Thus Spake Zarathustra, Friedrich Nietzsche [top fiction books of all time .TXT] 📗

an exception with us. Courage, however, and adventure, and delight in the uncertain, in the unattempted⁠—courage seemeth to me the entire primitive history of man.

“The wildest and most courageous animals hath he envied and robbed of all their virtues: thus only did he become⁠—man.

“This courage, at last become subtle, spiritual and intellectual, this human courage, with eagle’s pinions and serpent’s wisdom: this, it seemeth to me, is called at present⁠—”

“Zarathustra!” cried all of them there assembled, as if with one voice, and burst out at the same time into a great laughter; there arose, however, from them as it were a heavy cloud. Even the magician laughed, and said wisely: “Well! It is gone, mine evil spirit!

“And did I not myself warn you against it when I said that it was a deceiver, a lying and deceiving spirit?

“Especially when it showeth itself naked. But what can I do with regard to its tricks! Have I created it and the world?

“Well! Let us be good again, and of good cheer! And although Zarathustra looketh with evil eye⁠—just see him! he disliketh me⁠—:

“⁠—Ere night cometh will he again learn to love and laud me; he cannot live long without committing such follies.

“He⁠—loveth his enemies: this art knoweth he better than anyone I have seen. But he taketh revenge for it⁠—on his friends!”

Thus spake the old magician, and the higher men applauded him; so that Zarathustra went round, and mischievously and lovingly shook hands with his friends⁠—like one who hath to make amends and apologise to everyone for something. When however he had thereby come to the door of his cave, lo, then had he again a longing for the good air outside, and for his animals⁠—and wished to steal out.

LXXVI Among Daughters of the Desert I

“Go not away!” said then the wanderer who called himself Zarathustra’s shadow, “abide with us⁠—otherwise the old gloomy affliction might again fall upon us.

“Now hath that old magician given us of his worst for our good, and lo! the good, pious pope there hath tears in his eyes, and hath quite embarked again upon the sea of melancholy.

“Those kings may well put on a good air before us still: for that have they learned best of us all at present! Had they however no one to see them, I wager that with them also the bad game would again commence⁠—

“⁠—The bad game of drifting clouds, of damp melancholy, of curtained heavens, of stolen suns, of howling autumn-winds,

“⁠—The bad game of our howling and crying for help! Abide with us, O Zarathustra! Here there is much concealed misery that wisheth to speak, much evening, much cloud, much damp air!

“Thou hast nourished us with strong food for men, and powerful proverbs: do not let the weakly, womanly spirits attack us anew at dessert!

“Thou alone makest the air around thee strong and clear! Did I ever find anywhere on earth such good air as with thee in thy cave?

“Many lands have I seen, my nose hath learned to test and estimate many kinds of air: but with thee do my nostrils taste their greatest delight!

“Unless it be⁠—unless it be⁠—, do forgive an old recollection! Forgive me an old after-dinner song, which I once composed amongst daughters of the desert:⁠—

“For with them was there equally good, clear, Oriental air; there was I furthest from cloudy, damp, melancholy Old-Europe!

“Then did I love such Oriental maidens and other blue kingdoms of heaven, over which hang no clouds and no thoughts.

“Ye would not believe how charmingly they sat there, when they did not dance, profound, but without thoughts, like little secrets, like beribboned riddles, like dessert-nuts⁠—

“Many-hued and foreign, forsooth! but without clouds: riddles which can be guessed: to please such maidens I then composed an after-dinner psalm.”

Thus spake the wanderer who called himself Zarathustra’s shadow; and before anyone answered him, he had seized the harp of the old magician, crossed his legs, and looked calmly and sagely around him:⁠—with his nostrils, however, he inhaled the air slowly and questioningly, like one who in new countries tasteth new foreign air. Afterward he began to sing with a kind of roaring.

II

The deserts grow: woe him who doth them hide!

—Ha!
Solemnly!
In effect solemnly!
A worthy beginning!
Afric manner, solemnly!
Of a lion worthy,
Or perhaps of a virtuous howl-monkey⁠—
—But it’s naught to you,
Ye friendly damsels dearly loved,
At whose own feet to me,
The first occasion,
To a European under palm-trees,
A seat is now granted. Selah.

Wonderful, truly!
Here do I sit now,
The desert nigh, and yet I am
So far still from the desert,
Even in naught yet deserted:
That is, I’m swallowed down
By this the smallest oasis⁠—:
—It opened up just yawning,
Its loveliest mouth agape,
Most sweet-odoured of all mouthlets:
Then fell I right in,
Right down, right through⁠—in ’mong you,
Ye friendly damsels dearly loved! Selah.

Hail! hail! to that whale, fishlike,
If it thus for its guest’s convenience
Made things nice!⁠—(ye well know,
Surely, my learned allusion?)
Hail to its belly,
If it had e’er
A such loveliest oasis-belly
As this is: though however I doubt about it,
—With this come I out of Old-Europe,
That doubt’th more eagerly than doth any
Elderly married woman.
May the Lord improve it!
Amen!

Here do I sit now,
In this the smallest oasis,
Like a date indeed,
Brown, quite sweet, gold-suppurating,
For rounded mouth of maiden longing,
But yet still more for youthful, maidlike,
Ice-cold and snow-white and incisory
Front teeth: and for such assuredly,
Pine the hearts all of ardent date-fruits. Selah.

To the there-named south-fruits now,
Similar, all-too-similar,
Do I lie here; by little
Flying insects
Round-sniffled and round-played,
And also by yet littler,
Foolisher, and peccabler
Wishes and fantasies⁠—
Environed by you,
Ye silent, presentientest
Maiden-kittens,
Dudu and Suleika
—Roundsphinxed, that into one word
I may crowd much feeling:
(Forgive me, O God,
All such speech-sinning!)
—Sit I here the best of air sniffling,
Paradisal air, truly,
Bright and buoyant air, golden-mottled,
As goodly air as ever
From lunar orb downfell⁠—
Be it by hazard,
Or supervened it by arrogancy?
As the ancient poets relate it.
But doubter, I’m now calling it
In question: with this do I come indeed
Out of Europe,
That doubt’th more eagerly than doth any
Elderly married woman.
May the Lord improve it!
Amen.

This the finest air drinking,
With nostrils out-swelled like goblets,
Lacking future, lacking remembrances
Thus do