A Confession

De: Leo Tolstoy

Narrado por: Mark Bowen

A Confession, or My Confession, is a short work on the subject of melancholia, philosophy and religion by the acclaimed Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy. It was written in 1879 to 1880, when Tolstoy was in his early fifties.

The book is a brief autobiographical story of the author's struggle with a mid-life existential crisis. It describes his search for the answer to the ultimate philosophical question: "If God does not exist, since death is inevitable, what is the meaning of life?." Without the answer to this, for him, life had become "impossible".

The story begins with the Eastern fable of the dragon in the well. A man is chased by a beast into a well, at the bottom of which is a dragon. The man clings to a branch that is being gnawed on by two mice (one black, one white, representing night and day and the relentless march of time). The man is able to lick two drops of honey (representing Tolstoy's love of his family and his writing), but because death is inevitable, he no longer finds the honey sweet.

Tolstoy goes on to describe four possible attitudes towards this dilemma. The first is ignorance. If one is oblivious to the fact that death is approaching, life becomes bearable. The problem with this for him personally is that he is not ignorant. Having become conscious of the reality of death, there is no going back.

PLEASE NOTE: when you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2021 Strelbytskyy Multimedia Publishing (P)2021 Strelbytskyy Multimedia Publishing

I’m not sure you can get much deeper than this

I am incredibly appreciative of Leo Tolstoy for writing this. It is an honor to peer into his brain and see his dark thoughts. I love very much that he questions the meaning of life and rejects culturally acceptable answers. I love that he finds higher value in the worlds of common people than in the intellectual arrogant people who are his peers. He shows us the depths of his soul. He values service, humility and love. It’s uncomfortable and heart wrenching to dive into existential angst, but it’s also satisfying.

Amazing Self-Discovery

Many highly developed minds have reached the limit of human mind and realized that they need more. They want to know more about themselves and their painful search inevitably led to the discovery of God. Tolstoy has told the story of his own spiritual journey, which is very much the same path that many scientists have walked.

Great writing, good translation and good performance by the narrator.

Awaken my soul

I believe this is an honest confession of a man in seeking the truth in life. This piece indeed awakens my soul.

Excellent

Excellent version excellent book excellent narrator and traslator. I would recommend eventhough the last chapters i didn't feel a lot of relevance to me.