CH. iv.J MATTER AND SPIRIT. 449 



duced by the collocations of units of flatter. "Were we 

 constrained to sucli a treatment of the subject, we should be 

 forced to admit that the actual existence of psychical energy, 

 as a phenomenon essentially distinct from physical energy, 

 implies, as its antecedent source, something quasi-psychical 

 in the constitution of things. 



A third alternative, however, remains open. Since we 

 know nothing even of Mind, save as qualitatively diffeien- 

 tiated from Matter, under the persistent conditions by which 

 conscious activity is limited, it is open to us to maintain that 

 the Unknown Eeality which is manifested under both aspects 

 cannot legitimately be formulated in terms of either aspect. 

 The unconditioned Source of the phenomena which we 

 distinguish as psychical, and of the phenomena which we 

 distinguish as material, may well be neither quasi-psychical 

 nor quasi-materiah Whichever set of terms we use, we are 

 using symbols the values of which are determined by our 

 experiences of conditioned existence, and which must there- 

 fore be totally inadequate to express the characteristics of 

 unconditioned existence. Nevertheless, in so far as the 

 exigencies of finite thinking require us to symbolize the 

 Infinite Power manifested in the world of phenomena, we 

 are clearly bound to symbolize it as quasi-psychical, rather 

 than as quasi-material. Provided we bear in mind the 

 lymbolic character of our words, we may say that " God is 

 Spirit," though we may not say, in the materialistic sense, 

 :hat " God is Force." Such an utterance is, indeed, anthro- 

 jKjmorphic. But we are now finding powerful confirmation 

 of the argument elaborated in our Prolegomena, that a 

 Positive mode of philosophizing is impracticable, and that 

 ve can never get entirely rid of all traces of anthropo- 

 norphism.^ As formerly shown, " there is anthropomorphism 

 fcven in speaking of the unknown Cause as a Power mani- 

 fested in phenomeni;" and if this expression is liable to 



See above, vol. L p. 18a 

 VOL, II. GO 



