--At this point Schopenhauer
interrupts the thread of his discourse to speak at length upon an
example of false fame. Those who are at all acquainted with the
philosopher's views will not be surprised to find that the writer thus
held up to scorn is Hegel; and readers of the other volumes in this
series will, with the translator, have had by now quite enough of the
subject. The passage is therefore omitted.]
It is often said of a man that _he is in advance of his age_; and it
follows from the above remarks that this must be taken to mean that
he is in advance of humanity in general. Just because of this fact,
a genius makes no direct appeal except to those who are too rare to
allow of their ever forming a numerous body at any one period. If he
is in this respect not particularly favored by fortune, he will
be _misunderstood by his own age_; in other words, he will remain
unaccepted until time gradually brings together the voices of those
few persons who are capable of judging a work of such high character.
Then posterity will say: _This man was in advance of his age_, instead
of _in advance of humanity_; because humanity will be glad to lay the
burden of its own faults upon a single epoch.
Hence, if a man has been superior to his own age, he would also have
been superior to any other; provided that, in that age, by some rare
and happy chance, a few just men, capable of judging in the sphere of
his achievements, had been born at the same time with him; just as
when, according to a beautiful Indian myth, Vischnu becomes incarnate
as a hero, so, too, Brahma at the same time appears as the singer of
his deeds; and hence Valmiki, Vyasa and Kalidasa are incarnations of
Brahma.
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