“The Bible is a sanctum; the world, sputum.”
- July 3, 1883 – June 3, 1924
- Born in the Austro-Hungarian Empire
- Writer, lawyer
- Had a major influence on 20th century literature with works such as “The Metamorphosis,” “The Trial,” and “The Castle”
Quote
“The Bible is a sanctum; the world, sputum.”
Explanation
In this starkly contrasting statement, Franz Kafka draws a sharp distinction between the sacred and the profane. The Bible, in this context, is elevated to the status of a sanctum—a holy, sacred space, set apart from the world. For Kafka, it represents spiritual purity, divine truth, and a source of guidance and moral clarity. The Bible is a refuge from the chaos of everyday life, an untainted source of spiritual and moral authority. In contrast, Kafka likens the world to sputum, a term that refers to spit or phlegm, something gross, unpleasant, and contaminated. The world, in this view, is seen as dirty, polluted, and filled with fickleness and suffering. It is a place that stands in sharp opposition to the holiness of the sacred text, where human beings must navigate through impurities and difficulties.
Kafka’s use of these opposites underscores his alienation from the world and his complex relationship to religion. Throughout his works, Kafka explores themes of existential despair, alienation, and the human search for meaning in an indifferent and often hostile world. The Bible, for Kafka, may represent the idealized or spiritual world, offering clarity and purity, while the world we live in is a realm filled with imperfection, suffering, and moral confusion. This duality echoes his inner struggle between spirituality and the reality of human existence, where he seems to perceive the sacred as something distant and unattainable, and the world as something that taints and defiles any attempt at purity.
In modern times, Kafka’s quote may resonate with those who feel similarly disconnected from both society and religion. The image of the world as sputum suggests a disillusionment with the chaos and cruelty of human life, while the Bible remains a distant, perhaps even idealized refuge. This tension between the sacred and the profane can be observed in the struggles of individuals today who wrestle with faith and doubt, with the purity of religious ideals and the grittiness of daily existence. Kafka’s harsh comparison reflects the difficulty of reconciling the high spiritual aspirations found in religious teachings with the harsh realities of the world. In this way, the quote highlights a universal tension—the human desire for purity, meaning, and transcendence, in the face of a world that often seems irreducibly impure and full of suffering.
