Franz von Baader's Criticism of Modern Rationalism: A Brief Overview

Franz von Baader (1765 - 1841), one of the most important philosophers in the age of German idealism and romanticism, has considered it the most important task of his life to bring the modern rationalism in philosophy to an end. The focus of his criticism lies on the philosophical anthropocentrism and egocentricity of Rene Descartes (1596 - 1650), uttered in his famous saying 'Cogito ergo sum' ('I think therefore I am'). Baader also criticized Immanuel Kant (1724 - 1804) and other philosophers of German idealism, who have absorbed at least partially the rationalism of Descartes. In this article it will be shown how Baader, who follows the tradition of the theosophy of Jacob Boehme (1575 - 1624), the philosophy of Paracelsus (1493-1541), the mysticism of Meister Eckhart (1260 - 1328) and to many other sources which break the anthropocentrism and egocentricity of modern rationalism, opposes the Cogito ergo sum (I think therefore I am) statement with his Cogitor ergo sum (I am cognized therefore I am). Man can only recognize God if he is recognized by God. In other words, Baader shows that the human ego cannot be the principle of philosophy, but solely the participation in God.