{"id":151253,"date":"2014-10-08T18:58:50","date_gmt":"2014-10-08T15:58:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/espirited.com\/charles-bukowski-to-hell-and-back\/"},"modified":"2026-01-30T11:37:39","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T09:37:39","slug":"charles-bukowski-to-hell-and-back","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/espirited.com\/en\/charles-bukowski-to-hell-and-back\/","title":{"rendered":"Charles Bukowski: To Hell and Back"},"content":{"rendered":"

There is a poem by Charles Bukowski<\/strong><\/a> that I like very much. Since I\u2019ve been thinking about it often lately, I decided to share it on my website as well.<\/p>\n

“They say that hell is crowded, yet,<\/em>
\nwhen you\u2019re in hell,<\/em>
\nyou always seem to be alone.<\/em>
\n& you can\u2019t tell anyone when you\u2019re in hell<\/em>
\nor they\u2019ll think you\u2019re crazy<\/em>
\n& being crazy is being in hell<\/em>
\n& being sane is hellish too.<\/em><\/p>\n

those who escape hell, however,<\/em>
\nnever talk about it<\/em>
\n& nothing much bothers them after that.<\/em>
\nI mean, things like missing a meal,<\/em>
\ngoing to jail, wrecking your car,<\/em>
\nor even the idea of death itself.<\/em><\/p>\n

when you ask them,<\/em>
\n\u201chow are things?\u201d<\/em>
\nthey\u2019ll always answer, \u201cfine, just fine\u2026\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

once you\u2019ve been to hell and back,<\/em>
\nthat\u2019s enough<\/em>
\nit\u2019s the greatest satisfaction known to man.<\/em><\/p>\n

once you\u2019ve been to hell and back,<\/em>
\nyou don\u2019t look behind you when the floor creaks<\/em>
\nand the sun is always up at midnight<\/em>
\nand things like the eyes of mice<\/em>
\nor an abandoned tire in a vacant lot<\/em>
\ncan make you smile<\/em>
\nonce you\u2019ve been to hell and back.\u201d<\/em>
\n\u2015 Charles Bukowski, Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame<\/em><\/p>\n

These lines touch me. They speak to me. A part of me hears them\u2014and hears them very clearly. Having walked for a long time along the Reverse Path back Home, that part already knows that \u201cparadise before hell\u201d<\/em> is different from \u201cparadise after hell.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Most people remain in hell, looking back toward paradise. But the exit sign points in the opposite direction. It leads to a place where there is freedom\u2014but it is the freedom of one who has nothing left to lose. And courage\u2014but the courage of one who has already lived through what they once feared.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo have been in hell and to have returned\u201d<\/em> resembles the return of a traveler from a very long journey, filled with danger and pain. His clothes are torn, the skin of his face and hands roughened, his gaze deep. He has been to so many dark and frightening places, and yet he has survived. He has managed to return. He has lived through so much\u2014and now he KNOWS.<\/p>\n

What a great satisfaction.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Kameliya Hadzhiyska<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There is a poem by Charles Bukowski that I like very much. Since I\u2019ve been thinking about it often lately, I decided to share it on my website as well. “They say that hell is crowded, yet, when you\u2019re in hell, you always seem to be alone. & you can\u2019t tell anyone when you\u2019re in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":15783,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[646],"tags":[683],"class_list":["post-151253","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-spiritual-intelligence","tag-spiritual-transformation"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t