It is obvious that the matter is a difficult one to approach. But why is it so difficult? In the last analysis, we shall find that the difficulty is based on the prejudices in men's minds, and upon their inner assurance that their particular point of view is necessarily the right one because they themselves live and act in accordance with it, and it suffices for them; it is based on the fact that sex is one of the fundamental primeval urges, one of the substantial instincts, and is consequently the dominating factor in the animal side of man's nature; it is based upon the excessive intimacy of . the subject, - an intimacy which was transmuted into an indecent secret during the periods wherein the race succumbed to an excessive puritanism and prostituted a natural function into a prurient mystery. This intimacy relating to the subject of sex caused it to be regarded as an unmentionable episode, and as a topic to be shunned by decent people, instead of being regarded as an instinctual and natural process, - as instinctual and as necessary as the functions of eating and drinking. It is a function, however, which has not been reduced to rhythm in the [269] daily life and regarded as one to be followed and satisfied only when need arises and right demands. Herein lies a great distinction and a clue is offered to the problem.

Behind all these results of an agelong wrong attitude to the sex function lie two major evils, or rather two major effects of man's actions, mental and physical. These are of dire significance. There is, first of all, the development within man's consciousness of those complexes, those psychoses and psychological disruptions and inhibitions, which have so seriously undermined the health and the serenity of hundreds and thousands of men. There is, secondly, the threatening of the very life of humanity itself, as it is embodied in the family [270] unit and family life. On the one hand, you have promiscuity and over-indulgence in sex relations, which are resulting (and have always resulted) in over-population and an over-production of human beings. On the other hand, you have an enforced sterility which - though in many ways the lesser of the two evils - is eventually dangerous. This sterility is rapidly on the increase. It leads finally to physical conditions which are undesirable. Nevertheless, at this time, it is the lesser of the two evils. Two points might incidentally be noted here. Out of the first of these evils, and as a result of over-production, we have brought about an economic situation of such a drastic and serious nature that the very peace and stability of the world are threatened; out of the second, we should have a gradual disappearance of humanity itself, if enforced sterility should become a universal practice. This would lead to the consequent dominance of the animal world and an immense increase of animal life, and we should have a period of retrogression and not of progress.

In dealing with this subject of sex I shall have to generalize, and the exceptions to the rules laid down and to the suggested classifications will, of course, be many. I am dealing with the subject as a whole, and my topic therefore is the menace of the present attitude, the need for a fuller understanding, and the importance of a rearrangement of men's ideas on this vital matter. The attitude of the unthinking savage to the sex life, and the attitude of the mentally polarized and spiritually oriented initiate to the same subject, may seem so widely dissimilar that on the surface there may appear no point of resemblance; yet basically both of these attitudes are nearer to each other and to the reality than is that of the average man today. The one is controlled by the rhythm of his animal nature, and knows no more of the evil side and of the vile promiscuity of the civilized man than does the [271] animal in its wild state; the other lives his life in a controlled fashion, governing through the power of the mind, and animated by desire for the good of humanity. In between these two approaching extremes, we have the many points of view, the many dissimilar ideas, the many customs, the many types of relation (legitimate and illegitimate), the many animal and psychological reactions, the many forms of marriage, and the many perversions of a natural process which distinguish modern man in all parts of the world. These again vary in the different civilizations and under the influence of the differing climatic conditions.

I cannot and I will not touch upon the medical and physiological aspect of vice, whether it be the vice of promiscuity or the vice of an unhappy marriage. I can best serve you at this time by pointing out the laws which should govern the life of man, particularly where sex is concerned, and by [272] indicating - as far as I can and dare - why and how the present peculiar and unique conditions have been brought about. I may also be able to make certain suggestions which, when duly considered, may help to clear from the mind those false and illusory views which prevent man from seeing truly, and I may thus help him to find the golden thread of light which will lead him to his solution in due time.