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CONVERSATION ON A COUNTRY PATH

Teacher: Say rather, to keeping awake for releasement.

Scholar: Why not, to the awakening?

Teacher: Because on our own we do not awaken releasement in ourselves.

Scientist: Thus releasement is effected from somewhere else.

Teacher: Not effected, but let in.

Scholar: To be sure I don't know yet what the word releasement means; but I seem to presage that releasement awakens when our nature is let-in so as to have dealings with that which is not a willing.

Scientist: You speak without letup of a letting-be and give the impression that what is meant is a kind of passivity. All the same, I think I understand that it is in no way a matter of weakly allowing things to slide and drift along.

Scholar: Perhaps a higher acting is concealed in releasement than is found in all the actions within the world and in the machinations of all mankind . . .

Teacher: . . . which higher acting is yet no activity.

Scientist: Then releasement lies—if we may use the word lie—beyond the distinction between activity and passivity . . .

Scholar: . . . because releasement does not belong to the domain of the will.

Scientist: The transition from willing into releasement is what seems difficult to me.

Teacher: And all the more, since the nature of releasement is still hidden.

Scholar: Especially so because even releasement can still be thought of as within the domain of will, as is the case with old masters of thought such as Meister Eckhart.


Memorial Address (GA 16) by Martin Heidegger