Tracks of a Rolling Stone

s ofSociology') 'the first traceable conception of a supernaturalbeing is the conception of a ghost.' Even Fetichism is 'anextension of the ghost theory.' The soul of

to' Abimelech, Laban, Solomon, andothers 'i

ame to them. So the savage, who dreams ofhis dead acquaintance, believes he ha

t likethe dead man beside him. The spirit of the wounded manreturns after a long or short period of absence: why s

erving the dead, in the remotest ages, evince the beliefin cas

ngin the same key, Schopenhauer calls man 'a metaphysicalanimal.' He is speaking of the need man feels of a theory,in regard to the riddle of existence, which forces itselfu

t theory, this bearsindirectly on the

heinitial beliefs of conscious beings far lower in the scalethan man, whether derived solely from experience orotherwise. The reed that shakes is obviously shaken by thewind. But the riddle of the wind also forces itself intonotice; and man explains this by transferring to the wind't

me, we have the true orig

lawn. It rolled away close to a dog lyingquietly in the sun. The dog looked at it for a moment, butseeing nothing to account for its mov

a similar superstition. Is thereany essential difference between this belief of the dog orhorse and the belief of primitive man? I maintain that anintuitive animistic tendency (which Mr. Spencer repudiates),and not dreams, lies at the root of all spirituali

the transcendentalschool who, like Max Muller for instance (Introduction to the'Science of Religion'), hold that we have 'a primitiveintuition of God'; which, after all, the professor derives,like many others, fr

tions of a muchlater creature than the 'Pit

nd ghosts were origi

baying of the dog to the moon is as much an act of worship a

s the origin of theworship. In his e

thetrue sources of superstition.' Also 'in such a state of

the twofold notionof omnipotence and malignity. The savage of the present daylives in perpetual fear of evil spirits; and thesuperstitious dread, which I