No Arabian writer is quoted so often, and spoken of with so much universal admiration. The variety of subjects on which he wrote astonishes even the learned,
and the philosopher is surprised to see this Arab of the Middle Age resolving questions which remained prob- lems to Europeans for many centuries after him. Ma- sudi knew not only the historj"^ of the Eastern nations, but also ancient history, and that of the Europeans of his time. He had thoroughly studied the different re- ligions of mankind — Mohammedanism, Christianity, the doctrines of Zoroaster and Confucius, and the idolatry of barbarous nations. No Arabian writer can boast, like him, of learning at once profound and almost universal. Unfortunately, however, IMasudi wanted method in ar- ranging the prodigious number of facts which a rare memory never failed to supply him with while he was writing. He illustrates the history of the geography of the West with analogies or contrasts taken from Chi- na or Arabia; he avails himself of his knowledge of Christianity to eluciJate the creeds of the different Mo- hammedan sects ; and, while he informs the reader of the mj-steries of the extreme North, he will all at once for- get his subject, and transfer him into the Desert of Sa- hara. For a list of his works, which are mostly extant only in MS., see the English CyclopKEdia, s. v,
Matali, in Hindu mytholog}', is the charioteer of Indra. See Williams, Ti-anslaiion ofSahuntala, Act VI.
Mater Dolorosa, or Lady of Sorrow, is the tech- nical term given to such portraits of the Virgin Mary as represent her alone, weeping or holding the cro\ra of thorns. " She appears alone," says Mrs. Jameson {Le- gends of the Madonna, p. 36), " a seated or standing fig- ure, often the head or half-length only, the hands clasp- ed, the head bowed in sorrow, tears streaming from the heavy eyes, and the whole expression intensely mourn- ful. The features are properly those of a woman in
Representation of the Mater Dolorosa. (After Murillo.)
middle age ; but in later times the sentiment of beauty predominated over that of the mother's agony, and I have seen the sublime Mater Dolorosa transformed into a merelj' beautiful and youthful maiden, with such an air of sentimental grief as might be felt for the loss of a sparrow." It is common also to represent the Virgin with a sword in her bosom, and even with seven swortis, in allusion to the seven sorrows (Luke ii, 35) — a version of the allegorical prophecy which the Romanists have found quite profitable for the interests of the hierarchy. There are fe;v Roman Catholic churches without this representation of ]\Lary. See Stabat Matei;.
Mater Speciosa, or Lady of Joy, the counterpart of the hymn of " Mater Dolorosa.'" See Stabat Ma- ter.
Materialism may be defined as that system of philosophy which considers matter as the fundamental principle of all things, and consequently denies abso- lutely the independence and autonomy of the spirit. It
MATERIALISM
873
MATERIALISM
is sometimes considered as synonymous with Naiural- ■Ism, yet this is erroneous, for there is a difference be- tween the notions of nature and matter. It is also called bv some Sensualism, which is more correct, yet only ex- presses one of the characteristics of the theory of mate- rialism. In a more extended sense, the expression ma- terialism is made to signify the whole of the practical results which, consciously or unconsciously, flow from such philosophy, and whose final object, although some- times restrained by considerations of prudence or expe- diency, is sensual enjoyment in its fullest sense.
Materialism, strictly viewed, is the doctrine that all spirit, so called, is material in its substance, and is subject to the laws which govern the composition of material particles and the activity of material forces. Strictly construed, it is a psj'chological doctrine or theory ; but, as it implies certain philosophical assumptions or princi- ples, it makes a place for itself in the domain of specu- lative philosophy. Its assumptions and conclusions are also fundamental to theology. If its positions are tena- ble, theology is impossible. If the human soul is but another name for an aggregation of material particles, it cannot exist when these particles are sundered. Al- though it is conceivable that these particles may be so minute as aiot necessarily to be distiu^bed by the dissolu- tion of the larger particles which constitute the body, yet this is too improbable to relieve the materialistic theory from the charge of being inconsistent with the possibility of a future life. The moral relations of the soul must be entirely inconsistent with its subjection to the laws which govern matter and its activities, and these moral relations give to theology — certainlj'' to Christian theology — all its interest. If the assumptions of materialism are correct, there can be no intelligent and personal Creator. Creation itself is inconceivable, and therefore impossible.
A significant fact, which strikes one at first on the study of the history of materialism, is that it never ap- pears as a power among the masses in the early stages of civilization. On the contrary, we find that in all na- tions a more or less perfect spiritual contemplation of nature forms the first step towards religious conscious- ness. This fact is a sufficient answer in itself to the as- sertion that materialism is the original and true form of human consciousness. On the other hand, we find materialism spreading among the masses in the nations which have attained the culminating point of their civ- ilization. It becomes, then, the premonitory sign of their downfall, being already an evidence of their moral and spiritual decay.