lecture20-第4节

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！





It　moves　to　the　south　because　of　the　cold　which　drives　it　into



the　warm　parts　of　the　heavens　over　Libya。　　Or　listen　to　Saint



Augustine's　speculations：　　〃Who　gave　to　chaff　such　power　to



freeze　that　it　preserves　snow　buried　under　it；　and　such　power　to



warm　that　it　ripens　green　fruit？　　Who　can　explain　the　strange



properties　of　fire　itself；　which　blackens　all　that　it　burns；



though　itself　bright；　and　which；　though　of　the　most　beautiful



colors；　discolors　almost　all　that　it　touches　and　feeds　upon；　and



turns　blazing　fuel　into　grimy　cinders？　。　。　。　Then　what　wonderful



properties　do　we　find　in　charcoal；　which　is　so　brittle　that　a



light　tap　breaks　it；　and　a　slight　pressure　pulverizes　it；　and　yet



is　so　strong　that　no　moisture　rots　it；　nor　any　time　causes　it　to



decay。〃　　City　of　God；　book　xxi；　ch。　iv。







Such　aspects　of　things　as　these；　their　naturalness　and



unnaturalness　the　sympathies　and　antipathies　of　their　superficial



qualities；　their　eccentricities；　their　brightness　and　strength



and　destructiveness；　were　inevitably　the　ways　in　which　they



originally　fastened　our　attention。







If　you　open　early　medical　books；　you　will　find　sympathetic　magic



invoked　on　every　page。　　Take；　for　example；　the　famous　vulnerary



ointment　attributed　to　Paracelsus。　　For　this　there　were　a　variety



of　receipts；　including　usually　human　fat；　the　fat　of　either　a



bull；　a　wild　boar；　or　a　bear；　powdered　earthworms；　the　usnia；　or



mossy　growth　on　the　weathered　skull　of　a　hanged　criminal；　and



other　materials　equally　unpleasantthe　whole　prepared　under　the



planet　Venus　if　possible；　but　never　under　Mars　or　Saturn。　　Then；



if　a　splinter　of　wood；　dipped　in　the　patient's　blood；　or　the



bloodstained　weapon　that　wounded　him；　be　immersed　in　this



ointment；　the　wound　itself　being　tightly　bound　up；　the　latter



infallibly　gets　wellI　quote　now　Van　Helmont's　accountfor　the



blood　on　the　weapon　or　splinter；　containing　in　it　the　spirit　of



the　wounded　man；　is　roused　to　active　excitement　by　the　contact　of



the　ointment；　whence　there　results　to　it　a　full　commission　or



power　to　cure　its　cousin…german　the　blood　in　the　patient's　body。　



This　it　does　by　sucking　out　the　dolorous　and　exotic　impression



from　the　wounded　part。　　But　to　do　this　it　has　to　implore　the　aid



of　the　bull's　fat；　and　other　portions　of　the　unguent。　　The　reason



why　bull's　fat　is　so　powerful　is　that　the　bull　at　the　time　of



slaughter　is　full　of　secret　reluctancy　and　vindictive　murmurs；



and　therefore　dies　with　a　higher　flame　of　revenge　about　him　than



any　other　animal。　　And　thus　we　have　made　it　out；　says　this



author；　that　the　admirable　efficacy　of　the　ointment　ought　to　be



imputed；　not　to　any　auxiliary　concurrence　of　Satan；　but　simply　to



the　energy　of　the　posthumous　character　of　Revenge　remaining



firmly　impressed　upon　the　blood　and　concreted　fat　in　the　unguent。　



J。　B。　Van　Helmont：　　A　Ternary　of　Paradoxes；　translated　by　Walter



Charleton；　London；　1650。I　much　abridge　the　original　in　my



citations。







The　author　goes　on　to　prove　by　the　analogy　of　many　other　natural



facts　that　this　sympathetic　action　between　things　at　a　distance



is　the　true　rationale　of　the　case。　　〃If；〃　he　says；　〃the　heart　of



a　horse　slain　by　a　witch；　taken　out　of　the　yet　reeking　carcase；



be　impaled　upon　an　arrow　and　roasted；　immediately　the　whole　witch



becomes　tormented　with　the　insufferable　pains　and　cruelty　of　the



fire；　which　could　by　no　means　happen　unless　there　preceded　a



conjunction　of　the　spirit　of　the　witch　with　the　spirit　of　the



horse。　　In　the　reeking　and　yet　panting　heart；　the　spirit　of　the



witch　is　kept　captive；　and　the　retreat　of　it　prevented　by　the



arrow　transfixed。　　Similarly　hath　not　many　a　murdered　carcase　at



the　coroner's　inquest　suffered　a　fresh　haemorrhage　or　cruentation



at　the　presence　of　the　assassin？the　blood　being；　as　in　a



furious　fit　of　anger；　enraged　and　agitated　by　the　impress　of



revenge　conceived　against　the　murderer；　at　the　instant　of　the



soul's　compulsive　exile　from　the　body。　　So；　if　you　have　dropsy；



gout；　or　jaundice；　by　including　some　of　your　warm　blood　in　the



shell　and　white　of　an　egg；　which；　exposed　to　a　gentle　heat；　and



mixed　with　a　bait　of　flesh；　you　shall　give　to　a　hungry　dog　or



hog；　the　disease　shall　instantly　pass　from　you　into　the　animal；



and　leave　you　entirely。　　And　similarly　again；　if　you　burn　some　of



the　milk　either　of　a　cow　or　of　a　woman；　the　gland　from　which　it



issued　will　dry　up。　　A　gentleman　at　Brussels　had　his　nose　mowed



off　in　a　combat；　but　the　celebrated　surgeon　Tagliacozzus　digged　a



new　nose　for　him　out　of　the　skin　of　the　arm　of　a　porter　at



Bologna。　　About　thirteen　months　after　his　return　to　his　own



country；　the　engrafted　nose　grew　cold；　putrefied；　and　in　a　few



days　dropped　off；　and　it　was　then　discovered　that　the　porter　had



expired；　near　about　the　same　punctilio　of　time。　　There　are　still



at　Brussels　eye…witnesses　of　this　occurrence；〃　says　Van　Helmont；



and　adds；　〃I　pray　what　is　there　in　this　of　superstition　or　of



exalted　imagination？〃







Modern　mind…cure　literaturethe　works　of　Prentice　Mulford；　for



exampleis　full　of　sympathetic　magic。　















How　indeed　could　it　be　otherwise？　　The　extraordinary　value；　for



explanation　and　prevision；　of　those　mathematical　and　mechanical



modes　of　conception　which　science　uses；　was　a　result　that　could



not　possibly　have　been　expected　in　advance。　　Weight；　movement；



velocity；　direction；　position；　what　thin；　pallid；　uninteresting



ideas！　　How　could　the　richer　animistic　aspects　of　Nature；　the



peculiarities　and　oddities　that　make　phenomena　picturesquely



striking　or　expressive；　fail　to　have　been　first　singled　out　and



followed　by　philosophy　as　the　more　promising　avenue　to　the



knowledge　of　Nature's　life？　　Well；　it　is　still　in　these　richer



animistic　and　dramatic　aspects　that　religion　delights　to　dwell。　



It　is　the　terror　and　beauty　of　phenomena；　the　〃promise〃　of　the



dawn　and　of　the　rainbow；　the　〃voice〃　of　the　thunder；　the



〃gentleness〃　of　the　summer　rain；　the　〃sublimity〃　of　the　stars；



and　not　the　physical　laws　which　these　things　follow；　by　which　the



religious　mind　still　continues　to　be　most　impressed；　and　just　as



of　yore；　the　devout　man　tells　you　that　in　the　solitude　of　his



room　or　of　the　fields　he　still　feels　the　divine　presence；　that



inflowings　of　help　come　in　reply　to　his　prayers；　and　that



sacrifices　to　this　unseen　reality　fill　him　with　security　and



peace。







Pure　anachronism！　says　the　survival…theory；anachronism　for



which　deanthropomorphization　of　the　imagination　is　the　remedy



required。　　The　less　we　mix　the　private　with　the　cosmic；　the　more



we　dwell　in　universal　and　impersonal　terms；　the　truer　heirs　of



Science　we　become。







In　spite　of　the　appeal　which　this　impersonality　of　the　scientific



attitude　makes　to　a　certain　magnanimity　of　temper；　I　believe　it



to　be　shallow；　and　I　can　now　state　my　reason　in　comparatively　few



words。　　That　reason　is　that；　so　long　as　we　deal　with　the　cosmic



and　the　general；　we　deal　only　with　the　symbols　of　reality；　but　as



soon　as　we　deal　with　private　and　personal　phenomena　as　such；　we



deal　with　realities　in　the　completest　sense　of　the　term。　　I　think



I　can　easily　make　clear　what　I　mean　by　these　words。







The　world　of　our　experience　consists　at　all　times　of　two　parts；



an　objective　and　a　subjective　part；　of　which　the　former　may　be



incalculably　more　extensive　than　the　latter；　and　yet　the　latter



can　never　be　omitted　or　suppressed。　　The　objective　part　is　the



sum　total　of　whatsoever　at　any　given　time　we　may　be　thinking　of；



the　subjective　part　is　the　inner　〃state〃　in　which　the　thinking



comes　to　pass。　　What　we　think　of　may　be　enormousthe　cosmic



times　and　spaces；　for　example　whereas　the　inner　state　may　be



the　most　fugitive　and　paltry　activity　of　mind。　　Yet　the　cosmic



objects；　so　far　as　the　experience　yields　them；　are　but　ideal



pictures　of　something　whose　existence　we　do　not　inwardly　possess



but　only　point　at　outwardly；　while　the　inner　state　is　our　very



experience　itself；　its　reality　and　that　of　our　experience　are



one。　　A　conscious　field　PLUS　its　object　as　felt　or　thought　of



PLUS　an　attitude　towards　the　object　PLUS　the　sense　of　a　self　to



whom　the　attitude　belongssuch　a　concrete　bit　of　personal



experience　may　be　a　small　bit；　but　it　is　a　solid　bit　as　long　as



it　lasts；　not　hollow；　not　a　mere　abstract　element　of　experience；



such　as　the　〃object〃　is　when　taken　all　alone。　　It　is　a　FULL　fact；



even　though　it　be　an　insignificant　fact；　it　is