The Laws of Manu and Nietzsche's Attainable Perfection

Abstract

Nietzsche's views on the Laws of Manu are widely considered some of his most controversial. Even among those who express a supportive view of Nietzschean philosophy tend to shy away or outright ignore his apparent praise for the laws responsible for the caste system in India. It is strange enough that Nietzsche would ever comment on the caste system and weirder still is that these comments on the Laws of Manu seem to be one of the only overt examples of Nietzsche’s political philosophy. It might be akin to contemporary readers of Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit suddenly getting goosebumps and chills of terror as they discover the conclusive section of ‘Observing Reason’ where Hegel devotes time and effort to discussing the defunct science of phrenology.