Observations placeholder
Tolstoy, Leo - Confessions - The need for faith
Identifier
018589
Type of Spiritual Experience
Background
In fact, he isnot suppressing reason, he is suppressing existing beliefs in his memory
A description of the experience
Leo Tolstoy – Confessions
So, I said to myself, reasoning, in the person of the scholars and the clever, denies the meaning of life; while huge masses of men, - humanity - recognize that meaning in beliefs.
And those beliefs are based on the notion of a God, the Trinity, demons and angels, all that I have rejected.
My position was awful. I knew I would not find anything on the path of rational science, except the negation of life; anything in belief, except the negation of reason. Via ‘Intelligent knowledge’ it appeared that life is an evil:
But, faith told me that to understand the meaning of life, I have to abandon reason, the same reason for which the meaning is necessary.