“Smile of eternity” Lagerkvist in brief
Somewhere in the darkness, beyond life, the dead sat and talked. Everyone mostly talked about themselves, but everyone else listened attentively. Eventually, after discussing their situation, the dead decided on the action.
One of those who sat in darkness was indignant at the living, he considered them too presumptuous. Living imagines that everything exists only on them and holds. But life counts several billion dead people! And it is the dead that are tormented by spiritual struggles for many millennia.
Another of the darkness objected to him: the living things also mean something. Of course, they are shamelessly speculating on the fact that they were created by the dead, and they too exalt themselves. But we must pay tribute and live.
The first of the darkness continued: he was very significant during his lifetime. So significant that it was as if it was made to die! In general, only significant, remaining after death.
No, he had already spoken to his
On this, it seemed, the conversation of the dead was over. But a third, squat fat man intervened with small eyes and short legs-these are usually the kind of traders imagined. This was the merchant, and Pettersson called him, and he was very fond of his shop, of the other goods, of the smell of coffee, cheese, soap and margarine. Petterson was dying. The herring wrapped up all his life to count on immortality is difficult. In addition, Peterson did not believe in life after death. But here he is sitting here, in the dark. He is grateful. He lived. He died. And still alive. He is very grateful for all this.
Then others began to talk. Those whose life and death were full of meaning and even philosophical, and others, with fates ordinary, rustic, sometimes touching in their naivety. The sounds were uttered even by the most primitive dead, who lived in immemorial times. The savage did not know
And still there were dead in the darkness, who suffered from their specialness in life. One, for example, did not have a thumb on his right hand. He lived a normal life, communicated with other people and yet felt lonely. The other had a peculiarity: he suffered from the presence of a black speck on the nail of the middle finger of his left foot. With a speck he was born, with him he passed his whole age and with him died. Everyone thought that this man was like everyone else, and no one understood his loneliness, And he spent his whole life looking for himself like that and left it and not understood.
They spoke in the darkness of a man and a woman, they were drawn to each other. The woman was always happy because she was with her beloved. But she did not understand him, he insisted. He fought and suffered all his life, and built and destroyed, but she did not understand him. Yes, but she believed in him, the woman objected to him. He fought life, and she lived. So they fought in. darkness, united and irreconcilable.
And one of those sitting in the darkness did not say anything. He could not tell others about his fate. To them it might seem insignificant or even funny. He himself worked all his life as a servant under the earthly public toilet: he charged from the incoming and distributed paper. In natural human needs, he saw nothing humiliating and considered his work necessary, although not very important.
On the side of the others sat a young man and a gray-haired old man. The young man talked to himself: he promised his beloved to sail to her on the shore, fragrant with lotus blossoms. The old man admonished the young man, he told him: his beloved died long ago, and that he, the old man, held her hand when she died, because he is her son, he knows: his mother lived a long and happy life with his father, he I learned only from the faded photo, my mother never remembered him: after all, love is not everything, but life is everything… But the young man continued to whisper, turning to his beloved, and to the old man he said that his whole life is love, he does not know another life.
In the dark, voices and voices sounded. One of the dead lived on an island, inside of which a fire was enclosed. He loved a girl named Judith, and she loved him, too. Once they went to the mountains and met a one-eyed old woman there – this old woman saw only the true one. The old woman had predicted to Judith that she would die with childbirth. And although the narrator decided not to touch his beloved, so that she lived, she forced him to take control of herself and married him, she was a very earthly woman. When Juditha gave birth to the baby and died and the narrator emerged from the hut with the newborn in his arms, he saw his tribe performing a hymn in honor of the symbol of fertility – the phallus, and just then the fire broke out from under the earth on the mountains, and everyone stood and waited him, not trying to save himself, because it was impossible to be saved, and they sang a hymn in honor of the fertility of life. At that moment the narrator understood the meaning of being. Life is important only life in general. She, of course, needs trees and people and flowers, but they are not dear to her individually – having manifested themselves in them, life easily destroys them.
Then another voice began to speak: slow, clear and infinitely soft. The speaker said: he is the savior of people. He announced to them suffering and death, free from earthly joy and earthly torment. He was a temporary guest on earth and taught: everything is only appearance, the expectation of a truly essential one. He called God his father, and death his best friend, because she had to connect him with God, who sent him to live among people and take upon himself the sorrow of all life. And then people crucified the speaker, and the Father hid him in the darkness to hide from the people’s eyes. Now he is here in the dark, but he did not find the Father here and realized: he is just a man, and the sorrow of life is not bitter, but sweet, she is not what he wanted to take on by his death.
No sooner had he finished, as another voice said next: but he, who is speaking now, was a head waiter in an earthly life, he served in the largest and most visited restaurant. The head waiter is the most difficult and respected profession, it requires a subtle ability to guess human desires. What could be higher! And now he is afraid that they have not found a worthy replacement there on earth. He is worried about this. He suffers.
The dead moved, no one understood anything, each repeated his own, but then another one arose – in life he was a shoemaker – and delivered a fiery speech. What is truth? he asked. Earthly life is a complete mess. Everyone knows only himself, although everyone is looking for something else. Everyone is alone in an infinite space. It is necessary to find something one, one for all! We need to find God! To recover from him the answer for a life that confuses all!
Someone who spoke deeply hurt the dead. And everyone realized the terrible confusion of life, and agreed that there was no peace, no soil, no solid foundation. Although some thought: is there a God? But they were persuaded to go look for him – because they wanted to find Him very many.
And a long journey began. More and more new groups joined the dead, and eventually they merged into a huge human sea, which was boiling and bubbling, but gradually, oddly enough, it was being arranged. In fact, united by a common idea, the dead quickly found themselves similar: especially unhappy people found particularly unhappy, in general, happy – in general, happy, rebels – rebels, magnanimous – magnanimous, knitters brooms – knitters brooms… And then suddenly opened: the diversity of life is not so great! One group of the dead hailed the other. Who are you? one was asked. We are shopkeepers Pettersons, “they answered. And who are you? And they were answered: we are the ones who have a black speck on the nail of the left leg.
But when all finally figured out and came peace and quiet, people felt emptied. There was no confusion. Everything was orderly. And the sense of loneliness disappeared – lonely united with millions of lonely people. All the problems were solved by themselves. And there was no reason to seek God.
And then someone pretended to be unprepossessing and said: “What is it? It’s so simple that it turns out that it’s not worth living!” There is nothing mysterious in life, and everything in it is just a simple repetition of uncomplicated shipments in essence. “To fight and fight, It’s the only thing that remains of a person, whoever he is, is a bunch of manure for the grass of the next year. No! It is absolutely necessary to find God, that he should answer for the worthlessness of life that he created! “
And everyone moved on. Thousands of years passed, but they were all raving and wandering and already began to despair. Then, having consulted, they chose the wisest and noblest and put them ahead. And those, in fact, even a thousand years later pointed to the flickering ahead of the bright spot. It seemed that before him – hundreds of years of travel, but a speck of light suddenly appeared close. Light poured from an iron lantern with dusty panes, he fell on an old man who sawed wood. The dead were surprised. You are a god? they asked. The old man nodded in confusion. “And we are the life that you created.” We fought, suffered, worried and believed, we guessed and hoped… For what purpose did you create us? – The old man was embarrassed. Orobev, he looked at the crowd around him, lowered his eyes and said: “I’m an employee.” “It’s obvious,” the chosen elders remarked, and behind them they heard exclamations of indignation.
But he threw them into the abyss of despair, doomed to torment, to fear and worry, he inspired them with unjustified hopes! So the elders shouted. “I did what I could,” answered the old man.
And he gave them sun and joy, allowed to enjoy the charm of life, morning and happiness! So the elders shouted. And the old man answered them the same. He did as he could. He told them the same thing. And his answer confused the questioners. But the passions burst outward. Why did he start all this? Was there a purpose? For what purpose did he launch the devil’s machine of life? People crave harmony and are full of negation, they want diversity and unity, complexity and simplicity – just at once! Why did he create them like this?
The old man listened calmly, In appearance he was still embarrassed, but his humility was diminished. He answered them. He is just an employee. And he worked tirelessly. And he did not want anything too complicated. Neither to joy, nor to sorrow, nor to faith, nor to doubt. He just wanted people to have something and that they did not have to settle for emptiness.
The elders felt something in their heart. The old man grew up before their eyes. And their hearts were filled with warmth. But people from behind did not see what was happening in front. And to prevent any attempt to deceive, thousands of children who followed all were set forth. Why did God create these innocent babies? They are dead! What was he thinking about then?
Children did not know what they wanted from them, they liked the old grandfather, they reached out to him, and he crouched among them and hugged. He did not think anything then, “God said, caressing the children.
Crowds of the dead stood looking at God with the children, and in the chest of each, something was melting. All of a sudden they felt a mysterious connection with Him and realized that He is the same as them, only deeper and more than them.
It was difficult for them to leave God, and the children were the most difficult to leave. But the old man told them that we should obey adults. And the children obeyed!
Crowds of the dead once again set out on their journey. People calmly and peacefully, like brothers, talked to each other. And the meaning of all their very different words boiled down to what one elderly man said. And he said a simple thing – he accepts life as it is. After all, no other life is impossible to imagine!
Having reached the area of darkness, from where they all came out, and having said everything they wanted to say, the dead parted. Everyone went to the place that is prepared for him in the future.
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