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 *
 
 BOOK OF LIFE AND DEATH
 
 CAPTAIN F. W. GRANTHAM 
 
 2XD BATTALION ROVAL MLNSTER FLSII.IERS 
 
 KILLED IN ACTION AT FESTLIiERT 
 
 MAY QTH, 1915
 
 BOOK OF 
 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 BY 
 
 F. W. GRANTHAM 
 
 LONDON : JOHN LANE THE BODLEY HEAD 
 NEW YORK: JOHN LANE COMPANY 
 
 MCMXXI
 
 This volume is a revised and enlarged 
 edition of " Life, Ideals and Death," 
 published in March, 1913. 
 
 Printed in Oreat Britain by Ebenezer Baylia Se Son, Worcester.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 Crl- 
 
 PAGE 
 
 INTRODUCTION II 
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MATTER 
 
 I THE UNIVERSE MADE UP OF MATTER 
 
 AND MOTION 1 7 
 
 II MATTER DIVIDED INTO ELEMENTS : 
 
 ELEMENTS THE BASIS OF PROTEIN - 22 
 
 III MOTION ADDED TO PROTEIN MAKE UP 
 
 LIVING THINGS - - - - 26 
 
 IV LIVING THINGS DIVIDED INTO VEGE- 
 
 TABLE, ANIMAL AND MAN- - - 3 1 
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 
 
 V KNOWLEDGE 4I 
 
 VI DESTINY 55 
 
 VII THE FUTURE 69 
 
 VIII THE GREAT TEACHERS OF MANKIND - 72 
 
 MAN 
 
 IX DAILY LIFE 84 
 
 X FAMILY LIFE 95 
 
 XI SOCIAL LIFE IO3 
 
 XII THE COMMON WEAL OF MAN - - - II9 
 
 RELIGION 
 
 XIII IDEALS 133 
 
 XIV BELIEFS AND CEREMONIES - - - I48 
 
 ETERNITY 
 
 XV DEATH 155 
 
 1019972
 
 A FOREWORD 
 
 I AM asked to write a " foreword " to Fred Grant- 
 ham's book. I feel ill qualified to do it, but thirty 
 years ago he was a friend of mine at Cambridge, 
 and in 1915 we met again in France, and I w^as in 
 the line just south of him when, as a captain in the 
 Munster Fusiliers, he gave his life for his country 
 and found an unknown grave on the battlefield of 
 Festubert. 
 
 He was the second son of the late Mr. Justice 
 Grantham, and went to Harrow and then to Trinity 
 College, Cambridge. Whilst at Cambridge his 
 mind was greatly taken by the many noble and 
 Christian ideals which he found in the teaching of 
 Confucius and Buddha, the Brahmins and the 
 Koran ; and soon after his call to the Bar he went 
 out to practise in the East, largely, I think, in order 
 to gain a better opportunity to judge of those ideals 
 among their votaries; and, as he says, to study 
 different customs in many countries. 
 
 His book sets out his thoughts and ideals of what 
 is needed for all mankind to avoid anarchv and to
 
 viii FOREWORD 
 
 continue the upward progress of Evolution. The 
 first eight chapters tell, simply and briefly, the story 
 of the universe and of the evolution of matter, life, 
 mankind, the mind and religious ideas. Then he 
 gives the chief ideals of the five great religious 
 systems. To me, all seems meant to lead up to 
 Chapter XIII., " dedicated to those who sacrifice 
 their evil desires on the altar of their ideals." 
 
 Some passages will give the keynote of his 
 thoughts. 
 
 " To fill the heart with love, to be honest, to 
 understand, to control the passions, and to do his 
 duty — this is the path towards happiness." 
 
 " No man belongs altogether to himself : he has 
 duties to his family and to the human race. Man- 
 kind is more important than the individual, and 
 every time that a man conquers an alluring tempta- 
 tion, though it may mean self-sacrifice to the man, 
 it is a noble example of love for humanity and 
 helps on its progress heavenwards." 
 
 " Every man is able to fight for the right against 
 the evil that is in him. It is a campaign that lasts 
 from the awakening of his intelligence till the end 
 of his life ; death alone will relieve him of his post, 
 to surrender is only for the coward. A man's ideals 
 are a sacred trust for him to protect and guard 
 against vicious thoughts, words, and deeds. 
 . . . It is a struggle in which men can glory
 
 FOREWORD ix 
 
 and be proud if they have kept themselves free from 
 sin, and feel contempt for themselves when they 
 give up the struggle." 
 
 His charity admires and criticises each of the 
 great religions. Some of his thoughts may not be 
 strictly orthodox, but they are the thoughts of a 
 brave and modest soul, honest with itself. 
 
 A. H. Chaytor.
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 For many thousands of years, man has been 
 struggling upwards to a high state of civilization ; 
 in this he has been largely aided by his religions, 
 for they have led him in the struggle, ard have 
 uplifted him from the level of the beasts to the 
 nobler part of his nature. 
 
 In the early days of man his religious ideas were 
 simple, but they have changed at times and have 
 become nobler as man, too, has become nobler. 
 During the last two or three hundred years, con- 
 siderable changes have been taking place among 
 men, and they have outgrown parts of their 
 religions. 
 
 So the time has come once more to renew some 
 of the teachings of their sacred books. 
 
 This book endeavours to do that by supple- 
 menting them, and acting as a corrective where 
 they have gone beyond the realm of knowledge ; 
 its object being to point out what appears to be the 
 path of ideals and general development for men, 
 and to help them attain to it, to gladden life, and 
 comfort the mourning.
 
 xii INTRODUCTION 
 
 The Book of Life and Death accords with those 
 truths which are universal, in the Bible, the Texts 
 of the Brahmins and of Buddha, the Analects of 
 Confucius, and the Koran. All reverence be to 
 the great teachers of those Sacred Books. 
 
 It is divided into five parts : — 
 
 1. THE FOUNDATION OF MATTER. 
 Beginning with nothing, it leads up to simple 
 ■forms of life, and then through vegetables 
 and animals up to man. 
 
 2. THE FOUNDATION OF MIND. How 
 does man know anything, and what does he 
 know ? 
 
 3. MAN. This division depicts men in their 
 ordinary life and dealings with others and 
 contains rules of development. 
 
 4. RELIGION. A code of morals, and 
 beliefs and ceremonies. 
 
 5. ETERNITY. Death. 
 
 Life being the supporting root. Mind the sensitive 
 part, Man the vigorous stem, Religion the crowning 
 flower, and Death the spiritual seeds of eternity. 
 
 The Chapters are divided into Preface and 
 Sections, the Sections being easier to understand. 
 
 As to ivriting this book, it has been the lot of the 
 author to struggle, to learn, to think, to study 
 different customs in many countries and to write 
 this book.
 
 INTRODUCTION xiii 
 
 Perhaps some of those interested in it will kindly 
 say where it cannot be understood or might he 
 
 altered. 
 
 F. W. GRANTHAM. 
 
 13, King's Bench Walk, 
 Temple, E.G.
 
 Part I 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MATTER 
 
 Beginning with nothing, it leads up to simple forms 
 of life, and then through vegetables and animals up to 
 man.
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 The Universe made up of Matter and 
 Motion 
 
 TN the beginning, was the mystic obscurity 
 ^ of Non-existence. And this state of nothing- 
 ness continued till countless ages passed, and 
 unconscious matter had developed into conscious 
 life, and on to thinking man. 
 
 Man it is who turned the light of his in- 
 telligence on to that distant past, and conjured 
 it into existence. He it is who by his thought 
 awakened the slumbering ages of eternity, and 
 set the seal of knowledge on them. 
 
 Matter is everywhere existent. ■* 
 
 Each distant star, a world, with other suns 
 
 beyond ; each of the suns, again, the outlying 
 
 17 2
 
 i8 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 post of an unknown universe, and so with further 
 worlds, beyond, and beyond, and beyond, above, 
 below, to the right and left, men know not where 
 they end, nor how began, nor if they did begin, 
 still less how long the time that these have lived ; 
 there are old worlds decayed and fading fast, 
 new ones just born, and others in their prime. 
 
 Where matter is, motion is also there. 
 
 The stars, and ether too, ever move and 
 change ; comets recurring and returning ever to 
 the distant darkness, the planets in their mighty 
 orbits of the sun. The universe of moving stars, 
 revolving earth is here to-day, that is enough. 
 
 History began a few thousand years ago, 
 and though a thousand years or a myriad ages 
 are as nothing in the presence of time, yet for 
 man the dawn of history is important : it marks 
 the era when he was able to pass down his 
 knowledge to others in writing. 
 
 About that period also men commenced the 
 study of this earth and observation of the stars. 
 For man the most important bodies of the
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MATTER 19 
 
 firmament are the earth, sun and moon, their 
 different movements being somewhat as follows: — 
 
 1. The moon travels round the earth once in 
 twenty-eight days, and when it is on that side 
 of the earth away from the sun, it acts as a 
 mirror, and reflects the sun's light on to the 
 earth ; and by night, when the sun is set, it is 
 very bright, but during the day its splendour 
 pales before the brilliance of the sun. 
 
 2. When the moon is on that side between 
 the earth and the sun, only a part of it reflects 
 on to the earth, so that its light is not so strong. 
 
 3. As to the movements of the sun — it is 
 believed to be travelling through space, millions 
 of miles a year, carrying the earth, moon and 
 other planets with it. In addition, it appears 
 to travel round the earth once a day, but that 
 appearance is caused by the earth turning 
 completely round on her own axis every twenty- 
 four hours. 
 
 Several of the sections in Parts I and II consist of facts well 
 known to many who can pass them over. They are put in as a 
 foundation on which to build the rest of the book.
 
 20 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 4. The earth has three movements : 
 
 First. — This turning on her axis every twenty- 
 four hours ; it is called dawn on that part of 
 the earth which begins to turn its face to the sun, 
 and day when that part is fully turned to the 
 sun, and night when it has turned its back to 
 the sun. 
 
 Second. — She travels round the sun once in 
 rather more than three hundred and sixty-five 
 days. 
 
 Third. — She has probably yet another move- 
 ment, which has been likened to that of a top 
 when it slows down and begins to roll. But 
 the earth rolls slower than a top, as she only 
 makes a complete roll once in twenty-five 
 thousand years or so. 
 
 5. In consequence of this rolling motion, the 
 earth does not hang quite straight on her axis, 
 but bends over in one direction, and this is the 
 cause of the different seasons, spring, summer, 
 autumn and winter. It is winter in the hemis- 
 phere which is bending over away from the
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MATTER 21 
 
 sun, and summer in that hemisphere which is 
 bending toward the sun. 
 
 6. And this rolling change of position towards 
 the sun is a cause of a continent being at one 
 period covered with ice, and at another with 
 tropical vegetation and huge animals. 
 
 7. When the earth was first formed, it was 
 much hotter than now, and though the sun 
 has helped to keep her warm, yet she is always 
 giving off some of her heat into space. 
 
 8. The surface of the earth is affected by 
 the sun, and by the earth's movements and by 
 her loss of heat, so that great changes take place 
 on it ; and a country which is dry land and 
 lofty mountains may after a million years be 
 at the bottom of the sea : at one period part 
 of the earth is covered with ice, at another with 
 forests, at another with burning desert. Great 
 changes also take place in the heat and cold, 
 dryness and moisture of the air.
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 Matter divided into Elements : Elements 
 the Basis of Protein 
 
 /COMPLEXITY and simplicity belong to each 
 ^•^ other. Resolve all things into their pri- 
 meval matter and nothing is complex, different 
 things are the same thing, the all is one, and 
 unity is everything. But in their complexity 
 they become diverse, and incomprehensible the 
 more complex ; the more they differ the greater 
 number of various uses they serve ; in their 
 primitive simplicity they have but one use. 
 As yet the primeval matter of all things is but 
 a name, whether it is called vortices or atoms 
 or force, or self or being, or tao, or ether, or 
 electron, it is the same mystery looked at from 
 a different point of view. 
 
 In the first chapter the starry heavens were 
 
 22
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MATTER 23 
 
 introduced ; now, this earth and things on the 
 earth will be considered. A beginning could be 
 made with the lofty mountains or billowy ocean, 
 or with other objects which most impress them- 
 selves on man by their grandeur. But, if a start 
 is made on this road, it would be hke a traveller 
 compelled to retrace his steps ; because the 
 question would arise — what are these objects 
 made up of ? Have they always been like that 
 from the beginning, and will they so remain to 
 the end of time, or can they be separated into 
 simpler parts ? 
 
 And the answer comes. The universe, so 
 vast that it cannot be realised, is made up of 
 atoms too small to be imagined. A mountain, 
 for example, is magnificent when seen from afar ; 
 but when looked at near by, it is but rocks and 
 stones. Now to take one of these stones and 
 crush it, not with the weak hands, but by a 
 hammer forged by the power of the brain, into 
 little pieces ; and those pieces again can be 
 dissolved by the wile of subtle acids, if not by
 
 24 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 the force of the hammer, into primitive elements. 
 By this method of analysis, within the last 
 hundred years, man has divided up all things 
 dead or alive into some eighty elements. The 
 most important of these are oxygen, hydrogen, 
 nitrogen, and carbon, for they are the chief 
 constituents which make up protein, and that 
 is the material of which all living creatures are 
 formed. 
 
 1. Those things such as iron, copper or oxygen 
 which cannot be separated into different kinds, 
 are called elements. At the present time some 
 eighty different elements are known. 
 
 2. Those things which are made up of more 
 than one element are called compounds. Water, 
 for example, is a compound, as it is made up of 
 oxygen and hydrogen. 
 
 3. Different elements have different forms — 
 that is to say, they look different, or have a 
 different shape, or act dijfferently ; gold looks 
 different and acts differently from iron, oxygen 
 acts differently from gold or iron, and so on.
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MATTER 25 
 
 4. Different compounds also have different 
 forms ; their forms depend on the kind and 
 quantity of their elements, and on the way in 
 which their elements are mixed together. 
 
 5. One kind of compound is made up of a 
 certain number of particles of oxygen, hydrogen, 
 nitrogen and carbon and of one or two other 
 elements. This kind of compound is called 
 protein.
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 Motion added to Protein make up Living 
 
 Things 
 
 1% /TOTION and elements are ever present ; 
 ^^ -^ elements without motion would not be 
 elements, motion without matter would not be. 
 
 Permutation of molecules may be the beginning 
 of all things ; motion, perchance, added to the 
 first original substance cognisable by senses, 
 became effective in conjunction with the per- 
 mutation of the atoms and was translated into 
 the elements. 
 
 Mere motion is the essence of purposelessness. 
 Changeless protein typifies the inertianity of all 
 spiritless matter. 
 
 But let them meet together, give them a 
 
 modicum of time, a million years or a million 
 
 26
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MATTER 27 
 
 ages in which to develop, and the result is, Man, 
 the purposeful, spiritual, reasoning mind. 
 
 The life and death of a man and the unknown 
 Beyond appear full of mystery, but life when 
 considered in a microbe either at its birth or 
 death seems more understandable. In order to 
 understand about life, crystals are introduced 
 in this chapter, because the growth and change 
 which take place in them, are similar to the 
 growth and change which make up life. Crystals 
 are a kind of half-way house between dead 
 things and living creatures, though not neces- 
 sarily related by evolution. Although growth 
 in crystal is similar to that in protein, yet they 
 are not exactly alike ; because growth in crystals 
 only takes place by addition to its outside, but 
 with protein it takes place by addition to the 
 inner and outer particles. 
 
 Section 4 continues with protein ; motion, 
 which is ever present in all things, will be added 
 to it, and protein, or life as it now is, will be 
 ready to start on its journey.
 
 28 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 Life, and especially man's own life, how large 
 it looms in his own sight, and rightly so too, 
 but in the eye of Eternity how short is his 
 sojourn on the earth, and how trifling the in- 
 fluence of the greatest Emperor! How puny 
 when compared with the forces of nature. Man 
 is but an unknown atom among the myriad 
 worlds. 
 
 The effect which life produces on the earth 
 is slight and temporary ; if a man could look 
 down from another planet on to this globe, 
 the influence of mankind, nay of all living things, 
 would be too small to be noticed, while on other 
 worlds they have no effect at all. But though 
 in comparative size it is very pretty, yet, so far 
 as man knows, there has never been anything so 
 wonderful since the universe began ; for life 
 alone has the marvellous gift of understanding 
 itself and other things : it is an oasis of in- 
 telligence in the desert of universal unconscious- 
 ness. 
 
 I . Motion is always going on in the world ;
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MATTER 29 
 
 the sun is moving through space, the earth 
 revolves round the sun. 
 
 2. And on this earth motion of one kind or 
 another takes place in many things. The wind 
 blows things to and fro, a piece of earth is 
 swelled by the rain, or crumbled to dust by the 
 sun ; the ocean ebbs and flows with its tides, 
 and is ever rolling with its restless waves. 
 
 3. To go a step further, motion is often taking 
 place in many crystals ; look at the hoar-frost 
 or crystals on the window in winter. If cold 
 wet air is added to them, oxygen and hydrogen 
 from the air unite with the outside of the crystals, 
 and they grow in size ; if hot air is added to 
 them, oxygen and hydrogen disunite from the 
 crystals and they become smaller again. 
 
 4. So too with protein : oxygen, hydrogen, 
 nitrogen and carbon from the air unite with 
 the particles of protein, and it grows in size ; 
 if, however, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen or carbon 
 disunite from it, the protein becomes smaller 
 again. At times also oxygen, hydrogen, nitro-
 
 30 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 gen and carbon unite with and disunite from 
 protein without any change in size taking place. 
 
 5. This change which takes place in protein — 
 namely, the uniting and disuniting of oxygen, 
 hydrogen, nitrogen and carbon — is called Life. 
 This is a picture of life in its simplest and small- 
 est form, though change similar to this is the 
 life in a man's body, and though very complex 
 and wonderful when looked at in its most 
 developed forms of human life, yet when con- 
 sidered in its simpler forms is more understand- 
 able. 
 
 6. After this uniting and disuniting has been 
 going on in protein — that is to say, after it has 
 lived for a certain time — the uniting and dis- 
 uniting ceases to take place. This is called 
 Death. The length of life of protein or of any 
 living creature depends on its kind and on 
 accidents, disease, and so on.
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 Living Things divided into Vegetable^ 
 Animal and Man 
 
 LIFE commenced its story with protein ; 
 now it is proposed to lead on to a cell 
 and then to build up a body with many of thern : 
 a cell being like a brick, and the body being like 
 a house made of many bricks. 
 
 A pile of bricks lying in a heap does not make 
 a house : a conglomeration of cells does not 
 make a senseful creature. But when an architect 
 arranges the bricks in a creative order with 
 rooms, chimneys, windows, and has the help 
 of other materials for windows, floors, doors, 
 then a house is ready for man, the mind of 
 matter, to inhabit. That may be called the 
 
 specialisation, the useful purpose of bricks, 
 
 3»
 
 32 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 Similarly with cells unspecialised, they are of 
 no account, but when an Architect under the 
 name of Evolution fashions them, and makes 
 use of the cells to further different ends, some 
 as the brain or leader of the body, some to form 
 the outside, some the inside, some the heart or 
 stomach, some the nerves to connect the different 
 parts, some the arteries and veins to feed the 
 different organs with blood, and so on, and 
 when all these are connected and work together 
 a body will be produced capable of performing 
 its work, and the efhciency of the body will 
 depend on the excellence of the cells and on 
 the organisation. 
 
 A cell may be likened to a colonist who has 
 just landed with many others on a new shore. 
 What do the colonists do ? They organise 
 themselves, some to be leaders, some to land 
 the goods from the ship, some to search for game 
 or fruits, some to collect wood for fires and to 
 draw water, others to be cooks or sentries, and 
 others again to clear the ground for building
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MATTER 33 
 
 shelters, and so on ; and with this organisation 
 they will have some chance of a successful start, 
 but if they had remained so many independent 
 individuals, each man his own sentry, hunter, 
 cook, drawer of water, collector of wood, clearer 
 of the ground, carpenter, and so on, they would 
 not have made much progress. 
 
 The two chief divisions of living things are 
 called vegetable and animal ; in higher forms 
 they are easily distinguishable — vegetables by 
 their leaves, stalk or trunk or flowers, animals 
 by their moving about and seeking for food ; 
 but in the lower forms of hfe there is little 
 difference between them. 
 
 1. In order to understand about men, it is 
 best to know something of the lower forms of 
 life first. 
 
 2. To begin with, the simplest part of a 
 living thing which can live by itself is called a 
 cell. 
 
 3. Even tiny cells have different parts, though 
 
 not much is known about them up to the present 
 
 3
 
 34 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 because they are so small ; perhaps later men 
 will be able to increase the powers of the micro- 
 scope, and their knowledge of them. 
 
 4. They have, however, an inside, and an 
 outside or kind of skin, and somewhere in the 
 inside is the nucleus or kind of heart or lung, 
 though of course it differs from the heart or lungs 
 of a man. 
 
 5. Different movement or work goes on in 
 these parts, which are connected and work 
 together as one cell, somewhat like a man's body, 
 where the heart ahd brain and legs do different 
 work, but as they are connected together, the 
 body as a whole does its work, and a body with 
 many parts is more complex and able to perform 
 more complex functions. 
 
 6. There are many kinds of living things, 
 and in order to distinguish them one from the 
 other, man arranges them into classes according 
 to their likeness and difference from each other, 
 and he calls them by different names. 
 
 7. The two chief classes are vegetable and
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MATTER 35 
 
 animal. The general difference between them 
 is, vegetables get most of their food from the 
 earth, air or water and do not move from one 
 place to another ; while animals are able to 
 move about and obtain much of their food by 
 eating vegetables or other animals. 
 
 8. Some of the smallest vegetables and animals 
 consist of only one cell, so that they are very 
 simple forms of life ; other vegetables and animals 
 are made up of many cells, and the body of a 
 man has millions and millions of cells, every 
 part of a body being made up of them. 
 
 9. In vegetables and animals with many cells, 
 each cell has its outside, inside and nucleus, 
 and is more or less different from cells in other 
 parts of the body, but all the cells are connected, 
 so that they work together as a body. The 
 welfare of a part depends largely on the well- 
 being of the whole body, and the whole depends 
 on the well-being of each part, and sometimes 
 the interest of a part is subordinated to the 
 interests of the whole.
 
 36 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 10. Man divides up animals again into different 
 classes ; the two chief classes are : 
 {a) Those that have no backbone. 
 {b) Those that have a backbone, or verte- 
 brates. 
 He divides vertebrates again into fish, birds, 
 snakes and mammals, mammals being those who 
 nourish their young with their milk. 
 
 J I. Those who are the prime or chief of the 
 mammals are called primates, such as the apes. 
 
 12. And those of the primates who are the 
 m.ost intelligent and have the most character 
 man calls Man ; or to give a more hard-and-fast 
 definition — the difference of man from the apes 
 is, that the upper part of his hip bone or ilium 
 is curved more forward, and the length of all 
 his teeth is nearly the same ; all mammals 
 except man having some teeth longer than 
 others. 
 
 13. The bodies of man and of most animals 
 are made up of different parts, which do different 
 work and are all connected together.
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MATTER ^7 
 
 The Chief parts are — 
 
 {a) Skeleton and bones, which are a frame- 
 work for the muscles, etc. 
 
 {b) Muscles, some of which, by shortening 
 and lengthening, make the legs and 
 arms move ; other muscles are the 
 digestive organs of the stomach ; and 
 others which form the heart, contmu- 
 ously contract and expand, and force 
 the blood through the arteries, and hy 
 opening out again draw in other blood 
 from the lungs. And other xnuscks 
 which form the liver and kidneys assist 
 in getting rid of waste from the body ; 
 and others, which are the lungs, by 
 opening out draw in breath, the oxygen 
 of which they retain and by contracting 
 breathe out carbonic acid waste. The 
 muscles of the heart and lungs work 
 continuously because the babe before 
 birth has the circulation of the mother ; 
 and this has continued, with the help
 
 38 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 of food, from the first pulsation of 
 living things, when they crossed the 
 boundary of inanimate matter. 
 
 (<r) Arteries, which carry the blood to all 
 parts of the body to feed them, and 
 veins which carry it back with the 
 waste from the cells to the heart 
 through the lungs ; the blood is made 
 from, the food in the stomach, and it 
 takes in oxygen from the breath in the 
 lungs, and gets rid of waste from the 
 body by depositing it in the lungs, and 
 this waste is breathed out by the 
 breath. 
 
 {d) Nerves, which carry messages from the 
 hands, eyes and other senses to the 
 brain, and convey messages or orders 
 from the brain to the legs, arms, and 
 other parts of the body.
 
 Part II 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 
 
 How does man know anything, and what does he 
 know?
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 Knowledge 
 
 THIS chapter is, perhaps, the most difficult 
 and dullest of all. It is on the meaning 
 of words, on the understanding, and on exist- 
 ence. 
 
 Everyone can feel, and all but the bhnd and 
 deaf can see and hear ; but what is feeling, 
 seeing and hearing, and what is it that man 
 feels and sees and hears ? A leather bag, a blue 
 sky, a beautiful melody — do they exist by 
 themselves, are they real things ? Or is it that 
 the hands, eyes and ears and brain receive 
 impressions, and that what man calls a leather 
 bag, or beautiful melody, or blue sky are auto- 
 matic changes in the nervous matter of the hands, 
 eyes, ears and brain ?
 
 42 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 It is in my head that there are other men, 
 walking, talking, and moving — whether they 
 are really there I cannot say. If another man 
 tells me he is really there, it is only a change in 
 my head or as in a dream — perhaps he is not 
 really there. Similarly, with another man, if he 
 is actually there, it is only in his head that I am 
 hei'j and that other men are here. If I do not 
 exist, I and my dreams go ; there is nothing, 
 was nothing ; similarly for him through me, if 
 he died or did not exist there would be nothing. 
 But if he or if I act as if there was nothing, the 
 pangs of hunger or cold or toothache will soon 
 make us act as if there was something, even 
 though that toothache or hunger or doing some- 
 thing is only in my head or is only a dream. 
 
 A piece of earth can receive an impression 
 by being crushed, but it cannot distinguish 
 between a bag, or sky, or music. To Rontgen 
 rays there is no leather bag, to a blind man there 
 is no blue sky, to a deaf man no beautiful melody ; 
 so if there were not any men who could feel,
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 43 
 
 see and hear, there would be no such things as 
 leather bags, no blue sky, no melody. And as a 
 thing is that which can be felt, seen, heard, smelt 
 or tasted, if there had never been living things 
 capable of feeling, seeing, hearing, smelling or 
 tasting, there would never have been anything 
 at all. 
 
 The unreality of things is like a mirage to a 
 traveller. He is wearily riding across a sandy 
 desert in the broiling sun : at last, lock ! there 
 is a village with its huts and trees and lagoons 
 of water. One more effort and their parched 
 throats will be quaflBng cooling water in the 
 shadow of the palms. The tired camels stumble 
 on and on until ready to drop ; but alas ! they 
 find only baking sand where half-an-hour before 
 they had seen the shady trees and limpid water. 
 
 This world resembles a kaleidoscope : a turn 
 of the handle and everything is moving in gay 
 colours full of life and gaiety, another turn, and 
 all the gay colours are jarring and jangling, yet 
 another turn, and everything is blotted out.
 
 44 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 Beyond appearance man cannot go, and things 
 are understood differently at various times ; 
 as the light of science grows brighter, some things 
 that originally were incomprehensible to most, 
 become clear to all ; other things which seemed 
 to bear a definite form, assume a different shape 
 from what they apparently had at first : by 
 night, for example, the stars are bright, but by 
 day, though the stars are still there, before the 
 days of science men believed they had gone 
 away. 
 
 So, too, as to relativeness of size and time. 
 To a microbe on a speck of dust floating in a 
 sunbeam, if its senses were sufficiently acute the 
 speck might appear to it as an immense world 
 and the nearest atoms as other mighty planets 
 immeasurable distances off. The earth, on which 
 man lives, appears to him as vast, but this earth 
 and the neighbouring stars may be only similar 
 specks of dust when compared to the masses of 
 matter that exist. And the transitory passing 
 of the speck across the sunbeam may seem to
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 45 
 
 the microbe as a thousand aeons of time would 
 appear to man. 
 
 Man is ever limited by the power of his senses, 
 and beyond the horizon of his knowledge ever 
 reigns the mystery. 
 
 His daily bread, the home, and factory or 
 field where he works, these are well known and 
 understood by all ; but things at a distance 
 appear to him as a blur, and ideas on the border- 
 land of the Unknown are enshrouded in the 
 mist of ignorance. 
 
 Man has a httle light, for the rest he is trying 
 to pierce the veil of non-existent Being ; for 
 there are many problems which he can never 
 solve ; and he who probes too far the dark 
 obscurity will leave his reason in the secret 
 depths. The known is within him. In the 
 depths beyond the known, when it comes within 
 the focus of the mind, what there may be, no 
 one knows ; and the mystery of mysteries is, 
 how or when anything came to be. 
 
 According as men's knowledge increases, the
 
 46 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 greater becomes the known, the greater also the 
 Unknown. The rising sun dispels the morning 
 mist ; so does the growing understanding pene- 
 trate further and further through the vale of 
 ignorance. 
 
 Thf^ mind illuminates the world, men muse 
 of life and death, of the Absolute, the nothing, 
 the known and the Unknown ; in words they 
 theoricL of the beginning of the earth and sun 
 and stars, they foretell too the end of the world. 
 When the light of the sun grows dim and living 
 things and dead are akin, and life will sleep 
 for ever, then matter is doomed to die. 
 
 After the material world is passed away, the 
 nothingness can be expressed as being before 
 the worlds, and after they are not ; as it was 
 before time began and shall be after the years 
 have ceased ; when no universe of stars and 
 earth was there ; neither past, present or future ; 
 no light or darkness, no sound or silence, no Hfe 
 or death, neither finite or infinite, without 
 beginning or ending, no something or nothing.
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 47 
 
 But yet, though nothingness again shall be, 
 ideas have cast their light ahead and still re-echo 
 far, like the flash of twinkling stars, whose light 
 shines on though they themselves are dead. 
 
 Men are of the material world, even of that 
 they understand but a little, while ciitside 
 materiality they comprehend nothing. 
 
 Beyond the nothing, outside the understand- 
 ing where words carry not and thoughts have 
 no foundation, what may there be ? 
 
 But after all, even if man has no reality he 
 has at least the idea ; there are senses and brain. 
 Man depends on them and must act accordingly. 
 The senses show him different things ; the brain 
 gives him ideas ; matter is the basis of idea or 
 a tangible effect of the mind ; and idea the 
 foundation of matter. From one point of view 
 the world may be looked at as on a material 
 basis and from the other point of view as being 
 founc ^d on idea ; with idea, man conceives all 
 the past history of the universe ; it gives him 
 imagination ; it tells him of the existence of
 
 48 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 matter for countless ages in the past and possibly 
 for longer ages in the future. 
 
 Now again to bring out hard words, slow 
 perhaps and dull, but good if they are accurate. 
 Words are the wings which carry thoughts from 
 one man to another, but if men do not thoroughly 
 understand their use they are dangerous and give 
 him a fall^ and are liable to injure others as well 
 as their users. 
 
 1. In many vegetables and animals, parts of 
 the outside of their body are sensitive, so that 
 when they are touched they move away, for 
 example, or if a flower, it may close its petals. 
 
 2. In the higher animals these sensitive parts 
 are connected with nerves. The inner ends of 
 these nerves go to a nerve centre like railway 
 lines going to a station, and the centre or station 
 is connected by other nerves with different parts 
 of the body, and with other centres. 
 
 3. As the senses and brains of animals change 
 so do the ideas and things which they see change. 
 A tadpole has no conception of the things he
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 49 
 
 wiU see as a frog, nor a caterpillar of the beaute- 
 ous colours of a butterfly. 
 
 4. There are different sensitive parts or senses, 
 and they do different work and are called eye, 
 ear, nose, tongue, and organ of feeling. 
 
 There are also different nerve centrer, and 
 there is one principal centre called the brails. 
 
 5. The brain is connected by nerves vv'ith the 
 eye, ear, nose, tongue, and organ of feeling, 
 and with the legs, arms, and other parts of the 
 body, so that they work together and act as 
 one body. The nerves carry messages from the 
 hand or eye to the brain, other nerves carry 
 back orders to the hand or leg or so on, some- 
 what like a mail train carrying letters on the 
 up-line from Dover to London and another train 
 bringing back replies on the down-line. 
 
 6. The eyes of a hungry man, for example, 
 see something round, red, and shiny ; the im- 
 pression on the eyes makes a change in particular 
 nerve cells of the brain. That change had been 
 set up on a similar occasion followed by change
 
 50 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 in other cells which made the hand carry it to 
 the mouth. 
 
 7. An organ of the body does one kind of work 
 better than several kinds, and a man does better 
 work with greater saving of labour, on account 
 of there being different senses and different 
 organs working together, than if there was 
 no specialization or division of senses and 
 organs. 
 
 8. The movement of particles, or change which 
 take? place in eye, ear, nose, tongue, organ of 
 feeling, and in their connecting nerves and brain, 
 when affected by something external to them 
 is called seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, feeling, 
 or perceiving ; for example, I perceive a man 
 in the room. 
 
 9. That which is seen, heard, smelt, tasted 
 or felt is herein called matter. Of matter that 
 which the eye sees is called shape, colour and so 
 on ; that which the ear hears is called sound, 
 and so on. Any unit or part of matter is herein 
 called thing.
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 51 
 
 10. That part of matter by which a thing is 
 distinguished from any other part is herein 
 called its form, the form of matter depending 
 on the object and on the subject. 
 
 11. As the senses and brain and body of men 
 are alike, so do they perceive similar matter 
 alike, and so, under similar circumstances, do 
 they conceive similar ideas, and do similar thmgs. 
 
 12. As the senses and brains and bodies of 
 men differ, so do they perceive matter differ- 
 ently, and so do they conceive different ideas 
 and do different things. 
 
 13. If there were no eye there would be no 
 colour ; if there were no ear there would be no 
 sound ; if no nose no smell ; if no tongue no 
 flavour ; if no organ of feeling no resistance. 
 
 14. If there were no brains there would be 
 no ideas ; if there were no life there would be 
 no Matter ; nothing, no nothing, no cause and 
 effect, but idea and the idea of matter will have 
 been and continue retrospectively. 
 
 15. Perceptions make a more or less per-
 
 52 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 manent impression on the outer or grey cells of 
 the brain. When one of these impressions is 
 affected by flow of blood or movement of other 
 nervous matter, an image relating to a past 
 perception is produced. This is called conceiving 
 or thi .iking ; for example, I think or conceive 
 of the man who has left the room. 
 
 1 6. That which living things conceive or think 
 Is herein called idea or thought. When living 
 things think of matter without seeing, hearing, 
 smelling, tasting or feeling it, it is herein called 
 the idea of matter. 
 
 17. Conceptions also make a more or less 
 permanent impression on the outer or grey 
 matter of the brain. There are many millions 
 of impressions on that part of the brain. When 
 several impressions of perception or conception 
 are affected, the thoughts or ideas are more 
 complex. 
 
 18. Man arranges things and ideas into classes, 
 according to their Hkeness and difference from 
 each other, and he calls them by different words
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 53 
 
 or names, by which he makes known to others 
 the things which he perceives and his ideas and 
 desires and so on. 
 
 19. Changes in the front part of the brain, 
 by which man has knowledge of his existence, 
 of perception, and of ideas, are called con- 
 sciousness. 
 
 20. The knowledge, which a man has, of the 
 right and of his duty to live up to it, is herein 
 called conscience. The nobler side of man, 
 which impels him to goodness, and which 
 communes with the Infinite, is herein called soul, 
 religion doing for mankind what the soul effects 
 for the individual. 
 
 21. Certain other states of change in the grey 
 matter of his brain when affected by the senses 
 are called reason, emotions, desires, judgment, 
 and so on. 
 
 22. Some ideas are accurate, some inaccurate ; 
 those are herein called accurate if they refer 
 correctly either directly or indirectly to that 
 which man sees, hears, smells, tastes or feels,
 
 54 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 and inaccurate if they contradict, or do not refer 
 correctly, either directly or indirectly, to that 
 which man sees, hears, etc.
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 Destiny 
 
 THIS chapter is on cause and effect, which 
 is called Destiny (or Fate). He is absolute 
 monarch of all living creatures and dead things ; 
 such he has been from the beginning and such 
 he will continue till the end of time. Every- 
 thing obeys him implicitly. Pitiless and un- 
 yielding is his grasp, turning aside for no one. 
 What was not, could not be. What is, must be. 
 What will be, cannot be avoided. 
 
 Everything that is, and everything that 
 happens, has been caused by something previous, 
 though man does not always know what the 
 exact cause was. 
 
 The colour of a rose, the murmur of the sea, 
 the growth of an acorn into an oak, a puppy 
 
 55
 
 56 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 into a dog, everything, in fact, that now is, is 
 the unalterable descendant of that which has 
 happened during the previous ages ; if the matter 
 of which they are composed had met with 
 different circumstances, they might have been 
 water or a horse or part of another planet, or of 
 anything else. 
 
 A man takes up in the world as much room 
 in proportion to the strength or weakness of his 
 nature, and to the strength or weakness of the 
 world around. He may be likened to a pip in 
 an orange, which has its allotted space, and 
 which swells to a large or small size according 
 as its force and the pressure around it permit. 
 For man is being impelled along by the inexor- 
 able might of the unseen Power which holds the 
 Worlds in its grasp ; he stays on the earth as 
 long as he is bidden. Life is given to him 
 whether he wishes it or no ; life is taken away 
 from him whether he is ready or unready. 
 
 Sometimes, however, Destiny is used as an 
 excuse for laziness : if a man is too idle to take
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 57 
 
 precautions against the plague, or to do his work, 
 or whatever it may be, he will say, perhaps, 
 " Oh, Fate has already decided what is going 
 to happen to me. Why should I bother about 
 the plague, or about getting work ? " But, 
 idle vagabond, even if there is absolute Fate, 
 man is free within its bounds, it is in him to 
 strive to live up to the right, and it is in men 
 accordingly to punish those who do wrong and 
 those who injure others. 
 
 If he had pulled himself together, or been 
 stirred by a friendly hand, he would have 
 forgotten about Fate and would have taken steps 
 to do something. 
 
 Destiny is the master not only of all things, 
 but also of all the changes and variations which 
 take place in the world. And of these changes 
 and variations, evolution is the most important. 
 Evolution is the great sorter-out. Those forms 
 of life that arc unfit she casts away to be made 
 up into something else, those that are fit enough 
 she permits to continue, those that are the best
 
 58 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 or improve, she promotes to a higher purpose. 
 As among the flowers in a wood, some are 
 healthy, some diseased. Evolution causes the 
 latter to die off, and the sound ones by their 
 seeds produce future beautiful flowers ; so, too, 
 does evolution deal with men, those who do right 
 and can resist evil best, survive, for the standard 
 of right conduct is formed on the nature and 
 capabilities of the well developed man. 
 
 The former chapters dealt with vegetables 
 and animals on a stationary basis, as if they had 
 been cast by Nature in a mould, and had always 
 preserved their original shape ; but the old 
 doctrine of evolution, taught in its moral applica- 
 tion by Moses, worked out scientifically by 
 Darwin, is introduced here. Destiny is the 
 procession of the ages from one millennium to 
 another. He has seen the passing of dead matter 
 into living microbes ; has watched all the 
 different kinds of life on the globe passing along 
 and changing as the centuries roll by ; he is 
 the advent of men in their different kinds, and
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 59 
 
 will see the last type of humanity with a great 
 advance over previous ones, because men all 
 over the world will be co-ordinated, their com- 
 petition with each other regulated, and their 
 central organization will work for the good of 
 men as a whole. 
 
 1. Long ages ago the universe was probably 
 a mass of fiery vapour, gradually parts of it 
 separated off into smaller masses, and one of 
 these condensed and cooled down and broke up 
 into the sun, earth, moon and other planets. 
 
 2. It is not known how life first arose, but 
 the following theory is suggested, though like 
 most theories, it is probably more or less wrong. 
 
 As was pointed out in the earlier chapters, 
 changes are always taking place on the earth ; 
 mountains become sea or forest or desert, the 
 air alters from hot to dry or wet, and so on. 
 
 3. And among these changes which were ever 
 taking place, some elements showed an affinity 
 to become compounded with certain others, and 
 they became united with each other and dis-
 
 6o LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 united in endless variety, and at last, perhaps, 
 oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen and carbon, and one 
 or two other elements became united together, 
 and thus protein was formed, and then some 
 of the particles of this protein became disunited. 
 
 4. Possibly at that period, the earth turned 
 round on its axis quicker than it does now, so 
 that the days and nights were much shorter 
 and the heat and light of the day may have 
 united oxygen or hydrogen, etc, with the protein, 
 and the cold and dark of the night, may have 
 disunited them, and this was repeated day after 
 day, and night after night, and thus the simplest 
 forms of life or living things may have come 
 to be. Once started on their journey they have 
 continued to live owing to the recurrence of 
 these factors, and will persist till the environ- 
 ment alters and their course is run. 
 
 5. After living things had once been produced, 
 there were two chief causes which made them 
 constantly vary. First, that the young, though 
 similar to their parents, always differ slightly
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 6i 
 
 from them, because no two beings are exactly- 
 alike, and their offspring will be a cross between 
 the two and therefore differ more or less from 
 each parent and from every other being. Second, 
 that living things are affected by the air and 
 food and country where they live, so that they 
 also vary, according as these vary. 
 
 6. If some of the variations are of a higher 
 type and fitter to survive, they are an evolution 
 as to their particular species. If Scruggle for 
 life is added to them, evolution in general is the 
 result, though some low forms of life usually 
 persist along with the evolving higher types. 
 
 7. By struggle for life is meant as foUows : — 
 the food and space in the world is limited, but 
 the number of plants and animals born is in 
 excess of the food and space necessary for their 
 support, so that there is a struggle for them, 
 some of those that are fitter, and can obtain 
 food and space, survive, and have young in 
 their turn, and others that cannot obtain them, 
 die off.
 
 62 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 8. As an example, consider the roe of a fish ; 
 it consists of millions of eggs ; if every one of 
 those eggs became a fish, and if each of these 
 fish grew up and had young, and so on, the ocean 
 would not hold them all, and still less would 
 there be enough food for them. 
 
 Q. Oui of all the number of young fish born, 
 which of them will have most chance of surviv- 
 ing ? It is those who are born healthier, who 
 can stand the cold better, who can escape from 
 hungry big fish, and are able to obtain food ; 
 while the sickly ones, and those who swim into 
 the shark's mouth and those who cannot find 
 food, die off. So, too, if all the infants lived 
 and grew up and had children in their turn and 
 so on, there would soon not be enough standing 
 room on the earth for them, still less could they 
 all obtain food and water. 
 
 10. In addition to this struggle, many plants 
 and animals are born sickly, and die off on 
 account of too great heat, or cold, or disease. 
 
 11. This struggle for life exists among all
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 63 
 
 plants, animals and man, and any slight variation 
 in a seed or young animal which helps it to 
 withstand the cold or heat, or escape its enemies, 
 or obtain its food better, will help it survive 
 and have young in its turn. 
 
 12. The lower the type of animal, the greater 
 number of young are born, and the greater 
 number die off from lack of food, and so on. 
 
 The higher the animal, the lesser number 
 are born and die off. 
 
 13. Among men, next to man's need for food, 
 the strongest desire of most is to go with one 
 of the opposite sex and to have children ; men 
 do not differ in this from the beasts of the field. 
 But many men do differ from them in that they 
 alone are able to control their passions and thus 
 regulate the number of children born. 
 
 14. Though on this account the struggle is 
 not so severe as among vegetables and animals, 
 yet with man, too, more children are born than 
 can be properly fed and looked after, and grow 
 up and have children of their own and die in
 
 64 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 comfort and old age. And the weakly babes 
 and those whom dangerous microbes attack and 
 those who do not get proper food or care, die off, 
 while those who are born stronger or get better 
 food or care may survive. 
 
 15. The kind of variations that took place 
 during the evolution of a simple microbe into 
 higher forms were perhaps somewhat as follows : 
 — part of its body became slightly different, and 
 did different work, and gradually some parts 
 became 2 skin, some muscles, some nerves, some 
 legs, arms^ eyes, and so on. 
 
 16. Those animals that developed like this 
 would be able to withstand the heat or cold, 
 obtain food or escape their enemies better than 
 the undeveloped ones ; they would also have 
 more chance of growing up and having offspring. 
 
 And so some simple forms of life gradually 
 evolved into fishes, and some fishes into reptiles, 
 and some reptiles into mammals, and some 
 mammals into man. 
 
 17. This process of evolution took perhaps a
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 65 
 
 hundred million years to arrive at, and it did 
 not always proceed evenly, because at times 
 some or all vegetables and animals would degen- 
 erate, until again circumstances were favourable 
 to their further advance. 
 
 18. As to the evolution of ape-like or early 
 man into a good and wise man of the present 
 day, variations and struggle for life have affected 
 him in the same way as they have affected all 
 creatures. 
 
 19. Variations and struggle for life took place 
 not only when men were young, but also during 
 their whole life ; and according as men and their 
 food, work, neighbours and climate varied, so 
 were they fitter or less fit to fight their way in 
 the world and bring up a family. 
 
 20. The chief variations that caused his 
 evolution into a higher type were as follows : — 
 some developed a better brain, enabling them 
 to think things out, or more skilful hand, some 
 were able to speak, so that they could gain the 
 experience of others and express their wants. 
 
 5
 
 66 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 21. And later on, some men became more 
 honest and trustworthy in their deaHngs with 
 each other ; and some became more skilful in 
 fighting and hunting, or growing crops, or 
 keeping cattle, or mining ; and controlled their 
 passions better, so that one man kept to the 
 same woman or women and helped them take 
 care of the family ; and they were more careful 
 in the upbringing of the children ; and they 
 improved their sanitation, and laid up stores of 
 food, so that in famine and disease not so many 
 died ; and they made and used machinery and 
 tools, and some became good at certain kinds 
 of work (specialisation of work), and they 
 combined their efforts (co-operation). 
 
 22. Those men in whom these variations 
 occurred, usually obtained food and necessaries 
 better than others, and more of their children 
 survived, and some of them gradually evolved 
 into the good and wise men of the present 
 day. 
 
 As the present is the outcome of the past, so
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 67 
 
 the future will be the result of the present ; 
 if a man knew everything he would be able to 
 foretell the future ; but no one has complete 
 knowledge, so that it is uncertain for how long 
 the earth will continue able to support life. If 
 the ocean oversteps its customary bounds, if 
 the earth quakes, men and cities are swept away, 
 and the thought and toil of centuries vanish ; 
 or if the earth moved a little nearer or farther 
 from the sun, the whole globe might be burnt 
 to cinders or be frozen solid, but in the fleeting 
 history of man these are exceptional occurrences, 
 it is sufficient for him to do his best under the 
 existing conditions. 
 
 Mankind, with the good and wise men at their 
 head, is still advancing ; and so may they con- 
 tinue this progress heavenwards, up and up 
 and up, higher and even higher for future 
 countless ages till life has reached its zenith 
 and slowly descends again or till, at last, the 
 unknown hand of a world-wide cataclysm shall 
 hurl down the ladder of life.
 
 68 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 Then, will all living creatures be cast into 
 the melting furnace of Eternity ; 
 
 At the end of unnumbered aeons the stars, 
 the sun, and the earth will vanish ; 
 The years' reverberating roll shall cease ; 
 And mystic nothingness again shall be.
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 The Future. 
 
 T T THAT is there in store for man in the future ? 
 Long aeons ago they crossed the boundary 
 of inanimate matter to march towards their 
 heritage of spiritual life. 
 
 Since then the good and wise man has ascended 
 to such heights of glory from a lowly microbe, 
 to what marvellous development may he not 
 yet attain ? 
 
 Will he live to be one thousand years old, 
 
 or grow to be fifty feet high, or be able to transfer 
 
 his thoughts to others without the need of 
 
 speaking ? Or — and this is more important 
 
 than mere length of life or increase of stature — 
 
 will love reign supreme among men, with honesty, 
 
 wisdom, and purity as her ministers ? 
 
 Whatever the future prize may be, man will 
 
 69
 
 70 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 only reach the goal by careful thought and hard 
 work ; he will only be able to advance step by 
 step, because he cannot see far ahead, and his 
 old habits die hard. 
 
 And those men will under ordinary circum- 
 stances attain to a higher development and 
 survive in their descendants who live according 
 to the ideals in Chapter XIII. And those who 
 do not live up to them will degenerate or gradu- 
 ally die outc At times the standard of ideals 
 will change, according as mankind changes, or 
 according as he will be affected by variations in 
 the climate or food, and so on. 
 
 As to what height of evolution man will attain 
 to, that depends on man's efforts and on the 
 earth. 
 
 For evolution may be likened to a ladder 
 which stands on the earth below, with its head 
 in the heavens above. The first form of life 
 ascended the lowest rung millions of years ago, 
 and living things have been toiling up and up 
 ever since. Man is on the topmost rung yet
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 71 
 
 reached and is still struggling on, sometimes 
 slipping down a rung, but gradually climbing 
 upwards. 
 
 There may come a time when the present 
 civilization with its proud palaces and glorious 
 cities will be buried in the night of the past, 
 and our struggles and aspirations will be re- 
 membered as the awakening of man, when he 
 rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and for the first 
 time realised that his lot on the earth was 
 largely in his own power to am.eliorate. 
 
 And at that distant day, man's glorious 
 descendants will be able to walk sure-footedly 
 on the earth. They will be able to make better 
 use of the earth, air and water and of vegetables 
 and other animals — they will have learnt to 
 control their passions, banish misery, and to 
 direct their efforts by an intelligence more 
 powerful than can be imagined towards a still 
 more wonderful lot.
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 The Great Teachers of Mankind 
 
 TN their journey through life, men require 
 -*- instruction telling them what is right and 
 what is wrong, and in making many of their 
 laws the rulers also require assistance showing 
 them in what direction they should endeavour 
 to lead the citizens. This guide is given men 
 by their religions, as taught by the great Teachers. 
 Are not these the chief teachers of man- 
 kind ?— 
 
 Of the Semitic race : 
 
 The leader Moses, who was born in Egypt, 
 some three thousand five hundred years 
 ago; 
 The sinless Jesus Christ, who lived in 
 Palestine one thousand nine hundred 
 years ago ; 
 
 The warrior-poet Mohammed, who lived in 
 
 7a
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND jz 
 
 Arabia one thousand four hundred years 
 ago. 
 Of the Indian race : 
 One or two philosophic Brahmins and one 
 or two with their practical knowledge of 
 every-day life, who lived in India about 
 three thousand years ago ; 
 The contemplative Gautama Buddha, who 
 lived in India two thousand five hundred 
 years ago. 
 Of the Chinese race : 
 
 The wise Confucius, who lived in China 
 two thousand five hundred years ago. 
 A small part of the great work done by them 
 was that Moses delivered the Hebrews from 
 slavery, and by his lofty code of morals and 
 laws has enabled them to maintain a high 
 civilization during all the past centuries, and 
 to produce many great men. 
 
 As to the Brahmins, their ancestors entered 
 India where there were many millions of men 
 of a lower race and civilization ; by their teach-
 
 74 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 ings they have leavened the vast numbers and 
 inculcated a high standard of performance of 
 the duties of everyday life. They have also 
 furnished the world with profound philosophical 
 thought. 
 
 The Buddha has uplifted men whom his 
 teachings have instructed by freeing them from 
 superstit^'on and material desires. 
 
 Confucius by his constant striving towards 
 improvement and lofty standard of conduct and 
 reverence to parents has enabled the Chinese 
 to survive and flourish while many other races 
 have come and gone. 
 
 Jesus Christ has tempered the native instincts 
 of men with brotherly love and purity. 
 
 Mohammed preaching to barbarous tribes has 
 uplifted them from ignorant hordes to dis- 
 ciplined nations with a high sense of duty in 
 fulfilling his teachings. 
 
 Sometimes the followers of the great Teachers 
 have united themselves in a religion bearing the 
 name of their Master.
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 75 
 
 As the various stars all form part of the 
 Universe, so do the different religions together 
 constitute the spirit of universal truth, though 
 at times there have been religions which were 
 not ennobling. 
 
 The chief religions in order of age are the 
 Jewish, the Brahmin, the Buddhist, Confucian- 
 ism, Christianity, and Mohammedanism, their 
 sacred books being the Bible, the texts of the 
 Hindoos and of Buddha, the Analects of Con- 
 fucius, and the Koran. These it is v/hich enlighten 
 the World and guide mankind along the higher 
 path of life. 
 
 But in the days when those teachers lived 
 there was not much learning, and such learning 
 as existed was not very accurate. As a con- 
 sequence of this their doctrines, being dependent 
 to some extent on the ideas prevaiHng in their 
 part of the world, differ from each other in 
 certain beliefs, revealing some sides of the light 
 more strongly than others. 
 
 In addition to this, when those sacred books
 
 76 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 were compiled, writing was difficult, and there 
 was no printing, so that it is not always known 
 what the Masters themselves taught, and what 
 has been added to the text by later writers ; 
 some passages go beyond the realm of knowledge, 
 some express ideas in accordance with the 
 standard of intelligence of their hearers, or in 
 poetic allegory rather than plain statements. 
 
 The divine idea of God. The Bible teaches 
 of God as " I am," " I am that I am," " I am 
 the beginning and the end which is and which 
 was and which is to come." 
 
 The Bible also teaches of a personal God, 
 who cares for men as His children, rewarding 
 the good, punishing the wicked. 
 
 The New Testament also upholds God, as 
 Love. 
 
 Mohammed preached as a prophet of the God 
 to whom the Old Testament bare witness. 
 
 The fountain head of the lofty Semitic con- 
 ception of God was perhaps that of the Egyptians, 
 " I am that which hath been, that which is, and
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND -i^ 
 
 that which ever more shall be, no man hath 
 lifted my veil." 
 
 Confucius did not know as to spiritual beings, 
 but reverently sacrificed to the spirits, as if they 
 were present. 
 
 The philosophical Brahmins taught of God as 
 " whatever is, has been, and will be," or as 
 " being " or " self." 
 
 Other Brahmins conceived of personal gods, 
 some of whom took care of men on the earth, 
 rewarding the good, punishing the evil. 
 
 Others taught of gods of evil. 
 
 Gautama Buddha preached of no God or 
 soul. 
 
 As to a life after death : Moses did not teach 
 of one. 
 
 Jesus Christ taught that there was a future 
 life. 
 
 Mohammed also preached it. 
 
 Confucius did not know about life after death. 
 
 Some Brahmins thought that on the death 
 of a good man he became one with the universe,
 
 78 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 and that bad men were re-born on the earth, 
 in lower forms of life. 
 
 Gautama Buddha taught that the best men 
 attained to the peaceful bliss of Nirvana, and 
 that other men were re-born for future lives on 
 this earth. 
 
 As to the doctrines and ideals taught by 
 them ; they were based on those of former 
 teachers ?nd on the customs of men in their 
 part of the world, and, to some extent, Moses 
 founded his on those taught by Hammurabi 
 and by the Egyptians, Jesus Christ on those of 
 Moses, Mohammed on those of Moses, Confucius 
 on those taught by his predecessors, Gautama 
 Buddha on those taught by previous Brahmins. 
 
 Many hundred years have passed since those 
 sacred books were written, and men are more 
 enlightened' and able to receive more advanced 
 doctrines, so that if the great Founders taught 
 to-day, they would alter some of the teachings 
 which were attributed to or actually taught by 
 them, and supplement them.
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 79 
 
 Presumably, if they lived to-day, Moses would 
 not teach that the Jews are a special race apart 
 from other men ; 
 
 Nor the Brahmins the hard and fast divisions 
 into caste ; 
 
 Nor Gautama Buddha transmigration and 
 that cessation of living was better than life ; 
 
 Nor Mohammed the seclusion of v/omen. 
 
 And in the doctrines of the personality of 
 divine Beings or future life, they would teach 
 that it might be taken in poetic allegory rather 
 than in a material sense. 
 
 Though other parts of their doctrines, standing 
 for the good of man, have stood the test of time, 
 and are as sublime to-day as when they were 
 taught. 
 
 All reverence be to those great Prophets. 
 
 Though the great teachers differ as to God 
 and future life, they all taught that every man 
 should live an upright life, and on the whole 
 they all preached a similar standard of conduct.
 
 8o ' LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 And to have the inner heart righteous is more 
 important than the outward form of beHef. 
 
 Most men believe in the faith of their fathers 
 or in the reHgion of the country where they live ; 
 at times men change their belief according to 
 their age or according to influences affecting 
 them. 
 
 Apart from the teachings of religion, men 
 also vary in themselves, consequently different 
 parts of the Truth may come to them, and the 
 Truth may also come to the same man differently 
 at different times. 
 
 Some men conceive of God as being beyond 
 the known ; and of immortality as the merging 
 of the self into the Infinite ; and of the soul 
 as the nobler side of man which impels him to 
 goodness and which communes with God ; and 
 of prayer as an earnest thought and endeavour 
 to do what is right, and to make. the soul firm 
 against temptation. 
 
 Some men conceive, — of a personal God the 
 Creator of the universe, and Master of man's
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF MIND 8i 
 
 destinies, with the likeness and powers of man 
 or super-man ; and of life after death as the 
 continuing existence of the soul whether as angels 
 in heaven or spirits on the earth ; and of the 
 soul as a spirit independent of the body ; and 
 of prayer as a direct appeal to God who hears 
 them. 
 
 While from the point of view of Ideals, men 
 conceive, — of God, as all that is good ; and of 
 immortality as the- good deeds of a man which 
 never die. 
 
 Some men reverence the memory of their 
 forefathers and believe that they should act in 
 a way which would please their ancestors if they 
 lived, and that they should do nothing which 
 could give them sorrow. 
 
 Some men believe that the spirits of their 
 forefathers know what their children do and 
 can help them, and they worship them as if they 
 lived. 
 
 With regard to images, some think of theni 
 as representing the Deity ; being helped in
 
 82 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 worshipping immaterial Deity by seeing tangible 
 objects, not being able to understand abstract 
 ideas as well as images which they can see with 
 their own eyes. Some think of them as gods 
 who can help or injure men. 
 
 Some men make poetic obeisance to the Sun, 
 some worship it.
 
 Part III 
 
 MAN 
 
 This division depicts men in their ordinary life and 
 dealings with others, and contains some rules of 
 development.
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 Daily Life 
 
 ^ I ^HIS chapter is on the little things of ordinary 
 ■*- life, some of which pass under the eyes 
 every day, or every minute, and are taken as 
 a matter of course without being thought about ; 
 and yet frequently it is these trifles which make 
 or mar man's happiness, for often, more suitable 
 food, better cooked, or more carefully bitten ; 
 exercise sufficiently perspiring without overdoing 
 it, for those leading a sedentary life to aid in 
 getting rid of old tissue and taking in new, and 
 to assist the lungs, liver and kidneys get rid of 
 waste ; fresh air ; a little longer sleep ; rather 
 less drink the night before ; will turn an irritable 
 frown into a kindly smile. Sometimes, too, a 
 trifle is the cause of great woes. A speck of 
 san^' between the wheels of a machine will make 
 
 85
 
 86 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 it grate ; something which a man has eaten or 
 drunk will upset the whole outlook of his life, 
 and imagined wrongs or petty worries, coupled 
 with indigestion, will develop into serious 
 injuries done to him by his friends, or an un- 
 intentional slight may assume the guise of a 
 spiteful attack and make the whole world look 
 black and broody, while perspiring exercise or 
 corrected diet may enable him again to laugh 
 with the world. 
 
 And happiness it is which makes life joyful. 
 A contented life, though poor and unknown, 
 has reached the goal of human bliss, but without 
 happiness, who would not willingly have forgone 
 the fate of being born ? The sooner his weary 
 days are ended the quicker will his misery be 
 over. 
 
 Man is not able to make the whole of his life 
 happy, but he can at least alleviate his un- 
 happiness, and it is in him to consider imperson- 
 ally the cause of his trouble, instead of reviling 
 it, to endeavour to remove the evil, or to make
 
 MAN 87 
 
 the best of his position ; and then at the last 
 hour he can be thankful for any little happiness 
 which he has had during life. 
 
 It is good for everyone to have some fun and 
 pleasure though, as in many things, moderation 
 attains its aim, while excess kills its own child. 
 
 And there are various games, sports and arts 
 with plenty of fun and enjoyment, though some 
 become abused when work is neglected for them, 
 or too much money is spent on them ; or when 
 card-playing, racing or football are used as a 
 means of gambling for high stakes, most men 
 imagining they will win more than they lose, 
 while many end in ruin. 
 
 1. No plants or trees have eyes, ears, or legs, 
 etc., and consequently they lead a comparatively 
 simple Hfe, taking in oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen 
 and carbon from the air and getting rid of waste 
 from the body. 
 
 2. Many animals, however, are as well off as 
 men for running and walking or for a sense 
 of seeing and hearing natural objects, but they
 
 88 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 are a long way behind him in the power of 
 distinguishing written characters, music, or 
 spoken words, or in thinking, so that they also 
 live a lower life than man, and they pass their 
 lives in eating, drinking, sleeping, and moving 
 about in search of food, or in avoiding enemies, 
 and in the care of their offspring. 
 
 3. The life of a man is much more varied 
 than that of any other animal. His chief 
 necessaries are : fresh air to feed the blood with 
 oxygen, pure water or other liquid, vegetable 
 or vegetable and animal food, and clothing and 
 housing. 
 
 He spends most of his time in working for 
 these, in eating and drinking, in sleeping and 
 rest ; while most married women, instead of 
 earning money, spend their time in managing 
 the household and taking care of the children. 
 
 4. Work of some kind is necessary for every 
 man to keep him. healthy. A machine rusts 
 and gets out of order if it remains unused for 
 long ; so with a man or woman, if their body
 
 MAN 89 
 
 and brain do no work they get out of order, 
 and a man who does not look after his own 
 interests is an encourager of knaves. The beasts 
 of the field have to gain their livelihood ; men 
 who do nothing are the only creatures leaving 
 no fruits of their labour behind, and with nothing 
 to show in return for the benefits they have 
 received from the earth. 
 
 5. With regard to ambition, it is enough for 
 men to do their best in every affair of life, 
 whether in a high position or humble, and thus 
 fulfil the purpose of man. Success, too, will be 
 of secondary importance when the acts are 
 carried out with kindness, diligence and under- 
 standing. 
 
 As to fulfilHng a high position if he is wanted 
 to fulfil it and can be of service in it, it will be 
 of benefit to mankind ; there are many men 
 who would grace the chair of a king or minister, 
 and many more think they would, but there is 
 only room for one at a time, so it is enough for 
 everyone to do his best in the work that falls
 
 90 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 to his own lot. The higher the position or more 
 wealth a man has, the greater are his duties 
 and responsibilities to others ; to produce good 
 work fulfils a higher purpose than only to attain 
 to a high position ; and most persons put them- 
 selves at a higher value than their friends 
 consider them fitted for, and expect to attain 
 to a higher position than they get to. 
 
 6. Many men also take wine and other stim- 
 ulants which have a cheering effect, followed by 
 more or less of a reaction. But if they become 
 a man's master they take a bitter vengeance, 
 and are the cause of crimes and poverty and 
 sorrow for families ; so that men who cannot 
 be moderate or are too easily influenced by it, 
 or too excitable, have to avoid them altogether. 
 
 7. Man also cooks his food in order to give 
 the stomach, and indirectly the whole body, 
 less work in turning it into blood, and in order 
 to make it taste better. 
 
 8. Different men require different kinds and 
 amounts of air, water, food, exercise, sleep and
 
 MAN 91 
 
 rest, according to the strength of their body or 
 brain, their age, the work they do and the 
 cHmate they Hve in. 
 
 9. If a man does not obtain the kind or amount 
 best for him, or if he over-eats or does anything 
 to excess, he may die if an infant, or if grown up 
 he becomes ill or irritable and less able to work 
 his best. 
 
 10. In order to obtain food and clothing and 
 other necessaries, man must till the fields, breed 
 cattle, mine metals and do other work. 
 
 11. And many thrifty men are able to lay by 
 money so that they can hold out against a bad 
 harvest, lack of work, or illness, or old age, 
 and have more money for bringing up their 
 children. 
 
 12. The heat and cold, moisture and dryness 
 of the air — that is to say, the climate — differ 
 according to the time of year and country, and 
 it affects man's body and colour of his skin and 
 his whole life. Man alters his habits according 
 to his climate. No two men are exactly alike,
 
 92 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 either in body, brain or conduct ; some are bad 
 and stupid, though every man, however bad, 
 has some good in him, and most are generally 
 well developed, and some are good and wise, as 
 in Chapter XII. 
 
 13. Men try to obtain happiness, and enjoy 
 that which gives them pleasure and dislike that 
 which gives them pain. Among his chief plea- 
 sures are : acting up to the highest ideals — 
 that is to say, living the best life he can ; the 
 welfare of children ; being with friends, whether 
 relatives or others ; eating, drinking, games, 
 sport, music, poetry, painting, stories, acting 
 and other arts. 
 
 Another, again, finds pleasure in the beauties 
 of nature, in the mountains rugged against the 
 deep blue sky ; the silvery moon and shining 
 stars ; the whispering sea at eventide ; 
 
 Or at times contemplating ; 
 
 Or freeing himself from the material and 
 ideal world, and losing himself in the peaceful 
 calm of the For-ever. And doing this, sorrows
 
 MAN 93 
 
 are assuaged, vices checked, and a man prepares 
 for eternity. 
 
 14. And among things which cause him 
 suffering are failure to live up to a high standard 
 of conduct, bodily pain, ill health, hunger, cold, 
 lack of home for his family or self, lack of work, 
 loss of position, absence from home and the 
 death of dear ones. 
 
 15. No man can make sure of being happy ; 
 some men are born sickly, some are dealt with 
 unfairly by their fellow-men, or meet with 
 accidents^ ill-health or misfortune. But, to fill 
 the heart with love, to be honest, to understand, 
 to control the passions and to do his duty — 
 this is the path towards happiness. 
 
 16. After a man has lived a certain number 
 of years, the length of which depends on his 
 constitution and on circumstances, his heart 
 and lungs stop, and the parts of the body cease 
 to work together as a whole — that is to say, he 
 is dead. 
 
 And the body (in whicn man's individuality
 
 94 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 resided), becomes dis-united into particles, some 
 of which may be formed into plant life and 
 others into animals or man, or may remain 
 earth or air. 
 
 Note. — The words " man," " he," and " his " include women 
 also, except where the contrary is shown.
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 Family Life 
 
 TV /TAN'S very existence is affected by marriage 
 -^ * -*- and the home, and what differences of 
 feeHng are bound up with it ! At times there 
 is the passionate love of a man and a woman 
 for each other, affection so great that their whole 
 being thrills with emotion at the thought of 
 the other, and no sacrifice appears too big ; 
 and yet, when babes arrive to be nursed and 
 fed, and there are children to be clothed and 
 educated, what prosaic efforts must be made to 
 meet the increasing expenses. Love, however 
 deep, without the means of supporting the little 
 ones, is apt to turn to bitterness. On the other 
 hand, marriage with means, but without affec- 
 tion, misses the deepest sentiment of living 
 beings, though many persons are not lucky 
 
 95
 
 96 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 enough to obtain both or either of these phases. 
 
 What extremes, too, of devotion there are ! 
 Some mothers give themselves up to gaiety, 
 leaving the infants to hirelings, or spend their 
 time in the pubHc-house, letting the children 
 roam uncared for. Some men, too, neglect 
 their family as much as the law allows them. 
 While, on the other hand, the good mothers 
 day after day tend their offspring, giving time 
 and best attention to their comfort and welfare, 
 and the good fathers, with equal devotion, 
 wholeheartedly work for their home — woman's 
 best blood and brain being required for bearing 
 and bringing up children, man's for his work. 
 Nowadays not so many children are born, and 
 some of their time is spent at school and not so 
 many articles are made at home, so that in 
 many cases mothers have more time for secondary 
 work than they used to. 
 
 The difference between men and women is 
 due to their constitution, and is accentuated 
 according as they do different work and lead
 
 MAN 97 
 
 different lives. A man has usually sounder 
 judgment than a woman in practical affairs, 
 partly because his work and intercourse with 
 other men develop that part of his nature, 
 consequently the father of a family is more often 
 better fitted to be the head (in important affairs) 
 than the mother ; but, after all, so long as their 
 decisions are sound what matters it whether the 
 man or the woman is the ruling spirit ? 
 
 It is in the relation of men and women to each 
 other that the West differs mostly from the 
 East, up to the present. In some countries, 
 and usually in Asia, where men and girls marry 
 younger, and are more dependent, and live with 
 the parents of the husband, the wife is wanted 
 to continue the succession of sons, and to assist 
 her mother-in-law in the household work ; 
 consequently it is important that the parents- 
 in-law, as well as the husband, find her agree- 
 able ; and in those cases where grown-up children 
 and their families live with their elders, harmon- 
 ious accord toward the head and his wife is 
 
 7
 
 98 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 required, and affection by the head and his wife 
 toward the daughters-in-law and their children. 
 But in other countries, and in many parts of 
 Europe for example, there is more wealth and 
 greater independence of children, and a man and 
 woman make a fresh home by themselves, and 
 are more dependent on each other only. There 
 are, however, many marriages in the East similar 
 to those in the West, and vice versa. But every- 
 where, the fact that two comparative strangers 
 are thrown into great intimacy by marriage 
 makes it the most difficult relation of all. What 
 is there so wearing as constant bickering ? 
 What so happy as the harmony of a home ? 
 What finer sentiments have men, than to honour 
 their fathers and forefathers by acting worthily 
 of them and to work for the welfare of posterity ? 
 I . All vegetables and animals which are known 
 to man have been born from other vegetables 
 and animals ; man does not know whether 
 simple forms of life, which are unknown to him, 
 are still being made from the pure elements.
 
 MAN 99 
 
 2. As to the reproduction of life in general, 
 in the simpler vegetables and animals there is 
 no division into sexes, but among all the higher 
 animals some are male and others female. 
 
 When animals reproduce themselves, a germ 
 cell is separated off from the body of a male, 
 and another cell from the body of a female. 
 As soon as these cells join together they become 
 one cell. It then repeatedly divides and grows into 
 a number of cells connected and working together. 
 
 3. Among many animals there is considerable 
 difference in male and female, and they specialise 
 in or do different work, and generally the mother, 
 sometimes both the parents, looks after their 
 offspring for a shorter or longer period, and 
 with some animals such as the fox, the vixen 
 looks after the young and the dog fox provides 
 the food. 
 
 4. Among mankind there is more difference 
 between the sexes, and consequently more 
 specialisation or difference of work, than there 
 is among animals.
 
 loo LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 5. In some nations all the women marry, 
 but where there is a higher state of civilisation 
 so that the death-rate is lower, and men and 
 women control their passions better, it is im- 
 possible for them all to marry ; some, too, do 
 not happen to meet anyone they are sufficiently 
 fond of ; some have not the means to support 
 a wife and family, and others are separated by 
 death from him whom they love. Of those 
 who marry, a man and woman who will be 
 devoted to each other, live together and look 
 after the children for many years, and give them 
 the benefit of their experience and help them, 
 if they can, after they are grown up. And the 
 father and mother do different work, in order 
 to give the father more time and energy to 
 specialise in his work, and the mother in hers, 
 connecting their efforts for the benefit of the 
 family (the father being the head of the 
 family). 
 
 In some nations there is polygamy, many 
 men having more than one wife. But where
 
 MAN loi 
 
 men and women are highly developed, mono- 
 gamy, or one wife only, upholds the best standard 
 for mankind. 
 
 6. The man is generally best able to provide 
 food and housing or to earn money for the 
 family, and the woman to tend the children, 
 and take care of the household and accounts, 
 the wife being sometimes able to assist the 
 husband or do other work, and the husband 
 the wife. 
 
 7. And they provide a home for the children, 
 and try to give them a healthy mind and a 
 healthy body, and take care that they are 
 educated for earning their living, for tending 
 children, managing a household or for doing 
 other work, and that they have some learning 
 and understanding, of the universe and of men, 
 and of sciences and arts according to their 
 position and means ; and they give them a 
 start in life if they are able to do so. 
 
 Nowadays the life of civilized people is so 
 complicated, special education is necessary, and
 
 102 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 men must learn some work by which they will 
 be able to earn their living. 
 
 8. When a child is born it is like one of its 
 parents more than the other, but it is not exactly 
 like nor quite different from either. As it grows 
 up, it becomes more like, or different from its 
 father or its mother, according as its constitution, 
 country or food or other influences are like or 
 unlike those which its father or mother had. 
 
 9. Two men may be born alike^ but different 
 education, different companions, different luck 
 may make the one a rich man and chief minister 
 of his country and the other a member of the 
 casual ward. Though the rich man is not 
 necessarily the happier of the two.
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 Social Life 
 
 \ LL things living and dead act and re-act 
 •^ •*- upon each other. 
 
 Plants draw their food from the earth, air 
 and water, and from decayed vegetables and 
 animals. Animals similarly depend on the earth, 
 air and water and on vegetables and other 
 animals for their nourishment. 
 
 Hawks devour small birds ; they in their 
 turn eat insects which feed on still smaller 
 insects or plants, and so the round goes on. 
 
 Bees, too, are dependent on flowers for food, 
 and many flowers on bees for fertilisation, and 
 one bee is dependent on the other bees for the 
 well-being of itself and the whole hive. 
 
 Men are also dependent on vegetables and 
 
 animals ; the things that he is mostly dependent 
 
 103
 
 I04 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 on — that is to say, which he finds most useful — 
 are corn, rice, cattle, sheep, horses, donkeys, 
 cotton and trees. Some things, however, are 
 injurious to him, as poisonous plants, snakes 
 and tigers ; but his worst enemies are the 
 microbes, such as those which cause consumption, 
 small-pox or typhoid. As man is master on the 
 earth, he cultivates those things that are useful 
 to him, and makes them serve his wants, while 
 those that are injurious to him he endeavours 
 to destroy — tigers by shooting, dangerous mi- 
 crobes by air, antiseptics, cleanliness, and other 
 means of sanitation. 
 
 Men are also dependent on other men, as 
 well as on vegetables and animals, for their 
 well-being ; if every man had always relied on 
 his own efforts only for obtaining food, shelter 
 and comforts, or if there were no State, men 
 might now be in the same condition as the apes, 
 without education, art or any kind of civilization. 
 As it is, man has attained to a great position 
 on the earth by means of division of labour
 
 MAN 105 
 
 (different men doing different work), specialisa- 
 tion of work (different men becoming good at 
 different kinds of work), and co-operation (con- 
 necting together the work of different men). 
 This, among other things, has enabled men more 
 fitted for political work to hold responsible posts 
 in Government, because if all the citizens had 
 an equal part in governing, it would be like the 
 unintelligent stomach having as much power 
 in the control of the body as the highly-organized 
 brain. If, on the other hand, the citizens have 
 not enough voice, it would be like the brain 
 ignoring the wants of the various parts of the 
 body, so that sooner or later it would suffer 
 itself. 
 
 The accumulation of Capital and its combin- 
 ation with Labour has also assisted man's 
 development, because Capital, or, in other words, 
 the accumulation of food, houses, tools, roads, 
 learning and so on, is a necessary base for man's 
 civihzation ; though it is better to have lofty 
 ideals and a spiritual life with little wealth.
 
 io6 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 than much wealth and merely a material life ; 
 and there is always a danger of great wealth 
 strangling a higher life. 
 
 Capital may be likened to a cow and Labour 
 to the farmer who keeps her ; the hay being 
 the work done by the labourer, and the milk 
 being the wages. If the farmer gives the cow 
 good hay and treats her properly, the cow can 
 give good milk and plenty of it. If the farmer 
 gives the cow bad hay, or not enough, the cow 
 cannot give such good milk, nor so much. On 
 the other hand, if the cow is vicious or gives 
 insufficient milk, the farmer has not enough 
 food and cannot give her such good hay. So 
 let the cow be as generous as it can with its milk 
 and let the farmer give it good hay and they 
 will both prosper. And nowadays, owing to 
 share-companies, a labourer, either by himself 
 or his society, can often have his share in the 
 ownership and management of the cow. Har- 
 monious co-operation of labour and capital gives 
 the best result for both. If they do not work
 
 MAN 107 
 
 together they are like a couple of mules harnessed 
 together in a cart pulling against each other ; 
 or sometimes like a mule and horse harnessed 
 together, the mule pulhng away from the 
 horse. 
 
 Similarly, industry may be Hkened to a plot 
 of land : if capital puts good manure and seed 
 into it and if the labourer puts in hard work, 
 the land can return good food and plenty of it ; 
 but if the labourer neglects it, or if capital 
 starves it, the crop will be poor. Sometimes, 
 on the other hand, the soil is so bad it is not 
 worth while for capital or labour to put work 
 or money into it. 
 
 The first two or three sections of this chapter 
 deal with animals and their relations to each 
 other. The later sections deal with men and 
 their relations to each other. 
 
 I. Among some animals, such as bees, there 
 is considerable division of labour, specialization 
 of work and co-operation — some bees, for 
 example, acting as nurses to the young,
 
 io8 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 some attending on the queen mother, some 
 gathering food, and so on ; so that the pros- 
 perity of a bee depends on the well-being and 
 assistance of other bees in the hive. This also 
 applies to ants and other animals where the 
 members of a community are all born from the 
 same mother. 
 
 2. Some animals, such as lions, are nearly 
 independent of others ; a lion, usually by him- 
 self or with his lioness, stalking his own prey 
 and looking after his own young. 
 
 3. Other animals, such as apes, are partly 
 dependent and partly independent. Some apes, 
 for example, live with others, and at times 
 different apes do different work, and help each 
 other in robbing an orchard, some keeping watch 
 while others steal the fruit, and in defending 
 themselves against their enemies. 
 
 4. With regard to men, at a time when they 
 had very little civilization they mostly lived in 
 families or small tribes ; at times different men 
 did different kinds of work, and assisted each
 
 MAN 109 
 
 other in trapping game or attacking wild beasts, 
 or fighting hostile tribes. 
 
 5. At the present time men live together in 
 nations, and their safety and public organization 
 is looked after by King or President, Parliament 
 and officials who act for them. 
 
 6. Man exchanges his labour and his produce 
 for food, or for gold and silver, the ordinary 
 medium of exchange. The money paid for work 
 being based, in principle, on an amount which 
 enables men to be born and brought up, and 
 to keep themselves able to do that work ; so 
 that a man gets out of the earth what his parents 
 or he himself have spent in bringing him up, 
 and supporting him. Many persons never earn 
 so much as their bringing up has cost them ; 
 many earn more. The earth is only able to 
 support a limited number of men in a certain 
 standard of comfort. 
 
 7. The rate of pay for work also depends 
 more immediately on supply and demand — 
 that is to say, on the number of men able to do
 
 no LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 that work and on the amount of work to be 
 done. 
 
 8. Generally intellectual or skilled labour is 
 more productive and requires better food and 
 comforts and more careful bringing up than 
 unskilled labour. 
 
 9. Although some men have more money than 
 is required for their best development, yet many 
 have less ; if the wealth of the former assists 
 the latter there will be more well-developed men 
 in the world. As it is, there is always much 
 misery in the world, for the fact remains, and 
 a hard fact it is for the individual, though a 
 necessary one in general for the community, 
 that if a man cannot earn his living or has not 
 laid by enough, he must die off or be in want, 
 or live on the charity either of his parents or the 
 State, or others. 
 
 10. If State charity is given too indiscrimin- 
 ately it is easier for unfit persons to marry and 
 to have unfit children. 
 
 If much State charity is given it means to
 
 MAN III 
 
 some extent taxing those who are industrious 
 and intelligent and thrifty for the benefit of 
 those who are stupid and lazy and improvident. 
 Though, on the other hand, if persons have more 
 money than is wanted for the development of 
 themselves and their family, the surplus will be 
 more usefully spent in paying taxes, and by 
 saving others from taxation who have less money 
 than they require. 
 
 Taxation also equalizes burdens by taking 
 from the stingy man as well as from the generous. 
 As regards private charity, persons do not as 
 a rule err on the side of generosity. 
 
 11. Taxation, even though it is paid by the 
 rich, falls to some extent on the poor, in causing 
 rents and food, etc., to increase, while if the 
 poor are taxed directly too much, and the rich 
 not enough, there will be too many poor, and 
 more rich than are beneficial in proportion to 
 the population. 
 
 12. There is also much misery in the world 
 caused by excessive competition, because many
 
 112 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 men marry and take the chance of being able 
 to provide their children with necessaries and 
 comforts, and of their children being able to 
 find work. 
 
 13. And because men do not sufficiently 
 discount or make allowance for periods of 
 depression when work and bread are scarce, so 
 that the number of mouths to feed are not 
 co-ordinated with the amount of food on the 
 earth — that is to say, in the times of prosperity 
 there are more marriages and more births, but 
 then comes a period of depression when there 
 are bigger mouths to feed and not so much 
 bread and work to be had. Excess of population 
 is one of nature's means of keeping up or improv- 
 ing mankind, so that those who are unable to 
 support themselves do not thrive. There is 
 also keen competition for comforts and 
 position. 
 
 14. Much can be done to prevent some of 
 the misery, if men learn to control their passions, 
 and by this means regulate the number of
 
 MAN 113 
 
 children, and if they do not marry unless they 
 can bring up a family, living within their income 
 and laying by money or insuring. 
 
 15. There will always be some distress, owing 
 to men being thrown out of work by bankrupt- 
 cies, changing demands for goods, and changing 
 trade routes ; much can be done to alleviate 
 this distress, by similar means, and by men, 
 especially those who have more money than is 
 wanted for the development of themselves and 
 their children, contributing largely to those in 
 distress. 
 
 Many rich persons do not realise the struggles 
 
 which the deserving poor have. They have 
 
 never undergone the sad experience of wandering 
 
 around the city day after day, hungry and 
 
 insufficiently clothed, in search of work, with 
 
 the rent in arrear, their blankets in pawn and 
 
 not knowing how the children will get their next 
 
 meal ; the sole alternative being the workhouse 
 
 and break-up of a home which took such hard 
 
 work to get together ; the richer a man or the 
 
 8
 
 114 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 greater his position the more duties and re- 
 sponsibility he has to others. 
 
 1 6. Men also specialise in or do different kinds 
 of labour, as generally a man does one kind 
 better than several kinds ; so some men are 
 builders, some carpenters, clergymen, doctors, 
 farmers, labourers, lawyers, merchants, miners, 
 ofhcials, servants, tailors, and so on. 
 
 And it is on account of heredity of blood and 
 brain and environment that some men are able 
 to do certain kinds of work better than others. 
 It depends on a man's start in life, on himself, 
 and on opportunity, as to what work he does, 
 and what position he holds. 
 
 17. Those whose parents are able to give them 
 a good education and bring them up well are 
 usually able to do more important work in the 
 world and to start ander better chances. 
 
 They are better able to devote themselves 
 to more important work than if they had to 
 fight their way up from the bottom and spend 
 time and energy on competition alone, though
 
 MAN 115 
 
 men of exceptional intelligence and industry 
 with fair opportunity will always make their 
 way to the top ; though it is a hard struggle 
 in a settled country ; and it is good for most 
 kinds of work to have a training from the bottom. 
 
 18. And men organize or connect their labour 
 by means of exchange or partnership, or com- 
 panies or capital. 
 
 And in most occupations or trades, men and 
 women organize themselves into societies or 
 unions, with the object of improving the con- 
 ditions under which they labour, regulating 
 competition and increasing the standard of their 
 work. 
 
 19. And on account of division of labour, 
 specialization of work, and co-operation, a greater 
 number of men can obtain food, shelter and 
 comforts, and attain to a higher state of civil- 
 ization than if they lived independent of each 
 other and did not do different kinds of work 
 or help each other, and than if every man had 
 the same standard of living and the same expen-
 
 ii6 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 sive education which would not repay its cost. 
 
 20. As few men produce everything them- 
 selves, but are dependent on others for food, 
 houses, clothing, education, trading, protection 
 and so on, and as men have so much intercourse 
 with each other, therefore the good and wise, 
 or excellent man, is he who assists others as well 
 as himself. 
 
 21. The order of persons to whom a man has 
 duties is somewhat as follows : — Parents, children, 
 wife ; brothers, sisters, dependents, friends, near 
 relatives ; neighbours, fellow-citizens and men 
 of other nations. 
 
 22. Although the dependence of men upon 
 one another has increased, yet at the same time 
 his spirit of independence has increased — that 
 is to say, he wishes to have house or rooms for 
 himself or family without interference from 
 others, and he also wishes to do as he likes, so 
 long as he does not interfere with his neighbours. 
 
 23. Some men are in favour of socialism with 
 its highly centralised organisation. When an
 
 MAN 117 
 
 organisation is too centralised it becomes cumber- 
 some and expensive to work and lacks freedom 
 and elasticity for the individual, men's actions 
 of everyday life and the spending of his earnings 
 being governed by regulations. Extreme social- 
 ism, too, hinders the progress of those who work 
 harder and are more thrifty and intelligent than 
 others ; in addition to which, frequently men 
 do not work as well for the State as for themselves. 
 On the other hand, the denser a population 
 becomes, so much the more sociality is necessary 
 to enable them to live together in harmony and 
 to develop the greatest number as well as possible. 
 
 24. Some men are in favour of anarchy, or 
 every man being able to do as he likes, so that 
 violence could reign instead of law, and might 
 instead of right, and every man would have to 
 protect the lives and property of his family and 
 himself. 
 
 25. With men in their present form there will 
 be neither complete socialism nor complete 
 anarchy ; but justice for all there can be, if
 
 ii8 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 every man elects representatives, is governed 
 and judged by laws made by Emperor, King or 
 President, and Members, who represent him, is 
 entitled to protection against lawless men, and 
 has a remedy before impartial tribunals for 
 injury.
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 The Commonweal oj Man 
 
 1\ /fAN has already made great progress by 
 -^^-*' means of specialization of work, co- 
 operation and organization, and it rests with 
 him to advance still further by broadening these 
 factors, and using them on an international 
 instead of a national basis. 
 
 This generation, with its international steam- 
 ships and railways, post and telegraph, is at last 
 making the commonweal or well-being of men 
 practicable, by bringing them into touch with 
 each other, for the more man mixes with other 
 races the more does he feel the human kinship 
 which runs in the blood of all. 
 
 At present the nations of the world are like 
 
 a number of men jostling each other in a crowd, 
 
 119
 
 I20 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 pushing against each other, not knowing what 
 direction to take and with no definite leaders 
 among them. But it is worse than this, for 
 not only do different nations not assist each other, 
 but many of them spend time and thought and 
 money endeavouring to injure others instead 
 of helping them in the common cause of humanity. 
 
 Man, poor creature, has struggles enough to 
 obtain food, clothing and housing, to educate 
 his children, to control his vices, to overcome 
 disease, and yet he makes his task still harder 
 by fighting with other nations, destroying the 
 work of years, it may be, and killing precious 
 human life which has taken generations to 
 develop ; while during a campaign, men's limbs 
 are shattered, their bodies mangled, and they 
 die before their time, rape and murder often go 
 unrestrained, while women weep and orphans 
 hunger, because men have not agreed together. 
 
 Mankind has a wonderful state in the universe, 
 he has a still higher lot to fill. 
 
 Hitherto men have looked on themselves as
 
 MAN 121 
 
 belonging to separate nations which they con- 
 sidered as all-important. There is a greater 
 position for them to acquire as members of one 
 Commonweal, for there is but one race of men ; 
 with patience and goodwill towards their fellow- 
 men may they prove themselves worthy of it. 
 
 Progress is in the blood of mankind ; let 
 nations make the most of it, by using harmony 
 instead of discord, forgiveness instead of revenge, 
 friendship for enmity and love instead of hate, 
 so that nations, while retaining their love of 
 country and national characteristics, costumes 
 and manners may also develop a broader spirit 
 of humanity and may behave to each other as 
 an excellent man conducts himself with other 
 men ; and by this means let mankind work on 
 to the highest goal it may ever be his lot to 
 reach, before the pendulum of time swings back 
 again and men begin to degenerate. 
 
 If all the money, and time, and energy of 
 brain and body, now spent on armaments were 
 used to develop the prosperity of men, it would
 
 122 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 give every nation force enough to advance several 
 steps along the road of progress. Even the 
 great nations, which have taken so much work, 
 and time and thought to build up would make 
 greater advance by these peaceful means than 
 by conquering other peoples, seizing their terri- 
 tory and obtaining indemnities. Men make their 
 livelihood out of the earth. In stealing they 
 devote their energy to depriving another of his 
 goods instead of increasing the wealth in the 
 world ; this is a bad loss of time and energy ; 
 it is better to earn a little money out of 
 Mother Earth than to gain much by plundering 
 others. So, too, the same applies to nations. 
 The first step towards this end will be presumably 
 by the men of all nations forming a represent- 
 ative Parliament and organised centre for their 
 mutual benefit. 
 
 Nations are as the clouds, and man is like the 
 sky above. The clouds come and go, sometimes 
 high or low, or great or small, but sooner or later 
 they disappear. So, too, the nations. Man,
 
 MAN 123 
 
 however, like the sky, remains ; his interests 
 being more permanent than those of nations. 
 
 It may take time for men to turn their warlike 
 instincts into channels of friendly rivalry, to 
 moderate their national ambition for territorial 
 aggrandisement, to look on citizens of other races 
 with kindly instead of suspicious eyes, to be 
 pleased to see the progress of other nations and 
 of men of other nations, rather than trying to 
 hinder them, to make it their first thought that 
 they are members of mankind and their second 
 that they are citizens of their own particular 
 nation, and to turn their ambitions for empire 
 into aspirations for producing men who are an 
 honour to mankind. 
 
 It is uncertain whether it will take a long 
 time before men realise the advantage of being 
 united, and have the organisation able to act 
 and to protect the interests of the various nations 
 and thus save them having armies for self-defence; 
 and it depends on how Emperors, Kings, Pre- 
 sidents, Ministers and every man work for it.
 
 124 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 And in time there will be a higher type of 
 man with the best qualities of the Americans, 
 Austrians, British, Chinese, French, Germans, 
 Italians, Japanese, Russians, Spaniards, Turks 
 and other races who are or who become well- 
 developed. Though the different racial types 
 will also survive, according to their descent, the 
 country they live in and the work they do. 
 
 In order to assist the commonweal of men, 
 will it not be best that — 
 
 1. There should be an organized centre for 
 all mankind ; 
 
 2. The centre should include a head man, 
 parliament, and courts of justice ; the head man 
 or chief servant of mankind, whether hereditary 
 or for life, being liable, as a safety valve, to be 
 changed by a vote of the parliament, the majority 
 being sufhciently large, to prevent him being 
 turned out too lightly ; 
 
 3. As to the parliament, mankind will attain 
 to its highest well-being if men are as highly- 
 developed as possible, and if women are also ;
 
 MAN 125 
 
 a house of women will be able to look after the 
 development of women better than a house of 
 men ; though their respective spheres in many- 
 matters overlap : 
 
 With regard to the house of men, it should 
 have (a) representatives elected by the men in 
 the world to represent their wishes ; and (b) 
 representatives who are men of good conduct, 
 experience and learning, not so directly de- 
 pendent on popularity, to represent what is best 
 in and for the people and to prevent the interests 
 of minorities being insufficiently protected ; 
 
 4. With regard to women, they should be 
 represented by a house of women, their duties 
 and work being connected with matters on which 
 they have as much or more experience than men ; 
 care being taken that the interests of mothers 
 of the future generation and the interests of 
 unmarried women both receive their due atten- 
 tion ; 
 
 If there is a second house, it should be com- 
 posed, as to about one-quarter, of women fifty
 
 126 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 years of age or more, the majority of them being 
 mothers ; 
 
 5. The centre should be concerned with 
 matters affecting men, women and children in 
 general, and with matters affecting two or more 
 nations ; and should not interfere with the 
 separate interests of nations, the different govern- 
 ments continuing to deal with their own affairs ; 
 
 6. And that the centre should endeavour to 
 promote the following laws and customs, namely, 
 that — 
 
 7. Nations, instead of spending money on 
 army and navy, and on wars destructive of life 
 and property, should settle their disputes in 
 international courts of justice, the money saved 
 being spent on their well-being and improve- 
 ment, the nations depositing sufficient security 
 that they will act according to the Parliament 
 of Man, and the Laws of Nations, and will be 
 willing to pay fines for their breach. 
 
 8. Clergymen, as is done now in some places 
 and countries, should assist men to carry out
 
 MAN 127 
 
 the ideals and help them in their troubles ; and 
 their church services should be devoted to the 
 well-being or improvement of mankind, and to 
 help man, remember his helplessness in com- 
 parison with the universe, and that he is ever 
 in the presence of the Unknown ; 
 
 9. Men's religious beliefs and men generally 
 should not be interfered with, so long as they 
 do not impede the well-being of others ; 
 
 10. Malicious wrongdoers should be punished 
 according to their offence and previous character, 
 and should be reformed where possible, mercy 
 being shown if there is fair chance of reform- 
 ation ; 
 
 11. Badly developed or diseased persons, or 
 habitual evildoers, should be discouraged from 
 marrying, and the upbringing of children of 
 well-developed parents should be encouraged ; 
 
 12. Marriages in which the man or woman 
 is not a willing party, and in which the man or 
 woman is under twenty-one, and has not his 
 or her parents' consent^ should be discouraged.
 
 128 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 13. The marriage agreement should be upheld 
 and divorce permitted to the husband or wife 
 among poor as well as rich (after the offending 
 party has been punished), on the ground of 
 adultery by the wife (adultery of and with a wife 
 being more seriously punished), adultery on 
 more than one occasion by the husband (the 
 present standard of morality being higher in 
 some nations than in others preventing a universal 
 code), and on the ground of continued insanity, 
 cruelty endangering life, and ten years' desertion, 
 where in these last cases it will be beneficial to 
 the children and the parents, or will not be 
 injurious to the children through re-marriage 
 of either parent or from other reasons ; 
 
 14. Husband and wife should be permitted 
 to live apart if both wish it, or if the husband 
 or if the wife wishes it, and if the proper authority 
 consider it is best for the children and parents ; 
 
 15. Occupations should be open to women as 
 well as to men ; though there are some occupa- 
 tions in which women usually specialise, some in
 
 MAN 129 
 
 which men do, and many which are suitable 
 to either ; 
 
 16. Women who look after their children and 
 household should have the right, if need be, 
 to a proportion of their husband's earnings ; 
 
 17. Opportunity should be given for ex- 
 ceptional men to arise and for worthless men to 
 find their level ; 
 
 18. Sanitation should be enforced ; 
 
 19. One day a week for freedom from labour 
 should be ensured for regular workers, and three 
 days to a week on end once a year according to 
 the trying conditions of the work ; men under- 
 going much brain work or nerve strain requiring 
 more rest than others ; 
 
 20. Universal free movement of m.en and free 
 trade should gradually be permitted ; a man's 
 own country being responsible for his mainten- 
 ance if he becomes chargeable to the rates of the 
 country where he settles. With regard to free 
 trade, food and other articles can be produced 
 cheaper in some places than in others, so that it 
 
 9
 
 I30 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 is bad economy when they are produced in the 
 more expensive places, and men who buy them 
 have less money to spend for other things. 
 
 Beneficial changes if introduced gradually 
 need not cause trouble, but if made suddenly 
 they sometimes do great temporary harm. 
 
 21. International supervision and police should 
 be established to assist the local authorities in 
 places where life and property are not sufhciently 
 protected ; 
 
 22. And generally such other customs and 
 laws should be promoted as will help men to 
 become good and wise.
 
 Part IV 
 RELIGION 
 
 A Code of Morals : and Beliefs and Ceremonies.
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 Dedicated to those who sacrifice their evil desires on 
 the altar of their ideals. 
 
 Ideals 
 
 T^REVIOUS chapters have gradually been 
 -*■ leading up to this, on the most perfect 
 being known — namely, the good and wise or 
 excellent man ; he is the chosen of the world, 
 all the generations of Hves that are past have 
 helped to fashion him. 
 
 Man has inherited the rudiments of his qualities 
 from the animals, he has, however, nobly de- 
 veloped them since. 
 
 But why has man become man ? What is it 
 that distinguishes him from the beasts, and has 
 made him master of them on land and sea ? 
 
 It is chiefly because he has been endowed 
 
 with the four great gifts of kindness, honesty, 
 
 purity and intelligence. These are the four 
 
 qualities which make man sublime. 
 
 133
 
 134 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 To consider man's morals or ideals from 
 another point of view : why should men struggle 
 to be good and why avoid evil ? May a man 
 enjoy his every wish ? May he murder others 
 who annoy him ? May he rob and steal from 
 others who have more than he ? May he indulge 
 his every sensual desire ? Or, on the other 
 hand, should he be kind to his fellow men, 
 should he keep his hands from the property of 
 others and restrain his sensual passions ? Why, 
 in general, should he strive to live according to 
 the morals taught him by the great teachers ? 
 And the answer is : — The great teachers of 
 mankind, who are men of learning and thought 
 on these matters, have imbued them with their 
 authority; history has proved that their fulfil- 
 ment is for the good of mankind ; evolution has 
 crowned them with success ; and happiness has 
 been their reward. 
 
 If a man were alone on this earth, or if men 
 were the last of mankind, with no posterity to 
 consider, then could they behave differently,
 
 RELIGION 135 
 
 and even if some of them gave vent to their ugly 
 desires, and unrestrained passion, there would 
 be no one to injure but themselves. 
 
 Man, however, is surrounded by others. A 
 descendant of his fathers, whom he must not 
 disgrace ; a fellow to all those with whom he 
 comes in contact, for whose happiness he is in 
 part responsible, and on whom his own happiness 
 is largely dependent, and a worker for the future 
 generation for whom he is directly responsible. 
 
 No man belongs altogether to himself : he 
 has duties to his family and to the human race. 
 Mankind is more important than the individual, 
 and every time that a man conquers an alluring 
 temptation, though it may mean self-sacrifice 
 to the man, is a noble example of love for human- 
 ity and helps on its progress heavenwards. 
 
 Man is of this world, good or bad as it is ; 
 it is for him to make it as beautiful and happy 
 as possible, and that can be chiefly brought 
 about by kindness to others and by carrying out 
 his ideals.
 
 136 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 Some persons do not know whether there is 
 a personal God or a hfe after death, and are 
 afraid lest there be a hell they should go 
 to. Let them take hope that if there is a personal 
 God and future life, righteous conduct is the 
 noblest service to Him and the golden key to 
 Heaven. 
 
 From the earliest days distinctions have been 
 made between good men and bad men. What, 
 then, is a bad man ? Who has hindered the 
 human race in its progress upwards ,? They that 
 hit men downwards instead of helping them up ; 
 who are poisoned by desire for vengeance 
 instead of being purified by the spirit of forgive- 
 ness ; who fill their hearts with hate instead of 
 love ; who live by cheating others ; who allow 
 licence to run riot in their hearts, and lust after 
 men and women without endeavouring to control 
 their passions — these are at the bottom of the 
 scale, they who tempt others being the worst 
 of aU. 
 
 And those who do not endeavour to control
 
 RELIGION 137 
 
 any of their passions of hate and lust and dis- 
 honesty, and who are thoroughly vicious (if any 
 such there be) have lost the right to wear the 
 human face, and to live in the company of man. 
 They are lower than the beasts, having in- 
 telligence to further their vice. 
 
 What is a good man ? Who has helped on 
 the human race in its progress upwards ? What 
 is it has made man's civiHsation possible and has 
 helped him attain to his present height of glory ? 
 
 Who is worthy of ever being held in honour 
 and of entering the Valhalla of immortaUty ? 
 
 They who are affectionate and forbearing to 
 their parents, who do their duty by their family, 
 and are ever glad and ready to give a helping 
 hand to those that need it ; who are pleased at 
 the prosperity or happiness of others ; they who 
 render to others what is their due without taking 
 unfair advantage, and who can be trusted to 
 perform their promise ; they who train their 
 intelligence and use it to the best advantage ; 
 they who restrain themselves or reproduce
 
 138 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 themselves for the continuance of living beings 
 whom they properly bring up, for this is the 
 foundation stone of sexual morality ; and they 
 who have some power of reasoning about men 
 and things. Are not these the great ones of the 
 earth, though they live in a lowly cottage or are 
 unknown by their fellow-men ? 
 
 Between men of exceptional vice and men of 
 exceptional virtue there are many grades ; and 
 almost every man, however high his ideals, at 
 times makes slips, and sometimes sadly enough 
 falls irretrievably, so that he cannot again live 
 up to his former ideals. Every time a man gives 
 W3y ^o temptation he makes himself a slave 
 mori^; and more to vicious habits, and makes it 
 so much the more difficult in future to keep the 
 mind free, from evil thoughts and the body from 
 vick")us acts. The free man being he who 
 controls himself, and the highest duty and 
 pleasure being to live aright. Some small faults 
 ar'^ of no great harm, but the danger lies in their 
 becoming a hsoit and leading into great faults,
 
 RELIGION 139 
 
 which pull a man down ; and he has the weary- 
 effort of ever trying to free himself from the 
 quagmire of vice that would suck him under, 
 down, down into the foulness of the depths. 
 
 The following are the ideals for men to follow, 
 they have been taught in principle by the great 
 Teachers, and have been the goal of man's 
 existence all through the ages : — 
 
 To honour father and mother, when young 
 to be obedient to them, to tend them 
 when ill or old, and to support them, if 
 need be, when past work ; 
 To be affectionate to his children (and step- 
 children as his own) with tendern'^ss, 
 patience and firmness, while the;;^ are 
 young to provide them with food and a 
 home, to teach them right condu».t and 
 help them attain to it, and to take ^are 
 that they are educated : 
 To cherish his wife — particularly during the 
 nine months — as himself, the wife similarly 
 to love her husb-and ;
 
 I40 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 To be ever kind and considerate to others, 
 
 especially to those in need of it ; and to 
 
 forgive wrongs done to him ; 
 To give generous aid to the deserving, 
 
 especially when they have children to 
 
 bring up ; 
 Doing to others as a man would wish others 
 
 to do to him being the guiding principle 
 
 of life ; 
 If unmarried, to be continent ; 
 If married, properly to perform his functions, 
 
 or to be continent. Having only one wife 
 
 if a member of a civilized nation ; 
 Not to steal, and to be honest and worthy 
 
 of trust in act and word ; 
 To understand his work, and do his best 
 
 in it, whether it be humble or important ; 
 To have some knowledge of man and of the 
 
 universe ; 
 Not to be proud, nor to despise any one on 
 
 account of his humble position or race, or 
 
 poverty ;
 
 RELIGION 141 
 
 Not to covet the things or position of others ; 
 To earn his own living, or, if there be no 
 need for that, to do other work, the best 
 he can find to do, for the well-being of 
 men, women or children ; 
 To persevere and do his best to live 
 according to these ideals. 
 It is a hard struggle to live up to the highest 
 ideals, but if men understand what their failings 
 are, and earnestly endeavour to overcome them, 
 much can be done, and a remedy can be found 
 against most temptations ; though sometimes 
 it may take a long time before it is successful. 
 
 Although it rests with every man to direct 
 his own course and find out for himself what is 
 best, yet there are, perhaps, certain rules which 
 may be of assistance in helping men to live up 
 to ideals. Although man, like the animals, is 
 often tempted to do things which he ought not 
 to, yet he has one great advantage over them 
 that he is able to think out beforehand how to 
 avoid temptation.
 
 142 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 The first requirement is to keep body and 
 mind healthy with regular work, and sound 
 leisure, so that the foundation for the character 
 will be well set and can resist the storm of 
 temptation from sweeping it away in its path. 
 For a man's healthy ideals act as a brake on his 
 passions, and save him from being carried away 
 by them. 
 
 It may be necessary to some to give up alcohol, 
 for example, or other things which weaken their 
 moral strength, or even in some cases to change 
 their work if they are in danger of succumbing 
 to temptation in the work they are engaged in. 
 
 If persons or books or other things encourage 
 malice, dishonesty, lasciviousness, or other vicious 
 ideas, and injure the mind, they should be 
 avoided like poisons which injure the body. 
 
 It is better to run away from temptation 
 rather than meet it and fall. 
 
 And it is better to live up to ideals, and bring 
 up children less wealthy, than to bring them up 
 in a wealthy position at the sacrifice of virtue.
 
 RELIGION 143 
 
 Work and exercise ; not too rich nor too 
 much food and drink ; healthy pleasures ; sound 
 companions ; fresh air ; turning out evil ideas 
 by a change of occupation or eating a lozenge 
 or something easily carried about, or cooling 
 the head to alter the current of the thoughts ; 
 replacing vicious amusements by healthy ones ; 
 thinking out and taking steps beforehand to 
 avoid persons or places or things where they 
 are liable to fall under temptation, assist men, 
 women and children in the struggle with their 
 evil desires. A prayer in times of temptation, 
 or every morning to prepare for the coming day, 
 and every evening to overlook the day that is 
 done and to note what is needful for the morrow, 
 a suitable service occasionally or once a week 
 and a more solemn one once a year, can help 
 men uphold the banner of their ideals ; clergy- 
 men also assist in the cure of souls, and in helping 
 men to avoid temptation. 
 
 With regard to particular faults which persons 
 must struggle against ; sometimes it may be
 
 144 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 they are apt to do unkind acts, or be filled with 
 thoughts of hate ; so they should endeavour to 
 avoid those persons they feel thus disposed to, 
 until they can overcome their feelings. They 
 should also endeavour to thwart their evil 
 thoughts and deeds by actually doing kind deeds, 
 and thus have something definite to put to their 
 credit. They should also avoid indigestion, or 
 too much food and drink, or overwork or over 
 fatigue if possible, and other things which cause 
 irritability of temper. 
 
 Where persons are easily tempted to dis- 
 honesty they should be careful to live within 
 their income, and to lay by, and if possible have 
 work which does not bring chance of temptation, 
 and avoid persons with whom they are apt to be 
 dishonest. 
 
 With regard to sensual faults, meat or other 
 food, too much or rich, or hot with pepper, etc., 
 or spices or alcohol add fuel to the passions of 
 many persons, and should consequently be 
 avoided, also a hot head or loins or stuffy rooms.
 
 RELIGION 145 
 
 And sometimes it is best to have separate rooms 
 or house where men and women or boys are 
 concerned. Regulating the size of the family 
 by continence generally ; or, as men and women 
 cannot yet thoroughly control themselves, at 
 certain times ; or living for a time apart or with 
 their respective parents, as is the custom among 
 certain races. 
 
 Many men have these ideals and yet fail and 
 fail again to carry them out, but the healthy 
 mind will struggle again and again and again, 
 to live up to his standard of conduct and to fight 
 on against his vice ; as a butterfly in a room 
 when taken away from the window does its 
 utmost to return to the light, so healthy men 
 struggle to the light to do what is right. 
 
 Or, again, as a shepherd caught in a snow- 
 storm on the mountain ; wearied with walking, 
 cold and hungry, the easier course is to give up 
 the struggle, to lie down and rest, and take his 
 ease in death. But he resists the temptation 
 
 and struggles on till the dawn comes and the 
 
 10
 
 146 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 danger is past : so, too, on the journey through 
 life the traveller resists the easier course of vice 
 and struggles on till the temptation is overcome. 
 
 Every man is as a soldier in this life with orders 
 to struggle on until he succeeds in obeying the 
 moral commandments. 
 
 Every man is able to fight for the right against 
 the evil that is in him. It is a campaign that 
 lasts from the awakening of his intelligence till 
 the end of his life ; death alone will relieve him 
 of his post, to surrender is only for the coward. 
 A man's ideals are a sacred trust for him to pro- 
 tect and to guard against vicious thoughts, words 
 and deeds which are ever ready to attack him. 
 
 Man must not expect an easy life, to live aright 
 is a hard struggle to many, and sometimes may 
 mean much worry and sacrifice and giving up 
 comforts and even friends. But it is a struggle 
 in which men can glory, and be proud if they 
 have kept themselves free from sin, and feel 
 contempt for themselves when they give up the 
 struggle.
 
 RELIGION 147 
 
 And in order to succeed the sterner must be 
 their efforts till they command success by their 
 very sacrifice, for self-denial is far nobler than 
 giving way to vice, so that in the end the love 
 of their ideals will prevail over the chain of their 
 material desires.
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 Beliefs and Ceremonies 
 
 ANIMALS have no idea of any objects except 
 those which they can see, or perceive with 
 the senses ; so that their life is not complete, 
 having no idea of the Vast outside themselves. 
 
 Ignorant savages perceive the forces of nature 
 and some of them have slight ideas of an unknown 
 Power beyond. 
 
 Men have no sure knowledge of the power 
 which holds the worlds in its grasp ; they cannot 
 see nor understand its whence or whither, nor 
 can they command their lot in life. 
 
 Man alone can realise his own pettiness 
 measured with the Absolute ; he only can under- 
 stand that the known is as nothing in comparison 
 
 to the Unknown. 
 
 148
 
 RELIGION 149 
 
 To understanding man alone is it given to 
 distinguish between things that are seen and 
 the unseen, between the known and the beyond 
 the known ; the God beyond the known. 
 
 Men have beliefs and ceremonies which differ, 
 according as they can be helped by them to live 
 aright and to express their religious emotions. 
 
 It is fitting for men to express their thanks 
 in the presence of God by saying : " I am 
 thankful if I have been able to live aright, and 
 will endeavour to do so in future ; I am grateful 
 for any happiness I have had." 
 
 The occasions for holding certain ceremonies 
 are the same in most parts of the world. It is 
 fitting to keep one day out of seven — for a rest 
 from the past week's labour ; to strengthen a 
 man's purpose to live aright, to uplift him from 
 the material thoughts and cares of the world, 
 to express his humbleness and thanks, to freshen 
 the body and cheer the mind for the work of 
 the coming week. 
 
 At present men of one religion keep a certain
 
 I50 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 day, men of another religion keep a different 
 day ; it is not important that everyone keeps 
 the same day, though it is more convenient that 
 most persons do so. 
 
 It is also fitting once a year to devote himself 
 more earnestly to strengthen his purpose to live 
 aright, to raise him above the material world, 
 to prepare for Eternity^ and humbly to acknow- 
 ledge himself and give thanks. 
 
 Four of the occasions fitting to every man 
 for ceremonies are : — First, soon after birth, to 
 name the child, and for the parents to consider 
 their duties and endeavour to bring him up 
 aright and give him a healthy body and mind ; 
 second, when a youth is growing up, a ceremony 
 (after instruction) to help him to do his duty 
 in the world and to live an upright life ; third, 
 marriage^ to make the necessary agreements 
 between the parties as to maintenance and 
 permanency; and to consider the lofty duties 
 they are entering upon of fidelity, love and self- 
 denial ; and the last one, of Death, the farewell
 
 RELIGION 151 
 
 ceremony, and it may be to keep a picture or 
 inscribe a name tablet of him who is gone away. 
 
 Three of the forms important to man are : 
 the Cross, ancient even to the Egyptians and 
 Chinese, now an emblem of the highest Good ; 
 folding the hands in prayer ; kneeling or bowing 
 down the head or body and raising the hands 
 to the forehead in humbleness. 
 
 One name is sacred to man — that of God. 
 
 Let men rise above this material world which 
 they see around them ; ignorant, helpless crea- 
 tures, let them acknowledge themselves in the 
 presence of God by bowing down in deep humility.
 
 Part V 
 ETERNITY
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 Death 
 
 1. Death is the most solemn occasion of life. 
 
 2. If any wrong was done to him who is passed 
 away, amends can best be made by doing good 
 deeds, which he would have liked. 
 
 3. Kind acts and words to him during life 
 were better than tears and wreaths at his pall ; 
 and let them not be put off till death has made 
 it too late. 
 
 4. If there are a family or friends who mourn, 
 let them be thankful, they have had a dear one 
 to love, instead of repining for what might be. 
 Let them think of the hours of happiness the 
 loved one spent on earth, and of the pleasure 
 they had when he was with them. 
 
 5. Let them weep for him it may be, and 
 again do their work, play their part in Hfc and 
 face the world cheerfully. And on the annivers-
 
 156 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 ary of his loss may the memory be revered by 
 some token of respect and affection. 
 
 6. The greater the loss, the sweeter to recall 
 in remembrance him who is gone. The deeper 
 the grief, the fuller the store of loving memory 
 with which to soothe the aching heart. 
 
 7. Sorrow has cast her shadow on every home ; 
 death comes to all ; for the round of birth and 
 death goes hand in hand unceasing. 
 
 8. The buds in their petalled cradle growing 
 into flowers, they bloom and flourish till the 
 freshness fades, their seeds again continue on 
 the round. A flower is gone but other blossoms 
 remain to charm. 
 
 9. The tiny birds with mouths agape for food ; 
 the coming spring, they please with songs of 
 love, and feed their young as they were fed 
 before ; another year or two their heart is not 
 for song, but looks for rest ; until one day they 
 glide away from the present to the past. Their 
 song is sung, but the notes of other birds are 
 there to enchant.
 
 ETERNITY 157 
 
 10. So too with man — the children run about 
 the house, they grow, marry perchance, and 
 see their children run about and grow, till the 
 day arrives for them to pass away ; their children 
 marry, in turn again see their children run about 
 the house till their time too has come to bid 
 farewell^ and so with yet their children : and 
 thus mankind goes on. 
 
 11. Some of those men, who lived when 
 human beings first arose, have become immortal 
 through us their offspring ; and many of this 
 generation will live on through their children's 
 children, till the rolling years are forgotten in 
 Eternity. 
 
 12. For every man, there comes a time when 
 the hours of the world slow down. The eyes 
 are dimmed with age, the bones grow weary, and 
 wait the day when their journey's end is come. 
 
 13. Some die young, when their time has 
 come, it is all for the best ; had they lived they 
 might have suffered overwhelming sorrow. And 
 others live on w*.^n the freshness of life is past
 
 158 LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 It is not for old or young to repine. Let them 
 be thankful for any little pleasures they have 
 received during life. 
 
 14. Man can prepare for the last event of life — 
 his conscience clear, and free from the thoughts 
 and cares of the world — let him consider himself, 
 merely as one man among the other millions 
 on the earth, as a trifling piece of matter compared 
 to all the vast worlds that exist ; let him lose 
 sight of houses, men, everything, even himself : 
 thus heaven and earth fade away and he becomes 
 part of the greater Infinite. 
 
 15. Then at the last day, when it is time for 
 him to go, already during this life he has tasted 
 of Eternity where death and life are one. 
 
 16. Sometimes a man is afraid of death, but 
 if he has done his best to live aright, there is 
 nothing to regret or dread. He can greet 
 Eternity with a smile, and, knowing not pain 
 cr fear, peacefully pass away. His forefathers 
 have gone ahead, he goes where they have gone, 
 his children follow after.
 
 ETERNITY 159 
 
 17. The passage of a life in this world is as a 
 dream flitting across the face of a sleeper ; the 
 sleeper wakes, the dream fades away, another 
 life has gone to its rest. 
 
 18. All things are coming and going, if they 
 did not arise they would not be destroyed, if 
 there was no destruction they would not be 
 produced. 
 
 19. Since life began, long years ago, decay 
 has been its ever-present shadow ; for birth is 
 followed by dissolution, and dissolution is ever 
 being reconquered by birth ; until death has 
 come life is not complete. 
 
 20. As to him who quietly passed away, his 
 earthly joys and sorrows are at an end, he rests 
 asleep in the night to which man knows no 
 morrow ; freed from this narrow sphere, he is 
 part of the world-wide realm of the Infinite. 
 
 FOR THE FAREWELL SERVICE. 
 
 Neither the stars nor earth nor life nor death 
 are permanent. 
 
 Life is part of death, death is part of life,
 
 i6o LIFE AND DEATH 
 
 death gives way to life, life must be renewed by- 
 death. 
 
 No one may linger on the road longer than 
 his allotted span, and men must die that others 
 may be born. 
 
 It was time for him to make way for the 
 unborn yet to come, and to return to the home 
 whence he came. 
 
 Countless millions have passed along the road 
 before him, and have gone to rest in the twilight 
 of death ; returning at times in the visions of 
 the living. 
 
 Pass along ; pass along the highway of life. 
 
 His mother fetched him from the abyss of the 
 past ; the peace of futurity awaits him beyond 
 the grave. A myriad years will soon have 
 passed him by. 
 
 He came from Eternity ; to Eternity again 
 he has returned.
 
 :i*' 
 
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