Evil, and mischief, and misery, and confusion, and vanity, and vexation of spirit, and death, and disease, and assassination, and war, and poverty, and pestilence, and famine, and avarice, and selfishness, and rancour, and jealousy, and spleen, and malevolence, and the disappointments of philanthropy, and the faithlessness of friendship, and the crosses of love—all prove the accuracy of your views, and the truth of your system; and it is not impossible that the infernal interruption of this fall downstairs may throw a colour of evil on the whole of my future existence.

Thomas Love Peacock, Nightmare Abbey [Amazon, Bookshop, Local Library, Internet Archive]

Hermetic quote Peacock evil mischief death disease war all prove accuracy views truth system future existence

Consider also:

  1. “it is the fashion to be unhappy. To have a reason for being so would be exceedingly common-place: to be so without any is the province of genius: the art of being miserable for misery’s sake, has been brought to great perfection in our days”
  2. “Horribly useless, this business called life. What does it all matter, when love is gone? And who can hold love? Oh, misery! misery! And still so many years to live. To live alone.”
  3. “O nameless splendour of the Gods, Begotten hardly of Heaven! Unspoken treasure of the abodes Beyond the lightning levin! No misery, no despair may pay The joy to hold thee for a day!”
  4. “He was a man crying out for a mythology, and trying to make one because he could not find one to his hand.”
  5. “For I must pass Desolate into the dusk of things again, Having risen so far to fall to the abyss, Deeper for exaltation; I must go Wailing and naked into the inane Cavernous shrineless place of misery, Forgetful, hateful, impotent, except The last initiation seize my soul, And fling me into Isis’ very self, The immortal, mortal.”