ABSTRACT
An ancient theory teaches us that human life moves in spirals; each constituent circle comprises a period of seven years during which man undergoes a metamorphosis so complete that not even the tiniest tissue of the body remains unchanged. Infancy, adolescence, maturity mark transitions, until the apogee is reached. Then, the decline begins in narrowing curves. An equally ancient theory perceives a thread of continuity through these changing aspects. The conflict of an ever-present essence and everchanging attributes has led to many a philosophical dispute and disclosed many a valuable truth. It is particularly revealing to study the evolution of a great mind; the general tendency, magnified a hundredfold in its concave mirror, affords a better scrutiny of the concomitant processes filled with brusque turns, sudden retreats, and striking apostasies. It is not paradoxical to proclaim an ultimate self-denial as the logical outcome of a great career. The law of change holds its own.
