第9章

[23]Example：“Natureisalwayssointeresting，underwhateveraspectsheshowsherself，thatwhenitrains，Iseemtoseeabeautifulwomanweeping。Sheappearsthemorebeautiful，themoreafflictedsheis。”B。deSt。Pierre。

AsregardstheoriginoftheGreekgods，weneednotatpresentseekanopinion。Butthewholearrayofourinstancesleadstoaconclusionsomethinglikethis：Itisasiftherewereinthehumanconsciousnessasenseofreality，afeelingofobjectivepresence，aperceptionofwhatwemaycall“somethingthere。”

moredeepandmoregeneralthananyofthespecialandparticular“senses“bywhichthecurrentpsychologysupposesexistentrealitiestobeoriginallyrevealed。Ifthiswereso，wemightsupposethesensestowakenourattitudesandconductastheysohabituallydo，byfirstexcitingthissenseofreality；butanythingelse，anyidea，forexample，thatmightsimilarlyexciteit，wouldhavethatsameprerogativeofappearingrealwhichobjectsofsensenormallypossess。Sofarasreligiousconceptionswereabletotouchthisreality-feeling，theywouldbebelievedininspiteofcriticism，eventhoughtheymightbesovagueandremoteastobealmostunimaginable，eventhoughtheymightbesuchnon-entitiesinpointofWHATNESS，asKantmakestheobjectsofhismoraltheologytobe。

Themostcuriousproofsoftheexistenceofsuchanundifferentiatedsenseofrealityasthisarefoundinexperiencesofhallucination。Itoftenhappensthatanhallucinationisimperfectlydeveloped：thepersonaffectedwillfeela“presence“intheroom，definitelylocalized，facinginoneparticularway，realinthemostemphaticsenseoftheword，oftencomingsuddenly，andassuddenlygone；andyetneitherseen，heard，touched，norcognizedinanyoftheusual“sensible“

ways。Letmegiveyouanexampleofthis，beforeIpasstotheobjectswithwhosepresencereligionismorepeculiarlyconcerned。

Anintimatefriendofmine，oneofthekeenestintellectsIknow，hashadseveralexperiencesofthissort。Hewritesasfollowsinresponsetomyinquiries：——<59>

“Ihaveseveraltimeswithinthepastfewyearsfelttheso-

called’consciousnessofapresence。’TheexperienceswhichI

haveinmindareclearlydistinguishablefromanotherkindofexperiencewhichIhavehadveryfrequently，andwhichIfancymanypersonswouldalsocallthe’consciousnessofapresence。’

ButthedifferenceformebetweenthetwosetsofexperienceisasgreatasthedifferencebetweenfeelingaslightwarmthoriginatingIknownotwhere，andstandinginthemidstofaconflagrationwithalltheordinarysensesalert。

“ItwasaboutSeptember，1884，whenIhadthefirstexperience。

OnthepreviousnightIhadhad，aftergettingintobedatmyroomsinCollege，avividtactilehallucinationofbeinggraspedbythearm，whichmademegetupandsearchtheroomforanintruder；butthesenseofpresenceproperlysocalledcameonthenextnight。AfterIhadgotintobedandblownoutthecandle，Ilayawakeawhilethinkingonthepreviousnight’sexperience，whensuddenlyIFELTsomethingcomeintotheroomandstayclosetomybed。Itremainedonlyaminuteortwo。Ididnotrecognizeitbyanyordinarysenseandyettherewasahorriblyunpleasant’sensation’connectedwithit。Itstirredsomethingmoreattherootsofmybeingthananyordinaryperception。Thefeelinghadsomethingofthequalityofaverylargetearingvitalpainspreadingchieflyoverthechest，butwithintheorganism——andyetthefeelingwasnotPAINsomuchasABHORRENCE。Atallevents，somethingwaspresentwithme，andI

knewitspresencefarmoresurelythanIhaveeverknownthepresenceofanyfleshlylivingcreature。Iwasconsciousofitsdepartureasofitscoming：analmostinstantaneouslyswiftgoingthroughthedoor，andthe’horriblesensation’disappeared。

“OnthethirdnightwhenIretiredmymindwasabsorbedinsomelectureswhichIwaspreparing，andIwasstillabsorbedinthesewhenIbecameawareoftheactualpresence(thoughnotoftheCOMING)ofthethingthatwastherethenightbefore，andofthe’horriblesensation。’Ithenmentallyconcentratedallmyefforttochargethis’thing，’ifitwaseviltodepart，ifitwasNOT

evil，totellmewhoorwhatitwas，andifitcouldnotexplainitself，togo，andthatIwouldcompelit<60>togo。Itwentasonthepreviousnight，andmybodyquicklyrecovereditsnormalstate。

“OntwootheroccasionsinmylifeIhavehadpreciselythesame’horriblesensation。’Onceitlastedafullquarterofanhour。

InallthreeinstancesthecertaintythatthereinoutwardspacetherestoodSOMETHINGwasindescribablySTRONGERthantheordinarycertaintyofcompanionshipwhenweareintheclosepresenceofordinarylivingpeople。Thesomethingseemedclosetome，andintenselymorerealthananyordinaryperception。

AlthoughIfeltittobelikeuntomyselfsotospeak，orfinite，small，anddistressful，asitwere，Ididn’trecognizeitasanyindividualbeingorperson。”

Ofcoursesuchanexperienceasthisdoesnotconnectitselfwiththereligioussphere。Yetitmayuponoccasiondoso；andthesamecorrespondentinformsmethatatmorethanoneotherconjuncturehehadthesenseofpresencedevelopedwithequalintensityandabruptness，onlythenitwasfilledwithaqualityofjoy。

“Therewasnotamereconsciousnessofsomethingthere，butfusedinthecentralhappinessofit，astartlingawarenessofsomeineffablegood。Notvagueeither，notliketheemotionaleffectofsomepoem，orscene，orblossom，ofmusic，butthesureknowledgeoftheclosepresenceofasortofmightyperson，andafteritwent，thememorypersistedastheoneperceptionofreality。Everythingelsemightbeadream，butnotthat。”

Myfriend，asitoddlyhappens，doesnotinterprettheselatterexperiencestheistically，assignifyingthepresenceofGod。Butitwouldclearlynothavebeenunnaturaltointerpretthemasarevelationofthedeity’sexistence。Whenwereachthesubjectofmysticism，weshallhavemuchmoretosayuponthishead。

Lesttheoddityofthesephenomenashoulddisconcertyou，Iwillventuretoreadyouacoupleofsimilarnarratives，muchshorter，merelytoshowthatwearedealingwithawell-markednaturalkindoffact。Inthefirstcase，whichI<61>takefromtheJournaloftheSocietyforPsychicalResearch，thesenseofpresencedevelopedinafewmomentsintoadistinctlyvisualizedhallucination——butIleavethatpartofthestoryout。

“Ihadread。”thenarratorsays，“sometwentyminutesorso，wasthoroughlyabsorbedinthebook，mymindwasperfectlyquiet，andforthetimebeingmyfriendswerequiteforgotten，whensuddenlywithoutamoment’swarningmywholebeingseemedrousedtothehigheststateoftensionoraliveness，andIwasaware，withanintensenessnoteasilyimaginedbythosewhohadneverexperiencedit，thatanotherbeingorpresencewasnotonlyintheroom，butquiteclosetome。Iputmybookdown，andalthoughmyexcitementwasgreat，Ifeltquitecollected，andnotconsciousofanysenseoffear。Withoutchangingmyposition，andlookingstraightatthefire，IknewsomehowthatmyfriendA。H。wasstandingatmyleftelbowbutsofarbehindmeastobehiddenbythearmchairinwhichIwasleaningback。Movingmyeyesroundslightlywithoutotherwisechangingmyposition，thelowerportionofonelegbecamevisible，andIinstantlyrecognizedthegray-bluematerialoftrousersheoftenwore，butthestuffappearedsemitransparent，remindingmeoftobaccosmokeinconsistency。”[24]——andhereuponthevisualhallucinationcame。

[24]JournaloftheS。P。R。，February，1895，p。26。

Anotherinformantwrites：——

“QuiteearlyinthenightIwasawakened……IfeltasifI

hadbeenarousedintentionally，andatfirstthoughtsomeonewasbreakingintothehouse……Ithenturnedonmysidetogotosleepagain，andimmediatelyfeltaconsciousnessofapresenceintheroom，andsingulartostate，itwasnottheconsciousnessofaliveperson，butofaspiritualpresence。Thismayprovokeasmile，butIcanonlytellyouthefactsastheyoccurredtome。IdonotknowhowtobetterdescribemysensationsthanbysimplystatingthatIfeltaconsciousnessofaspiritualpresence……Ifeltalsoatthesametimeastrongfeelingofsuperstitiousdread，asifsomethingstrangeandfearfulwereabouttohappen。”[25]

[25]E。Gurney：PhantasmsoftheLiving，i。384。

ProfessorFlournoyofGenevagivesmethefollowingtestimonyofafriendofhis，alady，whohasthegiftofautomaticorinvoluntarywriting：——

“WheneverIpracticeautomaticwriting，whatmakesmefeelthatitisnotduetoasubconsciousselfisthefeelingIalwayshaveofaforeignpresence，externaltomybody。ItissometimessodefinitelycharacterizedthatIcouldpointtoitsexactposition。Thisimpressionofpresenceisimpossibletodescribe。

Itvariesinintensityandclearnessaccordingtothepersonalityfromwhomthewritingprofessestocome。IfitissomeonewhomIlove，Ifeelitimmediately，beforeanywritinghascome。Myheartseemstorecognizeit。”

InanearlierbookofmineIhavecitedatfulllengthacuriouscaseofpresencefeltbyablindman。Thepresencewasthatofthefigureofagray-beardedmandressedinapepperandsaltsuit，squeezinghimselfunderthecrackofthedoorandmovingacrosstheflooroftheroomtowardsasofa。Theblindsubjectofthisquasi-hallucinationisanexceptionallyintelligentreporter。Heisentirelywithoutinternalvisualimageryandcannotrepresentlightorcolorstohimself，andispositivethathisothersenses，hearing，etc。，werenotinvolvedinthisfalseperception。Itseemstohavebeenanabstractconceptionrather，withthefeelingsofrealityandspatialoutwardnessdirectlyattachedtoit——inotherwords，afullyobjectifiedandexteriorizedIDEA。

Suchcases，takenalongwithotherswhichwouldbetootediousforquotation，seemsufficientlytoprovetheexistenceinourmentalmachineryofasenseofpresentrealitymorediffusedandgeneralthanthatwhichourspecialsensesyield。Forthepsychologiststhetracingoftheorganicseatofsuchafeelingwouldformaprettyproblem——nothingcouldbemorenaturalthantoconnectitwiththemuscularsense，withthefeelingthatourmuscleswereinnervatingthemselvesforaction。Whatsoeverthusinnervatedouractivity，or“madeourfleshcreep“——oursensesarewhatdosooftenest——mightthenappearrealandpresent，eventhoughitwerebutanabstractidea。Butwithsuchvagueconjectureswehavenoconcernatpresent，forourinterestlieswiththefacultyratherthanwithitsorganicseat。

Likeallpositiveaffectionsofconsciousness，thesenseofrealityhasitsnegativecounterpartintheshapeofafeelingofunrealitybywhichpersonsmaybehaunted，andofwhichonesometimeshearscomplaint：——

“WhenIreflectonthefactthatIhavemademyappearancebyaccidentuponaglobeitselfwhirledthroughspaceasthesportofthecatastrophesoftheheavens。”saysMadameAckermann；“whenIseemyselfsurroundedbybeingsasephemeralandincomprehensibleasIammyself，andallexcitedlypursuingpurechimeras，Iexperienceastrangefeelingofbeinginadream。ItseemstomeasifIhavelovedandsufferedandthaterelongI

shalldie，inadream。Mylastwordwillbe，’Ihavebeendreaming。’“[26]

[26]Penseesd’unSolitaire，p。66。

Inanotherlectureweshallseehowinmorbidmelancholythissenseoftheunrealityofthingsmaybecomeacarkingpain，andevenleadtosuicide。

Wemaynowlayitdownascertainthatinthedistinctivelyreligioussphereofexperience，manypersons(howmanywecannottell)possesstheobjectsoftheirbelief，notintheformofmereconceptionswhichtheirintellectacceptsastrue，butratherintheformofquasi-sensiblerealitiesdirectlyapprehended。Ashissenseoftherealpresenceoftheseobjectsfluctuates，sothebelieveralternatesbetweenwarmthandcoldnessinhisfaith。Otherexampleswillbringthishometoonebetterthanabstractdescription，soIproceedimmediatelytocitesome。Thefirstexampleisanegativeone，deploringthelossofthesenseinquestion。Ihaveextracteditfromanaccountgivenmebyascientificmanofmyacquaintance，ofhisreligiouslife。Itseemstometoshowclearlythatthefeelingofrealitymaybesomethingmorelikeasensationthananintellectualoperationproperlyso-called。

“BetweentwentyandthirtyIgraduallybecamemoreandmoreagnosticandirreligious，yetIcannotsaythatIeverlostthat’indefiniteconsciousness’whichHerbertSpencerdescribessowell，ofanAbsoluteRealitybehindphenomena。FormethisRealitywasnotthepureUnknowableofSpencer’sphilosophy，foralthoughIhadceasedmychildishprayerstoGod，andneverprayedtoITinaformalmanner，yetmymorerecentexperienceshowsmetohavebeeninarelationtoITwhichpracticallywasthesamethingasprayer。WheneverIhadanytrouble，especiallywhenIhadconflictwithotherpeople，eitherdomesticallyorinthewayofbusiness，orwhenIwasdepressedinspiritsoranxiousaboutaffairs，InowrecognizethatIusedtofallbackforsupportuponthiscuriousrelationIfeltmyselftobeintothisfundamentalcosmicalIT。Itwasonmyside，orIwasonItsside，howeveryoupleasetotermit，intheparticulartrouble，anditalwaysstrengthenedmeandseemedtogivemeendlessvitalitytofeelitsunderlyingandsupportingpresence。Infact，itwasanunfailingfountainoflivingjustice，truth，andstrength，towhichIinstinctivelyturnedattimesofweakness，anditalwaysbroughtmeout。IknownowthatitwasapersonalrelationIwasintoit，becauseoflateyearsthepowerofcommunicatingwithithasleftme，andIamconsciousofaperfectlydefiniteloss。IusednevertofailtofinditwhenI