Thomas Parker Boyd - The Evolution of Human Thought (1930)

Thomas Parker Boyd, D.D., PhD Lecture One. The Oriental Foundation of Thought A study of the work of the Indo-European mind reveals its tendency was toward the "other" side of life. The sources of all Philosophical Principles are found there. India has had hundreds of schools, all teaching the way of the One Idea, Brahm, or "That," or God, and other terms for the Absolute Being. Most of these schools owe their existence to the various ways of explaining the phenomenal world in its relation to the "noumenon" or "That." India, the fountainhead of philosophical thought, contains the whole history of philosophy in brief. The Vedas and Upanishads reference every philosophical conception that the Western mind has evolved. Spinoza reproduced almost exactly the conception of Hindu philosophy. They had worked out his ideas 2,000 years before him. They taught evolution more than 2,500 years before Darwin. Pythagoras, a father of philosophy, sojourned in India, and based his whole scheme of thought upon their system. Plato was full of Eastern thought, while Neo-Platonism and Christian Gnosticism owe much to India. The great thinkers of the past twenty-five centuries have gone over the same ground the Hindu thinkers canvassed more than thirty centuries ago. To understand Eastern philosophical thinking, one must remember that much of their thought exists only in oral teaching, and "reading between the lines" in printed books, which contain fundamental oppositions between the basic Hindu conceptions and those of the Christian Theologian. To the Eastern mind, "Creation" is unthinkable, since it involves the making of something out of nothing, and to them nothing comes from nothing. Everything that is, is either an eternal thing, or else it is a form, manifestation, appearance, emanation or phase of some eternal thing. Therefore they could see evolution as the only method of bringing the universe into appearance, because everything evolved was first involved. Again, a mortal thing can never become immortal by any means. An immortal thing must have always been immortal, or it can never become so. So that which begins must end. That which is born must die sometime, and everything that dies has been born sometime. Eternity must exist on both sides of the now, in fact now is but a point in eternity. So the Hindu concedes immortality to the soul only when they concede previous immortality. The Western tendency is to publish abroad every detail of its thought, even before leading minds accept them. The Eastern tendency is exactly opposite, and the sage or wise man reserved for himself and his close circle of students and followers the cream of the idea, deeming it too important to broadcast to an unthinking, unappreciative public. Their great body of inner teachings has grown in this way. The Western mind tends to take philosophy as a matter of intellectual diversion, which he does not bother to live up to, while the Easterner takes philosophy in the sense of religion itself, which he must live out in everyday life. The Hindu confines his speculation to the "other side of Life," deeming it the only real one, while the physical and material world is essentially illusion, a thing of a moment, which begins to pass away while it is being formed. The Western mind tends to emphasize the material side of life, to promote material advancement and prosperity. In other words, the tendency of each is to be one-sided. The East leans to the "I AM" side, ignoring the "I DO" side. The West depends on the "I DO" side, almost entirely ignoring the "I AM" phase. The one regards the side of Being and ignores the side of Action. The other regards Action as the essential thing, ignoring the vital importance of Being. In India, the veil between the Visible and the Invisible is much thinner than in Western lands. The consequent mental and psychic atmosphere produces all sorts of growth, good and bad. The best philosophy and spiritual unfoldment dwells side by side with superstition, credulity, devil worship and frightful debasement of thought and practice. The noxious weeds grow in a tropical climate with fruits and flowers. Surprise and wonder fills us at the speculative achievement of those people, running back 100 centuries. Unquestionably they are the progenitors of the Aryan or Indo-European race, but legend shrouds their origin. One is that they are remnants of a high civilization in the region of the North pole, from where a cataclysm drove them, which changed it from a tropical to a polar climate. Another legend is that they are remnants of a high civilization in the great continent of Lemuria, now sunk in the Pacific Ocean. The legend states that many of them, under prophetic direction, took refuge in the higher altitudes, which in the cataclysm became islands, where they lived for centuries before finally migrating to the mainland. They found India inhabited by another people, also driven there by earth’s upheaval. Through all the centuries these people have survived. In this new world, like all pioneers, they lost much of the veneer of the old civilization. The old truths and knowledge were largely lost, and in its place tradition, legends, they handed down, as vague memories of the old teachings from one generation to another. They had gods and demigods, etc., but they never entirely lost the main idea of their philosophy: A great Universal One Absolute Being from whom all else emanated, and from whom the individual souls proceeded "as sparks rising from the blazing fire." They taught the immortality of the soul, which was never born, which could never die, which was subject to rebirth, under a Universal Law of Cause and Effect. Even the idea of the One was at times dimmed under the conception of a great Nature Spirit, of which they were a part in some mysterious way. In spite of the variations, we are indebted to them for the Master Key to all philosophy, namely: The Reality and Being of One Universal Spirit Principle, from which all other life, being and principles were manifested by emanation, reflection or otherwise, which manifestations had their only Real Being in the One Source. Some 5,000 years before the Christian era, philosophical thought in India underwent a great revival of interest, under the leadership of really great thinkers of the time, called sages, or wise men. The Hindus claim that these were the reincarnations of ancient Masters. They laid the foundation for a philosophy of pure Reason, doing their work so well that while many philosophies have come and gone, the foundation of the sages remains, sound and unhurt, and is still the base upon which we build all philosophy, ancient or modern. The outline of their work follows: First, the sages bade their students to observe that nothing is constant, abiding, fixed and imperishable in the phenomenal aspect of nature and the universe. That is, it was not "real" in the sense we use the word, as in "real estate, real property" or "realty." The phenomenal universe was not "real" in the philosophical sense of the word. Second, they bid the students recognize that something Real and substantial must lie underneath all the changing manifestations of the phenomenal universe, below the face or surface of that which occurred – the constant play of nature, force, and life, as the clouds passed before the blue sky or the wave upon the face of the ocean. They held that pure Reason must convince any rational mind that something Real and substantial must be under and behind the phenomenal universe, else the latter could not exist, even in appearance. A background of Reality or a foundation of Substance must exist. They did not speak or think of this substance as matter, but as the underlying or existing essence. This Universal Substance must be Real, and in its totality, it was necessarily the only Reality. Third, was the recognition that this substantiality must be but One in its essential being, otherwise that continuity and orderly trend of manifestation as seen in the Phenomenal Universe could not exist. "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is ONE Lord." Fourth, in logical reasoning, this Ultimate Reality must be above all phenomenal attributes and qualities, including those of man. Consequently, its Inner Nature as Essential Being was beyond the cognition, knowledge, or even the imagination of man, and was beyond definition or name. The sages styled this Ultimate Reality by the Sanscrit word "TAT" or That, referring to something understood, but having no qualities, attributes or name. Similar terms are "Brahman," the "Absolute," "That, as in "I am THAT I am." Fifth, they applied the Hindu Axiom: "Something can never be caused by, or proceed from, nothing." Since nothing other than That is in Real Existence, or which could have caused it, and since Reality could not have been self-created from nothing, it follows that "TAT" must always have existed and must be eternal. Since "Something cannot be dissolved into nothing," "TAT" cannot cease to be, and must be everlasting. Sixth. Since there was nothing outside of TAT with which or by which it could be defined, bounded, determined, affected, caused or influenced, it must be held that That is Infinite. Seventh. Since That was the only Reality, nothing else could act as a Cause in the phenomenal universe. That must be its only official and sufficient Cause – the causeless Cause, the only real cause, from which proceeds the cause and effect in the phenomenal world, in which each object or event is both a cause and an effect. Working by this law, the movements of the phenomenal universe are continuous, regular, uniform, arising from That, the only Real Cause. Eighth. The next step was to recognize that That was necessarily unchangeable, there being nothing to change it, nothing into which it could be changed, nothing it could change itself into, and even That could not change itself into any reality other than that which it is. By the same reasoning, That was not divisible and is essentially One. Therefore they held that That was Unchangeable and Indivisible. Ninth. The next step was the truth that as all that truly is, must be real, and that as That, being all that is Real, must be all that is, therefore it follows that other than That, there can be nothing that is. We must base all truth regarding the universe upon this basic proposition. That could not have created the phenomenal universe or the undivided souls from nothing, nor could That have "created" anything from its own substance or essence, nor was there anything outside of itself that That could have used to create anything. It therefore follows that nothing had been or could have been really "created," so the phenomenal universe and all that it contained, including individual souls, must have "emanated from," or been "manifested by" That, in some manner or by means of processes beyond the mind of men to determine, although not beyond his power to imagine. This was the sum of their reasoning. And it is the basis of all Hindu philosophy. These are the basic principles of all Hindu Philosophy. Upon them they have constructed several great systems of philosophy. The Sankhya System: First among these is the Sankhya System formulated by Kapila about 700 B.C. His basic proposition is that there exists in the universe two active principles whose interaction accounts for all that appears. We know them as Prakriti, the primordial Substance or Energy, and Purusha, the Spirit principle, embodied in Prakriti, producing everything from atoms to man. They held that both were emanations of That, or thought-forms in the Mind of the One. Kapila taught that Purusha is to be thought of, not as one great world Spirit or world Principle of Spirit in the sense of Undivided Unity, but rather as a countless myriad of spirit atoms, bound together by filaments of attraction, giving them harmony, yet individual freedom. He taught that Purusha is pure Spirit, unaffected by pleasure or pain or other emotions, until it becomes embodied in Prakriti. This in turn produces the "Soul" or as some term it, the subconscious, in which it becomes subject to Samsara, "the cycle of existence," with its chain of Cause and Effect, karmic results and rebirths. Out of this, Purusha struggles to return to its first state of freedom and bliss. Brahman is all. yet it must be of Brahman. The Upanishads concerns itself with questions of "the inquiry into Brahm. for He is all. meaning "the last of the Vedas or what we know as the Upanishads. he taught was the cosmic primordial Energy or Substance from which the Universe is evolved. He taught that it was atomless or continuous. and nothing else is. higher." or the Absolute and the Manifestations of the latter in the phenomenal universe. It differs from our idea of creation. but merely reflections of the One. as "a man in whom the senses of seeing and hearing. and through that understanding to find liberation or freedom. Kapila taught that atoms were simply centers of force in the Prakriti Substance. or be subject to change. Since it cannot be divided into parts.. or the world of appearances. The main school reaches the limit of speculative thought. The One Brahman. The Cause of the Universe in all its manifestations. until invaded by Purusha. Purusha was pictured as a "lame man. is the source of Being. Spirit. It is found only in the renunciation of material things. Intelligence. which seemingly apart. Happiness sought in material things is a will-o-the-wisp. the Absolute Substance. Bliss. and setting the face toward the land of the soul’s desire. the Absolute projected its Spirit into the manifestation called matter. "Why did God create the universe. this school of Hindu philosophy faces the ultimate question. Individual souls were "sparks rising from the fires and returning thereto. it must follow that the self of each of us must be in some way identical with the Self of the One. It was here that Ernest Haeckel. nothing outside itself. but who possessed a good pair of legs." Other symbols included the perfume of the flower. and one part expressed their idea of "manifestation" in symbols. from which evolution and the individual consciousness proceeded. is beyond qualities or attributes. found his "soul of the atom. etc.Prakriti. which man never overtakes. which is of it. and which action and reaction accounted for the greater part of material phenomena. since it can accomplish nothing. possessed of eyesight and the other senses. or Mind stuff arose. The Vedanta System: The other great Hindu system is called the Vedanta." and Prakriti. including Kapila with his Purusha and Prakriti as being nothing in themselves." and Schopenhauer found his "Will. worship." The Vedas were concerned with ceremonies." whence issued all appearance." He set forth the law of "love and hate" of atoms. Right here. From this he formulated the doctrine of evolution. ritual. The Self of Spirit in us must be the identical Spirit of the One. It is both creator and created. When the great outpouring took place. being always within the heat-waves of the fire. etc. ethereal Substance. His is the first recorded attempt to answer the questions of the origin of the world. established by the presence of Purusha "Spirit. cause and effect. Brahman itself imagining itself separated into countless souls building an imaginary universe of the senses. Out of this conjunction of Spirit and Substance. when it took an atomic form. are still of it. Kapila taught that true knowledge and right living alone could enable man to grasp the nature of Purusha and Prakriti. Chitta. It is a philosophy of pure Reason.. since nothing . In fact it was the first great school of Ideal philosophy. etc. whereas separately they could make no progress. the nature and relations of man and his future destiny. doer and deed. subject or object. and the lame man (Purusha) mounts up on the shoulders of the blind man (Prakriti) and together they move along briskly and intelligently. carrying our Western idea of Universal Ether. It brushed aside all previous conceptions. the German scientist. Here the system divides." So they made a combination. instead of being an emanation of it. It is a subtle. undivided and whole. He made Spirit the active cause of evolution rather than any inherent quality in Prakriti (Substance) itself. is purely imaginary. had been omitted. thus explaining the attraction and repulsion of particles evident in the physical universe. Others believed that all is a reflection. since He is not bound by necessity or desire." and Spencer his "Universal Matrix. Maya. the rays of the Sun. Physical body 2. In addition to these three great schools of Hindu thought there were three minor schools: The Vaisheshika of Kanada. Postures. Control of the senses. Unlimited extension of perception. Power of shrinking to the size of an atom. 7. Control of prana or vital force. Its central ideas are mental control. or the Yoga of Wisdom. Power of becoming very heavy. Divine Love. clairaudience. Human Soul 6. They taught the Eight Superior Powers. whether the universe is illusion or reality – why was it created? For it they had no answer. and the Vedanta System with its pure Reason and Idealism. Irresistible power of Will. the Path of Right Living and Devotion to Duty and God. or by all together. with its Purusha and Prakriti. Devotion. Patanjali founded the Yoga System about 200 B. Transcendental contemplation. 6. then studying the course of philosophical thought from the Greeks until today. etc. Sometimes they applied the same idea to Brahman and His emanations.. or World Purusha. The Yoga System: Following the Sankhya System of Kapila. or the Yoga of Absolute Concentration. Karma Yoga. 4. 5. meaning yoking or joining. the Yoga System. Transporting oneself anywhere at will. The Rajah Yoga (Royal).. 5. Unlimited dominion over everything. Physical Well-being or Physical Perfection. Prana or vital force 3.can be that has not always been. Astral body 4. . one is struck by the presence of these ideas in every age. 4. Action or Control. Self control. Its central idea is advancement through mental control. etc. or ecstacy. clairvoyance. 8. we have the third great school of Philosophy. realization and attainment by means of Wisdom. and the Nyaya of Gautama. 2 Religious duty. followed by the religious sects and cults. Rajah Yoga has eight steps. Spiritual Soul 7. There are many forms of Yoga teaching and practice. The Gnani Yoga. or levitation. Meditation. Hatha Yoga is the Yoga of Breath. Control over the Powers of Nature. Duty. Control of the mind. 3. Most of the innumerable systems of Hindu Philosophy hold to the conception of seven "principles" or "husks" of the individual soul. 1. It would require many volumes to give even an outline of the various schools of Indian Philosophy. 8. Atman or Spirit We find these seven principles in all forms of Hindu thought. 6. was preferred by the Vedantists. Power of becoming very light. Understanding and Knowledge. 1. based on the system of Kapila with the addition of a Personal God. Action. 7. who strive for attainment or emancipation by means of Wisdom. acquired by the exercise of Pure Reason and Right Thinking. psychic development and the unfoldment of latent forces.C. the Purva Mimansa of Jaimini. 2. 1. 3. A yogi or yogin is a practitioner of Yoga methods. one who seeks union. is the Yoga of Work. or gravitation. or invisibility. Yet after reading them. Animal soul 5. Among the first teachers of mathematics in Hellas. Categories: 1. The phenomenal universe is composed of six categories or final classes. Samavaya. the natural evolution of the world.) is considered the founder of Greek Philosophy. Because this system analyzes the nature and source of knowledge and its validity and nonvalidity. understanding. and the reduction of quality to quantity. The aim is the science of deliverance from material life by the perception of the true nature of the soul. the innermost Cause of the collective Effect.The Vaisheshika System: Kanada lived prior to the Christian era. Vishesha. and radical step from mythological to scientific explanation of natural phenomena. Drava. etc. 4. the Principle of Coherence: Explaining the relations. gravity. parts and whole. 3. 2. Gunas. air. ether. He taught the doctrine of atomic individualities. odor. 5. expansion. and the unreality of matter. action and agent. light. pain. time. number. subject and object. aversion. the sect claims for the Vedas what Western Fundamentalists claim for the Bible. as well as in the substances of matter. or Substance. or species. contraction. The Nyaya System: The Nyaya System is primarily concerned with the conditions of correct knowledge and the means of receiving this knowledge. he disputed the attribution of all phenomena to the activities of gods and goddesses. dimension. this school attempts to discriminate valid knowledge from invalid knowledge. Drava. Soul or Self (the Atman) Mind. 6. Nyaya is predominantly based on reasoning and logic. but made up of the countless souls who have mastered the flesh. and that the instruments of understanding were perception and inference. and evolved physical theories to explain all existence in terms of primary matter..C. These philosophers sought the one. Gautama was the Aristotle of the Hindus." Using systematic reasoning. it is also referred to as "the science of critical study. some single primitive substance from which all reality has sprung. Having observed . not a substitute for TAT. the Substratum of Phenomena. pleasure. or Qualities: seventeen. space. such as color. These qualities are inherent in the substance of the soul. Samanya: The principle of generality or genus. He included a personal God in his teaching. water. atomic substance. Thales of Miletus (624-547 B. Review of the Ancient Thinkers: The Greek Masters The Milesian (Ionian) Physicists The Ionian school (named Milesian because they originated in Miletus) made the first. Lecture Two. They discovered the scientific principles of the permanence of substance. and the practice of the Yoga methods. water. taste. volition. using the most minute methods for reasoning. The Purva Mimansa System: The Purva Mimansa System consists of attainment of freedom through observance of rites and ceremonies. or Action: Upward. atoms and substance. Later teachers added seven others. and are become one great World Spirit. change of position. A form of predestinationism. downward. air. scientific. unchanging material principle of all things. desire. The Sutras of Jaimini enquire into and expound law and the duties of ordinary life. Karma. is nine-fold – earth. atomic individuality of the nine-fold substance: Atomic souls. Kanada taught that Understanding was the Guna or Quality of the Soul. touch. They are the Fundamentalists of the Hindus. and contended that some fundamental principle must be behind all the flux and change about us. He maintained there was only one god. when still more condensed it becomes water. He regarded petrified marine animals in the mines in Syracuse as evidence that the sea once covered the land. The Ethiopian as black and snub nosed. All life was generated in sea-slime. then stones. and if horses and oxen could paint. while when it is condensed it becomes wind. else how is it that plants convert water into plant tissue. the Thracian as red-haired and blue-eyed. God is one incorporeal eternal being. comprehending all things within himself. and especially to clouds. His thought marks the first attempt to separate science and theology. all things return to air or vapor. The human soul is composed of highly rarified air. all-embracing sphere. while animals eat the plants and turn them into flesh and bone. all eye. contending that Reality or Being is one." he concluded that all things." Diogenes (550 B. The same idea holds concerning the world. It is the first statement of the view that natural phenomena are not the products of divine caprice.) was a mathematician who first calculated the size and distance of various planets. and all animals.C.C. because being itself is the existent.) was the third great Milesian.C. and.) taught that an underlying unity must exist in all matter. The Eleatics: The Philosophers of Elea A reflection of the Upanishads. and differ only in the degree of their condensation. When this movement ceases. . it becomes fire. and that the notions of plurality. He taught that all substances consist of air. nor by the existent. like the universe. God is of the same nature with the universe. "Each man represents God as he himself is. and life consists simply in inhaling and exhaling. and invented the sundial. consist of water. being is necessarily a unity. from which all things arise by condensation and rarefaction. He also thought of life as always and inseparably connected with matter. He reasoned that since Being is. and to explain the world without reference to myth or religion.) ridiculed the popular religion and said that man created God in his own image. being concerned with the problem of logical consistency. "a vast unchanging. including man. at the fundamental truth that "the All is One. all understanding. the world." There can be no creation." He reduced the gods of mythology to meteorological phenomena. Yet he did recognize any distinction between matter and mind. for being cannot come from not-being. wrote a book on geometry. in the form of a well-rounded sphere. they would no doubt depict the gods as horses and oxen. spherical in form. even the gods. and from this fact evolved the theory that alternate mixtures and separations of water and earth produced the whole visible universe. "which surrounds all things and animates all things. laid the basis for the development of the science of logic. a rational. death ensues.C. for how could it have a beginning? It certainly was not produced by the nonexistent. Everything else comes from these. descended from the fishes. At last. motion and change are illusions of the senses.) developed the idea of the Unity of God into a systematic Philosophy. Anaximander (611-547 B. He traced the universe’s origin to an infinite and indeterminate material called the Boundless. All things at last return to that origin. sensitive soul. all ear. Xenophanes (570-480 B. When it is thinned. It is by thought alone that we can pass beyond the false appearances of sense and arrive at the knowledge of being." The world is a vast cylinder and was originally in a fluid state. The Eleatics. then earth. then cloud. Parmenides (540-480 B.that moisture is necessary to life and motion and that "water is the essential principle whereby moist is moist. the fundamental postulate upon which we base all modern science. and non-being is not. but bears no resemblance to human nature either in body or mind.C. Being is eternal. immutable and eternal. and the universe as issuing from an intelligent principle. but are referable to a material principle. and pervades all things. Anaximenes (550-528 B." He was the father of pantheism and doctrine of the One. namely. a thing cannot arise from that which is different from it. the Eleatics held that the true explanation of things lies in the conception of a Universal Unity of Being. Air "differs in essence in accordance with its rarity or density. is intelligent. He regarded air as the primal element of all things. which gave it life and order. which means tentatively using the opposing thesis. but if they do exist. Pythagoras coined the term philosophia. He used the reduction ad absurdum.C. and is known for the Pythagorean theorem. depending on the degree of virtue achieved. Greek for "love of wisdom.) taught that there is no such thing as a changeless motionless Being. and nothing else existed. and devoted himself to refuting the views of the opponents of Parmenides. The world soul comes from the Central Fire around which the earth revolves daily. space is an illusion. mathematic and religious mysticism.His famous argument against motion goes something like this: Empty space is simply nothing and as nothing can be said to exist. then geometrical magnitudes. Zeno of Elea (488-425 B. uncertainty paper. Man himself is "kindled and put out ." -. that it is released from the body at death. and we may reduce all natural laws to numerical relations. Being is also infinite. and the swing of the planets on the different lengths or intervals produced the music of the spheres. there is no such thing as motion. Earth. which is nonsense." He taught that the natural order could be expressed in numbers. nor did any of his immediate disciples. each planet strung on a different length of string. From the Unity sprang arithmetical numbers. All order and system was based upon numbers and vibration. Fire is the fundamental pattern of existence. and claimed to remember several previous incarnations or lives. God is the Unity that rules the world. Nothing is permanent but the law of change.).htm Melissus of Samos (490-430 B. He wrote nothing. Heraclitus of Ephesus (536-470 B. first published an exposition of the sacred doctrines of Pythagoras. and if we say that being arose from being. further argument is profitless. In the beginning he said. Every particle of matter is in constant motion.C.C. but all is becoming. and spreads everywhere. immovable unity." He discovered the relation between the length of a string and the tone it produces. we may proceed to the conclusion that they always existed or else contend that they have been produced. All else is foolishness. worked miracles. The Pythagoreans Pythagoras and his disciples comprised an eclectic blend of philosophy. changeless. Therefore we must conclude that all being is eternal – everything that it has always been and always will be. He was the first to postulate that earth was a sphere orbiting around a "central fire. Pythagoras of Samos (569-475 B. Everything is number. does not really move at all. we must admit that being was before being came to be.aip. viewed as a philosopher. love and intelligence. a contemporary of Socrates. Philolaus (480-? B. Center for History of Physics of the American Institute of Physics] see: http://www. and reincarnated in a higher or lower form of life. and vice versa. then draws some preposterous conclusions from it. Now if an arrow is in one particular place.) was semi-mythical. therefore since there is no space for it to occupy. and if an arrow is at rest during each moment of its flight.org/history/heisenberg/p08_text. Everything comes from fire by a process of condensation and returns to fire by a process of rarefaction. An object could not move without occupying first one space and then another. 1927.) used the idea that nothing comes from nothing. air and water. It was said that he studied in Egypt and in India. The world is a perpetual flux and reflux. Theirs was a secret teaching and was memorized by each initiate. They talked about the "music of the spheres" and thought the universe was a sort of lyre. everybody must admit either that things exist or they do not exist. because at any particular moment it must be in one particular place. said he. Nothing is. the less precisely the momentum is known in this instant. The flying arrow. If they do not exist. The Pythagoreans believed that the soul is a prisoner of the body. then they must have come from being or non-being.) held the same philosophy.C. when does it move? ["The more precisely the position is determined. mathematician and mystic. are but fire in different forms. Nothing can possibly come from non-being.Heisenberg. and invented the concept of a counter-earth for numerological reasons. it is at rest. which led to the discovery of the musical scale. then material objects and finally life.C. If things have been produced. The first living thing to spring from the earth were plants. and no plan or purpose in the Universe. but all things from a ground (logos) and of necessity.) was a bald materialist. ignores the rational element. like those in fire.) was the first teleologist. but Divine Reason.org/history/heisenberg/p13e_text.000 years earlier. Those now existing are the descendants of those that did survive because of their fitness and adaptability. Nothing exists but matter and space. Rational thought is a higher kind of perception and is sealed in the brain. being and not-being. (including men). He stated that atoms are "imperceptible. round atoms. breaks them down." Fire and heat are always associated with life. shape and arrangement. the thinnest and purest of things.) believed that all things are composed of four immortal elements. which gives motion and order to all other material. air.like a candle in the nighttime. All substances. and a disintegrating force. insincerity. The Atomists Atomism is a theory which proposed that all matter is composed of tiny. fire. All knowledge comes to use through the senses and these are a modification of the sense of touch. and are distributed to every part of the body. There is no free will in man. Anaxagoras (500-430 B. Empedocles (492-432 B. It is the conflict of the opposites that brings always into existence." The mixing of these particles produces the world we experience.aip. really a vacuum. says "Naught happens for nothing. truth and falseness. Nothing is permanent. Anger is located in the heart. dry souls are the best. taught 2." Democritus of Abdera (460-362 B. and according to intelligent purpose or design. The Pluralists The Pluralists developed a philosophy which replaced the assumption of a single primary substance with a plurality of such substances. while desire is a function of the liver. Thought was a recent development generated by the blood’s activity. and demagoguery. Everywhere there is duality. Thus. except mind. The solitary fragment of Leucippus that remains. http://www. which is Darwin’s theory of survival of the fittest. They acquired a reputation for deceit. Finally love and hate entered and the elements became separated and the conflict between the two forces brought individual things into existence.C. good and evil. The whole Sophistic tendency of thought. A uniting force. indivisible particles differing only in simple physical properties.C. Fire is the basis of virtue. the word sophistry has come to signify these moral faults. individual particles that differ only in shape and position. then animals in monstrous forms incapable of surviving. . The drunkard is wicked because his soul is too moist. Originally the elements were all mixed together in a gigantic sphere in which love and hate did not operate. and water. called love or attraction.htm Leucippus of Elea (480-420 B. The Sophists Specializing in rhetoric. As to quality. Everything happens through a cause and of necessity." Mind is unmixed passionless matter. called hate or repulsion. The human soul consists of very small. earth. Atoms are brought together not by fortune or divine intelligence but by Natural Necessity. or "elementary seeds. they are alike.) formulated the philosophy of Atomism. Atoms are eternal and uncaused and differ only in size. warm. smooth. He was the first philosopher to affirm the existence of empty space.C. The full is no more real than the empty. which identifies knowledge with sense-perception. Death is a scattering of the Soul atoms. are mixtures containing all sorts of atoms. There are not merely four elements but an unlimited number.C. The world is made up of atoms and the void and there is no third thing. the Sophists were more professional educators than philosophers. builds up combinations of these elements. Faith or chance does not govern the world. and logic a collection of theoretical tricks. Agnostic.C. ethics was the only subject worth studying. All changing things exist only as they resemble ideas.) held that mind and not matter is the ultimate reality. (3) If anything did exit. it could not be known. Plato (427-348) was a pupil of Socrates. His teaching that all depends on the viewpoint. Metaphysics.C. In fact. All statements are equally false and differ only in plausibility. Virtue is not innate but must be taught like arithmetic. and could be known. and the virtuous man is always happy because he cares for nothing and fears nobody. it could not be communicated.): The essence of their teaching was that virtue is the only thing that matters. The philosopher should reduce the number of his desires as far as possible because the less a man wants. led to the position that knowledge is relative to the knower. Expediency is the only factor to be considered in belief or conduct. he believed that man is the measure of all things. the only way to be happy is to be virtuous.) Aristippus (435-390 B. carried Socrates’ idea that happiness is the supreme good to the idea that it is the only good possible for mankind. the Cynic School arose. which makes his system the connecting link between Socrates and Plato. and denied the existence of any absolute or objective truth or absolute standards of value. Later (425 B. Gorgias (483-375 B. To him. a pupil of Socrates. the gospel of pleasure. Euclides of Megara (430-360 B.C. He wrote nothing and did not fit his doctrines into a definite philosophical system. We can sum his position up in three propositions: (1) Nothing exists.C. the first to distinguish between the different modes of the verb. etc.). Hippias. (2) If anything existed. Theodorus (465-398 B.) His philosophical studies ended in nihilism.) he was condemned for impiety and banished from Athens. The supreme good for humanity is happiness. Happiness is not found in the mere possession of worldly goods. the more apt he is to get it. Prodicus and Critias were all famous Sophists.) believed himself appointed of the gods to expose ignorance and pretension wherever found.C. So great was his skill that he discomfitted them all. It is best for a man to worship the gods of his own city. Polytheistic.C. He regarded the phenomenon of adaptation in animal life. The Philosophy of Socrates Socrates (354-399 B. the founder of Idealism. and the only way to be virtuous is to be wise.C. Antisthenes (441-371 B. He held that logic was the right use of words.Protagoras of Abdera (490-420 B. The Cynics Following Socrates and his pupils.C. was a total failure. to him.C. the denial of all existence. he builds his whole philosophy upon hedonism.) was a dialectician. . So he gave up stone cutting and devoted his time to heckling teachers and orators. and to awaken in his followers desire for genuine knowledge. and the intricate harmony of the physical universe.) carried out the gospel of pleasure to its limit. that to avoid the ills of life one should commit suicide and obtain peace. as evidence that some sort of Divine Intelligence governs the world.) and Diogenes of Sinope (404-323 B. To be happy one must become relatively independent of physical needs. (His contributions will be discussed more fully under Aristotle. Virtue is identical unto knowledge and ignorance is the only vice. He believed that general concepts or ideas are more real and true than anything else in the world. Chemical analysis. logic. peripate) in the covered walkways of the Lyceum. to compare degrees of heat without a thermometer. The acorn becomes not a willow but an oak. The design is internal and arises from the type. not know who your father was). pointed out the importance of Observation and inductive reasoning and rescued philosophy from the introspective method of Socrates and Plato. How much better it is to be the real cousin to somebody than to be a son after Plato’s fashion (i.The Peripatetics Greek philosophers who followed the principles of Aristotle. "brother or sister. except God who is pure form (or Idea)." In his metaphysics. and matter. He was "compelled to fix time without a watch. The general truth of Idea exists in the particular object and not apart from it. Aristotle (384-322 B. Divine Providence coincides completely with the operation of natural causes. none is. Aristotle met Plato’s communism with such a statement as this. The egg of the hen is internally designed or destined to become not a duck but a chick.) condemned Plato’s subjectivism and based his philosophy on sensation rather than reason or intuition. He believed that one must proceed from the particular to the general (which is the modern scientific method). but that man the universal was the only reality. Slowly life created for itself a nervous system and a brain and mind moved resolutely onward toward the mastery of its environment. and we find most terms of science and philosophy in his writings. Development is not accidental or haphazard.C. God moves the world as the beloved object moves the lover. "In the midst of this bewildering richness of structure certain things stand out convincingly. botany. A trio of propositions of which the third (the conclusion) follows from the conceded truth of the other two. Plato loved the universal to such an extent that in his "Republic" he destroyed the individual to make a perfect state. but everything is guided in a certain direction from within by its structure. privacy and liberty are above social efficiency and power. therefore. He would not care to call every contemporary. biology. Each individual thing is a combination of form (the idea). the drive and purpose of things. and that it awakens real love in you. man is a rational animal. Aristotle held that man the individual was the idea embodied and that man. He is the final cause of nature. to observe the heavens without a telescope and the weather without a barometer.." Plato held that man the individual did not really exist. "father or mother. His was a colossal mind. He covered the whole range of human thought from the beginning until now. function and purpose of the thing. was a handy mental abstraction. love will be watery. He summarized the scientific knowledge of his time. and metaphysics. correct measurements and weights. In a state having women and children in common. the form of the world. but as the total motive of all operations in the world. Aristotle was the creator of the syllogism. His biology is illuminating. Yet crudities fill his astronomy.." Of all our mathematical. that intelligence has grown in correlation with complexity of structure and mobility of form.e. Neither of the two qualities that inspire regard and affection that a thing is your own. Things equal to the same thing are equal to each other. which we could not understand unless we know the limitations under which he lived and worked. can exist in such a state as Plato’s. were unknown. Socrates is a rational animal. optical and physical instruments. so-named because they learned from the master while strolling about (Gk. Socrates is a man. e. that there has been an increasing specialization of function and a continuous centralization of physiological control. nature and inner purpose. the principle of its ." If all are your brothers. he possessed only the rule and compass and a few imperfect substitutes for others. Individual quality.g." nor every elderly person. God does not create but He moves the world. That life has grown steadily in complexity and power. One of his greatest achievements was the overthrow of Plato’s idea of "universals. the universal. and a thorough application of mathematics to physics. moves it not as a mechanical force. he is open in his likes and dislikes. His ethics seem as fresh as if thought out yesterday. for he thinks nothing very important. self-control. symmetry of desire. He is his own best friend and takes delight in privacy whereas the man of no virtue or ability is his own worst enemy and is afraid of solitude. so we are free in the sense that we mold our own characters by our choice of friends. for complaisance is the characteristic of slaves. We do not act right because we have virtue or excellence. but rather we have these because we have acted rightly. His main interest was physics. books.C. It is no concern of his that he should be praised or that others should be blamed. This is the superman of Aristotle. he talks and acts frankly because of his contempt for men and things. Virtue or excellence will depend on clear judgment. He does not take part in public displays. A shrill voice and hasty steps come to a man through care.) held fast to the teachings of Aristotle. Between cowardice and rashness is courage. He is not fond of talking. Aristotle’s Ideal Man does not expose himself needlessly to danger. making the best of his circumstances. the sum of its vital processes and powers. the inherent goal of its growth. artistry of means. His carriage is sedate. his voice deep. between stinginess and extravagance is liberality. birth control. occupations and amusements. unless it be to themselves. He was the first to note that falling bodies accelerate. remain among the lasting achievements of mind. He is never fired with admiration. except it be a friend. his speech measured. The best in life consists in happiness through fulfillment. for he is concerned only about a few things. He cannot live in complaisance with others. by choosing now the environment that shall mold us. particularly botany. since there is nothing great in his eyes. to receive one is a mark of subordination. His psychology is fascinating. though he is ashamed to have a service done him. True inventions and betterment of the means of the observation and analysis have changed a few incidentals. He never feels malice and always forgets and passes over injuries. Theoprastus (373-287 B. are still the standards of human thinking. Yet he is willing in a great crisis to give his life. We cannot directly will to be different from what we are. but Aristotle’ s creation of a true discipline of thought and his firm establishment of its essential lines. All other cognition is only the result of sensations and combinations of many sensations. To confer a kindness is a mark of superiority. He is disposed to do men service. recognized only that knowledge which originates and stops in the senses as valid. so it is not one day. Life’s best is found in the means and not the extremes. It is not one swallow or one fine day that makes a spring. between secrecy and loquacity is honesty. is self-control. He is not given to hurry. since he cares for few things sufficiently. He bears the accidents of life with dignity and grace. the energizing purpose of the whole. . We are what we repeatedly do. knowing that under certain circumstances it is not worthwhile to live. and he described methods for forming a vacuum. He also softened Aristotle’s rigid moral code. domestic life. There is no mind or intelligence apart from the body. between moroseness and buffoonery is good humor. between humility and pride is modesty. His categories or metaphysical classifications. The Epicureans The Epicureans. but placed a greater emphasis on the natural sciences. He does not speak evil of others. but we can choose what we shall be. between sloth and greed is ambition. Strato of Lampsacus (340-270 B. Right in the ethical sense is the same as right in mathematics. and a hundred other subjects still challenge the thought of the world. He is not prone to vehemence. even his enemies. Virtue is not then an act but a habit.) succeeded Theophrastus and laid the emphasis on materialistic science. like the Stoics. between quarrelsomeness and flattery is friendship. Between Hamlet’s indecisiveness and Quixote’s impulsiveness. somewhat worked over by Kant.life. The chief condition of happiness is the life of reason. conceding that violating the laws of the land may be right at times. sociology. His statements in the realm of political economy. or act. or short time that makes a man blessed and happy.C. What is to be will be. Marcus Aurelius (A. poverty and riches. To move a finger without sufficient reason is as wicked as murder. for nothing external could be either good or evil. He loved a quiet and studious career. teaching perfect indifference to everything external.) was a dialectic and logician. saying concerning each individual thing that it no more is than is not. be happy. Their view of morality is stern. sickness and health. founder of the school that met in the Stoa or porch in the marketplace in Athens. but we should be unopinionated. but because punishment is painful. Therefore.D. 121-180) was a Roman Emperor. Chrysippus (282-209 B. Honesty is the best policy. a Roman poet. Lucretius (98-55 B. and the only fight worthwhile is the struggle against fear of the gods.-A. Pyrrho of Elis (360-270 B.) was a Roman Epicurean who taught that religion is the cause of all human suffering. The Skeptics Skepticism maintains that human being can never arrive at a certain knowledge. were equally unimportant.C.) abandoned many philosophical doctrines and moral precepts of the earlier Stoics.C. He did not favor marriage or the rearing of children. Seneca (3 B. Virtue is an asset only as far as it is pleasure to be virtuous. but couldn’t follow it. Zeno (340-265 B. was also an Epicurean. and a man of sterling character. and a man can die whenever he pleases. intent on leading a good life and trying to live up to his position. (3) The outcome . unmeasurable and inarbitrable. Death is the ultimate boundary of our woes. 65) His philosophy was a system of moral maxims.C. who refined and restated the precepts of Zeno. declared that "(1) things are equally indifferent. The modern word for this is agnosticism. His view in his "Meditations" was rather pessimistic. Science is valuable only as it makes people happier by destroying their fear of death and the gods.C. young or old.Epicurus (342-270 B. such as "There is but one way of getting into this world. Don’t worry about tomorrow. the last of the great Stoics. and rests upon physics as foundation. His was a philosophy of take things as they come. living a life in accord with nature and controlled by virtue.D. Horace (65 B. believing that one should act in life as at a banquet by taking a polite portion of all that is offered. or it neither is nor is not. not because stealing is wrong. Everything is ordained by fate or the Divine Reason that knows all things.) was a Jewish merchant from Cyprus.) His ethical doctrines were those of Aristippus: Pleasure. There is no plan or purpose behind the world.225 B. Panaetus (180-111 B. and that most knowledge is only probably true.).C. It is an ascetic system. The Stoics Stoicism is essentially a system of ethics. according to his disciple Timon. or it both is and is not. He was succeeded by Cleanthes (300. for this reason we should not put our trust in them. The world is a rational animal and God is the soul or reason of the world. and he adopted the physical science of the Atomists.) was an ex-pugilist." Epictetus (AD 55?-135?) was a Phrygian-born philosopher who popularized the Stoic ethical doctrine of limiting one's desires.C.C.). but many ways of getting out of it. Both pain and pleasure.C. He was a materialist.C. For this reason (2) neither our sensations nor our opinions tell us truths or falsehoods. who sought to rationalize Ethics. All individual acts are sinful. guided by a logic as theory of method. because there is no such thing as certainty in knowledge. uncommitted and unwavering. since our knowledge of things must always be subjective and unreal. was responsible for turni ng it into a form of skepticism. with the presence of evil. Stoicism was at full tide when Paul spoke at Athens.for those who actually adopt this attitude will be first speechlessness. as free from pain as possible. and coming down in stages to a world spirit.C. "we also are his offspring. Arcesilaus (318-243 B. "Philosophers of the Garden. The Hebrews conceived the Logos as the divine selfrevelation by the personified Wisdom or Word of Jehovah. He quoted from their philosophy when he said. However.) showed his agnosticism by saying that people need only know three things: What is the nature of things. but its founder’s personal charm and the conditions of the time made it run parallel with Christianity for several centuries. various efforts followed it to revive the old teachings under such Schools as Greco-Judaic. Neo-Platonists and others. so that it finally dissipated and was lost. It was a negative system. Its ethics were lame. They solved the first problem by assuming a series of emanations starting from a perfectly good supreme God. It centered around the Logos. it was not true because Epicurus advocated and aimed at the happiness of a tranquil life. He relegated them to a realm of their own. so they abandoned reason. and how it was to be emancipated. Review of the Ancient Thinkers: The Patristic Masters of Thought When Greek speculative Philosophy died under the knife of the Skeptics. and took up Neo-Platonism or one of the new Christian cults." so called because they met in the garden of Epicurus in Athens. how we are related to them. Yet it lacked an element of power in its teaching of God. Gnosticism.000 years of darkness. busied itself with such problems as (1) how to reconcile the creation of the world by a perfectly good God. (2) How the human spirit became imprisoned in matter." Timon of Philas (325-235 B. while to the Greek the Logos was the Divine Reason and Idea. The Epicureans. After a time the three merged into what we call Gnosticism. we can only live in a state of suspended judgment." for the Stoics conceived a sort of world spirit as an all-pervading essence. and then freedom from disturbance. there was no place for the interference of the gods.C.C. and what we can gain from them. Men began to suspect that some unseen spiritual world might be just as real and true as anything else. Lecture Three. They solved the second problem by advocating a life of asceticism in which everything . an imperfect being who created the world with its evils. The Skeptical movement killed rational philosophy in Greece. Epicurus did not deny the existence of the gods. Faith alone ruled for 1. and the soul of man. regarded pleasure as the absolute good. While this led to the charge of sensuality. undisturbed by social conventions or political excitement or superstitious fears. Neo-Pythagoreans. forming and animating the whole.) who was the sixth head of Plato’s Academy. The only two of the old schools of Greek thought that survived and held a place in the Christian period were the Epicureans and Stoics. The two were near enough together to offer a strong resistance to the Christian teaching of the Logos that Jesus Christ was the divine revealing Word of God. Its moral earnestness made it run long parallel with Christianity. Stoic morality was rigid and cold but insistent. as a school. These were at best but short lived and limited.) developed a wider array of skeptical arguments against any possible dogmatic position. Carneades of Cyrene (213-129 B. but taught that if we knew and lived according to our knowledge of the physical world. The Greco-Judaic school arose out of the effort to combine the philosophical ideas of the Hebrews and the Greeks. To illustrate the method of thought of this school’s adherents. having no reality whatever. and Duns Scotus (12701308 A.D. Porphyry. canon of Compiegne. called Patristic.. Yet such writers as Celsus.D. This was a mental battleground for two centuries. So much so that the Catholic Church claimed their great body of doctrine to be the Absolute and unmixed Truth of God. and Julian (called the Apostate. all was good. while Athenaeus contended for "Homoiousion.D. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274 A. Genera and species. That was the origin of the phrase. Moderate Nominalism was as unworkable as its predecessor. From that started the Scholastic reaction. Roscelenus. The entire conflict was on the question of Universals and particulars. the Emperor Justinian closed the great school in Athens. This ran for nearly two centuries. such as appears in Causation and all appearances. when he applied it to the interpretation of the Trinity. Extreme Nominalism..D.e. and third. as the essence of things. and from that time Pagan Philosophy. Genera and species. He resurrected Plato’s Idealism. Reality and all manifestation. which commenced with Porphyry’s Introduction and restatement of Aristotle’s Categories.D.. i. while Nominalism maintained that they were mere.D. and the old battle was on again between the two forms of Realism.D. because he had once espoused the Christian faith). Archbishop of Canterbury. as a system. and that we are all of the one substance. Nominalism is essentially the philosophy of the Catholic Church of today. of which words are the vocal symbols.material was avoided as far as possible.) during the same period. The latter won. In about 1085 A. modifying the extreme form by providing for an inner meaning for names. However. Arius contended that the creed should say. This is the prevalent idea of the Protestant world until today. In other words. Duns Scotus and his associates affirmed that universals exist in a threefold manner: First. who died in 880 A. at the Great Ecumenical or Universal Church Council at Nicea. originated or promulgated a doctrine called Extreme Nominalism. or else a licentious life in which everything that was material was used indiscriminately. a debate was between two of the giants of that day. formulated by the great Church teachers. and interjected questions that drove the Catholic theologians to an extreme position.D. but they exist subjectively as concepts in the mind. Anselm. Then arose Peter Abelard (1079-1142 A." In the year 529 A. and from that time was laid the modern metaphysical contention that the substance of Being is undivided. as things in the Mind of God. forced him to recant. Patristic or Systematic Theology Meanwhile a system of thought was arising. "an iota’s difference.D. and classed as Systematic Theology. Then arose Scotus Erigina. as concepts in the mind. and culminating in the speculations of the schoolmen of the Church. .. Realism maintained the objective reality of Universals and particulars. fused all these differing points into one system of thought." meaning One substance.).) and William of Occam (1285-1349 A. names having no reality at all. were active. Athenaeus and Arius battled on the question about whether the Creed should say that Jesus Christ was "One substance" with the Father or "Like substance" with the Father. who originated Moderate Nominalism. A strain of Gnosticism runs throughout the Epistles. second. the essence of which was that everything is but an empty name. in objective form. Nominalists taught that Universals have no substantive existence. Albert Magnus (1206-1280 A.). The battle raged furiously for two hundred years. 225 A. "Homoousion" or Like substance. although it was essentially a Christian view of it.). the Predicate and the subject. They stamped out all dissent to this fixed standard of belief with the most terrible intolerance. ceased to interfere with the speculations of the Fathers of the Church. Three great streams of thought. Condorcet. it only makes him clever. 3 x 3 = 9 is an eternal and necessary truth because they are the same thing. We merely perceive separate ideas. they are subjective concepts of these relations. this Scientific Realism had not yet been born. Law is our observed custom in the sequence of events. . and there are no inherent ideas. reason is the better guide. Education does not make a man good. and David Hume prepared another road for such a giant. he was shocked out of his "dogmatic slumbers. Abandoning our overly rapid development of the intellect and aiming at training the heart and the affections would be better. of life and in the great problems of conduct and belief. perceptions. We never perceive causes or laws. arose David Hume. The mind is not a substance or organ that has ideas. Instinct and feeling are more trustworthy than reason. They are inherently true. and the ideas arising from sensation. and accounts for all the facts of knowing or the Origin of Knowledge. When Kant read Hume. There are some theoretical conclusions against which our whole being revolts. Sometimes in the complexities of material existence. names are representations of both the relations and concepts. Thomas Hobbes and David Hume. In other words. because the subject already contains the predicate. Though reason might be against belief in God and immortality. We have no right to presume to stifle the demand of our nature at the dictates of logic. differently expressed. all material things are a bundle of sensations and matter has no reality." Hume likewise assaulted the idea of law and laws. The stimulus of things through our senses produces all our ideas. sensations. Third. let me state the purely scientific formula. He declared that reason was no final test. George Berkeley. How often our instincts and feelings push aside the little syllogisms that would like us to behave like geometrical figures and make love with mathematical precision. John Locke. we can know nothing but matter. saying. set in to solve the old conflict. Bernard Spinoza. This view is logically implied in all scientific classifications of mutual objects or subjects of scientific research. usually for mischief. This scientific form of Relationism gathers up every element of Truth. We only perceive events and sequences. never mind. eliminates every element of error. only mathematical formulas have necessity. It is an abstract name for a series of ideas. who proceeded to wipe mind from the slate. Berkeley refuted the whole of Locke’s scheme by showing that because we derive all our knowledge of matter through our sensation of it. and infer causation and necessity. determined in the mind by the relations themselves. Yet in the great crises. save as a condition of mind. The essence of Locke’s philosophy was that at birth the mind is a clean sheet. as Berkeley had destroyed matter. "No matter. Therefore. Gotthold Lessing. memories and feelings are the mind. We never perceive such an entity as mind. After Berkeley had destroyed matter. memories.For purposes of contrast. feeling was overwhelmingly in their favor." in which faith in anything unseen was practically wicked." Rousseau blazed the second great path. or Genera and species are: First. There is no observable soul behind ideas. Claude Helvetius. prepared the way for a Master of the Art of Reason. M. and Hume has as effectively destroyed mind. and are applicable to both. We know the mind only as we know matter. and if generalized will apply equally well to all questions of thought. Rousseau fought the materialism and atheism of the Enlightenment started by Voltaire. Second. However. subjective relations of resemblance among objectively existing things. we trust our feelings rather than to logic. There is no necessity in custom. the "Enlightenment. Thus. Such thinkers as Sir Francis Bacon. One wit advised that the whole controversy be abandoned. Voltaire inaugurated the Age of Reason. Christian Wolff. found in Immanuel Kant. feelings. that Universal. thou art with me and thy right hand shall hold me. First. I pray that they may be one as we are one. they are the sons of God. Father. to preach deliverance to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind. Power is essentially spiritual. "I and my Father are one. substance. It was to restore to us the awareness of the fact that he came showing the way of life and salvation. The third element was the Omnipresence of God." These and many other of his statements tell us that the Unity of Being was the basic idea in his teaching. thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning and fly to the uttermost parts of the sea." This is not the beginning of that conception of Being." Thus the Spirit is the only life. God is Spirit. then began the thirteen years of study to save religion from reason. he was concerned with the comprehension of being. and to save science from scepticism. That they all may be one." Nothing can be clearer than that while there was a marvelous human knowledge of human life and the effects of various ways of living. is that of Spirit. but it was forever a fact. This is a process of the mind and spirit within us. and in every possible place where His life was placed. It was and is an eternal fact. but God that gives the increase. The Master found Him present in the desert." . He is everywhere. art in me and I am in thee." "As many as are led by the spirit of God. "The spirit of the Lord is upon me. His whole teaching was purely philosophical in its character. He listened to his intuition and knew how to correlate it with mundane affairs. Maybe we fear that they might not stand the acid test of today’s knowledge. The two great divisions of philosophical speculation embrace all that he ever said." "That which is born of the spirit is spirit. evenly present. Spirit is beyond analysis. as thou. It is Spirit in action and Spirit is Omni-active. to heal the broken hearted. that they also may be one in us. for the masters and the sages of long ago held the same idea. All the action there is. At that day ye shall know that I am in the Father and ye in me. Lecture Four. "Whither shall I flee from thy spirit? If I ascend into heaven. The basic idea of his philosophy was the Unity of Being. They that worship Him must worship in spirit. That we should accept them without even trying them out by the approved standards of thought of today. and I in you. the Spirit was consciously there. and that Unity was one of essence. because he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. It is the ultimate essence of Being. The Jewish people then thought that Jerusalem or Samaria was the only place where God could be found. he omitted his daily walk to finish his book. intelligence. and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. the real source of his wonderful teaching was the teaching of the Spirit. In fact Jesus’ teachings submit themselves to analysis without the slightest chance of detracting from their value. The atonement was not something taking place external to ourselves by some power or agent apart from us. on the mountain. When the Master sought to explain his ministry. "Neither is he that plants anything nor he that waters. but wherever men shall worship in spirit. he said. to set at liberty them that are bruised.When Kant read Rousseau’s Epochal Essay on Education. if I make my bed in Sheol. That brings us to the second of the purely metaphysical concepts of Jesus. "There is a Spirit in man and the inspiration of the Almighty gives him understanding. with the interpretation of experience. substance – hence is my life intelligence. thou art there. second." This accords with the Psalmist’s statement. in the garden. He said the time has come when "neither in Jerusalem nor Samaria. on the sea. The Philosophy of Jesus The student is apt to think that the teachings of Jesus are in some way exempted from analysis. In other words. whose nature is eternal action." That is. It is an essential to our objective thinking. A second view is that other methods might have been chosen that would have made it impossible for man to err." "I work in the seen. No man has any Power of himself. Work out your own salvation for it is God that works in you both to will and to do. The waterfalls of earth thundered their anthem of power for ages in a splendor of waste until man found a method of harnessing them for his use. there is a fundamental Principle of Power. especially where the factor of human choice enters. but is reserved for them for whom it is prepared. "A thousand years is to Him as a day to us" is a figurative way of putting it. We cannot consciously think without the time factor." "The Father that dwells in me He does the works. infallible principles carry on the Divine Rule. but we waited for the Son of man to declare that this Power. God himself sees nothing of what we call evil. "All power in heaven and earth is given me. He works in the unseen. except it were given you from above. that is at once ruled out by the simple observation that such a status would have made man an automaton and would not in any sense have answered the need of the Divine Nature to have beings like himself who were good because they chose to be so." "Know ye not that I can ask my Father and presently He will give me more than twelve legions of angels. Yet its direction and effect is committed to us. It was only when we found out how to develop these mental powers and harness them for progress that we found a new world of enjoyment and efficiency. but the Father only. However. When we know that outcome. It is a knowing apart from the necessary time and space factors that enter into our thinking." "You would have no power against me. Sometimes one can catch a hint of it when his intuitive power goes into action and he sees and knows things in a way not analyzable by the reasoning mind. When they asked to sit. is not a human but a divine thing – and he multiplies its efficiency a thousandfold. and so on until the final action. Even the Son of man is receiving Power from the Father. and who would earn it. From this fact they argue that God Himself cannot know the outcome of individual action. Thou give us each day our daily bread. and carries on the metabolism in his body. "it is not mine to give. are criterions of purely human making. They have met it in various ways. one on his right hand and one on the left. Therefore. terrifying people as if it were the finger of an angry god."My Father works hitherto. One of them is. All the way through his teachings runs this golden thread of Power as the prerogative of the Most High alone. The next great metaphysical factor in his teaching was the Omniscience of God. right and wrong. it could not be had by any personal or political pull. The explanation also calls for the statement that our ideas of good and bad. The causal results are unimportant as compared with the final outcome. but it had to be earned. until man learned how to harness it and make it do his will. Thy will is done in earth as it is in heaven. directly from the power house of Omnipotence. "Of that hour knows no man. the fact that Infinite Wisdom chose the way of self-determinism for the individual indicates that it was the only way in which God could work out the Divine Purpose – God sovereign and man free." "My Father works hitherto and I work. doing nothing more than devising ways for the most primitive expression of man’s impulses. The things we esteem as badly wrong are really only negative good. The idea of Omniscience and the presence of evil has been the greatest problem that thinking minds have had to wrestle. and I work. the prescience of future contingencies is impossible. operating by what we know as laws." meaning the end of the ages and the consummation of the earthly order. I work in the seen and my Father works in the unseen." The next great metaphysical factor in his teaching was the Omnipotence of God. several contingencies immediately arise as to the next step. . Second. There must be some method of knowing which is different from ours. and there is no other Power." In other words. The power in electricity ran wild for ages. nor the Son. He knows the end from the beginning. God alone could know. Occasionally a seer or prophet caught a glimpse of the higher powers available and used it and became a seven-day wonder. he said. Every action has two or more possible outcomes. One has only to be still and meditate on the fact that the Power that operates in his functional activities. was available for mankind. The power inherent in man’s mind ran to waste for ages. energy. It is the support and background of all that appears. (2) Failing here. but that life moves on from one realm of existence to another as it receives and digests truth. I have taken this much time to explain this metaphysical factor because it was a fundamental in the teaching of Jesus. So. law. In and back of each conscious being is the presence and power of Reality. which are available for our next stage of existence in whatever form it may follow. It suggests that innumerable universes have risen and disappeared and probably will continue to do. being indivisible and immutable. Jesus lived and taught and acted as if the material life was something changing and passing. an archangel. a shadow of the unseen Reality whose order material things imperfectly reflected. . it is all that appears. That life is not one stage or a return to repeat the one stage with probably as little hope of success as the preceding one. The Infinite Mind of Reality. creates the universe and all that it contains. In its creation. there is no further opportunity or chance or hope. This view is born out in the simple fact that a small percentage do manage to master material conditions and attain high spiritual consciousness and character. The activities of spiritual reality comprise the kingdom of heaven. and even in that realm tradition tells us that Lucifer. Reality is immanent in you. Reality predicates an intelligence of infinite activity.It is further explained that the ancient idea that (1) the earth life is the one and only c hance for man’s unfoldment. which is to attain Godlikeness. The mind attains knowledge by the apprehension of the Truth. In the character of its conscious creations it manifests itself as the artist in his work. Reality is infinite substance. The Pure Logic of Reality is Universal Law. through which it lives and plays its infinitude of parts. many limitations beset the kingdom of heaven on earth. while the vast mass stand still and material ills of one sort and another swamp the multitudes. is immanent in its creations in the totality of Being. The created universe is the cosmic dramatization of the Ideas of Reality. The Substance of Reality is Universal Substance. Reality. (3) Being born is not primarily to make life a probationary period but to give a spirit cell the human form divine and by that achieve the chief end of incarnation. You are identical with it in the totality of its nature. is the Creative and Striving Power of the Universe. whose nature is to create or become. Reality. These ideas are archaic and a more rational view of human life as the individualized life of God must supercede them. All creation exists in the idea of Reality. preceding and surviving all changes and conditions. and this does not depend primarily upon material conditions. In any event. The Will of God was to be done in earth as it is in heaven. life. Reality is the infinite changeless Principle of Being. and it comes far short of its heavenly pattern. we have learned that within us is a power to assimilate and to hold secure the results of our knowing. God is the only Reality. fell from his high state through ambition to rival God. The Being of Reality is Universal Life. yet he could not fail to see that men very imperfectly did the Divine Will. The Will of Reality is Universal Energy. Reality is Immanent in its Creation. It is the unconditioned ground of all that exists conditionally. the divine intelligence in us can apprehend truth in a realm devoid of material conditions and in that action may grow and unfold without the hindering elements of materialism. whether one lives a day or a hundred years. It was the idea for the earth because it was the Actual in the World of Reality. In this study. in its Ideative and Volitional Activities. Length of life. considered as infinite Mind. mind. essence and substance. and there seemed to be no conflict in his mind between the all-knowing of God and the freedom of the individual. is immaterial to the outcome. The recognition of this identity by the intellect constitutes the Perception of Truth or Initiation. which abides invariable and constant. and do good to them that despitefully use you. We are His sons and daughters. for the language of loving is giving." Love of self. we may become conscious of the fact and enter a state of living accordingly." "Paul may plant and Apollos may water but God gives the increase. but leave the results to God. enter in. The study of man’s relationship and his experiences as he becomes conscious of who and what he is." His followers put it into practice and the invincible Roman Empire crumbled to dust. "Rejoice not that devils are subject unto you. I doubt if he meant literally that we should not defend our personal or national life when endangered by others. shake off the dust of your feet. "I am among you as one that serves. Because we are what we are in the nature and essence of Being. If not. We turn now to the interpretation of experience in the light of this metaphysical truth. The story of the unjust judge gives the same idea. We are that already and have eternally been. The prodigal son was his father’s boy. The Master has told us not to resist nor to strive nor to emulate those who do so. be clothed or be ye fed. The manifestation of this identity by choice or volition constitutes Mastery. preach. go with him twain. If they receive you. In working out this relationship. We resort to armed conflict. the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand and the King is coming. In other words. The Doctrine of Nonresistance. no matter his prodigality. With all his attainments he said. but like many other things in human life something else seems to work better. However. yet give him none of those things. The true neighbor was he who showed compassion." It was the contrast with the old idea of poetic justice "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. "Love your enemies. Strangely enough we are never commanded not to love ourselves. Divine Offspring. but that is really our task here. give him thy cloak also. "When you have done all. If he compels thee to go a mile. The story of the Good Samaritan was to the point. James asked. These two stories really emphasize the love of a friend or neighbor. bless them that curse you. but rather rejoice that your names are written in heaven. which was a vital factor in Jesus’ teaching. If he smites thy cheek turn the other one. feed him. Love of Enemies. then we expose ourselves to all the dread results of such resort. So he that plants is nothing and he that waters is nothing. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad." Altruism is the only possible cure for fatty enlargement of the ego. but to make our selflove the measure and standard of our love for our neighbor. even if we never hear of it or become aware of it in this world. We can each measure the love we have by how much service we are willing to give. It is an implication that the right motive for the action was lacking." His disciples were never held responsible for results. how dwells the love of God in that man?" Love of a friend or neighbor. This is stated as the prerogative of the Master and implied as the privilege of all men and women. we cannot be made the sons or daughters of God. but God who gives the increase." We resort to law." It almost seems a contradiction to say that our chief purpose here is to magnify the life of God in each of us and then to say forgetfulness of self." "If any man takes thy coat. "If thy enemy hungers. Its effectiveness depends on disarming the heart of humanity first. every movement toward world disarmament is in substance a gesture toward fulfillment of this teaching of the Master. the submerging self-interest in the larger welfare-overall." Yet humanity has proven it a thousand times that while force and combat will not . One of his parables told of a man who would not arise and give three loaves because it was his friend who asked. However. count yourselves as unprofitable servants. The forgetfulness of self. "If you see a man hungry or naked and say to him. certain attitudes of mind are essential. Naturally. Non-attachment to results.The realization of this identity by the intuition constitutes Illumination. This outline is necessary to understand the teaching of Jesus. "As ye go." "He that taketh the sword shall perish by the sword. then we place ourselves in line with human law and practice. Yet the Master himself interpreted it in his own life. but he finally did because he kept knocking. "Blessed are you when men shall persecute and revile you and say all manner of things against you falsely for my sake. The habitual frame of mind that looked toward the unseen realities instead of the appearance of things. They talk as if the Almighty were waiting breathlessly while they decide whether He exists or not. "I ascend to my Father and your Father. It was this attitude of mind to which Jesus referred when he said. As far as God’s supply is concerned. Open-mindedness toward the spiritual universe. which are always healing and constructive. The real purpose of philosophy is not to prove a thing true. Lecture Five. No one can walk down the stately cathedral aisles of philosophy and ever be the same again. The man who failed to invest his talent was condemned for his failure. To keep our minds open to the healing power and action of the unseen forces will turn the tide when everything else has failed. there was no failure. It embraces the tried and proved principles of metaphysics and interprets human experiences in the light of those principles and the facts of experience. However. In the present Depression there has never been so great abundance. but in full consciousness of the presence and power of the spiritual forces that play upon us and in us. The economies of the universe have never failed and we cannot question the objectification in material form. He loses something of life’s littleness and gains a new vista of its greatness. You go into a museum or a library or other place of gathered values and then come out again. Of course the birds had to get out and hustle for it. This is the Philosophy of Jesus. That is the test and it will work inevitably. then turned around and came right out again. "No man hath ascended into heaven save the son of man who came down from heaven. such as bridge clubs." Living in full obedience to the laws of material life. and a thing that works can be set down as at least having much truth in it. That is a bit of poetic licence. a parlor game. They are concerned with making you think and think for yourself. it was not punitive justice but the simple operation of the law of cause and effect." The feeding of the fowls of the air was his declaration that as for the supply. This phrase is in essence the philosophy of Pragmatism formulated by Professor William James.win. They work. he presented the famous Categories by which we may test our thought processes. so that we may know that what we think is correct. Few philosophers are concerned about whether you accept their thinking and its results." To facilitate correct thinking further. There has never been any change in that law. and treating him or her with the same consideration that you would a friend. Kant’s famous question with which he confounded the thinkers of his time was. . However. The spiritual attitude of mind opens us to the operation of the spiritual forces. he formulated the "Theory of Knowledge. The seriousness with which they take themselves is as amusing as the rooster who believed that the sun could not rise without the magic of his lusty crowing. but rather to find out by correct methods of thinking whether it is true or not. too much so. This was last but most vital of all. Immanuel Kant All philosophers take themselves seriously." It was an ascension in thought. Philosophy has degenerated into a sort of indoor sport. Personal responsibility for the investment of influence. it is unlimited. How do you know?" To facilitate this proposal to test their thinking. Omar Khayyam said that one went into philosophy about as he went into a room with a single door. you bring something with you. even the son of man who is in heaven. The same principle is true regarding health. Try it sometime by sitting in the silence and inviting Love in. The parable of the talents makes clear the obligation to use sensible means that will assure success. The fact that "not even a sparrow falls to the ground without your Father taking notice of it. but unlike most parlor games designed to give the thinking faculties a rest. kindness will end the conflict between people who are at enmity. it tends to awaken the thinking powers. the country club and others. "God is Love and Love is God.. time. When Kant comes to treat of the concepts of the pure reason in theology.For example." and Kant’s other writings called a halt to the wild speculation of his day. So that a science of mathematics was possible. "I and my Father are one. reciprocal action. a knight of mental combat. etc.brocku. whose first section deals with substance and attribute. Nor does this content of the mind have any external validity for objects. though brought forth by the mind. no one who had ever read and grasped his category of Relation. What may I hope? The old method of metaphysics was dogmatic. His proceeds that the mind can know its own ideas. but are realities having an existence independent of thought. and a science of physics was possible because their concepts can be tested by objective experience." I recommend my students to read Professor William James." or "God is Good and Good is God. Creation. From the ideas of cause and effect.html All philosophical roads lead to Kant. the chapter.emory. was not questioned." in his "Talks to Teachers. individualized. movement. however." True eac h of us is God. True we have traveled far since the "Critique of Pure Reason. Kant sought to find how far the concepts that are true of the mind are also true of things. It has concepts of space. "The Will. (avilable to read at): http://spartan. because our concepts of God. All this thinking proceeded on the assumption that whatever the mind thinks clearly and as necessary. Or those who stretch the Master’s words. The essence of his answer was that time and space with their derivatives. He was an adventurer in thinking." until they say. cannot be tested by objective experience. have an objective validity because the space and time within us are identical with the space and time without us. The mind has a consciousness of itself and from that forms the conception of a soul. It was this proposition that Kant tested by his criticism. Yet the presence of his three immortal questions and his answers are in every modern philosophical work. possibility. would ever be guilty of saying. actuality and necessity. "I am God. because the self-activity of the understanding brings forth their objects. and so it gets the idea of God.html Also his book on Pragmatism. unity. covered that point by declaring . Infinity. reality. It started with the observation that when the mind starts to investigate its own contents. must be real irrespective of whether we can verify it in experience. substance. Such knowledge is purely a priori that is. which it would like to know to be immortal. cause and effect. His questions involving the whole interest of philosophy were: 1. independent of objective experience. Such ideas as the categories or forms of the logical faculty have objective validity. plurality. but good is not God. it is a quality of His character.edu/EDUCATION/mfp/tt15. he finds that these ideas have no objective validity because they are not treated as ideas brought forth by the reason. all of which relate the mind to the outside world.. matter. and we may truly say that all modern streams of philosophical thought are traceable back to Kant. Our intuitive knowledge has objective validity because our function of intuition brings forth the objects of our intuition. What can I know? 2. His work was a rampart against the advance of materialism on one hand and atheism and pessimism on the other. but none of us can truly say in the light of correct thinking. it discovers within itself the presence of certain necessary ideas.ca/%7Elward/james/James_1907/James_1907_toc. and Eternity. the mind ascends until it comes to rest in the idea of a first cause of the necessary and most real being. God. while a science of metaphysics was not possible. What must I do? 3." God is good. etc. immortality. "I am God.ac. Kant. soul. irrespective of their truth or error." (Available to read at): http://www. Quality. Relation. assertive or apodictic [incontrovertible]. space and time. It is the business of logic to exhibit the special form in which this general intellectual synthesis is exercised and to exhibit these forms in their application to the elements of sense. He takes the four traditional classifications of logic – Quantity. embracing substance and attribute. Abstract all that belongs to the matter of sensation. embracing reality. Every judgment in reference to Quality is affirmative or negative. i.. but it must have power to coordinate them and give them intelligibility. Both space and time are pure intuition. totality. which unifies the objects of sense. action and reaction. namely. Quality.e. Every judgment in reference to Modality is problematic. but further investigation shows us that there is no bowl up there and there is nothing blue. the matter and the form. we have in fact a science of metaphysics. Likewise the time element of the experience remains in its relation to the timing of all other experiences.) The matter is what is perceived. To these judgments there correspond an equal number of categories from which all their pure principles may be derived. Relation. yet space and time remain. hypothetical. cause and effect. and that the mind furnishes the third. Space is the form of all outer sense perception while time is the form of all inner experience. limitation. but are the pure forms belonging to the mind. by which the mind presents to us objects outside ourselves. inverted bowl when we look upward to the sky. It follows that we do not see things as they are but only as they appear to us through time and space. Every judgment in reference to Relation is categorical. without the help of sense-experience. Every judgment in reference to Quantity is universal. They are: Quantity. Things can only be known to us through the forms of space and time. Reasoning shows us that it in fact is only a two dimensional object. The interval between two experiences produces the idea of time. embracing unity. In unfolding the principles of our intuitive faculty. but we cannot get at the reality because we cannot get outside our own minds. The inherent forms of sense perception are space and time. The space that the object occupied still remains in its relation to all other space. we see a blue. . This power is understanding. and that which gives order to our sensations does not belong to the phenomena. Kant concedes that phenomena may have realities behind them. and it reports as a three dimensional object. or singular. Or we see our image in a mirror. Space and time are the indispensable factors in all our perceptions." To constitute our knowledge. the mind must not only be able by its two forms. if we can form rational conclusions in their realm of knowing. (He uses the term matter in the sense of the subjective matter of a book or the substance of a line of thought.that if it is possible to form synthetic judgments or universal and necessary judgements. "That is true but it also is true that we can get outside our previous reports to find other facts which alter the reports. particular. The form is that which reduces the varied reports of appearance to order. to receive outward objects. or disjunctive. and Modality – and from them deduces twelve categories. For instance. plurality. he says there are two elements. while the succession of experiences produces the sense of time. No outer object nor state of feeling can become a part of consciousness unless it is either localized or timed. negation. They are four in number. Existence is said to be necessary in the sense that everything that occurs is regarded as determined by a cause that preceded it and on which it must follow.Modality. causality. Kant enumerates certain principles by which all our perceptions are raised to cognition (or things known). That of Modality sets forth the relation of objects to time as a whole. It is by means of these thought forms that we are enabled to think of objects as thought in a proper manner. By this means Kant treats of substance. That of Actuality is existence in a particular time. all changes take place according to the law of cause and effect. That of Reality is that which fills time. which unite in the general principle that an object of perception is always recognizable as an extensive magnitude. The time scheme for Quantity is succession of units. That of Reciprocity is co-existence in time. (B) Every event is connected or follows after another event. 4. must be thought in terms of number or degree. 2. whether it is physical or mental. That which agrees with the formal conditions of experience is possible. As in judgement there is an antecedent and a consequent. That of Necessity is existence in all time. Experience of any sort presupposes a formal unity of consciousness. embracing possibility. 1. That of Substantiality is permanence in time. and the categories express the special rules under which this Primal Unity presents itself for the guidance of the imagination. These two principles show that every object of perception. Postulates of Experimental Thought. That which coheres with the material conditions of things is actual. necessity. actuality. That of Relation is the order of time. unless thought supplied this persistent background. That of Quality is the contents of time. The negative is empty time. Axioms of Intuition. Anticipations of Perceptions are based upon the view that every sensation is an intensive magnitude or is known by its quality. the substance is not permanent. 3. These are regulative . so in our experience of things there is a physical cause and a physical effect. realizing the relations of succession and simultaneity would not be possible for us. In other words. The objective coexistence is only conceivable on the assumption that as parts of a community they act and react upon each other. (A) In all changes of phenomena. and is known by its quantity. reciprocity. Analysis of Principles In his formula showing how experience results from the categories. Analogies of Experience presenting the relation of things after the analogies of thought. Each category has a time element of its own through which the matter of sensation is taken up and transformed into thought. That of Possibility is agreement with the conditions of time generally. which is life. Arthur Schopenhauer [1788-1860]. He concedes that adaptation to environment enters into the windings of evolutionary progress. the absolute obligation of every man to live up to the highest reason within himself. Upon it Kant built his Critique of Practical Reason. He is liberty. so defined has no completed existence. present or future. There is no predetermined finality. This vital impulse pertains to an immanent principle. Modern Philosophical Formulas From Kant to recent times. . an original and undefined vital surge (elan vital). God. He is action. Disjunctive reasoning assumes the ultimate ground of totality. Thus. which in turn directs the countercurrent of matter. Hypothetical reasoning implies supposition which embraces the whole of the conditions of phenomena or the universe. It transcends them all – past. His "Duration" fills all space. setting forth man’s duties to the laws and constitution of the State and his duties to himself and to others. but movements in an inverse direction. Lecture Six. Reason is the faculty of the Absolute. and the terms by which it is expressed. and the burned out "dud" that falls back is matter. but the ideas that allow the intellect to understand it. developing a moral philosophy. This immanent principle however has no final completeness in itself: It comes into existence progressively as it creates the Universe. caused by the interruption of ascent. Kant first clearly formulated the idea of morality as "Duty for Duty’s Sake. or end. which involve and succeed each other. It is God. but God. in virtue of an initial impulse. and pre-creates them. Life in its humblest stage is a spiritual activity. or a creation that proceeds without end.principles by which the mind is guided in its aspiration to complete an absolute unity. In it he admits the doctrine of transformism as involved in all growth development or evolution. we perceive in ourselves as soon as we act freely. These constitute his Theory of Virtue. In other words. of a continuous outflow.. George Berkeley [1685-1753] and Karl Von Hartmann (1842-1906)." which with its vital impulse is the essential cause of evolution. or Nothingness. This is the essence of the Critique of Pure Reason. Bergsen’s philosophy has no place for the Void. Georg Hegel [1770-1831]. vis. The vital surge of Bergsen contains an impulse to create. intelligence. This creation brings forth. Bergsen’s "Creative Evolution" was his masterpiece. Friedrich Schelling [1775-1854]. Herbert Spencer [1820-1903]. but has nothing to do with the general direction of the movement. Reality appears as a double movement of ascent and descent. the supreme Being. He is ceaseless life. Categorical reasoning presupposes a subject that is not itself an attribute. This is the center." similar to Spinoza’s "Intellectual Love of God. in a sense. not only the forms of life. No scheme of evolution laid down in advance. the ascent itself a process of growth and thus a Creative Principle inherent in all things. It presupposes them. The essential factor is a kind of interior urge. there are only immediate objectifications. and substance. the gap is bridged by such names as Henri Bergsen [1859-1941]." The distinctive feature of his moral theory was his statement of the Categorical Imperative. This principle Bergsen called "Duration. stillness the movement itself. His creation. and its efforts start a current of ascending objectification. the whole creative process is like a skyrocket that goes up in an illumination. So speaking of their relations as spiritualization and materialization is better. the latter resulting from an interruption of the direction of the former. Matter is defined as a species of descent. Spirit and Matter are not opposed unities. contains them. It includes such contrasts as "whatever may be the deepest essential nature of things we are a part thereof. although endeavoring to keep their intuitions in accord with facts. He invests a new metaphysical entity – "Duration" which is founded on that which is least certain and most subjective to our understanding – the concept of time. Bergsen’s method is open to this fair criticism. often interpenetrating. that which brings the results of intuition into accord with logic and the study of facts. Its method is appeal to intuition and not to understanding. whose creative work is continued by the evolution of species. and the Universe. On earth the chief lines of evolution end in the production of plant life." Finally. and by the constitution of human personalities. in an impulsive charge that can overcome every resistence and clear many an obstacle. many lines flow out. Intuition cannot be reserved to philosophy. He defines intuition as instinct conscious of itself. Evolution does not take place in a direct line." He has many contradictions and inexact statements. the difference between instinct and intelligence. artistic. industrial. This is the only contrast and in both. but to Intuition. All humanity is an immense army that presses forward in space and time. The essential characteristic of the animal is instinct. perhaps even death." Three more contradictory statements could not be found. all inventors. and their solution depends entirely upon intuition. . In a word. behind. The great scientific discoveries existed in the understanding of men of genius before being adapted to the facts and shown to be true. philosophical. scientific. and mental life. able to consider its purpose indefinitely. Science depends as much on intuition as it does on reasoning. The one point in the Bergsen philosophy that is in accord with facts is: The existence of an essential factor with some kind of internal creative impulse producing the "vital surge. and by the side of us all. It belongs to many departments of life. However. According to Bergsen. that of the man is intelligence. including the original bent of the soul. the great philosophical problems in life. he makes brain to occupy the relationship to consciousness that a bolt has to an engine. it continues the work by which life organizes matter. of instinctive animal life." and "it presents the idea of a God freely creating both matter and life. which go beyond them. These forms are absolutely distinct. were intuitive by nature. Man alone reached the freedom of intelligence. while philosophers. and take as their criterion concordance with facts or with rational inferences. lie outside science. We are free when our acts emanate from our whole personality. This is a summary of Bergsen’s teaching. All other forms of life have remained captive to the mechanism that they invested. From the center. It is prepared and weighted in our whole past and falls like ripe fruit from our precious life.In connecting life and consciousness with matter. there is but one method of reaching Truth. His struggle to harmonize intuition and intelligence results in making intuition supreme. He allots the task of finding the solutions of all problems of the relations of self to the universe. before. close and parallel. the nature of Being. The only real distinction between philosophical and scientific method is that men of science remain within the limits of fact as much as possible. sometimes allow themselves to propose bold hypotheses. Consciousness is not bound to the organism but enjoys liberty in a wide sense. the world of life and the Soul is amenable neither to thought nor to scientific knowledge. We desire and will and act from the whole of that past. "this work is the categorical refutation of both monism and pantheism. all the great minds that have added something new to human resources. Liberty is a function of our power of introspection. and material and inorganic existence to intelligence – the domain of science. It is clear to any thinker that all men of genius. Our character is the condensation of our history since birth including our prenatal dispositions. then separate and divergent. Will is primitively and essentially unconscious. The subconscious governs both. (2) The soul of man as immortal but not eternal. and understands the creation as carrying out of the design of a sovereign and conscious will. The One. In all these respects its operation is identical with human subconsciousness. That the distinction between animals and man is one of nature and not of degree. Will only is manifested. It attains results superior to those of intentional and conscious thought. so that the two are alike in nature and differ in degree. energy. outside space and time. The metaphysical deductions based upon this concept easily fall into two classes. It adapts itself so well to facts that it has entered the domain of scientific Philosophy." The expression. the "Unconscious" of Von Hartmann. which is contrary to the facts as we know them today. the whole body is the phenomenal expression of Will. This objective conscious substitutes an intentional am limited activity for Will’s unconsidered and boundless impulses. Schopenhauer was first to seek to adapt this idea to facts. nor end nor origin. having a beginning but no end. In all the phenomena. etc. the Real. but Will. "The Philosophy of the Unconscious" was invented by Von Hartmann. are equally potent in animals and man. it is Will objectified and become concrete. nor annihilation. and in nearly the whole of animal life. It is active in animals under the impulsion of blind instinct. Will. belongs to all ages and all civilizations. conscious reasoning nor will. his genius. immanent and omnipresent Unconsciousness. the "Active Intellect" of Averroes. essential and permanent principle. Through all its manifestations. The primordial Cause of evolution. secretion. because consciousness does not appear as a primordial attribute of unity. The great instinctive impulses of self-preservation. (1) The providential foresight and the presence of evil. There remain two ideas of value in Bergsen.. It is the single principle of Pantheism and Monism. and all vital processes. Contrasted with Bergsen’s system came a system based on the "Unconscious. produces the innumerable appearances of things. eternal. In fact. the "Will" of Schopenhauer. his eternal essence. Every psychic consideration is against it. which he termed "Will. coexisting or succeeding one another. and mind is made up of "representations" or "objectifications" of the creative immanence. It is one. Will shows itself as Unconscious in all its representations. It is essentially mysterious and follows no known psychological laws. Will is unconscious in all the organic functions. the "Nature Naturans" of Spinoza. hence everything that happens in it must have emerged from Will and this Will acts blindly. It is the Divine Absolute. . is the divine principle of the religions of India." Will is the sole thing that really exists. his inspiration. His primary idea was to reduce the innumerable appearances of things to one single. Will comes to know that it desires and what it desires. the notion of a creative. reproduction. One class admits a Creator and a creation. his creative power – all these are impersonal. but the foundation of that philosophy. and the need of recognizing an essential and creative vital impulse. It implies neither individualization nor beginning. All that pertains to this objective consciousness is subject to death. The automatism of the main functions of life is identical in animals and man. It needs no motives for action. digestion. the "Thing in Itself" of Kant. in the plant world. Subconscious psychology dominates animal and man alike. In man. all belong to the unconscious Will. but that these do not necessarily proceed from deliberately willed design. growth. The other class places the Divine Idea in the universe itself: Its theories seek to disentangle the one sole permanent divine essence from the infinite varieties of passing ephemeral phenomena. The latter class considers that the universe of matter. This view meets with two insolvable difficulties. Animal instinct obeys neither logic. which as the essence of Being is unaffected by death. It is the "Idea" of Plato. in the inorganic world. That which is really superior in man. reproduction.Bergsen made one claim. in objectifying itself. beginning and ending in Time. who stands with his feet on the backs of two crocodiles. . Lecture Seven. all states of consciousness of the transitory personality. The real individuality. the permanent in man builds up another personality. which when separated from their errors. after the manner of Hindu thought. Paul. may in the light of psychological knowledge. assimilated and preserved by the eternal essence of Being. whose systems predated Bergsen and Schopenhauer. Here we have the notion of the Trinity. Thus. be registered. but leading. the Will. is destined to have an end as it had a beginning. Thus. reason gradually grows into consciousness. suggesting boundless vigor of life. and that the most important of all – the power to acquire and retain the knowledge of itself." "The value of life consists in learning not to desire it. take their place in a new system. 2. and the other knows neither time nor death. Man is the original indestructible being objectified in each person. The Development of the Doctrine of the Trinity The idea of the Trinity is very ancient. In the very beginnings of the records of human thinking. the essential unconscious activity possesses some kind of Reason. a transitory phenomenon." Von Hartmann took up Schopenhauer’s thesis. It did not occur to them that everything that falls within the domain of conscious existence. the self holds all its permanent gain. These great thinkers contributed one or more ideas." This activity becomes at least partially self-conscious in man. adding certain data to it. they represent Osiris as looking down upon Horus. Out of this notion all their pessimism arose. as God. and the Egyptians called him Lord of the Sacred Bark. the other purely human. and Horus the Son. Probably the ancient Egyptian records are the oldest in existence. It is fitting therefore that they called God the Father and Mother of all that was made. and the human finite cannot participate in the divine Infinite. Evolution is the means that the universal and creative reason uses to acquire self-consciousness. with its development from the birth to the death of the body. They attributed all potentialities except one to the Divine Principle or Will. This is the true conception that while the human personality. These are the natural and spiritual man of St. as the basis of its further unfoldment. and the process it implies. Isis the Mother. Schopenhauer. Nevertheless. were less precise than the latter. in his system. allowed some such survival. similar in its premises and its essence. with both of them there is an abyss between the unconscious and the conscious.1. manifests Himself in more than one personal expression. Schelling and Hegel. the essential being. One knows time and suffering and death. Unfortunately the trend of Schopenhauer’s philosophy was toward a confirmed pessimism. becomes a conscious Will. deeply engraved in its memory. It brings a rational Creation into existence. bringing to it all its permanent gains. there appears the notion that God. keeps and assimilates to itself. derived from the natural sciences and psychology. Man is from the first an individual. some reasonable finality. to conclusions far different from the pessimism of Schopenhauer and his fellow thinkers. Schelling’s universe is the result of an essentially unconscious "Activity. and we may find in evolution. "The will to live is a misfortune. In one Egyptian poem. One is divine. In his theory of Palingenesis or rebirth. In other words this Son of the Egyptian Trinity was the savior or preserver. Osiris was the Father. further enriched by the experiences of its new objectification. Those who see no necessity for any rebirth see the truth that in the next stage of adventure. by a different development of thought. For Hegel. originally unconscious. the unending circle of indestructible animation. that the most ancient and most deeply metaphysical idea of Deity they named Amon. Shiva. and acted as the Destructive Principle of the Trinity. Brahman was the Supreme Self of the Universe. the incessant round of birth and death in which all nature eternally revolves. Gradually the conception grew.In passing we should say. He was the Creative Principle of the Trinity. health. Aten was the Giver of life by means of Ra. represented the Principle of Destruction and strife. they formulated their ideas of the Supreme Being. With much of the same high discernment. a lesser conception of God. the third person of the Trinity. the creative Divinity. from whom all the universe. but three phases of Brahman. Vishnu and Shiva. the very first idea they perfected and proclaimed was the soul’s immortality. etc. He had charge of the whole circle of animated creation. the Sun God. The manifestation and interaction of the three causes the Universal Creation and Life. He is the destroyer and rebuilder of various forms of life. The idea of Brahman lost its original metaphysical significance among the people. Shiva exhibits by images and emblems the two primordial agencies. they reached the greatest height of unfoldment. He wore the lingam (male generative organ) as a symbol of the . Later there came Aten. Symbols emblematic of death and man’s desire indicate his a ttributes. It dates very far back as is shown by some most ancient scriptures. the striving to live and the forces that destroy. and a desire for order and peace – his symbol was the moving sun. The Trinitarian idea remains as a part of the Hindu religious conception. The teaching of the Hindus was the next factor in the development of the idea of the Trinity. while Aten was something more of a personal conception. In other words. He presides over the ebb and flow of sentient existence. with directions on how to meet each succeeding condition that arose. The conception of Vishnu as the Lord of Righteousness and Goodness. grew until at last he became regarded as the Supreme Principle in the Trinity. employed to create the material universe and man. they began to decline. Following their declaration of the soul’s immortality. Vishnu became a personified "THAT. righteousness and love. as if to defy death. Shiva represents the earliest and universal impression of nature upon men. a Trinity made up of Brahma. the destroyer. Vishnu had become the One God. This idea of Vishnu and Shiva presented the world wide and world-old conception of the Good Spirit and the Bad Spirit. but being capable of propitiation and flattery. until they identified him with the Supreme Being or Brahman Itself." Simultaneously. the inexorable law of the alternate triumph of life and death. They buried their book of the Breaths of Life with every priest and high-born person. which shows the Trinity as having one body with three heads emerging from it. they did not speak or think of the Absolute – the Brahman – as part of the Trinity. which all races and religions have had at some time in their history. In the face of death’s immutable records and monuments. the worship of Shiva. having a malevolent and revengeful nature. It is interesting that while they followed Amon the one. Amon was the Absolute and impersonal Being. God and Devil. they wrote on the walls of the tombs a thousand declarations of life. He had the storm for his symbol. flowed or was emanated. Further. the expression of endless and pitiless change. and they regarded Brahman as the nature of Vishnu. They regarded Vishnu as the preserving Principle of the Trinity or the Savior. The idea of the Trinity never lost its hold on the Hindu mind. and when they turned to Aten. although it changed with the rise of the worship of Vishnu. or of Shiva as the Supreme Being. They conceived Brahma to be the personification of the Brahman. filled with goodness. for which he rewarded his worshipers with prosperity. with its individual souls. the God of change and dissolution grew apace. Their Books of the Dead were in reality descriptions of the soul’s progress in the future. somewhat akin to the Greek demiurge or divine agent of the Supreme Being. for instance the well-known rock sculpture at Elphanta. In other words. Shiva was the third person of the Trinity. It proclaimed the steady advancement of the soul under the care of the Gods. Vishnu was from the first pictured as gracious deity. Yet that space could not have been empty. the Holy Spirit was the agent in immaculate conceptions. representing Shakti or the Creative Energy. The third person in the Hindu system was the Holy Breath. Plato taught a trinity of the soul. When the Pharaoh Sesostris invoked the oracle to know who could subjugate all things. they saw the necessity of some representation of the Feminine Principle in the Trinity. if we may believe the facts. nothing comes. the Holy Spirit. We have then a form idea of Absolute Intelligence and nothing to whom it can make itself known. These three each acting out their own perfectly defined offices. and the Beautiful easily take on the personification of the Trinity. meaning that God is the infinite home of all moral emotions. They mention the Trinity nowhere in the Scripture. Shakti is the name of the principle of Cosmic Energy. 6. life. we have the picture of a lonely Being. That was the actual situation sometime in the far off past. The Christian doctrine is embedded in the same necessity. Among some peoples. Son and Holy Spirit. as He could realize himself as love only through relationships within his own being.. the idea has been of three instead of another number." This is a brief review of the unfolding of the idea of the Trinity among various peoples. Y Zona was the father. or the Universal Mother. a distinction of persons whom we call the Father. He manifests in the Unity of Being. The Father as the Primal Source. and with them. a tongue of fire and other forms familiar to us in Christian teaching. by whom Chimalman conceived and brought Quetzalcoatl (Mexican Antiquities. Either He is transcendent. the fullest and most differentiated life. while they knew his bride or consort as Parvati. Vol. So every philosophy of earth has eventually premised the necessity. there is a diversity of personal expression and activity as provided in the Trinity. Since these could not by any possible chance come out of absolutely empty space. and provided for it by the notion of the Trinity. and so on through the list. as contrasted with the Principle of Being. Absolute Power and nothing to whom it could exhibit itself. which is here expressed in limited form. it follows that life. order and intelligent procedure. Strangely enough. For instance. Rising along with the development of Shiva. Three personal expressions of God. and Echvah was the Holy Ghost. we say that God is Love. The Holy Ghost became visible in the forms of a dove. but perfect Unity of Being. The worship is solely that of the Female Principle of the Universe. This is set forth in our Christian idea of the Trinity. and action. Shiva became regarded as Being itself. In the ancient Mexican trinity. Yet here we have form. Shiva became the male God and Shakti the female God. 1650). the Shakti worship sprang up. Absolute Love and no one on whom to lavish it. We can help ourselves to grasp some necessity for this universal conception of Being. yet in perfect unison of purpose. the Life Activities in the Universe. in which we may readily see analogies pointing to a higher form of the doctrine. and the Holy Spirit as the personal applier of life and grace. It became a necessary to think that some sort of relationship must exist in the Eternal Being. The Good. the Son as the Redemptive Mediator. by which living creatures were made. the True. so Shiva took a bride. without much exception. what would be left? The answer must be – nothing but absolute empty space. above and . Suppose that some magician’s wand would enable us to banish all that appears. "First God. law and intelligence and everything else in completeness fills apparently empty space. Bascal was the Word or Son. In other words. the answer was. for the whole material universe has come out of it. The source of the idea lies deeply hidden in our efforts to understand and explain the operation of the Eternal Principle of Being.Reproductive Principle of nature. Thinking of God apart from relationships seems impossible. only two possible interpretations of God's relationship to the Universe exist. So far they were all masculine. and as a symbol of subtle and malignant power he wore a garland of twined serpents. This is about the idea as held by all Christian believers. p. That while the Eternal Unity is undisturbed. Love implies relationships. throughout the ages. Now we have learned that out of nothing. Yet statements concerning the activities of God the Eternal Spirit produced the idea that while the Eternal Spirit of God is One. In other words. Outside the Trinitarian idea. then the Word. within or identical with all. by implication. Many such combinations of thought. both in Egypt and India. These are the extremes to which the untrained mind is apt to go. Man himself is a trinity. If God is purely masculine. that in all religions there is the tendency to exalt one person of the Trinity above the rest. One is. The Spirit is the eternal expression as action and the agent by which these are operative in human life. and spirit." I nearly fell off the Christmas tree when I first read that. Then they exalted the Son as God. This. Man is the combination of the Father Principle and the Mother Principle. Jesus Christ is set forth almost exclusively in their teaching concerning God. every school of thought has found it necessary to present in their Trinity some provision for the feminine elements of personality. but creeps out in the use of many schools of New Thought. We can only explain it by the dominant masculine type of mind through which they formulated the idea of the Trinity. When we say that "He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. and who appeared not to see that sometime the incongruity would appear to other thinkers without such prejudice. Still others have emphasized the fact that all action is that of the Spirit. or He is Immanent. when we accept the fact of the Trinity as a necessity of thinking. We have here an anomaly of thought. "Our FatherMother God. the administrator of all relations." That is the imagery of the feminine. and assigning a secondary place and influence to the Son and the Spirit. soul. First was the exaltation of the Father as Supreme. The Hindus made the Spirit. The Father is presented as masculine. It runs not only through the churches. then there is no explanation of the source of feminine qualities. such as the above. makes God both Transcendent and Immanent. This is true in both Catholic and Protestant usage. combine both the masculine and feminine qualities. would take care of a most embarrassing predicament of thought. Our Christian Trinity is about the only exception. Right here enters a point that most of the theologians have overlooked of all religions. the Son or Word is the Redemptive Mediator between God and man." we have the picture of two feminines producing something that is contrary to all the facts of life as we know them.outside all. body. the Spirit as masculine. The Father is the eternal embodiment of Truth. "The Spirit of God brooded over the face of the waters. . if carried over into our thought. show how deeply and profoundly the idea of the Trinity is rooted in the very nature of man. If manifesting Himself in three personal forms of expression without disturbing the Unity of Being is possible for God. The Trinitarian idea combines the two. and he is the Son or third factor in the Trinity. We can avoid this limited form of thought by returning to the original conception that the Father is the Primal Source of all that is. Two observations are pertinent here. or third person of their trinity. That was peculiarly true. and the Son as masculine. I found that the very first reference to the Spirit is distinctly feminine. This interpretation of the Trinity has spread until most of us think of the Spirit as the feminine aspect and expression of Being. a complete masculinity of ideas and the presence of feminine qualities everywhere. Another observation that is pertinent here is. and the Spirit is the personal applier of Life and Grace. then what in the name of logic is to hinder Him from expressing Himself in countless forms of personal expression with the same results? In other words. which holds us each as one with the essence of Being. The Son is the eternal embodiment and expression of Love and Goodness. Yet on looking it up. and provides for this perfect relationship by the presence and action of the Spirit. giving the Father and the Spirit a secondary value and place. The Christian Trinity has not escaped this tendency. It really took a woman to emphasize this fact and to provide for it in her statement. accept the countless individual expressions of Divine Being. So it is most of the way through the Bible. insomuch that the other persons in the Trinity assumed very secondary relative value. we also. Life and Power. the Absolute. they are present in all our objective thought. Then comes the idea of Quality. realize the immanence of mind. The very thought of God. Another apparently inherent tendency of the mind is to generalize. We often meet with the statement that there is no time or space in mind. we have certain fundamental categories or classifications for any intelligent understanding of God and the economies of the universe. or the contents grasped through that activity. Names for this Ultimate Something are immaterial. Then naturally the fourth form of thought appears. they are native to the mind. nor any possible modifications of them. Then get a clear idea of the Power of Mind. Mind transcends sense entirely. these ideas are not sensations. It knows that a stone has no power to throw itself. calls up the form of Unity or One. the first step to right thinking is to accept your right and the power to think for yourself . so it brings in the man who threw the stone. in Cosmic or Universal Mind. For instance. Thought has no form or significance apart from these ideas. Relation and Modality are always present. I am struck by a stone. It is present and identical in all living forms. Number. but works them over into forms inherent in its own nature. They belong to the unpicturable notions of intelligence. I have transcended the sensual experience and attributed objective existence and causal efficiency to a stone. yet in a world of imperfect appearances. The recognition is that what is true in the individual is true overall. Therefore. Substance and Attribute. When we think of God. Certain thought forms in the mind are inherent. Actuality. and Negation and Limitation. The moment we turn to the material world and its processes. Without any arguing. in the mind is the necessary idea of an Ultimate Source of thought. but it is not true in our objective power of thinking. in some degree. and Necessity. The mental life considered as fact belongs to psychology. That is true. in this material and objective world. Cause and Effect. First. Thought may signify mental activity. In all rational life. The second step in right thinking is to test your thought by the thought of others on the same subject. it belongs to Logic. the stone hit me.Lecture Eight. mind is also present in a manner suited to that life. or the method of our thought about the movements of the universe. He is perfect. The sense fact is simply certain visual. Yet the mind does not stop there. the instinct of direction in the homing pigeon. men are not around just throwing stones promiscuously. However. That is. They are not given to just a few. If I say. the mind holds certain essential necessities for thinking. Yet the sensations become an intelligible object of thought when we super-induce these ideas upon them by the action of the understanding. but considered as apprehending truth. Likewise. This gives us a starting point for the lesson. tactile and painful sensations. and in some degree to all living things. Outline for Right Thinking Many things may be true for cosmic thought that are not true for our human understanding. The human mind never rests in the impressions of the sensibility. beyond which we cannot go and do not need to go. Quality. it follows certain methods. In irrational life. For instance. . so mind begins to hunt for a motive. Possibility. the idea of Relation enters the mind. Action and Reaction. is attributed to all homing pigeons. In other words. In this way you can check over anything that may be lacking in your thought processes. Space. Some of these are Time. such thought forms as Unity. Whether we will or no. Modality. Quantity. Motion. These inherent thought forms are universal. Next. Any quality of mind that is apparent in any individual must of necessity be in all individuals of that species. the mind naturally holds the two ideas of Reality. and Mind controls these. It does the work according to the plan it has in hand. that the more perfect and constant that picture. then each finger. The larger forms of life also use this power. Unseen. a remarkable power in life to take on the form and color of surroundings. monkey do. the more definite will be the coming into form that which we have pictured. No bit of muscle. pattern. Now get an outline of the whole process: First. then you must change the plan to His Ideal. but also that the organic mind never fails to carry out what you steadily hold before it. Laying the back of the hand flat on the knee." The power of association is based upon the operation of the mimetic power. Do not practice denying the reality of anything that may be bothering you. when we come to human life. It is a faithful servant in the house. Omnipotent. Remember that the agent that puts things into operation is the organic mind within you. Second. Denial only tends to emphasize the thing. or the ability to hold the mind to a single thing and shut out everything else. "monkey see. Universal. . Turn the mind away from that which reports. If you add to this the fact that the Organic Mind is the agent of the Eternal Creative Mind. Primordial. but our sole part is to furnish the idea as a mold into which Power fashions Substance and brings our idea into form. Good or bad examples owe their power over us to the presence of this power. of which all things are made.No particle of matter has any power to act. fashioned as Idea. Therefore Mind is the only power there is. It is based upon and borne out by the facts of life everywhere. their voices. aches. Science knows what it calls the mimetic power of nature. The forces of nature are the operation of the Cosmic Mind through nature. This depends on our practice and power of concentration. Some deer are white in winter and brown in summer. This is not just a metaphysical notion. their mannerisms. It is limitless. Matter can act only as the life forces act upon it. It is the sole officer in charge of all your functional activities. you have laid a foundation for greater confidence. Its nature is action. I will give you a little drill in concentration that will help you if you will practice it. making all the others lay still. take on the form of the leaves and bark on which they live. close first the thumb. bugs. A state of confidence is essential. which only needs to know the will of the Master of the house. there is a Dynamic Power. to the Divine Ideal and keep your attention on that. These all show that the formula that we have learned is based upon the presence and operation of a principle of life that is universal. We take on the apparent qualities of those with whom we associate. bone. and superintends all the metabolism or changes that are forever taking place in the body. plastic nature. The Polar bear is white as to skin and hair because that is the color scheme always presented to him. produce a pain. The power of a child to mimic has passed into a proverb. We take on other people’s ills. or any other kind of invasion. This action is automatic. or mold. of a molding. This is all unconscious action. We do not have to try to make it work. insomuch so that often you look right at them without seeing them. Use the fingers. That confidence must rest upon the knowledge not only that your body responds to your mind. and so there is never any less or any more of it. They also take on the color. Third is the inevitable plan. adjusting to the color scheme prevailing. Jacob used striped rods and produced a preponderance of ring-streaked and striped calves. and complaints. It follows that since we solely relate to the idea or picture. or nerve has any power to grow a lump. Little insects. there is a Universal Substance. whose nature is to act. We do not have to concern ourselves about the Power or Substance of the Power. or have an inflamation. However. If years of wrong thinking have changed the original Divine Plan. into which the dynamic Power forms the unseen Substance. This of course means Mind in the general sense and in the particular. animals. and actual physical likeness. to carry it out. it is not conscious and unconscious. take the attitude of listening. When you want to rest your eyes. So when you would bring the mind to rest. but rather an intelligent impersonal force. The ancient thinkers posited as a starting point. When you have done this. while faith properly applies to the action of the superconscious. Avoid negative thoughts and statements or negative pictures. The use of the modern scientific method has confirmed these two concepts. The first step is to get still physically. Maybe from the Bible or any of the sacred books. To some. until you find the Silence within yourself. will soon get the mind in the habit of right thought and correct expression. It looks steadfastly to the Unseen. Just let it stay in your mind and it will lead to other ideals of the inner spiritual life. you get it as far from yourself as possible. except for a diversion. Faith is the knowing of our intuition. Then you can enter it anytime or anywhere. Lecture Nine. Develop the habit of thinking constructively. let every part of your body be free from any stress. The daily habit of entering the Silence is invaluable. It consists in getting your objective mind still while you contemplate things of high spiritual meaning. it continues to work it out whether you repeat it or not. and you can answer if needful. which has survived all speculation. You may not hear it for a time. If the picture is dim or hesitant and wandering. and the power that works through them. Their problem was how to make this Absolute intelligible to the finite mind. and other observable sources of information. and it will not occur in the same way with all people. It is well to remember that belief is always associated with the conscious or objective mind. second is the unity of all Substance. I do not know anything more helpful than the steady giving thanks for the finished work. whatever its form might be. it will give you immediate results. count on its fidelity to what you have given it. then leave it there for the builder to work out. The Outline of Philosophical Attainment The persistent effort of thinkers in all ages to find some rational solution to the Mysteries of Being and its manifestation is impressive. The process consisted in studying the economies of the material universe. it is well to be alone. you can let the other person talk. or it may be something about which you have read nothing nor thought anything at all. Then still your mind. and carry on the inner activity. or from the poets. the existence of an Absolute Being. the still small voice will bring up some word or phrase you have read or heard. While you are acquiring the habit. If you have given it a perfect idea. Relax. Daily reading a chapter from some author of standing. especially the Psalms and the Gospels. In fact. not by trying to think of nothing. you lift them to the farthest point away. This was the finding of pure reason. saturate the mind with the substance of the truth in correct literary form and the right metaphysical outlook. They did not present the idea of a personal Being. . It really means the steadfast confidence in the means you are using. Such books as the Bible. Once clearly grasping the idea. Having given the idea clearly. the action of mind. For when it is finished in your mind it will be finished in your body and affairs. the creative processes of development. passing through vast stages of emanation and subsidence apparently in an effort to find itself. but turn it to the greatest idea that it can possibly grasp – the idea of God. and busy yourself giving thanks for what it is doing. When once you have fully and clearly given the perfect idea to the inner builder. It is an inner experience.This confidence is identical with the "belief" that Jesus accounted so important. It is not worth your while to spend your time reading trash. You know that the eye is set for the vanishing point on the horizon. Cultivate the right mental habit by reading books that have an uplifting tendency. was the Unity of all spiritual existence. then you may need to repeat it often and many days. The first point in their thinking. Listen for the still small voice. This explains why one person will get healing at a single treatment while another must treat or be treated often. which does not depend upon any apparent material agencies. For many early centuries of Christian times.000 years before science announced the molecular theory of physics. Two schools of Greek thought survived into the Christian era – the Epicureans and the Gnostics." They debated such questions as whether names were things in themselves. .500 years before the time of Darwin. disregarded or forgotten. Von Hartmann. The Epicureans owed their survival to their rigid moral code. and that fire was the one basic element. enabling them to continue for centuries. the doctrine of evolution was announced some 2. and the organization of an atom can have no adequate explanation apart from t he presence of mind as the crux determining its organization. Kant made what was probably the greatest contribution to knowledge. the knight of mental combat. Some of them were constructive and some destructive. but innumerable ones. and formulating the principles of correct thinking. Another ancient conception was the atomic nature or structure of Spirit. Out of this contention one arose. One contended that all things proceed from the eternal fire. the Essence of the Absolute. presenting the idea that there was not just one basic element. They discovered the atomic nature of matter also some 2. during which there was no positive declaration of truth. While overlooked. who confronted them with the question. or just the sign of things in reality. the Catholic theologians maintained this in the most rigorous manner. Meanwhile. whose influence survives to this day. we have the picture of mental giants seeking to explain the universe from observable phenomena. The outstanding three among these giants of thought are Plato. "How do you know that your thinking is correct? He set about the task of clearing up the whole field of thought by analyzing the processes of mental lite. Coming down to a more modern period. whose works have profoundly influenced the world’s thought until today. In fact both had something in common with Christian Philosophy. Rousseau. and they will discover others. All this has resulted into a scientific philosophy at least as far as it concerns the phenomenal world. Then a new school of thinkers arose. but they made definite contribution to the advancement of knowledge. while another declared that earth was the basic element. but some of them conceived a basic intelligence as a necessary part of the scheme of materialization. which presupposed an intelligent designer. One of these thinkers was the first teleologist. Another contended that all things came from water. covering several centuries of time. the so called "Dark Ages" came along. In the 9th and 10th Centuries. especially when science faces the fact that matter never acts of itself. The early Christian Philosophy differed from all others in that its central figure was the person of Jesus Christ. Berkeley. while the Gnostics survived through their claim to positive knowledge. Hume and others of equal attainment appeared. arguing the presence of design and purpose in all creation. and that water was the original basic element. Out of all this intellectual turmoil arose the immortal Kant. and that air was the basic element. Since then the trend has been to make Philosophy scientific while science has become more philosophical.In wrestling with the problems of varieties in form and organization in material substance. Schopenhauer. Locke. the incarnate Idea and Life of God. Today any philosophical finding that does not accord with the facts as found in scientific exactness is subject to what is often a painful analysis. It was a mighty advance in knowledge about the material world. in many respects it furnishes a more rational view than that of Spirit en masse. their speculations led them far from their original ideas. The general trend of the later Greek thought was toward scepticism and downright atheism. in the Greek Age. Science today announces the discovery of ninety-six of these simple or basic elements. all others were essentially wrong. Another held that all things arise from air. In their system he was the Logos. Their ideas of uniting an atom of spirit and an atom of matter will hold a place among thinkers. Socrates and Aristotle. many fallacies of philosophical thought were at once apparent. their own philosophy being essentially right. Most of the Greek thinkers avoided the notion of a supreme directing intelligence in the universe. With the birth of scientific method applied to thinking. They battled over such questions as "Nominalism" and "Realism. Among these such names as Bergsen. the other with the spiritual world. in the ordinary processes of existence. The two systems do not contradict each other. did violence to an age taught to hate your enemies. We can trace the present state of philosophical development. Similarly. The sanctity of the body. and the cause of all human ill-being. Its basic ideas are directly discerned. He did not appear to use the usual processes of thinking from appearances back to fact. in his life and teachings organized the glimpses of Reality by the prophets. but from direct knowledge of Reality. He did not build his system upon the indications of appearance in the observable phenomena of the objective world. Since these marks of intelligence are everywhere. . and maintaining these relations. His injunction to keep a receptive attitude toward the spiritual universe was unwelcome to people who centered their whole life upon appearances. in its evolution through the minds of the thinkers of every age. but they are antonymous in their action. The new conception does not involve the direct and immediate action of this Universal Mind. for that matter. It is the philosophy of Intuition paralleling that of Reason. and to seek healing as the normal procedure ran squarely into the ingrained idea of neglect and punishing the body as a sinful thing. and contrary to the trend of human nature. discarding outworn notions. seers. It is true that the central dynamism. similes. Jesus. uses a plastic mounding form of Substance out of which everything is made. This dynamism. and get an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. The teaching that love is the universal solvent of all problems in respect to our brothers. Thus has the mind wrestled with the problems of existence. they need no special supervision. the universal substance. which has all power to work and perform within the radius of its existence. and together presenting a rational statement of spiritual reality and its manifestation. They are complementary. one is the philosophy of the natural man. To him these were but parables. not reasoned out. and the world of phenomena. his whole philosophy concerns itself with the welfare of the man within as the means of promoting his outward well being. in producing any form. it was the only way to insure self-preservation. and the dominant idea are all forms of the infinite intelligence. the obligation to keep it in health. the real world of spirit. but its intelligence and power are graduated to fit the needs of all forms and processes of life. It is wholly devoid of human wisdom. and enemies. the other is the philosophy of the spiritual man and the world of noumena. of any age. devising. each supplementing the other. one dealing with the natural world. While his philosophy’s principles are perfectly adapted to the needs of spiritual man. No study of philosophy can be complete without a careful analysis of the Philosophy of Jesus. The dynamism is subject to a central dominating idea. Every form is equipped with an intelligent. which acts as a plan or mold or pattern to determine the form that is to be produced.The basic idea in modern procedure is that a system of intelligible relations is observable in the material world. there must be a universal Principle of Intelligence or Mind. and establishing other more rational ideas until at last we have a rather complete philosophical outline of truth as we have deduced it from the phenomenal world. neighbors. There must be therefore a faculty of knowing. Upon this tenuous and fragile base he built a kingdom that has held the allegiance and challenged the imagination of men in every age since he announced it. but do their creative producing work by virtue of the inherent forces within them. His teaching about nonresistance diametrically opposed the fighting instincts of that age or. In fact. and illumined ones of all times and races as a complete spiritual philosophy. Being elements of the Creative Being. Such an idea as the forgetfulness of self seemed to militate against the normal sense of self preservation. working dynamism. In fact. old symbols illustrating the world of noumena. their application to everyday life does violence to all the native impulses in humanity’s biological pattern. step by step. . San Francisco. We have given only the barest possible outline to show the path of the evolution of knowledge.We encourage you to go over this course of lessons repeatedly until the outline is clearly fixed in mind. 1930 More information about Thomas Parker Boyd can be found here. and to become familiar with the full work of such men as those mentioned herein. California. We further recommend reading some standard books on Philosophy.