Søren Kierkegaard on the Most Important Thing

What I really lack is to be clear in my mind what I am to do, not what I am to know, except in so far as a certain knowledge must precede every action. The thing is to understand myself, to see what God really wishes me to do: the thing is to find a truth which is true for me, to find the idea for which I can live and die. … I certainly do not deny that I still recognize an imperative of knowledge and that through it one can work upon men, but it must be taken up into my life, and that is what I now recognize as the most important thing.

—Søren Kierkegaard, Letter to Peter Wilhelm Lund dated August 31, 1835

2 Comments on “Søren Kierkegaard on the Most Important Thing”

  1. Kierkegaard is one of the most interesting and influencial thinkers in the modern era—should be required reading. From what I know, he knew he was groundbreaking.

    Like

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