In order for the spirit to develop, the conditions shouldn’t be too favorable. Too much freedom softens the spirit, robs it of its earnestness. If it does not develop, we ought not to ascribe this prematurely to the obstacles it encounters. We ought rather to search for some interior malfunction.
We dream of circumstances in life that would naturally “secrete” spirit. A colossal mistake.
For the spirit the only adequate existence is “a perpetually uncertain and threatened life. . . .” Its worst threat is the one hiding behind a favorable situation.
