COSMIC PHILOSOPHY 



social development, corporate life is more and 

 more subordinated to individual life. The high- 

 est organic life is that in which the units have 

 the least possible freedom. The highest social 

 life is that in which the units have the greatest 

 possible freedom. This feature of social evolu- 

 tion is most conveniently described by Schel- 

 ling's term individuation^ which is employed in 

 a kindred sense both in Mr. Spencer's and in 

 other modern works on biology. 



Thus we have at last reached the conclusion 

 in quest of which we set out. Supplementing 

 our previous results, according to which organic 

 and social evolution were seen to agree, by our 

 present result, according to which they are seen 

 to differ, we obtain a formula for social evolu- 

 tion which may be regarded a^ fundamentally 

 accurate. We obtain the Law of Progress, which 

 may be provisionally stated as follows : — 



" The Evolution of Society is a continuous est ah- 

 lishment of psychical relations within the Commu- 

 nity, in conformity to physical and psychical rela- 

 tions arising in the Environment ; during which, 

 both the Community and the Environment pass 

 from a state of relatively indefinite, incoherent 

 homogeneity to a state of relatively definite, coherent 

 heterogeneity ; and during which, th^ constituent 

 Units of the Community become ever more distinctly 

 individuated r 



In the next chapter I shall proceed to show 

 328 



