12. To Rudolf Ronsperger

My dearest friend!

I would have liked to reply immediately after receiving your letter yesterday morning, but I was unable to do so; I cannot explain why. I was delighted that you found the schoolmaster's two little poems so favorable. Although we hold opposing views on many things, we are in complete agreement on this point. I would like to tell you more about this man, but on the one hand this would lead to great digressions, and on the other hand it would be better to do so after I have gathered more information about this charming person. I will just quote his excellent definition of poetry:

"Poetry is the herald of God's unnameable love. It is a natural, sweet, devout, and mysterious prayer, and the spirit of the person who understands this prayer must involuntarily pray along, for he is carried away to his Creator.” Here this man—a village schoolteacher who is otherwise generally devoid of any higher education—says the same thing that the greatest aesthetes of his kind have said. I dare to prove the truth of this last remark. Your two little poems are equally delightful to me. I definitely prefer the second one to the first. The indifference dispelled by a deeper feeling is what makes it genuinely poetic. I believe I have already told you that Heine, even though he has many good qualities, is repugnant simply because he takes the opposite path, dishonoring a noble sentiment with a mocking remark. I consider this “Geigers Herzeleid” to be the best I have seen from you so far. Continue along this path, and you will certainly be able to present us with many beautiful blossoms. My heartfelt thanks for sharing this little poem with me. As for the first one, “Herbsttraum” (Autumn Dream), I feel that something is missing after the fourth stanza; for me, the thought is completely unfinished. The last stanza, on the other hand, does not belong to the whole; by trying to turn the dream into reality, you spoil the whole impression and the thing becomes unnatural. I have no doubt that the choice of subject matter for your new tragedy is a fortunate one. You say that you could find no suitable subject matter for a tragedy in German history. This is quite understandable to me. If I were to give a brief explanation of the reason, I would say that German heroes may well suffer catastrophe, but in most cases they are not to blame. But more of that another time. I intend to read Milton's M shortly.

And now to another chapter. I beg you, I really beg you, to throw away Büchner and similar nonsense, forget everything that is written in it, for it is all lies. With each passing day, I am more amazed at how such nonsense can find such favor. I have good reason to give you this advice. For I assure you that our entire age is suffering from the fact that it has broken away from religion, which is in itself free of contradictions, and has devoted itself to a shallow enlightenment and enlightenment pedantry, and cannot rise to the teachings of philosophy, which are again free of contradictions and completely satisfying to both reason and the heart. Religion and philosophy both reconcile us with the world; shallow enlightenment alone creates disharmony. Therefore, I beg you once again not to believe everything that Büchner, Dühring, and their ilk claim; read other popular philosophical writings, e.g., Fichte's “Determination of Man” (Univ. Bibl.), and his “Addresses to the German Nation” (ibid.). When you have read them, you will perhaps understand the reason why I advised you to do so; it is, however, a weighty one. Without basing my sense of justice on revenge, as Dühring does, I would declare “Force and Matter,” especially since yesterday morning, to be a philosophical heresy, etc. ...—

I am convinced that if you follow my sincere advice, you will soon say: The doctor from Budapest is welcome to have me. For the time being, of course, you will not be able to imagine this possibility. The idea you wrote on the last page is quite good, and I will certainly carry it out; but please tell me what kind of disposition your father has.

With warmest regards, I look forward to your prompt reply. Your unchanging friend,

Rudolf Steiner.

Tradition: Original (4 pp., 1 double sheet), RSA; gift from Christoph Koller, Bern (2010), from the estate of Rudolf Koller, Zurich; printed in GA 38 (1985), pp. 26-28; reply to letter dated: before Aug. 10, 1881 (not available); replied on: before Aug. 16, 1881 (not available) People: Johann Wurth; Heinrich Heine; [Thomas Babington Macaulay]; Ludwig Büchner; Eugen Dühring; Johann Gottlieb Fichte; (Budapest doctor); Felix Ronsperger Literature: Thomas Babington Macaulay: “On John Milton,” in: The Edinburgh Review, August 1825; Ludwig Büchner: Kraft und Stoff (Force and Matter). Empirical-natural philosophical studies. In a generally comprehensible presentation, Frankfurt a.M. 1855; Johann Gottlieb Fichte: Die Bestimmung des Menschen (The Destiny of Man); Speeches to the German Nation, Leipzig [1879]