7 5 2 D O C . 4 7 9 O N I D E A L S character and is at odds with active Europeanism, which, when taken to an extreme, tends to create great personalities, heroism, and individual productivity. This Europeanism is already clearly evident in Hellenism. Devotion to the ideals of beauty and truth is the manifestation of an active creative spirit, at the same time requiring the establishment of values that respond to such a psychology. Plato’s world of ideas, with its closeness to the religious East, is absolutely European in- sofar as the establishment of different values is concerned. No matter how much the ideals and values of life may have changed in the history of Europe, they still retain this active, productive character. Moreover, European heroism is apparent even in those spiritual currents that oppose it by nature (Here I see, for example, the difference in principle between Asian and European mysticism). The newest “American” ideal of life is as different from the Asian as it is from the European. It does not tend toward the creation of meta-psychic moral values neither is it hero worship or faith in personalities. Rather, its objective is economic power. The progressive Americanization of Europe gives this ideal a pronounced practical validity on our continent as well, even though it may be denied and con- tested as an ideal value, because it is the opposite of the European ideal. For an American, the only criterion by which all values are judged is practical reality, a concept of life that had its philosophical expression in pragmatism, whose under- lying idea goes like this: “The truth is whatever can be proved in praxis.”[2] Despite this contrast, as far as spiritual and artistic life is concerned, I do not see any antagonism between Europe and America. The psyche of both worlds tends to- ward productive growth. In America a high level of technical and economic acu- men prevails however, I do not believe that this excludes all spiritual life. Technical and economic action, after all, also provides room for creative gifts, since genius can overcome mechanical rules and develop them freely. Furthermore, the most rigorous organization of economic life creates possibilities for freeing spiritual cre- ators from material concerns. For the Western world (Europe and America), the religious ideal of the East calls for productivity. He who truly adopts this ideal in the spiritual, artistic realm of life, does not, in my opinion, need any other ideal whatsoever and cannot therefore pro- pose any objective for himself other than productive development. “He who pos- sesses science and art also possesses religion he who does not possess them needs religion” (Goethe).[3] [1]See, e.g., Einstein’s impressions of Japanese culture, society, and intellectual life in “Musings on My Impressions in Japan” (Vol. 13, Doc. 391). [2]He was reading Vaz Ferreira’s criticism of pragmatism (Vaz Ferreira 1914) at the time of writing this article (see the following document). [3]A quote from Goethe’s poem “Zahme Xenien IX.” The original reads: “Wer Wissenschaft und Kunst besitzt,/Der hat auch Religion /Wer jene beiden nicht besitzt,/Der habe Religion” (Goethe 1952, p. 367).