Heinrich Robert Zimmer (6 December 1890 – 20 March 1943) was a German
Indologist
Indology, also known as South Asian studies, is the academic study of the history and cultures, languages, and literature of the Indian subcontinent, and as such is a subset of Asian studies.
The term ''Indology'' (in German, ''Indologie'') i ...
and linguist, as well as a historian of
South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;; ...
n art, most known for his works, ''Myths and Symbols in Indian Art and Civilization'' and ''Philosophies of India''. He was the most important German scholar in Indian
Philology
Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources; it is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics (with especially strong ties to etymology). Philology is also defined as ...
after
Max Müller
Friedrich Max Müller (; 6 December 1823 – 28 October 1900) was a German-born philologist and Orientalist, who lived and studied in Britain for most of his life. He was one of the founders of the western academic disciplines of Indian ...
(1823-1900).
[ In 2010, a "Heinrich Zimmer Chair for Indian Philosophy and Intellectual History" was inaugurated at ]Heidelberg University
}
Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...
.
Early life and education
He was born in Greifswald
Greifswald (), officially the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald (german: Universitäts- und Hansestadt Greifswald, Low German: ''Griepswoold'') is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rosto ...
, Germany. Zimmer began studying Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...
and linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Ling ...
at the University of Berlin
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative ...
in 1909. He earned his doctorate in 1914 with a thesis entitled ''Studien zur Geschichte der Gotra
In Hindu culture, the term gotra (Sanskrit: गोत्र) is considered to be equivalent to lineage. It broadly refers to people who are descendants in an unbroken male line from a common male ancestor or patriline. Generally, the gotra ...
s'' and directed by Heinrich Lüders
Heinrich Lüders (25 June 1869 in Lübeck – 7 May 1943 in Badenweiler) was a German Orientalist and Indologist known for his epigraphical analysis of the Sanskrit Turfan fragmentary manuscripts.
Biography
From 1888 to 1894, he studied a ...
.
He completed his Ph.D. in philology and comparative linguistics in 1914 at the University of Berlin.
Career
Between 1920-24 he lectured at the University of Greifswald
The University of Greifswald (; german: Universität Greifswald), formerly also known as “Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University of Greifswald“, is a public research university located in Greifswald, Germany, in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pom ...
, moving to Heidelberg University
}
Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...
to fill the Chair of Indian Philology
Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources; it is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics (with especially strong ties to etymology). Philology is also defined as ...
(1924-1938).[Heinrich Zimmer Chair for Philosophy and Intellectual History]
Heidelberg University
}
Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...
.
In 1938 he was dismissed by the Nazis
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...
based on the fact that his Christian wife was the great-great-granddaughter of a Jewish Austrian, and he emigrated to England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
where between 1939-40 he taught at Balliol College
Balliol College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. One of Oxford's oldest colleges, it was founded around 1263 by John I de Balliol, a landowner from Barnard Castle in County Durham, who provided the ...
, Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
. In 1940 he moved to New Rochelle
New Rochelle (; older french: La Nouvelle-Rochelle) is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States, in the southeastern portion of the state. In 2020, the city had a population of 79,726, making it the seventh-largest in the state o ...
, New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
where he eventually accepted a Visiting Lecturer position in Philosophy
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. ...
at Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
. Here, Joseph Campbell
Joseph John Campbell (March 26, 1904 – October 30, 1987) was an American writer. He was a professor of literature at Sarah Lawrence College who worked in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work covers many aspects of the ...
, who was then working on his first book, ''A Skeleton Key to Finnegans Wake'' (1944) attended his lectures. The two men became good friends.
Zimmer died unexpectedly of pneumonia in 1943, two years after his arrival in the United States. According to Joseph Campbell, "Zimmer was at the opening of what would have been the most productive period of his career. . . hardly had he begun to find his stride, however, when, suddenly stricken, he passed from full career to his death within seven days." After Zimmer's death, Campbell was given the task of editing and posthumously publishing Zimmer's papers, which he did over the next 12 years, turning Zimmer's lecture notes into four books, in the Bollingen Series: ''Myths and Symbols in Indian Art and Civilization'', ''Philosophies of India'', ''The Art of Indian Asia'', and ''The King and the Corpse'', which in turn became Zimmer's lasting legacy.
Work
Zimmer's method was to examine religious images using their sacred significance as a key to their psychic transformation. His use of (India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
n) philosophy and religious history to interpret art was at odds with traditional scholarship. His vast knowledge of Hindu mythology
Hindu mythology is the body of myths and literature attributed to, and espoused by, the adherents of the Hindu religion, found in Hindu texts such as the Vedic literature, epics like ''Mahabharata'' and ''Ramayana'', the Puranas, and ...
and philosophy (particularly Puranic
Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...
and Tantric works) gave him insights into the art, insights that were appreciated by Joseph Campbell
Joseph John Campbell (March 26, 1904 – October 30, 1987) was an American writer. He was a professor of literature at Sarah Lawrence College who worked in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work covers many aspects of the ...
among others. Campbell edited many of Zimmer's writings after his death. In the foreword to Zimmer's book, ''Artistic Form and Yoga in the Sacred Images of India,'' Campbell makes reference to a memorial to Heinrich Zimmer, which was read at the New York Oriental Club meeting in the spring of 1949: “Dr. Zimmer stood alone, forming a class by himself, not only for the wide range of subjects he was proficient in, but also for his unique genius of interpretation. . . Zimmer strove to understand both Eastern and Western ideas from Universal conceptions lying at the root of spiritual and psychological developments everywhere." The psychiatrist Carl Jung
Carl Gustav Jung ( ; ; 26 July 1875 – 6 June 1961) was a Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who founded analytical psychology. Jung's work has been influential in the fields of psychiatry, anthropology, archaeology, literature, ph ...
also developed a long-standing relationship with Zimmer, and incidentally edited a volume of Zimmer's entitled Der Weg zum Selbst (''The Way to the Self''). The two men first met in 1932, after which Zimmer, along with Richard Wilhelm, became one of the few male friends of Jung.
Zimmer is credited by many for the popularizing of South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;; ...
n art in the West, as he was the first to identify the radical difference between Western classical and Indian art
Indian art consists of a variety of art forms, including Indian painting, painting, sculpture in the Indian subcontinent, sculpture, Indian pottery, pottery, and textile arts such as Silk in the Indian subcontinent#Origin, woven silk. Geographica ...
.
Personal life
In 1929 he married Christiane, daughter of Austrian novelist Hugo von Hofmannsthal
Hugo Laurenz August Hofmann von Hofmannsthal (; 1 February 1874 – 15 July 1929) was an Austrian novelist, librettist, poet, dramatist, narrator, and essayist.
Early life
Hofmannsthal was born in Landstraße, Vienna, the son of an upper-cl ...
. Zimmer died of pneumonia in New Rochelle, New York, on March 20, 1943.
Quotes
On all levels there are rituals capable of transforming man. But it is everywhere the tradition and trend to rank the spiritual, sublime practices above the sensual and magical ones, since the general course of cultural development has favored the spiritual element over the material and feminine. This development has taken place under the predominance of the male principle. But with the cult of the Great Goddess in late Hinduism, the archaic heritage of sensual earth-bound rites rises once again overwhelmingly to the zenith."[Zimmer, Heinrich. ''The Indian World Mother,'' ]938
Year 938 ( CMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Summer – The Hungarian army invades Northern Italy with the permission of King H ...
pp. 91–92; from The Mystic Vision: Papers from The Eranos Yearbooks, Bollingen Series XXX, 6. Princeton University Press, 1968, Edited by Joseph Campbell and translated by Ralph Manheim.
Works
*''Kunstform und Yoga im Indischen Kultbild'' (''Artistic Form and Yoga in the Sacred Images of India'' 926Translated and edited by Gerald Chapple, James B. Lawson and J. Michael McKnight 984
*''Maya: Der Indische Mythos''. (1936)
* ''Der Weg zum Selbst'' (The Way to the Self) (1944)
*
Myths and Symbols in Indian Art and Civilization
'. Edited by Joseph Campbell. (1946)
*''Hindu Medicine.''Edited by Ludwig Edelstein.(1948)
*
The King and the Corpse: Tales of the Soul's Conquest of Evil
'. Edited by Joseph Campbell. (1948)
*
Philosophies of India
'. Edited by Joseph Campbell. (1953). .
*''The Art of Indian Asia, its Mythology and Transformations''. Completed and edited by Joseph Campbell. (1955)
*''Heinrich Zimmer: Coming Into His Own''. Edited by Margaret H Case. (1994)
References
Further reading
*
External links
Heinrich Zimmer, Studien zur Geschichte der Gotras
Heinrich Zimmer, Spiel um den Elefanten: ein Buch von indischer Natur
Heinrich Zimmer, Ewiges Indien: Leitmotive indischen Daseins
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zimmer, Heinrich
German art historians
German orientalists
German Indologists
Mystics
University of Greifswald faculty
Writers from New Rochelle, New York
1890 births
1943 deaths
Humboldt University of Berlin alumni
People from Greifswald
Heidelberg University faculty
German philologists
German male non-fiction writers
Historians of Indian art
20th-century philologists