348 CONCLUSION 



to mind and consciousness. Yet I suppose that our 

 adversary admits consciousness as a fact and he is aware 

 that but for knowledge by consciousness scientific 

 investigation could not begin. Does he regard con- 

 sciousness as supernatural? Then it is he who is 

 admitting the supernatural. Or does he regard it as 

 part of Nature? So do we. We treat it in what seems 

 to be its obvious position as the avenue of approach to 

 the reality and significance of the world, as it is the 

 avenue of approach to all scientific knowledge of the 

 world. Or does he regard consciousness as something 

 which unfortunately has to be admitted but which it is 

 scarcely polite to mention? Even so we humour him. 

 We have associated consciousness with a background 

 untouched in the physical survey of the world and have 

 given the physicist a domain where he can go round in 

 cycles without ever encountering anything to bring a 

 blush to his cheek. Here a realm of natural law is 

 secured to him covering all that he has ever effectively 

 occupied. And indeed it has been quite as much the 

 purpose of our discussion to secure such a realm where 

 scientific method may work unhindered, as to deal with 

 the nature of that part of our experience which lies 

 beyond it. This defence of scientific method may not 

 be superfluous. The accusation is often made that, by 

 its neglect of aspects of human experience evident to 

 a wider culture, physical science has been overtaken 

 by a kind of madness leading it sadly astray. It is 

 part of our contention that there exists a wide field 

 of research for which the methods of physics suffice, 

 into which the introduction of these other aspects would 

 be entirely mischievous. 



A besetting temptation of the scientific apologist for 

 religion is to take some of its current expressions and 



