In this connection it must be noted that the ideas were not given us in the form in which they are set out in my lectures. G. gave the ideas little by little, as though defending or protecting them from us. When touching on new themes for the first time he gave only general principles, often holding back the most essential. Sometimes he himself pointed out apparent discrepancies in the theories given, which were, in fact, precisely due to these reservations and suppressions. The next time, in approaching the same subject, whenever possible from a different angle, he gave more. The third time he gave still more. On the question of functions and centers for instance. On the first occasion he spoke of three centers, the intellectual, the emotional, and the moving, and tried to make us distinguish these functions, find examples, and so on. Afterwards the instinctive center was added, as an independent and self-supporting machine. Afterwards the SEX CENTER. I remember that some of his remarks arrested my attention. For instance, when speaking of the SEX CENTER he said it practically never worked independently because it was always dependent on other centers, the intellectual, the emotional, the instinctive, and the moving. Then in speaking of the energy of centers he often returned to what he called wrong workwork of centers and to the role of the SEX CENTER in this work. He spoke a great deal about how all centers rob the SEX CENTER of its energy and produce with this energy quite wrong work full of useless excitement and, in return, give to the SEX CENTER useless energy with which it was unable to work. Fragments: Three

“It is a very big thing when the SEX CENTER works with its own energy, but it happens very seldom.” Fragments: Three

I recollect another remark which afterwards proved a ground for much wrong reasoning and many wrong conclusions. This was that the three centers of the lower story: the instinctive, the moving, and the SEX CENTERs, work, in relation to each other, in the order of three forces — and that the SEX CENTER, in normal cases, acts as neutralizing force in relation to the instinctive and moving centers acting as active and passive forces. Fragments: Three

‘They can,” said G., “and to them must be added the SEX CENTER. These are the three centers of the lower story. The SEX CENTER is the neutralizing center in relation to the instinctive and the moving centers. The lower story can exist by itself, because the three centers in it are the conductors of the three forces. The thinking and the emotional centers are not indispensable for life.” Fragments: Six

“People have tried abstinence from times beyond memory. Sometimes, very rarely, it has led to something but in most cases what is called abstinence is simply exchanging normal sensations for abnormal, because the abnormal are more easily hidden. But it is not about this that I wish to speak. You must understand where lies the chief evil and what makes for slavery. It is not in sex itself but in the abuse of sex. But what the abuse of sex means is again misunderstood. People usually take this to be either excess or perversion. But these are comparatively innocent forms of abuse of sex. And it is necessary to know the human machine very well in order to grasp what abuse of sex in the real meaning of these words is. It means the wrong workwork of centers in relation to sex, that is, the action of the SEX CENTER through other centers, and the action of other centers through the SEX CENTER; or, to be still more precise, the functioning of the SEX CENTER with energy borrowed from other centers and the functioning of other centers with energy borrowed from the SEX CENTER.” Fragments: Twelve

“With what ‘hydrogen’ does the SEX CENTER work?” asked another. Fragments: Twelve

“The SEX CENTER works with ‘hydrogen’ 12,” he said on this occasion, “that is to say, it ought to work with it. This is si 12. But the fact is that it very rarely works with its proper hydrogen. Abnormalities in the working of the SEX CENTER require special study. Fragments: Twelve

“In the first place it must be noted that normally in the SEX CENTER as well as in the higher emotional and the higher thinking centers, there is no negative side. In all the other centers except the higher ones, in the thinking, in the emotional, in the moving, in the instinctive, in all of them there are, so to speak, two halves — the positive and the negative; affirmation and negation, or ‘yes’ and ‘no,’ in the thinking center, pleasant and unpleasant sensations in the moving and instinctive centers. There is no such division in the SEX CENTER. There are no positive and negative sides in it. There are no unpleasant sensations or unpleasant feelings in it; there is either a pleasant sensation, a pleasant feeling, or there is nothing, an absence of any sensation, complete indifference. But in consequence of the wrong workwork of centers it often happens that the SEX CENTER unites with the negative part of the emotional center or with the negative part of the instinctive center. And then, stimulation of a certain kind of the SEX CENTER, or even any stimulation at all of the SEX CENTER, calls forth unpleasant feelings and unpleasant sensations. People who experience unpleasant feelings and sensations which have been evoked in them through ideas and imagination connected with sex are inclined to regard them as a great virtue or as something original; in actual fact it is simply disease. Everything connected with sex should be either pleasant or indifferent. Unpleasant feelings and sensations all come from the emotional center or the instinctive center. Fragments: Twelve

“This is the ‘abuse of sex.’ It is necessary, further, to remember that the SEX CENTER works with ‘hydrogen’ 12. This means that it is stronger and quicker than all other centers. Sex, in fact, governs all other centers. The only thing in ordinary circumstances, that is, when man has neither consciousness nor will, that holds the SEX CENTER in submission is ‘buffers.’ ‘Buffers’ can entirely bring it to nought, that is, they can stop its normal manifestation. But they cannot destroy its energy. The energy remains and passes over to other centers, finding expression for itself through them; in other words, the other centers rob the SEX CENTER of the energy which it does not use itself. The energy of the SEX CENTER in the work of the thinking, emotional, and moving centers can be recognized by a particular ‘taste,’ by a particular fervor, by a vehemence which the nature of the affair concerned does not call for. The thinking center writes books, but in making use of the energy of the SEX CENTER it does not simply occupy itself with philosophy, science, or politics — it is always fighting something, disputing, criticizing, creating new subjective theories. The emotional center preaches Christianity, abstinence, asceticism, or the fear and horror of sin, hell, the torment of sinners, eternal fire, all this with the energy of the SEX CENTER. … Or on the other hand it works up revolutions, robs, bums, kills, again with the same energy. The moving center occupies itself with sport, creates various records, climbs moun­tains, jumps, fences, wrestles, fights, and so on. In all these instances, that is, in the work of the thinking center as well as in the work of the emotional and the moving centers, when they work with the energy of the SEX CENTER, there is always one general characteristic and this is a certain particular vehemence and, together with it, the uselessness of the work in question. Neither the thinking nor the emotional nor the moving centers can ever create anything useful with the energy of the SEX CENTER. This is an example of the ‘abuse of sex.’ Fragments: Twelve

“But this is only one aspect of it. Another aspect consists in the fact that, when the energy of the SEX CENTER is plundered by the other centers and spent on useless work, it has nothing left for itself and has to steal the energy of other centers which is much lower and coarser than its own. And yet the SEX CENTER is very .important for the general activity, and particularly for the inner growth of the organism, because, working with ‘hydrogen’ 12, it can receive a very fine food of impressions, such as none of the ordinary centers can receive. The fine food of impressions is very important for the manufacture of the higher ‘hydrogens.’ But when the SEX CENTER works with energy that is not its own, that is, with the comparatively low ‘hydrogens’ 48 and 24, its impressions become much coarser and it ceases to play the role in the organism which it could play. At the same time union with, and the use of its energy by, the thinking center creates far too great an imagination on the subject of sex, and in addition a tendency to be satisfied with this imagination. Union with the emotional center creates sentimentality or, on the contrary, jealousy, cruelty. This is again a picture of the ‘abuse of sex.’” Fragments: Twelve

“The role of the SEX CENTER in creating a general equilibrium and a permanent center of gravity can be very big. According to its energy, that is to say, if it uses its own energy, the SEX CENTER stands on a level with the higher emotional center. And all the other centers are subordinate to it. Therefore it would be a great thing if it worked with its own energy. This alone would indicate a comparatively very high level of being. And in this case, that is, if the SEX CENTER worked with its own energy and in its own place, all other centers could work correctly in their places and with their own energies.” Fragments: Twelve