beyond the river

You should not think that I am joking or joking when I belittle the value of existence; I am not a beginner or an innovator in this, and I am not an innovation among people. There are many philosophers and poets who deny the value of existence and see it as evil, i.e. evil, and they wish they had not been pushed to it, or if it had not been pushed to them! You remember, of course, that Abu Al-Ala wished more than once that Eve had died before giving her husband the child, or that she had died after giving birth to her first son. And you also remember that Abu Al-Ala - and many philosophers before him - viewed procreation as a crime that a rational, determined man should not commit. He thought he was wise and resolute, so he did not commit this sin, nor was he involved in this crime. Taha Hussien