THE RIGHT WAY IN PSYCHOLOGY. 



33 



aspect of the self from the whole self taken in connection with 

 its environment. It will not fall into the error of mistaking 

 what only exists as a part of, or a mode of a given reality, for 

 an element or phenomenon having a real existence by itself ; 

 and the consequent error of imagining the whole as consisting 

 of a number or succession of such parts. Body and soul, for 

 example, belong to the original datum, but as a duality in a 

 given unity. The self is one being, not two beings ; and this, 

 one being is not a body, neither is it a soul or spirit. A body 

 without a soul is not a human self, but a corpse. A soul without 

 a body is not a human self — but a ghost ; and ghosts are not 

 given facts. The given fact is the human self, one being 

 consisting of soul and body, a duality in a unity. (To avoid 

 possible misconception, permit me to point out that the cessation 

 or annihilation of the self when the body dies is not given fact. 

 The self may continue to exist, and to exist as a unity, and as a 

 duality in unity after the dissolution of the earthly body. 

 AVhether it does continue or not is also not given fact ; it lies 

 beyond the range of immediate experience.) To return to the 

 really given fact — this is the self as a unity, containing diversi- 

 ties called parts, powers, modes, faculties, or by other names. 

 To study these diversities is our proper business, but it is not 

 our business to explain how there can be such diversities in the 

 unity. There is nothing unnatural and nothing irrational 

 in this existence of diversities within unity. All reality, 

 so far as we can see, is of this nature. Everywhere we 

 find examples. The body is a unity, but in it the eyes are 

 different from the ears: the heart and the blood are different 

 from the brain and the nerves ; there is nothing puzzling 

 in this, nothing which detracts from the unity of the body. If 

 we encountered eyes alone, floating in the air, not belonging to 

 a body, but perfectly detached ; nevertheless, true living eyes r 

 able to see, that would be a puzzle. Similarly, the mind, soul, 

 or spirit is a unity of successive times and successive experiences, 

 of receptivity and activity, of endless diversities, in one living 

 unity. The union of body and soul in one living self is not an 

 exceptional fact, but in harmony with the whole universe. No 

 difficulty, no perplexity is felt, until we make the mistake of 

 regarding the body as a real thing by itself, and the soul as 

 another real thing by itself. The puzzle then is to explain 

 how the two diverse entities ever got united ; and how, 

 being united, they can act and react upon each other. But 

 it is not within our power to take ourselves to pieces ; 

 therefore we are not required to put ourselves together 



