Ludwig Feuerbach's departure from the traditional philosophy of Hegel opened a door for generations of radical philosophical thinkers, foremost among them the young Karl Marx. Indeed, much of early Marx is unintelligible without reference to certain fundamental Feuerbachian texts. The selections in this volume, few of them available in translation elsewhere, reveal Feuerbach's fundamental criticisms of the 'old philosophy' of Hegel and advance his own humanistic thought, grounded in life and sensuality. The reader can readily grasp the liberating influence of this unjustly neglected philosopher.

Ludwig Feuerbach (1804-1872) was a German philosopher and anthropologist credited by both Karl Marx and Frederick Engels as a major influence. Among his best known works is his critique of Christianity, The Essence of Christianity. Feuerbach supported materialism, liberalism, and atheism. Much of his writing presented a critical philosophical analysis of religion.
Dr. Zawar Hanfi was a professor at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, until his death in 1989. In 1971, he translated The Fiery Brook: Selected Writings by Ludwig Feuerbach. Dr. Hanfi was a linguist and classical scholar. Born in India, he studied Descartes with Heidegger in Germany after fleeing civil war in Pakistan.