Chapter 41 The second most silent moment

Friends, what happened to me?You see me disturbed, pushed, obeyed involuntarily, and ready to go--oh, ready to go! Yea, Zarathustra must return again to his solitude: but this time the bear in his cave was not happy! What happened to me?Who commands me? —Alas, my angry mistress wants me to do so; it has spoken to me; did I tell you its name? Last night at dusk my silent hour spoke to me: this is the name of my savage mistress. And so it happened:—for I must tell you all, that you might not be too hard-hearted with this one who hastened away! Do you know the fear of the sleeping man? He was terrified from head to toe, as he sank and the dream was beginning.

I say this to you as a parable.At the most silent moment of Ye Ye, the night fell and the dream began. The hands of the hour advance, the clock of my life breathes, -- never have I felt so silent around me; so my heart is afraid. Then I heard the silent words: "Zarathustra, do you know that?"— I exclaimed at this whisper, and the blood exited my face: but I was silent. Then the silent word said again: "You know that, Zarathustra, but you don't say it!" I finally answered with a defiant attitude: "Yes, I know that, but I don't want to say it!" Then the voiceless word said again: "Would you not, Zarathustra? Really? Hide not yourself behind this defiance!"—

Weeping and trembling like a child, I said, "Oh, yes, I would, but how could I! Spare me of this! It is beyond my power!" Then the silent word said again: "What matter to you, Zarathustra! Speak your words and die"— I answered, "Alas, is that my word? Who is mine? I wait for someone more worthy than I am; I am not worthy to die of it." Then the voiceless word said again: "What do you care about yourself! I don't think you are humble enough. The skin of humility is the thickest."— I answered, "My humble skin has endured all! I live below my height: how high is my peak? Who has not told me. But I know my valley well."

Then the voiceless word said again: "O Zarathustra, whoever will move the mountains will also move the valleys and the plains."— I replied, "My preaching has not moved mountains, nor reached crowds. Yes, I have gone to crowds, but I have not reached crowds." Then the silent speech said again: "What do you know? When the dew falls on the grass is the silent hour of the night."— I answered: "They laughed at me when I found out and followed my own way; indeed, my feet trembled. They said to me: 'You didn't know the way before, but now you don't know how to walk! '"

Then the voiceless speech said again: "What does it matter to their mocking! You are a man who has forgotten to obey: now you should command! Don't you know who is the person everyone needs?That is the man who directs the great cause. It is difficult to accomplish a great cause: but it is even more difficult to direct a great cause. This is your most unforgivable stubbornness: you have power, but you don't want to rule rule. "— I replied, "I lack a lion's roar to give orders." Then a whisper came to me: "The silentest words cause great storms. Thoughts brought by the lightness of dove's feet command the world.

O Zarathustra, walk like the shadow of that which should come: you shall command.When you command, you become the precursor. "— I replied, "I'm shy." Then the silent speech said again: "You must be a child and not be ashamed. The pride of youth is still in you; your youth comes belatedly: whoever wants to be a child must overcome youth. " I thought about it for a while and shuddered.I ended by repeating my first reply. "I do not want to." So there was an explosion of laughter all around me.Oh, how that laughter tore my guts and split my heart! The silent word said for the last time: "O Zarathustra, your fruit is ripe, but you yourself are not yet ripe for your fruit!

So you must go back to solitude again: make you mellow. "— A second time the laughter broke out and fled: and there was silence again around me, like a double silence.I lay on the ground, my limbs were sweating. —Now you have heard everything, and the reason why I must go back to solitude.Friends, I have nothing to hide. I tell you all this: I am the most meticulous and will always be meticulous. Alas, friends, I have something to say to you, and I have something to give you!But why don't I give it to you?Am I stingy? —— When Zarathustra had finished these words, he thought that he would leave his friends, and the power of pain seized him and made him weep; and no one could comfort him.But at night he still left his friends and did not go alone.