Philosophical Imaginatrix: Thus Spake Zarathustra by Friedrich Nietzsche

Friedrich Nietzsche, the monk with a big mustache, who died of syphilis was one of the most influential and famous philosopher from the 19th century. His ideas were revolutionary. And unacceptable. He was despised by many and loved by few. But there is no doubt that he was one of the best existential philosopher. Thus Spake Zarathustra is the only fictional book written by Nietzsche. It was his magnum opus. A book for all and none. Nietzsche explains to us how there is an eternal recurrence of the same thing. 

The book has borrowed the imagery from Plato's "The Allegory of the Cave' from Republic. Nietzsche was not particularly a fan of Plato. But when we read his works we can know that he was influenced by him. Plato explains that an enlightened thinker is in a gradual struggle like a man who is struggling to free himself of the illusions in an underground cave. Who learns that once he ascends to the world above and views things in the daylight, he discovered the essence of the truth by gazing at the sun. But Nietzsche talks a little more on this theme. He says once man learns the truth, he has to go under the cave and free others from their illusions. He calls it 'going under'. 

The book's main protagonist is Zarathustra. Not the persian prophet. But the one he created. Nietzsche's Zarathustra rejects the concept of morality based on the struggle between the good and evil. Nietzsche claims that 'god is dead'. The god is dead based on the culture. The book is complex. It's not a easy read. A reader would get tired by the third part, because he finds its not like reading a novel or a poem. It's like a philosophical mind game with Nietzsche. Who happens to be one of the greatest geniuses of all time. 

The reader hence having a little idea about what the book is, drops reading the book. And claims that he has. So the book remains un-understood the whole life. The book is difficult to render. Even I am not claiming I understand the book. I am just stating the fact that I love the book. It has given me a grand affair of mind. 

Zarathustra, the Superman, is in a spiritual campaign. He wants the world to transcend. The transcendence is divided into three symbols: Camel, Lion and the Child. He feels that this mission is nearly over. But that is not so. He enters a deeper darkness of the world. Zarathustra becomes in a sense wounded and disillusioned. Zarathustra for that reason wants to defeat his enemies. His campaign transforms from the benefit of humanity to the defeat of his enemies. Hence he suffers. But where is this suffering coming from. Zarathustra attributes this suffering to the imprisonment of the creative will, done by the immovable past. Humans don't have control over that. Yes its what decides the future. It's almost like the law of karma. 

The forward looking autonomous will of the man is overpowered by the backward looking heteronomous will. And this leads the man toward self doubt, fear and gloom. 

Zarathustra then moves ahead in the road of redemption from the conflict that has arised. Zarathustra moves from the objectified temporal self (who is defeated by the world and looks for domination) toward the eternal cosmic self (which is beyond physical reality). This ends the book. But readers generally consider the previous part as the end. It must be so that Nietzsche was using the Greek Custom of following a tragedy with the contrasting satyr play.

Zarathustra faces an existential crisis and goes deep in the abysmal thought. And that is only resolved when Zarathustra encounters the eternal cosmic self. Some find this a controversial ending. But Nietzsche is surely looking into a bigger picture. But for a greater audience this remains a riddle because we cannot understand what the eternal cosmic self means. Zarathustra is awakened by an epiphany to not address the mass of dead men, rather address himself only to those who aspire to be SUPERMAN. Or in a sense aspire to harvest something new. This epiphany comes to him as an eagle and a serpent. The eagle and serpent leads him to the wilderness of his journey. 

Zarathustra points out a unique problem, time and its 'it was'. Which is true for both the consequences of determinism and indeterminism. The solution to the problem dissolves in the divine reality which has no past and present, but only has an ETERNAL PRESENCE. Zarathustra can be seen as an combination of Spinoza's naturalism and Buddhism's naturalized. 

Nietzsche moves from the Descartes view of 'I think, therefore I am' to his view of 'I feel, therefore I am'. Zarathustra speaks in various topics, from metamorphoses to teachers of virtue, from afterwards to despires of the body, from passions to preachers of death. And many more. Zarathustra is an alive phenomenon of the world. The goal of life is to be a child with no prejudices and be open to the existence of the world. 

Some key notes from the book:

1. You have evolved from worm to man, but much within you is still worm. Once you were apes, yet even now man is more of an ape than any of the apes.

2. But the worst enemy you can meet will always be yourself; you lie in wait for yourself in caverns and forests. Lonely one, you are going the way to yourself! And your way goes past yourself, and past your seven devils! You will be a heretic to yourself and witch and soothsayer and fool and doubter and unholy one and villain. You must be ready to burn yourself in your own flame: how could you become new, if you had not first become ashes?

3. Who is the great dragon whom the spirit will no longer call lord and god? "Thou shalt" is the name of the great dragon. But the spirit of the lion says, "I will." "Thou shalt" lies in his way, sparkling like gold, an animal covered with scales; and on every scale shines a golden "thou shalt." Values, thousands of years old, shine on these scales; and thus speaks the mightiest of all the dragons: "All value of all things shines on me. All value has long been created, and I am all created value. Verily, there shall be no more 'I will.'" Thus speaks the dragon.

4. There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness.

5. I teach you the Overman. Man is something that shall be overcome. What have you done to overcome him? ... The time has come for man to set himself a goal. The time has come to plant the seed to his highest hope.