C ONTENTS
What Is Philosophy ?
S ources Of Philosophy
The Comprehensiv e
The Idea of G od
The Unconditional Imperative
M an
The World
Faith and E nlightenment
The History
of
Man
The Independent Philosopher
The Philosophical L ife
The History
of
Philosophy
APPENDI C ES
Philosophy and S cience
O n R eading P hilosophy
Bibliograp hy
Index
WAY T O WISD OM
doubt we are far more advanced than Hip p ocrat
the Greek physician But we are scarcely entitled
say that we hav e progressed
only adv anced beyond his m aterials beyond
scientific findings of which he made use In p hilo so
itself we have scarcely regained his level
It lies in the very nature Of philosophy as
t in gu ish e d from the sciences that in any Of its for
must dispense with the unanimous recognition
The certainty to which it a spires is not Of the Obj
scientific sort which is the same for every mind ;
inner certainty in which a man s whole bei
pates Whereas science always pertains to
Objects the knowledge Of which is by no means
pe ns able to all men philosophy deals with the
of being which concerns man as man with a
which wherever it is manifested moves us mor
deeply than any scientific knowledge
S yste m atic philosophy is indeed bound up with t h
sciences It always reckons with the m ost adv an ce c
scientific findings O f its time But essentially philosop h
Springs from a di ff erent source It emerges before an
science wherev er m e n achiev e awareness
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The existence of such a philosophy without science i
revealed in several striking ways :
First : In p hilosophical matters almost e v ery o n
believes hi m self capable of judgm ent Whereas it i
recognized that in the sciences study training metho c
are indispensable to understanding in philosophy me!
generally assu m e that they are competent to form a !
Opinion without preli m inary study
O ur O W!
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8
WHAT
IS
P
HILOSOPHY ?
manity o ur own destiny o ur o w n experience strike
as a su fficient basis fo r philosophical opinions
notion that philoso p hy m ust be accessible to all
u st ifi e d The circuitous paths travelled by specialists
phi losophy have meaning only if they lead man to
awareness o f being and O f his place in it
S econd : Philosophical thought m ust always spring
Om free creation E very man must accomplish it fo r
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im se lf
A marvellous
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indication o f man s innate disposition
3 philosophy is to be found in the questions asked by
hildre n It is not uncommon to hear from the mouths
f children words which penetrate t o the very depths
f philosophy A few examples :
A child cries o u t in wonderment
I keep trying to
”
hink that I am somebody else but I m always mysel f
his boy has touched o n one o f the universal sources O f
ert ain t y
awareness of being through awareness o f
elf
He is perplexed at t h e mystery of his I this
oystery that can be apprehended through nothing
lse ! uestioningly he stands before this ultimate
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e alit y
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Another boy hears the story Of the C reation : In the
beginnin
God
made
heaven
and
earth
and
g
”
?
mm e diat ely asks
What was before the beginning
( his child has sensed that there is no end t o question
ng that there is no stopping place for the mind that
[0 conclusive answer is possible
A little girl o u t walki ng in the woods wi th her father
ist e ns to his stories about the elv es that dance in the
l e arin gs at night
But there are no elves
Ier father shifts over to realities describes the motion
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9
WAY T O WISD OM
doubt we are far more advanced than Hip p ocrat
the Greek physician But we are scarcely entitled
say that we have progressed beyond Plato We ha
only adv anced beyond his materials beyond t
scientific findings of which he m ade use In p hilo so p
itself we have scarcely regained his level
It lies in the very nature Of philosophy as di
t ingu ish e d from the sciences that in any of its forms
m ust dispense with the unanimous recognition Of a
The certainty to which it aspires is not o f the o bj e ct iv
scientific sort which is the same for ev ery mind ; it is
inner certainty in which a man s whole being partie
pates Whereas science always pertains to p articul
objects the knowledge o f which is by no means indi
pensable to all men philosophy deals with the w h o l
Of being which concerns man as man with a trut
which wherever it is m anifested moves us mor
deeply than any scientific knowledge
Sys te m atic philosophy is indeed bound up with t h
sciences It always reckons with the m ost adv ance :
scientific findings Ofits time But essentially philosop h
springs from a di ff erent source It emerges before an
science wherev er men achieve awareness
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The existence o f such a philosophy without science i
rev ealed in several striking ways :
First : In philoso p hical m atters almost e v ery o n
believes hi m self capable O f judgment Whereas it i
recognized that in the sciences study training metho (
are indispensable to understanding in philosophy m e !
generally assu m e that they are co m petent to form a !
Opinion without preli m inary study
O ur O W!
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8
WHAT
IS
P
HILOSOP HY
?
manity o ur own destiny o ur own experience strike
as a su fficient basis for philosophical Opinions
notion that philosophy m ust be accessibl e to all
u st ifi e d The circuitous paths travelled by specialists
p hi losophy have meaning only if they lead man to
awareness o f being and o f his place in it
d : Philosophical thought must always spring
free creation E very man must accomplish it for
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m se lf
A marvellous
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’
indication Of man s innate disposition
philosophy is to be found in the questions asked by
ildre n I t is not uncommon to hear from the mouths
children words which penetrate to the very depths
philosophy A few examples :
I keep trying to
o u t in wonderment
”
somebody else but I m always mysel f
boy has touched o n o ne o f the u ni versal sources o f
int y awareness Of being through awareness Of
He is perplexed at t h e mystery Of his I this
ery that can be apprehended through nothing
uestioningly
he
stands
before
this
ultimate
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Another b o y hears the story O f the Cr eation : In the
and
b egin ni ng God made heav en and earth
immediat e ly asks
Wh at was before the beginni ng ?
This child has sensed that there is no end to question
ing that there is no stopping place for the m ind that
no conclusive answer is possible
A little girl out walking in the woods wi th her father
listens to hi s stories about the elves that dance in the
clearings at night
But there are no elves
Her father s hi fts over to realities describes the motion
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9
WAY TO WI SD O M
_
of
the sun discusses the question o f whether it is
sun or the earth that revol ves and explains the reas
for supposing that the earth is round
”
axis
O h that isn t so says the little girl
stamps her foot The earth stands still I o nl y be!
”
”
what I see
Then says her father
o
u
d
y
believ e in G o d you can t see Him either The 1
girl is puzzled for a m o m ent but then says with g
assurance If there weren t any God we wouldn t
here at all This child was seized with the won der
existence : things do not exist through themselves A n
she understood that there is a di ff erence b et w e e
uestions
bearing
o n particular Obj ects in the worl
q
and those bearing on o u r existence as a whole
A nother little girl is climbing the stairs o n her
v isit her aunt S he begins to reflect o n how
changes flows passes as though it had n
But there must be something that
I m climbing these stairs o n my
sa m e
—
my aunt that s so m ething I ll never forget
ment and terror at the universal transience Of t hi ng
here seek a forlorn evasion
Anyone who chose to collect these stories m igh
co m pile a rich store Of children s philosophy It i
so m etim es said that the children m ust have heard
this fro m their parents or so m eone else but such
objection Obviously does not apply to the child s re
serious questions To argue that the se children do
continue to philosophize and that consequently s
utterances must be accidental is to overlook the
that children Often possess gifts which they lose as
grow up With the years we seem to
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WHA T
rs
E HIL OSOP HY
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conve ntions and opinions concealments an d u n
est io n e d acceptance and there we lose the candour of
The child still reacts spontaneously t o the
es and inquires
O f life ; the child feels and s e
which soon disappear from his vision He
t for a moment was revealed to him and is
when grownups later tell him what he said
questions he asked
S pontaneous philosophy is found not only in
dren but also in the insane S ometimes — rarely
v eils o f universal occlusion seem t o part and
The begin ni ng of
e t rat in g truths are ma ni fested
rt ain
mental disorders is Often distinguished by
though they are
at t e rin g metaphys ical re v elations
u ally formulated in terms that cannot achieve
fi can c e : exceptions are such cases as HOlderli n and
Gogh But anyone witnessing these revelations
o t help feeling that the mists in which we ordin
live o ur lives hav e been torn asunder A nd many
people have in awaking from sleep experienced
gely revealing insights which vanish with ful l
leaving behind them only the im
wakefulness
ression
that
they
can
nev
e
r
be
recaptured
There
i
s
p
ro
ound
mea
n
i
ng
in
the
saying
that
children
and
fools
f
p
tell the truth But the creative originality to which we
ow e great philosophical ideas is not to be sought here
bu t among those great m inds — and in all history there
have been only a few Of them—who preserve their
candour and independence
Fourth : S ince man canno t av o id philosophy it is
always present : in the prov erbs handed down by
tradition in popular philosophical phrases in do m inant
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I I
WAY T O WISD OM
convictions such as are embodied in the idiom Of
e m ancipated in political Opinions but most o f
since the very beginnings of history in myths T here
no escape from philosophy The question is o n
whether a philosophy is conscious or not whether it
good or bad muddled or clear A nyone who rej e c
philosophy is him self unconsciously practising
philosophy
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What then is this philosophy which manifests itse
so univ ersally and in such strange forms ?
The Greek word for philosopher (philosophas) con
notes a distinction fro m sophos I t signifies the lover O
wisdom ( knowledge ) as distinguished from him
considers himself wise in the possession of k
This meaning O f the word still endures : the essence
hiloso
hy
is
not
the
pos
s ession o f truth but the sear
p
p
for truth regardless of how many philosophers m
belie it with their dogmatis m that is with a body
didactic principles purporting to be definitiv e a
co m p lete Philo sophy means to be on the way
questions are m ore essential than its answers and cv
answer becomes a new question
But this o n the w ay n es s— m an s destiny in
contains within it the possibility o f deep s atis
and indeed in exalted moments Of perfection This
perfection nev er re sides in formulable knowledge in
dogmas and articles of faith but in a historical con
summation O f m an s essence in which being itself is
rev e aled To app rehend this reality in m an s actual
situation is the aim Of philosophical endeavour
TO be searchingly on the way o r to find peace and
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12
WAY T O WI SD OM
ofreason in the presence of failure and in the prese
o f that which seems alien to it
Philosophy is the principle Of concentration thro ng
whi ch man becomes himsel f by partaking o f reality
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Although philosophy in the form of simple st irri
ide as can move every man and even ch ildren
scious elaboration is never compl e te must for
undertaken anew and must at all times be
as a living whole —it is manifested
great philosophers and echoed in the
sophers It is a task which man will face in one form
another as long as he remains m an
Today and not for the first time philosophy i
radically attacked and totally rejected as sup e rfi u o u
o r harmful What is the good o f it ? It does not help u
in a ffliction
Authoritarian church thought has c o n de m n e
independent phil osophy on the ground that it is
worldly temptation which leads man away from
destroys his soul with v ain preoccupations Pol
totalitarianism has attacked it o n the ground
philosophers hav e merely interpreted the worl
various ways when the i m portant thing was to ch
it Both these schools Of thought regard
as dangerous for it undermined order prom
spirit of independence hence o f rev olt delude
and dis tracted him from his practical tasks Tho
uphold another world illumined by a revealed
those who stand for the exclusive power of a
here and n o w would equally wish t o ext
philosophy
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14
WHAT
IS
P
HILOSOP H
Y ?
d everyday common sense clamours for the simple
tick of utility measured by which philosophy
T hales who is regarded as the first of Greek
o so p h ers was ridiculed by a slav e girl who saw him
into a well while observing the sky Why does he
ch the remote heavens when he is so awkward in
?
ngs with the things Of this worl d
philosophy then justify itself? That is im
I t cannot j ustify itself o n the basis o f a some
e for which it is useful I t can only appeal to th e
every man which drive him toward philo
h o u gh t I t is a disinterested pursuit to which
Of utility or inj uriousness have no relevance
endeavour proper t o man as man and it will con
u e to fulfil this striving as long as there are men alive
en those groups which are hostile to it cannot help
their own peculiar ideas and b ringing forth
p ragmatic systems which are a substi t ute fo r philo
—
though
subservient
to
a
desired
end
such as
;op h y
Marxis m or fascism The existence of even these
iy st e m s shows how indispensable p hilosophy is to man
Philosophy is always with us
P hilosophy cannot fight it cannot prove its truth
bu t it can comm unicate itself I t o ff ers n o resistance
where it is rej ected it does not triumph where it gains
a hearing It Is a living exp ression o f the basic univ er
sali t y of man o f t h e bond between all men
Great systematic philosophies have existed for t w o
an d o n e half millennia in the West in C hina and in
India A great tradition beckons to us Despite the
w ide variety o f philosophical thought despite all the
contradictions and mutually exclusiv e claims to truth
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15
WAY T O WISD OM
re is in all philosophy a O ne which no m
sse sse s but about which all serious e ff orts have at
es gravitated : the o n e eternal phi losophy
losophia p erennis We must seek this historical fou
n Of o u r think ing if we would think cl e arly
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an ingfully
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WAY T O WI SD OM
about the greater matters e g about
o f the moon and those Of the sun and o f t h e stars
”
about the genesis o f the universe
Wonder impels man to seek knowledge In
wonderment I become aware o f my lack O f k n o w le d
I seek knowled ge but for its o w n sake and n o t
”
satisfy any common need
In philosophical thought man awakens from
bondage to practical needs Without ulterior purp
he contemplates things the heav ens
asks what is all this ? Where does it co m e
the answers to his questions he expects no profit but
intrinsic satisfaction
S econd : O nce I have satisfied my wonderment an
admiration by knowledge of what is doubt arises
have heaped up insights but upon critical ex a m in at io
nothing is certain S ensory perceptions are conditione
by o ur sense organs and hence deceptive ; in any event
they do not coincide with what exists in itself outside
me independently o f my perception O ur categories
are those o f our hum an understanding T hey become
entangled in hopeless contradictions Everywhere
proposition stands against proposition In my p h ilo so
hi
a
l
progress
I
Seize
upon
doubt
and
attempt
c
t
o
p
apply it radically to ev erything either taking pleasure
in the sceptical negation which recognizes nothing but
by itselfcannot take a single step forward or inquiring
Where then is there a certainty that rises above all
doubt and withstands all critique ?
Descartes famous proposition
I think th erefore
”
I am was for him a solid certainty though he
doubted every thing else For even a total fallacy in m y
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18
SOURCES OF PHILOSOPHY
nk ing, a
fallacy which may be beyond my under
nding cannot blind me t o the realization that in
be deluded in my thinking I must be
al doubt gives rise to a critical examina
knowledge and without radical doubt
e no true philosophical thought But th e
question is : Ho w and where has a foundation
tainty been gained through doubt itself?
third : While I concentrate my energies upon
while I am
o w le dge o f t hings in the world
d in doubt as a road to certainty I am im
sed in things ; I do not think o f myself of my aims
happiness my sal v ation In forgetfulness o f my
elf I am content with the attainment o f this know
edge
This changes when I become aware o f mys e lf in my
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it uat io n
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The S toic E pictetus said Philosophy arises when
”
we become aware of our own weakness and help lessness
?
Shall
I
help
myself
in
my
weakness
His ans w er
Ho w
was : By looki ng upon every thing that is n o t within
my power as ne cessary and indifferent to me but by
namely the mode
raising what does depend o n me
and content Of my ideas t o clarity and freedom by
thought
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A nd now let us take a l ook at o ur human state We
are always in situations S ituations change opportuni
ties arise If they are m issed they nev er return I
myself can work t o change the Situation But there
are situations which remain essentially the same even
if their momentary aspect changes and their shattering
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19
WAY T O WI SD OM
obscured : I must die I must su ffer
struggle I am subject to chance I involve
inexorably in guilt We call the se fundamenta
!
ti ons o f o ur existence ultimate situations That is
they are situations which we cannot evade
say
change Along with wonder and doubt awaren
o f these ultimate situations is the most
sourc e o f philosophy In our day t o day live
evade them by closing o u r eyes and living
did no t exist We forget that we must die
guilt and forget that we are at the mercy o f chance
We face only concrete situations and m aster the m to
o ur profit we react t o the m by planning and acting in
the world under the impulsion Of o ur practical
interests But t o ultimate sit uations we react either by
Obfuscation o r if we really apprehend them by
despair and rebirth : we become ourselves by a change
in o ur consciousne ss o f being
force is
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O r we may define o ur human situation by saying
th at no reliance can be p laced in worldly ex istence
Ingenuously we mistake the world for being as
such In happy situations we rej oice at o u r strength
we are thoughtlessly confident we know nothing but
o ur actuality In pain and weakness we despair But
if we come o u t Of this situation alive we let ourselves
slip back into forgetfulness of self and a life Of hap
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e ss
m
p
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t m h t nl t d
ltim t it tio i G mz it ti Thi
f
th
o pt of t l im po t
d t di g of j p tho ght
i
th
d t ding f E i t ti li m A th o t t bov how th
f
it ti o
th
i
p bl
liti in l tio to whi h lo
ul tim t
hum lif n b m d g i ly m i gf l U ltim t it tio
nnot b
o ly b knowl dg d
u m o n t d ; th y
h ng d
Th e
er
e un
or
a e s
an
c a
e
ra s a e
cen ra
s a c nce
as
e re
ua
e ca
or s r
r an ce
ers an
ns are
e
u
a
e
as
e
u
e un
or
o
x s en
a s
e
n esca a
e
e nu n e
e
can
re a
e an n
n
e ac
20
a e s
e
e
s
as
re a
.
r
n
e c n ex
es
u
s
ers an
s
.
n
ua
a e s
.
a
n
ua
ua
e rs
on
s
.
’
u
e s
c
ns ca
,
s,
e
a
ne
e
WAY T O WISD OM
unreliabili ty of the world : there are in the world thin
worthy o f faith things that arouse confidence ; the
is a foundation which sustains us : home and co
parents and ancestors brothers and sisters an
friends husbands and wives There is a fo u n dat io
o f historical tradition in native language in faith i
the work of thinkers poets and artists
tradition also gives no security it is
reliable For we encounter it always
man ; God is nowhere in th e world Traditi
imp l ies a question Keeping sight o f the tradition
man must always derive what for him is certainty
being the reliable from his own primal source
But the precariousness Of all worldly existence is
warning to us it forbids us t o content ourselves w i
the world ; it points to someth ing else
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The ultimate situations—death chance guilt and
the uncertainty o f the world —confront me wit h the
reality o f failure What do I do in the face of this
absolute failure which if I am honest I canno t
?
fail t o recognize
The advice O f the S toic to withdraw to our o w n
freedom in the independence of the mind is no t
adequate The S toic s perception of man s weaknes s
was not radical enough He failed t o see that the min d
in itself is e m pty dependent on what is put into it
and he failed to consider the possibility o f madness
The S toic le aves us without consolation ; the indep en
dent mind is barren lacking all content He leaves u s
without hope because his doctrine a ff ords us n c
opportunity of inner transformation no fulfilmen t
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22
S OURCES OF PHILOSOPHY
self conquest in love no hopeful exp e ctation
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o ssib le
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A nd yet the S toics striving is toward true phil
o p hy
Their thought because its source is in
tim ate situations
expresses t he basic drive
find a revelation o f true being in human
.
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al
for man is his attitude toward failure
it remains hidden from him and Over
him only obj ectively at the end o r whether
erce iv e s it unobscured as the constant limit o f his
ence ; whether he snatches at fantastic solutions
consolations o r faces it honestly in silence
unfathomable The way in which man
hes h is fail ure determines what h e wil l b e
,
.
ultimate situations man either perceives nothing
ness or s enses true bein g in spite o f and above all
e m e ral worldly existence Even despair by the very
h
p
fact that it is possible in the world points beyond the
world
O r diff erently formulated man seeks redemption
Redemption is O ffered by t h e great universal religions
of rede m ption They are characterized by an obj ective
uarantee
o f the truth and reality o f redemption
g
Their road leads to an act Of individual conversion
This philosophy cannot provide And yet all phil
analogous to
osophy is a transc e nding of the world
redemption
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To sum up : The source o f philosophy is to be sought
in wonder in doubt in a sense o f forsakenness In
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23
WAY T O WI SD O M
any case it begins with an inner uphe aval w hi
determi nes I t s goal
Plato and Ar istotle wer e moved by wonder to se
the n atur e o f being
A mid infinite uncertainty Descartes sought co
pelling certainty
Amid the su ff erings o f life the S toics sought t
repose o f the mind
E ach o f these experiences has i ts o w n truth clothe
always in historical conceptions and language I
making these philosophies o ur o w n we penetrate
historical husk to the primal sources that are a
within us
The inner drive is toward firm foundations depth
being eternity
But for us perhaps none o f these is the most fund
mental absolute source The discov ery that
can be rev ealed t o wonder is a source o f inspiration
but beguiles us i nto withdrawing from the world an d
succumbing to a pure m agical metaphysic Compel
ling certainty is lim ited t o the scientific kn owledge
by which we orient ourselv es in the world S toic
imperturbability serve s us only as a makesh ift ir
distress as a r efuge fro m total ruin but in itse l
r e mains without content and life
These three motives wonder leading to know
ledge doubt leading to certainty forsakenness leading
to t h e se lf—cannot by themselves account fo r o uJ
present philosophical thought
In this crucial turning point in history in this agt
o f unprecedented ruin and of potentialities that c ar
only be darkly surmised the tlu ee motives we hav a
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24
WAY
'
T O WI SD O M
to existence is only a medium for impersonal
ings and values Defence and attack then b
means not by which m e n gain power but by
they approach one another T he contest is a
contest in which each man surrenders his wea
to the other T he certainty of authentic being re
only in unreserved communication between men
live together and vie with one another in a
co m m unity who regard their association with
another as but a preliminary stage who take n o t
for granted and question everything O nly
m u n ic at io n is all other truth fulfilled only
m u n ic a t io n am I myself not merely living but
life God manifests Him self only indirectly
through man s love Of m an ; co m pelling certainty
particular and relative subordinated to the Wh o l
T he S toical attitude is in fact e m pty and rigid
T he basic philosophic al attitude of which I an
speaking is rooted in distress at the absence o f co m
m u nic at io n in the drive to authentic comm unication
and in the possibility of the loving contest w h icl
profoundly uni tes self and self
A nd this philosophical endeav our is at the same
tim e rooted in the three philosophical experience
we have m entioned which m ust all be considered it
the light of their meaning whether favourable O J
hostile for comm unication fro m man to m an
A nd so we may say that wonder doubt the ex
erie n c e O f ultimate situations
are
indeed
sources
0
p
philosophy but the ultim ate source is the will t <
authentic co m m unication which e m braces all t h c
rest T his beco m es apparent at the v ery outset fO
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26
SO URCES OF P HILOSOPHY
not all philosophy strive for communication
I
re ss itself de m and a hearing ? A nd is n o t its v e ry
communicability which is in turn inseparable
uth ?
(Communication then i s the aim o f phi l osophy
and
communication a ll its other aims are ultimately
ot e d :
awarenes s o f being illumination through
a t tainme nt o f peace
s
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THE CO MPREHENS IVE
HE R E
S H O U L D like to speak of o ne o f t h
difficult philosophical ideas It is an in disp
idea because it forms the foundation
thinking It must be intelligible
form though its elaboration is a comp
I shall atte m pt to give an intimation o f this id
Philosophy bega n with the question : What
first sight there are m any kinds of being
the world the forms o f the animate and
all the infinitely many things that come and go
what is true being that is the being which h
everything together lies at the base of ev erything
being from which everything that is issues ?
TO thi s there are curiously many answers T he first
v enerable answer of the first philosopher is : Every
thing is water and co m es fro m water L ater thinkers
said that everything is funda m entally fire or air o r
the indeterminate or matter or ato m s ; o r that life
is primal being from which inanimate things have
merely degenerated ; or that the mind is true being
and tha t things are mere appearance s its ideas which
it produces as thou gh in a drea m T hus we find a
great nu m ber of m etaphysical attitudes which hav e
been known as m aterialis m ( everything is m atter and
spiritualism ( ev erything is
m echanical p roces s)
spirit) hylozois m ( the cos m o s is a living s p iritual
I
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28
THE C OMPREHENSIVE
and
In
e
v
er
case
being
w
as
so o n
y
)
as something existing in the world from
all other things sprang
?
which then is the correct view Tlu o ugh
nds o f years the warring schools have been
t o demonstrate the truth of any o n e o f them
each view some truth is manifested na m ely an
tude and a method o f inquiry which teach men to
something in th e worl d But each o ne becomes
lse when it lays claim to exclusiveness and strives
explain all exist e nce
Why is this so ? All these views have o n e thing in
o m m o n : they apprehend being as something whi ch
o nfro n t s me as an Obj ect which stands apart from
I t hi nk it This b as ic phenomenon o f o ur
u sne ss is to u s so se l f evident that we barely
suspect the riddle it presents because we do not
inquire into it T he thing that we think o f which we
speak is always something other than ourselves it is
the Object toward which we as subject are oriented
If we make ourselves into the obj ect o f o u r thinking
we ourselves become as it were the O ther and yet at
the same time we remain a thinking I which thinks
about itself but cannot aptly be thought as an Obj ect
because it determines the o bj e ct n e ss o f all objects
We call this basic condition Of o ur thinking the subj ect
object dichotomy A s long as we are awake and
conscious we are always involved in it Twist and t u rn
as we will we are always in this dichotomy always
oriented toward an obj ect whether the Object be the
reality o f o ur sense perception whether it be the con
cept o f ideal Obje cts such as numbers o r geometrical
ce
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29
WAY
TO
WISD OM
figures o r whether it be a fantasy o r ev en an imp ossib
imagining We are always confronted outwardly
inwardly by obj ects which are the content o f
consciousness A s S chopenhauer said there is
obj ect without a subject and no subject without a
obj ect
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What is the meaning o f this ever present subj e c
Obj e ct dichotomy ? I t can only mean that being as
whole is neither subject nor Object but must
Com prehensive which is manifested in this dich
Cl early being as such cannot be an Object
thing that becomes an Obj ect for me
from the Co m prehensive in confronting me
break away from it as subj ect Fo r the I t h
is a determinate being The Comprehensive
obscure to m y consciousness It becomes clear only
through Objects and takes o n greater clarity as the
Obj ects beco m e m ore conscious and more clear The
Comprehe n siv e does n o t itself become an object but is
m anifested in t he dichotomy o f I and Obj ect It
remains itself a background it boundlessly illumines
the pheno m enon but it is always the Compre
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h e n siv e
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But there is in all thinking a second dichoto m y
Every determinate Object is thought in reference to
other obj ects Determ inacy i m plies differentiation of
the o n e from the other A nd ev en when I think Of
being as such I have in mind nothingness as its
antithesis
T hus ev ery Object every thought content stands in
a twofold dichotomy first in reference t o me the
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30
a
u
thentica
llysi
'
C OMP REHENSIVE
TH E
ing subject an d secondly in reference to other
ts A s thought content it can never be every
never being itself
r the whole of being
u gh t must break out O f the Co m pre
It is a particular j uxtaposed both to the I
to other Obj ects
hus in o u r thinking we gain only an intimation Of
Co m prehensiv e It is not manifest e d to us but
r t h in g else is manifested in it
y
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What are the implicatio ns O f this idea ?
Measured by o ur custo m ary understanding in
elation t o things i t seems unnatural O ur under
g attuned to the practical resists it
basic operation by which we raise ourselves
eve rything that is thought is perhaps not
It but it seems strange because it does not
bring knowledge Of a new Object which we then
apprehe n d but aspires with the help of the idea to
transform o ur consciousness o f being
Because it shows us no new Obj ect the idea
meas ured by o u r customary worldly knowledge is
empty But by its form it opens up to us infinite
possibilities in which being may manifes t itself to us
and at the same tim e lends transparency to e v erything
that is It transforms the meaning o f the world of
Obj ects by awakening in us a faculty o f sensing what
authentically is in the phenomenon
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L et us attempt a further step toward the elucidation
of the Co m prehensiv e
To philosop hi ze concerning the Comprehens ive
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‘
1
3
WAY T O WISD OM
would mean to pe netrate into being itself This
only be done indirectly Fo r even as we speak we
engaged in Object thinki ng Through Object t h
we must gain indices to t h e n o n o bj e c t t hat is t o
Co m prehensiv e
An example is the thou ght operation we have j
performed T he moment we state the subject Obj
dichotomy in which we always find ourselves
which we cannot see from outside we make it
an Obj ect But this is basically incongruous
dichotomy is a relation between things in the w
which confront m e as Obj ects This relation beco
an i m ag e by which to express what is not visible
can itself never become Obj ect
S till thinking in i m ages we ascertain through the
source that is present within us a polyvalence in this
subject Object d ichotomy It is fundamentally dif
fe re n t depending o n wheth er I as understanding am
oriented toward objects ; as Dasein being there toward
my env ironment ; or as existence toward G o d
A s understanding we confront tangible t hings and
t o a certain measure we succeed in Obtaining c o m
pelling and uni versally valid knowledge but always
O f determ inate Objects
A s being there as men liv ing in o ur environment
we experience in it what we perceiv e with o ur senses
what achieves reality for us as the presence which
cannot be reduced to univ ersal knowledge
As existence we are oriented toward G o d—trans
c e n d e n c e —and this through the language o f things
which existence uses as hieroglyphics o r symbols
Neither our understanding n o r o u r vital se ns ualism
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32
WAY T O WI SD O M
consciousness o f profound and inexhaustible meaning
Fo r him who has experienced it this becoming o n e is
the true awakening and the awakening to conscious
ness in the subject Obj ect dichotomy is mor e in the
nature o f s l eep P lotinus the greatest mystical phil
o so p h er o f the West writes
O ften when I awaken t o myself from the slu m ber
I behold a wondrous beauty : I then
o f the body
believe firmly that I belong to a better and higher
world I call forth the most glorious life within me I
have becom e o ne with the godhead
We cannot doubt the existence o f mys tical
experience nor can we doubt that mystics have
always been unable to co m m unicate what is
most essential in the n experience The mystic is
immersed in the Comprehensiv e The co m m unicable
partakes of the subj ect Obj ect dichotomy and a clear
consciousness seeking to penetrate the infinite can
never attain the fullness Of that source We can speak
only of that which takes o n Object form A ll else is
incommunicable But its presence in the background
o f those philosophical ideas which we call speculative
constitutes their cont e nt and meaning
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O n the basis of o ur philosophical inquiry into the
Comprehensive we Shall be better able to understand
the great m etaphysical theories o f history the theori e s
o f fire matter the m ind the world process etc Fo r in
reality they were n o t solely the Object knowledge as
which they are Often interpreted and considered as
which they are co m pletely false ; they were h iero gly
phie s o f being devised by the philosophers o ut o f the
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34
.
THE C OMP RE HENSIVE
o
f
resence
the
Comprehensive
for
the
elucidation
o
f
p
th e self and O f being— and then at once m istaken for
ositi
v
e
objectivizations
authentic
being
o
f
p
When we move a m id the phenomena o f the world
we come to realize that we possess being itself neither
in the Object which becomes continuously more
restricted
nor in th e horizon Of our always lim ited
w orld taken as the sum o f phenomena but only in
th e Comprehensive which transcends all Obj ects and
horizons
which transcends the subj ect Obj ect
dichotomy
O nce we have ascertained the Co m prehensive
through o ur basic philosophical operation we realize
that all the metaphysics we have listed all those
supposed insights into being are in error as soon
as they interpret anything that is in the world however
i m portant and significant as being itself But they are
the only language in which we can speak when we
transcend all obj ects ideas world horizons phe
n o m e n a t o perceive being it self
For w e do n o t attain this goal by leaving the world
except in incommunicable m ysticism O nly in art icu
late obj ect knowledge can o ur consciousness remain
clear O nly in Obj ect knowledge experiencing its
limits through what it surmises at the limit can o u r
consciousness achieve content Even in the thinking
which transcends Object knowledge we remain in it
Even when we see through the phenomenon it holds
us fast
Through metaphysics we Obtain an intimation o f
the Comprehensive in transcendence We understand
t hi s metaphysics as a symbol
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35
WAY T O WI SD O M
But we lose it s meaning if we succu m b to irresp o
sible aesthetic enj oyment o f its ideas For its content
manifested to us only if we perceiv e the reality
symbol A nd we perceive it only o ut of the rea
o u r existence and n o t out o f mere
wh ich in this sphere declines to see any meaning at
But above all we must not look on the sym bol
reality as a physical reality like the things which
grasp live with and consume T o regard the Obj
as being is the essence Of all dogmatis m and
mistake the materiality o f symbols for reality
specifically the essence Of superstition For sup
st it io n is chained to the Obj ect faith is rooted in t h
Comprehensive
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A nd now the last methodological consequence 0
our experience o f the Co m prehensive : the conscious
ness of the discontinuity of o ur philosophical thinking
When we think Of the Comprehensive in phil
oso p h ic al terms we are making an Obj ect o f what is
essentially not an Object Hence we must always make
a reservation : we must retract the obj ect content o f
what has been said if we would arrive at that
experience o f the Comprehensive which is not a
co m municable content resulting from inquiry but an
attitude Of o ur consciousness I t is not m y knowledge
but my consciousness o f being that changes
But this is a basic trait o f all true philosophical
thought Man soars to the Co m prehensiv e in the
medium Of determ inate object thinking and only in
that mediu m He actualizes in consciousness the
foundation o f o ur life in being the guidance from that
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36
THE C OMP RE HE NSIVE
sphere the basic mood and meaning o f our life and
ac t iv it y ; h e frees us fro m the fetters o f determinate
thinking not by relinquishing i t but by carrying it to
the extreme In the general philosophical idea he
leav es roo m fo r its realization in the present
Being can only be fo r us o n condition that it b e
come present t o the mind in the dichotomy Of subject
and Object Hence o ur drive toward clarity That
which is present only obscurely must be apprehended
in object form o u t of the essence o f the I fulfilling
itself Being itself the foundation Of all things the
absolute presses upon o ur consciousness in Obj ect
form which because as Object i t is inadequate dis
integrates leaving behind the pure c l ari ty o f the
presence o f the Comprehens ive
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A wareness Of the subject Obj ect dichotomy as the
fundamental fact Of o u r thinking existence and o f the
Comprehensive that becomes present in it gives us the
freedom needed for philosophy
I t is an idea that frees u s from every existent It
co m pels us to turn back from the i m passe of ab so lutiz a
tion It is as it were an idea that turns us about
For those who found support in t h e absoluteness o f
things and in a theory o f knowledge confined to
Objects the loss o f the m is nihilism Exclusiv e reality
and truth cannot be i m puted to that which dis
course and Object thinking have made determinate
and hence finite
O ur philosophical thinking passes through this
n ihilis m
which is in truth a liberation fo r authentic
being By o ur rebirth in philosophy the m e aning and
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37
WAY T O WI SD OM
va lue o f all finite things though always limited
enhanced ; we are made fully aware that o u r rO
must lead through them but at the same time
achieve the onl y possible basis fo r freedom in
dealings with these things
The fall from absolutes which were after a
illusory becomes an ability to soar ; what seemed a
aby ss becom es space for freedom ; apparent N othi
ness is transform ed in to that
which au t h e n t i
being speaks to us
,
,
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.
T H E I DE A O F
GOD
W E S T E R N I D E A Of God spring s from two
t oric al roots : the Bible and Greek philosophy
When Jeremiah saw the ruin Of ev erything for which
he had worked all his life when his country and h is
people were lost when in E gypt the last remnants o f
his people turned aside from their faith in Yahweh
and O ff ered sacrifices to Isis and when his disciple
Baruch despaired
I fainted in my sighing and I
”
find no rest Jeremiah answered
Behold that
which I hav e built will I break down and that which
I have planted I will pluck up even this whole land
?
A nd seekest thou great things fo r thyself s e ek them
”
not
In such a situation th ese words mean : I t is e nough
that God is DO no t ask whether there is immortality ;
the question of whether God forgives is no longer
important Man no longer matters his defiance as
well as his concern for his o w n beatitude and eternity
is extinguished It is also impossib l e that the worl d
should have a purpose susceptible o f fulfilment that
it should endure in any for m ; for everything has been
created o u t o f nothing by God and is in His hand
When everything is lost but o n e thing remains : God
is If a life in this wo rld even with faith in G od s
guidance has failed this overpowering reality still
remains : God is If man fully renounc e s himself and
UR
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39
WAY T O WISD OM
his aims this reality can be manifested to him
only reality But it does not m anifest itself in a dv a
it does not m anifest itself abs t ractly but descends
the existence O f the world and only here mani
itself at the limit Jeremiah s words are hard w o
T hey are no longer bound up with any will to his
ical effi cacy in the world though such a will
preceded them throughout a lifeti m e and u lt im a t
through total failure m ade them possible T hey
simple words free from i m aginativ e flight and they
contain unfathomable truth precisely because they
are without finite content or any fixation in the world
The Greek philosophers expressed a similar thought
in di ff erent terms
! enophanes proclaimed : There
A t about 500
is only one God resembling m ortals neither in h is
aspect nor in his thoughts Plato conceiv ed o f the god
head—h e called it the Good—as the source o f all
knowledge N ot only is the knowable known in the
light Of the godhead ; it also deriv es its being from
the godhead which excels being both in rank and
power
The Greek philosophers understood that the many
go ds were decreed merely by custom whereas in
nature there was only o n e G o d ; that God is not seen
with our eyes that he rese m bles no o n e and can be
recognized in no i m age
God is conceiv ed as cosmic reason or cosmic law o r
as fate and providence o r as de m iurge
But this God O f the Greek thinkers is a God o rigin at
ing in thought not the living G o d Of Jere m iah In
essence the two coincide From this twofold root
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40
WAY T O WI SD OM
But if the proofs for the exi stence o f G o d a
construed as scientifically co m pelling proofs such
we find in mathematics o r the empirical sciences
are false In this light Kant r
Then came the reverse proposition : S ince
proofs o f the existence o f God can be refut e d the
no G o d
Thi s inference is false Fo r the nonexistence o f
can be prov ed no more than his existence T
proofs and their confu t ations show us only that a
proved God would be no God but merely a t hi ng in
the world
The truth as agai nst all supposed proofs and refuta
tions o f the existence o f God seems to be this : T he so
called proofs of the existence o f God are funda
mentally no proo fs at all but methods of achieving
certainty through thought All the proofs o f the exist
ence o f God and their v ariants that hav e been devised
through the centuries diff er essentially from scienti fic
proofs They are attempts t o express the experience o f
man s ascent to God in terms O f tho ug ht There are
roads o f thought by which we come to limits at which
the consciousness o f G o d suddenly b ecomes a natural
presence
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L et us consider a few examples
The oldest of proofs is the cosmological proof
From the existence o f the cosmos ( the Greek name for
u ni verse ) we infer that G o d ex ists ; from the world
process in which ev erything is e ff ect we infer a last
cause ; from motion the source of all motion ; from the
accident o f the particular the necessity o f the whole
.
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42
THE IDEA OF G OD
If by this syllogism we mean to infer the existence
f one t hi ng from the existence Of anoth e r thi ng as we
for example in inferring from the existence o f the
o f the moon which faces us the existence o f the
r side whi ch we never see it is inapplicable In
manner we can only infer the existence of things
world from the existence o f other thi ngs The
as a whole is not an obj ect because we are
s in it and we never confront the world as a
Hence we cannot from the existence Of the
as a whole infer the existe nce Of something
than the world
t his notion takes o n a new meaning when it is no
proo f Then metaphorically in
it expresses awareness Of the
inherent in the existence o f the world and
selves in it If we venture the thought that there
might be nothing and ask with S chelling : Why is
?
there something and n o t nothing we find that o ur
certainty o f existence is such that though we cannot
determine the reason for it we are led by it to the C o m
prehensive which by this v ery essence is and cannot
not be and th rough which ev erything else is
True men hav e looked on the world as eternal and
said that it existed out of itself and hence was identical
w ith God But t his is not poss i ble :
E verything in the world which is beautiful appro
ordered
and
embodies
a
certain
perfection
a
i
t
e
r
p
th e vast abundance O f things that fill us with emotion
—
m
in o ur immediate conte plation Of nature all this
cannot be apprehended through any fully knowable
w orldly thing through matter for example The design
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43
.
WAY T O WISD OM
Of organic life the beauty of nature in all it s forms
order o f the universe in general become incre asi
mysterious as o ur knowledge advances
But iffrom all this we infer that G o d th e b e nev
creator exists we must call to m ind all that is
disordered base in the world A nd this gives r
fundamental attitudes fo r which the world is
frightening terrible and it seems as plausible t
the existence of the devil as o f God The mystery
transcendence is not thereby solved but merely grows
deeper
But what clinches the matter is the imperfectibility
o f the world
The world is not finished but in co n
t inu o u s change ; our knowledg e o f the world cannot be
completed the world cannot be apprehended through
itself
Far from proving the existence o f G od these so
called proofs mislead us into placing God Wi thin the
real world or second cosmos which is as it were
ascertained at the limits o f the cosmos Thus they
Obscure the idea Of God
But they mov e us deeply when leading t hr ough th e
concrete phenomena o f the cosmos they confront
N othingness and imperfectibility For then they seem
to admonish us not to content ourselves with the world
as the sole meaning o f our life in the world
A gain and again it is brought ho m e to us that God is
n o t an object ofknowledge of compelling evidence He
cannot be experienced by the senses He is invisible
He cannot be seen bu t only believed in
But whence com es this faith ? I ts source is not in the
limits o f worldly experience but in the freedom Of man
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44
THE IDEA OF GOD
e man who attains true awareness o f his freedom
Freedom and G od are in
n s certainty Of God
parable Why ?
This I know : in my freedom I am n o t through m y
s elf but am given to myself for I can fail myself and f
cannot force my freedom Where I am authentically
myself I am certain that I am not through myself The
highest freedom is experienced in freedom from the
world and this freedom is a profound bond with
transcendence
We also call man s freedom his existence My
certainty of God has the force o f my existence I can
have certa inty O f Him not as a content O f science but as
presence for existence
If certainty o f freedom encompasses certainty Of
God s existence there must be a connection between
th e ne g atio n o f fre edom and the negation of God If I
do no t experience the miracle o f se lf h o o d I need no
relation to G o d I am content with the empirical
exist e nce o f natur e many gods demons
There is o n the other hand a connection b e tween
the belief that there can be freedom without God and
the deifi c at io n Of man This is an illusory arbitrary
freedom in which man s will is taken to be absolute
and independent I rely in the force O f my will and in a
defiant acceptance o f death But t his delusion that I
am through myself alone turns freedom into perplexity
and emptiness A savage drive for self assertion turns
desperate will to
t o a despair in which Kierkegaard s
”
”
be oneself and desperate will not t o be oneself b e
come one
G od exists for me i n th e degree to which I in freedom
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45
WAY T O WISD O M
authentically become mysel f He does not exist as a
scientific content but only as openness to existence
But t h e illumination o f our existence as freedo m does
not prove the existence o f G o d ; it merely points one
m ight say to the area in which certainty Of his ex
ist e n c e is possible
The thought that striv es for compelling certainty
cannot realize its aim in any proof of God s existenc e
But the failure o f thought does not result in nothing
ness It points to tha t which resolves into an in
exhaustible forever questioning Co m prehensive con
scio u sn e ss o f God
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’
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-
,
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God never becomes a t angible object in the world
and this means that man must not abandon his free
do m to the tangibil ities
authorities powers o f
the world ; that he bears responsibility for himself
and must not evade this responsibility by r en o un
cing freedom ostensibly for the sake o f freedo m H e
must owe his decision and the road he chooses to
himself Kant has said that God s unfathomable
wisdom is as admirable in what it gives us as in what it
denies us For if God s wisdom in its majesty were
always before o ur eyes if it were an absolute authority
speaking unequivocally in the world we should be
puppets o f its will But G o d in his wisdom wanted us t o
be free
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Instead o f the knowledge o f G o d which is un at t ain
able we gain through philosophy a Comprehensive
consciousness o f G o d
”
God is The e ssential in this proposition is th e
,
,
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“
.
46
THE IDEA OF GOD
reality t o which it points We d o n o t encompass this
reality In thinking the proposition ; merely to think it
le av es us empty Fo r it means nothing to the under
standing and to sensory experience We apprehend its
meaning only as we transcend as we pass beyond the
world o f Objects and through it discover authentic
reality Hence the climax and goal o f o ur life is the
point at which we ascertain authentic reality that is
.
.
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,
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,
God
,
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This reality is accessible to existence through th e
orientation toward God that lies at its source Hence
faith in G o d springing as it does from the source
resists any mediation This faith is no t laid down in any
definite articles of faith app l icable t o all men o r in any
historical reality which mediates between man and
God and is the same fo r all men The individual
always in hi s own historicity stands rather in an
i mmediate independent relation to G o d that re
quires no interm ed iary
This historicity which can be communicated and
described is in this form n o t absolute truth for all and
yet in its source it is absolutely true
God is reality absolute and cannot be encompassed
by any of the historical manifestations through which
H e speaks t o men If He is man as an individual mu st
be able t o apprehend Him directly
The reality o f God and the immediacy o f o ur his
t o ric al relation t o G o d exclude any un iversally c o m
pelling knowledge of God ; therefore what matters is
n o t our knowledge Of God but o u r attitude towards
God From time immemorial G o d h as been co nc el v e d
in e mpirical forms including a personification aft e r
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47
WAY
WISD OM
TO
image of man A nd yet every such conception is
the sa m e time in the nature Of a veil G od is not w h
we may se e with o ur eyes
O ur true attitude toward G o d has found its p ro
foundest expression in a few bibli cal injunctions
t he
.
.
.
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image or 127:
This m eant, to be gin with , that
invisible man must not worship Him in statues i
e ffi gie s
Gaining in depth this tangible p ro h ib
developed into the idea that G o d is not only invisible
but also inconceivable unthinkable NO symbol o r
metaphor can describe Him and none may take His
place A ll metaphorical representations of G o d without
exception are myt hs meaningful as such when under
stood to b e mere hints and parallels but they beco m e
superstitions when mistaken fo r the reality OfGod Him
self
S ince every image conceals as much as it discloses
we co m e closest to God in the negation O f i m ages But
even in the Bible this O ld Testament command m ent
was not fulfilled : the image O f God s personality
remai ned —
His wrath and His love His justice and His
mercy It is a command m ent that cannot be fulfilled
P armenides and Plato with their speculative doctrines
o f being the Indian Brahman philosophers the Chinese
T aoists attempted to apprehend without images the
—
l
s up ra erso n a
pure
intangible
reality
God
but
in
O
f
p
this they did n o t succeed Human thought and human
vision cannot dispense with the i m age A nd though in
philosophical thinking sensation and Obj ect almost
vanished perhaps ulti m ately some wisp o f God s
presence remains with power to engender life
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8
4
WAY T O WI SD OM
enduring problem fo r man as actual as it w
thousands o f years ago
A third biblical saying : Thy will be done
fundamental attitude toward G o d means : B o w
before that which defies understanding co nfi de n
it is situated above and not below the u n derst an da
Thy thoughts are not o ur thoughts thy ways are no
”
o ur ways
Trust in thi s basic attitude makes possible an all
encompassing sense o f thankfulness a w ordle s
impersonal love
Man stands before the godhead as the hid
and can accept what is most terrible as His decision
fully aware that in whatever finite form he expresses
this God it is spoken in human terms an d hence false
To sum up : O ur attitude toward the godhead is
defined by the command m ents N o image and no
”
”
likeness
N o other god and by the attitude O
”
acceptanc e expressed in the words Thy will be done
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“
“
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Reflection on G o d clarifies o u r faith But to believe is
no t to see G o d remains in the distance and remains
question TO liv e by God does not m ean to base o ne
self o n calculable knowledge but to live as though we
staked o ur existence o n the assumption that God is
To believe in G o d m eans to live by something which
is not in the world except in the polyv alent language o f
phenomena which we call the hieroglyphs o r symbols
o f transcendence
The G o d Offaith is the distant G o d the hidd e n G o d
the indemonstrable G o d
Hence I must recognize no t only that I do no t know
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,
THE IDEA OF GOD
t even that I do not know whether I believe
no possession It confers n o secure knowledge
ives certainty in the practice Of life
Thus the believer lives in the enduring ambiguity of
e Obj ective in enduring willingness to hear He
tens patiently and yet he is unswerving in his resolve
fweakness he is strong he is open though
he is resolute
God is typical Of all significant
on
thought : it does n o t bring secure know
self hood it gives a free area fo r
the whole emphasis is o n love in the world
adin g o f the symbols Of transcendence o n the
d breadth O f that which is illumined by reason
why all philosophical discourse is so in
I t calls for completion out o f the being o f
m who hears it
P hilosophy does not give it can only a wak e n—i t can
remind and help t o secure and preserve
In it each o f us understands what he actually kn e w
before
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1
5
T H E U N C O NDI T I O NA L I M P E RAT I VE
IN L o v E I N battle in pursuing lofty tasks m
act without regard fo r consequences u n co n dit io n a
When a man acts unconditionally his life is n o t
ultimate he subordinates it to something else
When we Obey the unconditional imperative
empirical existence becomes in a se nse the raw mate
Ofthe idea oflove o f a loyalty It is e n co m p as
eternal aim it is as it were consumed and it is
allowed drift at random in the stream o f life O nly
the limit in extreme situations can the call Of t
unconditional lead to loss o f life to acceptance
inevitable death while in bondage to the conditional
we wish first last and at any price to preserve o ur
physical existence
Men have for example risked their lives in a
com m on struggle fo r a comm on life in the world
S olidarity was then the ultimate condition
O riginally such communities were built upon trust
but later they came to be based o n the inspiring com
mand of an authority in which men believed so that
faith in this authori t y became a source o f the absolute
This faith freed men from uncertainty spared the m the
need to inquire for themselves However the u n co n
dit io n al in this form was subject to a tacit condition
namely the success Of the authority The believer
desired t o live th rough his Obed ience If th e au t hori ty
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52
THE UNC OND ITIONAL IMPE RATIVE
d t o b e successful as a power and m en lost th e ir
in it a ruinou s emptiness arose
the only escape from this empti ness Is for man
to wi n authentic being as the
!AT
IV
Efoundation o f his decisions
This h as happened in history when individuals
staked their lives through obedience t o an absolute
imperative : they remained loyal where disloyalty
would have destroy ed everything where a life saved
through disloyalty would have been poisoned where a
betrayal o f absolute being would have made a save d
life wretched
The purest examp l e is perhaps S ocrates L iving in
the lucidity o f h is reason out Of the Comprehensive Of
nonknowledge he went his way unswervingly nu
deterr e d by the passions Of anger hatred selfrigh t
e o u sn e ss ; he made no concession refused t o avail him
self o f the Opportunity for flight and died happy
staking everything o n his faith
Certain martyr s like Thomas M ore have displayed
ives in th e purest moral energy in their faith The martyr dom
he worl o f some others is subj ect to question To die for some
thing in order t o bear witness to it is to give an aim to
t
or
one s death hence t o make it impure Where martyrs
p
ing
have actually been inspired by a longing t o die
i so
perhaps in imitation o f Christ by a death urge which
not infrequently darkens the soul with symptoms o f
hysteria the impurity is still greater
II
CO
6 UH
R are are the phil osophers w h o without firm alle
fl
lflO
J nd
i
a
ce
n
to a community o f faith standing alone before
g
believer God have realized the maxi m : To philosophize Is to
UtllOlli)
L
learn how t o die S eneca for ye ars awaiti ng his death
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53
WAY T O WISD OM
sentence overcame the dea n t o escape d i ctated by
understanding ; in t he end he did not betray h im
unworthy actions and he preserved his co
when N ero demanded his death Boethius
nocently sentenced by a barbarian : he died
full
lucidity
turned
toward
h
i
z in g in
p
being Bruno overca m e his doubts and
what concessions h e had made in the high resolve
stand fast fo r no purpose ev en if it meant death at the
stake
S en e ca Boethius Bruno were m e n with their
weaknesses their failures men such as ourselves They
had to conquer themselves A nd this is why they can
point the way for us For saints after all are fi gures who
for us can live only in the twilight o r in the unreal
light O f myth but cannot stand up under realistic
scrutiny T he unconditional acts Of which men as m e n
were capable giv e us true encouragement while the
I magi nary provide s only empty e difi ca t io n
,
,
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,
,
.
o
i
t
s
e
1
1
(1
e
h
t
e
s
u
a
ec
b
’
r
o
[
t
a
h
W
d
n
a
f
m
i
e
t
h
p
e
l
s
e
Or
hm
”
“
t
l
e
s
“
W
’
if
mo
n
u
’
’
m
’
m
m
E
a
r
e
m
h
llsuc P
A
n
o
t
n
e
d
epen
ned
‘
,
,
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,
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,
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,
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,
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,
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dofm
n
a
om
c
m
y
e
xisten
ce
.
l beco
m
eca
u
b
m
s
l
e
f
a
,
y
n
rea
e
ssisobscu
m
O
We have recalled historical exa m ples o f men who
O
f
h
c“ ilaf“
know h o w to die Let us n o w attempt t o elucidate the i P
f
i
O
f
unconditional im perative
m bung
n
tern
?
When I ask m yself: What shall I do I arrive at an i ewbegn
Situ
a
t
o
i
m
m
answer by adducing finite aims and m eans by which to
ff
T
h
l
s
lmera
atta i n them I must obtain food and for this work is
p fi
d
e
n
n
esa
lla
needed I m ust liv e with m en in a comm unity : here I ttrn
o
u
rW
1
1
1
hiltits9
m
helped by certain rules o f conduct In every case an
a
T
he uncondn
a im determines the means appropriate t o it
h
en
But my basis for recognizing these aims lies either I n ce110i an01
some unquestioned practical interest or in utility
a
C
t
“infla
E mpirical existence however is no ultimate end
min
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'
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54
,
THE UNC OND ITIONAL IMP ERATIVE
questions remain : What k i nd Of exist e nce
What for ?
th e imperative is grounded in an authority
Obey because someone else has willed it
”
It is written
But such authority
mains unquestioned and hence unex am ined
A ll such imperatives are conditional For they make
e dependent on something outside me On practical
n c o n dit io n al i m peratives o n the
4
have their source in m yself Conditional
confront me as fixed but transient prin
which I can outwardly sustain myself
Unconditional imperatives come fro m wi thin m e
susta i ning me inwardly by that which in myself is no t
only myself
The unconditional i m perative co m es t o me as t h e
command o f my authentic self to my mere empirical
existence I beco m e aware of myself as Of that which I
myselfam because it is what I ought to be This aware
ness is obscure at the beginning and lucid at the end
Of m y un c o n dit io n al action When we become aware
o f the i m perat ive o u r questioning ceases in the c e r
tainty of being—though in temporal life there is at
once a new beginning O f questioning and in a changed
s i tuation certainty must forever be gained anew
This imperative precedes ev ery aim it is that which
determ ines all aims Accordingly it is not an Obj ect Of
o u r will but its source
The unconditional is a foundation Of action and
hence not an Object of knowledge but an element Of
faith In so far as I know the reasons and aims o f my
action I am in the finite I am subject to cond itions
e cau se
th e
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‘
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“
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_
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55
WAY T O WISD OM
O nly when I liv e by something that can no longe
explained by Object knowledge do I live by the
conditional
.
A few propositions may suggest th e meaning of t
un conditional imperative
First : as opposed to passive acceptance Of things
they are the unconditional attitude implies a de c isio
lucidly taken o ut o f an unfathomable depth a deci
sion with which I myse l f am identical What does thi
mean ?
It means to partake in the eternal in being
A ccordingly it implies absolute reliability and loyalty
which deriv e not from nature but from o ur decision
The decision is arrived at only through lucidity which
is the product Of reflect i on Expressed in psychological
terms the unconditional attitude does n o t lie in the
momentary state o f any man E ven though he may
reveal ov erpowering energy in his momentary act iv ity
it suddenly slackens he grows forgetful and unreliable
N or does the unconditional decision reside in the innate
character for the character can be transformed in
reb ir th N or does it reside in what we call in m y t h o lo
l
m
i
m
ter
s
a
man
s
de
on
for
this
demon
is
without
ca
g
loyalty O verpowering as it may be n o mode Of
passion o f v ital will o f self assertion is un c o n
dit io n al in the moment ; all are relative and hence
perishable
T hus the unconditional demands an existential
d e cision that has passed through reflection This
means that it does not arise fro m any natural state but
o u t Of freedom which cannot help being what it is
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6
5
WAY T O WISD OM
passion habit and fidelity to a promise Th e p o ssib il
o f authentic co m m unication in lo v ing contest can
denied That which is demonstrable is by that sa
token not unconditional
Third : T he unconditional i s timeless in time
The unconditional impe rativ e is no t given lik
e m pirical existence It grows within man in time
when man conquers himself and goes
decision unerringly leads h im does the u n
come into its o w n S t e adfastn e s
Singlemindednes s mere persev erance in man are
convincing signs that he lives by the u nco ndit i
imperativ e
In o ur temporal existence the unconditional
is manifested in the experience O f extreme S i
and in situations wh en we are in danger Of becoming
untrue to ourselves
But the unconditional itse l f is never entirely tem
poral Whenev er it may be it also cuts across time
R egardles s Of when it is conquered it is eternal
existing in ev ery new moment through recurrent
rebirth fro m the source Hence : Where a dev elop m ent
in ti m e seems to hav e giv en us possession O f it all can
still be betrayed in a moment Conversely where a man s
past seems to be mere factuality weighing him down
under endless contingencies to the point Of annihila
tion he can nev ertheless at any mo m ent begin as it
were from the beginning through sudden awareness o f
the unconditional
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These propositions it is true suggest the m eaning o f
the unconditional i m perative but do n o t elucidate its
,
,
58
E
U
N C O ND ITI ONA L IM PE RATIV E
Which becomes clear only through the
s Of good and evil
heeding the command Of the unconditional we
a choice A decision becomes the substance of the
an He has chosen what he understands as the good
the decision between good and e v il
Good and evil are diff erentiated o n three levels
I
We regard as evil the i m mediate and u n
strained surrender to passions and sensual impulses
the pl e asure and happiness Of this world t o em
ric al existence as such ; in short evil is the life o f the
h o remains in the sphere Of the contingent who
lives from day to day like an animal well o r
adly in the unrest Of change — a life in which there is
O decision
Good in contradistinction is t h e l ife Of the man who
n o t rej ect the happiness o f this world but sub
ates it to the morally admissible seen as the
This morally admissible
rsal law Of just action
Olute
as distinguished from mere weakness
rs to the natural bent consists in what
perversion : I do good only if it does me no
harm o r does no t cost m e too much ; o r stated abstractly :
although I will the unconditiona l embodied in the
moral imperativ e I follow the law Ofthe good only in so
far as it is co m patible with undisturbed sensual pleasure
only o n this condition and in no unconditional sense
do I w ish t o be good This pseudo v irtue might be
called a luxury Of fortunate circu m stances in which I
can a ff ord to be good In the case of conflic t be t w een
moral imperative and my v ital interest I may
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59
,
WAY T O WI SD O M
according to the magnitude O f this interest be sec
capable o f any v illainy In order to avert my
death I may Obey orders t o commit murder O r I
allow my fav oured position which saves me from co
fl ict to blind me to my ev il
It is good in contradistinction to lift oneself o ut
this condition o f contingency wherein the un
t io n al is subordinated to the requirements Of v
happiness and return to an authentic life In
unconditional T his is a conversion from continu
selfbetrayal and impurity Of motives to the serious
o f the unconditional
—
3 O n this level ev il is only the will to evil the
to destruction as such the urge to inflict tort
cruelty annihilation the nihilistic will to ruin cv
thing that is and has value
Good in contradistinction is the un co ndit io na
which is love and hence the will to reality
L et us compare these three level s
O n the first lev el the relation between good and evi
is m oral : the question is whether o u r natural incl
tions are governed by a will subservient to m oral laws
In Kant s words duty is opposed to inc l ination
O n the se cond lev el the relation is ethical : the
essential is the authenticity O f our motives The purity !
o f the unconditional is O posed to an impurity which ;
p
consists in the reversal of the relation o f contingency
in which the unconditional is made contingent o n
practical conditions
O n the third lev el the re l ation becomes meta
physical : here the essential lies in the m otives the m
selv es L ov e is opposed to hate L ov e impels to being
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60
,
.
THE UN C OND ITI O NA L IMP E RATIVE
to nonbeing L ove grows in bond w ith trans
ence ; hate severed from transcendence dwindles
abstract punctuality of the ego L ov e works as
building in the world ; hate as a loud catas
submerging being i n empirical existenc e and
n g empirical existence itself
each level an alternative is revealed a decis i on
ed for A man can only want o n e thing o r th e
if he is authentic He follows inclination or duty
iv es in perversion o r in purity o f motive he lives
Of hate o r out o f love But he can fail to decide
tead of deciding we vacillate and stu m ble through
combine the one with the other and even accept
h a state o f things as a necessary contradiction
indecision is in itse l f evil M an awakens only
he distinguishes between good and evil He
becomes himself when he decides which way he is
going and acts accordingly We must all continuously
recapture ourselves from indecision We are so little
capable Of fulfilling ourselves in goodness that th e very
force O f the passions that drive us headlong through
life is indispensable to the lucidity o f duty ; when we
really l ove we cannot help hating whatever threatens
o ur lo v e ; and it is precisely when we feel certain that
o u r motiv es are pure that we succumb to the per v er
sion o f impurity
The decision has its special character o n each o f the
three lev els M orally man seeks to base his decision on
thought E thically he rehabilitates himself from
perversion throu gh a rebirth o f his good will M eta
phys ically he achieves awareness o f being given to
hi mself in his ability to l ove He chooses the right his
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61
,
WAY T O WISD OM
motives become authentic he lives o u t o f love
when the three lev els become o n e is the un co n dit
realized
To live out o f love seems to include all the rest
lov e giv es certainty regarding the ethical truth
acts S t Augustine says : L ove and do what thou
But it is i m possible for us men to live solely by
this force o f the highest level fo r we fall const
into errors and m isunderstandings Hence we
not rely blindly in o u r love at every moment but
elucidate it A nd for the same reason we finite b
need the discipline by which we conquer o ur
and because o f the impurity o f our motiv es w
distrust o f ourselv es When we feel sure Of o urselv e
that is precisely when we are going astray
O nly the unconditional character Of the good fi l
mere duties with content purifies o u r ethical motive
dis solves the destructiv e will of hatred
But the foundation Of love in which the unco ndl
t io n al is grounded
is identical with the will to
authentic reality I want what I love to be A nd I!
cannot perceive what authentically is without loving
it
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e
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t
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MAN
?
N
A
M
Physiology st udies him as body
as
soul
sociology
as
a
social
being
We
gy
man as nature which we investigate as we do
o f other liv ing creatu r es
and as history
critical sifting O f tradition by an
g Of the purpose pursued by man in his
hts and actions and by the elucidation o f ev ents
e basis o f motives situations natural realities
study o f man has brought us many kinds
w le dge but not the knowledge o f man as a
Is
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question rises : C an man be fully apprehended
which is knowable concerning him ? O r is there
ing above this na m ely freedom which ev ades
o w le dge but is always pres e nt in him as
,
,
,
T he truth is that man is accessible to himself in two
ways : a s object o f inquiry and as existence endowed
with a freedom that is inaccessible to inquiry In the
o n e case man is conceiv ed as Object in the other as the
n o n o bj ec t which m an is and o f which he becomes
aware when he achieves authe n tic awareness Ofhimself
We cannot exhaust m an s being in knowl edge O f him
we can experience it only in the pri m al source o f our
thought and action M an is fundamentally more than
he can know about himself
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63
WAY TO WISD OM
We are conscious Of o u r freedom when we
cognize imperativ es addressed to us It is up to
whether we carry them out or evade them We can
seriously deny that we m ake a decision by which
decide concerning ourselves and that we are
sponsible
N0 on e who attempts t o deny this can logica
confront other men with an i m perative O nce
accused man in court said he was not to blame beca
he was born that way an d could not help doing as
did and could accordingly not be held re sp o nsib
and the good humoured j udge replied that it might
just as reasonable to say that the judge who
t e n ce d h im could do no di ff erently since that was
he was and he could n o t help acting in accordance wit
the laws
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O nce we have achieve d awareness of o ur fre e dom w
may take a second step toward the apprehension
ourselves : M an is a being who exists in re l ation to
God What does this mean ?
We did not create ourselves E ach man can think
that he m ight possibly not have been This we have in
co m m on with the anim als But at the sam e tim e where
in o ur freedo m we decide through ourselves and are
not automatically subordinated to a natural law we
are n o t through ourselves but by v irtue O f being given
to ourselves in o ur freedom If we do not lov e we do
not know what we should do we cannot force o u r
freedo m When we decide freely and conceive o f o ur
lives as meaningful we know that we do not owe
ourselves to ourselves At the summit Of freedom upon
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64
WAY T O WI SD O M
never man as a whole When these methods o f
lay clai m to absolute knowledge O f the whole
and this they have all done— they lose sight
m an and go far toward extinguishing their proponents
consciousness o f man and even their o w n hu m anity
the humanity which is freedom and relation to God
The study o f man is of supreme interest and i
pursued in a spirit of scientific criticis m rewarding I
this is done we know methodically what
within what limi ts we know a thing and
know in terms of what is possible and how radically
inaccessible t o this knowledge authentic hu m anity
r e mains And we avert the danger of obscuring man by
pseudo knowledge o f him
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O nce we know the limits o f knowledge we Shall
entrust ourselves all the more clearly to the guidance
which freedom itself O ffers to our freedom if it is
oriented toward God
Thi s is the great question Of humanity : Whence
does m an obtain guidance ? Fo r it is certain that his
life does not flow along like that Of the animals from
generation to generation constantly repeating itself
in accordance with natural law ; man s freedom Opens
up to him along with the uncertainty o f hi s being an
opportunity to become that whi ch he can authentically
be It is given to man to work in freedom upon his
e m pirical existence as u pon a material Hence man
alone has a hi story that is he does not live only by
hi s biological heritage but also by tradition M an s
li fe is not merely a natural process A nd hi s freedom
calls for guidan ce
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MAN
We shall n o t discuss h ere the cases in whi ch the
power o f man over man becom es a substitute fo r this
guidance What we have i n mind is the ultimate
guidance o f man Th e thesis Of philosophical faith
is : M an can live by God s guidance What does thi s
mean ?
We beli ev e that we have in th e unconditi onal
imp e rative an intimation o f God s guidance But how
is this poss i bl e when G o d is n o t corporeal when there
is no unmistakable form in which he exists as G od ?
If God lends guidance how does man know what G o d
wills ? Is there an encounter betwe en m an and G od ?
And if so how does it occur ?
We have autobiograp hi cal records telling us how
in men faced by critical problems long doubt h as
sudd enly giv e n way to certainty Thi s c e rtainty is the
freedom to act after perplexity and vacillation But
the freer man knows himself to be in this lucid
certain t y the more aware he b e comes Of the trans
ce n de n c e through which he is
Kierkegaard reflected each day upon God s g uid
ance and in such a way that he knew himself t o be
always in God s hand : through that which he did and
that which happened to him in the world he heard
G o d and yet in e v erything he heard he found many
meanings The guidance he receiv ed was n o t tangible
it provided no clear command ; it was guidance
through freedom itself which knows decision because
it knows itself rooted in the transcendent foundation
Guidance through transcendence is diff er e nt from
any guidanc e in the world for God s gui dance is o f
only o n e ki nd I t is given through fre e dom its elf
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67
WAY T O WISD O M
The voice o f G o d lies in the self awareness that daw nSiz
in th e individual when he is open to ev erything tha t i
comes t o him from his tradition and environment
The medium in which man is guided is his judg
ment regarding his o w n actions T hi s judgmen t
restrains or i m pels corrects or confirms T he v oice O f
God as j udg m ent regarding man s actions has n ot
other expression in ti m e than in this j udgment O f man
himself with regard to his emotions motiv es actions
In the free and forthright self awareness Of j udgment
in self accusation in self a ff irmation m an indirectly
finds God s judgment which I s never definitiv e and
always equivocal
Consequently human judgment is in error from the
outset wh en m an expects to find in it God s final
word upon which he can absolutely rely We must
mercilessly unmask the self will that lies in our moral
self satisfaction and self righteousness
A ctually no man can ever be fully and definitiv ely
satisfied with himself; he cannot be entirely self
contained in his judgm ent Of himself He requires the
judgment Of his fellow m e n concerning his actions
He is particularly sensitiv e to the j udgment Of those he
respects He is less mov ed by that o f the av erage man
and the crowd of inert individualized institutions but
ev en here he is not indi fferent Yet the judgment that
is ultimately decisiv e for him is n o t ev en that Of the
men he respects although this is the only judgment
accessible in the world ; only the judgment o f God can
be decisiv e
The individual is neve r entirely independent in his
j udgm ent o f hims elf He always attach es importance
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68
MAN
j udgment Of another Ev en the primi tiv e hero
to hi s death in unswerving for titude has in
the judgment o f other men : undying fame is the
n Of the dying h e ro e s o f the E ddas
re is also a truly soli tary h eroism which is
based on the community and has n o eye to fame
S authentic independence is sustained perhaps by
inner harmony o f a w ell favoured nature it
unconsciously from the historical
e rh ap s
Of a remembered community yet i t s
ness finds nothing in the present world to
can hold But if this heroism does not sink
nothingness it may be presumed to hav e deep
in authentic being and this stated explicitly
d be the judgment o f God rather than Of men
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the truth Of the judgment by which man is
is ma ni fested only through self conviction
takes two forms : the universal imperative and the
is torical inj unction
The uni v ersal ethi cal imperativ es carry intuitive
Ev er since the ten commandments they
o nv ic tio n
been a form Of God s presence These imperati v es
indeed be recognized and followed without
t h in God by a drastic li mi tation Of their meaning
what man can do out Of himself But whole
Obedience to th e ethical commandment
a rt e d
le arly heard in freedom is usually bound
the perception of transcendence precisely in
h
g
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Howev er
de q u at ely
action in concrete situations cannot
be deriv ed from universal commandm e nts
,
69
WAY TO WI SD OM
and prohibiti ons In ev ery historically actual situati
guidance lies in an immediate necessity o f doing
which cannot be deriv ed But what the individual
this case perceiv es as his duty remains q u estio n ab
howev er certain he may be o f it in his o w n mind T
very nature Of this hearkening to
imp lies the risk Of error hence humil
reliance o n o u r certainty forbids us
o w n acts as an i m perativ e for all
fanaticism Even the purest clarity as t o t h
hav e seen under God s guidance must n o t ther
giv e rise to a certainty that this is the only tru e roa d
fo r all
For it is always possible that ev erything will lo o ki
entirely di ff erent later In all lucidity we can choose ai
false road Ev en th e certainty Of decision in so far as
it is manifested in the world must retain a certain
element Of suspension For the most dev astating t h re atq
to truth in the world is the ov erweening claim t o the
absolutely true In the certainty o f the moment the
humility Of the enduring question is indispensable
O nly in retrospect are we filled with the wonder o f
an unfatho m able gui dance But even here it carries
no certainty God s guidance cannot be made into a
possession
Psychologically speaking the v oice o f God can be
heard only in sublime moments It is o u t Of such
moments and toward such moments that we live
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I fman experiences guidance through transcendence
transcendence rea l fo r him ? What is hi s relation t o
,
is
it ?
MA N
bareness o f abstraction o ur r el ation t o
can take on a crucial seriousness But as
en in o u r world we seek support for o ur certai nty in
e concrete M an s supreme achievement i n this
o rld is commu ni cation from persona li ty t o p e rson
li ty A ccordingly o ur r elation to transcend e nce if
e may speak in paradox b e comes sensibly present
o u r encounter with the personal God The godhead
drawn to u s in it s aspect Of p e rsonality while at th e
ame time we rai se ourselv es to th e level o f beings
ap ab le o f speaking wi th thi s G o d
I n the world thos e powers which have flung u s to
he ground strive to dominate u s : fear o f the future
n x io u s attachment to present possessions care in the
ace Of dire possib ilities O ppos in g the m man can
e rh a p s i n the face o f death gain a confidence whi ch
ill enable him even in the most extrem e inexplicable
meaningless situation to die in peace
Trust in the foundation o f being can mani fest
itself as disinterested grati tude as peac e in the beli e f
in God s being
In life freedom giv es us a sens e Of r e ceivi ng help
from transcendence
For polytheism helpers and adversaries become
”
gods and demons A god did it expresses the poly
theist s consciousness Of ev e nts and h is own ac t ions
which are thereby hallowed and endowed with
significance but at the same time dispersed into
innumerable vital and spiritual pow e rs conceived as
exi stents
As against this God s help i n the authentic self
hood that knows itself t o be radically dependent
in the
an sce n de n ce
Even
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7
1
WAY
T O WISD OM
is the help o f th e O n e I f God is th ere are n
demons
O ften God s help is narrowed to a finite cont ent a
thus lost A s for exam p le when prayer—as enco n
—
with the invisible God degenerates from
conte m plation tending towards silence su ccu m
the passion of seeking the hand o f the personal God
and beco m es an inv ocation Of this God for practica
ends
To the m an who sees through the opaqueness 0
life God sends all possibilities including the situations
Then ev ery situati on b e
O f hopeless annihilation
co m es a task for man s freedom and in this task he
stands grows and falls T he task howev er cannot be
adequately defined as pursuit Of earthly happiness
but can only be understood clearly through tran
this sole reality and the unconditional
sc en de n c e
comm andment O f lov e that is manifested in it which
infinitely Open by virtue Of its reason sees what is and
reads the symbols Of transcendence in the realities of
the world
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P riests it is true accuse the individual who orients
hi m self to God through philosophy Of arrogance and
self will They demand Obedience to the rev ealed God
I n reply to them this may be said : the individual
engaged in p hilosophical thought if he has drawn a
decision from the primal source believ es that he is
obeying God not with any Objectiv e guarantee that
he knows God s will but rather as a continuous
v enture God works through the free decisions o f the
individual
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72
T H E WO R L D
W
C A L L R E A L I T Y that which is present t o
us in practice that which in o ur dealings with t hi ngs
with living creatures and with men is resistance or
becomes matter We learn t o know reality through our
daily association with people, through the handling Of
tools through techni cal kn owledge through contact
with organized bodies o f men
That which is encountered in practice is clarified by
scientific knowledge and as knowledge o f r e ality
made av ailable for ne w practice
But by its very nature the knowledge o f r e a lity
transc ends the immediate interests of practical life
Practi ce which is always at the same time struggle
mastery of resistance is only o n e o f its sources M an
wants to know what is real regardless o f any practical
interest A profounder source Of the sciences is pu re
dev oted contemplation lucid passion a listening
fo r the world s answers
Knowledge becomes scientific through method a
systematic u ni ty is ascertained in what is known ; the
scientist looks beyond the multiple and disparate t o
unifying principles
This knowledge o f reality seem s t o find completion
in the world system The world system purports to
disclose reali ty as a whole in o ne world a cosmos
E
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74
,
THE WORLD
part of which is related t o ev ery other part
n recognized that such a
it
has
always
bee
h
g
st be imperfect and will require constant
ne v ertheless the world system h as been
ed as a product O f knowledge and in principle
form in which being as total reality becomes
ble to us The world system is expected to
pass the whole Of coherent knowledge World
are as Old as human knowledge ; and
at all times have stri v en for world systems
eans Of attaining a u ni fied awareness O f the
.
,
.
.
it is significant that the search for an all
ing world system in which the u ni verse
this so self evident
3 a self contained w hole
g for a total world view is based o n a funda
ental fallacy which h as only been understood in
e c e n t times
For scientific critique teaches us not only that ev ery
wo rl d system up to now has collapsed under the weight
> f its o w n contradictions but that the systematic
I ni ties o f knowledge w hi ch are indeed the goal O f
:ci e n c e have been div erse and sprung from essen tially
l iff e re n t roots T hi s beco m es increasingly evident
Ev en as the u ni ties
Nlt h the advance of science
—
m
e more univ ersal
particularly in physics—the
J e co
n ore marked become the cleav ages between the
J h y si c al world the world o f life the world of the soul
:h e world o f the mind These worlds are indeed con
l CCt
They are arranged in an order of dev elop
n ent ; the reali t y of the later stage presu poses that o f
p
h e e arlier while the reality of the earlier seems able
z
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75
,
WAY T O WISD OM
to stand wi thout that o f th e later ; for
can be n o life wi thout matter but ther
without life Vain attempts hav e been
the later stage from the earlier but
becomes more evident The one totality in the world
to whi ch all the unities susceptible o f exploration by
knowledge belong is itself no unity such as might b e
subsumed in an all e m bracing theory o r whi ch as
idea might serve as a beacon for scientific inquiry
Ther e is no world system but only a systematization o f
the sciences
World systems are always a particular sphere o f
knowledge erroneously absolutized and univ ersalized
Di fferent scientific ideas gi v e rise to special per
sp e c t iv es Ev ery world system i s a segment taken o u t
o f the world T he world itself cannot become a system
”
A ll
scientific cosmologies
hav e been mythi cal
cosmologies built on scientific methods and scant
remnants Of myth
The world is no Object we are always in the world
we confront Objects in it but nev er have the world
itself as an Object Far as our horizons o f methodical
inquiry extend particularly in o u r astronomical
conceptions Of the nebulae o f whi ch our Galaxy
with its billions o f suns is only one among mi llions and
in the mathematical conception o f univ ersal matter
all that we see here is aspects o f phenomena and
not the foundation o f things not the univ erse as
a whole
The univ erse is not self contained I t cannot be
explained out o f itself but in it one thing can be
explained by another ad in fi nit u m N0 one knows to
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6
7
THE WORLD
li mi ts future res e arch may y e t atta i n what
ses will still open b e fore it
,
.
A criti cal approach to science calls for the abandon
ent Of world systems which is also a prerequisite to
phi losophi cal apperception Of being True the
t Of being demands a familiarity
t h every branch of scientific inquiry But it seems to
the hi dden aim Of science t o attain through inquiry
a limit at which the area Of nonknowl e dge is opened
the most lucid knowledge Fo r only fulfilled
o w le dge
can lead to authentic nonknowledge
tic being is r evealed n o t in any world
on knowledge but in fulfilled n o n
uilt
o w le dge
which can be achiev ed only through
e n tifi c cognition
not without it and n o t before it
is the supreme striving Of knowledge t o reach the
oint
where
cognition
fails
F
o
r
u
r
consciousness
Of
o
p
being finds an indispensable source in nonknowledge
bu t only in fulfilled conquered nonknowledge
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We approach the reality o f the world from a dif
fe re n t angle S cientific knowledge can be included in
th e general proposition : A ll knowledge is interpreta
tion T he method we apply to the study o f texts may
be taken as a parallel to our study O f being A nd th e
analogy i s n o t accidental
For we possess being only in its interpretations To
and only that whi ch is
speak Of it is to interpret it
apprehended in speech falls under the head O f the
knowable But even in the p rep h ilo so p hi c stage the
language o f men s practical dealings with things
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77
WAY T O WISD OM
contains an interpretation of being ; being is always
defined in reference to something els e Being is for us
only in an interpreti v e context Being and the know
ledge O f being the ex istent and what we say Of it are
accordingly a texture of div erse interpretations A ll
being is for us an interpretation
Interpretation diff erentiates b e tween somethi ng
that is and something whi ch it means for example
betwe e n th e Sign and what it stands for If being is
taken as that whi ch is to be interpreted it would
seem that we must di fferentiat e in the same way :
i nterpretati on concerns something other than itself;
what confronts us in interpretation is being itself
But o ur atte m pted diff erentiation is n o t success
ful Fo r nothi ng enduring remains nothing purely
knowable whi ch n eed only be interpreted and is not
itself interpretation Whatever we know is only a
beam Of light cast by our interpretation into being
o r we might say the capture of an opportunity for
interpretation The power to make possible all these
interpretations must lie in the v ery nature Of being as
a whole
But the interpretation is not arbitrary If it is
sound it has an objectiv e character Being compels
these interpretations True all modes O f being are
for us modes Of interpretation but they are also
modes of necessary interpretation Consequently the
doctrine Of the categories as structures Of being sees the
modes o f being as modes Of interpretation thus fo r
”
example breaking down the Objectiv e categories
into identity relation cause and e ff ect freedom or
expressi on etc
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78
WAY T O WISD OM
remain unfulfilled and henc e fundam e ntally n o t
understood
It is not only the absolute world systems that are
gone The world is not self contained and fo r o ur
knowledge it breaks down into div erse perspecti v es
because it cannot be reduced to a single principle
The reali ty o f the world as a whole is n o obj ect o f
knowledge
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In the light o f what we hav e said o f God and exist
ence we may sum up o ur experience Of the world in
th e proposition : The reality o f the world subsis t s
ephemerally between God and existence
Ev eryday life seems to teach us the contrary : that we
men take the world o r something in the world as an
absolute A nd Of the man who has made so many
things the ulti m ate content Of his existence we may
say with Luther : that whi ch you hold t o upon whi ch
you stake your existence that is truly your G o d M an
cannot help taking something as an absolute whether
willi ngly and knowingly whether accidentally and
fi t fu lly or resolutely and steadfastly M an has a kind Of
home in the absolute He cannot ev ade it In that home
he m ust liv e
History down through the c e nturies reveals awe
inspiring figures Of men who hav e transcended the
world Indian ascetics certain monk s in China and the
West left the world in order to partake Of the absolute
in worldless meditation It was as though the world had
—
vanished ; being fro m the viewpoint Of the world
nothingness—was ev erythi ng
Chinese mystics freed the m selves from th e toils Of
,
.
.
,
.
,
,
,
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.
.
.
.
,
,
.
,
.
80
WAY T O WISD OM
in the temporal course o f his life Thi s w illingn
i m plies two fundamental experiences :
First the experience Of God s absolute transcend
ov er the world : the hidden G o d recedes farther
farther into the distance if I atte m pt to seize
apprehend Him univ ersally and forever ; He is
calculably near through the absolutely hi
form o f His speech in a situation whi ch is
unique
S econd the experi ence o f God s speech in
world : the world is not in itself but in it G o d spe
always with many meanings and this speech can
become clear historically in the existential mom ent an
cannot be g eneralized
.
’
.
’
,
,
,
.
Freedom for being does not see the ultimate i n th e
world as such In the world eternal being and temporal
manifestation meet
Y et we do not experience eternal being outside 0
that which is empirically m an ifested t o us in time
S ince that which is for us must be manifested in the
temporality o f the wo rld there can be n o direct
knowledge Of G o d and existence T here can only
be faith
The principles Of faith—G o d is ; there is an un co n
ditio n al i m perati v e ; m an is finite and imperfectible ;
man can liv e in God s guidance— enable us t o sense
the truth only in SO far as they embody their fulfilment
in the world as speech o f God If as though passing the
world by God should directly approach existence the
ev ent would be incomm unicable T he truth o f all
universal principles speaks in the form o f a tradition
.
.
.
,
.
.
’
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,
,
,
.
82
THE WORLD
a p articularity acquired in life ; these are th e
s in which the individual consciousn ess h as
ened t o the truth : o ur parents told u s so Ther e is
vast hi storical depth in such formulas as for Thy
”
”
”
immortality
love
O ly name s sake
As principles o f faith become more universal they
their historicity They rise to the level o f pure
rac t io n But with such abstractions alone no man
live ; wher e concret e fulfilment is lacking th ey
only a minimal v alue as guides t o memory and
They have at th e same time a cleansing power :
free us from the fetters Of pur e mat eriality and
superstiti ous narrowness h e lping u s to adapt th e
reat tradition to present r e alization
of
.
’
“
“
.
,
,
.
.
,
.
Unlimit e d devotion to God is the authenti c mod e o f
ist e n ce That to which I devot e myself in the world
to the point ofstaking my life must be constantly tested
in relation to God under the condition o f God s will in
whi ch we believe For in blind de v otion man heedlessly
serves the power which is o v er him only factually and
which h e does not elucidate and he may even serve
”
th e
devil through hi s failure to see question think
—
In devotion to reality in the world the in disp en s
able mediu m o f devotion to God —grows selfhood
which at the same time asserts itselfin that t o which it is
:l e v o t e d But if all empirical existence h as been reduced
:0 reality family people profession state world and
f this reality fails then we can conquer the despair o f
10thingness only through the self assertion which
:ran sce n ds the reality o f the world which s tands alon e
J e fo re God and exi sts o u t o f God O nly in dev otion t o
.
,
,
’
,
.
—
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,
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,
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,
,
,
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,
-
,
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83
,
WAY TO WISD OM
0d
the world is thi s selfhood granted a
eceiv e d as th e freedom t o ass e rt it in the world
and
not to
.
Th e e phemeral subsistence o f the world between G
n d existence is the burden o f a myth
ib lical categories—conceiv es the world as the m
e st a tio n o f a transcendent history : from the crea
h ro u gh the fall o f man and the redemption t o the
f the world and the resurrection o f all things In
t
h
the world does not exist o u t Of itself but
y
assing stage in a transcendent process
ran sie n t but the rea lity in this transience
x istence T he eternal is manifested in the
o rld It is thus that man as an indiv idua
edge o f hi mself A nd in this m anifestation o f t
ternal there lies a paradox : for in it that whi ch
ternal as such is once again decided
!
.
.
,
.
.
.
.
FA I TH
A ND E N L
I GHTEN MENT
H A V E S T A T E D th e principles o f philosophi cal
God i s ; there is an unconditional imperative ;
is fi ni t e and imperfec t i ble ; man can liv e in God s
reality o f th e world subsists ephemerally
11 G o d and existence These five propositions re
n fo rc e and l e nd imp e tus t o o n e another But each h as
t s o w n source in a fundamental experience O f exist e nce
N one Of these five principles is d e monstrable in th e
ense o f a limited insight into Obj e cts in the world
”
”
only be pointed o u t
elucidat e d
”
r e asoning recalled to mi nd They do
n st it u t e a cr e ed fo r despite th e force o f the fai th
placed i n them they remain in the susp e nsion o f
o w le dge I follow them not b e cause I accept a
die n ce to an authority but b e cause by my
cannot e lud e their truth
b statem e nts Of principles fill us wi th misgivi n g
are t o o readily treated like a body o f knowledge
his vitiates their purpos e They are t oo readily
into a dogma which is subs tituted for r e ality
should b e commu nicated in order that m e n may
rst a n d o n e another through th e m in order that
may be confirmed by communicati on i n order
they may awaken men wh e n cond i ti ons are
e But by the defi nit eness o f their statement
ris e to ps e udo kn owledge
’
.
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.
.
“
,
,
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-
.
85
WAY TO WISD OM
S tatement demands discussion For when we think
there are always tw o possibilities : we may arriv e at th
truth o r we may miss it Thus ev ery positive st at e m en
demands safeguards against error and side by sid
with the ordered building up Of thought we find per
version Consequently all positive exposition must b
permeated by negative j udgments limitation an
critique But in philosophical thought this battle 0
discussion is not a struggle for power ; it is a struggle fO
lucidity through questioning a struggle for clarity an
truth in which we allow our adv ersary all thos
weapons of the intellect with which we defend o ur o w
faith
In philosophizing I hav e recourse to direct state
ment where a direct question is asked Is there a G o d
Is there an unconditional imperativ e in our life ? I
man i m perfectible ? Is there guidance by God ? Is th
reality o f the world suspended and ephemeral ? I an
compelled to answer whe n I am confronted by t h t
principles characterizing lack of faith which are mor <
or less as follows :
First : There is no G o d for there is only the w o rlc
and the laws gov erning its process ; the world is God
S econd : There is no unconditional imperativ e ID!
the imperatives which I Obey originated in time an t
are in process of change They are determ ined b
custom habit tradition Obedience ; ev erything
contingent upon somethi ng else ad in fi nit um
T hird : M an is perfectible for man can be just a
perfect in his way as the animal ; it w ilf b e possible t<
breed a perfect man There is no inherent funda
m ent al i mperfecti on o r frailty in man Man is n(
.
.
,
,
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,
,
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,
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x
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,
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'
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86
F
AITH AND E NLIGHTENMENT
m e diat e
being but complet e and whole True
ev erything else in the world he is transient but he
ed in himself independent adequate t o
his world
There is no guidance by God This guid
e is an illusion and a self deception M an has the
n gt h t o follow himself and can rely o n h is o w n
r
,
.
,
,
,
.
.
-
.
n gt h
.
The world is ev erything its reality is the sole
enti e reality S ince there is no transcendence
in the world is indeed transient but the
elfis absolute it is eternal and not ephemeral
transition and suspension
dealing with such statements Of lack Of faith
osophy has a twofold task : to apprehend their
igin and to elucidate the truth o f faith
,
.
,
,
,
,
.
.
L ack o f faith is generally regarded as a product Of
!
?
e Enlightenment But what is enlightenment
T he teachings Of enlightenment are directed against
e blindness which accepts ideas as true without
them ; against actions—c g
magical
sti o h in g
o n s—which
cannot accomplish what they are
to accomplish since belief in their e fficacy
o n assumptions whi ch can be pro v ed false ;
gainst restrictions on questioning and inquiry ;
gainst traditional prejudices E nlightenment de m ands
n unlimited striving for insight and a critical aware
.
,
,
.
p im ily
E li ght m t A
i g ifi t philo ophi l ttit d
li ght m
t i oppo d to
d
p j di
yt hi g l th t ob t t th d p t p p h
po to lity
not
n
n
s
rsti t io n,
n
of
can
re u
and res
ns e
s
c e , an
rea
an
.
ca
n
a
e se
u
e,
a
en
en
s ru c s
en
en
e
ee
r
en
s
es
ar
.
s a
se
a
re
en
WAY T O WISD OM
Ma n striv es
understand what he bel
desires and does He wants to think for hims
wishes to grasp with his understanding and
possible to hav e proof of what is true He wants
knowledge t o be based o n experience which is fun
mentally accessible to ev eryone He seeks paths t o
source o f insight instead o f permitting it t o be s
before him as a finished product whi ch he need on
accept He wishes to understand to what degree
proof is v alid and at what limits the understanding
frustrated A nd he would like also to hav e a re
basis for the indemonstrable premise which h
ultimately take as the foundation Of his life
authority he follows of the v eneration he
respect in w h ich he holds the thoughts an
great men of the trust which he
which whether only at this p artic
particular situation o r in
unfathomable
why he obeys
true and ev ery t
right to this condition ; he
it inwardly A nd such participation must be
self conviction In short : enlightenment i
words Of Kant
man s departure from the conditio
”
Of immaturity for which he himself is responsible I
t ruth it is the path by which man comes to himself
to
.
,
,
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.
.
.
,
,
,
‘
,
,
.
.
.
-
.
’
.
.
But the demands Of enlightenment are so eas
misunderstood that the ve ry term is ambiv alent T
can be true and there can be false enlightenment A n
accordingly the fight agains t enlightenment is itsel
.
.
88
T
r
u
een
lightening,
n
otfrom
ou
tsid
e by
,
WAY T O WISD OM
limit upon questioning is aware Of the factua l li mi
Fo r it n o t only elucidates prejudices and
beliefs which were hitherto unquestioned
elucidates itsel f It does not confound the m
the understanding with the contents o f h
In it s view these contents can be elucidated b
rational understandi ng but they cannot b e base
upon the understanding
,
.
.
L et us now discuss som e ofthe attacks that hav e be
made on enlightenment I t has been called the
e ro ga t io n o f man who wishes t o o w e only
what has been besto wed upon him by grace
Those who make t hi s accusation fail to reco g
that God does not speak through the commands
rev elations of other men but in man s selfhood
through his freedom not from without
within A ny restriction o n man s freedom
i
l
l
n
W
h
m
a
u
l
a
e
r
s
v
G o d and oriented toward God is a rest rict io
theyreject our(on
v e ry thing through which G o d
a
t
t
ainlm
W
t
o
O
enemies Of enlightenment rebel against God
P
h
i
l
seh
i
a
l
u
i
o
c
s
c
i
é
fav our Of supposedly divi ne but actually
p p
lnoppositiontot
cont e nts o f faith i njunctions prohi bitions i
therecanbelt
and rules Of conduct wherein as in all thi n
W
iflw
u
tatrucsdc
folly and wisdom are inextricably
cease questioning these things is to renounce the hum situationmakethis;
mission The rejection Of enlightenment is a kind 0 manfallsintothem
O
ffanaticaldecisim
treason against man
O ne O f the m ain ele m ents of enlightenment i Barriersareerette
a science free from preconceiv ed n o tio
science
W
hytheseam
whose searching and questioning are not limited
ot in
ai m s and truths set forth in adv ance ( apart from such N
frequent!
.
,
.
’
,
’
,
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,
,
,
,
.
.
,
,
,
F
AITH AND ENLIGHTENMENT
cal humanitarian restrictions as those forbi ddi ng
use O f m e n as objects Of experiment )
We hav e heard the outcry : S cience d estroys faith
reek science could be built into faith and was useful
r its elucidation but modern science is utterly
s I t is a pur ely historical phenomenon resulting
catastrophic world crisis We may expect i ts end
d should do o u r utmost t o hasten it These critics
u b t the eternal truth which shines forth i n modern
enc e They deny the dignity Of man which is today
lo n ge r p o ssib le without a scientific attitude They
philosophical enlightenm e nt which they as
ate only with the flatness o f the und e rstanding and
with the breadth o f reason They turn against
seeing only the congealed liberalism Of
ralism
and superficial faith in progress n o t the
force o f liberality They attack toleranc e as
indi fference and fail to recognize the uni
man readiness fo r communication In short
r foundati on in human dignity in the
power to attain knowledg e in freedom and adv ocate
hil
sOp hi c al suicide
o
p
In opposition t o thes e beliefs we are certain that today
there can be no integrity reason o r human dignity
without a true scientific attitude where tradition and
situation make this attitude possible Where science is lost
man falls into the twilight o f v agu ely edifying sentiments
Of fanatical decisions arriv ed at in self willed blindness
Barriers are erected man is led into new prisons
,
’
.
.
,
.
.
.
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‘
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,
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,
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,
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,
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,
-
.
,
.
Why these attacks o n enlightenment ?
No t infrequently they grow o u t o f an urge to
1
9
WAY TO WISD OM
absurdity a driv e to set men up as m o u th p ie
and Obey them They arise out of passion fo r
whi ch no longer follows the laws Of the day
the experience O f the botto m le ss builds a s
saving pseudo order without foundation A nd
grow out of the unfaith of those who in their desir
faith persuade themselv es that they hav e a faith
o u t of a will to power which fosters the belief that
are more compliant when they are blindly su
to an authority which is an instrument Of thi s power
O ften the enemies o f enlightenment hav e invoke
Christ and the N ew T esta m ent—rightly SO if they ha
in mind certain churches and theologies down thron g
the centuries but u nj ust ifi ab ly if they were thi nki
of the source and tr uth of the biblical religion as such
for these are aliv e in true enlightenment they are
elucidated by p hilosophy which helps perhaps to pre
serv e the m fo r humanity in the new technological world
If the attacks on enlightenm ent Often seem meaning
ful it is because O f the perv ersions O f enlightenment
which are indeed Open to attack What makes the
ff
er
v
ersions
possible
is
the
di
iculty Of the task It is
p
true that the enthusiasm with which ev ery newly
awakening man attains freedom an d through it a
greater sense o f Openness t o the godhead goes hand in
h and with enlighten m ent But soon enlightenment may
become an unwarranted aspiration For God is not
heard unequiv ocally o u t O f freedo m but only in the
course Of lifelong e ff ort through m oments when man is
granted what he could nev er attain by thought M en
cannot always bear the burden Of critical non
knowledge in mere readiness to listen at the proper
,
.
-
.
,
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,
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,
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.
.
FAITH AND ENLIGH TENMENT
ment He desires defini te knowledge Of the ulti
.
h e h as
rejected faith he abandons himself to
lect as such and from it falsely expects c er
But since
e decisiv e questions o f life
t provide such certainty his expecta
by
deceptions
the
finite
and
:
y
te so m etimes this sometimes that and 8 0 o n
variations is absolutized into the whole A
category is taken fo r cognition as such The
O f persevering self examination gives way
ov erweening trust in a definitiv e pseudo certainty
en claim absolute truth for opi ni ons based o n acci
and situation and in their pseudo lucidity
nt
m b to a new blindness In its assertion that man
now and think everything o n the basis of his o w n
such enlightenment is indeed arbitrary I t
rts this impossible claim by undisciplined half
,
,
.
,
,
,
,
,
.
.
-
-
.
-
,
.
.
.
cannot combat all these perv e rsions o f e nligh t en
by abolishing thought but only by a realization
u gh t with its full potentialities with its critical
ness Of limi ts and its v alid accomplishments
sustain the test Of knowledge O nly a develop
Of thought ac hi ev ed through the self education
whole man can prev ent any body Of thought
whatsoever from becoming a poison ; can prevent
enlightenment from becoming an agent o f death
,
.
-
.
The purest enlightenment recognizes that it cannot
dispense with faith T he five propositions of p hi lo so
fa
i
th
cannot
be
demonstrat
e
d
l
ke
scient
i
fic
a
l
i
hi
c
p
.
93
WAY
T O WISD OM
theses It is not possible to impose faith by ration
means by any science o r philosophy
It is a fallacy o f false enlightenment to suppose
the understanding by itself alone can know truth
being T he understanding is dependent o n somet
else A s sci e ntific cognition it is dependent o n
experience A s philosophy it is dependent o n c
o f faith
The understanding can inde e d clarify
dev elop thought but that which lends its Opinion
O bj ectiv e significance its thought fulfilment it
action purpose its philosophy authentic content m us
be giv en t o it
The s ource Of these premises upon which t ho ugh t t
must depend is ultimately unknowable They are;
rooted in the Comprehensive out o f which w e live If f
the force o f the Comprehensive fails us we incline to ;
the fiv e negativ e propositions Of unfaith
The pre m ises Of sensory experience com e from th e :
world the premises Offaith hav e their source in histo ri
cal tradition In this outward form the premises are
merely guides by which we find o ur way to the
authentic premises Fo r the outward premises are
subject to constant testing not only by the under
standing as a judge who Of himself knows what is true
but by the understanding as an instrument : the
understanding tests experience by other experience ;
it also tests traditional faith by traditional faith and in
so doing tests all tradition by the original awakening Of
its contents out Of the primal source Of o u r o w n self
hood T he sciences provide those necessary insights
into experience which no o n e following the pr escribed
.
.
,
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94
FAITH AND EN LIGHTENMENT
1 b’ r
l ati
e t h o ds
aso n e d
can elude ; while philosophy through its
ro ac h to tradition
makes
possible
our
a
pp
,
‘
,
cannot combat unfaith directly but we can
t the demonstrably false claims of rationalistic
se u dO knowledge and the claims o f faith that ass um e
falsely rational form
The principles o f p hi losophical faith become false
when they are taken as communication o f a content
For none of these principles implies an absolute O bj ect ;
they are to be taken as the symbol o f an infinity b eco m
i ng concrete Where th i s infini ty is present in faith the
endl ess reality Of the world takes on meaning as its
ma ni festation But thi s meani ng must sti ll be inter
-
.
.
,
.
.
r
e
d
e
t
p
.
When the philosopher utters these principles Of
faith they assume an analogy t o a creed The p hi lo
sopher should n o t exploit his nonknowledge in order to
ev ade all answers He must be circumspect in his
philosophizing and repeat : I do not know ; I do not
ev en know whether I believe ; however such faith
expressed in such propositions strikes me as meani ng
ful ; I will venture to believ e in this way and I hope I
shall have the strength to live by my faith In philo
Sophy there wi ll always be a tension between the
seemi ng indecision Of the susp ended utterance and the
reality of resolute conduct
.
,
.
,
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.
95
T HE H I S T O RY O F MAN
!
NO R E A L I T Y I s more essential to our s elf aw aren e
-
than history It shows u s the b ro ade
ki nd brings us the contents Of tr
shows us standards by which
o u r life is built
measure the present frees us from u n co nscio u
bondage to o u r o w n age teaches us to see man in hi
highest potentialities and hi s imperishable creations
We can make no better use of leisure tha
familiarize ourselv es and keep ourselv es familiar
the glories o f the past and the catastrophes in
everything has be en shattered We gain a
understanding Of o ur present experience if we see it in
the m irror o f history A nd hi story becomes aliv e for us
when we regard it in the light of our own age O ur life
becomes richer when past and present illumine on e i
another
It is only the concrete parti cular history which is ;
close to us that truly concerns us Yet in our p hilo so
hi
al approach t o history we inevitably deal in
c
p
certain ab st ractio n S u
.
,
,
,
,
.
.
.
.
.
,
.
History sometimes appears t o be a chaos o f acci
dental happeni ngs an eddying flood It passes o n
fro m o n e turm oil from one catastrophe to the next with
brief intervals of happiness little islands which it
I thi
h pt
t in p g f om my book V m U p g d Zi l d
G hi ht h
b
p od d b tim
,
.
,
,
,
,
n
esc
c
s c
e
a
av e
er cer a
ee n re
r
assa es
uce
v er
r
a
6
9
o
.
rs run
an
e
ef
WAY T O WISD OM
as is shown by painting s and remains of tools Bu
only for the last fiv e to six thousand years that we h
had a documented coherent hi story
History breaks down into four basic s egm e nts :
First : We can only infer the first great steps towar
the use of language the invention o f tools the kin
and use o f fir e This is the P romethean
tion Of all hi story through which man became
distinction to a purely biologically defined
speci es o f which we can scarcely conceive
this was over what v ast periods of time the p ro
tended we do not know But this age
in the v ery remote past and it must have been many
times longer than the comparatively insignificant
span o f time cov ered by o ur documented historica l
era
S econd : The ancient high civilizations grew up
between 5000 and 3000
in E gypt M esopotamia
and o n the Indus somewhat later o n the Hwang
River in China These are little islands o f light amid
the broad mass of mankind which already populated
the whole planet
Third : In the years centring around 500 B C
from 8 00 to 2 00—the spiritual foundations o f huma nity
were laid Simultaneously and independently in China
India P ersia P alestine and Greece A nd these are
the foundations upon which hu m anity still subsis t s
today
Fourth : S ince then there h as been only o n e entirely
new spiritually and materi ally incisiv e ev ent equal t o
the others in historical significance : the age o f science
a n d tec h nology I t was foreshadowed in E urope at the
.
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8
9
THE HISTORY OF MAN
of
the M iddle A ges ; its theoretical groundwork
laid in the se v enteenth century ; at the end o f the
t e e n th century it entered on a period Of broad
rowth and in the last few decades it has advanced at
headlong pac e
,
.
L et us cast a glance at the third s egm e nt that o f the
ears around 500
Hegel h as said
A ll hi story
5 toward Christ and from Christ
T he appear
o f the S o n of God is the axis o f hi story
O ur
re m inds us every day o f thi s Christian
of history The flaw in this view Of history is
can have meaning only for belie v ing Christians
ev en Western Christians hav e n o t built their em
cal view Of history o n their faith but have drawn
essenti al distinction between sacred and profane
story
If there is an axis in history we must find it em
i
ric all
p
y in profane history as a set o f circumstances
significant for all men including Christians I t must
carry conviction for Westerners A siatics and all men
without the support o f any particular content of
faith a n d thus provide all men with a common his
t o rical fra m e o f reference
The spiritual process which took place between 8 00
and 2 00
seems to constitute such an axis I t was
then that the man with whom we liv e today came into
”
being L et us designate this period as the axial age
E xtraordinary ev ents are crowded into this period In
China li ved Confucius and Lao T se all the trends in
Chinese philosophy arose it was the era o f M O Tse
Chuang Tse and countless others In India it was the
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WAY
WISD OM
TO
age of th e Upanishads and o f Buddha ; as i
philosophical trends including skepticism
a lism sophistry and nihilism were de v eloped In Ira
Z arathustra put forward his challengi ng c o n cep tio
o f the cosmic process as a struggle between good an
evil ; in P ales t in e prophets arose : E lij ah
Jeremiah Deutero Isaiah ; Gr e ece produced
th e philosophers P arm e nides Heraclitus P l
tra gi c po e ts Thucydides and A rchimedes A ll
d eve l opment o f which these names are a mere inti
tion took plac e in these few centuries independe
and almost s i multaneously in China India and t h
West
The n ew el e ment i n thi s a ge is that man ev ery w h ered
became aware o f bein g as a whole of himself and his !
limits He experi e nced the horror Of the world and his
o w n helplessn e ss
He raised radical questions ap
ro ac h e d th e abyss in his dri v e for liberation and
p
redemption A nd in consciously apprehending his
li mi ts h e set hi mself the highest aims He experienced
the absolute in the depth of s elfhood and in the clarity
Of transcendence
Conflicting poss i bi lities were explored Discussion
partisans hi p intell e ctual schi sms ( though wi thin a
common frame of refer e nce ) gave rise t o mov e ment
and unrest borderi ng o n spiritual chaos
This era produced the basic categories in which we
still thi nk and created th e world r eligions o u t of which
men still live
The opinions customs conditions whi ch had
hi therto enjoyed unconscious acceptance came to be
questi oned The world w as thrown into turmoil
I OO
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WAY T O WISD OM
And the sociological conditi ons o f all three re gi
rev eal analogies : innumerable pet ty states and cities
struggle of all against all and yet at first an ast o ni shi
prosperity
But these centuries in which so much h
were not characterized by a simple asc ending
ment There was destruction and creation at 0
there was no fulfilment The supreme
reali zed in individuals did not become
heritage What started o u t as freedom 0
became anarchy in the end O nce t h e
creative impetus ideas congealed into
levelling occurred in all three spheres A s the diso
grew intolerable men sought new bonds and
stability
T he end w as first characterized by political dev
ments Vast despotic empires arose almost si
t
h
T
sin
S
hi
Huangti
in
India
o u sly in C hi na
(
(
)
M aurya dynasty) in the West ( the He llenist i
empires and the Imperium R omanum) Ev e ry w h er
systematic order and technical organization emerge
from the collapse
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T he spiritual life of men is still oriented toward the
axial age China India and the West hav e all wit
n e sse d conscious attempts to restore it renaissances
True there hav e been great new spiritual creations
but they have been inspired by ideas acquired in the
axial age
Thus the main line o f history runs fro m the birth Of
humanity through the civilizations of high anti
u
i
q t y to the axial age and its o ffshoots which
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10 2
THE HISTO RY
ayed a cr e ativ e role up
to
O F
MAN
of
th e dawn
our
ow n
S ince then a new li ne would se e m to hav e be gun
ag e Of science and technolo gy is a kind o f second
able t o the first i nventi on o f tools
.
If we may venture a pr e sumption by analogy we
hall pass through vast planned organizations analogous
0 those of E gypt and the other ancient high civi liza
from whi ch the ancient Jews emigrated and o n
when they laid a new foundation they look e d
hatred as a place Of forc e d labour P erhaps
kind will pass through these giant organizations
new axial age still remote invisible and in
eiv ab le an axial age Of auth e ntic human upsurge
ay we are livi ng in an era o f the most
It seems as though everything
at ast ro p h e s
ad been transmitted t o u s were being melted
and yet there is no convinci ng s i gn that a new
is in the making
is new is that in o ur day history is for the
becoming world wide in Scope M easured by
which modern communications hav e given
be all previous history is a mere a ggreg ate o f
cal histories
—
What we formerly called history is ended an
t e rm e diary m oment o f five thousand years between
prehistoric centuries in which the globe was p o p u
d and the world history which is now be ginning
millennia measur e d by the preceding era o f
an s existence and by future possibilities ar e a
in u t e i n terval In t hi s inte rval m e n may be said t o
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103
WAY
TO
WISD OM
have gathered together t o hav e mustered t
forces for the ac ti on o f world history to hav e acquire
the intellectual and technical equipment they neede
for the journey which is just be ginning
We must look to horizons such as these when
incline to take a dark view o f the realities of o u r
and to regard all hum an history as lost We
j ustified in believing in the future pote
humani ty In the short view al l is gloom in the 1
view it is not But this becomes evident only in
light o f history as a whole
T he more fully we realize ourselv es in the pres
seeki ng the truth and ascertaining the criteria
humanity the more confidently we may look to t h
future
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A nd now as to the meaning of history Those w h o 1
believ e that the historical process h as an aim Often
striv e to reali ze it by planning
But we become aware o f o ur helplessness when we
seek t o p lan and organize history as a whole T he:
overweening plans of rulers based upon a supposed
total knowledge o f history hav e always ended in
catastrophe The plans devised by indivi duals in their
restricted circles fail o r else contribute to unleashing
quite di ff erent unplanned complexes of ev ents T he
historical process can be seen either as an irresistible
mechanism or as an infinitely interpretable meaning
which manifests itself by unexpected n ew ev ents
which remains always equivocal a meaning which
ev en when we entrust ourselves to it is never known
to us
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104
WAY
WISD OM
T O
ev erything if partaking o f the primal sourc e
entrust myself t o transcendence
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We cannot define the ultimate aim o f his t ory but
can posit an aim which is itself a p re m ise fo r
realization of the highest human potentiali ties A n
that is the unity of mankind
Unity cannot be achieved t h rough any ratio n a
scientific univ ersal T his would produce a unity
understanding but not o f mankind No r does
reside in a univ ersal religion such as might be arriv e
at through discussion at religious congresses N or ca
it be realized through a conv entional language base
o n reason and common sense Unity can be gained 0
from the depth of historicity n o t as a comm
knowable content but in boundless c o m m unic at
o f the historically di ff erent in never ending dia log
rising to heights of noble e m ulation
A dial ogue Of thi s sort which will be worthy
man requires an area o f freedom from violenc e
practical unity o f men striving for such an area
nonviolence seems conceiv able and many
already taken it as their goal This goal o f uni
manki nd at least o n the basic lev els of life which does
not imply a common and univ ersal faith does no ti
seem entirely utopian Its reali zation will require a
stubborn political struggle against the powers that
be —
and o ur v ery situation may well drive us into such
a struggle
P rerequisite for such a uni ty is a political form upon
which all can agree since it provides the best possibl e
basis of freedom fo r all This form which only in the
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106
THE HISTORY OF MAN
st
h as been developed in theory and
ed , is the constitutional state built on
in part
elections
law s which are subject t o modifica tion solely
means In such a state men battle to gain
on for the just cause to win public opinion
widespread and enlightened education and
served dissemination o f news
would be no wars in a constituti onal world
r where no state would possess absolute sovereignty
mankind itself acting through it s constituti onal
n s would be sovereign
desires communication and aspires
through a constitutional order
ust is moving toward justice we
not be helped by an optimism born o f e n t h u
for such ideas which sees the future as all
t For we hav e every reason to take the opposite
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We see each o f us in ourself th e self will the
sist a n c e to self elucidation the sophistry with which
is used as an instrument o f o b fusc a
we see rej ection of the unfamiliar in the place o f
m u n ic atio n We see the pleasure men take in
er and violence ; we see how the masses are swept
war ; stricken with blind lust for gain and ad
ure willing to sacrifice e v erything even their
O n the other hand we see the unwillingness o f
masses to depriv e themselves to save to work
and quietly toward the building o f stable
and we see the passions which force their
ost unobstructed into the background o f the
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10 7
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WAY T O WI SD O M
A nd quite apart from the charact e r of men we
the irremediable inj usti ce o f all insti tutions w e
situations which cannot be solv ed by j usti ce
situations arising for example from the increase
r e distrib u tl o n o f the population or from t h
possession by o n e group o f somethi ng
desire and which cannot be divided
Hence there seems almost to be an
limi t at which vi olence in some form must a
through O nce again we are faced with the qu es
is it God or the devil who governs the world ? A n
though we may believ e that ultimately the d evil is i
th e s e rvi ce o f G od th ere is no proof o f i t
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Wh e n in o ur isolati on we se e our li ves s eeping
a s a mere succession o f moments tossed
about by accidents and overwhelming events ;
we contemplate a history that seems to be at an
leav i ng only chaos behi nd it then w e ar e imp elle
raise ourselv es abov e hi story
Y et we must remain aware Of o u r e poch and
situation A modern p hi losophy cannot d ev
without elucidati ng its roots in time and in a p
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t i ons o f o u r
epoch it is not from thes
we draw o ur p hi losophy but now as at al l
the C omprehensiv e We must n o t adjust
t i aliti es to the low level of o u r age not 5
Ourselves t o o ur epoch but attempt by elu ci
the age to arriv e at the poi nt wh e re w e can live o u
o u r primal source
N or must we deify hi story We need not acc ept
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108
THE
I N DE P E N DE N T P H I L O S O P H E R
TH E I N D E P E N D E N C E O F man is rejected by al
totali tarianism by the totalitarian religion w h icl
claims exclusiv e truth as well as by the t o t alit ariar
state which melting down all humanity into materia
for its edifice o f power leav es no room for individuality
and ev en controls leisure activities in acco rdan c r
with an ideological line Today independence seem
to be silently disappearing beneath the inundation 0
all life by the typical the habit ual the u n q u est io n e c
commonplace
But to philosophize is to fight for our inner
n
d
n
e
e
ce
under
all
conditions
What
is
inne
p
ind ependence ?
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S ince late antiquity the philosopher h as bee
represented as an independent man Th e p o
has certain salient features : This philosoph
independent first because he is without needs
fro m the world of possessions and the rule Of pass
he is an ascetic ; second because he is without
for he has seen through the illusory terrors
religions ; third because he takes no part in
ment and politics and liv es without ties in p e ac
retirement a citizen o f the world In any case
I IO
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THE INDEPENDENT PHILOSOPHER
phi losopher believes that he has attain e d to a posi
t ion o f absolute independence a vantage point o u t
sid e o f things in which he cannot be mov ed o r
shaken
This philosopher has become an obj ect Of admira
ti on but also o f distrust True numerous philosophers
o f thi s type have disclosed rare independence through
pov erty celibacy aloofness from business and politics ;
they hav e manifested a happiness which did not
spring from anything eternal but from awareness
that life is a j ourney and from indi ff erence to the
blows o f fate B u t some of these figures also reveal
egoism and ambition pride and vanity a coldness in
human dealings and an ugly hostility to other phil
o so p h e rs A nd dogmatism is common to all o f them
Theirs is an impure independence which seems very
much akin to an ununderstood and sometimes
ridiculous dependence
N evertheless side by side with biblical religion
t hese phi losophers do O ff er a historical source o f
possible independence A cquaintance with them
encourages our o w n striving for independence perhaps
precise ly by showing u s that man cannot sustain him
self ih isolation and detachment This ostensible
absolut e freedom turns automatically into a new
dependence outwardly o n the world whose re co gni
tion is courted inwardly on u n clarifi e d passions The
road o f the philosophers of lat e antiquity o ff ers us no
promise A lthough some were magnificent personali
ties they created in their fight fo r fre e dom rigid
figures and masks without background
We see that ind ependence turns into it s Opposite
III
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WAY T O WISD OM
if it is held to be absolute A nd it is n o t easy
what sense we can striv e fo r indep endence
.
to
say i
.
The concept of independence is almost hopel ess
ambivalent Fo r example
The philosoph e r and the m e taphysician
particular sets up thought structu res like gam es
which he remains superior because o f hi s unlimit
power over the m But this gives rise to the q ue stio
Is man master o f his thoughts because he
and can carry on his creative game without
to a foundati on arbitrarily according to ru
he himself h as devi sed enchanted by its form
conversely because he is oriented toward G o d a
thus remains superior to the discourse in which
m ust inevitably clothe absolute being whi ch
never fit the absolute and hence needs t o be
adjusted ad in fi nit u m ?
Here the independence o f the philosopher cou si
in his n o t succumbing to his ideas as dogmas but
maki ng himself master o v er them But mastery
one s ideas remains ambivalent— does it mean
arbitrary freedom from ties o r does it imply ti es in
t ranscendence ?
A nother example : In order t o gain o ur in dep e n d
ence we seek an A rchimedean point outside o f the
world This is an authentic quest but the question is
Is this A rchimedean point an outsideness which makes
m an a ki nd o f God in his total independence o r is it the
outside point where he truly meets G o d and ex p er
ie n ce s his only complete independence which alon e
can mak e him independent in the world ?
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1 12
WAY T O WISD OM
e loquent turns o f phrase and striki ng imag es i n dis
regard o f communication—all this dictatori al languag e
o f wi sdom and prophecy is n o t enough
Thus those w h o are deluded i nto supposin g that
they possess being as such often e nd e av our t o make man
forget himself M an is dissolved in ficti ons o f b ei ng
and yet these ficti o ns thems elv es always conceal a
possibl e road back to man ; hidden dissati sfaction may
lead t o the r e cov ery o f the authentic seriousness which
becomes real only in existential pr esence and casts o ff
the ruinous attitude o f those w h o tak e life as it is and
do what they pleas e
This irresponsible type o f indep e ndence i s also
manifested in intellectual opportunism A n irre sp o n
sible playing with contradictions permi ts such a man
to take any position he finds conv enient He is versed
in all methods but adheres strictly to non e H e espouses
an unscientific attitud e but makes scientific gestures
H e is a Proteus wriggling and changing you cannot
grasp hold o f him he actually says nothing but seems
to be promising something extraordinary He exerts
an attraction by vague hints and whi sperings which
give men a sense o f the mysterious N o authentic
discussion with him is possible but only a talking
”
back and forth about a wide variety o f interesti ng
things Conversation with him can be n o more than an
aimless pouring forth o f false emotion
Irresponsibl e independence can take th e form o f
indi ff erence t o a world that has grown intolerable
What does death matter ? It will come What is
ther e to be p e rturbed about ?
We live in the j oy o f o ur vitality and the pai n of its
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THE INDEPENDENT
P
HILOSOPHER
b b ing away A natural Y es permits u s at all times t o
ee l and to think according to circumstance We are
np ole m ic al What is the good o f taking sides ? L ove
n d tend erness are possible but they are at the mercy
f time , o f the ephemeral , of the transient as such
l othing is unconditional
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t
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i
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We drift along without desire to do o r to be any
hing in particular We do what is asked o f us o r what
ee m s appropriate Genuine emotion is absurd We are
l Cl
l
in
our
e
v
e
yday
dealings
with
men
r
p
N o horizon no distance neither past nor future
ust ain this life which expects nothing and liv es only
[ ere and now
The many forms of illusory independenc e to whic h
ve can succumb cast suspicion upon independence
tself This much is certain : in order to gain true
nde e n de n c e we must not onl
p
y elucidate these various
orms of independence but achiev e awareness o f the
imi ts o f all independence
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A bsolute independence is impossible In thinki ng we
we d ependent on experience which must be given us
11 living we are dependent on others with whom we
tand in a relation of mutual aid As selfhood we ate
le p en de n t on other selfhood and it is only in com
n u nic a t io n that we and the others come truly to
m rselv e s There is no isolated freedom Where there is
re e do m it struggles with unfreedom and if unfreedom
NCI C fully o v ercome through the elimination of all
e sist an c es freedom itself would cease
A ccordingly we are independent only wh en we are
I cannot
i t the same t ime enmeshed in the world
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1 15
WAY T O WISD OM
achi e v e independence by abandoning the worl
Indeed independence i n the world i m plies a par
attitude toward the world : to be in it and yet n o t in
to be both inside it and outside it This thought
shared by great thinkers o f the m ost v ary ing trends :
With regard to all experiences pleasures states
happiness and unhappiness Aristippus says
but I am not had ; S t P aul tells hi s followers h o w to t
part in earthly li fe : have as though y o u had n o t ;
B h agav ad Gita admo ni shes us to perform the task b
not to striv e after its fruits ; Lao Tse counsels man
act through inaction
These imm ortal sayings might be interpr e ted
infi nit u m Here we need only say that they all expr
inner independence O ur independence o f the
is inseparable from a mode o f dependenc e o n
world
A second limi t to independence is that by itself alon
it negates itself
Independence has been negatively formulat e d as
freedom from fear as indi ff erence to fortune good or
bad as the imperturbability of the thinker as mer e
spectator as i m m u ni ty to emotions and impulses But
the self who achi ev es such independence is reduced t o
the abstract punctuality o f the ego
Independence does n o t derive its content from itself
It is no t any innate gift it is not vi tality race t he will
to power it is not self cre ation
Phi losophical thought grows o u t of an independence
i n the world an independence signifyi ng an absolute
attachment to the world through transcending o f the
world A supposed independence without attachment
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1 16
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WAY TO WISD OM
w e do good only under the tacit conditi on that 0
good action will n o t be too harmful to o u r h ap p in e
and that this makes our good deed impure This is
ra di cal evi l that we cannot ov ercome
O ur independence itself requires help We can o n!
do o ur best and hope that somethi ng within
invisible to th e world — will in some unfathomable
come to o ur aid and lift us o ut o f o ur li m itati ons
only independ e nce possible for us is dependence o
transcend e nce
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I should li ke t o give some i ntimation o f how a
measure o f independence can be achiev ed i n p h iloso
hi
al thought today
c
p
L et u s not pledge ourselve s to any philosophi cal
school o r take formulable truth as such for the o n e and
exclusiv e truth ; let u s b e master of our thoughts ;
l et u s n o t heap up philosophical possessions but
apprehend philosophical thought as mov ement and
s e ek t o deepen it ;
let u s battle for truth and humanity in u n co n
ditio n al communication ;
let us acquir e the power t o learn fro m all the past
by making it o u r own ; let u s listen to o ur con
temporaries and remain open to all possibilities ;
let each o f us as an individual immerse hi ms elf in
his o w n historicity in hi s origin in what he has done ;
let him possess himself of what he was of what he
has become and of what has been giv en to hi m ;
l et u s n o t cease to grow through our own historicity
into the historicity o f man as a whole and thus make
ours e lves into citi zens of the world
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1 18
S
u
S
C
S
u
a
dc
sn
l
f
u
e
n
s
o
is C q
m
o
o
r
s
u
d
h
in
!
r
s
u
o
eto
m
s
o
1
o
d
n
dthe
a
n
t
dependen
in
ing, despair
butnot over
n
i
su
w
ro
g p
Philosoph
THE INDEPENDENT PHILO SOPHER
We l end littl e cr e dence to a philosopher who
b able ,
is
we do not believ e in the calm o f the
we do not even desire to be unm ov ed for it is our
[ manity itself which drives us into passion and fear
rd causes us in tears and rejoicing t o experience what
Consequently only by rising from the chains that
a d us to o u r emotions not by destroying them do we
m e t o oursel v es H e nce w e must venture to be me n
r
d th e n do what we can to mo v e forward t o o u r true
dependence Then we shall su ff er without complain
g despair without succumbing ; we shall be shaken
i t not ov e rturned fo r the inner independence that
ows up in u s will sustain us
P hilosophy is the school of thi s independ e nce it is
D
I the possession o f ind epend e nce
r e rt u r
p
oic ,
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1 19
THE PHI LOSO PHI CAL LIFE
IF O U R L I V E S are no t t o b e d iff us e and m eaningless
they must find their place in an ord e r In o u r
a ff airs w e must be sustained by a co
principl e we must find mea ni ng in an edifice o f w
fulfilment and sublime mom e nts and by repeti
we must g ai n in depth Then o ur liv es even in t
p e rformance o f monotonous tasks wi l l be p erm eat
by a mood arising from o ur conscious parti cipati on
a m e ani ng Then we shall be sustained by an awareness
o f the world and o f o urselves by th e history o f which
we are a part and in o u r o w n lives by m e mory and
loyalty
A n order o f thi s sort may com e t o the indivi dual fro m r
the world in whi ch he w as born from the church
whi ch shapes and ani mat es the g reat steps from birth to
death and the little steps o f eve ryday life He will then
spontaneously fit hi s daily experience into that order
No t so i n a crumbling world whi ch puts less and less
faith in traditi on in a world whi ch subsists only as
outward order without symbolism and transcendence
which l e aves the soul empty and is n o t adequate to
man which when it leav es him free thrusts him back
upon his o w n resources in lust and boredo m fear and
indi fferenc e Here the in di vidual can rely only in him
se lf By li v i ng p hi losophically h e se e ks t o build up by
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12 0
WAY TO WISD OM
mere work in whose aims we immerse ourse lv es as
itself a road to self forgetfulness omission and gui
A nd to lead a philosophical life means also to
seriously our experience o f men of happiness and
o f success and failure of the obs c ure and the
It means not to forget but to possess ourselv e s
of our experience not t o let ourselves be distracted
t o think problems through n o t to take things
granted but to elucidate them
There are two paths o f philosophi cal life : the p
of solitary meditation in all its ramifications and
path o f communication with men o f mutual under
standing through acting speaki ng and keeping
silence together
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We men cannot do wi thout o u r daily moments o f
profound reflection In them we recapture o ur self
awareness lest the pres ence o f the primal source be
lost entirely amid the inevitable distractions o f daily
life
What the religions accomplish in prayer and w o r
ship has its phi losophical analo gy in explicit im
mersion in inner commu ni on with being itself This
can take place only in times and moments ( regardless
whether at the beginning o r end o f the day o r in
between ) when we are not occupied in the world with
worldly ai m s and yet are n o t left empty but are in
contact with what is most essential
Unlike religious contemp lation philosophical con
t e m p la t io n h as no holy obj ect no sacred place no
fixed form T he order which we giv e to it does n o t
become a rule it remains potentiality in free motion
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12 2
THE P HIL OSOPHICAL LIFE
contemplation unlike religious worship de
ands solitude
What is the possible content of such meditation ?
Firs t self refl ection I call to mind what I hav e done
ought felt during the day I ask myself wherein I
erred wherein I hav e been dishonest with m y
wherein I hav e ev aded my responsibilities
ein I ha v e been insincere ; I also try to discern
good qualities I have displayed and seek ways in
t o enhance them I reflect o n the degree o f
n scio u s control o v er my actions that I ha v e exerted
the course of the day I j udge myself— with regard
my particular conduct not with regard to the whole
I find
an that I am for that is inaccessible to me —
les in accordance with whi ch I resolv e to judge
perhaps I fix in my m ind words that I plan to
t o myself in anger in despair in boredom and
states in which the self is lost magic words as it
re m inders ( such as : observ e moderation think of
ther b e patient G o d is ) I learn from the tradition
runs from the P ythagoreans through the S toics
tians to Kierkegaard and Nietzsche with its
I realize that such
t o self re fl ection
can nev er be conclusiv e and that it is
infinitely susceptible to error
Guided by philos
S econd transcending refl ection
o p h ica l methods I gain awareness of authentic being
o f the godhead I read the sy m bols of being with the
help of literature and art I gain understanding of
the m by p hi losophical scrutiny I seek to ascertain
that which is independent of time or that which is
eternal in time seek to touch upon the source of my
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WAY T O WISD OM
freedom and through it upon being i tself; I se ek as i t
were to partake of creation
Third I reflect o n what should be done in the p resent
R emembrance o f my own life with men is the back
ground against which I clarify my present task down
to the details of this particular day when in the
inevitable intensity o f practical thinking I lose my
awareness o f th e Comprehens ive m e aning
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What I gain fo r myself alone in refl e cti on would
—
i
it were all—b e as nothing gained
What is n o t realised in communication i s not yet
what is not ultimately grounded in it is without
adequate foundation The truth begins with two
Consequently p hi losophy demands : seek constan
co m
munication risk it without reserv e renounce the
defiant self assertion which forces itself upon you in
ev er new disguises live in the hope that in your very
renunciation you will in some incalculable way be
giv en back to yourself
Hence I must constantly draw myself into doubt I
must n o t grow secure I must not fasten o n to any
ostensible light withi n m yself in the belief that it w ill
illumine me reliably and judge me truly S uch an
atti tude toward the self is th e most seductiv e form
o f inauthentic self assertion
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If I meditate in these three forms—self re fl ectio n
transcending meditation contemplation o f my task
and open myself to unlimited communication an
imponderable presence which can nev er be forced
may come to me : the clarity o f my love the hidden and
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12 4
WAY T O WI SD OM
world into transcendence without hearing any di
and unequiv ocal word of God but reading
symbols o f the polyvalent language o f things and y
living with the certainty o f transcendence
O nly transcendence can make this q u estio n ab
life good the world beautiful and existence itself a
fulfilment
Ifto philos ophize is to learn how t o die then we must
l earn h o w to die in order to lead a good life To learn to
live and to learn h o w to die are one and the same thing
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M editation teaches us the p ower of thought
Thought is the beginning o f human existence In
accurate knowledge of obj ects I experience the power
o f the rational as in the operations o f mathematics in
the natural sciences in technical planning A s my
method grows purer the logic ofmy syllogi sms becomes
more co m pelling I gain greater insight into chains o f
causality my experience becomes more reli able
But p hilosophical thought begins at the limits o f
this rational knowledge R ationality cannot help us in
the essentials : it cannot help us to posit aims and
ultimate ends to know the highest good to know G o d
and human freedom ; thi s inadequacy o f the ra ti onal
giv es ri s e to a kind o f thinking which whi le working
with the tools o f the understanding is m ore than
understanding Philosophy presses to the limits o f
rational knowledge and there takes fire
He who believ es that he understands ev erything is no
longer engaged in philosophical thought He who
takes scientific in sight for knowledge o f being itself and
as a whole has succumbed to scientific superstition
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12 6
THE PHILOSOPHICAL LIFE
who has ceased to be astonished has ceased to
stion He who acknowledges no mystery is no
seeker Because he humbly acknowledges the
f possible knowledge the philosopher remains
the unknowable that is revealed at those limits
cognition c e ases but not thought By tech
applying my knowledge I can act outwardly
n kn o w le dge makes possible an inner action by
I transform myself This is another and deeper
f thought ; i t is not detached from being and
toward an obj ect but is a process of my
rm o st self in which thought and being become
tical M easured by outward technical power
thought o f inner action is as nothing i t is no
o w le dge that can be possessed it cannot be
according to plan and purpose ; it is an
tic illumination and growth into being
understanding ( ratio) broadens our horizons ;
es obj ects reveals the tensions o f the existent
p e rmits what it cannot apprehend to stand
full force and clarity The clarity of the
understanding makes possible clarity at its limits and
arouses the authenti c impulses which are thought and
action inward and outward act in o n e
The philosopher is expected t o liv e according to h is
doctrine This maxim expresses poorly the thought
that lies be h ind it For the philosopher h as no doctrine
if by doctrine is meant a set of rules under which the
particular cases of empirical existence might be
subsumed as things are subsu m ed under e m pirical
species o r men s acts under j uridical norms P hilos
o h ic al ideas cannot be applied ; they are a reality in
p
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12 7
WAY TO WISD OM
themselv es so that we m ay say : in the fulfilment 0
these thoughts the man him self liv es ; o r life is p er
meated with thought That is why the p hi lo so
and the man are inseparable ( while man can be
sid ere d apart from his scientific knowledge ) ; and
is why we cannot explore philosophical ideas in
selv es but must at the same time gain awareness o f t h
philosophical humanity which conceived t h e m
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.
P hilosophical life is in constant p eril o f straying int
perv ersions in justification o f which phi
propositions are inv oked The formulae
date existence are distort e d by the vital will
P eace of mind is confu sed with passivity con
with an illusory faith in the harmony o f all
knowing how to die is mistaken for flight from
world reason for total in difl e ren ce The best
perv erted to the worst
The wi ll to communication is pervert e d i nto self
contradictory attitudes : we wish to be undisturbed
yet demand absolute self certainty in self illumination
We wish to be excused because of o u r nerves and yet
ask t o be recognized as free We ar e cautiou s and taci
turn and secretly o n our guard even while pro fessing
unreserved readiness for communication We think o f
ourselves whi le we ar e supposedly speaking o f the
idea
Th e p hi losopher who strives to understand and over
come these p erversions in himself knows his u m
certainty ; he is always o u the lookout for criticism he
seeks opposition and wishes to be called to question ;
he desires to list en not in order to submit but in order
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12 8
6
WAY T O WISD OM
attained perfect O ur states of being are only manifesta overtheWW
fl
“
0
o
tions o f existenti al striving or failure It lies in ou
thetog
C
U
l
w
n
ig
nature to be o n the way We strive to cut
eth
n
o
6
H
c
c
time That is possible only in polarities
n
1
iste
sx
t
l
a
c
h
l
O nly when we exi st entirely in this time o f
O
osp
l
h
i
p
s
e
h
h
c
hi storicity can we experi e nc e som e thin g o f the ete
i
h
w
ip
sh
h
o
t
l
e
s
pr esent
r
u
hest gg
O nly as d e t e rmi nate men e ach in his specificity ca andreeling
:
a
t
e
we exp erienc e humanity as such
r
t
r
e
a
e
W
O nly wh e n we exp erience o ur own age as o ur relinquishour
Comprehensive r e ali ty can we apprehend t h is ag e as arenot egnieu
part o f the unity o f history and this unity o f history as flutterings are
part of eterni ty
nthoscwhosit
In o ur ascending journey the primal source grows arcintelhgihlec
cl e ar e r for us behind o ur empirical states but ther
e
g
e “m
hesam
constant danger that it will return to obscurity
departure for
The ascent of philosophical life is the ascent o f
d
epen
ds which
i ndivi dual man He must accomplish it as
thoughincom
in communicati on and cannot shift responsibility
n
everbeeom
et}
others
We achiev e this ascent in the historically co ncre
elective acts of our life n o t by electing any so
weltanschauung laid down in propositions
A nd now in conclusion let u s v enture a metaphor
that may characterize the situation o f philosophy in
the temporal world
Having o riented himself on secure dry land
through realistic observ ation through the special
—
sciences
through logic and methodology the
phi losopher at the limits o f this land explores the
world o f ideas over tranquil paths A nd now like a
butterfly he flutters ove r th e ocean shore darting o
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130
THE PHILOSOPHICAL
LIFE
v er the water ; he spies a ship in which he would
k e t o go o n a v oyage o f discove ry to seek o u t the
n e thing which as transcendence is present in his
xistenc e
He peers after the ship— the method o f
hiloso p hical thought and philosophical life— the
1i
p which he sees and yet can never fully reach ; and
e struggles to reach it sometimes strangely staggering
nd reeling
We are creatures o f this sort and w e are lost if we
linquish o u r orientation to the dry land But we
re n o t content t o remain there
That is why o u r
utterings are so uncertain and perhaps so absurd
those who sit secure and content o n dry land and
re intelligible only to thos e who hav e been seized by
1e same unrest
For them the world is a point o f
ep art u re
fo r that flight upon whi ch ev ery thing
ep e n ds which each man must venture o n his o w n
ro u gh in common with other men
and which can
ever become the object o f any doctri ne
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13 1
THE H I S TO RY O F PH I LO S O PHY
P H I L O S O P H Y I S A S o ld as reli gion and o ld
than the churches In the stature and purity
champions and in the integrity o f its spirit i
usually though n o t always been o n a l ev el wi th t
world o f the church whose rights it recognizes in
speci fic sphere But wi thout sociological form o f
o w n it has been helpless in its confrontati on with t
church It has enjoyed the accidental protection
powers in the world including the
favourable sociological situations in order to r
itself in objective works Its authentic reality is
to ev ery man at all times and it is in some
omnipresent wherever there are men
The churches are for all philosophy for individu
The churches are visible orga ni zations wield
power ov er masses of m en in the world Philosophy is
an expression o f a realm o f minds linked with o n e
another through all peoples and ages ; it is represented
by no institution whi ch excludes or welcomes
A s long as the churches ha v e ti es with the E ternal
their outward power exploits the innermost energies
A s they draw the E ternal into the servi ce o f their power
i n the world this power like every other power in the
world grows si ni ster and evil
A s long as p hi losophy remains in contact wi th eternal
truth i t inspires without violence it brings order t o
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13 2
WAY
TO
WISD OM
aristocrat who felt that he could not engage in t
political activity befitti ng hi s rank because o f
moral degeneration : Bruno Descartes S pin
were solitary thinkers without any in stit u t io
them seeki ng the truth for its own sake ; A nselm
the founder o f an ecclesiastical aristocracy ; Thom
serv ant of the church ; Nicholas o f G usa a card
whose ecclesiastical and philosophical life
M achiavelli an unsuccessful statesman ; Kan
S chelling professors who dev eloped their philos
in connection with their teachi ng
We must rid ourselv es of the idea that p hiloso
activity as such is the a ff air o f professors It
see m to be the a ff air of man under all conditions
circumstances o f the slav e as o f the ruler We u m
stand the hi storical manifestation o f the truth o nly i
examine it in conjunction with the world
arose and the destinies of the men w h o c
If these manifestations are remote and alien to us
in itselfis illuminating We m ust seek the philosophical
idea and the thinker in their physical reality The
truth does not hover all alone in the air o f abstraction
The history o f p hi losophy comes aliv e f o r us when
by thorough study o f a work and of the world in which
it was produced we participate as it were in that work
After that we seek perspectiv es which will accord
us a view of the hi story o f philosophy as a whole i111
schemas which though questionable serve as guid es
by which to orient ourselv es in so v ast a region
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The whole of the history of philosophy throughout :
t w o and a half millennia is like a single vast moment
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134
THE HISTORY OF P HILO SO P HY
the growing self awaren ess o f man Thi s moment
ay be look e d upon as a never ending discussion
o f forces
sclo sin
clash
e
s
questions
that
seem
in
g
luble sublime works and regressions profound
and a turmoil of error
our study o f the history o f philosophy we seek a
which to situate philosophical ideas
through the history o f philosophy as a whole can
arn h o w philosophy dev eloped in relation to the
div erse social and politica l conditions and
rso n al situations
P hilosophy dev eloped independently in Chi na
dia and the West Despite occasional int ercom
these three worlds were so sharply
own to the ti m e of Christ s birth that e ach
in the main be studied in its o w n terms
date the strongest influence was that o f
Indian Budd hi sm o n China comparable to that o f
Christianity on the Western world
I n the three worlds the development follows a
si m ilar curv e A fter a preliminary hi story whi ch
it is difl i cult to clarify the fundamental ideas rose
ev erywhere in the axial age ( 8 oo—2 oo
A fter t his
there was a period o f dissolution in the course o f
which the great religions o f redemption were con
solidated ; there were recurrent periods o f renewal ;
there were all embracing systems ( S cholasticism) and
logical speculations of subli m e metaphysical i m port
carried to the utmost extreme
What was the specific Western character o f this
synchronistic dev elopment ? First it consisted in a
greater dynami s m bringing with it constant crises and
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135
WAY
TO
WISD OM
developments ; second in the greater div e rsity
languages and peoples m anifesting the ideas ; a
thi rd in the unique dev elopment of Western sci
Western philosophy falls historically into four
periods :
First : Greek philosophy trav elled the path from myth
to logos created the basic Western concepts the
categories and fundamental conceptions of being
whole of the world and m an For us it remains the
archetype of si m plicity ; in making it o ur o w n we
preserv e our clarity
S econd : Chris tian medieval philosophy trav elled the
path fro m biblical religion to its conc eptual under
standing from rev elation to theology It was more than
a conser v ativ e pedagogic S cholasticis m Creativ e
thinkers chief a m ong them S t P aul S t A ugustine
M artin Luther disclo sed a world which in its source
was religious and philosophical in one For u s it
re m ains to preserv e aliv e in our m inds the secre t of
Christianity as manifested in this wide real m o f
though t
T hird : M odern E uropean philosophy arose hand in
hand with m odern natural science and m an s new
personal rejection of all authority Kepler and
Galileo on the one hand Bruno and S p inoza on the
other represent the new roads For us it remains to
prese rve the true m eaning of science as they ap p re
hended it—although it was also perv erted fro m the
v ery outset— and of spiritual freedo m
Fourth : The philosophy of German idealism From
L essing and Kant to Hegel and S chelling w e hav e a
series o f thinkers who p erhaps excel all previous
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13 6
WAY T O WISD O M
endured for a thousand years was drawing to a cl
The r ep rese n t at w e philosophers o f the epoch
Kierkegaard and Nietzsche thinkers of a typ
had formerly not existed clearly related to the
thi s age ; and M arx who intell ectually a world
from them excelled all mod ern philosophers in
influence
A n extreme thinking became poss i ble w hi
questioned everything in order to penetrate t o t
profoundest source which shook O ff all encu m
in order to free the vision fo r an insight into existe
the unconditional and actuality in a world that
been radically transformed by th e technological
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We draw up schemas o f thi s sort in env isagi
history o f philosophy as a whole They are 5
fi cial I n o ur search for deeper meanings we may
touch o n such questions as these :
Firs t : Is there a unity in the his tory of philosophy ? This
unity is no t fact but idea We seek it but attain only t o
particul ar uniti es
Certain problems ( such as the relation betw e en
body and soul ) co m e into focus at v arious ti mes but
the historical factors coincide only partially with a
logical construction o f the ideas Progressions o f
systems can be shown ; it can be shown fo r example
how as Hegel saw it German philosophy and
ultimately all philosophy culminated in his o wn
system But constructions o f this sort do violence to the
facts they fail t o take into account those elements in
earlier philosophical thought which are fatal to
Hegelian thinking and are hence ignored by He gel ;
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13 8
,
THE HISTORY OF
P
HILOS OP HY
h
rs
e
p
who erect them tend to neglect the
sse n ce o f other m en s thinking N 0 construction
h istory o f philosophy as a logically coherent
of positions coincides with historical fact
construction we can giv e t o the history
( 1by the geni us of the indi v idual
h ilo so p h e r Despite all de m onstrable ties and in
u e n c es greatness remains an incompa r able miracle
uite apart from the dev elopment that is accessible
o u r understanding
The idea o f a unity in the history o f philosophy may
ni al phi losophy which is internally
l
to
that
peren
pp y
me which creates i t s historical organs and structures
garments and tools but is not identical with them
( 1: The beginning and i ts s ignificance
The b e
is the first appearance o f an idea at some
in ti me The sourc e is the fundamental truth
lw ay s present
misunderstandings and perversions o f thought
at all times return to the source Instead of
this source by following the guidance of
mea ni ngful transmitted texts some thinkers fall
into the error o f seeking it in temporal beginnings :
i n the first pre S ocratic philosophers
in early
e g
Christianity in early Buddhism The journey to the
source which is always necessary assumes the false
form o f a search for the beginnings
I t is true that those beginnings which are still
attainable exert a powerful spell But an ab solute
beginning cannot be found What passes in our
tradition for a beginning is a relative beginning and
was itself th e product of earli er development
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139
WA Y
TO WISD OM
Henc e it is a fundamental p rinciple o f hi storic
study that in exami ning transmitted texts we re st ri
ourselv es to their real content O nly thr ough a hi s
ical at titude can we deepen o u r insight into what
been preserved There is nothing to be gained
reconstituting what has been lost by reco nstructi
earlier phases by filling in gaps
Third : Can we speak of develop ment and p rogress
?
philosophy We can observ e certain lines o f develop
ment for example : from S ocrates to Plato and
A ristotle from Kant to Hegel from L ocke t o Hume
But even such sequences are false if we take them t o
mean that the lat er thi nker preserved and transc e nded
the truth of his predecessor E ven whe re generati ons
are thus visibly linked the new is not encompassed in
what went before The successor often relinquishes the
essence o f the e arlier thought someti mes h e no longer
ev en understands it
Th ere are worlds o f intellectual exchang e whi ch
endure for a time to whi ch the indivi dual thinker
contributes his word as for example G re ek philos
o p hy
S cholas tic philosophy the German p hi los
”
0p hi c al move m ent
from 1 7 60 to 18 4 0 These are
ep ochs of living co m munion in original thought
T here are other epochs in which phi losophy endur es
as pedagogy others in whi ch it almost see ms t o have
v anished
The total view of the history o f philosophy as a
progressiv e develop m ent i s mi sleading The hi story
of p hi losophy res e mbles the history o f art in that it s
sup reme works are irreplaceable and unique It
resembles the history o f science in that its tools
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14 0
WAY T O WISD O M
Certain thinkers and epochs make it plain t hat
history of phi losophy has its gradations It is no level
field in whi ch all works and thi nkers stand o n an
equal footing There are heights of vision t o which
only a few hav e attained A nd there are great men
suns amid the hosts of stars But this does n o t mean
that we can set up a definitiv e hierarchy which would
carry conviction for ev eryone
It is a far remov e from the Opinions held generally
in a giv en epoch to the content of the philosophical
works created in that epoch That whi ch the un der
standing o f all men looks upon as self evident hence
requiring no interpretation can be expressed in the
form o f p h ilosophy just as well as the great philosophic
ideas that are susceptible of endless interpretation A
tranquil limited vision and contentment with the
world thus seen ; the yearning for the unknown ; and
questioning at the li m its all these are philosophy
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We have spoken o f an analogy between the history
o f philosophy and the authority o f religious traditi on
True philosophy has no cano ni cal books such as
those possessed by the religions no authority which
need simply be followed no definitiv e truth which
simply exists But the historical tradition o f philosophy
a s a whole thi s deposit o f inexhausti ble truth shows
us the roads to o ur present p hi losophical endeavour
The tradition is the profound truth of past thought
toward which we look with never ending expectancy ;
it is so m ethi ng unfathomable in the few great works ;
it is the reality of the great thinkers received wi th
rever ence
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14 2
THE HISTORY OF
P
HILOS OPHY
The tradition is an authority that cannot be ob eyed
vi th certainty
It is incumbent upon us to come to
n
urselv e s through it by o u r o w n experience to find
su r o w n s ource i n l t s source
O nly in the seriousness of present philosophical
hi nki n g can we gain contact with eternal philosophy
1
1 i t s historical ma ni festation
It is through the his
o ri cal manifestation that we gain the profound ties
hat can unite u s in a common present
Thus historical research is conducted o n various
ev e ls In his approach t o the texts the conscientious
t u de n t o f philosophy knows o n which plane he is
no v i n g
He must gain intelligent mastery o f the
facts But the end and summit o f hi storical study
ie s in th e mo ments o f communion in the source It is
hen that the light dawns whi ch gives mea ni ng and
i nity to all factual research Without this centre t hi s
> hilo so hi c al source the history o f philosophy would
p
) 6 a m e re record o f fallacies and curiosities
O nce it has awakened me history becomes the
n irro r o f what is my o w n : in its image I see what I
n y se lf think
The h istory o f philosophy— a space in whi ch I
—
h
i
nk
and
breathe
rev eals in inimi table perfection
:
p rototypes fo r my own searching By its atte m pts its
successes and failures philos o phy raises the question
It encourages me through the example o f those men
wh o hav e unswervi ngly followed its arduous path
To take a past philosophy as o ur own is no more
o f art for a
ossible
than
to
produce
an
old
work
p
second t ime A t best we can produce a deceptive copy
We hav e n o text like pious Bible readers in which we
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14 3
WAY T O WI SD O M
may hope to find absolute truth We love the Old texts
a s we lo v e o ld works o f art our hearts go o u t t o them
we immerse ourselves in their truth but there re
mains in them something remote and unattai nable
unfathomable though it is somethi ng with which we
always liv e something whi ch starts u s o n the way to
o u r present p hi losop hi zing
For philosophy is essentially concern e d w i th t h e
present We hav e only o n e reality and that is h e re an d
n o w What we miss by o ur evasions will ne v er return
but if w e squander ourselv e s then too we lose being
E ach day is precious : a moment can be eve rything
We are r e miss in our task if we lose ourselv es in the
past o r future O nly through present reali ty can we
gain access to the timel ess ; only in apprehendi ng
tim e can we attain to that sphere wh e r e all ti me
extinguished
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,
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APPEND IX
PHILOS OPHY
1
A ND
SCIENCE!
H Y H A s F R o M its very beginnings looked
as science indeed as science par excellence
1L o s o P
e lf
,
.
animated its devotees
Ho w its scientific character came to be questi oned
n be understood only in the light o f the development
the specifically modern sciences These sciences made
des in the nineteenth century largely
lo so p hy often in opposition t o philosophy
in an atmosphere of indi fference t o it If
was still expected to be a science it was in a
nse than before ; it was now expected to be a
he same sense as those modern sciences that
their acco m plishments If it were
it was argued it had become pointless
8 well die o u t
ago the opinion was widespread that
o p h y had had its place up to the moment when
the sciences had become independent of it the
n al univ ersal science N ow that all possible fields
i
g
research have been marked o ff the days of philo
N ow that we know how science obtains
v alidity it has beco m e evident that philo
cannot stand up against judgment by these
It deals in emp t y ideas because it sets up
ri t eria
R p i t d by p m i io of th P ti R i w
.
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e
r n e
er
ss
n
14 7
e
ar san
ev e
.
WAY
WISD OM
TO
undemonstrable hypotheses it disregards experi enc e
seduces by illusions it takes possession o f e n ergi
needed for genuine investigation and squand ers th e
in empty talk about the whole
This w as the picture of p hi losophy as se e n
science conceived as methodical cogent univers
valid insight Under such circumstances could
philosophy legi timately claim t o be scientific ? To this
situation p hi losophy reacted in t w o ways
1 The attack w as regarded as justified P hilosophers
)
withdrew t o limited tasks If philosophy is at an end
because the sciences hav e taken o v er all it s subject
matter there remains nev ertheless the knowledge o f its
history first as a fac t or in the hi story o f the scienc es
themselves then as a pheno m enon in the hi story of
thought the history o f the errors the anti cipated in
sights the process o f liberation by which philosophy
has made itself superfluous Finally the history of
philosophy must preserve the knowledge o f th e
philosophical texts if only for their aesthetic interest
Although these texts do not make any serious contri
b u t io n to scientific truth they are nevertheless worth
reading for the sake o f their style and the intellectual
attitude they reflect
O thers paid tribute to the m odern scientific trend by
rejecting all previous philosophy and striving to give
philosophy an exact scientific foundation They seized
upon questions which they claimed were reserv ed for
p hi losophy because they concern all the sciences ;
namely logic episte m ology pheno m enology In
e ff ort to refurbish its reputation philosophy became a
servile imi tator a handmai den t o the scienc e s It
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14 8
WAY T O WI SD O M
philosophy Whether it is the slav e o f science
whether it denies all science it has in either c
c e ased t o be philosophy
The seeming triumph of the sciences ov er philos
h as for some decades created a situation in
philosophers go back to v arious sources in sea
true philosophy If such a thing is found the
tion o f the relation between philosophy and s
will be answered both in a theoretical and in
concrete sense It is a practical question o f the u t m o
urgency
of
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We shall appreciate the full weight o f this p ro b le
if we consider its historical origin It dev eloped fro
three complexly intertwined factors These are a
spirit o f modern science ; b ) the ancient and
recurrent attem pt to achiev e univ ersal p h ilo so p hi
knowledge ; c ) the philosophica l concept of truth a
w as first and fo r all time elucidated in P lato
Ad a ) The m odern sciences dev eloped only
last few centuries hav e brought into the world a
scientific attitude which existed neither in A sia nor in
antiquity nor in the M iddle A ges
Ev en the Greeks to be sure conceiv ed of science as
methodical cogently certain and univ ersally v alid
knowledge But the m odern sciences not only hav e
brought o u t these basic attributes of science with
greater purity ( a task which has not yet been com
they
ha
v
e
also
i
v
en
new
form
and
new
l
e t e d)
g
p
foundation to the purpose scope and unity o f their
fields of inquiry I shall indicate certain o f their
fun dament al characteristics
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‘
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1 0
5
,
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m
f
i
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o
O
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l
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a
ll
a
l
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m
d
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t
sian
d
w
W
V
W
lullc F
l
m
e
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r
n
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l
u
pp
i
h
c
b
t
s
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m
n
ig
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N
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m
f
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em
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hortlive ,
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‘
O
d
l
l
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l
o
s
oug
r
n
sc
o
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“
1
n
r
r
a
b
m
e
mau es
u
o
r
[
l
s
r
e
s
s
t
a
o th
du
u
s
s
d
r
l
o
w
h
l
b
e
i
s
y
t
n
dparticulars a
n
a
ss
edsa
t
en
rec
ed
n
u
p
s c
ernphysic
od
m
hroughthemrte
T
split up and dep
.
heloreseemedtot
l
ssof the n
petene
—
reekcosm
G
os
heancienrs
3) T
'
.
tooneanother l
m g
m
od
ernseien
cesst
ham
oo
ireference
a
ll-e bracin bod
longer ossiblelor
p
con
ceiva
ble Our
.
P HIL OS OP HY AND SCIENCE
nothing is indifi rent In it s ey e s
To
modern
science
)
ery fact ev en the smallest and ugliest the most
ant and most alien is a legi timate Object o f inquiry
the very reason that it exists S cience has become
ly univ ersal There is nothing that can evade it
thing must be hidden o r passed over in silence ;
e m al n a mystery
science is by defini ti on unfinished
progresses toward the infinite whereas
ent science in ev ery o n e o f its forms pr esent e d itself
finished ; its actual d evelopment w as in ev ery case
ort lived and it never se t its o w n dev elopment as its
n scio u s goal M odern scientists ha v e understood that
al l e mbracing world syst e m which d e duces every
n g that exists from o n e o r a few p rinciples is im p o s
le A world system h as other sources and can only
u n1v e rs al v alidity if scientific critique is relaxed
mistaken fo r absolutes S uch
s are
e n t e d systemati zations as those achieved by
physics co v er only o n e aspect o f reality
ugh them reality as a whole h as become mor e
up and deprived o f foundations than it ev er
e seemed to the human mind Hence the in co m
ness
o f the modern world as compared t o the
—
k cosmos
The
ancient
sci
e
nces
remained
scattered unrelated
3)
t o one another They did n o t aim at consti tu ti ng an
all embracing body of specific knowledge whereas the
modern sciences striv e to be integrated into a univ ersal
frame o f reference Though a true world system is n o
longer possible fo r them a cosmos o f the sciences is s till
conceivable O ur sense o f the inadequacy Of each
1
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1
1
5
WAY T O WISD OM
special branch o f knowledge demands that e ach scien
be connected wi th knowledge as a whol e
The
modern
sciences
attach
little
value
t
o
4)
p ossibilities o f thought ; they recognize the idea
definite and concrete knowledge after it
worth as an instrument o f discovery and
t o infinite modifications in the process o f invest
True th ere is a certain similarity between anci
mod e rn atomic theory in so far as the general
is conc e rned But the ancient theory w as merely
intrinsically finished interpretation o f p o ssib ili t
based o n plausible explanations o f av ailable
eri e n ce while the modern the
p
tion wi th experi ence undergoes perpetual
confirmati on and disproof and is itself an i mplem ent
investi gation
h
i
a s becom e
T
day
a
sci
e
ntific
att
tud
e
i
o
b
ss
o
p
5)
an atti tude o f inquiry toward all phenomena ; t o d
the scienti st can know certain thi ngs
definit ely he can distingui sh between w h
and what he do es n o t kn ow ; and he h as
unprec e dented abundance o f knowledge
li ttle the G reek physician o r the Greek tech
by
The moral imp erativ e
science is to search for reliable kn o w le dg
o f unprejudic e d inquiry and critique
preconceived ideas When we enter into
have the sensation o f breathing clean air o f le av i
behind us all vague talk all plausible opinions
stubborn prejudice and blind faith
Ad b) M odern science sh ares t h e age o ld striving
total phi l osophi cal kn owledge Phi losophy had from
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1
52
WAY T O WISD O M
the cave and touches on in his dialectic thi s truth tha t
applies to being and to that which is abov e all being
how funda m entally di fferent it is from the truth o f t h e
sciences which m ov e only amid the manifest
b e ing without e v er attaining to b eing itself an
di ff erent from the truth o f the dogmatic system
holds itself to be in possession of the whole of
What a distance between the truth which can
be set down in writing but which accord
sev enth epistle tho ugh it can only be
thought is kindled in a favourable moment
m u nic at io n among men o f understanding
truth which is written univ ersally cogent
distinct and av ailable to all t hi n kin
t e lligib le
creatures !
,
,
,
'
,
,
,
,
,
,
Thr e e so di ff erent conceptions o f scientific kno
ledge—the first patterned on the method o f
science the second deriv ed fro m the idea
philosophical system and the third related t
truth which is directly apprehended by the in
—
m
P
lato
s
truth
being
an
exa
ple
all
contribute
t
)
(
present confusion A n example :
Its inquiries and inv estigations in the econo m ic field
have made M arxism an important force in scientific
dev elop m ent But this it shares with many other trends
and its scientific contribution does n o t account for it s
influence M arxism al so represents a philosophical
thesis regarding the dialectical course of histo ry as a
total process which it pu rports to understand T hus it
constitutes a philosophical doctrine but o n e with a
claim to univ ersal scientific v alidity It has the same
,
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’
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15 4
P
HIL O S O P HY AND SCIENCE
i
e m o lo gic al basis as Hegel s philosophy
t
s
,
p
ec t ic al m ethod remains its implement The
whose
diff er
only that for Hegel the core o f the historical
”
s lies in what he calls the idea while for
it lies in the mode o f production of man w ho
the animals obtains h is sustenance through
Both Hegel and M arx derive all
hat they regard as the core M arx
clai m s to hav e stood Hegel o n his
ead ; t hat however is only in content for he did not
e p a rt from Hegel s method o f constructing reality
y the dialectic o f the concept
N ow this identification of economic knowledge
5 gained by scientific method hence inducti v ely
is subject to constant
with the dialectical knowledge of the
which passes fo r essentially definitiv e
is the so u rce of the fallacy co m mitted by
Hegel and in a di ff erent form by the type o f modern
philosophy that began with Descartes and was repeated
by M arx M arx s absolute excl u siv e clai m therefore
originates in a conception of philosophy as total
syste m atic knowledge ; but at the sa m e time his
doctrine is presented as a result o f m odern science
f rom which it does n o t at all follow
In addition to the conceptions patterned o n modern
science and total philo sophy there op erates in M arxis m
also a third conception reflecting the lofty idea of an
absolute truth that fulfils m an s will and aspiration s
analogous to the P latonic idea of truth although
entirely di fferent in character M arxis m c o nceiv es of
itself as the true consciousness of the classless m an
’
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I
S5
WAY T O WISD O M
This quasi religious postulate is the source o f a
kind of fanaticis m which invokes n o t faith but mo
science which charges its opponents with stupi
malice o r inability to ov ercome class prejudice
contrasts these with its own univ ersal human truth
is free from class bondage and hence absolute
S imilar intellectual tendencies which u n cri ti
hypostatize a field of investigation that is
within it s limits into a total science and infuse
religious attitude hav e been manifested in the
of racial theory and psychoanalysis and in many
fields
T he false confusion o f heterogeneous eleme
produces here o n a large scale results that are
familiar o n a small scale in ev ery d
o f never being at a loss for an
m ere plausibility stubbornly uncritical statements a
a ffi rmations inability to explore in a genuine sense t
listen analyse test and reflect o n principles
The infuriati ng part o f it is that science is invoked t
defend somethi ng that runs directly counter to t
scienti fic spirit For science leads us to the un d erst a
ing of the principles limitations and meani ng o f
knowledge It teaches us to know in full
o f the m ethods by which each stage o f knowledge
achi eved It produces a certainty whose relativity i e
dependence on presu p p ositions and methods 0
inv estigation is its crucial characteristic
Thus we are today confronted with an am b iv ale
concept of science Genuine science can as has alw
been the case ap p ear to be occult ; it is in the nature
a public secret It is public because it is accessible
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15 6
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WAY TO WI SD OM
test the truth meaning o f scientific knowledge
auscultate it so to speak must participate in the
work o f these scientists
Third a pure philosophy must be worked o u t
new conditions that have been created by the
sciences This is indispensable fo r the sake o f the scie
themselv es Fo r philosophy is always alive in
sciences and so inseparable from them that the puri
both can be achiev ed only joi
to
-
,
,
,
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,
.
.
a bad philosophy The concrete work o f
is guided by his conscious or unconscious
and this philosophy cannot be the object o f
method
Fo r example : It is impossible t o prove scie n ti fi
that there should be s u ch a thing as science O r :
choice of an object o f science that is made from amo
an infinite number o f existing objects o n th e basis
this obj ect itself is a choice that cannot be j ustifi
scientifically O r : Th e ideas that guide us are tested
the systematic process o f
selves do not become an
S cience left t o itself as
less The intellect is a whore
it can prostitute itself to anything S cience is a whore
said L eni n for it sells itself to any class interest For
Nicholas of C u sa it is R eason and ulti m ately the
knowledge o f God that giv es mea ni ng certainty and
truth to intellectual knowledge ; fo r L enin it is the
classless society that promotes pur e science Be that as
it may awareness o f all this is the business o f p hilo so
i
hi
l
reflection
P
h
i
losophy
s
inher
e
nt
i
n
th
e
actual
c
a
p
of
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15 8
P
HILOSO P HY AND SCIENCE
themselv es ; it is their inner meaning that
the scientist with sustenance and guides his
cal work He who consolidates this guidance
reflection and becomes conscious o f it has
the stage o f explicit philosophizing If this
e fails science falls into gratuitous conv ention
rrec t n e ss aimless busy ness and spine
ss se rvi tude
A pure science requir es a pure p hi losophy
.
.
,
,
-
,
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.
.
h ow
can p hi losophy be pure ? Has it not always
”
?
ci e n ce
O ur answer is : It is science
such a sort that in the sense of modern
i
r
s
it
both
less
and
more
than
science
y
can be called science in so far as it
oses the sciences There is no tenable philo
u t side the sciences A lthough conscious of its
character p hi losophy is inseparable from
I t refuses t o transgress against univ ersally
insight A nyone who philosophizes must be
with scientific method
is n o t trained in a scienti fic
to keep his scientific interests
alive wi ll inevitably bungle and stumble
ke uncritical rough drafts for definitiv e
Unless an idea is sub m itted to the coldly
at e test o f scientific inquiry it is rapidly
in the fi re o f emotions and passions o r else
withers into a dry and narrow fanaticism
M oreover anyone w h o philosophizes striv es for
ie n tifi c knowledge for it is the only way to genuine
n kn o w le dg e it is as though the most magnificent
But
“
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15 9
WAY TO WISD OM
insights could be achiev ed only through man s q
for the limit at which cognition runs aground
see m ingly and temporarily but genuinely and
fi nitiv e ly n o t with a sense of loss and despair but
a sense of genuine i
knowledge can m ake definitive n o nkno w le
it alone can achieve the authentic failure which o p e
up a vista n o t merely upon the discoverable existe
but upon being itself
In accomplishing the great task of dispelling
magical conceptions m o dern sc ience enters upon
path that leads to the intuition o f the true dept h
authentic m ystery whi ch becomes present 0
through the most resolute knowledge in th e co n su
tion o f nonknowledge
Consequently philosophy turns against those w h
despise the sciences against the sham prophets w h
deprecate scientific inquiry who mi stake the erro
scie nce for science itself and who would ev en hold
science modern science responsible for the evils and
the inhu m anity o f our era
R ejecting superstitious belief in science as Well as
conte m pt of science philosophy grants its u n co n di
t io n al recognition to m odern science
In its eyes
science is a marvellous thing which can be relied upon
m ore than anything else the most significant achiev e
ment of man in his histo ry an achievement that is the
source o f great dangers but ofev en greater opportunities
and that from now on must be regarded as a pre
requisite o f all hu m an dignity Without science the
philosopher knows his o w n pursuits ev entuat e in
nothing
’
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160
,
WAY
TO
WISD OM
Yet in thi s intellectual transcendence which
proper to p hi losophy and which is analogous
scienti fic forms philosophy is less than sci e nc e Fo r
does not gain any tangible results o r any intellectual
binding insight There is no overlooki ng th e simp
fact that while scientific cognition is identical throu gh
o u t the world p hi losophy despite i t s claim t o univer
s ality is n o t actually uni v ersal in any shape o r form
T hi s fact is the outward characteris tic o f the peculiar
nature o f philosophical t ruth Al t hough scientific truth
is universally valid it remai ns relative t o method and
assumptions ; philosophical truth is absolute for him
who conquers it in historical actuality but it s state
ments are n o t univ ersally valid S cientific truth is one
and the same f o r all—philosophical truth wears
mul tipl e historical cloaks each o f these is the mani festa
ti on o f a uni que reality each h as it s justificati on but
they are not identically trans m issible
The o n e philosophy is the philosophia perennis around
which all philosophies revolv e whi ch n o one possesses
in which every genuine philosopher shares and which
nev ertheless can never achiev e the form o f an int ellec
tual edifice valid for all and exclusively true
Thus philosophy is n o t only less but also more than
science namely as the source o f a truth that is in
accessible to scientifically binding knowledge It is th is
philosophy that is meant in such defi nitions as : To
phi losophize is t o l earn how to di e o r to ri se t o god
head—o r t o know being qua being The meaning o f
such definitions is : P hilosophical thought is inward
ac t ion ; it appeals to freedom ; it is a summons t o
transcendence O r the same thing can be formulated
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162
PHILOSOPHY AND SCIE NCE
ly
P hi losophy is th e act of becomi ng con
—
genuine being o r is the thi nki ng o f a faith in
be infinitely elucidated—o r is the way
sertion thr ough t hi nking
But none of these propositions is properly spea king a
e fi n it io n There is no definition ofp hi losophy because
hilo so p h y cannot be determined by something out
There is no genus above philosophy und e r
it can be subsumed as a species Philosophy
itself relates itself directly to godhead and
f utility It grows out
primal source in which man is giv en to himself
To sum up : The sciences do not encompass all of the
ruth but only the exact knowledge that is binding to
he intellect and uni v ersally v alid Truth h as a greater
cope and part o f it can rev eal itself only to p hi loso
a l reason Throughout the centuries since the early
dle A ges philosop hi cal works hav e been written
”
under the title O n the Truth ; today the same task
still remains urgent i e to gain insight into the essence
o f truth in its full scope under the present conditions
o f scientific knowledge and hi storical experience
The foregoing considerations also apply to the
relation between science and philosophy O nly if the
t w o are strictly distinguished can the inseparable
connection between them re m ain pure and truthful
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Through research and study the univ ersity strives to
achieve the great practical u ni ty of the sciences and
philosophy A t the univ ersity a philosophical View of
the world has always been made mani fest through
scientific method
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163
WAY T O WISD OM
The university is the meeting place o f all sciences
the u ni v ersi
so far a s these remain an aggregate
resembles an intellectual warehouse ; but in so far
they striv e toward unity o f knowledge it resembles
never fi nish e d temple
A century and a half ago this w as still self ev id
the philosophical ideas that were assumed by
scientists in the various disciplines were brought to
h ighest light o f consciousness by the philosophers
th e situation has changed The science
fragmented by specialization It has c
lie v e d that scientific cognition m arked by the ne
o f uni v ersally v alid particular knowledge could
away fro m philosophy
Is the present dispersion of the sciences the ulti
and necessary stage ? O ne might wish fo r a philosophy
that would enco m pass and assi m ilate the whole
tradition that would be equal to the intellectual
situation o f o u r ti m e that would express the contents
co m mon to all o f us and this both in subli m e in t e llec
tual constructions and in si m ple propositions capable
o f finding resonance in e v ery man T oday we hav e n O
such p hilosophy
O ld univ ersity seals dating fro m the fifteenth century
rev eal figures wro ught in gold which represent Christ
distributing their tasks to the faculties Ev en where
such seals are still in use they no longer express the
modern reality ; yet they still bear witness to the task o f
unifying the whole
Today neither theology n o r philosophy creates a
whole Does the univ ersity still hav e a co m m on spirit ?
A s regards its organization it still seems to constitute
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164
‘
WAY T O WISD OM
embodied in the totality o f a sp e cific sci enc e T
phi losophy thus becomes in a sense the spokesman
knowledge in general provi ded that constant care
taken to see this particular domai n in relation to all t
knowable and thereby t o anchor it in depth
The teach e r o f philosophy in the service o f suc
e fforts is n o t a leader w h o lays down the law but a
attentiv e and patient listener eager t o find meani ng i
the broadest interrelations
The teacher o f philosophy reveres the ind
great philosophers w h o are not specimens o f a type b u t
creators ( such do n o t exist today) but he rej ects the
idolization o f men which began ev en in the academy
o f P lato for even the greatest ar e m e n and err and n o
one is an authority w h o must be obeyed by right
And the teach er o f philosophy h as respect for each r
science w hose insights are bin ding—but he condemns r
the scientific pride whi ch imagines that everythi ng can
be known in its ultimate foundati on o r ev en goes so far
as to suppose that it is known
His ideal is that o f a rational being coexisting wi th
other rational beings He wants to doubt he thirsts fo r
objections and attacks he striv es to become capable of
playing his part in the dialogue o f ev er deepening
communication whi ch is the prerequisite o f all truth s
and without whi ch there is no truth
His hope is that in the same measure as he beco m es
a rational being he may acquire the profound contents
which can sustain man that his will in so far as his
striving is honest may become good through the
direct help o f the transcendent without any human
mediation
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P HIL OSOP HY AND SCIEN CE
a teach e r o f p hi losophy however he fe els that it
duty n o t t o l e t his stud e nts forget th e great mi nds
e past t o preserve the various philosophi cal
as an obj e ct o f instruction and t o see t o it
sci e nc e s influ e nce philosophical t hi nking ; t o
ci dat e th e pres e nt age and at the sam e tim e to join
S s tud e nts in conquering a vi ew o f th e e t erna l
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167
APPEND IX
11
O N READI N G PH I L O S O PHY
IF I T I S true that phi losophy concerns man as man 1t
must lie wi thin o u r power to make it generally l n
t e lligib le I t must be possible t o communi cate briefly
certain fund amental ideas though n o t of course the
co m plex operations o f systemati c phi losophy It h as
been my intention to gi v e an inti mation o f those
elements in phi losophy which are the concern of ev ery
man But in so doing I hav e endeav oured n o t to
disregard the essential ev en where it seemed in
t ri n sic ally di ffi cult
The present lectures are little more than sketches
cov ering but a s m all segmen t o f the possibilities o f
philosophical thought M any great ideas are not ev en
touched upon M y aim h as been to encourage my
listeners to reflect o n these matters for themselv es
Fo r those who m ay seek guidance in their p hilo so
hi
al reflections I append what follows
c
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1
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O N THE S TU DY O F PH ILO S OPH Y
P hilosophi cal thought is concerned with the ulti
mate the authentic whi ch beco m es present in real life
Ev ery man as man philosophizes
But the dev elop m ents o f this thought cannot be
understood at a glance S ystematic p hi losophy calls for
study S uch study m ay be divided into three parts :
First : P articip ation in scientific inquiry From its two
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168
WAY
WISD OM
TO
I venture these maxi ms : proceed resolutely but do
n o t run aground ; t e st and correct n o t haphazardly
retaini ng
o r arbitrarily but in a constructi ve spirit
ev ery experience as an e ff ective force in your thinking
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,
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2
.
O N PH ILO SOPH I CA L R E ADING
When I read I wish first o f all t o understand what
the author meant to say But in order to un der
stand what he mean t I must understand n o t only
his languag e but hi s subject matter as well M y
understanding will depend o n my knowledge o f th e
subject
I t is through the understanding o f texts that we se t
o u t to acquire o ur knowledge of the subject Hence we
must thi nk o f the subj ect itself and at the sam e ti me o f
what the author meant O ne without the other mak e s
the reading fruitless
S ince when I study a text I have the subject in mind
my understanding o f the text undergoes an involuntary
transformation Fo r a sound understanding both are
necessary : immersion in the subject matter and return
to a clear understanding o f the author s meaning In
the first process I acquire philosophy in the second
historical insight
R eading should be undertaken in an attitude co m
pounded o f confidence in the author and lov e fo r th e
subject he has taken up A t first I must read as though
ev erythi ng stated in the text were true O nly after I
have allowed myself to be completely carried away
after I hav e been in the subj ect matter and then re
e m erged as it were from it s centre can meaningful
criticism begin
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O N
READ IN G
P
HILOS OPHY
How i n studying the history o f philosophy we make
past philosophy o ur own may be elucidated on the
basis o f the thre e Kantian imperativ es : thi nk for your
self; in your thinki ng put yourself in the place of ev e ry
other man ; think in una ni mi ty with yourself These
imperativ es are endless tasks A ny anticipated solution
making it appear that we have already fulfilled them is
a delusion ; we are always on o u r way to a solution
And in thi s hi story helps us
Independent thinking does not spring from the void
What we t hi nk must have roots in reali t y The
authority o f tradition awakens in us th e sources
anticipated in faith by contact with them in the
be ginni ngs and in the historical fu lfilm e n ts of p hi lo so
hi
p cal thought A ny further study presupposes this
confidence Without it we should not take upon our
selv es the trouble o f studyi ng Plato or Kant
O ur o w n philosop hi cal thi n king twines upward as it
were round the historical figures T hrough the under
standing of their texts we ourselv es become phi losophers
But thi s confident learni ng is not Obedience In thi s
”
following we test o u r o w n essence This ob e dience
is a trusting to guidance ; we begin by accepting
somethi ng as true ; we do not break in immediately and
constantly with critical reflections which paralyse
what is o u r o w n true though guided mov e m ent A nd
t hi s Obedience is the respect which does not allow of
easy criticism but only of a criticism which through our
own conscientious e ffort comes closer and closer to the
core o f the matter until it is able to cope with it
The limit o f obedience is that we recognize as true
only what through o ur independent thi nking has
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17 1
WAY TO WISD O M
become o u r o w n conviction N o philosopher not e ven
the greatest is in possession o f the truth Amicus P lato
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magis
amica veritas
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,
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We arrive at the truth in independent thi nking only
if in o ur thinking we strive constantly to p ut ourselves in
the p lace of ever
r
a
n
o
t
h
e
m
n
We
must
lear
t o know what
y
is possible fo r man By seriously attempting to thi nk
what another h as thought we broaden the potential
iti es o f o ur o w n truth even where w e bar ourselves t o
the other s thinking We learn t o know it only if we
v enture to put ourselv es entirely into it The remote
and alien the extreme and the exception even the
anomalous all enjoin u s to negl e ct n o ori ginal thought
to miss n o truth by blindness o r i n difi ere n ce A ccord
ingly the student o f philosophy turns not only t o th e
p hi losopher of hi s choice whom he studies without
stint as hi s own ; he turns also t o the hi story o f philo
sophy in order t o learn what w as and what men have
thought
The study o f history involv es the danger o f disp er
sion and n o n co m rnit m en t The imperative to think in
unanimity w ith ourselves is direct against the te mptati on
to indulge to o long in curiosity and the pleasure o f
contemplati ng div ersity What we learn from history
should becom e a stimulus ; it should either make us
attentiv e o r call u s to question The elements o f history
should n o t lie indi ff erently side by side in o ur minds
We ourselv es must create fricti on between these
elements which hi storical fact itself h as not brought
into exchange and contact We must create a relation
even among th e most disparate elements
All elements come together by being recei v ed into
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17 2
WAY T O WISD O M
becomes apparent that Hegelian thi nking cuts t h
heart o u t o f them and buries their remains in t h
v ast grav eyard o f history Hegel was finished with t h
past because he believ ed he had encompassed th
whole of it His ra t ional penetration is n o t candid
exploration but destructi v e surgery it is not e n durm g
questioning but conquest and subjection it is n o t a
li ving with but domination
It is always advisable to read sev eral accounts o f
hi story side by side in order t o safeguard ours e lv es
against accepting any o n e View as self evi dent If we
read only o n e account it s classifications force th em
selv es upon us involuntarily
It is also advisable to read no ac count without at
least sampling the related original texts
Finally hi stories of philosophy may be used as
reference works for literary orientation and various
philosophical lexicons are also useful
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4
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TE ! TS
For individual study it is worthwhi le t o acquir e a
limited library containing the really important texts
A ny list upon which such a library might be based will
be subject to personal modification But there is a core
which is almost universal though even here the
accent will vary ; there is no univ ersal acc e nt that will
be accepted by all
It is a good idea to begin by sp e cializing in o ne
philosopher It is o f course desirable that this should be
one of the great philosophers but it is possible to find
the way to philosophy through a philosopher o f second
or third rank A ny p hi losopher thoroughly studied
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17 4
,
ON READ IN G P HIL O SOP HY
leads step by step to p hi losophy and the history of
philosop h y as a whole
Fo r antiquity any bibliography is limited by the
small number o f extant texts particularly of compl ete
works that have been preserved Fo r more recent
centuries the texts are so abundant that quite on the
contrary the di ffi culty lies in selecting o n e
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L I ST O F
NA M E S I
.
WES TERN
PHI L O S O P HY
AN C IEN T PH IL O S O PHY
Frag m ents o f t h e Pr e S o crati cs ( 600
P l at o ( 4 2 8
Arist o tle ( 3 84
Fra g m e n ts o f t h e O ld S to ics ( 300
S e n eca ( d A D
E p ic te tu s ( ca A D 50
M arcu s Au re lius ( ru le d
-
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A D
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.
16 1
Lu c re ti us ( 96
Frag m en ts o f E p icu ru s ( 34 2
Th e S c e p tic s S ex tu s E m p iric u s ( ca A D
—
rc h
P
l
t
a
c
A
D
1
u
0
6
a
I
4
3
(
(
45 2 5 )
P l o ti n u s ( A D 2 03
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Cicero
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thius ( A D 4 8 0
C HRIS TI AN P H IL O S O PH Y
C h u rch Fat h e rs : S t Au gusti n e ( 354
Middl e A ge s : J o h n S co t u s E rige n a ( 9t h c e n tu ry) Ansel m
A
b
e l ard 107 —
1 14 2
t
h
103 3—
1
o m as 12 2 5
S
T
9
)
(
(
(
S
t
s (d
M
aste r E c k h art ( 1 2 60
n
o
h
n
D
u
s
co
u
J
Willi a m o f O c kh am ( ca 13o o 5o ) Nic h o l as o f Gu sa
h
r
14 8 3
t
L
u
e
C
al vi n ( 1509
1
0
1
4
(
(
M ODERN P H IL O S O PH Y
Th o m as M o re
P arac e lsu s
lV
Iac h iav elli
l 6t h c e n t u ry :
Mo nt aign e B ru n o J aco b B oh m e B ac o n
1 7 t h c e n tu ry : De sc art es H o bb es S p in o z a Lei b n itz P asc al
18 t h ce n tu ry
B
oe
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I
75
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WAY T O WISD OM
E N G LISH RA TI O N A LIS T S : L o cke Hu m e
F RE N C H A ND E N G LI SH M O RA LIS T S
.
,
La Ro c h e fo u c auld , La B ru y ere
c e n t ury : S h aft e sb ury , Va u v e n argu e s , C h am fo r t
M AN
I O O
: K a nt , F ich t e , He ge l , S ch e llin g
7th
18 t h
i
ce n t ury :
.
G ER
PH
I 9t h ce n tu ry :
G ERMA N
A
Lo t z e
TH E
PO e
L S PHY
CADEM IC PHIL O S O PHY
e
.
g
.
Th e Y ou ng er
,
i
K ie rke gaard,
o f p h il o so p h y :
P H IL O SO P H E R s :
sc e n c es as an area
A ND
IC A L
v on
,
.
Fich t e
,
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O RIGINA L
M o dern
.
E CO N OM IC PHIL O S O PHY :
S t e in , M arx
N ie t z sch e
.
To c q u evi lle , L o re
.
PH IL O S O PHY OF HIS TO RY : R ank e B u rckh ardt M ax We b er
NA TU RA L PHIL O S O PHY ; K E v o n B aer Darw in
PSY C H O L O G ICA L PH IL O S O PHY : F e ch n e r F re u d
,
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,
In roughly characterizing these men I shall venture
a number o f inadequate remarks In no cas e do I
expect to classify o r dispose o f any philosopher
although m y statements will inevitably sound as if I
did I should like m y remarks to be taken as questions
They are intended merely to call attention to certain
things and p erhaps to hel p some readers to find o u t
where their o w n inclinations lead
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,
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.
O N A N C I E NT
PHI L OSO PHY
The Pre S ocr atics hav e the unique magic that lies
”
in the beginnings T hey are unco m monly difl i c u lt
to understand correctly We must attempt to dis
”
regard all the phi losophi cal education which v eils
their immediacy in current habits o f th ought and
speech In th e Pre S ocratics thought is worki ng its way
o u t o f the original intuitiv e experience o f being
In
reading the m we participate in m an s first intellectual
illuminations T he work o f each of these great t hi nkers
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1
6
7
WAY TO WISD OM
whether Aristotelian or anti A ristotelian o r co nc ei
as transcending this entire plane o f thinking
Plotinus used the whole tradition o f ancient
sophy as a means ofexpressing a wonderful
original in mood which has come down
ages as the true metaphysic M ystical
communicated in the music o f a speculation w
remains unequalled and which re echoes wherev er 111
hav e thought metaphysically
The S toics E picurea ns and S ceptics the Plat o ni
and A ristotelians ( the later Acade m ics and
t e tics) created the universal p h ilosophy o f the e ducate
classes o f late antiquity for whom Cicero and Plu t arc
also wrote Despite all the conflicting positions an
constant polemics among them they represent
world in common P articipation in all it s aspe
amounted to eclecticism but it also characterizes
specifically li mi ted fundamental attitude o f
ancient centuries the personal dignity the contin
o f a world in whi ch th e essentials were merely repea
a world which w as strangely finished and barren
in which men understood o n e another This is
home o f the cos m opolitan philosophy that sti ll
currency today Its last captiv ati ng figure is Boethi us
whose Consolatio philosophiae by virtue of its mood
beauty and authenticity is among the basic works 0
philosophy
S ince then philosop hi cal commu ni ties of educatio
concepts style and attitude have been realized by
clergy o f the M iddle A ges the Humanists Since the
R enaissance and in a weaker sense by the speculativ e
i dealisti c German philosophers betwee n 1770 and
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17 8
intellectualan
WAY T O WISD OM
S cotus E rigena conceive d an e difice o f being
prising G o d nature and man in N eo p lato nic
ri e s with dialectic freedom of development
o
g
contributed a new mood o f self awareness and o p e
t o the world A man o f learning h e knew Greek
translated Dionysius A reopagita Working with tr
he erected a magnificent
tio n al concepts
ori gi nal in it s atti tud e He sought t o define
nature and founded a new speculative
which h as enjoyed influence down t o the present
work is a product o f ancient tradition blend ed
d e ep Christian and philosophical fai th
The methodical thi nking o f the M iddle A ges
becomes ori ginal with A nselm Immediate me
revelati ons are expressed in th e dry languag e
While his logical argu m e
and ju risprudence
and particularly his dogmatic propositi ons are a lien to
u s hi s ideas are still alive in so far as we disregard
their historical cloak o f Christian dogmatism and take
them in their univ e rsal human import as we do thos e
o f P armenides
A belard teach es the energy of reflec ti on the roads o f
the logically possible th e method o f dialectic co n tra dic
tion as a means o f exploring problems By this extreme
questi oning through the confrontation o f opposites he
became the founder o f the S cholastic method which
achi eved it s summit in Thomas Aquinas ; at the
same ti me h e sowed the seeds of disintegration in the
nai v e Christianity which had sustai ned men befor e
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Thomas Aquinas erect e d th e grandiose system which
h as b e en ove rwhel m ingly accepted in the Catholic
18 0
hnorr
n
d
a
d
a
f
o
d
o
eth
m
p
birnonluinhis c
minim ofhis
h
i
l
l
ctcs
u
lbiseom
p
onhefoundinl
DS
san
n
s cotu
u
.
thestructureof rs
m
om
en
twhenit s
lbatpa
sseda
son
bythe profound
questionolwilla
H
ere a
ndN
ow
epistem
olo and
gy
theoryofknowle
sen
seolhu
manl
st for L
O
ofthe ch
works ha
believerinChrb
a
re k
n
ow
n to
(m
u
tation
s) T
o
.
~
WA Y
TO WISDOM
’
O ckham s works They have no t be e n t ranslat e d i
G erman This is perhaps the only great gap still to
filled in the history o f philosophy
Nicholas o f C usa is the first phi losoph e r o f the M i d
Ages whom we encounter in an atmosph ere w hic
to us o ur o w n True h e remains entirely
his faith fo r in him the
sti ll unbroken the trust t h
Church wi ll o n e day e m b r
philosophy he n o longer projects o n e system ;
Thomas h e does not make use o f th e S cholastic met
which lo gi cally apprehends all tradition in i ts
t radicti o n s but turns directly t o the matter in h
wh e ther it be metaphysical ( transcendant ) or empi
immanent
Thus
he
employs
special
methods
bas
)
(
and finds a wonderful divi
o n his o w n intuitions
being which in these Speculations is revealed
a new way In this b eing o f the godhead he s e es t
realities of the world and in such a way
tion opens the path to e
insights which becom e the instruments o f the
His is an all embracing though t
o f God
close to reality and yet transcending it The
n o t circumvented but itself S hi nes in the light
transc e ndence This is a metaphysic which is s
indispensable The time spent in e p O Ii ng it may
counted among the happy hours o f the philosopher
With L uther it is di ff erent To study him
pensable He is a theological thinker who
philosophy speaks o f the whore reason yet he hims
thought out the basic ex istential ideas without which
present phi losophy would scarcely be possible The
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18 2
O N READ IN G P HIL O S O P HY
of
passionate seriousness o f faith and o f
shrewdness of depth and hatred o f
t rat io n and coarse bluster makes it a duty
rm e n t to study him T his man giv es forth a
o u n dly antip hi los ophical atmosphere
alvin s greatness lies in disciplined methodic form
logic unswerving and dauntless adherence to
ip le s But hi s lo v eless intolerance makes him in his
as in h is practical activities
the repellent
h esiS of philosophy I t is good to have looked him
e face in order t o recogni ze this spirit wherever in
d o r fragmentary form i t is manifested in the
He is the supreme incarnation o f that Christian
n t o le ran c e against which there is no weapon but
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,
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n t o le ra n c e
.
O N M ODE RN
PHI L O SO PHY
In contrast t o ancient and medi eval phi losophy
Odern philosophy forms no comprehensiv e whole but
an agglomeration of the most disparate unrelated
rts full of fine systematic structures none of which
is actually dominant It is extraordinarily rich full o f
the concrete and of bold free abstractions in constant
relati on to new science Its works are di ff eren tiated
along national lines written in Italian German
French and E nglish in addition to those carry overs
from the M iddle A ges that were still composed in L atin
We Shall attempt a characterization o f modern
p hi losophy in chronological order
The sixteenth century is rich in heterogeneous
ext raordinary personal creations which mov e us by
their immediacy They re m ain rich sources
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18 3
WAY
WISD OM
TO
In the politi cal sphere M achiavelli and M
initiated the modern approach to history as a ch
causes and e ffects Despite their outmoded tr
their works are still graphic and inter esting
P aracelsus and B ohme Show us that world equa
rich in profundity and supersti tion wi th clarity and
uncritical confusion which today is known
theosophy anthroposophy cosmosophy Rich in
tuitions and images the y lead into a maze
discern the rational structure that lies hidden in
cabbalistic quaintness and particu larly wi th B o b
in dialecti cal subtleties
M ontaigne is the type o f man grown in dep e n d
without desire for realization in the world
morality and opinions integrity and shrewd
s ceptical openness and sense of the practical
expressed in m odern form The reading o f M ontai
is immediately captiv ating philosophically it i
perfect expression for this form o f life but at the 8
tim e it is in a sense paralysing His earthbound
su fficiency is a delusion
Bruno in contrast is the infinit ely struggl
p hi losop her consumi ng himself in inade q uacy
has knowledge o f the limi ts and believes in
supreme His dialogue o n the eroici f urori is a b
work of the philosophy o f enthusiasm
Bacon is known as the founder o f m o dern e m p ir
and o f the modern sciences Both erroneously
did not understand true modern science the
m atic al science o f nature then at it s b e gin ni n
this science would nev er hav e come into being by
methods But in an enthusiasm fo r the new charac
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18 4
WAY
TO
WISD OM
without the greatness that com es o f a basic at tit u
which is profoundly human
The eighteenth century Shows for the first time
broader stream o f philosophical literature addressed
a general public It is the century ofthe E nlighten
The E nglish E nlightenment has its first repr
ative figur e i n L ocke He provided the E
society growing o u t of the revolution o f 1688 with
intellectual and political groundwork Hume is t
brilliant analyst ; an intelligent writer even w h
tedious he does not strike us as commonplace
scepticism is the bold unflinchi ng integrity o f
who dares to stand at the limits and face the
fathomable without speaki ng o f it
Both in France and in E ngland there w as a litera
o f aphorisms and essays by Observers of men
”
society whom we call moralists They strove t o b
a p hi losop hi cal attitude into psychology In
seventeenth century the work o f L a Rochefoucauld
L a Bruyere in the eighteenth century that
Vauvenargues and C h am fo rt grew out o f the worl
of the court S haftesbury was the philosopher o f a
aesthetic discipline o f life
A long with a systematic energy and an openness
what is deepest and what is most remote the gre
German philosophers hav e an intellectual vigour
wealth of ideas that m ake them an in disp ensab
foundation for all serious philosophical though
Kant Fich t e Hegel S chelling
Kant : for us the decisive step toward awareness
being ; precision in the intellectual operation o f trans
c e n ding ; an ethos growing out o f o u r inadequacy ;
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18 6
READING PHILOS OPHY
O N
of
conception and humanitarian feeli n g ; like
a personification of radiant reason A noble
.
hte : speculation carried to the point o f fanatic
frantic attempts at the impossible brilliant
on
moral eloquence
He initiated a
e trend of extremism and intolerance
mastery and m any sided elaboration o f the
categories ; explored the full range o f intel
l at t i tudes e ff ected the most compreh e nsive
ation o f Western history
elli n g : indefatigable p o n derings on the ulti
broached d i squieting mysteries ; failed as creator
opened up new paths
t e e n t h century represents transition dis
tion and consciousness o f dissolution expansion of
material world scientific scope The p h ilosophical
e t u s d w i ndled in philosophers turned professor
ing pale arbitrary unconvincing systems and
ies o n the history o f philosophy which fo r the
time made the whole h istorical material acce ssible
authenti c philosophical driv e surv iv ed in ex c ep
ely recognized by their contemporaries and
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academic philosophy is instructi v e full of
it no longer
u sn e ss and zeal ; howe v er
essenc e of man but deriv es fro m the
world with its cultural ideals its well
ri o u sn ess and its li mi tations Ev en its m ore
figures such as the younger Fichte and
will be studied for their e difi c at io n not for
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u b st a n c e
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18 7
WAY TO WISD OM
Th e original philosophers o f this era are Kierkega
and Nietzsche Both without system both
and victi m s They are aware of th e c at astr
astounding truths and Show no way o u t In the
age is documented by the most merciless self cri
in human history
Kierkegaard : forms o f spiri tual action p ro
i ntellectual commitment In him everything
t ic ularly congealed Hegelian thought is mad e
again Violently Christian
N ietzsche : endless reflection auscultation a
questioning o f all things ; digs deeply but discov ers
foundations except for new paradoxes Violen
anti Christian
The modern sciences become vehicles of a phi l
o p hical attitude not in their general concerns but i
numerous though separate personalities H er e are
few names only as examples
Political and social philosophy : Tocquevi lle a
pr e hended the course o f the modern world t o w
democracy through sociological knowledge o f
o f the French R evolution
and o f
ancien reg ime
United S tates o f A merica His p reo ccup atio
freedom his sense o f human dignity and o f au t h o
l e d him to inquire realistically into the inevi table
the possible He was a man and scientist o f th e
order O n the basis o f the political actions and id e
the French since 17 8 9 L orenz v o n S tein i n terpr e ted
the e v ents o f the first half o f the nineteenth century in
terms o f the polarity betwe e n state and society He
considered the question o f E urope s destiny M arx
utilized these insights developed th e m in econom i c
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188
WAY
TO
WISD OM
Psychological philosophy : Fechn e r established
methodical experimental study o f the relation b e tw e
the psychological and physical factors in
perception ( psychophysics ) ; th i s he conceived a
o f a logical but actually fantastic theory o f the a
tion Of all life and all things In his deb
psychology Freud naturalized and trivialized
subli m e insights o f Kierkegaard and Nietzsche
barren hateful weltanschauung masked by h u m
it arian forms was indeed appropriate to an age w h
hypocrisy it pitilessly dissected but Freud failed t o s
that this world was n o t the whole world
,
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L I ST O F
CHINA AND IND IA
C HINESE PH IL O S O PHY
Lao Tse ( 6t h c e ntu ry B C )
.
Tse
( 4th
(
seco n d
h alf
of
.
th e
NAM E S II
.
C o nfu ci u s ( 6t h
e n tu ry
t
h
c
5
t yB
)
Ch u an g
ce n u r
.
C
.
T
t y
I NDIA N PH IL OS OPHY
P al i C an o n o f B u
U p anish ads ( ro u gh ly 1000—
4 00
dh ism ; tex ts fro m t h e M ah ab h arat a ( 1st c e nt u ry
B h agav a d G ita e t c ; K au t ily a s A rth ash ast ra ; S h an k a
( 9t h centu ry
c en ur
’
-
.
,
thus far accessible to us in translations an
interpretations Chinese a nd Indian p hi losophy s
far inferior to Western philosophy in scope in dev
ment and in inspiring formulations Fo r us
philosophy re m ains the main object o f study It
indeed an exaggeration to say that all we understan
o f A s i ati c philosophy is what we would understan
As
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,
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190
O N RE AD IN G P HI L O S O P HY
out it through o u r o w n philosophy But it is true
most interpretations lean so heavily on t h eWest ern
that even for those who do not understand
n t a l languages the error is perceptible
e though the parallel between the three
ments— China India the West—is historically
it giv es us a distorted picture in that it seems to
e equal emphasis o n al l three For us this is not the
Despite those indispensable insights which we
to A siatic t h in km g the main ideas which animate
re those o f Western philosophy O nly in Western
phy do we find the clear distinctions th e
formulati o n s of problems the scientific orienta
the thorough discussions the sustained thought
ch t o u S are indispensable
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L I ST O F
PH IL O S O PHY
ligio n : Th e B
IN
t
a u re :
the
Le o n ardo ,
texts
co
lle cte d
A ND
in
AR T
so u rc e
bo o ks of
.
Aeschylu s S o p h oc le s Eu rip ide s ; Dante ;
G o eth e Dostoyevsky
Mich e l an ge lo Re m brandt
H o mer ;
akesp e a re ,
.
RE LIG I ON , L ITERA TU RE ,
ible ;
o ry
NAM E S III
,
,
.
,
.
,
ord er to possess ourselv es o f the cont e nts o f
Sophy do w n through its history we must read and
d the philosophers in the restricted sense ; we
obtain a clear view o f the dev elopment o f the
and we must allow ourselv es to be mov ed by
t works of religion literature and art We
not keep turning t o new and v aried works but
se ourselv es in those which are truly great
,
.
,
.
19 1
W AY TO WISD OM
Works
Th e G reat
S om e few works of philosophy are in their o w n
as infinite as great works o f art They contain m
thought than the author himself knew True cv
profound idea implies consequences o f which
thinker is not immediately awar e But in the
philosophies it is the totality itself which conceals
infinite A n astonishing harmony pervades the v
contradictions so that ev en they become an express
o f truth The complex ity o f thought
clarity in the foreground rev eals
depths The more patiently we study
more wonderful they seem to us S uch
Plato o f Kant Hegel s Phenomenology
each for reasons of it s own In Plato we
form supre m e lucidity the keenest
method artistic expression o f philosophical
without sacrifice of clarity and force In Kant w
the greatest integrity scu p u lo us weighing o f
word the most subli m e clarity Hegel is I
occasionally carried away by his
these defects are counterbalanced b
creativ e genius whi ch rev eals deep
does not integrate them in his own
is full o f violence and deception
toward dogmatic scholasticism and aestheticism
P hilosophies v ary exceedingly in rank and in ki n
It is a question of philosophical destiny whether or n
in my youth I entrust mys elf to the study of a gre
philosopher and to which of the great philosophers
entrust myself
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WAY TO WISD OM
contrary when you study o n e great philosopher
should also cons i der another who is v ery di ff e
from him If y o u restrict yourself t o o n e ev en the
unprejudiced philosopher the result will be
P hilosophy is incompatible wi t h any deifi c ati o n o f
in which o n e m an is regarded as an exclusive
A nd the very essence o f philosophical thought
openness t o the truth as a whole n o t to barren abstr
truth but t o truth in the div ersity o f its supre
realizati ons
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194
,
APPEND IX III
B I B L I O GRAPHY
H O S E R E A D E R S W H O wi sh to look mor e clos ely
t o my philosophical writi ngs may consult the follow
g brief bibliography
.
M y two principal p hi losophical works are
P hilosophie
2 cd
H eidelberg B erlin
I
S pringer Verlag 194 8
Von der Wahrheit M unich R Piper 194 8
2
.
.
.
-
,
,
-
,
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.
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,
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,
.
S hort works treating the subject matt e r o f thes e
adio talks in g reater detail :
Der philosophische Glaube M uni ch R Pip e r
1
194 8 ; Z ii ri ch
A rtemis V erlag 194 8
E nglish e d : The P erennial Scope of P hilos
trans
by
R
alph
M
anheim
oph
Ne w
y
York P hilosophical Libra ry 194 9 ;
L ondon R outledge and Kegan P aul
.
.
,
.
,
-
,
,
.
.
.
,
.
,
,
,
0
95
1
,
.
Vernunf t
und
E xis tenz
cd
2
.
S torm Verlag 194 7
P hilosophie und Wissens chaf t
V erlag 194 8
.
Bre men
,
,
-
.
,
3
.
.
Z urich ,
Artemis
.
,
O n contemporary philosophy
I
.
Die
t
i
e
e
s
g
g
i
S ituation
Berlin W de Gruyter
,
.
195
der
,
194 9
Zeit 7
E nglish
.
.
cd
.
,
ed :
.
BIB LIOGRAPHY
M an in the M odern Age Lo ndon , Ro
.
ledge and Kegan P aul 1934
Vom Ursprung und Ziel der Geschichte Z uri
A rtemis Verlag
1949 ;
M unich
Piper 194 9 E nglish e d : The Origin
Goal of His tory L ondon R outl e dge a
K egan P aul ( i n preparation )
Vom E uropaischen Geist M unich R Pip
194 7
E nglish e d : The E uropean Sp
L ondon S O M P r ess 194 8
,
2
.
.
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-
,
,
,
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,
,
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3
.
.
.
.
,
Works d evoted
I
.
.
.
.
.
.
,
i ndividual philosophers
Descartes und die Philosophie 2 cd B e rli
W d e G ruyter 194 7
Nietzsche 3 cd Berlin W d e Gruy t
to
.
.
.
2
.
,
.
,
.
.
,
,
.
,
194 9
Nietzsche
3
.
194
as
Ham el
.
S tor
.
.
O n philosophy
scienc e s :
.
.
B ii ch erst u b e
M ax
Weber
Verlag ,
I
das
Chris tentum
S eifert , 194 6
ed ,
Brem en ,
2
und
7
.
ma nifested in the concret
Allgemeine
P sy chop athologie 5 c d , H e id
b erg Berlin , S pringer Verlag, 194 7
S trindberg und van Gogh 3 c d , Brem e
.
-
.
-
.
2
.
.
S torm V erlag
-
194 9
,
.
.
A rti cl es in E nglish
R ededication o f G erman S cholarship trans
by M Z uckerlan dl American Scholar 15 ( April
N o 2 18 0 188
“
,
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,
,
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,
-
.
196
.
,
This book origi nated in twelv e radio lectures
comm issioned by
Basel radio station
.
199
INDE X
C omm ni tio f t th 3 5—
Di l ti l m th od of M
7;
H g l 54 —
6
om m i bl 35 ;
t
m y ti i m
lh m
di f 9 ; Di hotom y bj t obj t 9 t
iv
8; i
m
i g
i ty of m
ki d 6—
d
t q
l lif
th philo op hi
—
lt of w
C omm i tio b fo Ch i ti
3 3;
Di ff ti tio l v l of
35
good d il 59 6
C om m ity
ity i
—
Di g i ty of m 9
Com p h iv t h
8
3
38 ;
Di io d m nd d by t
h d th o gh
t in t y
—
8
d
philo
op
h
i
l
6
it
7
43 ;
f
Di i t g tio i ibl ign
f ith 94 ; w
5
C om p h iv
o io
G d 4 6—
7
D ogm ti m of ind p d
C o ditio l im p tiv 55
Do bt
o
of philo ophy
Co d t im d 54—
5
—
8
8
—
C nf m
9 4
( 55 47
99
33
D
S ot Joh ( 65
75
9
—
é
C o io
6
33 3
Co t m pl tio p
of m y ti
E kh t M t ( 6
li gio
d phi lo ophi
8 —
75
t
gyp t i viliz tio of 98
q
Co m ologi l p oof of i t
of Elij h th p oph t
—
l
i
h
t
m
f
i
th
d
8
t
God 4 —
5 95 ;
g
3
l k of f ith d th 8 7 ; d m d
Cosm ologi
i tifi 7 6
of 8 7 ; d fi nitio f 88 ; m biv
C tio f o
of philo ophi l
—
l
of 88—
tt
k
8
tho ght 9
9 9 ;
9 ;
t of 89
C tiv o igi lity
i m
th
84
C lt
g owth of 9 7
E vi o m t D i ( b i g th )
D t Alighi i ( 65
8
o i t d tow d 3
Epi t tu ( D 5
75 ;
9
o
of phi lo ophy 9
D wi Ch l ( 8 9
76
Epi
89
78
—
o
i
t
d
to
E
pi
D in ( b i g th
75
7
( 34
)
E m D id i ( 466
w d vi o m t 3
79
Et l to p t k i th 56
D th ; d wi tn 53
Ethi l l l of diff ti tio b
D th g 53
6 6 —
tw good d vil 59 —
D i io
i t ti l d m d d by
E ipid ( 4 84—
o ditio l im p tiv 56
9
4 7
philo ophy m od
D i fi ti
of m 4 5
36
p
—
of 59 ; t
il d fi itio
D
t R é ( 596
8 9
59 6 ;
6
tith i of good d 59—
E it
wo d of ; o i t d
D pi
tow d God 3 3 ; d f dom
D poti Em pi
i of
d th
di
m pi i l
D t mi y im pli tio of 3
45 ;
l im p
tiv 5
ti
D t oI i h
D v lopm t d p og i philo E i t ti li m
ophy 4 —
F il
lity of 3
D vil vi g th 8 3
oot d i th C om p
D votio
lim it d to God th F ith
;
t of 5 ; d
83 4
h
i
th ti m od f i t
36 ;
u
n: o
ca
no
c s
s
un
ersa
an
un
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an
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es
e,
e ren
es
u ro
n
e
1
1
ev e
e en
e
an ,
on
escar es,
ar a
ca
ex s e n
er u s
es
,
1
1
2
2
us ,
ras
2
,
ur e ,
ea
e
2
,
e
s n e ra
12
uI S
nsc
e
,
ca
1 0
1
e
,
n
u
n,
e s
-
an,
sc uss
s
,
2
,
are ness
e
ev
n
2
cer a
aren ess O
a
ec
-
a
n,
a
an
,
an
,
o
1
r u
e
ex s e n c e ,
o
resu
1
n, 2 1
secu r
ec
.
e re n
un
a
1
,
e an n
e ra, 1
re ac
e
arx
: su
n
re
e
ca
c
1
10
,
e , 12 2 e se
ca
s
n ess
n
2
,
u n ca
c
u
1
,
,
u n c on
2
2 on
.
1
a
e,
e
e o
e
,
,
ex s e n ce ,
a
ure , rea
,
22
e n s v e,
-
2 02
,
r
e
2 2-
n
n a u re
e
,
re
1
an
INDEX
I t ll tu l p i ity of
Hi to y of philo ophy 3 —
44 ; fo
t y 37
of nity in
p iod of 36 —
8 ; id
—
b gi ni g 39 4 ; I t p t tio ll knowl dg i 7
8
3 9 ; th
—
d lopm t d p og
0
;
4
—
I pon ibility ind p nd n
l ifi tio of philo oph
4
Hobb Thom ( 588
75
3 4
I i h th P oph t 00
85
H ld li Joh nn Ch i ti n ( 77
J p
di ion of th
it
tio
of
th
;
Hom
9
m t 87
H g ti Em pi of 02
m i h th P oph t th li ing
J
H m i t 7 8—
9
—
f
39 4
H m D vid ( 7
76
4
J dgm t of m n nd of God 6
86
H m ility i
i vi ng God guid
l ( 74
K nt I mm
7
Hw g Riv i iliz ti on 98
Hylozoi m 8—
9
Id
p l tiv 34
nli ght
m t 88 ;
79 ;
Im g
g tio of in lo t
—
g
ood
t
d
7 8;
yin g
pp o h to God 48
ophy
7 3
I m p tiv un o ditio l 5 6 K til y 33 9
U onditio l im p tiv K pl Joh
A d
Im p ti v ni v l S Uni
l Ki k g d S 0
im p tiv
88
38 ;
76
I m p tiv o ditio l 55
will
to
b o
Im p f tibility of th wo ld 44
g
id
67 ;
I dp d
j t d by tot lit
m
7
i im
pp t di p Kn owl d g
;
of
m biv l
of
;
p
of
th
m
y
—
o pt of
5 ; b ol t i d
lw
y
o
ditio
l
im po ibl
d
5 li m it
p
Kn owl d g
f
l
fi ll d
hi v
ti on of
5 8 ; how to
k owl d g
o
77
—
of 8 9
m
i
t
o
d
Kn owl d g
mp
ifi
I d p d t phi lo oph th
philo ophy 7 5 7
9
n
p
b
l
8 ; th o gh m th od 74
I di pi it l found tio l id i
lopm t of ind p d nt L
ye J n d ( 64 5
98 d
76
h
g
6
y
3
5
Phil
P
I di ph lo ophy t t
L i zf i 9
9
I divid l l tio of to God 4 7
L ng g
of 98
I d Riv i iliz tio
L
T ( p m C onf i ) 99
6 19
98
If
th t God i t 4 3
L
Ro h fo ld F g i d
I j tio hi to i l S Hi to i l
( 6 3
76 86
L ibnitz Gottf i d Wilh lm ( 646
i j tio
I n po t n ou philo ophy f
75 85 6
L i
V l dimi Ily i h Uly no
th
I tit tio
i m di bl inj ti
i
( 8 70
58
8
L i g Gotthold Eph i m ( 7 9
f
I t ll t nd f ith 93
36 8 7
I t ll t l oppo t ni m 4
Li b li m 9
s
r
s
s
er
en
ev e
c ass
n
n
e
e
1
an
1
.
1 2
1
cen ur
11
a
rs
a
u an
,
u
an s s,
u
e,
ers
S
ua
e re
1
1
a
1 0,
11
o
1
n rece
an ce,
s
er, c v
s
a
era
n
na
ersa
c n
es ,
na
e n ce :
n
,
e
en c e
,
11
easur e
,
-
a
s
e,
u e
a ar
1
1
s
a,
er,
en
ev e
oso
,
an
n
i
ua
n
n us,
s
,
o
u
,
e
,
n o n,
a
ao
a
r ca
ee
.
-
s
r ca
n a e
s
s
a re ,
n e
ec ua
1
e
e
,
1
1
,
e
rre
e
a
1
ce
r u
s
,
11
u c us
1
,
,
t
,
1
a
,
11
,
ran o s
,
e
e
1
-
r
c
a
o n sc e nce , 1
1
ra
,
e ra s
,
,
1
1
0
1
r e
,
1
,
,
u cau
e
1
o
us
1
-
c
e
a
ea
se
es s n
ec
are
r u
re,
a
10
n e
c: c
.
e,
e n n,
ns ,
,
e,
u a e , us e
a
,
e, 1 1
ns
e
e , sc en
ru
a ss e
ex s s ,
s
,
u
s
a
n
n un c
ns a e ,
n
a
n,
e
ex s o n, 1 0- 1
,
er, c v
n un c
en
na
1
re a
n e ren ce
e
s
n
e,
n,
a
I
s
,
ns
a
nes
e
n n
n
1 10
e,
,
e:
e
ua
r
1
i 1
e
1
s
r
,
a s c
a
e a
s u
1 0
,
,
e
a
on
,
an ce ,
an,
e
I1
e
on
se n se
n
en
ann
e sa
n
,
1-
er e
sa
ac
11
1
e r,
u
a e n ce
1
en
en
v
1 2
1
a, 1
e
a
a
ss
,
au
,
are n
1
I 12
11
e
r
a
1I O
,
n ce
e
.
v e rs a
re ec e
110
,
s
e
,
a
en
,
e
e aran c e
en
2
era
ee
.
-
e
ar an s
c
2
,
na
u
e,
en
a
anu e
,
c n
er ec
e
e
r
,
,
s
nc
e ra
n
e
ses
c
,
,
see
era
e
.
.
en
a
:
on e
n
e,
e ra
1
,
on ,
a
ac
r
ce
0, 100
e,
ne a
es,
a
e
2
,
e cu a
e as , s
e
2 on
a
0
an
s,
n
,
u
u
n,
.
,
1
’
e
r
s cuss
en
1
,
e
,
e
as
1
re
e
e
0
1
1!
e r, 100, 1
n, a
1
-
sa a
er n ,
1
,
s
rres
,
1
o
ass v
a
ec
1
1
1
as
n e
n er re a
0
-
e rs, 1
s
es,
,
ress,
r
n
ca
u
ea
1
,
ur
1 2
,
1 2
v
E
INDEX
P
l
Th oph t
84
f El
(
l ti
8 ; p
( 14 90
ras u s
e
arace s us,
—
1
r7 5 , 1
P a rm e m d es
no
)
of
e n
ea
o
100, 1 0
,
539 4 74
do ct ri n
czrca
ec u a
s
ve
b i g 48
P l Bl i ( 6 3
85
75
l S t 6 7 36
P
P
i t h b li f i God b i g 7
P
f l
f t h philo oph
P f tio
P ip t ti
78
P
i pi it l fo d tio l id i
98
f
P v io
t
il 5 9—
6 ;
g of in
light m t 9 —
3; d
l lif 8—
t h philo ophi
9
Ph om lity f m pi i l i t
79
Ph
n
l gy of M ind ( H g l)
9
id p d t 0
Phi lo oph
th
i tifi di ipli
9; t i i g i
ti l 5 9
P hilo oph
th fi t
P hil phi p
6 6
m
P hi lo ophi l f ith th i of 6 7
P hilo ophi l lif
th
0—
3 ; p th
f
t q ; go l of
9 3
Phi lo ophi l tho ght d tio l
k owl d g
6
Philo ophiz to i to l
how to
di 5 3—
4
P h lo ophy
t
h t i z d by
p og iv d v lopm t 7—
8;
d with t h whol of b i g
tk
o t f i tifi
8;
k owl d g
8;
wi tho t i
o phi lo ophy) i
( po t
t
f 8—
ibl to ll 9 ;
v p
t —;m i g d
t
of —6 ; im f
3 4;
o
of 7—7 ; l tim t o
f
6—
tio f 8 ;
7 ; th fi t q
d t t
p l tiv id
34 ;
m t ofl k f f i t h 8 7 ; hi to y f
—
Hi to y of philo
3 44 ( d
ophy) ; th fo m of t dy f
t di d with t h
33 ; m t b
wo ld i whi h it w p od d
ll ti m
d
t
4 ;
34 ;
—
i
i
d
47 67 ; th
ff t
ll
of
47 ;
p
m od n
i ntifi t d
48
as ca
au
11
,
n
e ac e
11
,
e
a e
e rs a,
e
’
n
e
e
cs ,
1
r
ua
s
n:
e rs
er
en
e n
s
1
,
er, 1 10
s
e
un
en
en a
ev
an
e , 12
e
r ca
eno ieno o
ra n n
1
ess e n
a
e rs
e
en
e
n sc en
o
e
rs
s, 1
ey erz
a
s
ca
s
ca
12 2 e
,
a
en
c
,
10 1
,
1 2
,
e,
se
e
e,
ne
a
.
,
12
1
12
,
1
an
u
s
a
-
e,
na
ra
earn
s
,
e,
s
no
:
e
ress
r
c
e
n
n a u re
o
s
s
11
12
1
a
1
,
e cu a
en s
2
an
see
us
1
en
1
an
ar
s c e n ce ,
ex ce
er
s u
sc e
r
o
,
o
e
u ce
r
es ,
a
e
1
ren
,
e
e
c
2
,
s u
1
en ce,
u rce
r
as
a
1
-
s a e
s
s
c
u r es
n o
,
r
e
n
r
,
an
s
re e
s
12 , 1
u es
a
o
an
a e s
eas,
ac
,
e an n
rs
e
a
e
o
c
ex s
,
u
2
e
2
,
1
12
,
s u rc es
,
,
sc e n c e
u
12 : acc ess
,
e n
sc e n
e,
rese n
er-
,
o
n an e u s
s
co n
”
e
ac c un
es
e
e n ce o
e
‘
e
a
!
en
e
c e rn e
e
arac er
s
1
,
1
sc en c e
ec s
on ,
c
e
1
n
unc
ran
a
12
,
a
a,
1
100,
a
2
1
1
,
1,
l
ress
r
n
1
,
n
e
er, 2
e n
n
on
s
(A
us
g
ca
ce , 1
.
D
2-
I
,
nc
c
-
17
34 ,
2 04
.
,
ve
e ac
sc e
1
,
,
n
I7
e , 12
s
i
in
16
s c an,
11
sc
es s
,
ca
s
n
an
ess
hy i i f tio of 9
Pi o d ll M i dol Giov nn i ( 1
79
Pl to ( 4 8—
34 8
33
66
7
75
77
9 3;
p og
b yo d 8 ; m o d
wo d 4 ; t hi g God
b i g 48 ; philo ophi l o
tio of i n 5 3 4
P
Plo ti
'
oso
ec s an
.
s c e n ce ,
2
1
,
1
,
e rs,
s
n
e
o
ex s en ce ,
e
er :
s
0
ca
o
n,
a
,
2
,
s
ns
a
ru e
or
en
en
se
es
1
,
n , 12
er ec
ec
1
,
e ace u n es s o
er
1
1 2
a se
.
i
how it b om
d m
q obj t
both l
d
,
,
,
50 ;
15 9 et
16 1 ;
Pl t h ( D 45
75
78
P olyt h i m 7
Poly l
3
P ti
o
of lity 7 4
P gm ti b tit t f philo
5
P y dg
tio of 7 2
P mi
of f ith nd of
—
p i
94 5
P
S o ti 7 5 76 7
P opo itio to gg t m ni g of
8
o ditio l i m p tiv 56—
th
P d k owl d g 85
P y ho
ly i
56
py g o nd d in phil o
P y hoth
ophy 9
P ity
d
ti l in i
philo ophy 5 7 63
tio i g
ti l to philo ophy
!
tio 8
; th fi t q
R i l th o y 56
R di
tho ght nd 49
R k L opold
( 7 95
76 89
R tio li ti p do knowl d g 95
R lity to fi d d pp h d 3 ;
—
f f il
3 ; y m bol of 3 6
phy i l 3 6 f G d 46—
7 ( nd
o ditio l im p ti v
G d) ;
—
d fi ni tion of 74 ;
nd
6
5 7;
A
u a rc
e s
.
1
.
1
,
v a enc e,
2
re a
ce a s u rc e
rac
ra
c su
a
1
,
u e
s
,
s
or
1
e r,
ra
re
ses
re-
s
cs, 1
seu
su
n
na
n
o-
s
s
n n
12
e
,
r
s
a
,
n, 2
u es
1
,
a
u
,
v on
1
1
ea
a
s eu
c
s
u re,
s ca
,
,
a
22
re
e,
en
s
o
o
e
,
1
,
,
na
u nc n
o
e
-
an
n
,
o
an
-
e
na
a
1
rs
an c e,
1
sc ence
: essen
e
e,
e
a
,
u es
an
e,
e ra
r u
,
esse n
ac a
n
ea
es
12
,
ur
—
s s, 1
er a
c
sens
e,
e
an a
s c
1
,
ns
e un c
a
a
a
c ra
r
a
,
e r en ce ,
ex
s
n
e n e ra
e
a
e ra
,
see
e
DEX
S lf will d g of 68
S
(d
75
77 ;
m ty dom of 5 4
S t Em p i i
75
S h ft b y A tho y A hl y Coop
thi d E l f ( 67
76 8 6
Sh k
9
of
S hi Em pi
S it tio
ltim t 9
S o iologi l o ditio f t h i l
g
S o t ( 4 7 399
d
4 ;
ob di
to b ol t im p tiv 53
S olit d t th i 5—
6
S opho l ( 495—
4 6
9
Sp
h God i th wo ld 8
S p gl O w ld ( 88
97
S pi oz B di t 1 ( 63
S p t l fo d tio l i d ( 8
—
8
9 99
S pi it li m 8
d di
io 8 6—
St t m t
7
Lo z
St i
76 88
S till of b i g th 4 9
S toi i m —3 4 ; m pty d i gid
S bj t obj t di hotom y 9 t q ;
i g f 3 —; i m pli tio
f
m
lt f
m od of 3 3 ;
3 ; th
w
of 3 7 8
S ff i g
S p titio ym bol d 36
—
S ym bol m t phy i
35 6
Sym boli logi 4 9
S ym bol f t
d
5
Sy t m tiz tio of t h i
76
T oi t tt m pt to pp h d God
48
T h ofphilo ophy 65 7
Th l of M il t ( 64 —
546
5
Th ology d philo ophy 64—
5
Thom S t f Aq i ( 5
—
8
8
34
75
Tho ght God o i gi ti g i 4 t
f
d
di
49 ; pow
q ;
8
6—
Th ydid ( b i 4 7
Tim
o ditio l i tim l i 58
To q vill Com t d ( 8 5
e
an
-
,
e n e ca
,
A O
.
ar
.
r
1
.
1
,
,
ex u s
a
e rs
r cus , 1
ur
es
r
n
,
ar
n
o
1
e
s
e r,
1
1
1
,
an a ra , 1 0
re
,
102
,
ns , u
ua
a e, 1
ca
c
n
c
2 0, 2 071
-
.
ns
o
e
ax a
e, 102
a
0-
cra es
en ce
e
u
e,
1 0
a
0
’
,
en
n
s
a,
en e
,
an
n ess
ec
u
e an n
u
er n
u
e rs
o
0
,
a
ns o
o
e n ce ,
,
1
s
,
e us
0
1
,
-
,
u n as
o
en
1
s
1
12 2
0 1, 1 2
na
r
,
an
0
re
a
,
,
ra
n
n,
an ce ,
0 e
er o
12
es
e , un c n
c
,
e sc en ces,
an
.
1
uc
.
1
e
a
as ,
.
se
s cs a ,
n
a
,
se
,
res u
1-
,
ransc e n
a es
u
e
ca
1
s an
ers
,
2
r
,
c,
s o
1
an
-
e a
e
1
,
es
c
e ac
,
e
n, s
s s,
n,
20
,
,
s e
00- 2 00
a
c
aren ess
a
2
,
ree
a
2
1
e,
,
ec
1
ns
v on, 1
22
-
( 0
s cuss
e n
,
2
,
0
1
a
1
2
re n
c s
e,
102
ua s
e n,
r
c us
un
en
e
a
,
a e
1
n
s,
e r,
i ri u a
r
era
n, 2
ru
c es
e ec
u e
s
an
ue
1 7 6, 18 8
e,
.
c rca
na
e
100
0
e ess
s
e
1 0
n,
,
INDEX
Up ni h d ( i
Tol
000 4 0
9
Tool i v tio of 98
d i d p d t
Tot lit i i m
Utility d philo ophy 5
philo ophy 4
Toy b A old Jo ph 97
V lidity niv l t p od d
d
ni v
phi lo ophy 7
T ditio
l
;
V
Gogh Vi nt ( 853
p i ipl 8 —
3
—
m y t y of
V v
T
d
2
g
M q i d ( 7
3 3
dom 4 5 ; hi oglyph
d f
76 86
44 ;
d w
ym bol of 5
of Vi io d b i g 3—4
8;
lf 64 ; g i d
th o gh 67—
l tio W lth i fi nit 49
69 ; m
d ob di
of God 8 2
Wl
M
to 7 —
3 ; b ol t
( 8 64
97
7
—
T
di g fl tio
é 9
3 4
T i
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