See also:

• METEMPSYCHOSIS (Gr. µF El.4/1Xco rts)

METEMPSYCHOSIS (Gr. µF El.4/1Xco rts)  , Or TRANSMIGRATION OF THE SOUL, the See also:

• DOCTRINE

doctrine that at See also:

• DEATH

death the soul passes into another living creature, See also:

• MAN
• MAN, ISLE OF (anc. Mona)

man, See also:

• ANIMAL
• ANIMAL (Lat. animalis, from anima, breath, soul)

animal, or even plant . This doctrine, famous in antiquity and still held as a religious tenet by certain sects of the civilized See also:

• WORLD

world, has its roots far back in See also:

• PRIMITIVE

primitive culture . It is See also:

• DEVELOPED

developed out of three universal See also:

• SAVAGE
• SAVAGE, MINOT JUDSON (1841– )
• SAVAGE, RICHARD (d. 1743)

savage beliefs: (r) that man has a soul, connected in some vague way with the breath, which can be separated from his material See also:

• BODY

body, temporarily in See also:

• SLEEP (0. Eng. slcepan; Ger. schlafen; cf. Lat. labi, to glide, and " slip ")

sleep, permanently at death; (2) that animals and even See also:

• PLANTS

plants have souls, and are possessed to a large extent of human See also:

• POWERS, HIRAM (1805-1873)

powers and passions; (3) that souls can be transferred from one organism to another . Innumerable examples might be mentioned of the notion that a new-See also:

• BORN, IGNAZ, EDLER VON (1742–1791)

born See also:

• CHILD
• CHILD, FRANCIS JAMES (1825-1896)
• CHILD, L
• CHILD, LYDIA MARIA (1802-1880)
• CHILD, SIR FRANCIS (1642-1713)
• CHILD, SIR JOHN (d. 1690)
• CHILD, SIR JOSIAH (163o - 1699)

child is the reincarnation of someone departed, as in See also:

• TIBET, or THIBET

Tibet the soul of the Dalai-Lama is supposed to pass into an See also:

• INFANT (in early forms enfaunt, enfant, through the Fr. enfant, from Lat. infans, in, not, and fans, the present participle of fari, to speak)

infant born nine months after his decease . Transmigration of human souls into non-human bodies is implied in See also:

• TOTEMISM

totemism (q.v.), for, as See also:

• PROFESSOR (the Latin noun formed from the verb profiteri, to declare publicly, to acknowledge, profess)

Professor Frazer says, " it is an See also:

• ARTICLE (from Lat. articulus, a joint)

article of faith that as the See also:

• CLAN (Gaelic clann, O. Ir. cland, connected with Lat. planta, shoot or scion, the ancient Gaelic or Goidelic substituting k for p)

clan sprang from the totem, so each clansman at death reassumes the totem See also:

• FORM (Lat. forma)

form." All these savage notions are to be regarded as presuppositions of See also:

• METEMPSYCHOSIS (Gr. µF El.4/1Xco rts)

metempsychosis, rather than identified with that doctrine itself as a reasoned theory . Till full investigation of See also:

• EGYPTIAN

Egyptian records put us in See also:

• POSSESSION
• POSSESSION (Lat. possessio, possidere, to possess)

possession of the facts, it was supposed that the Egyptians believed in metempsychosis, and See also:

• HERODOTUS (c. 484-425 B.C.)

Herodotus (ii . 123) explicitly credits them with it . We now know that he was wrong . All that they believed was that certain privileged souls might in the other world be able to assume certain forms at See also:

• PLEASURE (through Fr. plaisir from Lat. placere, to please; Gr. rlbovii)

pleasure, those of a See also:

• SPARROW (0. Eng. spearwa; Icel. sporr; O.H.G. Sparo)

sparrow-See also:

• HAWK (O. Eng. hafoc or heafoc, a common Teutonic word, cf. Dutch havik, Ger. Habicht; the root is hab-, haf-, to hold, cf. Lat. accipiter, from capere)

hawk, See also:

• LILY

lily, &c . Herodotus misunderstood the Egyptians to hold beliefs identical with those which were current in his See also:

• DAY (O. Eng. dreg, Ger. Tag; according to the New English Dictionary, " in no way related to the Lat. dies")
• DAY, JOHN (1574-1640?)
• DAY, THOMAS (1748-1789)

day in See also:

• GREECE

Greece . In See also:

• INDIA
• INDIA, FRENCH

India, on the contrary, the doctrine was thoroughly established from See also:

• ANCIENT
• ANCIENT (also spelt ANTIENT; derived, through the Fr. ancien, old, from the late Lat. antianum, from ante, before)

ancient times; not from the most ancient, as it is not in the Vedas; but onwards from the Upanishads . In them it is used for moral retribution: he who kills a See also:

• BRAHMAN

Brahman is, after a See also:

• LONG, GEORGE (1800-1879)
• LONG, JOHN DAVIS (1838– )

long progress through dreadful hells, to be reborn as a See also:

• DOG

dog, See also:

• PIG
• PIG (a word of obscure origin, connected with the Low Ger. and Dut. word of the same meaning, bigge)

pig, See also:

• ASS (O.E. assa; Lat. asinus)
• ASS, FEAST OF THE

ass, See also:

• CAMEL (from the Arabic Djemal or the Heb. Gamal)

camel, &c .

This we always find in metempsychosis as a reasoned theory . It is formed by combina-tion of two sets of ideas which belong to different planes of culture: the ideas of See also:

• JUDGMENT

judgment and See also:

• PUNISHMENT (from Lat. punire, to punish, from poena, punishment, Gr. 7rocvil)

punishment after death elaborated in a relatively cultured society by a priestly lass are combined with ideas, like that of totem-transmigration, proper to a savage society . In India we may explain the whole phenomenon as an infusion of the See also:

• LOWER

lower beliefs of the non-See also:

• ARYAN

Aryan conquered races into the higher religious See also:

• SYSTEM

system of their Aryan conquerors . In later See also:

• HINDUISM

Hinduism metempsychosis reached a monstrous development; according to Monier-See also:

• WILLIAMS
• WILLIAMS, JOHN (1582-1650)
• WILLIAMS, JOHN (1796-1839)
• WILLIAMS, ROGER (c. 1604–1684)
• WILLIAMS, ROWLAND (1817-1870)
• WILLIAMS, SIR WILLIAM FENWICK

Williams it was believed that there were 8,400,000 forms of existence through which all souls were liable to pass before returning to their source in the Deity . See also:

• BUDDHISM

Buddhism appeared as a reaction against all this, and sought by a subtle modification to harmonize the theory with its own pessimistic view of the world . According to Buddhism there is no soul, and consequently no metempsychosis in the strict sense . Something, however, is transmitted, i.e . See also:

• KARMA

Karma (See also:

• CHARACTER (Gr. xapareri7p, from xap&crew, to scratch)

character), which passes from individual to individual, till in the perfectly righteous man the will to live is extinguished and that particular See also:

• CHAIN (through the O. Fr. citable, chcene, &c., from Lat. catena)

chain of lives is brought to an end . We do not know exactly how the doctrine of meterflpsychosis arose in Greece; it cannot, as was once supposed, have been borrowed from See also:

• EGYPT

Egypt and is not likely to have come from India . It is easiest to assume that savage ideas which had never been extinguished were utilized for religious and philosophic purposes . The Orphic See also:

• RELIGION
• RELIGION, FOLKLORE, CUSTOM

religion, which held it, first appeared in See also:

• THRACE

Thrace upon the semi-barbarous See also:

• NORTH
• NORTH, BARONS
• NORTH, MARIANNE (1830—1890)
• NORTH, ROGER (1653-1734)
• NORTH, SIR THOMAS (1535?-16o1?)

north-eastern frontier . See also:

• ORPHEUS

Orpheus, its legendary founder, is said to have taught that " soul and body are See also:

• UNITED

united by a compact unequally binding on either; the soul is divine, immortal and aspires to freedom, while the body holds it in fetters as a prisoner .

Death dissolves this compact, but only to re-imprison the liberated soul after a See also:

• SHORT, FRANCIS JOB (1857– )

short See also:

• TIME (0. Eng. Lima, cf. Icel. timi, Swed. timme, hour, Dan. time; from the root also seen in " tide," properly the time of between the flow and ebb of the sea, cf. O. Eng. getidan, to happen, " even-tide," &c.; it is not directly related to Lat. tempus)
• TIME, MEASUREMENT OF
• TIME, STANDARD

time: for the See also:

• WHEEL (0. Eng. hweol, hweohl, &c., cognate with Icel. hjol, Dan. hiul, the Indo-European root is seen in Sanskrit chakra, Gr. r in Aos, circle, whence " cycle ")
• WHEEL, BREAKING ON THE

wheel of See also:

• BIRTH (a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages from the root of the verb " to bear ")

birth revolves inexorably . Thus the soul continues its See also:

• JOURNEY (through O. Fr. jornee or journee, mod. Fr. journee, from med. Lat. diurnata, Lat. diurnus, of or belonging to dies, day)

journey, alternating between a See also:

• SEPARATE

separate unrestrained existence and fresh reincarnation, See also:

• ROUND (O. Fr. rond, Lat. rotundus, the Fr. is the source also of Du. rond; Ger., Swed., Dan. and Nor. rond)

round the wide circle of See also:

• NECESSITY (Lat. necessitas)

necessity, as the See also:

• COMPANION (through the O. Fr. compaignon or compagnon, from the Late Lat. companio,—cum, with, and panis, bread,—one who shares meals with another; the word has been wrongly derived from the Late Lat. compagnus, one of the same pages or district)

companion of many bodies of men and animals . To these unfortunate prisoners Orpheus proclaims the See also:

• MESSAGE (a word occurring in slightly different forms in several languages, e.g. Fr. message, Span. mensaje, Ital. messagio; adapted from the Low Lat. missaticum, from mittere)

message of liberation, that they stand in need of the See also:

• GRACE (Fr. grace, Lat. gratia, from grates, beloved, pleasing; formed from the root cra-, Gr. xav-, cf. xaipw, x6p,ua, Xapts)
• GRACE, WILLIAM GILBERT (1848– )

grace of redeeming gods and of See also:

• DIONYSUS (probably = " son of Zeus," from & Os and vv(7os, a Thracian word for " son ")

Dionysus in particular, and calls them to turn to See also:

• GOD

God by ascetic piety of See also:

• LIFE

life and self-See also:

• PURIFICATION

purification: the purer their lives the higher will be their next reincarnation, until the soul has completed the See also:

• SPIRAL

spiral ascent of destiny to live for ever as God from whom it comes." Such was the teaching of Orphism which appeared in Greece about the 6th See also:

• CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century B.C., organized itself into private and public mysteries at See also:

• ELEUSIS

Eleusis and elsewhere, and produced a copious literature . The earliest See also:

• GREEK
• GREEK, ETRUSCAN AND

Greek thinker with whom metempsychosis is connected is Pherecydes; but See also:

• PYTHAGORAS
• PYTHAGORAS (6th century B.C.)

Pythagoras, who is said to have been his See also:

• PUPIL (Lat. pupillus, orphan, minor, dim. of pupus, boy, allied to puer, from root pm- or peu-, to beget, cf. "pupa," Lat. for " doll," the name given to the stage intervening between the larval and imaginal stages in certain insects)

pupil, is its first famous philosophic exponent . Pythagoras probably neither invented the doctrine nor imported it from Egypt, but made his reputation by bringing Orphic doctrine from North-Eastern Hellas to Magna Graecia and by instituting See also:

• SOCIETIES, LEARNED

societies for its See also:

• DIFFUSION (from the Lat. diffundere; dis-, asunder, and fundere, to pour out)

diffusion . The real See also:

• WEIGHT

weight and importance of metempsychosis is due to its See also:

• ADOPTION (Lat. adoptio, for adoptalio, from adoptare, to choose for oneself)

adoption by See also:

• PLATO

Plato . Had he not embodied it in some of his greatest See also:

• WORKS

works it would be merely a See also:

• MATTER

matter of curious investigation for the anthropologist and student of folk-See also:

• LORE
• LORE, AMBROISE DE (1396-1446)

lore . In the eschatological myth which closes the See also:

• REPUBLIC (Lat. respublica, a commonweal or common-wealth)

Republic he tells the See also:

• STORY, JOHN (c. 1510-1571)
• STORY, JOSEPH (1779-1845)
• STORY, ROBERT HERBERT (1835-1907)
• STORY, WILLIAM WETMORE (1819—1895)

story how Er, the son of Armenius, miraculously returned to life on the twelfth day after death and recounted the secrets of the other world . After death, he said, he went with others to the See also:

• PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place of Judgment and saw the souls returning from See also:

• HEAVEN (0. Eng. hefen, heofon, heofone; this word appears in O.S. hevan; the High. Ger. word appears in Ger. Himmel, Dutch hemel; there does not seem to be any connexion between the two words, and the ultimate derivation of the word is unknown; the sugges

heaven and from See also:

• PURGATORY (Late Lat. purgatorium, from purgare, to purge)

purgatory, and proceeded with them to a place where they See also:

• CHOSE (Fr. for " thing ")

chose new lives, human and animal . " He saw the soul of Orpheus changing into a See also:

• SWAN (A. S. swan and swan, Icel. svanr, Du. zwaart, Ger. Schwan)
• SWAN, J
• SWAN, JOHN MACALLAN (1847-1910)
• SWAN, SIR JOSEPH WILSON (1828– )

swan, Thamyras becoming a See also:

• NIGHTINGALE (O. Eng. Nihtegale, literally " singer of the night ")
• NIGHTINGALE, FLORENCE (1820–191o)

nightingale, musical birds choosing to be men, the soul of See also:

• ATALANTA

Atalanta choosing the honours of an See also:

• ATHLETE (Gr. aOX177'7r; Lat. athleta)

athlete . Men were seen passing into animals and See also:

• WILD, JONATHAN (c. 1682-1725)

wild and tame animals changing into each other." After their choice the souls drank of Lethe and then shot away like stars to their birth . There are myths and theories to the same effect in other dialogues, the See also:

• PHAEDRUS

Phaedrus, Meno, See also:

• PHAEDO

Phaedo, See also:

• TIMAEUS (c. 345—c. 250 B.e.)

Timaeus and See also:

• LAWS

Laws .

In Plato's view the number of souls was fixed; _o birth therefore is never the creation of a soul, but only a trans-See also:

• MIGRATION

migration from one body to another . Plato's See also:

• ACCEPTANCE (Lat. acceptare, frequentative form of accipere, to receive)

acceptance of the doctrine is characteristic of his sympathy with popular beliefs and See also:

• DESIRE

desire to incorporate them in a purified form into his system . See also:

• ARISTOTLE
• ARISTOTLE (384-322 B.C.)

Aristotle, a far less emotional and sympathetic mind, has a doctrine of See also:

• IMMORTALITY (Lat. in-, not, mortalis, mortal, from mors, death)

immortality totally inconsistent with it . In later Greek literature the doctrine appears from time to time; it is mentioned in a fragment of See also:

• MENANDER
• MENANDER (342–291 B.C.)
• MENANDER (MILINDA)

Menander (the Inspired Woman) and. satirized by See also:

• LUCIAN (d. 312)
• LUCIAN [Aowaavos] (c. A.D. 120-180)

Lucian (See also:

• GALLUS, C
• GALLUS, CORNELIUS (c. 70-26 B.C.)
• GALLUS, GAIUS AELIUS
• GALLUS, GAIUS CESTIUS
• GALLUS, GAIUS SULPICIUS

Gallus § 18 seq.) . In See also:

• ROMAN

Roman literature it is found as See also:

• EARLY
• EARLY, JUBAL ANDERSON (1816-1894)

early as See also:

• ENNIUS, QUINTUS (239-170 B.c.)

Ennius, who in his Calabrian See also:

• HOME
• HOME, DANIEL DUNGLAS (1833-1886)
• HOME, EARLS OF

home must have been See also:

• FAMILIAR (through the Fr. familier, from Lat. familiaris, of or belonging to the familia, family)

familiar with the Greek teachings which had descended to his times from the cities of Magna Graecia . In a lost passage of his See also:

• ANNALS (Annales, from annus, a year)

Annals, a Roman See also:

• HISTORY

history in See also:

• VERSE (from Lat. versus, literally a line or furrow drawn by turning the plough, from vertere, and afterwards signifying an arrangement of syllables into feet)

verse, Ennius told how he had seen See also:

• HOMER, WINSLOW (1836-191o)

Homer in a See also:

• DREAM (from a root dreug, connected with Germ. trugen, to deceive)

dream, who had assured him that the same soul which had animated both the poets had once belonged to a See also:

• PEA (Pisum)

pea-See also:

• COCK, EDWARD (1805-1892)

cock . See also:

• PERSIUS

Persius in one of his satires (vi . 9) laughs at Ennius for this: it is referred to also by See also:

• LUCRETIUS (TITUS LUCRETIUS CARUS) (c. 98–55 B.C.)

Lucretius (i . 124) and by See also:

• HORACE [QuINTus HORATIUS FLACCUS] (65-8 B.C.)

Horace (Epist . II. i . 52) . See also:

• VIRGIL (PUBLIUS VERGILIUS MARC)
• VIRGIL, POLYDORE (c. 1470-1555)

Virgil works the See also:

• IDEA (Gr. Ibia, connected with i&eiv, to see; cf. Lat. species from specere, to look at)

idea into his See also:

• ACCOUNT
• ACCOUNT (through O. Fr. acont, Late Lat. comptum, cornputare, to calculate)

account of, the Underworld in the See also:

• SIXTH

sixth See also:

• BOOK

book of the Aeneid (vv .

724 sqq.) . It persists in antiquity down to the latest classic thinkers, See also:

• PLOTINUS (A.D. 204-270)

Plotinus and the other Neoplatonists . Attempts have been made with little success to find metempsychosis in early Jewish literature . But there are traces of it in See also:

• PHILO
• PHILO, HERENNIUS

Philo, and it is definitely adopted in the Kabbala . Within the See also:

• CHRISTIAN
• CHRISTIAN, WILLIAM (1608-1663)

Christian See also:

• CHURCH
• CHURCH (according to most authorities derived from the Gr. Kvpcaxov [&wµa], " the Lord's [house]," and common to many Teutonic, Slavonic and other languages under various forms—Scottish kirk, Ger. Kirche, Swed. kirka, Dan. kirke, Russ. tserkov, Buig. cerk
• CHURCH, FREDERICK EDWIN (1826-1900)
• CHURCH, GEORGE EARL (1835–1910)
• CHURCH, RICHARD WILLIAM (1815–189o)
• CHURCH, SIR RICHARD (1784–1873)

Church it was held . during the first centuries by isolated Gnostic sects, and by the Manichaeans in the 4th and 5th centuries, but was invariably repudiated by orthodox theologians . In the See also:

• MIDDLE

middle ages these traditions were continued by the numerous sects known collectively as Cathari . At the See also:

• RENAISSANCE, THE

Renaissance we find the doctrine in See also:

• GIORDANO, LUCA (1632–1705)

Giordano See also:

• BRUNO (BRUN, BRUNS) OF QUERFURT, SAINT (c. 975-1009)
• BRUNO, GIORDANO (c. 1548-1600)
• BRUNO, or BRUN (925–965)
• BRUNO, SAINT

Bruno, and in the 17th century in the theosophist See also:

• VAN

van See also:

• HELMONT, JEAN BAPTISTE VAN (1577—1644)

Helmont . A modified form of it was adopted by See also:

• SWEDENBORG (or SWEDBERG), EMANUEL (1688-1772)

Swedenborg . During the classical See also:

• PERIOD
• PERIOD (Gr. irepioSos, a going or way round, circuit, aepi, round, and &Sis, way, road)

period of See also:

• GERMAN
• GERMAN, DUTCH AND SCANDINAVIAN

German literature metempsychosis attracted much See also:

• ATTENTION (from Lat. ad-tendo, await, expect; the condition of being " stretched " or " tense ")

attention: See also:

• GOETHE, JOHANN WOLFGANG VON (1749-1832)

Goethe played with the idea, and it was taken up more seriously by See also:

• LESSING, GOTTHOLD EPHRAIM (1729–1781)

Lessing, who borrowed it from See also:

• CHARLES
• CHARLES (1270-1325)
• CHARLES (1421-1461)
• CHARLES (1525-1574)
• CHARLES (c. 1319-1364)
• CHARLES (Fr. Charles; Span. Carlos; Ital. Carlo; Ger. Karl; derived from O.H.G. Charal,latinized as Carolus, meaning originally " man ": cf. Mod.Ger., Kerl," fellow," A.S. ceorl, Mod. Eng. " churl ")
• CHARLES (KARL EITEL ZEPHYRIN LUDWIG; in Rum. CAROL)
• CHARLES [KARL ALEXANDER] (1712-1780)
• CHARLES, ELIZABETH (1828-1896)
• CHARLES, JACQUES ALEXANDRE CESAR (1746-1823)
• CHARLES, THOMAS (1755-1814)

Charles See also:

• BONNET
• BONNET, CHARLES (172o–1793)

Bonnet, and by See also:

• HERDER, JOHANN GOTTFRIED VON (1744-1803)

Herder . It has been mentioned with respect by See also:

• HUME, ALEXANDER (c. 1557-1609)
• HUME, DAVID (1711-1776)
• HUME, JOSEPH (1777-1855)

Hume and by See also:

• SCHOPENHAUER, ARTHUR (1788-186o)

Schopenhauer . See also:

• MODERN

Modern See also:

• THEOSOPHY (from Gr. Oe6s, god, and vogbta, wisdom)

theosophy, which draws its See also:

• INSPIRATION (Lat. inspirare, breathe upon or into)

inspiration from India, has taken metempsychosis as a See also:

• CARDINAL (Lat. cardinalis)

cardinal tenet ; it is, says a See also:

• RECENT

recent theosophical writer, " the See also:

• MASTER (Lat. magister, related to tnagis, more, as the corresponding minister is to minus, less; the English form is due partly to the O. Eng. maegister, and partly to O. Fr. maistre, mod. maitre; cf. Du. meester, Ger. Meister, Ital. maestro)

master-See also:

• KEY
• KEY (in O. Eng. tang; the ultimate origin of the word is unknown; it appears only in Old Frisian kei of other Teutonic languages; until the end of the 17th century the pronunciation was kay, as in other words in O. Eng. ending in aeg; cf. daeg, day; clang
• KEY (the phraseograms being indicated by hyphens)
• KEY, SIR ASTLEY COOPER (1821-1888)
• KEY, THOMAS HEWITT (1799-1875)

key to modern problems,” and among them to the problem of See also:

• HEREDITY

heredity . Outside the somewhat narrow circle of theosophists there is little disposition to accept the doctrine: but it may be See also:

• WORTH
• WORTH, CHARLES FREDERICK (1825-1895)

worth while ,to point out that there are two fatal objections to it .

The first is that See also:

• PERSONAL

personal identity depends on memory, and we do not remember our previous incarnations . The second is that the soul, whatever it may be, is influenced throughout all its qualities by the qualities of the body: modern See also:

• PSYCHOLOGY
• PSYCHOLOGY (>Guxrl, the mind or soul, and X yos, theory)

psychology discredits the idea that the soul is a metaphysical essence which can pass indifferently from one body to another . If (to suppose the impossible) the soul of a dog were to pass into a man's body it would be so changed as to be no longer the same soul; and so, in a less degree, of See also:

• CHANGE (derived through the Fr. from the Late Lat. cambium, cambiare, to barter; the ultimate derivation is probably from the root which appears in the Gr. «a urmu', to bend)

change from one human body to another . See A . Bertholet, The Transmigration of Souls (trans. from the German by H . J . Chaytor); E . Rohde, See also:

• PSYCHE (//vxi7)

Psyche . (H .