Bright Science dost dispel Those Lazy Mists exhal'd from Hell Which stifle Virtue cloud our Day Reflect or else Refract Heav'ns Ray. Thou rescu'st Reason purgest Sense From that Original Offence And as who Lovely Objects spies By the Soul's Spectacles and Burning-Glass the Eyes Catches Love's Fire With far more Vigorous Desire Than others could By what dull Sounds and Hearsay told Such is th' Advantage Thou win'st here As Sight are Sound and Eye o're Ear. Thy clear Proposals gather and draw Heaven in Thro' the Soul 's widen'd Pores and squeez out putrid Sin e Faith but supplies thy room and brings Heav'n wrapt in Words thou writ in Things Faith's Lesson all may read that look But thine 's the Clearer yet the Harder Book Oh Book Oh World Oh Sun clad in thin shade Oh Book the Best and All that God e're made Dull Clods Drops Sparks thou seem'st to be Small Atomes of Great Entity But Big with GOD is thy each part And Vaster Truths far than thy Whole Self art VI. The Architect and Owner of this All Delivered out in Gross The All-rich Ball In Number Measure Weight Proportioned aright And bid us Traffick with 't and thrive But we were at a Loss None could into it's hidden Treasures rightly dive 'Till his Wise Steward Science came Acquainted with her Master's Will And with rare Skill f Did subtly take in pieces the vast Frame And to Heav'ns Merchandize the more to wooe us Detail'd in Parcels and chaw'd small the too-great Morsel to us When Prudence the wise Governess Of Virtue 's Family would try A Pattern of her perfect Managery And Rational Actions her sweet Children dress Fixing upon them in fit places Her whole bright Set of Circumstantial Graces By thy square Science she each Line doth draw And makes thy Word her Rule thy Dictates Law VII g When Virtue her self to Heaven a Journey takes And quaintly dresses Her shining Tresses With the most Curious and Enamouring Art To ravish so the High King's Heart Fair Science thy Bright Eye her Looking-Glass she makes In thine Eye Reasons best Mirrour She can spy each slender Errour And the least Blemish of Deformity h What 's wrinkled loosely set or pinn'd awry i When Musick would the ravish'd Soul beguile To dwell in the Ear 's Labyrinth a while Nature's well-ecchoing Musick-room Whither repairs A pretty Quire of nimble light-foot Ayres Ferry'd o're in quavering Undulations Interwoven on a thousand Fashions And there presents an unseen Masque of Sounds Sent from the Tattling Strings or Whistling Pipes Rebounds While She makes Friends in Consort each Discording Part Her Art tunes Instruments but Science tunes her Art VIII Thou art that Bright Reserve of Light For the Wise Church when grown From Unripe Nonage to her Manly Noon Her Youth's School-Master dark Credulity Too weak to govern mankind now a Child no longer But fit for th' University Will her dear Charge to Thee in Part resign And those Soul-binding Charms of thine To govern such a Free-born Subject stronger GOD is the Fountain-Sun Thou his ne're-changing Moon That deal'st as great a share of Borrow'd Light As can consist with our Flesh-veiled sight Fair Dawning to Bright Bliss Dark Nature's fullest Noon IX But ah my lisping Lyre Is now quite spent yet Thou art still Intire Farewel Bright Science thrice farewel Yet part not from My Soul such kind of Houses use to be thy Home Nature has built Thee there fine k Christal Rooms And I will wooe Virtue her self to strow There for Thee her Best Perfumes The Fabrick thou 'lt embrave beyond all Art and Praise With thy own Soul-guilding Rayes There there vouchsafe to dwell There there farewel Farewel in me and thy Dear Self improve To Full Light in my Head and in my Heart Firm Love FINIS ANNOTATIONS a WHat is meant here by Science is already declar'd in the Preface viz. All those Knowledges whether acquir'd by Prayer or Study which superadded to Faith are apt to render it Lively And indeed should we restrain the common signification of that word which imports no more but Knowledge to the Stricter Sense in which the Schools take it nothing ought even speaking of Natural Objects in true speech to be called Science unless it be in some Sort deriv'd from God and by means of that Derivation be apt to raise us to the Knowledge of Him For since all Truths are Connected and Science is the Knowing of things by their Causes hence only such Knowledges as relate to the First Truth and inform us of the Derivation of Things from the First Cause or of their Connexion with it can pretend to the Honour of being reputed True Sciences For which reason the Epicureans who deny a First Cause and hold all things to be done by Chance can lay no Claim to Scientifical Knowledge of any thing in Nature Whence of all other Sects of Philosophers Their Principles are the most Absurd Precarious and Inconsistent Moreover Science is intended to Perfect the Understanding Faculty but when 't is Practical and fits the Soul for Action that is in our case for the Love of God then 't is Full Lively and in that state which makes Science be as it should be that is Unmixt with Ignorance Whereas when 't is meerly Speculative and Unactive 't is Weak Faint ofttimes Airy and alwayes as to Heaven Vseless and by reason of it's Imperfection being alloy'd with some degree of Ignorance it degenerates from the Sincere and Genuine nature of Knowledge For it is to be noted that Virtue and Science are here treated of as in their Abstracted Ideas or as perfectly depur'd from all their Imperfections as may be seen in the third Stanza upon Virtue and in the 7th and 8th Stanzas here With which it may well consist that there may be many inferior Degrees of both of them that are not acquired either by Art of Contemplation but are Instill'd by the Common Doctrine and Discipline of the Church which may suffice to bring Souls to Heaven sooner or later tho' they may not perhaps come so high as to dispose them Immediately for the Beatifical Vision this being only attainable by those who are Pure in Heart and cleans'd from all Inordinate By-Affections to Creatures which requires more than Common Illuminations b For the Connatural way to Love any things is to Know and Conceit Lively the Goodness that is in it and therefore Regularly and in due order of Nature according to the Express and Lively Knowledge a Soul has of Coelestial Goods so great in proportion is her Love of them Whence whenever she falls into Sin or Loves not Heaven as she ought 't is because some Temporary or False Good making a more Agreeable Appearance to her at that unlucky Season the Knowledge of the Incomparable Good of Heaven which she had before is Darken'd and Dimm'd by Passion or which is the same by too much affection to some Creature according to that saying of Divines Omnis
dispences And transpires its Influences Which in Soul-quickening Rayes sent down Our dry and barren Earth with show'rs of Blessings crown Thy Fragrant Breast Is a Phoenix Cherub's Nest Where she does brooding sit k On thousand Birds of Paradise i' th' shell as yet Which with a Wise Impatiency Peck and spurn at their Prison to get free And ripe to be released they Chirp at the Dawning Glimpse of their Immortal Day Poor Unfledg'd things whose Pinions aym Heav'n's Eye And in their Downy Nonage meditate the Sky VIII Sum up thy Thoughts my Soul sum up thy Treasure This All 's too Poor of Worth and Time 's too Short a Leasure Thy dearest Saint In Form and Colours worthy Her to Paint Alas what can be found In Nature's Round l Whether we look up to those Nimble things Fancy-clad with Wings Or down to this dull-pac'd Corporeal Sphere m Nature's Well-furnish'd Shop of Instrumental Ware From neither can w' expect other Supplies But Raggs of being Torn in thin Formalities Too narrow far To define Her In whom Each single Good and Sweet Do in a Sacred Eminency meet IX Be then thy Self Dear Saint be Thine Own Beauty Our Slender Fancies shall not dare To injure Thee who art supremely Fair By a detractingly-Officious Duty Be still thy own Pure Self admit no Leaven For if thou beest Thy Self thou'lt be a Heaven Heav'n wrapt up in the Oar thou art refin'd To Glory when we 're made all Mind Life of oft self-reflected Grace-directed Reason Still ripe to act when Providence points the Season Spirit of Spirits Seraphick Quintessence Which none but such Pure Fires As Heav'n it self inspires n Blown too by God's own Breath can extract thence Balsom of Souls whose Vigour when it leaves 'em Nought from Eternal Death and Sin 's Corruption saves ' em Suburbs or Gate to Heav'ns Metropolis Planter of Paradise and Seed of Bliss The Flow'ry High Way to my Endless End My Loveliest and my Everlasting Friend Oh may no Loves Master this Heart of Mine But that Dear Mistress of Sweet Thee and Thine FINIS ANNOTATIONS a BY Virtue is meant that Queen of all Virtues Charity or an Intire Love of God no Virtue being truly and indeed such but That which directs all our Actions to our True Last End and only Sovereign Good the Enjoyment of Him This and none but This being able to Satiate Man's Natural Inclination and Propension to Happiness No wonder then the most elaborate Expressions fall short of reaching the Character Due to such a Transcendent Excellency This being the Highest Perfection of which a Creature can be capable in this world Since none is or can be above it but that which is beyond all our Conceptions the Vnspeakable State of Glory or the Actual Fruition of God as in Himself b After the Author had disgrac't the Idle Courtships and Ridiculous Flatteries us'd by the common sort of Poets to their Worldly Mistresses he addresses himself to Invoke his Spiritual Mistress Virtue and so makes the same which was his Subject or Theme to be his Must also And to ennoble his Conceptions as much as may be he raises his Thoughts to contemplate Her in that most Perfect State in which she will be found in every Holy Soul at the Last Day when all Venial Imperfections exprest by St. Paul by the Metaphors of Hay Stubble c. which alloy'd the purity of Heavenly Love in most of them shall be purged away by the Ravishing Sight of their Dear Saviour whom they had loved here chiefly tho' not so perfectly as they ought now appearing in his Glory and coming to deliver them from their tormenting Pains caused by their suspensive Hope of their long-delay'd and earnestly-desir'd Bliss and from those pains of Sense also which they endur'd for their By-Affection and Undue Adhesion to Creatures the love to which they did not so entirely order to the Love of Heaven Let then the Readers but fancy to themselves that Ardency of Divine Love which at the World 's happy Period when the Course of Nature now for ever useless shall be at a Stand and Time shall be no more will transport those Holy Souls and instate them in the Eternal Inheritance of those Blissful Mansions Let them next reflect on what Faith assures them that either they must strive to store up in their Souls while they are here that Disposition which and which only can immediately fit them for Heaven or they must be eternally Miserable if thy wholly neglect it or else suffer unspeakable Torments in the Intermediate State if they but slightly cultivate their Minds with Virtue Let I say Loose Livers and Tepid Souls but reflect steadily on these two Points and it must needs excite in them a Sollicitous care to improve their Wills with a fervent Love of Heaven which may be with less labour attained and at a far easier rate purchast here that hereafter c The Whole Material World was created for the Salvation of good Souls and consequently to breed and nourish them up in Virtue without which Salvation is Vnattainable and Impossible And 't is the peculiar effect of Charity or Virtue to order all those Creatures we make use of as Means to compass that Best End Whence by the Rule of Contraries we may gather the Hideous Enormity of Sin which consisting in the Chusing some Creature for our Ultimate End and in the Directing all our Actions to the Attaining and Enjoying that Perishable and False Good does of it's own nature disorder all the World and ravel it into a wrong Frame and Method and would actually Pervert the Order of the Universe did not the Infinite Goodness of God to support his own Work and supply the Failings of his Weak Creatures mercifully bring a Greater Good to the World out of their Miscarriages make a More perfect Harmony Spring out of that Confusion and so contrive things that the Vices of the Wicked should advance Holy and well-meaning Souls to a higher pitch of Virtue d As Vulgar Poets use to extoll their Worldly Mistresses for their rare Nature the Composition and Symmetry of their Bodies the Gracefulness and Beauty of their Face the Agreeableness of their Humour the Sweetness of their Breath and Deliciousness of their Breasts so all these Considerations are turn'd here to a Spiritual Sense in Commendation of Virtue under each of these Respects e Anaxagoras the Philosopher held the Soul was made of Harmony Too Musical a Conceit unless meant as here that she is a Principle of Order And certainly of all Orders That is the most Harmonious best proportion'd and Exact which directs every thing to Man's True Last End for which his nature was Created A Property only belonging to Charity or Virtue f For the Order of Sublunary things passing thro' the hands of Creatures who are Themselves disabled by Weakness or disorderd with Passion and therefore in both regards Imperfect Agents does oftentimes seem Straggling and Perplext And only the Supream
to the World they have a special Title to such Dedications I declare at the same time that their Virtuous Education and Personal Endowments are such as render them capable of understanding the most solid Grounds of Christian Morality and of benefiting Themselves by such Productions as exceed the reach of those Ladies who are not far above the common Levell of their Sex and Quality The Annotations may in one passage or two seem too speculative But I desire it may be consider'd that those speculations that are Aiery and Phantastick are indeed justly Blameable but that those which are nothing but a deep Search and Inspection into the Nature of the Thing which is under consideration as I am well assur'd these are cannot justly be taxed with any thing but their being too well-grounded and too solid which are such Good Faults that they can need no Excuse Nor can any thing be deem'd too Obscure which the dayly Course of our Christian Life with a due Reflexion on our Interiour will after a while beat out Plain to us and requite our Industry and Patience with the Evidence and Satisfaction it will bring along with it when 't is fully comprehended J. S. DEDICATION To Her GRACE The DUTCHESS of RICHMOND LO Madam here 's a Noble Guest Bespeaks a Room in your good Breast She seems a Stranger and Unknown Attir'd i' th' Mode of Helicon At a late Visit given her there By a Maiden Muse with Child of Her But if Y' unveil the Tiffany Dress Her Friend there lent her she 'll confess Her self Your Inmate vow'd to dwell Constantly in Your Heart 's dear Cell 'T was Orderd by Heaven's Kind Decree Your Soul should be her Landlady Your choicest Entertainment bring For this Great Daughter to Heavens King Of Your Heart Adorn each room With purest Thoughts with Prayer perfume Who thus receives her nothing loses She all her Father's Gifts disposes The Title she will give You is Heiress to Eternal Bliss And your Aim at True Glory to advance Whole Heaven will be your Rich Inheritance To VIRTUE His Soul's Mistress Stanza I. a FAir Maid of Honour to Heaven's Court What Pencil or what Colours be Fit to Resemble or even Emblem Thee To Fancy whom lifts Art into Transport I am all Extaâ—… When I mean Thee Dear Ravisher of Hearts and Brains Each High-Expressive Attribute Lisps or is mute Blazons of Honour prove but Blots and Stains Courtship which racks Truth is Detraction here Complements in Realities disappear II. Hence you Untutour'd Wits whose Vein Is onely Gallant when Prophane Your Chattering Muse is hoarse where the High Theme Leaves no Power to Blaspheme Your Aiery Art affords But Empty Lying Words Slandering Heav'n and All-rich Nature To Flatter one poor Clayie Creature Stars Violets Gems and Spice Roses and Paradise All are dissolv'd into Loose Rhyme Which to Hell's service movingly does Chime Are all distill'd by fulsome soultry Fires Of Cole-black Lust-enkindled Desires T' Extract alas a Motley Mistress thence Vice's and Vanity's Compound Quintessence Bold Chymists that dare try What God and Nature both deny Dust-creeping things be gone Your Highest Musick is but Hisses Th' Old Serpents Tone When he belov'd Corruption devours with Kisses Let Chloris Celia and that Idol-Crew Your Wanton Dotages pack all away with you And in their ill-fill'd Room Let Virtue Heavens-Enamouring Darling come III. Virtue dear Virtue Hark how the lovely Sound Climbing its Native Sky Compendiously Ecchoes the Sphere's whole Consort at each sweet Rebound While my Joy-ravish't Soul sweet Virtue sings All Heaven 's concern'd and Counter-rings Tun'd to the Self-same Key By Mysterious Sympathy Such sweet and secret Force has Correspondency Dear Virtue my Soul's Queen b Come and come Glorious as thou would'st be seen By they Dread Lord when at his Session's Day He shall the Palsy'd World in Flames survey And with the purest Beam of his Bright Eye Thy Mettal try And with one Powerful Glance Purge all thy Gross Allay In that dazling Form appear Nor fear Lest our Flesh-veiled Sight Cannot sustain thy pure Meridian Light True we are dim-ey'd Bats and dwell Bright Virtue in a dark and gloomy Cell Yet Starry Lights and Thine More needfully do shine Cimmerian Midnight to expel Deal forth a gentle Ray And create a New-born Day Which in Red Letters We Will Write and Consecrate to thy Dear Memory We with Devoutest Incense will it feast And every Sweet of the Arabian Nest IV. Lo where she comes she comes amain c And Nature's whole Great Houshold in her Train All prest by Reason's Law to follow Her Th' Obedient Well-train'd Band Stands still moves forward turns at Her Command To Heaven their Procession is and she The Van does lead Nor ought they tread In their Calm March One Step until her Beck they see Or if some grow disorder'd and do All Natures Well-Rank't Army grows Disorder'd too 'T is She allies Our Sublunary World to the Bright Skies She is the Wedding-Ring 'twixt God and Nature If any poor Exalted Creature Heav'n's Blest Affinity partakes Virtue the Marriage and Relation makes She stands between A Reconciling not Dividing Screen 'T is Love alone That can Two Spirits joyn in One. V. Being which in its Notion's spacious room All possible Perfections does enwomb Could not in her whole Line a Scale contrive By Steps at Heav'n t' arrive Add new Gradations until You fill All the far-stretched Length in Numbers Row In multiply'd Excesses let Proportions grow and grow Still still that Entity sinks infinitely Infinity below Let Great Creation exert its utmost Skill It's Product's but deep Nothing 's Valley to Heav'n's Topless Hill Whither t' arrive transcends oh far transcends Impossible Unless Great Virtue Heav'n's next Neighbour stand On th' top of Causes Climax and there lend a hand To help the Lame tho' Winged Spirits on high T' attain and reach th' else-Inaccess'ble Deity VI. d Thy Essence is of Harmony composed e That Old Philosopher had said true Had he meant You Soul to the World and our Souls too A Map of Symmetry Best Epitomizes Thee In Order's perfect'st Mould disposed f Order as when New Coyn'd in Heav'n's High Mint Retaining still the All-Wise All-Good Finger's Print A Calm Sereneness is thy proper Grace Smooth as a smiling Angel's Face g Oh thou' rt all Smile Smile shadows best thy Feature One constant serious Smile of well-pleas'd Nature A never-clouded Genuine Smile Not coyn'd fond Lovers to beguile To tempt Loose Vanity Or guild some Complemental Lye Thou 'st better Arts T'eamour Hearts Thy Strict Chast Cold yet Mild and Sweet Indifferency All Love is Feavour and Physick needs Which thy Just Temperament exceeds VII When thou breath'st thy Breath is Prayer Exhaling Thee in Perfum'd Ayre In such Ayr Angels wave their Wings With such Ayr the Seraph sings Such Ayr the Heavenly Dove Wafts down or if above h Seemingly a while it stays i This Ayr our interchanged sighs conveys Thro' such Ayr Kind Heav'n