THUS SPOKE ZARATHUSTRA

THE THREE METAMORPHOSES

All these heaviest things the load-bearing spirit taketh

upon itself: and like the camel, which, when laden,

hasteneth into the wilderness, so hasteneth the spirit into

its wilderness.

But in the loneliest wilderness happeneth the second

metamorphosis: here the spirit becometh a lion; freedom

will it capture, and lordship in its own wilderness.

“Thou-shalt,” is the greatdragon called. But the spirit of the lion saith, “I will.”

Thou-shalt,” lieth in its path, sparkling with gold—ascale-covered beast; and on every scale glittereth golden,“Thou shalt!”

To create new values—that, even the lion cannot yetaccomplish: but to create itself freedom for new creating—that can the might of the lion do.To create itself freedom, and give a holy Nay even untoduty: for that, my brethren, there is need of the lion.

But tell me, my brethren, what the child can do, whicheven the lion could not do?

a new beginning,a game, a self-rolling wheel, a first movement, aholy Yea.Aye, for the game of creating, my brethren, there isneeded a holy Yea unto life: its own will

PROLOGUEa child hath Zarathustra become

Like thee must I go down

wilt thou now carry thy fire into the valleys? Fearest thounot the incendiary’s doom?

“I love mankind.”

remain true to the earth,and believe not those who speak unto you of superearthlyhopes

Once the soul looked contemptuously on the body, andthen that contempt was the supreme thing:—the soulwished the body meagre, ghastly, and famished. Thus itthought to escape from the body and the earth.

“We have discovered happiness”—say the last men, andblink thereby.

They have their little pleasures for the day, and theirlittle pleasures for the night,

Behold the good and just! Whom do they hate most?Him who breaketh up their tables of values, the breaker,the lawbreaker:—he, however, is the creator.

Destroyers, will they be called, anddespisers of good and evil. But they are the reapers andrejoicers

“That is my good, that do Ilove, thus doth it please me entirely, thus only do I desirethe good.Not as the law of a God do I desire it, not as a humanlaw or a human need do I desire it; it is not to be a guidepostfor me to super-earths and paradises.An earthly virtue is it which I love:

Joys and Passions

The Preachers of Death

long for doctrinesof lassitude and renunciation.

Voluntary Death

Die at the right time: so teacheth Zarathustra.To be sure, he who never liveth at the right time, how could he ever die at the right time?

But to the fighter equally hateful as to the victor, isyour grinning death which stealeth nigh like a thief,—andyet cometh as master.

He that hath a goal and anheir, wanteth death at the right time for the goal and theheir. It is cowardice that holdeth them fast to their

branches.

But I hear only slow death preached, and patiencewith all that is “earthly.”

otherwiseyour dying hath been unsatisfactory.

Self surpassingthe Will to Power—the unexhausted, procreating life-will.

And this secret spake Life herself unto me. “Behold,”said she, “I am that which must ever surpass itself.

Only where there is life, is there also will: not, however,Will to Life, but—so teach I thee—Will to Power!

Verily, I say unto you: good and evil which would be everlasting—it doth not exist! Of its own accord must itever surpass itself anew.

And he who hath to be a creator in good and evil—verily, he hath first to be a destroyer, and break values inpieces.Thus doth the greatest evil pertain to the greatest good:that, however, is the creating good.—

The higher manIn that ye have despaired, there is much to honour. Forye have not learned to submit yourselves, ye have notlearned petty policy.For to-day have the petty people become master: theyall preach submission and humility and policy and diligenceand consideration and the long et cetera of pettyvirtues.

Surpass, ye higher men, the petty virtues, the pettypolicy, the sand-grain considerateness, the ant-hill trumpery,the pitiable comfortableness, the “happiness of thegreatest number”—!

And rather despair than submit yourselves. And verily, I love you, because ye know not to-day how to live, yehigher men! For thus do ye live—best!

DO NOT WILL anything beyond your power: there is a badfalseness in those who will beyond their power.

For nothing ismore precious to me, and rarer, than honesty.

all good things laughLaughing have Iconsecrated; ye higher men, learn, I pray you—to laugh!

The drunken song

I am for the first timecontent to have lived mine entire life.

‘Was that—life?’ will I say unto death. ‘Well! Once more!’