The Creator’s Way

Wouldst thou go into isolation, my brother? Wouldst thou seek the way unto thyself? Tarry yet a little and hearken unto me.

Do you want to go into isolation, my brother? Do you want to find your own way? Wait a little longer and listen to me.

“He who seeketh may easily get lost himself. All isolation is wrong”: so say the herd. And long didst thou belong to the herd.

“Anyone who seeks may easily get lost. All isolation is wrong”: that is what the herd says. And you belonged to the herd for a long time.

The voice of the herd will still echo in thee. And when thou sayest, “I have no longer a conscience in common with you,” then will it be a plaint and a pain.

The voice of the herd will still echo within you. And when you say, “I no longer share your conscience,” those words will be a lament and a pain.

Lo, that pain itself did the same conscience produce; and the last gleam of that conscience still gloweth on thine affliction.

Look, that same conscience produced the pain itself. And the last gleam of that conscience still glows on your suffering.

But thou wouldst go the way of thine affliction, which is the way unto thyself? Then show me thine authority and thy strength to do so!

But do you want to follow the path of your suffering, the path that leads to yourself? Then show me that you have the authority and strength to do it!

Art thou a new strength and a new authority? A first motion? A self-rolling wheel? Canst thou also compel stars to revolve around thee?

Are you a new strength and a new authority? A first movement? A wheel that rolls by itself? Can you also make stars revolve around you?

Alas! there is so much lusting for loftiness! There are so many convulsions of the ambitions! Show me that thou art not a lusting and ambitious one!

Alas! There is so much craving to be great! Ambition brings so many convulsions! Show me that you are not driven by craving and ambition!

Alas! there are so many great thoughts that do nothing more than the bellows: they inflate, and make emptier than ever.

Sadly, so many great thoughts do no more than a bellows: they inflate and leave things emptier than ever.

Free, dost thou call thyself? Thy ruling thought would I hear of, and not that thou hast escaped from a yoke.

Do you call yourself free? I want to hear about the idea that guides you, not that you have escaped a yoke.

Art thou one ENTITLED to escape from a yoke? Many a one hath cast away his final worth when he hath cast away his servitude.

Are you ENTITLED to free yourself from a yoke? Many people have thrown away their last remaining worth by throwing off their servitude.

Free from what? What doth that matter to Zarathustra! Clearly, however, shall thine eye show unto me: free FOR WHAT?

Free from what? What does Zarathustra care about that! But your eyes must clearly show me: free FOR WHAT?

Canst thou give unto thyself thy bad and thy good, and set up thy will as a law over thee? Canst thou be judge for thyself, and avenger of thy law?

Can you decide for yourself what is good and bad, and make your will a law for yourself? Can you be your own judge and avenge violations of your law?

Terrible is aloneness with the judge and avenger of one’s own law. Thus is a star projected into desert space, and into the icy breath of aloneness.

It is terrible to be alone with the judge and avenger of your own law. In this way, a star is hurled into empty space and the icy breath of loneliness.

To-day sufferest thou still from the multitude, thou individual; to-day hast thou still thy courage unabated, and thy hopes.

Today, you as an individual still suffer from the crowd. Today, you still have your full courage and your hopes.

But one day will the solitude weary thee; one day will thy pride yield, and thy courage quail. Thou wilt one day cry: “I am alone!”

But one day solitude will wear you down. One day your pride will give way, and your courage will falter. One day you will cry: “I am alone!”

One day wilt thou see no longer thy loftiness, and see too closely thy lowliness; thy sublimity itself will frighten thee as a phantom. Thou wilt one day cry: “All is false!”

One day you will no longer see your greatness, and you will see your smallness too closely. Your own greatness will frighten you like a ghost. One day you will cry: “All is false!”

There are feelings which seek to slay the lonesome one; if they do not succeed, then must they themselves die! But art thou capable of it—to be a murderer?

Some feelings seek to kill the lonely person. If they fail, the feelings themselves must die! But are you capable of being a murderer?

Hast thou ever known, my brother, the word “disdain”? And the anguish of thy justice in being just to those that disdain thee?

Have you ever known the word “disdain,” my brother? Have you felt the anguish of being fair to those who disdain you?

Thou forcest many to think differently about thee; that, charge they heavily to thine account. Thou camest nigh unto them, and yet wentest past: for that they never forgive thee.

You force many people to think differently about you. They hold that strongly against you. You came close to them, but then passed them by. They never forgive you for that.

Thou goest beyond them: but the higher thou risest, the smaller doth the eye of envy see thee. Most of all, however, is the flying one hated.

You go beyond them, but the higher you rise, the smaller you appear to the envious eye. Yet the one who flies is hated most of all.

“How could ye be just unto me!”—must thou say—“I choose your injustice as my allotted portion.”

“How could you be fair to me!” you must say. “I choose your injustice as my share.”

Injustice and filth cast they at the lonesome one: but, my brother, if thou wouldst be a star, thou must shine for them none the less on that account!

They throw injustice and filth at the lonely one. But, my brother, if you want to be a star, you must still shine for them!

And be on thy guard against the good and just! They would fain crucify those who devise their own virtue—they hate the lonesome ones.

And beware of the good and the just! They would gladly crucify those who create their own virtue. They hate those who stand alone.

Be on thy guard, also, against holy simplicity! All is unholy to it that is not simple; fain, likewise, would it play with the fire—of the fagot and stake.

Be on your guard against holy simplicity, too! It considers everything that is not simple unholy. It would also gladly play with the fire of the burning stake.

And be on thy guard, also, against the assaults of thy love! Too readily doth the recluse reach his hand to any one who meeteth him.

And be on guard against the attacks of your love too! A recluse is too quick to reach out to anyone he meets.

To many a one mayest thou not give thy hand, but only thy paw; and I wish thy paw also to have claws.

To many people, you must offer not your hand, but only your paw. And I want your paw to have claws, too.

But the worst enemy thou canst meet, wilt thou thyself always be; thou waylayest thyself in caverns and forests.

But you will always be the worst enemy you can meet. You lie in wait for yourself in caves and forests.

Thou lonesome one, thou goest the way to thyself! And past thyself and thy seven devils leadeth thy way!

You lonely one, you are on the path to yourself! And your path leads beyond yourself and your seven devils!

A heretic wilt thou be to thyself, and a wizard and a soothsayer, and a fool, and a doubter, and a reprobate, and a villain.

You will be a heretic to yourself, and a wizard and a fortune teller, a fool and a doubter, a corrupt person and a villain.

Ready must thou be to burn thyself in thine own flame; how couldst thou become new if thou have not first become ashes!

You must be ready to burn yourself in your own flame. How could you become new without first becoming ashes!

Thou lonesome one, thou goest the way of the creating one: a God wilt thou create for thyself out of thy seven devils!

You lonely one, you follow the path of the creator: you will create a God for yourself from your seven devils!

Thou lonesome one, thou goest the way of the loving one: thou lovest thyself, and on that account despisest thou thyself, as only the loving ones despise.

You who are alone, you follow the path of one who loves. You love yourself, and because of that, you despise yourself as only those who love can despise.

To create, desireth the loving one, because he despiseth! What knoweth he of love who hath not been obliged to despise just what he loved!

The one who loves wants to create because he despises! What does he know of love who has never been forced to despise what he loved?

With thy love, go into thine isolation, my brother, and with thy creating; and late only will justice limp after thee.

Go into solitude, my brother, with your love and your creative work. Only much later will justice limp after you.

With my tears, go into thine isolation, my brother. I love him who seeketh to create beyond himself, and thus succumbeth.—

Go into your isolation with my tears, my brother. I love the one who seeks to create beyond himself and falls as a result.

Thus spake Zarathustra.

This is what Zarathustra said.