第2章

类别:其他 作者:William James字数:5859更新时间:18/12/21 17:13:49
ThenIwalkedonaboutamile,andassoonasIwasgotwithinthecity,thewordoftheLordcametomeagain,saying:Cry,’WotothebloodycityofLichfield!’SoIwentupanddownthestreets,cryingwithaloudvoice,WotothebloodycityofLichfield!Itbeingmarketday,Iwentintothemarket-place,andtoandfrointheseveralpartsofit,andmadestands,cryingasbefore,WotothebloodycityofLichfield!Andnoonelaidhandsonme。AsIwentthuscryingthroughthestreets,thereseemedtometobeachannelofbloodrunningdownthestreets,andthemarket-placeappearedlikeapoolofblood。WhenIhaddeclaredwhatwasuponme,andfeltmyselfclear,Iwentoutofthetowninpeace;andreturningtotheshepherdsgavethemsomemoney,andtookmyshoesofthemagain。ButthefireoftheLordwassoonmyfeet,andalloverme,thatIdidnotmattertoputonmyshoesagain,andwasatastandwhetherI shouldorno,tillIfeltfreedomfromtheLordsotodo:then,afterIhadwashedmyfeet,Iputonmyshoesagain。Afterthisadeepconsiderationcameuponme,forwhatreasonIshouldbesenttocryagainstthatcity,andcallitThebloodycity!Forthoughtheparliamenthadtheministeronewhile,andthekinganother,andmuchbloodhadbeenshedinthetownduringthewarsbetweenthem,yettherewasnomorethanhadbefallenmanyotherplaces。ButafterwardsIcametounderstand,thatintheEmperorDiocletian’stimeathousandChristiansweremartyr’dinLichfield。SoIwastogo,withoutmyshoes,throughthechanneloftheirblood,andintothepooloftheirbloodinthemarket-place,thatImightraiseupthememorialofthebloodofthosemartyrs,whichhadbeenshedaboveathousandyearsbefore,andlaycoldintheirstreets。Sothesenseofthisbloodwasuponme,andIobeyedthewordoftheLord。” Bentasweareonstudyingreligion’sexistentialconditions,wecannotpossiblyignorethesepathologicalaspectsofthesubject。 Wemustdescribeandnamethemjustasiftheyoccurredinnon-religiousmen。Itistruethatweinstinctivelyrecoilfromseeinganobjecttowhichouremotionsandaffectionsarecommittedhandledbytheintellectasanyotherobjectishandled。Thefirstthingtheintellectdoeswithanobjectistoclassitalongwithsomethingelse。Butanyobjectthatisinfinitelyimportanttousandawakensourdevotionfeelstousalsoasifitmustbesuigenerisandunique。Probablyacrabwouldbefilledwithasenseofpersonaloutrageifitcouldhearusclassitwithoutadoorapologyasacrustacean,andthusdisposeofit。“Iamnosuchthing,itwouldsay;IamMYSELF,MYSELFalone。 Thenextthingtheintellectdoesistolaybarethecausesinwhichthethingoriginates。Spinozasays:“Iwillanalyzetheactionsandappetitesofmenasifitwereaquestionoflines,ofplanes,andofsolids。”Andelsewhereheremarksthathewillconsiderourpassionsandtheirpropertieswiththesameeyewithwhichhelooksonallothernaturalthings,sincetheconsequencesofouraffectionsflowfromtheirnaturewiththesamenecessityasitresultsfromthenatureofatrianglethatitsthreeanglesshouldbeequaltotworightangles。SimilarlyM。Taine,intheintroductiontohishistoryofEnglishliterature,haswritten:“Whetherfactsbemoralorphysical,itmakesnomatter。Theyalwayshavetheircauses。Therearecausesforambition,courage,veracity,justastherearefordigestion,muscularmovement,animalheat。Viceandvirtueareproductslikevitriolandsugar。”Whenwereadsuchproclamationsoftheintellectbentonshowingtheexistentialconditionsofabsolutelyeverything,wefeel——quiteapartfromourlegitimateimpatienceatthesomewhatridiculousswaggeroftheprogram,inviewofwhattheauthorsareactuallyabletoperform——menacedandnegatedinthespringsofourinnermostlife。Suchcold-bloodedassimilationsthreaten,wethink,toundooursoul’svitalsecrets,asifthesamebreathwhichshouldsucceedinexplainingtheiroriginwouldsimultaneouslyexplainawaytheirsignificance,andmakethemappearofnomorepreciousness,either,thantheusefulgroceriesofwhichM。Tainespeaks。 Perhapsthecommonestexpressionofthisassumptionthatspiritualvalueisundoneiflowlyoriginbeassertedisseeninthosecommentswhichunsentimentalpeoplesooftenpassontheirmoresentimentalacquaintances。Alfredbelievesinimmortalitysostronglybecausehistemperamentissoemotional。Fanny’sextraordinaryconscientiousnessismerelyamatterofoverinstigatednerves。William’smelancholyabouttheuniverseisduetobaddigestion——probablyhisliveristorpid。Eliza’sdelightinherchurchisasymptomofherhystericalconstitution。Peterwouldbelesstroubledabouthissoulifhewouldtakemoreexerciseintheopenair,etc。Amorefullydevelopedexampleofthesamekindofreasoningisthefashion,quitecommonnowadaysamongcertainwriters,ofcriticizingthereligiousemotionsbyshowingaconnectionbetweenthemandthesexuallife。Conversionisacrisisofpubertyandadolescence。 Themacerationsofsaints,andthedevotionofmissionaries,areonlyinstancesoftheparentalinstinctofself-sacrificegoneastray。Forthehystericalnun,starvingfornaturallife,Christisbutanimaginarysubstituteforamoreearthlyobjectofaffection。Andthelike。[1] [1]Aswithmanyideasthatfloatintheairofone’stime,thisnotionshrinksfromdogmaticgeneralstatementandexpressesitselfonlypartiallyandbyinnuendo。Itseemstomethatfewconceptionsarelessinstructivethanthisre-interpretationofreligionaspervertedsexuality。Itremindsone,socrudelyisitoftenemployed,ofthefamousCatholictaunt,thattheReformationmaybebestunderstoodbyrememberingthatitsfonsetorigowasLuther’swishtomarryanun:——theeffectsareinfinitelywiderthantheallegedcauses,andforthemostpartoppositeinnature。Itistruethatinthevastcollectionofreligiousphenomena,someareundisguisedlyamatory——e。g。,sex-deitiesandobsceneritesinpolytheism,andecstaticfeelingsofunionwiththeSaviorinafewChristianmystics。 Butthenwhynotequallycallreligionanaberrationofthedigestivefunction,andproveone’spointbytheworshipofBacchusandCeres,orbytheecstaticfeelingsofsomeothersaintsabouttheEucharist?Religiouslanguageclothesitselfinsuchpoorsymbolsasourlifeaffords,andthewholeorganismgivesovertonesofcommentwheneverthemindisstronglystirredtoexpression。Languagedrawnfromeatinganddrinkingisprobablyascommoninreligiousliteratureasislanguagedrawnfromthesexuallife。We“hungerandthirst“afterrighteousness;we“findtheLordasweetsavor;“we“tasteandseethatheisgood。”“SpiritualmilkforAmericanbabes,drawnfromthebreastsofbothtestaments。”isasub-titleoftheoncefamousNewEnglandPrimer,andChristiandevotionalliteratureindeedquitefloatsinmilk,thoughtoffromthepointofview,notofthemother,butofthegreedybabe。 SaintFrancoisdeSales,forinstance,thusdescribesthe“orisonofquietude“:“Inthisstatethesoulislikealittlechildstillatthebreast,whosemothertocaresshimwhilstheisstillinherarmsmakeshermilkdistillintohismouthwithouthisevenmovinghislips。Soitishere……OurLorddesiresthatourwillshouldbesatisfiedwithsuckingthemilkwhichHisMajestypoursintoourmouth,andthatweshouldrelishthesweetnesswithoutevenknowingthatitcomethfromtheLord。” Andagain:“Considerthelittleinfants,unitedandjoinedtothebreastsoftheirnursingmothersyouwillseethatfromtimetotimetheypressthemselvescloserbylittlestartstowhichthepleasureofsuckingpromptsthem。Evenso,duringitsorison,theheartunitedtoitsGodoftentimesmakesattemptsatcloserunionbymovementsduringwhichitpressescloseruponthedivinesweetness。”ChemindelaPerfection,ch。xxxi。;AmourdeDieu,vii。ch。i。 Infact,onemightalmostaswellinterpretreligionasaperversionoftherespiratoryfunction。TheBibleisfullofthelanguageofrespiratoryoppression:“Hidenotthineearatmybreathing;mygroaningisnothidfromthee;myheartpanteth,mystrengthfailethme;mybonesarehotwithmyroaringallthenightlong;asthehartpantethafterthewater-brooks,somysoulpantethafterthee,OmyGod:“God’sBreathinManisthetitleofthechiefworkofourbestknownAmericanmystic(ThomasLakeHarris),andincertainnon-Christiancountriesthefoundationofallreligiousdisciplineconsistsinregulationoftheinspirationandexpiration。 Theseargumentsareasgoodasmuchofthereasoningonehearsinfavorofthesexualtheory。Butthechampionsofthelatterwillthensaythattheirchiefargumenthasnoanalogueelsewhere。 Thetwomainphenomenaofreligion,namely,melancholyandconversion,theywillsay,areessentiallyphenomenaofadolescence,andthereforesynchronouswiththedevelopmentofsexuallife。Towhichtheretortagainiseasy。Evenweretheassertedsynchronyunrestrictedlytrueasafact(whichitisnot),itisnotonlythesexuallife,buttheentirehighermentallifewhichawakensduringadolescence。Onemightthenaswellsetupthethesisthattheinterestinmechanics,physics,chemistry,logic,philosophy,andsociology,whichspringsupduringadolescentyearsalongwiththatinpoetryandreligion,isalsoaperversionofthesexualinstinct:——butthatwouldbetooabsurd。Moreover,iftheargumentfromsynchronyistodecide,whatistobedonewiththefactthatthereligiousageparexcellencewouldseemtobeoldage,whentheuproarofthesexuallifeispast? Theplaintruthisthattointerpretreligiononemustintheendlookattheimmediatecontentofthereligiousconsciousness。 Themomentonedoesthis,oneseeshowwhollydisconnecteditisinthemainfromthecontentofthesexualconsciousness。 Everythingaboutthetwothingsdiffers,objects,moods,facultiesconcerned,andactsimpelledto。AnyGENERAL assimilationissimplyimpossible:whatwefindmostofteniscompletehostilityandcontrast。Ifnowthedefendersofthesex-theorysaythatthismakesnodifferencetotheirthesis; thatwithoutthechemicalcontributionswhichthesex-organsmaketotheblood,thebrainwouldnotbenourishedsoastocarryonreligiousactivities,thisfinalpropositionmaybetrueornottrue;butatanyrateithasbecomeprofoundlyuninstructive:wecandeducenoconsequencesfromitwhichhelpustointerpretreligion’smeaningorvalue。Inthissensethereligiouslifedependsjustasmuchuponthespleen,thepancreas,andthekidneysasonthesexualapparatus,andthewholetheoryhaslostitspointinevaporatingintoavaguegeneralassertionofthedependence,SOMEHOW,oftheminduponthebody。 Wearesurelyallfamiliarinageneralwaywiththismethodofdiscreditingstatesofmindforwhichwehaveanantipathy。Wealluseittosomedegreeincriticizingpersonswhosestatesofmindweregardasoverstrained。Butwhenotherpeoplecriticizeourownmoreexaltedsoul-flightsbycallingthem’nothingbut’ expressionsofourorganicdisposition,wefeeloutragedandhurt,forweknowthat,whateverbeourorganism’speculiarities,ourmentalstateshavetheirsubstantivevalueasrevelationsofthelivingtruth;andwewishthatallthismedicalmaterialismcouldbemadetoholditstongue。 Medicalmaterialismseemsindeedagoodappellationforthetoosimple-mindedsystemofthoughtwhichweareconsidering。 MedicalmaterialismfinishesupSaintPaulbycallinghisvisionontheroadtoDamascusadischarginglesionoftheoccipitalcortex,hebeinganepileptic。ItsnuffsoutSaintTeresaasanhysteric,SaintFrancisofAssisiasanhereditarydegenerate。 GeorgeFox’sdiscontentwiththeshamsofhisage,andhispiningforspiritualveracity,ittreatsasasymptomofadisorderedcolon。Carlyle’sorgan-tonesofmiseryitaccountsforbyagastro-duodenalcatarrh。Allsuchmentalovertensions,itsays,are,whenyoucometothebottomofthematter,mereaffairsofdiathesis(auto-intoxicationsmostprobably),duetothepervertedactionofvariousglandswhichphysiologywillyetdiscover。Andmedicalmaterialismthenthinksthatthespiritualauthorityofallsuchpersonagesissuccessfullyundermined。[2] [2]Forafirst-rateexampleofmedical-materialistreasoning,seeanarticleon“lesvarietesduTypedevot。”byDr。 Binet-Sangle,intheRevuedel’Hypnotisme,xiv。161。 Letusourselveslookatthematterinthelargestpossibleway。 Modernpsychology,findingdefinitepsycho-physicalconnectionstoholdgood,assumesasaconvenienthypothesisthatthedependenceofmentalstatesuponbodilyconditionsmustbethoroughgoingandcomplete。Ifweadopttheassumption,thenofcoursewhatmedicalmaterialisminsistsonmustbetrueinageneralway,ifnotineverydetail:SaintPaulcertainlyhadonceanepileptoid,ifnotanepilepticseizure;GeorgeFoxwasanhereditarydegenerate;Carlylewasundoubtedlyauto-intoxicatedbysomeorganorother,nomatterwhich——andtherest。Butnow,Iaskyou,howcansuchanexistentialaccountoffactsofmentalhistorydecideinonewayoranotherupontheirspiritualsignificance?Accordingtothegeneralpostulateofpsychologyjustreferredto,thereisnotasingleoneofourstatesofmind,highorlow,healthyormorbid,thathasnotsomeorganicprocessasitscondition。Scientifictheoriesareorganicallyconditionedjustasmuchasreligiousemotionsare;