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“Sich besinnen” has two possible meanings: to reflect and to
remember. This is no coincidence, since to reflect on something
also means measuring my present on the scale of my past. Mem¬
ory is, of course, important in this, and so is forgetting. When
learning from memory (that is what history is), it would be much
more important to learn wisdom than facts. And forgetfulness
is also important because holding on to grievances leads to new
grievances. In 1871, a young French doctor watched in shock as
Prussian soldiers committed atrocities in his beloved Paris. He
decided to take revenge on the Germans one day. His name was
Georges Benjamin Clemenceau.
Echoing Nietzsche, Spengler later writes the following in The
Decline of the West.
In this book is attempted for the first time the venture of predetermi¬
ning history, of following the still untravelled stages in the destiny of
a Culture, and specifically of the only Culture of our time and on our
planet which is actually in the phase of fulfilment - the West-Europe
an-American. (Spengler 1927.p.3.)
And the final conclusion is not very favorable. Humanity keeps
committing the very same mistakes that they did before. According
to Hegel, we can learn one thing from the past: that humans never
learn from it. If there was something to be learned from remember¬
ing, this is the most painful part. It is impossible to forgive. This
is what it relates to, even though the “other” and the “different”
have always been among us and always will be, whether we like
it or not. This can be as alien, guest, or even enemy. Just like us.