The Joyful Wisdom ("La Gaya Scienza"): Complete Works, Volume Ten
Nietzsche · en
inseparable from me, as my _proprium_ and _ipsissimum;_ only that the
word "classical" is repugnant to my ears, it has become far too worn,
too indefinite and indistinguishable. I call that pessimism of the
future,--for it is coming! I see it coming!--_Dionysian_ pessimism.)
371.
_We Unintelligible Ones._--Have we ever complained among ourselves of
being misunderstood, misjudged, and confounded with others; of being
calumniated, misheard, and not heard? That is just our lot--alas,
for a long time yet! say, to be modest, until 1901--, it is also our
distinction; we should not have sufficient respect for ourselves if
we wished it otherwise. People confound us with others--the reason
of it is that we ourselves grow, we change continually, we cast off
old bark, we still slough every spring, we always become younger,
higher, stronger, as men of the future, we thrust our roots always
more powerfully into the deep--into evil--, while at the same time we
embrace the heavens ever more lovingly, more extensively, and suck in
their light ever more eagerly with all our branches and leaves. We grow
like trees--that is difficult to understand, like all life!--not in
one place, but everywhere, not in one direction only, but upwards and
outwards, as well as inwards and downwards. At the same time our force
shoots forth in stem, branches, and roots; we are really no longer free
to do anything separately, or to _be_ anything separately.... Such is
our lot, as we have said: we grow in _height;_ and even should it be
our calamity--for we dwell ever closer to the lightning!--well, we
honour it none the less on that account; it is that which we do not
wish to share with others, which we do not wish to bestow upon others,
the fate of all elevation, _our_ fate....
372.