Letter handwritten and signed by Albert Einstein (with the initials "AE"), addressed to the Danish journalist Karen Stampe Bendix. No indication of place or date [United States, ca. 1936]. German.
A fascinating letter written against the backdrop of the threat posed by Nazi Germany's rapid mobilization in conjunction with its escalating political extremism, and the increasing likelihood of another war. Thus, notwithstanding his decidedly pacifistic worldview, Albert Einstein insists that under the prevailing circumstances, there is no choice but to confront Germany, the sooner the better, and perhaps even take the initiative in doing so. In this regard, he takes issue with the conciliatory stance of the powers of the free world: "Most regrettable is the feeble stance of England, insofar as it indeed postpones the start of war, but certainly cannot prevent it. It would have been best to intervene already three years ago. There are diseases that cannot be overcome without surgery. I cannot deny this even though I abhor the knife."
Einstein implores Stampe to take comfort in her own situation, inasmuch as Denmark, her native country, "is unthreatened by the impending turbulence, " and promises her that "even if it is economically difficult, there is yet strange consolation in that no place on earth is in a better situation." (This assertion turned out to be untrue in hindsight, seeing as notwithstanding the nonaggression pact it signed with Germany, Denmark was attacked and occupied by Nazi German forces in 1940.) The letter ends with a description of the prevailing sentiment in the United States: "There is heavy unemployment here as well, and unlike the situation in the past, [there is] a mood of pessimistic resignation with the state of affairs. On the other hand, the difficult circumstances here have not led to the heated political passions so familiar to us from Europe."
Einstein makes parenthetic reference to his wife's poor state of health, as well as the couple's general living conditions: "We live in an old, pretty house in picturesque surroundings… but I am still plagued by an unimaginable flood of letters."

Albert Einstein (1879-1955), among the most influential physicists of the 20th century, gave rise to the theory of relativity and helped lay the foundations for the theory of quantum mechanics. Nobel Laureate in Physics. Born in Ulm in southern Germany, studied in Switzerland, and served as professor at a number of different universities. In addition to his distinguished scientific accomplishments, Einstein was deeply involved in social and political activism; when the Nazis came to power in Germany in 1933, Einstein chose to renounce his German citizenship and settle in the United States with his second wife, Elsa Einstein (1876-1936), where he was offered a position at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton, New Jersey. Einstein remained at Princeton until his death on April 18, 1955.
Albert Einstein was an avowed pacifist all his life, and remained steadfast in his opposition to war in almost any form. As such, he campaigned for the establishment of international institutions promoting conflict resolution between the nations of the world. Notwithstanding this worldview, considering the threat posed to humanity by Nazi Germany – "an enemy who pursues the destruction of life as an end in itself" – Einstein vociferously called for the free world to prepare for war. So great was the danger in his view, that he implored United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt to order the accelerated development of an atomic bomb to ensure America would be in possession of this lethal weapon before Nazi Germany. With the conclusion of the Second World War, Einstein returned to his previous positions in opposition to virtually all use of military force, and campaigned forcefully for nuclear disarmament. For more on this subject, see below.
Karen Stampe Bendix (1881-1963), Danish educator, screenwriter, and author. Daughter of Danish-Jewish composer Victor Bendix and of the Danish noblewoman and activist author Rigmor Stampe Bendix (godchild of Hans Christian Andersen). In the 1930s, Stampe Bendix developed a close relationship with Albert Einstein and his wife, and published a lengthy article on Einstein in the Danish newspaper "Politiken."

[1] f., folded (roughly two-and-a-half written pages), 17.5 cm. Good condition. Fold lines and creases. Stains. Small tears along fold lines, repaired.

Albert Einstein's Pacifistic Worldview
For his entire life, Albert Einstein regarded himself as a passionate pacifist. With every fiber of his being, he opposed military conflict in all its forms. He sought to completely abolish the concept of the nation-state, whose very existence, in his view, rendered warfare unavoidable. In this vein, in the early days of the First World War, he signed the pacifistic manifesto entitled "Aufruf an die Europäer" ("Call to the Europeans, " 1914) as a direct response to "Manifest der 93" (the "Manifesto of the 93") – a rallying cry for war signed by 93 notable German academics. In the interwar period, through various frameworks, he actively and persistently strove to further his pacifistic and humanistic agenda, and to advance the goal of establishing powerful international institutions that could promise stability in Europe and enable the creation of multilateral international cooperative ventures, that would advance the cause of peace and eventually bring an end to war. In several instances, he went as far as intervening personally on behalf of conscientious objectors and pacifists who had been persecuted and prosecuted by legal governmental authorities in a number of different European countries (see "Einstein on Peace" [below], chapters 4 and 5).
Despite his longstanding commitment to pacifism, Nazi militarism and Adolf Hitler's aggressive territorial ambitions convinced Einstein that Nazi ideology posed a clear and present danger to both European Jewry and European civilization, and that Hitler must be stopped at all costs, sooner rather than later. In a letter dated 1936, Einstein wrote the following: "A strange breed of pacifist, you will probably say of me! But I cannot shut my eyes to realities. It is no exaggeration to say that the British, and, to some extent, the French pacifists are largely responsible for the desperate situation today because they prevented energetic measures from being taken at a time when it would have been relatively easy to adopt them. In vain, I advocated appropriate policies in 1933. But the 'Great Men' at the time almost ridiculed the danger of war" (see "Einstein on Peace" [below], p. 273).
Einstein regarded the possibility of Nazi Germany possessing an atomic bomb as a threat to all humanity, and believed it was essential the Allied Powers beat Germany in the race to the bomb. This view brought him and physicist Leo Szilard to send, in 1939, the so-called "Einstein-Szilard Letter" to United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt, to call the attention of the US administration to the latest developments in the field of nuclear fission, to clarify the potential military uses of this new technology, and to voice their fears that Nazi Germany might be pursuing an atomic weapon. In essence, the Einstein-Szilard Letter ultimately gave rise to the Manhattan Project which would eventually lead to the production of the world's first atomic bomb. Einstein later expressed his regrets of having signed this letter. In 1946, he and Szilard established the Emergency Committee of Atomic Scientists (ECAS) with the aim of warning the public of all the potential dangers of the atomic bomb. In 1955, shortly before his death, Einstein signed the Russell-Einstein Manifesto which similarly dealt with the threat of nuclear weaponry and beseeched the governments of the world to pursue the resolution of international conflicts by peaceful means.
In yet another letter, addressed to Japanese pacifist Seiei Shinoara and dated June 23, 1953, Einstein clarified his positions regarding Nazism and the American use of the atomic bomb with the following words: "I am a dedicated [‘entschiedener'] but not an absolute pacifist; this means that I am opposed to the use of force under any circumstances, except when confronted by an enemy who pursues the destruction of life as an end in itself […]" (English; excerpted from "Einstein on Politics" [see below], p. 491).
References:
1. Otto Nathan and Heinz Norden, eds., "Einstein on Peace, " Schocken Books, New York, 1960.
2. Robert Schulmann and David E. Rowe, eds., "Einstein on Politics, " Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ and Oxford UK, 2007, p. 491.

Large collection of letters and photographs from the psychoanalyst Carl Gustav Jung – letters sent by Jung to the psychoanalyst Dr. Rivkah Schärf Kluger, most handwritten and hand signed by him (German); photographs of Jung at his home in Küsnacht on the outskirts of Zurich, and more. Switzerland, [ca. 1940-60].
The collection includes:
• 62 letters bearing Carl Gustav Jung's signature (German). Most are handwritten, on official stationery, and the remainder typewritten. Most are in their original envelopes. The letters were sent from 1940 to 1960 to Jung's student and close friend, the psychoanalyst Dr. Rivkah Schärf Kluger. To the best of our knowledge, these letters have never been printed or published.
The letters deal with a wide range of personal and professional subjects, and contain some intriguing references to Jung's theories. In his letters, Jung relates to various ideas and concepts connected to his own theories of analytical psychology; he consults with Dr. Schärf Kluger regarding the publication of his studies and works, provides her with guidance in editing and copy-editing her own research, tells her about the state of his own health, about his vacations and future plans, gives her all manner of advice, and more. In some of his letters, Jung psychoanalyzes Schärf Kluger's dreams – which she had told him about in her letters to him – by deciphering, interpreting, and clarifying them.
In one letter, dated April 3, 1946, Jung analyzes a particular dream Schärf Kluger had told him about, which appeared connected to the relationship between the two: "You stay too long – Hidden behind this is a desire to be part of my family. But I lead you out, – that is, out of the realm of ‘being a daughter' […] The card points to the pious Jew who has to teach you obedience. The apparatus that lengthens my nose is suggestive of the intention, that is, the distant goal one reaches when one pursues that nose. The small wriggling fish behind all this is the Christian symbol […] This is the part or the ‘self, ' the ‘atman' (from Old High German = breath, Holy Spirit) that a person internalizes, aspires to bring closer, that which enables one to breathe (‘Spiritus Vitae, ' [the ‘spirit of life']), in other words, that which enables life. Life is sacrifice, that is, any form of fulfillment is sacrifice, because completion is both a beginning and an ending… the ‘self' lives only insofar as we live our lives according to reality. Through illusions we distort reality and attempt to avoid it."
In another letter, dated November 11, 1944, Jung writes to Schärf Kluger as follows: "It seems to me every time something is constellated in your unconscious, threatening dreams are aroused, because you usually react to your unconscious as if it were something pathological. This is a form of overreaction, and is far too pronounced, and is apparently related to the fact that you dropped abruptly, shall we say, from the Middle Ages into the Modern Era – actually to the pinnacle of modernity." In yet another letter, dated August 30, 1943, Jung confides to her that "it so happened that you once suddenly appeared in one of my dreams, but I can't remember the context."
In some of the letters, Jung appears to be intrigued by the Hebrew language and Jewish texts. In one of them, dated May 24, 1944, he thanks Schärf Kluger for sending him a particular kabbalistic composition, and writes as follows: "This [the composition] strongly reinforces my own feelings and experiences. I was very impressed by it. In the darkest hours of my illness, every night I found myself in something of a ‘pomegranate orchard.' [In all likelihood, the composition in question is the book by Rabbi Moses ben Jacob Cordovero titled ‘Pardes Rimonim' = ‘Pomegranate Orchard.'] In another letter, he thanks Schärf Kluger for providing him with an interpretation of the Hebrew word "rikmah" (= embroidery, tapestry, [biological] tissue).
• 41 photographs, including photos of Carl Gustav Jung at home in Küsnacht, on the outskirts of Zurich. Some of the photos show him in his study room, or working in the yard outside his house, or with members of his family, colleagues, and acquaintances, and more. Two of the photographs (portrait photographs of Jung) were taken by Margarita Fellerer, one of them is signed by Jung.

Size and condition vary.

Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961), Swiss physician and psychiatrist, one of the founding fathers of modern psychology; the father of analytical psychology, sometimes referred to as Jungian Psychology, and the theorist who gave rise to the concept of "collective unconscious." Jung was one of the most prominent of Sigmund Freud's students; Freud regarded him for a while as his natural successor, and even made certain he would be appointed President of his newly founded International Psychoanalytical Association. In 1912, Jung published a treatise, based on the results of his research, entitled "Psychology of the Unconscious, " in which he took issue with some of Freud's fundamental theoretical premises. This publication led to an ultimately irreconcilable personal and professional rift between the two. The main bone of contention between Freud and Jung involved their respective views regarding the unconscious; while Freud concentrated on illicit urges and repressed personal memories, Jung chose to focus on patterns of collective thought. In Jung's view, the appearance of recurring symbols and images in divergent cultures points to the existence of a pervasive collective unconscious wherein experiences are passed on from one generation to the next, originating with the dawn of humanity. In his opinion, this collective unconscious, consisting of symbols and images that exist cross-culturally among virtually all human societies – what Jung termed "archetypes" – exerts a profound influence on human personality. The impact of Jung's approach extended far beyond the field of psychology, into such areas as philosophy and religion, behavioral sciences, literature, art, and more.

The Swiss psychoanalyst Dr. Rivkah Schärf Kluger (1907-1987), was one of Carl Gustav Jung's most outstanding disciples. Born in Bern, Switzerland, she was the firstborn daughter of Sara Ettel Wiesel and Meschulem Leib Schärf, a Jewish couple of Hasidic origin who immigrated to Switzerland from Bukovina (today part of Romania; then a region of the Austro-Hungarian Empire). When she was four years old, her family moved from Bern to Zurich. Her academic training began at the University of Zurich, where she first studied philosophy and psychology, and then moved on to Semitic languages and religious history. She took a thorough interest in the field of Jewish mysticism and kabbalah. Her first encounter with Jung came when she was still a young student; she read his writings, attended his lectures, and kept detailed notes on the content of his lessons. Some of these notes have been recently published. In 1936, she began working alongside Jung as a psychoanalyst, and subsequently started teaching students of her own at the C.G. Jung Institute in Zurich. In 1946, she earned her doctorate. Her doctoral thesis dealt with the image of Satan in the Old Testament. Jung, who was immensely impressed with her work, had the thesis published as an appendix to his own book, "Symbolik des Geistes." Jung and Schärf Kluger developed a deep and durable, longstanding personal friendship. They would meet from time to time, and exchanged many letters over a prolonged period of correspondence. In 1955, Schärf Kluger moved to the United States along with her husband, Yehezkel Kluger. The two settled in Los Angeles, where Schärf Kluger lectured at the C.G. Jung Institute of Los Angeles. In 1969, the couple immigrated to Israel, settling in Haifa, where Schärf Kluger continued both teaching and practicing psychoanalysis.

Enclosed:
• Letters sent to Rivkah Schärf Kluger following the death of her mother in early February, 1950, including a handwritten, hand-signed letter from Emma Jung, wife of Carl Jung; a handwritten, hand-signed letter from the psychologist Toni Wolff (1888-1953), sometimes referred to as Jung's "second wife"; a letter of condolence signed by Jung's daughter Agathe and her husband Kurt Niehus; a letter (written on a postcard) from "M.J." – probably Jung's daughter, Marianne Jung; and more.
• Two lengthy letters written by Rivkah Schärf Kluger to Carl Jung: one from May 28, 1956, and the other from January 25, 1961. Another one of her handwritten letters is enclosed with one of Jung's letters, dated April 13, 1942.
• A letter signed by Aniela Jaffé, Carl Jung's secretary, and dated May 26, 1961. This letter, addressed to both Rivkah Schärf Kluger and her husband Yehezkel just a few days prior to Carl Jung's passing, gives a highly detailed account of Jung's failing health. In the letter, Aniela Jaffé requests that the couple treat the matter as strictly confidential.
• 13 handwritten or typewritten letters from the German-Jewish psychiatrist James Kirsch (1901-1989), chairman and founder of the C.G. Jung Institute of Los Angeles, dated 1951-54. Addressed to Yehezkel Kluger. English.
• 8 handwritten or typewritten letters from Prof. Heinrich Zangger (1874-1957), chairman of the University of Zurich's Instituts für Rechtsmedizin (Institute of Forensic Medicine). Addressed to Rivkah Schärf Kluger. German.

Reference:
Nomi Kluger-Nash, "Rivkah Schärf Kluger: A Life Fuelled with Intensity of Spirit and Rare Depth of Soul, " [Appendix I] in Carl Gustav Jung, "The Solar Myths and Opicinus de Canistris: Notes of the Seminar given at Eranos in 1943," Daimon (publisher), Switzerland, 2015.