Arthur Schopenhauer

– Sämtliche Werke, ed. by W. v. Löhneysen, vol. II, p. 97; cf. critical appendix p. 833 (not mentioning the second addition)..

The "Paralipomena" volume, from which this is taken, contains short ruminations arranged by topic under 31 subheadings. In view of the less-than-enthusiastic reception of the philosopher's earlier publications, publishers were reluctant to commit to this work; it was only after significant difficulty (and through the persuasion of the philosopher's disciple Julius Frauenstädt) that Hayn of Berlin consented to publish the two volumes in a print run of 750 copies - with a honorarium of only ten copies for the author. The subject matter and stylistic arrangement of the "Paralipomena" were significant influences on the work of the philosopher and psychologist Paul Ree, and through him most notably on the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, whose later work explores - following Schopenhauer - the relation of man to himself, the universe, the state, and women through the art of aphorism. - In the present manuscript, Schopenhauer writes: "The truth of cosmogony, however, is based not only on the space-relationship upon which Laplace insisted, namely, that 45 celestial bodies circle in a uniform direction and at the same time rotate likewise; more firmly still is it rooted in the time-relationship, expressed by the first and third Law of Kepler [...] These thoughts on cosmogony give rise to two metaphysical reflections [...] Even such a far-reaching physical explanation of the world's creation can never satisfy the desire for a metaphysical one, or indeed take its place. On the contrary! The closer one comes to tracking down a phenomenon, the more clearly it appears that it is precisely that: a mere phenomenon, an apparition, and not at all the essence of the thing in itself [...]" (transl.). - The present text begins with the final paragraph of § 85. It corresponds with the printed text in the Sämtliche Werke, ed. by A. Hübscher, vol. 6, p. 142, line 4 up to p. 150, line 19, with the exception of two sections not yet present in this draft (p. 146, lines 11-16, and p. 146, lines 32-page 147, line 7). Most of the parts which Schopenhauer deleted are published in vol. 7, pp. 130-138 and p. 138. - Slight edge damage. Provenance: On loan to the Dresden State Library until 1945; later in a foreign private collection. Sold at Stargardt's auction on Oct. 4, 1989. Schopenhauer manuscripts are of the utmost rarity: auction records since 1975 list only five other autograph manuscripts, only one of which was of comparable length..

Your translations from Sanskrit are of great interest to me, as is everything Indian, and I will devote myself to them very soon. Your two readers will also afford me much pleasure, as they contain many specimens of the more and most recent literature, about which I am little knowledgeable and glad if others choose the finest pieces for me. Sending you my fondest greetings and counting you among my own, I am [...]". - Schütz's letter must have touched Schopenhauer deeply, for he communicated it to Julius Frauenstädt on 4 March 1854: "A homage of this kind is meaningful. He is a new disciple. Of course I responded in the most cordial terms." In his letter, Schütz had praised Schopenhauer as "the greatest of thinkers": "as the tired wayfarer feels invigorated by a cool bath and capable of new exertions, so do I feel uplifted and fortified when, having briefly conversed with you, I return to my everyday business." Schütz's letter (dated Bielefeld, 19 February 1854) is published in: Hübscher, Briefwechsel (1933), no. 492. It is kept at the Schopenhauer Archive at the Frankfurt University Library. - Traces of folds; some staining to address leaf..