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PHILOSOPHY & FUN OF ALGEBRA, Chapter 13, The Great x of the World, part 1

Chapter 13, The Great x of the World, part 1

A great question which people like to quarrel about is:—Who or What made things be as they are? As soon as people grew clever enough to think about anything except scrambling for food and taking care of their own babies, they began quarrelling about Who or What made things be. Nobody knew anything about it; and most people had a great deal to say about it. Moses saw that there was no hope of getting a country orderly while all this confusion was going on; so he said to the Hebrews, “I must not allow all this confusion to go on among a people that I am made responsible for. None of us have ever seen the Maker of things. We can see the things growing, but not the force that makes them. That is our X; our Unknown. We are going to begin by stating that we don't know. We are going to call the Maker of things ‘I Am,' or ‘That which is, whatever it is'; and we are going to make two hypotheses to start with. We are going to try thinking of ‘I Am' as Unity; one, and not several or a fraction. We will also try thinking of ‘I Am' as No-Thing,—we are not going to suppose at present that any particular kind of thing made the rest; we will suppose that ‘I Am' is not a thing. When we find that any particular proceeding or behaviour destroys men, or makes them too sickly or weak or stupid or quarrelsome to manage other creatures and keep the upper hand of the world, we will say, for short, that ‘I Am' does not like or does not intend the people of Isra¨l to go on with that kinde of proceeding or behaviour. “Now these two hypotheses are as much as we can deal with for the present. Anybody who wants to think out other hypotheses than those will have to think to himself, or go out of the country that I am to manage.

“Now we will arrange all the facts that we know round the statement of our own ignorance; and then try our hypotheses on them.


Chapter 13, The Great x of the World, part 1 Kapitel 13, Das große X der Welt, Teil 1 Capítulo 13, La gran x del mundo, parte 1 第13章「世界の偉大なるx」その1 Capítulo 13, O Grande x do Mundo, parte 1 Глава 13 "Великий мир", часть 1

A great question which people like to quarrel about is:—Who or What made things be as they are? Uma grande questão sobre a qual as pessoas gostam de discutir é: - Quem ou o que fez as coisas serem como são? As soon as people grew clever enough to think about anything except scrambling for food and taking care of their own babies, they began quarrelling about Who or What made things be. Assim que as pessoas ficavam espertas o suficiente para pensar em qualquer coisa, exceto em lutar por comida e cuidar de seus próprios bebês, elas começavam a discutir sobre quem ou o que fazia as coisas acontecerem. Nobody knew anything about it; and most people had a great deal to say about it. Ninguém sabia nada sobre isso; e a maioria das pessoas tinha muito a dizer sobre isso. Moses saw that there was no hope of getting a country orderly while all this confusion was going on; so he said to the Hebrews, “I must not allow all this confusion to go on among a people that I am made responsible for. Moisés viu que não havia esperança de colocar um país em ordem enquanto toda essa confusão estava acontecendo; então ele disse aos hebreus: “Não devo permitir que toda essa confusão continue entre um povo pelo qual sou responsável. None of us have ever seen the Maker of things. Nenhum de nós jamais viu o Criador das coisas. We can see the things growing, but not the force that makes them. Podemos ver as coisas crescendo, mas não a força que as faz. That is our X; our Unknown. Esse é o nosso X; nosso desconhecido. We are going to begin by stating that we don't know. Vamos começar afirmando que não sabemos. We are going to call the Maker of things ‘I Am,' or ‘That which is, whatever it is'; and we are going to make two hypotheses to start with. Vamos chamar o Criador das coisas de 'Eu Sou' ou 'Aquilo que é, seja o que for'; e vamos fazer duas hipóteses para começar. We are going to try thinking of ‘I Am' as Unity; one, and not several or a fraction. Vamos tentar pensar em 'Eu Sou' como Unidade; um, e não vários ou uma fração. We will also try thinking of ‘I Am' as No-Thing,—we are not going to suppose at present that any particular kind of thing made the rest; we will suppose that ‘I Am' is not a thing. Também tentaremos pensar em 'Eu Sou' como Não-Coisa - não vamos supor no momento que algum tipo particular de coisa tenha feito o resto; vamos supor que 'eu sou' não é uma coisa. When we find that any particular proceeding or behaviour destroys men, or makes them too sickly or weak or stupid or quarrelsome to manage other creatures and keep the upper hand of the world, we will say, for short, that ‘I Am' does not like or does not intend the people of Isra¨l to go on with that kinde of proceeding or behaviour. Quando descobrimos que qualquer procedimento ou comportamento específico destrói os homens, ou os torna muito doentes, fracos, estúpidos ou briguentos para controlar outras criaturas e manter a vantagem sobre o mundo, diremos, para resumir, que 'eu sou' não gosta ou não pretende que o povo de Israel continue com esse tipo de procedimento ou comportamento. “Now these two hypotheses are as much as we can deal with for the present. “Agora, essas duas hipóteses são o máximo com que podemos lidar no momento. Anybody who wants to think out other hypotheses than those will have to think to himself, or go out of the country that I am to manage. Quem quiser pensar em outras hipóteses terá que pensar consigo mesmo, ou sair do país que devo administrar.

“Now we will arrange all the facts that we know round the statement of our own ignorance; and then try our hypotheses on them. “Agora organizaremos todos os fatos que conhecemos em torno da afirmação de nossa própria ignorância; e, em seguida, tente nossas hipóteses sobre eles.