Kerouac Quotes

Ah, it was a fine night, a warm night, a wine-drinking night, a moony night, and a night to hug your girl and talk and spit and be heavengoing.

As I grew older I became a drunk. Why? Because I like ecstasy of the mind.

The bus roared on. I was going home in October. Everybody goes home in October.

It always makes me proud to love the world somehow- hate's so easy compared.

Man lowers his head and lunges into civilization, forgetting the days of his infancy when he sought truth in a snowflake or a stick. Man forgets the wisdom of the child.

Something good will come out of all things yet — And it will be golden and eternal just like that.

I felt like lying down by the side of the trail and remembering it all

and silence is the golden mountain

I have fallen in love with you, God. Take care of us all, one way or the other.

Mind is the Maker, for no reason at all, for all this creation, created to fall.

Aw I don't wanta go to no such thing, I just wanta drink in alleys.'... But you'll miss all that, just for some old wine.' There's wisdom in wine, goddam it!' I yelled. 'Have a shot!

And the story of love is a long sad tale ending in graves.

When you've understood this scripture, throw it away. If you can't understand this scripture, throw it away. I insist on your freedom.

Write in recollection and amazement for yourself.

...do you think God made the world to amuse himself because he was bored? Because if so he would have to be mean.

All our best men are laughed at in this nightmare land.

Pretty girls make graves

Remove literary, grammatical and syntactical inhibition.

Ah, if I could realize, if I could forget myself and devote my meditations to the freeing, the awakening and the blessedness of all living creatures everywhere I'd realize what there is, is ecstasy.

I'm writing this book because we're all going to die.

We tiptoed around each other like heartbreaking new friends.

I just won't sleep," I decided. There were so many other interesting things to do.

He seems to me to be headed for his ideal fate, which is compulsive psychosis dashed with a jigger of psychopathic irresponsibility and violence

The truth of the matter is, you die, all you do is die, and yet you live, yes you live, and that's no Harvard lie.

Jumping from boulder to boulder and never falling, with a heavy pack, is easier than it sounds; you just can't fall when you get into the rhythm of the dance.

Work from pithy middle eye out, swimming in language sea.

..and that was the one distinct time in my life, the strangest moment of all, when I didnt know who I was

I don't wanta hear all your word descriptions of words words words you made up all winter, man I wanta be enlightened by actions.

my karma was to be born in America where nobody has any fun or believes in anything, especially freedom.

Forgive everyone for your own sins and be sure to tell them you love them which you do.

Write what you want bottomless from bottom of the mind.

It'll take you eternities to get rid of me,' she adds sadly, which makes me jealous, I want her to say I'll never get rid of her - I wanta be chased till eternity till I catch her.

Be crazy dumbsaint of the mind.

Ray, what you got to do is go climb a mountain.

The page is long, blank, and full of truth. When I am through with it, it shall probably be long, full, and empty with words.

We were all delighted, we all realized we were leaving confusion and nonsense behind and performing our one and noble function of the time, move.

A man who allows wild passion to arise within, himself burns his heart, then after burning adds the wind that thereto which ignites the fire again, or not, as the case may be.

I'd sleep and forget it; I had my own life, my own sad and ragged life forever.

fear life but don't die, your alone, everybody's alone, oh Cody Pomeray you can't win you can't lose all is ephemeral all is hurt

Think what a great world revolution will take place when ... [there are] millions of guys all over the world with rucksacks on their backs tramping around the back country.

I loved the way she said 'LA'; I love the way everybody says 'LA' on the Coast; it's their one and only golden town when all is said and done.

The cowboy music twanged in the roadhouse and carried across the fields, all sadness. It was all right with me. I kissed my baby and we put out the lights.

Don't touch me, I'm full of snakes.

And this is the way a novel gets written, in ignorance, fear, sorrow, madness, and a kind of psychotic happiness as an incubator for the wonders being born.

And then we’ll all go off to sweet life, ‘cause now is the time and we all know time!

To the children and the innocent it's all the same.

And still the Void is still and'll never move - But I will be the Void, moving without having moved.

Whenever spring comes to New York I can't stand the suggestion of the land that come blowing over the river from New Jersey and I've got to go. So I went.

Burroughs is the greatest satirical writer since Jonathan Swift.

I felt free and therefore I was free.