the soul of the far east-第27章

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！


ul　of　the　universe。　　When　he　has　once　realized　this　eternal　truth；　the　man　has　entered　Nirvana。　　For　Nirvana　is　not　an　absorption　of　the　individual　soul　into　the　soul　of　all　things；　since　the　one　has　always　been　a　part　of　the　other。　　Still　less　is　it　utter　annihilation。　　It　is　simply　the　recognition　of　the　eternal　oneness　of　the　two；　back　through　an　everlasting　past　on　through　an　everlasting　future。

Such　is　the　belief　which　the　Japanese　adopted；　and　which　they　profess　to…day。　　Such　to　them　is　to　be　the　dawn　of　death's　to…morrow；　a　blessed　impersonal　immortality；　in　which　all　sense　of　self；　illusion　that　it　is；　shall　itself　have　ceased　to　be；　a　long　dreamless　sleep；　a　beatified　rest；　which　no　awakening　shall　ever　disturb。

Among　such　a　people　personal　Christianity　converts　but　few。　They　accept　our　material　civilization；　but　they　reject　our　creeds。　　To　preach　a　prolongation　of　life　appears　to　them　like　preaching　an　extension　of　sorrow。　　At　most；　Christianity　succeeds　only　in　making　them　doubters　of　what　lies　beyond　this　life。　　But　though　professing　agnosticism　while　they　live；　they　turn；　when　the　shadows　of　death's　night　come　on；　to　the　bosom　of　that　faith　which　teaches　that；　whatever　may　have　been　one's　earthly　share　of　happiness；　〃'tis　something　better　not　to　be。〃

Strange　it　seems　at　first　that　those　who　have　looked　so　long　to　the　rising　sun　for　inspiration　should　be　they　who　live　only　in　a　sort　of　lethargy　of　life；　while　those　who　for　so　many　centuries　have　turned　their　faces　steadily　to　the　fading　glory　of　the　sunset　should　be　the　ones　who　have　embodied　the　spirit　of　progress　of　the　world。　　Perhaps　the　light；　by　its　very　rising；　checks　the　desire　to　pursue；　in　its　setting　it　lures　one　on　to　follow。

Though　this　religion　of　impersonality　is　not　their　child；　it　is　their　choice。　　They　embraced　it　with　the　rest　that　India　taught　them；　centuries　ago。　　But　though　just　as　eager　to　learn　of　us　now　as　of　India　then；　Christianity　fails　to　commend　itself。　　This　is　not　due　to　the　fact　that　the　Buddhist　missionaries　came　by　invitation；　and　ours　do　not。　　Nor　is　it　due　to　any　want　of　personal　character　in　these　latter；　but　simply　to　an　excess　of　it　in　their　doctrines。

For　to…day　the　Far　East　is　even　more　impersonal　in　its　religion　than　are　those　from　whom　that　religion　originally　came。　　India　has　returned　again　to　its　worship　of　Brahma；　which；　though　impersonal　enough；　is　less　so　than　is　the　gospel　of　Gautama。　　For　it　is　passively　instead　of　actively　impersonal。

Buddhism　bears　to　Brahmanism　something　like　the　relation　that　Protestantism　does　to　Roman　Catholicism。　　Both　bishops　and　Brahmans　undertake　to　save　all　who　shall　blindly　commit　themselves　to　professional　guidance；　while　Buddhists　and　Protestants　alike　believe　that　a　man's　salvation　must　be　brought　about　by　the　action　of　the　man　himself。　　The　result　is；　that　in　the　matter　of　individuality　the　two　reformed　beliefs　are　further　apart　than　those　against　which　they　severally　protested。　　For　by　the　change　the　personal　became　more　personal；　and　the　impersonal　more　impersonal　than　before。　The　Protestant；　from　having　tamely　allowed　himself　to　be　led；　began　to　take　a　lively　interest　in　his　own　self…improvement；　while　the　Buddhist；　from　a　former　apathetic　acquiescence　in　the　doctrine　of　the　universally　illusive；　set　to　work　energetically　towards　self…extinction。　　Curious　labor　for　a　mind；　that　of　devoting　all　its　strength　to　the　thinking　itself　out　of　existence！　Not　content　with　being　born　impersonal；　a　Far　Oriental　is　constantly　striving　to　make　himself　more　so。

We　have　seen；　then；　how　in　trying　to　understand　these　peoples　we　are　brought　face　to　face　with　impersonality　in　each　of　those　three　expressions　of　the　human　soul；　speech；　thought；　yearning。　　We　have　looked　at　them　first　from　a　social　standpoint。　　We　have　seen　how　singularly　little　regard　is　paid　the　individual　from　his　birth　to　his　death。　　How　he　lives　his　life　long　the　slave　of　patriarchal　customs　of　so　puerile　a　tendency　as　to　be　practically　impossible　to　a　people　really　grown　up。　　How　he　practises　a　wholesale　system　of　adoption　sufficient　of　itself　to　destroy　any　surviving　regard　for　the　ego　his　other　relations　might　have　left。　　How　in　his　daily　life　he　gives　the　minimum　of　thought　to　the　bettering　himself　in　any　worldly　sense；　and　the　maximum　of　polite　consideration　to　his　neighbor。　　How；　in　short；　he　acts　toward　himself　as　much　as　possible　as　if　he　were　another；　and　to　that　other　as　if　he　were　himself。　Then；　not　content　with　standing　stranger　like　upon　the　threshold；　we　have　sought　to　see　the　soul　of　their　civilization　in　its　intrinsic　manifestations。　　We　have　pushed　our　inquiry；　as　it　were；　one　step　nearer　its　home。　　And　the　same　trait　that　was　apparent　sociologically　has　been　exposed　in　this　our　antipodal　phase　of　psychical　research。　We　have　seen　how　impersonal　is　his　language；　the　principal　medium　of　communication　between　one　soul　and　another；　how　impersonal　are　the　communings　of　his　soul　with　itself。　　How　the　man　turns　to　nature　instead　of　to　his　fellowman　in　silent　sympathy。　And　how；　when　he　speculates　upon　his　coming　castles　in　the　air；　his　most　roseate　desire　is　to　be　but　an　indistinguishable　particle　of　the　sunset　clouds　and　vanish　invisible　as　they　into　the　starry　stillness　of　all…embracing　space。

Now　what　does　this　strange　impersonality　betoken？　　Why　are　these　peoples　so　different　from　us　in　this　most　fundamental　of　considerations　to　any　people；　the　consideration　of　themselves？　The　answer　leads　to　some　interesting　conclusions。


Chapter　8。　　Imagination。

If；　as　is　the　case　with　the　moon；　the　earth；　as　she　travelled　round　her　orbit　turned　always　the　same　face　inward；　we　might　expect　to　find；　between　the　thoughts　of　that　hemisphere　which　looked　continually　to　the　sun；　and　those　of　the　other　peering　eternally　out　at　the　stars；　some　such　difference　as　actually　exists　between　ourselves　and　our　longitudinal　antipodes。　　For　our　conception　of　the　cosmos　is　of　a　sunlit　world　throbbing　with　life；　while　their　Nirvana　finds　not　unfit　expression　in　the　still；　cold；　fathomless　awe　of　the　midnight　sky。　　That　we　cannot　thus　directly　account　for　the　difference　in　local　coloring　serves　but　to　make　that　difference　of　more　human　interest。　　The　dissimilarity　between　the　Western　and　the　Far　Eastern　attitude　of　mind　has　in　it　something　beyond　the　effect　of　environment。　　For　it　points　to　the　importance　of　the　part　which　the　principle　of　individuality　plays　in　the　great　drama　daily　enacting　before　our　eyes；　and　which　we　know　as　evolution。　　It　shows；　as　I　shall　hope　to　prove；　that　individuality　bears　the　same　relation　to　the　development　of　mind　that　the　differentiation　of　species　does　to　the　evolution　of　organic　life：　that　the　degree　of　individualization　of　a　people　is　the　self…recorded　measure　of　its　place　in　the　great　march　of　mind。

All　life；　whether　organic　or　inorganic；　consists；　as　we　know；　in　a　change　from　a　state　of　simple　homogeneity　to　one　of　complex　heterogeneity。　　The　process　is　apparently　the　same　in　a　nebula　or　a　brachiopod；　although　much　more　intricate　in　the　latter。　　The　immediate　force　which　works　this　change；　the　life　principle　of　things；　is；　in　the　case　of　organic　beings；　a　subtle　something　which　we　call　spontaneous　variation。　　What　this　mysterious　impulse　may　be　is　beyond　our　present　powers　of　recognition。　　As　yet；　the　ultimates　of　all　things　lie　hidden　in　the　womb　of　the　vast　unknown。　　But　just　as　in　the　case　of　a　man　we　can　tell　what　organs　are　vital；　though　we　are　ignorant　what　the　vital　spark　may　be；　so　in　our　great　cosmical　laws　we　can　say　in　what　their　power　resides；　though　we　know　not　really　what　they　are。　　Whether　mind　be　but　a　sublimated　form　of　matter；　or；　what　amounts　to　the　same　thing；　matter　a　menial　kind　of　mind；　or　whether；　which　seems　less　likely；　it　be　a　something　incomparable　with　substance；　of　one　thing　we　are　sure；　the　same　laws　of　heredity　govern　both。　　In　each　a　like　chain　of　continuity　leads　from　the　present　to　the　dim　past；　a　connecting　clue　which　we　can　follow　backward　in　imagination。　　Now　what　spontaneous　variation　is　to　the　material　organism；　imagination；　apparently；　is　to　the　mental　one。　　Just　as　spontaneous　variation　is　constantly　pushing　the　animal　or　the　plant　to　push　out；　a