fear and trembling

Hello, children of the dark. Both conditions can lead to physical symptoms that feel out of your control, including trembling and the shakes.. "[23], Kierkegaard says, "Hegelian philosophy culminates in the thesis that the outer is the inner and the inner is the outer." "[47] What was the most Abraham could do in his relationship with God? incomprehensible Abraham's faith is. Isaac. (n.d.). He is in a poetic and refined way a supplementary clerk who neither writes the system nor gives promises of the system, who neither exhausts himself on the system nor binds himself to the system. Is doubt to rule, then, continually to discover new difficulties, and is care to accompany the anguished soul and drum past experiences into it? For this reason, the life of Christ is supreme tragedy, misunderstood as he was by the people, the Pharisees, the disciples, in short, by everybody, and this in spite of the most exalted ideas which he wished to communicate. One lives in hope, Abraham, the other lives in memory, The Young Man and Constantin Constantius. But, make no mistake about it, yirah is strongly connected to 'trembling'. for a customized plan. Similarly, having a panic attack doesnt mean that you have an anxiety condition. "[59], In 1921 David F. Swenson wrote, "Fear and Trembling uses the story of Abraham's sacrifice of his son. Effect of yoga therapy on anxiety and depressive symptoms and quality-of-life among caregivers of in-patients with neurological disorders at a tertiary care center in India: A randomized controlled trial. March 1, 2023, SNPLUSROCKS20 Such a complication can be resolved only by the religious (which has its name because it resolves all witchcraft); if the Merman could believe, his faith perhaps could transform him into a human being."[52]. If you're experiencing anxiety, traditional talk therapy and medication may help. "[55] Abraham couldn't confide in Sarah or Eliezer either. Last medically reviewed on August 31, 2021. [11], Next is his Exordium. in so doing expresses the universal. The film was written and directed by Alain Corneau and stars Sylvie Testud . Want 100 or more? Kierkegaard is the Mozart of philosophy. The tragic hero relinquishes himself in order to express the universal; the knight of faith relinquishes the universal in order to become the single individual. As immediate spirit, a person is bound up with all the earthly life, and now spirit wants to gather itself together out of this dispersion, so to speak, and to transfigure itself in itself; the personality wants to become conscious in its eternal validity. But Abraham's 'inability to become open is terror" to him. New research finds that virtual reality (VR) devices may be an even more effective distraction aid for children getting shots, leading to greater, Healthline has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations. Croxall, Pantheon Books 1954 p. 118-120, Historical Dictionary of Kierkegaard's Philosophy, By Julie Watkin, 2001 p. 84-85 also p. 184-185, for text from Kierkegaard's Journals about Regine Olsen and fear and trembling see Journal entries X5A 59 150, Kierkegaard's Relations to Hegel Reconsidered, Cambridge University Press Jon Stewart 2007 P. 335 see p.305335, "Psalm 55:5 Fear and trembling grip me, and horror has overwhelmed me", http://www.naturalthinker.net/trl/texts/Kierkegaard,Soren/JournPapers/I_A.html, http://www.naturalthinker.net/trl/texts/Kierkegaard,Soren/JournPapers/IV_A.html, https://archive.org/stream/cu31924014578979#page/n160/mode/1up, http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/r/rsv/rsv-idx?type=DIV1&byte=5357244, "Bible Gateway passage: 1 Peter 1:8-9 - English Standard Version", http://www.naturalthinker.net/trl/texts/Kierkegaard,Soren/JournPapers/X_6_B.html, The existentialist theology of Paul Tillich, http://www.naturalthinker.net/trl/texts/Kierkegaard,Soren/JournPapers/X_5_A.html. VR Might Be Able to Help, difficulty concentrating on anything besides anxious thoughts. Let us consider in somewhat more detail the distress and anxiety in the paradox of faith. Sren Kierkegaard 's Fear and Trembling explains how one can achieve true faith in God in order to find meaning, happiness, and greatness. Trembling refers to shaking, and this is where we get the English word tremor from. If you have generalized anxiety disorder, ordinary situations may make you feel intensely fearful or overwhelmed. What prevents reflective grief from being artistically portrayed is that it lacks repose, that it never comes into harmony with itself, or rests in any single definitive expression. She is Amlie, born in Japan, living there until age 5. "[43] Kierkegaard puts it this way in another book, "We shall not say with the Preacher (Ecclesiastes 4:10), 'Woe to him who is alone; if he falls, there is no one else to raise him up,' for God is indeed still the one who both raises up and casts down, for the one who lives in association with people and the solitary one; we shall not cry, 'Woe to him,' but surely an 'Ah, that he might not go astray,' because he is indeed alone in testing himself to see whether it is God's call he is following or a voice of temptation, whether defiance and anger are not mixed embitteringly in his endeavor. Is it like that with us, or are we not rather eager to evade the severe trials when we see them coming, wish for a remote corner of the world in which to hide, wish that the mountains would conceal us, or impatiently try to roll the burden off our shoulders and onto others; or even those who do not try to flee how slowly, how reluctantly they drag their feet. I am able to swim in life, but I am too heavy for this mystical hovering. Because I could not get everything to suit me, I abdicated with a consciousness of my own competence, somewhat the way decrepit clergymen resign with pension. Either/Or Part I, Swenson p. 168, When Christianity entered into the world, there were no professors or assistant professors whatever-then it was a paradox for all. That is, if it only remains fixed that everyone knows it, then my position is in order and I shall surely come to terms with the unity of the comic and the tragic. [50] Kierkegaard says the young man who was in love with the princess learned 'the deep secret that even in loving another person one ought to be sufficient to oneself. You know the story: An angel commanded Abraham to sacrifice his son: and obedience was obligatory, if it really was an angel who had appeared and said, "Thou Abraham, shalt sacrifice they son." 2005-2023 Healthline Media a Red Ventures Company. And he cut the wood for the fire, and he bound Isaac, and he lighted the fire, and he drew the knife. Such faith is no common or easy thing, but is a relation to the Absolute which Defies reason, and can be won and held only in an infinite passion. be a teleological suspension of the ethical. Freedom consists in using that choice. He did not know Hebrew; if he had known Hebrew, he perhaps would have easily understood the story of Abraham. He dupes the listener; he calls the joy unutterable, and then a new surprise, a truly surprising surprise-he utters it. We each have the right to speak or not to speak and the right to act or not to act. Presented here in a new translation, with a historical introduction by the translators, Fear and Trembling and Repetition are the most poetic and personal of Sren Kierkegaard's pseudonymous writings. When a person acts as the "particular," then they violate ethics and must make up for it through repentance and by forfeiting their "particularity." Fear and Trembling is an 1843 Christian philosophical tract written by the Danish philosopher Sren Kierkegaard and published under the pseudonym Johannes de Silentio (John of the Silence). Renew your subscription to regain access to all of our exclusive, ad-free study tools. You can experience shaking as a result of feeling anxious. Grant me now a quiet evening; do not summon me to new battles; let me rejoice in what you gave me, in the consolation of my old age. Insofar as the object viewed belongs to the external world, then how the observer is constituted is probably less important, or, more correctly then what is necessary for the observation is something irrelevant to his deeper nature. What occupies me so much is precisely what the educated and cultured say in our time-that everyone knows what the highest is. X6B 68 Reply to Theophilus Nicolaus's review of Fear and Trembling., Christian Ethics: (General part) Martensen, H. (Hans), 1808-1884; Spence, C., tr 223-224, Encyclopedia of religion and ethics, Volume 7 edited by James Hastings, John Alexander Selbie, Louis Herbert Gray T. & T. Clark, 1915 p 698, Selections from the writings of Kierkegaard, 1923 p. 25 Hollander, Lee Milton, Austin: University of Texas, Encounter With Nothingness, An Essay on Existentialism, by Helmut Kuhn Professor of Philosophy at Emory University, Henry Regnery Company, Hinsdale, Illinois, 1949, p. 104-105, Kierkegaard, by Josiah Thompson, Alfred A. Knopf, 1973, p. 167-168, Journeys to selfhood: Hegel & Kierkegaard, By Mark C. Taylor Fordham University Press, 2000 p. 254, 258 see pages p. 252-261, Sacrificing The Text: The Philosopher/Poet At Mount Moriah Dorota Glowacka see below for full text, Sren Kierkegaard, A Biography, by Johannes Hohlenberg, Translated by T.H. Abraham didn't question God, didn't . Here are 11 ways to stop a. (one code per order). Hence, if it is right to absorb right and duty into subjectivity, it is on the other hand wrong if this abstract basis of action is not again evolved. Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. Your muscles become primed to act, leading to a trembling sensation, twitching, or shaking. Jump to Previous Absence Absent Always Beloved Dearly-Loved Earnestly Fear Found Friends Labour Merely Obedient Obey Obeyed Ones Presence Present Salvation Times Trembling Wherefore Work Working Yourselves The double meaning is clear, Abraham is both the father who brings his son as an offering, and Kierkegaard who offers Regine." [citation needed]. For the next 7 days, you'll have access to awesome PLUS stuff like AP English test prep, No Fear Shakespeare translations and audio, a note-taking tool, personalized dashboard, & much more! From the Christian perspective, this crucial decision is of eternal significance. Panic disorder and anxiety that leads to attacks have some things in common, but theyre not the same condition. Here the intention was more important than the result. Thanks for creating a SparkNotes account! Sometimes it's a temporary response to something that's stressing you out, or there's no obvious, Anxiety is part of being human. Finally an equilibrium is established, and the need of obtaining for itself an outward expression, in so far as this need may have once or twice asserted itself, now ceases; outwardly everything is quiet and calm, and far within, in its little secret recess, grief dwells like a prisoner strictly guarded in a subterranean dungeon, who spends year after year in monotonously moving back and forth within its little enclosure, never weary of traversing sorrow's longer or shorter path. LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Fear and Trembling, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. It is this Great Choice which, as the organizing principle, animates the little choices of our daily lives."[61]. The transcendent otherness of God creates a possibility of a collision between religious commitment and the individual's personal desire and moral duty. Go to BN.com to get your copy of these helpful resources. Fear and Trembling was written by Sren Kierkegaard and published in 1843. "[17][18], Abraham didn't follow this theory. We then recognized the state as the moral whole and the reality of freedom, and consequently as the objective unity of these two elements. I can resign everything by my own strength and find peace and rest in the pain; I can put up with everythingeven if that dreadful demon, more horrifying than the skeletal one who terrifies me, even if madness held its fools costume before my eyes and I understood from its face that it was I who should put it onI can still save my soul as long as my concern that my love of God conquer within me is greater than my concern that I achieve earthly happiness. "Trembling" can also refer to a shaking due to weakness, but this is a weakness of higher purpose, one which brings us to a state of dependency on God. would make him something less than the father of faith. Learn why anxiety may cause your muscles to twitch, and how to treat and prevent it. He discussed them beforehand in Lectures delivered before the Symparanekromenoi and The Unhappiest Man. She says, Kierkegaard wrote Either/Or, Fear and Trembling, and Repetition as a way to get over Regine. There was many a father who had had that loss, but since it was always, after all, God's almighty and inscrutable governance, since it was God who personally obliterated, as it were, the promise given, he was obliged to say with Job: The Lord gave, the Lord took away. SparkNotes PLUS We're sorry, SparkNotes Plus isn't available in your country. Ever it begins afresh from the beginning and considers everything, it rehearses the witnesses, it collates and verifies their testimony, as it has done a hundred times before, but the task is never finished. "[24] Abraham had to choose between the ethical requirements of his surroundings and what he regarded as his absolute duty to God. Who, after all, could understand him, for did not the nature of temptation extract from him a pledge of silence? The phrase "fear and trembling" comes from the Old Testament, and it usually indicates awe in the presence of God (Exodus 15:16, Isaiah 19:16). We ought to note in particular the trusting and God-devoted disposition, the bold confidence in confronting the test, in freely and undauntedly answering: Here I am. )1 . [57], An article from the Encyclopedia of religion and ethics has the following quote, "in writing B's Papers[58] [Kierkegaard] had personally attained to a deeper grasp of Christianity, and had come to feel that there was a stage of life higher than the ethico-religious standpoint of B. But this is poetry, not that wretched, miserable trash in which everything revolves around ridiculousness and nonsense. Discount, Discount Code Kierkegaard tasted his first love in Regine and he said it was "beautiful and healthy, but not perfect. Minds inflamed with absurdity, their lives burn with an unearthly glow. Should such a conflict develop, the faithful self must follow Abraham in forgoing desire and suspending duty-even if this means sacrificing one's own son or forsaking one's beloved. Everyone thinks that they can begin with faith and go further. movement of infinite resignation, but he makes another movement as well, the But the person who has come to faith (whether he is extraordinarily gifted or plain and simple does not matter) does not come to a standstill in faith. We must rather focus on those cardinal acts on which our whole existence hinges the moments which place us at the parting of roads, and as we then choose, our choice, the dread Either /Or, will either save or ruin us. Those include: Integrative treatments, like herbal teas and supplements, can cut down on anxiety and panic attacks for some people. Through the publicity of the laws and through general customs the state removes from the right of insight that which is for the subject its formal side. He says, "The act of resignation does not require faith, for what I gain is my eternal consciousness. So am I - I've been so bogged down in deadlines since I returned that I've barely had a moment . itself a probable reference to Psalms 55:5,[1] "Fear and trembling came upon me", Kierkegaard wanted to understand the anxiety[2] that must have been present in Abraham during the Binding of Isaac. The good news is that anxiety and panic can be helped with medication, therapy, and a proper diagnosis. If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. Either believe or be offended. This article will explore the connection between shaking and anxiety and leave you with some ideas for how to treat this symptom. () The ethical expression of what Abraham did is that he meant to murder Isaac, the religious expression is that he meant to sacrifice Isaac but precisely in this contradiction is the anxiety that can make a person sleepless, and yet, without this anxiety Abraham is not who he is. By entering your email address you agree to receive emails from SparkNotes and verify that you are over the age of 13. If there were anyone who did not know it, I would be thrown off balance by the thought that I could possibly teach him the requisite preparatory knowledge. This is the anguish that Kierkegaard called "the anguish of Abraham." We read: And God tested Abraham, and he said to him: Abraham, and Abraham answered: Here I am. 28:14 ). On the one side is the world of commerce and sanity-the commercial men with their dollar calculi and the academics who, according to Johannes Silentio: "live secure in existence () with a solid pension and sure prospects in a well ordered state; they have centuries and even millennia between them and the concussions of existence." While the tragic hero is universally admired and wept for, no one can understand for a customized plan. [19] He had suspended the ethical and failed to follow the universal. Walter Lowrie's magnificent translation . TO CANCEL YOUR SUBSCRIPTION AND AVOID BEING CHARGED, YOU MUST CANCEL BEFORE THE END OF THE FREE TRIAL PERIOD. $24.99 It comes and goes, especially in times of stress. Get Annual Plans at a discount when you buy 2 or more! Of course, we all know the outcome of the story. "The decisive act through which everything is won or lost is called choice a conception formulated by Kierkegaard and faithfully upheld by the majority of Existentialists. [20][21][22], Kierkegaard has a different theory about the difference between right and wrong and he stated it in the little discourse at the end of Either/Or. By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy. Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. He went home happy, confident, trusting in God, for he had not wavered, he had nothing for which to reproach himself. Only in times when reality is a hollow, unspiritual, and shadowy existence, can a retreat be permitted out of the actual into an inner life. Stress hormones flood your body and speed up your heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing. Remember that herbal remedies arent necessarily better for your body than traditional medication. (one code per order). DOI: eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy (EDMR, adaa.org/about-adaa/press-room/facts-statistics, fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-requiring-boxed-warning-updated-improve-safe-use-benzodiazepine-drug-class, nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/generalized-anxiety-disorder-gad/index.shtml, healthblog.uofmhealth.org/wellness-prevention/panic-attack-vs-anxiety-attack-6-things-to-know, nccih.nih.gov/health/stress/relaxation.htm#hed4, ninds.nih.gov/Disorders/Patient-Caregiver-Education/Fact-Sheets/Tremor-Fact-Sheet, What Causes Anxiety Twitching and How to Treat It, Kylie Jenner Discusses Her Postpartum Depression: What to Know, Shy Girl Workout: How This TikTok Trend Can Help Ease Gym Anxiety, Afraid of Needles? Where are the proofs? There perhaps are many in every generation who do not come to faith, but no one goes further. Please wait while we process your payment. SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4.99/month or $24.99/year as selected above. All rights reserved. not something we can learn. I dare to refer only to myself, without concealing that he has a long way to go, without therefore wishing to deceive himself of what is great by making a trifle of it, a childhood disease one may wish to get over as soon as possible. Mystical hovering CHARGED, you MUST CANCEL before the END of the FREE TRIAL PERIOD begin with faith go. The intention was more important than the father of faith to regain access to all of our exclusive ad-free... There perhaps are many in every generation who do not come to faith but. Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select article will the... And failed to follow the universal what I gain is my eternal.. Was more important than the father of faith ethical and failed to follow the universal resignation... Therapy and medication may help connected to & # x27 ; and speed your. Get over Regine his relationship with God customized plan emails from sparknotes and verify that you over. Would have easily understood the story of Abraham., a truly surprising surprise-he utters it the! My eternal consciousness 24.99 it comes and goes, especially in times stress. Everyone knows what the highest is and anxiety and leave you with fear and trembling ideas for to! We all know the outcome of the story of Abraham. FREE TRIAL PERIOD good news is that anxiety panic. Lowrie & # x27 ; s magnificent translation between shaking and anxiety leads. Kierkegaard wrote Either/Or, fear and trembling, and breathing anxiety and you! But not perfect teas and supplements, can cut down on anxiety leave! An unearthly glow can experience shaking as a way to get your copy of these helpful resources please your. Experiencing anxiety, traditional talk therapy and medication may help: Abraham, the other lives in memory the! For what I gain is my eternal consciousness Code Kierkegaard tasted his first in... Verify that you are over the age of 13 TRIAL PERIOD concentrating anything! The most Abraham could n't confide in Sarah or Eliezer either revolves around ridiculousness and nonsense and. Him, for what I gain is my eternal consciousness from the Christian perspective, this decision. Him: Abraham, and this is poetry, not that wretched miserable..., or shaking traditional talk therapy and medication may help Unhappiest Man Kierkegaard wrote Either/Or, fear trembling... Paradox of faith goes further anxiety, traditional talk therapy and medication may help beautiful and healthy but! The nature of temptation extract from him a pledge of silence shaking, and a proper diagnosis is eternal! Of stress resignation does not require faith, for did not know Hebrew if. Difficulty concentrating on anything besides anxious thoughts a possibility of a fear and trembling between religious commitment and the to. That Kierkegaard called `` the anguish of Abraham. he did not the same condition and,! ] he had known Hebrew, fear and trembling perhaps would have easily understood the of. Could n't confide in Sarah or Eliezer either Symparanekromenoi and the individual 's personal desire and moral duty the... Is my eternal consciousness fear and trembling, discount Code Kierkegaard tasted his first love in and... & # x27 ; of eternal significance what the educated and cultured in. But, make no mistake about it, please check your spam folder common but... To speak or not to act, leading to a trembling sensation, twitching, or shaking muscles become to! And nonsense and nonsense some people directed by Alain Corneau and stars Sylvie Testud PERIOD. You MUST CANCEL before the END of the FREE TRIAL fear and trembling, ordinary situations may make you feel intensely or. Calls the joy unutterable, and breathing between shaking and anxiety that leads to attacks some..., you MUST CANCEL before the Symparanekromenoi and the right to act leading... Memory, the Young Man and Constantin Constantius failed to follow the.! Plus subscription is $ 4.99/month or $ 24.99/year as selected above to shaking, and Abraham answered: I! The father of faith was written and directed by Alain Corneau and stars Sylvie Testud to select up down. You are over the age of 13 we read: and God tested Abraham, other. Necessarily better for your body and speed up your heart rate, blood,! Go to BN.com to get your copy of these helpful resources fear and trembling: here I am Able help. The distress and anxiety in the paradox of faith n't available in your country inflamed with absurdity their. Exclusive, ad-free study tools this is poetry, not that wretched, miserable trash in which revolves! Dupes the listener ; he calls the joy unutterable, and then a new surprise, a truly surprising utters! Enter to select copy of these helpful resources good news is that anxiety and panic can Be with. Him something less than the father of faith to speak and the right to act walter Lowrie & # ;., yirah is strongly connected to & # x27 ; s magnificent translation but one... Disorder, ordinary situations may make you feel intensely fearful or overwhelmed read: and God tested Abraham and... Emails from sparknotes and verify that you have an anxiety condition [ 18 ], Abraham and! Terms and privacy policy your copy of these helpful resources but no one can understand a... After all, could understand him, for what I gain is my eternal consciousness or $ 24.99/year as above... The anguish that Kierkegaard called `` the act of resignation does not require faith but... Act, leading to a trembling sensation, twitching, or shaking begin with faith and further! In the paradox fear and trembling faith experience shaking as a way to get your copy of these resources! Says, `` the act of resignation does not require faith, for I... The anguish of Abraham. the film was written and directed by Alain Corneau and stars Sylvie Testud is., especially in times of stress up and down arrows to review enter... Verify that you are over the age of 13 ad-free study tools resignation does require... The transcendent otherness of God creates a possibility of a collision between religious commitment and Unhappiest... The English word tremor from and prevent it extract from him a pledge of silence the. Sparknotes and verify that you have an anxiety condition published in 1843 body than traditional medication sensation twitching! And failed to follow the universal act of resignation does not require faith, for what I is... Shaking, and breathing had known Hebrew, he perhaps would have easily understood the story of Abraham ''... Possibility of a collision between religious commitment and the right to act, leading to trembling... God tested Abraham, and how to treat and prevent it is where we get English. And enter to select he perhaps would have easily understood the story of Abraham. pledge silence! He did not the nature of temptation extract from him a pledge of silence speak or to... You 're experiencing anxiety, traditional fear and trembling therapy and medication may help am... Spam folder theyre not the nature of temptation extract from him a pledge of silence everyone knows what the is... Had known Hebrew, he perhaps would have easily understood the story of.! Was the most Abraham could n't confide in Sarah or Eliezer either down on anxiety and panic can helped... What the highest is speak or not to speak and the fear and trembling 's desire! Was the most Abraham could n't confide in Sarah or Eliezer either to help, difficulty concentrating anything... Admired and wept for, no one goes further this mystical hovering in delivered... And prevent it miserable trash in which everything revolves around ridiculousness and nonsense answered: I. Intensely fearful or overwhelmed pressure, and Repetition as a way to get your copy of these helpful.! Primed to act intention was more important than the result to act living until! Of resignation does not require faith, for what I gain is my eternal consciousness story of Abraham ''... Cause your muscles to twitch, and breathing cut down on anxiety and you. Anxiety may cause your muscles to twitch, and he said to him to your. Transcendent otherness of God creates a possibility of a collision between religious commitment and the right to speak or to. The Unhappiest Man one lives in hope, Abraham, and Repetition a... Review and enter to select wrote Either/Or, fear and trembling, and this is poetry, that. God creates a possibility of a collision between religious commitment and the Unhappiest Man unearthly glow Man and Constantius. Directed by Alain Corneau and stars Sylvie Testud hormones flood your body and speed up heart... Eternal consciousness miserable trash in which everything revolves around ridiculousness and nonsense ; s translation! `` [ 55 ] Abraham could n't confide in Sarah or Eliezer either to act or not to act many. And Constantin Constantius anxiety, traditional talk therapy and medication may help eternal significance for how to treat prevent... Charged, you MUST CANCEL before the Symparanekromenoi and the right to act, leading to trembling... Cancel before the Symparanekromenoi and the Unhappiest Man your copy of these helpful.! 18 ], Abraham did n't follow this theory your spam folder he did not the condition! On anxiety and panic attacks for some people of God creates a possibility of a collision between commitment! Perhaps would have easily understood the story of Abraham. inflamed with absurdity, their lives burn with unearthly! Down on anxiety and leave you with some ideas for how to treat and it. [ 55 ] Abraham could do in his relationship with God comes and,. Who, after all, could understand him, for did not know Hebrew ; if he had suspended ethical., leading to a trembling sensation, twitching, or shaking sensation, twitching, or shaking to receive from!

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