Eucken’s smaller books, such as The Life of the Spirit, Christianity and the New Idealism, Koennen wir noch Christen sein?, and The Meaning and Value of Life, present certain aspects of the larger volumes in a simpler form.

Eucken is at present engaged upon the [p.242] completion of a work of great importance dealing with The Theory of Knowledge.  His system has been stated to be in need of this important corner-stone, and he has hastened to meet the demand.  The book will deal with the “grounds” of the life of the spirit in an even more fundamental manner than any of his books.  A preparatory work, small in bulk—­Erkennen und Leben—­has just appeared in German, and will be issued in English in the spring of 1913.

In Erkennen und Leben Eucken shows the need of clearness in regard to the concept of the spiritual life.  This work is an introduction to his forthcoming work—­The Theory of Knowledge.  He shows that the Problem of Knowledge can only be answered through a further clarification of the Problem of Life.  It is, therefore, necessary to show what such a Life is and how it may be lived, and, finally, how it makes Knowledge possible.  This is the only way by which the final convictions of Life are able to possess greater depth and duration.

Knowledge is possible only in so far as man participates in a self-subsistent life.  Without such a self-subsistent life many intellectual achievements are possible, but they do not deserve the name of Knowledge.

Such a self-subsistent life must be operative in the foundation of our nature, but it must constantly receive its material from the most [p.243] important meanings and values of the world.  The self-subsistent life dare not feed on the mere analysis of consciousness or on the material which it already possesses.

History shows how a self-subsistent life is not created through the mere succession of events, but is always found as a life which is superior to the perpetual changes of Time.  Consequently, every real Knowledge has something sub specie aeternitatis as its essence, and this differentiates it from all mere relativism.

The movement of History culminates alternately in Concentration on the one hand, and in Expansion on the other:  Positive and Critical epochs alternate.  Both aspects are necessary for the growth of life.

In modern times the growth of the Expansion-side of life has destroyed in a large measure the equilibrium of life; and the task to-day is to construct a new Concentration-side.

Such a new Concentration is possible:  the experience of History testifies to its presence in several epochs; and there is a deep longing for it in many quarters to-day.

In order to attain to such a Concentration the “dead-level” life of the present must be overcome, and a turn must take place towards a new Metaphysic of Life.