Freedom-Philosophy and Monism 163CHAPTER 10
FREEDOM-PHILOSOPHY
AND MONISM
Simple people, who acknowledge as real only what they
can see with their eyes and touch with their hands, also re-
quire reasons that are perceptible to the senses for their
moral lives. Such people need someone to communicate
the grounds for action to them in a way that is understand-
able to their senses. And they will allow these grounds for
action to be dictated to them, as commandments, by a per-
son whom they consider wiser and mightier than them-
selves, or whom they acknowledge for some other reason
as a power over them. In this way, as principles of moral-
ity, arise the principles of family, state, church, or divine
authority that were mentioned in the last chapter. Those
who are the most limited in their horizons put all their
faith in some one other person; those who are somewhat
more advanced allow their ethical conduct to be dictated
to them by a majority (state or society). They always rely
on powers they can perceive. Those for whom the convic-
tion finally dawns that these powers are basically human
beings as weak as themselves will seek guidance from a