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A10663 A treatise of the passions and faculties of the soule of man With the severall dignities and corruptions thereunto belonging. By Edvvard Reynoldes, late preacher to the honorable society of Lincoln's Inne: and now rector of the Church of Braunston in Northamptonshire. Reynolds, Edward, 1599-1676. 1640 (1640) STC 20938; ESTC S115887 297,649 518

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lacrymisque coactis Quos neque Tydides nec Larissaeus Achilles Non anni domuere decem non mille carinae They are surpriz'd by frauds and forced teares In whom their greatest foes could work no feares Whom ten yeres war not won nor thousand ships Are snar'd and conquer'd by perjurious lips The second manner of Corruption which Passion useth on the Vnderstanding and Will was Alienating or withdrawing of Reason from the serious examination of those Pleasures wherewith it desireth to possesse the Mind without controule that when it cannot so farre prevaile as to blind and seduce Reason getting the allowance and Affirmative Consent thereof it may yet at least so farre inveagle it as to with-hold it from any Negative Determination and to keepe off the Mind from a serious and impartiall consideration of what Appetite desireth for feare lest it should be convinced of sinne and so finde the lesse sweetnesse in it And this is the Reason of that affected and Voluntarie Ignorance which Saint Pet●… speakes of whereby Minds prepossessed with a love of inordinate courses doe with-hold and divert Reason and forbeare to examine that Truth which indeed they know as fearing lest thereby they should be deterred from those Vices which they resolve to follow Which is the same with that excellent Metaphore in Saint Paul who sayth That the wrath of God was revealed from Heaven on all Vngodlinesse and Vnrighteousnesse of Men 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 whic●… hold or detaine the Truth in Vnrighteousnesse that is which imprison and keepe in that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as the Apostle interpreteth himselfe in the next Verse all those Notions of Divine Truth touching the Omnipotencie and Iustice of God which were by the singer of Nature written within them to deterre them from or if not to make them inexcusable in those unnaturall pollutions wherein they wallowed Thus Medea in the Poet 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I know 't is wicked that I goe about But Passion hath put all my Reason out And therefore that Maxime of the Stoicall Philosopher out of Plato is false 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 That all men are unwillingly deprived of Truth since as Aristotle hath observed directly agreeable to the phrase of Saint Peter there is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 an elected or Voluntarie Ignorance which for their Securities sake men nourish themselves in And that there should be such an Alienation of the Mind from Truth when the Fancie and Heart are hot with Passion cannot be any great wonder For the Soule is of a limited and determined Activitie in the Body insomuch that it cannot with perspi●…uitie and diligence give attendance unto diverse Objects And therefore when a Passion in its fulnesse both of a violence and delight doth take it up the more cleare and naked brightnesse of Truth is suspended and changed So that as the Sunne and Moone at their rising and setting seeme farre greater than at other times by reason of thick Vapours which are then interposed so the Mind looking upon things through the Mists and Troubles of Passion cannot possibly judge of them in their owne proper and immediate Truth but according to that magnitude or colour which they are framed into by prejudice and distemper But then thirdly if Reason will neither be deluded nor won over to the patronage of Evill nor diverted from the knowledge and notice of Good then doth Passion strive to confound and distract the Apprehensions thereof that they may not with any firmenesse or efficacie of Discourse interrupt the Current of such irregular and head-strong Motions And this is a most inward and proper Effect of Passion For as things presented to the Mind in the nakednesse and simplicitie of their owne Truth doe gaine a more firme Assent unto them and a more fixed intuition on them so on the contrarie side those things which come mixt and troubled dividing the intention of the Mind between Truth and Passion cannot obtaine any setled or satisfactorie Resolution from the Discourses of Reason And this is the Cause of that Reluctancie betweene the Knowledge and Desires of Incontinent Men and others of the like Nature For as Aristotle observes of them they are but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Halfe-Evill as not sinning with that full and plenarie Consent of Will but Prat●…r Electionem as he speakes so I may more truly say of them that they have but an Halfe-Knowledge not any distinct and applicative Apprehension of Truth but a confused and broken Conceit of things in their Generalitie Not much unlike unto Nighttalkers who cannot be sayd to be throughly asleepe nor perfectly awaked but to be in a middle kind of inordinate temper betweene both or as Aristotle himselfe gives the similitude it is like a Stage-Player whose Knowledge is expresse and cleare enough but the things which it is conversant about are not personall and particular to those men but belonging unto others whom they personate So the Principles of such men are in the generall Good and True but they are never brought downe so low as if they did concerne a mans owne particular Weale or Woe nor thorowly weighed with an assuming applying concluding Conscience but like the notion of a Drunken or sleeping man are choaked and smothered with the Mists of Passion And this third Corruption is that which Aristotle in the particular of Incontinencie calleth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the weakenesse and disabilitie of Reason to keepe close to her owne Principles and Resolutions Whereunto exactly agreeth that of the Prophet How weake is thy heart seeing thou doest all things the workes of an imperious Whorish Woman And elsewhere Whoredome and Wine are sayd to take away the Heart So Hector describes lascivious Paris 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Thy face hath beautie in 't but in thy brest There doth no strength nor resolution rest The last Effect which I shall but name is that which Aristotle calleth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Rashnesse or Precipitancie which is the most Tyrannicall Violence which Passion useth when in spight of all the Dictates of Reason it furiously over-ruleth the Will to determine and allow of any thing which it pleaseth to put in practise and like a Torrent carryeth all before it or as the Prophet speakes rusheth like an Horse into the Battell So Lust and Anger are sometimes in the Scripture called Madnesse because it transporteth the Soule beyond all bounds of Wisdome or Counsell and by the Dictates of Reason takes occasion to become more outragious Ipsaque praesidia occupat feedes like Wild-fire upon those Remedies which should remove it As she sayd in the Poet Levis est dolor qui capere consilium potest Lib●… ire contra That 's but light griefe which counsell can abate Mine swells and all advice resolves to hate The corrupt effects which Passion worketh in the last place on the Body are
divers according to the particular nature of the Passions sometimes too sudden and violent sometimes too heavie oppression of the heart the other sudden perturbation of the spirits Thus old Ely dyed with sudden griefe Diodorsu with shame Sophocles Chilo the Lacedemonian and others with joy Nature being not able to beare that great and sudden immutation which these Passions made in the Body The causes and manner of which cogitation I reserre as being inquiries not so directly pertinent to the present purpose unto Naturall Philosophers and Physicians And from the generalitie of Passions I proceed unto the consideration of some particulars according to the order of their former division In all which I shall forbeare this long Method of the Antecedents Concomitants and Consequents of their Acts many particulars whereof being of the same nature in all Passions will require to be observed onely in one or two and so proportionally conceived in the rest and shall insist principally in those particulars which I handle on the causes and effects of them as being Considerations wherein commonly they are most serviceable or prejudiciall to our Nature CHAP. IX Of the affection of Love of Love naturall of generall communion of Love rationall the object and generall cause thereof NOw the two first and fundamentall Passions of all the rest are Love and Hatred Concerning the Passion of Love we will therein consider first its object and its causes both which being of a like nature for every morall object is a cause thoug●… not every cause an object will fall into one Love then consists in a kind of expansion o●… egresse of the heat and spirits to the object loved or to that whereby it is drawne and attracted whatsoever therefore hath such an attractive power is in that respect the object and general●… cause of Love Now as in Nature so in the Affections likewise we may observe from their objects a double attraction The first is tha●… naturall or impressed sympathie of things wher●… by one doth inwardly incline an union with the other by reason of some secret vertues and occ●… qualities disposing either subject to that 〈◊〉 all friendship as betweene Iron and the Loa●… stone The other is that common and mo●… discernable attraction which every thing receiv●… from those natures or places whereon they 〈◊〉 ordained and directed by the Wisedome an●… Providence of the first Cause to depend both in respect of the perfection and conservation of their being For as God in his Temple the Church so is He in his Pallace if I may so call it the World a God of Order disposing every thing in Number Weight and Measure so sweetly as that all is harmonious from which harmonie the Philosophers have concluded a Divine Providence and so powerfully as that all things depend on his Government without violence breach or variation And this Order and Wisdome is seene chiefely in that sweet subordination of things each to other and happie inclination of all to their particular ends till all be reduced finally unto Him who is the Fountaine whence issue all their streames of their limited being and the fulnesse of which all his creatures have received Which the Poet though something too Poetically seemeth to have express'd Principio Coelum ac Terras camposque liquentes Lucentemque globum Lunae Titaniaque Astra Spiritus intus al●… ●…otamque infusa per Artus Mens agitat molem magno se corpore miscet Heaven Earth and Seas with all those glorious Lights Which beautifie the Day and rule the Nights A Divine inward Vigour like a Soule Diffus'd through ev'ry joint of this great Whole Doth vegetate and with a constant force Guideth each Nature through its fixed course And such is the naturall motion of each thing to its owne Sphere and Center where is both the most proper place of its consisting and withall the greatest freedome from sorraine injurie or violence But we must here withall take notice of the generall care of the Creator whereby he hath fastned on all creatures not onely his private desire to satisfie the demands of their owne nature but hath also stamp'd upon them a generall charitie and feeling of Communion as they are sociable parts of the Vniverse or common Body wherein cannot possible be admitted by reason of that necessarie mutuall connexion between●… the parts thereof any confusion or divulsion without immediate danger to all the members And therefore God hath inclin'd the nature of these necessarie agents so to worke of their discords the perfect harmonie of the whole that i●… by any casualtie it fall out that the Body of Nature be like to suffer any rupture deformitie o●… any other contumely though haply occasioned by the uniforme and naturall motions of th●… particulars they then must prevent such damag●… and reproach by a relinquishing and forgetting of their owne natures and by acquainting themselves with motions whereunto considered i●… their owne determinate qualities they have a●… essentiall reluctancie Which propertie and sense of Nature in common the Apostle hath excellently set downe in 1 Cor. 12. where he renders this reason of all that there might be 〈◊〉 Schisme in the Body which likewise he divinely applyeth in the mysticall sense that all the severall gifts of the Spirit to the Church should drive to one common end as they were all derived from one common Fountaine and should never be used without that knitting qualitie of Love to which he elsewhere properly ascribeth the building continuation and perfecting of the Saints Now as it hath pleased the infinite Wisdome of God to guide and moderate by his owne immediate direction the motions of necessarie agents after the manner declared to their particular or to the generall end which motion may therefore as I before observed be called the naturall Passion of things so hath it given unto Man a reasonable Soule to be as it were his Vice-gerent in all the motions of Mans little World To apply then these proportions in Nature to the affection of Love in Man we shall finde first a Secret which I will call Naturall and next a Manifest which I call a Morall and more discursive attraction The first of these is that naturall sympathie wrought betweene the affection and the obj●…ct in the first meeting of them without any suspension of the person ●…ll farther inquirie after the disposition of the object which comes immediately from the outward naturall and sensitive Vertues thereof whether in shape feature beautie motion 〈◊〉 behaviour all which comming under the spheare of Sense I include under the name of Iudiciarie Physiognomie Which is not a bare delight in the outward qualities but a farther presumption of the Iudgement concluding thence a lovely disposition of that Soule which animateth and quickneth those outward Graces And indeed if it be true which Aristotle in his Ethicks tels us That similitude is the ground of Love and if there be no naturall Love stronger
the motions of a wounded Body so the Discourses of a wounded Minde are faint uncertaine and tottering Secondly in the Will it wo●…keth first Despaire for it being the propertic of griefe to condensate and as it were on all sides besiege the Minde the more violent the Passion is the lesse apparant are the Passages out of it So that in an extremity of anguish where the Passages are in themselves narrow and the reason also blind and weake to finde them out the Minde is const●… ned having no Object but it 's owne pai●…e to re flect upon to fall into a darke and fearefull contemplation of it's owne sad estate and marvellous high and patheticall aggravations of it as if it were the greatest which any man felt Not considering that it feeles it 's owne sorrow but knowes not the weight of other mens Whereas if all the calamities of mortall men were heaped into one Storehouse and from thence every man were to take an equall portion S●…crates was wont to say that each man would rather choose to goe away with his owne paine And from hence it proceedeth to many other effects fury sinfull wishes and ex●…rations both against it selfe and any thing that concurred to it's being in misery as we see in Israel in the Wildernesse that mirror of Patience Iob himselfe and thus Homer bringeth in Vlysses in des paire under a sore tempest bewailing himselfe 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Thrice foure times happy Grecians who did fall To gratifie their friends under Troy wall Oh that I there had rendred my last breath When Trojan darts made me a marke for Death Then glorious Rites my Funerals had attended But now my life will be ignobly ended Another evill effect is to indispose and disable for Dutie both because Griefe doth refrigerate as the Pilosopher telleth us and that is the worst temper for action and also diverts the Minde from any thing but that which feeds it and therefore David in his sorrow forgot to eate his bread because eating and refreshing of Nature is a mittigating of Griefe as Pliny telleth us And lastly because it weakneth distracteth and discourageth the Minde making it soft and timerous apt to bode evils unto it selfe Crudelis ubique luctus ubique pa●…or Griefe and feare goe usually together And therefore when Aeneas was to encourage his friends unto Patience and action he was forced to dissemble his owne sorrow Curisque ingentibus ager Spem vultu simulat premit altum corde dolorem Although with heavy cares and doubts distrest His looks fain'd hopes and his heart griefes supprest And it is an excellent description in Homer of the fidelity of Antilochus when he was commanded to relate unto Achilles the sad newes of Patroclus death 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. When Menelaus gave him this command Antilochus astonished did stand Smitten with dumbnesse through his griefe and feares His voyce was stopt and his eyes swamme inteares Yet none of all this griefe did duty stay He left his Armes whose weight might cause delay And went and wept and ran with dolefull word That great Patroelus fell by Hectors sword In a tempest saith Seneca that Pilot is to be commended whom the shipwracke swalloweth up at the Sterne with the Rudd●…r in his hand And it was the greatest honour of Mary Mag. dalene that when above all other she wept for the losse of Christ yet then of all other she was most diligent to seeke him Lastly in the body there is no other Passion that doth produce stronger or more lasting inconveniences by pressure of heart obstruction of spirit wasting of strength drynesse of bones exhausting of Nature Griefe in the heart is like a Moath in a garment which biteth asunder as it were the strings and the strength thereof stoppeth the voyce looseth the joynts withereth the flesh shrivelleth the skinne dimmeth the eyes cloudeth the countenance defloureth the beauty troubleth the bowels in one word disordereth the whole frame Now this Passion of griefe is distributed into many inferiour kindes as Griefe of Sympathy for the evils and calamities of other men * as if they were our owne considering that they may likewise be fall us or ours which is called mercy griefe of repining at the good of another man as if his happinesse were our misery As that Pillar which was light unto Israel to guide them was darknesse unto the Egyptians to trouble and amaze them which is called Envie Griefe of Fretfulnesse at the prosperity of evill and unworthy men which is called Indignation griefe of Indigence when we finde our selves want those good things which others enjoy which we envie not unto them but desire to enjoy them our selves too which is called Emulation griefe of Guilt for evill committed which is called Repentance and griefe of Feare for evill expected which is called Despaire of which to discourse would be over-tedious and many of them are most learnedly handled by Aristotle in his Rhetoricks And therefore I wall here put an end to this Passion CHAP. XXIII Of the affection of Hope the Object of it Good Future Possible Difficult of Regular and Inordinate Despaire THe next Ranks and Series is of Irascible Passions namely those which respect their Object as annexed unto some degree of Difficulty in the obtaining o●… avoiding of it the first of which is Hope whereby I understand an earnest and strong inclination and expectation of some great good apprehended as possible to be obtained though not by our owne strength nor without some intervenient Difficulties I shall not collect those prayses which are commonly bestowed upon it nor examine the contrary extreames of those who declaime against it making it a meanes either of augmenting an unexpected evill before not sufficiently prevented or of deflowring a future good too hastily pre-occupated but shall onely touch that dignity and corruption which I shall observe to arise from it with reference to it's Objects Causes and Effects Concerning the Object or fundamentall cause of Hope It hath these three conditions in it That it be a Future a Possible a Difficult Good First Future for good present is the Object of our sense but Hope is of things not seene for herein is one principall difference betweene divine Faith and divine Hope that Faith being 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The substance of things hoped f●…r 〈◊〉 ever respect to it's Object as in some manner present and subsisting in the promises and first fruits which we have of it so that the first effect of Faith is a present Interest and Title but the operation of Hope is waiting and expectation but yet it will not from hence follow that the more a man hath of the presence of an Object the lesse he hath of Hope towards it for though Hope be swallowed up in the compleat presence of it's Object yet it is not at all diminished but encreased rather by a partiall