This work of philosophical soul-searching explores the mysteries of human life and consciousness.
In this fascinating work of spiritual philosophy, Dagobert D. Runes sets out on a contemplative journey unencumbered by the traditional manner and terminology of philosophical writing. His purpose here is to articulate the true essence of humanity and human thought. By turns inspiring and melancholy, Runes peels back the layers of quotidian life to explore its deepest meaning.
As Runes puts it in this volume: “What goes on in the core of our mind, this tumult created of our vexation with the business of animal living, lies just in our mind. Our mind is our whole world; the whole world is in our mind.”Dagobert D. Runes was born in Zastavna, Bukovina, Austria-Hungary (now in Ukraine), and received a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Vienna in 1924. In 1926 he emigrated to the United States, where he became editor of the Modern Thinker and later Current Digest. From 1931 to 1934 he was director of the Institute for Advanced Education in New York City, and in 1941 he founded the Philosophical Library, a spiritual organization and publishing house.
Runes published an English translation of Karl Marx’s On the Jewish Question under the title A World Without Jews, featuring an introduction that was clearly antagonistic to extreme Marxism and “its materialism,” yet he did not entirely negate Marxist theory. He also edited several works presenting the ideas and history of philosophy to a general audience, including his Dictionary of Philosophy.