onably rational or consciously
intelligent, there was not among them the thousandth part of the
anxious worrying, the sentimental self-seeking and examination, or the
Introversion which worms itself in and out of, and through and
through, all modern work, action and thought, even as mercury in an
air-pump will permeate the hardest wood. For the Greeks worked more in
the spirit of Instinct; that is, more according to certain transmitted
laws and ideas than we realize--albeit this tradition was of a very
high order. We have lost Art because we have not developed tradition,
but have immensely increased consciousness, or reflection, out of
proportion to art It was from India and Egypt in a _positive_ form
that Man drew the poison of sentimental Egoism which became
comparative in the Middle Ages and superlative in this our time.

It is very evident that as soon as men become self-conscious of great
work, or cease to work for the sake of enjoying Art, or its results,
and turn all their attention to the genius or cleverness, or character
or style, self, _et cetera_, of the _artist_, or of themselves, a
decadence sets in, as there did after the Renaissance, when knowledge
or enjoyment of Art was limited, and guided by familiarity with names
and schools and "manners," or the like, far more than by real beauty
in itself.

Now, out of all this which I have said on Art, strange conclusions may
be drawn, the first being that even without self-conscious Thought or
excess of Intellect, there can be a Sense of Enjoyment in any or every
organism, also a further development of memory of that enjoyment, and
finally a creation of buildings, music and song, with no reflection,
in animals, and very little in Man. And when Man gets beyond working
with simple Nature and begins to think chiefly about himself, his Art,
as regards harmony with Nature, deteriorates.

We do not sufficiently reflect on the fact that _Natura naturans_, or
the action of Nature (or simply following Tradition), may, as is the
case of Transition Architecture, involve the creation of marvelously
ingenious and beautiful works, and the great enjoyment of them by
Instinct alone. It is not possible for ordinary man to even understand
this now in all its fullness. He is indeed trying to do so--but it is
too new for his comprehension. But a time will come when he will
perceive that his best work has been done unconsciously, or under
influences of which he was ignorant.

Hy