[40] should observe, namely that in all language^a the spatial category, the spatial relations, the relation in space^b, are decisive for the grasp of the human mind. Not the OTHER categories are of such primary importance as the category of space. Neither time nor causality nor substance nor quantity or quality, but space is decisive. Why? Because we encounter things within the context of our world in terms of "here" and "now." Things are here; then we can point to them. They are there; we point to them as absent. They are here; we point to them as present. And this is decisive. The now-element is much later. The element of time^c is much more abstract and much more complicated. Therefore the modes of time are not as genuinely expressed in our direct language as the dimension of space. This leads to a phenomenon in language which we call metaphor^d. When we speak about inner experiences, we must use the language^e of outer experience, we must spatialize--not "special-ize," but "spatial-ize," put into spatial relations--even those things which are matters of our inner experience. Now if we do this, then we say we use language metaphorically. In all levels of culture^f which we have discussed, this origin of language^g is still visible. I can now give you immediately an example in terms of the word which I just used, namely "level." "Level" is a spatial term. Levels are strata above each other. Words like "level," "strata," are used in all psychology, in all value realms. Or we speak of higher, lower, up, down. In all levels of man's spiritual activity, wherever language is used at all, there it is used with spatial metaphors. Now this is very important because we will find that this is also a predominant thing in religious symbolism^h. But these are metaphorsⁱ, these are not yet symbols. A meta- phor is not a symbol. The word comes from meta ferein, which means "transferring," transferring an image from one realm to the other. But even so, metaphoric language is still direct language. When we speak of "high" tension in our soul, or of the "lower" levels of our moral behavior, or of the "higher" levels, then we still grasp that reality directly; we don’t use symbols yet, but we use metaphors. And it is important to distinguish symbol and metaphor. Metaphor is based on the fact that the first origin of language is technical, using things as tools, and that words point to things which are FOR something, and which encounter in spatial relations. On this basis, all direct signification has spatial character, and if it is used for other realms of reality, then again it is a