Definitions HQ

Materialism (n.) turned ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠a good working hypothesis — that mind is conditioned by the body — into a philosophical presumption.

Materialism (n.) can ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠be seen as an act of historical justice: after centuries of spirit, science gave matter its splendid rehabilitation.

Materialism (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠a poorly developed consciousness, dazzled by concrete things, that sees instinct as the source of all reality and stays blissfully unaware of how spiritual its own surmise is.

Materialism (n.) replaced ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠a metaphysics of mind with a metaphysics of matter — intellectually a mere trick, psychologically an unexampled revolution in man's outlook.

Materialism (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠our overcorrection: we explain everything physically because too much was once explained by spirit — and we are probably making the same mistake on the other side, for matter is just as inscrutable as mind.

Materialism (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠a countermove to mysticism, its secret antagonist: the two are hostile brothers, like atheism and theism, grappling with the same unconscious powers — one by denying them, the other by recognizing them.

Materialism (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠the alchemists' claim turned inside out: we laughed at their lapis of body, soul and spirit, yet still drag along the prejudice that psyche can be made in a retort.

Materialism (n.) only ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠gave the One Substance another name — “matter” — and so produced a spirit dependent on nutrition, whose spontaneity fled into the soul.

Materialism (n.) runs ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠unbridled when the outer object is not offset by an inner one — with maniacal arrogance or the extinction of the personality, ideal of the totalitarian mass state.

Materialism (n.) and ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠atheism are ersatz answers that spread like epidemics wherever one waits in vain for the legitimate answer to the question of God.

Materialism (n.) returns ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠by the roundabout road of strict causality to archaic man's view that the individual is a mere resultant — but archaic man has the advantage of inconsistency: he makes an exception of the mana personality.

Materialism (n.) began ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠together with genuine chemistry when the alchemists projected even the highest value, God, into matter: the picture of the world shifted 180 degrees.

Materialism (n.) was ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠the death of all things psychic — and the sylphs and undines it killed would be resurrected only in the psychological era.

Materialism (n.) that ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠is outspoken may have its source in a denial of religious temperament.

Materialism (n.) is, ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠psychologically, an excessive overvaluation of physical causation that admits no other causal link; in psychiatry it survived as dogma after waning in philosophy.

Materialism (n.) puts ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠matter or energy in God's place; that aberration was not the alchemists' but was reserved for the moderns.