The Passions - Williaim Atkinson

0:00When you're ready to slow down, especially before bed, listen to Soul Good Sounds. We create calming audio, ambient soundscapes, and peaceful listening experiences designed to help you relax, unwind, and fall asleep. Search Soul Good Sounds wherever you listen to podcasts. That's S-O-L-G-O-O-D sounds. Soul Good Sounds rest well. Chapter 13 The passions A rising for the most elemental instinctive emotions we find what may be termed the passions. By the term passion is meant those strong feelings in which the elemental selfish instincts are manifested in relation to other persons, either in the phase of attraction or repulsion. In this class we find the elementary phases of love and the feelings of hate, anger, jealousy, revenge, etc.

1:00This class of emotions usually manifests violently as compared with the other emotions. The passions generally arise from self-preservation, race preservation and reproduction, self-interest, self-aggrandizement, etc. And may be regarded as a more complex phase of the elemental instinctive emotions. The elemental instinctive emotions of self-preservation and self-comfort cause the individual to experience and manifest the passional emotions of desire for combat, anger, hate, revenge, etc. While instinctive emotions leading to reproduction and continuance of the race give rise to the passional emotions of sexual love, jealousy, etc. The desire to attract the other sex increases ambition, vanity, love of display, and other feelings. It is only when this class of emotions blends with the higher emotions that the passions become purified and refined, but it must not be forgotten that these emotions were very

2:03necessary for the welfare of the race in the early stage in its evolution and that they still play an active part in human life under the greater or less restrained imposed by civilized society. Nor should it be forgotten that from these emotions have evolved the highest love of one human being for another. From instinctive sexual love and the racial instinct have developed the higher affection of man for woman and woman for man in all a beautiful manifestations and the love of the parent for the child and the love of the child for the parent. The first manifestation of altruism arises in the love of the living creature for its mate and in the love of the parents for their offspring. In certain forms of life where the association of the sexes is merely for the moment and is not followed by protection, mutual aid and companionship, there is found an absence of mutual affection of any kind, the only feeling being an elemental reproductive instinct

3:08bringing the male and female together for the moment and almost purely reflex activity. In the same way, in the cases of certain animals, the rattlesnake for instance, in which the young are able to protect themselves from birth, there is seen a total absence of parental affection or the return thereof. Human love between the sexes in its higher and lower degrees is a natural evolution from pastional emotion of a low order. Due to the growth of social, ethical, moral and aesthetic emotion arising from the necessities of the increasing complexity and development of human life. The simpler forms of pastional emotion are almost entirely instinctive in their manifestation. Indeed, in many cases, there appears to be about little more than a high form of reflex nervous action. The following words of William James give us an interesting view of this fact of life. The cat runs after the mouse, runs or shows fight before the dog, avoids falling from

4:13walls and trees, shuns fire and water. Not because he has any notion either of life or of death or of self-preservation. He acts in each case separately and simply because he cannot help it. Being so framed that when that particular running thing called a mouse appears in his field of vision, he must pursue that when that particular barking and obstreparous thing called a dog appears there, he must retire if at a distance and scratch if close by, that he must withdraw his feet from water and his face from flame, etc. Now why do the various animals do what seem to us such strange things in the presence of such outlandish stimuli? Why does the hen, for instance, submit herself to the tedium of incubating such a fearfully uninteresting set of objects as a nest full of eggs, unless she has some sort of prophetic inkling of the result?

5:14The only answer is ad hominem. We can only interpret the instinct of roots by what we know of instincts in ourselves. Why do men always lie down when they can, on soft beds rather than on soft floors? Why do they sit around a stove on a cold day? Why, in a room, do they place themselves 99 times out of a hundred, with their faces towards the middle rather than to the wall? Why does the maiden interest the youth so much that everything about her seems more important and significant than anything else in the world? Nothing more can be said than that these are human ways and that every creature likes its own ways and takes to following them as a matter of course. This may come and consider these ways and find that most of them are useful, but it is not for the sake of their utility that they are followed, but because at the moment of following them we feel that it is the only appropriate and natural thing to do.

6:18Not one man in a million when taking his dinner ever thinks of its utility. He eats because the food tastes good and makes him want more. If you should ask him why he wants to eat more of what tastes like that, instead of revering you as a philosopher, you will probably laugh at you for a fool. James continues, he takes, in short, what Berkeley called a mind debauched by learning to carry the process of making the natural seems strange, so far as to ask the why of any instinctive human act. To the metaphysition alone can such questions arise as, why do we smile when pleased and not scale? Why are we unable to talk to a crowd as to a single friend? Why does a particular maiden turn our wits upside down? The common man can only say, of course we smile, of course our heart palpitates at the sight of the crowd, of course we love the maiden, that beautiful soul clad in that perfect

7:23form, so palpably and flagrantly made from all eternity to be loved. And so probably does each animal feel about the particular things it tends to do in the presence of particular objects, they too are up priori synthesis. To the lion, it is the lioness which is made to be loved. To the bear, the she bear. To the broody hen, the notion would seem monstrous that there should be a creature in the world to whom a nest full of eggs was not the utterly fascinating, precious and never to be much sat upon object which it is to her. Thus we may be sure that however mysterious some animals' instincts may appear to us, our instincts will appear no less mysterious to them. And we may conclude that to the animal which obeys it, every impulse and every step of that instinct shines with its own sufficient light, and seems, at the moment, the only externally right and proper thing to do.

8:26It may be done for its own sake exclusively. One has very little need, as a rule, to develop the passional emotions. Instinct has taken pretty good care that we shall have our share of this class of feelings. But there is a need to train, restrain, govern and control these emotions, for the conditions which brought about their original being have changed. The social conventions require that we should subordinate these passional feelings to some extent at least. Society insists that we must restrict our love impulses to certain limits and to certain quarters, and that we subdue our anger and hate, except toward the enemies of our land, that the stirbers of public peace and the menaces of the social conventions of our time and land. The public welfare requires that we inhibit our fighting impulses, except in cases of self-defense or war. Public policy requires that we keep our ambitions within reasonable limits, which limits change

9:30from time to time, of course. In short, society is stepped in and insisted that man, as a social being, must not only acquire a social conscience, but must also develop sociable emotions and inhibit his unsociable ones. The evolution of man's nature has caused him unconsciously to modify his elemental instinct of passional emotions, and subordinate them to the dictates of social, ethical, moral and aesthetic feelings and ideals, and to intellectual considerations. Even the original elemental instincts of the lower animals have been modified by reason of the social requirements of the pack, herd or drove, until a modified instinct is now the ruling force. The general principles of emotional control, restraint and mastery, as given in a preceding chapter, are applicable to the particular class of emotions now under consideration here.

10:311. By refraining from a physical expression, one may, at least partially, inhibit the emotion. 2. By refuging to create the habit, one may more easily manifest control. 3. By refuging to dwell upon the idea or mental picture of the sighting object, one may lessen the stimulus. 4. By cultivating the opposite class of emotions, one may inhibit any class of feeling. 5. And finally, by acquiring control of the attention, by means of the will, one has the reins firmly in hand, and may drive or hold back the steeds of passion as he wills. The passions are like fiery horses, useful if well under control, but most dangerous if the control is lost. The ego is the driver, the will his hands, attention the reins, habit the bit and the passions

11:32the horses. To drive the chariot of life under social conditions, the ego must have strong hands, will, to tighten or loosen the reins of attention. He must also employ a well-designed and shaped bit of habit. Without strong hands, good reins, and well-adjusted bit, the fiery steeds of passion may gain control and, running away, dash the chariot in its driver over the precipice, and on to the jagged rocks below. End of Chapter 13 Chapter 14 The Social Emotions As man became a social animal, he developed new traits of character, new habits of action, new ideals, new customs, and consequently new emotions. Emotions long entertained and long manifested by the race become more or less instinctive and are passed along in the form of either A, inherited stimulus akin to, but lesser

12:37in degree and force than the more elemental emotions, or B, of inherited tendency to manifest the acquired emotional feeling upon the presentation is efficiently strong stimuli, hence arises that which we have called the social emotions. Under the classification of the social emotions are those acquired tendencies of action and the feeling of the race which are more or less altruistic, and are concerned with the welfare of others and ones duties and obligations towards society and our fellow men. In this class are to be found the emotions which impel us to perform what we consider or feel to be our duty toward our neighbours, and our obligations and duty toward the state, as expressed in its laws the customs of men of our country or the ideals of the community. In another phase it manifests a sympathy, fellow feeling, and kindness in general.

13:39In its first phase we find civic virtue, law abiding inclination, honesty, square dealing, and patriotism. In its second phase we find sympathy for others, charity, mutual aid, the alleviation of poverty and suffering, the erection of asylum for orphans and the aged, hospitals for the sick, and the formation of societies for general charitable work. In many cases we find the social, ethical, and moral emotions closely allied with religious emotion, and by many these are supposed to be practically identical, but there is a vast difference in spite of their frequent association. For instance we find many persons of high civic virtue, of exalted moral ideals, and manifesting ethical qualities of the most advanced type, who are lacking in the ordinary religious feelings. On the other hand we too frequently find persons professing great religious zeal, and

14:41apparently experiencing the most intense religious emotional feeling, who are deficient in social, civic, ethical, and moral qualities, in the best sense of these terms. The aim of all religion worthy of the name, however, is to encourage ethical and moral, as well as religious emotions. We must here make the distinction between those manifesting the actions termed ethical and moral, because they feel that way, and those who merely comply with the conventional requirements, because they fear the consequences of their violation. The first class have the true social, ethical, and moral feelings, tastes, ideals, and inclinations, while the second manifest merely the elementary feelings of self-preservation and selfish prudence. The first class are good, because they feel that way, and find it natural to be so, while the others are good, merely because they have to be, or be punished by legal penalty,

15:44or public opinion, loss of prestige, loss of financial support, etc. The social, moral, and ethical emotions are believed to have arisen in the race, by a reason of the association of individuals and communities, and the rise of the necessity for mutual aid and forbearance. Even many of the species of the lower animals have social, moral, or ethical codes of their own, based on the experience of the species or family, in fractions of which they punish severely. In the same way, sympathy and the altruistic feelings are supposed to have arisen. The community of interest and understanding in the tribe, family, or clan, brought not only the feeling of natural defence and protection, but also the finer in a sympathetic feeling of the pains and sufferings of their associates. This, in the progress of the race, has developed into broader and more complex ideals and feelings.

16:47Theology explains the moral feelings as resulting from conscience, which it holds to be a special faculty of the mind or soul, divinely given. Science, while admitting the existence of the state of feelings, which we call conscience, denies its supernatural origin and ascribes it to the result of evolution, heredity, experience, education, and suggestion. Conscience, according to science, is a compound of intellectual and emotional states. Conscience is not an invariable or infallible guide, but depends entirely upon the heredity, education, experience, and environment of the individual. It accompanies the moral and ethical codes of the race, which vary with time and with country. Actions which were thought right a century ago are condemned now, likewise things condemned a century ago are thought right now. What is commended in Turkey is condemned in England and vice versa.

17:50Moral tastes and ideals, like aesthetic ones, vary with time and country. There is no absolute code which has always been true in all places. There is an evolution in the ideals of morals and ethics as in everything else. And conscience and the moral and ethical emotions accompany the changing ideals. Many of the moral and ethical principles originally arose from necessity or utility, but have since developed into natural, spontaneous feeling on the part of the race. It is held that the race is rapidly developing a social conscience, which will cause the wiping out of many social conditions which are now the disgrace of civilization. It is predicted that in time the race will look back upon the existence of poverty in our civilization as our generation now looks back upon the existence of slavery, imprisonment for debt, capital punishment for the theft of a loaf of bread, the killing of prisoners of war, etc.

18:52It is thought that in time wars of conquest will be deemed as utterly immoral as today is regarded the murder of a body of men by a band of pirates or bandits. In the same way the economic slavery of today will be seen as immoral as now seems the physical slavery of the past. In not far distant time it will seem incredible that society could ever be allowed one of its members to dive hunger in the streets or of poverty and inattention in the sick room of the hobble. Not only will the ideals and feelings of ethical and moral responsibility change and evolve, but the feelings of personal sympathy will evolve in accordance therewith, at least such as the dream and prophecy of some of the world's greatest thinkers. The social, ethical and moral emotions may be developed by a study of the evolution and meaning of society on the one hand and a perception of the condition of the lives of less fortunate individuals on the other.

19:55The first will awaken new ideas of the history and real meaning of social association and mutual intercourse and will develop a new sense of responsibility, duty and civic and social pride. The second will awaken understanding and sympathy and a desire to do what one can to help those who are the underdog and also to bring about a better state of affairs in general. The study of history and civilisation, absociology and civics will do much in the first direction. The study of humankind and its life problems and conditions will do the same thing in the second case. In both cases there will be awakened a new sense of right and wrong, a new conception of ought and ought not, regarding one's relations to the race, society and his fellow beings. Let no one deceive himself or herself by the smug assumption that the race is entirely

20:56emerged from barbarism and is now on the top wave of civilisation. The truth, as known to all careful and conscientious thinkers, is that we are but half civilised, if indeed, that much. Many of our customs and conventions are those of a half-barbarist people. Our ideals are low, our customs often vile. We lack not only high ideals, but in many cases we show a lack of sanity in our social conventions, but evolution is moving us slowly ahead, our better day is dawning. The signs are in the air to be seen by all thought for men. Civilisation is climbing the ladder, aided by the evolution of the social, ethical and moral emotions and the development of the intellect. In connection with this phase of the emotions, we invite the student to consider the following excellent words of Professor Davidson in his history of Greek education.

21:57It is not enough for a man to understand the conditions of rational life in his own time. He must likewise love these conditions and hate whatever leads to life of an opposite kind. This is only another way of saying that he must love the good and hate the evil. For the good is simply what induces to rational or moral life, and the evil simply what leads away from it. It is perfectly obvious, as soon as it is pointed out, that all in moral life is due to a false distribution of affection, which again is often, though by no means always, due to a want of intellectual cultivation. He that attributes to anything a value greater or less than it really possesses in the order of things has already placed himself in a false relation to it, and will certainly, when he comes to act with reference to it, act immorally. End of chapter 14 Chapter 15 The Religious Emotions

23:00By the religious emotions is meant that class of emotional feeling arising from the faith and belief in, or consciousness of the presence of supernatural beings, powers, entities, or forces. This form of emotion is regarded as distinct from the ethical and moral emotions, although frequently found in connection therewith. Likewise, it is independent of any special form of intellectual belief, for it is far more fundamental and often exists without creed, philosophy, or stated belief, the only manifestation in such cases, being a feeling of the existence of supernatural beings, forces, and powers, to which man has a relation and to which he owes obedience. To those who may think that this is too narrow a conception of religious emotion, we refer the following definition of religion from the dictionaries, the acts or feelings which result from the belief of a God, or God's having superior control over matter, life, or

24:03destiny. Religion is subjective, designating the feelings and acts of men which relate to God. Theology is objective, denoting the science which investigates the existence, laws, and attributes of God, or, objectively, the out of form and embodiment which the inward spirit of a true or false devotion assumes. Subjectively, the feeling of veneration with which the worshiper regards the being here doors. Darwin, in his dissent of man, says that the feeling of religious devotion is a highly complex one, consisting of love, complete submission to an exalted and mysterious superior, a strong sense of dependence, fear, reverence, gratitude, hope for the future, and perhaps other elements. He is of the opinion that no man can experience so complex in emotion until advanced in his intellectual and moral faculties to at least a moderately high level.

25:06The authorities generally agree with Darwin, although the most recent study of the history of religion has shown that religious feeling has a far more primitive origin than that indicated by Darwin. It is true that the lower animals are not deemed capable of anything approaching religious feeling, unless there is a feeling approaching it in the attitude of the dog and horse and other domestic animals toward their masters. But man, as soon as he is able to attribute natural phenomena to a supernatural cause and power, manifests the crude religious feeling and emotion. He begins by believing in, fearing, and worshipping natural forces and objects, such as the sun, the moon, the wind, thunder and lightning, the ocean, rivers, mountains, etc. It is claimed that there is no natural object that has not been deified and worshipped by some people at some time in the history of the race.

26:07Later, man acquired the anthropomorphic conception of deities and created many gods in his own image, endowing them with his own attributes, qualities, and characteristics. The mental characteristics and morals of a people can always be ascertained by knowledge of the average conception of deity held by them. Polytheism or the belief in many gods were succeeded by monotheism or belief in one god. Monotheism ranges from the crudest conception of a man like God to the highest conception of a spiritual being, transcending all human qualities, attributes, or characteristics. One began by believing in many god things, then in many god persons, then in one god person, then in one god who is a spirit, then in one universal spirit which is god. It is a far cry from the savage man like God of old to the conception of universal spirit

27:09of the god drunken philosopher spinotiser. The extreme of religious belief is that which holds that there is nothing but god. All else is illusion of pantheistic idealism. Buddhism, at least in its original form, discarded the idea of a supreme being and held that ultimate reality is but universal law, hence the accusation that Buddhism is an atheistic religion, although it is one of the world's greatest religions, having over 400 million followers. But the release of the religious person may be considered as resulting from intellectual processes. His religious feelings and emotions arise from another part of his mental being. It is the testimony of the authorities of all religions, the religious conviction is an inner experience rather than an intellectual conception. The emotional element is always active in religious manifestations everywhere.

28:10The purely intellectual religion is not but a philosophy. Religion of that feeling and emotion is an anomaly. In all true religion there exists a feeling of inner assurance and faith, love or dependence, submission, reverence, gratitude, hope. And perhaps fear, the emotional element must always be present, not necessarily in the form of emotional excess, as in the case of revival hysteria or the dance of the whirling derbishes, but at least in the form of the calm, fervent feeling of that peace which patheth understanding. When religion departs from the emotional phase, it becomes merely a school of philosophy or an ethical culture society. The student must not lose sight of the uplifting influence of true religious emotion by a region of his knowledge of its early origin, like the Lotus, which has its roots in the slimy,

29:11filthy mud of the river, and its stem in the muddy, stagnant and foul waters thereof. But its beautiful flower unfolded in the clear air and facing the sun. So is religious feeling responsible for some of the most beautiful and uplifting ideals and actions of the race. If its origin and history contain much that is not consistent with the highest ideals of the race today, it is not the fault of religion but of the race itself. Religion, like all else in the Universal Manifestation, is under the laws of evolution, growth, and development. While the religion of the future may be, we know not. But the prophets of the race are dreaming visions of a religion as much higher than that of today, as the latter is higher than the crude fetishism of the savage. The following quotation from John Fiskts through Nature to God is appropriate in this place. Fiskts says, My aim is to show that that other influence, that inward conviction, the craving for final

30:15cause, the theistic assumption is itself one of the master facts of the universe, and as much entitled to respect as any fact in physical nature can possibly be. The argument flashed upon me about ten years ago, while reading Herbert Spencer's controversy with Frederick Harrison concerning the nature and reality of religion. Because Spencer derived historically the greater part of modern belief in an unseen world from the savage's primeval world of dreams and ghosts, some of his critics maintained that logical consistency required him to dismiss the modern belief as utterly false. Otherwise, he would be guilty of seeking to evolve truth from falsehood. By no means replied Spencer, contrary wise, the ultimate form of the religious consciousness is the final development of a consciousness which, at the outset, contained a germ of truth obscured by multitude-ness errors.

31:17Fisk, in this connection, quotes the Tennysonian question, who forged that other influence, that heat of inward evidence by which he doubts against the sense. The religious emotions may be developed by allowing the mind to dwell upon the power underline the universe of fleeting, changing forms, by reading prose and poetry, in which an appeal is made to the religious instinct, by listening to music which awakens the motion of reverence and awe, and finally, by meditating upon the inner spirit imminent in every living being. As an old Hindu sage once said, there are many paths by which men arrive at a knowledge of the presence of God, but there is but one goal and destination.