Induction

The term agnostic was fittingly coined by the 19th-century British scientist Thomas H. Huxley, who believed that only material phenomena were objects of exact knowledge. He made up the word from the prefix a-, meaning “without, not,” as in amoral, and the noun Gnostic. Gnostic is related to the Greek word gn?, “knowledge,” which was used by early Christian writers to mean “higher, esoteric knowledge of spiritual things”; hence, Gnostic referred to those with such knowledge. In coining the term agnostic, Huxley was considering as “Gnostics” a group of his fellow intellectuals—“ists,” as he called them— who had eagerly embraced various doctrines or theories that explained the world to their satisfaction. Because he was a “man without a rag of a label to cover himself with,” Huxley coined the term agnostic for himself, its first published use being in 1870.

Friday, September 9, 2011

Fu 復 11/9/2005

彖傳:
Tuan Zhuan:
復亨；剛反，動而以順行，是以出入無疾，朋來無咎。反復其道，七日來復，天行也。利有攸往，剛長也。復其見天地之心乎？
'Fu indicates the free course and progress (of what it denotes):' - it is the coming back of what is intended by the undivided line. (Its subject's) actions show movement directed by accordance with natural order. Hence 'he finds no one to distress him in his exits and entrances,' and 'friends come to him, and no error is committed.' 'He will return and repeat his proper course; in seven days comes his return:' - such is the movement of the heavenly (revolution). 'There will be advantage in whatever direction movement is made: - the strong lines are growing and increasing. Do we not see in Fu the mind of heaven and earth?
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