The Will to Power · Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche
917.
_To feel ones self stronger_ or, expressed otherwise: happiness always presupposes a comparison (not necessarily with others, but with one's self, in the midst of a state of growth, and without being conscious that one is comparing). _Artificial_ accentuation: whether by means of exciting chemicals or exciting errors ("hallucinations.") Take, for instance, the Christian's feeling of _security_; he feels himself strong in his confidence, in his patience, and his resignation: this artificial accentuation he owes to the fancy that he is protected by a God. Take the feeling of _superiority,_ for instance: as when the Caliph of Morocco sees only globes on which his three united kingdoms cover four-fifths of the space. Take the feeling of _uniqueness,_ for instance: as when the European imagines that culture belongs to Europe alone, and when he regards himself as a sort of abridged cosmic process; or, as when the Christian makes all existence revolve round the "Salvation of man." The question is, where does one begin to feel the pressure of constraint: it is thus that different degrees are ascertained. A philosopher for instance, in the midst of the coolest and most transmontane feats of abstraction feels like a fish that enters its element: while colours and tones oppress him; not to speak of those dumb desires--of that which others call "the ideal."
Text from Project Gutenberg, public domain in the United States.