Eduard von Hartmann: post-Christian religion and German idealism

This paper is devoted to the consideration of Eduard von Hartmann’s philosophy of religion. The author examines his critic of the liberal theology. E.v.Hartmann thinks that the Christian religion is dying. The mankind in the same time has necessity of religion. So the problem of post-Christian religion is put as rightful and important topic of discussion. The paper shows that, according to E.v.Hartmann’s opinion, the sole world-outlook being able to satisfie human spiritual yearning in future is the concrete monism. It teachs that the Absolute is unconscious. The veritable transcendent ground of the man is the unconscious Self (Absolute). The final goal of the life consists in the salvation i.e. the dissolution with the physical death in the ontological depth of the Self. The religion of the future is seen by E.v.Hartmann in the synthesis of Eastern (Indian) and Western spiritual currents. According to philosopher’s opinion, the German speculative idealism must favour this synthesis. The theory E.v.Hartmann’s is an original form of the mysticism avoiding acosmism and unconditionally recognizing unconsciousness of the Absolute. The historical analysis permits to include E.v.Hartmann’s philosophy to the German metaphysical tradition of XIXth century. The author briefly demonstrates the considerable proximity of E. v.Hartmann’s ideas to the later philosophy of F.Schelling. He concludes that E.v.Hartmann’s doctrine of the future religion is highly important for the history of philosophy because it might be considered as the only religious project built at the ground of the German idealism in common and of Schelling’s thought in particular.

E. von Hartmann, F. Schelling, God, religion of the future, christianity, the Unconscious, pessimism