Einstein: I have “always striven with a kind of fanaticism for the highest degree of simplicity in my observation”

Einstein is considered the greatest scientist since Newton, and was voted the leading person of the 20th Century by scholars, historians and average people alike. His Theory of Relativity made possible much of modern science, and theories he promulgated but could not prove himself continue to be proven by his successors. He instinctively believed that there is a complete rationality to the universe, and that its perfect and logical order precluded its being random. It was up to man to unravel and understand the workings of this cosmic plan to further the progress and knowledge of mankind. His scientific mind saw the challenge, and he determined to take on the unheard-of task of finding that order. His success in doing so raises important questions, such as what was the driving force behind his scientific work, and did he have a guiding principle? The answer is yes.

In addition to his scientific work, Einstein was a noted humanitarian and deeply interested in the plight of Jews around the world. He always did what he could to assist individuals attempting to come to America and find work, and in the wake of the Holocaust supported establishment of a Jewish state in what today is Israel but was then Palestine. Since 1946, Britain, which had a UN?mandate in Palestine, had been intercepting Jews and preventing them from making their way there, often sending them to internment camps on Cyprus. Finally, on May 14, 1948, the British mandate expired and the State of Israel was born. It soon found itself at war with adjacent Arab states and had to fight for its very existence. Einstein had a strong admiration for the nation-builders, who were often young people; he saw their struggle as one for the Jewish people as a whole.

Siegfried Hessing was a Polish-Jewish writer and student of philosophy. That Einstein and Hessing were known to each other for some years is confirmed by the existence of at least a dozen letters exchanged between them; the earliest (1932) shows Hessing seeking Einstein’s assistance for his work on Spinoza. When conditions in Czernowitz, Poland became too grim, Hessing sought help in emigrating with his wife and son. Forced to remain in Poland for the duration of the Holocaust, they survived and eventually boarded a ship for Palestine. The British intercepted them in the Dardanelles and sent them to internment (along with more than 51,000 other Jews) in Cyprus for a period of 18 months. Here Hessing continued in his scholarly work, concentrating on the philosopher Baruch Spinoza, whom Einstein so much admired. In 1948, Hessing wrote to ask Einstein to write a forward to his upcoming book on Spinoza. Einstein responds by empathizing with all Hessing had been through, goes on to praise the spirit of Israel, and finishes by providing the answer to the questions about his driving force and guiding principle in science.

Typed Letter Signed, in German, Princeton, November 24, 1948, to Hessing. “I am confirming the receipt of your friendly letter of November 8 and empathize with you for all the difficulties you have had to suffer through. I am also happy for you, that this path of sorrow will soon come to an end through the presence of more normal circumstances. We all owe thanks and admiration to the brave band of our brothers in Israel, that they have succeeded in attaining by their own hand that to which they have a just right. I am glad to send you the photograph you desire which will be sent for the sake of security together with a copy of this letter to the address in Tel-Aviv. I’ve read the introduction to your book with great interest and would be happy if I could support you by means of a forward in your publication. I do not feel, however, capable or justified to write such a forward. The reason is that your way of representing relationships of one thing to another differs so much from my way that I cannot honestly enter into such a thing, as a person who has always striven with a kind of fanaticism for the highest degree of simplicity in my observation and expression. I hope that you understand this, and that you will soon be successful in publishing your work.” Hessing went on to immigrate to the United States and write on the life and times of Spinoza. He was the editor of Speculum Spinozanum 1677-1977, which included a contribution by Einstein. This letter was obviously kept by Hessing all his life as a particular treasure, as it was folded in such a way that it might be carried in a wallet. This has resulted in some fading and wear, but the letter is perfectly legible, and the signature is very dark and strong.

Einstein is well known for saying “Nature is the realization of the simplest conceivable mathematical ideas,” and, “I have been guided not by the pressure from behind of experimental facts, but by the attraction in front from mathematical simplicity.” Here he takes it one step further, indicating that the underlying motivation behind his life of scientific inquiry was the driving desire to find simplicity in all things. He also expresses his gratitude to and admiration for those Jews who created the State of Israel, showing both his strong support and his belief that they had succeeded, a fact not universally appreciated at the time.