The author states: Both Nietzsche and Sri Aurobindo are prophets of the future superman but the visions of these two great thinkers differ vastly. Also the works of both are of a very varied nature. In this comparative study the author has used those materials from their writings which seemed to him to embody the principal trends of their thoughts on the subject. He has hardly used any secondary material and has not discussed in detail the views of others on the subject. Instead in his words the intention has been "to read by myself ... the two poet-philosophers and bring out their resemblances and their differences". The author does not approve of the tendency among modern philosophers, initiated by Bertrand Russell, to keep apart on one hand the theory of the nature of existence and on the other "an ethical doctrine as to the best way of living". He feels that this has alienated philosophy from life: "When knowledge is applied to life it becomes relevant to living rather than remain a sterile intellectual occupation divorced from life."
