lectures16+17-第14章

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That　doctrine；　for　example；　that　eternity　is　timeless；　that　our



〃immortality；〃　if　we　live　in　the　eternal；　is　not　so　much　future



as　already　now　and　here；　which　we　find　so　often　expressed　to…day



in　certain　philosophic　circles；　finds　its　support　in　a　〃hear；



hear！〃　or　an　〃amen；〃　which　floats　up　from　that　mysteriously



deeper　level。＇279＇　　We　recognize　the　passwords　to　the　mystical



region　as　we　hear　them；　but　we　cannot　use　them　ourselves；　it



alone　has　the　keeping　of　〃the　password　primeval。〃＇280＇







＇279＇　Compare　the　extracts　from　Dr。　Bucke；　quoted　on　pp。　398；



399。







＇280＇　As　serious　an　attempt　as　I　know　to　mediate　between　the



mystical　region　and　the　discursive　life　is　contained　in　an



article　on　Aristotle's　Unmoved　Mover；　by　F。　C。　S。　Schiller；　in



Mind；　vol。　ix。；　1900。















I　have　now　sketched　with　extreme　brevity　and　insufficiency；　but



as　fairly　as　I　am　able　in　the　time　allowed；　the　general　traits　of



the　mystic　range　of　consciousness。　　It　is　on　the　whole



pantheistic　and　optimistic；　or　at　least　the　opposite　of



pessimistic。　　It　is　anti…naturalistic；　and　harmonizes　best　with



twice…bornness　and　so…called　other…worldly　states　mind。







My　next　task　is　to　inquire　whether　we　can　invoke　it　as



authoritative。　　Does　it　furnish　any　WARRANT　FOR　THE　TRUTH　of　the



twice…bornness　and　supernaturality　and　pantheism　which　it　favors？







I　must　give　my　answer　to　this　question　as　concisely　as　I　can。　　In



brief　my　answer　is　thisand　I　will　divide　it　into　three　parts：







（1）　Mystical　states；　when　well　developed；　usually　are；　and　have



the　right　to　be；　absolutely　authoritative　over　the　individuals　to



whom　they　come。







（2）　No　authority　emanates　from　them　which　should　make　it　a　duty



for　those　who　stand　outside　of　them　to　accept　their　revelations



uncritically。







（3）　They　break　down　the　authority　of　the　non…mystical　or



rationalistic　consciousness；　based　upon　the　understanding　and　the



senses　alone。　　They　show　it　to　be　only　one　kind　of　consciousness。







They　open　out　the　possibility　of　other　orders　of　truth；　in　which；



so　far　as　anything　in　us　vitally　responds　to　them；　we　may　freely



continue　to　have　faith。







I　will　take　up　these　points　one　by　one。







　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　1。



As　a　matter　of　psychological　fact；　mystical　states　of　a



well…pronounced　and　emphatic　sort　ARE　usually　authoritative　over



those　who　have　them。＇281＇　They　have　been　〃there；〃　and　know。　　It



is　vain　for　rationalism　to　grumble　about　this。　If　the　mystical



truth　that　comes　to　a　man　proves　to　be　a　force　that　he　can　live



by；　what　mandate　have　we　of　the　majority　to　order　him　to　live　in



another　way？　　We　can　throw　him　into　a　prison　or　a　madhouse；　but



we　cannot　change　his　mindwe　commonly　attach　it　only　the　more



stubbornly　to　its　beliefs。＇282＇　It　mocks　our　utmost　efforts；　as　a



matter　of　fact；　and　in　point　of　logic　it　absolutely　escapes　our



jurisdiction。　　Our　own　more　〃rational〃　beliefs　are　based　on



evidence　exactly　similar　in　nature　to　that　which　mystics　quote



for　theirs。　　Our　senses；　namely；　have　assured　us　of　certain



states　of　fact；　but　mystical　experiences　are　as　direct



perceptions　of　fact　for　those　who　have　them　as　any　sensations



ever　were　for　us。　　The　records　show　that　even　though　the　five



senses　be　in　abeyance　in　them；　they　are　absolutely　sensational　in



their　epistemological　quality；　if　I　may　be　pardoned　the　barbarous



expressionthat　is；　they　are　face　to　face　presentations　of　what



seems　immediately　to　exist。　＇281＇　I　abstract　from　weaker　states；



and　from　those　cases　of　which　the　books　are　full；　where　the



director　（but　usually　not　the　subject）　remains　in　doubt　whether



the　experience　may　not　have　proceeded　from　the　demon。







＇282＇　Example：　　Mr。　John　Nelson　writes　of　his　imprisonment　for



preaching　Methodism：　　〃My　soul　was　as　a　watered　garden；　and　I



could　sing　praises　to　God　all　day　long；　for　he　turned　my



captivity　into　joy；　and　gave　me　to　rest　as　well　on　the　boards；　as



if　I　had　been　on　a　bed　of　down。　　Now　could　I　say；　'God's　service



is　perfect　freedom；'　and　I　was　carried　out　much　in　prayer　that　my



enemies　might　drink　of　the　same　river　of　peace　which　my　God　gave



so　largely　to　me。〃　　Journal；　London；　no　date；　p。　172。















The　mystic　is；　in　short；　INVULNERABLE；　and　must　be　left；　whether



we　relish　it　or　not；　in　undisturbed　enjoyment　of　his　creed。　



Faith；　says　Tolstoy；　is　that　by　which　men　live。　And　faith…state



and　mystic　state　are　practically　convertible　terms。











　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　2。



But　I　now　proceed　to　add　that　mystics　have　no　right　to　claim　that



we　ought　to　accept　the　deliverance　of　their　peculiar　experiences；



if　we　are　ourselves　outsiders　and　feel　no　private　call　thereto。　



The　utmost　they　can　ever　ask　of　us　in　this　life　is　to　admit　that



they　establish　a　presumption。　　They　form　a　consensus　and　have　an



unequivocal　outcome；　and　it　would　be　odd；　mystics　might　say；　if



such　a　unanimous　type　of　experience　should　prove　to　be　altogether



wrong。　　At　bottom；　however；　this　would　only　be　an　appeal　to



numbers；　like　the　appeal　of　rationalism　the　other　way；　and　the



appeal　to　numbers　has　no　logical　force。　　If　we　acknowledge　it；　it



is　for　〃suggestive；〃　not　for　logical　reasons：　　we　follow　the



majority　because　to　do　so　suits　our　life。







But　even　this　presumption　from　the　unanimity　of　mystics　is　far



from　being　strong。　　In　characterizing　mystic　states　an



pantheistic；　optimistic；　etc。；　I　am　afraid　I　over…simplified　the



truth。　　I　did　so　for　expository　reasons；　and　to　keep　the　closer



to　the　classic　mystical　tradition。　　The　classic　religious



mysticism；　it　now　must　be　confessed；　is　only　a　〃privileged　case。〃







　　



It　is　an　EXTRACT；　kept　true　to　type　by　the　selection　of　the



fittest　specimens　and　their　preservation　in　〃schools。〃　It　is



carved　out　from　a　much　larger　mass；　and　if　we　take　the　larger



mass　as　seriously　as　religious　mysticism　has　historically　taken



itself；　we　find　that　the　supposed　unanimity　largely　disappears。　



To　begin　with；　even　religious　mysticism　itself；　the　kind　that



accumulates　traditions　and　makes　schools；　is　much　less　unanimous



than　I　have　allowed。　　It　has　been　both　ascetic　and　antinomianly



self…indulgent　within　the　Christian　church。＇283＇　It　is　dualistic



in　Sankhya；　and　monistic　in　Vedanta　philosophy。　　I　called　it



pantheistic；　but　the　great　Spanish　mystics　are　anything　but



pantheists。　　They　are　with　few　exceptions　non…metaphysical　minds；



for　whom　〃the　category　of　personality〃　is　absolute。　　The　〃union〃



of　man　with　God　is　for　them　much　more　like　an　occasional　miracle



than　like　an　original　identity。＇284＇　　How　different　again；　apart



from　the　happiness　common　to　all；　is　the　mysticism　of　Walt



Whitman；　Edward　Carpenter；　Richard　Jefferies；　and　other



naturalistic　pantheists；　from　the　more　distinctively　Christian



sort。＇285＇　　The　fact　is　that　the　mystical　feeling　of　enlargement；



union；　and　emancipation　has　no　specific　intellectual　content



whatever　of　its　own。　　It　is　capable　of　forming　matrimonial



alliances　with　material　furnished　by　the　most　diverse



philosophies　and　theologies；　provided　only　they　can　find　a　place



in　their　framework　for　its　peculiar　emotional　mood。　　We　have　no



right；　therefore；　to　invoke　its　prestige　as　distinctively　in



favor　of　any　special　belief；　such　as　that　in　absolute　idealism；



or　in　the　absolute　monistic　identity；　or　in　the　absolute



goodness；　of　the　world。　　It　is　only　relatively　in　favor　of　all



these　thingsit　passes　out　of　common　human　consciousness　in　the