IV. The Origin of Evil

GA 55/1906-11-22/p015 ·1906-11-22 · English MediumMedium alignmentSome paragraph re-numbering between this translation and the German original — the locus may slip by a paragraph or two.
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We are told in the story of Paradise: “... and they saw that they were naked.” That means that human beings saw themselves for the first time; previously they had seen only the external world. They had earth-consciousness, but no self-consciousness. The latter enabled them to put wisdom into the service of the self From then onwards there existed not only selfless love for the surrounding world, but also love of self; the former was good, the latter was bad.

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Cite: GA 55/1906-11-22/p015 · edition English