Page:The International Journal of Psycho-Analysis II 1921 1.djvu/61

 A SHORT STUDY OF THE LIFE AND CHARACTER OF MOHAMMED 53

opposition be crushed and the religion becometh the Lord's alone!"

Thus did the child cry through the mouth of the man, seeking vengeance upon the father; and because of the intensity of the passion and because of the conditions under which it developed and because of the nature of the buried complexes to which the cry made such a profound appeal, one fourth of the human race, and that the unchangeable one, has not been merely influenced but utterly remoulded. So it comes about that after thirteen cen- turies we may observe an Asiatic, apathetic to a degree no ordinary European can comprehend, start up a hero, if appealed to in the name of Mohammed, fling away life with a glad laugh of exul- tation or risk a throne to defend a guest!

That these emotional outbursts are not confined to individuals but may affect whole communities is a phenomenon men of every creed and generation will at least be wise to consider. It is due to its appeal to these hidden sources of feeling that' Islam is still, when its stateliest empires have passed away, and its greatest achievements have been forgotten, the only force able to hurl Asia upon the iron civilisation of Europe. Perhaps after all the findings of modern psychology were anticipated by Renan when he charged Mohammed with inventing a new religion to revenge himself upon his brethren!

Received November 1, 1920.