,,christian ,,mysticism    ,the ,bampton
 ,lectures1 #ahii    ,considered in     
,eight ,lectures ,delivered before the  
,university of ,oxford    by            
,,william ,,ralph ,,inge1 ,d4,d4  ,dean 
,of ,s4 ,paul's    ,methuen  ,co4 ,ltd4 
#cf ,essex ,street ,w4c4  ,london       
,extract  ,from ,the ,last ,will ,and   
,testament  ,of ,the ,late  ,rev4 ,john 
,bampton  ,canon ,of ,salisbury         
----,i give and bequeath my ,lands and  
,estates to the ,chancellor1  ,masters1 
and ,scholars of the ,university of     
,oxford for ever1 to have  and to hold  
all and singular the said ,lands and    
,estates upon trust1  and to the intents
 and purposes hereinafter mentioned2    
that is to say1  ,i will and appoint    
that the ,vice-,chancellor of the       
,university of  ,oxford for the time    
being shall take and receive all the    
rents1  issues1 and profits thereof1 and
 7after all taxes1 reparations1 and     
necessary deductions made7 that he pay  
all the remainder to the  endowment of  

eight ,divinity ,lecture ,sermons1 to be
 established for  ever in the said      
,university1 and to be performed in the 
manner  following3    ,i direct and     
appoint that upon the first ,tuesday in 
,easter ,term1 a  ,lecturer be yearly   
chosen by the ,heads of ,colleges only1 
and by no  others1 in the room adjoining
 to the ,printing-,house1 between the   
hours  of ten in the morning and two in 
the afternoon1 to preach eight          
,divinity ,lecture ,sermons1 the year   
following1 at ,st4 ,mary's in ,oxford1  
between the commencement of the last    
month in ,lent ,term1 and the end  of   
the third week in ,act ,term4    ,also  
,i direct and appoint1 that the eight   
,divinity ,lecture ,sermons  shall be   
preached upon either of the following   
,subjects--to confirm  and establish the
 ,christian ,faith1 and to confute all  
heretics and  schismatics--upon the     
,divine authority of the ,holy          
,scriptures--upon  the authority of the 
writings of the primitive ,fathers1 as  

to the  faith and practice of the       
primitive ,church--upon the ,divinity of
 our  ,lord and ,saviour ,jesus         
,christ--upon the ,divinity of the ,holy
  ,ghost--upon the ,articles of the     
,christian ,faith1 as comprehended in   
the ,apostles' and ,nicene ,creeds4     
,also ,i direct that thirty copies of   
the eight ,divinity ,lecture  ,sermons  
shall be always printed within two      
months after they are  preached2 and one
 copy shall be given to the ,chancellor 
of the  ,university1 and one copy to the
 head of every ,college1 and one copy to
  the ,mayor of the ,city of ,oxford1   
and one copy to be put into the         
,bodleian ,library2 and the expense of  
printing them shall be paid out  of the 
revenue of the ,land or ,estates given  
for establishing the  ,divinity ,lecture
 ,sermons2 and the ,preacher shall not  
be paid1 nor  entitled to the revenue1  
before they are printed4    ,also ,i    
direct and appoint1 that no person shall
 be qualified to  preach the ,divinity  

,lecture ,sermons1 unless he hath taken 
the degree  of ,master of ,arts at      
least1 in one of the two ,universities  
of ,oxford  or ,cambridge2 and that the 
same person shall never preach the      
,divinity  ,lecture ,sermons twice4     
,,preface      ,the first of the        
subjects which1 according to the will of
 ,canon  ,bampton1 are prescribed for   
the ,lecturers upon his foundation1 is  
the  confirmation and establishment of  
the ,christian faith4 ,this is the aim  
which ,i have kept in view in preparing 
this volume2 and ,i should wish  my book
 to be judged as a contribution to      
apologetics1 rather than as  a          
historical sketch of ,christian         
,mysticism4 ,i say this because ,i      
decided1 after some hesitation1 to adopt
 a historical framework for  the        
,lectures1 and this arrangement may     
cause my object to be  misunderstood4   
,it seemed to me that the               
instructiveness of tracing the          
development and operation of mystical   

ideas1 in the forms which they  have    
assumed as active forces in history1    
outweighed the disadvantage  of         
appearing to waver between apology and  
narrative4 ,a series of  historical     
essays would1 of course1 have been quite
 unsuitable in the  ,university pulpit1 
and1 moreover1 ,i did not approach the  
subject from  that side4 ,until ,i began
 to prepare the ,lectures1 about a year 
and a  half before they were delivered1 
my study of the mystical writers had    
been directed solely by my own          
intellectual and spiritual needs4 ,i was
  attracted to them in the hope of      
finding in their writings a  philosophy 
and a rule of life which would satisfy  
my mind and  conscience4 ,in this ,i was
 not disappointed2 and thinking that    
others  might perhaps profit by         
following the same path1 ,i wished to   
put  together and publish the results of
 my thought and reading4 ,in such a     
scheme historical details are either out
 of place or of secondary  value2 and ,i

 hope this will be remembered by any    
historians who may  take the trouble to 
read my book4    ,the philosophical side
 of the subject is from my point of view
 of much  greater importance4 ,i have   
done my best to acquire an adequate     
knowledge of those philosophies1 both   
ancient and modern1 which are  most akin
 to speculative ,mysticism1 and also to 
think out my own  position4 ,i hope that
 ,i have succeeded in indicating my     
general  standpoint1 and that what ,i   
have written may prove fairly consistent
  and intelligible2 but ,i have felt    
keenly the disadvantage of having       
missed the systematic training in       
metaphysics given by the ,oxford  school
 of ,liter ,humaniores1 and also the    
difficulty 7perhaps ,i  should say the  
presumption7 of addressing metaphysical 
arguments to an  audience which included
 several eminent philosophers4 ,i wish  
also that  ,i had had time for a more   
thorough study of ,fechner's works2 for 
his  system1 so far as ,i understand it1

 seems to me to have a great  interest  
and value as a scheme of philosophical  
,mysticism which does  not clash with   
modern science4    ,i have spoken with a
 plainness which will probably give     
offence of the  debased supernaturalism 
which usurps the name of ,mysticism in  
,roman  ,catholic countries4 ,i desire  
to insult no man's convictions2 and it  
is for this reason that ,i have decided 
not to print my analysis of  ,ribet's   
work 7,la ,mystique ,divine1 distingue  
des ,contrefaons  diaboliques4 ,nouvelle
 ,edition1 ,paris1 #ahie1 #c vols471    
which ,i  intended to form an ,appendix4
 ,it would have opened the eyes of some 
of  my readers to the irreconcilable    
antagonism between the ,roman ,church   
and science2 but though ,i translated   
and summarised my author  faithfully1   
the result had all the appearance of a  
malicious travesty4  ,i have therefore  
suppressed this ,appendix2 but with     
regard to ,roman  ,catholic ,mysticism  
there is no use in mincing matters4     

,those who  find edification in signs   
and wonders of this kind1 and think that
  such supernatural phenomena1 even if  
they were well authenticated  instead of
 being ridiculous fables1 could possibly
 establish spiritual  truths1 will find 
little or nothing to please or interest 
them in  these pages4 ,but those who    
reverence ,nature and ,reason1 and have 
no  wish to hear of either of them being
 overruled or suspended1 will1  ,i hope1
 agree with me in valuing highly the    
later developments of  mystical thought 
in ,northern ,europe4    ,there is      
another class of mystics with whom ,i   
have but little  sympathy--the dabblers 
in occultism4 ,psychical research is1 no
  doubt1 a perfectly legitimate science2
 but when its professors invite  us to  
watch the breaking down of the middle   
wall of partition between  matter and   
spirit1 they have1 in my opinion1 ceased
 to be scientific1  and are in reality  
hankering after the beggarly elements of
 the later  ,neoplatonism4    ,the      

charge of pantheistic tendency will not1
 ,i hope1 be brought  against me without
 due consideration4 ,i have tried to    
show how the  ,johannine                
,logos-doctrine1 which is the basis of  
,christian ,mysticism1  differs from    
,asiatic ,pantheism1 from ,acosmism1 and
 from 7one kind of7  evolutionary       
,idealism4 ,of course1 speculative      
,mysticism is nearer to  ,pantheism than
 to ,deism2 but ,i think it is possible 
heartily to eschew  ,deism without      
falling into the opposite error4    ,i  
have received much help from many kind  
friends2 and though some of  them would 
not wish to be associated with all of my
 opinions1 ,i cannot  deny myself the   
pleasure of thanking them by name4 ,from
 my mother and  other members of my     
family1 and relations1 especially ,mr4  
,w4,w4 ,how1  ,fellow of ,merton1 ,i    
have received many useful suggestions4  
,three past  or present colleagues have 
read and criticised parts of my         
work--the  ,rev4 ,h4 ,rashdall1 now     

,fellow of ,new ,college2 ,mr4 ,h4,a4   
,prichard1 now  ,fellow of ,trinity2 and
 ,mr4 ,h4,h4 ,williams1 ,fellow of      
,hertford4 ,mr4 ,g4,l4  ,dickinson1     
,fellow of ,king's ,college1 ,cambridge1
 lent me an unpublished  dissertation on
 ,plotinus4 ,the ,rev4 ,c4 ,bigg1       
,d4,d41 whose ,bampton  ,lectures on the
 ,christian ,platonists are known all   
over ,europe1 did me  the kindness to   
read the whole of the eight ,lectures1  
and so added to  the great debt which ,i
 owe to him for his books4 ,the ,rev4   
,j4,m4 ,heald1  formerly ,scholar of    
,trinity1 ,cambridge1 lent me many books
 from his  fine library1 and by         
inquiring for me at ,louvain enabled me 
to procure  the books on ,mysticism     
which are now studied in ,roman         
,catholic  ,universities4 ,the ,rev4    
,dr4 ,lindsay1 who has made a special   
study of  the ,german mystics1 read my  
,lectures on that period1 and wrote me a
  very useful letter upon them4 ,miss   
,g4,h4 ,warrack of ,edinburgh kindly    

allowed me to use her modernised version
 of ,julian of ,norwich4    ,i have     
ventured to say in my last ,lecture--and
 it is my earnest  conviction--that a   
more general acquaintance with mystical 
theology  and philosophy is very        
desirable in the interests of the       
,english  ,church at the present time4  
,i am not one of those who think that   
the  points at issue between            
,anglo-,catholics and                   
,anglo-,protestants are  trivial3       
history has always confirmed            
,aristotle's famous dictum about        
parties--,greek3 gignontai ai staseis ou
 peri mikrn all' ek mikrn1  stasiazousi 
de peri megaln--but ,i do not so far    
despair of our  ,church1 or of          
,christianity1 as to doubt that a       
reconciling principle  must and will be 
found4 ,those who do me the honour to   
read these  ,lectures will see to what  
quarter ,i look for a mediator4 ,a very 
short  study would be sufficient to     
dispel some of the prejudices which     

still  hang round the name of           
,mysticism--e4g41 that its professors   
are  unpractical dreamers1 and that this
 type of religion is antagonistic  to   
the ,english mind4 ,as a matter of fact1
 all the great mystics have  been       
energetic and influential1 and their    
business capacity is  specially noted in
 a curiously large number of cases4 ,for
 instance1  ,plotinus was often in      
request as a guardian and trustee2 ,st4 
,bernard  showed great gifts as an      
organiser2 ,st4 ,teresa1 as a founder of
  convents and administrator1 gave      
evidence of extraordinary practical     
ability2 even ,st4 ,juan of the ,cross  
displayed the same qualities2 ,john     
,smith was an excellent bursar of his   
college2 ,fnelon ruled his  diocese     
extremely well2 and ,madame ,guyon      
surprised those who had  dealings with  
her by her great aptitude for affairs4  
,henry ,more was  offered posts of high 
responsibility and dignity1 but declined
 them4  ,the mystic is not as a rule    

ambitious1 but ,i do not think he often 
shows incapacity for practical life1 if 
he consents to mingle in it4  ,and so   
far is it from being true that ,great   
,britain has produced but  few mystics1 
that ,i am inclined to think the subject
 might be  adequately studied from      
,english writers alone4 ,on the more    
intellectual side we have 7without going
 back to ,scotus ,erigena7 the          
,cambridge ,platonists1 ,law and        
,coleridge2 of devotional mystics we    
have  attractive examples in ,hilton and
 ,julian of ,norwich2 while in verse    
the lofty idealism#a and strong         
religious bent of our race have         
produced a series of poet-mystics such  
as no other country can rival4  ,it has 
not been possible in these ,lectures to 
do justice to ,george  ,herbert1        
,vaughan the ,silurist1 ,quarles1       
,crashaw1 and others1 who  have all     
drunk of the same well4 ,let it suffice 
to say that the  student who desires to 
master the history of ,mysticism in     

,britain will  find plenty to occupy his
 time4 ,but for the religious public in 
general the most useful thing would be a
 judicious selection from the  mystical 
writers of different times and          
countries4 ,those who are more          
interested in the practical and         
devotional than the speculative side    
may study with great profit some parts  
of ,st4 ,augustine1 the sermons  of     
,tauler1 the ,theologia ,germanica1     
,hilton's ,scale of ,perfection1  the   
,life of ,henry ,suso1 ,st4 ,francis de 
,sales and ,fnelon1 the ,sermons  of    
,john ,smith and ,whichcote's           
,aphorisms1 and the later works of      
,william ,law1 not forgetting the poets 
who have been mentioned4 ,i can  think  
of no course of study more fitting for  
those who wish to revive  in themselves 
and others the practical idealism of the
 primitive  ,church1 which gained for it
 its greatest triumphs4    ,i conclude  
this ,preface with a quotation from     
,william ,law on the value  of the      

mystical writers4 ,writers like those ,i
 have mentioned1 he  says in a letter to
 ,dr4 ,trapp1 there have been in all    
ages of the  ,church1 but as they served
 not the ends of popular learning1 as   
they  helped no people to figure or     
preferment in the world1 and were       
useless to scholastic controversial     
writers1 so they dropt out of  public   
uses1 and were only known1 or rather    
unknown1 under the name of  mystical    
writers1 till at last some people have  
hardly heard of that  very name3 though1
 if a man were to be told what is meant 
by a  mystical divine1 he must be told  
of something as heavenly1 as great1  as 
desirable1 as if he was told what is    
meant by a real1 regenerate1  living    
member of the mystical body of ,christ2 
for they were thus  called for no other 
reason than as ,moses and the prophets1 
and the  saints of the ,old ,testament1 
may be called the spiritual ,israel1 or 
the true mystical ,jews4 ,these writers 
began their office of teaching  as ,john

 the ,baptist did1 after they had passed
 through every kind of  mortification   
and self-denial1 every kind of trial and
 purification1  both inward and outward4
 ,they were deeply learned in the       
mysteries of  the kingdom of ,god1 not  
through the use of lexicons1 or         
meditating  upon critics1 but because   
they had passed from death unto life4   
,they  highly reverence and excellently 
direct the true use of everything  that 
is outward in religion2 but1 like the   
,psalmist's king's daughter1  they are  
all glorious within4 ,they are truly    
sons of thunder1 and sons  of           
consolation2 they break open the whited 
sepulchres2 they awaken the  heart1 and 
show it its filth and rottenness of     
death3 but they leave  it not till the  
kingdom of heaven is raised up within   
it4 ,if a man has  no desire but to be  
of the spirit of the gospel1 to obtain  
all that  renovation of life and spirit 
which alone can make him to be in       
,christ  a new creature1 it is a great  

unhappiness to him to be unacquainted   
with these writers1 or to pass a day    
without reading something of what  they 
wrote4    ,,footnotes3    ,footnote #a3 
,it is really time that we took to      
burning that travesty  of the ,british  
character--the ,john ,bull whom our     
comic papers  represent guarding his    
pudding--instead of ,guy ,fawkes4 ,even 
in the  nineteenth century1 amid all the
 sordid materialism bred of commercial  
ascendancy1 this country has produced a 
richer crop of imaginative  literature  
than any other2 and it is significant   
that1 while in  ,germany philosophy is  
falling more and more into the hands of 
the  empirical school1 our own thinkers 
are nearly all staunch idealists4       
,,contents    ,,lecture         ,i4     
,general ,characteristics of ,mysticism 
,,ii4 ,the ,mystical ,element in the    
,bible       ,,iii4 ,christian          
,platonism and ,speculative             
,mysticism--7#a7 ,in the ,east          
,,iv4 ,christian ,platonism and         

,speculative ,mysticism--7#b7 ,in the   
,west         ,v4 ,practical and        
,devotional ,mysticism        ,,vi4     
,practical and ,devotional              
,mysticism--continued       ,,vii4      
,nature-,mysticism and ,symbolism       
,,viii4 ,nature-,mysticism--continued   
,,appendix ,a4 ,definitions of          
,mysticism and ,mystical ,theology      
,,appendix ,b4 ,the ,greek ,mysteries   
and ,christian ,mysticism               
,,appendix ,c4 ,the ,doctrine of        
,deification            ,,appendix ,d4  
,the ,mystical ,interpretation of the   
,song of ,solomon            ,,index    
,,lecture ,i      ,greek3 ,hmin de      
apodeikteon hs ep' eutuchia t megist    
para ,then  h toiaut mania didotai h de 
d apodeixis estai deinois men  apistos1 
sophois de pist    ,,plato1 ,phdrus1 p4 
#bde4        ,thoas4 ,es spricht kein   
,gott2 es spricht dein eignes ,herz4    
,iphigenia4 ,sie reden nur durch unser  
,herz zu uns4    ,,goethe1 ,iphigenie4  
,si notre vie est moins qu'une journe   

,en l'ternel2 si l'an qui fait le tour  
,chasse nos jours sans espoir de retour2
     ,si prissable est toute chose ne2  
,que songes-tu1 mon me emprisonne8      
,pourquoi te plat l'obscur de notre     
jour1     ,si1 pour voler en un plus    
clair sjour1     ,tu as au dos l'aile   
bien empenne6     ,l est le bien que    
tout esprit dsire1     ,l1 le repos ou  
tout le monde aspire1     ,l est        
l'amour1 l le plaisir encore6     ,l1   
mon me1 au plus haut ciel guide1     ,tu
 y pourras reconnatre l'ide     ,de la  
beaut qu'en ce monde j'adore6    ,,old  
,,poet4        ,,general                
,,characteristics ,,of ,,mysticism      
,beloved1 now are we children of ,god1  
and it is not yet made manifest  what we
 shall be4 ,we know that1 if ,he shall  
be manifested1 we shall be  like ,him2  
for we shall see ,him even as ,he       
is4--,i ,,john iii4 #b1 #c4      ,no    
word in our language--not even          
,socialism--has been employed more      
loosely than ,mysticism4 ,sometimes it  

is used as an equivalent for  symbolism 
or allegorism1 sometimes for theosophy  
or occult science2  and sometimes it    
merely suggests the mental state of a   
dreamer1 or  vague and fantastic        
opinions about ,god and the world4 ,in  
,roman  ,catholic writers1 mystical     
phenomena mean supernatural suspensions 
of physical law4 ,even those writers who
 have made a special study of  the      
subject1 show by their definitions of   
the word how uncertain is  its          
connotation4#b ,it is therefore         
necessary that ,i should make clear  at 
the outset what ,i understand by the    
term1 and what aspects of  religious    
life and thought ,i intend to deal with 
in these ,lectures4    ,the history of  
the word begins in close connexion with 
the ,greek  mysteries4#c ,a mystic      
,greek3 mysts is one who has been1 or is
  being1 initiated into some esoteric   
knowledge of ,divine things1 about      
which he must keep his mouth shut       
7,greek3 myein72 or1 possibly1 he is    

one whose eyes are still shut1 one who  
is not yet an ,greek3  epopts4#d ,the   
word was taken over1 with other         
technical terms of  the mysteries1 by   
the ,neoplatonists1 who found in the    
existing  mysteriosophy a discipline1   
worship1 and rule of life congenial to  
their speculative views4 ,but as the    
tendency towards quietism and           
introspection increased among them1     
another derivation for ,mysticism  was  
found--it was explained to mean         
deliberately shutting the eyes to  all  
external things4#e ,we shall see in the 
sequel how this later  ,neoplatonism    
passed almost entire into ,christianity1
 and1 while  forming the basis of       
medival ,mysticism1 caused a false      
association to  cling to the word even  
down to the ,reformation4#f    ,the     
phase of thought or feeling which we    
call ,mysticism has its  origin in that 
which is the raw material of all        
religion1 and perhaps  of all philosophy
 and art as well1 namely1 that dim      

consciousness of  the beyond1 which is  
part of our nature as human beings4 ,men
 have  given different names to these   
obstinate questionings of sense and     
outward things4 ,we may call them1 if we
 will1 a sort of higher  instinct1      
perhaps an anticipation of the          
evolutionary process2 or an  extension  
of the frontier of consciousness2 or1 in
 religious language1  the voice of ,god 
speaking to us4 ,mysticism arises when  
we try to bring  this higher            
consciousness into relation with the    
other contents of our  minds4 ,religious
 ,mysticism may be defined as the       
attempt to realise  the presence of the 
living ,god in the soul and in nature1  
or1 more  generally1 as the attempt to  
realise1 in thought and feeling1 the    
immanence of the temporal in the        
eternal1 and of the eternal in the      
temporal4 ,our consciousness of the     
beyond is1 ,i say1 the raw material  of 
all religion4 ,but1 being itself        
formless1 it cannot be brought  directly

 into relation with the forms of our    
thought4 ,accordingly1 it  has to       
express itself by symbols1 which are as 
it were the flesh and  bones of ideas4  
,it is the tendency of all symbols to   
petrify or  evaporate1 and either       
process is fatal to them4 ,they soon    
repudiate  their mystical origin1 and   
forthwith lose their religious content4 
,then comes a return to the fresh       
springs of the inner life--a revival  of
 spirituality in the midst of formalism 
or unbelief4 ,this is the  historical   
function of ,mysticism--it appears as an
 independent active  principle1 the     
spirit of reformations and revivals4    
,but since every  active principle must 
find for itself appropriate instruments1
  ,mysticism has developed a speculative
 and practical system of its  own4 ,as  
,goethe says1 it is the scholastic of   
the heart1 the dialectic  of the        
feelings4 ,in this way it becomes       
possible to consider it as a  type of   
religion1 though it must always be      

remembered that in becoming  such it has
 incorporated elements which do not     
belong to its inmost  being4#g ,as a    
type of religion1 then1 ,mysticism seems
 to rest on the  following propositions 
or articles of faith3--    ,first1 the  
soul 7as well as the body7 can see and  
perceive--,greek3 esti de psychs        
aisthsis tis1 as ,proclus says4  ,we    
have an organ or faculty for the        
discernment of spiritual truth1  which1 
in its proper sphere1 is as much to be  
trusted as the organs of  sensation in  
theirs4    ,the second proposition is   
that1 since we can only know what is    
akin to  ourselves1#h man1 in order to  
know ,god1 must be a partaker of the    
,divine nature4 ,what we are1 that we   
behold2 and what we behold1  that we    
are1 says ,ruysbroek4 ,the curious      
doctrine which we find in  the mystics  
of the ,middle ,ages1 that there is at  
the apex of the  mind a spark which is  
consubstantial with the uncreated ground
 of the  ,deity1 is thus accounted for4 

,we could not even begin to work out our
  own salvation if ,god were not already
 working in us4 ,it is always in  ,his  
light that we see light4 ,the doctrine  
has been felt to be a  necessary        
postulate by most philosophers who hold 
that knowledge of  ,god is possible to  
man4 ,for instance1 ,krause says1 ,from 
finite reason  as finite we might       
possibly explain the thought of itself1 
but not the  thought of something that  
is outside finite reasonable beings1 far
  less the absolute idea1 in its        
contents infinite1 of ,god4 ,to become  
aware of ,god in knowledge we require   
certainly to make a freer use of  our   
finite power of thought1 but the thought
 of ,god itself is  primarily and       
essentially an eternal operation of the 
eternal  revelation of ,god to the      
finite mind4 ,but though we are made in 
the  image of ,god1 our likeness to ,him
 only exists potentially4#i ,the        
,divine spark already shines within us1 
but it has to be searched for  in the   

innermost depths of our personality1 and
 its light diffused  over our whole     
being4    ,this brings us to the third  
proposition--,without holiness no man   
may  see the ,lord2 or1 as it is        
expressed positively in the ,sermon on  
the  ,mount1 ,blessed are the pure in   
heart3 for they shall see ,god4         
,sensuality and selfishness are absolute
 disqualifications for knowing  the     
things of the ,spirit of ,god4 ,these   
fundamental doctrines are  very clearly 
laid down in the passage from ,st4 ,john
 which ,i read as  the text of this     
,lecture4 ,the filial relation to ,god  
is already  claimed1 but the vision is  
inseparable from likeness to ,him1 which
  is a hope1 not a possession1 and is   
only to be won by purifying  ourselves1 
even as ,he is pure4    ,there is one   
more fundamental doctrine which we must 
not omit4  ,purification removes the    
obstacles to our union with ,god1 but   
our  guide on the upward path1 the true 
hierophant of the mysteries of  ,god1 is

 love#aj4 ,love has been defined as     
interest in its highest  power2#aa while
 others have said that it is of the     
essence of love  to be disinterested4   
,the contradiction is merely a verbal   
one4 ,the  two definitions mark         
different starting-points1 but the two  
ways of  love should bring us to the    
same goal4 ,the possibility of          
disinterested love1 in the ordinary     
sense1 ought never to have been  called 
in question4 ,love is not love when it  
asks for a reward4 ,nor  is the love of 
man to ,god any exception4 ,he who tries
 to be holy in  order to be happy will  
assuredly be neither4 ,in the words of  
the  ,theologia ,germanica1 ,so long as 
a man seeketh his own highest good      
because it is his1 he will never find   
it4 ,the mystics here are  unanimous1   
though some1 like ,st4 ,bernard1 doubt  
whether perfect love  of ,god can ever  
be attained1 pure and without alloy1    
while we are in  this life4#ab ,the     
controversy between ,fnelon and ,bossuet

 on this  subject is well known1 and few
 will deny that ,fnelon was mainly in   
the right4 ,certainly he had an easy    
task in justifying his statements  from 
the writings of the saints4 ,but we need
 not trouble ourselves  with the mystic 
paradox1 that it would be better to be  
with ,christ  in hell than without ,him 
in heaven--a statement which ,thomas    
,kempis  once wrote and then erased in  
his manuscript4 ,for wherever ,christ   
is1  there is heaven3 nor should we     
regard eternal happiness as anything    
distinct from a true conjunction of the 
mind with ,god4#ac ,god is  not without 
or above law3 ,he could not make men    
either sinful or  miserable4#ad ,to     
believe otherwise is to suppose an      
irrational  universe1 the one thing     
which a rational man cannot believe in4 
,the mystic1 as we have seen1 makes it  
his life's aim to be transformed  into  
the likeness of ,him in whose image he  
was created4#ae ,he loves  to figure his
 path as a ladder reaching from earth to

 heaven1 which  must be climbed step by 
step4 ,this scala perfectionis is       
generally  divided into three stages4   
,the first is called the purgative life1
  the second the illuminative1 while the
 third1 which is really the goal  rather
 than a part of the journey1 is called  
the unitive life1 or  state of perfect  
contemplation4#af ,we find1 as we should
 expect1 some  differences in the       
classification1 but this tripartite     
scheme is  generally accepted4    ,the  
steps of the upward path constitute the 
ethical system1 the rule  of life1 of   
the mystics4 ,the first stage1 the      
purgative life1 we read  in the         
,theologia ,germanica1 is brought about 
by contrition1 by  confession1 by hearty
 amendment2 and this is the usual       
language in  treatises intended for     
monks4 ,but it is really intended to    
include the  civic and social virtues in
 this stage4#ag ,they occupy the lowest 
place1 it is true2 but this only means  
that they must be acquired by  all1     

though all are not called to the higher 
flights of contemplation4  ,their chief 
value1 according to ,plotinus1 is to    
teach us the meaning  of order and      
limitation 7,greek3 taxis and ,greek3   
peras71 which  are qualities belonging  
to the ,divine nature4 ,this is a very  
valuable  thought1 for it contradicts   
that aberration of ,mysticism which     
calls  ,god the ,infinite1 and thinks of
 ,him as the ,indefinite1 dissolving all
  distinctions in the abyss of bare     
indetermination4 ,when ,ewald says1  the
 true mystic never withdraws himself    
wilfully from the business  of life1 no1
 not even from the smallest business1 he
 is1 at any rate1  saying nothing which 
conflicts with the principles of        
,mysticism4#ah    ,the purgative life   
necessarily includes self-discipline3   
does it  necessarily include what is    
commonly known as asceticism8 ,it would 
be  easy to answer that asceticism means
 nothing but training1 as men  train for
 a race1 or more broadly still1 that it 

means simply the  acquisition of some   
greater power by practice4#ai ,but when 
people  speak of asceticism1 they have  
in their minds such severe  buffeting of
 the body as was practised by many      
ancient hermits and  medival monks4 ,is 
this an integral part of the mystic's   
upward  path8 ,we shall find reason to  
conclude that1 while a certain degree   
of austere simplicity characterises the 
outward life of nearly all the  mystics1
 and while an almost morbid desire to   
suffer is found in many  of them1 there 
is nothing in the system itself to      
encourage men to  maltreat their bodies4
 ,mysticism enjoins a dying life1 not a 
living  death4 ,moreover1 asceticism1   
when regarded as a virtue or duty in    
itself1 tends to isolate us1 and        
concentrates our attention on our       
separate individuality4 ,this is        
contrary to the spirit of ,mysticism1   
which aims at realising unity and       
solidarity everywhere4 ,monkish         
asceticism 7so far as it goes beyond the

 struggle to live unstained  under      
unnatural conditions7 rests on a        
dualistic view of the world  which does 
not belong to the essence of ,mysticism4
 ,it infected all the  religious life of
 the ,middle ,ages1 not ,mysticism      
only4#bj    ,the second stage1 the      
illuminative life1 is the concentration 
of all  the faculties1 will1 intellect1 
and feeling1 upon ,god4 ,it differs from
  the purgative life1 not in having     
discarded good works1 but in having     
come to perform them1 as ,fnelon says1  
no longer as virtues1 that is  to say1  
willingly and almost spontaneously4 ,the
 struggle is now  transferred to the    
inner life4    ,the last stage of the   
journey1 in which the soul presses      
towards the  mark1 and gains the prize  
of its high calling1 is the unitive or  
contemplative life1 in which man beholds
 ,god face to face1 and is  joined to   
,him4 ,complete union with ,god is the  
ideal limit of religion1  the attainment
 of which would be at once its          

consummation and  annihilation4 ,it is  
in the continual but unending           
approximation to it  that the life of   
religion subsists4#ba ,we must therefore
 beware of  regarding the union as      
anything more than an infinite process1 
though1  as its end is part of the      
eternal counsel of ,god1 there is a     
sense in  which it is already a fact1   
and not merely a thing desired4 ,but the
  word deification holds a very large   
place in the writings of the  ,fathers1 
and not only among those who have been  
called mystics4 ,we  find it in ,irenus 
as well as in ,clement1 in ,athanasius  
as well as in  ,gregory of ,nyssa4 ,st4 
,augustine is no more afraid of         
deificari in  ,latin than ,origen of    
,greek3 theopoieisthai in ,greek4 ,the  
subject is  one of primary importance to
 anyone who wishes to understand        
mystical  theology2 but it is difficult 
for us to enter into the minds of the   
ancients who used these expressions1    
both because ,greek3 theos was a  very  

fluid concept in the early centuries1   
and because our notions of  personality 
are very different from those which were
 prevalent in  antiquity4 ,on this      
latter point ,i shall have more to say  
presently2  but the evidence for the    
belief in deification1 and its          
continuance  through the ,middle ,ages1 
is too voluminous to be given in the    
body of  these ,lectures4#bb ,let it    
suffice to say here that though such    
bold  phrases as ,god became man1 that  
we might become ,god1 were  commonplaces
 of doctrinal theology at least till    
after ,augustine1 even  ,clement and    
,origen protest strongly against the    
very impious heresy  that man is a part 
of ,god1 or consubstantial with ,god4#bc
 ,the  attribute of ,divinity which was 
chiefly in the minds of the ,greek      
,fathers when they made these           
statements1 was that of                 
imperishableness4    ,as to the means by
 which this union is manifested to the  
consciousness1 there is no doubt that   

very many mystics believed in1  and     
looked for1 ecstatic revelations1       
trances1 or visions4 ,this1  again1 is  
one of the crucial questions of         
,mysticism4    ,ecstasy or vision begins
 when thought ceases1 to our            
consciousness1  to proceed from         
ourselves4 ,it differs from dreaming1   
because the  subject is awake4 ,it      
differs from hallucination1 because     
there is no  organic disturbance3 it is1
 or claims to be1 a temporary           
enhancement1  not a partial             
disintegration1 of the mental faculties4
 ,lastly1 it  differs from poetical     
inspiration1 because the imagination is 
passive4    ,that perfectly sane people 
often experience such visions there is  
no  manner of doubt4 ,st4 ,paul fell    
into a trance at his conversion1 and    
again at a later period1 when he seemed 
to be caught up into the third  heaven4 
,the most sober and practical of the    
medival mystics speak of  them as common
 phenomena4 ,and in modern times two of 

the sanest of our  poets have recorded  
their experiences in words which may be 
worth  quoting4    ,wordsworth1 in his  
well-known ,lines composed above        
,tintern ,abbey1  speaks of--           
,that serene and blessed mood1    ,in   
which 444 the breath of this corporeal  
frame1    ,and even the motion of our   
human blood1    ,almost suspended1 we   
are laid asleep    ,in body1 and become 
a living soul3    ,while with an eye    
made quiet by the power    ,of harmony1 
and the deep power of joy1    ,we see   
into the life of things4      ,and      
,tennyson says1#bd ,a kind of waking    
trance ,i have often had1  quite from   
boyhood1 when ,i have been all alone4   
,this has generally  come upon me       
through repeating my own name two or    
three times to  myself silently1 till   
all at once1 out of the intensity of the
  consciousness of individuality1 the   
individual itself seemed to  dissolve   
and fade away into boundless being3 and 
this not a confused  state1 but the     

clearest of the clearest1 and the surest
 of the surest1  the weirdest of the    
weirdest1 utterly beyond words1 where   
death was an  almost laughable          
impossibility1 the loss of personality  
7if so it  were7 seeming no extinction1 
but the only true life4    ,admitting1  
then1 that these psychical phenomena    
actually occur1 we  have to consider    
whether ecstasy and kindred states are  
an integral  part of ,mysticism4 ,in    
attempting to answer this question1 we  
shall  find it convenient to distinguish
 between the ,neoplatonic vision of  the
 super-essential ,one1 the ,absolute1   
which ,plotinus enjoyed several  times1 
and ,porphyry only once1 and the visions
 and locutions which  are reported in   
all times and places1 especially where  
people have not  been trained in        
scientific habits of thought and        
observation4 ,the  former was held to be
 an exceedingly rare privilege1 the     
culminating  point of the contemplative 
life4 ,i shall speak of it in my third  

,lecture2 and shall there show that it  
belongs1 not to the essence of          
,mysticism1 and still less to           
,christianity1 but to the ,asiatic      
leaven  which was mixed with            
,alexandrian thought1 and thence passed 
into  ,catholicism4 ,as regards visions 
in general1 they were no invention of   
the mystics4 ,they played a much more   
important part in the life of the  early
 ,church than many ecclesiastical       
historians are willing to admit4        
,tertullian1 for instance1 says calmly1 
,the majority1 almost1 of men  learn    
,god from visions4#be ,such implicit    
reliance was placed on the  ,divine     
authority of visions1 that on one       
occasion an ignorant peasant  and a     
married man was made ,patriarch of      
,alexandria against his will1  because  
his dying predecessor had a vision that 
the man who should  bring him a present 
of grapes on the next day should be his 
successor6  ,in course of time visions  
became rarer among the laity1 but       

continued  frequent among the monks and 
clergy4 ,and so the class which         
furnished  most of the shining lights of
 ,mysticism was that in which these     
experiences were most common4    ,but we
 do not find that the masters of the    
spiritual life attached  very much      
importance to them1 or often appealed to
 them as aids to  faith4#bf ,as a rule1 
visions were regarded as special rewards
  bestowed by the goodness of ,god on   
the struggling saint1 and  especially on
 the beginner1 to refresh him and       
strengthen him in the  hour of need4    
,very earnest cautions were issued that 
no efforts must  be made to induce them 
artificially1 and aspirants were        
exhorted  neither to desire them1 nor to
 feel pride in having seen them4 ,the   
spiritual guides of the ,middle ,ages   
were well aware that such  experiences  
often come of disordered nerves and     
weakened digestion2  they believed also 
that they are sometimes delusions of    
,satan4 ,richard  of ,st4 ,victor says1 

,as ,christ attested ,his               
transfiguration by the  presence of     
,moses and ,elias1 so visions should not
 be believed unless  they have the      
authority of ,scripture4 ,albertus      
,magnus tries to  classify them1 and    
says that those which contain a sensuous
 element  are always dangerous4 ,eckhart
 is still more cautious1 and ,tauler    
attaches little value to them4 ,avila1  
the ,spanish mystic1 says that  only    
those visions which minister to our     
spiritual necessities1 and  make us more
 humble1 are genuine4 ,self-induced     
visions inflate us  with pride1 and do  
irreparable injury to health of mind and
 body4#bg    ,it hardly falls within my 
task to attempt to determine what these 
visions really are4 ,the subject is one 
upon which psychological and  medical   
science may some day throw more light4  
,but this much ,i must  say1 to make my 
own position clear3 ,i regard these     
experiences as  neither more nor less   
supernatural than other mental          

phenomena4 ,many  of them are certainly 
pathological2#bh about others we may    
feel  doubts2 but some have every right 
to be considered as real  irradiations  
of the soul from the light that for ever
 shines1 real  notes of the harmony that
 is in immortal souls4 ,in illustration 
of  this1 we may appeal to three places 
in the ,bible where revelations of  the 
profoundest truths concerning the nature
 and counsels of ,god are  recorded to  
have been made during ecstatic visions4 
,moses at ,mount  ,horeb heard1 during  
the vision of the burning bush1 a       
proclamation of  ,god as the ,i am--the 
,eternal who is exalted above time4     
,isaiah1 in  the words ,holy1 ,holy1    
,holy1 perceived dimly the mystery of   
the  ,trinity4 ,and ,st4 ,peter1 in the 
vision of the sheet1 learned that ,god  
is no respecter of persons or of        
nationalities4 ,in such cases the       
highest intuitions or revelations1 which
 the soul can in its best  moments just 
receive1 but cannot yet grasp or account

 for1 make a  language for themselves1  
as it were1 and claim the sanction of   
external authority1 until the mind is   
elevated so far as to feel the          
authority not less ,divine1 but no      
longer external4 ,we may find fairly    
close analogies in other forms of that  
,divine madness1 which ,plato  says is  
the source of the chiefest blessings    
granted to men--such as  the rapture of 
the poet1 or 7as ,plato adds7 of the    
lover4#bi ,and  even the philosopher or 
man of science may be surprised into    
some such  state by a sudden realisation
 of the sublimity of his subject4 ,so at
  least ,lacordaire believed when he    
wrote1 ,all at once1 as if by  chance1  
the hair stands up1 the breath is       
caught1 the skin contracts1  and a cold 
sword pierces to the very soul4 ,it is  
the sublime which has  manifested       
itself6#cj ,even in cases where there is
 evident  hallucination1 e4g4 when the  
visionary sees an angel or devil sitting
  on his book1 or feels an arrow thrust 

into his heart1 there need be no        
insanity4 ,in periods when it is        
commonly believed that such things may  
and do happen1 the imagination1 instead 
of being corrected by  experience1 is   
misled by it4 ,those who honestly expect
 to see miracles  will generally see    
them1 without detriment either to their 
truthfulness or sanity in other matters4
    ,the mystic1 then1 is not1 as such1 
a visionary2 nor has he any interest  in
 appealing to a faculty above reason1 if
 reason is used in its  proper sense1 as
 the logic of the whole personality4    
,the desire to find  for our highest    
intuitions an authority wholly external 
to reason and  independent of it1--a    
purely supernatural revelation1--has1 as
  ,rcjac says1 been the cause of the    
longest and the most dangerous of  the  
aberrations from which ,mysticism has   
suffered4 ,this kind of  supernaturalism
 is destructive of unity in our ideas of
 ,god1 the  world1 and ourselves2 and it
 casts a slur on the faculties which are

 the  appointed organs of communication 
between ,god and man4 ,a revelation     
absolutely transcending reason is an    
absurdity3 no such revelation could     
ever be made4 ,in the striking phrase of
 ,macarius1 the human mind is the       
throne of the ,godhead4 ,the supremacy  
of the reason is the favourite  theme of
 the ,cambridge ,platonists1 two of     
whom1 ,whichcote and ,culverwel1  are   
never tired of quoting the text1 ,the   
spirit of man is the candle of  the     
,lord4 ,sir1 ,i oppose not rational to  
spiritual1 writes ,whichcote  to        
,tuckney1 for spiritual is most         
rational4 ,and again1 ,reason is the    
,divine governor of man's life3 it is   
the very voice of ,god4#ca ,what we  can
 and must transcend1 if we would make   
any progress in ,divine  knowledge1 is  
not reason1 but that shallow rationalism
 which regards the  data on which we can
 reason as a fixed quantity1 known to   
all1 and which  bases itself on a formal
 logic1 utterly unsuited to a spiritual 

view of  things4 ,language can only     
furnish us with poor1 misleading1 and   
wholly  inadequate images of spiritual  
facts2 it supplies us with abstractions 
and metaphors1 which do not really      
represent what we know or believe  about
 ,god and human personality4 ,st4 ,paul 
calls attention to this  inadequacy by a
 series of formal contradictions3 ,i    
live1 yet not ,i2  dying1 and behold we 
live2 when ,i am weak1 then ,i am       
strong1 and so  forth2 and we find      
exactly the same expedient in ,plotinus1
 who is very  fond of thus showing his  
contempt for the logic of identity4     
,when1  therefore1 ,harnack says that   
,mysticism is nothing else than         
rationalism  applied to a sphere above  
reason1 he would have done better to say
 that  it is reason applied to a sphere 
above rationalism4#cb    ,for ,reason is
 still king4#cc ,religion must not be a 
matter of  feeling only4 ,st4 ,john's   
command to try every spirit condemns all
  attempts to make emotion or           

inspiration independent of reason4      
,those  who thus blindly follow the     
inner light find it no candle of the    
,lord1 but an ignis fatuus2 and the     
great mystics are well aware of  this4  
,the fact is that the tendency to       
separate and half personify the         
different faculties--intellect1 will1   
feeling--is a mischievous one4  ,our    
object should be so to unify our        
personality1 that our eye may  be       
single1 and our whole body full of      
light4    ,we have considered briefly   
the three stages of the mystic's upward 
path4 ,the scheme of life therein set   
forth was no doubt determined           
empirically1 and there is nothing to    
prevent the simplest and most           
unlettered saint from framing his       
conduct on these principles4 ,many of   
the medival mystics had no taste for    
speculation or philosophy2#cd  they     
accepted on authority the entire body of
 ,church dogma1 and  devoted their whole
 attention to the perfecting of the     

spiritual life  in the knowledge and    
love of ,god4 ,but this cannot be said  
of the  leaders4 ,christian ,mysticism  
appears in history largely as an        
intellectual movement1 the foster-child 
of ,platonic idealism2 and if  ever1 for
 a time1 it forgot its early history1   
men were soon found to  bring it back to
 its old loving nurse the ,platonic     
philosophy4 ,it  will be my task1 in the
 third and fourth ,lectures of this     
course1 to  show how speculative        
,christian ,mysticism grew out of       
,neoplatonism2 but  we shall not be     
allowed to forget the ,platonists even  
in the later  ,lectures4 ,the fire still
 burns on the altars of ,plotinus1 as   
,eunapius said4    ,mysticism is not    
itself a philosophy1 any more than it is
 itself a  religion4 ,on its            
intellectual side it has been called    
formless  speculation4#ce ,but until    
speculations or intuitions have entered 
into the forms of our thought1 they are 
not current coin even for the  thinker4 

,the part played by ,mysticism in       
philosophy is parallel to the  part     
played by it in religion4 ,as in        
religion it appears in revolt  against  
dry formalism and cold rationalism1 so  
in philosophy it takes  the field       
against materialism and scepticism4#cf  
,it is thus possible  to speak of       
speculative ,mysticism1 and even to     
indicate certain  idealistic lines of   
thought1 which may without entire       
falsity be  called the philosophy of    
,mysticism4 ,in this introductory       
,lecture ,i  can1 of course1 only hint  
at these in the barest and most summary 
manner4 ,and it must be remembered that 
,i have undertaken to-day to  delineate 
the general characteristics of          
,mysticism1 not of ,christian           
,mysticism4 ,i am trying1 moreover1 in  
this ,lecture to confine myself to      
those developments which ,i consider    
normal and genuine1 excluding the       
numerous aberrant types which we shall  
encounter in the course of our  survey4 

,the real world1 according to thinkers  
of this school1 is created by  the      
thought and will of ,god1 and exists in 
,his mind4 ,it is therefore  spiritual1 
and above space and time1 which are only
 the forms under  which reality is set  
out as a process4    ,when we try to    
represent to our minds the highest      
reality1 the  spiritual world1 as       
distinguished from the world of         
appearance1 we are  obliged to form     
images2 and we can hardly avoid choosing
 one of the  following three images4 ,we
 may regard the spiritual world as      
endless  duration opposed to            
transitoriness1 as infinite extension   
opposed to  limitation in space1 or as  
substance opposed to shadow4 ,all these 
are1  strictly speaking1 symbols or     
metaphors1#cg for we cannot regard any  
of them as literally true statements    
about the nature of reality2 but  they  
are as near the truth as we can get in  
words4 ,but when we think  of time as a 
piece cut off from the beginning of     

eternity1 so that  eternity is only in  
the future and not in the present2 when 
we think  of heaven as a place somewhere
 else1 and therefore not here2 when we  
think of an upper ideal world which has 
sucked all the life out of  this1 so    
that we now walk in a vain shadow1--then
 we are paying the  penalty for our     
symbolical representative methods of    
thought1 and must  go to philosophy to  
help us out of the doubts and           
difficulties in  which our error has    
involved us4 ,one test is infallible4   
,whatever view  of reality deepens our  
sense of the tremendous issues of life  
in the  world wherein we move1 is for us
 nearer the truth than any view  which  
diminishes that sense4 ,the truth is    
revealed to us that we may  have life1  
and have it more abundantly4    ,the    
world as it is1 is the world as ,god    
sees it1 not as we see it4 ,our  vision 
is distorted1 not so much by the        
limitations of finitude1 as by  sin and 
ignorance4 ,the more we can raise       

ourselves in the scale of  being1 the   
more will our ideas about ,god and the  
world correspond to  the reality4 ,such 
as men themselves are1 such will ,god   
,himself seem  to them to be1 says ,john
 ,smith1 the ,english ,platonist4       
,origen1 too1  says that those whom     
,judas led to seize ,jesus did not know 
who ,he was1  for the darkness of their 
own souls was projected on ,his         
features4#ch  ,and ,dante1 in a very    
beautiful passage1 says that he felt    
that he was  rising into a higher       
circle1 because he saw ,beatrice's face 
becoming  more beautiful4#ci    ,this   
view of reality1 as a vista which is    
opened gradually to the  eyes of the    
climber up the holy mount1 is very near 
to the heart of  ,mysticism4 ,it rests  
on the faith that the ideal not only    
ought to be1  but is the real4 ,it has  
been applied by some1 notably by that   
earnest but fantastic thinker1 ,james   
,hinton1 as offering a solution of  the 
problem of evil4 ,we shall encounter    

attempts to deal with this  great       
difficulty in several of the ,christian 
mystics4 ,the problem  among the        
speculative writers was how to reconcile
 the ,absolute of  philosophy1 who is   
above all distinctions1#dj with the ,god
 of  religion1 who is of purer eyes than
 to behold iniquity4 ,they could not    
allow that evil has a substantial       
existence apart from ,god1 for fear  of 
being entangled in an insoluble         
,dualism4 ,but if evil is derived  from 
,god1 how can ,god be good8 ,we shall   
find that the prevailing view  was that 
,evil has no substance4 ,there is       
nothing1 says ,gregory of  ,nyssa1 which
 falls outside of the ,divine nature1   
except moral evil  alone4 ,and this1 we 
may say paradoxically1 has its being in 
not-being4  ,for the genesis of moral   
evil is simply the privation of         
being4#da  ,that which1 properly        
speaking1 exists1 is the nature of the  
good4 ,the  ,divine nature1 in other    
words1 is that which excludes nothing1  

and  contradicts nothing1 except those  
attributes which are contrary to the    
nature of reality2 it is that which     
harmonises everything except  discord1  
which loves everything except hatred1   
verifies everything  except falsehood1  
and beautifies everything except        
ugliness4 ,thus that  which falls       
outside the notion of ,god1 proves on   
examination to be  not merely unreal1   
but unreality as such4 ,but the relation
 of evil to  the ,absolute is not a     
religious problem4 ,to our experience1  
evil  exists as a positive force not    
subject to the law of ,god1 though      
constantly overruled and made an        
instrument of good4 ,on this subject  we
 must say more later4 ,here ,i need only
 add that a sunny confidence  in the    
ultimate triumph of good shines from the
 writings of most of  the mystics1      
especially1 ,i think1 in our own        
countrymen4 ,the ,cambridge  ,platonists
 are all optimistic2 and in the         
beautiful but little known  ,revelations

 of ,juliana of ,norwich1 we find in    
page after page the  refrain of ,all    
shall be well4 ,sin is behovable1#db but
 all shall  be well1 and all manner of  
thing shall be well4    ,since the      
universe is the thought and will of ,god
 expressed under the  forms of time and 
space1 everything in it reflects the    
nature of its  ,creator1 though in      
different degrees4 ,erigena says finely1
 ,every  visible and invisible creature 
is a theophany or appearance of ,god4   
,the purest mirror in the world is the  
highest of created things--the  human   
soul unclouded by sin4 ,and this brings 
us to a point at which  ,mysticism falls
 asunder into two classes4    ,the      
question which divides them is this--,in
 the higher stages of the  spiritual    
life1 shall we learn most of the nature 
of ,god by close1  sympathetic1 reverent
 observation of the world around us1    
including  our fellow-men1 or by sinking
 into the depths of our inner           
consciousness1 and aspiring after direct

 and constant communion with  ,god8     
,each method may claim the support of   
weighty names4 ,the former1  which will 
form the subject of my seventh and      
eighth ,lectures1 is very  happily      
described by ,charles ,kingsley in an   
early letter4#dc ,the  great ,mysticism1
 he says1 is the belief which is        
becoming every day  stronger with me1   
that all symmetrical natural objects 444
 are types  of some spiritual truth or  
existence4444 ,everything seems to be   
full  of ,god's reflex if we could but  
see it4444 ,oh1 to see1 if but for a    
moment1 the whole harmony of the great  
system6 to hear once the music  which   
the whole universe makes as it performs 
,his bidding6 ,when ,i feel  that sense 
of the mystery that is around me1 ,i    
feel a gush of  enthusiasm towards ,god1
 which seems its inseparable effect4    
,on the other side stand the majority of
 the earlier mystics4 ,believing  that  
,god is closer to us than breathing1 and
 nearer than hands and  feet1 they are  

impatient of any intermediaries4 ,we    
need not search  for ,his footprints in 
,nature1 when we can behold ,his face in
  ourselves1#dd is their answer to ,st4 
,augustine's fine expression  that all  
things bright and beautiful in the world
 are footprints of  the uncreated       
,wisdom4#de ,coleridge has expressed    
their feeling in  his ,ode to           
,dejection--              ,it were a    
vain endeavour1           ,though ,i    
should gaze for ever        ,on that    
green light that lingers in the ,west2  
,i may not hope from outward forms to   
win    ,the passion and the life whose  
fountains are within4      ,grace works 
from within outwards1 says ,ruysbroek1  
for ,god is nearer  to us than our own  
faculties4 ,hence it cannot come from   
images and  sensible forms4 ,if thou    
wishest to search out the deep things of
  ,god1 says ,richard of ,st4 ,victor1  
search out the depths of thine own      
spirit4    ,the truth is that there are 
two movements1--a systole and diastole  

of the spiritual life1--an expansion and
 a concentration4 ,the tendency  has    
generally been to emphasise one at the  
expense of the other2 but  they must    
work together1 for each is helpless     
without the other4 ,as  ,shakespeare    
says#df--                    ,nor doth  
the eye itself1    ,that most pure      
spirit of sense1 behold itself1    ,not 
going from itself1 but eye to eye       
opposed1    ,salutes each other with    
each other's form3    ,for speculation  
turns not to itself    ,till it hath    
travelled1 and is mirrored there1       
,where it may see itself4      ,nature  
is dumb1 and our own hearts are dumb1   
until they are allowed to  speak to each
 other4 ,then both will speak to us of  
,god4    ,speculative ,mysticism has    
occupied itself largely with these two  
great  subjects--the immanence of ,god  
in nature1 and the relation of human    
personality to ,divine4 ,a few words    
must be said1 before ,i conclude1 on    
both these matters4    ,the ,unity of   

all existence is a fundamental doctrine 
of ,mysticism4 ,god  is in all1 and all 
is in ,god4 ,his centre is everywhere1  
and ,his  circumference nowhere1 as ,st4
 ,bonaventura puts it4 ,it is often     
argued  that this doctrine leads direct 
to ,pantheism1 and that speculative     
,mysticism is always and necessarily    
pantheistic4 ,this is1 of course1  a    
question of primary importance4 ,it is  
in the hope of dealing with it          
adequately that ,i have selected three  
writers who have been frequently  called
 pantheists1 for discussion in these    
,lectures4 ,i mean ,dionysius  the      
,areopagite1 ,scotus ,erigena1 and      
,eckhart4 ,but it would be  impossible  
even to indicate my line of argument in 
the few minutes  left me this morning4  
,the mystics are much inclined to adopt1
 in a modified form1 the old  notion of 
an anima mundi4 ,when ,erigena says1 ,be
 well assured that  the ,word--the      
second ,person of the ,trinity--is the  
,nature of all  things1 he means that   

the ,logos is a cosmic principle1 the   
,personality of which the universe is   
the external expression or              
appearance4#dg    ,we are not now       
concerned with cosmological             
speculations1 but the  bearing of this  
theory on human personality is obvious4 
,if the ,son of  ,god is regarded as an 
all-embracing and all-pervading cosmic  
principle1 the mystic union of the      
believer with ,christ becomes  something
 much closer than an ethical harmony of 
two mutually  exclusive wills4 ,the     
question which exercises the mystics is 
not  whether such a thing as fusion of  
personalities is possible1 but  whether1
 when the soul has attained union with  
its ,lord1 it is any  longer conscious  
of a life distinct from that of the     
,word4 ,we shall  find that some of the 
best mystics went astray on this point4 
,they  teach a real substitution of the 
,divine for human nature1 thus          
depersonalising man1 and running into   
great danger of a perilous  arrogance4  

,the mistake is a fatal one even from   
the speculative side1  for it is only on
 the analogy of human personality that  
we can  conceive of the perfect         
personality of ,god2 and without        
personality  the universe falls to      
pieces4 ,personality is not only the    
strictest  unity of which we have any   
experience2 it is the fact which creates
  the postulate of unity on which all   
philosophy is based4    ,but it is      
possible to save personality without    
regarding the human  spirit as a monad1 
independent and sharply separated from  
other  spirits4 ,distinction1 not       
separation1 is the mark of personality2 
but  it is separation1 not distinction1 
that forbids union4 ,the error1         
according to the mystic's psychology1 is
 in regarding consciousness of  self as 
the measure of personality4 ,the depths 
of personality are  unfathomable1 as    
,heraclitus already knew2#dh the light  
of  consciousness only plays on the     
surface of the waters4 ,jean ,paul      

,richter is a true exponent of this     
characteristic doctrine when he  says1  
,we attribute far too small dimensions  
to the rich empire of  ourself1 if we   
omit from it the unconscious region     
which resembles a  great dark continent4
 ,the world which our memory peoples    
only  reveals1 in its revolution1 a few 
luminous points at a time1 while its    
immense and teeming mass remains in     
shade4444 ,we daily see the  conscious  
passing into unconsciousness2 and take  
no notice of the bass  accompaniment    
which our fingers continue to play1     
while our attention  is directed to     
fresh musical effects4#di ,so far is it 
from being  true that the self of our   
immediate consciousness is our true     
personality1 that we can only attain    
personality1 as spiritual and  rational 
beings1 by passing beyond the limits    
which mark us off as  separate          
individuals4 ,separate individuality1 we
 may say1 is the bar  which prevents us 
from realising our true privileges as   

persons4#ej  ,and so the mystic         
interprets very literally that maxim of 
our ,lord1 in  which many have found the
 fundamental secret of ,christianity3   
,he that  will save his life--his soul1 
his personality--shall lose it2 and he  
that will lose his life for ,my sake    
shall find it4 ,the false self  must    
die--nay1 must die daily1 for the       
process is gradual1 and there  is no    
limit to it4 ,it is a process of        
infinite expansion--of  realising new   
correspondences1 new sympathies and     
affinities with the  not-ourselves1     
which affinities condition1 and in      
conditioning  constitute1 our true life 
as persons4 ,the paradox is offensive   
only  to formal logic4 ,as a matter of  
experience1 no one1 ,i imagine1 would   
maintain that the man who has           
practically realised1 to the fullest    
possible extent1 the common life which  
he draws from his ,creator1 and  shares 
with all other created beings1--so      
realised it1 ,i mean1 as to  draw from  

that consciousness all the influences   
which can play upon  him from           
outside1--has thereby dissipated and    
lost his personality1  and become less  
of a person than another who has built a
 wall round  his individuality1 and     
lived1 as ,plato says1 the life of a    
shell-fish4#ea    ,we may arrive at the 
same conclusion by analysing that       
unconditioned  sense of duty which we   
call conscience4 ,this moral sense      
cannot be a  fixed code implanted in our
 consciousness1 for then we could not   
explain either the variations of moral  
opinion1 or the feeling of  obligation  
7as distinguished from necessity7 which 
impels us to obey  it4 ,it cannot be the
 product of the existing moral code of  
society1  for then we could not explain 
either the genesis of that public       
opinion or the persistent revolt against
 its limitations which we  find in the  
greatest minds4 ,the only hypothesis    
which explains the  facts is that in    
conscience we feel the motions of the   

universal  ,reason which strives to     
convert the human organism into an organ
 of  itself1 a belief which is expressed
 in religious language by saying  that  
it is ,god who worketh in us both to    
will and to do of ,his good  pleasure4  
,if it be further asked1 ,which is our  
personality1 the shifting moi  7as      
,fnelon calls it71 or the ideal self1   
the end or the developing  states8 we   
must answer that it is both and neither1
 and that the root  of mystical religion
 is in the conviction that it is at once
 both and  neither4#eb ,the moi strives 
to realise its end1 but the end being   
an infinite one1 no process can reach   
it4 ,those who have counted  themselves 
to have apprehended have thereby left   
the mystical faith2  and those who from 
the notion of a progressus ad infinitum 
come to  the pessimistic conclusion1 are
 equally false to the mystical creed1   
which teaches us that we are already    
potentially what ,god intends us  to    
become4 ,the command1 ,be ye perfect1   

is1 like all ,divine commands1  at the  
same time a promise4    ,it is stating  
the same paradox in another form to say 
that we can only  achieve inner unity by
 transcending mere individuality4 ,the  
independent1 impervious self shows its  
unreality by being inwardly  discordant4
 ,it is of no use to enlarge the        
circumference of our life1  if the fixed
 centre is always the ego4 ,there are1  
if ,i may press the  metaphor1 other    
circles with other centres1 in which we 
are vitally  involved4 ,and thus        
sympathy1 or love1 which is sympathy in 
its  highest power1 is the great atoner1
 within as well as without4 ,the  old   
,pythagorean maxim1 that a man must be  
one1#ec is echoed by  all the mystics4  
,he must be one as ,god is one1 and the 
world is one2  for man is a microcosm1 a
 living mirror of the universe4 ,here1  
once  more1 we have a characteristic    
mystical doctrine1 which is perhaps     
worked out most fully in the ,fons ,vit 
of ,avicebron 7,ibn ,gebirol71  a work  

which had great influence in the ,middle
 ,ages4 ,the doctrine  justifies the use
 of analogy in matters of religion1 and 
is of great  importance4 ,one might     
almost dare to say that all conclusions 
about  the world above us which are not 
based on the analogy of our own  mental 
experiences1 are either false or        
meaningless4    ,the idea of man as a   
microcosm was developed in two ways4    
,plotinus  said that every man is       
double1 meaning that one side of his    
soul is  in contact with the            
intelligible1 the other with the        
sensible world4  ,he is careful to      
explain that the doctrine of ,divine    
,immanence does  not mean that ,god     
divides ,himself among the many         
individuals1 but  that they partake of  
,him according to their degrees of      
receptivity1 so  that each one is       
potentially in possession of all the    
fulness of ,god4  ,proclus tries to     
explain how this can be4 ,there are     
three sorts of  ,wholes--the first1     

anterior to the parts2 the second1      
composed of  the parts2 the third1      
knitting into one stuff the parts and   
the  whole4#ed ,in this third sense the 
whole resides in the parts1 as  well as 
the parts in the whole4 ,st4 ,augustine 
states the same doctrine  in clearer    
language4#ee ,it will be seen at once   
how this doctrine  encourages that class
 of ,mysticism which bids us sink into  
the depths  of our own souls in order to
 find ,god4    ,the other development of
 the theory that man is a microcosm is  
not  less important and interesting4 ,it
 is a favourite doctrine of the  mystics
 that man1 in his individual life1      
recapitulates the spiritual  history of 
the race1 in much the same way in which 
embryologists tell  us that the unborn  
infant recapitulates the whole process  
of physical  evolution4 ,it follows that
 the ,incarnation1 the central fact of  
human  history1 must have its analogue  
in the experience of the individual4    
,we shall find that this doctrine of the

 birth of an infant ,christ in  the soul
 is one of immense importance in the    
systems of ,eckhart1  ,tauler1 and our  
,cambridge ,platonists4 ,it is a        
somewhat perilous  doctrine1 as we shall
 see2 but it is one which1 ,i venture to
 think1  has a future as well as a past1
 for the progress of modern science has 
greatly strengthened the analogies on   
which it rests4 ,i shall show in  my    
next ,lecture how strongly ,st4 ,paul   
felt its value4    ,this brief          
introduction will1 ,i hope1 have        
indicated the main  characteristics of  
mystical theology and religion4 ,it is a
 type which  is as repulsive to some    
minds as it is attractive to others4    
,coleridge has said that everyone is    
born a ,platonist or an  ,aristotelian1 
and one might perhaps adapt the epigram 
by saying that  everyone is naturally   
either a mystic or a legalist4 ,the     
classification does1 indeed1 seem to    
correspond to a deep difference  in     
human characters2 it is doubtful whether

 a man could be found  anywhere whom one
 could trust to hold the scales evenly  
between--let  us say--,fnelon and       
,bossuet4 ,the cleavage is much the same
 as that  which causes the eternal      
strife between tradition and            
illumination1  between priest and       
prophet1 which has produced the deepest 
tragedies  in human history1 and will   
probably continue to do so while the    
world  lasts4 ,the legalist--with his   
conception of ,god as the righteous     
,judge  dispensing rewards and          
punishments1 the ,great ,taskmaster in  
whose  vineyard we are ordered to       
labour2 of the ,gospel as the new law1  
and  of the sanction of duty as a       
categorical imperative--will never find 
it easy to sympathise with those whose  
favourite words are ,st4 ,john's        
triad--light1 life1 and love1 and who   
find these the most suitable  names to  
express what they know of the nature of 
,god4 ,but those to  whom the ,fourth   
,gospel is the brightest jewel in the   

,bible1 and who  can enter into the real
 spirit of ,st4 ,paul's teaching1 will1 
,i hope1  be able to take some interest 
in the historical development of ideas  
which in their ,christian form are      
certainly built upon those parts of  the
 ,new ,testament4    ,,footnotes3       
,footnote #b3 ,see ,appendix ,a for     
definitions of ,mysticism and ,mystical 
,theology4    ,footnote #c3 ,see        
,appendix ,b for a discussion of the    
influence of the  ,greek mysteries upon 
,christian ,mysticism4    ,footnote #d3 
,tholuck accepts the former derivation  
7cf4 ,suidas1  ,greek3 mystria eklthsan 
para to tous akouontas myein to stoma   
kai mdeni tauta exgeisthai72 ,petersen1 
the latter4 ,there is no  doubt that    
,greek3 mysis was opposed to ,greek3    
epopteia1 and in  this sense denoted    
incomplete initiation2 but it was also  
made to  include the whole process4 ,the
 prevailing use of the adjective ,greek3
  mystikos is of something seen through 
a glass darkly1 some  knowledge         

purposely wrapped up in symbols4        
,footnote #e3 ,so ,hesychius says1      
,greek3 ,mystai1 apo my1 myontes gar    
tas aisthseis kai ex tn sarkikn         
phrontidn genomenoi1 out tas  theias    
analampseis edechonto4 ,plotinus and    
,proclus both use ,greek3  my of the    
closed eye of rapt contemplation4       
,footnote #f3 ,i cannot agree with      
,lasson 7in his book on ,meister        
,eckhart7 that the connexion with the   
,greek mysteries throws no light  on the
 subject4 ,no writer had more influence 
upon the growth of  ,mysticism in the   
,church than ,dionysius the ,areopagite1
 whose main  object is to present       
,christianity in the light of a         
,platonic  mysteriosophy4 ,the same     
purpose is evident in ,clement1 and in  
other  ,christian ,platonists between   
,clement and ,dionysius4 ,see ,appendix 
,b4    ,footnote #g3 ,it should also be 
borne in mind that every historical     
example of a mystical movement may be   
expected to exhibit  characteristics    

which are determined by the particular  
forms of  religious deadness in         
opposition to which it arises4 ,i think 
that it  is generally easy to separate  
these secondary1 accidental             
characteristics from those which are    
primary and integral1 and that we  shall
 then find that the underlying          
substance1 which may be regarded  as the
 essence of ,mysticism as a type of     
religion1 is strikingly  uniform4       
,footnote #h3 ,the analogy used by      
,plotinus 7,ennead i4 #f4 #i7 was often 
quoted and imitated3 ,even as the eye   
could not behold the sun unless  it were
 itself sunlike1 so neither could the   
soul behold ,god if it  were not        
,godlike4 ,lotze 7,microcosmus1 and cf4 
,metaphysics1 #ast  ed41 p4 #aji7 falls 
foul of ,plotinus for this argument4    
,the reality of  the external world is  
utterly severed from our senses4 ,it is 
vain to  call the eye sunlike1 as if it 
needed a special occult power to copy   
what it has itself produced3 fruitless  

are all mystic efforts to  restore to   
the intuitions of sense1 by means of a  
secret identity of  mind with things1 a 
reality outside ourselves4 ,whether the 
subjective  idealism of this sentence is
 consistent with the subsequent dogmatic
  assertion that nature is animated     
throughout1 it is not my province  to   
determine4 ,the latter doctrine is held 
by a large school of  mystics3 the      
acosmistic tendency of the former has   
had only too much  attraction for       
mystics of another school4    ,footnote 
#i3 ,this distinction is drawn by       
,origen1 and accepted by all  the       
mystical writers4    ,footnote #aj3     
,faith goes so closely hand in hand with
 love that the  mystics seldom try to   
separate them1 and indeed they need not 
be  separated4 ,william ,law's account  
of their operation is characteristic4   
,when the seed of the new birth1 called 
the inward man1 has faith  awakened in  
it1 its faith is not a notion1 but a    
real strong essential  hunger1 an       

attracting or magnetic desire of        
,christ1 which as it  proceeds from a   
seed of the ,divine nature in us1 so it 
attracts and  unites with its like3 it  
lays hold on ,christ1 puts on the       
,divine  nature1 and in a living and    
real manner grows powerful over all our 
sins1 and effectually works out our     
salvation 7,grounds and ,reasons  of    
,christian ,regeneration74    ,footnote 
#aa3 ,r4,l4 ,nettleship1 ,remains4      
,footnote #ab3 ,nescio si a quoquam     
homine quartus 7gradus7 in hac vita     
perfecte apprehenditur1 ut se scilicet  
diligat homo tantum propter  ,deum4     
,asserant hoc si qui experti sunt3 mihi 
7fateor7 impossibile  videtur 7,de      
diligendo ,deo1 xv42 ,epist4 xi4 #h74   
,footnote #ac3 ,from a sermon by ,smith1
 the ,cambridge ,platonist4  ,plotinus1 
too1 says well1 ,greek3 ei tis allo     
eidos dons peri ton  spoudaion bion     
ztei1 ou ton spoudaion bion ztei        
7,ennead i4 #d4  #ab74    ,footnote #ad3
 ,from ,smith's sermons4    ,footnote   

#ae3 ,pindar's ,greek3 genoio oios essi 
mathn is a fine  mystical maxim4 7,pyth4
 #b4 #aca47    ,footnote #af3 ,strictly1
 the unitive road 7via7 leads to the    
contemplative life 7vita74 ,cf4         
,benedict1 xiv41 ,de ,servorum ,dei     
beatific41 iii4 #bf1 ,perfecta hc       
mystica unio reperitur regulariter  in  
perfecto contemplativo qui in vita      
purgativa et illuminativa1 id  est      
meditativa1 et contemplativa diu        
versatus1 ex speciali ,dei favore  ad   
infusam contemplativam evectus est4 ,on 
the three ways1 ,suarez  says1          
,distinguere solent mystici tres vias1  
purgativam1  illuminativam1 et unitivam4
 ,molinos was quite a heterodox mystic  
in  teaching that there is but a unica  
via1 scilicet interna1 and this         
proposition was condemned by a ,bull of 
,innocent ,,xi4    ,footnote #ag3 ,in   
,plotinus the civic virtues precede the 
cathartic2  but they are not1 as with   
some perverse mystics1 considered to lie
  outside the path of ascent4           

,footnote #ah3 ,tauler is careful to put
 social service on its true  basis4 ,one
 can spin1 he says1 another can make    
shoes2 and all these  are gifts of the  
,holy ,ghost4 ,i tell you1 if ,i were   
not a priest1 ,i  should esteem it a    
great gift that ,i was able to make     
shoes1 and would  try to make them so   
well as to be a pattern to all4 ,in a   
later  ,lecture ,i shall revert to the  
charge of indolent neglect of duties1 so
  often preferred against the mystics4  
,footnote #ai3 ,r4,l4 ,nettleship1      
,remains4    ,footnote #bj3 ,in a ,roman
 ,catholic manual ,i find3 ,non raro sub
 nomine  theologi mystic intelligitur   
etiam ascesis1 sed immerito4 ,nam       
ascesis consuetas tantum et tritas      
perfectionis semitas ostendit1  mystica 
autem adhuc excellentiorem viam         
demonstrat4 ,this is to  identify       
mystical theology with the higher rungs 
of the ladder4 ,it  has been used in    
this curious manner from the ,middle    
,ages4 ,ribet says1  ,la mystique1 comme

 science spciale1 fait partie de la     
thologie  asctique2 that part1 namely1  
dans lequel l'homme est rduit  la       
passivit par l'action souveraine de     
,dieu4 ,l'ascse is defined as           
l'ascension de l'me vers ,dieu4         
,footnote #ba3 ,cf4 ,professor ,w4      
,wallace's collected ,lectures and      
,essays1 p4 #bgf4    ,footnote #bb3 ,see
 ,appendix ,c on the ,doctrine of       
,deification4    ,footnote #bc3 ,so     
,fnelon1 after asserting the truth of   
mystical  transformation1 adds3 ,it is  
false to say that transformation is a   
deification of the real and natural     
soul1 or a hypostatic union1 or an      
unalterable conformity with ,god4       
,footnote #bd3 ,life of ,tennyson1 vol4 
i4 p4 #cbj4 ,the curious  experience1   
that the repetition of his own name     
induced a kind of  trance1 is used by   
the poet in his beautiful mystical poem1
 ,the  ,ancient ,sage4 ,it would1       
indeed1 have been equally easy to       
illustrate  this topic from             

,wordsworth's prose and ,tennyson's     
poetry4    ,footnote #be3 ,see the very 
interesting note in ,harnack1 ,history  
of  ,dogma1 vol4 i4 p4 #ec4    ,footnote
 #bf3 ,the ,abb ,migne says truly1 ,ceux
 qui traitent les  mystiques de         
visionnaires seraient fort tonns de voir
 quel peu de  cas ils font des visions  
en elles-mmes4 ,and ,st4 ,bonaventura   
says of  visions1 ,nec faciunt sanctum  
nec ostendunt3 alioquin ,balaam sanctus 
esset1 et asina1 qu vidit ,angelum4     
,footnote #bg3 ,the following passage   
from ,st4 ,francis de ,sales is much  to
 the same effect as those referred to in
 the text3 ,les philosophes  mesmes ont 
recogneu certaines espces d'extases     
naturelles faictes par  la vhmente      
application de l'esprit  la considration
 des choses  releves4 ,une marque de la 
bonne et sainete extase est qu'elle ne  
se  prend ny attache jamais tant        
l'entendement qu' la volont1 laquelle   
elle esmeut1 eschauffe1 et remplit d'une
 puissante affection envers  ,dieu2 de  

manire que si l'extase est plus belle   
que bonne1 plus  lumineuse qu'affective1
 elle est grandement douteuse et digne  
de  soupon4    ,footnote #bh3 ,some of  
my readers may find satisfaction in the 
following passage of ,jeremy ,taylor3   
,indeed1 when persons have long  been   
softened with the continual droppings of
 religion1 and their  spirits made      
timorous and apt for impression by the  
assiduity of  prayer1 and the continual 
dyings of mortification--the fancy1     
which is  a very great instrument of    
devotion1 is kept continually warm1 and 
in  a disposition and aptitude to take  
fire1 and to flame out in great         
ascents2 and when they suffer           
transportations beyond the burdens and  
support of reason1 they suffer they know
 not what1 and call it what  they       
please4 ,henry ,more1 too1 says that    
those who would make their  whole nature
 desolate of all animal figurations     
whatever1 find only  a waste1 silent    
solitude1 and one uniform parchedness   

and vacuity4  ,and yet1 while a man     
fancies himself thus wholly ,divine1 he 
is not  aware how he is even then held  
down by his animal nature2 and that it  
is nothing but the stillness and        
fixedness of melancholy that thus       
abuses him1 instead of the true ,divine 
principle4    ,footnote #bi3 ,plato1    
,phdrus1 #bdd1 #bde2 ,ion1 #ecd4        
,footnote #cj3 ,lacordaire1 ,confrences1
 xxxvii4    ,footnote #ca3 ,compare1    
too1 the vigorous words of ,henry ,more1
 the most  mystical of the group3 ,he   
that misbelieves and lays aside clear   
and  cautious reason in things that fall
 under the discussion of reason1  upon  
the pretence of hankering after some    
higher principle 7which1 a  thousand to 
one1 proves but the infatuation of      
melancholy1 and a  superstitious        
hallucination71 is as ridiculous as if  
he would not use  his natural eyes about
 their proper object till the presence  
of some  supernatural light1 or till he 
had got a pair of spectacles made of    

the crystalline heaven1 or of the clum  
empyreum1 to hang upon his  nose for him
 to look through4    ,footnote #cb3     
,there is1 of course1 a sense in which  
any strong feeling  lifts us above      
reason4 ,but this is using reason in a  
loose  manner4    ,footnote #cc3 ,greek3
 ho nous basileus1 says ,plotinus4      
,footnote #cd3 ,roman ,catholic writers 
can assert that la plupart des          
contemplatifs taient dpourvus de toute  
culture littraire4 ,but  their notion of
 contemplation is the passive reception 
of  supernatural favours1--on which     
subject more will be said in  ,lectures 
,,iv4 and ,,vii4    ,footnote #ce3 ,die 
,mystik ist formlose ,speculation1      
,noack1  ,christliche ,mystik1 p4 #ah4  
,footnote #cf3 ,the ,atomists1 from     
,epicurus downwards1 have been          
especially odious to the mystics4       
,footnote #cg3 ,the theory that time is 
real1 but not space1 leads us  into     
grave difficulties4 ,it is the root of  
the least satisfactory kind  of         

evolutionary optimism1 which forgets1 in
 the first place1 that the  idea of     
perpetual progress in time is hopelessly
 at variance with what  we know of the  
destiny of the world2 and1 in the second
 place1 that a  mere progressus is      
meaningless4 ,every created thing has   
its fixed  goal in the realisation of   
the idea which was immanent in it from  
the  first4    ,footnote #ch3 ,origen in
 ,matth41 ,com4 ,series1 #ajj2 ,contra  
,celsum1  ii4 #fd4 ,referred to by      
,bigg1 ,christian ,platonists of        
,alexandria1 p4  #aia4    ,footnote #ci3
 ,paradiso viii4 #ac--      ,io non     
m'accorsi del salire in ella2     ,ma   
d'esserv' entro mi fece assai fede      
,la donna mia ch'io vidi far pi bella4  
,footnote #dj3 ,deo nihil opponitur1    
says ,erigena4    ,footnote #da3        
,compare ,bradley1 ,appearance and      
,reality1 where it is  shown that the   
essential attributes of ,reality are    
harmony and  inclusiveness4    ,footnote
 #db3 ,i4e4 necessary or expedient4     

,footnote #dc3 ,life1 vol4 i4 p4 #ee4   
,footnote #dd3 ,j4 ,smith1 ,select      
,discourses1 v4 ,so ,bernard says 7,de  
,consid4 v4 ,i71 quid opus est scalis   
tenenti iam solium8    ,footnote #de3   
,aug4 ,de ,libero ,arbitrio1 ii4 #af1   
#ag4    ,footnote #df3 ,troilus and     
,cressida1 ,act ,,iii4 ,scene #c4       
,footnote #dg3 ,this idea of the world  
as a living being is found in           
,plotinus3 and ,origen definitely       
teaches that as our body1 while         
consisting of many members1 is yet an   
organism which is held together  by one 
soul1 so the universe is to be thought  
of as an immense living  being which is 
upheld by the power and the ,word of    
,god4 ,he also holds  that the sun and  
stars are spiritual beings4 ,st4        
,augustine1 too 7,de  ,civitate ,dei1   
iv4 #ab1 vii4 #e71 regards the universe 
as a living  organism2 and the doctrine 
reappears much later in ,giordano       
,bruno4  ,according to this theory1 we  
are subsidiary members of an            

all-embracing organism1 and there may be
 intermediate will-centres  between our 
own and that of the universal ,ego4     
,among modern systems1  that of ,fechner
 is the one which seems to be most in   
accordance with  these speculations4 ,he
 views life under the figure of a number
 of  concentric circles of              
consciousness1 within an all-embracing  
circle  which represents the            
consciousness of ,god4    ,footnote #dh3
 ,greek3 psuchs peirata ouk an exeuroio 
pasan  epiporeuomenos hodon out bathyn  
logon echei1 ,frag4 #ga4    ,footnote   
#di3 ,j4,p4 ,richter1 ,selina4 ,compare1
 too1 ,lotze1  ,microcosmus3 ,within us 
lurks a world whose form we imperfectly 
apprehend1 and whose working1 when in   
particular phases it comes under  our   
notice1 surprises us with foreshadowings
 of unknown depths in our  being4       
,footnote #ej3 ,as ,lotze says1 ,the    
finite being does not contain in  itself
 the conditions of its own existence4   
,it must struggle to  attain to complete

 personality2 or rather1 since          
personality belongs  unconditionally    
only to ,god1 to such a measure of      
personality as is  allotted to us4      
,eternal life is nothing than the       
attainment of full  personality1 a      
conscious existence in ,god4            
,footnote #ea3 ,j4,a4 ,picton 7,the     
,mystery of ,matter1 p4 #cef7 puts the  
matter well3 ,mysticism consists in the 
spiritual realisation of a  grander and 
a boundless unity1 that humbles all     
self-assertion by  dissolving it in a   
wider glory4 ,it does not follow that   
the sense of  individuality is          
necessarily weakened4 ,but habitual     
contemplation of  the ,divine unity     
impresses men with the feeling that     
individuality is  phenomenal only4      
,hence the paradox of ,mysticism4 ,for  
apart from this  phenomenal             
individuality1 we should not know our   
own nothingness1 and  personal life is  
good only through the bliss of being    
lost in ,god4  ,rather1 ,i should say1  

through the bliss of finding our true   
life1  which is hid with ,christ in     
,god4 ,true religious worship doth not  
consist in the acknowledgment of a      
greatness which is estimated by         
comparison1 but rather in the sense of a
 ,being who surpasses all  comparison1  
because ,he gives to phenomenal         
existences the only reality  they can   
know4 ,hence the deepest religious      
feeling necessarily shrinks  from       
thinking of ,god as a kind of gigantic  
,self amidst a host of minor  selves4   
,the very thought of such a thing is a  
mockery of the  profoundest devotion4   
,footnote #eb3 ,see1 further1 ,appendix 
,c1 pp4 #cff-g4    ,footnote #ec3       
,greek3 hena genesthai ton anthrpon dei3
 ,pythagoras  quoted by ,clement4 ,cf4  
,plotinus1 ,enn4 vi4 #i4 ,i1 ,greek3 kai
 hugieia  de1 hotan eis hen syntachth to
 sma1 kai kallos hotan h tou henos ta   
moria katasch physis1 kai aret de psychs
 hotan eis hen kai eis mian  homologian 
henth4    ,footnote #ed3 ,proclus1 in   

,tim4 #hc4 #bfe4    ,footnote #ee3 ,aug4
 ,ep4 #ahg4 #ai3 ,deus totus adesse     
rebus omnibus  potest1 et singulis      
totus1 quamvis in quibus habitat habeant
 eum pro  su capacitatis diversitate1   
alii amplius1 alii minus4 ,more clearly 
still1 ,bonaventura1 ,itin4 ment4 ad    
,deum1 #e3 ,totum intra omnia1 et  totum
 extra3 ac per hoc est sphra            
intelligibilis1 cuius centrum est       
ubique1 et circumferentia nusquam4      
,,lecture ,,ii      ,greek3 ,to eu zn   
edidaxen epiphaneis s didaskalos1 hina  
to aei  zn husteron s theos chorgs4     
,,clement ,,of ,,alexandria4            
,but souls that of ,his own good life   
partake      ,he loves as ,his own self3
 dear as ,his eye      ,they are to     
,him2 ,he'll never them forsake3        
,when they shall die1 then ,god ,himself
 shall die3      ,they live1 they live  
in blest eternity4    ,,henry ,,more4   
,amor ,patris ,filiique1      ,par      
amborum1 et utrique        ,compar et   
consimilis3      ,cuncta reples1 cuncta 

foves1      ,astra regis1 coelum moves1 
,permanens immobilis4        ,te docente
 nil obscurum1      ,te prsente nil     
impurum2        ,sub tua prsentia       
,gloriatur mens iucunda2      ,per te   
lta1 per te munda        ,gaudet        
conscientia4        ,consolator et      
fundator1      ,habitator et amator     
,cordium humilium2      ,pelle mala1    
terge sordes1      ,et discordes fac    
concordes1        ,et affer prsidium4   
,,adam ,,of ,,st4 ,,victor        ,,the 
,,mystical ,,element ,,in ,,the ,,bible 
,that ,christ may dwell in your hearts  
by faith2 to the end that ye1  being    
rooted and grounded in love1 may be     
strong to apprehend with all  the saints
 what is the breadth and length and     
height and depth1 and to  know the love 
of ,christ which passeth knowledge1 that
 ye may be filled  with all the fulness 
of ,god4--,,eph4 iii4 #ag-ai4      ,the 
task which now lies before me is to     
consider how far that type of  religion 
and religious philosophy1 which ,i tried

 in my last ,lecture to  depict in      
outline1 is represented in and          
sanctioned by ,holy ,scripture4  ,i     
shall devote most of my time to the ,new
 ,testament1 for we shall not  find very
 much to help us in the ,old4 ,the      
,jewish mind and character1  in spite of
 its deeply religious bent1 was alien to
 ,mysticism4 ,in the  first place1 the  
religion of ,israel1 passing from what  
has been called  ,henotheism--the       
worship of a national ,god--to true     
,monotheism1 always  maintained a rigid 
notion of individuality1 both human and 
,divine4  ,even prophecy1 which is      
mystical in its essence1 was in the     
early  period conceived as unmystically 
as possible1 ,balaam is merely a        
mouthpiece of ,god2 his message is      
external to his personality1 which      
remains antagonistic to it4 ,and1       
secondly1 the ,jewish doctrine of  ideas
 was different from the ,platonic4 ,the 
,jew believed that the  world1 and the  
whole course of history1 existed from   

all eternity in  the mind of ,god1 but  
as an unrealised purpose1 which was     
actualised by  degrees as the scroll of 
events was unfurled4 ,there was no      
notion that  the visible was in any way 
inferior to the invisible1 or lacking in
  reality4 ,even in its later phases1   
after it had been partially             
,hellenised1 ,jewish idealism tended to 
crystallise as ,chiliasm1 or in         
,apocalypses1 and not1 like ,platonism1 
in the dream of a perfect  world        
existing yonder4 ,in fact1 the ,jewish  
view of the external  world was mainly  
that of nave realism1 but strongly      
pervaded by  belief in an ,almighty     
,king and ,judge4 ,moreover1 the ,jew   
had little  sense of the ,divine in     
nature3 it was the power of ,god over   
nature  which he was jealous to         
maintain4 ,the majesty of the elemental 
forces  was extolled in order to magnify
 the greater power of ,him who made and 
could unmake them1 and whom the heaven  
of heavens cannot contain4 ,the         

weakness and insignificance of man1 as  
contrasted with the tremendous  power of
 ,god1 is the reflection which the      
contemplation of nature  generally      
produced in his mind4 ,how can a man be 
just with ,god8 asks  ,job2 which       
removeth the mountains1 and they know it
 not2 when ,he  overturneth them in ,his
 anger2 which shaketh the earth out of  
her  place1 and the pillars thereof     
tremble2 which commandeth the sun1 and  
it riseth not1 and sealeth up the       
stars4444 ,he is not a man1 as ,i am1   
that ,i should answer ,him1 that we     
should come together in judgment4       
,there is no daysman betwixt us1 that   
might lay his hand upon us both4  ,nor  
does the answer that came to ,job out of
 the whirlwind give any  hint of a      
daysman betwixt man and ,god1 but only  
enlarges on the  presumption of man's   
wishing to understand the counsels of   
the  ,almighty4 ,absolute submission to 
a law which is entirely outside of us   
and beyond our comprehension1 is the    

final lesson of the book4#ef ,the       
nation exhibited the merits and defects 
of this type4 ,on the one hand1  it     
showed a deep sense of the supremacy of 
the moral law1 and of  personal         
responsibility2 a stubborn independence 
and faith in its  mission2 and a strong 
national spirit1 combined with vigorous 
individuality2 but with these virtues   
went a tendency to externalise  both    
religion and the ideal of well-being3   
the former became a matter  of forms and
 ceremonies2 the latter1 of worldly     
possessions4 ,it was  only after the    
collapse of the national polity that    
these ideals  became transmuted and     
spiritualised4 ,those disasters1 which  
at first  seemed to indicate a hopeless 
estrangement between ,god and ,his      
people1  were the means of a deeper     
reconciliation4 ,we can trace the       
process1  from the old proverb that to  
see ,god is death1 down to that         
remarkable passage in ,jeremiah where   
the approaching advent1 or rather       

restoration1 of spiritual religion1 is  
announced with all the  solemnity due to
 so glorious a message4 ,behold1 the    
days come1 saith  the ,lord1 that ,i    
will make a new covenant with the house 
of ,israel1  and with the house of      
,judah4444 ,after those days1 saith the 
,lord1 ,i  will put ,my law in their    
inward parts1 and write it in their     
hearts2  and ,i will be their ,god1 and 
they shall be ,my people4 ,and they     
shall  teach no more every man his      
neighbour1 and every man his brother1   
saying1 ,know the ,lord3 for they shall 
all know ,me1 from the least of  them   
unto the greatest of them1 saith the    
,lord4#eg ,that this  knowledge of ,god1
 and the assurance of blessedness which 
it brings1 is  the reward of            
righteousness and purity1 is the chief  
message of the  great prophets and      
psalmists4 ,who among us shall dwell    
with the  devouring fire8 ,who among us 
shall dwell with everlasting burnings8  
,he  that walketh righteously1 and      

speaketh uprightly2 he that despiseth   
the gain of oppressions1 that shaketh   
his hands from holding of  bribes1 that 
stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood1
 and shutteth his  eyes from seeing     
evil1 he shall dwell on high2 his place 
of defence  shall be the munitions of   
rocks3 bread shall be given unto him2   
his  waters shall be sure4 ,thine eyes  
shall see the ,king in ,his beauty2     
they shall behold the land that is very 
far off4#eh    ,this passage of ,isaiah 
bears a very close resemblance to the   
#aeth and  #bdth ,psalms2 and there are 
many other psalms which have been dear  
to  ,christian mystics4 ,in some of them
 we find the amoris  desiderium--the    
thirst of the soul for ,god--which is   
the  characteristic note of mystical    
devotion2 in others1 that longing for  a
 safe refuge from the provoking of all  
men and the strife of tongues1  which   
drove so many saints into the cloister4 
,many a solitary ascetic  has prayed in 
the words of the #gcrd ,psalm3 ,whom    

have ,i in heaven but  ,thee8 and there 
is none upon earth that ,i desire beside
 ,thee4 ,my flesh  and my heart faileth3
 but ,god is the strength of my heart1  
and my  portion for ever4 ,and verses   
like1 ,i will hearken what the ,lord    
,god  will say concerning me1 have been 
only too attractive to quietists4       
,other familiar verses will occur to    
most of us4 ,i will only add that  the  
warm faith and love which inspired these
 psalms is made more  precious by the   
reverence for law which is part of the  
older  inheritance of the ,israelites4  
,there are many1 ,i fear1 to whom the   
mystical element in the ,old  ,testament
 will suggest only the ,cabbalistic lore
 of types and  allegories which has been
 applied to all the canonical books1 and
 with  especial persistency and boldness
 to the ,song of ,solomon4 ,i shall give
  my opinion upon this class of         
allegorism in the seventh ,lecture of   
this course1 which will deal with       
symbolism as a branch of ,mysticism4    

,it would be impossible to treat of it  
here without anticipating my  discussion
 of a principle which has a much wider  
bearing than as a  method of biblical   
exegesis4 ,as to the ,song of ,solomon1 
its influence  upon ,christian          
,mysticism has been simply deplorable4  
,a graceful  romance in honour of true  
love was distorted into a precedent and 
sanction for giving way to hysterical   
emotions1 in which sexual  imagery was  
freely used to symbolise the relation   
between the soul and  its ,lord4 ,such  
aberrations are as alien to sane        
,mysticism as they are  to sane         
exegesis4#ei    ,in ,jewish writings of 
a later period1 composed under ,greek   
influence1  we find plenty of ,platonism
 ready to pass into ,mysticism4 ,but the
  ,wisdom of ,solomon does not fall     
within our subject1 and what is         
necessary to be said about ,philo and   
,alexandria will be said in the  next   
,lecture4 ,in the ,new ,testament1 it   
will be convenient to say a  very few   

words on the ,synoptic ,gospels first1  
and afterwards to  consider ,st4 ,john  
and ,st4 ,paul1 where we shall find most
 of our  material4    ,the first three  
,gospels are not written in the         
religious dialect of  ,mysticism4 ,it is
 all the more important to notice that  
the fundamental  doctrines on which the 
system 7if we may call it a system7     
rests1 are  all found in them4 ,the     
vision of ,god is promised in the       
,sermon on the  ,mount1 and promised    
only to those who are pure in heart4    
,the  indwelling presence of ,christ1 or
 of the ,holy ,spirit1 is taught in     
several places2 for instance--,the      
kingdom of ,god is within you2  ,where  
two or three are gathered together in   
,my name1 there am ,i in  the midst of  
them2 ,lo1 ,i am with you alway1 even to
 the end of the  world4 ,the unity of   
,christ and ,his members is implied by  
the words1  ,inasmuch as ye have done it
 to one of the least of these ,my       
brethren1  ye have done it unto ,me4    

,lastly1 the great law of the moral     
world1--the law of gain through loss1 of
 life through death1--which is  the     
corner-stone of mystical 7and1 many have
 said1 of ,christian7  ethics1 is found 
in the ,synoptists as well as in ,st4   
,john4 ,whosoever  shall seek to gain   
his life 7or soul7 shall lose it2 but   
whosoever  shall lose his life 7or soul7
 shall preserve it4    ,the ,gospel of  
,st4 ,john--the spiritual ,gospel1 as   
,clement already  calls it--is the      
charter of ,christian ,mysticism4       
,indeed1 ,christian  ,mysticism1 as ,i  
understand it1 might almost be called   
,johannine  ,christianity2 if it were   
not better to say that a ,johannine     
,christianity is the ideal which the    
,christian mystic sets before  himself4 
,for we cannot but feel that there are  
deeper truths in this  wonderful ,gospel
 than have yet become part of the       
religious  consciousness of mankind4    
,perhaps1 as ,origen says1 no one can   
fully  understand it who has not1 like  

its author1 lain upon the breast of     
,jesus4 ,we are on holy ground when we  
are dealing with ,st4 ,john's  ,gospel1 
and must step in fear and reverence4    
,but though the breadth  and depth and  
height of those sublime discourses are  
for those only  who can mount up with   
wings as eagles to the summits of the   
spiritual  life1 so simple is the       
language and so large its scope1 that   
even the  wayfaring men1 though fools1  
can hardly altogether err therein4      
,let us consider briefly1 first1 what we
 learn from this ,gospel about  the     
nature of ,god1 and then its teaching   
upon human salvation4    ,there are     
three notable expressions about ,god the
 ,father in the ,gospel  and ,first     
,epistle of ,st4 ,john3 ,god is ,love2  
,god is ,light2 and ,god  is ,spirit4   
,the form of the sentences teaches us   
that these three  qualities belong so   
intimately to the nature of ,god that   
they usher us  into ,his immediate      
presence4 ,we need not try to get behind

 them1 or to  rise above them into some 
more nebulous region in our search for  
the  ,absolute4 ,love1 ,light1 and      
,spirit are for us names of ,god        
,himself4 ,and  observe that ,st4 ,john 
does not1 in applying these             
semi-abstract words  to ,god1 attenuate 
in the slightest degree ,his            
personality4 ,god is  ,love1 but ,he    
also exercises love4 ,god so loved the  
world4 ,and ,he is  not only the white  
radiance that for ever shines2 ,he can  
draw us  to ,himself1 and send ,his ,son
 to bring us back to ,him4    ,the word 
,logos does not occur in any of the     
discourses4 ,the  identification of     
,christ with the ,word or ,reason of the
  philosophers is ,st4 ,john's own4 ,but
 the statements in the prologue are  all
 confirmed by our ,lord's own words as  
reported by the evangelist4  ,these fall
 under two heads1 those which deal with 
the relation of  ,christ to the ,father1
 and those which deal with ,his relation
 to the  world4 ,the pre-existence of   

,christ in glory at the right hand of   
,god  is proved by several declarations3
 ,what if ye shall see the ,son of  ,man
 ascending where ,he was before8 ,and   
now1 ,o ,father1 glorify ,me  with      
,thine own self1 with the glory which ,i
 had with ,thee before the  world was4  
,his exaltation above time is shown by  
the solemn  statement1 ,before ,abraham 
was1 ,i am4 ,and with regard to the     
world1  we find in ,st4 ,john the very  
important doctrine1 which has never made
  its way into popular theology1 that   
the ,word is not merely the  ,instrument
 in the original creation1--by 7or      
through7 ,him all things  were          
made1--but the central ,life1 the ,being
 in whom life existed and  exists as an 
indestructible attribute1 an underived  
prerogative1#fj  the ,mind or ,wisdom   
who upholds and animates the universe   
without being  lost in it4 ,this        
doctrine1 which is implied in other     
parts of ,st4  ,john1 seems to be stated
 explicitly in the prologue1 though the 

words  have been otherwise interpreted4 
,that which has come into existence1    
says ,st4 ,john1 was in ,him life       
7,greek3 ho gegonen1 en aut z  n47 ,that
 is to say1 the ,word is the timeless   
,life1 of which the  temporal world is a
 manifestation4 ,this doctrine was      
taught by many of  the ,greek ,fathers1 
as well as by ,scotus ,erigena and other
 speculative  mystics4 ,even if1 with   
the school of ,antioch and most of the  
later  commentators1 we transfer the    
words ,greek3 ho gegonen to the         
preceding sentence1 the doctrine that   
,christ is the life as well as  the     
light of the world can be proved from   
,st4 ,john4#fa ,the world is  the poem  
of the ,word to the glory of the        
,father3 in it1 and by means  of it1 ,he
 displays in time all the riches which  
,god has eternally put  within ,him4    
,in ,st4 ,john1 as in mystical theology 
generally1 the ,incarnation1  rather    
than the ,cross1 is the central fact of 
,christianity4 ,the ,word  was made     

flesh1 and tabernacled among us1 is for 
him the supreme  dogma4 ,and it follows 
necessarily from the ,logos doctrine1   
that the  ,incarnation1 and all that    
followed it1 is regarded primarily as a 
revelation of life and light and truth4 
,that eternal life1 which  was with the 
,father1 has been manifested unto us1 is
 part of the  opening sentence of the   
first ,epistle4#fb ,this is the message 
which  we have heard of ,him and        
announce unto you1 that ,god is ,light1 
and in  ,him is no darkness at all4 ,in 
coming into the world1 ,christ came     
unto ,his own4 ,he had1 in a sense1 only
 to show to them what was there         
already3 ,esaias1 long before1 had seen 
,his glory1 and spoken of ,him4  ,the   
mysterious estrangement1 which had laid 
the world under the  dominion of the    
,prince of darkness1 had obscured but   
not quenched the  light which lighteth  
every man--the inalienable prerogative  
of all  who derive their being from the 
,sun of ,righteousness4 ,this central   

,light is ,christ1 and ,christ only4 ,he
 alone is the ,way1 the ,truth1 the     
,life1 the ,door1 the ,living ,bread1   
and the ,true ,vine4 ,he is at once the 
,revealer and the ,revealed1 the ,guide 
and the ,way1 the ,enlightener and  the 
,light4 ,no man cometh unto the ,father 
but by ,him4    ,the teaching of this   
,gospel on the office of the ,holy      
,spirit claims  special attention in our
 present inquiry4 ,the revelation of    
,god in  ,christ was complete3 there can
 be no question that ,st4 ,john claims  
for  ,christianity the position of the  
one eternally true revelation4 ,but     
without the gradual illumination of the 
,spirit it is partly  unintelligible and
 partly unobserved4#fc ,the purpose of  
the  ,incarnation was to reveal ,god the
 ,father3 ,he that hath seen ,me hath   
seen the ,father4 ,in these momentous   
words 7it has been said7 the  idea of   
,god receives an abiding embodiment1 and
 the ,father is brought  for ever within
 the reach of intelligent devotion4#fd  

,the purpose of  the mission of the     
,comforter is to reveal the ,son4 ,he   
takes the  place of the ascended ,christ
 on earth as a living and active        
principle  in the hearts of ,christians4
 ,his office it is to bring to          
remembrance  the teachings of ,christ1  
and to help mankind gradually to        
understand  them4 ,there were also many 
things1 our ,lord said1 which could not 
be  said at the time to ,his disciples1 
who were unable to bear them4 ,these    
were left to be communicated to future  
generations by the ,holy ,spirit4  ,the 
doctrine of development had never before
 received so clear an  expression2 and  
few could venture to record it so       
clearly as ,st4 ,john1  who could not be
 suspected of contemplating a time when 
the teachings  of the human ,christ     
might be superseded4    ,let us now turn
 to the human side of salvation1 and    
trace the upward  path of the ,christian
 life as presented to us in this        
,gospel4 ,first1  then1 we have the     

doctrine of the new birth3 ,except a man
 be born  anew 7or1 from above71 he     
cannot see the kingdom of ,god4 ,this is
  further explained as a being born of  
water and of the ,spirit--words  which  
are probably meant to remind us of the  
birth of the world-order  out of chaos  
as described in ,genesis1 and also to   
suggest the two  ideas of purification  
and life4 7,baptism1 as a symbol of     
purification1  was1 of course1 already  
familiar to those who first heard the   
words47  ,then we have a doctrine of    
faith which is deeper than that of the  
,synoptists4 ,the very expression       
,greek3 pisteuein eis1 to believe  on1  
common in ,st4 ,john and rare elsewhere1
 shows that the word is  taking a new   
meaning4 ,faith1 in ,st4 ,john1 is no   
longer regarded  chiefly as a condition 
of supernatural favours2 or1 rather1 the
  mountains which it can remove are no  
material obstructions4 ,it is an  act of
 the whole personality1 a               
self-dedication to ,christ4 ,it must    

precede knowledge3 ,if any man willeth  
to do ,his will1 he shall know  of the  
teaching1 is the promise4 ,it is the    
credo ut intelligam of  later theology4 
,the objection has been raised that ,st4
 ,john's teaching  about faith moves in 
a vicious circle4 ,his appeal is to the 
inward  witness2 and those who cannot   
hear this inward witness are informed   
that they must first believe1 which is  
just what they can find no  reason for  
doing4 ,but this criticism misses       
altogether the drift of  ,st4 ,john's   
teaching4 ,faith1 for him1 is not the   
acceptance of a  proposition upon       
evidence2 still less is it the          
acceptance of a  proposition in the     
teeth of evidence4 ,it is1 in the first 
instance1  the resolution to stand or   
fall by the noblest hypothesis2 that is 
7may we not say871 to follow ,christ    
wherever ,he may lead us4 ,faith  begins
 with an experiment1 and ends with an   
experience4#fe ,he that  believeth in   
,him hath the witness in himself2 that  

is the  verification which follows the  
venture4 ,that even the power to make   
the experiment is given from above2 and 
that the experience is not  merely      
subjective1 but an universal law which  
has had its supreme  vindication in     
history1--these are two facts which we  
learn  afterwards4 ,the converse        
process1 which begins with a critical   
examination of documents1 cannot        
establish what we really want to  know1 
however strong the evidence may be4 ,in 
this sense1 and in this  only1 are      
,tennyson's words true1 that nothing    
worthy proving can be  proven1 nor yet  
disproven4    ,faith1 thus defined1 is  
hardly distinguishable from that mixture
 of  admiration1 hope1 and love by which
 ,wordsworth says that we live4 ,love   
especially is intimately connected with 
faith4 ,and as the ,christian  life is  
to be considered as1 above all things1 a
 state of union with  ,christ1 and of   
,his members with one another1 love of  
the brethren is  inseparable from love  

of ,god4 ,so intimate is this union1    
that hatred  towards any human being    
cannot exist in the same heart as love  
to ,god4  ,the mystical union is indeed 
rather a bond between ,christ and the   
,church1 and between man and man as     
members of ,christ1 than between        
,christ and individual souls4 ,our      
,lord's prayer is that they all may  be 
one1 even as ,thou1 ,father1 art in ,me1
 and ,i in ,thee1 that they also  may be
 one in us4 ,the personal relation      
between the soul and ,christ  is not to 
be denied2 but it can only be enjoyed   
when the person has  come to himself as 
a member of a body4 ,this involves an   
inward  transit from the false isolated 
self to the larger life of sympathy  and
 love which alone makes us persons4     
,those who are thus living  according to
 their true nature are rewarded with an 
intense  unshakeable conviction which   
makes them independent of external      
evidences4 ,like the blind man who was  
healed1 they can say1 ,one thing  ,i    

know1 that whereas ,i was blind1 now ,i 
see4 ,the words we know are  repeated   
again and again in the first ,epistle1  
with an emphasis which  leaves no room  
for doubt that the evangelist was       
willing to throw the  main weight of his
 belief on this inner assurance1 and to 
attribute it  without hesitation to the 
promised presence of the ,comforter4 ,we
 must  observe1 however1 that this      
knowledge or illumination is            
progressive4 ,this is proved by the     
passages already quoted about the  work 
of the ,holy ,spirit4 ,it is also       
implied by the words1 ,this is  life    
eternal1 that they should know ,thee1   
the only true ,god1 and ,jesus  ,christ 
whom ,thou hast sent4 ,eternal life is  
not ,greek3 gnsis1  knowledge as a      
possession1 but the state of acquiring  
knowledge  7,greek3 hina gignsksin74 ,it
 is significant1 ,i think1 that ,st4    
,john1  who is so fond of the verb to   
know1 never uses the substantive        
,greek3 gnsis4    ,the state of         

progressive unification1 in which we    
receive grace upon  grace1 as we learn  
more and more of the fulness of ,christ1
 is  called by the evangelist1 in the   
verse just quoted and elsewhere1        
eternal life4 ,this life is generally   
spoken of as a present  possession      
rather than a future hope4 ,he that     
believeth on the ,son  hath everlasting 
life2 he is passed from death unto life2
 we  are in ,him that is true1 even     
,jesus ,christ4 ,this is the true ,god1 
and eternal life4 ,the evangelist is    
constantly trying to transport us  into 
that timeless region in which one day is
 as a thousand years1 and  a thousand   
years as one day4    ,st4 ,john's       
,mysticism is thus patent to all2 it is 
stamped upon his  very style1 and       
pervades all his teaching4 ,commentators
 who are in  sympathy with this mode of 
thought have1 as we might expect1 made  
the  most of this element in the ,fourth
 ,gospel4 ,indeed1 some of them1 ,i     
cannot but think1 have interpreted it so

 completely in the terms of  their own  
idealism1 that they have disregarded or 
explained away the  very important      
qualifications which distinguish the    
,johannine theology  from some later    
mystical systems4 ,fichte1 for example1 
claims ,st4 ,john  as a supporter of his
 system of subjective idealism 7if that 
is a  correct description of it71 and is
 driven to some curious bits of         
exegesis in his attempt to justify this 
claim4 ,and ,reuss 7to give one  example
 of his method7 says that ,st4 ,john    
cannot have used the last  day in the   
ordinary sense1 because mystical        
theology has nothing to  do with such a 
notion4#ff ,he means1 ,i suppose1 that  
the mystic1 who  likes to speak of      
heaven as a state1 and of eternal life  
as a present  possession1 has no        
business to talk about future judgment4 
,i cannot  help thinking that this is a 
very grave mistake4 ,there is no doubt  
that those who believe space and time to
 be only forms of our thought1  must    

regard the traditional eschatology as   
symbolical4 ,we are not  concerned to   
maintain that there will be1 literally1 
a great assize1  holden at a date and   
place which could be announced if we    
knew it4 ,if  that is all that ,reuss   
means1 perhaps he is right in saying    
that  mystical theology has nothing to  
do with such a notion4 ,but if he  means
 that such expressions as those referred
 to in ,st4 ,john1 about  eternal life  
as something here and now1 imply that   
judgment is now1  and therefore not in  
the future1 he is attributing to the    
evangelist1 and to the whole array of   
religious thinkers who have used        
similar expressions1 a view which is    
easy enough to understand1 but  which is
 destitute of any value1 for it entirely
 fails to satisfy the  religious        
consciousness4 ,the feeling of the      
contrast between what  ought to be and  
what is1 is one of the deepest springs  
of faith in the  unseen4 ,it can only be
 ignored by shutting our eyes to half   

the facts  of life4 ,it is easy to say  
with ,browning1 ,god's in ,his heaven3  
all's  right with the world1 or with    
,emerson1 that justice is not deferred1 
and that everyone gets exactly his      
deserts in this life2 but it would      
require a robust confidence or a hard   
heart to maintain these  propositions   
while standing among the ruins of an    
,armenian village1 or  by the deathbed  
of innocence betrayed4 ,there is no     
doubt a sense in  which it may be said  
that the ideal is the actual2 but only  
when we  have risen in thought to a     
region above the antitheses of past1    
present1 and future1 where is denotes1  
not the moment which passes  as we      
speak1 but the everlasting ,now in the  
mind of ,god4 ,this is not a  region in 
which human thought can live2 and the   
symbolical eschatology  of religion     
supplies us with forms in which it is   
possible to think4  ,the basis of the   
belief in future judgment is that deep  
conviction of  the rationality of the   

world-order1 or1 in religious language1 
of the  wisdom and justice of ,god1     
which we cannot and will not surrender4 
,it  is authenticated by an instinctive 
assurance which is strongest in  the    
strongest minds1 and which has nothing  
to do with any desire for  spurious     
consolations2#fg it is a conviction1 not
 merely a hope1  and we have every      
reason to believe that it is part of the
 ,divine  element in our nature4 ,this  
conviction1 like other mystical         
intuitions1 is formless3 the forms or   
symbols under which we represent  it are
 the best that we can get4 ,they are1 as
 ,plato says1 a raft on  which we may   
navigate strange seas of thought far out
 of our depth4 ,we  may use them freely1
 as if they were literally true1 only   
remembering  their symbolical character 
when they bring us into conflict with   
natural science1 or when they tempt us  
to regard the world of  experience as   
something undivine or unreal4    ,it is 
important to insist on this point1      

because the extreme  difficulty 7or     
rather impossibility7 of determining the
 true relations  of becoming and being1 
of time and eternity1 is constantly     
tempting us  to adopt some facile       
solution which really destroys one of   
the two  terms4 ,the danger which besets
 us if we follow the line of thought    
natural to speculative ,mysticism1 is   
that we may think we have solved  the   
problem in one of two ways1 neither of  
which is a solution at all4  ,either we 
may sublimate our notion of spirit to   
such an extent that  our idealism       
becomes merely a sentimental way of     
looking at the  actual2 or1 by paring   
down the other term in the relation1 we 
may fall  into that spurious idealism   
which reduces this world to a vain      
shadow  having no relation to reality4  
,we shall come across a good deal of    
acosmistic philosophy in our survey of  
,christian ,platonism2 and the          
sentimental rationalist is with us in   
the nineteenth century2 but  neither of 

the two has any right to appeal to ,st4 
,john4 ,fond as he is  of the present   
tense1 he will not allow us to blot from
 the page  either unborn to-morrow or   
dead yesterday4 ,we have seen that he   
records the use by our ,lord of the     
traditional language about future       
judgment4 ,what is even more important1 
he asserts in the strongest  possible   
manner1 at the outset both of his       
,gospel and ,epistle1 the  necessity of 
remembering that the ,christian         
revelation was conveyed by  certain     
historical events4 ,the ,word was made  
flesh1 and tabernacled  among us1 and we
 have seen ,his glory4 ,that which was  
from the  beginning1 that which we have 
heard1 that which we have seen with our 
eyes1 that which we beheld1 and our     
hands handled1 concerning the ,word  of 
,life 444 that which we have seen and   
heard declare we unto you4  ,and again  
in striking words he lays it down as the
 test whereby we may  distinguish the   
spirit of truth from ,antichrist or the 

spirit of  error1 that the latter       
confesseth not that ,jesus ,christ is   
come in  the flesh4 ,the later history  
of ,mysticism shows that this warning   
was  very much needed4 ,the tendency of 
the mystic is to regard the ,gospel     
history as only one striking            
manifestation of an universal law4 ,he  
believes that every ,christian who is in
 the way of salvation  recapitulates the
 whole process of ,christ 7as ,william  
,law calls  it7--that he has his        
miraculous birth1 inward death1 and     
resurrection2 and so the ,gospel history
 becomes for the ,gnostic 7as  ,clement 
calls the ,christian philosopher7 little
 more than a  dramatisation of the      
normal psychological experience4#fh     
,christ  crucified is teaching for      
babes1 says ,origen1 with startling     
audacity2 and heretical mystics have    
often fancied that they can rise  above 
the ,son to the ,father4 ,the ,gospel   
and ,epistle of ,st4 ,john stand  like a
 rock against this fatal error1 and in  

this feature some ,german  critics have 
rightly discerned their supreme value to
 mystical  theology4#fi ,in all life1   
says ,grau1 there is not an abstract    
unity1 but an unity in plurality1 an    
outward and inward1 a bodily and        
spiritual2 and life1 like love1 unites  
what science and philosophy  separate4  
,this co-operation of the sensible and  
spiritual1 of the  material and ideal1  
of the historical and eternal1 is       
maintained  throughout by ,st4 ,john4   
,his view is mystical1 says ,grau1      
because  all life is mystical4 ,it is   
true that the historical facts hold1 for
  ,st4 ,john1 a subordinate place as    
evidences4 ,his main proof is1 as  ,i   
have said1 experimental4 ,but a         
spiritual revelation of ,god without    
its physical counterpart1 an            
,incarnation1 is for him an             
impossibility1  and a ,christianity     
which has cut itself adrift from the    
,galilean  ministry is in his eyes an   
imposture4 ,in no other writer1 ,i      

think1 do  we find so firm a grasp of   
the psychophysical view of life which we
  all feel to be the true one1 if only  
we could put it in an  intelligible     
form4#gj    ,there is another feature in
 ,st4 ,john's ,gospel which shows his   
affinity  to ,mysticism1 though of a    
different kind from that which we have  
been  considering4 ,i mean his fondness 
for using visible things and events  as 
symbols4 ,this objective kind of        
,mysticism will form the subject of  my 
last two ,lectures1 and ,i will here    
only anticipate so far as to say  that  
the belief which underlies it is that   
everything1 in being what  it is1 is    
symbolic of something more4 ,the ,fourth
 ,gospel is steeped in  symbolism of    
this kind4 ,the eight miracles which    
,st4 ,john selects are  obviously chosen
 for their symbolic value2 indeed1 he   
seems to regard  them mainly as acted   
parables4 ,his favourite word for       
miracles is  ,greek3 smeia1 signs or    
symbols4 ,it is true that he also calls 

them works1 but this is not to          
distinguish them as supernatural4 ,all  
,christ's actions are works1 as parts of
 ,his one work4 ,as evidences  of ,his  
,divinity1 such works are inferior to   
,his words1 being  symbolic and         
external4 ,only those who cannot believe
 on the evidence  of the words and their
 echo in the heart1 may strengthen their
 weak  faith by the miracles4 ,but      
blessed are they who have not seen1 and 
yet have believed4 ,and besides these   
signs1 we have1 in place of  the        
,synoptic parables1 a wealth of         
allegories1 in which ,christ is         
symbolised as the ,bread of ,life1 the  
,light of the ,world1 the ,door of  the 
,sheep1 the good ,shepherd1 the ,way1   
and the true ,vine4 ,wind and  water are
 also made to play their part4          
,moreover1 there is much  unobtrusive   
symbolism in descriptive phrases1 as    
when he says that  ,nicodemus came by   
night1 that ,judas went out into the    
night1 and that  blood and water flowed 

from our ,lord's side2 and the washing  
of the  disciples' feet was a symbolic  
act which the disciples were to         
understand hereafter4 ,thus all things  
in the world may remind us of  ,him who 
made them1 and who is their sustaining  
life4    ,in treating of ,st4 ,john1 it 
was necessary to protest against the    
tendency of some commentators to        
interpret him simply as a speculative   
mystic of the ,alexandrian type4 ,but   
when we turn to ,st4 ,paul1 we find     
reason to think that this side of his   
theology has been very much             
underestimated1 and that the distinctive
 features of ,mysticism are  even more  
marked in him than in ,st4 ,john4 ,this 
is not surprising1 for  our blessed     
,lord's discourses1 in which nearly all 
the doctrinal  teaching of ,st4 ,john is
 contained1 are for all ,christians2    
they rise  above the oppositions which  
must always divide human thought and    
human  thinkers4 ,in ,st4 ,paul1        
large-minded as he was1 and inspired as 

we  believe him to be1 we may be allowed
 to see an example of that  particular  
type which we are considering4    ,st4  
,paul states in the clearest manner that
 ,christ appeared to him1  and that this
 revelation was the foundation of his   
,christianity and  apostolic commission4
 ,neither did ,i receive the ,gospel    
from man1#ga  he says1 nor was ,i taught
 it1 but it came to me through          
revelation of  ,jesus ,christ4 ,it      
appears that he did not at first#gb     
think it  necessary to confer with flesh
 and blood--to collect evidence about   
our ,lord's ministry1 ,his death and    
resurrection2 he had seen and  felt     
,him1 and that was enough4 ,it was the  
good pleasure of ,god to  reveal ,his   
,son in me1#gc he says simply1 using the
 favourite  mystical phraseology4 ,the  
study of evidences1 in the usual sense  
of  the term in apologetics1 he rejects 
with distrust and contempt4#gd          
,external revelation cannot make a man  
religious4 ,it can put nothing  new into

 him4 ,if there is nothing answering to 
it in his mind1 it will  profit him     
nothing4 ,nor can philosophy make a man 
religious4 ,man's  wisdom1 the wisdom of
 the world1 is of no avail to find      
spiritual  truth4 ,god chose the foolish
 things of the world1 to put to shame   
them that are wise4 ,the word of the    
,cross is1 to them that are  perishing1 
foolishness4 ,by this language he1 of   
course1 does not mean  that             
,christianity is irrational1 and        
therefore to be believed on  authority4 
,that would be to lay its foundation    
upon external  evidences1 and nothing   
could be further from the whole bent of 
his  teaching4 ,what he does mean1 and  
say very clearly1 is that the carnal    
mind is disqualified from understanding 
,divine truths2 it cannot know  them1   
because they are spiritually discerned4 
,he who has not raised  himself above   
the world1 that is1 the interests and   
ideals of human  society as it organises
 itself apart from ,god1 and above the  

flesh1  that is1 the things which seem  
desirable to the average sensual man1   
does not possess in himself that element
 which can be assimilated by  ,divine   
grace4 ,the mystery of the wisdom of    
,god is necessarily hidden  from him4   
,st4 ,paul uses the word mystery in very
 much the same sense  which ,st4        
,chrysostom#ge gives to it in the       
following careful  definition3 ,a       
mystery is that which is everywhere     
proclaimed1 but  which is not understood
 by those who have not right judgment4  
,it is  revealed1 not by cleverness1 but
 by the ,holy ,ghost1 as we are able to 
receive it4 ,and so we may call a       
mystery a secret 7,greek3  aporrton71   
for even to the faithful it is not      
committed in all its  fulness and       
clearness4 ,in ,st4 ,paul the word is   
nearly always found in  connexion with  
words denoting revelation or            
publication#gf4 ,the  preacher of the   
,gospel is a hierophant1 but the        
,christian mysteries  are freely        

communicated to all who can receive     
them4 ,for many ages  these truths were 
hid in ,god1#gg but now all men may be  
illuminated1#gh if they will fulfil the 
necessary conditions of  initiation4    
,these are to cleanse ourselves from all
 defilement of  flesh and spirit1#gi and
 to have love1 without which all else   
will  be unavailing4 ,but there are     
degrees of initiation4 ,we speak wisdom 
among the perfect1 he says 7the ,greek3 
teleioi are the fully  initiated72 but  
the carnal must still be fed with milk4 
,growth in  knowledge1 growth in grace1 
and growth in love1 are so frequently   
mentioned together1 that we must        
understand the apostle to mean that     
they are almost inseparable4 ,but this  
knowledge1 grace1 and love is  itself   
the work of the indwelling ,god1 who is 
thus in a sense the  organ as well as   
the object of the spiritual life4 ,the  
,spirit  searcheth all things1 he says1 
yea1 the deep things of ,god4 ,the man  
who has the ,spirit dwelling in him has 

the mind of ,christ4 ,he that  is       
spiritual judgeth all things1 and is    
himself judged of no man4  ,it is1 we   
must admit frankly1 a dangerous claim1  
and one which may  easily be subversive 
of all discipline4 ,where the ,spirit of
 the ,lord  is1 there is liberty2 but   
such liberty may become a cloak of      
maliciousness4 ,the fact is that ,st4   
,paul had himself trusted in the  ,law1 
and it had led him into grievous error4 
,as usually happens in  such cases1 his 
recoil from it was almost violent4 ,he  
exalts the inner  light into an absolute
 criterion of right and wrong1 that no  
corner of  the moral life may remain in 
bondage to ,pharisaism4 ,the crucifixion
 of  the ,lord ,jesus and the stoning of
 ,stephen were a crushing condemnation  
of legal and ceremonial righteousness2  
the law written in the heart of  man1 or
 rather spoken there by the living voice
 of the ,holy ,spirit1  could never so  
mislead men as to make them think that  
they were doing  ,god service by        

condemning and killing the just4 ,such  
memories might  well lead ,st4 ,paul to 
use language capable of giving          
encouragement  even to fanatical        
,anabaptists4 ,but it is significant    
that the boldest  claims on behalf of   
liberty all occur in the earlier        
,epistles4    ,the subject of ,st4      
,paul's visions and revelations is one  
of great  difficulty4 ,in the ,acts we  
have full accounts of the appearance in 
the  sky which caused1 or immediately   
preceded1 his conversion4 ,it is quite  
clear that ,st4 ,paul himself regarded  
this as an appearance of the same  kind 
as the other ,christophanies granted to 
apostles and brethren1  and of a        
different kind from such visions as     
might be seen by any  ,christian4 ,it   
was an unique favour1 conferring upon   
him the apostolic  prerogatives of an   
eye-witness4 ,other passages in the     
,acts show that  during his missionary  
journeys ,st4 ,paul saw visions and     
heard voices1  and that he believed     

himself to be guided by the ,spirit of  
,jesus4  ,lastly1 in the ,second        
,epistle to the ,corinthians he records 
that more  than fourteen years ago he   
was in an ecstasy1 in which he was      
caught  up into the third heaven1 and   
saw things unutterable4 ,the form in    
which this experience is narrated       
suggests a recollection of  ,rabbinical 
pseudo-science2 the substance of the    
vision ,st4 ,paul will  not reveal1 nor 
will he claim its authority for any of  
his  teaching4#hj ,these recorded       
experiences are of great psychological  
interest2 but1 as ,i said in my last    
,lecture1 they do not seem to me  to    
belong to the essence of ,mysticism4    
,another mystical idea1 which is never  
absent from the mind of ,st4  ,paul1 is 
that the individual ,christian must live
 through1 and  experience personally1   
the redemptive process of ,christ4 ,the 
life1  death1 and resurrection of       
,christ were for him the revelation of a
  law1 the law of redemption through    

suffering4 ,the victory over sin and    
death was won for us2 but it must also  
be won in us4 ,the process  is an       
universal law1 not a mere event in the  
past4#ha ,it has been  exemplified in   
history1 which is a progressive         
unfurling or revelation  of a great     
mystery1 the meaning of which is now at 
last made plain in  ,christ4#hb ,and it 
must also appear in each human life4 ,we
 were  buried with ,him1 says ,st4 ,paul
 to the ,romans1#hc through baptism     
into death1 that like as ,christ was    
raised from the dead through the  glory 
of the ,father1 so we also might walk in
 newness of life4 ,and  again1#hd ,if   
the ,spirit of ,him that raised up      
,jesus from the dead  dwell in you1 ,he 
that raised up ,christ ,jesus from the  
dead shall  quicken also your mortal    
bodies through ,his ,spirit that        
dwelleth in  you4 ,and1 ,if ye were     
raised together with ,christ1 seek the  
things  that are above4#he    ,the law  
of redemption1 which ,st4 ,paul         

considers to have been  triumphantly    
summed up by the death and resurrection 
of ,christ1#hf  would hardly be proved  
to be an universal law if the ,pauline  
,christ  were only the heavenly man1 as 
some critics have asserted4 ,st4        
,paul's teaching about the ,person of   
,christ was really almost identical     
with the ,logos doctrine as we find it  
in ,st4 ,john's prologue1 and as  it was
 developed by the mystical philosophy of
 a later period4 ,not  only is ,his     
pre-existence in the form of ,god       
clearly taught1#hg but  ,he is the agent
 in the creation of the universe1 the   
vital principle  upholding and pervading
 all that exists4 ,the ,son1 we read in 
the  ,epistle to the ,colossians1#hh is 
the image of the invisible ,god1 the    
firstborn of all creation2 for in ,him  
were all things created1 in the  heavens
 and upon the earth2 all things have    
been created through ,him1  and unto    
,him2 and ,he is before all things1 and 
in ,him all things  consist 7that is1   

hold together1 as the margin of the     
,revised  ,version explains it74 ,all   
things are summed up in ,christ1 he says
 to  the ,ephesians4#hi ,christ is all  
and in all1 we read again in the        
,colossians4#ij ,and in that bold and   
difficult passage of the #aeth  chapter 
of the ,first ,epistle to the           
,corinthians he speaks of the  reign of 
,christ as coextensive with the world's 
history4 ,when time  shall end1 and all 
evil shall be subdued to good1 ,christ  
will deliver  up the kingdom to ,god1   
even the ,father1 that ,god may be all  
in  all4#ia ,very important1 too1 is the
 verse in which he says that the        
,israelites in the wilderness drank of  
that spiritual rock which  followed     
them1 and that rock was ,christ4#ib ,it 
reminds us of  ,clement's language about
 the ,son as the ,light which broods    
over all  history4    ,the passage from 
the ,colossians1 which ,i quoted just   
now1 contains  another mystical idea    
besides that of ,christ as the universal

 source  and centre of life4 ,he is1 we 
are told1 the ,image of the invisible   
,god1 and all created beings are1 in    
their several capacities1 images  of    
,him4 ,man is essentially the image and 
glory of ,god2#ic the  perfect man is he
 who has come to the measure of the     
stature of the  fulness of ,christ4#id  
,this is our nature1 in the             
,aristotelian  sense of completed normal
 development2 but to reach it we have to
 slay  the false self1 the old man1     
which is informed by an actively        
maleficent agency1 flesh which is       
hostile to spirit4 ,this latter         
conception does not at present concern  
us2 what we have to notice is  the      
description of the upward path as an    
inner transit from the false  isolation 
of the natural man into a state in which
 it is possible to  say1 ,i live2 yet   
not ,i1 but ,christ liveth in me4#ie ,in
 the ,epistle  to the ,galatians he uses
 the favourite mystical phrase1 until   
,christ  be formed in you2#if and in the

 ,second ,epistle to the                
,corinthians#ig he employs a most       
beautiful expression in describing  the 
process1 reverting to the figure of the 
mirror1 dear to  ,mysticism1 which he   
had already used in the ,first ,epistle3
 ,we all  with unveiled face reflecting 
as a mirror the glory of the ,lord1 are 
transformed into the same image from    
glory to glory4 ,other passages1  which 
refer primarily to the future state1 are
 valuable as showing  that ,st4 ,paul   
lends no countenance to that abstract   
idea of eternal  life as freedom from   
all earthly conditions1 which has misled
 so many  mystics4 ,our hope1 when the  
earthly house of our tabernacle is      
dissolved1 is not that we may be        
unclothed1 but that we may be  clothed  
upon with our heavenly habitation4 ,the 
body of our  humiliation is to be       
changed and glorified1 according to the 
mighty  working whereby ,god is able to 
subdue all things unto ,himself4 ,and   
therefore our whole spirit and soul and 

body must be preserved  blameless2 for  
the body is the temple of the ,holy     
,ghost1 not the  prison-house of a soul 
which will one day escape out of its    
cage and  fly away4    ,st4 ,paul's     
conception of ,christ as the ,life as   
well as the ,light of  the world has two
 consequences besides those which have  
been already  mentioned4 ,in the first  
place1 it is fatal to religious         
individualism4  ,the close unity which  
joins us to ,christ is not so much a    
unity of the  individual soul with the  
heavenly ,christ1 as an organic unity of
 all  men1 or1 since many refuse their  
privileges1 of all ,christians1 with    
their ,lord4 ,we1 being many1 are one   
body in ,christ1 and severally  members 
one of another4#ih ,there must be no    
schism in the  body1#ii but each member 
must perform its allotted function4 ,st4
  ,augustine is thoroughly in agreement 
with ,st4 ,paul when he speaks of       
,christ and the ,church as unus         
,christus4 ,not that ,christ is         

divided1 so that ,he cannot be fully    
present to any individual--that  is an  
error which ,st4 ,paul1 ,st4 ,augustine1
 and the later mystics all  condemn2 but
 as the individual cannot reach his real
 personality as an  isolated unit1 he   
cannot1 as an isolated unit1 attain to  
full  communion with ,christ4    ,the   
second point is one which may seem to be
 of subordinate  importance1 but it     
will1 ,i think1 awaken more interest in 
the future  than it has done in the     
past4 ,in the #hth chapter of the       
,epistle to the  ,romans1 ,st4 ,paul    
clearly teaches that the victory of     
,christ over sin  and death is of       
import1 not only to humanity1 but to the
 whole of  creation1 which now groans   
and travails in pain together1 but which
  shall one day be delivered from the   
bondage of corruption into the  glorious
 liberty of the sons of ,god4 ,this     
recognition of the  spirituality of     
matter1 and of the unity of all nature  
in ,christ1 is  one which we ought to be

 thankful to find in the ,new           
,testament4 ,it  will be my pleasant    
task1 in the last two ,lectures of this 
course1 to  show how the later school of
 mystics prized it4    ,the foregoing   
analysis of ,st4 ,paul's teaching has1  
,i hope1 justified  the statement that  
all the essentials of ,mysticism are to 
be found in  his ,epistles4 ,but there  
are also two points in which his        
authority has  been claimed for false   
and mischievous developments of         
,mysticism4  ,these two points it will  
be well to consider before leaving the  
subject4    ,the first is a contempt for
 the historical framework of            
,christianity4  ,we have already seen   
how strongly ,st4 ,john warns us against
 this  perversion of spiritual religion4
 ,but those numerous sects and          
individual thinkers who have disregarded
 this warning1 have often  appealed to  
the authority of ,st4 ,paul1 who in the 
,second ,epistle to  the ,corinthians   
says1 ,even though we have known ,christ

 after the  flesh1 yet now we know ,him 
so no more4 ,here1 they say1 is a       
distinct  admission that the worship of 
the historical ,christ1 the man ,christ 
,jesus1 is a stage to be passed through 
and then left behind4 ,there is  just   
this substratum of truth in a very      
mischievous error1 that ,st4  ,paul does
 tell us#ajj that he began to teach the 
,corinthians by  giving them in the     
simplest possible form the story of     
,jesus ,christ  and ,him crucified4 ,the
 mysteries of the faith1 the wisdom     
which  only the perfect can understand1 
were deferred till the converts had     
learned their first lessons4 ,but if we 
look at the passage in  question1 which 
has shocked and perplexed many good     
,christians1 we  shall find that ,st4   
,paul is not drawing a contrast between 
the  earthly and the heavenly ,christ1  
bidding us worship the ,second ,person  
of the ,trinity1 the same yesterday1    
to-day1 and for ever1 and to cease  to  
contemplate the ,cross on ,calvary4 ,he 

is distinguishing rather  between the   
sensuous presentation of the facts of   
,christ's life1 and a  deeper           
realisation of their import4 ,it should 
be our aim to know no  man after the    
flesh2 that is to say1 we should try to 
think of human  beings as what they are1
 immortal spirits1 sharers with us of a 
common  life and a common hope1 not as  
what they appear to our eyes4 ,and the  
same principle applies to our thoughts  
about ,christ4 ,to know ,christ  after  
the flesh is to know ,him1 not as man1  
but as a man4 ,st4 ,paul  in this verse 
condemns all religious materialism1     
whether it take the  form of hysterical 
meditation upon the physical details of 
the  passion1 or of an over-curious     
interest in the manner of the           
resurrection4 ,there is no trace        
whatever in ,st4 ,paul of any aspiration
  to rise above ,christ to the          
contemplation of the ,absolute--to treat
  ,him as only a step in the ladder4    
,this is an error of false ,mysticism2  

the true mystic follows ,st4 ,paul in   
choosing as his ultimate goal the       
fulness of ,christ1 and not the         
emptiness of the undifferentiated       
,godhead4    ,the second point in which 
,st4 ,paul has been supposed to sanction
 an  exaggerated form of ,mysticism1 is 
his extreme disparagement of  external  
religion--of forms and ceremonies and   
holy days and the like4  ,one man hath  
faith to eat all things2 but he that is 
weak eateth  herbs4#aja ,one man        
esteemeth one day above another1 another
  esteemeth every day alike4 ,he that   
eateth1 eateth unto the ,lord1 and      
giveth ,god thanks2 and he that eateth  
not1 to the ,lord he eateth not1  and   
giveth ,god thanks4 ,why turn ye back to
 the weak and beggarly  rudiments1      
whereunto ye desire to be in bondage    
again8 ,ye observe  days1 and months1   
and seasons1 and years4 ,i am afraid of 
you1 lest ,i  have bestowed labour upon 
you in vain4#ajb ,why do ye subject     
yourselves to ordinances1 handle not1   

nor taste1 nor touch1 after the         
precepts and doctrines of men8#ajc      
,these are strongly-worded  passages1   
and ,i have no wish to attenuate their  
significance4 ,any  ,christian priest   
who puts the observance of human        
ordinances--  fast-days1 for example--at
 all on the same level as such duties as
  charity1 generosity1 or purity1 is    
teaching1 not ,christianity1 but that   
debased ,judaism against which ,st4     
,paul waged an unceasing polemic1 and   
which is one of those dead religions    
which has to be killed again in  almost 
every generation4#ajd ,but we must not  
forget that these vigorous              
denunciations do occur in a polemic     
against ,judaism4 ,they bear the  stamp 
of the time at which they were written  
perhaps more than any other  part of    
,st4 ,paul's ,epistles1 except those    
thoughts which were connected  with his 
belief in the approaching end of the    
world4 ,st4 ,paul certainly  did not    
intend his ,christian converts to be    

anarchists in religious  matters4 ,there
 is evidence1 in the ,first ,epistle to 
the ,corinthians1  that his spiritual   
presentation of ,christianity had       
already been made an  excuse for        
disorderly licence4 ,the usual symptoms 
of degenerate  ,mysticism had appeared  
at ,corinth4 ,there were men there who  
called  themselves spiritual persons#aje
 or prophets1 and showed an arrogant    
independence2 there were others who     
wished to start sects of their own2     
others who carried antinomianism into   
the sphere of morals2 others who  prided
 themselves on various spiritual gifts4 
,as regards the last  class1 we are     
rather surprised at the half-sanction   
which the apostle  gives to what reads  
like primitive ,irvingism2#ajf but he   
was evidently  prepared to enforce      
discipline with a strong hand4 ,still1  
it may be  fairly said that he trusts   
mainly to his personal ascendancy1 and  
to his  teaching about the organic unity
 of the ,christian body1 to preserve or 

restore due discipline and cohesion4    
,there have been hardly any  religious  
leaders1 if we except ,george ,fox1 the 
founder of ,quakerism1  who have valued 
ceremonies so little4 ,in this1 again1  
he is a genuine  mystic4    ,of the     
other books of the ,new ,testament it is
 not necessary to say  much4 ,the       
,epistle to the ,hebrews cannot be the  
work of ,st4 ,paul4 ,it  shows strong   
traces of ,jewish ,alexandrianism2      
indeed1 the writer  seems to have been  
well acquainted with the ,book of       
,wisdom and with  ,philo4 ,alexandrian  
idealism is always ready to pass into   
speculative  ,mysticism1 but the author 
of the ,epistle to the ,hebrews can     
hardly be  called mystical in the sense 
in which ,st4 ,paul was a mystic4 ,the  
most  interesting side of his theology1 
from our present point of view1 is  the 
way in which he combines his view of    
religious ordinances as types  and      
adumbrations of higher spiritual truths1
 with a comprehensive view  of history  

as a progressive realisation of a       
,divine scheme4 ,the  keynote of the    
book is that mankind has been educated  
partly by  ceremonial laws and partly by
 promises4 ,systems of laws and         
ordinances1 of which the ,jewish ,law is
 the chief example1 have their  place in
 history4 ,they rightly claim obedience 
until the practical  lessons which they 
can teach have been learned1 and until  
the higher  truths which they conceal   
under the protecting husk of symbolism  
can  be apprehended without disguise4   
,then their task is done1 and mankind   
is no longer bound by them4 ,in the same
 way1 the promises which were  made     
under the old dispensation proved to be 
only symbols of deeper  and more        
spiritual blessings1 which in the moral 
childhood of humanity  would not have   
appeared desirable2 they were 7not      
delusions1 but7  illusions1 ,god having 
prepared some better thing to take their
  place4 ,the doctrine is one of        
profound and far-reaching importance4   

,in  this ,epistle it is certainly      
connected with the idealistic thought   
that all visible things are symbols1 and
 that every truth apprehended  by finite
 intelligences must be only the husk of 
a deeper truth4 ,we  may therefore claim
 the ,epistle to the ,hebrews as        
containing in  outline a ,christian     
philosophy of history1 based upon a     
doctrine of  symbols which has much in  
common with some later developments of  
,mysticism4    ,in the ,apocalypse1     
whoever the author may be1 we find      
little or  nothing of the characteristic
 ,johannine ,mysticism1 and the         
influence  of its vivid allegorical     
pictures has been less potent in this   
branch  of theology than might perhaps  
have been expected4    ,,footnotes3     
,footnote #ef3 ,in referring thus to the
 ,book of ,job1 ,i rest nothing on  any 
theory as to its date4 ,whenever it was 
written1 it illustrates  that view of   
the relation of man to ,god with which  
,mysticism can never  be content4 ,but1 

of course1 the antagonism between our   
personal claims  and the laws of the    
universe must be done justice to before 
it can be  surmounted4    ,footnote #eg3
 ,jer4 xxxi4 #ca-cd4    ,footnote #eh3  
,isa4 xxxiii4 #ad-ag4    ,footnote #ei3 
,see ,appendix ,d1 on the devotional use
 of the ,song of  ,solomon4    ,footnote
 #fj3 ,leathes1 ,the ,witness of ,st4   
,john to ,christ1 p4 #bdd4    ,footnote 
#fa3 ,the punctuation now generally     
adopted was invented  7probably7 by the 
,antiochenes1 who were afraid that the  
words without  ,him was not anything    
made might1 if unqualified1 be taken to 
include  the ,holy ,spirit4 ,cyril of   
,alexandria comments on the older       
punctuation1 but explains the verse     
wrongly4 ,the ,word1 as ,life by        
nature1 was in the things which have    
become1 mingling ,himself by            
participation in the things that are4   
,bp4 ,westcott objects to this1  that   
the one life is regarded as dispersed4  
,cyril1 however1 guards  against this   

misconception 7,greek3 ou kata merismon 
tina kai  alloisin74 ,he says that      
created things share in the one life as 
they  are able4 ,but some of his        
expressions are objectionable1 as they  
seem  to assume a material substratum1  
animated ab extra by an infusion of  the
 ,logos4 ,augustine's commentary on the 
verse is based on the  well-known       
passage of ,plato's ,republic about the 
ideal bed4 ,arca  in opere non est vita2
 arca in arte vita est4 ,sic ,sapientia 
,dei1 per  quam facta sunt omnia1       
secundum artem continet omnia antequam  
fabricat  omnia4 ,qu fiunt 444 foris    
corpora sunt1 in arte vita sunt4 ,those 
who  accept the common authorship of the
 ,gospel and the ,apocalypse will  find 
a confirmation of the view that ,greek3 
n refers to ideal1  extra-temporal      
existence1 in ,rev4 iv4 #aa3 ,thou hast 
created all  things1 and for ,thy       
pleasure they were 7,greek3 san is the  
true  reading7 and were created4 ,there 
is also a very interesting passage  in  

,eusebius 7,proep4 ,ev4 xi4 #ai73       
,greek3 kai outos ara n ho logos  kath' 
hon aei onta ta gignomena egeneto1 hsper
 ,hrakleitos an  axiseie4 ,this is so   
near to the words of ,st4 ,john's       
prologue as to  suggest that the        
apostle1 writing at ,ephesus1 is here   
referring  deliberately to the lofty    
doctrine of the great ,ephesian         
idealist1  whom ,justin claims as a     
,christian before ,christ1 and whom     
,clement  quotes several times with     
respect4    ,footnote #fb3 ,it will be  
seen that ,i assume that the first      
,epistle is  the work of the evangelist4
    ,footnote #fc3 ,westcott on ,john   
xiv4 #bf4    ,footnote #fd3 ,westcott4  
,footnote #fe3 ,cf4 ,theologia          
,germanica1 chap4 #dh3 ,he who would    
know  before he believeth cometh never  
to true knowledge4444 ,i speak of a     
certain truth which it is possible to   
know by experience1 but which ye  must  
believe in before ye know it by         
experience1 else ye will never  come to 

know it truly4    ,footnote #ff3 ,on the
 second coming of ,christ1 cf4 ,john v4 
#be1 xxi4 #bc2  ,i ,john ii4 #bh1 iii4  
#b4 ,scholten goes so far as to expunge 
v4 #be and  #bh1 #bi as spurious4       
,footnote #fg3 ,the allegation that the 
,christian persuades himself of a       
future life because it is the most      
comfortable belief to hold1 seems  to me
 utterly contemptible4 ,certain views   
about heaven and hell are no  doubt     
traceable to shallow optimism2 but the  
belief in immortality is  in itself     
rather awful than consoling4 ,besides1  
what sane man would  wish to be deceived
 in such a matter8    ,footnote #fh3    
,henry ,more brings this charge against 
the ,quakers4 ,there  are1 he says1 many
 good and wholesome things in their     
teaching1 but  they mingle with them a  
slighting of the history of ,christ1 and
  making a mere allegory of it--tending 
to the utter overthrow of that          
warrantable1 though more external frame 
of ,christianity1 which  ,scripture     

itself points out to us 7,mastix1 his   
letter to a ,friend1  p4 #cjf74         
,footnote #fi3 ,e4g4 ,strauss and ,grau1
 quoted in ,lilienfeld's ,thoughts  on  
the ,social ,science of the ,future4    
,footnote #gj3 ,the intense moral       
dualism of ,st4 ,john has been felt by  
many as a discordant note2 and though it
 is not closely connected with  his     
,mysticism1 a few words should perhaps  
be added about it4 ,it has  been thought
 strange that the ,logos1 who is the    
life of all things  that are1 should    
have to invade ,his own kingdom to      
rescue it from its  de facto ruler1 the 
,prince of darkness2 and stranger yet1  
that the  bulk of mankind should        
seemingly be children of the devil1 born
 of  the flesh1 and incapable of        
salvation4 ,the difficulty exists1 but  
it  has been exaggerated4 ,st4 ,john    
does not touch either the metaphysical  
problem of the origin of evil1 or       
predestination in the ,calvinistic      
sense4 ,the vivid contrasts of light and

 shade in his picture express  his      
judgment on the tragic fate of the      
,jewish people1 ,the ,gospel is  not a  
polemical treatise1 but it bears traces 
of recent conflicts4 ,st4  ,john wishes 
to show that the rejection of ,christ by
 the ,jews was  morally inevitable2 that
 their blindness and their ruin followed
  naturally from their characters and   
principles4 ,looking back on the        
memories of a long life1 he desires to  
trace the operation of uniform  laws in 
dividing the wheat of humanity from the 
chaff4 ,he is content  to observe how   
,greek3 thos anthrp daimn1 without      
speculating on  the reason why          
characters differ4 ,in offering these   
remarks1 ,i am  assuming1 what seems to 
me quite certain1 that ,st4 ,john       
selected from  our ,lord's discourses   
those which suited his particular       
object1 and  that in the setting and    
arrangement he allowed himself a certain
  amount of liberty4    ,footnote #ga3  
,gal4 i4 #ab4    ,footnote #gb3 #a ,cor4

 xv4 shows that he subsequently         
satisfied himself  of the truth of the  
other ,christophanies4    ,footnote #gc3
 ,gal1 i4 #ae1 #af4    ,footnote #gd3 #a
 ,cor4 i4 and ii4    ,footnote #ge3     
,chrysostom in ,i ,cor41 ,hom4 vii4 #b4 
,footnote #gf3 ,see ,lightfoot on ,col4 
i4 #bf4    ,footnote #gg3 ,eph4 iii4 #i4
    ,footnote #gh3 #b ,tim4 i4 #aj      
7,greek3 phtizein72 cf4 ,eph4 i4 #i4    
,footnote #gi3 #b ,cor4 vii4 #a4        
,footnote #hj3 ,in spite of this1 he is 
attacked for this passage in the        
,pseudo-,clementine ,homilies 7xvii4    
#ai71 where ,simon ,magus is asked1     
,can anyone be made wise to teach       
through a vision8    ,footnote #ha3     
,compare a beautiful passage in ,r4,l4  
,nettleship's  ,remains3 ,to live is to 
die into something more perfect4444 ,god
 can  only make ,his work to be truly   
,his work1 by eternally dying1          
sacrificing what is dearest to ,him4    
,footnote #hb3 ,col4 i4 #bf1 ii4 #b1 iv4
 #c2 ,eph4 iii4 #b-i4 ,i have allowed   

myself to quote from these ,epistles    
because ,i am myself a believer in      
their genuineness4 ,the ,mysticism of   
,st4 ,paul might be proved from the     
undisputed ,epistles only1 but we should
 then lose some of the most  striking   
illustrations of it4    ,footnote #hc3  
,rom4 vi4 #d4    ,footnote #hd3 ,rom4   
viii4 #aa4    ,footnote #he3 ,st4       
,paul's mystical language about death   
and  resurrection has given rise to much
 controversy4 ,on the one hand1 we  have
 writers like ,matthew ,arnold1 who tell
 us that ,st4 ,paul  unconsciously      
substitutes an ethical for a physical   
resurrection--an  eternal life here and 
now for a future reward4 ,on the other1 
we have  writers like ,kabisch          
7,eschatologie des ,paulus71 who argue  
that the  apostle's whole conception was
 materialistic1 his idea of a spiritual 
body being that of a body composed of   
very fine atoms 7like those of          
,lucretius' anima71 which inhabits the  
earthly body of the  ,christian like a  

kernel within its husk1 and will one day
 7at the  resurrection7 slough off its  
muddy vesture of decay1 and thenceforth 
exist in a form which can defy the      
ravages of time4 ,of the two views1     
,matthew ,arnold's is much the truer1   
even though it should be proved  that   
,st4 ,paul sometimes pictures the       
spiritual body in the way  described4   
,but the key to the problem1 in ,st4    
,paul as in ,st4 ,john1 is  that        
pyscho-physical theory which demands    
that the laws of the  spiritual world   
shall have their analogous              
manifestations in the world  of         
phenomena4 ,death must1 somehow or      
other1 be conquered in the  visible as  
well as in the invisible sphere4 ,the   
law of life through  death must be      
deemed to pervade every phase of        
existence4 ,and as a  mere prolongation 
of physical life under the same         
conditions is  impossible1 and1         
moreover1 would not fulfil the law in   
question1 we  are bound to have recourse

 to some such symbol as spiritual body4 
,it  will hardly be disputed that the   
,christian doctrine of the  resurrection
 of the whole man has taken a far       
stronger hold of the  religious         
consciousness of mankind than the ,greek
 doctrine of the  immortality of the    
soul1 or that this doctrine is plainly  
taught by  ,st4 ,paul4 ,all attempts to 
turn his eschatology into a             
rationalistic  7,arnold7 or a           
materialistic 7,kabisch7 theory must    
therefore be  decisively rejected4      
,footnote #hf3 ,col4 iii4 #a4           
,footnote #hg3 ,phil4 ii4 #f4           
,footnote #hh3 ,col4 i4 #ae-ag4         
,footnote #hi3 ,eph4 i4 #aj4            
,footnote #ij3 ,col4 iii4 #aa4          
,footnote #ia3 #a ,cor4 xv4 #bd-bh4     
,footnote #ib3 #a ,cor4 x4 #d4          
,footnote #ic3 #a ,cor4 xi4 #g4         
,footnote #id3 ,eph4 iv4 #ac4           
,footnote #ie3 ,gal4 ii4 #bj4           
,footnote #if3 ,gal4 iv4 #ai4           
,footnote #ig3 #b ,cor4 iii4 #ah4       

,footnote #ih3 ,rom4 xii4 #e4           
,footnote #ii3 #a ,cor4 xii4 #be4       
,footnote #ajj3 #a ,cor4 ii4 #a1 #b4    
,footnote #aja3 ,rom4 xiv4    ,footnote 
#ajb3 ,gal4 iv4 #i-aa4    ,footnote     
#ajc3 ,col4 ii4 #bj-bb4    ,footnote    
#ajd3 ,i have been reminded that great  
tenderness is due to  the sancta        
simplicitas of the anicula ,christiana1 
whose religion  is generally of this    
type4 ,i should agree1 if the anicula   
were not  always so ready with her      
faggot when a ,john ,huss is to be      
burnt4    ,footnote #aje3 #a ,cor4 xiv4 
#cg4    ,footnote #ajf3 ,there seem to  
have been two conceptions of the        
operations of the ,spirit in ,st4       
,paul's time3 7a7 ,he comes fitfully1   
with visible signs1 and puts men beside 
themselves2 7b7 ,he is an  abiding      
presence1 enlightening1 guiding1 and    
strengthening4 ,st4 ,paul  lays weight  
on the latter view1 without repudiating 
the former4 ,see ,h4  ,gunkel1 ,die     
,wirkungen des ,h4 ,geistes nach der    

popul4 ,anschauung d4  apostol4 ,zeit   
und d4 ,lehre der ,paulus4              
,,lecture ,,iii      ,greek3 ,dio d     
dikais mon pteroutai h tou philosophou  
dianoia  pros gar ekeinois aei esti mnm 
kata dunamin1 pros oisper theos n       
theios esti4 tois de d toioutois anr    
hupomnmasin orths  chrmenos1 teleous aei
 teletas teloumenos1 teleos onts monos  
gignetai4    ,,plato1 ,phdrus1 p4 #bdi4 
,,licht ,,und ,,farbe       ,wohne1 du  
ewiglich ,eines1 dort bei dem ewiglich  
,einen6       ,farbe1 du wechselnde1    
komm' freundlich zum ,menschen herab6   
,,schiller4         ,nel suo profondo   
vidi che s'interna1        ,legato con  
amore in un volume1        ,ci che per  
l'universo si squaderna2      ,sustanzia
 ed accidente1 e lor costume1           
,tutti conflati insieme par tal modo1   
,che ci ch'io dico  un semplice lume4   
,,dante1 ,paradiso1 c4 #cc4             
,,christian ,,platonism ,,and           
,,speculative ,,mysticism    ,i4 ,,in   
,,the ,,east    ,that was the true      

,light1 which lighteth every man coming 
into the  world4--,,john i4 #i4    ,he  
made darkness ,his hiding place1 ,his   
pavilion round about ,him2  darkness of 
waters1 thick clouds of the skies4--,ps4
 xviii4 #aa4      ,i have called this   
,lecture ,christian ,platonism and      
,speculative  ,mysticism4 ,admirers of  
,plato are likely to protest that ,plato
 himself  can hardly be called a mystic1
 and that in any case there is very     
little resemblance between the          
philosophy of his dialogues and the     
semi-,oriental ,mysticism of            
,pseudo-,dionysius the ,areopagite4 ,i  
do not  dispute either of these         
statements2 and yet ,i wish to keep the 
name of  ,plato in the title of this    
,lecture4 ,the affinity between         
,christianity  and ,platonism was very  
strongly felt throughout the period     
which we  are now to consider4 ,justin  
,martyr claims ,plato 7with             
,heraclitus#ajg  and ,socrates7 as a    
,christian before ,christ2 ,athenagoras 

calls him the  best of the forerunners  
of ,christianity1 and ,clement regards  
the  ,gospel as perfected               
,platonism4#ajh ,the ,pagans repeated so
  persistently the charge that ,christ  
borrowed from ,plato what was true  in  
,his teaching1 that ,ambrose wrote a    
treatise to confute them4 ,as a  rule1  
the ,christians did not deny the        
resemblance1 but explained it by  saying
 that ,plato had plagiarised from       
,moses--a curious notion which  we find 
first in ,philo4 ,in the ,middle ,ages  
the mystics almost  canonised ,plato3   
,eckhart speaks of him1 quaintly enough1
 as the great  priest 7der grosse       
,pfaffe72 and even in ,spain1 ,louis of 
,granada  calls him divine1 and finds in
 him the most excellent parts of        
,christian wisdom4 ,lastly1 in the      
seventeenth century the ,english        
,platonists avowed their intention of   
bringing back the ,church to her  old   
loving nurse the ,platonic philosophy4  
,these ,english ,platonists  knew what  

they were talking of2 but for the       
medival mystics ,platonism  meant the   
philosophy of ,plotinus adapted by      
,augustine1 or that of  ,proclus adapted
 by ,dionysius1 or the curious blend of 
,platonic1  ,aristotelian1 and ,jewish  
philosophy which filtered through into  
the  ,church by means of the ,arabs4    
,still1 there was justice underlying    
this  superficial ignorance4 ,plato is1 
after all1 the father of ,european      
,mysticism4#aji ,both the great types of
 mystics may appeal to  him--those who  
try to rise through the visible to the  
invisible1  through ,nature to ,god1 who
 find in earthly beauty the truest      
symbol of  the heavenly1 and in the     
imagination--the image-making faculty--a
 raft  whereon we may navigate the      
shoreless ocean of the ,infinite2 and   
those who distrust all sensuous         
representations as tending to nourish   
appetites which we ought to starve1 who 
look upon this earth as a  place of     
banishment1 upon material things as a   

veil which hides ,god's  face from us1  
and who bid us flee away from hence as  
quickly as may  be1 to seek yonder1 in  
the realm of the ideas1 the heart's true
  home4 ,both may find in the real      
,plato much congenial teaching--that    
the highest good is the greatest        
likeness to ,god--that the greatest     
happiness is the vision of ,god--that we
 should seek holiness not for  the sake 
of external reward1 but because it is   
the health of the soul1  while vice is  
its disease--that goodness is unity and 
harmony1 while  evil is discord and     
disintegration--that it is our duty and 
happiness  to rise above the visible and
 transitory to the invisible and        
permanent4 ,it may also be a pleasure to
 some to trace the fortunes of  the     
positive and negative elements in       
,plato's teaching--of the  humanist and 
the ascetic who dwelt together in that  
large mind2 to  observe how the         
world-renouncing element had to grow at 
the expense of  the other1 until full   

justice had been done to its claims2 and
 then  how the brighter1 more truly     
,hellenic side was able to assert itself
  under due safeguards1 as a precious   
thing dearly purchased1 a treasure      
reserved for the pure and humble1 and   
still only to be tasted  carefully1 with
 reverence and godly fear4 ,there is1 of
 course1 no  necessity for connecting   
this development with the name of       
,plato4 ,the  way towards a             
reconciliation of this and other        
differences is more  clearly indicated  
in the ,new ,testament2 indeed1 nothing 
can  strengthen our belief in           
inspiration so much as to observe how   
the  whole history of thought only helps
 us to understand ,st4 ,paul and  ,st4  
,john better1 never to pass beyond their
 teaching4 ,still1 the  traditional     
connexion between ,plato and ,mysticism 
is so close that we  may1 ,i think1 be  
pardoned for keeping1 like ,ficinus1 a  
lamp burning in  his honour throughout  
our present task4    ,it is not my      

purpose in these ,lectures to attempt a 
historical survey  of ,christian        
,mysticism4 ,to attempt this1 within the
 narrow limits of  eight ,lectures1     
would oblige me to give a mere skeleton 
of the  subject1 which would be of no   
value1 and of very little interest4 ,the
  aim which ,i have set before myself is
 to give a clear presentation of  an    
important type of ,christian life and   
thought1 in the hope that it  may       
suggest to us a way towards the solution
 of some difficulties  which at present 
agitate and divide us4 ,the path is     
beset with  pitfalls on either side1 as 
will be abundantly clear when we        
consider  the startling expressions     
which ,mysticism has often found for    
itself4  ,but though ,i have not        
attempted to give even an outline of the
 history  of ,mysticism1 ,i feel that   
the best and safest way of studying this
 or  any type of religion is to consider
 it in the light of its historical      
development1 and of the forms which it  

has actually assumed4 ,and so ,i  have  
tried to set these ,lectures in a       
historical framework1 and1 in  choosing 
prominent figures as representatives of 
the chief kinds of  ,mysticism1 to      
observe1 so far as possible1 the        
chronological order4  ,the present      
,lecture will carry us down to the      
,pseudo-,dionysius1 the  influence of   
whose writings during the next thousand 
years can hardly  be overestimated4 ,but
 if we are to understand how a system of
  speculative ,mysticism1 of an ,asiatic
 rather than ,european type1 came  to be
 accepted as the work of a convert of   
,st4 ,paul1 and invested with           
semi-apostolic authority1 we must pause 
for a few minutes to let our  eyes rest 
on the phenomenon called                
,alexandrianism1 which fills a large    
place in the history of the early       
,church4    ,we have seen how ,st4 ,paul
 speaks of a ,gnosis or higher          
knowledge1  which can be taught with    
safety only to the perfect or fully     

initiated2#aaj and he by no means       
rejects such expressions as the         
,pleroma 7the totality of the ,divine   
attributes71 which were  technical terms
 of speculative theism4 ,st4 ,john1 too1
 in his prologue  and other places1     
brings the ,gospel into relation with   
current  speculation1 and interprets it 
in philosophical language4 ,the movement
  known as ,gnosticism1 both within and 
without the ,church1 was an  attempt to 
complete this reconciliation between    
speculative and  revealed religion1 by  
systematising the symbols of            
transcendental  mystical theosophy4#aaa 
,the movement can only be understood as 
a  premature and unsuccessful attempt to
 achieve what the school of  ,alexandria
 afterwards partially succeeded in      
doing4 ,the anticipations  of           
,neoplatonism among the ,gnostics would 
probably be found to be very  numerous1 
if the victorious party had thought     
their writings worth  preserving4 ,but  
,gnosticism was rotten before it was    

ripe4 ,dogma was  still in such a fluid 
state1 that there was nothing to keep   
speculation within bounds2 and the      
,oriental element1 with its  insoluble  
dualism1 its fantastic mythology and    
spiritualism1 was too  strong for the   
,hellenic4 ,gnosticism presents all the 
features which we  shall find to be     
characteristic of degenerate ,mysticism4
 ,not to speak  of its oscillations     
between fanatical austerities and       
scandalous  licence1 and its belief in  
magic and other absurdities1 we seem1   
when  we read ,irenus' description of a 
,valentinian heretic1 to hear the  voice
 of ,luther venting his contempt upon   
some ,geisterer of the  sixteenth       
century1 such as ,carlstadt or          
,sebastian ,frank4 ,the fellow  is so   
puffed up1 says ,irenus1 that he        
believes himself to be  neither in      
heaven nor on earth1 but to have entered
 within the ,divine  ,pleroma1 and to   
have embraced his guardian angel4 ,on   
the strength of  which he struts about  

as proud as a cock4 ,these are the      
self-styled  'spiritual persons1' who   
say they have already reached           
perfection4  ,the later ,platonism could
 not even graft itself upon any of these
  ,gnostic systems1 and ,plotinus       
rejects them as decisively as ,origen4  
,still closer is the approximation to   
later speculation which we find  in     
,philo1 who was a contemporary of ,st4  
,paul4 ,philo and his ,therapeut  were  
genuine mystics of the monastic type4   
,many of them1 however1 had  not been   
monks all their life1 but were retired  
men of business1 who  wished to spend   
their old age in contemplation1 as many 
still do in  ,india4 ,they were1 of     
course1 not ,christians1 but ,hellenised
 ,jews1  though ,eusebius1 ,jerome1 and 
the ,middle ,ages generally thought that
  they were ,christians1 and were well  
pleased to find monks in the first      
century4#aab    ,philo's object is to   
reconcile religion and philosophy--in   
other  words1 ,moses and ,plato4#aac    

,his method#aad is to make ,platonism a 
development of ,mosaism1 and ,mosaism an
 implicit ,platonism4 ,the claims  of   
orthodoxy are satisfied by saying1      
rather audaciously1 ,all this is        
,moses' doctrine1 not mine4 ,his chief  
instrument in this difficult  task is   
allegorism1 which in his hands is a bad 
specimen of that  pseudo-science which  
has done so much to darken counsel in   
biblical  exegesis4 ,his speculative    
system1 however1 is exceedingly         
interesting4    ,god1 according to      
,philo1 is unqualified and pure ,being1 
but not  superessential4 ,he is         
emphatically ,greek3 ho n1 the ,i am1   
and the  most general 7,greek3 to       
geniktaton7 of existences4 ,at the same 
time ,he is without qualities 7,greek3  
apoios71 and ineffable  7,greek3        
arrtos74 ,in ,his inmost nature ,he is  
inaccessible2 as it  was said to ,moses1
 ,thou shalt see what is behind ,me1 but
 ,my face  shall not be seen4 ,it is    
best to contemplate ,god in silence1    

since we  can compare ,him to nothing   
that we know4 ,all our knowledge of ,god
 is  really ,god dwelling in us4 ,he has
 breathed into us something of ,his     
nature1 and is thus the archetype of    
what is highest in ourselves4 ,he  who  
is truly inspired may with good reason  
be called ,god4 ,this  blessed state    
may1 however1 be prepared for by such   
mediating agencies  as the study of     
,god's laws in nature2 and it is only   
the highest class  of saints--the souls 
born of ,god--that are exalted above the
 need of  symbols4 ,it would be easy to 
show how ,philo wavers between two      
conceptions of the ,divine nature--,god 
as simply transcendent1 and ,god  as    
immanent4 ,but this is one of the things
 that make him most  interesting4 ,his  
,judaism will not allow him really to   
believe in a ,god  without qualities4   
,the ,logos dwells with ,god as ,his    
,wisdom 7or sometimes he calls ,wisdom1 
figuratively1 the mother of the ,logos74
 ,he is the second ,god1 the  ,idea of  

,ideas2 the other ,ideas or ,powers are 
the forces which he  controls--the      
,angels1 as he adds1 suddenly           
remembering his ,judaism4  ,the ,logos  
is also the mind of ,god expressing     
itself in act3 the ,ideas1  therefore1  
are the content of the mind of ,god4    
,here he anticipates  ,plotinus2 but he 
does not reduce ,god to a logical point4
 ,his ,god is  self-conscious1 and      
reasons4 ,by the agency of the ,logos   
the worlds  were made3 the intelligible 
world1 the ,greek3 kosmos notos1 is  the
 ,logos acting as ,creator4 ,indeed1    
,philo calls the intelligible  universe 
the only and beloved ,son of ,god2 just 
as ,erigena says1 ,be  assured that the 
,word is the ,nature of all things4 ,the
 ,son represents  the world before ,god 
as ,high ,priest1 ,intercessor1 and     
,paraclete4 ,he is  the divine ,angel   
that guides us2 ,he is the bread of     
,god1 the dew  of the soul1 the         
convincer of sin3 no evil can touch the 
soul in  which ,he dwells3 ,he is the   

eternal image of the ,father1 and we1   
who  are not yet fit to be called sons  
of ,god1 may call ourselves ,his  sons4 
,philo's ethical system is that of the  
later contemplative ,mysticism4         
,knowledge and virtue can be obtained   
only by renunciation of self4           
,contemplation is a higher state than   
activity4 ,the soul should cut  off its 
right hand4 ,it should shun the         
whirlpool of life1 and not  even touch  
it with the tip of a finger4 ,the       
highest stage is when a  man leaves     
behind his finite self-consciousness1   
and sees ,god face to  face1 standing in
 ,him from henceforward1 and knowing    
,him not by  reason1 but by clear       
certainty4 ,philo makes no attempt to   
identify the  ,logos with the ,jewish   
,messiah1 and leaves no room for an     
,incarnation4    ,this remarkable system
 anticipates the greater part of        
,christian and  ,pagan ,neoplatonism4   
,the astonishing thing is that ,philo's 
work  exercised so little influence on  

the philosophy of the second century4   
,it was probably regarded as an attempt 
to evolve ,platonism out of the         
,pentateuch1 and1 as such1 interesting  
only to the ,jews1 who were at  this    
period becoming more and more           
unpopular4#aae ,the same prejudice  may 
possibly have impaired the influence of 
,numenius1 another  semi-mystical       
thinker1 who in the age of the          
,antonines evolved a kind  of ,trinity1 
consisting of ,god1 whom he also calls  
,mind2 the ,son1 the  maker of the      
world1 whom he does not call the ,logos2
 and the world1  the grandson1 as he    
calls it4 ,his ,jewish affinities are   
shown by his  calling ,plato an         
,atticising ,moses4    ,it was about one
 hundred and fifty years after ,philo   
that ,st4 ,clement  of ,alexandria tried
 to do for ,christianity what ,philo had
 tried to do  for ,judaism4 ,his aim is 
nothing less than to construct a        
philosophy of  religion--a ,gnosis1     
knowledge1 he calls it--which shall     

initiate  the educated ,christian into  
the higher mysteries of his creed4 ,the 
,logos doctrine1 according to which     
,christ is the universal  ,reason1#aaf  
the ,light that lighteth every man1 here
 asserts its full  rights4 ,reasoned    
belief is the superstructure of which   
faith#aag is  the foundation4           
,knowledge1 says ,clement1 is more than 
faith4 ,faith is a summary  knowledge of
 urgent truths1 suitable for people who 
are in a hurry2  but knowledge is       
scientific faith4 ,if the ,gnostic 7the 
philosophical  ,christian7 had to choose
 between the knowledge of ,god and      
eternal  salvation1 and it were possible
 to separate two things so inseparably  
connected1 he would choose without the  
slightest hesitation the  knowledge of  
,god4 ,on the wings of this knowledge   
the soul rises  above all earthly       
passions and desires1 filled with a calm
  disinterested love of ,god4 ,in this  
state a man can distinguish truth  from 
falsehood1 pure gold from base metal1 in

 matters of belief2 he  can see the     
connexion of the various dogmas1 and    
their harmony with  reason2 and in      
reading ,scripture he can penetrate     
beneath the literal  to the spiritual   
meaning4 ,but when ,clement speaks of   
reason or  knowledge1 he does not mean  
merely intellectual training4 ,he who   
would enter the shrine must be pure1 he 
says1 and purity is to  think holy      
things4 ,and again1 ,the more a man     
loves1 the more deeply  does he         
penetrate into ,god4 ,purity and love1  
to which he adds  diligent study of the 
,scriptures1 are all that is necessary  
to the  highest life1 though mental     
cultivation may be and ought to be a    
great  help4#aah    ,history exhibits a 
progressive training of mankind by the  
,logos4  ,there is one river of truth1  
he says1 which receives tributaries     
from every side4    ,all moral evil is  
caused either by ignorance or by        
weakness of will4  ,the cure for the one
 is knowledge1 the cure for the other is

  discipline4#aai    ,in his doctrine of
 ,god we find that he has fallen a      
victim to the  unfortunate negative     
method1 which he calls analysis4 ,it is 
the  method which starts with the       
assertion that since ,god is exalted    
above  ,being1 we cannot say what ,he   
is1 but only what ,he is not4 ,clement  
apparently objects to saying that ,god  
is above ,being1 but he strips  ,him of 
all attributes and qualities till       
nothing is left but a  nameless point2  
and this1 too1 he would eliminate1 for a
 point is a  numerical unit1 and ,god is
 above the idea of the ,monad4 ,we shall
  encounter this argument far too often 
in our survey of ,mysticism1 and  in    
writers more logical than ,clement1 who 
allowed it to dominate their  whole     
theology and ethics4    ,the ,son is the
 ,consciousness of ,god4 ,the ,father   
only sees the world as  reflected in the
 ,son4 ,this bold and perhaps dangerous 
doctrine seems  to be ,clement's own4   
,clement was not a deep or consistent   

thinker1 and the task which he  has set 
himself is clearly beyond his strength4 
,but he gathers up most  of the         
religious and philosophical ideas of his
 time1 and weaves them  together into a 
system which is permeated by his        
cultivated1 humane1  and genial         
personality4    ,especially interesting 
from the point of view of our present   
task is  the use of mystery-language    
which we find everywhere in ,clement4   
,the  ,christian revelation is the      
,divine 7or holy7 mysteries1 the ,divine
  secrets1 the secret ,word1 the        
mysteries of the ,word2 ,jesus ,christ  
is the ,teacher of the ,divine          
mysteries2 the ordinary teaching of the 
,church is the lesser mysteries2 the    
higher knowledge of the ,gnostic1       
leading to full initiation 7,greek3     
epopteia7 the great mysteries4  ,he     
borrows verbatim from a ,neopythagorean 
document a whole sentence1  to the      
effect that it is not lawful to reveal  
to profane persons the  mysteries of the

 ,word--the ,logos taking the place of  
the  ,eleusinian goddesses4 ,this       
evident wish to claim the ,greek        
mystery-worship1 with its technical     
language1 for ,christianity1 is  very   
interesting1 and the attempt was by no  
means unfruitful4 ,among  other ideas   
which seem to come direct from the      
mysteries is the notion  of deification 
by the gift of immortality4 ,clement#abj
 says  categorically1 ,greek3 to m      
phtheiresthai theiottos metechein  esti4
 ,this is1 historically1 the way in     
which the doctrine of  deification found
 its way into the scheme of ,christian  
,mysticism4  ,the idea of immortality as
 the attribute constituting ,godhead    
was1 of  course1 as familiar to the     
,greeks as it was strange to the        
,jews4#aba    ,origen supplies some     
valuable links in the history of        
speculative  ,mysticism1 but his mind   
was less inclined to mystical modes of  
thought  than was ,clement's4 ,i can    
here only touch upon a few points which 

bear  directly upon our subject4        
,origen follows ,clement in his division
 of the religious life into two  classes
 or stages1 those of faith and          
knowledge4 ,he draws too hard a  line   
between them1 and speaks with a         
professorial arrogance of the  popular1 
irrational faith which leads to somatic 
,christianity1 as  opposed to the       
spiritual ,christianity conferred by    
,gnosis or  ,wisdom4#abb ,he makes it   
only too clear that by somatic          
,christianity  he means that faith which
 is based on the gospel history4 ,of    
teaching  founded upon the historical   
narrative1 he says1 ,what better method 
could be devised to assist the masses8  
,the ,gnostic or ,sage no longer  needs 
the crucified ,christ4 ,the eternal or  
spiritual ,gospel1 which  is his        
possession1 shows clearly all things    
concerning the ,son of ,god  ,himself1  
both the mysteries shown by ,his words1 
and the things of  which ,his acts were 
the symbols4#abc ,it is not that he     

denies or  doubts the truth of the      
,gospel history1 but he feels that      
events which  only happened once can be 
of no importance1 and regards the life1 
death1 and resurrection of ,christ as   
only one manifestation of an  universal 
law1 which was really enacted1 not in   
this fleeting world  of shadows1 but in 
the eternal counsels of the ,most ,high4
 ,he  considers that those who are      
thoroughly convinced of the universal   
truths revealed by the ,incarnation and 
,atonement1 need trouble  themselves no 
more about their particular             
manifestations in time4    ,origen1 like
 the ,neoplatonists1 says that ,god is  
above or beyond  ,being2 but he is      
sounder than ,clement on this point1 for
 he attributes  self-consciousness#abd  
and reason to ,god1 who therefore does  
not  require the ,second ,person in     
order to come to ,himself4 ,also1 since 
,god  is not wholly above reason1 ,he   
can be approached by reason1 and not    
only by ecstatic vision4    ,the ,second

 ,person of the ,trinity is called by   
,origen1 as by ,clement1  the ,idea of  
,ideas4 ,he is the spiritual activity of
 ,god1 the  ,world-,principle1 the ,one 
who is the basis of the manifold4 ,human
 souls  have fallen through sin from    
their union with the ,logos1 who became 
incarnate in order to restore them to   
the state which they have lost4         
,everything spiritual is indestructible2
 and therefore every spirit  must at    
last return to the ,good4 ,for the ,good
 alone exists2 evil has  no existence1  
no substance4 ,this is a doctrine which 
we shall meet  with again4 ,man1 he     
expressly asserts1 cannot be            
consubstantial with  ,god1 for man can  
change1 while ,god is immutable4 ,he    
does not see1  apparently1 that1 from   
the point of view of the ,platonist1 his
  universalism makes man's freedom to   
change an illusion1 as belonging  to    
time only and not to eternity4    ,while
 ,origen was working out his great      
system of ecclesiastical  dogmatic1 his 

younger contemporary ,plotinus1 outside 
the ,christian  pale1 was laying the    
coping-stone on the edifice of ,greek   
philosophy  by a scheme of idealism     
which must always remain one of the     
greatest  achievements of the human     
mind4#abe ,in the history of ,mysticism 
he  holds a more undisputed place than  
,plato2 for some of the most            
characteristic doctrines of ,mysticism1 
which in ,plato are only thrown  out    
tentatively1 are in ,plotinus welded    
into a compact whole4 ,among  the       
doctrines which first receive a clear   
exposition in his writings  are1 his    
theory of the ,absolute1 whom he calls  
the ,one1 or the ,good2  and his theory 
of the ,ideas1 which differs from       
,plato's2 for ,plato  represents the    
mind of the ,world-,artist as immanent  
in the ,idea of the  ,good1 while       
,plotinus makes the ,ideas immanent in  
the universal mind2  in other words1 the
 real world 7which he calls the         
intelligible  world1 the sphere of the  

,ideas7 is in the mind of ,god4 ,he     
also1 in  his doctrine of ,vision1      
attaches an importance to revelation    
which  was new in ,greek philosophy4    
,but his psychology is really the centre
  of his system1 and it is here that the
 ,christian ,church and ,christian      
,mysticism1 in particular1 is most      
indebted to him4    ,the soul is with   
him the meeting-point of the            
intelligible and the  phenomenal4 ,it is
 diffused everywhere4#abf ,animals and  
vegetables  participate in it2#abg and  
the earth has a soul which sees and     
hears4#abh ,the soul is immaterial and  
immortal1 for it belongs to the  world  
of real existence1 and nothing that is  
can cease to be4#abi  ,the body is in   
the soul1 rather than the soul in the   
body4 ,the soul  creates the body by    
imposing form on matter1 which in itself
 is  ,no-thing1 pure indetermination1   
and next door to absolute               
non-existence4#acj ,space and time are  
only forms of our thought4 ,the         

concepts formed by the soul1 by         
classifying the things of sense1 are    
said to be ,ideas unrolled and separate1
 that is1 they are conceived  as        
separate in space and time1 instead of  
existing all together in  eternity4 ,the
 nature of the soul is triple2 it is    
presented under  three forms1 which are 
at the same time the three stages of    
perfection  which it can reach4#aca     
,there is first and lowest the animal   
and  sensual soul1 which is closely     
bound up with the body2 then there is   
the logical1 reasoning soul1 the        
distinctively human part2 and1  lastly1 
there is the superhuman stage or part1  
in which a man thinks  himself according
 to the higher intelligence1 with which 
he has become  identified1 knowing      
himself no longer as a man1 but as one  
who has  become altogether changed1 and 
has transferred himself into the higher 
region4 ,the soul is thus made one with 
,intelligence without losing  herself2  
so that they two are both one and two4  

,this is exactly  ,eckhart's doctrine of
 the funkelein1 if we identify          
,plotinus'  ,greek3 ,nous with          
,eckhart's ,god1 as we may fairly do4   
,the soul is  not altogether incarnate  
in the body2 part of it remains above1  
in the  intelligible world1 whither it  
desires to return in its entirety4      
,the world is an image of the ,divine   
,mind1 which is itself a reflection  of 
the ,one4 ,it is therefore not bad or   
evil4 ,what more beautiful  image of the
 ,divine could there be1 he asks1 than  
this world1 except  the world yonder8   
,and so it is a great mistake to shut   
our eyes to  the world around us1 and   
all beautiful things4#acb ,the love of  
beauty will lead us up a long way--up to
 the point when the love of  the ,good  
is ready to receive us4 ,only we must   
not let ourselves be  entangled by      
sensuous beauty4 ,those who do not      
quickly rise beyond  this first stage1  
to contemplate ideal form1 the universal
 mould1  share the fate of ,hylas2 they 

are engulfed in a swamp1 from which they
  never emerge4    ,the universe        
resembles a vast chain1 of which every  
being is a link4  ,it may also be       
compared to rays of light shed abroad   
from one centre4  ,everything flowed    
from this centre1 and everything desires
 to flow  back towards it4 ,god draws   
all men and all things towards ,himself 
as  a magnet draws iron1 with a constant
 unvarying attraction4 ,this theory  of 
emanation is often sharply contrasted   
with that of evolution1 and  is supposed
 to be discredited by modern science2   
but that is only true  if the emanation 
is regarded as a process in time1 which 
for the  ,neoplatonist it is not4#acc   
,in fact1 ,plotinus uses the word       
evolution to explain the process of     
nature4#acd    ,the whole universe is   
one vast organism1#ace and if one member
  suffer1 all the members suffer with   
it4#acf ,this is why a faint  movement  
of sympathy#acg stirs within us at the  
sight of any living  creature4 ,so      

,origen says1 ,as our body1 while       
consisting of many  members1 is yet held
 together by one soul1 so the universe  
is to be  thought of as an immense      
living being1 which is held together by 
one  soul--the power and the ,logos of  
,god4 ,all existence is drawn upwards   
towards ,god by a kind of centripetal   
attraction1 which is unconscious  in the
 lower1 half conscious in the higher    
organisms4    ,christian ,neoplatonism  
tended to identify the ,logos1 as the   
,second  ,person of the ,trinity1 with  
the ,greek3 ,nous1 ,mind or             
,intelligence1 of ,plotinus1 and        
rightly2 but in ,plotinus the word      
,logos has a less exalted position1     
being practically what we call  law1    
regarded as a vital force4#ach          
,plotinus' ,trinity are the ,one or the 
,good1 who is above existence1  ,god as 
the ,absolute2 the ,intelligence1 who   
occupies the sphere of real  existence1 
organic unity comprehending             
multiplicity--the ,one-,many1 as  he    

calls it1 or1 as we might call it1 ,god 
as thought1 ,god existing in  and for   
,himself2 and the ,soul1 the ,one and   
,many1 occupying the sphere  of         
appearance or imperfect reality--,god as
 action4 ,soulless matter1  which only  
exists as a logical abstraction1 is     
arrived at by looking  at things in     
disconnexion1 dull and spiritless4 ,it  
is the sphere of  the merely many1 and  
is zero1 as the ,one who is not is      
,infinity4    ,the ,intelligible ,world 
is timeless and spaceless1 and contains 
the  archetypes of the ,sensible ,world4
 ,the ,sensible ,world is our view of   
the ,intelligible ,world4 ,when we say  
it does not exist1 we mean that we      
shall not always see it in this form4   
,the ,ideas are the ultimate  form in   
which things are regarded by            
,intelligence1 or by ,god4 ,greek3      
,nous is described as at once ,greek3   
stasis and ,greek3  kinsis1 that is1 it 
is unchanging itself1 but the whole     
cosmic  process1 which is ever in flux1 

is eternally present to it as a         
process4    ,evil is disintegration4#aci
 ,in its essence it is not merely       
unreal1  but unreality as such4 ,it can 
only appear in conjunction with some    
low degree of goodness which suggests to
 ,plotinus the fine saying that  vice at
 its worst is still human1 being mixed  
with something  opposite to itself4#adj 
,the lower virtues1 as he calls the     
duties of the average  citizen1#ada are 
not only purgative1 but teach us the    
principles of  measure and rule1 which  
are ,divine characteristics4 ,this is   
immensely important1 for it is the point
 where ,platonism and ,asiatic          
,mysticism finally part company4#adb    
,but in ,plotinus1 as in his ,christian 
imitators1 they do not part  company4   
,the marching orders of the true mystic 
are those given by  ,god to ,moses on   
,sinai1 ,see that thou make all things  
according to the  pattern showed thee in
 the mount4#adc ,but ,plotinus teaches  
that1 as  the sensible world is a shadow

 of the intelligible1 so is action a    
shadow of contemplation1 suited to      
weak-minded persons4#add ,this is       
turning the tables on the man of action 
in good earnest2 but it is  false       
,platonism and false ,mysticism4 ,it    
leads to the heartless  doctrine1 quite 
unworthy of the man1 that public        
calamities are to the  wise man only    
stage tragedies--or even stage          
comedies4#ade ,the moral  results of    
this self-centred individualism are     
exemplified by the  medival saint and   
visionary1 ,angela of ,foligno1 who     
congratulates  herself on the deaths of 
her mother1 husband1 and children1 who  
were  great obstacles in the way of     
,god4    ,a few words must be said about
 the doctrine of ecstasy in ,plotinus4  
,he  describes the conditions under     
which the vision is granted in exactly  
the same manner as some of the          
,christian mystics1 e4g4 ,st4 ,juan of  
the  ,cross4 ,the soul when possessed by
 intense love of ,him divests herself   

of all form which she has1 even of that 
which is derived from  ,intelligence2   
for it is impossible1 when in conscious 
possession of  any other attribute1     
either to behold or to be harmonised    
with ,him4  ,thus the soul must be      
neither good nor bad nor aught else1    
that she  may receive ,him only1 ,him   
alone1 she alone4#adf ,while she is in  
this  state1 the ,one suddenly appears1 
with nothing between1 and they are  no  
more two but one2 and the soul is no    
more conscious of the body or  of the   
mind1 but knows that she has what she   
desired1 that she is  where no deception
 can come1 and that she would not       
exchange her bliss  for all the heaven  
of heavens4    ,what is the source of   
this strange aspiration to rise above   
,reason and  ,intelligence1 which is for
 ,plotinus the highest category of      
,being1 and  to come out on the other   
side of ,being ,greek3 epekeina ts      
ousias8 ,plotinus says himself elsewhere
 that he who would rise above  ,reason1 

falls outside it2 and yet he regards it 
as the highest  reward of the           
philosopher-saint to converse with the  
hypostatised  ,abstraction who          
transcends all distinctions4 ,the vision
 of the ,one is  no part of his         
philosophy1 but is a mischievous        
accretion4 ,for though  the             
superessential ,absolute may be a       
logical necessity1 we cannot  make it1  
even in the most transcendental manner1 
an object of sense1  without depriving  
it of its ,absoluteness4 ,what is really
 apprehended  is not the ,absolute1 but 
a kind of form of formlessness1 an idea 
not  of the ,infinite1 but of the       
,indefinite4#adg ,it is then impossible 
to  distinguish the ,one1 who is said to
 be above all distinctions1 from        
undifferentiated matter1 the formless   
,no-thing1 which ,plotinus puts at  the 
lowest end of the scale4    ,i believe  
that the ,neoplatonic vision owes its   
place in the system  to two very        
different causes4 ,first1 there was the 

direct influence of  ,oriental          
philosophy of the ,indian type1 which   
tries to reach the  universal by wiping 
out all the boundary-lines of the       
particular1 and  to gain infinity by    
reducing self and the world to zero4 ,of
 this we  shall say more when we come to
 ,dionysius4 ,and1 secondly1 the blank  
trance was a real psychical experience1 
quite different from the  visions which 
we have already mentioned4 ,evidence is 
abundant2 but ,i  will content myself   
with one quotation4#adh ,in ,amiel's    
,journal#adi  we have the following     
record of such a trance3 ,like a dream  
which  trembles and dies at the first   
glimmer of dawn1 all my past1 all my    
present1 dissolve in me1 and fall away  
from my consciousness at the  moment    
when it returns upon myself4 ,i feel    
myself then stripped and  empty1 like a 
convalescent who remembers nothing4 ,my 
travels1 my  reading1 my studies1 my    
projects1 my hopes1 have faded from my  
mind4  ,all my faculties drop away from 

me like a cloak that one takes off1     
like the chrysalis case of a larva4 ,i  
feel myself returning into a  more      
elementary form4 ,but ,amiel1 instead of
 expecting the advent of  the ,one while
 in this state1 feels that the pleasure 
of it is  deadly1 inferior in all       
respects to the joys of action1 to the  
sweetness of love1 to the beauty of     
enthusiasm1 or to the sacred  savour of 
accomplished duty4#adi    ,we may now   
return to the ,christian ,platonists4   
,we find in ,methodius  the interesting 
doctrine that the indwelling ,christ    
constantly repeats  ,his passion in     
remembrance1 for not otherwise could the
 ,church  continually conceive          
believers1 and bear them anew through   
the bath of  regeneration1 unless       
,christ were repeatedly to die1 emptying
 ,himself  for the sake of each         
individual4 ,christ must be born        
mentally  7,greek3 mots7 in every       
individual1 and each individual saint1  
by participating in ,christ1 is born as 

a ,christ4 ,this is exactly the         
language of ,eckhart and ,tauler1 and it
 is first clearly heard in the  mouth of
 ,methodius4#aej ,the new features are  
the great prominence  given to          
immanence--the mystical union as an opus
 operatum1 and  the individualistic     
conception of the relation of ,christ to
 the soul4    ,of the ,greek ,fathers   
who followed ,athanasius1 ,i have only  
room to  mention ,gregory of ,nyssa1 who
 defends the historical incarnation in  
true mystical fashion by an appeal to   
spiritual experience4 ,we all  believe  
that the ,divine is in everything1      
pervading and embracing it1  and        
dwelling in it4 ,why then do men take   
offence at the dispensation  of the     
mystery taught by the ,incarnation of   
,god1 who is not1 even now1  outside of 
mankind8444 ,if the form of the ,divine 
presence is not now  the same1 we are as
 much agreed that ,god is among us      
to-day1 as that  ,he was in the world   
then4 ,he argues in another place that  

all other  species of spiritual beings  
must have had their ,incarnations of    
,christ2 a doctrine which was afterwards
 condemned1 but which seems to  follow  
necessarily from the ,logos doctrine4   
,these arguments show very  clearly that
 for the ,greek theologians ,christ is a
 cosmic principle1  immanent in the     
world1 though not confined by it2 and   
that the scheme  of salvation is        
regarded as part of the constitution of 
the universe1  which is animated and    
sustained by the same ,power who was    
fully  manifested in the ,incarnation4  
,the question has been much debated1    
whether the influence of ,persian  and  
,indian thought can be traced in        
,neoplatonism1 or whether that  system  
was purely ,greek4#aea ,it is a quite   
hopeless task to try to  disentangle the
 various strands of thought which make  
up the web of  ,alexandrianism4 ,but    
there is no doubt that the philosophers 
of ,asia  were held in reverence at this
 period4 ,origen1 in justifying an      

esoteric mystery-religion for the       
educated1 and a mythical religion  for  
the vulgar1 appeals to the example of   
the ,persians and ,indians4  ,and       
,philostratus1 in his life of           
,apollonius of ,tyana1 says1 or makes   
his hero say1 that while all wish to    
live in the presence of ,god1 the       
,indians alone succeed in doing so4 ,and
 certainly there are parts of           
,plotinus1 and still more of his        
successors1 which strongly suggest      
,asiatic influences4#aeb ,when we turn  
from ,alexandria to ,syria1 we  find    
,orientalism more rampant4 ,speculation 
among the ,syrian monks of  the third1  
fourth1 and fifth centuries was perhaps 
more unfettered  and more audacious than
 in any other branch of ,christendom at 
any  period4 ,our knowledge of their    
theories is very limited1 but one       
strange specimen has survived in the    
book of ,hierotheus1#aec which  the     
canonised ,dionysius praises in glowing 
terms as an inspired  oracle--indeed1 he

 professes that his own object in       
writing was merely  to popularise the   
teaching of his master4 ,the book       
purports to be the  work of ,hierotheus1
 a holy man converted by ,st4 ,paul1 and
 an  instructor of the real ,dionysius  
the ,areopagite4 ,a strong case has     
been made out for believing the real    
author to be a ,syrian mystic1  named   
,stephen bar ,sudaili1 who lived late in
 the fifth century4 ,if  this theory is 
correct1 the date of ,dionysius will    
have to be moved  somewhat later than it
 has been the custom to fix it4 ,the    
book of the  holy ,hierotheus on the    
hidden mysteries of the ,divinity has   
been but  recently discovered1 and only 
a summary of it has as yet been made    
public4 ,but it is of great interest and
 importance for our subject1  because   
the author has no fear of being accused 
of ,pantheism or any  other heresy1 but 
develops his particular form of         
,mysticism to its  logical conclusions  
with unexampled boldness4 ,he will show 

us better  even than his pupil          
,dionysius whither the method of        
analysis really  leads us4    ,the      
system of ,hierotheus is not exactly    
,pantheism1 but ,pan-,nihilism4         
,everything is an emanation from the    
,chaos of bare indetermination  which he
 calls ,god1 and everything will return 
thither4 ,there are  three periods of   
existence--7#a7 the present world1 which
 is evil1 and  is characterised by      
motion2 7#b7 the progressive union with 
,christ1 who  is all and in all--this is
 the period of rest2 7#c7 the period of 
fusion of all things in the ,absolute4  
,the three ,persons of the  ,trinity1 he
 dares to say1 will then be swallowed   
up1 and even the  devils are thrown into
 the same melting-pot4 ,consistently    
with  mystical principles1 these three  
world-periods are also phases in the    
development of individual souls4 ,in the
 first stage the mind aspires  towards  
its first principles2 in the second it  
becomes ,christ1 the  universal ,mind2  

in the third its personality is wholly  
merged4 ,the  greater part of the book  
is taken up with the adventures of the  
,mind  in climbing the ladder of        
perfection2 it is a kind of theosophical
  romance1 much more elaborate and      
fantastic than the revelations of       
medival mystics4 ,the author professes  
to have himself enjoyed the  ecstatic   
union more than once1 and his method of 
preparing for it is  that of the        
,quietists3 ,to me it seems right to    
speak without words1  and understand    
without knowledge1 that which is above  
words and  knowledge2 this ,i apprehend 
to be nothing but the mysterious silence
  and mystical quiet which destroys     
consciousness and dissolves forms4      
,seek1 therefore1 silently and          
mystically1 that perfect and primitive  
union with the ,arch-,good4    ,we      
cannot follow the ascent of the ,mind   
through its various  transmutations4 ,at
 one stage it is crucified1 with the    
soul on the  right and the body on the  

left2 it is buried for three days2 it   
descends into ,hades2#aed then it       
ascends again1 till it reaches          
,paradise1 and is united to the tree of 
life3 then it descends below  all       
essences1 and sees a formless luminous  
essence1 and marvels that  it is the    
same essence that it has seen on high4  
,now it comprehends  the truth1 that    
,god is consubstantial with the         
,universe1 and that  there are no real  
distinctions anywhere4 ,so it ceases to 
wander4 ,all  these doctrines1 concludes
 the seer1 which are unknown even to    
angels1 have ,i disclosed to thee1 my   
son 7,dionysius1 probably74  ,know1     
then1 that all nature will be confused  
with the ,father--that  nothing will    
perish or be destroyed1 but all will    
return1 be  sanctified1 united1 and     
confused4 ,thus ,god will be all in     
all4#aee    ,there can be no difficulty 
in classifying this ,syrian philosophy  
of  religion4 ,it is the ancient        
religion of the ,brahmins1 masquerading 

in  clothes borrowed from ,jewish       
allegorists1 half-,christian ,gnostics1 
,manicheans1 ,platonising ,christians1  
and pagan ,neoplatonists4 ,we will  now 
see what ,st4 ,dionysius makes of this  
system1 which he accepts as  from the   
hand of one who has not only learned1   
but felt the things of  ,god4#aef       
,the date and nationality of ,dionysius 
are still matters of  dispute4#aeg      
,mysticism changes so little that it is 
impossible to  determine the question by
 internal evidence1 and for our purposes
 it  is not of great importance4 ,the   
author was a monk1 perhaps a ,syrian    
monk3 he probably perpetrated a         
deliberate fraud--a pious fraud1 in  his
 own opinion--by suppressing his own    
individuality1 and fathering  his books 
on ,st4 ,paul's ,athenian convert4 ,the 
success of the imposture  is amazing1   
even in that uncritical age1 and gives  
much food for  reflection4 ,the sixth   
century saw nothing impossible in a book
  full of the later ,neoplatonic        

theories--those of ,proclus rather  than
 ,plotinus#aeh--;having been written in 
the first century4  ,and the medival    
,church was ready to believe that this  
strange  semi-pantheistic ,mysticism    
dropped from the lips of ,st4 ,paul4#aei
    ,dionysius is a theologian1 not a   
visionary like his master ,hierotheus4  
,his main object is to present          
,christianity in the guise of a         
,platonic  mysteriosophy1 and he uses   
the technical terms of the mysteries    
whenever he can4#afj ,his philosophy is 
that of his day--the later              
,neoplatonism1 with its strong ,oriental
 affinities4    ,beginning with the     
,trinity1 he identifies ,god the ,father
 with the  ,neoplatonic ,monad1 and     
describes ,him as superessential        
,indetermination1 super-rational ,unity1
 the ,unity which unifies  every unity1 
superessential ,essence1 irrational     
,mind1 unspoken  ,word1 the absolute    
,no-thing which is above all            
existence4#afa  ,even now he is not     

satisfied with the tortures to which he 
has  subjected the ,greek language4 ,no 
monad or triad1 he says1 can  express   
the all-transcending hiddenness of the  
all-transcending  super-essentially     
super-existing super-,deity4#afb ,but   
even in the  midst of this barbarous    
jargon he does not quite forget his     
,plato4  ,the ,good and ,beautiful1 he  
says1 are the cause of all things that  
are2 and all things love and aspire to  
the ,good and ,beautiful1 which  are1   
indeed1 the sole objects of their       
desire4 ,since1 then1 the  ,absolute    
,good and ,beautiful is honoured by     
eliminating all qualities  from it1 the 
non-existent also 7,greek3 to m on7 must
  participate in the ,good and          
,beautiful4 ,this pathetic absurdity    
shows  what we are driven to if we try  
to graft ,indian nihilism upon the      
,platonic doctrine of ideas4 ,plotinus  
tried hard to show that his ,first      
,person was very different from his     
lowest category--non-existent  matter2  

but if we once allow ourselves to define
 the ,infinite as the  ,indefinite1 the 
conclusion which he deprecated cannot   
long be averted4    ,god is the ,being  
of all that is4 ,since1 then1 ,being is 
identical  with ,god or ,goodness1 evil1
 as such1 does not exist2 it only exists
 by  its participation in good4 ,evil1  
he says1 is not in things which  exist2 
a good tree cannot bear evil fruit2 it  
must1 therefore1 have  another origin4  
,but this is dualism1 and must be       
rejected4#afc ,nor  is evil in ,god1 nor
 of ,god2 nor in the angels2 nor in the 
human soul2  nor in the brutes2 nor in  
inanimate nature2 nor in matter4 ,having
 thus  hunted evil out of every corner  
of the universe1 he asks--,is evil1     
then1 simply privation of good8 ,but    
privation is not evil in itself4  ,no2  
evil must arise from disorderly and     
inharmonious motion4 ,as dirt  has been 
defined as matter in the wrong place1 so
 evil is good in the  wrong place4 ,it  
arises by a kind of accident2 all evil  

is done with  the object of gaining some
 good2 no one does evil as evil4 ,evil  
in  itself is that which is nohow1      
nowhere1 and no thing2 ,god sees evil   
as good4 ,students of modern philosophy 
will recognise a theory which  has found
 influential advocates in our own day3  
that evil needs only  to be             
supplemented1 rearranged1 and           
transmuted1 in order to take its  place 
in the universal harmony4#afd    ,all   
things flow out from ,god1 and all will 
ultimately return to ,him4 ,the  first  
emanation is the ,thing in itself       
7,greek3 auto to einai71 which          
corresponds to the ,plotinian ,greek3   
,nous1 and to the ,johannine ,logos4    
,he also calls it ,life in itself and   
,wisdom in itself 7,greek3  autoz1      
autosophia74 ,of this he says1 ,so then 
the ,divine ,wisdom in  knowing itself  
will know all things4 ,it will know the 
material  immaterially1 and the divided 
inseparably1 and the many as one        
7,greek3  heniais71 knowing all things  

by the standard of absolute unity4      
,these  important speculations are left 
undeveloped by ,dionysius1 who merely   
states them dogmatically4 ,the universe 
is evolved from the ,son1 whom he       
identifies with the ,thing in itself1   
,wisdom1 or ,life in itself4 ,in        
creation the ,one is said to become     
multiform4 ,the world is a necessary    
process of ,god's being4 ,he created it 
as the sun shines1 without              
premeditation or purpose4 ,the ,father  
is simply ,one2 the ,son has also       
plurality1 namely1 the words 7or        
reasons7 which make existence 7,greek3  
tous ousiopoious logous71 which theology
 calls fore-ordinations  7,greek3       
proorismous74 ,but he does not teach    
that all separate  existences will      
ultimately be merged in the ,one4 ,the  
highest ,unity gives  to all the power  
of striving1 on the one hand1 to share  
in the ,one2 on  the other1 to persist  
in their own individuality4 ,and in more
 than one  passage he speaks of ,god as 

a ,unity comprehending1 not abolishing  
differences4#afe ,god is before all     
things2 ,being is in ,him1 and ,he  is  
not in ,being4 ,thus ,dionysius tries to
 safeguard the transcendence of  ,god1  
and to escape ,pantheism4 ,the          
outflowing process is appropriated by   
the mind by the positive method--the    
downward path through finite            
existences3 its conclusion is1 ,god is  
,all4 ,the return journey is by  the    
negative road1 that of ascent to ,god by
 abstraction and analysis3  its         
conclusion is1 ,all is not ,god4#aff    
,the negative path is the high  road of 
a large school of mystics2 ,i will say  
more about it presently4  ,the mystic1  
says ,dionysius1 must leave behind all  
things both in the  sensible and in the 
intelligible worlds1 till he enters into
 the  darkness of nescience that is     
truly mystical4 ,this ,divine darkness1 
he says elsewhere1 is the light         
unapproachable mentioned by ,st4 ,paul1 
a deep but dazzling darkness1 as ,henry 

,vaughan calls it4 ,it is dark  through 
excess of light#afg4 ,this doctrine     
really renders nugatory what  he has    
said about the persistence of           
distinctions after the restitution  of  
all things2 for as all colours agree in 
the dark1 so1 for us1 in  proportion as 
we attain to true knowledge1 all        
distinctions are lost in  the absolute4 
,the soul is bipartite4 ,the higher     
portion sees the ,divine images         
directly1 the lower by means of symbols4
 ,the latter are not to be  despised1   
for they are true impressions of the    
,divine characters1  and necessary      
steps1 which enable us to mount to the  
one undivided  truth by analogy4 ,this  
is the way in which we should use the   
,scriptures4 ,they have a symbolic truth
 and beauty1 which is  intelligible only
 to those who can free themselves from  
the puerile  myths#afh 7the language is 
startling in a saint of the ,church67 in
  which they are sometimes embedded4    
,dionysius has much to say about        

love#afi1 but he uses the word  ,greek3 
ers1 which is carefully avoided in the  
,new ,testament4 ,he  admits that the   
,scriptures often use ,greek3 agap1 but 
justifies  his preference for the other 
word by quoting ,st4 ,ignatius1 who says
 of  ,christ1 ,my ,love ,greek3 ers is  
crucified4#agj ,divine ,love1 he  finely
 says1 is an eternal circle1 from       
goodness1 through goodness1  and to     
goodness4    ,the medival mystics were  
steeped in ,dionysius1 though his system
  received from them certain            
modifications under the influence of    
,aristotelianism4 ,he is therefore1 for 
us1 a very important figure2 and  there 
are two parts of his scheme which1 ,i   
think1 require fuller  consideration    
than has been given them in this very   
slight sketch4 ,i  mean the negative    
road to ,god1 and the pantheistic       
tendency4    ,the theory that we can    
approach ,god only by analysis or       
abstraction has  already been briefly   
commented on4 ,it is no invention of    

,dionysius4  ,plotinus uses similar     
language1 though his view of ,god as the
 fulness of  all life prevented him from
 following the negative path with       
thoroughness4 ,but in ,proclus we find  
the phrases1 afterwards so common1      
about sinking into the ,divine ,ground1 
forsaking the manifold for the  ,one1   
and so forth4 ,basilides1 long before1  
evidently carried the  doctrine to its  
extremity3 ,we must not even call ,god  
ineffable1 he  says1 since this is to   
make an assertion about ,him2 ,he is    
above every  name that is named4#aga ,it
 was a commonplace of ,christian        
instruction  to say that in ,divine     
matters there is great wisdom in        
confessing our  ignorance--this phrase  
occurs in ,cyril's catechism4#agb ,but  
confessing  our ignorance is a very     
different thing from refusing to make   
any  positive statements about ,god4 ,it
 is true that all our language about    
,god must be inadequate and symbolic2   
but that is no reason for  discarding   

all symbols1 as if we could in that way 
know ,god as ,he knows  ,himself4 ,at   
the bottom1 the doctrine that ,god can  
be described only by  negatives is      
neither ,christian nor ,greek1 but      
belongs to the old  religion of ,india4 
,let me try to state the argument and   
its consequence  in a clear form4 ,since
 ,god is the ,infinite1 and the         
,infinite is the  antithesis of the     
finite1 every attribute which can be    
affirmed of a  finite being may be      
safely denied of ,god4 ,hence ,god can  
only be  described by negatives2 ,he can
 only be discovered by stripping off    
all the qualities and attributes which  
veil ,him2 ,he can only be  reached by  
divesting ourselves of all the          
distinctions of personality1  and       
sinking or rising into our uncreated    
nothingness2 and ,he can only  be       
imitated by aiming at an abstract       
spirituality1 the passionless  apathy of
 an universal which is nothing in       
particular4 ,thus we see  that the whole

 of those developments of ,mysticism    
which despise symbols1  and hope to see 
,god by shutting the eye of sense1 hang 
together4 ,they  all follow from the    
false notion of ,god as the abstract    
,unity  transcending1 or rather         
excluding1 all distinctions4 ,of course1
 it is  not intended to exclude         
distinctions1 but to rise above them2   
but the  process of abstraction1 or     
subtraction1 as it really is1 can never 
lead  us to the ,one4#agc ,the only     
possible unification with such an       
,infinite is the ,greek3 atermn ngretos 
hupnos of ,nirvana4#agd ,nearly  all    
that repels us in medival religious     
life--its other-worldliness  and passive
 hostility to civilisation--the         
emptiness of its ideal  life--its       
maltreatment of the body--its           
disparagement of family  life--the      
respect which it paid to indolent       
contemplation--springs from  this one   
root4 ,but since no one who remains a   
,christian can exhibit the  results of  

this theory in their purest form1 ,i    
shall take the liberty of  quoting a few
 sentences from a pamphlet written by a 
native ,indian judge  who ,i believe is 
still living4 ,his object is to explain 
and commend to  ,western readers the    
mystical philosophy of his own          
country3#age--;,he  who in perfect rest 
rises from the body and attains the     
highest light1  comes forth in his own  
proper form4 ,this is the immortal soul4
 ,the  ascent is by the ladder of one's 
thoughts4 ,to know ,god1 one must first 
know one's own spirit in its purity1    
unspotted by thought4 ,the soul is      
hidden behind the veil of thought1 and  
only when thought is worn off1  becomes 
visible to itself4 ,this stage is called
 knowledge of the soul4  ,next is       
realised knowledge of ,god1 who rises   
from the bosom of the soul4  ,this is   
the end of progress2 differentiation    
between self and others has  ceased4    
,all the world of thought and senses is 
melted into an ocean  without waves or  

current4 ,this dissolution of the world 
is also known as  the death of the      
sinful or worldly ',i1' which veils the 
true ,ego4 ,then  the formless ,being of
 the ,deity is seen in the regions of   
pure  consciousness beyond the veil of  
thought4 ,consciousness is wholly       
distinct from thought and senses2 it    
knows them2 they do not know it4  ,the  
only proof is an appeal to spiritual    
experience4 ,in the highest  stage one  
is absolutely inert1 knowing nothing in 
particular4#agf    ,most of this would  
have been accepted as precious truth by 
the  medival ,church mystics4#agg ,the  
words nakedness1 darkness1  nothingness1
 passivity1 apathy1 and the like1 fill  
their pages4 ,we  shall find that this  
time-honoured phraseology was adhered to
 long  after the grave moral dangers    
which beset this type of ,mysticism had 
been recognised4 ,tauler1 for instance1 
who lays the axe to the root of  the    
tree by saying1 ,christ never arrived at
 the emptiness of which  these men talk1

 repeats the old jargon for pages       
together4 ,german  ,mysticism really    
rested on another basis1 and when       
,luther had the  courage to break with  
ecclesiastical tradition1 the via       
negativa  rapidly disappeared within the
 sphere of his influence4    ,but it    
held sway for a long time--so long that 
we cannot complain if  many have said1  
,this is the essence of ,mysticism4     
,mysticism is such  a vague word1 that  
one must not quarrel with any private   
interpretation of it2 but we must point 
out that this limitation  excludes the  
whole army of symbolists1 a school      
which1 in ,europe at  least1 has shown  
more vitality than introspective        
,mysticism4 ,i regard  the via negativa 
in metaphysics1 religion1 and ethics as 
the great  accident of ,christian       
,mysticism4 ,the break-up of the ancient
  civilisation1 with the losses and     
miseries which it brought upon          
humanity1 and the chaos of brutal       
barbarism in which ,europe weltered  for

 some centuries1 caused a widespread    
pessimism and world-weariness  which is 
foreign to the temper of ,europe1 and   
which gave way to  energetic and        
full-blooded activity in the            
,renaissance and  ,reformation4 ,asiatic
 ,mysticism is the natural refuge of men
 who have  lost faith in civilisation1  
but will not give up faith in ,god4 ,let
 us  fly hence to our dear country6 ,we 
hear the words already in               
,plotinus--nay1 even in ,plato4 ,the sun
 still shone in heaven1 but on  earth he
 was eclipsed4 ,mysticism cuts too deep 
to allow us to live  comfortably on the 
surface of life2 and so all the heavy   
and the  weary weight of all this       
unintelligible world pressed upon men   
and  women till they were fain to throw 
it off1 and seek peace in an  invisible 
world of which they could not see even a
 shadow round about  them4    ,but ,i do
 not think that the negative road is a  
pure error4 ,there is a  negative side  
in religion1 both in thought and        

practice4 ,we are first  impelled to    
seek the ,infinite by the limitations of
 the finite1 which  appear to the soul  
as bonds and prison walls4 ,it is       
natural first to  think of the ,infinite
 as that in which these barriers are    
done away4  ,and in practice we must die
 daily1 if our inward man is to be daily
  renewed4 ,we must die to our lower    
self1 not once only but continually1  so
 that we may rise on stepping stones of 
many dead selves to higher  things4#agh 
,we must die to our first superficial   
views of the world  around us1 nay1 even
 to our first views of ,god and         
religion1 unless  the childlike in our  
faith is by arrest of growth to become  
the  childish4 ,all the good things of  
life have first to be renounced1 and    
then given back to us1 before they can  
be really ours4 ,it was  necessary that 
these truths should be not only taught1 
but lived  through4 ,the individual has 
generally to pass through the quagmire  
of  the everlasting ,no1 before he can  

set his feet on firm ground2 and  the   
,christian races1 it seems1 were obliged
 to go through the same  experience4    
,moreover1 there is a sense in which all
 moral effort aims  at destroying the   
conditions of its own existence1 and so 
ends  logically in self-negation4 ,our  
highest aim as regards ourselves is to  
eradicate1 not only sin1 but temptation4
 ,we do not feel that we have  won the  
victory until we no longer wish to      
offend4 ,but a being who was  entirely  
free from temptation would be either    
more or less than a  man--either a beast
 or a ,god1 as ,aristotle says4#agi     
,there is1  therefore1 a half truth in  
the theory that the goal of earthly     
striving is negation and absorption4    
,but it at once becomes false if  we    
forget that it is a goal which cannot be
 reached in time1 and which  is         
achieved1 not by good and evil          
neutralising each other1 but by  death  
being swallowed up in victory4 ,if      
morality ceases to be moral  when it has

 achieved its goal1 it must pass into   
something which  includes as well as    
transcends it--a condition which is     
certainly not  fulfilled by             
contemplative passivity4#ahj    ,these  
thoughts should save us from regarding  
the saints of the  cloister with        
impatience or contempt4 ,the limitations
 incidental to  their place in history  
do not prevent them from being glorious 
pioneers among the high passes of the   
spiritual life1 who have scaled  heights
 which those who talk glibly about the  
mistake of asceticism  have seldom even 
seen afar off4    ,we must next consider
 briefly the charge of ,pantheism1 which
 has been  flung rather indiscriminately
 at nearly all speculative mystics1 from
  ,plotinus to ,emerson4 ,dionysius1    
naturally enough1 has been freely       
charged with it4 ,the word is so loosely
 and thoughtlessly used1 even  by       
writers of repute1 that ,i hope ,i may  
be pardoned if ,i try to  distinguish   
7so far as can be done in a few words7  

between the various  systems which have 
been called pantheistic4    ,true       
,pantheism must mean the identification 
of ,god with the totality  of existence1
 the doctrine that the universe is the  
complete and only  expression of the    
nature and life of ,god1 who on this    
theory is only  immanent and not        
transcendent4 ,on this view1 everything 
in the world  belongs to the ,being of  
,god1 who is manifested equally in      
everything4  ,whatever is real is       
perfect2 reality and perfection are the 
same  thing4 ,here again we must go to  
,india for a perfect example4 ,the      
learned behold ,god alike in the        
reverend ,brahmin1 in the ox and in the 
elephant1 in the dog and in him who     
eateth the flesh of dogs4#aha ,so  ,pope
 says that ,god is as full1 as perfect1 
in a hair as heart4 ,the  ,persian      
,sufis were deeply involved in this     
error1 which leads to all  manner of    
absurdities and even immoralities4 ,it  
is inconsistent with  any belief in     

purpose1 either in the whole or in the  
parts4 ,evil1  therefore1 cannot exist  
for the sake of a higher good3 it must  
be  itself good4 ,it is easy to see how 
this view of the world may pass  into   
pessimism or nihilism2 for if everything
 is equally real and  equally ,divine1  
it makes no difference1 except to our   
tempers1 whether  we call it everything 
or nothing1 good or bad4    ,none of the
 writers with whom we have to deal can  
fairly be charged  with this error1     
which is subversive of the very         
foundations of true  religion4 ,eckhart1
 carried away by his love of paradox1   
allows himself  occasionally to make    
statements which1 if logically          
developed1 would  come perilously near  
to it2 and ,emerson's philosophy is more
 seriously  compromised in this         
direction4 ,dionysius is in no such     
danger1 for the  simple reason that he  
stands too near to ,plato4 ,the         
pantheistic  tendency of medival        
,realism requires a few words of        

explanation1  especially as ,i have     
placed the name of ,plato at the head of
 this  ,lecture4 ,plato's doctrine of   
ideas aimed at establishing the         
transcendence of the highest ,idea--that
 of ,god4 ,but the medival  doctrine of 
ideas1 as held by the extreme ,realists1
 sought to find  room in the summum     
genus for a harmonious coexistence of   
all  things4 ,it thus tended towards    
,pantheism2#ahb while the ,aristotelian 
,realists maintained the substantial    
character of individuals outside  the   
,being of ,god4 ,this view1 says        
,eicken1 which quite inverted the       
historical and logical relation of the  
,platonic and ,aristotelian             
philosophies1 was maintained till the   
close of the ,middle ,ages4    ,we may  
also call pantheistic any system which  
regards the cosmic  process as a real   
becoming of ,god4 ,according to this    
theory1 ,god  comes to ,himself1 attains
 full self-consciousness1 in the highest
 of  ,his creatures1 which are1 as it   

were1 the organs of ,his self-unfolding 
,personality4 ,this is not a philosophy 
which commends itself specially  to     
speculative mystics1 because it involves
 the belief that time is  an ultimate   
reality4 ,if in the cosmic process1     
which takes place in  time1 ,god becomes
 something which ,he was not before1 it 
cannot be said  that ,he is exalted     
above time1 or that a thousand years are
 to ,him as  one day4 ,i shall say in my
 fourth ,lecture that this view cannot  
justly  be attributed to ,eckhart4      
,students of ,hegel are not agreed      
whether it  is or is not part of their  
master's teaching4#ahc    ,the idea of  
will as a world-principle--not in       
,schopenhauer's sense  of a blind force 
impelling from within1 but as the       
determination of a  conscious           
,mind--lifts us at once out of          
,pantheism4#ahd ,it sets up the         
distinction between what is and what    
ought to be1 which ,pantheism  cannot   
find room for1 and at the same time     

implies that the cosmic  process is     
already complete in the consciousness of
 ,god1 which cannot  be held if ,he is  
subordinated to the category of time4   
,god is more than the ,all1 as being the
 perfect ,personality1 whose ,will  is  
manifested in creation under necessarily
 imperfect conditions4 ,he  is also in a
 sense less than the ,all1 since pain1  
weakness1 and sin1  though known to ,him
 as infinite ,mind1 can hardly be felt  
by ,him as  infinite ,perfection4 ,the  
function of evil in the economy of the  
universe is an inscrutable mystery1     
about which speculative ,mysticism      
merely asserts that the solution cannot 
be that of the ,manicheans4 ,it  is only
 the ,agnostic#ahe who will here offer  
the dilemma of ,dualism  or ,pantheism1 
and try to force the mystic to accept   
the second  alternative4    ,there are  
two other views of the universe which   
have been called  pantheistic1 but      
incorrectly4    ,the first is that      
properly called ,acosmism1 which we have

  encountered as ,orientalised          
,platonism4 ,plato's theory of ideas was
  popularised into a doctrine of two    
separate worlds1 related to each  other 
as shadow and substance4 ,the           
intelligible world1 which is in the     
mind of ,god1 alone exists2 and thus1 by
 denying reality to the visible  world1 
we get a kind of idealistic ,pantheism4 
,but the notion of ,god as  abstract    
,unity1 which1 as we have seen1 was held
 by the later  ,neoplatonists and their 
,christian followers1 seems to make a   
real  world impossible2 for bare ,unity 
cannot create1 and the metaphor of  the 
sun shedding his rays explains nothing4 
,accordingly the  intelligible world1   
the sphere of reality1 drops out1 and we
 are  left with only the infra-real     
world and the supra-real ,one4 ,so we   
are  landed in nihilism or ,asiatic     
,mysticism#ahf4    ,the second is the   
belief in the immanence of a ,god who is
 also  transcendent4 ,this should be    
called ,panentheism1 a useful word      

coined by ,krause1 and not ,pantheism4  
,in its true form it is an  integral    
part of ,christian philosophy1 and1     
indeed1 of all rational  theology4 ,but 
in proportion as the indwelling of ,god1
 or of ,christ1 or  the ,holy ,spirit in
 the heart of man1 is regarded as an    
opus  operatum1 or as complete          
substitution of the ,divine for the     
human1  we are in danger of a           
self-deification which resembles the    
maddest  phase of ,pantheism#ahg4       
,pantheism1 as ,i understand the word1  
is a pitfall for ,mysticism to  avoid1  
not an error involved in its first      
principles4 ,but we need not  quarrel   
with those who have said that           
speculative ,mysticism is the           
,christian form of ,pantheism4 ,for     
there is much truth in ,amiel's  dictum1
 that ,christianity1 if it is to triumph
 over ,pantheism1 must  absorb it4      
,those are no true friends to the cause 
of religion who  would base it entirely 
upon dogmatic supernaturalism4 ,the     

passion for  facts which are objective1 
isolated1 and past1 often prevents us   
from  seeing facts which are eternal and
 spiritual4 ,we cry1 ,lo here1 and  ,lo 
there1 and forget that the kingdom of   
,god is within us and  amongst us4 ,the 
great service rendered by the           
speculative mystics to  the ,christian  
,church lies in their recognition of    
those truths which  ,pantheism grasps   
only to destroy4    ,,footnotes3        
,footnote #ajg3 ,the mention of         
,heraclitus is very interesting4 ,it    
shows  that the ,christians had already 
recognised their affinity with the      
great speculative mystic of ,ephesus1   
whose fragments supply many  mottoes for
 essays on ,mysticism4 ,the             
identification of the ,heraclitean      
,greek3 nous-logos with the ,johannine  
,logos appears also in ,euseb4  ,prp4   
,ev4 xi4 #ai1 quoted above4    ,footnote
 #ajh3 ,greek3 ho panta aristos         
,platn--oion pheothoroumenos1  he calls 
him4    ,footnote #aji3 ,mysticism finds

 in ,plato all its texts1 says ,emerson 
truly4    ,footnote #aaj3 ,the doctrine 
of reserve in religious teaching1 which 
some have thought dishonest1 rests on   
the self-evident proposition  that it   
takes two to tell the truth--one to     
speak1 and one to hear4    ,footnote    
#aaa3 ,man kann den ,gnosticismus des   
zweiten ,jahrhunderts als               
theologisch-transcendente ,mystik1 und  
die eigentliche ,mystik als             
substantiell-immanente ,gnosis          
bezeichnen 7,noack74    ,footnote #aab3 
,see ,conybeare's interesting account of
 the ,therapeut  in his edition of      
,philo1 ,on the ,contemplative ,life1   
and his  refutation of the theory of    
,lucius1 ,zeller1 etc41 that the        
,therapeut  belong to the end of the    
third century4    ,footnote #aac3       
,stoical influence is also strong in    
,philo4    ,footnote #aad3 ,the ,jewish 
writer ,aristobulus 7about #afj ,b4,c47 
is said  to have used the same argument 
in an exposition of the ,pentateuch     

addressed to ,ptolemy ,philometor4      
,footnote #aae3 ,compare ,philo's own   
account 7in ,flaceum7 of the            
anti-,semitic outrages at ,alexandria4  
,footnote #aaf3 ,there is a very        
explicit identification of ,christ with 
,greek3 ,nous in the second book of the 
,miscellanies3 ,he says1 ,whoso  hath   
ears to hear1 let him hear4 ,and who is 
',he'8 ,let ,epicharmus  answer3 ,greek3
 ,nous hora1 etc4    ,footnote #aag3    
,see ,bigg1 ,christian ,platonists of   
,alexandria1  especially pp4 #ib1 #ic4  
,footnote #aah3 ,greek3 ,pistis is here 
used in the familiar sense  7which falls
 far short of the ,johannine7 of assent 
to particular  dogmas4 ,greek3 ,gnsis   
welds these together into a consistent  
whole1 and at the same time confers a   
more immediate apprehension of  truth4  
,footnote #aai3 ,greek3 asksis or       
,greek3 praxis4    ,footnote #abj3      
,strom1 v4 #aj4 #fc4    ,footnote #aba3 
,see1 further1 ,appendices ,b and ,c4   
,footnote #abb3 ,in ,origen1 ,greek3    

sophia is a higher term than  ,greek3   
gnsis4    ,footnote #abc3 ,the ,greek   
word is ,greek3 ainigmata riddles4 ,on  
the  whole subject see ,harnack1        
,history of ,dogma1 vol4 ii4 p4 #cdb4   
,footnote #abd3 ,god1 he says 7,tom4 in 
,matth4 xiii4 #efi71 is not the         
absolutely unlimited2 for then ,he could
 not have self-consciousness3  ,his     
omnipotence is limited by ,his goodness 
and wisdom 7cf4 ,cels4 iii4  #dic74     
,footnote #abe3 ,i hope it is not       
necessary to apologise for devoting a   
few pages to ,plotinus in a work on     
,christian ,mysticism4 ,every treatise  
on religious thought in the early       
centuries of our era must take  account 
of the parallel developments of         
religious philosophy in the  old and the
 new religions1 which illustrate and    
explain each other4    ,footnote #abf3  
,enn4 i4 #h4 #ad1 ,greek3 ouden estin ho
 amoiron esti  psychs4    ,footnote     
#abg3 ,enn4 iii4 #b4 #g2 iv4 #g4 #ad4   
,footnote #abh3 ,enn4 iv4 #d4 #bf4      

,footnote #abi3 ,enn4 iv4 #a4 #a4       
,footnote #acj3 ,matter is ,greek3      
alogos1 skia logou kai ekptsis  ,enn4   
vi4 #c4 #g2 ,greek3 eidlon kai phantasma
 ogkou kai hopostases  ephesis ,enn4    
iii4 #f4 #g4 ,if matter were nothing1 it
 could not  desire to be something2 it  
is only no-thing--,greek3 apeiria1      
aoristia4    ,footnote #aca3 ,these     
three stages correspond to the three    
stages in  the mystical ladder which    
appear in nearly all the ,christian     
mystics4    ,footnote #acb3 ,the        
passages in which ,plotinus 7following  
,plato7 bids  us mount by means of the  
beauty of the external world1 do not    
contradict those other passages in which
 he bids us turn from things  without to
 look within 7,enn4 iv4 #h4 #a74        
,remembering that postulate  of all     
,mysticism1 that we only know a thing by
 becoming it1 we see  that we can only  
know the world by finding it in         
ourselves1 that is1  by cherishing those
 best hours of the mind 7as ,bacon says7

 when we  are lifted above ourselves    
into union with the world-spirit4       
,footnote #acc3 ,plotinus guards against
 this misconception of his  meaning1    
,enn4 v4 #a4 #f1 ,greek3 ekpodn de min  
est genesis h en  chron4    ,footnote   
#acd3 ,greek3 z exelittomen1 ,enn4 i4   
#d4 #a4    ,footnote #ace3 ,see         
especially ,enn4 iv4 #d4 #cb1 #de4      
,footnote #acf3 ,enn4 iv4 #e4 #c1       
,greek3 sympathes to zon tode to  pan   
heaut2 iv4 #i4 #a1 ,greek3 hste emou    
pathontos synaisthanesthai  to pan4     
,footnote #acg3 ,enn4 iv4 #e4 #b1       
,greek3 sympatheia amydra4    ,footnote 
#ach3 ,see ,bigg1 ,neoplatonism1 pp4    
#bjc1 #bjd4 ,he shows that  with the    
,stoics1 who were ,pantheists1 the      
,logos was regarded as a  first cause2  
while with the ,neoplatonists1 who were 
,theists and  ,transcendentalists1 it   
was a secondary cause4 ,in ,plotinus1   
the  ,intelligence 7,greek3 ,nous7 is   
,king 7,enn4 v4 #c4 #c71 and the  law of
 ,being 7,enn4 v4 #i4 #e74 ,but the     

,johannine ,logos is both  immanent and 
transcendent4 ,when ,erigena says1      
,certius cognoscas  verbum ,naturam     
omnium esse1 he gives a true but        
incomplete account of  the ,nature of   
the ,second ,person of the ,trinity4    
,footnote #aci3 ,see especially the     
interesting passage1 ,enn4 i4 #h4  #c4  
,footnote #adj3 ,enn4 i4 #h4 #ac1       
,greek3 eti anthrpikon h kakia1         
memigmen tini enanti4    ,footnote #ada3
 ,the civil virtues are the four        
cardinal virtues4  ,plotinus says that  
justice is mainly minding one's business
 ,greek3  oikeiopagia4 ,the purifying   
virtues deliver us from sin2 but ,greek3
  h spoud ouk ex hamartias einai1 alla  
theon einai4    ,footnote #adb3 ,compare
 ,hegel's criticism of ,schelling1 in   
the latter's  ,asiatic period1 ,this    
so-called wisdom1 instead of being      
yielded up to  the influence of         
,divinity by its contempt of all        
proportion and  definiteness1 does      
really nothing but give full play to    

accident and  caprice4 ,nothing was ever
 produced by such a process better than 
mere  dreams 7,vorrede zur              
,phnomenologie1 p4 #f74    ,footnote    
#adc3 ,heb4 viii4 #e4    ,footnote #add3
 ,enn4 iii4 #h4 #d1 ,greek3 hotan       
asthenssin eis to  therein1 skian       
therias kai logou tn praxin poiountai4  
,cf4 ,amiel's  ,journal1 p4 #d1 action  
is coarsened thought4    ,footnote #ade3
 ,enn4 iii4 #b4 #ae1 ,greek3 hypokriseis
 and ,greek3  paignion2 and see iv4 #c4 
#cb1 on love of family and country4     
,footnote #adf3 ,enn4 vi4 #g4 #cd4      
,footnote #adg3 ,it would be an easy and
 rather amusing task to  illustrate     
these and other aberrations of          
speculative ,mysticism from  ,herbert   
,spencer's philosophy4 ,e4g41 he says   
that1 though we cannot  know the        
,absolute1 we may have an indefinite    
consciousness of it4  ,it is impossible 
to give to this consciousness any       
qualitative or  quantitative expression 
whatever1 and yet it is quite certain   

that we  have it4 ,herbert ,spencer's   
,absolute is1 in fact1 matter without   
form4 ,this would seem to identify it   
rather with the all but  non-existing   
matter of ,plotinus 7see ,bigg1         
,neoplatonism1 p4 #aii71  than with the 
superessential ,one2 but the later      
,neoplatonists found  themselves        
compelled to call both extremes ,greek3 
to m on4  ,plotinus struggles hard      
against this conclusion1 which threatens
 to  make shipwreck of his ,platonism4  
,hierotheus1 whose sympathies are       
really with ,indian nihilism1 welcomes  
it4    ,footnote #adh3 ,the following   
advice to directors1 quoted by ,ribet1  
may  be added3 ,director valde attendat 
ad personas languid valetudinis4  ,si   
tales person a ,deo in quamdam quietis  
orationem eleventur1  contingit ut in   
omnibus exterioribus sensibus certum    
defectum ac  speciem quamdam deliquii   
experiantur cum magna interna suavitate1
 quod  extasim aut raptum esse facillime
 putant4 ,cum ,dei ,spiritui resistere  

nolint1 deliquio illi totas se tradunt1 
et per multas horas1 cum  gravissimo    
valetudinis priudicio in tali mentis    
stupiditate  persistunt4 ,genuine       
ecstasy1 according to these authorities1
 seldom  lasted more than half an hour1 
though one ,spanish writer speaks of an 
hour4    ,footnote #adi3 ,mrs4 ,humphry 
,ward's translation1 p4 #gb4            
,footnote #aej3 ,but we should not      
forget that the author of the  ,epistle 
to ,diognetus speaks of the ,logos as   
,greek3 pantote neos en  hagin kardiais 
gennmenos4 ,in ,st4 ,augustine we find  
it in a rather  surprisingly bold form2 
cf4 in ,joh4 tract4 #ba1 n4 #h3         
,gratulemur et  grates agamus non solum 
nos ,christianos factos esse1 sed       
,christum 444  ,admiramini1 gaudete3    
,christus facti sumus4 ,but this is     
really quite  different from saying1    
,ego ,christus factus sum4    ,footnote 
#aea3 ,greek must here be taken to      
include the ,hellenised  ,jews4 ,those  
who are best qualified to speak on      

,jewish philosophy  believe that it     
exercised a strong influence at         
,alexandria4    ,footnote #aeb3 ,proclus
 used to say that a philosopher ought to
 show no  exclusiveness in his worship1 
but to be the hierophant of the whole   
world4 ,this eclecticism was not        
confined to cultus4    ,footnote #aec3  
,this account of ,hierotheus is1 of     
course1 taken from  ,frothingham's most 
interesting monograph4    ,footnote     
#aed3 ,so ,ruysbroek says1 ,we must not 
remain on the top of  the ladder1 but   
must descend4    ,footnote #aee3        
,another description of the process of  
,greek3 haplsis  may be found in the    
curious work of ,ibn ,tophail1          
translated by ,ockley1  and much valued 
by the ,quakers1 ,the ,improvement of   
,human ,reason1  exhibited in the ,life 
of ,hai ,ebn ,tophail1 newly translated 
by ,simon  ,ockley1 #agjh4    ,footnote 
#aef3 ,greek3 ou monon mathn alla kai   
pathn ta theia4    ,footnote #aeg3 ,see 
,harnack1 vol4 iv4 pp4 #bhb1 #bhc4      

,frothingham's  theory necessitates a   
later date for ,dionysius than that     
which ,harnack  believes to be most     
probable2 the latter is in favour of    
placing him  in the second half of the  
fourth century4 ,the writings of        
,dionysius  are quoted not much later   
than #ejj4    ,footnote #aeh3 ,e4g41 he 
agrees with ,iamblichus and ,proclus 7in
  opposition to ,plotinus7 that the ,one
 is exalted above ,goodness4            
,footnote #aei3 ,at the present time the
 more pious opinion among  ,romanists   
seems to be that the writings are       
genuine2 but ,schram admits  that there 
is a dispute about their date1 and some 
,roman ,catholic  writers frankly give  
them up4    ,footnote #afj3 ,e4g41      
,greek3 katharsis1 phtismos1 mysis1     
epopteia1  thesis2 hierotelestai and    
,greek3 mystaggoi 7of the bishops71     
,greek3 phtistikoi 7of the priests71    
,greek3 kathartikoi 7of the  deacons74  
,footnote #afa3 ,greek3 hyperousios     
aoristia--hyper noun  hynots--henas     

henopoios hapass henados--hyperousios   
ousia kai nous  anotos kai logos        
arrtos--alogia kai anosia kai           
annymia--auto de  m on s pass ousias    
epekeina4    ,footnote #afb3 ,greek3    
oudemia  monas  trias exagei tn hyper   
panta krypsiotta ts hyper panta         
hyperousis hyperouss  hypertheottos4    
,footnote #afc3 ,greek3 monas estai pass
 dyados arch is stated by  ,dionysius as
 an axiom4    ,footnote #afd3 ,see      
especially ,bradley's ,appearance and   
,reality1 some  chapters of which show a
 certain sympathy with ,oriental        
speculative  ,mysticism4 ,the theory set
 forth in the text must not be          
confounded  with true pantheism1 to     
which every phenomenon is equally       
,divine as it  stands4 ,see below1 at   
the end of this ,lecture4    ,footnote  
#afe3 ,see ,de ,div4 ,nom4 iv4 #h2 xi4  
#c4    ,footnote #aff3 ,dionysius       
distinguishes three movements of the    
human  mind--the circular1 wherein the  
soul returns in upon itself2 the        

oblique1 which includes all knowledge   
acquired by reasoning1  research1 etc42 
and the direct1 in which we rise to     
higher truths by  using outward things  
as symbols4 ,the last two he regards as 
inferior  to the circular movement1     
which he also calls simplification      
,greek3 haplsis4    ,footnote #afg3 ,the
 highest stage 7he says7 is to reach    
,greek3 ton  hyperphton gnophon kai di' 
ablepsias kai agnsias idein kai gnnai4  
,footnote #afh3 ,greek3 tolmsa          
theoplasia and ,greek3 paidarids        
phantasia are phrases which he applies  
to ,old ,testament narratives4          
,footnote #afi3 ,as a specimen of his   
language1 we may quote ,greek3  esti de 
ekstatikos ho theios ers1 ouk en eautn  
einai tous erastas1  alla tn ermenn 7,de
 ,div4 ,nom4 iv4 #ac74    ,footnote     
#agj3 ,i am inclined to agree with ,dr4 
,bigg 7,bampton  ,lectures1             
,introduction1 pp4 viii1 ix71 that      
,dionysius and the later  mystics are   
right in their interpretation of this   

passage4 ,bishop  ,lightfoot and some   
other good scholars take it to mean1 ,my
 earthly  affections are crucified4 ,see
 the discussion in ,lightfoot's edition 
of ,ignatius1 and in ,bigg's            
,introduction4 ,i am not aware how the  
vindicators of ,dionysius explain the   
curious fact that he had read           
,ignatius6    ,footnote #aga3 ,see      
,harnack1 vol4 iii4 pp4 #bdb1 #bdc4 ,st4
 ,augustine  accepts this statement1    
which he repeats word for word4         
,footnote #agb3 ,compare also ,hooker3  
,of ,thee our fittest eloquence is      
silence1 while we confess without       
confessing that ,thy glory is           
unsearchable and beyond our reach4      
,footnote #agc3 ,unity is a             
characteristic or simple condition of   
real  being1 but it is not in itself a  
principle of being1 so that the ,one    
could exist substantially by itself4 ,to
 personify the barest of  abstractions1 
call it ,god1 and then try to imitate   
it1 would seem too  absurd a fallacy to 

have misled any one1 if history did not 
show that  it has had a long and        
vigorous life4    ,footnote #agd3 ,cf4  
,sir ,w4 ,hamilton 7,discussions1 p4    
#ba73 ,by  abstraction we annihilate the
 object1 and by abstraction we          
annihilate  the subject of              
consciousness4 ,but what remains8       
,nothing4 ,when we  attempt to conceive 
it as reality1 we hypostatise the zero4 
,footnote #age3 ,the ,hon4 ,p4          
,ramanathan1 ,c4,m4,g41                 
,attorney-,general of  ,ceylon1 ,the    
,mystery of ,godliness4 ,this           
interesting essay was brought  to my    
notice by the kindness of the ,rev4     
,g4,u4 ,pope1 ,d4,d41 ,university       
,teacher in ,tamil and ,telugu at       
,oxford4    ,footnote #agf3 ,hunt's     
summary of the philosophy of the        
,vedanta ,sara  7,pantheism and         
,christianity1 p4 #ai7 may help to      
illustrate further  this type of        
thought4 ,brahma is called the universal
 soul1 of which  all human souls are a  

part4 ,these are likened to a succession
 of  sheaths1 which envelop each other  
like the coats of an onion4 ,the  human 
soul frees itself by knowledge from the 
sheath4 ,but what is this  knowledge8   
,to know that the human intellect and   
all its faculties are  ignorance and    
delusion4 ,this is to take away the     
sheath1 and to find  that ,god is all4  
,whatever is not ,brahma is nothing4 ,so
 long as a man  perceives himself to be 
anything1 he is nothing4 ,when he       
discovers  that his supposed            
individuality is no individuality1 then 
he has  knowledge4 ,man must strive to  
rid himself of himself as an object of  
thought4 ,he must be only a subject4 ,as
 subject he is ,brahma1 while the       
objective world is mere phenomenon4     
,footnote #agg3 ,we may compare with    
them the following maxims1 which1       
enclosed in an outline of ,mount        
,carmel1 form the frontispiece to an    
early edition of ,st4 ,juan of the      
,cross3--    ,to enjoy ,infinity1 do not

 desire to taste of finite things4      
,to arrive at the knowledge of          
,infinity1 do not desire the knowledge  
of finite things4    ,to reach to the   
possession of ,infinity1 desire to      
possess nothing4    ,to be included in  
the being of ,infinity1 desire to be    
thyself nothing  whatever4    ,the      
moment that thou art resting in a       
creature1 thou art ceasing to  advance  
towards ,infinity4    ,in order to unite
 thyself to ,infinity1 thou must        
surrender finite  things without        
reserve4    ,after reading such maxims1 
we shall probably be inclined to think  
that  the ,infinite as a name for ,god  
might be given up with advantage4       
,there is nothing ,divine about a tabula
 rasa4    ,footnote #agh3 ,cf4 ,richard 
of ,st4 ,victor1 de ,prp4 ,anim4 #hc1   
ascendat per semetipsum super           
semetipsum4    ,footnote #agi3 ,the same
 is true of our attitude towards        
external  nature4 ,we are always trying 
to rise from the shadow to the          

substance1  from the symbol to the thing
 symbolised1 and so far the followers of
  the negative road are right2 but the  
life of ,mysticism 7on this side7       
consists in the process of              
spiritualising our impressions2 and to  
regard the process as completed is to   
lose shadow and substance  together4    
,footnote #ahj3 ,it may be objected that
 ,i have misused the term via  negativa1
 which is merely the line of argument   
which establishes the  transcendence of 
,god1 as the affirmative road           
establishes ,his  immanence4 ,i am far  
from wishing to depreciate a method     
which when  rightly used is a safeguard 
against ,pantheism1 but the whole       
history  of medival ,mysticism shows how
 mischievous it is when followed        
exclusively4    ,footnote #aha3 ,see    
,vaughan1 ,hours with the ,mystics1 vol4
 i4 p4 #eh4    ,footnote #ahb3 ,seth1   
,hegelianism and ,personality1 states   
this more  strongly4 ,he argues that the
 ultimate goal of ,realism is a         

thorough-going ,pantheism4 ,god is      
regarded as the summum genus1 the       
ultimate ,substance of which all        
existing things are accidents4 ,the     
genus inheres in the species1 and the   
species in individuals1 as an  entity   
common to all and identical in each1 an 
entity to which  individual differences 
adhere as accidents4    ,footnote #ahc3 
,mc,taggart1 ,studies in ,hegelian      
,dialectic1 p4 #aei sq41  argues that   
,hegel means that the ,absolute ,idea   
exists eternally in its  full           
perfection4 ,there can be no real       
development in time4 ,infinite  time is 
a false infinite of endless aggregation4
 ,the whole discussion  is very         
instructive and interesting4            
,footnote #ahd3 ,so ,lasson says well1  
in his book on ,meister ,eckhart1       
,mysticism views everything from the    
standpoint of teleology1 while          
,pantheism generally stops at causality4
    ,footnote #ahe3 ,as1 for instance1  
,leslie ,stephen tries to do in his     

,agnostic's ,apology4    ,footnote #ahf3
 ,the system of ,spinoza1 based on the  
canon1 ,omnis  determinatio est negatio1
 proceeds by wiping out all dividing    
lines1  which he regards as illusions1  
in order to reach the ultimate truth of 
things4 ,this1 as ,hegel showed1 is     
acosmism rather than ,pantheism1 and    
certainly not atheism4 ,the method of   
,spinoza should have led him1 as  the   
same method led ,dionysius1 to define   
,god as ,greek3 hyperousios  aoristia4  
,he only escapes this conclusion by an  
inconsistency4 ,see ,e4  ,caird1        
,evolution of ,religion1 vol4 i4 pp4    
#ajd1 #aje4    ,footnote #ahg3 ,there is
 a third system which is called         
pantheistic2  but as it has nothing to  
do with ,mysticism1 ,i need not try to  
determine whether it deserves the name  
or not4 ,it is that which  deifies      
physical law4 ,sometimes it is          
materialism grown sentimental1  as it   
has been lately described2 sometimes it 
issues in stern  ,fatalism4 ,this is    

,stoicism2 and high ,calvinism is simply
 ,christian  ,stoicism4 ,it has been    
called pantheistic1 because it admits   
only one  ,will in the universe4        
,,lecture ,,iv      ,greek3 ,edizsamn   
emeuton4    ,,heraclitus4      ,la      
philosophie n'est pas philosophie si    
elle ne touche  l'abme2  mais elle cesse
 d'tre philosophie si elle y tombe4     
,,cousin4         ,denn ,alles muss in  
,nichts zerfallen1      ,wenn es im     
,sein beharren will4    ,,goethe4       
,seek no more abroad1 say ,i1           
,house and ,home1 but turn thine eye    
,inward1 and observe thy breast2        
,there alone dwells solid ,rest4        
,say not that this ,house is small1     
,girt up in a narrow wall3      ,in a   
cleanly sober mind      ,heaven itself  
full room doth find4      ,here content 
make thine abode      ,with thyself and 
with thy ,god4      ,here in this sweet 
privacy      ,may'st thou with thyself  
agree1      ,and keep ,house in peace1  
tho' all      ,th' ,universe's fabric   

fall4    ,,joseph ,,beaumont4           
,the ,one remains1 the many change and  
pass3        ,heaven's light for ever   
shines2 earth's shadows fly3      ,life1
 like a dome of many-coloured glass1    
,stains the white radiance of ,eternity4
    ,,shelley4        ,,christian       
,,platonism ,,and ,,speculative         
,,mysticism    #b4 ,,in ,,the ,,west    
,know ye not that ye are a temple of    
,god1 and that the ,spirit of ,god      
dwelleth in you8--#a ,,cor4 iii4 #af4   
,we have seen that ,mysticism1 like most
 other types of religion1 had  its      
cradle in the ,east4 ,the ,christian    
,platonists1 whom we considered  in the 
last ,lecture1 wrote in ,greek1 and we  
had no occasion to mention  the ,western
 ,churches4 ,but after the              
,pseudo-,dionysius1 the ,east had       
little more to contribute to ,christian 
thought4 ,john of ,damascus1 in  the    
eighth century1 half mystic and half    
scholastic1 need not detain  us4 ,the   
,eastern ,churches rapidly sank into a  

deplorably barbarous  condition1 from   
which they have never emerged4 ,we may  
therefore turn  away from the           
,greek-speaking countries1 and trace the
 course of  ,mysticism in the ,latin and
 ,teutonic races4    ,scientific        
,mysticism in the ,west did not all pass
 through ,dionysius4  ,victorinus1 a    
,neoplatonic philosopher1 was converted 
to ,christianity  in his old age1 about 
#cfj ,a4,d4 ,the story of his           
conversion1 and the  joy which it caused
 in the ,christian community1 is told by
 ,st4  ,augustine#ahh4 ,he was a deep   
thinker of the speculative mystical     
type1 but a clumsy and obscure writer1  
in spite of his rhetorical  training4   
,his importance lies in his position as 
the first ,christian  ,neoplatonist who 
wrote in ,latin4    ,the ,trinitarian   
doctrine of ,victorinus anticipates in a
 remarkable  manner that of the later   
philosophical mystics4 ,the ,father1  he
 says1 eternally knows ,himself in the  
,son4 ,the ,son is the                  

self-objectification of ,god1 the forma 
of ,god#ahi1 the utterance  of the      
,absolute4 ,the ,father is cessatio1    
silentium1 quies2  but ,he is also motus
 while the ,son is motio4 ,there is no  
contradiction between motus and cessatio
 since motus is  not the same as        
mutatio4 ,movement belongs to the being 
of ,god2  and this eternal movement is  
the generation of the ,son4 ,this       
eternal  generation is exalted above    
time4 ,all life is now3 we live always  
in  the present1 not in the past or     
future2 and thus our life is a symbol   
of eternity1 to which all things are for
 ever present#aij4 ,the  generation of  
the ,son is at the same time the        
creation of the  archetypal world2 for  
the ,son is the cosmic principle#aia1   
through  whom all that potentially is is
 actualised4 ,he even says that the     
,father is to the ,son as ,greek3 ho m n
 to ,greek3 ho n1 thus  taking the step 
which ,plotinus wished to avoid1 and    
applying the same  expression to the    

superessential ,god as to               
infra-essential  matter4#aib    ,this   
actualisation is a self-limitation of   
,god1#aic but involves no  degradation4 
,victorinus uses language implying the  
subordination of  the ,son1 but is      
strongly opposed to ,arianism4    ,the  
,holy ,ghost is the bond 7copula7 of the
 ,trinity1 joining in  perfect love the 
,father and the ,son4 ,victorinus is the
 first to use  this idea1 which         
afterwards became common4 ,it is based  
on the  ,neoplatonic triad of status1   
progressio1 regressus 7,greek3 mon1     
proodos1 epistroph74 ,in another place  
he symbolises the ,holy ,ghost  as the  
female principle1 the ,mother of ,christ
 in ,his eternal life4  ,this metaphor  
is a relic of ,gnosticism1 which the    
,church wisely  rejected4    ,the second
 ,person of the ,trinity contains in    
,himself the archetypes of  everything4 
,he is the elementum1 habitaculum1      
habitator1  locus of the universe4 ,the 
material world was created for man's    

probation4 ,all spirits pre-existed1 and
 their partial immersion in an  impure  
material environment is a degradation   
from which they must  aspire to be      
delivered4 ,but the whole mundane       
history of a soul is  only the          
realisation of the idea which had       
existed from all eternity  in the mind  
of ,god4 ,these doctrines show that     
,victorinus is involved  in a dualistic 
view of matter1 and in a form of        
predestinarianism2 but  he has no       
definite teaching on the relation of sin
 to the ideal  world4    ,his language  
about ,christ and the ,church is        
mystical in tone4 ,the  ,church is      
,christ1 he says2 ,the resurrection of  
,christ is our  resurrection2 and of the
 ,eucharist1 ,the body of ,christ is    
life4    ,we now come to ,st4 ,augustine
 himself1 who at one period of his life 
was a diligent student of ,plotinus4 ,it
 would be hardly justifiable to  claim  
,st4 ,augustine as a mystic1 since there
 are important parts of  his teaching   

which have no affinity to ,mysticism2   
but it touched him  on one side1 and he 
remained half a ,platonist4 ,his natural
 sympathy  with ,mysticism was not      
destroyed by the vulgar and perverted   
forms of  it with which he was first    
brought in contact4 ,the ,manicheans and
  ,gnostics only taught him to          
distinguish true ,mysticism from false3 
he  soon saw through the pretensions of 
these sectaries1 while he was not       
ashamed to learn from ,plotinus4 ,the   
mystical or ,neoplatonic element in  his
 theology will be clearly shown in the  
following extracts4 ,in a few  places he
 comes dangerously near to some of the  
errors which we found  in ,dionysius4   
,god is above all that can be said of   
,him4 ,we must not even call ,him       
ineffable2#aid ,he is best adored in    
silence1#aie best known by              
nescience1#aif best described by        
negatives4#aig ,god is absolutely       
immutable2 this is a doctrine on which  
he often insists1 and which  pervades   

all his teaching about predestination4  
,the world pre-existed  from all        
eternity in the mind of ,god2 in the    
,word of ,god1 by whom all  things were 
made1 and who is immutable ,truth1 all  
things and events  are stored up        
together unchangeably1 and all are one4 
,god sees the  time-process not as a    
process1 but gathered up into one       
harmonious  whole4 ,this seems very near
 to acosmism1 but there are other       
passages  which are intended to guard   
against this error4 ,for instance1 in   
the  ,confessions#aih he says that      
things above are better than things     
below2 but all creation together is     
better than things above2 that is  to   
say1 true reality is something higher   
than an abstract  spirituality4#aii     
,he is fond of speaking of the ,beauty  
of ,god2 and as he identifies  beauty   
with symmetry1#bjj it is plain that the 
formless ,infinite is  for him1 as for  
every true ,platonist1 the bottom and   
not the top of  the scale of being4     

,plotinus had perhaps been the first to 
speak of  the ,divine nature as the     
meeting-point of the ,good1 the ,true1  
and the  ,beautiful2 and this           
conception1 which is of great value1    
appears also  in ,augustine4 ,there are 
three grades of beauty1 they both say1  
corporeal1 spiritual1 and divine1#bja   
the first being an image of the  second1
 and the second of the third4#bjb       
,righteousness is the truest            
beauty1#bjc ,augustine says more than   
once4 ,all that is beautiful  comes from
 the highest ,beauty1 which is ,god4    
,this is true ,platonism1  and points to
 ,mysticism of the symbolic kind1 which 
we must consider  later4 ,st4 ,augustine
 is on less secure ground when he says  
that evil  is simply the splash of dark 
colour which gives relief to the        
picture2  and when in other places he   
speaks of it as simple privation of     
good4  ,but here again he closely       
follows ,plotinus4#bjd    ,st4          
,augustine was not hostile to the idea  

of a ,world-,soul2 he regards  the      
universe as a living organism2#bje but  
he often warns his readers  against     
identifying ,god and the world1 or      
supposing that ,god is merely  immanent 
in creation4 ,the ,neoplatonic teaching 
about the relation of  individual souls 
to the ,world-,soul may have helped him 
to formulate  his own teaching about the
 mystical union of ,christians with     
,christ4  ,his phrase is that ,christ   
and the ,church are una persona4    ,st4
 ,augustine arranges the ascent of the  
soul in seven stages4#bjf  ,but the     
higher steps are1 as usual1 purgation1  
illumination1 and  union4 ,this last1   
which he calls the vision and           
contemplation of  truth1 is not a step1 
but the goal of the journey4 ,when we   
have  reached it1 we shall understand   
the wholesomeness of the doctrines  with
 which we were fed1 as children with    
milk2 the meaning of such  hard sayings 
as the resurrection of the body will    
become plain to  us4 ,of the blessedness

 which attends this state he says       
elsewhere1#bjg ,i entered1 and beheld   
with the mysterious eye of my  soul the 
light that never changes1 above the eye 
of my soul1 above my  intelligence4 ,it 
was something altogether different from 
any earthly  illumination4 ,it was      
higher than my intelligence because it  
made me1  and ,i was lower because made 
by it4 ,he who knows the truth knows    
that  light1 and he who knows that light
 knows eternity4 ,love knows that       
light4 ,and again he says1#bjh ,what is 
this which flashes in upon  me1 and     
thrills my heart without wounding it8 ,i
 tremble and ,i burn2 ,i  tremble1      
feeling that ,i am unlike ,him2 ,i burn1
 feeling that ,i am like  ,him4    ,one 
more point must be mentioned before we  
leave ,st4 ,augustine4 ,in  spite of1 or
 rather because of1 his ,platonism1 he  
had nothing but  contempt for the later 
,neoplatonism1 the theurgic and         
theosophic  apparatus of ,iamblichus and
 his friends4 ,i have said nothing yet  

about  the extraordinary development of 
magic in all its branches1 astrology1   
necromancy1 table-rapping1 and other    
kinds of divination1 charms and  amulets
 and witchcraft1 which brought ridicule 
upon the last struggles  of paganism4   
,these aberrations of ,nature-,mysticism
 will be dealt with  in their later     
developments in my seventh ,lecture4    
,st4 ,augustine1  after mentioning some 
nonsensical incantations of the         
abracadabra  kind1 says1 ,a ,christian  
old woman is wiser than these           
philosophers4  ,in truth1 the spirit of 
,plato lived in1 and not outside        
,christianity1  even in the time of     
,porphyry4 ,and on the cultus of angels 
and spirits1  which was closely         
connected with theurgic superstition1   
,st4  ,augustine's judgment is very     
instructive4 ,whom should ,i find1 he   
asks1 to reconcile me to ,thee8 ,should 
,i approach the angels8 ,with  what     
prayers1 with what rites8 ,many1 as ,i  
hear1 have tried this  method1 and have 

come to crave for curious visions1 and  
have been  deceived1 as they            
deserved4#bji    ,in spite of ,st4      
,augustine's ,platonism and the immense 
influence which  he exercised1 the      
,western ,church was slow in developing 
a mystical  theology4 ,the ,greek       
,mysticism1 based on emanation1 was not 
congenial  to the ,western mind1 and the
 time of the ,german1 with its          
philosophy  of immanence1 was not yet4  
,the tendency of ,eastern thinkers is to
 try  to gain a view of reality as a    
whole1 complete and entire3 the form    
under which it most readily pictures it 
is that of space4 ,the ,west  seeks     
rather to discover the universal laws   
which in every part of the  universe are
 working out their fulfilment4 ,the form
 under which it  most readily pictures  
reality is that of time4#baj ,thus      
,neoplatonism had to undergo certain    
modifications before it could  enter    
deeply into the religious consciousness 
of the ,west4    ,the next great name is

 that of ,john ,scotus ,erigena1#baa an 
,english or  ,irish monk1 who in the    
ninth century translated ,dionysius into
 ,latin4  ,erigena is unquestionably one
 of the most remarkable figures of the  
,middle ,ages4 ,a bold and independent  
thinker1 he made it his aim to          
elucidate the vague theories of         
,dionysius1 and to present them as a    
consistent philosophical system worked  
out by the help of ,aristotle  and      
perhaps ,boethius4#bab ,he intends1 of  
course1 to keep within the  limits      
permitted to ,christian speculation2 but
 in reality he does not  allow dogma to 
fetter him4 ,the ,christian             
,alexandrians were1 on the  whole1 more 
orthodox than their language2 ,erigena's
 language partially  veils the real     
audacity of his speculation4 ,he is a   
mystic only by his  intellectual        
affinities2#bac the warmth of pious     
aspiration and love  which makes        
,dionysius1 amid all his extravagance1  
still a religious  writer1 has cooled   

entirely in ,erigena4 ,he can pray with 
fervour and  eloquence for intellectual 
enlightenment2 but there was nothing of 
the  prophet or saint about him1 to     
judge from his writings4 ,still1 though 
one might dispute his title to be called
 either a ,christian or a  mystic1 we   
must spare a few minutes to this last   
flower of  ,neoplatonism1 which bloomed 
so late on our northern islands4        
,god1 says ,erigena1 is called ,essence 
or ,being2 but1 strictly speaking1  ,he 
is not ,being2#bad for ,being arises in 
opposition to not-,being1  and there is 
no opposition to the ,absolute1 or ,god4
 ,eternity1 the  abode or nature of     
,god1 is homogeneous and without parts1 
one1 simple1  and indivisible4 ,god is  
the totality of all things which are and
 are  not1 which can and cannot be4 ,he 
is the similarity of the similar1 the   
dissimilarity of the dissimilar1 the    
opposition of opposites1 and the        
contrariety of contraries4 ,all discords
 are resolved when they are  considered 

as parts of the universal harmony4 ,all 
things begin from  unity and end in     
unity3 the ,absolute can contain nothing
  self-contradictory4 ,and so ,god      
cannot be called ,goodness1 for         
,goodness  is opposed to ,badness1 and  
,god is above this distinction4         
,goodness1  however is a more           
comprehensive term than ,being4 ,there  
may be ,goodness  without ,being1 but   
not ,being without ,goodness2 for ,evil 
is the  negation of ,being4 ,the        
,scripture openly pronounces this1 says 
,erigena2 for we read1 ,god saw all     
things2 and not1 lo1 they were1  but1   
lo1 they were very good4 ,all things    
are1 in so far as they are  good4 ,but  
the things that are not are also called 
good1 and are far  better than those    
which are4 ,being1 in fact1 is a defect1
 since it  separates from the           
superessential ,good4 ,the feeling which
 prompts  this strange expression is    
that since time and space are themselves
  onesided appearances1 a fixed limit   

must be set to the amount of  goodness  
and reality which can be represented    
under these conditions4  ,erigena       
therefore thinks that to enter the      
time-process must be to  contract a     
certain admixture of unreality or evil4 
,in so far as life  involves            
separateness 7not distinction71 this    
must be true2 but the  manifold is only 
evil when it is discordant and          
antagonistic to unity4  ,that the       
many-in-one should appear as the        
one-in-many1 is the effect  of the forms
 of time and space in which it appears2 
the statement that  the things which are
 not are far better than those which    
are1 is  only true in the sense that the
 world of appearance is permeated by    
evil as yet unsubdued1 which in the     
,godhead exists only as something       
overcome or transmuted4    ,erigena says
 that ,god is above all the categories1 
including that of  relation4 ,it follows
 that the ,persons of the ,trinity1     
which are only  relative names1 are     

fused in the ,absolute4#bae ,we may make
  statements about ,god1 if we remember 
that they are only metaphors2 but       
whatever we deny about ,him1 we deny    
truly4#baf ,this is the negative  road  
of ,dionysius1 from whom ,erigena       
borrows a number of uncouth  compounds4 
,but we can see that he valued this     
method mainly as  safeguarding the      
transcendence of ,god against           
pantheistic theories of  immanence4 ,the
 religious and practical aspects of the 
doctrine had  little interest for him4  
,the destiny of all things is to rest   
and be quiet in ,god4 ,but he  tries to 
escape the conclusion that all          
distinctions must disappear2  rather1 he
 says1 the return to ,god raises        
creatures into a higher  state1 in which
 they first attain their true being4    
,all individual  types will be preserved
 in the universal4 ,he borrows an       
illustration1  not a very happy one1    
from ,plotinus4 ,as iron1 when it       
becomes  red-hot1 seems to be turned    

into pure fire1 but remains no less iron
  than before2 so when body passes into 
soul1 and rational substances  into     
,god1 they do not lose their identity1  
but preserve it in a higher  state of   
being4    ,creation he regards as a     
necessary self-realisation of ,god4 ,god
 was  not1 he says1 before ,he made the 
universe4 ,the ,son is the ,idea of  the
 ,world2 be assured1 he says1 that the  
,word is the nature of all  things4 ,the
 primordial causes or ideas--,goodness1 
,being1 ,life1 etc41  in themselves1    
which the ,father made in the ,son--are 
in a sense the  creators of the world1  
for the order of all things is          
established  according to them4 ,god    
created the world1 not out of nothing1  
nor out  of something1 but out of       
,himself4#bag ,the creatures have always
  pre-existed yonder in the ,word2 ,god 
has only caused them to be  realised in 
time and space4    ,thought and ,action 
are identical in ,god4 ,he sees by      
working and  works by seeing4    ,man is

 a microcosm4 ,the fivefold division of 
nature--corporeal1 vital1  sensitive1   
rational1 intellectual--is all          
represented in his  organisation4 ,the  
corruptible body is an accident1 the    
consequence  of sin4 ,the original body 
was immortal and incorruptible4 ,this   
body  will one day be restored4    ,evil
 has no substance1 and is destined to   
disappear4 ,nothing contrary  to the    
,divine goodness and life and           
blessedness can be coeternal with  them4
 ,the world must reach perfection1 when 
all will ultimately be  ,god4 ,the loss 
and absence of ,christ is the torment of
 the whole  creation1 nor do ,i think   
that there is any other4 ,there is no   
place  of punishment anywhere4          
,erigena is an admirable interpreter of 
the ,alexandrians and of  ,dionysius1   
but he emphasises their most dangerous  
tendencies4 ,we  cannot be surprised    
that his books were condemned2 it is    
more strange  that the audacious        
theories which they repeat from         

,dionysius should  have been allowed to 
pass without censure for so long4       
,indeed1 the  freedom of speculation    
accorded to the mystics forms a         
remarkable  exception to the zeal for   
exact orthodoxy which characterised the 
general policy of the early ,church4    
,the explanation is that in the  ,east  
,mysticism has seldom been              
revolutionary1 and has compensated for  
its speculative audacity by the         
readiness of its outward conformity4    
,moreover1 the theories of ,dionysius   
about the earthly and heavenly          
hierarchies were by no means unwelcome  
to sacerdotalism4 ,in the ,west  things 
were different4 ,mysticism there has    
always been a spirit of  reform1        
generally of revolt4 ,there is much even
 in ,erigena1 whose main  affinities    
were with the ,east1 which forecasts the
 ,reformation4 ,he is  the father1 not  
only of ,western ,mysticism and         
scholasticism1 but of  rationalism as   
well4#bah ,but the danger which lurked  

in his  speculations was not at first   
recognised4 ,his book on predestination 
was condemned in #hee and #hei for its  
universalist doctrine1#bai and  two     
hundred years later his ,eucharistic    
doctrine1 revived by ,berengar1  was    
censured4#bbj ,but it was not till the  
thirteenth century that a  general      
condemnation was passed upon him4 ,this 
judgment followed the  appearance of a  
strongly pantheistic or acosmistic      
school of mystics1  chief among whom was
 ,amalric of ,bena1 a master of theology
 at ,paris  about #abjj4 ,amalric is a  
very interesting figure1 for his        
teaching  exhibits all the features     
which are most characteristic of        
extravagant  ,mysticism in the          
,west--its strong belief in ,divine     
immanence1 not  only in the ,church1 but
 in the individual2 its uncompromising  
rationalism1 contempt for ecclesiastical
 forms1 and tendency to  evolutionary   
optimism4 ,among the doctrines          
attributed to ,amalric and  his         

followers are a pantheistic             
identification of man with ,god1 and a  
negation of matter2 they were said to   
teach that unconsecrated bread  was the 
body of ,christ1 and that ,god spoke    
through ,ovid 7a curious  choice671 as  
well as through ,st4 ,augustine4 ,they  
denied the  resurrection of the body1   
and the traditional eschatology1 saying 
that  he who has the knowledge of ,god  
in himself has paradise within him4     
,they insisted on a progressive         
historical revelation--the reign of the 
,father began with ,abraham1 that of the
 ,son with ,christ1 that of the  ,spirit
 with themselves4 ,they despised        
sacraments1 believing that the  ,spirit 
works without means4 ,they taught that  
he who lives in love can  do no wrong1  
and were suspected1 probably truly1 of  
the licentious  conduct which naturally 
follows from such a doctrine4 ,this     
antinomianism is no part of true        
,mysticism2 but it is often found in    
conjunction with mystical speculation   

among the half-educated4 ,it is  the    
vulgar perversion of ,plotinus' doctrine
 that matter is nothing1  and that the  
highest part of our nature can take no  
stain4#bba ,we  find evidence of        
immorality practised in nomine caritatis
 among the  ,gnostics and ,manicheans of
 the first centuries1 and these heresies
  never really became extinct4 ,the     
sects of the ,free ,spirit1 who         
flourished later in the thirteenth      
century1 had an even worse  reputation  
than the ,amalricians4 ,they combined   
with their ,pantheism a  ,determinism   
which destroyed all sense of            
responsibility4 ,on the other  hand1 the
 followers of ,ortlieb of ,strassburg1  
about the same period1  advocated an    
extreme asceticism based on a dualistic 
or ,manichean view  of the world2 and   
they combined with this error an extreme
  rationalism1 teaching that the        
historical ,christ was a mere man2 that 
the ,gospel history has only a          
symbolical truth2 that the soul only1   

without the body1 is immortal2 and that 
the ,pope and his priests are  servants 
of ,satan4    ,the problem for the      
,church was how to encourage the warm   
love and  faith of the mystics without  
giving the rein to these mischievous    
errors4 ,the twelfth and thirteenth     
centuries produced several famous       
writers1 who attempted to combine       
scholasticism and ,mysticism4#bbb  ,the 
leaders in this attempt were            
,bernard1#bbc ,hugo and ,richard of ,st4
  ,victor1 ,bonaventura1 ,albertus      
,magnus1 and 7later7 ,gerson4 ,their    
works  are not of great value as        
contributions to religious philosophy1  
for  the ,schoolmen were too much afraid
 of their authorities--,catholic        
tradition and ,aristotle--to probe      
difficulties to the bottom2 and the     
mystics1 who1 by making the renewed life
 of the soul their  starting-point1 were
 more independent1 were debarred1 by    
their  ignorance of ,greek1 from a      
first-hand knowledge of their           

intellectual  ancestors4 ,but in the    
history of ,mysticism they hold an      
important  place4#bbd ,speculation being
 for them restricted within the limits  
of  ,church-dogma1 they were obliged to 
be more psychological and less          
metaphysical than ,dionysius or         
,erigena4 ,the ,victorines insist often 
on  self-knowledge as the way to the    
knowledge of ,god and on                
self-purification as more important than
 philosophy4 ,the way to  ascend to     
,god1 says ,hugo1 is to descend into    
oneself4#bbe ,the  ascent is through    
self above self1 says ,richard2 we are  
to rise on  stepping-stones of our dead 
selves to higher things4 ,let him that  
thirsts to see ,god clean his mirror1   
let him make his own spirit  bright1    
says ,richard again4 ,the ,victorines do
 not disparage reason1  which is the    
organ by which mankind in general       
apprehend the things of  ,god2 but they 
regard ecstatic contemplation as a      
supra-rational state  or faculty1 which 

can only be reached per mentis excessum1
 and in  which the naked truth is seen1 
no longer in a glass darkly4#bbf        
,this highest state1 in which ,reason   
dies in giving birth to ,ecstasy1  as   
,rachel died in giving birth to         
,benjamin1 is not on the high road  of  
the spiritual life4 ,it is a rare gift1 
bestowed by supernatural  grace4        
,richard says that the first stage of   
contemplation is an  expansion of the   
soul1 the second an exaltation1 the     
third an  alienation4 ,the first arises 
from human effort1 the second from      
human effort assisted by ,divine grace1 
the third from ,divine grace  alone4    
,the predisposing conditions for the    
third state are devotion  7devotio71    
admiration 7admiratio71 and joy         
7exaltatio72 but  these cannot produce  
ecstasy1 which is a purely supernatural 
infusion4    ,this sharp opposition     
between the natural and the             
supernatural1 which  is fully developed 
first by ,richard of ,st4 ,victor1 is   

the  distinguishing feature of ,catholic
 ,mysticism4 ,it is an abandonment of   
the great aim which the earlier         
,christian idealists had set before     
themselves1 namely1 to find spiritual   
law in the normal course of  nature1 and
 the motions of the ,divine ,word in the
 normal processes of  mind4 ,st4 ,john's
 great doctrine of the ,logos as a      
cosmic principle is  now dropped4 ,roman
 ,catholic apologists#bbg claim that    
,mysticism was  thus set free from the  
idealistic pantheism of the             
,neoplatonist1 and  from the            
,gnostic-,manichean dualism which       
accompanies it4 ,the world  of space and
 time 7they say7 is no longer regarded1 
as it was by the  ,neoplatonist1 as a   
fainter effluence from an ideal world1  
nor is human  individuality endangered  
by theories of immanence4 ,both nature  
and man  regain a sort of independence4 
,we once more tread as free men on solid
  ground1 while occasional supernatural 
phenomena are not wanting to  testify to

 the existence of higher powers4    ,we 
have seen that the ,logos-doctrine 7as  
understood by ,st4 ,clement7 is         
exceptionally liable to perversion2 but 
the remedy of discarding it is  worse   
than the disease4 ,the unscriptural#bbh 
and unphilosophical  cleft between      
natural and supernatural introduces a   
more intractable  dualism than that of  
,origen4 ,the faculty which1 according  
to this  theory1 possesses immediate    
intuition into the things of ,god is not
  only irresponsible to reason1 but     
stands in no relation to it4 ,it  ushers
 us into an entirely new world1 where   
the familiar criteria of  truth and     
falsehood are inapplicable4 ,and what it
 reveals to us is not  a truer and      
deeper view of the actual1 but a wholly 
independent cosmic  principle which     
invades the world of experience as a    
disturbing force1  spasmodically        
subverting the laws of nature in order  
to show its power  over them4#bbi ,for  
as soon as the formless intuition of    

contemplation begins to express itself  
in symbols1 these symbols1 when         
untested by reason1 are transformed into
 hallucinations4 ,the warning  of       
,plotinus1 that he who tries to rise    
above reason falls outside of  it1      
receives a painful corroboration in such
 legends as that of ,st4  ,christina1   
who by reason of her extreme saintliness
 frequently soared  over the tops of    
trees4 ,the consideration of these      
alleged mystical  phenomena belongs to  
objective ,mysticism1 which ,i hope to  
deal with  in a later ,lecture4 ,here ,i
 will only say that the                 
scholastic-mystical  doctrine of        
supernatural interventions1 which at    
first sight seems  so attractive1 has   
led in practice to the most barbarous   
and  ridiculous superstitions4#bcj      
,another good specimen of scholastic    
,mysticism is the short treatise1  ,de  
adhrendo ,deo1 of ,albertus ,magnus4 ,it
 shows very clearly how the  negative   
road had become the highway of medival  

,catholicism1 and  how little could be  
hoped for civilisation and progress from
 the  continuance of such teaching4     
,when ,st4 ,john says that ,god is a    
,spirit1 says ,albert in the first      
paragraph of his treatise1 and that  ,he
 must be worshipped in spirit1 he means 
that the mind must be  cleared of all   
images4 ,when thou prayest1 shut thy    
door--that is1 the  doors of thy senses 
444 keep them barred and bolted against 
all  phantasms and images4444 ,nothing  
pleases ,god more than a mind free  from
 all occupations and distractions4444   
,such a mind is in a manner  transformed
 into ,god1 for it can think of nothing1
 and understand  nothing1 and love      
nothing1 except ,god3 other creatures   
and itself it  only sees in ,god4444 ,he
 who penetrates into himself1 and so    
transcends  himself1 ascends truly to   
,god4444 ,he whom ,i love and desire is 
above  all that is sensible and all that
 is intelligible2 sense and  imagination
 cannot bring us to ,him1 but only the  

desire of a pure  heart4 ,this brings us
 into the darkness of the mind1 whereby 
we can  ascend to the contemplation even
 of the mystery of the ,trinity4444 ,do 
not think about the world1 nor about thy
 friends1 nor about the past1  present1 
or future2 but consider thyself to be   
outside the world and  alone with ,god1 
as if thy soul were already separated   
from the body1  and had no longer any   
interest in peace or war1 or the state  
of the  world4 ,leave thy body1 and fix 
thy gaze on the uncreated light4444 ,let
  nothing come between thee and ,god4444
 ,the soul in contemplation views  the  
world from afar off1 just as1 when we   
proceed to ,god by the way of           
abstraction1 we deny ,him1 first all    
bodily and sensible attributes1  then   
intelligible qualities1 and1 lastly1    
that being 7esse7 which  keeps ,him     
among created things4 ,this1 according  
to ,dionysius1 is the  best mode of     
union with ,god4    ,bonaventura        
resembles ,albertus in reverting more   

decidedly than the  ,victorines to the  
,dionysian tradition4 ,he expatiates on 
the passivity  and nakedness of the soul
 which is necessary in order to enter   
into  the ,divine darkness1 and         
elaborates with tiresome pedantry his   
arbitrary schemes of faculties and      
stages4 ,however1 he gains something  by
 his knowledge of ,aristotle1 which he  
uses to correct the  ,neoplatonic       
doctrine of ,god as abstract ,unity4    
,god is 'ideo  omnimodum1' he says      
finely1 quia summe unum4 ,he is totum   
intra  omnia et totum extra--a succinct 
statement that ,god is both immanent    
and transcendent4 ,his proof of the     
,trinity is original and profound4  ,it 
is the nature of the ,good to impart    
itself1 and so the highest ,good  must  
be summe diffusivum sui1 which can only 
be in hypostatic union4    ,the last    
great scholastic mystic is ,gerson1 who 
lived from #acfc to  #adbi4 ,he attempts
 to reduce ,mysticism to an exact       
science1 tabulating  and classifying all

 the teaching of his predecessors4 ,a   
very brief  summary of his system is    
here given4    ,gerson distinguishes    
symbolical1 natural1 and mystical       
theology1  confining the last to the    
method which rests on inner experiences1
 and  proceeds by the negative road4    
,the experiences of the mystic have a   
greater certainty than any external     
revelations can possess4    ,gerson's   
psychology may be given in outline as   
follows3 ,the cognitive  power has three
 faculties3 7#a7 simple intelligence or 
natural light1  an outflow from the     
highest intelligence1 ,god ,himself2    
7#b7 the  understanding1 which is on the
 frontier between the two worlds2 7#c7  
sense-consciousness4 ,to each of these  
three faculties answers one of  the     
affective faculties3 7#a7               
synteresis2#bca 7#b7 understanding1     
rational desire2 7#c7 sense-affections4 
,to these again correspond three        
activities3 7#a7 contemplation2 7#b7    
meditation2#bcb 7#c7 thought4           

,mystical theology differs from         
speculative 7i4e4 scholastic71 in that  
mystical theology belongs to the        
affective faculties1 not the  cognitive2
 that it does not depend on logic1 and  
is therefore open  even to the ignorant2
 that it is not open to the unbelieving1
 since  it rests upon faith and love2   
and that it brings peace1 whereas       
speculation breeds unrest4    ,the means
 of mystical theology are seven3 7i47   
the call of ,god2  7ii47 certainty that 
one is called to the contemplative      
life--all are  not so2 7iii47 freedom   
from encumbrances2 7iv47 concentration  
of  interests upon ,god2 7v47           
perseverance2 7vi47 asceticism2 but the 
body  must not be maltreated if it is to
 be a good servant2 7vii47 shutting  the
 eye to all sense perceptions4#bcc      
,such teaching as this is of small value
 or interest4 ,mysticism itself  becomes
 arid and formal in the hands of        
,gerson4 ,the whole movement was  doomed
 to failure1 inasmuch as scholasticism  

was philosophy in chains1  and the      
negative road was ,mysticism            
blindfolded4 ,no fruitful               
reconciliation between philosophy and   
piety could be thus achieved4  ,the     
decay of scholasticism put an end to    
these attempts at compromise4           
,henceforward the mystics either discard
 metaphysics1 and develop their         
theology on the devotional and ascetic  
side--the course which was  followed by 
the later ,catholic mystics2 or they    
copy ,erigena in his  independent       
attitude towards tradition4    ,in this 
,lecture we are following the line of   
speculative ,mysticism1  and we have now
 to consider the greatest of all        
speculative mystics1  ,meister ,eckhart1
 who was born soon after the middle of  
the thirteenth  century4#bcd ,he was a  
,dominican monk1 prior of ,erfurt and   
vicar of  ,thuringen1 and afterwards    
vicar-general for ,bohemia4 ,he preached
 a  great deal at ,cologne about #acbe2 
and before this period had come into    

close relations with the ,beghards and  
,brethren of the ,free                  
,spirit--societies of men and women who1
 by their implicit faith in the  inner  
light1 resembled the ,quakers1 though   
many of them1 as has been  said1 were   
accused of immoral theories and         
practices4 ,his teaching  soon attracted
 the attention of the ,inquisition1 and 
some of his  doctrines were formally    
condemned by the ,pope in #acbi1        
immediately  after his death4    ,the   
aim of ,eckhart's religious philosophy  
is to find a speculative basis  for the 
doctrines of the ,church1 which shall at
 the same time satisfy  the claims of   
spiritual religion4 ,his aims are purely
 constructive1 and  he shows a distaste 
for polemical controversy4 ,the writers 
whom he  chiefly cites by name are      
,dionysius1 ,augustine1 ,gregory1 and   
,boethius2  but he must have read       
,erigena1 and probably ,averroes1       
writers to whom a  ,catholic could      
hardly confess his obligations4#bce ,he 

also frequently  introduces quotations  
with the words1 ,a master saith4 ,the   
master is  nearly always ,thomas        
,aquinas1 to whom ,eckhart was no doubt 
greatly  indebted1 though it would be a 
great mistake to say1 as some have done1
  that all ,eckhart can be found in the 
,summa4 ,for instance1 he sets  himself 
in opposition to ,thomas about the      
spark1 which ,thomas regarded  as a     
faculty of the soul1 while ,eckhart1 in 
his later writings1 says  that it is    
uncreated4#bcf ,his double object leads 
him into some  inconsistencies4         
,intellectually1 he is drawn towards a  
semi-pantheistic  idealism2 his heart   
makes him an ,evangelical ,christian4   
,but though it is  possible to find     
contradictions in his writings1 his     
transparent  intellectual honesty and   
his great powers of thought1 combined   
with deep  devoutness and childlike     
purity of soul1 make him one of the most
  interesting figures in the history of 
,christian philosophy4    ,eckhart wrote

 in ,german2 that is to say1 he wrote   
for the public1 and  not for the learned
 only4 ,his desire to be intelligible to
 the general  reader led him to adopt an
 epigrammatic antithetic style1 and to  
omit  qualifying phrases4 ,this is one  
reason why he laid himself open to so   
many accusations of heresy4#bcg         
,eckhart distinguishes between the      
,godhead and ,god4 ,the ,godhead is  the
 abiding potentiality of ,being1        
containing within ,himself all          
distinctions1 as yet undeveloped4 ,he   
therefore cannot be the object of       
knowledge1 nor of worship1 being        
,darkness and ,formlessness4#bch  ,the  
,triune ,god is evolved from the        
,godhead4 ,the ,son is the ,word of  the
 ,father1 ,his uttered thought2 and the 
,holy ,ghost is the ,flower of  the     
,divine ,tree1 the mutual love which    
unites the ,father and the ,son4        
,eckhart quotes the words which ,st4    
,augustine makes ,christ say of         
,himself3 ,i am come as a ,word from the

 heart1 as a ray from the sun1  as heat 
from the fire1 as fragrance from the    
flower1 as a stream from  a perennial   
fountain4 ,he insists that the          
generation of the ,son is a  continual  
process4    ,the universe is the        
expression of the whole thought of the  
,father2 it  is the language of the     
,word4 ,eckhart loves startling phrases1
 and says  boldly1 ,nature is the lower 
part of the ,godhead1 and ,before       
creation1 ,god was not ,god4 ,these     
statements are not so crudely           
pantheistic as they sound4 ,he argues   
that without the ,son the ,father  would
 not be ,god1 but only undeveloped      
potentiality of being4 ,the  three      
,persons are not merely accidents and   
modes of the ,divine  ,substance1 but   
are inherent in the ,godhead4#bci ,and  
so there can  never have been a time    
when the ,son was not4 ,but the         
generation of the  ,son necessarily     
involves the creation of an ideal world2
 for the ,son  is ,reason1 and ,reason  

is constituted by a cosmos of ideas4    
,when  ,eckhart speaks of creation and  
of the world which had no beginning1 he 
means1 not the world of phenomena1 but  
the world of ideas1 in the  ,platonic   
sense4 ,the ideal world is the complete 
expression of the  thought of ,god1 and 
is above space and time4 ,he calls it   
non-natured  nature1 as opposed to diu  
gen-trte ntre1 the world of             
phenomena4#bdj ,eckhart's doctrine here 
differs from that of ,plotinus  in a    
very important particular4 ,the         
,neoplatonists always thought of        
emanation as a diffusion of rays from a 
sun1 which necessarily  decrease in heat
 and brightness as they recede from the 
central focus4  ,it follows that the    
second ,person of the ,trinity1 the     
,greek3 ,nous or  ,intelligence1 is     
subordinate to the ,first1 and the      
,third to the  ,second4 ,but with       
,eckhart there is no subordination4 ,the
 ,son is the  pure brightness of the    
,father's glory1 and the express image  

of ,his  ,person4 ,the eternal fountain 
of things is the ,father2 the image of  
things in ,him is the ,son1 and love for
 this ,image is the ,holy ,ghost4  ,all 
created things abide formless 7as       
possibilities7 in the ground  of the    
,godhead1 and all are realised in the   
,son4 ,the ,alexandrian  ,fathers1 in   
identifying the ,logos with the         
,platonic ,greek3 ,nous1 the  bearer of 
the ,world-,idea1 had found it difficult
 to avoid  subordinating ,him to the    
,father4 ,eckhart escapes this heresy1  
but in  consequence his view of the     
world is more pantheistic4 ,for his     
intelligible world is really ,god--it is
 the whole content of the  ,divine      
mind4#bda ,the question has been much   
debated1 whether ,eckhart  really falls 
into pantheism or not4 ,the answer seems
 to me to depend  on what is the        
obscurest part of his whole system--the 
relation of the  phenomenal world to the
 world of ideas4 ,he offers the         
,christian dogma  of the ,incarnation of

 the ,logos as a kind of explanation of 
the  passage of the prototypes into     
externality4 ,when ,god speaks ,his     
ideas1 the phenomenal world arises4     
,this is an incarnation4 ,but the       
process by which the soul emancipates   
itself from the phenomenal and  returns 
to the intelligible world1 is also      
called a begetting of the  ,son4 ,thus  
the whole process is a circular         
one--from ,god and back to  ,god again4 
,time and space1 he says1 were created  
with the world4  ,material things are   
outside each other1 spiritual things in 
each  other4 ,but these statements do   
not make it clear how ,eckhart accounts 
for the imperfections of the phenomenal 
world1 which he is precluded  from      
explaining1 as the ,neoplatonists did1  
by a theory of emanation4  ,nor can we  
solve the difficulty by importing modern
 theories of  evolution into his system4
 ,the idea of the world-history as a    
gradual  realisation of the ,divine     
,personality was foreign to ,eckhart's  

thought4 ,stckl1 indeed1 tries to father
 upon him the doctrine that  the human  
mind is a necessary organ of the        
self-development of ,god4  ,but this    
theory cannot be found in ,eckhart4 ,the
 necessity which  impels ,god to beget  
,his ,son is not a physical but a moral 
necessity4  ,the good must needs impart 
itself1 he says4#bdb ,the fact is that  
his view of the world is much nearer to 
acosmism than to pantheism4  ,nothing   
hinders us so much from the knowledge of
 ,god as time and  place1 he says4 ,he  
sees in phenomena only the negation of  
being1 and  it is not clear how he can  
also regard them as the abode of the    
immanent ,god4#bdc ,it would probably be
 true to say that1 like most  medival   
thinkers1 he did not feel himself       
obliged to give a permanent  value to   
the transitory1 and that the world1     
except as the temporary  abode of       
immortal spirits1 interested him but    
little4 ,his neglect of  history1       
including the earthly life of ,christ1  

is not at all the  result of scepticism 
about the miraculous4 ,it is simply due 
to the  feeling that the ,divine process
 in the everlasting ,now is a fact of   
immeasurably greater importance than any
 occurrence in the external  world can  
be4    ,when a religious writer is      
suspected of pantheism1 we naturally    
turn  to his treatment of the problem of
 evil4 ,to the true pantheist all is    
equally divine1 and everything for the  
best or for the worst1 it does  not much
 matter which4#bdd ,eckhart certainly   
does not mean to  countenance this      
absurd theory1 but there are passages in
 his writings  which logically imply it2
 and we look in vain for any            
elucidation1 in  his doctrine of sin1 of
 the dark places in his doctrine of     
,god4#bde  ,in fact1 he adds very little
 to the ,neoplatonic doctrine of the    
nature  of evil4 ,like ,dionysius1 he   
identifies ,being with ,good1 and evil1 
as  such1 with not-being4 ,moral evil is
 self-will3 it is the attempt1 on  the  

part of the creature1 to be a particular
 ,this or ,that outside of  ,god4       
,but what is most distinctive in        
,eckhart's ethics is the new importance 
which is given to the doctrine of       
immanence4 ,the human soul is a         
microcosm1 which in a manner contains   
all things in itself4 ,at the  apex of  
the mind there is a ,divine spark1 which
 is so closely akin  to ,god that it is 
one with ,him1 and not merely united to 
,him4#bdf ,in  his teaching about this  
ground of the soul ,eckhart wavers4 ,his
  earlier view is that it is created1   
and only the medium by which ,god       
transforms us to ,himself4 ,but his     
later doctrine is that it is  uncreated1
 the immanence of the ,being and ,nature
 of ,god ,himself4  ,diess ,fnkelein1   
das ist ,gott1 he says once4 ,this view 
was adopted  by ,ruysbroek1 ,suso1 and  
7with modifications by7 ,tauler1 and    
became one  of their chief tenets4#bdg  
,this spark is the organ by which our   
personality holds communion with ,god   

and knows ,him4 ,it is with  reference  
to it that ,eckhart uses the phrase     
which has so often been  quoted to      
convict him of blasphemous              
self-deification--the eye with  which ,i
 see ,god is the same as that with which
 ,he sees me4#bdh ,the  uncreated spark 
is really the same as the grace of ,god1
 which raises  us into a ,godlike state4
 ,but this grace1 according to ,eckhart 
7at  least in his later period71 is ,god
 ,himself acting like a human faculty   
in the soul1 and transforming it so that
 man himself becomes grace4    ,the     
following is perhaps the most           
instructive passage3 ,there is in  the  
soul something which is above the soul1 
,divine1 simple1 a pure  nothing2 rather
 nameless than named1 rather unknown    
than known4 ,of  this ,i am accustomed  
to speak in my discourses4 ,sometimes ,i
 have  called it a power1 sometimes an  
uncreated light1 and sometimes a        
,divine spark4 ,it is absolute and free 
from all names and all forms1  just as  

,god is free and absolute in ,himself4  
,it is higher than  knowledge1 higher   
than love1 higher than grace4 ,for in   
all these there  is still distinction4  
,in this power ,god doth blossom and    
flourish  with all ,his ,godhead1 and   
the ,spirit flourisheth in ,god4 ,in    
this  power the ,father bringeth forth  
,his only-begotten ,son1 as essentially 
as in ,himself2 and in this light       
ariseth the ,holy ,ghost4 ,this spark   
rejecteth all creatures1 and will have  
only ,god1 simply as ,he is in          
,himself4 ,it rests satisfied neither   
with the ,father1 nor with the ,son1    
nor with the ,holy ,ghost1 nor with the 
three ,persons1 so far as each  existeth
 in its particular attribute4 ,it is    
satisfied only with the  superessential 
essence4 ,it is determined to enter into
 the simple  ,ground1 the still ,waste1 
the ,unity where no man dwelleth4 ,then 
it is  satisfied in the light2 then it  
is one3 it is one in itself1 as this    
,ground is a simple stillness1 and in   

itself immovable2 and yet by this       
immobility are all things moved4    ,it 
is ,god that worketh in us both to will 
and to do of ,his good  pleasure2 but   
our own nature and personality remain   
intact4 ,it is  plain that we could not 
see ,god unless our personality remained
  distinct from the personality of ,god4
 ,complete fusion is as  destructive of 
the possibility of love and knowledge as
 complete  separation#bdi4    ,eckhart  
gives to the highest reason#bej the     
primacy among our  faculties1 and in his
 earlier period identifies it with the  
spark4  ,he asserts the absolute        
supremacy of reason more strongly than  
anyone  since ,erigena4 ,his language on
 this subject resembles that of the     
,cambridge ,platonists4 ,reasonable     
knowledge is eternal life1 he says4     
,how can any external revelation help   
me1 he asks1 unless it be  verified by  
inner experience8 ,the last appeal must 
always be to the  deepest part of my own
 being1 and that is my reason4 ,the     

reason1 he  says1 presses ever upwards4 
,it cannot rest content with goodness or
  wisdom1 nor even with ,god ,himself2  
it must penetrate to the ,ground  from  
whence all goodness and wisdom spring4  
,thus ,eckhart is not content with the  
knowledge of ,god which is  mediated by 
,christ1 but aspires to penetrate into  
the ,divine  darkness which underlies   
the manifestation of the ,trinity4 ,in  
fact1  when he speaks of the imitation  
of ,christ1 he distinguishes between    
the way of the manhood1 which has to be 
followed by all1 and the  way of the    
,godhead1 which is for the mystic only4 
,in this overbold  aspiration to rise   
from the ,three to the ,one1 he falls   
into the  error which we have already   
noticed1 and several passages in his    
writings advocate the quietistic        
self-simplification which belongs to    
this scheme of perfection4 ,there are   
sentences in which he exhorts us  to    
strip off all that comes to us from the 
senses1 and to throw  ourselves upon the

 heart of ,god1 there to rest for ever1 
hidden from  all creatures#bea4 ,but    
there are many other passages of an     
opposite  tendency4 ,he tells us that   
the way of the manhood1 which1 of       
course1  includes imitation of the      
active life of ,christ1 must be trodden 
first  by all2 he insists that in the   
state of union the faculties of the     
soul will act in a new and higher way1  
so that the personality is  restored1   
not destroyed2 and1 lastly1 he teaches  
that contemplation is  only the means to
 a higher activity1 and that this is1 in
 fact1 its  object2 what a man has taken
 in by contemplation1 that he pours out 
in love4 ,there is no contradiction in  
the desire for rest combined  with the  
desire for active service2 for rest can 
only be defined as  unimpeded activity2 
but in ,eckhart there is1 ,i think1 a   
real  inconsistency4 ,the traditions of 
his philosophy pointed towards          
withdrawal from the world and from      
outward occupations--towards the        

monkish ideal1 in a word2 but the modern
 spirit was already astir  within him4  
,he preached in ,german to the general  
public1 and his  favourite themes are   
the present living operation of the     
,spirit1 and  the consecration of life  
in the world4 ,there is1 he shows1 no   
contradiction between the active and the
 contemplative life2 the  former belongs
 to the faculties of the soul1 the      
latter to its  essence4 ,in commenting  
on the story of ,martha and ,mary1 those
  favourite types of activity and       
contemplation#beb1 he surprises us by   
putting ,martha first4 ,mary hath chosen
 the good part2 that is1 he  says1 she  
is striving to be as holy as her sister4
 ,mary is still at  school3 ,martha has 
learnt her lesson4 ,it is better to feed
 the hungry  than to see even such      
visions as ,st4 ,paul saw4 ,besser ein  
,lebemeister als tausend ,lesemeister4  
,he discourages monkish  religiosity and
 external badges of saintliness--avoid  
everything  peculiar1 he says1 in dress1

 food1 and language4 ,you need not go   
into a desert and fast2 a crowd is often
 more lonely than a  wilderness1 and    
small things harder to do than great4   
,what is the  good of the dead bones of 
saints8 he asks1 in the spirit of a     
sixteenth century reformer2 the dead can
 neither give nor take#bec4  ,this      
double aspect of ,eckhart's teaching    
makes him particularly  interesting2 he 
seems to stand on the dividing-line     
between medival  and modern             
,christianity4    ,like other mystics1  
he insists that love1 when perfect1 is  
independent  of the hope of reward1 and 
he shows great freedom in handling      
,purgatory1 ,hell1 and ,heaven4 ,they   
are states1 not places2 separation  from
 ,god is the misery of hell1 and each   
man is his own judge4 ,we  would        
spiritualise everything1 he says1 with  
especial reference to  ,holy            
,scripture4#bed    ,in comparing the    
,mysticism of ,eckhart with that of his 
predecessors1  from ,dionysius          

downwards1 and of the scholastics down  
to ,gerson1 we  find an obvious change  
in the disappearance of the long ladders
 of  ascent1 the graduated scales of    
virtues1 faculties1 and states of  mind1
 which fill so large a place in those   
systems4 ,these lists are  the natural  
product of the imagination1 when it     
plays upon the theory  of emanation4    
,but with ,eckhart1 as we have seen1 the
 fundamental  truth is the immanence of 
,god ,himself1 not in the faculties1 but
 in  the ground of the soul4 ,the spark 
of the soul is for him really  divin    
particula aur4 ,god begets ,his ,son in 
me1 he is fond of  saying3 and there is 
no doubt that1 relying on a verse in the
  seventeenth chapter of ,st4 ,john1 he 
regards this begetting as  analogous to 
the eternal generation of the ,son4#bee 
,this birth of the  ,son in the soul has
 a double aspect--the eternal birth1    
which is  unconscious and               
inalienable1#bef but which does not     
confer  blessedness1 being common to    

good and bad alike2 and the assimilation
  of the faculties of the soul by the   
pervading presence of ,christ1 or  in   
other words by grace1 qu lux qudam      
deiformis est1 as ,ruysbroek  says4 ,the
 deification of our nature is therefore 
a thing to be striven  for1 and not     
given complete to start with2 but it is 
important to  observe that ,eckhart     
places no intermediaries between man and
 ,god4  ,the ,word is very nigh thee1   
nearer than any object of sense1 and any
  human institutions2 sink into thyself1
 and thou wilt find ,him4 ,the  heavenly
 and earthly hierarchies of ,dionysius1 
with the reverence for  the priesthood  
which was built upon them1 have no      
significance for  ,eckhart4 ,in this as 
in other ways1 he is a precursor of the 
,reformation4    ,with ,eckhart ,i end  
this ,lecture on the speculative        
,mysticism of the  ,middle ,ages4 ,his  
successors1 ,ruysbroek1 ,suso1 and      
,tauler1 much as they  resemble him in  
their general teaching1 differ from him 

in this1 that  with none of them is the 
intellectual1 philosophical side of     
primary  importance4 ,they added nothing
 of value to the speculative system of  
,eckhart2 their ,mysticism was primarily
 a religion of the heart or a  rule of  
life4 ,it is this side of ,mysticism to 
which ,i shall next  invite your        
attention4 ,it should bring us near to  
the centre of our  subject3 for a       
speculative religious system is best    
known by its  fruits4    ,,footnotes3   
,footnote #ahh3 ,conf4 viii4 #b-e4 ,the 
best account of the theology of         
,victorinus is ,gore's article in the   
,dictionary of ,christian  ,biography4  
,footnote #ahi3 ,so ,synesius calls the 
,son ,greek3 patros morph4    ,footnote 
#aij3 ,non enim vivimus prteritum aut   
vivimus futurum1 sed  semper prsenti    
utimur4 ternitas semper per prsentiam   
habet omnia  et hc semper4    ,footnote 
#aia3 ,effectus est omnia1 ,victorinus  
says plainly4    ,footnote #aib3        
,victorinus must have got this phrase   

from some ,greek  ,neoplatonist4 ,it was
 explained that ,greek3 to m on may be  
used in  four senses1 and that it is not
 intended to identify the two extremes4 
,but the very remarkable passage in     
,hierotheus 7referred to in ,lecture    
,,iii47 shows that the two categories of
 ,greek3 aoristia cannot be  kept apart4
    ,footnote #aic3 ,ipse se ipsum      
circumterminavit4    ,footnote #aid3 ,de
 ,trin4 vii4 #d4 #g2 de ,doctr4 ,christ4
 i4 #e4 #e2  ,serm4 #eb4 #af2 ,de ,civ4 
,dei1 ix4 #af4    ,footnote #aie3       
,contr4 ,adim4 ,man4 #aa4    ,footnote  
#aif3 ,de ,ord4 ii4 #af4 #dd1 #ah4 #dg4 
,footnote #aig3 ,enarrat4 in ,ps4 #he4  
#ab4    ,footnote #aih3 ,conf4 vii4 #ac 
ad fin4    ,footnote #aii3 ,compare with
 this sentence of the ,confessions the  
statement of ,erigena quoted below1 that
 the things which are not are  far      
better than those which are4            
,footnote #bjj3 ,ep4 #abj4 #bj4 ,st4    
,augustine wrote in early life an  essay
 ,on the ,beautiful and ,fit1 which he  

unhappily took no pains to  preserve4   
,footnote #bja3 ,de ,ord4 ii4 #af4 #db1 
#ei2 ,plot4 ,enn4 i4 #f4 #d4            
,footnote #bjb3 ,de ,lib4 ,arb4 ii4 #af4
 #da2 ,plot4 ,enn4 i4 #f4 #h1 iii4  #h4 
#aa4    ,footnote #bjc3 ,enarr4 in ,ps4 
xliv4 #c2 ,ep4 #abj4 #bj4 ,plot4 ,enn4  
i4  #f4 #d1 says with more              
picturesqueness than usual ,greek3 kalon
 to ts  dikaiosyns kai sphrosyns        
prospon1 kai oute hesperos oute eos  out
 kala4 7,from ,aristotle1 ,eth4 v4 #a4  
#ae47    ,footnote #bjd3 ,ench4 iii4    
etiam illud quod malum dicitur bene     
ordinatum est loco suo positum2         
eminentius commendat bona4 ,st4         
,augustine also says 7,ench4 xi471 cum  
omnino mali nomen non sit nisi          
privationis boni2 cf4 ,plot4 ,enn4 iii4 
#b4 #e1 ,greek3 hols de to  kakon       
elleipsin tou agathou theteon4 ,st4     
,augustine praises ,plotinus  for his   
teaching on the universality of         
,providence4    ,footnote #bje3 ,de     
,civ4 ,dei1 iv4 #ab1 vii4 #e4           

,footnote #bjf3 ,de ,quantitate ,anim1  
xxx4    ,footnote #bjg3 ,conf4 vii4 #aj4
 ,i have quoted ,bigg's translation4    
,footnote #bjh3 ,conf4 xi4 #i4          
,footnote #bji3 ,st4 ,augustine does not
 reject the belief that visions  are    
granted by the mediation of angels1 but 
he expresses himself with  great caution
 on the subject4 ,cf4 ,de ,gen4 ad litt4
 xii4 #cj1 ,sunt  qudam excellentia et  
merito divina1 qu demonstrant angeli    
miris  modis3 utrum visa sua facili     
quadam et prpotenti iunctione vel       
commixtione etiam nostra esse facientes1
 an scientes nescio quo modo  nostram in
 spiritu nostro informar visionem1      
difficilis perceptu et  difficilior     
dictu res est4    ,footnote #baj3 ,see  
,lotze1 ,microcosmus1 bk4 viii4 chap4   
#d1 and other  places4 ,we may perhaps  
compare the ,johannine ,greek3 kosmos   
with the  ,synoptic ,greek3 ain as      
examples of the two modes of envisaging 
reality4    ,footnote #baa3 ,eriugena   
is1 no doubt1 the more correct spelling1

 but ,i  have preferred to keep the name
 by which he is best known4    ,footnote
 #bab3 ,erigena quotes also ,origen1 the
 two ,gregorys1 ,basil1  ,maximus1      
,ambrose1 and ,augustine4 ,of pagan     
philosophers he puts ,plato  first1 but 
holds ,aristotle in high honour4        
,footnote #bac3 ,stckl calls him ein    
flscher ,mystiker1 because the          
,neoplatonic 7gnostic-rationalistic7    
element takes1 for him1 the  place of   
supernaturalism4 ,this1 as will be shown
 later1 is in  accordance with the      
,roman ,catholic view of ,mysticism1    
which is not  that adopted in these     
,lectures4 ,for us1 ,erigena's defect as
 a mystic  is rather to be sought in his
 extreme intellectualism4    ,footnote  
#bad3 ,dum vero 7divina bonitas7        
incomprehensibilis  intelligitur1 per   
excellentiam non immerito nihilum       
vocitatur4    ,footnote #bae3 ,this is  
really a revival of modalism4 ,the      
unorthodoxy  of the doctrine becomes    
very apparent in some of ,erigena's     

successors4    ,footnote #baf3 ,de ,div4
 ,nat4 i4 #cf3 ,iamdudum inter nos est  
confectum  omnia qu vel sensu corporeo  
vel intellectu vel ratione cognoscuntur 
de ,deo merito creatore omnium1 posse   
prdicari1 dum nihil eorum qu de  se     
prdicantur pura veritatis contemplatio  
eum approbat esse4 ,all  affirmations   
about ,god are made non proprie sed     
translative2 all  negations non         
translative sed proprie4 ,cf4 also ibid4
 i4 #a4 #ff1  verius fideliusque negatur
 in omnibus quam affirmatur2 and        
especially ibid4 i4 #e4 #bf1 theophanias
 autem dico visibilium et  invisibilium 
species1 quarum ordine et pulcritudine  
cognoscitur ,deus  esse et invenitur non
 quid est1 sed quia solummodo est4      
,erigena  tries to say 7in his atrocious
 ,latin7 that the external world can    
teach us nothing about ,god1 except the 
bare fact of ,his existence4 ,no        
passage could be found to illustrate    
more clearly the real tendencies  of the
 negative road1 and the purely          

subjective ,mysticism connected  with   
it4 ,erigena will not allow us to infer1
 from the order and beauty  of the      
world1 that order and beauty are ,divine
 attributes4    ,footnote #bag3 ,but it 
must be remembered that ,erigena calls  
,god  nihilum4 ,his words about creation
 are1 ,ac sic de nihilo facit  omnia1 de
 sua videlicet superessentialitate      
producit essentias1 de  supervitalitate 
vitas1 de superintellectualitate        
intellectus1 de  negatione omnium qu    
sunt et qu non sunt1 affirmationes      
omnium qu  sunt et qu non sunt4         
,footnote #bah3 ,so ,kaulich shows in   
his monograph on the speculative  system
 of ,erigena4    ,footnote #bai3        
,erigena was roused by a work on        
predestination1 written  by             
,gotteschalk1 and advocating            
,calvinistic views1 to protest against  
the doctrine that ,god1 who is life1 can
 possibly predestine anyone to  eternal 
death4    ,footnote #bbj3 ,berengar     
objected to the crudely materialistic   

theories  of the real presence which    
were then prevalent4 ,he protested      
against  the statement that the         
transmutation of the elements takes     
place vere  et sensualiter1 and that    
portiuncul of the body of ,christ lie   
upon  the altar4 ,the mouth1 he said1   
receives the sacrament1 the inner  man  
the true body of ,christ4    ,footnote  
#bba3 ,similar teaching from the sacred 
books of the ,east is  quoted by ,e4    
,caird1 ,evolution of ,religion1 vol4 i4
 p4 #cee4    ,footnote #bbb3 ,this is   
the accepted phrase for the work of the 
twelfth  and thirteenth century         
theologians4 ,we might also say that    
they  modified uncompromising ,platonic 
,realism by ,aristotelian science4 ,cf4 
,harnack1 ,history of ,dogma1 vol4 vi4  
p4 #dc 7,english translation73  ,under  
what other auspices could this great    
structure be erected than  under those  
of that ,aristotelian ,realism1 which   
was at bottom a  dialectic between the  
,platonic ,realism and ,nominalism2 and 

which was  represented as capable of    
uniting immanence and transcendence1    
history  and miracle1 the immutability  
of ,god and mutability1 ,idealism and   
,realism1 reason and authority4         
,footnote #bbc3 ,the great importance of
 ,bernard in the history of  ,mysticism 
does not lie in the speculative side of 
his teaching1 in  which he depends      
almost entirely upon ,augustine4 ,his   
great achievement  was to recall devout 
and loving contemplation to the image of
 the  crucified ,christ1 and to found   
that worship of our ,saviour as the     
,bridegroom of the ,soul1 which in the  
next centuries inspired so much  fervid 
devotion and lyrical sacred poetry4 ,the
 romantic side of  ,mysticism1 for good 
and for evil1 received its greatest     
stimulus in  ,bernard's ,poems and in   
his ,sermons on the ,canticles4 ,this   
subject is  dealt with in ,appendix ,e4 
,footnote #bbd3 ,stckl says of ,hugo    
that the course of development of       
medival ,mysticism cannot be understood 

without a knowledge of his  writings4   
,stckl's own account is very full and   
clear4    ,footnote #bbe3 ,the eye of   
contemplation was given us to see ,god  
within ourselves2 this eye has been     
blinded by sin4 ,the eye of  reason was 
given us to see ourselves2 this has been
 injured by sin4  ,only the eye flesh   
remains in its pristine clearness4 ,in  
things  above reason we must trust to   
faith1 qu non adiuvatur ratione  ulla1  
quoniam non capit ea ratio4    ,footnote
 #bbf3 ,richard1 who is more ecstatic   
than ,hugo1 gives the  following account
 of this state3 ,per mentis excessum    
extra semetipsum  ductus homo 444 lumen 
non per speculum in nigmate sed in      
simplici  veritate contemplatur4 ,in    
this state we forget all that is without
  and all that is within us4 ,reason and
 all other faculties are  obscured4     
,what then is our security against      
delusions8 ,the  transfigured ,christ1  
he says1 must be accompanied by ,moses  
and  ,elias2 that is to say1 visions    

must not be believed which conflict     
with the authority of ,scripture4       
,footnote #bbg3 ,see1 especially1       
,stckl1 ,geschichte der ,philosophie    
des ,mittelalters1 vol4 i4 pp4 #chb-chd4
    ,footnote #bbh3 ,it is hardly       
necessary to point out that ,st4 ,paul's
  distinction between natural and       
spiritual 7see esp4 #a ,cor4 ii47 is    
wholly different4    ,footnote #bbi3    
,contrast the ,plotinian doctrine of    
ecstasy with the  following3 ,dieu lve  
son gr aux plus hauts sommets1 sans     
aucun  mrite pralable4 ,osanne de       
,mantoue reoit le don de la             
contemplation   peine age de six ans4   
,christine est fiance  dix ans1 pendant 
une  extase de trois jours2 ,marie      
d',agrda reut des illuminations ds sa   
premire enfance 7,ribet74 ,since ,divine
 favours are believed to be  bestowed in
 a purely arbitrary manner1 the fancies 
of a child left  alone in the dark are  
as good as the deepest intuitions of    
saint1  poet1 or philosopher4 ,moreover1

 ,god sometimes asserts ,his liberty by 
elevating souls suddenly and without    
transition from the abyss of sin  to the
 highest summits of perfection1 just as 
in nature ,he asserts it  by miracles   
7,ribet74 ,such teaching is interesting 
as showing how the  admission of caprice
 in the world of phenomena reacts upon  
the moral  sense and depraves our       
conception of ,god and salvation4 ,the  
faculty of  contemplation1 according to 
,roman ,catholic teaching1 is acquired  
either by virtue or by gratuitous       
favour4 ,the dualism of natural  and    
supernatural thus allows men to claim   
independent merit1 while the            
interventions of ,god are arbitrary and 
unaccountable4    ,footnote #bcj3 ,those
 who are interested to see how utterly  
defenceless  this theory leaves us      
against the silliest delusions1 may     
consult with  advantage the ,dictionary 
of ,mysticism1 by the ,abb ,migne       
7passim71  or1 if they wish to ascend   
nearer to the fountain-head of these    

legends1 there are the sixty folio      
volumes of ,acta ,sanctorum1  compiled  
by the ,bollandists4 ,grres and ,ribet  
are also very full of  these stories4   
,footnote #bca3 ,see ,appendix ,c4      
,footnote #bcb3 ,the difference between 
contemplation and meditation is         
explained by all the medival mystics4   
,meditation is discursive1              
contemplation is mentis in ,deum suspens
 elevatio4 ,richard of ,st4  ,victor    
states the distinction                  
epigrammatically--per meditationem      
rimamur1 per contemplationem miramur4   
7,admiratio est actus  consequens       
contemplationem sublimis                
veritatis4--,thomas ,aquinas47          
,footnote #bcc3 ,this arbitrary         
schematism is very characteristic of    
this type of ,mysticism1 and shows its  
affinity to ,indian philosophy4         
,compare the eightfold path of ,buddha1 
and a hundred other similar             
classifications in the sacred books of  
the ,east4    ,footnote #bcd3 ,the date 

usually given1 #abfj1 is probably too   
late2 but  the exact year cannot be     
determined4    ,footnote #bce3 ,prof4   
,karl ,pearson 7,mina1 #ahhf7 says1 ,the
 ,mysticism  of ,eckhart owes its       
leading ideas to ,averroes4 ,he traces  
the doctrine  of the ,greek3 ,nous      
poitikos from ,aristotle1 de ,anima1    
through  the ,arabs to ,eckhart1 and    
finds a close resemblance between the   
prototypes or ideas of ,eckhart and the 
,dinge an sich of ,kant4  ,but          
,eckhart's affinities with ,plotinus and
 ,hegel seem to me to be  closer than   
those which he shows with ,aristotle and
 ,kant4 ,on the  connexion with         
,averroes1 ,lasson says that while there
 is a close  resemblance between the    
,eckhartian doctrine of the ,seelengrund
 and  ,averroes' ,intellectus ,agens as 
the universal principle of reason in    
all men 7monopsychism71 they differ in  
this--that with ,averroes  personality  
is a phase or accident1 but with        
,eckhart the eternal is  immanent in the

 personality in such a way that the     
personality itself  has a part in       
eternity 7,meister ,eckhart der         
,mystiker1 pp4 #cdh1 #cdi74             
,personality is for ,eckhart the eternal
 ground-form of all true being1  and the
 notion of ,person is the centre-point  
of his system4 ,he says1  ,the word ,i  
am none can truly speak but ,god alone4 
,the individual  must try to become a   
person1 as the ,son of ,god is a        
,person4    ,footnote #bcf3 ,denifle has
 devoted great pains to proving that    
,eckhart  in his ,latin works is very   
largely dependent upon ,aquinas4 ,his   
conclusions are welcomed and gladly     
adopted by ,harnack1 who1 like          
,ritschl1 has little sympathy with the  
,german mystics1 and considers  that    
,christian ,mysticism is really         
,catholic piety4 ,it will never be      
possible1 he says1 to make ,mysticism   
,protestant without flying in  the face 
of history and ,catholicism4 ,no one    
certainly would be guilty  of the       

absurdity of making ,mysticism          
,protestant2 but it is1 ,i think1  even 
more absurd to make it 7,roman7         
,catholic1 though such a view may  unite
 the suffrages of ,romanists and        
,neo-,kantians4 ,see ,appendix ,a1 p4   
#cdf4    ,footnote #bcg3 ,preger 7vol4  
iii4 p4 #adj7 says that ,eckhart did not
  try to be popular4 ,but it is clear1  
,i think1 that he did try to make  his  
philosophy intelligible to the average  
educated man1 though his  teaching is   
less ethical and more speculative than  
that of ,tauler4    ,footnote #bch3     
,sometimes he speaks of the ,godhead as 
above the  opposition of being and not  
being2 but at other times he regards the
  ,godhead as the universal ,ground or  
,substance of the ideal world4 ,all     
things in ,god are one thing4 ,god is   
neither this nor that4 ,compare1  too1  
the following passage3 7,gottes7        
einfeltige natur ist von formen         
formlos1 von werden werdelos1 von wesen 
wesenlos1 und von sachen  sachelos1 und 

darum entgeht sie in allen werdenden    
dingen1 und die  endliche dinge mssen da
 enden4    ,footnote #bci3 ,i here agree
 with ,preger against ,lasson4 ,it seems
 to me  to be one of the most important 
and characteristic parts of ,eckhart's  
system1 that the ,trinity is not for him
 7as it was for ,hierotheus7  an        
emanation or appearance of the          
,absolute4 ,but it is not to be denied  
that there are passages in ,eckhart     
which support the other view4           
,footnote #bdj3 ,compare ,spinoza's     
natura naturata4    ,footnote #bda3 ,the
 ideas are uncreated creatures2 they are
 creatures  in ,god but not in          
themselves4 ,preger states ,eckhart's   
doctrine thus3  ,gott denkt sein ,wesen 
in untergeordnete ,weise nachahmbar1 und
 der  ,reflex dieses ,denkens in dem    
gttlichen ,bewusstsein1 die             
,vorstellungen  hievon1 sind die ,ideen4
 ,but in what sense is the ideal world  
subordinate8 ,the ,son in ,eckhart holds
 quite a different relation to  the     

,father from that which the ,greek3 ,nos
 holds to the ,one in  ,plotinus1 as the
 following sentence will show3 ,god is  
for ever working  in one eternal ,now2  
this working of ,his is giving birth to 
,his ,son2 ,he  bears ,him at every     
moment4 ,from this birth proceed all    
things4 ,god has  such delight therein  
that ,he uses up all ,his power in the  
process4 ,he  bears ,himself out of     
,himself into ,himself4 ,he bears       
,himself continually  in the ,son2 in   
,him ,he speaks all things4 ,the        
following passage from  ,ruysbroek is an
 attempt to define more precisely the   
nature of the  ,eckhartian ,ideas3      
,before the temporal creation ,god saw  
the creatures1  et agnovit distincte in 
seipso in alteritate quadam--non tamen  
omnimoda  alteritate2 quidquid enim in  
,deo est ,deus est4 ,our eternal life   
remains  perpetuo in divina essentia    
sine discretione1 but continually flows 
out per ternam ,verbi generationem4     
,ruysbroek also says clearly that       

creation is the embodiment of the whole 
mind of ,god3 ,whatever lives  in the   
,father hidden in the unity1 lives in   
the ,son 'in emanatione  manifesta4'    
,footnote #bdb3 ,it is true that        
,eckhart was censured for teaching ,deum
  sine ipso nihil facere posse2 but the 
notion of a real becoming of  ,god in   
the human mind1 and the attempt to solve
 the problem of evil on  the theory of  
evolutionary optimism1 are1 ,i am       
convinced1 alien to his  philosophy4    
,see1 however1 on the other side1       
,carrire1 ,die  philosophische          
,weltanschauung der ,reformationszeit1  
pp4 #aeb-aeg4    ,footnote #bdc3 ,see   
,lasson1 ,meister ,eckhart1 p4 #cea4    
,eckhart protests  vigorously against   
the misrepresentation that he made the  
phenomenal  world the ,wesen of ,god1   
and uses strongly acosmistic language in
  self-defence4 ,but there seems to be a
 real inconsistency in this side  of his
 philosophy4    ,footnote #bdd3 ,i mean 
that a pantheist may with equal         

consistency call  himself an optimist or
 a pessimist1 or both alternately4      
,footnote #bde3 ,as when he says1 ,in   
,god all things are one1 from angel  to 
spider4 ,the inquisitors were not slow  
to lay hold of this error4  ,among the  
twenty-six articles of the gravamen     
against ,eckhart we find1  ,item1 in    
omni opere1 etiam malo1 manifestatur et 
relucet qualiter  gloria ,dei4 ,the word
 qualiter the stamp of true pantheism4  
,eckhart1 however1 whether consistently 
or not1 frequently asserts the          
transcendence of ,god4 ,god is in the   
creatures1 but above them4 ,he  is above
 all nature1 and is not ,himself nature1
 etc4 ,in dealing with  sin1 he is      
confronted with the obvious difficulty  
that if it is the  nature of all        
phenomenal things to return to ,god1    
from whom they  proceeded1 the process  
which he calls the birth of the ,son    
ought  logically to occur in every      
conscious individual1 for all have a    
like  phenomenal existence4 ,he attempts

 to solve this puzzle by the  hypothesis
 of a double aspect of the new birth    
7see below74 ,but ,i fear  there is some
 justice in ,professor ,pearson's       
comment1 ,thus his  phenomenology is    
shattered upon his practical theology4  
,footnote #bdf3 ,other scholastics and  
mystics had taught that there is  a     
residue of the ,godlike in man4 ,the    
idea of a central point of the  soul    
appears in ,plotinus and ,augustine1 and
 the word scintilla had  been used of   
this faculty before ,eckhart4 ,the      
synteresis of  ,alexander of ,hales1    
,bonaventura1 ,albertus ,magnus1 and    
,thomas ,aquinas1  was substantially the
 same4 ,but there is this difference1   
that while  the earlier writers regard  
this resemblance to ,god as only a      
residue1 ,eckhart regards it as the true
 ,wesen of the soul1 into  which all its
 faculties may be transformed4          
,footnote #bdg3 ,the following passage  
from ,amiel 7p4 #dd of ,english         
edition7 is an admirable commentary on  

the mystical doctrine of                
immanence3--,the centre of life is      
neither in thought nor in feeling  nor  
in will1 nor even in consciousness1 so  
far as it thinks1 feels1 or  wishes4    
,for moral truth may have been          
penetrated and possessed in all  these  
ways1 and escape us still4 ,deeper even 
than consciousness1 there  is our being 
itself1 our very substance1 our nature4 
,only those truths  which have entered  
into this last region1 which have become
 ourselves1  become spontaneous and     
involuntary1 instinctive and            
unconscious1 are  really our life--that 
is to say1 something more than our      
property4 ,so  long as we are able to   
distinguish any space whatever between  
the  truth and us1 we remain outside it4
 ,the thought1 the feeling1 the  desire1
 the consciousness of life1 are not yet 
quite life4 ,but peace  and repose can  
nowhere be found except in life and in  
eternal life1  and the eternal life is  
the ,divine life1 is ,god4 ,to become   

,divine is1  then1 the aim of life3 then
 only can truth be said to be ours      
beyond  the possibility of loss1 because
 it is no longer outside of us1 nor     
even in us1 but we are it1 and it is we2
 we ourselves are a truth1 a  will1 a   
work of ,god4 ,liberty has become       
nature2 the creature is one  with its   
,creator--one through love4    ,footnote
 #bdh3 ,no better exposition of the     
religious aspect of  ,eckhart's doctrine
 of immanence can be found than in      
,principal ,caird's  ,introduction to   
the ,philosophy of ,religion1 pp4 #bdd1 
#bde1 as the  following extract will    
show3 ,there is therefore a sense in    
which we  can say that the world of     
finite intelligence1 though distinct    
from  ,god1 is still1 in its ideal      
nature1 one with ,him4 ,that which ,god 
creates1 and by which ,he reveals the   
hidden treasures of ,his wisdom  and    
love1 is still not foreign to ,his own  
infinite life1 but one with  it4 ,in the
 knowledge of the minds that know ,him1 

in the self-surrender  of the hearts    
that love ,him1 it is no paradox to     
affirm that ,he knows  and loves        
,himself4 ,as ,he is the origin and     
inspiration of every true  thought and  
pure affection1 of every experience in  
which we forget and  rise above         
ourselves1 so is ,he also of all these  
the end4 ,if in one  point of view      
religion is the work of man1 in another 
it is the work  of ,god4 ,its true      
significance is not apprehended till we 
pass beyond  its origin in time and in  
the experience of a finite spirit1 to   
see in  it the revelation of the mind of
 ,god ,himself4 ,in the language of     
,scripture1 ',it is ,god that worketh in
 us to will and to do of ,his good      
pleasure3 all things are of ,god1 who   
hath reconciled us to ,himself4'        
,footnote #bdi3 ,eckhart sees this 7cf4 
,preger1 vol4 i4 p4 #dba73  ,personality
 in ,eckhart is neither the faculties1  
nor the form  7,bild71 nor the essence1 
nor the nature of the ,godhead1 but it  

is  rather the spirit which rises out of
 the essence1 and is born by the        
irradiation of the form in the essence1 
which mingles itself with our  nature   
and works by its means4 ,the obscurity  
of this conception is  not made any less
 by the distinction which ,eckhart draws
 between the  outer and inner           
consciousness in the personality4 ,the  
outer  consciousness is bound up with   
the earthly life2 to it all images must 
come through sense2 but in this way it  
can have no image of itself4  ,but the  
higher consciousness is supra-temporal4 
,the potential ground  of the soul is   
and remains sinless2 but the personality
 is also united  to the bodily nature2  
its guilt is that it inclines to its    
sinful  nature instead of to ,god4      
,footnote #bej3 ,eckhart distinguishes  
the intellectus agens 7diu  wirkende    
,vernunft7 from the passive 7ldende7    
intellect4 ,the office  of the former is
 to present perceptions to the latter1  
set out under  the forms of time and    

space4 ,in his ,strassburg period1 the  
spark or  ,ganster1 the intellectus     
agens1 diu oberste ,vernunft1 and       
synteresis1 seem to be identical2 but   
later he says1 ,the active  intellect   
cannot give what it has not got4 ,it    
cannot see two ideas  together1 but only
 one after another4 ,but if ,god works  
in the place of  the active intellect1  
,he begets 7in the mind7 many ideas in  
one  point4 ,thus the spark becomes     
supra-rational and uncreated--the       
,divine essence itself4    ,footnote    
#bea3 ,the following sentence1 for      
instance1 is in the worst  manner of    
,dionysius3 ,thou shalt love ,god as ,he
 is1 a non-,god1 a  non-,spirit1 a      
non-,person1 a non-,form3 ,he is        
absolute bare ,unity4 ,this  is         
,eckhart's theory of the ,absolute 7the 
,godhead7 as distinguished  from ,god4  
,in these moods he wishes1 like the     
,asiatic mystics1 to sink  in the       
bottomless sea of the ,infinite4 ,he    
also aspires to absolute  ,greek3       

apatheia 7,abgeschiedenheit74 ,is he    
sick8 ,he is as fain to  be sick as     
well4 ,if a friend should die--in the   
name of ,god4 ,if an eye  should be     
knocked out--in the name of ,god4 ,the  
soul has returned to  its pre-natal     
condition1 having rid itself of all     
creatureliness4    ,footnote #beb3 ,many
 passages might be quoted4 ,the ordinary
 conclusion  is that ,mary chose the    
better part1 because activity is        
confined to  this life1 while           
contemplation lasts for ever4 ,augustine
 treats the  story of ,leah and ,rachel 
in the same way 7,contra ,faust4        
,manich4  xxii4 #eb73 ,lia interpretatur
 ,laborans1 ,rachel autem ,visum        
principium1  sive ,verbum ex quo videtur
 principium4 ,actio ergo human          
mortalisque  vit 444 ipsa est ,lia prior
 uxor ,jacob2 ac per hoc et infirmis    
oculis  fuisse commemoratur4 ,spes vero 
tern contemplationis ,dei1 habens       
certam et delectabilem intelligentiam   
veritatis1 ipsa est ,rachel1 unde  etiam

 dicitur bona facie et pulcra specie1   
etc4    ,footnote #bec3 ,moreover1 he is
 never tired of insisting that the      
,will is everything4 ,if your will is   
right1 you cannot go wrong1 he  says4   
,with the will ,i can do everything4    
,love resides in the  will--the more    
will1 the more love4 ,there is nothing  
evil but the  evil will1 of which sin is
 the appearance4 ,the value of human    
life  depends entirely on the aim which 
it sets before itself4 ,this            
over-insistence on purity of intention  
as the end1 as well as the  beginning1  
of virtue1 is no doubt connected with   
,eckhart's denial of  reality and       
importance to the world of time2 he     
tries to show that it  does not         
logically lead to ,antinomianism4 ,his  
doctrine that good works  have no value 
in themselves differs from those of     
,abelard and ,bernard1  which have a    
superficial resemblance to it4 ,eckhart 
really regards the  ,catholic doctrine  
of good works much as ,st4 ,paul treated

 the ,pharisaic  legalism2 but he is as 
unconscious of the widening gulf which  
had  already opened between ,teutonic   
and ,latin ,christianity1 as of the     
discredit which his own writings were to
 help to bring upon the  monkish view of
 life4    ,footnote #bed3 ,as an example
 of his free handling of the ,old       
,testament1 ,i may quote1 ,do not       
suppose that when ,god made heaven and  
earth and all things1 ,he made one thing
 to-day and another to-morrow4  ,moses  
says so1 of course1 but he knew better2 
he only wrote that for  the sake of the 
populace1 who could not have understood 
otherwise4 ,god  merely willed and the  
world was4    ,footnote #bee3 ,e4g4 ,da 
der vatter seynen sun in mir gebirt1 da 
byn  ich der selb sun und nitt eyn      
ander4    ,footnote #bef3 ,so ,hermann  
of ,fritslar says that the soul has two 
faces1 the one turned towards this      
world1 the other immediately to  ,god4  
,in the latter ,god flows and shines    
eternally1 whether man is  conscious of 

it or not4 ,it is therefore according to
 man's nature as  possessed of this     
,divine ground1 to seek ,god1 his       
original2 and even  in hell the         
suffering there has its source in       
hopeless contradiction  of this         
indestructible tendency4 ,see ,vaughan1 
vol4 i4 p4 #bef2 and the  same teaching 
in ,tauler1 p4 #ahe4          ,,lecture 
,v      ,greek3 ,ho thronos ts theiottos
 ho nous estin mn4    ,,macarius4       
,thou comest not1 thou goest not2       
,thou wert not1 wilt not be2            
,eternity is but a thought        ,by   
which we think of ,thee4    ,,faber4    
,werd als ein ,kind1 werd taub und      
blind1      ,dein eignes ,icht muss     
werden nicht3        ,all ,icht1 all    
,nicht treib ferne nur2      ,lass      
,statt1 lass ,zeit1 auch ,bild lass     
weit1      ,geh ohne ,weg den schmalen  
,steg1        ,so kommst du auf der     
,wste ,spur4      ,o ,seele mein1 aus   
,gott geh ein1      ,sink als ein ,icht 
in ,gottes ,nicht1        ,sink in die  

ungegrndte ,fluth4      ,flich ich von  
,dir1 du kommst zu mir1      ,verlass   
ich mich1 so find ich ,dich1        ,o  
berwesentliches ,gut6    ,medival       
,german ,hymn4        ,quid clo dabimus8
 quantum est quo veneat omne8           
,impendendus homo est1 ,deus esse ut    
possit in ipso4    ,,manilius4          
,,practical ,,and ,,devotional          
,,mysticism    ,we all1 with unveiled   
face reflecting as a mirror the glory of
 the  ,lord1 are transformed into the   
same image1 from glory to glory4--#b    
,,cor4 iii4 #ah4      ,the school of    
,eckhart#beg in the fourteenth century  
produced the  brightest cluster of names
 in the history of ,mysticism4 ,in      
,ruysbroek1  ,suso1 ,tauler1 and the    
author of the ,theologia ,germanica we  
see  introspective ,mysticism at its    
best4 ,this must not be understood to   
mean that they improved upon the        
philosophical system of ,eckhart1 or    
that they are entirely free from the    
dangerous tendencies which have  been   

found in his works4 ,on the speculative 
side they added nothing of  value1 and  
none of them rivals ,eckhart in         
clearness of intellect4 ,but  we find in
 them an unfaltering conviction that our
 communion with ,god  must be a fact of 
experience1 and not only a philosophical
 theory4  ,with the most intense        
earnestness they set themselves to live 
through  the mysteries of the spiritual 
life1 as the only way to understand and 
prove them4 ,suso and ,tauler both      
passed through deep waters2 the  history
 of their inner lives is a record of    
heroic struggle and  suffering4 ,the    
personality of the men is part of their 
message1 a  statement which could hardly
 be made of ,dionysius or ,erigena1     
perhaps  not of ,eckhart himself4       
,john of ,ruysbroek1 doctor ecstaticus1 
as the ,church allowed him to  be       
called1 was born in #abic1 and died in  
#acha4 ,he was prior of the  convent of 
,grnthal1 in the forest of ,soignies1   
where he wrote most of  his mystical    

treatises1 under the direct guidance1 as
 he believed1 of  the ,holy ,spirit4 ,he
 was the object of great veneration in  
the later  part of his life4 ,ruysbroek 
was not a learned man1 or a clear       
thinker4#beh ,he knew ,dionysius1 ,st4  
,augustine1 and ,eckhart1 and was  no   
doubt acquainted with some of the other 
mystical writers2 but he  does not write
 like a scholar or a man of letters4 ,he
 resembles ,suso  in being more         
emotional and less speculative than most
 of the ,german  school4    ,ruysbroek  
reverts to the mystical tradition1      
partially broken by  ,eckhart1 of       
arranging almost all his topics in three
 or seven  divisions1 often forming a   
progressive scale4 ,for instance1 in the
  treatise ,on the ,seven ,grades of    
,love1 we have the following series1    
which he calls the ,ladder of ,love3    
7#a7 goodwill2 7#b7 voluntary  poverty2 
7#c7 chastity2 7#d7 humility2 7#e7      
desire for the glory of ,god2  7#f7     
,divine contemplation1 which has three  

properties--intuition1  purity of       
spirit1 and nudity of mind2 7#g7 the    
ineffable1 unnameable  transcendence of 
all knowledge and thought4 ,this        
arbitrary schematism  is the weakest    
part of ,ruysbroek's writings1 which    
contain many deep  thoughts4 ,his chief 
work1 ,ordo spiritualium nuptiarum1 is  
one of the  most complete charts of the 
mystic's progress which exist4 ,the     
three  stages are here the active life  
7vita actuosa71 the internal1  elevated1
 or affective life1 to which all are not
 called1 and the  contemplative life1 to
 which only a few can attain4 ,the three
 parts of  the soul1 sensitive1         
rational1 and spiritual1 correspond to  
these  three stages4 ,the motto of the  
active life is the text1 ,ecce sponsus  
venit2 exite obviam ei4 ,the ,bridegroom
 comes three times3 ,he came  in the    
flesh2 ,he comes into us by grace2 and  
,he will come to judgment4  ,we must go 
out to meet ,him1 by the three virtues  
of humility1 love1  and justice3 these  

are the three virtues which support the 
fabric of  the active life4 ,the ground 
of all the virtues is humility2 thence  
proceed1 in order1 obedience1           
renunciation of our own will1 patience1 
gentleness1 piety1 sympathy1            
bountifulness1 strength and impulse for 
all virtues1 soberness and temperance1  
chastity4 ,this is the active  life1    
which is necessary for us all1 if we    
wish to follow ,christ1 and  to reign   
with ,him in ,his everlasting kingdom4  
,above the active rises the inner life4 
,this has three parts4 ,our  intellect  
must be enlightened with supernatural   
clearness2 we must  behold the inner    
coming of the ,bridegroom1 that is1 the 
eternal truth2  we must go out from the 
exterior to the inner life2 we must go  
to  meet the ,bridegroom1 to enjoy union
 with ,his ,divinity4    ,finally1 the  
spirit rises from the inner to the      
contemplative life4  ,when we rise above
 ourselves1 and in our ascent to ,god   
are made so  simple that the love which 

embraces us is occupied only with       
itself1  above the practice of all the  
virtues1 then we are transformed and die
  in ,god to ourselves and to all       
separate individuality4 ,god unites us  
with ,himself in eternal love1 which is 
,himself4 ,in this embrace and          
essential unity with ,god all devout and
 inward spirits are one with  ,god by   
living immersion and melting away into  
,him2 they are by grace  one and the    
same thing with ,him1 because the same  
essence is in both4  ,for what we are1  
that we intently contemplate2 and what  
we  contemplate1 that we are2 for our   
mind1 our life1 and our essence are     
simply lifted up and united to the very 
truth1 which is ,god4 ,wherefore  in    
this simple and intent contemplation we 
are one life and one spirit  with ,god4 
,and this ,i call the contemplative     
life4 ,in this highest  stage the soul  
is united to ,god without means2 it     
sinks into the vast  darkness of the    
,godhead4 ,in this abyss1 he says1      

following his  authorities1 the ,persons
 of the ,trinity transcend themselves2  
there is only the eternal essence1 which
 is the substance of the  ,divine       
,persons1 where we are all one and      
uncreated1 according to our  prototypes4
 ,here1 so far as distinction of persons
 goes1 there is no  more ,god nor       
creature2 we have lost ourselves and    
been melted away  into the unknown      
darkness4 ,and yet we remain eternally  
distinct from  ,god4 ,the creature      
remains a creature1 and loses not its   
creatureliness4 ,we must be conscious of
 ourselves in ,god1 and  conscious of   
ourselves in ourselves4 ,for eternal    
life consists in the  knowledge of ,god1
 and there can be no knowledge without  
self-consciousness4 ,if we could be     
blessed without knowing it1 a  stone1   
which has no consciousness1 might be    
blessed4    ,ruysbroek1 it is plain1 had
 no qualms in using the old mystical    
language without qualification4 ,this is
 the more remarkable1 because  he was   

fully aware of the disastrous           
consequences which follow from  the     
method of negation and self-deification4
 ,for ,ruysbroek was an  earnest        
reformer of abuses4 ,he spares no       
one--popes1 bishops1 monks1  and the    
laity are lashed in vigorous language   
for their secularity1  covetousness1 and
 other faults2 but perhaps his sharpest 
castigation  is reserved for the false  
mystics4 ,there are some1 he says1 who  
mistake mere laziness for holy          
abstraction2 others give the rein to    
spiritual self-indulgence2 others       
neglect all religious exercises2  others
 fall into antinomianism1 and think that
 nothing is forbidden  to them--they    
will gratify any appetite which         
interrupts their  contemplation3 these  
are by far the worst of all4 ,there is  
another  error1 he proceeds1 of those   
who like to call themselves             
'theopaths4' ,they take every impulse to
 be ,divine1 and repudiate all          
responsibility4 ,most of them live in   

inert sloth4 ,as a corrective to  these 
errors1 he very rightly says1 ,christ   
must be the rule and  pattern of all our
 lives2 but he does not see that there  
is a deep  inconsistency between the    
imitation of ,christ as the living way  
to the  ,father1 and the negative road  
which leads to vacancy4#bei    ,henry   
,suso1 whose autobiography is a document
 of unique importance  for the          
psychology of ,mysticism1 was born in   
#abiebfj4 ,intellectually  he is a      
disciple of ,eckhart1 whom he           
understands better than  ,ruysbroek2 but
 his life and character are more like   
those of the  ,spanish mystics1         
especially ,st4 ,juan of the ,cross4    
,the text which is  most often in his   
mouth is1 ,where ,i am1 there shall also
 ,my servant  be2 which he interprets to
 mean that only those who have embraced 
to  the full the fellowship of ,christ's
 sufferings1 can hope to be united  to  
,him in glory4 ,no cross1 no crown1 is  
the law of life which ,suso  accepts in 

all the severity of its literal meaning4
 ,the story of the  terrible penances   
which he inflicted on himself for part  
of his life  is painful and almost      
repulsive to read2 but they have nothing
 in  common with the ostentatious       
self-torture of the fakir4 ,suso's      
deeply  affectionate and poetical       
temperament1 with its strong human loves
 and  sympathies1 made the life of the  
cloister very difficult for him4 ,he    
accepted it as the highest life1 and    
strove to conform himself to its        
ideals2 and when1 after sixteen years of
 cruel austerities1 he felt  that his   
refractory body was finally tamed1 he   
discontinued his  mortifications1 and   
entered upon a career of active         
usefulness4 ,in  this he had still      
heavier crosses to carry1 for he was    
persecuted and  falsely accused1 while  
the spiritual consolations which had    
cheered  him in his early struggles were
 often withdrawn4 ,in his old age1      
shortly before his death in #acfe1 he   

published the history of his  life1     
which is one of the most interesting and
 charming of all  autobiographies4      
,suso's literary gift is very           
remarkable4 ,unlike most  ecstatic      
mystics1 who declare on each occasion   
that tongue cannot  utter their         
experiences1 ,suso's store of glowing   
and vivid language  never fails4 ,the   
hunger and thirst of the soul for ,god1 
and the  answering love of ,christ      
manifested in the inner man1 have never 
found  a more pure and beautiful        
expression4 ,in the hope of inducing    
more  readers to become acquainted with 
this gem of medival literature1 ,i  will
 give a few extracts from its pages4    
,the servitor of the eternal ,wisdom1 as
 he calls himself throughout  the book1 
made the first beginning of his perfect 
conversion to ,god in  his eighteenth   
year4 ,before that1 he had lived as     
others live1 content  to avoid deadly   
sin2 but all the time he had felt a     
gnawing reproach  within him4 ,then came

 the temptation to be content with      
gradual  progress1 and to treat himself 
well4 ,but the eternal ,wisdom said  to 
him1 ,he who seeks with tender treatment
 to conquer a refractory  body1 wants   
common sense4 ,if thou art minded to    
forsake all1 do so to  good purpose4    
,the stern command was obeyed4#bfa ,very
 soon--it is the  usual experience of   
ascetic mystics--he was encouraged by   
rapturous  visions4 ,one such1 which    
came to him on ,st4 ,agnes' ,day1 he    
thus  describes3--,it was without form  
or mode1 but contained within itself    
the most entrancing delight4 ,his heart 
was athirst and yet satisfied4  ,it was 
a breaking forth of the sweetness of    
eternal life1 felt as  present in the   
stillness of contemplation4 ,whether he 
was in the body  or out of the body1 he 
knew not4 ,it lasted about an hour and a
 half2  but gleams of its light         
continued to visit him at intervals for 
some  time after4    ,suso's loving     
nature1 like ,augustine's1 needed an    

object of affection4  ,his imagination  
concentrated itself upon the eternal    
,wisdom1  personified in the ,book of   
,proverbs in female form as a loving    
mistress1 and the thought came often to 
him1 ,truly thou shouldest  make trial  
of thy fortune1 whether this high       
mistress1 of whom thou  hast heard so   
much1 will become thy love2 for in truth
 thy wild young  heart will not remain  
without a love4 ,then in a vision he saw
 her1  radiant in form1 rich in wisdom1 
and overflowing with love2 it is she    
who touches the summit of the heavens1  
and the depths of the abyss1  who       
spreads herself from end to end1        
mightily and sweetly disposing  all     
things4 ,and she drew nigh to him       
lovingly1 and said to him  sweetly1 ,my 
son1 give me thy heart4    ,at this     
season there came into his soul a flame 
of intense fire1 which  made his heart  
burn with ,divine love4 ,and as a love  
token1 he cut  deep in his breast the   
name of ,jesus1 so that the marks of the

  letters remained all his life1 about  
the length of a finger-joint4           
,another time he saw a vision of angels1
 and besought one of them to  show him  
the manner of ,god's secret dwelling in 
the soul4 ,an angel  answered1 ,cast    
then a joyous glance into thyself1 and  
see how ,god  plays ,his play of love   
with thy loving soul4 ,he looked        
immediately1  and saw that his body over
 his heart was as clear as crystal1 and 
that  in the centre was sitting         
tranquilly1 in lovely form1 the eternal 
,wisdom1 beside whom sat1 full of       
heavenly longing1 the servitor's own    
soul1 which leaning lovingly towards    
,god's side1 and encircled by ,his      
arms1 lay pressed close to ,his heart4  
,in another vision he saw the blessed   
master ,eckhart1 who had lately  died in
 disfavour with the rulers of the       
,church4 ,he signified to the  servitor 
that he was in exceeding glory1 and that
 his soul was quite  transformed1 and   
made ,godlike in ,god4 ,in answer to    

questions1 the  blessed ,master told him
 that words cannot tell the manner in   
which  those persons dwell in ,god who  
have really detached themselves from    
the world1 and that the way to attain   
this detachment is to die to  self1 and 
to maintain unruffled patience with all 
men4    ,very touching is the vision of 
the ,holy ,child which came to him in   
church on ,candlemas ,day4 ,kneeling    
down in front of the ,virgin1 who       
appeared to him1 he prayed her to show  
him the ,child1 and to suffer  him also 
to kiss it4 ,when she kindly offered it 
to him1 he spread out  his arms and     
received the beloved ,one4 ,he          
contemplated its beautiful  little eyes1
 he kissed its tender little mouth1 and 
he gazed again and  again at all the    
infant members of the heavenly treasure4
 ,then1  lifting up his eyes1 he uttered
 a cry of amazement that ,he who bears  
up the heavens is so great1 and yet so  
small1 so beautiful in heaven  and so   
childlike on earth4 ,and as the ,divine 

,infant moved him1 so did  he act toward
 it1 now singing now weeping1 till at   
last he gave it  back to its mother4    
,when at last he was warned by an angel1
 he says1 to discontinue his            
austerities1 he spent several weeks very
 pleasantly1 often weeping  for joy at  
the thought of the grievous sufferings  
which he had  undergone4 ,but his repose
 was soon disturbed4 ,one day1 as he sat
  meditating on life as a warfare1 he   
saw a vision of a comely youth1  who    
vested him in the attire of a           
knight1#bfb saying to him1  ,hearken1   
sir knight6 ,hitherto thou hast been a  
squire2 now ,god wills  thee to be a    
knight4 ,and thou shalt have fighting   
enough6 ,suso cried1  ,alas1 my ,god6   
what art ,thou about to do unto me8 ,i  
thought that ,i had  had enough by this 
time4 ,show me how much suffering ,i    
have before me4  ,the ,lord said1 ,it is
 better for thee not to know4           
,nevertheless ,i will  tell thee of     
three things4 ,hitherto thou hast       

stricken thyself4 ,now ,i  will strike  
thee1 and thou shalt suffer publicly the
 loss of thy good  name4 ,secondly1     
where thou shalt look for love and      
faithfulness1 there  shalt thou find    
treachery and suffering4 ,thirdly1      
hitherto thou hast  floated in ,divine  
sweetness1 like a fish in the sea2 this 
will ,i now  withdraw from thee1 and    
thou shalt starve and wither4 ,thou     
shalt be  forsaken both by ,god and the 
world1 and whatever thou shalt take in  
hand to comfort thee shall come to      
nought4 ,the servitor threw himself  on 
the ground1 with arms outstretched to   
form a cross1 and prayed in  agony that 
this great misery might not fall upon   
him4 ,then a voice  said to him1 ,be of 
good cheer1 ,i will be with thee and aid
 thee to  overcome4    ,the next        
chapters show how this vision or        
presentiment was verified4  ,the        
journeys which he now took exposed him  
to frequent dangers1 both  from robbers 
and from lawless men who hated the      

monks4 ,one adventure  with a murderer  
is told with delightful simplicity and  
vividness4 ,suso  remains throughout his
 life thoroughly human1 and1 hard as his
 lot had  been1 he is in an agony of    
fear at the prospect of a violent death4
  ,the story of the outlaw confessing to
 the trembling monk how1 besides  other 
crimes1 he had once pushed into the     
,rhine a priest who had just  heard his 
confession1 and how the wife of the     
assassin comforted ,suso  when he was   
about to drop down from sheer fright1   
forms a quaint  interlude in the saint's
 memoirs4 ,but a more grievous trial    
awaited  him4 ,among other pastoral     
work1 he laboured much to reclaim fallen
  women2 and a pretended penitent1 whose
 insincerity he had detected1  revenged 
herself by a slander which almost ruined
 him4#bfc ,happily1  the chiefs of his  
order1 whose verdict he had greatly     
dreaded1  completely exonerated him1    
after a full investigation1 and his last
  years seem to have been peaceful and  

happy4 ,the closing chapters of  the    
,life are taken up by some very         
interesting conversations with his      
spiritual daughter1 ,elizabeth ,stglin1 
who wished to understand the  obscurer  
doctrines of ,mysticism4 ,she asks him  
about the doctrine of  the ,trinity1    
which he expounds on the general lines  
of ,eckhart's  theology4 ,she1 however1 
remembers some of the bolder phrases in 
,eckhart1 and says1 ,but there are some 
who say that1 in order to  attain to    
perfect union1 we must divest ourselves 
of ,god1 and turn  only to the          
inwardly-shining light4 ,that is false1 
replies ,suso1  if the words are taken  
in their ordinary sense4 ,but the common
 belief  about ,god1 that ,he is a great
 ,taskmaster1 whose function is to      
reward  and punish1 is cast out by      
perfect love2 and in this sense the     
spiritual man does divest himself of    
,god1 as conceived of by the  vulgar4   
,again1 in the highest state of union1  
the soul takes no note  of the ,persons 

separately2 for it is not the ,divine   
,persons taken  singly that confer      
bliss1 but the ,three in ,one4 ,suso    
here gives a  really valuable turn to   
one of ,eckhart's rashest theses4 ,where
 is  heaven8 asks his pupil next4 ,the  
intellectual where is the  reply1 is the
 essentially-existing unnameable        
nothingness4 ,so we  must call it1      
because we can discover no mode of      
being1 under which to  conceive of it4  
,but though it seems to us to be        
no-thing1 it deserves  to be called     
something rather than nothing4 ,suso1 we
 see1 follows  ,dionysius1 but with this
 proviso4 ,the maiden now asks him to   
give her  a figure or image of the      
self-evolution of the ,trinity1 and he  
gives  her the figure of concentric     
circles1 such as appear when we throw a 
stone into a pond4 ,but1 he adds1 this  
is as unlike the formless  truth as a   
black ,moor is unlike the beautiful sun4
 ,soon after1 the  holy maiden died1 and
 ,suso saw her in a vision1 radiant and 

full of  heavenly joy1 showing him how1 
guided by his counsels1 she had found   
everlasting bliss4 ,when he came to     
himself1 he said1 ,ah1 ,god6 blessed  is
 the man who strives after ,thee alone6 
,he may well be content to  suffer1     
whose pains ,thou rewardest thus4 ,god  
help us to rejoice in  this maiden1 and 
in all ,his dear friends1 and to enjoy  
,his ,divine  countenance eternally6 ,so
 ends ,suso's autobiography4 ,his other 
chief  work1 a ,dialogue between the    
eternal ,wisdom and the ,servitor1 is a 
prose poem of great beauty1 the tenor of
 which may be inferred from  the above  
extracts from the ,life4 ,suso believed 
that the ,divine ,wisdom  had indeed    
spoken through his pen2 and few1 ,i     
think1 will accuse him  of arrogance for
 the words which conclude the ,dialogue4
 ,whosoever  will read these writings of
 mine in a right spirit1 can hardly fail
 to  be stirred in his heart's depths1  
either to fervent love1 or to new       
light1 or to longing and thirsting for  

,god1 or to detestation and  loathing of
 his sins1 or to that spiritual         
aspiration by which the  soul is renewed
 in grace4    ,john ,tauler was born at 
,strassburg about #acjj1 and entered a  
,dominican  convent in #acae4 ,after    
studying at ,cologne and ,paris1 he     
returned to  ,strassburg1 where1 as a   
,dominican1 he was allowed to officiate 
as a  priest1 although the town was     
involved in the great interdict of      
#acbd4  ,in #acci1 however1 he had to   
fly to ,basel1 which was the            
headquarters  of the revivalist society 
who called themselves the ,friends of   
,god4  ,about #acdf he returned to      
,strassburg1 and was devoted in his     
ministrations during the black death in 
#acdh4 ,he appears to have  been        
strongly influenced by one of the       
,friends of ,god1 a mysterious  layman1 
who has been identified1 probably       
wrongly1 with ,nicholas of  ,basel1#bfd 
and1 according to some1 dated his       
conversion from his  acquaintance with  

this saintly man4 ,tauler continued to  
preach to  crowded congregations till   
his death in #acfa4    ,tauler is a     
thinker as well as a preacher4 ,though  
in most points his  teaching is         
identical with that of ,eckhart1#bfe he 
treats all  questions in an independent 
manner1 and sometimes1 as for instance  
in  his doctrine about the uncreated    
ground of the soul1#bff he differs  from
 his master4 ,there is also a           
perceptible change in the stress  laid  
upon certain parts of the system1 which 
brings ,tauler nearer than  ,eckhart to 
the divines of the ,reformation4 ,in    
particular1 his sense of  sin is too    
deep for him to be satisfied with the   
,neoplatonic doctrine  of its           
negativity1 which led ,eckhart into     
difficulties4#bfg    ,the little book   
called the ,german ,theology1 by an     
unknown author1  also belongs to the    
school of ,eckhart4 ,it is one of the   
most precious  treasures of devotional  
literature1 and deserves to be better   

known  than it is in this country4 ,in  
some ways it is superior to the famous  
treatise of  ,kempis1 ,on the ,imitation
 of ,christ1 since the  self-centred    
individualism is less prominent4 ,the   
author thoroughly  understands ,eckhart1
 but his object is not to view          
everything sub  specie oeternitatis1 but
 to give a practical religious turn to  
his  master's speculations4 ,his        
teaching is closely in accordance with  
that  of ,tauler1 whom he quotes as an  
authority1 and whom he joins in         
denouncing the followers of the false   
light1 the erratic mystics of  the      
fourteenth century4    ,the practical   
theology of these four ,german mystics  
of the fourteenth  century--,ruysbroek1 
,suso1 ,tauler1 and the writer of the   
,german  ,theology1 is so similar that  
it is possible to consider it in detail 
without taking each author separately4  
,it is the crowning achievement  of     
,christian ,mysticism before the        
,reformation1 except in the ,english    

,platonists of the seventeenth century1 
we shall not find anywhere a  sounder   
and more complete scheme of doctrine    
built upon this  foundation4    ,the    
distinction drawn by ,eckhart between   
the ,godhead and ,god is  maintained in 
the ,german ,theology1 and by           
,ruysbroek4 ,the latter1 as  we have    
seen1#bfh does not shrink from following
 the path of analysis  to the end1 and  
says plainly that in the ,abyss there is
 no distinction  of ,divine and human   
persons1 but only the eternal essence4  
,tauler also  bids us put out into the  
deep1 and let down our nets2 but his    
deep  is in the heart1 not in the       
intellect4 ,my children1 you should not 
ask about these great high problems1 he 
says2 and he prefers not to  talk much  
about them1 for no teacher can teach    
what he has not lived  through himself4 
,still he speaks1 like ,dionysius and   
,eckhart1 of the  ,divine darkness1 the 
nameless1 formless nothing1 the wild    
waste1  and so forth2 and says of ,god  

that ,he is the ,unity in which all     
multiplicity is transcended1 and that in
 ,him are gathered up both  becoming and
 being1 eternal rest and eternal motion4
 ,in this deepest  ground1 he says1 the 
,three ,persons are implicit1 not       
explicit4 ,the ,son  is the ,form of all
 forms1 to which the eternal1 reasonable
 form  created after ,god's image 7the  
,idea of mankind7 longs to be           
conformed4    ,the creation of the      
world1 according to ,tauler1 is rather  
consonant  with than necessary to the   
nature of ,god4 ,the world1 before it   
became  actual1 existed in its ,idea in 
,god1 and this ideal world was set forth
  by means of the ,trinity4 ,it is in   
the ,son that the ,ideas exist from  all
 eternity4 ,the ,ideas are said to be   
living1 that is1 they work  as forms1   
and after the creation of matter act as 
universals above and  in things4 ,tauler
 is careful to show that he is not a    
pantheist4 ,god  is the ,being of all   
beings1 he says2 but ,he is none of all 

things4  ,god is all1 but all is not    
,god2 ,he far transcends the universe in
  which ,he is immanent4    ,we look in 
vain to ,tauler for an explanation of   
the obscurest point in  ,eckhart's      
philosophy1 as to the relations of the  
phenomenal to the  real4 ,we want       
clearer evidence that temporal existence
 is not regarded  as something illusory 
or accidental1 an error which may be    
inconsistent with the theory of         
immanence as taught by the school of    
,eckhart1 but which is too closely      
allied with other parts of their        
scheme4    ,the indwelling of ,god in   
the soul is the real centre of ,tauler's
  doctrine1 but his psychology is rather
 intricate and difficult4 ,he  speaks of
 three phases of personal life1 the     
sensuous nature1 the  reason1 and the   
third man--the spiritual life or pure   
substance of  the soul4 ,he speaks also 
of an uncreated ground1 which is the    
abyss  of the ,godhead1 but yet in us1  
and of a created ground1 which he  uses 

in a double sense1 now of the empirical 
self1 which is imperfect  and must be   
purified1 and now of the ideal man1 as  
,god intended him to  be4 ,this latter  
is the third man1 and is also           
represented by the  spark at the apex of
 the soul1 which is to transform the    
rest of  the soul into its own likeness4
 ,the uncreated ground1 in ,tauler1     
works upon us through the medium of the 
created ground1 and not as  in ,eckhart1
 immediately4 ,the created ground1 in   
this sense1 he calls  the ,image1 which 
is identical with ,eckhart's spark4 ,it 
is a  creative principle as well as     
created1 like the ,ideas of ,erigena4   
,the ,german ,theology says that the    
soul has two eyes1#bfi one of  which1   
the right eye1 sees into eternity1 the  
other sees time and the  creatures4 ,the
 right eye is practically the same as   
,eckhart's  spark and ,tauler's image4  
,it is significant that the author tells
  us that we cannot see with both eyes  
together2 the left eye must be  shut    

before we can use the right4#bgj ,the   
passage where this precept  is given    
shows very plainly that the author1 like
 the other fourteenth  century          
mystics1#bga was still under the        
influence of medival  dualism--the      
belief that the ,divine begins where the
 earthly leaves  off4 ,it is almost the 
only point in this golden little        
treatise1 as  ,henry ,more calls it1 to 
which exception must be taken4#bgb      
,the essence of sin is self-assertion or
 self-will1 and consequent  separation  
from ,god4 ,tauler has1 perhaps1 a      
deeper sense of sin than  any of his    
predecessors1 and he revives the        
,augustinian  7anti-,pelagian7 teaching 
on the miserable state of fallen        
humanity4  ,sensuality and pride1 the   
two chief manifestations of self-will1  
have  invaded the whole of our nature4  
,pride is a sin of the spirit1 and  the 
poison has invaded even the ground--the 
created ground1 that  is1 as the unity  
of all the faculties4 ,it will be       

remembered that the  ,neoplatonic       
doctrine was that the spiritual part of 
our nature can  take no defilement4     
,tauler seems to believe that under one 
aspect the  created ground is the       
transparent medium of the ,divine light1
 but in  this sense it is only          
potentially the light of our whole body4
 ,he will  not allow the sinless apex   
mentis to be identified with the        
personality4 ,separation from ,god is   
the source of all misery4 ,therein  lies
 the pain of hell4 ,the human soul can  
never cease to yearn and  thirst after  
,god2 and the greatest pain of the lost 
is that this  longing can never be      
satisfied4 ,in the ,german ,theology1   
the  necessity of rising above the ,i   
and mine is treated as the great  saving
 truth4 ,when the creature claimeth for 
its own anything good1  it goeth astray4
 ,the more of self and me1 the more of  
sin and  wickedness4 ,be simply and     
wholly bereft of self4 ,so long as a man
  seeketh his own highest good because  

it is his1 he will never find  it4 ,for 
so long as he doeth this1 he seeketh    
himself1 and deemeth that  he himself is
 the highest good4 7,these last         
sentences are almost  verbally repeated 
in a sermon by ,john ,smith1 the        
,cambridge ,platonist47    ,the three   
stages of the mystic's ascent appear in 
,tauler's sermons4 ,we  have first to   
practise self-control1 till all our     
lower powers are  governed by our       
highest reason4 ,jesus cannot speak in  
the temple of  thy soul till those that 
sold and bought therein are cast out of 
it4  ,in this stage we must be under    
strict rule and discipline4 ,the old    
man must be subject to the old law1 till
 ,christ be born in him of a  truth4 ,of
 the second stage he says1 ,wilt thou   
with ,st4 ,john rest on  the loving     
breast of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 thou
 must be transformed  into ,his         
beauteous image by a constant1 earnest  
contemplation  thereof4 ,it is possible 
that ,god may will to call thee higher  

still2  then let go all forms and       
images1 and suffer ,him to work with    
thee as  ,his instrument4 ,to some the  
very door of heaven has been            
opened--this  happens to some with a    
convulsion of the mind1 to others calmly
 and  gradually4 ,it is not the work of 
a day nor of a year4 ,before it  can    
come to pass1 nature must endure many a 
death1 outward and  inward4    ,in the  
first stage of the dying life1 he says  
elsewhere1 we are much  oppressed by the
 sense of our infirmities1 and by the   
fear of hell4  ,but in the third1 all   
our griefs and joys are a sympathy with 
,christ1  whose earthly life was a      
mingled web of grief and joy1 and this  
life  ,he has left as a sacred testament
 to ,his followers4    ,these last      
extracts show that the ,cross of        
,christ1 and the imitation  of ,his life
 on earth1 have their due prominence in 
,tauler's teaching4  ,it is1 of course1 
true that for him1 as for all mystics1  
,christ in  us is more than ,christ for 

us4 ,but it is unfair to put it in this 
way1 as if the ,german mystics wished to
 contrast the two views of  redemption1 
and to exalt one at the expense of the  
other4 ,tauler's  wish is to give the   
historical redemption its true          
significance1 by  showing that it is an 
universal as well as a particular fact4 
,when he  says1 ,we should worship      
,christ's humanity only in union with   
this  divinity1 he is giving exactly the
 same caution which ,st4 ,paul          
expresses in the verse about knowing    
,christ after the flesh4    ,in speaking
 of the highest of the three stages1    
passages were quoted  which advocate a  
purely passive state of the will and    
intellect4#bgc  ,this quietistic        
tendency cannot be denied in the        
fourteenth century  mystics1 though it  
is largely counteracted by maxims of an 
opposite  kind4 ,god draws us1 says     
,tauler1 in three ways1 first1 by ,his  
creatures2 secondly1 by ,his voice in   
the soul1 when an eternal truth         

mysteriously suggests itself1 as happens
 not infrequently in morning  sleep4    
7,this is interesting1 being evidently  
the record of personal  experience47    
,thirdly1 without resistance or means1  
when the will is  quite subdued4 ,what  
is given through means is tasteless2 it 
is seen  through a veil1 and split up   
into fragments1 and bears with it a     
certain sting of bitterness4 ,there are 
other passages in which he is  obviously
 under the influence of ,dionysius2 as  
when he speaks of  dying to all         
distinctions2 in fact1 he at times      
preaches  simplification in an          
unqualified form4 ,but1 on the other    
hand1 no  ,christian teachers have made 
more of the active will than these      
pupils of ,eckhart4#bgd ,ye are as holy 
as ye truly will to be holy1  says      
,ruysbroek4 ,with the will one may do   
everything1 we read in  ,tauler4 ,and   
against the perversion of the negative  
road he says1 we  must lop and prune    
vices1 not nature1 which is in itself   

good and  noble4 ,and ,christ ,himself  
never arrived at the 'emptiness' of     
which  these men 7the false mystics7    
talk4 ,of contemplation he says1        
,spiritual enjoyments are the food of   
the soul1 and are only to be  taken for 
nourishment and support to help us in   
our active work4  ,sloth often makes men
 fain to be excused from their work and 
set to  contemplation4 ,never trust in a
 virtue that has not been put into      
practice4 ,these pupils of ,eckhart all 
led strenuous lives themselves1  and    
were no advocates of pious indolence4   
,tauler says1 ,works of love  are more  
acceptable to ,god than lofty           
contemplation3 and1 ,all kinds  of skill
 are gifts of the ,holy ,ghost4#bge     
,the process of deification is thus     
described by ,ruysbroek and by  ,tauler4
 ,ruysbroek writes3 ,all men who are    
exalted above their  creatureliness into
 a contemplative life are one with this 
,divine  glory--yea1 are that glory4    
,and they see and feel and find in      

themselves1 by means of this ,divine    
light1 that they are the same  simple   
,ground as to their uncreated nature1   
since the glory shineth  forth without  
measure1 after the ,divine manner1 and  
abideth within  them simply and without 
mode1 according to the simplicity of the
  essence4 ,wherefore contemplative men 
should rise above reason and            
distinction1 beyond their created       
substance1 and gaze perpetually by  the 
aid of their inborn light1 and so they  
become transformed1 and one  with the   
same light1 by means of which they see1 
and which they see4  ,thus they arrive  
at that eternal image after which they  
were created1  and contemplate ,god and 
all things without distinction1 in a    
simple  beholding1 in ,divine glory4    
,this is the loftiest and most          
profitable  contemplation to which men  
attain in this life4 ,tauler1 in his    
sermon  for the ,fifteenth ,sunday after
 ,trinity1 says3 ,the kingdom is seated 
in the inmost recesses of the spirit4   

,when1 through all manner of  exercises1
 the outward man has been converted into
 the inward  reasonable man1 and thus   
the two1 that is to say1 the powers of  
the  senses and the powers of the       
reason1 are gathered up into the very   
centre of the man's being1--the unseen  
depths of his spirit1 wherein  lies the 
image of ,god1--and thus he flings      
himself into the ,divine  ,abyss1 in    
which he dwelt eternally before he was  
created2 then when  ,god finds the man  
thus firmly down and turned towards     
,him1 the ,godhead  bends and nakedly   
descends into the depths of the pure    
waiting soul1  and transforms the       
created soul1 drawing it up into the    
uncreated  essence1 so that the spirit  
becomes one with ,him4 ,could such a man
  behold himself1 he would see himself  
so noble that he would fancy  himself   
,god1 and see himself a thousand times  
nobler than he is in  himself1 and would
 perceive all the thoughts and purposes1
 words and  works1 and have all the     

knowledge of all men that ever were4    
,suso and  the ,german ,theology use    
similar language4    ,the idea of       
deification startles and shocks the     
modern reader4 ,it  astonishes us to    
find that these earnest and humble      
saints at times  express themselves in  
language which surpasses the arrogance  
even of  the ,stoics4 ,we feel that     
there must be something wrong with a    
system  which ends in obliterating the  
distinction between the ,creator and    
,his  creatures4 ,we desire in vain to  
hear some echo of ,job's experience1 so 
different in tone3 ,i have heard ,thee  
by the hearing of the ear1 but  now mine
 eye seeth ,thee2 therefore ,i abhor    
myself1 and repent in  dust and ashes4  
,the proper effect of the vision of ,god
 is surely that  which ,augustine       
describes in words already quoted3 ,i   
tremble1 and ,i  burn4 ,i tremble1 in   
that ,i am unlike ,him2 ,i burn1 in that
 ,i am like  ,him4 ,nor is this only the
 beginner's experience3 ,st4 ,paul had  

almost  finished his course when he     
called himself the chief of sinners4    
,the  joy which uplifts the soul1 when  
it feels the motions of the ,holy       
,spirit1 arises from the fact that in   
such moments the spirit's true          
endowments stand out plainly from its   
false ones2 we then see the  countenance
 of our genesis1 as ,st4 ,james calls   
it--the man or woman  that ,god meant us
 to be1 and know that we could not so   
see it if we  were wholly cut off from  
its realisation4 ,but the clearer the   
vision  of the ideal1 the deeper must be
 our self-abasement when we turn our    
eyes to the actual4 ,we must not escape 
from this sharp and humiliating         
contrast by mentally annihilating the   
self1 so as to make it  impossible to   
say1 ,look on this picture1 and on this4
 ,such false  humility leads straight to
 its opposite--extreme arrogance4       
,moreover1  to regard deification as an 
accomplished fact1 involves1 as ,i have 
said 7p4 #cc71 a contradiction4 ,the    

process of unification with the         
,infinite must be a progressus ad       
infinitum4 ,the pessimistic  conclusion 
is escaped by remembering that the      
highest reality is  supra-temporal1 and 
that the destiny which ,god has designed
 for us has  not merely a contingent    
realisation1 but is in a sense already  
accomplished4 ,there are1 in fact1 two  
ways in which we may abdicate  our      
birthright1 and surrender the prize of  
our high calling3 we may  count         
ourselves already to have apprehended1  
which must be a grievous  delusion1 or  
we may resign it as unattainable1 which 
is also a  delusion4    ,these truths   
were well known to ,tauler and his      
brother-mystics1 who  were saints as    
well as philosophers4 ,if they retained 
language which  appears to us so        
objectionable1 it must have been because
 they felt  that the doctrine of union  
with ,god enshrined a truth of great    
value4  ,and if we remember the great   
,mystical paradox1 ,he that will lose   

his  life shall save it1 we shall partly
 understand how they arrived at  it4 ,it
 is quite true that the nearer we       
approach to ,god1 the wider  seems to   
yawn the gulf that separates us from    
,him1 till at last we  feel it to be    
infinite4 ,but does not this conviction 
itself bring with  it unspeakable       
comfort8 ,how could we be aware of that 
infinite  distance1 if there were not   
something within us which can span the  
infinite8 ,how could we feel that ,god  
and man are incommensurable1 if  we had 
not the witness of a higher self        
immeasurably above our lower  selves8   
,and how blessed is the assurance that  
this higher self gives  us access to a  
region where we may leave behind not    
only external  troubles and the         
provoking of all men1 but the strife of 
tongues  in our own hearts1 the         
chattering and growling of the ape and  
tiger  within us1 the recurring smart of
 old sins repented of1 and the  dragging
 weight of innate propensities6 ,in this

 state the will1  desiring nothing save 
to be conformed to the will of ,god1 and
  separating itself entirely from all   
lower aims and wishes1 claims the  right
 of an immortal spirit to attach itself 
to eternal truth alone1  having nothing 
in itself1 and yet possessing all things
 in ,god4 ,so  ,tauler says1 ,let a man 
lovingly cast all his thoughts and      
cares1 and  his sins too1 as it were1 on
 that unknown ,will4 ,o dear child6 in  
the  midst of all these enmities and    
dangers1 sink thou into thy ground and  
nothingness4 ,let the tower with all its
 bells fall on thee2 yea1 let  all the  
devils in hell storm out upon thee2 let 
heaven and earth and  all the creatures 
assail thee1 all shall but marvellously 
serve thee2  sink thou into thy         
nothingness1 and the better part shall  
be thine4  ,this hope of a real         
transformation of our nature by the free
 gift of  ,god's grace is the only      
message of comfort for those who are    
tied  and bound by the chain of their   

sins4    ,the error comes in1 as ,i have
 said before1 when we set before        
ourselves the idea of ,god the ,father1 
or of the ,absolute1 instead of         
,christ1 as the object of imitation4    
,whenever we find such language as  that
 quoted from ,ruysbroek1 about rising   
above all distinctions1 we  may be sure 
that this error has been committed4     
,mystics of all times  would have done  
well to keep in their minds a very happy
 phrase which  ,irenus quotes from some 
unknown author1 ,he spoke well who said 
that  the infinite 7immensum7 ,father is
 measured 7mensuratum7 in the  ,son3    
mensura enim ,patris ,filius4#bgf ,it is
 to this measure1 not  to the           
immeasureable1 that we are bidden to    
aspire4    ,eternity is1 for ,tauler1   
the everlasting ,now2 but in his popular
  discourses he uses the ordinary       
expressions about future reward and     
punishment1 even about hell fire2 though
 his deeper thought is that  the        
hopeless estrangement of the soul from  

,god is the source of all  the torments 
of the lost4    ,love1 says ,tauler1 is 
the beginning1 middle1 and end of       
virtue4 ,its  essence is complete       
self-surrender4 ,we must lose ourselves 
in the love  of ,god as a drop of water 
is lost in the ocean4    ,it only       
remains to show how ,tauler combats the 
fantastic errors into  which some of the
 ,german mystics had fallen in his day4 
,the author of  the ,german ,theology is
 equally emphatic in his warnings       
against the  false light2 and           
,ruysbroek's denunciation of the        
,brethren of the  ,free ,spirit has     
already been quoted4 ,tauler1 in an     
interesting  sermon#bgg1 describes the  
heady arrogance1 disorderly conduct1 and
  futile idleness of these fanatics1 and
 then gives the following  maxims1 by   
which we may distinguish the false      
,mysticism from the true4  ,now let us  
know how we may escape these snares of  
the enemy4 ,no one  can be free from the
 observance of the laws of ,god and the 

practice of  virtue4 ,no one can unite  
himself to ,god in emptiness without    
true love  and desire for ,god4 ,no one 
can be holy without becoming holy1      
without  good works4 ,no one may leave  
off doing good works4 ,no one may rest  
in  ,god without love for ,god4 ,no one 
can be exalted to a stage which he  has 
not longed for or felt4 ,finally1 he    
shows how the example of  ,christ       
forbids all the errors which he is      
combating4    ,the ,imitation of ,christ
 has been so often spoken of as the     
finest  flower of ,christian ,mysticism1
 that it is impossible to omit all      
reference to it in these ,lectures4 ,and
 yet it is not1 properly  speaking1 a   
mystical treatise4 ,it is the ripe fruit
 of medival  ,christianity as           
concentrated in the life of the         
cloister1 the last and  best legacy1 in 
this kind1 of a system which was already
 decaying2 but  we find in it hardly a  
trace of that independence which made   
,eckhart a  pioneer of modern           

philosophy1 and the fourteenth century  
mystics  forerunners of the             
,reformation4 ,thomas  ,kempis preaches 
a  ,christianity of the heart2 but he   
does not exhibit the  distinguishing    
characteristics of ,mysticism4 ,the     
title by which the  book is known is    
really the title of the first section   
only1 and it  does not quite accurately 
describe the contents of the book4      
,throughout the treatise we feel that we
 are reading a defence of the  recluse  
and his scheme of life4 ,self-denial1   
renunciation of the  world1 prayer and  
meditation1 utter humility and purity1  
are the road  to a higher joy1 a deeper 
peace1 than anything which the world can
  give us4 ,there are many sentences    
which remind us of the ,roman ,stoics1  
whose main object was by detachment from
 the world to render  themselves        
invulnerable4 ,not that ,thomas  ,kempis
 shrinks from bearing  the ,cross4 ,the 
,cross of ,christ is always before him1 
and herein he is  superior to those     

mystics who speak only of the           
,incarnation4 ,but the  monk of the     
fifteenth century was perhaps more      
thrown back upon  himself than his      
predecessors in the fourteenth4 ,the    
monasteries were  no longer such homes  
of learning and centres of activity as  
they had  been4 ,it was no longer       
evident that the religious orders were a
  benefit to civilisation4 ,that        
indifference to human interests1 which  
we feel to be a weak spot in medival    
thought generally1 and in the           
,neoplatonists to whom medival thought  
was so much indebted1 reaches  its      
climax in ,thomas  ,kempis4 ,not only   
does he distrust and disparage  all     
philosophy1 from ,plato to ,thomas      
,aquinas1 but he shuns society and      
conversation as occasions of sin1 and   
quotes with approval the pitiful        
epigram of ,seneca1 ,whenever ,i have   
gone among men1 ,i have returned  home  
less of a man4 ,it is1 after all1 the   
life of the shell-fish1  as ,plato calls

 it1 which he considers the best4 ,the  
book cannot safely  be taken as a guide 
to the ,christian life as a whole4 ,what
 we do find  in it1 set forth with      
incomparable beauty and unstudied       
dignity1 are  the ,christian graces of  
humility1 simplicity1 and purity of     
heart4    ,it is very significant that  
the mystics1 who had undermined         
sacerdotalism1 and in many other ways   
prepared the ,reformation1 were         
shouldered aside when the secession from
 ,rome had to be organised4 ,the        
,lutheran ,church was built by other    
hands4 ,and yet the mystics of          
,luther's generation1 ,carlstadt and    
,sebastian ,frank1 are far from         
deserving the contemptuous epithets     
which ,luther showered upon them4       
,carlstadt endeavoured to deepen the    
,lutheran notion of faith by  bringing  
it into closer connexion with the love  
of ,god to man and of  man to ,god2     
,sebastian ,frank developed the         
speculative system of  ,eckhart and     

,tauler in an original and interesting  
manner4 ,but  speculative ,mysticism is 
a powerful solvent1 and ,protestant     
,churches  are too ready to fall to     
pieces even without it4 ,i will not even
  answer such men as ,frank1 said       
,luther in #aede2 ,i despise them too   
much4 ,if my nose does not deceive me1  
he is an enthusiast or  spiritualist1   
who is content with nothing but ,spirit1
 spirit1 spirit1  and cares not at all  
for ,bible1 ,sacrament1 or ,preaching4  
,the teaching  which the sixteenth      
century spurned so contemptuously was   
almost  identical with that of ,eckhart 
and ,tauler1 whose names were still     
revered4 ,but it was not wanted just    
then4 ,it was not till the next         
generation1 when superstitious          
veneration for the letter of ,scripture 
was bringing back some of the evils of  
the unreformed faith1 that  ,mysticism  
in the person of ,valentine ,weigel was 
able to resume its  true task in the    
deepening and spiritualising of religion

 in ,germany4    ,but instead of        
following any further the course of     
mystical theology  in ,germany1 ,i wish 
to turn for a few minutes to our own    
country4 ,i am  the more ready to do so1
 because ,i have come across the        
statement1  repeated in many books1 that
 ,england has been a barren field for   
mystics4 ,it is assumed that the        
,english character is alien to          
,mysticism--that we have no sympathy1 as
 a nation1 for this kind of  religion4  
,some writers hint that it is because we
 are too practical1  and have too much  
common sense4 ,the facts do not bear out
 this view4  ,there is no race1 ,i      
think1 in which there is a richer vein  
of  idealism1 and a deeper sense of the 
mystery of life1 than our own4 ,in  a   
later ,lecture ,i hope to illustrate    
this statement from our national        
poetry4 ,here ,i wish to insist that    
even the ,mysticism of the cloister1    
which is the least satisfying to the    
energetic and independent spirit  of our

 countrymen1 might be thoroughly and    
adequately studied from the  works of   
,english mystics alone4 ,i will give two
 examples of this  medival type4 ,both  
of them lived before the ,reformation1  
near the end  of the fourteenth century2
 but in them1 as in ,tauler1 we find    
very few  traces of ,romish error4      
,walter ,hilton or ,hylton#bgh1 a canon 
of ,thurgarton1 was the author of  a    
mystical treatise1 called ,the ,scale   
7or ,ladder7 of ,perfection4 ,the       
following extracts1 which are given as  
far as possible in his own  words1 will 
show in what manner he used the         
traditional mystical  theology4         
,there are two lives1 the active and the
 contemplative1 but in the  latter there
 are many stages4 ,the highest state of 
contemplation a man  cannot enjoy       
always1 but only by times1 when he is   
visited2 and1 as  ,i gather from the    
writings of holy men1 the time of it is 
very short4  ,this part of contemplation
 ,god giveth where ,he will4 ,visions   

and  revelations1 of whatever kind1 are 
not true contemplation1 but merely      
secondary4 ,the devil may counterfeit   
them2 and the only safeguard  against   
these impostures is to consider whether 
the visions have  helped or hindered us 
in devotion to ,god1 humility1 and other
 virtues4    ,in the third stage of     
contemplation1 he says finely1 reason is
  turned into light1 and will into love4
    ,spiritual prayer1 by which he means
 vocal prayer not in set words1  belongs
 to the second part of contemplation4   
,it is very wasting to  the body of him 
who uses it much1 wounding the soul with
 the blessed  sword of love4 ,the most  
vicious or carnal man on earth1 were he 
once  strongly touched with this sharp  
sword1 would be right sober and grave   
for a great while after4 ,the highest   
kind of prayer of all is the  prayer of 
quiet1 of which ,st4 ,paul speaks1 ,i   
will pray with the  understanding       
also#bgi4 ,but this is not for all2 a   
pure heart1  indeed1 it behoveth him to 

have who would pray in this manner4     
,we must fix our affections first on the
 humanity of ,christ4 ,since our  eyes  
cannot bear the unclouded light of the  
,godhead1 we must live  under the shadow
 of ,his manhood as long as we are here 
below4 ,st4  ,paul tells his converts   
that he first preached to them of the   
humanity and passion of ,christ1 but    
afterwards of the ,godhead1 how  that   
,christ is the power and wisdom of      
,god#bhj4    ,christ is lost1 like the  
piece of money in the parable2 but      
where8 ,in  thy house1 that is1 in thy  
soul4 ,thou needest not run to ,rome or 
,jerusalem to seek ,him4 ,he sleepeth in
 thy heart1 as ,he did in the  ship2    
awaken ,him with the loud cry of thy    
desire4 ,howbeit1 ,i believe  that thou 
sleepest oftener to ,him than ,he to    
thee4 ,put away  distracting noises1 and
 thou wilt hear ,him4 ,first1 however1  
find the  image of sin1 which thou      
bearest about with thee4 ,it is no      
bodily  thing1 no real thing--only a    

lack of light and love4 ,it is a false1 
inordinate love of thyself1 from whence 
flow all the deadly sins4    ,fair and  
foul is a man's soul--foul without like 
a beast1 fair within  like an angel4    
,but the sensual man doth not bear about
 the image of  sin1 but is borne by it4 
,the true light is love of ,god1 the    
false light is love of the world4  ,but 
we must pass through darkness to go from
 one to the other4 ,the  darker the     
night is1 the nearer is the true day4   
,this is the  darkness and nothing      
spoken of by the mystics1 a rich        
nothing1  when the soul is at rest as to
 thoughts of any earthly thing1 but     
very busy about thinking of ,god4 ,but  
the night passeth away2 the day         
dawneth4 ,flashes of light shine through
 the chinks of the walls of  ,jerusalem2
 but thou art not there yet4 ,but now   
beware of the midday  fiend1 that       
feigneth light as if it came from       
,jerusalem4 ,this light  appears between
 two black rainy clouds1 whereof the    

upper one is  presumption and           
self-exaltation1 and the lower a        
disdaining of one's  neighbour4 ,this is
 not the light of the true sun4 ,this   
darkness1  through which we must pass1  
is simply the death of self-will and all
  carnal affections2 it is that dying to
 the world which is the only  gate of   
life4    ,the way in which ,hilton      
conceives the truly mystical darkness of
  ,dionysius is very interesting4 ,as a 
psychical experience1 it has its  place 
in the history of the inner life4 ,the  
soul does enter into  darkness1 and the 
darkness is not fully dispelled in this 
world2 thou  art not there yet1 as he   
says4 ,but the psychical experience is  
in  ,hilton entirely dissociated from   
the metaphysical idea of absorption     
into the ,infinite4 ,the chains of      
,asiatic nihilism are now at last       
shaken off1 easily and1 it would seem1  
unconsciously4 ,the darkness  is felt to
 be only the herald of a brighter dawn3 
the darker the  night1 the nearer is the

 true day4 ,it is1 ,i think1 gratifying 
to  observe how our countryman strikes  
off the fetters of the  time-honoured   
,dionysian tradition1 the paralysing    
creed which blurs  all distinctions1 and
 the negative road which leads to       
darkness and  not light2 and how in     
consequence his ,mysticism is sounder   
and saner  than even that of ,eckhart or
 ,tauler4 ,before leaving ,hilton1 it   
may be  worth while to quote two or     
three isolated maxims of his1 as        
examples  of his wise and pure doctrine4
    ,there are two ways of knowing      
,god--one chiefly by the imagination1   
the other by the understanding4 ,the    
understanding is the mistress1 and  the 
imagination is the maid4    ,what is    
heaven to a reasonable soul8 ,nought    
else but ,jesus ,god4    ,ask of ,god   
nothing but this gift of love1 which is 
the ,holy ,ghost4  ,for there is no gift
 of ,god that is both the giver and the 
gift1 but  this gift of love4    ,my    
other example of ,english ,mysticism in 

the ,middle ,ages is ,julian or         
,juliana of ,norwich1#bha to whom were  
granted a series of  revelations in the 
year #acgc1 she being then about thirty 
years old4  ,she describes with evident 
truthfulness the manner in which the    
visions came to her4 ,she ardently      
desired to have a bodily sight of  her  
,lord upon the ,cross1 like other that  
were ,christ's lovers2 and  she prayed  
that she might have a grievous sickness 
almost unto  death1 to wean her from the
 world and quicken her spiritual sense4 
,the sickness came1 and the vision2 for 
they thought her dying1 and  held the   
crucifix before her1 till the figure on 
the ,cross changed  into the semblance  
of the living ,christ4 ,all this was    
showed by three  parts--that is to say1 
by bodily sight1 and by words formed in 
my  understanding1 and by ghostly       
sight4#bhb ,but the ghostly sight ,i    
cannot nor may not show it as openly nor
 as fully as ,i would4 ,her  later      
visions came to her sometimes during    

sleep1 but most often when  she was     
awake4 ,the most pure and certain were  
wrought by a ,divine  illapse into the  
spiritual part of the soul1 the mind and
  understanding1 for these the devil    
cannot counterfeit4 ,juliana was        
certainly perfectly honest and perfectly
 sane4 ,the great charm of her  little  
book is the sunny hopefulness and       
happiness which shines from  every page1
 and the tender affection for her       
suffering ,lord which  mingles with her 
devotion without ever becoming morbid or
 irreverent4  ,it is also interesting to
 see how this untaught maiden 7for she  
shows  no traces of book learning7 is   
led by the logic of the heart straight  
to some of the speculative doctrines    
which we have found in the              
philosophical mystics4 ,the brief       
extracts which follow will illustrate   
all these statements4    ,the crucified 
,christ is the one object of her        
devotion4 ,she refused to  listen to a  
proffer in my reason1 which said1 ,look 

up to heaven to  ,his ,father4 ,nay1 ,i 
may not1 she replied1 for ,thou art my  
heaven4  ,for ,i would liever have been 
in that pain till ,doomsday than to come
  to heaven otherwise than by ,him4 ,me 
liked none other heaven than  ,jesus1   
which shall be my bliss when ,i come    
there4 ,and after  describing a vision  
of the crucifixion1 she says1 ,how might
 any pain  be more than to see ,him that
 is all my life and all my bliss suffer8
    ,her estimate of the value of means 
of grace is very clear and sound4  ,in  
that time the custom of our praying was 
brought to mind1 how we  use1 for lack  
of understanding and knowing of love1 to
 make use of  many means4 ,then saw ,i  
truly that it is more worship to ,god   
and more  very delight that we          
faithfully pray to ,himself of ,his     
goodness1 and  cleave thereto by ,his   
grace1 with true understanding and      
steadfast by  love1 than if we made use 
of all the means that heart can think4  
,for  if we made use of all these means1

 it is too little1 and not full  worship
 to ,god2 but in ,his goodness is all   
the whole1 and there  faileth right     
nought4 ,for this1 as ,i shall say1 came
 into my mind4 ,in  the same time we    
pray to ,god for the sake of ,his holy  
flesh and  precious blood1 ,his holy    
passion1 ,his dearworthy death and      
wounds3 and  all the blessed kinship1   
the endless life that we have of all    
this1 is  ,his goodness4 ,and we pray   
,him for the sake of ,his sweet mother's
  love1 that ,him bare2 and all the help
 that we have of her is of ,his         
goodness4 ,and yet ,god of ,his goodness
 hath advanced means to help  us1 full  
fair and many2 of which the chief and   
principal mean is the  blessed nature   
that ,he took of the maid1 with all the 
means that go  afore and come after     
which belong to our redemption and to   
endless  salvation4 ,wherefore it       
pleaseth ,him that we seek ,him and     
worship ,him  through means1            
understanding and knowing that ,he is   

the goodness of  all4 ,for the goodness 
of ,god is the highest prayer1 and it   
cometh down  to the lowest part of our  
need4 ,it quickeneth our soul1 and      
bringeth  it on life1 and maketh it for 
to wax in grace and virtue4 ,it is      
nearest in nature and readiest in grace2
 for it is the same grace that  the soul
 seeketh1 and ever shall seek till we   
know verily that ,he hath  us all in    
,himself beclosed4    ,after this our   
,lord showed concerning ,prayers4 ,in   
which showing ,i see  two conditions    
signified by our ,lord2 one is          
rightfulness1 another is  assured trust4
 ,but oftentimes our trust is not full2 
for we are not  sure that ,god heareth  
us1 as we think because of our          
unworthiness1 and  because we feel right
 nought2 for we are as barren and dry   
oftentimes  after our prayers as we were
 before4444 ,but our ,lord said to me1  
',i am  the ground of thy beseechings3  
first1 it is ,my will that thou have it2
  and then ,i make thee to wish for it2 

and then ,i make thee to beseech  it1   
and thou beseechest it4 ,how then should
 it be that thou shouldest  not have thy
 beseeching8' 444 ,for it is most       
impossible that we should  beseech mercy
 and grace and not have it4 ,for all    
things that our good  ,lord maketh us to
 beseech1 ,himself hath ordained them to
 us from  without beginning4 ,here may  
we see that our beseeching is not the   
cause of ,god's goodness2 and that      
showed ,he soothfastly in all these     
sweet words which ,he saith3 ',i am the 
ground4' ,and our good ,lord  willeth   
that this be known of ,his lovers in    
earth2 and the more that  we know it the
 more should we beseech1 if it be wisely
 taken2 and so  is our ,lord's meaning4 
,merry and joyous is our ,lord of our   
prayer1 and  ,he looketh for it2 and ,he
 willeth to have it2 because with ,his  
grace  ,he would have us like to        
,himself in condition as we are in kind4
  ,therefore saith ,he to us ',pray     
inwardly1 although thou think it has no 

savour to thee3 for it is profitable1   
though thou feel not1 though  thou see  
not1 yea1 though thou think thou canst  
not4'    ,and also to prayer belongeth  
thanksgiving4 ,thanksgiving is a true   
inward knowing1 with great reverence and
 lovely dread turning  ourselves with   
all our mights unto the working that our
 good ,lord  stirreth us to1 rejoicing  
and thanking inwardly4 ,and sometimes   
for  plenteousness it breaketh out with 
voice and saith3 ,good ,lord6 great     
thanks be to ,thee3 blessed mote ,thou  
be4    ,prayer is a right understanding 
of that fulness of joy that is to  come1
 with great longing and certain         
trust4444 ,then belongeth it to us  to  
do our diligence1 and when we have done 
it1 then shall we yet think  that it is 
nought2 and in sooth it is4 ,but if we  
do as we can1 and  truly ask for mercy  
and grace1 all that faileth us we shall 
find in  ,him4 ,and thus meaneth ,he    
where ,he saith3 ',i am the ground of   
thy  beseeching4' ,and thus in this     

blessed word1 with the ,showing1 ,i saw 
a  full overcoming against all our      
weakness and all our doubtful dreads4   
,juliana's view of human personality is 
remarkable1 as it reminds us of  the    
,neoplatonic doctrine that there is a   
higher and a lower self1 of  which the  
former is untainted by the sins of the  
latter4 ,i saw and  understood full     
surely1 she says1 that in every soul    
that shall be  saved there is a godly   
will that never assented to sin1 nor    
ever  shall2 which will is so good that 
it may never work evil1 but evermore    
continually it willeth good1 and worketh
 good in the sight of ,god4444  ,we all 
have this blessed will whole and safe in
 our ,lord ,jesus  ,christ4 ,this godly 
will or substance corresponds to the    
spark of  the ,german mystics4    ,i saw
 no difference1 she says1 between ,god  
and our substance1 but1  as it were1 all
 ,god4 ,and yet my understanding took1  
that our substance  is in ,god--that is 
to say1 that ,god is ,god1 and our      

substance a  creature in ,god4 ,highly  
ought we to enjoy that ,god dwelleth in 
our  soul1 and much more highly1 that   
our soul dwelleth in ,god4444 ,thus was 
my understanding led to know1 that our  
soul is made ,trinity1 like to  the     
unmade ,blessed ,trinity1 known and     
loved from without beginning1  and in   
the making oned to the ,maker4 ,this    
sight was full sweet and  marvellous to 
behold1 peaceable and restful1 sure and 
delectable4    ,as anent our substance  
and our sense-part1 both together may   
rightly  be called our soul2 and that is
 because of the oneing that they have   
in ,god4 ,the worshipful ,city that our 
,lord ,jesus sitteth in1 it is our      
sense-soul1 in which ,he is enclosed1   
and our natural substance is  beclosed  
in ,jesus1 sitting with the blessed soul
 of ,christ at rest in  the ,godhead4   
,our soul cannot reach its full powers  
until our  sense-nature by the virtue of
 ,christ's passion be brought up to the 
substance4 ,this fulfilment of the soul 

is grounded in nature4 ,that  is to say1
 our reason is grounded in ,god1 which  
is substantial  ,naturehood2 out of this
 substantial ,nature mercy and grace    
spring and  spread into us1 working all 
things in fulfilling of our joy3 these  
are our ground1 in which we have our    
increase and our fulfilling4 ,for  in   
nature we have our life and our being1  
and in mercy and grace we  have our     
increase and our fulfilling4    ,in one 
of her visions she was shown our ,lord  
scorning the fiend's  malice1 and       
noughting his unmight4 ,for this sight  
,i laught mightily1  and that made them 
to laugh that were about me4 ,but ,i saw
 not ,christ  laugh4 ,after this ,i fell
 into graveness1 and said1 ',i see three
  things3 ,i see game1 scorn1 and       
earnest4 ,i see game1 that the fiend is 
overcome2 ,i see scorn1 in that ,god    
scorneth him1 and he shall be  scorned2 
and ,i see earnest1 in that he is       
overcome by the blissful  passion and   
death of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 that 

was done in full  earnest and with sober
 travail4'    ,alternations of mirth and
 sadness followed each other many times1
 to  learn me that it is speedful to    
some souls to feel on this wise4 ,once  
especially she was left to herself1 in  
heaviness and weariness of my  life1 and
 irksomeness of myself1 that scarcely ,i
 could have pleasure  to live4444 ,for  
profit of a man's soul he is sometimes  
left to  himself2 although sin is not   
always the cause2 for in that time ,i   
sinned not1 wherefore ,i should be so   
left to myself2 for it was so  sudden4  
,also1 ,i deserved not to have this     
blessed feeling4 ,but freely  our ,lord 
giveth when ,he will1 and suffereth us  
to be in woe sometime4  ,and both is one
 love4    ,her treatment of the problem 
of evil is very characteristic4 ,in my  
folly1 often ,i wondered why the        
beginning of sin was not letted2 but    
,jesus1 in this vision1 answered and    
said1 ',sin is behovable1#bhc but  all  
shall be well1 and all shall be well1   

and all manner of thing  shall be well4'
 ,in this naked word sin our ,lord      
brought to my mind  generally all that  
is not good4444 ,but ,i saw not sin2 for
 ,i believe it  had no manner of        
substance1 nor any part of being1 nor   
might it be  known but by the pain that 
is caused thereof2 and this pain 444    
purgeth and maketh us to know ourself1  
and ask mercy4 ,in these same  words    
7'all shall be well'7 ,i saw an high and
 marvellous privity hid  in ,god4 ,she  
wondered how all shall be well1 when    
,holy ,church  teacheth us to believe   
that many shall be lost4 ,but ,i had no 
other  answer but this1 ',i shall save  
my word in all things1 and ,i shall make
  all thing well4' ,this is the great   
deed that our ,lord ,god shall do2  but 
what the deed shall be1 and how it shall
 be done1 there is no  creature beneath 
,christ that knoweth it1 ne shall wit it
 till it is  done4    ,i saw no wrath   
but on man's party1 she says1 and that  
forgiveth ,he  in us4 ,it is the most   

impossible that may be1 that ,god should
 be  wroth4444 ,our life is all grounded
 and rooted in love4444 ,suddenly is    
the soul oned to ,god1 when it is truly 
peaced in itself2 for in ,him is  found 
no wrath4 ,and thus ,i saw1 when we be  
all in peace and love1 we  find no      
contrariousness1 nor no manner of       
letting1 through that  contrariousness  
which is now in us2 nay1 our ,lord ,god 
of ,his goodness  maketh it to us full  
profitable4 ,no visions of hell were    
ever showed  to her4 ,in place of the   
hideous details of torture which some of
 the  ,romish visionaries describe      
almost with relish1 ,juliana merely     
reports1 ,to me was showed none harder  
hell than sin4    ,again and again she  
rings the changes on the words which the
 ,lord said  to her1 ,i love thee and   
thou lovest ,me1 and our love shall     
never be  disparted in two4 ,the love   
wherein ,he made us was in ,him from    
without beginning2 in which love1 she   
concludes1 we have our  beginning1 and  

all this shall be seen in ,god without  
end4    ,,footnotes3    ,footnote #beg3 
,the indebtedness of the fourteenth     
century mystics to  ,eckhart is now     
generally recognised1 at any rate in    
,germany2 but  before ,pfeiffer's work  
his name had been allowed to fall into  
most  undeserved obscurity4 ,this was   
not the fault of his scholars1 who1 in  
spite of the ,papal condemnation of his 
writings1 speak of ,eckhart with  the   
utmost reverence1 as the great1 sublime1
 or holy master4    ,footnote #beh3 ,vir
 ut ferunt devotus sed parum litteratus1
 says the  ,abb ,trithme 7ap4 ,gessner1 
,biblioth474 ,rusbrochius cum idiota    
esset 7,dyon4 ,carth4 ,serm4 i474       
,compare ,rousselot1 ,les ,mystiques    
,espagnols1 p4 #dic4    ,footnote #bei3 
,maeterlinck1 ,ruysbroek's latest       
interpreter1 is far too  complimentary  
to the intellectual endowments of his   
fellow-countryman4  ,ce moine possdait  
un des plus sages1 des plus exacts1 et  
des plus  subtils organes philosophiques

 qui aient jamais exist4 ,he thinks it  
marvellous that il sait1  son insu1 le  
platonisme de la ,grce1 le  soufisme de 
la ,perse1 le brahmanisme de ,i',inde et
 le bouddhisme de  ,thibet1 etc4 ,in    
reality1 ,ruysbroek gets all his        
philosophy from  ,eckhart1 and his      
manner of expounding it shows no        
abnormal acuteness4  ,but ,maeterlinck's
 essay in ,le ,trsor des ,humbles       
contains some good  things--e4g4 ,les   
verits mystiques ne peuvent ni vieillir 
ni  mourir4444 ,une oeuvre ne vieillit  
qu'en proportion de son  antimysticisme4
    ,footnote #bfj3 ,so ,preger1        
probably rightly4 ,noack places his     
birth  five years later4 ,the chronology
 of the ,life is very loose4            
,footnote #bfa3 ,the extreme asceticism 
which was practised by ,suso1 and       
7though to a less degree7 by ,tauler1 is
 not enjoined by them as a  necessary   
part of a holy life4 ,we are to kill our
 passions1 not our  flesh and blood1 as 
,tauler says4    ,footnote #bfb3 ,it    

would be very interesting to trace the  
influence of  the chivalric idea on     
religious ,mysticism4 ,chivalry1 the    
worship of  idealised womanhood1 is     
itself a mystical cult1 and its relation
 to  religious ,mysticism appears       
throughout the ,divine ,comedy and ,vita
  ,nuova 7see especially the            
incomparable paragraph which concludes  
this  latter71 and in the sonnet of ,m4 
,angelo translated by ,wordsworth1 ,no  
mortal object did these eyes behold1    
etc4    ,footnote #bfc3 ,nothing in the 
book is more touching than the scene    
when the baby1 deserted by its mother1  
,suso's false accuser1 is  brought to   
him4 ,suso takes the child in his arms1 
and weeps over it  with affectionate    
words1 while the infant smiles up at    
him4 ,in spite  of the calumny which he 
knew was being spread wherever it would 
most  injure him1 he insists on paying  
for the child's maintenance1 rather     
than leave it to die from neglect4 ,the 
,italian mystic ,scupoli1 the  author of

 a beautiful devotional work called the 
,spiritual ,combat1  was calumniated in 
a similar manner4    ,footnote #bfd3 ,by
 ,schmidt1 whose researches formed the  
basis of  several popular accounts of   
,tauler's life4 ,preger and ,denifle    
both  reject the identification of the  
mysterious stranger with ,nicholas2     
,denifle doubts his existence           
altogether4 ,the subject is very fully  
discussed by ,preger    ,footnote #bfe3 
,tauler was well read in the earlier    
mystics4 ,he cites  ,proclus1 ,augustine
 7frequently71 ,dionysius1 ,bernard1 and
 the  ,victorines2 also ,aristotle and  
,aquinas4    ,footnote #bff3 ,tauler    
adheres to the doctrine of an uncreated 
ground1 but he holds that it must always
 act upon us through the  medium of the 
created ground4 ,he evidently considered
 ,eckhart's  later doctrine as too      
pantheistic4 ,see below1 p4 #ahc4       
,footnote #bfg3 ,see p4 #aee4 ,in my    
estimate of ,tauler's doctrine1 ,i have 
made no use of the treatise on ,the     

,imitation of the ,poverty of  ,christ1 
which ,noack calls his masterpiece1 and 
the kernel of his  ,mysticism4 ,the work
 is not by ,tauler4    ,footnote #bfh3  
,see above1 p4 #agj4    ,footnote #bfi3 
,this expression is found first1 ,i     
think1 in ,richard of  ,st4 ,victor2 but
 ,st4 ,augustine speaks of oculus       
interior atque  intelligibilis 7,de div4
 qust4 #df74    ,footnote #bgj3 ,but    
,christ1 he says1 could see with both   
eyes at once2  the left in no way       
hindered the right4    ,footnote #bga3  
,tauler often uses similar language2 as1
 for instance1  when he says1 ,the      
natural light of the reason must be     
entirely  brought to nothing1 if ,god is
 to enter with ,his light4    ,footnote 
#bgb3 ,stckl criticises the ,theologia  
,germanica in a very  hostile spirit4   
,he finds it in pantheism1 by which he  
means  acosmism1 and also               
,gnostic-,manichean dualism1 the latter 
being his  favourite charge against the 
,lutherans and their forerunners4 ,he   

considers that this latter tendency is  
more strongly marked in the  ,german    
,theology than in the other works of the
 ,eckhartian school1 in  that the writer
 identifies the false light with the    
light of nature1  and selfhood with sin2
 devil1 sin1 ,adam1 old man1            
disobedience1  selfhood1 individuality1 
mine1 me1 nature1 self-will1 are all the
  same2 they all represent what is      
against ,god and without ,god4          
,accordingly1 salvation consists in     
annihilation of the self1 and           
substitution for ,god for it4 ,there is 
no doubt that the writer of this        
treatise is deeply impressed with the   
belief that the root of sin is          
self-will1 and that the new birth must  
be a complete transformation2  but it   
must be remembered that the language of 
piety is less guarded  than that of     
dogmatic disputation1 and that the      
theology of such a  book must be judged 
by its whole tendency4 ,my own judgment 
is that1  taken as a whole1 it is safer 

than ,tauler or ,ruysbroek1 and much    
safer  than ,eckhart4 ,the              
strongly-marked ethical dualism is of   
very much  the same kind as that which  
we find in ,st4 ,john's ,gospel4 ,taken 
as a  theory of the origin and nature of
 evil1 it no doubt does hold out a  hand
 to ,manicheism2 but ,i do not think    
that the writer meant it to be  so      
taken1 any more than ,st4 ,john did4    
,footnote #bgc3 ,throughout the         
fourteenth century1 and still more in   
the fifteenth1 we can trace an          
increasing prominence given to          
subjugation of the will in mystical     
theology4 ,this change is to be         
attributed partly to the influence of   
the ,nominalist science of ,duns        
,scotus1 which gradually gained 7at     
least this point7 the ascendancy  over  
the school of ,aquinas4 ,it may be      
escribed as a transition from  the more 
speculative ,mysticism towards quietism4
 ,in the fourteenth  century writings1  
such as the ,theologia ,germanica1 we   

merely welcome  a new and valuable      
aspect of the religious life2 since the 
change is  connected with a distrust of 
reason1 and a return to standpoint of   
harsh legalism1 we cannot regard it as  
an improvement4    ,footnote #bgd3      
,compare p4 #afa1 for similar teaching  
in ,eckhart  himself4    ,footnote #bge3
 ,see the quotation on p4 #aa1 note4    
,footnote #bgf3 ,irenus1 ,contra ,har4  
iv4 #f4    ,footnote #bgg3 ,no4 #ca4 on 
,psalm xci4 #ac4    ,footnote #bgh3     
,hilton's book has been reprinted from  
the edition of  #afei1 with an          
introduction by the ,rev4 ,j4,b4        
,dalgairns4 ,very little is  known about
 the author's life1 but his book was    
widely read1 and was  chosen to be the  
guide of good ,christians in the courts 
of kings and  in the world4 ,the mother 
of ,henry ,,vii4 valued it very highly4 
,i have  also used ,mr4 ,guy's edition  
in my quotations from ,the ,scale of    
,perfection4    ,footnote #bgi3 #a ,cor4
 xiv4 #ae4 ,this text was also appealed 

to by the  ,quietists of the            
post-,reformation period4    ,footnote  
#bhj3 ,the texts to which he refers are 
those which ,origen  uses in the same   
manner4 ,compare #a ,cor4 i4 #bc1 ii4   
#b1 ,gal4 vi4 #ad1  with #a ,cor4 i4    
#bd4    ,footnote #bha3 ,julian 7born   
#acdc7 was probably a ,benedictine nun  
of  ,carrow1 near ,norwich1 but lived   
for the greater part of her life in an  
anchorage in the churchyard of ,st4     
,julian at ,norwich4 ,there is a copy   
of her ,revelations in the ,british     
,museum4 ,editions by ,cressy1 #afgj2   
reprint issued #ahdc2 by ,collins1      
#ahgg4 ,see1 further1 in the            
,dictionary of ,national ,biography4 ,in
 my quotations from her1 ,i have  used  
an unpublished version kindly lent me by
 ,miss ,g4,h4 ,warrack4 ,it is  just so 
far modernised as to be intelligible to 
those who are not  familiar with        
fourteenth century ,english4            
,footnote #bhb3 ,this was a recognised  
classification4 ,scaramelli says1  ,le  

visioni corporce sono favori propri dei 
principianti1 che  incomminciano a      
camminare nella via dello spirito4444   
,le visioni  immaginari sono proprie dei
 principianti e dei proficienti1 che non
  sono ancor bene purgati4444 ,le       
visioni intellectuali sono proprie di   
quelli che si trovano gia in istato di  
perfezione4 ,it comes  originally from  
,st4 ,augustine 7,de ,gen4 ad litt4 xii4
 #g1 n4 #af73 ,hc  sunt tria genera     
visionum4444 ,primum ergo appellemus    
corporale1 quia  per corpus percipitur1 
et corporis sensibus exhibetur4         
,secundum  spirituale3 quidquid enim    
corpus non est1 et tamen aliquid est1   
iam  recte dicitur spiritus2 et utique  
non est corpus1 quamvis corpori  similis
 sit1 imago absentis corporis1 nee ille 
ipse obtutus quo  cernitur4 ,tertium    
vero intellectuale1 ab intellectu4      
,footnote #bhc3 ,that is1 necessary or  
profitable4          ,,lecture ,,vi     
,o heart1 the equal poise of ,love's    
both parts1      ,big alike with wounds 

and darts1      ,live in these          
conquering leaves1 live still the same1 
,and walk through all tongues one       
triumphant flame6      ,live here1 great
 heart1 and love and die and kill1      
,and bleed1 and wound1 and yield1 and   
conquer still4      ,let this immortal  
life1 where'er it comes1      ,walk in a
 crowd of loves and martyrdoms4         
,let mystic deaths wait on it1 and wise 
souls be      ,the love-slain witnesses 
of this life of thee4      ,o sweet     
incendiary6 show here thy art      ,upon
 this carcase of a hard1 cold heart2    
,let all thy scattered shafts of light1 
that play      ,among the leaves of thy 
large books of day1      ,combined      
against this breast at once break in1   
,and take away from me myself and sin2  
,this glorious robbery shall thy bounty 
be1      ,and my best fortunes such fair
 spoils of me4      ,o thou undaunted   
daughter of desires6      ,by all thy   
dower of lights and fires1      ,by all 
the eagle in thee1 all the dove1        

,by all thy lives and deaths of love1   
,by thy large draughts of intellectual  
day1      ,and by thy thirsts of love   
more large than they2      ,by all thy  
brim-fill'd bowls of fierce desire1     
,by thy last morning's draught of liquid
 fire1      ,by the full kingdom of that
 final kiss      ,that seized thy       
parting soul and seal'd thee ,his2      
,by all the heavens thou hast in ,him1  
,fair sister of the seraphim6      ,by  
all of ,him we have in ,thee1           
,leave nothing of myself in me3         
,let me so read thy life1 that ,i       
,unto all life of mine may die4         
,,crashaw1 ,on ,st4 ,teresa4            
,in a dark night1      ,burning with    
ecstasies wherein ,i fell1              
,oh happy plight1      ,unheard ,i left 
the house wherein ,i dwell1      ,the   
inmates sleeping peacefully and well4   
,secure from sight2      ,by unknown    
ways1 in unknown robes concealed1       
,oh happy plight2      ,and to no eye   
revealed1      ,my home in sleep as in  

the tomb was sealed4        ,sweet      
night1 in whose blessed fold      ,no   
human eye beheld me1 and mine eye       
,none could behold4      ,only for      
,guide had ,i      ,his ,face whom ,i   
desired so ardently4    ,,st4 ,,juan    
,,of ,,the ,,cross 7translated by       
,hutchings74        ,,practical ,,and   
,,devotional ,,mysticism--continued     
,whom have ,i in heaven but ,thee8 and  
there is none upon earth that ,i  desire
 beside ,thee4 ,my flesh and my heart   
faileth3 but ,god is the  strength of my
 heart1 and my portion for ever4--,ps4  
lxxiii4 #be1 #bf4      ,we have seen    
that the leaders of the ,reformation in 
,germany thrust  aside speculative      
,mysticism with impatience4 ,nor did    
,christian  ,platonism fare much better 
in the ,latin countries4 ,there were    
students  of ,plotinus in ,italy in the 
sixteenth century1 who fancied that a   
revival of humane letters1 and a better 
acquaintance with philosophy1  were the 
best means of combating the barbaric    

enthusiasms of the  ,north4 ,but these  
,italian ,neoplatonists had1 for the    
most part1 no deep  religious feelings1 
and they did not exhibit in their lives 
that  severity which the ,alexandrian   
philosophers had practised4 ,and so1    
when ,rome had need of a ,catholic      
mystical revival to stem the tide of    
,protestantism1 she could not find what 
she required among the scholars  and    
philosophers of the ,papal court4 ,the  
,mysticism of the  counter-,reformation 
had its centre in ,spain4    ,it has    
been said that ,mysticism is the        
philosophy of ,spain4#bhd  ,this does   
not mean that idealistic philosophy     
flourished in the  ,peninsula1 for the  
,spanish race has never shown any taste 
for  metaphysics4 ,the ,mysticism of    
,spain is psychological2 its point of   
departure is not the notion of ,being or
 of ,unity1 but the human soul  seeking 
reconcilation with ,god4 ,we need not be
 on our guard against  pantheism in     
reading the ,spanish mystics2 they show 

no tendency to  obliterate the dividing 
lines of personality1 or to deify sinful
  humanity4 ,the cause of this          
peculiarity is to be sought partly in   
the  strong individualism of the        
,spanish character1 and partly in       
external  circumstances4#bhe ,free      
thought in ,spain was so sternly        
repressed1  that those tendencies of    
mystical religion which are antagonistic
 to  ,catholic discipline were never    
allowed to display themselves4 ,the     
,spanish mystics remained orthodox      
,romanists1 subservient to their        
directors and superiors1 and            
indefatigable in making recruits for    
the cloister4 ,even so1 they did not    
escape the attention of the             
,inquisition2 and though two among them1
 ,st4 ,teresa and ,st4 ,juan of the     
,cross1 were awarded the badge of       
sanctity1 the fate of ,molinos showed   
how ,rome had come to dread even the    
most submissive mystics4    ,the early  
part of the sixteenth century was a     

period of high culture  in ,spain4 ,the 
universities of ,salamanca and ,alcala  
were famous  throughout ,europe2 the    
former is said 7doubtless with great    
exaggeration7 to have contained at one  
time fourteen thousand  students4 ,but  
the ,inquisition1 which had been founded
 to suppress ,jews  and ,mahometans1 was
 roused to a more baneful activity by   
the  appearance of ,protestantism in    
,spain4 ,before the end of the sixteenth
  century1 the ,spanish people1 who up  
to that time had been second to  none in
 love of liberty and many-sided energy1 
had been changed into  sombre fanatics1 
sunk in ignorance and superstition1 and 
retaining  hardly a trace of their      
former buoyancy and healthy             
independence4#bhf  ,the first ,index    
,expurgatorius was published in #aedf2  
the burning of  ,protestants began in   
#aeei4 ,till then1 ,eckhart1 ,tauler1   
,suso1 and  ,ruysbroek had circulated   
freely in ,spain4 ,but the ,inquisition 
condemned them all1 except ,ruysbroek4  

,the same rigour was extended to  the   
,arabian philosophers1 and so their     
speculations influenced ,spanish        
theology much less than might have been 
expected from the long sojourn  of the  
,moors in the ,peninsula4 ,averroism was
 known in ,spain chiefly  through the   
medium of the ,fons ,vit of ,ibn        
,gebirol 7,avicebron74  ,dionysius and  
the scholastic mystics of the ,middle   
,ages were1 of  course1 allowed to be   
read4 ,but besides these1 the works of  
,plato and  ,plotinus were accessible in
 ,latin translations1 and were highly   
valued  by some of the ,spanish mystics4
 ,this statement may surprise those who 
have identified ,spanish ,mysticism with
 ,teresa and ,juan of the ,cross1  and  
who know how little ,platonism is to be 
found in their theology4  ,but these two
 militant champions of the              
counter-,reformation numbered  among    
their contemporaries mystics of a       
different type1 whose  writings1 little 
known in this country1 entitle them to  

an honourable  place in the roll of     
,christian ,platonists4    ,we find in  
them most of the characteristic         
doctrines of ,christian  ,neoplatonism3 
the radiation of all things from ,god   
and their return to  ,god2 the immanence
 of ,god in all things2#bhg the notion  
of man as a  microcosm1 vitally         
connected with all the different orders 
of  creation2#bhh the ,augustinian      
doctrine of ,christ and ,his members as 
one ,christ2#bhi insistence upon        
disinterested love2#bij and  admonitions
 to close the eye of sense4#bia ,this   
last precept1 which1  as ,i have        
maintained1 is neither true ,platonism  
nor true ,mysticism1  must be set       
against others in which the universe is 
said to be a copy  of the ,divine       
,ideas1 of which ,plotinus has spoken   
divinely1 the  creation of ,love1 which 
has given form to chaos1 and stamped it 
with  the image of the ,divine beauty2  
and in which we are exhorted to rise    
through the contemplation of nature to  

,god4#bib ,juan de ,angelis1 in  his    
treatise on the spiritual nuptials1     
quotes freely1 not only from  ,plato1   
,plotinus1 and ,virgil1 but from        
,lucretius1 ,ovid1 ,tibullus1 and       
,martial4    ,but this kind of humanism 
was frowned upon by the ,church1 in     
,spain as  elsewhere4 ,these were not   
the weapons with which ,lutheranism     
could be  fought successfully4 ,juan    
d',avila was accused before the         
,inquisition  in #aecd1 and one of his  
books was placed on the ,index of #aeei2
 ,louis  de ,granada had to take refuge 
in ,portugal2 ,louis de ,leon1 who had  
the  courage to say that the ,song of   
,solomon is only a pastoral idyll1 was  
sent to a dungeon for five years4#bic   
,even ,st4 ,teresa narrowly  escaped    
imprisonment at ,seville2 and ,st4 ,juan
 of the ,cross passed nine  months in a 
black hole at ,toledo4    ,persecution1 
when applied with sufficient            
ruthlessness1 seldom fails  of its      
immediate object4 ,it took only about   

twelve years to destroy  ,protestantism 
in ,spain2 and the ,holy ,office was    
equally successful in  binding          
,mysticism hand and foot4#bid ,and so we
 must not expect to  find in ,st4       
,teresa or ,st4 ,juan any of the        
characteristic independence  of         
,mysticism4 ,the inner light which they 
sought was not an  illumination of the  
intellect in its search for truth1 but a
 consuming  fire to burn up all earthly 
passions and desires4 ,faith presented  
them with no problems2 all such         
questions had been settled once for  all
 by ,holy ,church4 ,they were ascetics  
first and ,church ,reformers  next2     
neither of them was a typical           
mystic4#bie    ,the life of ,st4        
,teresa#bif is more interesting than her
 teaching4 ,she  had all the best       
qualities of her noble ,castilian       
ancestors--  simplicity1                
straightforwardness1 and dauntless      
courage2 and the record  of her         
self-denying life is enlivened by       

numerous flashes of humour1  which make 
her character more lovable4 ,she is best
 known as a visionary1  and it is mainly
 through her visions that she is often  
regarded as one  of the most            
representative mystics4 ,but these      
visions do not occupy a  very large     
space in the story of her life4 ,they   
were frequent during the  first two or  
three years of her convent life1 and    
again between the ages  of forty and    
fifty3 there was a long gap between the 
two periods1 and  during the last twenty
 years of her life1 when she was        
actively engaged  in founding and       
visiting religious houses1 she saw them 
no more4 ,this  experience was that of  
many other saints of the cloister4      
,spiritual  consolations seem to be     
frequently granted to encourage young   
beginners2#big then they are withdrawn1 
and only recovered after a long  period 
of dryness and darkness2 but in later   
life1 when the character is  fixed1 and 
the imagination less active1 the vision 

fades into the light  of common day4 ,in
 considering ,st4 ,teresa's visions1 we 
must remember  that she was             
transparently honest and sincere2 that  
her superiors  strongly disliked and    
suspected1 and her enemies ridiculed1   
her  spiritual privileges2 that at the  
same time they brought her great fame   
and influence2 that she was at times    
haunted by doubts whether she ever      
really saw them2 and1 lastly1 that her  
biographers have given them a  more     
grotesque and materialistic character   
than is justified by her own            
descriptions4    ,she tells us herself  
that her reading of ,st4 ,augustine's   
,confessions1 at the age of forty-one1  
was a turning-point in her  life4 ,when 
,i came to his conversion1 she says1 and
 read how he  heard the voice in the    
garden1 it was just as if the ,lord     
called me4  ,it was after this that she 
began again to see visions--or rather to
  have a sudden sense of the presence of
 ,god1 with a suspension of all  the    

faculties4 ,in these trances she        
generally heard ,divine  locutions4 ,she
 says that the words were very clearly  
formed1 and  unmistakable1 though not   
heard by the bodily ear4 ,they are quite
  unlike the words framed by the        
imagination1 which are muffled 7cosa    
sorda74 ,she describes her visions of   
,christ very carefully4 ,first ,he      
stood beside her while she was in       
prayer1 and she heard and saw ,him1     
though not with the eyes of the body1   
nor of the soul4 ,then by  degrees ,his 
sacred humanity was completely          
manifested to me1 as it is  painted     
after the ,resurrection4 7,this last    
sentence suggests that  sacred pictures1
 lovingly gazed at1 may have been the   
source of some  of her visions47 ,her   
superiors tried to persuade her that    
they were  delusions2 but she replied1  
,if they who said this told me that a   
person who had just finished speaking to
 me1 whom ,i knew well1 was not  that   
person1 but they knew that ,i fancied   

it1 doubtless ,i should  believe them1  
rather than what ,i had seen2 but if    
this person left  behind him some jewels
 as pledges of his great love1 and ,i   
found  myself rich having been poor1 ,i 
could not believe it if ,i wished4 ,and 
these jewels ,i could show them4 ,for   
all who knew me saw clearly that  my    
soul was changed2 the difference was    
great and palpable4 ,the  answer shows  
that for ,teresa the question was not   
whether the  manifestations were        
subjective or objective1 but whether    
they were  sent by ,god or ,satan4      
,one of the best chapters in her        
autobiography1 and perhaps the most     
interesting from our present point of   
view1 is the allegory under  which she  
describes the different kinds of prayer4
 ,the simile is not  original--it       
appears in ,st4 ,augustine and others2  
but it is more fully  worked out by ,st4
 ,teresa1 who tells us it has always    
been a great  delight to me to think of 
my soul as a garden1 and of the ,lord as

  walking in it4 ,so here she says1 ,our
 soul is like a garden1 rough  and      
unfruitful1 out of which ,god plucks the
 weeds1 and plants flowers1  which we   
have to water by prayer4 ,there are four
 ways of doing  this--,first1 by drawing
 the water from a well2 this is the     
earliest  and most laborious process4   
,secondly1 by a water-wheel which has   
its  rim hung round with little buckets4
 ,third1 by causing a stream to flow    
through it4 ,fourth1 by rain from       
heaven4 ,the first is ordinary prayer1  
which is often attended by great        
sweetness and comfort4 ,but sometimes   
the well is dry4 ,what then8 ,the love  
of ,god does not consist in being  able 
to weep1 nor yet in delights and        
tenderness1 but in serving with         
justice1 courage1 and humility4 ,the    
other seems to me rather to  receive    
than to give4 ,the second is the prayer 
of quiet1 when the soul  understands    
that ,god is so near to her that she    
need not talk aloud to  ,him4 ,in this  

stage the ,will is absorbed1 but the    
,understanding and  ,memory are still   
active4 7,teresa1 following the         
scholastic mystics1  makes these the    
three faculties of the soul47 ,in the   
third stage ,god  becomes1 as it were1  
the ,gardener4 ,it is a sleep of the    
faculties1  which are not entirely      
suspended1 nor yet do they understand   
how they  work4 ,in the fourth stage1   
the soul labours not at all2 all the    
faculties are quiescent4 ,as she        
pondered how she might describe this    
state1 the ,lord said these words to me3
 ,she 7the soul7 unmakes  herself1 my   
daughter1 to bring herself closer to    
,me4 ,it is no more she  that lives1 but
 ,i4 ,as she cannot comprehend what she 
sees1  understanding she ceases to      
understand4 ,years after she had        
attained  this fourth stage1 ,teresa    
experienced what the mystics call the   
great  dereliction1 a sense of ineffable
 loneliness and desolation1 which       
nevertheless is the path to incomparable

 happiness4 ,it was accompanied  by a   
kind of catalepsy1 with muscular        
rigidity and cessation of the  pulses4  
,these intense joys and sorrows of the  
spirit are the chief events of          
,teresa's life for eight or ten years4  
,they are followed by a period of       
extreme practical activity1 when she    
devoted herself to organising           
communities of bare-footed ,carmelites1 
whose austerity and devotion  were to   
revive the glories of primitive         
,christianity4 ,in this work she  showed
 not only energy1 but worldly wisdom and
 tact in no common  degree4 ,her visions
 had certainly not impaired her powers  
as an  organiser and ruler of men and   
women4 ,her labours continued without   
intermission till1 at the age of        
sixty-seven1 she was struck down by  her
 last illness4 ,this saint will be no   
longer wanted1 she said1  with a sparkle
 of her old vivacity1 when she knew that
 she was to die4    ,it is not worth    
while to give a detailed account of ,st4

 ,teresa's  mystical theology4 ,its     
cardinal points are that the religious  
life  consists in complete conformity to
 the will of ,god1 so that at last  the 
human will becomes purely passive and at
 rest2 and the belief  in ,christ as the
 sole ground of salvation1 on which     
subject she uses  language which is     
curiously like that of the ,lutheran    
,reformers4 ,her  teaching about        
passivity and the prayer of quiet is    
identical with  that which the ,pope    
afterwards condemned in ,molinos2 but it
 is only  fair to remember that ,teresa 
was not canonised for her theology1 but 
for her life1 and that the ,roman       
,church is not committed to every       
doctrine which can be found in the      
writings of her saints4 ,the real       
character of ,st4 ,teresa's piety may be
 seen best in some of her  prayers1 such
 as this which follows3--    ,o ,lord1  
how utterly different are ,thy thoughts 
from our thoughts6  ,from a soul which  
is firmly resolved to love ,thee alone1 

and which has  surrendered her whole    
will into ,thy hands1 ,thou demandest   
only that  she should hearken1 strive   
earnestly to serve ,thee1 and desire    
only to  promote ,thine honour4 ,she    
need seek and choose no path1 for ,thou 
doest that for her1 and her will follows
 ,thine2 while ,thou1 ,o ,lord1  takest 
care to bring her to fuller perfection4 
,in theory1 it may not be easy to       
reconcile earnest striving with         
complete surrender and abrogation of the
 will1 but the logic of the  heart does 
not find them incompatible4 ,perhaps no 
one has spoken  better on this matter   
than the ,rabbi ,gamaliel1 of whom it is
 reported  that he prayed1 ,o ,lord1    
grant that ,i may do ,thy will as if it 
were my  will1 that ,thou mayest do my  
will as if it were ,thy will4 ,but      
quietistic ,mysticism often puts the    
matter on a wrong basis4 ,self-will  is 
to be annihilated1 not 7as ,st4 ,teresa 
sometimes implies7 because  our thoughts
 are so utterly different from ,god's   

thoughts that they  cannot exist in the 
same mind1 but because self-interest    
sets up an  unnatural antagonism between
 them4 ,the will1 like the other        
faculties1  only realises itself in its 
fulness when ,god worketh in us both to 
will and to do of ,his good pleasure4   
,st4 ,juan of the ,cross1 the           
fellow-workman of ,st4 ,teresa in the   
reform  of monasteries1 is a still more 
perfect example of the ,spanish type of 
,mysticism4 ,his fame has never been so 
great as hers2 for while  ,teresa's     
character remained human and lovable in 
the midst of all her  austerities1 ,juan
 carried self-abnegation to a fanatical 
extreme1 and  presents the life of      
holiness in a grim and repellent aspect4
 ,in his  disdain of all compromise     
between the claims of ,god and the      
world1 he  welcomes every kind of       
suffering1 and bids us choose always    
that which  is most painful1 difficult1 
and humiliating4 ,his own life was      
divided  between terrible mortifications

 and strenuous labour in the  foundation
 of monasteries4 ,though his books show 
a tendency to  ,quietism1 his character 
was one of fiery energy and unresting   
industry4 ,houses of discalced          
,carmelites sprang up all over ,spain as
  the result of his labours4 ,these     
monks and nuns slept upon bare  boards1 
fasted eight months in the year1 never  
ate meat1 and wore the  same serge dress
 in winter and summer4 ,in some of these
 new  foundations the ,brethren even    
vied with each other in adding voluntary
  austerities to this severe rule4 ,it  
was all part of the campaign  against   
,protestantism4 ,the worldliness and    
luxury of the ,renaissance  period were 
to be atoned for by a return to the     
purity and devotion of  earlier         
centuries4 ,the older ,catholic         
ideal--the medival type of              
,christianity--was to be restored in all
 its completeness in the  seventeenth   
century4 ,this essentially militant     
character of the  movement among the    

,carmelites must not be lost sight of3  
the two great  ,spanish mystics were    
before all things champions of the      
counter-,reformation4    ,the two chief 
works of ,st4 ,juan are ,the ,ascent of 
,mount ,carmel1 and  ,the ,obscure      
,night of the ,soul4 ,both are treatises
 on quietistic  ,mysticism of a peculiar
 type4 ,at the beginning of ,la ,subida 
de ,monte  ,carmelo he says1 ,the       
journey of the soul to the ,divine union
 is  called night for three reasons3 the
 point of departure is privation  of all
 desire1 and complete detachment from   
the world2 the road is by  faith1 which 
is like night to the intellect2 the     
goal1 which is ,god1  is                
incomprehensible while we are in this   
life4    ,the soul in its ascent passes 
from one realm of darkness to another4  
,first there is the night of sense1 in  
which the things of earth  become dark  
to her4 ,this must needs be traversed1  
for the creatures  are only the crumbs  
that fall from ,god's table1 and none   

but dogs will  turn to pick them up4    
,one desire only doth ,god allow--that  
of  obeying ,him1 and carrying the      
,cross4 ,all other desires weaken1      
torment1 blind1 and pollute the soul4   
,until we are completely detached  from 
all such1 we cannot love ,god4 ,when    
thou dwellest upon anything1  thou hast 
ceased to cast thyself upon the ,all4   
,if thou wilt keep  anything with the   
,all1 thou hast not thy treasure simply 
in ,god4  ,empty thy spirit of all      
created things1 and thou wilt walk in   
the  ,divine light1 for ,god resembles  
no created thing4 ,such is the method   
of traversing the night of sense4 ,even 
at this early stage the forms  and      
symbols of eternity1 which others have  
found in the visible works  of ,god1 are
 discarded as useless4 ,god has no      
resemblance to any  creature4 ,the      
dualism or acosmism of medival thought  
has seldom  found a harsher expression4 
,in the night of sense1 the             
understanding and reason are not blind2 

but  in the second night1 the night of  
faith1 all is darkness4 ,faith is       
midnight2 it is the deepest darkness    
that we have to pass2 for in the  third 
night1 the night of memory and will1 the
 dawn is at hand4  ,faith he defines as 
the assent of the soul to what we have  
heard--as a blind man would receive a   
statement about the colour of  an       
object4 ,we must be totally blind1 for a
 partially blind man will  not commit   
himself wholly to his guide4 ,thus for  
,st4 ,juan the whole  content of        
revelation is removed from the scope of 
the reason1 and is  treated as something
 communicated from outside4 ,we have1   
indeed1  travelled far from ,st4        
,clement's happy confidence in the      
guidance of  reason1 and ,eckhart's     
independence of tradition4 ,the soul has
 three  faculties--intellect1 memory1   
and will4 ,the imagination 7fantasia7   
is a link between the sensitive and     
reasoning powers1 and comes  between the
 intellect and memory4#bih ,of these    

faculties1 faith 7he  says7 blinds the  
intellect1 hope the memory1 and love the
 will4 ,he  adds1 to all that is not    
,god2 but ,god in this life is like     
night4  ,he blames those who think it   
enough to deny themselves without       
annihilating themselves1 and those who  
seek for satisfaction in  ,god4 ,this   
last is spiritual gluttony4 ,we ought to
 seek for  bitterness rather than       
sweetness in ,god1 and to choose what is
 most  disagreeable1 whether proceeding 
from ,god or the world4 ,the way of     
,god consisteth not in ways of devotion 
or sweetness1 though these may  be      
necessary to beginners1 but in giving   
ourselves up to suffer4 ,and  so we must
 fly from all mystical phenomena        
7supernatural  manifestations to the    
sight1 hearing1 and the other senses7   
without  examining whether they be good 
or evil4 ,for bodily sensations bear  no
 proportion to spiritual things2 since  
the distance between ,god  and the      
creature is infinite1 there is no       

essential likeness or  communion between
 them4 ,visions are at best childish    
toys2 the fly  that touches honey cannot
 fly1 he says2 and the probability is   
that  they come from the devil4 ,for    
neither the creatures1 nor intellectual 
perceptions1 natural or supernatural1   
can bring us to ,god1 there  being no   
proportion between them4 ,created things
 cannot serve as a  ladder2 they are    
only a hindrance and a snare4    ,there 
is something heroic in this sombre      
interpretation of the maxim  of our     
,lord1 ,whosoever he be of you that     
forsaketh not all that he  hath1 he     
cannot be ,my disciple4 ,all that he    
hath--yea1 and his own  life            
also--intellect1 reason1 and memory--all
 that is most ,divine in  our           
nature--are cast down in absolute       
surrender at the feet of ,him who  made 
darkness ,his secret place1 ,his        
pavilion round about ,him with  dark    
water1 and thick clouds to cover        
,him4#bii    ,in the third night--that  

of memory and will--the soul sinks into 
a  holy inertia and oblivion 7santa     
ociosidad y olvido71 in which the       
flight of time is unfelt1 and the mind  
is unconscious of all  particular       
thoughts4 ,st4 ,juan seems here to have 
brought us to  something like the torpor
 of the ,indian ,yogi or of the         
hesychasts of  ,mount ,athos4 ,but he   
does not intend us to regard this state 
of trance  as permanent or final4 ,it is
 the last watch of the night before the 
dawn of the supernatural state1 in which
 the human faculties are  turned into   
,divine attributes1 and by a complete   
transformation the  soul1 which was at  
the opposite extreme to ,god1 becomes1  
by  participation1 ,god4 ,in this       
beatific state one might say1 in a      
sense1 that the soul gives ,god to ,god1
 for she gives to ,god all that  she    
receives of ,god2 and ,he gives ,himself
 to her4 ,this is the  mystical         
love-gift1 wherewith the soul repayeth  
all her debt4 ,this  is the infinite    

reward of the soul who has refused to be
 content with  anything short of        
infinity 7no se llenan menos que con lo 
,infinito74  ,with what yearning this   
blessed hope inspired ,st4 ,juan1 is    
shown in  the following beautiful       
prayer1 which is a good example of the  
eloquence1 born of intense emotion1     
which we find here and there in  his    
pages3 ,o sweetest love of ,god1 too    
little known2 he who has found  ,thee is
 at rest2 let everything be changed1 ,o 
,god1 that we may rest in  ,thee4       
,everywhere with ,thee1 ,o my ,god1     
everywhere all things with ,thee2  as ,i
 wish1 ,o my ,love1 all for ,thee1      
nothing for me--nothing for me1         
everything for ,thee4 ,all sweetness and
 delight for ,thee1 none for  me--all   
bitterness and trouble for me1 none for 
,thee4 ,o my ,god1 how  sweet to me ,thy
 presence1 who art the supreme ,good6 ,i
 will draw near  to ,thee in silence1   
and will uncover ,thy feet1#cjj that it 
may please  ,thee to unite me to        

,thyself1 making my soul ,thy bride2 ,i 
will rejoice  in nothing till ,i am in  
,thine arms4 ,o ,lord1 ,i beseech ,thee1
 leave me  not for a moment1 because ,i 
know not the value of mine own soul4    
,such faith1 hope1 and love were        
suffered to cast gleams of light upon   
the saint's gloomy and thorn-strewn     
path4 ,but nevertheless the text of     
which we are most often reminded in     
reading his pages is the verse of       
,amos3 ,shall not the day of the ,lord  
be darkness and not light8 even  very   
dark1 and no brightness in it8 ,it is a 
terrible view of life and  duty--that we
 are to denude ourselves of everything  
that makes us  citizens of the          
world--that nothing which is natural is 
capable of  entering into relations with
 ,god--that all which is human must die1
  and have its place taken by           
supernatural infusion4 ,st4 ,juan       
follows to  the end the negative road of
 ,dionysius1 without troubling himself  
at  all with the transcendental         

metaphysics of ,neoplatonism4 ,his      
nihilism  or acosmism is not the result 
of abstracting from the notion of ,being
  or of unity2 its basis is             
psychological4 ,it is subjective        
religion  carried almost to its logical 
conclusion4 ,the ,neoplatonists were led
  on by the hope of finding a           
reconciliation between philosophy and   
positive religion2 but no such problems 
ever presented themselves to  the       
,spaniards4 ,we hear nothing of the     
relation of the creation to ,god1  or   
why the contemplation of it should only 
hinder instead of helping  us to know   
its ,maker4 ,the world simply does not  
exist for ,st4 ,juan2  nothing exists   
save ,god and human souls4 ,the great   
human society has  no interest for him2 
he would have us cut ourselves          
completely adrift  from the aims and    
aspirations of civilised humanity1 and1 
since  nothing but the ,infinite can    
satisfy us1 to accept nothing until our 
nothingness is filled with the          

,infinite4 ,he does not escape from the 
quietistic attitude of passive          
expectancy which belongs to this view   
of life2 and it is only by a glaring    
inconsistency that he attaches  any     
value to the ecclesiastical symbolism1  
which rests on a very  different basis  
from that of his teaching4 ,but ,st4    
,juan's ,mysticism  brought him no      
intellectual emancipation1 either for   
good or evil4  ,faith with him was the  
antithesis1 not to sight1 as in the     
,bible1  but to reason4 ,the sacrifice  
of reason was part of the crucifixion of
  the old man4 ,and so he remained in an
 attitude of complete  subservience to  
,church tradition and authority1 and    
even to his  director1 an intermediary  
who is constantly mentioned by these    
post-,reformation mystics4 ,even this   
unqualified submissiveness did not      
preserve him from persecution during his
 lifetime1 and suspicion  afterwards4   
,his books were only authorised         
twenty-seven years after  his death1    

which occurred in #aeia2 and his        
beatification was delayed  till #afgd4  
,his orthodoxy was defended largely by  
references to ,st4  ,teresa1 who had    
already been canonised4 ,but it could   
not be denied  that the quietists of the
 next century might find much support   
for  their controverted doctrines in    
both writers4    ,st4 ,juan's ideal of  
saintliness was as much of an           
anachronism as his  scheme of ,church   
reform4 ,but no one ever climbed the    
rugged peaks of  ,mount ,carmel with    
more heroic courage and patience4 ,his  
life shows  what tremendous moral force 
is generated by complete self-surrender 
to  ,god4 ,and happily neither his      
failure to read the signs of the times1 
nor his one-sided and defective grasp of
 ,christian truth1 could  deprive him of
 the reward of his life of              
sacrifice--the reward1 ,i  mean1 of     
feeling his fellowship with ,christ in  
suffering4 ,he sold all  that he had to 
gain the pearl of great price1 and the  

surrender was  not made in vain4    ,the
 later ,roman ,catholic mystics1 though 
they include some beautiful  and lovable
 characters1 do not develop any further 
the type which we  have found in ,st4   
,teresa and ,st4 ,juan4 ,st4 ,francis de
 ,sales has been a  favourite devotional
 writer with thousands in this country4 
,he  presents the ,spanish ,mysticism   
softened and polished into a graceful   
and winning pietism1 such as might      
refine and elevate the lives of  the    
honourable women who consulted him4 ,the
 errors of the quietists  certainly     
receive some countenance from parts of  
his writings1 but  they are neutralised 
by maxims of a different tendency1      
borrowed  eclectically from other       
sources4#cja    ,a more consistent and  
less fortunate follower of ,st4 ,teresa 
was ,miguel  de ,molinos1 a ,spanish    
priest1 who came to ,rome about #afgj4  
,his piety  and learning won him the    
favour of ,pope ,innocent ,,xi41 who1   
according  to ,bishop ,burnet1 lodged   

him in an apartment of the palace1 and  
put  many singular marks of his esteem  
upon him4 ,in #afge he published in     
,italian his ,spiritual ,guide1 a       
mystical treatise of great interest4    
,molinos begins by saying that there are
 two ways to the knowledge of           
,god--meditation or discursive thought1 
and pure faith or  contemplation4       
,contemplation has two stages1 active   
and passive1 the  latter being the      
higher4#cjb ,meditation he also calls   
the exterior  road2 it is good for      
beginners1 he says1 but can never lead  
to  perfection4 ,the interior road1 the 
goal of which is union with ,god1       
consists in complete resignation to the 
will of ,god1 annihilation of  all      
self-will1 and an unruffled tranquillity
 or passivity of soul1  until the       
mystical grace is supernaturally        
infused4 ,then we shall  sink and lose  
ourselves in the immeasurable sea of    
,god's infinite  goodness1 and rest     
there steadfast and immovable4#cjc ,he  

gives a  list of tokens by which we may 
know that we are called from meditation 
to contemplation2 and enumerates four   
means1 which lead to perfection  and    
inward peace--prayer1 obedience1        
frequent communions1 and inner          
mortification4 ,the best kind of prayer 
is the prayer of silence2#cjd  and there
 are three silences1 that of words1 that
 of desires1 and that  of thought4 ,in  
the last and highest the mind is a      
blank1 and ,god alone  speaks to the    
soul4#cje ,with the curious passion for 
subdivision  which we find in nearly all
 ,romish mystics1 he distinguishes three
  kinds of infusa contemplazione--7#a7  
satiety1 when the soul is filled  with  
,god and conceives a hatred for all     
worldly things2 7#b7 un  mentale eccesso
 or elevation of the soul1 born of      
,divine love and its  satiety2 7#c7     
security4 ,in this state the soul would 
willingly even  go to hell1 if it were  
,god's will4 ,happy is the state of that
 soul  which has slain and annihilated  

itself4 ,it lives no longer in itself1  
for ,god lives in it4 ,with all truth we
 may say that it is deified4    ,molinos
 follows ,st4 ,juan of the ,cross in    
disparaging visions1 which  he says are 
often snares of the devil4 ,and1 like   
him1 he says much of  the horrible      
temptations and torments1 worse than any
 which the  martyrs of the early ,church
 underwent1 which form part of purgative
  contemplation4 ,he resembles the      
,spanish mystics also in his  insistence
 on outward observances1 especially     
daily communion1 when  possible1 but    
thinks frequent confession unnecessary1 
except for  beginners4    ,the book was 
no sooner printed1 says ,bishop ,burnet1
 than it was  much read and highly      
esteemed1 both in ,italy and ,spain4    
,the  acquaintance of the author came to
 be much desired4 ,those who seemed  in 
the greatest credit at ,rome seemed to  
value themselves upon his  friendship4  
,letters were writ to him from all      
places1 so that a  correspondence was   

settled between him and those who       
approved of his  method1 in many        
different places of ,europe4 ,it grew so
 much to be  the vogue in ,rome1 that   
all the nuns1 except those who had      
,jesuits to  their confessors1 began to 
lay aside their rosaries and other      
devotions1 and to give themselves much  
to the practice of mental  prayer4      
,molinos had written with the object of 
breaking the fetters which  hindered    
souls in their upward course4           
,unfortunately for himself1 he  also    
loosened some of the fetters in which   
the ,roman priesthood  desires to keep  
the laity#cjf4 ,and so1 instead of the  
honours which  had been grudgingly and  
suspiciously bestowed on his            
predecessors1  ,molinos ended his days  
in a dungeon#cjg4 ,his condemnation was 
followed by a sharp persecution of his  
followers in ,italy1 who had  become    
very numerous2 and1 in ,france1 ,bossuet
 procured the  condemnation and         
imprisonment of ,madame ,guyon1 a lady  

of high  character and abilities1 who   
was the centre of a group of quietists4 
,madame de ,guyon need not detain us    
here4 ,her ,mysticism is identical  with
 that of ,saint ,teresa1 except that she
 was no visionary1 and that  her        
character was softer and less masculine4
 ,her attractive  personality1 and the  
cruel and unjust treatment which she    
experienced  during the greater part of 
her life1 arouse the sympathy of all who
  read her story2 but since my present  
object is not to exhibit a  portrait    
gallery of eminent mystics1 but to      
investigate the chief  types of mystical
 thought1 it will not be necessary for  
me to describe  her life or make        
extracts from her writings4 ,the        
character of her  quietism may be       
illustrated by one example--the hymn on 
,the  ,acquiescence of ,pure ,love1     
translated by ,cowper3--        ,love6  
if ,thy destined sacrifice am ,i1       
,come1 slay thy victim1 and prepare ,thy
 fires2     ,plunged in ,thy depths of  

mercy1 let me die       ,the death which
 every soul that loves desires6       ,i
 watch my hours1 and see them fleet     
away2       ,the time is long that ,i   
have languished here2     ,yet all my   
thoughts ,thy purposes obey1       ,with
 no reluctance1 cheerful and sincere4   
,to me 'tis equal1 whether ,love ordain 
,my life or death1 appoint me pain or   
ease     ,my soul perceives no real ill 
in pain2       ,in ease or health no    
real good she sees4       ,one ,good she
 covets1 and that ,good alone2       ,to
 choose ,thy will1 from selfish bias    
free     ,and to prefer a cottage to a  
throne1       ,and grief to comfort1 if 
it pleases ,thee4       ,that we should 
bear the cross is ,thy command          
,die to the world1 and live to self no  
more2     ,suffer unmoved beneath the   
rudest hand1       ,as pleased when     
shipwrecked as when safe on shore4      
,fnelon was also a victim of the        
campaign against the quietists1  though 
he was no follower of ,molinos4 ,he was 

drawn into the  controversy against his 
will by ,bossuet1 who requested him to  
endorse  an unscrupulous attack upon    
,madame ,guyon4 ,this made it necessary 
for  ,fnelon to define his position1    
which he did in his famous ,maxims of   
the ,saints4 ,the treatise is important 
for our purposes1 since it is  an       
elaborate attempt to determine the      
limits of true and false  ,mysticism    
concerning two great                    
doctrines--disinterested love and       
passive contemplation4    ,on the       
former1 ,fnelon's teaching may be       
summarised as follows3  ,self-interest  
must be excluded from our love of ,god1 
for self-love is  the root of all evil4 
,this predominant desire for ,god's     
glory need not  be always explicit--it  
need only become so on extraordinary    
occasions2  but it must always be       
implicit4 ,there are five kinds of love 
for ,god3  7i47 purely servile--the love
 of ,god's gifts apart from ,himself2   
7ii47  the love of mere covetousness1   

which regards the love of ,god only as  
the condition of happiness2 7iii47 that 
of hope1 in which the desire  for our   
own welfare is still predominant2 7iv47 
interested love1 which  is still mixed  
with self-regarding motives2 7v47       
disinterested love4  ,he mentions here  
the three lives of the mystics1 and says
 that in  the purgative life love is    
mixed with the fear of hell2 in the     
illuminative1 with the hope of heaven2  
while in the highest stage we  are      
united to ,god in the peaceable exercise
 of pure love4 ,if ,god  were to will to
 send the souls of the just to hell--so 
,chrysostom and  ,clement suggest--souls
 in the third state would not love ,him 
less#cjh4 ,mixed love1 however1 is not a
 sin3 the greater part of  holy souls   
never reach perfect disinterestedness in
 this life4 ,we  ought to wish for our  
salvation1 because it is ,god's will    
that we  should do so4 ,interested love 
coincides with resignation1             
disinterested with holy indifference4   

,st4 ,francis de ,sales says that  the  
disinterested heart is like wax in the  
hands of its ,god4    ,we must continue 
to co-operate with ,god's grace1 even in
 the highest  stage1 and not cease to   
resist our impulses1 as if all came from
 ,god4  ,to speak otherwise is to speak 
the language of the tempter4 7,this  is1
 of course1 directed against the immoral
 apathy attributed to  ,molinos47 ,the  
only difference between the vigilance of
 pure and that  of interested love1 is  
that the former is simple and peaceable1
 while  the latter has not yet cast out 
fear4 ,it is false teaching to say that 
we should hate ourselves2 we should be  
in charity with ourselves as  with      
others4#cji    ,spontaneous1            
unreflecting good acts proceed from what
 the mystics call  the apex of the soul4
 ,in such acts ,st4 ,antony places the  
most perfect  prayer--unconscious       
prayer4    ,of prayer he says1 ,we pray 
as much as we desire1 and we desire as  
much as we love4 ,vocal prayer cannot be

 7as the extreme quietists  pretend7    
useless to contemplative souls2 for     
,christ has taught us a  vocal prayer4  
,he then proceeds to deal with passive  
contemplation1 and refers  again to the 
unconscious prayer of ,st4 ,antony4 ,but
 pure  contemplation is never           
unintermittent in this life4 ,bernard1  
,teresa1  and ,john say that their      
periods of pure contemplation lasted not
 more  than half an hour4 ,pure         
contemplation1 he proceeds1 is negative1
  being occupied with no sensible image1
 no distinct and nameable idea2  it     
stops only at the purely intellectual   
and abstract idea of being4  ,yet this  
idea includes1 as distinct objects1 all 
the attributes of  ,god--as the         
,trinity1 the humanity of ,christ1 and  
all ,his mysteries4  ,to deny this is to
 annihilate ,christianity under pretence
 of  purifying it1 and to confound ,god 
with nant4 ,it is to form a kind  of    
deism which at once falls into atheism1 
wherein all real idea of  ,god as       

distinguished from ,his creatures is    
rejected4 ,lastly1 it is to  advance two
 impieties--7i47 ,to suppose that there 
is or may be on the  earth a            
contemplative who is no longer a        
traveller1 and who no longer  needs the 
way1 since he has reached his           
destination4 7ii47 ,to ignore  that     
,jesus ,christ is the way as well as the
 truth and the life1 the  finisher as   
well as the author of our faith4        
,this criticism of the formless vision  
is excellent1 but there is a  palpable  
inconsistency between the definition of 
negative  contemplation and the         
inclusion in it of all the attributes of
 ,god  as distinct objects4             
,contradictions of this sort abound in  
,fnelon1  and destroy the value of his  
writings as contributions to religious  
philosophy1 though in his case1 as in   
many others1 we may speak of  noble     
inconsistencies which do more credit to 
his heart than  discredit to his        
intellect4 ,we may perhaps see here the 

dying spasm of  the negative method1    
which has crossed our path so often in  
this  survey4    ,the image of ,jesus   
,christ1 ,fnelon continues1 is not      
clearly seen by  contemplatives at      
first1 and may be withdrawn while the   
soul passes  through the last furnace of
 trial2 but we can never cease to need  
,him1  though it is true that the most  
eminent saints are accustomed to  regard
 ,him less as an exterior object than as
 the interior principle  of their lives4
 ,they are in error who speak of        
possessing ,god in ,his  supreme        
simplicity1 and of no more knowing      
,christ after the flesh4  ,contemplation
 is called passive because it excludes  
the interested  activity of the soul1   
not because it excludes real action4    
7,here again  ,fnelon is rather         
explaining away than explaining his     
authorities47  ,the culmination of the  
passive state is transformation1 in     
which  love is the life of the soul1 as 
it is its being and substance4          

,catherine of ,genoa said1 ,i find no   
more me2 there is no longer any  other  
,i but ,god4 ,but it is false to say    
that transformation is a  deification of
 the real and natural soul1 or a        
hypostatic union1 or an  unalterable    
conformity with ,god4#caj ,in the       
passive state we are  still liable to   
mortal sin4 7,it is characteristic of   
,fnelon that he  contradicts1 without   
rejecting1 the substitution-doctrine    
plainly  stated in the sentence from    
,catherine of ,genoa47    ,in his letter
 to the ,pope1 which accompanies the    
,explanation of the  ,maxims1 ,fnelon   
thus sums up his distinctions between   
true and false  ,mysticism3--    #a4    
,the permanent act 7i4e4 an indefectible
 state of union with ,god7  is to be    
condemned as a poisoned source of       
idleness and internal  lethargy4    #b4 
,there is an indispensable necessity of 
the distinct exercise of  each virtue4  
#c4 ,perpetual contemplation1 making    
venial sins impossible1 and  abolishing 

the distinction of virtues1 is          
impossible4    #d4 ,passive prayer1 if  
it excludes the co-operation of         
free-will1 is  impossible4    #e4 ,there
 can be no quietude except the peace of 
the ,holy ,ghost1  which acts in a      
manner so uniform that these acts seem1 
to  unscientific persons1 not distinct  
acts1 but a single and permanent  unity 
with ,god4    #f4 ,that the doctrine of 
pure love may not serve as an asylum for
 the  errors of the ,quietists1 we      
assert that hope must always abide1 as  
saith ,st4 ,paul4    #g4 ,the state of  
pure love is very rare1 and it is       
intermittent4    ,in reply to this      
manifesto1 the ,three ,prelates#caa     
rejoin that  ,fnelon keeps the name of  
hope but takes away the thing2 that he  
really preaches indifference to         
salvation2 that he is in danger of      
regarding contemplation of ,christ as a 
descent from the heights of  pure       
contemplation2 that he unaccountably    
says nothing of the love of  gratitude  

to ,god and our ,redeemer2 that he      
erects the rare and  transient          
experiences of a few saints into a rule 
of faith4    ,in this controversy about 
disinterested love1 our sympathies are  
chiefly1 but not entirely1 with ,fnelon4
 ,the standpoint of ,bossuet is  not    
religious at all4 ,pure love1 he says   
almost coarsely1 is  opposed to the     
essence of love1 which always desires   
the enjoyment of  its object1 as well as
 to the nature of man1 who necessarily  
desires  happiness4 ,most of us will    
rather agree with ,st4 ,bernard1 that   
love1  as such1 desires nothing but     
reciprocation--verus amor se ipso       
contentus est3 habet prmium1 sed id quod
 amatur4 ,if the question had  been     
simply whether religion is or is not in 
its nature mercenary1 we  should have   
felt no doubt on which side the truth   
lay4 ,self-regarding  hopes and schemes 
may be schoolmasters to bring us to     
,christ2 it  seems1 indeed1 to be part  
of our education to form them1 and then 

see  them shattered one after another1  
that better and deeper hopes may be     
constructed out of the fragments2 but a 
selfish ,christianity is a              
contradiction in terms4 ,but ,fnelon1 in
 his teaching about  disinterested love1
 goes further than this4 ,a man's self1 
he says1  is his own greatest cross4 ,we
 must therefore become strangers to     
this self1 this moi4 ,resignation is not
 a remedy2 for resignation  suffers in  
suffering2 one is as two persons in     
resignation2 it is only  pure love that 
loves to suffer4 ,this is the thought   
with which many  of us are familiar in  
,james ,hinton's ,mystery of ,pain4 ,it 
is at  bottom ,stoical or ,buddhistic1  
in spite of the emotional turn given to 
it by ,fnelon4 ,logically1 it should    
lead to the destruction of love2  for   
love requires two living factors1#cab   
and the person who has  attained a holy 
indifference1 who has passed wholly out 
of self1 is  as incapable of love as of 
any other emotion4 ,the attempt to wind 

ourselves too high for mortal man has   
resulted1 as usual1 in two  opposite    
errors4 ,we find1 on the one hand1 some 
who try to escape the  daily sacrifices 
which life demands1 by declaring        
themselves bankrupt  to start with4     
,and1 on the other hand1 we find men    
like ,fnelon1 who  are too good         
,christians to wish to shift their      
crosses in this way2  but who allow     
their doctrines of holy indifference and
 pure love  to impart an excessive      
sternness to their teaching1 and demand 
from us  an impossible degree of        
detachment and renunciation4    ,the    
importance attached to the prayer of    
quiet can only be  understood when we   
remember how much mechanical recitation 
of forms of  prayer was enjoined by     
,romish directors4 ,it is1 of course1   
possible  for the soul to commune with  
,god without words1 perhaps even without
  thoughts2#cac but the recorded prayers
 of our ,blessed ,lord will not  allow  
us to regard these ecstatic states as   

better than vocal prayer1  when the     
latter is offered with the spirit1 and  
with the  understanding also4    ,the   
quietistic controversy in ,france was   
carried on in an atmosphere  of         
political intrigues and private         
jealousies1 which in no way concern  us4
 ,but the great fact which stands out   
above the turmoil of calumny  and       
misrepresentation is that the ,roman    
,church1 which in sore straits  had     
called in the help of quietistic        
,mysticism to stem the flood of         
,protestantism1 at length found the     
alliance too dangerous1 and  disbanded  
her irregular troops in spite of their  
promises to submit to  discipline4 ,in  
,fnelon1 ,mysticism had a champion      
eloquent and learned1  and not too      
logical to repudiate with honest        
conviction consequences  which some of  
his authorities had found it necessary  
to accept4 ,he  remained a loyal and    
submissive son of the ,church1 as did   
,molinos2 and  was1 in fact1 more       

guarded in his statements than ,bossuet1
 who in his  ignorance of mystical      
theology often blundered into dangerous 
admissions#cad4 ,but the ,jesuits saw   
with their usual acumen that            
,mysticism1 even in the most submissive 
guise1 is an independent and  turbulent 
spirit2 and by condemning ,fnelon as    
well as ,molinos1 they  crushed it out  
as a religious movement in the ,latin   
countries4    ,to us it seems that the  
,mysticism of the counter-,reformation  
was bound  to fail1 because it was the  
revival of a perverted1 or at best a    
one-sided type4 ,the most consistent    
quietists were perhaps those who        
brought the doctrine of quietism into   
most discredit1 such as the  hesychasts 
of ,mount ,athos4 ,for at bottom it     
rests upon that dualistic  or rather    
acosmistic view of life which prevailed 
from the decay of  the ,roman ,empire   
till the ,renaissance and ,reformation4 
,its cosmology  is one which leaves this
 world out of account except as a       

training  ground for souls2 its theory  
of knowledge draws a hard and fast line 
between natural and supernatural truths1
 and then tries to bring them  together 
by intercalating supernatural phenomena 
in the order of  nature2 and in ethics  
it paralyses morality by teaching with  
,st4  ,thomas ,aquinas that to love ,god
 secundum se is more meritorious  than  
to love our neighbour4#cae ,all this is 
not of the essence of  ,mysticism1 but  
belongs to medival ,catholicism4 ,it was
 probably a  necessary stage through    
which ,christianity1 and ,mysticism with
 it1 had  to pass4 ,the vain quest of an
 abstract spirituality at any rate      
liberated the religious life from many  
base associations2 the  negative road is
 after all the holy path of             
self-sacrifice2 and the  maltreatment of
 the body1 which began among the hermits
 of the  ,thebaid1 was largely based on 
an instinctive recoil against the poison
  of sensuality1 which had helped to    
destroy the old civilisation4 ,but  the 

resuscitation of medival ,mysticism     
after the ,renaissance was an           
anachronism2 and except in the fighting 
days of the sixteenth century1  it was  
not likely to appeal to the manliest or 
most intelligent  spirits4 ,the         
world-ruling papal polity1 with its     
incomparable army of  officials1 bound  
to poverty and celibacy1 and therefore  
invulnerable1  was a reductio ad        
absurdum of its world-renouncing        
doctrines1 which  ,europe was not likely
 to forget4 ,introspective ,mysticism   
had done its  work--a work of great     
service to the human race4 ,it had      
explored all  the recesses of the lonely
 heart1 and had wrestled with the angel 
of  ,god through the terrors of the     
spiritual night even till the morning4  
,tell me now ,thy name 444 ,i will not  
let ,thee go until ,thou bless  me4     
,these had been the two demands of the  
contemplative mystic--the  only rewards 
which his soul craved in return for the 
sacrifice of  every earthly delight4    

,the reward was worth the sacrifice2 but
 ,god  reveals ,himself in many ways1   
and the spiritual ,christianity of the  
modern epoch is called rather to the    
consecration of art1 science1 and       
social life than to lonely              
contemplation4 ,in my last two ,lectures
 ,i  hope to show how an important      
school of mystics1 chiefly between the  
,renaissance and our own day1 have      
turned to the religious study of        
nature1 and have found there the same   
illumination which the medival  ascetics
 drew from the deep wells of their inner
 consciousness4    ,,footnotes3         
,footnote #bhd3 ,rousselot1 ,les        
,mystiques ,espagnols1 p4 #c4           
,footnote #bhe3 ,among the latter must  
be mentioned the growth of  ,scotist    
,nominalism1 on which see a note on p4  
#ahg4 ,ritschl was the  first to point  
out how strongly ,nominalism influenced 
the later  ,mysticism1 by giving it its 
quietistic character4 ,see ,harnack1    
,history of ,dogma 7,eng4 tr471 vol4 vi4

 p4 #ajg4    ,footnote #bhf3 ,cf4 the   
beginning of the ,vida de ,lazarillo de 
,tormes1  corregida y emendada por ,juan
 de ,luna 7,paris1 #afbj74 ,the         
ignorance  of the ,spaniards is         
excusable4 ,the ,inquisitors are the    
cause4 ,they are  dreaded1 not only by  
the people1 but by the great lords1 to  
such an  extent that the mere mention of
 the ,inquisition makes every head      
tremble like a leaf in the wind4        
,footnote #bhg3 ,pedro ,malon de        
,chaide3 ,las cosas en ,dios son mismo  
,dios4    ,footnote #bhh3 ,alejo        
,venegas in ,rousselot1 p4 #gh3 ,louis  
de ,leon1 who  is indebted to the ,fons 
,vit4    ,footnote #bhi3 ,louis de      
,leon3 ,the members and the head are one
  ,christ4    ,footnote #bij3 ,diego de 
,stella affirms the mystic paradox1 that
 it is  better to be in hell with       
,christ than in glory without ,him      
7,medit4  iii474    ,footnote #bia3     
,juan d',avila3 ,let us put a veil      
between ourselves and  all created      

things4    ,footnote #bib3 ,this side of
 ,platonism appears in ,pedro ,malon1   
and  especially in ,louis de ,granada4  
,compare also the beautiful ode of      
,louis de ,leon1 entitled ,noche        
,serena1 where the eternal peace of the 
starry heavens is contrasted with the   
turmoil of the world--      ,quien es el
 que esto mira1     ,y precia la bajeza 
de la tierra1     ,y no gime y suspira  
,y rompe lo que encierra     ,el alma1 y
 destos bienes la destierra8     ,aqui  
vive al contento1     ,aqui reina la    
paz1 aqui asentado     ,en rico y alto  
asiento     ,esta el amor sagrado       
,de glorias y deleites rodeado4         
,footnote #bic3 ,after his release he   
was suffered to resume his  lectures4 ,a
 crowd of sympathisers assembled to hear
 his first  utterance2 but he began     
quietly with his usual formula1         
,deciamos  ahora1 ,we were saying just  
now4    ,footnote #bid3 ,the heresy of  
the ,alombrados 7,illuminati71 which    
appeared in the sixteenth century1 and  

was ruthlessly crushed by the           
,inquisition1 belonged to the familiar  
type of degenerate ,mysticism4  ,its    
adherents taught that the prayers of the
 ,church were worthless1  the only true 
prayer being a kind of ecstasy1 without 
words or mental  images4 ,the           
illuminated need no sacraments1 and can 
commit no sins4  ,the mystical union    
once achieved is an abiding possession4 
,there was  another outbreak of the same
 errors in #afbc1 and a corresponding   
sect  of ,illumins in ,southern ,france4
    ,footnote #bie3 ,the real founder of
 ,spanish quietistic ,mysticism was     
,pedro of ,alcantara 7d4 #aefb74 ,he was
 confessor to ,teresa4 ,teresa is  also 
indebted to ,francisco de ,osuna1 in    
whose writings the principles  of       
quietism are clearly taught4 ,cf4       
,heppe1 ,geschichte der  quietistichen  
,mystik1 p4 #i4    ,footnote #bif3 ,the 
fullest and best account of ,st4 ,teresa
 is in ,mrs4  ,cunninghame ,graham's    
,life and ,times of ,santa ,teresa 7#b  

vols474    ,footnote #big3 ,h imaginari 
visiones regulariter eveniunt vel       
incipientibus vel proficientibus nondum 
bene purgatis1 ut communiter  tenent    
myst 7,lucern4 ,myst4 ,tract1 v4 #c74   
,footnote #bih3 ,so in ,plotinus ,greek3
 phantasia comes between ,greek3  physis
 7the lower soul7 and the perfect       
apprehension of ,greek3  nous4          
,footnote #bii3 ,st4 ,juan follows the  
medival mystics in distinguishing       
between meditation and contemplation4   
,meditation1 from which  external images
 are not excluded1 is for him an early  
and imperfect  stage2 he who is destined
 to higher things will soon discover    
signs  which indicate that it is time to
 abandon it4    ,footnote #cjj3 ,the    
reference is to ,ruth iii4 #g4          
,footnote #cja3 ,the somewhat feminine  
temper of ,francis leads him to  attach 
more value to fanciful symbolism than   
would have been approved  by ,st4 ,juan1
 or even by ,st4 ,teresa4 ,and we miss  
in him that steady  devotion to the     

,person of ,christ1 and to ,him alone1  
which gives the  ,spaniards1 in spite of
 themselves1 a sort of kinship with     
evangelical  ,christianity4 ,st4 ,juan  
could never have written1 ,honorez1     
reverez1 et  respectez d'un amour       
special la sacre et glorieuse ,vierge   
,marie4 ,elle  est mre de nostre        
souverain pre et par consequent nostre  
grand'mre  7674    ,footnote #cjb3 ,the 
three parts into which the book is      
divided deal  respectively with the     
darkness and dryness by which ,god      
purifies the  heart2 the second stage1  
in which he insists1 complete obedience 
to a  spiritual director is essential2  
and the stage of higher  illumination4  
,footnote #cjc3 ,col c' ingolfiano e ci 
perdiamo nel mare immenso  dell'        
infinita sua bont in cui restiamo       
stabili ed immobili4    ,footnote #cjd3 
,it is interesting to find the prayer of
 quiet even in  ,plotinus4 ,cf4 ,enn4 v4
 #a4 #f3 ,let us call upon ,god ,himself
 before we  thus answer--not with       

uttered words1 but reaching forth our   
souls in  prayer to ,him2 for thus alone
 can we pray1 alone to ,him who is      
alone4    ,footnote #cje3 ,he speaks1   
too1 of inner recollection 7il          
raccoglimento interiore71 mirandolo     
dentro te medesima nel pi intimo  del'  
anima tua1 senza forma1 specie1 modo    
figura1 in vista e  generate notitia di 
fede amorosa ed oscura1 senza veruna    
distinzione  di perfezione  attributo4  
,footnote #cjf3 ,cf4 ,bp4 ,burnet3 ,in  
short1 everybody that was thought       
either sincerely devout1 or that at     
least affected the reputation of  it1   
came to be reckoned among the           
,quietists2 and if these persons were   
observed to become more strict in their 
lives1 more retired and  serious in     
their mental devotions1 yet there       
appeared less zeal in  their whole      
deportment as to the exterior parts of  
the religion of  that ,church4 ,they    
were not so assiduous at ,mass1 nor so  
earnest to  procure ,masses to be said  

for their friends2 nor were they so     
frequently either at confession or in   
processions1 so that the trade  of those
 that live by these things was terribly 
sunk4    ,footnote #cjg3 ,the ,spiritual
 ,guide was well received at first in   
high quarters2 but in #afha a ,jesuit   
preacher published a book on the  prayer
 of quiet1 which raised a storm4 ,the   
first commission of  inquiry exonerated 
,molinos2 but in #afhe the ,jesuits and 
,louis ,,xiv4  brought strong pressure  
to bear on the ,pope1 and ,molinos was  
accused  of heresy4 ,sixty-eight false  
propositions were extracted from his    
writings1 and formally condemned4 ,they 
include a justification of  disgraceful 
vices1 which ,molinos1 who was a man of 
saintly character1  could never have    
taught4 ,but though the whole process   
against the  author of the ,spiritual   
,guide was shamefully unfair1 the book  
contains some highly dangerous teaching1
 which might easily be pressed  into the
 service of immorality4 ,molinos saved  

his life by recanting  all his errors1  
but was imprisoned till his death1 about
 #afif4 ,in #afhg  the ,inquisition     
arrested #bjj persons for quietist      
opinions4    ,footnote #cjh3 ,this      
mystic paradox has been mentioned       
already4 ,it  is developed at length in 
the ,meditations of ,diego de ,stella4  
,fnelon says that it is found in        
,cassian1 ,gregory of ,nazianzus1       
,augustine1 ,anselm1 and a great number 
of saints4 ,it is an  unfortunate       
attempt to improve upon ,job's fine     
saying1 ,though ,he slay  me1 yet will  
,i trust in ,him1 or the line in ,homer 
which has been  often quoted--,greek3 en
 de phaei kai olesson1 epei ny toi      
euaden  outs4 ,but unless we form a very
 unworthy idea of heaven and hell1  the 
proposition is not so much extravagant  
as self-contradictory4    ,footnote     
#cji3 ,the doctrine here condemned is   
,manichean1 says ,fnelon  rightly4      
,footnote #caj3 ,st4 ,bernard 7,de      
diligendo ,deo1 x4 #bh7 gives a careful 

statement of the deification-doctrine as
 he understands it3 ,quomodo  omnia in  
omnibus erit ,deus1 si in homine de     
homine quicquam supererit8  ,manebit    
substantia sed in alia forma4 ,see      
,appendix ,c4    ,footnote #caa3 ,the   
,archbishop of ,paris1 the ,bishop of   
,meaux 7,bossuet71  and the ,bishop of  
,chartres4    ,footnote #cab3 ,if two   
beings are separate1 they cannot        
influence each  other inwardly4 ,if they
 are not distinct1 there can be no      
relations  between them4 ,man is at once
 organ and organism1 and this is why    
love  between man and ,god is possible4 
,the importance of maintaining that     
action between man and ,god must be     
reciprocal1 is well shown by            
,lilienfeld1 ,gedanken ber die          
,socialwissenschaft der ,zukunft1 vol4  
v4 p4 #dgb sq4    ,footnote #cac3       
,thought was not1 says ,wordsworth of   
one in a state of  rapture2 and again1  
,all his thoughts were steeped in       
feeling4    ,footnote #cad3 ,e4g41 he   

writes to ,madame ,guyon1 ,je n'ai      
jamais hesit  un seul moment sur les    
tats de ,sainte ,thrse1 parceque je n'y 
ai  rien trouv1 que je ne trouvasse     
aussi dans l'ecriture4 ,it is  doubtful 
whether ,bossuet had really read much of
 ,st4 ,teresa4 ,fnelon  says much more  
cautiously1 ,quelque respect et quelque 
admiration que  j'aie pour ,sainte      
,thrse1 je n'aurais jamais voulu donner 
au public  tout ce qu'elle a crit4      
,footnote #cae3 ,of course there is a   
sense in which this is true2 but ,i  am 
speaking of the way in which it was     
understood by medival  ,catholicism4    
,,lecture ,,vii    ,greek3 ,en pasi tois
 physikois enesti ti thaumaston2        
kathaper  ,hrakleitos legetai eipein2   
einai kai entautha theous4              
,,aristotle1 de ,partibus ,animalium1 i4
 #e4                                    
,what if earth      ,be but the shadow  
of heaven1 and things therein      ,each
 to other like1 more than on earth is   
thought8    ,,milton4         ,god is   

not dumb1 that ,he should speak no more4
      ,if thou hast wanderings in the   
wilderness1      ,and find'st not       
,sinai1 'tis thy soul is poor2          
,there towers the mountain of the voice 
no less1      ,which whoso seeks shall  
find2 but he who bends1      ,intent on 
manna still and mortal ends1      ,sees 
it not1 neither hears its thundered     
lore4    ,,lowell4      ,of the         
,absolute in the theoretical sense ,i do
 not venture to speak2  but this ,i     
maintain1 that if a man recognises it in
 its  manifestations1 and always keeps  
his eye fixed upon it1 he will reap a   
very great reward4    ,,goethe4         
,,nature-,,mysticism ,,and ,,symbolism  
,the creation itself also shall be      
delivered from the bondage of           
corruption into the liberty of the glory
 of the children of  ,god4--,,rom4 viii4
 #ba4      ,it would be possible to     
maintain that all our happiness consists
 in  finding sympathies and affinities  
underlying apparent antagonisms1 in     

bringing harmony out of discord1 and    
order out of chaos4 ,even the  lowest   
pleasures owe their attractiveness to a 
certain temporary  correspondence       
between our desires and the nature of   
things4  ,selfishness itself1 the prime 
source of sin1 misery1 and ignorance1   
cannot sever the ties which bind us to  
each other and to nature2 or if  it     
succeeds in doing so1 it passes into    
madness1 of which an  experienced       
alienist has said1 that its essence is  
concentrated  egoism4 ,incidentally ,i  
may say that the peculiar happiness     
which  accompanies every glimpse of     
insight into truth and reality1 whether 
in the scientific1 sthetic1 or emotional
 sphere1 seems to me to have  a greater 
apologetic value than has been generally
 recognised4 ,it is  the clearest       
possible indication that the true is for
 us the good1 and  forms the ground of a
 reasonable faith that all things1 if we
 could  see them as they are1 would be  
found to work together for good to      

those who love ,god4    ,the true       
,mysticism1 it has been lately said with
 much truth1 is  the belief that        
everything1 in being what it is1 is     
symbolic of  something more4#caf ,all   
,nature 7and there are few more         
pernicious  errors than that which      
separates man from ,nature7 is the      
language in  which ,god expresses ,his  
thoughts2 but the thoughts are far more 
than  the language4#cag ,thus it is that
 the invisible things of ,god from  the 
creation of the world may be clearly    
seen and understood from the  things    
that are made2 while at the same time it
 is equally true that  here we see      
through a glass darkly1 and know only in
 part4 ,nature half  conceals and half  
reveals the ,deity2 and it is in this   
sense that it  may be called a symbol of
 ,him4    ,the word symbol1 like several
 other words which the student of       
,mysticism has to use1 has an           
ill-defined connotation1 which produces 
confusion and contradictory statements4 

,for instance1 a ,french writer  gives  
as his definition of ,mysticism the     
tendency to approach the  ,absolute1    
morally1 by means of symbols4#cah ,on   
the other hand1 an  ,english essayist   
denies that ,mysticism is symbolic4#cai 
,mysticism1 he  says1 differs from      
symbolism in that1 while symbolism      
treats the  connexion between symbol and
 substance as something accidental or   
subjective1 ,mysticism is based on a    
positive belief in the existence  of    
life within life1 of deep               
correspondences and affinities1 not less
  real than those to which the common   
superficial consciousness of  mankind   
bears witness4 ,i agree with this       
statement about the basis of            
,mysticism1 but ,i prefer to use the    
word symbol of that which has a  real1  
and not merely a conventional affinity  
to the thing  symbolised4#cbj ,the line 
is by no means easy to draw4 ,an aureole
 is  not1 properly speaking1 a symbol of
 saintliness1#cba nor a crown of  royal 

authority1 because in these instances   
the connexion of sign with  significance
 is conventional4 ,a circle is perhaps  
not a symbol of  eternity1 because the  
comparison appeals only to the          
intellect4 ,but  falling leaves are a   
symbol of human mortality1 a flowing    
river of the  stream of life1 and a vine
 and its branches of the unity of       
,christ  and the ,church1 because they  
are examples of the same law which      
operates through all that ,god has made4
 ,and when the ,anglian noble1 in  a    
well-known passage of ,bede1 compares   
the life of man to the flight  of a bird
 which darts quickly through a lighted  
hall out of darkness1  and into darkness
 again1 he has found a symbol which is  
none the less  valid1 because light and 
darkness are themselves only            
symbolically  connected with life and   
death4 ,the writer who denies that      
,mysticism is  symbolic1 means that the 
discovery of arbitrary and fanciful     
resemblances or types is no part of     

healthy ,mysticism4#cbb ,in this he  is 
quite right2 and the importance of the  
distinction which he wishes  to         
emphasise will1 ,i hope1 become clear as
 we proceed4 ,it is not  possible always
 to say dogmatically1 ,this is genuine  
,symbolism1 and  that is morbid or      
fantastic2 but we do assert that there  
is a true  and a false ,symbolism1 of   
which the true is not merely a          
legitimate1  but a necessary mode of    
intuition2 while the latter is at best a
  frivolous amusement1 and at worst a   
degrading superstition4#cbc    ,but we  
shall handle our subject very           
inadequately if we consider only  the   
symbolical value which may be attached  
to external objects4 ,our  thoughts and 
beliefs about the spiritual world1 so   
far as they are  conceived under forms1 
or expressed in language1 which belong  
properly  only to things of time and    
space1 are of the nature of symbols4 ,in
  this sense it has been said that the  
greater part of dogmatic theology  is   

the dialectical development of mystical 
symbols4 ,for instance1 the  paternal   
relation of the ,first ,person of the   
,trinity to the ,second is  a symbol2   
and the representation of eternity as an
 endless period of  time stretching into
 futurity1 is a symbol4 ,we believe that
 the forms  under which it is natural   
and necessary for us to conceive of     
transcendental truths have a real and   
vital relation to the ideas  which they 
attempt to express2 but their inadequacy
 is manifest if we  treat them as facts 
of the same order as natural phenomena1 
and try to  intercalate them1 as is too 
often done1 among the materials with    
which  an abstract science has to deal4 
,the two great sacraments are typical   
symbols1 if we use the word in  the     
sense which ,i give to it1 as something 
which1 in being what it is1  is a sign  
and vehicle of something higher and     
better4 ,this is what the  early ,church
 meant when it called the sacraments    
symbols4#cbd ,a  symbol at that period  

implied a mystery1 and a mystery implied
 a  revelation4 ,the need of sacraments 
is one of the deepest convictions  of   
the religious consciousness4 ,it rests  
ultimately on the instinctive           
reluctance to allow any spiritual fact  
to remain without an external           
expression4 ,it is obvious that all     
morality depends on the application  of 
this principle to conduct4 ,all         
voluntary external acts are symbolic  of
 7that is1 vitally connected with7      
internal states1 and cannot be  divested
 of this their essential character4 ,it 
may be impossible to  show how an act of
 the material body can purify or defile 
the  immaterial spirit2 but the         
correspondence between the outward and  
inward life cannot be denied without    
divesting morality of all  meaning4 ,the
 maxim of ,plotinus1 that the mind can  
do no wrong1 when  transferred from his 
transcendental philosophy to matters of 
conduct1  is a sophism no more          
respectable than that which ,euripides  

puts into  the mouth of one of his      
characters3 ,the tongue hath sworn2 the 
heart  remains unsworn4 ,every act of   
the will is the expression of a state   
of the soul2 and every state of the soul
 must seek to find expression  in an act
 of the will4 ,love1 as we should all   
admit1 is not love1 so  long as it is   
content to be only in thought1 or in    
word and in  tongue2 it is only when it 
is love in deed that it is love in      
truth4#cbe ,and it is the same with all 
other virtues1 which are in  this sense 
symbolic1 as implying something beyond  
the external act4  ,nearly all the      
states or motions of the soul can find  
their  appropriate expression in action4
 ,charity in its manifold forms need    
not seek long for an object2 and        
thankfulness and penitence1 though  they
 drive us first to silent prayer1 are   
not satisfied till they have  borne     
fruit in some act of gratitude or       
humility4 ,but that deepest  sense of   
communion with ,god1 which is the very  

heart of religion1 is  in danger of     
being shut up in thought and word1 which
 are inadequate  expressions of any     
spiritual state4 ,no doubt this highest 
state of the  soul may find indirect    
expression in good works2 but these fail
 to  express the immediacy of the       
communion which the soul has felt4 ,the 
want of symbols to express these highest
 states of the soul is  supplied by     
sacraments4 ,a sacrament is a symbolic  
act1 not arbitrarily  chosen1 but       
resting1 to the mind of the recipient1  
on ,divine  authority1 which has no     
ulterior object except to give          
expression to1  and in so doing to      
effectuate1#cbf a relation which is too 
purely  spiritual to find utterance in  
the customary activities of life4 ,there
  are three requisites 7on the human    
side7 for the validity of a  sacramental
 act4 ,the symbol must be appropriate2  
the thing symbolised  must be a         
spiritual truth2 and there must be the  
intention to perform  the act as a      

sacrament4    ,the sacraments of        
,baptism and the ,lord's ,supper fulfil 
these  conditions4 ,both are symbols of 
the mystical union between the          
,christian and his ascended ,lord4      
,baptism symbolises that union in its   
inception1 the ,eucharist in its organic
 life4 ,baptism is received but  once1  
because the death unto sin and the new  
birth unto righteousness  is a definite 
entrance into the spiritual life1 rather
 than a gradual  process4 ,the fact that
 in ,christian countries ,baptism in    
most cases  precedes conversion does not
 alter the character of the sacrament2  
indeed1 infant ,baptism is by far the   
most appropriate symbol of our  adoption
 into the ,divine ,sonship1 to which we 
only consent after the  event4 ,it is   
only because we are already sons that we
 can say1 ,i will  arise1 and go unto my
 ,father4 ,the ,holy ,communion is the  
symbol of the  maintenance of the       
mystical union1 and of the strengthening
 and  refreshing of our souls1 which we 

derive from the indwelling presence  of 
our ,lord4 ,the ,church claims an       
absolute prerogative for its duly       
ordained ministers in the case of this  
sacrament1 because the common  meal is  
the symbol of the organic unity of      
,christ and the ,church as  unus        
,christus1 a doctrine which the         
schismatic1 as such1  denies4#cbg ,the  
communicant who believes only in an     
individual  relation between ,christ and
 separate persons1 or in an invisible   
,church1 does not understand the meaning
 of the sacrament of the  ,lord's       
,supper1 and can hardly be said to      
participate in it4    ,there are two    
views of this sacrament which the plain 
man has always  found much easier to    
understand than the symbolic view which 
is that  of our ,church4 ,one is that it
 is a miracle or magical performance1   
the  other is that it is a mere         
commemoration4 ,both are absolutely     
destructive of the idea of a sacrament4 
,the latter view1 that of some          

,protestant sects1 was quite foreign to 
the early ,church1 so far as our        
evidence goes2 the former1 it is only   
just to say1 is found in many of  the   
,fathers1 not in the grossly            
materialistic form which it afterwards  
assumed1 but in such phrases as the     
medicine of immortality applied  to the 
consecrated elements1 where we are meant
 to understand that the  elements have a
 mysterious power of preserving the     
receiver from the  natural consequences 
of death4#cbh ,but when we find that the
 same  writers who use compromising     
phrases about the change that comes over
  the elements1#cbi also use the        
language of symbolism1 and remember1    
too1 that a miracle was a very different
 thing to those who knew of  no         
inflexible laws in the natural world    
from what it is to us1 we  shall not be 
ready to agree with those who have      
accused the third and  fourth century   
,fathers of degrading the ,lord's       
,supper into a magical  ceremony4       

,most of the errors which have so       
grievously obscured the true nature  of 
this sacrament have proceeded from      
attempts to answer the question1  ,how  
does the reception of the consecrated   
elements affect the inner  state of the 
receiver8 ,to those who hold the        
symbolic view1 as ,i  understand it1 it 
seems clear that the question of cause  
and effect  must be resolutely cast     
aside4 ,the reciprocal action of spirit 
and  matter is the one great mystery    
which1 to all appearance1 must remain   
impenetrable to the finite intelligence4
 ,we do not ask whether the  soul is the
 cause of the body1 or the body of the  
soul2 we only know  that the two are    
found1 in experience1 always united4 ,in
 the same way  we should abstain1 ,i    
think1 from speculating on the effect of
 the  sacraments1 and train ourselves   
instead to consider them as             
divinely-ordered symbols1 by which the  
,church1 as an organic whole1  and we as
 members of it1 realise the highest and 

deepest of our  spiritual privileges4   
,there are other religious forms for    
which no ,divine institution is         
claimed1 but which have a               
quasi-sacramental value4 ,and those who1
  whether they eat1 or drink1 or        
whatever they do1 do all to the glory   
of ,god1 may be said to turn the        
commonest acts into sacraments4 ,to the 
true mystic1 life itself is a sacrament4
 ,it is natural1 but  unfortunate1 that 
some of those who have felt this most   
strongly have  shown a tendency to      
disparage observances which are simply  
acts of  devotion1 mere forms1 as they  
call them4 ,the attempt to distinguish  
between conventional ceremonies1 which  
have no essential connexion  with the   
truth symbolised1 and actions which are 
in themselves moral  or immoral1 is no  
doubt justifiable1 but it should be     
remembered that  this is the way in     
which antinomianism takes its rise4     
,many have begun  by saying1 ,the heart1
 the motive1 is all1 the external act   

nothing2  the spirit is all1 the letter 
nothing4 ,what can it matter whether ,i 
say my prayers in church or at home1 on 
my knees or in bed1 in words  or in     
thought only8 ,what can it matter       
whether the ,eucharistic bread  and wine
 are consecrated or not8 whether ,i     
actually eat and drink or  not8 ,and so 
on4 ,the descent to ,avernus is easy by 
this road4 ,perhaps  no sect that has   
professed contempt for all ceremonial   
forms has  escaped at least the         
imputation of scandalous licentiousness1
 with the  honourable exception of the  
,quakers4 ,the truth is that the need of
  symbols to express or represent our   
highest emotions is inwoven with  human 
nature1 and indifference to them is not1
 as many have supposed1  a sign of      
enlightenment or of spirituality4 ,it   
is1 in fact1 an  unhealthy symptom4 ,we 
do not credit a man with a warm heart   
who does  not care to show his love in  
word and act2 nor should we commend the 
common sense of a soldier who saw in his

 regimental colours only a rag  at the  
end of a pole4 ,it is one of the points 
in which we must be  content to be      
children1 and should be thankful that we
 may remain  children with a clear      
conscience4    ,i do not shrink from    
expressing my conviction that the true  
meaning  of our sacramental system1     
which in its external forms is so       
strangely  anticipated by the ,greek    
mysteries1 and in its inward            
significance  strikes down to the       
fundamental principles of mystical      
,christianity1  can only be understood  
by those who are in some sympathy with  
,mysticism4 ,but it has not been        
possible to say much about the          
sacraments sooner than this late stage  
of our inquiry4 ,we have  hitherto been 
dealing with the subjective or          
introspective type of  ,mysticism1 and  
it is plain that this form1 when carried
 to its logical  conclusion1 is         
inconsistent with sacramental religion4 
,those who seek  to ascend to ,god by   

the way of abstraction1 the negative    
road1 must  regard all symbols as veils 
between our eyes and reality1 and must  
wish to get rid of them as soon as      
possible4 ,from this point of view1     
sacraments1 like other ceremonial forms1
 can only be useful at a very  early    
stage in the upward path1 which leads us
 ultimately into a  ,divine darkness1   
where no forms can be distinguished4 ,it
 is true that  some devout mystics of   
this type have both observed and exacted
 a  punctilious strictness in using all 
the appointed means of grace2 but  this 
inconsistency is easily accounted       
for4#ccj ,the pressure of  authority1   
loyalty to the established order1 and   
human nature1 which  is stronger than   
either1 has prevented them from casting 
away the  time-honoured symbols and     
vehicles of ,divine love4 ,but a true   
appreciation of sacraments belongs only 
to those who can sympathise  with the   
other branch of ,mysticism--that which  
rests on belief in  symbolism4 ,to this 

branch of my subject ,i now invite your 
attention4  ,if we expect to find       
ourselves at once in a larger air when  
we have  taken leave of the monkish     
mystics1 we shall be disappointed4 ,the 
objective or symbolical type of         
,mysticism is liable to quite as many   
perversions as the subjective4 ,if in   
the latter we found a tendency to       
revert to the apathy of the ,indian     
,yogi1 we shall observe in the  former  
too many survivals of still more        
barbarous creeds4 ,indeed1 ,i  feel that
 it is almost necessary1 as an          
introduction to this part of  my        
subject1 to consider very briefly the   
stages through which the  religious     
consciousness of mankind has passed in  
its attempts to  realise ,divine        
immanence in ,nature1 for this is1 of   
course1 the  foundation of all religious
 symbolism4    ,the earliest belief     
seems to be that which has been called  
,animism1  the belief that all natural  
forces are conscious living beings like 

ourselves4 ,this is the primitive form  
of natural religion2 and though  it     
leads to some deplorable customs1 it is 
not a morbid type1 but a  very early    
effort on the lines of true             
development#cca4    ,the perverted form 
of primitive ,animism is called         
,fetishism1 which  is the belief that   
supernatural powers reside in some      
visible object1  which is the home or   
most treasured possession of a god or   
demon4 ,the  object may be a building1 a
 tree1 an animal1 a particular kind of  
food1 or indeed anything4 ,unfortunately
 this belief is not peculiar to         
savages4 ,a degraded form of it is      
exhibited by the so-called  neo-mystical
 school of modern ,france1 and in the   
baser types of ,roman  ,catholicism     
everywhere#ccb4    ,primitive ,animism  
believes in no natural laws4 ,the next  
stage is to  believe in laws which are  
frequently suspended by the intervention
 of  an independent and superior power4 
,medival dualism regarded every  breach 

of natural law as a vindication of the  
power of spirit over  matter--not       
always1 however1 of ,divine power1 for  
evil spirits could  produce very similar
 disturbances of the physical order4    
,thus arose  that persistent tendency to
 seek after a sign1 in which the        
religion  of the vulgar1 even in our own
 day1 is deeply involved4 ,miracle1 in  
some form or other1 is regarded as the  
real basis of belief in ,god4 ,at  this 
stage people never ask themselves       
whether any spiritual truth1 or  indeed 
anything worth knowing1 could possibly  
be communicated or  authenticated by    
thaumaturgic exhibitions4 ,what attracts
 them at first  is the evidence which   
these beliefs furnish1 that the world in
 which  they live is not entirely under 
the dominion of an unconscious or       
inflexible power1 but that behind the   
iron mechanism of cause and  effect is a
 will more like their own in its        
irregularity and  arbitrariness4        
,afterwards1 as the majesty of law dawns

 upon them1  miracles are no longer     
regarded as capricious exercises of     
power1 but  as the operation of higher  
physical laws1 which are only active on 
rare occasions4 ,a truer view sees in   
them a materialisation of  mystical     
symbols1 the proper function of which is
 to act as  interpreters between the    
real and the apparent1 between the      
spiritual  and material worlds4 ,when   
they crystallise as portents1 they lose 
all  their usefulness4 ,moreover1 the   
belief in celestial visitations has  its
 dark counterpart in superstitious dread
 of the powers of evil1  which is       
capable of turning life into a long     
nightmare1 and has led to  dreadful     
cruelties#ccc4 ,the error has still     
enough vitality to  create a prejudice  
against natural science1 which appears  
in the light  of an invading enemy      
wresting province after province from   
the empire  of the supernatural4    ,but
 we are concerned with thaumaturgy only 
so far as it has affected  ,mysticism4  

,at first sight the connexion may seem  
very slight2 and  slight indeed it is4  
,but just as ,mysticism of the          
subjective type is  often entangled in  
theories which sublimate matter till    
only a vain  shadow remains1 so         
objective ,mysticism has been often     
pervaded by  another kind of false      
spiritualism--that which finds          
edification in  palpable supernatural   
manifestations4 ,these so-called        
mystical  phenomena are so much         
identified with ,mysticism in the ,roman
  ,catholic ,church of to-day1 that the 
standard treatises on the subject1  now 
studied in continental universities1    
largely consist of grotesque  legends of
 levitation1 bilocation1 incandescence1 
radiation1  and other miraculous tokens 
of ,divine favour#ccd4 ,the great work  
of  ,grres1 in five volumes1 is divided 
into ,divine1 ,natural1 and  ,diabolical
 ,mysticism4 ,the first contains stories
 of the miraculous  enhancement of      
sight1 hearing1 smell1 and so forth1    

which results from  extreme holiness2   
and tells us how one saint had the power
 of becoming  invisible1 another of     
walking through closed doors1 and a     
third of  flying through the air4       
,natural ,mysticism deals with          
divination1  lycanthropy1 vampires1     
second sight1 and other barbarous       
superstitions4 ,diabolical ,mysticism   
includes witchcraft1 diabolical         
possession1 and the hideous stories of  
incubi and succub4 ,it is not  my       
intention to say any more about these   
savage survivals1 as ,i do not  wish to 
bring my subject into undeserved        
contempt#cce4 ,these  terrors1 and this 
darkness of the mind1 as ,lucretius     
says1 must be  dispelled1 not by the    
bright shafts of the sun's light1 but by
 the  study of ,nature's laws#ccf4      
,some of these fables are quite         
obviously due to a materialisation of   
conventional symbols4 ,these symbols are
 the picture language into  which the   
imagination translates what the soul has

 felt4 ,a typical  case is that of the  
miniature image of ,christ1 which is    
said to have  been found embedded in the
 heart of a deceased saint4 ,the        
supposed  miracle was1 of course1 the   
work of imagination2 but this does not  
mean that those who reported it were    
deliberate liars4 ,we know now  that we 
must distinguish between observation and
 imagination1 between  the language of  
science and that of poetical metaphor2  
but in an age  which abhorred           
rationalism this was not so clear#ccg4  
,rationalism has  its function in       
proving that such mystical symbols are  
not physical  facts4 ,but when it goes  
on to say that they are related to      
physical  facts as morbid hallucinations
 to realities1 it has stepped outside   
its province4    ,proceeding a little   
further as we trace the development of  
natural or  objective religion1 we come 
to the belief in magic1 which in        
primitive peoples is closely associated 
with their first attempts at            

experimental science4 ,what gives magic 
its peculiar character is that  it is   
based on fanciful1 and not on real      
correspondences4 ,the  uneducated mind  
cannot distinguish between associations 
of ideas which  are purely arbitrary and
 subjective1 and those which have a more
  universal validity4 ,not1 of course1  
that all the affinities seized  upon by 
primitive man proved illusory2 but those
 which were not so  ceased to be        
magical1 and became scientific4 ,the    
savage draws no  distinction between the
 process by which he makes fire and that
 by  which his priest calls down rain1  
except that the latter is a             
professional secret2 drugs and spells   
are used indifferently to cure  the     
sick2 astronomy and astrology are parts 
of the same science4 ,there  is1        
however1 a difference between the magic 
which is purely  naturalistic and that  
which makes mystical claims4 ,the       
magician  sometimes claims that the     
spirits are subject to him1 not because 

he  has learned how to wield the forces 
which they must obey1 but because  he   
has so purged his higher faculties that 
the occult sympathies of  nature have   
become apparent to him4 ,his theosophy  
claims to be a  spiritual illumination1 
not a scientific discovery4 ,the error  
here is  the application of spiritual   
clairvoyance to physical relations4 ,the
  insight into reality1 which is        
unquestionably the reward of the pure   
heart and the single eye1 does not      
reveal to us in detail how nature       
should be subdued to our needs4 ,no     
spirits from the vasty deep will  obey  
our call1 to show us where lies the road
 to fortune or to ruin4  ,physical      
science is an abstract inquiry1 which1  
while it keeps to its  proper           
subject--the investigation of the       
relations which prevail in  the         
phenomenal world--is self-sufficient1   
and can receive nothing on  external    
authority4 ,still less can the adept    
usurp ,divine powers1 and  bend the     

eternal laws of the universe to his puny
 will4    ,the turbid streams of theurgy
 and magic flowed into the broad river  
of ,christian thought by two            
channels--the later ,neoplatonism1 and  
,jewish ,cabbalism4 ,of the former      
something has been said already4 ,the   
root-idea of the system was that all    
life may be arranged in a  descending   
scale of potencies1 forming a kind of   
chain from heaven to  earth4 ,man1 as a 
microcosm1 is in contact with every link
 in the  chain1 and can establish       
relations with all spiritual powers1    
from the  superessential ,one to the    
lower spirits or dmons4 ,the            
philosopher-saint1 who had explored the 
highest regions of the  intelligence1   
might hope to dominate the spirits of   
the air1 and  compel them to do his     
bidding4 ,thus the door was thrown wide 
open for  every kind of superstition4   
,the ,cabbalists followed much the same 
path4 ,the word ,cabbala means oral     
tradition1 and is defined by  ,reuchlin 

as the symbolic reception of a ,divine  
revelation handed down  for the saving  
contemplation of ,god and separate      
forms4#cch ,in  another place he says1  
,the ,cabbala is nothing else than      
symbolic  theology1 in which not only   
are letters and words symbols of things1
  but things are symbols of other       
things4 ,this method of symbolic        
interpretation was held to have been    
originally communicated by              
revelation1#cci in order that persons of
 holy life might by it  attain to a     
mystical communion with ,god1 or        
deification4 ,the  ,cabbalists thus held
 much the same relation to the          
,talmudists as the  mystics to the      
scholastics in the twelfth century4     
,but1 as ,jews1 they  remained faithful 
to the two doctrines of an inspired     
tradition and an  inspired book1 which  
distinguish them from ,platonic         
mystics4#cdj    ,pico de ,mirandola     
7born #adfc7 was the first to bring the 
,cabbala into  ,christian philosophy1   

and to unite it with his ,neoplatonism4 
,very  characteristic of his age is the 
declaration that there is no natural    
science which makes us so certain of the
 ,divinity of ,christ as ,magic  and the
 ,cabbala4#cda ,for there was at that   
period a curious  alliance of ,mysticism
 and natural science against            
scholasticism1 which  had kept both in  
galling chains2 and both mystics and    
physicists  invoked the aid of ,jewish  
theosophy4 ,just as ,pythagoras1 ,plato1
 and  ,proclus were set up against      
,aristotle1 so the occult philosophy of 
the  ,jews1 which on its speculative    
side was mere ,neoplatonism1 was set up 
against the divinity of the ,schoolmen4 
,in ,germany1 ,reuchlin  7#adee-aebb7   
wrote a treatise1 ,on the ,cabbalistic  
,art1 in which a  theological scheme    
resembling those of the ,neoplatonists  
and  speculative mystics was based on   
occult revelation4 ,the book  captivated
 ,pope ,leo ,x4 and the early ,reformers
 alike4    ,the influence of ,cabbalism 

at this period was felt not only in the 
growth of magic1 but in the revival of  
the science of allegorism1  which       
resembles magic in its doctrine of      
occult sympathies1 though  without the  
theurgic element4 ,according to this    
view of nature1  everything in the      
visible world has an emblematic meaning4
 ,everything  that a man saw1 heard1 or 
did--colours1 numbers1 birds1 beasts1   
and  flowers1 the various actions of    
life--was to remind him of something    
else4#cdb ,the world was supposed to be 
full of sacred cryptograms1  and every  
part of the natural order testified in  
hieroglyphics#cdc to  the truths of     
,christianity4 ,thus the shamrock bears 
witness to the  ,trinity1 the spider is 
an emblem of the devil1 and so forth4   
,this  kind of symbolism was and is     
extensively used merely as a            
picture-language1 in which there is no  
pretence that the signs are  other than 
artificial or conventional4 ,the        
language of signs may be  used either to

 instruct those who cannot understand   
words1 or to  baffle those who can4     
,thus1 a crucifix may be as good as a   
sermon to  an illiterate peasant2 while 
the sign of a fish was used by the early
  ,christians because it was            
unintelligible to their enemies4 ,this  
is not  symbolism in the sense which ,i 
have given to the word in this          
,lecture4#cdd ,but it is otherwise when 
the type is used as a proof  of the     
antitype4 ,this latter method had long  
been in use in biblical  exegesis4      
,pious persons found a curious          
satisfaction in turning the  most matter
 of fact statements into enigmatic      
prophecies4 ,every verse  must have its 
mystical as well as its natural meaning1
 and the  search for types was a        
recognised branch of apologetics4       
,allegorism  became authoritative and   
dogmatic1 which it has no right to be4  
,it  would be rash to say that this     
pseudo-science1 which has proved so     
attractive to many minds1 is entirely   

valueless4 ,the very absurdity of  the  
arguments used by its votaries should   
make us suspect that there  is a dumb   
logic of a more respectable sort behind 
them4 ,there is1  underlying this love  
of types and emblems1 a strong          
conviction that  if one eternal purpose 
runs through the ages1 it must be       
discernible  in small things as well as 
in great4 ,everything in the world1 if  
we  could see things as they are1 must  
be symbolic of the ,divine ,power  which
 made it and maintains it in being4 ,we 
cannot believe that  anything in life is
 meaningless1 or has no significance    
beyond the  fleeting moment4 ,whatever  
method helps us to realise this is      
useful1  and in a sense true4 ,so far as
 this we may go with the allegorists1   
while at the same time we may be        
thankful that the cobwebs which they    
spun over the sacred texts have now been
 cleared away1 so that we can  at last  
read our ,bible as its authors intended 
it to be read4#cde    ,theosophical and 

magical ,mysticism culminated in the    
sixteenth and  seventeenth centuries4   
,just as the idealism of ,plotinus lost 
itself in  the theurgic system of       
,iamblichus1 so the doctrine of ,divine 
immanence  preached by ,eckhart and his 
school was followed by the              
,nature-,mysticism  of ,cornelius       
,agrippa#cdf and ,paracelsus4#cdg ,the  
negative road had  been discredited by  
,luther's invective1 and ,mysticism1    
instead of  shutting her eyes to the    
world of phenomena1 stretched forth her 
hands  to conquer and annex it4 ,the old
 theory of a ,world-,spirit1 the        
pulsations of whose heart are felt in   
all the life of the universe1 came  once
 more into favour4 ,through all         
phenomena1 it was believed1 runs an     
intricate network of sympathies and     
antipathies1 the threads of which1      
could they be disentangled1 would       
furnish us with a clue through all the  
labyrinths of natural and supernatural  
science4 ,the age was impatient to      

enter on the inheritance from which     
humanity had long been debarred2 the    
methods of experimental science seemed  
tame and slow2 and so we find1          
especially in ,germany1 an extraordinary
 outburst of ,nature-,mysticism--       
astrology1 white magic1 alchemy1        
necromancy1 and what not--such as       
,christianity had not witnessed before4 
,these pseudo-sciences 7with which  was 
mingled much real progress in medicine1 
natural history1 and kindred  sciences7 
were divided under three provinces or   
vincula--those of the  ,spiritual       
,world1 which were mainly magical       
invocations1 diagrams1 and  signs2 those
 of the ,celestial ,world1 which were   
taught by astrology2 and  those of the  
,elemental ,world1 which consisted in   
the sympathetic  influence of material  
objects upon each other4 ,these secrets 
7it was  held7 are all discoverable by  
man2 for man is a microcosm1 or epitome 
of  the universe1 and there is nothing  
in it with which he cannot claim an     

affinity4 ,in knowing himself1 he knows 
both ,god and all the other works  that 
,god has made4    ,the subject of       
,nature-,mysticism is a fascinating one2
 but ,i must here  confine myself to its
 religious aspects4 ,an attempt was soon
 made1 by  ,valentine ,weigel           
7#aecc-aehh71 ,lutheran pastor at       
,tschopau1 to bring  together the new   
objective ,mysticism--freed from its    
superstitious  elements--and the        
traditional subjective ,mysticism which 
the ,middle  ,ages had handed down from 
,dionysius and the ,neoplatonists4      
,weigel's  cosmology is based on that of
 ,paracelsus2 and his psychology also   
reminds us of him4 ,man is a microcosm1 
and his nature has three  parts--the    
outward material body1 the astral       
spirit1 and the immortal  soul1 which   
bears the image of ,god4 ,the three     
faculties of the soul  correspond to    
these three parts2 they are sense1      
reason 7,vernunft71  and understanding  
7,verstand74 ,these are the three eyes  

by which we  get knowledge4 ,the sense  
perceives material things2 the reason1  
natural science and art2 the            
understanding1 which he also calls the  
spark1 sees the invisible and ,divine4  
,he follows the scholastic  mystics in  
distinguishing between natural and      
supernatural knowledge1  but his method 
of distinguishing them is1 ,i think1    
original4 ,natural  knowledge1 he says1 
is not conveyed by the object2 it is the
  percipient subject which creates      
knowledge out of itself4 ,the object    
merely provokes the consciousness into  
activity4 ,in natural knowledge  the    
subject is active1 not passive2 all that
 appears to come from  without is really
 evolved from within4 ,in supernatural  
knowledge the  opposite is the case4    
,the eye of the understanding1 which    
sees the  ,divine1 is the spark in the  
centre of the soul where lies the       
,divine  image4 ,in this kind of        
cognition the subject must be absolutely
  passive2 its thoughts must be as still

 as if it were dead4 ,just as in        
natural knowledge the object does not   
co-operate1 so in supernatural          
knowledge the subject does not          
co-operate4 ,yet this supernatural      
knowledge does not come from without4   
,the ,spirit and ,word of ,god are      
within us4 ,god is ,himself the eye and 
the light in the soul1 as well  as the  
object which the eye sees by this light4
 ,supernatural knowledge  flows from    
within outwards1 and in this way        
resembles natural  knowledge4 ,but since
 ,god is both the eye that sees and the 
object  which it sees1 it is not we who 
know ,god1 so much as ,god who knows    
,himself in us4 ,our inner man is a mere
 instrument of ,god4    ,thus ,weigel1  
who begins with ,paracelsus1 leaves off 
somewhere near  ,eckhart--and ,eckhart  
in his boldest mood4 ,but his chief     
concern is to  attack the ,bibliolaters 
7,buchstabentheologen7 in the ,lutheran 
,church1 and to protest against the     
unethical dogma of imputed              

righteousness4 ,we need not follow him  
into either of these  controversies1    
which give a kind of accidental         
colouring to his  theology4 ,speculative
 ,mysticism1 which is always the foe of 
formalism  and dryness in religion1     
attacks them in whatever forms it finds 
them2  and so1 when we try to penetrate 
the essence of ,mysticism by            
investigating its historical            
manifestations1 we must always consider 
what was the system which in each case  
it was trying to purify and             
spiritualise4 ,weigel's ,mysticism moves
 in the atmosphere of ,lutheran         
dogmatics4 ,but it also marks a stage in
 the general development of  ,christian 
,mysticism1 by giving a positive value  
to scientific and  natural knowledge as 
part of the self-evolution of the human 
soul4  ,study nature1 he says1 physics1 
alchemy1 magic1 etc42 for it is  all in 
you1 and you become what you have       
learnt4 ,it is true that his  religious 
attitude is rigidly quietistic2 but this

 position is so  inconsistent with the  
activity which he enjoins on the reason1
 that  he may claim the credit of having
 exhibited the contradiction between    
the positive and negative methods in a  
clear light2 and to prove a             
contradiction is always the first step  
towards solving it4    ,a more notable  
effort in the same direction was that of
 ,jacob ,bhme1  who1 though he had      
studied ,weigel1 brought to his task a  
philosophical  genius which was all his 
own4    ,bhme was born in #aege near    
,grlitz1 where he afterwards settled as 
a  shoemaker and glover4 ,he began to   
write in #afab1 and in spite of         
clerical opposition1 which silenced him 
for five years1 he produced a  number of
 treatises between that date and his    
death in #afbd4    ,bhme professed to   
write only what he had seen by ,divine  
illumination4 ,his visions are not 7with
 insignificant exceptions7              
authenticated by any marvellous signs2  
he simply asserts that he has  been     

allowed to see into the heart of things1
 and that the very ,being  of ,god has  
been laid open to his spiritual         
sight4#cdh ,his was that  type of mind  
to which every thought becomes an image1
 and a logical  process is like an      
animated photograph4 ,i am myself my own
 book1 he  says2 and in writing1 he     
tries to transcribe on paper the images 
which  float before his mind's eye4 ,if 
he fails1 it is because he cannot find  
words to describe what he is seeing4    
,bhme was an unlearned man2 but  when he
 is content to describe his visions in  
homely ,german1 he is  lucid enough4    
,unfortunately1 the scholars who soon   
gathered round him  supplied him with   
philosophical terms1 which he forthwith 
either  personified--for instance the   
word ,idea called forth the image of a  
beautiful maiden--or used in a sense of 
his own4 ,the study of  ,paracelsus     
obscured his style still more1 filling  
his treatises with a  bewildering       
mixture of theosophy and chemistry4 ,the

 result is  certainly that much of his  
work is almost unreadable2 the nuggets  
of  gold have to be dug out from a bed  
of rugged stone2 and we cannot be       
surprised that the unmystical eighteenth
 century declared that  ,behmen's works 
would disgrace ,bedlam at full moon4#cdi
 ,but ,german  philosophers have spoken 
with reverence of the father of         
,protestant  ,mysticism1 who perhaps    
only wanted learning and the gift of    
clear  expression to become a ,german   
,plato2 and ,sir ,isaac ,newton shut    
himself up for three months to study    
,bhme1 whose teaching on  attraction and
 the laws of motion seemed to him to    
have great  value4#cej    ,for us1 he is
 most interesting as marking the        
transition from the  purely subjective  
type of ,mysticism to ,symbolism1 or    
rather as the  author of a brilliant    
attempt to fuse the two into one system4
 ,in my  brief sketch of ,bhme's        
doctrines ,i shall illustrate his       
teaching from  the later works of       

,william ,law1 who is by far its best   
exponent4 ,law  was an enthusiastic     
admirer of ,bhme1 and being1 unlike his 
master1 a  man of learning and a        
practised writer1 was able to bring     
order out  of the chaos in which ,bhme  
left his speculations4 ,in strength of  
intellect ,law was ,bhme's equal1 and as
 a writer of clear and forcible         
,english he has few superiors4          
,bhme's doctrine of ,god and the world  
resembles that of other  speculative    
mystics1 but he contributes a new       
element in the great  stress which he   
lays on antithesis as a law of being4   
,in ,yes and ,no  all things consist1 he
 says4 ,no philosopher since ,heraclitus
 and  ,empedocles had asserted so       
strongly that ,strife is the father of  
all  things4 ,even in the hidden life of
 the unmanifested ,godhead he finds  the
 play of ,attraction and ,diffusion1 the
 resultant of which is a  ,desire for   
manifestation felt in the ,godhead4 ,as 
feeling this desire1  the ,godhead      

becomes ,darkness2 the light which      
illumines the darkness  is the ,son4    
,the resultant is the ,holy ,spirit1 in 
whom arise the  archetypes of creation4 
,so he explains ,body1 ,soul1 and       
,spirit as  thesis1 antithesis1 and     
synthesis2 and the same formula serves  
to  explain ,good1 ,evil1 and ,free     
,will2 ,angels1 ,devils1 and the ,world4
 ,his  view of ,evil is not very        
consistent2 but his final doctrine is   
that  the object of the cosmic process  
is to exhibit the victory of ,good  over
 ,evil1 of ,love over ,hatred4#cea ,he  
at least has the merit of  showing that 
strife is so inwoven with our lives here
 that we cannot  possibly soar above the
 conflict between ,good and ,evil4 ,it  
must be  observed that ,bhme repudiated 
the doctrine that there is any          
evolution of ,god in time4 ,i say not   
that ,nature is ,god1 he says3  ,he     
,himself is all1 and communicates ,his  
power to all ,his works4 ,but  the      
creation of the archetypes was not a    

temporal act4    ,like other ,protestant
 mystics1 he lays great stress on the   
indwelling  presence of ,christ4 ,and1  
consistently with this belief1 he       
revolts  against the ,calvinistic       
doctrine of imputed righteousness1 very 
much  as did the ,cambridge ,platonists 
a little later4 ,that man is no         
,christian1 he says1 who doth merely    
comfort himself with the  suffering1    
death1 and satisfaction of ,christ1 and 
doth impute it to  himself as a gift of 
favour1 remaining himself still a wild  
beast and  unregenerate4444 ,if this    
said sacrifice is to avail for me1 it   
must be  wrought in me4 ,the ,father    
must beget ,his ,son in my desire of    
faith1  that my faith's hunger may      
apprehend ,him in ,his word of promise4 
,then  ,i put ,him on1 in ,his entire   
process of justification1 in my inward  
ground2 and straightway there begins in 
me the killing of the wrath of  the     
devil1 death1 and hell1 from the inward 
power of ,christ's death4 ,i  am        

inwardly dead1 and ,he is my life2 ,i   
live in ,him1 and not in my  selfhood4  
,i am an instrument of ,god1 wherewith  
,he doeth what ,he will4  ,to the same  
effect ,william ,law says1 ,christ given
 for us is neither  more nor less than  
,christ given into us4 ,he is in no     
other sense our  full1 perfect1 and     
sufficient ,atonement1 than as ,his     
nature and spirit  are born and formed  
in us4 ,law also insists that the       
,atonement was  the effect1 not of the  
wrath1 but of the love of ,god4 ,neither
 reason  nor scripture1 he says1 will   
allow us to bring wrath into ,god       
,himself1 as a temper of ,his mind1 who 
is only infinite1 unalterable1          
overflowing ,love4 ,wrath is atoned when
 sin is extinguished4 ,this  revolt     
against the forensic theory of the      
,atonement is very  characteristic of   
,protestant ,mysticism4#ceb    ,the     
disparagement of external rites and     
ordinances1 which we have  found in so  
many mystics1 appears in ,william ,law1 

though he was  himself precise in       
observing all the rules of the ,english 
,church4  ,this pearl of eternity is the
 ,church1 a temple of ,god within thee1 
the consecrated place of ,divine        
worship1 where alone thou canst  worship
 ,god in spirit and in truth4 ,in       
spirit1 because thy spirit is  that     
alone in thee which can unite and cleave
 unto ,god1 and receive  the working of 
the ,divine ,spirit upon thee4 ,in      
truth1 because this  adoration in spirit
 is that truth and reality of which all 
outward  forms and rites1 though        
instituted by ,god1 are only the figure 
for a  time2 but this worship is        
eternal4 ,accustom thyself to the holy  
service of this inward temple4 ,in the  
midst of it is the fountain of  living  
water1 of which thou mayst drink and    
live for ever4 ,there the  mysteries of 
thy redemption are celebrated1 or rather
 opened in life  and power4 ,there the  
supper of the ,lamb is kept2 the bread  
that came  down from heaven1 that giveth

 life to the world1 is thy true         
nourishment3 all is done1 and known in  
real experience1 in a living            
sensibility of the work of ,god on the  
soul4 ,there the birth1 the life1  the  
sufferings1 the death1 the resurrection 
and ascension of ,christ1  are not      
merely remembered1 but inwardly found   
and enjoyed as the real  states of thy  
soul1 which has followed ,christ in the 
regeneration4  ,when once thou art well 
grounded in this inward worship1 thou   
wilt  have learnt to live unto ,god     
above time and place4 ,for every day    
will  be ,sunday to thee1 and wherever  
thou goest thou wilt have a priest1 a   
church1 and an altar along with         
thee4#cec    ,in his teaching about     
faith and love1 ,law follows the best   
mystical  writers2 but none before him1 
,i think1 attained to such strong and   
growing eloquence in setting it forth4  
,there is but one salvation for  all    
mankind1 and the way to it is one2 and  
that is1 the desire of the  soul turned 

to ,god4 ,this desire brings the soul to
 ,god1 and ,god into  the soul2 it      
unites with ,god1 it co-operates with   
,god1 and is one life  with ,god4 ,o my 
,god1 just and true1 how great is ,thy  
love and mercy to  mankind1 that heaven 
is thus everywhere open1 and ,christ    
thus the  common ,saviour to all that   
turn the desire of their hearts to      
,thee6  ,and of love he says3 ,no       
creature can have any union or communion
 with  the goodness of the ,deity till  
its life is a spirit of love4 ,this is  
the one only bond of union betwixt ,god 
and ,his creature4 ,love has no         
by-ends1 wills nothing but its own      
increase3 everything is as oil to  its  
flame4 ,the spirit of love does not want
 to be rewarded1 honoured1  or esteemed2
 its only desire is to propagate itself1
 and become the  blessing and happiness 
of everything that wants it4    ,the    
doctrine of the ,divine spark           
7synteresis7 is held by ,law1 but in  a 
more definitely ,christian form than by 

,eckhart4 ,if ,christ was to  raise a   
new life like ,his own in every man1    
then every man must have  had originally
 in the inmost spirit of his life a seed
 of ,christ1 or  ,christ as a seed of   
heaven1 lying there in a state of       
insensibility1  out of which it could   
not arise but by the mediatorial power  
of  ,christ4444 ,for what could begin to
 deny self1 if there were not  something
 in man different from self8444 ,the    
,word of ,god is the hidden  treasure of
 every human soul1 immured under flesh  
and blood1 till as a  day-star it arises
 in our hearts1 and changes the son of  
an earthly  ,adam into a son of ,god4   
,is not this the ,platonic doctrine of  
anamnesis1 ,christianised in a most     
beautiful manner8    ,very              
characteristic of the later ,mysticism  
is the language which both  ,bhme and   
,law use about the future state4 ,the   
soul1 when it departs  from the body1   
,bhme writes1 needeth not to go far2 for
 where the  body dies1 there is heaven  

and hell4 ,god is there1 and the devil2 
yea1  each in his own kingdom4 ,there   
also is ,paradise2 and the soul needeth 
only to enter through the deep door in  
the centre4 ,law is very  emphatic in   
asserting that heaven and hell are      
states1 not places1 and  that they are  
no foreign1 separate1 and imposed       
states1 adjudged to  us by the will of  
,god4 ,damnation1 he says1 is the       
natural1  essential state of our own    
disordered nature1 which is impossible1 
in  the nature of the thing1 to be      
anything else but our own hell1 both    
here and hereafter4 ,there is nothing   
that is supernatural1 he says  very     
finely1 in the whole system of our      
redemption4 ,every part of it  has its  
ground in the workings and powers of    
nature1 and all our  redemption is only 
nature set right1 or made to be that    
which it  ought to be4#ced ,there is    
nothing that is supernatural but ,god   
alone4444 ,right and wrong1 good and    
evil1 true and false1 happiness  and    

misery1 are as unchangeable in nature as
 time and space4 ,nothing1  therefore1  
can be done to any creature             
supernaturally1 or in a way  that is    
without or contrary to the powers of    
nature2 but every thing  or creature    
that is to be helped1 that is1 to have  
any good done to  it1 or any evil taken 
out of it1 can only have it done so far 
as the  powers of nature are able1 and  
rightly directed to effect it4#cee      
,it is difficult to abstain from quoting
 more passages like this1 in  which     
,faith1 which had been so long directed 
only to the unseen and  unknown1 sheds  
her bright beams over this earth of     
ours1 and claims  all nature for her    
own4 ,the laws of nature are now        
recognised as the  laws of ,god1 and for
 that very reason they cannot be broken 
or  arbitrarily suspended4 ,redemption  
is a law of life4 ,there will come a    
time#cef1 the time of the lilies1 as    
,bhme calls it1 when all  nature will be
 delivered from bondage4 ,all the design

 of ,christian  redemption1 says ,law1  
is to remove everything that is         
unheavenly1  gross1 dark1 wrathful1 and 
disordered from every part of this      
fallen  world4 ,no text is oftener in   
his mouth than the words of ,st4 ,paul  
which ,i read as the text of this       
,lecture4 ,that dim sympathy of the     
human spirit with the life of nature    
which ,plotinus felt1 but which  medival
 dualism had almost quenched1 has now   
become an intense and  happy            
consciousness of community with all     
living things1 as subjects  of one      
all-embracing and unchanging law1 the   
law of perfect love4  ,magic and        
portents1 apparitions and visions1 the  
raptures of infused  contemplation and  
their dark ,nemesis of ,satanic         
delusions1 can no  more trouble the     
serenity of him who has learnt to see   
the same ,god in  nature whom he has    
found in the holy place of his own      
heart4    ,it was impossible to separate
 ,law from the blessed ,behmen1 whose   

disciple he was proud to profess        
himself4 ,but in putting them together  
,i have been obliged to depart from the 
chronological order1 for the  ,cambridge
 ,platonists1 as they are usually       
called1 come between4 ,this1  however1  
need cause no confusion1 for the        
,platonists had no direct  influence    
upon ,law4 ,law1 ,nonjuror as well as   
mystic1 remained a ,high  ,churchman by 
sympathy1 and hated ,rationalism2 while 
the ,platonists  sprang from an         
,evangelical school1 were never tired of
 extolling  ,reason1 and regarded ,bhme 
as a fanciful enthusiast4#ceg ,and yet1 
we find so very much in common between  
the ,platonists and ,william ,law1  that
 these party differences seem merely    
superficial4 ,the same exalted  type of 
,mysticism appears in both4    ,the     
group of philosophical divines1 who had 
their centre in some of  the ,cambridge 
colleges towards the middle of the      
seventeenth century1  furnishes one of  
the most interesting and important      

chapters in the  history of our ,church4
 ,never since the time of the early     
,greek ,fathers  had any orthodox       
communion produced thinkers so          
independent and yet so  thoroughly loyal
 to the ,church4 ,and seldom has the    
,christian temper  found a nobler       
expression than in the lives and        
writings of such men  as ,whichcote and 
,john ,smith4#ceh    ,these men made no 
secret of their homage to ,plato4 ,and  
let it be  noticed that they were       
students of ,plato and ,plotinus more   
than of  ,dionysius and his successors4 
,their ,platonism is not of the debased 
,oriental type1 and is entirely free    
from self-absorbed quietism4 ,the  via  
negativa has disappeared as completely  
in their writings as in  those of ,bhme2
 the world is for them as for him the   
mirror of the  ,deity2 but1 being       
philosophers and not physicists1 they   
are most  interested in claiming for    
religion the whole field of intellectual
  life4 ,they are fully convinced that  

there can be no ultimate  contradiction 
between philosophy or science and       
,christian faith2 and  this accounts not
 only for their praise of reason1 but   
for the happy  optimism which appears   
everywhere in their writings4 ,the      
luxurious and  indolent ,restoration    
clergy1 whose lives were shamed by the  
simplicity  and spirituality of the     
,platonists1 invented the word          
,latitudinarian  to throw at them1 a    
long nickname which they have taught    
their  tongues to pronounce as roundly  
as if it were shorter than it is by     
four or five syllables2 but they could  
not deny that their enemies were  loyal 
sons of the ,church of ,england4#cei    
,what the ,platonists meant  by making  
reason the seat of authority may be seen
 by a few  quotations from ,whichcote   
and ,smith1 who for our purpose are1 ,i 
think1  the best representatives of the 
school4 ,whichcote answers ,tuckney1 who
  had remonstrated with him for a vein  
of doctrine1 in which reason  hath too  

much given to it in the mysteries of    
faith2--,too much and  too often on     
these points6 ,the ,scripture is full of
 such truths1  and ,i discourse on them 
too much and too often6 ,sir1 ,i oppose 
not  rational to spiritual1 for         
spiritual is most rational4 ,elsewhere  
he  writes1 ,he that gives reason for   
what he has said1 has done what is  fit 
to be done1 and the most that can be    
done4 ,reason is the ,divine  ,governor 
of man's life2 it is the very voice of  
,god4 ,when the  doctrine of the ,gospel
 becomes the reason of our mind1 it will
 be the  principle of our life4 ,it ill 
becomes us to make our intellectual     
faculties ,gibeonites4#cfj ,how far this
 teaching differs from the  frigid      
common-sense morality prevalent in the  
eighteenth century1  may be judged from 
the following1 which stamps ,whichcote  
as a genuine  mystic4 ,though liberty of
 judgment be everyone's right1 yet how  
few  there are that make use of this    
right6 ,for the use of this right doth  

depend upon self-improvement by         
meditation1 consideration1  examination1
 prayer1 and the like4 ,these are things
 antecedent and  prerequisite4 ,john    
,smith1 in a fine passage too long to   
quote in  full1 says3 ,reason in man    
being lumen de lumine1 a light flowing  
from the ,fountain and ,father of lights
 444 was to enable man to work  out of  
himself all those notions of ,god which 
are the true groundwork  of love and    
obedience to ,god1 and conformity to    
,him4444 ,but since  man's fall from    
,god1 the inward virtue and vigour of   
reason is much  abated1 the soul having 
suffered a ,greek3 pterorrysis1 as      
,plato  speaks1 a defluvium pennarum4444
 ,and therefore1 besides the truth of   
natural inscription1 ,god hath provided 
the truth of ,divine  revelation4444    
,but besides this outward revelation1   
there is also an  inward impression of  
it 444 which is in a more special manner
  attributed to ,god4444 ,god only can  
so shine upon our glassy                

understandings1 as to beget in them a   
picture of ,himself1 and turn the  soul 
like wax or clay to the seal of ,his own
 light and love4 ,he that  made our     
souls in ,his own image and likeness can
 easily find a way  into them4 ,the     
,word that ,god speaks1 having found a  
way into the soul1  imprints itself     
there as with the point of a diamond4444
 ,it is ,god  alone that acquaints the  
soul with the truths of revelation1 and 
also  strengthens and raises the soul to
 better apprehensions even of  natural  
truth1 ,god being that in the           
intellectual world which the sun  is in 
the sensible1 as some of the ancient    
,fathers love to speak1 and  the ancient
 philosophers too1 who meant ,god by    
their ,intellectus  ,agens#cfa whose    
proper work they supposed to be not so  
much to  enlighten the object as the    
faculty4    ,the ,platonists thus lay   
great stress on the inner light1 and    
identify  it with the purified reason4  
,the best exposition of their teaching  

on  this head is in ,smith's beautiful  
sermon on ,the ,true ,way or ,method of 
attaining to ,divine ,knowledge4        
,divinity1 he says1 is a ,divine life   
rather than a ,divine science1 to be    
understood rather by a spiritual        
sensation than by any verbal            
description4 ,a good life is the        
prolepsis of ,divine science--the fear  
of the ,lord is the beginning  of       
wisdom4 ,divinity is a true efflux from 
the eternal light1 which1  like the     
sunbeams1 does not only enlighten1 but  
also heat and enliven2  and therefore   
our ,saviour hath in ,his beatitudes    
connext purity of  heart to the beatific
 vision4 ,systems and models furnish but
 a poor  wan light1 compared with that  
which shines in purified souls4 ,to     
seek our divinity merely in books and   
writings is to seek the living  among   
the dead2 in these1 truth is often not  
so much enshrined as  entombed4 ,that   
which enables us to know and understand 
aright the  things of ,god1 must be a   

living principle of holiness within us4 
,the  sun of truth never shines into any
 unpurged souls4444 ,such as men        
themselves are1 such will ,god ,himself 
seem to be4444 ,some men have too  bad  
hearts to have good heads4444 ,he that  
will find truth must seek it  with a    
free judgment and a sanctified mind4    
,smith was well read in mystical        
theology1 and was aware how much his    
ideal differed from that of ,dionysian  
,mysticism4 ,his criticism of the  via  
negativa is so admirable that ,i must   
quote part of it4 ,good men  444 are    
content and ready to deny themselves for
 ,god4 ,i mean not that  they should    
deny their own reason1 as some would    
have it1 for that  were to deny a beam  
of ,divine light1 and so to deny ,god1  
instead of  denying ourselves for       
,him4444 ,by self-denial1 ,i mean the   
soul's  quitting all its own interest in
 itself1 and an entire resignation of   
itself to ,him as to all points of      
service and duty2 and thus the soul     

loses itself in ,god1 and lives in the  
possession not so much of its  own being
 as of the ,divinity1 desiring only to  
be great in ,god1 to  glory in ,his     
light1 and spread itself in ,his        
fulness2 to be filled  always by ,him1  
and to empty itself again into ,him2 to 
receive all from  ,him1 and to expend   
all for ,him2 and so to live1 not as its
 own1 but as  ,god's4 ,wicked men       
maintain a meum and tuum between ,god   
and  themselves1 but the good man is    
able to make a full surrender of        
himself1 triumphing in nothing more than
 in his own nothingness1 and  in the    
allness of the ,divinity4 ,but1 indeed1 
this his being nothing is  the only way 
to be all things2 this his having       
nothing the truest way  of possessing   
all things4444 ,the spirit of religion  
is always  ascending upwards2 and1      
spreading itself through the whole      
essence of  the soul1 loosens it from a 
self-confinement and narrowness1 and so 
renders it more capacious of ,divine    

enjoyment4444 ,the spirit of a good  man
 is always drinking in                  
fountain-goodness1 and fills itself more
 and  more1 till it be filled with all  
the fulness of ,god4 ,it is not a       
melancholy kind of sitting still1 and   
slothful waiting1 that speaks  men      
enlivened by the ,spirit and power of   
,god4 ,it is not religion to  stifle and
 smother those active powers and        
principles which are within  us4444     
,good men do not walk up and down the   
world merely like ghosts  and shadows2  
but they are indeed living men1 by a    
real participation  from ,him who is    
indeed a quickening ,spirit4    ,neither
 were it an happiness worth the having  
for a mind1 like an  hermit sequestered 
from all things else1 to spend an       
eternity in  self-converse and the      
enjoyment of such a diminutive          
superficial  nothing as itself is4444   
,we read in the ,gospel of such a       
question of  our ,saviour's1 ,what went 
ye out into the wilderness to see8 ,we  

may  invert it1 ,what do you return     
within to see8 ,a soul confined within  
the private and narrow cell of its own  
particular being8 ,such a soul  deprives
 itself of all that almighty and        
essential glory and goodness  which     
shines round about it1 which spreads    
itself throughout the whole  universe2  
,i say1 it deprives itself of all this1 
for the enjoying of  such a poor1 petty1
 and diminutive thing as itself is1     
which yet it  can never enjoy truly in  
such retiredness4    ,the ,english      
,platonists are equally sound on the    
subject of ecstasy4  ,whichcote says3   
,he doth not know ,god at all as ,he is1
 nor is he in a  good state of religion1
 who doth not find in himself at times  
ravishings with sweet and lovely        
considerations of the ,divine           
perfections4 ,and ,smith3 ,who can tell 
the delights of those  mysterious       
converses with the ,deity1 when reason  
is turned into sense1  and faith becomes
 vision8 ,the fruit of this knowledge is

 sweeter than  honey and the            
honeycomb4444 ,by the ,platonists'      
leave1 this life and  knowledge 7that of
 the 'contemplative man'7 peculiarly    
belongs to the  true and sober          
,christian4 ,this life is nothing else  
but an  infant-,christ formed in his    
soul4 ,but we must not mistake3 this    
knowledge is here but in its infancy4   
,while we are here1 our own  imaginative
 powers1 which are perpetually attending
 the best acts of  our souls1 will be   
breathing a gross dew upon the pure     
glass of our  understandings4    ,heaven
 is first a temper1 then a place1 says  
,whichcote1 and ,smith  says the same   
about hell4 ,heaven is not a thing      
without us1 nor is  happiness anything  
distinct from a true conjunction of the 
mind with  ,god4 ,though we could       
suppose ourselves to be at truce with   
heaven1  and all ,divine displeasure    
laid asleep2 yet would our own sins1 if 
they continue unmortified1 make an tna  
or ,vesuvius within us4#cfb  ,this view 

of the indissoluble connexion between   
holiness and  blessedness1 as between   
sin and damnation1 leads ,smith to      
reject  strenuously the doctrine of     
imputed1 as opposed to imparted1        
righteousness4 ,god does not bid us be  
warmed and filled1 he says1  and deny us
 those necessities which our starving   
and hungry souls  call for4444 ,i doubt 
sometimes1 some of our dogmata and      
notions about  justification may puff us
 up in far higher and goodlier conceits 
of  ourselves than ,god hath of us1 and 
that we profanely make the  unspotted   
righteousness of ,christ to serve only  
as a covering wherein  to wrap our foul 
deformities and filthy vices1 and when  
we have done1  think ourselves in as    
good credit and repute with ,god as we  
are with  ourselves1 and that we are    
become ,heaven's darlings as much as we 
are  our own4#cfc    ,these extracts    
will show that the ,english ,platonists 
breathe a larger  air than the later    
,romish mystics1 and teach a religion   

more  definitely ,christian than        
,erigena and ,eckhart4 ,i shall now show
 how  this happy result was connected   
with a more truly spiritual view of  the
 external world than we have met with in
 the earlier part of our  survey4 ,that 
the laws of nature are the laws of ,god1
 that man1 as  man1 is averse to what is
 evil and wicked1 that evil is          
unnatural1  and a contradiction of the  
law of our being1 which is only found in
  wicked men and devils1 is one of      
,whichcote's gallant themes4 ,and       
,smith sets forth the true principles of
 ,nature-,mysticism in a splendid       
passage1 with which ,i will conclude    
this ,lecture3--    ,god made the       
universe and all the creatures contained
 therein as so  many glasses wherein ,he
 might reflect ,his own glory4 ,he hath 
copied  forth ,himself in the creation2 
and in this outward world we may read   
the lovely characters of the ,divine    
goodness1 power1 and wisdom4444  ,but   
how to find ,god here1 and feelingly to 

converse with ,him1 and  being affected 
with the sense of the ,divine glory     
shining out upon the  creation1 how to  
pass out of the sensible world into the 
intellectual1  is not so effectually    
taught by that philosophy which         
professed it  most1 as by true religion4
 ,that which knits and unites ,god and  
the  soul together can best teach it how
 to ascend and descend upon those       
golden links that unite1 as it were1 the
 world to ,god4 ,that ,divine  ,wisdom1 
that contrived and beautified this      
glorious structure1 can  best explain   
her own art1 and carry up the soul back 
again in these  reflected beams to ,him 
who is the ,fountain of them4444 ,good  
men may  easily find every creature     
pointing out to that ,being whose image 
and  superscription it bears1 and climb 
up from those darker resemblances  of   
the ,divine wisdom and goodness1 shining
 out in different degrees  upon several 
creatures1 till they sweetly repose     
themselves in the  bosom of the         

,divinity2 and while they are thus      
conversing with this  lower world 444   
they find ,god many times secretly      
flowing into their  souls1 and leading  
them silently out of the court of the   
temple into  the ,holy ,place4444 ,thus 
religion1 where it is in truth and      
power1  renews the very spirit of our   
minds1 and doth in a manner spiritualise
  this outward creation to us4444 ,it is
 nothing but a thick mist of  pride and 
self-love that hinders men's eyes from  
beholding that sun  which enlightens    
them and all things else4444 ,a good man
 is no more  solicitous whether this or 
that good thing be mine1 or whether my  
perfections exceed the measure of this  
or that particular creature2  for       
whatsoever good he beholds anywhere1 he 
enjoys and delights in it  as much as if
 it were his own1 and whatever he       
beholds in himself1 he  looks not upon  
it as his property1 but as a common     
good2 for all these  beams come from one
 and the same ,fountain and ,ocean of   

light in whom  he loves them all with an
 universal love4444 ,thus may a man walk
 up  and down the world as in a garden  
of spices1 and suck a ,divine  sweetness
 out of every flower4 ,there is a       
twofold meaning in every  creature1 a   
literal and a mystical1 and the one is  
but the ground of  the other2 and as the
 ,jews say of their law1 so a good man  
says of  everything that his senses     
offer to him--it speaks to his lower    
part1  but it points out something above
 to his mind and spirit4 ,it is the     
drowsy and muddy spirit of superstition 
which is fain to set some idol  at its  
elbow1 something that may jog it and put
 it in mind of ,god4  ,whereas true     
religion never finds itself out of the  
infinite sphere of  the ,divinity 444 it
 beholds itself everywhere in the midst 
of that  glorious unbounded ,being who  
is indivisibly everywhere4 ,a good man  
finds every place he treads upon holy   
ground2 to him the world is  ,god's     
temple2 he is ready to say with ,jacob1 

',how dreadful is this  place6 this is  
none other than the house of ,god1 this 
is the gate of  heaven4'    ,,footnotes3
    ,footnote #caf3 ,in ,r4,l4          
,nettleship's ,remains4    ,footnote    
#cag3 ,in addition to passages quoted   
elsewhere1 the following  sentence from 
,luthardt is a good statement of the    
symbolic theory3  ,nature is a world of 
symbolism1 a rich hieroglyphic book3    
everything  visible conceals an         
invisible mystery1 and the last mystery 
of all is  ,god4 ,goethe's ,alles       
vergngliche ist nur ein ,gleichniss     
would be  better without the nur1 from  
our point of view4    ,footnote #cah3   
,rcjac1 ,essai sur les ,fondements de la
 ,connaissance  ,mystique4    ,footnote 
#cai3 ,in the ,edinburgh ,review1       
,october #ahif4 ,the article  referred  
to1 on ,the ,catholic ,mystics of the   
,middle ,ages1 is  beautifully written1 
and should be read by all who are       
interested in  the subject4    ,footnote
 #cbj3 ,this is ,kant's use of the word4

 ,see ,bosanquet1 ,history  of sthetic1 
p4 #bgc3 ,a symbol is for ,kant a       
perception or  presentation which       
represents a conception neither         
conventionally as a  mere sign1 nor     
directly1 but in the abstract1 as a     
scheme1 but  indirectly though          
appropriately through a similarity      
between the rules  which govern our     
reflection in the symbol and in the     
thing 7or idea7  symbolised4 ,in this   
sense beauty is a symbol of the moral   
order4  ,goethe's definition is also    
valuable3 ,that is true symbolism where 
the more particular represents the more 
general1 not as a dream or  shade1 but  
as a vivid1 instantaneous revelation of 
the inscrutable4    ,footnote #cba3 ,or 
rather of power and dignity2 for in some
 early  ,byzantine works even ,satan is 
represented with a nimbus4    ,footnote 
#cbb3 ,emerson says rightly1 ,mysticism 
7in a bad sense7  consists in the       
mistake of an accidental and individual 
symbol for an  universal one4           

,footnote #cbc3 ,the distinction which  
,ruskin draws between the fancy  and the
 imagination may help us to discern the 
true and the false in  ,symbolism4      
,fancy has to do with the outsides of   
things1 and is  content therewith4 ,she 
can never feel1 but is one of the most  
purely  and simply intellectual of the  
faculties4 ,she cannot be made serious2 
no edge-tool1 but she will play with3   
whereas the imagination is in  all      
things the reverse4 ,she cannot but be  
serious2 she sees too far1  too darkly1 
too solemnly1 too earnestly1 ever to    
smile4444 ,there is  reciprocal action  
between the intensity of moral feeling  
and the power  of imagination4 ,hence   
the powers of the imagination may always
 be  tested by accompanying tenderness  
of emotion4444 ,imagination is quiet1   
fancy restless2 fancy details1          
imagination suggests4444 ,all egotism is
  destructive of imagination1 whose play
 and power depend altogether on  our    
being able to forget ourselves4444      

,imagination has no respect for  sayings
 or opinions3 it is independent 7,modern
 ,painters1 vol4 ii4  chap4 iii474      
,footnote #cbd3 ,cf4 ,harnack1 ,history 
of ,dogma1 vol4 ii4 p4 #add3 ,what  we  
nowadays understand by 'symbols' is a   
thing which is not that which  it       
represents2 at that time 7in the second 
century7 'symbol' denoted a  thing      
which1 in some kind of way1 is that     
which it signifies2 but1 on  the other  
hand1 according to the ideas of that    
period1 the really  heavenly element lay
 either in or behind the visible form   
without  being identical with it4       
,accordingly1 the distinction of a      
symbolic  and realistic conception of   
the ,lord's ,supper is altogether to be 
rejected4 ,and vol4 iv4 p4 #bhi3 ,the   
'symbol' was never a mere type or  sign1
 but always embodied a mystery4 ,so     
,justin ,martyr uses ,greek3  symboliks 
eipein and ,greek3 eipein en mystri as  
interchangeable  terms2 and ,tertullian 
says that the name of ,joshua was       

nominis futuri  sacramentum4            
,footnote #cbe3 ,so some thinkers have  
felt that the ,word is not the  best    
expression for the creative activity of 
,god4 ,the passage of  ,goethe where    
,faust rejects ,word1 ,thought1 and     
,power1 and finally  translates1 ,in the
 beginning was the ,act1 is well known4 
,and  ,philo1 in a very interesting     
passage1 says that ,nature is the       
language  in which ,god speaks2 but     
there is this difference1 that while the
  human voice is made to be heard1 the  
voice of ,god is made to be  seen3 what 
,god says consists of acts1 not of words
 7,de ,decem  ,orac4 ,,ii74    ,footnote
 #cbf3 ,aquinas says of the sacraments1 
efficiunt quod  figurant4 ,the ,thomists
 held that the sacraments are caus of   
grace2 the ,scotists 7,nominalists71    
that grace is their inseparable         
concomitant4 ,the maintenance of a real 
correspondence between sign and         
significance seems to be essential to   
the idea of a sacrament1 but  then the  

danger of degrading it into magic lies  
close at hand4    ,footnote #cbg3 ,in   
the case of irregular ,baptism1 the     
maxim holds3  ,fieri non debuit2 factum 
valet4 ,cf4 ,bp4 ,churton1 ,the         
,missionary's  ,foundation of ,doctrine1
 p4 #abi4 ,the reason for this          
difference  between the two sacraments  
is quite clear4    ,footnote #cbh3 ,it  
is1 of course1 difficult to decide how  
far such  statements were meant to be   
taken literally4 ,but there is no doubt 
that both ,baptism and the ,eucharist   
were supposed to confer  immortality4   
,cf4 ,tert4 de ,bapt4 #b 7#fba1 ,oehl471
 nonne mirandum est  lavacro dilui      
mortem82 ,gregory of ,nyssa1 ,or4 cat4  
magn4 #ce1 ,greek3  m dynasthai de phmi 
dicha ts kata to loutron anagennses en  
anastasei genesthai ton anthrpon4       
,basil1 too1 calls ,baptism ,greek3     
dynamis eis tn anastasin4 ,of the       
,eucharist1 ,ignatius uses the  phrase  
quoted1 ,greek3 pharmakon ts athanasias1
 and ,greek3  antidotos tou m           

apothanein2 and ,gregory of ,nyssa uses 
the same  language as about ,baptism4   
,see1 further1 in ,appendices ,b and ,c4
    ,footnote #cbi3 ,e4g4 ,greek3       
metallaxis 7,theodoret71 ,greek3        
metabol 7,cyril71 ,greek3 metapoisis    
7,gregory ,naz471 ,greek3               
metastoicheisis 7,theophylact74 ,the    
last-named goes on to say that  we are  
in the same way transelementated into   
,christ4 ,the ,christian  ,neoplatonists
 naturally regard the sacrament as      
symbolic4 ,origen is  inclined to hold  
that every action should be sacramental1
 and that  material symbols1 such as    
bread and wine1 and participation in a  
ceremonial1 cannot be necessary vehicles
 of spiritual grace2 this is  in        
accordance with the excessive idealism  
and intellectualism of his  system4     
,dionysius calls the elements ,greek3   
symbola1 eikones1  antitypa1 aisthta    
tina anti notn metalambanomena2 and     
,maximus1  his commentator1 defines a   
symbol as ,greek3 aisthton ti anti      

notou metalambanomenon4    ,footnote    
#ccj3 ,harnack 7,history of ,dogma1 vol4
 vi4 p4 #ajb1 ,english  edition7 says3  
,in the centuries before the            
,reformation1 a growing  value was      
attached not only to the sacraments1 but
 to crosses1  amulets1 relics1 holy     
places1 etc4 ,as long as what the soul  
seeks is  not the rock of assurance1 but
 means for inciting to piety1 it will   
create for itself a thousand holy       
things4 ,it is therefore an extremely   
superficial view that regards the most  
inward ,mysticism and the  service of   
idols as contradictory4 ,the opposite   
view1 rather1 is  correct4 ,i have      
seldom found myself able to agree with  
this writer's  judgments upon           
,mysticism2 and this one is no          
exception4 ,the most  inward ,mysticism 
does not occupy itself much with        
external  incitements to piety1 nor is  
this the motive with which a mystic     
could ever 7e4g47 receive the           
,eucharist4 ,the use of amulets1 etc41  

which ,harnack finds to have been       
spreading before the ,reformation1 and  
which was certainly very prevalent in   
the sixteenth and seventeenth           
centuries1 had very little to do with   
the most inward ,mysticism4 ,my  view as
 to the place of magic in the history of
 ,mysticism is given in  this ,lecture2 
,i protest against identifying it with  
the essence of  ,mysticism4 ,symbolic   
,mysticism soon outgrew it2             
introspective ,mysticism  never valued  
it4 ,the use of visible things as       
stimulants to piety is  another matter2 
it has its place in the systems of the  
,catholic  mystics1 but as a very early 
stage in the spiritual ascent4 ,what ,i 
have said as to the inconsistency of a  
high sacramental doctrine with  the     
favourite injunctions to cast away all  
images1 which we find in  the medival   
mystics1 is1 ,i think1 indisputable4    
,footnote #cca3 ,the most recent        
developments of ,german idealistic      
philosophy1 as set forth in the         

cosmology of ,lotze1 and still more of  
,fechner1 may perhaps be described as an
 attempt to preserve the truth  of      
,animism on a much higher plane1 without
 repudiating the  universality of law4  
,footnote #ccb3 ,i refer especially to  
,huysmans' two mystical novels1  ,en    
,route and ,la ,cathdrale4 ,the naked   
,fetishism of the latter book  almost   
passes belief4 ,we have a ,madonna who  
is good-natured at ,lourdes  and        
cross-grained at ,la ,salette2 who likes
 pretty speeches and little  coaxing    
ways in paying court to her1 and who at 
the end is  apostrophised as our ,lady  
of the ,pillar1 our ,lady of the ,crypt4
 ,it  may perhaps be excusable to resort
 to such expedients as these in the     
conversion of savages2 but there is     
something singularly repulsive in  the  
picture 7drawn apparently from life7 of 
a profligate man of  letters seeking    
salvation in a ,christianity which has  
lowered itself  far beneath educated    
paganism4 ,at any rate1 let not the name

 of  ,mysticism be given to such        
methods4    ,footnote #ccc3 ,i refer    
especially to the horrors connected with
 the  belief in witchcraft1 on which see
 ,lecky1 ,rationalism in ,europe1  vol4 
i4 ,remy1 a judge of ,nancy1 boasted    
that he had put to death  eight hundred 
witches in sixteen years4 ,in the       
bishopric of  ,wartzburg1 nine hundred  
were burnt in one year4 ,as late as     
#ahej1 some  ,french peasants burnt     
alive a woman named ,bedouret1 whom they
 supposed  to be a witch4    ,footnote  
#ccd3 ,the degradation of ,mysticism in 
the ,roman ,church since  the           
,reformation may be estimated by        
comparing the definitions of  ,mysticism
 and ,mystical ,theology current in the 
,middle ,ages with the  following from  
,ribet1 who is recognised as a standard 
authority on the  subject3 ,la          
,theologie mystique1 au point de vue    
subjectif et  experimental1 nous semble 
pouvoir tre dfinie2 une attraction      
surnaturelle et passive de l'me vers    

,dieu1 provenant d'une  illumination et 
d'un embrasement intrieurs1 qui         
prviennent la  rflexion1 surpassent     
l'effort humain1 et peuvent avoir sur le
 corps  un retentissement merveilleux et
 irresistible4 ,au point de vue         
doctrinal et objectif1 la mystique peut 
se dfinir3 la science qui  traite des   
phnomnes surnaturels1 soit intimes1 soit
 extrieurs1  qui preparent1             
accompagnent1 et suivent la             
contemplation divine4 ,the  time is     
past1 if it ever existed1 when such     
superstitions could be  believed without
 grave injury to mental and moral       
health4    ,footnote #cce3 ,this        
language about the teaching of the      
,roman ,church  may be considered       
unseemly by those who have not studied  
the subject4  ,those who have done so   
will think it hardly strong enough4 ,in 
self-defence1 ,i will quote one sentence
 from ,schram1 whose work on  ,mysticism
 is considered authoritative1 and is    
studied in the great  ,catholic         

university of ,louvain3 ,quri potest    
utrum dmon per turpem  concubitum possit
 violenter opprimere marem vel feminam  
cuius obsessio  permissa sit ob finem   
perfectionis et contemplationis         
acquirend4 ,the  answer is in the       
affirmative1 and the evidence is such as
 could hardly  be transcribed1 even in  
,latin4 ,schram's book is mainly        
intended for  the direction of          
confessing priests1 and the evidence    
shows1 as might  have been expected1    
that the subjects of these phenomena are
  generally poor nuns suffering from    
hysteria4    ,footnote #ccf3 ,at a time 
when many are hoping to find in the     
study of  the obscurer psychical        
phenomena a breach in the middle wall of
  partition between the spiritual and   
material worlds1 ,i may seem to  have   
brushed aside too contemptuously the    
floating mass of popular  beliefs which 
spiritualists think worthy of serious   
investigation4 ,i  must therefore be    
allowed to say that in my opinion       

psychical research  has already         
established results of great value1     
especially in helping  to break down    
that view of the imperviousness of the  
ego which is  fatal to ,mysticism1 and  
7,i venture to think7 to any consistent 
philosophy4 ,monadism1 we may hope1 is  
doomed4 ,but the more popular  kind of  
spiritualism is simply the old hankering
 after supernatural  manifestations1    
which are always dear to semi-regenerate
 minds4    ,footnote #ccg3 ,it is1 ,i   
think1 significant that the word        
imagination  was slow in making its way 
into psychology4 ,greek3 ,phantasia is  
defined by ,aristotle 7de ,anima1 iii4  
#c7 as ,greek3 kinsis hypo ts  aisthses 
ts kat energeian gignomen1 but it is not
 till  ,philostratus that the creative  
imagination is opposed to ,greek3       
mimsis4 ,cf4 ,vit4 ,apoll4 vi4 #ai1     
,greek3 mimsis men  dmiourgsei ho eiden1
 phantasia de kai ho m eiden4           
,footnote #cch3 ,reuchlin1 ,de arte     
cabbalistica3 ,est enim ,cabbala  divin 

revelationis ad salutiferam ,dei et     
formarum separatarum  contemplationem   
tradit symbolica receptio1 quam qui     
coelesti  sortiumtur afflatu recto      
nomine ,cabbalici dicuntur1 eorum vero  
discipulos cognomento ,cabbalos         
appellabimus1 et qui alioquin eos       
imitari conantur1 ,cabbalist nominandi  
sunt4    ,footnote #cci3 ,the mystical  
,rabbis ascribe the ,cabbala to the     
angel  ,razael1 the reputed teacher of  
,adam in ,paradise1 and say that this   
angel gave ,adam the ,cabbala as his    
lesson-book4 ,there is a clear and      
succinct account of the main            
,cabbalistic docrines in ,hunt1         
,pantheism  and ,christianity1 pp4      
#hd-hh4    ,footnote #cdj3 ,but the     
notion that the deepest mysteries should
 not be  entrusted to writing is found  
in ,clement and ,origen2 cf4 ,origen1   
,against ,celsus1 vi4 #bf3 ,greek3 ouk  
akindynon tn tn toioutn  saphneian      
pisteusai graph4 ,and ,clement says3    
,greek3 ta aporrta1  kathaper ho theos1 

log pisteuetai ou grammati4 ,the curious
 legend of  an oral tradition also      
appears in ,clement 7,hypolyp4 ,fragm4  
in  ,eusebius1 ,h4,e4 ii4 ,i4 #d73      
,greek3 ,iakb t dikai kai ,ian kai      
,petr meta tn anastasin paredke tn gnsin
 ho kyrios1 outoi tois  loipois         
apostolois paredkan1 oi de loipoi       
apostoloi tois  hebdomkonta1 n eis n kai
 ,barnabas4 ,origen1 too1 speaks of     
things  spoken in private to the        
disciples4    ,footnote #cda3 ,the      
following extract from ,pico's ,apology 
may be  interesting1 as illustrating the
 close connexion between magic and      
science at this period3 ,one of the     
chief charges against me is that ,i  am 
a magician4 ,have ,i not myself         
distinguished two kinds of magic8  ,one1
 which the ,greeks call ,greek3 goteia1 
depends entirely on alliance  with evil 
spirits1 and deserves to be regarded    
with horror1 and to be  punished2 the   
other is magic in the proper sense of   
the word4 ,the  former subjects man to  

the evil spirits1 the latter makes them 
serve  him4 ,the former is neither an   
art nor a science2 the latter embraces  
the deepest mysteries1 and the knowledge
 of the whole of ,nature with  her      
powers4 ,while it connects and combines 
the forces scattered by ,god  through   
the whole world1 it does not so much    
work miracles as come to  the help of   
working nature4 ,its researches into the
 sympathies of  things enable it to     
bring to light hidden marvels from the  
secret  treasure-houses of the world1   
just as if it created them itself4 ,as  
the countryman trains the vine upon the 
elm1 so the magician marries  the       
earthly objects to heavenly bodies4 ,his
 art is beneficial and  ,godlike1 for it
 brings men to wonder at the works of   
,god1 than which  nothing conduces more 
to true religion4    ,footnote #cdb3    
,this was a very old theory4 ,cf4       
,lecky1 ,rationalism in  ,europe1 vol4  
i4 p4 #bfd4 ,the ,clavis of ,st4        
,melito1 who was bishop  of ,sardis1 it 

is said1 in the beginning of the second 
century1  consists of a catalogue of    
many hundreds of birds1 beasts1 plants1 
and  minerals that were symbolical of   
,christian virtues1 doctrines1 and      
personages4    ,footnote #cdc3 ,the     
analogy between allegorism in religion  
and the  hieroglyphic writing is drawn  
out by ,clement1 ,strom4 v4 #d and #g4  
,footnote #cdd3 ,the distinction1       
however1 would be unintelligible to  the
 savage mind4 ,to primitive man a name  
is a symbol in the  strictest sense4    
,hence1 the knowledge1 invocation1 and  
vain  repetition of a deity's name      
constitutes in itself an actual1 if     
mystic1 union with the deity named      
7,jevons1 ,introduction to the  ,history
 of ,religion1 p4 #bde74 ,this was one  
of the chief reasons for  making a      
secret of the cultus1 and even of the   
name of a patron-deity4  ,to reveal it  
was to admit strangers into the tutelage
 of the national  god4    ,footnote     
#cde3 ,i do not find it possible to give

 a more honourable  place than this to a
 system of biblical exegesis which has  
still a few  defenders4 ,it was first   
developed in ,christian times by the    
,gnostics1  and was eagerly adopted by  
,origen1 who fearlessly applied it to   
the  ,gospels1 teaching that ,christ's  
actions on earth were enigmas  7,greek3 
ainigmata71 to be interpreted by        
,gnosis4 ,the method was  often found   
useful in dealing with moral and        
scientific difficulties  in the ,old    
,testament2 it enabled ,dionysius to use
 very bold language  about the literal  
meaning1 as ,i showed in ,lecture ,,iii4
 ,the ,christian  ,platonists of        
,alexandria meant it to be an esoteric  
method3 ,clement  calls it ,greek3      
symboliks philosophein4 ,it was held    
that ,greek3 ta  mystria mystiks        
paradidotai2 and even that ,divine      
truths are  honoured by enigmatic       
treatment 7,greek3 h krypsis h mystik   
semnopoiei to theion74 ,but the main use
 of allegorism was pietistic2  and to   

this there can be no objection1 unless  
the piety is morbid1 as  is the case in 
many commentaries on the ,song of       
,solomon4 ,still1 it can  hardly be     
disputed that the countless books       
written to elaborate the  principles of 
allegorism contain a mass of futility   
such as it would  be difficult to match 
in any other class of literature4 ,the  
best  defence of the method is perhaps  
to be found in ,keble's ,tract 7,no4    
#hi7  on the ,mysticism of the early    
,fathers4 ,keble's own poetry contains  
many beautiful examples of the true use 
of symbolism2 but as an  apologist of   
allegorism he does not distinguish      
between its use and  abuse4 ,yet surely 
there is a vast difference between      
seeing in the  glorious sky embracing   
all a type of our ,maker's love1 and    
analysing the #aec fish caught in the   
,sea of ,galilee into the square of  the
 #ab ,apostles  the square of the #c    
,persons of the ,trinity4    ,the       
history of the doctrine of signatures1  

which is the cryptogram  theory applied 
to medicine1 is very curious and        
interesting1 ,citrons1  according to    
,paracelsus1 are good for heart         
affections1 because they  are           
heart-shaped2 the saphena riparum is to 
be applied to fresh  wounds1 because its
 leaves are spotted as with flecks of   
blood4 ,a  species of dentaria1 whose   
roots resemble teeth1 is a cure for     
toothache and scurvy4--,vaughan1 ,hours 
with the ,mystics1 vol4 ii4 p4  #gg4 ,it
 is said that some traces of this quaint
 superstition survive  even in the      
modern materia medica4 ,the alliance    
between medicine and  ,mysticism        
subsisted for a long time1 and forms a  
curious chapter of  history4            
,footnote #cdf3 ,cornelius ,agrippa of  
,nettesheim1 a contemporary of          
,reuchlin1 studied ,cabbalism mainly as 
a magical science4 ,he was  nominally a 
,catholic1 but attacked ,rome and       
scholasticism quite in the  spirit of   
,luther4 ,his three chief works are1 ,on

 the ,threefold ,way of  ,knowing ,god1 
,on the ,vanity of ,arts and ,sciences  
7a ferocious attack  on most of the     
professions71 and ,on ,occult           
,philosophy 7treating of  natural1      
celestial1 and religious magic74 ,the   
magician1 he says1  must study three    
sciences--physics1 mathematics1 and     
theology4  ,agrippa's adventurous life  
ended in #aecc4    ,footnote #cdg3      
,theophrastus ,paracelsus 7,philippus   
,bombastus von  ,hohenheim7 was born in 
#adic1 and died in #aeda4 ,his writings 
are a  curious mixture of theosophy and 
medical science3 medicine1 he  taught1  
has four pillars--philosophy1 astronomy 
7or rather  astrology71 alchemy1 and    
religion4 ,he lays great stress on the  
doctrine that man is a microcosm1 and on
 the law of ,divine  manifestation by   
contraries--the latter is a new feature 
which was  further developed by ,bhme4  
,footnote #cdh3 ,i saw1 he says1 the    
,being of all ,beings1 the ,ground  and 
the ,abyss2 also1 the birth of the ,holy

 ,trinity2 the origin and  first state  
of the world and of all creatures4 ,i   
saw in myself the  three worlds--the    
,divine or angelic world2 the dark      
world1 the  original of ,nature2 and the
 external world1 as a substance spoken  
forth out of the two spiritual          
worlds4444 ,in my inward man ,i saw it  
well1 as in a great deep2 for ,i saw    
right through as into a chaos  where    
everything lay wrapped1 but ,i could not
 unfold it4 ,yet from time  to time it  
opened itself within me1 like a growing 
plant4 ,for twelve  years ,i carried it 
about within me1 before ,i could bring  
it forth in  any external form2 till    
afterwards it fell upon me1 like a      
bursting  shower that killeth           
wheresoever it lighteth1 as it will4    
,whatever ,i  could bring into          
outwardness1 that ,i wrote down4 ,the   
work is none of  mine2 ,i am but the    
,lord's instrument1 wherewith ,he doeth 
what ,he  will4    ,footnote #cdi3 ,this
 is from ,bp4 ,warburton4 ,sublime      

nonsense1  inimitable bombast1 fustian  
not to be paralleled1 is ,john ,wesley's
  verdict4    ,footnote #cej3 ,see      
,overton1 ,life of ,william ,law1 p4    
#ahh4    ,footnote #cea3 ,i have omitted
 ,bhme's gnostical theories as to the   
seven ,quellgeister as belonging rather 
to theosophy than to  ,mysticism4 ,the  
resemblance to ,basilides is here rather
 striking1 but  it must be a pure       
coincidence4    ,footnote #ceb3 ,and of 
,english ,mysticism before the          
,reformation2 cf4 p4  #bjh4    ,footnote
 #cec3 ,from the ,spirit of ,prayer4    
,the sect of ,behmenists in  ,germany1  
unlike ,law1 attended no church1 and    
took no part in the  ,lord's            
,supper4--,overton1 ,life of ,william   
,law1 p4 #bad4    ,footnote #ced3 ,this 
stimulating doctrine1 that the soul1    
when freed  from impediments1 ascends   
naturally and inevitably to its own     
place1  is put into the mouth of        
,beatrice by ,dante 7,paradiso1 i4      
#acf7--      ,non dei pi ammirar1 se    

bene stimo1     ,lo tuo salir1 se non   
come d'un rivo     ,se d'alto monte     
scende giuso ad imo4     ,maraviglia    
sarebbe in te1 se privo                 
,d'impedimento giu ti fossi assiso1     
,com' a terra quieto fuoco vivo4        
,quinci rivolce inver lo cielo il viso4 
,footnote #cee3 ,it may be interesting  
to compare the following passage  from  
,george ,fox1 which dramatises the      
irruption of natural science1  with its 
faith in fixed laws1 into the sphere of 
the religious  consciousness3--,one     
morning1 while ,i was sitting by the    
fire1 a great  cloud came over me1 a    
temptation beset me2 and ,i sat still4  
,it was  said1 ,all things come by      
,nature2 and the elements and stars came
  over me1 so that ,i was in a manner   
quite clouded by it4 ,and as ,i sat     
still under it and let it alone1 a      
living hope and a true voice arose  in  
me1 which said1 ,there is a living ,god 
who made all things4  ,immediately the  
cloud and temptation vanished away1 and 

life rose over  it all2 my heart was    
glad1 and ,i praised the living ,god4   
,footnote #cef3 ,so we may fairly say1  
if we remember that we are  speaking of 
what transcends time4 ,neither ,bhme nor
 ,law looks forward  to a golden age on 
this earth4    ,footnote #ceg3 ,henry   
,more's judgment is as follows3 ,jacob  
,behmen1 ,i  conceive1 is to be reckoned
 in the number of those whose           
imaginative  faculty has the            
pre-eminence above the rational2 and    
though he was a  good and holy man1 his 
natural complexion1 notwithstanding1 was
 not  destroyed1 but retained its       
property still2 and1 therefore1 his     
imagination being very busy about       
,divine things1 he could not without  a 
miracle fail of becoming an enthusiast1 
and of receiving ,divine  truths upon   
the account of the strength and vigour  
of his fancy2  which1 being so well     
qualified with holiness and sanctity1   
proved not  unsuccessful in sundry      
apprehensions1 but in others it fared   

with him  after the manner of men1 the  
sagacity of his imagination failing him1
  as well as the anxiety of reason does 
others of like integrity with  himself4 
,footnote #ceh3 ,canon ,g4,g4 ,perry1 in
 his ,students' ,english ,church        
,history1 disposes of this noble group  
of men in one contemptuous  paragraph1  
as a class of divines who were neither  
,puritans nor ,high  ,churchmen1 and    
makes the astounding statement that to  
the school  thus commenced1 the         
deadness1 carelessness1 and indifference
 prevalent  in the eighteenth century   
are in large measure to be attributed4  
,it  is of these very same men that     
,bishop ,burnet writes1 that if they had
  not appeared to combat the laziness   
and negligence1 the ease and  sloth of  
the ,restoration clergy1 the ,church had
 quite lost her  esteem over the nation4
 ,alexander ,knox 7,works1 vol4 iii4 p4 
#aii7  speaks of the rise of this school
 as a great instance of the design  of  
,providence to supply to the ,church    

what had never before been  produced1   
writers who do full honour at once to   
the elevation and the  rationality of   
,christian piety4444 ,in their writings 
we are invited to  ascend1 by having a  
prospect opened before us as luminous as
 it is  sublime4444 ,they are such      
writers as had never before existed4444 
,no  ,church but the ,english ,church   
could have produced them4 ,of ,john     
,smith  he says1 ,my value for him is   
beyond what words can do justice to4    
,the works of ,whichcote1 ,smith1       
,cudworth1 and ,culverwel are happily   
accessible enough1 and ,i beg my readers
 to study them at first hand4 ,i  do not
 believe that any ,christian could rise 
from the perusal of the  two first-named
 without having gained a lasting benefit
 in the  deepening of his spiritual life
 and heightening of his faith4          
,footnote #cei3 ,a writer who signs     
himself ,s4,p4 7probably ,simon         
,patrick1 bishop of ,ely71 in a pamphlet
 called ,a ,brief ,account of the  new  

,sect of ,latitude ,men 7#affb71        
vindicates their attachment to the      
virtuous mediocrity of the ,church of   
,england1 as distinguished from  the    
meretricious gaudiness of the ,church of
 ,rome1 and the squalid  sluttery of    
fanatic conventicles4    ,footnote #cfj3
 ,compare with these extracts the words 
of ,leibnitz3 ,to  despise reason in    
matters of religion is to my eyes       
certain proof  either of an obstinacy   
that borders on fanaticism1 or1 what is 
worse1  of hypocrisy4    ,footnote #cfa3
 ,see ,appendix ,c4    ,footnote #cfb3  
,the classical reader will be reminded  
of ,lucretius1  iii4 #igi-ajcf4 ,smith1 
however1 would not have relished this   
comparison4 ,he devotes part of one     
sermon to a refutation of the           
,epicurean poet1 in whom he sees a      
precursor of his bte noire1  ,hobbes6   
,footnote #cfc3 ,compare with this the  
following passage of ,jean de  ,labadie 
7#afaj-afgd71 the founder of a mystical 
school on the  ,continent3 ,plusieurs   

sont bien aises d'ouyr dire qu'ils sont 
justifis par ,jesus-,christ1 lavs de    
leurs pchs en son sang par la  fo1 par  
la repentance et par le baptme          
chrestien1 et volontiers ils            
,i'embrasent comme ,justificateur1 comme
 crucifi et mort pour eux2 mais  peu    
prennent part  sa croix1  sa mort1 pour 
se faire spirituellement  mourir avec   
,luy1 crucifier leur chair avec la      
sienne1 et porter en  eux-mmes les vives
 marques de sa croix et de sa mort4 ,peu
 le goutent  comme ,justificateur au    
dedans par l',esprit consacrant et      
immolant le  vieil homme  ,dieu et par  
une pratique vraiment sainte1 laquelle  
dompte le pch4          ,,lecture ,,viii
         ,for nothing worthy proving can
 be proven1      ,nor yet disproven2    
wherefore thou be wise1      ,cleave    
ever to the sunnier side of doubt1      
,and cling to ,faith beyond the forms of
 ,faith6      ,she reels not in the     
storm of warring words1      ,she       
brightens at the clash of ,yes and ,no1 

,she sees the ,best that glimmers       
through the ,worst1      ,she feels the 
sun is hid but for a night1      ,she   
spies the summer thro' the winter bud1  
,she tastes the fruit before the blossom
 falls1      ,she hears the lark within 
the songless egg1      ,she finds the   
fountain where they wail'd ',mirage6'   
,,tennyson1 ,the ,ancient ,sage4        
,of true religions there are only two3  
one of them recognises and  worships the
 ,holy that without form or shape dwells
 in and around us2  and the other       
recognises and worships it in its       
fairest form4  ,everything that lies    
between these two is idolatry4          
,,goethe4      ,my wish is that ,i may  
perceive the ,god whom ,i find          
everywhere in the  external world1 in   
like manner within and inside me4       
,,kepler4         ,getrost1 das ,leben  
schreitet        ,zum ew'gen ,leben hin2
      ,von innrer ,gluth geweitet       
,verklrt sich unser ,sinn4      ,die    
,sternwelt wird zerfliessen        ,zum 

goldnen ,lebenswein1      ,wir werden   
sie geniessen        ,und lichte ,sterne
 sein4        ,die ,lieb' ist           
freigegeben        ,und keine ,trennung 
mehr      ,es wogt das volle ,leben     
,wie ein unendlich ,meer4      ,nur eine
 ,nacht der ,wonne1        ,ein ewiges  
,gedicht6      ,und unser ,aller ,sonne 
,ist ,gottes ,angesicht4    ,,novalis4  
,,nature-,,mysticism--continued    ,the 
invisible things of ,him since the      
creation of the world are  clearly seen1
 being understood through the things    
that are made1 even  ,his everlasting   
power and ,divinity4--,,rom4 i4 #bj4    
,in my last ,lecture ,i showed how the  
later ,mysticism emancipated itself     
from the mischievous doctrine that the  
spiritual eye can only see when  the eye
 of sense is closed4 ,after the         
,reformation period the mystic  tries to
 look with both eyes2 his aim is to see 
,god in all things1 as  well as all     
things in ,god4 ,he returns with better 
resources to the  task of the primitive 

religions1 and tries to find spiritual  
law in  the natural world4 ,it is true  
that a strange crop of superstitions1   
the seeds of which had been sown long   
before1 sprang up to mock his  hopes4   
,in necromancy1 astrology1 alchemy1     
palmistry1 table-turning1  and other    
delusions1 we have what some count the  
essence1 and others  the reproach1 of   
,mysticism4 ,but these are1 strictly    
speaking1  scientific and not religious 
errors4 ,from the standpoint of religion
  and philosophy1 the important change  
is that1 in the belief of these  later  
mystics1 the natural and the spiritual  
are1 somehow or other1 to  be           
reconciled2 the external world is no    
longer regarded as a place of  exile    
from ,god1 or as a delusive appearance2 
it is the living vesture  of the ,deity2
 and its discordant harmony1#cfd though 
for the many  it needs interpreters1#cfe
 yet has a voice for the wise which     
speaks of things behind the veil4 ,the  
glory of ,god is no longer  figured as a

 blinding white light in which all      
colours are combined  and lost2 but is  
seen as a many-coloured wisdom#cff which
 shines  everywhere1 its varied hues    
appearing not only in the sanctuary of  
the  lonely soul1 but in all the wonders
 that science can discover1 and all  the
 beauties that art can interpret4       
,dualism1 with the harsh  asceticism    
which belongs to it1 has given way to a 
brighter and more  hopeful philosophy2  
men's outlook upon the world is more    
intelligent1  more trustful1 and more   
genial2 only for those who perversely   
seek to  impose the ethics of selfish   
individualism upon a world which obeys  
no  such law1 science has in reserve a  
blacker pessimism than ever brooded     
over the ascetic of the cloister4    ,we
 shall not meet1 in this chapter1 any   
finer examples of the  ,christian mystic
 than ,john ,smith and ,william ,law4   
,but these men1 and  their intellectual 
kinsmen1 were far from exhausting the   
treasure of  ,nature-,mysticism4 ,the   

,cambridge ,platonists1 indeed1 somewhat
  undervalued the religious lessons of  
,nature4 ,they were scholars and        
divines1 and what lay nearest their     
heart was the consecration of the       
reason--that is1 of the whole           
personality under the guidance of its   
highest faculty--to the service of truth
 and goodness4 ,and ,law1 in his  later 
years1 was too much under the influence 
of ,bhme's fantastic  theosophy to bring
 to ,nature that childlike spirit which 
can best  learn her lessons4    ,the    
,divine in ,nature has hitherto been    
discerned more fully by the  poet than  
by the theologian or the naturalist2 and
 in this concluding  ,lecture ,i must   
deal chiefly with ,christian poetry4    
,the attitude  towards ,nature which we 
have now to consider is more            
contemplative  than practical2 it       
studies analogies in order to know the  
unseen  powers which surround us1 and   
has no desire to bend them or make them 
its instruments4    ,our ,lord's        

precept1 ,consider the lilies1 sanctions
 this religious  use of ,nature2 and    
many of ,his parables1 such as that of  
the ,sower1  show us how much we may    
learn from such analogies4 ,and be it   
observed  that it is the normal and     
regular in ,nature which in these       
parables is  presented for our study2   
the yearly harvest1 not the three years'
  famine2 the constant care and justice 
of ,god1 not the special  providence or 
the special judgment4 ,we need not wait 
for  catastrophes to trace the finger of
 ,god4 ,as for ,christian poetry and    
art1 we do not expect to find any theory
 of sthetic in the ,new  ,testament2 but
 we may perhaps extract from the precept
 quoted above  the canon that the       
highest beauty that we can discern      
resides in the  real and natural1 and   
only demands the seeing eye to find it4 
,in the ,greek ,fathers we find great   
stress laid on the glories of  ,nature  
as a revelation of ,god4 ,cyril says1   
,the wider our  contemplation of        

creation1 the grander will be our       
conception of ,god4  ,and ,basil uses   
the same language4 ,we find1 indeed1 in 
these writers a  marked tendency to     
exalt the religious value of natural    
beauty1 and to  disparage the function  
of art--a premonition1 perhaps1 of      
iconoclasm4  ,pagan art1 which was      
decaying before the advent of ,christ1  
could not1  it appears1 be quietly      
,christianised and carried on without a 
break4    ,the true ,nature-,mysticism  
is prominent in ,st4 ,francis of        
,assisi4 ,he  loves to see in all around
 him the pulsations of one life1 which  
sleeps in the stones1 dreams in the     
plants1 and wakens in man4 ,he  would   
remain in contemplation before a flower1
 an insect1 or a bird1  and regarded    
them with no dilettante or egoistic     
pleasure2 he was  interested that the   
plant should have its sun1 the bird its 
nest2 that  the humblest manifestations 
of creative force should have the       
happiness to which they are             

entitled4#cfg ,so strong was his        
conviction that all living things are   
children of ,god1 that he would  preach 
to my little sisters the birds1 and even
 undertook the  conversion of the       
ferocious wolf of ,agobio4    ,this     
tender reverence for ,nature1 which is a
 mark of all true  ,platonism1 is found1
 as we have seen1 in ,plotinus4 ,it is  
also  prominent in the ,platonists of   
the ,renaissance1 such as ,bruno and    
,campanella1#cfh and in ,petrarch1 who  
loved to offer his evening  prayers     
among the moonlit mountains4 ,suso has  
at least one beautiful  passage on the  
sights and sounds of spring1 and        
exclaims1 ,o tender  ,god1 if ,thou art 
so loving in ,thy creatures1 how fair   
and lovely must  ,thou be in            
,thyself6#cfi ,the ,reformers1          
especially ,luther and  ,zwingli1 are   
more alive than might have been expected
 to the value of  ,nature's lessons2 and
 the ,french mystics1 ,francis de ,sales
 and  ,fnelon1 write gracefully about   

the footprints of the ,divine wisdom    
and beauty which may be traced          
everywhere in the world around us4      
,but natural religion is not to be      
identified with ,mysticism1 and it      
would not further our present inquiry to
 collect passages1 in prose or  poetry1 
which illustrate the aids to faith which
 the book of ,nature  may supply4 ,nor  
need we dwell on such pure ,platonism as
 we find in  ,spenser's ,hymn of        
,heavenly ,beauty1 or some of ,shelley's
 poems1 in  which we are bidden to gaze 
upon the world as a mirror of the       
,divine  ,beauty1 since our mortal sight
 cannot endure the white radiance of    
the eternal archetypes4#cgj ,we have    
seen how this view of the world  as a   
pale reflection of the ,ideas leads in  
practice to a contempt for  visible     
things2 as1 indeed1 it does in          
,spenser's beautiful poem4 ,he  invites 
us1 after learning ,nature's lessons1 to
      ,look at last up to that sovereign
 light1   ,from whose pure beams all    

perfect beauty springs2   ,that kindleth
 love in every godly spright1   ,even   
the love of ,god2 which loathing brings 
,of this vile world and these           
gay-seeming things2   ,with whose sweet 
pleasures being so possessed1   ,thy    
straying thoughts henceforth for ever   
rest4      ,this is not the keynote of  
the later ,nature-,mysticism4 ,we now   
expect  that every new insight into the 
truth of things1 every enlightenment  of
 the eyes of our understanding1 which   
may be granted us as the  reward of     
faith1 love1 and purity of heart1 will  
make the world around  us appear1 not   
viler and baser1 but more glorious and  
more ,divine4 ,it  is not a proof of    
spirituality1 but of its opposite1 if   
,god's world  seems to us a poor place4 
,if we could see it as ,god sees it1 it 
would  be still1 as on the morning of   
creation1 very good4 ,the hymn  which is
 ever ascending from the earth to the   
throne of ,god is to be  listened for1  
that we may join in it4 ,the laws by    

which all creation  lives are to be     
studied1 that we too may obey them4 ,as 
for the beauty  which is everywhere     
diffused so lavishly1 it seems to be a  
gift of  ,god's pure bounty1 to bring   
happiness to the unworldly souls who    
alone  are able to see and enjoy it4    
,the greatest prophet of this branch of 
contemplative ,mysticism is             
unquestionably the poet ,wordsworth4 ,it
 was the object of his life to  be a    
religious teacher1 and ,i think there is
 no incongruity in placing  him at the  
end of the roll of mystical divines who 
have been dealt  with in these          
,lectures4 ,his intellectual kinship    
with the acknowledged  representatives  
of ,nature-,mysticism will1 ,i hope1    
appear very plainly4    ,wordsworth was 
an eminently sane and manly spirit4 ,he 
found his  philosophy of life early1 and
 not only preached but lived it         
consistently4 ,a ,platonist by nature   
rather than by study1 he is  thoroughly 
,greek in his distrust of strong        

emotions and in his love of  all which  
the ,greeks included under ,greek3      
sphrosyn4 ,he was a  loyal ,churchman1  
but his religion was really almost      
independent of any  ecclesiastical      
system4 ,his ecclesiastical sonnets     
reflect rather the  dignity of the      
,anglican ,church than the ardent piety 
with which our  other poet-mystics1 such
 as ,herbert1 ,vaughan1 and ,crashaw1   
adorn the  offices of worship4 ,his cast
 of faith1 intellectual and             
contemplative  rather than fervid1 and  
the solitariness of his thought1 forbade
 him  to find much satisfaction in      
public ceremonial4 ,he would probably   
agree with ,galen1 who in a very        
remarkable passage says that the study  
of nature1 if prosecuted with the same  
earnestness and intensity which  men    
bring to the contemplation of the       
,mysteries1 is even more fitted  than   
they to reveal the power and wisdom of  
,god2 for the symbolism  of the         
mysteries is more obscure than that of  

nature4    ,he shows his affinity with  
the modern spirit in his firm grasp of  
natural law4 ,like ,george ,fox and     
,william ,law1 he had to face the  shock
 of giving up his belief in arbitrary   
interferences4 ,there was a  period when
 he lost his young faculty of           
generalisation2 when he bowed  before   
the inexorable dooms of an unknown      
,lawgiver--the categorical  imperative1 
till the gift of intuition was restored 
to him in fuller  measure4 ,this        
experience explains his attitude towards
 natural  science4 ,his reverence for   
facts never failed him2 the sanctity and
  truth of nature1 he says1 must not be 
tricked out with accidental  ornaments2 
but he looked askance at the science    
which tries to erect  itself into a     
philosophy4 ,physics1 he saw plainly1 is
 an abstract  study3 its view of the    
world is an abstraction for certain     
purposes1  and possesses less truth than
 the view of the poet4#cga ,and yet he  
looked forward to a time when science1  

too1 shall be touched with fire  from   
the altar2--        ,then her heart     
shall kindle2 her dull eye1     ,dull   
and inanimate1 no more shall hang       
,chained to its object in brute slavery4
      ,and in a remarkable passage of   
the ,prefaces he says ,if the time      
should ever come when that which is now 
called science shall be ready  to put on
 as it were a form of flesh and blood1  
the poet will lend his  ,divine spirit  
to aid the transformation1 and will     
welcome the ,being  thus produced as a  
dear and genuine inmate of the household
 of man4  ,he feels that the loving and 
disinterested study of nature's laws    
must  at last issue1 not in materialism1
 but in some high and spiritual  faith1 
inspired by the ,word of ,god1 who is   
,himself1 as ,erigena said1  the ,nature
 of all things4    ,in aloofness and    
loneliness of mind he is exceeded by no 
mystic of the  cloister4 ,it may be said
 far more truly of him than of ,milton1 
that  his soul was like a star1 and     

dwelt apart4 ,in his youth he confesses 
that human beings had only a secondary  
interest for him2#cgb and  though he    
says that ,nature soon led him to man1  
it was to man as a  unity1 as one       
spirit1 that he was drawn1 not to men as
  individuals4#cgc ,herein he resembled 
many other contemplative  mystics2 but  
it has been said truly that it is easier
 to know man in  general than a man in  
particular4#cgd ,the sage who sits in   
the  centre of his being1 and there     
enjoys bright day1#cge does not  really 
know human beings as persons4    ,it    
will be interesting to compare the steps
 in the ladder of  perfection1 as       
described by ,wordsworth1 with the      
schemes of  ,neoplatonism and           
introspective ,mysticism4 ,the three    
stages of the  mystical ascent have been
 already explained4 ,we find that       
,wordsworth1  too1 had his purgative1   
disciplinary stage4 ,he began by        
deliberately  crushing1 not only the    
ardent passions to which he tells us    

that he  was naturally prone1 but all   
ambition and love of money1 determining 
to confine himself to such objects as   
excite no morbid passions1 no           
disquietude1 no vengeance1 and no       
hatred1 and found his reward in a       
settled state of calm serenity1 in which
 all the thoughts flow like a  clear    
fountain1 and have forgotten how to hate
 and how to  despise4#cgf    ,wordsworth
 is careful to inculcate several        
safeguards for those who  would proceed 
to the contemplative life4 ,first1 there
 must be  strenuous aspiration to reach 
that infinitude which is our being's    
heart and home2 we must press forward1  
urged by hope that can never  die1      
effort1 and expectation1 and desire1 and
 something evermore about  to be4#cgg   
,the mind which is set upon the         
unchanging will not  praise a cloud1#cgh
 but will crave objects that endure4 ,in
 the  spirit of true ,platonism1 as     
contrasted with its later aberrations1  
,wordsworth will have no blurred        

outlines4 ,he tries always to see in    
,nature distinction without separation2 
his principle is the exact  antithesis  
of ,hume's atheistic dictum1 that things
 are conjoined1 but  not connected4#cgi 
,the importance of this caution has been
 fully  demonstrated in the course of   
our inquiry4 ,then1 too1 he knows that  
to  imperfect man reason is a crown     
still to be courted1 never to be  won4  
,delusions may affect even the very     
faculty of sight1 whether a  man look   
forth1 or dive into himself4#chj ,again1
 he bids us seek  for real1 and not     
fanciful analogies2 no loose types of   
things  through all degrees2 no         
mythology2 and no arbitrary symbolism4  
,the  symbolic value of natural objects 
is not that they remind us of  something
 that they are not1 but that they help  
us to understand  something that they in
 part are4 ,they are not intended to    
transport us  away from this earth into 
the clouds4 ,this earth is the world of 
all  of us1 he says boldly1 in which we 

find our happiness or not at  all4#cha  
,lastly1 and this is perhaps the most   
important of all1 he  recognises that   
the still small voice of ,god breathes  
not out of  nature alone1 nor out of the
 soul alone1 but from the contact of the
  soul with nature4 ,it is the marriage 
of the intellect of man to this  goodly 
universe1 in love and holy passion1     
which produces these  raptures4         
,intellect includes ,imagination1 which 
is but another name  for ,reason in her 
most exalted mood2#chb these must assist
 the eye of  sense4    ,such is the     
discipline1 and such are the counsels1  
by which the  priest of ,nature must    
prepare himself to approach her         
mysteries4 ,and  what are the truths    
which contemplation revealed to him8    
,the first step on the way that leads to
 ,god was the sense of the  boundless1  
growing out of musings on the finite2   
and with it the  conviction that the    
,infinite and ,eternal alone can be our 
being's  heart and home--we feel that we

 are greater than we know4#chc ,then    
came to him--                           
,the sense sublime    ,of something far 
more deeply interfused1    ,whose       
dwelling is the light of setting suns1  
,and the round ocean and the living air1
    ,and the blue sky1 and in the mind  
of man2    ,a motion and a spirit1 that 
impels    ,all thinking things1 all     
objects of all thoughts1    ,and rolls  
through all things4#chd      ,the       
worldliness and artificiality which set 
us out of tune with all  this is worse  
than paganism4#che ,then this higher    
,pantheism  developed into the sense of 
an all-pervading ,personality1 a soul   
that  is the eternity of thought4 ,and  
with this heightened consciousness of   
the nature of ,god came also a deeper   
knowledge of his own personality1  a    
knowledge which he describes in true    
mystical language as a sinking  into    
self from thought to thought4 ,this may 
continue till man can at  last breathe  
in worlds to which the heaven of heavens

 is but a  veil1 and perceive the forms 
whose kingdom is where time and space   
are not4 ,these last lines describe a   
state analogous to the ,greek3  opsis of
 the ,neoplatonists1 and the excessus   
mentis of the ,catholic  mystics4 ,at   
this advanced stage the priest of       
,nature may surrender  himself to       
ecstasy without mistrust4 ,of such minds
 he says--                        ,the  
highest bliss    ,that flesh can know is
 theirs--the consciousness    ,of whom  
they are1 habitually infused    ,through
 every image and through every thought1 
,and all affections by communion raised 
,from earth to heaven1 from human to    
divine2444    ,thence cheerfulness for  
acts of daily life1    ,emotions which  
best foresight need not fear1    ,most  
worthy then of trust when most          
intense4#chf      ,there are many other 
places where he describes this bliss    
ineffable1  when all his thoughts were  
steeped in feeling1 as he listened to   
the  song which every form of creature  

sings as it looks towards the  uncreated
 with a countenance of adoration and an 
eye of love1#chg  that blessed mood--   
,in which the affections gently lead us 
on1--     ,until1 the breath of this    
corporeal frame1     ,and even the      
motion of our human blood     ,almost   
suspended1 we are laid asleep     ,in   
body1 and become a living soul3         
,while with an eye made quiet by the    
power     ,of harmony1 and the deep     
power of joy1     ,we see into the life 
of things4#chh      ,is it not plain    
that the poet of ,nature amid the       
,cumberland hills1 the  ,spanish ascetic
 in his cell1 and the ,platonic         
philosopher in his  library or          
lecture-room1 have been climbing the    
same mountain from  different sides8    
,the paths are different1 but the       
prospect from the  summit is the same4  
,it is idle to speak of collusion or    
insanity in  the face of so great a     
cloud of witnesses divided by every     
circumstance of date1 nationality1      

creed1 education1 and environment4  ,the
 ,carmelite friar had no interest in    
confirming the testimony of the         
,alexandrian professor2 and no one has  
yet had the temerity to question  the   
sanity of ,wordsworth1 or of ,tennyson1 
whose description of the  ,vision in his
 ,ancient ,sage is now known to be a    
record of personal  experience4 ,these  
explorers of the high places of the     
spiritual life  have only one thing in  
common--they have observed the          
conditions laid  down once for all for  
the mystic in the #bdth ,psalm1 ,who    
shall ascend  into the hill of the      
,lord8 or who shall stand in ,his holy  
place8 ,he  that hath clean hands and a 
pure heart2 who hath not lifted up his  
soul unto vanity1 nor sworn deceitfully4
 ,he shall receive the blessing  from   
the ,lord1 and righteousness from the   
,god of his salvation4 ,the  land which 
is very far off is always visible to    
those who have  climbed the holy        
mountain4 ,it may be scaled by the path 

of prayer and  mortification1 or by the 
path of devout study of ,god's handiwork
 in  ,nature 7and under this head ,i    
would wish to include not only the way  
traced out by ,wordsworth1 but that     
hitherto less trodden road which  should
 lead the physicist to ,god72 and1      
lastly1 by the path of  consecrated life
 in the great world1 which1 as it is the
 most exposed  to temptations1 is       
perhaps on that account the most blessed
 of the  three4#chi    ,it has been said
 of ,wordsworth1 as it has been said of 
other mystics1  that he averts his eyes 
from half of human fate4 ,religious     
writers  have explained that the        
neglected half is that which lies       
beneath the  shadow of the ,cross4 ,the 
existence of positive evil in the world1
 as a  great fact1 and the consequent   
need of redemption1 is1 in the opinion  
of many1 too little recognised by       
,wordsworth1 and by ,mysticism in       
general4 ,this objection has been urged 
both from the scientific and  from the  

religious side4 ,it is held by many     
students of ,nature that  her laws      
affirm a ,pessimism and not an          
,optimism4 ,red in tooth and  claw with 
ravine1 she shrieks against the creed   
that her ,maker is a  ,god of love4 ,the
 only morality which she inculcates is  
that of a tiger  in the jungle1 or at   
best that of a wolf-pack4 ,it is not    
strange  7says ,lotze7 that no          
nature-religions have raised their      
adherents to  any high pitch of morality
 or culture4#cij ,the answer to this is 
that ,nature includes man as well as the
 brutes1 and the merciful and  moral man
 as well as the savage4 ,physical       
science1 at any rate1 can  exclude      
nothing from the domain of ,nature4 ,and
 the ,christian may say  with all       
reverence that ,nature includes1 or     
rather is included by1  ,christ1 the    
,word of ,god1 by whom it was made4 ,and
 the ,word was made  flesh to teach us  
that vicarious suffering1 which we see  
to be the law  of ,nature1 is a law of  

,god1 a thing not foreign to ,his own   
life1 and  therefore for all alike a    
condition of perfection1 not a reductio 
ad  absurdum of existence4 ,the reductio
 ad absurdum is not of ,nature1  but of 
selfish individualism1 which suffers    
shipwreck alike in  objective and in    
subjective religion4 ,it is precisely   
because the  shadow of the ,cross lies  
across the world1 that we can watch     
,nature at  work with admiration1 hope1 
and love1 instead of with horror and    
disgust4    ,the religious objection    
amounts to little more than that        
,mysticism has  not succeeded in solving
 the problem of evil1 which no          
philosophy has  ever attacked with even 
apparent success4 ,it is1 however1 with 
some  reason that this difficulty has   
been pressed against the mystics2 for   
they are bound by their principles to   
attempt some solution1 and their        
tendency has been to attenuate the      
positive character of evil to a         
somewhat dangerous degree4 ,but if we   

sift the charges often brought  by      
religious writers against ,mysticism1 we
 shall generally find that  there lies  
at the bottom of their disapproval a    
residuum of medival  dualism1 which     
wishes to see in ,christ the conquering 
invader of a  hostile kingdom4 ,in      
practice1 at any rate1 the great mystics
 have not  taken lightly the struggle   
with the law of sin in our members1 or  
tried to heal slightly the wounds of the
 soul4#cia    ,it is quite true that the
 later mystics have been cheerful and   
optimistic4 ,but those who have found a 
kingdom in their own minds1 and  who    
have enough strength of character to    
live by reason and not by  opinion1 as  
,whichcote says 7in a maxim which was   
anticipated by that  arch-enemy of      
,mysticism--,epicurus71 are likely to be
 happier than  other men4 ,and1         
moreover1 ,wordsworth teaches us that   
almost1 if not  quite1 every evil may be
 so transmuted by the faculty which     
abides  within the soul1 that those     

interpositions which would hide and     
darken may become contingencies of pomp1
 and serve to exalt her  native         
brightness2 even as the moon1 rising    
behind a thick and lofty  grove1 turns  
the dusky veil into a substance glorious
 as her own4 ,so  the happy warrior is  
made more compassionate by the scenes of
 horror  which he is compelled to       
witness4 ,whether this healing and      
purifying  effect of sorrow points the  
way to a solution of the problem of evil
  or not1 it is a high and noble faith1 
the one and only consolation  which we  
feel not to be a mockery when we are in 
great trouble4    ,these charges1 then1 
do not seem to form a grave indictment  
against  the type of ,mysticism of which
 ,wordsworth is the best representative4
  ,but he does fall short of the ideal  
held up by ,st4 ,john for the           
,christian mystic1 in that his love and 
sympathy for inanimate ,nature  were 7at
 any rate in his poetry7 deeper than for
 humanity4 ,and if  there is any        

accusation which may justly be brought  
against the higher  order of mystics 7as
 opposed to representatives of aberrant 
types71 ,i  think it is this3 that they 
have sought and found ,god in their own 
souls and in ,nature1 but not so often  
in the souls of other men and  women3   
theirs has been a lonely religion4 ,the 
grand old maxim1 ,vides  fratrem1 vides 
,dominum tuum1 has been remembered by   
them only in acts  of charity4 ,but in  
reality the love of human beings must be
 the  shortest road to the vision of    
,god4 ,love1 as ,st4 ,john teaches us1  
is  the great hierophant of the         
,christian mysteries4 ,it gives wings to
  contemplation and lightens the        
darkness which hides the face of ,god4  
,when our emotions are deeply stirred1  
even ,nature speaks to us with  voices  
unheard before2 while the man who is    
without human affection is  either quite
 unmoved by her influences1 or misreads 
all her lessons4    ,the spiritualising 
power of human love is the redeeming    

principle in  many sordid lives4        
,teutonic civilisation1 which derives   
half of its  restless energy from ideals
 which are essentially anti-,christian1 
and  tastes which are radically         
barbarous1 is prevented from sinking    
into  moral materialism by its high     
standard of domestic life4 ,the sweet   
influences of the home deprive even     
mammon-worship of half its  grossness   
and of some fraction of its evil4 ,as a 
schoolmaster to bring  men and women to 
,christ1 natural affection is without a 
rival4 ,it is  in the truest sense a    
symbol of our union with ,him from whom 
every  family in heaven and earth is    
named4 ,it is needless to labour a      
thesis  on which nearly all are agreed2 
but it may be worth pointing out that1  
though ,st4 ,paul felt the unique value 
of ,christian marriage as a  symbol of  
the mystical union of ,christ and the   
,church1 this truth was  for the most   
part lost sight of by the medival       
mystics1 who as monks  and priests were1

 of course1 cut off from domestic life4 
,the romances  of true love which the   
,old ,testament contains were treated as
  prophecies wrapped up in riddling     
language1 or as models for ecstatic     
contemplation4 ,wordsworth1 though his  
own home was a happy one1 does  not     
supply this link in the mystical chain4 
,the most noteworthy  attempt to do so  
is to be found in the poetry of ,robert 
,browning1  whose ,mysticism is in this 
way complementary to that of            
,wordsworth4#cib ,he resembles          
,wordsworth in always trying to see the 
infinite in things1 but considers that  
little else 7than the  development of a 
soul7 is worth study4 ,this is not      
exactly a return  to subjective         
,mysticism1 for ,browning is as well    
aware as ,goethe that  if a talent grows
 best in solitude1 a character is       
perfected only  in the stream of the    
world4 ,with him the friction of active 
life1  and especially the experience of 
human love1 are necessary to realise    

the ,divine in man4 ,quite in the spirit
 of ,st4 ,john he asks1 ,how can  that  
course be safe1 which from the first    
produces carelessness to  human love8   
,do not cut yourself from human weal 444
 there are  strange punishments for such
 as do so4#cic ,solitude is the death of
  all but the strongest virtue1 and in  
,browning's view it also deprives  us of
 the strongest inner witness to the     
existence of a loving ,father  in       
heaven4 ,for he who finds love full in  
his nature cannot doubt  that in this1  
as in all else1 the ,creator must far   
surpass the  creature4#cid ,since1 then1
 in knowing love we learn to know ,god1 
and  since the object of life is to know
 ,god 7this1 the mystic's minor         
premiss1 is taken for granted by        
,browning71 it follows that love is  the
 meaning of life2 and he who finds it   
not loses what he lived for1  and       
eternally must lose it4#cie ,the        
mightiness of love is curled            
inextricably round all power and beauty 

in the world4 ,the worst fate  that can 
befall us is to lead a ghastly smooth   
life1 dead at  heart4#cif ,especially   
interesting is the passage where he     
chooses or  chances upon ,eckhart's     
image of the spark in the centre of the 
soul1  and gives it a new turn in       
accordance with his own ,mysticism--    
,it would not be because my eye grew dim
     ,thou could'st not find the love   
there1 thanks to ,him     ,who never is 
dishonoured in the spark     ,he gave us
 from ,his fire of fires1 and bade      
,remember whence it sprang1 nor be      
afraid     ,while that burns on1 though 
all the rest grow dark4#cig      ,our   
language has no separate words to       
distinguish ,christian love  7,greek3   
agap--caritas7 from sexual love 7,greek3
 ers--amor72  charity has not           
established itself in its wider meaning4
 ,perhaps this  is not to be            
regretted--at any rate ,browning's poems
 could hardly be  translated into any   
language in which this distinction      

exists4 ,but let  us not forget that the
 ascetic element is as strong in        
,browning as in  ,wordsworth4 ,love1 he 
seems to indicate1 is no exception to   
the rule that  our joys may be three    
parts pain1 for where pain ends gain    
ends  too4#cih                    ,not  
yet on thee    ,shall burst the future1 
as successive zones    ,of several      
wonder open on some spirit    ,flying   
secure and glad from heaven to heaven2  
,but thou shalt painfully attain to joy1
    ,while hope and fear and love shall 
keep thee man4#cii      ,he even carries
 this law into the future life1 and will
 have none of a  joy which is           
crystallised for ever4 ,felt            
imperfection is a proof of  a higher    
birthright3#djj if we have arrived at   
the completion of our  nature as men1   
then begins anew a tendency to ,god4    
,this faith in  unending progress as the
 law of life is very characteristic of  
our own  age4#dja ,it assumes a         
questionable shape sometimes2 but       

,browning's  trust in real success      
through apparent disappointments--a     
trust even  based on the consciousness  
of present failure--is certainly one of 
the noblest parts of his religious      
philosophy4    ,i have decided to end my
 survey of ,christian ,mysticism with   
these two  ,english poets4 ,it would    
hardly be appropriate1 in this place1 to
  discuss ,carlyle's doctrine of        
symbols1 as the clothing of religious   
and other kinds of truth4 ,his          
philosophy is wanting in some of the    
essential features of ,mysticism1 and   
can hardly be called ,christian  without
 stretching the word too far4 ,and      
,emerson1 when he deals with  religion1 
is a very unsafe guide4 ,the great      
,american mystic1 whose  beautiful      
character was as noble a gift to        
humanity as his writings1  is more      
liable than any of those whom we have   
described to the  reproach of having    
turned his back on the dark side of     
life4 ,partly  from a fastidiousness    

which could not bear even to hear of    
bodily  ailments1 partly from the       
natural optimism of the dweller in a new
  country1 and partly because he made a 
principle of maintaining an  unruffled  
cheerfulness and serenity1 he shut his  
eyes to pain1 death1  and sin1 even more
 resolutely than did ,goethe4 ,the      
optimism which is  built on this        
foundation has no message of comfort for
 the stricken  heart4 ,to say that evil 
is only good in the making1 is to repeat
 an  ancient and discredited attempt to 
solve the great enigma4 ,and to  assert 
that perfect justice is meted out to    
individuals in this world1  is surely   
mere dreaming4 ,moreover1 we can hardly 
acquit him of playing  with pantheistic 
,mysticism of the ,oriental type1       
without seeing1 or  without caring1     
whither such speculations logically     
lead4 ,within  man1 he tells us1 is the 
soul of the whole1 the wise silence1 the
  universal beauty1 to which every part 
and particle is equally  related--the   

eternal ,one4 ,this is genuine          
,pantheism1 and should carry  with it   
the doctrine that all actions are       
equally good1 bad1 or  indifferent4     
,emerson says that his wife kept him    
from antinomianism2  but this is giving 
up the defence of his philosophy4 ,he   
also differs  from ,christianity1 and   
agrees with many ,hegelians1 in teaching
 that  ,god1 the ,over-,soul1 only      
attains to self-consciousness in man2   
and  this1 combined with his denial of  
degrees in ,divine immanence1 leads  him
 to a self-deification of an arrogant   
and shocking kind1 such as we  find in  
the ,persian ,sufis1 and in some        
heretical mystics of the ,middle  ,ages4
 ,i1 the imperfect1 adore my own        
,perfect4 ,i am receptive of the  great 
soul4 ,i become a transparent eyeball4  
,i am nothing4 ,i see all4  ,the        
currents of the universal ,being        
circulate through me4 ,i am part of     
,god2 and much more to the same effect4 
,this is not the language of  those who 

have travelled up the mystical ladder1  
instead of only  writing about it4 ,it  
is far more objectionable than the bold 
phrases  about deification which ,i     
quoted in my fifth ,lecture from the    
fourteenth century mystics2 because with
 them the passage into the  ,divine     
glory is the final reward1 only to be   
attained by all manner  of exercises2   
while for ,emerson it seems to be a     
state already  existing1 which we can   
realise by a mere act of intellectual   
apprehension4 ,and the phrase1 ,man is a
 part of ,god1--as if the  ,divine      
,spirit were divided among the organs   
which express its  various              
activities1--has been condemned by all  
the great speculative  mystics1 from    
,plotinus downwards4 ,emerson is perhaps
 at his best when  he applies his       
idealism to love and friendship4 ,the   
spiritualising and  illuminating        
influence of pure comradeship has never 
been better or  more religiously set    
forth4 ,and though it is necessary to be

 on our  guard against the very         
dangerous tendency of some of his       
teaching1 we  shall find much to learn  
from the brave and serene philosopher   
whose  first maxim was1 ,come out into  
the azure2 love the day1 and who  during
 his whole life fixed his thoughts      
steadily on whatsoever things  are pure1
 lovely1 noble1 and of good report4     
,the constructive task which lies before
 the next century is1 if ,i may  say so 
without presumption1 to spiritualise    
science1 as morality and  art have      
already been spiritualised4 ,the vision 
of ,god should appear  to us as a triple
 star of truth1 beauty1 and             
goodness4#djb ,these are  the three     
objects of all human aspiration2 and our
 hearts will never  be at peace till all
 three alike rest in ,god4 ,beauty is   
the chief  mediator between the good and
 the true2#djc and this is why the great
  poets have been also prophets4 ,but   
,science at present lags behind2 she    
has not found her ,god2 and to this is  

largely due the unrest of the  age4     
,much has already been done in the right
 direction by divines1  philosophers1   
and physicists1 and more still1 perhaps1
 by the great  poets1 who have striven  
earnestly to see the spiritual          
background  which lies behind the       
abstractions of materialistic science4  
,but much  yet remains to be done4 ,we  
may agree with ,hinton that ,positivism 
bears a new ,platonism in its bosom2 but
 the child has not yet come to  the     
birth4#djd    ,meanwhile1 the special   
work assigned to the ,church of ,england
 would  seem to be the development of a 
,johannine ,christianity1 which shall   
be both ,catholic and ,evangelical      
without being either ,roman or          
,protestant4 ,it has been abundantly    
proved that neither ,romanism nor       
,protestantism1 regarded as             
alternatives1 possesses enough of the   
truth  to satisfy the religious needs of
 the present day4 ,but is it not        
probable that1 as the theology of the   

,fourth ,gospel acted as a  reconciling 
principle between the opposing sections 
in the early  ,church1 so it may be     
found to contain the teaching which is  
most  needed by both parties in our own 
communion8 ,in ,st4 ,john and ,st4 ,paul
  we find all the principles of a sound 
and sober ,christian ,mysticism2  and it
 is to these fresh springs of the       
spiritual life that we must  turn1 if   
the ,church is to renew her youth4    ,i
 attempted in my second ,lecture to     
analyse the main elements of  ,christian
 ,mysticism as found in ,st4 ,paul and  
,st4 ,john4 ,but since in  the later    
,lectures ,i have been obliged to draw  
from less pure sources1  and since1     
moreover1 ,i am most anxious not to     
leave the impression  that ,i have been 
advocating a vague spirituality tempered
 by  rationalism1 ,i will try in a few  
words to define my position             
apologetically1 though ,i am well aware 
that it is a hazardous and  difficult   
task4    ,the principle1 ,cuique in sua 

arte credendum est1 applies to those    
who have been eminent for personal      
holiness as much as to the leaders  in  
any other branch of excellence4 ,even in
 dealing with arts which  are akin to   
each other1 we do not invite poets to   
judge of music1 or  sculptors of        
architecture4 ,we need not then be      
disturbed if we  occasionally find men  
illustrious in other fields1 who are as 
insensible to religion as to poetry4    
,our reverence for the character  and   
genius of ,charles ,darwin need not     
induce us to lay aside either  our      
,shakespeare or our ,new ,testament4#dje
 ,the men to whom we  naturally turn as 
our best authorities in spiritual       
matters1 are those  who seem to have    
been endowed with an anima naturaliter  
,christiana1  and who have devoted their
 whole lives to the service of ,god and 
the  imitation of ,christ4    ,now it   
will be found that these men of         
acknowledged and pre-eminent            
saintliness agree very closely in what  

they tell us about ,god4 ,they  tell us 
that they have arrived gradually at an  
unshakable conviction1  not based on    
inference but on immediate experience1  
that ,god is a  ,spirit with whom the   
human spirit can hold intercourse2 that 
in ,him  meet all that they can imagine 
of goodness1 truth1 and beauty2 that    
they can see ,his footprints everywhere 
in nature1 and feel ,his  presence      
within them as the very life of their   
life1 so that in  proportion as they    
come to themselves they come to ,him4   
,they tell us  that what separates us   
from ,him and from happiness is1 first1 
self-seeking in all its forms2 and1     
secondly1 sensuality in all its  forms2 
that these are the ways of darkness and 
death1 which hide from  us the face of  
,god2 while the path of the just is like
 a shining  light1 which shineth more   
and more unto the perfect day4 ,as they 
have  toiled up the narrow way1 the     
,spirit has spoken to them of ,christ1  
and  has enlightened the eyes of their  

understandings1 till they have at  least
 begun to know the love of ,christ which
 passeth knowledge1 and  to be filled   
with all the fulness of ,god4    ,so    
far1 the position is unassailable4 ,but 
the scope of the argument  has1 of      
course1 its fixed limits4 ,the inner    
light can only testify to  spiritual    
truths4 ,it always speaks in the present
 tense2 it cannot  guarantee any        
historical event1 past or future4 ,it   
cannot guarantee  either the ,gospel    
history or a future judgment4 ,it can   
tell us that  ,christ is risen1 and that
 ,he is alive for evermore1 but not that
 ,he  rose again the third day4 ,it can 
tell us that the gate of everlasting    
life is open1 but not that the dead     
shall be raised incorruptible4 ,we  have
 other faculties for investigating the  
evidence for past events2  the inner    
light cannot certify them immediately1  
though it can give a  powerful support  
to the external evidence4 ,for though we
 are in no  position to dogmatise about 

the relations of the temporal to the    
eternal1 one fact does seem to stand    
out1--that the two are1 for us1  bound  
together4 ,if1 when we read the         
,gospels1 the ,spirit itself  beareth   
witness with our spirit that here are   
the words of eternal  life1 and the     
character which alone in history is     
absolutely flawless1  then it is natural
 for us to believe that there has been1 
at that  point of time1 an ,incarnation 
of the ,word of ,god ,himself4 ,that the
  revelation of ,christ is an absolute  
revelation1 is a dogmatic  statement    
which1 strictly speaking1 only the      
,absolute could make4 ,what  we mean by 
it is that after two thousand years we  
are unable to  conceive of its being    
ever superseded in any particular4 ,and 
if anyone  finds this inadequate1 he may
 be invited to explain what higher      
degree  of certainty is within our      
reach4 ,with regard to the future life1 
the  same consideration may help us to  
understand why the ,church has clung  to

 the belief in a literal second coming  
of ,christ to pronounce the  dooms of   
all mankind4 ,but our ,lord ,himself has
 taught us that in that  day and that   
hour lies hidden a more inscrutable     
mystery than even ,he  ,himself1 as man1
 could reveal4    ,there is one other   
point on which ,i wish to make my       
position clear4  ,the fact that human   
love or sympathy is the guide who       
conducts us to  the heart of life1      
revealing to us ,god and ,nature and    
ourselves1 is  proof that part of our   
life is bound up with the life of the   
world1  and that if we live in these our
 true relations we shall not entirely   
die so long as human beings remain alive
 upon this earth4 ,the progress  of the 
race1 the diminution of sin and misery1 
the advancing kingdom  of ,christ on    
earth1--these are matters in which we   
have a personal  interest4 ,the strong  
desire that we feel--and the best of us 
feel it  most strongly--that the human  
race may be better1 wiser1 and happier  

in the future than they are now or have 
been in the past1 is neither  due to a  
false association of ideas1 nor to pure 
unselfishness4 ,there  is a sense in    
which death would not be the end of     
everything for us1  even though in this 
life only we had hope in ,christ4       
,but when this comforting and inspiring 
thought is made to form the  basis of a 
new ,chiliasm--a belief in a millennium 
of perfected  humanity on this earth1   
and when this belief is substituted for 
the  ,christian belief in an eternal    
life beyond our bourne of time and      
place1 it is necessary to protest that  
this belief entirely fails to  satisfy  
the legitimate hopes of the human race1 
that it is bad  philosophy1 and that it 
is flatly contrary to what science tells
 us of  the destiny of the world and of 
mankind4 ,the human spirit beats        
against the bars of space and time      
themselves1 and could never be          
satisfied with any earthly utopia4 ,our 
true home must be in some  higher sphere

 of existence1 above the contradictions 
which make it  impossible for us to     
believe that time and space are ultimate
  realities1 and out of reach of the    
inevitable catastrophe which the  next  
glacial age must bring upon the human   
race4#djf ,this world of  space and time
 is to resemble heaven as far as it can2
 but a fixed  limit is set to the amount
 of the ,divine plan which can be       
realised  under these conditions4 ,our  
hearts tell us of a higher form of      
existence1 in which the doom of death is
 not merely deferred but  abolished4    
,this eternal world we here see through 
a glass darkly3 at  best we can         
apprehend but the outskirts of ,god's   
ways1 and hear a  small whisper of ,his 
voice2 but our conviction is that1      
though our  earthly house be dissolved  
7as dissolved it must be71 we have a    
home  not made with hands1 eternal in   
the heavens4 ,in this hope we may       
include all creation2 and trust that in 
some way neither more nor less          

incomprehensible than the deliverance   
which we expect for ourselves1  all     
,god's creatures1 according to their    
several capacities1 may be set  free    
from the bondage of corruption and      
participate in the final  triumph over  
death and sin4 ,most firmly do ,i       
believe that this faith  in immortality1
 though formless and inpalpable as the  
air we breathe1  and incapable of       
definite presentation except under      
inadequate and  self-contradictory      
symbols1 is nevertheless enthroned in   
the centre of  our being1 and that those
 who have steadily set their affections 
on  things above1 and lived the risen   
life even on earth1 receive in          
themselves an assurance which robs death
 of its sting1 and is an  earnest of a  
final victory over the grave4    ,it is 
not claimed that ,mysticism1 even in its
 widest sense1 is1 or can  ever be1 the 
whole of ,christianity4 ,every religion 
must have an  institutional as well as a
 mystical element4 ,just as1 if the     

feeling  of immediate communion with    
,god has faded1 we shall have a dead    
,church  worshipping a dead ,christ1 as 
,fox the ,quaker said of the ,anglican  
,church in his day2 so1 if the seer and 
prophet expel the priest1 there  will be
 no discipline and no cohesion4 ,still1 
at the present time1 the  greatest need 
seems to be that we should return to the
 fundamentals of  spiritual religion4   
,we cannot shut our eyes to the fact    
that both the  old seats of authority1  
the infallible ,church and the          
infallible  book1 are fiercely assailed1
 and that our faith needs               
reinforcements4  ,these can only come   
from the depths of the religious        
consciousness  itself2 and if summoned  
from thence1 they will not be found     
wanting4  ,the impregnable rock is      
neither an institution nor a book1 but a
  life or experience4 ,faith1 which is  
an affirmation of the basal             
personality1 is its own evidence and    
justification4 ,under normal            

conditions1 it will always be strongest 
in the healthiest minds4 ,there  is and 
can be no appeal from it4 ,if1 then1 our
 hearts1 duly prepared  for the         
reception of the ,divine ,guest1 at     
length say to us1 ,this ,i  know1 that  
whereas ,i was blind1 now ,i see1 we    
may1 in ,st4 ,john's  words1 have       
confidence towards ,god4    ,the        
objection may be raised--,but these     
beliefs change1 and merely  reflect the 
degree of enlightenment or its opposite1
 which every man  has reached4 ,the     
conscience of the savage tells him      
emphatically that  there are some things
 which he must not do2 and blind        
obedience to  this categorical          
imperative has produced not only all the
 complex  absurdities of taboo1 but     
crimes like human sacrifice1 and faith  
in  a great many things that are not4   
,perhaps we are leaving behind the      
theological stage1 as we have already   
left behind those superstitions  of     
savagery4 ,now the study of primitive   

religions does seem to me to  prove the 
danger of resting religion and morality 
on unreasoning  obedience to a supposed 
revelation2 but that is not my position4
 ,the  two forces which kill mischievous
 superstitions are the knowledge of     
nature1 and the moral sense2 and we are 
quite ready to give both free  play1    
confident that both come from the living
 ,word of ,god4 ,the fact  that a       
revelation is progressive is no argument
 that it is not ,divine3  it is1 in     
fact1 only when the free current of the 
religious life is  dammed up that it    
turns into a swamp1 and poisons human   
society4 ,of  course we must be ready to
 admit with all humility1 that our      
notions  of ,god are probably unworthy  
and distorted enough2 but that is no    
reason why we should not follow the     
light which we have1 or mistrust  it on 
the ground that it is too good to be    
true4    ,nor would it be fair to say   
that this argument makes religion depend
  merely on feeling4 ,a theology based  

on mere feeling is 7as ,hegel  said7 as 
much contrary to revealed religion as to
 rational knowledge4  ,the fact that    
,god is present to our feeling is no    
proof that ,he  exists2 our feelings    
include imaginations which have no      
reality  corresponding to them4 ,no1 it 
is not feeling1 but the heart or  reason
 7whichever term we prefer71 which      
speaks with authority4 ,by  the heart or
 reason ,i mean the whole personality   
acting in concord1 an  abiding mood of  
thinking1 willing1 and feeling4 ,the    
life of the spirit  perhaps begins with 
mere feeling1 and perhaps will be       
consummated in  mere feeling1 when that 
which is in part shall be done away2 but
  during its struggles to enter into its
 full inheritance1 it gathers up  into  
itself the activities of all the        
faculties1 which act  harmoniously      
together in proportion as the organism  
to which they  belong is in a healthy   
state4    ,once more1 this reliance on  
the inner light does not mean that every

  man must be his own prophet1 his own  
priest1 and his own saviour4 ,the       
individual is not independent of the    
,church1 nor the ,church of the         
historical ,christ4 ,but the ,church is 
a living body and the  ,incarnation and 
,atonement are living facts still in    
operation4 ,they  are part of the       
eternal counsels of ,god2 and whether   
they are enacted  in the ,abyss of the  
,divine ,nature1 or once for all in     
their fulness on  the stage of history1 
or in miniature1 as it were1 in your    
soul and  mine1 the process is the same1
 and the tremendous importance of those 
historical facts which our creeds affirm
 is due precisely to the fact  that they
 are not unique and isolated portents1  
but the supreme  manifestation of the   
grandest and most universal laws4       
,these considerations may well have a   
calming and reassuring influence  upon  
those who1 from whatever cause1 are     
troubled by religious doubts4  ,the     
foundation of ,god standeth sure1 having

 this seal1 ,the ,lord  knoweth1 and is 
known by1 them that are ,his4 ,but we   
must not expect  that religious         
difficulties will ever cease4 ,every    
truth that we  know is but the husk of a
 deeper truth2 and it may be that the   
,holy  ,spirit has still many things to 
say to us1 which we cannot bear now4    
,each generation and each individual has
 his own problem1 which has  never been 
set in exactly the same form before3 we 
must all work out  our own salvation1   
for it is ,god who worketh in us4 ,if we
 have  realised the meaning of these    
words of ,st4 ,paul1 which ,i have had  
occasion to quote so often in these     
,lectures1 we cannot doubt that1  though
 we now see through a glass darkly1 and 
know only in part1 we  shall one day    
behold our ,eternal ,father face to     
face1 and know ,him  even as we are     
known4    ,,footnotes3    ,footnote     
#cfd3 ,horace1 ,ep4 i4 #ab4 #ai4        
,footnote #cfe3 ,greek3 polypoikilos    
sophia1 ,eph4 iii4 #aj4    ,footnote    

#cff3 ,pindar1 ,olymp4 ii4 #aed4        
,footnote #cfg3 ,barine in ,revue des   
,deux ,mondes1 ,april #ahia4            
,footnote #cfh3 ,the latter1 like       
,fechner in our own century1 holds that 
the stars are living organisms1 whose   
sensibility is full of  pleasure4       
,footnote #cfi3 ,see ,illingworth's     
,divine ,immanence1 where this and      
other interesting passages are quoted4  
,but ,suso was1 of course1 not  a       
,protestant mystic4 ,and ,i cannot agree
 with the author when he says  that     
,lucretius found no religious           
inspiration in ,nature4 ,the poet of    
the ,nature of ,things shows himself to 
have been a lonely man1 who  had        
pondered much among the hills and by the
 sea1 and who loved to  taste the pure  
delights of the spring4 ,thence came to 
him the holy  joy and dread 7qudam      
divina voluptas atque horror7 which     
pulsates  through his great poem as he  
shatters the barbarous mythology of     
paganism1 and then1 in the spirit of a  

priest rather than of a  philosopher1   
turns the bright shafts of day upon the 
folly and  madness of those who are     
slaves to the world or the flesh4 ,the  
spirit  of ,lucretius is the spirit of  
modern science1 which tends neither to  
materialism nor to atheism1 whatever its
 friends and enemies may say4           
,footnote #cgj3 ,christian ,platonism   
has never been more beautifully set     
forth than in the poem of ,spenser named
 above4 ,compare1 especially1  the      
following stanzas3--        ,the means1 
therefore1 which unto us is lent        
,him to behold1 is on ,his works to     
look1     ,which ,he hath made in beauty
 excellent1     ,and in the same1 as in 
a brazen book     ,to read enregistered 
in every nooke     ,his goodness1 which 
,his beauty doth declare3     ,for all  
that's good is beautiful and fair4      
,thence gathering plumes of perfect     
speculation1     ,to imp the wings of   
thy high-flying mind1     ,mount up     
aloft through heavenly contemplation1   

,from this dark world1 whose damps the  
soul do blind1     ,on that bright ,sun 
of glory fix thine eyes1     ,cleared   
from gross mists of frail infirmities4  
,shelley sums up a great deal of        
,plotinus in the following stanza of    
,adonais3--        ,the ,one remains2   
the many change and pass2     ,heaven's 
light for ever shines2 earth's shadows  
fly2     ,life1 like a dome of          
many-coloured glass1     ,stains the    
white radiance of eternity4             
,compare1 too1 the opening lines of     
,alastor4    ,footnote #cga3 ,compare   
the following sentences in ,bradley's   
,appearance and ,reality3 ,nature viewed
 materialistically is only an           
abstraction for certain purposes1 and   
has not a high degree of truth  or      
reality4 ,the poet's nature has much    
more4444 ,our principle1 that  the      
abstract is the unreal1 moves us        
steadily upward4444 ,it compels us  in  
the end to credit nature with our higher
 emotions4 ,that process can  only cease

 when nature is quite absorbed into     
spirit1 and at every  stage of the      
process we find increase in reality4    
,footnote #cgb3 ,prelude1 viii4 #cdj sq4
    ,footnote #cgc3 ,prelude1 viii4     
#ffh4    ,footnote #cgd3 ,la            
,rochefoucauld4    ,footnote #cge3      
,these words1 from ,milton's ,comus1 are
 applied to  ,wordsworth by ,hazlitt4   
,footnote #cgf3 ,prelude1 iv4           
#abjg-abbi4 ,the ascetic element in     
,wordsworth's ethics should by no means 
be forgotten by those who envy  his     
brave and unruffled outlook upon life4  
,as ,hutton says excellently  7,essays1 
p4 #ha71 there is volition and          
self-government in every  line of his   
poetry1 and his best thoughts come from 
the steady  resistance he opposes to the
 ebb and flow of ordinary desires and   
regrets4 ,he contests the ground inch by
 inch with all despondent and  indolent 
humours1 and often1 too1 with movements 
of inconsiderate and  wasteful          
joy--turning defeat into victory1 and   

victory into defeat4  ,see the whole    
passage4    ,footnote #cgg3 ,prelude1   
vi4 #fjd-fjh4    ,footnote #cgh3        
,miscell4 ,sonnets1 xii4    ,footnote   
#cgi3 ,see the ,essay in which he deals 
with ,macpherson3 ,in  nature everything
 is distinct1 yet nothing defined into  
absolute  independent singleness4 ,in   
,macpherson's work it is exactly the    
reverse--everything is defined1         
insulated1 dislocated1 deadened--yet    
nothing distinct4    ,footnote #chj3    
,excursion1 v4 #ejj-ead4    ,footnote   
#cha3 ,this seemed flat blasphemy to    
,shelley1 whose idealism  was mixed with
 ,byronic misanthropy4 ,nor was there   
aught the world  contained of which he  
could approve4    ,footnote #chb3       
,prelude1 xiv4 #aib4 ,wordsworth's      
psychology is very  interesting4        
,imagination is for him 7,miscellaneous 
,sonnets1 xxxv47  a glorious faculty1   
whose function it is to elevate the     
more-than-reasoning mind2 'tis hers to  
pluck the amaranthine flower  of ,faith1

 and colour life's dark cloud with      
orient rays4 ,this  faculty is at once  
more than reason1 and identical with    
,reason in  her most exalted mood4 ,i   
have said 7p4#ba7 that ,mysticism is    
reason  applied to a sphere above       
rationalism and this appears to be      
exactly  ,wordsworth's doctrine4        
,footnote #chc3 ,sonnets on the ,river  
,duddon1 xxxiv4    ,footnote #chd3      
,lines composed above ,tintern ,abbey1  
#ie-ajb4    ,footnote #che3 ,miscell4   
,sonnets1 xxxiii4    ,footnote #chf3    
,prelude1 xiv4 #aab-abi4    ,footnote   
#chg3 ,prelude1 ii4 #cif-dah4           
,footnote #chh3 ,lines composed above   
,tintern ,abbey1 #ce-dh4    ,footnote   
#chi3 ,wordsworth's ,mysticism contains 
a few subordinate  elements which are of
 more questionable value4 ,the echoes   
from beyond  the grave1 which the inward
 ear sometimes catches1 are dear to most
  of us2 but we must not be too         
confident that they always come from    
,god4 ,still less can we be sure that   

presentiments are heaven-born           
instincts4 ,again1 when the lonely      
thinker feels himself surrounded by     
huge and mighty forms1 that do not move 
like living men1 it is a  sign that the 
dim and undetermined sense of unknown   
modes of being  has begun to work not   
quite healthily upon his imagination4   
,and the  doctrine of pre-existence1    
which appears in the famous ,ode1 is one
  which it has been hitherto impossible 
to admit into the scheme of  ,christian 
beliefs1 though many ,christian thinkers
 have dallied with  it4 ,perhaps the    
true lesson of the ,ode is that the     
childish love of  nature1 beautiful and 
innocent as it is1 has to die and be    
born again  in the consciousness of the 
grown man4 ,that ,wordsworth himself    
passed  through this experience1 we know
 from other passages in his writings4   
,in his case1 at any rate1 the light of 
common day was1 for a time at  least1   
more splendid than the roseate hues of  
his childish imagination  can possibly  

have been2 and there seems to be no     
reason for holding  the gloomy view that
 spiritual insight necessarily becomes  
dimmer as  we travel farther from our   
cradles1 and nearer to our graves4 ,what
  fails us as we get older is only that 
kind of vision which is  analogous to   
the consolations often spoken of by     
monkish mystics as  the privilege of    
beginners4 ,amiel expresses exactly the 
same regret as  ,wordsworth3 ,shall ,i  
ever enjoy again those marvellous       
reveries of  past days8444 ,see the     
whole paragraph on p4 #cb of ,mrs4      
,humphry ,ward's  translation4          
,footnote #cij3 ,these objections are   
pressed by ,lotze1 and not only by      
avowed ,pessimists4 ,lotze abhors what  
he calls sentimental symbolism  because 
it interferes with his monadistic       
doctrines4 ,i venture to say  that any  
philosophy which divides man1 as a being
 sui generis1 from  the rest of ,nature1
 is inevitably landed either in         
,acosmism or in  ,manichean ,dualism4   

,footnote #cia3 ,this is perhaps the    
best place to notice the mystical       
treatise of ,james ,hinton1 entitled    
,man and his ,dwelling-place1 which  is 
chiefly remarkable for its attempt to   
solve the problem of evil4  ,this writer
 pushes to an extremity the favourite   
mystical doctrine  that we surround     
ourselves with a world after our own    
likeness1 and  considers that all the   
evil which we see in ,nature is the     
projection  of our own deadness4 ,apart 
from the unlikelihood of a theory which 
makes man--the roof and crown of        
things--the only diseased and           
discordant element in the universe1 the 
writer lays himself open to  the fatal  
rejoinder1 ,did ,christ1 then1 see no   
sin or evil in the  world8 ,the         
doctrines of sacrifice 7vicarious       
suffering7 as a blessed  law of ,nature 
7the secret of the universe is learnt on
 ,calvary71 and  of the necessity of    
annihilating the self as the principle  
of evil1  are pressed with a harsh and  

unnatural rigour4 ,our blessed ,lord    
laid  no such yoke upon us1 nor will    
human nature consent to bear it4 ,the   
atonement of the world by love is much  
better delineated by ,r4,l4             
,nettleship1 in a passage which seems to
 me to exhibit the very kernel  of      
,christian ,mysticism in its social     
aspect4 ,suppose that all human  beings 
felt permanently to each other as they  
now do occasionally to  those they love 
best4 ,all the pain of the world would  
be swallowed up  in doing good4 ,so far 
as we can conceive of such a state1 it  
would be  one in which there would be no
 'individuals' at all1 but an universal 
being in and for another2 where being   
took the form of consciousness1  it     
would be the consciousness of 'another' 
which was also 'oneself'--a  common     
consciousness4 ,such would be the       
'atonement' of the world4    ,footnote  
#cib3 ,charles ,kingsley is another     
mystic of the same school4    ,footnote 
#cic3 ,browning1 ,paracelsus1 ,act i4   

,footnote #cid3 ,browning1 ,saul1 xvii4 
,footnote #cie3 ,browning1 ,cristina4   
,footnote #cif3 ,browning1 ,christmas   
,eve and ,easter ,day1 xxx41  xxxiii4   
,footnote #cig3 ,browning1 ,any ,wife to
 any ,husband4    ,footnote #cih3       
,compare ,plato's well-known sentence3  
,greek3 di  algdonn kai odynn gignetai h
 pheleia1 ou gar oion te  alls adikias  
apallattesthai4    ,footnote #cii3      
,browning1 ,paracelsus4    ,footnote    
#djj3 ,compare ,pascal3 ,no one is      
discontented at not being a  king1      
except a discrowned king4    ,footnote  
#dja3 ,it is almost as prominent in     
,tennyson as in ,browning3  ,give her   
the wages of going on1 and not to die1  
is his wish for the  human soul4        
,footnote #djb3 ,i had written these    
words before the publication of         
,principal ,caird's ,sermons1 which     
contain1 in my judgment1 the most       
powerful defence of what ,i have called 
,christian ,mysticism that has  appeared
 since ,william ,law4 ,on p4 #ad he     

says3 ,of all things good and  fair and 
holy there is a spiritual cognisance    
which precedes and is  independent of   
that knowledge which the understanding  
conveys4 ,he  shows how in the          
contemplation of nature it is by an     
organ deeper  than intellectual thought 
that the revelation of material beauty  
flows in upon the soul4 ,and in like    
manner there is an apprehension  of ,god
 and ,divine things which comes upon the
 spirit as a living  reality which it   
immediately and intuitively perceives4  
444 ,there is  a capacity of the soul1  
by which the truths of religion may be  
apprehended and appropriated4 ,see the  
whole sermon1 entitled1 ,what  is       
,religion8 and many other parts of the  
book4    ,footnote #djc3 ,cf4 ,hegel    
7,philosophy of ,religion1 vol4 ii4 p4  
#h73  ,the ,beautiful is essentially the
 ,spiritual making itself known         
sensuously1 presenting itself in        
sensuous concrete existence1 but in     
such a manner that that existence is    

wholly and entirely permeated by  the   
,spiritual1 so that the sensuous is not 
independent1 but has its  meaning solely
 and exclusively in the ,spiritual and  
through the  ,spiritual1 and exhibits   
not itself1 but the ,spiritual4         
,footnote #djd3 ,some reference ought   
perhaps to be made to ,drummond's       
,natural ,law in the ,spiritual ,world4 
,but ,mysticism seeks rather to  find   
spiritual law in the natural world--and 
some better law than  ,drummond's       
,calvinism4 7,and ,i cannot help        
thinking that1 though  ,evolution       
explains much and contradicts nothing in
 ,christianity1 it is  in danger of     
proving an ignis fatuus to many1        
especially to those  who are inclined to
 idealistic pantheism4 ,there can be no 
progress or  development in ,god1 and   
the cosmic process as we know it cannot 
have a  higher degree of reality than   
the categories of time and place under  
which it appears4 ,as for the millennium
 of perfected humanity on this  earth1  

which some ,positivists and others dream
 of1--,christianity has  nothing to say 
against it1 but science has a great     
deal47 ,see below1  p4 #cbh4            
,footnote #dje3 ,in the ,life of        
,charles ,darwin there is an interesting
  letter1 in which he laments the       
gradual decay of his taste for poetry1  
as his mind became a mere machine for   
grinding out general laws from  a mass  
of observations4 ,the decay of religious
 feeling in many men  of high character 
may be accounted for in the same way4   
,the really  great man is conscious of  
the sacrifice which he is making4 ,it is
 an  accursed evil to a man1 ,darwin    
wrote to ,hooker1 to become so  absorbed
 in any subject as ,i am in mine4 ,the  
common-place man is  not conscious of   
it3 he obtains his heart's desire1 if he
 works hard  enough1 and ,god sends     
leanness withal into his soul4          
,footnote #djf3 ,the metaphysical       
problem about the reality of time in    
relation to evolution is so closely     

bound up with speculative  ,mysticism1  
that ,i have been obliged to state my   
own opinion upon it4  ,it is1 of course1
 one of the vexed questions of          
philosophy at the  present time2 and ,i 
could not afford the space1 even if ,i  
had the  requisite knowledge and        
ability1 to argue it4 ,the best         
discussion of  it that ,i know is in    
,m',taggart's ,studies in ,hegelian     
,dialectic1 pp4  #aei-bjb4 ,cf4 note on 
p4 #bc4          ,,appendices           
,,appendix ,a    ,definitions ,of       
,mysticism ,and ,mystical ,theology     
,the following definitions are given    
only as specimens4 ,the list might  be  
made much longer by quoting from other  
,roman ,catholic theologians1  but their
 definitions for the most part agree    
closely enough with  those which ,i have
 transcribed from ,corderius1 ,john a   
,jesu ,maria1 and  ,gerson4    #a4      
,corderius4 ,theologia mystica est      
sapientia experimentalis1 ,dei          
affectiva1 divinitus infusa1 qu mentem  

ab omni inordinatione puram  per actus  
supernaturales fidei spei et caritatis  
cum ,deo intime  coniungit4444 ,mystica 
theologia1 si vim nominis attendas1     
designat  quandam sacram et arcanam de  
,deo divinisque rebus notitiam4    #b4  
,john a ,jesu ,maria4 ,theologia mystica
 est clestis qudam ,dei  notitia per    
unionem voluntatis ,deo inhrentis       
elicita vel lumine  clitus immisso      
producta4    #c4 ,bonaventura 7adopted  
also by ,gerson74 ,est animi extensio in
 ,deum  per amoris desiderium4    #d4   
,gerson4 ,theologia mystica est motio   
anagogica in ,deum per amorem  fervidum 
et purum4 ,aliter sic3 ,theologia       
mystica est experimentalis  cognitio    
habita de ,deo per amoris unitivi       
complexum4 ,aliter sic3 est  sapientia1 
id est sapida notio habita de ,deo1 dum 
ei supremus apex  affectiv potenti      
rationalis per amorem iungitur et       
unitur4    #e4 ,scaramelli4 ,la         
theologia mistica esperimentale1 secondo
 il suo  atto principale e pi proprio1  

una notizia pura di ,dio che l' anima   
d'ordinario riceve nella caligine       
luminosa1 o per di meglio nel chiaro    
oscuro d' un' alta contemplazione1      
insieme con un amore esperimentale  si  
intimo1 che la fa perdere tutta a s     
stessa per unirla e  transformarla in   
,dio4    #f4 ,ribet4 ,la thologie       
mystique1 au point de vue subjectif et  
exprimental1 nous semble pouvoir tre    
dfinie3 une attraction  surnaturelle et 
passive de l'me vers ,dieu1 provenant   
d'une  illumination et d'un embrasement 
intrieurs1 qui prviennent la  rflexion1 
surpassent l'effort humain1 et pouvent  
avoir sur le corps  un retentissement   
merveilleux et irrsistible4444 ,au point
 de vue  doctrinal objectif1 la mystique
 peut se dfinir3 la science qui traite  
des phnomnes surnaturels1 qui prparent1 
accompagnent1 et suivent  l'attraction  
passive des mes vers ,dieu et par ,dieu1
 c'est  dire la  contemplation divine2  
qui les coordonne et les justifie par   
l'autorit  de l'criture1 des docteurs et

 de la raison2 les distingue des        
phnomnes parallles dus a l'action de    
,satan1 et des faits analogues  purement
 naturels2 enfin1 qui trace des rgles   
pratiques pour la  conduite des mes dans
 ces ascensions sublimes mais           
prilleuses4    #g4 ,l',abb ,migne4 ,la  
mystique est la science d'tat sur       
naturel de  l'me humaine manifest dans  
le corps et dans l'ordre des choses     
visibles par des effets galement        
surnaturels4    ,in these scholastic and
 modern ,roman ,catholic definitions we 
may  observe 7a7 that the earlier       
definitions supplement without          
contradicting each other1 representing  
different aspects of ,mysticism1  as an 
experimental science1 as a living       
sacrifice of the will1 as an            
illumination from above1 and as an      
exercise of ardent devotion2 7b7  that  
symbolic or objective ,mysticism is not 
recognised2 7c7 that the  sharp         
distinction between natural and         
supernatural1 which is set up by  the   

scholastic mystics1 carries with it a   
craving for physical  mystical phenomena
 to support the belief in supernatural  
interventions4 ,these miracles1 though  
not mentioned in the earlier            
definitions1 have come to be considered 
an integral part of ,mysticism1  so that
 ,migne and ,ribet include them in their
 definitions2 7d7  lastly1 that those   
who take this view of la mystique divine
 are  constrained to admit by the side  
of true mystical facts a parallel  class
 of contrefaons diaboliques4    #h4 ,von
 ,hartmann4 ,mysticism is the filling of
 the consciousness with  a content      
7feeling1 thought1 desire71 by an       
involuntary emergence of  the same out  
of the unconscious4    ,von ,hartmann's 
hypostasis of the ,unconscious has been 
often and  justly criticised4 ,but his  
chapter on ,mysticism is of great value4
 ,he  begins by asking1 ,what is the    
,wesen of ,mysticism8 and shows that  it
 is not quietism 7disproved by mystics  
like ,bhme1 and by many  active         

reformers71 nor ecstasy 7which is       
generally pathological71 nor            
asceticism1 nor allegorism1 nor         
fantastic symbolism1 nor obscurity of   
expression1 nor religion generally1 nor 
superstition1 nor the sum of  these     
things4 ,it is healthy in itself1 and   
has been of high value to  individuals  
and to the race4 ,it prepared for the   
,gospel of ,st4 ,john1  for the revolt  
against arid scholasticism in the       
,middle ,ages1 for the  ,reformation1   
and for modern ,german philosophy4 ,he  
shows the mystical  element in ,hamann1 
,jacobi1 ,fichte1 and ,schelling2 and   
quotes with  approval the description of
 intellectual intuition given by the    
last  named4 ,we must not speak of      
thought as an antithesis to experience1 
for thought 7including immediate or     
mystical knowledge7 is itself           
experience4 ,this knowledge is not      
derived from sense-perception1--the     
conscious will has nothing to do with   
it1--it can only have arisen  through   

inspiration from the ,unconscious4 ,he  
would extend the name of  mystic to     
eminent art-geniuses who owe their      
productions to  inspirations of genius1 
and not to the work of their            
consciousness  7e4g4 ,phidias1 eschylus1
 ,raphael1 ,beethoven71 and even to     
every  truly original philosopher1 for  
every high thought has been first       
apprehended by the glance of genius4    
,moreover1 the relation of the          
individual to the ,absolute1 an         
essential theme of philosophy1 can  only
 be mystically apprehended4 ,this       
feeling is the content of  ,mysticism   
,greek3 kat exochn1 because it finds its
 existence only  in it4 ,he then shows  
with great force how religious and      
philosophical  systems have full        
probative force only for the few who are
 able to  reproduce mystically in       
themselves their underlying             
suppositions1 the  truth of which can   
only be mystically apprehended4 ,hence  
it is that  those systems which rejoice 

in most adherents are just the poorest  
of  all and most unphilosophical 7e4g4  
materialism and rationalistic  ,theism74
    #i4 ,du ,prel4 ,if the self is not  
wholly contained in  self-consciousness1
 if man is a being dualised by the      
threshold of  sensibility1 then is      
,mysticism possible2 and if the         
threshold of  sensibility is movable1   
then ,mysticism is necessary4 ,the      
mystical  phenomena of the soul-life are
 anticipations of the biological        
process4 ,soul is our spirit within the 
self-consciousness1 spirit is  the soul 
beyond the self-consciousness4    ,this 
definition1 with which should be        
compared the passage from ,j4,p4        
,ritcher1 quoted in ,lecture ,i41       
assumes that ,mysticism may be treated  
as a branch of experimental psychology4 
,du ,prel attaches great  importance to 
somnambulism and other kindred psychical
 phenomena1  which 7he thinks7 give us  
glimpses of the inner world of our ,ego1
 in  many ways different from our waking

 consciousness4 ,as the moon turns  to  
us only half its orb1 so our ,ego4 ,he  
distinguishes between the ,ego  and the 
subject4 ,the former will perish at     
death4 ,it arises from the  free act of 
the subject1 which enters the           
time-process as a  discipline4 ,the     
self-conscious ,ego is a projection of  
the  transcendental subject1 and        
resembles it4 ,we should regard this    
earthly existence as a transitory       
phenomenal form in correspondence  with 
our transcendental interest4 ,conscience
 is transcendental  nature4 7,this last 
sentence suggests thoughts of great     
interest47 ,du  ,prel shows how         
,schopenhauer's pessimism may be made   
the basis of a  higher optimism4 ,the   
path of biological advance leads to the 
merging  of the ,ego in the subject4    
,the biological aim for the race        
coincides  with the transcendental aim  
for the individual4 ,the whole content  
of  ,ethics is that the ,ego must       
subserve the ,subject4 ,the disillusions

 of  experience show that earthly life  
has no value for its own sake1 and  is  
only a means to an end2 it follows that 
to make pleasure our end is  the one    
fatal mistake in life4 ,these thoughts  
are mixed with  speculations of much    
less value2 for ,i cannot agree with ,du
 ,prel that  we shall learn much about  
higher and deeper modes of life by      
studying  abnormal and pathological     
states of the consciousness4    #aj4    
,goethe4 ,mysticism is the scholastic of
 the heart1 the dialectic  of the       
feelings4    #aa4 ,noack4 ,mysticism is 
formless speculation4    ,noack's       
definition is1 perhaps1 not very happily
 phrased1 for the  essence of ,mysticism
 is not speculation but intuition2 and  
when it  begins to speculate1 it is     
obliged at once to take to itself forms4
  ,even the ultimate goal of the via    
negativa is apprehended as a kind  of   
form of formlessness4 ,goethe's         
definition regards ,mysticism as a      
system of religion or philosophy1 and   

from this point of view  describes it   
accurately4    #ab4 ,ewald4 ,mystical   
theology begins by maintaining that man 
is  fallen away from ,god1 and craves to
 be again united with ,him4    #ac4     
,canon ,overton4 ,that we bear the image
 of ,god is the  starting-point1 one    
might almost say the postulate1 of all  
,mysticism4  ,the complete union of the 
soul with ,god is the goal of all       
,mysticism4    #ad4 ,pfleiderer4        
,mysticism is the immediate feeling of  
the unity of  the self with ,god2 it is 
nothing1 therefore1 but the fundamental 
feeling of religion1 the religious life 
at its very heart and centre4  ,but what
 makes the mystical a special tendency  
inside religion1 is the  endeavour to   
fix the immediateness of the life in    
,god as such1 as  abstracted from all   
intervening helps and channels whatever1
 and find  a permanent abode in the     
abstract inwardness of the life of pious
  feeling4 ,in this ,god-intoxication1  
in which self and the world are  alike  

forgotten1 the subject knows himself to 
be in possession of the  highest and    
fullest truth2 but this truth is only   
possessed in the  quite undeveloped1    
simple1 and bare form of monotonous     
feeling2 what  truth the subject        
possesses is not filled up by any       
determination in  which the simple unity
 might unfold itself1 and it lacks      
therefore the  clearness of knowledge1  
which is only attained when thought     
harmonises  differences with unity4     
#ae4 ,professor ,a4 ,seth4 ,mysticism is
 a phase of thought1 or rather1         
perhaps1 of feeling1 which from its very
 nature is hardly susceptible  of exact 
definition4 ,it appears in connexion    
with the endeavour of the  human mind to
 grasp the ,divine essence or the       
ultimate reality of  things1 and to     
enjoy the blessedness of actual         
communion with the  highest4 ,the first 
is the philosophic side of ,mysticism2  
the second1  its religious side4 ,the   
thought that is most intensely present  

with  the mystic is that of a supreme1  
all-pervading1 and indwelling ,power1   
in whom all things are one4 ,hence the  
speculative utterances of  ,mysticism   
are always more or less pantheistic in  
character4 ,on the  practical side1     
,mysticism maintains the possibility of 
direct  intercourse with this ,being of 
beings4 ,god ceases to be an object1 and
  becomes an experience4    ,this       
carefully-worded statement of the       
essence of ,mysticism is  followed by a 
hostile criticism4 ,professor ,seth     
considers quietism the  true conclusion 
from the mystic's premisses4 ,it is     
characteristic of  ,mysticism1 that it  
does not distinguish between what is    
metaphorical  and what is susceptible of
 a literal interpretation4 ,hence it is 
prone  to treat a relation of ethical   
harmony as if it were one of            
substantial identity or chemical fusion2
 and1 taking the sensuous  language of  
religious feeling literally1 it bids the
 individual aim at  nothing less than an

 interpenetration of essence4 ,and as   
this goal is  unattainable while reason 
and the consciousness of self remain1   
the  mystic begins to consider these as 
impediments to be thrown aside4444      
,hence ,mysticism demands a faculty     
above reason1 by which the subject      
shall be placed in immediate and        
complete union with the object of his   
desire1 a union in which the            
consciousness of self has disappeared1  
and in which1 therefore1 subject and    
object are one4 ,to this1 ,i  think1 the
 mystic might answer3 ,i know well that 
interpenetration and  absorption are    
words which belong to the category of   
space1 and are  only metaphors or       
symbols of the relation of the soul to  
,god2 but  separateness1                
impenetrability1 and isolation1 which   
you affirm of the  ego1 belong to the   
same category1 and are no whit less     
metaphorical4  ,the question is1 which  
of the two sets of words best expresses 
the  relation of the ransomed soul to   

its ,redeemer8 ,in my opinion1 your     
phrase 'ethical harmony' is altogether  
inadequate1 while the ,new  ,testament  
expressions1 'membership1' 'union1'     
'indwelling1' are as  adequate as words 
can be4 ,the rest of the criticism is   
directed  against the negative road1    
which ,i have no wish to defend1 since  
,i  cannot admit that it follows        
logically from the first principles of  
,mysticism4    #af4 ,rcjac4 ,mysticism  
is the tendency to approach the         
,absolute  morally1 and by means of     
symbols4    ,rcjac's very interesting   
,essai sur les ,fondements de la        
,connaissance mystique has the great    
merit of emphasising the symbolic       
character of all mystical phenomena1 and
 of putting all such  experiences in    
their true place1 as neither            
hallucinations nor  invasions of the    
natural order1 but symbols of a higher  
reality4 ,les  apparitions et autres    
phnomnes mystiques n'existent que dans  
l'esprit du voyant1 et ne perdent rien  

pour cela de leur prix ni de  leur      
vrit4444 ,et alors n'y a-t-il pas au    
fond des symboles autant  d'tre que sous
 les phnomnes8 ,bien plus encore3 car   
l'tre  phnomnal1 le rel1 se pose dans la
 conscience par un enchanement de  faits
 tellement successif que nous ne tenons 
jamais 'le mme'2 tandis  que sous les   
symboles1 si nous tenons quelque chose1 
c'est l'identique  et le permanent4     
,rcjac also insists with great force    
that the  motive power of ,mysticism is 
neither curiosity nor self-interest1 but
  love3 the intrusion of alien motives  
is at once fatal to it4 ,its  logic     
consists in having confidence in the    
rationality of the moral  consciousness 
and its desires4 ,this agrees with what 
,i have  said--that ,reason is1 or      
should be1 the logic of our entire      
personality1 and that if ,reason is so  
defined1 it does not come into  conflict
 with ,mysticism4 ,rcjac also has much  
to say upon ,free ,will  and            
,determinism4 ,he says that ,mysticism  

is an alliance between the  ,practical  
,reason 7which he identifies with la    
,libert7 and  ,imagination4 ,determinism
 is the opposite1 not of ',liberty1' but
 of  'indifference4' ,liberty1 as       
,fouille says1 is only a higher form of 
,determinism4 ,the modern idea of       
liberty1 and the mystical conception  of
 ,divine will1 may be reconciled in the 
same way as inspiration and  reason1 on 
condition that both are discovered in   
the same fact  interior to us1 and that1
 far from being opposed to each other1  
they  are fused and distinguished       
together dans quelque implicite         
rellement prsent a la conscience4 ,rcjac
 throughout appeals to  ,kant instead of
 to ,hegel as his chief philosophical   
authority1 in this  differing from the  
majority of those who are in sympathy   
with  ,mysticism4    #ag4 ,bonchitt4    
,mysticism consists in giving to the    
spontaneity of  the intelligence a      
larger part than to the other faculties4
    #ah4 ,charles ,kingsley4 ,the great 

,mysticism is the belief which is       
becoming every day stronger with me1    
that all symmetrical natural  objects   
are types of some spiritual truth or    
existence4 ,when ,i walk  the fields1 ,i
 am oppressed now and then with an      
innate feeling that  everything ,i see  
has a meaning1 if ,i could but          
understand it4 ,and this  feeling of    
being surrounded with truths which ,i   
cannot grasp1 amounts  to indescribable 
awe sometimes4 ,everything seems to be  
full of ,god's  reflex1 if we could but 
see it4 ,oh1 how ,i have prayed to have 
the  mystery unfolded1 at least         
hereafter6 ,to see1 if but for a moment1
 the  whole harmony of the great system6
 ,to hear once the music which the      
whole universe makes as it performs ,his
 bidding6 ,oh1 that heaven6 ,the        
thought of the first glance of creation 
from thence1 when we know even  as we   
are known4 ,and ,he1 the glorious1 the  
beautiful1 the incarnate  ,ideal shall  
be justified in all ,his doings1 and in 

all1 and through  all1 and over all4444 
,all day1 glimpses from the other world1
 floating  motes from that inner        
transcendental life1 have been floating 
across  me4444 ,have you not felt that  
your real soul was imperceptible to your
  mental vision1 except at a few        
hallowed moments8 ,that in everyday life
  the mind1 looking at itself1 sees only
 the brute intellect1 grinding  and     
working1 not the ,divine particle1 which
 is life and immortality1  and on which 
the ,spirit of ,god most probably works1
 as being most  cognate to ,deity       
7,life1 vol4 i4 p4 #ee74 ,again he says3
 ,this earth  is the next greatest fact 
to that of ,god's existence4            
,kingsley's review of ,vaughan's ,hours 
with the ,mystics shows that he         
retained his sympathy with ,mysticism at
 a later period of his life4 ,it  would 
be impossible to find any consistent    
idealistic philosophy in  ,kingsley's   
writings2 but the sentences above quoted
 are interesting as  a profession of    

faith in ,mysticism of the objective    
type4    #ai4 ,r4,l4 ,nettleship4 ,the  
cure for a wrong ,mysticism is to       
realise  the facts1 not particular facts
 or aspects of facts1 but the whole     
fact3 true ,mysticism is the            
consciousness that everything that we   
experience is an element1 and only an   
element1 in fact2 i4e4 that in  being   
what it is1 it is symbolic of something 
more4    ,the obiter dicta on ,mysticism
 in ,nettleship's ,remains are of great 
value4    #bj4 ,lasson4 ,the essence of 
,mysticism is the assertion of an       
intuition which transcends the temporal 
categories of the  understanding1       
relying on speculative reason4          
,rationalism cannot  conduct us to the  
essence of things2 we therefore need    
intellectual  vision4 ,but ,mysticism is
 not content with symbolic knowledge1   
and  aspires to see the ,absolute by    
pure spiritual apprehension4444 ,there  
is a contradiction in regarding ,god as 
the immanent ,essence of all  things1   

and yet as an abstraction transcending  
all things4 ,but it is  inevitable4     
,pure immanence is unthinkable1 if we   
are to maintain  distinctions in        
things4444 ,strict 'immanence' doctrine 
tends towards  the monopsychism of      
,averroes4444 ,mysticism is often       
associated with  pantheism1 but the     
religious character of ,mysticism views 
everything  from the standpoint of      
teleology1 while pantheism generally    
stops at  causality4444 ,mysticism1     
again1 is often allied with rationalism1
 but  their ground-principles are       
different1 for rationalism is deistic1  
and  rests on this earth1 being based on
 the understanding as opposed to  the   
higher faculty1 the reason4444 ,nothing 
can be more perverse than  to accuse    
,mysticism of vagueness4 ,its danger is 
rather an  overvaluing of reason and    
knowledge4444 ,mysticism is only        
religious so  long as it remembers that 
we can here only see through a glass    
darkly2  when it tries to represent the 

eternal adequately1 it falls into a  new
 and dangerous retranslation of thought 
into images1 or into bare  negation4444 
,religion is a relation of person to    
person1 a life1 which  in its form is an
 analogy to the earthly1 while its      
content is pure  relation to the        
eternal4 ,dogmatic is the skeleton1     
,mysticism the  life-blood1 of the      
,christian body4444 ,since the          
,reformation1  philosophy has taken over
 most of the work which the speculative 
mystics performed in the ,middle ,ages  
7,essay on the ,essence and ,value  of  
,mysticism74    #ba4 ,nordau4 ,the word 
,mysticism describes a state of mind in 
which  the subject imagines that he     
perceives or divines unknown and        
inexplicable relations among phenomena1 
discerns in things hints at  mysteries1 
and regards them as symbols by which a  
dark power seeks to  unveil1 or at least
 to indicate1 all sorts of marvels4444  
,it is always  connected with strong    
emotional excitement4444 ,nearly all our

  perceptions1 ideas1 and conceptions   
are connected more or less closely      
through the association of ideas4 ,but  
to make the association of ideas  fulfil
 its function1 one more thing must be   
added--attention1 which  is the faculty 
to suppress one part of the             
memory-images and maintain  another     
part4 ,we must select the strongest and 
most direct images1  those directly     
connected with the afferent nerves2 this
 ,ribot calls  adaptation of the whole  
organism to a predominant idea4444      
,attention  presupposes strength of     
will4 ,unrestricted play of association1
 the  result of an exhausted or         
degenerate brain1 gives rise to         
,mysticism4  ,since the mystic cannot   
express his cloudy thoughts in ordinary 
language1 he loves mutually exclusive   
expressions4 ,mysticism blurs  outlines1
 and makes the transparent opaque4      
,the ,germans have two words for what we
 call ,mysticism--,mystik and           
,mysticismus1 the latter being generally

 dyslogistic4 ,the long chapter  in     
,nordau's ,degeneration1 entitled       
,mysticism1 treats it throughout  as a  
morbid state4 ,it will be observed that 
the last sentence quoted  flatly        
contradicts one of the statements copied
 from ,lasson's essay4 ,but  ,nordau is 
not attacking religious ,mysticism1 so  
much as that unwholesome  development of
 symbolic science1 falsely so called1   
which has usurped  the name in modern   
,france4 ,those who are interested in   
,mysticism should  certainly study the  
pathological symptoms which counterfeit 
mystical  states1 and from this point of
 view the essay in ,degeneration is     
valuable4 ,the observations of ,nordau  
and other alienists must lead us to     
suspect very strongly the following     
kinds of symbolical representation1     
whether the symbols are borrowed from   
the external world1 or created by  the  
imagination3--7a7 ,all those which      
include images of a sexual  character4  
,it is unnecessary to illustrate this4  

,the visions of monks  and nuns are     
often1 as we might expect1 unconsciously
 tinged with a  morbid element of this  
kind4 7b7 ,those which depend on mere   
verbal  resemblances or other fortuitous
 correspondences4 ,nordau shows that the
  diseased brain is very ready to follow
 these false trains of  association4 7c7
 ,those which are connected with the    
sense of smell1  which seems to be      
morbidly developed in this kind of      
degeneracy4 7d7  ,those which in any way
 minister to pride or self-sufficiency4 
#bb4 ,harnack4 ,mysticism is rationalism
 applied to a sphere above  reason4     
,i have criticised this definition in my
 first ,lecture1 and have  suggested    
that the words rationalism and reason   
ought to be  transposed4 ,elsewhere     
,harnack says that the distinctions     
between  ,scholastic1 ,roman1 ,german1  
,catholic1 ,evangelical1 and            
,pantheistic  ,mysticism are at best    
superficial1 and in particular that it  
is a  mistake to contrast ,scholasticism

 and ,mysticism as opposing forces  in  
the ,middle ,ages4 ,mysticism1 he       
proceeds1 is ,catholic piety in         
general1 so far as this piety is not    
merely ecclesiastical obedience1  that  
is1 fides implicita4 ,the ,reformation  
element which is ascribed  to it lies   
simply in this1 that ,mysticism1 when   
developed in a  particular direction1 is
 led to discern the inherent            
responsibility of  the soul1 of which no
 authority can again deprive it4 ,the   
conflicts  between ,mysticism and       
,church authority1 he thinks1 in no way 
militate  against both being ,catholic  
ideals1 just as asceticism and          
world-supremacy are both ,catholic      
ideals1 though contradictory4 ,the      
,german mystics he disparages4 ,i give  
no extracts from their  writings1 he    
says1 because ,i do not wish even to    
seem to countenance  the error that they
 expressed anything that one cannot read
 in ,origen1  ,plotinus1 the            
,areopagite1 ,augustine1 ,erigena1      

,bernard1 and ,thomas1 or  that they    
represented religious progress4 ,it will
 never be possible  to make ,mysticism  
,protestant without flying in the face  
of history and  ,catholicism4 ,a mystic 
who does not become a ,catholic is a    
dilettante4    ,before considering these
 statements1 ,i will quote from another 
attack  upon ,mysticism by a writer     
whose general views are very similar to 
those of ,harnack4    #bc4 ,herrmann    
7,verkehr des ,christen mit ,gott74 ,the
 most  conspicuous features of the      
,roman ,catholic rule of life are       
obedience  to the laws of cultus and of 
doctrine on the one side1 and           
,neoplatonic  ,mysticism on the         
other4444 ,the essence of ,mysticism    
lies in this3 when  the influence of    
,god upon the soul is sought and found  
solely in an  inward experience of the  
individual2 when certain excitements of 
the  emotions are taken1 with no further
 question1 as evidence that the  soul is
 possessed by ,god3 when at the same    

time nothing external to  the soul is   
consciously and clearly perceived and   
firmly grasped2 when  no thoughts that  
elevate the spiritual life are aroused  
by the  positive contents of an idea    
that rules the soul1--then that is the  
piety of ,mysticism4444 ,mysticism is   
not that which is common to all         
religion1 but a particular species of   
religion1 namely a piety which  feels   
that which is historical in the positive
 religion to be  burdensome1 and so     
rejects it4    ,these extracts from     
,harnack and ,herrmann represent the    
attitude  towards ,mysticism of the     
,ritschlian school in ,germany1 of which
 ,kaftan  is another well-known         
exponent4 ,they are neo-,kantians1 whose
 religion  is an austere moralism1 and  
who seem to regard ,christianity as a   
primitive ,puritanism1 spoiled by the   
,greeks1 who brought into it their      
intellectualism and their sacramental   
mysteries4 ,true ,christianity1  they   
say1 is faith in the historic ,christ4  

,in the human ,jesus1 says  ,herrmann1  
we have met with a fact1 the content of 
which is  incomparably richer than that 
of any feelings which arise within      
ourselves1--a fact1 moreover1 which     
makes us so certain of ,god that1  our  
reason and conscience being judges1 our 
conviction is only  confirmed that we   
are in communion with ,him4 ,the        
mystic's experience  of ,god is a       
delusion4 ,if the ,christian has learnt 
how ,christ alone has  lifted him above 
all that he had even been before1 he    
cannot believe  that another man might  
reach the same end by simply turning    
inward  upon himself4 ,the piety of the 
mystic is such that at the highest      
point to which it leads ,christ must    
vanish from the soul along with  all    
else that is external4 ,this curious    
view of ,christianity quite  fails to   
explain how our reason and conscience   
can detect the  incomparable richness of
 a revelation altogether unlike the     
feelings which arise within ourselves4  

,it entirely ignores the  ,pauline and  
,johannine doctrine of the mystical     
union1 according to  which ,christ is   
not external to the redeemed soul1 and  
most  assuredly can never vanish from   
it4 ,instead of the ,lo ,i am with you  
alway of our blessed ,lord1 we are      
referred to history--that is1           
primarily1 the four ,gospels confirmed  
by a fifth1 the united  testimony of the
 first ,christian community 7,harnack1  
,christianity  and ,history74 ,we are   
presented with a ,christianity without  
knowledge  7,gnosis71 without           
discipline1 without sacraments1 resting 
partly on a  narrative which these very 
historical critics tear in pieces1 each 
in  his own fashion1 and partly on a    
categorical imperative which is  really 
the voice of irreligious moralism1 as   
,pfleiderer calls it4  ,the words are   
justified by such a sentence as this    
from ,herrmann3  ,religious faith in    
,god is1 rightly understood1 just the   
medium by  which the universal law      

becomes individualised for the          
particular man  in his particular place 
in the world's life1 so as to enable him
 to  recognise its absoluteness as the  
ground of his self-certainty1 and  the  
ideal drawn in it as his own personal   
end4 ,thus the school which  has shown  
the greatest animus against ,mysticism  
unconsciously  approaches very near to  
the atheism of ,feuerbach4 ,indeed1 what
 worse  atheism can there be1 than such 
disbelief in the rationality of our     
highest thoughts as is expressed in this
 sentence3 ,metaphysics is an           
impassioned endeavour to obtain         
recognition for thoughts1 the contents  
of which have no other title to be      
recognised than their value for  us8 ,as
 if faith in ,god had any other meaning 
than a confidence that  what is of value
 for us is the eternally and universally
 good and  true6 ,herrmann's attitude   
towards reason can only escape atheism  
by  accepting in preference the crudest 
dualism1 behind which 7to quote         

,pfleiderer again7 lies concealed simply
 the scepticism of a  disintegrating    
,nominalism4    #bd4 ,victor ,cousin4   
,mysticism is the pretension to know    
,god without  intermediary1 and1 so to  
speak1 face to face4 ,for ,mysticism1   
whatever  is between ,god and us hides  
,him from us4 ,mysticism consists in    
substituting direct inspiration for     
indirect1 ecstasy for reason1  rapture  
for philosophy4    #be4 ,r4,a4 ,vaughan4
 ,mysticism is that form of error which 
mistakes  for a ,divine manifestation   
the operations of a merely human        
faculty4    ,this poor definition is the
 only one 7except ,mysticism is the     
romance  of religion7 to be found in    
,hours with the ,mystics1 the solitary  
work in ,english which attempts to give 
a history of ,christian  ,mysticism4    
,the book has several conspicuous       
merits4 ,the range of the  author's     
reading is remarkable1 and he has a     
wonderful gift of  illustration4 ,but he
 was not content to trust to the        

interest of the  subject to make his    
book popular1 and tried to attract      
readers by  placing it in a most        
incongruous setting4 ,there is something
 almost  offensive in telling the story 
of men like ,tauler1 ,suso1 and ,juan of
  the ,cross1 in the form of smart      
conversations at a house-party1 and  the
 jokes cracked at the expense of the    
benighted mystics are not  always in the
 best taste4 ,vaughan does not take his 
subject quite  seriously enough4 ,there 
is an irritating air of superiority in  
all his  discussions of the lives and   
doctrines of the mystics1 and his hatred
  and contempt for the ,roman ,church   
often warp his judgment4 ,his own       
philosophical standpoint is by no means 
clear1 and this makes his  treatment of 
speculative ,mysticism less satisfactory
 than the more  popular parts of the    
book4 ,it is also a pity that he has    
neglected the  ,english representatives 
of ,mysticism2 they are quite as        
interesting in  their way as ,madame    

,guyon1 whose story he tells at         
disproportionate  length4 ,at the same  
time1 ,i wish to acknowledge            
considerable  obligations to ,vaughan1  
whose early death probably deprived us  
of even  better work than the book which
 made his reputation4    #bf4 ,james    
,hinton4 ,mysticism is an assertion of a
 means of knowing  that must not be     
tried by ordinary rules of evidence--the
 claiming  authority for our own        
impressions4    ,another poor and       
question-begging definition1 on the same
 lines as the  last4          ,,appendix
 ,b    ,the ,greek ,mysteries ,and      
,christian ,mysticism      ,the         
connexion between the ,greek ,mysteries 
and ,christian ,mysticism is  marked not
 only by the name which the world has   
agreed to give to that  type of religion
 7though it must be said that ,greek3   
mystria is not  the commonest name for  
the ,mysteries--,greek3 orgia1 teletai1 
tel  are all1 ,i think1 more frequent71 
but by the evident desire on the  part  

of such founders of mystical            
,christianity as ,clement and           
,dionysius the ,areopagite1 to emphasise
 the resemblance4 ,it is not  without a 
purpose that these writers1 and other   
,platonising  theologians from the third
 to the fifth century1 transfer to the  
faith  and practice of the ,church      
almost every term which was associated  
with  the ,eleusinian ,mysteries and    
others like them4 ,for instance1 the    
sacraments are regularly ,greek3        
mystria2 baptism is ,greek3  mystikon   
loutron 7,gregory of ,nyssa72 unction1  
,greek3 chrisma  mystikon 7,athanasius72
 the elements1 ,greek3 mystis edd       
7,gregory  ,naz472 and participation in 
them is ,greek3 mystik metalpsis4       
,baptism1 again1 is initiation ,greek3  
mysis2 a baptized person is  ,greek3    
memymenos1 ,greek3 mysts or ,greek3     
symmysts 7,gregory ,ny4  and            
,chrysostom71 an unbaptized person is   
,greek3 amytos4 ,the  celebrant is      
,greek3 mystrin lanthanontn mystaggos   

7,gregory ,ny472  the administration is 
,greek3 paradosis1 as at ,eleusis4 ,the 
sacraments are also ,greek3 telet or    
,greek3 tel1 regular  ,mystery-words2 as
 are ,greek3 teleisis1 teleiousthai1    
teleiopoios1  which are used in the same
 connexion4 ,secret formulas 7the notion
 of  secret formulas itself comes from  
the ,mysteries7 were ,greek3  aporrta4  
7,whether the words ,greek3 phtismos and
 ,greek3 sphragis  in their sacramental 
meaning come from the ,mysteries seems  
doubtful1  in spite of ,hatch1 ,hibbert 
,lectures1 p4 #bie47 ,nor is the        
language of  the ,mysteries applied only
 to the sacraments4 ,clement calls      
purgative  discipline ,greek3 ta        
katharsia1 and ,greek3 ta mikra mystria1
 and  the highest stage in the spiritual
 life ,greek3 epopteia4 ,he also  uses  
such language as the following3 ,o truly
 sacred mysteries6 ,o  stainless light6 
,my way is lighted with torches1 and ,i 
survey the  heavens and ,god6 ,i am     
become holy while ,i am being initiated4

 ,the ,lord  is my hierophant1 etc4     
7,protr4 xii4 #abj74 ,dionysius1 as ,i  
have  shown in a note on ,lecture       
,,iii41 uses the ,mystery words         
frequently1  and gives to the orders of 
the ,christian ministry the names which 
distinguished the officiating priests at
 the ,mysteries4 ,the aim of  these     
writers was to prove that the ,church   
offers a mysteriosophy  which includes  
all the good elements of the old        
,mysteries without  their corruptions4  
,the alliance between a                 
,mystery-religion and  speculative      
,mysticism within the ,church was at    
this time as close as  that between the 
,neoplatonic philosophy and the revived 
pagan ,mystery  cults4 ,but when we try 
to determine the amount of direct       
influence  exercised by the later       
paganism on ,christian usages and       
thought1 we  are baffled both by the    
loss of documents1 and by the extreme   
difficulty of tracing the pedigree of   
religious ideas and customs4 ,i  shall  

here content myself with calling        
attention to certain features  which    
were common to the ,greek ,mysteries and
 to ,alexandrian  ,christianity1 and    
which may perhaps claim to be in part a 
legacy of  the old religion to the new4 
,my object is not at all to throw       
discredit upon modes of thought which   
may have been unfamiliar to             
,palestinian ,jews4 ,a doctrine or      
custom is not necessarily un-,christian 
because it is ,greek or pagan4 ,i know  
of no stranger perversity  than for men 
who rest the whole weight of their      
religion upon  history1 to suppose that 
our ,lord meant to raise an universal   
religion on a purely ,jewish basis4     
,the ,greek ,mysteries were perhaps     
survivals of an old-world ritual1  based
 on a primitive kind of                 
,nature-,mysticism4 ,the public         
,mysteries1  of which the festival at   
,eleusis was the most important1 were so
  called because the ,state admitted    
strangers by initiation to what was     

originally a national cult4 7,there were
 also private ,mysteries1  conducted for
 profit by itinerant priests ,greek3    
agyrtai from the  ,east1 who as a class 
bore no good reputation47 ,the main     
features of  the ritual at ,eleusis are 
known4 ,the festival began at ,athens1  
where  the myst collected1 and1 after a 
fast of several days1 were  driven to   
the sea1 or to two salt lakes on the    
road to ,eleusis1 for  a purifying bath4
 ,this kind of baptism washed away the  
stains of their  former sins1 the worst 
of which they were obliged to confess   
before  being admitted to the           
,mysteries4 ,then1 after sacrifices had 
been  offered1 the company went in      
procession to ,eleusis1 where           
,mystery-plays were performed in a great
 hall1 large enough to hold  thousands  
of people1 and the votaries were allowed
 to handle certain  sacred relics4 ,a   
sacramental meal1 in which a mixture of 
mint1  barley-meal1 and water was       
administered to the initiated1 was an   

integral part of the festival4 ,the most
 secret part of the ceremonies  was     
reserved for the ,greek3 epoptai who had
 passed through the  ordinary initiation
 in a previous year4 ,it probably       
culminated in the  solemn exhibition of 
a corn-ear1 the symbol of ,demeter4 ,the
 obligation  of silence was imposed not 
so much because there were any secrets  
to  reveal1 but that the holiest        
sacraments of the ,greek religion might 
not be profaned by being brought into   
contact with common life4 ,this  feeling
 was strengthened by the belief that    
words are more than  conventional       
symbols of things4 ,a sacred formula    
must not be taken in  vain1 or divulged 
to persons who might misuse it4    ,the 
evidence is strong that the ,mysteries  
had a real spiritualising  and          
moralising influence on large numbers of
 those who were initiated1  and that    
this influence was increasing under the 
early empire4 ,the  ceremonies may have 
been trivial1 and even at times         

ludicrous2 but the  discovery had been  
made that the performance of solemn acts
 of  devotion in common1 after ascetical
 preparation1 and with the aid of  an   
impressive ritual1 is one of the        
strongest incentives to piety4          
,diodorus is not alone in saying 7he is 
speaking of the ,samothracian           
,mysteries7 that those who have taken   
part in them are said to become  more   
pious1 more upright1 and in every way   
better than their former  selves4       
,the chief motive force which led to the
 increased importance of                
,mystery-religion in the first centuries
 of our era1 was the desire for         
salvation 7,greek3 stria71 which both   
with pagans and ,christians  was very   
closely connected with the hope of      
everlasting life4  ,happiness after     
death was the great promise held out in 
the ,mysteries4  ,the initiated were    
secure of blessedness in the next world1
 while the  uninitiated must expect to  
lie in darkness and mire after their    

death 7cf4 ,plato1 ,phdrus1 #fi74       
,how was this salvation attained or     
conferred8 ,we find that several        
conflicting views were held1 which it is
 impossible to keep rigidly  separate1  
since the human mind at one time        
inclines to one of them1 at  another    
time to another4    7a7 ,salvation is   
imparted by revelation4 ,this makes it  
to depend  upon knowledge2 but this     
knowledge was in the ,mysteries conveyed
 by  the spectacle or drama1 not by any 
intellectual process4 ,plutarch 7de     
,defect4 ,orac4 #bb7 says that those who
 had been initiated could  produce no   
demonstration or proof of the beliefs   
which they had  acquired4 ,and ,synesius
 quotes ,aristotle as saying that the   
initiated  do not learn anything1 but   
rather receive impressions 7,greek3 ou  
mathein ti dein alla pathein74 ,the old 
notion that monotheism was  taught as a 
secret dogma rests on no evidence1 and  
is very unlikely4  ,there was a good    
deal of ,greek3 theokrasia1 as the      

ancients called  it1 and some departures
 from the current theogonies1 but such  
doctrine  as there was1 was much nearer 
to pantheism than to monotheism4        
,certain  truths about nature and the   
facts of life were communicated in the  
greatest mysteries1 according to        
,clement1 and ,cicero says the same     
thing4 ,and sometimes the ,greek3 gnsis 
strias includes knowledge  about the    
whence and whither of man 7,greek3 tines
 esmen kai ti  gegonamen1 ,clem4 ,exc4  
ex ,theod4 #gh74 ,some of the mystical  
formul  were no doubt susceptible of    
deep and edifying interpretations1      
especially in the direction of an       
elevated nature-worship4    7b7         
,salvation was regarded1 as in the      
,oriental religions1 as  emancipation   
from the fetters of human existence4    
,doctrines of this  kind were taught    
especially in the ,orphic ,mysteries1   
where it was a  secret doctrine 7,greek3
 aporrtos logos1 ,plat4 ,phdr4 #fb7 that
  we men are here in a kind of prison1  

or in a tomb 7,greek3 sma  tines to sma 
einai ts psychs1 s tethammens en t      
paronti1  ,plat4 ,crat4 #djj74 ,they    
also believed in transmigration of      
souls1 and  in a ,greek3 kuklos ts      
geneses 7rota fati et generationis74    
,the  ,orphic life1 or rules of conduct 
enjoined upon these mystics1  comprised 
asceticism1 and1 in particular1         
abstinence from flesh2 and  laid great  
stress on following of ,god ,greek3     
epesthai or  ,greek3 akolouthein t the  
as the goal of moral endeavour4 ,this   
cult1  however1 was tinged with         
,thracian barbarism2 its heaven was a   
kind of  ,valhalla 7,greek3 meth ainios1
 ,plat4 ,rep4 ii4 #cfc74 ,very similar  
was the rule of life prescribed by the  
,pythagorean brotherhood1 who  were also
 vegetarians1 and advocates of          
virginity4 ,their system of  purgation1 
followed by initiation1 liberated men   
from the grievous  woeful circle        
7,greek3 kyklou d'exeptan ,barypentheos 
argaleoio on a  tombstone71 and entitled

 them to a happy life with the gods4    
7,for  the conception of salvation as   
deification1 see ,appendix ,c47 ,whether
  these sects taught that our separate  
individuality must be merged is         
uncertain2 but among the ,gnostics1 who 
had much in common with the  ,orphic    
myst1 the formula1 ,i am thou1 and thou 
art ,i1 was common  7,pistis ,sophia2   
formul of the ,marcosians2 also in an   
invocation of  ,hermes3 ,greek3 to son  
onoma emon kai to emon son4 eg gar eimi 
to  eidlon son4 ,rohde1 ,psyche1 vol4   
ii4 p4 #fa74 ,a foretaste of this       
deliverance was given by initiation1    
which conducts the mystic to  ecstasy1  
an ,greek3 oligochronios mania 7,galen71
 in which animus  ita solutus est et    
vacuus ut ei plane nihil sit cum corpore
 7,cic4 ,de  ,divin4 i4 ,i4 #aac72 which
 was otherwise conceived as ,greek3     
enthousiasmos 7,greek3 enthousiss kai   
ouketi ouss en eaut dianoias1  ,philo74 
7c7 ,the imperishable ,divine nature is 
infused by mechanical means4            

,sacraments and the like have a magical 
or miraculous potency4 ,the  ,homeric   
hymn to ,demeter insists only on ritual 
purity as the  condition of salvation1  
and we hear that people trusted to the  
mystic  baptism to wash out all their   
previous sins4 ,similarly the baptism of
  blood1 the taurobolium1 was supposed  
to secure eternal happiness1  at any    
rate if death occurred within twenty    
years after the ceremony2  when that    
interval had elapsed1 it was common to  
renew the rite4 7,we  find on           
inscriptions such phrases as arcanis    
perfusionibus in  ternum renatus47 ,so  
mechanical was the operation of the     
,mysteries  supposed to be1 that rites  
were performed for the dead 7,plat4     
,rep4  #cfd4 ,st4 ,paul seems to refer  
to a similar custom in #a ,cor4 xv4     
#bi71  and infants were appointed       
priests1 and thoroughly initiated1 that 
they might be clean from their original 
sin4 ,among the ,gnostics1 a  favourite 
phrase was that initiation releases men 

from the fetters of  fate and necessity2
 the gods of the intelligible world     
7,greek3  theoi notoi7 with whom we hold
 communion in the ,mysteries being      
above fate4    7d7 ,salvation consists  
of moral regeneration4 ,the efficacy of 
initiation without moral reformation    
naturally appeared doubtful to  serious 
thinkers4 ,diogenes is reported to have 
asked1 ,what say you8  ,will ,patcion   
the thief be happier in the next world  
than  ,epaminondas1 because he has been 
initiated8 ,and ,philo says1 ,it often  
happens that good men are not initiated1
 but that robbers1 and  murderers1 and  
lewd women are1 if they pay money to the
 initiators and  hierophants4 ,ovid     
protests against the immoral doctrine of
 mechanical  purgation with more than   
his usual earnestness 7,fasti1 ii4      
#ce73--        ,omne nefas omnemque mali
 purgamina causam       ,credebant      
nostri tollere posse senes4     ,grcia  
principium moris fuit2 ilia nocentes    
,impia lustratos ponere facta putat4    

,a6 nimium faciles1 qui tristia crimina 
cdis       ,fluminea tolli posse putetis
 aqua6      ,such passages show that    
abuses existed1 but also that it was    
felt to  be a scandal if the initiated  
person failed to exhibit any moral      
improvement4    ,these different        
conceptions of the office of the        
,mysteries cannot1 as  ,i have said1 be 
separated historically4 ,they all       
reappear in the  history of the         
,christian sacraments4 ,the main        
features of the  ,mystery-system which  
passed into ,catholicism are the notions
 of  secrecy1 of symbolism1 of mystical 
brotherhood1 of sacramental grace1  and1
 above all1 of the three stages in the  
spiritual life1 ascetic  purification1  
illumination1 and ,greek3 epopteia as   
the crown4    ,the secrecy observed     
about creeds and liturgical forms had   
not much to  do with the development of 
,mysticism1 except by associating       
sacredness  with obscurity 7cf4 ,strabo1
 x4 #dfg1 ,greek3 h krypsis h mystik    

semnopoiei to theion1 mimoumen tn physin
 autou ekpheugousan tn  aisthsin71 a    
tendency which also showed itself in the
 love of  symbolism4 ,this certainly had
 a great influence1 both in the form of 
allegorism 7cf4 ,clem4 ,strom1 i4 #a4   
#ae1 ,greek3 esti de ha kai  ainixetai  
moi h graph2 peirasetai de kai          
ganthanousa eipein kai  epikryptomen    
ekphnai kai deixai sipsa71 which ,philo 
calls the  method of the ,greek         
,mysteries1 and in the various kinds of 
,nature-,mysticism4 ,the great value of 
the ,mysteries lay in the facilities    
which they offered for free symbolical  
interpretation4    ,the idea of mystical
 union by means of a common meal was1 as
 we have  seen1 familiar to the ,greeks4
 ,for instance1 ,plutarch says 7,non    
fosse  suav4 vivi sec4 ,epic4 #ba71 ,it 
is not the wine or the cookery that     
delights us at these feasts1 but good   
hope1 and the belief that ,god is       
present with us1 and that ,he accepts   
our service graciously4 ,there  have    

always been two ideas of sacrifice1     
alike in savage and civilised           
cults--the mystical1 in which it is a   
communion1 the victim who is  slain and 
eaten being himself the god1 or a symbol
 of the god2 and the  commercial1 in    
which something valuable is offered to  
the god in the  hope of receiving some  
benefit in exchange4 ,the ,mysteries    
certainly  encouraged the idea of       
communion1 and made it easier for the   
,christian  rite to gather up into      
itself all the religious elements which 
can be  contained in a sacrament of this
 kind4    ,but the scheme of ascent from
 ,greek3 katharsis to ,greek3 mysis1 and
  from ,greek3 mysis to ,greek3         
epopteia1 is the great contribution of  
the ,mysteries to ,christian ,mysticism4
 ,purification began1 as we have seen1  
with confession of sin2 it proceeded by 
means of fasting 7with which was        
combined ,greek3 agneia apo synousias7  
and meditation1 till the second  stage1 
that of illumination1 was reached4 ,the 

majority were content with  the partial 
illumination which belonged to this     
stage1 just as in books of  ,roman      
,catholic divinity mystical theology is 
a summit of perfection to  which all are
 not called4 ,the elect advance1 after a
 year's interval at  least1 to the full 
contemplation 7,greek3 epopteia74 ,this 
highest truth  was conveyed in various  
ways--by visible symbols dramatically   
displayed1  by solemn words of          
mysterious import2 by explanations of   
enigmas and  allegories and dark        
speeches 7cf4 ,orig4 ,cels4 vii4 #aj71  
and perhaps  by visions and revelations4
 ,it is plain that this is one of the   
cases in which ,christianity conquered  
,hellenism by borrowing from it  all its
 best elements2 and ,i do not see that a
 ,christian need feel any  reluctance to
 make this admission4                   
,,appendix ,c    ,the ,doctrine ,of     
,deification      ,the conception of    
salvation as the acquisition by man of  
,divine  attributes is common to many   

forms of religious thought4 ,it was     
widely  diffused in the ,roman ,empire  
at the time of the ,christian           
revelation1  and was steadily growing in
 importance during the first centuries  
of  our era4 ,the ,orphic ,mysteries had
 long taught the doctrine4 ,on          
tombstones erected by members of the    
,orphic brotherhoods we find such       
inscriptions as these3 ,happy and       
blessed one6 ,thou shalt be a god       
instead of a mortal 7,greek3 olbie kai  
makariste theos d' es anti  brotoio72   
,thou art a god instead of a wretched   
man 7,greek3 theos  ei eleeinou ex      
anthrpou74 ,it has indeed been said that
 deification  was the idea of salvation 
taught in the ,mysteries 7,harnack74    
,to modern ears the word deification    
sounds not only strange1 but  arrogant  
and shocking4 ,the ,western             
consciousness has always tended to      
emphasise the distinctness of           
individuality1 and has been suspicious  
of anything that looks like juggling    

with the rights of persons1 human  or   
,divine4 ,this is especially true of    
thought in the ,latin countries4  ,deus 
has never been a fluid concept like     
,greek3 theos4 ,st4  ,augustine no doubt
 gives us the current ,alexandrian      
philosophy in a  ,latin dress2 but this 
part of his ,platonism never became     
acclimatised  in the ,latin-speaking    
countries4 ,the ,teutonic genius is in  
this matter  more in sympathy with the  
,greek2 but we are ,westerns1 while the 
later  ,greeks were half ,orientals1 and
 there is much in their habits of       
thought which is strange and            
unintelligible to us4 ,take1 for        
instance1  the apotheosis of the        
emperors4 ,this was a genuinely ,eastern
 mode of  homage1 which to the true     
,european remained either profane or    
ridiculous4 ,but ,vespasian's last joke1
 ,voe6 puto ,deus fio6 would  not sound 
comic in ,greek4 ,the associations of   
the word ,greek3 theos  were not        
sufficiently venerable to make the idea 

of deification  7,greek3 theopoisis7    
grotesque4 ,we find1 as we should       
expect1 that  this vulgarisation of the 
word affected even ,christians in the   
,greek-speaking countries4 ,not only    
were the barbarous people of  ,galatia  
and ,malta ready to find theophanies in 
the visits of  apostles1 or any other   
strangers who seemed to have unusual    
powers1  but the philosophers 7except   
the godless ,epicureans7 agreed in      
calling the highest faculty of the soul 
,divine1 and in speaking of  the ,god   
who dwells within us4 ,there is a       
remarkable passage of  ,origen 7quoted  
by ,harnack7 which shows how elastic the
 word ,greek3  theos was in the current 
dialect of the educated4 ,in another    
sense  ,god is said to be an immortal1  
rational1 moral ,being4 ,in this sense  
every gentle 7,greek3 asteia7 soul is   
,god4 ,but ,god is otherwise  defined as
 the self-existing immortal ,being4 ,in 
this sense the souls  that are enclosed 
in wise men are not gods4 ,clement1 too1

 speaks of  the soul as training itself 
to be ,god4 ,even more remarkable than  
such language 7of which many other      
examples might be given7 is the         
frequently recurring accusation that    
bishops1 teachers1 martyrs1             
philosophers1 etc41 are venerated with  
,divine or semi-,divine honours4  ,these
 charges are brought by ,christians     
against pagans1 by pagans  against      
,christians1 and by rival ,christians   
against each other4 ,even  the          
,epicureans habitually spoke of their   
founder ,epicurus as a god4  ,if we try 
to analyse the concept of ,greek3 theos1
 thus loosely and  widely used1 we find 
that the prominent idea was that        
exemption from  the doom of death was   
the prerogative of a ,divine ,being 7cf4
 #a ,tim4  vi4 #af1 ,who only hath      
immortality71 and that therefore the    
gift of  immortality is itself a        
deification4 ,this notion is distinctly 
adopted  by several ,christian writers4 
,theophilus says 7ad ,autol4 ii4 #bg7   

that man1 by keeping the commandments of
 ,god1 may receive from him  immortality
 as a reward 7,greek3 misthon71 and     
become ,god4 ,and  ,clement 7,strom4 v4 
#aj4 #fc7 says1 ,to be imperishable     
7,greek3 to m  phtheiresthai7 is to     
share in ,divinity4 ,to the same effect 
,hippolytus 7,philos4 x4 #cd7 says1 ,thy
 body shall be immortal and             
incorruptible as well as thy soul4 ,for 
thou hast become ,god4 ,all the  things 
that follow upon the ,divine nature ,god
 has promised to supply  to thee1 for   
thou wast deified in being born to      
immortality4 ,with  regard to later     
times1 ,harnack says that after         
,theophilus1 ,irenus1  ,hippolytus1 and 
,origen1 the idea of deification is     
found in all the  ,fathers of the       
ancient ,church1 and that in a primary  
position4 ,we have  it in ,athanasius1  
the ,cappadocians1 ,apollinaris1        
,ephraem ,syrus1  ,epiphanius1 and      
others1 as also in ,cyril1 ,sophronius1 
and late ,greek  and ,russian           

theologians4 ,in proof of it1 ,ps4      
lxxxii4 #f 7',i said1 ,ye  are gods'7 is
 very often quoted4 ,he quotes from     
,athanasius1 ,he  became man that we    
might be deified2 and from              
,pseudo-,hippolytus1 ,if1  then1 man has
 become immortal1 he will be ,god4      
,this notion grew within the ,church as 
chiliastic and apocalyptic              
,christianity faded away4 ,a favourite  
phrase was that the ,incarnation1  etc41
 abolished death1 and brought mankind   
into a state of  incorruption 7,greek3  
aphtharsia7 ,this transformation of     
human  nature1 which is also spoken of  
as ,greek3 theopoisis is the  highest   
work of the ,logos4 ,athanasius makes it
 clear that what he  contemplates is no 
pantheistic merging of the personality  
in the  ,deity1 but rather a renovation 
after the original type4    ,but the    
process of deification may be conceived 
of in two ways3 7a7  as                 
essentialisation1 7b7 as substitution4  
,the former may perhaps be  called the  

more philosophical conception1 the      
latter the more  religious4 ,the former 
lays stress on the high calling of man1 
and his  potential greatness as the     
image of ,god2 the latter1 on his       
present  misery and alienation1 and his 
need of redemption4 ,the former was the 
teaching of the ,neoplatonic philosophy1
 in which the human mind was  the throne
 of the ,godhead2 the latter was the    
doctrine of the  ,mysteries1 in which   
salvation was conceived of realistically
 as  something imparted or infused4     
,the notion that salvation or           
deification consists in realising our   
true nature1 was supported by the       
favourite doctrine that like only  can  
know like4 ,if the soul were not        
essentially ,godlike 7,greek3           
theoeids71 it could never know ,god4    
,this doctrine might seem to  lead to   
the heretical conclusion that man is    
,greek3 omoousios t  ,patri in the same 
sense as ,christ4 ,this conclusion1     
however1 was  strongly repudiated both  

by ,clement and ,origen4 ,the former    
7,strom4  xvi4 #gd7 says that men are   
not ,greek3 meros theou kai t the       
omoousioi2 and ,origen 7in ,joh4 xiii4  
#be7 says it is very impious to  assert 
that we are ,greek3 omoousioi with the  
unbegotten nature4  ,but for those who  
thought of ,christ mainly as the ,divine
 ,logos or  universal ,reason1 the line 
was not very easy to draw4 ,methodius   
says  that every believer must1 through 
participation in ,christ1 be born as  a 
,christ1--a view which1 if pressed      
logically 7as it ought not to be71      
implies either that our nature is at    
bottom identical with that of  ,christ1 
or that the life of ,christ is          
substituted for our own4 ,the           
difficulty as to whether the human soul 
is1 strictly speaking1 divin  particula 
aur1 is met by ,proclus in the ingenious
 and interesting  passage quoted p4 #cd2
 ,there are1 he says1 three sorts of    
wholes1  7#a7 in which the whole is     
anterior to the parts1 7#b7 in which the

  whole is composed of the parts1 7#c7  
which knits into one stuff the  parts   
and the whole 7,greek3 h tois holois ta 
mer sunyphainousa74  ,this is also the  
doctrine of ,plotinus1 and of           
,augustine4 ,god is not  split up among 
,his creatures1 nor are they essential  
to ,him in the  same way as ,he is to   
them4 ,erigena's doctrine of deification
 is  expressed 7not very clearly7 in the
 following sentence 7,de ,div4 ,nat4    
iii4 #i73 ,est igitur participatio divin
 essenti assumptio4  ,assumptio vero    
eius divin sapienti fusio qu est omnium 
substantia  et essentia1 et qucumque in 
eis naturaliter intelliguntur4          
,according to ,eckhart1 the ,wesen of   
,god transforms the soul into  itself by
 means of the spark or apex of the soul 
7equivalent to  ,plotinus' ,greek3      
kentron psychs1 ,enn4 vi4 #i4 #h71 which
 is so  akin to ,god that it is one with
 ,god1 and not merely united to ,him4   
,the history of this doctrine of the    
spark1 and of the closely  connected    

word synteresis1 is interesting4 ,the   
word spark occurs  in this connexion as 
early as ,tatian1 who says 7,or4 #ac73  
,in the  beginning the spirit was a     
constant companion of the soul1 but     
forsook  it because the soul would not  
follow it2 yet it retained1 as it were1 
a spark of its power1 etc4 ,see also    
,tertullian1 ,de ,anima1 #da4 ,the      
curious word synteresis 7often misspelt 
sinderesis71 which plays a  considerable
 part in medival mystical treatises1    
occurs first in  ,jerome 7on ,ezech4    
i473 ,quartamque ponunt quam ,grci      
vocant ,greek3  syntrsin1 qu scintilla  
conscienti in ,cain quoque pectore non  
exstinguitur1 et qua victi voluptatibus 
vel furore nos peccare  sentimus4444 ,in
 ,scripturis eam interdum vocari legimus
 ,spiritum4  ,cf4 ,rom4 viii4 #bf2 #b   
,cor4 ii4 #aa4 ,then we find it in      
,alexander of  ,hales1 and in           
,bonaventura1 who 7,itinerare1 c4 ,i7   
defines it as apex  mentis seu          
scintilla2 and more precisely           

7,breviloquium1 ,pars #b1 c4  #aa73     
,benignissimus ,deus quadruplex contulit
 ei adiutorium1 scilicet  duplex natur  
et duplex grati4 ,duplicem enim indidit 
rectitudinem  ipsi natur1 videlicet unam
 ad recte iudicandum1 et hc est         
rectitudo  conscienti1 aliam ad recte   
volendum1 et hc est synteresis1 cuius   
est  remurmurare contra malum et        
stimulare ad bonum4 ,hermann of         
,fritslar  speaks of it as a power or   
faculty in the soul1 wherein ,god works 
immediately1 without means and without  
intermission4 ,ruysbroek  defines it as 
the natural will towards good implanted 
in us all1 but  weakened by sin4        
,giseler says3 ,this spark was created  
with the soul  in all men1 and is a     
clear light in them1 and strives in     
every way  against sin1 and impels      
steadily to virtue1 and presses ever    
back to  the source from which it       
sprang4 ,it has1 says ,lasson1 a double 
meaning in mystical theology1 7a7 the   
ground of the soul2 7b7 the  highest    

ethical faculty4 ,in ,thomas ,aquinas it
 is distinguished from  intellectus     
principiorum1 the former being the      
highest activity of  the moral sense1   
the latter of the intellect4 ,in        
,gerson1 synteresis  is the highest of  
the affective faculties1 the organ of   
which is the  intelligence 7an emanation
 from the highest intelligence1 which is
 ,god  ,himself71 and the activity of   
which is contemplation4 ,speaking       
generally1 the earlier scholastic       
mystics regard it as a remnant of  the  
sinless state before the fall1 while for
 ,eckhart and his school it  is the core
 of the soul4    ,there is another      
expression which must be considered in  
connexion with  the medival doctrine of 
deification4 ,this is the intellectus   
agens1  or ,greek3 nous poitikos1 which 
began its long history in  ,aristotle   
7,de ,anima1 iii4 #e74 ,aristotle there 
distinguishes two forms  of ,reason1    
which are related to each other as form 
and matter4 ,reason  becomes all things1

 for the matter of anything is          
potentially the  whole class to which it
 belongs2 but ,reason also makes all    
things1  that is to say1 it communicates
 to things those categories by which    
they become objects of thought4 ,this   
higher ,reason is separate and          
impassible 7,greek3 christos kai amigs  
kai apaths72 it is  eternal and         
immortal2 while the passive reason      
perishes with the body4  ,the creative  
,reason is immanent both in the human   
mind and in the  external world2 and    
thus only is it possible for the mind to
 know  things4 ,unfortunately1          
,aristotle says very little more about  
his  ,greek3 nous poitikos1 and does not
 explain how the two ,reasons  are      
related to each other1 thereby leaving  
the problem for his  successors to work 
out4 ,the most fruitful attempt to form 
a consistent  theory1 on an idealistic  
basis1 out of the ambiguous and perhaps 
irreconcilable statements in the ,de    
,anima1 was made by ,alexander of       

,aphrodisias 7about #bjj ,a4,d471 who   
taught that the ,active ,reason is  not 
a part or faculty of our soul1 but comes
 to us from without--it  is1 in fact1   
identified with the ,spirit of ,god     
working in us4 ,whether  ,aristotle     
would have accepted this interpretation 
of his theory may be  doubted2 but the  
commentary of ,alexander of ,aphrodisias
 was translated  into ,arabic1 and this 
view of the ,active ,reason became the  
basis of  the philosophy of ,averroes4  
,averroes teaches that it is possible   
for  the passive reason to unite itself 
with the ,active ,reason1 and that  this
 union may be attained or prepared for  
by ascetic purification and  study4 ,but
 he denies that the passive reason is   
perishable1 not  wishing entirely to    
depersonalise man4 ,herein he follows1  
he says1  ,themistius1 whose views he   
tries to combine with those of          
,alexander4  ,avicenna introduces a     
celestial hierarchy1 in which the higher
  intelligences shed their light upon   

the lower1 till they reach the  ,active 
,reason1 which lies nearest to man1 a   
quo1 ut ipse dicit1  effluunt species   
intelligibiles in animas nostras        
7,aquinas74 ,the  doctrine of           
monopsychism was1 of course1 condemned  
by the ,church4  ,aquinas makes both the
 ,active and ,passive ,reason parts of  
the human  soul4 ,eckhart1 as ,i have   
said in the fourth ,lecture1 at one     
period of  his teaching expressly       
identifies the intellectus agens with   
the  spark1 in reference to which he    
says that here ,god's ground is my      
ground1 and my ground ,god's ground4    
,this doctrine of the ,divinity of  the 
ground of the soul is very like the     
,cabbalistic doctrine of the            
,neschamah1 and the ,neoplatonic        
doctrine of ,greek3 ,nous 7cf4  ,stckl1 
vol4 ii4 p4 #ajjg74 ,eckhart was        
condemned for saying1 aliquid  est in   
anima quod est increatum et increabile2 
si tota anima esset  talis1 esset       
increata et increabilis4 ,hoc est       

intellectus4 ,eckhart  certainly says   
explicitly that as fire turns all that  
it touches into  itself1 so the birth of
 the ,son of ,god in the soul turns us  
into ,god1  so that ,god no longer knows
 anything in us but ,his ,son4 ,man thus
  becomes filius naturalis ,dei1 instead
 of only filius adoptivus4 ,we  have    
seen that ,eckhart1 towards the end of  
his life1 inclined more and  more to    
separate the spark1 the organ of ,divine
 contemplation1 from  the reason4 ,this 
is1 of course1 an approximation to the  
other view  of deification--that of     
substitution or miraculous infusion from
  without1 unless we see in it a        
tendency to divorce the personality     
from the reason4 ,ruysbroek states his  
doctrine of the ,divine spark  very     
clearly3 ,the unity of our spirit in    
,god exists in two ways1  essentially   
and actively4 ,the essential existence  
of the soul1 qu  secundum ternam ideam  
in ,deo nos sumus1 itemque quam in nobis
  habemus1 medii ac discriminis expers  

est4 ,spiritus ,deum in nuda  natura    
essentialiter possidet1 et spiritum     
,deus4 ,vivit namque in ,deo  et ,deus  
in ipso2 et secundum supremam sui partem
 ,dei claritatem  suscipere absque medio
 idoneus est2 quin etiam per terni      
exemplaris  sui claritudinem            
essentialiter ac personaliter in ipso   
lucentis1  secundum supremam vivacitatis
 su portionem1 in divinam sese demittit 
ac demergit essentiam1 ibidemque        
perseveranter secundum ideam manendo    
ternam suam possidet beatitudinem2      
rursusque cum creaturis omnibus  per    
ternam ,verbi generationem inde emanans1
 in esse suo creato  constituitur4 ,the 
natural union1 though it is the first   
cause of  all holiness and blessedness1 
does not make us holy and blessed1 being
  common to good and bad alike4         
,similitude to ,god is the work of      
grace1 qu lux qudam deiformis est4 ,we  
cannot lose the unitas1  but we can lose
 the similitudo qu est gratia4 ,the     
highest part of  the soul is capable of 

receiving a perfect and immediate       
impression of  the ,divine essence2 by  
this apex mentis we may sink into the   
,divine  essence1 and by a new          
7continuous7 creation return to our     
created  being according to the idea of 
,god4 ,the question whether the ground  
of the soul is created or not is        
obviously a form of the question  which 
we are now discussing4 ,giseler1 as ,i  
have said1 holds that it  was created   
with the soul4 ,sterngassen says3 ,that 
which ,god has in  eternity in uncreated
 wise1 that has the soul in time in     
created  wise4 ,but the author of the   
,treatise on ,love1 which belongs to    
this  period1 speaks of the spark as the
 ,active ,reason1 which is ,god4  ,and  
again1 ,this is the ,uncreated in the   
soul of which ,master  ,eckhart speaks4 
,suso seems to imply that he believed   
the ground of  the soul to be uncreated1
 an emanation of the ,divine nature2 and
  ,tauler uses similar language4        
,ruysbroek1 in the last chapter of the  

,spiritual ,nuptials1 says that         
contemplative men see that they are  the
 same simple ground as to their         
uncreated nature1 and are one  with the 
same light by which they see1 and which 
they see4 ,the later  ,german mystics   
taught that the ,divine essence is the  
material  substratum of the world1 the  
creative will of ,god having1 so to     
speak1  alienated for the purpose a     
portion of ,his own essence4 ,if1 then1 
the created form is broken through1 ,god
 ,himself becomes the ground of  the    
soul4 ,even ,augustine countenances some
 such notion when he says1  ,from a good
 man1 or from a good angel1 take away   
'man' or 'angel1'  and you find ,god4   
,but one of the chief differences       
between the older  and later ,mysticism 
is that the former regarded union with  
,god as  achieved through the faculties 
of the soul1 the latter as inherent in  
its essence4 ,the doctrine of immanence1
 more and more emphasised1  tended to   
encourage the belief that the ,divine   

element in the soul is  not merely      
something potential1 something which the
 faculties may  acquire1 but is immanent
 and basal4 ,tauler mentions both views1
 and  prefers the latter4 ,some         
hesitation may be traced in the         
,theologia  ,germanica on this point 7p4
 #aji1 ,golden ,treasury edition73 ,the 
true light is that eternal ,light which 
is ,god2 or else it is a  created light1
 but yet ,divine1 which is called grace4
 ,our ,cambridge  ,platonists naturally 
revived this ,platonic doctrine of      
deification1  much to the               
dissatisfaction of some of their        
contemporaries4 ,tuckney  speaks of     
their teaching as a kind of moral       
divinity minted only with  a little     
tincture of ,christ added4 ,nay1 a      
,platonic faith unites to  ,god6        
,notwithstanding such protests1 the     
,platonists persisted that  all true    
happiness consists in a participation of
 ,god2 and that we  cannot enjoy ,god by
 any external conjunction with ,him4    

,the question was naturally raised1 ,if 
man by putting on ,christ's life  can   
get nothing more than he has already1   
what good will it do him8  ,the answer  
in the ,theologia ,germanica is as      
follows3 ,this life is  not chosen in   
order to serve any end1 or to get       
anything by it1 but  for love of its    
nobleness1 and because ,god loveth and  
esteemeth it so  greatly4 ,it is plain  
that any view which regards man as      
essentially  ,divine has to face great  
difficulties when it comes to deal with 
theodicy4    ,the other view of         
deification1 that of a substitution of  
the ,divine  ,will1 or ,life1 or        
,spirit1 for the human1 cannot in       
history be sharply  distinguished from  
the theories which have just been       
mentioned4 ,but  the idea of            
substitution is naturally most congenial
 to those who feel  strongly the        
corruption of man's heart1 and the need 
of deliverance1  not only from our      
ghostly enemies1 but from the tyranny of

 self4 ,such  men feel that there must  
be a real change1 affecting the very    
depths  of our personality4             
,righteousness must be imparted1 not    
merely  imputed4 ,and there is a death  
to be died as well as a life to be      
lived4 ,the old man must die before the 
new man1 which is not ,i but  ,christ1  
can be born in us4 ,the birth of ,god   
7or ,christ7 in the soul  is a favourite
 doctrine of the later ,german mystics4 
,passages from the  fourteenth century  
writers have been quoted in my fourth   
and fifth  ,lectures4 ,the following    
from ,giseler may be added3 ,god will be
 born1  not in the ,reason1 not in the  
,will1 but in the most inward part of   
the  essence1 and all the faculties of  
the soul become aware thereof4  ,thereby
 the soul passes into mere passivity1   
and lets ,god work4 ,they  all insist on
 an immediate1 substantial1 personal    
indwelling1 which is  beyond what       
,aquinas and the ,schoolmen taught4 ,the
 ,lutheran ,church  condemns those who  

teach that only the gifts of ,god1 and  
not ,god  ,himself1 dwell in the        
believer2 and the ,english ,platonists1 
as we have  seen1 insist that an infant 
,christ is really born in the soul4 ,the
  ,german mystics are equally emphatic  
about the annihilation of the old  man1 
which is the condition of this          
indwelling ,divine life4 ,in  quietistic
 7,nominalist7 ,mysticism the usual     
phrase was that the will  7or1 better1  
self-will7 must be utterly destroyed1 so
 that the  ,divine ,will may take its   
place4 ,but ,crashaw's leave nothing of 
myself  in me1 represents the aspiration
 of the later ,catholic ,mysticism      
generally4 ,st4 ,juan of the ,cross     
says1 ,the soul must lose entirely  its 
human knowledge and human feelings1 in  
order to receive ,divine  knowledge and 
,divine feelings2 it will then live as  
it were outside  itself1 in a state more
 proper to the future than to the       
present  life4 ,it is easy to see how   
dangerous such teaching may be to weak  

heads4 ,a typical example1 at a much    
earlier date1 is that of ,mechthild  of 
,hackeborn 7about #abdj74 ,it was she   
who said1 ,my soul swims in the         
,godhead like a fish in water6 and who  
believed that1 in answer to her         
prayers1 ,god had so united ,himself    
with her that she saw with ,his  eyes1  
and heard with ,his ears1 and spoke with
 ,his mouth4 ,many similar  examples    
might be found among the medival        
mystics4    ,between the two ideas of   
essentialisation and of substitution    
comes  that of gradual transformation1  
which1 again1 cannot in history be      
separated from the other two4 ,it has   
the obvious advantage of not  regarding 
deification as an opus operatum1 but as 
a process1 as a  hope rather than a     
fact4 ,a favourite maxim with mystics   
who thought  thus1 was that love changes
 the lover into the beloved4 ,louis of  
,granada often recurs to this thought4  
,the best mystics rightly see in the    
doctrine of the ,divinity of ,christ    

the best safeguard against the          
extravagances to which the notion of    
deification easily leads4 ,particularly 
instructive here are the  warnings which
 are repeated again and again in the    
,theologia  ,germanica4 ,the false light
 dreameth itself to be ,god1 and taketh 
to  itself what belongeth to ,god as    
,god is in eternity without the         
creature4 ,now1 ,god in eternity is     
without contradiction1 suffering1  and  
grief1 and nothing can hurt or vex ,him4
 ,but with ,god when ,he is  made man it
 is otherwise4 ,therefore the false     
light thinketh and  declareth itself to 
be above all works1 words1 customs1     
laws1 and  order1 and above that life   
which ,christ led in the body which ,he 
possessed in ,his holy human nature4 ,so
 likewise it professeth to  remain      
unmoved by any of the creature's works2 
whether they be good or  evil1 against  
,god or not1 is all alike to it2 and it 
keepeth itself  apart from all things1  
like ,god in eternity2 and all that     

belongeth to  ,god and to no creature it
 taketh to itself1 and vainly dreameth  
that  this belongeth to it4 ,it doth not
 set up to be ,christ1 but the  eternal 
,god4 ,and this is because ,christ's    
life is distasteful and  burdensome to  
nature1 therefore it will have nothing  
to do with it2  but to be ,god in       
eternity and not man1 or to be ,christ  
as ,he was after  ,his resurrection1 is 
all easy and pleasant and comfortable to
 nature1  and so it holdeth it to be    
best4    ,these three views of the      
manner in which we may hope to become   
partakers of the ,divine nature1 are all
 aspects of the truth4 ,if we  believe  
that we were made in the image of ,god1 
then in becoming like  ,him we are      
realising our true idea1 and entering   
upon the heritage  which is ours already
 by the will of ,god4 ,on the other     
hand1 if we  believe that we have fallen
 very far from original righteousness1  
and  have no power of ourselves to help 
ourselves1 then we must believe in  a   

deliverance from outside1 an acquisition
 of a righteousness not  our own1 which 
is either imparted or imputed to us4    
,and1 thirdly1 if  we are to hope for a 
real change in our relations to ,god1   
there must  be a real change in our     
personality1--a progressive             
transmutation1  which without breach of 
continuity will bring us to be something
  different from what we were4 ,the     
three views are not mutually  exclusive4
 ,as ,vatke says1 ,the influence of     
,divine grace does not  differ from the 
immanent development of the deepest     
,divine germ of  life in man1 only that 
it here stands over-against man regarded
 as a  finite and separate being--as    
something external to himself4 ,if the  
,divine image is the true nature of man1
 and if it only possesses  reality in   
virtue of its identity with its type or 
with the ,logos1  then there can be no  
true self-determination in man which is 
not at  the same time a                 
self-determination of the type in its   

image4 ,we  cannot draw a sharp line    
between the operations of our own       
personality  and those of ,god in us4   
,personality escapes from all attempts  
to limit  and define it4 ,it is a       
concept which stretches into the        
infinite1 and  therefore can only be    
represented to thought symbolically4    
,the  personality must not be identified
 with the spark1 the ,active  ,reason1  
or whatever we like to call the highest 
part of our nature4  ,nor must we       
identify it with the changing ,moi 7as  
,fnelon calls it74  ,the personality1 as
 ,i have said in ,lecture ,i4 7p4 #cc71 
is both the  end--the ideal self1 and   
the changing ,moi1 and yet neither4 ,if 
either thesis is held divorced from its 
antithesis1 the thought ceases  to be   
mystical4 ,the two ideals of            
self-assertion and self-sacrifice  are  
both true and right1 and both1          
separately1 unattainable4 ,they are     
opposites which are really necessary to 
each other4 ,i have quoted from         

,vatke's attempt to reconcile grace and 
free-will3 another extract from  a      
writer of the same school may perhaps be
 helpful4 ,in the growth of  our        
experience1 says ,green1 an animal      
organism1 which has its  history in     
time1 gradually becomes the vehicle of  
an eternally  complete consciousness4   
,what we call our mental history is not 
a  history of this consciousness1 which 
in itself can have no history1  but a   
history of the process by which the     
animal organism becomes its  vehicle4   
',our consciousness' may mean either of 
two things3 either a  function of the   
animal organism1 which is being made1   
gradually and  with interruptions1 a    
vehicle of the eternal consciousness2 or
 that  eternal consciousness itself1 as 
making the animal organism its  vehicle 
and subject to certain limitations in so
 doing1 but retaining  its essential    
characteristic as independent of time1  
as the  determinant of becoming1 which  
has not and does not itself become4 ,the

  consciousness which varies from moment
 to moment 444 is consciousness  in the 
former sense4 ,it consists in what may  
properly be called  phenomena4444 ,the  
latter consciousness 444 constitutes our
 knowledge  7,prolegomena to ,ethics1   
pp4 #gb1 #gc74 ,analogous is our moral  
history4 ,but no ,christian can believe 
that our life1 mental or moral1  is or  
ever can be necessary to ,god in the    
same sense in which ,he is  necessary to
 our existence4 ,for practical religion1
 the symbol which  we shall find most   
helpful is that of a progressive        
transformation of  our nature after the 
pattern of ,god revealed in ,christ2 a  
process  which has as its end a real    
union with ,god1 though this end is1    
from  the nature of things1 unrealisable
 in time4 ,it is1 as ,i have said in    
the body of the ,lectures1 a progessus  
ad infinitum1 the consummation  of which
 we are nevertheless entitled to claim  
as already ours in a  transcendental    
sense1 in virtue of the eternal purpose 

of ,god made  known to us in ,christ4   
,,appendix ,d    ,the ,mystical         
,interpretation ,of ,the ,song ,of      
,solomon      ,the headings to the      
chapters in the ,authorised ,version    
give a sort of  authority to the        
mystical interpretation of ,solomon's   
,song1 a poem  which was no doubt       
intended by its author to be simply a   
romance of  true love4 ,according to our
 translators1 the ,lover of the story is
  meant for ,christ1 and the ,maiden for
 the ,church4 ,but the tendency of      
,catholic ,mysticism has been to make   
the individual soul the bride of        
,christ1 and to treat the ,song of      
,solomon as symbolic of spiritual       
nuptials between ,him and the individual
 contemplative4 ,it is this  latter     
notion1 the growth of which ,i wish to  
trace4    ,erotic ,mysticism is no part 
of ,platonism4 ,that sensuous love of   
the  unseen 7as ,pater calls it71 which 
the ,platonist often seems to aim  at1  
has more of admiration and less of      

tenderness than the emotion  which we   
have now to consider4 ,the notion of a  
spiritual marriage  between ,god and the
 soul seems to have come from the ,greek
 ,mysteries1  through the ,alexandrian  
,jews and ,gnostics4 ,representations of
  marriages of gods were common at the  
,mysteries1 especially at those  of the 
least reputable kind 7cf4 ,lucian1      
,alexander1 #ch74 ,in other  instances  
the ceremony of initiation was made to  
resemble a marriage1  and the ,greek3   
mysts was greeted with the words ,greek3
 chaire1  nymphie4 ,and among the ,jews 
of the first century there existed a    
system of ,mysteries1 probably copied   
from ,eleusis4 ,they had their  greater 
and their lesser ,mysteries1 and we hear
 that among their  secret doctrines was 
marriage with ,god4 ,in ,philo we find  
strange and  fantastic speculations on  
this subject4 ,for instance1 he argues  
that  as the ,bible does not mention    
,abraham1 ,jacob1 and ,moses as ,greek3 
gnrizontas tas gynaikas1 we are meant to

 believe that their children  were not  
born naturally4 ,but he allegorises the 
women of the  ,pentateuch in such a way 
7,greek3 log men eisi gynaikes1 erg de  
aretai7 that it is difficult to say what
 he wishes us to believe in a  literal  
sense4 ,the ,valentinian ,gnostics seem 
to have talked much of  spiritual       
marriage1 and it was from them that     
,origen got the idea of  elaborating the
 conception4 ,but1 curiously enough1 it 
is ,tertullian  who first argues that   
the body as well as the soul is the     
bride of  ,christ4 ,if the soul is the  
bride1 he says1 the flesh is the dowry  
7de ,resurr4 #fc74 ,origen1 however1    
really began the mischief in his        
homilies and commentary on the ,song of 
,solomon4 ,the prologue of the          
commentary in ,rufinus commences as     
follows3 ,epithalamium libellus  hic1 id
 est nuptiale carmen1 dramatis in modum 
mihi videtur a ,salomone  conscriptus1  
quem cecinit instar nubentis spons1 et  
erga sponsum suum  qui est sermo ,dei   

clesti amore flagrantis4 ,adamavit enim 
eum sive  anima1 qu ad imaginem eius    
facta est1 sive ecclesia4 ,harnack says 
that ,gregory of ,nyssa exhibits the    
conception in its purest and most       
attractive form in the ,east1 and adds1 
,we can point to very few ,greek        
,fathers in whom the figure does not    
occur4 7,there is a learned note  on the
 subject by ,louis de ,leon1 which      
corroborates this statement of          
,harnack4 ,he refers to ,chrysostom1    
,theodoret1 ,irenus1 ,hilary1 ,cyprian1 
,augustine1 ,tertullian1 ,ignatius1     
,gregory of ,nyssa1 ,cyril1 ,leo1       
,photius1 and ,theophylact as calling   
,christ the bridegroom of souls47  ,in  
the ,west1 we find it in ,ambrose1 less 
prominently in ,augustine and  ,jerome4 
,dionysius seizes on the phrase of      
,ignatius1 ,my love has been  crucified1
 to justify erotic imagery in devotional
 writing4    ,bernard's homilies on the 
,song of ,solomon gave a great impetus  
to this  mode of symbolism2 but even he 

says that the ,church and not the       
individual is the bride of ,christ4     
,there is no doubt that the enforced    
celibacy and virginity of the monks and 
nuns led them1 consciously or           
unconsciously1 to transfer to the human 
person of ,christ 7and to a  much       
slighter extent1 to the ,virgin ,mary7 a
 measure of those feelings  which could 
find no vent in their external lives4   
,we can trace this1  in a wholesome and 
innocuous form1 in the visions of       
,juliana of  ,norwich4 ,quotations from 
,ruysbroek's ,spiritual ,nuptials1 and  
from  ,suso1 bearing on the same point1 
are given in the body of the  ,lectures4
 ,good specimens of devotional poetry of
 this type might be  selected from      
,crashaw and ,quarles4 7,a few specimens
 are included in  ,palgrave's ,golden   
,treasury of ,sacred ,song47 ,fnelon's  
language on  the subject is not quite so
 pleasing2 it breathes more of          
sentimentality than of reverence4 ,the  
contemplative1 he says1 desires  une    

simple prsence de ,dieu purement        
amoureuse1 and speaks to ,christ  always
 comme l'pouse  l'poux4    ,the ,sufis  
or ,mohammedan mystics use erotic       
language very freely1 and  appear1 like 
true ,asiatics1 to have attempted to    
give a sacramental or  symbolic         
character to the indulgence of their    
passions4 ,from this  degradation the   
mystics of the cloister were happily    
free2 but a  morbid element is painfully
 prominent in the records of many       
medival  saints1 whose experiences are  
classified by ,ribet4 ,he               
enumerates--7#a7  ,divine touches1 which
 ,scaramelli defines as real but purely 
spiritual sensations1 by which the soul 
feels the intimate presence of  ,god1   
and tastes ,him with great delight2 7#b7
 ,the wound of love1 of  which one of   
his authorities says1 hc poena tam      
suavis est quod  nulla sit in hac vita  
delectatio qu magis satisfaciat4 ,it is 
to this  experience that ,cant4 ii4 #e  
refers3 ,fulcite me floribus1 stipate me

  malis1 quia amore langueo4 ,sometimes 
the wound is not purely  spiritual3 ,st4
 ,teresa1 as was shown by a post-mortem 
examination1 had  undergone a miraculous
 transverberation of the heart3 et      
pourtant  elle survcut prs de vingt ans 
cette blessure mortelle6 7#c7           
,catherine of ,siena was betrothed to   
,christ with a ring1 which remained     
always on her fingers1 though visible to
 herself alone4 ,lastly1 in the         
revelations of ,st4 ,gertrude we read3  
,feria tertia ,pasch dum  communicatura 
desideraret a ,domino ut per idem       
sacramentum vivificum  renovare         
dignaretur in anima eius matrimonium    
spirituale quod ipsi in  spiritu erat   
desponsata per fidem et religionem1     
necnon per virginalis  pudiciti         
integritatem1 ,dominus blanda serenitate
 respondit3 hoc1  inquiens1 indubitanter
 faciam4 ,sic inclinatus ad eam         
blandissimo  affectu eam ad se stringens
 osculum prdulce anim eius infixit1 etc4
    ,the employment of erotic imagery to

 express the individual relation        
between ,christ and the soul is always  
dangerous2 but this objection  does not 
apply to the statement that the ,church 
is the bride of  ,christ4 ,even in the  
,old ,testament we find the chosen      
people so spoken  of 7cf4 ,isa4 liv4 #e2
 ,jer4 iii4 #ad74 ,professor ,cheyne    
thinks that the  ,canticles were        
interpreted in this sense1 and that this
 is why the  book gained admission into 
the ,canon4 ,in the ,new ,testament1    
,st4 ,paul  uses the symbol of marriage 
in ,rom4 vii4 #a-d2 #a ,cor4 xi4 #c2    
,eph4 v4  #bc-cc4 ,on the last passage  
,canon ,gore says3 ,the love of         
,christ--the  removal of obstacles to   
,his love by atoning sacrifice--the act 
of  spiritual purification--the gradual 
sanctification--the consummated  union  
in glory2 these are the moments of the  
,divine process of  redemption1 viewed  
from the side of ,christ1 which ,st4    
,paul specifies4  ,this use of the      
sacrament of marriage 7as a symbol of   

the mystical  union between ,christ and 
the ,church71 which alone has the       
sanction of  the ,new ,testament1 is one
 which1 we hope1 the ,church will always
  treasure4 ,the more personal relation 
also exists1 and the fervent  devotion  
which it elicits must not be condemned2 
though we are forced  to remember that  
in our mysteriously constituted minds   
the highest and  lowest emotions lie    
very near together1 and that those who  
have chosen  a life of detachment from  
earthly ties must be especially on their
  guard against the occasional revenges 
which the lower nature1 when  thwarted1 
is always plotting against the higher4