,,the ,,crest-,,wave ,,of ,,evolution ,a ,course of ,lectures in ,history1 ,given to the ,graduates' ,class in the ,raja-,yoga ,college1 ,point ,loma1 in the ,college-,year #aiah-aiai499 by ,,kenneth ,,morris ,,contents ,i4 ,,introduction ,,ii4 ,,homer ,,iii4 ,,greeks ,,and ,,persians ,,iv4 ,,aeschylus ,,and ,,athens ,v4 ,,some ,,periclean ,,figures ,,vi4 ,,socrates ,,and ,,plato ,,vii4 ,,the ,,mauryas ,,of ,,india ,,viii4 ,,the ,,black-,,haired ,,people ,,ix4 ,,the ,,dragon ,,and ,,the ,,blue ,,pearl ,x4 ,,such ,a ,,one ,,xi4 ,,confucius ,,the ,,hero ,,xii4 ,,tales ,,from ,a ,,taoist ,,teacher ,,xiii4 ,,mang ,,the ,,philosopher1 ,,and ,,butterfly ,,chwang ,,xiv4 ,,the ,,manvantara ,,opens ,,xv4 ,,some ,,possible ,,epochs ,,in ,,sanskrit ,,literature ,,xvi4 ,,the ,,beginnings ,,of ,,rome ,,xvii4 ,,rome ,,parvenue ,,xviii4 ,,augustus ,,xix4 ,,an ,,imperial ,,sacrifice ,,xx4 ,,china ,,and ,,rome3 ,,the ,,see-,,saw ,,xxi4 ,,china ,,and ,,rome3 ,,the ,,see-,,saw 7,continued7 ,,xxii4 ,,eastward ,,ho6 ,,xxiii4 ,,the ,,dragon1 ,,the ,,apostate1 ,,the ,,great ,,mind ,,xxiv4 ,,from ,,julian ,,to ,,bodhidharma ,,xxv4 ,,towards ,,the ,,islands ,,of ,,the ,,sunset ,,xxvi4 ,,sacred ,,ierne ,,of ,,the ,,hibernians ,,xxvii4 ,,the ,,irish ,,illumination ------------ 99 ,serialized in ,theosophical ,path in #bg ,chapters from ,march1 #aiai through ,july1 #aiba4 ----------- ,i4 ,,introductory ,these lectures will not be concerned with history as a record of wars and political changes2 they will have little to tell of battles1 murders1 and sudden deaths4 ,instead1 we shall try to discover and throw light on the cyclic movements of the ,human ,spirit4 ,back of all phenomena1 or the outward show of things1 there is always a noumenon in the unseen4 ,behind the phenomena of human history1 the noumenon is the ,human ,spirit1 moving in accordance with its own necessities and cyclic laws4 ,we may1 if we go to it intelligently1 gain some inkling of knowledge as to what those laws are2 and ,i think that would be1 in its way1 a real wisdom1 and worth getting4 ,but for the most part historical study seeks knowledge only2 and how it attains its aim1 is shown by the falseness of what passes for history4 ,in most textbooks you shall find1 probably1 a round dozen of lies on as many pages4 ,and these in themselves are fruitful seeds of evil2 they by no means end with the telling1 but go on producing harvests of wrong life2 which indeed is only the ,lie incarnate on the plane of action4 ,the ,eternal ,right ,thing is what is called in ,sanskrit ,,sat1 the ,true2 it opposite is the ,lie1 in one fashion or another1 always2 and what we have to do1 our mission and raison d'etre as students of ,theosophy1 is to put down the ,lie at every turn1 and chase it1 as far as we may1 out of the field of life4 ,for example1 there is the ,superior-,race ,lie3 ,i do not know where it shall not be found4 ,races ,a1 ,b1 ,c1 and ,d go on preaching it for centuries2 each with an eye to its sublime self4 ,in all countries1 perhaps1 history is taught with that lie for mental background4 ,then we wonder that there are wars4 ,but ,theosophy is called onto provide a true mental background for historical study2 and it alone can do so4 ,it is the mission of ,point ,loma1 among many other things1 to float a true philosophy of history on to the currents of world-thought3 and for this end it is our business to be thinkers1 using the divine ,manasic light within us to some purpose4 ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky supplied something much greater than a dogma3 she--like ,plato --gave the world a method and a spur to thought3 pointed for it a direction1 which following1 it might solve all problems and heal the wounds of the ages4 ,a false and foolish notion in the western world has been1 tacitly to accept the ,greeks and ,hebrews of old for the two fountains of all culture since2 the one in secular matter1 the other in religion and morality4 ,of the ,hebrews nothing need be said here2 but that true religion and morality have their source in the ever-living ,human ,spirit1 not in any sect1 creed1 race1 age1 or bible4 ,i doubt there has been any new discovery in ethics since man was man2 or rather1 all discoveries have been made by individuals for themselves2 and each1 having discovered anything1 has found that that same principle was discovered a thousand times before1 and written a thousand times4 ,there is no platitude so platitudinous1 but it remains to burst upon the perceptions of all who have not yet perceived it1 as a new and burning truth2 and on the other hand1 there is no startling command to purity or compassion1 that has not been given out by ,teachers since the world began4--,as for ,greece1 there was a brilliant flaming up of the ,spirit there in the ,fourth and ,fifth ,centuries ,b4,c42 and its intensity1 like the lights of an approaching automobile1 rather obscures what lies beyond4 ,it is the first of which we have much knowledge2 so we think it was the first of all4 ,but in fact civilization has been traveling its cyclic path all the time1 all these millions of years2 and there have been hundreds of ancient great empires and cultural epochs even in ,europe of which we know nothing4 ,i had intended to begin with ,greece2 but these unexplored eras of old ,europe are too attractive1 and this first lecture must go to them1 or some of them4 ,not to the antecedents of ,greece1 in ,crete and elsewhere2 but to the undiscovered ,north2 and in particular to the ,celtic peoples2 who may serve us as an example by means of which light may be thrown on the question of racial growth1 and on the racial cycles generally4 ,the ,celtic ,empire of old ,europe affects us like some mysterious undiscovered planet4 ,we know it was there by its effects on other peoples4 ,also1 like many other forgotten histories1 it has left indications of its achievement in a certain spirit1 an uplift1 the breath of an old traditional grandeur that has come down4 ,but to give any historical account of it--to get a telescope that will reach and reveal it--we have not to come to that point yet4 ,still1 it may be allowed us to experiment with all sorts of glasses4 ,to penetrate that gloom of ancient ,europe may be quite beyond us2 but guessing is permitted4 ,now the true art of guessing lies in an intuition for guiding indications4 ,there is something in us that knows things directly2 and it may deign at times to give hints1 to direct the researches1 to flash some little light on that part of us which works and is conscious in this world1 and which we call our brain-minds4 ,so although most or all of what ,i am going to say would be called by the scientific strictly empirical1 fantastic and foolish1 yet ,i shall venture2 aware that their ,aristotelio-,baconian method quite breaks down when it comes to such a search into the unknown2 and that this guessing1 guided by what seems to be a law1 would not1 perhaps1 have been sneered at by ,plato4 ,guided by what seems to be a law2--guided1 at any rate1 by the knowledge that there are laws2 that ,god geometrizes1 as ,plato says3 that which is within flows outward upon a design2 that life precipitates itself through human affairs as it does through the forms of the crystals2 that there is nothing more haphazard about the sequence of empires and civilizations1 than there is about the unfolding of petals of a flower4 ,in both cases it is the eternal rhythm1 the ,poetry of the ,infinite1 that manifests2 our business is to listen so carefully as to hear1 and apprehend the fact that what we hear is a poetry1 a vast music1 not a chaotic cacophony3 catch the rhythms--perceive that there is a design--even if it takes us long to discover what the design may be4 ,you know ,plato's idea that the world is a dodecahedron or twelve-sided figure4 ,now in ,plato's day1 much that every schoolboy knows now1 was esoteric--known only to the initiated4 ,so ,i think ,plato would have known well enough that this physical earth is round2 and that what he meant when he spoke of the dodecahedron1 was something else4 ,this1 for example3 that on the plane of causes--this outer plane being that of effects --there are twelve 7geographical7 centers1 aspects1 foci1 facets1 or what you like to call them3 twelve laya centers1 as ,i think the ,secret ,doctrine would say3 through which the forces from within play on the world without4 ,you have read1 too1 in ,the ,secret ,doctrine1 ,professor ,crooke's theory1 endorsed by ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky1 as to how the chemical elements were deposited by a spiral evolutive force1 a creative impulse working outward in the form of a caduceus or lemniscate1 or figure '#h4' ,now suppose we should discover that just as that force deposited in space1 in its spiral down-working1 what ,crookes calls the seeds of potassium1 beryllium1 boron1 and the rest--so such another creative force1 at work on the planes of geographical space and time1 rouses up or deposits in these1 according to a definite pattern1 this nation and that in its turn1 this great age of culture after that one2 and that there is nothing hap-hazard about the configuration of continents and islands1 national boundaries1 or racial migrations8 ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky tells us that the whole past history of the race is known to the ,guardians of the ,secret ,wisdom2 that it is all recorded1 nothing lost2 down to the story of every tribe since the ,lords of ,mind incarnated4 ,and that these records are in the form of a few symbols2 but symbols which1 to those who can interpret or disintegrate them1 can yield the whole story4 ,what if the amount of the burden of history1 which seems so vast to us who know so very little of it1 were in reality1 if we could know it all1 a thing that would put but slight tax on the memory2 a thing we might carry with us in a few slight formulae1 a few simple symbols8 ,i believe that it is so2 and that we may make a beginning1 and go some little way towards guessing what these formulae are4 ,as thus3 ,a given race flowered and passed2 it had so many centuries of history before its flowering2 it died1 and left something behind4 ,greece1 for example4 ,we may know very little --you and ,i may know very little--of the details of ,greek history4 ,we cannot1 perhaps1 remember the date of ,aegospotami1 or what happened at ,plataea3 we may have the vaguest notion of the import of ,aeschylus1 or ,sophocles1 or ,plato4 ,but still there is a certain color in our conscious perceptions which comes from ,greece3 the 'glory that was ,greece' means something1 is a certain light within the consciousness1 to everyone of us4 ,the ,greeks added something to the wealth of the human spirit1 which we all may share in1 and do4 ,an atmosphere is left1 which surrounds and adheres to the many tangible memorials2 just as an atmosphere is left by the glories of the ,cinquecento in ,italy1 with its many tangible memorials4 ,but indeed1 we may go further1 and say that an atmosphere is left1 and that we can feel it1 by many ages and cultures which have left no tangible memorials at all2 or but few and uninterpretable ones1 like the ,celtic4 ,and that each has developed some mood1 some indefinable inward color--which we perceive and inherit4 ,each different3 you cannot mistake the ,chinese or the ,celtic color for the ,greek2 thought it might be hard to define your perception of either1 or of their difference4 ,it would be hard to say1 for instance1 that this one was crimson1 the other blue2 not quite so hard to say that this one affects us as crimson does1 that other as blue does4 ,and yet we can see1 ,i think1 that by chasing our impressions to their source1 there might be some way of presenting them in symbolic form4 ,there might be some way of reducing what we feel from the ,greeks1 or ,chinese1 or ,celts1 into a word1 a sentence2 of writing it down even in a single hieroglyph1 of which the elements would be such as should convey to something in us behind the intellect just the indefinable feeling either of these people give us4 ,in the ,chinese writing1 with all its difficulty1 there is something superior to our alphabets3 an element that appeals to the soul directly1 or to the imagination directly1 ,i think4 ,suppose you found a ,chinese ideogram--of course there is no such a one--to express the forgotten ,celtic culture2 and it proved in analysis1 to be composed of the signs for twilight1 wind1 and pine trees2 or wind1 night1 and wild waters2 with certain other elements which not the brain-mind1 but the creative soul1 would have to supply4 ,in such a symbol there would be an appeal to the imagination--that great ,wizard within us--to rise up and supply us with quantities of knowledge left unsaid4 ,indeed1 ,i am but trying to illustrate an idea1 possibilities4444 ,i think there is a power within the human soul to trace back all growths1 the most profuse and complex1 to the simple seed from which they sprung2 or1 just as a single rose or pansy bloom is the resultant1 the expression1 of the interaction and interplay of innumerable forces--so the innumerable forces whose interaction makes the history of one race1 one culture1 could find their ultimate expression in a symbol as simple as a pansy or rose bloom--color1 form and fragrance4 ,so each national great age would be a flower evolved in the garden of the eternal2 and once evolved1 once bloomed1 it should never pass away2 the actual blossom withers and falls2 but the color1 the form1 the fragrance1--these remain in the world of causes4 ,and just as you might press a flower in an album1 or make a painting of it1 and preserve its scent by chemical distillation or what not--and thereby preserve the whole story of all the forces that went to the production of that bloom--and they are1 ,i suppose1 in number beyond human computation--so you might express the history of a race in a symbol as simple as a bloom444 ,and that there is a power1 an unfolding faculty1 in the soul1 which1 seeing such a symbol1 could unravel from it1 by meditation1 the whole achievement of the race2 its whole history1 down to details2 yes1 even down to the lives of every soul that incarnated in it3 their personal lives1 with all successes1 failures1 attempts1 everything4 ,because1 for example1 the light which comes down to us as that of ancient ,greece is the resultant1 the remainder of all the forces in all the lives of all individual ,greeks1 as these were played on by the conditions of place and time4 ,time3--at such and such a period1 the ,mood of the ,oversoul is such and such4 ,place3--the temporal mood of the ,oversoul1 playing through that particular facet of the dodecahedron1 which is ,greece4 ,the combinations and interplay of these two1 plus the energies for good or evil of the souls there incarnate1 give as their resultant the whole life of the race4 ,there is perhaps a high ,algebra of the ,soul by which1 if we understood its laws1 we could revive the history of any past epoch1 discover its thought and modes of living1 as we discover the value of the unknown factor in an equation4 ,pythagoras must have his pupils understand music and geometry2 and by music he intended1 all the arts1 every department of life that came under the sway of the ,nine ,muses4 ,why8--,because1 as he taught1 ,god is ,poet and ,geometer4 ,chaos is only on the outer rim of existence2 as you get nearer the heart of thing1 order and rhythm1 geometry and poetry1 are more and more found4 ,chaos is only in our own chaotic minds and perceptions3 train these aright1 and you shall hear the music of the spheres1 perceive the reign of everlasting ,law4 ,these impulses from the ,oversoul1 that create the great epochs1 raising one race after another1 have perfect rhythm and rhyme4 ,god sits harping in the ,cycle of ,infinity1 and human history is the far faint echo of the tune he plays4 ,why can we not listen1 till we hear and apprehend the tune8 ,or ,history is the sound heard from far1 of the marching hosts of angels and archangels2 the cyclic tread of their battalions2 the thrill and rumble and splendor of their drums and fifes3--why should we not listen till the whole order of their cohorts and squadrons is revealed8--,i mean to suggest that there are laws1 undiscovered1 but discoverable--discoverable from the fragments of history we possess--by knowing which we might gain knowledge1 even without further material discoveries1 of the lost history of man4 ,without moving from ,point ,loma1 or digging up anything more important that hard-pan1 we may yet make the most important finds1 and throw floods of light on the whole dark problem of the past4 ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky gave us the clews2 we owe it to her to use them4 ,now ,i want to suggest a few ideas along these lines that may throw light on ancient ,europe2 of which orthodox history tells us of nothing but the few centuries of ,greece and ,rome4 ,as if the people of three thousand years hence should know1 of the history of ,christendom1 only that of ,italy from ,garibaldi onward1 and that of ,greece beginning1 say1 at the ,second ,balkan ,war4 ,that is the position we are in with regard to old ,europe4 ,very like ,spain1 ,france1 ,britain1 ,germany and ,scandinavia played as great parts in the millennia ,b4,c41 as they have done in the times we know about4 ,all analogy from the other seats of civilization is for it2 all racial memories and traditions--tradition is racial memory--are for it2 and ,i venture to say1 all reason and common sense are for it too4 ,now ,i have to remind you of certain conclusions worked out in an article ',cyclic ,law in ,history1' which appeared some time back in ,the ,theosophical ,path3--that there are1 for example1 three great centers of historical activity in the ,old ,world3 ,china and her surroundings2 ,west ,asia and ,egypt2 ,europe4 ,perhaps these are major facets of the dodecahedron4 ,perhaps again1 were the facts in our knowledge not so desperately incomplete1 we should find1 as in the notes and colors1 a set of octaves3 that each of these centers was a complete octave1 and each phase or nation a note4 ,do you see where these leads8 ,supposing the note ,china is struck in the ,far ,eastern ,octave2 would there not be a vibration of some corresponding note in the octave ,europe8 ,supposing the ,octave ,west ,asia were under the fingers of the ,great ,player1 would not the corresponding note in ,europe vibrate8 ,now let us look at history4 ,right on the eastern rim of the ,old ,world is the ,chino-,japanese field of civilization4 ,it has been1 until lately1 under pralaya1 in a night or inactive period of its existence1 for something over six centuries3 a beautiful pralaya in the case of ,japan2 a rather ugly one1 recently1 in the case of ,china4 ,right on the western rim of the ,old ,world are the remnants of the once great ,celtic people4 ,europe at large has been very much in manvantara1 a day or waking period1 for a little over six hundred years4 ,yet of the four racial roots or stocks of ,europe1 the ,greco-,latin1 ,teutonic1 ,slavic1 and ,celtic1 the last-named alone has been under pralaya1 sound asleep1 during the whole of this time4 ,let me interject here the warning that it is no complete scheme that is to be offered2 only a few facts that suggest that such a scheme may exist1 could we find it4 ,before ,europe awoke to her present cycle of civilization and progress1 before the last quarter of the thirteenth century1 the ,chinese had been in manvantara1 very much awake1 for about fifteen hundred years4 ,when they went to sleep1 the ,celts did also4 ,i pass by with a mere note of recognition the two dragons1 the one on the ,chinese1 the other on the ,welsh flag2 just saying that national symbols are not chose haphazard1 but are an expression of inner things2 and proceed to give you the dates of all the important events in ,chinese and ,celtic1 chiefly ,welsh1 history during the last two thousand years4 ,in #aiaa the ,chinese threw off the ,manchu yoke and established a native republic4 ,in #aiaj the ,british ,government first recognized ,wales as a separate nationality1 when the heir to the throne was invested as ,prince of ,wales at ,carnarvon4 ,within a few years a bill was passed giving ,home ,rule to ,ireland2 and national parliaments at ,dublin and at ,cardiff are said to be among the likelihoods of the near future4 ,the eighteenth century1 for manvantara1 was a singularly dead time in ,europe2 but in ,china1 for pralaya1 it was a singularly living time1 being filled with the glorious reigns of the ,manchu emperors ,kanghu and ,kien ,lung4 ,in ,wales it saw the religious revival which put a stop to the utter ,anglicization of the country1 saved the language from rapid extinction1 and awakened for the first time for centuries a sort of national consciousness4 ,going back1 the first great emperor we come to in ,china before the ,manchu conquest1 was ,ming ,yunglo1 conqueror of half ,asia4 ,his contemporary in ,wales was ,owen ,glyndwr1 who succeeded in holding the country against the ,english for a number of years2 there had been no ,welsh history between ,glyndwr and the religious revival4 ,in #abfj or thereabouts the ,mongols completed the conquest of ,china1 and dealt her then flourishing civilization a blow from which it never really recovered4 ,about twenty years later the ,english completed the conquest of ,wales1 and dealt her highly promising literary culture a blow from which it is only now perhaps beginning to recover4 ,in the eleventh1 twelfth1 and thirteenth centuries the great ,sung artists of ,china were painting infinity or their square feet of silk3 painting ,natural ,magic as it has never been painted or revealed since4 ,in those same centuries the ,welsh bards were writing the ,natural ,magic of the ,mabinogion1 one of the chief ,european repositories of ,natural ,magic2 and filling a remarkable poetical literature with the same quality3--and that before the rest of ,europe had1 for the most part1 awakened to the spiritual impulses that lead to civilization4 ,in the seventh and eighth centuries1 when continental ,europe was in the dead vast and middle of pralaya1 ,chinese poetry1 under ,tang ,hsuan-tsong and his great predecessors1 was in its ,golden ,age--a ,golden ,age comparable to that of ,pericles in ,athens4 ,in the seventh and eighth centuries1 ,ireland was sending out scholars and thinkers as missionaries to all parts of benighted ,europe3 ,ireland in her golden age1 the one highly cultured country in ,christendom1 was producing a glorious prose and poetry in the many universities that starred that then by no means distressful island4 ,in #dbj1 ,china1 after a couple of centuries of anarchy1 began to re-establish her civilization on the banks of the ,yangtse4 ,in #daj1 the ,britons finally threw off the ,roman yoke1 and the first age of ,welsh poetry1 the epoch of ,arthur and ,taliesin1 which has been the light of romantic ,europe ever since1 began4 ,does it not seem as if that great ,far ,eastern note could not be struck without this little far western note vibrating in sympathy8 ,very faintly2 not in a manner to be heard clearly by the world2 because in historical times the ,celtic note has been as it were far up on the keyboard1 and never directly under the ,master-,musician's fingers4 ,and when you add to it all that this ,celtic note has come in the minds of literary critics rather to stand as the synonym for ,natural ,magic--you all know what is meant by that term2--and that now1 as we are discovering the old ,chinese poetry and painting1 we are finding that ,natural ,magic is really far more ,chinese than ,celtic--that where we ,celts have vibrated to it minorly1 the great ,chinese gave it out fully and grandly--does it not add to the piquancy of the 'coincidence8' ,now there is no particular reason for doubting the figures of ,chinese chronology as far back as #bcej ,b4,c4 ,our ,western authorities do doubt all before about #gej2 but it is hard to see why1 except that 'it is their nature to4' ,the ,chinese give the year #bcef as the date of the accession of the ,emperor ,yao1 first of the three canonized rulers who have been the patriarchs1 saints1 sages1 and examples for all ages since4 ,in that decade a manvantara of the race would seem to have begun1 which lasted through the dynasties of ,hia and ,shang1 and halfway through the ,chow1 ending about #hej4 ,during this period1 then1 ,i think presently we shall come to place the chief activities and civilization of the ,celts4 ,from #hej to #bdj--;all these figures are of course approximations3 there was pralaya in ,china2 on the other side of the world1 it was the period of ,celtic eruptions--and probably1 disruption4 ,while ,tsin ,shi ,hwangti1 from #bdf to #bac1 was establishing the modern ,chinese ,empire1 the ,gauls made their last incursion into ,italy4 ,the culmination of the age ,shi ,hwangti inaugurated came in the reign of ,han ,wuti1 traditionally the most glorious in the ,chines annals4 ,it lasted from #adj to #hf ,b4,c42 nor was there any decline under his successor1 who reigned until #fc4 ,in the middle of that time--the last decade of the second century--the ,cimbri1 allied with the ,teutones1 made their incursion down into ,spain4 ,opinion is divided as to whether this people was ,celtic or ,teutonic2 but probably the old view is the true one1 that the word is akin to ,cimerii1 ,crimea1 and ,cymry1 and that they were ,welshmen in their day4 ,when ,caesar was in ,gaul1 the people he conquered had much to say about their last great king4 ,diviciacos1 whose dominions included ,gaul and ,britain2 they looked back to his reign as a period of great splendor and national strength4 ,he lived1 they said1 about a hundred years before ,caesar's coming--or was contemporary with ,han ,wuti4 ,but the empire of the ,celtic ,kings was already far fallen1 before it was confined to ,gaul1 ,britain1 and perhaps ,ireland4 ,when first we see this people they were winning a name for fickleness of purpose3 making conquests and throwing them away2 which things are the marks of a race declining from a high eminence it had won of old through hard work and sound policy4 ,we shall come to see that personal or outward characteristics can never be posited as inherent in any race4 ,such things belong to ages and stages in the race's growth4 ,whatever you can say of ,englishmen1 ,frenchmen1 ,germans1 now1 has been totally untrue of them at some other period4 ,we think of the ,italians as passionate1 subtle of intellect1 above all things artistic and beauty-loving4 ,now look at them as they were three centuries ,b4,c43 plodding1 self- contained and self-mastered1 square-dealing and unsubtle1 above all things contemning beauty1 wholly inartistic4 ,but a race may retain the same traits for a very long time1 if it remains in a back-water1 and is unaffected by the currents of evolution4 ,so we may safely say of the ,celts that the fickleness for which they were famed in ,roman times was not a racial1 but a temporal or epochal defect4 ,they were not fickle when they held out 7in ,wales7 for eight centuries against the barbarian onslaughts which brought the rest of the ,roman empire down in two or three2 or when they resisted for two hundred years those ,normans who had conquered the ,anglo-,saxons in a decade4 ,this very quality1 in old ,welsh literature1 is more than once given as a characteristic of extreme age2 ,i am old1 bent double2 ,i am fickly rash4 says ,llywarch ,hen4 ,i think that gives the clew to the whole position4 ,the race was at the end of its manvantaric period2 the ,race ,soul had lost control of the forces that bound its organism together2 centrifugalism had taken the place of the centripetal impulse that marks the cycles of youth and growth4 ,it had eaten into individual character2 whence the tendency to fly off at tangents4 ,we see the same thing in any decadent people2 by which ,i mean1 any people at the end of one of its manvantaras1 and on the verge of a pralaya4 ,and remember that a pralaya1 like a night's rest or the ,devachanic sleep between two lives1 is simply a means for restoring strength and youth4 ,how great the ,celtic nations had been in their day1 and what settled and civilized centuries lay behind them1 one may gather from two not much noticed facts4 ,first3 ,caesar1 conqueror of the ,roman world and of ,pompey1 the greatest ,roman general of the day1 landed twice in ,britain1 and spent a few weeks there without accomplishing anything in particular4 ,but it was the central seat and last stronghold of the ,celts2 and his greatest triumph was accorded him for this feat2 and he was prouder of it than anything else he ever did4 ,he set it above his victories over ,pompey4 ,second3 the ,gauls1 in the first century ,b4,c41 were able to put in the field against him three million men3 not so far short of the number ,france has been able to put in the field in the recent war4 ,napoleon could hardly1 ,i suppose1 have raised such an army--in ,france4 ,caesar is said to have killed some five million ,gauls before he conquered them4 ,by ordinary computations1 that would argue a population of some thirty millions in the ,gaulish half of the kingdom of ,diviciacos a century after the latter's death2 and even if that computation is too high1 it leaves the fact irrefutable that there was a very large population2 and a large population means always a long and settled civilization4 ,diviciacos ruled only ,gaul and ,britain2 possible ,ireland as well2 he may have been a ,gaul1 a ,briton1 or an ,irishman2 very likely there was not much difference in those days4 ,it will be said ,i am leaving out of account much that recent scholarship has divulged2 ,i certainly am leaving out of account a great many of the theories of recent scholarship1 which for the most part make confusion worse confounded4 ,but we know that the lands held by the ,celts--let us boldly say1 with many of the most learned1 the ,celtic empire--was vastly larger in its prime than the ,british ,isles and ,france4 ,its eastern outpost was ,galatia in ,asia ,minor4 ,you may have read in ,the ,outlook some months ago an article by a learned ,serbian1 in which he claims that the ,jugo-,slavs of the ,balkans1 his countrymen1 are about half ,celtic2 the product of the fusion of ,slavic in-comers1 perhaps conquerors1 with an original ,celtic population4 ,bohemia was once the land of the ,celtic ,boii2 and we may take it as an axiom1 that no conquest1 no racial incursion1 ever succeeds in wiping out the conquered people2 unless there is such wide disparity1 racial and cultural1 as existed1 for example1 between the white settlers in ,america and the ,indians4 ,there are forces in human nature itself which make this absolute4 ,the conquerors may quite silence the conquered2 may treat them with infinite cruelty2 may blot out all their records and destroy the memory of their race2 but the blood of the conquered will go on flowing through all the generation of the children of the conquerors1 and even1 it seems probable1 tend ever more and more to be the prevalent element4 ,the ,celts1 then1 at one time or another1 have held the following lands3 ,britain and ,ireland1 of course2 ,gaul and ,spain2 ,switzerland and ,italy north of the ,po2 ,germany1 except perhaps some parts of ,prussia2 ,denmark probably1 which as you know was called the ,cimbric ,chersonese2 the ,austrian empire1 with the ,balkan ,peninsula north of ,macedonia1 ,epirus and ,thrace1 and much of southern ,russia and the lands bordering the ,black ,sea4 ,further back1 it seems probable that they and the ,italic people were one race2 whose name survives in that of the province of ,liguria1 and in the ,welsh name for ,england1 which is ,lloegr4 ,so that in the reign of ,diviciacos their empire had already shrunk to the meerest fragment of its former self4 ,it had broken and shrunk before we get the first historical glimpses of them2 before they sacked ,delphi in #bgi ,b4,c43 before their ambassadors made a treaty with ,alexander2 and replied to his question as to what they feared3 ,nothing except that the skies should fall4 ,before they sacked ,rome in #cij4 ,all these historic eruptions were the mere sporadic outburst of a race long past its prime and querulous with old age1 ,i think ,two thousand years of severe pralaya1 almost complete extinction1 utter insignificance and terrible karma awaited them2 and we only see them1 pardon the expression1 kicking up their heels in a final plunge as a preparation for that long silence4 ,some time back ,i discussed these historical questions1 particularly the correspondence between ,celtic and ,chinese dates1 with ,dr4 ,siren and ,professor ,fernholm2 and they pointed out to me a similar correspondence between the dates of ,scandinavian and ,west ,asian history4 ,i can remember but one example now3 ,gustavus ,vasa1 father of modern ,sweden1 founder of the present monarchy1 came to the throne in #aebc and died in #aefj4 ,the last great epoch of the ,west ,asian ,cycle coincides1 in the west1 and reign of ,suleyman the ,magnificent in ,turkey1 from #aebj to #aeff4 ,at its eastern extremity1 ,babar founded the ,mogul ,empire in ,india in #aebf2 he reigned until #aeef4 ,on the death of ,aurangzeb in #agjg1 the ,moguls ceased to be a great power2 the ,battle of ,pultowa1 in #agji1 put an end to ,sweden's military greatness4 ,it is interesting to compare the earliest ,celtic literature we have1 with the earliest literature of the race which was to be the main instrument of ,celtic bad karma in historical times--the ,teutons4 ,here1 as usual1 common impressions are false4 ,it is the latter1 the ,teutonic1 that is in the minor key1 and full of wistful sadness4 ,there is an earnestness about it3 a recognition of1 and rather mournful acquiescence in1 the mightiness of ,fate1 which is imagined almost always adverse4 ,i quote these lines from ,william ,morris1 who1 a ,celt himself by mere blood and race1 lived in and interpreted the old ,teutonic spirit as no other ,english writer has attempted to do1 mush less succeeded in doing3 he is the one ,teuton of ,english literature4 ,he speaks of the haunting melancholy of the northern races--the ,thought of the ,otherwhere that ,waileth weirdly along through all music and song ,from a ,teuton's voice or string3 444 ,withal it was a brave melancholy that possessed them2 they were equal to great deeds1 and not easily to be discouraged2 they could make merry1 too2 but in the midst of their merriment1 they could not forget grim and hostile ,fate3-- ,there dwelt men merry-hearted and in hope exceeding great1 ,met the good days and the evil as they went the ways of fate4 ,it is literature that reveals the heart of a people who had suffered long1 and learnt from their suffering the lessons of patience1 humility1 continuity of effort3 those qualities which enable them1 in their coming manvantaric period1 to dominate large portions of the world4 ,but when we turn to the ,celtic remains1 the picture we find is altogether different4 ,their literature tells of a people1 in the ,biblical phrase1 with a proud look and a high stomach4 ,it is full of flashing colors1 gaiety1 titanic pride4 ,there was no grayness1 no mournful twilight hue on the horizon of their mind2 their ',other-,world' was only more dawn-lit1 more noon-illumined1 than this one2 ,ireland of the living was sun-bright and sparkling and glorious2 but the ',great ,plain' of the dead was far more sun-bright and sparkling than ,ireland4 ,it is the literature of a people accustomed to victory and predominance4 ,when they began to meet defeat they by no means acquiesced in it4 ,they regarded adverse fate1 not with reverence1 but with contempt4 ,they saw in sorrow no friend and instructress of the human soul2 were at pains to learn no lesson from her2 instead1 they pitted what was their pride1 but what they would have called the glory of their own souls1 against her2 they made no terms1 asked no truce2 but went on believing the human--or perhaps ,i should say the ,celtic--soul more glorious than fate1 stronger to endure and defy than she to humiliate and torment4 ,in many sense it was a fatal attitude1 and they reaped the misery of it2 but they gained some wealth for the human spirit from it too4 ,the aged ,oisin has returned from ,fairyland to find the old glorious order in ,ireland fallen and passed during the three centuries of his absence4 ,high ,paganism has gone1 and a religion meek1 inglorious1 and ,unceltic has taken its mission thereto3 tells him the gods are conquered and dead1 and that the omnipotent ,god of the ,christians reigns alone now4--,i would thy ,god were set on yonder hill to fight with my son ,oscar6 replies ,oisin4 ,patrick paints for him the hell to which he is destined unless he accepts ,christianity2 and ,oisin answers3 ,put the staff in my hands6 for ,i go to the ,fenians1 thou cleric1 to chant ,the warsongs that roused them of old2 they will rise1 making clouds with their breath4 ,innumerable1 singing1 exultant2 and hell underneath them shall pant1 ,and demons be broken in pieces1 and trampled beneath them in death4 ,no1 says ,patrick2 none war on the masters of hell1 who could break up the world in their rage2 and bids him weep and kneel in prayer for his lost soul4 ,but that will not do for the old ,celtic warrior bard2 no tame heaven for him4 ,he will go to hell2 he will not surrender the pride and glory of his soul to the mere meanness of fate4 ,he will ,go to ,caolte and ,conan1 and ,bran1 ,sgeolan1 ,lomair ,and dwell in the house of the ,fenians1 be they in flames or at feast4 ,so with ,llywarch ,hen1 ,prince of ,cumberland1 in his old age and desolation4 ,his kingdom has been conquered2 he is in exile in ,wales2 his four and twenty sons1 wearers of golden torques1 proud rulers of princes1 have been slain2 he is considerably over a hundred years old1 and homeless1 and sick2 but no whit of his pride is gone4 ,he has learnt no lesson from life excepts this ,one3 that fate and ,karma and sorrow are not so proud1 not so skillful to persecute1 as the human soul is capable of bitter resentful endurance4 ,he is titanically angry with destiny2 but never meek or acquiescent4 ,then if you look at their laws of war1 you come to know very well how this people came to be almost blotted out4 ,if they had a true spiritual purpose1 instead of mere personal pride1 ,i should say the world would be ,celtic-speaking and ,celtic-governed now4 ,yet still their reliance was all on what we must call spiritual qualities4 ,the first notice we get in classical literature of ,celts and ,teutons--,i think from ,strabo--is this3 ,the ,celts fight for glory1 the ,teutons for plunder4 ,instead of plunder1 let us say material advantage2 they knew why they were fighting1 and went to get it4 ,but the ,celtic military laws--,don ,quixote in a fit of extravagance framed them6 ,there must be no defensive armor2 the warrior must go bare-breasted into battle4 ,there are a thousand things he must fear more than defeat or death--all that would make the glory of his soul seem less to him4 ,he must make fighting his business1 because in his folly it seemed to him that in it he could best nourish that glory2 not for what material ends he could gain4 ,pitted against a people--with a definite policy1 he was bound to lose in the long run4 ,but still he endowed the human spirit with a certain wealth2 still his folly had been a true spiritual wisdom at one time4 ,the ,french at ,fontenoy1 who cried to their ,english enemies1 when both were about to open fire3 ,apres vous1 messieurs6 were simply practicing the principles of their ,gaulish forefathers2 the thrill of honor1 of ',pundonor' as the ,spaniard says1 was much more in their eyes than the chance of victory4 ,now1 in what condition does a race gain such qualities8 ,not in sorrow2 not in defeat1 political dependence or humiliation4 ,the virtues which these teach are of an opposite kind2 they are what we may call the plebeian virtues which lead to success4 ,but the others1 the old ,celtic qualities1 are essentially patrician4 ,you find them in the ,turks2 accustomed to sway subject races1 and utterly ruthless in their dealings with them2 but famed as clean and chivalrous fighters in a war with foreign peoples4 ,see how the ,samurai1 the patricians of never yet defeated ,japan1 developed them4 ,they are the qualities the ,law teaches us through centuries of domination and aristocratic life4 ,they are developed in a race accustomed to rule other races2 a race that does not engage in commerce2 in an aristocratic race1 or in an aristocratic caste within a race4 ,here is the point3 the ,law designs periods of ascendency for each people in its turn1 that it may acquire these qualities2 and it appoints for each people in its turn ,periods of subordination1 poverty and sorrow1 that it may develop the opposite qualities of patience1 humility1 and orderly effort4 ,would it not appear then1 that in those first centuries ,b4 ,c4 when ,celts and ,teutons were emerging into historical notice1 the ,teutons were coming out of a long period of subordination1 in which they had learnt strength--the ,celts out of a long period of ascendency1 in which they had learnt other things8 ,the ,teuton1 fresh from his pralayic sleep1 was unconquerable by ,rome4 ,the ,celt1 old1 and intoxicated with the triumphs of a long manvantara1 could not repel ,roman persistence and order4 ,rome4 too1 was rising1 or in her prime2 had patience1 and followed her material plans every inch of the way to success4 ,where she conquered1 she imposed her rule4 ,but whatever material plan were set before the ,celt1 some spiritual red-herring1 some notion in his mind1 was sure to sidetrack him before he had come half way to its accomplishment4 ,he had enough of empire-building2 and thirsted only after dreams4 ,brennus turned from a burnt ,rome1 his pride satisfied4 ,vercingetorix1 decked in all his gold1 rode seven times--was it seven times8--round the camp of ,caesar3 defeat had come to him2 death was coming2 but he would bathe his soul in a little pomp and glory first4 ,whether you threw your sword in the scales1 or surrendered to infamous ,caesar1 the main thing was that you should kindle the pride in your eye1 and puff up the highness of your stomach4 4 4 4 ,so the practical ,roman despised him1 and presently conquered him4 ,here is another curious fact3 the greater number1 if not all1 of the words in the ,teutonic languages denoting social order and the machinery of government1 are of ,celtic derivation4 ,words such as ,reich and ,amt1 to give two examples ,i happen to remember out of a list quoted by ,mr4 ,t4 ,w4 ,rollestone in one of his books4 ,and now ,i think we have material before us wherewith to reconstruct a sketch or plan of ancient ,european history4 ,let me remind you again that our object is simply the discovery of ,laws4 ,that1 in the eyes of the ,law1 there are no most favored nations4 ,that there are no such things as permanent racial characteristics2 but that each race adopts the characteristics appropriate to its stage of growth4 ,it is a case of the pendulum swing1 of ebb and flow4 ,for two thousand years the ,teutons have been pressing on and1 dominating the ,celts4 ,they started at the beginning of that time with the plebeian qualities--and have evolved1 generally speaking1 a large measure of the patrician qualities4 ,the ,celts1 meanwhile1 have been pushed to the extremities of the world2 their history has been a long record of disasters4 ,but in the preceding period the case was just the reverse4 ,then the ,celts held the empire4 ,they ruled over large ,teutonic populations4 ,holding all the machinery of government in their hands1 they imposed on the languages of their ,teuton subjects the words concerned with that machinery2 just as in ,welsh now our words of that kind are mostly straight from the ,english4 ,it does not follow that there was any sudden rising of ,teutons against dominant ,celts2 more probably the former grew gradually stronger as the latter grew gradually weaker1 until the forces were equalized4 ,we find the ,cimbri and ,teutones allied on equal terms against ,rome4 ,according to an old ,welsh history1 the ,brut ,tyssilio1 there were ,anglo-,saxons in ,britain before ,caesar's invasion2 invited there by the ,celts1 and living in peace under the ,celtic kings4 ,to quote the ,brut ,tyssilio a short time ago would have been to ensure being scoffed at on all sides2 but recently professor ,flinders ,petrie has vindicated it as against both the ,anglo-,saxon ,chronicle and ,caesar himself4 ,english ,teutonic was first spoken in ,britain probably1 some two or three centuries ,b4,c42 and it survived there1 probably1 in remote places1 through the whole of the ,roman occupation2 then1 under the influence of the rising star of the ,teutons1 and reinforced by new incursions from the ,continent1 finally extinguished the ,latin of the roman province1 and drove ,celtic into the west4 ,but go back from those first centuries ,b4,c4 and you come at last to a time when the ,celtic star was right at the zenith1 the ,teutonic very low4 ,free ,teutons you should hardly have found except in ,scandinavia2 probably only in southern ,sweden3 for further north1 and in most of ,norway1 you soon came to ice and the ,lapps and terra incognita4 ,and even ,sweden may have been under ,celtic influence--for the ,celtic words survive there --but hardly so as to affect racial individuality2 just as ,wales and ,ireland are under ,english rule now1 yet retain their ,celtic individuality4 ,and then go back a few more thousand years again1 and you would probably find the case again reversed2 and ,teutons lording it over ,celts1 and our present conditions restored4 ,it is by suffering these poles of experience1 now pride and domination1 now humiliation and adversity1 that the races of mankind learn4 ,europe is not a new sort of continent4 ,man1 says one of the ,teachers1 has been much what he is any time these million years4 ,history has been much what it is now1 ebbing and flowing4 ,knowledge1 geographical and other1 has receded1 and again expanded4 ,europe has been the seat of empires and civilizations1 all ,europe1 probably1 for not so far short of a million years2 there has been plenty of time for it to multiply terrible karma-- which takes the occasion to expend itself sometimes--as now4 ,i mistrust the theory of recent ,aryan in-pourings from ,asia4 ,the ,huns came in when the ,chinese drove them2 and the ,turks and ,mongols have come in since2 but there is nothing to show that the ,slavs1 for example1 when they first appear in history1 had come in from beyond the ,urals and the ,caspian4 ,slavs and ,greco- ,latins1 ,teutons and ,celts1 ,i think they were probably in ,europe any time these many hundreds of thousands of years4 ,or rather1 ,i think there were ,europeans--,indo-,europeans1 ,aryans1 call them what you will--where they are now at any time during such a period4 ,because race is a thing that will not bear close investigation4 ,it is a phase2 an illusion2 a temporary appearance taken on by sections of humanity4 ,there is nothing in it to fight about or get the least hot over4 ,it is a camouflage2 there you have the very word for it4 ,what we call ,celts and ,teutons are simply portions of the one race1 humanity1 camouflaged up upon their different patterns4 ,so far as flood and ultimate physical heredity are concerned1 ,i doubt there is sixpenny-worth of difference between any two of the lot4 ,oi mesilf1 said ,mr4 ,dooley1 speaking as a good ,american citizen1 am the thruest and purest ,anglo-,saxon that iver came out of ,anglo-,saxony4 ,we call ourselves ,anglo-,saxons because we speak ,english 7a language more than half ,latin72 when in reality we are probably ,jews1 ,turks1 infidels or heretics1 if all were known4 ,what is a ,spaniard8 ,a ,latin1 you answer pat4 ,yes2 he speaks a ,latin-derived language2 and has certain qualities of temperament which seem to mark him as more akin to the ,french and ,italians1 than to those whom we1 just as wisely1 dub ',teutonic' or ',slavic4' ,but in fact he may have in his veins not a drop of blood that is not ,celtic1 or not a drop that is not ,teutonic1 or ,moorish1 or ,roman1 or ,phoenician1 or ,iberian1 or ,god knows what4 ,suppose you have four laya centers in ,europe3 four ,foci through which psychic impulses from the ,oversoul pour through into this world4 ,a ,mediterranean point1 perhaps in ,italy2 a ,teutonic point in ,sweden2 a ,celtic point in ,wales-,ireland 7formerly a single island1 before ,england rose out of the sea72 and a ,slavic point1 probably in ,russia4 ,the moment comes for such and such a 'race' to expand2 the ,mediterranean1 for example4 ,the ,italian laya center1 ,rome1 quickens into life4 ,rome conquers ,italy1 ,gaul1 ,spain1 ,britain1 the ,east2 becomes ,caput ,mundi4 ,countries that shortly before were ,celtic in blood1 become1 through no material change in that blood1 ,latin2 by language1 and1 as we say1 by race4 ,the moment comes for a ,teutonic expansion4 ,the laya center in ,sweden quickens2 there is a ,swedish or ,gothic invasion of ,celtic lands south of the ,baltic2 the continental ,teutons presently are freed4 ,it is the expansion of a spirit1 of a psychic something4 ,people that were before ,celts 7just as ,mr4 ,dooley is an ,anglo-,saxon7 become somehow ,teutons4 ,the language expands1 and carries a tradition with it4 ,head measurements show that neither ,southern ,germany nor ,england differs very much towards ,teutonicism from the ,mediterranean type2 yet the one is thoroughly ,teutonic1 the other ,anglo-,saxon4 ,sometimes the blood may be changed materially2 often1 ,i suppose1 it is changed to some extent2 but the main change takes place in the language and tradition2 sometimes in tradition alone4 ,there was a minor ,celtic quickening in the twelfth century ,a4 ,d42 then ,wales was in a fervor of national life4 ,she had not the resources1 or perhaps the will1 for outside conquest4 ,but her ,authurian legend went forth1 and drove ,beowulf and ,child ,horn out of the memory of the ,english1 ,charlemagne out of the memory of the ,french2 invaded ,germany1 ,italy1 even ,spain3 absolutely installed ,welsh ,king ,arthur as the national hero of the people his people were fighting2 and infused chivalry with a certain uplift and mysticism through-out western ,europe4 ,or again1 in the ,cinquecento and earlier1 the ,italian center quickened2 and learning and culture flowed up from ,italy through ,france and ,england2 and these countries1 with ,spain1 become the leaders in power and civilization4 ,england since that ,teutonic expansion which made her ,english was spent1 has grown less and less ,teutonic1 more and more ,latin2 the ,italian impulse of the ,renaissance drove her far along that path4 ,in the middle of the eleventh century1 her language was purely ,teutonic2 you could count on the fingers of your hand the words derived from ,latin or ,celtic4 ,and now8 ,sixty percent of all ,english words are ,latin4 ,at the beginning of the fifth century1 after nearly three hundred years of ,roman occupation1 one can hardly doubt that ,latin was the language of what is now ,england4 ,celtic1 even then ,i imagine1 was mainly to be heard among the mountains4 ,see how that situation is slowly coming back4 ,and the tendency is all in the same direction4 ,you have taken1 indeed1 a good few words from ,dutch2 and some two dozen from ,german1 in all these centuries2 but a ,latin word has only to knock1 to be admitted and made welcome4 ,teachers of composition must sweat blood and tears for it1 alas1 to get their pupils to write ,english and shun ,latin4 ,in a thousand years' time1 will ,english be as much a ,latin language as ,french is8 ,quite likely4 ,the ,saxon words grow obsolete2 ,french ones come pouring in4 ,and ,americans are even more prone to ,latinisms than ,englishmen are3 they 'locate' at such and such a place1 where an ,english man would just go and live there4 ,before ,latin1 ,celtic was the language of ,britain4 ,finally1 says ,w4,q4 ,judge1 ,sanskrit will become the universal language4 ,that would mean simply that the ,fifth ,root ,race will swing back slowly through all the linguistic changes that it has known in the past1 till it reaches its primitive language condition4 ,then the descendants of ,latins1 ,slavs1 ,celts1 and ,teutons will proudly boast their unadulterated ,aryan-,sanscrit heredity1 and exult over their racial superiority to those barbarous ,teutons1 ,celts1 ,slavs1 and ,latins of old1 of whom their histories will lie profusely4 ,,ii4 ,homer ,when the ,law designs to get tremendous things out of a race of men1 it goes to work this way and that1 making straight the road for an inrush of important and awakened souls4 ,having in mind to get from ,greece a startling harvest presently1 it called one ,homer1 surnamed ,maeonides1 into incarnation1 and endowed him with high poetic genius4 ,or he had in many past lives so endowed himself2 and therefore the ,law called him in4 ,this evening ,i shall work up to him1 and try to tell you a few things about him1 some of which you may know already1 but some of which may be new to you4 ,what we may call a ,european manvantara or major cycle of activity--the one that preceded this present one--should have begun about #hgj ,b4 ,c4 ,its first age of splendor1 of which we know anything1 began in ,greece about #cij years afterwards2 we may conveniently take #dgh1 the year ,athens attained the hegemony1 as the date of its inception4 ,our present ,european manvantara began while ,frederick ,,ii was forcing a road for civilization up from the ,moslem countries through ,italy2 we may take #abdj as a central and convenient date4 ,the first #cij years of it--from #abdj to #afcb--saw ,dante and all the glories of the ,cinquecento in ,italy2 ,camoens and the era of the great navigators in ,portugal2 ,cervantes and his age in ,spain2 ,elizabeth and ,shakespeare in ,england4 ,that will suggest to us that the ,periclean was not the first age of splendor in ,europe in that former manvantara2 it will suggest how much we may have lost through the loss of all records of cultural effort in northern and western ,europe during the four centuries that preceded ,pericles4 ,of course we cannot certainly say that there were such ages of splendor4 ,but we shall see presently that during every century since ,pericles--during the whole historical period--there has been an age of splendor somewhere2 and that these have followed each other with such regularity1 upon such a definite geographical and chronological plan1 that unless we accept the outworn conclusion that at a certain time--about #ejj ,b4 ,c4--the nature of man and the laws of nature and history underwent radical change1 we shall have to believe that the same thing had been going on--the recurrence of ages of splendor--back into the unknown night of time4 ,and that geographical and chronological plan will show us that such ages were going on in unknown ,europe during the period we are speaking of4 ,in the manvantara #bihj to #adhj ,b4,c41 did the ,western ,laya ,center play the part in ,europe1 that the ,southern one did in the manvantara #hgj ,b4,c4 to #fcj ,a4,d48 ,was the ,celtic ,empire then1 what the roman ,empire became in the later time8 ,if so1 their history after the pralaya #adhj to #hgj may have been akin to that of the ,latin1 in this present cycle2 no longer a united empire1 they may have achieved something comparable to the achievements of ,france1 ,spain1 and ,italy in the later ,middle ,ages4 ,at least we hear the rumblings of their marches and the far shoutings of their aimless victories until within a century or two of the ,christian era4 ,then1 what was ,italy like in the heyday of the ,etruscans1 or under the ,roman kings8 ,the fall of ,tarquin--an ,etruscan--was much more epochal1 much more disastrous1 than ,livy guessed4 ,there were more than seven kings of ,rome2 and their era was longer than from #gec to #gaf2 and ,rome--or perhaps the ,etruscan state of which it formed a part--was a much greater power then1 than for several centuries after their fall4 ,the great works they left are an indication4 ,but only the vaguest traditions of that time came down to ,livy4 ,the ,celts sacked ,rome in #cij ,b4,c41 and all the records of the past were lost2 years of confusion followed2 and a century and a half and more before ,roman history began to be written by ,ennius in his epic ,annales4 ,it was a break in history and blotting out of the past2 such as happened in ,china in #bad ,b4,c41 when the ancient literature was burnt4 ,such things take place under the ,law4 ,race-memory may not go back beyond a certain time2 there is a law in ,nature that keeps ancient history esoteric4 ,as we go forward1 the horizon behind follows us4 ,in the ages of materialism and the low places of racial consciousness1 that horizon probably lies near to us2 as you see least far on a level plain4 ,but as we draw nearer to esotericism1 and attain elevations nearer the spirit1 it may recede2 as the higher you stand1 the farther you see4 ,not so long ago1 the world was but six thousand years old in ,european estimation4 ,but ever since ,theosophy has been making its fight to spiritualize human consciousness1 pari passu the horizon of the past has been pushed back by new and new discoveries4 ,what comes down to us from old ,europe between its waking and the age of ,pericles8 ,some poetry1 legends1 and unimportant history from ,greece2 some legends from ,rome2 the spirit or substance of the ,norse sagas2 the spirit or substance of the ,welsh ,mabinogi and the ,arthurian atmosphere2 and of the ,irish tales of the ,red ,branch and ,fenian cycles4 ,the actual tales as we get them were no doubt retold in much later times2 and it is these late recensions that we have4 ,what will remain of ,england in the memory of three or four thousand years hence8 ,unless this ,theosophical ,movement shall have lifted human standards to the point where that which has hitherto been esoteric may safely be kept public1 this much3--an echo only of what ,england has produced of eternal truth2--something from ,shakespeare2 something from ,milton2 and as much else in prose and poetry from the rest4 ,but all the literature of this and all past ages is and will then still be in being2 in the hidden libraries of the ,guardians of ,esoteric ,science1 from which they loose fragments and hints on the outer world as the occasion cyclically recurs1 and as their wisdom directs4 ,how do they loose such fragments of old inspiration8 ,it may be by putting some manuscript in the way of discovery2 it may be by raising up some man of genius who can read the old records on inner planes1 and reproduce in epic or drama something of a long past splendor to kindle the minds of men anew4 ,in that way ,greece was kindled4 ,troy fell1 says ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky1 nearly five thousand years ago4 ,now you will note that a ,european manvantara began in #bihj ,b4 ,c42 which is very nearly five thousand years ago4 ,and that this present ,european manvantara or major cycle was lit up from a ,west ,asian ,cycle2 from the ,moors in ,spain2 from ,egypt through ,sicily and ,italy2 and1 in its greatest splendor2 when ,constantinople fell1 and refugees therefrom came to light the ,cinquecento in ,italy4 ,now ,constantinople is no great way from ,troy2 and1 by tradition1 refugees came to ,italy from ,troy1 once4 ,was it they in part1 who lit up that ancient ,european cycle of from #bihj to #adhj ,b4 ,c48 ,in the ,homeric poems a somewhat vague tradition seems to come down of the achievements of one of the ,european peoples in that ancient cycle4 ,sometime then ,greece had her last ,pre-periclean age of greatness4 ,what form it took1 the details of it1 were probably as much lost to the historic ,greeks as the details of the ,celtic ,age are to us4 ,but ,homer caught an echo and preserved the atmosphere of it4 ,as the ,celtic ,age bequeaths to us1 in the ,irish and ,welsh stories1 a sense of style--which thing is the impress of the human spirit triumphant over all hindrances to its expression2--so that long past period bequeathed through ,homer a sense of style to the later ,greeks4 ,it rings majestically through his lines4 ,his history is perhaps not actual history in any recognizable shape4 ,legends of a long lost glory drifted down to a poet of mightiest genius2 and he embodied them1 amplified them1 told his message through them2 perhaps reinvented half of them4 ,even so ,geoffrey of ,monmouth 7without genius1 however7 did with the rumors that came down to him anent the ancient story of his own people2 and ,spenser followed him in the ,faery ,queen1 ,malory in his book1 and ,tennyson in the ,idylls of the ,king4 ,even in that last1 from the one poem ,morte ,d',arthur we should get a sense of the old stylish magnificence of the ,celtic epoch2 for the sake of a score of lines in it1 we can forgive ,tennyson the rest of the ,idylls4 ,but ,tennyson was no ,celt himself2 only1 like ,spenser and ,malory1 an anglicizer of things ,celtic4 ,how much more of the true spirit would have come down to ,homer1 a ,greek of genius1 writing of traditional ,greek glory1 and thrilled with racial uplift4 ,where did he live8 ,oh1 ,goodness knows6 ,when8 ,goodness knows again4 7,though we others may guess a little1 ,i hope47 ,we have ,herodotus for it1 that ,homer lived about four hundred years before his own time2 that is to say1 to give a date1 in #hej2 and ,i like the figure well2 for if ,dante came in as soon as possible after the opening of this present manvantara1 why not ,homer as soon as possible after the opening of the last one8 ,at such times great souls do come in2 or a little before or a little after2 because they have a work of preparation to do2 and between ,dante and ,homer there is much parallelism in aims and aspirations3 what the one sought to do for ,italy1 the other sought to do for ,greece4 ,but this is to treat ,homer as if he had been one real man2 whereas everybody knows 'it has been proved' 7a7 that there was no such person2 7b7 that there were dozens of him2 7c7 that black is white1 man an ape1 and the soul a fiction4 ,admitted4 ,a school of critics has cleaned poor old blind ,maeonides up very tidily1 and left not a vestige of him on ,god's earth--just as they have1 or their like have1 cleaned up the ,human ,soul4 ,but there is another school1 who have preserved for him some shreds at least of identity4 ,briefly put1 you can 'prove up what may be classed as brain-mind evidence--grammar1 microscopic examination of text and forms and so on--that ,homer is a mere airy myth2 but to do so you must be totally oblivious of the spiritual facts of style and poetry4 ,take these into account1 and he rises with wonderful individuality from the grave and nothingness into which you have relegated him4 ,the ,illiad does not read like a single poem2 there are incompatibilities between its parts4 ,on the other hand1 there is1 generally speaking1 the impress of a single creative genius4 ,one master made the ,homeric style4 ,the ,iliad1 as we know it1 may contain passages not his2 but--he wrote the ,iliad4 ,what does not follow is1 that he ever sat down and said3 ,now let us write an epic4 ,conditions would be against it4 ,a wandering minstrel makes ballads1 not epics2 for him ,poe's law applies3 that is a poem which can be read or recited at a single sitting4 ,the unity of the ,iliad is one not of structure1 but of spirit2 and the chances are that the complete works of any great poet will be a unity of spirit4 ,why should we not suppose that in the course of a long life a great poet--whose name may not have been ,homer--that may have been only what he was called--his real name may have been 7if the critics will have it so7 the ,greek for ,smith1 or ,jones1 or ,brown1 or ,robinson--but he was called ,homer anyhow--why should we not suppose that he1 filled and fascinated always with one great traditionary subject1 wrote now one incident as a complete poem2 ten years later another incident2 and again1 after an interval1 another8 ,each time with the intention to make a complete and separate poem2 each time going to it influenced by the natural changes of his mood2 now preoccupied with one hero or god1 now with another4 ,the ,tennyson in his twenties1 who wrote the fairylike ,lady of ,shalott1 was a very different man in mood and outlook from the ,mid-,victorian ,tennyson who wrote the execrable ,merlin and ,vivien2 but both were possessed with the ,arthurian legend4 ,at thirty and at fifty you may easily take different views of the same men and incidents4 ,the ,iliad1 ,i suggest1 may be explained as the imperfect fusion of many poems and many moods and periods of life of a single poet4 ,it was not until the time of ,pisistratus1 remember1 that it was edited into a single epic4 ,now these many poems1 before ,pisistratus took them in hand1 had been in the keeping for perhaps three centuries of wandering minstrels--,rhapsodoi1 ,aoidoi1 ,citharaedi and ,homeridae1 as they were called--who drifted about the ,isles of ,greece and ,asiatic mainland during the long period of ,greek insignificance and unculture4 ,the first three orders were doubtless in existence long before ,homer was born2 they were the bards1 trouveurs and minnesingers of their time2 their like are the instruments of culture in any race during its pralayas4 ,so you find the professional story-tellers in the ,east today4 ,but the ,homeridae may well have been--as ,de ,quincey suggests--an order specially trained in the chanting of ,homeric poems2 perhaps a single school founded in some single island by or for the sake of ,homer4 ,we hear that ,lycurgus was the first who brought ,homer--the works1 not the man--into continental ,greece2 importing them from ,crete4 ,that means1 probably1 that he induced ,homeridae to settle in ,sparta4 ,european continental ,greece would in any case have been much behind the rest of the ,greek world in culture2 because furthest from and the least in touch with ,west ,asian civilization4 ,crete was nearer to ,egypt2 the ,greeks of ,asia ,minor to ,lydia2 as for the islanders of the ,cyclades and ,sporades1 the necessity of gadding about would have brought them into contact with their betters to the south and east1 and so awakened them1 much sooner than their fellow ,greeks of ,attica1 ,boeotia1 and the ,peloponnese4 ,where did ,homer live8 ,naturally1 as a wandering bard1 all over the place4 ,we know of the seven cities that claimed to be his birthplace3 ,smyrna1 ,chias1 ,colophon1 ,salamis1 ,rhodos1 ,argos1 ,athenae ,orbis de patria certat1 ,homere1 ,tua4 ,of these ,smyrna probably has the best chance of it2 for he was ,maeonides1 the son of ,maeon1 and ,maeon was the son of ,meles2 and the ,maeon and the ,meles are rivers by ,smyrna4 ,but ,de ,quincey makes out an excellent case for supposing he knew ,crete better than any other part of the world4 ,many of the legends he records2 many of the superstitions--to call them that2--many of the customs he describes3 have been1 and are still1 peculiar to ,crete4 ,neither the smaller islands1 nor continental ,greece1 were very suitable countries for horse-breeding2 and the horse does not figure greatly in their legends4 ,but in ,crete the friendship of horse and man was traditional2 in ,cretan folk-lore1 horses still foresee the doom of their masters1 and weep4 ,so they do in ,homer4 ,there is a certain wild goat found only in ,crete1 of which he give a detailed description2 down the measurement of its horns2 exact1 as sportsmen have found in modern times4 ,he mentions the ,kubizeteres1 ,cretan tumblers1 who indulge in a 'stunt' unknown elsewhere4 ,they perform in couples2 and when he mentions them1 it is in the dual number4 ,preternatural voices are an ,homeric tradition3 ,stentor spoke loud as fifty other men2 when ,achilles roared at the ,trojans1 their whole army was frightened4 ,in ,crete such voices are said to be still common3 shepherds carry on conversations at incredible distances--speak to1 and are answered by1 men not yet in sight4--,dequincey gives several other such coincidences2 none of them1 by itself1 might be very convincing2 but taken all together1 they rather incline one to the belief that ,smith1 or ,brown1 or ,jones1 alias ,homer1 must have spent a good deal of his time in ,crete2--say1 was brought up there4 ,now ,crete is much nearer ,egypt than the rest of ,greece is2 and may very likely have shared in a measure of ,egyptian culture at the very beginning of the ,european manvantara1 and even before4 ,of course1 in past cycles it had been a great center of culture itself2 but that was long ago1 and ,i am not speaking of it4 ,in the tenth century ,a4,d41 three hundred years before civilization1 in our own cycle1 had made its way from the ,west ,asian ,moslem world into ,christendom1 ,sicily belonged to ,egypt and shared in its refinement--was ,moslem and highly civilized1 while ,europe was ,christian and barbarous2 later it became a main channel through which ,europe received enlightenment4 ,may not ,crete have played a like part in ancient times8 ,i mean1 is it not highly probable8 ,may it not have been--as ,sicily was to be--a mainly ,european country under ,egyptian influence1 and a seat of ,egyptianized culture8 ,let us1 then1 suppose ,homer a ,greek1 born early in the ninth century ,b4,c41 taken in childhood to ,crete1 and brought up there in contact with cultural conditions higher than any that obtained elsewhere among his own people4 ,but genius stirs in him1 and he is ,greek altogether in the deep enthusiasms proper to genius3 so presently he leaves ,crete and culture1 to wander forth among the islands singing4-- ,en delo tote ,proton ego ,kai ,homeros aoidoi ,melpomen1 says ,hesiod3 ,then first in ,delos did ,i and ,homer1 two ,aoidoi1 perform as musical reciters4 ,delos1 of course1 is a small island in the ,cyclades4 ,he would have had some training1 it is likely1 as an ,aoidos3 a good founding in the old stories which were their stock in trade1 and which all pointed to the past glory of his race4 ,in ,crete he had seen the culture of the ,egyptians2 in ,asia ,minor1 the strength and culture of the ,lydians2 now in his wanderings through the isles he saw the disunion and rudeness of the ,greeks4 ,but the old traditions told him of a time when ,greeks acted together and were glorious3 when they went against1 and overthrew1 a great ,west ,asian ,power strong and cultured like the ,lydians and ,egyptians4 ,why should not he create again the glory that once was ,greece8 ,menin aeide1 ,thea1 ,peleiadeo ,achileos6 --,goddess1 aid me to sing the wrath 7and grandeur7 of a ,greek hero6--,let the ,muses help him1 and he will remind his people of an ancient greatness of their own3 of a time when they were united1 and triumphed over these now so much stronger peoples6 ,so ,dante1 remembering ancient ,rome1 evoked out of the past and future a vision of ,united ,italy2 so in the twelfth century a hundred ,welsh bards sand of ,arthur4 ,i think he would have created out of his own imagination the life he pictures for his brazen-coated ,achaeans4 ,it does not follow1 with any great poet1 that he is bothering much with historical or other accuracies1 or sticking very closely even to tradition4 ,enough that the latter should give him a direction2 as ,poet-creator1 he can make the details for himself4 ,homer's imagination would have been guided1 ,i take it1 by two conditions3 what he saw of the life of his semi-barbarous ,greek country men2 and what he knew of civilization in ,egyptianized ,crete4 ,he was consciously picturing the life of ,greeks2 but ,greeks in an age traditionally more cultured than his own4 ,floating legends would tell him much of their heroic deed1 but little of their ways of living4 ,such details he would naturally have to supply for himself4 ,how would he go to work8 ,in this way1 ,i think4 ,the ,greeks1 says he1 were in those old ages1 civilized and strong1 not1 as now1 weak1 disunited and half barbarous4 ,now what is strength like1 and civilization8 ,why1 ,i have them before me here to observe1 here in ,crete4 ,but ,crete is ,egyptianized2 ,i want a ,greek civilization2 culture as it would appear if home-grown among ,greeks4--,i do not mean that he consciously set this plan before himself2 but that naturally it would be the course that he1 or anyone1 would follow4 ,civilization would have meant for him ,cretan civilization3 the civilization he knew3 that part of the proposition would inhere in his subconsciousness4 ,but in his conscious mind1 in his intent and purpose1 would inhere a desire to differentiate the ,greek culture he wanted to paint1 from the ,egyptianized culture he knew4 ,so ,i think that the conditions of life he depicts were largely the creation of his own imagination1 working in the material of ,greek character1 as he knew it1 and ,cretan-,egyptian culture as he knew that4 ,he made his people essentially ,greeks1 but ascribed to them also non-,greek features drawn from civilized life4 ,one sees the same thing in the old ,welsh ,romances3 tales from of old retold by men fired with immense racial hopes1 with a view to fostering such hopes in the minds of their hearers4 ,the bards saw about them the rude life and disunion of the ,welsh1 and the far greater outward culture of the ,normans2 and their stock in trade was a tradition of ancient and half-magical ,welsh grandeur4 ,when they wrote of ,cai--,sir ,kay the ,seneschal--that so subtle was his nature that when it pleased him he could make himself as tall as the tallest tree in the forest1 they were dealing in a purely celtic element3 the tradition of the greatness of1 and the magical powers inherent in1 the human spirit2 but when they set him on horseback1 to ride tilts in the tourney ring1 they were simply borrowing from1 to out do1 the ,normans4 ,material culture1 as they saw it1 included those things2 therefore they ascribed them to the old culture they were trying to paint4 ,lying was traditionally a ,greek vice4 ,the ,greek lied as naturally as the ,persian told the truth4 ,homer wishes to set forth ,ulysses1 one of his heroes1 adorned with all heroic perfections4 ,he was so far ,greek as not to think of lying as a quality to detract2 he proudly makes ,ulysses a lord of lies4 ,perhaps nothing in ,crete itself would have taught him better2 if we may believe ,epimenides and ,saint ,paul4 ,on the other hand1 he was a great-hearted and compassionate man2 compassionate as ,shakespeare was4 ,now the position of women in historical ,greece was very low indeed2 the position of women in ,egypt1 as we know1 was very high indeed4 ,this was a question to touch such a man to the quick2 the position he gives women is very high3 very much higher than it was in ,periclean ,athens1 with all the advance that had been made by that time in general culture4 ,andromache1 in ,homer1 is the worthy companion and helpmeet of ,hector2 not a ,greek1 but ,egyptian idea4 ,homer's contemporary1 ,hesiod1 tells in his ,works and ,days of the plebeian and peasant life of his time4 ,hesiod had not the grace of mind or imagination to idealize anything2 he sets down the life of the lower orders with a realism comparable to that of the ,english ,crabbe4 ,it is an ugly and piteous picture he gives4 ,homer1 confining himself in the main to the patrician side of things1 does indeed give hints that the lot of the peasant and slave was miserable2 he does not quite escape some touches from the background of his own day4 ,nor did ,shakespeare1 trying to paint the life of ancient ,athens1 escape an ,english ,elizabethan ,background2 ,bully ,bottom and his colleagues are straight from the wilds of ,warwickshire2 the ,roman mob is made up of ,london prentices1 cobblers and the like4 ,learned ,ben1 on the other hand1 contrives in his ,sejanus and his ,catiline1 by dint and sheer intellect and erudition1 to give us correct waxwork and clockwork ,romans2 there are no anachronisms in ,ben ,johnson2 never a pterodactyl walks down his ,piccadilly4 ,but ,shakespeare rather liked to have them in his2 with his small ,latin and less ,greek1 he had to create his human beings--draw them from the life1 and from the life he saw about him4 ,the deeper you see into life1 the less the costumes and academic exactitudes matter2 you keep your imagination for the great things1 and let the externals worry about themselves4 ,now ,homer was a deal more like ,shakespeare than ,ben2 but there was this difference3 he was trying to create ,greeks of a nobler order than his contemporaries4 ,men in those days1 he says1 were of huger stature than they are now4 ,and yet1 when his imagination is not actually at work to heighten and ennoble the portrait of a hero1 real ,greek life of his own times does not fail sometimes--to obtrude on him4 ,so he lets in bits now and again that belong to the state of things ,hesiod describes1 and confirm the truth of ,hesiod's dismal picture4 ,well1 he wandered the islands1 singing2 laying the nexus of his songs1 as ,hesiod says in the passage from which ,i quoted just now1 in the ancient sacred hymns4 ,as ,shakespeare was first an actor1 then a tinkerer of other men's plays1 then a playwright on his own account2 so perhaps ,homer1 from a singer of the old hymns1 became an improver and restorer of them1 then a maker of new ones4 ,he saw the wretched condition of his people1 contrasted it with the traditions he found in the old days1 and was spurred up to create a glory for them in his imagination4 ,his feelings were hugely wrought upon by compassion working as yoke-fellow with race-pride4 ,you shall see presently how the intensity of his pity made him bitter2 how there must have been something ,dantesque of grim sadness in his expression3 he had seen suffering1 not ,i think all his own1 till he could allow to fate no quality but cruelty4 ,impassioned by what we may call patriotism1 he attacked again and again the natural theme for ,greek epic3 the story of a ,greek contest with and victory over ,west ,asians2 but he was too great not to handle even his ,west ,asians with pity1 and moves us to sympathy with ,hector and ,andromache often1 because against them too was stretched forth the hand of the great enemy1 fate4 ,in different moods and at different times1 never thinking to make an epic1 he produced a large number of different poems about the siege of ,troy4 ,and the ,odyssey8 ,well1 the tradition was that he wrote it in his old age4 ,its mood is very different from that of the ,iliad2 and many words used in it are used with a different meaning2 and there are words that are not used in the ,iliad at all4 ,someone says1 it comes from the old age of the ,greek epic1 rather than from that of ,homer4 ,i do not know4 ,it is a better story than the ,iliad2 as if more nearly cast at one throe of a mind4 ,yet it1 too1 must be said not to hang together2 here also are discrepant and incompatible parts4 ,there is all tradition for it that the ,homeric poems were handed down unwritten for several centuries4 ,well2 ,i can imagine the ,aoidoi and ,citharaoidoi and the rest learning poems from the verbal instruction of other ,aoidoi and ,citharaoidoi1 and so preserving them from generation to generation to generation4 ,but ,i cannot imagine1 and ,i do think it is past the wit of man to imagine1 long poems being composed by memory2 it seems to me ,homer must have written or dictated them at first4 ,writing in ,greece may have been an esoteric science in those times4 ,it is now1 anywhere1 to illiterates4 ,in ,caesar's day1 as he tells us1 it was an esoteric science among the ,druids2 they used it1 but the people did not4 ,it seems probable that writing was not in general use among the ,greeks until long after ,homer2 but1 to me1 certain that ,homer used it himself1 or could command the services to those who did4 ,but there was writing in ,crete long before the ,greco-,phoenician alphabet was invented2 from the time of the first ,egyptian ,dynasties1 for example4 ,and here is a point to remember3 alphabets are invented2 systems of writing are lost and reintroduced2 but it is idle to talk of the invention of writing4 ,humanity has been writing1 in one way or another1 since ,lemurian days4 ,when the ,manasaputra incarnated1 ,man became a poetizing animal2 and before the ,fourth ,race began1 his divine ,teachers had taught him to set his poems down on whatever he chanced at the time to be using as we use paper4 ,now1 what more can we learn about the inner and real ,homer8 ,what can ,i tell you in the way of literary criticism1 to fill out the picture ,i have attempted to make8 ,very little2 yet perhaps something4 ,i think his historical importance is greater1 for us now1 than his literary importance4 ,i doubt you shall find in him as great and true thinking1 as much ,theosophy or ,light upon the hidden things1 as there is in ,virgil for example4 ,i doubt he was an initiate1 to understand in that life and with his conscious mind the truths that make men free4 ,plato did not altogether approve of him2 and where ,plato dared lead1 we others need not fear to follow4 ,i think the great ,master-,poets of the world have been such because1 with supreme insight into the hidden1 they presented a great ,master-,symbol of the ,human ,soul4 ,i believe that in the ,iliad ,homer gives us nothing of that sort2 and that therefore1 in a certain sense1 he is constantly over-rated4 ,he pays the penalty of his over-whelming reputation3 his fame is chiefly in the mouths of those who know him not at all1 and use their hats for speaking-trumpets4 ,we have in ,english no approximately decent translation of him4 ,someone said that ,pope served him as ,puck served ,bully ,bottom1 what time ,peter ,quince was moved to cry3 ,bless thee ,bottom1 how thou art translated6 ,it is not so2 to call ,pope an ass would be to wrong a faithful and patient quadruped2 than which ,pope was as much greater in intellect as he was less in all qualities that call for true respect4 ,yet often we applaud ,homer1 only upon a knowledge of ,pope2 and it is safe to say that if you love ,pope you would loathe ,homer4 ,pope held that water should manifest1 so to say1 through ,kew or ,versailles fountains2 but it was essentially to be from the ,kitchen-tap--or even from the sewer4 ,homer was more familiar with it thundering on the precipices1 or lisping on the yellow sands of time-forgotten ,mediterranean islands4 ,which pronunciation do you prefer for his often-recurring and famous sea-epithet3 the thunder-on-the-precipices of poluphloisboio thalasses1 or the lisping-on-the-sands of poluphleesbeeo thalassace8 7pardon the attempted phonetics74--,for truly there are advocates of either2 but neither ,i suppose would have appealed much to ,mr4 ,pope4 ,as to his style1 his manner or movement3 to summarize what ,mathew ,arnold says of it 7the best ,i can do73 it is as direct and rapid as ,scott's2 as lucid as ,wordsworth's could be2 but noble like ,shakespeare's or ,milton's4 ,there is no ,dantesque periphrasis1 nor ,miltonian agnostic struggle and inversion2 but he calls spades1 spades1 and moves on to the next thing swiftly1 clearly1 and yet with exultation4 7,yet there is retardation often by long similes47 ,and he either made a language for himself1 or found one ready to his hand1 as resonant and sonorous as the loll and slap of billows in the hollow caverns of the sea4 ,as his lines swing in and roll and crash1 they swell the soul in you1 and you hear and grow great on the rhythm of the eternal4 ,this though we really1 ,i suppose1 are quite uncertain as to the pronunciation4 ,but give the vowels merely a plain ,english value1 certain to be wrong1 and you still have grand music4 ,perhaps some of you have read ,mathew ,arnold's great essay ,on ,translating ,homer1 and know the arguments wherewith wise ,matthew exalts him4 ,a ,mr4 ,newman had translated him so as considerably to out-,bottom ,bottom2 and ,arnold took up the cudgels--to some effect4 ,newman had treated him as a barbarian1 a primitive2 ,arnold argued that it was ,homer1 on the contrary1 who might have so looked on us4 ,there is1 however1 perhaps something to be said on ,mr4 ,newman's side4 ,homer's huge and age-long fame1 and his extraordinary virtues1 were quite capable of blinding even a great critic to certain things about him which ,i shall1 with great timidity1 designate imperfections3 therein following ,de ,quincey1 who read ,greek from early childhood as easily as ,english1 and who1 as a critic1 saw things sometimes4 ,bonus dormitat ,homerus1 says ,horace2 like the elder ,gobbo1 he something smacked4 ,he was the product of a great creative force2 which did not however work in a great literary age3 and all ,i am going to say is merely a bearing out of this4 ,first there is his poverty of epithets4 ,he repeats the same ones over and over again4 ,he can hardly mention ,hector without calling him megas koruthaiolos ,hector1--great glittering- helmeted ,hector2 or 7in the genitive7 ,hectoros hippodamoio-- of ,hector the tamer of war-steeds4 ,over and over again we have anax andron ,agamemnon2 or swift-footed ,achilles4 ,over and over again is the sea poluphloisbois-terous1 as if he could say nothing new about it4 ,having discovered one resounding phrase that fits nicely into the hexameter1 he seems to have been just content with the splendor of sound1 and unwilling so to stir his imagination as to flash some new revelation on it4 ,as if ,hamlet should never be mentioned in the play1 without some such epithet as the hesitating ,dane4444444 ,but think how the ,myriad-minded ,one positively tumbles over himself in hurling and fountaining up new revelatory figures and epithets about everything3 how he could not afford to repeat himself1 because there were not enough hours in the day1 days in the year1 nor years in one human lifetime1 in which to ease his imagination of its tremendous burden4 ,he had ,golconda at the root of his tongue3 let him but pass you the time of day1 and it shall go hard but he will pour you out the wealth of ,ormus or of ,ind4 ,a plethora1 some have said3 never mind2 wealth was nothing to him1 because he had it all4 ,or note how severe ,milton1 almost every time he alludes to ,satan1 throws some new light of majestic gloom1 inner or outer1 with a new epithet or synonym1 upon his figure or his mind4 ,even of mere ancillaries and colorless lines1 ,homer will make you a resounding glory4 ,what means this most familiar one1 think you3 ,ten d'apameibomenos prosephe koruthaiolos ,hector8 --,surely here some weighty splendid thing is being revealed8 ,but no2 it means3 ,answering spake unto her great glittering-helmeted ,hector2 or tout simplement1 ',hector answered4' ,and hardly can anyone open his lips1 but it must be brought in with some variation of that sea-riding billow1 or roll of drums3 ,ton d'emeibet epeita anax andron ,agamemnon4 ,hos phato4 ,ten d'outi prosephe nephelegereta ,zeus --whereafter at seven lines down we get again3 ,ten de meg' ochthesas prosephe nephelegereta ,zeus2 --in all of which ,i think we do get something of primitivism and unskill4 ,it is a preoccupation with sound where there is no adequate excuse for the sound2 after the fashion of some orators1 whom1 to speak plainly1 it is a weariness to hear4 ,but you will remember how ,shakespeare rises to his grandest music when he has fatefullest words to utter2 and how ,milton rolls in his supreme thunders each in its recurring cycle2 leads you to wave-crest over wave-trough1 and then recedes2 and how the crest is always some tremendous thing in vision1 or thought as well as sound4 ,so he has everlasting variation2 manages his storms and billows2 and so ,i think his music is greater in effect than ,homer's--would still be greater1 could we be sure of ,homer's tones and vowel- values2 as ,i think his vision goes deeper into the realm of the ,soul and the ,eternal4 ,yet is ,homer majestic and beautiful abundantly4 ,if it is true that his reputation gains on the principle of ,omne ignotum pro magnifico--because he is unknown to most that praise him--let none imagine him less than a wonderful reservoir of poetry4 ,his faults--to call them that--are such as you would expect from his age1 race1 and peculiar historic position2 his virtues are drawn out of the grandeur of his own soul1 and the current from the ,unfathomable that flowed through him4 ,he had the high serious attitude towards the great things1 and treated them highly1 deeply and seriously4 ,we may compare him to ,dante3 who also wrote1 in an age and land not yet literary or cultured1 with a huge racial inspiration4 ,but ,dante had something more3 a purpose to reveal in symbol the tremendous world of the ,soul4 ,matthew ,arnold speaks of the ,homeric poems as the most important poetical monument existing4 ,well2 cultured ,tom1 ,dick and ,harry would say much the same thing2 it is the orthodox thing to say4 ,but with great deference to ,matthew1 ,i believe they are really a less important monument than the poems of ,aeschylus1 ,dante1 ,shakespeare1 or ,milton1 or ,i suppose ,goethe--to name only poets of the ,western ,world2 because each of these created a ,soul- symbol2 which ,i think the ,iliad at any rate does not4 ,here1 to me1 is another sign of primitivism4 ,if there is paucity of imagination in his epithets1 there is none whatever in his surgery4 ,i do not know to what figure the casualty list in the ,iliad amounts2 but believe no wound or death of them all was dealt in the same bodily part or in the same way4 ,now ,poetry essentially turns from these physical details2 her preoccupations are with the ,soul4 ,from ,homer and ,polygnotus1 says ,goethe1 ,i daily learn more and more that in our life here above the ground we have1 properly speaking1 to enact ,hell4 ,a truth1 so far as it goes3 this ,earth is hell2 there is no hell1 says ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky1 but a man- bearing planet4 ,but we demand of the greatest1 that they shall see beyond hell into ,heaven4 ,homer achieves his grandeur oftenest through swift glimpses of the pangs and tragedy of human fate2 and ,i do not think he saw through the gloom to the bright ,reality4 ,watching the ,greek host from the walls of ,troy1 ,helen says3 ,clearly the rest ,i behold of the dark-eyed sons of ,achaia2 ,known to me well are the faces of all2 their names ,i remember2 ,two1 two only remain whom ,i see not among the commanders1 ,castor1 fleet in the car1 ,polydeukes1 brave with the cestus-- ,own dear brethren of mine1--one parent loved us as infants4 ,are they not here in the host1 from the shores of loved ,lacedaimon8 ,or1 though they came with the rest in the ships that bound through the waters1 ,dare they not enter the fight1 or stand in the council of heroes1 ,all for fear of the shame and the taunts my crime has awakened8 ,and then3 ,hos phato4 ,tous d'ede kalechen phusizoos aia1 ,en ,lakedaimoni authi1 phile en patridi gaie4 --,so spake she2 but they long since under ,earth were reposing ,there in their own dear land1 their fatherland1 ,lacedaimon4 ,from ,dr4 ,hawtrey's translation1 quoted by ,matthew ,arnold in ,on ,translating ,homer4 ,there it is the sudden antithesis from her gentle womanly inquiry about her brothers to the sad reality she knows nothing1 that strikes the magical blow1 and makes the grand manner4 ,then there is that passage about ,peleus and ,cadmos3 ,not even ,peleus ,aiacides1 nor godlike ,cadmos1 might know the happiness of a secure life2 albeit the highest happiness known to mortals was granted them3 the one on the mountain1 the other in seven-gated ,thebes1 they heard the gold-snooded ,muses sing4 ,you hear the high pride and pathos in that4 ,to be a poet1 he says3 to have heard the gold-snooded ,muses sing3 is the highest happiness a mortal can know2 he is mindful of the soul1 the ,poet-creator in every man1 and pays it magnificent tribute2 he acknowledges what glory1 what bliss1 have been his own2 but not the poet1 he says1 not even he1 may enjoy the commonplace happiness of feeling secure against dark fate4 ,it is the same feeling that ,i spoke of last week as so characteristic of the early ,teutonic literature2 but there it appears without the swift sense of tragedy1 without the sudden pang1 the grand manner4 ,the pride is lacking quite3 the intuition for a divinity within man4 ,but ,homer sets the glory of soul-hood and pet-hood against the sorrow of fate3 even though he finds the sorrow weighs it down4 ,caedmon or ,cynewulf might have said3 ,it is given to none of us to be secure against fate2 but we have many recompenses4 ,how different the note of ,milton3 ,those other two1 equal with me in fate1 ,so were ,i equal with them in renown-- or3 ,unchanged1 though fallen on evil days2 ,on evil days though fallen1 and evil tongues1 ,in darkness1 and by dangers compassed round4 ,and ,llywarch1 or ,oisin1 would never have anticipated the blows of fate2 when the blows fell1 they would simply have been astonished at fate's presumption4 ,we might quote many instances of this proud pessimism in ,homer3 ,kai se1 geron1 to prin men1 akouomen1 olbion einai-- ,thou to1 we hear1 old man1 e'en thou was at once time happy2 ,hos gar epeklosanto theoi deiloisi brotoisin ,zoein achnumenous4 ,autoi de l'akedees eisin-- ,the ,gods have allotted to us to live thus mortal and mournful1 ,mournful2 but they themselves live ever untouched by mourning4 ,proud--no2 it is not quite proud2 not in an active sense2 there is a resignation in it2 and yet it is a kind of haughty resignation4 ,as if he said3 ,we are miserable2 there is nothing else to be but miserable2 let us be silent1 and make no fuss about4--,it is the restraint--a very ,greek quality--the depth hinted at1 but never wailed over or paraded at all--that make in these cases his grand manner4 ,his attitude is1 ,i think1 nearer the ,teutonic than the ,celtic3--his countrymen1 like the ,teutons1 were accustomed to the pralaya1 the long racial night4 ,but he and the ,celts achieved the grand manner1 which the ,teutons did not4 ,his eyes1 like ,llywarch's or ,oisin's1 were fixed on a past glory beyond the nightfall4 ,but where does this ,homeric mood lead us8 ,to no height of truth1 ,i think4 ,katherine ,tingley gave us a keynote for the literature of the future and the grandest things it should utter1--for the life1 the art1 the poetry of a coming time that shall be ,theosophical1 that is1 lit with the splendor and beauty of the ,soul--when she spoke that high seeming paradox that ,life is ,joy4 ,let us uncover the real ,life2 all this sorrow is only the veil that hides it4 ,god knows we see enough of the veil2 but the poet's business is to tear it down1 rend it asunder1 and show the brightness which it hides4 ,if the personality were all1 and a man's whole history were bounded by his cradle and his grave2 then you had done all1 when you had presented personalities in all their complexity1 and made your page teem with the likenesses of living men1 and only shown the ,beyond1 the ,governance1 as something unknowable1 adverse and aloof4 ,but the ,greater ,part of a man is eternal1 and each of his lives and deaths but little incidents in a vast and glorious pilgrimage2 and when it is understood that this is the revelation to be made1 this grandeur the thing to be shadowed forth1 criticism will have entered upon its true path and mission4 ,i find no such ,soul-symbol in the ,iliad3 the passion and spiritual concentration of whose author1 ,i think1 was only enough to let him see this outward world3 personalities1 with their motive-springs of action within themselves3 his greatness1 his sympathy1 his compassion1 revealed all that to him2 but he lacked vision for the ,meanings4 ,i found him then less than ,shakespeare3 whose clear knowledge of human personalities-- ability to draw living men--was but incidental and an instrument2 who but took the tragedy of life by the way1 as he went to set forth the whole story of the soul2 never losing sight of ,karma1 and that man is his own adverse destiny2 finishing all with the triumph of the soul1 the ,magician1 in ,the ,tempest4 ,and ,i count him less than that ,blind ,titan in ,bardism1 who1 setting out to justify the ways of ,god to men1 did verily justify the ways of fate to the ,soul2 and showed the old1 old truth1 so dear to the ,celtic bards1 that in the very depths of hell the ,soul has not yet lost all her original brightness2 but is mightily superior to hell1 death1 fate1 sorrow and the whole pack of them2--,i count him less than the ,evening ,dragon of ,samson ,agonistes1 whose last word to us is ,nothing is here for tears2 nothing to wail ,or knock the breast2 no weakness or contempt4 ,and ,i found him less that ,one with the grand tragic visage1 whose words so often quiver with unshed tears1 who went forth upon his journey 4444 pei dolci pomi ,promessi a me per lo verace ,duca2 ,ma fino al centro pria convien ch'io tomi3-- to obtain those sweet apples 7of ,paradise7 promised me by my true ,leader2 but first is--convien--how shall you translate the pride and resignation of that word8--it behoves1 we must say1 it convenes--first it is convenient that ,i should fall as far as to the center 7of hell72--who must end the gloom and terror of that journey1 that fall1 with ,e quindi uscimmo a riveder le stelle1 ,and then we came forth to behold again the ,stars2 and who came from his ascent through purifying ,purgatory with ,rifatto si1 come piante novelle ,rinnovellate di novella fronda1 ,puro e disposto a salire alle stelle-- ,so made anew1 like young plants in spring with fresh foliage1 ,i was pure and disposed to come forth among the ,stars2--and who must end his ,paradiso and his life-work announcing ,l'amor che muove il sole e le altre stelle1 ,the ,love that moves the sun and the other ,stars4 ,ah1 glory to this ,dante6 ,glory to the man who would end nothing but with the stars6 ,,iii4 ,,greeks ,,and ,,persians ,now to consider what this ,blind ,maeonides did for ,greece4 ,sometime last ,century a ,black ,potentate from ,africa visited ,england1 and was duly amazed at all he saw4 ,being a very important person indeed1 he was invited to pay his respects to ,queen ,victoria4 he told her of the many wonders he had seen2 and took occasion to ask her1 as the supreme authority1 how such things came to be4 ,what was the secret of ,england's greatness8 --,she rose to it magnificently1 and did precisely what a large section of her subjects would have expected of her4 ,she solemnly handed him a copy of the ,bible1 and told him he should find his answer in that4 ,she was thinking1 no doubt1 of the influence of ,christian teaching2 if called on for the exact passage that had worked the wonder1 very likely she would have turned to the ,sermon on the ,mount4 ,well2 very few empires have founded their material greatness on such texts1 as ,the meek shall inherit the earth4 ,they take a shorter road to it4 ,if a man ask of thee thy coat1 and thou give him thy cloak also1 thou dost not 7generally7 build thyself a world-wide commerce4 ,when he smiteth thee on they left cheek1 and thou turnest to him thy right for the complementary buffet1 thou dost not 7as a rule7 become shortly possessed of his territories4 ,queen ,victoria lived in an age when people did not notice these little discrepancies2 so did ,mr4 ,podsnap4 ,and yet there was much more truth in her answer than you might think4 ,king ,james's ,bible is a monument of mighty literary style2 and one that generations of ,englishmen have regarded as divine1 a message from the ,ruler of the ,stars4 ,they have been reading it1 and hearing it read in the churches1 for three hundred years4 ,its language has been far more familiar to them than that of any other book whatsoever2 more common quotations come from it1 probably1 than from all other sources combined4 ,the ,puritans of old1 like the ,nonconformists now1 completely identified themselves with the folk it tells about3 ,cromwell's armies saw in the hands of their great captain the sword of the ,lord and of ,gideon4 ,when the ,roundhead went into battle1 or when the ,revivalist goes to prayer meeting1 he heard and hears the command of ,jehovah to go up to ,ramoth ,gilead and prosper2 to smite ,amalek hip and thigh4 ,phrases from the ,old ,testament are in the mouths of millions daily2 and they are phrases couched in the grand literary style4 ,now the grand style is the breathing of a sense of greatness4 ,when it occurs you sense a mysterious importance lurking behind the words4 ,it is the accent of the eternal thing in man1 the ,soul2 and one of the many proofs of the ,soul's existence4 ,so you cannot help being reminded by it of the greatness of the soul4 ,there are periods when the soul draws near its racial vehicle1 and the veils grow thin between it and us3 through all the utterances of such times one is apt to hear the thunder from beyond4 ,although the soul have no word to say1 or although it message suffer change in passing through the brain-mind1 so that not high truth1 but even a lie may emerge--it still comes1 often1 ringing with the grand accents4 ,such a period was that which gave us ,shakespeare and ,milton1 and the ,bible1 and ,brown1 and ,taylor1 and all the mighty masters of ,english prose4 ,even when their thought is trivial or worse1 you are reminded1 by the march and mere order of their words1 of the majesty of the ,soul4 ,when ,deborah sings of that treacherous murderess1 ,jael the wife of ,heber the ,kenite1 that before she slew her guest and ally ,sisera1 ,he asked water and she gave him milk2 she brought forth butter in a lordly dish1--you are aware that1 to the singer1 no question of ethics was implied4 ,nothing common1 nothing of this human daily world1 inheres in it2 but sacrosanct destinies were involved1 and the martialed might of the ,invisible4 ,it was part of a tremendous drama1 in which ,omnipotence itself was protagonist4 ,little ,israel rose against the mighty of this world2 but the ,unseen is mightier than the mighty2 and the ,unseen was with little ,israel4 ,the application is false1 unethical1 abominable--as coming through brain-minds of that kind4 ,but you must go back behind the application1 behind the brain-mind1 to find the secret of the air of greatness that pervades it4 ,it is a far-off reflection of this eternal truth3 that the ,soul1 thought it speak through but one human being1 can turn the destinies and overturn the arrogance of the world4 ,when ,david sang1 ,let ,god arise1 and let his enemies be scattered2 yea1 let all his enemies be scattered6 he1 poor brain-mind1 was thinking of his triumphs over ,philistines and the like2 with whom he had better have been finding a way to peace2--but the ,soul behind him was thinking of its victories over him and his passions and his treacheries4 ,so such psalms and stories1 though their substance be vile enough1 do by their language yet remind us somehow of the grandeur of the ,spirit4 ,that is what style achieves4 ,undoubtedly this grand language of the ,bible1 as that of ,milton and ,shakespeare in a lesser degree--lesser in proportion as they have been less read--has fed in the ,english race an aptitude1 an instinct1 for action on a large imperial scale4 ,it is not easy to explain the effect of great literature2 but without doubt it molds the race4 ,now the ethic of the ,old ,testament1 its moral import1 is very mixed4 ,there is much that is true and beautiful2 much that is treacherous and savage4 ,so that its moral and ethical effects have been very mixed too4 ,but its style1 a subtler thing than ethics1 has nourished conceptions of a large and seeping sort1 to play through what ethical ideas they might find4 ,the more spiritual is any influence--that is1 the less visible and easy to trace--the more potent it is2 so style in literature may be counted one of the most potent forces of all4 ,through it1 great creative minds mold the destinies of nations4 ,let ,theosophy have expression as noble as that of the ,bible--as it will--and of that very impulse it will bite deep into the subconsciousness of the race1 and be the nourishment of grand public action1 immense conceptions1 greater than any that have come of ,bible reading1 because pure and true4 ,our work is to purify the channels through which the ,soul shall speak2 the ,teachers have devoted themselves to establishing the beginnings of this ,movement in right thought and right life4 ,but the great literary impulse will come1 when we have learned and earned the right to use it4 ,now1 what the ,bible became to the ,english1 ,homer became to the ,greeks--and more also4 ,they heard his grand manner1 and were billed by it with echoes from the ,supermundane4 ,anax andron ,agamemnon--what ,greek could hear a man so spoken of1 and dream he compounded of common clay8 ,never mind what this king of men did or failed to do2 do but breathe his name and titles1 and you have affirmed immortality and the splendor of the ,human ,soul6 ,the human ,soul8 ,tush6 said they1 the ,greek ,soul6 he was a ,greek as we are64444 ,and so ,tomides1 ,dickaion and ,harryotatos1 ,athenian tinkers and cobblers1 go swaggering back to their shops1 and dream grand racial dreams4 ,for this is a much more impressionable people than the ,english2 any wind from the ,spirit blows in upon their minds quickly and easily4 ,homer in ,greece --once ,solon1 or ,pisistratus1 or ,hopparchus1 had edited and canonized him1 and arranged for his orderly periodical public reading 7as the ,bible in the churches7--had an advantage even over the ,bible in ,england4 ,when ,cromwell and his men grew mighty upon the deeds of the mighty men of ,israel1 they had to thrill to the grand rhythms until a sort of miracle had been accomplished1 and they had come to see in themselves the successors and living representatives of ,israel4 ,but the ,greek1 rising on the swell of ,homer's roll and boom1 had need of no such transformation4 ,the uplift was all for him2 his by hereditary right2 and no pilfering necessary1 from alien creed or race4 ,we have seen in ,homer an inspired ,race-patriot1 a mighty poet saddened and embittered by the conditions he saw and his own impotence to change them4--,yes1 he had heard the golden-snooded sing2 but ,greeks were pygmies1 compared with the giants who fought at ,ilion6 ,there was that eternal contrast between the glory he had within and the squalor he saw without4 ,yes1 he could sing2 he could launch great songs for love of the ancients and their magnificence4 ,but what could a song do8 ,had it feet to travel ,hellas2 hands to flash a sword for her2 a voice and kingly authority to command her sons into redemption8--,ah1 poor blind old begging minstrel1 it had vastly greater powers and organs than these6 ,lycurgus1 it is said1 brought singers or manuscripts of your poems into ,sparta2 because1 blind minstrel1 he had a mind to make ,sparta great-souled2 and he knew that you were the man to do it1 if done it could be4 ,then for about two hundred and sixty years1 without much fuss to come into history1 you were having your way with your ,greeks4 ,your music was ringing in the ears of mothers2 their unborn children were being molded to the long roll of your hexameters4 ,there came to be manuscripts of you in every city3 corrupt enough1 many of them1 forgeries1 many of them2 lays fudged up and fathered on you by venal ,rhapsodoi1 to chant in princely houses whose ancestors it was a good speculation to praise4 ,you were everywhere in ,greece3 a great and vague tradition1 a formless mass of literature3 by the time ,solon was making laws for ,athens1 and ,pisistratus was laying the foundations of her stable government and greatness4 ,and then you were officially canonized4 ,solon1 ,pisistratus1 or one of the ,pisistratidae1 determined that you should be1 not a vague tradition and wandering songs any longer1 but the ,bible of the ,hellenes4 ,from an obscure writer of the ,alexandrian period we get a tale of ,pisistratus sending to all the cities of ,greece for copies of ,homeric poems1 paying for them well2 collating them1 editing them out of a vast confusion2 and producing at last out of the matter thus obtained1 a single more or less articulate ,iliad4 ,from ,plato and others we get hints leading to the supposition that an authorized state copy was prepared2 that it was ordained that the whole poem should be recited at the ,panathenaic ,festivals by relays of ,rhapsodoi2 this state copy being in the hands of a prompter whose business it was to see there should be no transgression by the chanters499 ,the wandering songs of the old blind minstrel have become the familiar ,sacred ,book of the brightest-minded people in ,greece4 ------ 99 ,for a detailed account of all this see ,de ,quincey's essay ,homer and the ,homeridae4 ------ ,some sixty years pass1 and now look what happens4 ,a mighty ,power in ,asia arranges a punitive expedition against turbulent islanders and coast-dwellers on its western border4 ,but an old blind minstrel has been having his way with these3 and the punitive expedition is to be of the kind not where you punish1 but where you are punished2--has been suggesting to them1 from the ,olympus of his sacrosanct inspiration1 the idea of great racial achievement1 till it has become a familiar thing1 ideally1 in their hearts4--,the huge armies and the fleets come on2 ,egypt has gone down2 ,lydia has gone down2 the whole world must go down before them4 ,but there is an old blind minstrel1 long since grown ,olympian in significance1 and throned aloft beside ,nephelegereta ,zeus1 chanting in every ,greek ear and heart4 ,greeks rise in some sort to repel the ,persian3 ,athens and ,sparta1 poles apart in every feeling and taste1 find that under the urge of archaic hexameters and in the face of this common danger1 they can co-operate after a fashion4 ,the world is in a tumult and threatens to fall2 but behind all the noise and ominous thunder1 by heaven1 you can hear the roll of hexameters1 and an old blind sorrow-stricken bard chanting4 ,the soul of a nation is rising1 the beat of her wings keeping time to the music of olden proud resounding lines4 ,who led the ,grecian fleet at ,salamis8--,not ,spartan ,eurygiades1 but an old blind man dead these centuries4 ,who led the victors at ,marathon8 ,not sly ,athenian ,miltiades1 but an old dead man who had only words for his wealth3 blind ,maeonides chanting2 and with his chanting marshaling on the roll of his hexameters mightier heroes than ever a ,persian eye could see3 the host that fought at ,ilion2 the creatures of his brain2 ,polymechanos ,odysseus1 and ,diomedes and ,aias2 ,podargos ,achilles2 ,anas andron ,agamemnon4 ,the story of the ,persian ,wars comes to us only from the ,greek side2 so all succeeding ages have been enthusiastically ,prohellene4 ,we are to think that ,europe since has been great and free and glorious1 because free and cultured ,greeks then held back a huge and barbarous ,asian despotism4 ,all of which is great nonsense4 ,europe since has not been great and free and glorious2 very often she has been quite the reverse4 ,she has1 at odd times1 been pottering around her ideal schemes of government2 which ,asia in large part satisfied herself that she had found long ago4 ,as for culture and glory1 the trumps have now been with the one1 now with the other4 ,and the ,persians were not barbarians by any means4 ,and when you talk of ,asia1 remember that it is as far a cry from ,persia to ,china1 as from ,persian to ,england4 ,let us have not more of this preoccupation with externals1 and blind eyes to the ,spirit of ,man4 ,i suppose ballot-boxes and referenda and recalls and the like were specified1 when it was said ,of such is the kingdom of ,heaven8444 ,but ,persia would not have flowed out over ,europe1 if ,marathon1 ,salamis1 and ,plataea had gone the other way4 ,empires wax and wane like the moon2 they ebb and flow like the tides2 and are governed by natural law as these are2 and as little depend1 ultimately1 upon battle1 murder1 and sudden death2 which are but effects that wisdom would evitate2 we are wrong in taking them for causes4 ,two things you can posit about any empire3 it will expand to its maximum2 then ebb and fall away4 ,though the daily sun sets not on its boundaries1 the sun of time will set on its decay2 because all things born in time will die2 and no elixer of life has been found1 nor ever will be4 ,there is an impulse from the inner planes2 it strikes into the heart of a people2 rises there1 and carries them forward upon an outward sweep2 then recedes1 and leaves them to their fall4 ,its cycle may perhaps be longer or shorter2 but in the main its story is always the same1 and bound to be so2 you cannot vote down the cycles of time4 ,what hindered ,rome from mastery of ,europe2 absolute mastery2 and keeping it forever8 ,nothing--but the eternal ,cyclic ,law4 ,so ,persia4 ,she was the last phase of that ,west ,asian manvantara which began in #ahij and was due to end in #eij ,b4 ,c4 ,as such a phase1 a splendor-day of thirteen decades should have been hers2 that1 we find1 being always the length of a national illumination4 ,she began under ,cyrus in #eeh2 flowed out under ,cambyses and ,darius to her maximum growth--for half the thirteen decades expanding steadily4 ,then she touched ,greece1 where a younger cycle was rising1 and recoiled4 ,she should have been at high tide precisely three years before-,marathon--a half-cycle after the accession of ,cyrus1 or in #dic2--;and was4 ,then the ,law-pronounced its ,thus far and no further2 and enforced it with ,homer's songs1 and ,greek valor1 and ,darius' death1 and ,xerxes' fickle childishness 7he smacked the ,hellespont because it was naughty74 ,these things together brought to naught the might and ambition and bravery of ,iran2 but had they been lacking1 the ,law would have found other means4 ,though ,xerxes and ,themistocles had both sat at home doing nothing1 ,alexander would still have marched east in his time1 and ,rome conquered the world4 ,so discount all talk of ,greece's having saved ,europe1 which was never in danger4 ,but you may say ,persia saved ,greece3 that her impact kindled the fires--was used by the ,law for that purpose--which so brilliantly have illumined ,europe since4 ,persia rose in the evening of that ,west ,asian manvantara2 the empires of its morning and noon1 as ,assyria chiefly1 had been slower of growth1 longer of life1 smaller of expanse2 and for her one1 had several periods of glory4 ,a long habit of empire -building had been formed there1 which carried ,persia rapidly and easily to her far limits4 ,assyria1 the piece de resistance of the whole manvantara1 with huge and long effort had created1 so to say1 an astral mold2 of which ,persia availed herself1 and overflowed its boundaries1 conquering regions east and west ,assyria never knew4 ,but if she found the mold and the habit there to aid her1 she came too late for the initial energies of the morning1 or the full forces of the manvantaric noon4 ,those had been wielded by the great ,tiglath ,pilesers and ,assurbanipals of earlier centuries2 fierce conquerors1 splendid builders1 ruthless patrons of the arts4 ,what was left for the evening and ,persia could not carry her outward her full thirteen decades1 but only half of them3 sixty-five years her tides were rising1 and then she touched ,greece4 ,thence-forward she remained stationary within her borders1 not much troubled internally1 until the four -twenties4 ,to a modern eye1 she seems on the decline since ,marathon2 to a ,persian of the time1 probably1 that failure on the ,greek frontier looked a small matter enough4 ,a ,pancho ,villa to chase2 if you failed to catch him1 pooh1 it was nothing6 ,xerxes is no ,darius1 true3 ,artaxerxes ,i1 no ,cyrus1 nor nothing like4 ,but through both their reigns there is in the main good government in most of the provinces2 excellent law and order2 and a belief still in the high civilizing mission of the ,persians4 ,peace1 instead of the old wars of conquest2 but you would have seen no great falling off4 ,hystaspes himself had been less conqueror than consolidator2 the ,augustus of the ,achaemenids1 greater at peace than at war2--though great at that too1 but not from land-frontiers2 and indeed1 had ample provocation1 as those things go1 for his punitive expedition that failed4 ,for the rest1 he had strewn the coast with fine harbors1 and reclaimed vast deserts with reservoirs and dikes2 had explored the ,indus and the ocean1 and linked ,egypt and ,persia by a canal from the ,red ,sea to the ,nile4 ,well2 and ,xerxes carried it on2 he too played the great ,achaemenid game2 did he not send ships to sail round ,africa8 ,if there was no more conquering1 it was because there was really nothing left to conquer2 who would bother about that ,greece8--,darius ,hystaspes was the last strong kind1 yes2 but ,datius ,nothus was the first gloomy tyrant1 or at least his queen1 bloodthirsty ,parysatis1 was2 which was not til #dcd4 ,so that ,persia too had her good thirteen decades of comfortable1 even glorious1 years4 ,whereafter we see her wobbling under conflicting cyclic impulses down to her final fall4 ,for lack of another to take her place1 she was still in many ways the foremost power2 albeit here and there obstreperous satraps were always making trouble4 ,when ,lysander laid ,athens low in #djd1 it was ,persian financial backing enabled him to do it2 but ,cyrus might march in to her heart1 and ,xenophon out again1 but two years later1 and none to say them effectually nay4 ,had there been some other ,west ,asian power1 risen in #ebj or thereabouts1 to outlast ,persia and finish its day with the end of the great cycle in #cij1 one supposes the ,achaemenids would have fallen in the four-twenties1 and left that other supreme during the remaining years4 ,but there was none4 ,the remains of ,nineveh and ,babylon slept securely in the ,persian central provinces2 there was nothing there to rise2 they had their many days long since4 ,egypt would have done something1 if she could2 would have like to2--but her own cycles were against her4 ,she had the last of her cyclic days under the ,x,x,v,ith ,dynasty4 ,in #fee ,psamtik ,i reunited and resurrected her while his overlord ,assurbanipal was wrecking his--,assurbanipal's--empire elsewhere2 thirteen decades afterwards1 in #ebe1 she fell before ,cambyses4 ,thirteen decades1 nearly1 of ,persian rule followed1 with interruptions of revolt1 before she regained her independence in #djd2--stealing1 you may say1 the nine years short from the weakness of ,persia4 ,then she was free for another half -cycle1 less one year2 a weak precarious freedom at best1 lost to ,artaxerxes ,ochus in #cdj4 ,all but the first fourteen years of it fell beyond the limits of the manvantara2 the ,west ,asian forces were spent4 ,egypt was merely waiting til the ,greek cycle should have sunk low enough and on to the military plane2 and had not long to wait4 ,she paid back most of her nine years to ,persia2 then hailed ,alexander as her savior2 and was brought by him1 to some extent1 under the influence of ,european cycles2 to share then in what uninteresting twilight remained to ,greece1 and presently in the pomps and crimsons of ,rome4 ,persia1 too1 was waiting for that ,greek military cycle2 until it should rise1 however1 something had to be going on in ,west ,asia4 ,the ,athenian first half-cycle--sixty-five years from the inception of the hegemony--ended in #dac1 when the ,peloponnesian ,war entered its last1 and for ,athens1 disastrous1 phase4 ,another half-cycle brings us to the rise of ,philip2 who about that time became dominant in ,greece4 ,but not yet had a power consolidated1 which could contest with ,persia the hegemony of the world4 ,having enabled ,sparta to put down ,athens1 the western satraps turned their attention to finding those who should put down ,sparta4 ,corinth1 ,thebes1 ,argos and ,athens were willing2 and ,pharnabazus financed them for war in #cie4 ,a year after1 he and ,conon destroyed the ,spartan fleet4 ,in #chg came the ,peace of ,antalicidas1 by which ,persia won what ,xerxes had fought for of old2 the suzerainty of ,greece4 ,but she was not strong2 her cycle was long past2 she stood upon the wealth and prestige of her better days1 and the weakness of her contemporaries4 ,internally she was falling to pieces until ,artaxerxes ,ochus1 between #cfb and #cch1 wading through blood and cruelty1 restored her unity1 wore out her resources1 and left her apparently as great as under ,xerxes1 but really ready to fall at a touch4 ,he prepared the way for ,alexander4 ,so ended an impulse that began1 who knows when8 on a high spiritual plane in the pure religion of the ,teacher we call ,zoroaster2 a high system of ethics expressed in long generations of clean and noble lives4 ,from that spirituality the impulse descending reached the planes of intellect and culture2 with results we cannot measure now2 nothing remains but the splendor of a few ruins in the wilderness--the course the lion and the lizard keep4 ,it reached the plane of military power1 and flowed over all the lands between the ,indus and the ,nile2 covering them with a well-ordered1 highly civilized and wisely governed empire4 ,then it began to ebb2 meeting a counter-impulse arising in ,eastern ,europe4 ,which1 too1 had it source on spiritual planes2 in the heart and on the lyre of blind ,maeonides2 and worked downward and outward1 till it had wrought on this plane a stable firmness in ,sparta1 an alertness in ,athens4 ,it contacted then the crest of the ,persian wave1 and received from the impact huge accession of vigor4 ,it blossomed in the ,age of ,pericles on the plane of mind and creative imagination4 ,it came down presently on to the plane of militarism1 and swelled out under ,alexander as far as to the eastern limits of the ,persian ,empire he overthrew4 ,where it met a tide beginning to rise in ,india2 and receded or remained stationary before that4 ,and at last it was spent1 and itself overthrown by a new impulse arisen in ,italy2 which took on impetus from contact with ,greece1 as ,greece had done from contact with ,persia4 ,the ,greeks of ,homer's and ,hesiod's time1 before the ,european manvantara1 elsewhere begun1 had reached or quickened them1 were uncouth and barbarous enough2 they may have stood1 to their great ,west ,asian neighbors1 as the ,moors of today to the nations of ,europe2 they may have stood1 in things cultural1 to the unknown nations of the north or west already at that time awakened1 as the ,chinese now and recently to the ,japanese4 ,like ,moors1 like ,chinese1 they had behind them traditions of an ancient greatness2 but pralaya1 fall1 adversity1 squalor1 had done their work on them1 developing the plebeian qualities4 ,now that they have emerged into modern history1 as then when they were emerging into ancient1 we find them with many like characteristics2 a turn for democracy1 for example2 the which they assuredly had not when they were passing into pralaya under the ,byzantine ,empire4 ,a turn for democracy2 plebeian qualities2 these are the things one would expect after pralaya1 if that pralaya had been at all disastrous4 ,with the ancient ,greeks1 the plebeian qualities were not all virtues by any means2 they retained through their great age many of the vices of plebeianism4 ,they won their successes for the most part on sporadic impulses of heroism2 shone by an extraordinary intellectual and artistic acumen4 ,but taking them by and large1 they were too apt to ineffectualize those successes1 in the fields of national and political life1 by extraordinary venality and instability of character4 ,i shall draw here deeply on ,professor ,mahaffy1 who very wisely sets out to restore the balance as between ,greeks and ,persians1 and burst bubble-notions commonly held4 ,greek culture was extremely varied1 and therein lay its strength2 you can find all sorts of types there2 and there are outstanding figures of the noblest4 ,but on the whole1 says ,mahaffy--,i think rightly--there was something sordid1 grasping1 and calculating3 noblesse oblige made little appeal to them--was rather foreign to their nature4 ,patricianism did exist2 in ,sparta2 perhaps in ,thebes4 ,of the two ,thebans we know best1 ,pindar was decidedly a patrician poet1 and ,epaminondas was a very great gentleman2 now ,thebes1 certainly1 must have been mighty in foregone manvantaras1 as witness her five cycles of myths1 the richest in ,greece4 ,in her isolation she had doubtless carried something of that old life down2 and then1 too1 she had ,pindar4 ,nor was ,sparta any upstart2--of her we have only heard ,athenians speak4 ,but outside of these two1 you hardly find a ,greek gentleman in public life2 hardly that combination of personal honor1 contempt of commerce1 class-pride1 leisured and cultured living2--with1 very often1 ultra-conservatism1 narrowness of outlook1 political ineptitude and selfishness4 ,the ,spartans had many of these instincts1 good and bad4 ,they reached their cultural zenith in the seventh century or earlier2 probably ,lycurgus had an eye to holding off that degeneration which follows on super-refinement2 and hence the severe life he brought in4 ,my authority makes much of the adoration the other ,greeks accorded them2 who might hate and fight with ,sparta1 but took infinite pride in her nonetheless4 ,thus they told those tales of the ,spartan mothers1 and the ,spartan boy the fox nibbled2 thus their philosophers1 painting an ,utopia1 took always most of its features from ,lacedaemon4 ,all of which ,i quote for the light's sake it throws on the past of ,greece3 the past of her past1 and the ages before her history4 ,or really1 on the whole history of the human race2 for ,i think it is what you shall find always1 or almost always4 ,i spoke of the ,celtic qualities as having been of old patrician2 they are plebeian nowadays1 after the long pralaya and renewal4 ,as a pebble is worn smooth by the sea1 so the patrician type1 with its refinements and culture1 is wrought out by the strong life currents that play through a race during its manvantaric periods4 ,pralaya comes1 with conquest1 the overturning of civilization1 mixture of blood2 all the precious results obtained hurled back into the vortex2--and then to be cast up anew with the new manvantara1 a new uncouth formless form1 to be played on1 shaped and infused by the life-currents again4 ,in ,greece an old manvantara had evolved patricianism and culture2 which the pralaya following swept all away1 except some relics perhaps in ,thebes the isolated and conservative1 certainly in ,sparta4 ,lycurgus was wise in his generation when he sought by a rigid system to impose the plebeian virtues on ,spartan patricianism4 ,wise in his generation1 yes2 but he could work no miracle4 ,spartan greatness1 too1 was ineffectual3 there is that about pouring new wine into old bottles4 ,sparta was old and conservative2 covered her patrician virtues with a rude uncultural exterior2 was inept politically--as old aristocracies so commonly are2 she shunned that love of the beautiful and the things of the mind which is the grace1 as ,bushido--to use the best name there is for it--is the virtue1 of the patrician4 ,you may say she was selfish and short-sighted2 true2 and yet she began the ,peloponnesian ,war not without an eye to freeing the cities and islands from the soulless tyranny an ,athenian democracy had imposed on them3 when there is a war1 some men will always be found1 who go in with unselfish high motives4-- ,being the patrician state1 and the admired of all1 it was she naturally who assumed the hegemony when the ,persian came4 ,but she had foregone the graces of her position1 and her wits1 through lack of culture1 were something dull4 ,she lost that leadership presently to a young democratic ,athens endowed with mental acumen and potential genius2 who1 too1 gained immeasurably from ,sparta1 because she knew how to turn everything to the quickening of her wits--this having at her doors so contrasting a neighbor1 for example4--,young8 ,well1 yes2 ,i suspect if there had ever been an ,athenian glory before1 it was ages before ,troy fell4 ,she plays no great part in the legends of the former manvantara2 ,homer has little to say about her4 ,she had paid tribute at one time to ,minos1 king of ,crete2 her greatness belonged not to the past1 but to the future4 ,as all ,greeks admired the ,spartans--what we call a 'sneaking' admiration--so too they admired the ,persians2 who were gentleman in a great sense1 and in most moral qualities their betters4 ,who was ,ho ,basileus1 ,the ,king par excellence8 ,always 'the ,great ,king1 the ,king of the ,persians4' ,others were mere kings of ,sparta1 or where it might be4 ,and this ,great ,king was a far-way1 tremendous1 golden figure1 moving in a splendor as of fairy tales2 palaced marvelously1 so travelers told1 in cities compared with which even ,athens seemed mean4 ,greek drama sought its subjects naturally in the remote and grandiose2 always in the myths of prehistory1 save once--when ,aeschylus found a kindred atmosphere1 and the material he wanted1 in the palace of the ,great ,king4 ,to whom1 as a matter of history1 not unrecorded by ,herodotus1 his great chivalrous barons accorded a splendid loyalty1--and loyalty is always a thing that lies very near the heart of ,bushido4 ,most ,greeks would cheerfully sell their native city upon an impulse of chagrin1 revenge1 or the like4 ,xerxes' ships were overladen1 and there was a storm2 the ,persian lords gaily jumped into the sea to lighten them4 ,such ,samurai action might not have been impossible to ,greeks1--,spartans especially2 but in the main their eyes did not wander far from the main chance4 ,you will think of many exceptions2 but this comes as near truth1 probably1 as a generalization may4 ,we should understand their temperament2 quick and sensitive1 capable of inspiration to high deeds2 but1 en masse1 rarely founded on enduring principles4 ,that jumping into the seas was nothing to the ,persians2 they were not sung to it2 it was not done in defense of home1 or upon a motive of sudden passion1 as hate or the like2 but permanent elements in their character moved them to it quietly1 as to the natural thing to do4 ,but if ,greeks had done it1 with what kudos1 like ,thermopylae1 it would have come down6 ,they were great magnificoes1 very lordly gentlemen1 those ,persian nobles2 hijosdalgo1 as they say in ,spain2 men of large lives1 splendor and leisure1 scorning trade2 mighty huntsmen before the ,lord4 ,of the ,greeks1 only the ,spartans were sportsmen2 but where the ,spartans hunted foxes and such-like small fry1 ,the ,persians followed your true dangerous wild-fowl3 lions1 leopards1 and tigers4 ,a great satrap could buy up ,greece almost at any time2 could put the ,greeks to war amongst themselves1 and finance his favorite side out of his own pocket4 ,on such a scale they lived2 and travelers and mercenaries brought home news of it to ,greece2 and ,greeks whose wealth might be fabulous strove to emulate the splendor they heard of4 ,the ,greeks made better heavy armor--one cause of the victories2 but for the most part the ,persian crafts and manufactures outshone the ,greek by far4 ,all these things ,i take from ,mahaffy1 who speaks of their culture as an ancestral dignity for superior to1 and different from1 the somewhat mercantile refinement of the ,greeks4 ,the secret of the difference is this3 the ,west ,asian manvantara1 to which the ,persians belonged1 was more than a thousand years older than the ,european manvantara1 to which the ,greeks belonged2 so the latter1 beside the former1 had an air of parvenu4 ,the ,greeks dwelt on the ,persian's borders2 and fought him when they must2 intrigued with or against him when they might2 called him barbarian for self-respect's sake--and admired and envied him always4 ,had he been really a barbarian1 in contact with their superior civilization1 he would have become degraded by the contact2 in such cases it always happens that the inferior sops up the vices only of his betters4 ,but ,alexander found the ,persians much the same courtly-mannered1 lordly-living1 mighty huntsmen they had been when ,herodotus described them2 and was ambitious that his ,europeans should mix with them on equal terms and learn their virtues4 ,where and when did this high tradition grow up8 ,there was not time enough1 ,i think1 in that half cycle between the rise of ,cyrus and ,marathon4 ,in truth we are to see in these regions vistas of empires receding back into the dimness1 difficult to sort out and fix their chronology4 ,cyrus overthrew the ,assyrian2 from whose yoke his people had freed themselves some fifteen years or so before4 ,the ,medes had been rising since the earlier part of that seventh century2 sometime then they brought the kindred race of ,persians under their sway4 ,sometime then1 too1 ,i am inclined to think1 lived the ,teacher ,zoroaster3 about whose date there is more confusion than about that of any other ,world ,reformer2 authorities differ within a margin of #fjjj years4 ,but ,taoism1 ,confucianism1 ,jainism1 ,buddhism1 and ,pythagoreanism all had their rise about this time2 the age of religions began then2 it was not a thing of chance1 but marked a definite change in the spiritual climate of the world4 ,the ,bundahish1 the ,parsee account of it1 says that he lived #beh years before ,alexander2 almost all scholars reject the figure--once more1 it is their nature to4 ,but you will note that #beh is about as much as to say #bfj1 which is twice the cycle of thirteen decades2 ,i think the probabilities are strong that the ,bundahish is right4 ,the chief grounds for putting him much earlier are these3 ,greek accounts say1 six thousand years before the ,greek time2 and there are known to have been kings in those parts1 long before ,cyrus1 by the name or title of ,mazdaka1--which word is from ,mazda1 the name of the ,god-,principle in ,zoroastrianism4 ,the explanation is this3 you shall find it in ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky3 there were many ,zoroasters2 this one we are speaking of was the last 7as ,gautama was the last of the ,buddhas72 and of course he invented nothing1 taught no new truth2 but simply organized as a religion ideas that had before belonged to the ,mysteries4 ,where then did his predecessors teach8--,where ,zal and ,rustem thundered as they might2 in the old ,iran of the ,shah ,nameh1 the land of ,kaikobad the ,great and ,kaikhusru4 ,too remote for all scholars even to agree that it existed2 set by those who do believe in it at about #aajj ,b4,c4--we hear of a ,powerful empire in ,bactria-- which is up towards ,afghanistan2 ,i take it that it was from this the ,persian tradition came--last down to1 and through1 the period of the ,achaemenidae4 ,what arts1 what literature1 these latter may have had1 are lost2 nothing is known of their creative and mental culture2 but1 to quote ,mahaffy once more1 it is exceedingly unlikely they had none4 ,dio ,chrysostom1 in the first century ,b4,c41 says that neither ,homer nor ,hesiod sang of the chariots and horses of ,zeus so worthily as ,zoroaster2 which may mean1 perhaps1 that a tradition still survived in his time of a great ,achaemenian poetry4 ,why then is this culture lost1 since if it existed1 it was practically contemporary with that of the ,greeks8 ,because contemporaneity is a most deceiving thing2 there is nothing in it4 ,persia now is not contemporary with ,japan2 nor modern ,china with ,europe or ,america4 ,the ,achaemenians are separated from us by two pralayas2 while between us and the ,greeks there is but one4 ,when our present ,europe has gone down1 and a new barbarism and ,middle ,ages have passed over ,france1 ,britain and ,italy1 and given place in turn to a new growth of civilization--what shall we know of this ,paris1 and ,florence1 and ,london8 ,as much and as little as we know now of ,greece and ,rome4 ,we shall dig them up and reconstruct them2 found our culture on theirs1 and think them very wonderful for mere centers of 7,christian7 paganism2 we shall marvel at their genius1 as shown in the fragments that go under the names of those totally mythological poets1 ,dante and ,milton2 and at their foul cruelty1 as shown by their capital punishment and their wars4 ,and what shall we know of ancient ,athens and ,rome8 ,our scholars will sneer at the superstition that they ever existed2 our theologians will say the world was created somewhat later4 ,or indeed1 no2 ,i think it will not be so4 ,i think we shall have established an abiding perception of truth3 ,theosophy will have smashed the backbone of this foolish ,kali-,yuga as a little1 before then4 ,so that ,creasy is all out in his estimate of the importance of ,marathon and the other victories4 ,wars are only straws to show which way the current flows2 and they do that only indifferently4 ,they are not the current themselves1 and they do not direct it2 and were men wise enough to avoid them1 better than the best that was ever won out of war would be won by other means that the ,law would provide4 ,and yet the ,human ,spirit will win something out of all eventualities1 even war1 if ,kama and the ,cycles permit4 ,in a non-political sense the ,persian ,wars bore huge harvest for ,greece2 the ,law used them to that end4 ,the great effort brought out all the latent resources of the ,athenian mind3 the successes heightened ,greek racial feeling to a pitch4 --,what6 we could stand against huge ,persia8--then we are not unworthy of the men that fought at ,ilion1 our fathers2 the race and spirit of anax andron ,agamemnon is not dead6 ,ha1 we can do anything2 there are no victories we may not win6 ,and here is the dead weight and terror of the war lifted from us2 and there is no anxiety now to hold our minds4 ,we may go forth conquering and to conquer2 we may launch our triremes on immaterial seas1 and subdue unknown empires of the spirit6--,and here is ,athens the quick-witted1 hegemon of ,greece2 her ships everywhere on the wine-dark seas2 her citizens everywhere2 her natural genius swelled by an enormous sense of achievement2 her soul1 grown great under a great stress1 now freed from the stress and at leisure to explore3--in contact with opposite-minded ,sparta2 in contact with conservative and somewhat luxuriously-living slow ,thebes2--with a hundred other cities2--in contact with proud ,persia2 with ,egypt1 fallen1 but retaining a measure of her old profound sense of the ,mysteries and the reality of the ,unseen2 --from all these contacts and sources a spirit is born in ,athens that is to astonish and illumine the world4 ,and ,egypt is now in revolt from the ,persian2 and intercourse with her is easier than ever before in historical times2 and the triremes1 besides what spiritual cargoes they may be bringing in from her1 are bringing in cargoes of honest material papyrus to tempt men to write down their thoughts4--,so the flowering of ,greece became inevitable2 the ,law intended it1 and brought about all the conditions4 ,,iv--,,aeschylus ,,and ,,his ,,athens ,greece holds such an eminence in history because the ,crest-,wave rolled in there when it did4 ,she was tenant of an epochal time2 whoever was great then1 was to be remembered forever4 ,but the truth is1 ,greece served the future badly enough4 ,the sixth and fifth centuries ,b4 ,c4 were an age of transition1 in which the world took a definite step downward4 ,there had been present among men a great force to keep the life of the nations sweet3 that which we call the ,mysteries of ,antiquity4 ,whether they had been active continuously since this ,fifth ,root ,race began1 who can say8 ,very possibly not2 for in a million years cycles would repeat themselves1 and ,i dare say conditions as desolate as our own have obtained4 ,there may have been withdrawals1 and again expansions outward4 ,but certainly they were there at the dawn of history1 and for a long time before4 ,what their full effect may have been1 we can only guess2 for when the history that we know begins1 they were already declining3--we get no definite news1 except of the ,iron ,age4 ,the ,mysteries were not closed at ,eleusis until late in the days of the ,roman ,empire2 and we know that such a great man as ,julian did not disdain to be initiated4 ,but they were only a remnant then1 an ever-indrawing source of inspiration2 already a good century before ,pericles they must have ceased to rule life4 ,pythagoras--born1 probably1 in the five-eighties--had found it necessary1 to obtain that with which spirituality might be reawakened1 to travel and learn what he could in ,india1 ,egypt1 ,chaldaea1 and1 according to ,porphyry and tradition1 among the ,druids in ,gaul--and very likely ,britain1 their acredited headquarters4 ,from these countries he brought home ,theosophy to ,greek ,italy2 and all this suggests that he--and the race--needed something that ,eleusis could no longer give4 ,about the same time ,buddha and the founder of ,jainism in ,india1 ,laotse and ,confucius in ,china1 and as we have seen1 probably also ,zoroaster in ,persia1 all broke away from the ,official ,mysteries1 more or less1 to found ,theosophical ,movements of their own2 --which would indicate that1 at least from the ,tyrrhenian to the ,yellow ,sea1 the ,mysteries had1 in that sixth century1 ceased to be the efficient instrument of the ,white ,lodge4 ,the substance of the ,ancient ,wisdom might remain in them2 the energy was largely gone4 ,pisistratus did marvels for ,athens2 lifting her out of obscurity to a position which should invite great souls to seek birth in her4 ,he died in #ebg2 two years later a son was born to the ,eupatrid ,euphorion at ,eleusis2 and ,i have no doubt there was some such stir over the event1 on ,olympus or on ,parnassus1 as happened over a birth at ,stratford-on-,avon in #aefd1 and one in ,florence in the ,may of #abfe4 ,in #eaj1 ,hippias1 grown cruel since the assassination of his brother1 was driven out from an ,athens already fomenting with the yeast of new things4 ,about that time this young ,eleusinian ,eupatrid was set to watch grapes ripening for the vintage1 and fell asleep4 ,in his dream ,dionysos1 ,god of the ,mysteries1 appeared to him and bade him write tragedies for the ,dionysian ,festival4 ,on waking1 he found himself endowed with genius3 beset inwardly with tremendous thoughts1 and words to clothe them in2 so that the work became as easy to him as if he had been trained to it for years4 ,he competed first in #dii--;against ,choerilos and ,pratinas1 older poets--and was defeated2 and soon afterwards sailed for ,sicily1 where he remained for seven years4 ,the dates of ,pythagoras are surmised1 not known2 ,plumptre1 with a query1 gives #dig for his death4 ,i wonder whether1 in the last years of his life1 that great ,teacher met this young ,aeschylus from ,athens2 whether the years the latter spent in ,sicily on this his first visit there1 were the due seven years of his ,pythagorean probation and initiation8 ,veniat ,aeschylus1 says ,cicero1 non poeta solum1 sed etiam ,pythagoreus3 sic enim accepimus 2--and we may accept it too2 for that was the ,theosophical ,movement of the age2 and he above all others1 ,pythagoras having died1 was the great ,theosophist4 ,they had the ,eleusinian ,mysteries at ,athens1 and ,most of the prominent ,athenians must have been initiated into them--since that was the ,state ,religion2 but ,aeschylus alone in ,athens went through life clothed in the living power of ,theosophy4 ,go to the life of such a man1 if you want big clues as to the inner history of his age2--the life of ,aeschylus1 ,i think1 can interpret for us that of ,athens4 ,there are times when the movement of the cycles is accelerated1 and you can see the great wheel turning2 this was one4 ,aeschylus had proudly distinguished himself at ,marathon2 and ,athens1 as the highest honor she could do him for that1 must have his portrait appear in the battle-picture painted for a memorial of the victory4 ,he fought1 too1 at ,artemisium and ,salamis2 with equal distinction4 ,in #dhd he won the first of thirteen annual successes in the dramatic competitions4 ,these were the years during which ,athens was really playing the hero2 the years of ,aristides' ascendency4 ,in #dhj ,xerxes burned the city2 but the people fought on1 great in faith4 ,in #dgi came ,plataea1 ,aeschylus again fighting4 ,throughout this time1 he1 the ,esotericist and ,messenger of the ,gods1 was wholly at one with his ,athens--an ,athens alive enough then to the higher things to recognize the voice of the highest when it spoke to her--to award ,aeschylus1 year after year1 the chief dramatic prize4 ,then in #dgh or #dgg she found herself in a new position3 her heroism and intelligence had won their reward1 and she was set at the head of ,greece4 ,six years later ,aeschylus produced ,the ,persians1 the first of the seven extant out of the seventy or eighty plays he wrote2 in it he is still absolutely the patriotic ,athenian4 ,in #dga came the ,seven against ,thebes2 from which drama1 ,i think1 we get a main current of light on the whole future history of ,athens4 ,two men1 representing two forces1 had guided the city during those decades4 ,on the one hand there was ,aristides1 called the ,just--inflexible1 incorruptible1 impersonal and generous2 on the other1 ,themistocles--precocious and wild as a boy2 profligate as a youth and young man2 ambitious1 unscrupulous and cruel2 a genius2 a patriot2 without moral sense4 ,the policy of ,aristides1 despite his so-called democratic reforms1 was conservative2 he persuaded ,greece1 by sound arguments1 to the side of ,athens3 he was for ,athens doing her duty by ,greece1 and remaining content4 ,that of ,themistocles was that she should aim at empire by any means3 should make herself a sea-power with a view to dominating the ,greek world4 ,oh1 to begin with1 doubtless with a view to holding back the ,persians2 and so far his policy was sane enough2 but his was not the kind of mind in which an ambitious idea fails to develop in ambitious and greedy directions2 and that of mastery of the seas was an idea that could not help developing fatally4 ,he had been banished for his corruption in #dga2 but he had set ,athens on blue water1 and bequeathed to her his policy4 ,henceforward she was to make for supremacy1 never counting the moral cost4 ,she attacked the islands at her pleasure1 conquered them1 and often treated the conquered with vile cruelty4 ,the ,seven against ,thebes was directed by ,aeschylus against the ,themistoclean1 and in support of the ,aristidean1 policy4 ,imperialistic ambitions1 fast ripening in that third decade of the fifth century1 were opposed by the ,messenger of the ,gods4 ,his valor in four battles had set him among the national heroes2 he had been1 in ,the ,persians1 the laureate of ,salamis2 by the sheer grandeur of his poetry he had won the prize thirteen times in succession4--,and by the bye1 it is to the eternal credit of ,athenian intelligence that ,athens1 at one hearing of those obscure1 lofty and tremendous poems1 should have appreciated them1 and with enthusiasm4 ,try to imagine ,samson ,agonistes put on the stage today2 with no academical enthusiasts or eclat of classicism to back it2 but just put on before thirty thousand sight-seers1 learned and vulgar1 statesman and cobbler1 tinker and poet2 the mob all there2 the groundlings far out-numbering the elite3--and all not merely sitting out the play1 but roused to a frenzy of enthusiasm2 and ,milton himself1 present and acting1 the hero of the day4 ,that1 despite ,mr4 ,whistler and the ,ten ,o',clock--seems really to have been the kind of thing that happened in ,athens4 ,tomides was there1 with his companions-- little ,tomides1 the mender of bad soles--and intoxicated by the grand poetry2 understanding it1 and never finding it tedious2-- poetry they had had no opportunity to study in advance1 they understood and appreciated wildly at first hearing4 ,one cannot imagine it among moderns4--,and ,milton is clear as daylight beside remote and difficult ,aeschylus4 ,to catch the latter's thought1 we need the quiet of the study1 close attention1 reading and re-reading2 and though of course time has made him more difficult2 and we should have understood him better1 with no more than our present limited intelligence1 had we been his countrymen and contemporaries2 yet it remains a standing marvel1 and witness to the far higher general intelligence of the men of ,athens4 ,the human spirit was immensely nearer this plane2 they were far more civilized1 in respect to mental culture1 than we are4 ,why8--,the cycles have traveled downward2 our triumphs are on a more brutal plane2 we are much farther from the light of the ,mysteries than they were4 ,and yet they were going wrong3 the great cycle had begun its down-trend2 they were already preparing the way for our fool-headed materialism4 ,in the ,seven against ,thebes ,aeschylus protested against the current of the age4 ,three years later1 ,athens1 impatient of criticism1 turned on him4 ,he is acting in one of his own plays--one that been lost4 ,he gives utterance1 down there in the arena1 to certain words-- tremendous words1 as always1 we must suppose3 words hurled out of the heights of an angry eternity-- ,aeschylus' bronze-throat eagle-bark for blood1 --and ,athens1 that used to thrill and go mad to such tones when they proclaimed the godlike in her own soul and encouraged her to grand aspirations--goes mad now in another sense4 ,she has grown used to hear warning in them1 and something in alliance with her own stifled conscience protesting against her wrong courses2 and such habituation rarely means acquiescence or soothed complacency4 ,now she is smitten and stung to the quick4 ,a yell from the mob2 uproar2 from the tiers above tiers they butt1 lurch1 lunge1 pour forward and down3 the tinkers and cobblers1 demagogs and demagoged3 intent--yes--to kill4 ,but he1 having yet something to say1 takes refuge at the altar2 and there even a maddened mob dare not molest him4 ,but the prize goes to a rising star1 young ,sophocles2 and presently the ,gods' ,messenger is formally accused and tried for ,profanation of the ,mysteries4 ,revealing secrets pertaining to them1 in fact4 ,and now note this3 his defense is that he did not know that his lines revealed any secret--was unaware that what he had said pertained to the ,mysteries4 ,could he have urged such a plea1 had it not been known he was uninitiated8 ,could he have known the teachings1 had he not been instructed in a school where they were known8 ,he1 then1 was an initiate of the ,pythagoreans1 the new ,theosophical ,movement upon the new method2 not of ,orthodox ,eleusis1 that had grown old and comatose rather1 and had ceased to count4--,well1 the judges were something saner than the mob2 memory turned again to what he had done at ,marathon1 what at ,arternisium and ,plataea2 to his thirteen solid years of victory 7national heroism on poetico-dramatic fields72 and to that song of his that saved at ,salamis3 ,o ,sons of ,greeks1 go set your country free6 --and he was acquitted3 ,athens had not yet fallen so low as to prepare a hemlock cup for her teacher4 ,but meanwhile he would do much better among his old comrades in ,sicily than at home2 and thither he went4 ,he returned in #deh1 to find the ,age of ,pericles in full swing2 with all made anew1 or in the making2 and the time definitely set on its downward course4 ',reform' was busy at abolishing institutions once held sacred2 was the rage2--that funeral speech of ,pericles1 with its tactless vaunting of ,athenian superiority to all other possible men and nations1 should tell us something4 ,when folk get to feel like that1 ,god pity and forgive them6--it is hard enough for mere men to4 ,aeschylus smote at imperialism in the ,agamemnon--the first play of this last of his trilogies2 and at the mania for reforming away sacred institutions in the ,eumenides--where he asserts the divine origin of the threatened ,areopagus4 ,popular feeling rose once more against him1 and he returned to ,sicily to die4 ,like so many another of his royal line1 apparently a failure4 ,and indeed1 a failure he was1 so far as his ,athens was concerned4 ,true1 ,athenian artistic judgment triumphed presently over the ,athenian spite4 ,though it was the rule that no successful play should be performed more than once1 they decreed that 'revivals' of ,aeschylus should always be in order4 ,and ,aristophanes testifies to his lasting popularity--when he shows little ,tomides with a bad grouch over seeing a play by ,theognis1 when he had gone to the theater expecting ,aeschylus2--and when he shows ,aeschylus and ,euripides winning1 because his poetry had died with him1 and so he had it there for a weapon--whereas ,aeschylus's was still alive and on earth4 ,yes2 ,athens took him again1 and permanently1 into favor3 took the poet1 but not the ,messenger and his message4 ,for she had gone on the wrong road in spite of him3 she had let the divine force1 the influx of the human spirit which had come to her as her priceless cyclic opportunity1 flow down from the high planes proper to it1 on to the plane of imperialism and vulgar ambition2 and his word had been spoken to the ,greeks in vain--as all ,greek history and ,karma since has been proclaiming4 ,but in sooth he was not merely for an age1 but for all time2 and his message1 unlike ,pindar's whom all ,greece worshiped1 and far more than ,homer's or that of ,sophocles--is vital today4 ,aeschylus1 and ,plato1 and ,socrates who speaks through ,plato1 and ,pythagoras who speaks through all of them1 are the ,greeks whose voices are lifted forever for the ,soul4 ,even the political aspect of his message--the only one ,i have touched on--is vital4 ,it proclaims a truth that underlies all history3 one1 ,i suspect1 that remains for our ,theosophical ,movement to impress on the general world-consciousness so that wars may end3 namely1 that the impulse of ,nationalism is a holy thing1 foundationed upon the human spirit3 a means designed by the ,law for humanity's salvation4 ,but like all spiritual forces1 it must be kept pure and spiritual1 or instead of saving1 it will damn4 ,in its inception1 it is vision of the ,soul3 of the ,racial or ,national ,soul--which is a divine light to lure us away from the plane of personality1 to obliterate our distressing and private moods2 to evoke the divine actor in us1 and merge us in a consciousness vastly greater than out own4 ,but add to that saving truth this damning corolary3 ,i am better than thou2 my race than thine2 we have harvests to reap at your expense1 and our rights may be your wrongs3--and you have1 though it appear not for awhile1 fouled that stream from godhood3--you have debased your nationalism and made it hellish4 ,upon your ambitions and your strength1 now in the time of your national flowering1 you may win to your desire1 if you will2 because now the spirit is quickening the whole fiber of your national self2 and the national will must become1 under that pressure1 almost irresistibly victorious4 ,the ,peoples of the earth shall kneel before your throne2 you shall get your vulgar empire2--but you shall get it presently1 as they say1 where the chicken got the axe3 ,vengeance is mine1 saith the ,law2 ,i will repay4 ,the cycle1 on the plane to which you have dragged it down1 will run its course2 your high throne will go down with it1 and yourself shall kneel to races you now sniff at for 'inferior4' ,you have brought it on to the material plane1 and are now going upward on its upward trend there gaily-- ,ah1 let no evil lust attack the host ,conquered by greed1 to plunder what they ought not2 ,for yet they need return in safety home1 ,doubling the goal to run their backward race ,agamemnon1 ,plumtre's translation ,the downtrend of the cycle awaits you--the other half--just as the runner in the foot-races to win1 must round the pillar at the far end of the course1 and return to the starting-place4--,that is among the warnings ,aeschylus spoke in the ,agamemnon to an ,athens that was barefacedly conquering and enslaving the ,isles of ,greece to no end but her own wealth and power and glory4 ,the obvious reference is of course to the conquerors of ,troy4 ,i have spoken of this ,oresteian ,trilogy as his ,hamlet2 with the ,prometheus ,bound--another tremendous ,soul-,symbol--it is what puts him in equal rank with the four supreme ,masters of later ,western ,literature4 ,i suppose it is pretty certain that ,shakespeare knew nothing of him1 and had never heard of the plot of his ,agamemnon4 ,but look here3-- ,there was one ,hamlet ,king of ,denmark1 absent from control of his kingdom because sleeping within his orchard 7his custom always of an afternoon74 ,and there was one ,agamemnon ,king of ,men1 absent from control of his kingdom because leading those same ,men at the siege of ,troy4 ,hamlet had a wife ,gertrude2 ,agamemnon had a wife ,clytemnestra4 ,hamlet had a brother ,claudius2 who became the lover of ,gertrude4 ,agamemnon had a cousin ,aegisthos1 who became the paramour of ,clytemnestra4 ,claudius murdered ,hamlet1 and thereby came by his throne and queen4 ,clytemnestra and ,aegisthos murdered ,agamemnon1 and ,aegisthos thereby became possessed of his throne and queen4 ,hamlet and ,gertrude had a son ,hamlet1 who avenged his father's murder4 ,agamemnon and ,clytemnestra had a son ,orestes1 who avenged his father's murder4 ,there1 however1 the parallel ends4 ,shakespeare had to paint the human soul at a certain stage of its evolution3 the 'moment of choice1' the entering on the path3 and brought all his genius to bear on revealing that4 ,he had1 here1 to teach ,karma only incidentally2 in ,macbeth1 when the voice cried ',sleep no more6' he is more ,aeschylean in spirit4 ,that dreadful voice rings through ,aeschylus2 who was altogether obsessed with the majesty and awfulness of ,karma4 ,it is what he cried to ,athens then1 and to all ages since1 reiterating ,karma with terrible sleep-forbidding insistency from dark heights4--,i have quoted the wonderful line in which ,browning1 using similes borrowed from ,aeschylus himself1 sums up the effect of his style3 ',aeschylus' bronze-throat eagle-bark for blood1' which compensates for the more than ,greek--unintelligibility of ,browning's version of the ,agamemnon3 it gives you some color1 some adumbration of the being and import of the man4 ,how shall we compare him with those others1 his great compeers on the ,mountain of ,song8 ,shakespeare--as ,i think--throned upon a peak where are storms often1 but where the sun shines mostly2 surveying all this life1 and with an eye to the eternal behind3 ,dante--a prophet1 stern1 proud1 glad and sorrowful2 ever in a great pride of pain or agony of bliss2 surveying the life without1--only to correlate it with and interpret it by the vaster life within that he knew better2--this ,universe for him but the crust and excoriata of the ,universe of the ,soul4 ,milton--a ,titan ,soul hurled down from heaven1 struggling with all chaos and the deep to enunciate--just to proclaim and put on everlasting record-- those two profound significant words1 ,titan and ,soul1 for a memorial to ,man of the real nature of ,man4 ,aeschylus--the barking of an eagle--of ,zeus the ,thunderer's own eagle out of ominous skies above the mountains3 a thing unseen as ,karma1 mysterious and mighty as ,fate1 as ,disaster1 as the final ,triumph of the ,soul2 sublime as death2 a throat of bronze1 superhumanly impersonal2 a far metallic clangor of sound1 hoarse or harsh1 perhaps1 if your delicate ears must call him so2 but grand2 immeasurably grand2 majestically1 ominously and terribly grand2-- ancestral voices prophesying war1 and doom1 and all dark tremendous destinies2--and yet he too with serenity and the ,prophecy of ,peace and bliss for his last word to us3 he will not leave his avenging ,erinyes until by ,pallas' wand and will they are transformed into ,eumenides1 bringers of good fortune4 ,something like that1 perhaps1 is the impression ,aeschylus leaves on the minds of those who know him4 ,they bear testimony to the fact that1 however grand his style--like a ,milton ,carlylized in poetry--thought still seems to overtop it and to be struggling for expression through a vehicle less than itself4 ,says ,lytton1 not unwisely perhaps3 ,his genius is so near the verge of bombast1 that to approach his sublime is to rush into the ridiculous2 and he goes on to say that you might find the nearest echo of his diction in ,shelley's ,prometheus2 but of his diction alone2 for his power is in concentration--that of ,shelley in diffuseness4 ,the intellectuality of ,shelley1 he says1 destroyed2 that of ,aeschylus only increased his command over the passions4 ,the interest he excites is startling1 terrible1 intense4 ,browning tried to bring over the style2 but left the thought1 in an ,english ,double-,dutched1 far remoter than he found it from our understanding4 ,the thought demands in ,english a vehicle crystal-clear2 but ,aeschylus in the ,greek is not crystal-clear3 so close-packed and vast are the ideas that there are lines on lines of which the best scholars can only conjecture the meaning4--,in all this criticism1 let me say1 one is but saying what has been said before2 echoing ,professor ,mahaffy2 echoing ,professor ,gilbert ,murray2 but there is a need to give you the best picture possible of this man speaking from the eternal4--,unless ,milton and ,carlyle had co-operated to make it1 ,i think1 any translation of the ,agamemnon--which so many have tried to translate--would be fatiguing and a great bore to read4 ,it may not be amiss to quote three lines from ,george ,peel's ,david and ,bethsabe1 which have been often called ,aeschylean in audacity3-- ,at him the thunder shall discharge his bolt1 ,and his fair spouse1 with bright and fiery wings1 ,sit ever burning on his hateful wings2 ,his--the thunder's--fair spouse is the lightning4 ,imagine images as swift1 vivid and daring as that1 hurled and flashed out in language terse1 sudden1 lofty--and you may get an idea of what this eagle's bark was like4 ,and the word that came rasping and resounding on it out of storm-skies high over ,olympus1 for ,athens then and the world since to hear1 was ,,karma4 ,he took that theme1 and drove it home1 and drove it home1 and drove it home4 ,athens disregarded the rights and sufferings of others2 was in fact abominably cruel4 ,well2 she should hear about ,karma2 and in such a way that she should--no1 but she should-- give ear4 ,karma punished wrong-doing4 ,it was wrong-doing that ,karma punished4 ,you could not do wrong with impunity4--,the common thought was that any extreme of good fortune was apt to rouse the jealousy of the ,gods1 and so bring on disaster4 ,this was what ,pindar taught--all-worshiped prosperous ,pindar1 ,aeschylus' contemporary1 the darling poet of the ,greeks4 ,the idea is illustrated by ,herodotus' story of the ,ring of ,polycrates4 ,you remember how the latter1 being tyrant of ,samos1 applied to ,amasis of ,egypt for an alliance4 ,but wary ,amasis1 noting his invariable good luck1 advised him to sacrifice something1 lest the ,gods should grow jealous3 so ,polycrates threw a ring into the sea1 with the thought thus to appease ,nemesis cheaply2 but an obliging fish allowed itself to be caught and served up for his supper with the ring in its internal economy2 on hearing of which1 wary ,amasis foresaw trouble1 and declined the alliance with thanks4 ,such views or feelings had come to be ,greek orthodoxy2 you may take it that whatever ,pindar said was not far from the orthodoxies--hence his extreme popularity3 we dearly love a man who tells us grandly what we think ourselves1 and think it right to think4 ,but such a position would not do for ,aeschylus4 ,he noted his doctrine only to condemn it4 ,there live an old saw framed in ancient days ,in memories of men1 that high estate1 ,full grown1 brings forth its young1 nor childless dies1 ,but that from good success ,springs to the race a woe insatiable4 ,but ,i1 apart from all1 ,hold this my creed alone3 ,ill deeds along bring forth offspring of ill ,like to their parent stock4 ,needless to say the translation--,dean ,plumptre's in the main-- fails to bring out the force of the original4 ,we must remember that for his audiences the story he had to tell was not the important thing4 ,they knew it in advance2 it was one of their familiar legends4 ,what they went to hear was ,aeschylus' treatment of it2 his art1 his poetry1 his preaching4 ,that was what was new to them3 the thing for which their eyes and ears were open4 ,we go to the theater1 as we read novels1 for amusement2 the ,athenians went for aesthetic and religious ends4 ,so ,aechylus had ready for him an efficient pulpit2 and was not suspect for using it4 ,we like ,movies shows because they are entertaining and exciting2 the ,athenian would have damned them because they are inartistic4 ,i said1 he had a pulpit ready for him2 yet1 as nearly as such a statement can come to truth1 it was he himself who invented the drama4 ,it was1 remember1 an age of transition3 things were passing out from the inner planes3 the ,mysteries were losing their virtue4 ,the ,egyptian ,mysteries had been dramatic in character2 the ,eleusinian1 which were very likely borrowed or copied or introduced from ,egypt1 were no doubt dramatic too4 ,then there had been festivals among the rustics1 chiefly in honor of ,dionysos not altogether in his higher aspects1 with rudimentary plays of a coarse buffoonish character4 ,by #dii1 in ,athens1 these had grown to something more important2 in that year the wooden scaffolding of the theater in which they were given broke down under the spectators2 and this led to the building of a new theater in stone4 ,it was in #dii ,aeschylus first competed2 the show was still very rudimentary in character4 ,then he went off to ,sicily2 and came back with the idea conceived of ,greek ,tragedy as an artistic vehicle or expression--and something more4 ,he taught the men who had at first defeated him1 how to do their later and better work2 and opened the way for all who came after1 from ,sophocles to ,racine4 ,he took to sailing this new ship of the drama as near as he might to the shore-line of the ,mysteries themselves2--indeed1 he did much more than this2 for he infused into his plays that wine of divine life then to be found in its purity and vigor only or chiefly in the ,pythagorean ,brotherhood4--,and now as to this new art-form of his4 ,de ,quincey1 accepting the common idea that the ,dionysian ,theater was built to seat between thirty and forty thousand spectators 7every free ,athenian citizen71 argues that the formative elements that made ,greek ,tragedy what it was were derived from these huge dimensions4 ,in such a vast building 7he asks7 how could you produce such a play as ,hamlet8--where the art of the actor shows itself in momentary changes of expression1 small byplay that would be lost1 and the like4 ,the figures would be dwarfed by the distances2 stage whispers and the common inflexions of the speaking voice would be lost4 ,so none of these things belonged to ,greek ,tragedy4 ,the mere physical scale necessitated a different theory of art4 ,the stature of the actors had to be increased1 or they would have looked like pygmies2 their figures had to be draped and muffled1 to hide the unnatural proportions thus given them4 ,a mask had to be worn1 if only to make the head proportionate to the body2 and the mask had to contain an arrangement for multiplying the voice1 that it might carry to the whole audience4 ,that implied that the lines should be chanted1 not spoken2--though in any case1 chanted they would be1 for they were verse1 not prose2 and the ,greeks had not forgotten1 as we have1 that verse is meant to be chanted4 ,so here1 to begin with1 the whole scheme implied something as unlike actual life as it well could be4 ,and then1 too1 there was the solemnity of the occasion--the religious nature of the whole festival4 ,thus1 in substance ,de ,quincey2 who makes too little1 perhaps1 of the matter of that last sentence2 and too much of what goes before4 ,we may say that it was rather the grand impersonal theory of the art that created the outward condition2 not the conditions that created the theory4 ,mahaffy went to ,athens and measured the theater2 and found it not so big by any means4 ,they could have worked out our theories and practice in it1 had they wanted to1 so far as that goes4 ,coarse buffoonish country festivals do not of themselves evolve into grand art or solemn occasions2 you must seek a cause for that evolution1 and find it in an impulse arisen in some human mind4 ,or minds indeed2 for such impulses are very mysterious4 ,the ,gods sow their seed in season2 we do not see the sowing1 but presently mark the greening of the brown earth4 ,the method of the ,mysteries--drama serious and religious--had been drifting outwards3 things had been growing to a point where a great creative ,soul could take hold of them and mold them to his wish4 ,if ,aeschylus was not an ,initiate of ,eleusis1 he had learnt1 with the ,pythagoreans1 the method of the ,mysteries of all lands4 ,he knew more1 not less1 than the common pillars of the ,athenian ,church and ,state4 ,i imagine it was he1 in those thirteen consecutive years of his victories1 who in part created1 in part drew from his ,pythagorean knowledge1 those conventions and circumstances for ,tragedy which suited him--rather than that conventions already existing imposed formative limits on him4 ,his genius was aloof1 impersonal1 severe1 and of the substance of the ,eternal2 such as would need precisely those conventions1 and must have created them had they not been there4 ,briefly1 ,i believe that this is what happened4 ,sent by ,pythagoras to do what he could for ,athens and ,greece1 he forged this mighty bolt of tragedy to be his weapon4 ,the theory of modern drama is imitation of life4 ,it has nothing else and higher to offer2 so1 when it fails to imitate1 we call it trash4 ,but the theory of ,aeschylean ,tragedy is the illumination of life4 ,illumination of life1 through a medium quite unlike life4 ,art begins on a spiritual plane1 and works down to realism in its decadence2 then it ceases to be art at all1 and becomes merely copying what we imagine to be nature1--nature1 often1 as seen through a diseased liver and well-atrophied pineal gland4 ,true art imitates nature only in a very selective and limited way4 ,it chooses carefully what it shall imitate1 and all to the end of illumination4 ,it paints a flower1 or a sunset1 not to reproduce the thing seen with the eyes1 but to declare and set forth that mood of the ,oversoul which the flower or the sunset expressed4 ,flower-colors or sunset-colors cannot be reproduced in pigments2 but you can do things with pigments and a brush that can tell the same story4 ,or it can be done in words1 in a poem2 or with the notes of music2--in both of which cases the medium used is still more1 and totally1 unlike the medium through which the ,oversoul said its say in the sky or the blossom4 ,nature is always expressing these moods of the ,oversoul2 but we get no news of them1 as a rule1 from our own sight and hearing2 we must wait for the poets and artists to interpret them4 ,life is always at work to teach us life2 but we miss the grand lessons1 usually1 until some human ,teacher enforces them4 ,his methods are the same as those of the artists3 between whose office and his there was at first no difference2--,bard means only1 originally1 an ,adept ,teacher4 ,such a one selects experiences out of life for his pupils1 and illumines them through the circumstances under which they are applied2 just as the true artist selects objects from nature1 and by his manner of treating them1 interprets the greatness that lies beyond4 ,so the drama-theory of ,aeschylus4 ,he took fragments of possible experience1 and let them be seen through a heightened and interpretative medium2 with a light at once intense and somber- portentous thrown on them2 and this not to reproduce the externalia and appearance of life1 but to illumine its inner recesses2 to enforce1 in plays lasting an hour or so1 the lessons life may take many incarnations to teach4 ,this cannot be done by realism1 imitation or reproduction of the actual2 than which life itself is always better4 ,what keeps us from seeing the meanings of life8 ,personality4 ,not only our own1 but in all those about us4 ,personality dodges and flickers always between our eyes and the solemn motions1 the adumbrations of the augustness beyond4 ,we demand lots of personality in our drama2 we call it character-drawing4 ,we want to see fellows like ourselves lounging or bustling about1 and hear them chattering as we do2--fellows with motives 7like our own7 all springing from the personality4 ,human life is what interests us3 we desire to drink deep of it1 and drink again and again4 ,the music that we wish to hear is the still1 sad music of humanity2--that is1 taking our theory at its best1 and before you come down to sheer 'jazz' and ragtime4 ,but what interested ,aeschylus was that which lies beyond and within life4 ,he said3 ',you can get life in the ,agora1 on the ,acropolis1 any day of the week2 when you come to the theater you shall have something else1 and greater4' ,so he set his scenes1 either in a vast1 remote1 and mysterious antiquity1 or--in ,the ,persians--at ,susa before the palace of the ,great ,king3 a setting as remote1 splendid1 vast1 and mysterious1 to the ,greek mind of the day1 as the other4 ,things should not be as like life1 but as unlike life1 as possible4 ,the plays themselves1 as acted1 were a combination of poetry1 dance1 statuesque poses and motions and groupings2 there was no action4 ,all the action was done off the scenes4 ,they did not portray the evolution of character2 they hardly portrayed character--in the personal sense--at all4 ,the dramatis personae are types1 symbols1 the expression of natural forces1 or principles in man4 ,in our drama you have a line1 an extension forward in time2 a progression from this to that point in time2--in ,greek ,tragedy you have a cross-section of time--a cutting through the atom of time that glimpses may be caught of eternity4 ,there was no unfoldment of a story2 but the presentation of a single mood4 ,in the chanted poetry and the solemn dance-movements a situation was set forth2 what led up to it being explained retrospectively4 ,the audience knew what was coming as well as the author did3 that ,agamemnon1 for instance1 was to be murdered4 ,so all was written to play on their expectations1 not on their surprise4 ,there was a succession of perfect pictures2 these and the poetry were to hold the interest1 to work it up3 to seize upon the people1 and lead them by ever-heightening accessions of feeling into forgetfulness of their personal lives1 and absorption in the impersonal harmony1 the spiritual receptivity1 from which the grand truths are visible4 ,the actors' masks allowed only the facial expression of a single mood2 and it was a single mood the dramatist aimed to produce3 a unity2 one great word4 ,there could be no grave-diggers2 no quizzing of ,polonious2 no clouds very like a whale4 ,the whole drama is the unfoldment of a single moment3 that1 say1 in which ,hamlet turns on ,caudius and kills him--rather1 leads him out to kill him4 ,to that you are led by a little sparse dialog1 ominous enough1 and pregnant with dire significance1 between two or three actors2 many long speeches in which the story is told in retrospect2 much chanting by the chorus--,horatio multiplied by a dozen or so--to make you feel ,hamlet's long indecision1 and to allow you no escape from the knowledge that ,claudius' crime would bring about its karmic punishment4 ,it is a unity3 one thunderbolt from ,zeus2--first the growl and rumbling of the thunders2 then the whirr of the dread missile1--and lo1 the man dead that was to die4 ,and through the bolt so hurled1 so effective1 and with it--the eagle-bark--,aeschylus crying ,karma6 to the ,athenians4 ,so it has been said that ,aeschylean ,tragedy is more nearly allied to sculpture2 ,shakespearean ,tragedy to the ,epic4 ,think how that unchanging mask1 that frozen moment of expression1 would develop the quality of tragic irony4 ,in it ,clytemnestra comes out to greet the returning ,agamemnon4 ,she has her handmaids carpet the road for him with purple tapestries2 she makes her speeches of welcome2 she alludes to the old sacrifice of ,iphigenia2 she tells him how she has waited for his return2-- and all the while the audience knows she is about to kill him4 ,they listen to her doubtful words1 in which she reveals to them1 who know both already1 her faithlessness and dire purpose2 but to her husband1 seems to reveal something different altogether4 ,with ,agamemnon comes ,cassandra from fallen ,troy3 whose fate was to foresee all woes and horror1 and to forthtell what she saw-- and never to be believed2 so now when she raises her dreadful cry1 foreseeing what is about to happen1 and uttering warning-- none believe her but the audience1 who know it all in advance4 ,and then there are the chantings of the chorus1 a group of ,argive elders4 ,they know or guess how things stand between the queen and her lover2 they express their misgiving1 gathering as the play goes on2 they recount the deeds of violence of which the ,house of ,atreus has been the scene1 and are haunted by the foreshadowings of ,karma4 ,but they many not understand or give credence to the warnings of ,cassandra3 ,karma disallows fore-fending against the fall of its bolts4 ,troy has fallen1 they say3 and that was ,karma2 because ,paris1 and ,troy in supporting him1 had sinned against ,zeus the patron of hospitality1--to whom the offense rose like vultures with rifled nest1 wheeling in mid-heaven on strong oars of wings1 screaming for retribution4 --,you may not that ,aeschylus' freedom from the bonds of outer religion is like ,shakespeare's own3 here ,zeus figures as symbol of the ,lords of ,karma2 from him flow the severe readjustments of the ,law2--but in the ,prometheus ,bound he stands for the lower nature that crucifies the ,higher4 ,troy1 then1 had sinned1 and has fallen2 but 7says the ,chorus7 let the conquerors look to it that they do not overstep the mark2 let there be no dishonoring the native ,gods of ,troy2 7the ,athenians had been very considerably overstepping the mark in some of their own conquests recently27--let there be no plundering or useless cruelty2 7the ,athenians had been hideously greedy and cruel27--or ,karma would overtake it own agents1 the ,greeks1 who were not yet out of the wood1 as we say--who had not yet returned home4 ,this was when the beacons had announced the fall of ,troy1 and before the entry of ,agamemnon4 ,clytemnestra is not like ,gertrude1 but a much grander and more tragical figure4 ,shakespeare leaves you in no doubt as to his queen's relation to ,claudius2 he enlarges on their guilty passion ad lib4 ,aeschylus never mentions love at all in any of his extant plays2 only barely hints at it here4 ,it may be supposed to exist2 it is an accessory motive2 it lends irony to ,clytemnestra's welcome to ,agamemnon--in which only the audience and the ,chorus are aware that the lady does protest too much4 ,but she stands forth in her own eyes as an agent of ,karma-,nemesis2 there is something very terrible and unhuman about her4 ,early in the play she reminds the ,chorus how ,agamemnon1 is setting out for ,troy1 sacrificed his and her daughter ,iphigenia to get a fair wind3 a deed of blood whose consequences must be feared--something to add to the ,chorus's misgivings1 as they chant their doubtful hope that the king may safely return4 ,in reality ,artemis had saved ,igphigenia2 and though ,clytemnestra did not know this1 in assuming the position of her daughter's avenger she put herself under the karmic ban4 ,and ,agamemnon did not know it3 he had intended the sacrifice3 and was therefore1 and for his supposed ruthlessness at ,troy1 under the same ban himself4 ,hence the fate that awaited him on his return2 and hence because of ,clytemnestra's useless crime--when she and ,aegisthos come out from murdering him1 and announce what they have done1 the ,chorus's dark foretellings--to come true presently --of the ,karma that is to follow upon it4 ,and here we must guard ourselves against the error--as ,i think it is that ,aeschylus set himself to create the perfect and final art-form as such4 ,i think he was just intent on announcing ,karma to the ,athenians in the most effective way possible3 bent all his energies to making that--and that the natural result of that high issue clear and unescapable2 purpose was this marvelous art-form--which ,sophocles took up later1 and in some external ways perhaps perfected4 ,then came ,aristotle after a hundred years1 and defining the results achieved1 tried to make ,shakespeare impossible4 ,the truth is that when you put yourself to do the ,soul's work1 and have the great forces of the ,soul to back you therein1 you create an art-form2 and it only remains for the ,aristotelian critic to define it4 ,then back comes the ,soul after a thousand years1 makes a new one1 and laughs at the ,aristotles4 ,the grand business is done by following the ,soul--not by conforming to rules or imitating models4 ,but it must be the ,soul2 rules and models are much better than personal whims2 they are a discipline good to be followed as long as one can4-- ,you will note how ,aeschylus stood above the possibilities of actualism with which we so much concern ourselves2 in the course of some sixteen hundred lines1 and without interval or change of act or scene1 he introduces the watchman on the house-top who first sees the beacons that announce the fall of ,troy1 on the very night that ,troy fell1--and the return of ,agamemnon in his chariot to ,argos4 ,in the ,choephori or ,libation-,pourers1 the second play of the trilogy1 ,orestes returns from his ,wittenberg1 sent by ,apollo to avenge his father4 ,the scene again is in front of the house of ,atreus4 ,having killed ,aegistlios within1 ,orestes comes out to the ,chorus2 then ,clytemnestra enters2 he tells her what he has done1 and what he intends to do2 and despite her pleadings1 leads her in to die beside her paramour4 ,he comes out again1 bearing 7for his justification7 the blood-stained robe of ,agamemnon2--but he comes out distraught and with the guilt of matricide weighing on his soul4 ,the ,chorus bids him be of good cheer1 reminding him upon what high suggestion he has acted2 but in the background he1 and he alone1 sees the ,furies swarming to haunt him1 like ,gorgons1 dark-robed1 and all their tresses hang entwined with many serpents2 and from their eyes is dropping loathsome blood4 ,he must wander the world seeking purification4 ,in the ,eumenides we find him in the temple of ,loxias 7the ,apollo7 at ,delphi1 there seeking refuge with the god who had prompted him to the deed4 ,but even there the ,furies haunt him-- though for weariness--or really because it is the shrine of ,loxias--they have fallen asleep4 ,from them even ,loxias may not free him2 only perhaps ,pallas at ,athens may do that2 ,loxias announces this to him and bids him go to ,athens1 and assures him meanwhile of his protection4 ,to ,athens then the scene changes1 where ,orestes' case is tried3 ,apollo defends him2 ,pallas is the judge2 the ,furies the accusers2 the ,court of the ,areopagus the jury4 ,the votes of these are equally divided2 but ,athene gives her casting vote in his favor2 and to compensate the ,erinyes1 turns them into ,eumenides--from ,furies to goddesses of good omen and fortune4 ,orestes is free1 and the end is happy4 ,no doubt very pretty and feeble of the bronze-throated ,eagle- barker to make it so4 ,what6 clap on an exit to these piled-up miseries8--he should have plunged us deeper in woe1 and left us to stew in our juices2 he ,should have shunned this detestable effeminacy1 worthy only of the ,dantes and ,shakespeares4 ,but unfortunately he was an ,esotericist1 with the business of helping1 not plaguing1 mankind3 he must follow the grand symbolism of the story of the ,soul1 recording and emphasizing and showing the way to its victories1 not its defeats4 ,he had the eye to see deep into realities1 and was not to be led from the path of truth eternal by the cheap effective expedients of realism4 ,he must tell the whole truth3 building up1 not merely destroying2 and truth1 at the end1 is not bitter1 but bright and glorious4 ,it is the triumph and purification of the soul2 and to that happy consummation all sorrow and darkness and the dread ,furies themselves1 whom he paints with all the dark flame-pigments of sheerest terror1 are but incidental and a means4 ,and the meaning of it all8 ,well1 the meaning is as vast as the scheme of evolution itself1 ,i suppose4 ,it is ,hamlet over again1 and treated differently2 that which wrote ,hamlet through ,shakespeare1 wrote this ,trilogy through ,aeschylus4 ,i imagine you are to find in the ,agamemnon the symbol of the ,spirit's fall into matter--of the incarnation 7and obscuration7 of the ,lords of ,mind--driven thereto by ancient ,karma1 and the result--of the life of past universes4 ,shakespeare deals with this retrospectively1 in the ,ghost's words to ,hamlet on the terrace4 ,the 'death' of the ,spirit is its fall into matter4 ,and just as the ghost urges ,hamlet to revenge1 so ,apollo urges ,orestes2 it is the influx1 stir1 or impingement of the ,supreme ,self1 that rouses a man1 at a certain stage in his evolution1 to lift himself above his common manhood4 ,this is the most interesting and momentous event in the long career of the soul3 it takes the place1 in that drama of incarnations1 that the marriage does in the modern novel4 ,shakespeare1 whose mental tendencies were the precise opposite of ,aeschylus's--they ran to infinite multiplicity and complexity1 where the other's ran to stern unity and simplicity 7of plot7--made two characters of ,polonius and ,gertrude3 ,polonius1--the objective lower world1 with its shallow wisdom and conventions2 ,gertrude1--,nature1 the lower world in it subjective or inner relation to the soul incarnate in it4 ,aeschylus made no separate symbol for the former4 ,shakespeare makes the killing of ,polonius a turning-point2 thenceforth ,hamlet must1 will he nill he1 in some dawdling sort sweep to his revenge4 ,aeschylus makes that same turning-point in the killing of ,clytemnestra1 whereafter the ,furies are let loose on ,orestes4 ,if you think well what it means1 it is that leap spoken of in ,light on the ,path1 by which a man raises himself on to the path of individual accomplishment instead of mere obedience to the genii which rule our earth4 ,he can no longer walk secure like a sheep in the flock2 he has come out1 and is separate2 he has chosen a captain within1 and must follow the ,soul1 and not outer convention4 ,that step taken1 and the face set towards the ,spirit-,sun--the life of the world forgone1 that a way may be fought into the ,life of the ,soul3--all his past lives and their errors rise against him2 his passions are roused to fight for their lives1 and easy living is no longer possible4 ,he must fly then for refuge to ,loxias the ,sun-,god1 the ,supreme ,self1 who can protect him from these ,erinyes--but it is ,pallas1 ,goddess of the ,inner ,wisdom1 of the true method of life1 that can alone set him free4 ,and it is thus that ,apollo pleads before her for ,orestes who killed his mother 7,nature7 to avenge his ,father 7,spirit73--a man1 says he1 is in reality the child of his father1 not of his mother3--this lower world in which we are incarnate is not in truth our parent or originator at all1 but only the seed-plot in which we1 sons of the ,eternal1 are sown1 the nursery in which we grow to the point of birth2--but we ourselves are in our essence flame of the ,flame of ,god4 ,so ,pallas--and you must think of all she implied--,theosophy1 right living1 right thought and action1 true wisdom--judges ,orestes guiltless1 sets him free1 and transforms his passions into his powers4 ,v4 ,,some ,,periclean ,,figures ,yoshio ,markino 7that ever-delightful ,japanese7 makes an illuminating comparison between the modern western and the ancient eastern civilizations4 ,what he says amounts to this3 the one is of ,science1 the other of the ,human ,spirit2 the one of intellect1 the other of intuition2 the one has learnt rules for carrying all things through in some shape that will serve--the other worked its wonders by what may be called a ,transcendental ,rule of ,thumb4 ,but in fact it was a reliance on the ,human ,spirit1 which invited the presence thereof2--and hence results were attained quite unachievable by modern scientific methods4 ,what ,yoshio says of the ,chinese and ,japanese is also true of all the great western ages of the past4 ,we can do a number of things1-- that is1 have invented machinery to do a number of things for us1--but with all our resources we could not build a ,parthenon3 could not even reproduce it1 with the model there before our eyes to imitate499 ------ 99 ,i quote ,prof4 ,mahaffy in his ,problems of ,greek ,history4 ,he also points out that it is beyond the powers of modern science in naval architecture to construct a workable model of a ,greek trireme4 ------ ,it stands as a monument of the ,human ,spirit3 as an age-long witness to the presence and keen activity of that during the ,age of ,pericles in ,athens4 ,it was built at almost break-neck speed1 yet remains a thing of permanent inimitable beauty1 defying time and the deliberate efforts of men and gunpowder to destroy it4 ,the work in it which no eye could see was as delicate1 as exquisite1 as that which was most in evidence publicly2 every detail bore the deliberate impress of the ,spirit1 a direct spiritual creation4 ,there is no straight line in it2 no two measurements are the same2 but by a divine and direct intuition1 every difference is inevitable1 and an essential factor in the perfection of the whole4 ,as if the same creative force had made it1 as makes of the sea and mountains an inescapable perfection of beauty4 ,it is one of the many mighty works wherewith ,pericles and his right-hand man ,pheidias1 and his architects ,ictinus and ,callicrates1 adorned ,athens4 ,it would serve no purpose to make a list of the great names of the age2 which you know well enough already4 ,the simple fact to note is this3 that at a certain period in the fifth and fourth centuries ,b4 ,c4 the ,crest-,wave of ,evolution was1 so far as we can see1 flowing through a very narrow channel4 ,the ,far ,eastern seats of civilization were under pralaya2 the life-forces in ,west ,asia were running towards exhaustion1 or already exhausted2 ,india1 it is true1 is hidden from us2 we cannot judge well what was going on there2 and so was most of ,europe4 ,any scheme of cycles that we can put forward as yet must necessarily be tentative and hypothetical2 what we do not know is1 to what we do know1 as a million to one2 ,i may be quite wrong in giving ,europe as long a period for its manvantaras as ,china2 possibly there were no manvantaric activities in ,europe1 in that period1 before the rise of ,greece4 ,but whether or no1 this particular time belongs1 of all ,european countries1 to ,greece3 the genius of the world1 the energy of the human spirit1 was mainly concentrated there2 and of ,greece1 in the single not too large city of ,athens4 ,it is true ,i am rather enamored of the cycle of a hundred and thirty years2 prejudiced1 if you like1 in its favor2 it is also true that genius was speaking through at least one world-important ,athenian voice-- that of ,aeschylus--before the age of ,pericles began4 ,still1 these dates are significant3 #dgg1 in which year ,athens attained the hegemony of ,greece1 and #cdg1 in which ,plato died4 ,it was after #dgg that ,aeschylus eagle-barked the grandest part of his message from the ,soul1 and that the great ,periclean figures appeared2 and though ,athenians of genius out-lived ,plato1 he was the last world-figure and great ,soul-,prophet2 the last ,athenian equal in standing to ,aeschylus4 ,when those thirteen decades had passed1 the ,soul had little more to say through ,athens4-- ,aristotle8--,i said1 the ,soul had little more to say4 4 4 4 ,about midway through that cycle came ,aegospotami1 and the destruction of the ,long ,walls and of the ,empire2 but these did not put an end to ,athenian significance4 ,mahaffy very wisely goes to work to dethrone the ,peloponnesian ,war--as he does1 too1 the ,persian--from the eminence it has been given in the textbooks ever since4 ,as usual1 we get a lopsided view from the historians3 in this case from ,thucydides1 who slurred through a sort of synopsis of the far more important and world-interesting mid-fifth century1 and then dealt microscopically with these twenty-five years or so of trumpery raidings1 petty excursions and small alarms4 ,that naval battle at ,syracuse1 which ,creasy puts with ,marathon in his famous fifteen1 was utterly unimportant3 tardy ,nicias might have won all through1 and still ,athens would have fallen4 ,her political foundations were on the sand4 ,under ,persia you stood a much better chance of enjoying good government and freedom3 ,persian rule was far less oppressive and cruel4 ,the states and islands subject to ,athens had no self-government1 no representation2 they were at the mercy of the ,athenian mob1 to be taxed1 bullied1 and pommeled about as that fickle irresponsible tyranny might elect or be swayed to pommel1 tax1 and bully them4 ,thucydides was a great master of prose style1 and so could invest with an air of importance all the matter of his tale4 ,besides1 he was the only contemporary historian1 or the only one that survives4 ,so the world ever since has been tricked into thinking this ,peloponnesian ,war momentous2 whereas really it was a petty family squabble among that most family-squabblesome of peoples1 the ,greeks4--,in most of which ,i am only quoting ,mahaffy2 who1 whether intentionally or not1 deals with ,greek history in such a way as to show the utter unimportance1 irrelevance1 futility1 of war4 ,greek history is merely a phase of human history4 ,we have looked for its significance exclusively in political and cultural regions2 but this is altogether a mistake4 ,the ,greeks did not invent culture2 there had been greater cultures before1 only they are forgotten4 ,all that about the evolution of ,political freedom1 of the city state1 republicanism1 etc41 is just nonsense4 ,as far as ,i can see1 the importance of ,greece lies in this3 human history1 the main part of it1 flowing in that age through the narrow channel of ,greece1 came down from sacred to secular2 from the last remnants of a state of affairs in which the ,lodge1 through the ,mysteries1 had controlled life and events1 to the beginnings of one in which things were to muddle through under the sweet guidance of brain-minds and ordinary men4 ,the old order had become impossible2 the world had drifted too far from the ,gods4 ,so the ,gods tried a new method3 let loose a new great force in the world2 sent ,teachers to preach openly 7sow broadcast1 and let the seed take its chances7 what had before been concealed and revealed systematically within the ,established ,mysteries4 ,what ,athens did with that new force has affected the whole history of ,europe since2 apparently mostly for weal2 really1 nearly altogether for woe4 ,aristides1 with convincing logic1 had been able to persuade all ,greece to act against a common danger under an ,athens then morally great1 and feeling this new force from the ,god-world as a wine in the air1 a mental ozone1 an inspiration from the subliminal to heroic endeavor4 ,but his policy perished when the visible need for it subsided2 it gave way to the ,themistoclean1 which passed into the ,periclean policy2 and that1 says ,mahaffy1 was so dangerous and difficult that no cautious and provident thinker could have called it secure4 ,which also was ,plato's view of it2 who went so far as to say that ,pericles had made the ,athenians lazy1 sensual1 and frivolous4 ,when we find ,aeschylus at the start at odds with it1 and ,plato at the end condemning it wholesale1--for my part ,i think we hardly need bother to argue about it further4 ,both were men who saw from a standpoint above the enlightenment of the common brain-mind4 ,it is not the present purpose to treat history as a matter of wars and politics2 details of which you can get from any textbook2 our concern is with the motions of the human spirit1 and the laws that work from behind4 ,as to these motions1 and the grand influxes1 there is this much we can rely on3 they come by law1 in their regular cycles2 and we can invite their coming1 and insure their stability when they do come4 ,the more ,i study history1 the more the significance of my present surroundings impresses me4 ,we stand here upon a marvelous isthmus in time2 behind us lies a world of dreary commonplaces called the civilization of ,christendom2 before us--who knows what possibilities8 ,nothing is certain about the future--even the near future2--except that it will be immensely unlike the past4 ,whatever we have learned or failed to learn1 large opportunities are given us daily for discovering those inward regions whence all light shines down into the world4 ,genius is one method of the ,soul's action2 one aspect of its glory made manifest4 ,we are given opportunities to learn what invites and what hinders its outflow4 ,to all common thinking1 it is a thing absolutely beyond control of the will2 that cannot be called down1 nor its coming in anywise foretold4 ,but we know that the ,divine ,self would act1 were the obstructions to its action removed2 and that the obstructions are all in the lower nature of man4 ,worship the ,soul in all thoughts and deeds1 and sooner or later the ,soul will pour down through the channel thus made for it2 and its inflow will not be fitful and treacherous1 but sure1 stable1 equable and redeeming4 ,this is where all past ages of brilliance have failed4 ,cyclically they were bound to come3 the fields ripened in due season2 but the wealth of the harvest depended on the reapers4 ,the ,elizabethan ,age1 with all its splendid quickening of the ,english mind1 was coarse and wicked to a degree4 ,all through the wonderful ,cinquecento1 when each of a dozen or more little ,italian city-states was producing genius enough to furnish forth a good average century in modern ,europe or ,america1 ,italy was also a hotbed of unnatural vices1 lurid crimes1 wickedness to stock the nine circles of ,malebolge4 ,so too ,athens at the top of her glory became selfish1 grasping1 conscienceless and cruel2 and those nameless vices grew up and grew common in her which probably account for the long dark night that has spread itself over ,greece ever since4 ,it is a strange situation1 that looks like an anomaly3 that wherever the ,human ,spirit presses in most1 and raises up most splendor of genius1 there1 and then the dark forces that undermine life are most at work4 ,but we should have no difficulty in understanding it4 ,at such times1 by such influxes1 the whole inner kingdom of man is roused and illumined2 and not only the intellect and all noble qualities are quickened1 but the passions also4 ,the race1 and the individual1 are stirred to the deepest depths1 and no part of you may have rest4 ,what then will happen1 unless you have the surest moral training for foundation8 ,the force which rouses up the highest in you1 rouses up also the lowest2 and there must be battle-royal and victory at last1 or surrender to hell4 ,through lack of training1 and ignorance of the laws of the inner life1 the ,higher will be handicapped2 the lower will have advantage through its own natural impulse downward1 increased by every success it is allowed to gain4 ,and so all these ages of creative achievement exhaust themselves2 every victory of the passions drawing down the creative force from the higher planes1 to waste it on the lower2 till at last what had been an attempt of the ,spirit to lift humanity up on to nobler lines of evolution1 and to open a new order of ages1 expires in debauchery1 weakness1 degeneracy1 physical and moral death4 ,the worst fate you could wish a man is genius without moral strength4 ,it wrecks individuals1 and it wrecks nations4 ,i said we stand now on an isthmus of time2 fifth-century ,greece stood on such another4 ,for reasons that we have seen1 there was to be a radical difference between the ages that preceded1 and the ages that followed it2 its influence was not to wear out1 in the west1 for twenty-five hundred years4 ,it was to give a keynote1 in cultural effort1 to a very long future4 ,so all western ages since have suffered because of its descent from lofty ideals to vulgar greed and ambition2 from ,aristides to ,themistocles and ,pericles4 ,we shall see this ,athenian descent in literature1 in art1 in philosophy4 ,if ,athens had gone up1 not down1 ,european history would have been a long record of the triumphs of the spirit3--not1 as it has been in the main1 one of sorrow and disaster4 ,at the beginning of the ,greek age in literature1 we find the stupendous figure of ,aeschylus4 ,for any such a force as he was1 there is--how shall ,i say8--a twofold lineage or ancestry to be traced3 there are no sudden creations4 ,take ,shakespeare1 for example4 ,there was what he found read to his hand in ,english literature2 and what he brought into ,england out of the ,unknown4 ,in his outwardness1 the fabric of his art--we can trace this broad river back to a thinnish stream by the name of ,chaucer2 or he was growth1 recognizably1 of the national tree of which ,chaucer was the root1 or lay at the root4 ,the unity called ,english poetry had grown naturally from that root to this glorious flower3 the sparkle1 with1 brightness1 and above all large hold upon the other life that one finds in ,shakespeare--one finds at least the rudiments of them in ,chaucer also4 ,but there is another1 an exoteric element in him which one finds nowhere in ,english literature before him3 the ,grandeur from within1 the high ,soul ,symbol4 ,in him suddenly that portentous thing appears1 like a great broad river emerging from the earth4--,of which we do not say1 however1 that they have had no antecedent rills and fountain2 we know that they have traveled long beneath the mountains1 unseen2 they sank under the earth-surface somewhere1 and are not special new creations4 ,looking back behind ,shakespeare1 from this our eminence in time1 we can see beyond the intervening heights this broad water shine again over the plain in ,dante2 and beyond him some glimmer of it in ,virgil2 until at last we see the far-off sheen of it in ,aeschylus1 very near the backward horizon of time4 ,we can catch no glimpse of it farther1 because that horizon is there4 ,we can trace ,aeschylus' outward descent--as ,shakespeare's from ,chaucer--from the nascent ,greek drama and the rudimentary plays at the rustic festivals2 but the grand river of his esotericism --there it shines1 as large and majestic1 at least1 as in ,shakespeare2 and it was1 no more than his1 a special creation or new thing4 ,our horizon lies there1 to prevent our vision going further2 but from some higher time-eminence in the future1 we shall see it emerge again in the backward vastnesses of pre-history2 again and again4 ,the grandeur of ,aeschylus his no parent in ,greek1 or in western extant literature2 or if we say that it has a parent in ,homer 7which ,i doubt1 because not seeing the ,soul ,symbols in ,homer71 it is only putting matters one step further back4444 ,but behind ,greece1 there were the lost literatures of ,babylonia1 ,assyria1 ,egypt1 of which we know nothing2 aye1 and for a guess1 lost and mighty literatures from all parts of ,europe too4 ,if ,i could imagine it otherwise1 ,i would say so4 ,almost suddenly1 during ,aeschylus' lifetime1 another ,greek ,art came into being4 ,when he was a boy1 sculpture was still a very crude affair2 or perhaps just beginning to emerge from that condition4 ,the images that come down to us1 say from ,pisistratus' time and earlier1 are not greatly different from the 'primitive' carvings of many so-called savage peoples of our own day4 ,that statement is loose and general2 but near enough the mark to serve our purpose4 ,you may characterize them as rude imitations of the human form1 without any troublesome realism1 and with a strong element of the grotesque4 ,says the ,encyclopeadia ,britannica 7from which the illustration is taken73 ,the statues of the gods began either with stiff and ungainly figures roughly cut out of the trunk of a tree1 or with the monstrous and symbolical representations of ,oriental art4444 ,in early decorations of vases and vessels one may find ,greek deities represented with wings1 carrying in their hands lions or griffins1 bearing on their heads lofty crowns4 ,but as ,greek art progressed it grew out of this crude symbolism444 ,what the artists of ,babylonia and ,egypt express in the character of the gods by added attribute or symbol1 swiftness by wings1 control of storms by the thunderbolt1 traits of character by animal heads1 the artists of ,greece work more and more fully into the scultptural type2 modifying the human subject by the constant addition of something which is above the ordinary levels of humanity1 until we reach the ,zeus of ,pheidias or the ,dimeter of ,cnidus4 ,when the decay of the high ethical art of ,greece sets in1 the ,gods become more and more warped to the merely human level4 ,they lose their dignity1 but they never lose their charm4 ,in which1 ,i think1 much light is once more thrown on the inner history of the race1 and the curious and fatal position ,greece holds in it4 ,for here we see ,art emerging from its old ,position as a hand-maid to the ,mysteries and recognized instrument of the ,gods or the ,soul2 from sacred becoming secular2 from impersonal1 personal4 ,there is1 perhaps1 little enough in pre-,pheidian ,greek sculpture that belongs to the history of ,art at all 7,i do not speak of old cycles and manvantaras1 the ages of ,troy and ,mycenae1 but of historical times2 ,i cast no glance now behind the year #hgj ,b4 ,c474 ,for the real art that came next before the ,pheidian ,greek1 we have to look to ,egypt and ,mesopotamia4 ,take ,egypt first4 ,there the sculptor thinks of himself far less as artist than as priest and servant of the ,mysteries3 that is1 of the great ,divine heart of ,existence behind this manifested world1 and the official channel which connected ,it with the latter4 ,the ,gods1 for him1 are frankly unhuman--superhuman-- unlike humanity4 ,we call them 'forces of ,nature'2 and think ourselves mighty wise for having camouflaged our ignorance with this perfectly meaningless term4 ,we have dealt so wisely with our thinking organs1 that do but give us a sop of words1 and things in themselves we shall never bother about3--like the ,grave-digger1 who solved the whole problem of ,ophelia's death and burial with his three branches of an act4 ,but the ,egyptian1 with mental faculties unrotted by creedal fatuities like our own1 would not so feed 'of the chameleon's dish1'--needed something more than words1 words1 and words4 ,he knew also that there were elements in their being quite unlike any we are conscious of in ours4 ,so he gave them purely symbolic forms3 a human body1 for that which he could posit as common to themselves and humanity2 and an animal mask1 to say that the face1 the expression of their consciousness1 was hidden1 and not to be expressed in terms of human personality4 ,while affirming that they were conscious entities1 he stopped short of personalizing them4 ,what was beneath the mask or symbol belonged to the ,mysteries1 and was not to be publicly declared4 ,but when he came to portraying men1 especially great kings1 he used a different method4 ,the king's statue was to remain through long ages1 when the king himself was dead and ,osirified4 ,the artist knew--it was the tradition of his school--what the ,osirified dead looked like4 ,not an individual sculptor1 but a traditional wisdom1 was to find expression4 ,what sculptor's name is known8 ,who wrought the ,vocal ,memnon8--,not any man2 but the ,soul and wisdom and genius of ,egypt4 ,the last things bothered about were realism and personality4 ,there were a very few conventional poses2 the object was not to make a portrait1 but to declare the ,universal ,human ,soul2--it was hardly artistic1 in any modern acceptation of the word2 but rather religious4 ,artistic it was1 in the highest and truest sense3 to create1 in the medium of stone1 the likeness or impression of the ,human ,soul in its grandeur and majesty2 to make hard granite or syenite proclaim the eternal peace and aloofness of the ,soul4--,plato speaks of those glimpses of the other side of the sky which the soul catches before it comes into the flesh2--the ,egyptian artist was preoccupied with the other side of the sky4 ,how wonderfully he succeeded1 you have only to drop into the ,british ,museum to see4 ,there is a colossal head there1 hung high on the wall facing the stairs at the end of the ,egyptian ,gallery2 you may view it from the ground1 or from any point on the stairs2 but from whatever place you look at it1 if you have any quality of the ,soul in you1 you go away having caught large glimpses of the other side of the sky4 ,you are convinced1 perhaps unconsciously1 of the grandeur and reality of the ,soul4 ,having watched ,eternity on that face many times1 ,i rejoiced to find this description of it in ,de ,quincey2--if he was not speaking of this1 what he says fits it admirably3 ,that other object which for four and twenty years in the ,british ,museum struck me as simply the sublimest sight which in this sight-seeing world ,i had seen4 ,it was the memnon's head1 then recently brought from ,egypt4 ,i looked at it1 as the reader must suppose in order to understand the depth which ,i have here ascribed to the impression1 not as a human but as a symbolic head2 and what it symbolized to me were3 7#a7 the peace which passeth understanding4 7#b7 ,the eternity which baffles and confounds all faculty of computation--the eternity which had been1 the eternity which was to be4 7#c7 ,the diffusive love1 not such as rises and falls upon waves of life and mortality1 not such as sinks and swells by undulations of time1 but a procession1 an emanation1 from some mystery of endless dawn4 ,you durst not call it a smile that radiated from those lips2 the radiation was too awful to clothe itself in adumbrations of memorials of flesh4 ,art can never reach higher than that1--if we think of it as a factor in human evolution4 ,what else you may say of ,egyptian sculpture is of minor importance3 as1 that it was stiff1 conventional1 or what not2 that each figure is portrayed sitting bolt upright1 hands out straight1 palms down1 upon the knees1 and eyes gazing into eternity4 ,ultimately we must regard ,art in this ,egyptian way3 as a thing sacred1 a servant of the ,mysteries2 the revealer of the ,soul and the other side of the sky4 ,you may have enormous facility in playing with your medium2 may be able to make your marble quite fluidic1 and flow into innumerable graceful forms2 you may be past master of every intricacy1 multiplying your skill to the power of n2--but you will still in reality have made no progress beyond that unknown carver who shaped his syenite1 or his basalt1 into the peace which passeth understanding--the eternity which baffles and confounds all faculty of computation4 ,if we turn to ,assyria1 we find much the same thing4 ,this was a people far less spiritual than the ,egyptians3 a cruel1 splendid1 luxurious civilization deifying material power4 ,but you cannot look at the great ,winged ,bulls without knowing that there1 too1 the motive was religious4 ,there is an eternity and inexhaustible power in those huge carvings2 the sculptors were bent on one end3--to make the stone speak out of superhuman heights1 and proclaim the majesty of the ,everlasting4--,in the ,babylonian sculptures we see the kings going into battle weaponless1 but calm and invincible2 and behind and standing over1 to protect and fight for them1 terrific monsters1 armed and tiger-headed or leopard-headed--the 'divinity that hedges a king' treated symbolically4 ,as always in those days1 though many veils might hide from the consciousness of ,assyria and later ,babylon the beautiful reality of the ,soul of ,things1 the endeavor1 the raison d'etre1 of ,art was to declare the ,might1 ,power1 ,majesty1 and dominion which abide beyond our common levels of thought4 ,now then3 that great ,memnon's head comes from behind the horizon of time and the sunset of the ,mysteries2 and in it we sample the kind of consciousness produced by the ,teaching of the ,mysteries4 ,go back step by step1 from ,shakespeare's ,glamis hath murdered ,sleep1 and therefore ,cawdor ,shall sleep no more42 to ,dante's ,the love that moves the ,sun and the other ,stars2 to ,talesin's ,my original country is the ,region of the ,summer ,stars2 to ,aeschylus's bronze-throat eagle-bark at blood2--and the next step you come to beyond 7in the ,west7--the next expression of the ,human ,soul--marked with the same kind of feeling--the same spiritual and divine hauteur--is1 for lack of literary remains1 this ,egyptian sculpture4 ,the ,grand ,manner1 the majestic note of ,esotericism1 the highest in art and literature1 is a stream flowing down to us from the ,sacred ,mysteries of ,antiquity4 ,it is curious that a crude primtivism in sculpture--and in architecture too--should have gone on side by side1 in ,greece1 during the seventh and sixth centuries ,b4 ,c41 with the very finished art of the ,lyricists from ,sappho to ,pindar2 but apparently it did4 7,they had wooden temples1 painted in bright reds and greens2 ,i understand without pillared facades47 ,i imagine the explanation to be something like this3 ,you are to think of an influx of the ,human ,spirit1 proceeding downward from its own realms towards these1 until it strikes some civilization --the ,greek1 in this case4 ,now poetry1 because its medium is less material1 lies much nearer than do the plastic arts to the ,spirit on its descending course2 and therefore receives the impulse of its descent much sooner4 ,perhaps music lies higher again2 which is why music was the first of the arts to blossom at all in this nascent civilization of ours at ,point ,loma4 ,let me diverge a little1 and take a glance round4--,at any such time1 the seeds of music may not be present in strength or in a form to be quickenable into a separately manifesting art2 and this may be true of poetry too2 yet where poetry is1 you may say music has been2 for every real poem is born out of a pre-existing music of its own1 and is the inverbation of it4 ,the ,greek ,melic poets 7the lyricists7 were all musicians first1 with an intricate musical science1 on the forms of which they arranged their language2 ,i do not know whether they wrote their music apart from the words4 ,after the ,greek1 the ,italian illumination was the greatest in western history2 there the influx1 beginning in the thirteenth century1 produced first its chief poetic splendor in ,dante before that century had passed2 not raising an equal greatness in painting and sculpture until the fifteenth4 ,in ,england1 the ,breath that kindled ,shakespeare never blew down so far as to light up a great moment in the plastic arts3 there were some few figures of the second rank in painting presently2 in sculpture1 nothing at all 7to speak of74 ,painting1 you see1 works in a little less material medium than sculpture does4 ,dante's ,italy had not quite plunged into that orgy of vice1 characteristic of the great creative ages1 which we find in the ,italy of the ,cinquecento4 ,but ,england1 even in ,shakespeare's day1 was admiring and tending to imitate ,italian wickedness4 ,james ,i's reign was as corrupt as may be2 and though the ,puritan reaction followed1 the creative force had already been largely wasted3 notice had been served to the ,spirit to keep off4 ,puritanism raised itself as a barrier against the creative force both in its higher and lower aspects3 against art1 and against vice2--probably the best thing that could happen under the circumstances2 and the reason why ,england recovered so much sooner than did ,italy4--,on the other hand1 when the influx came to ,holland1 it would seem to have found1 then1 no opportunities for action in the non-material arts3 to have skipped any grand manifestation in music or poetry3 and at once to have hit the ,dutchman 'where he lived' 7as they say71--in his paintbox4--,but to return3- ,sculpture1 then1 came later than poetry to ,greece2 and in some ways it was a more sudden and astounding birth4 ,unluckily nothing remains--,i speak on tenterhooks--of its grandest moment4 ,progress in architecture seems to have begun in the reign of ,pisistratus2 some time in the next sixty years or so the ,soul first impressed its likeness on carved stone4 ,i once saw a picture--in a lantern lecture in ,london--of a pre-,pheidian statue of ,athene2 dating1 ,i suppose1 from the end of the sixth century ,b4 ,c4 ,she is advancing with upraised arm to protect--someone or something4 ,the figure is1 perhaps1 stiff and conventional2 and you have no doubt it is the likeness of a ,goddess4 ,she is not merely a very fine and dignified woman2 she is a ,goddess1 with something of ,egyptian sublimity4 ,the artist1 if he had not attained perfect mastery of the human form--if his medium was not quite plastic to him--knew well what the ,soul is like4--,the ,greek had no feeling1 as the ,egyptian had1 for the mystery of the ,gods2 at his very best 7once he had begun to be artistic7 he personalized them2 he tried to put into his representations of them1 what the ,egyptian had tried to put into his representations of men2 and in that sense this ,athene is1 after all1 only a woman2--but one in whom the ,soul is quite manifest4 ,i have never been able to trace this statue since2 and my recollections are rather hazy4 ,but it stands1 for me1 holding up a torch in the inner recesses of history4 ,it was the time when ,pythagoras was teaching2 it was that momentous time when 7as hardly since7 the doors of the ,spiritual were flung open1 and the impulse of the six ,great ,teachers was let loose on the world4 ,hithertoo ,greek carvers had been making images of the ,gods1 symbolic indeed--with wings1 thunderbolts and other appurtenances2--but trivially symbolic2 mere imitation of the symbolism1 without the dignity or religious feeling1 of the ,egyptians and ,babylonians2 as if their gods and worship had been mere conventions1 about which they had felt nothing deep2--now1 upon this urge from the ,god-world1 a sense of the grandeur of the within comes on them2 they seek a means of expressing it3 throw off the old conventions2 will carve the ,gods as men2 do so1 their aspiration leading them on to perfect mastery3 for a moment achieve ,egyptian sublimity2 but--have personalized the ,gods2 and dear knows what that may lead to presently4 ,the came ,pheidias1 born about #dif4 ,nothing of his work remains for us2 the ,elgin ,marbles themselves1 from the ,parthenon1 are pretty certainly only the work of his pupils4 ,but there are two things that tell us something about his standing3 7#a7 all antiquity bears witness to the prevailing quality of his conceptions2 their sublimity4 7#b7 ,he was thrown into prison on a charge of impiety1 and died there1 in #ddb4 ,here you will note the progress downward4 ,aeschylus had been so charged1 and tried--but acquitted4 ,pheidias1 so charged1 was imprisoned4 ,forty-three years later ,socrates1 so charged1 was condemned to drink the hemlock4 ,of ,aeschylus and ,socrates we can speak with certainty3 they were the ,soul's elect men4 ,was ,pheidias too8 ,athens certainly was turning away from the ,soul2 and his fate is a kind of half-way point between the fates of the others4 ,he appears in good company4 ,and that note of sublimity in his work bears witness somewhat4 ,we have the work of his pupils1 and know that in their hands the marble--,pheidias himself worked mostly in gold and ivory--had become docile and obedient1 to flow into whatever forms they designed for it4 ,we know what strength1 what beauty1 what tremendous energy1 are in those ,elgin marbles4 ,all the figures are real1 but idealized3 beautiful men and horses1 in fullest most vigorous action1 suddenly frozen into stone4 ,the men are more beautiful than human2 but they are human4 ,they are splendid unspoiled human beings1 reared for utmost bodily perfection2 athletes whose whole training had been1 you may say1 to music3 they are music expressed in terms of the human body4 ,yes2 but already the beauty of the body outshone the majesty of the ,soul4 ,it was the beauty of the body the artists aimed at expressing3 a perfect body--and a sound mind in it3 a perfectly healthy mind in it1 no doubt 7be cause you cannot have a really sound and beautiful body without a sound healthy mind7--was the ideal they sought and saw4 ,very well1 so far2 but1 you see1 ,art has ceased to be sacred1 and the handmaid of the ,mysteries2 it bothers itself no longer with the other side of the sky4 ,in ,pheidias' own work we might have seen the influx at that moment when1 shining through the soul plane1 its rays fell full on the physical1 to impress and impregnate that with the splendor of the ,soul4 ,we might have seen that it was still the ,soul that held his attention1 although the body was known thoroughly and mastered3 that it was the light he aimed to express1 not the thing it illumined4 ,in the work of his pupils1 the preoccupation is with the latter2 we see the physical grown beautiful under the illumination of the ,soul2 not the ,soul that illumines it4 ,the men of the ,egyptian sculptors had been ,gods4 ,the ,gods of these ,greek sculptors were men4 ,perfect1 glorious1 beautiful men --so far as externals were concerned4 ,but men--to excite personal feeling1 not to quell it into nothingness and awe4 ,the perfection1 even at that early stage and in the work of the disciples of ,pheidias1 was a quality of the personality4 ,it was indeed marvelously near the point of equilibrium3 the moment when ,spirit enters conquered matter1 and stands there enthroned4 ,in ,pheidias himself ,i cannot but think we should have found that moment as we find it in ,aeschylus4 ,but you see1 it is when that has occurred3 when ,spirit has entered matter1 and made the form1 the body1 supremely beautiful2 it is precisely then that the moment of peril comes--if there is not the wisdom present that knows how to avoid the peril4 ,the next and threatening step downward is preoccupation with1 then worship of1 the body4 ,the ,age of ,pericles came to worship the body3 that was the danger into which it fell2 that was what brought about the ruin of ,greece4 ,that huge revelation of material beauty2 and that absence of control from above2 the lost adequacy of the ,mysteries1 and the failure of the ,pythagorean ,movement2--the impatience of spiritual criticism1 heedlessness of spiritual warning2--well1 we can see what a turning-point the time was in history4 ,on the side of politics1 selfishness and ambition were growing2 on the side of personal life1 vice4 4 4 4 ,it is a thing to be pondered on1 that what has kept ,greece sterile these last two thousand years or so is1 ,i believe1 the malaria2 which is a thing that depends for its efficacy on mosquitos4 ,great men simply will not incarnate in malarial territory2 because they would have no chance whatever of doing anything1 with that oppression and enervation sapping them4 ,greece has been malarial2 ,rome1 too1 to some extent2 the ,roman ,campagna terribly2 as if the disease were 7as no doubt it is7 a ,karma fallen on the sites of old-time tremendous cultural energies2 where the energies were presently wrecked1 drowned and sodden in vice4 ,here then is a pretty little problem in the workings of ,karma3 on what plane1 through what superphysical links or channels1 do the vices of an effete civilization transform themselves into that poor familiar singer in the night-time1 the mosquito8 ,greece and ,rome1 in their heyday1 were not malarial2 if they had been1 no genius and no power would have shone in them4 ,in the ,middle ,ages1 before people knew much about sanitary science and antiseptics and the like1 a great war quickly translated itself into a great pestilence4 ,then we made advances and discovered ,listerian remedies and things1 and said3 ,come now2 we shall fight this one2 we shall have slaughtered millions lying about as we please1 and get no plague out of it2 we are wise and mighty1 and ,karma is a fool to us2 we are the children of ,,modern ,,civilization2 what have ,nature and its laws to do with us8 ,our inventions and discoveries have certainly put them out of commission4--,and sure enough1 the mere foulness of the battlefield1 the stench of decay1 bred no pest2 our ,science had circumvented the old methods through which ,natural ,law 7which is only another way of saying ,karma7 worked2 we had cut the physical links1 and blocked the material channels through which wrong-doing flowed into its own punishment4--,whereupon ,nature1 wrathful1 withdrew a little2 took thought for her astral and inner planes2 found new links and channels there2 passed through these the causes we had provided1 and emptied them out again on the physical plane in the guise of a new thing1 ,spanish ,influenza2--and spread it over three continents1 with greater scope and reach than had ever her old-fashioned stench-bred plagues that served her well enough when we were less scientific4 ,whereof the moral is3 ,he laughs loudest who laughs last2 and just now1 and for some time to come1 the laugh is with ,karma4 ,say until the end of the ,maha-,manvantara2 until the end of manifested ,time4 ,when shall we stop imagining that any possible inventions or discoveries will enable us to circumvent the fundamental laws of ,nature8 ,not the printing-press1 nor steam1 nor electricity1 nor aerial navigation1 nor vril itself when we come to it1 will serve to keep civilizations alive that have worn themselves out by wrong-doing--or even that have come to old age and the natural time when they must die4 ,but their passings need not be ghastly and disastrous1 or anything but honorable and beneficial1 if in the prime and vigor of their lifetimes they would learn decently to live4 ,but to return to our muttons1 which is ,greece2 and now to the literature again3-- ,after ,aeschylus1 ,sophocles4 ,the former1 a ,messenger of the ,gods1 come to cry their message of ,karma to the world2 and in doing so1 incidentally to create a supreme art-form2--the latter1 a good easy soul who lives and lets live1 founds no anti-school1 upsets no faith4--thus ,browning sums him up4 ,a faultless artist enamored of his art2 in which1 thinks he 7and most academic critics with him7 he can improve something on old ,aeschylus2 a man bothered with no message2 a beautiful youth2 a genial companion1 well-loved by his friends--and who is not his friend8--all through his long life2 twenty times first-prize winner1 and never once less than second4--,why1 solely on the strength of his ,antigone1 the ,athenians appointed him a strategos in the expedition against ,samos2 with the thought that one so splendidly victorious in the field of drama1 could not fail of victory in mere war4 ,but don't lose hope6--upon an after-thought 7perhaps7 they appointed ,pericles too2 who suggested to his poet-colleague that though master of them all in his own line1 he had better on the whole leave the sordid details of command to himself1 ,pericles1 who had more experience of that sort4 ,what more shall we say of ,sophocles8--,a charming brilliant fellow in his cups--of which1 as of some other more questionable pleasures1 report is he was too fond2 a man worshiped during his life1 and on his death made a hero with semi-divine honors2--does that sound like the story of a ,messenger of the ,gods8 ,he was born at ,colonos in ,attica1 in #dif2 of his hundred or so of dramas1 seven come down to us4 ,his age saw in him the very ideal of a tragic poet2 ,aristotle thought so too2 so did the ,alexandrian critics1 and most moderns with them4 ,indeed1 says ,mahaffy1 it is no unusual practice to exhibit the defects of both ,aeschylus and ,euripides by comparison with their more successful rival4 ,without trying to give you conclusions of my own1 ,i shall read you a longish passage from ,gilbert ,murray1 who is not only a great ,greek scholar1 but a fine critic as well1 and a poet with the best translations we have of ,greek tragedy to his credit2 he has made ,euripides read like good ,english poetry4 ,comparing the ,choephori of ,aeschylus1 the second play in the ,oreseian ,trilogy1 with the ,electra of ,sophocles1 which deals with the same matter1 he says3 ,aeschylus444 had felt vividly the horror of his plot2 he carries his characters to the deed of blood on a storm of confused1 torturing1 half-religious emotion2 the climax is of course1 the mother-murder1 and ,orestes falls into madness after it4 ,in the ,electra this element is practically ignored4 ,electra has no qualms2 ,orestes shows no signs of madness2 the climax is formed not by the culminating horror1 the matricide1 but by the hardest bit of work1 the slaying of ,aegisthos6 ,aeschylus has kept ,electra and ,clytemnestra apart2 here we see them freely in the hard unloveliness of their daily wrangles4 ,above all1 in place of the cry of bewilderment that closes the ,choephori--',what is the end of all this spilling of blood for blood8'--the ,electra closes with an expression of entire satisfaction444 ,aeschylus takes the old bloody saga in an earnest and troubled spirit1 very different from ,homer's1 but quite as grand4 ,his ,orestes speaks and feels as ,aechylus himself would444 ,sophocles444 takes the saga exactly as he finds it4 ,he knows that those ancient chiefs did not trouble about their consciences2 they killed in the fine old ruthless way4 ,he does not try to make them real to himself at the cost of making them false to the spirit of the epos444 ,the various bits of criticism ascribed to him--',i draw men as they ought to be drawn2 ,euripides draws them as they are'2 ',aeschylus did the right thing1 but without knowing it'--all imply the academic standpoint444 ,even his exquisite diction1 which is such a marked advance on the stiff magnificence of his predecessor1 betrays the lesser man in the greater artist4 ,aeschylus's superhuman speech seems like natural superhuman speech4 ,it is just the language that ,prometheus would talk1 that an ideal ,agamemnon or ,atossa might talk in the great moments4 ,but neither ,prometheus nor ,oedipus nor ,electra1 nor anyone but an ,attic poet of the highest culture1 would talk as ,sophocles makes them4 ,it is this which has established ,sophocles as the perfect model1 not only for ,aristotle1 but in general for critics and grammarians2 while the poets have been left to admire ,aeschylus1 who 'wrote in a state of intoxication1' and ,euripedes1 who broke himself against the bars of life and poetry4 ,you must1 of course1 always allow for a personal equation in the viewpoint of any critic3 you must here weight the natural superhuman diction against the stiff magnificence ,professor ,murray attributes to ,aeschylus2 and get a wise and general view of your own4 ,what ,i want you to see clearly is1 the descent of the influx from plane to plane1 as shown in these two tragedians4 ,the aim of the first is to express a spiritual message1 grand thought4 ,that of the second is to produce a work of flawless beauty1 without regard to its spiritual import4 ,what was to ,aeschylus a secondary object2 the purely artistic--was to ,sophocles the whole thing4 ,aeschylus was capable of wonderful psychological insight4 ,clytemnestra's speech to the ,chorus1 just before ,agamemnon's return1 is a perfect marvel in that way4 ,but the tremendous movement1 the ,august impersonal atmosphere as 4444 gorgeous ,tragedy ,in sceptered pall comes sweeping by4 --divests it of the personal1 and robes it in a universal symbolic significance3 because he has built like a titan1 you do not at first glance note that he has labored like a goldsmith1 as someone has said4 ,but in ,sophocles the goldsmithry is plain to see4 ,his character-painting is exquisite3 pathetic often2 just and beautiful almost always4 ,i put in the almost in view of that about the hard unloveliness of ,electra's daily wrangles with her mother4 ,the mantle of the religious ,egyptians had fallen on ,aeschylus3 but ,sophocles' garb was the true fashionable ,athenian chiton of his day4 ,he was personal1 where the other had been impersonal2 faultless1 where the other had been sublime2 conventionally orthodox1 where through ,aeschylus had surged the super-credal spirit of universal prophecy4 ,and then we come to third of the trio3 ,euripides1 born in #dhj4 ,he was1 says ,professor ,murray1 essentially representative of his age1 yet apparently in hostility to it2 almost a failure of the stage--he won only four prizes in fifty years of production-- yet far the most celebrated poet in ,greece4 ,athens hated1 jeered at1 and flouted him just as much as she honored and adored ,sophocles2 yet you know what happened to those ,athenian captives at ,syracuse who could recite ,euripides4 ,where1 in later ,greek writings1 we come on quotations from the other two once or twice1 we come on quotations from ,euripides dozens of times4 ,the very fact that eighteen of his plays survive1 to seven each of ,aeschylus' and ,sophocles'1 is proof of his larger and longer popularity4 ,he had no certain message from the ,gods1 as ,aeschylus had2 his intensely human heart and his mighty intellect kept him from being the 'flawless artist' that ,sophocles was4 ,he questioned all conventional ideas1 and would not let the people rest in comfortable fat acquiescence4 ,he came to make men 'sit up and think4' ,he did not solve problems1 but raised them1 and flung them at the head of the world4 ,he must stir and probe things to the bottom2 and his recurrent unease1 perhaps1 mars the perfection of his poetry4 ,admetus is to die1 unless someone will die for him2 recollect that for the ,greekish mob1 death was the worst of all possible happenings4 ,alcestis his wife will die for him2 and he accepts her sacrifice4 ,now1 that was the old saga2 and in ,greek conventional eyes1 it was all right4 ,woman was an inferior being1 anyhow2 there was nothing more fitting that ,alcestis should die for her lord4--,here let me make a point plain3 you cannot look back through ,greece to a ,golden ,age in ,greece2 it is not like ,egypt1 where the farther you go into the past1 the greater things you come to2--although in ,egypt1 too1 there would have been rises and falls of civilization4 ,in ,homer's days1 in ,euripides'1 they had these barbarous ideas about women2 and these foolish exoteric ideas about death2 historic ,greece1 like modern ,europe from the ,middle ,ages1 rises from a state of comparative barbarism1 lightlessness2 behind which1 indeed1 there were rumors of a much higher ,past4 ,these great ,greeks1 ,aeschylus1 ,euripides1 ,plato1 brought in ideas which were as old as the hills in ,egypt1 or in ,india2 but which were new to the ,greece of their time--of historic times2 they were1 ,i think1 as far as their own country was concerned1 innovators and revealers2 not voicers of a traditional wisdom2 it may have been traditional once1 but that time was much too far back for memory4 ,i think we should have to travel over long1 long ages1 to get to a time when ,eleusis was a really effective link with the ,lodge--to a period long before ,homer1 long before ,troy fell4--,but to return to the story of ,alcestis3-- ,you might take it on some lofty impersonal plane1 and find a symbol in it2 ,aeschylus would have done so1 somehow2 though ,i do not quite see how4 ,sophocles would have been aware of nothing wrong in it2 he would have taken it quite as a matter of course4 ,euripides saw clearly that ,admetus was a selfish poltroon1 and rubbed it in for all he was worth4 ,and he could not leave it at that1 either2 but for pity's sake must bring in ,hercules at the end to win back ,alcestis from death4 ,so the play is great-hearted and tender1 and a covert lash for conventional callousness2 and somehow does not quite hang together3--leaves you just a little uncomfortable4 ,browning calls him1 in ,balaustion's ,adventure1 4444 ,euripides ,the human1 with his droppings of warms tears2 --it is a just verdict1 perhaps4 ,without ,aeschylus' ,divine ,wisdom1 or ,sophocles' worldly wisdom1 he groped perpetually after some means to stay the downward progress of things2 he could not thunder like the one1 nor live easily and let live1 like the other4--,i do not give you these scraps of criticism 7which are not my own1 but borrowed always ,i think71 for the sake of criticism2 but for the sake of history2--understand them1 and you have the story of the age illumined4 ,you can read the inner ,athens here1 in the aspirations and in the limitations of ,euripides1 and in the contempt in which ,athens held him2 as you can read it in the grandeur of ,aeschylus1 and the ,athenian acceptance of1 and then reaction against1 him2 and in the character of ,sophocles and his easy relations with his age4 ,when ,euripides came1 the light of the ,gods had gone4 ,he was blindish2 he would not accept the ,gods without question4 ,yet was he on the side of the ,gods whom he could not see or understand2 we must count him on their side1 and loved by them4 ,he was not panoplied1 like ,aeschylus or ,milton1 in their grim and shining armor2 yet what armor he wore bore kindred proud dints from the hellions' batterings4 ,or perhaps mostly he wore such marks as wounds upon his own flesh4 4 4 4 ,not even a total lack of humor1 which ,i suppose must be attributed to him1 can make him appear less than a most sympathetic1 an heroic figure4 ,he was the child and fruitage and outcast of his age1 belonging as much to an ,athens declining and inwardly hopeless1 as did ,aeschylus 7at first7 to ,athens in her early glory4 ,he was not so much bothered 7like ,sophocles7 with no message1 as bothered with the fact that he had no clear and saving message4 ,his realism--for compared with the other two1 he was a sort of realist--was the child of his despair2 and his despair1 of the atmosphere of his age4 ,he was1 or had been1 in close touch with ,socrates 7you might expect it72 lived a recluse somewhat1 taking no part in affairs2 married twice1 unfortunately both times2 and his family troubles were among the points on which gentlemanly ,athens sneered at him4 ,a lovely lyricist1 a restless thinker2 tender-hearted2 sublime in pity of all things weak and helpless and defeated3--women especially1 and conquered nations4 ,prof4 ,murray says3 ,in the last plays dying ,athens is not mentioned1 but her death- struggle and her sins are constantly haunting us2 the ,joy of battle is mostly gone2 the horror of war is left4 ,well might old ,aeschylus pray1 ',god grant that ,i may sack no city6' if the reality of conquest is what it appears in the last plays of ,euripides4 ,the conquerors there are as miserable as the conquered2 only more cunning1 and perhaps more wicked4 ,he died the year before ,aegospotami1 at the court of ,archelaus of ,macedon4 ,one is glad to think he found peace and honor at last4 ,athens heard with a laugh that some courtier there had insulted him2 and with astonishment that the good barbarous ,archelaus had handed said courtier over to ,euripides to be scourged for his freshness4 ,i don't imagine that ,euripides scourged him though-to amount to anything4 ,,vi4 ,,socrates ,,and ,,plato ,by this time you should have seen1 rather than any picture of ,greece and ,athens in their heyday1 an indication of certain universal historical laws4 ,as thus 7to go back a little73 an influx of the ,spirit is approaching1 and a cycle of high activities is about to begin4 ,a great war has cleared off what karmic weight has been hanging over ,athens2--,xerxes1 you will remember1 burnt the town4 ,hence there is a clearness in the inner atmosphere2 through which a great spiritual voice may1 and does1 speak a great spiritual message4 ,but human activities proceed1 ever increasing their momentum1 until the atmosphere is no longer clear1 but heavy with the effluvia of by no means righteous thought and action4 ,the ,spirit is no more visibly present1 but must manifest if at all through a thicker medium2 and who speaks now1 speaks as artist only1--not as poet--or artist-prophet4 ,time goes on1 and the inner air grows still thicker2 till men live in a cloud1 through which truths are hardly to be seen4 ,then those who search for the light are apt to cry out in despair2 they become realists struggling to break the terrible molds of thought3--and if you can hear the ,spiritual in them at all1 it is not in a positive message they have for men1 but in the greatness of their heart and compassion4 ,they do not build2 they seek only to destroy4 ,there seems nothing else for them to do4 ,so in ,england1 ,wordsworth opened this last cycle of poetry2 coming when there was a clear atmosphere1 and speaking more or less clearly through it his message from the ,gods4 ,you hear a like radiant note of hope in ,shelley2 and something of it in ,keats1 who stood on the line that divides the ,poet-,prophet from the ,poet-,artist4 ,then you come to the ascendency of ,tennyson1 whose business in life was to be the latter4 ,he tried the role of prophet2 he lived up to the highest he could3 strove towards the light much more gallantly than did ,sophocles1 his ,athenian paradigm4 ,but the atmosphere of his age made him something of a failure at it3 no clear light was there for him to find1 such as could manifest through poetry4 ,then you got men like ,matthew ,arnold with his cry of despair1 and ,william ,morris with his longing for escape2 then the influence of ,realism4 ,so many poets recently have an element of ,euripides in them2 a will to do well1 but a despair of the light2 a tendency to question everything1 but little power to find answers to their questions4 ,then there were some few who1 influenced 7consciously or not7 by ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky1 that great dawn-herald1 caught glimpses of the splendor of a dawn--which yet we wait for4 ,euripides1 with the ,soul stirring within and behind him1 broke himself on the bars of life and poetry1 as ,professor ,murray says4 ,he was so hemmed in by the emanations of the time that he could never clearly enunciate the ,soul4 ,not1 at any rate1 in an unmixed way1 and with his whole energies4 ,perhaps his favorite device of a ,deus ex ,machina--like ,hercultes in the ,alcestis --is a symbolical enunciation of it1 and intended so to be4 ,perhaps the cause of the unrest he makes us feel is this3 he knew that the highest artistic method was the old ,aeschylean symbolic one1 and tried to use it2 but at the same time was compelled by the gross emanations of the age1 which he was not quite strong enough to rise above1 to treat his matter not symbolically1 but realistically4 ,he could not help saying3 ,here is the epos you ,athenians want me to treat1--that my artist soul forces me to treat2 here are the ideas that make up your conventional religion2--now look at them6 ,and forth-with he showed them1 in there exoteric side1 sordid1 ugly and bloody2-- and then1 on the top of that showing1 tried to twist them round to the symbolic impersonal plane again2 and so left a discord not properly solved1 an imperfect harmony2 a sense of loss rather than gain2 of much torn down1 and nothing built up to take its place4 ,the truth was that the creative forces had flowed downward until the organs of spiritual vision were no longer open2 and poetry and art1 the proper vehicles of the higher teaching in any age approximately golden1 could no longer act as efficient channels for the light4 ,to turn to ,england again3 ,tennyson was1 generally speaking1 most successful when most he was content to be merely the artist in words1 and least so when he assumed the office of ,teacher2 because almost all he found to teach was brain-mind scientific stuff2 which was what the age called for1 and the desired diet of ,mid-,victorian ,england4 ,carlyle1 who was a far greater poet essentially1 and a far greater teacher actually1 fitted himself to an age when materialism had made unpoetic2 and eschewed poetry and had no use for it2 and would have had others eschew it also4 ,in our own time we have realists like ,mr4 ,masefield4 ,they are called realists because they work on the plane which has come1 in the absence of anything spiritual1 to seem that of the realities2 the region of outside happenings1 of the passions in all their ugly nakedness1 of sorrow1 misery1 and despair4 ,such men may be essentially noble2 we may read in them1 under all the ugliness and misery they write down1 just one quality of the ,soul2--its unrest in and distaste for those conditions2 but the mischief of it is that they make the sordidness seem the reality2 and the truth about them is that their outlook and way of writing are simply the result of the blindness of the ,soul2--its temporary blindness1 not its essential glory4 ,but the true business of ,poetry never changes2 it is to open paths into the inner1 the beautiful1 the spiritual world4 ,just when things were coming to this pass ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky went to ,england2 and though she did not touch the field of creative literature herself1 brought back as you know a gleam of light and beauty into poetry that may yet broaden out and redeem it4 ,she was born when the century was thirty-one years old2 and1 curiously enough1 there was a man born in ,attica about #dfi1 or when his century was thirty-one years old1 who1 though he did not himself touch the field of literature1 was the cause why that light rose to shine in it which has shone most brilliantly since all down the ages2 that light which we could not afford to exchange even for the light of ,aeschylus4 ,if one of the two were about to be taken from us1 and we had our choice which it should be1 we should have to cry1 ,take ,aeschylus1 but leave us this6 --,ay1 and take all other ,greek literature into the bargain6--,but to return to the man born in #dfi4 ,he was the son of humble people2 his father was a stone-cutter in a small way of business2 his mother a midwife4 ,he himself began life as a sculptor1--a calling1 in its lower reaches1 not so far above that of his father4 ,a group of the ,graces carved by him was still to be seen on the road to the ,acropolis two hundred years after2 and they did not adorn ,athens with mean work1 one may guess2 the ,athens of ,pericles and ,pheidias4 ,but1 successful or not1 he seems soon to have given it up4 ,of his youth we know very little4 ,spintharus1 one of the few that knew him then and also when he had become famous1 said that he was a man of terrible passions3 anger hardly to be governed1 and vehement desires2 though1 he added1 he never did anything unfair4 99 ,by 'unfair' you may understand 'not fitting'--a transgression of right action4 ,he set out to master himself3 a tremendous and difficult realm to master4 ------ 99 ,gilbert ,murray3 ,ancient ,greek ,literature ------ ,we hardly begin to know him till he was growing old2 and then he was absolute monarch of that realm4 ,we do not know when he abandoned his art2 or how long it was before he had won some fame as a public teacher4 ,we catch glimpse of him as a soldier3 from #dcb to #dbi he served at the siege of ,potidaea2 at ,delium in #dbd2 and at ,amphipolis in #dbb4 ,thus to do the hoplite1 carrying a great weight of arms1 at forty-seven1 he needed to have some constitution2 and indeed he had2--furthermore1 he played the part with distinguished bravery--though wont to fall at times into inconvenient fits of abstraction4 ,beyond all this1 for the outside of the man1 we may say that he was of fascinating1 extreme and satyr-like ugliness and enormous sense of humor2 that he was a perpetual joke to the comic poets1 and to himself2 an old fellow of many and lovable eccentricities2 and that you cannot pick one little hole in his character1 or find any respect in which he does not call for love4 ,and men did love him2 and he them4 ,he saw in the youth of ,athens1 whose lives so often were being wasted1 ,souls with all the beautiful possibilities of ,souls2 and loved them as such1 and drew them towards their soulhood4 ,such love and insight is the first and strongest weapon of the ,teacher3 who sees divinity within the rough-hewn personalities of men as the sculptor sees the ,god within the marble2 and calls it forth4 ,he was wont to joke over his calling2 his mother1 said he1 had been a midwife1 assisting at the birth of men's bodies2 he himself was a midwife of souls4 ,how he drew men to him--of the power he had--let ,alcibiades bear witness4 ,as for myself1 says ,alcibiades1 were ,i not afraid you would think me more drunk than ,i am1 ,i would tell you on oath how his words have moved me--ay1 and how they move me still4 ,when ,i listen to him my heart beats with a more than ,corybantic excitement2 he has only to speak and my tears flow4 ,orators1 such as ,pericles1 never moved me in this way-- never roused my soul to the thought of my servile condition3 but this man makes me think that life is not worth living so long as ,i am what ,i am4 ,even now1 if ,i were to listen1 ,i could not resist4 ,so there is nothing for me but to stop my ears against this siren's song and fly for my life1 that ,i may not grow old sitting at his feet4 ,no one would ever think that ,i had shame in me2 but ,i am ashamed in the presence of ,socrates4 ,poor ,alciabes6 whom ,socrates loved so well1 and tried so hard to save2 and who could only preserve his lower nature for its own and for his city's destruction by stopping his ears against his ,teacher6 ,alcibiades1 whose genius might have saved ,athens444 only ,athens would not be saved444 and he could not have saved her1 because he had stopped his ears against the man who made him ashamed2 and because his treacherous lower nature was always there to thwart and overturn the efficacy of his genius2--what a picture of duality it is6 ,socrates gave up his art2 because art was no longer useful as an immediate lever for the age4 ,he knew poetry well1 but insisted1 as ,professor ,murray ,i think says1 on always treating it as the baldest of prose4 ,there was poetry about1 galore2 and men did not profit by it3 something else was needed4 ,his mission was to the ,athens of his day2 he was going to save ,athens if he could4 ,so he went into the marketplace1 the agora1 and loafed about 7so to say71 and drew groups of young men and old about him1 and talked to them4 ,the ,delphic ,oracle had made pronouncement3 ,sophocles is wise2 ,euripides is wiser2 but ,socrates is the wisest of mankind4 ,sometimes1 you see1 the ,delphic ,oracle could get off a distinctly good thing4 ,but ,socrates1 with his usual sense of humor1 had never considered himself in that light at all2 oldish1 yes2 and funny1 and ugly1 by all means2--but wise6 ,he thought at first1 he used to say1 that the ,oracle must be mistaken1 or joking2 for ,athens was full of reputed wise men1 sophists and teachers of philosophy like ,prodicus and ,protagoras2 whereas he himself1 heaven knew--4 ,well1 he would go out and make a trial of it4 ,so he went1 and talked1 and probed the wisdom of his fellow-citizens2 and slowly came round to the belief that after all the ,delphic ,oracle might not have been such a fool4 ,for he knew his ignorance2 but the rest were ignorant without knowing it4 ,this was his own way of telling the story2 and you can never be sure how much camouflage was in it2--and yet1 too1 he was a giant humorist4 ,anyhow1 he did show men their ignorance2 and you all know his solemn way of doing it4 ,he drew them on with sly questionings to see what idiots they were2 and then drew them on with more sly questionings to perceive at least a few sound ethical truths4 ,he took that humble patient means of saving ,athens3 by breaking down false opinions and instilling true ones4 ,it was beginning quite at the bottom of things4 ,where we advertise a public lecture1 he button-holed a passer-by2 and by the great power of his soul won a following presently4 ,to rouse up a desire for right living in the youth of ,athens3 if he could do that1 thought he1 he might save ,athens for the world4 ,i wonder what the cycles of national glory would come to1 how long they might last1 if only the ,teachers that invade to save them could have their way4 ,always we see the same picture3 the tremendous effort of the ,gods to redeem these nations in the times of their creative greatness2 to lift them on to a spiritual plane1 that the greatness may not wane and become ineffective4 ,there is the figure that stands before the world1 about whose perfection or whose qualities you may wrangle if you will2 he is great2 he is wonderful2 he stirs up love and animosity2--but behind him are the ,depths1 the ,hierarchies1 the ,pantheons4 ,socrates' warning ,voice1 the ,daimon that counseled him in every crisis1 has always been a hard nut for critics to crack4 ,he was an impostor1 was he8 ,away with you for a double fool6 ,his life meets you so squarely at every point2 there was no atom in his being that knew how to fear or lie4444 ,well1 no2 but he was deluded2 he mistook--4 ,man1 there is more value in the light word of ,socrates affirming1 than in a whole world full of evidence denying1 of such maunderers as you6 ,see here2 he was the most sensible of men2 balanced2 keeping his head always2--a mind no mood or circumstances could deflect from rational self-control1 either towards passion or ecstasy4 ,one explanation remains--as in the case of ,joan1 or of ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky2--he was neither deceiving nor deceived1 but what he claimed to hear1 he did hear2 and it was the voice of ,one that stood behind him1 and might not appear in history at all1 or in the outer world at all3 a greater than he1 and his ,teacher2 whose bodily presence might have been in ,greece the while1 or anywhere else4 ,how dare we pretend1 because we can do a few things with a piston or a crucible1 that we know the limits of natural and spiritual law8 ,it is a strange figure to find in ,greece2 drawn thither1 one would say1 by the attraction of opposites4 ,he must have owed some of his power to his being such a contrast to all things familiar4 ,personal beauty was extremely common1 and he was comically ugly4 ,the ,athenians were one of the best-educated populations of ancient or modern times--far ahead of ourselves2 and he was ill-educated1 and acted as a public teacher4 ,he was hen-pecked at home1 in an age when the place of woman was a very subordinate and submissive one2 and he was the butt of all joke-lovers abroad1 and himself enjoyed the joke most of all4 ,and he quietly stood alone1 against the mob and his fellow-judges1 for the hapless victors of ,arginusae in #djf2 and he quietly stood alone against the ,thirty ,tyrants during their reign of terror in #djd1 disobeying them at peril of his life4 ,but ,strip him of the thing of sinews and muscles1 as he called his outer self2 forget the queer old personality that appears in the ,clouds of ,aristophanes1 or for that matter in the ,memorabilia of ,xenophon--and what kind of picture of ,socrates should we see8 ,the humor would not go1 for it is a universal quality2 it has been said no ,adept was ever without it2 could you draw aside the veil of ,mother ,isis herself1 and draw it suddenly1 ,i suspect you should surprise a laugh vanishing from her face4 ,so the humor would remain2 and with it there would be 444 something calm1 aloof1 unshakable1 yet vitally affectioned towards ,athens1 the ,athenians1 humanity2 something unsurprised at1 far less hoping or fearing anything from1 life or death2 in possession of the peace which passeth understanding2 native to the eternity that baffles all faculty of computation2--something that drew all sorts and conditions of ,athenians to him1 good and bad1 ,plato and ,alcibiades1 by that diffusive love1 not such as rises and falls upon waves of life and mortality1 not such as sinks and swells by undulations of time1 but a procession1 an emanation1 from some mystery of endless dawn4--,in point of fact1 to get a true portrait of ,socrates you have to look at the ,memnon's head4 ,the ,egyptian artists carved it to be the likeness of the ,perfect ,man1 the ,soul1 always in itself sublime1 absolute master of its flesh and personality4 ,that was what ,socrates was4 ,well2 the century ended1 with that last quarter of it in which the ,lodge makes always its outward effort4 ,socrates for the ,lodge had left no stone unturned2 he had made his utmost effort dally4 ,the democracy had been reinstated1 and he was understood to be a moderate in politics4 ,and the democracy was conventional-minded in religion2 and he was understood to be irreligious1 a disturber and innovator4 ,and the democracy was still smarting from the wound2 imposed on it by ,critias and ,charmides1 understood to have been his disciples2 and could not forget the treacheries of ,alcibiades1 another4 ,and there were vicious youths besides1 whom he had tried and failed to save2 they had ruined themselves1 and their reputable parents blamed and hated him for the ruin1 not understanding the position4 ,and he himself had seen so many of his efforts come to nothing3 ,alcibiades play the traitor2 ,critias and ,charmides1 the bloody tyrant2--he had seen many he had labored for frustrate his labors2 he had seen ,athens fallen4 ,he had done all he could1 quietly1 unfailingly and without any fuss2 now it was time for him to go4 ,but going1 he might yet strike one more great blow for the ,light4 ,so with quiet zest and humor he entered upon the plans of his adversaries1 accepting his trial and sentence like--like ,socrates2 for there is no simile for him1 outside himself4 ,he turned it all masterfully to the advantage of the ,light he loved4 ,you all know how he cracked his grand solemn joke when the death sentence was passed on him4 ,by ,athenian law1 he might suggest an alternative sentence2 as1 to pay a fine1 or banishment4 ,well1 said he2 death was not certainly an evil2 it might be a very good thing2 whereas banishment was certainly an evil1 and so was paying a fine4 ,and besides1 he had no money to pay it4 ,so the only alternative he could suggest was that ,athens should support him for the rest of his life in the ,prytaneum as a public benefactor4 ,not a smile from him2 not a tremor4 ,he elected deliberately2 he chose death2 knowing well that1 as things stood1 he could serve humanity in no other way so well4 ,so he put aside ,crito's very feasible plan for his escape1 and at the last gathered his friends around him1 and discoursed to them4 ,on ,reincarnation4 ,it was an old tradition1 said he2 and what could be more reasonable than that the soul1 departing to ,hades1 should return again in its season3--the living born from the dead1 as the dead are from the living8 ,did not experience show that opposites proceed from opposites8 ,then life must proceed from1 and follow1 death4 ,if the dead came from the living1 and not the living from the dead1 the universe would at last be consumed in death4 ,then1 too1 there was the doctrine that knowledge comes from recollection2 what is recollected must have been previously known4 ,our souls must have existed then1 before birth4 4 4 4 ,why did he talk like that3 thus reasoning about reincarnation1 and not stating it as a positive teaching8 ,well2 there would be nothing new and startling about it1 to the ,greeks4 ,they knew of it as a teaching both of ,pythagoras and of the ,orphic ,mysteries3 that is1 those did who were initiates or ,pythagoreans4 ,but it was not public teaching1 known to the multitude2 and except among the ,pythagoreans1 sophistry and speculation had impaired its vitality as a matter of faith or knowledge4 7,so scientific discovery and the spread of education have impaired the vitality now of ,christian presentations of ethics47 ,so that to have announced it positively1 at that time1 would have served his purpose but little3 men would have said1 ,we have heard all that before2 had he nothing better to give us than stale ideas from the ,mysteries or ,pythagoras8 ,what he wanted to do was to take it out of the region of religion1 where familiarity with it had bread an approach to contempt2 and restate it robbed of that familiarity1 and clothed anew in a garb of sweet reasonableness4 ,so once more1 and as ususal1 he assumed ignorance1 and approached the whole subject in a quiet and rational way1 thus3 ,i do not say that this is positively so2 ,i do not announce it as a dogma4 ,dogmas long since have lost their efficacy1 and you must stand or fall now by the perceptions of your own souls1 not by what ,i or any authority may tell you4 ,but as reasoning human beings1 does it not appeal to you8 ,and the very spirit in which he approached it and approached his death was precisely the one to engrave his last spoken ideas on the souls of his hearers as nothing else could4 ,no excitement2 no uplift or ecstasy of the martyr2 quiet reasoning only2 full1 serene1 and1 for him1 common-place command of the faculties of his mind4 ,the shadow of death made no change in ,socrates2 how then should they misunderstand or magnify the power of the shadow of death8--,how shall we bury you8 asks ,crito4 ,socrates turns to the others present1 and says3 ,i cannot persuade ,crito that ,i here am ,socrates--,i who am now reasoning and ordering discourse4 ,he imagines ,socrates to be that other1 whom he will see by and by1 a corpse4--,so the scene went on until the last moment1 when ,phaedo veiled his face1 and ,crito started to his feet1 and ,apollodorus1 who had never ceased weeping all the time1 burst out into a loud and angry cry which broke down everyone but ,socrates4 ,someone has said that there is nothing in tragedy or history so moving as this death of ,socrates1 as ,plato tells it4 ,and yet its tragic interest1 its beauty1 is less important1 to my thinking1 than the insight it gives us into the methods and mental workings of an ,adept4 ,put ourselves into the mind of ,socrates4 ,he is going to his death2 which to him is about the same as1 to us1 going to ,south ,ranch or ,san ,diego4 ,you say ,i am taking the beauty and nobility out of it2 but no2 ,i am only trying to see what beauty and nobility look like from within4 ,to him1 then1 his death is in itself a matter of no personal moment4 ,but the habit of his lifetime has been to turn every moment into a blow struck for the ,soul1 for the ,light1 for the ,cause of ,sublime ,perfection4 ,and here now is the chance to strike the most memorable blow of all4 ,with infinite calmness he arranges every detail1 and proceeds to strike it4 ,he continues to play the high part of ,socrates1--that is all4 ,you might go to death like a poet1 in love with ,death's solemn beauty1 you might go to her like a martyr1 forgetting the awe of her in forevision of the splendor that lies beyond4 ,but this man broadly and publicly goes to her like ,socrates4 ,he will allow her no fascination1 no mystery2 not even1 nor by any means1 equality with the ,soul of ,man4 4 4 4 ,and ,apollodorus might weep then1 and burst into an angry cry2 and ,crito and ,phaedo and the rest might all break down--then2 but what were they to think afterwards8 ,when they remembered how they had seen ,death and ,socrates1 those two great ones1 meet2 and how the meeting had been as simple1 as unaffected1 as any meeting between themselves and ,socrates1 any morning in the past1 in the ,athenian agora8 ,and when ,death should come to them1 what should they say but this3 ',there is nothing about you that can impress me2 formerly ,i conversed with one greater than you are1 and ,i saw you pay your respects to ,socrates4' ,could he1 could any man have proclaimed the ,divinity in ,man1 its real and eternal existence1 in any drama1 in any poem1 in any glorious splendor of rhetoric with what fervor soever of mystical ecstasy endued--with such deadly effectiveness1 such inevitable success1 as in this simple way he elected8 ,there are men whose actions seem to spring from a source super-ethical3 it is cheap to speak of them as good1 great1 beautiful or sublime3 these are but the appearances they assume as we look upwards at them4 ,what they are in themselves is3 7#a7 ,compassionate2--it is the law of their being to draw men upwards towards the ,spirit2 7#b7 ,impersonal2--there is a non-being or vacuity in them where we have our passions1 likings1 preferences1 dislikes and desires4 ,they are1 in the ,chinese phrase1 the equals of ,heaven and ,earth2 ,earth1 heaven1 and time1 death1 life and they ,endure while they shall be to be4 ,so ,socrates1 having failed in his life-attempt to save ,athens1 entered with some gusto on that great coup de main of his death3 to make it a thing which first a small group of his friends should see2 then that ,greece should see2 then that thirty coming centuries and more should see2 presented it royally to posterity1 for what1 as a manifestation of the ,divine in man1 it might be worth4 ,and look6 what is the result8 ,scarcely is the 'thing of muscles and sinews' cold3 scarcely has high ,socrates forgone his queer satyr-like embodiment3 when a new luminary has risen into the firmament1--one to shine through thirty centuries certainly1 ,brighter than ,jupiter--a blazing star ,brighter than ,hesper shining out to sea --one that is still to be splendid in the heavens wherever in ,europe1 wherever in ,america1 wherever in the whole vast realm of the future men are to arise and make question and peer up into the beautiful skies of the ,soul4 ,a ,phoenix in time has arisen from the ashes of ,socrates3 from the glory and solemnity of his death a ,voice is mystically created that shall go on whispering ,the ,soul wherever men think and strive towards spirituality4 --,ah indeed1 you were no failure1 ,socrates--you who were disappointed of your ,critias1 your ,charmides1 your ,alcibiades1 your whole ,athens2 you were not anything in the very least like a failure2 for there was yet one among your disciples-- ,he says1 that one1 that he was absent through illness during that last scene of his ,teacher's life4 ,i do not know2 it has been thought that may have been merely a pretense1 an artistic convention1 to give a heightened value of impersonality to his marvelous prose3--for it was he who wrote down the account of the death of ,socrates for us3 that tragedy so transcendent in its beauty and lofty calm4 ,but this much is certain3 that day he was born again3 became1 from a gilded youth of ,athens1 an eternal luminary in the heavens1 and that which he has remained these three-and-twenty hundred years3 the ,poet-,philosopher of the ,soul1 the ,beacon of the ,spirit for the western world4444 ,he had been a brilliant young aristocrat among the crowd that loved to talk with ,socrates3 the very best thing that ,athens could produce in the way of birth1 charm1 talent1 and attainments2--it is a marvel to see one so worshiped of ,fortune in this world1 turn so easily to become her best adored in the heaven of the ,soul4 ,on his father's side he was descended from ,codrus1 last king of ,athens2 on his mother's1 from ,solon3 you could get nothing higher in the way of family and descent4 ,in himself1 he was an accomplished athlete2 a brilliant writer of light prose2 a poet of high promise when the mood struck him-- and he had ideas of doing the great thing in tragedy presently2 trained unusually well in music1 and in mathematics2 deeply read2 with a taste for the philosophies2 a man1 in short1 of culture as deep and balanced as his social standing was high4 ,but it seemed as though the ,law had brought all these excellencies together mainly to give the fashionable ,athenian world assurance of a man2 for here he was in his thirty-first year with nothing much achieved beyond--his favorite pursuit--the writing of mimes for the delectation of his set3 close studies of little social scenes and conversations1 seen mostly in the humorous aspect4 99 ,he had consorted much with ,socrates2 at the trial1 when it was suggested that a fine might be paid1 and the hemlock evitated1 it was he who had first subscribed and gone about to raise a sum4 ,but now the death of his friend and ,teacher struck him like a great gale amidships2 and he was transformed1 another man2 and the great ,star ,plato rose1 that shines still2 the great ,voice ,plato was lifted to speak for the ,soul and to be unequaled in that speaking1 in the west1 until ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky came4 ------ 99 ,murray3 ,ancient ,greek ,literature3--whence all this as to ,plato's youth4 ------ ,but note what a change had taken place with the ending of the fifth century4 ,hitherto all the great ,athenians had been great ,athenians4 ,aeschylus1 witness of eternity1 had cried his message down to ,athens and to his fellow-citizens2 he had poured the waters of eternity into the vial of his own age and place4 ,i speak not of ,sophocles1 who was well enough rewarded with the prizes ,athens had to give him4 ,euripides again was profoundly concerned with his ,athens2 and though he was contemned by and held aloof from her1 it was the problems of ,athens and the time that ate into his soul4 ,socrates came to save ,athens2 he did not seek political advancement1 but would hold office when it came his way2 was enough concerned in politics to be considered a moderate-one cause of his condemnation2 but above all devoted himself to raising the moral tone of the ,athenian youth and clearing their minds of falsity4 ,finally1 he gave loyalty to his city and its laws as one reason for rejecting ,crito's plan for his escape4 ,what he hoped and lived for was1 to save ,athens2 and he was the more content to die1 when he saw that this was no longer possible4 ,but ,plato had no part nor lot in ,athens4 ,he loathed her doctrine of democracy1 as knowing it could come to no good4 ,he had affiliations1 like ,aeschylus1 in ,sicily1 whither he made certain journeys2 and might have stayed there among his fellow ,pythagoreans1 but for the irascible temper of ,dionysius4 ,but much more1 and most of all1 his affiliations were in the wide ,cosmos and all time3 as if he foresaw that on him mainly would devolve the task of upholding spiritual ideas in ,europe through the millenniums to come4 ,he dwelt apart1 and taught in the ,groves of ,academe outside the walls4 ,let ,athens' foolish politics go forward as they might1 or backward--he would meddle with nothing4 ,it has been brought against him that he did nothing to help his city 'in her old age and dotage'2 well1 he had the business of thousands of coming years and peoples to attend to1 and had no time to be accused1 condemned1 and executed by a parcel of obstreperous cobblers and tinkers hot-headed over the petty politics of their day4 ,the ,gods had done with ,athens1 and were to think now of the great age of darkness that was to come4 ,he was mindful of a light that should arise in ,egypt1 after some five hundred years2 and must prepare wick and oil for the ,neo-,platonists4 ,he was mindful that there should be a thing called the ,renaissance in ,italy2 and must attend to what claims ,pico di ,mirandola and others should make on him for spiritual food4 ,he must consider ,holland of the seventeenth century1 and ,england3 the ,platonists of ,cambridge and ,amsterdam2--must think of ,van ,helmont2 and of a ,vaughan who 'saw eternity the other night'2 of a ,traherne1 who should never enjoy the world aright without some illumination from his star2 of a young ,milton1 penseroso1 out watching the ,bear in some high lonely tower with thrice-great ,hermes1 who should unsphere his spirit1 44444 to unfold ,what worlds and what vast regions hold ,the immortal mind that hath forsook ,her mansion in this fleshy nook2 --no1 but he must think of all times coming2 and how1 whenever there should be any restlessness against the tyranny of materialism and dogma1 a cry should go up for ,plato4--,so let ,isocrates1 the 'old man eloquent1'--let a many-worded not unpeculant patriotic ,demosthenes who knew nothing of the ,god-world--attend to an ,athens wherein the ,gods were no longer greatly interested2--the great ,star ,plato should rise up into mid-heaven1 and shine not in1 but high over ,athens and quite apart from her2 drawing from her indeed the external elements of his culture1 but the light and substance from that which was potent in her no longer4 ,i said ,greece served the future badly enough4 ,consider what might have been4 ,the pivot of the ,mediterranean world1 in the sixth century1 was not ,athens1 but in ,magna ,graecia3 at ,croton1 where ,pythagoras had built his school4 ,but the mob wrecked ,croton1 and smashed the ,pythagorean ,movement as an organization2 and that1 ,i take it1 and one other which we shall come to in time1 were the most disastrous happenings in ,european history4 ,yes2 the causes why ,classical civilization went down2 why the ,dark ,ages were dark2 why the ,god in ,man his been dethroned1 and suffered all this crucifixion and ignominy the last two thousand years4 ,aeschylus1 truly1 received some needed backing from the relics of the ,movement which he found still existent in ,sicily2 but what might he not have written1 and what of his writings might not have come down to us1 preserved there in the archives1 had he had the peace and elevation of a ,croton1 organized1 to retire to8 ,whither1 too1 ,socrates might have gone1 and not to death1 when ,athens became impossible2 where ,plato might have dwelt and taught2 revealing1 to disciples already well-trained1 much more than ever he did reveal2 and engraving1 oh so deeply6 on the stuff of time1 the truths that make men free4 ,and there he should have had successors and successors and successors2 a line to last perhaps a thousand or two thousand years2 who never should have let ,european humanity forget such simple facts as ,karma and ,reincarnation4 ,but only at certain times are such great possibilities presented to mankind2 and a seed-time once passed1 there can be no sowing again until the next season comes4 ,it is no good arguing with the ,law of ,cycles4 ,plato may not have been less than ,pythagoras2 yet1 under the ,law1 he might not attempt-- it would have been folly for him to have attempted--that which ,pythagoras had attempted4 ,so he had to take another line altogether2 to choose another method2 not to try to prevent the deluge1 which was certain now to come2 not even to build an ark1 in which something should be saved2 but1 so to say1 to strew the world with tokens which1 when the great waters had subsided1 should still remain to remind men of those things it is of most importance they should know4 ,this is the way he did it4 ,he advanced no dogma1 formulated no system2 but what he gave out1 he gave rather as hypotheses4 ,his aim was to set in motion a method of thinking which should lead always back to the ,spirit and ,divine ,truth4 ,he started no world- religion2 founded no church--not even such a quite unchurchly church as that which came to exist on the teachings of ,confucius4 ,he never had the masses practicing their superstitions1 nor a priesthood venting its lust of power1 in his name4 ,instead1 he arranged things so1 that wherever fine minds have aspired to the light of the ,spirit1 ,plato has been there to guide them on their way4 ,so you are to see ,star-,plato shining1 you are to hear that voice from the ,spheres at song1 when ,shelley1 reaching his topmost note1 sang3 ,the ,one remains1 the many change and pass2 ,heaven's light forever shines1 ,earth's shadows fly2 ,life like a dome of many-coloured glass ,stains the white radiance of ,eternity2-- and when ,swinburne sings of ,time and change that3 ,songs they can stop that earth found meet1 ,but the ,stars keep their ageless rhyme2 ,flowers they can slay that ,spring thought sweet1 ,but the ,stars keep their ,spring sublime1 ,actions and agonies control1 ,and life and death1 but not the ,soul4 ,in a poetic age--in the time of ,aeschylus1 for example--,plato would have been a poet2 and then perhaps we should have had to invent another class of poets1 one above the present highest2 and reserve it solely for the splendor of ,plato4 ,because ,platonism is the very ,theosophic ,soul of ,poetry4 ,but he came1 living when he did1 to loathe the very name of poetry3 as who should say3 ,god pity you6 ,i give you the ,way1 the ,truth1 and the ,life1 and you make answer1 ',charming ,plato1 how exquisitely poetic is your prose6' ,so his bitterness against poetry is very natural4 ,poetry is the inevitable vehicle of the highest truth2 spiritual truth is poetry4 ,but the world in general does not know this4 ,like ,bacon1 it looks on poetry as a kind of pleasurable lying4 ,plato went through the skies ,mercury to the ,sun of ,truth1 its nearest attendant planet2 and therefore was1 and could not help being1 ,very-,poet of very-poets4 ,but ,homer and others had lied loudly about the ,gods2 and1 thought ,plato1 the ,gods forbid that the truth he had to declare--a vital matter-- should be classed with their loud lying4 ,he masked the batteries of his ,theosophy2 camouflaged his great ,theosophical guns2 but fired them off no less effectively1 landing his splendid shells at every ganglionic point in the history of ,european thought since4 ,let a man soak his soul in ,plato2 and it shall go hard but the fair flower ,theosophy shall spring up there presently and bloom4 ,he prepares the soil3 suggesting the way to1 rather than precisely formulating1 the high teachings4 ,the advantage of the grand ,platonic camouflage has been twofold3 on the one hand you could hardly dwarf your soul with dogmatic acceptation of ,platonism1 because he gave all his teachings--even ,reincarnation--as hypotheses1--and men do not as a rule crucify their mental freedom on an hypothesis4 ,on the other hand1 how was any ,church eager to burn out heresy and heretics to deal with him8 ,he was not to be stamped out2 because his influence depended on no continuity of discipleship1 no organization2 because he survived merely as a tendency of thought4 ,no churchly fulminations might silence his batteries2 because he had camouflaged them1 and they were not to be seen4 ,of course he did not invent his ideas2 they are as old as ,theosophy4 ,the ,lodge sent him to proclaim them in the way he did3 the best way possible1 since the ,pythagorean effort had failed of its greatest success4 ,what we owe to him--his genius and inestimable gift to the world--is precisely that matchless camouflage4 ,it has been effective1 in spite of efforts-- ,that1 for instance1 of a forward youth who came to ,athens and studied under him for twenty years1 and whom ,plato called the intellect of the school1 saying that he spurned his ,teacher as colts do their mothers4 ,a youth1 it is said1 who revered ,plato always2 and only gradually grew away from thinking of himself as a ,platonist4 ,but he never could have understood the inwardness of ,plato or ,platonism1 for his mind turned as naturally to scientific or brain-mind methods1 as ,plato's did to mysticism and the illumination of the ,soul4 ,he adopted much of the teaching1 but gave it a twist brain-mindwards2 yet not such a twist1 either1 but that the ,neo-,platonists in their day1 and certain of the ,arab and ,turkish philosophers after them1 could re-,platonize it to a degree and admit him thus re-,platonized into their canon4 ,i am not going to trouble you much with ,aristotle2 let this from the ,encyclopedia suffice3 ,philosophic differences it says are best felt by their practical effects3 philosophically1 ,platonism is a philosophy of universal forms1 ,aristotelianism is a philosophy of individual substances3 practically1 ,plato makes us think first of the supernatural and the kingdom of heaven1 ,aristotle of the natural and the whole world4 ,or briefly1 ,aristotle took what he could of ,plato's inspiration1 and turned it from the direction of the ,soul to that of the ,brain-mind4 ,the most famous of ,plato's disciples1 he did what he could1 or what he could not help doing1 to spoil ,plato's message4 ,but ,plato's method had guarded that1 so that for mystics it should always be there1 ,aristotle or no4 ,but for mere philosophers1 seeming to improve on it1 he had something tainted it4 ,it descended1 as said1 through the ,neo-,platonists--who turned it back ,plato-ward--to the ,moslems3 through ,avicenna1 who ,aristotelianized1 to ,averroes1 who ,platonized it again2 and from him to ,europe2 where ,bacon presently gave it another twist to out-,aristotle ,aristotle 7as someone said7 to stagger the ,stagirite--and passed it on as the scientific method of today4 ,according to ,coleridge1 every man is by nature either a ,platonist or an ,aristotelian2 and there is some truth in it4 ,and meanwhile1 though the huge ,greek illumination could die but slowly1 ,greece was growing uninteresting4 ,for ,pheidias of the earlier century1 we have in ,plato's time ,praxiteles1 whose carved gods are lounging and pretty nincom--- well1 mortals2 they sink1 says the ,encyclopedia1 to the human level1 or indeed1 sometimes almost below it4 ,they have grace and charm in a supreme degree1 but the element of awe and reverence is wanting4--,we have an ,aphrodite at the bath1 a 'sweet young thing' enough1 no doubt2 an ,apollo ,sauroctonos1 a youth leaning against a tree1 and idly striking with an arrow at a lizard4 ,a certain natural magic has been claimed for ,praxiteles and his school and contemporaries2 but if they had it1 they mixed unholy elements with it4--,and then came ,alexander1 and carried the dying impetus eastward with him1 to touch ,india with it before it quite expired2 and after that ,hellenism became ,hellenisticism1 and what remained of the ,crest-,wave in ,greece was nothing to lose one little wink of sleep over4 ,,vii4 ,,the ,,mauryas ,,of ,,india ,some talk of ,alexander may be appropriate here2 but not much4 ,he was ,aristotle's pupil2 and apart from or beyond his terrific military genius1 had ideas4 ,genius is sometimes1 perhaps more often than we suspect1 an ability to concentrate the mind into a kind of impersonality2 almost non-existence1 so that you have in it a channel for the great forces of nature to play through4 ,we shall find that ,mr4 ,judge's phrase 'the ,crest-,wave of ,evolution' is no empty one3 words were things1 with him and in fact1 as he says2 and it is so here4 ,for this ,crest-,wave is a force that actually rolls over the world as a wave over the face of the sea1 raising up splendors in one nation after another in order geographically1 and with no haphazard about it4 ,its first and largest movement is from ,east to ,west2 producing 7as far as ,i can see7 the great manvantaric periods 7fifteen hundred years apiece7 in ,east ,asia1 ,west ,asia1 and ,europe2 each of these being governed by its own cycles4 ,but it has a secondary movement as well2 a smaller motion within the larger one2 and this produces the brilliant days 7thirteen decades long for the most part7 that recur in the manvantaras4 ,thus3 ,china seems to have been in manvantara from #bcjj to #hej ,b4 ,c42 ,west ,asia1 from #ahij to #cij2 ,europe1 from #hgj ,b4 ,c4 to #fcj ,a4 ,d4 ,so in the time of ,alexander ,west ,asia was newly dead1 and ,china waiting to be reborn4 ,the ,crest-,wave1 in so far as it concerned the ,european manvantara1 had to roll westward from ,greece 7in its time7 to awaken ,italy2 but in its universal aspect--in its strongest force--it had to roll eastward1 that its impulse might touch more important ,china when her time for awaking should come4 ,it is an impetus1 of which sometimes we can see the physical links and lines along which it travels1 and sometimes we cannot4 ,the line from ,greece to ,china lies through ,persia and ,india4 ,but ,persia was dead1 in pralaya2 you could expect no splendor1 no mark of the ,crest-,wave's passing1 there4 ,so ,alexander1 rising by his genius and towering ideas to the plane where these great motions are felt1 skips you lightly across dead ,persia1 knocks upon the doors of ,india to say that it is dawn and she must be up and doing2 and subsides4 ,i doubt he carried her any cultural impulse1 in the ordinary sense2 it is our ,euro-,american conceit to imagine the ,greek was the highest thing in civilization in the world at that time4 ,we may take it that ,indian civilization was far higher and better in all esentials2 certainly the ,greeks who went there presently1 and left a record1 were impressed with that fact4 ,you shall see2 out of their own mouths we will convict them4 ,it is the very burden of ,megasthenes' song4 ,alexander had certain larger than ,greek conceptions1 which one must admire in him4 ,though he overthrew the ,persians1 he never made the mistake of thinking them an inferior race4 ,on the contrary1 he respected them highly2 and proposed to make of them and his ,greeks and ,mecedoinians one homogeneous people1 in which the ,persian qualities of aristocracy should supply a need he felt in ,europeans4 ,the ,law made use of his intention1 partially1 and to the furtherance of its own designs4--,his method of treating the conquered was 7generally7 far more ,persian or ,asiatic than ,greek2 that is to say1 far more humane and decent than barbarous4 ,he took a short cut to his broad ends1 and married all his captains to ,persian ladies1 himself setting the example2 whereas most ,greeks would have dealt with the captive women very differently4 ,so that it was a kind of enlightenment he set out with1 and carried across ,persia1 through ,afghanistan1 and into the ,punjab1--which1 we may note1 was but the outskirts of the real ,india1 into which he never penetrated2 and it may yet be found that he went by no means so far as is supposed2 but let that be4 ,so now1 at any rate1 enough of him2 he has brought us where we are to spend this evening4 ,for a student of history1 there is something mysterious and even --to use a very vile drudge of a word--'unique' about ,india4 ,go else where you will1 and so long as you can posit certainly a high civilization1 and know anything of its events1 you can make some shift to arrange the history4 ,none need boggle really at any ,chinese date after about #bcej ,b4,c42 ,babylon is fairly settled back to about #djjj2 and if you cannot depend on assigned ,egyptian dates1 at least there is a reasonably know sequence of dynasties back through four or five millennia4 ,but come to ,india1 and alas1 where are you8 ,all out of it1 chronologically speaking2 enough2 very likely1 the flotsam and jetsam of several hundred thousand years4 ,i have no doubt the ,puranas are crowded with history2 but how much of what is related is to be taken as plain fact2 how much as 'blinds'2 how much as symbolism--only the ,adepts know4 ,the three elements are mingled beyond the wit of man to unravel them2 so that you can hardly tell whether any given thing happened in this or that millennium1 ,root-,race period1 or ,round of ,worlds1 or ,day of ,brahma4 ,you are in the wild jungles of fairyland2 where there are gorgeous blooms1 and idylls1 dreamlit1 beautiful and fantastical1 all in the deep midwood lonliness2 and time is not1 and the computations of chronology are an insult to the spirit of your surroundings4 ,history1 in ,india1 was kept an esoteric science1 and esoteric all the ancient records remain now2 and ,i dare say any twice-born ,brahmin not ,oxfordized knows far more about it than the best ,max ,mullers of the west1 and laughs at them quietly4 ,until someone will voluntarily lift that veil of esotericism1 the speculations of western scholars will go for little4 ,why it should be kept esoteric1 one can only guess2 ,i think if it were known1 the cycles and patterns of human history would cease to be so abstruse and hidden from us3 we should know too much for our present moral or spiritual status4 ,as usual1 our own savants are avid to dwarf all dates1 and bring everything within the scope of a few thousand years2 as for the native authorities1 they simply try confusions with us2 if you should trust them too literally1 or some of them1 events such as the ,moslem conquest will not take place for a few centuries yet4 ,they do not choose that their ancient history should be known2 so all things are in a hopeless muddle4 ,one thing to remember is this3 it is a continent1 like ,europe2 not a country1 like ,france4 ,the population is even more heterogeneous than that of ,europe4 ,only one sovereign1 ,aurangzeb --at least for many thousands of years--was ever even nominally master of the whole of it4 ,there are two main divisions1 widely different3 ,hindustan or ,aryavarta1 north of the ,vindhya ,mountains and the ,river ,nerbudda2 and ,dakshinapatha or the ,deccan1 the peninsular part to the south4 ,the former is the land of the ,aryans2 the people of the latter are mainly non-,aryan--a race called the ,dravidians whom1 apparently1 the ,aryans conquered in ,hindustan1 and assimilated2 but whom in the ,deccan1 though they have influenced them largely1 and in part molded their religion1 they never quite conquered or supplanted4 ,well2 never is a long day2 dear knows what may have happened in the long ages of pre-history4 ,the ,aryans came down into ,india through its one open door--that in the northwest4 ,but when8--,oh1 from about #adjj to #abjj ,b4,c41 says western scholarship2 which has spent too much ingenuity altogether over discovering the original seat of the ,aryans1 and their primal civilization4 ,after ,sir ,william ,jones and others had introduce ,sanskrit to western notice1 and its affinity had been discovered to that whole chain of languages which is sometimes called ,indo-,european1 the theory long held that ,sanskrit was the parent of all these tongues1 and that all their speakers had emigrated at different times from somewhere in ,central ,asia4 ,but in the scientific orthodoxies fashion reigns and changes as incontinently as in dress4 ,scholars rose to launch a new name for the race3 ,indogermanic2 and to prove ,middle-,europe the ,eden in which it was created4 ,then others1 to dodge that ,eden about through every corner of ,europe2 which at least must have the honor2--it could not be conceded to inferior ,asia4 ,all the languages of the group were examined and worried for evidence4 ,men said1 ',by the names of trees we shall run it to earth'2 and this was the doxy that was ortho-for some time4 ,light on a tree-name common to all the languages1 and find in what territory that tree is indigenous3 that will certainly be the place4 ,as thus2 ,i will work out for you a suggestion given in the encyclopaedia1 that you may see what strictly scientific methods of reasoning may lead to3-- ,perhaps the two plant names most universally met with in all ,aryan languages1 ,european or ,asiatic1 are potato and tobacco4 ',from ,greenland's icy mountains to ,ceylon's sunny isle1 ,whereever prospect pleases1 ,and only man is vile4'--you shall nearly always hear the vile ones calling the humble tuber of their mid-day meal by some term akin to potato1 and the subtle weed that companions their meditations1 by some word like tobacco4 ,argal1 the ,aryan race used these two words before their separation2 and if the two words1 the two plants also4 ,you follow the reasoning8--,now then1 seek out the land where these plants are indigenous2 and if haply it shall be found they both have one original habitat1 why1 there beyond doubt you shall find the native seat of the primitive ,aryans4 ,and1 glory be to ,science6 they do2 both come from ,virginia4 ,virginia1 then1 is the ,aryan ,garden of ,eden4 ,ah but1 strangely enough1 we do find one great branch of the race--the ,teutons--unacquainted with the word potato4 ,you may argue that the ,french are too3 but luckily1 ,science has the seeing eye2 ,science is not to be cheated by appearances4 ,the ,french say pomme de terre2 but this is evidently only a corruption--potater1 pomdeter--twisted at some late period by false analogy into pomme de terre1 7'apple of the earth'47 ,but the ,teuton has kartoffel1 utterly different2 argal again1 the ,teutons must have separated from the parent stem before the ,aryans had discovered that the thing was edible and worth naming4 ,they1 therefore1 were the first to leave ,virginia3 paddle their own canoes off to far-away ,deutschland before ever the mild ,hindoo set out for ,hindustan1 the ,greek for ,greece1 or the ,anglo-,saxon for ,anglo-,saxony4 ,but even the ,teutons have the word tobacco4 ,come now1 what a light we have here thrown on the primitive civilization of our forefathers6 ,they knew1 it seems1 the virtures of the weed or ever they had boiled or fried a single murphy2 they smoked first1 and only ate long afterwards3 and the ,germans who led that first expedition out from the fatherland of the race1 must have gone with full tobacco-pouches and empty lunch-bags4 ,what a life-like picture rises before our eyes6 ,these first ,aryans were a dreamy contemplative people2 tobacco was the main item in their lives1 the very basis of their civilization4--,then presently1 after the ,teutons had gone1 someone must have let his pipe go out for a few minutes--long enought to discover that he was hungry1 and that a fair green plant was growing at his door1 with a succulent tuber at the root of it which one could ,,eat4 ,think of the joy1 the wonder1 of that momentous discovery6 ,did he hide it away1 lest others should be as happy as himself8 ,were ditectives set to watch him1 to spy out the cause of a habit of sleek rotundity that was growing upon him at last visibly8 ,we shall never know4 ,or did he call in his neighbors at once and annouce it8 ,did someone ask3 ',what shall we name this ,god-given thing8'--and did another reply3 ',it looks to me like a potato2 let's call it that6'8 ,that at least must have been how it came by it name4 ,they received the suggestion with acclamations3 and all future out-going expeditions took sacks of it with them2 and their descendants have continued to call it potato to this day4 ,for you must not that being the only food with a name common to all the languages--or almost all --it must be supposed to have been the only food they knew of before their separation4 ,even the words for father1 mother1 fire1 water1 and the like1 have a greater number of different roots in the ,aryan languages than have these blessed two4 ,to say the truth1 a dawning perception of the possibilities of this kind of reasoning chilled the enthusiasm of the ,aryan-hunters a good deal2 it was the bare bodkin that did quietus make for much philological pother and rout4 ,no2 if you are to prove racial superiority or exclusiveness1 you had much better avail yourself of the simplicity of a stout bludgeon1 than rely upon the subtleties of brain-mind argumentation2 for time past is long1 and mostly hidden2 and lots of things have happened to account for your proofs in ways you would never suspect4 ,the long and short of it is1 that after pursuing the primitive ,aryans up hill and down dale through all parts of ,europe1 ,science is forced to pronouce her final judgement thus3 ,we really know nothing about it4 ,the ancestors of this ,fifth ,root-,race emigrated to ,central ,asia to escape the fate of ,atlantis2 whither too went several ,atlantean peoples1 such as the forefathers of the ,chinese1--who were not destined to be destroyed4 ,it is a vast region1 and there was room for them all4 ,that emigration may have been as long a process as that of the ,europeans in our own time to ,america2 probably it was2 or longer4 ,but it happened1 at any rate1 a million years ago2 and in a million years a deal of water will flow under the bridges4 ,you may call ,english a universal language now2 it might conceivably become so absolutely1 after a few centuries4 ,but history will go on and time1 and the cyclic changes inherent in natural law4 ,these are not to be dodged by railways1 turbines1 aeroplanes2 you cannot evitate their action by inventing printing-presses2--which1 ,i suppose1 have been invented and forgotten dozens of times 'since created man4' ,in a million years from now the world will have contracted and expanded often4 ,we have seen1 in our little period called historical1 hardly anything but expansion2 though there have been contractions1 too4 ,but contractions there will be1 major ones2 it is quite safe to foretell that2 because action and reaction are equal and opposite3 it is a fundamental law4 ,geography will re-become1 what it was in the times we call ancient1 an esoteric science2 the races will be isolated1 and there will be no liners on the seas1 and ,europe and ,asia will be fabulous realms of faerie for our more or less remote descendants4 ,then what will have become of the once universal ,english language8--,it will have split into a thousand fragment tongues1 as unlike as ,dutch and ,sanskrit2 and philology--the great expansion having happened again--will have as much confusion to unravel in the ,brito-,yankish1 as it has now in the ,indo-,european4--,in a million years8--,bless my soul1 in a poor little hundred thousand6 ,the ,aryan languages1 since they began to be1 have been spreading out and retreating1 mixing and changing and interchanging2 one imposed on another1 hidden under another1 and recrudescing through another2 through ten or a hundred thousand years1--or however long it may be2 just as they have been doing in historical times4 ,you find ,persian half ,arabicized2 ,armenian come to be almost a dialect of ,persian2 ,latin growing up through ,english2 ,greek almost totally submerged under ,latin1 ,slavonic1 and ,turkish1 and now with a tendency to grow back into ,greek2 ,celtic preserving in itself an older than ,aryan syntax1 and conveying that in its turn to the ,english spoken by ,celts4 ,language is1 to say the truth1 a shifting kaleidoscopic thing3 a momentary aspect of racial expression4 ,in a thousand years it becomes unintelligible2 we are modifying ours every day1 upon laws whose nature can be guessed4 ,yet ultimately all is a symphony and ordered progression1 with regular rhythms recurring2 it only seems a chaos1 and unmusical1 because we hear no more than the fragment of a bar4 ,you all know the teaching of ,the ,secret ,doctrine about the ,root-,races of ,humanity1 of which this present one1 generally called the ,aryan1 is the fifth2 and how each is divided into seven sub-races2 each sub-race into seven family-races2 and each family-race into innumerable nations and tribes4 ,according to that work1 this ,fifth ,root-,race has existed a million years4 ,the period of a sub-race is said to be about #baj1jjj years2 and that of a family-race1 about #cj1jjj4 ,so then1 four sub-races would have occupied the first #hdj1jjj years of the ,fifth ,race's history2 and our present fifth sub-race would have been in being during the last #afj1jjj years2 in which time five family-races would have flourished and passed2 and this present sixth family-race would be about ten millenniums old4 ,now1 no single branch of the ,aryans3 by which term ,i mean the sixth family-race2 ,i shall confine it to that1 and not apply it to the ,fifth ,root-,race as a whole1--no single race among the ,aryans has been universal1 or dominant1 or prominent even1 during the whole of the last ten thousand years4 ,the ,teutons 7including ,anglo-,saxons71 who loom so largely now1 cut a very small figure in the days when ,latin was1 in its world1 something more universal than ,english is in ours2 and a few centuries before that1 you should have heard ,celtic1 and little else1 almost anywhere in ,europe4 ,this shows how fleeting a thing is the sovereignty of any language2 within the three thousand years we know about1 three at least of the ,aryan language-groups have been 'universal'2 within the last ten milleniums there has been time enough1 and to spare1 for a 'universality' each of ,sanskrit1 ,persian1 ,greek1 ,slavonic1 ,latin1 ,teutonic1 and ,celtic4 ,so evidently none of these is the language of the family-race3 we may speak of the ,aryan ,family-,race2 not of the ,celtic or ,slavonic4 ,but it does not follow that the whole sub-race is not ,aryan too4 ,mr4 ,judge says somewhere that ,sanskrit will be the universal language again4 ,supposing that there were some such scheme of evolution here1 as in the world-chain8 ,you know the diagram in ,the ,secret ,doctrine1 with the teaching as to the seven rounds4 ,as above1 so below2 when ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky seems to be giving you a sketch of cosmic evolution1 often she is at the same time1 if you can read it1 telling you about the laws that govern your own and the race's history4 ,i suspect some such arrangement as this3 when the sub-race began1 #afj1jjj years ago1 ,sanskrit was its 'universal' language2 spoken by all the ,aryans that moved out over ,europe and into ,india4 ,an unaccountable ,sanskrit inscription has been found in ,asia ,minor299 and there is ,lithuania1 a little speech-island in northeastern ,central ,europe1 where a nearly ,sanskrit language1 ,i believe1 survives4 ,then ,sanskrit changed imperceptibly 7as ,american is changing from ,english7 into the parent language of the ,persian group1 which became the general speech of the sub-race except in ,india1 where ,sanskrit survived as a seed-speech for future resurrection4 ,then1 perhaps pari passu with further westward expansion1 ,persian changed into the parent of the ,slavonic group1 itself living on as a seed-speech in ,iran2 and so on through all the groups2 in each case the type-language of a group remaining1 to expand again after the passage of ages and when its cycle should return1 in or about its corresponding psychic center on the geographical plane4 ,then this evolution1 having reached its farthest limit1 began to retrace its course2 ,i would not attempt to say in what order the language groups come3 which is globe ,a in the chain1 which ,globe ,d1 and so on2 but merely suggest that a 'family race' may represent one round from ,sanskrit to ,sanskrit2 and the whole ,fifth ,sub-race1 seven such complete rounds4 ------ 99 ,ancient ,india1 by ,e4 ,j4 ,rapson ------ ,what came before8 ,what was the ,fourth ,sub-race8 ,well3 ,i imagine we may have the relic1 the sishta or seed of it1 in the ,hamitic peoples and languages3 the ,libyans1 ,numidians1 ,egyptians1 ,iberians1 and ,pelasgians of old2 the ,somalis1 ,gallas1 ,copts1 ,berbers1 and ,abyssinians of today4 ,we are almost able to discern a time--but have not guessed when it was--when this ,iberian race1 having perhaps its central seat in ,egypt1 held all or most lands as far as ,ireland to the west1 and ,japan and ,new ,zealand eastward2 we find them surviving1 mixed with1 but by no means submerged under1 ,aryan ,celts in ,spain--which is ,iberia2 we find their name 7,i imagine7 in that of ,iverne1 ,ierine1 ,hibernia1 or ,ireland2 we know that they gave the syntax of their language to that of the ,celts of the ,british ,isles2 and that the ,celtic races of today are mainly ,iberian in blood--,i daresay all ,europe is about half ,iberian in blood1 as a matter of fact2--that the ,greeks found them in ,greece3 ,i suspect that the main difference between ,sparta and ,athens lay in the fact that ,sparta was pure ,aryan1 ,athens mainly ,iberian4--,it seems to me then that we can almost get a glimpse of the sub-race preceding our own4 ,some have been puzzled by a seeming discrepancy between ,katherine ,tingley's statement that ,egypt is older than ,india1 and ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky's1 that ,menes1 founder of the ,egyptian monarchy1 went from ,india to ,egypt to found it4 ,but now suppose that something like this happened--would it not solve the problem8--,in #aeh1jjj ,b4 ,c41 or at the time this present ,aryan ,sub-race began1 ,egypt1 one state in the huge ,iberian series1 was already a seat of civilization as old as the ,iberian race4 ,there may have been an ,iberian ,empire1 almost world-wide2 which again may have split into many kingdoms2 and as the star of the whole race was declining1 we may suppose ,egypt in some degree of pralaya2 or again1 that it may have been an outlying and little-considered province at that time4 ,in ,central ,asia the ,sanskrit-speaking tribe begins to increase and multiply furiously4 ,they pour down into ,iberian ,hindustan4 ,they are strong1 and the ,gods are leading them2 the ,iberians have grown world-weary with the habit of long empire4 ,the ,iberian power goes down before them2 the ,iberians become a subject people4 ,but there is one ,menes among the latter1 of the royal house perhaps1 who will not endure subjection4 ,he stands out as long as he may2 then sails west with his followers for ,iberian lands that the ,aryans have not disturbed1 and are not likely to4 ,in their contests with the invaders of ,india1 they have thrown off all world-weariness1 and become strong2 ,prince ,menes is hailed in ,egypt 7as the last of the ,ommevads1 driven out from the ,east by the ,abbasids1 was hailed in ,spain72 he wakens ,egypt1 and founds a new monarchy there4--,i am telling the tale of very ancient and unknown conditions in terms of historic conditions we know about and can understand2 it is only the skeleton of the story ,i would stand for4 ,and to put ,menes back at #afj1jjj years ago--what an amusing idea that will seem6--,but the truth is we must wage war against this mischievous foreshortening of history4 ,i have no doubt there have been empires going1 from time to time1 in ,egypt1 since before ,atlantis fell2 people have the empire-building instinct1 and it is an eminently convenient place for empire-building4 ,i have no doubt there have been dozens of different ,meneses--that is1 founders of ,egyptian monarchies1--with thousands of years between each two4 ,but ,i think probably the one that came from ,india to do it1 came about the time when the fifth sub-race rose to supplant the fourth as that section of humanity in which evolution was chiefly interested4 ,which last phrase in itself is rank heresy1 and smacks of the 'white man's burden1' and all such nonsense as that4 ,we might learn a lesson here4 ,think3 since that time1 during how many thousands of years1 off and on1 has not that old sub-race been the darling of evolution1 the seat of the ,crest-,wave1 and place where all things were doing8 ,all the ,setis1 the grand ,rameseses and ,thothmeses came since then2 all the historic might and glory of ,egypt4 ,you never know rightly when to say that the life of a sub-race is ended2 the two-hundred-and-ten-century period cannot1 ,i imagine1 include it from birth to death2 but can only mark the time between the rise of one1 and the rise of another4-- ,but now to ,india4 ,we have no knowledge of the last time when ,sanskrit was spoken3 it has always been1 in historic or quasi-historic ages1 what it is now--literary language preserved by the high castes4 ,in the days of the ,buddha it had long given place to various vernaculars grown out of it3 ,pali1 and what are called the ,prakrits4--,we have lost memory of what ,i may call the archetypal languages of ,europe3 the common ancestor of the ,celtic group1 for instance2 or that ,italian from which ,latin and the lost ,oscan and ,savellian and the rest sprang4 ,no matter2 they remain in the ideal world1 and ,i doubt not in the course of our cyclic evolution we shall return to them1 take them up1 and pass through them again4 ,but it seems to me that in the land of ,esoteric ,history1 where ,manu provided in advance against the main destructiveness of war1 the archetypal language of the whole sub-race has been preserved4 ,the ,aryans went down into ,india1 and there1 at the extreme end of the ,aryan world1 enjoyed some of the advantages of isolation3 they were in a backwater1 over which the tides of the languages did not flow4 ,by esotericizing their history1 ,i imagine they have really kept it intact1 continuous1 and within human memory2 as we have not done with ours4 ,as if that which is to be preserved forever1 must be preserved in secret2 and silence were the only durable casket for truth4 ,the ,greeks1 they say1 were very gifted liars2 but ,i do not see why we should suppose them lying1 when they sang the superiorities of ,indian things and people2--as they did4 ,the ,indians1 says ,megasthenes1 were taller than other men1 and of greater distinction and prouder bearing4 ,the air and water of their land were the purest in the world2 so you would expect in the people1 the finest culture and skill in the arts4 ,almost always they gathered two harvests in the years2 and famine had never visited ,india4--,you see1 railways1 quick communications1 and all the appliances of modern science and invention cannot do as much for ,india in pralaya1 as her own native civilization could do for her in manvantara4--,then he goes on to show how that civilization guarded against famine and many other things2 and incidentally to prove it not only much higher than the ,greek1 but much higher than our own4 ,i said ,manu provided in advance against the main destructiveness of war3 here was the custom1 which may have been dishonored in the breach sometimes1 but still was the custom4--,the whole continent was divided into any number of kingdoms2 mutually antagonistic often1 but with certain features of homogeneity that made the name ,aryavarta more than a geographical expression4 ,i am speaking of the ,india ,megasthenes saw1 and as it had been then for dear knows how long4 ,it had made concessions to human weakness1 yes2 had fallen1 as ,i think1 from an ancient unity2 it had not succeeded in abolishing war4 ,it was open to any king to make himself a ,chakravartin1 or world-sovereign1 if he disposed of the means for doing so3 which means were military4 ,as this was a well-recognised principle1 wars were by no means rare4 ,but with them all1 what a ,utopia it was1 compared to ,christendom6 ,there was never a draft or conscription4 ,of the four castes1 the ,kshatriya or warrior alone did the fighting4 ,while the conches brayed1 and the war- cars thundered over ,kurukshetra2 while the pantheons held their breath1 watching ,arjun and mightiest ,karna at battle--the peasants in the next field went on hoeing their rice2 they knew no one was making war on them4 ,they trusted ,gandiva1 the goodly bow1 to send no arrows their way2 their caste was inviolable1 and sacred to the tilling of the soil4 ,megasthenes notes it with wonder4 ,war implied no ravaging of the land1 no destruction of crops1 no battering down of buildings1 no harm whatever to non-combatants4 ,kshatriya fought ,kshatriya4 ,if you were a ,brahmin3 which is to say1 a theological student1 or a man of letters1 a teacher or what not of the kind--you were not even called up for physical examination4 ,if you were a merchant1 you went on quietly with your 'business as usual4' ,a mere patch of garden1 or a peddler's tray1 saved you from all the horrors of a questionnaire4 ,kshatriya fought ,kshatriya1 and no one else2 and on the battlefield1 and nowhere else4 ,the victor became possessed of the territory of the vanquished2 and there was no more fuss or botheration about it4 ,and the vanquished king was not dispossessed1 ,saint ,helenaed1 or beheaded4 ,simply1 he acknowledged his conqueror as his overlord1 paid him tribute2 perhaps put his own ,kshatriya army at his disposal2 and went on reigning as before4 ,so ,porus met ,alexander without the least sense of fear1 distrust1 or humiliation at his defeat4 ,how shall ,i treat you8 said the ,macedonian4 ,porus was surprised4--,i suppose1 said he in effect1 as one king would treat another2 or1 like a gentleman4 ,and ,alexander rose to it2 in the atmosphere of a civilization higher than anything he knew1 he had the grace to conform to usage4 ,manu imposed his will on him4 ,porus acknowledged him for overlord1 and received accretions of territory4--,this explains why all the changes of dynasty1 and the many conquests and invasions have made so little difference as hardly to be worth recording4 ,they effected no change in the life of the people4 ,even the ,british ,raj has been1 to a great degree1 molded to the will of ,manu4 ,each strong native state is ruled by its own ,maharaja1 who acknowledges the ,kaiser-i-,hind at ,london for his overlord1 and lends him at need his ,moslem or ,kshatriya army4--,all of which proves1 ,i think1 the extreme antiquity of the svstem3 which is so firmly engraved in the prototypal world--the astral molds are so strong--that no outside force coming in has been able materially to change it4 ,the ,greek invasion goes wholy unnoticed in ,indian literature4 ,which brings us back to ,alexander4 ,if he got as far as to the ,indus2--he got no farther4 ,there were kingdoms up there in the northwest--perhaps no further east than ,afghanistan and ,baluchistan--which had formed part of the empire of ,darius ,hystaspes1 and sent contingents to fight under ,xerxes in ,greece2 and these now ,alexander claimed as ,darius ,codomannus's successor4 ,but even in these outlying regions1 he found conditions very different from those in ,persia3 there was no unquestionable superiority of the ,european to the ,asiatic1 nor nothing like4 ,had he gone further1 and into the real ,india of the ,ganges valley1 his name1 it is likely1 would not have come down synonymous with victory2 presentlv we will call ,megasthenes to witness again as to the unquestionable superiority of the ,asiatic to the ,european4 ,but thither the ,macedonians refused to follow their king2 and ,i suppose he wept rather over their insubordination1 than for any overwhelmment with a sense of terrene limits4 ,for he knew well that there was plenty more world to conquer1 could one conquer it3 rich and mighty kingdoms beyond that ,thar ,desert his soldiers are said to have refused to cross4 ,he knew1 because there were many to tell him3 exiled princes and malcontents from this realm and that1 each with his plan for self-advancement1 and for using the ,macedonia as a catspaw4 ,among them one in particular3 as masterful a man as ,alexander1 and a potential world-conqueror himself4 ,he was 7probably7 a more or less illegitimate scion of the ,house of ,nanda1 then reigning in ,magadha2 which country1 now called ,behar1 had been growing at the expense of its ,gangetic neighbors for some centuries4 ,king ,suddhodana1 the ,buddha's father1 had reigned over the ,sakyas in ,nepaul as a tributary under the king of ,magadha2 which statement ,i let pass1 well aware that the latest western scholarship has revolutionized the ,sakyas into a republic--perhaps with soviets1--and ,king ,suddhodana himself into a mere ward politician4 ,this ,sandrakottos1 as the ,greeks called him1 had many tales to tell of the wealth of his kinsman's kingdom1 and of the extreme unpopularity of its ruler3-and therefore of the ease with which ,alexander might conquer it and hand it over to him4 ,but two of a trade seldom agree2 both he and his host were born to rule empires2 and presently he offended susceptibilities1 and had to flee the camp4 ,whereupon he shortly sharked up a list of landless reprobates1 ,kshatriyas at a loose end1 for food and diet2 and the enterprise with a stomach in't was1 as soon as ,alexander's back was turned1 to drive out the ,macedonian garrisons4 ,this done1 he marched eastward as king of the ,indus region1 conquered ,magadha1 slew his old enemy the ,nanda king with all male members of the family1 and reigned in his stead as ,chandragupta ,i1 of the house of ,maurya4 ,that was in #cba4 ,master then of a highly trained army of about #gjj1jjj1 he spread his empire over all ,hindustan4 ,in #cje1 ,seleucus ,nicator1 ,alexander's successor in ,asia1 crossed the ,indus with an army1 and was defeated2 and in the treaty which followed1 gave up to ,chandragupta all claim to the ,indian provinces1 together with the hand of his daughter in marriage4--and received by way of compensation #ejj elephants that might come in useful in his wars elsewhere4 ,also he sent ,megisthenes to be his ambassador at ,pataliputra1 ,chandragupta's capital2 and ,megasthenes wrote2 and in a few quotations from his lost book that remain1 chiefly in ,arrian1--we get a kind of window wherethrough to look into ,india3 the first1 and perhaps the only one until ,chinese travelers went west discovering4 ,here let me flash a green lantern4 ,if at some future time it should be shown that the ,chandragupta ,maurya of the ,sanskrit books was not the same person as the ,sandacottos of ,megasthenes2 nor his son ,bindusara ,amitraghata1 the ,amitrochidas of the ,greeks2 nor his son and successor1 ,asoka1 the ,devanampiya ,piadasi whose rock-cut inscriptions remain scattered over ,india2 nor the ,amtiyako ,yonaraja--the ,ionian ,king ,antiochus apparently1--,atiochus ,theos1 ,selecus ,nicator's granson3 as is supposed2 nor yet the other four kings mentioned in the same instricption in a ,sanskrit disguise as contemporaries1 ,ptolemy ,philadelphos of ,egypt 7#bhe-bdg72 ,magas of ,cyrene 7#bhe-beh72 ,antigonus ,gonatas of ,macedon 7#bgg-bci71 and ,alexander of ,epirus1 who began to reign in #bgb2--;if all these identifications should fall to the ground1 let no one be surprised4 ,there are passages in the writings of ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky that seem to suggest there is nothing in them2 and yet1 after studying those passages1 ,i do not find that she says so positively3 her attitude seems rather one of withholding information for the time being2 she supplies none of a contrary sort4 ,the time may not have been ripe then for unveiling so much of ,indian history2 nor indeed1 in those days1 had the pictures of these kings1 and particularly of ,asoka1 so clearly emerged3 inscriptions have been deciphered since1 which have gone to fill out the outline2 and the story1 as it his been pieced together now1 has an air of verisimilitude1 and hangs together4 ,without the ,greek identifications1 and the consequent possibility of assigning dates to ,chandragupta and his son1 we should know indeed that there was a great ,maurya empire1 which lasted a matter of thirteen decades and a few odd years2 but we should hardly know when to place it4 ,accepting the ,greek identifications1 and placing the ,mauryas where we do in time--you shall see how beautifully the epoch fits into the universal cycles1 and confirms the teaching as to ,cyclic ,law4 ,so1 provisionally1 ,i shall accept them1 and tell the tale4 ,first a few more items from ,megasthenes as to ,india under ,chandragupta4 ,there was no slavery1 he notes2 all ,indians were free1 and not even were there aliens enslaved4 ,crime of any kind was rare2 the people were thoroughly law-abiding4 ,thievery was so little known1 that doors went unlocked at all times2 there was no usury1 and a general absence of litigation4 ,they told the truth3 as a ,greek1 he could not help noticing that4 ,the men were exceptionally brave2 the women1 chaste and virturous4 ,but in contrast to the general simplicity of their style1 they loved finery and ornaments4 ,their robes were worked in gold1 adorned with precious stones1 and they wore flowered garments of the finest muslin4 ,attendants walking behind held umbrellas over them4444 ,the system of government was very highly and minutely evolved4 ,of the great officers of state1 some have charge of the markets1 others of the city1 others of the soldiers2 others superintend the canals1 and measure the land1 or collect the taxes2 some construct roads and set up pillars to show the by-roads and distances from place to place4 ,those who have charge of the city are divided into six boards of five members apiece3 ,the first looks after industrial art4 ,the second attends to the entertainment of strangers1 taking care of them1 sound or sick1 and in the event of their death1 burying them and sending their property to their relatives4 ,the third board registered births and deaths2 the fourth1 fifth and sixth had supervision of things commercial4 ,military affairs were as closely organized3 there were ,boards of ,infantry1 ,cavalry1 ,war ,chariots1 ,elephants1 ,navy1 and ,bullock ,transport4 ,and behind all these stood ,chandragupta himself1 the superman1 ruthless and terrifically efficient2 and ,chanakya1 his ,macchiavellian minister3 a combination to hurry the world into greatness4 ,and so indeed they did4 ,under ,asoka1 ,chandragupta's grandson1 the age culminated4 ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky says positively that he was born into ,buddhism2 this is not the general view2 but one finds nothing in his edicts1 really1 to contradict it4 ,his father ,bindusara1 of whom we know nothing1 may have been a ,buddhist4 ,but it would appear that ,asoka in his youth was the most capable1 and also the most violent and passionate of ,bindusara's sons4 ,during his father's lifetime1 he held one of the great vice-royalties into which the empire was divided2 he succeeded to the throne in #bga4 ,his domains at that time included all ,aryavarta1 with ,baluchistan1 and as much of ,afghanistan as lies south of the ,hindoo ,koosh2 and how much of the ,deccan it is difficult to determine4 ,nine years later he extended this realm still further1 by the conquest of the ,kalingas1 whose country lay along the coast northward from ,madras4 ,at the end of that war he was master of all ,india north of a line drawn from ,pondicherry to ,cannanore in the south2 while the tip of the ,deccan and ,ceylon lay at least within his sphere of influence4 ,he was easily the strongest monarch of his day4 ,in ,china--between which country and ,india there was no communication3 they had not discovered each other1 or they had lost sight of each other for ages--an old order was breaking to pieces1 and all was weakness and decay4 ,in the ,west1 ,greek civilization was in decadence1 with the successors of ,alexander engaged in profitless squabbles4 ,rome1 a power only in ,italy1 was about to begin her long struggle with ,carthage2 overseas nobody minded her4 ,the ,crest-,wave was in ,india1 the strongest power and most vigorous civilization1 so far as we can tell1 in the world1 and at the head of ,india stood this ,chakravartin1 victorious ,asoka1 flushed with conquest1 and a whole world tempting him out to conquer4-- ,he never went to war again4 ,for twenty-nine years after that conquest of the ,kalingas1 until his death in #bcc1 he reigned in unbroken peace4 ,he left his heart to posterity in many edicts and inscriptions cut on rocks and pillars2 thirty-five of these remain1 or have so far been discovered and read4 ,in #beg1 or five years after the ,kalinga ,war1 he published this3 ,devanamipiya ,piadasi-- ,it means literally 'the ,beloved of the ,gods1 the ,beautiful of ,countenance'2 but it is really a title equivalent to ,his ,gracious ,majesty1' and was borne by all the ,maurya kings2-- ,devanampiya ,piadasi feels remorse on account of the conquest of the ,kalingas2 because1 during the subjugation of a preciously unconquered country slaughter1 death1 and taking away captives of the people necessarily occur2 whereat ,his ,majesty feels profound sorrow and regret444 ,it would be in keeping with the ,southern ,buddhist tradition as to the ungovernable violence of ,asoka's youth1 that he should have introduced into war horrors quite contrary to ,manu and ,indian custom2 but here ,i must say that ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky1 though she does not particularize1 says that there were really two ,asokas1 two ',devanampiya ,piadasis1' the first of whom was ,chandragupta himself1 from whose life the tradition of the youthful violence may have been drawn2 and there remains the possibility that this ,kalinga ,war was waged by ,chandragupta1 not ,asoka2 and that it was he who made this edict1 felt the remorse1 and became a ,buddhist4 ,however1 to continue 7tentatively73-- ,the loss of even the hundredth or the thousandth part of the persons who were then slain1 carried away captive1 or done to death in ,kalinga would now be a matter of deep regret to ,his ,majesty4 ,although a man should do him any injury1 ,devanampiya ,piadasi holds that it must patiently be borne1 so far as it possibly can be borne444 for ,his ,majesty desires for all animate beings security1 control over the passions1 peace of mind1 and joyousness4 ,and this is the chief of conquests1 in ,his ,majesty's opinion3 the ,conquest of ,duty4 ,some time later he took the vows of a ,buddhist monk1 'entered the ,path'2 and1 as he says1 'exerted himself strenuously4' ,he has been called the ',constantine of ,buddhism'2 there is much talk among the western learned1 about his support of that movement having contributed to its decay4 ,they draw analogy from ,constantine2 even hint that ,asoka embraced ,buddhism1 as the latter did ,christianity1 from political motives4 ,but the analogy is thoroughlv false4 ,constantine was a bad man1 a very far-gone case2 and there was little in the faith he adopted1 or favored1 as it had come to be at that time1 to make him better2--even if he had really believed in it4 ,and it was a defined religio- political body1 highly antagonistic to the old state religion of ,rome1 that he linked his fortunes with4 ,but no sovereign so mighty in compassion is recorded in history as having reigned1 as this ,asoka4 ,he was the most unsectarian of men4 ,buddhism as it came to him1 and as he left it1 was not a sect1 but a living spiritual movement4 ,for what is a sect8--,something cut off-- from the rest of humanity1 and the sources of inner life4 ,but for ,asoka1 as for the modern ,theosophical ,movement1 there was no religion higher than--,dharma--which word may be translated1 'the 7higher7 ,law1' or 'truth4' or 'duty4' ,he never ceased to protect the holy men of ,brahminism4 ,edict after edict exhorts his people to honor them4 ,he preached the ,good ,law2 he could not insist too often that different men would have different conceptions as to this ,dharma4 ,each1 then1 must follow his own conception1 and utterly respect his neighbors'4 ,the ,good ,law1 the ,doctrine of the ,buddhas1 was universal2 because the objective of all religions was the conquest of the passions and of self4 ,all religions must manifest on this plane as right action and life2 and that was the evangel he proclaimed to the world4 ,there was no such sharp antagonism of sects and creeds4 ,there is speculation as to how he managed1 being a world-sovereign --and a highly efficient one--to carry out the vows of a ,buddhist monk4 ,as if the begging bowl would have been anything of consequence to such an one6 ,it is a matter of the status of the soul2 not of outward paraphernalia4 ,he was a practical man2 intensely so2 and he showed that a ,chakravartin could tread the ,path of the ,buddhas as well as a wandering monk4 ,one can imagine no ,tolstoyan playing at peasant in him4 ,his business in life was momentous4 ,i am never satisfied with my exertions and my dispatch of business1 he says4 ,work ,i must for the public benefit1--and the root of the matter is in exertion and dispatch of business1 than which nothing is more efficacious for the public welfare4 ,and for what end do ,i toil8 ,for no other end than that ,i may discharge my debt to animate beings4 ,and again3 ,devanampiya ,piadasi desires that in all places men of all religions may abide1 for they all desire purity of mind and mastery over the senses4 ,well2 for nine and twenty years he held that vast empire warless2 even though it included within its boundaries many restless and savage tribes4 ,certainly only the greatest1 strongest1 and wisest of rulers could do that2 it has not been done since 7though ,akbar came near it74 ,we know nothing as to how literature may have been enriched2 some think that the great epics may have come from this time4 ,if so1 it would only have been recensions of them1 ,i imagine4 ,but in art and architecture his reign was everything4 ,he built splendid cities1 and strewed the land with wonderful buildings and monoliths4 ,patna1 the capital1 in ,megasthenes' time nine miles long by one and a half wide1 and built of wood1 he rebuilt in stone with walls intricately sculptured4 ,education was very widespread or universal4 ,his edicts are sermons preached to the masses3 simple ethical teachings touching on all points necessary to right living4 ,he had them carved on rock1 and set them up by the roadsides and in all much-frequented places1 where the masses could read them2 and this proves that the masses could read4 ,they are all vibrant with his tender care1 not alone for his human subjects1 but for all sentient beings4 ,work ,i must4444 that ,i may discharge my debt to all things animate4 ,and how he did work without one private moment in the day or night1 as his decrees show1 in which he should be undisturbed by the calls of those who needed help4 ,he specifies2 he particularizes2 there was no moment to be considered private1 or his personal own4 ,and even then he was not content4 ,there were foreign lands2 and those1 too1 were entitled to his care4 ,i said that the southern tip of ,india1 with ,ceylon1 were within his sphere of influence3 his sphere of influence was much wider than that1 however4 ,saying that a king's sphere of influence is wherever he can get his will done1 ,asoka's extended westward over the whole ,greek world4 ,here was a king whose will was benevolence2 who sought no rights but the right to do good2 whose politics were the service of mankind3--it is a sign of the ,brotherhood of ,man1 that his writ ran1 as you may say--the writ of his great compassion1--to the ,mediterranean shore3-- ,everywhere in the dominions of ,devanampiya ,piadasi1 and likewise in the neighboring realms1 such as those of the ,chola1 ,pandya1 ,satiyaputra and ,keralaputra1 in ,ceylon1 in the dominions of the ,greek king ,antiochus1 and in those of the other kings subordinate to that ,antiochus--everywhere1 on behalf of ,his ,majesty1 have two kinds of hospitals been founded3 hospitals for men1 and hospitals for beasts4 ,healing herbs1 medicinal for man and medicinal for beasts1 wherever they were lacking1 have been imported and planted4 ,on the roads1 trees have been planted1 and wells have been dug for the use of men and beasts4 ,and everywhere1 in all those foreign realms1 he had his missionaries preaching the ,good ,law4 ,and some of these came to ,palestine1 and founded there for him an order at ,nazareth called the ,essenes2 in which1 some century or two later1 a man rose to teach the ,good ,law--by name1 ,jesus of ,nazareth4--,now consider the prestige1 the moral influence1 of a king who might keep his agents1 unmolested1 carrying out his will1 right across ,asia1 in ,syria1 ,greece1 ,macedonia1 and ,egypt2 the king of a great1 free1 and mighty people1 who1 if he had cared to1 might have marched out world-conquering2 but who preferred that his conquests should be the conquests of duty4 ,devanampiya ,piadasi3 the ,gracious of ,mien1 the ,beloved of the ,gods3 an ,adept ,king like them of old time1 strayed somehow into the scope and vision of history4 ,,viii4 ,,the ,,black-,,haired ,,people ,greece shone between #dgh and #cdh1--to give the thirteen decades of her greatest spiritual brightness4 ,then came ,india in #cba2 we lose sight of her after the death of ,asoka in the two-thirties1 but know the ,maurya ,empire lasted its thirteen decades 7and six years7 until #ahe4 ,then ,china flamed up brilliantly under the ,western ,house of ,han from #aid to #fd2--;at which time1 however1 we shall not arrive for a few weeks yet4 ,between these three national epochs there is this difference3 the ,greek ,age came late in its manvantara2 which opened 7as ,i guess71 roughly speaking1 some three hundred and ninety years before3--three times thirteen decades1 with room for three national flowerings in ,europe--among what peoples1 who can say8-- ,we cannot tell where in its manvantara the ,indian ,age may have come3 whether near the beginning1 or at the middle4 ,but in ,china we are on firm ground1 and the firmest of all4 ,a manvantara1 a fifteen-century cycle1 began in the two-forties ,b4 ,c42 this ,age of ,han was its first blossom and splendid epoch2 and we need feel no surprise that it was not followed by a night immediately1 but only by a twilight and slight dimming of the glories for about thirteen decades again1 and then the full brilliance of another day4 ,such things are proper to peoples new-born after their long pralaya2 and can hardly happen1 one would say1 after the morning of the manvantara has passed4 ,thus in our own ,european cycle1 ,italy the first-born was in full creative energy from about #abdj to #aejj3 twenty-six decades2--whereas the nations that have held hegemony since have had to be content each with its thirteen4 ,and now to take bird's-eye views of ,china as a whole2 and to be at pains to discover what relation she bears1 historically1 to ourselves and the rest of the globe4 ,do you remernber how ,abraham haggled with the ,lord over the ,cities of the ,plain8 ,yahveh was for destroying them off hand for their manifold sins and iniquities2 but ,abraham argued and bargained and brought him down till if peradventure there should be found ten righteous in ,sodom and ,gomorrah1 the ,lord promised he would spare them4 ,but ten righteous there were not1 nor nothing near2 so the ,cities of the ,plain went down4 ,i suppose the ,crest-,wave rarely passes from a race without leaving a wide trail of insanity in its wake4 ,the life forces are strong2 the human organisms through which they play are but--as we know them4 ,commonly these organisms are not directed by the ,divine ,soul1 which has all too little of the direction of life in its hands2 so the life-currents drift downward1 instead of fountaining up2 and exhaust these their vehicles1 and leave them played out and mentally--because long since morally--deficient4 ,so come the cataclysmic wars and reigns of terror that mark the end of racial manvantaras3 it is a humanity gone collectively mad4 ,on the other hand1 none can tell what immense safeguarding work may be done by the smallest sane co-ordinated effort upwards4 ,if peradventure the ten righteous shall be found--but they must be righteous1 and know what they are doing--,i will spare1 and not destroy1 saith the ,lord4 7,he said nothing about respectabilities4 ,i dare say there was quite a percentage of respectable chapel-going ,sabbath-observing folk in the ,cities of the ,plain47 ,and yet there must be always that dreadful possibility--which perhaps has never become actual since the fall of ,atlantis--that a whole large section of mankind should go quite mad1 and become unfit to carry on the work of evolution4 ,it is a matter of corrupting the streams of heredity2 which is done by vice1 excess1 wrong living2 and these come of ignorance4 ,heaven knows how near it we may be today2 ,i do not think ,christendom stands1 or has stood1 so very far1 from the brink4 ,and yet it is from the white race1 we have supposed1 that the coming races will be born2 this is the main channel through which human evolution is intended to flow4--,we are in kall-yuga2 the ,mysteries are dead1 and the religions have taken their place3 there has been no sure and certain link1 organized on this plane1 between the world and its ,higher ,self4 ,each succeeding civilization1 under these circumstances1 has run a greater risk4 ,of what race are we8 ,i say1 of no race at all1 but can view the matter as ,human ,souls1 reincarnating egos1 prepared to go where the ,law bids us4 ,races are only temporary institutions set up for the convenience of the ,host of ,souls4 ,we see1 ,i suppose1 the results of such a breakdown in ,africa4 ,atlanteans were segregated there2 isolated2 and for a million years degenerated in that isolation to what they are4 ,but their ancestors1 before that segregation began1 had better airships than we have2 were largely giants1 in more respects than the physical1 were we are pygmies4 ,now they are--whatever may be their potentialities1 whatever they may become--actually an inferior reace4 ,and it is a racial stock that shows no signs of dying out4 ,what then8--,i suppose indeed there must be backward races1 to house backward egos2--though for that matter you would think that our ,londons and ,chicagos and the rest1 with their slums1 would provide a good deal of accommodation4 ,or consider the ,redskins1 here and in ,south ,america3 whether ,atlanteans1 or of some former subrace of the ,fifth1 at least not ,aryans4 ,take the finest tribes among them1 such as the ,navajos4 ,here is a very small hereditary stream1 kept pure and apart3 of fine physique2 potentially of fine mentality2 unsullied with vices of any sort3 a people as much nearer than the white man to natural spirituality1 as to natural physical health4 ,it is no use saying they are so few4 ,two millenniums ago1 how many were the ,anglo-,saxons8 ,three millenniums ago1 how many were the ,latins8 ,supposing the white race in ,america failed4 ,the statistics of lunacy--of that alone--are a fearful ,mene1 ,tekel ,upharsin written on our walls1 for any ,daniel with vision to read4 ,i think ,naure must also take into account these possibilities4 ,does she keep in reserve hereditary streams and racial stocks other than her great and main ones1 in case of accidents8 ,are the ,redskins among these8 ,the ,secret ,doctrine seems to hint sometimes that the founders of our ,fifth ,root ,race were of ,lemurian rather than ,atlantean descent4 ,nowhere is it actually said so2 but there are a number of passages that read1 to me1 as if they were written with that idea1 or theory1 or fact1 in mind4 ,is it1 possibly1 that a small pure stream of ,lemurian heredity had been kept aloof through all the years of ,atlantis1 in reserve2--some stream that may have been1 at one time1 as narrow as the tribe of ,navajos8--,this may be a very bold conclusion to draw from what is said in ,the ,secret ,doctrine2 it may have no truth in it whatever3 other passages are to be found1 perhaps1 that would at least appear to contradict it4 ,but if it is true1 it would account for what seems like a racial anomaly--or more than one4 ,science leans to the conclusion that the ,australian aborigines are ,aryan3 they are liker ,aryans than anything else4 ,but we know from ,the ,secret ,doctrine that they are among the few last remnants of the ,lemurians4 ,again1 the ,ainos of ,japan are very like ,europeans3 they have many physical features in common with the ,caucasians1 and none in common with the peoples of ,east ,asia4 ,yet they are very low down in the scale of evolution3--not so low as the ,australian ,blackfellow1 but without much occasion for giving themselves airs4 ,a thousand years of contact with the much- washing ,japanese have never suggested to them why ,god made soap and water4 ,like many other people1 they have the legend of the flood3 remember1 as you may say1 the fall of ,atlantis2 but unlike us upstarts of the ,fourth and ,fifth ,races1 they have also a legend of a destruction of the world by fire and earthquake--a cataclysm that lasted1 they say1 a hundred days4 ,is it a memory of the fate of ,lemuria8 ,is a new ,root-,race developed1 not from the one immediately preceding it1 but from the one before8 ,is ,mercury's caduceus1 here too1 a symbol of the way evolution is done8 ,did the ,law keep in reserve a ,sishta or ,seed-,race from ,lemuria1 holding it back from ,atlantean development during the whole period of the ,atlanteans2--holding it1 all that while1 in seclusion and purity --and therefore in a kind of pralaya2--at the right moment1 to push its development1 almost suddenly1 along a new line1 not parallel to the ,atlantean1 but sui generis1 and to be ,aryan ,fifth presently8--,is the ,law keeping in reserve a ,sishta or ,seed-,race of ,atlantean stock1 holding that in reserve and apart all through our ,aryan time1 to develop from it at last the beginnings of the ,sixth1 on the new continent that will appear8 ,or to do so1 at any rate1 should the main ,aryan stock fail at one of the grand crises in its evolution1 and become of too corrupt heredity to produce fitting vehicles for the egos of the ,sixth to inhabit8 ,when we have evolved back to ,sanskrit for the last time3 when the forces of civilization have played through and exhausted for the last time the possibilities of each of the groups of ,aryan languages1 so that it would be impossible to do anything more with them--for languages do become exhausted3 we cannot write ,english now as they could in the days of ,milton and ,jeremy ,taylor2 not necessarily because we are smaller men1 but because the fabric of our speech is worn much thinner1 and will no longer take the splendid dyes2--and when that final flowering of ,sanskrit is exhausted too--will the new ,sixth ,race language1 as a type1 be a derivation from the ,aryan8 ,then how8--,or will it1 possibly1 be as it were a new growth sprung out of the grave of ,fourth ,race ,chinese1 or of one of that ,atlantean group through which1 during all these millions of years1 such great and main brain-energies have not on the whole been playing as they have been through the ,aryans2 and which might therefore1 having lain so long fallow1 then be fit for new strange developments and uses8 ,all of which may be1 and very likely is1 extremely wide of the mark4 ,such ideas may be merest wild speculation1 and have no truth in them at all4 ,and yet ,i think that if they were true1 they would explain a thing to me otherwise inexplicable3 ,china4 ,we are in the ,fifth ,root-,race1 and the fifth sub-race thereof3 that is1 beyond the middle point4 ,and yet one in every four of the inhabitants of the globe is a ,fourth ,race ,chinaman2 and ,i suppose that if you took all the races that are not ,caucasian1 or ,fifth ,race1 you would find that about half the population of the world is ,atlantean still4 ,take the languages4 ,a ,sanskrit word1 or a ,greek1 or ,old ,gothic1 or ,latin1 is a living organism1 a little articulate being4 ,there is his spine1 the root2 his body1 the stem2 his limbs and head1 the formative elements1 prefixes and suffixes1 case-endings and what not4 ,let him loose in the sentence1 and see how he wriggles gaily from state to state3 with a flick of the tail from nominative to genitive1 from singular to plural3 declaring his meaning1 not by means of what surroundings you put about him1 but by motions1 changes1 volitions so to say1 of his own4 ',now1' says he1 ',i'm pater1 and the subject2 set me where you will1 and ,i am still the subject1 and you can make nothing else of me4' ,or1 ',now1' says he1 ',i'm patrem1 and the object2 go look for my lord the verb1 and you shall know what's done to me2 be he next door1 or ten pages away1 ,i am faithful to him4' ,patrem filius amat1 or filius amat patrem1 or in whatever order it may be1 there is no doubt who does1 and who 7as they say7 suffers the loving4--,but now take a word in ,english4 ,you can still recognise him for the same creature that was once so gay and jumpy-jumpy3 father is no such far cry from pater3--but oh what a change in sprightliness of habits is here6 ,time has worn away his head and limbs to almost unrecognisable blunt excrescences4 ,bid him move off into the oblique cases1 and if he can help it1 he will not budge2 you must shove him with a verb2 you must goad him with a little sharp preposition behind2 and then he just lumps backward or forward1 and there is no change for the better in him1 as you may say4 ,no longer will he declare his meaning of himself2 it must depend on where you choose to put him in the sentence4--,among the mountains of ,europe1 the grand ,alps are the parvenus2 the ,pyrenees look down on them2 and the ,vosges on the ,pyrenees2 and--pardon me6--the little old time-rounded tiny ,welsh mountains look down on them all from the heights of a much greater antiquity4 ,they are the smallest of all1 the least jagged and dramatic of all2 time and the weather have done most to them4 ,the storm1 like the eagle of ,gwern ,abwy in the story1 has lighted on their proud peaks so often1 that that from which once she could peck at the stars in the evening1 rises now but a few thousand feet from the level of the sea4 ,time and springs and summers have silenced and soothed away the startling crags and chasms1 the threatening gestures of the earth at infinity1 and clothed them over with a mantle of quietness and green fern and heather and dreams4 ,when the ,fifth ,race was younger1 its language was ,alpine3 in ,gothic1 in ,sanskrit1 in ,latin1 you can see the crags and chasms4 ,french1 ,spanish and ,italian are ,pyrenean1 much worn down4 ,english is the ,vosges4 ,chinese is hardly even the ,welsh mountains4 ,every word is worn perfectly smooth and round4 ,there is no sign left at all of prefix or suffix1 root or stem4 ,there are no parts of speech3 any word without change can do duty for any part of speech4 ,there is no sign of case or number3 all has been reduced to an absolute simplicity1 beyond which there is no going4 ,words can end with no consonant but the most rounded of all1 the nasal liquids n and ng4 ,there is about as much likeness to the ,aryan and ,semitic languages--you can trace about as much analogy between them--as you can between a centipede and a billiard-ball4 ,there are definite laws governing the changes of language4 ,you know how the ,latin castrum became in ,english ciaster and then chester2 the change was governed by law4 ,the same law makes our present-day vulgar say cyar for car2 that word1 in the ,american of the future1 will be something like chair4 ,the same law makes the same kind of people say donchyer for don't you2 some day1 alas6 even that will be classical and refined ,american4 ,well2 we know that that law has been at work in historic times even on the ,chinese billiard-ball3 where ,confucius said ,ts'in like a gentleman1 the late ,yuan ,shi ,kai used to say ,ch'in4 ,so did the ,dowager ,empress2 it was eminently the refined thing to do4 ,so we ourselves have turned ,ts'in into ,china4--,and that is the one little fact--or perhaps one of the two or three little facts--that remain to convince us that ,chinese and its group of kindred languages grew up on the same planet1 and among the same humankind1 that produced ,sanskrit and ,latin4 ,but does not that suggest also the possibility that ,alpine ,aryan might some day--after millions of years--wear down or evolve back even into billiard-ball ,chinese8 ,that human language is one thing2 and all the differences1 the changes rung on that according to the stages of evolution8 ,in the ,aryan group of languages1 the bond of affinity is easily recognisable3 the roots of the words are the same3 ,pitri1 pater1 vater1 are clearly but varying pronunciations of the same word4 ,in the ,turanic group1 however--,finnish1 ,hungarian1 ,turkish1 ,tatar1 ,mongol and ,manchu--you must expect no such well-advertised first-cousinship4 ,they are grouped together1 not because of any likeness of roots3 not because you could find one single consonant the same in the ,lappish or ,hungarian1 say1 and in the ,mongol or ,manchu words for father--you probably could not2--but because there may be syntactical likenesses1 or the changes and assimilations of sounds may be governed by the same laws4 ,thus in ,turkic--,i draw upon the ,encyclopaedia ,britannica--there is a suffix z1 preceded by a vowel1 to mean your3 pederin is 'father'2 'your father' becomes pederiniz2 dostun means 'friend'2 'your friend' becomes not dostuniz1 but dostunus2 and this trick of assimilating the vowel of the suffix is the last one in the stem is an example of the kind of similarities which establish the relationship of the group4 ,as for likeness of roots1 here is a specimen3 gyordunus is the ,turkish for the ,finnish naikke4--,so here you see a degree of kinship much more remote than that you find in the ,aryan4 ,where1 say1 ,dutch and ,gaelic are brothers--at least near relations and bosom friends1--,turkish and ,mongol are about fifteenth cousins by marriage twice removed1 and hardly even nod to each other in passing4 ,and yet ,turks and ,mongols both claim descent from the sons of a common father3 according to legends of both peoples1 the ancestor of the ,turks was the brother of the ancestor of the ,mongols4 7,always remember that in speaking of ,turks thus scientifically1 one does not mean the ,ottomans1 who inherit their language1 but are almost purely ,caucasian or even ,aryan1 in blood47 ,now take the ,monosyllabic or ,south-,eastern ,asiatic ,group3 ,chinese1 ,burmese1 ,siamese1 ,annamese1 and ,tibetan4 ,here there are only negatives1 you might say1 to prove a relationship4 ,they do not meet on the street2 they pass by on the other side1 noses high in the air2 each sublimely unaware of the other's existence4 ,they suppose they are akin--through ,adam2 but whould tell you that much has happened since then4 ,their kinship consists in this3 the words are each are billiard-balls--and yet1 if you will allow the paradox1 of quite different shapes4 ,thus ,i should call a ,tibetan name like n,gamri-srong-btsan a good jagged angular sort of billiard-ball2 and a ,chinese one like ,t'ang ,tai-tsong a perfectly round smooth one of the kind we know4--,the languages are akin1 because each say1 where we should say 'the horse kicked the man1' horse agent man kicking completion1 or words to that effect1--dapped out nearly in spherical or angular disconnected monosyllables4 ,but the words for horse and man1 in ,chinese and ,tibetan1 have respectively as much phonetic likeness as geegee and equus1 and ,smith and ,jones4 ,as to the value and possibilities of such languages1 ,i will quote you two pronouncements1 both from writers in the ,encyclopaedia ,britannica4 ,one says3 ,chinese has the greatest capacity of any language ever invented2 the other1 ,the ,chinese tongue is of unsurpass jejuneness4 ,in the whole language there are only about four or five hundred sounds you could differentiate by spelling1 as to say1 shih1 pronounced like the first three letters in the word shirt in ,english4 ,that vocable may mean3 history1 or to employ1 or a corpse1 a market1 a lion1 to wait on1 to rely upon1 time1 poetry1 to bestow1 to proclaim1 a stone1 a generation1 to eat1 a house1 and all such things as that2--,i mention a few out of the list by way of example499 ,now of course1 were that all to be said about it1 ,chinamen would no doubt sometimes get confused3 would think you meant a corpse1 when you were really talking about poetry1 and so on4 ,but there is a way of throwing a little breathing in1 a kind of hiatus3 thus ,ts'in meant one country1 and ,tsin another one altogether2 and you ought not to mix them1 for they were generally at war1 and did not mix at all well4 ,that would potentially extend the number of sounds1 or words1 or billiard-balls1 from the four hundred and twenty in modern polite ,pekinese1 or the twelve hundred or so in the older and less cultured ,cantonese1 to twice as many in each case4 ,still that would be but a poor vocabulary for the language with the vastest literature in the world1 as ,i suppose the ,chinese is4 ,then you come to the four tones1 as a further means of extending it4 ,you pronounce shih one tone--you sing it on the right note1 so to say1 and it means poetry2 you take that tone away1 and give it another1 the dead tone1 and very naturally it becomes a corpse3--as1 one way1 and another ,i have often tried to impress on you it really does4--,of course the hieroglyphs1 the written words1 run into hundreds of thousands2 for the literature1 you have a vocabulary indeed4 ,but you see that the spoken language depends1 to express its meaning1 upon a different kind of elements from those all our languages depend on4 ,we have solid words that you can spell3 articles built up with the bricks of sound-stuff we call letters3 c-a-t cat1 d-o-g dog1 and so on2--but their words1 no2 nothing so tangible3 all depends on little silences1 small hiatuses in the vocalizition1--and above all1 musical tones4 ,now then1 which is the more primitive8 ,which is nearer the material or intellectual1 and which1 the spiritual1 pole8 ------- 99 ,encyclopaedia ,britannica3 article1 ,china3 ,language4 ------- ,more primitive--,i do not know4 ,only ,i think when the ,stars of ,morning sang together1 and all the sons of ,god shouted for joy2 when primeval humanity first felt stirring within it the ,divine fire and essence of the ,lords of ,mind2 when the ,sons of the ,fire mist came down1 and found habitation for themselves in the bodies of our ancestors2 when they saw the sky1 how beautiful and kindly it was2 and the wonder of the earth1 and that blue jewel the sea2 and felt the winds of heaven caress them1 and were aware of the ,spirit1 the ,great ,dragon1 immanent in the sunlight1 quivering and scintillant in the dim blue diamond day2 ,they prayed1 but their worship was only ,the wonder of nights and of days1 --when they opened their lips to speak1 and the first of all the poems of the earth was made3--it was song1 it was tone1 it was music they uttered1 and not brute speech such as we use1 it was intoned vowels1 as ,i imagine1 that composed their language3 seven little vowels1 and seven tones or notes to them perhaps3 and with these they could sing and tell forth the whole of the ,glory of ,god4 ,and then--was it like this8--they grew material1 and intellectual1 and away from the child-state of the ,spirit2 and their tones grew into words2 and consonants grew on to the vowels1 to make the vast and varied distinctions the evolving intellect needed for its uses2 and presently you had ,atlantis with its complex civilization--its infinitely more complex civilization even than our own2 and grammar came ever more into being1 ever more wonderful and complex1 to correspond with the growing curves and involutions of the ever more complex-growing human brain2 and a thousand languages were formed--many of them to be found still among wild tribes in mid-,africa or ,america--as much more complex than ,sanskrit1 as ,sanskrit is than ,chinese3 highly declensional1 minutely syntactical1 involved and worked up and filigreed beyond telling2--and that was at the midmost point and highest material civilization of ,atlantis4 ,and then the ,fourth ,race went on1 and its languages evolved2 back1 in the seventh sub-race1 to the tonalism1 the chanted simplicity of the first sub-race2--till you had something in character not intellectual1 but spiritual3--,chinese4 ,and meanwhile--,i am throwing out the ideas as they come1 careless if the second appears to contradict the first3 presently a unity may come of them2--meanwhile1 for the purposes of the ,fifth ,root-,race1 then nascent1 a language-type had grown up1 intellectual as any in ,atlantis1 because this ,fifth ,race was to be intellectual too1-- but also spiritual3 not without tonalistic elements3 a thing to be chanted1 and not dully spoken3--and there1 when the time came for1 it to be born1 you had the ,sanskrit4 ,but now for the ,sixth ,root-,race3 is that to figure mainly on the plane of intellect8 ,or shall we then take intellectual things somewhat for granted1 as having learnt them and passed on to something higher8 ,look at those diagrams of the planes and globes in ,the ,secret ,doctrine1 and see how the last ones1 the sixth and seventh1 come to be on the same level as the first and second4 ,shall we be passing1 then1 to a time when1 in the seventh1 our languages will have no need for complexity3 when our ideas1 no longer personal but universal and creative1 will flow easily from mind to mind1 from heart to heart on a little tone1 a chanted breath of music2 when mere billiard-balls of syllables will serve us1 so they be rightly sung3--until presently with but seven pure vowel sounds1 and seven tones to sing them to1 we shall be able to tell forth once more the whole of the ,glory of ,god8 ,now then1 is ,chinese primitive1 or is it an evolution far away and ahead of us8 ,were there first of all billiard-balls2 and did they acquire a trick of coalescing and running together2 this one and that one1 in the combination1 becoming subordinate to another2 until soon you had a little wriggling creature of a word1 with his head of prefix1 and his tail of suffix1 to look or flicker this way or that according to the direction in which he wished to steer himself1 the meaning to be expressed2--from monosyllabic becoming agglutinative1 synthetic1 declensional1 complex--,alpine and super-,sanskrit in complexity2--then ,pyrenean by the wearing down of the storms and seasons2 then ,vosges1 with crags forest-covered2 then green soft round ,welsh mountains2 and then1 still more and more worn down by time and the phonetic laws which decree that men shall 7in certain stages of their growth7 be always molding their languages to an easier and easier pronunciation1--stem assimilating prefix and suffix1 and growing intolerant of changes within itself2--fitting itself to the weather1 rounding off its angles1 coquetting with euphony2-- dropping harsh consonants2 tending to end words with a vowel1 or with only the nasal liquids n and ng1 softest and roundest sounds there are2--till what had evolved from a billiard-ball to an ,alpine crag1 had evolved back to a billiard-ball again1 and was ,chinese8 ,is it primitive1 or ultimate8 ,i am almost certain of this1 at any rate3 that as a language-type1 it stands somewhere midway between ours and spiritual speech4 ,how should that be2 when we are told that this people is of the ,fourth1 the most material of the ,races2 while we are on the proud upward arc of the ,fifth8 ,and how is it that ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky speaks of the ,chinese civilization as being younger than that of the ,aryans of ,india1 the ,sanskrit speakers1--,fifth certainly8 ,is this1 possibly1 the explanation3 that the ancestors of the ,chinese1 a colony from ,atlantis some time perhaps long before the ,atlantean degeneration and fall1 were held under major pralaya apart from the world-currents for hundreds of thousands of years1 until some time later than #afj1jjj years ago--the time of the beginning our our sub-race8 ,a pralaya1 like sleep1 is a period of refreshment1 spiritual and physical2 it depends upon your mood as you enter it1 to what degree you shall reap its benefits3 whether it shall regenerate you2 whether you shall arise from it spiritually cleansed and invigorated by contact with the bright ,immortal ,self within4 ,africa entered such a rest-period from an orgy of black magic1 and her night was filled with evil dreams and sorceries1 and her people became what they are4 ,but if ,china entered it guided by white ,atlantean ,adepts1 it would have been for her ,fairyland2 it would have been the ,fortunate ,islands2 it would have been the ,garden of ,siwang ,mu1 the paradise of the ,west2 and when she came forth it would have been--it might have been--with a bent not towards intellectual1 but towards spiritual achievements4 ,compare her civilization1 in historic times1 with that of the ,west4 ,historic times are very little to go by1 but they are all we have at present4--,she attained marvelous heights2 but they were not the same kind of heights the ,west has attained4 ,through her most troublous1 stirring1 and perilous times1 she carried whole provinces of ,devachan with her4 ,it was while she was falling to pieces1 that ,ssu-,k'ung ,t'u wrote his divinely delicate meditations4 ,when the iron most entered her soul1 she would weep1 but not tear her hair or rage and grow passionate2 she would condescend to be heart-broken1 but never vulgar4 ,in her gayest moments1 wine-flushed and ,spring-flushed1 she never forgot herself to give utterance to the unseemly4 ,there is no line in her poetry to be excused or regretted on that score4 ,she worshipped ,beauty1 as perhaps only ,greece and ,france in the ,west have done2 but unlike ,greece or ,france1 she sought her divinity only in the impersonal and dispassionate3 never mistook for its voice1 the voices of the flesh4 ,she sinned much1 no doubt2 but not in her pursuit of the ,beautiful2 not in her worship of ,art and ,poetry4 ,she was faithful to the high ,gods there4 ,she never produced a figure comparable to1 nor in the least like1 our ,homers and ,aeschyluses1 ,dantes and ,miltons and ,shakespeares4 ,but then1 the ,west has never1 ,i imagine1 produced a figure comparable to her ,li ,pos1 ,tu ,fus1 ,po ,chu-is or ,ssu-k'ung ,t'us3 giants in lyricism--one might name a hundred of them--beside whom our ,hugos and ,sapphos and ,keatses were pygmies4 ,nor have we had any to compare with her masters of landscape-painting3 even the ,encyclopaedia ,britannica comes down flat-footed with the statement that ,chinese landscape-painting is the highest the world has seen4--,and why8--,because it is based on a knowledge of the ,god-world2 because her eyes were focused for the things 'on the other side of the sky'2 because this world1 for her1 was a mere reflexion and thin concealment of the other1 and the mists between her and the ,divine 'defecate' constantly1 in ,coleridge's curious phrase1 'to a clear transparency4' ,things seen were an open window into the ,infinite2 but with us1 heaven knows1 that window is so thick filthy with selfhood1 so cobwebbed and begrimed with passion and egotism and individualism and all the smoke and soot of the brain-mind1 that given an artist with a natural tendency to see through1 he has to waste half his life first in cleaning it with picks and mattocks and charges of dynamite4 ,so it becomes almost inevitable that when once you know ,chinese painting1 all western painting grows to look rather coarse and brutal and materialistic to you4 ,but1 you say1 no ,aeschylus or ,shakespeare8 ,no ,dante or ,homer8 ,no epic--no great drama6 ,pooh6 you say1 where is the great creative energy8 ,where is the sheer brain force8-- ,it is to us a matter of course that the type of our great ones is the highest possible type4 ,well2 it may be3 but the deeper you go into thinking it over1 the less certain you are likely to become as to the absoluteness of standards4 ,the time to award the prizes is not yet2 all we can do is to look into the nature of the differences4 ,warily let us go to work here6 ,where1 you asked1 are the great creative energies8 ,well2 in the ,west1 certainly1 they have flowed most where they can most be seen as energies4 ,i think1 through channels nearer this material plane3 nearer the plane of intellect1 at any rate4--,no3 there is no question where the sheer brain force has been3 it has been in the ,west4 ,but then1 where was it more manifest1 in ,pope or in ,keats8 ,in ,pope most emphatically4 ,but off with your head if you say he gave the greater gift4--,or ,i will leave ,pope1 and go to his betters2 and say that ,keats1 when he caught in his net of words the fleeting beauty of the world1 was far nearer the ,spirit than was ,bacon when with tremendous intellectual energy he devised his philosophy3 there was a much longer evolution behind the ease and effortless attainment of the one1 than behind the other's titanic brain-effort4 ,yet1 so far as the putting forth of brain energies is concerned1 there is no question3 ,bacon was much the greater man4 ,so in all creative work1 in all thought1 we must call the ,west incomparably greater in brain energy4 ,and ,i am not making such a foolish comparison as between modern or recent conditions in the two races4 ,you see it if you set the greatest ,eastern ages1 the ,han1 the ,t'ang1 the ,sung1 or the ,fujiwara1 against the ,periclean1 ,augustan1 ,medicean1 ,elizabethan1 or ,louis ,quatorze4 ,in the ,west1 the spiritual creative force came down and mingled itself more forcefully with the human intellect3 had a much more vigorous basis in that1 ,i think1 to work in and upon4 ,it has reached lower into the material1 and played on matter more powerfully-- and1 be it said1 on thought and intellection too4 ,we are so accustomed to thinking of spirituality as something that1 outside the plane of conduct1 can only play through thought and intellection1 or perhaps religious emotion1 that to speak of the high spirituality of ,china will sound1 to most1 absurd4 ,on the whole1 you must not go to ,china for thought or intellection4 ,least of all you must go there for what we commonly understand by religious emotion2--they don't readily gush over a personal god4 ,it will seem entirely far-fetched to say that in ,china the creative forces have retained much more of their spirituality3 have manifested perhaps not less greatly than in the ,west1 but on planes less material1 nearer their spiritual source4 ,it will seem so the more because until very recently ,china has been constantly misrepresented to us4 ,and yet ,i think it is pretty much the truth4 ,in all their creative art the ,spirit has been busy suggesting itself1 not through ideas1 or the forms of intellection1 but through the more subtle perceptions and emotions that lie behind4 ,it gives us1 if we are at all gifted or educated to see1 pure vistas of ,itself4 ,compare ,michelangelo's ,moses with the ,dai ,butsu at ,kamakura3--as ,i think ,dr4 ,siren does in one of his lectures4 ,the former is a thing of titanic1 even majestic energies2 but they are energies physical and mental3 a grand triumph on what is called in ,sanskrit philosophy the ,rajasic plane4 ,the second suggests1 not energy and struggle1 but repose and infinite calm4 ,in the ,moses1 we sense warfare1 with victory1 to attain and to hold its attainment2 in the ,dai ,butsu1 something that has passed through all that aeons ago4 ,in which is the greater sum of energies included8 ,in the ,dai ,butsu certainly2 wherein we see no sign of what we commonly call energies at all4 ,the one is human struggling up towards ,godhood2 the other1 ,godhood looking down with calm limitless compassion upon man4 ,such need no engines and dynamics to remove the mountains3 they bid them rise up1 and be cast into the sea2 and are obeyed4 ,or take a great ,chinese landscape and a great ,western one3 a ,ma ,yuan1 say1 and a--whom you please4 ,to the uninstructed it seems ridiculous to compare them4 ,this took a whole year to paint2 it is large2 there is an enormous amount of hard work in it2 huge creative effort1 force1 exertion1 went to make it4 ,that--it was done perhaps in an hour4 ,that mountain is but a flick of the brush2 yonder lake but a wash and a ripple4 ,it is painted on a little trumpery fan--a mere square foot of silk4 ,yes2 but on that square foot1 by the grace of the ,everlasting ,spirit1 are 'a thousand miles of space'3 much more--there is ,infinity itself4 ,watch2 and that faint gray or sepia shall become the boundless blue2 and you shall see dim dragons wandering3 you shall see ,eternal ,mystery brooding within her own limitless home4 ,far1 far more than in the western work1 there is an open window into the ,infinite3 that which shall remind us that we are not the poor clay and dying embers we seem1 but a pat of the infinite ,mystery4 ,the ,spirit is here2 not involved in human flesh and intellection1 but impersonal and universal4 ,what do you want3--to be a great towering personality2 or to remember that you are a flame of the ,fire which is ,god8 ,oh1 out upon these personal deities1 and most ungodly personalities of the ,west6 ,i thank ,china for reminding me that they are cheap and nasty nothingnesses at the best6 ,we rather demand of our art1 at its highest1 that it shall be a stimulant1 and call to our minds the warfare in which we are engaged3 the hopeless-heroic gay and ever mournful warfare of the soul against the senses4 ,well2 that battle has to be fought2 there is nothing better than fighting it--until it is won4 ,let us by all means hear the snarling of the trumpets2 let us heed the battle-cries of the ,soul4 ,but let us not forget that somewhere also the ,spirit is at peace3 let us remember that there is ,peace1 beyond the victory4 ,in ,chinese art and poetry we do not hear the war-shouts and the trumpets3 broken1 there1 are the arrow and the bow2 the shield1 the sword1 the sword and the battle4--,but--the ,day-,spring from on high hath visited us4 ,what element from the ,divine is in it1 does not concern itself with this earth-life2 tells you nothing in criticism of life4 ,there is naught in it of the ,soul as ,thinker1 nor of the ,soul as ,warrior4 ,but surely it is something for us1 immersed here in these turbid ,rajasika regions1 to be reminded sometimes that the ,sattvic planes exist2 it is something for us to be given glimpses of the pure quietudes of the ,spirit in its own place4 ,i am the better1 if ,i have been shown for an instant the delicate imperishable beauty of the ,eternal4 ,we are tired who follow after ,truth1 a phantasy that flies2 ,you with only look and laughter ,stain our hearts with richest dyes4-- ,they do indeed2 with look and laughter--or it may be tears4 ,now1 what does it all mean8 ,simply this1 ,i think3 that the ,west brings down what it can of the ,spirit into the world of thought and passion2 brings it down right here upon this bank and shoal of time2 but ,china rises with you into the world of the ,spirit4 ,we do not as a rule allow the validity of the ,chinese method4 ,we sometimes dub ,keats1 at his best a thorough ,chinaman1 'merely beautiful4' ,i have rather put the case for ,china2 because all our hereditary instincts will rise with a brief for the ,west4 ,but the truth is that the ,spirit elects its own methods and its own agents1 and does this through the one1 that through the other4 ,when ,i read ,hamlet1 ,i have no doubt ,shakespeare was the greatest poet that ever lived4 ,when ,i read ,li ,po1 ,i forget ,shakespeare1 and think that among those who sing none was ever so wonderful as this ,banished ,angel of the ,hills of ,tang4 ,i forget the ,voice that cried ',sleep no more6' and ,poetry seems to me to have spoken her final word in what you would perhaps call trivialities about the ,cold ,clear ,spring or the ,white ,foam ,rapid3 she seems to me to have accomplished all she can in such bits of childlike detachment and wonder as this3 ,the song-birds1 the pleasure-seekers1 have flown long since2 but this lonely cloud floats on1 drifting round in a circle4 ,he and ,ching-ting ,mountain gaze and gaze at each other1 and never grow weary of gazing2 --the 'lonely cloud' being1 of course1 ,li ,po himself4 ,he has shown me ,man the brother of the ,mountains1 and ,i ask no more of him4 ,the mountains can speak for themselves4 ,he had no moral purpose1 this ,banished ,angel for whose sake the ,hills of ,t'ang are a realm in the ,spirit1 inerasible1 and a beautiful dream while the world endures4 ,po ,chu-i1 says ,mr4 ,arthur ,waley1 blamed him for being deficient in feng and ya1--by which we may understand1 for present purposes1 much what ,matthew ,arnold meant by 'criticism of life4' ,but does it not serve a spiritual purpose that our consciousness should be lifted on to those levels where personality is forgotten3 that we should be made to regain1 while reading1 the child-state we have lost8 ,li ,po died a child at sixty3 a magical child3 always more or less naughty1 if we are to believe all accounts1 especially his own2 but somehow never paying the penalty we pay for our naughtiness1--exile from the wonder-world1 and submersion in these intolerable personalities4 ,you read ,milton1 and are cleaned of your personality by the fierce exaltation of the ,spirit beating through4 ,you read ,li ,po-type of hundreds of others his compatriots--and you are also cleaned of your personality2 but by gentle dews1 by wonderment1 by being carried up out of it into the diamond ether4 ,it seems to me that both affirmed the ,divine ,spirit4 ,milton waged grand warfare in his affirmation4 ,li ,po merely said what he saw4 ,so ,i think that among the ,aryans the ,spirit has been fighting in and into the great turbid current of evolution2 and that among the ,chinese it has not been so much concerned with that stream1 but rather to sing its own untrammeled expression4 ,a great drama or epic comes of the presence and energy of the ,spirit working in a human mind4 ,a great lyric comes of the escape of the consciousness from the mind1 and into the ,spirit4 ,the ,west has produced all the great dramas and epics1 and will persist in the view that the ,spirit can have no other expression so high as in these forms4 ,very likely the ,west is right2 but ,i shall not think so next time ,i am reading ,li ,po or ,ssu-k'ung ,t'u--or ,keats4 ,and ,i have seen small mild ,japanese jujitsu men 'put it all over1' as they say1 big burly ,english wrestlers without seeming to exert themselves in any way1 or forgoing their gentle methods and manner2 and if you think of jujitsu rightly1 it is1 to our wrestling and boxing1 much what ,wu ,taotse and ,ku ,kai-chih are to ,rembrandt and ,michelangelo1 or the ,chinese poets to ours4 ,if we go into the field of philosophy1 we find much the same thing4 ,take ,confucianism4 ,it is inappropriate1 in some ways1 to call ,confucius a great thinker 7but we shall see that he was something very much more than that74 ,he taught no religion2 illuminated in nowise the world of mind2 though he enabled millions to illumine it for themselves4 ,he made hardly a ripple in his own day2 and yet1 so far as ,i can see1 only the ,buddha and ,mohammed1 of the men whose names we know1 have marshaled future ages as greatly as he did4 ,flow his way6 said he to history2 and1 in the main1 it did4 ,he created an astral mold for about a quarter of humanity1 which for twenty-four centuries has endured4 ,he did it by formulating a series of rules for the conduct of personal and national life2 or rather1 by showing what kind of rules they should be1 and leaving others to formulate them2--and so infused his doctrine with his will and example1 that century after century flowed into the matrix he had made for them4 ,to create such a stable matrix1 the ,aryan mind1 in ,india1 worked through long spiritual-intellectual exploration of the world of metaphysics3 an intensive culture of all the possibilities of thought4 ,we in the ,west have boggled towards the same end through centuries of crass political experiment4 ,confucius1 following his ancient models1 ignored metaphysics altogether3 jumped the life to come1 and made his be-all and his end-all here3--in what was necessary1 in deeds and thought and speech1 to make individual1 social1 and political life staid1 sincere1 orderly1 quiet1 decent1 and happy4 ,he died a broken- hearted failure2 than whom perhaps no man except the ,lord ,buddha ever succeeded more highly4 ,laotse is his complement4 ,laotse's aim is not the activity1 but the quiescence of mind1 self1 intellect3 in the ,,no ,,thing seeking the lonely ,way4 ,you forgo everything--especially selfhood2--you give up everything2 you enter upon the heritage of ,no ,thing2--and you find yourself heir to the ,universe1 to wonder1 to magic4 ,you do with all your complicated egoity as the camel did with his cameltiness before he could enter the needle's eye2 then--heigh presto6--it is the ,elixir of ,life you have drunk2 it is freedom you have attained of the roaming-place of ,dragons6--,it amounts1 truly1 to the same thing as ,aryan ,theosophy2 but where the latter travels through and illuminates immense realms of thought and metaphysic1 ,taoism slides gently into the ,absolute2 as who should laugh and say1 ,you see how easy it is6 ,and you do not hear of the ,path of ,sorrow1 as with the ,aryans2 ,tao is a path of sly laughter and delight4 ,then from ,japan we get ,shinto2 still less a system of metaphysics or dogma4 ,the ,shinto temple1 empty but for air1 is symbolic of the creed whose keynotes are purity and simplicity4 ,taoism1 ,confucianism1 and ,shinto are the three great native creations1 in religion1 of what ,i shall call the ,altaic mind4 ,there have been1 indeed1 profound thinkers and metaphysicians both in ,japan and ,china2 but their mental activities have been for the most part fruitage from the ,aryan seed of ,buddhism4 ,a word here as to that phrase ',altaic mind4' ,what business has one to class the ,chinese and ,japanese together1 and to speak of them 7as ,i shall7 as ',altaic'--the ,altaic ,race8 ,in the first place this term1 like ',latin' or ',anglo-,saxon1' has the virtue of being quite meaningless4 ,it is utterly silly and inappropriate from every standpoint2 but as ,i need a term to include ,china and all the peoples that have derived their historic culture from her1 ,i shall beg leave to use it4 ,neither ,japanese nor ,corean belong to the billiard-ball group of languages4 ,there is a syntactical likeness between these two1 but none in vocabulary2 where the ,japanese vocabulary came from1 ,omniscience perhaps may know4--,a syntax outlasts a vocabulary by many ages3 you may hear ,celts now talk ,english with a syntax that comes from the sub-race before our own3 ,iberian1 and not ,aryan4 ,so we may guess here a race akin to the ,coreans conquered at some time by a race whose vocables were ,japanese--whence they came1 ,god knows4 ,only one hears that in ,south ,america the ,japanese pick up the ,indian languages a deal more easily than white folk do1 or than they do ,spanish or ,english4 ,but this is a divergence2 we should be a little more forward1 perhaps1 if we knew who were the ,coreans1 or whence they came4 ,but we do not4 ,they are not ,turanic--of the ,finno-,turko-,mongol stock 7by language72 they are not speakers of billiard-balls1 allied to the ,chinese1 ,burmese1 and ,tibetans4 ,but the fact is that neither blood-affinity nor speech-affinity is much to the purpose here2 we have to do with affinities of culture4 ,during the period #bdj ,b4 ,c4--#abfj ,a4 ,d4 a great civilization rose1 flowered1 and waned in the ,far ,east2 it had its origin in ,china1 and spread out to include in its scope ,japan1 ,corea1 and ,tibet2 probably also ,annam and ,tonquin1 though we hear less of them2--while ,burma1 ,assam1 and ,siam1 and those southerly regions1 though akin to ,china in language1 seem to have been always more satellite to ,india4 ,mongols and ,manchus1 though they look rather like ,chinese1 and have lived rather near ,china1 belong by language and traditionally by race to another group altogether--to that1 in fact1 which includes the very ,caucasian-looking ,turks and ,hungarians2 as to what culture they have had1 they got it from ,china after the ,chinese manvantara had passed4 ,the ,chinese themselves are only homogeneous in race in the sense that ,europe might be if the ,romans had conquered it all1 and imposed their culture and language on the whole continent4 ,the staid1 grave1 dignified1 and rather stolid northern ,chinaman differs from the restless and imaginative ,cantonese not much less than the ,japanese does from either4 ,this much you can say3 ,chinese1 ,japanese1 and ,coreans have been molded into a kind of loose unity by a common culture2 the peoples of ,china into a closer homogeneity by a common culture-language1 written and spoken1--and by the fact that they have been1 off and on during the last two thousand years1 but most of the time1 under the same government4 ,as to ,corea1 though in the days of ,confucius it was unknown to the ,chinese1 the legends of both countries ascribe the founding of its civilization and monarchy to a ,chinese minister exiled there during the twelfth century ,b4 ,c4 ,japanese legendary history goes back to #fjj ,b4 ,c42--that is1 to the closing of the ,age of the ,mysteries1 and the opening of that of the ,religions3-- ,i imagine that means that about that time a break with history occurred1 and the past was abolished3 a thing we shall see happen in ancient ,china presently4 ,but ,i suppose we may call ,shotoku ,daishi the ,father of historical ,japan2--he who1 about the end of the sixth century ,a4 ,d41 brought in the culture impetus from the continent4 ,about that time1 too1 ,siam rose to power2 and soon afterwards ,t'ang ,taitsong imposed civilization on ,tibet4--,so there you have the ',altaic' ,race2 ,altaic1 as ,mr4 ,dooley is ,anglo-,saxon4 ,to speak of them as ',mongolian' or ',mongoloid1' as is often done1 is about as sensible as to speak of ,europeans and ,americans as ',hunnoid1' because the ,huns once conquered part of ,europe4 ,it conveys derogation--which ,altaic does not4 ,i have compared their achievement with that of the ,west3 we have one whole manvantara and a pralaya of theirs to judge by1 as against two fragments of western manvantaras with the pralaya intervening4 ,it is not much2 and we should remember that there are cycles and epicycles2 and that ,japan1 or old ,china herself1 within our own lifetime1 may give the lie to everything4 ,but from the evidence at hand one is inclined to draw this conclusion3 ,that in the ,far ,east you have a great section of humanity in reserve2--in a sense1 in a backwater of evolution3 nearer the ,spirit1 farther from the hot press and conflict of the material world2--even in its times of highest activity1 not in the van of the down-rush of ,spirit into matter1 as the western races have been in theirs2--but held apart to perform a different function4 ,as if the ,crest-,wave of ,evolution needed what we might call ,devachanic cycles of incarnation1 and found them there during the ,altaic manvantaras of manifestation4 ,not that their history has been empty of tragedies2 it has been very full of them2 and wars--some eight or nine ,napoleons in their day have sat on the ,dragon ,throne4 ,but still1 the worlds of poetry1 delight1 wonder1 have been nearer and more accessible to the ,chinaman1 in his great ages1 than to us in ours2 as they have been1 and probably are now1 nearer to the ,japanese4 ,and ,i do not know how that should be1 unless the ,law had taken those ,atlanteans away1 kept them apart from the main stream--not fighting the main battle1 but in reserve--for purposes that the long millenniums of the future are to declare4 ,,ix4 ,,the ,,dragon ,,and ,,the ,,blue ,,pearl ,the horizon of ,chinese history lies near the middle of the third millennium ,b4 ,c4 ,the first date sinologists dare swear to is #ggf2 in which year an eclipse of the sun is recorded1 that actually did happen3 it is set down1 not as a thing interesting in itself1 but as ominous of the fall of wicked kings4 ,here1 then1 in the one place where there is any testing the annals1 it appears they are sound enough2 which might be thought to speak well for them4 ,but our scholars are so damnebly logical1 as ,mr4 ,mantalini would say1 that to them it only proves this3 you are to accept no date earlier4 ,one general solar indorsement will not do2 you must have an eclipse for everything you believe1 and trust nothing unless the stars in their courses bear witness4 ,well2 we have fortunately ,halley's ,comet in the ,bayeux ,tapestry for our familiar #ajff2 but beware6 everything before that is to be taken as pure fudge6 ,the fact is there is no special reason for doubting either chronology or sequence of events up to about #bceg ,b4 ,c41 in which year the ,patriarch ,yao came to the throne4 ,he was the first of those three1 ,yao1 ,shun1 and ,yu1 who have been ever since the patterns for all ,chinese rulers who have aspired to be ,confucianly good4 ,be like ,yao1 ,shun1 and ,yu2 do as they did2-- there you have the word of ,confucius to all emperors and governors of states4 ,yao1 it is true1 is said to have reigned a full century1 or but one year short of it4 ,this is perhaps the first improbability we come to2 and even of this we may say that some people do live a long time4 ,none of his successors repeated the indiscretion4 ,before him came a line of six sovereigns with little historic verisimilitude3 they must be called faint memories of epochs1 not actual men4 ,the first of them1 ,fo-hi 7#bheb-bgch71 was half man1 half dragon2 which is being interpreted1 of course1 an ,adept ,king2--or say a line of ,adept ,kings4 ,as for the dates given him1 ,i suppose there is nothing exact about them2 that was all too far back for memory2 it belongs to reminiscence4 ,before ,fo- hi came the periods of the ,nest-,builders1 of the ,man-,kings1 the ,earth-,kings1 and the ,heaven-,kings2 then ,p'an ,k'u1 who built the worlds2 then1 at about two and a quarter million years before ,confucius1 the emanation of ,duality from the ,primal ,one4 ,all this1 of course1 is merely the exoteric account2 but it shows at least that--the ,chinese never fell into such fatuity as we of the ,west1 with our creation six trumpery millenniums ago4 ,this much we may say3 about the time when ,yao is said to have come to the throne a manvantara began1 which would have finished its course of fifteen centuries in #hej or so ,b4 ,c4 ,it is a period we see only as through a glass darkly3 what is told about it is1 to recent and defined history1 as a ghost to a living man4 ,there is no reason why it should not have been an age of high civilization and cultural activities2 but all is too shadowy to say what they were4 ,to its first centuries are accredited works of engineering that would make our greatest modern achievements look small3 common sense would say1 probably the reminiscence of something actual4 ,certainly the ,chinese emerged from it1 and into daylight history1 not primitive but effete3 senile1 not childlike4 ,that may be only a racial peculiarity1 a national prejudice1 of course4 ,and where should you look1 back of #hej ,b4 ,c41 to find actual history--human motives1 speech and passions--or what to our eyes should appear such8 ,as things near the time-horizon1 they lose their keen outlines and grow blurred and dim4 ,the ,setis and ,thothmeses are names to us1 with no personality attaching2 though we have discovered their mummies1 and know the semblance of their features1 our imagination cannot clothe them with life4 ,we can hear a near ,napoleon joking1 but not a far-off ,rameses4 ,we can call ,justinian from his grave1 and traverse the desert with ,mohammed2 but can bold no converse with ,manu or ,hammurabi2-- because these two dwell well this side of the time-horizon1 but the epochs of those are far beyond it4 ,the stars set3 the summer evenings forget ,orion1 and the nights of winter the beauty of ,fomalhaut3 though there is a long slope between the zenith ,now and the sea-rim1 what has once gone down beyond the west of time we cannot recall or refashion4 ,so that old ,chinese manvantara is gone after the ,dragon ,fo-hi and the ,yellow ,emperor1 after the ,man-,kings and the ,earth-,kings and the ,heaven-,kings2 and ,yao1 ,shun1 and ,yu the ,great1 and the kings of ,hia1 and ,shang1 and even ,chow1 are but names and shadows1 ,quo pater1 ,aeneas1 quo dires ,tullus et ,ancus1 --we cannot make them interestingly alive4 ,but it does not follow that they did not live when they are supposed to have lived1 or do the things attributed to them4 ,their architecture was ephemeral1 and bears no witness to them2 they built no pyramids to flout time2 they raised no monument but a people1 a culture1 an idea1 that still endures4 ,then1 too1 we shall see that at the beginning of the last ,chinese manvantara a conscious attempt was made to break wholly with the past1--to wipe it from human memory1 and begin all anew4 ,such a thing happened in ,babylon once2 there had been a ,sargon in remote antiquity with great deeds to his credit2 thousands of years after1 another ,sargon arose1 who envied his fame2 and1 being a kind1 and absolute1 decreed that all the years intervening should never have existed--merged his own in the personality of his remote predecessor1 and so provided a good deal of muddlement for archaeologists to come4 ,indeed1 such a thing almost happened in ,france at the ,revolution4 ,it is said that in some ,french schools now you find children with a vague idea that things more or less began with the taking of the ,bastille3 that there was a misty indefinable period between the #abth of ,october 7or on whatever day it was ,eve's apple ripened7 and the glorious #adth of ,july3--an age of prehistory1 wandered through by unimportant legendary figures such as ,jeanne ,darc1 ,henri ,quatre1 ,louis ,quatorze1 which we may leave to the superstitious--and come quickly to the real flesh and blood of ,m4 de ,mirabeau and ,citizen ,danton4--,even so1 in our own time1 ,china herself1 wearied with the astral molds and inner burdens of two millenniums1 has been writhing in a fever of destruction3 has burnt down the ,hanlin ,college1 symbol and center of a thousand years of culture2 destroyed old and famous cities2 sent up priceless encyclopaedias in smoke2 replaced the ,empire with a republic1 and the ,dragon of wisdom with five meaningless stripes2--breaking with all she was in her brilliant greatness1 and all she has been since in her weakness and squalid decline4-- ,we ask why history is not continuous2 why there are these strange hiatuses and droppings out8--the answer is simple enough4 ,it is because ,karma1 long piled up1 must sometime break out upon the world4 ,the inner realms become clogged with the detritus of ages and activity1 till all power to think and do is gone3 there is no room nor scope left for it4 ,the weight of what has been thought and done1 of old habit1 presses down on men1 obstructs and torments them1 till they go mad and riot and destroy4 ,the manvantara opens3 the ,crest-,wave1 the great tide of life1 rushes in4 ,it finds the world of mind cluttered up and encumbered2 there is an acute disparity between the future and the past1 which produces a kind of psychic maelstrom4 ,blessed is that nation then1 which has a man at its head who can guide things1 so that the good may not go with the bad1 the useful with the useless6 ,the very facts that ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti1 when the manvantara opened at the beginning of the third century ,b4,c41 was driven 7you may say7 to do what ruthless drastic things he did4-- and that his action was followed by such wonderful results--are proof enough that a long manvantara crowded with cultureal and national activities had run it course in the past1 and clogged the astral1 and made progress impossible4 ,but what he did do1 throws the whole of that past manvantara1 and to some extent the pralaya that followed it1 into the realm of shadows4--,he burnt the literature4 ,in a few paragraphs let me summarize the history of that past age whose remnants ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti thus sought to sweep away4--,yao adopted ,shun for his successor2 in whose reign for nine years ,china's ,sorrow1 that mad bull of waters1 the ,hoangho1 raged incessantly1 carrying the world down towards the sea4 ,then ,ta ,yu1 who succeeded ,shun on the throne presently1 devised and carried through those great engineering works referred to above3 --cut through mountains1 yoked the mad bull1 and saved the world from drowning4 ,he was1 says ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky1 an ,adept2 and had learnt his wisdom from the ,teachers in the snowy ,range of ,si,dzang or ,tibet4 ,his dynasty1 called the ,hia1 kept the throne until #agff2 ending with the downfall of a cruel weakling4 ,followed then the ,house of ,shang until #aabb2 set up by a wise and merciful ,tang the ,completer1 brought to ruin by a vicious tyrant ,chousin4 ,it was ,ki-tse1 a minister of this last1 and a great sage himself1 who1 fleeing from the persecutions of his royal master1 established monarchy1 civilization1 and social order in ,corea4 ,another great man of the time was ,won ,wang1 ,duke of the ,palatinate of ,chow1 a state on the western frontier whose business was to protect ,china from the ,huns4 ,really1 those ,huns were a thing to marvel at3 we first hear of them in the reign of the ,yellow emperor1 two or three centuries before ,yao2 they were giving trouble then1 a good three millenniums before ,attila4 ,won ,wang1 fighting on the frontier1 withstood these kindly souls2 and all ,china looked to him with a love he deserved4 ,which of course roused ,king ,chousin's jealousy2 and when a protest came from the great soldier against the debaucheries and misgovernment at the capital1 the king roused himself and did what he could2 imprisoned the protestant1 as he dared not kill him4 ,during the three years of his imprisonment ,won ,wang compiled the mysterious ,i-,king1 of ,book of ,changes2 of which ,confucius said1 that were another half century added to his life1 he would spend them all in studying it4 ,no western scholar1 one may safely say1 has ever found a glimmer of meaning in it2 but all the ages of ,china have held it profounder than the profound4 ,his two sons avenged ,won ,wang2 they roused the people1 recruited an army in their palatinate--perhaps enlisted ,huns too--and swept away ,chousin and his dynasty4 ,they called their new royal house after their native land1 ,chow2 ,wu ,wang1 the elder of the two1 becoming its first king1 and his brother the ,duke of ,chow1 his prime minister4 ,i say king2 for the title was now ,wang merely2 though there had been ,hwangtis or ,emperors of old4 ,won ,wang and his two sons are the second ,holy ,trinity of ,china2 ,yao1 ,shun1 and ,ta ,yu being the first4 ,they figure enormously in the literature3 are stars in the far past1 to which all eyes1 following the august example of ,confucius1 are turned4 ,there is a little to be said about them3 they are either too near the horizon1 or too little of their history has been ,englished1 for us to see them in their habit as they lived2 yet some luster of real greatness still seems to shine about them4 ,it was the ,duke of ,chow1 apparently1 who devised or restored that whole ,chinese religio-political system which ,confucius revivified and impressed so strongly on the stuff of the ideal world--for he could get no ruler of his day to establish it in the actualities--that it lasted until the beginning of a new manvantara is shatter it now4 ,that it was based on deep knowledge of the hidden laws of life there is this 7among a host of other things7 to prove3 ,music was an essential part of it4 ,when1 a few years ago1 the tiny last of the ,manchu emperors came to the throne1 an edict was published decreeing that1 to fit him to govern the empire1 the greatest care should be taken with his education in music4 ,a wisdom1 truly1 that the west has forgotten6 ,when ,william of ,normandy conquered ,england1 he rewarded his followers with fiefs3 in ,england1 while ,english land remained so to be parceled out2 afterwards 7he and his successors7 with unconquered lands in ,wales1 and then in ,ireland4 they were to carve out baronies and earldoms for themselves2 and the ,celtic lands thus stolen became known as the ,marches3 their rulers1 more or less independent1 but doing homage to the king1 as ,lords ,marchers4 ,the kings of ,chow adopted the same plan4 ,their old duchy palatinate became the model for scores of others4 ,china itself--a very small country then--southern ,shansi1 northern ,homan1 western ,shantung--was first divided up under the feudal system2 the king retaining a domain1 known as ,chow1 in ,homan1 for his own4 ,then princes and nobles--some of the blood royal1 some of the old shang family1 some risen from the ranks--were given warrant to conquer lands for themselves from the barbarians beyond the frontier3 so you go rid of the ambitious1 and provided ,chow with comfortable buffers4 ,they went out1 taking a measure of ,chinese civilization with them1 and conquered or cajoled ,huns1 ,turks1 ,tatars1 ,laos1 shans1 ,annamese1 and all that kind of people1 into accepting them for their rulers4 ,it was a work1 as you may imagine1 of centuries2 with as much history going forward as during any centuries you might name4 ,the states thus formed were young1 compared to ,china2 and as ,china grew old and weak1 they grew into their vigorous prime4 ,the infinity of human activities that has been6 ,these ,chow ages seem like the winking of an eye2 but they were crowded with great men and small1 great deeds and trivialities1 like our own4 ,the time will come when our ',anglo-,saxon' history will be written thus3 ,england sent out colonies1 and presently the colonies grew stronger and more populous than ,england2--and it will be enough1 without mention of the ,pitts and ,lincolns1 the ,washingtons and ,gladstones1 that now make it seem so full and important4 ,by #hej the balance of power had left or was leaving the ,chow king at ,honanfu4 ,his own subjects had grown unwarlike1 and he could hardly command even their allegiance2 for each man's feudal duty was first to his own duke1 marquis1 earl1 viscount1 or baron2-- strangely enough1 there were those five degrees of nobility in ancient ,china as in modern ,england4 ,of these nobles1 each with his court and feudal dominion1 there were in what we may call ,china ,proper some unascertainable number between thirteen and a hundred and fifty3 mostly small and insignificant1 but mostly1 too1 full of schemes and ambitions4 ,but it was the ,lords ,marchers that counted4 ,one after another of them had wrested from the ,chow the title of ,wang or ,king2 it was not enough for them to be dukes and marquises4 ,then came a time when a sort of ,bretwalda-ship was established2 to be wielded by whichever of them happened to be strongest--and generally to be fought for between whiles3 a glorious and perpetual bone of contention4 ,international law went by the board4 ,the ,chow domain1 the duchies and marquisates1 lay right in the path of the contestants--midmost of all1 and most to be trampled4 ,was ,tsin to march all round the world1 when a mere scurry across neutral 7and helpless7 ,chow would bring it at the desired throat of ,ts'u8--,a question not to be asked6--there at ,honanfu sat the ,chow king1 head of the national religion1 head of the state with its feudatories1 receiving 7when it suited them to pay it7 the annual homage of all those loud and greedy potentates1 who for the rest kicked him about as they pleased1 and ordered each other to obey him1--for was he not still the son of ,heaven1 possessor of the ,nine ,tripods of sovereignty1 the tripods of ,ta ,yu8--,so the centuries passed1 growing worse and worse ever1 from the ninth to the sixth3 an age of anarchy1 bad government1 disorder1 crime and clash of ambitions3 when there was a decline of virtue and an insurrection of vice and injustice in the world2--and we know what manner of incarnation1 at such times1 is likely to happen4 ,conditions had outgrown the astral molds made for them in the last manvantara3 the molds that had been made for a small homogeneous ,china4 ,the world had expanded1 and was no longer homogeneous3 ,china herself was not homogeneous2 and she found on all sides of her very heterogeneous ,ts'ins1 ,tsins1 ,ts'is1 ,ts'us1 ,wus and ,yuehs2 each of whom1 like so many ,great ,powers of our own times1 had the best of intentions to partake of her sacramental body when ,god's will so should be4--,indeed1 the situation was very much as we have seen it4 ,then1 as now 7or recently71 ,china was old1 inert1 tired1 and unwarlike2 must depend on her cunning1 and chiefly on their divisions1 for what protection she might get against the rapacious and strong4 ,she was dull1 sleepy and unimaginative1 and wanted only to be left alone2 yet teemed1 too1 with ambitious politicians1 each with his sly wires to pull4 ,her culture1 ancient and decrepit1 was removed by aeons from all glamor of beginnings4--,for a good ,european parallel1 in this respect1 you might go to ,constantinople in the ,middle ,ages1 when it hung ripe on the bough1 so to say1 and waiting to fall into ,latin1 ,turkish1 ,bulgar1 or even ,russian jaws1 whichever at the psychic moment should be gaping and ready beneath4 ,there too was the sense of old age and sterility2 of disillusionment2 of all fountains and inspirations run dry4--,in ancient ,grecce1 it was no such far cry back from the essential modernity of ,pericles' or of ,plato's time to the antiquity of ,homer's4 ,in ,india1 the faery light of an immemorial dawn mingles so with the facts of history that there is no disentangling myth from matter-of-fact2 if you should prove almost any king to have reigned quite recently1 his throne would still be somehow set in the mellow past and near the fountains of time4 ,augustan ,rome1 modern in all its phases1 stands not so far in front of a background peopled with nymphs and ,sibyls3 a past in which the ,great ,twin ,brothers might fight at ,lake ,regillus1 and stern heroes make fantastic sacrifices for ,rome4 ,even modern ,europe is much less modern than ,medieval ,constantinople or ,chow ,china4 ,we can breathe still the mysterious atmosphere of the ,middle ,ages2 you shall find still1 and that not in remote countries only1 fairy-haunted valleys2 a few hours out from ,london1 and you shall be in the heart of druidry1 and among peoples whose life is very near to ,poetry4 ,but ,china1 in those first pre-,confucian centuries1 was desperately prosaic3 not so much modern1 as pertaining to an ugly not impossible future4 ,antiquity was far1 far away4 ,the dawn with its glow and graciousness2 noon and the prime with their splendor1 were as distant and unimaginable as from our ,amercan selves the day when ,charlemain with all his peers went down4 ,if you can imagine an ,american several hundred years from now--one in which ,point ,loma had never been2 several hundred years more unromantic than this one2 an ,america fallen and grown haggard and toothless2 with all impulse to progress and invention gone2 with centrifugal tendencies always loosening the bond of union2 advancing1 and having steadily advanced1 further from all religious sanctions1 from anything she may retain of the atmosphere of mystery and folklore and the poetry of racial childhood2 you may get a picture of the mental state of that ,china4 ,a material civilization1 with 7except in war areas7 reasonable security of life and goods1 remained to her4 ,her people lived in good houses1 wore good clothes1 used chairs and tables1 chopsticks1 plates and dishes of pottery2 had for transit boats1 carts and chariots199 wheelbarrows ,i suppose1 and cany wagons light4 ,they had a system of writing1 the origin of which was lost in remote antiquity2 a large literature1 of which fragments remain4 ,they were home-loving1 war-hating1 quiet1 stagnant1 cunning perhaps1 quite un-enterprising2 they lived in the valley of the ,hoangho1 and had not discovered1 or had forgotten1 the ,yangtse to the south of them1 and the sea to the east4 ,they might have their local loyalties and patriotism of the pork-barrel1 and a certain arrogance of race3 belief in the essential superiority of the ,black-haired ,people to the barbarians on their borders2 but no high feeling for ,chu ,hia-- ,all the ,chinas2--no dream of a possible national union and greatness4 ,some three hundred of their folk-ballads come down to us1 which are as unlike the folk-ballads of ,europe as may be4 ,they do not touch on the supernatural2 display no imagination2 there are no ghosts or fairies2 there is no glory or delight in war2 there is no glory in anything2--but only an intense desirability in home1--in staying at home with your family1 and doing your ,i work in the fields4 ,and nothing of what we should call romance1 even in this home-love3 the chief tie is that between parents and children1 not that between husband and wife1 and still less that between lovers4 ,there is much moralizing and wistful sadness4--,such was the life of the peasants2 at the other pole was the life of the courts3 intrigue and cunning1 and what always goes with cunning--ineptitude2 a good measure of debauchery2 some finicking unimportant refinement2 each man for self and party1 and none for ,gods and ,men4 ,we have to do1 not with the bright colors of the childhood of a race1 but with the grayness of its extreme old age4 ,those who will may argue that you can have old age with never a prime1 youth1 or childhood behind it4 ,some say that ,laotse was born at sixty-one1 or seventy1 or eighty-two years old--a few decades more or less are not worth bothering about--whence his name lao tse1 the old son 7but tse may also mean ,teacher or ,philosopher74 ,but ,i misdoubt the accuracy of such accounts1 myself4 ,i think it likely he was a baby to begin with1 like the majority of us4 ,and ,i imagine his country had been young1 too1 before she grew old2--as young as ,america1 and as vigorous4 ------ 99 ,chinese ,literature3 ,giles2--whence also much else in these articles4 ------ ,among such a people1 how much should you expect to find of the ,sacred ,mysteries8--,there were the ,nine ,tripods of ,ta ,yu with the king at ,honanfu1 to say that his kinghood had behind it symbolic sanctions2 there was the ,book of ,changes2 there was the system of the ,duke of ,chow1 more dishonored in the breach than honored in the observance4444 ,for the rest1 you might as well look for the ,eleusinia in ,chicago4 ,who could believe in religion1 those days8--,well2 it was the pride of some of the little duchies and marquisates to keep up a reputa-tion for orthodoxy3 there was ,lu in ,shantung1 for example1-very strict499 7,as strictness went1 we may say47 ,and if you wished to study ritual1 you went up to ,honanfu to do so2 where1 too1 was the ,national or ,royal ,library1 where profitable years might be spent4 ,but who1 except enthusiasts1 was to treat religion seriously8 --when one saw the doddering ,head of ,religion yearly flouted1 kicked about and hustled in his own capital by his ,barbarian ,highness the ',king'--so he must now style himself and be styled1 where in better days ',count ,palatine' or ',lord ,marcher' would have served his turn well enough--of ,ts'in or ,tsin or ,ts'i or ,ts'u1 who would come thundering down with his chariots when he pleased1 and without with-your-leave or by-your-leave1 march past the very gates of ,honanfu2--and lucky if he did march past1 and not come in and stay awhile2 --on his way to attacking his ,barbarian ,highness the ',king' of somewhere else4 ,the ,god that is to be sincerely worshiped must1 as this world goes1 be able now and then to do some little thing for his vicegerent on earth2 and ,heaven did precious little in those days for the weakling ,king-pontiff puppets at ,honanfu4 ,a mad world1 my masters6 ------ 99 ,ancient ,china ,simplified3 ,e4 ,harper ,parker2--also much drawn on4 ------ ,wherein1 too1 we had our symbols3--the ,dragon1 the ,sky-wanderer1 with something heavenly to say2 but alas6 the ,dragon had been little visible in our skies of ,chu ,hia these many years or centuries2--the ,tiger1 brute muscularity1 lithe terrible limbs1 fearful claws and teeth1--we knew him much better6 ,this1 heaven knew1 was the day of the ,tiger of earthly strength and passions2 were there not those three great tigers up north1 ,ts'in1 ,tsin1 and ,ts'i2 and as many more southward2 and all hungry and strong8--,and also1 some little less thought of perhaps1 the ,phoenix1 ,secular ,bird1 that bums itself at the end of each cycle1 and arises from its ashes young and dazzling again3 the ,phoenix --but little thought of1 these days2 for was not the world old and outworn1 and toppling down towards a final crash8 ,the days of ,chu ,hia were gone1 its future all in the long past2 no one dared dream of a time when there should be something better than ,yen diddling ,lu1 or ,ts'u beating ,ts'i at a good set-to with these new sixty-warrior-holding chariots4 ,who should think of the ,phoenix--and of a new age to come when there should be no more ,yen and ,lu and ,chow and ,tsin and ,ts'in1 but one broad and mighty realm1 a ,middle1 a ,celestial ,kingdom1--such a ,chu ,hia as time had no memory of2--to whose throne the ,hun himself should bow1 or whose hosts should drive him out of ,asia2--a ,chu ,hia to whom tribute should come from the uttermost ends of the earth8 ,who should dream of the ,secular ,bird now1-- as improbable a creature1 in these dark days of the ,tiger1 as that old long-lost ,sky-wanderer the ,dragon himself8 ,let be2 let three little centuries pass2 let the funeral pyre but be kindled1 and quite burn itself out2 and let the ashes grow cold-- ,and behold you now1 this ,phoenix of the ,world1 bright and dazzling1 rising up from them6 ,behold you now this same ,black-haired ,people1 young1 strong1 vigorous1 gleaming with all the rainbow hues of romance and imagination2 conquering and creative1 and soon to strew the jewels of faerie over all the ,eastern ,world4 4 4 4 ,but this is to anticipate3 to take you on to the second century ,b4 ,c42 whereas ,i want you now in the sixth4--,i said that you should find better chances for study in the ,royal ,library at ,honanfu1 could you get together the means for journeying thither1 than anywhere else in ,chu ,hia4 ,that was particularly true in the latter part of that sixth century3 because there was a man by the name of ,li ,urh1 chief librarian there1 from whom1 if you cared to1 you might hear better things than were to be found in the books in his charge4 ,his fame1 it appears1 has gone abroad through the world2 although his chief aim seems to be to keep in the shadows and not be talked about4 ,scholars resort to him from far and near2 one of them1 the greatest of all1 who came to him in the year #eag and was 7if we are to believe accounts7 treated without too much mercy1 came out awestruck1 and said3 ,today ,i have seen the ,dragon4--,what6 that little old man with the bald head and straggly lank ,chirese beard8--,like enough1 like enough6 --they are not all1 as you look at them with these physical eyes1 to be seen winged and wandering the heavens4 4 4 4 ,but wandering the heavens1 this one1 yes6 ,he has the blue ether about him1 even there in the ,library among the books4--,he has a way of putting things in little old quiet paradoxes that seem to solve all the problems1--to take you out of the dust and clatter of this world1 into the serenity of the ,dragon-world where all problems are solved1 or non-existent4 ,chu ,hia is all a fuss and turmoil1 and running the headlong ,gadarene road2 but the ,old ,philosopher--as he has come to be called--has anchorage right outside of and above it1 and speaks from the calmness of the peaks of heaven4 ,a kind of school forms itself around him2 his wisdom keeps provincials from returning home1 and the young men of the capital from commonplace courses4 ,though he has been accredited with much authorship1 ,i think he wrote nothing2 living among books1 he had rather a contempt for them1--as things at the best for patching up and cosseting life1 new windings and wrappings for its cocoon2--whereas he would have had the whole cocoon stripped away1 and the butterfly beautifully airing its wings4 ,be that as it may1 there are1 shall we say1 stenographers among his disciples1 and his sayings come down to us4 ,they have to do with the ,way1 the ,truth1 and the ,life2 which things1 and much else1 are included in ,chinese in the one word ,tao4 ,the main purpose of his studies says ,ssema ,tsien 7the ',father of ,chinese ,history'71 was to keep himself concealed and unknown4 ,in this he succeeded admirably1 so far as all future ages were to concerned2 for ,ssema himself1 writing in the reign of ,han ,wuti some four centuries later1 could be by no means sure of his identity4 ,he tells us all we know1 or think we know1 about ,laotse3--that he was born in a village in southern ,honan2 kept the ,royal ,library at ,honanfu2 met ,confucius there in #eag2 and at last rode away on his ox into the west1 leaving the ,tao ,teh ,king with the ,keeper of the ,pass on the frontier2--and then goes on to say that there were two other men whom many regarded as having been the real ,laotse2 one of the ,lao ,lai1 a contemporary of ,confucius1 who wrote fifteen treatises on the practices of the school of ,tao2 the other1 a ,grand ,historiographer of ,chow1 ,tan by name1 who lived some century and a quarter later4 ,to me this is chiefly interesting as a suggestion that the ',school of ,tao' was a thing existent and well-established at that time1 and with more than one man writing about it4 ,it may we'll have been4 ,taoists ascribe the foundation of their religion to the ,yellow ,emperor1 twenty-eight centuries ,b4 ,c42 but there never was time ,tao was not2 nor1 ,i suppose1 when there was quite no knowledge of it1 even in ,china4 ,in the old manvantara1 past now these three hundred years1 the ,black-haired ,people had wandered far enough from such knowledge2--with the accumulation of complexities1 with the piling up of encumberments of thought and deed during fifteen hundred busy years of intensive civilization4 ,as long as that piling up had not entirely covered away ,tao1 the ,supreme ,simplicity1 the ,clear ,air2--as long as men could find scope to think and act and accomplish things2--so long the manvantara lasted2 when nothing more that was useful could be accomplished1 and action could no longer bring about its expectable results 7because all that old dead weight was there to interpose itself between new causes set in motion and their natural outcome7--then the pralaya set in4 ,you see1 that is why pralayas do set in2 why they must2--why no nation can possibly go on at a pitch of greatness and high activity beyond a certain length of time4--,and all that activity of the manvantara--all that fuss and bustle to achieve greatness and fortune--it had all been an obscuration of and moving away from ,tao4 ,the ,great ,teachers come into this world out of the ,unknown1 bringing the essence of their ,truth with them4 ,we know well what they will teach3 in some form or another it will be ,theosophy2 it will be the old self-evident truths about ,karma and the two natures of man4 ,but how they will teach it3 what kind of sugar-coating or bitter aloes they will prescribe along with it3 --that1 ,i think1 depends on reactions from the age they come in and the people whom they are to teach4 ,it is almost certain1 as ,i said1 that ,li ,urh the ,old ,philosopher left no writings4 ,who knows1 does not tell1 said he2 and ,po ,chu-i quotes this1 and pertinently adds3 ,what then of his own five thousand words and more4--the ,tao ,teh ,king4 ,that book was proved centuries ago1 in ,china1 not to have come1 as it stands1 even from ,laotse's age2 because there are characters in it that were invented long afterwards4 ,the wisest thing to believe is that it is made up mostly of his sayings1 taken down by his disciples in the ,pitman of the time2 and surviving1 with accretions and losses perhaps1 through the disquiet of the next two centuries1 and the burning of the books1 and everything4 ,because whatever vicissitudes may have befallen it1 one does hear in its maxims the tones of a real voice3 one man's voice1 with a timbre in it that belongs to the ,lords of ,wisdom4 ,and to me1 despite ,lao ,lai and ,tan the ,grand ,historiographer1 it is the voice of an old man in the seclusion of the ,royal ,library3 a happy little bald-headed straggly-bearded old man anxious to keep himself unknown and unapplauded2 it is a voice attuned to quietness1 and to mental reactions from the thunder of the armies1 the drums and tramplings and fuss and insolence of his day4 ,i thoroughly believe in the old man in the ,royal ,library1 and the riding away on oxback at last into the west1--where was ,si ,wang ,mu's ,faery ,garden1 and the ,gobi ,desert1 with sundry oases therein whereof we have heard4 ,i can hear that voice1 with childlike wonder in it1 and ,adept-like seriousness1 and childlike and ,adept-like laughter not far behind1 in such sayings as these3 ,tao is like the emptiness of a vessel2 and the use of it1 we may say1 must be free from all self-sufficiency4 ,how deep and mysterious it is1 as if it were the author of all things6 ,we should make our sharpness blunt1 and unravel the complications of things4 4 4 4 ,how still and clear is ,tao1 a phantasm with the semblance of permanence6 ,i do not know whose son it is4 ,it might appear to have been before ,god4 ,we see in ,christendom the effects of belief in a personal ,god1 and also the inefficacy of mere ethics4 ,believers make their ,god in their own image1 and nourish their personalities imitating an imitation of themselves4 ,at the best of times they take their ,new ,testament ethics1 distil from these every virtue and excellent quality1 and posit the result as the characteristics of their ,deity3--the result1 plus a selfhood2 and therefore the great delusion and heresy1 ,separateness1 is the link that binds the whole together4 ,it is after all but a swollen personality2 and whether you swell your personalitv with virtues or vices1 the result is an offense4 ,there is a bridge1 razor-edged1 between earth and heaven2 and you can never carry that load across it4 ,laotse1 supremely ethical in effect1 had a cordial detestation-- take this gingerly6--of un-re-enforced ethics4 ,when the great ,tao is lost1 says he1 men follow after charity and duty to one's neighbor4 ,again3 ,when ,tao is lost1 virtue takes its place4 ,when virtue is lost1 benevolence succeeds to it4 ,when benevolence is lost1 justice ensues4 ,when justice is lost1 then we have expediency4 ,he does not mean1 of course1 that these things are bad2 but simply that they are the successive stages of best1 things left when ,tao is lost sight of2 none of them in itself a high enough aim4 ,they are all included in ,tao1 as the less in the greater4 ,he describes to you the character of the man of ,tao2 but your conduct is to be the effect of following ,tao2 and you do not attain ,tao by mere practice of virtue2 though you naturally practise virtue1 without being aware of it1 while following ,tao4 ,it all throws wonderful light on the nature of the ,adept2 about whom you have said nothing at all when you have accredited him with all the virtues4 ,joan was blemishless2 but not thereby did she save ,france2--she could do that because1 as ,laotse would have said1 being one with ,tao1 she flowed out into her surroundings1 accomplishing absolutely her part in the universal plan4 ,no compilation of virtues would make a ,teacher 7such as we know73 it is a case of the total absence of everything that should prevent the natural ,divine ,part of man from functioning in this world as freely and naturally as the sun shines or the winds blow4 ,the sun and the stars and the tides and the wind and the rain--there is that perfect glowing simplicity in them all3 the ,original1 the ,root of all things1 ,tao4 ,be like them1 says ,laotse1 impersonal and simple4 ,i hold fast to and cherish ,three ,precious ,things1 he says3 ,gentleness1 ,economy1 ,humility4 ,why8 ,so1 you would say1 do the ethics of the ,new ,testament2 such is the preaching of the ,christian ,churches4 ,but 7in the latter case7 for reasons quite unlike ,laotse's4 ,for we make of them too often virtues to be attained1 that shall render us meek and godly1 acceptable in the eyes of the ,lord1 and ,i know not what else3 riches laid up in heaven2 a pamperment of satisfaction2 easily to become a cloak for self- righteousness and1 if worse can be1 worse4 ,but tut6 ,laotse will not be bothered with riches here or elsewhere4 ,with him these precious things are simply absences that come to be when obstructive presences are thrown off4 ,no sanctimoniousness for the little ,old ,man in the ,royal ,library6 ,he would draw minds away to the silence of the ,great ,mystery1 which is the fountain of laughter1 of life1 the unmarred2 and he would have them abide there in absolute harmony4 ,understand him1 and you understand what he did for ,china4 ,it is from that ,inner ,thing1 that ,tao1 that all nourishment comes and all greatness4 ,you must go out with your eyes open to search for it3 watch for ,dragons in the sky2 for the ,laugher1 the ,golden ,person1 in the ,sun3 watch for ,tao1 ineffably sparkling and joyous--and quiet-- in the trees2 listen for it in the winds and in the sea-roar2 and have nothing in your own heart but its presence and omnipresence and wonder-working joy4 ,how can you flow out to the moments1 and capture the treasure in them2 how can you flow out to ,tao1 and inherit the stars1 and have the sea itself flowing in your veins2--if you are blocked with a desire1 or a passion for things mortal1 or a grudge against someone1 or a dislike8 ,beauty is ,tao3 it is ,tao that shines in the flowers3 the rose1 the bluebell1 the daffodil--the wistaria1 the chrysanthemum1 the peony--they are little avatars of ,tao2 they are little gateways into the ,kingdom of ,god4 ,how can you know them1 how can you go in through them1 how can you participate in the laughter of the planets and the angelic clans1 through their ministration1 if you are preoccupied with the interests or the wants of contemptible you1 the personality8 ,laotse went lighting little stars for the ,black-haired ,people3 went pricking the opacity of heaven1 that the ,light of lights might filter through4 ,if you call him a philosopher1 you credit him with an intellectualism that really he did not bother to possess4 ,rather he stood by the ,wells of ,poetry1 and was spiritual progenitor of thousands of poets4 ,there is no way to ,poetry but ,laotse's ,way4 ,you think you must go abroad and see the world2 you must not2 that is only a hindrance3 a giving the eyes too many new externals1 to hinder them from looking for that which you may see1 as he says1 'through your own window4' ,if you traverse the whole world seeking1 you will never come nearer to the only thing that counts1 which is ,here1 and ,now4 ,seek to feed your imagination on outward things1 on doings and events1 and you will perhaps excite1 but surely soon starve it4 ,but at the other pole1 the inner ,how deep and mysterious is ,tao1 as if it were the author of all things6 ,and then ,i hear someone ask him whence it originated--someone fishing for a little metaphysics1 some dose of philosophy4 ,what6 catch ,laotse8 ,i know1 said ,confucius1 how birds fly1 beasts run1 fishes swim4 ,but the runner may be snared1 the swimmer hooked1 the flyer shot with an arrow4 ,but there is the ,dragon2 ,i cannot tell how he mounts on the wind through the clouds and rises into heaven4 ,no2 you cannot hook1 snare1 or shoot the ,dragon4 ,i do not know whose son ,tao is1 says ,laotse4 ,it might appear to have been before ,god4 ,so ,i adhere to the tale of the old man in the ,royal ,library1 holding wonderful quiet conversations there2 that it might appear to have been before ,god is enough to convince me4 ,there was a man once99--,i forget his name1 but we may call him ,cho ,kung for our purposes2 he was of affable demeanor1 and an excellent flautist2 and had an enormous disbelief in ghosts1 bogies1 goblins1 and 'supernatural' beings of every kind4 ,it seized him with the force of a narrow creed2 and he went forth to missionarize1 seeking disputants4 ,he found one in the chief ,librarian of some provincial library2 who confessed to a credulousness along that line1 and seemed willing to talk4 ,here then were grand opportunities--for a day's real enjoyment1 with perchance a creditable convert to be won at the end of it4 ,behold them sitting down to the fray1 in the shadows among the books3 the young ,cho ,kung1 affable 7,i like the word well71 voluble and earnest2 the old ,librarian1 mild1 with little to say but buts and ifs1 and courteous even beyond the wont in that last refuge of good manners1 ,china4 ,all day long they sat2 and affable ,cho1 like ,sir ,macklin in the poem1 ,argued high and argued low1 ,and likewise argued round about him2 --until by fall of dusk the ,librarian was fairly beaten4 ,so cogent were ,cho's arguments1 so loud and warm his eloquence1 so entirely convincing his facts adduced--his modern instances1 as you may say--that there really was nothing for the old man to answer4 ,ghosts were not2 genii were ridiculously unthinkable2 supernatural beings could not exist1 and it was absurd to think they could4 ,the ,librarian had not a leg to stand on2 that was flat4 ,accordingly he rose to his feet--and bowed4--,sir1 said he1 with all prescribed honorifics1 undoubtedly you are victorious4 ,the contemptible present speaker sees the error of his miserable ways4 ,he is convinced4 ,it remains for him only to add--and here something occurred to make ,cho rub his eyes--that he is himself a supernatural being4--,and with that his form and limbs distend1 grow misty--and he vanishes in a cloud up through the ceiling4--,you see1 those old librarians in ,china had a way of doing things which was all their own4 ------ 99 ,the story is told in ,dr4 ,h4 ,h4 ,giles' ,dictionary of ,chinese ,biography4 ------ ,so ,li ,urh responded to the confusions of his day4 ,arguments8-- ,you could hardly call them so2 there is very little arguing1 where ,tao is concerned4 ,the ,tiger was abroad1 straining all those lithe tendons1--a tense fearful symmetry of destruction burning bright through the night-forests of that pralaya3 grossest and wariest energies put forth to their utmost in a race between the cunning for existence1 a struggle of the strong for power4--,it is the way of ,tao to do difficult things when they are easy2 to benefit and not to injure2 to do and not to strive4 ,come out1 says ,laotse1 from all this moil and topsey- turveydom2 stop all this striving and botheration2 give things a chance to right themselves4 ,there is nothing flashy or to make a show about in ,tao2 it vies with no one4 ,let go2 let be2 find rest of the mind and senses2 let us have no more of these fooleries1 war1 capital punishment1 ambition2 let us have self- emptiness4 ,just be quiet1 and this great ,chu ,hia will come right without aid of governing1 without politics and voting and canvassing and such4--,here and ,now and ,what comes by were his prescriptions4 ,he was an advocate of the ,small ,state4 ,aristotle would have had no government ruling more than ten thousand people2 ,laotse would have had his ,state of such a size that the inhabitants could all hear the cocks crowing in foreign lands2 and he would have had them quite uneager to travel abroad4 ,what he taught was a total bouleversement of the methods of his age4 ,it is the way of ,tao not to act from personal motives1 to conduct affairs--without feeling the trouble of them1 to taste without being aware of the flavor1 to account the great as the small and the small as the great1 to recompense injury with kindness4 ,the argument went all against him4 ,their majesties of ,ts'in and ,tsin and ,ts'i and ,ts'u were there with their drums and tramplings2 the sixty warrior-carrying chariots were thundering past2--who should hear the voice of an old quiet man in the ,royal ,library8 ,minister ,this and ,secretary ,that of ,lu and ,chao and ,cheng were at it with their wire-pullings and lobbyings and petty diddlings and political cheateries--7it is all beautifully modern72 what had the world to do with self-emptiness and ,tao8 ,the argument was all against him2 he hadn't a leg to stand on4 ,there was no ,tao2 no simplicity2 no magic2 no ,garden of ,si ,wang ,mu in the ,west2 no ,azure ,birds of ,compassion to fly out from it into the world of men4 ,very well then2 he1 being one with that non-existent ,tao1 would ride away to that imaginary ,garden2 would go1 and leave-- ,a strand torn out of the rainbow to be woven into the stuff of ,chinese life4 ,you could not tell it at the time2 you never would have guessed it--but this old dull tired squalid ,china1 cowering in her rice-fields and stopping her ears against the drums and tramplings1 had had something--some seed of divinity1 thrown down into her mind1 that should grow there and be brooded on for three centuries or so1 and then-- ,there is a ,blue ,pearl1 ,immortality2 and the ,dragon1 wandering the heavens1 is forever in pursuit or quest of it4 ,you will see that on the old flag of ,china1 that a foolish republicanism cast away as savoring too much of the ,manchu4 7,but it was ,laotse and ,confucius1 ,han ,wuti and ,tang ,taitsong1 and ,wu ,taotse and the ,banished ,angel that it savored of really47 ,well1 it was this ,blue ,pearl that the ,old ,philosopher1 riding up through the pass to the ,western ,gate of the world1 there to vanish from the knowledge of men2--it was this ,blue ,pearl that1 stopping and turning a moment there so high up and near heaven1 he tossed back and out into the fields of ,china2--and the ,dragon would come to seek it in his time4--,you perhaps know the picture of ,laotse riding away on his ox4 ,i do not wonder that the beast is smiling4 ,for it really was the ,blue ,pearl3 and the ,lord knew what it was to do in ,china in its day4 ,it fell down1 you may say1 from the clear ether of heaven into the thick atmosphere of this world2 and amidst the mists of human personality took on all sorts of iridescences2 lit up strange rainbow tints and fires to glow and glisten more and more wonderfully as the centuries should pass2 and kindle the ,chinese imagination into all sorts of opal glowings and divine bewilderments and wonderments2--and by and by the wonder-dyed mist-ripples floated out to ,japan1 and brought to pass there all sorts of nice ,japanese cherry-blossomy and plum- blossomy and peonyish things1 and ,urashima-stories and ,bushido- ish and ,lafcadioish and badger-teakettle things3--reawakened1 in fact1 the whole of the faery glow of the ,eastern ,world4 ,it is not to be thought that here among the mists and personalities the ,pearl could quite retain all its pure blueness of the ether4 ,it is not to be thought that ,taoism1 spread broadcast among the people1 could remain1 what it was at the beginning1 an undiluted ,theosophy4 ,the lower the stratum of thought into which it fell1 the less it could be ,thought-,spiritual1 the stuff unalloyed of ,manas-,taijasi4 ,nevertheless1 it was the ,pearl ,immortality1 with a vigor and virtue of its own1 and a competence for ages1 on whatever plane it might be1 to work wonders4 ,among thinking and spiritual minds it remained a true ,way of ,salvation4 ,among the masses it came to be thought of presently as personal immortality and the elixir of life4 ,regrettable1 you may say2 but this is the point3 nothing was ever intended to last forever4 ,you must judge ,taoism by what it was in its day1 not by what it may be now4 ,laotse had somehow flashed down into human consciousness a vision of ,infinity3 had confronted the ,chinese mind with a conviction of the ,great ,mystery1 the ,divine ,silence4 ,it is simply a fact that that is the fountain whose waters feed the imagination and make it grow and bloom4 ,search for the ,secret in chatter and outward sights and deeds1 and you soon run to waste and nothingness2 but seek here1 and you shall find what seemed a void1 teeming with lovely forms4 ,he set the ,chinese imagination1 staggered and stupefied by the so long ages of manvantara1 and then of ruin1 into a glow of activity1 of grace1 of wonder2 men became aware of the vast world of the ,within2 as if a thousand ,americas had been discovered4 ,it supplied the seed of creation for all the poets and artists to come4 ,it made a new folklore2 revivified the inner atmosphere of mountains and forests2 set the fairies dancing2 raised ,yellow ,crane ,pagodas to mark the spot where ,wang ,tzu-chiao flew on the ,crane to heaven in broad daylight4 ,it sent out the ships of ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti presently to seek the ,golden ,islands of ,peng-lai1 where the ,immortals give cups of the elixir to their votaries2 in some degree it sent the armies of ,han ,wuti in search of the ,garden of ,si ,wang ,mu4 ,the ships found 7perhaps7 only the ,golden ,islands of ,japan2 the armies found certainly ,persia1 ,india1 and even the borders of ,rome2--and withal1 new currents1 awakening and inter-national1 to flow into ,china and make splendid the ,golden ,age of ,han4 ,x4 ,,such ,a ,,one ,i produce myself among creatures1 ,o son of ,bharata1 whenever there is a decline of ,virtue and an insurrection of vice and injustice in the world3 and thus ,i incarnate from age to age for the preservation of the just1 the destruction of the wicked1 and the establishment of righteousness4--,bhagavad-,gita ,the world had fallen into decay1 and right principles had perished4 ,perverse discourses and oppressive deeds had grown rife2 ministers murdered their rulers and sons their fathers4 ,confucius was frightened at what he saw1 and undertook the work of reformation4--,mencius ,men were expecting an avatar in old ,judaea2 and1 sure enough1 one came4 ,but they were looking for a national leader1 a ,messiah1 to throw off for them the ,roman yoke2 or else for an ascetic like their prophets of old time3 something1 in any case1 out of the way2--a personality wearing marks of avatarship easily recognisable4 ,the one who came1 however1 so far from leading them against the ,romans1 seemed to have a good deal of sympathy with the ,romans4 ,he consorted with centurions and tax-gatherers1 and advised the ,jews to render unto ,roman ,caesar the things which were his3 which meant1 chiefly1 the tribute4 ,and he was not an ascetic1 noticeably2 bore no resemblance to their prophets of old time2 but came1 as he said1 'eating and drinking'2 even went to marriage-feasts1 and that by no means to play killjoy2-- and they said1 ',behold1 a gluttonous man and a winebibber6' 7which was a lie74--,instead of supporting the national religion1 as anyone with half an eye to his interests would have done1 he did surprising things in the temple with a whip of small cords4-- ,here1 said they1 let us crucify this damned fellow6 ,and they did4 ,aftertimes1 however1 recognised him as an avatar2 and then so perverse is man6--as the one and only possible avatar4 ,if ever another should appear1 said our western world1 it could but be this one come again2 and1 because the doctrine of avatars is a fundamental instinct in human nature1 they expected that he would come again4 ,so when the pressure of the times and the intuition of men warned them that a great incarnation was due1 they began to look for his coming4 ,that was in our own day1 say in the last half-century2 during which time a mort of books have been written about a mysterious figure turning up in some modern city1 whom you could not fail to recognise by certain infallible signs4 ,generally speaking1 the chief of these were3 long hair1 and a tendency to make lugubrious remarks beginning with ,verily1 verily ,i say unto you4 ,in actual life1 too1 lots of men did grow their hair long and cultivate the verily-verily habit2 hoping that1 despite their innate modesty1 their fellow-men might not fail to take the hint and pierce the disguise afforded1 often by a personal morality you might call oblique4 ,but if an avatar had come1 it is fairly certain that he or she would have followed modern fashions in hair and speech2 first1 because real avatars have a sense of humor2 and secondly1 because his or her business would have been to reform1 not the language or style of hair-dressing1 but life4--',he or she' is a very vile phrase2 for the sake of novelty1 let us make the feminine include the masculine1 and say 'she' simply4--,her conversation1 then1 instead of being peppered with archaic verilies and peradventures1 would have been in form much like that of the rest of us4 ,it is quite unlikely she would have shone at ,pleasant ,sunday ,afternoons1 or ,bazaars of the ,young ,women's ,christian ,association2 quite unlikely that she would have been in any sense whatever a pillar of the orthodoxies4 ,as she would have come to preach ,truth1 you may suppose ,truth needed1 and therefore lacking2 and so1 that her teachings would have been at once dubbed vilest heterodoxy1 and herself a charlatan4 ,below with eddy and flow the white tides creep ,on the sands4 ,says ,ssu-k'ung ,t'u1-- 44444 in no one form may ,tao abide4 ,but changes and shifts like the wide wing-shadows asweep ,on the mountainside2 --the sea is one1 but the tides drift and eddy2 the roc1 or maybe the dragon1 is one1 but the shadow of his wings on the mountain sward shifts and changes and veers4 ,when you think you have set up a standard for ,tao3 when you imagine you have grasped it in you hands3--how fleet it is to vanish6 ,the man of ,tao1 said the fisherman of the ,mi-lo to ,ch'u ,yuan1 does not quarrel with his surroundings1 but adapts himself to them2--and perhaps there you have the best possible explanation of the nature of those ,great souls who come from time to time to save the world4 ,i think we take the ,buddha as the type of them2 and expect not only a life and character that we can recognise as flawless1 but also a profundity of revelation in the philosophy and ethics4 ,but if no two blades of grass are alike1 much less are two human ,souls2 and in these ,great ,ones1 it is the picture of ,souls we are given4 ,when we think that if all men were perfect1 all would be alike1 we err with a wide mistake4 ,the nearer you get to the ,soul1 and the more perfect is the expression of it1 the less is there monotony or similarity2 and almost the one thing you may posit about any avatar is1 that he will be a surprise4 ,tom and ,dick and ,harry are alike3 'pipe and stick young men'2 'pint and steak young men'2 they get born and marry and die1 and the grass grows over them with wondrous alikeness2 but when the ,masters of ,men come1 all the elements are cast afresh4 ,everyone has a place to fill in the universal scheme2 he has a function to perform1 that none else can perform2 a just what he can do1--which commonly he falls far short of doing4 ,when he does it1 fully and perfectly1 then he is on the road of progress2 that road opens up to him2 and presently1 still exercising the fulness of his being1 he becomes a completeness1 like ,heaven and ,earth2 their 'equal1' in the ,chinese phrase2 or as we say1 a ,perfect ,man or ,adept4 ,does anyone know what place in history he is to fill8 ,i cannot tell2 ,i suppose an ,adept1 incarnated1 would be too busy filling it to have time or will to question4 ,but here perhaps we have the nearest thing possible to a standard for measuring them2 and here the virtue of ,taoism1 and one greatest lesson we may learn from it4 ,are we to judge by the impressiveness of the personality8 ,no2 the ,man of ,tao is not a personality at all4 ,he makes one to use1 but is not identified with it2 his personality will not be great or small1 or enchanting or repellent1 but simply adapted to the needs4--,is it the depth and fulness of the philosophv he gives out8 ,no2 it may be wiser and also more difficult to keep silent on main points1 than to proclaim them broadcast2 and for this end he may elect even not to know 7with conscious brain-mind7 too much2--not to have the deep things within his normal consciousness4 ,but he comes into the world to meet a situation2 to give the course of history a twist in a desired direction2 and the sign and measure of his greatness is1 it seems to me1 his ability to meet the situation at all points1 and to do just what is necessary for the giving of the twist1--no more and no less4 ,and then1 of course1 it takes a thousand years or so before you can judge4 ,one is not speaking of common statesmen1 who effect quick changes that are no changes at all1 but of the ,men who shepherd the ,host of ,souls4 ,i like to imagine1 before the birth of ,such a ,one1 a consultation of the ,gods upon the ,mountain of ,heaven4 ,a synod of the kind 7for ,china7 would have taken place in the sixth century ,b4 ,c41 no doubt2 because in those days certainly there was a decline of virtue and an insurrection of vice and injustice in the world4 ,transport yourselves then1 say in the year #eeb1 to the peaks of ,tien ,shan of ,kuen ,lun1 or high ,tai-hsing1 or the grand ,south ,mountain2 and see the ,pantheon assembled4 ,they look down over ,chu ,hia2 they know that in three centuries or so a manvantara will be beginning there1 and grow anxious lest anything has been left undone to insure its success4 ,they note ,laotse 7whom they sent some fifty years earlier7 at his labors2 and consider1 what those labors would achieve for the ,black- haired ,people4 ,he would bring light to the most excellent minds2 the ,god of ,light said1 ,i have seen to that4 ,he would in time waken the lute-strings of the ,spirit1 and set ,chu ,hia all a-song2 the ,god of ,music said1 ,i have seen to that4 ,they foresaw ,wu ,taotse and ,ma ,yuan2 they foresaw ,ssu-k'ung ,t'u and the ,banished ,angel2 and asked ,is it not enough8 ,and the thought grew on them that it was not enough1 till they sighed with the apprehensions that troubled them4 ,only a few minds among the millions1 they foresaw1 would have proper understanding of ,tao4 ,now1 ,gods of whatever land they may be1 there are those three ,bardic ,brothers amongst them3 ,he of ,light1 who awakens vision2 ,he of ,song1 who rouses up the harmonies and ennobling vibrations2 and ,he of ,strength1 whose gloves hold all things fast1 and neither force nor slipperiness will avail against them4 ,it was this third of them1 ,gwron1 who propounded the plan that satisfied the ,pantheon4 ,i will send one among them1 with the ,gloves for his treasure1 said he4 ,they considered how it would be with ,such a ,one3 going among men as the ,gods' ,messenger1 and with those two ,gloves for his treasure4--,this way will it be1 they said4 ,not having the treasure of the ,god of ,light1 he will seem as one without vision of the ,god-world or remembrance whence he came4 ,not having the treasure of the ,god of ,music1 he will awaken little song with the ,bards4 ,but having the ,gloves1 he will hold the gates of hell shut1 so far as shut they may be1 through all the cycle that is coming4 ,with that the council ended4 ,but ,plenydd ,god of ,light and ,vision thought3 ,though my treasure has gone with the ,old ,philosopher1 and ,i cannot endow this man with it1 ,i will make him ,such a ,one as can be seen by all men2 ,i will throw my light on him1 that he may be an example through the age of ages4 ,and ,alawn ,god of ,music thought3 ,though my lute has gone with ,laotse1 ,i will confer boons on this one also4 ,such a ,one he shall be1 as draws no breath but to tunes of my playing2 the motions of his mind1 to my music1 shall be like the motions of the ordered stars4-- ,and they both thought3 ,it will be easy for me to do as much as this1 with his having the ,gloves of ,gwron on his hands4 ,at that time ,k'ung ,shuhliang ,heih1 ,commander of the district of ,tsow1 in the ,marquisate of ,lu in ,shantung1 determined to marry again4 ,now ,china is a vast democracy3 the most democratic country in the world4 ,perhaps ,i shall come to proving that presently2 for the moment ,i must ask you to let it pass on the mere statement1 satisfied that it is true4 ,despite this radical democracy1 then1 she has had two noble families4 ,one is descended from a famous ,patriot-,pirate of recent centuries1 known to ,westerners as ,koxinga2 with it we have no concern4 ,the other is to be found in the town of ,k'iuh-fow in ,shantung1 in the ancient ,marquisate of ,lu4 ,there are about fifty thousand members of it1 all bearing the surname ,k'ung2 its head has the title of ',duke by ,imperial ,appointment and hereditary right'2 and1 much prouder still1 ',continuator of the ,sage4' ,dukes of ,england sometimes trace their descent from men who came over with ,william the ,conqueror3 a poor eight centuries is a thing to be proud of4 ,there may be older families in ,france1 ,italy1 and elsewhere4 ,duke ,k'ung traces his1 through a line of which every scion appears more of less in history1 to the son of this ,k'ung ,shuhliang ,heih in the sixth century ,b4,c42 who in turn traced his1 through a line of which every scion appeared in history1 and all1 with one possible exception1 very honorably1 to a member of the ,imperial ,house of ,shang who1 in #aabb ,b4,c41 on the fall of that house1 was created ,duke of ,sung in ,honan by the first of the ,chows4 ,the ,house of ,shang held the throne for some five centuries1 beginning with ,tang the ,comnpleter in #agff1 who traced his descent from the ,yellow ,emperor in mythological times4 ,duke ,k'ung1 then1 is descended in direct male line from sovereigns who reigned beyond the horizon of history1--at the latest1 near the beginning of the third millennium ,b4,c4 ,the family has been distinguished for nearly five thousand years4 ,the matter is not unimportant2 since we are to talk of a member of this family4 ,we shall understand him better for remembering the kind of heredity that lay behind him3 some seventy generations of nobility1 all historic4 ,only one royal house in the world now is as old as his was then3 that of ,japan4 ,some generations before1 the ,k'ung family had lost their duchy of ,sung and emigrated to ,lu2 where1 in the early part of the sixth century1 its head1 this ,shuhliang ,heih1 had made a great name for himself as a soldier4 ,he was now a widower1 and seventy years old2 and saw himself compelled to make a second marriage1 or the seventy illustrious generations of his ancestors would be deprived of a posterity to offer them sacrifices4 ,so he approached a gentlman of the ,yen family1 who had three eligible daughters4 ,to these ,yen put the case1 leaving to them to decide which should marry ,k'ung4--,though old and austere1 said he1 he is of the high descent1 and you need have no fear of him4 ,chingtsai1 the youngest1 answered that it was for their father to choose4--,then you shall marry him1 said ,yen4 ,she did2 and when her son was to be born1 she was warned in a dream to make pilgrimage to a cave on ,mount ,ne4 ,there the spirits of the mountain attended2 there were signs and portents in the heavens at the nativity4 ,the k'e-lin1 a beast out of the mythologies1 appeared to her2 and she tied a white ribbon about its single horn4 ,it is a creature that appears only when things of splendid import are to happen4 ,three years after1 the father died1 leaving his family on the borders of poverty4 ,at six1 ,ch'iu1 the child1 a boy of serious earnest demeanor1 was teaching his companions to play at arranging1 according to the rites1 toy sacrificial vessels on a toy altar4 ,beyond this1 and that they were poor1 and that he doted on his mother--who would have deserved it1--we know little of his boyhood4 ,at fifteen1 he tells us himself1 his mind was bent on learning4 ,nothing in the way of studies1 seems to have come amiss to him2 of history1 and ritual1 and poetry1 he came to know all that was to be known4 ,he loved music1 theory and practice2 held it to be sacred3 not merely one of the refinements of life1 but a part of life itself4 ,it is as well to remember this2 and that often1 in after life1 he turned dangerous situations by breaking into song2 and that his lute was his constant companion4 ,he used to say that a proper study of poetry--he was not himself a poet1 though he compiled a great anthology of folk-poems later--would leave the mind without a single depraved thought4 ,once he said to his son3 ,if you do not learn the ,odes1 you will not be fit to talk to4 ,poetry rouses us1 said he1 courtesy upholds us2 music is our crown4 ,you are1 then1 to see in him no puritan abhorring beauty1 but a man with artistic perceptions developed4 ,at what you might call the other pole of knowledge1 he was held to know more about the science of war than any man living2 and ,i have no doubt he did4 ,if he had consented to use or speak about or let others use that knowledge1 he might have been a great man in his day2 but he never would4 ,at nineteen1 according to the custom1 he married2 and soon afterwards accepted minor official appointments3 ,keeper of the ,granaries1 then ,superintendent of the ,public ,parks in his native district4 ,he made a name for himself by the scrupulous discharge of his duties1 that came even to the ears of the ,marquis2 who1 when his son was born1 sent the young father a complimentary present of a carp4--,it would have been two or three years before the beginning of the last quarter of the century when he felt the time calling to him1 and voices out of the ,eternal2 and threw up his superintendentship to open a school4 ,not an ordinary school by any means4 ,the ,pupils were not children1 but young men of promise and an inquiring mind2 and what he had to teach them was not the ordinary curriculum1 but right living1 the right ordering of social life1 and the right government of states4 ,they were to pay2 but to pay according to their means and wishes2 and he demanded intelligence from them2 --no swelling of the fees would serve instead4--,i do not open the truth1 said he1 to one not eager after knowledge2 nor do ,i teach those unanxious to explain themselves4 ,when ,i have presented one corner of a subject1 and the student cannot learn from it the other three for himself1 ,i do not repeat the lesson4 ,he lectured to them1 we read1 mainly on history and poetry1 deducing his lessons in life from these4 ,his school was a great success4 ,in five years he had acquired some two thousand pupils3 seventy or eighty of them1 as he said1 men of extraordinary ability4 ,it was that the ,doors of the ,lodge had opened1 and its force was flowing through him in ,lu1 as it was through the ,old ,philosopher in ,honanfu4--,by this time he had added archery to his own studies1 and 7like ,william ,q4 ,judge7 become proficient4 ,also he had taken a special course in music theory under a very famous teacher4 ,at thirty he stood firm4 ,two of his disciples were members of the royal family2 and ,marquis ,chao regarded him with favor1 as the foremost educationist in the state4 ,he had an ambition to visit the capital 7of ,china72 where1 as no where else1 ritual might be studied2 where1 too1 was ,laotse1 with whom he longed to confer4 ,marquis ,chao1 hearing of this1 provided him with the means2 and he went up with a band of his pupils4 ,there at ,loyang1 which is ,honanfu1 we see him wandering rapt through palaces and temples1 examining the sacrificial vessels1 marveling at the ancient art of ,shang and ,chow4 ,but for a few vases1 it is all lost4 ,he did interview ,laotse2 we cannot say whether only once or more often4 ,nor1 ,i think1 do we know what passed2 the accounts we get are from the pen of honest ,ben ,trovato2 ,vero1 the modest1 had but little hand in them4 ,we shall come to them later4 ,and now that he stands before the world a ,teacher1 we may drop his personal name1 ,k'ung ,ch'iu1 and call him by the title to which paeans of praise have been swelling through all the ages since3 ,k'ung ,futse1 ,k'ung the ,master2 latinized1 ,confucius4 ,it is a name that conveys to you1 perhaps1 some associations of priggishness and pedantry3 almost whereever you see him written of you find suggestions of the sort4 ,forgo them at once3 they are false utterly4 ,missionaries have interpreted him to the ,west2 who have worked hard to show him something less than the ,nazarene4 ,they have set him in a peculiar light2 and others have followed them4 ,perhaps no writer except and until ,dr4 ,lionel ,giles 7whose interpretation1 both of the man and his doctrine1 ,i shall try to give you71 has shown him to us as he was1 so that we can understand why he has stood the ,naional ,hero1 the ,savior and ,ideal ,man of all those millions through all these centuries4 ,we have been told again and again that his teaching was wholly unspiritual2 that he knew nothing of the inner worlds2 never mentions the ,soul1 or ',god'2 says no word to lighten for you the dusk within the ,holy of holies4 ,he was all for outwardness1 they say3 a thorough externalist2 a ritualist cold and unmagnetic4--,it is much what his enemies said in his own day2 who1 and not himself1 provide the false-interpreters with their weapons4 ,but think of the times1 and you may understand4 ,how would the missionaries feel1 were ,jesus translated to the ,chinese as a fine man in some respects--considering--but1 unfortunately6 too fond of the pleasures of the table2 a gluttonous man and a winebibber 8 ,they were stirring times1 indeed2 when all boundaries were in flux1 and you needed a new atlas three times a year4 ,robbers would carve themselves new principalities overnight2 kingdoms would arise1 and vanish with the waning of a moon4 ,what would this1 or any other country1 become1 were law1 order1 the police and every restraining influence made absolutely inefficient8 ,were ,california one state today2 a dozen next week2 in ,july six or seven1 and next ,december but a purlieu to ,arizona8--,things1 heaven knows1 are bad enough as they are2 there is no dearth of crime and cheatery4 ,still1 the police and the legal system do stand between us and red riot and ruin4 ,in ,china they did not2 the restraints had been crumbling for two or three centuries4 ,human nature1 broadly speaking1 is much of a muchness in all lands and ages3 ,i warrant if you took the center of this world's respectability1 which ,i should on the whole put in some suburb of ,london2--,i warrant that if you relieved ,clapham1--whose crimes1 says ,kipling very wisely1 are 'chaste in ,martaban1'--of police and the ,pax ,britannica for a hundred years or so1 lurid ,martaban would have little pre-eminence left to brag about4 ,the class that now goes up primly and plugly to business in the ,city day by day would be cutting throats a little2 they would be making life quite interesting4 ,their descendants1 ,i mean4 ,it would take time2 ,mother ,grundy would not be disthroned in a day4 ,but it would come2 because men follow the times1 and not the ,soul2 and are good as sheep are1 but not as heroes4 ,so in ,chow ,china4 ,but the young ,confucius knew his history4 ,he looked back from that confusion to a wise ,wu ,wang and ,duke of ,chow2 to a ,tang the ,completer1 whose morning bath-tub was inscribed with this motto from ,the ,new ,way3 ,if at any time in his life a man can make a new man of himself1 why not every morning8 ,most of all he looked back to the golden and sinless age of ,yao and ,shun and ,yu1 as far removed from him1 nearly1 as pre-,roman ,britain is from us3 he saw them ruling their kingdom as a strong benevolent father rules his house4 ,in those days men had behaved themselves3 natural virtue had expressed itself in the natural way4 ,in good manners2 in observation of the proprieties1 for example4--,in that wild ,martaban of ,chow ,china1 would not a great gentleman of the old school 7who happened also to be a ,great ,teacher7 have seen a virtue in even quiet ,claphamism1 that we cannot8 ,it was not the time for ,such a ,one to slight the proprieties and 'reasonable conventions of life4' ,the truth is1 the devotion of his disciples has left us minute pictures of the man1 so that we see him 444 particular as to the clothes he wore2 and from this too the ,west gathers material for its charge of externalism4 ,well2 and if he accepted the glossy top-hats and black ,prince ,albert coats2--only with him they were caps and robes of azure1 carnation1 yellow1 black1 or white2 this new fashion of wearing red he would have none of3--,i can see nothing in it but this3 the ,great ,soul had chosen the personality it should incarnate in1 with an eye to the completeness of the work it should do2 and seventy generations of noble ancestry would protest1 even in the matter of clothing1 against red riot and ruin and ,martaban4 ,he is made to cite the ',superior ,man' as the model of excellence2 and that phrase sounds to us detestably priggish4 ,in the ,harvard ,classics it is translated 7as well as may be7 'true gentleman1' or 'princely man'2 in which is no priggish ring at all4 ,again1 he is made to address his disciples as ,my ,children1 at which1 too1 we naturally squirm a little3 what he really called them was ',my boys1' which sounds natural and affectionate enough4 ,supposing the ,gospels were translated into ,chinese by someone with the gluttonous-man-and-winebibber bias2 --what1 ,i wonder1 would he put for ,amen1 amen lego humin8 ,not ,verily1 verily ,i say unto you6 ,but ,i must go on with his life4 ,things had gone ill in in ,lu during his absence3 threee great clan chieftains had stopped fighting among themselves to fight instead against their feudal superior1 and ,marquis ,chao had been exiled to ,ts'i4 ,it touched ,confucius directly2 his teaching on such matters had been peremptory3 he would 'rectify names'3 have the prince prince1 and the people his subjects3--he would have law and order in the state1 or the natural harmony of things was broken4 ,as suggested above1 he was very much a man of mark in ,lu2 and a protest from him1--which should be forth-coming-- could hardly go unnoticed4 ,with a band of disciples he followed his marquis into ,ts'i3 it is in ,chihli1 north of ,lu1 and was famous then for its national music4 ,on the journey he heard ,ts'i airs sung1 and 'hurried forward4' ,one of the first things he did on arriving at the capital was to attend a concert 7or something equivalent72 and for three months thereafter1 as a sign of thanksgiving1 he ate no flesh4 ,i never dreamed1 said he1 that music could be so wonderful4 ,the fame of his ,raja-,yoga ,school 7that was what it was7 had gone abroad1 and ,duke ,ching of ,ts'i received him well2--offered him a city with its revenues2 but the offer was declined4 ,the ,duke was impressed2 half inclined to turn ,confucianist2 wished to retain him with a pension1 to have him on hand in case of need2-- but withal he was of doubtful hesitating mind about it1 and allowed his prime minister to dissuade him4 ,these scholars1 said the latter1 are impractical1 and cannot be imitated4 ,they are haughty and self-opinionated1 and will never rest content with an inferior position4 ,confucius has a thousand peculiarities2--this is the gluttonous-man-and-winebibber saying1 which the missionary interpreters have been echoing since2--it would take ages to exhaust all he knows about the ceremonies of going up and down4 ,this is not the time to examine into his rules of propriety2 your people would say you were neglecting them4--,when next ,duke ,ching was urged to follow ,confucius1 he answered3 ,i am too old to adopt his doctrines4 ,the ,master returned to ,lu2 lectured to his pupils1 compiled the ,books of ,odes and of ,history2 and waited for the disorders to pass4 ,which in time they did1 more or less4 ,marquis ,ting came to the throne1 and made him chief magistrate of the town of ,chungtu4 ,now was the time to prove his theories1 and show whether he was the ,man to the core1 that he had been so assiduously showing himself1 you may say1 on the rind4 ,ah ha6 now surely1 with hard work before him1 this scholar1 theorist1 conventional formalist1 ritualist1 and what else you may like to call him1 will be put to shame1--shown up empty and foolish before the hard-headed men of action of his age4 ,who1 indeed1--the hard-headed men of action-- have succeeded in doing precisely nothing but to make confusion worse confounded2 how much less1 then1 will this ,impractical ,one do6 ,let us watch him1 and have our laugh444--,on the wrong side of your faces then2 for lo now1 miracles are happening6 ,he takes control2 and here at last is one city in great ,chu ,hia where crime has ceased to be4 ,how does he manage it8 ,the miracle looks but the more miraculous as you watch4 ,he frames rules for everything2 insists on the proprieties2 morning1 noon1 and night holds up an example1 and1 says he1 relies on the power of that4--,example8 ,tush1 he must be beheading right and left6--,nothing of the sort2 he is all against capital punishment1 and will have none of it4 ,but there is the fact3 you can leave your full purse in the streets of ,chung-tu1 and pick it up unrifled when you pass next2 you can pay your just price1 and get your just measure for it1 fearing no cheateries2 ,high ,cost of ,living is gone2 corners in this and that are no more2 graft is a thing you must go elsewhere to look for2--there is none of it in ,chung-tu4 ,and graft1 let me say1 was a thing as proper to the towns of ,china then1 as to the graftiest modern city you might mention4 ,the thing is inexplicable--but perfectly attested4 ,not quite inexplicable1 either3 he came from the ,gods1 and had the ,gloves of ,gwron on his hands3 he had the wisdom you cannot fathom1 which meets all events and problems as they come1 and finds their solution in its superhuman self1 where the human brain-mind finds only dense impenetrability4--,marquis ,ting saw and wondered4--,could you do this for the whole state8 he asked4--,surely2 and for the whole empire1 said ,confucius4 ,the ,marquis made him1 first ,assistant-,superintendent of ,works1 then ,minister of ,crime4 ,and now you shall hear ,chapter ,x of the ,analects1 to show you the outer man4 ,all these details were noted down by the love of his disciples1 for whom nothing was too petty to be recorded2 and if we cannot read them without smiling1 there is this to remember3 they have suffered sea-change on their way to us3 sea-change and time-change4 ,what you are to see really is3 7#a7 a great ,minister of ,state1 utterly bent on reproving and correcting the laxity of his day1 performing the ritual duties of his calling--as all other duties--with a high religious sense of their antiquity and dignity2 both for their own sake1 and to set an example4 what would be thought of an ,english ,archbishop of ,canterbury who behaved familiarly or jocularly at a ,coronation ,service8--7#b7 ,a gentleman of the old school1 who insists on dressing well and quietly1 according to his station4 ,that is what he would appear now1 in any grade of society1 and among men the least capable of recognising his inner greatness3 'race' is written in every feature of his being2 set him in any modern court1 and with half an eye you would see that his family was a thousand years or so older than that of anyone else present1 and had held the throne at various times4 ,here is a touch of the great gentleman3 he would never fish with a net1 or shoot at a bird on the bough2 it was unsportsmanlike4 7#c7 ,a very natural jovial man1 not above changing countenance when fine meats were set on his table3--a thing that directly contradicts the idea of a cold1 ever play-acting ,confucius4 ,a parvenu must be very careful2 but a scion of the ,house of ,shang1 a descendant of the ,yellow ,emperor1 could unbend and be jolly without loss of dignity2--and1 were he a ,confucius1 would4 ,a gentleman1 said he1 is calm and spacious2 he was himself1 according to the ,analects1 friendly1 yet dignified2 inspired awe1 but not fear2 was respectful1 but easy4 ,he divided mankind into three classes3 ,adepts or ,sages2 true ,gentlemen2 and the common run4 ,he never claimed to belong to the first1 though all ,china knows well that he did belong to it4 ,he even considered that he fell short of the ideal of the second2 but as to that1 we need pay no attention to his opinion4 ,here1 then1 is ,chapter ,x3 ,amongst his own countryfolk ,confucius wore a homely look1 like one who has no word to say4 ,in the ancestral temple and at court his speech was full1 but cautious4 ,at court he talked frankly to men of low rank1 winningly to men of high rank4 ,in the ,marquis's presence he looked intent and solemn4 ,when the ,marquis bade him receive guests1 his face seemed to change1 his knees to bend4 ,he bowed left and right to those behind him1 straightened his robes in front and behind1 and sped forward1 his elbows spread like wings4 ,when the guest had left1 he always reported it1 saying3 ',the guest has ceased to look back4' ,entering the palace gate he stooped1 as though it were too low for him4 ,he did not stand in the middle of the gate1 nor step on the threshold4 ,passing the throne1 his face seemed to change1 his knees to bend2 and he spoke with bated breath4 ,mounting the royal dais1 he lifted his robes1 bowed his back and masked his breathing till it seemed to stop4 ,coming down1 his face relaxed below the first step1 and bore a pleased look4 ,from the foot of the steps he sped forward1 his elbows spread like wings2 and when again in his seat1 he looked intent as before4 ,he held his hands not higher than in bowing1 nor lower than in giving a present4 ,he wore an awed look and dragged his feet1 as though they were fettered4 ,which means that he felt the royal office to be sacred1 as the seat of authority and government1 the symbol and representative of heaven1 the fountain of order3 in its origin1 divine4 ,he treated ,marquis ,ting as if he had been ,yao1 ,shun1 or ,yu2 or rather1 the ,marquis's throne and office as if one of these had held them4 ,there is the long history of ,china to prove he was wise in the example he set4 ,when presenting royal gifts his manner was formal2 but he was cheerful at the private audience4--,this gentleman was never arrayed in maroon or scarlet2 even at home he would not wear red or purple4 ,in hot weather he wore unlined linen clothes1 but always over other garments4 ,over lambskin he wore black2 over fawn he wore white2 over fox-skin he wore yellow4 ,at home he wore a long fur robe with the right sleeve short4 ,he always had his night-gown half as long again as his body4 ,in the house he wore fox- or badger-skin for warmth4 ,when out of mourning there was nothing wanting from his girdle4 ,except for court-dress1 he was sparing of stuff4 ,he did not wear lamb's wool1 or a black cap1 on a visit of condolence4 ,on the first day of the moon he always went to court in court dress4 ,on fast days he always donned clothes of pale hue1 changed his food1 and moved from his wonted seat4 ,he did not dislike his rice cleaned with care1 nor his hash copped small4 ,he would not eat sour or mouldy rice1 putrid fish1 or tainted meat4 ,aught discolored or high1 badly cooked1 or out of season1 he would not eat4 ,he would not eat what was badly cut1 or a dish with the wrong sauce4 ,a choice of meats could not tempt him to eat more than he had a relish for4 ,to wine alone he set no limit2 but he never drunk more than enough4 ,he did not drink brought wine1 or eat ready-dried meat4 ,he did not eat much4 ,ginger was never missing at his table4 ,after sacrifice at the palace he would not keep the meat over-night2 at home1 not more than three days4 ,if kept longer1 it was not eaten4 ,he did not talk at meals1 nor in bed4 ,though there were but coarse rice and vegetables1 he made his offering with all reverence4 ,if his mat were not straight1 he would not sit down4 ,when drinking with the villagers1 when those with slaves left1 he left too4 ,at the village exorcisms he donned court dress1 and stood on the eastern steps4 ,when sending inquiries to another land1 he bowed twice and saw his messenger out4 ,on ,k'ang's making him a present of medicine1 he accepted it with a low bow1 saying3 ',i do not know2 ,i dare not taste it4' ,his stables having been burnt1 the ,master1 on his return from court1 said3 ',is anyone hurt8' ,he did not ask after the horses4 ,set down in perfect good faith to imply that his concern was for the sufferings of others1 not for his personal loss3 and without perception of the fact that it might imply callousness as to the suffering of the horses4 ,we are to read the recorder's mind1 and not the ,master's1 in that omission4-- ,when the marquis sent him baked meat1 he set his mat straight1 and tasted it first4 ,when the ,marquis sent him raw meat1 he had it cooked for sacrifice4 ,when the ,marquis sent him a living beast1 he had it reared4 ,when dining in attendance on the ,marquis1 the latter made the offering2 ,confucius ate of things first4 ,on the ,marquis coming to see him in sickness1 he turned his face to the east and had his court dress spread across him1 with the girdle over it4 ,when summoned by the ,marquis1 he walked1 without waiting for his carriage4 ,on entering the ,great ,temple1 he asked how each thing was done4 ,when a friend died who had no home1 he said3 ',it is for me to bury him4' ,when a friend sent a gift1 even of a carriage and horses1 he did not bow4 ,he only bowed for sacrificial meat4 ,he would not lie in a bed like a corpse4 ,at home he unbent4 ,on meeting a mourner1 were he a friend1 his face changed4 ,even in every-day clothes1 when he met anyone in full dress1 or a blind man1 his face grew staid4 ,when he met men in mourning1 he bowed over the cross-bar4 ,before choice meats he rose with a changed look4 ,at sharp thunder or fierce wind1 his countenance changed4 ,in mounting his chariot he stood straight and grasped the cord4 ,when in his chariot1 he did not look round1 speak fast1 or point4 ,there you have one side of the outer man2 and the most has been made of it4 ,always figuring1 always posturing1 we hear4 ,i merely point to the seventy noble generations1 the personality made up of that courtly heredity1 whose smallest quite spontaneous acts and habits seemed to men worth recording1 as showing how the perfect gentleman behaved3 a model4 ,another side is found in the lover of poetry1 the devotee of music1 the man of keen and intense affections4 ,surely1 if a poseur1 he might have posed when bereavement touched him2 he might have assumed a high philosophic calm4 ,but no2 he never bothered to2 even though reproached for inconsistency4 ,his mother died when he was twenty-four2 and he broke through all rites and customs by raising a mound over her grave2 that1 as he said1 he might have a place to turn to and think of as his home whereever he might be on his wanderings4 ,he mourned for her the orthodox twenty-seven months2 then for five days longer would not touch his lute4 ,on the sixth day he took it and began to play2 but when he tried to sing1 broke down and wept4 ,one is surprised2 but there is no posing about it4 ,yen ,hui was his saint ,john1 the ,beloved disciple4 ,when ,yen ,hui died1 we read1 the ,master cried1 ',woe is me6 ,i am undone of ,heaven6 ,i am undone of ,heaven6' ,when ,yen ,hui died the ,master gave way to grief4 ,the disciples said3 ',sir1 you are giving way4'--',am ,i giving way8' said he4 ',if for this man ,i do not give way1 for whom shall ,i give way8444 ,hui treated me as a son his father2 ,i have failed to treat him as a father his son4' ,confucius was old then1 and near his own death444 ,but what ,i think you will recognise in his speech1 again and again1 is the peculiarly spontaneous444 indeed impetuous 444 ring of it4 ,he had that way of repeating a sentence twice that marks a naturally impetuous man4--,of his sense of humor ,i shall speak later4 ,he dearly loved his disciples1 and was homesick when away from them4--,my batch of boys1 ambitious and hasty--,i must go home to them6 ,i must go home to them6 said he4 ,once when he was very ill1 ,tse ,lu moved the disciples to act as ministers3--to behave to him as if he were a king and they his ministers4--,i know1 ,i know6 said ,confucius2 ,tse ,lu has been making believe4 ,this show of ministers1 when ,i have none1--whom will it deceive8 ,will it deceive ,heaven8 ,i had rather die in your arms1 my boys1 than be a king and die in the arms of my ministers4--,seeing the disciple ,min standing at his side in winning strength1 ,tse ,lu with warlike front1 ,jan ,yu and ,tse ,kung fresh and strong1 the ,master's heart was glad1 we read4 ,he considered what he calls 'love' the highest state1--the condition of the ,adept or ,sage2 but that other thing that goes by the same name1--of that he would not speak2--nor of crime1--nor of feats of strength1 --nor of doom1--nor of ghosts and spirits4 ,anything that implied a forsaking of middle lines1 a losing of the balance1 extravagance1--he abhorred4--,and now back to that other side of him again3 the ,man of ,action4 ,the task that lay before him was to reform the state of ,lu4 ,something was rotten in it2 it needed some reforming4--,the rotten thing1 to begin with1 was ,marquis ,ting himself2 who was of such stuff as ,confucius referred to when he said3 ,you cannot carve rotten wood4 ,but brittle and crumbling as it was1 it would serve his turn for the moment2 it would give him the chance to show twenty-five ,chinese centuries the likeness of an ,adept at the head of a state4 ,so it should be proved to them that ,such a ,one--they call him ,such a ,one generally1 ,i believe1 to avoid the light repetition of a name grown sacred--is no impractical idealist merely1 but a ,master of ,splendid ,successes here in this world3 that the ,way of ,heaven is the way that succeeds on earth--if only it be honestly tried4 ,ting was by no means master in his own marquisate4 ,as in ,england under ,stephen1 bold bad robber barons had fortified their castles everywhere1 and from these strongholds defied the government4 ,the mightiest magnate of all was the ,chief of ,clan ,chi1 who ordered things over his royal master's head1 and was very much a power for the new ,minister of ,crime to reckon with4 ,a clash came before long4 ,ex-marquis ,chao--he that had been driven into exile--died in ,ts'i2 and his body was sent home for burial with his ancestors4 ,chi1 who had been chief among those responsible for the dead man's exile1 by way of insulting the corpse1 gave orders that it should be buried outside the royal cemetery2 and his orders were carried out4 ,confucius heard of it1 and was indignant4 ,to have had the corpse exhumed and reburied would have been a new indignity1 ,i suppose2 therefore he gave orders that the cemetery should be enlarged so as to include the grave2 --and went down and saw it done4--,i have done this on your behalf1 he informed ,chi1 to hide the shame of your disloyalty4 ,to insult the memory of a dead prince is against all decency4 ,the great man gnashed his teeth2 but the ,minister of ,crime's action stood4 ,he turned his attention to the robber-barons1 and reduced them4 ,i do not know how2 he was entirely against war2 but it is certain that in a very short time those castles were leveled with the ground1 and the writ of the ,marquis ran through ,lu4 ,he hated capital punishment2 but signed the death warrant for the worst of the offenders2--and that despite the protest of some of his disciples1 who would have had him consistent above all things4 ,but his back was up1 and the man was executed4 ,one makes no excuse for it2 except perhaps1 to say that such an action1 isolated1 and ordained by ,such a ,one1 needs no excuse4 ,he was in the habit of fulfilling his duty2 and duty may at times present itself in strange shapes4 ,it was a startling thing to do2 and ,lu straight-way1 as they say1 sat right up and began to take concentrated notice of a situation the like of which had not been seen for centuries4 ,he had the final decision in all legal cases4 ,a father brought a charge against his son2 relying on the bias of the ,minister whose life had been so largely given to preaching filial piety4 ,if you had brought up your son properly1 said ,confucius1 this would not have happened2 and astounded plaintiff1 defendant1 and the world at large by putting both in prison for three months4 ,in a year or so he had done for ,lu what he had done for ,chung-tu during his magistracy4 ,by this time ,ts'i and ,sung and ,wei and the whole empire were taking notice too4 ,there was actually a state where crime was unknown2 where law ruled and the government was strong1 and yet1 the people more than contented2 a state--and such a state6-- looming ahead as the probable seat of a ,bretwalda4 ,lu with the hegemony6 ,this old orthodox strict ,lu6--this home of lost causes6--this back number1 and quaint chinoiserie to be laughed at6--,as if ,morgan ,shuster had carried on his work in ,persia until ,persia had become of a strength to threaten the world4 ,lu was growing strong2 and ,ts'i--renowned military ,ts'i--thought she ought to be doing something4 ,thus in our own time1 whenever somnolent obsolete ,turkey tried to clean her house1 ,russia1 land-hungry and looking to a ,thanksgiving ,dinner presently1 felt a call to send down emissaries1 and--see that the cleaning should not be done4 ,duke ,ching of ,ts'i1 at the first attempt1 bungled his plans badly4 ,he would not strike at the root of things1 ,confucius2 perhaps retained too much respect for him2 perhaps simply did not understand2 but at that harmless mutton ,marquis ,ting who ,confucius had successfully camouflaged up to look like a lion4 ,to that end he formally sought an alliance with ,lu1 and the ,lu ,minister of ,crime concurred4 ,he intended that there should be more of these alliances4 ,an altar was raised on the frontier1 where the two princes were to meet and sign the treaty4 ,duke ,ching had laid his plans2 but they did not include the presence of ,confucius at the altar as ,master or the ,ceremonies on the side of ,lu4 ,there he was1 however2 and after all1 it could hardly make much difference4 ,the preliminary rites went forward4 ,suddenly1 a roll of drums2 a rush of 'savages' out of ambush2--there were savage tribes in those parts2--confusion2 the ,marquis's guard1 as the ,duke's1 is at some little distance2 and clearly it is for the ,marquis that these 'savages' are making4 ,but ,confucius is there4 ,he steps between the kidnappers and his master1 with elbows spread like wings hustles the latter off into safety2 takes hold of the situation2 issues sharp orders to the savages--who are of course ,ts'i troops in disquise3 ,attention6 ,about face6--,double march6--snaps out the words of command in right military style1 right in the presence of their own duke1 who stands by amazed and helpless2--and off they go4 ,then spaciously clears the matter up4 ,finds1 no doubt1 that it is all a mistake2 supplies1 very likely1 an easy and acceptable explanation to save ,ching's face2 shortly has all things peaceably in status quo4 ,then brings back his marquis1 and goes forward with the treaty2 but now as ,master of the ,ceremonies and something more4 ,there had been a land question between ,lu and ,ts'i3 ,lu territory seized some time since by her strong neighbor1 and the cause of much soreness on the one hand and exultation on the other4 ,by the time that treaty had been signed ,duke ,ching of ,ts'i had ceded back the land to ,marquis ,ting of ,lu1--a thing assuredly he had never dreamed of doing2 and an alliance had been established between the two states4 ,since the ,duke of ,chow's time1 ,lu had never stood so high4 ,was our man a prig at all8 ,was he a pedant8 have those who have sedulously spread that report of him in the ,west told the truth about him8 ,or--hath a pleasant little lie or twain served their turn8 ,duke ,ching went home and thought things over4 ,he had learned his lesson3 that ting was but a camouflage lion1 and by no means the one to strike at1 if business was to be done4 ,he devised a plan1 sweet in it simplicity1 marvelous in its knowledge of what we are pleased to call 'human' nature4 ,he ransacked his realm for beautiful singing and dancing girls1 and sent the best eighty he could find to his dear friend and ally of ,lu4 ,not to make the thing too pointed1 he added a hundred and twenty fine horses-- with their trappings4 ,what could be more appropriate than such a gift8 ,it worked4 ,ting retired to his harem1 and day after day passed over a ,lu unlighted by his countenance4 ,government was at a standstill2 the great ,minister of ,crime could get nothing done4 ,the ,annual ,sacrifice was at hand2 a solemnity ,confucius hoped would remind ,ting of realities and bring him to his right mind4 ,according to the ritual1 a portion of the offering should be sent to each high official of the state3 none came to ,confucius4 ,day after day he waited2 but ,ting's character was quite gone3 the lion-skin had fallen off1 and the native egregious muttonhood or worse stood revealed4--,master1 said ,tse ,lu1 it is time you went4 ,but he was very loath to go4 ,at last he gathered his disciples1 and slowly went out from the city4 ,he lingered much on the way1 looking back often1 still hoping for sight of the messenger who should recall him4 ,but none came4 ,that was in #dig4 ,the old century had ended about the time he took office2 and with it1 of course1 the last quarter in which1 as always1 the ,doors of the ,lodge were open1 and the spiritual influx pouring into the world4 ,so the effort of that age had its consummation and fine flower in the three years of his official life3 to be considered a triumph4 ,now1 ,laotse had long since ridden away into the ,west2 the ,doors were shut2 the tides were no longer flowing2 and the ,god's great ,confucius remained in a world that knew him not4 ,as for holding office and governing states1 he had done all that was necessary4 ,,xi4 ,,confucius ,,the ,,hero ,he had done enough in the way of holding office and governing states4 ,laotse had taught that of old time1 before ,tao was lost1 the ,yellow ,emperor sat on his throne and all the world was governed without knowing it4 ,confucius worked out the doctrine thus3 ,true government is by example2 given the true ruler1 and he will have the means of ruling at his disposal1 and they will be altogether different from physical force4 ',example' does not covey it either3 his thought was much deeper4 ,there is a word li--,i get all this from ,dr4 ,lionel ,giles--which the egregious have been egregiously translating 'the rules of propriety'2 but which ,confucius used primarily for a state of harmony within the soul1 which should enable beneficent forces from the ,infinite to flow through into the outer world2--whereof a result would also be1 on the social plane1 perfect courtesy and politeness1 these the most outward expression of it4 ,on these too ,confucius insisted which is the very worst you can say about him4--,now1 the ruler stands between ,gods and men2 let his li be perfect--let the forces of heaven flow through him unimpeded1--and the people are regenerated day by day3 the government is by regeneration4 ,here lies the secret of all his insistence on loyalty and filial piety3 the regeneration of society is dependent on the maintenance of the natural relation between the ,ruler who rules-- that is1 lets the li of heaven flow through him--and his people4 ,they are to maintain such an attitude towards him as will enable them to receive the li4 ,in the family1 he is the father2 in the state1 he is the king4 ,in very truth1 this is the ,doctrine of the ,golden ,age1 and proof of the profound occult wisdom of ,confucius3 even the 7comparatively7 little of it that was ever made practical lifted ,china to the grand height she has held4 ,it is hinted at in the ,bhagavad-,gita3--whatsoever is practised by the most excellent men2 again1 it is the ,aryan doctrine of the ,guruparampara ,chain4 ,the whole idea is so remote from modern practice and theory that it must seem to the west utopian1 even absurd2 but we have ,asoka's reign in ,india1 and ,confucius's ,ministry in ,lu1 to prove its basic truth4 ,during that ,ministry he had flashed the picture of such a ruler on to the screen of time3 and it was enough4 ,china could never forget4 ,but if1 knowing it to have been enough1--knowing that the hour of the ,open ,door had passed1 and that he should never see success again1--he had then and there retired into private life1 content to teach his disciples and leave the stubborn world to save or damn itself3--enough it would not have been4 ,he had flashed the picture on to the screen of time1 but it would have faded4 ,twenty years of wandering1 of indomitability1 of disappointment and of ignoring defeat and failure1 lay before him3 in which to make his creation1 not a momentary picture1 but a carving in jade and granite and adamant4 ,it is not the ever-victorious and successful that we take into the adyta of our hearts4 ,it is the poignancy of heroism still heroism in defeat1-- unchanged1 though fallen on evil years1 --that wins admittance there4 ,someone sneered at ,confucius1 in his latter years1 as the man who was always trying to do the impossible4 ,he was2 and the sneerer had no idea what high tribute he was paying him4 ,it is because he was that3 the hero1 the flaming idealist3 that his figure shines out so clear and splendidly4 ,his outer attempts--to make a ,man of ,marquis ,this or ,duke ,that1 and a model state of ,lu or ,wei--these were but carvings in rotten wood1 foredoomed to quick failure4 ,all the material of the world was rotten wood3 he might have learned that lesson2--only there are lessons that ,such a ,one never learns4 ,well2 we in turn may learn a lesson from him3 applicable now4 ,the rotten wood crumbled under his hands time and again3 under his bodily hands2--but it made no difference to him4 ,he went on and on1 still hoping to begin his life's work1 and never recognising failure2 and by reason and virtue of that1 the hands of his spirit were carving1 not in rotten wood1 but in precious jade and adamant spiritual1 to endure forever4 ,on those inner planes he was building up his ,raja-,yoga2 which time saw to it should materialize and redeem his race presently4 ,confucius in the brief moment of his victory illuminated the world indeed2 but ,confucius in the long years of his defeat has bowed the hearts of twenty-five centuries of the ,black-haired ,people4 ,we can see this now2 ,i wonder did he see it then8 ,i mean1 had that certain knowledge and clear vision in his conscious mind1 that was possessed in the divinity of his ,soul--as it is in every ,soul4 ,i imagine not2 for in his last days he--the personality-- could give way and weep over the utter failure of his efforts4 ,one loves him the more for it3 one thinks his grandeur only the more grand4 ,it is a very human and at last a very pathetic figure--this ,man that did save his people4 ,due west from ,lu1 and on the road thence to ,honanfu the ,chow capital1 lay the ,duchy of ,wei2 whither now he turned his steps4 ,he had no narrow patriotism3 if his own ,lu rejected him1 he might still save this foreign state1 and through it1 perhaps1 ,all the ,chinas4 ,he was at this time one of the most famous men alive2 and his first experience in ,wei might have been thought to augur well4 ,on the frontier he was met by messengers from a local ,wei official1 begging for their master an interview3-- ,every illustrious stranger has granted me one2 let me not ask it of you1 ,sir1 in vain4 ,confucius complied2 was conducted to the yamen1 and went in1 leaving his disciples outside4 ,to these the magistrate came out1 while the ,master was still resting within4--,sirs1 said he1 never grieve for your ,teacher's fall from office4 ,his work is but now to begin4 ,these many years the empire has been in perilous case2 but now ,heaven has raised up ,confucius1 its tocsin to call the people to awakenment4--,a wise man1 that ,wei official6 ,at the capital1 ,duke ,ling received him with all honor1 and at once assigned him a pension equal to the salary he had been paid as ,minister of ,crime in ,lu4 ,he even consulted him now and again2 but reserved to himself liberty to neglect the advice asked for4 ,however1 the courtiers intrigued2 and before the year was out1 ,confucius had taken to his wanderings again3 he would try the state of ,ch'in now1 in the far south-east4 ,if any prince would employ me1 said he1 within a twelvemonth ,i should have done something considerable2 in three years the government would be perfect4 ,he was to pass through the town of ,kwang1 in ,sung2 it had lately been raided by a robber named ,yang ,hu1 in face and figure resembling himself4 ,someone who saw him in the street put it abroad that ,yang ,hu was in the town1 and followed him to the house he had taken for the night4 ,before long a mob had gathered1 intent on vengeance4 ,the situation was dangerous2 the mob in no mood to hear reason2--and as to that1 ,yang ,hu also would have said that he was not the man they took him for1--very likely would have claimed to be the renowned ,confucius4 ,the disciples1 as well they might be1 were alarmed3 the prospect was1 short shrift for the whole party4--,boys1 said the ,master1 do you think ,heaven entrusted the ,cause of ,truth to me1 to let me be harmed by the towns-men of ,kwang8 --,the besiegers looked for protests1 and then for a fight4 ,what they did not look for was to hear someone inside singing to a lute2--it was that great musician ,confucius4 ,when he sang and played you stopped to listen2 and so did the ,kwang mob now4 ,they listened1 and wondered1 and enjoyed their free concert2 then made reasonable inquiries1 and apologies1--and went their ways in peace4 ,in those ,south-eastern states there was no prospect for him1 and after a while he returneci to ,wei4 ,he liked ,duke ,ling personally1 and the liking was mutual2 time and again he went back there1 hoping against hope that something might be done1--or seeing no other horizon so hopeful4 ,now ,ling had a consort of some irregular kind3 ,nantse1 famed for her beauty and brilliance and wickedness4 ,perhaps ennuyee1 and hoping for contact with a mind equal to her own1 she was much stirred by the news of ,confucius' return1 and sent to him asking an interview4 ,such a request was a characteristic flouting of the conventions on her part2 for him to grant it would be much more so on his4 ,but he did grant it2 and they conversed1 after the custom of the time1 with a screen between1 neither seeing the other4 ,tse ,lu was much disturbed2 considering it all a very dangerous innovation1 inconsistent in ,confucius1 and improper4 ,so in the eyes of the world it would have seemed4 ,but ,nantse held the ,duke1 and ,confucius might influence ,nantse4 ,he never let conventions stand in his way1 when there was a chance of doing good work by breaking them4 ,one suspects that the lady wished to make her vices respectable by giving them a seeming backing by incarnate virtue2 and that to this end she brought about the sequel4 ,duke ,ling was to make a ,progress through the city2 and requested ,confucius to follow his carriage in another4 ,he did so2 not knowing that ,nantse had seen to it that she was to be sitting at the ,duke's side4 ,her position and reputation even in those days needed some regularizing2 and she had chosen this means to do it4 ,but to the people1 the spectacle was highly symbolic2 and ,confucius heard their jeers as he passed3--,flaunting ,vice in front1 ,slighted ,virtue in the rear4--,i have met none1 said he1 who loves virtue more than women4 ,it was time for him to go2 and now he would try the south again4 ,in reality1 perhaps1 it matter little whither he went or where he stayed3 there was no place for him anywhere4 ,all that was important was1 that he should keep up the effort4 ,an official in ,sung1 one ,hwan ,tuy1 held the roads against him1 accusing him of a proud air and many desires2 an insinuating habit and a wild will4 ,from this time on he was subject to persecution4 ,the insinuating habit reminds one of an old parrot-cry one has heard3 ,she hypnotizes them4 ,he turned westward from this opposition1 and visited one state1 and then another2 in neither was there any disposition to use him4 ,he had found no more likely material than ,duke ,ling of ,wei1 who at least was always glad to see and talk with him3--might not be jade to carve1 but was the wood least rotten at hand4 ,but at ,wei1 as usual1 there was nothing but disappointment in store4 ,pih ,hsih1 a rebel1 was holding a town in ,tsin1 modern ,shansi1 against the king of that state2 and now sent messengers inviting ,confucius to visit him4 ,tse ,lu protested3 had he not always preached obedience to the ,powers that ,were1 and that the ,true ,gentleman did not associate with rebels8--,am ,i a bitter gourd1 said ,confucius1 to be hung up out of the way of being eaten8 ,he was always big enough to be inconsistent4 ,he had come to see that the ,powers that ,were were hopeless1 and was for catching at any straw4 ,but something delayed his setting out2 and when he reached the ,yellow ,river1 news came of the execution of ,tsin of two men whom he admired4 ,how beautiful they were6 said he2 how beautiful they were6 ,this river is not more majestic6 ,and ,i was not there to save them6 ,the truth seems to be that he would set out for any place where the smallest opening presented itself2 and while that opening existed1 would not be turned aside from his purpose2 but if it vanished1 or if something better came in sight1 he would turn and follow that4 ,thus he did not go on into ,tsin when he heard of these executions2 but one1 when he was on the road to ,wei and a band of roughs waylaid him and made him promise never to go there again1 he simply gave the promise and went straight on4 ,at ,wei now ,duke ,ling was really inclined to use him2--but as his military adviser4 ,it was the last straw2 he left1 and would not return in ,ling's lifetime4 ,he was in ,ch'in for awhile2 and then for three years at ,ts'ae1 a new state built of the rebellion of certain subjects or vassals of the great sourthern kingdom of ,ts'u4 ,on hearing of his arrival1 the ,duke of ,ts'ae had the idea to send for ,tse ,lu1 who had a broad reputation of his own as a brave and practical man1 and to inquire of him what kind of man the master really was4 ,but ,tse ,lu1 as we have seen1 was rigid as to rebels1 and vouchsafed no answer4--,you might have told him1 said ,confucius1 that ,i am simply one who forgets his food in the pursuit of wisdom1 and his sorrows in the joys of attaining it1 and who does not perceive old age coming on4 ,missionary writers have cast it at him1 that were of old he had preached against rebellion1 now he was willing enough to have rebels for his patrons2--adversity had not stiffened his back1 but had made him pliable4 ,which shows how blind such minds are to real greatness4 ,they have nothing to draw with1 and this well is deep4 ,he sought no patrons1 now or at another time2 but tools with which to work for the redemption of ,china2 and he was prepared to find them anywhere1 and take what came to hand4 ,his keynote was duty4 ,the world went on snubbing1 ignoring1 insulting1 traducing1 and persecuting him2 and he went on with the performance of his duty2--rather1 with the more difficult task of searching for the duty he was to perform4 ,this resorting to rebels1 like that conversing with ,nantse1 shows him clearly not the formalist and slave of conventions he has been called1 but a man of highest moral courage4 ,what he stood for was not forms1 conventions1 reules1 proprieties1 or anything of the sort2 but the liens of least resistance in his high endeavor to lift the world3 lines of least resistance2 middle lines2 common sense4--,as ususal1 there was nothing to be done with the ,duke of ,ts'ae4 ,wandering from state to state1 he came on recluses in a field by the river1 and sent ,tse ,lu forward to ask one of them the way to the ford4 ,said the hermit3--,you follow one who withdraws from court to court2 it would be better to withdraw from the world altogether4--,what6 said ,confucius when it was told him2 shall ,i not associate with mankind8 ,if ,i do not associate with mankind1 with whom shall ,i associate8 ,in which answer lies a great key to ,confucianism2 turn it once or twice1 and you get to the import of his real teaching4 ,he never would follow the individual soul into its secrecies2 he was concerned with man only as a fragment of humanity4 ,he was concerned with man as humanity4 ,all that the ,west calls 7personal7 religion he disliked intensely4 ,any desire or scheme to save your own soul2 any right-doing for the sake of a reward1 either here or hereafter1 he would have bluntly called wrong- doing1 anti-social and selfish4 7,i am quoting in substance from ,dr4 ,lionel ,giles47 ,he tempted no one with hopes of heaven2 frightened none with threats of hell4 ,it seemed to him that he could make a higher and nobler appeal1--could strike much more forcibly at the root of evil 7which is selfishness71 by saying nothing about rewards and punishments at all4 ,the one inducement to virtue that he offered was this3 ,by doing right1 you lead the world into right-doing4 ,he was justified in saying that ,man is divine2 because this divine appeal of his was effective2 not like the ,west's favorite appeal to fear1 selfish desire1 and the brutal side of our nature4 ,do right to escape a whipping1 or a hanging1 or hell-fire1 says ,christendom2 and the nations reared on that doctrine have risen and fallen1 risen and fallen2 a mad riot of people struggling into life1 and toppling back into death in a season2 so that future ages and the far reaches of history will hardly remember their names1 too lightly graven upon time4 ,but ,china1 nourished on this divine appeal1 however far she may have fallen short of it1 has stood1 and stood1 and stood4 ,in the last resort1 it is the only inducement worth anything2 the only lever that lifts4--,there is that li1--that inevitable rightness and harmony that begins in the innermost when there is the balance and duty is being done1 and flows outward healing and preserving and making wholesome all the phases of being2--let that harmony of heaven play through you1 and you are bringing mankind to virtue2 you are pouting cleansing currents into the world4 ,how little of the tortuosity of metaphysics is here2--but what grand efficacity of super-ethics6 ,you remember what ,light on the ,path says about the man who is a link between the noise of the market-place and the silence of the snow-capped ,himalayas2 and what it says about the danger of seeking to sow good karma for oneself1--how the man that does so will only be sowing the giant weed of selfhood4 ,in those two passages you find the essence of ,confucianism and the wisdom and genius of ,confucius4 ,it is as simple as ,a ,b ,c2 and yet behind it lie all the truths of metaphysics and philosophy4 ,he seized upon the pearl of ,theosophic thought1 the cream of all metaphysics1 where metaphysics passes into action1--and threw his strength into insisting on that3 ,pursue virtue because it is virtue1 and that you may 7as you will1--it is the only way you can7 bring the world to virtue2 or negatively1 in the words of ,light on the ,path3 ,abstain 7from vice7 because it is right to abstain--not that yourself shall be kept clean4 ,and now to travel back into the thought behind1 that you may see if ,confucius was a materialist2 whether or not he believed in the ,soul2--and that if he was not a great original thinker1 at least he commanded the ends of all great1 true and original thinking4 ,man1 he says1 is naturally good4 ,that is1 collectively4 ,man is divine and immortal2 only men are mortal and erring4 ,were there a true brotherhood of mankind established1 a proper relation of the parts to the whole and to each other1--you would have no difficulty with what is evil in yourself4 ,the lower nature with its temptations would not appear2 the world-old battle with the flesh would be won4 ,but separate yourself in yourself1--consider yourself as a selfhood1 not as a unit in society2--and you find1 there where you have put yourself1 evil to contend with a-plenty4 ,virtue inheres in the ,brotherhood of ,man2 vice in the separate personal and individual units4 ,virtue is in ,that which is no man's possession1 but common to all3 namely1 the ,soul--though he does not enlarge upon it as that2 perhaps never mentions it as the ,soul at all2--vice is in that which each has for himself alone3 the personality4 ,hence his hatred of religiosity1 of personal soul-saving4 ,you were to guard against evil in the simplest way3 by living wholly in humanity1 finding all you motives and sources of action there4 ,if you were1 in the highest sense1 simply a factor in human society1 you were a good man4 ,if you lived in yourself alone1--having all evil to meet there1 you were likely to succumb to it2 and you were on the wrong road anyway4 ,come out1 then2 think not of your soul to be saved1 nor of what may befall you after death4 ,you1 as you1 are of no account2 all that matters is humanity as a whole1 of which you are but a tiny part4--,now1 if you like1 say that ,confucius did not teach ,theosophy1 because1 so far as we know1 he said nothing about ,karma or ,reincarnation4 ,i am inclined to think him one of the two or three supreme historical ,teachers of ,theosophy2 and to say that his message1 so infinitely simple1 is one of the most wonderful presentations of it ever given4 ,it is this entire purity from all taint of personal religion2 this distaste for prayer and unrelish for soul-salvation2 this sweet clean impersonality of ,god and man1 that makes the missionary writers find him so cold and lifeless4 ,but when you look at him1 it is a marvelously warm-hearted magnetic man you see3 ,such a ,one as wins hearts to endless devotion4 ,many of the disciples were men who commanded very much the respect of the world4 ,the king of ,ts'u proposed to give ,confucius an independent duchy3 to make a sovereign prince of him1 with territories absolutely his own4 ,but one of his ministers dissuaded him thus3 ,has your majesty1 said he1 any diplomatist in your service like ,tse ,kung8 ,or anyone so fitted to be prime minister as ,yen ,huy8 ,or a general to compare with ,tse ,lu8 4 4 4 ,if ,k'ung ,ch'iu were to acquire territory1 with such men as these to serve him1 it would not be to the prosperity of ,ts'u4--,and yet those three brilliant men were content--no1 proud--to follow him on his hopeless wanderings1 sharing all his long sorrow2 they were utterly devoted to him4 ,indeed1 we read of none of his disciples turning against him2--which also speaks mighty well for the stuff that was to be found in ,chinese humanity in those days4 ,tse ,kung was told that some prince or minister had said that he1 ,tse ,kung1 was a greater man than ,confucius4 ,he answered3 ,the wall of my house rises only to the height of a man's shoulders2 anyone can look in and see whatever excellence is within4 ,but the ,master's wall is many fathoms in height2 so that who fails to find the gateway cannot see the beauties of the temple within nor the rich apparel of the officiating priests4 ,it may be that only a few will find the gate4 ,need we be surprised1 then1 at ,his ,excellency's remark8 ,yen ,huy said3--,the ,master knows how to draw us after him by regular steps4 ,he broadens our outlook with polite learning1 and restrains our impulses by teaching us self-control4 ,only once1 ,i think1 is he recorded to have spoken of prayer4 ,he was very ill1 and ,tse ,lu proposed to pray for his recovery4 ,said ,confucius3 ,what precedent is there for that8--,there was great stuff in that ,tse ,lu3 a bold warriorlike nature2 not very pliable2 not too easy to teach1 ,i imagine1 but wonderfully paying for any lesson taught and learned4 ,he figures often as the one who clings to the letter1 and misses vision of the spirit of the teaching2 so now the ,master plays him a little with this as to precedent1--which weighed always more strongly with ,tse ,lu than with ,confucius4--,in the ,eulogies1 said ,tse ,lu1 7it is a lost work71 it is written3 ',we pray to you1 ,o ,spirits of ,heaven and ,earth4--,ah6 said ,confucius1 my prayers began long1 long ago4 ,but he never did pray1 in the ,western sense4 ,his life was one great intercession and petition for his people4 ,as to his love of ritual3 remember that there are ceremonies and ceremonies1 some with deep power and meaning4 ,those that ,confucius upheld came down to him from ,adept ,teachers of old2 and he had an eye to them only as outward signs of a spiritual grace1 and means to it4 ,ceremonies indeed6 said he once2 do you think they are a mere matter of silken robes and jade omaments8 ,music forsooth6 ,can music be a mere thing of drums and bells8--,or of harps1 lutes1 dulcimers1 sackbuts1 psalteries1 and all kinds of instruments1 he might have added2 all of which1 together with all rites1 postures1 pacings1 and offerings1 were nothing to him unless channels through which the divine li might be induced to flow4 ,yet on his wanderings1 by the roadside1 in lonely places1 he would go through ceremonies with his disciples4 ,why8--,why is an army drilled8 ,if you go to the root of the matter1 it is to make one the consciousness of the individual soldiers4 ,so ,confucius1 as ,i take it1 in his ceremonies sought to unify the consciousness of his disciples1 that the li might have passage through them4 ,i say boldly it was a proof of that deep occult knowledge of his1--which he never talked about4 ,they asked him once if any single ideogram conveyed the whole law of life4--,yes1 he said2 and gave them one compounded of two others1 which means ',as heart'3--the missionaries prefer to render it 'reciprocity4' ,his teaching--out of his own mouth we convict him--was the ,doctrine of the ,heart4 ,he was for the glow in the heart always2 not as against1 but as the one true cause of1 external right action4 ,but the ,heart doctrine cannot be defined in a set of rules and formulae2 so he was always urging middle lines1 common sense4 ,that is the explanation of his famous answer when they asked him whether injuries should be repaid with kindness4 ,what he said amounts to this3 ,for goodness sake1 use common sense6 ,i have given you 'as heart' for your rule4--,we know ,katherine ,tingley's teaching3 not one of us but has been helped and saved by it a thousand times4 ,i can only say that1 in the light of that1 the more you study ,confucius1 the greater he seems2 the more extraordinary the parallelisms you see between her method and his4 ,perhaps it is because his method has been so minutely recorded4 ,we do not find here merely ethical precepts1 or expositions of philosophic thought3 what we see is a ,teacher guiding and adjusting the lives of his disciples4 ,when he had been three years at ,ts'ae1 the ,king of ,ts'u invited him to his court4 ,ts'u1 you will remember1 lay southward towards the ,yangtse1 and was1 most of the time1 one of the six ,great ,powers499 ,here at last was something hopeful2 and ,confucius set out4 ,but ,ts'ae and ,ch'in1 though they had neglected him1 had not done so through ignorance of his value2 and were not disposed to see his wisdom added to the strength of ,ts'u4 ,they sent out a force to waylay him2 which surrounded him in the wilderness and held him besieged but unmolested for seven days4 ,food ran out1 and the ,confucianists were so enfeebled at last that they could hardly stand4 ,we do not hear that terms were offereed1 as that they should turn back or go elsewhere3 the intention seems to have been to make an end of ,confucius and ,confucianism altogether1--without bloodshed4 ,even ,tse ,lu was shaken4--,is it for the ,princely ,man1 said he1 to suffer the pinch of privation8--,privation may come his way1 ,confucius answered2 but only the vulgar grow reckless and demoralized under it4 ,so saying he took his lute and sang to them1 and hearing him they forgot to fear4 ,meanwhile one of the party had won through the lines1 and brought word to ,ts'u of the ,master's plight2 whereat the king sent a force to his relief1 and came out from the capital to receive him in state4 ,the king's intentions were good2 but we have seen how his ministers intrigued and diverted them4 ,in the autumn of that year he died1 having become somewhat estranged from the ,master4 ,his successor was one from whom no good could be expected1 and ,confucius returned to ,wei4 ------- 99 ,ancient ,china ,simplified3 by ,prof4 ,e4 ,harper ,parker2 from which book the account of the political condition and divisions of the empire given in these lectures is drawn4 ------ ,duke ,ling was dead1 and his grandson1 ,chuh1 was on the throne4 ,there had been a complication of family crimes plottings3 ,chuh had driven out his father1 who in turn had attempted the life of his own mother1 ,nantse4 ,chuh wished to employ ,confucius1 but not to forgo his evil courses3 it was a situation that could not be sanctioned4 ,for six years the ,master lived in retirement in ,wei1 watching events1 and always sanguine that his chance would come4 ,he was not sixty-nine years old2 but hoped to begin his life's work presently4 ,then suddenly he was in demand1--in two quarters4 ,there was a sort of civil war in ,wei1 and the chief of one of the factions came to him for advice as to the best means of attacking the other4 ,confucius was disgusted4 ,meanwhile ,lu had been at war with ,ts'i2 and ,yen ,yu1 a ,confucianist1 put in command of the ,lu troops1 had been winning all the victories in sight4 ,marquis ,ting now slept with his fathers1 and ,marquis ,gae reigned in his stead2 also there was a new ,chief of ,clan ,chi to run things3-- ,gae to reign1 ,chi to rule4 ,they asked ,yen ,yu where he had learned his so victorious generalship2 and he answered1 from ,confucius4--,if a mere disciple could do so much1 they thought1 surely the ,master himself could do much more3 as1 perhaps1 lead the ,lu armies to universal victory4 ,so they sent him a cordial invitation1 with no words as to the warlike views that prompted it4 ,high in hope1 ,confucius set out2 these fourteen years his native country had been pulling at his heart-strings1 and latterly1 more insistently than ever4 ,but on his arrival he saw how the land lay4 ,chi consulted him about putting down brigandage3 ,chi being1 as you might say1 the arch-brigand of ,lu4--,if you1 ,sir1 were not avaricious1 said ,confucius1 though you offered men rewards for stealing1 they would cleave to their honesty4 ,there was nothing to be done with such men as these2 he went into retirement1 having much literary work to finish4 ,that was in #dhc4 ,in #dhb his son ,li died2 and a year later ,yen ,huy1 dearest of his disciples4 ,we have seen how he gave way to grief4 ,there is that strange mystery of the dual nature2 even in ,such a ,one4 ,there is the human ,personality that the ,great ,soul must work through4 ,he had performed his function2 he had fulfilled his duty2 all that he owed to the coming ages he had paid in full4 ,but the evidence goes to show that he was still looking forward for a chance to begin1 and that every disappointmtnt hurt the outward man of him3 that it was telling on him3 that it was a sad1 a disappointed1 even a heart-broken old man that wept over ,yen ,huy4--,in #dha1 we read1 a servant of the ,chief of ,clan ,chi caught a strange one-horned aninial1 with a white ribbon tied to its horn4 ,none had seen the like of it2 and ,confucius1 being the most learned of men1 was called in to make pronouncement4 ,he recognised it at once from his mother's description3 it was the k'e-lin1 the unicorn2 that was the ribbon ,chingtsai had decked it with in the cave on ,mount ,ne the night of his birth4 ,he burst into tears4 ,for whom have you come8 he cried2 for whom have you come8 ,and then3 ,the course of my doctrine is run1 and wisdom is still neglected1 and success is still worshiped4 ,my principles make no progress3 how will it be in the after ages8 --,ah1 could he have know6--,i mean1 that old weary mind and body2 the ,soul which was ,confucius knew4 ,yen ,huy1 ,tse ,lu1 and ,tse ,kung3 those were the three whom he had loved and trusted most4 ,yen ,huy was dead2 ,tse ,lu1 with ,tse ,kao1 another disciple1 he had left behind in ,wei holding office under the duke4 ,now news came that a revolution had broken out there4 ,tse ,kao will return1 said he2 but ,tse ,lu will die4 ,so it fell4 ,tse ,kao1 finding the duke's cause hopeless1 made his escape2 but ,tse ,lu fought the forlorn hope to the end1 and died like a hero4 ,only ,tse ,kung1 of the three1 was left to him4 ,who one morning1 when he went to the ,master's house1 found him walking to and fro before the door crooning over this verse3 ,the great mountain must crumble1 ,the strong beam must break4 ,the wise man must wither like a flower4 ,heavy-hearted1 ,tse ,kung followed him in4--,what makes you so late8 said ,confucius2 and then3 ,according to the rites of ,hia1 the dead lay in state at the top of the eastern steps1 as if he were the host4 ,under the ,shangs1 it was between the two pillars he lay1 as if he were both host and guest4 ,the rite of the ,chows is for him to lie at the top of the western steps1 as if he were the guest4 ,i am a man of ,shang1--it will be remembered that he was descended from that royal house2 and last night ,i dreamed that ,i was sitting between the pillars1 with offerings set out before me4 ,no intelligent monarch arises2 no prince will make me his teacher4 ,my time has come to die4--,that day he took to his bed2 his passing was a week later4 ,on the banks of the ,sze his disciples buried him2 and for three years mourned at his grave4 ,but ,tse ,kung built himself a cabin at the graveside1 and remained there three years longer4 ,all my life1 said he1 ,i have had heaven above my head1 but ,i do not know its height4 ,i have had earth beneath my feet1 but ,i have not known its magnitude4 ,i served ,confucius3 ,i was like a thirsty man going with his pitcher to the river4 ,i drank my fill1 but ,i never knew the depth of the water4 ,and ,tse ,kung was right2 and what he felt then1 one feels now4 ,you read ,boswell1 and have your ,johnson in the hollow of your hand3 body1 soul1 and spirit3 higher triad and lower quaternary4 ,of ,confucius we have a picture in some respects even more detailed than ,boswell's of ,johnson2 but when we have said everything1 we still feel that nothing has been said4 ,boswell lets you in through his master's church-door2 shows you nave and aisle1 vault and vestry2 climbs with you to the belfry2 stands with you at the altar and in the pulpit2 till you have seen everything there is to see4 ,but with ,confucius as with every ,adept the case is quite different4 ,the ,master's wall is fathomless1 said ,tse ,kung2 but he and the other disciples took care that ,china at least should find the gate of entry2 and it is still possible for us to go in1 and see the beauty of the temple1 the richness of the robes of the officiating priests4 ,you go through everything2 see him under all sorts of circumstances2 and ask at last3 ,is this all8--,no1 says your guide2 see here6 and flings one last door open4 ,and that1 like the door in ,lord ,dunsaney's play1 opens on to the vastness of the stars4 ,what is it that baffles us and remains undefined and undefinable8 ,just this3 ,,tao3 the ,infinite ,nature4 ,you can survey the earth1 and measure it with chains2 but not ,space1 in which a billion leagues is nowise different from an inch or two1 --it bears the same proportion to the whole4 ,there was his infinite trust2--and his unbroken silence as to the ,things he trusted in4 ,time and the world went proving to him year by year that his theories were all impracticable1 all wrong2 that he was a failure2 that there was not anything for him to do1 and never would be a chance for him to do it2--and all their arguments1 all the sheer dreadful tyranny of fact1 had no weight with him at all3 he went on and on4 ,what was his sword of strength8 ,where were the ,allies in whom he trusted8 ,how dared he pit ,k'ung ,ch'iu of ,lu against time and the world and me8--,the ,unseen was with him1 and the ,silence2 and he 7perhaps7 lifted no veil from the ,unseen1 and kept silent as to the silence2--and yet maintained his ,movement1 and held his disciples together1 and saved his people1--as if he himself had been the ,unseen made visible1 and the ,silence given a voice to speak4 ,and with it all there was the human man who suffered4 ,i think you will love him the more for this1 from the ,analects3 ,the ,minister said to ,tse ,lu1 ,tseng ,hsi1 ,jan ,yu1 and ,kung-hsi ,hua as they sat beside him3 ',i may be a day older than you are1 but forget that4 ,you are wont to say1 ,we are unknown4 ,well2 had ye a name in the world1 what would ye do8' ,tse ,lu answered lightly3 ',give me charge of a land of a thousand chariots1 crushed between great neighbors1 overrun by soldiery and oppressed by famine2 in three years' time ,i should have put courage and high purpose into the people4' ,the ,master smiled1--',what wouldst thou do1 ,ch'iu8' he said4 ,jan ,yu answered3 ',had ,i charge of sixty or seventy square miles1 or from fifty to sixty1 in three years' time ,i would give the people plenty4 ,as for courtesy1 music and the like1 they could wait for these for the rise of a ,princely ,man4' ',and what wouldst thou do1 ,chih8' said the ,master4 ,kung-hsi ,hua answered3 ',i would speak of the things ,i fain would learn1 not of what ,i can do4 ,at service in the ,ancestral ,temple1 or at the ,grand ,audience1 clad in black robe and cap1 ,i fain would fill a small part4' ',and thou1 ,tien8' said the ,master4 ,tseng ,hsi stopped playing1 pushed away his still sounding lute1 rose up1 and made answer3 ',my choice would be unlike those of the other three4' ',what harm in that8' said the ,master4 ',each but speaks his mind4' ,tseng ,hsi said3 ',in the last days of ,spring1 and clad for the season1 with five or six grown men and six or seven lads1 ,i would bathe in the waters of ,yi1 all fanned by the breeze in the ,rain ,god's ,glade1 and wander home with song4' ,the ,master sighed4--',i hold with ,tien1' said he4 ,very1 very human1 ,i say2 very ,chinese4 ,but here is that which was not human but divine3 he never turned from his path to satisfy these so human and ,chinese longings2 the breeze in the ,rain ,god's ,glade never blew for him4 ,it is just as well to remember1 when you read of the ceremonies1 the body bent under the load of the scepter1 the carefully chosen 7as it may seem7 and habitually worn expression of face on passing or approaching the throne1 the elbows spread like wings3--all the formal round of proprieties2--that it was the last days of ,spring1 and the waters of ,yi1 and the breeze in the ,rain ,god's ,glade1 that were calling to his ,chinese heart4 ,yes2 he was very human2 listen to this3--,yuan ,jang awaited the ,master squatting on the ground4 ,the ,master said3--',unruly when young1 unmentioned as man1 undying when old1--this spells ,good-for-nothing'2 and hit him on the leg with his staff4 ,which brings one naturally to his sense of humor4 ,once he was passing through a by-street when a man of the district shouted3--,great is ,confucius the ,philosopher6 ,yet for all his wide learning he has nothing which can bring him fame6 ,the ,master turned to his disciples and said3--,what shall ,i take up8 ,shall ,i take up charioteering8--or archery8--,i must certainly take up charioteering6 ,his disciples once were expecting him at the city of ,ch'ing2 and ,tse ,kung asked a man who was coming from the east gate if he had seen him there4--,well1 said the man1 there is a man there with a forehead like ,yao1 a neck like ,kao ,yao1 his shoulders on a level with those of ,tse-ch'an1 but wanting below the waist three inches of the height of ,yu2--and altogether having the forsaken appearance of a stray dog4 ,tse ,kung recognised the description and hurried off to meet the ,master1 to whom he reported it verbatim4 ,confucius was hugely delighted4 ,a stray dog6 said he2 fine6 fine6 ,unluckily1 no contemporary photographs of ,yao and ,yu and the others have come down2 so the description is not as enlightening now as it may have been then4 ,tse ,kung1 we read1 would compare one man with another4 ,the ,master said3--,what talents ,tse has6 ,now ,i have no time for such things6 ,i keep on hearing in his words accents that sound familiar4 ,when he was at ,loyang--,honanfu--one of the things that struck him most was a bronze statue in the ,temple of the ,imperial ,ancestors1 with a triple1 clasp on its mouth4 ,one does not wonder4 ,a ,great ,soul from the ,god ,world1 he kept his eyes resolutely on the world of men2 as if he remembered1 nothing of the splendor1 and nothing foresaw4 4 4 4 ,indeed1 ,i cannot tell2 one would give much to know what really passed between him and ,laotse4 ,if you say that no word of his lightens1 for you that 'dusk within the ,holy of holies'1--at least he gives you the keys1 and leaves you to find and open the ',holy of holies' for yourself if you can4 ,there are lost chapters1 that went at the ,burning of the ,books2 and an old-fashioned ,chinaman would often tell you of any ,western idea or invention his countrymen may not have known1 that you should have found all in the lost chapters of ,confucius4 ,it may be2--and that you should have found there better things1 too1 than ,western ideas and inventions4 ,there is a passage in the ,analects that tells how the disciples thought he was 'keeping back from them some part of his doctrine3 ,no1 no1 he answered2 if ,i should not give it all to you1 to whom should ,i give it8 ,distinctly1 then1 this suggests that there was an esotericism1 a side not made public2 and there is no reason to suppose that it has been made public since4 ,but it is recorded that he would lift no veils from the ,other-worlds4 ,if you do not understand life1 said he1 how can you understand death8 ,well2 we who are stranded here1 each on his desert island of selfhood1 thrust out after knowledge3 peer for signs at all the horizons2--are eager to inquire1 and avid of the ,unknown--which also we imagine to be something outside of our own being4 ,but suppose a man1 as they say one with ,tao1 in which all knowledge rests in solution3 what knowledge would he desire8 ,after what would he be inquisitive8 ,and how much1 desiring it1 would he possess8 ,what is the end of being1 after all8 ,to perform your function1 your duty2 what men and the world1--ay1 and the far suns and stars1--are requiring of you3--that is all4 ,not to gain infinite knowledge2 but to have at1 every step what knowledge you need2 that so you may fill your place in the ,universe1 meeting all contours and flowing into them2 restoring and maintaining the ,harmony of ,things4 ,so we hear much about this performance of duty4 ,but in reality1 to do one's duty is to sing with the singing spheres2 to have the ,top of ,infinity for the roof of one's skull1 and the bottom of the ,great ,deep for one's footsoles3 to be a compendium1 and the ,equal1 of ,heaven and ,earth4 ,the password into the ,tao of ,laotse is ,silence2 ,confucius kept the great ,silence more wonderfully than ,laotse did--or so it seems to me now4 ,laotse said3 ,sing with the singing spheres1 and behold1 your duty is doing itself uder your hands4 ,the password into the ,tao of ,confucius is ,duty3 he said merely ,do that1 and1--the rest is silence4 ,he may have played that rest on his lute2 we are not to hear it in his words4 ,there was a knowledge that ,laotse1 enthroned in his silence1 had no means of using2 that ,confucius riding the chariot of duty1 had no occasion to possess4 ,now whether you call ,tao duty1 or silence1--what should the ,man of ,tao desire beyond the fulness of it8 ,all the light is there for him2 all the suns are kindled for him2--why should he light wax candles8 ,that is1 for himself3 he will light them fast enough where others may be in need4 ,to us1 a great poem may be a great thing3 but to them who have the fulness of which the greatest poem is but a little glimpse--what should it matter to them8 ,and of the infinite knowledge at his disposal1 would the ,man of ,tao choose to burden himself with one little item of which there was no present need8 ,so when they say1 ,confucius was nobody2 there is no evidence that he knew the great secrets2 answer them3--,yes1 there is4 ,he knew that supreme secret1 how to teach1 which is the office of a ,teacher3 he knew how to build up the inner life of his disciples2 to coax1 train1 lure the hidden god into manifestation in them4 ,and for evidence you can give them this3 ,tse ,kung--who1 you remember1 was always comparing this man with that--asked which was the better1 ,shih or ,shang4 7,they were two disciples47 ,confucius answered3 ,shih goes too far2 ,shang not far enough4 ,said ,tse ,kung 7just as you or ,i would have done73-- ,then ,shih is the better man8--,too far1 replied ,confucius1 is not better than not far enough4--,to my ears there is more occultism in that than in a thousand ethical injunctions4--,or answered2--,whilst thy father and they elder brother are alive1 how canst thou do all thou art taught8 ,jan ,yu said3--,shall ,i do all ,i am taught8 ,the ,master said3--,do all thou art taught4 ,kung-hsi ,hua said3 ,yu asked1 ',shall ,i do all ,i am taught8' and you spoke1 ,sir1 of father and elder brother4 ,ch'iu asked1 ',shall ,i do all ,i am taught8' and you answered3 ',do all thou art taught4' ,i am puzzled1 and make bold to ask you1 ,sir4 ,the ,master said3--,ch'iu is bashful1 so ,i egged him on4 ,yu has the pluck of two1 so ,i held him back4 ,think it over6 ,think it over6 ,this though occurs to me3 ,was that sadness of his last days caused by the knowledge that the ,school could not continue after his death2 because the one man who might have succeeded him as the ,teacher1 ,yen ,huy1 was dead8 ,so far as ,i know1 it did not go on2 there was no one to succeed him4 ,that supreme success1 that grand capture of future ages for the ,gods1 was denied him2 or ,i daresay our own civilization might have been ,confucian--,,balanced --now4 ,but short of that--how sublime a figure he stands6 ,if he had known that for twenty-five centuries or so he was to shine within the vision of the great unthinking masses of his countrymen as their supreme example2 their anchor against the tides of error1 against abnormalities1 extravagances1 unbalance2 a bulwark against invading time and decay2 a check on every bad emperor1 so far as check might be set at all2 a central idea to mold the hundred races of ,chu ,hia into homogeneity2 a stay1 a prop1 a warning against headlong courses at all times of cyclic downtrend2--if he had known all this1 he would1 ,i think1 have ordered his life precisely as he did4 ,is there no strength implied1 as of the ,universal1 and not of any personal1 will1 however titanic1 in the fact that moment after moment1 day after day1 year after year1 he built up this picture1 gave the world this wonderful assurance of a man8 ,in his omissions1 no less than in his fulfilments4 ,he taught1--so far as we know1--nothing but what the common mind might easily accept2 nothing to miss the mark of the intelligence of dull ,li or ,ching toiling in the rice-field2--nor yet too paltry for the notice of the ,hwangti on the ,dragon ,throne4 ,laotse had come in the spirit of ,plenydd the ,light-bringer2 in the spirit of ,alawn1 to raise up presently sweet profusions of song4 ,he illuminated the inner worlds2 his was the urge that should again and again1 especially later when reinforced by ,buddhism1 prick up the ,black-haired ,people to heights of insight and spiritual achievement4--,but the cycles of insight and spiritual achievement1 these too1 must always run their course and fall away2 there is no year when it is always ,spring4 ,dark moments and seasons come2 and the ,spirit becomes hidden2 and what you need most is not illumination1--which you cannot get2 or if you could1 it would be hell1 and not heaven1 that would be illuminated for you2 not a spur to action1--for as things are constituted1 any spur at such a time would drive you to wrong and exorbitant action3--what you need is not these1 but simply stability to hold on2 simply the habit of propriety1 the power to go on at least following harmless conventions and doing harmless things2 not striking out new lines for yourself1 which would certainly be wrong lines1 but following as placidly as may be lines that were laid down for you1 or that you yourself laid down1 in more righteous and more luminous times4 ,a strong government1 however tyrannical1 is better than an anarchy in which the fiend in every man is let loose to run amuck4 ,under the tyranny1 yes1 the aspiring man will find himself hindered and thwarted2 but under the anarchy1 since man is no less hell than heaven1 the gates of hell will be opened1 and the ,soul1 normally speaking1 can only retire and wait for better times3--unless it be the ,soul of a ,confucius1 it can but wait till ,karma with ruthless hands has put down the anarchy and cleared things up4 ,unless it be the ,soul of a ,confucius2 and even ,such a ,one is bound to be a failure in his own day4 ,but see what he did4 ,the gates of hell were swung wide1 and for the time being1 not the hosts of the ,seraphim and ,cherubim1--not the armed ,bodhisatvas and ,dhyanis1--could have forced them back on their hinges3 the ripple of effect1 we read1 thou shalt let run its course4 ,but in the ideal world he erected a barrier against them4 ,he set up a colossal statue with arms outthrown to bar the egress2 the statue of ,confucius preaching the ,balanced ,life4 ,with time it materialized1 so to say1 and fell into place4 ,you can never certainly stop the gates of hell1--in this stage of our evolution4 ,but perhaps as nearly as it can be done1 he did it4 ,rome fell1 and ,christendom made a mess of things2 it has never yet achieved that union which is the first condition of true civilization4 ,but ,china1 older than ,rome1 despite her sins and vicissitudes1 has made a shift to stand4 ,i shall come to comparing the two histories presently2 then you will see4 ,when the pralaya came on her1 and the forces of life all went elsewhere--as they do and must from every civilization in their season1--,china lost two of her treasures3 ,plenydd's vision1 and ,alawn's gift of song1 were taken from her4 ,but this stability2 these ,gloves of ,gwron2 this instinct for middle courses and the balance1 this ,doctrine of the ,mean and love of plain sane doings3 she has retained enough of this to keep her in being4 ,and it was ,k'ung ,ch'iu of ,lu that gave it to her4 ,shall we not call him ,such a ,one as only the ,gods send8 ,someone told me the other day what he had seen a couple of ,chinamen do in a ,californian garden4 ,they had a flower-bed to plant1 about forty feet long2 and each a basket of seedlings to plant it with1 and a slip of wood for a model1 with mystic unintelligible signs inscribed thereon3 ,,welcome ,,home in ,english capitals4 ,one went to one end of the bed and the other to the other1 and they began their planting4 ,they made no measurements or calculations2 used no rod or line2 but just worked ahead till they met in the middle4 ,when that happened1 and the job was done1 the bed was inscribed1 in perfectly formed and proportioned ,english capitals made of young plants1 ,,welcome ,,home4 ,there was no crowding or omission4 ,to account for it you have twenty-four centuries of ,confucianism1--of ,katherine ,tingley's doctrine of ,middle ,lines1 the ,balanced ,life4 ,it is a very small thing2 but it may help us to understand4 ,,xii4 ,,tales ,,from ,a ,,taoist ,,teacher ,confucius died in #dgh3 the year1 it may be noted1 in which ,athens attained her hegemony3 or just when the ,greek ,cycle thirteen decades was opening4 ,looking backward thirteen decades from that1 we come to #fjh ,b4,c42 four years after which date1 according to the usually accepted tradition1 ,laotse was born4 ,thus we find the cycle preceding that of ,greece mainly occupied1 in ,china1 by the lives of the two great ,teachers4 ,we should have seen by this time that these two lives were1 so to say1 parts of a single whole3 co-ordinated spiritually1 if not in an organization on this plane4 ,laotse1 like ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky1 brought the ,teachings2 he illuminated the inner worlds4 ,that was his work4 ,we can see little of him as he accomplished it3 and only the smallest fragment of his doctrine remains3--five thousand words1 out of his whole long life4 ,but since we have had in our own time an example of how these things are done1 we may judge him and his mission by this analogy2 also by the results4 ,then came ,confucius1 like ,katherine ,tingley1 to link this wisdom with individual and national life4 ,the teachings were there2 and he had no need to restate them3 he might take the great principles as already enounced4 ,but every ,teacher has his own method1 and his need to accentuate this or that3 so time and history have had most to say about the differences between these two4 ,what ,confucius had to do1 and did1 was to found his school1 and show in the lives of his disciples1 modeled under his hands1 how the wisdom of the ,ages 7and of ,laotse7 can be made a living power in life and save the world4 ,contrasting the efforts of that age and this1 we may say that then1 organization1 such as we have now1 was lacking4 ,confucius did not come as the official successor of ,laotse2 ,laotse1 probably1 had had no organized school that he could hand over to ,confucius4 ,he had taught1 and his influence had gone far and wide1 affecting the thought of the age2 but he had had no trained and pledged body of students to whom he could say3 ',follow this man when ,i am gone2 he is my worthy successor4'-- ,all of which will be laughed at3 ,i firmly believe1 however1 that it is an accurate estimate of things4 ,when you come to think of it1 it was by the narrowest margine that ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky1 through ,mr4 ,judge--and his heroism and wisdom alone to be thanked for it6--had anything beyond the influence of her ideas and revelation to hand on to ,katherine ,tingley4 ,in the way of an organization1 ,i mean4 ,very few among her disciples had come to have any glimmering of what discipleship means1 or were prepared to follow her accredited successors4 ,and ,confucius1 in his turn1 had no established center for his school2 it was a thing that wandered the world with him1 and ceased1 as in organization 7however hazy7 to exist when he died4 ,nothing remained1 then1 of either ,teacher for posterity except the ideas and example4 ,and yet ,i have hinted1 and shall try to show1 that tremendous results for good followed3 that the whole course of history was turned in an upward direction4 ,you may draw what inferences you will4 ,the matter is profoundly significant4 ,thirteen decades after the death of ,confucius1 ,plato died in ,greece2 and about that time two men arose in ,china to carry forward1 bring down1 and be the expositors of1 the work of the two great ,teachers of the sixth and seventh centuries4 ,these were ,chwangtse for ,taoism1 and ,mangtse or ,mencius for ,confucius3 the one1 the channel through which spiritual thought flowed to the quickening of the ,chinese imagination2 the other1 the man who converted the spiritual thought of ,confucius into the ,chinese ,constitution4 ,alas6 they were at loggerheads3 a wide breach between the two schools of thought had come to be by their time2 or perhaps it was they who created it4 ,we shall arrive at them next week2 tonight1 to introduce you to ,liehtse1 a ,taoist teacher who came sometime between ,laotse and ,chwangtse2--perhaps in the last quarter of the fifth century1 when ,socrates was active in ,greece4 ,professor ,de ,groot1 of ,holland1 speaks boldly of ,confucius as a ,taoist2 and though ,i dislike many of this learned ,dutchman's ideas1 this one is excellent4 ,his thesis is that ,laotse was no more an innovator than ,confucius2 that both but gave a new impulse to teachings as old as the race4 ,before ,laotse there had been a ,teacher ,quan1 a statesman-philosopher of the seventh century1 who had also taught the ,tao4 ,the immemorial ,chinese idea had been that the ,universe is made of the interplay of two forces1 ,yang and ,yin1 positive and negative2--or simply the ,higher and the ,lower natures4 ,to the ,yang1 the ,higher1 belong the ,shen or gods1--all conscious beneficent forces within and without man4 ,to the ,yin or lower belong the kwei1 the opposite of gods3 fan means foreign2 and ,fan ,kwei is the familiar ,chinese term for white men4 ,from ,shen and ,tao we get the term ,shentao1 which you know better as ,shinto1--the ,way of the ,gods2 or as well1 the ,wisdom of the ,gods2 as good an equivalent of our term ,theosophy as you should find2 perhaps indeed better than ,theosophy itself2 for it drives home the idea that the ,wisdom is a practical ,way of ,life4 ,shentao1 the ,taoism of the ,higher ,nature1 then1 was the primeval religion of the ,chinese2--,dr4 ,de ,groot arrives at this1 though perhaps hardly sees how sensible a conclusion he has reached4 ,in the sixth century ,b4,c4 it was in a fair way to becoming as obsolete as ,neoplatonism or ,gnosticism in the nineteenth ,a4,d42 and ,laotse and ,confucius simply restated some aspects of it with a new force and sanction2--just as ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky1 in the ,key to ,theosophy1 begins1 you will remember1 with an appeal to and restatement of the ,theosophy of the ,gnostics and ,neoplatonists of ,alexandria4 ,it may seem a kind of divergence from our stream of history1 to turn aside and tell stories from the ,book of ,liehtse2 but there are excuses4 ,chinese history1 literature1 thought-- everything--have been such a closed book to the ,west1 that those scholars who have opened a few of its pages are to be considered public benefactors2 and there is room and to spare for any who will but hold such opened pages up2--we are not in the future to dwell so cut off from a third of mankind4 ,also it will do us good to look at ,theosophy from the angle of vision of another race4 ,i think ,liehtse has much to show us as to the difference between the methods of the ,chinese and ,western minds3 the latter that must bring most truths down through the brain-mind1 and set them forth decked in the apparel of reason2 the former that is1 as it seems to me1 often rather childlike as to the things of the brain-mind2 but has a way of bringing the great truths down and past the brain-mind by some circuitous route2 or it may be only by a route much more direct than ours4 ,the ,west presents its illuminations so that they look big on the surface2 you say1 ,this is the work of a great mind4 ,a writer in the ,times ,literary ,supplement brought out the idea well1 in comparing the two poetries4 ,what he said was1 in effect1 as follows3--the ,western poet1 too often1 dons his singing robe before he will sing2 works himself up2 expects to step out of current life into the ,grand ,manner2--and unless the ,soul happens to be there and vocal at the time1 achieves mostly pombundle4 ,the ,chinaman presents his illumination as if it were nothing at all1--just the simplest childish-foolish thing2 nothing in the world for the brain-mind to get excited about4 ,you take very little notice at the time3 more of their quaint punchinello chinoiserie1 you say4 ,three weeks after1 you find that it was a clear voice from the supermundane1 a high revelation4 ,the ,chinese poet saunters along playing a common little tune on his ,pan-pipes4 ,singing robes8-- ,none in the world2 just what he goes to work in4 ,grand ,manner8-- ',sir1' says he1 'the contemptible present singer never heard of it2 wait for that till the coming of a ,superior ,man4'--',well1' you say1 'at least there is no danger of pombundle'2 and indeed there is not4 ,but you rather like the little tune1 and stop to listen 4 4 4 and then 4 4 4 ,oh ,god6 the ,wonder of wonders has happened1 and the ,universe will never be quite the dull1 fool1 ditchwater thing it was to you before 4 4 4 ,liehtse gives one rather that kind of feeling4 ,we know practically nothing about him4--,i count three stages of growth among the sinologists3 the first1 with a missionary bias2 the second1 with only the natural bias of pure scholarship and critical intellectualism1 broad and generous1 but rather running at times towards tidying up the things of the ,soul from off the face of the earth2 the third1 with scholarship plus sympathy1 understanding1 and a dash of mystical insight4 ,the men of the first stage accepted ,liehtse as a real person1 and called him a degenerator of ,taoism1 a teacher of immoral doctrine2--in the ,book of ,liehtse1 certainly1 such doctrine is to be found4 ,the men of the second stage effectually tidied ,liehtse up3 ,dr4 ,h4 ,a4 ,giles says he was an invention of the fertile brain of ,chwangtse1 and his book a forgery of ,han times4 ,well2 people did forge ancient literature in those days1 and were well paid for doing so2 and you cannot be quite certain of the complete authenticity of any book purporting to have been written before ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti's time4 ,also ,chwangtse's brain was fertile enough for anything2--so that there was much excuse for the men of the second stage4 ,but then came ,dr4 ,lionel ,giles99 who belongs to the third stage1 and perhaps is the third stage4 ,he shows that though there is in the ,book of ,liehtse a residue or scum of immoral teaching1 it is quite in opposition to the tendency of the teaching that remains when this scum is removed2 and deduces from this fact the sensible idea that the scum was a later forgery2 the rest1 the authentic work of a true philosopher with an original mind and a style of his own4 ,such a man1 of course1 might have lived later than ,chwangtse1 and taken his nom de plume of ,liehtse from the latter's book2 but against this there is the fact that ,liehtse's teaching forms a natural link between ,chtangtse's and that of their common ,master ,laotse2 and above all--and herein lies the real importance of him--the real ,liehtse treats ,confucius as a ,teacher and ,man of ,tao4 ,but by ,chwangtse's time the two schools had separated3 ,confucius was ,chwangtse's butt2--we shall see why4 ,and in the scum of ,liehtse he is made fun of in ,chwangtse's spirit1 but without ,changtse's wit and style4 ------ 99 ,whose translation of parts of the ,book of ,liehtse1 with an invaluable preface1 appears in the ,wisdom of the ,east ,series2 from which translation the passages quoted in this lecture are taken2--as also are many ideas from the preface4 ------ ,so that whoever wrote this book1--whether it was the man referred to by ,chwangtse when he says3 ,there was ,liehtse again2 he could ride upon the wind and go wheresoever he wished1 staying away as long as thirteen days1--or someone else of the same name1 he did not take his non de plume from that passage in ,chwangtse1 because he was probably dead when ,chwangtse wrote it4 ,we may1 then1 safely call him a ,taoist ,teacher of the fifth century1--or at latest of the early fourth4 ,the book's own account of itself is1 that it was not written by ,liehtse1 but compiled from his oral teaching by his disciples4 ,thus it begins3 ,our ,master ,liehtse live in the ,cheng ,state for forty years1 and no man knew him for what he was4 ,the prince1 his ministers1 and the state officials looked upon him as one of the common herd4 ,a time of dearth fell upon the state1 and he was preparing to emigrate to ,wei1 when his disciples said to him3 ',now that our ,master is going away without any prospect of returning1 we have ventured to approach him1 hoping for instruction4 ,are there no words from the lips of ,hu-,ch'iu ,tsu-lin that you can impart to us8'--,lieh the ,master smiled and said3 ',do you suppose that ,hu ,tzu dealt in words8 ,however1 ,i will try to repeat to you what my ,teacher said on one occasion to ,po-hun ,moujen4 ,i was standing by and heard his words1 which ran as follows4' ,then come some rather severe metaphysics on cosmogony3 really1 a more systematic statement of the teaching thereon which ,laotse referred to1 but did not 7in the ,tao ,teh ,king7 define4 ',more systematic1'--and yet by no means are the lines laid down and the plan marked out2 there is no cartography of cosmogenesis2 4 4 4 but seeds of meditation are sown4 ,of course1 it is meaningless nonsense for the mind to which all metaphysics and abstract thought are meaningless nonsense4 ,mystics1 however1 will see in it an attempt to put the ,unutterable into words4 ,one paragraph may be quoted3 ,there is life1 and ,that which produces life2 form1 and ,that which imparts form2 sound1 and ,that which causes color2 taste1 and ,that which causes taste4 ,the source of life is death2 but ,that which produces life never comes to an end4 ,remember the dying ,socrates3 'life comes from death1 as death from life4' ,we appear1 at birth1 out of that ,unseen into which we return at death1 says ,liehtse2 but that which produces life1 --which is the cause of this manifestation 7you can say1 the ,soul71--is eternal4 ,the origin of form is matter2 but ,that which imparts form has no material existence4 ,no2 because it is the down-breathing spirit entering into matter2 matter being the medium through which it creates1 or to which it imparts1 form4 ,the form to which the clay is modeled is first united with--or we may say1 projected from--the potter's mind4 ,the genesis of sound lies in the sense of hearing2 but ,that which causes sound is never audible to the ear4 ,the source of color--for 'source' we might say1 the 'issuing-point'--is vision2 but ,that which produces color never manifests to the eye4 ,the origin of taste lies in the palate2 but ,that which causes taste is never perceived by that sense4 ,all these pehnomena are functions of the ,principle of ,inaction--the inert unchanging ,tao4 ,one is reminded of a passage in the ,talavakara-,upanishad3 ,that which does not speak by speech1 but by which speech is expressed3 ,that alone shalt thou know as ,brahman1 not that which they here adore4 ,that which does not think by mind1 but by which mind is itself thought3 ,that alone shalt thou know as ,brahman1 not that which they here adore4 ,and so it continues of each of the sense-functions4 ,after this1 ,liehtse for the most wanders from story to story2 he taught in parables2 and sometimes we have to listen hard to catch the meaning of them1 he rarely insists on it1 or drives it well home1 or brings it down to levels of plain-spokenness at which it should declare itself to a westem mind4 ,here1 again1 is the ,chinese characteristic3 the touch is lighter2 more is left to the intuition of the reader2 the lines are less heavily drawn4 ,they rely on a kind of intelligence in the readers1 akin to the writers'1 to see those points at a glance1 which we must search for carefully4 ,where each word has to be drawn1 a little picture taking time and care1 you are in no danger of overlavishness2 you do not spill and squander your words1 intoxicated1 as they say1 with the exuberance of your verbosity4 ,style was forced on the ,chinese2 ideograms are a grand preventive against pombundle4--,i shall follow ,liehtse's method1 and go from story to story at random2 perhaps interpreting a little by the way4 ,we saw how ,confucius insisted on balance3 egging on ,jan ,yu1 who was bashful1 and holding back ,tse ,lu1 who had the pluck of two2-- declaring that ,shih was not a better man than ,shang1 because too far is not better than not far enough4 ,the whole ,chinese idea is that this balance of the faculties is the first and grand essential4 ,your lobsided man can make no progress really2--he must learn balance first4 ,an outstanding virtue1 talent1 or aptitude1 is a deterrent1 unless the rest of the nature is evolved up to it2--that is why the ,greatest ,men are rarely the most striking men2 why a ,napoleon catches the eye much more quickly than a ,confucius2 something stands out in the one1--and compels attention2 but all is even in the other4 ,you had much better not have genius1 if you are morally weak2 or a very strong will1 if you are a born fool4 ,for the morally weak genius will end in moral wreck2 and the strong-willed fool--a plague upon him6 ,this is the truth1 knowledge of which has made ,china so stable2 and ignorance of which has kept the ,west so brilliant and fickle1--of duality such poles apart1--so lobsided and1 ,i think1 in a true sense1 so little progressive4 ,for see how many centuries we have had to wait while ignorance1 bigotry1 wrong ideas1 and persecution1 have prevented the establishment on any large scale of a ,theosophical ,movement--and be not too ready to accept a whirl of political changes1 experiment after experiment1--and latterly a spurt of mechanical inventions1--for ,true ,progress3 which ,i take to mean1 rightly considered1 the growth of human egos1 and freedom and an atmosphere in which they may grow4 ,but these they had in ,china abundantly while ,china was in manvantara2 do not think ,i am urging as our example the fallen ,china of these pralayic times4 ,balance was the truth ,confucius impressed on the ,chinese mentality3 the saving ,truth of truths1 ,i may say2 and it is perhaps the truth which most of all will stand connected with the name of ,katherine ,tingley in the ages to come3--the saving ,truth of truths1 which will make a new and better world for us4 ,you must have it1 if you are to build solidly2 it is the foundation of any true social order2 the bedrock on which alone a veritable civilization can be built4 ,oh1 your unbalanced genius can produce things of startling beauty2 and they have their value1 heaven knows4 ,the ,soul watches for its chances1 and leaps in at surprising moments3 the arm clothed in white samite may reach forth out of the bosom of all sorts of curious quagmires2 and when it does1 should be held in reverence as still and always a proof of the underlying divinity of man4 ,but--there where the basis of things is not firmly set3 where that mystic1 wonderful reaching out is not from the clear lake1 but from turbidity and festering waters-- where the grand balance has not been acquired3--,you must look to come on tragedy4 ,the world has gained something from the speech of the ,soul there2 but the man through whom ,it spoke2--it has proved too much for him4 ,the vibrations were too strong1 and shattered him4 ,think of ,keats 4 4 4 and of thousands of others1 poets1 musicians1 artists4 ,where you get the grand creations1 the unfitful shining1--there you get evidence of a balance3 with genius--the daimonic force--no greater than1 perhaps not so keen as1 that of those others1 you find a strong moral will4 ,dante and ,milton suffered no less than others from those perils to which all creative artists are subject3 both complain bitterly of inner assailments and torment2 but they had1 to balance their genius1 the strong moral urge to fight their weaknesses all through life4 ,it could not save their personalities from suffering2 but it gave the ,soul in each of them a basis on which to build the grand steadfast creations4--,all of which ,chinese ,liehtse tells you without comment1 and with an air of being too childish-foolish for this world1 in the following story3-- ,kung-hu and ,chi-ying fell ill1 and sought the services of the renowned doctor1 ,pien-chiao4 ,he cured them with his drugs2 then told them they were also suffering from diseases no drugs could reach1 born with them at their birth1 and that had grown up with them through life4 ,would you have me grapple with these8 said he4--,yes1 said they2 but wished first to hear the diagnosis4-- ,you1 he said to kung-hu1 have strong mental powers1 but are weak in character2 so1 though fruitful in plans1 you are weak in decision4 ,you1 he said to ,chi-ying1 are stong of will1 though stupid2 so there is a narrowness in your aims and a want of foresight4 ,now if ,i can effect an exchange of hearts between you1 the good will be equally balanced in both4 ,they agreed at once3 ,kung-hu1 with the weaker will1 was to get the smaller mental powers to match it2 ,chi-ying was to get a mentality equal to his firm will4 ,we should think ,kung-hu got very much the worst of the bargain2 but he1 and ,dr4 ,pien-chiao1 and ,liehtse1 and perhaps ,chinamen generally1 thought and would think nothing of the kind4 ,to them1 to have balanced faculties was far better than to have an intellect too big for one's will-power2 because such balance would afford a firm basis from which will and intellect might go forward in progress harmoniously4 ,so ,pien-chiao put both under a strong anaesthetic1 took out their hearts1 and made the exchange 7the heart being1 with the ,chinese1 the seat of mentality72 and after that the health of both was perfect4--,you may laugh2 but after all there is a grandeur in the recognition implied1 that the intellect is not the man1 but only one of his possessions4 ,the story is profoundly characteristic3 like ,ah ,sin's smile in the poem1 childlike and bland2 but hiding wonderful depths of philosophy beneath4 ,laotse showed his deep ,occult wisdom when he said that the ,man of ,tao does difficult things while they are still easy4 ,liehtse tells you the story of the ,assitant to the ,keeper of the ,wild ,beasts at ,loyang4 ,his name was ,lian yang1 and his fame went abroad for having a wonderful way with the creatures in his charge4 ,hsuan ,wang1 the ,chow king1 heard of it2 and sent orders to the ,chief ,keeper to get the secret from ,liang1 lest it should die with him4--,how is it1 said the ,keeper1 that when you feed them1 the tigers1 wolves1 eagles1 and ospreys all are tame and tractable8 ,that they roam at large in the park1 yet never claw and bite one another8 ,that they propagate their species freely1 as if they were wild8 ,his ,majesty bids you reveal to me the secret4 ,a touch of nature here3 all zoologists know how difficult it is to get wild beasts to breed in captivity4 ,lian ,yang answered3 ,i am only a humble servant1 and have really no secret to tell4 ,i fear the king has led you to expect something mysterious4 ,as to the tigers3 all ,i can say is that1 like men1 when yielded to they are pleased and when opposed they are angry4 ,nothing gives way either to pleasure or to anger without a cause2 and anger1 by reaction1 will follow pleasure1 and pleasure anger4 ,i do not excite the tigers' joy by giving them live creatures to kill1 or whole carcasses to tear up4 ,i neither rouse their anger by opposing them1 nor humor them to make them pleased4 ,i time their periods of hunger and anticipate them4 ,it is my aim to be neither antagonistic nor compliant2 so they look upon me as one of themselves4 ,hence they walk about the parks without regretting the tall forests and broad marshes1 and rest in the enclosure without yearning for lonely mountain or dark vale4 ,it is merely using common sense4 ,and there ,liehtse leaves it in all its simplicity2 but ,i shall venture to put my spoke in1 and add that he has really given you a perfect philosophy for the conduct of life3 for the government of that other and inner tiger1 the lower nature1 especially2 it is always that1 you will remember1 for which the ,tiger stands in ,chinese symbology2--and also for education1 the government of nations--everything4 ,balance1--,middle lines1--,avoidance of ,extremes1--,lines of ,least ,resistance3--by whom are we hearing these things inculcated daily8 ,did they not teach ,raja-,yoga in ancient ,china8 ,have not our school and its principles a ,chinese smack about them8 ,well2 it was these principles made ,china supremely great2 and kept her alive and strong when all her contemporaries had long passed into death2 and1 ,i hope1 have ingrained something into her soul and hidden being1 which will make her rise to wonderful heights again4 ,you can hear ,laotse in them2 it is the practical application of ,laotse's doctrine4 ,but can you not equally hear the voice of ,confucius3 too far is not better than not far enough8 ,western ethical teaching has tended towards inculcating imitation of the soul's action3 this ,chinese teaching takes the ,soul for granted2 says very little about it2 but shows you how to provide the soul with the conditions through and in which it may act4 ,love your enemies2--yes2 that is fine2 it is what the ,soul1 the ,divine ,part of us1 does2--but we are not in the least likely to do it while suffering from the reaction from an outburst of emotion2 ethics grow rather meaningless to us when1 for example1 we have toppled over from our balance into pleasure1 eaten not wisely but too well1 say2 and then toppled back into the dumps with an indigestion4 ,but where the balance is kept you need few ethical injunctions2 the soul is there1 and may speak2 and sees to all that4 ,hu-,chiu ,tzu-lin1 we read1 taught ,liehtse these things4 ,said he3 ,you must familiarize yourself with the ,theory of ,consequents before you can talk of regulating conduct4 ,liehtse said3--,will you explain what you mean by the ,theory of ,consequents8 ,look at your shadow1 said his teacher2 and you will know4 ,liehtse turned his head and looked at his shadow4 ,when his body was bent the shadow was crooked2 when upright1 it was straight4 ,thus it appeared that the attributes of straightness and crookedness were not inherent in the shadow1 but corresponded to certain positions in the body 4 4 4 4 ,holding this ,theory of ,consequents1 says ,liehtse1 is to be at home in the antecedent4 ,now the antecedent of the personality is the ,soul2 the antecedent of the action is the motive2 the antecedent of the conduct of life is the relation in which the component faculties of our being stand to each other and to the ,soul4 ,if the body is straight1 so is the shadow2 if the inner harmony or balance is attained and held to--well2 you see the point4 ,the relative agrees with its antecedent1 say the grammar books1 very wisely4 ,it is karma again3 the effect flowing from the cause4 ,you may consider the virtues of ,shennung and ,yuyen1 says ,liehtse2 you may examine the books of ,yu1 ,kia1 ,shang1 and ,chow1--that is1 the whole of history2--you may weight the utterances of the great ,teachers and ,sages2 but you will find no instance of preservation or destruction1 fulness or decay1 which has not obeyed this supreme ,law of ,causality4 ,where are you to say that ,liehtse's ,confucianism ends1 and his ,taoism begins8 ,it is very difficult to draw a line4 ,confucius1 remember1 gave ,as-the-heart for the single character that should express his whole doctrine4 ,liehtse is leading you inward1 to see how the conduct of life depends upon ,balance1 which also is a word that may translate ,tao4 ,where the balance is1 there we come into relations with the great ,tao4 ,there is nothing supra-,confucian here2 though soon we may see an insistence upon the ,inner which1 it may be supposed1 later ,confucianism1 drifting toxards externalism1 would hardly have enjoyed4--,a man in ,sung carved a mulberry-leaf in jade for his prince4 ,it took three years to complete1 and was so well done1 so realistic in its down and glossiness1 that if placed in a heap of real mulberry-leaves1 it could not be distinguished from them4 ,the ,state pensioned him as a reward2 but ,liehtse1 hearing of it1 said3 ,if ,god ,almighty took three years to complete a leaf1 there would be very few trees with leaves on them4 ,the ,sage will rely less on human skill and science1 than on the evolution of ,tao4 ,lung ,shu came to the great doctor ,wen ,chih1 and said to him3 ,you are the master of cunning arts4 ,i have a disease2 can you cure it1 ,sir8 ,so far1 said ,wen ,chih1 you have only made known your desire4 ,please let me know the symptoms of your disease4 ,they were1 utter indifference to the things and events of the world4 ,i hold it no honor to be praised in my own village1 nor disgrace to be decried in my native ,state4 ,gain brings me no joy1 loss no sorrow4 ,i dwell in my home as if it were a mere caravanserai1 and regard my native district as though it were one of the barbarian kingdoms4 ,honors and rewards fail to rouse me1 pains and penalties to overawe me1 good or bad fortune to influence me2 joy or grief to move me4 ,what disease is this8 ,what remedy will cure it8 99 ------ 99 ,i may say here that though ,i am quoting the speeches more or less directly from ,dr4 ,lionel ,giles' translation1 too many liberties are being taken1 verbally1 with the narative parts of these stories1 to allow quotation marks and small type4 ,one contracts and expands 7sparingly1 the latter72 but gives the story4 ------ ,wen ,chih examined his heart under ,x-rays2--really and truly that is in effect what ,liehtse says4--,ah1 said he1 ,i see that a good square inch of your heart is hollow2 you are within a little of being a true ,sage4 ,six of the orifices are open and clear1 and only the seventh is blocked up4 ,this last is doubtless due to the fact that you are mistaking for a disease what is in reality an approach to divine enlightenment4 ,it is a case in which my shallow art is of no avail4 ,i tell this tale1 as also that other about the exchange of hearts1 partly to suggest that ,liehtse's ,china may have had the actuality1 or at least a reminiscence1 of scientific knowledge since lost there1 and only discovered in ,europe recently4 ,in the same way one finds references to automatic oxen1 self-moving chariots1 traveling by air1 and a number of other things which1 as we read of them1 sound just like superstitious nonsense4 ,there are old ,chinese drawings of pterodactyls1 and suchlike unchancey antediluvian wild fowl4 ,argal1 7you would say7 the ,chinese knew of these once2 although ,ptero and his friends have been extinct quite a few million years1 one supposes4 ,or was it superstition again8 ,then why was it not superstition in ,professor ,so-and-so1 who found the bones and reconstructed the beastie for holiday crowds to gaze upon at the ,crystal ,palace or the ,metropolitan ,museum8 ,knowledge does die away into reminiscence1 and then into oblivion2 and the chances are that ,liehtse's time retained reminiscences which have since become oblivion-hidden2--then rediscovered in the ,west4--,but ,i tell the tale also for a certain divergence marked in it1 between ,taoist and ,confucian thought4 ,laotse would have chuckled over it1 who brooded much on 'self-emptiness' as the first step towards illumination4 ,confucius would have allowed it2 but it would not have occurred to him1 unsuggested4 ,now here is something still further from ,confucianism2 something prophetic of later ,taoist developments1 though it still contains ,laotse's thought1 and--be it said--deep wisdom4 ,fan ,tsu ,hua was a bully and a charlatan1 who by his trickery had won such hold over the king of ,tsin that anyone he might recommend was surely advanced to office1 and anyone he cried down would lose his all4 ,so it was said he had magic to make the rich poor and the poor rich4 ,he had many disciples1 who were the terror of the peaceably disposed4 ,one day they saw an old weak man approaching1 'with weather-beaten face and clothes of no particular cut4' ,a chance for sport not to be neglected1 they thought2 and began to hustle him about in their usual fashion1 'slapping him on the back1 and what not4' ,but he--,shang ,ch'iu ,k'ai was his name--seemed only full of joy and serenity1 and heeded nothing4 ,growing tired of their fun at last1 they would make an end of it2 and led him to the top of a high cliff4 ,whoever dares throw himself over1 said one of them1 will find a hundred ounces of silver1 which certainly he had not had with him at the top1 and none of them had put there4 ,it was a wonder2 and still more a wonder his being unhurt2 but you can make chance account for most things1 and they meant to get rid of him4 ,so they brought him to the banks of the river1 saying3 ,a pearl of great price is here1 to be had for the diving4 ,in he went without a word1 and disappeared duly2 and so1 thought they1 their fun had come to a happy end4 ,but no3 as they turned to go1 up he came1 serene and smiling1 and scrambled out4 ,well2 did you find the pearl8 they asked4 ,oh yes1 said ,shang2 it was just as your honors said4 ,he showed it to them2 and it was indeed a pearl of great price4 ,here was something beyond them2 the old man1 clearly1 was a favorite of ,fortune2 ,fan their master himself must deal with him4 ,so they sent word ahead1 and brought him to the palace of ,fan4 ,who understood well the limitations of quack magic3 if he was to be beaten at these tricks1 where would his influence be8 ,so he heaped up riches in the courtyard1 and made a great fire all round4--,anyone can have those things1 he announced1 who will go in and get them4 ,shang quietly walked through the flames1 and came out with his arms full2 not a hair of his head was singed4 ,and now they were filled with consternation2 they had been making a mock of ,tao these years2 and here evidently was a real ,master of ,tao1 come to expose them4--,sir1 they said1 we did not know that you posessed the ,secret1 and were playing you tricks4 ,we insulted you1 unaware that you were a divine man4 ,but you have leaped from the cliff1 dived into the ,yellow ,river1 and walked through the flames without injury2 you have shown us our stupidity1 blindness1 and deafness4 ,we pray you to forgive us1 and to reveal to us the ,secret4 ,he looked at them in blank amazement4--,what is this you are telling me8 said he4 ,i am only old ,shang ,ch'iu ,k'ai the peasant4 ,i heard that you1 ,sir1 by your magic could make the poor rich4 ,i wanted to be rich1 so ,i came to you4 ,i believed in you absolutely1 and in all your disciples said2 and so my mind was made one2 ,i forgot my body2 ,i saw nothing of cliffs or fire or water4 ,but now you say you were decieving me1 my soul returns to its perplexity1 and my eyes and ears to their sight and hearing4 ,what terrible dangers ,i have escaped6 ,my limbs freeze with horror to think of them4 ,tsai ,wo1 continues ,liehtse1 told this story to ,confucius4--,is this so strange to you8 said the latter4 ,the man of perfect faith can move heaven and earth1 and fly to the six cardinal points without hindrance4 ,his powers are not confined to walking in perilous places and passing through water and fire4 ,if ,shang ,ch'iu ,k'ai1 whose motive was greed and whose belief was false1 found no obstacle in external things1 how much more certainly will it be so when the motive is pure and both parties sincere8 ,i will finish it with what is really another of ,liehtse's stories1--also dealing with a man who walked through fire uninjured1 unconscious of it because of the one-pointedness of his mind4 ,the incident came to the ears of ,marquis ,wen of ,wei1 who spoke to ,tsu ,hsia1 a disciple of ,confucius1 about it4--,from what ,i have heard the ,master say1 said ,tsu ,hsia1 the man who achieves harmony with ,tao enters into close relations with outer objects1 and none of them has power to harm or hinder him4--,why1 my friend1 said the ,marquis1 cannot you do all these marvels8--,i have not yet succeeded1 said ,tsu ,hsia1 in cleansing my heart from impurities and discarding brainmind wisdom4--,and why1 said the ,marquis1 cannot the ,master himself 7,confucius1 of course7 perform such feats8--,the ,master1 said ,tsu ,hsia1 is able to perform them2 but he is also able to refrain from performing them4--which1 again1 he was4 ,here is another example3 ,hui ,yang went to visit ,prince ,k'ang of ,sung4 ,the prince1 however1 stamped his foot1 rasped his throat1 and said angrily3-- ,the things ,i like are courage and strength4 ,i am not fond of your good and virtuous people4 ,what can a stranger like you have to teach me8 ,i have a secret1 said ,hui ,yang1 whereby my opponent1 however brave or strong1 can be prevented from harming me either by thrust or blow4 ,would not ,your ,highness care to know that secret8 ,capital6 said the ,prince2 that is certainly something ,i should like to hear about4 ,true1 said ,hui yang1 when you render his stabs or blows ineffectual1 you cover your opponent with shame4 ,but my secret will make him1 however brave or strong1 afraid to stab or strike at all4 ,better still1 said the ,prince2 let me hear about it4 ,it is all very well for him to be afraid to do it4 said ,hui ,yang2 but that does not imply he has no will to do it4 ,now1 my secret would deprive him even of the will4 ,better and better1 said ,prince ,k'ang2 ,i beseech you to reveal it to me4 ,yes1 said ,hui ,yang2 but this not having the will to injure does not necessarily connote a desire to love and do good4 ,but my secret is one whereby every man1 woman1 and child in the empire shall be inspired with the friendly desire to love and do good to each other4 ,this is much better than the possession of mere courage and strength4 ,has ,your ,highness no mind to acquire such a secret as this8 ,the ,prince confessed that1 on the contray1 he was most anxious to learn it4 ,it is nothing else than the teachings of ,confucius and ,mo ,ti1 said ,hui ,yang4 ,a main idea of ,taoism--one with which the ,confucius of orthodox ,confucianism did not concern himself--is the possibility of creating within one's outer and mortal an inner and immortal self2 by subduing desire1 by sublimating away all impurities1 by concentration4 ,the seed of that ,immortality is hidden in us2 the seed of mastery of the inner and outer worlds4 ,faith is the key4 ,shang ,ch'iu ,k'ai1 whose faith had made him whole1 walked through fire4 ,whoso hath faith as a grain of mustard-seed1 said ,jesus1 can move mountains4 ,it sounds as if he had been reading the ,book of ,liehtse2 which is at pains to show how the thing is done4 ,t'ai-hsing and ,wang-wu1 the mountains1 stood not where they stand now1 but in the south of the ,chi district and north of ,ho-yang4 ,i like the tale well1 and shall tell it for its naive ,chinesity4 ,the ,simpleton of the ,north ,mountain1 an old man of ninety1 dwelt opposite to them1 and was vexed in spirit because their northern flanks blocked the way for travelers1 who had to go round4 ,so he called his family together and broached a plan4--,let us put forth our utmost strength and clear away this obstacle1 said he2 let us cut right through the mountains till we come to ,han-yin4 ,all agreed except his wife4 ,my goodman1 said she1 has not the strength to sweep away a dung-hill1 let alone such mountains as ,t'ai-hsing and ,wang-wu4 ,besides1 where will you put the earth and stones8 ,they answered that they would throw them on the promontory of ,p'o-hai4 ,so the old man1 followed by his son and grandson1 sallied forth with their pickaxes1 and began hewing away at the rocks and cutting up the soil1 and carting it away in baskets to the promontory4 ,a widow who lived near by had a little boy who1 though he was only just shedding his milk-teeth1 came skipping along to give them what help he could4 ,engrossed in their toil they never went home except once at the turn of the season4 ,the ,wise ,old ,man of the ,river-bend burst out laughing and urged them to stop4 ,great indeed is your witlessness6 said he4 ,with the poor remaining strength of your declining years you will not succeed in removing a hair's-breadth of the mountains1 much less the whole vast mass of rock and soil4 ,with a sigh the ,simpleton of the ,north ,mountain answered3--,surely it is you who are narrow-minded and unreasonable4 ,you are not to be compared with the widow's son1 despite his puny strength4 ,though ,i myself must die1 ,i shall leave my son behind me1 and he his son4 ,my grandson will beget sons in his turn1 and those sons also will have sons and grandsons4 ,with all this posterity my line will not die out2 while on the other hand the mountains will receive no increment or addition4 ,why then should ,i despair of leveling them to the ground at last8--,the ,wise ,old ,man of the ,river-bend had nothing to say in reply4 ,chinese6 ,chinese6--,from whatever angle you look at it1 it smacks of the nation that saw ,babylon fall1 and ,rome1 and may yet-- ,but look now1 at what happened4 ,there was something about the project and character of the ,simpleton of the ,north ,mountain1 that attracted the attention of the ,serpent-,brandishing deities4 ,they reported the matter to ,almighty ,god2 who was interested2 and perhaps was less patient than the simpleton4--,i do not quite know who this person translated ',almighty ,god' may be2 ,i think he figures in the ,taoist hierarchy somewhere below ,laotse and the other ,adepts4 ,at any rate he was in a position to order the two sons of ,k'ua ,o--and ,i do not know who ,k'ua ,o and his sons were-- to expedite matters4 ,so the one of them took up ,t'ai-hsing1 and the other ,wu-wang1 and transported them to the positions where they remain to this day to prove the truth of ,liehtse's story4 ,further proof3--the region between ,ts'i in the north and ,han in the south--that is to say1 northern ,homan--is still and has been ever since1 an unbroken plain4 ,and perhaps1 behind this naive ,chinesity1 lie grand enunciations of occult law4 4 4 4 ,i will end with what is probably ,liehtse's most famous story-- and1 from a purely literary standpoint1 his best4 ,it is worthy of ,chwangtse himself2 and ,i tell it less for its philosophy than for its fun4 ,one morning a fuel-gatherer--we may call him ,li for convenience1 though ,liehtse leaves him nameless--killed a deer in the forest2 and to keep the carcass safe till he went home in the evening1 hid it under a pile of brushwood4 ,his work during the day took him far and when he looked for the deer again1 he could not find it4 ,i must have dreamed the whole thing1 he said2--and satisfied himself with that explanation4 ,he made a verse about it as he trudged home through the woods1 and went crooning3 ,at dawn in the hollow1 beside the stream1 ,i hid the deer ,i killed in the dream2 ,at eve ,i sought for it far and near2 ,and found 'twas a dream that ,i killed the deer4 ,he passed the cottage of ,yen the woodman--,yen we may call him1 though ,liehtse calls him nothing4--who heard the song1 and pondered4 ,one might as well take a look at the place1 thought he2 it seemed to him it might be such and such a hollow1 by such and such a stream4 ,thither he went1 and found the pile of brushwood2 ,it looked to him a likely place enough to hide a deer under4 ,he made search1 and there the carcass was4 ,he took it home and explained the matter to his wife4 ,once upon a time1 said he1 a fuel-gatherer dreamed he had killed a deer and forgotten where he had hidden it4 ,now ,i have got the deer1 and here it is2 so his dream came true1 in a way4--,rubbish6 she answered4 ,it was you must have dreamed the fuel-gatherer and his dreim4 ,you must have killed the deer yourself1 since you have it there2 but where is your fuel-gatherer8 ,that night ,li dreamed again2 and in his dream saw ,yen fetch the deer from its hiding-place and bring it home4 ,so in the morning he went to ,yen's house and there1 sure enough1 the deer was4 ,they argued the matter out1 but to no purpose4 ,then they took it before the magistrate1 who gave judgment as follows3 ,the plaintiff began with a real deer and an alleged dream2 and now comes forward with a real dream and an alleged deer4 ,the defendant has the deer the plaintiff dreamed1 and wants to keep it4 ,according to his wife1 however1 the plaintiff and the deer are both but figments of the defendant's dream4 ,meanwhile1 there is the deer2 which you had better divide between you4 ,the case was reported to the ,prince of ,cheng1 whose opinion was that the magistrate had dreamed the whole story1 himself4 ,but his ,prime ,minister said3 ,if you want to distinguish between dream and waking1 you would have to go back to the ,yellow ,emperor or ,confucius4 ,as both are dead1 you had better uphold the magistrate's decision4 99 ------ 99 ,the tale is told both in ,dr4 ,lionel ,giles's translation mentioned above1 and also1 with verbal differences1 in ,dr4 ,h4 ,a4 ,giles's work on ,chinese ,literature4 ,the present telling follows now one1 now the other version1 now goes its own way2-- and pleads guilty to adding the verse the woodman crooned4 ------ ,,xiii4 ,,mang ,,the ,,philosopher1 ,,and ,,butterfly ,,chwang ,liehtse's tale of the ,dream and the ,deer leads me naturally to this characteristic bit from ,chwangtse399-- ,once upon a time1 ,i1 ,chwangtse1 dreamed ,i was a butterfly fluttering hither and thither2 to all intents and purposes a veritable butterfly4 ,i followed my butterfly fancies1 and was unconscious of my individuality as a man4 ,suddenly ,i awoke1 and there ,i lay1 a man again4 ,now how am ,i to know whether ,i was then1 ,chwangtse dreaming ,i was a butterfly1 or whether ,i am now a butterfly dreaming ,i am ,chwang8 ------ 99 ,which1 like nearly all the other passages from him in this lecture1 is quoted from ,dr4 ,h4 ,a4 ,giles's ,chinese ,literature1 in the ,literatures of the ,world series2 ,new ,york1 ,appleton4 ------ ,for which reason he is1 says ,dr4 ,giles1 known to this day as ,butterfly ,chwang2 and the name is not all inappropriate4 ,he flits from fun to philosophy1 and from philosoply to fun1 as if they were dark rose and laughing pansy2 when he has you in the gravest depths of wisdom and metaphysic1 he will not be content till with a flirt of his wings and an aspect gravely solemn he has you in fits of laughter again4 ,his is really a book that belongs to world-literature2 as good reading1 for us now1 as for any ancient ,chinaman of them all4 ,i think he worked more strenuously in the field of sheer intellect--stirred the thought stuff more--than most other ,chinese thinkers1--and so is more akin to the ,western mind2 he carves his cerebrations more definitely1 and leaves less to the intuition4 ,the great lack in him is his failure to appreciate ,confucius2 and to explain that1 before ,i go further with ,butterfly ,chwang1 ,i shall take a glance at the times he lived in4 ,they were out of joint when ,confucius came2 they were a couple of centuries more so now4 ,still more was the ,tiger stalking abroad3 there were two or three tigers in particular1 among the ,great ,powers1 evidentlv crouching for a spring--that should settle things4 ,time was building the funeral pyre for the ,phoenix1 and building it of the debris of ruined worlds4 ,in the early sixth century1 the best minds were retiring in disgust to the wilds2--you remember the anchorite's rebuke to ,tse-,lu4 ,but now they were all coming from their retirement--the most active minds1 whether the best or not--to shout their nostrums and make confusion worse confounded4 ,all sorts of socialisms were in the air1 raucously bellowed by would-be reformers4 ,a loud barbarian from the south 7as ,mencius called him--,i do not know who he was7 was proclaiming that property should be abolished1 and all goods held in common4 ,one ,yang ,chu was yelling universal egoism3 ,let us eat and drink1 for tomorrow we die4 ,against him1 one ,mo ,ti had been preaching universal altruism2--but ,i judge1 not too sensibly1 and without appeal to philosophy or mysticism4 ,thought of all kinds was in a ferment1 and the world filled with the confused noise of its expression2 clear voices were needed1 to restate the message of the ,teachers of old4 ,then ,mencius arose to speak for ,confucius in this ,china so much further progressed along the ,gadarene road4 ,a strong and brilliant man1 he took the field strongly and brilliantly1 and filled the courts of dukes and kings with a roll of ,confucian drums4 ,confucius1 as ,i have tried to show you1 had all ,mysticism divinely behind and backing him1 though he said little about it2 ,mencius1 ,i think1 had none4 ,mencius remade a ,confucius of his own1 with the mystical elements lacking4 ,he saw in him only a social reformer and teacher of ethics2 and it is the easiest thing in the world to see ,confucius only through ,mencian spectacles4 ,i would not fall into the mistake of undervaluing ,mencius4 ,he was a very great man2 and the work he did for ,china was enormous1 and indispensable4 ,you may call him something between the ,st4 ,paul and the ,constantine of ,confucianism4 ,unlike ,constantine1 he was not a sovereign1 to establish the system2 but he hobnobbed with sovereigns1 and never allowed them to think him their inferior2 and it was he who made of ,confucianism a system that could be established4 ,unlike ,st4 ,paul1 he did not develop the inner side of his ,master's teachings2 but he so popularized them as to ensure their triumph4 ,he took the ideas of ,confucius1 such of them as lay within his own statesmanlike and practical scope of vision1 restated and formulated them1 and made of them what became the ,chinese ,constitution4 ,a brave and honest thinker1 essentially a man of action in thought1 he never consciously deteriorated or took away from ,confucius' doctrine4 ,it is more as if some great ,president or ,prime ,minister1 at some future time1 should suddenly perceive that ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky had brought that which would save his nation2 and proceed to apply that saving thing1 as best he might1 in the field of practical politics and reform--or rather to restate it in such a way that 7according to his view7 it might be applied4 ,he put the constituents parts of society in order of importance as follows3 the ,people2 the ,gods2 the ,sovereign3 and this has been a cardinal principle in ,chinese polity4 ,he saw clearly that the ,chow dynasty could never be revived2 and arrived at the conclusion that a dynasty was only sacred while it retained the mandate of heaven4 ,chow had lost that2 and therefore it was within the rights of ,heaven1 as you may say1 to place its mandate elsewhere2--and within the rights of the subject--as the logic of events so clearly proved ,chow had lost the mandate--to rebel4 ,confucius had hoped to revivify ,chow--had begun with that hope1 at any rate3 ,mencius hoped to raise up some efficient sovereign who should overturn ,chow4 ,the ,right of ,rebellion1 thus taught by him1 is another fundamental ,chinese principle4 ,it works this way3 if there was discontent1 there was misrule2 and it was the fault of the ruler4 ,if the latter was a local magistrate1 or a governor1 prefect1 or viceroy1 you had but to make a demonstration1 normally speaking1 before his yamen3 this was technically a 'rebellion' within ,mencius' meaning2 and the offending authority must report it to ,pekin1 which then commonly replaced him with another4 7,it would get to ,pekin's ears anyway2 so you had better--and ususally did--report it yourself47 ,if the offender was the ,son of ,heaven1 with all his dynasty involved-- why1 then one had to rebel in good earnest2 and it was to be supposed that if ,heaven had really given one a mandate1 one would win4 ,the effect was that1 although nominally absolute1 very few emperors have dared or cared to fly quite in the face of ,confucius1 or ,mencius1 of their religio-political system1 of the ,board of ,censors whose business it was to criticize the ,throne1 and of a vast opinion4 ,there was the tradition an emperor ruled for the people4 ,the office of ruler was divine2 the man that held it was kept an impersonality as much as possible4 ,he changed his name on coming to the throne1 and perhaps several times afterwards3 thus we speak of the great emperors ,han ,wuti and ,tang ,taitsong2 who might1 however1 be called more exactly1 ,liu ,ch'e1 who was emperor during the period ,wuti of the ,han ,dynasty2 ,li ,shihmin1 who filled the throne during the ,t'ang period called ,taitsong4 ,again1 there was the great idea1 ,confucio-,mencian1 that the son of ,heven must be 'compliant'3 leading rather than driving4 ,he promulgated edicts1 but they were never rigidly enforced2 a certain voluntaryism was allowed as to the carrying out of them3 if one of them was found unsuccessful1 or not to command popular approval1 another could be--and was--issued to modify or change it4 ,so that the whole system was far removed from what we think of as an ',oriental ,despotism'2 on the contrary1 there was always a large measure of freedom and self-government4 ,you began with the family3 the head of that was its ruler1 and responsible for order in his little realm4 ,but he governed by consent and affection1 not by force4 ,each village-community was self-governing2 the headman in it taking the place of the father in the family2 he was responsible for order1 so it was his business to keep the people happy2--and the same principle was extended to fit the province1 the viceroyalty1 the empire4 ,further1 there was the absence of any aristocracy or privileged class2 and the fact that all offices were open to all ,chinamen 7actors excepted7--the sole key to open it being merit1 as attested by competitive examinations4 ,the system is ,mencian2 the inspiration behind it from ,confucius4 ,it is the former's working out of the latter's superb idea of the li4 ,the ,mencian system has broken down1 and been abolished4 ,it had grown old1 outworn and corrupt4 ,but it was established a couple of centuries before that of ,augustus1 and has been subject to the same stress of time and the cycles2 and only broke down the other day4 ,time will wear out anything made by man4 ,there is no garment1 but the body will out-grow or out-wear it2 no body1 but the soul will outlive it and cast it away4 ,mencius1 inspired by his ,master ,confucius1 projected a system that time took two thousand years and more to wear out in ,china4 ,it was one that did much or everything to shield the people from tyranny4 ,whether a better system has been devised1 ,i do not know2 but should say not--in historical times4 ,as to the inspiration behind it--well1 lest you should doubt the value of ,confucius1 compare the history of ,europe with that of ,china4 ,we have disproportioned ideas1 and do not see these things straight4 ,the ,chinese ,empire was founded some two centuries before the ,roman3 both composed of heterogeneous elements4 ,both1 after about four centuries1 fell2 but ,china1 after about four centuries more1 came together and was great again4 ,fifteen hundred years after ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti had founded ,china1 her manvantara then having ended1 and her whole creative cycle run through1 she fell to the ,mongols4 ,fifteen hundred years after ,julius ,caesar had founded his empire1 the last wretched remnant of it fell to the ,turks4 ,but ,china first compelled her conquerors to behave like ,chinamen1 and then1 after a century1 turned them out4 ,the ,turks never became ,greek or ,roman1 and so far have not quite been turned out4 ,the roman empire disappeared1 and never reunited2--that is what has been the matter with ,europe ever since4 ,europe1 in her manvantara1 has wasted three parts of her creative force in wars and disunion4 ,but ,china1 even in her pralaya1 became a strong1 united power again under the ,mings 7#acfh-afdd7--the first of them--a native dynasty4 ,conquered again1 now by the ,manchus1 she mader her conquerors behave like ,chinamen1--imposed on them her culture2--and went forth under their banners to conquer4 ,the ,european pralaya 7#fcj-abdj7 was a time barren of creation in art and literature1 and in life uttterly squalid and lightless ,the ,chinese pralaya1 after the ,mongol ,conquest1 took a very long time to sink into squalidity4 ,the arts1 which had died in ,europe long before ,rome fell1 lived on in ,china1 though with ever-waning energy1 through the ,mongol and well into the ,ming time3 the national stability1 the force of custom1 was there to carry them on4 ,what light1 what life1 what vigor was there in ,rome or ,constantinople a century and a half after ,alaric or ,heraclius8 ,but ,ming ,yunglo1 a century and a half after the fall of ,sung1 reigned in great splendor2 sent his armies conquering to the ,caspian1 and his navies to the conquest of ,ceylon1 the discovery of ,africa1 the gathering in of the tribute of the ,archipelago and the shores of the ,indian ,ocean4 ,until the end of the eighteenth century the minor arts and crafts--pottery and bronzes--of which there was nothing to speak of in ,europe in the corresponding ,european age--were flourishing wonderfully2 and in the seventeenth and eighteeenth centuries1 under ,kanghi and ,kienlung1 ,china was once more a great military power4 ,she chased and whipped the ,goorkhas down through the ,himalays and into ,india1 only twenty years before ,england fought difficult and doubtful campaigns with those fierce little mountaineers4 ,you may even say she has been better off in her pralaya1 in many ways1 and until recently1 than most of ,europe has been in most of her manvantara4 ,in ,kienlung's reign1 for example 7#agce-agie7 there were higher standards of life1 more security1 law1 and order1 than in the ,europe of ,catherine of ,russia1 ,frederick the ,great1 ,louis ,,xv and the ,revolution1 and the ,english ,georges4 ,there was far less ferment of the ,spirit1 true2 less possibility of progress2--but that is merely to say that ,china was in pralaya1 ,europe in high manvantara4 ,the explanation is that a stability had been imparted to that ,far ,eastern civilization1 which ,europe has lacked altogether2 whose history1 for all its splendid high- lights1 has had thousands of hideous shadows2 has not been so noble a thing as we tacitly and complacently assume2 but a long record of wars1 confusions1 disorder1 and cruelities1 with only dawning now the possibility of that union which is the first condition of true progress1 as distinguished from the riot of material inventions and political experiments that has gone by that name4--,but now1 back to ,mencius again4 ,in all things he tried to follow ,confucius2 beginning early by being born in the latter's own district of ,tsow in ,shantung1 and having a woman in ten thousand for his mother2--she has been the model held up to all ,chinese mothers since4 ,he grew up strong in body and mind1 thoughtful and fearless2 a tireless student of history1 poetry1 national institutions1 and the lives of great men4 ,like ,confucius1 he opened a school1 and gathered disciples about him3 but there was never the bond of love here1 that there had been between ,confucius and ,tse ,lu1 ,yen ,huy1 and the others4 ,these may have heard from their ,master the pure deep things of ,theosophy2 one would venture the statement that none of ,mencius' following heard the like from him4 ,he saw in ,confucius that which he himself was fitted to be1 and set out to become4 ,he went from court to court1 and everywhere1 as a great scholar1 was received with honor4 7,you will note as one more proof of an immemorial culture1 that then1 as now the scholar1 as such1 was at the very top of the social scale4 ,there was but one word for scholar and official47--,he proposed1 like ,confucius1 that some king should make him his minister2 and like ,confucius1 he was always disappointed4 ,but in him we come on none of the soft lights and tones that endear ,confucius to us2 he fell far short of being ,such a ,one4 ,a clear1 bold mind1 without atmosphere1 with all its lines sharply defined4444 he made free to lecture the great ones of the earth1 and was very round with them1 even ridiculing them at his pleasure4 ,he held the field for ,confucius--not the ,taoist1 but the ,mencian ,confucius--against all comers2 smote ,yang ,chu the ,egotist hip and thigh2 smote gentle ,mo ,ti1 the ,altruist2 preached fine and practical ethics2 and had no patience with those dreamers of the ,house of ,laotse4--,a man sent from the ,gods1 ,i should say1 to do a great work2 even though-- ,and then there was that dreamer of dreams1 of ,butterfly dreams1-- subtle mystical humorous ,chwangtse3 how could it be otherwise than that clear-minded clarion-throated ,philosopher ,mang should afford him excellent play8 ,philosopher ,mang 7,philosopher of the ,second ,class1 so officially entitled71 in the name of his ,master ,k'ung ,ch'iu1 fell foul of ,dreamer ,chwang2 how could it be otherwise than that ,dreamer ,chwang should aim his shafts1 not a ,mang merely1 but 7alas67 at the one whose name was always on ,mang's lips8--,confucius says1 ,confucius says1 ,confucius says-- cries ,philosopher ,mang4--,oh hang your ,confucius6 thinks ,chwang the ,mystic2 let us have a little of the silence and splendor of the ,within6 7,well1 ,confucius would have said the same thing1 ,i think47 ,let me tell you a tale1 says ,chwang2 and straight goes forward with it4 ,it was the time of the autumn floods4 ,every stream poured into the river1 which swelled in its turbid course4 ,the banks were so far apart that from one to the other you could not tell a cow from a horse4 ,then the ,spirit of the ,river laughed for joy that all the beauty of the earth was gathered to himself4 ,down with the current he journeyed east1 until he reached the ,ocean4 ,there looking eastward1 and seeing no limit to its expanse of waves1 his countenance changed4 ,as he gazed out1 he sighed1 and said to the ,spirit of the ,ocean3 ',a vulgar proverb says that he who has heard but a part of the truth thinks no one equal to himself4 ,such a one am ,i4 ',when formerly ,i heard people detracting from the learning of ,confucius1 or underrating the heroism of ,po ,i4 ,i did not believe4 ,but now that ,i have looked on your inexhaustibility-- alas for me had ,i not reached your abode6 ,i should have been forever a laughing-stock to those of comprehensive enlightenment4' ,to which the ,spirit of the ,ocean answered3 ',you cannot speak of ocean to a well-frog1--the creature of a narrower sphere4 ,you cannot speak of ice to a summer insect1--the creature of a season4 ,you cannot speak of ,tao to a pedant2 his scope is too restricted4 ,but now that you have emerged from your narrow sphere1 and have seen the great sea1 you know your own insignificance1 and ,i can speak of great principles4 ,have you never heard of the ,frog of the ,old ,well8 ,the ,frog said to the ,turtle of the ,eastern ,sea1 ',happy indeed am ,i6 ,i hop on the rail around the well4 ,i rest in the hollow of some broken brick4 ,swimming1 ,i gather the water under my arms and shut my mouth tight4 ,i plunge into the mud1 burying my feet and toes4 ,not one of the cockles1 crabs1 or tadpoles ,i see around me is my match4 ,why do you not come1 ,sir1 and pay me a visit8' ,now the ,turtle of the ,eastern ,sea had not got its left leg down ere its right leg had stuck fast1 so it shrank back and begged to be excused4 ,it then described the sea1 saying1 ',a thousand leagues would not measure its breadth1 nor a thousand fathoms its depth4 ,in the days of ,yu the ,great there were nine years of flood out of ten2 but this did not add to its contents4 ,in the days of ,t'ang there were seven years of drought out of eight1 but this did not narrow its span4 ,not to be affected by volume of water1 not to be affected by duration of time--this is the happiness of the ,eastern ,sea4' ,at this the ,frog of the ,old ,well was considerably astonished1 and knew not what to say next4 ,and for one whose knowledge does not reach to the positive-negative domain the attempt to understand me is like a mosquito trying to carry a mountain1 or an ant to swim the ,yellow ,river1--they cannot succeed4 ,if ,chwangtse had lived before ,mencius1 or ,mencius after ,chwangtse1 ,chwangtse could have afforded to see ,confucius in his true light1 as ,liehtse did2 but the power and influence of the mind of ,mencius were such that in his time there was no looking at the ,master except through his glasses4 ,we do not know what happened when ,laotse and ,confucius met2 but ,i suspect it was very like what happened when ,mr4 ,judge met ,madame ,blavatsky4 ,but ,butterfly ,chwang1 the rascal1 undertook to let us know2 and wrote it out in full4 ,he knew well enough what would happen if he met ,mencius2 and took that as his model4 ,he wanted ,mencius to know it too4 ,he itched to say to him1 ,put away1 sir1 your flashy airs1 and the rest2 and so made ,laotse say it to ,confucius4 ,it shows how large ,philosopher ,mang had come to loom1 that anyone could attribute flashy airs to that great-hearted simple ,gentleman ,k'ung ,ch'iu4 ,one thing only ,i believe in about that interview3 ,confucius' reputed speech on coming forth from it to his disciples3--,there is the ,dragon2 ,i do not know how he mounts upon the wind and rises about the clouds4 ,today ,i have seen ,laotse1 and can only compare him to the ,dragon4 ,he would have said that2 it has definite meaning2 the ,dragon was the symbol of the spirit1 and so universally recognised4--,confucius appears to have taken none of his disciples into the ,library2 and ,confucianist writers have had nothing to say about the incident1 except that it occurred1 ,i believe4 ,chwangtse1 and all ,taoist writers after him1 show ,confucius taking his rating very quietly2--as indeed1 he would have done1 had ,laotse been in a mood for quizzing4 ,for ,confucius never argued or pressed his opinions2 where his words were not asked for and listened to1 he retired4 ,but it is not possible the recognition should have been other than mutual3 the great ,laotse would have known a ,man when he saw him4 ,i like the young imperturbable ,k'ung ,jung1 precocious ten-year-old of some seven centuries later4 ,his father took him up to the capital when the ,dragon ,statesman ,li ,ying was the height of his power2 and the boy determined on gaining an interview with ,li4 ,he got admission to the latter's house by claiming blood-relationship4 ,asked by the great man wherein it lay1 says he very sweetly3 ,your ancestor ,laotse and my ancestor ,confucius were friends engaged in the search for truth2 may we not then be said to be of the same family8-- ,cleverness in youth1 sneered a bystander1 does not mean brilliancy in later life4--,you1 ,sir1 says ,ten-years-old1 turning to him1 must have been a very remarkable boy4 99 ------- 99 ,giles3 ,chinese ,literature4 ------- ,the truth is1 both ,mencius and ,chwangtse stood a step lower and nearer this world than had the two they followed3 whose station had been on the level platform at the top of the altar4 ,but ,mencius descending had gone eastward2 ,chwangtse towards the west4 ,he was all for getting at the ,mean1 the ,absolute ,life1 beyond the pairs of opposites2--which is1 indeed1 the central ,chinese thought1 ,confucian or ,taoist1 the raison d'etre of ,chinese longevity1 and the saving health of ,china4 ,but unfortunately he --,chwangtse--did not see that his own opposite1 ,philosopher ,mang1 was driving him an inch or two away from the ,middle ,line4 ,so1 with a more brilliant mind 7a cant phrase that67 he stands well below ,laotse2 just as ,mencius stands below ,k'ung ,ch'iu4 ,the spiritual down-breathing had reached a lower plane3 soon the manvantara was to begin1 and the ,crest-,wave to be among the black-haired ,people4 ,for all these ,teachers and ,half-,teachers were but early swallows and forerunners4 ,laotse and ,confucius had caught the wind at its rising1 on the peaks where they stood very near the ,spirit2 ,chwangtse and ,mangtse caught it in the region of the intellect3 the former in his wild valley1 the latter on his level prosaic plain4 ,they are both called more daring thinkers than their predecessors2 which is merely to say that in them the ,spirit figured more on the intellectual1 less on its own plane4 ,they were lesser men1 of course4 ,mencius had lost ,confucius' spirituality2 ,chwangtse1 ,i think1 something of the sweet sanifying influence of ,laotse's universal compassion4 ,well1 now3 three little tales from ,chwangtse1 to illustrate his wit and daring2 and after then1 to the grand idea he bequeathed to ,china4 ,chwangtse one day saw an empty skull1 bleached1 but still preserving its shape4 ,striking it with his riding-whip1 he said3 ',was thou once some ambitious citizen whose inordinate yearnings brought him to this pass8--some statesman who plunged his country in ruin1 and perished in the fray8--some wretch who left behind him a legacy of shame8--some beggar who died in the pangs of hunger and cold8 ,or didst thou reach this state by the natural course of old age8' ,he took the skull home1 and slept that night with it under his head for a pillow1 and dreamed4 ,the skull appeared to him in his dream1 and said3 ',you speak well1 ,sir2 but all you say has reference to the life of mortals1 and to mortal troubles4 ,in death there are none of these things4 ,would you like to hear about death8' ,cwangtse1 however1 was not convinced1 and said3 ',were ,i to prevail upon ,god to let your body be born again1 and your bones and flesh be renewed1 so that you could return to your parents1 to your wife and to the friends of your youth--would you be willing8' ,at this the skull opened its eyes wide and knitted its brows and said3 ',how should ,i cast aside happiness greater than that of a king1 and mingle once again in the toils and troubles of mortality8' ,here is the famous tale of the ,grand ,augur and the ,pigs3-- ,the ,grand ,augur1 in his ceremonial robes1 approached the shambles and thus addressed the ,pigs3-- ',why1' said he1 'should you object to die8 ,i shall fattan you for three months4 ,i shall discipline myself for ten days and fast for three4 ,i shall strew fine grass1 and place you bodily upon a carved sacrificial dish4 ,does not this satisfy you8 ',yet perhaps after all1' he continued1 speaking from the pigs' point of view1 'it is better to live on bran and escape the shambles444 ',no1' said he2 speaking from his own point of view again4 ',to enjoy honor when alive one would readily die on a war-shield or in the haeadsman's basket4' ,so he rejected the pigs' point of view and clung to his own4 ,in what sense1 then1 was he different from the pigs8 ,and here1 the still more famous tale of the ,sacred ,tortoise3-- ,chwantse was fishing in the river ,p'u when the ,prince of ,ch'u sent two high officials to ask him to take charge of the administration4 ,chwangtse went on fishing1 and without turning his head said3 ',i have heard that in ,ch'u there is a sacred tortoise which has been dead now some three thousand years4 ,and that the prince keeps this tortoise carefully enclosed in a chest on the altar of his ancestral temple4 ,now if this tortoise had its choice1 which would it prefer3 to be dead1 and have its remains venerated2 or to be alive1 and wagging its tail in the mud8' ',sir1' replied the two officials1 'it would rather be alive1 and wagging its tail in the mud4' ',begone6' cried ,chwangtse4 ',i too will wag my tail in the mud6' ,well2 so much for ,butterfly2 now for ,chwang--and to introduce you to some of his real thought and teaching4 ,you will not have shot so wide of the mark as to see in his story of the skull traces of pessimism3 ,chwantse had none of it2 he was a very happy fellow2 like the policeman in the poem1 44444a merry genial wag ,who loved a mad conceit4 ,but he was by all means and anyhow for preaching the ,inner as against the outer4 ,yet he did not dismiss this world1 either1 as a vain delusion and sorrowful mockery2--the gist of his teaching is this3 that men bear a false relation to the world2 and he desired to teach the true relation4 ,he loved the ,universe1 and had a sublime confidence in it as the embodiment and expression of ,tao2 and would apply this thought as a solvent to the one false thing in it3 the human personality1 with its heresy of separateness4 ,dissolve that1--and it is merely an idea2 in the words of a modern philosopher1 all in the mind1--and you have the one true elixir flowing in your veins1 the universal harmony2 are part of the solemn and glorious pageant of the years4 ,the motions of the heavenly bodies1 the sweetness of ,spring and the wistfulness of ,autumn1 flaunting ,summer and ,winter's beauty of snow--all are parcel of yourself1 and within the circle of your consciousness4 ,often he rises to a high poetic note2--it is largely the supreme beauty of his style which keeps his book1 so thouroughly unorthodox1 still alive and wagging its tail among his countrymen4 ,chwangtse will not help you through the examinations2 but he is mighty good to read when your days of competing are over2 as ,i think it is ,dr4 ,giles who says4 ,like his contemporary ,diogenes1 he would have his dead body cast out to the vultures2 but the spirit of his wish was by no means cynical4 ,when ,chwangtse was about to die1 he writes 7anticipating things pleasantly71 his disciples expressed a wish to give him a splendid funeral4 ,but he said3 ',with heaven and earth for my coffin and shell1 and the sun1 moon1 and stars for my burial regalia2 with all creation to escort me to the grave-- is not my funeral already prepared8' ,he speaks of the dangers of externalism1 even in the pursuit of virtue2 then says3 ,the man who has harmony within1 though he sit motionless like the image of a dead man at a sacrifice1 yet his ,dragon ,self will appear2 though he be absorbed in silence1 his thunder will be heard2 the divine power in him will be at work1 and heaven will follow it2 while he abides in tranquillity and inaction1 the myriads of things and beings will gather under his influence4--,not to run counter to the natural bias of things1 he says1 is to be perfect4 ,it is by this running counter--going aginst the ,law1 following our personal desires and so forth1--that we create karma1--give the ,universe something to readjust1--and set in motion all our troubles4 ,he who fully understands this1 by storing it within enlarges the heart1 and with this enlargement brings all creation to himself4 ,such a man will bury gold on the hillside1 and cast pearls into the sea4-- sink a plummet into that1 ,i beseech you2 it is one of the grand utterances of wonder and wisdom4--,he will not struggle for wealth or strive for fame2 rejoice over longevity1 or grieve at an early death4 ,he will get no elation from success1 nor chagrin from failure2 he will not account the throne his private gain1 no look on the empire of the world as glory personal4 ,his glory is to know that all thigns are one1 and life and death but phases of the same existence4 ,why call that about burying gold and casting pearls into the sea one of the supreme utterances8--,well2 ,chwangtse has a way of putting a whole essay into a sentence2 this is a case in point4 ,we have discussed ,natural ,magic together many times2 we know how the ultimate beauty occurs when something human has flowed out into ,nature1 and left its mysterious trace there1 upon the mountains1 or by the river-brink1 ,by paved fountain1 or by rushy brook4 ,or on the beached margent of the sea4 ,tu ,fu saw in the blues and purples of the morning-glory the colors of the silken garments of the lost poet ,ssema ,hsiangju1 of a thousand years before--that is1 of the silken garments of his rich emotion and adventures4 ,china somehow has understood this deep connexion between man and ,nature2 and that it is human thought molds the beauty and richness1 or hideousness and sterility of the world4 ,are the mountains noble8 ,they store the grandeur and aspirations of eighteen millions of years of mankind4 ,are the deserts desolate and terrible8 ,it was man made the deserts3 not with his hands1 but with his thought4 ,man is the fine workshop and careful laboratory wherein ,nature prepares the most wonderful of her wonders4 ,it is an instinct for this truth that makes ,chinese poetry the marvel that it is4--,so the man of ,tao is enriching the natural world3 filling the hills with gold1 putting pearls in the sea4 ,i do not know where there is a more pregnant passage than this following1--a better acid 7of words7 to corrode the desperate metal of selfhood2 listen well1 for each clause is a volume4 ,can one get ,tao to possess it for one's own8 asks ,chwangtse2 and answers himself thus3 ,your very body is not your own2 how then should ,tao be8--,if my body is not my own1 whose is it1 pray8--,it is the delegated image of ,god4 ,your posterity is not your own2 it is the delegated exuviae of ,god4 ,you move1 but know not how2 you are at rest1 but know not why2 you taste1 but know not the cause2 these are the operations of universal law4 ,how then should you get ,tao so as to possess it for your own8 ,now then1 ,i want to take one of those clauses1 and try to see what ,chwangtse really meant by it4 ,your individuality is not your own1 but the delegated adaptability of ,god4--,there is a certain position in the ,scheme of ,things ,entire1--a point1 with a relation of its own to the rest of the ,scheme1 to the ,universe2-- as the red line has a relation of its own to the rest of the spectrum and the ray of light as a whole44444 ,from that point1 from that position1 there is a work to be done1 which can be done from no other4 ,the ,lonely ,eternal looks out through these eyes1 because it must see all things2 and there are things no eyes can see but these1 no other hands do4 ,this point is an infinitesimal part of the whole2 but without its full and proper functioning1 the ,whole falls short in that much3--because of your or my petty omissions1 the ,universe limps and goes lame4--,into this position1 as into all others impartially1 the ,one ,life which is ,tao flows1 adapting itself through aeons to the relations which that point bears to the ,whole3 and the result and the process of this adaptation is--your individuality or mine4 ,you are not the point1 the position3 because it is merely that which you hold and through which you function2 it is yours1 but not you4 ,what then are you8 ,that which occupies and adapts itself to the point8 ,but that is ,tao1 the ,universal4 ,you can only say it is you1 if from you you subtract all you-ness4 ,your individuality1 then1 is a temporary aspect of ,tao in a certain relation to the totality of ,tao1 the ,one ,thing which is the ,no ,thing3--or it is the delegated adaptability of ,god4 ,how and wherein adaptable8--,the ,infinite1 occupying this position1 has formed therein all sorts of attachments and dislikes2 and each one of them hinders it adaptability4 ,your surroundings have reflected themselves on you3 and the sum of the reflexions is your personality1--the little cage of ,i-am-ness from which it is so hard to escape4 ,every reflected image engraves itself on the stuff of yourself by the sensation of attachment or repulsion which it arouses4 ,when it says1 ,the ,one becomes the ,two--which is the way in one form or another all ancient philosophy sums up the beginning of things2--this is what is meant3 the ',one' is ,tao2 the ',two' is this conditioned world1 whose nature and essence is to appear as pairs of opposites--to be attractive1 or to repel4 ,the pigs' point of view was that it was better to live on bran and escape the shambles2 the ,grand ,augur's1 that the pomp and ceremony of the sacrifice1 the public honor1 ought more than to compensate them for the momentary inconvenience of being killed4 ,opposite ways of thinking2 points of view3 which cherishing1 ,grand ,augur and pigs alike dwelt on the plane of externals2 and so there was no real difference between them4 ,when you stand for you1 and ,i for myself1 it is six of one and half a dozen of the other2 but when either of us stand for ,that which is both of us1 and all else1-- then we touch reality2 then there is no longer conflict1 or opposites2 no longer false appearances1--but the presence and cognition of the ,true4 ,here let me note what seems to me a radical superiority in ,chinese methods of thought4 ,you may take the ,bhagavad-,gita1 perhaps1 as the highest expression of ,aryan religio-philosophic thinking4 ,there we have the ,spirit1 the ,one1 shown as the self of the ,universe1 but speaking through1 and as1 ,krishna1 a human personality4 ,heaven forbid that ,i should suggest there is anthropomorphism in this4 ,still1 ,i think our finest mystical and poetic perceptions of the ,light beyond all lights do tend to crystallize themselves into the shape of a ,being2 we do tend to symbolize and figure that ,wonder as 44444 an ,individuality 44444in some indefinable splendid sort4 ,often you find real mystics1 men who have seen with their own eyes so to say1 talking about ,god1 the ,lord1 the ,great ,king1 and what not of the like2 and though you know perfectly well what they mean1 there was yet that necessity on them to use those figures of speech4 ,but in ,china1 no4 ,there1 they begin from the opposite end4 ,neither in ,laotse nor in ,confucius1 nor in their schools1 can you find a trace of personalism4 ,gods many1 yes2 as reason and common sense declare2 but nothing you can call a god is so ancient1 constant1 and eternal as ,tao1 which would appear to have been before ,god4 ,go to their poets1 and you find that the rage is all for ,beauty as the light shining through things4 ,the grass-blade and the moutain1 the moonlit water and the peony1 are lit from within and utterly adorable3 not because ,god made them2 not as reminding you of the ,topmost of any ,hierarchy of ,being2 but1 if you really go to the bottom of it1 because there is no personality in them1--and so nothing to hinder the eternal wonder1 impersonal ,tao1 from shining through4--,as if we came through our individuality to a conception of the ,divine2 but they1 through a perception of the divine1 to a right understanding of their individuality4 ,it amounts to us to fall into gross hideous anthropomorphism2 the worst of them into superstitions of their own4--,when one quotes ,chwangtse as speaking of the delegated adaptability of ,god1 one must remember that one has to use some ,english word for his totally impersonal ,tao or ,tien1 or even ,shangti1 or whatever it may be4 ,this ,tao1 you say1 something far off1--a principle in philosophy or a metaphysical idea1--may be very nice to discuss in a lecture or write poetry about2 but dear me6 between whiles we have a great deal to do1 and really--,but no6 it is actually1 as ,mohammed said1 nearer to thee than thy jugular vein4 ,it is a simple adjustment of oneself to the ,universe1--of which1 after all1 one cannot escape being a part2 it is the attainment of a true relationship to the whole4 ,what obscures and hinders that1 is simply our human brain-mind consciousness4 ,consider the lilies of the field1 that attain a perfection of beauty4 ,the thing that moves us1 or ought to move us1 in flowers1 trees1 seas and mountains1 is this3 that lacking this fretting1 gnawing sense of ,i-am-ness1 their emanations are pure ,tao1 and may reach us along the channel we call beauty3 may flood our being through the gateway of the eyes4 ,beauty is ,tao made visible4 ,the rose and peony do not feel themselves ',i1' distinct from 'you' and the rest2 they are in opposition to nothing2 they do not fall in love1 and have no aversions3 they simply worship ,heaven and are unanxious1 and so beautiful4 ,when we know this1 we see what beauty means2 and that it is not something we can afford to ignore and treat with stoic indifference or puritan dislike4 ,it is ,tao visible2 ,i call every flower an avatar of ,god4 ,now you see how ,taoism leads to poetry2 is the philosophy of poetry2 is indeed ,poetics1 rather than ,metephysics4 ,think of all the little jewels you know in ,keats1 in ,shelley1 or ,wordsworth3 the moments when the mists between those men and the divine defecated to a thin transparency2--those were precisely the moments when the poets lost sight of their ,i-am-ness and entered into true relations with the ,universe4 ,a daffodil1 every second of its life1 holds within itself all the real things poets have ever said1 or will ever say1 about it2 and can reach our souls directly with edicts from the ,dragon ,throne of the ,eternal4--,i watched the linarias yesterday1 and their purple delicacy assured me that all the filth1 all the falsehood and tragedy of the world1 should pass and be blown away2 that the garden was full of dancing fairies1 joy moving them to their dancing2 that it was my own fault if ,i could not see ,apollo leaning down out of the ,sun2 and my own fatuity1 and that alone1 if ,i could not hear the ,stars of ,morning singing together1 and all the sons of ,god shouting for you4 ,and it was the truth they were telling2 the plain1 bald1 naked truth2--they have never learned to lie1 and do not know what it means4 ,there is no sentimentalism in this2 only science4 ,we live in a ,universe absolutely soaked through with ,god1--or with ,poetry1 which is perhaps a better name for ,it2 a ,universe peopled thick with ,gods4 ,but it is all very far from our common thoughts and conceptions2 that is why it sounds to most people like sentimental nonsense and 'poetry4' ,no wonder ,plato hated that word2--since it is made a hand-grenade1 in the popular mind1 to fling at every truth4 ,and yet ,poetry 'gets in on us1' too1 occasionally1 and accomplishes for the woods and waters wild the work they cannot do for themselves2--the work they cannot do1 cause we will not look at them1 cannot see them1 and have forgotten their ancient language1 being too much immersed in a rubbishing gabble of our own4 ,what ,toism1 and especially ,chwangtse as ,i think1 did for the ,chinese was to publish the syntax and vocabulary of that ancient language2 to make people understand how to take these grand protagonists of ,tao2 how to communicate familiarly with these selfless avatars of the ,most ,high4 ,listen to this3 the thought is close-packed1 but ,i think you will follow it3-- ,the true ,sage rejects all distinction of this and that1 that is to say1 of subjective1 or that which one perceives within one's own mind and consciousness1 and objective1 or that which is perceived as existing outside of them2--he does not look upon the mountain or the daffodil as things different or apart from his own conscious being4 ,he takes his refuge in ,tao1 and places himself in subjective relations with all things2 he keeps the mountain within him2 the scent of the daffodil1 and her yellow candle-flame of beauty1 are within the sphere and circle of himself2 444the little wave of ,breffny goes stumbling through his soul4 ,hence it is said--this is ,chwangtse again--that there is nothing like the light of ,nature4 ,only the truly intelligent understand this principle of the identity of things4 ,they do not view things as apprehended by themselves1 but transfer themselves into the position of the things viewed4--,and there1 ,i may say1 you have it3 the last is the secret of the wonder-light in all ,far ,eastern ,poetry and ,art2 more1 it is the explanation of all poetry everywhere4 ,it is the doctrine1 the archeus1 the ,open ,sesame1 the thyme- and lavender- and sweetwilliam-breathed ,secret ,garden of this old wizardly ,science of ,song2--who would go in there1 and have the dark and bright blossoms for his companions1 let him understand this4 ,for ,poetry is the revelation of the ,great ,life beyond the little life of this human personality2 to tap it1 you must evict yourself from the personal self2 transfer yourself into the position of the things viewed1 and not see1 but be1 the little stumbling wave or the spray of plum-blossom1 thinking its thoughts4--,viewing things thus1 continues our ,chwangtse1 you are able to comprehend and master them4 ,so it is that to place oneself in inner relation with externals1 without consciousness of their objectivity1--this is ,tao4 ,but to wear out one's intellect in an obstinate adherence to the objectivity--the apartness--of things1 not recognizing that they are all one--this is called ,three in the ,morning4--',what do you mean by ,three in the ,morning8' asked ,tse ,yu4--',a keeper of monkeys1' ,tse ,chi replied1 'said with regard to their daily ration of chestnuts that each monkey should have three in the morning and four at night4 ,at this the monkeys were very angry2 so he said that they might have four in the morning and three at night2 whereat they were well pleased4 ,the number of nuts was the same2 but there was an adaptation to the feelings of those concerned4'-- which1 again1 means simply that to follow ,tao and dodge until it is altogether sloughed off the sense of separateness1 is to follow the lines of least resistance4 ,all these ideas are a natural growth from the teachings of ,laotse2 but ,butterfly ,chwang1 in working them out and stating them so brilliantly1 did an inestimable service to the ages that were to come4 ,,xiv4 ,,the ,,manvantara ,,opens ,laotse's ,blue ,pearl was already shining into poetry4 ,ch'u ,yuan1 the first great poet1 belongs to this same fourth century2 it is a long step from the little wistful ballads that ,confucius gathered to the wild irregular meters1 99 splendid imagery1 and be it said1 deep soul symbolism of his great poem the ,li ,sao 7,falling into ,trouble74 ,the theme of it is this3 ,from earliest childhood ,ch'u ,yuan had sought the ,tao1 but in vain4 ,at last1 banished by the prince whose minister he had been1 he retired into the wilds1 and was meditating at the tomb of ,shun in ,hupeh1 in what was then the far south4 ,there the ,phoenix and the ,dragon came to him1 and bore him aloft1 past the ,west ,pole1 past the ,milky ,way1 past even the ,source of the ,hoangho1 to the ,gates of ,heaven4 ,where1 however1 there was no admittance for him2 and full of sorrow he returned to earth4 ------ 99 ,chinese ,literature1 by ,dr4 ,h4 ,a4 ,giles4 ,what is said about the ,li ,sao here comes from that work--except the suggestions as to its inner meaning4 ------ ,on the banks of the ,mi-lo a fisherman met him1 and asked him the cause of his trouble4--,all the world is foul1 answered ,ch'u ,yuan1 and ,i alone am clean4--,if that is so1 said the fisherman1 why not plunge into the current1 and make its foulness clean with the infection of your purity8 ,the ,man of ,tao does not quarrel with his surroundings1 but adjusts himself to them4 ,ch'u ,yuan took the hint3 leaped into the ,mi-lo2--and yearly since then they have held the ,dragon-boat ,festival on the waters of ,middle ,china to commemorate the search for his body4-- ,just how much of this is in the ,li ,sao1--where the poem ends1-- ,i do not clearly gather from ,professor ,giles's account2 but the whole story appears to me to be a magnificent ,soul ,symbol3 of that ,path which leads you indeed on dragon flights to the borders of the ,infinite1 but whose end1 rightly considered1 is in this world1 and to be as it were drowned in the waters of this world1 with your cleanness infecting them to be clean1--and lighting them for all future ages with beauty1 as with little dragon-boats luminous with an inner flame4 ,ch'u ,yuan had followers in that and the next century2 but perhaps his greatness was hardly to be approached for a thousand years4 ,but we were still in ,tiger-time1 and with quite the worst of it to come4 ,here lay the ,blue ,pearl scintillating rainbows up through the heavy atmosphere2 but despite its flashing and up-fountaining those strange dying-dolphin hues and glories1 you could never have told1 in ,tiger-time1 what it really was4 ,the ,dragon was yet a long way off2 though indeed it must be allowed that flight1 when ,chwangtse wrote and ,ch'u ,yuan sung1 was surprised with the far churr of startling wings under the stars4 ,ears intent to listen were surprised2 but only for a moment2-- there was that angry howling again from the northern hills and the southern forests3 the two great ,tigers of the world face to face1 tails lashing2--and between them and in their path1 ,chow quite prone1--the helpless ,black-haired ,people trembling or chattering frivolously4 ,not for such an age as that ,chwangtse and ,ch'u ,yuan wrote1 but indeed you may say for all time4 ,what light from the ,blue ,pearl could then shine forth and be seen1 would1 in the thick fog and smoke-gloom1 take on wild fantastic guise2 which1 as we shall see1 it did3--but what ,chwangtse had written remained1 pure immortality1 to kindle up better ages to come4 ,when ,china should be ready1 ,chwangtse and the ,pearl would be found waiting for her4 ,the manvantara had not yet dawned2 but we may hurry on now to its dawning4 ,the ,crest-,wave was still in ,india when ,china plunged into the abyss from which her old order of ages never emerged4 ,soon after ,asoka came to the throne of ,magadha1 in #bhd ,b4,c41 ,su ,tai1 wise prime minister to the ,lord of ,chao1 took occasion to speak-- seriously to his royal master as to the latter's perennial little wars with ,yen499 ,this morning as ,i crossed the river1 said he1 ,i saw a mussel open its shell to the sun4 ,straight an oyster-catcher thrust in his bill to eat the mussel2 which promptly snapped the shell to and held the bird fast4--',if it doesn't rain today or tomorrow1' said the oyster-catcher1 'there'll be a dead mussel here4'--',and if you don't get out of this by today or tomorrow1' said the mussel1 'there'll be a dead oyster-catcher4' ,meanwhile up came a fisherman and carried them both off4 ,i fear ,ts'in will be our fisherman4 ------ 99 ,the tale is taken from ,dr4 ,h4,a4 ,gile's ,chinese ,literature4 ------ ,which duly came to pass4 ,even in ,liehtse's time ,ts'in characteristics were well understood3 he tells a sly story of a neighboring state much infested by robbers4 ,the king was proud of a great detective who kept them down2 but they soon killed the ,pinkerton1 and got to work again4 ,then he reformed himself1--and the robbers found his kingdom no place for them4 ,in a body they crossed the ,hoangho into ,ts'in2--and bequeathed to its policy their tendencies and aptitudes4 ,ts'in had come to be the strongest state in ,china4 ,next neighbor to the ,huns1 and half ,hun herself1 she had learned warfare in a school forever in session4 ,but she had had wise rulers also1 after their fashion of wisdom3 who had been greatly at pains to educate her in all the learning of the ,chinese4 ,so now she stood1 an armed camp of a nation1 enamored of war1 and completely civilized in all external things4 ,ts'u1 her strongest rival1 stretching southward to the ,yangtse and beyond1 had had to deal with barbarians less virile than the ,huns2 and besides1 dwelling as ,ts'u did among the mountains and forests of romance1 she had some heart in her for poetry and mysticism1 whereas ,ts'in's was all for sheer fighting4 ,laotse probably had been a ,ts'u man2 and also ,chwangtse and ,ch'u ,yuan2 and in after ages it was nearly always from the forests of ,ts'u that the great winds of poetry were blown4 ,still--he had immense territories and resources1 and the world looked mainly to her for defense against the northern ,tiger ,ts'in4 ,soon after ,su ,tai told his master the parable of the mussel and the oyster-catcher the grand clash came1 and the era of petty wars and raidings was over4 ,ts'u gathered to herself most of the rest of ,china for her allies1 and there was a giant war that fills the whole horizon1 nearly1 of the first half of the third century ,b4 ,c4 ,new territories were involved3 the world had expanded mightily since the days of ,confucius4 ,first and last1 says ,ssema ,tsien1 the allies hurled a million men against ,ts'in4 ,but to no purpose2 one nation after another went down before those ,hun-trained half-,huns from the north-west4 ,in #beg ,chau ,tsiang king of ,ts'in took the ,chow capital1 and relieved ,nan ,wang1 the last of the ,chows1 of the ,nine ,tripods of ,ta ,yu1 the symbols of his sacred sovereignty2 --the mantle of the ,caliphate passed from the ,house of ,wen ,wang and the ,duke of ,chow4 ,the world had crumbled to pieces3 there had been changes of dynasty before1 but never 7in known history7 a change like this4 ,the ,chows had been reigning nearly nine hundred years2 but their system had been in the main the same as that of the ,shangs and ,hias1 and of ,yao1 ,shun1 and ,ta ,yu3 it was two millenniums1 a century1 and a decade old4 ,a ,chinaman1 in ,chau ,tsiang's place1 would merely have reshaped the old order and set up a new feudal-pontifical house instead of ,chow2 which could not have lasted1 because old age had worn the old system out4 ,but these barbarians came in with new ideas4 ,a new empire1 a new race1 a new nation was to be born4 ,chau ,tsiang died in #bea2 and even then one could not clearly foresee what should follow4 ,in #bec he had performed the significant sacrifice to ,heaven1 a prerogative of the ,king-,pontiff3 but he had not assumed the title4 ,resistance was still in being4 ,his son and successor reigned three days only2 and his son1 another nonentity1 five years without claiming to be more than ,king of ,ts'in4 ,but when this man died in #bdf1 he left the destinies of the world in the hands of a boy of thirteen2 who very quickly showed the world in whose hands its destinies lay4 ,not now a ,king of ,ts'in2 not a ,king-,pontiff of ,chow2--not1 if you please1 a mere wang or king at all2--but ,hwangti1 like that great figure of mythological times1 the ,yellow ,emperor1 who had but to sit on his throne1 and all the world was governed and at peace4 ,the child began by assuming that astounding title3 ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti1 the ,first ,august ,emperor3 peace to the ages that were past2 let them lie in their tomb2 time now should begin again6--,childish boyish swank and braggadocio1 said the world2 but very soon the world found itself mistaken4 ,hwangti2--but no sitting on his throne in meditation1 no letting the world be governed by ,tao1 for him6 ,if you have read that delightful book ,through ,hidden ,shensi1 by ,mr4 ,f4 ,a4 ,nichols1 the city of ,hienfang1 or ,changan1 or1 by its modern name1 ,singanfu or ,sian-fu in ,shensi1 will be much more than a name to you4 ,thither it was that the ,dowager ,empress fled with her court from ,pekin at the time of the ,boxer ,rebellion2 there1 long ago1 ,han ,wuti's banners flew2 there ,tang ,taitsong reigned in all his glory and might2 there the ,banished ,angel sang in the palace gardens of ,tang ,hsuantsong the luckless3 history has paid such tribute of splendor to few of the cities of the world4 ,at ,hienfang now this barbarian boy and ,attila-,napoleon among kings built his capital2--built it right splendidly1 after such ideas of splendor as a young half-,hun might cherish4 ,for indeed1 he had but little and remote ,chinese heredity in him2 was of the race of ,attila and ,genghiz1 of ,mahmoud of ,ghazna1 ,tamerlane1 and all the world-shaking ,turkish conquerors4 --,well1 but these people1 though by nature and function destroyers1 have been great builders too3 building hugely1 monumentally1 and to inspire awe1 and not with the faery grace and ephemeral loveliness of the ,chinese2--though they learned the trick of that1 too1--as they learned in the west kindred qualities from the ,saracens4 ,grand ,pekin is of their architecture2 which is ,chinese with a spaciousness and monumental solemnity added4 ,such a capital ,ts'in ,she ,hwangti built him at ,hien fang or ,changan4 ,in the ,hall of audience of his palace within the walls he set up twelve statues1 each 7,i like this barbarian touch7 weighing twelve thousand pounds4 ,well2 we should say1 each costing so many thousand dollars2 you need not laugh2 ,i am not sure but that the young ,hun had the best of it4 ,and without the walls he built him1 too1 a ,palace of ,delight with many halls and courtyards2 in some of which 7,i like this too7 he could drill ten thousand men4 ,all of this was but the trappings and the suits of his sovereignty3 he let it be known he had the substance as well4 ,no great strategist himself1 he commanded the services of mighty generals3 one ,meng-tien in especial1 a bright particular star in the ,war-,god's firmament4 ,an early step to disarm the nations1 and have all weapons sent to ,changan2 then1 with these1 to furnish forth a great standing army1 which he sent out under ,meng-tien to conquer4 ,the ,middle ,kingdom and the quondam ,great ,powers were quieted2 then south of the ,yangtse the great soldier swept1 adding unknown regions to his master's domain4 ,then rorth and west1 till the ,huns and their like had grown very tame and wary2--and over all these realms the ,emperor spread his network of fine roads and canals1 linking them with ,changan3 what the ,romans did for ,europe in road-building1 he did for ,china4 ,he had1 of course1 a host of relatives2 and precedent loomed large to tell him what to do with them3 the precedent of the dynasty-founders of old4 ,nor were they themselves likely to have been backward in reminding him4 ,wu ,wang had come into possession of many feudal dominions1 and had made of the members of his family dukes and marquises to rule them4 ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti's empire was many times the size of ,wu ,wang's2 so he was in a much better position to reward the deserving4 ,we must remember that he was no heir to a single sovereignty1 but a ,napoleon with a ,europe at his feet4 ,ts'in and ,ts'u and ,tsin and the others were old-established kingdoms1 with as long a history behind them as ,france or ,england has now2 and that history had been filled with wars1 mutual antagonisms and hatreds4 ,chow itself was like an ,italy before ,garibaldi2--with a papacy more inept1 and holding vaguer sway3--it had been at one time the seat of empire1 and it was the source of all culture4 ,he had to deal1 then1 with a heterogeneity as pronounced as that which confronted ,napoleon2 but he was not of the stuff for which you prepare ,waterloos4 ,no one dreamed that he would treat the world other than as such a heterogeneity4 ,his relations expected to be made the ,jeromes1 ,eugenes1 and ,murats of the ,hollands1 ,spains1 and ,sicilies to hand4 ,the world could have conceived of no other way of dealing with the situation4 ,but ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti could1 very well4 ,he abolished the feudal system4 ,he abolished nationalities and national boundaries4 ,there should be no more ,ts'in and ,tsin and ,ts'u2 no more ruling dukes and marquises4 ,instead1 there should be an entirely new set of provinces1 of which he would appoint the governors1 not hereditary2 and they should be responsible to him3 promotable when good1 dismissable and beheadable on the first sign of naughtiness4 ,it was an idea of his own2 he had no foreign history to go to for models and precedents1 and there had been nothing like it in ,chinese ,history4 ,napoleon hardly conceived such a tremendous idea1 much less had he the force to carry it out4 ,even the achievement of ,augustus was smaller2 and ,augustus had before him models in the history of many ancient empires4 ,now what was the ferment behind this man's mind2--this barbarian --for so he was--of tremendous schemes and doings8 ,the answer is astonishing1 when one thinks of the crude ruthless human dynamo he was4 ,it was simply ,taoism3 it was ,laotse's ,blue ,pearl2-- but shining1 of course1 as through the heart of a very ,london ,particular of ,hunnish-barbarian fogs4 ,no subtleties of mysticism2 no ,chwangtsean spiritual and poetry-breeding ideas1 for him6--,it has fallen1 this magical ,pearl1 into turbid and tremendous waters1 a natural potential ,niagara2 it has stirred1 it has infected their vast bulk into active ,niagarahood4 ,he was on fire for the unknown and the marvelous2 could conceive of no impossible--it should go hard1 he thought1 but that the subtler worlds that interpenetrate this one should be as wonderful as this world under ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti4 ,don't argue with him2 it is dangerous6--certainly there was an ,elixir of ,life1 decantable into goblets1 from which ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti might drink and become immortal1--the ,first ,august ,emperor1 and the only one forever6 ,certainly there were those ,golden ,islands eastward1 where ,gods dispensed that nectar to the fortunate2--out in your ships1 you there1 and search the waves for them6 ,and certainly1 too1 there were ,god knew what of fairylands and paradises beyond the western desert2 out1 you ,general ,meng-tien1 with your great armies and find them6 ,he did tremendous things1 and all the while was thus dreaming wildly4 ,from the business of state he would seize hours at intervals to lecture to his courtiers on ,tao2--,i think not in a way that would have been intelligible to ,laotse or ,chwangtse4 ,those who yawned were beheaded1 ,i believe4 ,how would such a prodigy in time appear to his own age8 ,such cataclysmic wars as ,ts'in had been waging for the conquest of ,china take society first1 so to say1 upon its circumference1 smash that to atoms1 and then go working inwards4 ,the most conservative and stable elements are the last and least affected4 ,the peasant is killed1 knocked about1 transported1 enclaved2 but when the storm is over1 and he gets back to his plough and hoe and rice-field again1 sun and wind and rain and the earth-breath soothe him back to and confirm in what he was of old3 only some new definite spiritual impulse or the sweep of the major cycles can change him much1--and then the change is only modification4 ,at the other end of society you have the ,intellectuals4 ,in ,england1 ,oxford is the home and last refuge of lost causes4 ,a literary culture three times as old as modern ,oxford's1 as ,china's was then1 will be1 you may imagine1 fixed and conservative4 ,it is a mental mold petrified with age2 the minds participating must conform to it1 solidify1 and grow harder in the matrix it provides than granite or adamant4 ,we have seen how in recent times the ,confucian literati resisted the onset of westernism4 ,all these steam-engines and telegraphs seemed to them fearfully crude and vulgar in comparison with the niceties of literary style1 the finesses of time-taking ceremonious courtesies1 that had been to them and to their ancestors time out of mind the true refinements of life1 and even the realities4 ,china rigid against the ,west was not a semi-barbarism resisting civilization1 but an excessively perfected culture resisting the raw energies of one still young and1 in its eyes1 still with the taint of savagery3 brusque manners1 materialistic valuations4 ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti in his day had to meet a like opposition4 ,the wars had broken up the structure of society1 but not the long tradition of refined learning4 ,that had always seemed the quarter from which light and leading must come2 but it had long ceased to be a quarter from which light or leading could come4 ,mencius had been used to rate and ridicule the ruling princes2 and scholars now could not understand that ,mencius and his ruling princes and all their order were dead4 ,they could not understand that they were not ,menciuses1 nor ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti a kinglet such as he had dealt with4 ,now ,mencius had been a great man1--a ,man's son1 as they say2--and very likely he and ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti might have hit it off well enough4 ,but there was no ,mencius1 no ,man's son1 among the literati now4 ,the whole class was wily1 polite1 sarcastic1 subtle1 unimaginative1 refined to a degree1 immovable in conservatism4 ,the ,taoist teachers had breathed in a new spirit1 but it had not reached them4 ,how would ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti1 barbarian1 wild ,taoist1 and man of swift great action1 appear to them8 ,of course they could not abide him2 and had not the sense to fear4 ,they were at their old game of wire-pulling3 would have the feudal system back1 with all the old inefficiency2 in the name of ,ta ,yu and the ,duke of ,chow they would do what they might to undo the strivings of this ,ts'in upstart4 ,so all the subtleties of the old order were arrayed against him1--pull devil1 pull baker4 ,he knew it2 and knew the extreme difficulty of striking any ordinary blow to quiet them4 ,he had challenged ,time ,past to the conflict1 and meant to win4 ,time ,future was knocking at the doors of the empire1 and he intended it should come in and find a home4 ,his armies had crossed the ,gobi1 and smelt out unending possibilities in the fabulous west2 they had opened up the fabulous south1 the abode of ,romance and genii and dragons4 ,it was like the discovery of the ,americas3 a new world brought over the horizon4 ,his great minister1 ,li ,ssu had invented a new script1 the ,lesser ,seal1 easier and simpler than the old one2 ,meng-tien1 conqueror of the ,gobi1 had invented the camel's-hair brush wherewith to write gracefully on silk or cloth1 instead of difficultly with stylus on bamboo-strips as of old4 ,it was the morning stir of the new manvantara2 and little as the emperor might care for culture1 he heard the ,future crying to him4 ,he heard1 too1 the opposing murmur of the still unconquered ,past4 ,the literati stood against him as the ,papacy against ,frederick ,,ii of ,sicily3 a less open opposition1 and one harder to meet4 ,he did not solve the problem till near the end of his reign4 ,in #bac he called a great meeting in the ,hall of ,audience at ,changan4 ,see the squat burly figure enthroned in grand splendor2 the twelve weighty statues arranged around2 the chief civil and military officers of the empire1 thorough ,taoists like himself1 gathered on one side2 the ,academies and ,censorates1 all the leaders of the literati1 on the other4 ,the place was big enough for a largish meeting4 ,minister ,li ,ssu rises to describe the work of the ,emperor2 whereafter the latter calls for expressions of opinion4 ,a member of his household opines that he surpasses the very greatest of his predecessors3 which causes a subdued sneer to run through the ranks of scholars4 ,one of them takes the floor and begins to speak4 ,deprecates flattery guardedly1 as bad for any sovereign2 considers who the greatest of these predecessors were3--,yao1 ,shun1 and ,yu1 ',tang the ,completer1 ,wu ,wang2 and--implies a good deal4 ,warms to his work at last1 and grows bitter2 almost openly pooh poohs all modern achievements2 respectfully--or perhaps not too respectfully--advocates a return to the feudal-- ,silence6 roars ,attila-,napoleon from his throne2 and motions ,li ,ssu to make answer4 ,the answer was predetermined1 one imagines4 ,it was an order that five hundred of the chief literati present should retire and be beheaded1 and that thousands more should be banished4 ,and that all books should be burned4 ,attila-,napoleon's orders had a way of being carried out4 ,this was one4 ,he had meanwhile been busy with the great material monument of his reign3 the ,wall of ,china2 and with cautious campaigns yearly to the north of it2 and with personal supervision of the ,commissariat ,department of all his armies everywhere2 and with daily long hikes to keep himself in trim4 ,now the ,wall came in useful4 ,to stretch its fifteen hundred miles of length over wild mountains and valleys in that bleak north of the world1 some little labor was needed2 and scholars and academicians were many and1 for most purposes1 useless2 and they needed to be brought into touch with physical realities to round out their characters2--then let them go and build the wall4 ,he buried enough of them--alive1 it is to be feared3 an ugly ,ts'in custom1 not a ,chinese1--to make melons ripen in mid-winter over their common grave2 the rest he sentenced to four years of wall-building1--which meant death4 ,that1 too1 was the penalty for concealing books4 ,he was now in dead earnest that the ,past should go1 and history begin again2 to be read forever afterwards in this order1--the ,creation1 the ,reign of ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti4 ,but he spared books on useful subjects3 that is to say1 on ,medicine1 ,agriculture1 and ,magic4 ,so ancient ,china is to be seen now only as through a glass darkly2 if his great attempt had been quite successful1 it would not be to be seen at all4 ,his crimes made no karma for ,china2 they are not a blot on her record2--since they were done by an outside barbarian1--a mere publican and ,ts'inner4 ,from our standpoint as students of history1 he was a malefactor of the first order2 even when you take no account of his ruthless cruelty to men2--and so ,china has considered him ever since4 ,yet ,karma finds ruthless agents for striking its horrible and beneficial blows2 7and woe unto them that it finds674 ,it seems that ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti did draw the bowstring back--by this very wickedness1--far back--that sent the arrow ,china tearing and blazing out through the centuries to come4 ,the fires in which the books were burned were the pyre of the ,phoenix1--the burning of the astral molds1--the ignition and annihilation of the weight and the karma of two millenniums4 ,the ,secular ,bird was to burn and be consumed to the last feather1 and be turned to ashes utterly1 before she might spring up into the ether for her new flight of ages4 ,one wonders what would happen if a ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti were to arise and do by modern ,christendom what this one did by ancient ,china4 ,i say nothing about the literati1 but only about the literature4 ,would burning it be altogether an evil8 ,nearly all that is supremely worth keeping would live through2 and its value would be immensely enhanced4 ,first the newspapers would go1 that sow lies broadcast1 and the seeds of national hatreds4 ,the light literature would go1 that stands between men and thought4 ,the books of theology would go1 and the dust of creedalism that lies so thick on men's minds4 ,a thousand bad precedents that keep us bound to medievalism would go with the law-books3 there would be a chance to pronounce1 here and now as human beings1 on such things as capital punishment2--which remains1 though we do not recognise the fact1 solely because it has been in vogue all these centuries1 and is a habit hard to break with4 ,history would go2 yes2--but a mort of pernicious lies would go with it4 ,well1 well2 one speaks of course in jest 7partly74 ,but when all is said1 ,china was not unfortunate in having a strong giant of a man1 a foreigner withal1 at her head during those crucial decades4 ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti guarded ,china through most of that perilous intermission between the cycles4 ,it was the good that he did that mostly lived after him4 ,in #baj he fell ill1 took no precautions1 and died1--in his fiftieth year4 ,a marvelous mausoleum was built for him3 a palace1 with a mountain heaped on top1 and the floor of it a map of ,china1 with the waters done in quicksilver4 ,whether his evil deeds were interred with his bones1 who can say8--certainly his living wives were1 and the thousands of living workmen who had built the mausoleum4 ,ts'innish doings1 not ,chinese4 ,in the ,book of ,odes1 ,confucius preserved a ,ts'in ballad mourning over men so buried alive with their dead king4 ,the strong hand lifted1 rebellion broke out1 and for awhile it looked as if ,chu ,hia must sink into the beast again4 ,his feeble son got rid of ,meng-tien1 poisoned ,li ,ssu1 offered the feeblest resistance to the rebels1 and then poisoned himself4 ,after four years of fighting1--what you might call unpleasantness all round1--one ,liu ,pang achieved the throne4 ,he had started life as a beadle2 joined ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti's army1 and risen to be a general2 created himself after the emperor's death ,prince of ,han2 and now had the honor to inaugurate1 as ,emperor ,kaotsu1 the greatest of the ,chinese dynasties4 ,in the two-fifties strong barbarous ,ts'in had swallowed unmanly worn-out ,china1 and for half a century had been digesting the feast4 ,then--to mix my metaphors a little--,china flopped up to the surface again1 pale1 but smiling blandly4 ,in the sunlight she gathered strength and cohesion1 and proceeded presently to swallow ,ts'in and everything else in sight2 and emerged soon young1 strong1 vigorous1 and glowing-hearted to the conquest of many worlds in the unknown4 ,what was ,ts'in1 now is ,shensi ,province1 the very ,heart of ,han3 the ,shensi man today is the ,son of ,han1 ,ts'in ,englished2 but in ,shensi1 the old ,ts'in1 in their tenderest moods1 they call it ,han still1--the proudest most patriotic name there is for it4 ,not at once was the ,golden ,age of ,han to dawn3 half a thirteen-decade cycle from the opening of the manvantara in the two-forties had to pass first4 ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti had mapped out a great empire2 it fell to the ,hans to consolidate it4 ,han ,kaotsu followed somewhat in the footsteps of his predecessor1 less the cruelty and barbarism1 and most of the strength4 ,the sentiment of the empire was ,chinese1 not ,ts'innish2 so1 though not a brilliant or always a fortunate soldier1 he was able to assert his sway over the greater part of ,china ,proper4 ,chinesism had spread over territories never before ,chinese1 and wherever it had spread1 the people were glad of a ,chinese dynasty2 besides1 his rule was tactful and kindly4 ,they were glad that the ,gods of the ,soil of ,han were to be worshipped now1 and those of ,ts'in disthroned2 and that the ,ts'in edicts were annulled2--as they were with one important exception3 those relating to literature4 ,a cultureless son of the proletariat himself4 ,han ,kaotsu felt no urge towards resurrecting that2 and perhaps it was as well that the sleeping dogs should be let lie awhile4 ,the wonder is that the old nationalities did not reassert themselves2 but they did not1 to any extent worth mentioning2 and perhaps this is the best proof of ,han ,kaotsu's real strength4 ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti had dealt soundly with the everlasting ,hun in his time2 but when he died1 the ,hun recovered4 ,they kept ,han ,kaotsu busy1 so that his saddle1 as he said1 was his throne4 ,they raided past the capital and down into ,ssechuan2 once very nearly captured the emperor2 and had to be brought out at last with a ,chinese princess for the ,hun king4 ,generally speaking1 the ,hans would have lived at peace with them if they could1 and were ready to try better means of solving the problem than war4 ,but it certainly was a problem2 for in these ,huns we find little traces of human nature that you could work upon4 ,but ,china was a big country by that time1 and only a part of it1 comparatively small1 suffered from the ,huns4 ,for the rest1 ,han ,kaotsu was popular1 his people were happy1 and his reign of twelve years was a breathing-time in which they gathered strength4 ,he kept a hundred thousand workmen busy on public works1 largely road- and bridge-building3 a suspension bridge that he built1 a hundred and fifty yards long1 and crossing a valley five hundred feet below1 is still in use1--or was during the last century4 ,he died in #aid4 ,he was succeeded1 nominally1 by his son ,han ,hweiti2 really by his widow1 the empress ,liu ,chi3 one of the three great women who have ruled ,china4 ,at this time the ,huns1 under their great ,khan ,mehteh1 were at the height of their power4 ,khan ,mehteh made advances to the ,empress3 ,i should like1 said he1 to exchange what ,i have for what ,i have not4 ,you and ,i may think he meant merely a suggestion for mutual trade2 but she interpreted it differently1 thanked him kindly1 but declined the flattering proposal on the score of her age and ugliness4 ,her hair and teeth1 she begged him to believe1 were quite inadequate1 and made it impossible for her to think of changing her condition4--,i do not know whether it was vanity or policy4 ,but it was she1 or perhaps her puppet son the emperor1 who started the great ,renaissance4 ,a commission was appointed for restoring the literature3 among its members1 ,k'ung ,an-kuo1 twelfth in descent from ,confucius4 ,books were found1 that devotion had hidden in dry wells and in the walls of houses2 one ,fu ,sheng1 ninety years old1 repeated the ,classics word for word to the ,commissioner1 all from his memory4 ,the restrictions gone1 a mighty reaction set in2 and ,china was on fire to be her literary self again4 ,a great ball was set rolling2 learning went forward by leaps and bounds4 ,the enthusiasm1 it must be said1 took directions legitimate and the reverse2--bless you1 why should any written page at all be considered lost1 when there were men in ,han with inventive genius of their own1 and a pretty skill at forgery8 ,the ,son of ,heaven was paying well2 to it1 then1 minds and calligraphic fingers6 ,so there are false chapters of ,chwangtse1 while many true ones have been lost4 ,and ,i can never feel sure of ,confucius' own ,spring and ,autumn ,annals1 wherein he thought lay his highest claim to human gratitude1 and the composition of which the really brilliant-minded ,mencius considered equal to the work of ,ta ,yu in bridling ,china's ,sorrow2--but which1 as they come down to us1 are not impressive4--,the tide rolled on under ,han ,wenti1 from #agi to #aef3 a poet himself1 a man of peace1 and a reformer of the laws in the direction of mercy4 ,another prosperous reign followed2 then came the culmination of the age in the ,golden ,reign of ,han ,wuti1 from #adj to #hf4 ,the cyclic impulse had been working mainly on spiritual and intellectual planes3 ,ssema ,tsien1 the ,father of ,chinese ,history1 gives gloomy pictures of things economic499 ,when the ,house of ,han arose1 says ,ssema1 the evils of their predecessors had not passed away4 ,husbands still went off to the wars2 old and young were employed in transporting food1 production was almost at a standstill1 and money was scarce4 ,the ,son of ,heaven had not even carriage horses of the same color2 the highest civil and military authorities rode in bullock carts2 the people at large knew not where to lay their heads4 ,the coinage was so heavy and cumbersome that the people themselves started a new issue at a fixed standard of value4 ,but the laws were lax1 and it was impossible to prevent the grasping from coining largely1 buying largely1 and then holding for a rise in the market4 ,prices went up enormously3--it sounds quite modern and civilized1 doesn't it8--rice sold at a thousand cash per picul2 a horse cost a hundred ounces of silver4 ------ 99 ,the passages quoted are taken from ,dr4 ,giles's work on ,chinese ,literature4 ------ ,under the ,empress ,liu ,chi and her successors these conditions were bettered2 until1 when a half cycle had run its course1 and ,han ,wuti had been some twenty years on the throne1 prosperity came to a culmination4 ,says ,ssema ,tsien3 ,the public granaries were well-stocked2 the government treasuries full444 ,the streets were thronged with the horses of the people1 and on the highroads1 whole droves were to be seen1 so that it became necessary to forbid the public use of mares4 ,village elders ate meat and drank wine4 ,petty government clerkships lapsed from father to son1 and the higher offices of state were treated as family heirlooms4 ,for a spirit of self-respect and reverence for the law had gone abroad1 and a sense of charity and duty towards one's neighbor kept men aloof from disgrace and crime4 ,there had been in ,kansuh1 the north-westernmost province of ,china ,proper1 a people called the ,yueh ,chi or ,white ,scythians1 whom the ,huns had driven into the far west2 by this time they were carving themselves an empire out of the domains of the ,parthians1 and penetrating into north-west ,india1 but ,han ,wuti knew nothing of that4 ,all that was known of them was1 that somewhere on the limits of the world they existed1 and were likely to be still at loggerheads with their ancient foes the ,huns4 ,han ,wuti had now been on the throne seven years1 and was and had been much troubled by the ,hun problem3 he thought it might help to solve it if those lost ,yueh ,chi could be raked up out of the unknown and made active allies4 ,to show the spirit of the age1 ,i will tell you the story of ,chang ,ch'ien1 the general whom he sent to find them4 ,chang ,ch'ien set out in #aci2 traversed the desert1 and was duly captured by the ,huns4 ,ten years they held him prisoner2 then he escaped4 ,during those ten years he had heard no news from home3 a new emperor might be reigning1 for aught he knew2 or ,han ,wuti might have changed his plans4 ,such questions1 however1 never troubled him3 he was out to find the ,yueh ,chi for his master1 and find them he would4 ,he simply went forward2 came presently to the kingdom of ,tawan1 in the neighborhood of ,yarkand2 and there preached a crusade against the ,huns4 ,unsuccessfully3 the men of ,tawn knew the ,huns1 but not ,han wuti1 who was too far away for a safe ally2 and they proposed to do nothing in the matter4 ,chang ,ch'ien considered4 ,go back to ,china8--,oh dear no6 there must be real ,yueh ,c'hi somewhere1 even if these ,tawanians were not they4 ,on he went1 and searched that lonely world until he did find them4 ,they liked the idea of ,hun-hurting2 but again1 considered ,china too far away for practical purposes4 ,he struck down into ,tibet2 was captured again2 held prisoner a year2 escaped again1--and got back to ,changan in #abf4 ,a sadder and a wiser man1 you might suppose2 but nothing of the kind6 ,full1 on the contrary1 of brilliant schemes2 full of the wonder and rumor of the immense west4 ,these he poured into ,han ,wuti's most sympathetic ears2 and the emperor started now in real earnest upon his ,napoleonic career4 ,the frontier was no longer at the ,great ,wall4 ,only the other day ,sir ,aurel ,stein discovered1 in the far west1 the long straight furrows traced by the feet of ,han ,wuti's sentinels on guard2 the piles of reed-stalks1 at regular intervals1 set along the road for fire-signals2 documents giving details as to the encampments1 the clothes and arrows served out to the soldiers1 the provisions made for transforming armies of conquest into peaceful colonies4 ,all these things the sands covered and preserved4 ,and behind these outposts was a wide empire full of splendor outward and inward2 full of immense activities1 in literature1 in engineering1 in commerce4 ,new things and ideas came in from the west3 international influences to reinforce the flaming up of ,chinese life4 ,the moving force was still ,taoism2 the ,blue ,pearl1 sunk deep in the now sunlit waters of the common consciousness1 was flashing its rainbows4 ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti1 for all his greatness1 had been an uncouth barbarian2 ,han ,wuti was a very cultured gentleman of literary tastes1--a poet1 and no mean one4 ,he too was a ,taoist2 an initiate of the ,taoism of the day2 which might mean in part that he had an eye to the ,elixir of ,life2 but it also meant 7at least7 that he had a restless1 exorbitant1 and gorgeous imagination4 ,such1 indeed1 inflamed the whole nation2 which was rich1 prosperous1 energetic1 progressive1 and happy4 ,ts'in ideas of bigness in architecture had taken on refinement in ,chinese hands2 the palaces and temples of ,han ,wuti are of course all lost1 but by all accounts they must have been wonderful and splendid4 ,very little of the art comes down3 there are some bas-reliefs of horses1 fine and strong work1 realistic1 but with redeeming nobleness4 ,how literature had revived may be gathered from this3 in ,han ,wuti's ,imperial ,library there were #cabc volumes of the ,classics and commentaries thereupon2 #bgje on ,philosophy2 #acah of ,poetry2 #bebh on ,mathematics2 #hfh on ,medicine2 #gij on the ,science of ,war4 ,his gardens at ,changan were famous2 he had collectors wandering the world for new and ornamental things to stock them2 very likely we owe many of our garden plants and shrubs to him4 ,he consecrated mountains and magnificent ceremonies2 and for the sake of the gods and genii appeared as flaming splendors over ,tai-hsing and the other sacred heights4 ,for the light of ,romance falls on him2 he is a shining half faery figure4--,outwardly there was pomp1 stately manners1 pageantry1 high magnificence2 inwardly1 a burning-up of the national imagination to ensoul it4 ,the ,unseen1 with all its mystery and awe or loveliness1 was the very nearly visible3 not a pass nor lake nor moor nor forest but was crowded with the things of which wonder is made4 ,muh ,wang1 the ,chow king1 eight centuries before1 had ridden into the ,west and found the garden of that ,faery ,queen whose ,azure ,birds of ,compassion fly out into this world to sweeten the thoughts of men4 ,bless you1 ,han ,wuti married the lady1 and had her to abide peaceably in his palace1 and to watch with him ,the lanterns glow vermeil and gold1 ,azure and green1 the ,spring nights through1 ,when loud the pageant galeons drew ,to clash in mimic combating1 ,and their dark shooting flames to strew ,over the lake at ,kouen ,ming4 ,from about #acj to #aaj ,han ,wuti was ,napoleonizing3 bringing in the north-west2 giving the ,huns a long quietus in #aai2 conquering the south with ,tonquin2 the southern coast provinces1 and the lands towards ,tibet4 ,ssema ,tsien tells us that mountains were hewn through for many miles to establish a trade-route through the south-west and open up those remote regions2 that was a scheme of ,chang ,ch'ien's1 who had ever an eye to penetrating to ,india4 ,there was a dark side to it4 ,vast sums of money were eaten up1 and estravagance in private life was encouraged4 ,says ,ssema3 ,from the highest to the lowest1 everyone vied with his neighbor in lavishing money on houses and appointments and apparel1 altogether beyond his means4 ,such is the everlasting law of the sequence of prosperity and decay4444 ,merit had to give way to money2 shame and scruples of conscience were laid aside2 laws and punishments were administered with severer hand4 ,it is a very common thing to see signs of decline and darkness in one's own age2 and ,ssema himself had no cause to love the administration of ,han ,wuti2 under which he had been punished rather severely for some offense4 ,still1 what he says is more or less what you would expect the truth to be4 ,and you will note him historian of the life of the people2 not mere recounter of court scandals and chronicler of wars3 conscious1 too1 of the law of cycles2--all told1 something a truer historian than we have seen too much of in the ,west4--,where1 indeed1 we are wedded to politics1 and must have our annalists chronicle above all things what we call political growth2 not seeing that it is but a circle1 and squirreling round valiantly in a cage to get perpetually in high triumph to the place you started from2 a foolish externality at best4 ,but real ,history mirrors for us the motions of the ,human ,spirit and the ,eternal4 ,i said that what ,ssema tells us is what you would expect the truth to be2 this way3--,after half a cycle of that adventurous and imaginative spirit1 eyes jaundiced a little would surely find excuse enough for querulous vision4 ,there is1 is there not1 something ,elizabethan in that ,chang ,ch'ien1 taking the vast void so gaily1 and not to be quenched by all those fusty years imprisoned among the ,huns1 but returning only the more fired and heady of imagination8 ,if he was a type of ,han ,wuti's ,china1 we may guess ,ssema was not far out1 and that vaulting ambition was overleaping itself a little2 that men were buying automobiles who by good rights should have ridden in a wheelbarrow4 ,things did not go quite so well with the great emperor after his twenty flaming ,napoleonic years2 his vast mountain-cleaving schemes were left unfinished2 ,central ,asia grew more troublesome again1 and he had to call off ,chang ,ch'ien from an expedition into ,india by way of ,yunnan and ,tibet and the half-cleaved mountains1 to fight the old enemy in the north-west4 ,but until the thirteen decades were passed1 and ,han ,chaoti1 his successor1 had died in #fc ,b4,c41 the vast designs were still upspringing2 high and daring enterprise was still the characteristic of the ,chinese mind4 ,the thirteen decades1 that is1 from the accession of ,han ,hueiti and the beginning of the ,revival of ,literature in #aid4 ,,xv4 ,,some ,,possible ,,epochs ,,in ,,sanskrit ,,literature ,han ,chaoti died in #fc ,b4,c42 his successor is described as a boor of low tastes2--from that time the great ,han impetus goes slowing down and quieting4 ,china was recuperating after ,han ,wuti's flare of splendor2 we may leave her to recuperate1 and look meanwhile elsewhere4 ,and first to that most tantalizing of human regions1 ,india2 where you would expect something just now from the cyclic backwash4 ,as soon as you touch this country1 in the domain of history and chronology1 you are certain1 as they say1 to get 'hoodooed4' ,kali-,yuga began there in #cajb ,b4,c41 and ever since that unfortunate event1 not a single soul in the country seems to have had an idea of keeping track of the calendar4 ,so-and-so1 you read1 reigned4 ,when8--,oh1 in #ajjj ,a4,d4 ,or in #bac ,a4,d4 ,or in #gh ,a4,d4 ,or in a few million ,b4,c41 or #bajj ,a4,d4 ,or he did not reign at all4 ,after all1 what does it matter8--this is ,kali-,yuga1 and nothing can go right4--,you fix your eyes on a certain spot in time1 which1 according to your guesses at the cycles1 should be important4 ,nothing doing there1 as we say4 ,oh no1 nothing at all3 this is ,kali-,yuga1 and what should be doing8 4444 ,well1 if you press the point1 no doubt somebody was reigning1 somewhere4--,but1 pardon my insistence1 if seems--4 ,quite so1 quite so6 as ,i said1 somebody must have been reigning4--,you scrutinze2 you bring your lenses to bear2 and the somebody begins to emerge4 ,and proves to be1 say1 the great ,samundragupta1 emperor of all ,india 7nearly72 for power and splendor1 almost to be mentioned with ,asoka4 ,and it was the ,golden ,age of ,music1 and perhaps some other things4--,yes1 certainly2 the ,guptas were reigning then1 ,i forgot4 ,but why bother about it8 ,this is ,kali-,yuga1 and what does anything matter8--,and you come away with the impression that your non-informant could reveal enough and plenty1 if he had a mind to4 ,which is1 indeed1 probably the case4 ,all this nonchalant indefiniteness means nothing more1 one suspects1 than that the ,brahmans have elected to keep the history of their country unknown to us poor ,mlechhas4 ,then there are ,others1 too3 the ,guardians of ,esotericism in a greater sense2 who have not chosen so far that ,indian history should be known4 ,so we can only take dim foreshadowings1 and make guesses4 ,we saw the ,maurya dynasty1--that one seemingly firm patch to set your feet on in the whole morass of the ,indian past1--occupy the thirteen decades from #cbj to #aij ,b4,c41 7or we thought we did72 now the question is1 from that pied-a-terre whither shall we jump8 ,if you could be sure that the ebb of the wave would be equal in length to its inrush1--the night to the day3--that the minor pralaya would be no longer or shorter than the little manvantara that preceded it--why1 then you might leap out securely for #fj ,b4,c41 with a comfortable feeling that there would be some kind of turning-point in ,indian history there or thereabouts4 ,sometimes things do happen so1 beautifully1 as if arranged by the clock4 ,but unfortunately1 enough mischief may be done in thirteen decades to take a much longer period to disentangle2 and again1 it is only when you strike an average for the whole year1 that you can say the nights are equal to the days4 ,we are trying to see through to the pattern of history2 not to dogmatize on such details as we may find1 nor claim on the petty strength of them to be certain of the whole4 ,so1 our present leap 7for we shall make it71 while not quite in the dark1 must be made in the dusk of an hour or so after sunset4 ,there must be an element of faith in it3 very likely we shall splash and sink gruesomely4 ,well1 here goes then6 ,from #aij ,b4,c4 thirteen decades forward to #fj ,b4,c41 and1--squish6 ,but1 courage6 throw out your arm and clutch--at this trailing root1 #eg ,b4 ,c41 here within easy reach2 and haul yourself out4 ,so2 and see1 now you are standing on something4 ,what it is1 ,dios lo sabe6 ,but there is an ,indian era that begins in #eg ,b4,c42 for a long time1 dates were counted from that year4 ,that era rises in undefined legendary splendor1 and peters out ineffectually you don't just know where4 ,there is nothing to go upon but legends1 with never a coin nor monument found to back them2--never mind2 dates you count eras from are generally those in which important cycles begin4 ,the legends relate to ,vikramaditya king of ,ujjain1--which kingdom is towards the western side of the peninsula1 and about where ,hindoostan and the ,deccan join4 ,he is the ,arthur-,charlemain of ,india1 the ,golden ,monarch of ,romance4 ,in the lakes of his palace gardens the very swans sang his praises daily-- ,glory be to ,vikramajeet ,who always gives us pearls to eat2 and when he died1 the four pillars that supported his throne rose up1 and wandered away through the fields and jungle disconsolate3 they would not support the dignity of any lesser man499 ,such tales are told about him by every ,indian mother to her children at this present day1 and have been1 presumably1 any time these last two thousand years4 ------ 99 ,india through the ,ages1 by ,mrs4 ,flora ,annie ,steel4 ------ ,of his real existence ,historical ,research cannot satisfy itself at all2--or it half guesses it may have discovered his probable original wandering in disguise through the centuries of a thousand years or so later4 ,but you must expect that sort of thing in ,india4 ,at his court1 says tradition1 lived the ,nine ,gems of ,literature1 --chief among them the poet-dramatist ,kalidasa2 whom ,historical ,research 7western7 rather infers lived at several widely separated epochs much nearer our own day4 ,well2 for the time being let us leave ,historical ,research 7western7 to stew in its own 7largely poisonous7 juices1 and see how it likes it1--and say that there are good cyclic chances of something large here1 in the half-cycle between the ,ages of ,han ,wuti and ,augustus4 ,we may note that things ,indian must be dealt with differently from things elsewhere4 ,you take1 for example1 the old story about the ,moslem conquerors of ,egypt burning the ,alexandrian ,library4 ,the fact that this is mentioned for the first time by a ,christian who lived six hundred years after the supposed event1 while we have many histories written during those six hundred years which say nothing about it at all1--is evidence amounting to proof that it never happened2 especially when you take into account the known fact that the ,alexandrian ,library had already been thoroughly burnt several times4 ,but you can derive no such negativing certainty1 in ,india1 from the fact that ,vikramaditya and ,ujjain and ,kalidasa may never have been mentioned together1 not associated with the era of #eg ,b4,c41 in any extant writing known to the west that comes from before several centuries later4 ,because the ,brahman were a close corporation that kept the records of history1 and kept them secret2 and gave out bits when it suited them4 ,say that in #adjj 7or whenever else it may have been7 they first allowed it to be published that ,kalidasa flourished at ,vikrmaditya's court3--they may have been consciously lying1 but at least they were talking about what they knew4 ,they were not guessing1 or using their head-gear wrongfully1 their lying was intentional1 or their truth warranted by knowledge4 ,and no motive for lying is apparent here4--,it would be very satisfactory1 of course1 were a coin discovered with ,king ,vikrmaditya's image and superscription nicely engraved thereon3 ,vikramaditya ,de ,gratia3 ,uj4 ,imp42 ,fid4 ,def42 #eg ,b4,c4 ,but in this wicked world you cannot have everything2 you must be thankful for what you can get4 ,you may remember that ,han ,wuti1 to solve the ,hun problem1 sent ,chang ,ch'ien out through the desert to discover the ,yueh ,chi' and that ,chang found them at last in ,bactria1 which they had conquered from ,greeks who had held it since ,alexander's time4 ,he found them settled and with some fair degree of civilization2 spoke of ,bactria under their sway as a land of a thousand cities2--they had learned much since they were nomads driven out of ,kansuh by the ,huns4 ,also they were in the midst of a career of expansion4 ,within thirty years of his visit to them1 or by #ajj ,b4,c41 they had spread their empire over eastern ,persia1 at the expense of the ,parthians2 and thence went down into ,india conquering4 ,by #fj ,b4,c4 they held the ,punjab and generally the western parts of ,hindoostan2 then1 since they do not seem to have got down into the ,deccan1 ,i take it they were held up4 ,by whom8--,truly this is pure speculation4 ,but the state of ,malwa1 of which ,ujjain was the capital1 lay right in their southward path2 if held up they were1 it would have been1 probably1 by some king of ,ujjain4 ,was this what happened8--that the peril of these northern invaders roused ,malwa to exert its fullest strength2 the military effort spurring up national feeling2 the national feeling1 creative energies spiritual1 mental and imaginative2--until a great age in ,ujjain had come into being4 ,it is what we often see4 ,the menace of ,spain roused ,england to ,elizabethanism2 the ,persian peril awakend ,athens4 ,so ,king ,vikramaditya leads out his armies1 and to victory2 and the ,nine ,gems of ,literature sing at his court4 ,it is a backwash from ,han ,wuti's ,china1 that goes west with ,chang ,ch'ien to the ,yueh ,chi1 and south with them into ,india4 ,and we can look for no apex of literary creation at this time1 either in ,china or ,europe4 ,in the ,roman literature of that cycle it is the keen creative note we miss3 ,virgil1 the nearest to it1 cannot be said to have possessed quite2 and ,han literature was probably its first culmination under ,han ,wuti1 and its second under the ,eastern ,hans4 ,one suspects that great creation is generally going on somewhere1 and is not displeased to find hints of its presence in ,india2 is inclined to think this may have been1 after all1 the ,golden ,age of the ,sanskrit ,drama4--,at which there can be at any rate no harm in taking a glance at this point2 and1 retrospectively1 at ,sanskrit literature as a whole2--a desperately inadequate glance1 be it said4 ,i ask you here to remember the three periods of ,english ,poetry1 with their characteristics2 and you must not mind my using my ,welsh god-names in connexion with them4 ,first1 then1 there was the ,period of ,plenydd1--of the beginnings of ,vision2 when the eyes of ,chaucer and his lyricist predecessors were opened to the world out-of-doors2 when they began to see that the skies were blue1 fields and forests green2 that there were flowers in the meadows and woodlands2 and that all these things were delectable4 ,then there was the ,period of ,gwron1 ,strength2 when ,marlowe and ,shakespeare and ,milton evolved the ,grand ,manner2 when they made the great ,march-,music1 unknown in ,english before1 and hardly achieved by anyone since3--the era of the great ,warrior-poetry of the ,tragedies and of ,paradise ,lost4 ,then came1 with ,wordsworth and ,keats and ,shelley1 the ,age of ,alawn1 lasting on until today2 when the music of intonation brought with it romance and mystery and ,natural ,magic with its rich glow and wizard insight4 ,and you will remember how ,english ,poetry1 on the uptrend of a major cycle1 is a reaching from the material towards the spiritual1 a growth toward that4 ,though ,milton and ,shakespeare made their grand ,soul-,symbols1--by virtue of a cosmic force moving them as it has moved no others in the language1--you cannot find in their works1 or in any works of that age1 such clear perceptions or statements of spiritual truth as in ,swinburne's ,songs before ,sunrise2 nor was the brain-mind of either of those giants of the ,middle ,period capable of such conscious mystic thought as ,wordsworth's4 ,there was an evolution upward and inward2 from ,chaucer's school-boy vision1 to ,swinburne's 7in that one book7 clear sight of the ,soul4 ,we appear to find in ,sanskrit literature1--,i speak in a very general sense1--also such great main epochs or cycles4 ,first a reign of ,plenydd1 of ,vision1--in the ,age of the ,sacred ,books4 ,then a reign of ,gwron1--in the ,age of the heroic ,epics4 ,then a reign of ,alawn1 in the ,age of the ,drama4 ,but the direction is all opposite4 ,the cycle is not upward1 from the sough of a beastly ,iron ,age towards the luminance of a coming ,golden2 but downward from the peaks and splendors of the ,age of ,gold to where the outlook is on to this latter hell's-gulf of years4 ,plenydd1 when he first touched ,english eyes1 he was ,plenydd the ,lord of ,spiritual vision1 the ,seer into the ,eternities4 ,wordsworth at his highest only approaches1-- ,swinburne in ,hertha halts at the portals of1 the ,upanishads4 ,now1 what may this indicate8 ,to my mind1 this3 that you are not to take these ,sanskrit ,sacred ,books as the fruitage of a single literary age4 ,they do not correspond with1 say1 the ,elizabethan1 or the ,nineteenth-,century1 poetry of ,england2 but are rather the cream of the output of a whole period as long 7at least7 as that of all ,english literature2 the blossoming of a ,racial ,mind during 7at least7 a manvantara of fifteen hundred years4 ,i do not doubt that the age that gave birth to the ,katha-,upanishad1 gave birth to all manner of other things also2 flippancies and trivialities among the rest2--just as in the same ,england1 and in the same years1 ,milton was dictating ,samson ,agonistes1 and ,butler was writing the stinging scurrilities of ,hudibras4 ,but the ,sanskrit ,hudibrases are lost2 as the ,english one will be1 even if it takes millenniums to lose it4 ,full-flowing time has washed away the impermanencies of that ancient age1 and left standing but the palaces built upon the rock of the ,soul4 ,the ,soul made the ,upanishads1 as it mide ,paradise ,lost2 it made the former in the ,golden ,age1 and the latter in this ,age of ,iron2 the former through men gifted with superlative vision2 the latter through a blind old bard4 ,therein lies the difference3 all our bards1 our very greatest1 have been blind1--,dante and ,shakespeare1 no less than ,milton4 ,full-flowing ,time washed away the impermanencies of that ancient age1 and left standing but the rock-built palaces of the ,soul2 and these1--not complete1 perhaps2--repaired to a degree by hands more foolish2--a little ruinous in places1--but the ruins grander and brighter than all the pomps1 all the new-fangled castles of genii1 of later times1 --come down to us as the ,sacred ,books of ,india1 the oldest extant literature in the world4 ,how old8 ,we may put their epoch well before the death of ,krishna in #cajb ,b4 ,c41--well before the opening of the ,kali-,yuga2 we may say that it lasted a very long time2--and be content that if all scholarship1 all western and modern opinion1 laughs at us now1--the laugh will probably be with us when we have been dead a long time4 ,or perhaps sooner4 ,they count three stages in this ,vedic or pre-classical literature1 wherefrom also we may infer that it was the output of a great manvantara1 not of a mere day of literary creation4 ,these three1 they say1 are represented by the ,vedas1 the ,brahmanas1 and the ,upanishads4 ,the ,vedas consist of hymns to the ,gods2 and in a ,golden ,age you might find simple hymns to the ,gods a sufficient expression of religion4 ,where1 say1 ,reincarnation was common knowledge2 where everybody knew it1 and no one doubted it2 you would not bother to make poems about it3 --you do not make poems about going to bed at night and getting up in the morning--or not as a rule4 ,you make poems upon a reaction of surprise at perceptions which seem wonderful and beautiful1-- and in a ,golden ,age1 the things that would seem wonderful and ,beautiful would be1 precisely1 the ,sky1 the ,stars1 ,earth1 ,fire1 the ,winds and ,waters4 ,our senses are dimmed1 or we should see in them the eternally startling manifestations of the ,lords of ,eternal ,beauty4 ,it is no use arguing from the ,vedic hymns1 as some folk do1 a 'primitive' state of society2 we have not the keys now to the background1 mental and social1 of the people among whom those hymns arose4 ,poetry in every succeeding age has had to fight harder to proclaim the spiritual truth proper to her native spheres3 were all spiritual truth granted1 she would need do nothing more than mention the ,sky1 or the ,earth1 and all the wonder1 all the mystery and delight connoted by them would flood into the minds of her hearers4 ,but now she must labor difficultly to make those things cry through2 she gains in glory by the resistance of the material molds she must pierce4 ,so the ,vedas tell us little unless we separate ourselves from our preconceptions about 'primitive ,aryans'2 whose civilization may have been at once highly evolved and very spiritual4 ,the ,brahmanas are priest-books2 the ,upanishads1 it is reasonable to say are ,kshattriya-books2--you often find in them ,brahmans coming to ,kshattriyas to learn the ,inner ,wisdom4 ,the ,brahmanas are books of ritual2 the ,upanishads came much later that the ,brahmanas3 that they represent a reaction towards spirituality from the tyranny of a priestly caste4 ,but probably the day of the ,kshattriyas was much earlier than that of the priests4 ,the ,marlow-,shakespear-,milton time was the ,kshattriya period in ,english poetry2 also the period during which the greatest souls incarnated1 and produced the greatest work4 ,so1 perhaps1 in this manvantara of the pre-classical ,sanskrit literature1 the ,rig-,veda with its hymns represents the first1 the ,chaucerian period2 but a ,golden ,age ,chaucerian1 simple and pure1--a time in which the ,mysteries really ruled human life1 and when to hymn the ,gods was to participate in the wonder and freeddom of their being4 ,think1 perhaps1 as the cycle mounted to its hour of noon1 esotericism opened its doors to pour forth an illumination yet stronger and more saving3 mighty egos incarnated1 and put in writing the marvelous revelations of the ,upanishads3 there may have been a descent towards matter1 to call forth these more explicit declarations of the ,spirit4 ,the exclusive caste-system had not been evolved by any means1 nor was to be for many ages3 the kings are at the head of things2 and they1 not the priests1 the chief custodians of the ,deeper ,wisdom4--,and then1 later1 the ,priest-cast made its contribution1 evolving in the ,brahmanas the ritual of their order2 with an implication1 ever growing after the beginning of the ,kali-,yuga1 that only by this ritual salvation could be attained4 ,not that it follows that this was the idea at first4 ,ritual has its place3 hymns and chantings1 so they be the right ones1 performed rightly1 have their decided magical value2 we can understand that in its inception and first purity1 this ,brahmana literature may have been a growth or birth1 under the aegis of ,alawn of the ,harmonies1 of the magic of chanted song4 ,and having said all this1 and reconsidering it1 one feels that to attribute these three branches of literature to a single manvantara is a woeful foreshortening4 ,i suppose the ,rig-,veda is as old as the ,aryan ,sub-race1 which1 according to our calculations1 must have begun some #afj1jjj years ago4 ,the ,upanishads affect us like poetry2 even in ,max ,muller's translation1 which is poor prose1 they do not lose altogether their uplift and quality of song4 ,they sing the philosophy of the divine in ,man2 ,i suppose we may easily say they are the highest thing in extant literature4 ,they do not come to us whole or untainted4 ,we may remember what the ,swami ,dayanand ,sarasvati said to ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky3 that he could show the excellent ,moksh ,mooller that what crossed the ,kalapani from ,india to ,europe were only the bits of rejected copies of some passages from our sacred books4 ,again1 ,madame ,blavatsky says that the best part of the ,upanishads was taken out at the time ,buddha was preaching2 the ,brahmans took it out1 that he might not prove too clearly the truth of his teachings by appeals to their sacred books4 ,also the ,buddha was a ,kshattriya2 so the ancient eminence of the ,kshattriyas had to be obscured a little2--it was the ,brahmans1 by that time1 who were monopolizing the teaching office4 ,and no doubt in the same way from time to time much has been added3 the ,brahmans could do this1 being custodians of the sacred literature4 ,yet in spite of all we get in them a lark's song1-- but a spiritual lark's song1 floating and running in the golden glories of the ,spiritual ,sun2 a song whose verve carries us openly up into the realms of pure spirit2 a wonderful radiance and sweetness of dawn1 of dawn in its fresh purity1 its holiness1--haunted with no levity or boisterousness of youth1 but with a wisdom gay and ancient1--eternal1 laughter-laden1 triumphant1--at once hoary and young1--like the sparkle of snows on ,himalaya1 like the amber glow in the eastern sky4 ,here almost alone in literature we get long draughts of the ,golden ,age3 not a ,golden ,age fought for and brought down into our perceptions 7which all true poetry gives us71 but one actually existing1 open and free2--and not merely the color and atmosphere of it1 but the wisdom4 ,one need not wonder that ,madame ,blavatsky drew so freely on ,india for the nexus of her teachings4 ,that country has performed a marvelous function1 taking all its ages together1 in the life of humanity2 in preserving for us the poetry and wisdom of an age before the ,mysteries had declined2 in keeping open for us1 in a semi-accessible literature1 a kind of window into the ,golden ,age4--,well2 each of the races has some function to fulfil4 ,and it is not modern ,india that has done this2 she has not done it of her own good will1--has had no good will to do it4 ,it is the ,akbars the ,anquetil ,duperrons and ,sir ,william ,joneses1 --and above all1 and far above all1 ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky1--whom we have to thank4 ,so much1 then1 for the age of the ,vedic literature4 ,it passed1 and we come to an age when that literature had become sacred4 ,it seems to me that in the natural course of things it would take a very long time for this to happen4 ,you may say that in the one analogy we have whose history is well known1--the ,koran1--we have an example of a book sacred as soon as written4 ,but ,i do not believe the analogy would hold good here4 ,the ,koran came as the rallying-standard of a movement which was designed to work quick changes in the outer fabric of the world2 it came when the cycles had sunk below any possibility of floating spiritual wisdom on to the world-currents2--and there were the precedents of ,judaism and ,christianity1 ever before the eyes of ,mohammed1 for making the new religious movement center about a ,book4 ,but in ancient ,india1 ,i take it1 you had some such state of affairs as this3 classes there would be1 according to the natural differences of egos incarnating2 but no castes2 religion there was1--that is to say1 an attention to1 an aspiration towards1 the spiritual side of life2 but no religions1--no snarling sects and jangling foolish creeds4 ,those things 7a ,god's mercy67 had not been invented then1 nor were to be for thousands of years4 ,the foremost souls1 the most spiritual1 gravitated upward to the headship of tribes and nations2 they were the kings1 as was proper they should be3 ,king-,initiates1 ,teachers as well as ,rulers of the people4 ,and they ordained public ceremonies in which the people1 coming together1 could invoke and participate in the ,life from ,above4 ,so we read in the ,upanishads of those great ,kshattriya ,teachers to whom ,brahmans came as disciples4 ,poets made their verses2 and what of these were good1 really inspired1 suitable--what came from the souls of ,poet-,initiates1-- would be used at such ceremonies3 sung by the assembled multitudes2 and presently1 by men specially trained to sing them4 ,so a class rose with this special function2 and there were other functions in connexion with these ceremonies1 not proper to be performed by the kings1 and which needed a special training to carry out4 ,here1 then1 was an opening in life for men of the right temperament2--so a class arose1 of priests3 among whom many might be real ,initiates and disciples of the ,adept-,kings4 ,they had the business of taking care of the literature sanctioned for use at the sacrifices1--for convenience we may call all the sacred ceremonies that1--at which they performed the ritual and carried out the mechanical and formal parts4 ,it is very easy to imagine how1 as the cycles went on and down1 and the ,adept-,kings ceased to incarnate continuously1 these religious officials would have crystallized themselves into a close corporation1 an hereditary caste2 and what power their custodianship of the sacrificial literature would have given them2--how that literature would have come to be not merely sacred in the sense that all true poetry with the inspiration of the ,soul behind it really is2--but credited with an extra-human sanction4 ,but it would take a long time4 ,when modern creeds are gone1 to what in literature will men turn for their inspiration8 --,to whatever in literature contains real inspiration1 you may answer4 ,they will not sing ,dr4 ,watts's doggerel in their churches2 but such things perhaps as ,wordsworth's ,the ,world is too much with us1 or ,henley's ,i am the ,captain of my ,soul4 ,and then1 after a long time and many racial pralayas1 you can imagine such poems as these coming to be thought of as not merely from the ,human ,soul1 an ever-present source of real inspiration1 --but as revelations by ,god himself1 from which not one jot or tittle should be taken without blasphemy2 given by ,god when he founded his one true religion to mankind4 ,we lose sight of the spirit1 and exalt the substance2 then we forget the substance1 and deify the shadow4 ,we crucify our ,saviors when they are with us2 and when they are gone1 we crucify them worse with our unmeaning worship and dogmas made on them4 ,well1 the age of the ,vedas passed1 and pralayas came1 and new manvantaras2 and we come at last to the age of ,classical ,sanskrit2 and first to the period of the ,epics4 ,this too is a ,kshattriya age4 ,whether it represents a new ascendency of the ,kshattriyas1 or simply a continuance of the old one3 whether the priesthood had risen to power between the ,vedas and this1 and somewhat fallen from it again1--or whether their rise was still in progress1 but not advanced to the point of ousting the kings from their lead1--who can say8 ,but this much1 perhaps1 we may venture without fear3 the ,kshattriyas of the ,epic age were not the same as those of the ,upanishads4 ,they were not ,adept-,kings and ,teachers in the same way4 ,by ,epic age1 ,i mean the age in which the epics were written1 not that of which they tell4 ,and neither the ,mahabharata nor the ,ramayana was composed in a day2 but in many centuries2--and it is quite likely that on them too ,brahmanical hands have been tactfully at work4 ,some parts of them were no doubt written in the centuries after ,christ2 there is room enough to allow for this1 when you think that the one contains between ninety and a hundred thousand1 the other about twenty-four thousand couplets2--the ,mahabharata being about seven times1 the ,ramayana about twice as long as the ,iliad and the ,odyssey combined4 ,so the ,age of the ,epics must be narrowed down again1 to mean the age that gave birth to the nuclei of them4 ,as to when it may have been1 ,i do not know that there is any clue to be found4 ,modern criticism has been at work1 of course1 to reduce all things to as commonplace and brain-mind a basis as possible2 but its methods are entirely the wrong ones4 ,mr4 ,romesh ,dutt1 who published abridged translations of the two poems in the late nineties1 says of the ,mahabharata that the great war which it tells of is believed to have been fought in the thirteenth or fourteenth century before ,christ2 and of the ,ramayana1 that it tells the story of nations that flourished in ,northern ,india about a thousand years ,b4 ,c4--,is believed by whom1 pray8 ,it is also believed1 and has been from time immemorial1 in ,india1 that ,krishna1 who figures largely in the ,mahabharata1 died in the year #cajb ,b4,c42 and that he was the eighth avatar of ,vishnu2 and that ,rama1 the hero of the ,ramayana1 was the seventh4 ,now brain-mind criticism of the modern type is the most untrustworthy thing1 because it is based solely on circumstantial evidence2 and when you work upon that1 you ought to go very warily2--it is always likely that half the circumstances remain un-discovered2 and even if you have ninety and nine out of the hundred possible1 the hundredth1 if you had it1 might well change the whole complexion of the case4 ,and this kind of criticism leads precisely nowhere1 does not build anything1 but pulls down what was built of old4 ,so ,i think we must be content to wait for real knowledge till those who hold it may choose to reveal it2 and meanwhile get back to the traditional starting-point2 --say that the ,war of the ,kuravas and ,pandavas happened in the thirty-second century ,b4,c42 ,rama's invasion of ,lanka1 ages earlier2 and that the epics began to be written1 as they say1 somewhere between the lives of ,krishna and ,buddha1--somewhere between #bejj and #ejjj years ago4 ,why before ,buddha8--,because they are still ,kshattriya works2 written before the ,brahman ascendency1 though after the time when the ,kshattriyas were led by their ,adept-,kings2--and because ,buddha started a spiritual revolt 7,kshattriya7 against a ,brahman ascendency well established then1--a revolt that by ,asoka's time had quite overthrown the ,brahman power4 ,why1 then1 should we not ascribe the epics to this ,buddhist ,kshattriya period8 ,to ,asoka's reign itself1 for example8--,well1 it has been done2 but probably not wisely4 ,panini in his ,grammar cites the ,mahabharata as an authority for usage2 and even the westernest of criticism is disinclined1 on the evidence1 to put ,panini later than #djj ,b4,c4 ,goldstucker puts him in the seventh century ,b4,c4 ,en passant1 we may quote this from the ,encyclopaedia ,britannica as to ,panini's ,grammar3 ,for a comprehensive grasp of linguistic facts1 and a penetrating insight into the structure of the vernacular language1 this work stands probably unrivalled in the literature of any language4--,panini1 then1 cites the ,mahabharata2 ,panini lived certainly before ,asoka's time2 the greatness of his work argues that he came in a culminating period of scholarship and literary activity1 if not of literary creation2 the reign of ,asoka we may surmise was another such period2--and from all this ,i think we may argue without much fear that the the nucleus and original form of it1 was written long before the reign of ,asoka4 ,besides1 if it had been written during the ,buddhist ascendency1 one fancies we should find more ,buddhism in it than we do4 ,there is some2--there are ideas that would be called ,buddhist2 but that really only prove the truth of the ,buddha's claim that he taught nothing new4 ,but a ,poem written in ,asoka's reign1 one fancies1 would not have been structurally and innately1 as the ,mahabharata is1 martial4 ,there is this difference between the two epics1--,i speak of the nucleus-poems in each case2--the ,mahabharata seems much more a natural growth1 a national epic1--the work not of one man1 but of many poets celebrating through many centuries a tradition not faded from the national memory2--but the ,ramayana is more a structural unity2 it bears the marks of coming from one creative mind3 even western criticism accepts ,valmiki 7whoever he may have been7 as its author4 ,to him it is credited in ,indian tradition2 which ascribes the authorship of the ,mahabharata to ,vyasa1 the reputed compiler of the ,vedas2--and this last is manifestly not to be taken literally2 for it is certain that a great age elapsed between the ,vedas and the ,epics4 ,so ,i think that the ,mahabharata grew up in the centuries1 many or few1 that followed the ,great ,war1--or1 say1 during the second millennium ,b4,c42 that in that millennium1 during some great 'day' of literary creation1 it was redacted into a single poem2-- and that1 the epic habit having thus been started1 a single poet1 ,valmiki1 in some succeeding 'day1' was prompted to make another epic1 on the other great traditional saga-cycle1 the story of ,rama4 ,but since that time1 and all down through the centuries1 both poems have been growing ad lib4 ,this is an endeavor to take a bird's-eye view of the whole subject2 not to look at the evidence through a microscope1 in the modern critical way4 ,it is very unorthodox1 but ,i believe it is the best way3 the bird's eye sees most2 the microscope sees least2 the former takes in whole landscapes in proportion2 the latter gets confused with details that seem1 under that exaggeration1 too highly important1--but which might be negatived altogether could you see the whole thing at once4 ,a telescope for that kind of seeing is not forthcoming2 but the methods of thought that ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky taught us supply at least the first indications of what it may be like3 they give us the first lenses4 ,as our perceptions grow under their influence1 doubtless new revelations will be made2 and we shall see more1 and further4 ,all we can do now is to retire from the confusion brought about by searching these far stars with a microscope2 to look less at the results of such searching1 than at the old traditions themselves1 making out what we can of them through what ,theosophic lenses we have4 ,we need not be misled by the ridiculous idea that civilization is a new thing4 ,it is only the bias of the age2 the next age will count it foolishness4--,but to return to our epics4-- ,first to the ,mahabharata4 ,it is1 as it comes down to us1 not one poem1 but a large literature4 ,mr4 ,dutt compares it1 both for length and variety of material1 to the sermons of ,jeremy ,taylor and ,hooker1 ,locke's and ,hobbes's books of ,philosophy1 ,blackstone's ,commentaries1 ,percy's ,ballads1 and the writings of ,newman1 ,pusey1 and ,keble1--all done into blank verse and incorporated with ,paradise ,lost4 ,you have a martial poem like the ,iliad1 full of the gilt and scarlet and trumpetings and blazonry of war2--and you find the ,bhagavad-,gita a chapter in it4 ,since it was first an epic1 there have been huge accretions to it3 ,whosever fancy it struck would add a book or two1 with new incidents to glorify this or that locality1 princely house1 or hero4 ,and it is hard to separate these accretions from the original1--from the version1 that is1 that first appeared as an epic poem4 ,some are closely bound into the story1 so as to be almost integral2 some are fairly so2 some might be cut out and never missed4 ,hence the vast bulk and promiscuity of material2 which might militate against your finding in it1 as a whole1 any consistent ,soul-symbol4 ,and yet its chief personages seem all real men2 they are clearly drawn1 with firm lines2--says ,mr4 ,dutt1 as clearly as the ,trojan and ,achaean chiefs of ,homer4 ,yudhishthira and ,karna and ,arjuna2 ,bhishma and ,drona and the wild ,duhsasan1 are very living characters2--as if they had been actual men who had impressed themselves on the imagination of the age1 and were not to be drawn by anyone who drew them except from the life4 ,that might imply that poets began writing about them not so long after they lived1 and while the memory of them and of their deeds was fresh4 ,we are to understand1 however1--all ,india has so understood1 always1--that the poem is a ,soul-symbol1 standing for the wars of ,light and ,darkness2 whether this symbol was a tradition firmly in the minds of all who wrote it1 or whether it was imposed by the master-hand that collated their writings into an epic for the first time4 ,for it would seem that of the original writers1 some had been on the ,kurava1 some on the ,pandava side2 though in the symbol as it stands1 it is the ,pandavas who represent the ,light1 the ,kurava1-- the darkness4 ,there are traces of this submerged diversity of opinion4 ,just as in the ,iliad it is the ,trojan ,hector who is the most sympathetic character1 so in the ,mahabharata it is often to some of the ,kurava champions that our sympathies unavoidably flow4 ,we are told that the ,kurava are thoroughly depraved and villainous2 but not seldom their actions belie the assertion1--with a certain ,kshattriya magnamity for which they are given no credit4 ,krishna fights for the sons of ,pandu2 in the ,bhagavad-,gita and elsewhere we see him as the incarnation of ,vishnu1--of the ,deity1 the ,supreme ,self4 ,as such1 he does neither good nor evil2 but ensures victory for his protegees4 ,philosophically and symbolically1 this is sound and true1 no doubt1 but one wonders whether the poem 7or poems7 ran so originally2 whether there may not be passages written at first by ,kuravist poets2 or a ,brahminical superimposition of motive on a poem once wholly ,kshattriya1 and interested only in showing forth the noble and human warrior virtues of the ,kshattriya caste4 ,i imagine that in that second millennium ,b4 ,c41 in the early centuries of ,kali-,yuga1 you had a warrior class with their bards1 inspired with high ,bushido feeling1--with chivalry and all that is fine in patricianism--but no longer under the leadership of ,adept ,princes2--the esoteric knowledge was now mainly in the hands of the ,priest-class4 ,the ,kshattriya bards made poems about the ,great ,war1 which grew and coalesced into a national epic4 ,then in the course of the centuries1 as learning in its higher branches became more and more a possession of the ,brahmans1--and since there was no feeling against adding to this epic whatever material came handy1--,brahmin esotericists manipulated it with great tact and finesse into a symbol of the warfare of the ,soul4 ,there is the story of the death of the ,kurava champion ,bhishma4 ,the ,pandavas had been victorious2 and ,duryodhana the ,kurava king appealed to ,bhishma to save the situation4 ,bhishma loved the ,pandava princes like a father2 and urged ,duryodhana to end the war by granting them their rights1--but in vain4 ,so next day1 owing his allegiance to ,duryodhana1 he took the field2 and ,as a lordly tusker tramples on a field of feeble reeds1 ,as a forest conflagration on the parched woodland feeds1 ,bhishma rode upon the warriors in his mighty battle car4 ,god nor mortal chief could face him in the gory field of war4 99 ------ 99 ,the quotations are from ,mr4 ,romesh ,dutt's translation4 ------ ,thus victorious1 he cried out to the vanquished that no appeal for mercy would be unheard2 that he fought not against the defeated1 the worn-out1 the wounded1 or a woman born4 ,hearing this1 ,krishna advised ,arjuna that the chance to turn the tide had come4 ,the young ,sikhandin had been born a woman1 and changed afterwards by the ,gods into a man4 ,let ,sikhandin fight in the forefront of the battle1 and the ,pandavas would win1 and ,bhishma be slain4--,arjuna1 who loved ,bhishma as dearly as ,bhishma loved him and his brothers1 protested2 but ,krishna announced that ,bhishma was so doomed to die1 and on the following day2 a fate decreed1 and righteously to be brought about by the stratagem4 ,so it happened3 ,bhishma viewed the ,pandav forces with a calm unmoving face2 ,saw not ,arjun's bow ,gandiva1 saw not ,bhima's mighty mace2 ,smiled to see the young ,sikhandin rushing to the battle's fore ,like the white foam on the billow when the mighty storm winds roar2 ,thought upon the word he plighted1 and the oath that he had sworn1 ,dropt his arms before the warrior that was1 but a woman born2 --and so1 was slain4444 and the chiefs of both armies gathered round and mourned for him4--,now it seems to me that the poets who viewed sympathetically the magnanimity of ,bhishma1 which meets you on the plane of simple human action and character1 would not have viewed sympathetically1 or perhaps conceived1 the strategem advised by ,krishna1--which you have to meet1 to find it acceptable1 on the planes of metaphysics and symbolism4 ,there is a quality in it you do not find in the ,illiad4 ,greek and ,trojan champions1 before beginning the real business of their combats1 do their best to impart to each other a little valuable self-knowledge3 each reveals carefully1 in a fine flow of hexameters1 the weak points in his opponent's character4 ,they are equally eloquent about their own greatnesses1 which stir their enthusiasm highly2--but as to faults1 neither takes thought for his own2 each concentrates on the other's2 and a war of words is the appetiser for the coming banquet of deeds4 ,before fighting ,hector1 ,achilles reviled him2 and having killed him1 dragged his corpse shamefully round the walls of ,troy4 ,but ,bhishma1 in his victorious career1 has nothing worse to cry to his enemies than--,valiant are ye1 noble princes6 and if you think of it on the unsymbolic plane1 there is a certain nobility in the ,despondency of ,arjuna in the ,bhagavad-,gita4 ,says the ,encyclopaedia ,brittanica3 ,to characterize the ,indian ,epics in a single word3 though often disfigured by grotesque fancies and wild exaggerations1 they are yet noble works1 abounding in passages of remarkable descriptive power2 and while as works of art they are far inferior to the ,greek epics1 in some respects they appeal far more strongly to the romantic mind of europe1 namely1 by the loving appreciation of natural beauty1 their exquisite delineation of womanly love and devotion1 and their tender sentiment of mercy and forgiveness4 --,precisely because they come from a much higher civilization that the ,greek4 ,from a civilization1 that is to say1 older and more continuous4 ,before ,rome fell1 the ,romans were evolving humanitarian and compassionate ideas quite unlike their old-time callousness4 ,and no1 it was not the influence of ,christianity2 we see it in the legislation of ,hadrian for example1 and especially in the anti-,christian ,marcus ,aurelius4 ,these feeling grow up in ages unscarred by wars and human cataclysms2 every war puts back their growth4 ,the fall of ,rome and the succeeding pralaya threw ,europe back into ruthless barbarity4 ,in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries humanism began to grow again2 and has been gaining ground especially since ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky began her teaching4 ,but not much more than a century ago they were publicly hanging1 drawing1 and quartering people in ,england2 crowds were gathering at ,tyburn or before the ,old ,bailey to enjoy an execution4 ,we have hardly had four generations in ,western ,europe in which men have not been ruthless and brutal barbarians with a sprinkling of fine spirits incarnate among them2 no ,european literature yet has had time to evolve to the point where it could portray a ,yudhishthira1 at the end of a national epic1 arriving at the gates of heaven with his dog1--and refusing to enter because the dog was not to be admitted4 ,there have been1 with us1 too great ups and downs of civilization2 too little continuity4 ,we might have grown to it by now1 had that medieval pralaya been a quiet and natural thing1 instead of what it was3-- a smash-up total and orgy of brutalities come as punishment for our sins done in the prime of manvantara4 ,a word or two as to the ,ramayana4 ,probably ,valmiki had the other epic before his mental vision when he wrote it2 as ,virgil had ,homer4 ,there are parallel incidents2 but his genius does not appear in them2--he cannot compete in their own line with the old ,kshattriya bards4 ,you do not find here so done to the life the chargings of lordly tuskers1 the gilt and crimson1 the scarlet and pomp and blazonry1 of war4 ,the braying of the battle conches is muted3 all is cast in a more gentle mold4 ,you get instead the forest and its beauty2 you get tender idylls of domestic life4--,this poem1 like the ,mahabharata1 has come swelling down the centuries2 but whereas the latter grew by the addition of new incidents1 the ,ramayana grew by the re-telling of old ones4 ,thus you may get book after book telling the same story of ,rama's life in the forest-hermitage by the ,godavari2 each book by a new poet in love with the gentle beauty of the tale and its setting1 and anxious to put them into his own language4 ,india never grows tired of these ,ramayanic repetitions4 ,sita1 the heroine1 ,rama's bride1 is the ideal of every good woman there2 ,i suppose ,shakespeare has created no truer or more beautiful figure4 ,to the ,mahabharata1 the ,ramayana stands perhaps as the higher ,wordsworth to ,milton2 it belongs to the same great age1 but to another day in it4 ,both are and have been wonderfully near the life of the people3 children are brought up on them2 all ages1 castes1 and conditions make them the staple of their mental diet4 ,both are semi-sacred2 neither is quite secular2 either relates the deeds of an avatar of ,vishnu2 ages have done their work upon them1 to lift them into the region of things sacrosanct4 ,and now at last we come to the age of ,king ,vikramaditya of ,ujjain1--to the ,nine ,gems of ,literature1--to a secular era of literary creation1--to the ,sanskrit ,drama1 and to ,kalidisa1 its ,shakespeare2--and to his masterpiece1 ,the ,ring of ,sakoontala4 ,there is a tendency with us to derive all things ,indian from ,greek sources4 ,some ,greek writer says the ,indians were familiar with ,homer2 whereupon we take up the cry1--,the ,ramayana is evidently a plagiarism from the ,iliad2 the abduction of ,sita by ,ravan1 of the abduction of ,helen by ,paris2 the siege of ,lanka1 of the siege of ,troy4 ,and the ,mahabharata is too2 because1--because it must be2 there's a deal of fighting in both4 7,so ,macedon plagiarized its river from ,monmouth47 ,we believe a ,greek at all times against an ,indian2 forgetting that the ,greeks themselves1 when they got to ,india1 were astounded at the truthfulness of the people they found there4 ,such strained avoidance of the natural lie1--the harmless1 necessary lie that came so trippingly to a ,greek tongue1--seemed to them extraordinary4--,so too our critics naturally set out from the position that the ,indian ,drama must have been an offshoot or imitation of the ,greek4 ,but fortunately that position had to be quitted toute de suite2 for the ,indian theory is much nearer the ,english than the ,greek2--much liker ,shakespeare's than ,aeschylus's4 ,sakoontal is romantic2 it came in a ,third or ,alawn ,period2 of all ,englishmen1 ,keats might most easily have written it2 if ,endymion were a play1 ,endymion would be the likest thing to it in ,english4 ,you must remember that downward trend in the ,great ,cycle2 that make each succeeding period in ,sanskrit literature a descent from the heights of esotericism towards the personal plane4 ,that is what brings ,kalidasa on to a level with ,keats4 ,behind ,sakoontala1 as behind ,endymion1 there is a ,soul-symbol2 only ,kalidasa1 like ,keats1 is preoccupied in his outer mind more with forest beauty and natural magic and his romantic tale of love4 ,it marks a stage in the descent of literature from the old impersonal to the modern personal reaches3 from tales told merely to express the ,soul-,symbol1 to tales told merely for the sake of telling them4 ,the stories in the ,upanishads are glyphs pure and simple4 ,in the epics1 they have taken on much more human color1 though still exalting and ennobling1--and all embodying1 or molded to1 the glyph4 ,now1 in ,the ,ring of ,sakoontala1--and it is typical of its class1--we have to look a little diligently for the glyph2 what impresses us is the stillness and morning beauty of the forest1 and1--yes1 it must be said4--the emotions1 quite personal1 of ,king ,dushyanta and ,sakoontala1 the hero and heroine4 ,she is a fairy's child1 full beautiful2 and has been brought up by her foster-father1 the yogi ,kanwa1 in his forest hermitage4 ,while ,kanwa is absent1 ,dushyanta1 hunting1 follows an antelope into that quiet refuge2 finds ,sakoontala1 loves and marries her4 ,here we are amidst the drowsy hum of bees1 the flowering of large ,indian forest blossoms1 the scent of the jasmine in bloom2 it is what ,keats would have written1 had his nightingale sung in an ,indian jungle4--,the king departs for his capital1 leaving with ,sakoontala a magical ring with power to reawaken memory of her in his heart1 should he ever forget4 ,but ,durvasas1 a wandering ascetic1 passes by the hermitage2 and ,sakoontala1 absorbed in her dreams1 fails to greet him2 for which he dooms her to be forgotten by her husband4 ,she waits and waits1 and at last seeks the unreturning ,dushyanta at his court2 who1 under the spell of ,durvasas1 fails to recognise her4 ,if what she claims is true1 she can produce the ring8--,but no2 she has lost it on her journey through the forest4 ,he repudiates her2 whereupon she is caught up by the ,gods into the ,grove of ,kasyapa beyond the clouds4 ,but the ring had fallen into a stream in the forest1 and a fish had swallowed it1 and a fisherman had caught the fish1 and the police had caught the fisherman 4444 and so it came into the hands of ,dushyanta again2 who1 at sight of it1 remembered all1 and was plunged in grief over his lost love4 ,years pass1 and ,indra summons him at last to fight a race of giants that threaten the sovereignty of the ,gods4 ,in the course of that warfare1 mounting to heaven in the car of ,indra1 ,dushyanta comes to the ,grove of ,kasyapa1 and is reunited with ,sakoontala and with their son1 now grown into an heroic boy4 ,as in ,the ,tempest a certain preoccupation with the magical beauty of the island dims the character-drawing a little1 and perhaps thereby makes the symbol more distinct1--so in ,sakoontala4 ,it is a faery piece3 begining in the morning calm and forest magic2 then permitting passion to rise1 and sadness to follow2 ending in the crystal and blue clearness of the upper air4 ,in this we see the basic form of the ,soul-,symbol1 which is worked out in the incidents and characters4 ,dushyanta1 hunting in the unexplored forest1 comes to the abode of holiness1 finds and loves ,sakoontala2--and from their union is born the perfect hero1--,sarva-,damana1 the ',all-tamer4'--,searching in the impersonal and unexplored regions within us1 we do at some time in our career of lives come to the holy place1 get vision of our ,immortal ,self2 from the union of which with this1 our human personality is to be born some time that new being we are to become1--the ,perfect ,man or ,adept4 ,but that first vision may be lost2 ,i suppose almost always is2--and there are wanderings and sorrows1 forgetfulness and above all heroic services to be performed1 before the final reunion can be attained4 ,,xvi4 ,,the ,,beginnings ,,of ,,rome ,we have seen an eastward flow of cycles3 which without too much ,procrusteanizing may be given dates thus3--,greece1 #dgh to #cdh2 ,maurya ,india1 #cbj to #aij2 ,western ,han ,china1 #aid to #fc2 in this current1 ,west ,asia1 being then in long pralaya1 is overleaped4 ,we have also seen a tide in the other direction2 it was first ,persia that touched ,greece to awakenment2 and there is that problematical ,indian period 7if it existed71 thirteen decades after the fall of the ,mauryas1 and following close upon the waning of the first glory of the ,hans4 ,so we should look for the ,greek ,age to kindle something westward again1 sooner or later2-- which of course it did4 #dgh to #cdh2 #cdh to #bah2 #bah to #hh ,b4,c42 #hh ,b4,c4 to #db ,a4 ,d43 we shall see presently the significance of those latter dates in ,roman history4 ,meanwhile to note this3 whereas ,persia woke ,greece at a touch1 thirteen decades elapsed before ,greece began to awake ,italy4 ,it waited to do so fully until the ,crest-,wave had sunk a little at the eastern end of the world2 for you may note that the year #fc ,b4,c41 in which ,han ,chaoti died1 was the year in which ,augustus was born4 ,with him in the same decade came most of the luminaries that made his age splendid3 ,virgil in #gj2 ,horace in #fe2 ,vipsanius ,agrippa in #fc2 ,cilnius ,maecenas in what precise year we do not know4 ,the fact is that the influx of vigorous light-bearing egos1 as it decreased in ,china1 went augmenting in ,italy3 which no doubt1 if we could trace it1 we should find to be the kind of thing that happens always4 ,for about four generations the foremost souls due to incarnate crowd into one race or quarter of the globe2 then1 having exhausted the workable heredity to be found there1--used up that racial stream1--they must go elsewhere4 ,there you have the raison d'etre1 probably1 of the thirteen-decade period4 ,it takes as a rule about four generations of such high life to deplete the racial heredity for the time being1--which must then be left to lie fallow4 ,so now1 ,america not being discovered1 and there being no further eastward to go1 we must jump westward the width of two continents 7nearly71 and 7that last lecture being parenthetical as it were7 come from ,han ,chaoti's death to ,augustus' birth1 from ,china to ,rome4 ,but before dealing with ,augustus and the ,roman prime1 we must get some general picture of the background out of which he and it emerged3 this week and next we must give to early and to ,republican ,rome4 ,and here let me say that these two lectures will be1 for the most part1 a very bare-faced plagiarism2 summarizing facts and conclusions taken from a book called ,the ,grandeur that was ,rome1 by ,mr4 ,j4 ,c4 ,stobart1 of the ,english ,cambridge4 ,one greatest trouble about historical study is1 that it allows you to see no great trends1 but hides under the record of innumerable fidgety details the real meanings of things4 ,mr4 ,stobart1 with a gift of his own for taking large views1 sees this clearly1 and goes about to remedy it2 he does not wander with you through the dark of the undergrowth1 labeling bush after bush2 but leads you from eminence to eminence1 generalizing1 and giving you to understand the broad lie of the land3 he makes you see the forest in spite of the trees4 ,as this is our purpose1 too1 we shall beg leave to go with him2 only adding now and again such new light as ,theosophical ideas throw on it2--and for the most part1 to avoid a tautology of acknowledgments1 or a plethora of footnotes in the ,,path presently1 letting this one confession of debt serve4 ,the learning1 the pictures1 the marshaling of facts1 are all ,mr4 ,stobart's4 ,in the fifth and sixth centuries ,a4 ,d41 when the old manvantara was closing1 ,europe was flung into the ,cauldron of ,regeneration4 ,nations and fragments of nations were thrown in and tossing and seething2 the broth of them was boiling over1 and1--just as the the ,story of ,taliesin1 flooding the world with poison and destruction3 and all that a new order of ages might in due time come into being4 ,one result that a miscellany of racial heterogeneities was washed up into the peninsular and island extremities of the continent4 ,in the ,british you had four ,celtic and a ,pictish remnant1--not to mention ,latins galore1--pressed on by three or four sorts of ,teutons4 ,in ,spain1 though it was less an extremity of ,europe than a highway into ,africa1 you had a fine assortment of odds and ends3 ,suevi1 ,vandals1 ,goths and what not2 superimposed on a more or less homogenized collection of ,iberians1 ,celts1 ,phoenicians1 and ,italians2--and in ,italy you had ,italians broken up into numberless fragments1 and overrun by all manner of ,lombards1 ,teutons1 ,slavs1 and ,huns4 ,welded by cyclic stress1 presently first ,england1 then ,spain1 and lastly ,italy1 became nations2 in all three varying degrees of homogeneity being attained4 ,but the next peninsula1 the ,balkan1 has so far reached no unity at all2 it remains to this day a curious museum of racial oddments1 to the sorrow of ,european peace2 and each of them represents some people strong in its day1 and perhaps even cultured4 ,what the ,balkan peninsula has been in our own time1 the ,apennine peninsula was after the fall of ,rome1 and also before the rise of ,rome3 a job-lot of race-fragments driven into that extremity of ,europe by the alarms and excursions of empires in dissolution whose history time has hidden4 ,the end of a manvantara1 the break-up of a great civilization and the confusion that followed1 made the ,balkans what they are now1 and ,italy what she was in the ,middle ,ages4 ,the end of an earlier manvantara1 the break-up of older and forgotten civilizations1 made ,italy what she was in the sixth century ,b4,c4 ,both peninsulas1 by their mere physical geography1 seem specially designed for the purpose4 ,italy is divided into four by the ,apennines1 and is mostly ,apennines4 ,everyone goes there3 conquerors1 lured by the dono fatale1 and for the sake of the prizes to be gathered2 the conquered1 because it is the natural path of escape out of ,central ,europe4 ,the way in is easy enough2 it is only the way out that is difficult4 ,the ,alps slope up gently on the northern side2 but sharply fall away in grand precipices on the southern4 ,there1 too1 they overlook a region that would always tempt invaders3 the great rich plain the ,po waters2 a land no refugees could well hope to hold4 ,it has been in turn ,cisalpine ,gaul1 the ,plain of the ,lombards1 and the main part of ,austrian ,italy2 this thrice a possession of conquerors from the north4 ,it is the first of the four divisions4 ,there never would be safety in it for refugees2 you would not find in it a great diversity of races living apart2 conquerors and conquered would quickly homogenize1--unless the conquerors had their main seat in1 and remained in political union with1 transalpine realms4 ,refugees would still and always have to move on1 if they desired to keep their freedom4 ,three ways would be open to them1 and three destinies1 according to which way they chose4 ,they might go down into the long strip of ,adriatic coastland1 where there are no natural harbors--and remain isolated and unimportant between the mountain barrier and the sea4 ,those who occupied this cul de sac have played no great part in history3 the isolated never do4--,or they might cross the ,apennines and pour down into the lowlands of ,etruria and ,latium1 where are rich lands1 some harbors1 and generally1 fine opportunities for building up a civilization4 ,draw-backs also1 for a defeated remnant3 ,etruria is not too far from ,lombardy to tempt adventurers from the north1 the vanguard of the conquering people2--although again1 the ,apennine barrier might make their hold on that middle region precarious4 ,they might come there conquering2 but would form1 probably1 no very permanent part of the northern empire3 they would mix with the conquered1 and at any weakening northward1 the mixture would be likely to break away4 ,so ,austria had influence and suzerainty and various crown appanages in ,tuscany2 but not such settled sway as over the ,lombard ,plain4 ,then1 too1 this is a region that1 in a time of ,west ,asian manvantara and ,european pralaya1 might easily tempt adventurers from the ,near ,east4 ,but the main road for true refugees is the high ,apennines2 and this is the road most of them traveled4 ,their fate1 taking it1 would be to be pressed southward along the backbone of ,italy by new waves and waves of peoples2 and among the wild valleys to lose their culture1 and become highlandmen1 bandit tribes and raiding clans2 until the first comers of them had been driven down right into the hot coastlands of the heel and toe of ,italy4 ,great material civilizations rarely originate among mountains3 outwardly because of the difficulty of communications2 inwardly1 ,i suspect1 because mountain influences pull too much away from material things4 ,nature made the mountains1 you may say1 for the special purpose of regenerating effete remnants of civilizations4 ,sabellians and ,oscans1 ,samnites and ,volscians and ,aequians and dear knows what all3--open your ,roman ,histories1 and in each one of the host of nation-names you find there1 you may probably see the relic of some kingdom once great and flourishing north or south of the ,alps2--just as you can in the ,serbians1 ,roumanians1 ,bulgars1 ,vlachs1 and ,albanians in the next peninsula now4 ,one more element is to be considered there in the far south4 ,our ,lucanian and ,bruttian and ,iapygian refugees1--themselves1 or some of them1 naturally the oldest people in ,italy1 the most original inhabitants1--would find themselves1 when they arrived there1 very much de-civilized2 but1 because the coast is full of fine harbors1 probably sooner or later in touch with settlers from abroad4 ,it is a part that would tempt colonists of any cultured or commercial peoples that might be spreading out from ,greece or the ,west ,asian centers or elsewhere2 and so it was ,magna ,graecia of old1 and a mixing-place of ,greek and old ,italian blood2 and so1 since1 has been held by ,saracens1 ,normans1 ,byzantines1 and ,spaniards4 ,the result of all this diversity of racial elements would be that ,italy could only difficultly attain national unity at any time2 but that once such unity was attained1 she would be bound to play an enormous part4 ,no doubt again and again she has been a center of empire2 it is always your ex-melting-pot that is4 ,who were the earliest ,italians8 ,the earliest1 it least1 that we can guess at8--,once on a time the peninsula was colonized by folk who sailed in through the ,straits of ,gibraltar from ,ruta and ,daitya1 those island fragments of ,atlantis2 and 7says ,madame ,blavatsky7 you should have found a pocket of these colonists surviving in ,latium1 strong enough for the most part to keep the waves of invaders to the north of them1 and the refugees to the high ,apennines4 ,another relic of them you would have found1 probably1 driven down into the far south2 and such a relic1 ,i understand1 the ,iapygians were4 ,one more ethnic influence1--an important one4 ,round about the year #ajjj ,b4,c41 all ,europe was in dead pralaya1 while ,west ,asia was in high manvantara3 under which conditions1 as ,i suggested just now1 such parts as the ,lombard ,plain and ,tuscany might tempt ,west ,asians of enterprise2--as ,spain and ,sicily tempted the ,moslems long afterwards4 ,supposing such a people came in2 they would be1 while the ,west ,asian manvantara was in being1 much more cultured and powerful than their ,italian neighbors2 but the waning centuries of their manvantara would coincide with the first and orient portion of the ,european one2 so1 as soon as that should begin to touch ,italy1 things would begin to equalize themselves2 till at last1 as ,europe drew towards noon and ,west ,asia towards evening1 these ,west ,asians of ,etruria would go the way of the ,spanish ,moors4 ,there you have the probable history of the ,etruscans4 ,all ,roman writers say they came from ,lydia by sea2 which statement could only have been a repetition of what the ,etruscans said about themselves4 ,the matter is much in dispute2 but most likely there is no testimony better than the ancient one4 ,some authorities are for ,lydia2 some are for the ,rhaetian ,alps2 some are for calling the ,etruscans 'autochthonous1'--which ,i hold to be1 like ,mesopotamia1 a 'blessed word4' ,certainly the ,gauls drove them out of ,lombardy1 and some of them1 as refugees1 up into the ,rhaetian ,alps1--sometime after the ,european manvantara began in #hgj4 ,we cannot read their language1 and do not know enough about it to connect it even with the ,turanian ,group2 but we know enough to exclude it1 perhaps1 from every other known group in the ,old ,world1--certainly from the ,aryan4 ,there is something absolutely un-,aryan 7one would say7 about their art1 the figures on their tombs4 ,great finish2 no primitivism2 but something queer and grotesque about the faces4444 ,however1 you can get no racial indications from things like that4 ,there is a state of decadence1 that may come to any race1--that has perhaps in every race cycles of its own for appearing1--when artists go for their ideals and inspiration1 not to the divine world of the ,soul1 but to vast elemental goblinish limboes in the sub-human3 realms the insane are at home in1 and vice-victims sometimes1 and drug-victims ,i suppose always4 ,denizens of these regions1 ,i take it1 are the models for some of our cubists and futurists4 4 4 4 ,i seem to see the same kind of influence in these ,etruscan faces4 ,i think we should sense something sinister in a people with art-conventions like theirs2--and this accords with the popular view of antiquity1 for the ,etruscans had not a nice reputation4 ,the probability appears to be that they became a nation in their ,italian home in the tenth or eleventh century ,b4,c42 were at first war-like1 and spread their power considerably1 holding ,tuscany1 ,umbria1 ,latium1 with ,lombardy until the ,gauls dispossessed them1 and presently ,corsica under a treaty with ,carthage that gave the ,carthaginians ,sardinia as a quid pro quo4 ,tuscany1 perhaps1 would have been the original colony2 when ,lombardy was lost1 it was the central seat of their power2 there the native population became either quite merged in them1 or remained as plebeians2 ,umbria and ,latium they possessed and ruled as suzerains4 ,the ,tuscan lands are rich1 and the ,rasenna1 as they called themselves1 made money by exporting the produce of their fields and forests2 also crude metals brought in from the north-west1--for ,etruria was the clearing-house for the trade between ,gaul and the lands beyond1 and the eastern ,mediterranean4 ,from ,egypt1 ,carthage1 and ,asia1 they imported in exchange luxuries and objects of art2 until in time the old terror of their name1--as pirates1 not unconnected with something of fame for black magic2 one finds it as early as in ,hesiod1 and again in the ,medea of ,euripides1--gave place to an equally ill repute for luxurious living and sensuality4 ,we know that in war it was a poor thing to put your trust in ,etruscan alliances4 ,according to their own account of it1 they were destined to endure as a distinct people for about nine centuries2 which is probably what they did4 ,their power was at its height about #fjj ,b4,c4 ,as they began to decline1 certain small ,italian cities that had been part of their empire broke away and freed themselves2 particularly in ,latium1 where lived the descendants of those old-time colonists from ,ruta and ,daitya1--priding themselves still on their ancient descent1 and holding themselves ,patricians or nobles1 with a serf population of conquered ,italians to look down upon4 ,or1 of course1 it may have been vice versa3 that the ,atlanteans were the older stock1 nearer the soil1 and ,plebeians2 and that the ,patricians were later conquerors lured or driven down from ,central ,europe4 ,at any rate1 as their empire diminished1 ,etruria stood like some alien civilized ,granada in the midst of surrounding medieval barbarism2 for ,italy1 in #ejj ,b4,c41 was simply medieval4 ,up in the mountains were war-like highlanders3 each tribe with its central stronghold1--like ,beneventum in ,samnium1 which you could hardly call a city1 ,i suppose3 it was rather a place of refuge for times when refuge was needed1 than a group of homes to live in2 in general1 the mountains gave enough sense of security1 and you might live normally in your scattered farms4--,but down in the lowlands you needed something more definitely city-like3 at once a group of homes and a common fortress4 ,so ,latium and ,campania were strewn with little towns by river and seashore1 or hill-top built with more or less peaceful citadel2 each holding the lands it could watch1 or that its citizen armies could turn out quickly to defend4 ,each was always at war or in league with most of the others2 but material civilization had not receded so far as among the mountaineers4 ,the latter raided them perpetually1 so they had to be tough and abstemious and watchful2 and then again they raided the mountaineers to get their own back1 7with reasonable interest72 and lastly1 lest like ,hotspur they should find such quiet life a plague1 and want work1 it was always their prerogative1 and generally their pleasure1 to go to war with each other4--,a hard1 poor life1 in which to be and do right was to keep in fit condition for the raidings and excursions and alarms2 ethics amounted to about that much2 art or culture1 you may say1 there was none4 ,their civilization was what we know as ,balkanic1 with perpetual ,balkanic eruptions1 so to speak4 ,their conception of life did not admit of the absence of at least one good summer campaign4 ,mr4 ,stobart neatly puts it to this effect3 no man is content to live ambitionless on a bare pittance and the necessaries2 he must see some prospect1 some margin1 as well2 and for these folk1 now that they had freed themselves from the ,etruscans1 the necessaries were from their petty agriculture1 the margin was to be looked for in war4 ,among these cities was one on the ,tiber1 about sixteen miles up from the mouth4 ,it had had a great past under kings of its own1 before the ,etruscan conquest2 very likely had wielded wide empire in its day4 ,a tradition of high destiny hung about it1 and was ingrained in the consciousness of its citizens2 and ,i believe that this is always what remains of ancient greatness when time1 cataclysms1 and disasters have wiped all actual memories thereof away4 ,but now1 say in #ejj ,b4,c41 we are to think of it as a little peasant community in an age and land where there was no such wide distinction between peasant and bandit4 ,it had for its totem1 crest1 symbol1 what you will1 very appropriately1 a she-wolf4444 ,art or culture1 ,i said1 there was none2--and yet1 too1 we might pride ourselves on certain great possessions to be called 7stretching it a little71 in that line2 which had been left to us by our erstwhile ,etruscan lords1 or executed for us by ,etruscan artists with their tongues in their cheeks and sides quietly shaking4--,ha1 you men of ,praeneste6 you men of ,tibur6 sing small1 will you8 ,we have our grand ,jupiter on the ,capitoline1 resplendent in vermilion paint2 what say you to that8 ,paid for him1 too1 7a surmise1 this67 with cattle raided from your fields1 my friends6 ,everything handsome about us1 you see2 but not for this must you accuse us of the levity of culture4 ,we might patronize2 we did not dabble4--,one seems to hear from those early ages1 echoes of tones familiar now4 ,ours is the good old roast beef and common sense of--,i mean1 the grand old gravitas of ,rome4 ,what6 you must have a ,jupiter to worship1 mustn't you8 ,no sound as by ,parliament-,established-,religion of ,numa ,pompilius1 ,sir1 and the world would go to the dogs6 ,and1 of course1 vermilion paint4 ,it wears well1 and is a good bloody color with no levity about it2 besides1 can be seen a long way off--whereby it serves to keep you rascals stirred up with jealousy1 or should4 ,so3 we have our vermilion ,jupiter and think of ourselves very highly indeed4 ,yes2 but there is a basis for our boasting1 too2--which boasting1 after all1 is mainly a mental state2 we aim to be taciturn in our speech1 and to proclaim our superiority with sound thumps1 rather than like wretched ,greeks with poetry and philosophy and such4 ,we do possess1 and love1--at the very least we aim at1--the thing we call gravitas2 and--there are points to admire in it4 ,the legends are full of revelation2 and what they reveal are the ideals of ,rome4 ,stern discipline2 a rigid sense of duty to the state2 unlimited sacrifice of the individual to it2 stoic endurance in the men2 strictest chastity in the women3--there were many and great qualities4 ,something had come down from of old1 or had been acquired in adversity3 a saving health for this nation4 ,war was the regular annual business2 all the male population of military age took part in it2 and military age did not end too early4 ,it was an order that tended to leave no room in the world but for the fittest1 physically and morally1 if not mentally4 ,there was discipline1 and again and always discipline3 paterfamilias king in his household1 with power of life and death over his children4 ,it was a regime that gave little chance for loose living4 ,a sterile and ugly regime1 ,nevertheless2 and1 later1 they fell victims to its shortcomings4 ,vice1 that wrecks every civilization in its turn1 depend upon it had wrecked one here3 that one of which we get faint reminiscences in the stories of the ,roman kings4 ,then these barren and severe conditions ensued1 and vice was 7comparatively speaking7 cleaned out4 ,what were the inner sources of this people's strength8 ,what light from the ,spirit shone among them8 ,of the ,sacred ,mysteries1 what could subsist in such a community8--,well2 the ,mysteries had1 by this time1 as we have seen1 very far declined4 ,pythagoras had made his effort in this very ,italy2 he died in the first year of the fifth century soon after the expulsion of the kings1 according to the received chronology2--in reality1 long before there is dependable history of ,rome at all4 ,there had been an ,italian ,golden ,age1 when ,saturn reigned and the ,mysteries ruled human life4 ,there were reminiscences of a long past splendor2 and an atmosphere about them1 ,i think1 more mellow and peace-lipped than anything in ,hesiod or ,homer4 ,i suppose that from some calmer1 firmer1 and more benignant ,roman ,empire manvantaras back1 when the ,mysteries were in their flower and ,theosophy guided the relations of men and nations1 some thin stream of that divine knowledge flowed down into the pralaya2 that an echo lingered1--at ,cumae1 perhaps1 where the ,sibyl was1-- or somewhere among the ,oscan or ,sabine mountains4 ,certainly nothing remained1 regnant and recognised in the cities1 to suggest a repugnance to the summer campaigns1 or that other nations had their rights4 ,yet there was something to make life sweeter than it might have been4 ,they said that of old there had been a ,king in ,rome who was a ,messenger of the ,gods and link between earth and heaven2 and that it was he had founded their religion4 ,was ,numa ,pompilius1 a real person8--,by no means1 says modern criticism4 ,i will quote you ,mr4 ,stobart3-- ,the ,seven ,kings of ,rome are for the most part mere names which have been fitted by rationalizing historians1 presumably ,greek1 with inventions appropriate to them4 ,tomulus is simply the patron hero of ,rome called by her name4 ,numa1 the second1 whose name suggests numen1 was the blameless ,sabine who originated most of the old ,roman cults1 and received a complete biography largely borrowed from that invented for ,solon4 --,he calls attention1 too1 to the fact that ,tarquin the ,proud is made a typical ,greek ,tyrant1 and is said to have been driven out of ,rome in #eaj1--the very year in which that other typical ,greek ,tyrant1 ,hippias1 was driven out of ,athens2--so that on the whole it is not a view for easy unthinking rejection4 ,but ,madame ,blavatsky left a good maxim on these matters3 that tradition will tell you more truth than what goes for history will2 and she is quite positive that there is much more truth in the tales about the kings than in what comes down about the early ,republic4 ,only you must interpret the traditions2 you must understand them4 ,let us go about1 and see if we can arrive at something4 ,before the influx of the ,crest-,wave began1 ,rome was a very petty provincial affair1 without any place at all in the great sweep of world-story4 ,her annals are about as important as those of the ,samnium of old1 of which we know nothing2 or those1 say1 of ,andorra now1 about which we care less4 ,our school histories commonly end at the ,battle of ,acium2 which is the place where ,roman history becomes universal and important3 a point wisely made and strongly insisted on by ,mr4 ,stobart4 ,i shows how thoroughly we lack any true sense of what history is and is for4 ,we are so wrapped up in politics that our vision of the motions of the ,human ,spirit is obscured4 ,there were lots of politics in ,republican ,rome1 and you may say none in the empire2 so we make for the pettiness that obsesses us1 and ignore the greatness whose effects are felt yet4 ,rome played at politics3 old-time conqueror-race ,patricians against old-time conquered-race ,plebians3 till the two were merged into one and she grew tired of the game4 ,she played at war until her little raidings and conquests had carried her out of the sphere of provincial politics1 and she stood on the brink of the great world4 ,then the influx of important souls began2 she entered into history1 presently threw up politics forever1 and performed1 so far as it was in her to do so1 her mission in the world4 ,what does ,history care for the election results in some village in ,montenegro8 ,or for the passage of the ,licinian ,rogations1 or the high exploits of ,terentilius ,harsa8 ,yet1 too1 we must get a view of this people in pralaya1 that we may understand better the workings of the ,human ,spirit in its fulness4 ,but we must see the forest1 and not lose sight and sense of it while botanizing over individual trees4 ,we must forget the interminable details of wars and politics that amount to nothing2 that so we may apprehend the form1 features1 color1 of this aspect of humanity4 ,here is a mighty river3 the practical uses of mankind are mainly concerned with it as far up as it may be navigable2 or at most1 as far up as it may be turning mills and watering the fields of agriculture4 ,there may be regions beyond when poets and mythologists may bring great treasures for the ,human ,spirit2 but do you do well to treat such treasures as plug material for exchange and barter8 ,they call for another kind of treatment4 ,the sober science of history may be said to start where the nations become navigable1 and begin to affect the world4 ,you can sail your ships up the river ,rome to about the beginning of the third century ,b4,c41 when she began to ermerge from ,italian provincialism and to have relations with foreign peoples3 ,pyrrhus came over to fight her in #bhj4 ,what is told of the century before may be true or not2 as a general picture it is probably true enough1 and only as a general picture does it matter2 its details are supremely unimportant4 ,the river here is pouting through the gorges1 or shallowly meandering the meads4 ,it is watering ,farmer ,balbus's fields2 ,grazier ,ahenobarbus's cows drink at it2 idle ,dolabell angles in its quiet reaches3 there are bloody tribal affrays yearly at its fords4 ,it is important1 certainly1 to ,babbus and ,dolabella1 and the men slain in the forays2--but to us others--4 ,and then at #cij there are falls and dangerous rapids2 you will get no ships beyond these4 ,the ,gauls poured down and swept away everything3 the records were burnt2 and ,rome1 such as it was1 had to be re-founded4 ,here is a main break with the past2 something like ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti's ,book-burning2 and it serves to make doubly uncertain all that went before4 ,go further now1 and you must take to the wild unmapped hills4 ,there are no fields beyond this2 the kine keep to the lush lowland meadows2 rod and line must be left behind1--and angler too1 unles he is prepared for stiff climbing1 and no marketable recompense4 ,nor yet1 perhaps1 for some time1 much in things unmarketable3 ,i will not say there is any great beauty of scenery in these rather stubborn and arid hills4 ,as to the fourth century1 then 7or from #bhj to #cij7--we need not care much which of ,ahenobarbus's cows was brindled1 or which had the crumpled horn1 or which broke off the coltsfoot bloom with lazy ruthless hoof4 ,as to the fifth1--we need not try to row the quinqueremes of history beyond that ,gaulish waterfall4 ,we need not bother with the weight ,dolabella claims for the trout he says he caught up there3 that trout has been cooked and eaten these twenty-three hundred years4 ,away beyond1 in the high mountains1 there may be pools haunted by the nymphs2 you cannot sail up to them1 that is certain2 but there may be ways round44444 ,here1 still in the foot-hills1 is a pool that does look1 if not nymphatic1 at least a little fishy1 as they say2 the story of ,rome's dealings with ,lars ,porsenna4 ,it even looks as if something historical might be caught in it4 ,the ,roman historians have been obviously camouflaging3 they do not want you to examine this too closely4 ,remember that all these things came down by memory1 among a people exceedingly proud1 and that had been used to rely on records1--which records had been burnt by the ,gauls4 ,turn to your ,english ,history1 and you shall probably look in vain in it for any reference to the ,battle of ,patay2 you shall certainly find ,agincourt noised and trumpted ad lib4 ,now battles are never decisive2 they never make history2 the very best of them might just as well not have been fought4 ,but at ,patay the forces which made it inevitable ,france should be a nation struck down into the physical plane and made themselves manifest3 as far as that plane is concerned1 the centuries of ,french history flow from the battlefield of ,patay4 ,but what made trumpery ,agincourt was only the fierce will of a cruel1 ambitious fighting king2 and what flowed from it was a few decades of war and misery4 ,that by way of illustration how history is envisaged and taught3 depend upon it1 by every people2 it is not peculiar to this one or that4--,well then1 the fish we are at liberty to catch in this particular ,roman pool is a period during which ,rome was part of the ,etruscan ,empire4 ,the fact is generally accepted1 ,i believe2 and is1 of course1 the proposition we started from4 ,how long the period was1 we cannot say4 ,the ,tarquins were from ,tarquinii in ,etruria2 perhaps a line of ,etruscan governors4 ,the gentleman from ,clusium who swore by the ,nine ,gods was either a king who brought back a rebellious ,rome to temporary submission1 or the last ,etruscan monarch in whose empire it was included4 ,but here is the point3 whether fifty or five hundred years long--and perhaps more likely the former than the latter--this period of foreign rule was long enough to make a big break in the national tradition1 and to throw all preceding events out of perspective4 ,at the risk of longueurs--and other things--let me take an illustration from scenes ,i know4 ,i have heard peasants in ,wales talking about events before the conquest2--people who have never learnt ,welsh history out of books1 and have nothing to go on but local legends2--and placing the old unhappy far-off things and battles long ago at over a hundred years back1 ,i shouldn' wonder4 ,it is the way of tradition to foreshorten things like that1--,nothing much has happened in ,wales since those ancient battles with the ,english2 so the six or seven centuries of ,english rule are dismissed as over a hundred years4 ,rome under the ,etruscans1 like ,wales under the ,english1 would have had no history of her own3 there would have been nothing to impress itself on the race-memory4 ,such times fade out easily3 they seem to have been very short1 or are forgotten altogether4 ,but this same ,welsh peasant1 who thus forgets and foreshortens recent history1 always remembers that there were kings of ,wales once4 ,perhaps1 if he were put to it to write a history1 with no books to guide him1 he would name you as many as seven of them1 and supply each with more or less true stories4 ,in reality1 of course1 there were eight centuries of ,welsh kings2 and before them1 the ,roman occupation1--which he also remembers1 but very vaguely2 and before that1 he has the strongest impression that there were ages of wide sovereignty and splendor4 ,the kings he would name1 naturally1 are the ones that made the most mark4--,i think the ,romans1 in constructing or making ,greeks construct for them their ancient history1 did very much the same kind of thing4 ,they remembered the names of seven kings1 with tales about them1 and built on those4 ,there were the kings who had stood out and stood for most2 and the ,romans remembered what they stood for4 ,so here ,i think we get real history2 whereas in the stories of republican days we may see the efforts of great families to provide themselves with a great past4 ,but ,i doubt we could take anything aupied de la lettre2 or that it would profit us to do so if we could4 ,here is a pointer3 we have seen how in ,india a long age of ,kshattriya supremacy preceded the supremacy of the ,brahmins4 ,now observe ,kshattriya ,romulus followed by ,brahmin ,numa4 ,i do not see why ,madame ,blavatsky shold have so strongly insisted on the truth of the story of the roman ,kings unless there were more in it than mere pralayic historicity4 ,unless it were of bigger value1 that is1 than ,andorran or ,montenegrin annals4 ,rome1 after the ,etruscan domination1 was a meanly built little city2 but there were remains from pre-,etruscan times greater than anything built under the ,republic4 ,rome is a fine modern capital now2 but there were times in the age of papal rule1 when it was a miserable depopulated village of great ruins1 with wolves prowling nightly through the weed-grown streets4 ,yet even then the tradition of ,roma ,caput ,mundi reigned among the wretched inhabitants1--witness ,rienzi3 it was the one thing1 besides the ruins1 to tell of ancient greatness4 ,some such feeling1 borne down out of a forgotten past1 impelled ,republican ,rome on the path of conquest4 ,it was not even a tradition1 at that time2 but the essence of a tradition that remained as a sense of high destinies4 ,who1 then1 was ,romulus8--,some king's son from ,ruta or ,daitya1 who came in his lordly ,atlantean ships1 and builded a city on the ,tiber8 ,very likely4 ,that would be1 at the very least1 as far back as nine or ten thousand ,b4,c42 which is contemptibly modern1 when you think of the hundred and sixty thousand years of our present sub-race4 ,the thing that is in the back of my mind is1 that ,rome is probably as old as that sub-race1 or nearly so2 but wild horses should not drag from me a statement of it4 ,rome1 ,london1 ,paris1--all and any of them1 for that matter4--,but a hundred and sixty thousand or ten thousand1 no man's name could survive so long1 ,i think1 as a peg on which to hang actual history4 ,it would pass1 long before the ten millenniums were over1 into legend2 and become that of a ,god or demigod1--whose cult1 also1 would need reviving1 in time1 by some new avatar4 ,now 7as remarked before7 humanity has a profound instinct for avatars2 and also 7as you would expect7 for ,reincarnation4 ,the sixth-century ,britons were reminded by one of their chieftains of some mighty king or ,god of prehistory2 the two got mixed1 and the mixture came down as the ,arthur of the legend4 ,this is what ,i mean by 'reviving the cult4' ,now then1 who was ,romulus8--,some near or remote descendant of heroic refugees from fallen ,troy1 who rebuilt ,rome or reestablished its sovereignty8--,very likely1 again2--,i mean1 very likely both that and the king's son from ,ruta or ,daitya4 ,and lastly1 very likely some tough little peasant-bandit restorer1 not so long before the ,etruscan conquest1 whom the people came to mix up witl mightier figures half forgotten4 4 4 4 4 ,we see his history1 as the ,romans did1 through the lens of a tough little peasant-bandit city2 through the lens of a pralaya1 which makes pralayic all objects seen4 ,it is like the ,irish peasant-girl who has seen the palace of the king of the fairies2 she describes you something akin to the greatest magnificence she knows1--which happens to be the house of the local squireen4 ,now the ,etruscan domination1 as we have noted1 could probably not have begun before #ajjj ,b4,c42 at which time1 to go by our hypothesis as to the length and recurrence of the cycles1 ,europe was in dead pralaya1 and had been since #adhj4 ,so that1 possibly1 you would have had between #adhj and #ajjj a ,rome in pralaya1 but independent--like ,andorra now1 or ,montenegro4 ,the stories we get about the seven kings would fit such a time admirably4 ,they tell of pralayic provincials2 and ,rome1 during that second half of the second millennium ,b4,c41 would have been just that4 ,but again1 if the seven kings had been just that and nothing more1 ,i cannot see why ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky should have laid such stress on the essential truth of their stories4 ,she is particular1 too1 about the ,arthurian legend3--saying that it is at once symbolic and actually historical1--which latter1 as concerns the sixth-century ,arthur1 it is not and she would not have considered it to be3 no ,briton prince of that time went conquering through ,europe4 ,so there must be some further value to the tales of the ,roman kings2 else why are they so much better than the ,republican annals8 ,why8--unless all history except the invented kind or the distorted-by-pride-or-politics kind is symbolic2 and unless we could read in these stories the record1 not merely of some pre-,etruscan pralayic centuries1 but of great ages of the past and of the natural unfoldment of the ,human ,spirit in history through long millenniums8 ,evolution is upon a pattern2 understand the drift of any given thousand years in such a way that you could reduce it to a symbol1 and probably you have the key to all the past4 ,so ,i imagine there would be seven interpretations to these kings1 as to all other symbols4 ,romulus may represent a ,kshattriya1 and ,numa a ,brahmin domination in the early ages of the sub-race4 ,actual men1 there may yet be mirrored in them the history--shall we say of the whole sub-race8 ,or ,root-race8 ,or the whole natural order of human evolution8 ,it is business for imaginative meditation1--which is creative or truth-finding meditation4 ,but now let us try1 diffidently1 to search out the last1 the historic1 pre-,etruscan ,numa4 ,if you examined the ,mohammedan ,east1 now in these days of its mid-pralaya and disruption3 ,turkey especially1 or ,egypt3 you should find constantly the tradition of ,men lifted by holiness and wisdom and power above the levels of common humanity3 ,unseen ,guardians of the race1--a ,great ,lodge or ,order of them4 ,in ,christendom1 in its manvantara1 you find no trace of this knowledge2 but it may surprise you to know that it is so common among the ,moslems1 that according to the ,turkish popular belief1 there is always a ,white ,adept somewhere within the mosque of ,st4 ,sophia1--hidden under a disguise none would be likely to penetrate4 ,there are hundreds of stories4 ,the common thought is that representatives of this ,lodge1 or their disciples1 often appear2 are not so far away from the world of men2 may be teaching1 quite obscurely1 or dropping casual seeds of the ,secret ,wisdom1 in the next village4 ,well2 ,i imagine pralayic conditions may allow benign spiritual influences to be at work1 sometimes1 nearer the surface of life than in manvantara4 ,the brain-mind is less universally dominant2 there is not the same dense atmosphere of materialism4 ,you get on the one hand a franker play of the passions1 and no curbs imposed either by a sound police system or a national conscience2 in pralaya time there is no national conscience1 or1 ,i think1 national consciousness1--no feeling of collective entity1 of being a nation1--at all2 perhaps no public opinion4 ,as it is with a man when he sleeps3 the soul is not there2 there is nothing in that body that feels then ',i am ,i'2 nothing 7normally7 that can control the disordered dreams4 4 4 4 ,hence1 in the sleeping nation1 the massacres1 race-wars1 mob-murders1 and so on2 which1 we should remember1 affect parts1 not the whole1 of the race4 ,but on the other hand that very absence of brain-mind rule may imply ,buddhic influences at work in quiet places2 and one cannot tell what unknown graciousnesses may be happening1 that our manvantaric livelinesses and commercialism quite forbid4 4 4 4 ,believe me1 if we understood the laws of history1 we should waste a deal less time and sanity in yelling condemnations4 ,italy then was something like ,turkey is now4 ,dear knows whom you might chance on1 if you watched with anointed eyes 4 4 4 in ,st4 ,sophia 4 4 4 or among the ,sabine hills4 ,somewhere or other1 as ,i said just now1 reminiscences of the ,mysteries would have survived4 ,i picture an old wise man1 one of the guardians of those traditions1 coming down from the mountains1 somewhere between #aejj and #ajjj ,b4 ,c41 to the little city on the ,tiber2 touching something in the hearts of the people there1 and becoming1--why not8--their king4 ,for ,i guess that this one was not so different from a hundred little cities you should have found strewn over ,italy not so long ago4 ,the ground they covered1--and this is still true1--would not be much larger than the ,academy ,garden2 their streets but six or seven feet across4 ,their people were a tough1 stern1 robberish set2 but with a side1 too1 to which saintliness 7in a high sense7 could make quick appeal4 ,intellectual culture they had none2 the brain-mind was the last thing you should look for 7in ancient ,rome at least72--and just because it was dormant1 one who knew how to go about it could take hold upon the ,buddhic side4 ,that was perhaps what this ,numa ,pompilius achieved doing4 ,there would be nothing extraordinary in it4 ,the same thing may be going on in lots of little cities today1 in pralayic regions3 news of the kind does not emerge4 ,we have a way of dividing time into ancient and modern2 and think the one forever past1 the other forever to endure4 ,it is quite silly4 ,there are plenty of places now where it is #gec ,b4,c42 and no doubt there were plenty then where it was pompous #aiai4--;,can anyone tell me1 by the bye1 what year it happens to be in ,europe now8 ,how much ,numa may have given his ,romans1 who can say8 ,most of it may have worn away1 before historic times1 under the stress of centuries of summer campaigns4 ,but something he did ingrain into their being2 and it lasted1 because not incompatible with the life they knew4 ,it was the element that kept that life from complete vulgarity and decay4 ,you have to strip away all ,greekism from your conceptions1 before you can tell what it was4 ,the ,greek conquest was the one ,rome did not survive4 ,conquered ,greece overflowed her1 and washed her out2 changed her traditions1 her religion1 the whole color of her life4 ,if ,greece had not stepped in1 myth-making and euhemerizing1 who would have saved the day at ,lake ,regillus8 ,not the ,great ,twin ,brothers from lordly ,lace-daemon1 be sure4 ,who then8 ,some queer uncouth ,italian nature-spirit gods8 ,one shakes one's head in doubt3 the ,romans did not personalize their deities like the ,greeks4 ,cato gives the ritual to be used at cutting down a grove2 says he--,this is the proper ,roman way to cut down a grove4 ,sacrifice with a pig for a peace-offering4 ,this is the verbal formula3 ',whether thou art a god or a goddess to whom that grove is sacred1' --and so on4 ,their gods were mostly like that3 potentialities in the unseen1 with whom good relations must be kept by strict observance of an elaborate ritual4 ,there were no stories about them2 they did not marry and have families like the good folk at ,olympus4 ,which is perhaps a sign of this3 that ,numa's was a religion1 the teaching of a 7minor7 ,teacher who came long after the ,mysteries had disappeared4 ,because in the ,mysteries1 cosmogenesis was taught through dramas which were symbolic representations of its events and processes2 and out of these dramas grew the stories about the gods4 ,but when the real spiritual teaching has ceased to flow through the ,mysteries1 and the stones are accepted literally1 and there is nothing else to maintain the inner life of the people1--a ,teacher of some kind must come to state things in plainer terms4 ,this1 ,i take it1 is what happened here2 and the very worn-outness of conditions that this implies1 implies also tremendous cultural and imperial activities in forgotten time2 ,i imagine ,italy1 then1 at two or three thousand ,b4,c41 was playing a part as much greater outwardly than ,greece was1 as her part now is greater than ,greece's1 and has been during recent centuries4 ,this1 then1 is what ,numa's religion did for ,rome3--it peopled the woods and fields and hills with these impersonal divinities2 it peopled the moments of the day with them2 so that nothing in space or time1 no near familiar thing or duty1 was material wholly1 or pertained to this world alone2--there was another side to it1 connected with the unseen and the gods4 ,there were ,great ,gods in the ,pantheon2 but your early ,roman had no wide-traveling imagination2 and they seemed to him remote and uncongenial rather1--and quickly took on ,greekishness when the ,greek influence began4 ,minerva1 vaguely imagined1 assumed soon the attributes of the very concretely imagined ,pallas2 and so on4 ,but he had nearer and ,numaish divinities much more a part of his life1--which indeed largely consisted of rituals in their honor4 ,there were ,lares and ,penates and ,manes1 who made his home a kind of temple1 and the earth a kind of altar2 there were deities presiding over all homely things and occasions2 formless impersonal deities2 presences to be felt and remembered1 not clothed imaginatively with features and myths3--,cuba1 who gave the new-born child its first breath2 ,anna ,perenna of the recurring year2 hosts of agricultural gods without much definition1 and the unseen genii of wood1 field1 and mountain4 ,everything1 even each individual man1 had a god-side3 there was something in it or him greater1 more subtle1 more enduring1 than the personality or outward show4--,to the folk-lorist1 of course1 it is all 'primitive ,mediterranean' religion or superstition2 but the inner worlds are wonderful and vast1 if you begin to have the smallest inkling of an understanding of them4 ,i think we may recognise in all this the hand of a wise old ,pompilius from the ,sabine hills1 at work to keep the life of his ,romans1 peasant-bandits as they were1 clean in the main and sound4 ,yes1 there were gross elements3 among the many recurring festivals1 some were gross and saturnalian enough4 ,the ,romans kept near ,nature1 in which are1 both animal and cleansing forces2 but the high old gravitas was the virtue they loved4 ,and supposing ,numa established their religion1 it does not follow that he established what there came to be of grossness in it4 ,they kept near ,nature2 very near the land1 and the ,earth ,breath1 and the ,earth ,divinities1 and the ,italian soil1--and that southern laya center and gateway into the inner world which1 ,i am persuaded1 is in ,italy4 ,there are many didactic poems in world-literature1--poems dealing with the operations of agriculture2-- and they are mostly as dull as you would expect1 with that for their subject2 but one of them1 and one only1 is undying poetry4 ,that one is the ,roman one4 ,its author was a ,celt1 and his models were ,greek2 and he was rather a patient imitative artist than greatly original and creative2--but he wrote for ,rome1 and with the ,italian soil and weather for his inspiration2 and their forces pouring through him made his didactics poetry1 and poetry they remain after nineteen centuries4 ,nothing of the kind comes from ,greece4 ,as if whenever you broke the ,italian soil1 a voice sang up to you from it3 ,once ,saturn reigned in ,italy6 ,it is this that brings ,cincinnatus back to his cabbage-field from the war1--and politics1 as to something sacred1 a fountain at which life may be renewed4 ,plug souls2 no poetry in them2--but the ,earth ,breath cleanses and heals and satisfies them4 ,in place of a literature1 they have wild unpoetical chants to their ,mayors to raise as they go into battle2 for art and culture1 they have that bright vermilion ,jove2 nothing from the ,spirit to comfort them in these6 ,but put the ex-dictator to hoe his turnips1 and he is in a dumb sort of way in communication at once with the ,spirit and all deepest sources of comfort4--,what is ,samnite gold to me1 when ,i have my own radishes to toast1--sacred things out of my own sacred soil8 ,the ,italian sun shines down on me1 and warms more than my physicality and limbs4 ,see1 ,i strike my hoe into ,italy1 and the sacred essences of ,earth our ,mother flow up to me1 and quiet my mind from anxious and wasting thought1 and fill me with calmness and vigor and ,italy1 and her old quaint immemorial gods6 ,not that the ,roman had any conception1 patriotically speaking1 about ,italy2 it was simply the soil he was after1--which happened to be ,italian4 ,not for him1 in the very slightest1 ,filicaia's or ,mazzini's dream6 ,good practical soul1 what would he have done with dreaming8--,but he had his feet on the ground1 and was soaked through1 willy nilly1 with its forces2 he lived in touch with realities1 with the seasons and the days and nights1--how we do forget those great1 simple1 life-giving1 cleansing things6--and his mind was molded to what he owed to the soil1 to the realities1 to ,dea ,roma2--and ,duty became a great thing in his life4 ,out of all this comes something that makes this narrow little cultureless bandit city almost sympathetic to us1--and very largely indeed admirable4 ,they knew how to keep their heads4 ,there were those two races among them1--races or orders2--and a mort of politics between the two4 ,greek cities1 in like manner but generally less radically divided1 knew no method but for one side to be perpetually banishing the other1 turn and turn about1 and wholesale2 but these spare1 tough ,romans effect compromise after compromise1 till ,patricians and ,plebs are molten down into one common type4 ,they are not very brilliant1 even at their native game of war3 given a good general1 their enemies are pretty sure to trounce them4 ,pyrrhus1 a fine tactician but no great strategist1 does so several times2--and then they reply to his offers of peace1 that they make no peace with enemies still camped on ,italian soil4-- ,comes next a real master-strategist1 ,hannibal2 and senate and people1 time after time1 are forced 7like ,balbus in the poem7 ,with a frankness that ,i'm sure will charm ye ,to own it is all over with the army4 ,he wipes them out in a most satisfactory and workmanlike manner4 ,their leading citizens1 ipso facto their generals 7amateur soldiers always cabbage-hoers at heart7 afford him a good deal of amusement2 as if you should send out the mayor of ,jonesville1 ,arkansaw1 against a ,foch or a ,hindenburg4 ,one of them1 a fool of a fellow1 blunders into a booby-trap and loses the army which is almost the sole hope of ,rome2 and comes home1 utterly defeated1 --to be gravely thanked by the ,senate for not committing suicide after his defeat3 for not despairing of the ,republic4 ,ah1 there is real ,great ,stuff in that2 they are admirable peasant bandits after all6 ,most people would have straight court martialed and beheaded the man2 as ,england hanged poor ,admiral ,byng pour encourager les autres4 ,and all the while they have been having the sublime impudence to keep an army in ,spain conquering there4 ,how to account for this unsubduability8 ,well2 there is ,numa's teaching2 and what you might call a latent habit of ,caput-,mundi-ship3 imperial seeds in the soil4 ,there is that indestructible god-side to everything2 especially1 behind and above this city on the seven hills1 there is divine eternal ,,rome4 ,so1 after the ,gaulish conquest1 they rejected proffered and more desirable ,etruscan sites1 and came back and provided ,dea ,roma with a new out-ward being2 the imperial seeds1 molds of empire1 were on the ,seven ,hills1 not at ,veii4 ,so1 when this still greater peril of ,hannibal so nearly submerged them1 they took final victory for granted1--could conceive of no other possibility1--and placidly went forward while being whipped in ,italy with the adventure in ,spain4 ,there was one thing they could not imagine3 ultimate defeat4 ,it was a kind of stupidity with them4 ,they were a stupid people4 ,you might thrash them2 you might give them their full deserts 7which were bad71 and fairly batter them to bits2 all the world might think them dead2 dozens of doctors might write death-certificates2 you might have ,rome coffined and nailed down1 and be riding gaily to the funeral2--but you could not convince her she was dead2 and at the very graveside1 sure enough1 the 'pesky critter' 7as they say7 would be bursting open the coffin lid2 would finish the ceremony with you for the corpse1 and then ride home smiling to enjoy her triumph1 thank ,god for his mercies1--and get back to her hoe and her cabbages as quickly as might be4 ,it is this that to my mind makes it philosophically certain that she had had a vast antiquity as the seat of empire2 ,i mean1 before the ,etruscan domination4 ,dea ,roma1--the ,idea of ,rome1-- was an astral mold almost cast in higher than astral stuff3 it was so firmly fixed1 so unalterably there1 that ,i cannot imagine a few centuries of peasant-bandits building it1--unimaginative tough creatures at the best4 ,no2 it was a heritage2 it was built in thousands of years1 and founded upon forgotten facts4 ,there was something in the ideal world1 the deposit of long ages of thinking and imagining4 ,how1 pray1 are nations brought into being8 ,by men thinking and willing and imagining them into being4 ,such men create an astral matrix2 with walls faint and vague at first1 but ever growing stronger as more and more men reinforce them with new thought and will and imagination4 ,but in ,rome we see from the first the astral mold so strong that the strongest party feelings1 the differences of a conqueror and a conquered race1 are shaped by it into compromise after compromise4 ,and then1 too1 an instinct among those peasant-bandits for empire3 an instinct that few ,european peoples have possessed2 that it took the ,english1 for example1 a much longer time to learn than it took the ,romans4 ,for let us note that even in those early days it was not such a bad thing to come under ,roman sway2 if you took it quietly1 and were misled by no patriotic notions4 ,that is1 as a rule4 ,unmagnanimous always to men1 ,rome was not without justice1 and even at times something quite like magnanimity1 to cities and nations4 ,she was no ,athens1 to exploit her subject peoples ruthlessly with never a troubling thought as to their rights4 ,she had learned compromise and horse sense in her politics it home3 if her citizens owed her a duty1 --she assumed a responsibility towards them4 ,it took her time to learn that2 but she learned it4 ,she went conquering on the same principle4 ,her plebeians had won their rights2 in other towns1 mostly1 the plebeians had not4 ,roman dominion meant usually a betterment of the conditions of the plebs in the towns annexed1 and their entering in varying degrees upon the rights the plebs had won at ,rome4 ,she went forward taking things as they came1 and making what arrangements seemed most feasible in each case4 ,she made no plans in advance2 but muddled trough like an ,englishman4 ,she had no ,greek or ,french turn for thinking things out beforehand2 her empire grew1 in the main1 like the ,british1 upon a subconscious impulse to expand4 ,she conquered ,italy because she was strong2 much stronger inwardly in spirit than outwardly in arms2 and because 7,i do but repeat what ,mr4 ,stobart says3 the whole picture really is his7 what should she do with her summer holidays1 unless go on a campaign8--and because while she had still citizens without land to hoe cabbages in1 she must look about and provide them with that prime necessity4 ,all of which amounts to saying that she began with a habit of empire-winning1--which must have been created in the past4 ,on her toughness the spirited ,gaul broke as a wave1 and fell away4 ,on her narrow unmagnanimity the chivalrous mountain ,samnite bore down1 and like foam vanished4 ,she had none of the spiritual possibilities of the ,gaul2 but the ,crest-,wave was coming1 and the future was with ,italy4 ,she had none of the high-souled chivalry of the ,samnite2 but she was the heart of ,italy1 and the point from which ,italy must expand4 ,she was hard1 tough1 and based on the soil2 and that soil1 as it happened1 the laya center1--a sort of fire-fountain from within and the unseen4 ,you stood on the ,seven ,hills1 and let heaven and hell conspire together1 you could not be defeated4 ,gauls1 ,samnites1 ,latins1--all that ever attacked her1--were but taking a house-cloth to dry up a running spring4 ,the ,crest-,wave was coming to ,italy2 whose vital forces1 all centrifugal before1 must now be made to turn and flow towards the center4 ,that was ,rome2 and as they would not flow to her of their own good will1 out she must go and gather them in4 ,long afterwards1 when the ,caesars and ,augusti of the ,west left her for ,milan and ,ravenna1 it was because the ,crest-,wave was departing1 the forces turning centrifugal1 and ,italy breaking to pieces2 long afterwards again1 in the eighteen-seventies1 when the ,crest-,wave was returning1 ,italy must flow in centripetally to ,rome2 no ,turin1 no ,florence would do4 ,so1 by #bfd ,b4,c41 she had conquered ,italy4 ,then1 still land-hungry1 she stepped over into ,sicily1 invited by certain rascals in ,messana1 and light-heartedly challenged the ,mistress of the ,western ,seas4 ,at this point the stream is leaving ,balbus's fields and ,ahenobarbus's cattle1 and coming to the broad waters1 where the ships of the world ride in4 ,,xvii4 ,,rome ,,parvenue 99 ,the ,punic ,war was not forced on ,rome4 ,she had no good motive for it2 not even a decent excuse4 ,it was simply that she was accustomed to do the next thing2 and ,carthage presented itself as the next thing to fight1--,sicily1 the next thing to be conquered4 ,the war lasted from #bfd to #bda2 and at the end of it ,rome found herself out of ,italy2 mistress of ,sicily1 ,sardinia1 and ,corsica4 ,the ,italian laya center had expanded2 ,italy had boiled over4 ,it was just the time when ,ts'in at the other end of the world was conquering ,china1 and the ,far ,eastern ,manvantara was beginning4 ,manvantaras do not begin or end anywhere1 ,i imagine1 without some cyclic event marking it in all other parts of the world4 --------- 99 ,this lecture1 like the preceding one1 is based on ,mr4 ,j4 ,h4 ,stobart's1 ,the ,grandeur that was ,rome4 --------- ,we have heard much talk of how disastrous the result would have been if ,carthage1 not ,rome1 had won4 ,but ,carthage was a far and belated outpost of ,west ,asia and of a manvantara that had ended over a century before3--there was no question of her winning4 ,though we see her only through ,roman eyes1 we may judge very well that no possibility of expansion was left in her4 ,there was no expansive force4 ,she threw out tentacles to suck in wealth and trade1 but was already dead at heart4 ,all the greatness of old ,west ,asia was concentrated1 in her1 in two men3 ,hamilcar ,barca and his son3 they shed a certain light and romantic glory over her1 but she was quite unworthy of them4 ,her prowess at any time was fitful3 where money was to be made1 she might fight like a demon to make it2 but she was never a fighting power like ,rome4 ,she won her successes at first because her seat was on the sea1 and the war was naval1 and sea-battles were won not by fighting but by seamanship4 ,if ,carthage had won1 they say2--but ,carthage could not have won1 because the cycles were for ,rome4 ,you will note how that ,north ,african rim is tossed between ,european and ,west ,asian control1 according to which is in the ascendant4 ,now that ,europe's up1 and ,west ,asia down1 ,france1 ,italy1 and ,england hold it from ,egypt to the ,atlantic2 and in a few centuries' time1 no doubt it will be quite ,europeanized4 ,but ,west ,asia1 early in its last manvantara1 flowed out over it from ,arabia1 drove out all traces of ,europeanism1 and made it wholly ,asiatic4 ,before that1 while a ,european manvantara was in being1 it was ,european1 no less ,roman than ,italy2 and before that again1 while the ,crest-,wave was in ,west ,asia1 it was ,west ,asian1 under ,egypt and ,phoenician colonies4 ,as for its own native races1 they belong1 ,i suppose1 to the fourth1 the ,iberian ,sub-race2 and now in the days of our fifth ,sub-race 7the ,aryan71 seem out of the running for wielding empires of their own4 ,so if ,carthage had won then1 things would only have been delayed a little2 the course of history would have been much the same4 ,rome might have been destroyed by ,hannibal2 she would have been rebuilt when ,hannibal had departed2 then gone on with her expansion1 perhaps in other directions1--and presently turned1 and come on ,carthage from elsewhere2 or absorbed her quietly1 and let her do the carrying trade of the ,mediterranean 'under the ,roman flag' as you might say1--or something of that sort4 ,rome eradicated ,carthage for the same reason that the ,spaniards eradicated the ,moors3 because the ,west ,asian tide1 to which ,moors and ,carthaginians belonged1 had ebbed or was ebbing1 and the ,european tide was flowing high4 ,hamilcar indeed1 and ,hannibal1 seem to have been touched by cyclic impulses1 and to have felt that a ,spanish ,empire might have received the influx which a ,west ,asian town in ,africa could not4 ,but ,italy's turn came before ,spain's2 and all ,hamilcar's haughty heroism1 and ,hannibal's magnanimous genius1 went for nothing2 and ,rome1 the admirable and unlovely1 that had suffered the ,caudine ,forks1 and then conquered ,samnium and beheaded that noble generous ,samnite ,gaius ,pontius1 conquered in turn the conqueror at ,cannae1 and did for his reputation what she had done with the ,samnite hero's person3 chopped its head off1 and dubbed him in perfect sincerity 'perfidus ,hannibal4' ,over that corpse she stood1 at the end of the third century ,b4,c41 mistress of ,italy and the ,italian islands2 with proud ,carthage at her feet2 and the old cultured ,east1 that had known of her existence since the time of ,aristotle at least1 now keenly aware of her as the strongest thing in the ,mediterranean world4 ,now while she had been a little provincial town in an ,italy deep in pralaya1 ,numa's religion1 what remained of it1 had been enough to keep her life from corruption4 ,each such impulse from the heaven-world's1 in its degree1 an elixiral tincture to sweeten life and keep it wholesome2 some1 like ,buddhism1 being efficient for long ages and great empires2 some only for tiny towns like early ,rome4 ,what we may call the exoteric basis of ,numaism was a ritual of many ceremonies connected with home-life and agriculture1 and designed to keep alive a feeling for the sacredness of these4 ,it was calculated for its cycle3 you could have given no high metaphysical system to peasant-bandits of that type2--you could not take the ,upanishads to ,afghans or ,abyssinians today4 ,but as soon as that cycle was ended1 and ,rome was called on to come out into the world1 there was need of a new force and a new sanction4 ,has it occurred to you to wonder why1 in that epochal sixth century ,b4,c41 when in so many lands the ,messengers of ,truth were turning away from the official ,mysteries1 and preaching their ,theosophy upon a new plan broadcast among the peoples1 ,pythagoras1 after wandering the east and west to gather up the threads of wisdom1 should have elected not to return to ,greece1 but to settle in ,italy and found his ,movement there8 ,i suppose the reason was this3 ,he knew in what direction the cycles should flow1 and that the greatest need of the future ages would be for a redeemed ,italy2 he foresaw1 or ,those who sent him foresaw1 that it was ,italy should mold the common life of ,europe for a couple of thousand years4 ,greece was rising then1 chiefly on the planes of intellect and artistic creation2 but ,italy was to rise after a few centuries on planes much more material1 and therefore with a force much more potent and immediate in its effects in this world4 ,the ,age of ,greece was nearer to the ,mysteries2 which might be trusted to keep at least some knowledge of ,truth alive2 the ,age of ,italy1 farther away and on a lower plane1 would be in need of a ,religion4 ,so he chose ,croton1 a ,greek city1 because if he had gone straight to the barbarous ,italians1 he could have said nothing much at that time1--and hoped that from a living center there1 the light might percolate up through the whole peninsula1 and be ready for ,rome when ,rome was ready for it4 ,he left ,athens to take care of itself2--much as ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky chose ,new ,york at first1 and not immediately the then world-capitals ,paris and ,london2--,i suppose we may say that ,magna ,graecia stood to old ,greece in his time as ,america did to western ,europe forty years ago4 ,had his ,movement succeeded2 had it struck well up into the ,italian lands2 how different the whole after-history of ,europe might have been6 ,might8--certainly would have been6 ,but we know that a revolution at ,croton destroyed1 at the end of the sixth century1 the ,pythagorean ,school2 after which the hope and messengers of the ,movement-- ,aeschylus1 ,plato--worked in ,greece2 and that although the ,pythagorean individual ,lucanians1 ,iapygians1 and even ,samnites-- that noble ,gaius ,pontius of the ,caudin ,forks was himself a ,pythagorean and a pupil of the ,pythagorean ,archytas1--it was1 in the ,teacher's own lifetime1 practically broken up and driven out into ,sicily1 where those two great ,athenians contacted it4 ,we have seen that it was not effectless2 and1 what glimmer of it came down1 through ,plato1 into the ,middle ,ages4 ,but its main purpose3 to supply nascent ,italy with a saving ,world-,religion2 had been defeated4 ,of all the ,theosophical ,movements of the time1 this so far as we know was the only one that failed4 ,buddhism1 ,taoism1 ,confucianism1 each lasted on as a grand force for human upliftment2 but ,pythagoreanism1 as an organized instrument of the ,spirit1 passed4 ,when ,aeschylus made his protests in ,athens1 the ,center of the ,movement to which he belonged had already been smashed4 ,plato did marvels2 but the cycle had gone by and gone down1 and it was too late for him to attempt that which ,pythagoras had failed to accomplish4 ,so ,rome1 when she needed it most1 lacked divine guidance2 so drifted out on to the high seas of history pilotless and rudderless2--so ,weltpolitik only corrupted and vulgarized her4 ,she had no ,blue ,pearl of ,laotse to render her immortal2 no ,confucian ,doctrine of the ,mean to keep her sober and straight2 and hence it came that1 though later a new start was made1 and great men arose1 once1 twice1 three times1 to do their best for her1 she fell to pieces at last1 a ,humpty-,dumpty that all the king's horses and all the king's men could never reweld into one2--and the place she should have filled in history as ,unifier of ,europe was only filled perfunctorily and for a time2 and her great duty was never rightly done4 ,hinc lacrimae aetatum--hence the darkness and miseries of the ,christian ,era6 ,take your stand here1 at the end of the ,punic ,war1 on the brink of the ,age of ,rome2 and you feel at once how fearfully things have gone down since you stood1 with ,plato1 looking back over the ,age of ,grecce4 ,there is nothing left now of the high possibilities of artistic creation4 ,of the breath of spirituality that still remained in the world then1 now you can find hardly a trace4 ,a ,cicero presently1 for a ,socrates of old2 it is enough to tell you how the world has fallen4 ,some fall1 ,i suppose1 was implied in the cycles2 still ,rome might have gone to her more material duties with clean heart1 mind1 and hands2 she might have built a structure1 as ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti and ,han ,wuti did1 to endure4 ,it would not be fair to compare the ,age of ,han with the ,augustan2 the morning glory of the ,east ,asian1 with the late afternoon of the ,european manvantara2 and yet we cannot but see1 if we look at both dispassionately and with a decent amount of knowledge1 how beneficently1 the ,eastern ,teachers had affected their peoples1 and what a dire thing it was for ,europe that the work of the ,western ,teacher had failed4 ,chow ,china and ,republican ,rome fell to pieces in much the same way3 in a long orgy of wars and ruin2--but the rough barbarian who rebuilt ,china found bricks to his hand far better than he knew he was using1-- material with a true worth and vitality of its own1--a race with elements of redemption in its heredity2 whereas the great statesman1 the really ,great ,soul who rebuilt ,rome1 had to do it1 if the truth should be told1 of materials little better than stubble and rottenness4 ,roman life1 when ,augustus came to work with it for his medium1 was fearfully infected with corruption2 one would have said that no power human or divine could have saved it4 ,that he did with it as much as he did1 is one of the standing wonders of time4 ,but now back to the place where we left ,rome3 in #bjj ,b4,c41 at the end of the ,carthaginian ,war4 ,no more now of ,farmer ,balbus's fields2 no more of the cows of ,ahenobarbus2 ,dolabella's rod and line1 and his fish-stories1 shall not serve us further4 ,it is the navigable river now2 on which we must sail down and out on to the sea4 ,already the little ,italian city is being courted by fabulously rich ,egypt1 the doyen of culture since ,athens declined2 and soon she is to be driven by forces outside her control into conquest of all the old seats of ,mediterranean civilization2--and withal she is utterly unfitted for the task in any spiritual or cultural sense3 she is still little more than the same narrow little provincial half-barbarous ,rome she has always been4 ,no grand conceptions have been nourished in her by a literature of her own with high lights couched in the ,grand-,manner2 no olden ,homer has sung to her1 with magnificent roll of hexameters to set the wings of her soul into magnificent motion4 ,beyond floating folk ballads she has had no literature at all2 though latterly1 she is trying to supply the place of one with a few slave-made translations from the ,greek1 and a few imitations of the decadent ,greek comedy of ,alexandria2--also there has been a poet ,naevius1 whom--she found altogether too independent to suit her tastes2 and a ,father ,ennius1--uncouth old bone of her bone1 7though he too ,greek by race7 who is struggling to mold her tough inflexible provincial dialect into ,greek meter of sorts1--and thereby doing a real service for poets to come4 ,and there is a ,cato the ,censor1 writing prose2 ,cato1 typical of ,roman breadth of view2 with1 for the sum of a truly national political wisdom1 yelping at ,rome continually that fool's jingo cry of his3--your finest market in the western seas1 your richest potential commercial asset1 must be destroyed4 ,there you have the high old ,roman conception of ,weltpolitik2 whereby we may understand how little fitted ,rome was for ,weltpolitik at all2 how hoeing cabbages and making summer campaigns1--as ,mr4 ,stobart says1 with a commissariat put up for each soldier in a lunch-bag by his wife1--were still her metier1--the ,italian soil1 whether in actual or only potential possession--held already1 or by the grace of ,god soon to be stolen--still her inspiration4 ,and this ,italian soil she was now about to leave forever4 ,the forces that led her to world-conquest were twofold1 inner and outer4 ,the inner one was the summer campaign habit1 formed during several centuries2 and the fact that she could form no conception of life that did not include it3 the impulse to material expansion was deep in her soul1 and ineradicable4 ,she might have followed it1 perhaps1 north and westward2 finished with ,spain2 gone up into ,gaul 7though in ,gaul she might have found1 even at that time1 possibly1 an unmanageable strength72 she might even have carried her own ultimite salvation up into ,germany4 ,but we have seen ,darius flow victorious eastward towards ,india1 but unsuccessful when he tried the passes of the west2 and ,alexander follow him in the same path1 and not turn westward at all4 ,so you may say an eastward habit had been formed1 and inner-channels were worn for conquest in that direction1 but none in the other4 ,besides1--and this was the outer of the two forces1--the ,east was crying out to ,rome4 ,there were pirates on the other side of the ,adriatic2 and for the safety of her own eastern littoral she had been dealing with them1 as with ,spain1 during and before the terrible ,hannibalic time4 ,to sit securely at home she must hold the ,illyrian coast3 and1 she thought1 or events proved it to her1 to hold that coast safely1 she must go conquering inland4 ,then again ,egypt had courted her alliance1 for regions4 ,the ,ptolemy of the time was a boy2 and ,philip of ,macedon ind ,antiochus of ,syria had hatched a plan to carve up his juicy realm for their own most delectable feasting4 ,it was the very year after peace--to call it that--had been forced on prostrate ,carthage2 and you might think an exhausted ,rome would have welcomed a breathing time1 even at the expense of losing her annual outing4 ,and so indeed the people were inclined to do4 ,but the summer was icumen in2 and what were consuls and ,senate for8 ,should they be as these irresponsibles of the comitia8 ,should they fail to look about them and take thought8--,as if someone should offer you a cottage 7with all modern appointments7 by the seaside1 or farmhouse among the mountains1 free of rent for ,july and ,august1 here were all the respectabilities of the ,east cooingly inviting ,rome to spend her summer with them2 they to provide all accessories for a really enjoyable time4 ,in this way eastern politics assorted themselves1--thus was the ,levant divided3 on the one hand you had the traditional seats of militariasm2 on the other1 famous names--and the heirs to the glory 7a good deal tarnished now7 that once had been ,greece4 ,the former were ,macedon and ,syria1 or ,macedon with ,syria in the background2 what better could you ask that a good square se-to with these8 ,oh1 one at a time2 that was the fine old ,roman way2 divide et impera2 ,mecedon now1 and1 a-grace of ,god1 ,syria--,but let be2 we are talking of this summer2 for next1 the ,lord 7painted bright vermilion7 it may be hoped will provide4 ,so for the present ,philip of ,mecedon figures as the desired enemy4--,as to the other side1 the famous names to be our allies1 they are3 ,egypt1 chief seat in recent centuries of culture and literature1 and incidentally the ,golconda of the time1 endowed past dreaming of with commerce1 wealth1 and industries2 and ,rhodes1 rich and republican1 and learned too2 and the sacred name of ,athens2 and ,pergamum in ,asia1 cultured ,attalus's kingdom4 ,are we not to ally ourselves with the arts and humanities1 with old fame1 with the most precious of traditions8--,for ,rome1 it must be said1 was not all ,catos3 there was something in her by this time that could thrill to the name of ,greece4 ,and ,philip had been in league with ,hannibal1 though truly he had left him shamefully unsupported4 ,philip had been in league with ,hannibal--with ,hannibal6--,why1 it was a glorious unsought fight1 such as only fortune's favored soldiers might attain4 ,the comitia vote against it8 ,they say ,hannibal has made them somewhat tired8--,nonsense6 let 'em vote again6 let 'em vote again6--,they do so2 assured pithily that it is only a question whether we fight ,philip in ,macedon1 or he us on our own ,italian soil4 ,of course1 if you put it that way1 it is ,hobson's choice3 the voting goes all right this time4 ,so we are embarked on the great ,eastern ,adventure2 and ,flamininus sets out for ,greece4 ,now your simple savage is often a gentleman4 ,i don't mean your ,congo ,quashi or ,borria ,bungalee from the back-country blocks of ,new ,south ,wales--our ,roman bore no resemblance to them2 but say your ,morocco kaid1 your desert chieftain from ,tunis or ,algiers4 ,though for long generations he has lost his old-time civilized attainments1 he retains in full his manners1 his native dignity1 his wild ,saharan grace4 ,but banish him to ,paris1 and see what happens4 ,he buys up automobiles1--and poodles1--and astrolabes1 --and patent-leather boots1--and a number of other things he were much better without4 ,he exchanges his soul for a pass into the demi-monde2 and year by year sees him further sunk into depths of vulgarism4 ,this is precisely what in a few generations happened to ,rome4 ,but meanwhile she was at an apex2 touched by some few luminous ideals here and there1 and producing some few great gentlemen4 ,unprovincial egos2 like ,scipio ,africanus had been edging their way into ,roman incarnation2 they were swallows of a still far-off summer2 they stood for ,hellenization1 and the modification of ,roman rudeness with a little imported culture4 ,rome had conquered ,magna ,graccia1 and had seen something there2 had felt a want in herself1 and brought in slaves like ,livius ,andronicus to supply it4 ,flamininus himself was really a very great gentleman3 a patrician1 type of the best men there were in ,rome4 ,he went to ,greece thrilled with generous feelings1 as to a sacred land4 ,when he restored to the ,greek cities their freedom1-- handed them back to their own uses and devices1 after freeing them from ,philip1--it was with an infinite pride and a high simplicity4 ,we hear of him overcome in his speech to their representatives on that occasion1 and stopping to control the lump in his throat3 conqueror and master of the whole peninsula and the islands1 he was filled with reverence1 as a great simple-hearted gentleman might be1 for the ancient fame and genius of the peoples at his feet4 ,he and his officers were proud to be admitted to the ,games and initiated at ,eleusis4 ,i think this is the finest chapter in early ,roman history4 ,there is the simplicity1 pride1 and generosity of the ,roman gentleman1 confronted with a culture he was able to admire1 but conscious he did not possess2--and on the other hand the fine flow of ,greek gratitude to the liberator of ,greece1 in whom the ,greeks recognised that of old time1 and which had been so rare in their own life4 ,at this moment ,rome blossomed3 a beautiful bloom1 we may say4 ,but it was a fateful moment for her1 too4 ,the ,greeks had long lost what capacity they had ever had for stable politics4 ,flamininus might hand them back their liberties with the utmost genuineness of heart2 but they were not in a condition to use the gift4 ,rome soon found that she had no choice but to annex them1 one way or another4 ,they were her proteges2 and ,antiochus attacked them2--so then ,antiochus had to be fought and conquered4 ,that fool had great ,hannibal with him1 and resources with which ,hannibal might have crushed ,rome2 but it did not suit ,antiochus that the glory should be ,hannibal's4 ,then presently ,attalus bequeathed ,pergamum to the ,senate2 which involved ,rome in ,asia ,minor4 ,so step by step she was compelled to conquer the ,east4 ,now there was a far greater disparity of civilization between ,rome and this ,hellenistic ,orient and half-orientalized ,greece1 than appeared afterwards between the ,romans and ,spaniards and ,gauls4 ,spain1 very soon after ,augustus completed its conquest1 was producing most of the brightest minds in ,latin literature3 the influx of important egos had hardly passed from ,italy before it began to appear in ,spain4 ,had not ,rome become the world metropolis1 capable of attracting to herself all elements of greatness from every part of the ,mediterranean world1 we should think of the first century ,a4,d41 as a great ,spanish ,age4 ,gaul1 too1 within a couple of generations of ,ceasar's devastating exploits there1 had become another ,egypt for wealth and industries4 ,the grandson's of the ,vercingetorixes and ,dumnorixes were living more splendidly1 and as culturedly1 in larger and better villas than the patricians of ,italy2 as ,ferrero shows4 ,we may judge1 too1 that there was a like quick rise of manvantaric conditions in ,britain after the ,claudian conquest3 we have news of ,agricola's speaking of the labored studies of the ,gauls1 as if that people were then famed for learning1--to which1 he said1 he preferred the quick wits and natural genius of the ,britons4 ,and here ,i may mention that1 even before the conquest of ,gaul1 ,caesar's own tutor was a man of that nation1 a master of ,greek and ,latin learning2--but try to imagine a ,roman tutoring ,epaminondas or ,pelopidas6 ,so we may gather that a touch from ,italy--by that time highly cultured1--was enough to light up those ,celtic countries at once2 and infer from that that no such long pralayic conditions had obtained in them as had obtained in ,italy during the centuries preceding the ,punic ,wars4 ,spain at thirteen decades before ,scipio1 ,gaul at as much before ,caesar1 ,britain at as much before ,caesar or ,claudius1 may well have been strong and cultured countries3 because you wake quickly after the thirteen decade period of rest1 but slowly after the long pralayas4 ,roman ,italy woke very slowly at the touch of ,greece2 and woke1 not like ,spain and ,gaul afterwards at ,rome's touch1 to culture2 not to learning or artistic fertility4 ,what happened was what always does happen when a really inferior civilization comes in contact with a really superior one4 ,rome did not become civilized in any decent sense3 she simply forwent ,roman virtues and replaced them with ,greek vices2 and made of these1 not the vices of a degenerate culture1 but the piggishness of cultureless boors4--,behold her ,gadarene stations1 after ,flamininus's return3-- ,millions of money1 in indemnities1 loot1 and what not1--in bribes before very long1--are flowing in to her4 ,where not so long since she was doing all her business with stamped lumps of bronze or copper1 a pound or so in weight1 in lieu of coinage1 nor feeling the need of anything more handy1--now she is receiving yearly1 monthly1 amounts to be reckoned in millions sterling2 and has no more good notion what to do with them than ever she had of old4 ,if the egos 7of ,crest-,wave standing7 had come in as quickly as did the shekels1 things might have gone manageably2 but they did not by any means4 ,her great misfortune was to enter the world-currents only on the material plane2 to find her poor little peasant-bandit-souled self mistress of the world and its money1 and still provincial to the core and with no ideas of bigness that were not of the earth earthy2 with nothing whatever that was both spiritual and ,roman to thrill to life the higher side of her2--a multimillionaire that could hardly read or write1 and knew no means of spending her money that was not essentially vulgar4 ,she had given up her sole means of salvation--which was hoeing cabbages2 her slaves did all that for her now2--and so was at a loss for employment2 and ,satan found plenty of mischief for her idle hands to do4 ,there were huge all-day-long banquets1 where you took your emetic from time to time to keep you going4 ,there were slaves1--armies of them2 to have no more than a dozen personal attendants was poverty4 ,there were slaves from the ,east to minister to your vices2 some might cost as much as five thousand dollars2 and there were dirt-cheap ,sardinians and 'barbarians' of all sorts to run your estates and farms4 ,all the work of ,italy was done by slave labor2 and the city swarmed with an immense slave population2 the country slaves with enough of manhood left in them to rise and butcher and torture their masters when they could2 the city slaves1 one would say1 in no condition to keep the semblance of a soul in them at all1--living dead4 ,for the most part both were shamefully treated2 ,cato1-- high old ,republican ,cato1 type of the free and nobly simple ,roman--used to see personally to the scourging of his slaves daily after dinner1 as a help to his digestion4--,so the rich wasted their money and their lives4 ,they bought estates galore1 and built villas on them2 ,cicero had--was it eighteen8-- country-houses4 ,they bought up ,greek art-treasures1 of which they had no appreciation whatever1--and which therefore only helped to vulgarize them4 ,such things were costly1 and thought highly of in ,greece2 so ,rome would have them for her money1 and have them en masse4 ,mummius brought over a shipload2 and solemnly warned his sailors that they would have to replace any they might break or lose4 ,the originals1 or such substitutes as the sailors might supply1--it was all one to him4 ,as to literature1--well1 we have seen how it began with translations made by a ,greek slave1 ,livius ,andronicus1 who put certain ,hellenistic comedies and the ,odyssey into ,latin ballad meters2 the kind of verse you would expect from a slave ordered promiscuously by his master to get busy and do it4 ,then came ,father ,ennius2 and here ,i shall diverge a little to try to show you what 7as ,i think7 really happened to the soul of ,rome4 ,it was a queer set-out1 this job that ,ennius attempted1--of making a real ,roman poem1 an epic of ,roman history4 ,between old ,latin and ,greek there was the same kind of difference as between ,french and ,english3 one fundamental in the rhythm of the languages4 ,i am giving my own explanation of a very puzzling problem2 and needless to say1 it may be wrong4 ,the ancient ,roman ballads were in what is called ,saturnian meter1 which depends on stress and accent2 it is not unlike the meter of the ,scotch and ,english ballads4 ,that means that old ,latin was spoken like ,english is1 with syllabic accent4 ,but ,greek was not4 ,in that1 what counted1 what made the meters1 was tone and quantity4 ,now we have that in ,english too2 but it is a subtler and more occult influence in poetry than accent is4 ,in ,english1 the rhythm of a line of verse depends on the stresses2 but where there is more than rhythm1--where there is music1--quantity is a very important factor4 ,for example1 in the line ,that carried the take to ,sligo town to be sold1 you can hear how the sound is held up on the word take1 because the k is followed by the t in to2 and what a wonderful musical effect is given thereby to the line4 ,all the swing and lilt and rhythm of ,greek poetry came in that way2 there were no stresses1 no syllabic accents2 the accents we see written were to denote the tones the syllables should be--shall ,i say sung on8 ,now ,french is an example of a language without stresses2 you know how each syllable falls evenly1 all taking an unvarying amount of time to enounce4 ,i imagine the basic principle of ,greek was the same2 only that you had to add to the syllables a length of sound where two consonants combining after a vowel retarded the flow of tone1 as in take to in the line quoted just now4 ,now if you try to write a hexameter in ,english on the ,greek principle1 you get something without the least likeness either to a ,greek hexameter or to music2 because the language is one of stresses1 not1 primarily1 of tones4 ,this is the forest pimeval2 the murmuring pines and the hemlocks4 will not do at all2 there is no ,greek spondee in it but--rest prime--2 and ,longfellow would have been surprised if you had accused that of spondeeism4 ,what you would get would be something like these--,i forget who was responsible for them3 ,procession1 complex melodies1 pause1 quantity1 accent1 ,after ,virgilian precedent and practice1 in order4 ,lines like these could never be poetry2 poetry could never be couched in lines like these2--simply because poetry is an arrangement of words upon a frame-work of music3 the poet has to hear the music within before his words can drop naturally into the places in accordance with it4 ,you could not imitate a ,french line in ,english1 because each of the syllables would have to be equally stressed2 you could not imitate an ,english line in ,french1 because in that language there are none of the stresses on which an ,english line depends for its rhythm4 ,but when ,i read ,chaucer ,i am forced to the conclusion that what he tried to do was precisely that3 to imitate ,french music2 to write ,english without regard to syllabic accent4 ,the ,english lyrics of his time and earlier depend on the principle of accent3 ,sum'--mer is'--i-cum'--en in1 ,loud'--e sing'--cuccu'2 --but time and again in ,chaucer's lines we find that if we allow the words their natural ,english stresses1 we break up the music altogether2 whereas if we read them like ,french1 without syllabic accent1 they make a very reasonable music indeed4 ,now ,french had been in ,england the language of court and culture2 it was still spoken in polite circles at ,stratforde-at-le-,bowe2 and ,chaucer was a courtier1 ,anglo-,french1 not ,anglo-,saxon2 and he had gone to ,france for his first models1 and had translated a great ,french poem2 and ,anglo-,saxon verse-methods were hardly usable any longer4 ,so it may well have appeared to him that serious poetry was naturally ,french in meter and method4 ,there was no model for what he wanted to do in ,english2 the ,english five-iambic line had not been invented1 and only the popular lyricists1 of the proletariat1 sang in stresses4 ,and anyhow1 as the upper classes1 to which he belonged more or less1 were only growing out of ,french into ,english1 very likely they pronounced their ,english with a good deal of ,french accent4 ,now it seems to me that something of the same kind1 with a difference1 is what happened with ,ennius4 ,you are to understand him as1 though ,greek by birth1 ,romanior ipsis ,romanis3 ,greek body1 but ultra-,roman ego4 ,one may see the like thing happen with one's own eyes at any time3 men ,european-born1 who are quite the extremest ,americans4 ,in his case1 the spark of his ,greek heredity set alight the ,roman conflagration of his nature4 ,he was born in ,calabria1 a ,roman subject1 in #bci2 and had fought for ,rome before ,cato1 then quaestor1 brought him in his train from ,sardinia in #bjd4 ,a glance at the cycles1 and a measuring-up of things with our thirteen-decade yardstick1 will suggest the importance of the time he lived in4 ,the ,encyclopaedia ,britannica gives ,a4,d4 #db as the date for the end of the golden ,age of ,latin ,literature4 ,its first great names are those of ,cicero1 ,caesar1 and ,lucretius4 ,thirteen decades before #db ,a4,d41 or in #hh ,b4,c41 these three were respectively eighteen1 fourteen1 and eight years old2 so we may fairly call that ,golden ,age thirteen decades long1 and beginning in #hh4 ,thirteen decades back from that bring us to #bah2 and as much more from that1 to #cdh4 ,you will remember #cdh as the year of the death of ,plato1 which we took as marking the end of the ,golden ,age of ,greek4 ,in #bah ,ennius was twenty-one4 ,he was the ,father of ,latin ,poetry2 as ,cato the ,censor1 seven years his junior1 was the ,father of ,latin ,prose4 ,so you see1 he came right upon a ,greek cycle2 right upon the dawn of what should have been a new ,greek day1 with the night of ,hellenisticism in between4 ,and he took1 how shall ,i put it8--the forces of that new day1 and transmuted them1 in himself as crucible1 from ,greek to ,roman444 ,a sort of ,channel through which the impulse was deflected from ,greek to ,latin444 ,i think that1 thtilled with a patriotism the keener-edged because it was acquired1 he went to work in this way3--,he was going to make one of these long poems1 like those 7inferior7 ,greek fellows had2 and he was going to make it in ,latin4 7,i do not know which was his native language1 or which tradition he grew up in47 ,he didn't see why we ,romans should not have our ancient greatness sung in epic2 weren't we as good as ,homer's people1 anyhow8 ,certainly we were2 and a deal better6 ,well1 of course there was our old ,saturnian meter2 but that wasn't the kind of way serious poetry was written4 ,serious poetry was written in hexameters4 ,if ,greek was his native tongue1 he may have spoken ,latin all his life1 of course1 with a ,greek accent2 and the fact that he was sitting down to make up his 'poem' in a meter which no native-born ,latin speaker could hear as a meter at all1 may have been something of which he was profoundly unconscious4 ,but that is what he did4 ,he ignored 7mostly7 the stresses and accents natural to ,latin1 and with sweet naivete made a composition that would have scanned if it had been ,greek1 and that you could make scan by reading with a ,greek rhythm or accent4 ,the ,romans accepted it4 ,that perhaps is to say1 that he had no conception at all of poetry as words framed upon an inner music4 ,i think he was capable of it2 that most ,romans of the time1 supposing they had had the conviction of poethood1 would have been capable of it4 ,it was the kind of people they were4 ,but that was not all there was to ,ennius1 by any means4 ,a poet-soul had incarnated there2 he had the root of the matter in him2 it was only the racial vehicle that was funny1 as you may say4 ,he was filled with a high conception of the stern grandeur ,romans admired2 and somehow or other1 his lines carry the impress of that grandeur at times3 there is inspiration in them4 ,and now comes the point ,i have fetched all this compass to arrive at4 ,by ,spenser's time1 or earlier1 in ,england1 all traces of ,chaucer's ,french accent had gone2 the language and the poetry had developed on lines of their own1 as true expressions of the national soul4 ,but in ,rome1 not so4 ,two centuries later great ,roman poetry was being written3 a major poet was on the scenes1 --,virgil4 ,he1 ,i am certain1 wrote with genuine music and inspiration4 ,we have accounts of his reading of his own poems2 how he was carried along by the music1 chanting the lines in a grand voice that thrilled all who heard4 ,he chanted1 not spoke1 them2 poets always do4 ,they formed themselves1 grew in his mind1 to a natural music already heard there1 and existent before the words arose and took shape to it4 ,that music is the creative force at work1 the whirr of the loom of the ,eternal2 it is the golden-snooded ,muses at song4 ,and therefore he was not1 like ,ennius1 making up his lines on an artificial foreign plan2 to my mind that is unthinkable2--he was writing in the ,latin spoken by the cultured2 in ,latin as all cultured ,romans spoke it4 ,but1 mirabile dictu1 it was ,latin as ,ennius had composed it3 he was writing in ,ennius' meter4 ,i can only understand that ,greek had so swamped the ,latin soul1 that for a century or more cultured ,latin had been spoken in quantity1 not in accent2 in the ,greek manner1 and with the ,greek rhythm4 ,ennius had come to be appreciable as meter and music to ,roman ears2 which he certainly could not have been in his own day4 ,so we may say that there is in a sense no ,roman literature at all4 ,nothing grew out of the old ,saturnian ballad-meter1--except perhaps ,catullus1 who certainly had no high inspiring impersonal song to sing4 ,the ,roman soul never grew up1 never learned to express itself in its own way2 before it had had time to do so1 the ,greek impulse that should have quickened it1 swamped it4 ,you may think of ,japan1 swamped by ,chinese culture in the sixth century ,a4,d41 as a parallel case2 but no2 there ,buddhism1 under real spiritual ,teachers1 came in at the same time1 and fostered all that was noblest in the ,japanese soul1 so that the result was fair and splendid4 ,a more cognate case is that of the ,turks1 who suffered through suddenly conquering ,persia while they were still barbarous1 and taking on1 outwardly1 ,persian culture wholesale2 ,turkish and ,latin literature are perhaps on a par for originality4 ,but if the ,greek impulse had touched and wakened ,rome under the aegis of ,pythagoreanism1--,rome might have become1 possibly1 as fine a thing as ,japan4 ,true1 the ,crest-,wave had to roll in to ,rome presently1 and to raise up a great literature there4 ,but whose is the greatest name in it8 ,a ,gaul's1 who imitated ,greek models4 ,there is something artificial in the combination2 and you guess that whatever most splendid effort may be here1 the result cannot be supreme4 ,the greatest name in ,latin prose1 too1--,livy's--was that of a ,gaul4 ,and herefrom we may gather what mingling of forces is needed to produce the great ages and results in literature4 ,you have a country2 a tract of earth with the ,earth-breath playing up through the soil of it2 you have the components or elements of a race mixed together on that soil1 and molded by that play of the ,earth-breath into homogeneity1 and among them1 from smallest beginnings in folk-verse1 the body of a literature must grow up4 ,then in due season it must be quickened3 on the outer plane by an impulse from abroad1--intercourse with allies1 or resistance to an invader2 and on the inner1 by an inrush of ,crest-,wave egos4 ,there must be that foreign torch applied1--that spark of inter-nationalism2 and there must be the entry of the vanguard of the ,host of ,souls with its great captains and marshals1 bringing with them1 to exhibit once more in this world1 the loot of many lands and ages and old incarnations2 which thing they shall do through a sudden efflorescence of the literature that has grown up slowly to the point of being ready for them4 ,such natural growth happened in ,greece1 in ,china2 in our own cycle1 in ,france1 ,italy1 ,england3 where the trees of the nation literatures received buddings and manurings from abroad1 but produced always their own natural national fruit3--,shakespeare was your true ,english apple1 grown from the ,chaucer stock2 although in him flower for juices the sweetness and elixir of all the world and the ancient ages4 ,but in ,rome1 before the stock was more than a tiny seedling1 a great branch of ,greece was grafted on it1--and a degenerate ,greece at that--and now we do not know even what kind of fruit-tree that ,roman stock should have grown to be4 ,how1 then1 did this submersion and obliteration of the ,roman soul come to pass8 ,it is not difficult to guess4 ,greek meant culture3 if you wanted culture you learnt ,greek4 ,all education was in ,greek hands4 ,the ,greek master spoke ,latin to his boys2 no doubt with a ,greek accent4 ,so cultured speech1 cultured ,latin1 came to mean ,latin without its syllabic stresses2 spoken1 as nearly as might be1 with ,greek evenness and quantity4--,as if ,french should so submerge us1 that we spoke our ,united ,states dapping out syllable by syllable like ,frenchmen4 ,but it is a fearful thing for a nation to forgo the rhythm evolved under the stress of its own ,soul1--especially when what it takes on instead is the degenerate leavings of another3 ,alexandria1 not ,athens4 ,this ,rome did4 ,she gained the world1 and lost her own soul2 and the exchange profited her as little as you might expect4 ,imitation of culture is often the last touch that makes the parvenu unbearable2 it was so in ,rome4 ,one likes better in some ways ,cato's stult old ,roman attitude3 who scorned ,greek all his life for sheer foppery1 while he knew of nothing better written in it than such trash as poetry and philosophy2 but at eighty came on a ,greek treatise on manure and straightway learned the language that he might read and enjoy something profitable and thoroughly ,roman in spirit4--,greek artists flocked to ,rome2 and doubtless the more fifth-rate they were the better a thing they made of it3 but it was risky for good men to rely on ,roman appreciations4 ,two flute-players are contending at a concert2 ,greek and perhaps rather good4 ,their music is soon drowned in catcalls3 ,what the dickens do we ,romans want with such footling tootlings8 ,then the presiding magistrate has an idea4 ,he calls on them to quit that fooler and get down to business3--,give us our money's worth1 condemn you to it1 ye naughty knaves3 fight6--,and fight they must1 poor things1 while the audience1 that but now was bored to death1 howls with rapture4 ,so ,rome passed away4 ,where now is the simple soul who1 while his feet were on his native soil and he asked nothing better than to hoe his cabbages and turn out yearly for patriotic throat-cuttings1 was reputable--nay1 respect-worthy1--and above all1 not a little picturesque8 ,alas6 he is no more4--,you remember ,kelly1--lovable ,kelly1 who in his youth1 trotting the swate ould bogs of ,cohhacht1 heard poetry in every sigh of the wind1--saw the hosts of the ,danaan ,sidhe riding their flamey steeds through the twilight1--listened1 by the cabin peat-fire in the evenings1 to tales of ,finn ,mac,cool and ,cuculain and the ancient heroes and ,gods of ,ireland8--,behold this very ,kelly now6--,what6 is this he8--this raucous1 pushing1 red-haired1 huge-handed1 green-necktied vulgarian who has made his pile bricklaying in ,chicago2--this ward-politician2 this--,well1 well2 ,sic transit gloria mundi6 ,and the ,roman cad of the second century ,b4,c4 was worse than a thousand ,kellys4 ,he had learned vice from past-masters in the ,levant2 and added to their lessons a native brutality of his own4 ,his feet were no longer on the ,italian soil2 that was nothing sacred to him now4 ,his moral went as his power grew4 ,his old tough political straightforwardness withered at the touch of ,levantine trickery2 his subjects could no longer expect a square deal from him4 ,he sent out his gilded youth to govern the provinces1 which they simply fleeced and robbed shamelessly2 worse than ,athens of old1 and by much4 ,the old predatory instinct was there still3 ,hellenisticism had supplied no civilizing influence to modify that4 ,but it was there minus whatever of manliness and decency had once gone with it4 ,karma travels by subtle and manifold links from the moral cause to the physical effect4 ,there are historians who will prove to you that the ruin of ,rome came of economic causes3 which were1 in fact1 merely some of the channels through which ,karma flowed4 ,they were there1 of course2 but we need not enlarge on them too much4 ,the secret of it all is this3 a people without the ,balance of the ,faculties1 without the saving doctrine of the ,mean1 with but one side of their character developed1 was called by cyclic law1 while still semi-barbarian1 to assume huge responsibilities in the world4 ,their qualities were not equal to the task4 ,the sense of the ,beautiful1 their feeling for ,art and ,poetry1 had not grown up with their mateial strength4 ,why should it8 some may ask2 are not strength and moral enough8--,no2 they are not3 because it is only the ,balance which can keep you on the right path2 strength without the beauty sense1--yes1 even fortitude1 strength of will1--turns at the touch of quickening time and new and vaster conditions1 into gaucherie1 disproportion1 brutality2 ay1 it is not strength3--the saving quality of strength1 morale1 dribbles out and away from it3 only the ,balance is true strength4 ,the empires that were founded upon uncompassion1 through they swept the world in a decade1 within a poor century or so were themselves swept away4 ,rome1 because she was only strong1 was weak2 her virtues found no exit into life except in things military2 the most material plane1 the farthest from the ,spirit4 ,her people were not called1 like the ,huns or ,mongols1 to be a destroyer race3 the ,law designed them for builders4 ,but to build you must have the ,balance1 the proportionate development spiritual1 moral1 mental1 and physical3 it is the one foundation4 ,rome's grand assets at the start were a sense of duty1 a natural turn for law and order3 grand assets indeed1 if the rest of the nature be not neglected or atrophied4 ,in ,rome it was1 largely4 ,to be strong-willed and devoted to duty1 and without compassion3 --that means that you are in train to grow a gigantic selfhood1 which ,nature abhors2 emptiness of compassion is the vacuum nature most abhors4 ,you see a strong man with his ambitions3 scorning vices1 scorning weakness2 scorning too1 and lashing with his scorn1 the weak and vicious2 bending men to his will and purposes4 ,prophesy direst sorrow for that man6 ,nature will not be content that he shall travel his chosen path till a master of selfishness and a great scourge for mankind has been evolved in him4 ,she will give him rope2 let him multiply his wrong-doings2 because1 paradoxically1 in wrong-doing is its own punishment and cure4 ,his selfishness sinks by its own weight to the lowest levels2 prophesy for him that in a near life he shall be the slave of his body and passions1 yet keeping the old desire to excel2--that common vice shall bring him down to the level of those he scorned1 while yet he forgets not the mountain-tops he believed his place of old4 ,then he shall be scourged with self-contempt1 the bitterest of tortures2 and the quick natural punishments of indulgence shall be busy with him1 snake-locked ,erinyes with whips of wire4 ,in that horrible school1 struggling to rise from it1 he shall suffer all that a human being can in ignominy1 sorrow and shame2--and at last shall count it all well worth the while1 if it has but taught him ,that which is no atribute1 but ,alaya's self1--,compassion4 ,so ,karma has its ministrants within ourselves2 and the dreadful tyrants within are to be disthroned by working and living1 not for self1 but for man4 ,this is why ,brotherhood is the doctrine and practice that could put a stop to the awful degeneratioin of mankind4 ,rome was strong without compassion2 so her strength led her on to conquests1 and her conquests to vices1 and her vices to hideous ruin and combustion4 ,she loved her gravitas1--which implied great things2--but contemned the ,beautiful2 and so1 when a knowledge of the ,beautiful would have gone far to save her1 by maintaining in her a sense of proportion and the fitness of things--she lost her morale and became utterly vulgarian4 ,but think of ,china1 taking it as a matter of course that music was an essential part of government2 or of ,france1 with her ,ministre des ,beaux ,arts in every cabinet4 ,perhaps2 these two1 of all historical nations1 have made the greatest achievements2 for you must say that neither ,india nor ,greece was a nation4--,as for ,rome1 with all her initial grandeur1 it would be hard to find another nation of her standing that made such an awful mess of it as she did2 one refers1 of course1 to ,republican ,rome2 when ,augustus had had his way with her1 it was another matter4 ,she took the ,gadarene slope at a hand-gallop2 and there you have her history during the second century ,b4,c4 ,not till near the end of that century did the egos of the ,crest-,wave begin to come in in any numbers4 ,from the dawn of the last quarter1 there or thereabouts1 all was an ever-growing rout and riot2 the hideous toppling of the herd over the cliff-edge4 ,it was a time of wars civil and the reverse2 of huge bloody conscriptions and massacre2 reforms and demagogism and murder of the ,gracchi3-- ,marius and ,sulla cat and dog2--the original ,spartican movement1 that wrecked ,italy and ended with six thousand crucifixions along the road to ,capua2--ended so1 and not with a slave conquest and wiping-out of ,rome1 simply because ,spartacus's revolted slave-army was even less disciplined than the legions that ,beast-,crassus decimated into a kind of order and finally conquered them with4 ,it was decade after decade of brutal devasting wars1 --wars chronic and incurable1 you would say3 the untimely wreck and ruin of the world4 ,it is a strange gallery of portraits that comes down to us from this time3 man after notable man arising without the qualities that could save ,rome4 ,here are a few of the likenesses1 as they are given ,dr4 ,stobart3 there were the ,gracchi1 with so much that was fine in them1 but a ruining dash of the demagog1--an idea that socialism could accomplish anything real2--and no wisdom to see through to ultimite causes4 ,there was ,marius1 simple peasant with huge military genius3 a wolf of a soldier and foolish lamb of a politician2 a law-maker who1 captured by the insinuations and flatteries of the opposite side1 swears to obey his own laws so far as they may be legal4 ,there was ,sulla1 of the class of men to which ,alcibiades and ,alexander belonged1 but an inferior specimen of the class and unscrupulous rip1 and a brave successful commander2 personally beautiful1 till his way of living made his face like a mulberry sprinkled with flour2-- with many elements of greatness always negatived by sudden fatuities2 much of genius1 more of fool1 and most of rake-helly demirep2 highly cultured1 and plunderer of ,athens and ,delphi2 great general1 who maintained his hold on his troops by unlimited tolerance of undiscipline4 ,there was ,crassus the millionaire1 and all his millions won by cheatery and ugly methods2 the man with the slave fire-brigade1 with which he made a pretty thing out of looting at fires4 ,there was ,cicero1 with many noble and ,roman qualities and a large foolish vanity3 thundering orator with more than a soupcon of the vaudeville favorite in him3 a ,hamlet who hardly showed his real fineness until he came to die4 ,and there was ,pompey2--real honesty in ,pompey1 perhaps the one true-hearted gentleman of the age3 a man of morale1 and a great soldier1--who might have done something if his general intelligence had been as great as his military genius and his sense of honor3--surely ,pompey was the best of the lot of them2 only the cursed spite was that the world was out of joint1 and it needed something more than a fine soldier and gentleman to set it right4--,and then ,caesar--could he not do it8 ,caesar1 the ,superman1--the brilliant all-round genius at last1--the man of scandalous life--scandalous even in that cesspool ,rome1--the epileptic who dreamed of world-dominion1--the conqueror of ,gaul1 says ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky1 because in ,gaul alone the ,sacred ,mysteries survived in their integrity1 and it was his business1 on behalf of the dark forces against mankind1 to quench their life and light for ever2--could not this ,caesar do it8 ,no2 he had the genius2 but not that little quality which all greatest personalities1--all who have not passed beyond the limits of personality3 tact1 impersonality1 the power that the disciple shall covet1 to make himself as nothing in the eyes of men3-- and because he lacked that for armor1 there were knives sharpened which should reach his heart before long4--,and then1 in literature1 two figures mentionable3 ,lucretius1 thinker and philosopher in poetry3 a high ,roman type1 and a kind of materialist1 and a kind of ,god's warrior1 and a suicide4 ,and ,catullus3 no noble type2 neither ,roman nor ,greek1 but ,italian perhaps2 singing in the old ,saturnian meters with a real lyrical fervor1 but with nothing better to sing than his loves4--,and then1 in politics again1 ,brutus3 type1 in sentimental history of the ,republican ,school1 of the high old roman and republican virtues2 ,brutus of the blood-bright splendor1 the tyrant-slayer and ,roman ,harmodios-,aristogeiton2 the adored of philosophic ,french liberty-equality-fraternity adorers2 ,shakespeare's noblest ,roman of them all2--,o how featly ,cassius might have answered1 when ,brutus accused him of the itching palm1 if he had only been keeping au fait with the newspapers through the preceding years6 ,et tu1 ,brute1 ,i hear him say1 quoting words that should have reminded his dear friend of the sacrd ties of friendship1-- ,art thou the man will rate thy ,cassius thus8 ,this is the most unkindest cut of all2 ,for truly ,i have filched a coin or two3-- ,have been1 say1 thrifty2 gathered here and there ,pickings1 we'll call them2 but1 my ,brutus1 thou-- ,didst thou not shut the senators of ,rhodes 7,i think 'twas ,rhodes7 up in their senate-house1 ,and keep them there unfoddered day by day4 ,until starvation forced them to disgorge ,all of their million to thee8 ,didst not thou-- ,brutus is much too philosophical1 much to studious1 to listen to qualities of that kind1 and cuts the conversation short right there4 ,cassius was right3 that about starving the senators of his province that surrendered their wealth was precisely what our ,brutus did4--,then there was ,anthony1 the rough brave soldier1--a kind of man of the unfittest when the giants ,pompey and ,caesar had been in2 ,anthony1 master of ,rome for awhile1--and truly1 ,god knows ,rome will do with bluff ,mark ,anthony for her master6--,it is a very interesting list2 most of them queer lobsided creatures1 fighting with own hands or for nothing in particular2 most with some virtues3 ,then that might have saved ,rome1 if1 as ,mrs ,poyser said1 they are hatched again1 and hatched different4 ,,xviii4 ,,augustus ,we left ,rome galloping down the ,gadarene slope1 and scrimmaging for a vantage point whence to hurl herself headlong4 ,down she came2 a riot and roaring ruin3 doing those things she ought not to have done1 and leaving undone those things she ought to have done1 and with no semblance of health in her4 ,there was nothing for it but the downfall of the world2 good-bye civilization and all that was ever upbuilded of old4 ,come now2 we should become good ,congo forester in our time1 with what they call 'long pig' for our daintiest diet4 ,it is a euphemism for your brother man4 ,but supposing this mist-filled ,gadarene gulf were really bridgable3 supposing there were another side beyond the roar of hungry waters and the horror2 and that mankind1--,european mankind1--might pass over1 and be saved1 were there but staying the rout for a moment1 and affording a means to cross8 ,there is a bardic proverb in the ,welsh3 ,a fo ,ben1 bydded ,bont3--',he who is ,chief1 let him be the bridge'3 ,bran the ,blessed said it1 when he threw down his giant body over the gulf1 so that the men of the ,island of the ,mighty might pass over into ,ireland4 ,and the end of an old cycle1 and the beginning of a new1 when there is--as in our ,rome at that time--a sort of psychic and cyclic impasse1 a break-down and terrible chasm in history1 if civilization is to pass over from the old conditions to the new1 a man must be found who can be the bridge4 ,he must solve the problems within himself2 he must care so little for1 and have such control of1 his personality1 that he can lay it down1 so to speak1 and let humanity cross over upon it4 ,history may get no news of him at all2 although he is then the ,chief of ,men1 and the greatest living2--or it may get news1 only to belittle him4 ,his own and the after ages may think very little of him2 he may possess no single quality to dazzle the imagination3--he may seem cold and uninteresting1 a crafty tyrant2--or an uncouth old ex-rail-splitter to have in the ,white ,house2--or an illiterate peasant-girl to lead your armies2 yet because he is the bridge1 he is the ,chief2 and you may suspect someone out of the ,pantheons incarnate in him4 ,for the truth of all which1 humanity has a sure instinct4 ,when there is a crisis we say1 ,look for the ,man4 ,rome thought 7for the most part7 that she had found him when ,caesar1 having conquered ,pompey1 came home master of the world4 ,if this phoenix and phenomenon in time1 now with no competitor above the horizons1 could not settle affairs1 only ,omnipotence could4 ,every thinking 7or sane7 ,roman knew that what ,rome needed was a head2 and now at last she had got one4 ,pompey1 the only possible alternative1 was dead2 ,caesar was lord of all things4 ,pharsalus1 the deciding battle1 was fought in #dh2 he returned home in #df4 ,from the year between1 in which he put the finishing touches to his supremacy1 you may count the full manvantara of ,imperial ,rome3 fifteen centuries until #adec and the fall of the ,eastern ,empire4 ,all opinion since has been divided as to the character of ,caesar4 ,to those whose religion is democracy1 he is the grand ,destroyer of ,freedom2 to the worshipers of the ,superman1 he is the chief avatar of their god4 ,mr4 ,stobart199 who deals with him sanely1 but leaning to the favorable view1 says he was not a bad man1 for he preferred justice and mercy to tyranny and cruelty1 and had a passion for logic and order2 and adds1 he was a man without beliefs or illusions or scruples4 ,he began by being a fop and ultra-extravagant2 and was always1 if we may believe accounts1 a libertine of the first water4 ,he was1 of course1 an epileptic4 ,in short1 there is nothing in history to give an absolutely sure clue to his real self4 ,but there is that passage in ,madame ,blavatsky1 which ,i have quoted before1 to the effect that he was an agent of the dark forces1 and conquered ,gaul for them1 to abolish the last effective ,mysteries2 and ,i think in the light of that1 his character1 and a great deal of history besides1 becomes intelligible enough4--,i will be remembered that he stood at the head of the ,roman religion1 as ,potifex ,maximus4 ------ 99 ,on whose book1 ,the ,grandeur that was ,rome1 this paper also largely leans4 ------ ,but it was not the evil that he did that 7obviously7 brought about his downfall4 ,caesar was fortified against ,karma by the immensity of his genius4 ,whom should he fear1 who had conquered ,pompeius ,magnus8 ,none in the roman world could reach so high as to his elbow2--for sheer largeness of mind1 quickness and daring1 he stoood absolutely the ,superman among pygmies4 ,he knew his aim1 and could make or wait for it2 and it was big and real4 ,other men crowed or fumbled after petty and pinch-beck ends2 impossible rhetorical republicanisms2 vain senatorial prestiges2 --or pleasure pure and simple--say rather1 very complex and impure4 ,let them clack1 let them fumble6 ,caesar would do things and get things done4 ,he wore the whole armor of his greatness1 and could see no chink or joint in it through which a hostile dagger might pierce4 ,even his military victories were won by some greater than mere military greatness4--,karma1 perhaps1 remembering the ,mysteries at ,gaulish ,bibracte1 and the world left now quite lightless1 might have a word to say2 might even be looking round for shafts to speed4 ,but what1 against a man so golden-panoplied8 ,tush6 saith ,caesar1 there are no arrows now but straws4 ,one such straw was this3 7a foolish one1 but it may serve7-- ,rome for centuries has been amusing herself on all public occasions with ,fourth of ,july rhetoric against kings1 and in praise of tyrannicides4 ,rome for centuries has been cherishing in her heart what she calls a love of ,freedom1--to scourge your slaves1 steal from your provincials1 and waste your substance in riotous living4 ,all of which ,julius ,caesar1--being a real man1 mind you1--holds in profoundest contempt for driveling unreality2 which it certainly is4 ,but unrealities are awfully real at times4 ,unluckily1 with all his supermannism1 he retained some traces of personality4 ,he was bald1 and sensitive about it2 he always had been a trifle foppish4 ,so when they gave him a nice laurel wreath for his triumph over ,pompey1 he continued1 against all precedent1 to wear it indefinitely1--as hiding certain shining surfaces from the vulgar gaze4444 ,h'm1 said ,rome1 he goes about the next thing to crowned6 ,and here is his statue1 set up with those of the ,seven ,kings of antiquity2 he allowing it1 or not protesting4--,they remembered their schoolboy exercises1 their spoutings on many ,latins for ,glorious ,fourth2 and felt very badly indeed4 ,then it was unlucky that1 being too intent on realities1 he could not bother to rise when those absurd old ,piccadilly pterodactyls the ,senators came into his presence2 that he filled up their ridiculous house promiscuously with low-born soldiers and creatures of his own4 ,and that there was a crowd of foolish prigs and pedants in ,rome to take note of these so trivial things1 and to be more irked by them than by all the realities of his power3--a lean hungry ,cassius2 an envious brusque detractor ,casca2 a ,brutus with a penchant for being considered a philosopher1 after a rather maiden-auntish sort of conception of the part1--and for being considered a true descendant of his well-known ancestor3 a cold soul much fired with the ignis fatuus of ,republican slave-scourging province-fleecing freedom4 ,an unreal lot1 with not the ghost of a ,man between them2--what should the one ,great ,man of the age find in them to disturb the least ofhis dreams8 ,came1 however1 the ,ides of ,march in ,b4,c4 #dd2 and the laugh once more was with ,karma1--the one great final laugher of the world4 ,caesar essayed to be ,chief of the ,romans3 he who is chief1 let him be the bridge2--this one1 because of a few ludicrous personal foibles1 has broken down now under the hurry and thunder of the marching cycles4 ,the fact being that your true ,chief aspires only to the bridgehood2 whereas this one overlooked that part of it1 intent on the chieftaincy4--,and now1 ,god have mercy on us6 there is to be all the round of wars and proscriptions and massacres over again3 ,roma caput mundi herself piteously decapitate2 and with every booby and popinjay rising in turn to kick her about at his pleasure2--and here first comes ,mark ,anthony to start the game1 it seems4 ,well2 ,mark ,anthony managed wisely enough at that crisis2 you would almost have said1 hearing him speak at ,caesar's funeral1 that there was at least a ha'porth of brains hidden somewhere within that particularly thick skull of his4 ,half an hour changes him from a mere thing alive on sufferance--too foolish to be worth bothering to kill--into the master of ,rome4 ,and yet probably it was not brains that did it1 but the force of genuine feeling3 he loved dead ,caesar2 he was trying now to be cautious1 for his own skin's sake3 was repressing himself2--but his feelings got the better of him1--and were catching1-- and set the mob on fire4 ,your lean and hungry ones2 your envious detractors2 your thin maiden-auntish prig republican philosophers3--all very wisely sheer off4 ,your grand resounding ,cicero1--vox et praeterea almost nihil 7he had yet to die and show that it was almost1 not quite17 sheers off too1 into the country1 there to busy himself with an essay on the ,nature of the ,gods 7to contain1 be sure1 some fine eloquence71 and with making up his mind to attack ,anthony on behalf of ,republican ,freedom4--,anthony's next step is wise too3 he appoints himself ,caesar's executor1 gets hold of the estate1 and proceeds to squander it right and left buying up for himself doubtful support4--,all you can depend on is the quick coming-on of final ruin and dismay3 of all impossibilities1 the most impossible is to imagine ,mark ,anthony capable of averting it4 ,as to ,caesar's heir1 so nominated in the will--the persona from whom busy ,anthony has virtually stolen the estate1--no one gives him a thought4 ,seeing who he was1 it would be absurd to do so4 ,and then he turned up in ,rome1 a sickly youth of eighteen2 demanded his moneys from ,anthony2 dunned him till he got some fragment of them2--then borrowed largely on his own securities1 and proceeded to pay--what prodigal ,anthony had been much too thrifty to think of doing--,ceasar's debts4 ,rome was surprised4 ,this was ,caesar's grand-nephew1 ,octavius2 who had been in camp at ,apollonia in ,illyricum since he had coolly proposed to his great-uncle that the latter1 being ,dictator1 and about to start on his ,parthian campaign1 should make him his ,master of the ,horse4 ,he had been exempted from military service on account of ill-health2 and ,julius had a sense of humor2 so he packed him off to ,apollonia to 'finish' a military training that had never begun4 ,there he had made a close friend of a rising young officer by the name of ,vipsanius ,agrippa2 a man of high capacities who1 when the news came of ,caesar's death1 urged him to lose no time1 but rouse the legions in their master's name1 and march on ,rome to avenge his murder4--,no1 says ,octavius1 ,i shall go there alone4 ,landing in ,italy1 he heard of the publication of the will1 in which he himself had been named heir4 ,that meant1 to a very vast fortune1 and to the duty of revenge4 ,of the fortune1 since it was now in ,mark ,anthony's hands1 you could predict nothing too surely but its vanishment2 as to the duty1 it might also imply a labor for which the ,mariuses and ,sullas1 the ,caesars and ,pompeys1 albeit with strong parties at their backs1 had been too small men4 ,and ,octavius had no party1 and he was no soldier1 and he had no friends except that ,vipsanius back in ,apollonia4 ,his mother and step-father1 with whom he stayed awhile on his journey1 urged him to throw the whole matter up3 forgo the improbably fortune and very certain peril1 and not rush in where the strongest living might fear to tread4 ,why1 there was ,mark ,anthony1 ,caesar's lieutenant--the ,hercules1 mailed ,bacchus1 ,roman ,anthony--the great dashing captain whom his soldiers so adored-- even he was shilly-shallying with the situation1 and not daring to say ,caesar shall be avenged4 ,and ,anthony1 you might be sure1 would want no competitor--least of all in the boy named heir in ,caesar's will4--,oh1 ,i shall go on and take it up1 said ,octavius2 and went4 ,and paid ,caesar's debts1 as we have seen1 presently3 thereby advertising his assumption of all responsibilities4 ,anthony began to be uneasy about him2 the ,senatorial ,party to make advances to him2 people began to suspect that1 possibly1 this sickly boy might grow into a man to be reckoned with4 ,i am not going to follow him in detail through the next thirteen years4 ,it is a tortuous difficult story2 to which we lack the true clues1 unless they are to be found in the series of protrait-busts of him taken during this period4 ,the makers of such busts were the photographers of the age2 and1 you may say1 as good as the best photographers4 ,every prominent ,roman availed himself of their services4 ,mr4 ,baring-,gould1 in his ,tragedy of the ,caesars1 arranges1 examines1 and interprets these portraits of ,augustus2 ,i shall give you the gist of his conclusions1 which are illuminating4--,first we see a boy with delicate and exceedingly beautiful features1 impassive and unawakend3 ,octavius when he came to ,rome4 ,a cloud gathers on his face1 deepening into a look of intense anguish2 and with the anguish grows firmness and the clenched expression of an iron will3 this is ,octavian in the dark days of the thirties4--the anguish passes1 but leaves the firmness behind3 the strength remains1 the beauty remains1 and a light of high serenity has taken the place of the aspect of pain3 this is ,augustus the ,emperor4 ,the same writer contrasts this story with that revealed by the busts of ,julius3 wherein we see first a gay insouciant dare-devil youth1 and at last a man old before his time2 a face sinister 7,i should say7 and haunted with ugly sorrow4 ,we get no contemporary account of ,augustus2 no interpeting biography from the hand of any one who knew him4 ,we have to read between the lines of history1 and with what intuition we can muster3 and especially the story of that lonely soul struggling through the awful waters of the years that followed ,caesar's death4 ,we see him allying himself first with one party1 then with another2 exercising 7apparently7 no great or brilliant qualities1 yet by every change thrown nearer the top2 till with ,anthony and ,lepidus he is one of the ,triumvirate that rules the world4 ,then came those cruel proscriptions4 ,this is the picture commonly seen3--a cold keen intellect perpetually dissembling2 keen enough to deceive ,anthony1 to decieve the senate1 to decieve ,cicero and all the world2 cruel for policy's sake1 without ever a twinge of remorse or compunciton3 a marble-cold impassive mind1 and no heart al all1 with master-subtlety achieving mastery of the world4--,alas6 a boy in his late teens and early twenties1 so nearly friendless1 and with enemies so many and so great444 ,a boy up aginst so huge and difficult circumstances always1 that 7you would say7 there was no time1 no possibility1 for him to look ahead3 in every moment the next agonizing perilous step that must be taken vast enough to fill the whole horizon of his mind1 of any human mind perhaps2--ay1 so vast and compelling that every day with wrenches and torsion that horizon must be pushed back and back to contain them1--a harrowing painful process1 as we may read on his busts444 ,as to the proscriptions1 ,dio1 a writer1 as ,mr4 ,baring-,gould says1 never willing to allow a good quality to one of the ,caesars1 or to put their conduct in other than an unfavorable light1 says that they were brought about mainly--by ,lepidus and ,anthony1 who1 having been long in honor under ,julius ,caesar1 and having held many offices in state and army1 had acquired many enemies4 ,but as ,octavian was associated with them in power1 an appearance of complicity attached to him4 ,but he was not cruel by nature1 and he had no occasion for putting many to death2 moreover1 he had resolved to imitate the example of his adoptive father4 ,added to this1 he was young1 was just entering on his career1 and sought rather to gain hearts than to alienate them4 ,no sooner was he in sole power than he showed no signs of severity1 and at that time he caused the death of very few1 and saved very many4 ,he proceeded with the utmost severity against such as betrayed their proscribed8 masters or friends2 but was most favorable to such as helped the proscribed to escape4 ,it was that appearance of complicity that wrote the anguish on his face3 the fact that he could not prevent1 and saw no way but to have a sort of hand in1 things his nature loathed4 ,in truth he appears to us now rather like a pawn1 played down the board by some great ,chess-player in the ,unseen3 moving by no volition or initiative of its own through perils and peace-takings to ,queenhood on the seventh square4 ,but we know that he who would enter the ,path of ,power must use all the initiative1 all the volition1 possible in any human being1 to attain the balance1 to master the personality1 to place himself wholly and unreservedly in the power1 under the control1 of the ,higher thing that is within and yet without him' ,the ,voice of his ,soul1 that speaks also through the lips of his ,teacher2 whether that ,teacher be embodied visibly before men or not4 ,he obeys2 he follows the gleam2 he sufferes1 and strives1 and makes no question2 and his striving is all for more power to obey and to follow4 ,in this1 ,i think1 we have our clue to the young ,octavian4--',luck' always favored him2 not least when1 in dividing the world1 ,anthony chose the ,east1 gave ,lepidus ,africa1 and left the most difficult and dangerous ,italy to the youngest partner of the three4 ,he had two friends1 men of some genius both3 ,vipsanius ,agrippa the general1 and ,cilnius ,maecenas the statesman4 ,both appear to us as great personalities2 the master whom they served so loyally and splendidly remains and ,impersonality1--which those who please may call a 'cold abstraction4' ,while ,octavian was away campaigning1 ,maecenas1 with no official position1 ruled ,rome on his behalf2 and so wisely that ,rome took it and was well content4 ,as for those campaigns1 'luck' or ,agrippa won them for him2 in ,octavian himself we can see no qualities of great generalship4 ,and indeed1 it is likely he had none2 for he was preeminently a man of peace4 ,but they always were won4 ,suetonius makes him a coward2 yet he was one that1 when occasion arose1 would not think twice about putting to sea in an open boat during a storm2 and once1 when he heard that ,lepidus was preparing to turn against him1 he rode alone into that general's camp1 and took away the timid creature's army without striking a blow3 simply ordered the soldiers to follow him1 and they did4 ,if he seems now a colorless abstraction1 he could hardly have seemed so then to ,lepidus' legions1 who deserted their own general--and paymaster--at his simple word of command4 ,or to ,agrippa1 or to ,maecenas1 great men who desired nothing better than to serve him with loyal affection4 ,maecenas was an ,etruscan2 a man of brilliant mind and culture2 reputed somewhat luxurious when he had nothing to do1 but a very dynamo when there was work4--,a man1 be it said1 of great ideals on his own account3 we see it in his influence on ,virgil and ,horace4 ,in his last years some coldness1 unexplained1 sprung up between him and his master2 yet when ,maecenas died1 it was found he had made ,augustus his sole heir4--,but now ,augustus is still only ,octavian1 moving impassively and impersonally to his great destiny2 as if no thing of flesh and blood and common human impulses1 but a cosmic force acting2--which indeed the ,impersonal ,man always is4 ,what he did1 seems to have done1 or could not help doing1 always worked out right1 whether it carries for us an ethical look or no4 ,the problems and difficulties that lay between that time and ,peace flowed to him3 and as at the touch of some alchemical solvent1 received their solution4 ,we get one glimpse of the inner man of him1 of his beliefs or religion4 ,he believed absolutely in his ,genius 7in the ,roman sense72 his luck1 or his ,karma1 or--and perhaps chiefly--that ,god-side of a man which ,numaism taught existed3--what we should call1 the ,higher ,law1 the ,warrior1 and the ,higher ,self4 ,there1 as ,i think1 you have the heart of his mystery2 he followed that1 blindly1--and made no mistakes4 ,in the year #bi ,b4,c4 it led him back to ,rome in ,triumph1 having laid the world at his feet4 ,he had been the bridge over that chasm in the cycles2 the ,path through all the tortuosities of that doubtful and wayward time2 over which the ,purposes of the ,gods had marched to their fulfilment4 ,he had been strong as destiny1 who seemed to have little strength in his delicate body4 ,with none of ,caesar's dash and brilliance1 he had repeated ,caesar's achievement2 and was to conquer further in spiritual regions ,caesar never knew4 ,with none of ,anthony's soldiership1 he had easily brought ,anthony down4--,why did ,cleopatra lose ,actium for ,anthony8 ,we face the almost inexplicable again in the whole story of ,octavian's dealings with ,cleopatra4 ,she is one of the characters history has most venomously lied about4 ,mr4 ,wiegand has shown some part of the truth about her in his biography2 but ,i do not think he has solved the whole problem2 for he takes the easy road of making ,octavian a monster4 ,now ,augustus1 beyond any question1 was one of the most beneficent forces that ever appeared in history2 and no monster can be turned1 by the mere circumstance of success achieved1 into that4 ,cleopatra had made a bid to solve the world-problem on an ,egyptian basis3 first through ,caesar1 then through ,anthony4 ,we may dismiss the idea that she was involved in passionate attachments2 she had a grand game to play1 with ,world-stakes at issue4 ,the problem was not to be solved through ,caesar1 and it was not to be solved through ,anthony2 but it had been solved by ,octavian4 ,there was nothing more for her to do1 but step aside and be no hindrance to the man who had done that work for the ,gods that she had tried and been unable to do4 ,so she sailed away from ,actium4 ,julius ,caesar in his day had married her2 and young ,caesarion their son was his heir by ,egyptian1 but not by ,roman1 law4 ,when1 in the days of ,caesar's dictatorship1 she brought the boy to ,rome1 ,caesar refused to recognise her as his wife1 or to do the right thing by ,caesarion4 ,to do either would have endangered his position in ,rome2 where by that time he had another wife1 the fourth or fifth in the series4 ,he feared the ,romans2 and they feared ,egypt and its ,queen4 ,it seemed very probably at that time that the headship of the world might pass to ,egypt2 which was still a sovereign power1 and immensely rich1 and highly populated1 and a compact kingdom2--whereas the ,roman state was everywhere ill-defined1 tenebrous1 and falling to pieces4 ,at this distance it is hard to see in ,egypt anything of strength or morale that would have enable it to settle the world's affairs2 as hard1 indeed1 as it is to see anything of the kind in ,rome4 ,but ,rome was haunted with the bogey idea2 and terribly angry1 aftewards1 with ,anthony for his ,egyptian exploits2 and hugely relieved when ,actium put an end to the ,egyptian peril4 ,egypt1 it was thought1 if nothing else1 might have starved ,italy into submission4 ,but in truth the cycles were all against it3 ,cleopatra was the only ,egyptian that counted1--the lonely ,spacious ,soul incarnate there4 ,when ,octavian reached ,alexandria1 all he did was to refuse to be influenced by the queen's wonderfully magnetic personality4 ,he appears to me to have been uncertain how to act3 to have been waiting for clear guidance from the source whence all his guidance came4 ,he also seems to have tried to keep her from committing suicide4 ,it is explained commonly on the supposition that he intended she should appear in his triumph in ,rome2 and that she killed herself to escape that humiliation4 ,i think it is one of those things whose explanation rests in the hands of the ,gods1 and is not known to men4 ,you may have a mass of evidence1 that makes all humanity certain on some point2 and yet the ,gods1 who have witnessed the realities of the thing1 may know that those realities were quite different4 ,then her two elder children were killed2 and no one has suggested1 so far as ,i know1 that it was not by ,octavians's orders4 ,it is easy1 even1 to supply him with a motive for it2 one in keeping with accepted ideas of his character3--as he was ,caesar's heir1 he would have wished ,caesar's own children out of the way2--and ,caesar's children by that 7to ,roman ideas7 loathed ,egyptian connexion4 ,his family honor would have been touched4444 ,up to this point1 then1 such a picture as this might be the true portrait of him3--a sickly body1 with an iron will in it2 a youth with no outstanding brilliancies1 who never lost his nerve and never made mistakes in policy2 with no ethical standars above those of his time3--capable of picking his names coldly on the proscription lists2 capable of having ,cleopatra's innocent children killed2--one1 certainly1 who had followed the usual custom of divorcing one wife and marrying another as often as expediency suggested4 ,above all1 following the ends of his ambition unerringly to the top of success4 ,the ends of his ambition8--,that is all hidden in the intimate history of souls4 ,how should we dare say that ,julius was ambitious1 ,augustus not8 ,both apparently aimed at mastery of the world2 from this human standpoint of the brain-mind there is nothing to choose1 and no means of discrimination4 ,but what about the standpoint of the ,gods8 ,is there no difference1 as seen from their impersonal altitudes1 between reaching after a place for your personality1 and supplying a personality to fill a place that needs filling8 ,there is just that difference1 ,i think1 between the brilliant ,julius and the staid ,octavian4 ,the former might have settled the affairs of the world1--as its controller and master and the dazzling obvious mover of all the pieces on the board4 ,i do not believe ,octavian looked ahead at all to see any shining pinnacle or covet a place on it2 but time and the ,law hurled one situation after another at him1 and he mastered and filled them as they came because it was the best thing he could do4444 ,if we say that the two men were as the poles apart1 there are but tiny indications of the difference3 the tactlessness and small vanities that advertise personality in the one2 the supreme tact and balance that affirm impersonality in the other4 ,the personality of ,julius must tower above the world2 that of ,augustus was laid down as a bridge for the world to pass over4 ,julius gave his monkeys three chestnuts in the morning and four at night2--you remember ,chwangtse's story2--and so they grew angry and killed him4 ,augustus adjusted himself2 decreed that they should have their four in the morning4 ,his personality was always under command1 and he brought the world across on it4 ,it never got in the way2 it was simply the instrument wherewith he 7or the ,gods7 saved ,rome4 ,he--we may say he--did save ,rome4 ,she was dead1 this time2 dead as ,lazarus1 who had been three days in the tomb1 etc4 ,he called her forth2 gave her two centuries of greatness2 five of some kind of life in the west2 fifteen1 all told1 in west and east4 ,julius is always bound to make on the popular eye the larger impression of greatness4 ,he retains his personality with all its air of supermanhood2 it is easy to see him as a live human being1 to imagine him in his habit as he lived1--and to be astounded by his greatness4 ,but ,augustus is hidden2 the real man is covered by that dispassionate impersonality that saved ,rome4 ,if all that comes down about the first part of his life is true1 and has been truly interpreted1 you could not call him then even a good man4 ,but the record of his reign belies every shadow that has been cast on that first part4 ,it is altogether a record of beneficence4 ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky speaks of ,julius as an agent of the dark forces4 ,elsewhere she speaks of ,augustus as an ,initiate4 ,did she mean by that merely an initiate of the ,official ,mysteries as they still existed at ,eleusis and elsewhere8 ,many men1 good1 bad and indifferent1 were that3 ,cicero1--who was doubtless1 as he says1 a better man for his initiation3 ,glamininus and his officers2 most of the prominent ,athenians since the time of ,pericles and earlier4 ,i dare say it had come to mean that though you might be taught something about ,karma and ,reincarnation1 you were not taught to make such teachings a living power in your own life or that of the world4 ,there is nothing of the ,occultists1 nothing of the ,master ,soul1 in the life and actions of ,cicero2 but there was very much1 as ,i shall try to show1 in the life and actions of ,augustus4 ,and1 we gather from ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky1 the only ,mysteries that survived in their integrity to anything like this time had been those at ,bibracte which ,caesar destroyed4 7,which throws light1 by the bye1 on ,lucan's half-sneering remark about the ,druids1--that they alone had real knowledge about the ,gods and the things beyond this life47 ,so it seems to me that ,augustus' initiation implied something much more real1--much more a high status of the soul1--than could have been given him by any semi-public organized body within the ,roman world4 ,virgil1 in the year #dj ,b4,c41 being then a pastoral poet imitating ,theocritus1--nothing very serious1--wrote a strange poem that stands in dignity and depth of purpose far above anything in his model4 ,this was the ,fourth ,eclogue of his ,bucolics1 called the ,pollio4 ,in it he invokes the ,sicilian ,muse to inspire him to loftier strains2 and proceeds to sing of the coming of a new cycle1 the return of a better age1 to be ushered in1 supposedly1 by a 'child' born in that year3-- ,ultima ,cumaci venit jam carminis aetas2 ,magnus ab integro saeclorum nascitur ordo2 ,jam redit et ,virgo1 redeunt ,saturnia regna2 ,jam nora progenies coelo demittitur alto4 ,this was taken in the ,middle ,ages as referring to the birth of ,jesus2 and on the strength of having thus prophesied1 ,virgil came to be looked on as either a true prophet or a black magician4 ,hence his enormous reputation all down the centuries as a master of the secret sciences4 ,the chemist is the successor to the alchemist2 and in ,wales we still call a chemist fferyll1 which is ,virgil ,cymricized4 ,well2 his reputation was not altogether undeserved2 he did know much2 you can find ,karma1 ,reincarnation1 ,devachan1 ,kama-loka--most of the ,theosophical teachings as to the postmortem-prenatal states1-- taught in the ,sixth ,book of the ,aeneid4 ,but as to this ,pollio ,eclogue3 even in modern textbooks one often sees it asserted that he must have been familiar with the ,hebrew ,scriptures2--because in the ,book of ,isaiah the coming of a ,messiah to the ,jews is prophesied in terms not very unlike those he used4 ,to my mind this is far-fetched3 ,virgil had ,gaul behind him1 if you must look for explanations in outside things2 and at least in after ages ,celtic ,messianism was as persistent a doctrine as ,jewish4 ,a survival1 of course2 in truth the initiated or partly initiated among all ancient peoples knew that avatars come4 ,virgil1 if he understood as much about ,theosophy as he wrote into the ,sixth ,aeneid1 would also have known1 from whatever source he learnt it1 the truth about cycles and ,adept ,messengers4 ,there has been much speculation as to who the child born in the year of ,pollio's consulship1 who was to bring in the new order of ages1 could have been4 ,but we may note that in the language of ,occultism 7and think of ,virgil as an ,occultist71 the 'birth of a child' had always been a symbolical way of speaking of the inititation of a candidate into the 7true7 ,mysteries4 ,so that it does not follow by any means that he meant an actual baby born in that year2 he may have intended1 and probably did intend1 some ,adept then born into his illumination1--or that1 according to ,virgil's own ideas1 might be thought likely soon to be4 ,one cannot say2 he was a very wise man1 ,virgil4 ,at least it indicates a feeling1--perhaps peculiar to himself1 perhaps general1--that the world stood on the brink of a great change in the cycles1 and that an ,adept ,leader might be expected1 who should usher the new order in4 ,his eyes may have been opened to the possibilities of the young ,octavian4 ,it is possible that the two were together at school in ,rome1 studying rhetoric under ,epidius1 in the late fifties2 and certainly ,virgil had recently visited ,rome and there interviewed the ,triumvir ,octavian2 and had obtained from him an order for the restitution of his parental farm near ,mantua1 which had been given to one of the soldiers of ,philippi after that battle4 ,two or three of the ,eclogues are given to the praises of ,octavian2 whom1 even as early as that1 ,virgil seems to have recognised as the future or potential savior of ,rome4 ,the points to put side by side are these3 ,virgil1 a ,theosophist1 expected the coming of an avatar1 an ,initiate who should save ,rome2--,h4,p4 ,blavatsky speaks of ,augustus as an ,initiate2--,augustus did save ,rome4 ,when did he become an ,initiate8 ,was there1 at some time1 such a change in his life that it was as if a new ,soul had come in to take charge of that impersonal unfailing personality8 ,there are tremendous mysteries connected with incarnation2 the possibility of a sudden accession of entity1 so to say1--a new vast increment of being4 ,as ,octavius and ,octavian1 the man seems like one without will or desires of his own1 acting in blind obedience to impersonal forces that aimed at his supremacy in the ,roman world4 ,as ,augustus1 he becomes another man altogether1 almost fathomlessly wise and beneficient2 a ,master of ,peace and ,wisdom4 ,he gave ,rome ,peace1 and taught her to love peace4 ,he put ,peace for a legend on the coinage2 and in the west ,pax1 in the east ,irene1 became favorite names to give you children4 ,he did what he could to clean ,roman life2 to give the people high ideals2 to make the empire a place1--and in this he succeeded1--where decent egos could incarnate and hope to progress2 which1 generally speaking1 they cannot in a chaos4 ,his fame as a benefactor of the human race spread marvelously3 in far-away ,india 7where at that time the ,secret ,wisdom and its ,masters were much more than a tradition71 they knew of him1 and struck coins in his honor2 coins bearing the image and superscription of this ,roman ,caesar4 ,i said that he went to work like an ,occultist3 like one with an understanding of the inner laws of life1 and power to direct outward things in accordance with that knowledge4 ,thus3--the task that lay before him was to effect a complete revolution4 ,rome could not go on under the old system any longer4 ,that system had utterly broken down2 and unless an efficient executive could be evolved1 there was nothing for it but that the world should go forward ,kilkenny-catting itself into non-existence4 ,now an efficient executive meant one-man rule2 or a king1 by whatsoever name he might be called4 ,but the tradition of centureis made a king impossible4 ,there were strongly formed astral molds2 and whoever should attempt to break them would1 like ,caesar1 ensure his own defeat4 ,whoever actually should break them1--well1 the result of breaking astral molds is always about the same4 ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky said that she came to break molds of mind2 and so she did2 but it was not in politics2 and the while she was laying her trains of thought-dynamite1 and exploding them gloriously1 she was also building up fair and glorious mansions of thought to house those made homeless4 ,the situation we are looking at here is on a different plane1 the political4 ,you break the astral molds there2 and they may be quite worthless1 quite effete and contemptible1--yet they are the things which alone keep the demon in man under restraint4 ,it is the old peril of ,revolutions4 ,they may be started with the best of intentions1 in the name of the highest ideals2 but1 unless there be super-human strength 7like ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti's7 or superhuman wisdom 7like ,augustus'7 to guide them1 as surely as they succeed in breaking the old molds1 they degenerate into orgies1--blood1 vice1 and crime4 ,augustus effected his revolution and kept all that out2 he substituted peace and prosperity for the blood and butchery of a century4 ,and it was because he went to work with the knowledge of an ,occultist that he was able to do so4 ,he carefully abstained from breaking the molds4 ,he labored to keep them all intact1--for the time being1 and until new ones should have been formed4 ,gently and by degrees he poured a new force and meaning into them2 which1 in time1 would necessarily destroy them2 but mean-while others would have been growing4 ,he took no step without laboriously ascertaining that there were precedents for it4 ,rome had been governed by ,consuls and ,tribunes2 well1 he would accept the consulate1 and the tribuniciary power2 because it was necessary now1 for the time being at any rate1 that ,rome should be governed by ,augustus4 ,it is as well to remember that it was the people who insisted on this last4 ,the ,republican ,party might subsist among the aristocracy1 the old governing class2 but ,augustus was the hero and champion of the masses4 ,time and again he resigned3 handed back his powers to the senate1 and what not2--whether as a matter of form only1 and that he might carry opinion along with him2 or with the real hope that he had taught things at last to run themselves4 ,in either case his action was wise and creditable2 you have to read into him mean motives out of your own nature1 if you think otherwise4 ,let there be talk of tyrants1 and plots arising1 with danger of assassination1--and what was to become of re-established law1 order1 and the ,augustan ,peace8 ,the fact was that the necessities of the case always compelled the senate to reinstate him3 it was too obvious that things could not run themselves4 ,if there had been any practicable opposition1 it could always have made those resignations effectual2 or at least it could have driven him to a show of illegalism1 and so1 probably1 against the point of some fanatic theorist's dagger4 ,in #bc ,b4,c4 there was a food shortage2 and the mob besieged the senate house1 demanding that new powers should be bestowed on the ,caesar3 they knew well what mind and hands could save them4 ,but he would run up no new 7corrugated iron or reinforced concrete7 astral molds1 nor smash down any old ones4 ,there should be no talk of a king1 or1 perpetual dictator4 ,chief citizen1 as you must have a chief1--since a hundred years had shown that haphazard executives would not work4 ,primus inter ,pares in the senate3 ,princeps1--not a new title1 nor one that implied royalty1--or meant anything very definite2 why define things1 anyhow1 now while the world was in flux8 ,mr4 ,stobart1 who ,i think comes very near to showing ,augustus as he really was1 still permits himself to speak of him as chilly and statuesque4 ,but can you imagine the mob so in love with a chilly and statuesque--tyrant1 or statesman1 or politician1--as to besiege the senate-house and clamor for an extension of his powers8 ,and this chilly statuesque person was the man who delighted in sharing in their games with children6 ,another reason why there was no talk of a king3 he was no ,leader of a spiritual movement1 but merely dealing with politics1 with which the cycles will have their way3 a world of ups and downs1 not stable because linked to the ,heart of ,things4 ,supposing he should find one to appoint as his worthy successor3 with the revolutions of the cycles1 could that one hope to find another to succeed him8 ,political affairs move and have their being at best in a region of flux1 where the evils1 and especially the duties1 of the day are sufficient therefor4 ,in attending to these1-- performing the duties1 fighting the evils1--,augustus laid down the lines for the future of ,rome4 ,he tried to revive the patriciate2 he wanted to have1 cooperating with him1 a governing class with the ancient sense of responsibility and turn for affairs4 ,but what survived of the old aristocracy was wedded to the tradition of ,republicanism1 which meant oligarchy1 and doing just what you liked or nothing at all4 ,the one thing they were not prepared to do was to cooperate in saving ,rome4 ,at first they showed some eagerness to flatter him2 but found that flattery was not what he wanted4 ,then they were inclined to sulk1 and he had to get them to pass a law making attendance at the senate compulsory4 ,mean views as to his motives have become traditional2 but the only view the facts warrant is this3 he lent out his personality1 not ungrudgingly1 to receive the powers and laurels that must fall upon the central figure in the state1 while ever working to vitalize what lay outward from that to the circumference1 that all ,romans might share with him the great ,roman responsibility of running and regenerating the world4 ,where there was talent1 he opened a way for it4 ,he made much more freedom than had ever been under the ,republic2 gave all classes functions to perform2 and curtailed only the freedom of the old oligarchy to fleece the provinces and misdirect affairs4 ,and meanwhile the old ,rome that he found on his return in #bi1-- brick-built ignobly at best1 and now decaying and half in ruins1 --was giving place to a true imperial city4 ,in #bh1 eighty-two temples were built or rebuilt in marble2 among the rest1 one to ,apollo on the ,palatine1 most magnificent1 with a great public library attached4 ,the first public library in ,rome had been built by ,asinius ,pollio nine years before2 soon they became common4 ,agrippa busied himself building the ,pantheon2 also public baths1 of which he was responsible for a hundred and seventy within the limits of the city4 ,fair play to the ,romans1 they washed4 ,all classes had their daily baths2 all good houses had hot baths and swimming-tanks4 ,the outer ,rome he found in brick and left in marble3--but the inner ,rome he had to rebuild was much more ruinous than the outer2 as for the material he found it built of--well1 it would be daring optimism and euphemism to call those ,romans bricks--says someone4 ,time had brought southern ,europe to the point where national distinctions were disappearing4 ,no nation could now stand apart4 ,greek or ,egyptian or ,gaul1 all were1 or might be1 or soon would be1 ,romans2 and if any ego with important things to say should incarnate anywhere1 what he said should be heard all round the ,middle ,sea4 ,this too is a part of the method of natural ,law2 which now splits the world into little fragments1 the nations1 and lets them evolve apart1 bringing to light by the intensive culture of their nationalisms what hidden possibilities lie latent in their own soils and atmospheres2--an anon welds them into one1 that all these accomplished separate evolutions may play upon each other1 interact1--every element quickening and quickened by the contact4 ,in the centrifugal or heterogenizing cycles national souls are evolved2 in the centripetal or homogenizing they are given freedom to affect the world4 ,we have seen what such fusion meant for ,china2 perhaps some day we may see what such fusion may mean for the world entire4 ,in ,augustus' time1 fusion was to do something for the ,mediterranean basin4 ,if he had been an ,occultist1 to know it1 his great cards lay in ,italy and ,spain3 the former with her cycle of productiveness due to continue1 shall we say until about #dj ,a4,d48--the latter with hers due soon to begin4 ,well1 it does look rather as if he knew it4 ,we shall see presently how he dealt with ,italy2 within two years of his triumph he was turning his attention to ,spain1 still only partly conquered4 ,we may picture that country1 from its first appearance in history until this time we are speaking of1 as in something like modern ,balkan conditions4 ,hamilcar ,barca1 a great proud gentlman1 the finest fruit of an ancient culture1 had thought no scorn to marry a ,spanish lady2 as a king of ,italy nowadays found it nowise beneath him to marry a ,montenegrin princess4 ,in either case it meant no unbridgable disparity in culture4 ,among any of the ,spanish people you should have found men who would have been at home in ,greek or ,carthaginian drawing-rooms1 so to say2 though the break-up of a forgotten civilization there had left the country in fragments and small warfares and disorder4 ,if you read the earliest ,spanish accounts of their conquests in the new world1 you cannot escape the feeling that1 no such long ages ago1 ,spain was in touch with ,america2 not so many centuries1 say1 before ,hamilcar went to ,spain4 ,such accounts are no doubt unscientific2 but may be the more intuitional and true and indicative for that4 ,when ,augustus turned his eyes on ,spain1 ,basque and ,celtic chieftains in the northern mountains and along the shores of ,biscay1 the semi-decivilized membra disjecta of past civilizations1 were always disposed to make trouble for the ,roman south4 ,he could not have left them alone1 except at the cost of keeping huge garrisons along the border1 with perpetual alarms for the province4 ,so he went there in person1 and began the work of conquering those mountains in ,b4,c4 #bg4 ,it was a long and difficult war with hideous doings on both sides3 the ,romans crucified the ,spaniards1 and the ,spaniards jeered at them from their crosses4 ,this because ,augustus was too sick to attend to things himself2 half the time he was at death's door4 ,not till he could afford to take ,agrippa from work elsewhere was any real progress made4 ,but at one point we see his own hand strike into it2 and the incident is very instructive4 ,spain had her ,vercingetorix in one ,corocotta1 a ,celt who kept all ,roman efforts useless and all ,roman commanders tantalized and nervous till a reward of fifty thousand dollars was offered for his capture4 ,augustus1 recovered a little1 was in camp2 and things were going ill with the ,spainiards4 ,one day an important-looking ,celt walked in1 and demanded to see the ,caesar upon business connected with the taking of ,corocotta4 ,led into the ,caesar's presence1 he was asked what he wanted4--,fifty-thousand dollars1 said he2 ,i am ,corocotta4 ,augustus laughed long and loud2 shook hands with him heartily2 paid him the money down1 and gave him his liberty into the bargain2 whereafter soon this ,quijote espanol married a ,roman wife1 and as ,caius ,julius ,corocottus lived happily ever after4 ,it was a change from the 'generous' ,julius' treatment of ,vercingetorix2 but that ,rome profited by the precedent thus established1 we may judge from ,claudius' treatment of the third ,celtic hero who fell into ,roman hands1--,caradoc of ,wales4 ,spain was only one of the many places where the frontier had to be settled4 ,the empire was a nebulous affair2 you could not say where it began and ended2 and to bring all out of this nebulosity was one of the labors that awaited ,augustus4 ,even a ,messenger of the ,gods is limited by the conditions he finds in the world2 and is as great as his age will allow him to be4 ,though an absolute monarch1 he cannot change human nature4 ,he must concentrate on points attackable1 and do what he can2 deflect currents in the right direction2 above all1 sow ideals1 and wait upon the ministrations of time4 ,he must take conditions as he finds them1 following the lines of least resistance4 ,it is nothing to him that posterity may ask1 ,why did he not change this or that8--and add he was no better than he should be4 ,at once to change outer things and ways of feeling that have grown up through centuries is not difficult but impossible2 and sometimes right courses1 violently taken1 are wronger than wrong ones4 ,augustus was a man of peace1 if anybody ever was1 yet 7as in ,spain7 made many wars4 ,the result of this ,spanish conquest was that the ,pax ,romana came into ,spain1 bringing with it severa centuries of high prosperity2 the world-currents flowed in there at once and presently the light of ,spain1 such as it was at that time1 shone out over the ,roman world4 ,most of the great names of the first century ,a4,d4 are those of ,spaniards4 ,after ,spain1 the most immediate frontier difficulty was with ,parthia2 and there ,augustus won his greatest victory4 ,at ,carrhae the ,parthians had routed ,crassus and taken the ,roman eagles4 ,rome was responsible for the provinces of ,asia2 and she was nominally at war with ,parthia1--so those provinces were in trim to be overrun at any time4 ,the war1 then1 must be finished2 and could ,rome let it end on terms of a ,parthian victory8 ,where 7it would be argued7 would then be ,roman prestige8 ,where ,roman authority 7a more real and valuable thing78 ,where the ,pax ,romana8--,all very true and sound2 everybody knew that for the war to reopen was only a question of time2--,julius had been on the point of marching east when the liberators killed him4 ,yes1 said ,augustus2 the matter must be attended to4 ,but ,parthia was a more of less civilized power3 a state at least with an established central government2 and when you have that1 there is generally the chance to settle things by tact instead of by fighting4 ,he found a means4 ,he opened negotiations1 and brought all his tact to bear4 ,he was the chief1 and a bridge again4 ,over which presently came ,phraates king of ,parthia1 amenable and well-disposed1 to return the eagles and such of the prisoners as were still alive4 ,rome had won back her prestige2 ,parthia was undegraded2 peace had won a victory that war would have spent itself in vain striving after4 ,but the frontier was enormous1 and nowhere else marched with that of an established power4 ,there was no winning by peace along that vast northern line from the ,black to the ,north ,sea1 at the most vital spot of which an unlucky physical geography makes ,italy easily invadable and rather hard to defend4 ,negotiations would not work here1 since there was no union to negotiate with2 only ebullient ,german tribes whose game was raiding and whose trade plunder4 ,so the ,alps had to be held1 and a line drawn somewhere north of them1--say along the ,danube and the ,rhine or ,elbe2 a frontier that could be made safe with a minimum of soldiers4 ,all this he did2 excluding adventurous schemes3 leaving ,britain1 for example1 alone2--and was able to reduce the army1 before he died1 to a mere handful of #adj1jjj men4--,varus and his lost legions8 ,well2 there is something to be said about that4 ,augustus was old1 and the generals of the imperial family1 who knew their business1 were engaged elsewhere4 ,and ,germany was being governed by a good amiable soul by the name of ,quintilius ,varus1 who persisted in treating the ,germans as if they had been civilized ,italians4 ,and there was a young ,cheruscan who had become a ,roman citizen1 spoke ,latin fluently1 and had always been a good ally of ,rome4 ,his ,latin cognomen was ,arminius2 of which ,german patriotism has manufactured a highly improbable ,hermann4 ,the trustful ,varus allowed himself to be lured by this seemingly so good friend into the wilds of the ,saltus ,teutobergiensis1 where the whole power of the ,cheruscans fell on and destroyed him4 ,then ,tiberius came1 and put the matter right2 but there was an ugly half hour of general panic first4 ,there had been no thought of adding ,germany to the empire but only as to whether the frontier should be on the ,elbe or the ,rhine4 ,varus' defeat decided ,augustus for the ,rhine4 ,now we come to what he did for ,italy3 his second trump card1 if we call ,spain his first4 ,spain belonged to the future1 ,italy to the present4 ,her cycle was half over1 and she had done nothing 7in ,b4,c4 #bi7 very worthy with it4 ,first1 an effort should be made towards the purificatior of family-life3 a pretty hopeless task1 wherein at last he was forced to banish his own daughter for notorious evil-living4 ,he made laws2 and it may be supposed that they had some effect in time4 ,a literary impulse towards high dignified ideals1 however1 may be much more effective than laws4 ,he had ,maecenas with his circle of poets4 ,of course1 poetry written to order1 or upon imperial suggestion1 is not likely to be of the highest creative kind4 ,but the high creative forces were not flowing in that age2 and we need not blame ,augustan patronage for the limitations of ,augustan literature4 ,there is no time to argue the question2 this much we may say3 the two poets who worked with the emperor1 and wrote under his influence and sometimes at his suggestion1 left work that endures in world-literature2 that is noble and beautiful1 and still interesting4 ,i mean ,virgil and ,horace1 of course4 ,ovid1 who was not under that influence1 but of the faction opposed to it1 wrote stuff that it would be much better were lost entirely4 ,the poet's was the best of pulpits1 in those days3 poets stood much nearer the world then than for all the force of the printing-press they can hope to do now4 ,so1 if they could preach back its sacredness to the soil of ,italy2 if they could recreate the ideal of the old agricultural life2 something might be done towards 7among other things7 checking the unwholesome crowding to the capital1--as great an evil then as now4 ,through ,maecenas and directly ,augustus influenced ,virgil1 the laureate2 who responded with his ,georgics4 ,it is a wonderful work4 ,virgil was a practical farmer2 he tells you correctly what to do4 ,but he makes a work of art of it all poetical4 ,he suffuses his directions for stock-raising and cabbage-hoeing with the light of mythology and poetry4 ,he gives you the ,golden ,age and ,saturn's ,italy1 and makes the soil seem sacred4 ,he had the ,gaul's feeling for grace and delicacy1 and brought in ,celtic beauty to illumine the ,italian world4 ,the lines are impregnated with the soul1 the inner atmosphere1 of the ,italian land2 full of touches such as that lovely ,muscosi fontes et somno mollior herba1 of violets and popies and narcissus2 quinces and chestnut trees4 ,all that is of loveliness in rural 7and sacred7 ,italy is there2 the landscapes are there1 still beautiful2 and the dignity and simplicity of the old agricultural life4 ,it is a practial treatise on farming2 yet a living poem4 ,horace too played up for his friend ,maecenas and for ,caesar4 ,maecenas gave him that ,sabine farm2 and ,horace made ,latin songs to ,greek meters about it3 made music that is a marvel to this day1 so that it remains a place of pilgrimage1 and you can still visit1 ,i believe1 that fons ,bandusia splendidiot vitro that he loved so well and set such sweet music to4 ,he give you that country as ,virgil gives you the valley vistas1 not unfringed with mystery1 of ,appenines and the north4 ,between them1 ,italy is there1 as it had never been interpreted before4 ,if--in ,virgil at least--there is a direct practical purpose1 there is no less marvelous art and real vision of ,nature4 ,and then ,augustus set both of them to singing the grandeur of ,rome2 to making a new patriotism with their poetry2 to inspiring ,roman life with a sense of dignity1--a thing it needed sorely3 ,virgil in the ,aeneid 7where also1 as we have seen1 he taught not a little ,theosophy72 ,horace in the ,carmen ,saeculare and some of the great ,odes of the third and fourth books4 ,the lilt of his lines is capable of ringing1 and does so again and again1 into something very like the thrill and resonance of the ,grand ,manner4 ,listen for it especially in the third and fourth lines of this3 ,quid debeas1 o ,roma1 ,neronibus ,testis ,metaurum flumen et ,hasdrubal ,devictus1 et pulcher fugatis ,ille dies ,latio tenebris4 ,i am not concerned here to speak of his limitations2 nor of ,virgil's2 who1 in whatever respect the ,aeneid may fall short1 does not fail to cry out in it to the ,romans4 ,remember the dignity and the high mission of ,rome6--,by all these means ,augustus worked towards the raising of ,roman ideals4 ,to that end he wrote1 he studied1 he made orations4 ,he searched the ,latin and ,greek literatures2 and any passage he came on that illumined life or tended towards upliftment1 he would copy out and send to be read in the senate2 or he would read it there himself to the senators2 or publish it as an edict4 ,there is a touch of the ,teacher in this1 ,i think4 ,he has given ,rome ,peace2 he is master of the world1 and now has grown old4 ,he enjoys no regal splendor1 no pomp or retinue2 his life is as that of any other senator1 but simpler than most4 ,and his mind is ever brooding over ,rome1 watchful for the ideas that may purify ,roman life and raise it to higher levels4 ,many things occurred to sadden his old age4 ,his best friends were dead2 ,varus was lost with his legions2 there had been the tragedy of ,julia1 whom he had loved well1 and the deaths of the young princes1 her sons4 ,he was a man of extraordinarily keen affections1 and all these losses came home to him sorely4 ,but against every sadness he had his own achievements to set4 ,there was ,rome in its marble visibly about him1 that he had found in brick and in ruins2 ,rome now capable of centuries of life1 that had been1 when he came to it1 a ghastly putridity4 ,,xix4 ,,an ,,imperial ,,sacrifice ,render unto ,caesar the things that are ,caesar's ,this is the secret of writing3 look at the external things until you see pulsating behind them the rhythm and beauty of the ,eternal4 ,only look for it1 and persist in your search1 and presently the ,universal will be revealed shining through the particular1 the sweep of everlasting ,law through the little object1 and happenings of a day4 ,come to history with the same intent and method1 and at last things appear in their true light4 ,here1 too1 as in a landscape1 is the rhythm of the ,eternal2 here are the ,basic ,forms4 ,i doubt if the evidence of the annalists is ever worth much1 unless they had an eye to penetrate to these4 ,when one sees behind the supposed fact narrated and the judgments pronounced the glimmering up of a basic form1 one guesses one is dealing with a true historian4 ,recently ,i read a book called ,the ,tragedy of the ,caesars1 by the novelist ,baring-,gould2 and in it the life of a certain man presented in a sense flatly contradictory to the views of nineteen centuries anent that man2 but it seemed to me at last an account that had the rhythm1 the basic form1 showing through4 ,so in this lecture what ,i shall try to give you will be ,mr4 ,baring-,gould's version of this man's life1 with efforts of my own to go further and make quite clear the basic form4 ,what does one mean by 'basic form'8 ,in truth it is hard to define4 ,only1 this world1 that seems such a heterogeneous helter-skelter of mournful promiscuities1 is in fact the pattern that flows from the loom of an ,eternal ,weaver3 a beautiful pattern1 with its rhythms and recurrences2 there is no haphazard in it2 it is not mechanical1--yet still flawless as the configuarations of a crystal or the petals of a perfect flower4 ,the name of the man we are to think of tonight has come down as a synonym for infamy3 we imagine him a gloomy and bloodthirsty tyrant2 a morose tiger enthroned2 a gross sensualist2--well1 ,i shall show you portraits of him1 to see whether you can accept him for that4 ,the truth is that aristocratic ,rome1 degenerate and frivolous1 parrot-cried out against the supposed deneracy of the imperial1 and for the glories of the old republican1 regime2 for the days when ,romans were ,romans1 and 'virtuous4' ,one came to them in whom the 7real7 ancient ,roman honor more appeared than in another man in ,italy1 perhaps before or since2--and they could not understand the honor1 and hated the man4 ,they captured his name in a great net of lies2 they breathed a huge fog of lies about him1 which come down to us as history4 ,now to see whether a plain tale may not put them down4 ,once more take your stand1 please1 on the ,mountain of the ,gods3 the time1 in or about the year #ci ,b4,c43--and thence try to envisage the world as ,those do who guide but are not involved in the heats and dusts of it4 ,the ,western ,world2 in which ,rome1 caput mundi1 was the only thing that counted4 ,caput mundi2 but a kind of idiot head at that3 inchoate1 without co-ordination2 maggots scampering through what might have been the brain2 the life fled1 and that great rebellion of the many lives which we call decay having taken its place4 ,and yet1 it was no true season for ,rome to be dead2 it was no natural death2 not so much decent death at all as the death in life we call madness4 ,for the ,crest-,wave men were coming in2 it was the place where they should be4 ,the cycle of ,italy had begun1 shall we say1 in #id ,b4,c41 and would end in #cf ,a4,d42 --for convenience one must give figures1 though one means only approximations by them2--and not until after that latter date would souls of any caliber cease to be incarnate in ,roman bodies4 ,before that time1 then1 the madness had to be cured and ,rome's mission had to be fulfilled4 ,the mission was1 to homogenize the world4 ,that was the task the ,law had in mind for ,rome2 and it had to be done while the ,crest-,wave remained in ,italy and important egos were gathered in ,rome4 ,some half dozen strong souls1 under the ,gods' special agent ,octavian1 had gone in there to do the work2 but the ,crest-,wave had flowed into ,rome when ,rome was already vice-rotten2 and how could she expect to run her whole thirteen decades a great and ruling people8 ,none of those strong souls could last out the whole time4 ,octavian himself1 should he live to be eighty1 would die and not see the cycle finished3 twenty years of it would remain--to be filled by one worthy to succeed him1 or how should his work escape being undone8 ,the world must be made homogensous1 and ,rome not its conqueror and cruel mistress1 but its well-respected heart and agreed-on center2 and all this must be accomplished1 and established firmly1 before her cyclic greatness had gone elsewhere3--that is1 before #cg ,a4,d4 ,the ,republic1 as we have seen1 had had its method of ruling the provinces3 it was to send out young profligates to fleece and exploit them1 and make them hate ,rome4 ,this must be changed1 and a habit formed of ruling for the benefit of the subject peoples4 ,two or three generations of provincials must have grown up in love with ,rome before the end of the cycle1 or the ,empire would then inevitably break4 ,by #cg ,a4,d41 the ,crest-,wave would have left ,italy1 and would be centering in ,spain4 ,spain1 hating ,rome1 would shake off the ,roman yoke2 she would have the men to do it2--and the rest of the world would follow suit4 ,even if ,spain should set herself to the ,gods' work of union-making1 what path should she take towards it8 ,only that of conquest would be open2 and how should she hope to conquer1 and then wipe out the evil traces of her conquering1 and create a homogeneity1 all within her possible cycle of thirteen decades8 ,rome's great opportunity came1 simply because ,rome had done the conquering before ever the ,crest-,wave struck her2 in days when the ,crest-,wave was hardly in ,europe at all4 ,even so1 it would be a wonder if all could be finished in the few years that remained4 ,by ,rome it never could have been done at all3 it was the office of a ,man1 not of a state or nation4 ,the ,man who should do it1 must do it from ,rome3 and ,rome had first to be put into such condition as to be capable of being used4 ,it devolved upon ,augustus to do that first1 or his greater work would be impossible4 ,he had to win ,rome to acquiescence in himself as ,princeps4 ,so his primary need was a personality of infinite tact2 and that he possessed4 ,he was the kind of man everybody could like2 that put everyone at ease2 that was friendly and familiar in all sorts of society2 so he could make that treacherous quagmire ,rome stable enough to be his pied-a-terre4 ,that done1 he could stretch out his arms thence to the provinces1 and begin to weld them into unity4 ,for this was the second part and real aim of his work3 to rouse up in the ,empire a centripetalism1 with ,rome for center1 before centripetalism1 in ,rome itself1 should have given place to the centrifugal forces of national death4 ,rome ruled the world1 and ,augustus ,rome1 by right of conquest2 and that is the most precarious right of all1 and must always vanish with a change in the cycles4 ,he had to1 and did1 transmute it into a stable right3 first with respect to his own standing in ,rome1--which might be done1 with tact for weapon1-- in a few years2 then with respect to ,rome's standing in the world1--which could not be done in less than a couple of lifetimes1 and with the best of good government as means4 ,if the work should be interrupted too early it would all fall to pieces4 ,so then he must have one successor at least1 a soul of standing equal to his own3 one that could live and reign until #cg ,a4,d4 ,let the ,empire until that year be ruled continuously from ,rome in such a manner as to rouse up ,roman--that is1 ,world1 --patriotism in all its provinces1 and the appearance of the ,crest-,wave in a new center would not be the signal for a new break-up of the world4 ,the problem was1 then1 to find the man able to do this4 ,the child3 for he must not be a man yet4 ,and seeing what was at stake1 he must be better equipped than ,augustus3 he must be trained from childhood by ,augustus4 ,because he was to work in the midst of much more difficult conditions4 ,augustus had real men to help him3 the successor probably would have none4 ,when the ,crest-,wave struck it1 ,rome was already mean and corrupt and degenerate4 ,augustus1 not without good human aid1 might hope to knock it into some kind of decency during the apex-time of the thirteen decades4 ,his reign would fall1 roughly1 in the third quarter of the cycle1 which is the best time therein2 but his successor would have to hold out through the last quarter1 which is the very worst4 ,the ,crest-,wave would then be passing from ,italy3 ,rome would be becoming ever a harder place for a ,real ,man to live and work in4 ,meaner and meaner egos would be sneaking into incarnation2 decent gentlemanly souls would be growing ever more scarce4 ,by 'mean egos' ,i intend such as are burdened with ingrate personalities3 creatures on whom sensuality has done its disintegrating work2 whose best pleasure is to exempt themselves from any sense of degradation caused by fawning on the one strong enough to be their master1 by tearing down as they may his work and reputation1 circulating lies about him1 tormenting him in every indirect way they can4 ,among such as these1 and probably quite lonely among the1 the successor of ,augustus would lave to live1 fulfilling ,heaven's work in spite of them4 ,where to find a ,soul capable1 or who would dare undertake the venture8 ,well2 since it was to be done1 and for the ,gods1--no doubt the ,gods would have sent their qualified man into incarnation4 ,in ,b4,c4 #ci ,octavian proclaimed a general amnesty2 and among these who profited by it was a certain member of the ,claudian gens1--one of that ,nero family to which ,rome owed so much-- ,testis ,metaurum flumen et ,hasdrubal ,devictus ,he had been a friend of ,caesar's and an enemy of ,octavian's2 and had been spending his time recently in fleeing from place to place in much peril2 as had also his wife1 aged eighteen1 and their three-year-old son4 ,on one occasion this lady was hurrying by night through a forest1 and the forest took fire2 she escaped1 but not until the heat singed the cloak in which the baby boy in her arms was wrapped4 ,now they returned1 and settled in their house on the ,palatine not far from the house of ,octavian4 ,in ,rome at that time marriage was not a binding institution4 ,to judge by the lives of those prominent enough to come into history1 you simply married and divorced a wife whenever convenient4 ,octavian some time before had married ,scribonia1 to patch up an alliance with her kins-man ,sextus ,pompey1 then prominent on the high seas in the role--,i think the phrase is ,mr4 ,stobart's--of gentleman-pirate4 ,as she was much older than himself1 and they had nothing in common1 it occurred to no one that1 now the utility of the match had passed1 he would not follow the usual custom and divorce her4 ,he met ,livia1 the wife of this ,tiberius ,claudius ,nero1 and duly did divorce ,livia4 ,a new wedding followed1 in which ,claudius ,nero acted the part of father to his ex-wife1 and gave her away to ,octavian4 ,it all sounds very disgraceful2 but this must be said3 the great ,augustus could never have done his great work so greatly had he not had at his side the gracious figure of the empress ,livia1-- during the fifty-two years that remained to him his serenest counselor and closest friend4 ,and then--there was the boy3 ,i believe the most important element in the transaction4 ,his father died soon afterwards1 and he came to live in the palace1 under the care of his mother1--and of ,augustus2 who had now within his own family circle the two egos with whom he was most nearly concerned1 and without whom his work would have been impossible4 ,so ,i think we may put aside the idea that the marriage with ,livia was an 'affair of the heart1' as they call it3--a matter of personal and passional atraction4 ,he was guided to it1 as always1 by his ,genius1 and followed the promptings of the ,gods4 ,but1--,hell hath no fury like a woman scorned4 ,the divorced ,scribonia never forgave ,augustus4 ,she became the center of a faction in society that hated him1 hated ,livia1 loathed and detested the whole ,claudian line4 ,there must have been bad blood in ,scribonia4 ,her daughter ,julia became profligate4 ,of ,julia's five children1 ,agrippa ,postumus went mad through his vices2 ,julia inherited her mother's tendencies1 and came to a like end4 ,agrippina1 a bitter and violent woman1 became the evil genius of the next reign4 ,of this ,agrippina's children1 ,drusus and ,caligula went mad and her daughter was the mother of the madman ,nero4 ,to me the record suggest this3 that the marriage with1 not the divorce of1 ,scribonia was a grave mistake on the part of ,octavian2 bringing down four generations of terible karma4 ,he was afloat in dangerous seas at that time1 and a mere boy to take arms against them3 did he1 trusting in material alliances and the aid of ,sextus ,pirate1 forget for once to trust in his ,genius within8 ,we have seen how the lines of pain became deeply graven on his face during the years that followed ,caesar's death4 ,a high soul1 incarnating1 must take many risks2 and before it has found itself and tamed the new personality1 may have sown griefs for itself to be reaped through many lives4 ,the descendants of ,augustus and ,scribonia were the bane of ,augustus and of ,rome4 ,but ,livia was his good star1 and always added to his peace4 ,but now1 back to the household on the ,palatine1 in the thirties ,b4,c4 ,julia 7,scribonia's daughter71 pert1 witty1 bold1 and daring1 was the darling of her father1 whom she knew well how to amuse4 ,drusus1 the younger son of ,livia and ,claudius ,nero1 was a bold handsome boy of winning manners and fine promise1 generally noticed and loved4 ,to these two you may say ,augustus stood in only human relations3 the loving1 careful1 and jolly father1 sharing in all their games and merriment4 ,he always liked playing with children3 as emperor1 would often stop in his walks through the streets to join in a game with the street-boys4 ,but with ,livia's elder son1 ,tiberius1 he was different4 ,tiberius had no charm of manner3 ,drusus his brother quite put him in the shade4 ,he carried with him the scars of his babyhood's perilous adventures1 and the terror of that unremembered night of fire4 ,he was desperately shy and sensitive2 awkward in company2 reserved1 timid1 retiring1 silent4 ,within the nature so pent up were tense feelings2 you would say ungovernable1 only that he always did govern them4 ,he went unnoticed2 ,drusus was the pet of all2 under such conditions how much harmony as a rule exists between two brothers8 ,but ,tiberius loved ,drusus with his whole heart2 his thoughts knew no color of jealousy2 unusual harmony was between them until ,drusus died4--,the world said ,augustus disliked the boy3 we shall see on what appearances that opinion was based4 ,but ,tiberius1 then and ever afterwards1 held for ,augustus a feeling deeper and stronger than human or filial affection3 it was that1 with the added reverence of a disciple for his ,teacher4--,you shall find these intense feelings sometimes in children of his stamp2 though truly children of the stamp of ,tiberius are rare enough2 for with all his tenderness1 his over-sensitiveness and timidity1 put him to some task1 whisper to him ,duty6--and the little ,tiberius is another child altogether3 unflinching1 silent1 determined1 pertinacious1 ready to die rather than give in before the thing is most whole-souledly done4 ,augustus1 merriest and most genial of men1 never treated him as he did ,julia and ,drusus3 there were no games and rompings with ,tiberius4 ,let this grave child come into the room1 and all ended2 as if the ,princeps were a school-boy caught at it by some stern prowling schoolmaster4 ,indeed1 it was common talk that ,augustus1 until the last years of his life1 never smiled in ,tiberius' presence2 that his smile died always on his stepson's entry2 the joke begun went unfinished2 he became suddenly grave and restrained2--as1 ,i say1 in the presence of a soul not to be treated with levity1 but always upon a considered plan4 ,the children grew up1 and people began to talk of a successorship to ,augustus in the ,principate4 ,it would be1 of course1 through ,julia1 his daughter4 ,he married her to ,marcellus1 aged seventeen1 his sister ,octavia's son1 who he adopted4 ,marcellus and ,julia1 then1 would succeed him2 no one thought of retiring ,tiberius4 ,marcellus1 however1 died in a couple of years2 and folk wondered who would step into his place4 ,augustus gave ,julia to ,vipsanius ,agrippa1 the man who had won so many campaigns for him4 ,agrippa was as old as the ,princeps1 but of much stronger constitution2 and so1 likely to outlive him perhaps a long while4 ,very appropriate1 said ,rome3 ,agrippa will reign next3 an excellent fellow4 ,no one thought of shy ,tiberius4--,agrippa1 by the way1 was a strong man and a strict disciplinarian1--with soldiers1 at any rate3 it might be hoped also with wives4 ,it was just as well for lady ,julia to be under a firm hand4 ,ten years later ,agrippa died1 and the heirship presumptive passed to his two eldest children by ,julia3 the princes ,caius and ,lucius4 ,augustus adopted them in due course4 ,heirship presumptive means here1 that they were the ones ,rome presumed would be the heirs3 a presumption which ,augustus1 without being too definite1 encouraged4 ,the ,initiate ,leaders and ,teachers of the world do not1 as a rule1 as far as one can judge1 advertise well beforehand the identity of their successors4--,as for ,tiberius2--why1 said ,rome1 his stepfather does not even like him4 ,drusus1 now1 and his children1--ah1 that might be a possibility4 ,for the marriages of the two brothers told a tale4 ,drusus had married into the sacred ,julian line3 a daughter of ,octavia and ,mark ,anthony2 his son ,germanicaus was thus a grand-nephew of ,augustus1 and a very great pet4 ,but ,tiberius had made a love-match1 with a mere daughter of ,agrippa by some former wife3 an alliance that could not advance him in any way4 ,her name was ,vipsania2 the whole intensity of his pent-up nature went into his feeling for her2 he was remarkably happily married2--that is1 for the human1 the tender1 sensitive1 and affectionate side of him4 ,meanwhile both brothers had proved their worth4 ,at twenty-two1 ,tiberius set up a kind in ,armenia1 and managed for ,augustus the ,parthian affair1 whereby the standards of ,crassus were returned4 ,there were ,swiss and ,german campaigns3 in which ,drusus was rather put where he might shine1--and he did shine2--and ,tiberius a little in the shade4 ,but ,drusus in ,germany fell from his horse1 and died of his injuries2 and then ,tiberius was without question the first general of his age1 and ablest man under the ,princeps4 ,as a soldier he was exceedingly careful of the welfare of his men2 cautious in his strategy1 yet bold2 reserved2 he made his own plans1 and saw personally to their carrying out2-- above all1 he never made mistakes and never lost a battle4 ,his natural shyness and timidity and awkwardness vanished as soon as there was work to be done3 in camp1 or on the battlefield1 he was a very different man from the shy ,tiberius of ,roman society4 ,gossip left his name untouched4 ,it took advantage of ,augustus2 natural bonhomie1 and whispered tales agains him galore3 even said that ,livia retained her hold on him by taking his indiscretions discreetly2--which is as much as to say that an utterly corrupt society judged that great man by its own corrupt standards4 ,but ,tiberius was too austere2 his life chilled even ,roman gossip into silence4 ,there was also his patent devotion to ,vipsania44444 ,you could only sneer at him1 if at all1 for lack of spirit4 ,he had1 then1 great and magnificent qualities2 but the scars of his babyhood peril remained4 ,there was that timid and clinging disposition2 that over-sensitiveness that came out when he was away from camp1 or without immediate business to transact1 or in any society but that of philosophers and occultists3--for we do know that he was a student of ,occult ,philosophy4 ,he had grand qualities2 but felt1 beneath his reserve1 much too strongly2 had a heart too full of pent-up human affections4 ,but it is written3 ,before the ,soul can stand in the prescence of the ,masters1 its feet must be washed in the blood of the heart4 ,it devolved upon his ,teacher to break that heart for him2 so that he might stand in the presence of the ,masters4 ,agrippa had died2 and for ,julia's sake it was wise and better to provide her with a husband4 ,augustus hesitated long before he dared take the tremendous step he did3 as one doubtful whether it would accomplish what he hoped1 or simply kill at once the delicate psychic organism to be affected by it4 ,then he struck1 --hurled the bolt4 ,let ,tiberius put away ,vipsania and marry ,julia4 ,put away that adored ,vipsania3--marry that ,julia1--whom every single instinct in his nature abhorred6 ,incompatible3--that is the very least and mildest thing you can say about it2--but he must say nothing1 for he is speaking to her father4 ,he resists a long time1 in deep anguish2 but there is one word that for ,tiberius was ever a clarion call to his soul4 ,what1 cries he1 is this terrible thing you demand of me8--and his ,teacher answers3 ,duty4 ,duty to ,rome1 that the ,julian and ,claudian factions may be united2 duty to the empire1 that my successors1 ,caius and ,lucius1 may have1 after ,i am gone1 a strong man for their guardian4--,you will note that1 if you please4 ,augustus had just adopted these two sons of ,julias2 they were1 ostensibly1 to be his successors2 there was no bait for ambition in this sacrifice ,tiberius was called on to make2 he would not succeed to the ,principate2 the marriage would not help him2 there was to be nothing in it for him but pure pain4 ,in the name of duty he was called on to make a holocaust of himself4 ,he did it2 and the feet of his soul were indeed washed in the blood of his heart4 ,he said no word2 he divorced ,vipsania and explained nothing4 ,but for months afterwards1 if he should chance to meet her1 or see her in the street far off1 he could not hide the fact that his eyes filled with tears4--,then ,rome in its own kindly way took upon itself the duty or pleasure of helping him out a little3 gossip got to work to soothe the ache of his wound4 ,vipasania1 said gossip2--you are well rid of her2 she was far from being all that you thought her4 ,probably he believed nothing of it2 but the bitterness lay in its being said4 ,a shy man is never popular4 ,his shyness passes for pride1 and people hate him for it4 ,tiberius was very shy4 ,so society was always anxious to take down his pride a little4 ,the truth was1 he was humble to the verge of self-distrust4 ,he did his best for ,julia3 lived under the same roof with her for a few agonized months1 and discovered what everyone knew or suspected about her4 ,the cup of his grief was now quite full2 and indeed1 worse things a man could hardly suffer4 ,austere1 reserved1 and self-controlled as he was1 at sight of ,vipsania he could not hide his tears4 ,but it is written3 ,before the eyes can see1 they must become incapable of tears4 --,he was the butt of ,roman gossip3 in all rancorous mouths because of the loved ,vipsania2 in all tattling mouths because of the loathed ,julia2 laughed at on both accounts2 sympathized with by nobody2 hearing all whispers1 and fearfully sensitive to them4 ,but ,before the ear can hear1 it must have lost its sensitiveness4 ,the storm was upon him2 the silence was ahead2 he was rocked and shaken and stunned by the earthquakes and thunders of ,initiation3 when a man has to be hopeless1 and battered1 and stripped of all things3 a naked soul afflicted with fiery rains and torments2 and to have no pride to back him2 and no ambition to back him2 and no prospect before him at all1 save such as can be seen with the it may be unopened eyes of faith4 ,this is the way ,tiberius endured his trials3-- ,all ,rome knew what ,julia was1 except ,augustus4 ,so it is said2 and perhaps truly2 for here comes in the mystery of human duality3 a thing hard enough to understand in ourselves1 that are common humanity2 how much harder the variety that appears in one such as ,augustus6 ,you may say1 ,he must have known4 ,well1 there was the ,adept ,soul2 that1 ,i doubt not1 would have known4 ,but perhaps it is that those who have all knowledge at their beck and call1 have the power to know or not know what they will8--to know what shall help1 not to know what shall hinder their work8 ,julia was not to be saved3 was1 probably1 tainted with madness like so many of her descendants3--then what the ,adept ,soul could not forfend1 why would the human personality1 the warn-hearted father1 be aware of8 ,had that last known1 how should he escape being bowed down with grief3 then in those years when all his powers and energies were needed8 ,octavian had gone through storm and silence long since3 in the days of the ,triumvirate1 and his enforced partnership in its nefarious deeds2--now his personal mind and his hands were needed to guide the ,empire3 and needed clear and untrammeled with grief444 ,until ,tiberius should be ready2 at least until ,tiberius4444 ,so ,i imagine it possible that the soul of ,augustus kept from its personality that wounding knowledge about ,julia4 ,tiberius was not the one to interfere with its purposes4 ,why did he not get a divorce8 ,the remedy was clear and easy2 and he would have ceased to be the laughing stock of ,rome4 ,he did not get a divorce2 or try to2 he said no word2 he would not lighten his own load by sharing it with the ,teacher he loved4 ,he would not wound that ,teacher to save himself pain or shame4 ,augustus had made severe laws for punishing such offenses as ,julia's2 and--well1 ,tiberius would bear his griefs alone4 ,no sound escaped him4 ,but1 as no effort of his could help or save her1 live with ,julia1 or in ,rome1 he could not4 ,his health broke down2 he threw up all offices1 and begged leave to retire to ,rhodes4 ,augustus was 7apparently7 quite unsympathetic2 withheld the permission until 7they say7 ,tiberius had starved himself for four days to show it was go or die with him4 ,and no1 he would not take ,julia2 and he would give no reason for not taking her4 ,well2 what was ,augustus to do1 having to keep up human appearances1 and suit his action to the probabilities8 ,what1 but appear put out1 insulted1 angry8 ,estrangement followed2 and ,tiberius went in 7apparent7 disgrace4 ,i find the explanation once more in ,light on the ,path2 thus-- ,in the early state in which a man is entering upon the silence he loses knowledge of his friends1 of his lovers1 of all who have been near and dear to him3 and also loses sight of his teachers4 ,so in this case4 ,scarce one passes through1 we read1 without bitter complaint4 ,but ,i think ,tiberius did4 ,how else to explain the incident ,i cannot guess4 ,or indeed1 his whole life4 ,tacitus' account does not hang together at all2 the contraditions trip each other up1 and any mud is good enough to fling4 ,mr4 ,baring-,gould's version goes far towards truth2 but the well is deep for his tackle1 and only esotericism1 ,i think1 can bring up the clear water4 ,whether ,augustus knew all personally1 or was acting simply on the promptings of his inner nature1 or of ,those who stoood behind him1--he took the course1 it seems to me1 which as an ,occult ,teacher he was bound to take4 ,his conduct was framed in any case to meet the needs of his disciple's initiation4 ,he1 for the ,law1 had to break that disciple's outer life2 and then send him lonely into the silence to find the greater life within4 ,truly these waters are deep2 and one may be guessing with the utmost presumption4 ,but hear ,light on the ,path again2 and judge whether the picture that emerges is or is not consistent4 ,it says3 ,your teacher or your predecessor1 may hold your hand in his1 and give you the utmost sympathy the human heart is capable of4 ,but when the silence and the darkness come1 you lose all knowledge of him3 you are alone1 and he cannot help you2 not because his power is gone1 but because you have invoked your great enemy4 --,tiberius was alone1 and ,augustus could not help him2 and he went off1 apparently quite out of favor1 to seven years of voluntary exile in ,rhodes1 there to don the robe of a philosopher1 and study philosophy and astrology1 as they say4 ,let us put it1 the ,esoteric ,wisdom2 ,i think we may4 ,the truth about ,julia could not be kept from ,augustus forever4 ,it came to his ears at last2 when his work was by so much nearer completion1 and when ,tiberius was by so much nearer his illumination4 ,the ,princeps did his duty1 thought it made an old man of him3 he banished ,julia according to his own law4 ,then it was the wronged husband who stepped in and interceded2 who wrote pleading letters to his stepfatehr1 imploring him to have mercy on the erring woman3 to lighten her punishment2 to let her mother1 at least1 be with her in her exile4 ,he knew well what tales ,julia had been telling her father about him2 and how ,augustus had seemed to believe them2 but a courageous endurance of personal injustice is demanded of the disciple2 and very surely it was found in him4 ,rome heard of his intercession1 and sneered at him for his weak-spiritedness2 as kindly letter-writers failed not to let him know4 ,look for the flower to bloom in the silence that follows the storm1 not till then4 ,the flower bloomed in this case during those seven years at ,rhodes2 then ,tiberius was fit to return4 ,outer events shaped themseves to fit inner needs and qualifications3 here now at last was the ,man who was to succeed ,augustus1 duly and truly prepared1 worthy and well-qualified3 initiated1 and ready to be named before the world ,heir to the ,principate4 ,within a few months of each other ,caius and ,lucius1 the hitherto supposed successors designate1 died2 their brother ,agrippa ,postumus was already showing signs of incipient madness4 ,true1 there were many of the ,julian line still alive and available1 were ,augustus 7as had been thought7 bent on making ,julian blood the qualification necessary3 there was ,germanicus1 married to ,agrippina2 he the son of ,drusus and ,antonia1 ,octavia's daughter2 she the daughter of ,julia1 and so grand-daughter of ,augustus himself3 there were these two with their several children4 ,but all else might wait upon the fact that ,tiberius1 the real man1 was now ready4 ,the ,princeps adopted him1 and no one was left to doubt who was to be the successor4 ,the happiest years in ,tiberius's life began3 he had at last the full1 unreserved1 and undisguised friendship of his ,teacher4 ,his portarait-busts taken at this period show for the fist and only time a faint smile on his gravely beautiful face4 ,also he was given plenty of work4 ,his great ,german campaigns followed quickly2 and the quelling of the ,pannanian insurrection that called him back from the ,rhine2 and ,varus' defeat while ,tiberius was in ,pannonia2 and ,tiberius's triumphant saving of the situation4 ,it was then1 when the frontier was broken and all the world aquake with alarm1 that he consulted his generals2 the only time he ever did so4 ,says ,velleius ,paterculus1 who served uner him3--,there was no ostentation in his conduct2 it was marked by solid worth1 practicality1 humaneness4 ,he took as much care of any one of us who happened to be sick1 as if that one's health were the main object of his concern4 ,ambulances1 he continues1 were always in attendance1 with a medical staff1 warm baths1 suitable food1 etc41 for the sick4 ,the general often admonished1 rarely punished2 taking a middle part1 dissembling his knowledge of most faults1 and preventing the commission of others4444 ,he preferred the approval of his own conscience to the acquisition of renown4 ,he returned to ,rome in triumph in the autumn of ,a4,d4 #ab2 and dismissed his chief captives with present1 instead of butchering them in the fine old ,roman way4 ,he was at the height of his fame2 undeniably ,rome's savior1 and surely to be ,princeps on his ,teacher's death4 ,augustus1 in letters that remain1 calls him the only strength and stay of the ,empire4 ,all who were with you1 says he1 admit that this verse suits you3 ',one man by vigilance has restored the state4' ,whenever anything happens that requires more than ordinary consideration1 or when ,i am out of humor1 then1 by ,hercules1 ,i long for the presence of my dear ,tiberius2 and ,homer's lines rise in my mind3 ',bold from his prudence1 ,i could e'en aspire ,to dare with him the burning rage of fire4' ,when ,i hear that you are worn out with incessant fatigue1 the ,gods confound me if ,i am not all in a quake4 ,so ,i entreat you to spare yourself1 lest1 should we hear of your being ill1 the news prove fatal to your mother and myself1 and the ,roman people be alarmed for the safety of the ,empire4 ,i pray heaven to preserve you for us1 and bless you with health now and ever1--if the ,gods care a rush for the ,roman people4 4444,farewell1 my dearest ,tiberius2 may good success attend you1 you best of all generals1 in all that you undertake for me and for the ,muses4 ,two years later ,augustus died1 and ,tiberius became emperor2 and the persecution broke out that was not to end till his death4 ,let us get the whole situation firmly in mind4 ,there was that clique in high society of men who hated the ,principate because it had robbed them of the spoils of power4 ,it gathered first round ,scribonia1 because she hated ,augustus for divorcing her2 then round ,julia1 because she was living in open contempt of the principles her father stood for4 ,its chief bugbear of all was ,tiberius1 because he was the living embodiment of those principles2 and because ,julia1 the witty and brilliant1 hated him above all things and made him in the salons the butt for her shafts4 ,its darling poet was ,ovid2 whose poetic mission was1 in ,mr4 ,stobart's phrase1 to gild uncleannes with charm4 ,presently ,augustus sent him into exile3 whiner over his own hard lot4 ,but enough of unsavory him3 the clique remained and treasured his doctrine4 ,when ,caius and ,lucius died1 it failed not to whisper that of course ,tiberius had poisoned them2 and during the next twenty-five years you could hardly die1 in ,rome1 without the clique's buzzing a like tale over your corpse4--,a faction that lasted on1 handing down its legends1 until ,suetonius and ,tacitus took them up and immortalized them2 thus creating the ,tiberius of popular belief and history1 deceiving the world for twenty centuries4 ,the ,augustan system implied no tyranny2 not even absolutism3--it was through no fault of its founder1 or of his successor1 that the constitutional side of it broke down4 ,remember the divine aim behind it all3 to weld the world into one4 ,so you must have the provinces1 the new ones that retaineed their national identity1 under ,adept rule2 there must be no monkeying by incompetents there4 ,those provinces were1 absolutely all in the hands of ,caesar4 ,but in ,rome1 and ,italy1 and all quiet and long-settled parts1 the senate was to rule2 and ,augustus' effort1 and especially ,tiberius' effort1 was to make it do so4 ,but by this time1 you may say1 there was nothing resembling a human ego left among the senators3 when the ,manasaputra incarnated1 these fellows had been elsewhere4 ,they simply could not rule4 ,augustus had had constantly to be intervening to pull them out of scrapes2 to audit their accounts for them1 because they could not do the sums themselves2 to send down men into their provinces to put things right whenever they went wrong4 ,tiberius was much more loath to do this4 ,at times one almost suspects him of being at heart a republican1 anxious to restore the ,republic the first moment it might be practicable4 ,that would be1 when the whole empire was one nation and some few souls to guide things should have appeared4 ,at any rate 7in his latter years7 it must have seemed still possible that the ,principate should continue3 there was absolutely no one to follow him in it4 ,so the best thing was to leave as much as possible the senate's duty to the senate1 that responsibility might be aroused in them4 ,for himself1 he gave his whole heart and mind to governing the provinces of ,caesar4 ,he went minutely into finances2 and would have his sheep sheared1 not flayed4 ,his eyes and hands were everywhere1 to bring about the ,brotherhood of ,man4 ,there is1 perhaps1 evidence in the ,christian ,evangels3 where we see the ,jewish commonalty on excellent good terms with the ,roman soldier1 and ,jesus consorting freindily with ,tiberius' centurions and tax-gatherers2 but the ,jewish national leaders as the enemies of both--of the ,romans1 and of the democratic ,nazarene4 ,if this emperor's life had come down through provincial1 and not metropolitan1 channels1 we should have heard of him as the most beneficent of men4 ,indeed1 ,mr4 ,baring-,gould argues that among the ,christians a tradition came down of him as of one very near the ,kingdom of ,god4 ,it may be so2 and such a view may even be the reflexion of the ,nazarene ,master's own opinion as to ,tiberius4 ,at any rate1 we must suppose that at that time the ,christian ,movement was still fairly pure3 its seat was in the provinces1 far from ,rome2 and its strength among humble people seeking to live the higher life4 ,but those who were interested to lie against ,tiberius1 and whose lies come down to us for history1 were all metropolitans1 and aristocrats1 and apostles of degeneracy4 ,i do not mean to include ,tacitus under the last head2 but he belonged to the party1 and inherited the tradition4 ,it was on the provinces that ,tiberius had his hand1 not on the metropolis4 ,he hoped the senators would do their duty1 gave them every chance to2 he rather turned his eyes away from their sphere1 and kept them fixed on his own4 ,we must understand this well3 the histories give but accounts of ,roman and home affairs2 with which1 as they were outside his duty1 ,tiberius concerned himself as little as he might4 ,but the senate's conception of duty-doing was this3 flatter the ,caesar in public with all the ingenuity and rhetoric ,god or the devil has given you2 but for the sake of decency slander him in private1 and so keep your self-respect4--,i abased my soul to ,caesar1 ,i8 ,yes1 ,i know ,i licked his shoes in the senate house2 but that was merely camouflage4 ,at ,agrippina's at home ,i made up for it2 was it not high-souled ,i who told that filthy story about him8--which1 7congratulate me67 ,i invented myself4 ,how dare you then accuse me of being small-spirited1 or one to reverence any man soever8--,so these maggots crawled and tumbled2 untill they brought down their own karma on their heads like the ,assyrian in the poem1 or a thousand of bricks4 ,constitutuionalism broke down1 and tyranny came on awfully in its place2 and those who had not upheld the constitution suffered from the tyranny4 ,but it was not heroic ,tiberius who was the tyrant4 ,he was unpopular with the crowd1 because austere and taciturn2 he would not wear the pomps and tinsels1 or swagger it in public to their taste4 ,he was too reserved2 he was not a good mixer3 if you fell on your knees to him1 he simply recoiled in disgust4 ,he would not witness the gladiatorial games1 with their sickening senseless bloodshed2 nor the plays at the theatre1 with their improprieties4 ,in these things he was an anomaly in his age1 and felt about them as would any humane gentleman today4 ,so it was easy for his enemies to work up popular feeling aginst him4 ,at the funeral of ,augustus he had to read the oration4 ,a lump in his throat prevented him getting through with it1 and he handed the paper to his son ,drusus to finish4 ,oh6 cried his enemies then and ,tacitus after them1 what dissimulation6 what rank hypocrisy6 when in reality he must be overjoyed to be in the dead man's shoes4 ,when that same ,drusus 7his dear son and sole hope7 died some years later1 he so far controlled his feelings that none saw a muscle of his face moved by emotion while he read the oration4 ,oh6 cried his enemies then and ,tacitus after them1 what a cold unfeeling monster6 ,tiberius1 with an absolute eye for reading men's thoughts1 knew well what was being said on either occasion4 ,when ,augustus died1 his one surviving grandson1 ,agrippa ,postumus1 was mad and under restraint in the island of ,planasia1 near ,elba4 ,a plot was hatched to spirit him away to the ,rhine1 and have him there proclaimed as against ,tiberius by the legions4 ,one ,clemens was deputed to do this2 but when ,clemens reached ,planasia1 he found ,agrippa murdered4 ,says ,suetonius3 ,it remained doubtful whether ,augustus left the order 7for the murder7 in his last moments1 to prevent any public disturbance after his death2 or whether ,livia issued it in the name of ,augustus1 or whether it was issued with or without the knowledge of ,tiberius4--,tacitus in the right1--though truly this ,agrippa ,postumus was a peculiarly violent offensive idiot1 and ,augustus knew well what the anti-,claudian faction was capable of4 ,nor can one credit that gracious lady ,livia with it2 though it was she who persuaded ,tiberius to hush the thing up1 and rescind his order for a public senatorial investigation4 ,for an order to that effect he issued2 and ,tacitus1 more suo1 puts it down to his hypocrisy4 ,tacitus' method with ,tiberius is this3 all his acts of mercy are to be attributed to weak-spiritedness2 all his acts of justice1 to blood-tyranny2 everything else to hypocrisy and dissimulation4 ,neither ,augustus1 nor yet ,livia1 then1 had ,agrippa killed2 must we credit it to ,tiberius8 ,less probably1 ,i think1 it was he than either of the others3 ,i can just imagine ,augustus taking the responsibility for the sake of ,rome1 but not ,tiberius criminal for his own sake4 ,here is an explanation which incriminates neither3 it may seem far-fetched2 but then many true things do4 ,we know how the children of darkness hate the ,messengers of ,light4 ,tiberius stood for private and public morality2 the ,julian-republican clique for the opposite4 ,he stood for the nations welded into one1 the centuries to be1 and the high purposes of the ,law4 ,they stood for anarchy1 civil war1 and the old spoils system4--,down him then6 said they4 ,and how8--,fish up mad ,postumus1 and let's have a row with the ,legions of the ,rhine4--,yes2 that sounds pretty--for you who are not in the deep know of the thing4 ,but how far do you think the ,legions of the ,rhine are going to support this young revolting-habited madman against the first general of the age8 ,you are green2 you are crude1 my friends2--but go to it2 your plot shall do well4 ,but we1 the cream and innermost of the party1--we have another4 ,let the madman be murdered1--and who shall be called the murderer8 ,i believe they argued that way2--and very wisely2 for ,tiberius still carries the odium of the murder of ,agrippa ,postumus4 ,why did he allow himself to be dissuaded from the public investigation8 ,was it weakness8 ,his perturbation when he heard of the murder1 and his orders for the investigation1 were natural enough4 ,one can perhaps understand ,livia1 shaken with the grief of her great bereavement1 fearing the unknown1 fearing scandal1 fearing to take issue with the faction whose strength and bitterness she knew1 pleading with her son to let the matter be4 ,was it weakness on his part1 that he concurred8 ,this much must be allowed3 ,tiberius was always weak at self-defense4 ,had he taken prompt steps against his personal enemies1 it might have been much better for him1 in a way4 ,but then and always his eyes were upon the performance of his duty2 which he understood to be the care of the empire1 not the defense of himself4 ,we called ,augustus the bridge2 ,tiberius was the shield4 ,he understood the business of a shield to be1 to take shafts1 and make no noise about it4 ,proud he was2 with that sublime pride that argues itself capable of standing all things1 so that the thing it cares for--which is not its own reputation--is unhurt4 ,you shall see4 ,we might call it unwisdom1 if his work had suffered by it2 but it was only his peace1 his own name--and eventually his enemies-- that suffered4 ,he brought the world through4 ,detail by detail1 ,mr4 ,baring-,gould takes the incidents of his reign1 and show how the plot was worked up against him1 and every happening1 all his deeds and motives1 colorless or finely colored1 given a coat of pitch4 ,we can only glance at one or two points here3 his relations with ,germanicus1 and with ,agrippina2 the rise and fall of ,sejanus4 ,germanicus1 his nephew1 was fighting on the ,rhine when ,tiberius came to the throne4 ,there was a mutiny2 which ,germanicus quelled with much loss of dignity and then with much bloodshed4 ,to cover the loss of dignity1 he embarked on gay adventures against the ,germans2 and played the fool a little1 losing some few battles4 ,tiberius1 who understood ,german affairs better than any man living1 wanted peace in that quarter2 and recalled ,germanicus2 then1 lest there should be any flavor of disgrace in the recall1 sent him on a mission to the ,east4 ,your textbooks will tell you he recalled him through jealousy of his brilliant exploits4 ,germanicus being something flighty of disposition1 the emperor sent with him on his new mission a rough old fellow by the name of ,calpurnius ,piso to keep a weather eye open on him1 and neutralize1 as far as might be1 extravagant actions4 ,the choice1 it must be said1 was a bad one2 for the two fought like cat and dog the better part of the time4 ,then ,germanicus died1 supposing that ,piso had poisoned him2 and ,agrippina his wife came home1 an ,ate shrieking for revenge4 ,she had exposed her husband's naked body in the marketplace at ,antioch1 that all might see he had been poisoned2 which shows the kind of woman she was4 ,germanicus was given a huge funeral at ,rome2 he was the darling of the mob1 and the funeral was really a demonstration against ,tiberius4 then ,piso was to be tried for the murder3 a crabbed but honest old plebeian of good and ancient family1 who ,tiberius knew well enough was innocent4 ,there were threats of mob violence if he should be acquitted2 and the suggestion studiously sown that ,piso1 guilty1 had been set on to the murder by the ,princeps4 ,tiberius1 knowing the popular feeling1 did not attend the funeral of his nephew4 ,it was a mistake in policy1 perhaps2 but his experience had been unpleasant enought at the funeral of ,augustus4 ,tacitus says he stayed away fearing lest the public1 peering into his face thus from close to1 might see the marks of dissimulation in it1 and realize that his grief was hypocrisy4 ,how the devil did ,tacitus know8 ,yet what he says comes down as gospel4 ,this sort of thing went on continually1 and provided him a poor atmosphere in which to do his great and important work4 ,as he grew older1 he retired more and more4 ,he trusted in his minister ,sejanus who had once heroically save his life3 an exceedingly able1 but unfortunately also an exceedingly wicked man4 ,sejanus became his link with ,rome and the senate2 and used that position1 and the senate's incompetence1 to gather into his own hands a power practically absolute in home affairs4 ,home affairs1 be it always remembered1 were what the ,princeps expected the senate to attend to3 their duty1 under the constitution4 ,instead1 however1 they fawned on ,sejanus ad lib4 ,sejanus murdered ,tiberius' son ,drusus1 and aspired to the hand of ,livilla1 his widow3 she was the daughter of ,germanicus and ,agrippina2 and she certainly1 and ,agrippina probably1 were accessories to the murder of ,drusus4 ,for ,agrippina was obsessed with hatred for ,tiberius3 with the idea that he had murdered her husband1 and with thirst for revenge4 ,sejanus was thus in a fair way to the ends of his ambition3 to be named the successor to the ,principate4 ,then ,tiberius found him out2 and sent a message to a senate engaged in ,sejanus-worship1 demanding the punishment of the murderers of ,drusus4 ,sejanus had built up his power by fostering the system of delation4 ,there was no public prosecutor in the ,roman system3 when any wrong had been done1 it was anyone's business to prosecute4 ,the end of education was rhetoric1 that you might get on in life4 ,the first step was to bring an accusation against some public man1 and support it with a mighty telling speech4 ,if you succeeded1 and killed your man1--why1 then your name was made4 ,on this system1 with developments of his own1 ,sejanus had built2 had employed one half of ,rome informing against the other4 ,it took time to bring about2 but he had worked up by degrees a state of things in which all went in terror of him2 and the senate was eager perpetually to condemn any one he might recommend for condemnation4 ,when ,tiberius found him out1 they lost their heads entirely1 and simply tumbled over themselves in their anxiety to accuse1 condemn1 and execute each other4 ,everyone was being informed against as having been a friend of ,sejanus1 and therefore an enemy of their dear ,princeps2 who was away at ,capri attending to his duty2 and whose ears1 now ,sejanus was gone1 they might hope to reach with flatteries4 ,you supped with your friend overnight2 did your best to diddle him into saying something over the wine-cups2--then rose betimes in the morning to accuse him of saying it3 only too often to find that he1 7traitorly wretch67 had risen half an hour earlier and accused you2 so you missed your breakfast for nothing2 and dined 7we may hope7 in a better world4 ,thus during the last years of the reign there was a ,terror in ,rome3 in the senate's sphere of influence2 the senatorial class the sufferers and inflictors of the suffering4 ,meanwhile ,tiberius in his retirement was still at his duty2 his hold on his provinces never relaxed4 ,when the condemned appealed to him1 the records show that in nearly every case their sentences were commuted4 ,tiberius' enemies were punishing themselves2 but the odium of it has been fastened on ,tiberius4 ,he might have interfered1 you say8--,what6 with ,karma8 ,i doubt4 ,his sane1 balanced1 moderate character comes out in his own words again and again3 he was a wonderful anomaly in that age4 ,rome was filled with slanders against him2 and the fulsome senate implored him to punish the slanderers4 ,we have not much time to spare1 ,tiberius answered2 we need not involve ourselves in this additional business4 ,if any man speaks ill of me1 ,i shall take care so to behave as to be able to give a good accound of my words and acts1 and so confound him4 ,if he speaks ill of me after that1 it will be time enough for me to think about hating him4 ,permission was asked to raise a temple to him in ,spain2 he refused to grant it1 saying that if every emperor was to be worshiped1 the worship of ,augustus would lose its meaning4 ,for myself1 a mere mortal1 it is enough for me if ,i do my duties as a mortal2 ,i am content if posterity recognises that444 ,this is the only temple ,i desire to have raised in my honor1--and this only in men's hearts4--the senate1 in a spasm of flattery1 offered to swear in advance to all his acts4 ,he forbade it1 saying in effect that he was doing and proposed to do his best2 but all things human were liable to change1 and he would not have them endorsing the future acts of one who by the mere failure of his faculties might do wrong4 ,in those sayings1 ,i think1 you get the man3 perhaps a disciple only1 and never actually a ,master2 perhaps never absolutely sure of himself1 but only of his capacity and determination to do his duty day by day3 his own duty1 and not other men's3--never setting himself on a level with his ,teacher2 or thinking himself able1 of his own abilities1 to run the world1 as ,augustus had had the power and the mission to do1--but as probably no man might have had the power to do in ,tiberius' time2--and by virtue of that faith1 that high concentration on duty1 carrying the world 7but not ,rome7 through in spite of ,rome1 which had become then a thing incurable1 nothing more than an infection and lamentable scab4 ,he left it altogether in his last years2 its atmosphere and bitterness were too much for him4 ,form the quiet at ,capri he continued to rule his provinces until the end2 ever hoping that if he did his duty1 someone or some spirit might arise in the senate to do theirs4 ,tacitus explains his retirement--as ,roman society had explained it when it happened1--thus3 ,being then seventy-two years old1 ,tiberius1 whose life up to that time had been irreproachable and untouched by gossip1 went to ,capri to have freedom and privacy for orgies of personal vice4 ,but why did he not stay at ,rome for his orgies3 doing at ,rome as the ,romans did1 and thereby perhaps earning a measure of popularity8 ,over the bridge ,augustus1 western humanity had made the crossing2 but on the further shore1 there had to be a sacrifice to the ,fates4 ,tiberius was the sacrifice4 ,and that sacrifice was not in vain4 ,we get one glimpse through provincial 7and therefore undiseased7 eyes of the empire he built up in the provinces4 ,it is from ,philo ,judaeus1 a ,jewish ,theosophist of ,alexandria1 who came to ,rome in the reign of ,caligula1 ,tiberius' successor4 7,tiberius1 it must be said1 appointed no successor2 there was none for him to appoint47 ,caligula1 says ,philo1 4444succeeded to an empire that was well organized1 tending everywhere to conceed--north1 south1 east1 and west brought into friendship2 ,greeks and barbarians routed1 soldiers and civilians linked together in the bonds of a happy peace4 ,that was the work of ,tiberius4 ,in the ,gospel narrative1 ,jesus is once made to allude to him2 in the words quoted at the head of this paper3 ,render unto ,caesar--who was ,tiberius--the things which are ,caesar's ,i think it is about time it should be done3 that the wreath of honor should at last be laid on the memory of this brave1 just1 sane1 and merciful man2 this silent duty-doer1 who would speak no word in his own defense2 this ,agent of the ,gods1 who endured all those years of crucifixion1 that he might build up the ,unity of ,mankind4 ,says ,mr4 ,baring-,gould3 ,in the galleries of ,rome1 of ,naples1 ,florence1 ,paris1 one sees the beautiful face of ,tiberius1 with that intellectual brow and sensitive mouth1 looking pleadingly at the passer-by1 as though seeking for someone who would unlock the secret of his story and vindicate his much aspersed memory4 ,,xx4 ,,china ,,and ,,rome3 ,,the ,,see-,,saw ,that mankind is a unit2--that the history of the world1 however its waters divide1--whatever islands and deltas appear1--is one stream2--how ridiculous it is to study the story of one nation or group of nations1 and leave the rest ignored1 coming from your study with the impression 7almost universal17 that all that counts of the history of the world is the history of your own little corner of it3--these are some of the truths we should have gathered from our survey of the few centuries we have so far glanced at4 ,for take that sixth century ,b4,c4 ,the world seems all well split up4 ,no one in ,china has ever heard of ,greece2 no one in ,italy of ,india4 ,what do the ,greeks know about ,northern ,europe1 or the ,chinese about the ,indians or ,persians8--,and yet we find in ,italy1 in ,persia1 in ,india1 in ,china1 men appearing1-- phenomenal births1--evolved far above their fellows3 six of them1 to do the same work3 ,founders of ,religions1 all contemporary more or less2 all presenting to the world and posterity the same high passwords and glorious countersigns4 ,can you conceive that their appearance1 all in that one epoch1 was a matter of chance8 ,is not some prearrangement suggested1--a put-up job1 as they say3 a definite plan formed1 and a definite end aimed at8 ,then by whom8 ,can you escape the conclusion that1 behind all this welter of races and separate histories aloof or barking at each other1 there is yet somewhere1 within the ringfence of humankind1 incarnate or excarnate1 ,one ,center from which all the threads and currents proceed1 and all the great upward impulses are directed8 ,those ,six ,teachers came1 and did their work2 then two or three centuries passed2 time enough for the seeds they sowed to sprout a little2 and we come to another phase of history1 a new region in time4 ,high spiritual truth has been ingeminated in all parts of the world where the ancient vehicle of truth-dissemination 7the ,mysteries7 has declined2 ,a ,teacher1 a ,savior1 has failed to appear only in the lands north and west of ,italy1 because there among the ,celts1 and there alone1 the ,mysteries are still effective3--so you may say the seeds of spirituality have been well sown along a great belt stretching right across the ,old ,world4 ,why8 ,in preparation for what8 ,for something1 we may suppose4 ,certainly for something3 for example1 for the next two thousand five hundred years1--the last quarter1 ,i would say1 of a ten-millennium cycle1 which was to end with a state of things in which every part of the world should be know to1 and in communication with1 every other part4 ,so now in the age that followed that of the ,six ,teachers1 in preparation for that coming time 7our own71 the attempt must be made to weld nations into unities4 ,nature and ,law compel it3 whose direction now is towards grand centripetalism1 where before they had ordained heterogeneity and the scattering and aloofness of peoples4 ,but ,those who sent out the great six ,teachers have a hand to play here3 they have to put the welding process through upon their own designs4 ,they start at the fountain of the cyclic impulses1 on the eastern rim of the world3 as soon as the cycle rises there1 they strike for the unification of nations4 ,then they follow the cycle westward4 ,to ,west ,asia8--,nothing could be done there1 because this was the ,west ,asian pralaya2 those parts must wait for ,mohammed4 ,in ,europe then1--,greece8--,no2 its time and vigor had passed2 and the ,greeks are not a building people4 ,they must bide their time1 then1 till the wave hits ,italy1 and what they have done in ,china1 attempt to do there4 ,only1 what they had done in ,china was a mere ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti1-- because ,laotse and ,confucius had not failed spiritually to prepare the ground1--they must send forth ,adept-souled ,augustus and ,tiberius to do1--if human wisdom and heroism could do it1--in ,italy2--because ,pythagoras' ,movement had failed4 ,the ,roman ,empire was the ,european attempt at a ,china2 ,china was the ,asiatic creation of a ,rome4 ,we call the ,asiatic creation1 ,china1 ,ts'in-a2 it may surprise you to know that they called the ,european attempt by the same name3 ,ta ,ts'in1 'the ,great ,ts'in4' ,put the words ,augustus ,primus ,romae into ,chinese1 and without much straining they might read1 ,ta ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti4 ,the whole period of the ,chinese manvantara is1 from the two-forties ,b4,c4 to the twelve-sixties ,a4,d41 fifteen centuries4 ,the whole period of the ,roman ,empire1 ,western and ,eastern1 is from the forties ,b4,c4 to the ,fourteen-fifties ,a4,d41 fifteen centuries4 ,the first phase of the ,chinese ,empire1 from ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti to the fall of ,han1 lasted about #dfj years2 the ,western ,roman ,empire1 from ,pharsalus to the death of ,honorius1 lasted about as long4 ,both were the unifications of many peoples2 both were overturned by barbarians from the north3 ,teutons in the one case1 ,tatars in the other4 ,but after that overturnment1 ,china1 unlike ,rome1 rose from her ashes many times1 and still endures4 ,thank the success of ,confucius and ,laotse2 and blame the failure of ,pythagoreanism1 for that6 ,but come now2 let me draw up their histories as it were in parallel columns1 and you shall see the likeness clearly2 you shall see also1 presently1 how prettily time and the laws that govern human incarnation played battledore and shuttlecock with the two3 what a game of see-saw went on between the ,east and ,west4 ,from #cjj to #bej ,b4,c4 there was an orgy of war in which old ,feudal ,china passed away forever1 and from which ,ts'in emerged ,mistress of the world4 ,from #ajj to #ej ,b4 ,c4 there was an orgy of war in which ,republican ,rome passed away forever1 and out of which ,caesar emerged ,world-,master4 ,caesar's triumph came just two centuries after ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti's accession2 ,kublai ,khan the ,turanian1 who smashed ,china1 came just about as much before ,mohammed ,,ii the ,turanian1 who swept away the last remnant of ,rome4 ,in the first cycles of the two there is a certain difference in procedure4 ,in ,china1 a dawn twilight of half a cycle1 sixty-five years1 from the fall of ,chow to the ,revival of ,literature under the second ,han1 preceded the glorious age of the ,western ,hans4 ,in ,rome1 the literary currents were flowing for about a half-cycle before the accession of ,augustus3 that half-cycle formed a dawn-twilight preceding the glories of the ,augustan ,age4 ,it was just when the reign of ,han ,wuti was drawing towards a sunset a little clouded1--you remember ,ssema ,ts'ien's strictures as to the national extravagance and its results1--that the ,crest-,wave egos began to come in in ,rome4 ,cicero1 eldest of the lights of the great cycle of ,latin literature1 would have been about twenty when ,han ,wuti died in #hf4 ,we counted the first day of the ,hans as lasting from #aid 7the ,revival of the ,literature7 to the death of ,han ,wuti's successor in #fc2 in which year1 as we saw1 ,augustus was born4 ,during the next twenty years the ,crest-,wave was rolling more and more into ,rome3 where we get ,julius ,caesar's career of conquest2-- it was a time filled with wine of restlessness1 and1 you may say1 therewith 'drunk and disorderly4' ,meanwhile 7from #fa to #di7 ,han ,suenti the ,just was reigning in ,china4 ,his ,troops of justice became1 after a while1 accustomed to victory2 but in defensive wars4 ,here it was a time of sanity and order1 as contrasted with the disorder in ,rome2 of pause and reflexion compared with the action and extravagance of the preceding ,chinese age4 ,it was ,confucian and ethical2 no longer ,taoist and daringly imaginative2 ,confucianism began to consolidate its position as the state system4 ,so in ,england ,puritan sobriety followed ,elizabethanism4 ,han ,wuti let nothing impede the ferment of his dreams3 ,han ,suenti retrenched1 and walked quietly and firmly4 ,his virtues commanded the respect of ,central ,asia3 the ,tatars brought him their disputes for arbitration1 and all the regions west of the ,caspian sent him tribute4 ,china forwent her restless and gigantic designs1 and took to quietude and grave consideration4--,so we may perhaps distribute the characteristics of these two decades thus between the three great centers of civilization3 in ,china1 the stillness that follows an apex time2 in ,india1 creation at its apex2 in ,rome1 the confusion caused by the first influx of ,crest-,wave ,souls4 ,as ,octavian rose to power1 the ,house of ,han declined4 ,we hear of a gorging ,vitellius on the throne in the thirties2 then of several puppets and infants during the last quarter of the century2 in ,a4,d4 #a1 of the dynasty overthrown by a usurper1 ,mang ,wang1 who reigned until ,a4,d4 #be4 ,thus the heyday of ,augustan ,rome coincides with the darkest penumbra of ,china4 ,then ,kwang-wuti1 the eldest surviving ,han prince1 was reinstated2 but until two years before the death of ,tiberius1 he had to spend his time fighting rebels4 ,now turn to ,rome4 ,while ,han ,kwang-wuti was battling his way towards the restitution of ,han glories1 ,tiberius1 last of the ,roman ,crest-,wave ,souls1 was holding out grimly for the ,gods until the cycle should have been completed1 and he could say that his and their work was done4 ,for sixty-five years he and his predecessor had been welding the empire into one3 now1 that labor had been so far accomplished that what dangerous times lay ahead could hardly imperil it4 ,so far it had been a case of ,initiate appointing ,initiate to succeed him3 ,augustus1 ,tiberius2--but whom should ,tiberius appoint8 ,there was no one4 ,the cycle was past1 and for the present ,rome was dead2 and on the brink of that unfortunate place to which 7they say7 the wicked dead must go4 ,tiberius finally had had to banish ,agrippina1 her mischief having become too importunate4 ,you remember she was the daughter of ,julia and ,agrippa1 and ,germanicus' widow4 ,his patience with her had been marvelous4 ,once1 at a public banquet1 to do her honor he had picked a beautiful apple from the dish1 and handed it to her3 with a scowl and some ostentation1 she gave it to the attendant behind her1 as who should say3 ',i know your designs2 but you do not poison me this time'2 all present understood her meaning well4 ,once1 when he met her in the palace1 and she passed him with some covert insult1 he stopped1 laid a hand on her shoulder1 and said3 ,my little woman1 it is no hurt to you that you do not reign4 ,but his patience only encouraged her in her machinations2 and at last he was compelled to banish her4 ,also to keep one of her sons in strictest confinement2 of which the historians have made their for him discreditable tale3 the truth is1 it was an heroic effort on his part to break the boy of his vices by keeping him under close and continuous supervision4 ,but that is more easily said than done1 sometimes2 and this ,drusus presently died a madman4 ,he then took the youngest son of ,agrippina to live with him at ,capri2 that he1 ,tiberius1 might personally do the best with him that was to be done2 for he foresaw that this youth ,caius would succeed him2 his own grandson1 ,tiberius ,gemellus1 being much younger4 ,he foresaw1 too1 that ,caius1 once on the throne1 would murder ,gemellus2 which also happened4 ,but there was nothing to be done4 ,had he named his grandson his successor1 a strong regent would have been needed to carry things through until that successor's majority1 and to hold the ,empire against the partisans of ,caius4 ,there was no such strong man in sight2 so1 what had to come1 had to come4 ,apres lui le deluge3 ,tiberius knew that4 ,le deluge was the four years' terror of the reign of ,caius1 known as ,caligula2 who1 through no good will of his own1 but simply by reason of his bloodthirsty mania1 amply revenged the wrongs done his pedecessor4 ,karma put ,caligula on the throne to punish ,rome4 ,the reign was too short1 even if ,caligula had troubled his head with the provinces1 for him to spoil the good work done in them during the preceding half-cycle4 ,he did not so trouble his head2 being too busy murdering the pillars of ,roman society4 ,then a gentleman who had been spending the afternoon publicly kissing his slippers in the theater1 experienced1 as they say1 a change of heart1 and took thought to assassinate him on the way home2 whereupon the ,praetorians1 let loose and having a thoroughly good time1 happened on a poor old buffer of the royal house by the name of ,claudius2 and to show their sense of humor1 made him emperor tout de suite4 ,the senate took a high hand1 and asserted its right to make those appointments2 but ,claudius and the ,praetorians thought otherwise2 and the senate1 after blustering1 had to crawl4 ,they besought him to allow them the honor of appointing him4--what a difference the mere turn of a cycle had made3 from ,augustus bequeathing the ,empire to ,tiberius1 ablest man to ablest man1 and all with senatoral ratification2 to the jocular appointment by undisciplined soldiery of a sad old laughingstock to succeed a raging maniac4 ,claudius was a younger brother of ,germanicus2 therefore ,tiberius' nephew1 ,caligula's uncle1 and a brother-in-law to ,agrippina4 ,mr4 ,baring-,gould says that somewhere deep in him was a noble nature that had never had a chance3 that the soul of him was a jewel1 set in the foolish lead of a most clownish personality4 ,i do not know2 certainly some great and fine things came from him2 but whether they were motions of his own soul 7if he had one71 or whether the ,gods for ,rome's sake took advantage of his quite negative being1 and prompted it to their own purposes1 who can say8--,sitting down1 and keeping still1 and saying nothing1 the old man could look rather fine1 even majestic2 one saw traces in him of the ,claudian family dignity and beauty4 ,but let hm walk a few paces1 and you noted that his feet dragged and his knees knocked together1 and that he had a paunch2 and let him get interested in a conversation1 and you heard that he first spluttered1 and then roared4 ,physical wakness and mental backwardness had made him the despair of ,augustus3 he was the fool of the family1 kept in the background1 and noticed by none4 ,tiberius1 in search of a successor1 had never thought of him2 had rather let things go to mad ,caligula4 ,he had never gone into society2 never associated with men of his own rank2 but chose his companions among small shopkeepers and the ',arries and ',arriets of ,rome1 who1 'tickled to death' at having a member of the reigning family to hobnob with them in their back-parlors1 would refrain from making fun of his peculiatities4 ,caligula had enjoyed using him as a butt1 and so had spared his life4 ,he had never even learned to behave at table3 and so1 when he came to the throne1 made a law that table-manners should no longer be incumbent on a ,roman gentleman4 ,all this is recorded of him2 one would hardly believe it1 but that his portraits bear it out499 ------ 99 ,the accounts of ,claudius and ,nero are from ,the ,tragedy of the ,caesars1 by ,s4 ,baring-,gould4 ------ ,for all that he did well at first4 ,he made himself popular with the mob1 cracking poor homely jokes with them at which they laughed uproariously4 ,he paid strict attention to business3 made some excellent laws2 wisely extended ,roman citizenship among the subject peoples2 undertook and pushed through useful public works4 ,rome was without a decent harbor3 corn from ,egypt had to be transshipped at sea and brought up the ,tiber in lighters2 which resulted in much inconvenience1 and sometimes shortage of food in the city4 ,claudius went down to ,ostia and looked about him2 and ordered a harbor dredged out and built there on a large scale4 ,the best engineers of the day said it was impossible to do1 and would not pay if done4 ,but the old fool stuck to his views and made them get to work2 and they found it1 though difficult and costly1 quite practicable2 and when finished1 it solved the food problem triumphantly4 ,this is by way of example4--,poor old fool6 it was said he never forgot a kindness1 or remembered an injury4 ,he came soon1 however1 to be managed by various freedmen and rascals and wives2 all to the end that aristocratic ,rome should be well punished for its sins4 ,one day when he was presiding in the law courts1 someone cried out that he was an old fool1--which was very true4--and threw a large book at him that cut his face badly1--which was very unkind4 ,and yet1 all said1 through him and through several fine and statesmanlike measures he put through1 the work of ,augustus and ,tiberius in the empire at large was in many ways pushed forward3 he did well by the provinces and the subject races1 and carried on the grand homogenization of the world4 ,he reigned thirteen years2 then came ,nero4 ,if one accepts the traditional view of him1 it is not without evidence4 ,his portraits suggest one ensouled by some horrible elemental2 one with no human ego in him at all4 ,the accounts given of his moods and actions are quite credible in the light of the modern medical knowledge as to insanity2 you would find men like ,tacitus ,nero in most asylums4 ,neither ,tacitus nor ,suetonius was in the habit of taking science as a guide in their transcriptions2 they did not1 in dealing with ,tiberius for example1 suit their facts to the probabilities1 but just set down the worst they had heard said4 ,what they record of him is unlikely1 and does not fit in with his known actions4 ,but in drawing ,nero1 on the contrary1 they made a picture that would surprise no alienist4 ,besides1 ,tacitus was born some seventeen years after ,tiberius died2 but he was fourteen years old at the death of ,nero1 and so of an age to have seen for himself1 and remembered4 ,nero did kill his mother1 who probably tried to influence him for good2 and he did kill ,seneca1 who certainly did4 ,his reign is a monument to the rottenness of ,rome2 his fall1 a proof1 perhaps1 of the soundness of the provinces4 ,for when they felt the shame of his conduct1 they rose and put him down2 ,roman ,gaul and ,germany and ,spain and the ,east did4 ,here is a curious indication3 ,galba1 ,otho1 and ,vitellius1 who made such a sorry thing of the two years 7#fh and #fi7 they shared in the ,principate1 had each done well as a provincial governor4 ,in the provinces1 then1 the ,tiberian tradition of honest efficient government suffered not much1 if any1 interruption4 ,the fact that ,rome itself stood the nine years of ,nero's criminal insanity1--and even1 so far as the mob was concerned1 liked it 7for his grave was long kept strewn with flowers7--shows what a people can fall to1 that the ,crest-,wave had first made rotten1 and then left soulless4 ,by the beginning of #gj1 things were comfortably in the hands of ,vespasian1 another provincial governor2 under whom1 and his son ,titus after him1 there were twelve years of dignified government2 and seven more of the same1 and then seven or eight of tyranny1 under his second son1 ,domitian4 ,against the first two of these ,flavians nothing is to be said except that the rise of their house to the ,principate was by caprice of the soldiery4 ,vespasian was an honest ,sabine1 fond of retiring to his native farm2 he brought in much good provincial blood with him into ,roman society4--,then in #if came a revolution which placed the aged senator ,nerva on the throne2 who set before himself the definite policy--as it was intended he should--of replacing personal caprice by legality and constitutionalism as the instrument of government4 ,he reigned two years1 and left the empire to ,trajan2 who was strong enough as a general to hold his position1 and as a statesman1 to establish the principles of ,nerva4 ,and so things began to expand again2 and a new strength became evident1 the like of which had not been seen since 7at least7 the death of ,tiberius4 ,octavian returned to ,rome1 sole ,master of the world1 in ,b4,c4 #bi4 ,a half-cycle on from that brings us to #cf ,a4,d41 the year before ,tiberius died3 that half-cycle was one1 for the ,empire all of it1 and for ,rome most of it1 of bright daylight4 ,the next half-cycle ends in #aja1 in the third year of ,trajan3 a time1 for the most part1 of decline1 of twilight4 ,you will notice that the ,han day lasted the full thirteen decades before twilight came2 the ,roman1 but six decades and a half4 ,we ought to understand just how far this second ,roman half-cycle was an age of decline3 just how much darkneww suffused the twilight it was4 ,we talk of representative government2 as if any government were ever really anything else4 ,men get the government that represents them2 that represent their intelligence1 or their laxity1 or their vices3--whether it be sent in by the ballot or by a ,praetorian ,guard with their caprice and spears4 ,in a pralayic time there is no keen national consciousness1 no centripetalism4 ,there was none in ,rome in those days2 or not enough to counteract the centrifugalism that simply did not care4 ,the empire held together1 because ,augustus and ,tiberius had created a centripetalism in the provinces2 and these continued in the main through it all to enjoy the good government the first two emperors had made a tradition in them1 and felt but little the hands of the fools or madmen reigning in ,rome4 ,and then1 blood from the provinces was always flowing into ,rome itself2 particularly in the ,flavian time2 and supplied or fed a new centripetalism there which righted things in the next half-cycle4 ,it was ,rome1 not the provinces1 that ,nero and ,caligula represented in their day2 the time was transitional2 you may call ,otho and ,vitellius the first bungling shots of the provinces at having a hand in things at the center2 wholesome ,vespasian was their first representative emperor3 ,nerva and those that followed him represented equally the provinces and a regenerated ,rome4--,this tells you what ,nero's ,rome was1 and how it came to tolerate ,nero2 when ,vitellius came in with his band of ruffians from the ,rhine1 and the streets flowed with blood day after day1 the places of low resort were as full as ever through it all2 while carnage reigned in the forums1 riotous vice reigned within doors4 ,but look outside of ,rome1 and the picture is very different4 ,the ,spaniard1 ,gaul1 ,illyrian1 ,asiatic and the rest1 were enjoying the ,roman ,peace4 ,there was progress2 if not at the center1 everywhere between that and the periphery of civilization4 ,life1 even in ,italy 7in the country parts7 was growing steadily more cultured1 serious1 and dignified2 and in all remote regions was assimilating its standards to the best in ,italy4 ,from the ,scottish ,lowlands to the ,cataracts of the ,nile a single people was coming into being2 it was a wide and well-tilled field in which incarnate souls might grow4 ,the satirists make lurid pictures of the evils ,rome2 and the evils were there1 with perhaps not much to counter-balance them1 in ,rome4 ,paris has been latterly the capital of civilization2 and one of its phases as such has been to be the capital of the seven deadly sins4 ,the sins are or were there3 ,paris provided for the sinners of the world1 in her capacity of world-metropolis2 just as she provided for the artists1 the litteratuers1 and so on4 ,foolish people drew from that the conclusion that therefore ,frenchmen were more wicked than other people3 whereas in truth the life of provincial ,france all along has probably been among the soundest of any4 ,so we must offset ,martial's and ,juvenal's pictures of the calm and gracious life in the country3 virtuous life1 often1 with quiet striving after usefulness and the higher things4 ,he reveals to us1 in the last quarter of the century1 interiors in northern ,italy1 by ,lake ,como2 you should have found the like anywhere in the empire4 ,and where1 since ,rome fell1 shall you come on a century in which ,britain1 ,gaul1 ,spain1 ,italy1 the ,balkans1 ,asia and ,africa1 enjoyed a ,roman or any kind of peace8 ,be not deceived3 there has been no such success in ,europe since as the empire that ,augustus the ,initiate made1 and for which ,tiberius his disciple was crucified4 ,yet they captured it1 as ,i find things1 out of the jaws of failure and disaster4 ,failure3 that of ,pythagoreanism six centuries before2--disaster3 ,caesar's conquest of ,gaul and destruction of the ,mysteries there4 ,men come from the ,masters of the ,world to work on this plane or on that3 to found an empire perhaps1 or to start a spiritual movement4 ,augustus came commissioned to the former1 not to the latter1 work4 ,supposing in his time the ,gaulish ,mysteries had been intact4 ,we may trust him to have established relations somehow3 he would have had close and friendly relations with the ,gaulish hierophants2 even if he had conquered the people1 he would not have put out their light4 ,but ,i imagine he would have found a means to union without conquest4 ,then what would have happened8 ,we have seen that the cyclic impulse did touch ,gaul at that time2 it made her vastly rich1 hugely industrial2--as ,ferero says1 the ,egypt of the ,west4 ,that1 and nothing better than that1 because she had lost her spiritual center1 and might not figure as the world ,teacher among nations4 ,but1 you say1 ,augustus proscribed ,druidism--which sounds like carrying on ,julius' nefarious work4 ,he did1 ,i believe2--but why8 ,because ,julius had seen to it that the white side of ,druidism had perished4 ,the ,druids were magicians2 and now it was the dark magic and its practitioners that remained among them1--at least in ,gaul4 ,so of course ,augustus proscribed it4 ,remember how ,france has stood1 these last seven centuries1 as the teacher of the arts and civilization to ,europe2 and this idea that she might have been1 and should have been1 something far higher to the ,roman world1 need not seem at all extravagant4 ,i think it was a possibility2 which ,caesar had been sent by the kings of night to forestall4 ,and so1 that ,augustus lacked that reinforcement by which he might have secured for ,europe a unity as enduring as the ,chinese ,teachers secured for the ,far ,east4 ,and yet the ,lodge did not leave ,rome lightless2 there was much spiritual teaching in the centuries of the ,empire2 indeed1 a new out-breathing in each century1 as an effort to retrieve the great defeat2--and this has been the inner history of europe ever since4 ,this3 raidings from the ,godworld3 swift cavalry raidings1 that took no towns as a rule1 nor set up strongholds here on hell's border2 yet did each time1 no doubt1 carry off captives4 ,set up no strongholds2--that is1 until our own times2 so what we have missed is the continuous effort2 the established base 'but here upon this bank and shoal1' from which the shining squadrons of the ,gods might ride4 ,such a base was lost when ,caesar conquered ,gaul2 then some substitute for ,gaul had to be found4 ,it was ,greece and the ,east2 where1 as you may say1 abjects and orts of truth came down2 not the live ,mysteries1 but the membra disjecta of the vanished ,mysteries of a vanished age4 ,with these the ,teachers of the ,roman world had to work1 distilling out of them what they might of the ancient ,theosophy4 ,so latterly ,h4,p4 ,blavasky must gather up fragments in the ,east for the nexus of her teaching2 she must find seeds in old sarcophagi1 and plant and make them grow in this soil so uncongenial2 because there was no well-grown ,tree patent to the world1 with whose undeniable fruitage she might feed the nations4 ,this was one great difficulty in her way2 whe had to introduce ,theosphy into a world that had forgotten it ever existed4 ,so1--but with a difference1--in that first century4 ,the difference was that ,pythagoreanism1 the nexus1 was only six hundrd years away1 and the memory of it fairly fresh4 ,stoicism was the most serious living influence within the empire2 a system that concerned itself with right and brave living1 and was so far spiritual2 but perhaps not much further4 ,the best in men reacted against the sensuality of the mid-century1 and made ,stoicism strong2 but this formed only a basis of moral grit for the higher teaching2 of which1 while we know it was there1 there is not very much to say4 ,i shall come to it presently2 meanwhile1 to something else4--,in literature1 this was the cycle of ,spain3 the ,crest-,wave was largely there during the first thirteen decades of the ,christian era4 ,seneca was born in ,cordova about #c ,b4 ,c42 ,hadrian1 the last greatman of ,spanish birth 7though probably of ,italian race71 died in #ach4 ,seneca was a ,stoic3 a man with many imperfections1 of whom history cannot make up its mind wholly to approve4 ,he was ,nero's tutor and minister during the first five golden years of the reign2 his government was wise and beneficent1 though1 it is said1 sometimes upheld by rather doubtful means4 ,in the growing gloom and horror of the nightmare reign of ,nero1 he wrote many counsels of perfection2 his notes rise often1 someone has said1 to a sort of falsetto shriek2 but then1 the wonder is he could sing at all in such a hell's cacophony4 ,a man with obvious weaknesses1 perhaps2 but fighting hard to be brave and hopeful where there was nothing in sight to encourage bravery or foster hope2 when every moment was pregnant with ghastly possibilities2 when death and abominable torture hobnobbed in the ,roman streets with riots of disgusting indulgence1 abnormal lusts1 filthiness parading unabashed4 ,he speaks of the horrors1 the gruesome impalings2 deprecating them in a general way2 not daring to come down to particulars1 and rebuke ,nero4 ,well2 ,nero commanded the legions1 and was kittle cattle to rebuke4 ,if sometimes you see tinsel and tawdriness about poor ,seneca1 look a little deeper1 and you seem to see him writing it in agony and bloody sweat4 4 4 4 ,he was among the richest men in ,rome1 when riches were a deadly peril3 he might even1 had he been another man1 have made himself emperor2 perhaps the worst thing against him is that he did not4 ,his counsels and aspirations were much better than his deeds2--which is as much as to say his ,higher ,self than his lower4 ,he stood father-confessor to ,roman ,society3 a ,stoic philosopher in high1 luxurious1 and most perilous places3 he cannot escape looking a little unreal4 ,someone in some seemingly petty difficulties1 writes asking him to sue his influence on his behalf2 and he replies with a dissertation on death1 and what good may lie in it1 and the folly of fearing it4 ,cold comfort for his correspondent2 a tactless1 strained1 theatrical thing to do1 we may call it4 ,but what strain upon his nerves1 what hideous knowledge of the times and of evils he did not see his way to prevent1 what haunting sense of danger1 must have driven him to that fervid hectic eloquence that now seems so unnatural6 ,one guesses there may be a place in the ,pantheons or in ,valhalla of the heroes for this poor not untawdry not unheroic ,seneca4 ,one sees in him a kind of ,hamlet1 hitting in timorous indecision on the likely possibility of converting his ,claudius by a string of moral axioms and eloquence to a condition that should satisfy the ,ghost and undo the something rotten in the state4444 ,yet the ,gods must have been grateful to him for the work he did in holding for ,stoicism and aspiration a center in ,rome during that dreadful darkness4 ,perhaps only the very strongest1 in his position1 could have done better2 and then perhaps only by killing ,nero499 ------ 99 ,dill3 ,roman ,society from ,nero to ,marcus ,aurelius4 ------ ,but there was a greater than ,seneca in ,rome1 even in ,nero's reign2--there intermittently1 and not to abide3 ,appollonius of ,tyana1 presumably the real ,messenger of the age3--and by the change that had come over life by the second century1 we may judge how great and successful4 ,but there is not getting at the reality of the man now4 ,we have a ,life of him1 written about a hundred years after his death by ,philostratus1 a ,greek sophist1 for the learned ,empress ,julia ,domna1 ,septimius ,severus' wife2 who1 no doubt1 chose for the work the best man to hand2 but the age of great literature was past1 and ,philostratus resurrects no living soul4 ,the account may be correct enough in outline2 the author was painstaking2 visited the sites of his subject's exploits1 and pressed his inquiries2 he claims to have based his story on the work of ,damis of ,neneveh1 a disciple of ,apollonius who accompanied him everywhere4 ,but much is fabulous3 there is a gorgeous account of dragons' in ,india1 and the methods used in hunting them2 and you know nothing of the real ,apollonius when you have read it all4 ,here1 in brief1 is the outline of the story3 ,apollonius was born at ,tyana in ,cappodocia somewhere about the year #a ,a4,d41 and died in the reign of ,nerva at nearly a hundred3 tradition ascribed to his birth its due accompaniment of signs and portents4 ,at sixteen he set himself under ,pythagorean discipline2 kept silence absolute for five years2 traveled1 healing and teaching1 and acquired a great renown throughout ,asia ,minor4 ,he went by ,babylon and ,parthia to ,india2 spent some time there as the pupil of certain ,teachers on a sacred mountain2 they1 it appears1 expected his coming1 received him and taught him2 ever afterwards he spoke of himself as a disciple of the ,indian ,master ,iarchus4 ,nothing in the book is more interesting than the curious light it throws on popular beliefs of the time in the ,roman ,world as to the existence of these ,indian masters of the ,secret ,wisdom2--,india1 of course1 included the region north of the ,himalayas4 ,later he visited the ,gymnosophists of the ,tebaid in ,egypt2 according to the account1 these were of a lower standing than the ,indian ,adepts2 and ,apollonius came among them not as a would-be disciple1 but as an equal1 or superior4--,he was persecuted in ,rome by ,nero2 but over awed ,tigellinus1 ,nero's minister1 and escaped4 ,he met ,vespasian and ,titus at ,alexandria1 soon after the fall of ,jerusalem2 and was among those who urged ,vespasian to take the throne4 ,he was arrested in ,rome by ,domitian1 and tried on charges of sorcery and treason2 and is said to have escaped his sentence and execution by the simple expedient of vanishing in broad daylight in court4 ,one wonders why this from his defense before ,domitian1 as ,philostratus gives it1 has not attracted more comment2 he says3 ,all unmixed blood is retained by the heart1 which through the blood-vessels sends it flowing as if through canals over the entire body4--,according to tradition1 he rose from the dead1 appeared to several to remove their doubts as to a life beyond death1 and finally bodily ascended into heaven4 ,reincarnation was a very cardinal point in his teaching2 perhaps the name of ,neo-,pythagoreanism1 given to his doctrine1 is enough to indicate in what manner it illuminated the inner realms and laws which ,stoicism1 intent only on brave conduct and the captaincy of one's own soul1 was unconcerned to inquire into4 ,another first century ,neo-,pythagorean ,teacher was ,moderatus of ,gades in ,spain4 ,the period of ,apollonius's greatest influence would have corresponded with the reigns of ,vespasian and ,titus1 from #fi to #hc2 the former1 when he came to the throne1 checked the orgies of vice and brought in an atmosphere in which the light of ,thesophy might have more leave to shine4 ,the certainty is that the last third of the first century wrought an enormous change3 the period that preceded it was one of the worst1 and the age that followed it1 that of the ,five ,good ,emperors1 was the best1 in known ,european history4--,under the ,flavians1 from #fi to #if1--or roughly1 during the last quarter1--came the ,silver ,age1 the second and last great day of ,latin literature3 with several ,spanish and some ,italian names1--foam of the ,crest-,wave1 these latter1 as it passed over from ,spain to the ,east4 ,it will1 by the way1 help us to a conception of the magnitude of the written material at the disposal of the ,roman world1 to remember that ,pliny the ,elder1 in preparing his great work on ,natural ,history1 consulted six thousand published authorities4 ,that was in the reign of ,nero2 it makes one feel that those particular ancients had not so much less reading matter at their command than we have today4 ,of the great ,flavian names in literature1 we have ,tacitus2 ,pliny the ,younger1 with his bright calm pictures of life2 ,juvenal1 with his very dark ones3 these were ,italians4 ,juvenal was a satirist with a moral purpose2 the ,spaniard ,martial1 contemporary1 was a satirist without one4 ,martial drew from life1 and therefore his works1 though coarse1 are still interesting4 ,we learn from him what enormous activity in letters was to be found in those days in his native ,spain2 where every town had its center of learning and apostles and active propaganda of culture4 ,such things denote an ancient cultural habit1 lapsed for a time1 and then revived4 ,another great ,spainiard1 and the best man in literature of the age1 was ,quintilian3 gracious1 wise1 and of high ,theosophic ideals1 especially in education4 ,he was born in ,a4,d4 #ce2 and was probably the greatest literary critic of classical antiquity4 ,for twenty years1 from #gb until his death1 he was at the head of the teaching profession in ,rome4 ,the teaching was1 of course1 in rhetoric4 ,rome resounded with speech-makings2 and ,gaul1 ,spain1 and ,africa were probably louder with it than ,rome4 ,though the end of education then was to turn out speech-makers1--as it is now to turn out money-makers1--,i do not see but that the ,romans had the best of it1--,quintilian saw through all to fundamental truths2 he taught that your true speech-maker must be first a true man4 ,he went thoroughly into the training of the orator1--more thoroughly1 even from the standpoint of pure technique1 than any other ,greek or ,roman writer2--but would base it all upon character1 balance of the faculties1--in two words1 ,raja-,yoga4 ,pliny the ,younger was among his pupils1 and owed much to him2 also is there to prove the value of ,quintilian's method2--for ,quintilian turned out ,pliny a true gentlman4 ,prose in those days1--that is1 rhetoric1--was tending ever more to flamboyancy and extravagance3 a current which ,quintilian stood against valiantly4 ,we find in him1 as critic1 just judgment1 sane good taste1 wide and generous sympathies2--a tendency to give the utmost possible credit even where compelled in the main to condemn2--as he was in the case of ,senaca4 ,he had the faculty of hitting off in a phrase the whole effect of a man's style2 as when he speaks of the milky richness of ,livy1 and the immortal swiftness of ,sallust4 99 ------ 99 ,encyclopaedia ,britannica2 article ',quintilian' ------ ,so then1 to sum up a little3 ,i think we gain from these times a good insight into cyclic workings4 ,first1 we shall see that the cycles are there1 and operative3 action and reaction regnant in the world1--a tide in the affairs of men2 and strong souls coming in from time to time1 to manipulate reactions1 to turn the currents at strategic points in time2 making things1 despite what evils may be ahead1 flow on to higher levels than their own weight would carry them to3 thus did ,augustus and ,tiberius2 --or throwing them down1 as the merry ,julius did1 from bright possibilities to a sad and lightless actuality4 ,for perhaps we have been suffering because of ,julius' exploit ever since2 and certainly1 no matter what ,neros and ,caligulas followed them1 the world was a long time the better for the ground the great first two ,principes captured from hell4--,and next1 we shall learn to beware of being too exact1 precise1 and water-tight with out computations and conceptions of these cycles3 we shall see that nature works in curves and delicate wave-lines1 not in broken off bits and sudden changes4 ,rome was going down in ,tiberius' reign3 she was bad enough then1 heaven knows2 though we may put her passing below the meridian at or near the end of it2-- conveniently1 in the year #cf4 ,and then1 what with 7#a7 the tenseness of the gloom and the severity of suffering in the reigns of ,caligula1 ,nero1 and ,domitian2--and 7#b7 the inflow of new and cleaner blood from the provinces at all times but especially under ,vespasian2 and above all1 7#c7 the ,theosophic impulse whose outward visible sign is the mission of ,apollonius and ,moderatus3--we find her ready to emerge into light in #if1 when ,nerva came to the throne1 instead of having to wait the five more years for the end of the half-cycle2--although we may well suppose it took that time at least for ,nerva and ,trajan to clear things up and settle them4 ,so we may keep this scheme of dates in memory as indicative3 a 7rough7 half-cycle before #bi ,b4,c41 that of dawn and darkest hour preceding it2 #bi ,b4,c4 to #cf ,a4,d4 daylight2 #cf to #aja1 night and the beginnings of a new dawn4 ,and now we must turn to ,china4 ,dusk came on in ,rome with the death of ,tiberius in ,a4,d4 #cg2 but what is dusk in the west is dawn in the east of the world4 ,in #ce ,han ,kwang-wuti had put down the ,crimson-,eyebrow rebellion1 and seated himself firmly on the throne4 ,the preceding half-cycle1 great in ,rome under ,augustus and ,tiberius1 had been a time1 first of puppet emperors1 then of illegalism and usurpation1 then of civil war4 ,han ,kwang-wuti put an end to all that1 and opened1 in #ce1 a new cycle of his own4 ,but there is also an old cycle to be taken into account3 the original thirteen-decade period of the ,hans1 that began in #aid1 and ended its first day in #fc or so1--to name convenient dates4 ,i should1 if ,i believed in this cyclic law1 look for a recurrence of that3 a new day to dawn1 under its influence1 in #ff or #fg ,a4,d41 thirteen decades after the old one ended1--and to last until #aif or #aig4 ,but on the other hand1 here is ,han ,kwang-wuti starting things going in #ce1 a matter of thirty-two years ahead of time1--catching the flow of force just as it diminished in ,rome4--,and this thirty-two years1 you may note1 with what odd months we may suppose thrown in1 is in itself a quarter-cycle4 ,now cyclic impulses waste2 a second day of splendor will commonly be found a ,silver ,age1 where the first was ,golden3 it will often be more perfect and refined1 but much less vigorous1 than the first4 ,so ,i should look for the second day of the ,hans to come on the whole with less light to shine and less strength to endure than its predecessor2 ,i should expect a gentleness as of late afternoon in place of the old noontide glory4 ,but then there is the complication induced by ,han ,kwang-wuti1 who started his cycle in #ce4444 or more probably his half-cycle2--,i should look for it to be no more than that1 on account of this same wastage of the forces2--this also has to be taken into consideration4 ,brooding over the whole situation1 ,i should foretell the history of this second ,han ,dynasty in this way3 from #ce to #fg1--the latter date the point where the old and new cycles intersect1-- would be a static time3 of consolidation rather than expansion2 of the gathering of the wave1 not of its outburst into any splendor of foam4 ,between #fg and #ajj1 or when the two cycles coincide1 ,i should look for great things and doings2 for some echo or repetition of the glories of ,han ,wuti1--perhaps for a finishing and perfecting of his labors4 ,from then on till #aig ,i should expect static1 but weakening conditions3 static mainly till #afe1 weakening rapidly after4 ,advise me1 please1 if this is clear4--,well1 if you have followed so far1 you have a basis for understanding what is to come4 ,the dynasty1 as thus re-established by ,kwang-wuti1 is known as that of the ,eastern ,hans2 for this reason3--just as late in the days of the ,roman empire1 ,diocletian was stirred by cyclic flowing east-ward to move his capital from ,rome to ,nicomedia1-- ,constantine changed it afterwards to ,byzantium1--so was ,han ,kwang-wuti to move his from ,changan in ,shensi1 in the west1 eastward to ,loyang or ,honanfu1--the old ,chow capital1--in ,honan4 ,while ,rome was weltering under ,caligula1 ,claudius1 and ,nero1 ,china was recovering herself1 getting used to a calm equanimity1 under ,haii ,kwang-wuti3 the conditions in the two were as opposite as the poles4 ,she dwelt in quietness at home1 and held her own1 and a little more1 on the frontiers4 ,in #eg1 two years before ,nero went mad and took the final plunge into infamy1 ,han ,kwang-wuti died1 and ,han ,mingti succeeded him4 ,as ,nero went down1 ,han ,mingti went up4 ,his ninth or tenth year1 remember1 was to be that of the recurrence of the old ,han cycle4 ,it was the year in which the provinces rose against ,nero1--the lowest point of all in ,rome4 ,i do not know that it was marked by anything special in ,china2 the fact being that all the ,chinese sixties were momentous4 ,in the third ,year of his reign ,han ,mingti dreamed a dream3 he saw a serene and ,golden ,man descending towards him out of the western heavens4 ,it would mean1 said his brother1 to whom he spoke of it1 the ,golden ,god worshiped in the ,west1--the ,buddha4 ,buddhism had first come into ,china in the reign of ,tsin ,shi ,hwangti2 but that imperial ruffian had made short work of it3-- he threw the missionaries into prison1 and might have dealt worse with them1 but that a ,golden ,man appeared in their cell in the night1 and opened all doors for their escape4 ,buddhist scriptures1 probably1 were among the books destroyed at the great ,burning4 ,so there may have been ,buddhists in ,china all through the ,han time2 but if so1 they were few1 isolated and inconspicuous2 it is ,han ,mingti's proper glory1 to have brought ,buddhism in4 ,he liked well his brother's interpretation1 and sent inquirers into the west4 ,in #fe they returned1 with scriptures1 and an ,indian missionary1 ,kashiapmadanga1--who was followed shortly by ,gobharana1 another4 ,a temple was built at ,loyang1 and under the emperor's patronage1 the work of translating the books began4--,we have seen before how some touch from abroad is needed to quicken an age into greatness3 such a touch came now to ,china with these ,indian ,buddhists2--who1 in all likelihood1 may also have been in their degree ,messengers of the ,lodge4 ,in the usual vague manner of ,indian chronology1 the years #eg and #gh ,a4,d4 are connected with the name of a great king of the ,yueh ,chi1 ,kanishka1 whose empire covered ,northern ,india4 ,almost every authority has a favorite point in time for his habitat2 but these dates1 not so far apart but that he may well have been reigning in both1 will do as well as another4 ,you will note that #gb ,a4,d4 7which falls between them7 is a matter of thirteen decades from #eh ,b4,c41 the date sometimes ascribed to that much-legended ,vikramaditya of ,ujjain4 ,or1 if we go back to the 7fairly7 settled #cba ,b4,c4 of ,chandragupta ,maurya1 and count forward thirteen-decade periods from that1 we get #aia for the end of the ,mauryas 7it happened about then72 #fa for ,vikramaditya 7which may well be72 #fi for ,kanishka1--which also is likely enough1 and would make him contemporary with ,han ,mingti4 ,as the years #eg and #gh are both ascribed to him1 it may possibly be that they mark the beginning and end of his reign respectively4 ,we know very little about him1 except that he was a very great king1 a great ,buddhist1 a man of artistic tastes1 and a great builder2 that he loved the beautiful hills and valleys of ,cashmere2 and that his reign was a wonderful period in sculptue1 --that of the ,gandhara or ,greco-,buddhist ,school4 ,again1 he is credited 7by ,hiuen ,tsang7 with convening the ,fourth ,buddhist ,council3 following in this1 as in other matters1 the example of ,asoka4 ,we are at liberty ,i suppose1 if we like1 to assign that cyclic year #fi to the meeting of this ,council3 this year or its neighborhood4 ,so that all this may have had something to do with the missionary activity that responded to ,han ,mingti's appeal4 ,but there is something else to remember2 something of far higher importance2 namely1 that during all this period of her most uncertain chronology1 ,india was in a peculiar position3 the ,successors of the ,buddha were more or less openly at work there2--a long line of ,adept leaders and teachers that can be traced 7,i believe7 through some thirteen centuries from ,sakya-muni's death4 ,we may suppose1 not unreasonably1 that ,kashiapmadanga and ,gobharana were disciples and emissaries of the then ,successor4 ,it is1 so far1 and with so little translated1 extremely hard to get at the undercurrents in these old ,chinese periods2 but ,i suspect a strong spiritual influence1 ,buddhist at that1 in the great events of the years that followed4 ,for ,china proceeded to strike into history in such a way that the blow resounded1 if not round the world1 at least round as much of it as was discovered before ,columbus2 and she did it in such a nice1 clean1 artistic and quiet way1 and withal so thoroughly1 that ,i cannot help feeling that that glorious warriorlike ,northern ,buddhism of the ,mahayana had something to do with it4 ,it was not ,han ,mingti himself who did it1 but one of his sevants2 of whom1 it is likely1 you have never heard2 although east or west there have been1 probably1 but one or two of his trade so great as he1 or who have mattered so much to history4 ,his name was ,pan ,chow2 his trade1 soldiering4 ,he began his career of conquest about the time the major ,han ,cycle was due to recur1--in the sixties2 maintained it through three reigns1 and ended it at his death about when the ,eastern ,han half-cycle1 started in #ce1 was due to close2--somewhere1 that is1 about #ajj ,a4,d41 while ,trajan was beginning a new day and career of conquest in ,rome4 ,,xxi4 ,,china ,,and ,,rome3 ,,the ,,see-,,saw 7,,continued7 ,during the time of ,chinese weakness ,central ,asia had relapsed from the control the great ,han ,wuti had imposed on it1 and that ,han ,suenti had maintained by his name for justice2 and the ,huns had recovered their power4 ,one wonders what these people were2 of whom we first catch sight in the reign of the ,yellow ,emperor1 nearly #cjjj ,b4,c42 and who do not disappear from history until after the death of ,attila4 ,during all those three millenniums odd they were predatory nomads1 never civilized3 a curse to their betters1 and nothing more4 ,and their betters were1 you may say1 every race they contacted4 ,it seems as if1 as in the human blood1 so among the races of mankind1 there were builders and destroyers4 ,i speculate as to the beginnings of the latter3 they cannot be 4 4 4 races apart1 of some special creation2--made by demons1 where it was the ,gods made men4 4 4 4 ,to the ,huns1 says ,gibbon1 a fabulous origin was assigned worthy of their form and manners1--that the witches of ,scythia1 who for their foul and deadly practices had been driven from society1 had united in the desert with infernal spirits1 and that the ,huns were the offspring of this execrable conjunction4 ,but it seems to me that it is in times of intensive civilization1 and in the slums of great cities1 that ,nature--or anti-,nature--originates noxious human species4 ,i wonder if their forefathers were1 once on a time1 the hooligans and yeggmen of some very ancient ,babylon ,bowery or the ,east ,end of some pre-,nimrodic ,nineveh8 ,babylon was a great city1--or there were great cities in the neighborhood of ,babylon1 before the ,yellow ,emperor was born4 ,one of these may have had1 ,god knows when1 its glorious freedom-establishing revolution1 its up-fountaining of sansculottes1--patriots whose predatory proclivities had erstwhile been checked of their free brilliance by busy-body tyrannical police2--and then this revolution may have been put down1 and the men of the underworld who made turned out now from their city haunts1 driven into the wilderness and the mountains1--may have taken1--would certainly have taken1 one would say1--not to any industry1 7they knew none but such as are wrought by night unlawfully in other men's houses72 not to agriculture1 which has ever had1 for your free spirit1 something of degradation in it2--but to pure patriotism1 freedom and liberty1 as their nature was3 first to cracking such desultory cribs as offered1--knocking down defenseless wayfarers and the like3 then to bolder raidings and excursions2--until presently1 lo1 they are a great people2 they have ridden over all ,asia like a scirocco2 they have thundered rudely at the doors of proud princes1--troubling even the peace of the ,yellow ,emperor on his throne4 ,well1--but isn't the stature stunted1 physical1 as well as mental and moral1 when life is forced to reproduce itself1 generation after generation1 among the unnatural conditions of slums and industrialism8 4 4 4 ,can you nourish men upon poisons century by century1 and expect them to retain the semblance of men8 ,they had bothered ,han ,kwang-wuti2 who could do little more than hold his own against them1 and leave them to his successor to deal with as ,karma might decree4 ,karma1 having as you might say one watchful eye on ,rome and ,europe1 and what need of chastisement should arise after awhile at that western end of the world1 provided ,han ,mingti with this ,pan ,chow2 who1 being a soldier of promise1 was sent upon the ,hun war-path forthwith4 ,then the miracles began to happen4 ,pan ,chow strolled through ,central ,asia as if upon his morning's constitutional3 no fuss2 no hurry2 little fighting1--but what there was1 remarkably effective1 one gathers4 ,presently he found himself on the ,caspian shore2 and if he had left any ,huns behind him1 they were hardly enough to do more than pick an occasional pocket4 ,he started out when the ,roman provinces were rising to make an end of ,nero2 in the last year of ,domitian1 from his ,caspian headquarters he determined to discover ,rome2 and to that end sent an emissary down through ,parthia to take ship at the port of ,babylon for the unknown ,west4 ,the ,parthians 7who were all against the two great empires becoming acquainted1 because they are making a good thing of it as middle-men in the ,roman-,chinese caravan trade71 knew better1 probably1 than to oppose ,pan ,chow's designs openly2 but their agents haunted the quays at ,babylon1 tampered with west-going skippers1 and persuaded the ,chinese envoy to go no farther4 ,but ,i wonder whether some impulse achieved flowing across the world from east to west at that time1 even though its physical link or channel was thus left incomplete8 ,it was in that very year that ,nerva re-established constitutionalism and good government in ,rome4 ,pan ,chow worked as if by magic3 seemed to make no effort1 yet accomplished all things4 ,for nearly forty years he kept that vast territory in order1 despite the huge frontier northward1 and the breeding-place of nomad nations beyond4 ,all north of ,tibet is a region of marvels4 ,where you were careful to leave only the village blacksmith under his spreading chestnut-tree1 or the innkeeper and his wife1 for the sake of future travelers1 let a century or two pass1 and their descendants would be as the sea-sands for multitude2 they would have founded a power1 and be thundering down on an empire-smashing raid in ,persia or ,china or ,india3 ,whether ,huns1 ,sienpi1 ,jiujen1 ,turks1 ,tatars1 ,tunguses1 ,mongols1 ,manchus3 ,god knows what all1 but all destroyers4 ,but as far as the old original ,huns were concerned1 ,pan ,chow settled their hash for them4 ,bag and baggage he dealt with them2 and practically speaking1 the land of their fathers knew them no more4 ,dry the starting tear6 here your pity is misplaced4 ,think of no vine-covered cottages ruined2 no homesteads burned2 no fields laid waste4 ,they lived mainly in the saddle2 they were as much at home fleeing before the ,chinese army as at another time4 ,a shunt here2 a good kick off there3 so he dealt with them4 ,it is in ,european veins their blood flows now2--and prides itself on its pure undiluted ,aryanism and ,nordicism1 no doubt4 ,i suppose scarcely a people in continental ,europe is without some mixture of it2 for they enlisted at last in all foraying armies1 and served under any banner and chief4 ,pan ,chow felt that they belonged to the 7presumably7 barbarous regions west of the ,caspian4 ,ta ,ts'in in future might deal with them2 by ,god's grace1 ,han never should4 ,he gently pushed them over the brink2 removed them2 cut the cancer out of ,asia4 ,next time they appeared in history1 it was not on the ,hoangho1 but on the ,danube4 ,meanwhile1 they established themselves in ,russia2 moved across ,central ,europe1 impelling ,quadi and ,marcomans against ,marcus ,aurelius1 and then ,teutons of all sorts against the whole frontier of ,rome4 ,in the sixties1 for ,han ,mingti1 ,pan ,chow set that great wave in motion in the far east of the world4 ,three times thirteen decades passed1 and it broke and wasted in foam in the far west3 in what we may call the ,very ,first ,battle of the ,marne1 when ,aetius defeated ,attila in #dea4 ,i can but think of one thing better he might have done3 shipped them eastward to the remote ,pacific ,islands2 but it is too late to suggest that now4 ,but ,i wonder what would have happened if ,pan ,chow had succeeded in reaching his arm across1 and grasping hands with ,trajan8 ,he had not died2 the might of ,china had not begun to recede from its westward limits1 before the might of ,rome under that great ,spaniard had begun to flow towards its limits in the east4 ,through the bulk of the second century ,china remained static1 or weakening4 ,her forward urge seems to have ended with the death of ,pan ,chow1 or at the end of the half-cycle ,han ,kwang-wuti began in #ce4 ,we might tabulate the two concurrent ,han cycles1 for the sake of clearness1 and note their points of intersection1 thus3 --,western ,han ,cycle1 #acj years --,eastern ,han ,half-,cycle1 #fe yrs --#ce ,a4,d4 ,opened by ,han ,kwang-wuti4 --,a static and consolidating time until #fg ,a4,d41 thirteen decades from the death of ,han ,chaoti4 ,introduction of ,buddhism in #fe4 --,the period of ,pan ,chao's victories2 the ,golden ,age of the ,eastern ,hans1 lasting until 7about73 --#ajj ,a4 ,d4 the end of the ,eastern ,han ',day'2 death of ,pan ,chow4 --,continuance of ,day under this1 and supervention of ,night under this ,cycle1 produce3 --,a static1 but weakening period until3 --#afe1 the year in which a new ,eastern ,han ,day should begin4 ,a weak recrudescence should be seen4 --#aig3 the year in which the main or original ,han ,cycle should end4 ,we should expect the beginnings of a downfall4 ,by or before3 --#bcj1 the end of the second1 feeble1 ,eastern ,han ,day1 the downfall would have been completed4 ,now to see how this works out4 ,the first date we have to notice is #afe4 ,well2 in the very scant notices of ,chinese history ,i have been able to come on1 two events mark this date2 or rather1 one marks #afe1 and the other #aff4 ,to take the latter first3 we saw that at a momentous point in ,roman history1--in the year of ,nerva's accession1 #if1--;,china tried to discover ,rome4 ,in #aff ,rome actually succeeded in discovering ,china4 ,this year too1 as we shall see1 was momentous in ,roman history4 ,you may call it a half cycle after the other2 for probably the ambassadors of ,king ,an-,tun of ,ta ,ts'in who arrived at the court of ,han ,hwanti at ,loyang in #aff1 had been a few years on their journey4 ,you know ,king ,an-tun better by his ,latin name of ,marcus ,aurelius ,antoninus4 ,the event for #afe is the foundation of the ,taoist ,church1 under the half-legendary figure of its first ,pope1 ,chang ,taoling2 whose lineal descendants and successors have reigned ,popes of ,taoism from their ,vatican on the ,dragon-,tiger ,mountain in ,kiangsi ever since4 ,they have not adverertised their virtues in their names1 however3 we find no ,innocents and ,piuses here3 they are all plain ,changs2 his reigning ,holiness being ,chang the ,sixth-somethingth4 ,it was from ,buddhism that the ,taoists took the idea of making a church of themselves4 ,taoism and ,buddhism from the outset were fiercely at odds2 and yet the main splendor of ,china was to come from their inner coalescence4 ,chu ,hsi1 the greatest of the ,sung philosophers of the brilliant twelfth century ,a4,d41 says that ,buddhism stole the best features of ,taoism2 ,taoism stole the worst features of ,buddhism3 as if the one took a jewel from the other1 and the other recouped the loss with a stone4 99 ,this is exact3 the jewel stolen by ,buddhism was ,laotse's ,blue ,pearl1--,wonder and ,natural ,magic2 the stone that ,taoism took instead was the priestly hierarchy and church organization1 imitated from the ,buddhists1 that grew up under the successors of ,chang ,taoling4 ------ 99 ,chinese ,literature3 ,h4,a4 ,giles ------ ,if ,laotse founded any school or order at all1 it remained quite secret4 ,i imagine his mission was like ,plato's1 not ,buddha's3 to start ideas1 not a brotherhood4 ,by ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti's time1 any notions that were wild1 extravagant1 and gorgeous were ,taoism2 which would hardly have been1 perhaps1 had there been a ,taoist organization behind them2--although it is not safe to dogmatize4 ,it was1 at any rate1 mostly an inspiration to the heights for the best minds1 and for the masses 7including ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti7 a rumor of tremendous things4 ,after ,han ,wuti's next successor1 the best minds took to thinking ,confucianly3 which was decidedly a good thing for ,china during the troublous times before and after the fall of the ,western ,hans4 ,then when ,buddhism came in1 ,taoism came to the fore again1 spurred up to emulation by this new rival4 ,i take it that ,chang ,taoling's activities round about this year #afe represent an impulse of the national soul to awakenment under the influence of the recurrence of the ,eastern ,han ,day half-cycle4 ,what kind of reality ,chang ,taoling represents1 one cannot say3 whether a true teacher in his degree1 sent by the ,lodge1 around whom legends have gathered2 or a mere dabbler in alchemy and magic4 ,here is the story told of him2 you will note an incident or two in it that suggest the former possibility4 ,he retired to the mountains of the west to study magic1 cultivate purity of life1 and engage in meditation2 stedfastly declining the offers of emperors who desired him to take office4 ,laotse appeared to him in a vision1 and gave him a treatise in which were directions for making the ',elixir of the ,dragon and the ,tiger4' ,while he was brewing this1 a spirit came to him and said3 ,on the ,pesung ,mountain is a house of stone2 buried beneath it are the ,books of the ,three ,emperors 7,yao1 ,shun1 and ,yu74 ,get these1 practise the discipline they enjoin1 and you will attain the power of ascending to heaven4 ,he found the ,pesung ,mountain2 and the stone house2 and dug1 and discovered the books2 which taught him how to fly1 to leave his body at will1 and to hear all sounds the most distant4 ,during a thousand days he disciplined himself2 a goddess came to him1 and taught him to walk among the stars2 then he learned to cleave the seas and the mountains1 and command the thunder and the winds4 ,he fought the king of the demons1 whose hosts fled before him leaving no trace of their departing footsteps4 ,so great slaughter he wrought in that battle that1 we are told1 various divinities came with eager haste to acknowledge their faults4 ,in nine years he gained the power of ascending to heaven4 ,his last days were spent on the ,dragon-,tiger ,mountain2 where1 at the age of a hundred and twenty-three1 he drank the elixir1 and soared skyward in broad daylight2--followed 7,i think it was he7 by all the poultry in his barnyard1 immortalized by the drops that fell from the cup as he drank4 ,he left his books of magic1 and his magical sword and seal1 to his descendants2 but ,i think the ,dragon-,tiger ,mountain did not come into their possession until some centuries later4 ,i judge that the tales of the ,taoist ,sennin or ,adepts1 if told by some ,chinese-enamored ,lafcadio1 would be about the best collection of fairy-stories in the world2 they reveal a universe so deliciously nooked and crannied with bewildering possibilities3--as indeed this our universe is2--only not all its byways are profitable traveling4 ,it is all very well to cry out against superstition2 but we are only half-men in the ,west3 we have lost the faculty of wonder and the companionship of extrahuman things4 ,we walk our narrow path to nowhere safely trussed up in our personal selves3 or we not so much walk at all1 as lie still1 chrysalissed in them3--it may be just as well1 since for lack of the quality of balance1 we are about as capable of walking at ease and dignity as is a jellyfish of doing ,blondin on the tight-rope4 ,china1 in her pralaya and dearth of souls1 may have fallen into the perils of her larger freedom1 and some superstition rightly to be called degrading3 in our ,middle ,ages1 when we were in pralaya1 we were superstitious enough2 and being unbalanced1 fell into other evils too such as ,china never knew3 black tyrannies of dogmatism1 burnings of heretics wholesale4 ,but when the ,crest-,wave ,egos were in ,china1 that larger freedom of hers enabled her1 among other things1 to achieve the highest heights in art3 the ,yellow ,crane was at her disposal1 and she failed not to mount the heavens2 she had the glimpses ,wordsworth pined for2 she was not left forlorn4 ,this merely for another blow at that worst superstition of all3 ,unbrotherliness1 and our doctrine of ,superior ,racehood4--,many of the tales are mere thaumatolatry3 as of the man who took out his bones and washed them once every thousand years2 or of the man who would fill his mouth with rice-grains1 let them forth as a swarm of bees to gather honey in the valley1--then readmit them into his mouth as to a hive1 where they became rice again1--presumably sweetened to taste4 ,but in others there seems to be a core of symbolism and recognition of the fundamental things4 ,there was a man once1--the tale is in ,giles's ,dictionary of ,chinese ,biography1 but ,i forget his name--who sought out the ,sennin ,ho ,kwang 7his name might have been ,ho ,kwang72 and found him at last in a gourd-flask1 whither he was used to retire for the night4 ,in this retreat ,ho ,kwang invited our man to join him2 and he was enabled to do so2 and found it1 once he had got in1 a fair and spacious palace enough4 ,three days he remained there learning2 while fifteen years were passing in ,china without4 ,then ,ho ,kwang gave him a rod1 and a spell to say over it2 and bade him go his ways4 ,he would lay the rod on the ground1 stand astride of it1 and speak the spell2 and straight it became a dragon for him to mount and ride the heavens where he would4 ,thenceforth for many years he was a kind of ,guardian ,spirit over ,china3 appearing suddenly wherever there was distress or need of help3 at dawn in mountain ,chungnan by ,changan town in the north2 at noon1 maybe1 by the southern sea2 at dusk he might be seen a-dragon-back above the sea-mists rolling in over ,yangtse2--and all in the same day4 ,but at last1 they say1 he forgot the spell1 and found himself riding the clouds on a mere willow wand2--and the wand behaving as though ,newton had already watched that aggravating apple2--and himself1 in due course dashed to pieces on the earth below4--,there is some fine symbolism here2 the makings of a good story4 ,and now we come to #aig1 the year in which 7to quote our tabulation above7 the main or original ,han ,cycle should end1 and in which we should expect the beginnings of a downfall4 ,the ,empire1 as empires go1 is very old now3 four hundred and forty odd years since ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti founded it2 as old as ,rome was 7from ,julius ,caesar's time7 when the ,east and ,west split under ,arcadius and ,honorius2 nearly three centuries older than the ,british ,empire is now2--the cyclic force is running out1 centripetalism very nearly wasted4 ,in these one-nineties we find two non-entitous brothers quarreling for the throne3 who has eyes to see1 now1 can see that the days of ,han are numbered4 ,all comes to an end in #bbj1 ten years before the third half-cycle 7and therefore second 'day'7 of the ,eastern ,han series2 there is not force enough left to carry things through till #bcj4 ,han ,hienti1 the survivor of the two brothers aforesaid1 retired into private life2 the dynasty was at an end1 and the empire split in three4 ,in ,ssechuan a ,han prince set up a small unstable throne2 another went to ,armenia1 and became a great man there2 but in ,loyang the capital1 ,ts'ao ,ts'ao1 the man who engineered the fall of the ,hans1 set his son as ,wei ,wenti on the throne4 ,he was a very typical figure1 this ,ts'ao ,ts'ao3 a man ominous of disintegration4 ,you cannot go far in ,chinese poetry without meeting references to him4 ,he rose during the reign of the last ,han1--the ,chien-,an period1 as it is called1 from #aif to #bba1--;by superiority of energies and cunning1 from a wild irregular youth spent as hanger-on of no particular position at the court1--the son of a man that had been adopted by a chief eunuch1--to be prime minister1 commander of vast armies 7he had at one time1 says ,dr4 ,h4 ,a4 ,giles1 as many as a million men under arms71 father of the empress2 holder of supreme power2 then overturner of the ,han1 and founder of the ,wei dynasty4 ,civilization had become effete2 and such a strong wildling could play ducks and drakes with affairs4 ,but he could not hold the empire together4 ,centrifugalism was stronger than ,ts'ao ,ts'ao4 ,the cycles and all else here become confused4 ,the period from #bbj to #bfe--;about a half-cycle1 you will note1 from #aif and the beginning of the ,chien-,an time1 or the end of the main ,han ,cycle1--is known as that of the ,san ,koue or ,three ,kingdoms3 its annals read like ,froissart1 they say2 gay with raidings1 excursions1 and alarms4 ,it was the riot of life disorganized in the corpse1 when organized life had gone4 ,a great historical novel dealing with this time1--one not unworthy1 it is said1 of ,scott1--remains to be translated4 ,then1 by way of reaction1 came another half-cycle 7roughly7 of reunion3 an unwarlike period of timid politics and a super-refined effeminate court2 it was1 says ,professor ,harper ,parker1 a great age of calligraphy1 belles lettres1 fans1 chess1 wine-bibbing and poetry-making4 ,then1 early in the fourth century1 ,china split up again3 crafty ladylike ,chinese houses ruling in the ,south2 and in the north a wild medley of dynasties1 ,turkish1 ,tungus1 ,tatar1 and ,tibetan1-- even some relics of the ,huns3 sometimes one at a time1 sometimes half a dozen all together4 ,each barbarian race took on hastily something of ,chinese culture1 and in turn imparted to it certain wild vigorous qualities which one sees very well in the northern art of the period3 strong1 fierce1 dramatic landscapes3 ,nature painted in her sudden and terrific moods4 ,china was still in manvantara1 though under obscuration2 she still drew her moiety of ,crest-,wave souls3 there were great men1 but through a lack of co-ordination1 they failed to make a great empire or nation4 ,so here we may take leave of her for a couple of centuries4 ,just why the vigor of the ,crest-,wave was called off in the two-twenties1 causing her to split then1 we shall see presently4 ,back now to ,rome1 at the time of the death of ,pan ,chow the ,hun-expeller and the end of the one glorious half-cycle of the ,eastern ,hans4 ,as ,china went down1 ,rome came up4 ,pan ,chow died early in the reign of ,trajan1 the first great ,roman conqueror since ,julius ,caesar2 and only the ,caspian ,sea1 and perhaps a few years1 divided ,trajan's eastern outposts from the western outposts of the ,hans4 ,we need not stay with this ,spaniard longer than to note that here was a case where grand military abilities were of practical value3 ,trajan used his to subserve the greatness of his statesmanship2 only a general of the first water could have brought the army under the new constitutional regime4 ,the soldiers had been setting up ,caesars ever since the night they pitched on old ,claudius in his litter2 now came a ,caesar who could set the soldiers down4--,his nineteen years of sovereignty were followed by the twenty-one of ,hadrian3 a very great emperor indeed2 a master statesman1 and queer mass of contradictions whose private life is much better uninquired into4 ,he was a mighty builder and splendid adorner of cities2 all that remained unsystematized in the ,augustan system1 he reduced to perfect system and order4 ,his laws were excellent and humane2 he introduced a special training for the ,civil ,service1 which wrought enormous economies in public affairs3 officials were no longer to obtain their posts by imperial appointment1 which might be wise or not1 but because of their own tested efficiency for the work4--,then came the golden twenty-three years of ,antoninus ,pius1 from #ach to #afa3 a time of peace and strength1 with a wise and saintly emperor on the throne4 ,the flower ,rome now was in perfect bloom3 an urbane1 polished1 and ordered civilization covered the whole expanse of the empire4 ,hadrian had legislated for the down-trodden3 no longer had you power of life and death over your slaves2 they were protected by the law like other men2 you could not even treat them harshly4 ,true1 there was slavery1 --a canker2 and there were the gladiatorial games2 we may feel piously superior if we like4 ,but there was much humanism also4 ,there was no proletariat perpetually on the verge of starvation1 as in nineteenth and twentieth century ,europe4 ,if we can look back now and say1 ,there this1 that1 or the other sign of oncoming decay2 the thing could not last2--it will also be remarkably easy for us1 two thousand years hence1 to be just as wise about these present years 'of grace4' ,it is perhaps safe to say1 --as ,i think ,gibbon says--that there was greater happiness among a greater number then than there has been at any time in ,christendom since4 ,gibbon calculates that there were twice as many slaves as free citizens3 we do know that their number was immense1--that it was not unusual for one man to own several thousand4 ,but they were well treated3 often highly educated2 might become free with no insuperable difficulty3--their position was perhaps comparable with that of slaves in ,turkey now1 who are insulted if you call them servants4 ,gibbon estimates the population at a hundred and twenty millions2 many authorities think that figure too high2 but ,gibbon may well be right1 or even under the mark1--and it may account for the rapid decline that followed the age of the ,antonines4 ,for ,i suspect that a too great population is a great danger1 that hosts at such times pour into incarnation1 besides those that have good right to call themselves human souls2--that the maxim fewer children and better ones is based upon deep and occult laws4 ,china in her great days would never appear to have had more than from fifty to seventy millions3 the present enormous figures have grown up only since the ,manchu conquest4 ,there was no great stir of creative intellect and imagination in second century ,rome3 little noteworthy production in literature after ,trajan's death4 ,the greatest energies went into building2 especially under ,hadrian4 ,the time was mainly static1--though golden4 ,there were huge and opulent cities1 and they were beautiful2 there was enormous wealth2 an even and widespread culture affecting to sweetness and light the lives of millions-- by race ,britons1 ,gauls1 ,moors1 ,asiatics or what not1 but all proud to be ,romans2 all sharing in the blessings of the ,roman ,citizenship and ,peace4 ,not without self-government1 either1 in local affairs3 thus we find ,welsh clans in ,britain still with kings1 and stranger still1 with senates1 of their own4 ,it was the quiet and perfect moment at the apex of a cycle3 the moment that precedes descent4 ,the old impulse of conquest flickered up1 almost for the last time1 under ,trajan1 some of whose gains wise ,hadrian wisely abandoned4 ,under whom it was1 and under the first ,antonine1 that the empire stood in its perfect and final form3 neither growing nor decreasing2 neither on the offensive nor actively on the defensive4 ,now remember the cycles3 sixty-five years of manvantara under ,augustus and ,tiberius1--,b4,c4 #bi to ,a4 ,d4 #cf4 ,then sixty-five mostly of pralaya from #cf to #aja2 and now sixty-five more of mnavantara under the ,five ,good ,emperors 7or three of them71 from #aja to #aff4 ,but why stop at #aff1 you ask4 ,had not ,marcus ,aurelius1 the best of them all1 until #ahj to reign8--,he had2 and yet the change came in #aff2 after that year ,rome stood on the defensive until she fell4 ,it was in that year1 you will remember1 that ,king ,an-tun ,aurelius's envoys reached ,loyang by way of ,bumiah and the sea4 ,but note this3 ,domitian was killed1 and ,nerva came to the throne1 and ,rome had leave to breathe freely again1 in five years before the half-cycle of shadows should have ended3 the two years of ,nerva1 and the first three of ,trajan1 we may call borrowed by the dawning manvantara from the dusk of the pralaya that was passing4 ,now if we took the strictness of the cycles au very pied de lettre1 we should be a little uneasy about the last five years of that manvantara2 we should expect them at least to be filled with omens of coming evil2 we should expect to find in them a dark compensation for the five bright years at the tail of the old pralaya4--,well1 cycles have sometimes a pretty way of fulfilling expectations4 ,for see what happened3-- ,marcus ,aurelius came to the throne in #afa3 a known man1 not untried2 one1 certalnly1 to keep the ,golden ,age in being1--if kept in being it might be4 ,greatly capable in action1 saintly in life and ideals3 what could ,rome ask better8 ,or what had she to fear8--,the king is the representative man3 it must have been a wonderful ,rome1 we may note in passing1 that was ruled by and went with and loved well those two saintly philosophic ,antonines enthroned4--,nothing1 then1 could seem more hopeful4 ,under the circumstances it was rather a mean trick on the part of ,father ,tiber 7to whom the ,romans pray71 that before a year was out he must needs be breeding trouble for his votaries3 overflowing1 the ingrate1 and sweeping away large parts of his city2 wasting fields and slaughtering men 7to quote ,macaulay again72 drowning cattle wholesale1 and causing shortage of supplies4 ,and he does but give the hint to the other gods1 it seems2 who are not slow to follow suit4 ,earthquakes are the next thing2 then fires2 then comes in ,beelzebub with a plague of insects4 ,there is no end to it4 ,the legions in ,britain1--after all this long peace and good order1--grow frisky3 mind them of ancient and profitable times when you might catch big fish in troubled waters2--and try to induce their general to revolt4 ,then ,parthian ,vologaeses sees his chance2 declares war1 annihilates a ,roman army1 and overruns ,syria4 ,verus1 co-emperor by a certain too generous unwisdom that remains a kind of admirable fly in the ointment of the character of ,aurelius1 shows his mettle against the ,parthians1--taking his command as a chance for having a luxurious fling beyond the reach and supervision of his severe colleague2--and things would go ill indeed in the ,east but for ,avidius ,cassius1 ,verus' second in command4 ,this ,cassius returns victorious in #afe1 and brings in his wake disaster worse than any ,parthians3--after battle1 murder1 and sudden death come plague1 pestilence1 and famine4 ,in #aff the first of these latter three broke out1 devastated ,rome1 ,italy1 the empire in general2 famine followed2--it was thought the end of all things was at hand4 ,it was the first stroke of the cataclysm that sent ,rome down4 4 4 4 ,then came ,quadi and ,marcomans1 ,hun-impelled1 thundering on the doors of ,pannonia2 and for the next eleven years ,aurelius was busy fighting them4 ,then ,avidius ,cassius revolted in ,asia2--but was soon assassinated4 ,then the ,christians emerged from their obscurity1 preachers of what seemed anti-national doctrine2 and the wise and noble emperor found himself obliged to deal with them harshly4 ,he was wise and noble1--there is no impugning that2 and he did deal with them harshly3 we may regret it2 as he must have regretted it then4 ,so the reign marks a definite turning-point3 that at which the empire began to go down4 ,in it the three main causes of the ruin of the ancient world appeared3 the first of the pestilences that depopulated it2 the first incursion of the barbarians that broke it down from without2 the new religion that1 with its loyalty primarily to a church1 an imperium in imperior1 undermined ,roman patriotism from within4 ,nero's persecution of the ,christians had been on a different footing3 a madman's lust to be cruel1 the sensuality that finds satisfaction in watching torture3 there was neither statecraft nor religion in it2 but here the ,roman state saw itself threatened4 ,it was threatened2 but it is a pity ,aurelius could find no other way4 ,in himself he was the culmination of all the good that had been ,roman3 a ,stoic1 and the finest fruit of ,stoicism1--which was the finest fruit of philosophy unillumined 7as ,i think7 by the spiritual light of mysticism4 ,he practised all the virtues2 but 7perhaps7 we do not find in him that knowledge of the ,inner ,laws and ,worlds which alone can make practise of the virtues a saving energy in the life of nations1 and the imspiration of great ages and awakener of the hidden god in the creative imagination of man4 ,the burden of his ,meditations is self-mastery3 a reasoning of himself out of the power of the small and great annoyances of life2--this is to stand on the defensive2 but the spiritual ,world-,conqueror must march out1 and flash his conquering armies over all the continents of thought4 ,an underlying sadness is to be felt in ,aurelius's writings4 ,he lived greatly and nobly for a world he could not save444 that could not be saved1 so far as he knew4 ,he died in #ahj2 and another ,nero1 without ,nero's artistic instincts1 came to the throne in his son ,commodus2 pralaya1 military rule1 disruption1 had definitely set in4 ,now anciently a manvantara had begun in ,western ,asia somewhere about #ahij ,b4,c42 had lasted fifteen centuries1 as the wont of them appears to be2 and had given place to pralaya about #cij2 and that1 in turn1 was due to end in or about #bbj ,a4,d4 ,we should1 if we had confidence in these cycles1 look for what remained of the ,crest-,wave in ,europe to be wandering flickeringly eastward about this time4 ,hitherto it had been in two of the three world-centers of civilization3 in ,china and in ,europe2 now for a few centuries it was to be divided between three4--,i am irrigating the garden1 and get a fine flow from the faucet1 which gives me a sense of inward peace and satisfaction4 ,suddenly the fine flow diminishes to a miserable dribble1 and all my happiness is gone4 ,i look eastward1 to the next garden below on the slope2 and see my neighbors busy there3 their faucet has been turned on1 and is flowing royally2 and ,i know where the water is going4 ,the ,west-,asian faucet was due to be turned on in the two-twenties2 now watch the spray from the sprinklers in the ,chinese and ,roman gardens4 ,in those two-twenties we saw ,china split into three2 and it rather looked as if the manvantara had ended4 ,i shall not look at ,west ,asia yet1 but leave it for a future lecture4 ,but in ,europe1 with ,marcus ,aurelius died almost the last ,italian you could call a ,crest-,wave ,ego4 ,the cyclic forces1 outworn and old1 produced after that no order that you can go upon3 events followed each other higgledipiggledy and inertly2-- but it was the ,illyrian legions that put him on the throne4 ,note that ,illyria3 it is what we shall soon grow accustomed to calling ,jugoslavia4 ,severus's reign of eighteen years1 from #aic to #baa1 was the only strong one1 almost the only one not disgraceful1 until #bfh2 by which time the ,roman world was in anarchy1 split into dozens1 with emperors springing up like mushrooms everywhere4 ,then came a succession of strong soldiers who reestablished unity3 ,claudius ,gothicaus1 an ,illyrian peasant2 ,aurelian1 an ,illyrian peasant2 ,tacitus1 a ,roman senator1 for one year only2 ,probus1 an ,illyrian peasant2 ,caus1 an ,illyrian2 then the greatest of all statesmen since ,hadian1 who refounded the empire on a new plan1--the ,illyrian who began life as ,docles the slave1 rose to be ,diocles the soldier1 and finally1 in #bhd1 tiaraed ,diocletian reigning with all the pomp and mystery and magnificence of an ,eastern ,king of kings4 ,he it was who felt the cyclic flow1 and moved his capital to ,nicomedia1 which is about fifty miles south and east from ,constaintinople4 ,one can speak of no ,illyrian cycle2 rather only of the ,crest-,wave dropping a number of strong men there as it trailed eastward towards ,west ,asia4 ,the intellect of the empire1 in that third century1 and the spiritual force1 all incarnated in the ,roman ,west-,asian seats2 in ,egypt1 ,asia ,minor1 and ,syria1 as we shall see in a moment4 ,but you not how bueautifully orderly1 in a geographical sense1 are the movements of the ,wave in ,roman world and epoch3 beginning in ,italy in the first century ,b4,c42 going west to ,spain about ,a4,d4 #a1--;and to ,gaul too1 though there kindling chiefly material and industrial greatness2 passing through ,italy again in the late first and in the second century1 in the time of the ,glavians and the five ,good ,emperors2 then in the third like a swan flying eastward1 with one wing1 the material one1 stretched over ,illyria raising up mighty soldiers and administrators there1 and the other1 the spiritual wing1 over ,egypt1 there fanning 7as we shall see7 the fires of esotericism to flame4 ,for it was in that third century1 while disaster on disaster was engulfing the power and prestige of ,rome1 that the strongest spiritual movement of all the ,roman period came into being4 ,history would not take much note of the year in which a porter in ,alexandria was born2 so the birth-date of the man we come to now is unknown4 ,it would have been1 however1 not later than #ahj2 since he had among his pupils one man at least born not later than #ahe4 ,according to ,eusebius1 he was born a ,christian2 and ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky1 in ,the ,key to ,theosophy1 seems to accept1 or at least not to contradict1 this view4 ,i think she often did allow popular views on non-essentials to pass1 for lack of time and immediate need to contradict them4 ,but ,eusebius 7of who she has much to say1 and none of it complimentary to his truthfulness7 is1 ,i believe1 the sole authority for it2 and scholars since have found good reason for supposing that he was mixing this man with another of the same name1 who was a ,christian2 whereas 7it is thought7 this man was not4 ,be that as it may1 we know almost nothing about him2 except that he began life as a porter1 with the job of carrying goods in sacks2 whence he got the surname ,sakkophoros1 latter shortened to ,saccas2--from which you will have divined by this time that his personal name was ,ammonius4 ,we know also that early in the third century he had gathered disciples about him1 and was teaching them a doctrine he called ,theosophy2 very properly1 since it was and is the ,wisdom of the gods or divine ,wisdom4 ,an eclectic system1 as they say2 wherein the truths in all such philosophies and religions as come handy were fitted together and set forth4 ,but in truth all this was but the nexus of his teaching3 ,theosophy1 then as now1 is eclectic only in this sense3 that some truth out of it underlies all religions and systems2 which they derive from it1 and it from them nothing4 ,all through the long ,west-,asian pralaya1--,west-,asian includes ,egyptian1--the seeds of the ,esoteric ,wisdom remained in those parts2 they lacked vitalization1 because the world-currents were not playing there then2 but they survived in ,egypt from the ,egyptian ,mysteries of old2 and as in ,india you might have found men who knew about them1 but not how to use them for the uplifting of the world1--so doubtless you should have found such men in ,egypt during the ,ptolemaic and ,roman periods4 ,hence the statement of ,diogenes ,laertius1 that the ,theosophy of ,ammonius ,saccas originated with one ,pot ,ammun1 a priest of ,ptolemaic times3 who1 perhaps1 was one of those who transmitted the doctrine in secret4 ,the seeds were there1 then2 and how that the ,crest ,wave was coming back to ,west ,asia1 it was possible for ,ammonius to quicken them2 and this he did4 ,but it had not quite come back2 so he made nothing public4 ,he wrote nothing2 he had his circle of disciples1 and what he taught is to be know from them4 ,among them was ,origen1 who was born1 or became1 a ,christian2 but who introduced into1 or emphasized in1 his ,christianity much sound ,theosophical teaching2 very likely he was deputed to capture ,christianity1 or some part of it1 for truth4 ,here ,i may offer a little explanation of something that may have puzzled some of us3 it will be remembered that ,mr4 ,judge says somewhere that ,reincarnation was condemned by the ,council of ,constantinople2 and that in a series of learned articles which appeared in ,,the ,,theosophical ,,path recently1 the late ,rev4 ,s4,j4 ,neill contradicted this asserion4 ,the truth seems to be this3 ,origen taught1 if not ,reincarnation1 at least the pre-existence of souls2 and1 says the ,encyclopaedia ,britannica3 ,it is true that many scholars deny that ,origen read1 his teachings was condemned by this council of ,constantinople1 ,a4,d4 #eec2 but ,moller rightly holds that the condemnation is proved4 ,another pupil of ,ammonius was ,cassius ,longinus1 born in #bac at ,emessa 7,homs7 in ,asia ,minor4 ,later he taught ,platonism for thirty years at ,athens2 then in the two-sixties went east to the court of ,zenobia at ,palmyra1--whose brilliant empire1 though it fell before the ,illyrian ,aurelian1 was a sign in its time that the ,crest-,wave had come back to ,west ,asia4 ,longinus became her chief counselor2 it was by his advice that she resisted ,aurelian2--who pardoned the ,arab queen1 and1 after she had paraded ,rome in his triumph1 became very good friends with her2 but condemned her counselor to death4 ,but ,longinus ,i think had failed to follow in the paths laid down for him by his ,teacher3 we find him in disagreement with that ,teacher's successor4 ,who was ,plotinus1 born of ,roman parents at ,lycopolis in ,egypt4 ,it is from his writings we get the best account of ,ammonius' doctrine4 ,he was with the latter until #bdc2 then joined ,gordian ,,iii's expedition against ,persia1 with a view to studying ,persian and ,indian philosophies at their source4 ,but ,gordian was assassinated2 and ,plotinus1 after a stay at ,antioch1 made his way to ,rome and opened a school there4 ,this was in the so-called ,age of the ,thirty ,tyrants1 when the central government was at its weakest4 ,gallienus was emperor in ,rome1 and every province had an emperorlet of its own2--it was before the ,illyrian peasant-soldiers had set affairs on their feet again4 ,a lazy erratic creature1 this ,gallienus2 says ,gibbon3 ,in every art that he attempted his lively genius enable him to succeed2 and1 as his genius was destitute of judgement1 he attempted every art1 except the important ones of war and government4 ,he was master of several curious but useless sciences1 a ready orator1 an elegant poet1 a skilful gardener1 an excellent cook1 and a most contemptible prince4 ,yet he had a curious higher side to his nature1 wherewith he might have done much for humanity1--if he had ever bothered to bring it to the fore4 ,he1 and his wife1 were deeply interested in the teachings of ,plotinus4 ,such a man may sometimes be 'run1' and made the instrument of great accomplishment3 a morass through which here and there are solid footholds2 if you can find them1 you may reach firm ground1 but you must walk infinitely carefully4 ,it is the old tale of the ,prince with the dual nature1 and the ,initiate who tries to use him for the saving of the world1--and fails4 ,plotinus knew what he was about4 ,was it last week we were talking of the endless need of the ages3 a stronghold of the ,gods to be established in this world1 whence they might conduct their cyclic raidings8 ,what had ,pythagoras tried to do in his day8--,found a ,center of ,learning in the ,west1 in which the ,laws of ,life1 physical1 mental1 moral1 and spiritual1 should be taught4 ,he did found it1--at ,croton2 but ,croton was destroyed1 and all the history of the next seven centuries suffered from the destruction4 ,then--it was seven centuries after his death1-- ,ammonius ,saccas arose1 and started things again2 and left a successor who was able to carry them forward almost to the point where ,pythagoras left them4 ,for the fame of this ,neo-,platonic ,theosophy had traveled by this time right over the empire2 and ,plotinus in ,rome1 and in high favor with ,gallienus1 was a man on whom all eyes were turned4 ,he proposed to found a ,point ,loma in ,campania2 to be called ,platonopolis4 ,things were well in hand2 the emperor and empress were enthusiastic3--as your ,gallieneuses will be1 for quarter of an hour at a time1 over any high project4 ,but certain of his ministers were against it2 and he wobbled2 and delayed2 and thought of something else2 and hung fire2 and presently was killed4 ,and ,claudius1 the first of the ,illyrian emperors1 who succeeded him1 was much to busy defeating the ,goths to come to ,rome even1--much less could he pay attention to spiritual projects4 ,two years later ,plotinus died1 in #bgj2--;and the chance was not to come again for more than sixteen centuries4 ,but ,neo-,platonism was not done with yet1 by any means4 ,plotinus left a successor in his disciple ,porphyry1 born at ,tyre or at ,batanea in ,syria in #bcc4 ,you see they were all ,west ,asians1 at least by birth3 the first spiritual fruits of the ,crest-,wave's influx there4 ,porphyry's name was originally ,malchus 7the ,arabic ,malek1 meaning king72 but as a king was a wearer of the purple1 someone changed it for him to ,porphyry or ',purple4' ,in #bfb he went to ,rome to study under ,plotinus1 and was with him for six years2 then his health broke down1 and he retired to ,sicily to recover4 ,in #bgc he returned1--,plotinus had died three years before1 and opened a ,neo-,platonic ,school of his own4 ,he taught through the last quarter of that century1 while the ,illyrian emperors were smashing back invaders on the frontiers or upstart emperors in the provinces4 ,without imperial support1 no ,platonopolis could have been founded2 and there was no time for any of those ,illyrians to think of such things4--even if they had had it in them to do so1 as they had not3--witness ,aurelian's execution of ,longinus4 ,the time had gone by for that highest of all victories3 as it might have gone by in our own day1 but for events in ,chicago1 in ,february1 #ahih4 ,when ,porphyry died in #cjd1 he left a successor indeed2 but now one that did not concern himself with ,rome4 ,it was ,iamblichus1 born in the ,lebanon region2 we do not know in what year2 or much about him at all1 beyond that he was an aristocrat1 and well-to-do2 and that he conducted his ,theosophic activities mainly from his native city of ,chalcis4 he died between #ccj and #ccc2 thus through thirteen decades1 from the beginning of the third century1 these four great ,neo-,platonist ,adepts were teaching ,theosophy in the ,roman world2--,ammonius in ,egypt2 ,plotinus and ,porphyry1--the arm of the ,movement stretched westward to save1 if saved they might be1 the ,roman west ,europe1 --in ,rome itself2 then1 since that was not be done1 ,iamblichus in ,syria4 ,we hear of no man to be named as successor to ,iamblichus2 ,i imagine the great line of ,teachers came to an end with him4 ,yet1 as we shall see1 their impulse1 or movement1 or propaganda1 did not cease then3 it did not fail to reach an arm down into secular history1 and to light up one fiery dynamic soul on the ,imperial ,throne1 who did all that a ,god-ensouled ,man could do to save the dying ,roman world4 ,diocletian1 that great but quite unillumined pagan1 was dead2 the new order1 that subverted ,rome at last1 had been established by ,constantine2 and the ,house of ,constantine1 with all that it implied1 was in power4 ,but a year or two before the death of ,iamblichus it chanced that a ,great ,soul stole a march on the ,house of ,constantine1 and 7as you may say7 surreptitiously incarnated in it1 for the ,cause of the ,gods and ,sublime ,perfection4 ,and to him1 in his lonely and desolate youth1 kept in confinement or captivity by the ,christian on the throne1 came one ,maximus of ,smyrna1 a disciple of ,iamblichus2-- and lit in the soul of ,prince ,julian that divine knowledge of ,theosophy wherewith afterwards he made his splendid and tragic effort for ,heaven4 ,,xxii4 ,,eastward ,,ho6 ,the point we start out from this evening is1 in time1 the year #bbj ,a4,d41 in place1 ,west ,asia3 #bbj1 or you may call it #bbf1-- sixty-five years1 a half-cycle1 after #afa and the accession of ,marcus ,aurelius2 and therewith1 in ,rome1 the beginning of the seasons prophetic of decline4 ,so now we are in #bbf2 look well around you2 note your whereabouts2--for there is no resting here4 ,you have seen8 you have noted8 ,on again then1 ,i beseech you2 and speedily4 ,and1 please1 backwards3 playing as it were the crab in time2 and not content till the whole pralaya is skipped1 and you stand on the far shore1 in the sunset of an elder day3 looking now forward1 into futurity1 from #cij1 perhaps #cid ,b4,c42 over first a half-cycle of ,persian decline1--long melancholy sands and shingle1 to--there on the edge of the great wan water1--that ,july in #ccj when mean ,satrap ,bessus killed his king1 ,codomannus1 last of the ,achaemenidae1 then in flight from ,alexander2--and the ,house of ,cyrus and ,darius came to an end4 ,what a time it was that drifted into ,limbo then6 ,one unit of history2 one phase of the world's life-story6 ,it had seen all those world-shaking ,tiglath-pilesers eastward2 all those proud ,osirified kings by the ,nile2--and now it was over2 had died in its last stronghold1 ,persia1 and there was nowhere else for it to be reborn2 and1 after a decent half-cycle of lying in state under degenerate descendants of the great ,darius1 had been furied 7cataclysmal obsequies67 beneath a landslide of ,hellenistic ,macedonianism4 ,its old civilization1 senile long since1 was gone1 and a new kind from the west superimposed2--,babylon was a memory vague and splendid2--the ,assyrian had gone down1 and should never re-arise3--,egypt of the ,pharaohs had fallen forever and ever2--,aryan ,persia was over-run2-- ,iran indeed had gone1 with all his rose1 ,and ,jamshyd's seven-ringed cup1 where no one knows3 --,and the angel that recorded their deeds and misdeed had written ,tamam on the last page1 sprinkled sand over the ink1--shut the volume1 and put it away on the shelf2--and with a ,thank ,god that's done with6 settled down to snooze for six hundred years and ten4 ,for what had he to do with what followed8 ,with ,alexander's wedding-feast in #cbd1--when upwards of ten thousand couples1 the grooms all ,macedonian1 the brides all ,persian1 were united3 what had he to do with the new race young ,achilles ,redivivus thus proposed to bring into being8 ,these were mere ,macedonian doings1 to be recorded by his brother angel of ,europe2 as also were the death of ,alexander1 and his grand schemes that came to nothing4 ,there was no ,west ,asia now2 only ,europe3 all was ,european and ,hellenized to the borders of ,india1 with periodical overflowings beyond2--just as1 long afterwards1 ,spain was a province of ,west ,asia2 and just as ,egypt now is submerged under a ,european power4 ,only the trouble is that the seed of something native always remains in regions so overflowed with an alien culture2 and ,alexander dreamed never of what might lie quiescent1 resurrectable in time1 in the mountains of ,persis1 the ,achaemenian land1 out of the path of the eastward march of his phalanxes2--or indeed1 in those wide deserts southward1 parched ,araby1 that none but a fool--and such was not ,alexander--would trouble to invade or think of conquering3 something that should in its time reassert ,west ,asia over all ,hellenedom1 in ,macedonia itself1 and ,west beyond the ,pillars of ,hercules and the limits of the world4 ,but let that be3 it need trouble no one in this year of #cbd ,b4,c46 ,only remember that that which hath been shall be again1 and there is nothing new under the sun4 ,in this study of comparative history one finds after awhile that there are very few dates that count1 and they are very easy to keep in mind4 ,the same decades are important everywhere2 and this because humanity is one1 and however diversified on the outside1 inwardly all history is the history of the one ,host of ,souls4 ,take #cbj ,b4,c4 ,alexander is dead three years1 but the world is still vibrating with him4 ,chandragupta ,maurya has just started his dynasty and great age in ,india1 which is to last its thirteen decades until the neighborhood of #aij4 ,seleucus ,nicataor1 the only one of the ,macedonian diadochi who has not divorced his ,persian bride1 is about to set up for himself a sovereignty in ,babylon1--which ,scipio ,africanus1 thirteen decades afterwards1 struck from the list of the ,great ,powers when he defeated ,seleucus' descendant ,antiochus at ,magnesia1--in #aij again2 at which time the ,romans first broke into ,asia4 ,and it was in the one-nineties1 too1 that the second ,han ,emperor came to the ,dragon ,thone1 and the glorious age of the ,western ,hans began4 ,though the ,seleucidae possessed for some time a great part of ,darius ,hystaspes' empire1--and1 except ,egypt1 all the old imperial seats of the foregone manvantara1--they do not belong to ,west ,asia at all2 their history is not ,west-,asian1 but ,european2 they are a part of that manvantara whose forces were drifting ,west from ,greece to ,italy4 ,the history of all the ,macedonian kingdoms is profoundly uninteresting4 ,there was enough of ,greek in them to keep them polished2 enough of ,macedonian to keep them essentially barbarous2 they sopped up some of the effeteness of the civilizations they had displaced1 ,egyptian and ,asiatic2 but the souls of those old civilizations remained aloof4 ,there was mighty little ,egypt in the ,egypt of the ,ptolemies3 what memories and atmosphere of a grand antiquity survived1 hid in the crypts and pyramids2 all one saw was a sullen fanatic people scorning their conquerors4 ,so too in ,seleucus' ,babylon there was little evidence of the old ,childacan wisdom1 or the ,assyrian power1 or the pride and chivalry of the ,persian4 ,it was ,europe occupying ,west ,asia2 and not good ,europe at that2 and only able to do so 7as is always the case7 because the ,soul of ,west ,asia was temporarily absent4 ,the ,seleucidae maintained a mimic greatness in tinsels until #aij and ,scipio and ,magnesia2 then a mere rising-tide-lapped sand-castle of a kingdom until1 in #fd ,b4,c41 ,pompey made what remained of it a ,roman province1--just twice thirteen decades after the marriage-feast at ,babylon2 just when the great age of the ,western ,hans was ending1 and when ,augustus was thinking of being born1 and 7probably or possibly7 ,vikramaditya of starting up a splendor at ,ujjain4 ,what ,pompey took1--what remained for him to take1--consisted only of ,syria2 all the eastern part of the ,seleucid empire had gone long since4 ,in #bee ,diodotus1 the ,seleucid satrap of ,bactria1 rebelled and made himself a kingdom2 and that the kingdom might become an empire1 went further on the war-path4 ,on the eastern shores of the ,caspian he defeated one of the myriad nomad tribes of ,turanian stock that haunt those parts1--first cousins1 a few times removed perhaps1 to our friends the ,huns2 a few more times removed1 to that branch of their race that had1 so to say1 married above them and become thus a sort of poor relations to the aristocracy1--the ,ts'inners who were at that time finishing up their conquest of ,china4 ,thus while the far eastern branch of the family was prospering mightily1 the far western was getting into trouble3 ,i may mention that they were known1 these far westerners1 as the ,parni2 and that their chief had tickled his pride with assumption of the ,persian name of ,arsaces2--just as ,i dare say you should find various ,george ,washingtons and ,pompey the ,greats now swaying empire in the less explored parts of ,africa4 ,south of this ,parnian country lies what is now the province of ,khorasan1 mountainous2 then a ,seleucan satrapy known as ,parthia2--also inhabited by ,turanians1 but of a little more settled sort2 the satrap was ,andragoras1 who1 like ,diodotus in ,bactria 7only not quite so much so71 had made himself independent of the reigning ,antiochus 7,,ii74 ,with him ,arsaces found refuge after his defeat by ,diodotus1 and there spent the next seven years3--whether enjoying ,andragoras' hospitality1 or making trouble for him1 this deponent knoweth not4 ,in #bdh1 however1 he proceeeded to slay him and to reign in his stead4 ,two years later1 ,arsaces died1 and his brother ,tiridates succeeded him and carried on the good work2 he was driven out by ,seleucus ,,ii in #bch1 but returned to it when the latter was called westward by rebellions soon after4 ,thenceforward the ,parthian kingdom was1 as you might say1 a fact in nature2 though until a half-cycle had passed1 a small and unimportant one1 engaged mostly in reinvogorating the native ,turanianism of the ,parthians with fresh ,parnian importations from the northern steppes4 ,then1 in #agj1 ,mithradates ,i came to the throne1 and seriously founded an empire4 ,he fought ,eucratidas of ,bactria1 and won some territory from him4 ,he fought eastward as far as to the ,indus2 then conquered ,meida and ,babylonia in the west4 ,in #abi ,demetrius ,,ii ,nicator1 the reigning ,seleucid1 attacked ,mithradates' son1 ,phraates ,,ii1 and was defeated2 and the lands east of the ,euphrates definitely passed from ,seleucid to ,parthian control4 ,why not1 then1 count as manvantaric doings in ,west ,asia this rise of the ,parthians to power8 ,why relegate them and their activities to the dimness of pralaya8 ,says the ,encyclopaedia ,britannica3 ,the ,parthian ,empire as founded by the conquests of ,mithradates ,i and restored1 once by ,mithradates ,,ii 7the ,great1 c4 #abd to #hh ,b4,c471 and again by ,phraates ,,ii 7,b4,c4 #gf to #gj71 was1 to all exterior appearances1 a continuation of the ,achaemenid dominion4 ,thus the ,arsacids now began to assume the old title ',king of kings' 7the shahanshah of modern ,persia71 though previously their coins as a rule had borne only the legend 'great king4' ,the official version preserved by ,arrian in his ,parthica1 derives the line of ,these ,parnian nomads from the ,achaemenian ,artaxerxes ,,ii4 ,in reality however the ,parthian empire was totally different from its predecessor1 both externally and internally4 ,it was anything rather than a world empire4 ,the countries west of the ,euphrates never owned its dominion1 and even of ,iran itself not one half was subject to the ,arsacids4 ,there were indeed vassal states on every hand1 but the actual possessions of the kings--the provinces governed by their satraps--consisted of a rather narrow strip of land stretching from the ,euphrates and north ,babylonia through southern ,media and ,parthia as far as north-western ,afghanistan444 ,round these provinces lay a ring of minor states which as a rule were dependent on the ,arsacids4 ,they might1 however1 partially transfer their allegiance on the rise of a new power 7e4g4 ,tigranes in ,armenia7 or a ,roman invasion4 ,thus it is not without justice that the ,arsacid period is described1 in the later ,persian and ,arabian tadition1 as the period of the 'kings of the part-kingdoms'--among which the ,ashkanians 7i4e4 the ,arsacids7 had won the first place4444 ,it may appear surprising that the ,aracids made no attempt to incorporate the minor states in the empire and create a great and united dominion1 such as existed under the ,achaemenids and was afterwards restored by the ,sassanians4 ,this fact is the clearest symptom of the weakness of their empire and of the small power wielded by their ,king of kings4 ,in contrast alike with its predecessors and successors the ,arsacid dominion was peculiarly a chance formation--a state which had come into existence through fortuitous external circumstances1 and had no firm foundation within itself1 or any intrinsic raison d'etre4 ,a ,turanian domination over ,iran1 it had leave to exist only because the time was pralaya4 ,when a man dies1 life does not depart from his body2 but only that which sways and organizes life2 then life1 ungoverned and disorganized1 takes hold and riots4 ,so with the seats of civilization4 ,one generally finds that at such times some foreign power receives1 as we are getting to say1 a mandate 7but from the ,law7 to run these dead or sleeping or disorganized regions1--until such time as they come to life again1 and proceed to evict the mandataries4--,as well to remember this1 now that we are proposing1 upon a brain-mind scheme1 to arrange for ourselves what formerly the ,law saw to3-- the nations that are now to be great and proud manditaries1 shall sometime themselves be mandataried2 and those that are mandataried now1 shall then arrange their fate for them2 there is no help for it3 you cannot catch ,spring in a trap1 or cage up ,summer lest he go4--,it seems now we must believe in a new doctrine3 that certain ',nordics' are the ,superior ,race1 and you must be blue-eyed and large and blond1 or you shall never pass ,peter's wicket4 ,one of these days we shall have some learned ingenious ,hottentot arising1 to convince us poor others of the innate superiority of ,hottentottendom1 and that we had better bow down6 4 4 4 ,but to return3 ,the ,parthians remained little more than ,central-,asian nomads3 something between the ,huns who destroved civilization1 and the ,turks who cultivated it for all they were worth 7in a ,central ,asian-nomad sort of way74 ,all their magnates were ,turanian2 they retained a taste for tent-life2 their army and fighting tactics where of the desert-horseman type3 mounted bowmen1 charging and shooting1 wheeling and scattering in flight1--which put not your trust in1 or 'ware the ,parthian shot4 ,they were not armed for close combat2 and were quite defenseless in winter1 when the weather slackened their bow-string4 ,true1 ,aryan ,iran put its impress on them3 so that presently their kings wore long beards in the ,achaemenian fashion1 made for themselves an ,achaemenian descent1 called themselves by ,achaemenian names4 ,they took on1 too1 the ,achaemenian religion of ,zoroaster3--so1 but much more earnestly and adventurously and opera-bouffe grimly4 ,ts'in ,shi ,hwangti took on the quest of ,tao4 ,there was also a stratum of ,hellenistic culture in their domains1 and they took on something of that4 ,when they conquered ,babylonia1 it was inevitable that they should move their headquarters down into that richest and most thickly-populated part of their realm--to ,seleucia1 the natural capital1 one might suppos8--a huge ,hellenistic city well organized for world-commerce4--,but let these nomad kings come into it with their horde1 and what would become of the ordered civic life8 ,nomads do not take well to life in great cities2 they love the openness of their everlasting plains1 and the narrrow streets and high buildings irk their sensibilities4 ,for this reason1 and perhaps because they recognised their deficienceies1 they shunned ,seleucia2 and built themselves lumbering straggling gawky ,ctesiphon across the ,tigris to be their chief capital2--for they had many2 not abiding to be long in one place1 but gadding about as of old4 ,still1 ,greek culture was not to be denied4 ,they coined money1 copying the inscriptions on the coins of the ,seleucids1 and copyting them ever worse and worse4 ,not until after #gg ,a4,d41 and then only occasionally1 do ,parthian coins bear inscriptions in ,aramaic4 ,yet sometimes we hear of their being touched more deeply with ,greekness4 ,orodes ,i1--he who defeated ,crassus1-- spoke good ,greek1 and ,greek tragedies were played at his court4-- ,as with nomads generally1 it was always easy for a ,parthian king to shark up a great army and achieve a striking victory2 but as a rule impossible to keep the horde so sharked up thogether for solid conquests2 and above all1 it was impossible to organize anything4 ,but they played their part in history3 striking down to cut off the flow of ,greek culture eastward4 ,it had gone1 upon ,alexander's impulse1 up into ,afghanistan and down into ,india2 may even have touched ,han ,china1--probably did4 ,i do not suppose that the touch could have done anything but good in ,india and ,china2 where culture was well-established1 older1 and in all essentials higher1 than in ,greece4 ,but in ,persia itself the case was different4 ,persia was under pralaya1 in retreat among its original mountains2 and submergence under ,hellenisticism might have meant for its oblivion of its own native ,persianism4 ,consder3 of the two great centers of ,west-,asian culture1 ,egypt fell under ,greek1 and then under ,roman1 dominion2 and the old ,egyptian civilization became1 so far as we can tell1 utterly a thing of the past4 ,when ,egypt rose again1 under the ,esotericist ,sultans of the tenth century ,a4,d41 ,i dare not quite say that her new glory was linked by nothing whaterver to the ancient glory of the ,pharaohs2 but that would be the general--as it is the obvious--view4 ,fallen into pralaya1 she had no positive strength of her own to oppose to the active manvantaric influence of ,greekism under the ,ptolemies2 and in ,roman days it was her imported ,greekism that she opposed to the ,romans1 not her own old and submerged ,khemism4 ,her soul was buried very deep indeed1 if it remained with her at all4 ,in ,persia1 on the other hand1 ,west ,asia retained much more clearly its cultural identity4 ,persianism was submerged for about thirteen decades under the ,seleucids2 then the ,parthians cut in1 and the drowning waters were drained away4 ,the ,parthians had no superior culture to impose on the ,persians2 whereas the ,greeks had1--because theirs was active and in manvantara1 while that of the ,persians themselves was negative1 because in pralaya4 ,one might say roughly that a nation under the dominance of a people more highly or actively cultured than itself1 tends to lose the integrity of its own culture1--as has happened in ,ireland and ,wales under ,english rule3--they take on1 not advantageously1 an imitation of the culture of their rulers4 ,but under the dominance of a stronger1 but less advanced1 people1 they tend to seek refuge the more keenly in their own cultural sources3 as the ,finns and ,poles have done under the ,russians4 ,this explains in part the difference between ,egypt and ,persia it the dawn of the new ,west-,asian manvantara4 ,we have seen that in the former the seeds were ready to sprout1 and did1--in ,ammonius ,saccas and his movement4 ,they were ,egyptian seeds2 but the soil and fertilizers were so ,greek that the blossom when it appeared seemed not ,egyptian1 not ,west-,asian1 but ,neo-,greek2 and turned not to the rising1 but to the setting sun4 ,the new growth affiliated itself to the ,european manvantara that was passing1 not to the ,west-,asian one that was to begin4 ,persia was in a different position4 ,certain events went to quicken the ,persian seed within the ,parthian empire4 ,one was the rise of the ,yueh ,chi4 ,during the period between the end of the brilliance of the ,western1 and the beginning of that of the ,eastern ,hans1 these people were consolidating an empire in ,northern ,india1 and figuring there as the ,kushan ,dynasty3 their power culminated1 probably1 in the reign of ,kanishka4 ,they had wrested from the ,parthians some of their eastern provinces2--really1 the overlordship of these rather than the sovereignty1 for the ,parthians held all things lightly except the ground they happened to be camping on2 and this made a change in the center of ,parthian gravity which was of enormous help to the ,persians4 ,the heart of ,persiandom was the province of ,fars or ,persis1 the mountain-land lying to the east of the ,persian ,gulf1 and between it and the ,great ,persian ,desert4 ,mesopotamia1 where were ,ctesiphon1 the ,parthian's chief capital1 and ,seleucia1 their greatest city1--the richest and most populated part of their empire1 stretches northward from the very top of the gulf1 a long way from ,fars2 and the main routes eastward from ,mesopotamia run well to the north of the latter avoiding its mountains and desert beyond4 ,so this province is remote1 and well calculated to maintain appreciable independence of any empire not born in itself4 ,the ,parthian writ had never run there much2 nor had the ,median in the days when the ,medes were in power2 though of that empire1 as of the ,parthian1 it had been more or less nominally a dependent province4 ,it was from these mountains that a chieftain came1 in the five-fifties ,b4,c41 to over turn ,astyages the ,mede's sovereignty1 and replace it with his own ,achaemenian ,persian2 and to take ,persianism out of mountain ,fars1 and spread it over all ,west ,asia4 ,back to ,fars1 when the ,achaemenians fell1 that ,persianism receded2 there to maintain itself unimportantly aloof through the ,seleucid and ,arsacid ages2 probably never very seriously menaced by ,greekism1 even in ,seleucid times1 because so remote from the routes of trade and armies4 ,the conquests of the ,yueh ,chi put ,fars still nearer the circumference of ,parthia3 threw the center of that more definitely into ,mesopotamia1 and closed the avenues eastward4 ,the change made ,fars the more conscious of herself4 ,but there were ,persians all over the ,parthian domain2 and had been ever since they first went down out of their mountains under ,cyhrus to conquer4 ,it was in accordance with what ,i may call the ,law of ,cyclic ,backwashes1 that the rise of ,yueh ,chi should have stirred up ,persian feeling in them everywhere4 ,thus3 the impulse of ,han ,wuti's westward activities passed as a quickening into the ,yueh ,chi2 and on from them1 not into the ,parthians1 who were but an unreality and mirage of empire1 but into these ,persians1 the true possessors of the land whose turn it was to be quickened4 ,they began remembering1 now1 their ancient greatness2 and turning their eyes to their still half-independent ancestral mountains1 whence--dared they hope it8--another ,cyrus might appear4 ,then came another psychic impulse1 from the west3 when ,trajan's eastward victories shook the ,parthian power again4 ,then1--you will remember how the ,roman world was shaken at the time of ,marcus ,aurelius' accession3 how ,vologaeses seized the opportunity to attack2 how ,verus the co-emperor went against him1 and made a mess of things2 how ,avidius ,casius 7who brought back the plague to ,rome7 saved the situation4 ,in doing so1 he conferred unwittingly untold benefits on the ,persian subjects of ,parthia4 ,he destroyed ,seleucia as a punitive measure4 ,now ,seleucia had been the cultureal capital of the ,parthian empire2 and it was a ,greek city4 ,its culture was ,greek2 and ,greek culture had ever been1 for ,persianism1 a graver danger and more present check than ,parthian ignorance2 or it submerged and abashed1 where the other only ignore1 the ,persian spirit4 ,so when ,seleucia was wiped out1 in #afe1 the chief and real enemy of the ,national ,soul had vanished4 ,the ,persians might no longer look to ,hellenism for their cultural inspiration2 might no more set up ,its light against the ,parthian darkness2 they must find a light instead proper to their own souls2--and must look towards mountain ,fars to find it4 ,within a half-cycle they were up4 ,they were due to be up1 as you will remember1 in the two-twenties3 the decade in which we saw the stream in ,china1 as in ,rome1 diminish4 ,troubles had begun in ,rome in #afb1 the second year of ,aurelisus4 #afb plus #fe are #bbg4 ,in #bbg ,persia rose and ,parthia vanished4 ,in the second century ,a4,d4 there had been a man in ,fars named ,papak the son of ,sassan1 who took as his motto the well-known lines from ,marlowe3 ,is it not passing brave to be a king ,and ride in triumph through ,persepolis8 --,persepolis1 indeed1 was gone1 and only its vast and pillared ruins remained in the wilderness2 but near by the town of ,istakhr had grown up1 to be what ,persepolis had been in the old ,achaemenian days1--the heart and center of ,fars1 which is spiritually1 the heart and center of all ,iran4 ,papak thought he would make ,istakhr serve his purpose2 and did2--and reigned there in due course without ever a ,parthian to say him nay4 ,in #bab he died2 and what he had been and desired to be1 that his son ,ardashir would be in turn1 and much more also4 ,this ,ardashir was very busy remembering the story of the ,achaemenidae3 men1 like himself1 of ,fars2 men1 like himself1 of the ,one and ,only ,true ,religion3 but further1 conquerors of the world and ,kings of the kings of ,iran and ,turan4 ,and if they1 why not he8--,so he goes to it1 and from king of ,istakhr becomes king of ,fars2 and then unobtrusively takes in ,karmania eastward2--until news of his doings comes to the ears of his suzerain ,artabanus ,king of ,parthis1 who does not like it4 ,artabanus has recently 7#bag7 received in indemnity a matter of seven and a half million dollars from a well-whipped ,roman emperor2 and is not prepared to see his own uderlings give themselves airs2--so whistles up his horde of cavalry1 and marches south and east to settle things4 ,three battles1 and the ,parthian empire is a thing of the past2 and ,ardashir 7which is ,artaxerxes7 the son of ,papak the son of ,sassan sits in the great seat of the ,achaemenidae4 ,now this is the key to all the history of the west in those times2 and we may include ,west ,asia in the west3--the world was going down1 and each new phase of civilization was something worse than the one before4 ,i cannot but see degeneracy1 and with every age a step further from ancient truth3 ,rome with less light than ,greece2 the ,sassanians a feebble copy of the ,achaemenians3--knowledge of the ,realities receding ever into the past4 ,a new spirit had been coming in since the beginning of the ,christian era1 or since the living flame of the last-surviving ,mysteries was quenched4 ,it is one we are but painfully struggling away from now2 it has tainted all life west of ,china since4 ,china1 with her satellite nations1 alone in the main escaped it3 ,i mean1 the spirit of religious intolerance4 ,the odium of introducing it belongs not 7as you might think7 to one particular religious body1 but to the evil in humanlty2 on which1 since the ,mysteries were destroyed1 there had been no effective check4 ,the corner-stone of true religion is the ,divine ,spirit omnipresent in ,nature2 the ,divine ,soul in ,man4 ,as well forbid the rest of men to breathe the air you breathe1 or walk under your private stretches of sky1 as try to peg yourself out a special claim in these6 ,you cannot do it1 and the first instinct of man should be that you cannot do it4 ,but lose sight of these ,divine ,things2 lose the sense that perceives them1 their essential universality1 their inevitable universality2--and where are you8 ,what are you to do about the inner life8--,why1 for lack of reality1 you shall take a sham3 you shall hatch up some formula of words2 or better still1 take the formula already hatched that comes handiest2 call it your creed or confession of faith2 fix your belief on that1 as supreme and infallible1 the sure and certain key to the mysteries within and around you2-- then you may cease to think of those mysteries altogether2 the word-formula will be enough2 it is that1 not thought1 not action1 that saves4 ,i believe in--such and such an arrangement of consonants and vowels2--and therefore ,i am saved1 and highly superior2 and you1 poor reptile1 who possess not this arrangement1 but some other and totally false one2--you1 thank ,god1 are damned4 ,you are lost2 you shall go to hell2 ,i scorn and look down on you from the heights of the special favor of the ,maker of the ,stars and ,suns3 as if ,i lay already snug in ,abraham's bosom1 and watched you parched and howling4--,the ,mysteries were gone2 there was no ,center of ,light in the ,west1 from which the thought-essence of common sense might seep out purifying year by year into men's minds2 ,theosophy the grand antiseptic was not2 so such tomfoolery as this came in to take its place4 ,you must react to this from indifference1 and to indifference from this2--two poles of inner darkness1 and wretched unthinking humanity wobbling between them2--so long as you have no ,light4 ,what then is the ,light8--,why1 simply something you cannot confine in a church or bottle in a creed3 and this is a proposition that needs no proving at all1 because it is self-evident4 ,there was a fellow in ,english ,wiltshire once1 they say1 who planted a hedge about his field to keep in the cuckoo from her annual migration4 ,the spirit of ,cuckoo-hedging came in1 in the first centuries ,a4 ,d4 ,it was totally unknown to the ,roman polity4 ,whatever inner things any man or nation chose to bear witness to1 said the ,roman state1 were to be supposed to exist2 and might be proclaimed1 were they not subversive of the public order1 for the benefit of any that needed them4 ,there were two exceptions3 ,druidism2 we have glanced at a possible reason why it was proscribed in ,gaul by ,augustus2 another reason may been that the ,druids clung to the memories of ,celtic--and so anti-,roman--great things forelost4 ,the other exception was the first historical world-religion that proclaimed the doctrine1--,believe or be damned6 ,over the portals of the first century ,a4,d41 says ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky1 the words the ,karma of ,israel are written4 ,judaism had never tried to impress itself on the world1 as the religion that was born from it did4--,it is rarely that one finds sane views taken as to ,jewish history2 it is a history1 and a race1 that provoke extreme feelings4 ,a small people1 originally exiled from ,india1 that had had eight thousand years of vicissitudes since2 sometimes1 it is necessary to think1 high fortunes2--no doubt an age of splendor once under their great king ,solomon1 or some one else for whom the traditional ,solomon stands2 oftenest1 perhaps1 subjected to their powerful neighbors in ,egypt1 ,babylon1 or ,assyria1 and latterly ,rome3 you may say that no doubt they were in the long run no better and no worse than the rest of mankind4 ,they had great qualities1 and the failings correspondent4 ,they had1 like all other races1 their champions of the ,light1 their ,prophets and wise ,rabbis2 and in ages of darkness their stiff necked fierce materialism incased in dogma and inthroned in high places in the national religion4 ,their history has been lifted to a bad eminence1--bad for them and the rest of us1--by the ignorance of the last two millenniums2 in reality1 that history1 sanely understood1 and not gathered too much from their own records1 amply explains their failings and their virtues1 and should leave us not unduly admiring1 nor unfraternally the reverse4 ,they were human2 which means1 subject to human duality1 to cycles of light1 and cycles of darkness4 ,the centuries after the sixth ,b4,c4 were1 as we have seen1 a cycle of growing darkness for most of the world4 ,the position of the ,jews1 a small people surrounded by great ones1 and therefore always liable to be trampled on1 had intensified their national feeling to an extraordinary pitch2 and their religion was the one lasting bond of their nationality4 ,so1 at the beginning of the ,christian era1 they were notoriously the most difficult people to govern in the ,roman world4 ,the passing of the ,egyptian ,mysteries had left those ,egyptians who still were ,egyptian sullenly fanatical2 but the reaction from ancient greatness kept that fanaticism aloof1--the energies were dormant3 ,egypt1 thoroughly conquered1 turned her face from the world1 and hoped for nothing4 ,but the ,jews maintained an inextinguishable hope2 they nourished on it a fighting spirit which entered fiercely into the religion that was for them the one and only truth1 and that lifted them in their own estimation high above the rest of mankind4 ,romans and ,egyptians alike worshiped the ,gods1 though they called them by different names2 but the ,jews abhorred the ,gods4 ,the ,maker of ,sirius and ,canopus and the far limits of the galaxy was a good ,jew like themselves1 their peculiar property2 ,he had his earthly headquarters in ,jerusalem2 spoke1 ,i suppose1 only ,hebrew1 and considered other languages gibberish2 of all this earth1 was only interested in a tiny corner at the south-east end of the ,mediterrancan2 and of all the millions of humanity only in the million or two of his ,chosen ,people4 ,i say at once that1 considering their history1 and the universal decline of the ,mysteries1 and the gathering darkness of the age1 there is nothing surprising in their attitude4 ,much oppression1 many conquests1--never accepted by themselves1--had driven them in on themselves and kept their racial self-consciousness at a perpetual boiling-point2 and it all went into their religion1 which compensated them with unearthly dignities for the indignities they suffered on earth 4444 them4444 the ,chosen ,people of the ,lord6 ,it bred in them scorn of the ,gentiles1 for which there was no solvent in the ,roman polity1 the ,roman citizenship1 the ,roman peace4--,there must have been always noble protest-ants among them4 ,the common people1--as the picture in the ,gospels shows1--were ready enough to fraternize humanly with ,gentiles and ,romans2 but the fact remains that at the time ,judaism gave birth to ,christianity1 this narrow fierce antagonism to all other religions was the official attitude of the ,jewish church4 ,it was1 perhaps1 the darkest moment in ,jewish spiritual history2 and it was the moment chosen by a ,teacher as that in which he should be born a ,jew4 ,the story in the ,gospels cannot1 ,i suppose1 be taken as au pied de lettre historical2 but no doubt it gives a general picture which is true enough4 ,and the picture it gives shows the ,jewish proletariat in very favorable contrast with the officials heads of the church and state4 ,they1 the common people1 received the ,teacher well2 to them1 he was a gracious figure whom they came in multitudes to hear4 ,he was in fierce opposition to the hierarchic aristocracy1--the scribes and ,pharisees1 hypocrites1 as he called them3 the body that nourished the tradition of exclusiveness and intolerance4 ,he preached pure ethics to the people1 and they loved him for it4 ,he gathered round him disciples1--men eager to learn from him that which it would have been ridiculous to have tried to teach the mob3 the ,secret ,wisdom1 without which to keep them sweet1 ethics become sentimentalism1 and philosophy a cold corpse4 ,it is a law in the ,schools of this ,wisdom that seven years of training are necessary before the disciple can reach that grade of insight and self-mastery which will enable him in turn to become a ,teacher3 seven years at the very least4 ,within four years of the beginning of his mission1 before1 in the nature of things1 one single disciple could have been more than half-trained1 the hierarchic aristrocracy had had this ,teacher crucified4 ,who1 then1 was to transmit his doctrine8 he wrote nothing of it down2 in the truest sense it never can be written down3 had never had time to teach it2 from any writings whatsoever each student can only gain the nexus of what he is to learn from life2 for teaching does not mean giving dissertations1 arguments1 proofs2 enunciating principles1 and explaining them1 or the like4 ,it means1 so far as one dare try to express it1 bringing such experiences to bear on the lives of those who are to be taught1 as shall awaken their own inner perceptions to truth4 ,so this ,man's doctrine was never transmitted4 ,his disciples1 good and earnest men1 as we may imagine1 had not the weapons spiritual wherewith to wage effective warfare for the ,light4 ,supposing ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky had died in #ahgi44448 ,the next step was1 the inevitable materialization of the whole movement4 ,it followed the course all such movements must follow1 that are without spiritual leadership at the head1 spiritual wisdom at the core4 ,it reacted against the exclusiveness of ,judaism1--and at the same time inherited it4 ,feelings of that sort lie far deeper than the articles of belief2 a change of creed will not remove them2 it needs special1 defined1 and herculean efforts to remove them4 ,you might1 for example1 react from a bigoted creed to one whose sole proclaimed article was universal toleration1 and become a fierce bigot in that1--for the creed1 not the idea2 because creeds always obscure ideas3 when a creed is formulated1 it means that ideas are shelved4 ,so now ,chrisitianity inherited the ,chosen ,people dogma1 but transferred it from a racial-ecclesiastical to a wholly ecclesiastical basis2 and1 since every ,teacher comes upon a cyclic impusle outward1 took on a missionary spirit4 ,the ,chosen ,people now were the members of the church1 who might belong to any race4 ,within that churchly pale you were saved2 you were a special protege of the ,maker of ,sirius and ,canopus and the far limits of the galaxy2 who had--for a dogma had to be invented to explain the untimely disastrous death of the ,teacher1--incarnated and been crucified in ,judea4 ,outside that pale you were damned1--from ,caesar on his throne to the smallest newsboy yelling false news in the ,forum4 ,while such a spirit had been confined to the ,jews1 it had been comparatively harmless2 now it was spreading broadcast through the ,roman world1 an entirely new thing1 and the darkest and most ominous yet4 ,whom1 then1 shall we blame8 ,these sectarians8--,no3 to understand is to forgo the imagined right apportioning blame4 ,it was that humanity had entered on a dark region in time3 a region whose terrors had not been forefended2 to be entered perforce by a humanity1 or section of humanity1 that had no ,center of ,light established in its midst4 ,had ,croton of ,pythagoras survived2 or the ,mysteries at ,gaulish ,bibracte3 had there been but one firm foothold for the ,lodge in the world of men2--,i think none of these things could have come about2 and that for the same reason that you cannot have total darkness in a room in which a lamp is lighted4 ,but this darkness was total3 intolerance is the negation of spiritual light4 ,of all the various movements in the ,roman world that had not actual members of the ,lodge behind and moving them1 ,christianity had the greatest impetus2 and it was the one that first entered into this murk and deadly gloom4 ,so that it may seem1 to an impartial but not too deeply-seeing eye1 as if it were ,christianity that invented the gloom4 ,not so2 nor ,judaism neither2 nor any ,christians nor ,jews4 ,it was the men who burned ,croton2 the man who killed the ,mysteries in ,gaul4 ,for every disaster there are causes far and far back4 ,christianity had spread1 by this third century1 perhaps as much through the ,parthian empire as through the ,roman4 ,the ,zoroastrians had been as tolerant as the ,romans2 much more so to ,christianity2--though the motive of their toleration had been pure indifference to everything religious2 whereas in ,rome there was statesmanship and wisdom behind theirs4 ,the ,persians reacted against ,parthianism in all its manifestations4 ,they were shocked at ,parthian indifference4 ,the ,persian is as naturally religious as the ,hindoo3 and has the virtues and vices of the religious temperament4 ,the virtues are a tendency to mysticism1 a need to concern oneself with the unseen2 the vices1 a non-immunity to fanaticism and bigotry4 ,they came down now from their mountains determined to combat the slackness2 the indifference1 the materialism of the world4 ,the virus of intolerance was in the air1--a spirit like the germ of plague or any epidemic2 one religion catches it from another4 ,let it be about1 and you are in danger of catching it1 unless your faith is based on actual inner enlightenment1 and not faith at all1 but knowledge2 or unless you have a ,teacher so enlightened to adjust you1 and keep you too busy to catch it2--or unless you are totally heedless of the unseen4 ,the ,persians were not indifferent1 but very much in earnest2 and they had no knowledge1 but only faith3 so they stood in peculiar danger4 ,and presently a ,teacher came to them1 and they rejected him4 ,his name was ,mani2 he was born in ,ctesiphon1 of noble ,persian family1 probably in #bae2 and came forward as a ,teacher 7according to the ,mohammedan tradition1 which is the most trustworthy7 at the coronation of ,sapor ,i1 ,ardashir's successor1 in #bdb4 ,sapor at first was disposed to hear him2 but the ,magi moved heaven and earth to change that disposition4 ,ardashir had bound church and state together in the closest union3 no worship but the ,zoroastrian was allowed in his dominions4 ,this was mainly aimed at the ,christians1 and must have caused them much discomfort4 ,but ,mani1 it would seem1 rose against all this narrow-ness4 ,it has been said that he taught ,reincarnation1 and again denied2--this much he taught certainly1--that all religions are founded on one body of truth4 ,he drew his own doctrine from ,zoroistrianism1 ,christianity 7chiefly ,gnostic71 and ,buddhism2 taking from each what he found to be true4 ,manichaeism spread quickly1 through the ,roman world as well as through ,persia2 in the former it replaced ,mithraism1 another ,persian growth1 that had come to be preeminently the religion of the ,roman soldier4 ,sapor looked on him favorably2 ,hormizd1 the heir apparent1 was more or less a disciple2 but the ,magi agitated4 ,they arranged a great debate before the king1 and therein convinced him2 persuaded him1 at least1 to withdraw from the ,teacher the light of his countenance2--and ,mani found it expedient1 or perhaps was compelled1 to go into exile4 ,in ,china2 where the fimily of the ,ts'ao ,ts'ao who expelled the ,eastern ,hans1 was reigning as the ,house of ,wei in the north4 ,there ,mani busied himself1 less in teaching his religion than in studying ,chinese civilization1-- especially its arts and crafts1 and most of all1 carpet-weaving4 ,presently he ventured back to ,persia1 with a large knowledge of ,chinese methods and a large collection of specimens2--with which he gave a new impetus to ,persian art and manufactures4 ,hormizd came to the throne in #bga1 and befriended him and his doctrine2 but reigned only a single year4 ,his successor ,bahram ,i in the name of ,zoroastrianism had him flayed and crucified4 ,so ,sassanian history is1 on the whole1 uninteresting4 ,their culture stood for no great ideas2 only for a narrow persecuting church4 ,west ,asia was not ready yet for great and world-important doings2 it must wait for these till ,mohammed1 who struck into the very least promising quarter of it1 and kindled in the barbarous wilderness a light to redeem the civilization of the western world4 ,i shall hardly have to turn to the ,sassanians again2 so will say here what is to be said4 ,we have seen that their empire was quite unlike the ,parthian2 it was a reversion to1 and copy in small of1 the ,achaemenian of ,cyrus and ,darius4 ,it never attained the size of that2 and only late in its existence1 and to a small degree1 overflowed the ,parthian limits4 ,but it was a well-organized state1 with a culture of its own2 and enough military power to stand throughout its existence the serious rival of ,rome4 ,its arts and crafts became famous1 --thanks largely to ,mani2 in architecture it revived the ,achaemenian tradition1 with modifications of its own2 and passed the result on to the ,arabs when they rose1 to be the basis of the ,saracenic ,style4 ,there was a fairly extensive literature3 largely religious1 but with much also in belles lettres1 re-tellings of the old ,iranian sagas1 and the like4 ,its history is mainly the record of gigantic wars with ,rome2 these were diversified later by tussles with the ,turks1 ,ephthalites or ,white ,huns1 et hoc genus omne4 ,its whole period of existence lasted from #bbg to #fcg2 #daj years2--which we may compare with the #dbf of the ,hans1 and the ,roman #dbd from the accession of ,augustus to the final division of the empire4 ,of its cycles1 there is a little information forthcoming2 but we may say this3 ,sapor ,i came to the throne in #bda1 succeeding his father ,ardashir2 he had on the whole a broad outlook2 favored ,mani at first2 was at pains to bring in teachers of civilization from all possible sources2--with his reign the renaissance of the arts and learning1 such as it was1--and it was by no means contemptible1-- began4 ,three times thirteen decades from that1 and we are at #fca4 ,the thirteen decades 7less a year7 from #dii to #fbh are mainly filled with the reigns of ,kavadh ,i and the two ,chosroeses1-- ,kai-,kobad the great and ,kai-,khusru1 --all three strong kings and conquerors4 ,when ,chosroes ,,ii was killed in #fbh1 after a war with ,heraclius that began brilliantly and ended in disaster1--the empire practically fell3 split up under several pretenders1 to be an easy prey for the ,moslems a few years later4 ,was the whole ,sassanian period divisible into a day1 a night1 and a day8 ,information is not at hand whereby one might gauge the life of the people1 and say4 ,the last thirteen decades1 certainly1 seem to have left their mark as an age of glory on the ,persian imagination1 and to have been remembered as such in the days of ,omar ,khayyam4--,and here we must leave the ,sassanians1 having other fish to fry4 ,we saw the ,crest-,wave strike ,rome 7at ,nerva's accession7 in #if2 then1 #aca years later1 raise up ,ardashir and ,persia in #bbg2 --and so1 ,i suppose1 should incline to look east again1 and jump another thirteen decades1 and land in ,india1 in #ceg or thereabouts1--praying ,god to keep us from a bad fall4 ,india ,i allow2 but look before you leap2--or1 if you will1 in mid-air turn over in your minds the old ,indian cycles1 as far as you know them1 and see if they offer you any prospect of a landing-place4 ,as thus3 there were the ,mauryas1 #cbj to #aij ,b4 ,c42 thence on thirteen decades to #fj ,b4,c41--and near enough to the reputed #eh of the reputed ,vikramaditya of ,ujjain4 ,on again 7thirteen decades as usual7 to the seventies ,a4,d4--and good enough in all conscience for that slippery ,kanishka who so dodges in and out among the early centuries1 and is fitted with a new date by everyone who has to do with him4 ,on again1 from #gj to #bjj2 nothing doing there1 ,i regret to say1 7that we know about74 ,never mind2 on thence to #cbj1--the nearest point to our #ceg2 let us land in the three-twenties then1 and see what happens4 ,on solid ground3 for ,india1 remarkably solid4 ,there actually was a ,golden ,age there at that time2 and everybody seems to agree that it lasted1 say1 one hundred and twenty-nine years2 from #cbf to #dee4 ,this you will note1 was the period of the last phase of the ,roman ,empire3 that of its rapid decline4 ,in #cbc ,constantine came to the throne1 and began making ,chrisitianity the state religion2 in #ccj he moved his capital4 ,after #def1 no emperor ruled in the west but for puppets set up by the ,german ,ricimer1 two set up by ,constantinople1 and ,romulus ,augustulus1 the last1--and all within twenty years4 ,there is no bright spot within the whole thirteen decades1 except the two years of ,julian4 ,the faucet was turned on in ,india2 and the ,roman garden went waterless1 and wilted4 ,what happened was this3 in #cbj1 one ,chandragupta ,gupta married the ,pincess of ,magadha2 and an era was dated from their coronation on the #bfth of ,february in that year4 ,their son ,samudragupta succeeded his father in #cbf1 and reigned until #cge4 ,it is characteristic of ,india that this1 probably the greatest monarch since ,asoka1 is absolutely unmentioned in any history or contemporary literature3 the sole evidence for his reign and greatness comes from coins and inscriptions4 ,one of the latter is to be found on a pillar originally set up and inscribed by ,asoka1 now in the fort at ,allahabad4 ,it shows him a mighty conqueror1 reigning over all ,hindustan2 victorious in the ,deccan2 and1 by influence and alliances1 dominant from ,ceylon to the ,oxus4 ,his coins picture him playing on the lyre2 the inscriptions speak of him as a poet and musician2 in his reign began a great renaissance in art1 architecture1 literature1 and perhaps especially in music1--a renaissance which reached its culmination in the reign of his successor4 ,another thing to note3 when of old time ,pushyamitra overturned the ,buddhist ,mauryas1 he showed his ,brahmin orthodoxy by performing the great ,horse ,sacrifice2--a sign that the ancient religion had come back in triumph4 ,they let loose a horse to wander where it would1 and followed it with an army for a whole year2 then sacrificed it4 ,samudragupta performed the same rites2--and it is known that the ,gupta age was one of strong reaction against ,buddhism4 ,i know that it is disputed now that there was ever a persecution of the ,buddhists in ,india2 but the tradition remains2 and one of the ,teachers1 in a letter that appears either in the ,occult ,world or ,esoteric ,buddhism1 speaks of ,india as a land from which the ,light of the ,lodge had been driven with the followers of the ,buddha4 ,certainly there were ,buddhists in ,india long after this time3 even a great ,buddhist king in the seventh century3 but it seems more than probably that the spirit of intolerance went east with the eastward cyclic flow we have noted this evening3 from ,christianity to ,zoroastrianism3 from ,zoroastrianism under the ,sassanids to ,brahminism under the ,guptas4 ,not1 perhaps1 that there was actual persecution1 yet4 ,emissaries from the king of ,ceylon found the shrine at ,buddhagaya fallen into decay2 and they themselves were not well treated at the site4 ,the ,buddhist kind1 however1 determined to remedy things as well as he could4 ,he sent ambassadors with rich gifts to ,samundragupta2 who called the gifts tribute1 and permitted him1 on consideration thereof1 to restore the shrine4 ,the monastery then built by the ,sinhalese was afterwards visited by ,hiuen ,tsang2 who describes it as having three storeys1 six halls1 three towers1 and accommodation for a thousand monks4 ,on it1 says ,hiuen ,tsang1 the utmost skill of the artist has been employed2 the ornamentation is in the richest colors1 and the statue of ,buddha is cast in gold and silver1 decorated with gems and precious stones4 ,a revolution took place in architecture in this age3 the ,buddhist style was abandoned1 for something which1 says ,mrs4 ,flora ,annie ,steel3 99 44444more ornate1 less self-evident1 served to reflect the new and elaborate pretensions of the priesthood4 ------ 99 ,to whose book ,india through the ,ages1 ,i am indebted for these facts concerning the ,gupta ,age4 ------ ,it is summed up1 says ,mrs4 ,steel1 in the words3 4444cucumber and gourd444 tall curved vimanas or towers1 exactly like two thirds of a cucumber stuck in the ground and surmounted by a flat gourd-like 'amalika4' 4444 ,exquisite in detail1 perfect in the design and execution of their ornamentation1 the form of these temples leaves much to be desired4 ,the flat blob at the top seems to crush down the vague aspirings of the cucumber1 which1 even if unstopped1 must erelong have ended in an earthward curve again4 ,the age culminated in the next reign1 that of ,chandragupta ,,ii ,vikramaditya4 ,heaven knows how to distingusih between him and his half-mythological namesake of ,b4,c4 #eh and ,ujjain4 ,very possibly the ,nine ,gems of ,literature and ,kalidasa and ,the ,ring of ,sakoontala belong to this reign really4 ,at any rate it was a wonderful time4 ,fa-hien1 the ,chinese ,buddhist traveler1 obligingly visited ,india during its process1 and left a picture of conditions4 ,personal liberty1 says ,mrs4 ,steel1 was the keynote feature4 ,there was no capital punishment2 no hard pressure of the laws2 there were excellent hospitals and charitable institutions of all sorts4--,we are to see in the whole age1 ,i imagine1 a period of great brilliance1 and of humaneness resulting from eight centuries of the really civilizing influence of ,buddhism3 far higher conditions than you should have found elsewhere to east or west at that time2--and also1 the moment when the impulse of culture had reached its outward limit1 and the reaction against the spiritual sources of culture began4 ,chandragupta ,vikramaditya reigned until #dac2 ,kumaragupta1 great and successful also1 until #dee4 ,then1 thirteen decades after ,samudragupta's accession1 came ,skandagupta2 and with him1 the ,white ,huns4 ,he defeated them on a large scale in the fifties2 but they returned again and again to the attack2 during the next thirty years their pressure was breaking up the empire2 till when ,skandagupta died in #dhj1 it fell to pieces4 ,,xxiii4 ,,the ,,dragon1 ,,the ,,apostate1 ,,the ,,great ,,mind ,the time is the middle of the fourth century ,a4,d4 ,the top of the ,crest-,wave is in ,india1 now the greatest country in the world4 ,the young ,samudragupta1 about thirty years old now1 has been filling the whole peninsula with his renown as warrior1 poet1 conqueror1 patron of arts and letters1 musician4 ,the ,hindus are a busy and efficient people1 masterly in this material world4 ,their colonies are spread over ,java1 ,sumatra1 and the other islands2 ,formosa 7think where it lies7 has a ,sanskrit1 but not yet 7so far as we know7 a ,chinese1 name2 all those seas are filled with ,indian shipping4--,and with ,arab shipping1 too1 by the way2 or are coming to be so2 and spray of the ,wave 7in the shape of ,indian and ,arab ships7 is falling in the port of ,canton4 ,but ,china as a whole is in a deep trough of sea3 an intriguing1 ceremonious1 ultra-elegant1 and wily-weak court and dynasty have lately been expelled from precarious sovereignty at ,changan in the ,north to ,nankin south of the ,yangtse2 there to abide a little while un-overturned1 looking down in lofty impotent contempt on the uncouth ,wether ,huns1 ,tunguses1 and ,tibetans who are sharing and quarreling over the ancient seats of the ,black-haired ,people in the ,hoangho basin1 after driving this same precious ,house of ,tsin into the south4--,persia is on the back of the ,wave1 something lower than the ,crest3 ,sapor ,,ii1 a dozen or so years older than ,samudragupta1 has been on the throne since some months before his 7,sapor's7 birth2 and has now grown up into a particularly vigorous monarch2 conquering here and there2 persecuting the ,christians with renewed energy since ,constantine took them into favor2--and of late years unmercifully banging about ,constantius son of ,constantine in the open field1 and besieging and sometimes taking his fortresses4 ,this1 you may say1 with one hand3 with the other he has been very busy with his neighbors in the north-east1 the nomads2 he has been punishing them a little2 and incidentally founding1 as a protection against their in roads1 the city of ,new ,sapor in ,khorassan1--famed later as ,nai-shapur1 and the birthplace of a certain ,tent-maker of song-rich memory4 ,in ,armenia an ,arsacid-- that is1 ,parthian--house has survived and holds sovereignty3 and ,armenia is a sort of weak ,belgium between ,persia and ,rome2 inclining to the latter1 of course1 because ruled by ,arsacids1 who are the natural dynastic enemies of the ,sassanids of ,persia4 ,rome has turned ,christian2 so1 to cement his alliance with ,rome and insure ,roman aid against powerful ,persia1 the ,armenian king has had himself coverted likewise1 and his people follow suit with great piety2--which sends ,shah ,sapor1 ,king of the kings of ,iran and ,turan1 ,brother of the ,sun and ,moon1 to it with a missionary as well as a dynastic zeal2 and a war that is to be of nearly thirty years' duration has been in process along the frontier since #ccf4 ,persia1 better called a kingdom1 perhaps1 than an empire1 commands about forty millions of subjects2 as against imperial ,rome's--who can say8 ,the population there must have gone down by many millions since the days of the ,antonines1 with all the civil wars1 plagues1 pestilences1 and famines that have harrowed the years between4 ,the sons of ,constantine have succeeded to the throne of their father2 and the portions of ,constantine ,,ii1 the eldest of the three1 and ,constans1 the youngest1 have at last fallen into the hands1 or the web1 of ,constantius1--a sort of cross between a spider1 an octopus1 and an elderly maiden aunt1--and in general about as unpleasant a creature as ever sat on a throne4 ,constantine the ,great1 indeed1 had willed the succession into the hands of a much larger number of his relatives2 but this ,constantius1 his father once decently buried1 had taken time by the forelock1 and insured things to his two brothers and himself by killing out two of his uncles and seven of their sons2 so that now1 ,constantine ,,ii and ,constans being dead1 no male scions of the house of ,constantius ,chlorus remain as possible rivals to him1 except two boys who had been at the time of the massacre1 the one too young1 and the other too sickly1 to count4 ,we shall come to them by and by4 ,christianity is well established2 though ,constantius1 followed his father's wise example1 is deferring his baptism until the last possible moment3 he partly knows the weakness of his nature1 and desires to have license for a little pleasant sinning until the end1 with the certainty of a glorious resurrection to follow in despite of it4--,dismiss your kindly apprehensions2 ,god was good to ,constantius2 no untimely accident cut him off unbaptized2 his plan worked excellently1 and providing an ,arian heretic may go to heaven1 in heaven he is to this day1 singing his ,alleluias with the best of them1--and perhaps between whiles arguing it out with the various uncles and cousins he murdered4 ,meanwhile1 however1 priests and bishops are the great men of his empire2 and they enjoy immunities from duties and taxation to an extent that throws the whole rational order of government out of gear4 ,thus1 for example1 the upkeep of the great roads and posts system1--the lines of communication1--falls upon a certain class called the ,decurions1 who in each district at their own expense have to maintain all in order4 ,but churchmen1--an enormous class now1--are immune from the decurionship2 and are allowed further the use of the post-horses and inns free of cost2--with the result that1 practically speaking1 no one else can use them at all4 ,because these churchmen are forever hurrying hither and thither to conference1 council1 or synod2 there each sect1-- ,arian and ,athanasian chiefly1--to damn to eternal perdition 7and temporal excommunication when possible7 the vile heretics of the other3 ,homoiousian to thunder against ,homoousian1 ,homoousian against ,homoiousian3 ,arius contra ,athanasium1 and ,athanasius contra mundum3--till the air of the whole ,roman world is thick with the fumes of brimstone and the stench of the ,nether ,pit4 ,taxation1 on those left to tax1 falls an intolerable burden2 --we have seen how ,shah ,sapor is dealing with one end of the empire2--at the other end1 in ,gaul1 one ,magnentius rose against ,constantius1 and the latter thoughtfully invited in the ,germans to put him down and help themselves to what they found handy2-- and a certain ,chnodomar1 a king in those trans-,rhenish regions1 has taken him much at his word4 ,result3 a strip forty miles wide along the left bank of the ,rhine from source to mouth has been conquered and annexed2 three times as much this side is a perfectly desolate ,no-man's land2 forty-five important cities1 including ,cologne and ,strasbourg1 have been reduced to ashes1 with innumerable smaller towns and villages2 all open towns in north-eastern ,gaul have been abandoned2 the people of the walled cities are starving on what corn they can grow on vacant corner lots and in their own back-gardens2 hundreds of thousands have been killed out1 or carried off into slavery in ,germany2 and ,king ,chnodomar has every reason to think that ,god is behaving in a very reasonable manner4--,as for the rest of the empire1 whatever may be its population in human bodies1 there is a plentiful lack of human souls to inhabit them2 the ,roman world has fallen on evil years1 truly1 but is by no means unchanged2-- and the one thing you can prophesy with any decent security is that affairs cannot go on in this way much longer4 ,rome has conducted a number of funerals in her day1 of this nation and that conquered and put an end to2 not much intuition is required now1 to foresee that the next funeral will be her own4--7,though indeed1 ,i doubt you should have found half-a-dozen in the ,roman world who could foresee it47 ,now there is a ,way1 narrow and most difficult to find1--a ,way of conducting the affairs of this life and this world1 in balance1 in equilibrium2 in that fine ,i condition through which alone the life-renewing forces from the vaster worlds within may flow down1 and keep existence here in harmony1 and forefend decay4 ,this was1 of course1 the essence of ,chinese thought1 ,confucian and ,taoist4 ,you maintained the inner harmony1 and the forces of heaven might use you as their channel4 ,you found ,tao 7the ,way71 and grew never old2 you succeeded in all enterprises2 walked through life unruffled1--duty flowing1 beautifully accomplished1 at every moment from your hands4 ,you met with no snags or adjusted yourself always to conditions as they arose1 and over-rode them in quietest triumph4--,they said that1 possessing ,tao1 one might live on many times the common threescore years and ten2 very likely there is some truth in it2 it seems as if it were true at any rate1 of the life of nations4 ,china caught glimpses1 and lived on and on2 grew old1 and reviewed her youth time and again4 ,but normally1 what do we find with these un-,taoist nations of the ,west8--,they go easily for some period2 then it becomes harder and harder for them to adjust theniselves to conditions4 ,they become clogged with the detritus of old thought and action4 ,what is the meaning of the incessant need we see for reform8 ,under whatever form of government a nation may be1 it arises perpetually2 it carries us around the ring of the-archies and-cracies1 and there is no finality anywhere4--,no2 there is no straight line of political progress2 but round in a ring you go6 ,you turn out your kings1 because they are tyrannical3 which means that their government is no longer efficient1 and cannot cope with affairs2 there is a lack of adjustment between the inner and the outer1 between the needs and the provision made to meet them4 ,the monarchy1 which was at first representative and the true expression of the nation1--because it1 or anything else1 when there was no detritus1 but things were new and the inner air uncluttered1 gave freedom to the national aspirations to pour themselves out in action1--gives such freedom no longer2 it irks2 it misfits2 you feel it chafing everywhere4 ,and yet it has not ceased by any means to be representative3 it represents now a nation which has lost its adjustment to the inner things and is clogged up by the detritus of old thought and action1 and it is that detritus that irks and misfits and chafes you4 ,so you rise and smash an astral mold or two2 turn out your kings2 shout freedom and liberty1 and are very glorious for a time under a totally free and independent republic2--which means1 at once or after a while1 government by a class4 ,and this succeeds just as well and badly as its predecessor2 neither has found ,tao1 the ,way1--following which1 your detritus should be consumed as it goes1 and life lifted above the sway of ,karma4 ,so once more the detritus accumulates1 and blocks the channels2 and the life of the nation labors and is oppressed4 ,need arises for reforms2 and the reforms are difficultly carried through2 the franchise is extended1 and there is loud talk about political growth and what not2 we see the millennium at hand1 and ourselves its predestined enjoyers4 ,and the old process repeats itself1 till you have a very full-fledged democracy3--you make all the men vote1 and all the women2 and presently no doubt all the children2 but even when you have all adult dogs and cats and cows voting as well1--you will not find that that order is ,tao1 the ,way1 any more than the others were4 ,the presence of a cow or two1 or an ass or two1 more or less1 in your parliament will not really insure efficiency of administration4 ,the detritus grows again1 under the most democratic of democracies2 and weighs things down2--and you cast about for new methods of reform4 ,democratic government1 somehow1 does nothing of what was expected of it2 is not the panacea2--you see that1 to bring the chaos of affairs into order1 you must stop all this jabber and tinkering1 and set up some undivided council1--some ,man1 for ,god's sake6--a ,dictator who can keep his own and other people's mouths shut and hands busy1 and get things done unimpeded4 ,so you make one more grand reform for the sake of efficiency1 and set up your ,imperator1 and have peace1 and decent government2 and you have1 wittingly or not1 started up old bugbear ,monarchy again2 and things go well for a time4 ,but1 bless you1 you have not found the ,way2 you know nothing about ,tao1 which is not to be discovered in the fields of politics1 and has nothing whatever to do with forms of government4 ,so you go in search once more for a political method of dealing with that one and only oppressing thing1 the detritus1--your karma2--and away you go squirreling round the changes again2 and all this you call political evolution1 as ,i dare say the squirrel does his own gyrations in his cage2--whereas if you found ,tao1--if you lived balancedly1-- if you kept open the channels between this and the ,god-world1-- there would be no political evolution at all--no squirreling1-- but only calm1 untrammeled beautiful life4 ,all the claptrap about ,western ,superiority to the ,orient1 and the growth of freedom in the ,west1 in contrast with ,eastern political immobility1 simply means that the ,orient is less fond of squirreling than we are2 taking its aces by and large1 there has been a little more ,tao with them than with us3 more consuming the detritus as they went2 more balanced living1 and thus more keeping the channels open4--,at least1 ,i imagine so4 ,now ,rome was very old2 and1 since ,augustus' day1 the detritus had grown and grown4 ,diocletian had devoted a political sagacity amounting in some respects to genius to setting things right1 and had accomplished something4 ,he had moved out of ,rome itself1 where the psychic atmosphere was too thickly encumbered2 had gone eastward1 where the air1 after long pralaya1 was clearer2 had propped up imperial authority1 now for the first time1 with the definite insignia of imperial state3 wore a tiara1 was to be kneeled to1 addressed as ,dominus1 and so forth3--all outward expedients1 and ,brummagem substitutes for that inner adjustment which ,laotse called ,tao3 the ,way that you are to seek by retreating within1 and by advancing boldly without2 and not by any one road1 because it is not found by devotion alone1 nor by religous contemplation alone1 or by ardent progress1 self-sacrificing labor1 or studious observation of life1 alone2 but the whole nature of man must be used wisely by the one who desire to enter it4 ,diocletian knew nothing of this2 so1 great statesman as he was1 his methods were effective only while he sat on the throne2 in his old age and retirement he had to watch1 from his palace at ,spalato1 the empire he had piloted banging about in a thousand storms again2 and to plead in vain to those to whom he had given their thrones for the safety and life of his own wife and daughter2--the total failure of his life and labors thus miserably brought home to him before he died4 ,where there is no vision the people perish1 said that learned ,hebrew of old1 ,king ,solomon2 and by that one saying proclaimed his right to his title of 'the ,wise4' ,look into it1 and you have almost the whole philosophy of history4 ,the incessant need of humanity is this thing ,vision3 men and nations go mad for lack of it3 they seek in hell the joys of heaven which should be theirs1 and which they cannot see4 ,it means vision of the ,inner ,worlds1 of the heaven that lies around us4 ,oh1 nothing spooky or foolish2 one is far from meaning the ,astral ,light4 ,people who go burrowing into that are again seeking a substitute for ,vision1 and a very poisonous one4--,if ,i may speak of a personal experience3 coming to ,point ,loma from ,london was like coming from the bottom of the sea into the upper ether4 ,there1 in the heart of that old civilization1 the air is thick with detritus2 here--if only because a long pralaya and fallow time have made the land new1--the detritus is negligible2 perhaps it is not even forming1 but consumed as we go2 because at least we have glimpses of the ,way4 ,result3 the mental outlook that extended there1 in visionary moments1 to some six inches1 before one's nose1 here has broadened out to take in some seas and mountains2 in comparison1 it runs to far horizons4 ,i take it that this is the experience of us all4 ,so this is what that wise ,solomon meant3 ,when the detritus has accumulated to the point where1 like a thick fog1 it shuts away all vision of the ,true1 then the nation must go into abeyance2 it must fall4--,rome was very near that point4 ,one wishes one could say something about those ,inner ,worlds of ,beauty4 ,when the voices of self are silenced1 and desires abashed and at peace1--how they shine through6 ,this outer world1 truly1 reflects them2 but another and ugly world of our own making4 44444is too much with us2 late and soon1 ,getting and spending1 we lay waste our powers4 ,little we see in ,nature that is ours2 ,we have given our hearts away1 a sordid boon6 ,the ,sea that bares her bosom to the moon1 ,the winds that will be howling at all hours1 ,and are upgathered now like sleeping flowers1-- ,for this1 for everything1 we are out of tune4 ,sometimes2 not always1 thank ,god6 ,look again3 there are the mountains1 and above them the mournful glories of the anti-sunset2 the mute and golden trumpetings of the dawn2 --there is the sea1 and over it the wistfulness and pomp and pageantry of the setting sun1 and the gentleness of heaven at evening2--there is the whole drama of ,day with its tremendous glories2 and the huge mystery of ,night-time3 ,niobe ,night1 silent in the heavens1 ,glittering magnificently unperturbed2 --and there are the flowers in the garden1 those ,praelarissimi and ,nobilisimi in the ,court of ,god1 the ,pansy1 the ,blue ,larkspur1 the ,purple ,anemone2--and what are all these things8-- ,just symbols2 just mirrorings of a beauty in the ,world of ,ideas within2 just places where the ,spirit has touched matter1 and matter1 at that fiery and creative touch1 has flamed up into the likeness of ,god1 which is ,beauty4--,what is ,vision8--,it is to have luminous forms rising in the imagination1 like ,wordsworth had1 like ,shelley2 it is with shut eyes to see the beauty and wonder of the ,gods2 it is to have no grayness or dearth or darkness within2 but to have the 'bliss of solitude' crowded with beautiful squadrons of deities1 trembling with the light of legions on legions of suns4 ,for3 ,not all we are here ,where this darkness oppresses us2 ,not this oblivion ,of ,beauty expresses us4 ,gaze not on it1 ,to be stained with its stain2 ,the ,lonely ,all-,beautiful ,calls us again4 ,in galleried palaces1 ,turquoise blue1 ,with the sweetness of many suns ,filtering through1-- ,in the ,suns's own garden1 ,where galaxies flame ,for lilac and daffodil1 ,each on his stem1-- ,where apple-bloom ,capricorn ,hangs from his tree1 ,glittering dim o'er ,the dim blue sea1-- ,and billowing dim o'er ,the dim blue lawns ,of heaven come the nebular ,sunsets and dawns1-- ,we too have the regallest ,part of our being1 ,far beyond dreaming of1 ,hearing of1 seeing4 ,and the ,lonely ,all-,beautiful ,calls to us here3-- ,my knights1 my commissioned1 ,my children dear6 ,the hell where affrighted1 ,enchanted1 ye roam1-- ,ye set forth to make it ,a heaven for my home6 --,and it is ,vision1 not to mistake mankind for less or other than ,deific ,essence cruelly encumbered over with oblivion2 it is to see the flame of ,eternal ,beauty and valiant ,godhood in all men2 and not to rest or sit content without doing something to uncover that ,beauty1 to rescue that ,godhood4--,you go into the slums of a great city2 and you do not wonder that the ,god-essence1 inmingling and involved in the clay which is 7the lower7 man1 goes there quite distraught and unrecognizable2 where life is so far from the great reflexion of the ,worlds of ,beauty2 where the ,sun is no bright brother and confidential friend1 but a breeder up of pestilences2 where the sky is shut away and there are no flowers to bloom2--whether we like it or no1 these things1 the unperverted manifestations of the formative pressure of the ,spirit1 are needed to keep men sane4 ,beauty you must have1 to nourish the ,divine within you2 alas for him that thinks he may attain to the ,good or the ,true1 and in a thin meager or ,puritan spirit1 strives to shut out their divine sister from his needs and aspirations6--,but there1 in our hideous modern conditions1 there is no vision1 without or within2 so men go mad with fearful lusts and despairs2 and it is the van of the ,battle1 in one sense1 between ,godhood and ,chaos2 and reeks with the slaughter and bloodshed and the madness of that conflict2 there too the ,holy ,spirit of ,man is incarnate2 there the ,host of ,souls2--but in the shock and din and the carnage1 there on the slippery brink of yet unconquered hell1--all the divine descent and ancient glory of the ,host is forgotten3--there is no ,vision1 and the people perish4 7,it may seem ,i go a long way round to come to him2 but in reality ,i am already trying to draw you a character-sketch of the subject of this evening's lecture3 to present you the permanent part and significance of a strange incarnation of ,vision that appeared in ,rome's dark and dying days3 the man to whom ,saint ,gregory ,nazianzen1 in his grand attack1 applied that ringing triplet of epithets ,i have taken for the title of the lecture3 ,the ,dragon1 the ,apostate1 the ,great ,mind4 ,know him first in his impersonality thus3 a great white flame of ,vision2 a tremendous ,poet of the ,gods in action2--and then1 when you come to his personality1 with what it might have retained of personality1 of hereditary impairments1 perhaps1 that should have vanished had he lived past his young manhood1 these will not hinder you from understanding the greatness and beauty and tragedy of that life apparently wasted4 ,but we shall come to him in our time47 ,back in the sixth century ,b4 ,c41 when all those ,great ,teachers came3 when the forces that until then had been pent up in the ,mysteries were suddenly let loose upon the world1--and the more vehement for their having been so pent up1 and their now being so let loose2--what a flood of vision they brought with them6 ,in ,greece1 to rouse up almost at once that wonderful wave of artistic creation2 in ,persia1 to create quickly a splendid and chivalrous empire2 in ,india1 7so far as we know7 to pervade as an ethical illumination the life of the people for some centuries before manifesting in art or empire2 in ,china1 to work in a twofold current1 on one side upon the imagination1 on the other upon the moral conceptions of the race1 until the ,chinese manvantara began4 ,its effect in each case was according to the cyclic position of the country at the time3 those1 seemingly1 being the most fortunate1 that had to wait longest for the full fruition4 ,thus it struck ,china in the midst of pralaya1 and lay in the soil fructifying until the pralaya had passed2 then1 appearing and re-appearing according to cyclic law1 was a saving health in the nation for fifteen centuries at least2--,india1 ,i imagine1 when the manvantara there some five centuries old1 and under a minor shadow2 which shadow once passed1 it produced its splendors in the ,maurya time2 and was in all effective for a thousand years4 ,but it came to ,persia in the autumn of the great cycle1 when the forces it brought had to ripen quickly1 and descend at once on to the military 7the lowest7 plane2--and to ,greece just at noon or early summer1--just before the most intellectual moment1--and so there1 too1 had no time to ripen1 but must burst out at once in artistic creation without ever a chance first to work in and affect the moral life of the race4 ,this last is what ,pythagoras at ,croton had in mind to do3 had ,croton endured1 there would have been a stable moral basis for the intellectual spendors4--,i believe that you have here the very archeus and central clue to history4 ,in ,china1 it was enough for ,laotse to float his magical ideas1 and for confucius to give out his extremely simple 7but highly efficient7 philosophy1 and to provide his grand ,example2 in ,india it was enough for the ,lord ,buddha to teach his wisdom and to found his ,order2 he might trust the future to them2--,for ,persia1 one cannot say3 the facts as to ,zoroaster are not enough known2 there might seem to have been some failure there too2--but in ,greece1 it was imperative that ,pythagoras should establish his ,lomaland2 nothing else could save the forces from squandering themselves at once1 in that momentous time1 on the intellectual and artistic planes1 and leaving life unredeemed and unaffected4 ,which indeed they did2 and thence on it ,europe we see century by century vision waning and the world on a downward path1 until the moment comes when a new effort may be made4 ,augustus calls a halt then2 moves heaven and earth2 works like ten ,herculeses1 along all lines1 to bring about an equilibrium in outer affairs2 and so far succeeds that in his time one or two men may have the ,vision1 at any rate3--,virgil may catch more than glimpses of the ,inner ,beauty1 and leave the outer world a litle less forlorn4 ,but in place of the rush and fine flow of the ,grecian ,age1 what painful strivings we find in the ,augustan6--,when too1 ,teachers labor to illumine the vastnesses within2 ,apollonius2 ,moderatus2 shall we add1 the ,nazarene8--,so the downward tendency is checked2 in the following centuries we see a slow pushing upward1--in the heroic effort of the ,stoics1 not after ,vision--that was beyond their scope and ken1--but after at least that which should bring it back1--a noble method of life4 ,and then1 at last1 a dawn eastward3 and the bugles of the ,spirits of the ,dawn heard above the ,pyramids1 heard over the shadowy plains where ,babylon was of old2--and out of that yellow glow in the sky come1 now that the cycle permits them1 masters of the ,splendid vision4 ,they come with something of light from the ancient ,mysteries of ,egypt2 with some shining from ,star ,plato1 and from ,pythagoras2 and at their coming light up the dark worlds and the intense blue deeps of the sky1--wherein you can see now1 under their guidance1 immeasurable and beautiful things to satisfy the highest cravings of your heart3 winged ,aeons on ,aeons1 ring above ring1--mystery emanating mystery1 beauty1 beauty1 from here up to the ,throne of the ,lonely ,all-,beautiful4-- ,what growth there had been in ,roman ,europe1 to prepare the way for the spread of ,neo-,platonism1 ,i cannot say2 but imagine ,gnosticism had something to do with it2 and that ,gnosticism was a graft on the parent stem of ,christianity set there by some real ,teacher who came later than ,jesus4 ,if we knew more of the realities about ,simon ,magus on the one hand1 and ,paul of ,tarsus on the other1 we might have clearer light on the whole problem2 at present must be content with saying this much3--that ,gnosticism1 with its deep mystical truths1 emerges into the light of well-founded history about neck and neck with orthodox ,christianity2 was considered a branch of the same movement1 equally ,christian2 but was at least tinged with esoteric truth1 and deeply ,hellenized1 and perhaps ,persianized2--whereas the orthodox branch was the legitimate heir of exoteric ,judaism4 ,how much of real vision there may have been in ,gnosticism2 how much of mere speculation1 which is but a step towards vision1--,i am not prepared to guess2 but have little doubt that ,gnostic activities made ready the ground for ,neo-,platonism2 so that when the latter's ,manasaputric light incarnated1 it found fit rupas to inhabit4 ,this was the ,lodge's most important effort to sow truth in ,europe since ,pythagoras4 ,says even the ,enyclopaedia ,britannica 7without help from ,esotericism73 ,neo-,platonism is in one aspect 444 the consummation of ancient philosophy4 ,never before in ,greek or ,roman speculation had the consciousness of man's dignity and superiority to ,nature received such adequate expression4444 ,from the religious and moral point of view1 it must be admitted that the ethical 'mood' which ,neo-,platonisni endeavored to create and maintain is the highest and purest ever reached by antiquity4444 ,it is a proof of the strength of the moral instincts of mankind that the only phase of culture which we can survey in all its stages from beginning to end culminated not in materialism but in the highest idealism4 ,it asserted the ,gods1 the great stars and luminaries of the ,inner ,world2 it asserted the ,divinity of ,man1--superior1 truly1 as the ,encyclopaedia says to 7the lower7 ,nature1 but of the ,higher1 one part or factor in the whole4 ,it came into ,europe trailing clouds of splendor and opening the heavens of ,vision4 ,the huge menace and perils of the age1 the multiplying disasters1 were driving men to seek spiritual refuge of some kind2 and there were1 in the main1 two camps that offered it3--this of ,neo-,platonism1 proclaiming ,human ,divinity and strong effort upward in the name of that2 and that other which proclaimed human helplessness1 and that man is a poor worm and weakling1 originally sinful1 and with nothing to hope from his own efforts1 but all from the grace1 help1 or mercy of ,extracosmic ,intervention4 ,it was a terribly comfortable doctrine1 this last1 for a race staggering towards the end of its manvantara under a fearful load of detritus1 a culture old and thoroughly tired4 ,no wonder ,europe chose this path1 and not the ,neo-,platonist path of flaming idealism and endeavor4 ,ammonius1 ,plotinus1 ,porphyry1 ,iamblichus1--they had worked wonders2 but not the crowning wonder of that which could save the age and the age to come3 ,plotinus had failed of that1 because there no tool at hand for the ,gods1 but a silly1 weak ,gallienus4--,so now ,constantine has made the great change2 and the empire that was ,roman is now ,roman no longer3 ,you owe your first allegiance now1 not to the state or to the emperor at its head1 but to an imperium within the state which claims immunity from laws and duties3 the kingdom is divided within itself1 and must look for the fate of divided kingdoms4 ,zeus on ,olympus now weighs the ,roman empire in his scales1--and finds the fate is death1 and no help for it3 there are to be thirteen decades of moribundity1 and then ,christian burial1 with ,odoacer and sundry other the like barbarians to be mourners and heirs2 and then1--blackest night over the western world for ,god knows how long3 night1 with nightmare and horror1 and no ,vision1 no beautiful dreams1 no refreshment1 no peace4 ,for the party that ,constantine has now made dominant despises cordially all the ancient light of ,hellenism2 ,aeschylus1 ,homer1 ,plato1 ,sophocles1 ,euripides1-- everyone you could in any sense a light-bearer that came of old1 to bring mankind even the merest brain-mind culture1--these people condemn and abhor for heathen1 and take pleasure in the thought that they are now1 and have been since they died1 and shall be forever1 frizzling in the nether fires3 they condemn the substance of their writings1 and will draw no ideas1 no saving grace1 from them whatever2--will learn from them nothing in the world but grammar and eloquence with which to thunder at them and all their like from barren raucous pulpits4 ,so1 ,vision having gone1 culture is to go too1 and all you can call civilization2 and therewith law and order1 and the decencies of life3 all that soap stands symbol for is to be anathema maranatha2 all that the ,soul stands symbol for is to be anathema maranatha2--a pretty prospect6 ,zeus sighs in heaven1 and his sigh is a doleful thunder prophetic of the gloom that is to overspread all the western skies for many centuries to come4 --,and then comes ,helios1 the ,unconquered ,sun1 and lays a hand on his arm1 and says3 ,not so fast62 ,never despair yet2 look down--there6 ,and the ,gods look down3 to a gloomy castle upon a crag in the wild mountains of ,cappadocia2 and they see there a youth1 a captive banished to that desolate grand region3 well-attended1 as befits a prince of the royal blood1 but lonely and overshadowed2 --not under fear1 because fear is no part of his nature2 but yet never knowing when the order for his death may come4 ,they read all this in his mind1 his atmosphere4 ,they see him deep in his books3 a soul burning with earnestness1 but discontented1 and waiting for something3 all the images of ,homer rising about him beckoning on the one hand1 and on the other a grim something that whispers1 ,these are false2 ,i alone am true6 --,what of him8 says ,zeus2 he too is a ,christian4--,watch6 says ,sol ,invictus2 ,i have sent my man to him4--,and they watch2 and sure enough1 presently they see a man coming into this youth's presence1 and pointing upwards towards themselves2 and they see the youth look up1 and the shadow pass from his eyes as a great blaze of light and splendor breaks before him1--as he catches sight of them1 the ,gods1 and his eye meets theirs1 and he rises1 illumined and smiling2--and they know that in the ,roman world there is this one man with the ,grand ,vision2 this man who may yet 7if they play their cards well7 wear the ,roman diadem2-- that there is vision in the ,roman world again1 and it may be the people shall not perish4 ,it was ,julian1 the ,dragon1 the ,apostate1 the ,great ,mind2 ,i thank thee1 ,gregory of ,nazianzus1 for teaching me that word6--and the one that came to him there in ,cappadocia was ,maximus of ,smyrna1 ,iamblichus' disciple4 ,his story has been told and re-told2 ,i expect you know it fairly well4 ,how he was a son of ,julius ,constantius1 son of ,constantius ,chlorus1--and thus a nephew of ,constantine the ,great1 and a first cousin to the ,octopus-,spider-,maiden ,aunt ,constantius then on the throne2--how he because of his infancy1 and his half-brother ,gallus because of a delicate constitution which made it seem impossible he should grow up1 were spared when ,constantius had the rest of the family massacred2--how he was banished and confined in that ,cappadocian castle2--of ,gallus' short and evil reign that ended1 poor fool that he was1 in his being lured into the spider-web of ,constantius and beheaded2--how ,julian was called then to the court at ,milan1 expecting a like fate2--how he spent seven months there1 spied on at every moment1 and looking for each to be his last2--how he was saved and befriended by the noble ,empress ,eusebia 7a strangely beautiful figure to find in those sinister surroundings72--and sent presently to the ,university of ,athens1 there to spend the happiest moments of his life2--then called back to be made ,caesar3 he who had never been anything but a student and a dreamer1 called from his books and dreams at twenty-four1 and set to learn 7as ,caesar7 his elementary drill1-- which he found very difficult to learn indeed2--and then sent to fight the ,germans in ,gaul4 ,how ,constantius tried always to thwart him while he was there3 setting underlings over him with power to undo or prevent all he might attempt or do2--how in spite of it all he fought the ,germans1 and drove them across the ,rhine1 and followed them up1 and taught them new lessons in their own remote forests2 and took the gorgeous ,chnodomar1 their king1 prisoner2 and sent for him1 prepared to greet friendlily one so great in stature and splendid in bearing2 but was disgusted when the gentleman1 on coming into his presence1 groveled on the floor and whined for his life1--whereupon ,julian1 instead of treating him like a gentleman as he had intended1 packed him off to his 7,chnodomar's7 old ally the ,maiden ,aunt at ,milan to see what they would make of each other2--how he fought three campaigns victoriously beyond the ,rhine2 restored the desolated ,cisrhenish ,no-man's land1 and brought in from ,britain1 in six hundred corn-ships1 an amount ,gibbon calculates at #abj1jjj quarters of wheat to feed its destitute population4--,and this fact is worth nothing3 if ,britain could export all that wheat1 it surface was not1 as some folks hold1 mainly under forest3 it was a well-cultivated country1 you may depend1 with agriculture in a very flourishing condition1--as ,gibbon does not fail to point out4 --,and you know1 probably1 how ,julian loved his ,paris1 and governed ,gaul thence in civil affairs in such a manner that ,paris and ,gaul loved him2--how his own special legions1 his pets1 his ,tenth1 so to say1 were the ,celts and ,petulants1 and after these1 the ,herulians and ,batavians 7or shall ,i say ,dutchmen872--how ,constantius tried to deprive him of these1 ordering him to send them off to him for wars with ,sapor in the east2--how ,julian sorrowfully bade them go1 judging well by ,gallus his brother's experience 7whom ,constantius had treated in the same way as a first step towards cutting off his head7 what the next thing should be2--but how they1 7bless their ,celtic and ,petulant and ,herulian and ,dutch hearts67 told him very plainly that that kind of thing would not wash with them3 ,come6 said they2 no nonsense of this sort2 be you our emperor1 and condemn that old lady your cousin ,constantius6--or we kill you right now4 ,into his bed-room in ,paris they poured by night with those terms1--an ultimatum2 whether or not with a twinkle in their eyes when they proposed the alternative1 who can say8--,what was a young hero to do1 whom the ,gods had commissioned to strike the grand blow for them2 and who never should strike it1 that was certain1 if ,constantius should have leave to take away from him1 first his ,celts and ,petulants1 and then his head8 ,so he accepts2 and writes kindly and respectfully to his ,maiden ,aunt-- ,spidership the ,emperor telling him he must manage without the legions1 and with a ,co-,augustus to share the empire with him1-- ruling 7it was to be hoped in perfect harmony with himself7 the west and leaving the east to ,constantius4 ,however1 all will not do3 ,constantius writes severe and haughtily1 ,send the men1 and let's hear no more of that presumptuous fooling about the second ,augustus6--,so ,julian marches east2 whither1 accompanying him1 the lately rebellious ,celts and ,petulants are ready enough to go now2 and ,constantius might after all have fallen in battle1 and so missed his saving baptism2 but his plans had gone agley1 and the whole situation was extremely disturbing2 and you never knew what might happen3 and really1 when you thought how you had treated this ,julian's father1 and his two brothers1 and numberless uncles and cousins1 you might fear the very worst2-- and so1 good maiden-auntish soul1 he fell into a sadness1 and thence into a decline2 and while ,julian and his ,petulants were yet a long way off1 got baptized respectably1 and slipped off to heaven4 ,and you know1 too1 probably1 how ,julian1 being now sole emperor1 reigned3 working night and day2 wearing out relays of secretaries1 but never worn out himself2 making the three years of his reign1 as ,i think ,gibbon says1 read like thirty2 disestablishing ,christianity1 and refounding ,paganism1--not the ,paganism that had been of old1 but a new kind1 based upon compassion1 human brotherhood1 and ,theosophical ethics1 and illumined by his own ever-present vision of the ,gods2--how he reformed the laws2 governed2 made his life-giving hand felt from the ,scottish ,wall to the ,nile ,cataracts2--instilled new vigor into everything2 forced toleration upon the ,christians1 stopping dead their mutual persecutions1 and recalling from banishment those who had been banished by their co-religionists of other sects2--made them rebuild temples they had torn down1 and disgorge temple properties they had plundered2--and amidst all this1 and much more also1 found time in the wee small hours of the nights to do a good deal of literary work3 ,theosophical treatises1 correspondence1 sketches4444--,and you will know of the spotless purity1 the asceticism1 of his life2 and how he stedfastly refused to persecute2--whereby his opponents complained that1 son of ,satan as he was1 he denied them the glory of the martyr's crown2--and of his plan to rebuild the ,temple at ,jerusalem1 and to re-establish ,jews and ,judaism in their native land3--of his letter to the ,jewish high priest or chief ,rabbi1 beginning ,my brother2--of the charitable institutions he raised1 and dedicated to the ,lord of ,vision1 his ,god the ,unconquered ,sun2--of his contests with frivolity and corruption at ,antioch1 and his friendship with the philosophers2--and then1 of his ,persian expedition1 with its rashness1--its brilliant victories1--its over-rashness and head-strong advance2--of the burning of the fleet1 and march into the desert2 and retreat2 and that sudden attack1--the ,persian squadrons rising up like afreets out of the sands1 from nowhere2 and ,julian rushing unarmed through the thickest of the fight1 turning1 first here1 then there1 confusion into firmness1 defeat into victory2--and of the arrow1 ,persian or ,christian1 that cut across his fingers and pierced his side2 and how he fainted as he tried to draw it out2 and recovered1 and called for his horse and armor2 and fainted again2 and was carried into a tent hastily run up for him3--and of the scene there in the night1 that made those who were with him think of the last scene in the life of ,socrates2 ,julian dying1 comforting his mourning officers2 cheering them2 talking to them quietly about the beauty and dignity of death1 and the divinity of the ,soul2 then suddenly inquiring why ,anatolius was not present1--and learning that ,anatolius had fallen1--and 7strange inconsistency67 the dying man breaking into tears of the death of his friend4--,and you will know of the hopeless march of the army back under ignominious ,jovian1 all ,shah ,sapor's hard terms accepted2--and the doom of the ,roman ,empire sealed4 ,that was the ,man3 that is the record1 outwardly1 of a ,soul fed upon the immensities of ,vision4 ,vision is the keynote of him3 the intense reality to him of the ever-beautiful compassionate ,gods4444 ,it is true there was a personality attached2 and all his defenders since have found much in it that they wished had not been there4 ,a lack of dignity1 it is said2 a certain self-consciousness444 ,well2 he was very young2 he died a very boy at thirty-two2 he never attained to years of discretion3--in a sense we may allow that much4 ,you say1 he might very well have followd the reaonable conventions of life2 and condescended1 when emperor1 not to dress as a philosopher of the schools4 ,so he might4 ,they laughed at his ways1 at his garb1 at his beard2-- and he went the length of sitting up one night to write the ,misopogon1 a skit upon his personality4 ,only philosophers wore beards in those days2 it was thought most unsuitable in an emperor4 ,i do not know what the men of ,antioch said about it2 but he speaks of it as unkempt and1--in the ,gibbonistic euphemism1--populous2 indeed1 names the loathsome cootie outright1 which ,gibbon was much too ,gibbonish to do4 ,in the nature of things1 this was a libel4 ,i read lately an article1 ,i think by an ,irish writer1 on the eccentricities of youthful genius4 ,it often happens that a soul of really fine caliber1 with a great work to do in the world1 will waste a portion of his forces1 at the outset1 in fighting the harmless conventions4 ,but as his real self grows into mastery1 all this disappears1 and he comes to see where his battle truly lies4 ,julian died before he had had time quite to outgow the eccentricities2 but for all that1 not before he had shown the world what the ,soul in action is like4 ,every great soul1 incarnating1 has still this labor to carry through as prolog to his life's work3--he must conquer the new personality1 with all its hereditary tendencies2 he must mold it difficultly to the perfect expression of the glory and dignity of himself4 ,julian had to take up a body in which on the one side ran the warrior blood of ,claudius ,gothicus and ,constantius ,chlorus1 on the other1 the refinement and culture of the senatorial house of the ,anicii4 ,two such streams1 coming together1 might well need some harmonizing3 might well produce1 for example1 an acute self-consciousness1--to be mastered4 ,what he got from them1 for world-service1 was on the one hand his superb military leadership and mastery of affairs2 on the other1 his intense devotion to learning and culture4 ,thus the two streams of heredity appeared1 dominated by his own quality of ,vision4 ,the paternal stream1 by his generation1 had grown much vitiated3 it was pure warriorism in ,claudius ,gothicus1 and even in ,constantius ,chlorus2 it was warriorism refined with subtlety and cruelty in ,constantine ,i2 it was mere fussy treacherous cruelty in the ,spider-,octopus1--and sensual brutality in ,julian's brother ,gallus4 ,the vices of the latter may indicate how great a self-conqueror the unstained ,julian was4 ,he was a ,keats in imperial affairs1 dying when he had given no more than a promise of what he should become4 ,he laws1 his valor1 his victories1 his writings1 are no more than juvenilia3 they are equal to the grand performance1 not the promise1 of many who are counted great4 ,he came out from his overshadowment and long seclusion1 from him books and dreams2 was thrown into conditions that would have been difficult for an experienced statesman1 and won through them all triumphantly2 was set to conduct a war that would have taxed the genius of a ,caesar1 a ,tiberius1 or an ,aurelius1--and swept through to as signal victories as any of theirs4 ,he learnt the elements of drill1 and was straight sent to conquer the conquering ,germans2 and did it brilliantly4 ,he came to a ,gaul as broken and hopeless as ,joan of ,arc's ,france2 and found within himself every quality needed to heal it and make it whole4 ,joan conquered with her ,vision2 ,julian conquered with his4 ,he set out with this before his eyes and in his soul3--,the ,gods are there2 the beautiful ,gods2 uttermost splendor of divinity is at the heart of things4 ,the glory of the ,gods and of their world filled his eyes2 and the determination filled his soul to make this outer world conform to the beauty of his vision4 ,the thing he did not care about1--did not notice1 except in a humourous way1--was that queer thing of a personality that had been allotted to himself4 ,how could he have succeeded1 in the world that then was8--,and yet even a ,christian poet was constrained to say1--and to rise1 says ,gibbon1 above his customary mediocrity in saying it1--that though ,julian was hateful to ,god1 he was altogether beneficent to mankind4 ,i do not know how to explain the ,persian expedition4 ,he himself said1 when dying1 that he had loved and sought peace1 and had but gone to war when driven to it4 ,we cannot see now what were the driving factors4 ,did he go to reap glory that he might have used1 or thought he might have used1 in his grand design8 ,did he go to break a way into ,india1 perhaps there to find a light beyond any that was in ,rome8 444 ,or was it the supreme mistake of his life4444 one would say the only mistake8 ,it failed1 and he died1 and his grand designs came to nothing2 and ,rome went out in utter darkness4 ,and men sneered at him then1 and have been sneering at him ever since1 for his failure4 ,perhaps we must call it that2 it was a forlorn hope at the best of times4 ,but you cannot understand him1 unless you think of him as a ,lord of ,vision lonely in a world wholly bereft of it3 a man for whom all skies were transparent1 and the solid earth without opacity1 but with the luminous worlds shining through wherein ,apollo walks1 and all the ,masters of ,light and ,beauty2--unless you think of him as a ,lord of ,vision moving in an outer world1 a phase of civilization1 old1 tired1 dying1 dull as ditch-water1 without imagination1 with no little vestige of poetry1 no gleam of aspiration1--with wit enough to sneer at him1 and no more2 by no means with wit enough to allow him to save it from itself and from ruin4 ,,xxiv4 ,,from ,,julian ,,to ,,bodhidharma ,when the news came drifting back over the ,roman world that the ,emperor had been killed in ,persia1 and that an unknown insignificant ,jovian reigned in his stead2--and while three parts of the population were rejoicing that there was an end of the ,apostate and his apostasy2 and half the rest1 that there was an end of this terrible strenuosity1 this taking of the ,gods 7good harmless useful fictions--probably fictions7 so fearfully in earnest3 ,i wonder how many there were to guess how near the end of the world had come8 ,the cataclysm was much more sudden and over-whelming than we commonly think2 and to have prophesied1 in ,roman society1 in the year #cfc1 that in a century's time the empire and all its culture would be things of the past 7in the ,west71 would have sounded just as ridiculous1 probably1 as such a prophesy concerning ,europe and its culture would have sounded in a ,london drawing-room fifteen years ago4 ,there were signs and portents1 of course1 for the thoughtful2 and no doubt some few ,matthew ,arnolds in their degree to be troubled by them4 ,and of course 7as in our own day1 but perhaps rather more71 an idea with cranks that at any moment ,doomsday might come4 ,but while the world endured1 and the ,last ,trump had not sounded1 of course the ,roman empire would stand4--,christianity8 ,well1 yes2 it had grown very strong2 and the extremists among the ,christians were rabid enough against culture of any sort4 ,but there were also ,christians who1 while they hated the olden culture of ,paganism1 were ambitious to supply a ,christian literature in prose and verse to take the place of the ,classical4 ,there had been an awful devastation of ,gaul2 the barbarians of the north had been1 now and again1 uneasy and troublesome2 but see how ,julian--even he1 with the ,grace of ,god all against him--had chastised them6 ,the head of the ,roman ,state would always be the ,master of the ,world4 ,and strangely enough1 this was an idea that persisted for centuries2 facts with all their mordant logic were impotent to kill it4 ,hardly in ,dante's time did men guess that the ,roman empire and its civilization were gone4 ,life1 when ,julian died1 was still capable of being a very graceful and dignified affair1--outwardly1 at any rate4 ,on their great estates in ,gaul1 in ,britain1 in ,italy1 great and polished gentlemen still enjoyed their otium cum dignitate4 ,the culture of the great past still maintained itself amongst them2 although thought and all mental vigor were buried deep under the detritus4 ,in fourth century ,gaul there was quite a little literary renaissance2 centering1 as you might expect1 in the parts furthest from ,german invasion4 ,its leading light was born in ,bordeaux in the three-thirties2 and was thus 7to link things up a little7 a younger contemporary of the ,indian ,samudragupta4 ,he was ,ausonius3 teacher of rhetoric1 tutor to the prince ,gratian1 consul1 country gentleman1 large land-owner1 and1 in a studious uninspired reflective way1 a goodish poet4 ,also a convert to ,christianity1 but unenthusiastic3--altogether1 a dignified and polished figure2 such as you might find in ,england now1 in the country squire who has held important offices in ,india in his time1 hunts and shoots in season1 manages his estates with something between amateur and professional interest1 reads ,horace for his pleasure1 and even has a turn for writing ,latin verses4 ,ausonius leaves us a picture of the life of his class3 a placid1 cultured life1 with quite a strong ethical side to it2 sterile of any deep thought or speculation2 far removed from unrest4-- ,another respresentative man was his friend ,symmachus at ,rome3 also highly cultured and of dignified leisure2 a very upright and capable gentleman widely respected for his sterling honesty2 a pagan1 not for any stirring of life within his heart or mind1 but simply for love of the ancient ,roman idea1--sheer conservatism2--for much the same reasons1 in fact1 as make the ,englishman above-mentioned a staunch member of the ,english ,church4 ,there were many such men about3 admirable men2 but unluckily without the great constructive energies that might1 under ,julian's guidance for example1 have saved the empire4 ,but the empire6 ,in that crisis1--in that narrow pass in time6 ,it is not excellent gentlemen that can do such near-thaumaturgic business2 but only disciples2 for the proposition is1 as ,i understand it1 to link this world with the ,god-world1 and hold fast through thunders and cataclysm1 so that what shall come through1--what shall be when the thunder is stilled and the cataclysm over1-- shall flow on and up onto a new order of cycles1 higher1 nearer the ,spirit4 4 4 4 4 ,no2 it is not to be done by amiable gentlemen1 or excellent administrators1 or clever politicians4 4 4 4 ,julian had come flaming down into the world1 to see if he could rouse up and call together those who should do it2 but his bugles had sounded in the empty desert1 and died away over the sands4 ,there were tremendous energies abroad2 but they were all with the ,destroyers1 and were to be1 ever increasingly3 with such men as1 at this time1 ,saint ,martin of ,tours1 that great tearer-down of temples2 or in the next century1 ,saint ,cyril of ,alexandria and ,peter the ,reader1 the tearers-to-pieces of ,hypatia4 ,perhaps the greatest energies of all you should have found1 now and later1 in the ,christian mob of ,alexandria1--wild beasts innocent of nothing but soap and water4 ,it was ,symmachus who was chosen by the ,roman ,senate to remonstrate with the emperor ,valentinian against the removal of the altar and statue of ,victory1--the ,pagan symbols1--from the senate house4 ,i quote you ,gibbon's summary of a part of his petition3 ,the great and incomprehensible ,secret of the ,universe eludes the enquiry of man4 ,where reason cannot instruct1 custom may be permitted to guide2 and every nation seems to consult the dictates of prudence by a faithful attachment to those rites and opinions which have received the sanction of ages4 ,if those ages have been crowned with glory and prosperity--if the devout people have frequently obtained the blessings which they have solicited at the altars of the ,gods--it must appear still more advisable to persist in the same salutary practise and not to risk the unknown perils that may attend any rash inovations4 ,the test of antiquity and success1 7continues ,gibbon71 was applied with singular advantage to the ,religion of ,,numa1 and ,rome herself1 the celestial genius that presided over the fates of the city1 is introduced by the orator to plead her own cause before the tribunal of the emperors4 ',most excellent princes1' says the venerable matron1 'fathers of your country6 pity and respect my age1 which has hitherto flowed in an uninterrupted course of piety4 ,since ,i do not repent1 enjoy my domestic institutions4 ,this religion has reduced the world under my laws4 ,these rites have repelled ,hannibal from the city1 and the ,gauls from the ,capitol4 ,were my grey hairs reserved for such intolerable disgrace8 ,i am ignorant of the new system ,i am required to adopt2 but ,i am well assured that the correction of old age is always an ungrateful and ignominious office4' ,symmachus was addressing a ,christian emperor2 and it was an ill thing then1 as in the days of ,hadrian1 to argue with the master of the legions4 ,still1 the method he chooses is interesting3 it holds a light up to the inwardness of the age1 and shows it dead4 ,this was at twenty-one years after the death of the ,dragon-,apostate2 whose appeal had all been to the realities and the divinity of man and the living splendor of the ,gods he knew and loved4 ,that splendor1 said he1 should burn away the detritus1 and make ,romans men and free again4 ,but ,symmachus1 for all his admirable restraint1 his rhetorical excellence1 his good manners and gentlemanly bearing1--which ,i am sure we should admire1-- appeals really only to the detritus2 to nothing in the world that could possibly help or save ,rome4 ,the ,christians wanted to be free of it1 because they felt its weight2 the ,pagans wanted to keep it1 because they found it warm and comfortable4 ,symmachus sees nothing higher or better than custom2 the secret of the universe1 says he1 is unknowable2 there is no inner life4 --,he was confuted by a much more alive and less estimable man3 ,ambrose1 bishop of ,milan1--with whom1 also1 both he and ,ausonius were on friendly terms4 ,ambrose's argument1 too1 is illuminating3 like the ,king of ,hearts'1 it was in the main that you were not to talk nonsense4 ,how ridiculous1 said he1 to impute the victories of old ,rome to the ,religion of ,numa and favor of the ,gods1--when the strength and valor of the ,roman soldier were quite enough to account for all4 ,thus he appears in the strange role of a rationalist4 ,christianity1 he continued1 was the one and only true religion2 and all the rest--etc41 etc41 etc4 ,ambrose and his party were fighting towards a definite and positive end2 knew what they wanted1 and meant to get it4 ,of course they won4 ,symmachus and the senate were fighting only for a sentiment about the past1 and had no chance at all4 ,and it really did not matter3 ,rome was doomed anyway4 ,but in passing ,i must e'en linger on a note of sublimity in this petition of ,symmachus3 of sublime faith2--when he makes ,dea ,roma refer to her history as having hitherto flowed in an uninterrupted course of piety4 ,it makes one think that they taught ,roman history in their schools then much in the same way that we teach our national histories in our schools today2 here and in ,england1 and no doubt elsewhere1 ,an uninterrupted course of piety6 quotha4 ,marry come up6 ,but all this is anticipating the years a little3 looking into the eighties1 whereas we have not finished with the sixties yet4 ,julian died in #cfc1 on the #bfth of ,june2 and within a couple of years1 you may say1--many said so then1--the ,gods began to avenge him4 ,nature herself took a hand1 to warn a degenerate world4 ,in #cfe came an earthquake2 gollowed by a huge withdrawal of the sea1 so that you could explore dry-shod the antres of the sea-gods4 ,and then a tidal wave which threw large ships up onto the roofs of houses two miles inland1 and killed in ,alexandria alone fifty thousand people4--,aha6 said the ,pagans1 we told you so4--,nothing of the kind6 said the ,christians in reply2 did not we set a saint on the beach at ,epidaurus1 before whom the oncoming billow stopped1 bowed its head1 and retired8 ,well2 no doubt that was so2 but ,alexandria was a perfect hotbed of saints1 one of whom1 you might think1 might have been lured down to the beach and the perilous proximity of water for the occasion4 ,but let it pass6 ,ten years later the ,law began to marshal its armies seriously for the destruction of an obsolete world4 ,the ,huns crossed the ,volga1 and fell upon the ,ostrogoths1 who had had a ,middle-,european empire up through ,austria and ,germany4 ,the ,ostrogoths1 somewhat flattened out1 joined with the ,huns to fall upon the ,visigoths2 who theeupon poured down through the ,balkans to fall upon the ,romans2 and defeated and killed the emperor ,valens at ,adianople in #cgh4 ,theodosius1 from #cgi to #cie1 held precariously together a frontier cracking and bulging all along the line as it had never cracked and bulged before4 ,when he died1 the empire finally split3 of his two sons1 ,arcadius taking the ,east1 ,honorius the ,west4 ,in ,honorius' half1 from now on it is a record of ruin hurrying on the footsteps of ruin4 ,ended the quiet otium cum dignitate of the great country gentlemen2 the sterile culture1 the somewhat puritan morality1 the placid refined life we read of in ,ausonius4 ,you shall see now the well-ordered estate laid waste2--the peasants killed or hiding in the woods2--the mansion smashed1 and its elegant furniture2--the squire1 the kindly-severe religious matron his mother the young wife1--gracious lady of the house1-- and the bonny children3--they are hacked corpses lying at random in the wrecked salons1 or in the trampled garden where my lady's flowers now grow wild4 ,the land went out of cultivation2 the populace1 what remained of it1 crowded into the walled cities1 there to frowse in mental and physical stuffiness until the ,middle ,ages were passed1--or else took to the wilds under any vigorous mind1 and became bandits4 ,the open country was all trodden down by wave after wave of marauding1 murdering1 beer-swilling1 turbulent giants from the north1--or by the still more dreaded dwarfish horsemen whose forefathers ,pan ,chow had driven long since out of ,asia4 ,they poured down into ,greece2 they1 poured down through ,gaul and ,spain into ,africa2 into ,italy2 host after host of them2--civilization was a pathetic sand-castle washed over and over by ruining seas4 ,rome1 indeed1 could still command generals at times3 ,stilicho1 ,aetius1 and afterwards ,belisarius and ,narses2 but they were all pitiful ,partingtons swishing their mops round against a most ugly ,atlantic4 ,in #daj ,rome itself was sacked by ,alaric2 in the same year ,britain1 and then ,brittany1 rose and threw off the ,roman yoke4 ,in the four-fifties came the keen point of the ,hunnish terror1 putting the fear of death on even the worst of the barbarians that had wrecked the ,roman world4 ,in #dgf1 the pretense of a ,western ,empire was abandoned4--,so now to follow the great march of the cycles eastward2 with this warning3 that next week we shall glance at a little backwash in the other direction1 and see the disembodied soul of this now closed phase of human culture 'go west4' ,the split with ,rome was altogether of value to the ,eastern empire of ,constantinople4 ,that empire lasted1 from the time of ,arcadius to that of ,constantine ,,ix and ,mohammed the ,conqueror1 one thousand and fifty-eight years1 says ,gibbon1 in a state of premature and perpetual decay4--,a statement which1 taken as an example of ,gibbonese1 is altogether delightful2 but for the true purposes of history it may need a little modification4 ,the position of this ,byzantine ,empire was a curious one3 ,european in origin1 mainly ,west-,asian in location4 ,its situation permitted it to last on so long into the ,west-,asian manvantara2 its origin doomed that long survival to be1 for the most part1 devoid of the best characteristics of life4 ,yet during most of the ,european pralaya it was far and away the richest and most civilized power in ,christendom2 and1 except during the reigns of extraordinary kings in the west1 like ,charlemagne1 the strongest too4 ,it specialized in military science2 and the well-trained ,byzantine soldiers and highly scientific generals had little to fear1 as a rule1 from the rude energies and huge stature of the northern and western hordes4 ,but culture remained there in the sishta state1 and could do nothing until it was transplanted4 ,there were cycles3 weaknesses and recoveries2 on the whole its long life-period matters very little to history2 it only became of great importance when it died4 ,the reason why it did not succumb when ,rome did was that the tides of life in the whole empire had long been flowing eastward1 and were now gathered there almost wholly3 there was much more activity in the east2 there were much bigger cities1 and a much greater population4 ,so that part was harder to penetrate and conquer3 there was more resistance there4 ,the barbarian deluge flowed down where it might flow down most easily3 following1 as deluges and everything else gifted with common sense always do1 the lines of least resistance4 ,the way through ,gaul and ,spain was quite open2 the way into ,italy nearly so2--but the way into ,asia was blocked by ,constantinople4 ,that city is naturally one of the strongest in the world1 in a military sense2 and1 you would say1 inevitably the capital of an empire4 ,if ,dardanus had had a little more intuition1 and had founded his ,troy on the ,golden ,horn instead of on the ,dardanelles1 ,anax andron ,agamemnon and his chalcho-chitoned ,achaeans1 ,i dare say1 would have gone home to ,greece much sadder and wiser men2--or more probably1 not at all4 ,but ,troy is near enough to that inevitable site to argue the strong probability of its having been1 perhaps long before ,priam's time1 a great seat of empire1 trade1 and culture4 ,if one dug in ,constantinople itself1 ,i dare say one should find the remains of cities that had been mighty4 ,events of the last seven years have shown how difficult it is to attack1 how easy to defend4 ,since its foundation by ,constantine it has been besieged nine times1 and only twice taken by foreign enemies4 ,when the ,turks took it1 they had already overflowed all the surrounding territories2 and they were the strongest military power in the world1 and the ,byzantines were among the weakest4--,so it stood there in the fifth century to hold back the hordes of northern ,europe from the rich lands of ,asia ,minor and ,syria3 a strength much beyond the power of those barbarians to tackle2 while all ,europe west-ward was being trampled to death4 ,further1 the peace imposed on ,jovian by ,shah ,sapor in #cfd lasted1 with one small intermission of war1 and that successful for the ,romans1 for a hundred and thirty-eight years2 during which time1 also1 the powers that were at ,constantinople ruled mainly wisely and with economy4 ,they were generally not the reigning emperor1 but his wife or mother or aunt1 or someone like that4 ,so then1 in the year #djj we find the world in this condition3-- western ,europe going ,with hideous ruin and combustion down ,to bottomless perdition2 --the ,eastern ,empire weakish1 but fairly quiet and advancing towards prosperity3 in pralaya certainly1 and so to remain for thirteen decades 7#cie to #ebg7 from the death of ,theodosius to the accession of ,justinian2--,persia1 under an energetic and intelligent ,yazdegird ,,ii 7#cii to #dbj71 a strongish military power3 ,yazdegird held his barons well in hand1 and even made a brave effort to broaden the religious outlook2 he tried to stop the persecution of the ,christians1 and allowed them to organize a national church1 the ,nestorian2--,india1 still and until #def1 at the height of her glory3--there is a continual rise as you go eastward1 with the climax in ,india4 ,the next step is ,china2 to which now after all these centuries we return4 ,as we have seen1 since the ,hans fell there had been a confusion of ephemeral kingdoms jostling and hustling each other across the stage of time3 there had been too much history altogether2 too many wars1 heroes1 adventures and wild escapades4 ,life was too riotous and whirling an affair3 ,china seemed to have sunk into a mere ,europe1 a kind of ,kilkenny ,christendom4 ,not that culture ever became extinct2 indeed1 through this whole period the super-refinement that had grown up under the ,hans persisted side by side with the barbarian excursions and alarms4 ,it was not1 as in ,rome1 a case of major pralaya3 men did not resort to savagery2 literary production seems never to have run quite so sterile4 ,but things were in the melting-pot1 centripetalism had gone2 little dynasties flared up quickly and expired2 and amidst all those lightning changes there was no time for progress1 or deep concerns1 or for the ,soul of the ,black-haired ,people to be stirring to manifestation4 ,you will1 ,i dare say1 have learned to look for a rise in ,china at any falling-time in ,europe2 so would consider something should have happened there in #cfe1 the year of the great earthquake and tidal wave1 when the fifty thousand ,alexandrians were drowned1-- the second year after ,julian's death4 ,well2 in that #cfe ,tao ,yuan-ming was born1 who later became known as ,tao ,chien3 in ,japanese1 ,toemmei4 ,there had been poets all along4 ,during the last thirty years of the ,hans1 #aij to #bbj1 there had been the ,seven ,scholars of the ,chien ,an ,period3 among them that jolly ,k'ung ,jung who1 because he was a descendant of ,confucius1 claimed blood-relationship with the descendants of ,laotse4 ,ts'ao ,ts'ao himself wrote songs3 he was that bold bad adventurer and highly successful general who turned out the last ,han and set his own son on the throne as ,wei ,wenti2 who also was a poet1 as was his brother ,ts'ao ,chih4 ,of ,ts'ao ,chih a contemporary said3 ,if all the talent in the world were divided into ten parts1 ,ts'ao ,chih would have eight of them4--,who1 then1 would have the other two8 asked somebody4--,i should have one of them myself1 was the answer1 and the rest of the world the other4 ,ts'ao ,chih enriched the language with one of its most familiar and delicious quotations3 ,the ,superior ,man takes precautions1 ,and avoids giving rise to suspicion3 ,he does not pull up his shoes in a melon patch1 ,nor adjust his cap while passing through an orchard of plums4 ,it is indicative of his own position at court4 ,later in the third century came the ,seven ,sages of the ,bamboo ,grove1 a club of rather bibulous singers2 and there are names of many scholars besides to say that the time was not too barren2 yet on the whole it was1 ,i suppose1 a period of slump in literary production1 as it was of confusion in politics4 ,but when ,julian had been dead two years in the west of the world1 ,tao ,yuan-ming was born in the east3 ,i do not say the creator of a new time2 but certainly a sign of its coming4 ,a large amount of his poetry survives2 and it is filled with a new spirit4 ,like ,wordsworth1 he went back to nature4 ,ambition1 of course1 had been a great mark of the age3 men raced after office1 and scrambled for the spoils4 ,tao ,yuan-ming was called to fill an official post1 and went up reluctantly to the capital2 but very soon escaped back to the things he loved3 the mountains1 and his chrysanthemum garden1 and the country1 where he could hear the dogs barking in the far farms1 and see the chickens scratching in the lanes4 ,we do not find in him1 perhaps1 the flood of ,natural ,magic that came with the poets of the ,great ,age three or four centuries later2 but we do find a heart-felt worship of the great unspoiled world under the sky3 he is there to say that ,china was returning to her real strength1 which is ,nature-worship4 ,while he pottered about in the front garden1 he tells us1 his wife pottered about in the back garden2 they made an idol of their chrysanthemums1 and started or nourished the cult which has flourished so strongly since in ,japan4 ,he was ,i suppose the greatest poet since ,ch'u ,yuan1 who came some seven centuries earlier2 it is from him we get the story some of you may know under the title ,red ,peach-,blossom ,inlet4 ,for about half a cycle 7sixty-five years7 barbarian dynasties had been holding the north2 with the result that the center of gravity of the real ,black-haired ,people had been shifted from the puritan landscapes of ,north ,china to the pagan landscapes of the ,yangtse ,valley1--a region of mountains and forests and lakes and wild waters3 ,tsu the land of ,laotse and ,ch'u ,yuan1 and ,i think ,chwangtse too4 ,it is here are the ,hills of ,t'ang1 the metropolis of ,natural ,magic perhaps for all the world2 and the mind and imagination of ,china1 centered here1 were receiving a new polarization2 something richer and more luminous was being born4 ,contemporary with ,tao ,yuan-ming was ,ku ,kaichih1 the first supreme name in painting4 ,fenollosa speaks of a ,white ,lotus ,club1 organized by ,hui ,yuan1 ,a ,buddhist priest1 and consisteing of mountain-climbers and thinkers1--,tao ,yuan-ming being a member4 ,one would like to get at the heart of what happened in that last quarter of the fourth century4 ,this is what we see on our side3 ,canton and ,yangtse ports were being visited more and more by ,hindu1 ,arab1 and ,sassanian traders1 bringing in new things and ideas3 the ,hindus1 especially1 an impetus towards culture from the splendor of the gupta period1 then at its topmost height4 ,also ther were new inventions1 such as that of paper1 which was an incentive to literary output4 ,the ,chinese mind1 in the south especially1 was quickened on the one hand by the magical wind from the mountains1 and on the other by a wind from the great world over-seas3 the necessary nationalistic and international quickenings4 ,but deeper quickenings also were taking place4 ,india was fast becoming1 under the ,gupta reaction towards ,brahmanism1 no place for the ,buddhists2 and the ,hindu ships that put in at ,canton and the ,yangtse were bringing much to ,china besides merchandise4 ,a great propaganda of ,buddhism was in process2 by ,indian monks1 and now too for the first time by native ,chinese4 ,we read of a missionary who went about preaching to an indifferent world2 then in sorrow took to the mountains1 and proclaimed the ,good ,law to the mountain boulders2 and they nodded as it were their heads in assent4 99 ,but there is evidence that ,china was fast becoming the spiritual metropolis of the world3 ,buddhism was drifting in1 and mingling among the mountains with mountain ,taoism1 that dear and hoary magic of the ,eastern ,world2 and the result was an atmosphere in which astounding events were to happen4 ------ 99 ,giles ,dictionary of ,chinese ,biography2 from which work1 and from the same author's ,chinese ,literature1 the facts1 quotations1 and enecdotes given in this lecture are taken4 ------ ,in #dja1 ,kumarajiva1 the seventeenth ,buddhist ,patriarch1 came from ,india and took up his residence at the court at ,changan1 where a ,tibetan family was then reigning over the north2 and this1 when you think that these ,patriarchs were 7as ,i believe7 no popes elected by a conclave of churchly dignities1 but the ,spiritual ,successors of the ,buddha1 each appointed by his predecessor1 an event momentous enough in itself4 ,still1 ,kumarajiva came 7it would appear7 but to prepare the way for the great change that was impending2 left behind him a successor in ,india1 or one to fill the office at his death2 in ,india the headquarters of ,buddhism remained4 ,two years before his arrival1 ,fa ,hian1 a ,chinese ,buddhist monk1 had set out on foot from ,central ,china1 walked across the ,gobi ,desert1 and down through ,afghanistan into ,india1 a pilgrim to the sacred places3 a sane and saintly man1 from whom we learn most of what we know about the ,gupta regime4 ,he returned by sea in #dab1 landing at ,kiao-chao in ,santung1--a place latterly so sadly famous1--bringing with him spiritual and quickening influences4 ,in the south1 meanwhile1 another ,indian teacher1 ,buddhabhadra1 had been at work4 ,before very long1 a ,renaissance was in full flow4 ,the political events that led up to it were these3 between #cjd and #cai a ,tatar family by the name of ,liu1 from ,manchuria1 succeeded in driving the ,house of ,tsin out of northern ,china3 these ,tsins were that effete1 ladylike1 chess-playing1 fan-waving1 high-etiquettish dynasty ,i have spoken of before4 ,in #cai they took up their abode in ,nanking1 and there ruled corruptly for a hundred years1 leaving the north to the barbarians4 ,in #dbj1 a soldier in their employ1 ,liu-yu by name1 deposed the last ,tsin emperor1 and set himself on the throne as the first sovereign of the ,liu-song ,dynasty4 ,he was a capable man1 and introduced some vigor and betterment into affairs2 he found conditions ripe for a renaissance of civilization2 and in his reign we may say that the renaissance took shape4 #dbj is1 so far as a date can be given for what was really a long process1 a convenient date to give4 ,we have seen ,persia rise in the two-twenties2 ,india in the three-twenties2 we shall not go far wrong in giving the four-twenties to ,china4 ,that decade1 too1 marks a fresh step downward in the career of ,rome3 ,honorius died in #dbc4 ,fenollosa is definite upon #dbj for the inception of the great age of the ,southern ,renaissance of art4 ,that age culminated in the first half of the next century1 and ended with the passing of the ,liang dynasty in the five-fifties3 a matter of thirteen decades again2 which1 ,i take it1 is further reason for considering our four-twenties epochal4 ,i fancy we shall grow used to finding the twenties in each century momentous1 and marked by great political and spiritual re-shapings of the world4 ,we shall find this in our historical studies2 in the next few years we may find it in current events too2 and what we shall see may remind us that in these decades the sun generally rises in some new part of the world1--the sun of culture and power4 ,naturally enough3--in the last quarter of each century you have the influx of spiritual forces2 which influx1 it is to be supposed1 can hardly fail to produce changes inwardly1--a new temperature1 new conditions in the world of mind4 ,so there must be readjustments2 there is a disharmony between outer and inner things1 between the world of causes and the world of effects2 and one commonly finds the first two decades of the new century filled with the noise and confusion of readjustment4 ,new wine has been poured into the old skin-bottles of the world2 and ferments1 explodes1 rends them4 ,then1 in the twenties or so1 things calm down1 and it is seen that readjustments have been made4 ,by 'readjustments1' one does not mean the treaties of statesmen and the like2 brain-mind affairs for the most part1 that amount to nothing4 ,one means a new direction taken by the tide of incarnating souls4 ,as if the readjusting cataclysms had blocked their old channels of these1 and opened new ones444 ,a new arpeggio chord1 but rather a faint and broken one1 sounds in the five-twenties1 or begins then4 ,at ,constantinople the thirteen pralayic and recuperative decades since the death of ,theodosius and the split with the ,west have ended4 ,now an emperor dies2 and it becomes a question which of several likely candidates can lay out his money to best advantage and secure the succession4 ,there is an official of some sort at court there1 one ,justin1 a ,balkan peasant by birth2 you will do well to bribe him heavily1 for he1 probably1 can manage the affair for you1-- ,one of the candidates does so3 hands him a large sum1 on the assurance from ,justin that he shall be the man4 ,but the old fellow has peasant shrewdness1 shall we say2 and the money is used most thriftily2 but not as its donor intended4 ,justin duly ascends the throne4 ,nothing very promising in that1 to insure manvantaric times coming in4 ,but the old man remembers a nephew of his back there in ,bulgaria or ,jugoslavia or where it may have been2 and sends for him1 and very wisely lets him do most of the running of things4 ,in #ebg1 this nephew succeeds to the purple on his uncle's death3 as ,justinian2 and1 for ,europe and the ,byzantine empire1 and for the times1--that is to say1 'considering1' --manvantaric doings do begin4 ,a man of hugely sanguine temperament1 inquisitive and enterprising and impulsive1 he had the fortune to be served by some great men3 ,tibonian1 who drew up the ,pandects2 ,belisarius and ,narses1 who thrashed the barbarians2 the architect who built ,saint ,sophia4 ,against these assets to his reign of thirty-eight years you must set the factions of the circus1 at ,constantinople itself2 and bloody battle over the merits of the ,greens1 the ,blues1 the ,whites1 etc4 ,but certainly ,justinian contrived to strike into history as no other ,byzantine emperor did2 with his law code1 and with his church4 ,so now enough of him4 ,four years after the accession of this greatest of the ,byzantines1 the greatest of the ,sassanids came to the throne in ,persia3 ,chosroes ,anushirwan3 a wise and victorious reign until #egi4 ,there was an ',endless ,peace' sworn with ,rome in #ecc2 and not peace merely1 but friendship and alliance2 it was to last for all time1 and did last for seven years4 ,the ,chosroes1 jealous of the western victories of ,justinian1 listened to the pleadings of the ,ostrogoths1 and declared war2 peace came again in #efc1 on the basis of a yearly tribute from ,rome to ,persia1-- but with compensations1 such as toleration for the ,christians in ,persia4--there were reforms in the army and in taxation2 improvements in irrigation2 encouragement of learning2 revision of the laws2 some little outburst in literature and culture generally3 the culmination1 in all but extent of territory1 of the whole ,sassanian period4--,we may throw in one item from the future1--that is from #fbj3 in that year ,sassanian ,persia had flowed out to the full limits of the empire of ,darius ,hystaspes3 held ,egypt1 ,syria1 all ,west ,asia to within a mile of the walls of ,constantinople4 ,within three years the fall had begun2 within twenty it was completed4 ,as to ,india1 this 7#ebj7 is among the hidden times3 the ,ephthalites had overturned the ,guptas2 they were ,huns of the ,hunniest2 they had over-turned the ,guptas and all else 7in the north74 ,tales come down of the fiendishness of their kings3 of a man that for his sport would have elephants hurled from the top of precipices2 it may be that the ,indian manvantara closed with the ,gupta fall2--though we get the finical dandiacal 'great' reign of ,harsha in #gjj4 ,the light certainly was dying from ,india now3 the ,crest-,wave had been there1 in all its splendor2 they had made good use of it in all but the spiritual sense1 and very bad use of it in that4 ,the year in which you may say 7as nearly as history will tell you7 the light died there1 was precisely this year of #ebj2 and that effected a change in the spiritual center of gravity of the world of the most momentous kind3 so much so that we may think of a new order of ages as beginning then2 and looking at world-history as a whole1 we may say1 ,here endeth the lesson that began where we took things up in the time of the ,six ,great ,teachers2 and here beginneth a new chapter1-- with which these lectures will hardly concern themselves4 ,but we may glance at the event that opens it4 ,it made very little stir at the time4 ,it was merely the landing at ,canton of an old man from ,india3 a ',blue-eyed ,brahmin1'--but a ,buddhist1 and the head of all the ,buddhists at that2--and his preaching there until ,liang ,wuti1 the emperor at ,nanking1 had heard of his fame1 and invited him to court2 and his retirement thence to a cave-temple in the north4 ,beyond this there is very little to tell you4 ,he was a king's son from southern ,india2 his name ,bodhidharma2 and one would like to know what the records of the ,great ,lodge have to say about him4 ,for he stands in history as the founder of the ,dhyana or ,zen ,school1 another form of the name of which is ,dzyan2 when one reads ,the ,voice of the ,silence1 or the ,stanzas in ,the ,secret ,doctrine1 one might remember this4 ,outwardly1--,i think this is true1--he refused to cut into history at all3 was a grand ,esoteric figure1 whose campaigns1 7super-,napoleonic1 more mirific than those of ,genghiz ,khan71 were all fought on spiritual planes whence no noise of the cannonading could be heard in this outer world4 ,he was the twenty-eighth ,successor of the ,buddha2 of a line of ,masters that included such great names as those of ,vasubandhu1 and of ,nagarjuna1 founder of the ,mahayana1--one of the four suns that illumine the world4 ,we have seen that he had been preceded3 ,kumarajiva had come to ,china a century before2 but experimentally1 leaving the ,center of the ,movement in ,india2 there must have been thousands of disciples in the ,middle ,kingdom in #ebj when ,bodhidharma came1 bringing with him the ,buddha's alms-bowl1 the symbol of the ,patriarchate1 to make in ,china his headquarters and that of his successors4 ,for a thousand years the ,buddha's ,movement had been in ,india a living link with the ,lodge2--in that land of esoteric history which hides from us what it means to be so linked and connected4 ,now ,india had failed4 ,the ,guptas had reigned in great splendor2 but they had flourished upon a reaction away from the ,light4 ,i suppose it means this3 that the burden of fighting upward had been too much for this people1 now wearied with old age2 they had dropped the burden and the struggle1 and found in the relief a phantom of renewed youth to last them a little day4 ,whatever may be true of ,buddhism now1--however the long cycles may have wasted its vitality1 and to whatever depths it may have fallen1--we should remember this3 that certainly for about fourteen centuries there was contained within it a living link with the ,masters' ,lodge4 ,it was not like any other existing religion 7so far as one knows73 like none of the dominant religions of today1 at any rate4 ,at its head1 apparently1 through all those long centuries1 was a line of ,adepts1 men of spiritual genius1 members of the ,lodge4 ,so what ,bodhidharma's coming meant1 ,i take it1 was that in ,china that was established actually which in the ,west first ,pythagoras1 and then ,plotinus had tried to establish1 and tried in vain4 ,it was1 as you may say1 the transplanting of the ,tree of ,life from a soil that had grown outworn to one in which it could flourish2 and the result was1 it appears to me1 a new impulse given to the ages1 to all history4 ,hitherto1 in the main1 we have seen 7except in ,china7 a downward trend of cycles2 from this point an upward trend began4 ,we have been dealing1 latterly1 with dullish centuries1 and history in a febrile and flickering mood2--but give this wonderful change time to take effect1 and the centuries begin to flame up1 and history to become a roaring conflagration4 ,we might here spy out into that time1 which will lie beyond the scope of these lecture2 and see the glory of the ,t'angs begin in ,china in #fah2 ,corea's one historic age of splendor1 in art and also in military prowess1 at its highest point about #fhj2 the era of ,shotoku ,daishi1 saint1 sage1 prince and protagonist of civilization in ,japan1 from about #ehj to #fbj2 the rise of ,siam1 and of ,tibet1 into strength and culture and ,buddhism1 in the first half of the seventh century2-- then1 looking westward1 the wonderful career of ,mohammed in ,arabia1 who gave the impetus that rescued civilization first in ,west ,asia and then1 when in the thirteenth century a new ,european manvantara was ready to open1 in ,europe also3 rescued civilization first in ,west ,asia and then1 when in the thirteenth century a new ,european manvantara was ready to open1 in ,europe also2 an impetus which worked on the intellectual-cultural plane until it had brought things to the point where ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky might come to give things a huge twist towards the spiritual1-- and where ,katherine ,tingley might accomplish that which all the ages had been expecting1 and the whole creation groaning and travailing to see4 ,oh1 on brain-mind lines you can trace no connexion2 but then the plane of causes lies deeper than the brain-mind4 ,we may understand now1 ,i think1 what place the ,buddha holds in human history3 how it was not for nothing that he was the ,buddha1 the central ,avatar1 the topmost and ,master ,figure of humanity for these last twenty-five hundred years1 with what other sublime men appeared as it were subordinate to him1 and the guides of tributary streams3 ,laotse and ,confucius preparing the way for him in ,china2 ,pythagoras carrying his doctrine into the ,west4444 ,well2 here is scope for thought2 and for much thought that may be true and deep1 and illuminative of future ages2 and yet not convenient to write down at this time4 ,but to ,bodhidharma again4 ,h4 ,p4 ,blavatsky affirmed that ,buddhism had an esoteric as well as an exoteric side3 an affirmation that was of course disputed4 ,but here is this from a ,chinese writer quoted by ,edkins3 ,tathagata taught great truths and the causes of things4 ,he became the instructor of men and devas2 saved multitudes1 and spoke the contents of more than five hundred books4 ,hence arose the ,kiaumen or ,exoteric branch of the system1 and it was believed to hold the tradition of the words of the ,buddha4 ,bodhidharma brought from the ,western ,heaven the seal of truth1 and opened the ,fountain of ,dhyana in the east4 ,he pointed directly to ,buddha's heart and nature1 swept away the parasitic growth of book instruction1 and thus established the ,esoteric branch of the system containing the doctrine of the heart1 the tradition of the ,heart of ,buddha4 ,yet the two branches1 while presenting of necessity a different aspect1 form but one whole4 ,now that ,doctrine of the ,heart had always been in existence2 it does not mean that ,bodhidharma invented anything4 ,but in a line of ,teachers1 each will have its own methods1 and1 if there is progress1 there will be new and deeper revelations4 ,the ,buddha gave out so much1 as the time permitted him2 ,nagarjuna1 founding the ,mahayana1 so much further2 ,bodhidharma1 now that with the move to ,china a new lease of life had come1 gave out1 or rather taught to his disciples1 so much more again of the doctrine that in its fulness is and always has been the doctrine of the ,lodge4 ,lian ,wuti1 the emperor at ,nanking1 had been at the end of the fifth century a general in the service of the last scion of a dying dynasty there1 and a devout ,taoist2 in #ejb he became the first of a new dynasty1 the ,liang2 and presently1 a devout ,buddhist4 ,chinese historians love him not2 ,fenollosa describes him as too generous-minded and other-worldly for success4 ,yet he held the throne for nearly fifty years2 a time in which art was culminating and affairs advancing through splendor and unwisdom to a downfall4 ,twice he took the yellow robe and alms-bowl1 and went forth through his domains1 emperor still1 but mendicant missionary preaching the ,good ,law4--,the ,truth8 the ,inner doctrine8--,i learn most about this poor ,lian ,wuti from the record of an interview held once between him and the ',blue-eyed ,brahmin' ,master of ,dzyan4 ,lian ,wuti invited ,bodhidharma to court1 and ,bodhidharma came4 ,said the emperor3 --,since my accession ,i have been continually building temples1 transcribing books1 and admitting new monks to take the vows4 ,how much merit may ,i be supposed to have accumulated8 --,none1 said ,bodhidharma4 --,and why none8 --,all this1 said the ,master1 is but the insignificant effect of an imperfect cause not complete in itself2 it is but the shadow that follows the substance1 and without real existence4 --,then what1 asked ,wuti1 is real merit8 --,it consists in purity and enlightenment1 depth and completeness2 in being wrapped in thought while surrounded by vacancy and stillness4 ,merit such as this cannot be won by worldly means4 ,wuti1 ,i suppose1 found this kind of conversation difficult1 and changed the subject1--with an exotericist's question4 ,said he3 --,which is the most important of the holy doctrines8 --,where all is emptiness1 said ,bodhidharma1 nothing can be called holy4 ,a neat compliment1 thinks good externalist ,wuti1 may improve things4--,if nothing can be called holy1 says he1 who is it then that replies to me8--holiness being a well-known characteristic of ,bodhidharma himself4 ,who answered merely3 --,i do not know2 and went his ways4 ,the final comment on the interview is given by a ,japanese writer thus3 ,can an elephant associate with rabbits8 ,for the rest1 he spent the remaining years of his life in a cave-temple near ,honanfu2 and died after appointing a ,chinaman his successor4 ,besides this small stock of facts there is a sort of legend2 as for example3 ,after leaving the court of ,lian1 he crossed the ,yangtse on a reed1--a theme in sacred art for thousands ever since1--and because of this miraculous crossing1 is worshiped still by ,yangtse boatman as their patron saint1--on the #bhth of ,february in each year4--,once1 as he sat in meditation1 sleep overcame him2 and on waking1 that it might never happen again1 he cut off his eyelids4 ,but they fell on the earth1 took root and sprouted2 and the plant that grew from them was the first of all tea plants1--the symbol 7and cause67 of eternal wakefulness4 ,he is represented in the pictures as being footless2 in his missionary travels1 it is said1 he wore away his feet4 ,thus where there is no known life-story1 but all hidden away beneath a veil of esotericism and a ,master's seclusion1 myths have grown1 and a story has been made4--,he sat there in his cave silent through the years1 they say2 his face to the wall4 ,chih ,kuang came to him1 asking to be taught the doctrine2 and for seven days stood in the snow at the cave-mouth1 pleading and unnoticed4 ,then1 to show that he was in earnest1 he drew his sword and sliced off his left arm2 and the ,master called him in1 and taught him4--,legend again1 no doubt4 ,i imagine we can only judge of the man and of his astounding greatness by the greatness of the ages he illumined4 ,it was as if he gave1 in ,east ,asia1 the signal for nation after nation to leap into brilliant being4 ,as for ,china1 she became something new4 ,the ,age of ,han had been golden1 strong1 manly1 splendid4 ,but ,han was like other empires here and there about the world4 ,henceforth during her cycle ,china was to be as a light-giving body1 a luminary wondrous in the firmament with a shining array of satellite kingdoms circling about her4 ,her own ,teachers of a thousand years before had prepared the way for it3 ,confucius when he gave her stability2 ,laotse when he dropped the ,blue ,pearl into her fields4 ,that ,pearl had shone1 heaven knows4 ,now ,ta-mo1 this ,bodhidharma1 breathed on it2 and it glowed1 and flame shot up from it1 and grew1 and foamed up beautiful1 till it was a steady fountain of wonder-fire spraying the far stars4 ,heretofore we have had a background of ,taoist wizardry3 in its highest aspects1 ,natural ,magic1--the ,keatsism of the waters and the wild1 the wood1 the field1 and the mountain2 henceforth there was to be a sacred something shining through and inmingled with this3 the urge of the ,divine ,soul1 the holy purposes of evolution4 ,we may say this in ,art1 to take that one field alone1 the most perfect1 the fullest1 the divinest1 expression of ,natural ,magic whereof this world holds record was to come in the school of the ,successors of ,bodhidharma1 directly the result of his ',doctrine of the ,heart4' ,his school remained esoteric2 but it was established1 not among the secret mountains1 nor in far unvisited regions2 but there in the midst of imperial ,china3 an extension of the ,lodge1 you may say1 visible among men4 ,bodhidharma--are you to call him a ,messenger at all8 ,he hardly came out into the world4 ,it was known he was there2 near by was the northern capital2--he taught disciples1 when they had the strength to insist on it4 ,yet he dwelt aloof too1 and wrapped about in the seclusion ,masters must have1 to carry on their spiritual work4 ,one must suppose that ,messengers of the ,lodge had been very busy in ,china between #cge and #djj1 in the days of ,tao ,yuang-ming and ,ku ,kai-chih2 that they had been very busy again in the last quarter of the fifth century2 for it seems as if somehow or other there was such an atmosphere in ,china in the first half of the sixth century1--when ordinarily speaking the ,doors of the ,spiritual ,world would be shut1--that the ,lodge was enabled partly to throw off its seclusion1 and it was possible for at least one of its ,members to take up his abode there1 and to be known to the world as doing so4 ,a ,messenger was sent out into the ,chinese world from the ,school of ,bodhidarma in #ege3 ,chih-i1 the founder of the ,tientai ,school which was the spiritual force underlying the glory of the ,t'ang age2 but he was a ,messenger from the ,dzyan ,school of ,bodhidharma1 not its ,head4 ,as far as ,i have been able to gather the threads of it1 the line of those ,heads1 the ,eastern ,patriarchs1 ,bodhidharma's successors1 was as follows3 ,he died in or about #ecf1 having appointed ,chi ,kuang to succeed him4 ,chi ,kuang appointed ,hui ,ssu1 called the ,chief of the ,chunglung ,school of the followers of ,bodhidharma4 ,hui ,ssu died in #egf1 having sent out ,chih-i into the world the year before1 and having appointed ,seng ,t'san to succeed him as head of ,dzyan4 ,seng ,t'san died in #fjf2 ,tao ,hsin1 his successor1 in #fea2 ,hung ,jen1 his1 in #fge4 ,hung ,jen1 it appears1 left two successors3 ,lu ,hui-neng in the south1 and ,shen ,hsiu in the north4 ,it was the last quarter of the century3 ,i imagine ,lu ,hui-neng was the ,messenger sent out into the world2 he spent the rest of his life teaching in the neighborhood of ,canton2 ,i imagine ,shen ,hsiu remained the ,head of the ,esoteric ,school4 ,after that the line disappears2 but the school attained its greatest influence in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries in ,china1 and later still in ,japan4--,all these were men living not quite in the world3 it was known that they were there1 and where they might be found4 ,after ,shen ,hsiu1 the last ,northern ,chinese ,patriarch1 the line probably withdrew to ,tibet1 which had lately come into relations with ,china1 and where civilization had been established through the efforts of ,t'ang ,taitsong4 ,and now ,i will close this lecture with a saying of ,shen ,hsiu's which1 in this modified form1 is very familiar to all of you3 ,mind is like a mirror3 it gathers dust while it reflects4 ,it needs the gentle breezes of soul wisdom to brush away the dust of our illusions4 ,,xxv4 ,,towards ,,the ,,islands ,,of ,,the ,,sunset ,i had not thought to speak to you further about ,celtic things4 ,but there is something in them here which concerns the spiritual history of the race2 something to note1 that may help us to understand the ,great ,plan4 ,so1 having beckoned you last week to the edge of the world and the fountain of dawn1 and to see ,bodhidharma standing there and evoking out of the deep a new order of ages1 ,i find myself now lured by a westward trail1 and must jump the width of two continents with you1 and follow this track whither it leads3 into the heart and flame of mysterious sunset4 ,i hope1 and the ,gwerddonau ,llion1 the ,green ,spots of the ,flood1--,makarn ,nesoi1 ,tirnanogue1 the ,islands of the ,blest4 ,we saw that while the great flow of the cycles from dying ,rome ran in wave after wave eastward1 there was a little backwash also1 by reason of which almost the last glow we saw in the west was in fourth century ,gaul1 in the literary renaissance there which centers round the name of ,ausonius4 ,now in later history we find every important ,french cycle tending to be followed by one in ,england3 as ,chaucer followed ,jean de ,meung2 ,shakespeare1 ,ronsard and the ,pleyade2 ,dryden and ,pope1 ,moliere and ,racine2 ,wordsworth and ,shelley1 the ,revolution4 ,and we have seen ,china wake in #dbj2 and we have noted1 in the first of these lectures1 the strange fact that whenever ,china 'gets busy1' we see a sort of reflexion of it among the ,celts of the west4 ,and we shall come presently to one of the most curious episodes in history1-- the ,irish ,renaissance in the sixth century3 when all ,europe else was dead and buried under night and confusion1 and ,ireland only1 standing like a white pillar to the west1 a blazing beacon of culture and creative genius4 ,now if you see a wave rising in fourth-century ,gaul1 and a wave breaking into glorious foam in sixth- and seventh-century ,ireland1--what would you suspect8-- ,why1 naturally1 that it was the same wave1 and had flowed through the country that lies between3 common sense would tell you to expect something of a ,great ,age in fifth- and early sixth-century ,britain4 ,and then comes tradition1--which is nine times out of ten the truest vehicle of history1--and shouts that your expectations are correct4 ,for within this time came ,arthur4 ,you know that in the twelfth century ,geoffrey of ,monmouth published what he claimed to be a ,history of the ,kings of ,britain from the time of the coming there of the ,trojans2 and that it was he mainly who was responsible for floating the ,arthurian ,legend on to the wide waters of ,european literature4 ,what percentage of history there may be in his book2 how much of it he did not make out of whole cloth1 but founded on genuine ,welsh or ,breton traditions1 is at present unknowable2--the presumption being that it is not much4 ,but here is a curious fact that ,i only came on this week4 ,the ,romans were expelled from ,britain in #daj1 remember4 ,arthur passed from the world of mortals on the night after ,camlan1 that last weird battle in the west1 when ,all day long the noise of battle rolled ,among the mountains by the wintry sea1 ,till all ,king ,arthur's ,table1 man by man1 ,had fallen in ,lyonnesse about their lord ,king ,arthur4 ,now the reign of ,arthur may be supposed to represent the culmination of a national revival among the ,british ,celts2 and1 --this is the detail ,i was pleased to come upon1--according to ,geoffrey1 ,camlan was fought in #edb2--;a matter of thirteen decades 7and two years7 after the expulsion of the ,romans4 ,so that1 ,i say1 it looks as if there were some cyclic reality behind it4 ,geoffrey of ,monmouth did not know that such periods of national revival do last as a general rule for thirteen decades4 ,he had some other guide to help him to that #edb for ,camlan4 ,history knows practically nothing about fifth-century ,britain4 ,it has been looking at it1 since scientific methods came in1 through ,teutonic 7including ,anglo-,saxon7 or ,latin eyes2 and seen very little indeed but confusion4 ,britain like the rest of the western empire1 suffered the incursions of northern barbarism2 but unlike most of the rest1 it fought1 and not as a piece of ,rome1 but as ,celtic ,britain2--fought1 and would not compromise nor understand that it was defeated4 ,it took eight centuries of war1 and the loss of all ,england1 and the loss of all ,wales1 to teach1 it that lesson2 and even then it was by no means sure4 ,in the twelve-eighties1 when last ,llewelyn went to war1 he was still hoping1 not to save ,wales from the ,english1 but to re-establish the ,celtic ,kingdom of ,britain1 ,arthur's ,empire1 and to wear the high crown of ,london4 ,the men that marched to ,bosworth ,field under ,harri ,tudor1 two centuries later1 went with the same curious hope and assurance4 ,it was a racial mold of mind1 and one of extraordinary strength and persistence1--and one totally unjustified by facts in what were then the present and future4 ,but ,i do not believe such molds can ever be fudged up out of nothing3 ex nihilo nihil is as true here as elsewhere4 ,so we must look for the cause and formation of this mold in the past4 ,something1 ,i think1 within that first cycle of ,welsh history must have impressed it on the ,welsh mind3 some national flowering2 some great figure1 one would say4--,arthur8 ,he is like ,vikramaditya of ,ujjain2 no one know whether he existed at all4 ,there is no historic evidence2 but rather the reverse4 ,but then there are all those mountains and things named after him1 from the top of ,pengwaed in ,cornwall to the bottom of ,dinsol in the ,north2 and1 there is the ,arthurian ,legend1 with such great vitality that it drove out the national ,saxon legends from ,england1 and quenched the ,charlemagne legend in ,france1 and made itself master of the mind of western ,europe in the ,middle ,ages2-- ,i imagine there would have been an ,arthur4 ,some chieftain who won battles2 held up the ,saxon advance for a long time1 probably2 and reminded his people of some ancient hero1 or perhaps of a ,god ,artaios1 thought to be reincarnate in him4 ,not that ,i believe that the mold of mind of which we have been speaking could have been created in the fifth and sixth centuries4 ,whoever ,arthur was--the ,arthur of that time1--however great and successful1 he could but have reigned over some part of ,britain1 precariously resisting and checking the barbarians2 but tradition tells of a very ,chakravartin1 swaying the western world4 ,no2 that mold certainly was a relic of the lost ,celtic empire4 ,it had grown dim during the ,roman domination2 but it had survived1 and the coming in of the ,crest-,wave had put new life into it4 ,nothing could have put new life into it1 it seems to me1 but such a coming in of the ,crest-,wave1--to make it endure and inspire men as it did4 ,i think it is certain the ,crest-,wave1 --a backwash of it1 a little portion of it1 but enough to make life hum and the age important1--was among the ,welsh between #daj and #edb4 ,the wave was receding towards the ,western ,laya-,center2 and gathered force as it rolled from ,ausonius' ,gaul to ,taliesin's ,wales1 and from ,tallesin's ,wales to ,ireland4 ,let us look at the probabilities in ,britain in #daj1 seeing what we can4 ,three hundred years of ,roman rule had left that province1 ,i cannot doubt1 rich and populous1 with agriculture in a better condition than it has been since3--remember the corn ,julian brought thence to feed ,gaul4 ,we must think of a large population1 ,roman and ,romanized1 mixed of every race in the ,roman world1 in the cities2 and of another population1 still ,celtic1 in the mountains of northern ,england1 in the western ,scottish ,lowlands1 and especially in ,wales4 ,it was the former element1 the cities1 that appealed to ,aetius for help against the ,picts and ,scots2 the latter1 dwelling in less accessible places1 fought as soon as they felt the invaders' pressure4 ,wales itself had never been all held by the ,romans4 ,the legions had covered the south from ,caerleon in ,monmouthshire to ,saint ,davids in ,penfro1 a region held by ,silures and ,gaelic ,celts4 ,they had marched along the northern coast to the island of ,mona1 establishing1 just as ,edward the ,conqueror did in his day1 strongholds from which to dominate the dangerous mountains3 these regions also were held by ,gaels4 ,but just south of those mountains1 in what are now the counties of ,meirionydd and ,montgomery1 there was a great piece of ,wales which they seem never to have penetrated2 and it was held by the ,cymric ,ordovices1 ,welsh1 not ,irish1 by language4 ,about this time there was a great upheaval of the ,irish2 who conquered western ,scotland1 and established there sooner or later the ,scottish kingdom of history4 ,they also invaded ,wales and ,england1 and sent their fleets far and wide3 they were the ',picts and ,scots' of the history-books4 ,there seems also to have been an invasion and conquest of ,wales1 from the north1 by the ,welsh2 who1 joining forces with the ,welsh ,ordovices whom they found already in the unconquered un-,roman part1 established in the course of time the kingdom and ,house of ,cunedda1 which reigned till the ,edwardian ,conquest4 ,it is pretty safe to say that the ,romanized cities and the ,romanized population generally offered no great resistance to the ,saxons2 mixed with them fairly readily1 and went to form perhaps the basis of the ,english race2 that they lost their language and culture is due to the fact that they were cut off from the sources of these on the continent1 and1 being of an effete civilization1 were far less in vigor than the ,saxon incomers4 ,and as we saw in the first of these lectures1 there was probably a large ,teutonic or ,saxon element in ,britain since before the days of ,julius ,caesar4 ,but there seems to have been a time during those thirteen decades that followed the eviction of the ,romans1 when the ,celtic element1 wakened to life and receiving an impulse from the ,crest-,wave1 caught up the sovereignty that the ,romans had dropped1 remembered its ,ancient greatness1 and nourished vigorous hopes4 ,to the ,welsh mind1 the age has appeared one of old unhappy far-off things1--unhappy1 because of their tragic ending at ,camlan2-- but grandiose4 ,titanic vague figures loom up3 ,arthur1 the type of all hero-kings2 ,taliesin1 type of all prophet-bards2 ,merlin1 type of magicians4 ,tennyson caught the spirit of it in the grand moments of the ,morte ,d',arthur2 and missed it by a thousand miles elsewhere in the ,idylls4 ,the spirit1 the atmosphere1 is that of a glory receding into the unknown and the ,west of ,wonder2 into ,lyonnesse1 into ,avallon1 into the ,sunset ,isles4 ,there is a sense of being on the brink of the world2 with the 'arm clothed in white samite' reaching in from a world beyond1--that ,otherworld to which the wounded ,arthur1 barge-borne over the nightly waters by the ,queens of ,faerie1 went to heal him of his wounds1 and to await the cyclic hour for his retum4 ,he is the symbol of--what shall we say8--civilization1 culture1 or the spiritual sources of these1 the light that alone can keep them sweet and wholesome2 that light has died from the broken ,roman world1 and passes now west-ward through the ,gates of the ,sunset3 through ,wales1 through ,ireland1 the ,laya-,center2 into the ,hidden1 the ,place of the ,spirit2 into ,avallon1 which is ,ynys ,afallen1 the ',isle of ,apple-trees'2--whence to return in its time3--,rex quondam1 rexque futurus4 ,there is a poem by ,myrddin ,gwyllt1 traditionally of the sixth century1 about that ,garth of ,apple-trees2 which he will have a secret place in the ,woods of ,celyddon1 the ,occult ,land1 and not an island in the sea at all2 and in this poem it has always seemed to me that one gets a clue to the real and interesting things of history4 ,he claims in it to be the last of the white-robed ,guardians of the ,sacred ,tree1 the fruit of which none of the black-robed1--no 'son of a monk1'--shall ever enjoy4 ,there has been a battle1 in which the true order of the world has gone down2 but there ,myrddin stays to guard the ',tree' against the ',woodmen1'--whom also he seems to identify with the 'black-robed' and the priests ,myrddin ,gwyllt1 by the by1 is one of the two figures in ,welsh tradition who have combined to become the ,merlin of ,european tradition2 the other was ,myrddin ,emrys the magician4 ,i take great risks1 gentlemen but wish to give you a taste1 as ,i think the sound of some lines from the original may1 and doubt any translation can1 of the old and haughty sense of mystery and grandeur embodied in the poem2 because it is this feeling1 perhaps the last echo of the ,western ,mysteries1 that is so characteristic of the literature that claims to come down to us from this age3 ,afallen beren1 bren ailwyddfa1 ,cwn coed cylch ei gwraidd dywasgodfa2 ,a mi ddysgoganaf dyddiau etwa ,medrawd ac ,arthus modur tyrfa2 ,camlan darwerthin difiau yna2 ,namyn saith ni ddyraith o'r cymanfa4 ,afallen bere1 beraf ei haeron1 ,a dyf yn argel yn argoed ,celyddon2 ,cyt ceiser ofer fydd herwydd ei hafon1 ,yn y ddel ,cadwaladr at gynadl ,rhyd ,theon1 ,a ,chynan yn erbyn cychwyn y ,saeson4 ,cymru a orfydd2 cain fydd ei ,dragon2 ,caffant pawb ei deithi2 llawen fi ,brython6 ,caintor cyrn elwch cathl heddwch a hinon4 ,what it means appears to be something of this sort3 ,sweet and beautiful ,tree of the trees6 ,the ,wood-dogs guard the circle of its roots2 ,but ,i will foretell1 a day shall be ,when ,modred and ,authur shall rush to the conflict2 ,again shall they come to the ,battle at ,camlan1 ,and but seven men shall escape from that meeting4 ,sweet ,apple-tree1 sweetest its fruitage6 ,it grows in secret in the ,woods of ,celyddon2 ,in vain shall they seek it on the banks of its stream there1 ,till ,cadwaladr shall come to ,rhyd ,theon1 ,and ,cynan1 opposing the tumult of ,saxons1 ,wales shall arise then2 bright shall be her ,dragon2 ,all shall have their just reward2 joy is me for the ,brython6 ,the horns of joy shall sound then the song of peace and calmness4444 ,the sweet fruits of the ,tree1 he says1 are the prisoners of words1 7carcharorion geirau7--which is just what one would say1 under a stress of inspiration1 about the truths of the ,secret ,wisdom2--and they shall not be found1 he says1--they shall be sought in vain1--until the ,maban ,huan1 the ',child of the ,sun1' shall come4 ,the whole poem is exceedingly obscure2 a hundred years ago1 the wise men of ,wales took it as meaning much what ,i think it means3 the passing of the real wisdom of the ,mysteries1--of ,neo-druidism1--away from the world and the knowledge of men1 to a secret place where the ,woodmen1 the ,black-robed1 could not find to destroy it2--until1 after ages1 a ,leader of the ,hosts of ,light should come--you see it is here ,cadwaladr1 but ,cadwaladr simply means ',battle-,leader1' --and the age-old battle between light and darkness1 ,arthur and ,modred1 should be fought again1 and this time won1 and the ,mysteries re-established4--,if ,i have succeeded in conveying to you anything of the atmosphere of this poem1 ,i have given you more or less that of most of the poetry attributed to this period2 there is a large mass of it3 some of the poems1 like the long ,gododin of ,aneurin1 merely telling of battles2 others1 like the splendid elegies of ,llywarch ,hen1 being laments1--but with a marvelous haughty uplift to them2 and others again1 those attributed to ,taliesin1 strewn here and there with passages that 4 4 4 move me strangely 4 4 4 and remind me 7to borrow a leaf from the ,imagists7 of a shower of diamonds struck from some great rock of it2 and of a sunset over purple mountains2 and of the ,mysteries of ,antiquity2 and of the ,divine ,human ,soul4 ,much of this poetry is unintelligible2 much of it undoubtedly of far later origin2 and the names of ,taliesin and ,myrddin1 all through the centuries spells for ,celts to conjure with1 are now the laughing-stock of a brand-new scholarship that has tidied them up into limbo in the usual way4 ,it is what happens when you treat poetry with the brain-mind1 instead of with the creative imagination ,god gave you to treat it with3 when you dissect it1 instead of feeding your soul with it4 ,but this much is true1 ,i think3 out of this poetry1 the occasional intelligible flashes of it1 rings out a much greater note than any ,i know of in our ,welsh literature since3 a sense of much profounder1 much less provincial things3 the ,grand ,manner1--of which we have had echoes since1 in the long centuries of our provincialism2 but only ,i think echoes2 --but you shall find something more than echoes of it1 say in ,llywarch ,hen1 in a sense of heroic uplift1 of the titanic unconquerableness that is in the ,soul2--and in ,taliesin1 in a sense of the wizardly all-pervadingness of that ,soul in space and time3 ,i know the imagination of the oak-trees4 ,not of father and mother1 ,when ,i became1 ,my creator created me2 ,but of nine-formed faculties1 ,of the ,fruit of fruits1 ,of the fruit of primordial ,god2 ,of primroses and mountain flowers1 ,of the blooms of trees and shrubs1 ,of ,earth1 of an earthly course1 ,when ,i became1-- ,of the blooms of the nettle1 ,of the foam of the ,ninth ,wave4 ,i was enchanted by ,math ,before ,i became immortal4 ,i was enchanted by ,gwydion1 ,the purifier of ,brython1 ,of ,eurwys1 of ,euron1 ,of ,euron1 of ,modron1-- ,of ,five ,battalions of ,initiates1 ,high ,teachers1 the children of ,math4 --,now ,math--he was a famous wizard of old--means 'sort1' 'kind'2 and so implies such ideas as 'differentiation1' 'heterogeneity4' ,to say that you were enchanted by ,math before you became immortal1 is as much as to say that before the great illumination1 the initiation1 one is under the sway of this illusionary world of separatenesses2--as for being 'enchanted by ,gwydion1' that name is1 ,i suppose1 etymologically the same as the ,sanskrit ,vidya1 or ,budha2 he is the ',purifier' of those ',five ,battalions of--',celfyddon1' the word is 'artists1' 'skillful ones'2 but again ,i imagine1 it is connected with the word ,celi1 'occult' or 'secret'2 so that being 'enchanted by' him would mean simply1 being initiated into the ,occult ,wisdom4 ,it is difficult for a student of symbolism not to believe that there were ,theosophical activities in fifth- and sixth-century ,britain4 ,another glimpse of the feeling of the age you get in the two oldest ,arthurian romances3 ,the ,dream of ,rhonobwy1 and ,culhwch and ,olwen4 ,they were written1 in the form in which we have them1 not until the last centuries of ,welsh independence1--when there was another national illumination2 and indeed all the literature of this early time comes to us through the bards of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries4 ,they transmitted it2 wrote it down2 added to and took away from it2 altered it3 a purely brain-mind scholarship might satisfy itself that they invented it2 but criticism1 to be of any use at all1 must be endowed with a certain delicacy and intuition2 it must rely on better tools than the brain-mind4 ,matthew ,arnold1 who had such qualifications1 compared the work of the later bards to peasants' huts built on and of the ruins of ,ephesus2 and it is still easier for us1 with the light ,theosophy throws on all such subjects1 to see the greater and more ancient work through the less and later4 ,i shall venture to quote from ,culhwch and ,olwen3 a passage that some of you may know very well already4 ,culhwch the son of ,cilydd the son of the ,prince of ,celyddon rides out to seek the help of ,arthur3 ,and the youth pricked forth upon a steed with head dappled gray1 of four winters old1 firm of limb1 with shell-formed hoofs1 having a bridle of linked gold on his head1 and upon him a saddle of costly gold4 ,in his hands were two spears of silver1 sharp1 well-tempered1 headed with steel1 three ells in length1 of an edge to wound the wind and cause blood to flow1 and that faster than the fall of the dewdrop from the blade of reed-grass upon the earth when the dew of ,june is at its heaviest4 ,a gold-hilted sword was at his side1 the blade of which was of gold1 bearing a cross of inlaid gold of the hue of the lightning of heaven2 his war-horn was of ivory4 ,before him were two brindled white-breasted greyhounds1 having strong collars of rubies about their necks1 reaching from the shoulder to the ear4 ,and the one that was on the right side bounded across to the left side1 and the one that was on the left to the right1 and like two sea-swallows sported they around him4 ,and his courser cast up four sods with his four hoofs like four swallows in the air1 now above his head and now below4 ,about him was a four-cornered cloth of purple1 having an apple of gold at each corner2 and every one of the apples was of the value of a hundred kine4 ,and there was precious gold of the value of three hundred kine upon his shoes and upon his stirrups1 from his knee to the tip of his toe4 ,and the blade of reed-grass bent not beneath him1 as he journeyed towards the gates of ,arthur's palace4 ,so far we have the glittering imagination of the twelfth-century bard2 you might think working in a medium not wholly ,celtic1 but ,norman-influenced as well2 imagining his ,arthurian ,culhwch in terms of the knights he had seen at the courts of the ,lords ,marchers1--were it not that just such descriptions are the commonplaces of ,irish ,celticism1 where they come from a time and people that had never seen ,norman knights at all4 ,but now you begin to leave regions where ,normans can be remembered or imagined at all3 ,spake the youth1 ',is there a porter8'--',there is2 and unless thou holdest thy peace1 small will be thy welcome4 ,i am the porter of ,arthur's hall on the first day of ,january in every year2 and on every other day than this the post is filled by ,huandaw1 and ,gogigwc1 and ,llaescenym1 and ,penpingion who goeth upon his head to save his feet1 neither towards the heavens nor towards the earth1 but like a rolling stone upon the floor of the court4'--',open thou the portal4'--',i will not open it4'-- ',wherefore not8'--',the knife is in the meat and the drink is in the horn1 and there is revelry in ,arthur's court2 and no man may enter but a craftsman bearing his craft1 or the son of the king of a privileged country4 ,but there will be refreshment for thy dogs and for thy horse1 and for thee there will be collops cooked and peppered1 and luscious wine and mirthful song1--and food for fifty men shall be set before thee in the guest chamber1 where the stranger and the sons of other countries eat1 who come not into the precincts of the palace of ,arthur4 ,said the youth1 ',that will ,i not do4 ,if thou openest the portal1 it is well4 ,if thou dost not open it1 ,i will bring disgrace upon thy lord and an evil report upon thee4 ,and ,i will set up three shouts at this very gate1 than which none were ever more deadly1 from the top of ,pengwaed in ,cornwall to the bottom of ,dinsol in the ,north1 and to ,esgair ,oerfel in ,ireland4'--',whatsoever clamor thou mayest make1' said ,glewlwyd ,gafaelfawr1 against the rules of ,arthur's court thou shalt not enter until ,i first go and consult with ,arthur4' ,then ,glewlwyd went into the hall4 ,and ,arthur said to him1 ',hast thou news from the gate8'--,half of my life is past1 and half of thine4 ,i was heretofore in ,caer ,se and ,as ,se1 in ,sach and ,salach1 in ,lotor and ,ffotor1 in ,india the ,greater and ,india the ,less4 ,and ,i was with thee in the ,battle of ,dau ,ynyr1 when the twelve hostages were brought from ,norway4 ,and ,i have also been in ,europe and in ,africa and in the islands of ,corsica1 and in ,caer ,brythwch and ,brythach and ,ferthach2 and ,i was present when thou didst conquer ,greece in the ,east4 ,and ,i have have been in ,caer ,oeth and ,annoeth and ,caer ,nefenhir3 nine supreme sovereigns1 handsome men1 saw we there2 but never did ,i behold a man of equal dignity to him who is now at the door of the portal4' ,then said ,arthur3--',if walking thou didst enter here1 return thou running4 ,and everyone that beholds the light1 and everyone that opens and shuts the eye1 let him show him respect and serve him2 some with gold-mounted drinking-horns1 others with collops cooked and peppered1 until such time as food and drink can be set before him4 ,culhwch came in1 and asked a boon of ,arthur2 and ,arthur answered that he should receive whatsoever his tongue might name1 as far as the wind dries and the rain moistens and the sun revolves and the sea encircles and the earth extends2 save only my ship and my mantle1 and ,caledfwlch my sword1 and ,rhongomiant my lance1 and ,wynebgwrthucher my shield1 and ,carnwenhau my dagger and ,gwen ,hwyfar my wife4 ,by the truth of heaven thou shalt receive it cheerfully1 name what thou wilt4 ,so ,culhwch made his request2-- and it is really here that the ancient ages come trooping in3-- ,i crave of thee that thou obtain for me ,olwen the daughter of ,yspaddaden ,head of ,giants2 and this boon ,i seek likewise at the hands of thy warriors4 ,i seek it from ,cai1 and ,bedwyr1 and ,greidawl ,galldonyd1 and ,greid the son of ,eri1 and ,cynddelig ,cyfarwvdd1 and ,tathal ,cheat-the-,light1 and ,maelwys the son of ,baeddan1 and--well1 there are hundreds of them2 but ,i must positively give you a few2 they are all1 it is likely1 the denizens of ancient ,celtic ,god-worlds and fairy-worlds and goblin-worlds1--and ,duach and ,grathach and ,nerthach the sons of ,gwawrddur ,cyrfach 7these men came forth from the confines of hell72 and ,huell the son of ,caw 7he never yet made a request at the hands of any lord47 ,and ,taliesin the ,chief of ,bards1 and ,manawyddan son of the ,boundless1 and ,cormorant the son of ,beauty 7no one struck him in the ,battle of ,camlan by reason of his ugliness2 all thought he was an auxiliary devil4 ,hair had he upon him like the hair of a stag74 ,and ,sandde ,bryd ,angel 7no one touched him with a spear in the ,battle of ,camlan by reason of his beauty2 all thought he was a ministering angel74 ,and ,cynwyl ,sant 7the third man who escaped from the ,battle of ,camlan2 and he was the last that parted from ,authur upon ,henrtoen his horse74 ,and ,henwas the ,winged the son of ,erim2 7unto these three men belonged these three peculiarities3 with ,henbedestyr there was not anyone that could keep pace1 either on horseback or on foot2 with ,henwas ,adeiniog no fourfooted beast could run the distance of an acre1 much less could it go beyond it2 and as to ,sgilti ,ysgawndroed1 when he intended to go on a message for his lord1 he never sought to find a path1 but knowing whither he was to go1 if his way led through a wood he went along the tops of the trees4 ,during his whole life a blade of grass bent not beneath his feet1 much less did it break1 so light was his tread47 ,teithi ,hen the son of ,gwynhan 7his dominions were swallowed by the sea1 and he himself barely escaped1 and he came to ,arthur2 and his knife had this peculiarity3 from the time he came there no haft would ever remain on it2 and owing to this a sickness came on him1 and he pined away during the remainder of his life1 and of this he died47 ,drem the son of ,dremidyd 7when the gnat arose in the morning with the sun1 ,drem could see it from ,gelli ,wis in ,cornwall as far off as ,pen ,blathaon in ,north ,britain47 ,and ,eidol the son of ,ner1 and ,glwyddyn ,saer 7who built ,ehangwen1 ,arthur's hall47 ,henwas and ,henwyneb1 7an old companion unto ,arthur74 ,gwallgoyc another4 7,when he came to a town1 though there were three hundred houses in it1 if he wanted anything1 he would let sleep come to the eyes of no man until he had it47 ,osla ,gyllellfawr 7he bore a short broad dagger4 ,when ,arthur and his hosts came before a torrent1 they would seek a narrow place where they might cross the water1 and lay the sheathed dagger across the torrent1 and it would be a bridge enough for the armies of the ,three ,islands of the ,mighty and the three islands near thereby1 with all their spoils47 ,the sons of ,llwch ,llawyniog from beyond the raging sea4 ,celi and ,cueli and ,gilla ,coes ,hydd1 7who could clear three hundred acres at a bound3 the chief leaper of ,ireland was he74 ,sol and ,gwadyn ,ossol and ,gwadyn ,odyeith4 7,sol could stand all day upon one foot4 ,gwadyn ,ossol1 if he stood upon the top of the highest mountain in the world1 it would become a level plain under his feet4 ,gwadyn ,odyeith1--the soles of his feet emitted sparks when they struck upon things hard1 like the heated mass drawn out of the forge4 ,he cleared the way for ,arthur when they came to any stoppage47 ,hireerwm and ,hiratrwm 7the day they went upon a visit three cantref provided for their entertainment1 and they feasted until noon and drank until night and they they devoured the heads of vermin as if they had never eaten anything in their lives4 ,when they made a visit they left neither the fat not the lean1 the hot nor the cold1 the sour nor the sweet1 the fresh not the salt1 the boiled nor the raw47 ,huarwar the son of ,aflawn 7who asked ,arthur such a boon as would satisfy him2 it was the third great plague of ,cornwall when he received it4 ,none could get a smile from him but when he was satisfied47 ,sugyn the sone of ,sugnedydd 7who could suck up the sea on which there were three hundred ships1 so broad-chested he was74 ,uchtryd ,faryf ,draws 7who spread his red untrimmed beard over the eight-and-forty rafters that were in ,arthur's hall74 ,bwlch and ,cyfwlch and ,sefwlch the three sons of ,cleddyf ,cyfwlch1 the three grandsons of ,cleddyf ,difwlch4 7,their three shields were three gleaming glitterers4 ,their three spears were three pointed piercers4 ,their three swords were three griding gashers1--,gles1 and ,glessic1 and ,gleisad47 ,clust the son of ,clustfeinad2 7though he were buried seven cubits beneath the earth1 he would hear the ant fifty miles off rise from her nest in the norning74 ,medyr the son of ,methredydd2 7from ,belli ,wic he could in a twinkling7-- ,well2 one must stop somewhere2 ,culhwch himself was in no hurry to4 ,he went on until the armies of the ,island of the ,mighty and the chief ladies of ,arthur's court1 with all their peculiarities1 had been enumerated4 ,but here1 ,i say1 you are let into an elder world2 beyond this one in space1 beyond it in time4 ,you are on the precipice edge of the world's end1 and mist fills the chasm before you2 and out of the mist1 things vast and gigantic1 things half human and things not half human1 present themselves1 stirring your wonder1 and withdraw leaving your imagination athirst4 ,these men came forth from the confines of hell 4444 ,who wrote of them had news1 ,i think1 of terrific doings in ,atlantis1 when earth shook to the tread of giant hosts4 ,i confess that to me all things ,european1 after this1 look a little neat and dapper4 ,i look from the cliffs at the limit of things1 out over 44444the sunset bound of ,lyonnesse1 ,a land of old upheaven from the abyss ,by fire1 to sink into the abyss again2 ,where fragments of forgotten people dwelt3 --it is not in this world2 belongs not to this ,fifth ,race2 but is more ancient1 fantasmal1 and portentous4 ,has it ever occurred to you that no body of men1 no movement1 no nation for that matter1 can choose for itself a symbol that does not actually express it8 ,the flags of the nations are all1 for those that can read them1 the sign manuals of the souls of the nations1 wherein the status of each is written plain2 though those that chose the symbol1 and those that glory in it1 may have no idea how they are thus revealing or exposing themselves4--,no1 ,i am not going to speak of the ,dragon2 which1 by all traditions1 was the symbol chosen for the monarchy set up by the fifth-century ,britons2 nor to remind you--and yet it is worth remembering1-- that the ,dragon is the symbol of the ,esoteric ,wisdom2--,i am going to speak of something else4--,you take some form1 some picture2 and it seems to you in some inexplicable way inspiring2 and you adopt it1 and say ,in hoc signo vincam4 ,why8 ,you know nothing about symbolism2 and yet1 if you have any inner life1 those who understand symbolism can read your inner life in you symbol4 ,that is because symbolism is a universal science1 real1 and with nothing arbitrary about it2 and because something in your subconsciousness wiser than you has directed you choice1 and means you to be expressed4 ,take one of the most universal symbols of all3 the ,cross4 ,in one form or another we find it all over the world4 ,in ancient ,egypt1 where it is called the ,ankh1 and is drawn as a capital ,t with a circle above4 ,there it symbolizes life in the largest sense4 ,the circle above stands for ,spirit2 the ,tau or cross below1 for matter3 thus it pictures the two in their true relation the one to the other4--,the ,christian ,church1 as it grew up in the last centuries of the ,roman empire1 chose for itself a symbol1--in which ,constantine went forth to conquer4 ,it was the four limbs of the cross3 simply the symbol of ,matter4 ,but somehow1 the ,christian ,church in the ,celtic ,isles did not adopt this symbol1 or rather this form of it4 ,it took what is called the ,celtic ,cross3 the ,cross1 which is matter1 with the ,circle1 which is ,spirit1 imposed over the upper part of it4 ,now if you brought a man from ,india1 or ,china1 or anywhere1 who knew nothing about ,european history or ,christianity1 but understood the ancient science of symbolism2 and showed him these two crosses1 the ,celtic and the ,latin2 he would tell you at once that the one1 the ,latin1 stood for a movement wholly unspiritual2 and that the other1 the ,celtic1 stood for a movement with some spiritual light in it4 ,how much1 ,i am not prepared to say4 ,one of the chief formative forces in ,christian theology was ,saint ,augustine of ,hippo1 born in #ced1 died in #dcj4 ,he taught that man was ,originally sinful1 naturally depraved2 and that no effort of his own will could make him otherwise3 all depended on the ,grace of ,god1 something from without1 absolutely beyond control of volition4 ,then rose up a ,welshman by the name of ,morgan1--or he may have been an ,irishman2 some say so2 only ,morgan is a ,welsh1 not an ,irish name2 and evidence is lacking that there were ,irish ,christians at that time2 he was a ,celt1 'whatever'2--and went to ,rome1 teaching and preaching4 ,his doctrine was that man is not originally sinful and naturally depraved2 he had the temerity to declare that pagans1 especially those who had never heard of ,christianity1 were not by ,god's ineffable mercy damned to everlasting hell2 that unbaptized infants were not destined to frizzle eternally2 that what a man ought to do1 that he had the power1 within his own being1 to do2 and that his salvation lay in his own hands4 ,they translated his ,welsh name 7which means ',sea-born'7 into the ,greek--,pelagius2 and dubbed his damnable heresy ',pelagianism'2 and it was a heresy that flourished a good deal in the ,celtic ,isles2--his writings came down in ,ireland4 ,the incident is not much in itself2 but something4 ,not that the ,celtic ,church of ,david and ,patrick was ,pelagian2 it was not4 ,in the matter of doctrine it is impossible to distinguish it from the ,church on the continent4 ,but ,pelagianism may suggest that there were in ,britain relics of an elder light4 ,did some echo of ancient wisdom1 ,druidic1 survive in ,britain from ,pre-roman days8 ,it is a question that has been much fought over2 and one that1 nowadays1 the learned among my countrymen answer very rabidly in the negative4 ,you have but to propound it in a whisper1 to make them foam heartily at the mouth4 ,bless you1 they know that it didn't1 and can prove it over and over2 because--because--it couldn't have1 and you are a fool for thinking it could4 ,here is the position taken by modern scholarship 7as a rule73 we know nothing about the philosophy of the ,druids1 and do not believe they had one4 ,they could not have had one2 and the classical writers who said they had simply knew nothing about it4 ,it may be useful to quote what some of these classical writers say4 ,they 7the ,druids7 speak the language of the ,gods1 says ,diodorus ,siculus 7v1 #ca1 #d72 who describes them also as exhorting combatants to peace1 and taming them like wild beasts by enchantment 7v1 #ca1 #e74 ,they taught men1 says ,diogenes ,laertius1 to worship the ,gods1 to do no evil1 and to exercise courage 7#f74 ,they taught many things regarding the stars and their motions1 the extent of the universe and the earth1 and the nature of things1 and the power and might of the immortal ,gods1 says ,caesar 7iv1 #ad472 and ,strabo speaks of their teaching in moral science 7iv1 #d1 #d74 ,and ye1 ye ,druids1 says ,lucan1 to you only is given knowledge or ignorance 7whichever it be7 of the ,gods and the powers of heaven4 4 4 4 ,from you we learn that the borne of man's ghost is not the senseless grave1 not the pale realm of the monarch below4 7i1 #dea sq17 ,the ,druids wish to impress this in particular3 that souls do not perish1 but pass from one to another after death4 7,caesar1 iv1 #ad7 ,diodorus testifies that among them the doctrine of ,pythagoras prevailed1 that the souls of men are immortal1 and after completing their term of existence1 live again1 the soul passing into another body 7v1 #bh74 ,says ,valerius ,maximus3 ,they would fain make us believe that the souls of men are immortal4 ,i would be tempted to call these breeches-warers fools1 if their doctrine were not the same as that of the mantle-clad ,pythagoras2 and he goes on to speak of the ,celtic custom of lending money to be repaid in a future life 7vi1 #f1 #aj74 ,timagenes1 ,strabo1 and mela also bear witness to their teaching the immortality of the soul4 ,i may say at once that ,i copy all these quotations from a book written largely to prove that the ,druids were savage medicine-men with no philosophy at all3 it is1 ,the ,religion of the ,ancient ,celts1 by ,canon ,mac,culloch4 ,the argument used by this learned divine is very simple4 ,the ,druids were savage medicine-men1 and could have known nothing about ,pythagoras' teachings or ,pythagoras himself4 ,therefore they didn't4 ,all the classical writers were exaggerating1 or inventing1 or copying from one another4--,it never occurs to our ,canon to remember ,iamblichus' statement that the ,druids did not borrow or learn from ,pythagoras1 but ,pythagoras from them4 ,he quotes with no sign of doubt the things said by the classical writers about barbaric ,druid rites2 never dreaming that in respect to these there may have been invention1 exaggeration1 or copying one from another-- and that other chiefly the gentle ,julius who--but ,i have mentioned his exploit before4 ,holding to such firm preconceptions as these1--and being in total ignorance of the fact that the ,esoteric ,wisdom was once universal1 and therefore naturally the same with ,pythagoras as with anyone else who had not lost it1 whether he and the ,druids had ever heard of each other or not1--it becomes quite easy for my learned countryment to scout the idea that any such doctrine or system could have survived among the ,britons until the fifth century1 and revived then4 ,yet ,nennius1 by the way1 asserts that ,vortigern 7the king who called in the ,saxons7 had ',magi' with him2 which word in the ,irish text appears as ',druids'3 and ,canon ,mac,culloch himself speaks of this as evidence of a recrudescence of ,druidism at that time4 ,with those quotations from the classical writers in view--if with nothing else1--,i think we may call ,reincarnation4444 the characteristic doctrine of ,druidism4 ,it so appeared to the ,romans2 it was that doctrine1 which with themselves had been obscured by skepticism1 worldliness1 and the outwornness of their spiritual perceptions1 that struck them as the most noteworthy1 most surprising thing in ,druidic teaching4 ,it stood in sharp contrast1 too1 with the beliefs of ,christianity2 so that1 supposing it1 and the system that taught it1 had died during the ,roman occupation of ,britain1 there really was nowhere from which it might have been regained4 ,wales has been1 until very recently1 extraordinarily cut off from the currents of civilization and world-thought4 ,she has dwelt aloof among her mountains1 satisfied with an interesting but exceedingly narrow little culture of her own4 ,you might almost say that from the time the ,romans left ,britain there was no channel through which ideas might flow in to her2 and this idea1 especially1 was hardly in ,europe to flow in4 ,and yet this idea has curiously persisted in ,wales1 as a tradition among the unlettered1 even to our own day4 ,dr4 ,evans-,wentz1 of ,berkeley1 ,oxford1 and ,rennes ,universities1 in this present twentieth century1 found old people among the peasantry who knew something about it1 had heard of it from their elders2 there was nothing new or unfamiliar about it to them2 and this though nearly all ,welsh folklore1 even belief in the fairies1 almost suffered extinction during the ,religious ,revivals of the eighteenth century and since4 ,they say the chapels frightened the fairies out of ,wales2 it is not quite true2 but you can understand how wave after wave of fervid ,calvinism would have dealt with a tradition like that of ,reincarnation4 ,and yet echoes of it linger1 and ,dr4 ,wentz found them4 ,i myself remember hearing of a servant-girl from the mountains to whom her mistress 7from whom ,i heard it7 introduced the subject4 ,the girl expressed no surprise whatever3 indeed to goodness she shouldn' wonder1 so there2 her father was a druid1 miss1 indeed and had told her about it when she was a child4 ,we have collateral evidence1--in ,nennius1 ,i believe1--for the existence of several famed poets among the ,welsh at that time2 and ,tallesin' is one of the names mentioned4 ,seventy-seven poems come down ascribed to him3 ,i quoted some lines from one of them2 here now are some line from another4 ,the child ,taliesin is discovered in the court of ,maelgwr ,gwynedd1 where he has confounded the bards with his magic2 and is called forth to explain himself4 ,he does so in the following verses3 ,primary ,chief ,bard am ,i to ,elphin1 ,and my original country is the ,region of the ,summer ,stars2 ,idno and ,heinin called me ,merddin2 ,at length every being shall call me ,taliesin4 ,i was with my ,lord in the highest sphere ,when ,lucifer fell into the depths of hell2 ,i have borne a banner before ,alexander2 ,i know the names of the stars from north to south4 ,i was in ,canaan when ,absalom was slain2 ,i was in the ,court of ,don 7the ,milky ,way7 before the birth of ,gwydion2 ,i was on the high cross of the merciful ,son of ,god2 ,i have been three periods in the prison of ,arianrhod4 ,i was in ,asia with ,noah in the ,ark2 ,i saw the destruction of ,sodom and ,gomorrah2 ,i was in ,india when ,rome was built2 ,i am now come here to the remnant of the ,trojans4 ,i was with my ,lord in the ass's manger2 ,i strengthened ,moses through the waters of ,jordan2 ,i was in the firmament from the ,cauldron of ,ceridwen ,i shall be on earth until the day of doom4 99 ------ 99 ,i quote it from ,mr4 ,t4,w4 ,rollestone's ,myths and ,legends of the ,celtic ,race4 ,the poem appeares in the ,hanes ,taliesin1 in ,lady ,guest's ,mabinogion4 ------ ,now1 what would common sense have to say about things like that8 ,simply1 ,i think1 that they are echoes that came down in ,wales through the ages1 of a teaching that once was known4 ,they do not1--they would not1--no one would expect them to1--give the true and exact features and the inwardness of such teaching1 but they do reflect the haunting reminiscences of a race that once believed in ,reincarnation so firmly1 that people were ready to lend money not to be repaid until a future life on earth4 ,if you can prove that that poem not written until the thirteenth1 or sixteenth1 or eighteenth century1 all the better2 it only shows the greater strength1 the longer endurance1 of the tradition2 and therefore1 the greater reality of that from which the tradition came4 ,it is the ghost of something which once was living2 and the longer you can show the ghost surviving1--the more living in its day was the something it survived from4 ,your ,tamerlanes and ,malek ,rics can be used to frighten babies for centures2--their ghosts walk in that sense2 their memories linger2--but your ,tomlinsons die and are done with1 and no wind carries rumors of them after4 ,and the name of ,taliesin1--whom you may say we know to have been a ,welsh poet of the sixth century1--is made the peg on which to hang these floating reminiscences of ,druidic teaching2--and the story told about him1--a story replete with universal symbolism1 --is1 for anyone who has studied that science1 clearly symbolic of the initiation of a ,teacher of the ,secret ,doctrine4 ,what is it accounts for race-persistence8 ,not just what you see on the physical plane4 ,there is what we should call an astral mold2 and this is fed and nourished1--its edges kept firm and distinct1--by forces from the plane of causes1 the thought-plane4 ,when this mold has been well established1--as by centuries of national greatness and power1--all sorts of waves of outer circumstance may roll over the race1 and apparently wash its raciality clean away2 and yet something in the unseen operates to resist1 and1 when the waves recede1 to raise up first the old race-consciousness1 and finally national existence again4 ,take ,ireland for example4 ,it has been over-run and over-run so much that many authorities would deny the existence of any ,celtic blood there at all4 ,but what is absolutely undeniable is that a distinct and well-defined racial type exists there2 and that it corresponds largely to the racial type--,i do not mean physical so much as spiritual1--that the ,greek and ,roman writers ascribed to the ,celtic ,gauls4 ,it is often claimed that an ,irishman is merely an inferior kind of ,englishman1 and that there is little difference in blood between the two2 but those who make this claim most loudly would not dream of denying the difference of the mental types2 they are generally the ones who see most difference4 ,why was it that the children of the ,norman invaders of ,ireland became ,hiberniores ipsis ,hiberniis8 ,because of the astral mold1 certainly4 ,it is race-consciousness that makes race1 and not the other way2 and there is something behind that makes race-consciousness2 so that even where calamity has smashed up the latter and put it altogether in abeyance1 the seeds of it remain1 in the soil and on the inner planes1 to sprout again in their day2 when the ,crest-,wave rolls in2 when ,souls come to revive them4 ,it may be that this will never happen1 of course2 but it seems to me that where ,nature wishes to put an end to these racial recrudescences1 she must take strong steps4 ,though the ,british ,celts had been under ,roman rule for four centuries1 their language today is ,celtic4--,why8--,because there was what you may call a very old1 well-established and strong ,celtic-speaking astral mold4 ,we absorbed a large number of ,latin words2 but assimilated them to the ,celtic mold so that you would never recognise them2 whereas in a page of ,english the ,latin borrowings stand out by the score4 ,look at that ascend1 for instance3 ,latin ascendere parading itself naked and unashamed1 and making no pretense whatever to be anything else4 ,you shall find ascendere1 too1 on any page of ,welsh2 or rather1 you shall not find him1 by reason of his skillful camouflage4 ,he has cut off his train1 as in ,english2 but he has cut off more of it3 the d of the stem1 as well as the ending4 ,he has altered both his vowels1 and one of his three remaining consonants2 and appears as esgyn1 to walk the pages undetected for an alien by that vigilant police1 the ,celtic sense of euphony4 ,he is typical of a thousand others4 ,wherefore the difference8--,the ,english were a new people in process of formation1 and besides with a whole heap of ,latin blood in them from the ,roman province2 their mold was faintly formed1 or only forming2 but the ,celts had formed theirs rigidly in ancient times4 ,again3 when in the ninth century ,hywel ,dda king of ,wales codified the laws of his country1 the result was a ,celtic code without1 ,i think1 any relation to ,roman law2 though ,roman law had prevailed in ,roman ,britain for three centuries or so4 ,what strong ,celtic molds must have persisted1 to cause this6 ,roman law imposed itself on nearly all ,europe1 including many peoples that never were under ,roman rule2 and yet here was this people1 that had been all that time under the ,romans1 oblivious of ,roman law1 uninfluenced by it1 practically speaking2--and returning at the first opportunity to the kind of laws they had had before the ,romans were born or thought of4 ,druidism had been proscribed1 as a practice1 during ,roman times4 ,the worship of the ,celtic ,gods had continued2 but they had been assimilated to those of the empire2--which would be a much more difficult thing to do were the ,gods1 as your modern learned suppose1 mere fictions of the superstitious1 and not the symbols of1 or the ,powers behind1 the forces of ,nature4 ,so ,celtic religion outwardly was submerged in ,roman religion2 and then later4 ,christianity came in4 ,but the science1 the institutions1 and the philosophy of the ,druids had been part and parcel of the inner life of the race perhaps as long as their laws and language had2 and your ,celt runs by nature to religion1 or even to religiosity1--ultra-religion4 ,is it likely that1 while he kept his laws and language1 he let his religion go8 ,and when it was not an arbitrary farrago of dogmas1 like some we might mention2 but a philosophy of the soul so vivid that he counted death little more to fuss about than going to sleep8 ,when should those old ideas have reappeared1--when should the racial astral molds have been brought out and furbished up with new strength to make them endure8 ,why1 when the ,roman dominion came to an end2 when the people were turning for inspiration to their own things1 and away from ,latin things2 when they were forgoing ,latin for ,celtic2 reviving ,celtic laws and customs2 trying to forget they had been subjected to foreigners1 and to remember and resurrect the old ,monarchy of ,britain4 ,christianity would not give them all the difference from ,romanism that they wanted1--that the most ardent among them wanted3 the ,romans were ,christians too2--but there was that other ancient thing which the ,romans had proscribed4 ,it still existed1 in ,ireland for example2 and for that matter1 there were plenty of places in ,britain where the ,roman arm could never have reached it4 ,matthew ,arnold saw these things in his day1 and argued for the ,neo-druidism of the sixth century4 ,he was a man accustomed to deal in ideas4 ,you may easily train your mind to an acuteness and sagacity in dealing with grammatical roots1 and forms1 that will not help you in dealing with ideas4 ,to sum up1 then3 ,i believe there was an influx of the ,crest-,wave into ,britain1 from about #daj to #edj3 a national awakenment1 with something of greatness to account for the ,arthurian legend2 and with something of spiritual illumination1 through a revival of ,druidic ,wisdom to account for the rumor of ,taliesin4 ,i am not sure but that this influenced the ,celtic ,church3 ,i am not sure but that ,david1 and ,cadoc1 and ,teilo1 and ,padarn1 fathers of that church1 were men pervious to higher influences2 and that the monastery-colleges they presided over were real seats of lerning1 unopposed to1 if not in league with1 the light4 ,,xxvi4 ,,sacred ,,ierne ,,of ,,the ,,hibernians 99 ,i could not put the pen aside ,till with my heart's love ,i had tried ,to fashion some poor skilless crown ,for that dear head so low bowed down4 --,from the ,celtic ,it is but a step from ,wales to ,ireland4 ,from the one1 you can see the fair hills of holy ,ireland in the heart of any decent sunset2 from the other1 you can see ,wales shining landed in in any shining dawn4 ,no ,roman legion ever landed in ,ireland2 yet all through ,roman times boats must have been slipping across and across2 there must have been constant communication1 and there was1 really1 no distinction of race4 ,there was a time1 ,i believe1 when they were joined1 one island2 and all the seas were east of the ,severn4 ,both peoples were a mixture of ,gaels and ,cymry2 only it happens that the ,gaelic or ,q language survived in ,ireland2 the ,cymric or ,p language in ,wales4 ,so1 having touched upon ,wales last week1 and shown the ,crest-,wave flowing in there1 this week1 following that ,wave westward1 ,i invoke the land of ,ireland6 ,shining1 shining sea6 ,fertile1 fertile mountain6 ,gladed1 gladed wood6 ,abundant river1 abundant in water6 ,fish-abounding lake6 ,it was what ,amargin the ,druid sang1 when the ,gael first came into ,ireland4 ,here is the story of their coming3-- ------ 99 ,the stories told in this and the following lecture1 and the translations of ,irish poems1 etc41 are taken from ,mr4 ,t4,w4 ,rollertone's delightful ,myths and ,legends of the ,celtic ,race1 or from ,m4 de ,jubainville's ,irish ,mythological ,cycle1 translated and published in ,dublin in the 'nineties4 ------ ,bregon built a tower in ,spain4 ,he had a son named ,ith2 and one fine evening in winter ,ith was looking out over the horizon from ,bregon's tower1 and saw the coast of ,ireland in the distance2 for it is on a winter's evening when the air is pure that one's sight carries farthest4 ,so says the eleventh century bard who tells the tale3 he without knowing then that it was not in ,spain was ,bregon's tower1 but on the ,great ,plain1 which is in the ,atlantic1 and yet not in this world at all4 ,now this will tell you what you ought to know about ,ireland1 and why it is we end our lectures with her4 ,we saw ,wales near the border of things2 looking out from that cliff's edge on to the unknown and unseen1 and aware of mysterious things beyond4 ,now we shall see ,ireland1 westward again1 down where the little waves run in and tumble2 sunlit waves along shining sands2 and with boats putting out at any time2 and indeed1 so lively an intercourse going forward always1 that you never can be quite sure whether it is in mortal ,ireland or immortal ,fairyland you are1-- ,so your soul goes straying in a land more fair2 ,half you tread the dew-wet grasses1 half wander there4 ,for the wonder of ,ireland is1 that it is the ,west ,pole of things2 there is no place else nearer the ,unseen2 its next-door neighbor-land westward is this ,great ,plain1 whither sail the ,happy ,dead in their night-dark coracles1--to return1 of course1 in due season2 and all the peoplings of ,ireland were from this ,great ,plain4 ,so you see why the ,crest-,wave1 passing from dying ,europe1 went west by way of ,ireland4 ,i will tell you about that ,great ,plain3 it is ,a marvelous land1 full of music1 where primrose blossoms on the hair1 and the body is white as snow4 ,there none speaks of mine and thine2 white are the teeth and black the brows2 eyes flash with many-colored lights1 and the hue of the fox-glove is on every cheek4 4 4 4 ,though fair are the plains of ,ireland1 few of them are so fair as the ,great ,plain4 ,the ale of ,ireland is heady1 but headier far the ale of the ,great ,country4 ,what a wonder of a land it is6 ,no youth there grows to old age4 ,warm streams flow through it2 the choicest mead and wine4 ,men there are always comely and blemishless4 ,well2 ,ith set sail from the ,great ,plain1 with three times thirty warriors1 and landed at ,corcaguiney in the south-west of ,ireland2 and at that time the island inhabited less by men than by ,gods2 it was the ,tuatha ,de ,danaan1 the ,race of the ,danaan ,gods1 that held the kingship there4 ,little wonder1 then1 that the first name of ,ireland we get in the ,greek writings is ,sacred ,ierne1 populous with the ,hibernians4 ,well now1 he found ,mac,cuill1 ,mac,cecht1 and ,mac,grene the ,son of the ,sun1 arranging to divide the kingdom between them2 and they called on him to settle how the division should be4--,act1 said he1 according to the laws of justice1 for the country you dwell in is a good one2 it is rich in fruit and honey1 in wheat and in fish2 and in heat and cold it is temperate4 ,from that they thought he would be designing to conquer it from them1 and so forestalled his designs by killing him2 but his companions escaped1 and sailed back to the ,great ,plain4 ,that was why the ,milesians came to conquer ,ireland4 ,the chiefs of them were ,eber ,finn1 and ,eber ,donn1 and ,eremon1 and ,amargin the ,druid3 the sons of ,mile1 the son of ,bile the son of ,bregon2 thus their grandfather was the brother of that ,ith whom the ,gods of ,ireland slew4 ,it was on a ,thursday1 the first of ,may1 and the seventeenth day of the moon1 that the ,milesians arrived in ,ireland2 and as he set his right foot on the soil of it1 ,amargin chanted this poem3 ,i am the wave of the ,ocean2 ,i am the murmur of the billow2 ,i am the ox of the seven combats2 ,i am the vuture upon the rock2 ,i am a tear of the sun2 ,i am the fairest of plants2 ,i am a wild boar in valor2 ,i am a salmon in the water2 ,i am a lake in the plain2 ,i am a word of science2 ,i am the spear-point that gives battle2 ,i am the god who creates in the head the fire of thought4 ,who is it that enlightens the assembly upon the mountain1 if not ,i8 ,who telleth the ages of the moon1 if not ,i8 ,who showeth the place where the sun goes to rest8 ,they went forward to ,tara1 and summoned the kings of the ,danaan ,gods to give up the island to them2 who asked three days to consider whether they would give battle1 or surrender1 or quit ,ireland4 ,on that request ,amargin gave judgment3 that it would be wrong for the ,milesians to take the ,gods unprepared that way2 and that they should go to their ships again1 and sail out the distance of nine waves from the shore1 and then return2 then if they could conquer ,ireland fairly in battle1 it should be theirs4 ,so they embarked1 and put the nine waves between themselves and the shore1 and waited4 ,and the ,danaans raised up a druid mist and a storm against them1 whereby ,ireland seemed to them no more than the size of a pig's back in the water2 and by reason of that it has the name of ,innis na ,wic1 the ,island of the ,pig4 ,but if the ,gods had magic1 ,amargin had better magic2 and he sang that ,invocation to the ,land of ,ireland2 and at that the storm fell and the mist vanished4 ,then ,eber ,donn was exulting in his rage at the thought of putting the inhabitants to death2 but the thought in his mind brought the storm again1 and his ship went down1 and he was drowned4 ,but at last the remnant of them landed1 and fought a battle with the ,gods1 and defeated them2 whereafter the ,gods put a druid invisibility on themselves1 and retired into the hills2 and there in their fairy palaces they remain to this day2 indeed they do4 ,they went back into the inwardness of things2 whence1 however1 they were always appearing1 and again vanishing into it2 and all the old literature of ,ireland is thridded through with the lights of their magic and their beauty1 and their strange forthcomings and withdrawings4 ,for example3 ,there was ,midir the ,proud1 one of them4 ,in the time of the great ,caesar1 ,eochaid ,airem was high king of ,ireland2 and he had for his queen ,etain1 reborn then as a mortal1--but a ,danaan princess at one time1 and the wife of ,miidir4 ,it was a fine evening in the summer1 and ,eochaid ,airem was looking from the walls of ,tara and admiring the beauty of the world4 ,he saw an unknown warrior riding towards him2 clad in purple tunic2 his hair yellow as gold1 and his blue eyes shining like candles4 ,a five-pointed lance was in his hand2 his shield was ornamented with beads of gold4 --,a hundred thousand welcomes to you1 said the high king4 ,who is it you are8 --,i know well who you are1 said the warrior1 and for a long time4 --,what name is on you8 said ,eochaid4 --,nothing illustrious about it in the world1 said the other4 ,i am ,midir of ,bregleith4 --,what has brought you hither8 --,i am come to play at chess with you4 --,i have great skill at chess1 said the high king2 and indeed1 he was the best at it in ,ireland1 in those days4 --,we shall see about that1 said ,midir4 --,but the queen is sleeping in her chamber now1 said ,eochaid2 and it is there the chessboard is4 --,little matter1 said ,midir1 ,i have here a board as good as yours is4 ,and that was the truth4 ,his chessboard was of silver1 glittering with precious stones at each corner4 ,from a satchel wrought of shining metal he took his chessmen1 which were of pure gold4 ,then he arranged them on the board4--,play you1 said he4 --,i will not play without a stake1 said the king4 --,what will the stake be8 said ,midir4 --,all one to me1 said ,eochaid4 --,if you win1 said ,midir1 ,i will give you fifty broad-chested horses with slim swift feet4 --,and if you win1 said ,eochaid ,airem1 sure of victory1 ,i will give you whatever you demand4 ,midir won that game1 and demanded ,etain the queen4 ,but the rules of chess are that the vanquished may claim his revenge1--a second game1 that is1 to decide the matter2 and the high king proposed that it should be played at the end of a year4 ,midir agreed1 and vanished4 ,the year ended1 and ,eochaid was at ,tara2 he had had the palace surrounded by a great armed host against ,midir2 and ,etain was there with him4 ,here is the description of ,etain3 ,a clear comb of silver was held in her hand1 the comb was adorned with gold2 and near her1 as for washing1 was a basin of silver whereon four birds had been chased1 and there were little bright gems of carbuncles on the rim of the basin4 ,a bright purple mantle waved round her2 and beneath it another mantle with fringes of silver3 the outer one clasped over her bosom with a golden brooch4 ,a tunic she wore1 with a long hood that might cover her head attached to it2 it was stiff and glossy with green silk beneath red embroidery of gold1 and clasped over her breast with marvelously wrought clasps of gold and silver1 so that men saw the bright gold and the green silk flashing against the sun4 ,on her head were two tresses of golden hair1 and each tress plaited into four strands1 and at the end of each strand a little ball of gold4 ,each of her two arms was as white as the snow of a single night1 and each of her two cheeks of the hue of the foxglove4 ,even and small the teeth in her head1 and they shone like pearls4 ,her eyes were blue as the blue hyacinth1 her lips delicate and crimson4 4 4 4 ,white as snow1 or the foam of the wave1 was her neck4 4 4 4 ,her feet were slim and white as the ocean foam2 evenly set were her eyes1 and the eyebrows of a bluish black1 such as you see on the shell of a beetle4 --,what ,i call on you to note about that is something very unpoetic4 ,it is not the flashing brightness1 the grace1 the evidence of an eye craving for beauty1 and of a hand sure in the creation of beauty2--but the dress4 ,the ,irish writers got these ideas of dress without having contacted1 for example1 classical civilization1 or any foreign civilization4 ,the ideas were home-grown1 the tradition ,irish4 ,the writer was describing what he was familiar with3 the kind of dress worn by an ,irish princess before ,ireland had seen foreign fashions and customs4 ,he was heightening picture for artistic effect1 no doubt2 but he was drawing with his eye on the object4 ,i am inclined to think that imagination always must work upon a basis of things known2 just as tradition must always be based on fact4 ,now then3 try1 will you1 to imagine primitive savages dressing like that1 or sufficiently nearly like that for one of their bards to work up such a picture on the actualities he had seen4 ,i think you cannot do it4 ,and this picture is not extraordinary2 it is typical of what we commonly find in the ancient ,irish stories4 ,what it proves is that the ,ireland that emerges into history1 war-battered and largely decivilized by long unsettled conditions as she was1 remembered and was the inheiritor of an ,ireland consummately civilized4--,but to return to the hall of ,eochaid ,airem3 ,every door in it was locked2 and the whole place filled with the cream of the war-host of the ,gael1 and apprehension on everyone1 they not knowing would it be war and violence with ,midir1 or what it would be4 ,so it had been all day2 so it was now in the dusk of the evening4 ,then suddenly there stood ,midir in the midst of them3 ,midir the ,proud2 never had he seemed fairer than then4 ,no man had seen him enter2 none knew how he had come4 ,and then it was but putting his spear in his left hand for him1 and putting his right arm about the waist of ,etain1 and rising through the air with her1 and vanishing through the roof4 ,and when the men of ,ireland rushed out from the hall1 they saw two swans circling above ,tara and away1 their long white necks yoked together with a yoke of moon-bright silver4 ,it was a long time the ,gods were ruling in ,ireland before the ,milesians came4 ,king after king reigned over them2 and there are stories on stories1 a rich literature for another nation1 about the time of these ,danaan ,gods alone4 ,one of them was ,lir1 the ,boundless ,deep4 ,he had four children by his first wife2 when she died1 he married her sister1 ,aoife by name4 ,aoife was jealous of the love he had for his children1 and was for killing them4 ,but when it came to doing it1 her womanhood overcame her1 and instead she put swanhood on the four of them1 and the doom that swans they should be from that out for nine hundred years3 three hundred on ,lake ,derryvaragh in ,west ,meath1 three hundred on the ,straits of ,moyle between ,ireland and ,scotland1 three hundred on the ,atlantic by ,erris and ,innishglory4 ,after that the enchantment would end4 ,for that1 ,bov ,derg1 one of the ,gods1 changed her into a demon of the air1 and she flew away shrieking1 and was heard of no more4 ,but there was no taking the fate from the swan-children2 and the ,danaans sought them on their lake1 and found they had human speech left to them1 and the gift of wonderful ,danaan music4 ,from all parts they came to the lake to talk with them and to hear them singing2 and that way it was for three hundred years4 ,then they must depart1 ,fionuala and her three brothers1 the swan-children1 and wing their way to the northern sea1 and be among the wild cliffs and the foam2 and the worst of loneliness and cold and storm was the best fate there was for them4 ,their feathers froze to the rocks on the winter nights2 but they filled the drear chasms of the tempest with their ,danaan singing4 ,it was ,fionuala wrapped her plumage about her brothers1 to keep them from the cold2 she was their leader1 heartening them4 ,and if it was bad for them on the ,straits of ,moyle1 it was worse on the ,atlantic2 three hundred years they were there1 and bitter sorrow the fate on them4 ,when their time to be freed was near1 they were for flying to the palace of ,lir their father1 at the hill of the ,white ,field in ,armagh4 ,but long since the ,milesians had come into ,ireland1 and the ,danaans had passed into the hills and the unseen2 and with the old centuries of their enchantment heavy on them1 their eyes had grown no better than the eyes of mortals3 gorse-grown hills they saw1 and green nettles growing1 and no sign of the walls and towers of the palace of ,lir4 ,and they heard the bells ringing from a church1 and were frightened at the thin1 dreadful sound4 ,but afterwards1 in their misery1 they took refuge with the saint in the church1 and were converted1 and joined him in singing the services4 ,then1 after a while1 the swanhood fell from them1 and they became human1 with the whole of their nine centuries heavy on them4 ,lay us in one grave1 said ,fionuala to the saint2 and place ,conn at my right hand1 and ,fiachra at my left1 and ,aed before my face2 for there they were wont to be when ,i sheltered them many a winter night upon the seas of ,moyle4 ,so it was they were buried2 but the saint sorrowed for them till the end of his days4 ,and there1 if you understand it1 you have the forgotten story of ,ireland4 ,she was once ,danaan1 and fortunate in the ,golden ,age4 ,then she was enchanted1 and fell from her high estate2 and sorrow and the wildness of ages of decivilizing wars were her portion2 but she retained her wonderful ,danaan gift of song4 ,then came ,christianity1 and she sang her swan-song in the services of the ,church2--when she had overcome her terror of the ominous sound of the bells4 ,she became human again3 that is1 enjoyed one more period of creative greatness1 a faint revival of her old splendor2 and then1--,ah1 it was a long time ago2 a long time the hermit had been sorrowing over her grave6 ,but listen1 by the lake of ,derryvaragh1 on the seas of ,moyle1 or by ,erris and ,innishglory1 and you will hear still the ghostly echoes of the singing of ,danaan swans4 ,danaan swans3 music better than of the world of men6 ,o ,swan-child1 come from the grave1 and be bright as you were of old ,when you sing o'er the sun-bright wave in the ,danaans' ,age of ,gold6 ,are you never remembering1 darling1 the truth that you knew well then1 ,that there's nobody dies from the world1 asthore1 but is born in the world again4 ,it brings me naturally to the place where we take her up in our history4 ,at the end of the fourth century1 the sea1 says the ,roman poet ,claudian1 was foamy with the hostile oars of the ,irish4 ,niall of the ,nine ,hostages was high king of ,tara2 and he was all for a life on the ocean wave and a home on the rolling deep4 ,he raided the coasts of ,britain annually1 and any other coasts that came handy1 carrying off captives where he might4 ,one of these was a boy named ,sucat1 from ,glamorgan3 probably from ,glamorgan1 though it might have been from anywhere between the ,clyde and the ,loire4 ,in time this ,sucat escaped from his ,irish slavery1 entered the ,church1 took the ,latin name of ,patrick1 and made it his business to ,christianize ,ireland4 ,that was about the time when the ,britons were throwing off the ,roman yoke4 ,he was at the height of his career in the middle of the fifth century4 ,even if he did not make a clean and bloodless sweep of the whole country1 ,patrick was one of the most successful ,christian missionaries that ever preached4 ,there was some opposition by the druids1 but it was not successful4 ,he went to the courts of the kings1 and converted them2 and to say you had baptized a king1 was as good as to say you had his whole clan captured2 for it was a fractious unnatural clansman who would not go where his chieftain led4 ,we are in an atmosphere altogether different from the rancor and fanaticism of the continent4 ,patrick1--there must have been something very winning and kindly about the man1-- roused no tradition of animosity4 ,he never made ,ireland hate her pagan past4 ,when the ,great ,age came1--which was not till later1 --not till the ,crest-,wave had passed from ,wales1--and ,christian ,irishmen took to writing down the old legends and stories1 they were very tender to the memories of the ,gods and heroes4 ,it was in pity for the ,children of ,lir1 that were turned into swans1 that they were kept alive long enough to be baptized and sent to heaven4 ,can you fancy ,latona and her children so received by ,greekish or ,latin monks into the ,communion of ,saints8 ,but the ,irish ,church was always finding excuses for the salvation of the great figures of old4 ,some saint called up ,cuculain from hell1 converted him1 and gave him a free pass that ,peter at the ,gates should honor4 ,there was ,conchobar ,mac,nessa again4 ,he was king of ,ulster in the days of the ,red ,branch1 the grand heroic cycle of ,irish legend2 ,cuculain was the chief of his warriors4 ,a brain-ball was driven through the skull of ,conchobar from a sling2 but sure1 his druid doctors would never be phased by a trifle like that4 ,they bound up the wound and healed him in a cauldron of cure2 but warned him never to get excited or over-exert himself1 or the brain-ball would come out and he would die2 barring such accidents1 he would do splendidly4 ,and so he did for some years4 ,then one day a darkness came over the world1 and he put his druids to finding out the cause of it4 ,they told him they saw in their vision three crosses on a hill in the east of the world1 and three men nailed on them2 and the man in the middle with the likeness of the ,son of ,god4 ,with that the battle-fury came on ,conchobar1 and he fell to destroying the trees of the forest with his sword4 ,oh that ,i were there6 he cried2 thus would ,i deal with his enemies4 ,with the excitement and over-exertion1 out came the brain-ball1 and he died4 ,and if ,god ,almighty would not take ,conchobar ,mac,nessa1 pagan as he was1 into heaven for a thing like that1--sure1 ,god ,almighty was not half such a decent kindly creature as the ,irish monk who invented the yarn4 ,so nothing comes down to us that has not passed the censorship of a race-proud priesthood1 with perhaps never a drop of the wine of true wisdom in them1 to help them discriminate and truth to shine through what they were passing on2 but still1 with a great deal of the milk of human kindness as a substitute1 so far as it might be4 ,they treasured the literary remains of druid days2 liberally twisting them1 to be sure1 into consonance with ,christian ideas of history and the fitness of things2 but still they treasured them1 and drew from them inspiration4 ,thus the whole past comes down euhemerized1 cooked1 and touched up4 ,it comes down very glorious1--because the strongest feeling in ,irish hearts was ,irishism1 race-consciousness4 ,whereas the ,latin ,church was fiercely against antiquity and all its monuments1 the ,celtic ,church in ,ireland was anxious above all things to preserve ,celtic antiquity1--having first brought it into line with the one true faith4 ,the records had to be kept1--and made to tally with the ,bible4 ,the godhood of the ,gods had to be covered away1 and you had to treat them as if they had been respectable children of ,adam1--more or less respectable1 at any rate4 ,a descent from ,noah had to be found for the legendary kings and heroes2 and for every event a date corresponding with that of someone in the ,bible4 ,above all1 you had to pack the whole ,irish past into the few thousand years since ,noah came out of the ,ark4--,you get a glimpse in ,wales of the struggle there was between ,hebrao-,christian chronology and the ,celtic sense of the age of the world3 in the pedigree of an ancient family1 where1 it is said1 about half way down the line this entry occurs after one of the names3 ,in his time ,adam was expelled from ,paradise4 ,in ,ireland1 indeed1 there was at least one man from before the ,flood living in historic times3 ,fintan1 whom1 with others1 ,noah sent into the western world while the ,ark was building4 ,here is one of ,fintan's poems3 ,if you inquire of me concerning ,ireland1 ,i know and can relate gladly all the invasions of it since the beginning of the delightful world4 ,out of the east came ,cessair1 a woman1 daughter of ,bith1 with her fifty maidens1 with her three men4 ,the flood came upon ,bith on his mountain without mystery2 on ,ladru at ,ard ,ladran2 on ,cessair at ,cull ,cesra4 ,as for me1 for the space of a year1 beneath the rapid flood1 on the height of a mighty wave1 ,i enjoyed sleep which was exceeding good4 ,then1 in ,ireland1 ,i found my way above the waters until ,partholan came out of the ,east1 from the land of the ,greeks4 ,then1 in ,ireland1 ,i enjoyed rest2 ,ireland was void till the son of ,agnoman came1 ,nemed with the delightful manners4 ,the ,fir ,bolg and the ,fir ,galioin came a long time after1 and the ,fir ,domnan also2 they landed at ,erris in the west4 ,then came the ,tuatha ,de ,danaan in their hood of mist4 ,i lived with them for a long time1 though their age is far removed4 ,after that came the sons of ,mile out of ,spain and the south4 ,i lived with them2 mighty were their battles4 ,i had come to a great age1 ,i do not conceal it1 when the pure faith was sent to ,ireland by the ,king of the ,cloudy ,heaven4 ,i am the fair ,fintan son of ,bochra2 ,i proclaim it aloud4 ,since the flood came here ,i am a great personage in ,ireland4 ,in the middle of the sixth century he was summoned as a witness by the descendants of ,niall of the ,nine ,hostages against ,king ,dermot ,mac,kerval1 in a dispute as to the ancient divisions of ,ireland4 ,he came to ,tara with nine companies in front of him1 and nine companies behind3 they were his descendants4 ,this1 mind you1 is in strictly historical times4 ,the king and his people received him kindly1 and after he had rested a little1 he told them his story1 and that of ,tara from its foundation4 ,they asked him to give them some proof of his memory4 ,right willingly1 said ,fintan4 ,i passed one day through a wood in ,west ,munster2 ,i brought home with me a red berry of the yew-tree1 which ,i planted in my kitchen-garden1 and it grew there till it was as tall as a man4 ,then ,i took it up1 and re-planted it on the green lawn before the house1 and it grew there until a hundred champions could find room under its foliage1 to be sheltered there from wind and rain1 and cold and heat4 ,i remained so1 and my yew remained so1 spending our time alike1 until at last all its leaves fell off from decay4 ,when afterwards ,i thought of turning it to some profit1 ,i went to it1 and cut it from its stem2 and ,i made of it seven vats1 and seven keeves1 and seven stans1 and seven churns1 and seven pitchers1 and seven milans1 and seven medars1 with hoops for all4 ,i remained so with my yew vessels until their hoops all fell off from decay and old age4 ,after that ,i re-made them2 but could only get a keeve out of the vat1 and a stan out of the keeve1 and a mug out of the stan1 and a cilorn out of the mug1 and a milan out of the cilom1 and a medar out of the milan2 and ,i leave it to ,almighty ,god that ,i do not know where their dust is now1 after their dissolution with me from decay4 99 ------ 99 ,de ,jubainville1 ,irish ,mythological ,cycle2 when also ,fintan's poem quoted above4 ------ ,now here is a strange relic of the ,secret ,teaching that comes down with this legend of ,fintan4 ,each of the four ,cardinal ,points1 it was said1 had had its ,man appointed to record all the wonderful events that had taken place in the world499 ,one of them was this ,fintan1 son of ,bochra1 son of ,lamech1 whose duty was to preserve the histories of ,spain and ,ireland1 and the ,west in general4 ,as we have seen1 ,spain is a glyph for the ,great ,plain1 the ,otherworld4 ------ 99 ,see ,the ,secret ,doctrine1 for the ,thesophical teaching4 ------ ,from this universal euhemerization1--this loving preservation and careful cooking of the traditions by the ,christian redactors of them1--we get certain results4 ,one is that ancient ,ireland remains for us in the colors of life3 every figure flashes before our eyes in a golden mellow light of morning1 at once extremely real and extremely magical3 not the ,greek heroic age appears so flooded with dawn-freshness1 so realistic1 so minutely drawn1 nor half so lit with glamor4 ,another result is that1 while strange gleams of ,esotericism shine through1--as in that about the ,four ,recorders of the ,four ,cardinal ,points1--things that it seemed undangerous to the monks1 because they did not understand their significance1 to let pass1--we hear nothing in ,irish literature about the philosophy of the ,druids4 ,ireland retains her belief in magic to this day2 and his would be a hard skull that could know ,ireland intimately and escape that belief4 ,so it seemed nothing irreligious to the monks to let the ,druids remain magicians4 ,but philosophy was another matter entirely2 and must be ruled out as conflicting with the ,christian scheme of things4 ,from this silence our ,druid-,medicine-men ,theorists draw great comfort and unction for their pet belief4 ,reincarnation appears in some stories as a sort of thing that might happen in special cases2 because ,god is good to the ,irish1 and might be willing to give them sometimes another chance4 ,but nothing is allowed to come down to imply it was known for a law in ,nature2 no moral or philosophic bearing is attached to it4 ,this is just what you would expect4 ,the ,christian censors of the literature had rejected it as unchristian doctrine4 ,they would hate to have it thought that ,irishmen could ever have believed in such things2 they would cover such belief up in every possible way4 ,you would find peasant-bards in ,wales to this day1 men learned in the national tradition1 who are deacons in their chapels and druids of the ,gorsedd1 and firm believers in ,druidism4 ,they have founded a ,gorsedd here in ,america lately1 with an active propaganda of ,druidism1 and lecturers touring4 ,they think of it as a kind of ,pre-christian ,christianity2 and would open their eyes wide to hear that ,reincarnation was the cornerstone teaching in it4 ,this may throw a little light on the attitude of those early ,irish ,christians4--,but on the other hand there were tales that could not be preserved at all1 that you could not tell at all1 without bringing a touch of reincarnation into them4 ,the universal doctrine survived in that way in ,ireland1 as it survived as a rumor in the folk-lore in ,wales4 ,there is the story1 for instance1 of ,mongan son of ,fiachta1 a historical chieftain killed in #fbe4 ,according to ,tigernach1 the oldest of the ,irish annalists1 ,finn ,mac,cool died in ,a4,d4 #bgd4 ,finn1 you will remember1 is the central figure of the ,fenian ,cycle of sagas2 he was the father of ,oisin and the leader of the ,fenians2 next to ,cuculain1 he is the chiefest hero of ,irish legend4 ,i quote this story from ,m4 de ,jubainville499 ------ 99 ,but without word-for-word exactitude2 hence the absence of inverted commas4 ,the same remark applies to all the stories quoted1 or nearly quoted1 from ,mr4 ,rollerstone'e book4 ------ ,mongan had a quarrel with ,forgoll1 his chief bard or file1 as to the place where ,fothad ,airgtech king of ,ireland had been slain by ,cailte1 one of ,finn's companions4 ,mongan said it was on the banks of the ,lame in ,ulster1 near his own palace2 ,forgoll said it was at ,dubtar in ,leinster4 ,forgoll1 enraged at being contradicted by a mere layman1 threatened to pronounce awful incantations against ,mongan1 which might put rat-hood on him1 or anything4 ,the end of it was that ,mongan was given three days to prove his statement2 if he should not have done so by that time1 he and all his possessions were to become the property of the file4 ,two days passed1 and half the third1 and ,mongan did nothing1 but remained at his ease entirely1 never troubling in the world4 ,as for his wife1 poor woman1 from the moment he made the wager her tears had not ceased to flow4--,make an end of weeping1 said he2 help will certainly come to us4 ,forgoll came to claim his bond4--,wait you till the evening1 said ,mongan4 ,evening came1 and if help was coming1 there was no sign of it4 ,mongan sat with his wife in the upper chamber2 ,forgoll out before them waiting to take possession of everything4 ,pitiless and revengeful the look of ,forgoll2 the queen weeping and walling2 ,mongan himself with no sign of care on him4--,be not you sorrowful1 woman1 said he2 the one who is coming to help us is not far off2 ,i hear his footsteps on the ,labrinne4 ,it is the ,river ,caragh1 that flows into ,dingle bay in the southwest2 a hundred leagues from where they were in the palace at ,donegore in the north-east of ,antrim4 ,with that she was quiet for awhile2 but nothing happened1 and she began weeping again4--,hush now6 said ,mongan2 ,i hear the feet of the one that will help us crossing the ,maine4 ,it is another river in ,kerry1 between the ,caragh and the north-east3 on the road1 that is1 between ,mongan's palace and the ,great ,plain4 ,that way he was consoling her again and again2 and she again and again breaking out with her lamentations4 ,he was hearing the footsteps at every river between ,kerry and ,antrim3 at the ,liffey1 and then the ,boyne1 and then the ,dee1 and after that1 at ,carlingford ,lough1 and at last at ,larne ,water1 a little to the south of the palace4--,enough of this folly1 said ,forgoll2 pay you me what is mine4 ,a man came in from the ramparts2--,what news with you8 asks ,mongan4--,there is a warrior like the men of old time approaching from the south1 and a headless spear-shaft in his hand4--,i told you he would be coming1 said ,mongan4 ,before the words were out from between his teeth1 the warrior had leaped the three ramparts into the middle of the dun1 and in a moment was there between ,mongan and the file in the hall4--,what is it is troubling you8 said he4 --,i and the file yonder have made a wager about the death of ,fothad ,airgtech1 said ,mongan4 ,the file said he died at ,dubtar in ,leinster2 ,i said it was false4 --,then the file has lied1 said the warrior4 --,thou wilt repent of that1 cried ,forgoll4 --,that is not a good speech1 said the warrior4 ,i will prove what ,i say4 ,then he turned to ,mongan4 ,we were with thee1 ,finn ,mac,cool1 said he1-- --,hush6 said ,mongan2 it is wrong for thee to reveal a secret4 --,well then1 said the warrior1 we were with ,finn coming from ,alba4 ,we met ,fothad ,airgtech near here1 on the banks of ,larne ,water4 ,we fought a battle with him4 ,i cast my spear at him1 so that it went through his body1 and the iron head quitted the shaft1 and went into earth beyond1 and remained there4 ,this is the shaft of that spear1 said he1 holding up the headless shaft he had with him4 ,the bare rock from which ,i hurled it will be found1 and the iron head is in the earth a little to the east of it2 and the grave of ,fothad ,airgtech a little to the east of that again4 ,a stone chest is round his body2 in the chest are his two bracelets of silver1 and his two arm-rings1 and his collar of silver4 ,over the grave is a stone pillar1 and on the end of the pillar that is in the earth is ,ogham writing1 and it says1 ',here is ,fothad ,airgtech4 ,he was fighting with ,finn when ,cailte slew him4' ,cailte had been one of the most renowned of ,finn's companions2 he had come now from the ,great ,plain to save his old master4 ,you will note that remark of the latter's when ,cailte let the fact escape him that he1 ,mongan1 had been ,finn3 ,hush6 it is wrong for the to reveal a secret4 ,that was the feeling of the ,christian redactors4 ,reincarnation was not a thing for baptized lips to speak about4 ,but we are anticipating things3 the coming of ,patrick did not bring about the great literary revival which sent all these stories down to us4 ,patrick ,christianized ,ireland3 converted the kings and established the church2 and left the bulk of the people pagan-hearted and pagan-visioned still1--as1 glory be to ,god1 they have been ever since4 ,i mean by that that under all vicissitudes the ,irish have never quite lost sight of the ,inner ,life at the heart of things1 as most of the rest of us have4 ,time and men and circumstance1 sorrow and ignorance and falsity1 have conspired to destroy the race2 but there is a vision there1 however thwarted and hedged in1--and the people do not perish3 their woods and mountains are still full of a gay or mournful1 a wailing or a singing1 but always a beautiful1 life4 ,patrick was a great man2 but he never could drive out the ,danaan ,gods1 who had gone into the hills when the ,milesians came4 ,he drove out the serpents1 they say2 and a serpent was a name for a ,druid ,adept3 ,taliesin says1 in one of his poems1 ',wyf dryw1 wyf sarff1' ',i am a druid1 ,i am a serpent'2 and we know from ,h4,p4 ,blavatsky how universal this symbol was1 with the meaning of an ,initiate of the ,secret ,wisdom4 ,so perhaps ,patrick did evict his ,betters from that land of evictions2 it may be so2--but not the ,god-life in the mountains4 ,but ,i judge from the clean and easy sweep he made of things that ,druidism was at a low pass in ,ireland when he came4 ,it had survived there five centuries since its vital center and link with the ,lodge had been destroyed at ,bibracte by ,caesar2 and1 ,i suppose1 thus cut off1 and faced with no opposition to keep it pure and alert1 might well1 and would naturally have declined4 ,its central light no longer burning1 political supremacy itself would have hastened its decay2 fostering arrogance for spirituality1 and worldliness for true ,wisdom4 ,how then about the theory that some life and light remained or was revivable in it in ,britain8 ,why claim that for ,britain1 which one would incline to deny to ,ireland and ,gaul8-- ,well2 we know that ,druidism did survive in ,gaul a long time after the ,romans had proscribed it4 ,but ,gaul became very thoroughly ,romanized4 ,the ,romans and their civilization were everywhere2 the ,celtic language quite died out2 7,breton was brought in by emigrants from ,britain27--and where the ,celtic language had died1 unlikely that ,celtic thought would survive4 ,but in ,britain1 as we have seen1 while the ,romans and their proscription were near enough to provide a salutary opposition and constant peril1 there were many places in which the survivors of ,suetonius' massacre in ,mona might have taken refuge4 ,i take it that in ,ireland it suffered through lack of opposition2 in ,gaul1 it died of too effective opposition2 but in ,britain there were midway conditions that may well have allowed it to live on4 ,beyond ,christianizing the country1 it does not appear that ,patrick did much for it4 ,it is not clear that ,ireland made any progress in material civilization then1--or for that matter1 at any time since4 ,we should know by this time that these things are a matter of law4 ,patrick found her essentially in pralaya1 essentially under the influence of centrifugalism2 and you cannot turn the ebbing tide1 and make it flow before its time4 ,there was a queer mixture of intensive culture and ruthless barbarism3 an extreme passion on the one hand for poetry and the things of the spirit1--and on the other1 such savagery as continual warfare always brings in its train4 ,the literary class was so strong that in the little kingdom of ,tir ,conall in ,donegal alone the value of ten thousand dollars of the revenue was set aside yearly for its support and purposes2--whereby one would imagine that for all things else they could but have had a nickel or so left4 ,this is culture with a vengeance4 ,there was1 besides1 wonderful skill in arts and crafts1 intricate designing in jewelry-work2--and all this is not to be called by another name than the relics of a high civilization4 ,but there was no political unity2 or only a loose bond under the high kings at ,tara1 who had forever to be fighting to maintain their authority4 ,there was racial1 but not national consciousness4 ,but where in ,europe was there national consciousness8 ,we should remember that it only began to exist1 or to reincarnate from times beyond the horizon of history1 in the thirteenth century ,a4,d4 ,there would be a deal less sneering at ,ireland were only these facts known4 ,england was perhaps the first country in which it became effective3 the wars of the first and third ,edwards called it into being there4 ,joan lit the fires of it in ,france2 she mainly2--in the fourteen-twenties and thirties4 ,spain had to wait for ,ferdinand and ,isabel2 ,sweden for ,gustavus ,vasa2 ,holland for ,william the ,silent2 ,italy for ,victor ,emmanuel2 ,germany for ,bismarck4 ,wales was advancing towards it1 in an imperfect sort of way1 rather earlier than ,england2 but the ,edwardian conquest put the whole idea into abeyance for centuries4 ,so too ,ireland3 she was half-conquered by the ,normans1 broken1 racked1 ruined and crucified1 a century before the idea of ,nationhood had come into existence1 and while centrifugalism was still the one force in ,europe4 ,it is thus quite beside the point to say that she was never a nation1 even in the days of her native rule4 ,of course she was not4 ,nor was ,england1 in those times2 nor any other4 ,in every part of the continent the centrifugal forces were running riot2 though in some there were strong fighting kings to hold things together4 ,this by way of hurling one more spear at the old cruel doctrine of race inferiorities and superiorities3 at ,unbrotherliness and all its wicked works and ways4 ,i was the ,european pralaya2 when your duty to your neighbor was everywhere and always to fight him1 to get in the first blow2 to kill him before he killed you1 and thank ,god for his mericies4 ,so ,ireland was not exceptional in that way4 ,where she was exceptional1 bless her sweet heart1 lay1 as we shall see1 in the fact that while all the rest were sunk in ignorance and foulest barbarism1 and mentall utterly barren1--she alone had the grace to combine her ,kilkenny ,cattery with an exquisite and wonderful illumination of culture4 ,while she tore herself to pieces with one hand1 with the other she was holding up the torch of learning1--and a very real learning too1 --to benighted ,europe2 and then 7bedad67 she found another hand again1 to be holding the pen with it1 and to produce a literature to make the white angels of ,god as green as her own holy hills with envy6 ,that was ,ireland6 ,the ,crest-,wave rolled in to her2 the spiritual forces descended far enough to create a cultural illumination1 but not far enough to create political stability4 ,we have seen before that they touch the artistic creative planes1 in their descent1 before they reach the more material planes4 ,so her position is perfectly comprehensible4 ,the old ,european manvantara was dying2 elsewhere it was dead4 ,its forces1 when they passed away through ,ireland1 were nearly exhausted2 in no condition whatever to penetrate to the material plane and make political greatnesses and strengths4 ,but they found in her very soil and atmosphere a spiritual something which enabled them to produce a splendor of literary creation that perhaps had had no parallel in ,europe since ,periclean days3 ,yes1 surely ,ireland was much more creative than ,augustan ,rome4 ,have any of you heard of literary savages8 ,of wild men of the woods1 your true prognathous primitives1 that in a bare couple of generations1 and upon no contact with civilized races1 rose from their native pithecanthropism to be the wonderful beacon of the ,west or ,east8 ,you have not1 and cannot imagine it2 nor could it ever be4 ,a great literary habit is only acquired in long ages of settled civilization2 and there were long ages of settled civilization behind ,ireland2--and when1 about thirteen decades after ,patrick's coming1 she flamed up into cultural creation1 she was but returning to what was proper to her soul2 in the midst of her dissolution1 she was but groping after an olden self4 ,that olden self1 very likely1 she had even by that time more than half forgotten2 and we now can only see it refracted1 as it were1 through the lens of those first ,christian centuries1 and with the eyes of those ,christian monks and bards4 ,how would they have seen them8--,there was that spirit of euhemerization3 of making ancient things conform to new ,christian ideas4 ,they had the ,kilkenny ,catterwauling in their ears daily2 would they have allowed to any ,pagan times a quieter less dissonant music8 ,could they have imagined it1 indeed8--,i doubt4 ,kilkennyism would have appeared to them the natural state of things4 ,were you to look back into ,paganism for your ,christian millennium1 to come not till ,christ came again8 ,were you to search there for peace on earth and mercy mild8--there in the long past1 when all the near past was war8--,besides1 there was that ancientest of ,mariners1 ,noah1 but a few thousand years back2 and you had to make things fit4 ,so ,i find nothing in it conclusive1 if the legends tell of no conditions different from those ,patrick found3 ,kilkenny ,cattery in politics1 intensive culture in the things of the spirit2 and ,i see no difficulty in the co-existence of the two4 ,the cultured habit had grown in forgotten civilized ages2 the ,cattery was the result of national or racial pralaya2 of the break-up of the old civilization1 and the cyclic necessary night-time between it and the birth of another4 ,let us remember that during the ,thirty ,years ,war1 in mid-manvantara1 ,europeans sunk into cannibalism2 let us remember the lessons of our own day1 which show what a very few years of war1 so it be intense enough1 can do toward reducing civilized to the levels of savage consciousness4 ,so when we find ,ireland1 in this fourth century1 always fighting1-- and the women as well as the men2 and when we find a tribe in ,scotland1 the ,attacotti1 with a reputation for cannibalism2--we need not for a moment imagine that things had always been like that4 ,it is not that man is naturally a savage1 and may from the heights of civilization quickly relapse into savagery2 it is that he is a dual being1 with the higher part of his nature usually in abeyance1 and its place taken1 when it is taken at all1 by the conventions of law and order2 and so the things that are only thought1 or perhaps secretly practised1 in times of civilization1 as soon as war has broken down the conventions1 find their full expression in action1--and others along with them4 ,so ,patrick found ,ireland1 what she has been mostly since1 a grand ,kilkenny ,cattery2 but with the literary habit of an older and better day surviving1 and nearly ready to be awakened into transcendent splendor4 ,the echoes of the ,danaan music were ringing in her still2 and are now1 heaven knows2--and how would they not be1 when what to our eyes are the hills of her green with fern1 to eyes anointed1 and to the vision of the spirit1 are the palaces of the ,danaan ,sidhe1 and the topless towers of ,fairyland8 ,i shall come to my history next week2 meanwhile here for you is the ,song of ,finn in ,praise of ,may1 a part of it1 as ,mr4 ,rollertone translates it1 to give a taste of the literary habit of ,pre-christian ,ireland3 ,may day6 delightful day6 ,bright colors play the vales along2 ,now wakes at morning's slender ray1 ,wild and gay1 the blackbird's song4 ,now comes the bird of dusty hue1 ,the loud cuckoo1 the summer lover2 ,broad-branching trees are thick with leaves2 ,the bitter evil time is over4 ,swift horses gather nigh1 ,where half dry the river goes2 ,tufted heather crowns the height2 ,weak and white the bog-down blows4 ,corncrake singing1 from eve til morn1 ,deep in corn1 the strenuous bird2 ,sings the virgin waterfall1 ,white and tall1 her one sweet word4 ,loaded bough of little power ,goodly flower-harvests win2 ,cattle roam with muddy flanks2 ,busy ants go out and in4 --------- ,carols loud the lark on high1 ,small and shy1 his tireless lay1 ,singing in wildest1 merriest mood ,of delicate-hued delightful ,may4 ,and here1 from the same source1 are the ,delights of ,finn1 as his son ,oisin sang them to ,patrick3 ,these are the things that were dear to ,finn1-- ,the din of battle1 the banquet's glee1 ,the bay of his hounds through the rough glen ringing1 ,and the blackbird singing in ,letterlee4 ,the ,shingle grinding along the shore1 ,when they dragged his war-boats down to the sea2 ,the dawn-wind whistling his spears among4 ,and the magic song of his ministrels three4 ,whereby you may know1 if you consider it rightly1 what great strain of influence flows in from the ,great ,plain and the ,land of ,youth1 that may yet help towards the salvation of ,europe4 ,when you turn your eyes on the diaphanous veil of the ,mighty ,mother1 and see it sparkling and gleaming like that1 it is but a step to seeing the motions of the ,great ,life behind2 but a step to seeing ',eternal ,beauty wander on her way2' --that ,beauty which is the grand ,theophany or manifestation of ,god4 ,it would not be1 it could not exist1 but that the ,spirit is here2 but that the ,gods are here1 and clearly visible2 talk not of the ,supreme ,self1 and shut your eyes meanwhile to the ,beauty of the ,world which is the light that shines from ,it1 and the sign of ,its presence6 ,and the consciousness of this ,beauty is one which1 since ,ireland1 thrilled from the ,otherworld1 arose and sang1 has been forcing itself ever more and more through the minds1 chiefly of poets1 of a ,europe exiled from truth4 ,i cannot over-estimate the importance of this delight in and worship of ,beauty in ,nature1 which the wise ,chinese considered the path to the highest things in ,art4 ,europe has inherited1 mainly from the ,greeks and the time the western world fell into ignorance1 a preoccupation with human personality3 in ,art and ,literature1 ,i mean1 as well as in life4 ,we are individuals1 and would peg out claims for ourselves even in the ,inner ,world2 and by reason of that the ,inner ,world is mostly shut away from us2--for there1 as the poem ,i quoted about the ,great ,plain says1 none talk of 'mine' and 'thine4' ,but down through the centuries of ,christendom1 after our catching it so near its source in magical ,ireland1 comes this other music3 this listening1 not for the voices of passion1 and indecision1 and the self-conceit which is the greatest fool's play of all1 within our personal selves1--but for the meditations of the ,omnipresent as they are communicated through the gleam on water1 through the breath and delicacy of flowers1 through the 'blackbird's singing in ,letterlee1' --this tendency to 'seek in the ,impersonal' 7,nature is impersonal7 'for the ,eternal ,self4' ,so here1 in these fourth1 fifth1 sixth and seventh centuries1 ,i find the forces 'going west1' through ,gaul1 through ,wales1 through ,ireland1 to the ,great ,plain2 there to recover themselves bathing in the magical ,fountain of ,youth which is so near to the island the ,greeks called ,sacred ,ierne of the ,hibernians4 ,it may be that the finest part of them has not come back yet2 but will re-emerge1 spiritual and saving1 through this same gateway4 ,one would be ashamed of the ,host of the ,gods1 were they not doing strenuous battle in the unseen for the regeneration of this poor ,ireland1 that will yet mean so much to the world3 and one would marvel at the hellions1 indeed one would1 were they in their turn not moving heaven and earth1 with their best battle-breaking champions in the fore-front1 to maintain their strangle-hold on her tortured and beautiful soul4 ,,xxvii4 ,,the ,,irish ,,illumination ,we put #dbj for a date to the ,southern ,renaissance in ,china1 and #daj to the age that became ,arthurian in ,wales4 ,the next thing in ,china is #ebg1 and the coming of ,bodhidharma2 the next thing in ,celtdom is #ebj1 and the coming of ,findian4 ,he was an ,irishman1 and had been studying in ,wales2 where1 certainly1 there was great activity in churchly circles in those days4 ,get a map of that country1 and note all the place-names beginning with ,llan1--and you will see4 ,there are countless thousands of them4 ',llan' means 'the holy place of1' and the rest of the name will be that of the saint who taught or preached there3 of whom1 ,i believe1 only ,david appears in the ,catholic calendar4 ,they were most of them active in the fifth and sixth centuries4 ,findian1 according to the ,encyclopaedia ,britannica1 had come under the influence of three of the foremost of them3 ,david1 ,gildas1 and ,catwg the ,wise2 who were perhaps great men1 if we may judge by the results of their teaching1 as ,findian transmitted it to those that came after him4 ,we have seen that ,patrick opened no kind of golden age in ,ireland1 gave no impulse to civilization or letters4 ,the church he founded had fallen on rather evil days since his death2 and now ,findian came to reform things in the light of what he had learned in ,wales4 ,he began by founding at ,clonard a monastery on the ,welsh plan4 ,that was some twenty-two years before ,geoffrey's date for the passing of ,arthur4 ,by the time ,camlan had been fought1 and the ,crest-,wave had left ,wales1 ,findian had made a channel through which it might flow into ,ireland1 and in the five-forties the ,irish illumination began4 ,we must say a word or two as to the kind of institution he founded4 ,there were several of them in ,wales1--to be called colleges1 or even universities1 as rightly as monasteries3--one at ,bangor in the north2 two or three in ,glamorgan2 one at ,saint ,davids4 ,students flocked to them by the thousands2 there was strict discipline1 the ascetic life1--and also serious study1 religious and secular4 ,it was all beautifully simple3 each student lived in his own hut1 of clay and wattles made1 --or1 where stone might be plentiful1 as it is in most parts of ,wales1 of stone4 ,like a military camp1 the whole place would be surrounded with fosse and vallum4 ,they grew their own corn and vegetables1 milked their own cows1 fished in the streams1 and supported themselves4 ,the sky roofed their lecture-halls2 of which the walls1 if there were any1 were the trees and the mountains4 ,but these places were real centers of learning1 the best there were in ,europe in those days2 and you needed not to be a monk to attend them4 ,in ,wales the strain of the ,saxon wars kept them from their full fruition4 ,celtic warfare was governed by a certain code3 thus1 you1 went to war only at such and such a time of the year2 invaded your neighbor's territory only through such and such a stretch of his frontier2 and no one need trouble to guard more than the recognized doorway of his realm4 ,above all1 you never took an army through church lands4 ,so through all the wars the ,britons might be waging among themselves to keep their hands in1 the monastery-colleges remained islands of peace1 on friendly terms with all the combatants4 ,but ,wales1 with no natural frontier1 lay very open to invaders who knew no respect for religion or learning4 ,twelve hundred of the student-monks of ,bangor1 for example1 were slaughtered in #fac by the ,saxon ,ethelfrith2--whereafter the rest fled to ,bardsey ,island in ,cardigan ,bay1 and the great college at ,bangor ceased to be4 ,augustine of ,canterbury1 sent by the ,pope to convert the ,english1 had summoned the ,welsh bishops to a conference1 and ordered them to come under his sway and conform to ,rome4 ,they hardly knew why1 but disliked the idea4 ,outwardly1 their divergence from ,catholicism was altogether trivial3 they had their own way of shaving their heads for the tonsure1 and their own times for celebrating ,easter1--though truly1 these are the kind of things over which you fight religious wars4 ,however1 it was not these details that worried them so much2 but an uneasy sense they derived1 perhaps1 from the tone of ,augustine's summons4 ,the story runs that they took counsel among themselves1 and agreed that if he were a man sent from ,god1 they would find him humble-minded and mannered2 whereof the sign should be1 that he would rise to greet them when they entered4 ,but ,augustine had other ideas2 and as the ambassador of the ,vicar of ,christ1 rose to greet no man4 ,so still1 not quite knowing why1 they would have no dealings with him2 and went their ways after refusing to assimilate their ,church of the ,circled ,cross to his of the ,cross ,uncircled2--whereupon he1 to teach them a sound lesson1 impelled the ,saxon kings to war4 ,fair play to him1 he was dead before that war brought about the massacre of the monks of ,bangor1--who had marched to ,chester to pray for the ,briton arms4 ,but when ,findian went back to ,ireland he found no such difficulties in his way4 ,not till two hundred and seventy-five years later was that island disturbed by foreign invaders2 and whatever domestic ,kilkenny ,cattery might be going forward1 the colleges were respected4 ,his school at ,clonard quickly grew99 till its students numbered three thousand2 and in the forties1 he sent out twelve of the chief of them to found other such schools throughout the island4 ,then the great age began2 and for the next couple of thirteen-decade periods ,ireland was a really brilliant center of light and learning4 ,not by any means merely1 or even chiefly1 in theology2 there was a wonderful quickening of mental energies1 a real illumination4 ,the age became1 as we have seen1 a sort of literary clearing-house for the whole ,irish past4 ,if the surviving known ,gaelic manuscripts were printed1 they would fill nearly fifty thousand quarto volumes1 with matter that mostly comes from before the year #hjj1--;and which is still not only interesting1 but fascinating4 ------ 99 ,encyclopaedia ,britannica1 article ',ireland'2 whence all re ,findian and the colleges4 ------ ,the truth is1 we seem to have in it the relics and wreckage of the literary output of a whole foregone manvantara1 or perhaps several4 ,for in the vast mass of epics and romances that comes down1 one distinguishes three main cycles3 the ,mythological1 the ,red ,branch1 and the ,fenian4 ,the first deals with the ,five ,races that invaded or colonized ,ireland3 ,partholanians1 ,nemedians1 ,firbolgs1 ,gods1 and ,irish2--in all of it ,i suspect the faint memories and membra disjecta of old1 old manvantaras3 indeed1 the summing up of the history of created man4 ,you will have noted that the number of the races1 as in ,theosophic teaching1 is five4 ,m4 de ,jubainville points out that the creation of the world1 or its gradual assumption of its present form1 goes on pari passu with the evolution of its humanities1 and under their eyes2 thus1 when ,partholan1 the first invader1 arrived1 there were but three lakes in ,ireland1 and nine rivers1 and one plain4 ,this1 too1 is an echo of the secret doctrine2 and incidentally indicates how tremendously far back that first invasion was thought to have been4 ,the ,partholanians came into ,ireland from the ,great ,plain1 the ,land of the ,living1 as the ,irish called it1 which is also the ,land of the ,dead3--in other words1 they came into this world1 and not from another part of it4 ,their peculiarity was that they were no wiser the one than the other 2 an allusion to the mindlessness of the early humanities before the ,manasaputra incarnated in the mid-,third ,root ,race4 ,again1 before their coming1 there was a people in ,ireland called the ,fomorians3 they came up from the sea1 were gigantic and deformed2 some of them with but one foot or one arm1 some with the heads of horses or goats4 ,that will remind you of the water-men1 terrible and bad in the ,stanzas of ,dzyan3 the first attempts of the ,earth or unaided ,nature to create men4 ,but when the ,partholanians fought with and defeated these ,fomoroh1 they were said to have freed ,ireland from a foreign foe2 this though the ,fomorians were there first1 and though the ,partholanians were invaders1 and utterly ceased to be after a time1 so that no drop of their blood runs in ,irish veins4 ,why1 then1 does ,ireland identify itself with the one race1 and discard the other as foreign foes8-- ,because the ,partholanians represent the first human race1 but the ,fomoroh or ',water-men' were unhuman1 and a kind of lusus naturae4 ',fomoroh1' by the way1 may very well be translated ',water-men'2 fo ,i take to be the ,greek upo1 'under1' and 'mor' is the 'sea4' ,now the ,battle of ,mag ,itha1 between ,partholan and the ,fomorians1 is a very late invention2 not devised1 ,i think1 until the eleventh century4 ,and of course there was no war or contact between the ,first ,race and the ,water-men1 who had been destroyed long before4 ,this is a good example of what came down in ,pagan ,ireland1 and how the ,christian redactors treated it4 ,they had heard of the existence of the ,fomoroh before the coming of ,partholan1 and thought it wise to provide the latter with a war against them4 ,later1 as we shall see1 the ,fomoroh stood for the over-sea people westward1--the ,atlantean giant-sorcerers4 ,the second race of invaders1 the ,nemedians1 were also given a war with the ,fomorians1--in the story of the seige of ,conan's ,tower4 ,but this story is told by ,nennius as applying to the ,milesians1 the ,fifth ,race ,irish1 and not to the ,second ,race ,nemedians2 and probably relates to events in comparatively historical tiems1-- say a million years ago1 or between that and the submersion of ,poseidonis about nine thousand ,b4,c4 ,one would imagine that ,ireland1 from its position1 must have been a main battle-ground between the men of the ,fifth and the ,atlanteans1 between the ,white and the ,black ,magicians4 ,mr4 ,judge's ,bryan ,kinnavan stories indicate that it was a grand stronghold of the former4 ,the ,nemedians were akin to the ,partholanians3 the ,second ,race to the ,first1--both mindless3 they came after their predecessors had all died out2 and in their turn died or departed to the last man4 ,so we find in ,the ,secret ,doctrine that the first two humanities passed utterly and left no trace4 ,if ,i go into all this a little fully1 it is because it illustrates so well the system of blinds under which the ,inner ,teaching was hidden1 and at the same time revealed1 by the ,initiate of every land4 ,these ,celtic things seem never to have come under the eye of ,mme4 ,blavatsky at all2 or how she might have drawn on them6 ,i think that nowhere else in the mythologies are the ,five ,root-,races1 the four past and the one existent1 mentioned so clearly as here in ,ireland4 ,for historic reasons at which we have glanced1--the ,roman occupation1 which was hardly over before the ,saxon invasions began1--,wales has preserved infinitely less of the records of ancient ,celtic civilization than ,ireland has2 and yet ,professor ,kund ,meyer told me1--and surely no living man is better qualified to make suct a statement1--that the whole of the forgotten ,celtic mythology might yet be recovered from old ,,mss4 hidden away in ,welsh private libraries that have never been examined4 ,how much more then may be hoped for from ,ireland6 ,the third invasion was by a threefold people3 the ,fir ,domnan1 or ,men of the ,goddess ,domna2 the ,fir ,bolg1 or ,men of the ,sacks2 and the ,galioin4 ,from these races there were still people in ,connacht in the seventeenth century who claimed their decent4 ,generally all three are called by the one name of ,firbolgs4 ,they were avaricious1 mean1 uncouth1 musicless1 and inhospitable4 ,then came the ,tuatha ,de ,danaan1 ,gods and false gods1 as ,tuan ,mac,carell told ,st4 ,finnen1 from whom everyone knows the ,irish men of learning are descended4 ,it is likely they came into ,ireland from heaven1 hence their knowledge and the excellence of their teaching4 ,thus ,tuan1 who has just been made to allude to them as ,gods and false gods4 ,this ,tuan1 ,i should mention1 originally came into ,ireland with ,partholan2 and1 that history might be preserved1 kept on reincarnating there1 and remembering all his past lives4 ,these ,danaans conquered1 and then ruled over1 the ,firbolgs3 it is a glyph of the ,third or ,lemurian ,race1 of which the first three 7and a half7 sub-races were mindless--the ,fir ,domnan1 ,fir ,bolg and ,galioin2 then the ,lords of ,mind incarnated and reigned over them1 the ,tuatha ,de ,danaan1 wafted down from heaven in a druid cloud4 ,so far we have a pretty exact symbolic rendering of the ,theosophic teaching4 ,the ,danaans conquered the ,firbolgs1 it is said1 at the ,battle of ,moytura4 ,now there were two ,battles of ,moytura1 of which this was the first2 it alludes to the incarnation of the ,manasaputra1 and with it the clear symbolic telling of human history comes to an end4 ,so much1 being very remote1 was allowed to come down without other disguise than that which the symbols afforded4 ,but at this point1 which is the beginning of the mind-endowed humanity we know1 a mere eighteen million years ago1 further blinds became necessary4 ,history1 an esoteric science1 had still more to be camouflaged1 lest memories should seize upon indications too readily1 and find out too much4 ,why this should be1 it is not the time to argue2 enough to say that the wisdom of antiquity decreed it4 ,there has always been some doubt as to the ,second ,battle of ,moytura4 ,because of a certain air with which it is invested1 scholars think now1 for the most part1 that it was a later invention4 ,but ,i do not think so3 ,i think that air comes from the extra layer of symbolism that is laid over it2 from the second coating of camouflage2 from the fact that the few years between the two battles represent several million years1--about which the mythological history is silent1 running them all together1 like street-lights you see a long way off4 ,what happened was this3 ,in the first battle ,nuada1 king of the ,danaans1 lost his hand2 and1 because a king must be blemishless1 lost his kinghood too4 ,it went to ,bres son of ,elatha2 whose mother was ,danaan1 but whose unknown father was of the ,fomoroh4 ,note the change3 the first battle was with the ,firbolgs1 the mindless humanity of the early third ,race2 now we are to deal with ,fomorians1 who have come to symbolize the ,black ,magicians of ,atlantis3 the second half of the ,lemurian1 and nearly the whole of the ,atlantean period1 have elapse4--,in person1 ,bres was handsome like the ,danaans2 in character he was ,fomorian altogether4 ,this is the sum of the history of later ,lemuria and of ,atlantis2 ,moytura1 and ,nuada's loss of his hand and kinghood there1 symbolize the incarnation of the ,manasaputra1--descent of ,spirit into matter1-- and therewith1 in time1 their forgetting their own divinity4 ,i should say that it is ,bres himself1 rather than the ,fomorians as a whole1 who stands symbol just now for the ,atlantean sorcerers4 ,there is a subtle connexion between the ,firbolgs and ,fomoroh3 the former are the men1 the latter the ,gods1 of the same race2 the ,firbolgs stood originally for the mindless men of the early third1 men evolving up out of the lower kingdoms towards the point of becoming human and mind-endowed2 the ,fomorians were the ,gods or so to say ,spiritual ,powers of those lower worlds2 the forces in opposition to upward evolution4 ,so we see ,bres of that dual lineage3 with magic from his ,danaan mother1 and blackness from his ,fomorian father3 the ,atlanteans1 inheriting mind from the ,manasaputra1 but turning their divine inheritance to the uses of chaos and night4 ,as his reign represents the whole ,atlantean period1 we might expect it to have begun well enough1 and worsened as it went4 ,this was so2 had he shown his colors from the first1 it is not to be thought that the ,danaans would have tolerated him at all4 ,but it came to be1 as time went on1 that he oppressed ,ireland abominably2 and at last they rose and drove him out4 ,nuada1 whose missing hand had been replaced with one of silver1 was restored in the kingship2 henceforth he is called ,nuada of the ,silver ,hand4 ,here we have the return or redescent of the ,divine ,dynasties who came to lead the men of the early ,fifth ,race against the ,atlantean giants4 ,i shall beg leave now to tell you the story of the ,second ,battle of ,moytura4 ,perhaps it was in ,ireland that the ,white ,adepts of the ,fifth made their first stand against the ,atlanteans8 ,perhaps thence it first got its epithet1 ,sacred ,ierne8--,bres1 driven out by the ,gods1 took refuge with his father the ,fomorian king beyond the western sea2 who gave him an army with which to reconquer his lost dominions4 ,now we come to the figure who represents the ,fifth ,race4 ,there are in ,europe perhaps a dozen cities named after ,lugh ,lamfada1 the ,irish 7indeed ,celtic7 ,sun-god3 ,lyons1 the most important of them1 was ,lug-dunum1 the dun or fortress of ,lugh4 ,lugh was a kind of counterpart to ,bres2 he was the son of ,cian1 a ,danaan1 and a daughter of the ,fomorian champion ,balor of the ,mighty ,blows1 or of the ,evil ,eye4 ,the story of his birth is like that of ,perseus1 son of ,zeus and ,danae4 ,danae's son1 you remember1 was fated to kill his grandfather ,acrisius2 so ,acrisius shut ,danae in an inaccessable tower1 that no son might be born to her4 ,the antiquity of the whole legend is suggested by this nearness of the ,greek and ,irish versions2--even to the similarity of the names of ,dana and ,danae3 though ,dana was not the mother of ,lugh1 but of the whole race of the ,gods3 ,tuatha ,de ,danaan means1 the ',race of the ,gods the ,children of ,dana4' ,so you see it comes from the beginnings of the ,fifth ,race1 a million years ago2 but how much better the history of that time is preserved in the ,irish than in the ,greek version6 ,as if the ,irish took it direct from history and symbolism1 and the ,greeks from the ,irish4 ,and why not8 since in the nature of things ,ireland must have been so much nearer the scene of action4 ,lugh grew up among his mother's people1 but remembered his divine descent on his father's side2 and when it came to the ,war of the ,fomoroh against ,ireland1 was for fighting for his father's people4 ,so he set out for ,tara1 where ,nuada and the ,gods were preparing to meet the invasion2 and whoever beheld him as he came1 it seemed to them as if they had seen the sun rising on a bright day in summer4--,open thou the portal6 said he2 but the knife was in the meat and the mead in the horn1 and no man might enter but a craftsman bearing his craft4 ,oh then1 ,i am a craftsman1 said ,lugh2 ,i am a good carpenter4 ,there was an excellent carpenter in ,tara already1 and none other needed4-,it is a smith ,i am1 said ,lugh4 ,but they had a smith there who was professor of the three new designs in smithcraft1 and none else would be desired4 ,then he was a champion2 but they had ,ogma son of ,ethlenn for champion1 and would not ask a better4 ,then he was a harper2 and a poet2 and an antiquary2 and a necromancer2 and an artificer2 and a cup-bearer4 ,but they were well supplied with men of all those crafts1 and there was no place for him4-- ,then go and ask the king1 said ,lugh1 if he will not be needing a man who is excellent in all those crafts at once2 and that way he got admission4 ,after that he was drawing up the smiths and carpenters1 and inquiring into their abilities1 and giving them their tasks in preparation for the battle4 ,there was ,goibniu1 the smith of the ,danaans4--,though the men of ,ireland should be fighting for seven years1 said ,goibniu1 for every spear that falls off its handle1 and for every sword that breaks1 ,i will put a new weapon in its place2 and no erring or missing cast shall be thrown with a spear of my making2 and no flesh it may enter shall ever taste the sweets of life after2--and this is more than ,dub the smith of the ,fomorians can do4 ,and there was ,creidne the ,brazier3 he would not do less well than ,goibniu the ,smith would2 and there was ,luchtine the ,carpenter3 evil on his beard if he did less than ,creidne2--and so with the long list of them4 ,it was on the first day of ,november the battle began2 and when the sun went to his setting1 the weapons of the ,fomorians were all bent and notched1 but those of the ,gods were like new4 ,and new they were3 new and new after every blow struck or cast thrown4 ,for with three strokes of his hammer ,goibniu would be fashioning a spear-head1 and after the third stroke there could be no bettering it4 ,with three chippings of his knife1 ,luchtine had cut a handle for it2 and at the third chipping there would be no fault to find with the handle either by ,gods or men4 ,and as quickly as they made the spear-heads and the shafts1 ,creidne the ,brazier had the rivets made to rivet them2 and if there were bettering those rivets1 it would not be by any known workmanship4 ,when ,goibniu had made a spear-head1 he took it in his tongs1 and hurled it at the lintel of the door so that it stuck fast there1 the socket outward4 ,when ,luchtine had made a spear-haft1 he hurled it out at the spear-head in the lintel2 and it was good hurling1 not to be complained of3 the end of the haft stuck in the socket1 and stuck firm4 ,and as fast as those two men did those two things1 ,creidne had his rivets ready1 and threw them at the spear-head2 and so excellent his throwing1 and the nicety of his aim1 no rivet would do less than enter the holes in the socket1 and drive on into the wood of the shaft2--and that way there was no cast of a spear by the ,gods at the hellions1 but there was a new spear in the smithy ready to replace it4 ,then the ,fomoroh sent a spy into the camp of the ,gods1 who achieved killing ,goibniu with one of the latter's own spears2 and by reason of that it was going ill with the ,gods the next day in the battle4 ,and it was going worse with them because of ,balor of the ,mighty ,blows1 and he taking the field at last for the ,fomorians1-- ,balor as old as a forest1 his mighty head helpless sunk1 ,and an army of men holding open his weary and death-dealing eye1 --for wherever his glances fell1 there death came4 ,they fell on ,nuada of the ,silver ,hand1 and he died1--albeit it is well known that he was alive1 and worshiped in ,britain in ,roman times1 for a temple to him has been found near the ,river ,severn4--,then came ,lugh to avenge ,nuada1 and a bolt from his sling tore like the dawn ray1 like the meteor of heaven1 over ,moytura plain1 and took the evil eye of ,balor in the midst1 and drove it into his head2 and then the ,fomorians were routed4 ,and this1 in truth1 like ,camlan and ,kurukshetra1 is the battle that is forever being fought3 ,balor comes death-dealing still2 and still the sling of ,lugh ,lamfada is driving its meteor shafts through heaven and defeating him4 ,as for the defeat of the ,gods by the ,milesians1 and their retirement into the mountains1--that too is actual history told under a thinnish veil of symbolism3 the ,fifth ,race having been started1 the ,sons of ,wisdom1 its first ,gods and ,adept ,kings1 who had sown the seeds of all bright things that were to be in its future civilizations1 withdrew into the ,unseen4 ,all this and much more1--the whole ,mythological ,cycle1-- represents what came over into ,irish literature from ancient manvantaric periods1 and the compression of the records of millions of years4 ,a century seems a very long time while it is passing2 but at two or three millenniums ago1 no longer than a few autumns and winters2 and at a million years' distance1 the doings and changes1 the empires and dynasties of a hundred centuries1 look to the eyes of racial memory like the contents of a single spring4 ,so it is the history and wisdom of remote multiplied ages that come down to us in these tales4 ,but with the ,heroic ,cycle we seem to be entering a near manvantara4 ,this is the noon-period of ,irish literature1 the ,shakespeare-,milton time2 where the other was the dawn or ,chaucer period4 ,or the ,mythological ,cycle is the ,vedic1 and the ,heroic1 the ,epic1 period1 to take an ,indian analogy2 and this fits it better1 because the ,irish1 like the ,indian1 dawn-period is immensely ancient and of immense duration4 ,but when you come to the ,heroic time1 with the stories of the high king ,conary ,mor1 and of the ,red ,branch ,warriors1 with for piece de resistance the epic ,tann ,bo ,cuailgne1 you seem 7as you do in the ,mahabharata7 to be standing upon actual memories1 as much historical as symbolic4 ,here all the figures1 though titanic1 are at least half human1 with a definite character assigned to all of importance4 ,they revel in huge dramatic action2 move in an heroic mistless sunlight4 ,you can take part in the daily life of the ,red ,branch champions as you can in that of the ,greeks before ,troy2 they seem real and clear-cut2 you can almost remember ,deirdre's beauty and the sorrow of the doom of the ,children of ,usna2 you have a shrewd notion what ,cuculain looked like1 and what ,conall ,carnach2 you are familiar with the fire trailed from the chariot wheels1 the sods kicked up by the horses' hoofs2 you believe in them all1 as you do in ,odysseus and ,ajax1 in ,bhishma and ,arjuna1 in ,hamlet and ,falstaff2--as ,i for my part never found it possible to believe in ,malory's and ,tennyson's well-groomed gentlemen of the ,table ,round4 ,and then1 after long lapse1 came another age1 and the ,cycle of the ,fenians4 ,it too is full of excellent tales1 but all less titanic and clearly-defined3 almost1 you might say1 standing to the ,red ,branch as ,wordsworth and ,keats to ,shakespeare and ,milton4 ,the atmosphere is on the whole dimmer1 the figures are weaker2 there is not the same dynamic urge of creation4 ,you come away with an impression of the beauty of the forest through which the ,fenians wandered and camped1 and less with an impression of the personalities of the ,fenians themselves4 ,there is abundant ,natural ,magic1 but not the old ,grand ,manner2 and you would not recognise ,finn or ,oisin or ,oscar1 if you ment them1 so easily as you would ,cuculain or ,fergus ,mac,roy or ,naisi4 ,civilization appears to have declined far between the two ages1 to have become much less settled1--as it naturally would1 with all that fighting going on4 ,i take it that all the stories of both cycles relate to ages of the breakup of civilization3 peaceful and civilized times leave less impress on the racial memory4 ,the ,fenians are distinctly further from such civilized times1 however1 than are the ,red ,branch3 they are a nomad company1 but the ,red ,branch had their capital at ,emain ,macha by ,armagh in ,ulster4 ,but what mystery1 what sparkling magic environs them6 ,mr4 ,rollerstone cites this as an example3 ,once three beautiful unknown youths joined ,finn's company2 but stipulated that they should camp apart1 and be left alone during the nights4 ,after awhile it fell out what was the reason for this3 one of them died between every dusk and dawn1 and the other two had to be watching him4 ,that is all that is said2 but it is enough to keep your imagination at work a long while4 --,and then1 the manvantara dies away in a dolphin glory of mystical colors in the many tales of wondrous voyages and islands in the ,atlantic3 such as the ,voyage of ,maelduin1 of which ,tennyson's version gives you some taste of the brightness1 but none at all of the delicacy and mysterious beauty and grace4 ,except the classical1 this is the oldest written literature in ,europe2 and ,i doubt there is any other that gives us such a wide peep-hole into lost antiquity4 ,yes2 perhaps it is the best lens extant1 west of ,india4 ,it is a lens1 of course1 that distorts3 the long past is shown through a temperament1--made into poetry and romance2 not left bare scientific history4 ,but perhaps poetry and romance are after all the truest and final form of history4 ,perhaps1 in looking at recent ages1 we are balked of seeing their true underlying form by the dust of events and the clamor of details2 for eyes anointed they might resolve themselves into ,moyturas and ,camlans endlessly fought2 into magical weapons magically forged2 into ,cuculains battling eternally at the ,watcher's ,ford1 he alone withstanding the great host of this world's invaders1 while all his companions are under a druid sleep4 4 4 4 ,it is the most splendid scene or incident in the ,tann ,bo ,cuailgne2 and ,i cannot think of it1 but it calls up before my mind's eye another picture3 that of a little office in ,new ,york1 and a desk1 and rows of empty seats2 and another ,irishman1 lecturing to those empty seats 4 4 4 4 but to all humanity1 really 4 4 4 4 from the ranks of which his companions should come to him presently2 he would hold back the hosts of darkness alone1 waiting for their coming4 ,and ,i cannot think of this latter picture but it seems to me as if3 ,cuculain rode from out the ages' prime1 ,the hero time1 spacious and girt with gold1 ,for he had heard this earth was stained with crime4 ,with loud hoof-thunder1 clangor1 ring and rhyme1 ,with chariot-wheels flame-trailing where they rolled1 ,cuculain rode from out the ages' prime4 ,i saw his eyes1 how darkening1 how sublime1 ,with what impatient pity and power ensouled2 7,for he had heard this earth was stained with crime67 ,song on his lips--,i heard the chant and chime4 ,the stars themselves danced to in days of old3-- ,cuculain rode from out the ages' prime4 ,love sped him on to out-speed the steeds of ,time3 ,no bliss for him1 and this world left a-cold1 ,which1 he had heard1 was stained with grief and crime4 ,here in this ,iron ,age's gloom and grime ,the ,ford of ,time1 the waiting years1 to hold1 ,cuculain came 4 4 4 4 and from the ,golden prime ,brought light to save this world grown dark with crime4444 ,well2 from the schools of ,findian and his disciples missionaries soon began to go out over ,europe4 ,to preach ,christianity1 yes2 but distinctly as apostles of civilization as well4 ,columba left ,ireland to found his college at ,iona in #efc2 and from ,iona1 ,aidan presently went into ,northumbria of the ,saxons1 to found his college at ,lindisfarne4 ,northumbria was ,christianized by these ,irishmen2 and there1 under their auspices1 ,anglo-,saxon culture was born4 ,in ,whitby1 one of their foundations1 ,caedmon arose to start the poetry3 a pupil of ,irish teachers4 ,at the other end of ,england1 ,augustine from ,rome had ,christianized ,kent2 but no culture came in or spread over ,england from ,augustine and ,kent and ,rome2 ,northumbria was the source of it all4 ,you have only to compare ,beowulf1 the epic the ,saxons brought with them from the continent1 with the poetry of ,caedmon and ,cynewulf1 or with such poems as ,the ,phoenix1 to see how ,irishism tinged the minds of these ,saxon pupils of ,irish teachers with1 as ,stopford ,brooke says1 a certain imaginative passion1 a love of natural beauty1 and a reckless wildness curiously mingled with an almost scientific devotion to metrical form4 ,ireland meanwhile was the heart of a regular circulation of culture4 ,students poured in from abroad1 drawn by the fame of her learning2 we have a poem in praise of generous ,ireland from an ,anglo-,saxon prince who spent his exile there in study4 ,irish teachers were at the court of ,charlemagne2 ,irish teachers missionarized ,austria and ,germany4 ,when the ,norsemen discovered ,iceland1 they found ,irish books there2 probably ,irish scholars as well1 for it has been noted 7by ,matthew ,arnold7 that the ,icelandic sagas1 unlike any other ,pre-,christian ,teutonic literature1 bear strong traces of the ,celtic quality of ,style4 ,they had their schools everywhere4 ,you hear of an ,irish bishop of ,tarentum in the latter part of the seventh century2 and a hundred years later1 of an ,irish bishop of ,salzburg in ,austria4 ,this was ,virgil--in ,irish1 ,fergil1 ,i imagine a native name of ,salzburg3 a really noteworthy man4 ,he taught1 at that time1 that the world is a globe1 and with people living at the antipodes2 for which teaching he was called to order by the ,pope3 but we do not hear of his retracting4 ,last and greatest of them all was ,johannes ,scotus ,erigena1 who died in #hhb3 a very bright particular star1 and perhaps the one of the largest magnitude between the ,neo-,platonists and the great mystics of later times1 who came long after the new manvantara had dawned4 ,he is not to be classed with the ,scholastics2 he never subordinated his philosophy to theology2 but approached the problems of existence from a high1 sane1 and ,theosophic standpoint3 an independent and illuminated thinker4 ,he taught at the court of ,charles the ,bald of ,france2 and was invited to ,oxford by ,alfred in #hgg1 and died abbot of ,malmesbury five years later1--having in his time propounded many tough nuts of propositions for churchmen to crack and digest if they could4 ,as1 that authority should be derived from reason1 and not1 as they thought1 vice versa2 and that damnation was simply the consciousness of having failed to fulfill the divine purpose1-- and not1 as their pet theory was1 a matter of high temperature of eternal duration4 ,the following are quotations from his work ,de ,divisione ,naturae2 ,i take them from ,m4 de ,jubainville's ,irish ,mythological ,cycle1 where they are given as summing up ,erigena's philosophy1--and as an indication of the vigorous ,pantheism of ,pre-christian ,irish thought4 ,we are informed by all the means of knowledge that beneath the apparent diversity of beings subsists the ,one ,being which is their common foundation4 ,when we are told that ,god makes all things1 we are to understand that ,god is in all things1 that he is the substantial essence of all things4 ,for ,he alone possesses in himself all that which may be truly said to exist4 ,for nothing which is1 is truly of itself1 but ,god alone2 who alone exists per se1 spreading himself over all things1 and communicating to them all that which in them truly corresponds to the notion of being4 ,i think we can recognise here1 under a not too thick disguise of churchly phraseology1 the philosophy of the ,bhagavad-,gita4 ,again3 ,do you not see how the creator of the universality of things hold the first rank in the divisions of ,nature8 ,not without reason1 indeed2 since he is the basic principle of all things1 and is inseparable from all the diversity which he created1 without which he could not exist as creator4 ,in him1 indeed1 immutably and essentially1 all things are2 he is in himself division and collection1 the genus and the species1 the whole and the part of the created universe4 ,what is a pure idea8 ,it is1 in proper terms1 a theophany3 that is to say1 a manifestator of ,god in the human soul4 ,you would be mildly surprised1 to say the least of it1 to hear at the present day a native1 say in ,abyssinia1 rise to talk in terms like these3 it is no whit less surprising to hear a man doing so in ninth-century ,europe4 ,but an ,irishman in ,europe in those days was much the same thing as an ,oxford professor in the wilds of ,abyssinia would be now2--with this difference3 that ,ireland is a part of ,europe1 and affected by the general ,european cycles 7we must suppose74 ,europe then was in thick pralaya 7as ,abyssinia is now72 but in the midst of it all there was ,ireland1 with her native contrariness1 behaving better than most people do in high manvantara4 ,the impulse that made that age great for her never came far enough down to awaken great creation in the plastic arts2 but it touched the fringes of them1 and produced marvelous designing1 in jewel-work1 and it the illumination of manuscripts4 ,concerning the latter1 ,i will quote this from ,joyce's ,short ,history of ,ireland2 it may be of interest3-- ,its most marked characteristic is interlaced work formed by bands1 ribbons and cords1 which are curved and twisted and interwoven in the most intricate way1 something like basket work infinitely varied in pattern4 ,these are intermingled and alternated with zigzags1 waves1 spirals1 and lozenges2 while here and there among the curves are seen the faces or forms of dragons1 serpents1 or other strange-looking animals1 their tails or ears or tongues elongated and woven till they become merged or lost in the general design4 4 4 4 ,the pattern is so minute and complicated as to require the aid of a magnifying glass to examine it4 4 4 4 ,miss ,stokes1 who has examined the ,book of ,kells1 says of it3 ',no effort hitherto made to transcribe any one page of it has the perfection of execution and rich harmony of color which belongs to this wonderful book4 ,it is no exaggeration to say that1 as with the microscopic works of ,nature1 the stronger the magnifying power brought to bear on it1 the more is this perfection seen4 ,no single false interlacement or uneven curve in the spirals1 no faint tiace of a trembling hand or wandering thought can be detected4' ,the same author tells us that someone took the trouble to count1 through a magnifying glass1 in the ,book of ,armagh1 in a small space scarcely three quarters of an inch in length by less than half an inch in width1 no less than one hundred and fifty-eight interlacements of a slender ribbon pattern formed of white lines edged with black ones4--,one of these manuscripts1 sometimes1 would be given as a king's ransom4 ,an unmasculine art1 it may be said2 and enormous laborious skill spent upon tribial creation4 ,but once again1 the age was pralaya2 all ,europe was passing into1 or quite sunk in1 pralaya4 ,the ,host of ,souls was not then holding the western world2 there was but a glint and flicker of their wings over ,ireland as they passed elsewhere2 there was no thorough entering in to take possession4 ,but the island 7perhaps7 is the ,western ,lay-center1 and a critical spot2 the veils of matter there are not very thick2 and that mere glint and flicker was enough to call forth all this wonderful manifestation of beauty4 ,if ,i emphasize over-much1 it is because all this talk about 'inferior races1'--and because ,ireland has come in for so much opprobrium1 one way and another1 on that score4 ,but people do not know1 and they will not think1 that those races are superior in which the ,crest-,wave is rearing itself2 and that their superiority cannot last3 the ,crest-,wave passes from one to another1 and in the nature of things can never remain in any one for longer than its due season4 ,it is as certain that it will pass sometime from the regions it fills with strength and glory now1 as that it will sometime thrill into life and splendor the lands that are now forlorn and helpless2 and for my part1 seeing what the feeble dying away of it1 or the far foam flung1--no more than that1--raised up in ,ireland once1 ,i am anxious to see the central glory of it rise there2 ,i am keen to know what will happen then4 ,it will rise there1 some time2 and perhaps that time may not be far off4--,oh if men could only look at these national questions with calm scientific vision1 understanding the laws that govern national and racial life6 ,there would be none of these idiotic jealousies then2 no heart-burnings or contempt or hatred as between the nations2 there would be none of this cock-a-doodling arrogance that sometimes makes nations in their heyday a laughing-stock for the ,gods4 ,instead we should see one single race1 ,humanity2 poured now into one national mold1 now into another2 but always with the same duality3 half divine1 half devilish-idiotic2 --and while making the utmost best of each mold as they came to inhabit it1 the strong would find it their supreme business to help the weak1 and not exploit or contemn them4 ,but it will need the sound sense of ,theosophy1--knowledge of ,reincarnation1 the conviction of ,human ,brotherhood1--to work this change in mankind4 ,well2 now to the things that brought ,ireland down4 ,in #gie the ,norwegians began their ravages1 and they seem to have had a peculiar spite against the monastery-colleges4 ,that at ,armagh was sacked nine times in the ninth1 and six times in the tenth century4 ,in the same period ,glendalough was plundered seven times2 ,clonard four times2 ,clonmacnois five times betnveen #hch and #hde1 and often afterwards4 ,these are only samples3 there were scores of the institutions1 and they were all sacked1 burnt1 plundered1 and ravaged1 again and again4 ,the scholars fled abroad1 taking their precious manuscripts with them2 for which reason many of the most valuable of these have been found in monasteries on the continent4 ,the age of brilliance was over4 ,for a couple of centuries1 the ,norwegians1 and then the ,danes1 were ruining ,ireland2 until ,brian ,boru did their quietus make at ,clontarf in #ajad4 ,before the country had had time to recover1 the ,norman conquest began3 a thing that went on for centuries1 and never really finished2 and that was much more ruinous even than the invasions of the ,norsemen4 ,as to the ,celtic ,church1 which had fostered all that brilliance1 its story is soon told4 ,in ,wales1 the ,norman and ,plantagenet kings of ,england were at pains to bring the see of ,st4 ,davids under the sway of ,canterbury and into close communion with ,rome3 they and the ,roman ,church fought hand in hand to destroy ,celtic liberties4 ,the ,church of the ,circled ,cross had never been an independent organization in the sense that the ,greek ,church was3 it had never had its own ,patriarchs or ,popes2 it was always in theory under ,rome4 ,but secular events had kept the two apart2 and while they did so1 the ,celtic ,church was virtually independent4 ,in the eleventh and twelfth ,centuries the ,welsh ,church fought hard for its existence2 but ,norman arms backed by ,papal sanction proved too strong for it2 and despite the valor of the princes1 and especially of that gallant bishop-historian ,gerald the ,welshman1 it succumbed4 ,as to ,ireland3 an ,english ,pope1 ,adrian ,,iv1 born ,nicholas ,brakespeare1 presented the island to ,king ,henry ,,ii2 and ,king ,henry ,,ii with true courtesy returned the compliment by presenting it to the ,pope4 ,the ,synod of ,cashel1 called by ,henry in #aagb1 put ,ireland under ,rome2 and the ,church of the ,circled ,cross ceased to be4 ,there1 in short and simple terms1 you have the history of it4 ,and therein1 too1 as ,i guess1 you may see all sorts of interesting phases of karmic working4 ,for the ,church of the ,circled ,cross1 that had done so well by ,ireland in some things1 had done marvelously badly in others4 ,there was a relic of political stability in ancient ,ireland1--in the office of the ,high-kings of ,tara4 ,it is supposed now that it had grown up1 you may say out of nothing3 had been established by some strong warrior1 to maintain itself as it might under such of his successors as might be strong too4 ,i have no doubt1 on the other hand1 that it was really an ancient institution1 once firmly grounded1 that had weakened since the general decay of the ,celtic ,power4 ,the ,gods in their day had had their capital at ,tara2 and until the middle of the fifth century ,a4,d4 ,tara stood there as the symbol of national unity4 ,when ,patrick came the position was this3 all ,ireland was divided into innumerable small kingdoms with their kinglets1 with the ,ard-righ of ,tara as supreme over them all as he could make himself4 ,the hopefullest thing that could have happened would have been the abolition of the kingdoms and kinglets1 and the establishment of the ,ard-righ's authority as absolute and final4 ,dermot son of ,fergus ,kervall became ,high-king in #edd4 ,a chief named ,aed ,guairy murdered one of ,dermot's officers1 and sought sanctuary with ,st4 ,ruadan of ,lorrha1 one of ,findian's twelve apostles1 to whom he was related4 ,the king hailed him forth1 and brought him to ,tara for trial4 ,thereupon the whole ,church of ,ireland rose to a man against the mere layman1 the king1 who had dared thus defy the spiritual powers4 ,they came to ,tara in a body1 fasted against him1 and laid their heavy curse on him1 on ,tara1 and1 in the result1 on the kingship4--,alas6 said ,dermot1 for the iniquitous contest that ye have waged against me1 seeing that it is ,ireland's good ,i pursue1 and to preserve her discipline and royal right2 but it is ,ireland's unpeace and murderousness ye endeavor after4 99 ------ 99 ,i quote this from ,mr4 ,rollerstone's book4 ------ ,which was true4 ,the same trouble came up in ,england six centuries later1 and might have ended in the same way4 ,but the dawn of a manvantara was approaching then1 and the centrifugal forces in ,england were slowly giving place to the centripetal3 national unity was ahead1 and the first two strong ,williams and ,henrys were able in the main to assert their kingly supremacy4 ,but in the ,irish time not manvantara1 but pralaya1 was coming2 and this not for ,ireland only1 but for all ,europe4 ,in the natural order of things1 the centrifugal forces were increasing always4 ,that is why ,dermot ,mac,kervall failed1 where ,henry ,,ii in part suceeded4 ,there was nothing in the cycles to support him against the saints4 ,tara1 accursed1 was abandoned1 and fell into ruin2 and the symbol and center of ,irish unity was gone4 ,the ,high-kingship1 thus bereft of its traditional seat1 grew weaker and weaker2 and ,ireland1 except by ,brian ,boru1 a usurper1 was never after effectively governed4 ,so when the ,norsemen came there was no strong secular power to defend the monasteries from them1 and the karma of ,st4 ,ruadan's churchly arrogance and ambition fell on them4 ,and when ,strongbow and the ,normans came1 there was no strong central monarchy to oppose them3 the king of ,leinster invited them in1 and the king of ,ireland lacked the backing of a united nation to drive them out2 and ,ireland fell4 ,well2 we have seen how often things tend to repeat themselves1-- but on a higher level1--after the lapse of fifteen centuries4 ,patrick1 probably1 was born in or about #chg4 ,in #ahhg or thereabouts ,theosophy was brought into ,ireland4 ,patrick's coming led eventually to the period of the ,irish illumination2 the coming of ,theosophy led in a very few years to the greatest ,irish illumination1 in poetry and drama especially1 that had been since ,ireland fell4 ,but ,patrick did not complete things2 nor did that first touch of ,theosophy in the 'eighties and 'nineties of last century4 ,theosophy1 known in those days only to a score or so of ,irishmen1 kindled wonderful fires3 you know that ,english literature is more alive in ,ireland now than anywhere else in the ,english-speaking world2 and that that whole ,celtic ,renaissance was born in the rooms of the ,dublin ,theosophical ,society4 ,yet there were to be eventualities3 the ,dublin ,lodge was only a promise2 the ,celtic ,renaissance is only a promise4 ,theosophy only bides its time until the storm of the world has subsided4 ,it will take hold upon marvelous ,ireland yet2 it will take hold upon ,sacred ,ierne4 ,what may we not expect then8 ,when she had but a feeble candle of ,truth1 in those ancient times1 she stood up a light-giver to the nations2 how will it be when she has the bright sun shining in her heart8 ------------- ,so now we have followed the history of the world1 so far as we might1 for about a thousand years4 ,we have seen the ,mysteries decline in ,europe1 and nothing adequate rise to take their place2 and1 because of that sorrowful happening1 the fall of ,european civilization into an ever-increasing oblivion of the ,spiritual things4 ,we have seen how in the ,east1 in ,india and ,china1 spiritual movements did arise1 and succeed in some sort in taking the place of the ,mysteries2 and how in consequence civilization there did in the main1 for long ages1 go forward undeclining and stable4 ,and we have watched the ,crest-,wave1 indifferent to all national prides and conceits1 flow from one race to another1 according to a defined geographical and temporal plan3 one nation after another enjoying its hour of greatness1 and none chosen of the ,law or the ,spirit to be lifted forever above its fellows2--but a regular circulation of splendor about the globe1 like the blood through the veins3 ,greece1 ,india1 ,china2 ,rome1 ,spain1 ,rome1 ,egypt1 ,persia1 ,india1 ,china3 each repeating itself as the cycles of its own lifetime might permit4 ,and then1 as the main current passed eastward from dying ,europe1 a reserve of it1 a little ,european ,sishta1 passing west3 from ,gaul to ,britain1 from ,britain to ,ireland2 from ,ireland to ,tirnanogue and ,wonderland199 there to hide for some centuries until the ,great ,wave should roll westward again from ,china through ,persia1 ,egypt1 ,africa1 ,sicily and ,spain1 up into ,europe3 when the ,little ,wave1 returning magic-laden out of the ,western ,paradise should roll back ,europewards again through ,ireland1 twelfth-century ,wales and ,brittany2 and spray ,christendom with foam from the sea6 that wash the shores of ,fairyland3 producing first what there was of mystery and delicacy to uplift mankind in feudal chivalry2 then the wonder-note in poetry which has probably been one of the strongest and subtlest antidotes against deathly materialism4 ,hence one may understand the raison d'etre for that strange correspondence between ,chinese and ,celtic happenings which we have noted3 the main wave rolls east2 the backwash west2 and they touch simultaneously the extremities of things1 which extremities are1 ,celtdom and ,china4 ,in both you get the sense of being at the limits of the world1--of having beyond you only nonmaterial and magical realms3--,peng-lai in the ,east1 ,hy ,brasil in the ,west2--the ,fortunate ,islands of the ,sunset1 and the ,fortunate ,islands of the ,dawn4 ,we have seen opportunities coming to each nation in turn2 but that how they used them depended on themselves3 on whether they would turn them to spiritual or partly spiritual1 or to wholly material uses3 whether they would side1 in their hour of prosperity1 with the ,gods--as ,china did to some extent2 or with the hellions1 as in the main ,europe did4 ,and above all1 we have seen how the ,gods will never accept defeat1 but return ever and again to the attack1 and are in perpetual heroic rebellion against the despotism of materialism and evil and human blindness2 and we know that the victory they so often failed to achieve of old1 they are out to win now1 and in the way of winning it3 that we are in the crisis and most exciting of times1 standing to make the future ages golden2 that the measure of the victory the ,gods shall win is somewhat in our own hands to decide4 ,the war-harps that played victory to ,heaven at ,moytura of old are sounding in our ears now1 if we will listen for them2 and when ,point ,loma was founded1 it was as if once more the shaft of ,lugh the ,sunbright took the eye of ,balor ,balcbeimnech in the midst4 ,and so1 at this point1 we take leave of our voyaging together through the past4 ------ 99 ,perhaps1 if we knew anything about ,american history1 to ,america4 ,one is tempted to put two and two together1 in the light of what we have seen1 and note what they come to4 ,the great ,american ,empires fell before ,cortes and ,pizarro1 between #aebj and #aecc4 ,that surely marked the end of a manvantaa or fifteen hundred years period of cultural activity2 which then would have begun between #bj and #cc ,a4,d4--upon a backwash of the cycle from ,augustan ,rome8 ,we are not to imagine that any outward link would be necessary4 ,is it possibly a fact that in those centuries1 the first five of our era roughly1 when both ,europe and ,china were somewhat sterile for the most part1--the high tide of culture and creation was mainly in the antipodes of each other1 ,america and ,india8 ,and that after the fall of the ,tang glory in ,china 7#gej7 and the ,irish illumination in the west 7#gge71 some new phase of civilization began1 somewhere between the ,rio ,grande del ,norte and the borders of ,chile8 ,the ,incaic ,empire1 like the ,han and the ,western ,roman1 we know lasted about four centuries1 or from the region of #aajj-;,a4,d4--,but there we must leave it1 awaiting the work of discovery4