T H E H A RT F O RD —L A M S O N L E C T U RE S O N

TH E REL I G I O N S O F T H E W O RL D : gr
r

A N INTRODUCTION
TO THE S TU D Y O F

COMPARATIV E RELIGION

F RA N K B Y RON J E V ON S
PRI N C I PA L O F B I SH OP HATF I EL D ’
HAL L ,
S D AM
U RH

U NI V ERS ITY , D A
U RH M , D
E N GL A N

N e w fink

T H E M A C M I L L A N C O M PA N Y
 CO PYRI G HT , 1 908 ,

BY TH E M ACM IL LAN C O M PAN Y .

Se t u p and e l e ct roty pe d . P bli h d O

u s e c t ob e r, x 9 0 8 .

Norwi ch iBre ss
C u s h i ng C o B e rw i ck S mi th C o
r
. .

N o w ood , M as s , U S A. . . .
 NOTE
“
TH E H artford L amson L ectures on The Re
-

l ig i ons of th e W orl d
”
are de liv ered at H artf ord
Th eologic al S emi nary in co nnection with th e L am
son Fu nd which w as e st ablished by a g roup Of
,

friends in honor of th e l ate C h arles M L amson .

,

D D sometim e P resident Of th e A meric an Bo ard

. .
,

of C ommissioners for Forei g n M issions to a s sist

,

in prep arin g students for the forei g n mission ary

field . T h e L ectures are desi g ned prim arily to
giv e to such students a g ood k nowled g e of the
reli g ious history beliefs and customs of the peo
, ,

p les amon g whom th ey exp ec t to l abor A s they

.

ar e delivered by sc h ol a rs of th e first r a nk who are

,

authorities in their resp ective fie lds it is exp ec ted

,

th at in publish ed form they will prov e to b e of

v alu e to s t udents g e n e r ally .
 C O N T E N TS

IN TR O D U C TI O N
I M M O RT A L IT Y

MA GI C
FETI C H S M I

PRAYE R
S A C RI I C
F E

M O RA L I TY
C H R S A N TY
I TI I

A PP N D X
E I

B I O GRAP HY
BLI

IND E X
 A N A LY T I CA L TA BL E OF
CO N T E N TS

I N T R O D U C TI O N

Th e u se of a ny sci nc li s i n its pp lic ti n t p r ctic l p

e e e a a o o a a ur

p s
o es F C hristi
. n ity t
or h f t h sci n c f r li i
g n a ,
e use O e e e O e o

c nsists i n pp lyi ng it t sh w th t C hristi nity is t h

o a o o a a e

hi g h st m nif st ti n f t h r lig i us sp irit T m k

e a e a o o e e o . 0 a e

this f t h sci nc
u se o f r lig i n w must f ully nd
e e e O e o , e a

f r nkly cc p t t h f cts it f ur nish s

a a e nd must r c g nis e a e , a e o e

th t th rs
a o t li b rty t
e th m f ny pp sit p
a re a e o use e or a O o e ur

p s o e B t w must l
. i nsist th t t h sci nc f r lig i n
u e a so a e e e O e o

is limit d t t h st b lishm nt f f cts nd is x clud d

e o e e a e o a a e e

f r m p ssi ng judg m nt n t h r li g i us v lu
o a f th s e o e e o a e O o e

f cts
a T h sci nc
. f r li g i ne hist ric l sci nc is n
e e o e o as a o a e e co

c r n d with th chr n l g ic l rd r nd n t with th r li

e e e o o o a o e , a o e e

gi v lu f its f cts ; nd t h rd r f th s f cts d s

ou s a e ,
o a a e o e o o e a oe

n t d t rmi n th ir v lu
o e e ny m r i n t h c s
e f r li g i n
e a e a o e e a e o e o

th n i n th c s f lit r tur
a e t B t if th ir v lu is
a e o e a e o r ar . u e a e a

qu sti n n which th sci nc r f us s t nt r it d s n t

e o o e e e e e o e e , oe o

f ll w th t t h qu sti n is n which d s n t dmit f

o o a e e o o e oe o a O a

truthf ul nsw r sci nc h n m n p ly f truth T h

a e : e e as o o o o o . e

v lu f nythi ng lw ys im p li s r f r nc t t h f utur
a e O a a a e a e e e e o e e :

t b
o f v lu
e o thi ng must b f a e f s m p urp s
a e o use or o e o e,

a nd wh t is p urp s d is i n t h
a f utur T hi ng s h v o e e e . a e

v lua eh v n t cc rdi ng th y
, or a e us f ul n t o , a o as e a re e or o

for ou r p urp s s T h c nvicti n th t w o e n tt i n

. e o o a e ca a a ou r

p ur p s s nd id
o e ls th c nvicti n with ut which w
a ea , e o o o e

sh uld n t v n tt m p t t tt i n th m is f ith ; nd it
o o e e a e o a a e a a

is i n f ith nd b y f ith th t th m n f r lig i n p r p s s t

a a a a e a o e o o o e o

ix
 A N A LY T I C A L T A B L E O F C ON T E N T S
P GE
A S

c nqu r t h w rld I t is by f ith i n C hristi nity th t t h

o e e o . a a a e

missi n ry u nd rt k s t c nv rt m n t C hristi nity

o a e a e o o e e o a .

T h c m p r tiv v lu
e o f di ff r nt r li g i ns
a a n nly b e a e O e e e o ca o e

a sc rt i n d b y c m p ris n f th s r lig i ns ; nd t h
e a e o a o O o e e o a e

missi n ry f ll m n ug ht t k n w wh t is t b
o a ,
o a e ,
o o o a o e

l r nt f r m such c m p ris n I t is s m tim s su pp s d

ea o o a o . o e e o e

( wr ng ly
o ) th t t dmit th t ll r li g i n s c mp r bl
a o a a a e o a re o a a e

is t dmit th t l l id ntic l ; b ut i n truth it is nly

o a a a a re e a , , o

b c us th y di ff r th t it is p ssi b l t c m p r th m
e a e e e a o e o o a e e .

F or t h p ur p s f c m p ris n b th t h di ff r nc s nd
e o e O o a o o e e e e a

th r s m b l nc s must b ssum d t x ist ; nd v n

e e e a e e a e o e a e e

f ort h p ur p s s e f t h sci nc f r li g i n th r is n th
o e o e e e o e o e e o

i ng t c m p l us t p stul t
o o p ri d i n which ith r
e o o a e a e o e e

th di ff r nc s t h r s m b l nc s w r n n x ist nt
e e e e or e e e a e e e o -
e e .

B t th u g h th r is n thi ng t c m p l us t
u o ssum th t
e e o o o e o a e a

th l w st f r m i n which r lig i n is f u nd w n
e o e o e o o as e ce s

s ari ly t h rli st t x ist it is c nv ni nt f us t st rt

e ea e o e , o e e or o a

f r m t h l w st f rms
o F e th p r ctic l p ur p s s f
o e o . or e a a o e O

t h missi n ry it is d sir b l wh r p ssi b l t

e o a disc v r e a e e e o e o o e

a ny p i nts f r s m b l nc
o tr its f c nn cti n b tw n
o e e a e or a o o e o e ee

t h l w r f rm with which his h

e o e r rs o f mili r nd ea e a re a a a

t h hi g h r f rm t
e which h p r p s s t l d th m I t
e o o e o o e o ea e .

is th r f r p r p r f him nd r s n b l i n its lf t
e e o e o e or a ea o a e e o

l k u p n t h l ng hist ry f r li g i n m n s s rch
oo o e o o O e o as a
’
ea

f or G d nd t o r g rd it t h f u ncti n f th mis
, a o e a as e o o e

i n y t k p th rs i n th t s rch
s o ar o ee o e a ea

Y I M M O RT A L IT

T he b li f i n imm rt lity is m r
e e
p r mi n nt th u g h l ss o a o e o e , o e

i ntim t ly b u nd p with r lig i n m ng st u ncivilis d

a e o u e o , a o e

th n it is m ng st civilis d p p l s I n rly tim s

a a o e eo e . ea e

th f ncy lu x uri t s u nch c k d

e a n this n th r a e , e e ,
o as o o e

m tt rs I t is l t i n t h hist ry f r li g i n th t t h
a e . a e e o o e o a e

imm rt lity f t h s ul is f u nd t b p stul t d lik

o a o e o o o e o a e a e

b y m r lity nd r lig i n T h b li f th t t h s ul
o a a e o . e e e a e o

e x ists f t r d th d u b tl ss m nif st d its lf first i n t h

a e ea o e a e e e e
 '

ANA L TI CA Y L T AB L E OF C ON T EN T S

fa ct th t m n dr m f th s w h h v di d B t w r
a e ea o o e o a e e . u , e e

th r n d sir t b li v it m y b d u b t d wh th r
e e o e e o e e e , a e o e e e

t h b li f w uld surviv
e e e v n rig i n t T h b li f
o e , or e e o a e . e e e

o rig i n t s i n d sir i n l ng i ng f n l d nd l st ;
a e e e , o or o e ov e a o

a nd dr ms n t t h c us
ea f th t d sir
a re th ug h th y o e a e o a e e , o e

a re o n r g i n i n which it m nif sts its l f

e e o r th r n a e e , or a e o e

m d f its m nif st ti n T h d sir is f c nti nu d

o e o a e a o . e e e or o e

c mmu ni n; nd its g r tific ti n is f u nd i n sp iritu l

o o a a a o o a a

c mmu ni n S uch c mmu ni n ls is b li v d t u nit

o o . o o a o e e e o e

w rshi pp rs b th with n n th r nd with th ir G d

o e o o e a o e a e o .

Wh r d th is r g rd d
e e ea disru pti n f c mmu ni n e a e as a o o o o

b tw n t h livi ng nd t h d p rt d d th is r g rd d
e ee e a e e a e ,
ea e a e

as u nn tur l vi l ti n f t h rig i n l d sig n f

a a ,
as a o a o O e o a e O

thi ng s which c lls f x p l n ti n ; nd t h x p l n ti n

,
a or e a a o a e e a a o

i p r vid d i n myths which cc u nt f

s o e it b y sh wi ng th t a o or o a

th erig i n f d th w d t ccid nt mist k At

o o ea as ue o a e or a e .

first it is f lt th t t h mist k c nn t b n with ut

,
e a e a e a o e o e o

r m dy t h d c s d is i nvit d t c m t us g i n
e e : e e ea e e
“
o o e o a a .
”

If h d s n t r tur n i n his l d b dy th n h is b li v d
e oe o e O o ,
e e e e e

t r pp
o ea r i n s m n w b rn chi ld O th d ct ri n f
ea o e e -
o . r e o e o

re b irth m y b s tisfi d b y t h b li f th t t h s ul is
a e a e e e e a e o

re i nc r n t d i n nim l f rm T his b li f is sp ci lly

a a e a a o . e e e a

lik ly t g r w p wh r t t m nc st rs
e o o b li v d t
u e e o e a e o a re e e e o

m nif st th ms lv s i n th sh p f s m nim l B li f
a e e e e e a e O o e a a . e e

i n such nim l r i nc r n ti n ha i n its rig i n h w

a e a a o as, o , o

e v r n c nn cti n with ny th ry th t tr nsmig r ti n

e ,
o o e o a eo a a a o

fr m o hum n t n nim l f rm is p u nishm nt Up

a a o a a a o a e .

t this p i nt i n th
o v luti n f t h b li f i n imm rt lity
o e e o o o e e e o a ,

th b li f i n n th r w rld th n this d s n t sh w
e e e a o e o a oe o o

its lf E v n wh n nc st r w rshi p b g i ns t g r w p
e . e e a e o -
o e o o u ,

th nc st rs fi ld f p r ti ns is i n this w rld r th r
’
e a e o e o O e a o o ,
a e

th n i n t h n x t B t th f ct th t th ir id nd p
a e e . u e a a e a a ro

t ti n
ec o n b i nv k d b y t h c mmu nity t nds t
ca e lvt o e e o e o e e a e

th m t th l v l f t h g d
e o eg ds f t h c mmu nity
e e O e o or o O e o .

T his t nd ncy h w v r m y b d f t d
e e ,
it w i n o e e ,
a e e ea e ,
as as

$ ud wh
ae a , r t h r li g i us s n tim
e n t e will n t p rmit e e o e e o e

th d i ff r nc b tw n G d nd m n t b b lurr d
e e e e e ee o a a o e e .
x 1i A N A LY T I C A L TA B L E OF C ON T E N T S
P GE A S

W h r t h f ct th t t h d d d n t r tur n st b lish s
e e e a a e ea o o e e a e

its l f i nc ntr v rti b l t h b li f g r ws p th t t h

e as o o e e ,
e e e o u a as e

d d c nti nu t x ist it is i n n th r w rld th t th ir

e a o e o e ,
a o e o a e

e x ist nc must c nti nu A t first th y

e e c nc iv d o e . e a re o e e

t oc nti nu t b o th y r m mb r d t h v b n
e o e as e a re e e e e o a e ee

i n this li f L t r t h id g r wse p.th t th y p n a e e ea o u a e a re u

i h d
s r w rd d th r cc rdi ng
e or e th y h v b n
a e e e ,
a o as e a e ee

b d a g d h r ;or cc rdi ngoo th y h v h v n

e t in e a o as e a e or a e o

this li f s ug ht c mmu ni n with t h tru G d T his

e o o o e e o .

b li f thus di ff rs ntir ly f r m t h rli r b li f g

e e e e e o e e a e e e ,
e . . as

it is f u nd m ng st t h E s k im th t it is i n this w rld
o a o e o, a o

t h s p irits f t h d p rt d r
e pp r nd th t th ir
o n e e a e ea ea ,
a a e co

t i n d x ist nc is n fi t d b y c nsid r ti ns f m r l
'

ue e e e u a e c e o e a o o o a

ity r lig i n I t is h w v r n t m r ly t h b li f i n
or e o .
,
o e e ,
o e e e e e

t h n x t w rld th t m y c m t b s nctifi d b y r li g i n
e e o a a o e o e a e e o

a nd m r lis d Th b li f i n r i nc r n ti n i n nim l
o a e . e e e e a a o a a

f rm m y c m t b
o m p l y d i n t h s rvic f r li g i n
a o e o e e o e e e e o e o

a nd m r lity it is i n B uddhism T h r h w v r
o a , as . e e , o e e ,

wh t w ri g i n lly t h tr nsmig r ti n f s uls w tr ns

a as o a e a a o O o as a

f rm d b y G t m i nt t h tr nsmi g r ti n f ch r ct r ;
o e o a a o e a a o o a a e

a nd t h v ry x ist nc f t h i ndividu l s ul wh th r
e e e e e o e a o ,
e e

b f r d th
e o e ft r w h ld t b n illusi n nd
ea or a e ,
as e o e a o a a

d c p ti n T his t n t p ush s t h
e e o . d ctri n f s lf e e e e o e o e

s crific which is ss nti l b th t r li g i n nd t

a e ,
e e a o o e o a o

m r lity t n x tr m which is f t l i n l g ic t m r lity

o a ,
o a e e e a a o o o a

a nd r li g i n lik c mmu ni n b tw n m n nd G d
e o a e : o o e ee a a o

th i ndisp ns b l p r su pp siti n f b th r lig i n nd

e e a e e o o o o e o a

m r ls is im p ssi b l if t h v ry x ist nc f m n is
o a —
o e ,
e e e e e o a

illus ry T h m ss g f t h missi n ry will b th t b y

o . e e a e o e o a e a

C hristi nity s l f ifi is sh w n t b t h c nditi n f

a e -
s ac r ce o o e e o o o

m r lity t h ss nc f c mmu ni n with G d nd t h

o a , e e e e O o o o a e

w y t li f
a t rn l o e e e 34 69 a —

M AGIC
A vi w s m tim h l d w th t m g ic is r lig i n nd r lig i n
e o e e e as a a e o ,
a e o

m g ic W ith qu l r s n w nt f r s n it mig ht
a . e a ea o , or a o ea o ,

b h ld th t m g ic w sci nc nd sci nc m g ic
e e a a as e e , a e e a .
 A N A LYT I CA L T A B L E O F C ON T E N T S X l ll

E v e n if w e c rr ct
d fi niti n nd y th t t us o e the e o , a sa a o

m g ic pp
a n a sp ct ea rs i n
sp uri us syst m f
,
o e a e , as a o e o

sci nc ; nd i n n th r
e e a sp uri us syst m f
,
a o e , as a o e o te

l ig i n ; w still h v t n t th t f
o e th s w h b li v d a e o o e a ,
or o e o e e e

i n it it c uld n t h v b n
,
o sp uri us syst m wh th r
o a e ee a o e ,
e e

o f sci nc r lig i n P rimitiv m n cts n t h

e e or e mpo . e a a o e ass u

ti n th t h n p r duc lik b y m ns f lik ; nd b ut

o a e ca o e e ea o e a a o

th t ssump ti n th r is n m g ic f ny ki nd I t is
a a o e e o a
”
o a .

o nly wh n n ff ct thus p r duc d is

e a thi ng n t m
e e o e a o co

m nl y d n
o nd n t g n r lly o e pp r v d f th t it is
a o e e a a o e o ,
a

r g rd d m g ic ; nd it is m g ic b c us n t v ry
e a e as a a a ,
e a e o e e

o n k n ws h w t d
e it n t v ry n h t h p w r
o o o o ,
or o e e o e as e o e

to d it n t
o v ry n c r s t d it A b ut this
,
or o e e o e a e o o . o

b li f l ng
e e ,
v ry n nt rt i ns it th r is n thi ng
so o as e e o e e e a ,
e e o

sp uri us W h n h w v r it b g i ns t b susp ct d th t
o . e o e e e o e e e a

th m g i i n h
e an t t h p w r t d wh t h p r f ss s
c a as o e o e o o a e o e e ,

his p r f ssi n t nds t b c m f r udul nt nd his b li f

o e o e o e o e a e a e e

sp uri us O n t h th r h nd thi ng c mm nly d n

o . e o e a ,
a o o o e

a nd g n r ally pp rev d ef is n t r g rd d
a m g ic l o e o o e a e as a a

m r ly b c us t h ff ct r s m b l s t h c us nd lik is
e e e a e e e e e e e e a e , a e

i n this i nst nc p r duc d b y li k a M g ic is t rm f vil

e o e e . a a e O e

c nn t ti n ; nd t h p r ctic f usi ng lik t p r duc lik

o o a o a e a e o e o o e e

is c nd m n d wh n nd b c us it is m p l y d f nti
o e e e a e a e e o e or a

s ci l p urp s s S uch p r ctic s

o a o e r s nt d b y t h
. a e a re e e e e

s ci ty m ng st wh m nd n wh m th y
o e , a o m o a o o e a re e

p l oy d ; ned th y ff nsiv
a t t h G d w he l ks a re o e e o e o o oo

a f t r t h i nt r sts f t h c mmu nity

e e e I n fin t h
e b j ct
o e o . e ,
e O e

a nd p urp s f t h p r ctic d t rmi n s t h

o e o ttitu d f t h
e a e e e e e a e o e

c mmu nity t w rds t h p r ctic if th b j ct is nti

o o a e a e : e O e a

s ci l th p r ctic is n f ri us ; nd t h witch if sm ll d
o a ,
e a e e a o a e ,
e e

ou t is kill d T h p rs n w h is willi ng t u nd rt k
,
”
e . e e o o o e a e

such n f ri us p r c di ng s c m s t b cr dit d with

e a o o ee o e o e e e a

n f ri us p rs n lity th t is t
e a o e y with o b th t ha p w r , a o sa , o e o e

a nd t h will t d wh t rdi n ry d c nt m m b rs f
e o o a o a ,
e e e e o

th c mmu nity c uld n t nd w uld n t d p rs n l

e o o o a o o o: e o a

p w r c m s t
o e b th om st im p rt nt b c us t h
e o e e o o a ,
e a e e

m st myst ri us ch r ct ristic f th m n b li v d t
o e o , a a e o e a e e e o
‘
( IV A N A LY T I C A L TA B L E O F C ON T E N T S
PAG E
S

be m g ici n I f w tur n t thi ng s such r i n m k i ng

a a a . e o ,
as a -
a ,

w hich s ci lly b n f ci l w f nd simil r g r wth i n

a re o a e e i a ,
e i a a o

th eb li f th t s m m n h v x tr rdi n ry p w r t
e e a o e e a e e ao a o e o

w r k w nd rs
o n b h l f f t h tri b
o e A f urth r st g
o f e a o e e . e a e o

d v l pm nt is r ch d wh n t h m n w h us s his p
e e o e ea e e e a o e e r

s n l p w r f n f ri us purp s s u nd rt k s by m ns
o a o e or e a o o e e a e ea

o f it c ntr l s pirits m g ic th n t nds t p ss i nt f tich

to o o : a e e o a o e

ism Simil rly wh n r i n nd th r s ci l b n fits c m

. a ,
e a a o e o a e e o e

t b r g rd d
o e g i fets f t h ag ds t h pe w r f t
as h r in o e o ,
e o e O e a

m k r c m s t b r g rd d
a e o p w r t p r cur f r m
e o e e a e as a o e o o e o

t h g ds t h g i fts th t th y h v t b st w
e o e m g ic is dis a e a e o e o : a

p l ca d b y r lieg i n T h pp siti n ef p ri nci p l b tw n

o . e O o o O e e ee

m g ic nd r li g i n thus m k s its l f m ni f st I t m k s
a a e o a e e a e . a e

its lf m ni f st i n th t t h n p r m t s s ci l nd t h
e a e a e o e o o e o a a e

o th r nti s ci l p urp s s t h s p irit w rshi pp d by ny

e a -
o a o e :
'
e o e a

c mmu nity its g d is s p irit w h h th i nt r sts f

o as o a o as e e e O

th ec mmu nity t h rt nd w h
o fi i c nd m ns a ea ,
a o ex o c o o e

a nd p u nish s th s wh b y m g ic e th rwis w rk o e o a or o e e o

i njury t t h m m b rs f t h c mmu nity F i n lly th

o e e e o e o . a ,
e

d cli n f t h b li f i n m g ic is l rg ly d t t h d is
e e O e e e a a e ue o e

co v e r y th t it d s n t p r duc t h a fi t it p r f ss s t oe o o e e e ec s o e e o

b ri ng b ut B t t h missi n ry will ls dw ll n t h
a o . u e o a a o e o e

f ct th t his h r rs f l it t b
a a nti s ci l nd t b ea e n e e o e a -
o a a o e co

d m m d li k by th ir m r l s ntim nts nd th ir
e e a e e o a e e a e re

l ig i f li ng
o us ee
7
— 0 1 04

F E T I C H I SM

Fe tichism is r g rd d b y s m st g f r li g i us d v l p
e a e o e as a a e o e o e e o

m nt e t h f rm f r li g i n f u nd m ng st m n t
, o r as e o O e o o a o e a

t h l w st st g
e f d v l p m nt k n w n t us
o e F r m thisa e o e e o e o o . o

t h c nclusi n is s m tim s dr w n th t f tichism is t h

e o o o e e a a e e

s urc f l l r li g i n nd f l l r li g i us v lu s ; nd
o e o a e o a o a e o a e a ,

th r f r th t ( f tichism h n v lu ) r lig i n ( which

e e o e ,
a as e as o a e e o

is n v lv d f rm f f tichism ) h n v lu ith r
a e o e o o e as o a e e e .

T his c nclusi n is th n b li v d to b p r v d by t h o e e e e o e o e e

sci nc f r li g i n I n f ct h w v r stud nts f t h

e e o e o . a , o e e ,
e o e

sci nc f r lig i n discl im this c nclusi n nd ri g htly

e e o e o a o o a
 A N AL YTI CAL T B A LE OF C ON T E N T S X V

ss rt th t th sci nc d s n t u nd rt k t p r v ny
a e a e e e oe o e a e o o e a

thi ng t t h truth th v lu f r li g i n
as o e or e a e o e o .

M uch c nf usi n p r v ils

o t owh t f tichism is ; nd th e a as o a e a e

c nf usi n is p rim rily d t B sm n H c nf us s

o o a ue o o a . e o e ,

whil t h sci nc f r lig i n disti ng uish s b tw n nim l

e e e e o e o e e e e ,
a a

g ds o n d f ticha s H ss rtsewh t w n w k n w t b
e . e a e a e o o o e

f ls viz th t f tich is n i n nim t

a e ,
.
, a bj ct nd n thi ng
a e a a a e o e a o

m r ; nd th t t h n tiv r j cts
o e a b r ks n f
a e a e e e ,
or
“
ea ,
”
o e o

th s g ds kn wi ng it t b g d
e e o ,
o o e a o .

A ny sm ll b j ct which h pp ns t
a o e rr st th tt nti n f a e o a e e a e o o a

n g r e wh n h ho, d sir t g r ti f y m y im p r ss him

e e as a e e o a ,
a e

asb i ng f tich i
e h vi ng p w r t h l p him t
a e ,
. e . as a o e o e o

g r ti f y his d sir
a H r B ofi d i ng s ys is t h sim p l st
e e . e e , a ,
e e

c nc iv b l c nstructi n f r li g i us id s h r is
o e a e o o O e o ea : e e

p r s nted r eli g i ne u n d r t h g uise f d sir L t oit b e e e o e e . e e

g r n t da th n e th t ,
t h bj ct ttr cts tt nti n nd is
e ,
a e o e a a a e o a

i nv lu nt rily ss ci t d with th p ssi b ility f tt i ni ng

o a a o a e e o o a a

t h d sir d nd
e e I t f ll ws th t
e e i n t h p ri d f ni
. o o a ,
as e e o o a

mism ll b j cts , a b li v d t b nim t d b y sp irits

o e a re e e e o e a a e ,

f tich b j cts
e O disti ng uish d f r m th r b j cts b y
e a re e o o e o e

t h f ct e n t th t th y
a nim t d b y s p irits b ut
o a e a re a a e

th t it is b li v d th y will id i n th cc mp lishm nt f
a e e e e a e a o e o

t h d sir d nd
e e T h p ic k i ng p f f tich b j ct h w
e e . e u o a e O e ,
o

v r is n t lw ys f ll w d b y t h d sir d r sult ; nd
e e ,
o a a o o e e e e e a

n g r th n xp l i ns th t it h l st its sp irit “
th e e o e e a a as o .

T h s p irit g e s t f it i nd d b ut m y p rch nc b
oe ou O ,
ee ,
a e a e e

i nduc d v n c m p ll d t r turn i nt s m th r
e or e e o e e o e o o e o e

bj ct ; nd th n f tich s m y b p urp s ly m d
O e a e e e a e o e a e as

w ll e ccid nt lly f u nd nd
as a li b l t c rci n
e a o ,
a a re a e o oe o as

w ll e p n t as o c n cili ti n e o o a o .

But thr ug h ut this p r c ss th r is n r l i g i n R li g i n

,
o o o e ,
e e o e o . e o

is th w rshi p f t h g ds f c mmu nity b y t h m

e o o e o O a o e co

mu nity f t h g d f t h c mmu nity T h cult f

or e oo o e o . e o a

f tich is c nduct d b y n i ndividu l f

e o his p riv t nds ; e a a or a e e

nd t h
a m st im p rt nt f u ncti n f f tich is t w rk
e o o a o O a e o o

vil g i nst th s m m b rs f t h c mmu nity w h h v

e a a o e e e o e o o a e

i ncurr d th f tich w n r s r s ntm nt T hus r lig i n

e e e o e
’
e e e . e o
xvi A N A LY T I C A L TA B L E OF C ON T E N T S
P GE A S

a nd f tich w rshi p e d ir c t d t -
nds n t m r ly
o a re e e o e o e e

d i lI n b ut
e re nt g nistic
t Fr m h v y uts t a a o . o t e e r o e re

l ig i n i n s ci l f tichism is
o nti s ci l
o T s k th
a e a - o a . O ee e

o ri g i n f r lig i n i n f tichism is v i n C nd m n d
o e o e a . o e e ,

wh r v r it x ists by t h r li g i us nd m r l f li ng s
e e e e ,
e e o a o a e e

o f th c mmu nity f tichism c nn t h v b n th

e o ,
e a o a e ee e

p rimitiv r li g i n f m en k i nd T h
e s p irits f f otich o a . e o e

ism cc rdi ng t HOfI d i ng b c m v ntu lly t h g ds

,
a o o ,
e o e e e a e o

o f p lyth ism sucho sp irit

e l ng it is f tich
: a , so o as a e ,

is t h g d f m m nt nd must c m t b p
“
e o O a o e ,
”
a o e o e er

m n nt if it is t tt i n t t h r nk s f t h p lyth istic
a e o a a o e a o e o e

g ods B t f . tich s v n wh
u n th ir f u ncti n b c m s
e e , e e e e o e o e

p rm n nt r m i n f tich s
e a e nd d
,
n t b c me
g ds a e e a o o e o e o .

Th y d e n t v n b c m d p rtm nt l g ds f
o o e e e o e
“
e a e a o ,
”
or

th ir p w rs
e t f urth r
o e m n s d sir s g n r lly
a re o e a a
’
e e e e a .

O n th th r h nd th y h v p rs n lity v n if th y
e o e a ,
e a e e o a ,
e e e

h v n t p rs n l n m s F i n lly if H Off d i ng b
a e o e o a a e . a , ,
as e

li e ve s ,th w rd g d rig i n lly m nt h w h is

e o
“
o
”
o a ea
“
e o

w rshi pp d nd g ds
o e w rshi pp d b y t h mm
,
”
a o a re o e e co u

nity th n f tich s
, e th y n wh r
e w rshi pp d b ye , as e a re o e e o e

t h c mmu nity
e o i n n c s g ds , a re o a e o .

T he f u ncti n f t h f tich is nti s ci l ;

o o f t h g ds t p
e e a -
o a o e o , o ro

m t t h w ll b i ng f t h c mmu nity T m i nt i n th t
o e e e -
e o e o . o a a a

a g d is v lv d
o t f ef tich is t m i nt i n th t p
o e ou o a e o a a a rac

tic s d structiv f s ci ty h v nly t b p ush d f

e e e O o e a e o o e e ar

e n u g h nd th y w ill p r v t h s lv ti n f s ci ty
o a e 5 37 o e e a a o o o e 1 0 —1

P RA Y E R
P r y r is
a e h n m n n i n th hist ry f r lig i n t whi ch
a p e o e o e o o e o o

t h sci nc
e f r li g i n he d v t d b ut littl tt nti n
e O e o as e o e e a e o

th r es n ll g d b i ng th t it is sim p l nd f mili r
ea o a e e e a so e a a a

as n t t d m nd d t il d study I t m y h w v r b
o o e a e a e . a , o e e , e

th t t h p h n m n n is i nd d f mili r y t n t sim p l
a e e o e o ee a a e o e .

S im p l n t it is e m tt r n which d ifi nt vi ws
or o , a a e o e re e

m y b h ld
a T hus th u g h it m y b
e e
g r d th t i n . o a e a ee a

th l w r f rms f r lig i n it is t h cc m p lishm nt f

e o e o O e o e a o e O

d sir th t is sk d f
e e div rg nc f p i ni n m rg s
a a e o r, a e e e O o o e e e
 A NA LYT I CA L TA B L E OF C ON T E N T S xvii

th e m m nt th q u sti n is p t W h s d sir $ th t f
o e e e o u , o e e e a o

t h i ndividu l
e f t h c mmu nity $ A nd i nst nc s m y
a or o e o a e a

b cit d t sh w th t it is n t f
e e o his w n p rs n l o a o or o e o a ,

s l fish dv nt g l n th t th s v g lw ys
e a a a vn e a o e a e a a e a a or e e

usu lly p r ys I t is th d sir s f t h c mmu nity th t

a a . e e e O e o a

th g d f t h c mmu nity is c nc r n d t g r nt
e o o e th o o e e o a : e

p titi n f n i ndividu l is ff r d nd h rk n d t
e o o a nly a o e e a a e e o o

so f it is n t p r judici l t t h i nt r sts f th m
a r as o e a o e e e o e co

mu nity T h st t m nt th t s v g p r y r is u n thic l
. e a e e a a a e a e e a

m y b c rr ct i n t h s ns th t p rd n f m r l i n is
a e o e e e e a a o or o a s

n t s u g ht ; it is i nc rr ct if u nd rst
o o d t m n th t o e ,
e oo o ea a

th s v g d s n t p r y t d th thi ng s which his

e a a e oe o a o o e

m r lity m k s it i ncum b nt n him t d g t fi g ht

o a a e e o o o, e . . o

succ ssf ully T h d sir s which th g d is p r y d t

e . e e e e o a e o

g r nt a rdi n rily d sir s which b i ng f lt b y ch

a re o a e e , e e ea

nd
a v ry m m b r f th c mmu nity
e e et h d sir s f e o e o , a re e e e o

th c mmu nity
e o such nd n t f ny n m m b r , as , a o o a o e e e

x clusiv ly
e e .

C h rms it h
a , b n sug g st d in s m c s s p r y rs th t
as ee e e , o e a e a re a e a

b y v i n r p titi n h v l st th ir r lig i us sig nific nc

a e e o a e o e e o a e

nd b c m m r s p lls
a e oA nd simil rly it h
e b n g
e e e . a as ee su

g st d th t
e e t f m r s p lls p r y r m y h v b n
a ou O e e e a e a a e ee

v lv d B t n th hyp th sis th t sp ll is s m thi ng

e o e . u , o e o e a a e o e

i n which n r li g i n is it is cl r th t o t f it n
e o ,
ea a ou O o re

l ig i n n c m ; whil if p r y r i
o ca o r lig i n h b n e e a e , . e . e o , as ee

v lv d t f sp lls th n th r h v n v r b n sp lls
e o e ou o e ,
e e e a e e e ee e

wh lly w nti ng i n v ry r lig i us l m nt W h th r

o a e e e o e e e . e e a

g iv n f rmul e th n is p r y r sp ll m y b di ffi cult
o a e a e or e a e

t d cid wh n it h s m f tur s which s m t b

o e e ,
e as o e ea e ee o e

m g ic l nd th rs which s m t b r lig i us T h
a a a o e ee o e e o . e

m g ic l l m nt m y h v b n rig i n l nd b i n
a a e e e a a e ee o a a e

p r c ss f dis pp ri ng b f r t h d w n f t h r li g i us
o e O a ea e o e e a o e e o

pS irit N W .t h f rmul utt O r d is usu,

lly m e o a e e a a cc o

p n i
a d b y ge stur s p rf rm d I f t he w rds utt r d e e o e . e o a re e e

t o e x p l i n t h g stur a rit th x p l n ti n is ff r d
e e e or e ,
e e a a o o e e

t s m o o n t h w rdse o f t h n tur
e ,
f pr y r t e o a re o e a e O a a e o

s m n t g r nt th d sir which th g stur m nif sts

o e o e o a e e e e e e a e .
x viii A N A LYT I C A L TA B L E OF C ON T E N T S
P GE A S

On th r h nd if t h g tur s
t he o e p rf rm d t
a , e es e a re e o e o

m k h w rds m r i nt llig i b l th n t h cti n p

a e t e o o e e e ,
e e a o er

f rm d is
o e g i n n m g ic ,
l a b ut is i n
at n d d t
,
m k ot a a ,
e e o a e

th w rds h p r y r m r m ph tic I n n ith r

e o t e a e o e e a . e e

c s th n is t h g stur
a e ,
e rit m g i l i n i nt nt D
,
e e e or e a ca e . r
.

Fr z r s sug g sti n th t it r quir d l ng g s f m n t

a e
’
e o a e e o a e or a o

disc v r th t h c uld n t lw ys succ d v n b y th

o e a e o o a a ee e e e

a id f m g ic
o i n g tti ng wh t h w nt d ;
a
— nd th t e a e a e a a

o nly wh n h m d this disc v ry did h t k t

e e a r li g i n
e o e e a e o e o

a nd p r y r is asu g g sti n which c nn t b m i nt i n d

e ,
a e o a o e a a e

i n vi w f t h f ct th t s v g
e o m n is much m r
e a t a a a e a o e a

t h m rcy
e f ccid nts th n is civilis d m n
e o a Th g e a e a . e su

g esti n ion f ct t,
lls r th r g i nst ath n i n
, f v ur f e a e a a a a o o

th vi w th t m g ic p r c d d r lig i n nd th t sp lls
e e a a e e e e o , a a e

p r c ed d ep r y re a e .

T he A ustr li n b l ck f ll ws mi g ht h v b n xp ct d t
a a a e o a e ee e e e o

p r s nt us with t h s p ct cl
e e f p p l u n cqu i nt d e e a e O a eo e a a e

with p r y r B t i n p i nt f f ct w find m ng st th m
a e . u o o a e a o e

b th p r y rs t B y m nd f rmul which th u g h n w
o a e o a e e a o a: ,
o o

u ni nt llig i b l v n t t h n tiv s m y rig i n lly h v b n

e e e e o e a e , a o a a e ee

p r y rsa e A nd g n r lly s p k i ng t h p r sum p ti n is th t

. e e a ea e e o a

r c s w h disti nctly dmit t h x ist nc f sp irits p r y

a e , o a e e e e o , a

t o th s s p irits v n th ug h th ir p r y rs b c nc l d
o e ,
e e o e a e e o ea e

f r m t h whit m n s b s rv ti n G ds th r f t h ’
o e e a O e a o . o a re e e or e

p ur p s f b i ng p r y d t
o e o P r y r is t h ss nc f
e a e o . a e e e e e o re

l ig i n o is sh w n b y t h f ct th t g ds wh n th y c s
,
as o e a a o ,
e e ea e

t o b pr y d te i g n r d r th r th n w rshi p p d
a e o, a re o e a e a o e .

S uch g ds i n A f ric
o nd ls wh r as b c m littl a a e e e e e o e e

m r th n m m ri s wh n th y n l ng r h v circl
o e a e o e , e e o o e a e a e

o f w rshi pp rs t
o fi p r y r n d s crific t th m
e o o er a e a a e o e .

T he hi g h st p i nt r ch d i n th v luti n f p C hristi n
e o ea e e e o o o re -
a

p r y r is wh n t h g ds
a e k n wi ng b st wh t is g d
e e o , as o e a oo ,

p titi n d sim p ly f thi ng s g d O L rd s p r y r ’

a re e o e or oo . ur o a e

is r v l ti n which t h th ry f v luti n c nn t
a e e a o e eo O e o o a o

a cc u nt fo x p l i n N d s HOfid i ng
o r or e nti n my a . or oe
’
s
“
a o

f r li g i us f li ng r s t its l hristi s ul ”
o e
p o n f t eet h C n e e e o e a o as

a n nti n my
a o
38 1 —1
74
 A N A LY T I CA L T A B L E O F C ON T E N T S x ix

SA C R I F I C E

P ryr
a e s crific hist ric lly g t g th r nd l g ic lly
a nd a e o a o o e e , a o a

a rei ndiss lu b l S crific wh th r r lis d i n n ff r

o e . a e ,
e e ea e a o e

i ng d dic t d e in s crifici l m l is p r m pt d b y t h
a e or a a a ea ,
o e e

w rshi pp rs d sir t f l th t th y
o e
’
t n with t h
e e o ee a e a re a o e e

sp irit w rshi pp d T h t d sir m nif sts its lf s p ci lly

o e . a e e a e e e a

n c rt i n r g ul rly
o e a ccurri ng cc si ns ( h rv st s d
e a o o a o a e ,
ee

tim i niti ti n) nd ls i n tim s f crisis At h rv st

e ,
a o a a o e o . a e

tim t h s crific s
e e fi i ng a th nk ff ri ng s is e or o er s a re a -
o e ,
as

sh wn b y t h f ct th t f rmul f th nk sg ivi ng is
o e a a a o a o a

m p l oy d P rimitiv p r y r d s n t c nsist s l ly i n
e e . e a e oe o o o e

p titi
e ns f of v urs t c m or
; it i n clud s th naks g ivi ngo o o e e a

f b l ssi ng s r c iv d S uch th nksg ivi ng s c nn t b y

or e e e e . a a o

ny p ssi b ility b
a o twist d i nt m g ic e e o a .

An l g us t th s th nksg ivi ng s t h rv st tim is t h

a o o o e e la a a e e e so

mn
e ti ng f fi t f ruits m ng st t h A ustr li n b l ck
ea o rs — a o e a a a

f ll wse o I f this s l m n
. ti ng is n t i n A ustr li o e ea o a a a

surviv l f s cr m nt l m l i n which th g d nd his

a O a a a e a ea ,
e o a

w rshi pp rs w r p rt k rs it must b m r ly c r m ny
o e e e a a e ,
e e e a e e o

wh r b y t h f d which u ntil it is t n is t b is
e e e oo ,
ea e a o o,

d s cr lis d B t
“
e a a m tt r f f ct such f d is n t
e .
”
u , as a a e o a ,
oo o

t b t th tri b g n r lly ; nd t h bj ct f th s l m n
a oo o e e e e a a e O e O e o e

ti ng c nn t b t r m v th t b nd d s cr lis th
ea a o e o e o e e a oo a e a a e e

f d f oo t h tri b or e e .

If t h h rv st rit s
e a e fi t f ruit c r m ni ls e s crifici l i n
or rs -
e e o a a re a a

n tur a th n t h p r sump ti n is th t t
e ,
e th c r
e e o a s o, oo , a re e e e

m ni s p rf rm d t s d tim t h n l g us p ri d
o e e o e a ee e or e a a o o e o .

At i niti ti n c r m ni sa o myst ri s v n m ng st th
e e o e or e e ,
e e a o e

A ustr li n b l ck f ll ws th r is vid nc t sh w th t
a a a e o ,
e e e e e o o a

p r y r
a eis ff r d ; n d g n rO lly p kieng w m e y y a e e a S ea e a sa

th t t h b y i niti t d is dmitt d t t h w rship f t h

a e o a e a e o e o o e

tri b l g ds a o .

T h s p ri ng
e nd h rv st cust ms a cl s ly lli d t n
a e o a re o e a e o o e

n th r nd m y b
a o e rr ng d i n f ur g r u p s ( ) I n M
a a e a a e o o : I ex

i coth y p l i nly c nsist f t h w rshi p f g d b y

e a o o e o o a o —

m ns f s crific nd p r y r nd f c mmu ni n
ea O a e a a e —
a o o o .
XX A N A LY T I C A L T A B L E O F C ON T E N T S

( ) 2 s m In th r c s s th
o u g h t h g
e o d h n pr p r
e a e ,
o e o as o o e or

p rs n l n m nd n im g is m d f him t h n w “
e o a a e ,
a o a e a e o ,
e e

c r n D F r z r s ys is its l f t n s cr m nt lly
o ,
”
r
. a e a ,
“
e ea e a a e a ,

th t is t h b dy f t h c r n s p irit ; nd it is b y this
a ,
as e o o e o
”
a

s cr m nt l m l th t c mmu ni n is ff ct d m i n
a a e a ea a o o e e e or a

t in d
a ( 3 ) I n t h h rv st cust ms f n rth r n E ur p
e . e a e o O o e o e,

b r d nd dum p li ng s m d nd t n s cr m nt lly
ea a a re a e a ea e a a e a ,

as a su b stitut f t h r l fl sh f t h divi n b i ng e or e ea e o e e e

or a n nim l is sl i n nd its fl sh nd b l
a a d p rt k n a a e a oo a re a a e

o f (
.
4 ) A m ng st t h A ustr li n tri b s th
o r is s cr e a a e e e a a a

m nt l ti ng f th t t m nim l p l nt N w th s
e a ea o e o e a a or a . o , e e

f ur g r u p s f cust ms m y b
o o ll r li g i us ( nd D
O o a e a e o a r
.

F r z r s p ks f th m ll
a e s cr m nt l ) ll m g ic l ;
ea o e a as a a e a or a a a

or it m y b d mitt d th t t h first thr

a e a r li g i us nd e a e e e a re e o , a

m i nt i n d th t t h f urth is strictly m g ic l B t such

a a e a e o a a . u

a s p r ti n f t h A ustr li n g r u p f r m t h r st d s
e a a o o e a a o o e e oe

n t c mm nd its l f
o o lik ly ; f urth r it v rl ks t h
e e as e e ,
o e oo e

f ct th t it is
a t th a p ri d n l g us t h rv st a e e o a a o o o a e

tim th t th h dm n ts s l m nly nd s p ri ng ly f
e a e ea a ea o e a a o

t h p l nt
e nim l a nd th t t h rv st tim it is t
or a l t a ,
a a a a e e oo a e

t o w rk m g ic t c us t h p l nt
o a nim l t g r wo a e e a or a a o o .

T h p r b b ility is th n th t b th t h A ustr li n g r u p
e o a , e , a o e a a o

a nd t h th rs s crifici l rit s nd r li g i us
e o e are a a e a a re e o .

S uch s crifici l rit s h w v r th u g h f lt t b t h m n

a a e , o e e , o e o e e ea s

wh r b y c mmu ni n w ff ct d nd m i nt i n d b
e e o o as e e e a a a e e

tw n t h g d nd his w rshi pp rs m y c m t b
ee e o a o e , a o e o e

i nt rp r t d th m ki ng f g if ts t t h g d
e e e as th e a o o e o , as e

m ns f p urch si ng his f v ur
ea o f ull d isch rg
a a o , o r as a a e

of th ir b lig ti ns W h n i nt rp r t d th y will b
e o a o . e so e e e e e

d n u nc d b y tru r lig i n B t th ug h it b d mitt d

e o e e e o . u o e a e

th t t h s crifici l rit mig ht b m d t b r this sp ct

a e a a e e a e o ea a e ,

it d s n t f ll w is s m tim s su pp s d th t it w
oe o o o , as o e e o e , a as

f r m th
o uts t i nc p b l f b ri ng ny th r O n t h
e o e a a e o ea a o e . e

c ntr ry it w f r m th b g i nni ng n t nly t h rit

o a , as , o e e , o o e e

O f m ki ng ff ri ng s t t h g d b ut
a o ls t h rit wh r b y
e o e o , a o, e e e e

c mmu ni n w tt i n d wh r b y th s ci ty f w
o o as a a e , e e e o e o or

shi pp rs w b r ug ht i nt t h p r s nc f t h g d th y
e as o o e e e e o e o e
 A NALYTI CA L TA B LE or C ON TE N TS xx i
P GEA S

w rshi pp d v n th ug h th chi f b n fits which th

o e , e e o e e e e e

w rshi pp rs c nc iv d th ms lv s t r c iv w r rthly
o e o e e e e e o e e e e e ea

b l ssi ng s
e I t is b c us t h rit h d f r m t h b g i nni ng
. e a e e e a o e e

this p t nti lity i n it th t it w p ssi b l f it t b c m

o e a a as o e or o e o e

th m e ns wh r b y thr u g h C hrist
ea l l m n mi g ht b e e , o , a e e

b r u g ht t G d
o o o75 1 -
21 0

Y M O RA L I T
Th q u sti n wh th r m r lity is b s d n r li g i n
e e o e e o a a e o e o ,
or re

l ig i n n m r lity is
o o n which c lls f discussi n
o a ,
o e a or o ,

i n smuch a it is pt t p r c d n mist k n vi w
as a o o ee o a a e e

f f cts i n t h
O a hist ry f r lig i n I t is m i nt i n d e o O e o . a a e

th t a m tt r f hist ry m r lity c m first nd

as a a e o o o a a e a re

l ig i n f t rw rds ;o and th t e m tt r f p hil s p hy

a a a as a a e o o o

lig i n p r su pp s s m r lity R lity th t is t y is

re o e o e o a . ea , a o sa ,

i n t h m ki ng ; t h s p irit f m n is s l f r lisi ng ; b i ng
e a e O a e -
ea e

i i n p r c ss f b c mi ng r ti n lis d nd m r lis d ;
s o e o e o a o a e a o a e

r li g i n i n p r c ss f dis pp ri ng
e o o e o a ea .

E rly r li g i n it is s i d is u n thic l it h
a e o , t d with s p ir its a ,
e a : as o o ,

which such ,
n t c nc r n d with m r lity ; with
as , a re o o e e o a

g ds which o n t thic l id l nd n t bj cts

a re o e a or ea , a a re o O e

f w rshi p i n
o o s ns f t h t rm ou r e e O e e .

N W t h s p irits which i n t h p ri d f nimism

O ,
e b li v d ,
e e o O a , a re e e e

t nim t
o thi ng s
a n t it is tru
a e c nc r n d with ,
a re o , e , o e e

m r lity ; b ut th n n ith r th y g ds T b g d
o a e ,
e e a re e o . o e a o

sp irit must h v c mmu nity f w rshipp rs ; nd it is

a a e a o o o e a

t h p r t ct r f th t c mmu nity th t h is w rshi p p d

as e o e o O a o a e o e .

H p r t cts t h c mmu nity g i nst ny i ndividu l m m

e o e e o a a a a e

b wh er vi l t s th cust m f th c mmu nity T h

o o a e e o o e o . e

cust m f t h c mmu nity c nstitut s th m r lity f t h

o o e o o e e o a o e

ci ty O ff nc s g i nst th t cust m
so e . e ff nc s e a a a o a re o e e

g ianst t h
a
g d f t h c mmu nitye A g d st rts
o n o e o . o a as a

thic l p w r nd
e a n obj ct f w rshi p
e , a as a o e o o .

Still it m y b
, rg u d b f r g ds w r b f r r lig i n
a e a e ,
e o e o e e ,
e o e e o

w v lv d m r lity w ; nd this m y b sh w n b y
as e o e ,
o a as a a e o

th rig i n nd n tur f justic which thr ug h ut is

e o a a e o e , o o

ntir ly i nd p nd nt f r li g i n nd r li g i us c nsid r
e e e e e o e o a e o o e a
XX II A N A LYT I CA L TA B L E O F C ON T E N T S
ti ns
o this th ry h rig i n f justic is t b f u nd
. On eo ,
t e o o e o e o

i n h r s ntm nt f t h i dividu l
t e e B t first t h i n
e e O e n a . u , , e

dividu l p rt f r m s ci ty is n b str cti n nd n

a ,
a a o o e , a a a o a a

im p ssi b ility t h i ndividu l n v r x ists p rt f r m

o : e a e e e a a o

b ut lw ys a m m b r f s m s ci ty N x t justic
a as a e e o o e o e . e , e

is n t t h r s ntm nt f ny i ndividu l b ut t h s nti

o e e e e o a a , e e

m nt f t h c mmu nity x p r ssi ng its l f i n t h cti n n t

e o e o ,
e e e e a o o

O f ny i ndividu l b ut f t h c mmu nity

a such T h a o e o as . e

r s p nsi b ility b th f t h wr ng d n nd f ri g hti ng it

e o o or e o o e a or

r sts with th c mmu nity T h rli st fi n g i nst

e e o . e ea e o
'

e ce s a a

which pu b lic cti n is t k n s id t b witchcr ft nd a o a e a re a o e a a

b r ch s f t h m rri g l ws T h l tt r
ea e o n t in e a a e a . e a e a re o

juri s r s nt d b y ny i ndividu l th y
e e e ff nc s
e a a : e a re o e e

a g i nst
a t h g ds n d p u nish d t e v rt t h mis o a a re e o a e e

f rtu n s which th rwis wuld visit t h tri b

o e W itch o e e o e e .

cr ft is sp ci lly ff nsiv t t h g d f t h c mmu nity

a e e a o e e o e o o e o .

a lm st if n t q uit t h l w st st g s f hum n d v l p
o ,
o e ,
e o e a e O a e e o

m nt dis s nd f mi n
e ,
r g rd d p u nishm nts
ea e a a e a re e a e as e

which f ll n t h c mmu nity a wh l b c us t h

o e o as a o e ,
e a e e

c mmu nity i n t h p rs n f n f it m m b rs h
o , e e o O o e o s e e , as

o ff nd d s m su p r n tur l p w r
e e I n quit t h l w st
o e e a a o e . e e o e

st g t h g uilt f t h ff ndi ng m m b r is ls r g rd d
a e e o e O e e e a o e a e

as c p b l f i nf cti ng t h wh l c mmu nity ; nd h

a a e O e e o e o a e

is cc rdi ng ly v id d b y t h wh l c mmu nity nd

,
a o , a o e e o e o a

t b d T b is d t t h c ll ctiv cti n nd
a oo e . a oo ue o e o e e a o ,
a ex

p r ss s t h
e c ll ctiv f li ng f t h c mmu nity
e e o e e ee o e o as a

wh l I t is f r m such c ll ctiv cti n nd f li ng th t

o e . o o e e a o a ee a

justic h b n v lv d nd n t f r m i ndividu l r s nt
e as ee e o e a o o a e e

m nt which is still nd lw ys w s m thi ng di ff r nt

e , a a a as o e e e

f r m justic
o Th ff nc s p u nish d b y t h c mmu nity
e . e o e e e e o

h v lw ys b n c nsid r d f
a e a a th y fi n ee o e e , so a r as e a re o e ce s

a g i nst m r lity t b
a fi n g i nst t h g ds f t h
o a , o e O e ce s a a e o o e

c mmu nity T h f ct th t i n c urs f tim such fi n

o . e a a o e o e O e ce s

c m t b p u nish d lw ys milit ti ng g i nst th

o e o e e a a as a a a e

g ood f s ci ty t stifiO s m r ly t t h og n r l essum p ti n e e e e o e e e a a o

th t t h g d f m n is t h will f G d m n d n t
a e oo o a e o o : e o o

b li v th t murd r dult ry t
e e e a m r ly fi n e , a e , e c .
, a re e e O e ce s
 A N A LYT I CA L TA B L E OF C ON T E N T S x x iii
P GEA S

i nst m n s l ws I t is nly b y ig n ri ng this p t nt

ag a a
’
a . o o a e

f ct th t it b c m s p ssi b l t m i nt i n th t r l i g i n
a a e o e o e o a a a e o

is b uil t u p n m r lity nd th t w disc v ri ng o o a , a a e a re o e

r lig i n t b su p rflu us su p rstructur

e o o e a e o e e .

It m y b
a rg u d th t t h ssum p ti n th t murd r dult ry
e a e a e a o a e , a e ,

ff nc s g i nst G d s will is mr mp
’
te c .
, a re o e e a a o a e e as su

ti n nd th t i n m ki ng t h ssump ti n w
o , a fl i ng a a e a o e a re ee
“
t th b s m f f ith T h r p ly is th t w
o e o o o a . e e a e are

c nt nt n t m r ly t fl b ut t r st th r
o e o e e o ee o e e e 2 1 1 —23 8

H RI STI AN I T Y C

If w e t u nd rst nd th p l c f C hristi nity in t h

a re o e a e a e o a e e vo

l t i n f r li g i n w
u o must c nsid r th p l c f r li
o e o ,
e o e e a e o e

g i n in th
o v luti n f hum nity ; nd I must x p l i n
e e o o O a a e a

t h p i nt f vi w f r m which I p r p s t
e o o pp r ch t h e o o o e o a oa e

thr id s f ( ) v luti n ( ) th v luti n f hum nity

ee ea o 1 e o o ,
2 e e o o O a ,

( 3 ) th v luti n f r lig i n e e o o o e o .

I wish t pp r ch t h id
o a f v luti n f r m t h p r p siti n
oa e ea o e o o o e o o o

th t th i ndividu l is b th m ns b y which s ci ty t
a e a o a ea o e a

t i ns its nd nd n nd f th s k f which s ci ty
a e , a a e or e a e o o e

ex ists U tilit ri nism h f mili ris d us with th vi w

. a a as a a e e e

th t s ci ty x ists f th s k f th i ndivi d u l nd f
a o e e or e a e O e a a or

th ur
e
p p s f r lisi ng t h h p p i n ss nd g d f
o e o ea e a e a oo o

ev ry i ndividu l n m n is t b tr t d m r ly
e a : o a o e ea e e e as a

ch tt l x isti ng s l ly
a e m ns wh r b y his wn r
,
e o e as a ea e e o e , or

t h g v r ni ng cl ss m y b n fit
e o e B t this s p ct f t h a , a e e . u a e o e

f cts is ntir ly ig n r d b y t h sci ntific th ry f

a e e o e e e eo o e vo

l ti n
u cc rdi ng t th t th ry t h i ndividu l x ists
o : a o o a eo ,
e a e

only f ct r i n t h p r c ss f v luti n
as a a n f th o e o e o e o o , as o e o e

m ns b y which nd n t i n ny s ns th nd f
ea , a o as a e e e e or

which th p r c ss is c rri d n ,
e o e a e o .

N x t this s p ct f t h f cts is i g n r d n t nly b y t h

e , a e o e a o e o o e

sci ntific th ry f v luti n b ut ls b y th th ry which

e eo o e o o , a o e eo

hum nit ri nism h lds t th v luti n f hum nity

a a a o as o e e o o o a ,

viz th t it is p r c ss m vi ng thr ug h th thr st g s

. a a o e o o e ee a e

of cust m r li g i n nd hum nit ri nism

o , T h t p r c ss
e o , a a a a . a o e

i still
s it h l ng b n in th p st f f r m c mpl t
,
a s as o ee e a , ar o o e e
xx iv A N A LYT I C A L TA B L E OF C ON T E N T S

th e e nd is
is n nd i n which wh n v r nd
no t y e t . It a e ,
e e e a

if v r r lis d n
e e rth w w h
ea n w livi ng sh ll n t
e o e a ,
e o a re o a o

liv t p rt k w
e o n this th
a y f tha e : l e a re — o e or o e e vo u

ti n f hum nity m ns nd s l ly m ns t n nd
o o a ea , a o e ea ,
o a e

which wh n r lis d w sh l l n t p t k i n B i ng n
,
e ea e ,
e a o ar a e . e a

nd i n which w
e c nn t p rtici p t it is n t n nd e a o a a e , o a e

which n b r ti n lly t p f us t striv t tt i n

ca e a o a se u or o e o a a .

N will t h g n r ti n which is ultim t ly t nj y it

or e e e a o , a e o e o ,

find much s tis f cti n i n r fl cti ng th t th ir nj ym nt

a a o e e a e e o e

h b n p urch s d t t h c st f th rs T tr t
as ee a e a e o o o e . o ea a

mi n rity f i ndividu ls th nd f which hum nity

o o a as e e or a

is v lv d nd t h m j rity
e o e m r ly m n is
,
a e a o as e e ea s, a

str ng p ss f hum nit ri nism c m t

a e a or a a a to o e o .

A p p r chi ng t h
oa v luti n f r lig i n f r m t h p i nt f vi w
e e o o o e o o e o o e

th t th i ndividu l must lw ys b r g rd d b th
a e n a a a e e a e o as a

e nd nd m ns w find th t B uddhism d ni s t h
a as a ea ,
e a e e e

i ndividu l t b ith r th n th th r f his v ry

a o e e e e o e or e o e , or e

e x ist nc is n illusi n nd n illusi n which must b

e e a o , a a o e

disp ll d i n rd r th t h m y c s f r m n x ist nc
e e , o e a e a ea e o a e e e

which it is n illusi n t im g i n th t h p ss ss s If
a o o a e a e o e e .
,

h w v r w turn t th r r l ig i ns l ss hig hly d v l p d

o e e ,
e o o e e o e e e o e

th n B uddhism w find th t i n ll t h x ist nc f t h

a ,
e a ,
a , e e e e O e

i ndividu l w ll f t h g d f t h c mmu nity is

a as e as o e o o e o

a ssum d ; th t th i nt r sts f th c mmu nity

e a th e e e o e o a re e

will f th c mmu nity s g d ; th t th i nt r sts f th

o e o
’
o a e e e o e

c mmu nity hig h r th n th i nt r sts f th i nd ividu l

o a re e a e e e o e a ,

wh n th y pp r t d ifi ; nd th t th m n w h p r f rs
e e a ea o e r a a e a o e e

t h i nt r sts f t h c mmu nity t his w n is r g rd d

e e e o e o o o e a e as

th hig h r ty p f m n I n fin t h i ndividu l f r m
e e e o a . e ,
e a , o

this p i nt f vi w cts v lu nt rily t h m ns wh r b y

o O e , a o a as e ea e e

th end f s ci ty m y b r
e olis d A nd i n cti ng h
o e a e ea e .
,
so a , e

t stifi s t his c nvicti n th t h will th r b y r lis his

e e o o o a e e e ea e

o wn e nd .

T hr u g h ut th hist ry f r lig i n th s tw f cts

o o e im o o e o e e o a a re

p li d e first t h x ist nc i th i ndividu l

: ,m mb r e e e e o e a as a e e

o f s ci ty s k i ng c mmu ni n with G d ; n x t t h
o e ee o o o e , e ex

i t n
s e f s ci ty
ce m ns f which th i ndividu l is
o o e as a ea o e a
 A N A LYT I C A L TA B L E O F C ON T E N T S XX V
P AG E S

th e H nc tw c ns qu nc s with r g r d t
e nd . el e o o e e e e a o e vo u

ti n first v luti n m y h v h l p d t m k us b ut w
o : ,
e o o a a e e e o a e , e

a reh l p i ng t m k it ; n x t t h
e nd f v luti n is n t
o a e e ,
e e o e o o o

wh lly utsid ny n f us b ut i n p rt is r lis d

o o e a o e o ,
a ea e

i n us A nd it is just b c us t h
. nd is b th withi n e a e e e o

us nd with ut us th t w
a b u nd p with f ll w o a e a re o u ou r e o

m an a nd G od .

Wh th r t h p r c ss f v luti n is m vi ng t ny nd wh t
e e e o e o e o o o o a e a

v r is qu sti n which sci nc d cli n s f rm lly

e e , a e o e e e e — o a te

f us s t c nsid r
e W h th r t h nd t which r lig i n
o o e . e e e e a e o

ims is p ssi b l
a n t h i n ny d g r o b n chi v d e or o , as a e ee ee a e e

n t is
or qu sti n which th sci nc f r lig i n f rm lly
o , a e o e e e o e o o a

d cli n s t c nsid r I f h w v r w r c g nis th t th

e e o o e .
, o e e ,
e e o e a e

nd f r li g i n viz c mmu ni n with G d is n nd t

e o e o , . o o o ,
a e a

which w ug ht t im th n th p r c ss wh r b y th nd
e o o a ,
e e o e e e e e

t nds t b tt i n d is n l ng r v luti n i n th i n
e o e a a e o o e e o o e sc e

ti fi s ns cI t is p r c ss i n which p r g r ss m y
e e . m y a o e o e a or a

n t b m do A f ct t h missi n ry v rywh r s s
e a e . s a a , e o a e e e e ee

rr st d d v l p m nt im p rf ct c mmu ni n with G d ;
a e e e e o e ,
e e o o o

f th or di ff r nt f rms f r lig i n r lis t h nd f

e e e o O e o ea e e e O

r lig i n in di ff r nt d g r s C hristi nity cl ims t b

e o e e e ee . a a o e

fi n l n t i n t h chr n l g ic l s ns b ut i n th t it
“
a ,
”
o e o o o a e e , a

l n fi nds th tru b sis nd th nly nd f s ci ty i n

a o e e e a a e o e O o e

th l v ef G d T h C hristi n th ry f s ci ty g i n
o e o o . e a eo o o e a a

di ff rs f r m ll th r th ri s i n th t it n t nly r g rds
e o a o e eo e a o o e a

th i ndividu ls c m p si ng it
e c nti nui ng t x ist ft r
a o o as o o e a e

d th b ut t ch s th t t h s ci ty f which th i ndividu l
ea , ea e a e o e o e a

is truly m m b r th ug h it m nif sts its lf in this w rld

a e e , o a e e o ,

is r lis d i n th n xt
ea e e e .

T h hist ry f r li g i n is t h hist ry f m n s s rch f G d

’
e o o e o e o o a ea or o .

T h t s rch d p nds f its succ ss in p rt u p n m n s ’

a ea e e or e , a , o a

will C hristi nity c nn t b st ti n ry th x t nt t

. a a o e a o a : e e e o

which w p ush missi n ry ut p sts f rw rd g iv s

e ou r o a o o o a e

us th m sur f evit lity A nd i n th t r sp ct

ea e o ou r a . a e e ,
as

i n th rs t h vit lity f t h U nit d St t s is g r t

o e ,
e39
— a o e e a e ea . 2 2 65

A PP EN D I X 2 66 ad f i n
.
 IN T RO DU C T ION

OF the m any things th at fill visitor from the

a

Ol d country with admir ation on hi s first visit to

,

the United St ates th at w hi ch arrests hi s attention

,

most frequently is the e x te nt and success with

,

whi ch science is applied to pr actic al purposes And .

it is be g inning to d awn upon me th at in the

United St ates it is not only pure science w hi ch is
thus pr actic ally applied the pure sciences Of
,
-

mech anics physics m athem atics

, ,
but th at the
,

historic sciences also are expected to justify them

selves by their pr actic al applic ation ; and th at
a mongst the historic sciences not even the science

Of religion is e x empted from the common lot .

I t also may be useful ; and had better be so ,

if any one is to h ave any use for it I t must m ake .

itself useful to the man who h as pr actic al need of

its resul ts and wishes to apply them the mis —

s i onar
y
. He it is who for the
,
pr a ctic al purposes
Of the work to which he is c alled requires an ,

applied science O f religion ; and H artford Theo

B I
2 O P R T IV E R E LIG I ON
C M A A

logic al Semin ary may I believe justly cl aim to

, ,

be the first institution in the world which h as

deliber ately and consciously set to work to cre ate
by the courses of lectures of whi ch thi s series is
,

the very humble beginning an applied science of

,

religion .

H ow then will the applied science di ffer from

, ,

the pure science of religion $ I n one w ay it will

not di ffer : an applied science does not sit in judg
ment upon the pure science on which it is b ased ;
it accepts the truths w hi ch the pure science pre
sents to all the world and b ases itself upon them
,
.

The business of pure science is to discover facts ;

th at of the applied science is to use them The .

business of the science of religion is to discover

al l the f acts necess ary if we are to underst and the

growth and history of religion . The business O f

the applied science is in our c ase to use the dis
, ,

covered facts as a me ans of showing th at C hr is

ti ani ty is the highest m anifest ation O f the religious

spirit
.

I n de aling with the applied S cience then we

, ,

recover a liberty which the pure science does not

enjoy . The science of religion is a historic
science I ts student looks b ack upon the p ast ;
.
 IN TR O D U CT ION 3

and looks b ack upon it with a single purpose th at ,

O f discovering wh at as a m atter of f act did h appen

, , ,

wh at w as the order In whi ch the events Occurred .

I n so looking b ack he may and does see m any

, ,

t hi ngs which he could wish h ad not occurred ; but

he h as no power to alter them ; he h as no choice
but to record them ; and his duty his single duty , ,

is to ascert ain the historic facts and to est ablish

the historic truth With the applied science the
.

c ase is very di fferent There the stu d ent sets his

.

face to the future no longer to the p ast The

, .

truths Of pure science are the we apons pl aced in

his h and with which he is to conquer the world .

I t is in the faith th at the armour provided him by

science is sure and wi ll not fail hi m th at he ad d resses
hi mself to hi s chosen work The implements are
.

set in his h ands The liberty is hi s to employ

.

them for wh at end he will Th at liberty is a con

.

sequence Of the f act th at the student s Obj ect no ’

longer is to ascert ain the p ast but to m ake the ,

future.

The business of the pure science is to ascert ain

the facts and st ate the truth To wh at use the.

facts and truth are afterw ards put is a question ,

with which the pure science h as nothi ng to do .

4 C O M P AR AT IV E R E LIGION

The s ame facts may be put to very diff erent uses

from the s ame facts very diff erent conclusions may
be dr awn . The f acts which the science O f reli
gion est ablishes may be used and are used for
di ffere nt and for contr adictory pur poses The man
.

who is agnostic or atheist uses them to support hi s

a theism or agnosticism ; or even if he is so u n
,

wise to prove it
,
. The man who h as religion is
equ ally at liberty to use them in his support ; and
if he r arely does th at at any r ate he still more r arely
,

commits the mist ake of im agining th at the science

of religion proves the truth of his p articul ar views
on the subject of religion I ndeed his tendency is
.
,

r ather in the opposite direction : he is unre ason ably

une asy and apt to h ave a disquieting al arm lest
the science of religion may re ally be a d anger to
religion. This al arm may very n atur ally arise
when he discovers th at to the scientific student one
religion is as another and the question is i nd i ffe r
,

ent whether there is any truth in any form I t is .

very e asy to jump from these f acts to the erroneous

conclusion th at science Of religion is wholly i n
comp atible with religious belief And Of course it
.

is quite hum an and perfectly intelligible th at th at

conclusion should be procl aimed aloud as correct
 I N TR O D U C TI ON 5

and inevit able b y the man who being an atheist , ,

fights for wh at he feels to be the truth .

We must therefore once more insist upon the

, ,

simple fact th at science of religion abst ains ne ce s

s aril y from assuming either th at religion is true or

is not true Wh at it does assume is wh at no one

.

will deny viz th at religion is a fact

, . Religious .

b eliefs may be right or they may be wrong : but

they exist Therefore they can be stu di ed de
.
,

scribe d cl assified pl aced in order of development

, , ,

and tre ated as a br anch of sociology and a s one

dep artment of the evolution of the world And .

all this can be d one without once a sking the ques

tion whether reli g ious belief is true and right and

good or not Whether it is pronounced true or
, .

false by you or me will not in the le ast sh ake the

,

fact th at it h as e xi sted for thous ands of ye ars th at ,

it h as h ad a history during th at period and th at ,

th at history may be written We may h ave .

doubts whether the institution of priv ate property

is a good thing or whether b arter and e x ch ange
,

are desir able proceedings But we sh all not doubt .

th at private property e x ists or th at it may be ex

ch anged And we sh all not im agine th at the science
.

of politic al economy which de als among other , ,

6 C O MP ARA T IV E R E LIGION

things with the production and e x ch ange of we alth

whi ch is priv ate property m akes any pronounce
,

ment wh atever on the question whether priv ate

property is or is not an institution which we ought to
support and believe in The conclusions est ablishe d
.

by the science O f politic al economy are set forth b e

fore the whole world ; and men may use them for wh at
purpose they will They may and do dr aw very
.

di ff erent inferences from them even contr adictory

,

inferences B ut if they do it is bec ause they use

.
,

them for d i fferent ends or contr adictory purposes .

And the fact th at the communist or soci alist uses

politic al economy to support his views no more
proves th at soci alism is the logic al consequence of
politic al economy th an the fact th at the atheist
uses or misuses for hi s own purposes the conclu
, ,

sions of the science of religion proves his inferences

to be the logic al outcome of the science .

The science of religion de als essenti ally with the

one fact th at religion h as existed and d oes exist .

I t is from th at fact th at the mission ary will st art ;

and it is with men who d o not question the f act

th at he will h ave to do The science of religion

.

seeks to tr ace the historic growth the evolution of

,

reli g ion ; to est ablish wh at actu ally w as not to ,

 I N TR O D U C T ION 7

ju d ge wh at ought to h ave been science knows ,

”
no ought in th at sense or r ather in th at tense
, ,

the p ast tense I ts work is done its l ast word h as

.
,

been s aid when it h as demonstr ated wh at w as

, .

I t is the he art which sighs to think wh at might h ave

been and which puts on it a higher v alue th an it
,

does on wh at actu ally c ame to p ass There is .

then another order in w hi ch facts may be r anged

besides the chronologic al order in which b istori
c ally they occurred ; and th at is the order of their
v alue I t is an order in which we do r ange facts W hen
.
,

ever we criticise them I t is the ord e r in which we

.

r ange them whenever we p ass judgment on them

, .

O r r ather p assing judgment on them is pl acing them

, ,

in the order O f their v alue And the chronologic al

.

order O f their occurrence is quite a di fferent thing

from the order in which we r ank them when we
judge them according to their v alue and import ance .

I t is or r ather it would be quite absurd to say in

, , ,

the c ase of liter ature or art for inst ance th at the

, , ,

two orders are identic al There it is Obvious and

.

univers ally admitted th at one period may re ach a

higher level th an another which in point of time is
l ater The cl assic al period is followed by a post
.

cl assic al period ; culmin ation is followed by decline .

8 C O MP AR AT I V E R E L I GION

N ow this di fference in point of the liter ary or

,

a rtistic v alue of two periods is as re al and as fund a

ment al as the time order or chronolo g ic al rel ation
of the two periods I t would be p atently ridiculous
.

for any ardent m aint ainer O f the import ance of dis

ti ng ui sh i ng between good liter ature and b ad goo d ,

art and b ad art to say th at the one period being

, ,

good must h ave been chronologic ally prior to the

,

other bec ause fro m the point of art it w as better

, , ,

th an th at other Every one can see th at The

. .

chronologic al order the historic order is one thing ;

, ,

the order of liter ary v alue or artistic import ance is

another . B ut if this is gr anted and every one will
,

gr ant it then it is also and thereby gr anted th at

, , ,

the historic order of events is not the s ame thing

as the order of their v alue and is no guide to it
,
.

Thus far I h ave illustr ated these rem arks by

reference to liter ary and artistic v alu es But I .

need h ardly s ay th at I h ave been thinking re ally all

the time of religious v alues I f the student of.

liter ature or of art surveys the history of art and

liter ature with the purpose of judging the v alu e of
the works produced the student Of religion may
,

and must survey the history Of religion with the

same purpose . I f the one student is entitled as he ,

 I N TR O DU C T I ON 9

justly is entitled to s ay th at the di fference b etween

,

the liter ary or artistic v alue Of two periods is as re al

and as fund ament al as is their di fference in the

order of time then the student Of religion is cl aim

,

ing no exception al or suspicious privilege for him

self H e is cl aiming no privilege at all ; he is bu t
.

exercising the common rights of al l students like

himself when he points out th at di fferences in
,

religious v alues are just as re al and j ust as fund a

ment al as the historic Or chronologic al order itself .

The assignment of v alues then ,

be it the assign
,

ment of the v alu e of works of art liter ature or , ,

religion,
—
is a proceeding which is not only possibl e
( as will be somewh at contemptuously a dmitted by
those who believe th at evolution is progress and th at ,

there is no order of v alu e distinct from the order of

history and chronologic al succession ) the assign
ment of v alue is not only permissible ( as may b e
admitted by those who believe or for w ant of
,

thought f ancy they believe th at the historic order

,

Of events is the only order which c an re ally exist ) ,

it is absolutely inevit able I t is the concomit ant or

.

r ather an integr al p art of every act of perception .

E verything th at we perceive is either dismissed from

attention b ec ause it is judged at the moment to h av e

IO C O M P ARAT IV E R E LIGION

no v alu e or if it h as v alue attention is conce n

, , ,

t rate d upo n it .

From this point of view then it should be cle ar

, ,

th at there is some deficiency in such a science as the

science of religion which by the very conditions
, ,

th at determine its e x istence is precluded from ever

,

r aising the qu estion O f the v alu e of any O f the

religio ns with which it de als Why does it volu m .

t aril y deliber ately and of its own accord rigidly

, , ,

e x clude the qu estion whether religions h ave any

v alue —
whether religion itself h as any v alu e $
O ne answer there is to th at question which once
would h ave been accepted as conclusive viz th at ,
.

the obj ect Of science is truth Th at answer deli .

c at e ly implies th at whether religion h as any v al ue is

an enquiry to which no truthful answer c an be given .

The Obj ect of science is truth ; therefore science

alone with all modesty be it s aid c an att ain tru th
, ,
.

Science will not ask the question or when it is —

,

merciful abst ains fro m asking the qu estion

,

whether religion is tru e S o the re ason able and

.

truthful man must on th at point necess arily be ag

, ,

nostic : whether religion is tru e he does not know ,

.

This tr ain of inferences follows S O f ar as it is —

permitted illogic al infer e nce s to follow at all from

 I N TR O D U CT ION I I

the premise th at the obj ect of science is truth O r .

,

r ather it follows from th at premise as we S hould now

,

underst and it vi z th at the Obj ect of historic science

,
.

is historic truth Th at is the Obj ect of the science

.

of religion —
to be tru e to the historic f acts to ,

discover and to st ate them accur ately O n the .

principl e of the division of l abour or on the principl e ,

O f t aking one thing at a time it is obviously wise

,

th at when we are ende avouring to discover the his

toric sequ enc e of events we should confine our
,

selves to th at t ask and not su ffer ourselves to b e

distr acted and diverted by other and tot ally di ffer
ent consider ations The science Of religion there
.
,

fore is justified in the Opinion of all who are e n

, ,

titled to e x press an Opinion in ste adf astly declining

,

to consider any other point th an the historic order

of the f acts with which it de als B ut in so declining .

to go beyond its self appointed t ask of reconstituting

-

the historic order Of events and tr acing the e v ol u

tion of religion it does not thereby imply th at it is
, , ,

impossibl e to pl ace them or correctly pl ace them

, ,

in their order of v alu e To s ay th at they h ave no

.

v alu e would be just as absurd as to s ay th at works

of liter ature or art h ave no liter ary or artistic v alu e .

To s ay th at it is di fficult to assign their v alu e may b e

I2 C O MP A R AT IVE RE LIGION

tru e but is no argu ment ag ai ns t i t is r ather a s ti mu

, ,

lus in f avo u r of m aking th e at t empt And it is just

,
.

the order v alu e t h e rel ative v alue of forms O f re l i g ion

, ,

which is of absorbing int erest t o miss ion ari es I t .

is a v al u at ion w h ich is ess en ti al t o wh at I h ave

al re ad y design at ed as th e app l ied s cienc e of religion .

Thus f ar i n spe ak i ng of th e dis t incti on between

the hi storic order in w hi ch the v arious forms Of art ,

l iter ature and religion h ave occurred and th e order

, ,

of v alu e in w hi ch the soul of every man who is sen

sibl e ei ther to art or t o li t er ature or to religion
i ns ti ncti v e l v att empts to pl ace them I h ave mec es ,

s arll y as su med th e posi t ion of one who looks b ack

w ard Over th e p as t I t w as impossible to comp are

.

and contr as t t h e order v al u e w i t h t h e hi storic order ,

s ave b y doing S O I t w as nec ess ary to point out

.

t h at t h e v e rv s ame f acts whi ch c an be arr anged c hr o

nol og i c all v and in th e order of t hei r evolu tion can

al so b e and as a m at t er of f act by every man are

, ,

arr anged more or less roughly more or l ess cor

,

re c tl y,
or incorrec tly in the order of their v al u e I t
,
.

is now n e c ess ary for us to set our f ac es tow ards the

f u ture .I s ay nec es s ary for the simpl e re as on
“ ”

th at the ide a of v alu e c arries wi th it a reference

“ ”

to th e fu ture If a thi ng h as v al u e it is b ec ause we

.
,
 I N TR O D U CT ION I3

judge th at it may produce some e ff ect and serve

some purpose w hi ch we foresee or at l e ast su rmi se,
.

I f on looki ng b ack upon p ast hi story we pronounce

, ,

th at an event h ad v alu e we do so b e c ause we see

,

th at it served or mi ght h ave served some end of

, ,

w hi ch we approve I ts v alue is rel ative in our eyes

.

to some end or purpose w hi ch w as rel atively f u ture

to it The obj ects whi ch we ai m at the ends af t er
.
,

whi ch we st rive are i n the futu r e Those t hings

,
.

h ave v alu e whi ch may subserve our e nds and help

us to att ain our pu rposes And our pu rposes our .
,

ends and Obj ects are in the fu ture There th ere is

,
.
,

h Op e and freedom room to work the ch ance of

, ,

remedy ing the errors of the p ast the Oppo rtu ni ty to

,

m ake some forw ard st rides and to help O thers on .

I t is the end we ai m at the Obj ect we strive for

, ,

the ide al we set before us th at gives v alu e to wh at

,

we do and to wh at h as been done b v us and others

,
.

N ow our ends our obj ects and our ide als are m atters
, ,

of the wil l on whi ch the wi ll is set and not merely

, ,

m atters Of whi ch we h ave int ellectu al apprehension .

They are not p as t events but future possib i lities .

The con viction th at we c an att ai n them or att ain

tow ard them is not when st ated as a proposi ti on
, ,

a proposition th at c an b e proved as a st atement ,

I 4 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LI G ION

referring to the p ast may b e prov e d : but it is a

co nvic tion which we hold o r a convic tion which ,

holds us just as strongly as any co nviction th at we

,

h ave about any p ast event of history The whol e .

action of m anki nd every action th at every m an

,

performs is b ased upon th at convi ction I t is the

,
.

b asis of al l th at we do of everything th at is and h as ,

been done by us and others And it is F aith I n . .

th at S ign alone c an the world be conqu ered .

When then the man of religion proposes by f aith

, ,

to conquer the world he is simply doing wittingly , ,

and in full consciousness of wh at he is doing th at ,

which every man does in his every action even though ,

he may not know it To m ake it a sneer or a re .

pro ach th at religion is a mere m atter of f aith ; to

im agine th at there is any better or indeed th at there ,

is any other ground of action

,
is demonstr ably ,
—

unre ason able The b asis of such notions is of

.
,

course the f alse ide a th at the man of sense acts upon

,

knowledge and th at the man who acts on f aith is

,

not a sensible man The error Of such notions may

.

be e x posed in a sentence Wh at knowledge h ave .

we of the future $ We h ave none Absolutely .

none We expect th at n ature will prove uniform

.
,

th at c auses will produce their e ff ects We believe .

 I N TR O D U C T ION 1 5

the future will resemble to some e x tent the p ast

, ,
.

But we h ave no k nowledge Of the future ; and such

belief as we h ave about it like all other belief , ,

whether it be belief in religion or in science is ,

—

simply f aith When then the man of science con

.
, ,

s u l ts the records Of the p ast or the e x periments of

the present for guid ance as to wh at will or may be ,

he is exhibiting his f aith not in science but in some ,

re ality in some re al being in which is no sh adow of

, ,

turning When the pr actic al man uses the results

.

of pure science for some pr actic al end he is t aking ,

them on f aith and uses them in the further f aith

th at the end he aims at c an be re alised and sh all ,

by him be re alised if not in one w ay then in another

, ,
.

The mission ary then who uses the results of the

, ,

science O f religion who seeks to benefit by an

,

applied science of religion is but following in the ,

footsteps Of the pr actic al man and using business ,

methods tow ard the end he is going to re alise .

The end he is going to re alise is to convert men to

C hristi anity . The f aith in which he acts is th at
C hristi anity is the highest form which religion c an
t ake the fin al form it sh all t ake As works of art
,
.

or liter ature may b e cl assed either according to order

of history or ord e r Of v alu e so the works Of the ,
I 6 C O MP A R AT IV E R E LIGION

religious spirit may be cl assed not only in chrono ,

logic al order but also in order O f religious v alue I

,
.

am not aw are th at any proof c an be given to show

th at any given period of art or liter ature is better

th an any other The merits of Sh akespe are or O f
.

Homer may be pointed out ; and they may or they ,

may not when pointed out be felt I f they are felt

, ,
.
,

no proof is needed ; if they are not no proof is pos ,

sibl e But they c an be pointed out

. by one who
feels the m And they c an be contr asted with the
.

work of other poets in which they are less conspicu

ous And the contr ast may reve al the truth in a
.

w ay in which otherwise it coul d never h ave been

m ade pl ain .

I know no other w ay in which the rel ative v alu es

Of di ff erent forms of religion c an become known or
b e m ade known Y ou may h ave been tempte d to
.

reflec t whilst I h ave been spe aking th at on the

, , ,

principle I h ave l aid down there is no re ason why ,

there should not be five hundred applied sciences ,

or applic ations of the science of religion inste ad , ,

of one ; for every one of the m any forms of religion

may cl aim to apply the science of religion to its
own ends T O th at I may reply first th at a pri ori
.
,

you woul d expect th at every n ation would set up

 I N TR O D U C T ION I
7

its own liter ature as the highest ; b ut as a m atter of

,

f act you find Sh akespe are gener ally pl aced highest

,

amongst dr am atists Homer amongst epic poets

,
.

You do not find the conception of liter ary merit

v arying from n ation to n ation in such a w ay th at
there are as m any st and ards of v alu e as there are
persons to apply them Y ou find th at there tends
.

to be one st and ard N e x t since the di fferent forms

.
,

Of religion must be comp ared if their rel ative v alu es

are to b e ascert ained the metho d of the applied

,

scienc e of religion must b e the method of com

p arison Wh atever the outcome th at is anticip ated
.

from the employment of the applie d science it is ,

by the method of comp arison th at it must act An d .

one indic ation of genuine f aith is re adiness to em

ploy th at metho d and assured confidence in the

,

result of its employment The mission ary s life is

.
’

the best bec ause the most concrete e x ample of the

,

pr actic al working of the method of comp arison ;

and the outcome of the comp arison which is m ade

by those amongst whom and for whom he works

m akes itself felt in their he arts their lives and some
, ,

times i n their conversion I t is the best ex ample

.
,

b ec ause the v alu e of a religion to be known must be

felt But though it is the best bec ause it is the
.
-
1 8 C O M P A R AT IV E R E LIG ION

simplest the most dir e ct and th e most convi ncing

, , ,

i t is no t th at which add resses itself prim a rily to th e

re ason and it is not one which is produc e d by t h e

,

applied scie nce of religion I t is no t one which

.

c an be produced by any scie nc e pure or applied ,

.

The Obj ect of t h e applied scie nc e of religion is to

en able the mission ary himself to comp are fo rms of
religion incident ally in order th at he may know
,

wh at by f aith he feels and without f aith he could

,

not feel v i z th at C hristi anity is the highest form ;

,
.

but still more in order th at he may t e ach others and ,

may h ave at his comm and the f acts afforded by the

science of religion wherewith to appe al when
, ,

necess ary to the re ason and intellige nce as well as

,

to the he arts and feelings of those for whose s alv a

tion he is l abouring .

The time h as h appily gone by when the mere

ide a of comp aring C hristi anity wi th any other
religio n would h ave been rej ected with horror as
tre asonous and tre acherous The f act th at th at .

time h as now gone by is in itself evidence of a

stronger f aith in C hristi anity Wh at if it w as not .
,

fe ar at any r ate prese nted the appe ar ance of fe ar

, ,

h as been b anished ; and we c an and do in the gre ater ,

f aith th at h as been vouchs afed to us look with con ,

 IN TR O D U C T ION 1 9

fid e nc e on the propos al to comp are C hristi anity

with other religions The truth c annot but g ain
.

thereby and we rest on Him who is the w ay and

,

the tru th We recognise fully and freely th at com

.

p arison implies simil arity points of resembl ance

, ,

ay l and even fe atures of identity And of th at

.

ad mission much h as been m ade and more th an

c an be m aint ained . I t h as been pressed to me an

th at al l forms of religion from the lowest to the
,

highest are identic al ; th at therefore there is noth

,

ing more or other in the highest th an in the lowest ;

and th at in the lowest you see how b arb arous is

religion and how unworthy of civilised man N ow .

,

th at course of argument is Open to one obviou s Oh

e c ti on which would be f at al to it even if it were the
j ,

only obj ection which it is not Th at obj ection is

,
.

th at whether we are usi ng the method of comp ari

son for the purpose of estim ating the rel ative v alues
of di fferent forms of religion ; or whether we are
using the comp ar ative method of science with the ,

Obj ect of discovering and est ablishing f acts quite ,

ap art from the v alue they may h ave for an pur

y
pose they may b e put to when they h ave been
est ablished ; in either c ase comp arison is only
,

applied and c an only be applied to things which

, ,
20 C O MP AR AT IV E R E LIGION

though they resembl e one another also diff er from ,

o ne a noth e r . I t is bec ause they d i ff er at first sight

, ,

th at the discovery of their resembl anc e is impor

t ant And it is on th at aspect of the t ru th th at the
.

comp ar ative method of science dwells C om .

p arati v e philology ,
for inst ance ,
devotes itself to
est ablishing resembl ances between s ay the I ndo , ,

Europe an l angu ages which for long were not sus

,

e c t e d to be ar any likeness to one another or to h ave

p
any connection with e ach other Those resem .

bl ances are ex amined more and more closely are ,

st ated with more and more precision until they are ,

st ated as l aws of comp ar ative philology and recog ,

ni s e d as l aws of science to which there are no e x ce p

tions Y et when the resembl ances h ave been

.

worked out to the furthest det ail no one im agines

,

th at G reek and S anskrit are the s ame l angu age or ,

th at the di fferences between them are negligibl e I t .

is then surprising th at any student of comp ar ative

religion should im agine th at the discovery or the
recognition of points of likeness b etween the rel i
gions comp ared will ever result in proving th at the
di ff erences between them are negligible or non
existent Such an inference is unscie ntific and
.
,

it h as only to be st ated to show th at the student

 I N TR O DU CT I ON 2I

of comp ar ative religion is but exercising a right

common to al l students of al l sciences when he ,

cl aims th at points of di fference c annot be over

looked Or thrust aside .

I f then the student of the science of religion

, ,

directs his attention prim arily to the discovery of

resembl ances between religions which at first sight
be ar no more resembl anc e to one another th an
G reek did to the C eltic tongu es ; if the comp ar a
tive method of science dwells upon the f act th at
things which di ffer from one another may also re
semble one another and th at their resembl ances may
,

be st ated in the form of scientific l aws — there is ,

still another aspect of the truth and it is th at between

,

things which resemble one another there are also

di ff erences And the jury of the world will ulti
.

m ately dem and to know the tru th and the whole

tru th .

N ow to get not only at the truth but at the whole

, ,

of the truth is precisely the business of the applied

,

science of religion and is the very Obj ect of th at

,

which in order to distinguish it from the comp ar a

,

tive method of science I h ave c alled the method

,

of comp arison For the purposes of f air comp ari

.

son not only must the resembl ances which the ,

 C O M P AR A T IV E R E LIG ION

comp ar ative m e thod of science dwells on be ,

t aken into accoun t bu t the di fferences also must be

, , ,

weigh e d A nd it is the bu siness of the method of

.

comp ariso n th e objec t of the applied science of

,

religion to do both things N either of the two can

,
.

be dispensed wi th ; neither is more import ant th an

the other ; but for the pr actic al purposes of th e
mission ary it is import ant to begin with the resem
bl ances ; and on grounds of logic and of theory the ,

resembl ances must be first est ablished if the i m ,

port ance nay $ the decisive v alu e of the di ff erences

, ,

is to go home to the he arts and minds of the mis

s i onary s he arers The resembl ances are there and
’
.

are to b e studied ultim ately in order to bring ou t

the di fferences and m ake them st and forth so pl ainly

as to m ake choice between the higher form of reli

gion and the lower e asy simply bec ause the diff er
,

enc e is so m anifest N ow the mission ary s he arer

.
,
’

could not know much less appreci ate the di fferenc e

, , ,

the superiority of C hristi anity as long as C hris ,

ti ani ty w as unknown to him And it is equ ally

.

m anifest though it h as never been o ffici ally recog

,

ni s e d until now and by the H artford Theologic al

S emin ary th at neither c an the mission ary ad e

,

t e l y set forth the superiority of C hristi anity to

q u a
 IN TR O DU CT ION 2
3

the lower forms of religion unless he knows some

,

thing about them and about the points in which their

inferiority consists Hitherto he h as h ad to le arn
.

th at for himself as he went on and as it were by

, , , ,

rule of thu mb But on business principles economy

.
, ,

of l abour and e fficiency in work will be better se

cured i f he is t aught before he goes out and is ,

t aught on scientific methods Wh at he h as to .

le arn is the resembl ances between the v arious forms

of religion the di fferences between them and the
, ,

rel ative v alu es Of those di fferences .

I t may perh aps be asked Why should those dif

,

fe re nce s exist $ And if the qu estion S hould b e put ,

I am inclined to s ay th at to give the answer is b eyond

the S cope of the applied science of religion The .

method of comp arison assu mes th at the di ff erences

do exist and it c annot begin to be employed unless
,

and until they exist They are and must b e t aken

.

for gr anted at any r ate by the applied science of

,

religion and if the method of comp arison is to b e

,

set to work I ndeed if we may t ake the principl e

.
,

of evolution to be the di fferenti ation of the homo

g e n e o
,
u s we m ay go further and s ay th at the whole
theory of evolution and not merely a p articul ar
,

historic science such as the science of religion

, ,
24 C O MP A R AT IV E R E L I GION

postul ates di fferenti ation and the principl e of di ff er

ence and does not e x pl ain i t
,
evolution c annot ,
—

st art the homogeneous c annot be other th an homo

,

g e ne ou s until
,
the principle of di f
f erence a nd the
power of diff erenti ation is assu med .

Th at the science Of religion at the end le aves

untouched those diff erences between religions which
it recognised at the beginning is a point on which I ,

insisted as ag ainst those who unw arr ant ably pro

,

cl aim the science to h ave demonstr ated th at al l

religions alike are b arb arisms or surviv als of b ar
b ari s m I t is well therefore to be ar th at f act in mind
.
, ,

when attempts are m ade to expl ain the e x istence of

the di fferences by postul ating a period when they
were non existent Th at postul ate may t ake form
-
.

in th e supposition th at origin ally the tru e religion

alone existed and th at the di fferences arose l ater
,
.

Th at is a supposition which h as been m ade by more

th an one peopl e and in more ages th an one I t
,
.

c arries with it the consequence th at the history

it would be di fficult to c all it the evolution and
impossible to c all it the progress O f religion h as —

b een one of degr ad ation gener ally O wing however .

, ,

to the far re aching and deep penetr ating influ ence

- -

of the theory Of evolution it h as of l ate grown cus

,
 I N TR O DU C T ION 25

tomary to assume th at the movement the course Of ,

religious history h as been in the opposite direction ;

,

and th at it h as moved upw ards from the lowest forms

of religion known to us or from some form an alogous

,

to the lowest known forms through the higher to ,

the highest This second theory however di fferent

.
,

i n its arr angement of the f acts from the G olden Age

theory first alluded to is still fund ament ally in
,

agreement with it in asmuch as it also assumes th at

,

the di fferences e x hibited l ater in the history of

religion at first were non e x istent B oth theories
-
.

assu me the e x istence of the origin ally homogeneous ,

but they dis agree as to the n ature of the di fferences

which supervened and also as to the n ature of the
,

origin ally homogeneous .

I wish therefore to c all attention to the simple

truth th at the f acts at the dispos al of the science of
religion neither en abl e nor w arr ant us to decide
between these two views I f we were to come to a
.

decision on the point we should h ave to tr avel f ar

,

beyond the confines of the science Of religion or ,

the widest bounds of the theory of evolution and ,

enquire why there should be error as well as tru th

or to put the m atter very di fferently why there
, ,

should b e truth at al l But if we st arted tr avelling

.
26 C O MP A R AT IVE R E LIGION

on th at enquiry we should not get b ack in time for

,

this course of l ectures Fortun ately it is not meces

.

s ary to t ake a ticket for th at j ourney perh aps not

possible to secure a return ticket We h ave only .

to recognise th at the science of religion confines

itself to const ating and tr acing the diff erences and ,

does not attempt to e x pl ain why they should e x ist ;

while the applied science of religion is concerned
with the pr actic al business of bringing home the
di fference between C hristi anity and other forms of
religion to the he arts of those whose s alv ation may
turn on whether the mission ary h as been properly
equipped for his t ask .

I f now I announce th at for the student of the

, ,

applied science it is advis able th at he should turn

his attention in the first pl ace to the lowest forms of

religion the announcement need not be t aken to
,

me an th at a man c annot become a student Of the

science of religion whether pure or applied unless
, ,

he assu mes th at the lowest is the most primi tive

form . The science of religion as it pushes its
,

enquiries may possibly come across

,
—
may even
al re ady h ave come across the lowest form to
—

which it is possible for man to descend Bu t .

whether th at form is the most primitive as well as

 IN TR O D U CT ION 27

the lowest ,
still more whether it is th e mos t
,

pri mi tive b ec ause it is the lowest will b e qu es ,

tions which will not admit of b eing se t tl ed offh and .

And in the me antime we are not c alled upon to

answer them in the affirm at ive as a s i ne qu a non Of

b ei ng ad mi t t ed students of the science .

The re ason for be g inning wi th th e lowes t forms is

as is proper i n a pr actic al science a pr ac t ic al

one As I h ave alre ady s aid if th e mission ary is t o

.
,

succeed i n hi s work he must know and te ach th e

,

di ff erence and the v alu e of the di fference b etween

C hristi anity and other reli g io ns B ut di ff e r enc e
.

impli e s simil arity : we c annot S pecify th e points of

di fference between two things without presupposing
some simil arity b etween them at any r ate su ffi
,

cient si mi l arity to m ake a comp arison of them profit

able . N ow the si mi l ari ty b etween the higher forms
,

of reli g ion is such th at there is no need to demon

str ate it in order to justify our procee di ng to dwell
,

upon the di fferenc es Bu t the simil arity b e t ween th e

.

hi gher and the lower forms is f ar from b eing thu s

Obvious I ndeed i n some c ases for e x ampl e in th e
.
, ,

c ase of some Austr ali an tribes there is alleged by, ,

some s tu dents of the science Of religio n to b e such ,

a tot al absence of si mi l arity th at we ar e e nti t led or

28 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

compelled to recognise th at however liber ally or ,

loosely we rel ax our definition of religion we must

, ,

pronounce those tribes to b e without religion The .

alleg ation thus m ade the qu estion thus r aised

, ,

evidently is of pr actic al import ance for the pr actic al

purposes of the mission ary Where some resem .

bl ances e x ist between the higher and the lower

forms of religion those resembl ances may be m ade
, ,

and should b e m ade the ground from which the mis

,

s i onary should proceed to point out by contr ast the

di fferences and so to set forth the higher v alu e of

,

C hristi anity But if no such resembl ances should

.

exist they c annot b e m ade a b asis for the mission

,

ary s wor k Without proceeding in this i ntrod u c

’
.

tory l ecture to discuss the qu estion whether there are

any tribes wh atever th at are withou t religion I may ,

point out th at reli g ion in al l its forms is in one of

, , ,

its aspects a ye arning and aspir ation after G od a

, ,

se arch after Him per adventure we may find Him

,
.

And if it b e alleged th at in some c ases there is no

se arch after Him th at amongst civilised men
, ,

amongst our ow n acq ii ai nt anc e s there is in some ,

c ases no se arch an : no aspir ation and th at therefore,

among the F DI C b ackw ard peoples of the e arth

there may ns o b e tribes to whom the very ide a of

 IN TR O D U CTI ON 29

such a se arch is unknown then we must b e ar in

,

mi nd th at a se arch after any obj ect wh atever may

, ,

be dropped may even b e tot ally ab andoned ; and

,

yet the he art may ye arn after th at which it is per

su ad e d or it may be is deluded into thinking
, ,

it c an never find P erh aps however th at w ay of

.
, ,

putting it may b e obj ected to on the ground th at it ,

is a p e ti ti o pri nci pi z and assu mes the very f act it

’

is necess ary to prove Vi z th at the lowest tribes th at

,
.

are or c an b e known to u s h ave m ade the se arch

and given it up where as the contention is th at they

,

h ave never m ade the se arch Th at contention I .

,

will rem ark in p assing is one which never can b e

,

proved But to those who consider th at it is prob

.

able i n itself and th at it is a necess ary st age in the

,

evolution Of belief I would point out th at every

,

se arch is m ade in hope or it may be in fe ar , ,

th at se arch presupposes h Op e and fe ar V ague of .

,

course the h Op e may be ; sc arce conscious if con

, ,

scious at al l of wh at is hoped But withou t hope

,
.
,

until there are some dim stirrings however v ague , ,

se arch is unconceiv able and it is in and by the pro

,

cess Of se arch th at the h Op e b ecomes stronger and

the obj ect sought more definite to vi ew N ow .
,

i nas much as it i s dou b tful Whether any tribe of

3 0 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

people is without religion it may re ason ab ly b e

,

held th at the v ast m aj ority at any r ate of the peopl es

, ,

of the e arth h ave proceeded from hope to aspir ation

and to se arch ; and if there should be found a tribe

which h ad not yet entered consciou sly on the se arch ,

the re ason able conclusion would be not th at it is

e x empted from the l aws which we see exemplified
in all other peoples bu t th at it is tending to Obey
,

the s ame l aws and is st arting from the s ame point

as they —
,
th at hope which is the desire of al l na
tions and h as been m ade m anifest in the Son of
M an .

Wh atever b e the e arliest history of th at hope ,

wh atever w as its n ature and course in prehistoric

times it h as been worked out in history in m any
,

directions under the influ ence of m any errors into

, ,

m any forms of religion But in them all we feel

.

th at there is the s ame striving the s ame ye arning ;

,

and we see it with the s ame pity and distress as we

may observe the distorted motions of the man who ,

though p arti ally p ar alysed yet strives to w alk and

, ,

move to the pl ace where he would be I t is with .

these attempts to w alk in the hope of giving help to

,

them who need it th at we who are here to d ay are

,
-

concerned We must study them if we are to

.
,
 IN TR O D U CT ION 3 I

underst and them and to remedy them And there .

is no underst anding them unless we recognise th at

,

in them al l there is the striving and ye arning after

G od which may be cru elly distorted but is alw ays
, ,

there .

I t so h appens th at there h as been gre at re adiness

on the p art O f students of the science of religion to

recognise th at belief in the continu ed existence of

the soul after the de ath of the body h as comp ar a
tive univers ality amongst the lower r aces of man
kind Their ye arning after continu ed existence
.

developes into h Op e of a future life ; and the hope ,

or fe ar t akes m any forms : the continu ed existence

,

may or may not be on this e arth ; it may or may

not t ake the S h ape of a belief in the tr ansmigr ation
of souls ; it sometimes does and sometimes does not
, ,

le ad to belief in the judgment of the de ad and

future punishments and rew ards ; it may or may
not postul ate the immort ality of the soul ; it may
shrink to comp ar ative if not ab solute u ni mp or
, ,

t ance ; or it may be dre aded and denounced by

philosophy and even by religion But whether .

dre aded or delighted in whether developed by re

,

l i g i on or denou nced the tendency to the belief is

,

th e r e u nivers al amon g m ankind and in e r adi cable .

3 2 C O MP AR AT IV E R E LIG I ON

The p ar allel then between this belief and the

, ,

belief or tendency to believe in G od is close and i n

structive ; and I sh all devote my ne x t l ecture there
fore to the belief in a future life among the pri mi
tive r aces of m ankind Th at belief m anifests
itself as I sh al l hope to S how from the beginning i n
, , ,

a ye arning h O p e for the continu ed existence O f the

beloved ones who h ave been t aken from us by de ath ,

as well as in dre ad of the ghosts of those who during

their life were fe ared But in either c ase wh at it

.

postul ates and points to is man li ving in community

with man I t implies society ; and there ag ain is
.

p ar allel to religion I t is with the hopes and fe ars

.

of the community as such th at religion h as to do

and it is from th at point of Vi ew th at I sh all st art

when I come to de al with the subj ect Of m agic ,

and its resembl ance to and di fference from religion .

I ts resembl ance is not accident al and the di fferenc e

is not arbitr ary : the difference is th at between
soci al and anti soci al purposes Th at di ff erenc e
-
.
,

if borne in mind may give u s the clu e to the re al

,

n ature of fetichism a subj ect

,
which will re
quire a lecture to itself I sh all then proc eed to a
.

topic which h as been ignored to a surprising extent

by the sci e nc e of reli g ion ; th at is , the sub j ect of
 IN TR O D U CT ION 33

pr ayer : and the light which is to b e derived thence

will I tru st give fresh illumin ation to the me aning
, ,

of s acrifice The rel ation of religion to mor ality

.

will then f all to be considered ; and my fin al l ecture

will de al with the pl ace of C hristi anity in the evo
l u ti on Of religion
.
 I M M O RTA L I T Y

T HE mission ary like ,

other pr actic al man
any ,

requires to know wh at science c an te ach him about

the m ateri al on which he h as to work S o far as is .

possible he should know wh at m ateri als are soun d

,

and c an b e u sed with s afety in his constructive work ,

and wh at must b e thrown aside wh at must be

,

destroyed if his wor k is to esc ape dry rot and to

,
-

st and as a perm anent edifice He should b e abl e to

.

feel confidence for inst ance not merely th at m agic

, ,

and fetichism are the neg ation of religion b ut th at ,

in te aching th at f act he h as to support him the

evi dence collected by the science of religion ; and
he should h ave th at evidence pl aced at his dispos al
for e ffective use if need b e
, .

I t may b e also th at amongst much unsound ma

t e ri al he will find some th at is sound th at may b e
,

used and th at he c annot afford to c ast aw ay H e

,
.

h as to work upon our common hum anity upon the ,

hu m anity common to him and his he arers He .

h as to remember th at no man and no community Of

34
 I MM O RTA LI T Y 35

men ever is or h as been or ever c an b e excluded

from the se arch after G od And his duty his
.
,

chosen duty is to help them in th at se arch and as

, ,

f ar as may b e to m ake the w ay cle ar for them and ,

to guide their feet in the right p ath He will find .

th at they h ave attempted to m ake p aths for them

selves ; and it is not impossibl e th at he will find th at
some Of those p aths for some dist ance do go in the
right direction ; th at some of their b eliefs h ave in
them an el ement of truth or a groping after truth
,

which rightly understood may b e m ade to l e ad to

, ,

C hr isti anity I t is with one of those beliefs the

.

belief in immort ality th at I sh all de al in this

l ecture .

I t is a f act worthy of notice th at the b elief in i m

mort ality fills I will not s ay a more import ant bu t
, ,

a more prominent pl ace in the he arts and hopes of

,

uncivilised th an of civilised man ; and it is also a

f act worthy of notice th at among primitive men the
belief in immort ality is much less intim ately bound
up with religion th an it comes to b e at a l ater period
Of evolution The two f acts are prob ably not wholly
.

without rel ation to one another SO long as the .

belief in immort ality luxuri ates and grows wild so ,

to spe ak untr ained and unrestr ain e d b y reli g ion it

, ,
3 6 C O M P A RAT IV E R E LIGION

developes as the f ancy wills and lives by fl attering the

,

f ancy When however the rel ations of a future life

.
, ,

to mor ality and religion come to be re alised when ,

the conception of the next world comes to be mor al

ised then it becomes the subj ect of fe ar as well as
,

of hope ; and the f ancy loses much of the freedom

with which it tricked out the pictures th at once it
drew purely according to its own sweet liking of a
, ,

future st ate O n the one h and the guilty mind

.
,

prefers not to dwell upon the d ay of reckoning so ,

long as it c an st ave O ff the ide a ; and it may su e

c e e d more or l ess in putting it on one side until

the proximity of de ath m akes the ide a insistent .

Thus the mind more or less deliber ately dis mi sses

the future life from attention O n the other h and .
,

religion itself insists persistently on the f act th at you

h ave your duty here and now in this world to per
form and th at the rest the future consequ ences
, , ,

you must l e ave to G od Thus once more and this

.
, ,

time not from unworthy motives attention is di ,

re c t e d to this life r ather th an to the next ; and it is

this point th at is critic al for the f ate both of the

belief in immort ality and of religion itself At this .

point religion may as in the c ase Of Buddhism it

, ,

actu ally h as done form ally give up and d is avow

,
 IMM O RT A LI TY 37

belief in immort ality And in th at c ase it sows the

.

seed of its own destruction O r it may recognise

.

th at the immort ality of the soul is postul ated by and

essenti al to mor ality and religion alike And in th at
.

c ase even in th at c ase alone is religion in a position

, ,

to provide a logic al b asis for mor ality and to pl ace

the n atur al desire for a future life on a firmer b asis
th an the untutored f ancy Of primitive man coul d
fin d for it.

I t is then with primitive man or with the lower

“
r aces th at we will b egin and with the comp ar ative
,

univers ality of their belief in the continu ed e x istence

”
O f the soul after the de ath of the body ( Tylor ,

P ri mi ti v e C u l tu re II I )
, ,
.N ow the cl assic al theory
,

of this belief is th at set forth by Professor Tylor

i n his P ri mi ti v e C u l tu re Whenc e does primitive
.

man get his ide a th at the soul continu es to exist

after the de ath O f the body $ the answer given is in ,

the first pl ace from the f act th at man dre ams He

,
.

dre ams of dist ant scenes th at he visits in his sleep ;

it is cle ar from the evidenc e Of those who s aw his
,

sleeping body th at his body cert ainly did not tr avel ;

,

therefore he or his soul must b e sep ar ab le from the

body and must h ave tr avelled whilst his body l ay
unmoving and unmove d B ut he also dre ams of
.
3 8 C O M P A RAT I VE R E LIGION

those who are now de ad and whose bodies he knows

, ,

it may be to h ave been inciner ated The e x pl an a

,
.

tion then is Obvious th at they too or their souls are

, , ,

sep ar able from their bodies ; and the f act th at they

survive de ath and the destruction of the body is
demonstr ated by their appe ar ance in his dre ams .

About the re ality of their appe ar anc e in his dre ams

he h as no more doubt th an he h as about the re ality of
wh at he himself does and suffers in his dre ams I f
.
.
,

however the de ad appe ared only in his dre ams their

, ,

existence after de ath might seem to be limited to

the dre am time But as a m atter of f act they ap
-
.

pe ar to him in his w aking moments also : ghosts are

at le ast as f a mili ar to the s av age as to the civilised

man ; and thus the evidence of his dre ams which ,

first suggested his belief is confirmed by the evidence

,

O f his senses .

Thus the belief in the continu ed e x istence of the

soul after the de ath of the body is tr aced b ack to
the action of dre ams and w aking h allucin ations .

N ow it is ine vit able th at the inference should b e

,

dr awn th at the belief in immort ality h as thus been

tr acked to its b asis And it is inevit able th at those
.

who st art with an inclin ation to reg ard the b elief as

p alp ably absurd should welcome this exhibition of
 I MM O RT A LI T Y 39

its evolution as proof conclusive th at the belief

could only h ave origin ated in and c an only impose
upon imm ature minds To th at doubtless it is a
.

perfectly sound reply to s ay th at the origin of a belief

is one thing and its v alidity quite another The .

w ay in which we c ame to hold the belief is a m atter

of historic al investig ation and undoubtedly may

,

form a very f ascin ating enquiry Bu t the qu estion

.

whether the belief is tru e is a question which h as to

be considered no m atter how I got it just as the
, ,

qu estion whether I am committing a tresp ass or not

in being on a piece of ground c annot b e set tled by
any amount of expl aining how I got there Or .
,

to put it in another w ay the very risky p ath by which

,

I h ave scr ambl ed up a cli ff does not m ake the top

any the l ess s afe when I h ave got there .

But though it is perfectly logic al to insist on the

distinction between the origin and the v alidity of any
belief and to refuse to question or doubt the v alidity
,

of the belief in immort ality merely bec ause of the

origin ascribed to it by authorities on primitive cul
ture,
—
th at is no re ason why we should not e x ami ne
the origin suggested for it to see whether it is a s atis
,

f act ory origin And th at is wh at I propose now to do

. .

I wish to suggest first th at belief in the appe ar ance O f

4o C O M P A R AT IV E RE LIGION

the de ad whether to the dre amer or the ghost seer

,
-
,

is an intellectu al belief as to wh at occurs as a mat

ter of f act ; and ne x t th at thereby it is distinguished
from the desire for immort ality which m anifests i t
self with comp ar ative univers ality amongst the lower
r aces .

N ow th at the appe ar anc e of the de ad whether to

, ,

the w aking or the sleeping eye is su fficient to st art

,

the intellectu al belief will be admitted alike by those

who do and those who do not hold th at it is su ffi
cient logic ally to w arr ant the belief But to s ay th at .

it st arts the desire to see him or her whom we h ave

lost would b e ridiculous O n the contr ary it would
,
.
,

b e much ne arer the truth to s ay th at it is the longing

and the desire to see once ag ain the loved one th at
, , ,

sets the mind a dre aming and first gives to the he art
-
,

h Op e . The f act th at were there no desire for the

,

continu ance of life after the d e ath Of the body the ,

belief would never h ave c aught on th at it either

would never h ave arisen or would h ave soon ce ase d
to e x ist is shown by the simple consider ation th at
only where the desire for the continu ance of life
after de ath dies down does the belief in immort ality

tend to w ane I f any further evide nce of th at is

.

required it may be found in the te aching of those

 I MM O RTAL I T Y 41

forms of philosophy and religion which ende avour

to dispense with the belief in immort ality for they ,

al l recognise and indeed procl aim th at they are b ased

on the deni al of the desire and the will to live If .

,

and only if as
,
and only as the desire to live ,

here and here after c an be suppressed c an the b e

, ,

lief in immort ality b e er adic ated The b asis of the

.

belief is the desire for continu ed e x istence ; and

th at is why the attempt to tr ace the origin O f the b e
lief i n immort ality b ack to the belief in dre ams and
app aritions is one which is not perfectly s atisf actory ;

it le aves out of account the desire without which the

b elief would not be and is not Oper ative .

B ut though it l e aves out an element which is at

le ast as import ant as any element it includes it ,

would b e an error to t ake no account of wh at it does

contribute I t would b e an error of this kind if we
.

C losed our eyes to the f act th at wh at first arrests

the attention of man in the lower st ages Of his e vol u

,

tion is the surviv al of others th an himself Th at

,
.

is the belief which first m anifests itself in his he art

and m i nd ; and wh at first reve als it to him is the a
p
e aranc e of the de ad to his sleepi ng or his w aking
p
eye He does not first hope or believe th at he him
.

self will survive the de ath of the b ody and then go

4 2 C O M P AR AT IV E R E LIGION

on to infe r th at therefore others also will simil arly sur

vive O n th e c ontr ary it is the appe ar ance O f others
.
,

in his sleepi ng or w aking moments th at first gives

him t h e ide a ; and it is only l ater and on reflection
th at it occurs to him th at he also will h ave or be a , ,

ghost .

But though we must recognise th e intellectu al ele

ment in the belief and the intellectu al processes
which are involved in the belief we must also t ake
,

in to account the emotion al element the element of ,

desire And first we should notice th at the desire is

.

not a selfish or self reg arding desire ; it is the longing

-

for one loved and lost of the mother for her child
, ,

or of the child for its mother I t is desire of th at

.

kind which gives to dre ams and app aritions their

emotion al v alue without which they would h ave little
,

signific ance and no spiritu al import ance Th at is .

the direction in which we must look for the re ason

why on the one h and belief in the continu ation of
, ,

existence after de ath seems at first to h ave no con

ne c ti on with religion while on the other h and the
, , ,

connection is ultim ately shown by the evolution of

b elief to be so intim ate th at neither can att ain its
proper development without the other .

Dre ams are occ asions on which the longing for

 I MM O RTA L I TY 43

one l ov e d and l os t
m anifests itself bu t they are not the
,

c ause or the origin of the affection and the longing .

But dre ams are not e x clusively speci ally or even , ,

u su ally the dom ain in which religion pl ays a p art .

Hence the visions of the night in which the memory ,

Of the dep arted and the cr aving for reunion with them

are m anifested be ar no necess ary reference to reli

,

gion ; and it is therefore possible and p ri ma faci e ,

pl ausible to m aint ain th at the belief in the i mmor

,

t ality of the soul h as its origin in a centre quite dis

tinct from the sphere of religion and th at it is only ,

very slowly if at al l th at the belief in immort ality

, ,

comes to be incorpor ated with religion O n the other .

h and the very cr aving for reunion or continu ed com

,

munion with those who are felt not to be lost but gone
before is itself the feeling which is not the b ase
, , ,

but at the b ase of religion I n the lowest forms

,
.

to which religion c an be reduced or in which it ,

‘

m anifests itself religion is a bond of community ;

,

it m anifests itself e x tern ally in joint acts of worship ,

intern ally in the feeling th at the worshippers are

bound together by it and united with the Obj ect Of
their worship This feeling of communion is not a
.

mere article of intellectu al belief nor is it imposed ,

upon the members ; it is wh at they themselves desire .

44 C O M P A RAT IV E R E LIG I ON

H o ffd i ng st ates the truth when h e s ays th at in its

“
most rudim e nt ary form we e ncounter religion under
”
the guise of desire ; but in s ayi ng so he omits the
essence of the truth th at esse nce without which
,

the truth th at he p arti ally enunci ates may become

wholly misle adin g — h e omits to s ay and I think he ,

f ails to see th at the desire which alone can cl aim to

,

be considered as reli gious is the desire of the com

munity not of the individu al as such and the desire
, ,

Of the community as unite d in common worship The .

ide a of religion as a bond of spiritu al communion is

implicit from the first even though a long process
,

of evolution be necess ary to disent angle it and set it

forth self consciously N ow it is precisely this Spir
-
.
,

i tu al communion of which man becomes consciou s

in his cr aving after reunion or continu ed communion
with those who h ave dep arted this life And it is .

with the history of his attempts to h armonise this

desire with wh at he knows and dem ands of the
universe otherwise th at we are here and now con
,

cerned .

So strong is th at desire so inconceiv able is the

,

ide a th at de ath ends al l and divorces from us forever

,

those we h ave loved and lost awhile th at the lower ,

r aces of m ankind h ave been pretty gener ally driven

 I MM O RT A LI T Y 45

to the conclusion th at de ath is a mist ake or du e to a

mist ake I t is widely held th at there is no such
.

thing as a n atur al de ath M e n do Of course die they

.
,

may be killed ; but it is not an ordin ance of n ature th at

a man must be killed ; and if he is killed his de ath
, ,

is not n atur al SO strong is this feeling th at when a

.

man dies and his de ath is not obviously a c ase of

murder the inference which the s av age prefers to
,

dr aw is th at the de ath is re ally a c ase of murder ,

b ut th at the murder h as been worked by witchcr aft

or m agic A mongst the Austr ali an bl ack fellows as
.
,

we are told by M essrs Spencer and G illen . no ,

( t

such thing as n atur al de ath is re alised by the n ative ;

a man who dies h as of necessity been killed by some

other man or perh aps even by a wom an and sooner ,

or l ater th at man or wom an will b e att acked ; con

sequ ently in very m any c ases there t akes pl ace
,

wh at the white man not seeing bene ath the surf ace
, ,

not unn atur ally describes as secret murder ; but in

re ality every c ase of such secret murder when ,

one or more men ste althily st alk their prey with the
obj ect Of killing him is in re ality the ex acting of a
,

life for a life the accused person being indic ated by

,

the so c alled medicine man as one who h as brought

-

ab out the de ath of another man by m ag ic and whose ,

46 C O M P ARAT I V E RE LI G ION

life must therefo re be forfeited ( N ati v e Tri be s of

C e ntra l A u s tral i a p
,
.

Wh at underlies this ide a th at by man alone is

de ath brought into the world is th at de ath is u n
n atur al and is no p art O f the origin al design of things .

When the f act comes to b e recognised undeni ably

th at de aths not c aused by hu m an agency do t ake
pl ace then the f act requires e x pl an ation ; and the
,

e x pl an ation on which primitive r aces quite i nd e p e n

,

d e ntl y of e ach other hit is th at as de ath w as no p art of

,

the origin al design of things its introduction w as du e

,

to accident or mist ake Either men were origin ally

.

e x empt from de ath or they were intended to b e

,

e x empt I f they were intended to b e e x empt then

.
,

the inference dr awn is th at the intention w as fru s

trat e d by the c arel essness of the agent intrusted with

the duty of m aking men de athless I f they were .

origin ally e x empt from de ath then the loss of the

,

e x emption h as to b e accounted for And in either

.

c ase the e x pl an ation t akes the form of a n arr ative

which rel ates how the mist ake took pl ace or wh at
event it w as th at c aused the loss of the exemption .

I need not quote e x amples Of either cl ass of n arr ative .

Wh at I wish to do is to emph asise the f act th at by

primitive man de ath i s felt to b e i ncons ist e nt W i th th e
 I MM O RTA LI T Y 47

scheme of things First therefore he denies th at.

, ,

it can come in the course of n ature though he admits ,

th at it may b e procured by the wicked man in the

w ay of murder or m agic And it is at this st age th at .

his h Op e of reunion with those loved and lost sc arcely

stretches b eyond the prospect Of their return to this
’

world E vidence of this st age is found p artly in t ales

.

such as those told of the mother who returns to revisit

her child or of p ersons restored to life Stories of
,
.

this l atter kind come from T asm ani a Austr ali a and , ,

S amo a amongst other pl aces and are found amongst

, ,

the Eskimo and Americ an I ndi ans as well as ,

amongst the F j orts ( j A M ac C u l l ou g h T he C hi l d . .

,

h ood of F i cti on C h I V ) E ven more direct evi

,
. .

dence Of the emotion which prompts these stories is

afforded by the Ho dirge quoted by Professor Tylor ,

(P C II , 3 ,
2 3 3)
“
We ne v e r sco ld
d you ; ne e r
e v w ro n e
g d yo u ;
C ome to u s b ack $
We e v e r lo v e d and c h i e r s he d you ; a nd ha v liv
e e d l ong t og e th er

U nd e r t h e sa me roo f ;

t
D e s e r i t not now $
The rai ny ni g h t s and th e co l d b l w i ng
o d ays are co mi ng on;

D o not w and e r h e re $
D O not t
s and b y th e b u ntr as h e s ; co me to u s ag a n $ i
Y ou c anno t find t
s h e l e r u nd e r the p ee
p u l w
,
h e n the rain co me s
dow n ,
48 C O M P ARA T IV E R E LIGION

T he sa ul will not hi l d y fr m th c l d b itt r w i nd

s e ou o e o e .

C m t y ur h m $
o e o o o e

I t isw pt f y
s e or ou a nd l n; nd w
c ea th w h l v a e are e re o o e d yo u
v r;
e e

A nd th r i ri e e s ce put for yo u a nd w t ; a er

C o me h o me ,
co m h m e o e ,
co me to us a ai n $
g
”

I n these verses it is evident th at the de ath of the

body is recognised as a f act I t is even more m ani .

fest th at the de ath Of the body is pu t aside as weigh

ing for n aught ag ainst the absolute conviction th at
the loved one still e x ists But reunion is sought in .

this world ; another world is not yet thought of .

The ne x t world h as not yet b een c alled into existenc e

to redress the sorrows and the su ff erings O f this life .

Where the discovery of th at solution h as not b een

m ade the hum an mind see k s such consol ation as
,

may be found elsewhere I f th e aspir ation come

“
.
,

”
to us come to us ag ain c an find no other re alis ation
, , ,

it welcomes the re appe ar ance of the lost one in an

other form I n Austr ali a amongst the Eu ahl ayi tribe
.
, ,

the mother who h as lost her b aby or her young child

may yet believe th at it is restored to her and born
ag ain in the form O f another child I n West Afric a .
,

according to M iss Kingsley

“
the new b abies as they ,

arrived in the f amily were shown a selection of sm all

articles belon g in g to dece ase d mem b ers whose souls

 I MM O RT A LI TY 49

were still ab sent ,

the thing the child c aught hold
O f identified him Why he s Uncl e John ; see $
‘ ’
.
,

he knows his own pipe ; or Th at s C ousin Emm a ;

’ ‘ ’

see $ she k nows her m ar k et c al ab ash ; and so on ” ’

.

But it is not only amongst Austr ali an bl ack fellows

or West Afric an negroes th at the attempt is m ade
to extr act consol ation for de ath from the specul ation
th at we die only to b e reborn in this world The .

theory of rebirth is put forw ard by a distinguished

stu dent Of H egel Dr M cT ag g art
.
—
i n a work
entitled S ome D og mas of Re li g i on I t is admitted .

b y Dr M cT ag g art to b e tru e th at we h ave no memory

.

wh atever of our previous st ages of e x istence ; bu t he

decl ares we may say th at in spite of the loss of
,
“
,

memory it is the s ame p erson who lives in the suc

,

c e ssi v e lives
”
p
( 1 3 0) and he appe ars to find the
.

s ame consol ation as his remote foref athers did in

looking forw ard to a future st age of e x istence in
which he will h ave no more memory of his present
existence and no more re ason to believe in it th an
, ,

he now h as memory of or re ason to believe in his

, ,

pre e xistence .
“
I t is cert ain he s ays th at in
” “
, ,

this life we remember no previous lives and he ,

accepts th e position th at it is equ ally cert ain we sh all

h ave in our next life ab solutely no memory of our

E
5 0 O P R T V E R E LIGION
C M A A I

present existenc e Th at O f course distingu ishes

.
, ,

Dr M cT ag g art from the West Afric an Uncl e j ohn

.

“
who when he is reborn at any r ate knows his own
, ,

”
pipe .

The hu m an mind as I h ave s aid seeks such con

, ,

sol ation as it may find in the doctrine of rebirth .

I t finds evidence of rebirth either in the beh aviour

of the new born child or in its resembl ance to de
-

ce ase d rel ations But it also comes to the conclu

.

sion th at the reinc arn atio n may be in anim al form .

Whether th at conclusion is suggested by the str angely

hum an expression in the eyes of some anim als or ,

whether it is b ased upon the belief in the power of

tr ansform ation need not be discussed I t is b e
,
.

yond doubt th at tr ansform ation is b elieved in : the

C herokee I ndi an sings a verse to the e ffect th at he b e
“
comes a re al wolf ; and after st ating th at he h as
become a re al wolf the songster utters a prolonged
,

”
howl and p aws the ground like a wolf with his feet
,

( Fr azer Ki ng s li i p p
, ,
I ndeed identity may be
.
,

att ained or m anifested without any process of tr ans

form ation ; i n Austr ali a amongst the Dieri tribe

, ,

the he ad man Of a totem consisting of a p articul ar

sort of a seed is spoken of by his people as being the
pl ant itself which yields the seed ( i b p .
,
.
 I MM O RTA LI T Y 5 I

Where such beliefs are prev alent the doctrine of the

,

reinc arn ation of the soul in anim al form will ob vi

ou s l y arise at the st age of evolution which we are

now discussing th at is to s ay when the soul is not

,

yet supposed to dep art to another world and must ,

therefore m anifest itself in this world in one w ay

or another if not in hu m an sh ape then in anim al
, ,

form I n the form of wh at anim al the dece ased will

.

be reinc arn ated is a qu estion which will b e an

s w e re d in di fferent w ays P urely fortuitous circu m
.

st ances may le ad to p articul ar anim als b eing con

s i d e re d to be the reinc arn ation of the dece ased .

O r the f act th at the dece ased h as a p articul ar ani

mal for totem may le ad the survivors to expect his
re appe ar ance in the form of th at p articul ar anim al .

The one f act of import ance for our present purpose

is th at at its origin the belief in anim al reinc arn ation
h ad no necess ary connection with the theory of
future punishments and rew ards At the st age of
.

evolution in which the belief in tr ansmigr ation arose

m any anim als were the Obj ect Of genuine respect
bec ause of the virtues of cour age etc which were ,
.
,

m anifested by them ; or bec ause of the position they

occupied as totems C onsequ ently no loss of st atus
.

w as involved when the soul tr ansmigr ated from a

5 2 C O MP ARAT IV E R E L I GION

hum an to an anim al form N O notion of pu ni sh

.

ment w as involved in the belief .

The doc trines of reinc arn ation and tr ansmigr ation

b elong to a st age in the evolution of belief or to a ,

system of thought in which the conviction th at the

,

de ath of the body does not ent ail the destruction of

the soul is undoubted but from which the conce p
,

tion indeed the very ide a of another world th an this

, ,

is excluded Th at conception begins to m anifest

.

itself where ancestor worship est ablishes itself ; b ut

the m anifest ation is incomplete D ece ased chief .

t ains and heroes who h ave been benef actors to the

,

tribe are remembered ; and the good they did is

,

remembered also They are themselves remembere d

.

as the doers of good ; and their spirits are n atur ally

conceived as continuing to b e benevolent or re ady ,

to confer benefits when properly appro ached But .

thus envis aged they are seen r ather in their rel a

,

tion to the living th an in their rel ation to e ach other .

I t is their assist ance in this world th at is sought ;

their condition in the next world is of less pr actic al
import ance and therefore provokes less of specul ation ,

in the first inst ance But when specul ation is

.

provoked it proves ultim ately f at al to ancestor wor

,

ship .
 IMM O RTALI TY 53

First it may le ad to the qu estion of the rel ation

,

of the spirits of the dece ased benef actors to the god

or gods of the community There will be a tendency
.

to blur the distinction between the god and his

worshippers if any of the worshippers come to b e
,

reg arded as being after de ath spirits from whom

aid may b e invo k ed and to whom Off erings must

be m ade And if the distinction ce ases after de ath

.
,

it is di fficult and sometimes impossible to m aint ain

it during life ; an emperor who is to b e deified after
de ath may find his d e i fic ati on b eginning b efore his
de ath B elief in such d e i fic ati on may b e accepted
.

b y some members of the community O thers .

will reg ard it as proof th at religion is n aught ; and

y e t others will be driven to seek for a form of religion
which affords no pl ace for such d e ific ati ons but m ain
,

t ains explicitly th at distinction between a god and

his worshippers which is present in the most rudi
ment ary forms of religion .

But though the tendency of ancestor worship

is to run this course and to p ass in this w ay out of
the evolution of religion it may be arrested at the
,

very outset if the religious S pirit is as it h as been

, ,

in one c ase at le ast strong enough to st and ag ainst

,

it at the b eginning Thus amongst the Jews there

.
,
54 C O MP A R A T IV E R E LIGION

w as a tendency to ancestor worship as is shown ,

by the f act of its prohibition Bu t it w as st amped

.

out ; and it w as st amped ou t so eff ectu ally th at belief

in the continued e x istence of the soul after de ath
c e ased for long to h ave any pr actic al influence .

“
G ener ally spe aking the Hebrews reg arded the
,

gr ave as the fin al end of al l sentient and intelligent

existenc e the l and where al l things are forgotten
,
‘ , 7’

( S mith s D i cti onary of the B i bl e s v Sheol )

’ “
In ,
. . .

de ath the Ps almist s ays to the L ord there is no

,
” “
,

remembr ance of thee : in Sheol who sh all give thee

” “
th anks $ Sh all they th at are dece ased arise and
pr aise thee $ Sh all thy loving kindness b e decl are d-

”
in the gr ave $ or thy righteousness in the l and Of
”
forgetfulness $ Thus the Sheol of the Ol d Test a
ment rem ains to testify to the V iew t ak en of the st ate
of the de ad b y a people amongst whom the worship
of ancestors w as arrested at the outset Amongst .

such a people the de ad are supposed simply to con

“
ti nu e in the next world as they l eft this : in Sheol
the kings of the n ations h ave their thrones and the ,

mighty their we apons Of w ar just as in V irgil

”
,

the ghost of D eiphobus still shows the gh astly

wounds by which he perished ( j evons H i story of ,

Re l i g i on p,
.
 I MM O RT A LI TY 55

This continu ation theory the Vi ew th at the de ad ,

continu e in the ne x t world as they l eft this me ans ,

th at to the peopl e who entert ain it the de ad are

, ,

merely a memory I t is forbidden to think of them

.

as doing anything as affecting the li v ing in any w ay

,
.

They are conceived as powerless to gr atify the wishes

of the living or to thw art them Where the L ord
,
.

G od is a j e alous G od religion c annot toler ate the

,

ide a th at any other spirit should be conceived as

usurping His functions still less th at such spirits
,

should receive the O fferings and the pr ayers which

are the du e of Him alone But though the de ad are
.

thus reduced to a mere memory the memory itself ,

does not and c annot die Accordingly the de ad .

,

or r ather those whose bodies are de ad continu e to ,

live But as they e x ercise no action in or control

.
, ,

over the world of the living their pl ace of abode

, ,

comes to b e reg arded as another world to which ,

they are confined Specul ation therefore where

.
, ,

specul ation is m ade as to the c ase of the inh abit ants

,

of this other world must t ake the direction of e n

,

quiring as to their f ate Where specul ation is not

.

m ade the de ad are conceived merely to continu e to

,

be as they are rememb ered to h ave been in this

life But if there is to b e room for any specul ation
.
,
5 6 C O M P A RAT IV E R E LIGION

at all , there must be assu med to be some diversity

in their f ate and therefore some re ason intelligibl e
, ,

to man for th at diversity Th at is a conclusion to

,
.

which tribes att ain who h ave app arently gone through
no period of ancestor worship —
indeed ancestor , ,

worship only impedes or defers the att ainment of

th at conclusion The diversity of f ate could only
.

consist in the di fferenc e between being where you

would b e and being where you would not Bu t .

the re asons for th at diversi ty may b e very di ff erent

amongst di fferent peoples First where religion .
,

is at its lowest or is in its le ast developed form the ,

gods are not the c ause of the diversity nor do they

seem concerned in it Such diversity as there is
.

seems in its S impl est form merely to b e a continu anc e

of the soci al distinctions which prev ail among the
living : the high Chieft ains rest in a c alm plenteous , ,

sunny l and in the sky ; whil e al l I ndi ans of low

“

degree go deep down under the e arth to the l and of

C h ay her with its poor houses and no s almon and
-
,

no deer and bl ankets so sm all and thin th at when

, ,

the de ad are buried the friends often bury bl ankets

with them ( Tylor P C II
”
,
. Elsewhere it
.
, , ,

is not soci al distinctions but mor al th at m ake the

, ,

di fference : the ru de Tupin amb as Of Br azil thin k

“
 I MM O RT A LI T Y 57

the souls Of such as h ad lived virtuously th at is to ,

s ay who h ave well avenged themselves and e aten

m any of their ene mi es ( i b ) rej oin the souls Of their

”
,
.

f athers in the h appy l and while the cow ards go

,

to the other pl ace Thus though the distinctions

.
,

in the next world do not seem origin ally to h ave

sprung from or to h ave been connected with mor ality ,

and still less with religion they are or may be at

, ,

a very e arly period seized upon by the mor al con

,

sci ou sne s s as cont aining truth or implying it when ,

rightly understood Truth indeed of the highest

.

import for mor ality is implied in the distinctions

thus ess ayed to b e dr awn But before the tru th
.

implicit could b e m ade explicit it w as necess ary ,

th at the distinctions should be recognised to h ave

their b asis in religion And th at w as impossibl e
.

where religion w as at its lowest or in its le ast de

v e l op e d form
.

From the f act th at on the one h and the conception

Of a future life in another world when it arose ,

amongst peopl e in a low st age of religious develop

ment bore but little mor al and no religious fruit ;

,

and on the other where it did yield fruit there h ad

, ,

been a previous perio d when religion closed its

eyes as far as possibl e to the condition of the de ad
5 8 C O M P AR A T IV E R E LIGION

in H ades or in Sheol ,
we may dr aw the inference
th at t h e conception of the future st ate formed by such
“ ”
people as the rude Tupin amb as of Br az il h ad
,

to be sterilised so to spe ak
,
to b e purified from
,

associ ations d angerous both to mor ality and reli

gion We may fairly s ay th at as a m atter of f act

.

th at w as the consequence which actu ally h appened ,

and th at both in G reece and Jud a e a the prospect of a

future life at one time bec ame pr actic ally a tabu l a
ra sa on which might b e written a f airer mess age of

hope th an h ad ever been given before I n G reece .

the mess age w as written indeed and w as receive d

, ,

with hope by the thous ands who j oined in the cele

br ation of the mysteries B ut the ch ar acters in
.

which it w as written f aded soon The mess age .

w as found to reve al nothing I t reve aled nothing

.

bec ause it dem anded nothing I t dem anded neither

.

a higher life nor a higher conception of the deity .

I t did not set forth a new and nobl er mor ality ; and
it accommod ated itself to the existing polytheism .

Wh at it did do w as to f amili arise the Hellenic world

with the conviction th at there w as a life here after ,

b etter th an this life ; and th at the condition of its

att ainment w as communion with the tru e G od ,

per adventure He could b e found I t w as by this .

 I MM O RTA LI T Y 59

conviction and this e x pect ation th at the ground w as

prep ared wherever Hellenism e x isted for the mes
, ,

s age th at w as to come from I sr ael .

From the beginning or l et us s ay in the lowest

,

forms in which religion m anifests itself religion is ,

the bond in which the worshippers are united with

one another and with their G od The community
.

which is thus united is at first the e arliest form of

society wh atever th at form may h ave been in which
, ,

men dwell together for their common purposes .

I t is the f act th at its memb ers h ave common pur

poses and common interests which constitute them
a community ; and amongst the common interests

without which there could b e no community is

th at of common worship : knowl edge of the s acra ,

b eing confined to the members of the community ,

is the test by which members are known outsiders ,

e x cluded and the e x istence of the community as

,

a community secured . At this st age in a l arge ,

number of societies —
negro M al ayo P olynesi an
,
-
,

N orth Americ an I ndi ans E skimo Austr ali ans

, ,

the belief in reinc arn ation t akes a form in which the

presence of souls of the dep arted is recognised as
necess ary to the very conception of the community .

Thus in Al ask a among the U nali ts of St M ich ael s

,
.
’
60 O P R T IV E R E LIGION
C M A A

B ay, festiv al of the de ad is Observe d the e qu i v a

a ,

lent of which appe ars to be found amongst al l

the Eskimo M M auss ( L A nne e S oci ol og i qu e I X
. .
’ ’

, ,

99) thus describes it :

“
I t comprises two essenti a l
p arts I t begins with pr aying the souls Of the de ad
.

gr aciously to consent to reinc arn ate themselves

for the moment in the n ames ake which e ach de
ce ased person h as ; for the custom is th at in e ach
st ation the child l ast born alw ays t akes the n ame
'

of the l ast person who h as d i e d Then these living.

represent atives of the dece ase d receive presents ,

and h aving received them the souls are dismissed

from the abodes of the living to return to the l an d

of the de ad Thus at this festiv al not only does
.

the group reg ain its unity but the rite reconstitutes
,

the ide al group which consists of all the gener ations

which h ave succeeded one another from the e arliest
times M ythic al and historic ancestors as well as
.

l ater ones thus mingle with the livi ng and com ,

munion b etween them is conducted by me ans of

the exch ange of presents Amongst people other
.
H

th an the Eskimo a ne w born child not only t akes

,
-

the n ame of the l ast member of the f amily or cl an

who h as died but is reg arded as the reinc arn ation of
,

“
the dece ased Thus the number of individu als ,
 I MM O RTA LI T Y 61

of n ames of souls of soci al functions in the cl an is

, ,

limited ; and the life of the cl an consists in the de ath

and rebirth of individu als who are alw ays identic ally

”
the s ame ( l o .

The line of evolution thus followed by the b elief

in reinc arn ation results in the tot al sep ar ation of the
b elief from mor ality and from religion and results ,

in rendering it infertile alike for mor ality religion , ,

and progre s s in ci vilis ation gener ally Where the .

b elief in reinc arn ation t akes the form of belief in

the tr ansmigr ation of the soul into some anim al
form it may b e utilised for mor al purposes provided
, ,

th at the peopl e amongst whom the belief obt ains

h ave otherwise adv anced so far as to see th at the
punishments and rew ards which are essenti al to the
development of mor ality are by no me ans alw ays
re alised in this life When th at conviction h as
.

est ablished itself the reinc arn ation theory will

,

provide m achinery by which the belief in future

punishments an d rew ards c an be conceived as
Oper ative : rebirth in anim al form if the belief in ,

it alre ady exists may be held out as a deterrent to

,

wrongdoing Th at is as a m atter of f act the use

.
, ,

to which the belief h as b een put by Buddhism The .

for m and st ation in which the d e ce ase d will b e re

62 C O M P A RAT IV E R E LIGION

born is no longer as amo ngst the peoples just men

,

t i o ne d conceived to b e det e rmined autom atic ally

, ,

so to spe ak but is supposed to depend on the mor al

,

qu ali ties e x hibited during life I f this V iew of the

.

future life h as struck deeper root and h as spre ad

over a gre ater surf ace th an the doctrine t aught in
the G reek mysteries ever did the re ason may prob
,

ably be found i n the f act th at the G reek mysteries

h ad no higher mor ality to te ach th an w as alre ady

recog nised whilst the mor al te aching of the Buddh a
,

w as f ar more e x alted and f ar more profoundly t ru e

th an anything th at h ad been pre ached in I ndi a

before I f a mor al system by itself on its own
.
,

merits were c ap able of aff ording a sure found ation

,

for religion Buddhism would b e built upon a rock

,
.

To the S piritu al community by which man may be

united to his fellow man and to his G od mor ality
-
,

is essenti al and indispens abl e But the mor al life

.

derives its v alu e solely from the f act th at on i t

depends and by me ans of it is re alised th at com
, ,

munion of man with G od after which man h as from

the beginning striven I f then th at communion and
.

the very possibility of th at communion is denied ,

th e deni al must prove f at al alike to religion and to

mor ality N ow th at is th e deni al which Bu d dhism
.
,
 I MM O RTA LI T Y 63

m akes But the f act of the deni al is obscured to

.

those who believe and to those who would like to

,

believe in Buddhism by the w ay in which it is m ade

, ,
.

I t is m ade in such a w ay th at it appe ars and is

believed to b e an affirm ation inste ad of a deni al .

C ommunion with G od is decl ared to b e the fin al end

to which the tr ansmigr ation of souls conducts But .

the communion to which it le ads is so intim ate th at

the hu m an soul the individu al ce ases to b e Ob
, ,
.

v i ou s l y therefore if it ce ases to be the communion

, , ,

also must ce ase ; there is no re al communion sub

sisting between two S pirits the hu m an and the divine

, ,

for two spirits do not e x ist bu t only one I f this

,
.

w ay of st ating the c ase be looked upon with sus

p i c i on as possibly not doing justice to the te aching

of Buddhism or as pressi ng unduly far the union

,

between the hum an and the divine which is the

ultim ate go al of the tr ansmigr ation of souls the ,

reply is th at in truth the c ase ag ainst Buddhism

is stronger th an appe ars from this mode of st ating
it T O s ay th at from the Buddhist point of view
.

the hum an soul the individu al eventu ally ce ases to

, ,

be is indeed an incorrect w ay of putting the m atter

,
.

I t implies th at the hum an soul the individu al now

, ,

is ; and here after ce ases to b e But so f ar from .

64 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LIGION

a dmitting th at the individu al now is the Bu d dhist ,

doctrine is th at the e x istence of the soul now is , ,

mere illusion may o I t is therefore logic al enough

,
.
,

and at any r ate self consistent to s a th at here after

y
-
, ,

when the series of tr ansmigr ations is complete the ,

individu al will not indeed ce ase to be for he never ,

w as but the illusion th at he existed will be dissip ated

,
.

L ogic ally ag ain it follows from this th at if the e x ist

,

ence of the individu al soul is an illusion from the

beginning then there can strictly spe aking be no
,

tr ansmigr ation of souls for there is no soul to tr ans

,

migr ate But with perfect self consistency Buddh

.
-

ism accepts this position : wh at is tr ansmitted from

one being to the next in the ch ain of existences is
not the individu ality or the soul but the ch ar acter ,
.

Professor Rhys D avids s ays ( H i bbe rt L e ctu re s pp ,

.

9 1 ,
I h ave no hesit ation in m aint aining
th at G ot am a did not te ach the tr ansmigr ation Of
souls Wh at he did te ach would be b etter su m
.

mari z e d if we wish to ret ain the word tr ans mi gr a

,

tion as the tr ansmigr ation of ch ar acter But

,
.

it would be more accur ate to drop the word tr ans

migr ation altogether when spe aking of Buddhism ,

and to c all its d octrine the doctrine of k arm a .

G ot am a held th at after the d e ath of any being ,

 I MM O RTALI TY 65

whether hum an or not there survi ved nothing at ,

al l but th at being s k arm a the result th at is of

’ ‘ ’
, , ,

“
its ment al and bodily actions He disc arded the .

theory of the presence within e ach hum an body , ,

of a soul which could h ave a sep ar ate and etern al

existence He therefore est ablished a new identity
.

between the individu als in the ch ain of existence ,

$
hich he like his forerunners acknowledged b y
, , ,

w assertion th at th at which m ade two beings

”
to b e the s ame being w as not soul but k arm a
— -
,

( i h. pp 9 3
,
. Thus once more it appe ars th at
,

t here c an be no eventu al communion between

the hum an soul at the end of its ch ain of existence
, ,

and the di vine for the re ason not th at the hum an

, ,

soul ultim ately ce ases to be but th at it never is or ,

w as and therefore neither tr ansmigr ates from one

,

body to another nor is eve ntu ally absorbed in the

,

atman .

L ogic ally
consistent though this tr ain of argu
ment be it le aves un answered the simpl e qu estion
, ,

How can the result of my actions h ave any interest

for me not here after bu t at the present moment ,

if I not only sh all not exist here after but do not exist
at the present moment $ I t is not impossibl e for a
man who b elieves th at his existence will ab solutely
I$
66 C O M P A RAT IV E R E LIGION

ce ase at de ath to t ake some interest in and l abour

for the good of others who will come after him ;
but it is impossible for a man who does not e x ist
now to believe in anything wh atever And it is .

on th at fund ament al absurdity th at Buddhism is

built : it is directed to the conversion of those who
do not exist to be converted and it is directed to the
,

obj ect of relieving from existence those who h ave

no existence from which to be relieved .

Where then lies the strength of Buddhism if as ,

a logic al structure it is rent from top to bottom by

gl aring inconsistency $ I t lies in its appe al to the

spirit of self s acrifice Wh at it denounces from
-
.
,

beginning to end is the will to live The re ason

,
.

why it denounces the will to live is th at th at will

m anifests itself exclusively in the desires of the indi
vidu al ; and it is to the desires of man th at all the
misery in the world are directly du e D estroy those
.

desires by annihil ating the will to live and in no

other w ay can they be destroyed and the misery

of the world will ce ase The only termin ation to

.

the misery Of the world which Buddhism c an im agine

is the volunt ary cess ation of life which will ultim ately
ensue on the cess ation of the will to live And .

the me ans by which th at is to be brought about is

 I MM O RT A LI T Y 67

the uprooting and destruction of the self reg arding -

desires by me ans of the higher mor ality of self s ac -

ri fic e . Wh at the B uddhist overlooks is th at the

uprooting and destruction of the self reg arding -

desires results not in the annihil ation but in the

, ,

p urific ation and enh anced vit ality of the self

,
th at
uproots them The outcome of the unselfish and
.

self s acri fici ng life is not the destruction of individ

-

u ali ty but its highest re alis ation

,
N ow it is only in
.
,

society and by living for others th at this u ns e lfish ne ss

and self s acri fice can b e c arried ou t ; man c an only
-

e x ist and u ns e lfish ne ss can only oper ate in society ,

and society me ans the communion of man with his

fellows I t is tru e th at only in society can self

.

i s hne s s exist ; but it is recognized from the begin

ning as th at which is destructive of society and it ,

is therefore condemned alike by the mor ality and the

religion of the society The communion of man with
.

his fellows and his G od is hindered impeded and , ,

blocked wholly and solely by his self reg arding de -

sires ; it is furthered and re alised solely by his unselfish

desires But his unselfish desires involve and imply
.

his e x istence I w as going to s ay just as much I

, ,

me an —
f ar more th an his selfish desires for they ,

imply and are only possible on the assumption of

, ,
68 C O MP AR AT IV E R E L I GION

the existenc e of his fellow man and of his com

-
,

munion with him N ay $ more by the testimony

.
,

of Buddhism itself as well as of the religious ex

e ri e nc e of m ankind at l arge the unselfish desires
p , ,

the spirit of self s acri fic e require both for their

-
,

logic al and their emotion al jus tific ation still more ,

for their pr actic al oper ation the f aith th at by me ans

,

of them the will of G od is c arried out and th at in ,

them man shows likest G od I t is in them and by

.

them th at the communion of man with his fellow

man and with his G od is re alised I t is the f aith
.

th at such communion though it may b e interrupted

, ,

can never be entirely broken which m anifests itself

in the belief in immort ality Th at belief may t ak e

.

sh ape in the ide a th at the souls of the dep arted

revisit this e arth tempor arily in ghostly form or ,

more perm anently as reinc arn ated in the new born -

members of the tribe ; it may b ody forth another

world of b liss or woe and if it is to subserve the
,

purposes of mor ality it must so d o ; nay $ more if

, ,

it is to subserve the purposes of mor ality it is into ,

the presence of the L ord th at the soul must go B ut .

in any and wh atever sh ape the belief t akes the soul ,

is conceived or implied to b e in communion with

other spirits There i s no other w ay in w hi ch i t is
.
 Y
I MMORTALI T 69

possible to conceive the existence of a soul ; just

as any p article of m atter to b e comprehended in its
,

full re ality implies not only every other p article of

,

m atter but the universe which comprehends them ,

so the e x istence of any spirit logic ally implies not

only the existence of every other but also of Him
without whom no one of them could b e .

I t is in this belief in the communion of spirits

wherever he may find it and where will he not $

th at the mission ary may obt ain a lever age for

his work I t is a sure b asis for his oper ations b e
.

c ause the desire for communion is univers al ; and

C hristi anity alone of the religions of the world
, ,

te aches th at self s acri fice is the w ay to life etern al

-
.
 M A GI C

OF the topics which present themsel ves to

all

the student of the scienc e of religion for investig a

tion and expl an ation there is none which h as c aused
more diversity of opinion none which h as produced
,
-

more confusion of thought th an m agic The f act

,
.

is th at the b elief in m agic is condemned alike by

science and religion ,
b y the one as essenti ally ir
—

r ation al and by the other as essenti ally irreligious

,
.

Bu t though it is thus conde mned it fl ourishes , ,

where it does flourish as being science though

, ,

of a more secret kind th an th at usu ally recognised ,

or as being a more potent applic ation of the rites

and ceremonies of religion I t is indeed neither
.

science nor religion ; it lives by mimicking one

or other or both I n the n atur al history of belief
.

it owes its surviv al so long as it does survive to

, ,

“ ”
its protective colouring and its power of mim
i cry I t is alw ays and everywhere an error
.
, , ,

whether tried by the c anons of science or religion ;

70
 MA G I C 7 1

but it lives as e rror c an only live b y posing and

, ,

p assing itself off as truth .

I f now the o nl y persons deceived by it were the

persons who believed in it students of the science ,

of religion would h ave been s aved from much

fruitl ess controversy But so subtly protective is
.

its colouring th at some scientific enquirers h ave

confidently and unhesit atingly identified it with
religion and h ave decl ared th at m agic is religion
, ,

and religion is m agic The tyr anny of th at error

.
,

however is now well nigh overp ast I t is erroneous

,
-
.
,

and we ma suppose is seen to be erroneous in

y ,

ex actly the s ame w ay as it would b e to s ay th at

science is m agic and m agic science The truth
,
.

is th at m agic in one aspect is a colour able imit ation

“
O f science in short as Dr Fr azer s ays ( E arly
,
.

H i s tory of th e K i ng s hi p p “
m agic is a spuri
,
.

ous sys tem of n atur al l aw Th at is we must note

.
, ,

it is a system which is spurious in our eyes but ,

“
which to those who believed in it w as a st atement
, ,

of the rules which determine the sequ ence of events

throughout the world —
a set of precepts which

hum an beings Observe in order to comp are their

”
ends ( i b p .
,
.

The point then from which I wish to st art is th at

, ,
7 2 C O MP A R A T I V E R E LIGION

m agic as it is now V iewed by students of the science

,

of religion on the one h and is a spurious system

,

of n atur al l aw or science and on the other a spurious

,

system of religion .

O ur next point is th at m agic could not be spu rious

for those who believed in it : they held th at they knew
some things and could do things which ordin ary
peopl e did not know and could not do ; and whether ,

their knowledge w as of the secrets of n ature or of

the spirit world it w as not in their eyes spurious
, .

O ur third point is more di fficult to expl ain though ,

it will appe ar not merely ob vious bu t self evident ,

-
,

if I succeed in expl aining it I t will f acilit ate the

.

work of e x pl an ation if you will for the moment

,

suppose — without considering whether the sup

position is tru e Or not —
th at there w as a time
when no one h ad he ard th at there w as such a thing
as m agic .L e t u s further suppose th at at th at time

man h ad o b served such f acts as th at he at produces

w armth th at the young of anim als and man resemble
,

their p arents : in a word th at he h ad att ained more

,

or less consciously to the ide a as a m atter of ob

,

serv ation th at like produces like and as a m atter

, ,

of pr actic e th at like may b e produced by like .

H aving att ained to th at pr actic al ide a he will of ,

 MA GI C 73

course wor k it not only for all th at it is worth but ,

for more Th at is indeed the only w ay he h as of

.

finding out how much it is g ood for ; and it is only

repe ated f ailure which will convince him th at here
at length he h as re ached the limit th at in this p ar ,

ti cu l ar point things do not re alise his expect ations ,

th at in this inst ance his anticip ation of n ature

h as been too previous Until th at f act h as been
.

h ammered into him he will go on expecting and

,

b elieving th at in this inst ance also like will produc e

like when he sets it to work ; and he will b e per
,

f e ctl y convinced th at he is employing the n atur al

and re ason abl e me ans for att aining his end As .

a m atter of f act however as we with our superior

, ,

k nowledge can see in the first pl ace those me ans

,

never can produce the desired e ffect ; and next ,

the ide a th at they c an as it withers and b efore it

,

fin ally f alls to the ground will ch ange its colour

,

and assu me the hu e of m agic Thus the ide a

.

th at by whistling you c an produce a win d is

at first as n atur al and as purely r ation al as the

ide a th at you c an produc e w armth by me ans of

fire There is nothing m agic al in either B oth
. .

are m atter oi f act applic ations of the pr actic al m axim

- —

th at li k e produces like .
74 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LIGION

Th at then is the point which I h ave been wishing

, ,

to m ake the third of the three points from which

,

I wish to st art There are three w ays of looking

.

at identic ally the s a me thing e g whistling to pro ,

. .

duce a wind First we may reg ard it and I suggest

.
, ,

th at it w as in the beginning reg arded as an ap ,

plic ation h aving nothing to distinguish it from

,

any other applic ation of the gener al m axim th at ,

like produces like The ide a th at e ating the flesh

.

of deer m akes a man timid or th at if you wish to ,

b e strong and bold you should e at tiger is in this , ,

st age of thought no more m agic al th an is the ide a

,

of drinking w ater bec ause you are dry .

N ext the ide a of whistling to produce a wind

, ,

or of sticking splinters Of bone into a m an s foot ’

prints i n order to injure his feet may b e an ide a ,

not gener ally known a thing not commonly done , ,

a proceeding not gener ally approved of I t is thu s .

m arked off from the commonpl ace actions of

drinking w ater to moisten your p arched thro at or
sitting by a fire to get w arm When it is thu s .

m arked off it is reg arded as m agic : not every one

,

knows how to do it or not every one h as the power

,

to do it or not every one c ares to do it Th at is

,
.

the secon d st age the hey d ay of m agic

,
.
 MA GI C 75

The third and fin al st age is th at in which no

educ ated person believes in it when if a man thinks
, ,

to get a wind by whistling he may whistle for it .

These three w ays of looking at identic ally the s ame

thing may and do coe x ist The ide a of whistling
.

for a wind is for you and me simply a mist aken ide a ;

but possibly at this moment there are s ailors act
ing upon the ide a and to some of them it appe ars a
perfectly n atur al thing to do whil e to others there
,

is a fl avour of the m agic al about it But though

.

the three w ays may and do coexist it is obvious

,

th at our w ay of loo k ing at it is and must b e the

the l atest of the three for the simpl e re ason th at
,

an error must exist before it can be explode d I .

sa
y th at our w ay O f looking at it must be the l atest ,

but in s aying so I do not me an to imply th at this

w ay of looking at it origin ates only at a l ate st age

in the history of m ankind O n the contr ary it is

.
,

present in a ru diment ary form from very e arly

times ; and the proof is the f act gener ally recognise d
th at m agici ans amongst the lowest r aces though
,

they may believe to a cert ain extent in their own

m agic al powers do pr actise a good de al of m agic
,

which they themselves know to b e fr au d ul ent .

Progress t akes pl ace when other peopl e also and a ,

7 6 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LIGION

ste adily incre asing nu mber of people come to see ,

th at it is fr audulent .

I n the ne x t pl ace just as amongst very primitive

,

peoples we see th at some m agic is known by some

people V i z the m agici ans themselves to b e frau d u
,
.
,

l e nt though other people believe in it ; so amongst

, ,

very primi tive peoples we find beliefs and pr actices

,

e x isti ng which h ave not yet come to b e reg arded

as m agic al though they are such as might come and
, ,

do elsewhere come to b e considered pure m agic

,
.

Thus for inst ance when C herokee I ndi ans who

, ,

su ffer from rheu m atism abst ain from e ating the

“
flesh Of the common grey squirrel bec ause the
squirrel e ats in a cr amped position which would ,

”
cle arly aggr av ate the p angs of the rheu m atic p atient
( Fr azer H i s tory of the Ki ng s hi p p
,
or when ,
.

“
they will not we ar the fe athers of the b ald he aded -

”
buzz ard for fe ar of themselves b ecoming b ald
they are simply following the b est medic al advice
of their d ay they cert ainly do not im agine they
,
—

are pr actising m agic any more th an you or I do

,

when we are following the prescriptions of our

medic al adviser O n the contr ary it is quite as
.
,

ob vious then th at the fe athers of the b ald he aded

, ,
-

buz z ard are infectious as it is now th at the clothes

 MA GI C 77

of a fever p atient are infectious N either proposi

.

tion to b e accepted as true requires us to believe

, ,

in m agic : either might S pring up where m agic

h ad never been he ard of A nd if th at is the c ase
.
, ,

it simply complic ates things unnecess arily to t alk

of m agic in such c ases The tende ncy to believe
.

th at like produces like is not a cons e quence of or

a deduction from a belief in m agic : on the contr ary ,

m agic h as its root or one Of its roots in th at tendency

O f the hum an mind . B ut though th at tendency
helps to produce m agic amongst other things ,

m agic is not the only thing which it produces : it

produces b eliefs such as those of the C herokees
just quoted which are no more m agic al th an the
,

belief th at fire produces w armth or th at cau s a ,

ae g u at ej e ctu m
,
th at an e ff ect is when an alysed
, ,

indistinguish abl e from the conditions which con

s ti tu te it
.

To attempt to define m agic is a risky thing ;

and inste ad of doing so at once I will try to m ark
, ,

O ff proceedings which are not m agic al ; and I would

venture to s ay th at things which it is believed any

one c an do and felt th at any one may do are not
, ,

m agic al in the eyes of those who h ave th at beli e f

and th at feeling . You may abst ain from e ati ng
7 8 C O M P ARAT I V E R E LI G ION

squirrel or we aring fine fe ath e rs b e c ause of the

consequences ; and every one will think you are
showing your common sense Y ou may h ang up .

the bones of anim als you h ave killed in order to ,

attr act more anim als of the like kind ; and you

are simply pr actising a dodge which you think

will be useful Wives whose husb ands are absent
.

on hunting or fighting e x peditions may do or abst ain

from doing things which on the principle th at like
,

produces like will aff e ct th e i r husb ands success ;

,
' ’

and this applic ation of the principle may be as

irr ation al and as perfectly n atur al

—
as the b e
—

h aviour of the b eginner at b illi ards whose body

writhes when he h as m ade his stroke in excess of
, ,

symp athy with the b all which just won t m ake the ’

c annon I n both c ases the principle acted ou

.
,

deliber ately in the one c ase less volunt arily in the

,

other ,
the instinctive feeling is th at like produces
like not as a m atter of m agic bu t as a m atter of
,

f act I f the b eh aviour of the billi ard pl ayer is du e

.

to an impulse which is in itself n atur al and in his

c ase is not m agic al we may f airly t ake the s ame
,

V iew of the hunter s wife who abst ains from spin

’

ning for fe ar the g ame should turn and wind like the
spindl e and the hunter be un abl e to hit it ( Fr azer ,
 MA G I C 79

p. The principle in both c ases is th at like

produces like Some applic ations of th at principle
.

are correct ; some are not The incorrectness of

.

the l atter is not at once discovered : the belief in

'

their c ase is erroneous but is not known to b e erro

,

ne ou s
. And unless we are prep ared to t ake up the
position th at m agic is the only form of erroneou s
belief which is to be found amongst pri mi tive men ,

we must ende avour to dr aw a line between those

erroneous beliefs which are m agic al and those
erroneous beliefs which are not The line will .

not b e a h ard and f ast line bec ause a belief which

,

origin ally h ad nothing m agic al about it may come

to be reg arded as m agic al I ndeed on the assu mp
.
,

tion th at belief in m agic is an error we h ave to ,

enquire how men come to f all into the error I f .

there is no such thing as m agic how did man come

,

to believe th at there w as $ M y suggestion is th at

the rise of the beli ef is not du e to the introduction
Of a novel pr actice but to a new w ay of looking at
,

an existing pr actice I t is du e in the first inst ance

.

to the f act th at the pr actice is reg arded with dis

approv al as f ar as its consequ ences are concerned

and without reg ard to the me ans employed to pro

d uce them I njury to a memb er of the community

.
,
80 C O M P ARA T IV E R E LIG I ON

especi ally injury which c auses de ath is vi ewed ,

by the community with indign ant dis approv al .

Whether the de ath is produced by actu al blows or

“
by dr awing the figure of a person and then st abbing
”
it or doing it any other injury ( Fr azer p ,
.

it is visited with the condemn ation Of the com

“
munity And consequently al l such attempts to
.

injure or destroy an enemy by inj uring or destroy

”
ing an e ffigy of him whenever they are m ade ,

whether they come o ff or not are resented and

,

dis approved by society O n the other h and

.
,

symp athetic or hom oeop athic m agic of this kind ,

when u sed by the hunter or the fisherm an to secure

food meets with no condemn ation B oth ass assin
,
.

and hunter use subst anti ally the s ame me ans to

eff ect their obj ect ; but the dis approv al with which
the community vi ews the obj ect of the ass assin is
extended also to th e me ans which he employs .

I n fine the pr actice of using like to produc e like

,

comes to be looked on with lo athing and with d re ad

when it is employed for antisoci al purposes Any .

one c an injure or destroy his priv ate enemy by

injuring an e fli g y of him just as any one c an injure
,

or destroy his enemy by ass aulting and wounding

him lB u t though any one may do this it is felt
.
,
th at no one ought to do it Such pr actices are
.

condemned by public Opinion Further as they

.
,

are condemned by the community they are i ps o,

facto o ffensive to the god of the community To .

him only those pr ayers c an be O ffered and by him ,

only those pr actices can b e approved which are ,

not injurious to the community or are not felt b y

the community to b e injurious Th at is the re ason
.

why such pr actices are condemned by the religious

as well as b y the mor al feeling of the community .

And they are condemne d by religion and mor ality

long b efore their futility is exposed by science or
recognised by common sense When they are .

felt to b e futil e there is no c al l upon religion or

,

mor ality especi ally to conde mn the pr actices

though the intention and the will to injure our
fellow man rem ains o ff ensive both to mor ality
-

and religion With the me ans adopted for re alising

.

the will and c arrying out the intention mor ality ,

and religion h ave no concern I f the s ame or

.

si mi l ar me ans can b e used for purposes consistent

with the common we al they do not so far as they
, ,

are used for such purposes ,

come under the b an
of either mor ality or religion Therein we h ave I
.
,

suggest the re ason of a cert ain confusion of thought

,

G
82 C O MP A R A T IV E R E LIG I ON

in the minds O f students of the science of religion .

We of the prese nt d ay look at the me ans employed .

We see the s ame me ans employed for ends th at are ,

and for ends th at are not antisoci al ; and in asmuch

, ,

as the me ans are the s ame and are alike irr ation al ,

we group them all together under the he ad O f m agic .

The grouping is perfectly correct in asmuch as the

,

proceedings grouped together h ave the common at

tribute oi being proceedings which c annot possibly
produce the e ff ects which those who employ them
b elieve th at they will and do produce But this .

grouping becomes perfectly misle ading if we go ,

on to infer as is sometimes inferred th at primitive

, ,

man adopted it . First it is b ased on the f act th at

,

t h e proceedings are uniformly irr ation al —

a f act

of which man is at first wholly un aw are ; and which ,

when it begins to d awn upon him presents itself ,

in the form of the further error th at whil e some of

these proceedings are absurd others are not I n
,
.

neither c ase does he adopt the modern scientific ,

position th at all are irr ation al impossible absurd

, ,
.

N e x t the modern position de als only with the pro

,

c e e di ng s as me ans decl aring them al l absurd

—
, ,

and overlooks entirely wh at is to primitive man th e

point Of fund ament al import ance V iz the obj ect

,
.
 MA G I C 83

and purpose with which they are used Y et it is

.

the obj ect and purpose which determine the soci al

v alu e of these proceedings For him or in his
.
,

eyes to cl ass together the things which he approves

,

of and the things of which he dis approves would

be monstrous : the me ans employed in the two
c ases may be the s ame but th at is of no import ance
,

in f ace of the f act th at the ends aimed at in the

two c ases are not merely di fferent but contr adictory .

I n the one c ase the obj ect promotes the common

we al or is supposed by him to promote it I n the
,
.

other it is destructive of the common we al .

I f therefore we wish to avoid confusion of thought

, , ,

we must in discussing m agic const antly be ar in

mind th at we group together —
and therefore are

in d anger of confusing things which to the s av age

di ffer toto cae l o from one another A step tow ards
.

avoid ing this confusion is t aken by Dr Fr az e r

.
,

when he distinguishes ( H i story of th e Ki ng s hi p ,

p 8 9 ) between priv ate mag i c and public magic

. .

The distinction is m ade still more emph atic by

Dr H addon ( M ag i c and F e ti chi s m p 2 0) when
.
,
.

“ ”
he spe aks of nef arious m agic . The very s ame
me ans when employed ag ainst the good Of the
community are reg arded by mor ality and religion
,
84 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

a like as nef arious which when employed for the

, ,

good Of the community are reg ar d ed with approv al .

The very s ame illegitim ate applic ation —

I me an ,

logic ally illegitim ate in our eyes — the very s ame

,

applic ation of the princi ple th at like produces li k e

will b e condemned by the public Opinion Of the

community when it is employed for purposes of
murder and praised b y pu b lic Opinion when it is
employed to pro d uce the r ain which the community
desires The d istinction dr awn by pri mitive man
.

b etween the two c ases is th at though any one can

,

use the me ans to do either no one ought to d o the

,

one which the community condemns Th at is con .

d e mne d as nef arious and b ec ause it is nef arious

:

the witch may b e smell ed ou t by the witch

“ ” ” “

doctor and destroye d by or with the approv al of

”
, ,

the community .

Bu t though th at is I suggest the first st age in the

, ,

process by which the belief in m agic is evolved it is ,

by no me ans the whol e of the process I ndee d .

,

it may f airly b e urged th at pr actices which any one

c an perform though no one ought to perform may
, ,

b e nef arious ( as simple str aightforw ard murder

,

is ) b ut so f ar there is nothing m agic al about them

,
.

An d I am prep are d to accept th at view I n d ee d , .

 MA G I C 85

it is an essenti al p art of my argu ment for I seek to

,

S how th at the belief in m agic h ad a beginning and

w as evolved out of something th at w as not a b elief

in m agic though it g ave rise to it

,
The belief th at
.

li k e produces like can b e entert ained where m agic

h as not so much as b een he ard of And though
.
,

it may ultim ately b e worked out into the scientific

position th at the su m of conditions necess ary to
produce an eff ect is indistinguish able from the
e ffect it may also b e worked out on other lines
,

into a belief in m agic ; and the first step in th at

evolution is t aken when the b elief th at like pro
duces like is used for purposes pronounce d by
public Opinion to b e nef arious .

The next step is t aken when it comes to b e b e

li e v e d not only th at the thing is nef arious but th at
not every one can do it The re ason why only
.

a cert ain person c an do it may b e th at he alone

k nows how to do it or he and the p erson from

whom he l e arnt it The lore of such persons when
.

ex amined by folk lore students is found gener ally to

-

come under one or other of the two cl asses known

as symp athetic and mimetic m agic or h omoe o,

p athic and cont agious m agic I n these c ases it is

.

o b vious th at the modu s ope randi is the s ame as it

86 C O M P AR A T I V E R E L I G I O N

w as in wh at I h ave c alled the first st age in the

evolution of m agic and h ave alre ady described
at gre at l ength Wh at differenti ates this secon d
.

st age from the first is th at where as in the first st age

these applic ations of the principle th at like produces
like are known to every one though not pr actised ,

by every one in the second st age these applic ations

,

are not known to every one but only to the de alers

,

in m agic Some of those applic ations of the prin

.

ci p l e may b e applic ation s which h ave descended

to the de aler and h ave p assed ou t of the gener al
memory ; and others may simply b e extensions
of the principle which h ave b een invented by the
de aler or his te acher Ag ain the public di s ap
.
,

prov al of nef arious arts will tend first to segreg ate

the followers of such arts from the rest of the com
munity ; and next to foster the notion th at the arts
thus segreg ated and thereby m ade more or l ess
,

mysterious include not only things which the or

,

di nary decent member of society would not d o if he

could bu t also things which he could not do if he
,

would The mere belief in the possibility of such

.

arts cre ates an atmosphere of suspicion in which

things are b elieve d bec ause they are impossible .

When this st age h as been re ached when he who ,

 MA G I C 87

pr actises nef arious arts is reported and believed to

do things which ordin ary decent peopl e could not
do if they would his person ality inevit ably comes
,

to b e considered as a f actor in the results th at he

produces ; he is credited with a power to produce
them which other people th at is to s ay ordin ary
,

people do not possess And it is th at person al

,
.

power which eventu ally comes to b e the most i m

port ant bec ause the most mysterious articl e in
, ,

his equipment I t is in virtu e of th at person al

.

power th at he is commonly b elieved to b e abl e to

do things which are impossibl e for the ordin ary
memb er Of the tri b e .

Thus far I h ave b een tr acing the steps of the

process by which the worker of nef arious arts st arts
by employing for nef arious purposes me ans which
any one could u se if he would and ends by being,

credited with a power peculi ar to himself of work

ing impossibilities I now wish to point out th at a
.

process ex actly p ar allel is simult aneously c arried

on by which arts b e ne fice nt to society are supposed
to b e evolved Rain m aking may b e t aken as an
.
-

art soci ally benefici al The modu s op e randi of

.

r ain m aking appe ars in al l c ases to b e b ased on the

-

principle th at like produces like ; and to b e in its

88 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

n ature a process which any one c an c arry ou t and

which requires no mysterious art to e ff ect and no
mysterious person al power to produc e At the .

s ame time as it is a proceeding which is benefici al

,

to the tribe as a whole it is one in which the whol e

,

tribe and no one tribesm an in p articul ar is inter

, ,

e s te d I t must b e c arried out in the interest of the

.

tribe and by some one who in c arrying it out acts

for the tribe The n atur al represent ative of the
.

trib e is the he ad man Of the trib e ; and though

-
,

any one might perform the simple actions necess ary ,

and could perform them just as well as the he ad

man they tend to f all into the h ands of the he ad

,

man ; and in any c ase the person who performs

them performs them as the represent ative of the
tribe The n atur al inference comes in course of
.

time to b e dr awn th at he who alone performs them

is the man who alone c an perform them ; and when
th at inference is dr awn it becomes obvious th at his
person ality or the power peculi ar to him person ally
, ,

is necess ary if r ain is to be m ade and th at the acts

,

and ceremonies through which he goes and through

which any one could go would not b e e ffic acious ,

or not as effi c acious without his person al agency

,

and mysterious power Hence the man who works

.
 MA G I C 89

wonders for his trib e or in the interests of his tribe ,

in virtue of his person al power does things which

,

are impossible for the ordin ary member of the trib e .

Up to this point in tr acing the evolution Of m agic

, ,

we h ave not found it onc e necess ary to bring in or

even to refer to any belief in the existence of spiritu al
beings of any kind SO f ar as the necessities of the
.

argument are concerned the belief in m agic mi ght

,

h ave origin ated in the w ay I h ave described and

might h ave developed on the lines suggested in a ,

tribe which h ad never so much as he ard of spirits .

O f course as a m atter of f act every tri b e in which

, ,

the belief in m agic is found does also b elieve in the

existence of spirits ; animism is a st age of belief
lower th an which or b ack Of which science does
not profess to go But it is only in an adv anced
.

st age of its evolution th at the b elief in m agic b e

comes involved with the belief i n spirits O rigin ally
.
,

e ating tiger to m ake you bold or e ating s aff ron to

,

cure j aundice w as just as m atter of f act a proceeding

,

as drinking w ater to moisten your thro at or sitting

by a fire to get w arm ; like produces like and b e ,

yond th at obvious f act it w as not necess ary to go

there w as no more need to im agine th at the action
of the s affron w as due to a spirit th an to im agine
9 0 C O M P ARA T IV E R E L I G I ON

th at it w as a w ater spirit which sl akes your thi rst .

The f act seems to be th at ani mism is a s av age

philosophy which is competent to expl ain every
thing when c alled upon but th at the s av age does
,

not spend every moment of his w aking life in i n

v ok i ng it : until there is some need to f all b ack upon

it he goes on tre ating in anim ate things as things

,

which he can utilise for his own purposes withou t

referenc e to spirits Th at is the attitude also of
.

the man who in virtu e Of his lore or his person al

power c an produc e e ffects which the ordin ary man
c annot or will not : he performs his ceremony and
the e ffect follows —
or will follow — bec ause he
knows how to do it or h as mysterious person al
power to produce the e ff ect But he consults no
.

spirits at any r ate in the first inst anc e Ev e ntu

.

ally he may do so ; and then m agic enters on a

further st age in its evolution ( S ee Appendix )

. .

I f the man who h as the lore or the person al

power and who uses it for nef arious purposes pro
, ,

poses to employ it on Obt aining the s ame control

over spirits as he h as over things his m agic re aches
,

a st age of evolution in which it is di fficult and

pr actic ally unnecess ary to distinguish it from the

st age of fetichism in which the owner of a fetich
 MA G I C or

a pplies coercion to m ak e the fetich spirit do wh at

he W ishes With fetichism I de al in another lecture
. .

I f on the other h and the man who h as the lore

, ,

“
or the person al power and uses it for soci al or com
mu nal purposes ( H addon p 4 1 ) comes to believe
”
,
.

th at for the e ff ects which he h as hitherto sought

,

to produc e by me ans of his superior k nowledge or

superior power it is necess ary to invoke the aid
,

of spirits he will n atur ally address himself to the

,

spirit or god who is worshipped by the community

b ec ause he h as at he art the gener al interests of the
community ; or it may b e th at the spirit who pro
duces such a benefit for the community at l arge as ,

r ain for ex ampl e will t ake his pl ac e among the

,

gods of the community as the r ain god in virtu e

-
,

of the b enefit which he confers upon the community

gener ally I n either c ase the attitude of the priest

.
,

or person who appro aches him on b eh alf of th e

community will be th at which befits a supplic ant
invoking a f avour from a power th at h as shown
f avour in the p ast to the community And it will .

not surprise us if we find th at the ceremonies which

were used for the purpose Of r ain m aking before
-
,

r ain w as recognised as the gift of the gods continu e ,

for a time to b e pr actise d as the proper rites with

9 2 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

which to appro ach the god of the community or

the r ain god in p articul ar Such surviv als are
-
.

then in d anger of being misinterpreted by students

of the science of religion for they may be reg arded
,

as evidence th at religion w as evolved out of m agic ,

when in tru th they show th at religion tends to drive

ou t m agic Thus Dr Fr azer in his L e ctu re s on
. .
,

th e E arl y H i story of th e K i ng s hi p ( pp 7 3 .

describes the pr actice of the N ew C aledoni ans who ,

“
to promote the growth of t aro bury in the field ,

cert ain stones resem b ling t aros pr aying to their ,

”
ancestors at the s ame time and he goes on to
,

s ay :
“
I n these pr actices of the N ew C aledoni ans
the m agic al e ffic acy of the stones appe ars to b e
deemed insu ffi cient Of itself to accomplish the end
in vi ew ; it h as to b e reinforced by the spirits of the
de ad whose help is sought by pr ayer and s acrifice
,
.

Thus in N ew C aledoni a sorcery is blent with the

worship of the de ad ; in other words m agic is com ,

b i ne d with religion I f the stones ce ased to b e em

.

ployed and the pr ayers and s acrifices to the ancestors

,

rem ained the tr ansition from m agic to religion

,

”
would be complete Thus it seems to b e suggested
.

in these words of Dr Fr azer s th at religion may

.
’

b e evolved out Of m agic I f th at is wh at is suggested

.
,
 MAG I C 93

then there is little d ou b t th at the suggestion is not

borne out by the inst ance given L e t us concede .

for the moment wh at some Of u s would be inclined

to doubt viz th at pr ayers and s acrifice Off ered to
,
.

a hu m an being alive or de ad is religion ;

,
and let
,

us enquire whether this form of religion is evolved

out of m agic The m agic here is quite cle ar : stones
.

resembling t aros are buried in the t aro fiel d to pro

mote the growth of t aros Th at is an applic ation
.

of the principle th at like produces like which might

b e employed by men who h ad never he ard of an
c e s tor worship or of any kind of religion and wh o ,

h ad never uttered pr ayers or O ffered s acrifices

of any kind N ext the religious element accor d
.
, ,

ing to Dr Fr azer is also quite cl e ar : it consists

.
,

in O ffering s acrifices to the de ad with the pr ayer

“
or the words Here are your o fferings in order
, ,

th at the crop of y ams may be good ”

N ow it i s .
,

not suggested even by Dr Fr azer th at this religious

,
.
,

element is a form of m agic or is in any w ay developed

out of or evolved from m agic O n the contr ary if .
,

this element is religious —

indeed whether it be ,

re ally religious or not —

i t is Obvi ously entirely
distinct and di fferent from symp athetic or h omoe o
p athic m ag ic The mere f act th at the m agic al
.
94 C O M P A RA T I V E R E L I G I ON

rite of b urying in the t aro fields stones which re

sembl e t aros h as to be supplemented by rites which
are ,
on Dr Fr azer s own showing non m agic al
.
’
,
-
,

shows th at the pri mitive belief in this applic ation

of the principle th at like produces like w as alre ady
dying out and w as in process of beco ming a mere
,

surviv al Suppose th at it died ou t entirely and

.

the rite of burying stones bec ame an unintelligibl e

surviv al or w as dropped altogether and suppose
, ,

th at the pr ayers and s acrifices rem ained in possession

of the field which would b e the more correct w ay
,

of st ating the f acts to s ay th at the m agic h ad died

,

out and its pl ac e h ad been t aken by something

tot ally diff erent viz religion ; or th at wh at w as
,
.

m agic h ad become religion th at m agic and religion

,

are but two m anifest ations two st ages in the e v ol u

, ,

tion Of the s ame principle $ The l atter st atement

w as form ally rej ected by Dr Fr azer in the second .

edition of his Gol de n B ou g h when he decl ared th at

,

“
he h ad come to recognise a fund ament al di sti nc
tion and even opposition of principle between m agic
”
and religion ( Pref ace xvi ) His words therefore
,
.
, ,

justify us in assuming th at when he spe aks in his ,

L e ctu re s on the E arly H i s tory of th e K i ng s hi p of ,

“ ”
the tr ansition from m agic to religion he c annot ,
 MA G I C 95

me an th at m agic b ecomes religion or th at religion

,

is evolved out of m agic for the distinction and

,

”
even Opposition of principle between the two is
“ ”
fund ament al He can therefore only me an th at
.
, ,

m agic is followed and may be driven out by some

thing which is fund ament ally Opposed to it viz ,
.

religion .

Wh at then is the fund ament al Opposition b etween

m agic and religion $ and is it such as to require us
to believe with Dr Fr azer th at m agic preceded
.

religion and th at Of two Opposite ide as the mind

,

c an conceive the one without conceivi ng and

—

rej ecting — the other $

The fund ament al opposition b etween m agic and
religion I t ake to be th at religion is supposed to
promote the interests of the community and th at ,

m agic so f ar forth as it is nef arious is condemne d

, ,

b y the mor al and by the religious feeling of the

community I t is the ends for which nef arious
.

m agic is used th at are con d emne d and not the,

me ans The me ans may b e and as we see are

.
, ,

silly and futile ; and for intellectu al progress their

, ,

silliness and futility must be recognised by the

i ntellect But it is only when they are used for
.
,

purposes inimic al to the public good th at they are

9 6 C O MP A R A T IV E R E LIG I ON

condemned by religion and mor ality as nef arious .

I f therefore we t alk O f a fund ament al opposition

between m agic and religion we must underst and
,

th at the fund ament al Opposition is th at between

nef arious m agic and religion ; neither religion nor
mor ality conde mns the desire to incre ase the foo d
supply or to promote any other interest of the com
munity Whether a man uses skill th at he h as
.

acquired or person al power or force of will m atters

, , ,

not provided he uses it for t h e gener al goo d The

,
.

qu estion whether as a cold m atter of f act the me ans

, ,

he uses are effic acious is not one which mor al fervour

or religious ardour is competent by itself to settle

the cool atmosphere and dry light of re ason h ave

r ather th at function to perform ; and they h ave to
perform it in the c ase both of me ans th at are u sed
for the gener al good and of those used ag ainst it .

I t ake it therefore th at wh at religion is fund a

ment ally Opposed to is m agic or anything else
th at is used for nef arious purposes .

The question then arises whether we h ave any

re ason to believe th at m agic used for nef arious
purposes must h ave e x isted before religion N ow .

by nef arious purposes I me an purposes i ncon

sistent with or d e structive of the common good .
 There can b e no such purposes however unless and , ,

until there is a community however sm all h aving, ,

common interests and a common good As soon as .

there e x ists such a community there will b e a dis ,

tinction between actions which promote and actions

which are destru ctive of the common good The .

one cl ass will b e approved the other dis approved

, ,

of by public Opinion M agic will be approved

.

and dis approved of according as it is or is not used

in a w ay inconsistent with the public good I f .

there is a spirit or a god who is worshipp ed by the

community bec ause he is believed to b e concerned
with the good Of the community then he will dis ,

approve of nef arious proceedings whether m agic al

or not . But Dr Fr azer s position I t ake to b e

.
’

th at no such spirit or god can come to b e b elieved

in unless there h as been previously a belief in m agic
,
.

N ow th at argu ment either is or is not b ased on the

,

assumption th at m agic and religion are but two

m anifest ations two st ages in the evolution of the

, ,

s ame principle I f th at is the b asis then wh at

.
,

m anifested itself at first as m agic subsequ ently

“
m anifests itself as religion ; and the tr ansition
f from m agic to religion
”
implies the priority of
m agic to religion But as we h ave seen Dr Fr az e r
.
, ,
.

H
9 8 O P R AT IV E R E LIGION
C M A

form ally postul ates not an identity but an op

, ,

”
position of principl e between the two We must .

therefore rej ect the assu mption of an identity of

“ ”
principle ; and accept the Opposition of principle .

B ut if so then there must be two principles which

,

are Opposed to one another ,

religion and m agic ;
and we might urge th at line of argu ment consistently

enough to show th at there c an be no m agic s ave

where there is religion to b e Opposed to it .

N ow there is an Opposition of principle b etween

,

m agic u sed for nef arious purposes and religion ;

and the opposition is th at the one promotes soci al

and the other anti soci al purposes N ef arious

-
.

purposes whether worked by m agic or by other

,

me ans are condemned by religion and are nef arious

,

especi ally b ec ause o ff ensive to the god who h as the

interests of the community at he art Th at from
.

the moment society existed anti soci al tendencies

-

also m anifested themselves will not b e doubted ;

and neither need we doubt th at the principl e th at

like produces like w as employed from the beginning

for soci al as well as for anti soci al purposes The
-
.

qu estion is whether in the st age Of animism the

, ,

e arliest and the lowest st age which science recognises

in the evolution of man there is ever found a society
,
 MA G I C 99

of hum an beings which h as not appropri ated some

one or more of the spirits by which al l things on ,

the ani mi stic principle are worked to the purposes

, ,

of the community N O such society h as yet b een

.

proved to exist ; still l ess h as any a p ri ori proof

been produced to show th at such a society must
h ave existed The presumption indeed is r ather
.

the other w ay C hildren go through a p eriod of

.

helpless inf ancy longer th an the young of any other

cre atures ; and could not re ach the ag e of self help -
,

if the f amily did not hold together for some ye ars

at l e ast B ut where there is a f amily there is a
.

society even if it b e confined to members of the

,

f amily There also therefore there are soci al and

.
, ,

anti soci al tendencies and purposes ;

-
and in the ,

animistic st age the spirits by which man conceives

, ,

himself to b e surrounded are either hostile or not

,

hostile to the society and are accordingly either

,

worshipped or not worshipped by it Doubtl ess .

,

even in those e arly times the f ather and the hus

,

b and conceived himself to b e the whole f amily ; and

if th at view h ad its un ami abl e side —
and it still

h as —
i t also on occ asion h ad the inestim abl e
adv ant age of sinking self of self s acri fice in defence
,
-
,

of the f ami ly .
I OO C O M P AR AT IV E R E LIGION

Thus far I h ave been concerned to show how ,

st arting from a principle such as th at like produces

like about which there is nothing m agi c al in the
,

eyes either of those who believe in m agic or of those

who h ave left the belief behind man mi ght evolve ,

the conception of m agic as being the lore or the

person al power which en ables a man to do wh at
ordin ary people c annot do A few words are meces
.

s ary as to the decline of the belief The first is th at .

the belief is rotten before it is ripe Those applic a .

tions of the principle th at like produces like which

are m agic al are gener ally precisely those which are

f alse The f act th at they are f alse h as not prevented

.

them from surviving in countless numbers to the

present d ay But some suspicion of their f alsity
.

in some c ases does arise ; and the person who h as

the most frequent opportunities of discovering their
f alsity the person on whose notice the discovery of
,

their f alsity is thrust most pointedly is the person ,

who de als h abitu ally and profession ally in m agic .

Hence though it is his profession to work wonders

, ,

he t akes c are as far as may be not to attempt i m

possibilities Thus Dr H addon
. . p 6 2 ) found .

th at the men of M urr ay I sl and Torres Str aits who

, ,

“ ”
m ade a big wind by m agic only m ade it in the ,
 MA G I C I OI

se ason Of the southe ast tr ade wind O n my ask .

” “
ing he s ays whether the ceremony w as done in
, ,

the north monsoon my inform ant s aid emph atic ally

, ,

C an t do it in northwest Th at is the ch arm is

‘ ’ ’
.
,

performed only at th at se ason of the ye ar when the

required result is possible indeed when it is of
—

norm al occurrence I n this as in other c ases I

.
, ,

found th at the impossible w as never attempted A .

r ain ch arm would not be m ade when there w as no

expect ation of r ain coming or a southe ast wind be
,

”
r aised during the wrong se ason The inst ance
.

thus given to us by Dr H addon shows how the

.

belief in m agic begins to give w ay before the s ci e n

ti fic observ ation of f act The coll apse of m agic
.

becomes complete when every one sees th at the

southe ast tr ade wind blows at its appointed time ,

whether the m agic rites are performed or not In .

fine wh at ki lls m agic reg arded as a me ans for pro

,

d u ci ng e ffects is the discovery th at it is superfluous ,

when for inst ance the desired wind or r ain is coming ,

and futile when it is not And where as mor ality and

.

religion only condemn the end aimed at by m agic ,

and only condemn it when it is anti soci al science -

,

slowly shows th at m agic as a me ans to any end is

superfluous and silly .
1 02 C O MP A RAT IV E R E LIG I ON

Science however shows this but slowly ; and if

, ,

we wish to underst and how it is th at the belief in

the m agici an s power h as survived for thous ands O f
’

ye ars down to the present moment amongst nu

me rou s peoples we must r e member th at his equi p
,

ment and app ar atus are not limited to purely non

sensic al notions O n the contr ary in hi s stock of
.
,

knowledge c arefully h anded down are m any truths

, ,

and f acts not gener ally known ; and they are the

most e fli caciou s articles of his stock in tr ade Dr . .

Fr azer may not go farther th an his argument requires ,

but he cert ainly goes farther th an the f acts will

“
support him when he s ays
,
p 8 3 ) for it must .

alw ays be remembered th at every single profession

and cl aim put forw ard by the m agici an as such is

f alse ; not one of them can be m aint ained without

”
deception conscious or unconscious
,
.

I f now in conclusion we look once more at the

, ,

subject of m agic and look at it from the pr actic al

point of View of the mission ary we sh all see th at ,

there are sever al conclusions whi ch may be of use

to him I n the first pl ace hi s attitude to m agic will
.
,

be hostile and in his hostility to it he will find the

,

best st arting point for his c amp aign ag ainst it to be

-

in the fact th at everywhere m agic is felt to a g re ater ,

 MA G I C 1 0
3

or less extent to b e anti soci al and is condemned

,
-
,

b oth by the mor al sentiments and the religious

feeling of the community I t is felt to be essenti ally
.

wicked ; and in w arring ag ainst it the mission ary

will be ch ampioning the c ause of those who know it
to be wrong but who S imply d are not defy it The .

f act th at defi ance is not ventured on is essenti al to

the continu ance of the tyr anny ; and wh at is ne ce s
s ary if it is to be defied is an actu al concrete e x ample
, ,

of the f act th at when defied it is futile .

N ext where m agic is pr actised for soci al purposes

, ,

where it mimics science or religion and survives in

“ ”
virtue of its power of protective colouring it is in ,

f act superfluous and silly ; and where the n atives

themselves are beginning to recognise th at the m agic
which is supposed for inst ance to r aise the southe ast
, ,

tr ade wind won t act at the wrong se ason it should

’
,

not be di fficult to get them to see th at it is unne ce s

s ary at the right se ason The n atur al process which
.

tends thus to get rid of m agic may be acceler ated

by the sensible mission ary ; and some knowledge of
science will be found in this as in other m atters an
, ,

indispens able p art of hi s tr aining .

Fin ally the mi ssion ary may rest assured in the

,

conviction th at his fl ank will not be turned by the

1 04 C O M P A RA T IV E R E LIGION

science of religion The ide a th at religion w as

.

preced e d by and evolved out of m agi c may h ave been

entert ained by some students of the sci e nce of reli
gion in the p ast and may not yet h ave been thrown
,

O ff by al l
. B ut it holds no pl ace now in the science
O f religion To derive ei ther science or religion
.

from the m agic whi ch e x ists only by mimicki ng one

or the other is just as absurd as to im agine th at the
insect which i mit ates the colour O f the le af whereon
it li ves prece d es and cr eates the tree whi ch is to
support it .
 F E T I CH I S M

TH E line of action t aken by the mission ary at

work will like th at of any other pr actic al man be
, ,

conditioned not only by the object w hi ch he wishes

,

to att ain but also by the n ature Of the m ateri al on

,

whi ch and with whi ch he h as to work He requires .

therefore al l the inform ation w hi ch the science of

religion can pl ace at his dispos al about the beliefs
and pr actices of those a mongst whom his work is

c ast ; and if he is to m ake pr actic al use O f th at

,

inform ation he must know not only th at cert ain

,

beliefs and pr actices do as a m atter of f act obt ain

he must k now also wh at is their v alue for his speci al
purpose —
wh at if any are the points about them
, ,

which h ave religious v alue and can b e utilized by

,

hi m ; and wh at are those points about them whi ch

are obstructive to hi s purpose and how b est they
,

may be removed and counter acted To supply him.

with t hi s inform ation to give him this estim ate of

,

v alues to guide him as to the attitude he should

,

assume and the w ay in which he may ut i li se or must

1 0
5
1 06 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIG ION

a tt ack n ative pr ac tices and beliefs is the Object ,

with which t h e appli e d science of religion when it ,

h as been constituted by the action of H artford

Theologic al Semin ary will address itself
, .

Now it may seem from the pr actic al point of V iew

,

of the mission ary th at with reg ard to fetichism

there c an be no question as to wh at its v alue is or
as to wh at his attitude should be tow ards it But .
,

even if we should ultim ately find th at fetichism is

obstructive to religion we sh all still w ant to know
,

wh at hints we can e x tr act from the science of

religion as to the best w ay of cutting at the roots O f
fetichism ; and therefore it will be necess ary to con
sider wh at e x actly fetichism is And as a m atter of
.
,

fact there is a tendency m anifesting itself amongst

,

students of the science of religion to s ay as Dr ,

.

H addon s ays ( M ag i c and F e ti chi s m p th at ,

.

“ ”
fetichism is a st age of religious development ;
and amongst writers on the phi losophy of reli g ion

to t ake fetic h ism and tre at i t provision ally at any

o

r ate if not as the pri mitive religion of m an kin d then

, ,

“
as th at form of religion which we find amongst
men at the lowest st age of development known to
us ( Hoffd i ng P hi l os op hy of Re l i g i on E T
”
, 45 ,
. .
, ,

I f then fetichi sm is the pri mitive religion of

, ,
 T H I SM
FE I C 1 07

m an ki n d or a st age of religious development a ,

b asis from w hi ch m any other modes of religious

thought h ave been developed ( H addon p it will , .

h ave a v alue whi ch the mission ary must recognise .

And in any c ase he must know wh at v alue if any it , ,

h as .

No wif we
,
are ,
I will not
to do justice to the
s ay

View th at fetichism is the primitive religion of man

ki nd or a st age from which other modes of religious
thought h ave been developed but if we are simply ,

to underst and it we must cle arly distinguish it from

,

the view —
somewh at p ar adoxic al to s ay the le ast
—
th at fetic hi sm h as no religious v alue and yet is ,

the source of al l religious v alues The inference .

whi ch may legitim ately be dr awn from this second

view is th at all forms of religious thought h aving ,

been evolved from this primitive religion of man

ki n d h ave precisely the s ame v alue as it h as ; they
,

do b ut m ake explicit wh at it re ally w as ; the history

of religion does but write l arge and set out at length
W h at w as cont ained in it from the first ; in fetichism

we see wh at from the first religion w as and wh at at ,

the l ast religion is O n this View the source from

.
,

whi ch all religious v alues spring is fetichi sm fetich

ism h as no v alue of any ki nd and therefore the ,
1 08 C O M P ARA T IV E R E LIGION

e volved forms of fetichism which we c all forms of

r e ligion h ave no v alue ei ther of any ki nd Thus .
,

sci e nce —
the science of religion —
is supposed to
demonstr ate by scientific methods the re al n ature
and the essenti al ch ar acter of al l religion .

Now the error in this re asoning proceeds p artly

,

on a false conception of the object and method of

science —
a f alse conception which is slowly but

surely dis appe aring The Object of all science

.
,

whether it be physic al science or other whether it ,

be historic science or other is to est ablish f acts

, .

The Object of the h istoric science of religion is to -

record the f acts of the history of religion in such a

w ay th at the accur acy of the record as a record will

be disputed by no one qu alified to judge the f act .

For th at purpose it abst ains deliber ately and con

,

s i st e ntl y from asking or considering the religious

v alue of any of the f acts with whi ch it de als I t h as .

not to consider and does not consider wh at would

, ,

h ave been still less wh at ought to h ave been the

, ,

course of history but simply wh at it w as I n t hi s

,
.

it is following merely the dict ates of common sense ;

before we can profit ably e x press an opinion on any
occurrence we must know wh at e x actly it w as th at
,

occurred ; and to le arn wh at occurred we must

 FE T I C H I S M 1 0
9

divest our minds of preconceptions I t is the busi .

ness of the science of religion to set aside pre con

ce pt i ons as to whether religion h as or h as not any

v alue ; and if it does set them aside th at is to say ,

so far as it is scientific it will end as it b eg an without

,

touching on the question of the v alue of religion I n .

fine it is and would I think now be gener ally ad

, ,

mi ff ed to be a misconception of the function of the

,

science of religion to im agine th at it does or can , ,

prove anyt hi ng as to the truth of religion one w ay ,

or the other .

There is however another error in the re asoning

, ,

which is directed to S how th at in fetichi sm we see

wh at religion w as and essenti ally is Th at error .

consists not only in a f alse conception of wh at reli

gion is —
the man who h as himself no religion may
,

be excused if he f ails to underst and fully wh at it is ,

it is b ased on a mi sunderst anding of wh at fetichi sm

is And so confusion is doubly confounded The
. .

source of th at mi sunderst anding is to be found in

Bosm an ( Pinkerton Voy ag e s and Trave l s L ondon
, , ,

1 8 1 4 X VI
, who s ays : I once asked a negro
,
“

with whom I could t alk very freely how they

celebr ated their divine worship and wh at number ,

of gods they h ad ; he l aughing answere d th at I h ad

, ,
I IO C O MP A R A T I V E R E LIGION

puzzled him ; and assured me th at nobody in the

whole country could give me an e x act account of it .

‘
For as for my own p art I h ave a very l arge num
, ,

b e r O f gods and doubt not but th at others h ave as

,

m any For any O f us being resolved to undert ake

.

anything of import ance we first of al l se arch out ,

a god to prosper our designe d un d ert aking ; and

going out of doors with the design t ake the first ,

cre ature th at presents itself to our eyes whether ,

dog cat or the most contemptible cre ature in the

, ,

world for our god ; or perh aps inste ad Of th at any , , ,

in anim ate th at f alls in our w ay whether a stone a , ,

piece of wood or anything else of the s ame n ature

, .

Thi s new chosen god is immedi ately presented with

-

an o ff ering which is accomp anied by a solemn v ow

, ,

th at if it ple aseth him to prosper our undert aki ngs ,

for the future we will alw ays worship and esteem

him as a god I f our design prove successful we
.
,

h ave discovered a new and assisting god whi ch is ,

d aily presented with a fresh O ff ering ; b ut if the con

t rary h appen the new god is rejecte d as a useless
,

tool and consequently returns to his primitive

,

est ate We m ake and bre ak our gods d aily and

.
,

consequently are the m asters and inventors O f wh at

we s acrifice N ow al l this w as s ai d b y the ,
 T H I SM
FE I C I I I

negro , as Bosm an himself observe d to ridicule his ,

”
own country gods . And it is not surprising th at it
should h ave been or should be accepted as a trust
, ,

worthy description of the e arliest form of religion by

those who in the highest form can find no more th an
t hi s negro found in fetichi sm when he wished to
ridicule it .

L e t us hold over for the moment the question

whether fetichism is or is not a form of religion ;
and let us enquire how f ar the account given by Bos

m an s negro accords with the f acts First though

’
.
,

there is no doubt th at anim als are worshipped as

gods and though there is no doubt th at the gu ardi an
,

S pirits of individu als are chosen or are supposed to

,

m anifest themselves for ex ample amongst the N orth

, ,

Americ an I ndi ans in anim al form and th at the

,
“
,

first cre ature th at presents itself to the man seek

”

ing the m anifest ation of hi s gu ardi an spirit may b e

t ak en to be hi s god even though it b e the most
,
“

contemptible cre ature in the world still students of

the science of religion are f airly s atisfied th at such
gods or gu ardi an spirits are not to be confused with
fetiches A fetich is an in anim ate or lifeless Object
.
,

even if it is the fe ather cl aw b one eyeb all or any

, , , ,

other p art of an anim al or even of a man I t is as .

I I 2 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIG ION

B o s man s negro s aid any i nanim ate th at f alls in

’
,

our w ay ”
When he go e s on to s ay t h at it is i m
.
“

medi ately presented wi t h an O ff eri ng and so long , ,

“
as i t s owner believes in it is d aily presented with
,

”
a fresh o ff ering he is st ating a fact th at is beyond
,

dispute and which is fully recognised by al l stu

,

dents A typic al inst ance is given by Professor

.

Tylor ( P ri mi ti v e C u l tu re II 1 5 8 ) of the owner of

, ,

a stone which h ad been t a ken as a fetich :

“
H e w as
once going out on import ant business but crossing ,

the threshold he trod on this stone and hurt hi mself .

H a $ h a $ thought he art thou there $ SO he took

,

the stone and it helped him through his undert aking

for d ays When B os man s negro further goes on
.
’

to st ate th at if the fetich is discovered by its owner

not to prosper his undert ak ings as he e x pected it to ,

“ ”
do it is rejected as a useless tool he m akes a
, ,

st atement which is admi tted to be true and which ,

in its truth may be understood to me an th at when

,

the owner finds th at the object is not a fetich he c asts ,

“
it aside as being nothing but the in anim ate w hi ch
it is B osman s negro however s ays not th at the
.
’
, ,

“
in anim ate but th at the new god is rej ected as a
”
useless tool Th at we must t ake as being but a
.

c arelessness of e x pression ; the evidence of Colonel

 FE T I CH I S M 1 1
3

Ellis , O b server whose competence is undoubted

an ,

is : E very n ative with whom I h ave conversed on

“

the su bject h as l aughed at the possibility of it being

supposed th at he could worshi p or o ffer s acrifice
to some such object as a stone whi ch of itself would
,

b e perfectly Obvious to his senses w as a stone only

s k i s p e a ki ng opl e s
”
and nothing more ( Th e T -
P e ,

p. From these words it follows th at the object

worshipped as a fetich is a stone ( or wh atever it is )
“
and somet hi ng more and th at the object
,
rejected
”
as a useless tool is a stone (or wh atever it is ) and
not hi ng more When then B osman s negro goes
.
, ,
’

“ ”
on to s ay we m ake and bre ak our gods d aily
, ,

he is not describing accur ately the processes as they

are conceived by those who perform them The .

fetich wors hi pper believes th at the object which

arrests hi s attention h as alre ady the powers w hi ch

he ascribes to it ; and it is in consequence of th at

belief th at he t akes it as hi s fetich And it is only.

when he is convinced th at it is not a fetich th at he

rejects it as a useless tool But wh at B osman s
.
’

negro suggests and app arently intended to suggest

, ,

is th at the fetich worshipper m akes s ay a stone , ,

hi s god knowing th at it is a stone and nothing more ;

,

and th at he bre aks his fetich believing it to be a god .

1 1 4 O P R T V
C M A A I E R E LIGION
Thus the worshipper knows th at the object is no go d
when he is worshipping it ; but believes it to be a
god when he rej e cts it as a useless tool N ow th at is
.
,

consciously or unconsciously deliber ately or not a

, ,

misrepresent ation of fetichism ; and it is precisely

o n th at misconception O f wh at fetichism is th at they

b ase themselves who identify religion with fetichi sm ,

and then argue th at as fetichism h as no v alue reli

, ,

g io n s or re ason able
,
neither h as religion i t self
.

Returning now to the question wh at fetichism is

a question which must be answered before we

c an enquire wh at religious v alue it possesses and

,

whether it can be of any use for the pr actic al pur

poses O f the mi ssion ary in his work we h ave now
“ ”
seen th at a fetich is not merely an in anim ate ,

but something more ; and th at an object to become

reg arded as a fetich must attr act the attention of
the man who is to adopt it and must attr act the
,

attention of the man when he h as business on h and ,

th at is to say when he h as some end in View whi ch

he desires to att ain or gener ally when he is in a
,

st ate of expect ancy The process of choice is one

.

“
of n atur al selection Professor H e ffd i ng sees
.

“
in it the simplest conceiv able construction Of
religious ide as The choice is entirely element ary
.
 T H I SM
FE I C 1 1 5

and involunt ary as element ary and involunt ary as

,

the e x cl am ation which is the simplest form of a

judgment of worth The object chosen must b e
.

something or other which is closely bound up

with wh atever engrosses the mind I t perh aps.

aw akens memories of e arlier events in which

it w as present or cooper ative or else it pre ,

sents a cert ain perh aps a very dist ant simil arity
to Objects which helped in previous times of need .

O r it may be merely the first object w hi ch presents

itself in a moment of str ained e x pect ation I t .

attr acts attention and

,
is therefore involunt arily
associ ated with wh at is about to h appen with the ,

possibility of att aining the desired end ( P hi l os op hy

o
f R e li g i
,
on E . T p .
,
And
. then P rofessor
Hotf d i ng goes on to say “
I n such phenomen a as
,

these we encounter religion under the guise of de

sire ”
. Now without denying th at there are such
,

thi ngs as religious desires and holding as we do

th at religion is the se arch after G od and the ye arn

ing of the hum an he art after Him the desire ,

”
of all n ations ,
we sh all h ave no tempt ation to
deny th at there are such thi ngs as religious desires
yet we must for the moment reserve our decision
on the question whether it is in such phenomen a
1 1 6 C O M P A R AT IV E R E LIGION

as these th at we encounter religious desires and ,

we must be ar in mi nd th at there are desires which

are not religious and th at we w ant to know whether
,

it is in the phenomen a of fetichi sm th at we encounter

religious desires .

Th at in the phenomen a of fetichism we encounter

desires other th an religious is beyond dispute : the
use of a fetich is as Dr N ass au s ays to aid the
,
.
“
,

possessor in the accomplishment of some specific

wish (F e ti chi s m i n We s t Afri ca p
”
th at is of
,
.
,

any specific wish .Now a fetich is as we h ave seen

, , ,

an in anim ate Object and somethi ng more Wh at .

more $ I n actu al truth nothi ng more th an the fact

,

“
th at it is involunt arily associ ated with wh at is
about to h appen with the possibility of att aining
,

”
the desired end . But to the possessor the some
thi ng more it may be s aid is the fact th at it is not
, ,

“ ”
merely an in anim ate but also a spirit or the h abi ,

t ati on of a spiritu al being When however we

.
, ,

reflect th at fetichism goes b ack to the animistic

st age O f hum an thought in which al l the things th at
,

we term in anim ate are believed to be anim ated by

spirits it is Obvious th at we require some di ff erenti a
,

to m ark O ff those things ( anim ated by spirits ) w hich

are fetiches from those thi ngs ( ani m ate d b y spirits )
 FE T I C H I S M 1 1
7

which are not And the di fferenti a is of course

.
, ,

th at fetiches are spirits or Objects anim ated by

,

spirits w hi ch will ai d the possessor in the ae com

,

pl i s h me nt of some specific wish and a

,
re thought
to be willing so to aid owing to the f act th at by an
,

involunt ary associ ation of ide as they become con

ne cte d in the wors hi pper s mind with the possibility
’

of att aining the end he h as in view at the moment .

To recognise fetichism then in its simplest if not

, ,

in its most primitive form al l we need postul ate is

,

animism the belief th at al l things are anim ated

—

by spirits and the process of very n atur al selection $

whi ch h as alre ady been described At t hi s st age

.
,

in the hi story of fetichism it is especi ally di fficult

to judge whether the fetich is the spirit or the Object
anim ated by the spirit . As Dr H addon s ays ( p 8
. .

“
Just as the hum an body and soul form one i n
dividu al so the m ateri al object and its occupying
,

spirit or power form one individu al more v ague , ,

perh aps but still with m any attributes distinctively

,

hum an I t possesses person ality and will

. it . .

possesses most of the hum an p assions — anger re, ,

venge also generosity and gr atitude ; it is within

,

re ach of influence and may be benevolent hence to ,

b e deprec ated and pl ac ated and its ai d enlisted

,
”
.
1 1 8 C O M P A R AT IV E R E L I GION

A more adv anc e d st age in the history of fetichism

is th at which is re ached by refl e ction on the f act
th at a fetich not unfrequently ce as e s to prosper the
undert akings of its possessor in the w ay he e x pected
it to do O n the principles of ani mism everythi ng
.
,

th at is — whether anim ate or in anim ate according ,

to our notions —
is m ade up of spirit or so ul and , ,

body I n the c ase of man when he dies the spirit

.
, ,

le aves the body When therefore a fetich ce ases to

.
, ,

act the e x pl an ation by an alogy is th at the spirit

,

h as left the body the in anim ate with which it w as

, ,

origin ally associ ated ; and when th at is the c ase ,

then as we le arn from M iss Kingsley ( Trav e l s i n

,

We st Afri ca pp 3 O 4 3 O 5 ) the little thing you kept

,
“
.
—
,

the spirit in is no more use now and only fit to sell ,

to a white man as a big The fact th at

‘
,

in n ative belief wh at we c all an in anim ate thing may

,

lose its soul and become re ally de ad is shown by

M iss Ki ngsley in a p ass age quoted by Dr H addon : .

“
E verything th at he
”
the n ative knows by me ans
, ,

of hi s senses he reg ards as a twofold entity p art

spirit p art not spirit or as we should say m atter ;
, , , ,

the connecti on of a cert ain spirit with a cert ain m ass

of m atter he holds is not perm anent He will
, ,
.

point out to you a lightning struck tree and tell -

,
 F ETI C H I SM 1 1 9

you its spirit h as b een b roken he will tell you when

the cooking pot h as been broken th at it h as lost
-
,

its spirit (F ol k L ore V III

” -
,
We might s afely
,

infer then th at as any Object may lose its spirit so too ,

may an Object which h as been chosen as a fetich ;

even if we h ad not as we h ave direct testimony
, ,

to the belief .

N e x t when it is believed th at an object may lose

,

its spirit and become de ad indeed there is room and ,

opportunity for the belief to grow th at its spirit may

p ass into some other object : th at there may be
a tr ansmigr ation of spirits And when this belief
.

arises,
a fresh st age in the history of fetichism is

evolve d And the fresh st age is evolved in accord

.

ance with the l aw th at governs the whole evolution

of fetichism Th at l aw is th at a fetich is an object

.

believed to aid its possessor in att aining the end he

desires I n the e arliest st age of its history anythi ng
.

w hi ch h appens to arrest a m an s attention when he’

is in a st ate of e x pect ancy is involunt arily associ ated

“

with wh at is ab out to h appen and so becomes a

”
,

fetich I n the most developed st age of fetichism

.
,

men are not content to w ait unt il they stumble across

“
a fetich and when they do so to s ay
,
H a $ h a $ art ,

”
thou there $ Their ment al attitude becomes i n
I 20 C O M P AR AT IV E R E LIGION
”
te rrog ati ve : Ha $ h a $
where art thou $ They
no longer w ait to stumble across a fetich they pro ,

c e e d to m ake one ; and for th at procedure a belief

in the tr ansmigr ation of spirits is essenti al An .

Object a h abit ation for the spi rit is prep ared ; and
, ,

he is invited conj ured or c onjured into it I f he

, , ,
.

is conj ri re d into it the attitude of the man who

,

invites him is submissive ; if c onjured the ment al ,

attitude of the performer is one of superiority .

C olonel Ellis t hr oughout all his c areful enquiries

“
found th at so gre at is the fe ar of giving possible
O ff ence to any superhum an agent th at ( in the region
of hi s Observ ation ) we may well believe th at even the
m akers of fetiches did not assume to comm an d the
spirits But elsewhere in other regions it is i m
.
, ,

possible to doubt but th at the owners of fetiches

not only conj ti re the spirits into the objects but also ,

apply coercion to them when they f ail to aid their

possessor in the accomplishment of hi s wishes .

Th at I t ake it is the ultim ate st age in the evolution

, , ,

the fine flower of fetichism And it is not religion

,
.
,

it h as no v alue as religion or r ather its v alue is anti

,

religious Even if we were to accept as a definition

.

of religion th at it is the concili ation of beings con

ce i v e d to be superior we shoul d b e compelled b y
,
 FE T I C H I SM I 2I

the definition to s ay th at fetic hi sm in its eventu al

outcome is not religion for the attitude of the owner
,

tow ards hi s fetich is then one of superiority and his ,

method is when concili ation f ails to apply coer

, ,

cion.

But it may perh aps be argued th at fetichism e x ,

cept in wh at I h ave termed its ultim ate evolution is ,

religion and h as religious v alue ; or to put it other

,

wise th at wh at I h ave represented as the eventu al

,

outcome is re ally a perversion or the decline of

fetichi sm Then in the fetic hi sm whi ch is or rep
.
,

resents the pri miti ve religion of m anki nd we meet ,

“
a ccording to Professor HOffd i ng religion under
,

the guise of desire ”

. Now not all desires are
,

religious ; and the question which is purely a ques

,

tion of f act arises whether the desires which fetich

,

ism su b serves are religious And in using the word

.

“
religi ous I will not here pl ace any extr avag ant
”

me aning on the word ; I will t ake it in the me aning

whi ch would be understood by the community in
which the owner of a fetich dwells himself I n .

the tribes described by C olonel Ellis for inst ance , ,

there are worshipped person al gods h aving proper

n ames ; and the worship is served by duly appointed
priests ; and the worshippers consist of a body of
I 22 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

persons whose welf are the god h as at he art Such .

a re som e of t h e s alient fe atures of wh at all students

of t h e scienc e of religion would include under the

he ad of t h e religion O f those tribes N ow amongst .

those s ame tribes the fetich or s u hman as it is termed

, ,

by them is found ; and there are sever al fe atures

,

whi ch m ake a f e tich quite distinguish able from any

of the gods which are worshipped there Thus the .
,

fetich h as no body of worshippers : it is the pri

v ate property of its owne r who alone m akes Offer ,

ings to it I ts rai s on d etre its speci al and only

.
’
,

function is to subserve the priv ate wishes of its

,

owner I n so far as he m akes o ff erings to it he may

.

be c alled its priest ; but he is not as in the c ase of ,

the priests of the gods who are worshi pped there ,

the represent ative of the community or congreg ation ,

for a fetich h as no plur ality of worshippers ; and

none of the priests of the gods will h ave anyt hi ng to
“
do with it N e x t th oug h O fferings are m ade to the
.
,

s u hma n by its owner

”
they are m ade in priv ate
,

( Jevons H
,
i s tory of Re li g i on p 1 65 ) there is
, no .
-

“
public worship and public opinion does not ap ~

”
prove of them The interests and the desires which
.

the fetich exists to promote are not those of the com

munity : they are antisoci al for as C olonel Elli s , ,
 FE T I CH I SM 1 23

tells us one of the speci al attributes of a s u hman

,

is to procure the de ath of any person whom its

worshipper may wish to h ave removed ”
indeed
“
the most import ant function of the s u hman appe ars
to b e to work evil ag ainst those who h ave injured or
o ff ended its worshipper .

Thus a very cle ar distinction exists between the

,

worshi p of a fetich and the worship of the gods .

I t is not merely th at the fetich is invoked occ asion ally

in ai d Of antisoci al desires : nothing can prevent
the worshipper of a god if the worshipper be b ad
,

enough from pr aying for th at which he ought not

,

to pr ay for I t is th at the gods of the community

.

are there to s anction and further all desires which

are for the good of the community and th at the

,

fetich is there to further desires which are not for

the good of the community ,
hence it is th at
“ ”
public opinion does not approve of them At .

another st age of religious evolution it becomes ,

app arent and is openly pronounced th at neither does

the go d of the community approve of them ; and

then fetichis m like the sin of witchcr aft is st amped
, ,

ou t more or less . B ut amongst the tribes who h ave

only re ached the point of religious progress att ained
b y the natives of West Afric a public Opinion h as
,
1 24 C O MP AR AT IV E R E LIGION

only gone so far as to e x press dis approv al not to ,

decl are w ar .

I f th e n we are to hold to the V iew of Professor

, ,

HOffd i ng and O f Dr H addon th at fetic hism is in

.
,

i t s essence or w as at the beginning religious in its

, ,

n ature though it may be perverted into something

,

non religious or anti religious we must at any r ate

- -
,

admit th at it h as become non religious not only in -

the c ase of those fetichists who assume an attitude

of superiority and command to their fetiches b ut ,

also in the e arlier st age of evolution when the

fetichist preserves an attitude O f sub mission and
concili ation tow ards his fetich but assumes the atti ,

tude only for the purpose of re alising desires w hi ch

are anti soci al and recognised to be anti religious
- -
.

But if we t ake as I think we must t ake

—
,

th at line of argument the conclusion to w h ich it

,

will bring us is f airly cle ar and is not far off The .

di fferenti a or r ather th at di ff erenti a which ch ar acter

i s ti c al l y m arks O ff the fetich from the god is the
n ature of the desires which e ach e x ists to promote ;
the function whi ch e ach e x ists to fulfil the end ,

which is there for e ach to subserve But the ends .

are di ff erent Not only are they di ff erent they are

.
,

ant agonistic And the process of evolution does

.
 FE T I CH I SM 1 25

b ut bring out the ant agonism it does not cre ate it

,
.

I t w as there from the beginning From the moment .

there w as society there were desires which could

,

onl y be re alised at the cost and to the loss of society ,

as well as desires in the re alis ation of which the good

of society w as re alised The assist ance of powers

.

other th an hum an might be sought ; and the n ature

of the power which w as sought w as determined by
the end or purpose for which its aid w as employed
or invoked —
if for the good of society it w as ap ,

proved by society ; i f not not I ts function the

, .
,

end it subserved determined its v alue for society

,

determined whether public opinion should approve

or dis approve of it whether it w as a god of the com
,

munity or the fetich of an individu al Society can .

only exist where there is a cert ain community of

purpose among its members ; and can only continue
to exist where anti soci al tendencies are to some
-

extent suppressed or checked by force of public

opinion .

Fetichi sm then in its tendency and in its purpose

, , ,

in the function which it performs and the end at

whi ch it aims is not only distinguish able from reli
gion it is ant agonistic to it from the e arliest period
, ,

of its history to the l atest Reli g ion is soci al an

.
,
1 26 C O M P AR A T IV E R E LIGION

a fl ai r of the community ; fetichism is anti soci al -

,

condemned by the community Public opinion .

,

e x pressing the mor al sentiments of the community

as well as its reli g ious feeli ng pronounces both
,

mor al and religious dis approv al of the man who

uses a s u hman for its speci al purpose of c ausing
de ath —
committing murder Fetichism is o ffen.

sive to the mor ality as well as to the religion even

O f the n ative. To seek the origin of religion in
fetichism is as v ain as to seek the origin of mor ality
‘

in the selfish and self seeking tendencies of man

-
.

There is no need to enquire whether fetichism is

historic ally prior to religion or whether religion is
,

historic ally prior to fetichism M an as long as he

.
,

h as li ved in societies must h ave h ad desires which

,

were incomp atible with the welf are of the com

munity as well as desires which promoted its wel
fare The powers which are supposed to c are
.

whether the community f ares well are the gods of

the community ; and their worship is the religion
of the community The powers which h ave no
.

such c are are not gods nor is their wors hi p

,
—
if
coercion or c ajolery can be c alled worship —
reli
gion The essence of fetichism on its extern al
.

side is th at the owner of the fetich alone h as access

 FE T I C H I S M 1 2
7

to it alone can pr ay to it alone can o ff er s acrifices

, ,

to it I t is therefore in its inw ard essence directly

.

destructive of the unity of interests and purposes

th at society dem ands and religion promotes Pe r .

h aps it would be going too far to say th at the prac

tice Of m aking pr ayers and O fferings to a fetich is
borrowed from religious worship : they are the
n atur al and instinctive method of appro aching any
power which is c ap able of gr anting or refusing wh at
we desire I t is the qu arter to which they are
.

addressed and the end for which they are employed

, ,

th at m akes the di fference between them I t is the .

f act th at in the one c ase they are and in the other

,

are not addressed to the qu arter to which they ought

,

to be addressed and employed for the end for which

,

they ought to be employed th at m akes the di fference

,

in religious v alue between them .

I f we be ar in mind the simple fact th at fetichism

is condemned by the religious and mor al feelings
of the communities in which it exists we sh all not
,

f all into the mist ake of reg arding fetichism either

as the primitive religion of m anki nd or as a st age

“
of religious development or as a b asis from which
m any other modes of religious thought h ave been
”
developed .
1 28 C O M PARAT IV E R E LIGION

Professor Ho ff di ng holding th at fetichism is the

,

primi tive religion out of which polytheism w as

,

dev e loped adopts Use ne r s theory as to the mode

,
’

“
of its evolution . The fetich Professor HOff d i ng
”
,

“
s ays ( p
. is only the provision al and momen
t ary dwelling pl ace of a spirit
- As H erm ann .

U se ne r h as stri kingly c alled it it is the god of a

‘
,

But though Professor Hoffdi ng adopts

this definition of a fetich it is Obvious th at the ,

course of his argument re quires us to underst and it

as subj ect to a cert ain limit ation His argument in .

e ff ect is th at fetichism is not polytheism but some ,

thing di fferent something out of which polytheism

,

w as evolved . And the di fference is th at polytheism

me ans a plur ality of gods where as fetichism knows
,

no gods but only spirits I n asmuch then as on the

,
.
,

theory whether it is held by HOffd i ng or by any

body else th at the spirits of fetichism become the
gods of polytheism there must be di fferences between
,

the spirits Of the one and the gods of the other let ,

us enquire wh at the di fferences are supposed to

be.

First there is the st atement th at a fetich is the

,

”
god of a moment by which must be me ant th at
,

the spirits w hi ch so long as they are moment ary and

,
 FE T I C H I SM 1 2
9

tempor ary are fetiches must come to b e perm anent

, ,

if they are to att ain to the r ank Of gods .

But on this point Dr H addon di ffers He is

. .

quite cle ar th at a fetich may be worshi pped per

mane nt l y without ce asing to be a fetich And it is .

indeed abund antly cle ar th at an Object only ce ases

to be worshipped when its owner is convinced th at it
is not re ally a fetich ; as long as he is s atisfied th at
it is a fetich he continues its cult
,
and he continues

it bec ause it is his person al property bec ause he , ,

and not the rest of the community h as access ,

to it .

N ext Hoffding argues th at it is from these mo

,

ment ary fetiches th at speci al or speci alised deities

“
dep artment al gods as M r Andrew L ang h as
”
,
.

“
termed them arise And these speci alised divini
—
.

”
ties constitute an adv ance on gods O f the moment
( p
. N ow wh
,
at is implied in this a rgument ,

wh at is postul ated but not e x pressed is th at a ,

fetich h as only one p articul ar thing which it can do .

A dep artment al god can only do one p articul ar

sort of thing h as one speci alised function A de
,
.

p ar t m e nt al god is but a fetich a dv anced one st age in

the hi er archy of divine beings Therefore the func
.

tion of the fetich in the first inst ance w as speci alised

K
1 3 0 C O M PARA T IV E R E LIGION

and limited But there it is th at the a pri ori argu

.

ment comes into collision with the ac t u al f acts .

A fetich when it presents its e lf to a man assis t s

, ,

hi m in the p articul ar business on which he is at the

moment eng aged But it only continues to act a s.

a fetich provided th at it a ssists him a fterw ards and

,

in other m atters also The desires of the owner .

are not limited and consequently neither are

,
his
expect ations ; the business O f the fetich is to procure
hi m gener al prosperity ( H addon p As far ,
.

as fetiches are concerned it is simply reversing the ,

facts to suppose th at it is bec ause one fetich can only

do one thing th at m any fetiches are picked up
,
.

M any Objects are picked up on the ch ance of their

proving fetiches bec ause if the object turns out
,

re ally to be a fetich it will bring its owner good luck

and prosperity gener ally there is no knowing wh at—

it may do But it is only to its owner th at it brings

.

prosperity —
not to other people not to the com ,

munity for the community is deb arred access to it

,
.

The ne x t di ff erence between fetichis m and poly

theism according to HOffd ing is th at the gods of
, ,

polytheism h ave developed th at person ality which

is not indeed absolutely w anting in the S pirits of
fetichism b ut can h ardly be s aid to b e properly
 FE I C T H I SM 1
3 1

” “
there. The tr ansition he s ays from momen , ,

t ary and S peci al gods to gods which can properly be

c alled person al is one Of the most import ant tr ansi
tions in the history of religion I t denotes the .

”
tr ansition from animism to polytheism ( p .

And one Of the outw ard signs th at the tr ansition

h as been e ffected is as U s e ne r points out with
,

“
speci al emph asis th at only at a cert ain st age of
,

evolution i e on the appe ar ance of polytheism do

,
. .
, ,

”
the gods acquire proper n ames ( i b .

N ow this argument I suggest seeks to m ake or

, , , ,

to m ake much of a di ff erence between fetichism

,

and polytheism whi ch sc arcely exists and so far as ,

it does e x ist is not the re al di fference between them .

I t seeks to minimise if not to deny the person ality

, ,

of the fetich in order to ex alt th at of the gods of

,

polytheism And then this di fference in degree of

.

person ality this tr ansition from the one degree to

,

“
the other is exhibited as one of the most import ant
,

”
tr ansitions in the history of religion The question .

therefore is first whether the di fference is so gre at ,

and ne x t whether it is the re al di fference between

fetichism and religion in the polytheistic st age .

The di fference in point of person ality between the

S pirits of fetichism and the gods of polytheism is not
1
3 2 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LIGION

a bsolut e . The fetich

ccording to Dr H addon
,
a .
,

“
posse s se s pe rs onal i ty and will it h as also many ,

hum an ch ar acters I t possesses most of th e hum an

.

p assions anger revenge al so generosity and gr ati

, , ,

tude ; it is within re ach of influence and may be

benevolent is hence to be deprec ated and pl ac ated
, ,

“
and its ai d to be enlisted ( p the fetich is
.

worshipped pr ayed to s acrificed to and t alked

, , ,

with ( p”
.

B ut perh aps it may be s aid th at though th e

, ,

fetich does po ssess perso nality it is only when it ,

h as acquired su ffi cient person ality to enjoy a proper

n ame th at it becomes a god or fetichism p asses ,

into polytheism To this the reply is th at poly

.

theism does not w ait thus deferenti ally on the e vo

l u ti on of proper n ames There w as a period in the
.

evolution of the hum an r ace when men neither h ad

proper n ames of their own nor kn ew their fellows by
proper n ames ; and yet they doubted not their per
s onal i t
y Th
. e simple f a ct is th at he who is t o

receive a n ame whether he be a hum an being or a

—

S piritu al being —
must b e there in order to be n amed .

When he is there he may receive a n ame which h as

lost all me aning as proper n ames at the present d ay
,

h ave gener ally done ; or one which h as a me aning .

 FE TI C H ISM 1 33

A mother may add ress her chil d as John or as “ ”

“ ”
boy but whichever form of address she uses she
, , ,

h as no doubt th at the child h as a person ality The .

f act th at a fetich h as not acquired a proper n ame is

no t a proof th at it h as acquired no person ality ; if it
can ,
as Dr H addon s ays it can b e petted or
.
“
,

ill tre ated with reg ard to its p ast or future b e

-

”
h aviour ( p its person ality is undeni able I f it
. .

“
can be worshipped pr ayed to s acrificed to t alked , , ,

”
with it is as person al as any deity in a p antheon
,
.

I f it h as no proper n ame neither at one time h ad ,

men themselves And H off d ing himself seems dis .

inclined to follow U s e ne r on this point : no i m

“

port ant period he s ays ( p

” “
,
in the history of .

religion c an begin with an empty word The word c an .

”
neither be the beginning nor exist at the beginning .

Fin ally HOffdi ng to enforce the conclusion th at ,

“
polytheism is evolved from fetic hi sm s ays : The ,

influence exerted by worshi p on the life of religious

ide as c an find no more striki n g e x e mpli ficati on th an
in the word god itself : when we study those ety
‘ ’

mol og i e s of this word whi ch from the philologic al ,

point of vi ew appe ar most likely to be correct we

, ,

find the word re ally me ans he to whom s acrifice ‘

”
is m ade or he who is worshipped
,
’ ‘
( p ’
.
1 34 C O M P A R A T I V E R E L I GION

Professor Wilhelm Thomsen considers the first e x

pl an ation the more prob able : I n th at c ase th e re
“

would be a rel ationship between the root O f t he word

‘
g ott a nd
’
g i e s se n
(
‘
to pour ) as also’
b e t ween the
,

G reek x e e w whose root x v the S anskrit hu from

’

, ,

w hich comes hu l a which me ans s acrificed as well

,
‘
,
’

”
as he to whom s acrifices are m ade
‘
( p ’
.

Now if god me ans either he to whom s acrifice

“
,
” “

”
is m ade or he who is wors hi pped we h ave only ,

to enquire by whom the s acrifice is m ade or the wor

shi p p aid according to Professor HOff d i ng in order
, ,

to see the v alue of thi s p hilologic al argument A .

le ading di ff erence between a fetich and a god is th at

s acrifice is m ade and worship p aid to the fetich by
its owner to the god by the community Now
,
.

”
thi s p hi lologic al deriv ation of god throws no light
“ ”
wh atever on the question by whom the god is
worshi pped ; but the content of the p ass age w hi ch
I h ave quoted shows th at Professor HOffding hi m
self here underst ands the worship of a god to be
the worship p aid by the community I f th at is so .
,

and if the function or a function of the being wor

shipped is to gr ant the desires of hi s worshippers ,

then the function of the being worshipped by the

community is to gr ant the desires of the community .
 FE T I CH I SM 1 35

And if th at is the distinguishi ng m ark or a distinguish

ing m ark of a god then the worshi p of a god di ffers
,

toto cae l o from the worship p aid to a fetich whose ,

distinguishi ng m ark is th at it is subservient to the

anti soci al wishes of its owner and is not wors hi pped
-
,

by the community And it is just as impossible to

.

m aint ain th at a god is evolved out of a fetich as it

would b e to argue —
indeed it is arguing —
th at
pr actices destructive of society or soci al welfare
h ave only to b e pushed far enough and they will
prove the s alv ation of society .

I f in the animistic st age when everythi ng th at is

,

is worked by spirits it is possible and desir able for

,

the individu al to g ain hi s individu al ends by the

co oper ation of some spirit it is equ ally possible and
,

more desir ab le for the community to g ain the aid

O f a spirit which will further the ends for the s ake

Of whi ch the community exists But those ends are.

not tr ansient or moment ary neither therefore can

,

”
the spirit who promotes them be a moment ary
god And if we accept HOffding s description of
.
’

the simplest and e arliest m anifest ation of the reli

“
g i ou s spirit a s being belief in a power w hi ch c ares
whether he $man$h as or h as not e x periences which he
v alues we must b e c areful to m ak e it cle ar th at the
,
”
1
3 6 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

power worshipped by a community is worshipped

bec ause he is believed to c are th at the community
should h ave the e x periences which the community
v alues H aving m ade th at stipul ation we may
.
,

accept H Off di ng s further st atement ( p 1 4 7 ) th at

’
.

“
even the moment ary and speci al gods implied the
existence of a personifying tendency and faculty
for although from our point O f V iew a moment ary
,

god is a self contr adictory notion we are quite

-
,

willing to agree th at thi s tendency to personific ation

may be t aken as prim ary and primi tive : religion
from the beginning h as been the se arch after a power
essenti ally person al But th at w ay of conceiving
.

spiritu al powers is not in itself distinctive of or con

fined to religion : it is an intellectu al conception ;
it is the essence of animism and animi sm is not
,

religion To s ay th at an emotion al element also

.

must be present is true ; but neither will th at serve

to m ark off fetichism from religion Fetichism .

also is emotion al in tone : it is in hope th at the

s av age picks up the thing th at may prove to h ave

the fetich power ; and it is with fe ar th at he recog
ni s e s his neighbour s s uhman A god is not merely
’
.

a power conceived of intellectu ally and felt emotion

ally to be a person al power from whom things may

 FE T I CH I S M 1
37

be hoped or fe ared ; he must indeed be a person al

power and be reg arded with hope and fe ar but it is ,

by a community th at he must be so reg arded And .

the community in turni ng to such a power worships

, ,

him with s acrifice : a god is indeed he to whom

s acrifice is m ade and worship p aid by the com
munity with whose interests and whose mor ality
,

—
with whose good in a word he is from the b e
, ,

ginning identified “
.I n the absence of experience
of good as one Of the re alities of life no one H Off
”
, ,

“
ding s ays would ever h ave believed in the goodness
,

of the gods ; and we may ad d it is as interested

”
, ,

in and c aring for the good of the community th at

the god of the community is worshipped I t is in .

the conviction th at he d oes so c are th at religious ,

feeling is rooted ; or as HOff d i ng puts it ( p

, .

“
it is rooted in the need to collect and concentr ate
ourselves to resign ourselves to feel ourselves sup
, ,

ported and c arried by a power r aised above al l

struggle and opposition and beyond al l ch ange .

There we h ave implicit from the beginning th at

, ,

communion with god or striving there after which

, ,

is essenti al to wors hi p I t is faith I t is rest

. . .

I t is the he art s desire An d it is not fetichism

’
.
,

nor is fetichism it .
 P RAY ER

THE physici an if he is to do his work must know

, ,

both a he althy and a dise ased body or org an when he

, ,

sees it He must know the di fference between the

.

two and the symptoms both of he alth and dise ase .

O therwise he is in d anger of trying to cure an org an

whi ch is he althy alre ady in whi ch c ase his reme
dies will simply aggr av ate the dise ase Th at is .

obviously true oi the physici an who seeks to he al the

body and it is equ ally if not so O b viously tru e of
, , ,

the physici an who seeks to minister to a mind or a ,

soul dise ased N ow the mission ary will find th at

,
.
,

the he athen to whom he is to minister h ave the

, ,

h abit of pr ayer ; and the question arises Wh at is ,

to be hi s attitude tow ards it $ He c annot t ake up

the position th at pr ayer is in itself a h abit to be
conde mned ; he is not there to er adic ate the h abit ,

o r to uproot the tendency N either is he there

.

to cre ate the h abit ; it alre ady exists and the wise ,

mi ssion ary will ac knowledge its existence with th ank

fulness His b usi ness is not to te ach his flock to
.

1
38
 P R A YER 1
39

pr ay b ut how to pr ay th at is to s ay for wh at and

, , ,

to whom But even if he thus wisely recognises

.

th at pr ayer is a h abit not to be cre ated but to b e ,

tr ained by him it is still possible for hi m to assume

,

r ashly th at it is simply impossible for a he athen ever

to pray for anything th at is right and therefore , ,

th at it is a mission ary s duty first to insist th at ’

everything for w hi ch a s av age or b arb ari an pr ays

must be condemned as essenti ally irreligious and
wicked I n th at c ase wh at will such a mission
.
,

ary if sent to the Khonds of O riss a s ay when he

, , ,

“
finds them pr aying thus : We are ignor ant of wh at
it is good to ask for You know wh at is good for
.

us. G ive it to us l $ Can he possibly say to his

”

“
flock All your pr ayers all the things th at you pr ay
, ,

for now are wicked ; and your only hope of s alv ation
,

lies in ce asing to pr ay for them $ I f not then he

”
,

must recognise the fact th at it is possible for the

he athen to pr ay and to pr ay for some things th at
,

it is right to pr ay for And he must not only recog

.

nise the fact but he must utilise it N ay $ more he

,
.
,

must not only recognise the fact if it ch ances to

force itself upon him he must go out of his w ay
,

with the deli b er ate purpose of finding out wh at

thi ngs are pr ayed for H e will then find himself in
.
1 40 C O M P A RAT IV E R E LIGION

more intim ate cont act with the soul of the man th an
he can ever att ain to in any other w ay ; and he may
then find th at there are other things for whi ch p e ti
tions are put up which could not be pr ayed for s ave
by a man who h ad a defective or erroneous conce p
tion of Him who alone can answer pr ayer .

B ut it is a blundering unbusinesslike w ay of
,

m an aging things if the mission ary h as to go out to

his work unprep ared in this essenti al m atter and ,

h as to find out these things for himself and per

— ”

h aps not find them out at al l The applied science

of religion should equip him in this respect ; it
should be able to t ake the facts and truths est ab
l i s h e d by the science of religion and apply them to

the purposes of the mission ary But it is a striking

.

e x ample of the youth and imm aturity of the science

.

of religion th at no attempt h as yet been m ade by it

to collect the facts much less to co ordin ate and st ate
,

them scientific ally I f a thing is cle ar when we

.
,

come to think of it in the history of religion it is

, ,

th at the gods are there to be pr ayed to : man worships

them bec ause it is on their knees th at al l things lie .

I t is from them th at man hopes all t hi ngs ; it is in

pr ayer th at man e x presses hi s hopes and desires I t .

is from his pr ayers th at we should be able to find out

 P R A YE R 1 41

wh at the gods re ally are to whom man pr ays Wh at .

is s aid about them in mythology or even in theol

ogy —
is the product of reflection and is in m any
,

c ases demonstr ably di fferent from wh at is given in

consciousness at the moment when man is striving
after communion with the Highest Yet it is from
.

mythology or from the still more reflective and de

,

liber ative e x pression of ritu al of rites and ceremoni es

, ,

th at the science of religion h as sought to infer the

n ature of the gods man worships The whole app a
.

r atus O f religion rites and ceremonies s acrifice and

, ,

alt ars n ature worship and polytheism h as been i n

,
-
,

v e s ti g at e d ; the one thing overlooked h as been the

one thing for the s ake O f which al l the others e x ist ,

the pr ayer in which m an s soul rises or seeks to rise

’
, ,

to G od .

The re ason given by Professor Tylor (P ri mi ti ve

C u l tu re II 3 64 ) for this is not th at the subject is
, ,

unimport ant but th at it is so simple ; so simple

“
and f a mili ar ,
he s ays
,
is the n ature of pr ayer
th at its study does not dem and th at det ail of f act and
argument which must be given to rites in comp ari

son pr actic ally insignific ant ”

. Now it is indeed the
,

c ase th at things which are famili ar may appe ar to be

simple ; b ut it is also the c ase th at sometimes things
1 42 C O M P AR AT IV E R E LIGION

a re considered simple merely bec ause they are

f amili ar and not bec ause th e y are simple The
, .

f act th at they are not so simple as every one h as

a ssumed comes to be suspected when it is discovered

th at people t ake slightly di ff erent views of them .

Such slightly di fferent views may be detected in thi s

c ase .

Professor Hoffd i ng holds th at in the lowest

,

form in whi ch religion m anifests itself religion ,

6‘

appe ars under the guise of desire thus r ang ’

,

ing himself on the side of an opinion mentioned

b y Professor Tylor ( op ci t II 464) th at as reg ards
. .
, , ,

“
the religion of the lower culture in pr ayer the ,

accomplishment of desire is asked for but desire is ,

a s yet limited to person al adv ant age Now st art .

’
,

ing from this position th at pr ayer is the expression

of desire we h ave only to as k whose desire $ th at
, ,

of the individu al or th at of the community $ and

we sh all see th at under the simple and f amili ar
“ ”
phr ase of the accomplishment of desire there
lurks a di fference of V iew which may possibly widen
out into a very wide diff erence of opinion I f we .

appe al to the f acts we may t ake as an inst ance a

,

“
pr ayer uttered in loud uncouth voice of pl aintive ,

piteous tone by one of the O s ages to Woh k ond a

”
,
 P R AYE R 1 43

the M aster of L ife : Woh k ond a pity me I am , ,

very poor ; give me wh at I need ; give me success

ag ainst mi ne enemies th at I may avenge the de ath
,

O f my friends M ay I b e able to t ake sc alps to t ake

.
,

horses $ etc ( Tylor II

”
. SO on the G old
, ,

C o ast a negro in the morning will pr ay He aven $ ,

gr ant th at I may h ave something to e at this d ay ”

“ ”
( i b .
,
not give us this d ay our d aily bre ad ;
or r aising hi s eyes to he aven he will thus address
, ,

the god of he aven G od give me to d ay rice

:

and y ams gold and agries give me sl aves riches

, , ,

and he alth and th at I may be brisk and swift $

”
,

O n the other h and John Tanner (N arrati ve p 4 6)

, ,
.

rel ates th at when Algonquin I ndi ans were setting

ou t in a fleet of fr ail b ark c anoes across L ak e Su

perior the chi ef addressed a pr ayer to the G re at

,

Spirit : You h ave m ade this l ake ; and you h ave

“

m ade us your children ; you can now c ause th at the

,

w ater S h all rem ain smooth while we p ass over in

s afety ”
The chief it will b e observed d id not
.
, ,

e x pressly c all the G re at Spirit our F ather b ut

“ ”
,

he did spe ak of himself and his men as

children I f we cross over to Afric a ag ain we
.
7)
, ,

find the M as ai women pr aying thus ; and b e it

-

O b serve d th at though the first person singul ar is use d ,

1 44 C O M PARAT IV E R E LIGION

it is used by the chorus of women ,

and is plur al in
e ff ect

M y G od , to th e e al one I p r ay

Tha tri ng m y t m b g iv n
O ff s p a o e e e .

Th nly I i nv k
ee o ch d y o e ea a ,

0 m r ni ng t r i n hi g h t h v n
o s a es ea e .

G d f th thu nd r nd th r i n
o o e e a e a ,

G iv e nt my
e ar u pp li nt tr
o i n su a s a .

L r d f th p w r
o o f th e i o e s o e a r,

T th
o I i my d ily pr y
ee ra s e a a e r.

M y G od t h l n I pr y
,
to ee a o e a ,

Wh v u i p i ng w t
os e s a o r s as as s s ee

A nly h i
s o t h r b d i pl y
c o ce s e s s a ,

T hy b l i ng d ily I ntr t
e ss a e ea .

Th h r t wh n I p r y t t h
ou ea es e a o ee,

And li t n t i n thy l m n y
s e es c e e c .

L d f th p w r
or o f th
e i o e s o e a r,

T th
o I i
ee my d ily p r y r
ra s e a a e .

H Th M OLL I S , e a sai ,
p 346
. .

When Professor Tylor s ays th at by the s av age

the accomplishment of desire is asked for b ut ,

de sire is as yet limited to person al adv ant age we ,

must be c areful not to infer th at the only adv ant age

a s av age is c ap able of pr aying for is his own selfish

ad v ant age
. Professor Tylor himself quotes ( II ,
 P R A YE R 1 45

66
3 ) the following pr ayer from t he w ar -
song of a

Del aw are
O t
Gre a Spiri t th e re ab o e , v
Hav e i
p yt on my chi l dre n
A nd my w ife $
v tt tt
Pre e n h a h e y s h all mourn for me $
L e t me s u cce e d in h t i s u nd e r ak t i ng ,

t
Th a I may s l ay my e ne my

A nd b ri ng h ome the t ok e ns of vi t
c ory

T o my d e ar fam l i y nd my f i nd a r e s

T h at w e may re j o i t g th ce o e er .

H v pi t y n m nd p t t my li f
a e o e a ro e c e,

And I w i l l b i ng t h
”
r n ff i ng ee a o er .

Nor is it exclusively for their own person al ad v an

t age th at the M as ai women are concerned when they

pr ay for the s afe return of their sons from the w ars
t
O hou wh o g ave s t, thou to w h om w e pray
t
F or off s p ri ng , ak e not now thy g i f aw ay t .

t t t
0 morni ng s ar, h a s hi ne s t from afar,
B ring b ack our s ons i n s afe ty from the war .

H OL L I S , p 35 1
. .

Nor is it in purely selfish spirit th at the M as ai

a

women pr ay th at their w arriors may h ave the ad

v ant age over all their enemies

O G od of tt
b a l e s , b re ak
T h e powe r of th e foe .
1 46 O P R T IV E R E L I G I ON
C M A A

T h ir c ttl m y w t k
e a e a e a e,

T h i r mig hti st l y l w
e e a o .

S i ng O y m id ns f i
, e a e a r,

F or triu mp h th f o er
’
e oe .

T h i is th tim f
s p e y e or ra e r

S ucce ss ou r ar ms may k now .

M orni ng v ning t s
and e e s ar

T h t i n th h v n g l w
a e ea e s o ,

B k i n th w
re a , as o er ars ,

T h e p ow e r of the foe .

O d w e l l e r, w h e re on hig h
F l us h e s at d aw n th e s now ,

0 Cl ou d G od , b re ak , w e cry,
”
T h e p ow e r of th e foe .

I b , p 35 2
. . .

Ag ain the r ain th at is pr ayed for by the M ang anj a

,

of L ake Ny ass a is an adv ant age indeed but one ,

enjoyed by the community and pr ayed for by the

community They m ade O fferings to the Supreme
.

“
Deity th at he might give them r ain and the ,

priestess dropped the me al h andful by h andful on

the ground e ach time c alling in a high pitched voice
,
-
,
 P R A YE R 1 47

‘
He ar thou O G od and sen d r ain $ and the
, ,
’

assembled people responded cl apping their h ands

,

softly and intoning ( they alw ays intone their pr ayers ) ,

‘
He ar thou O G od ( Tylor p
, ,
.

The appe al then to f acts shows th at it is with $

the desires of the community th at the god of the
community is concerned and th at it is by a re pre
,

se nt ati v e of the community th at those desires are

O ffered up in pr ayer and th at the community may

,

join in The appe al to f acts shows also th at an

.
, ,

individu al may put up individu al petitions as when ,

a Y ebu will pr ay : G od in he aven protect me from

“

sic kness and de ath G od give me h appiness and

.

wisdom .
”
But we may s afely infer th at the only
pr ayers th at the god Of the community is e x pected
to h arken to are pr ayers th at are consistent with the
interests and welfare of the community .

From th at point of V iew we must refuse to give

“
more th an a gu arded assent to the opinion th at
pr ayer appe ared in the religion of the lower culture ,

”
but th at in this its e arlier st age it w as unethic al
( Tylor,
P r ayer obviously does appe ar in the

religion of the lower culture but to s ay th at it

,

there is unethic al is to m ake a st atement which re

quires defini ng The st atement me ans wh at Pro
.
1 4 8 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LIGION

fe ssor Tylor e x presses l ater on in the words : I t “

sc arcely appe ars as though any s av age pr ayer ,

au thentic ally n ative in i t s origin were ever directed

,

to Obt ain mor al goodness or to as k p ardon for

”
mor al sin ( p . But it might be mi sunderstood
to me an th at among s av ages it w as custom ary or
possible to pr ay for things recognised by the s av age
himself as wrong and condemned by the com
,

munity at l arge I n the first pl ace however the

.
, ,

god of the community simply as being the god of the

community would not toler ate such pr ayers N ext .
,

the r ange and e x tent of s av age mor ality is less ext en

sive th an it is or at any r ate th an it ought to be
in our d ay ; and though we must recognise and
at the right time insist upon the di fference th at ought
,

not to m ake us close our eyes to the f act th at the

s av age does pr ay to do the thi ngs which s av age
mor ality holds it incumbent on hi m to do for in ,

st ance to fight br avely for the good of his wife his ,

children and his tribe to c arry out the duty of

, ,

a venging murder And if he pr ays for we alth he

.

also pr ays for wisdom ; if he pr ays th at hi s god may

deliver hi m from sickness th at shows he is hum an

,

r ather th an th at he is a low type of hum anity .

I t would seem then th at though in religions of low

, ,
 P R A YE R 1 49

culture we meet religion under the guise of desire ,

we also find th at religion m akes a distinction b e

tween desires ; there are desires which may be
expressed to the god of the community and desires ,

w hi ch may not Further though it is in the he art

.
,

of a person and an individu al th at desire must origi

n ate it does not follow th at pr ayer origin ates in
,

individu al desire To say so we must assume th at

.
,

the s ame desire c annot possibly origin ate simul

t ane ou sl y in di ff erent persons . But th at is a p atently
erroneous assumption : in time O f w ar the desire ,

for victory will spring up simult aneously in the

he arts of al l the tribe ; in time of drought the ,

pr ayer for r ain will ascend from the he arts of al l

the people ; at the time of the sowing Of seed a pr ayer
for the ki ndly fruits of the e arth may b e uttered
”

b y every memb er of the community Now it is .

precisely these desires which being desires must

,

origin ate in individu al souls yet being desires of

,

every individu al in the community are the desires

of the community th at are the desires which t ake
,

the form of pr ayer O ffered by the community or its

represent ative to the god of the community Anti .

soci al desires c annot be expressed by the community

or s anctioned by religion . Pr ayer is the essenti al
I SO C O MP AR A T IV E R E L I GION

e x pression of true soci alism ; and the spirit which

prompts i t is and h as alw ays been the moving spirit
of soci al progress .

P rofessor Tylor noticing the ,

extreme develop
ment of mech anic al r e ligion the pr ayer mill of the
,
-

Tibet an B uddhists suggests th at it may perh aps

,
“

le ad us to form an Opinion of l arge applic ation in

the study of religion and superstition ; n amely th at ,

the theory of pr ayers may expl ain the origin of

” “
ch arms C h arm formul ae he s ays
.
-
,
are in very
,

m any c ases actu al pr ayers and as such are inte lli

,

g ib l e .Where they are mere verb al forms producing ,

their e ffect on n ature and man by some unexpl ained

process may not they or the types they h ave been
,

modelled on h ave been origin ally pr ayers since ,

( P C II
”
dwindled into mystic sentences $ . .
,

3 7 2 N ow if this ,
suggestion of P rofessor
T yl or s be correct it will follow th at as ch arms and
’
,

spells are degr aded surviv als of pr ayer SO m agic ,

gener ally of which ch arms and spells are but one

—

dep artment is a degr ad ation of religion Th at

— .

in m any c ases ch arms and spells are surviv als of

pr ayer — formul ae from which all spirit of religion
h as entirely ev apor ate d al l students of the science

of religion would now admit Th at pr ayers may .

 P R A YE R 1 5 1

stiffen into tr adition al formul ae and then become

,

v ain repetitions which may actu ally be unintelligible

to those who utter them and so be conceived to
,

“
h ave a force which is purely m agic al and a n ature
pr actic ally assimil ated more or less to th at of
”
ch arms is a f act which c annot be denied .

B ut when once the truth h as been admitted th at

pr ayers may p ass into spells the possibility is sug
,

gested th at it is out of spells th at pr ayer h as

origin ated M ercury r aised to a high temper ature
.

becomes red precipit ate ; and red precipit ate e x posed

to a still gre ater he at becomes mercury ag ain Spells .

may be the origin O f pr ayers if pr ayers show a

,

tendency to rel apse into spells Th at possibility fits

.

in either with the theory th at m agic preceded re

l ig ion or still more ex actly with the theory th at
religion simply is m agic r aised so to spe ak to a
, ,

higher mor al temper ature We h ave therefore to

.

consider the possibility th at the proces s of evolutio n

h as been from spell to pr ayer ( R R M arett F ol k . .
,

L ore X V 2 pp 1 3 2
, ,
. and let us begin the

consider ation by observing th at the reverse p ass age

from pr ayer to spell is only possible on the con
—

dition th at religion ev apor ates entirely in the process .

The pr ayer does not become a ch arm until the

1 5 2 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LI G ION

r e ligion h as dis appe ared entire ly f rom it : a ch arm

therefore is th at in which no religion is and out of ,

which conseque ntly no r e ligion c an be e x tr act e d .

I f then pe r i mp os s i bi l e it could be demonstr ated

, ,

th at there w as a period in the history of m anki nd ,

when ch arms and m agic e x isted and religion w as ,

utterly unknown ; if it be argu e d th at the spirit of

religion when at length it bre athed upon m ankind
, ,

tr ansformed spells into pr ayers still al l th at would

—

then be m aint ained is th at spoken formul ae which

were spells were followed by other formul ae which
are the very opposite of spells M ust we not how
.
,

ever go one step further and admit th at one and

,

the s ame form of words may be pr ayer and religion

when bre athed in one spirit and v ain repetition and
,

mere m agic when uttered in another $ L e t us admit

th at the di fference between pr ayer and spell lies in
the diff erence of the spirit inspiring them ; and then
we sh all see th at the di ffere nce is essenti al fund a ,

ment al as little to be ignored as it is impossible

,

to bridge .

The formul a used by the person employing it to

e x press his desire may or may not in itself su ffice to
S how whether it is religious in intent and v alue .

Thus in West Afric a the women O f F rami n d ance

 P RA YE R 1
53

and sing ,
’

O ur husb ands h ave gone to Ash antee

l and ; may they sweep their enemies o ff the f ace
of the e arth ( Fr azer G ol de n B ou g h I ,
We ,
2
,

may comp are the song sung in time of w ar by the

M as ai women : O G od to whom I pr ay for off ,

S pring may our children return hither

,
”
( Hollis ,

p. and there seems no re ason why since the ,

M as ai song is religious the Frami n song may not be

,

reg arded as religious also But we h ave to remember .

th at both pr ayers and spells h ave a setting of their

own : the desires which they e x press m anifest them
selves not only in wh at is s aid but in wh at is done ;
and when we enquire wh at the Framin women
,

do whilst they S ing the words quoted above we find ,

th at they d ance with brushes in their h ands The .

brushes are quite as essenti al as the words I t .

is therefore suggested th at the whole ceremony is

m agic al th at the sweeping is symp athetic m agic
,

and the song is a spell The words e x pl ain wh at the

.

action is intended to e ff ect just as in N ew C aledoni a ,

when a man h as kindled a smoky fire and h as

“
performed cert ain acts he invokes hi s ancestors ,

and s ays Sun $ I do this th at you may be burning

,
‘

”
hot and e at up al l the clouds in the sky
, ( Fr azer ’
,

ib .
,
Ag ain amongst the M as ai in time of
,
1 54 C O M P A RAT I VE R E LIGION

drought a ch arm c alled ol k or a is thrown into -

a fire ;
the old me n encircle the fire and Sing :

G od of r i n cl u d l k
th e a -
t hi
o ,
S a e ou r rs t,

W k n w thy f
e o x t nd i ng p w r
ar -e e o e s,

A h r d sm n l d th ir k i n t d i nk
S e e ea e e o r ,

R fr h
e es w i th thy
us li ng h w r c oo s o e s .
”

H O LL I S , p 3 48
. .

I f the Ol kor a whi ch is thrown into the fir e m akes

-

it rise in clouds of smoke resembling the r ain ,

clouds which are desir e d then here too the cere ,

mony t aken as a whole presents the appe ar ance

of a m agic al rite accomp anied by a spoken spell .

I t is true th at in this c ase the ceremony is re e nforced

by an appe al to a god just as in the N ew C aledoni an
,

c ase it is re e nforced by an appe al to ancestor wors hi p .

But this may be e x pl ained as showing th at here we

h ave m agic and ch arms being gr adu ally supersede d
by religion and pr ayer ; the old formul a and the Ol d
rite are in process of being suff used by a new spirit ,

the spirit of religion which is the very neg ation and

,

ultim ately the destruction of the Ol d spirit of m agic .

Before accepting this interpret ation however , ,

which is intended to Show the priority of m agic to

religion we may notice th at it is not the only inter
,

p re t ati on of whi ch the f acts are susceptible I t is .

 P R A YE R 1 55

b ased on the assumption th at the words uttered are

intended as an expl an ation of the me aning of the
acts performed I f th at assumption is correct then
.
,

the performer of the ceremony is e x pl aining its me an

ing and intention to somebody To whom $ I n the .

c ase of the N ew C aledoni an ceremony to the an ,

ce stral spirits ; in the c ase of t h e M as ai old men ,

to the god Thus the religious aspect of the cere

.
,

mony appe ars after all to be an essenti al p art of the

ceremony and not a new element in an Ol d rite
,
.

And then we may consistently argue th at the Fra

, ,

min women who S ing “

O ur husb ands h ave gone
,

to Ash antee l and ; may they sweep their enemies

”
O ff the f ace of the e arth are either still conscious ,

th at they are addressing a pr ayer to their n ative

god ; or th at if they are no longer conscious of the
,

fact they once were and wh at w as origin ally

, ,

pr ayer h as become by v ain repetition a mere spell .

All this is on the assumption th at in these cere

monies the words are intended to expl ain the me an
,

ing Of the acts performed and therefore to expl ain ,

it to somebody per adventure he will underst and

,

and gr ant the performer of the ceremony his he art s

’

desire But as the consequences of the assumption

.
,

do not favour the theory th at pr ayer must be pre

1 5 6 C O M P A R AT IV E R E LIGION

ceded by spell l e t us disc ard t h e assump tion th at the

,

words e x pl ain the me aning of t h e acts performe d .

L e t us consider the possibility th at perh aps the

actions w hich are gone through are me ant to e x pl ain

the words and m ake them more forcible I t is unde .

ni able th at in moments of emotion we e x press our

selves by gesture and the pl ay of our fe atures as
well as by our words ; indeed in re ading a pl ay we
,

are apt to miss the full me aning of the words simply

b ec ause they are not assisted and interpreted by the

actor s gestures and fe atures
’
I f we t ake up this
.

position th at the things done are expl an atory of the

,

words uttered and re e nforce them then the sweeping ,

which is acted by the Pramin women ag ain is not

m agic al ; it simply emph asises the words “
may ,

they sweep their enemies off the face of the e arth ,

and shows to the power appe aled to wh at it is th at is

desired The smoke sent up by the N ew C aledoni an

.

ancestor worshipper or the M as ai old men is a w ay

of indic ating the clouds which they wish to attr act

or avert respectively An equ ally cle ar c ase comes
.

from the Ke i I sl ands : When the w arriors h ave

“

dep arted the women return indoors and bring out

,

cert ain b askets cont aining fruits and stones These .

fruits and stones they anoint and pl ace on a bo ard ,

 P R A YE R 1 57

murmuring as they do so O lor d sun moon let ,

‘
, ,

the bullets rebound from our husb ands brothers , ,

betrothed and other rel ations just as r aindrops re

, ,

bound from these objects which are sme ared with

”
oil ( Fr azer op ci t p
’
,
. .
,
I t is I think perfectly
.
, ,

re ason able to reg ard the act performed as e x pl an a

tory of the words uttered and of the thing desired ;
the women themselves expl ain to their lords the sun ,

and moon with the precision n atur al to women

-
,

when e x pl aining wh at they w ant ex actly how they ,

w ant the bullets to bounce off j ust like r aindrops , .

Dr Fr azer however from whom I h ave quoted this

.
, ,

illustr ation not h aving perh aps considered the pos

,

si bi l i ty th at the acts performed may be expl an atory

of the words is compelled to e x pl ain the action as

,

“
m agic al : in this custom the ceremony of anointing
stones in order th at the bullets may recoil from the
men like r aindrops from the stones is a piece of pure
symp athetic or imit ative m agic He is therefore .
’

compelled to suggest th at the pr ayer to the sun is a

pr ayer th at he will give e ffect to the ch arm and is ,

perh aps a l ater addition B ut independently of the

.

possibility th at the actions performed are expl an a

tory of the words or r ather th at wor d s and actions
,

b oth are inten d e d to m ak e cle ar to the sun precisely

1 5 8 C O MP ARA T IV E R E LIGION

wh at the petition is wh at tells ag ainst Dr Fr azer s sug

, .
’

gestion is th at the women w ant the bullets to bo unce O ff ,

and it is the power of the god to which they appe al

and on w hich they rely for the fulfilment of their pr ayer .

There is however a further consider ation which

, ,

we should perh aps t ake into account M an when .

,

he h as a desire which he wishes to re alise —

and ,

the whole of our life is spent in trying to re alise

wh at we wish —
t akes al l the steps which experience
,

S hows to be necess ary or re ason suggests ; and when ,

he h as done everything th at he can d o he may still ,

feel th at nothing is cert ain in this life and the thing ,

may not come off Under those circumst ances he

.

may and often does pr ay th at success may attend

, ,

his e fforts N ow Dr Fr azer in the second edition

. .
,

of his Gol de n B oug h wishing to S how th at the perio d

,

of religion w as preceded by a non religious period in -

the history of m ankind suggests t h at at first man ,

h ad no ide a th at his attempts to re alise his desires

“ ”
could f ail and th at it w as his t ardy reco g nitio n
,

of the f act th at led him to religion This t ardy .

recognition he s ays prob ably proceede d very

,
“
,

slowly and required long ages for its more or less

,

perfect accomplishment For the recognition of

.

man s powerlessness to influence the course of

’
 P R A YE R 1 59

n ature on a gr an d sc ale must h ave b een gr adu al

( I
,
I would suggest however th
,
at it c annot ,

h ave t aken long ages for s av age man to discover

“ ”

th at his wishes and his pl ans did not alw ays come
off .I t is I think going too far to im agine th at
, ,

for long ages man h ad no ide a th at his attempts to

re alise his d esires could f ail I f religion arises as
.
,

Dr Fr azer suggests when man recognises his own

.
,

we aknes s and his own powerlessness often to e ffect , ,

wh at he most d esires then man in his most primi

,

tive and most helpless condition must h ave been

most re ady to recognise th at there were powers
other th an himself and to desire th at is t o pr ay
, ,

for their assist ance Doub tless it would be at the

,
.

gre ater crises times of pestilence drought f amine

, , ,

and w ar th at his pr ayers would be most insistent ;

,

b ut it is in the period of s av agery th at famine is most

frequent and drought most to be fe ared Ag ainst .

them he t akes al l the me asures known to him al l ,

the pr actic al steps which n atur al science as under ,

stoo d by him can suggest N ow his theory and

,
.

pr actice include m any things which though they are ,

in l ater d ays reg arde d as unc anny and m agic al are ,

to him the ordin ary n atur al me ans Of pro d ucing the

e ffects which he d esires B ut when he h as t ak en all
.
1 60 C O M P A R A T IV E RE LIGION

th e steps which pr actic al re ason suggests and e x ,

rie nce of the p ast a pproves s av age man h ar assed

p e , ,

by the dre ad of appro aching drought or f amine may ,

still bre athe out the M ang anj a pr ayer He ar thou , ,

O G od and send r ain

,
”
When however he does
.
, ,

so it is I suggest doubly erroneous to infer th at

, , ,

this pr ayer t akes the pl ace of a spell or th at ap art

from the pr ayer the acts performed are and origi ,

n ally were m agic al These acts may be b ased on the

,
.

principle th at l ik e produces like and may be performed

as the ordin ary n atur al me ans for producing the e ff ect
, ,

which h ave nothing m agic al about them And they are .

accomp anied by a pr ayer which is not a mere expl an a

tion or st atement of the purpose with which the acts are

performed but is the expression of the he art s desire
,
’
.

No a pri ori proofs of any cogency therefore h ave , ,

been adduced by D r Fr azer and none therefore are

.
,

likely to be produced by any one else to show th at ,

there w as ever a period in the history of man when

pr ayers and religion were unknown to him The .

question rem ains whether any actu al inst ances are

known to the science of religion Unfortun ately as .
,

I pointed out at the beginning of this lecture SO ,

neglected by the science of religion h as been the

subject of pr ayer th at even now we are sc arcely
 P R A YE R 1 61

a ble to go beyond the st atement m ade more th an a

qu arter of a century ag o by P rofessor T yl or th at ,

“
at low levels of civilis ation there are m any r aces

who distinctly admit the existence of spirits but are ,

”
not cert ainly known to pr ay to them even in thought

( P C. II . P rofessor
,
T yl o r s st atement ’
is pro
perly gu arded : there are r aces not cert ainly known
to pr ay The possibility th at they may yet be dis
.

covered to m ake pr ayers is not excluded .

Now if we turn to one of the lowest levels of

,

culture th at of the Austr ali an bl ack fellows we

, ,

S h all find th at there is much doubt amongst students

whether the aborigines h ave consciously any

”
form of religion wh atever ( Howitt N ati v e Tri be s ,

of S E A
. u s trali a
.
) a n d in ,
southe ast Austr ali a

M r Howitt t hi nks it c annot be alleged th at they

.

h ave though their be l iefs are such th at they

,

might e asily h ave developed into an actu al religion

( p . Now one of the tribes of southe ast Aus
t ral i a is th at of the Dieri With them r ain is very
.

import ant for periods of drought are frequent ;

,

and r ain m aki ng ceremonies are considered of

U
-

much consequence ( p ’
The
. ceremonies
are symbolic : there is bloo d to symbolise the
” “
r ain and two l arge stones representing g athering
M
1 62 C O MP AR AT IV E R E LIGION

clouds pres aging r ain just as th e N ew C aledoni an

,

sends up clouds of smoke to symbolise r ain clouds -

,

and the M as ai we h a v e conjec t ured thro w o l kor a

,
-
,

into the fire for the s ame purpose But the N ew .

C aledoni an not only performs the actions prescribed

for the rite he also invokes the spirits of hi s ah
,

ce s tors ; and the M as ai not only go through the

proper d ance but c all upon the god of the r ain cloud
,
-
.

The Dieri however ought to be content with their

, ,

sym b olic or symp athetic m agic and not O ffer up

any pr ayer But being un aw are of thi s f act they
.
, ,

do pr ay : they c all upon the r ain m ak ing M u ra

“ -

muras to give them power to m ake a he avy r ain

f all crying Out in loud voices the impoverished
,

st ate of the country and the h alf st arved condition

,
-

of the tribe in consequence of the di fficulty in pro

,

”
curing food in su fficient qu antity to preserve life
( p . The M u ra mu ras seem to be ancestr al—

spirits like those invoked by the N ew C aledoni an

,
.

I f we turn to the Eu ahl ayi tribe of northwestern

N ew South W ales we find th at at the B oorah rites
,

a pr ayer is off ered to B y ame e a s ki ng him to let

“
,

the bl acks live long for they h ave been f aithful

,

to his ch arge as Shown by the Observ ance of the

”
B oorah ceremony ( L P arker T he E u a hl.ay i ,
 P R A YE R 1 63

Tri be , p . Th at is the pr ayer of the community

to B yame e and is in conformity with wh at we h ave
,

noted before vi z th at it is with the desires of the

,
.

community th at the god of the community is con

cerned Another pr ayer the n ature of w hi ch is not
.
,

st ated by M rs Parker by whom the inform ation is

.
,

given us is put up at funer als presum ably to

, ,

B y ame e by the community or its represent ative .

M rs Parker adds
.
“
Though we say th at actu ally:

these people h ave but two attempts at pr ayers ,

one at the gr ave and one at the inner B oorah ring ,

I t hi nk perh aps we are wrong When a man i n .

vokes ai d on the e ve of b attle or in his hour of ,

d anger and need ; when a wom an croons over her

b aby an inc ant ation to keep hi m honest and true ,

and th at he S h all be sp ared in d anger surely these ,

croonings are of the n ature Of pr ayers born of the

s ame element ary fr ame of mind as our more el abo
r ate lit anies As an inst ance of the croonings
.
’

M rs Parker gives the mother s song over her b ab y

.
’
,

as soon as it begins to cr awl

Ki nd b e ,
D O not s e al ,t
D o not tou ch wh at to anoth e r be long s,
Le a v e all s u ch al one ,

Ki nd b e .
1 64 C O M P A RAT I V E R E LIGION

These inst ances may suffi ce to Show th at it would

no t h ave b e en s afe to infer a ye ar or two ag o from , ,

the f act th at th e Austr ali ans wer e not known to pr ay ,

th at therefore pr ayer w as unknown to them I ndeed .

,

we may s afely go f arther and sur mise th at other

inst ances besides those noted re ally exi st though ,

they h ave not been observed or if Observed h ave

not been understood Among the northern tribes .

of centr al Austr ali a rites are performed to secure

food just as they are performed by the Dieri to
,

a vert drought The Dieri rites are accomp anied

.

by a pr ayer as we h ave seen The Kai ti sh rites

,
.

to promote the growth of gr ass are accomp anie d

“
by the singing O f words which h ave no me aning ,

”
known to the n atives O f the present d ay ( Spencer
and G illen N orthe rn Tri be s p
,
Amongst ,
.

the M ar a tribe the r ain m aki ng rite consists Simply

-

“ ”
in singing the w ater drin ki ng it and spitting it ,

out in all directions I n the Anul a tribe dugongs

.
“

”
are a f avourite article of food and if the n atives ,

“
desire to bring them out from the rocks they can ,

”
do so by Singing and throwing sticks at the rocks
‘ ’

( i b. pp
, 3 3
1 . I t is re
,
ason able to suppose th at
“ ”
in al l these c ases the Singing is now merely a
ch arm B ut if we remember th at pr ayers when
.
,
 P R A YE R 65

their me aning is forgotten p ass by v ain repetitions

,

into mere ch arms we may also re ason ably suppose

,

th at these Austr ali an ch arms are degr aded pr ayers ;

and we S h all be confirmed in t hi s supposition to

some extent by the f act th at in the K ai ti sh tribes

the words sung h ave no me aning known to the
n atives of the present d ay I f the me aning h as
.
’

ev apor ated the religion may h ave ev apor ated with

,

“ ”
it Th at the rites of w hi ch the S inging is an
.
,

essenti al p art h ave now become m agic al and are

,

used and understood to be pr actised purely to pro

mote the supply of dugongs and other articles of
food may be freely admi tted ; but it is uns afe to
,

infer th at the purpose with whi ch the rites continue

to be pr actised is the whole of the purpose with
which they were origin ally performed I f the .

“ ”
me aning of the singing h as p assed entirely aw ay ,

the me aning of the rites may h ave su ffered a ch ange .

At the present d ay the rite is understood to incr ease

the supply of dugongs or other articles of food .

But it may h ave been used origin ally for other

purposes Presum ably rites of a simil ar ki nd
.
,

cert ainly of some kind are pr actised by the Aus

,

trali ans who h ave for their totem the blow fl y the -
,

w ater beetle or the evening st ar But they do not

-
,
.
1 66 C O MP A RAT IV E R E LIGION

e at fli e s or beetles Th e ir origin al purpose in choos

.

ing the evening st ar c annot h av e be e n to incre ase

i t s number . N or can th at h ave b e e n the object of
choosing the mosquito for a totem But if the .

Object of the rites is not to incre ase the number of

mosquitoes fl ies and beetles it need not in the first
, , ,

inst ance h ave been the Object with which the rites
were celebr ated in the c ase of other totems .

L e t us now return to Professor T yl o r s st atement

’

th at at low levels of civilis ation there are m any

r aces who distinctly ad mit the e xistence of spirits ,

but are not cert ainly known to pr ay to them even

in thought . The number of those r aces who are
not k nown to pr ay is being reduced as we h ave seen
,
.

And I think we may go even f arther th an th at and

s ay th at where the existence of spirits is not merely

believed in but is utilised for the purpose of est ab

,

l i s hi ng perm anent rel ations between a community

and a spirit we may s afely infer th at the community
,

O ffers pr ayer to the spirit even though the f act

,

may h ave esc aped the notice of tr avellers The .

re ason why we may infer it is th at at the lower levels

of civilis ation we meet with religion in H Off ding s ,
’

“
words in the guise O f desire
,
”
We may put the
.

s ame truth in other words and s ay th at reli g ion is

 P RA YE R 1 67

from the b eginning pr actic al Such pr ayers as are .

known to us to be put up by the lowest r aces are

alw ays pr actic al : they may be definite petitions

for definite goods such as h arvest or r ain or victory

in time of w ar ; or they may be gener al petitions
“
such as th at Of the Khonds : We are ignor ant of
what it is good for us to ask for You know wh at .

is good for us G ive it us .

”
But in any c ase wh at
.

the god of a community is there for is to promote

the goo d of the community I t is bec ause the s av age
.

h as petitions to put up th at he believes there are

powers who can gr ant his petitions Pr ayer is the .

very root of religion When the s av age h as t aken

.

every me asure he knows of to produce the result he

desires he then goes on to pr ay for the r ainfall he
,

“
desires crying out in a loud voice the impoverished
,

st ate of the country and the h alf st arved condition -

Of the tri b e ”
. I t is true th at it is in moments of
stress p articul arly if not solely th at the s av age turns
, ,

to his go d —
and the s ame may b e s aid of m any

of us but it is with confidence and hope th at he

-

turns to him I f he h ad no confidence and no hope

.
,

he would o ff er no pr ayers But he h as hope he h as

.
,

faith ; and every time he pr ays his he art s ays if his ,

wor d s d o not in Thee L ord do we put our trust

“
, ,
”
,
.
1 68 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LIG ION

Th at p r ayer is the essence the very b re ath of , ,

religion without whi ch it dies is shown by the

, ,

f act th at amongst the very lowest r aces of m ankind

we find frequent tr aditions of the exi stence of a
high god or supreme being the cre ator of the world ,

and the f ather of m anki nd The numerous tr aces .

of t hi s dying tr adition h ave been collected by the

untiring energy and the unriv alled knowledge of
M r Andrew L ang in his book The M a ki ng of
.
,

Re l i g i on I n West Afric a Dr N ass au ( F e ti chi sm

. .

i n We s t Afri ca pp 3 6 ff )
“ ”
hundreds of times
,
. .

( p .
3 7) h as found th at they know of a Being
superior to themselves of whom they themselves , ,

he s ays inform me th at he is the M aker and the

“
,

”
F ather Wh at is ch ar acteristic of the belief of
.

the s av ages in this god is th at in Dr N ass au s ,

.
’

“
words it is an accepted belief but it does not Often
, ,

influence their life G od is not in al l their thought

. .
’

I n pr actice they give Him no worship ”

The belief .

is in fact a dying tr adition ; and it is dying bec ause

pr ayer is not o ffered to this remote and tr adition al
god I s ay th at the belief is a dying tr adition and
.
,

I s ay so bec ause its elements which are all found ,

present and active where a community believes

in pr ays to and worshi ps the god of the community
, , ,
 P RA YE R 1 69

are found p arti ally but only p arti ally present where
, ,

the belief survives but as a tr adition Thus for .

,

inst ance where the belief is fully oper ative the god
, ,

of the community s anctions the mor ality of the

community ; but sometimes where the belief h as
become merely tr adition al this tr adition al god is
,

supposed to t ake no interest in the community and

exercises no ethic al influence over the community .

Thus in West Afric a Ny ankupon is ignored

, ,
“

r ather th an worshipped ”
I n the And am an I sl ands
.
,

on the other h and whe re the god Pul ug a is still

,

angered by sin or wron g doing he is pitiful to those

-
,

in p ain or distress and sometimes deigns to a fford

relief (L ang p 2 1 2 quoting M an $ A I X I I
”
, ,
. .
,

Ag ain where the belief in the god of the

,

community is fully oper ative the occ asions on ,

which the pr ayers of the community are o ffered are

also the occ asions on which s acrifice is m ade .

Where s acrifice and pr ayers are not O ffered the ,

b elief may still for a time survive at is does among ,

the Fuegi ans They m ake no s acrifice and as

.
,

far as is known offer no pr ayers ; but to kill a man

,

brings down the wr ath of their god the big man in ,

“
the woods : Rain come down snow come down , ,

h ail come down wind blow blow ver y much blow

, , , .
1
7 0 C O M P ARA T IV E R E L I GI ON

Very to kill man Big man in woods no like

b ad .

”
it he very angry ( L ang p 1 8 8 quoting Fitzroy
, , .
, ,

II ,
But when s acrifice and pr ayer ce ase ,

the ultim ate outcome is th at which is found amongst

the West Afric an n atives who as Dr N ass au tells , ,
.

us ( p s ay with reg ard to A nz am who m they

.
,

“
admit to be their C re ator and F ather Why should ,

we c are for him $ He does not help nor h arm us .

I t is the spirits who can h arm us whom we fe ar

”
and worship and for whom we c are
, Who the
spirits are Dr N ass au does not say b ut they must
.
,

be either the other gods of the pl ace or the fetich

spirits And the re ason why Anz am is no longer
.

believed to help or h arm the n atives is ob vi ously

th at from some c ause or other there is now no
, ,

longer any est ablished form of worship O f hi m .

The community of which he w as origin ally the go d

may h ave broken up or more prob ably may h ave
,

been broken up with the result th at the congreg a

,

tion which met to o ff er pr ayer and s acrifice to Anzam

w as sc attered ; and the memory of him alone
survives N othing would be more n atur al then
.
, ,

th an th at the n atives when asked by Dr N ass au

,
.

“ ”
Why do you not worship him $ ( p S hould .

invent a re ason vi z th at it is no use worshi pping

,
.
 P R A YE R 1 7 1

him now —
the truth being th at the form of wor
ship h as perished for re asons now no longer present
to the n atives mind I n any c ase when pr ayers
’
.
,

ce ase to be O ffered —
whether bec ause the com
munity is broken up or bec ause some new qu arter
is discovered to whi ch pr ayers can be O ffered with
gre ater hope of success when pr ayers for any —
,

re ason do ce ase to be O ffered to a god the worship

, ,

of him begins to ce ase also for the bre ath of life ,

h as dep arted from it .

I n t hi s lecture as my subject is primitive religion

, ,

I h ave m ade no attempt to tr ace the history of

pr ayer f arther th an the highest point which it re aches
in the lower levels of religion Th at is the point .

“
re ached by the Khond pr ayer : We are ignor ant
of wh at it is good to ask for You know wh at is .

good for us G ive it us

. Th at is also the highest .

point re ached by the most religious mind amongst

the ancient G reeks : Socr ates pr ayed the gods simply
for things good bec ause the gods knew best wh at
,

is good (X e n M e m I iii
.
,
The gener al impres
.
, , ,

sion left on one s mi nd by the pr ayers o ffered in

’

this st age of religious development is th at man is

“ ”
here and the gods are there But there is —
.

such a long w ay off And yet far Off as it is man

.
, ,
1 7 2 C O M P A RAT IV E R E LIGION

never c ame to think it w as so far o ff th at the gods

could not he ar The possibili ty of m an s entering
.
’

into some sort of communic ation with them w as

alw ays present N ay $ more a communi ty of
.
,

interests between him and them w as postul ated

the gods were to promote the interests of the com
munity and man w as to serve the gods O n oc
,
.

c asions when s acrifice w as m ade and pr ayer w as

o ffered the worshippers entered into the presence
,

o f G od and communion with Him w as sought ; but

,

stress w as l aid r ather on the s acrifice O ff ered th an

on the pr ayers sent up The communion at whi ch
.

anim al s acrifice aimed may h ave been gross at times ,

and at others mystic ; but it w as the s acrifice r ather

th an the pr ayer which accomp anied it th at w as

reg arded as essenti al to the communion desired as ,

the me ans of bridging the g ap between man here

and the gods there I f however the g ap w as to be
.
, ,

bridged a new revel ation w as necess ary one re

, ,

ve aling the re al n ature of the s acrifice required by

G od and of the communion desired by man And
,
.

th at revel ation is m ade in O ur L ord s Pr ayer ’

.

With the most e arnest and unfeigned desire to use

the theory of evolution as a me ans of ordering the
f acts of the history of religion and of en abling us
 P R A YE R 1
73

so far as it can en able u s to underst and them

—
,

one is bound to notice as a f act th at the theory of

evolution is un able to account for or e x pl ain the
revel ation m ade in O ur L ord s Pr ayer of the spirit
,
’
,

which is both hum an and divine I t is the be am .

of light w hi ch when turned on the d arkness of the

,

p ast en ables us to see whither man with hi s pr ayers

,

and his s acrifices h ad been blindly striving the pl ace ,

where he f ain would be I t is the surest be acon

.

the mission ary c an hold out to those who are still

in d ar kness and who S how by the f act th at they
pr ay —
i f only for r ain for h arvest and victory
, ,

over al l their enemies th at they are b attling with

the d ar k ness and th at they h ave not turned entirely
aw ay from the light of His counten ance who is

never at any time far from any one of us Their .

he art wit hi n them is re ady to be ar witness Re .

“
l i g i on is present in them if only under the guise of
,

” ”
desire ; but it is the desire of all n ations for
w hi ch they ye arn .

There are H Offding s ays

,
two tendencies in
,

the n ature of religious feeling : on the one h and

there is the need to collect and concentr ate our
selves to resign ourselves to feel ourselves sup
, ,

porte d and c arried by a power r aised above all

1
74 C O M P AR AT IV E R E LIGIO N

s truggle and opposition and beyond al l ch ange .

But within the religious consciousness another need

m akes itself felt the need of feeling th at in the
,

midst of the struggle we h ave a fellow struggler at -

our side a fellow struggler who k nows from hi s own

,
—

”
experience wh at it is to suff er and meet resist ance
T h P h i l os op hy of Re l i g i on Between these
( e ,

two tendencies H Offdi ng discovers an opposition

“ ”
or contr adiction an antinomy of religious feeling
, .

But it is precisely bec ause C hristi anity alone of al l

religions recognises both needs th at it tr anscends
the antinomy The antinomy is ind eed purely
.

intellectu al Hoffd ing himself s ays

. only when
,

recollection coll ation and comp arison are possible

, ,

do we discover the opposition or the contr adiction

between the two tendencies .And in s aying th at
’
,

in asmuch as recollection coll ation and comp arison

, ,

are intellectu al processes he admits th at the an

,

t i no my is intellectu al . Th at it is not an antinomy

of religious feeling is S hown by the fact th at the
two needs exist th at is to say are b oth felt To
, ,
.

s ay a p ri ori th at both c annot be s atisfied is useless

in face of the fact th at those who feel them find

th at C hristi anity s atisfies them .
 S ACRI F I CE

IN my l ast lecture I c alled attention to the f act

th at the subject of pr ayer h as been str angely neglected
by the science of religion Religion in wh atever
.
,

form it m anifests itself is essenti ally pr actic al ; man

,

desires to enter into communic ation or into commu

nion with his god and in so doing he h as a pr actic al
,

purpose in V iew Th at purpose may be to secure a

.

m ateri al blessing of a p articul ar kind such as vi c

,

tory in w ar or the enjoyment of the fruits of the e arth

in their due se ason or the purpose may be to o ff er
,

th anks for a h arvest and to pr ay for a continu ance

of prosperity gener ally O r the purpose of pr ayer
.

may be to as k for deliver ance from m ateri al evils ,

such as fami ne or pl ague O r it may be to ask for

.

deliver ance from mor al evils and for power to do

G od s will I n a wor d if man h ad no pr ayer to
’
.
,

m ake the most powerful if not the only motive

, , ,

inciting him to see k communion would be w anting .

Now to some of us it may seem a pri ori th at there

,

is no re ason why the communion thus sought i n

I
7S
1 7 6 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

pr ayer should require any extern al rite to s anction

or condition it I f th at is our a pr i ori V iew we
.
,

sh all be the more surprised to find th at in actu al fact

a n extern al rite h as alw ays been felt to be essenti al ;

and th at rite h as alw ays been and still i s s acrifice in ,

one or other of its forms O r to put the s ame fact

.
,

in another w ay public worship h as b een from the

,

beginning the condition without whi ch priv ate wor

ship could not begin and without w hi ch priv ate
worship c annot continu e To any form of religion
.

wh atever it be it is essenti al if it is to be religion

, , ,

th at there sh all be a community Of worshippers and

a god worshipped The bond which unites the
.

worshippers with one another and with their god is

religion From the beginning the public worship
.

in which the worshippers h ave unite d h as expressed

itself in rites rites of s acrifice and in the pr ayers

of the community To the end the pr ayers O ff ered

.
,

are pr ayers to O ur F ather ; and if the worshipper

”

is sp ati ally sep ar ate d from he is spiritu ally unite d

,

to his fellow worshippers even in priv ate pr ayer

,
-
.

We may then recognise th at pr ayer logic ally and

ultim ately implies s acrifice in one or other of its
senses ; and th at s acrifice as a rite is me aningless
and impossible without pr ayer But if we recognise
.
 R F I CE
SA C I 1 77

th at s acrifice wherever i t occurs implies pr ayer then ,

the f act th at the Observers of s av age or b arb arous

rites h ave described the ritu al acts Of s acrifice b ut ,

h ave not observed or h ave neglected to report the

pr ayers implied will not le ad us into the error of
,

im agining th at s acrifice is a rite w hi ch can exist

th at it can h ave a re l igious existence —
without
pr ayer We may attend to either the s acrifice or to
.
,

the pr ayer as we may attend either to the concav

,

ity or the convexity of a curve but we may not deny

,

the existence and presence of the one bec ause our

attention h appens to be concentr ated on the other .

The rel ation in primi tive religion of the one to the

other we may express by s aying th at pr ayer st ates the
motive with which the s acrifice is m ade and th at ,

s acrifice is essenti al to the pr ayer which would not

,

b e e ffi c acious without the s acrifice The re ason why

.

a community can add ress the god which it wors hi ps

I S th at the go d is felt to b e identified in some w ay

wi th the community and to h ave its interests in his

ch arge and c are And the rite of s acrifice is felt
.

to m ake the identific ation more re al Pr ayer ag ain

.
, ,

is possible only to the god to whom the community

is known ; with whom it is identified more or less ;,

and with whom when hi s help is required the com

, ,
1 7 8 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

munity seeks to identify itself more e ff ectu ally .

The me ans of th at iden tific ation without which the

pr ayers of the community would be ine ffectu al is
s acrifice The e arliest form of s acrifice may prob
.

ably be t aken to be the s acrifice of an anim al fol ,

lowed by a s acrifici al me al L ater when the god

.
,

h as a st ate d pl ace in which he is believed to m anifest

himself ,
tree or temple then the identific ation
,

may be e ffected by att aching o fferings to the tree

or temple But in either c ase wh at is sought by the
.

O ff ering dedic ated or the me al O f s acrifice is in a

word incorpor ation The worshippers desire to
.

feel th at they are at one with the spirit whom they

worship And the desire to e x perience this sense of
.

union is p articul arly strong when pl ague or fami ne

m akes it evident th at some estr angement h as t aken
pl ace between the god and the community whi ch is
norm ally in his c are and under his protection The .

s acrifices and pr ayers th at are O ffered in such a c ase

Obviously do not open up communic ation for the first
time between the god and his tribe : they revive and
re e nforce a communion which is felt to exist alre ady ,

even though tempor al misfortunes such as drought ,

or f amine testify th at it h as been allowed by the

,

tri b e to become less close th an it ought to be or th at ,

 F
S A CRI I CE 1 79

i t h as been str ained by tr ansgressions on the p art of

individu al members O f the community But it is .

not only in times of public distress th at the com

munity appro aches its god with s acrifice and
pr ayer I t so h appens th at the pr ayers O ffered for
.

victory in w ar or for r ain or for deliver ance from

famine are inst ances of pr ayer of so m arked a ch ar
a cter th at they h ave forced themselves on the notice

of tr avellers in al l p arts Of the world from the ,

E s k imo to the Austr ali an b l ack fellows or the negroes

of Afric a And it w as to this cl ass of pr ayers th at

.

I c alled your attention princip ally in the l ast lec

ture But they are when we come to think of it
.
, ,

essenti ally occ asion al pr ayers pr ayers th at are

,

O ff ered at the gre at crises of trib al life when the ,

very e x istence of the tribe is at st ake Such crises

.
,

however by their very n ature are not regul ar or

,

norm al ; and it would b e an error to suppose th at

it is only on these occ asions th at pr ayers are m ade
by s av age or b arb arous peoples I f we wish to dis
.

cover the e arliest form of regul arly recurring public

worship we must look for some regul arly recurring
,

occ asion for it O ne such regul arly recurring oc

.

c asion is h arvest time another is seed time another

, ,

is the annu al ceremoni al at which the boys who at

1 80 C O MP A R A T IV E R E LIGION

t ain in the course of the ye ar to the ag e of m anhoo d

”
are initi ated into the secrets or mysteries of the
tribe These are the chief and perh aps the only
.

regul arly recurring occ asions of public worship as

distinguished from the irregul ar crises of w ar pesti ,

lence drought and f amine which aff ect the com

, ,

munity as a whole and from the irregul ar occ asions

,

when the individu al member of the community pr ays

for o ffspring or for delivery from Sickness or for suc
ces s in the priv ate undert aki ng in which he h appens
to be eng aged .

O f the regul arly recurring occ asions of pu b lic

worship I will select to begin with the rites which
, ,

are associ ated with h arvest time And I will d o so .

p artly bec ause the science of religion provides us

with very definite p articul ars both as to the s acrifices
and as to the pr ayers w hi ch are usu ally m ade on

these occ asions ; and p artly b ec ause the pr ayers

th at are m ade are of a Speci al kind and throw a
fresh light on the n ature of the communion th at
the tri b e seeks to eff ect b y me ans of the s acrifici al
O ff ering .

At S aa in the Solomon I sl an d s y arns are o ff ered

, , ,

and the person o ffering them cries in a loud voice ,

“
Thi s is yours to e at
”
( Fr azer , G . II , In
 F
S ACRI I CE 1 81

the Society I sl ands the formul a is H ere Tari I h ave , , ,

brought you something to e at (i b ”

I n I ndo .
,

C hina the invit ation is the s ame :

,
Taste O god ,

”
dess these fir st fruits whi ch h ave just been re aped
,
-

( i.b ,
There are no a ctu a lly e x pressed words
of th anks in these inst ances ; but we may s afely
conjecture th at the o fferings are th ank O fferings and -

th at the feeling with whi ch the o fferings are m ade is

one of gr atitude and th ankfulness Thus in C er am .

“
we are told th at first fruits are o ffered as a token of
-

”
gr atitude (i b .
,
O n the Niger the O nitsh a
formul a is e x plicit : I th ank G od for being per
mi tte d to e at the new y am (i b 3 2
”
At Tjumb a
.
,

in the East I ndies vessels filled with rice are pre

“
,

”
sented as a th ank o ffering to the gods (i b
—
.
,

The people of Ni as on these occ asions O ffer th anks

for the blessings bestowed on them ( i b By a .
,

very n atur al tr ansition of thought and feeling th ank ,

fulness for p ast favours le ads to pr ayer for the con

ti nu ance of f avour in the future Thus in Tan a in
.
,

the N ew Hebrides the formul a is : Comp assion

,
“

at e f ather $ here is S ome food for you ; e at it ; be

”
ki nd to us on account of it (i b whi le the .
,

B asutos say : Th ank you gods ; give us bre ad

“
,

to morrow also (i b
-
and in Tong a the pr ayers
.
,
1 82 C O MP A R A T IV E R E LIGION

m dea at the off ering

of fruits implore the pro
firs t - o

t e cti on of the gods and beseech them for welf are

,

gener ally though in especi al for the fruits of the

,

e arth ( i b .
,

The pr ayers of primitive man w hi ch I quote d in

my l ast lecture were in the n ature of petitions or
requests as w as n atur al and indeed inevit able in
,

View of the f act th at they were preferred on occ asions

when the tribe w as in e x ception al distress and re
quired the ai d of the gods on whose protection the
community relied But the pr ayers w hi ch I h ave
.

just quoted are not in their essence petitions or

requests even though in some c ases they tend to
,

b ecome so They are essenti ally pr ayers of th anks

.

giving and the o fferings m ade are th ank o fferings -

.

Thus our conception of primi tive pr ayer must be

extended to include both ment al attitudes —
th at
of th ankfulness for p ast or present blessings as well
as the hope of blessings yet to come And in asmuch
.

as s acrifice is the concomit ant of pr ayer we must ,

recognise th at s acrifici al o fferings also serve as the

expression of both ment al attitudes And we must .

note th at in the regul arly recurring form of pub l ic

or trib al worship with which we are now de aling
the domin ant feeling to which e x pression is given is
 R
S A C I F I CE 1 83

th at of th ankfulness The tri b e seeks for communion

.

with its god for the purpose of e x pressing its th anks .

Even the s av age who simply s ays “

Here Tari I , , ,

h ave brought you something to e at or still more , ,

“
curtly This is yours to e at is expressing th anks
, , ,

albeit in s av age f ashion And the me ans which the

.

s av age adopts for securing th at communion which

he seeks to renew regul arly with the trib al god is a
s acrifici al me al of which the god and his worshippers
,

p art ake Throughout the whole ceremony whether

.
,

we regard the spoken words or the acts performed ,

there is no suggestion of m agic and no possibility of

twisting the ceremony into a piece O f m agic intended
to produce some desired result or to exercise any
constr aint over the powers to which the ceremony is
addresse d The ment al attitude is th at of th ankful
.

ness.

Now it is I venture to suggest i mpossible to dis

, , ,

soci ate from the first fruits ceremoni als whic h I

-

h ave described the ceremonies Observed b y Au stra

li an bl ack fellows on Simil ar occ asions And it is .

also impossible to overlook the di fferences between

the ceremony in Austr ali a and the ceremony else

where I n Austr ali a as elsewhere when the time of
.
, ,

ye ar arrives at which the food becomes fit for e ating ,

1 84 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

a ceremony h as to be performed before custom per

mits the food to be e aten freely I n Austr ali a as .
,

elsewhere a ceremoni al e ating a s acr ament al me al

, , ,

h as to t ake pl ace But where as elsewhere the god

.

of the community is e x pressly invited to p art ake of

the s acr ament al me al even though he be not men
,

ti one d by n ame and though the invit ation t ake the

“ ”
curt form of This is yours to e at in Austr ali a no ,

words wh atever are spoken ; the person who per

forms the ceremony performs i t indeed with every
indic ation of reverenti al feeling he e ats solemnly ,

and sp aringly ,
th at is to s ay form ally and bec ause
the e ating is a m atter of ritu al but no reference is
,

m ad e by hi m so far as we know to any god How ,

.

then are we to e x pl ain the absence of any such

reference $ There seems to me to be only one ex
pl an ation which is re ason ably possible I t is th at .

in the Austr ali an ceremony which would be perfectly

,

intelligible and perfectly in line with the ceremony

as it occurs everywhere else the reference to the god
,

who is or w as invited to p art ake Of the first fruits h as

—

in the process of time and we must add in the course

, ,

of religious dec ay gr adu ally dropped out The

,
.

invit ation may never h ave been more ample th an

”
the curt form This is yours to e at
,
Even in the .
 S ACR I F I CE 1 85

a bsence of any verb al invit ation wh atever a gestur e ,

may long h ave su fficed to indic ate wh at w as in the

mi nd and w as implied by the act of the s av age per
forming the ceremony Words may not h ave been
.

felt necess ary to e x pl ain wh at every person present

at the ceremony k new to be the purpose of the rite .

But in the absence of any verb al formul a wh atever

the purpose and me aning of the rite would be apt to
p ass out of mind to ev apor ate even though custom
, ,

m aint ained as it does in Austr ali a to this d ay m ain

,

t ain the punctu al and punctilious perform ance of

,

the outw ard ceremony I suggest therefore th at in

.
, ,

Austr ali a as elsewhere the solemn e ating of the first

, ,

fruits h as been a s acr ament al me al of which both the

god and his worshippers were p art akers The alter .

n ative is to my mind much less prob able : it is to use

the Austr ali an ceremony as it now e x ists to e x pl ain
the origin of the ceremony as we find it elsewhere .

I n Austr ali a it is not now app arently associ ated with

the wors hi p of any god ; therefore it may be argued
in other countries also it w as not origin ally part of
the worship of any god either I f then it w as not
.
, ,

an act of public worship origin ally how are we to ,

underst and it $ The suggestion is th at the fruits of

the e arth or the anim als which become the food of
1 86 C O M P A R AT I V E R E LIGION

man are until they become fit for e ating reg arde d

, ,

as s acred or t aboo and therefore may not be e aten

, .

Th at suggestion derives some support from the fact

th at in Austr ali a anyt hing th at is e aten may b e a
totem and being a totem is t ab oo But if it is thus .

s acred then in order to b e e aten it must be d e sacral

,

”
ised the t aboo must be t aken off And it is sug
, .

gested th at th at precisely is wh at is e ff ecte d by the

ceremoni al e ating of the totem by the he adm an of the
totem cl an : the totem i S d e s acrali se d by the mere
'

f act th at it is form ally and ceremoni ally e aten by the

he adm an after which it may be consumed b y others
,

as an ordin ary article of food B ut this expl an ation

.

of the first fruits ceremony is b ased upon an assu mp

-

tion which is contr ary to the f acts of the c ase as it

occurs in Austr ali a I t assumes th at the pl ant or
.

the anim al until des acr alised is t aboo to all mem b ers
of the tribe and th at none of them can e at it until it
,

h as b een des acr alised by the ceremoni al e ating B ut .

the assumption is f alse ; the pl ant or anim al is s acre d

and t ab oo only to members of the cl an whose totem

it is I t is not s acred to the v ast m ajority of the

.

tribe for they h ave totems of their own ; to them it is

,

not s acred or t aboo they may ki ll it and they do

,

without bre ak ing any t ab oo The ceremoni al .

 S A C I I CERF 1 87

e ating of the first fruits r aises no t aboo as far as the

-

tribe gener ally is concerned for the pl ant or anim al

,

is not t ab oo to them As far as the tribe gener ally is

.

concerned no process of des acr alis ation t akes pl ace

,

and none is e ff ected by the ceremoni al e ating I t is .

the p articul ar totem group alone which is affected

b y the ceremony ; and the inference which it seems
to me prefer ab le to dr aw is th at the ceremoni al e ating
of the fir st fruits is or r ather h as b een in Austr ali a
-
, ,

wh at it is elsewhere vi z an inst ance Of pr ayer and

,
.

s acrifice in which the worshippers of a god are

b rought into period ic in this c ase annu al com —

munion with their god The di fference between

.

the Austr ali an c ase and others seems to be th at in

the other c ases the god who p art akes of the first
fruits is the god of the whole community while in ,

Austr ali a he is the g od Of the p articul ar totem group

and is an alogous to the f amily gods who are wor

shipped elsewhere even where there is a trib al or

,

n ation al god to b e worshipped as well .

We are then inclined for these and other re asons

, ,

to expl ain the ceremoni al e ating of the totem pl ant

or anim al in Austr ali a by the an alogy of the cere
moni al e ating of first fruits elsewhere and to regar d
-
,

the ceremony as b eing in al l c ases an act of worship ,

 1 88 C O M P A R AT IV E R E LIGION

in which at h arvest time the worshippers of a god

seek communion wi th him by me ans of s acrifice
and pr ayers of th anksgiving But if we t ake this
.

V iew of the s acrifice and pr ayers o ff ered at h arvest

time we S h all be inclined to reg ard the rites which
,

are performed at seed time or the period an alogous

,

to it as being also possibly in p art of a religious

, , ,

ch ar acter I n the c ase of agricultur al peoples it is

.

beyond doubt th at some of the ceremonies are reli

g i o u s in ch ar acter : where the food pl ant is itself

reg arded as a deity or the mode in whi ch a deity is

m anifested not only may there be at h arvest time a
,

s acr ament al me al in which as amongst the Aztecs

, ,

“ ”
the deity is form ally communic ated to his wor
shi ppers but at seed time s acrifice and pr ayer may
,

be m ade to the deity Such a religious ceremony

.
,

wh atever be the degree O f civilis ation or se mi ci vi l i

s ation which h as been re ached by those who observe
the ceremony does not of course t ake the pl ace
,

of the agricultur al oper ations w hi ch are necess ary if

the fruits are to be produced in due se ason An d .

the combin ation of the religious rites and the agri

cultur al oper ations does not convert the ag ri cul
tur al oper ations into m agic al oper ations or prove ,

,
th at the religious rites are merely pieces of m agic
 S AC R I F I CE 1 89

intended to constr ain the superior power of the deity

concerned I ndeed if among the oper ations per
.
,

formed at seed time we find some th at from t h e

point of V iew of modern science are pe rfe ctly ine f
/

fe ctu al as v ain as e ating tiger to m ake you b O

,
l d we ,

sh all be justified in reg arding them as pieces of primi

tive science eventu ally disc arded indeed in the
,

progress O f adv ancing knowledge but origin ally,

pr actised (on the principle th at like produces like )

as the n atur al me ans of producing the e ffect desired .

I f we so reg ard them we Sh all esc ape the error of

,

considering them to be m agic al ; and we sh all h ave

no di fficulty in distinguishing them from the reli
g i ou s rites which m ay be combined with them .

Further where h arvest time is m arked by the offer

,

ing of s acrifice and pr ayers of th anksgiving we may,

not unre ason ably t ake it th at the religious rites ob

served at seed time or the period an alogous to it are
in the n ature of s acrifice and pr ayers addressed to
the appropri ate deity to b eseech hi m to favour the
growth of the pl ant or anim al in question In a
.

word the pr actice of giving th anks to a god at h arvest

,

time for the h arvest cre ates a re ason able pre su mp

tion th at pr ayer is O ffered to him at seed time ; and
if th anks are given at a period an alogous to h ar
1 90 C O MP AR AT IV E R E LIGION

vest time by a people like the Austr ali an bl ack

fellows who h ave no domestic ated pl ants or anim als
, ,

pr ayers of the n ature of petitions may be o ffered by

them at the period an alogous to seed time .

The deity to whom pr ayers are o ffered at the one

period and th anksgiving is m ade at the other may
b e as in the c ase of the Aztec Kilo u en or the Hindoo
, ,

M aize mother the spirit of the pl ant envis aged as a

-
,

deity ; or may be not a dep artment al deity of

,
“ ”

this kind but a supreme deity h aving power over al l

,

things B ut when we turn from the regul arly recur

.

ring acts o f public worship connected with seed time

and h arvest to the regul arly recurring ceremonies at

which the boys of a tribe are initi ated into the duties
and rights of m anhood it is obvious th at the deity
,

concerned in them even if we assume ( as is b y no

,

“
me ans necess ary ) th at he w as origin ally dep art
”
ment al and at first connected merely with the
growth of a pl ant or ani m al must b e reg arded at the
,

initi ation ceremonies as a god h aving in hi s c are al l

the interests of th at tribe of which the boys to be
initi ated are about to become full members Um .

mist ak able tr aces of such a deity are found amongst

“ ”
the Austr ali an bl ack fellows in the father of al l ,

“
the al l f ather d escribed by M r Howitt The
-
”
. .
 S AC R I F I CE 1 9 1

wors hi p of the al l f ather is in d eed now of a fr ag

-
”

ment ary kind ; but it fortun ately h appens th at in

the c ase of one tribe the Eu ahl ayi we h ave evidence
, , ,

rescued by M rs L angloh Parker to S how th at pr ayer

.
,

is Off ered to B yame e ; the Eu ahl ayi pr ay to him for

long life bec ause they h ave kept his l aw The
, .

n ature of B yame e s l aw may s afely be inferred from

’

the fact th at at this festiv al both amongst the Eu ah

,

l ayi and other Austr ali ans the boys w ho are ,

being initi ated are t aught the mor al l aws or the

custom ary mor ality of the tribe But though pr ay .

ers are still O ffered by the Eu ahl ayi and may h ave
at one time been o ffered by al l the Austr ali an tribes ,

there is no evidence at present to S how th at the pr ayer

is accomp anied by a s acrifice as is custom ary amongst
,

tribes whose worship h as not disintegr ated so much

as is the c ase amongst the Austr ali ans .

The ceremonies by which boys are admitted to

the st atus of m anhood are prob ably amongst al l ,

the peoples of the e arth who observe them of a ,

religious ch ar acter for the simple re ason th at the

,

community to whi ch the boy is admitted when he

att ains the ag e of m anhood is a community united ,

together b y religious bonds as a community wor

shipping the s ame god or gods ; and it is to the wor
1 9 2 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LIGION

ship and the service of these gods th at he is ad mitted .

But the ceremonies themselves v ary too much to

allow of our dr awing from them any v alu able or

import ant conclusion as to the n ature and import

of s acrifice as a religious institution O n the other
.

h and the ceremonies Observed at h arvest time or

, ,

the an alogous period h ave wherever they occur

, , ,

such m arked simil arity among themselves and the ,

institution of pr ayer and s acrifice is such a promi

nent fe ature in them th at the evidence they affor d
,

must be decisive for us in attempting to form a

theory of s acrifice N or can we dissoci ate the cere
.

monies observed in spring from the h arvest cere

monies ; as Dr Fr azer rem ar k s ( G B II
. . .
, ,

P l ainly these spring and h arvest customs are b ase d

“

on the s ame ancient modes of thought and form

p arts of the s ame primi tive he athen d om ”
Wh at .
,

“ ”
then are these ancient modes of thought and
,

wh at the pri mitive customs b ased upon them $

We may I t hi nk cl assify them in four groups
, ,
.

I f we are to t ake first those inst ances in which the

“ ”
ancient mode of thought is most cle arly expressed
whether bec ause they are the most fully developed
or bec ause they ret ain the ancient mode most f aith

fully and with the le ast disintegr ation —

w e must
 SAC R I F I CE 1 93

turn to ancient M exico and Peru I n M exico .

a p aste idol or dough im age of the god w as m ade ;

the priest hurled a d art into its bre ast ; and this w as
“
c alled the k illing of the god so th at his body might
,

b e e aten ”
The dough im age w as broken and the
pieces were given in the m anner of a communion to
“
the people who received it with such te ars fe ar
, , ,

as it w as an admir ab le thi ng
”
and reverence ,
s ays ,

“
F ather Acost a s aying th at they did e at the flesh
,

and bones of G od O r ag ain an im age of the

”
.
, ,

goddess Chi comeco atl w as m ade of dough and e x hi

bited b y the priest s aying ,
“
This is your god ,
”
.

All ki nds Of m aize be ans etc were o ffered to it and

.
, ,
.
,

“
then were e aten I n the temple in a gener al scr am
ble t ake who could
,
”
I n Peru e ars of m aize were
.

dressed in rich g arments and worshipped as the

M other of the M aize ; or little lo aves of m aize mi ngle d
with the b lood of Sheep were m ade ; the priest g ave
to e ach of the people a morsel of these lo aves and ,

al l did receive and e at these pieces and pr ayed th at ,

“
the god would S how them f avour gr anting them ,

children and h appy ye ars and abund ance and al l

th at they required I n this the first group of
.
,

inst ances it is pl ain beyond al l possibility of g ain

,

s aying th at the spring and h arvest customs consist

O
1 94 C O M P A RAT IV E R E LIGION

Of the worship of a god of s acrifice and pr ayers to

,

him and of a communion which bound the wor

,

shippers to one another and to him .

O ur second group of inst ances consists O f c ases

in w hi ch the corn or dough or p aste is not indeed
m ade into the form or im age of a god but as Dr , ,
.

Fr azer s ays (G B II . .
“
the new corn is itself
,

e aten s acr ament ally th at is as the body of the corn

, ,

spirit ”
.The spirit thus worshipped may not yet
h ave acquired a proper n ame ; the only design ation
used may h ave been such a one as the Hindoo
B h og al d ai me aning simply C otton mother I n
,
-
.

deed even amongst the Peruvi ans the goddess h ad

, ,

not yet acquired a proper n ame but w as known ,

only as the M other of the M aize B ut precisely .

bec ause the st age illustr ated in our second group

of inst ances is not so highly developed as in M e x ico
or Peru it is much more widely spre ad I t is found .

in the E ast I ndi an isl and of B uro amongst the ,

Al foors of M in ah ass a in the C elebes in the N eil

, ,

h rry Hills of South I ndi a in the Hindoo K oosh

g e , ,

in I ndo C hin a on the N iger amongst the $ ulus

-
, ,

and the Pondos and amongst the C reek Semi nole

, , ,

and N atchez I ndi ans ( i b 3 2 1 I n this

. the ,

second group of inst ances then though the god , ,

 SAC R I F I CE 1 95

may h ave no speci al proper n ame ,

, though no
, and

im age of him is m ade out of the dough or p aste ,

“
still the new corn is itself e aten s acr ament ally ,

th at is as the body of the corn spirit by me ans of

the s acr ament al e ating of s acrifice and pr ayer
, ,

communion between the god and his worshippers

is renewed and m aint ained .

The third group of inst ances consists of the

h arvest customs of northern Europe —
the h arvest
supper and the rites of the C orn mother or the Corn -

m aiden or the Kern B aby I t c an sc arcely be con

.

tended th at these rites and customs so far as they ,

survive at the present d ay ret ain if they ever h ad

, , ,

any religious v alue ; they are performed as a m atter

of tr adition and custom and not bec ause any one

knows why they are performed But th at they .

origin ally h ad a me aning even though now it h as

ev apor ated —
c annot b e doubted N or can it be .

doubted th at the me aning if it is to be recovered

, ,

must be recovered by me ans of the comp ar ative

method And if the comp ar ative method is to
.
,

b e applied the Corn mother of northern Europe

,
-

c annot be dissoci ated from the M aize mother of -

ancient P eru But if we go thus far then we must

.
, ,

“
with Dr Fr azer (i b
. . recognise cle arly the
1
9 6 C O M P AR A T IV E R E LIGION

s acr ament al ch ar acter of the h arvest supper in -

,

“
which as a substitute for the re al flesh of the divine
,

being bre ad and dumpli ngs are m ade and e aten

,

s acr ament ally Thus once more h arvest cus

.
’
, ,

toms testify in northern Europe as elsewhere to , ,

the f act th at there w as once a st ated annu al period , ,

at which co mmunion between the god and his wor

shipper w as sought by pr ayer and s acrifice .

The North Europe an h arvest customs are further

-

interesting and import ant bec ause if they are cle arly ,

connected on the one h and with the groups of i n

st ances alre ady given they are also connected on
,

the other with the group to which we h ave yet to c all

attention Thus far the whe at or m aize if not e aten
.
,

in the form of little lo aves or c akes h as been m ade ,

into a dou g h im age or else the e ars of m aize h ave

,

been dressed in rich g arments to indic ate th at they

represent the M other O f the M aize ; and in Europe
also both forms of symbolism are found But in .

northern Europe the corn spirit is also believed

,

“
to be m anifested Dr Fr azer s ays in the anim al
,
.
,

which is present in the corn and is c aught or ki lled

in the l ast she af ”
The anim al may be a wolf dog
.
, ,

“
cock h are cat go at bull cow horse or pig
, , , ,
The
, , ,
.

anim al is S l ain and its flesh and blood are p art aken
 SAC R I F I CE 1 97

of b y the h arvesters and Dr Fr azer s ays these

, ,
.
,

customs bring out cle arly the s acr ament al C h ar acter

of the h arvest supper Now this m anifest ation
.
,

O f the corn spirit in anim al form is not confined to

Europe ; it occurs for inst ance in G uine a and in

all the provinces and districts of C hin a And it is .

import ant as forming a link between the ag ri cu l

tur al and the pre agricultur al periods ; in Dr
-
.

“
Fr azer s words
’
,
hunting and p astor al tribes as ,

well as agricultur al peoples h ave been in the h abit

,

”
of killi ng their gods (i b I n the p astor al
.

period as well as in agricultur al times the god who

, ,

is worshipped by the tribe and with whom the tribe

seeks communion by me ans of pr ayer and s acrifice ,

may m anifest himself in anim al form and “

the ,

anim al is sl ain and its flesh and b lood are p art a ken

”
of.

We now come to the fourth and the l ast of our

groups of inst ances I t consists of the rites Observed
.

by Austr ali an tribes Amongst these tribes too

.

“
there is wh at Dr Fr azer terms a s acr ament al
.

”
e ating of the totem pl ant or anim al Thus C entr al .

Austr ali an bl ack men O f the k ang aroo totem e at

a little k ang aroo flesh as a s a cr ament ( Spencer and
,

G illen p 2 04
,
. Now it is impossible I t hi nk to
, , ,
1 9 8 C O MP ARAT IV E R E LIG I ON

dissoci ate the Austr ali an rite to sep ar ate this fourth ,

group from the three groups alre ady described

,
.

I n Austr ali a as in the other c ases the customs are

, ,

observed in spring and h arvest time and in h arvest ,

time in Austr ali a as well as elsewhere there is a

, ,

solemn and sp aring e ating of the pl ant or anim al ;

and in Dr Fr azer s words pl ainly these spring
,
.
’
,

and h arvest customs are b ased on the s ame ancient

modes of thought and form p art O f the s ame pri mi ,

”
tive he athendom What then is t hi s ancient and
.
, ,

pri mi tive mode of thought $ I n all the c ases except

the Austr ali an the thought m anifestly implied and
,

expressed is th at by the solemn e ating of the pl ant

or the anim al or the dough im age or p aste idol or
, ,

the little lo aves the community enters into com ,

munion with its god or renews communion with him ,

.

O n this occ asion the Peruvi ans pr ayed for children ,

h appy ye ars and abund ance O n this occ asion even .

,

a mong the Austr ali ans the Eu ahl ayi tribe pr ay for ,

long life bec ause they h ave kept B yame e s l aw

,
’
.

I t would not therefore be unre ason able to interpret

, ,

the Austr ali an custom by the s ame ancient mode of

thought which e x pl ains the custom wherever else
and th at is all over the world it is found But .

perh aps if we can find some other interpret ation

,
 S AC R I F I CE 1
99

of the Austr ali an custom we should do better to

,

reverse the process and e x pl ain the spring and h ar

vest customs which are found elsewhere by me ans of ,

and in accord ance with the Austr ali an custom

,
.

Now another interpret ation of the Austr ali an custom

h as been put forw ard by Dr Fr azer He tre ats the
. .

Austr ali an ceremony as b eing a piece of pure m agic ,

the purpose of which is to promote the growth and

incre ase of the pl ants and anim als which provide
the bl ack fellows with food B ut if we st art from
.

this point of view we must go further and say th at

,

a mongst other peoples th an the Austr ali an the kill

ing of the represent ative anim al of the spirit of

veget ation is in Dr Fr azer s words a m agic al rite
,
.
’
,

”
intended to assure the reviv al of n ature in spring .

And if th at is the n ature of the rite which appe ars

in northern Europe as the h arvest supper it will ,

also be the n ature of the rite as it appe ars both in

o u r second group of inst ances where the corn is ,

“
e aten as the body of the corn S pirit and in the -
,

first group where the dough im age or p aste idol w as

,

e aten in M exico as the flesh and bones of the god .

Th at this line of thought runs through Dr Fr azer s .

’

Golde n B ou g h in its second edition is indic ated by

, ,

the f act th at the rite is spoken O f throughout as a

2 00 C O M P A R A T IV E R E L I GION

s acr ament Th at the M exic an rite as described

.

in our first group is s acr ament al is cle ar O f the ,

.

ri tes whi ch form our second group of inst ances Dr ,

.

“
Fr azer s ays th at the corn spirit or god is killed -
, ,

in the person of his represent ative and e aten s acr a

” “
ment ally and th at the new corn is itself e aten
,

”
s acr ament ally ; th at is as the body of the corn spirit
,
-

( p
. O f the N orth E urope an rites ag ain he , ,

“
S ays ,
the anim al is S l ain and its flesh and blood are
”
p art aken of by the h arvesters these customs
bring out cle arly the s acr ament al ch ar acter O f the
” “
h arvest supper as a substitute for the re al
flesh of the divine being b re ad or dumplings are ,

”
m ade in his im age and e aten s acr ament ally .

Fin ally even when spe aking of the Austr ali ans as
,

men who h ave no gods to worship and with whom ,

the rite is pure and un adulter ated m agic he yet ,

describes the rite as a s acr ament .

Now i f on the one h and from its b eginning amongst

, ,

the Austr ali ans to the form which it fin ally took

a mongst the M e x ic ans the rite is as Dr Fr azer ,
.

system atic ally c alls it a s acr a ment and if on the

,
:

other it is in Dr Fr azer s words a m agic al rite

, ,
.
’
,

”
intended to assure the reviv al of n ature in spring ,

then the conclusion which the re ad er c annot help

 S AC R I FI CE 20I

dr awing is th at a s acr ament or this s acr ament at ,

le ast is in its origin and in its n ature throughout

, , ,

a piece O f m agic Religion is but m agic written

.

in diff erent ch ar acters ; and for those who can inter

pret them it spells the s ame thing But though this .

is the conclusion to which Dr Fr azer s argument .

’

le ads and to which in the first edition of his Gol de n

,

B oug h it cle arly seemed to point ; in the pref a ce to

the second edition he form ally dis avows it He .

recognises th at religion does not Spring from m agic ,

but is fund ament ally opposed to it A s acr ament .

,

therefore we may infer c annot be a piece of m agic

, ,
.

The Austr ali an s acr ament therefore as Dr Fr azer, ,

.

c alls it c annot we should be inclined to say be a

, , ,

piece of m agic But Dr Fr azer still holds th at the

. .

Austr ali an rite or s acr ament is pure m agic reli

gio ns it c annot be for in Dr Fr azer s View the Aus
,
.
’

trali ans know no religion and h ave no gods .

Now if the rite as it occurs in Austr ali a is pure

m agic and if religion is not a v ariety of m agic but
,

fund ament ally di ff erent from it then the rite which , ,

as it occurs everywhere else is religious c annot be

, ,

derived from or a v ariety of the Austr ali an piece of

, ,

m agic ; and the Spring and h arvest customs which

“
are found in Austr ali a c annot be b ased on the
202 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

s ame ancient modes of thought or form p art of the

”
s ame primitive he athendom as the s acr ament al
rites which are found everywhere else in the world .

The solemn annu al e ating of the totem pl ant or

a nim al in Austr ali a must h a ve a tot ally di fferent

b asis from th at on which the s acr ament and com

munion st ands in every other p art of the globe
in Austr ali a it is b ased on m agic elsewhere on th at
,

which is according to Dr Fr az er fund ament ally

,
.
,

di ff erent and opposed to m agic V iz religion Before

,
. .
,

however we commit ourselves to this conclusion

, ,

we may be allowed to as k Wh at is it th at compels

,

us thus to sever the Austr ali an from the other forms

of the rite $ The reply would seem to be th at ,

where as the other forms are admittedly religious ,

“
the Austr ali an is a m agic al rite intended to assure
the reviv al of n ature in spring Now if th at were
.
’
,

re ally the n atur e of the Austr ali an rite we might ,

h ave to accept the conclusion to which we hesit ate

to commit ourselves But as a m atter of f act the
.
, ,

Austr ali an rite is not intended to assure the reviv al

of n ature in spring and h as nothing m agic al about
,

i t I t is perfectly true th at in spring in Austr ali a

.

cert ain proceedings are performed which are b ased

u pon the principle th at like pro d uces like ; and
 SAC R I F I CE 2 03

th at these proceedings are by students of the science

,

Of religion termed
,
perh aps incorrectly mag
ic al But these spring customs are quite di ff e rent
.

from the h arvest customs ; and it is the h arvest

customs which constitute the link between the rite
in Austr ali a and the rite in the rest of the world .

The cruci al question therefore is whether the Aus

, ,

t ral i an h arvest rite is m agic al or is even b ased on

,

the principle th at like produces like And the .

answer is th at it is pl ainly not The h arvest rite

.

in Austr ali a consists as we know it now simply in

, ,

the f act th at at the appointed time a little of the

totem pl ant or anim al is solemnly and sp aringly
e aten by the he adm an of the totem The solemnity .

with which the rite is performed is unmist ak ab le ,

and may well be termed religious And no attempt

.

even so far as I am aw are h as been m ade to S how

, ,

th at thi s sole mn e ating is reg arded as m agic by the

performers of the rite or how it can be SO reg arde d
,

by students of the science of religion Until the .

attempt is m ade and m ade successfully we are more ,

th an justified in refusing to reg ard the rite as m agic al ;

we are bo und to refuse to reg ard it as such B ut if .

the rite is not m agic al and a forti ori if it is as

—
,

Dr Fr azer terms it s acrament al

.
,
—
then it is reli
204 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LIGION

g i o u s ; andthe ancient mode of thought forming ,

p art of primitive he athendom which is at the b ase,

of the rite is the conviction th at m anifests itself

,

wherever the rite continues to live vi z th at by pr ayer

,
.

and s acrifice the worshippers in any community are

brought into co mmunion with the god they worship .

The rite is in truth wh at Dr Fr az er terms it as it

, ,
.

occurs in Austr ali a —

a s a cr ament But not even .

in Austr ali a is a s acr ament a piece of m agic .

I n the ani mistic st age of the evolution O f hum anity ,

the only c auses man can conceive of are anim ated

things ; and in the presence of any occurrence
,

su ffi ciently stri king to arrest hi s attention the ques ,

tions which present themselves to his mind are Who ,

did thi s thing and why $ O ccurrences which arrest

,

the attention of the community are occurrences

which affect the commu nity ; and in a low st age of
evolution when the most pressing of al l pr actic al
,

questions is how to live the occurrences which ,

most e ff ectu ally arrest attention are those which

a ff ect the food supply of the community I f then .
, ,

the food supply fails the occurrence is due to some

,

of the person al or qu asi person al powers by whom

,
-
,

the community is surrounded ; and the re ason why

such power so acted is found in the wr ath which
 S A C R I F I CE 20
5

must h ave actu ated him The situ ation is abnorm al

.
,

for famine is abnorm al ; and it i ndic ates anger and

wr ath on the p art of the po wer who brought it
about . But it also implies th at when thi ngs go on
in the norm al w ay when the rel ations between
,

the spirit and the community are norm al the ,

attitude of the spirit to the community is pe a ce able

and friendly Not only however does the com

.
, ,

munity desire to renew pe a ce able and friendly rel a

tions where pestilence or f amine S how th at they
,

h ave been disturbed : the community also desires

to benefit by them when they are in their norm al
condition The spirits th at can disturb the norm a l
.

conditions by sending pestilence or famine can also

a ssist the community in undert a kings the success ,

of which is indispens able if the community is to

m aint ain its e x istence ; for inst ance those under ,

t aki ngs On which the food supply O f the community

depends .Hence the petitions which are put up
at seed time or in the pre agricultur al period at
, ,
-
,

se asons an alogous to seed time Hence also the .

, ,

rites at h arvest time or the an alogous se ason rites ,

which are instituted and developed for the purpose

of m aint aining friendly rel ation and commu nion
b etween the community and the spirit whose favour
,
2 06 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

is sought and whose anger is dre aded by the com ~

munity S uch s acrifici al rites may indeed be inter

.

p r e t e d as the m a king of gifts to the gods ; a nd they

do as a m atter of f act often come so to be reg arded
, ,

by those who perform them From this undeni able

.

f act the inference may then b e dr awn and by m any ,

students of the science of religion it is inferred ,

th at from the beginning there w as in such s acrifici al

rites no other intention th an to bribe the god or to
purch ase hi s f avour and the good things he h ad to
give But the inference w hi ch when properly
.
, ,

limited h as some truth in it b ecomes misle ading

, ,

when put forw ard as being the whole truth Unless .

there were some truth in it the rite of s acrifice coul d

,

never h ave developed into the form which w as

denounced by the Hebrew prophets and mercilessly
exposed by Pl ato But h ad th at been the whole
.

truth the rite would h ave b een inc ap able of di sch arg
,

ing the re ally religious function which it h as in its

history fulfilled Th at function h as b een to pl ace
.

and m aint ain the society which pr actises it in com

munion with its god Doubtless in the e arliest

.

st ages of the history of the rite the communion thus

,

felt to be est ablished w as prized and w as m ainly

sought for the extern al blessings w hi ch were b elieve d
 S AC R I F I CE 20
7

to follow from it or as a me ans to avert the public

, ,

dis asters whi ch a bre ach of communion ent ailed .

Dou b tless it w as only by degrees and by slow ,

de g rees th at the communion thus est ablished c ame

,

to be reg arded as being in itself the end which the

rite of s acrifice was truly intended to att ain But .

the communion of the worshi ppers with their god

w as not a purpose origin al ly foreign to the rite and ,

which when introduced tr ansformed the rite from

, ,

wh at it at first w as into something r adic ally di fferent .

O n the contr ary it w as present even though not

, ,

prominent or predomi n ant from the beginning ;

,

and the rite as a religious institution

,
followed ,

di fferent lines of evolution according as the one

,

aspect or the other w as developed Where the as .

p e ct un d er w hi ch the s acrifici al rite w as reg arded

was th at the o ffering w as a gift m ade to the deity

in or d er to secure some specified tempor al adv ant age ,

the religious v alue of the rite diminished to the

v anishing point in the eyes both of those who like ,

Pl ato could see the intrinsic absurdity of pretending

,

to m ake gifts to Him from whom alone al l good

things come and of those who felt th at the s acrifici al
,

rite so conceived did not aff ord the spiritu al com

munion for which they ye arned Where even the .
208 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIG ION

s acrifici al rite w as reg arded as a me ans where b y

communion between the worshipper and his god w as
att ained or m aint ained the emph asis might be
,

thrown on the rite and its due perform ance r ather

th an on the spiritu al communion of which it w as
the condition Th at is to s ay with the growth of
.
,

form alism attention w as concentr ated on the ritu al

and correspondingly withdr awn from the pr ayer
which from the beginning h ad been of the essence
, ,

of the rite By the rite of s acrifice the community

.

h ad alw ays been brought into the presence of the

god it worshipped ; and in the pr ayers then o ffered
,

on beh alf of the society the society h ad b een brought

,

into communion with its god From th at com .

munion it w as possible to f all aw ay even though ,

the perform ance of the rite w as m aint ained The .

very Object of th at communion might be misin

t e rpre t e d and mist aken to be a me ans merely to

tempor al blessings for the community or even to ,

person al adv ant ages for the individu al O r the .

puncti lious perform ance of e ach and every det ail

of the rite might tend to b ecome an end in itself
and displ a ce the spiritu al communion the att ain ,

ment of which h ad been from the beginning the

hi ghest even if not the only or the most prominent
, ,
 SA C R I F I CE 209

end which the rite might subserve The di fference .

between the possibilities which the rite mi ght h ave

re alised and the actu al purposes for which it h ad
come to be used before the birth of C hrist is a dif
ference p atent to the most c asu al Observer of the
f acts The diss atisf action felt alike by Pl ato and
.

the Hebrew prophets with the rite as it h ad come

to be pr actised may be reg arded if we choose so ,

to reg ard it as the necess ary consequence of pre

,

existing f acts and as necess arily ent ailing the re

,

i on or the reconstitution of the rite As

j e c t a .

m atter of history the rite w as reconstituted and not

,

rejected ; and as reconstituted it bec ame the centr al

f act of the C hristi an religion I t bec ame the me ans
.

whereby through C hrist al l men might be brought

, ,

to G od We may s ay if we will th at a new me aning

.
, ,

w as put into the rite or th at its true me aning w as

,

now m ade m anifest The f acts themselves cle arly

.

indic ate th at from the beginning the rite w as the

me ans whereby a society sought or might seek com
munion with its god They also indic ate th at the
.

rite of anim al s acrifice c ame to be found i nsu fficient

as a me ans .I t w as through our L ord th at manki nck
le arned wh at s acrifice w as needed le arned to —

“
o ffer and present unto thee O L ord ourselves our
, , ,
2I0 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIG ION

souls and bodies to be a re ason able holy and lively

, ,

s acrifice unto thee .Th at is the s acrifice C hrist

showed us the e x ample of ; th at is the e x ample
which the mi ssion ary devotes himself to follow and
to te ach
.
 I M O RAL I T Y

IN t hi s lecture I propose to consider the question

whether mor ality is b ased on religion or religion
on mor ality I t is a question w hi ch may be ap
.

roach e d from the point O f V iew either of philosophy

p
or of hi story $ uite recently it h as been tre ated
.

from the former point of view by Professor H otfdi ng

in The P hi l os op hy of Re l i g i on (tr ansl ated into Eng
lish 1 9 06) and from the point of view of the his
,

tory of mor ality by M r Hobhouse in his M oral s

.

i n E vol u ti on I t may of course also b e quite

, ,

properly appro ached from the point of V iew of the

history of religion ; and from wh atever st andpoint
it is tre ated the question is one of import ance for the
,

mission ary both bec ause of its intrinsic interest for

,

the philosophy of religion and bec ause its discussion

,

is apt to proceed on a mist aken view Of f acts in the

hi story of religion About those f acts and their me an
.
~

ing the mission ary who is to be properly equipped for

, ,

hi s work should be in no doubt : a right View and

,

a proper estim ate O f the f acts are essenti al b oth for

21 1
2I 2 C O M PA RAT IV E R E LIGION

his pr actic al work and for the theoretic al j u s ti fica

tion of his position .

O ne answer to the question before us is th at

mor ality is the b as al f act the bottom fact : if we
-

reg ard the question historic ally we S h all fin d th at ,

mor ality c ame first and religion afterw ards ; and ,

even if th at were not so we S hould find th at as a

,

m atter of logic and philosophy religion presupposes

mor ality —
religion may for a time be the lever
, ,

th at moves the world but it would be powerless if

,

it h ad not a fulcrum and th at fulcrum is mor ality

, .

SO long and so far as religion oper ates benefici ally

on the world it does so simply bec ause it supports
,

and re e nforces mor ality But the time is not far

.

dist ant and may even now be come when mor ality
, ,

no longer requires any support from religion and

then religion becomes useless nay $ an e ncu m ,

br ance which must either fall o ff or be lopped off .

I f therefore mor ality c an st and by itself and al l$

, , ,

along h as not merely stood by itself but h as re ally ,

upheld religion in wh at is mor ality rooted $ The

,

answer is th at mor ality h as its roots not in the com ,

m and th at thou sh alt love the L ord thy G od with

all thy he art and al l thy soul but in hum an solid ar
,

ity in hum anity reg arded as a S piritu al whole To/

,
.
 R
M O A LI TY 21 3

this conclusion it is s aid the hi story O f recent phi

, ,

l osoph y h as ste adily been moving I f the move .

ment h ad t aken pl ace in only one school of phi lo

sophic thought it mi ght h ave been a movement
,

r unning into a side tr ack But it is the direction

‘
-
.

t aken by schools so di fferent in their presuppositions

and their methods as th at of Hegel and th at of C omte ;

and it is the undesigned coi ncidence of their ten

deney w hi ch at first could never h ave been surmised

, ,

th at c arries with it a conviction of its correctness .

Hu man solid arity hum anity reg arded as a spiritu al

,
l

whole may be c alled as Hegel c alls it self conscious

, , ,
-

,
spirit ; or you may c all it as C omte c alls it the , ,

, M ind of Hum anity it is but the collective wisdom

“
of a common hum anity with a common ai m ; and ”
,

th at being so mor ality is rooted not in the will and

, ,

the love Of a b e ne fice nt and o mnipotent Providence ,

but in the self re alising spirit i n man setting up its

-

f common ai m at mor ality

”
The very conception
‘
.

O f a b e ne fice nt and omnipotent G od

z h aving now
done its work as an aid to mor ality must now be
put aside bec ause it st ands in the w ay of our recog
,

ni si ng wh at is the re al spiritu al whole besides which ,

q
there
”
is none other spirit v i z the self re alising spirit
, .
-

in man Th at spirit is only re alising ; it is not yet

.
21 4 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

re alised . I t is in process of re alis ation ; the con and

c e p ti o n O f it a s in process of re alis ation en ables it to

, ,

be brought into h armony or r ather reve als its inner,

h armony with the notion of evolution

,
There is .

nothing outside evolution no being to whom evo ,

l u ti on is presented as a spect acle or by whom as a ,

“
process it is directed
,
Being itself as H Offdi ng
.
,
‘
s ays (P robl e ms of P hi l os op hy p is to be con ,
.

”
ce i v e d as in process of beco ming of evolutio n , ,

The spirit in man as we h ave just s aid is the re al

, ,

spiritu al whole and it is self re alising ; it is evolving

,
-

and progressing both mor ally and r ation ally In .

“
H Off di ng S words
’
Being itself becomes more ra
” “
t i onal th an before ( i b p .
,
Being itself
. is
not re ady-m ade but still incomplete and r ather to ,

be conceived as a continu al becoming like the indi ,

”
vidu al person ality and like knowledge (i b p .
, .

We may s ay then th at being is becoming r ation alised

, ,

and mor alised as and bec ause the spirit in man

re alises itself For a time the process of mor alis a

.

tion and self re alis ation w as worked by and through

-

the conception of a b e ne fice nt and o mnipotent god .

Th at conception w as it would seem a hypothesis

, , ,

v alu able as long it w as a worki ng hypothesis but ,

to b e c ast aside now th at hum anit ari anism is found

 MO R ALI TY 21 5

more adequ ate to the f acts and more in h armony

with the consistent applic ation of the theory Of evo
l uti on
. We h ave then to consid e r whether it is
, ,

adequ ate to the f acts whether when we reg ard the

, ,

facts of the history of religion we do find th at mor ality

,

comes first and religion l ater .

“
Wh at M r Hobhouse enquires in hi s M oral s
,
”
.

i n Ev ol u ti on ( II ,
Wh at is the ethic al ch ar acter
” “
Of e arly religion $ and hi s reply is th at in the first
s t age we find th at spirits as such are not concerne d
, ,

w i th mor ality . Th at w as also the answer which

h ad previously been given by Professor H Off d i ng ,

who s ays in hi s P hi l os op hy of Re l i g i on “
in the
lowest forms of it religion c annot be s aid to
sh ave any ethic al signific ance ( p”
O rigin ally .
,

“
the gods were purely n atur al forces which could be
” “
defied or ev aded though eventu ally they bec ame
,

ethic al powers whom men neither could nor wished

”
to defy ( p . This first st age O f e arly religion
seems on the terms of the hypothesis to be supposed
be found in the period O f ani mi sm and fetichism ;
“to
and the primi tive conception of spirit is M r ,
.

H o b house s ays ( II “
of somethi ng feeling and
,

t hi n ki ng like a r ather stupid man and open like him ,

to supplic ation exhort ation or intimid ation

, ,
”
If .
2I 6 C O M P AR AT IV E R E LIGION

th at is so then Professor H o ffd i ng may be j ustified

,

“
in s aying th at in t h e lowest forms of religion the
gods appe ar as pow e rs on which man is d e pend e nt :
but not as p at terns of conduct or administr ators O f
an ethic al world ord e r ( p N ow . in t h e period ,

termed ani mistic b e c ause in anim ate things are

supposed to be anim ated and ac t u ated by spirits ,

it may be th at m any or most of such spirits are sup

posed to feel and think like a r ather stupid man and ,

therefore to be c ap able of being c ajol e d deluded i n , ,

ti mi d ate d and c astig ated by the hum an being who

,

desires to m ake use O f them But it is not al l .

such spirits th at are worshipped then I ndeed .

,

it is impossible M r Hobhouse s ays ( II

,
.
,

“
th at any such spirit could be an object of wor
shi p i n our sense of the term Worshi p implies .

the superiority of the Object worshipped to the

person w orshipping But though not an object
.
,

of worship in our sense of the term the spirit th at ,

could be deluded in t imi d ated and c astig ated w as

, , ,

according to M r Hobhouse
“
. the Object of a reli gious
,

cult on the p art of the man who believed th at he

”

could and did intimid ate and c astig ate the spirit .

Prob ably however most students O f the science O f

, ,

re ligion would agree th at a cult whi ch included or

 M O RA LI T Y 2 I7

a llowed i ntimid ation and c astig ation of the object

of the cult w as as little entitled to be termed religious
as it is to be c alled worship I n the period of ani
.

mism then either there w as no religious cult no

, , ,

worship in our sense of the term ; or if there w as ,

religion then the S pirit worshipped w as worshi pped

,

as a bei ng higher th an man Whether man h as

.

at any time been wi t hout religion is a question on

w hi ch there is here no need to enter The alleg a .

tion we are now co nsideri ng is th at whe never reli

gion do e s appe ar the n in its first and e arliest st age
,

it is not concer ned with mor ality ; and the g round

for th at alleg ation is th at the spirits of the animistic
,
period h ave nothing to do with mor ali ty or conduct .

Now it may be th at these S pirits which anim ate

,

in anim ate thi ngs are not concer ned with mor ality ;
but then nei ther are they worshipp e d nor is the ,

rel ation between them and man religi ous Religion .

implies a god ; and a spirit to be a god must h ave

,.
worshi ppers a community of worshippers
,
whether
th at community be a nation a tribe or a f amily
, , .

Further it is as the protector of the interests of th at

,

community however sm all th at the god is wor

— —

j s h i pp e d by the commu n ity The i n

.dispens able
ic ondition of religion is the e xistence of a communi ty ;
21 8 C O MP AR AT IV E R E LIG I ON

and from the b eginning man must h ave live d in some

sort of community whether a f amily or a horde
, ,

for the period of helpless infancy is SO long in the c ase

of hum an beings th at without some sort of perm an
ent community the r ace could not be perpetu ated .

The indispens able condition of religion therefore , ,

h as alw ays existed from the time when man w as

man Further wh atever the form of community “
.
,

in w hi ch man origin ally dwelt it w as only in the

,

community and by me ans of the community th at

the individu al could e x ist th at is to say if the
—
,

interest of any one individu al conflicted or w as sup

posed to conflict with the interests of the commu
ni ty then the interests of the community must pre
,

v ail if the community w as to e x ist Here then

, .
, ,

from the beginning we h ave the second condition

indispens able for the existence of religion vi z the ,
.

possibility th at the conduct of some member O f the

community might not be the con d uct require d by
the interests or supposed interests of the community ,

and prescribed by the custom of the community .

I n the c ase of such divergence of interests and con

duct the being worshi pped by the community w as
,

necess arily as being the god of the community and

, ,

receiving the worship of the community on the Si d e l ,

 MO R A LI TY 21 9

of the community and ag ainst the member who

viol ated the custom of the community But at this .
,

period in the hi story of hum anity the mor ality of

,

the community w as the custom of the community ;

and the god of the community from the first ne ce s

s aril y upheld the custom th at is the mor ality of the

, ,

“ ”
community Spirits as such th at is to s ay spirits
.
, ,

which anim ated in anim ate t hi ngs but which were not
the protectors of any hum an community were for , ,

the very re ason th at they were not the gods of any

“
community not concerned with mor ality
,
Spirits .
’
,

however which were the protectors of a community

,

necess arily upheld the customs and therefore the

“
mor ality of the community ; they were not without
ethic al signific ance .
”
I t w as an essenti al p art of
the very conception of such spirits of spirits st and
ing in this rel ation to the community th at they —

“
. were ethic al powers .
”
H Offd i ng S dictum th at
’

“
the gods appe ar as powers on which man is de
pendent b ut not as p atterns of conduct or ad mi ni s
,

”
tr af ors of an ethic al world order ( p overlooks
.

the f act th at in the e arliest times not only are gods

powers on which man is depende nt but powers ,

which enforce the conduct required by the custom

of the community and s anction the ethic al order as
2 20 C O M P AR A T IV E R E LIGION

far as it h as then been reve aled The f act th at

.

“
the worship of the f amily O f the cl an or of the
, , ,

” “
n ation is sh ared in by al l not merely helps to:
,

nourish a feeling of solid arity which may acquire

”
ethi c al signific ance as H Offdi ng s ays ( p
,
it .

cre ates a solid arity which otherwise would not e x ist .

I f there were no worship S h ared in by all there ,

would be no religious solid arity ; and judgi ng from ,

the very gener al if not univers al occurrence of reli

, ,

gion in the lowest r aces as well as the highest we ,

may conjecture th at without religious solid arity

”
a tribe found it h ard or impossible to survive in the
l .

struggle for e x istence Th at religious solid arity

.

however is not as Hoffd i ng suggests something

, ,

which may eventu ally acquire ethic al signific ance ; ”

it is in its essence and from the beginning the wor

sh i p Of a god who punishes the co mmunity for the
et hi c al tr ansgression of its members bec ause they ,

are not merely Viol ations of the custom of the

community but o ffences ag ainst him When H Off
,
.

“
ding s ays ( p 3 2 8 ) religious f aith
. assumes

an independent hum an ethic which h as as a m atter

, ,

of fact developed historic ally under the pr actic al

,

influence O f the ethi c al feeling of man he seems to

”
,

overlook the f act th at as a m atter of history hum an

 MO A LI R TY 22I

ethics h ave alw ays b een b ased rightly or wrongly

on religious f aith th at mor al tr ansgressions h ave
,

alw ays been reg arded as not merely wrongs done

to a m an s neighbour but also as o ffences ag ainst

’
,

the god or gods of the community th at the person

,
$
su ffering from foul wrong for which he can get no
hum an redress h as alw ays appe aled from man to
G od and th at the remorse of the wrong doer who
,
-

h as ev ad e d hum an punishment h as alw ays t aken

a in the f e ar of wh at G od may yet do
“ sh pe .

Those who desire to prove th at at the present d ay

mor ality can e x ist ap art from religion and th at in
,

the f u ture it will do so finding its b asis in hum ani

,

t ari ani s m and not in religion are moved to S how

,

“
th at as a m atter of historic f act religion and mor ality

h ave been things ap art We h ave e x amined the asser

.

tion th at religion in its lowest forms is not concerned

with mor ality ; and we h ave attempted to S how
th at the god of a community or the Spirit worshipped
,

by a communi ty is necess arily a being conceived as

,

concerned with the interests of the community and

a s hostile to those who viol ate the customs which
is to tr ansgress the mor ality O f the community
—
.

But even if thi s be admitted it may still be s aid th at

,

it does not in the le ast disprove the assertion th at

222 C O MP AR A T IV E R E LIGION

mor ality exi s t ed befor e religion did The theory

.

we are e x a mining freely admits th at religion is

supposed in cert ain st ages O f the history of hum anity
, ,

to re e nforce mor ality and to be necess ary in the inter

est of mor als though eventu ally it is found th at
,

mor ality needs no such support ; and not only needs

now no such support but never did need it ; and the
f act th at it did not need it is shown by demonstr ating
the existence of mor ality before religion e x isted .

I f then it be admitted th at religion from the mo

, ,

ment it first appe ared re e nforced mor ality and did ,

not p ass through a non mor al period first still mo

-
,

ral i ty may h ave existed before religion w as evolved ,

and must h ave so existed if mor ality and religion

are things essenti ally ap art Wh at evidence then is

.

there on the point $ We find M r Hobhouse s aying.

( I
,
8 0 ) th at at a lmost if
,
not quite the lowest
,
st ages
“
of hum an development there are cert ain actions
w hi ch are resented as involving the community as
a whole in misfortune and d anger These include
.
,

besides actu al tre ason conduct w hi ch brings upon

,

the people the wr ath of G od or of cert ain spirits or7

, , <

which V iol ates some mighty and mysterious t aboo s

The actions most frequently reg arded in this light are
”
cert ain bre aches Of the m arri age l aw and witchcr aft n .
 R
MO A LI TY 22
3

These O ff ences we are told (i b

,
end anger the.
,

community itself and the punishment is prompted

,

b y the sense of a d anger to the whole community .

Here then from the beginning we find th at o ff ences

, ,

ag ainst the common good are punished not simply ,

a s such but as misconduct bringing on the co mmu

,

ni ty and not merely on the o ffender the wr ath of gods

, ,

or spirits I n other words

. M r H ob h ou se s words .
’
,

p
. 1 1
9 in the evolution of public justice we find ,

th at at the outset the community interferes m ainly

on wh at we may c all supern atur al grounds only with
a ctions which are reg arded as end angering its own

e x istence ”
. We may then fairly s ay th at if the com
munity inflicts punishments m ainly on supern atur al
grounds from the time when the evolution of public
justice first begins then mor ality from its very b e
,

ginning w as re e nforced indeed prompted

—
by —

i
religion The mor ality w as indeed only the custom
.

of the com munity ; but viol ation of the custom w as

from the beginning reg arded as a religious O ff ence
and w as punished on supern atur al grounds .

The V iew th at mor ality and religion are essen

ti all y distinct th at mor ality not only can st and alone
, ,

without support from religion but h as in re ality ,

alw ays stood without such support however much

2 24 O P R AT IV E R E LIG ION
C M A

the f act h as been obscured by religious pre posse s

sions —
this V iew r e ceives stri k ing confirm ation
from the current and gener ally accepted theory of the
origin and n ature of justice Th at theory tr aces .
,

the origin of j ii sti ce b ack to the feeling of resentment

experienced by the individu al ag ainst the p articul ar
c ause of his p ain ( Westerm arck Ori g i n and D e ve l op 1
,

me nt of the M oral I de as I R esentment le ad s

, ,

to ret ali ation and t akes the form of revenge Ven .

e ance at first e x ecuted by the person injure d ( or

g ,

by his kin if he be killed ) comes eventu ally if

, , ,

S lowly to be t aken out of the h ands of the person

,

injured or his avengers and to be e x ercised by the

,

St ate in the interests of the community and in fur

'
t h e rance not of revenge but of justice and the good
, ,

O f society Thus not only the origin of justice

.
,

but the whole course of its growth and develop

ment is entirely independent of religion and reli
,

g i o u s consider ations Throughout

. the individu al ,

and society are the only p arties involved ; the gods

do not appe ar or if they do appe ar they are i ntru

, ,

sive and superfluous I f this be the true view O f

.

the history and n ature Of j ustice it may —

and ,

prob ably must b e the truth about the whole of

—

mor ality and not only about j ustice We h av e b ut “.

 MO RA LI T Y 225

to follow Dr Westerm arck (i b p 2 1 ) in grouping

. .
,
.

the mor al emotions under the two he ads of emo

tions of approv al and emotions of dis approv al we ,

,
h ave but to note with hi m th at both groups belong
to the cl ass of retributive emotions and we see ,

th at the origin and history of justice are typic al

of the origin and hi story of mor als : mor ality in
gener al just as much as justice in p articul ar both
, ,

origin ates independently of religion and developes

where mor al progress is m ade —
independently
of religion .

L e t us now proceed to ex amine t hi s view of the

rel ation of religion and mor ality and to consider

whether their absolute independence of e ach other
is historic fact I t tr aces b ack justice to the feeling
.

of resentment e x perienced by the individu al ; but

if the individu al ever e x isted by himself and ap art
from society there could neither then be justice nor
,

anything an alogous to justice for justice implies

, ,

not merely a plur ality of individu als but a society ; ,

it is a soci al virtue The individu al e x isting by

.

hi mself and ap art from society is not a hi storic f act

but an impossible abstr action
'

a conception essen

ti all y f alse bec ause it e x presses something w hi ch

neither e x ists nor h as e x isted nor could possibly

$
226 C O M P A RAT I V E R E LIG ION
e x ist The origin of justice
. o r of any virtue
—

c annot b e fou nd in the impossible and s e lf con tr a -

d i c to ry co nc e p tion of t he i ndividu al e x is ti ng ap art

from society ; it c annot be found in a mere plur ality $

of such individu als : it can only be found in a .

society whether th at society h ave the org anis ation

of a f a mi ly a tribe or a n ation j ustice in parti cu
,
;
.
,

l ar and mor ality in gener al like religion imply , ,

the exi stence of a society ; neither is a merely indi

vidu al affair Justice is as M r Hobhouse st ates
.
,
.
,

“ ”
public action t aken for the s ake of public s afety
( I
,
it is from ,
the outset of its history public ,

action ; and b ack of th at we c annot go for the indi ,

vidu al did not as a m atter of history e xi st before

, ,

society and could not so h ave e x isted

,
.

I n the ne x t pl ace justice is not the resentment of

,

any individu al it is the sentiment of the community

,
t

e x pressing itself in public action t aken not for the ,

s ake of any individu al but for the s ake of public

,

s afety I ts object from the beginning is not the gr ati

.

ficati on of individu al resentment but the s afety and ,

welf are of the community which t akes common f

'

action . Proof of this if proof were needed would

, ,

be found in the fact th at the existence of the indi

vidu al as such is not recognised Not only does
, ,
.
 M O A LIR TY 22
7

the community which h as su ff ere d in the wrong done

to any of its members t ake action as a community ;
’
i t proceeds not ag ainst the individu al who h as i n
,

fii cte d the wrong but ag ainst the community to

,

t
w hi ch he belongs
“
The wrong done is as M r
.
”
, , .

Hobhouse s ays ( I “
the act of the f amily or cl an
,

and may be avenged on any member of th at f amily

or cl an . There is collective responsibility for the

wrong done just as there is collective responsibility
,

for righting it .

I f now we enquire Wh at are the e arliest o ff ences

, , ,

ag ainst which publi c action is t aken $ and why $

we may remember th at M r Hobhouse h as st ated .

them to be witchcr aft and bre aches of the m arri age

l

l aw ; and th at the punishment of those o ffences

“
corresponds as he h as s aid roughly to our own
, ,

a dministr ation of justice

”
( I N ow in the c a se , ,

of bre aches of the m arri age l aws m ating with a —

cousin on the mother s side inste ad of with a cousin

’

on the f ather s side m arrying into a forbidden

’
,

cl ass i t is obvious th at there is no individu al W h o

—

h as su ffered injury and th at there is no individu al

to e x perience resentment I t is the community .

th at su ff ers or is e x pected to su ffer ; and it e x pects

$‘
to su ffer bec ause it in the person of one c f its mem
, ,
2 28 C O M PA RA TI V E RE L I G I O N

b e r s h as o ff en d ed C ollectively it is responsible
, .

for t h e misd e e ds of its m e mb e rs Whom th e n h as$ .

, ,

i t o ff e nded $ To whom is it responsibl e $ Who will

visit it with pu nishment unless it m akes h aste to set

,

itself right $ The answer given by a cert ain tribe of

the Se a Dy aks m akes the m atter cle ar : they M r ,
.

St John tells us in his L ife i n the F ore s ts of the F ar

.

E as t ( I 6 3 quoted by Westerm arck I

“
, , are of , ,

opi nion th at an unm arried girl proving with child

must be o ffensive to th e superior powers who i h , ,

ste ad o f alw ays ch astisi ng the individu al punish the ,

tribe by misfortunes h appening to its members .

'

They therefore on the discovery of the pregn ancy

fine the lovers and s acrifice a pig to propiti ate
,

o ffended he aven and to avert th at sickness or those

,

”
misfortunes th at might otherwise follow Th at is .
,

of course only one inst ance But we may s afely

,
.

s ay th at the m arri age l aw is gener ally a scribed to

the ordin ance of the gods even in the lowest tribes

, ,

and th at bre a ches of it are o ffences ag ainst he aven .

I t is unnecess ary to prove it need only be men ,

t i one d ,
th at witchcr aft is conspicuously o ffensive
to the religious sentiment and is punished as an ,

off ence ag ai i st the god or gods When then we

'

.
, ,

consider th e origin and n ature of j ustice not from ,

 MO RA LI T Y 22
9

an a bstr act and a pri ori point of view but in the light
,

‘
of historic fact so far from finding th at it origin ates
,

and oper ates in complete independe nce of religion ,

w e discover th at from the b e ginning the o ff ences

with which the justice of the primitive community

d e als are o ffences not ag ainst the community but ,

ag ainst he aven I n the evolution of public jus

tice as M r Hobhouse s ays at the outset the com
,
”
.
“
,

munity interferes m ainly on wh at we may c all

”
supern atur al grounds From the beginning mis
.

deeds are punished not merely as wrongs done to

,

society but as wrong done to the gods and as wrong

,

doing for which the community collectively is re

sponsible to the gods Justice from the beginning is
.

“
not individu al resentment but public action t aken
,

for the public s afety ”

. I t is not as M r Hobhouse
,
.

”
c alls it revenge guided and li mited by custom
, .

I t is the custom ary action of the community t aken

to avert divine venge ance The action t aken assume s
.

in e x treme c ases the form of the de ath pen alty ; but

i t s usu al form of action is th at of t aboo .

I f the origin of justice is to be sought in something

th at is not j ustice if justice in p articul ar and mo
,

ral i ty in gener al are to be tre ated as h avi ng been

“

evolved out of something which w as in a w ay di fferen t

2
3 0 C O M PARAT IV E R E LIGION

fro m them and yet in a w ay must h ave cont ain e d

them in asmuch as they c ame for th from i t w e sh all
, ,

do w e ll to look for th at something not in the u nh i s ,

to ri cal unr e al abstr action of an im agi nary individu al

, ,

ap art from society but in society its e lf when it is as

,

yet not cle arly conscious O f the justice and mor ality
at work within it Such a st age in the dev e lopment
.

O f society is I think to be disc e rned

, ,
.

“
We h ave seen th at at al most if not quite the , , ,

”
lowest st ages of hu m an development there is ,

something which according to M r Hobhouse cor,

.
,

“
responds roughly to our own admi nistr ation O f
justice ( I But this rough j ustice implies
,

conscious deliber ate action on the p art of the com

,

munity I t implies th at the community as such

.

m akes some sort of enquiry into wh at can be the

c ause O f the misfortunes which are bef alling it ;
and th at h aving found out the person responsible
, ,

it deliber ately t akes the steps it deems necess ary

for putting itself right with the supern atur al power
th at h as sent the sickness or f amine N ow such .
,

conscious purposive delib e r ate action may and

, ,

prob ably does t ake pl ace at almost the lowest st age

of development of society ; but not we may surmise , ,

at quite the lowest Wh at eventu ally is done con

.
 R
M O A LI TY 23 I

s ci ou sl y and deliber ately is prob ably done in the

first pl ace much more summ arily and autom atic ally .

And —
i n quite the low e st st age O f soci al develop
ment —
i t is by me ans of the action of t aboo th at
summ ary and autom atic punishment for bre aches of
the custom of the community is i nflicted I ts action
‘

is autom atic and immedi ate : merely to come in

cont act with the forbidden thi ng is to become t a
booed yourself ; and so gre at is the horror and dre ad
O f such cont act even if m ade unwitti ngly
,
th at it is ,

c ap able of c ausing when discovered de ath L ike

, ,
.

the justice however of which it is the forerunn e r

, , ,

it does not result alw ays in de ath nor does it produce ,

th at e ff ect in most c ases But wh at it does do is

.

to m ake the O ffender hi mself t aboo and as i nfectious

as the thing th at rendered him t aboo Here too .
, ,

the action O f t aboo in e x communic ati ng the O ffender

, ,

anticip ates ,
or r ather foresh adows the action of ,

justice when it e x cludes the guilty person from the

commu nity and m akes of him an outl aw Ag ai n in .
,

the rough justice fou nd at almost though not quit e , ,

the lowest st ages the e arliest O ffences of which

,

o ffici al notice so to spe ak is t aken are O ffences for

, , ,

which the pu nishment dis e ase or f a mine etc

—
,
.

f alls on the community as a whole b e c ause the com ,

23 2 C O M PARAT IV E R E LIGION

munity in the person of one of its memb e rs h as

, ,

o ffend e d as a whole ag ai nst he aven I n the e arli e r .

st age of feeling also which survives where t aboo

, ,

prev ails it is the community as a whole which may

,

be infected and which must su ffer if the O ff e nd e r IS

,

allowed to spre ad the infec tion ; it is t h e community ,

as a whole which is concerned to thrust out the

,

guilty person every one shuns hi m bec ause he is

—

t aboo Thus in this the e arliest st age the O ffender

.
, ,

ag ainst the custom of t h e community is outl awed

just as e ffectively as in l ater st ages of soci al develop

ment But no form al sentence is pronounced ; no
.

meeting of the men or the elders O f the community

is held to try the o ffe nder ; no re ason is given or
sought why the O ffence should thus be pu nished The .

oper ation of t aboo is like th at of the l aws of n ature :

the man who e ats poisonous food dies with no r e as on
given A re ason may eventu ally be found by science
.
,

and is eventu ally discovered though the process of ,

discovery is slow and m any mist akes are m ade, ,

and m any f alse re asons are given before the true

re ason is found SO too the true re ason for the pro

.
, ,

h ib i ti on of m any of the things which the community ,

feels to be forbidden and pronounced to be t aboo is ,

fou nd with the progress of society

,
—
when it does
 M O RA LI T Y 23
3

progress which is not alw ays

,
to be th at they are
immor al and i rreligious though h e r e too m any
, , ,

mist a ke s are m ad e b e for e true mor ality and true

religion are fou nd But at the outset no re ason is
.

g iven : the thi ngs are simply o ffensive to the com

mu nity and are t abooed as such We looking b ack .

,

at th at st ag e i n the evolution of society c an see th at ,

a mongst t h e thi ngs thus o ffensive and t abooed are

som e which in l at e r st ages are equ ally o ffe nsive

, , ,

but are now forbidden for a re ason th at c an be

formul ated and given v i z th at they are O ffences
,
.

ag ainst the l aw of mor ality and the l aw of G od

,
.

Th at re ason at the outset of society may sc arcely

, ,

h ave been consciously pr e sent to the mind of man :

progress in p art at le ast h as consist e d in the di s cov
, ,

ery of the re asons of things But th at man did from

.

the beginning avoid some of the things which are

forbidden by mor ality and religion and th at those ,

t hi ngs were t aboo to hi m is beyond the possibility

,

of doubt N or c an it be doubt e d th at in the pro b i

.

b i ti on and punishment of them there w as incho ate

j ustice and i ncho ate religion Such prohibition

.

w as due to the collective action and e x pressed the

,
collectiv e fe eli ng of the commu nity as a whole .

And it is from such soci al action and feeling th at

234 C O M P A RAT IV E R E LIGION

jus tic e I suggest h as been evolved

, , not from the —

feeli ng of resen t ment e x perienced by the individu al

as an individu al Person al resent ment and person al
.

revenge may h ave stimul ated j us tice to action .

But by the hypothesis we h ave been e x amining

, ,

they were not justice N eith e r h ave th e y been.

tr ansformed into justice : they still e xi st as some

thing distinct from justice and c ap able of pervert
ing it .

The form which justice t akes in the period whi ch

is almost but not quite the lowest st age of hum an
, ,

evolution is the sense Of the collective responsibility

O f the community for al l its actions th at is to say , ,

for the acts of all its members And th at responsi .

b i l i ty in its e arliest sh ape is felt to be a responsibility

to he aven to the supern atur al powers th at send dis
,

e ase and f amine upon the community I n those .

d ays no man sins to himself alone just as in still , ,

e arlier d ays no man could bre ak a t aboo without

,

becoming a source of d anger to the whole community .

The wrong doer h as o ffended ag ainst the super

-

n atur al powers and h as brought down c al amity

upon the community He is therefore punished .
,

directly as an o ff ender ag ainst the god of the com

m unity and indirectly for h aving involved the com
,
 M O RA LI T Y 2
35

munity in su ff ering I n Dr Westerm arck s words

. .
’

( I
,
there is “
genuine indign ation a g a inst the
O ffender both bec ause he rebels ag ainst G od and
, ,

bec ause he thereby e x poses the whole community

”
to supern atur al d angers But though society for
.

m any long centuries continues to punish rebellion

ag ainst G od still in the long run it ce a ses or tends
, ,

to ce ase doing so I ts re ason for so ce asing is inter

,
.

re te d di ffere ntly by di fferent schools of thought

p .

O n the one h and it is s aid in derision let the gods

, ,

punish o ffences ag ainst the gods the implic ation —

being th at there are no such o ffences to punish ,

b ec ause there is no god O n the other h and it is.

,

s aid I will rep ay s aith the L ord

,
“
,
”
the implic a
tion being th at man may not assume to be the min
ister of divine venge ance I f then we be ar in mind.
, ,

th at the fact may be interpreted in either of these

di fferent w ays we sh all not f all into the f all acy
,

of im agining th at the mere existence of the f act

su ffices to prove either interpret ation to be true .

Yet this fall acy pl ays its p art in lending fictitious

support to the doctrine th at mor ality is in no wise
dependent upon religion The O ffences now pun .

i sh e d by l aw it is argued are no longer punished

, ,

as o ffences ag ainst religion but solely as o ffences ,

23 6 C O M PAR AT IV E R E LI G ION

a g ainst the good of t he community To this arg u .

ment the reply is th at me n beli e ve the good of the

community to be th e will O f G od and do not ,

believe murder th e ft adultery etc to be merely

, , ,
.
,

O ff ences ag ai nst m an s l aws O verlooking this

’
.

f act which is f at al to the doctrine th at mor ality is

,

in no wise dependent on religion th e argument we ,

are discussing proceeds to m aint ain th at the b asis

for the enforcement of mor ality by the l aw is recog

ni se d by every one who knows anything of the phi

l osophy of l aw to be wh at is good for the community

and its members : fr a ud and violence are punished
as such and not bec ause they are O ffences ag ainst
,

thi s or th at religion The f act th at the l aw no

.

longer punishes them as o ffences ag ainst G od su ffices

to show th at it is only as O ffences ag ainst hum anity
th at there is any sense or ever w as any sense in
, ,

punishing them Religion may h ave re e nforce d

.

$
mor ality very usefully at one time by m aking out ,

th at mor al misdeeds were o ffences ag ainst G od ,

but such arguments are not now required The . .

good and the well being of hum anity is in itself

-

sufficient argument Hum anit ari anism is t aking

.

the pl ace of religion and by so doing is d e monstrat

,

ing th at mor ality is as it alw ays h as been i nd e pe n

, ,
 MO RA LI T Y 2
37

dent of religion ; and th at in truth religion h as built

,,
upon it not it upon religion As H Offd i ng puts it
,
.

( p
. R eligious f a ith a ssumes an inde
pendent hum an ethic developed historic ally under
t h e pr actic al influence O f the ethic al feeling of man
”
.

Th at is to s ay mor ality is in H Offd i ng s V iew inde

,
’

pe ndent of religion and prior to religion both as a

, ,

m atter of logic and of history As a m atter of his .

tory —
O f the history of religion this seems to —

me for the re asons alre ady given to be contr ary

, ,

to the f acts as they are known The re al re ason .

for m aint aining th at mor ality is and must be and

must h ave been independent of religion seems

—
,

to me to be a philosophic al re ason I may give it .

in H Offd ing s own words : Wh at other aims and

’

”
qu alities he asks ( p
,
“
could man attribute
.

to his gods or conceive as divine but those which he ,

h as le arnt from his own e x perience to recognise

f
as the highest $
”
The answer e x pected to the ques
tion pl ainly is not merely th at it is from e x perience
th at man le arns but th at man h as no e x perience of
,

G od from which he could le arn The answer given .

by M r Hobhouse in the co ncludi ng words of his

.
,

M oral s i n E v ol u ti on is th at the collective wisdom

“ ”

o f man
“
is al l th at we directly know of the Divine .
238 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LIGION

H e re too no direct access to G od is allowed to b e

, , :

possibl e to man I t is from his e x per i en ce of other

.

men perh aps ev e n of hims e lf and his own doings

th at man le arns al l h e knows of G od : but he h as
himself no e x perience of G od O bviously then from
.
, ,

this hum anit ari an point of view wh at a man goes

,

through in his religious moments is not experience ,

and we are mist a ken if we im agine th at it w as e x

ri e nce ; it is only a misinterpret ation of e x perience L

p e .

I t is on the supposition th at we are mist aken on the ,

assumption th at we m ake a misinterpret ation th at ,

the argument is built to prove th at mor ality is and

must be independent of religion Argument to
.

show or proof to demonstr ate th at we h ad not the

, ,

e x perience or th at we mistook something else for

, ,

it is of course not forthcoming But if we hold

, , ,
.

f ast to our conviction we are told th at we are fleeing

,

“ ”
to the bosom of f aith .

Until some better argument is produced we may ,

be well content not merely to flee but to rest there .

 f C H RI S T I A NI T Y

TH E subject de alt with in this lecture will b e

the pl ace of C hristi anity in the evolution of religion ;
and I sh all appro ach it by considering the pl ace
of religion in the evolution of hum anity I t will.

be therefore advis able indeed necess ary for me

, ,

to consider wh at is me ant by evolution ; and I wish

to begin by e x pl aining the point of V iew from which
I propose to appro ach the three ide as Of evolution ,

of the evolution of hum anity and the evolution of

religion .

The individu al e x ists and can only e x ist in society

, , .

Society c annot e x ist without individu als as mem

bers thereof ; and the individu al c annot exist s ave
in society From this it follows th at from one
.

point of view the individu al may be reg arded as

a me ans a me ans by which society att ains its
—

end or purpose : every one of us h as his pl ace or

function in society ; and society thrives according
a s e ach member performs hi s function and dis

ch arges hi s duty From another point Of V ie w

.

2
39
2 40 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LIG ION

the individu al may be reg arded as an end I f .

man is a soci al anim al if men liv e in socie ty it

, ,

is bec ause so alone can a man do wh at is best for

himself : it is by me ans of society t h at he re alises
hi s end I t is then from this proposition v i z th at
.
,
.

the individu al is both a me ans and an end th at ,

I wish to appro ach the ide a of evolution .

I will begin by c alling attention to the fact th at

th at proposition is true both st atic ally th at is to ,

s ay is true O f the individu al s position in a com

’
,

munity and is also true dyn amic ally th at is to s ay

, , ,

is true of hi s pl ace in the process of evolution O n .

the former point th at the proposi tion is true st ati

,

c ally of the position of the individu al in the com

,

munity I need s ay but little I n mor al philosophy

,
.

it is the utilit ari an school which h as p articul arly

insisted upon this truth Th at school h as ste adily
.

argued th at in the distribution of h appiness or of

,

the good every man is to count as one and nobody

, ,

to count as more th an one th at is to s ay in the

—
,

community the individu al is to be reg arded as the

end The Object to be aimed at is not h appiness
.

in gener al and no one s h appiness in p articul ar

’
,

but the h appiness of e ach and every individu al .

I t is the individu al and his h appiness which is the

 C HR I S T I A NI T Y 241

end for the s ake of which society exists and to which

,

it is the me ans ; otherwise the individu al mi ght

derive no benefit from society But if the truth .

th at the individu al is an end as well as a me ans

is recognised by mor al philosophy th at truth h as ,

also pl ayed at le ast an equ ally import ant p art in

politic al philosophy I t is the very bre ath of the

.

cry for liberty equ ality and fr aternity

, ,
a cry ,

wrung out from the he art of man by the system of

oppression which denied th at the ordin ary citizen
h ad a right to be anything but a me ans for pro
curing enjoyment to the members of the ruling cl ass .

The truth th at any one man wh atever his pl ace -

in society wh atever the colour of his ski n h as as

,
—

much right as any other to be tre ated as an end

and th at no man w as merely a me ans to the e n

j y
o m e nt or h appiness or well being of another
-
w as ,

the ch arter for the em ancip ation of sl aves I t is .

still the m agn a ch art a for the freedom of every

member of the hum an r ace N O man is or c an be
.

a ch attel a thing e x isting for no other purpose

—

th an to subserve the interests Of its owner and to

be a me ans to his ends But though from the
.

truth th at the individu al is in himself an end as well

as a me ans it follows th at al l men h ave the right to
,

R
242 C O M P A R AT IV E R E LIG I ON

freedom it does not follow as a logic al inference

,

th at al l men are equ al as me ans as me ans to the

m ateri al h appiness or to the mor al improvemen t .

of society .

I need not further dwell upon the f act th at st ati

c ally as reg ards the rel ations of men to one another
in society at any moment the truth is fully recognised
,

th at the individu al is not merely a me ans to the

h appiness or well being O f others but is also in him
-
,

self an end But when we consider the proposition

.

dyn amic ally when we wish to find out the p art it

,

h as pl ayed as one of the forces at work in e vol u

tion we find th at its truth h as been far from fully
,

recognised —
p artly perh aps bec ause utilit ari anism
d ates from a time when evolution or the be aring ,

of it w as not understood But the truth is at le ast

,
.

of as gre at import ance dyn ami c ally as it is st atic ally .

And on one side its truth and the import ance of

,

its truth h as been fully developed : th at the indi

vidu al is a me ans to an end beyond him ; and th at ,

dyn amic ally he h as been and is a f actor in e v ol u

,

tion and as a f actor merely a me ans and nothing

,

else —
all this h as been worked out fully if not ,
”
to excess The other side of the truth the f act
.

) ,

th at the individu al is alw ays an end h as however I , , ,

 C HR I S T I A NI TY 2 43

been as much neglected by the scientific evolutionist

as it w as by the sl ave driver : he h as been li able
-

to reg ard men as ch attels as instruments by which

,

t h e work of evolution is c arried on The work h as

j .

g o t to be done ( by men a mongst other anim a ls an d

things ) things h ave to be evolved evolution must go
, ,

on B ut why $ and for whom $ with wh at purpose

.
,

and for whose benefit $ with wh at end $ are ques

tions w hi ch science le aves to be answered by those

people who are foolish enough to ask them Science .

as concerned simply with the individu al as a me ans ,

as one of the me ans whereby evolution is c arried

,

on ; and doubtless science is justified —

i f only
on the principle of the division of l abour i n con
—

, h ning itself to the dep artment of enquiry which

it t akes in h and and in refusing to tr avel beyond it .

Any theory of man therefore or of the evolution

l , ,

lof hum anity which professes to b ase itself strictly

,

on scientific f act and to e x clude other consider a

‘
ti ons as unscientific and therefore as uns afe m ateri al
z

to build on will n atur ally and perh aps necess arily

, , ,

be domin ated by the notion th at the individu al

e x i sts as a f actor in evolution as one of the me ans
,

by which and not as in any sense the end for which

, ,

evolution is c arried on .
2 44 C O M P A RAT IV E R E LIGION

Such seems to be the c ase wi th the theory of

hum anit ari anism . I t b ases itself upon science < ,

upon e x peri e nce and rules out communion with

,

G od as not being a scientific f act or a f act O f e x

p e ri e nce at al
. l B ased upon science it is a,
theory
whi ch seeks amongst other things to assign to
religion its pl ace in the evolution of hum anity .

According to the theory the d ay O f religion is over

, ,

its p art pl ayed out its function in the evolution of

,

hum anity disch arged According to this theory

.
,

three st ages may be discerned in the evolution of

hum anity when we reg ard man as a mor al being ,

as an et hi c al consciousness Those three st ages

.

may be ch ar acterised first as custom next religion , ,

and fin ally hum anit ari anism .

0

By the theory in the first st age

,
th at of custom
the spirits to whom cult is p aid are vindictive .

I n the second st age th at of religion man ,

h aving att ained to a higher mor ality credits hi s ,

gods with th at higher mor ality I n the third st age

.

— th at of hum anit ari anism —

h e finds th at the
gods are but l ay figures on which the robes of
righteousness h ave been displ ayed th at man alone
c an we ar when he is perfect He is not yet
—
.
,

perfect I f he were the evolution of hum anity

.
,
:
 C HR I S T I A N I TY 24 5

woul d b e att ained where as at present it is as

—

yet in process The end of evolution is not yet

.

att ained : it is to est ablish in some future gener a

,

tion a perfect hum anity For th at end we must

,
.

work ; to it we may know th at as a m atter of seien ,

t i fic evolution we are working

,
O n it we may b e .
,

, S ati s fie d,
man will not enter in our gener ation .

Now this theory of the evolution of hum anity ,

and of the pl ace religion t akes in th at evolution is ,

in essenti al h armony with the scientific tre atment of

the evolution theory in asmuch as it tre ats O f the
,

individu al solely as an instrument to something

other th an himself as a me ans of producing a st ate
,

of hum anity to which he will not belong But if .

the assumption th at the individu al is alw ays a me ans

, and never an end in himself be f alse then a theory ,

of the evolution of man ( as an ethic al consciousness )

which is b ased on th at wrong assumption will
”
itself be wrong I f e ach individu al is an end as
.
,

v alu able and as import ant as any other individu al ;

if e ach counts for one and not less th an any one
other ,
— then his end and his good c annot lie in the
perfection of some future gener ation I n th at c ase .
,

his end would be one th at e x hy p ot he s i he could

never enjoy a rest into which he could never enter ;
,
2 46 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

and consequently it would be an irr ation al end and ,

could not serve as a b asis for a r ation alist theory

of ethics M an s object ( to be a r ation al object )
.
’
.

must h ave reference to a society of which he may

be a member The re alis ation of his Object there
.
,

fore c annot be referred to a st age of society yet to

,

come on e arth after he is de ad

, ,
a society of ,
—

which he whether de ad or annihil ated could not

,

be a member I f then the individu al s object is $

.
, ,

to be a r ation al object as the hum anit ari an or ,

r ation alist assumes then th at end must be one in

,

whi ch he can sh are ; and therefore c annot be in

thi s world N or can th at end be att ained by doing
.

m an s will
’ —
for m an s will may be evil and re’
,

gress as well as progress is a f act in the evolution ,

of hum anity ; its att ainment therefore must be

$ , ,

e ffected by doing G od s will ’

.

The truth th at the individu al is an end as well as

a me ans is I suggest v alu able in considering the
, ,

dyn amics as well as the st atics of society At le ast .

,

it s aves one from the self compl acency of im agining -

th at one s ancestors existed with no other end and

’

for no higher purpose th an to produce me ; and if

the golden d ays anticip ated by the theory of hum ani
t ari ani s m ever arrive it is to be supposed th at the
, ,
 C HR I S T I A NI T Y 247

men of th at time will find it just as intoler able and

revolting as we do now to believe th at p ast gener a
,

tions toiled and su ffered for no other re ason for no ,

other end and to no other purpose th an th at their

,

successors should enter into the fruits of their l abour .

I n a word the theory th at in the evolution of man as

,

an ethic al consciousness as a mor al being religion

, ,

is to be superseded by hum anit ari anism is only ,

possible so long as we deny or ignore the fact th at

the individu al is an end and not merely a me ans .

We w ill therefore now go on to consider the e vol u

tion of religion from the point of V iew th at the i n
dividu al is in hi mself an end as well as a me ans .

I f of the world religions we t ake th at which is the

, ,

gre atest as me asured by the number of its adherents

, ,

vi z Buddhism we sh all see th at tried by this test

.
, , ,

”
it is at once found w anting The object at which .

Buddhism procl aims th at man S hould ai m is not

the development the perfection and the re alis ation
, ,

of the individu al to the fullest extent : it is on the ,

contr ary the utter and complete e ffacement of the

,

individu al so th at he is not merely absorbed but

, ,
fl

absolutely wiped out I n ni rv ana

,
I n the atman .
,

with which it is the duty of man to seek to identify

himself the individu ality of man does not survive :
,
2 48 C O M P A RAT IV E R E LIG ION

it simply ce ases to b e N ow this obliter ation of

.

his existence may seem to a man in a cert ain mood

desir able ; and th at mood may be cultiv ated a s ,

indeed Buddhism seeks to cultiv ate it system atic ally , .

But here it is th at the inner inconsistency the self ,

contr adictoriness of Buddhism becomes p atent , .

The individu al to do anything must e x ist I f he

, , .

is to desire nothi ng s ave to ce ase to exi st he must ,

exist to do th at B ut the te aching of Buddhi sm

.

is th at thi s world and t his life is illusion —

a nd

further th at the exi stence of the individu al sel f

,

is precisely the most mischievous illusion th at ,

illusion above all others from which it is incumbent

on us to free ourselves We are here for no other
.

en d th an to free ourselves from th at illusion Thus .

,

then by the te aching of Buddhism there is an end

, ,

it may be s aid for the individu al to ai m at Yes $$

,
.

b ut by the s ame te aching there is no individu al

to ai m at i t individu al e x istence is the most
—

pernicious of all illusions And further by the

.
,

te aching the fin al end and object of religion is to

,

get rid of an individu al existence which does not ,

exi st to be got rid of and which it is an illusion to

,

b elieve in I n fine Buddhism denies th at the

.
,

individu al is either an end or a me ans for it denies ,

 C HR I S T I A NI TY 2 49

the existence of the individu al and contr adicts ,

itself in th at deni al The individu al is not an end

.

the h appiness or immort ality the continued ,

e x istence O f the indivi du al is not to be aimed at

,
.

N either is he a me ans for his very e x istence is an ,

illusion and as such is an obst acle or impediment

,

which h as to be removed in order th at he who is ,

not may ce ase to do wh at he h as never begun to do ,

vi z to e x ist
. .

I n Buddhism we h ave a developed religion

a religion which h as been developed by a system

of ph i l osoph y b u t sc arcely as religion improved

,
.
, ,

by it I f now we turn to other religions less highly

.
, ,

developed even if we turn to religions the develop

,

ment of which h as been e arly arrested which h ave ,

never got beyond the st age of inf antile development ,

we sh all find th at al l proceed on the assumption

th at communion between man and G od is possible
and does occur I n al l the e x istence of the i n
.
,

dividu al as well as of the god is assumed even ,

though time and development may be required to

re alise even in adequ ately wh at is cont aine d in the
, ,

a ssumption I n all and from the beginning

.
, ,

religion h as been a soci al f act : the go d h as been the

god Of the community ; and as such h as re pre , ,
2 50 C O M P AR A T IV E R E LIGION

sented the interests of the community Those .

interests h ave been reg arded not merely as other ,

but as higher th an the interests of the individu al

, ,

when the two h ave been at v ari ance for the simple
,

re ason ( when the time c ame for a re ason to be

sought and given ) th at the interests of the com
munity were the will of the community s god ’
.

H ence at al l times the man who h as postponed his

own interests to those under the s anction of the god
and the community —
the man who h as respecte d
and upheld the custom of the community h as
—

been reg arded as the higher type of man as the better ,

man from the religious as well as from the mor al

point of V iew ; while the man who h as s acrifice d
the higher interests to the lower h as been punishe d
,

whether by the autom atic action of t aboo or ,

the deliber ate sentence of outl awry —

as one who ,

b y b re aki ng custom h as o ff ended ag ainst the god

,

and so brought suffering on the community .

Now if the interests whether of the indivi d u al

, ,

or the community are reg arded as purely e arthly

, ,

the divergence between them must be utter and

i rre conci l e ab l e ; and to e x pect the individu al to
forego his own interests must be eventu ally dis
covered to be as it fund ament ally is unre ason ab le
, ,
.
 C HR I S T I AN I T Y 251

I f on the other h and for the individu al to forego

, ,

them is ( as in a cool moment we al l recognise it

, ,

to be ) re ason able then the interests under the s anc

,

tion of the god and the community —

the hi gher
interests —
c annot be other th an they must be ,

identic al with the re al interests Of the individu al

,
.

I t is only in and through society th at the individu al

can att ain his hi ghest interests and only by doing ,

the will of the god th at he can SO att ain them .

Doubtless —
despite of logic and feeling —
i n all
co mmu ni ti e S al l individu als in a gre ater or less
degree h ave deliber ately preferred the lower to the
higher and in so doing h ave been actu ated neither
,

b y love of G od nor by love of their fellow man -

.

But in so doing they h ave at all times in the l atest

, , ,

as well as the e arliest st ages of society been felt to ,

b e bre aching the very b asis of soci al solid arity the ,

m ainten ance of whi ch is the will of the G od wor

s hipped by society .

From th at point of View the individu al is reg arded

as a me ans . But he is also in hi mself an end i n ,

t ri nsi cal l y as v alu able as any other member of

the communi ty and therefore an end which society

,

exists to further and promote I t is impossible .

,

therefore th at the end viewed as th at which society

, ,
252 C O M P AR A T IV E R E L I GION

as well as the individu al aims at and which society ,

must re alise as far as it can re alise it through the

, ,

individu al should be one w hich c an only be att ained

,

by some future st ate of society in which he does not

“ ”
exist .The ki ngdom of He aven is within you
and not somet h ing to whi ch you c annot att ain .

G od is not far from us at any time Th at truth w as .

implicit at all st ages in the evolution of religion

consciously recognised perh aps more perh aps less
, , ,

b ut whether more or less consciously recognised it ,

w as there Th at is the conviction implie d in the

.

f act th at man everywhere seeks G od I f he seeks .

H im in pl ants in anim als in stocks or stones th at

, , ,

only shows th at man h as tried in m any wrong

directions —
not th at there I S not a right direction .

I t is the gener al l aw of evolution : of a thous an d

seeds thrown out perh aps one alone f alls into good
,

soil But the failure of the 999 av ails nothing

.

ag ainst the f act th at the one be ars fruit abund antly .

Wh at sancti fie s the f ailures is th at they were attempts .

We indeed may if we are SO selfish and blind

, ,

reg ard the attempts as m ade in order th at we might

succeed C ert ainly we profit by the work of our
.

ancestors o r r ather we may profit if we will

—
.
, ,

But our s av age ancestors were themselves ends and ,

 C HR I S T IA NI T Y 53

not merely me ans to our benefit I t is monstrous .

to im agine th at our s alv ation is bought at the cost

of their condemn ation N o man can do more .

th an turn to such ligh t as there may be to gui de

hi m .
“
To h I m th at h ath sh all be given it is
”
, ,

true but every man at every time h ad something ;

never w as there one to whom nothing w as given .

To us at thi s d ay in thi s dispens ation much h as

, ,

b een given But ten t alents as well as one may

.

be wr apped up : one as well as ten may b e put to

profit I t is monstrous to s ay th at one could not
.

be c annot h ave been used properly I t w as for

, , .

not using the one t alent he h ad th at the unfaithful

serv ant w as condemned —
not for not h aving te n
to use .

Throughout the history of religion then two fact s , ,

h ave been implied which if implicit at the beginning

, , ,

h ave been rendered explicit in the c ourse of its

hi story or evolution They are first the existence
.
, ,

of the individu al as a member of society in com ,

munion or seeking communion with G od ; and ,

h e x t th at while the individu al is a me ans to soci al

,

ends society is also a me ans of which the individu al

,

N eith er end neither th at of society

l

I S the end
—
.

t D Ol
’

th at of the indivi d u al —
can b e for warded at
2 54 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

the cost of the other ; the re alis ation of e ach is to

be att ained only by the re alis ation of the other .

Two consequences then follow with reg ard to evo

l ution : first it depends on us ; evolution may h ave
,

helped to m ake us but we are helping to m ake it

,
.

Ne x t the end of evolution is not wholly outside

,

any one of us but in p art is re a lised in us or may

, ,

be if we SO will Th at is to s ay the true end may

,
.
,

be re alised by every one of us ; for e ach of us as ,

being himself an end is an object of c are to G od

,

and not merely those who are to live on e arth at

the fin al st age of evolution I f the end is outside

.

us it is in love of neighbour ; if beyond us it is in

, ,

G od s love I t is just bec ause the end is (or may

’
.

be ) both within us and without us th at we are bound

up with our fellow man and G od I t is precisely
-
.

bec ause we are individu als th at we are not the b e al l -

and the end al l th at the end is without us And

- —
.

it is bec ause we are members of a community th at ,

the end is not wholly outside us .

I n his P robl e ms of P hi l os op hy ( p 1 63 ) Hoff d ing

.
'
x

“
s ays : The test of the perfection of a hum an society
is : to wh at degree is every person so pl aced and (
tre ated th at he is not only a mere me ans but also ,

”
alw ays at the s ame time an end $ and he points
 C HR I S T I A NI T Y 255

ou t th at this is Kant s famous dictum with another

’
,

motive th an th at given to it by hi m ”
But if it .

is re ason able to apply this test to society reg arded ,

from the point of V iew of st atics it is also re ason able

,

to apply it to society reg arded dyn ami c ally I f it is .

the proper test for ascert aining wh at degree of per

fe cti on society at any given moment h as att ained ,

it is also the proper test for ascert aining wh at ad

v ance if any tow ards perfection h as been m ade
, ,

by society between any two periods of its growth ,

any two st ages in its evolution But the moment

.

we admit the possibility of applying a test to the

process O f evolution and of discovering to wh at end
the process is moving we are ab andoning science
,

and the scientific theory of evolution S cience .

form ally refuses to consider whether there be any

end to which the process of evolution is working :
“ ”
end is a c ategory which science declines to apply
to its subject m atter I n the interests of knowledge
-
.

it declines to be influenced by any consider ation of

wh at the end aimed at by evolution may be or ,

whether there be any end aimed at at al l I t simply .

notes wh at does t ake pl ace wh at is wh at h as been

, , ,

and to some e x tent wh at may be the sequence of ,

events —
not their object or purpose And the .
2 56 C O M P ARAT IV E R E LIGION

science of religion being a science restricts itself

, ,

in t h e s ame w ay As therefore science declines to

.

use t he c ategory end progress is an ide a i mpos

, ,

sible for science for progress is movement tow ards

an end ,
the re alis ation of a purpose and object .

And science declines to consider whether progress

is so much as possible But so far as the subject
.
,

m atter of the science of religion is concerned it is ,

positive ( th at is to s ay it is mere f act of observ a

,

tion ) th at in reli g ion an end is aimed at for man ,

everywhere seeks G od and communion with H im .

Wh at the science of religion declines to do is to

pronounce or even to consider whether th at en d is
possible or not whether it is in any degree achi eve d
,

or not whether progress is m ade or not

,
.

But if we do not as science does merely const ate

, ,

the f act th at in religion an end is aimed at viz th at ,

.

communion with G o d which issues in doing His will

from love of Him and therefore of our fellow man ; -

if we recognise th at end as the end th at ought to

be aimed at ,
—
then our attitude tow ards the whole
process of evolution is ch anged : it is now a process
with an end and th at end the s ame for the indi

vidu al and for society But at the s ame time it is

.

no longer a process determined by mech anic al

 C HR I S T I A N I TY 2 57

c auses worke d by the iron h and of necessity and

therefore it is no longer evolution in the scientific

sense ; it is no longer evolution as understood by
science I t is now a process in which there may
.

or may not be progress m ade ; and in which there ,

fore i t is necess ary to h ave a test of progress

,
—
a

test which is to be found in the f act th at the indi

vidu al is not merely a me ans but an end Whether
,
.

progress is m ade depends in p art on whether there

is the will in man to move tow ards the end proposed ;
and th at will is not uniformly e x ercised as is shown,

by the fact th at deterior ation as well as adv ance

t akes pl ace —
regress occurs as well as progress ;
whole n ations and those not sm all ones may be
, ,

arrested in their religious development I f we look

.

with the eye of the mission ary over the globe every ,

where we Se e arrested development imperfect ,

communion with G od I t may be th at in such c ases

.

of imperfect communion there is an unconscious

or h ardly conscious recognition th at the form of
religion there and then prev alent does not su ffice
to afford the communion desired O r worse still.
, ,

and much more gener al there is the belief th at such

,

communion as does e x ist is al l th at can e x ist th at

adv ance and improvement are impossible From .
2 58 C O M P A R A T IV E R E LIGION

this s tate it h as been the work of the religious spirit

to w a ke us to reve al to us G od s will to m ake u s
,
’
,

underst and th at it is within us and th at it may , ,

if we will work within us I t is as such a revel a

,
.

tion of the will of G od and the love of G od and as ,

the m anifest ation of the person ality of G od th at ,

our L ord appe ared on e arth .

Th at appe ar ance as a historic fact must t ake its

pl ace in the order of historic events and must st and ,

in rel ation to wh at preceded and to wh at followed

and is yet to follow I n rel ation to wh at preceded ,

C hristi anity cl aims to be the fulfilment of al l th at

is true in previous religion ( I llingworth P e rs on ,

ali t : H u man and D i v i ne p The m a king

y ,
.

of th at cl aim assumes th at there w as some truth in

previous religion th at so far as previous forms were
,

religious they were true

,
a f act th at must con
—

s t antl y be borne in mind by the mission ary The .

truth and the good inherent in all forms of religion

is th at in all man seeks aft er G od The fin ality
, ,
.

of C hristi anity lies in the fact th at it reve als the

G od for whom man seeks Wh at w as true in other
.

religions w as the belief in the possibility of com

munion with G od and the belief th at only as a
,

member of a society could the individu al man att ain

 C HR I S T IA NI T Y 2 59

to th at communion Wh at is o ff ered by C hristi anity

.

is a me ans of gr ace whereby th at communion may

b e att ained and a society in whi ch the individu al
may att ain it C hristi anity O ff ers a me ans whereby
.

the end aimed at by all religions may be re alised .

I ts finality therefore does not consist in its chrono

, ,

logic al rel ation to other religions I t is not fin al .

bec ause or in the sense th at it supervened in the

, ,

order of time upon previous religions or th at it ,

fulfilled only their truth O ther religions h ave as

.
,

a m atter of chronology followed it and yet others

, ,

may follow it here after But their chronologic al

.

order is irrelevant to the question : Whi ch of them

best re alises the end at which religion in al l its ,

forms aims $ And it is the answer to th at question

,

which must determine the finality of any form of

religion NO one would consider the fact th at
.

M ahomme d ani sm d ates some centuries after C hrist

any proof of its superiority to C hristi anity And .

the l apse of time however much gre ater would

, ,

constitute no gre ater proof .

Th at di ff erent forms of religion do re alise the

end of religion in di fferent degrees is a point on
which there is gener al agreement M onotheism is .

pronounce d higher th an polytheism ethic al religions ,

2 6o C O M P A RAT IV E R E LIGION

higher th an non ethic al Wh at di ff erenti ates Chris

-
.

ti ani ty from other ethic al religions and from o ther

forms O f mo notheism is th at in them religi on appe ars

,

a s ancill ary to mor ality and im poses pen al ties and

,

rew ards with a V iew to enforce or encour age mor al

ity I n them at their highest the love of man is for
.
, ,

his fellow man and usu ally for himself C hris

-
,
.

ti ani ty alone m akes love of G od to be the true b a sis

a nd the only end of society both th at whereby per ,

so nali ty e x ists and the end in which it seeks its

re alis ation Therein the C hristi an theory of society
.

diff ers from all others Not merely does it hold th at

.

man c annot m ake hi mself better without m aking

society better th at development of person ality
,

c annot be e ffected without a corresponding develop

ment of society But it holds th at such mor al
.

development and improvement of the individu al and

of society can find no r ation al b asis and h as no
r ation al end s ave in the love of G o d
,
.

I n another w ay the C hristi an theory of society

di ff ers fro m al l others L ike all others it holds
.

th at the unifying bond of every society is found in

worship Unlike others it recognises th at the indi
.

vidu al is restricted by e x isting society even where ,

th at society is b ase d upon a common worship The .

 C HR I S T I AN I TY 2 61

a dequ ate re alis ation of the potenti alities of the indi

vidu al postul ates the re alis ation of a perfect society ,

just as a perfect society is possible only provided

th at the potenti alities of the individu al are re alised
to the full Such perfection to w hi ch both society
.
,

and the individu al are me ans is neither att ained

,

nor possible on e arth even where communion with

,

G od is recognised to be both the true end of society

and the individu al ,and the only me ans by which

th at end can be att ained Still less is such per

.

fe cti on a possible end if mor ality is set above religion

, ,

and the love of man be substituted for the love o f

G od I n th at c ase the life of the individu al upon

.

e arth is pronounced to be the only life of which he

is or can be conscious ; and the end to which he is
, ,

a me ans is the good of hum anity as a whole Now .

hum an society from the beginning of its evolution

,

to its end may be reg arded as a whole just as the

, ,

society existing at any given moment of its evolution

may be reg arded as a whole But if we are to
.

consider hum an society from the former point of

view and to see in it so reg arded the e nd to which
, ,

the individu al is a me ans then it is cle ar th at until

, ,

perfection is att ained in some remote and very

impro b able future the individu al members of the
,
 C O MP A R AT I V E R E LIG I ON

hum an r ace will h ave l aboured and not e arned their

rew ard will h ave worked for an end which they
,

h ave not att ained and for an end which when if

, ,

ever it is att ained society as a whole will not enjoy

, , .

Such an end is an irr ation al and impossible Object

o f pursuit Perfection if it is to be att ained by the
.
,

individu al or by society is not to be att ained on

,

e arth nor in m an s communion with man Religion

,
’
.

from its outset h as been the quest of man for G od .

I t h as been the quest of man whether reg arded as

.

an individu al or as a member of society But if .

th at quest is to be re alised it is not to be re alised ,

either by society or the individu al reg arded as h aving ,

a mere e arthly e x istence A new conception O f the

.

re al n ature of both is requisite Not only must the .

individu al be reg arded as continuing to e x ist after

de ath but the society of whi ch he is truly a member
,

must be reg arded as one which if it m anifests or ,

begins to m anifest itself on this e arth requires for ,

its re alis ation th at is for perfect communion

—
,

with G od the postul ate th at though it m anifests

-

itself in this world it is re alised in the next This

,
.

new conception of the re al n ature O f society and the

individu al involving belief in the communion of
,

the s aints and in the kingdom of He aven as th at

,
 C HR I S TI AN I TY 2 63

w hi ch may be in e ach i ndividu al and therefore must

,

extend beyond e ach and include al l whether in thi s

world or the ne x t thi s conception is one whi ch
-

C hristi anity alone of al l religions o ffers to the

, ,

world .

Rel i g ion is the quest of man for G o d M an .

everywhere h as been in se arch of G od per adventure ,

he mi ght find Him ; and the hi story of religion is

the hi story of his se arch But the moment we reg ard
.

the hi story the evolution of religion as a se arch ,

we ab andon the mech anic al ide a of evolution : the

c ause at work is not m ateri al or mech anic al but ,

final The c ause is no longer a necess ary c ause

.

which can only h ave one result and which when ,

it oper ates must produce th at result Progress is

,
.

no longer something which must t ake pl ace which ,

is the inevit able result of antecedent c auses I t .

i s something w h ich may or may not t ake pl ace and

w hi ch c annot t ake pl ace unless e ff ort is m ade I n .

a word it is dependent in p art upon m an s will

’
,

without the action of which neither se arch can be

m ade nor progress in the se arch But though in .

p art dependent upon m an s will progress can only

’
,

b e m ade so far as m an s will is to do G od s will

’ ’
.

And th at is not alw ays and h as not b een alw ays

, ,
2 64 C O M PARA T I V E R E LIGION

m an s will Hence evolution h as not alw ays b een

’
.

progress N or is it so now There h ave been

. .

l apses in civilis ation d ark ages periods when m an s , ,

’

love for man h as w aned p a ri pa s s u with the w aning

of hi s love for G od Such l apses there may be yet .

ag ain The fall of man may be gre ater in the spirit

.
,

u al sense th an it ever yet h as been for m an s will ’

, ,

is free But G od s love is gre at and our f aith is in

.
’
,

it I f C hristi anity should ce ase to grow where it

.

now grows and ce ase to spre ad where it as yet is

,

not there would be the gre ater f all And on us

,
.

would rest some at le ast of the responsibility C hris

, ,
.

t i ani ty c annot be st ation ary : if it st ands let it ,

b ew are ; it is in d anger of falling Between religions .

,

as well as other org anis ations there is a struggle , ,

for exi stence I n th at struggle we h ave to fight

.

for a religion to decline to fight is for th at rel i gi on

t a di e The mission ry is not eng aged in a wo rk
. a $

of supererog ation something with which we at home ,

h ave no concern We spe ak of hi m as in the fore .

front of the b attle We do not usu ally or const antly

.

re alise th at it is our b attle he is fighting th at his

defe at if he were defe ated would be the beginning
, ,

of the end for us ; th at on hi s success our fate de

pends The met aphor of the mission ary as an out
.
 C HR I S T I A NI TY 26 5

post sounds r ather picturesque when he ard in a ser

mon o r did so sound the first time it w as used I
—
, ,

s uppose —
but it is not a mere picture ; it is the
,

b arest truth The e x tent to which we push our out

.

posts forw ard is the me asure of our vit ality of how ,

much we h ave in us to do for the world Si x out of .

seven of C hristendom s mission aries come from the

’

United St ates of Americ a Until I he ard th at from

.

the pulpit of Durh am C athedr al I h ad r ather a ,

horror of big things and a cert ain appreh ension

about going to a l and where bigness r ather th an the ,

golden me an seemed to be t aken as the st and ard of

,

merit But from th at sermon I le arnt something

.
,

vi z not only th at there are big things to be done in

.

the world but th at Americ a does them and th at

, ,

Americ a does more of them th an she t al k s ab out .

 APP EN D I X

S I N CE the ch apter on M agic was written the ,

p ublic tion of Wilhelm W u nd t s V ol k

'

e rps y ch ol og i e
’
a ,

Vol II Part II h as led me to b elieve th a t I ought to

.
, ,

h ave l a id more stress on the power of the m agici an ,

which I mention on p ages 7 4 8 5 8 6 8 7 8 8 8 9 and

, , , , , ,

less on the savage s recognition of the principle that

’

like produces like I n the st age of human evolution

.

known as Animism every event which c alls for ex

,

pl anation is e x pl a ined as the doing of some person

or conscious agent When a s avage falls ill his
.
,

sickness is regarded as the work of some ill disposed -

person whose power c annot b e doubted

,
for it is
manifest in the sickness it h as c aused a nd whose

power is as mysterious as it is indubit able Th at .

power is wha t a s avage means by magic ; and the

p ersons believed to possess it are m a gicia ns I t .

is the business of the S ick savage s friends to find ’

o u t who is c a using his S ickness Their suspicion

.

may fall on any one whose a ppearance or beh aviour

is suspicious or mysterious ; and the person sus
2 67
2 68 A PP E N D I X

p e c t e comes to be regarded a s a witch or m agician

d ,

from the v e ry fact th a t h e is suspected Such per .

sons h ave the power of witchcra ft or m agic bec a use ,

they a re believed to h ave the power : poss unl qu i a

p osse v i de ntur N ot o nly are they believed to possess
.

the power ; they come to believe themselves tha t , ,

they possess it They believe th at possessing it

.
, ,

they h ave but to e x ercise it The Australia n ma

.

“ ”
g i c ia n h a s but to poi nt his stick a nd in the belief
, ,

both of himself and of every one concerned the ,

victim will fall All over the world the witch h as

.

but to st ab the image she h as dra wn or m ade and ,

the person portrayed will feel the wound I n this .

proceeding the im age is like the person a nd the

, ,

blow delivered is like the blow which the victim is to

feel I t is Open to us therefore to s ay th at in this
.
, ,

“ ” ”
typic al c ase Of imit ative or mimetic m agic ,

like is believed to produce like And on p ages 7 5 7 7

.
—
,

and elsewhere a bove I h a ve t a ken th at position

, ,
.

B ut I would now a d d two qu alifications The first is .

,

as alre a dy intim ated th at though st abbing an

, ,

e ffigy is like st abbing the victim it is only a m agici an

,

or witch th at h as the power thus to i nflict wounds ,

sickness or de ath : the services of the magici an or

,

witch are employed for no other re ason than tha t

 A PP E N D I X 26
9

the ordin ary person h as not the power even by the ,

a i d of the rite to c a use the e ffect The second

,
.

qualification is th at where a s we disti nguish between

,

the ca tegories of likeness and identity the S av age ,

m a kes but little distinction ; To us it is evident

th at st abbing the image is only like st abbing the
victim ; but to the believer in m agic st abbing the ,

im age is the s ame thing a s st abbing the victim ;

a nd in his b elief a s the w a x en im age melts
,
so the ,

victim withers a way .

I t would therefore b e more precise and more

, ,

correct to say (p age 7 4 above) th at e ati ng tiger to

,

m ake you bold points ra ther to a confusion in the ,

s avage s mind of the c ategories of likeness and

’
,

identity th a n to a conscious recognition of the

,

principle th at like produces like : a s you e at tiger s ’

flesh so you become bold with the tiger s boldness

,
’
.

The Spirit of the tiger enters you B ut no m agic is .

necess ary to enable you to m ake the meal : any one

can e at tiger The b elief th at so the tiger s spirit ’
.

will enter you is a piece of Animism ; but it is not

therefore a piece of m agic .
 B I B L I O G RA P HY

AB T, A D i e A pol og ie d e s Ap ul e i us
. v on M ad aura und di e
t
an i k e $ au b e re i G i e sse n 1 9 08 . . .

ALVI E LL A , G . O ri g in and G row h t of th e C once p i on t of

G od . L ond on . 1 892 .

BASTIAN A A ll l i V lk
,
nd . er e aus o s u M e nsche nk unde .

B l in 8 8 8
er . 1 .

B OU SS W Wh t i R lig i n $ (E
E T, . a s e o . L ond on . 1 90 7 .

D AVI S T W M g i D i i n t i n nd D
E ,
. . a c, v a o ,
a e monol og y . L e ip
z ig . 1 8 98 .

EL L I S , A . B . T he Ew e -
s pe ak i ng P e opl e s of th e Sl av e
C oas t . L ond on . 1 8 90 . T h e T shi s pe ak i ng
-
P e opl e s of

th e G o d C oas l t . L ond on . 1 88 7 . T h e Y o ru b a-s pe ak

i ng P e opl e s of th e S l v
a e C oas t . L ond on . 1 8 94 .

FM ,
L . De p oe tarum Romanorum d oc ri na t mag i ca .

G i e ss e n . 1 9 04 .

FA RN E LL , L . R . T h e P l ace of th e Sonde r G o -
tt er i n G re e k
t
P ol y h e i sm, i n An h ropol og i cal Ess ays t . O xf ord . 1
90 7 .

F RA$ E R , $ . G . A d oni s , A tti Os, s i ri s . L ond on . 1 9 05 . The

G ol d e n B ou g h . L ond on . 1
9 00 . Le c t u re s o n th e E arl y
Hi s t ory o f th e Ki ng s hi p . L ond on . 1 90 5 .

GR AN G E R, F . T he W ors h i p of th e Romans . L ondon .

1 8 95 .

H ADD ON H C ,
. . M ag i c and F tie sh i s m . L ond on
9 06 . 1 .

H ARRI SON $ E ,
. P ro e g ome na to th e
. l t
S u d y of G re e k Re
l ig i on . C amb ri dg e 1 9 03 . .

H AR AND
TL ,
Th e L e g e nd o f P e rE S
s e u s L ond
. o n 1 895 . . . .

H O B H OU S E , L T M ora s i n E o u i on L ond on 1 9 0 6 . . l v l t . . .

HOEED I N G, H P h il osophy of Re li g ion ( E . L ondon . .

1 06
9 .
2
7 2 B B I LIOG RA P H Y

HO LLI S . T he M a s i a . O x f rd 9 o . 1 0 5 .

HO W I TT, A . W . T he N tiv T ri b s
a e e o f So uth E as t A tr l i us a a .

L o nd o n . 1 9 4
0 .

H U B E RT, H . M ag i a . I n D are mb e rg S ag l io
’
s D i ti c onnai e r
d e s An q ti uit é s . Pa ris . 1 9 04 .

HUB E RT, H . M AU S S M ,
. T éo h ri e g é né r l
a e d e l a mag e i .

L A nné e So
’
ci l g i q uo o e . Pa ris . 1
9 04 . La Na e e t latur
fon cti on du cri fic sa e . L A nné e
’
So ci l g i q u
o o e . P ar s i .

1 8 99 .

HUV E LI N , P . M ag i e e t d r ito i nd ivi d u l e . L Anné e

’
Soci o
l og iq u e . Pa ri s . 1 90 7 .

G
I LLI N W O RTH , $ . R . Pe r s ona lity :H um an and D iv in e . L on
d on . 1 8 94 .

$ VEO N S F B T h D fi
,
n i ti n f M g
. i S i l g
. ic l R e e o o a c . oc o o a e

vi w f Ap ril 9 8 L nd n T h E v luti n f th
e or ,
1 0 . o o . e o o o e

R li g i u C n i u n
e I n P n A ng li n P p r
o s o sc o s e ss . a -
ca a e s .

L nd n 9o 8 I ntr d u ti no t t h H i t . y f R li1
g ni 0 . o c o o e s or o e o .

L nd n 896
o M gi I n P r c d i ng
o . f th I nt r 1 . a c . o ee s o e e

n ti n l C ng r
a f t h H i t ry f R li g i n
o a 9 8o e ss or e s o o e o s . 1 0 .

L AN G A C u t m nd M yt h
,
. L nd n 8 93 M g i nd
s o a . o o . 1 . a c a

R li g i n L nd n
e 9 T h o M k i n g f
. R li g i n o o . 1 01 . e a o e o .

L nd n 8 98
o M d r n M yth l g y L nd n
o . 1 89 7 . o e o o . o o . 1 .

M yth R itu l nd R li g i n L nd n ,
88 7 a ,
a e o . o o . 1 .

L N ORM
E F C h l d n M g i (E
AN T, L nd n . 8 77 a ea a c . o o . 1 .

M A CC O GH UL L $ A C mp r tiv U T h l g y L n,
d n . . o a a e eo o . o o .

1 9 0 2 .

M ARE TT R R ,
. . I S T ab oo a Ne g a tiv e M ag i c $ I n An thr op o

l g ic l
o a Ess a y s . O xf rd 9 o . 1 07 .

M AU S S M ,
. D e s Soc i été E k i m s s os . L Anné e Soc
’
i l g iqu
o o e .

Pa ri s .
9 06
1 .

M Ii LLE R $ ,
. G Ge s c. hi ht c e de r a me ri k anis c h e n U rre l ig ione n .

B l ase . 1 855 .

N A S SA R U, . H . F ti chi sm in W t Af i c
e es r a . L ond on . 1 9 04 .
 B B I LIO G RA P HY 2 73

P ARKE R K L T h E hl yi T i b L nd n 9 5
,
. . e ua a r e . o o . 1 0 .

P AYN E E $ Hi t y f th N w W l d
,
. l l d Am i . s or o e e or ca e e r ca .

O xf d 8 9 or . 1 2 .

RE I NAC H S C ult M yt h , t R l ig i n P i 9 5
. e s, e s, e e o s . ar s . 1 0 .

R p t f th C mb i dg Anth p l g i l E x p d i t i n t
e or s o e a r e ro o o ca e o o

T St i t
orre sC mb i dg ( Eng l nd ) 9 8 ra s . a r e a . 1 0 .

RHY S D AVI D S T W O ig in nd G w th f R l i g i n L n ,
. . r a ro o e o . o

d on . 1 891 .

RU H L , L . D e M ort u oru m i nd i ci o . G i e sse n . 1

9 03 .

SC H MI D T, H . V e te re s P h i l osoph i q uomo do
i
i r di cav e rint d e

p re ci b u s . G i e sse n 1 90 7 . .

SCH RAD R O R l l x i k n d i nd g m ni h n Al t t m
E ,
. ea e o er o er a sc e er u er .

St b g 9ras s ur . 1 01 .

SKE AT W W M l y M gi
,
L nd n .
9 . a a a c . o o . 1 00 .

SM H W RIT R li g i n f th S mi t
,
. L nd n 8 94 . e o o e e es . o o . 1 .

SP N C L
E T h M yth l g i
E, f A n i nt M x i
. nd P e o o es o c e e co a e ru .

L ond on . 1 90 7 .

S P E N CE R G I LLE N . Th e N a i tv e T ri b e s of Ce n t ral Au s
t rali a . L ondon . 1 8 99 . T h e N ort h e rn T ri b e s of Ce n
t ral Au s t rali a . L ondon . 1 9 04 .

T YLOR, E . B . P ri mi i tv e C ul t ure . L ond on . 1 8 73 .

WAI T$ ,
T . t
An h ropol og i e d e r N atu rvOlk e r . L e pz i g i . 1 8 64 .

W S EB TE R, H . P ri mi i tv e Se cre t Soci e i e s t . L ond on 9 08 . 1 .

W S E TE RM ARCK ,
E . The O ri g i n and De v e l opme nt o f th e

M oral I d e as . L ond on . 1 9 06 .

WUN D T W ,
. VOl k e rpsych ol og i e . L e ipzig . 1 9 04 1 —
9 7
0 .
 I N DEX
c st
A o a, F a e th r 9 3 1 i is i n p r c ss f v luti n
B e ng o e o e o o

; still i nc mp l t
, . , ,

Ag no stic
, 4,
6 21 4 o e e 21 4
B li f d d sir
.
.
,

A g ri s 3 e 1 4 e e 3 9 4 ; in im
an e e 0

m rtality nd G d 3 3 ;
,
.
, , ,

Al f 94
oors , 1 o a o 1 2

rr n us nd m g ic 7 9 ; i n
.
, ,

A l g nq ui ns
o 43 1 e o eo a a ,

m g ic 8 5 ; r li g i u 3 7
.
,

Al l f th r
,

-
a 9 e 1 0. a ,
e o s, 1 .

A nc st rs
,

e 6 o 1 2 B h g ld i
o a
94 a 1 .

B illi rds 7 8
,

A nc t r w rshi p 5
.
,

es o 53 ; m y o 2, a a

rr st d by r lig i n 5 3 5 4 Bl d d r in 6
.
, ,

b e a e e e o oo an a 1 1 .

B n s f nim ls hu ng
, , , , ,

SS o e , o p 78 a a u , .

A d m n I l ds 69
,

n a a s an 1 B oora h 6 ff 1 2

s cri fi c B sm
.

A nim l im l
.
, ,

a 9 ; n a e 20 a a o 9 ff an, 3 1 0 1 1 2, 1 1

B r d pr y r f d ily 8
. .
,

m l 78
,

ea 1 ea a e or a 1 1

A nim ls w rs hi p p d B u d dhism
. .
, , ,

a o e 1 1 1 .
4 7 ff ; d i mm 2 an or

A nimism t lity 3 6 3 7 6 6 6 3 ; its

.
, , ,

5 6 7 ; nd 2 04, 2 1 21 21 a a 1 2,

m g ic 8 9 9 9 8 ; nd f f u d m t l il l g ic lity 66 ; its
, , , , , , ,

a 0, a e n a e n a o a

8 ; p ly str ng th 6 6
, , ,

ti h i m c 6 7
s 1 1 1 1 1 1 o e

th ism 3 ; n t r lig i B ur
.
, , , ,

e 36 1 1 o e on, 1 o,
94 1

B uzz rd 7 6
.

A ntici p ti f n tur
.
,

a 73 o n, o a e ,
. a .

A nti my h f r lig i us f l
,

no ,
t e, o e o ee B y a me e , 1 6 2 ff .
, 1 91 , 1 98 .

i ng74 1

us c diti s
.
,

A nz am, 1 7 0 C a e , a nd o n on , 7 7 , 8 5

li d sci c f r lig i n if ; l b s
. .

App e en e o e o 2 Ce e e , 1 94
l s utur 3 ; is us d r m
, .

oo k t o th e f e e Ce a , 1 8 1
by th missi n ry rm is ri
.
,

p
e o a as a ra c C e e on e , for a n, 1 6 1
tic l m n 5 6 ; its bj ct h i x ist c
.

a a 1 1 o e , C a n of e e n e , 65

h rms r y rs
.
, ,

8
1 21 C a and p a e , 1 5 0 , 1 1 5 , 1 52

Ash nt L nd 5 3 5 5 h tt ls
. .
, ,

a ee a 1 1 . C a e 2 4 1 , 24 3

hr I di
.
, , ,

A th ist 4 6
e C e o k e e n an, 5 0, 7 6 , 7 7
Atm n 4 7 hic m c tl
. .
, ,

a 2 C o e oa , 1 9 3

m nt 7 8 hildh d
. .
,

At -
o ne -
e 1 . C oo , 9 8

Att ti 9
.
,

e n o n, 1 0 C hi na, 1 9 4 , 1 9 7
Austr li 8 3 ff
.

hristi ity
.
,

a a, 1 C an 2 3 9 fi , 2 5 8 , 2 5 9 , 2 60
°

tri b s r lig i n f
.

A ustr li i h st rm r li i
.
,

a an e ,
e o o th e h g e fo of e g o n, I 5

th r rms
,

82 . 1 8, 2 2, 2 3 ; a nd o e fo of
A zt cs e 88 9 , 1 r lig i n 6 7 8 3 5 ; l n
, 1 0 . e o 2 2 2 a o e

t ch s s l f ifi
, , , ,

h w y ea e e -
s a cr ce as t e a

B sut s
a 8 o t li f
1 t rn l 69 ; nd s cri fi c
1 . o e e e a a a e,
B c mi ng
, ,

e o 4 9 ,
21 . 20 .
 2 7 6 IN D E X

C l uds 5 3 ; f sm k nd r i
o 1 o o e a a n, C r k I ndi ns
e e a 1 94
ust m r t ct d by th
.
, ,

6 1 6 1 1 2 C ; o 2 44 p o e e e

C mmu l p ur p s s d m g ic f h c mmu ity

.
, ,

o na o e ,
an a , g d o o 9 t e o n ,
21 .

9 1

C mmu i much D c s d pr y r
.

o 75 ; n o n, 1 no t so an e 6 ; 53 1 2 an a e 1

i t ll ctu l b li f D d h 3 8 ; r tur 4 7 ; s p irit

.
, ,

an n e b e a e e as an O ea t e e n, s

j t f d sir 3 ; f m n
, ,

ce o e e 4 44 o a Of h 9 t e 2

with G d h b is f m r lit D th mist k cc rd i ng h

.
, , ,

o t e as o o a y e a a a e a o to t e

6 ; l g ic lly i c m p ti b l with
,

p rimitiv iw l
,

2 o a n o a e 5; e V e 4 4, 4 or e s e

B uddhism i v lv s p
,

63 ; n o e e r d ue m g ic 5 6 8 to a 4 4 0.

s n l x ist c 6 7 ; with G d D r 7
, , , ,

o a e e n e o e e 4
s ug ht i p r y r 7 ; D g r d ti n f r li g i
.
, , ,

37 ;
1 o n a e 1 2 e a a 4 o o e o n, 2

d s cri fi c M x ic
.
,

an 7 ; i a e 1 2 n e o, D ifie i c a t o n,
53
m i t i d by s cr D i p h b us 5
.
,

1
93 ; a n a ne a a e o 4
m t l ti g 9 5 ; nu lly D l w r pr y r
.
,

e n a e a n 1 an a e a a e5 a e 1 4
96 ; r w d 9 8 ; h tru D p rtm nt l d iti s
.
, , ,

1 e ne e 1 t e e e a 9 e a e e 1 0

f s cri fi c D s cr lis ti n 8 6
.
, ,

ed n o 7 8 ; b a e 20 20 e e a a a o 1

tw m D sir imm rt li ty i th
, , , .

e e d G d n 9 ; im a n an o 24 e f e or o a s e

p r f ct rig i n f h b li f i n i mm
, ,

e 57 e 2 o o t e e e or

C m mu ity nd m g ic 8 t lity ; is n s lfi h
.
,

o 5 ; n 2 4 a a 1 a 4 0, 4 1 ot a e s

d its G d 9 d sir ; h r t f ll vils

, , , ,

97 ; an o 1 e e 42 t e oo o a e

C mmu ity d f tich s 6 6 ; r li g i us

.
, , ,

o h n t e, an e e 5 6 e ; o 1 1 1 1 1 21

nd its g ds nd p r y r
, , , , ,

1 22
; 35 ;
a d o 1 an a 9; d h a e 1 4 2, 1 4 an t e

pr y r w rshi p f h g ds 3 5 ; nd
, ,

a6 7e 8 66 ; 1 4 1 4 1 4 1 o o t e o 1 a

d h i dividu l r lig i n 5 8 6 6 ; f th m
, , , , ,

an t 8 e 39 n a 21 2 e o 1 1 o e co

C m p r tiv m th d
.

mu ity 6 3
, , , ,

o a a e e o 2 0, 21 n 1

C m p r tiv P h il l g y
.

D sir f ll n ti ns
.
, ,

o a a e o o 20 e e o 5 73 a a o 1 1 1

C m p ris m th d f 7 ; i m
.

D i ri 5
.
, , ,

o a o n, e o o 1 e 6 64 0, 1 1 1

p li s imil rity i n h r li g i s D i ff r nc imp li s imil rity 7

.
, , ,

e S a t e e on e e e e S a 2

c mp r d 9 ; nd im p li s d i f
.

D i ff r nc s b t k i t
, ,

o a e 1 a e e e e to e a e n n o ac

f r nc ls c tr st d c u t by m th d f c mp ris n
, ,

e e ; e a o, 20 on a e o n e o O o a o

with c mp r tiv m th d ; ; th ir v lu 4 ; p stu

,

o a a e e o 21 22 3 e a e 2 2 o

d ls with di ff r c s l t d by sci c
, , ,

ea e e n e 22 . a e e n e 24

C mt i i n f th h m g n
.
, ,

o 3 e 21 Difl e re nt at o o e o o e e

c rci n f
.

C ncili ti n
,

o nd a o a oe o o ou s , 3 5 2 2 4, 2 .

p irit D m stic t d p l nts nd nim ls

, , ,

S s, 1 21 o e a e a a a a

g r g ti s 7
.
,

C on e a on 1 0 1 9 0

t g i us m g ic 8 5 D r ms 1 3 7 ; th ir
. .
,

C on a o a ea nd t h a e 5 0 11 e

C nti nu ti th ry 5 5 5 6 m ti l v lu 4
,
.
, ,

o a on eo e o ona a e 2

C rn t n s cr m t ll y 9 4 D r ug ht
.
, ,
.
,

o ea e a a e n a 1 o 6 1 4
D ug
.
, , , ,

95
1 g 6
on s, 65 1 4, 1

C r n m id
.

D y n mics f s ci ty
.

o -
95 a e n, 1 a 46 55 o o e 2 2

C r m th r
. .
, , ,

o n -
95 o e 1

C r s p irit E st I ndi s
.
,

o n- 96 99 1 1 2 00 a 8 e 1 1

C tt n m th r E ti ng
. .
, , , ,

o o 94
-
o e 1 a f h g d 93o t e o 1

Cr t r
. .
, ,

ea o 7 ,
1 0 . E ti g ti g r 7
a n 89 e , 4, .
 I NDEX
Ell is C l l 3 o one w rshi pp rs ; its p ri nci p l
1 1 1 2 0, 1 21 1 22 o e 1 22 a

m ti l l m t i n f tichi sm bj ct w r k vi l 3 ; s rv s
.
, , , , ,

E o o na e e e n e o e to o e 1 2 e e

nd r li g i its w r nly 7 ; p rm
, ,

a 36 e o n, 1 o ne o 1 2 e a

g iv s v lu t wh t w f its w rshi p
.
,

End t h e n n e 9; h
a e o a e e ce o o 1 2 as

d is m tt r f will n p ci lis d fu cti

, , ,

d o, 1
3; an a 9 a e o o s e a e n on, 1 2

f s ci ty 3 ; is p r y d t d t lk d
, ,

5 o 53 ; o e 2 1 2 a 1 0 a e o an a e
3;
1

with 3 ; w rshi pp d by n
,

c t g ry u nkn wn t sci nc
,

a e o o o e e 1 2 o e a

i dividu l 3 ; d by th
, ,

55
2 n a 1 4 an not e

c mmu ity 3 5 7
,

Ends ti s ci l 8
.

an -
o a 1 o n 1 1 0

F tichism 5 ff
. .
,

E rr r
, , ,

o 5 2 5; th e 1 0 21 as e

E u hl yi 4 8 l w st f rm f r li g i n 6
,
.
, ,

a 6 a 9 98 1 2, 1 1 1 . o e o o e o 1 0

Ev luti n f r li g i n 6 s urc f r li g i us
, , , , ,

o 4; o 7; 21th o e o , , 1 0 as e o e o e o

d Pr g r ss v lu s nd m g ic
,

2
39 47 53 ; 2 2 an o e , a e a a

6 ; th ry f 3 ; 9 ; d r lig i
, , , ,

9 1 2, 2 4, 2 44 36 ; eo o 2 0 an e o n, 1 1 1 2 0, 1

nd t h hist ry f r li g i n f its v luti

, , ,

a 7
e th l w o o 9 e o 1 2, e a o e o on, 1 1

f hum ity 3 9 4 4 nd m n d by p ublic

, ,

73 ;
I o ; an 2 2 , 1 20 Co e e

pi i ff siv t
, ,

6; l w f
24 5 ; nd f 54
a o 3; 2 2 e o ,
2 , o n o n, 1 2 2, 1 2 o e n e o

t h m r lity f h n tiv
,

56
2 6; e o a o t e a e 1 2

t v ri c with his
.
,

d an a a an e re

F ith
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.

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 I NDEX 2 83

T yl r P r f ss r
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,

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,

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.
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.

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 P r i ncip a l o
f B i sh op H a gfie l d
’
s H a l l , D u rha m

n Introdu ction to the

i story of Re li g i on
Thi rd E di ti on . C l oth , 8 vo, 4 1 5 pag e s , ne t
by mai l ,

Th e hist ry f rly r li g i n is h r i nv sti g t d n th p ri nci pl s

o o ea e o e e e a e o e e
a nd m th ds f nthr p l g y ; it w
e o i nt nd d prim rily f stu
o a o o o as e e a or

d nts w h r quir n i ntr d cti n t t h hist ry f r li g i n b t

e o e e a o u o o e o o e o u

p r v d f i nt r st t stud nts f f l k l r w id r
,

h as o e o nd t th e e o e o o o e a o e e
circl f g n r l r d rs I t cc mplish s h t n th r w r k i n
,

e o e e a e a e a o e W a o o e o

t h s m fi ld d
.

e a s i n th dir cti n f s mm rizi ng t h r sults f

e e oe e e o o u a e e o

r c nt thr p l g y stim ti ng th ir b ri ng p n r li g i us pr b
,

e e an o o o , e a e e a u o e o o

l ms nd w vi ng th wh l i nt c nn ct d hist ry f rly
e , a ea e o e o a o e e o o ea

r li g i n
e o .

BY H U T T O N W EB ST ER
P r of e ss or f
o S oci ol og y a nd A nth r op ol og y , Uni v e r s i ty o
f N e br a sha

ri mitiv e
e cre t S oci e ti e s
C l oth , g i l t top, 8 v o, ne t ; by mai l ,

Pr ss r W bst r h g r up d h r i n c nd ns d nd cl ssi fi d
ofe o e e as o e e e a o e e a a e

b
,

f rmo g r t m u n
a t f i nf rm eati n g th r
a d y tr v
o ll rs nd o o a o a e e a e e a

th n l g ists f th i niti ti n c r m ni s nd s cr t s ci ti s
, ,

e o o o e a o e e o e a e e o e e

f u nd m ng s v g nd b r b r us c mmu niti s i n l l p rts

,

o a o a a f
e a a a o o e a a o

th w rld ; nd tt m pts t rriv t th si g nific nc f th f cts

e o a a e o a e a e a e o e a

P rticul r tt nti n is g iv n t th lm st univ rs l b ut wid ly

.

a a a e o e o e a o e a e

v ryi ng p ub rty i nstituti

,

a
“
nd t t h p rt s cr t s ci ti s p l y
e o n, a o e a e e o e e a

i n t h tri b l li f e nd g v r nm nt a M g ic l fr t r iti s ls
e a o e e . a a a e n e a o re

i
ce ve much p ti nt tt nti n Th p r v l nc nd v ri ty fa e a e o e e a e e a a e o

mystic rit s c r m ni ls d s lid riti s m ng t h p ri mitiv

.

e e e o a an o a e a o e e

b
,

l s this c ti t r c iv rticul r tt ti k
, ,

p p e o f e n n n o p n o T h e e e e a a a e n o e oo

thus b c m s st r h us f f cts f t h th n l g ic l stud nt ;

.

e o e a o e o e o a or e e o o a e

a nd it ls will b f p rticul r i nt r st t m m b rs f th M s nic

a o e o a a e e o e e o e a o

a nd th r nci nt s cr t rd rs
o e a e e e o e .

P U B LI SH ED BY

TH E M A C M I L L AN C O M PA N Y
6 4 —6
6 F I F TH AVENUE , NEW YORK
O the r V al u abl e Bo ok s for S tu de nts of Ethnol og y

B Y F R IED ER IC H RA T $ EL
H i st r y f M nki nd
o o a

Richly illustr t d 3 v ls a e . o . 8 vo . Ea ch , ne t ; b y m il a ,

B Y C HA RL ES P l C K ER l N G
Hi s t r y o of th e Ra c s e of M an
ne t ; by m il a ,

BY $ERO M E D O W D
Th e Ne g r o Ra c s
e V ol I
b y m il
. . .

ne t ; a ,

BY A . G . L EO N A RD
Th e L o w er Ng i e r a nd i ts Tri b u ari e t s
8 vo . ne t ; by m il a ,

B Y DU DL EY K IDD
K ah r c l sm
So i a i i l sm
a nd th e Da w n of I nd vi d u a i
by m il 8 vo ne t ; . a ,

Th e E ss nti l K
fi W ith e p l t s far m p h t
a g r prhs 1 00 a e o o o a
x pr ss g x tr
. .

8 n t; vo. e e e a e e a

S ava g Ch i l d h d A S t d y f K fi Ch i l d n
e oo . P r fus ly u o a r re . o e

illustr t d fr m ph t g r phs
a e 8 o n t ; b y m il
o o a . yo . e a ,

BY R . D EN N ETT
E .

A t th e a k of th e B c Bl k M ac an s
’
Mi nd ; or, Not e s on th e
K ng i ly Ofi ce in W st Af ri e ca
I llustr t d a e . 8 vo . ne t ; b y m il a ,

BY G . W . S TOW
t
Na i ve Ra ce s of S th Af i
ou r ca
8 vo . ne t ; e xpr ss e ag e e x tr a

BY B . S PE N C ER A ND $ F G l LL
. EN .

t
Na i v e Tri b e s of C e n r a Au r a i a t l st l
$6 50. ne t ; b y m il a ,

t
Nor h e rn Tri b e s of Ce n t
r al Au s t
r a li a
$6 50. ne t ; b y m il a ,

BY A . W HOW ITT .

Na i tv e i
Tr b e s of t
S ou h e as t A u s tr a i a l
ne t ; b y m il a ,

BY W W . . S KEAT A ND C . O . B LA G D EN
P ag c s f th M l y P
an Ra e o e a a e ni n s l u a . P r f u ly illustr t
o se a e d
fr m sp ci l p h t g r p hs
o v ls
e a o o a . 2 o . 8 vo . ne t ; by m il a ,

P U BLI SH ED B Y
T H E M A C M I L L AN C O M PA N Y
 BY H F I EL D IN G HA LL
.

he S oul of a Pe opl e
F ou rth Re pri nti ng of a F ou rth Edi ti on
C l oth , 8 v o, ne t
An cc unt f b s rv ti ns m ng t h B urm s b f r nd ft r
a o o o e a o a o e e e e o e a a e

f A nn x ti n thr ug h which t h f ith

,

th W
e ar o f th p pl e a o , o e a o e e o e

re v l d its l f
ea e e .

Pe opl e at S ch ool
C l oth , 8 v o, ne t

It c rr s p nds t th rli r b k th i nn r li f f th f l i g s
o e o o e ea e oo as e e e o e e e n
m ti ns nd id ls is r l t d t t h ut r li f f succ ss nd f il
,

e o o a e a e a e o e o e e o e a a

f p r g r ss nd r tr g r ssi n jud g d n ti ns j u d g ch
,

u re o o e a e o e o e as a o e e a

th r I t tr ts f t h B rm s b f r nn x ti n nd f h
, ,

o e . e a o e u e e e o e a e a o a o t e
w ys i n which it h ff ct d th m
a as a e e e .

he He arts of Me n
C l oth , 8 vo, ne t
Th is is b k n t f n r li g i n s v r l r lig i ns b ut f
a oo o o o e e o , or e e a e o o te

tr t d with t h d li g ht ful l cidity f h E st Th r is

,

l i g i o n, ea e e e u o t e a e e

m thi ng v ry pp li g i th w h l sp irit f this m n w h

.

so e e a ea n n e o e o a o

s ks f li g ht g ntl n ss th t is r st ful n utt r bs nc f bit

e e or a e e e a e a e a e e o

v n wh r th r must b c nd m n ti n g r t p ti nc
, ,

t n er e ss e e e e e e e o e a o , a e a a e e

and s r nity i n th t r li g i n which is

e e h music f t h i nfinit a e o
“
t e o e e
ech d fr m t h h rts f m n
oe o e ea o e .
”

he Inw ard Lig ht

C l oth , 8 vo, ne t ; by mai l
“
A n e n h an ng c ti b k oo vi t l with hum
a an i nt r st
e e .
— New
Yor k Tr i bu ne .

“
I ts p ub lic ti n is n v nt b c us it xpr ss s i n n w
a o a e e e a e e e e a e a nd

ri i l rm wh t v n t h m st sc ptic l c nn t but dmit t

,

o g na fo a e e e o e a a o a o be
a r ti n l nd b uti f l utl k n li f — N th A m i
a o a a ea u o oo o e .
”
or e r ca n

Re v i e w .

P U BL ISH ED BY

T H E M A C M I LL A N C O M PA N Y
6 66 FIF TH AVENUE , NEW
4 -
YORK
he Phil os oph y o f the C h r i s ti an Re l ig i on
By A N D RE W M A RTI N FA I RBAI R N P ri nci p l f M nsfi ld , a o a e

C ll g
o Ox f rd euth r f C hrist i M d r n Th l g y
e ,
o , a o o
“
n o e eo o ,

S tudi s i n t h P hil s phy f R li g i n ”

e e o o o e o .

C l oth , 8 v o , x x vi ii $ 5 83 p ag e s , ne t

T his w r k is n f th str ng st nd b st pub lish d wit h i n th

o o e o e o e a e e e
l st t n y rs i n E g lish i n h d p rtm nt c mm nly k w n
a e e a n t e e a e o o no as

A p l g tic
o o I p rim ry e bj ct is tw s f ld fi rst t x pl i n
ts a o e o o : o e a re

thr g h n t r d m c c ivi g f it j i nt pr duct

.
,

l ig i on ou a u e an a n, on e n o as a o o

o f h m i nd withi n m n nd f t h n tur
t e r u nd him Th a a o e a e a o e

s c nd p rt f t h uth r s d si g is t c nstru Chri ti nity

.

’
e o a o e a o e n o o e s a

thr g h r li g i t x pl i n its ri g i n nd n t r nd i nd ic t its

ou e o n, o e a o a a u e a a e

disti nctiv id s This is b k n t sim p ly t b r d f t h

,

e e a a oo o o e e a or e

i nt r st f its t p c b t t b stu d i d with c r nd nj y d

,
.

e e o o i u o e e a e a e o e as a

r r c tri b ti n t h phil s phy f r li g i n w rk

,

a e on u o th o t e o o o e o e o

o f m st r mi nd
a Th I nt i
a e C hic g .
”
e e r or , a o.

T h m st im p rt nt b
e k f t ki nd th t h
o
pp r d f
o y rs a oo o I s a as a e a e or ea

D F ir b ir n is u nqu sti n b ly n f h m st m st r f l thi nk rs

.

r a a e o a o e o t e o a e u e

f t h tim H is t th s m tim i nt ns ly m d r n
.

o e e H e a e a e e e e o e e

u nd rst nd s x c pti n lly w ll t h p i ts t which th m st vit l

. .

e a e e o a e e o n a e o a

p r b l ms i n p r s nt d y th u g ht h v
o e rriv d A nd h disc r ns
e e a o a e a e so e e

k nly t h p i nts wh r t h fu nd m nt l qu sti ns f p hil s phy

.

e e e o e e e a e a e o o o o
sci nc nd r li g i n m t
,
”
e e , aCh i g T b n e o ee . ca o ri u e.

he Phi l osop hi cal B as is of Re l i g ion

By $O HN W A TSON , MA . .
, LL D . .
,P r f ss r o e o of M o al Ph i r
l osoph y i n $ ue e n
’
s Un iv rsitye , K i ng st o n, C ana d a.

C l oth , 8 va, x x vi $ 48 5 p g es
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e u oo .

P U BL I SH ED BY

TH E M A C M I L L A N C O M PA N Y
6 4 — 6 6 FI FTH A VEN UE , N EW Y ORK