33

That is the only way: we must mercilessly put in question and bring before the court feelings of devotion, sacrificing for one’s neighbour, the entire morality of self-renunciation, and, in exactly the same way, the aesthetic of "disinterested contemplation," according to which the castration of art seductively enough tries these days to create a good conscience for itself. There is much too much magic and sweetness in those feelings "for others," "not for myself," for us not to find it necessary to grow doubly mistrustful here and to ask, "Are these not perhaps - seductions?" - The fact that those feelings please - the person who has them and the one who enjoys their fruits, as well as the one who merely looks on - this still provides no argument for them. On the contrary, that demands immediate caution. So let’s be cautious!

Friedrich Nietzsche - Beyond Good and Evil
Part II - Aphorism # 33

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