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A02493
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The vanitie of the eye first beganne for the comfort of a gentlewoman bereaved of her sight, and since vpon occasion enlarged & published for the common good. By George Hakewill Master of Arts, and fellow of Exeter Coll. in Oxford.
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Hakewill, George, 1578-1649.
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1615
(1615)
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STC 12622; ESTC S103636
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52,423
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194
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good and bad iust and vniust honest and dishonest without the variety of colours could he liue happyly without the knowledge of thinges hee could not and when others saw not that which lay before their â—eeâ—e he travelled through al infinity setting no stintâ— to his boundlesse conceipt and surely I for my part am clearely of opinion that howbeit his practise in this case be not allowed much lesse his example toâ— bee followed yet the reason and ground of the action was not so strange and ridiculous as some men haue conceited it it being a necessary certaine meanes for the vnity of the thoughts and by it redoubling of their force which by the sight are commonly distracted in the varietie of obiects by consequent loose much even of their naturall stâ—eÌ„gth the truth of this assertioÌ„ partly appeares in that little but excellent descriptioÌ„ of the Spaniards life in which among all the masters of al coÌ„ditions whoÌ„ Lazarillo de Tormes served we finde none comparable to his blinde master for the smelling out of his knaveries but yet more fully in our night meditations which by reason of the restraint of our sight spring from our most retired thoughts and by that meanes for the most part savour as much of iudgement and ripenesse as those of the morning of quicke and ready dispatch for which cause as I suppose the Greekes haue given the same name to the night and good invention and one of the sharpest Philosophers that ever put pen to paper borrowed his name from darknesse Besides it is noted of our Saviour whose imitable actions ought ever to be our patterns that hee prayed oftner in the night or alone in the garden or vpon the mountaine then in the daie or in the presence of company and himselfe commands vs the practise of the same exercise retired a part and our chamber dore shut surely reason me thinks teacheth vs thus much that the soule being shut vppe and kept in from peeping out and as it were gazing abroad through the casements of the body shee must by coâ—straint reflect her beames vpon the conâ—emplation of her selfe and such thinges as shee hath before apprehended CAP. 22. Containing an answer to an obiection that man alone hath therfore given him an vpright figure of body to the end he might behold the heavens IF anie heere obiect that God hath given man aboue all other creatures an erect and vpright countenance and as the Anatomists haue observed one nerue more theÌ„ to bruit beastes for the turning of the eie vpward to the ende hee might beholde the heavens and in them as in large characters drawn in faire velom the glory of their maker I answere that man indeed considered in the state of integrity might would haue made excellent vse thereof but in the state of corruption the greatest part either thereby are induced to Idolatry as hath bin before shewed or which is no lesse pardonable with Thales whiles they looke vp into heaven fal into the ditch of curiosity and presumption and from the contemplation of the starres notwithstaÌ„ding that in producing particular effects they coÌ„curre only as vniversall causes rushing into the chaire of God haue peremptorily decreed of the alteratioÌ„ of whole states the destinies of Princes and private men secrets no doubt sealed vp and fast locked within the bosome of the eternall wisâ—dome but only when it selfe pleaseth vpon extraordinary occasions to disclose to impart them to the sonnes of men and which is worth the observing whiles these men pretend to â—ee in the stars the notable actions and events of the whole world as Menippus is â—abled to haue don from the circle of the moone yet knowe they not many times what is acted in their owne closets by their owne servants and children or with their wiues daughters in their own houses Paralell with these figure-flinggers may not vnfitly be matched those fortune-tellers who vndertake to foretell men and womens marriages fortunes by their pretended art of Physiognomie and chiromancie the one coÌ„â—isting in beholding the traies of the visage the other the lines of the hande but the folly of both appeares in that one wise answere of Socrates to a professour of these artes who looking stedfastly on him and out of the grouÌ„ds of his profession pronouncing him to be vitiously given Socrates replies that indeed he said somewhat if a man lived as a beast and followed the disposition of his inbred corrupt nature not rectified by education or morall verture CAP. 23. Setting downe at large the hinderances of the eie in the service of God NOW to proceede from the little service which the eie performes vs in the gaining of knoweledge to the ill offices which it supplies in spiritual exercises let every man in this case but examine his owne conscience either when himselfe speakes to God in prayer or when God speakes to him in preaching which two are as it were the ascending and descending Angels in Iacobs ladder he shal surely finde that the divâ—l takes occasioÌ„ to withdraw his mind froÌ„ the â—crious thoughts of those exercises by nothinge more then by the wandring of the eie For the prevention of which mischiefe vvee see those that are appointed to die in commending theÌ„selues to God before the stroake of iustice and others as well at thansgiving at meals as other publike praiers close their eies and cover their faces which howbeit soÌ„e others censure yet do I nothing doubt but the practise of it fiâ—st grewe out of a sensible feeling of this kinde of temptation Whence it is that S. Paul commands wome to be couered in the church by reason of the Angels either least the bad Angels by that means take occasion to stirre vpp ill thoughts as some interpreters thinke or lest the minister who is elsewhere named the Angell of God should thereby take offence as others are of opinioÌ„ which custome remained amoÌ„g the Corinthians vnto whom S. Paul wrot this epistle vnto Tertullians time as himselfe witneseth in his booke de velandis virginibus in which he disputs excelleÌ„tly for this preseÌ„t purpose Such saith he are the eies of the virgin that desires to be seene as those that desire to see her the saÌ„â— kind of eies desire interchangably to see one another and it proceeds from the same roote the forwardnes to see to be seen wherefore let the virgin fly to her head coâ—ering as to her helmet or targâ—t by which she may defend her selfe against the assaults of teÌ„ptatioÌ„ against all the darts of scaÌ„dall suspicion surmise emulatioÌ„ I beseech thee whether thou bee a mother or a sister or a daughter cover thy head if a mother for thy sons sake if a sister for thy brethrens sake if a daughter for thy fathers sake for all ages are indaÌ„gered in you put on therefore the armour of modesty intrench your selus within the bulwark of shame facenesse build vp a
lookedst on thy bed where the foule adultery was represeÌ„ted the sacred table where the tremblable mysteries of the sacrament are performed Whiles thou accustomest thy selfe to see such spectacles insensibly by degrees bidding adue to shame modesty thou beginnest to entertaine practise the same Those verie women whom their own lewdnes vnhappines hath prostituted to the coÌ„moÌ„ vse are notwithstaÌ„ding covered with the darke secret retiring places even they who haue sould their blushing yet in such actions blush to be seene But this Monster enters the theater dares mouÌ„t the stage doth take a pride to play his part in the publike view face of the world and not only to speak do naught but to glory boast in it which is worse to professe himself a Master teacher of Art so that in regard of this boldnesse the brasen forehead of the stewes may iustly challenge the title of Modestie CAP. 8. How the eie was the chiefe occasion of originall sin of examâ—es in all those mischiefes which â—ormerly are proued to arise froÌ„ it NOw for originall sin which was the first personall in our first parents and cleaues to all their posterity as natural wee â—inde the first outward occasion of it to haue been the fairenesse of the apple apprehended by the womans eie the punishment first inflicted on it to haue been the opening of the eies whether of the minde or the body I dispute not Whence it may be in the Hebrew the same worde signifieth as well an eie as a fouÌ„taine to shew that froÌ„ it as from a spring or fountaine did flowe both sinne it selfe the cause of sin and misery the punishment of both and because by the eie came the greatest hurt therefore God hath placed in it the greatest tokeÌ„s of sorrow For froÌ„ it comes teares by which the eâ—pressing of sorrow is peculiar to man alone in which regarde iâ— were to bee wished that men would often pervse that excellent treatise of the gouernment of the eies written by M Grienham a worke vndertaken vpon like reasoÌ„ no doubt as was that practicall discourse of the government of the tongue by the late reverend and ever renowned Mr Perkins The former of which we doubt not but is so much the more acceptable and vsefull as the subiect is more large and error dangerous for the tongue discloseth what evill â—loweth vnto it but the eie keepeth it close which is a thing more perilous But to proceed from reasons precepts to examples the most popular arguments there doth not want in holy writ a clowd of witnesses to bring in evidence of the necessity vse of the precepts before laid downe Of covetousnesse in Achan of fornication in Sichem in David Putaphars wife of adulterie of gulttony in our first parents of anger envy and revenge in Soule in each of which particulars it pleased the holy Ghost no doubt that hee that readeth might consider to set down in expresse tearms the sense of seeing as the first motiue which drewe theÌ„ into these particulars 1. for AchaÌ„ we haue it registred vnder his own coÌ„fession I saw among the spoile saith he a goodly Babylonish garmeÌ„t 200 shicles of siluer a wedge of gold of 200 shicles weight I coveted theÌ„ took theÌ„ 2. for SicheÌ„ the text it self is clear Then Dinah the daughter of Lea. the which she bare to Iacob went out to seâ— the daughters of the CuÌ„try whoÌ„ when Sichem the son of Hamor Lord of the Country saw hee took her lay with her defiled her 3 for David we find it in the forefront of this teÌ„ptatioÌ„ wheÌ„ it was euening saith the Text David arose from his bed walked vpoÌ„ the roof of the Kings Palace from the roof he saw a woman washing her selfe the woman was very beautifull to looke vpon then David sent messengers tooke her away and she came to him hee lay with her And for Put aphars wife the Text saith that she cast her eie on Ioseph and said ly with me 4. For Saul the scripture is very remaâ—kable where it s said that afteâ— the slaughter of the Philisâ—ians the womeÌ„ sang by course Saul hath slain his thousand David his tenthousand wherefore Saul had an eie on David froÌ„ that day forward Lastly for our first parents Moses the pen-man of God or rather the spirit of God inditing to Moses rather then that circuÌ„stance should be vnvrged in coÌ„tent to thrust it into a parenthesis see the womaÌ„ saith the Text seeing that the tree was good for meat that it was pleasaÌ„t to the eie and a tree to bee desired to get knowledge took of the fruit therof did eat and gaue it also to her husband hee did eat To these may be added as Apocripha the example of the 2 Iudges in the story of Susanna of whoÌ„ it s said That they saw her walking daily in her husbands garden from theÌ„ce their lust was first inflamed towards her to conclude this point for making vp the musick ful to this vniversal diluge of sin may bee added the cause that drew the generall flowd of waters vpon the old world which in the letter of the Text is expressed to be that the sons of God saw the daughters of meÌ„ that they were faire and they tooke them wiues of al that they liked sure it is to bee thought that froÌ„ the eie first sprang the sinne of the Sodoâ—â—â—s conceaued against the Angels which Lot receaued because from thence their punishment first began according to that rule of the Câ—vilians who advise not so much the fact iâ— selfe as the first originall cause from whence it springs to bee looked into VpoÌ„ which grouÌ„d was fouÌ„ded that more wise theÌ„ strict law of Zalencus in commaunding the eies of an adulterer to bee put out as being either the chiefe guides or counsellers in that worke and his owne son afterward offending in the same kinde rather then his law should be broken content he was good man to loose one of his owne eies by that meanes to redeeme one of his sonnes And vpon the same reason of Iustice did Oedipus in the Poet execute vpon himselfe the same kinde of punishment and in the same member though in the appearance of men for a different offence was Henrie the 2. king of France striken by the finger of God hauing that eie put out by the splinter of a staffe broken in Tilting with which not long before hee had vowed to see Anne of Burge one of the PresideÌ„ts of the Parliament of Paris some other of his associats of the reformed religioÌ„ to be burnt if they persisted in that opinion as Serres and Thuanus both French and excellent historiographers of this age haue left recorded But to returne to the matter once of this we are sure