Language confusion of good and evil: this sign I give you as the sign of the state.
Thus Spoke Zarathustra
In sarcasm the mischievous one and the weakling meet. But they mis- understand one another. I know you.
You may have only those enemies whom you can hate, but not enemies to despise. You must be proud of your enemy: then the successes of your enemy are your successes too.
Rebellion – that is the nobility of slaves. Let your nobility be obedience! Your commanding itself shall be obeying!
To a good warrior “thou shalt” sounds nicer than “I will.” And every- thing you hold dear you should first have commanded to you.
Let your love for life be love for your highest hope, and let your highest hope be the highest thought of life!
But you shall have your highest thought commanded by me – and it says: human being is something that shall be overcome.
So live your life of obedience and war! What matters living long! Which warrior wants to be spared!
I spare you not, I love you thoroughly, my brothers in war! –
Thus spoke Zarathustra.
On the New Idol
Somewhere still there are peoples and herds, but not where we live, my brothers: here there are states.
State? What is that? Well then, lend me your ears now, for I shall say my words about the death of peoples.
State is the name of the coldest of all cold monsters. It even lies coldly, and this lie crawls out of its mouth: “I, the state, am the people.”
This is a lie! The ones who created the peoples were the creators, they hung a faith and a love over them, and thus they served life.
The ones who set traps for the many and call them “state” are annihi- lators, they hang a sword and a hundred cravings over them.
Where there are still peoples the state is not understood, and it is hated as the evil eye and the sin against customs and rights.
This sign I give you: every people speaks its own tongue of good and evil – which the neighbor does not understand. It invented its own lan- guage through customs and rights.
But the state lies in all the tongues of good and evil, and whatever it may tell you, it lies – and whatever it has, it has stolen.
First Part
Everything about it is false; it bites with stolen teeth, this biting dog. Even its entrails are false.
Language confusion of good and evil: this sign I give you as the sign of the state. Indeed, this sign signifies the will to death! Indeed, it beckons the preachers of death!
Far too many are born: the state was invented for the superfluous! Just look at how it lures them, the far-too-many! How it gulps and
chews and ruminates them! “On earth there is nothing greater than I: the ordaining finger of God
am I” – thus roars the monster. And not only the long-eared and the shortsighted sink to their knees!
Oh, even to you, you great souls, it whispers its dark lies! Unfortunately it detects the rich hearts who gladly squander themselves!
Yes, it also detects you, you vanquishers of the old God! You grew weary in battle and now your weariness still serves the new idol!
It wants to gather heroes and honorable men around itself, this new idol! Gladly it suns itself in the sunshine of your good consciences – the cold monster!
It wants to give you everything, if you worship it, the new idol. Thus it buys the shining of your virtue and the look in your proud eyes.
It wants to use you as bait for the far-too-many! Indeed, a hellish piece of work was thus invented, a death-horse clattering in the regalia of divine honors!
Indeed, a dying for the many was invented here, one that touts itself as living; truly, a hearty service to all preachers of death!
State I call it, where all are drinkers of poison, the good and the bad; state, where all lose themselves, the good and the bad; state, where the slow suicide of everyone is called – “life.”
