not possibly Conceive because her Womb was closed up Another tells her that doubtless she was with Child because nothing is sealed or closed up in vain and without cause What ought we to think of that Conjectural Art which is to no other end but to delude and deceive us by the subtilty of Wit Is it that the great number of Observations and Precepts that the Stoicks have gathered concerning this matter signifies any thing else but a little Cunning and Subtilty which from some likelyhood carries its Conjecture now this way than another Suppose one should now find a Serpent twin'd about the young Roscius yet in his Cradle which perhaps was false but if there should be found one in the Cradle there is no great wonder because the Serpents are very common and numerous at Celoin they being often found by the Fire-side I know that these Soothsayers pretend that there is nothing more Illustrious nothing more Noble more Excellent than their Art I wonder why the Immortal Gods should be willing to shew such strange and miraculous Thing in favour of a Charlatan and that they would never shew so much Favour to a Scipio Africanus For as to that Divination which is without Art we might justly take for Fabulous such as that related amongst the Heathens of certain Spirits that appeared openly and familiarly discoursed and foretold things that were to come For to mention something of that of Brutus that told him that he should lose the Day at the Battel in the Fields of Philippi and that he would there appear to him We must observe that Brutus having revealed this Apparition the foregoing Night to Cassius the next Morning Cassius told him that this supposed Apparition or Spirit was but a Mist before his Eyes or of his deluded Imagination And that this was the more probable because Brutus was of a Melancholy Temper as Plutarch observes that the troubles of his Mind so oppressed him that he seldom slept and when he considered in what danger the Common-wealth was and remembred that Pompey had been unhappy in a like cause he pondred what Resolution he might take if things succeeded not well and that which is considerable ruminating and thinking upon these and such like things when the Night was well spent all his Camp very silent all their Lights out and he half asleep 't is no wonder that he then thought he had seen and heard his Genius or Spirit because he was perswaded by the Doctrines of his Sect being a Stoick that there were good and evil Spirits besides there are four Circumstances that discover in what disturbance his Mind was then in and that we may suppose him to have been but in a Slumber or as we say Dreaming or half asleep The first is that he enquired of his Servants if they had heard nothing This shews that he himself was doubtful whether this had happened to him awake or asleep The second that the Domesticks answered him that they had neither seen nor heard any thing nevertheless if it had been so they could not but have seen that monstrous Image or Appearance at least to have heard its Voice which Brutus declared to be to this effect I am O Brutus thy evil Genius thou shalt see me again at the Fields of Philippi The third that his Servants should have heard the Speech of Brutus to the Spirit when he askt it whether it was a God or Man and what it would have Ecquis tu Deorum aut hominum es Ecquid tibi vis qui ad nos venisti And that Word which he spake without being daunted after the Spirit had discoursed with him Videbo The fourth is that Brutus according to the Relation of Plutarch was settled in his Mind after that he had heard and advised with Cassius by whose reasoning he understood that all this was but a meer Dream But what shall we say of that famous Genius or Demon of Socrates 'T is true Socrates himself speaks of it diversly in several Places but as this Philosopher was altogether employed about prescribing Precepts of good Manners he may perhaps make use of this cunning to add a greater weight to his wholsome Admonitions for we may know well enough with what authority he speaks who is supposed to be divinely Inspired Besides when Simias in Plutarch made it his business to inquire of Socrates himself what this Genius was Socrates never answered him a Word This shews sufficiently that Socrates would not tell a lie by confirming it nor would deny it by answering for fear that his wholsome and good Councils should lose thereby their Authority and Influence So that we may suppose that the Genius of Socrates was nothing else but his Reason his Wisdom and Natural Prudence which had been empowered by a constant and continual Study of Philosophy and which discover'd to him what was best to be done and furnished him with those good Counsels which he imparted to his Auditors and this is so much the more probable because Xenocrates one of the Disciples and Successors of Plato and who consequently ought to know the Thoughts of Plato and of Socrates saith That he is happy who is inriched with a good Soul and that such a Soul is to every one of us a Genius or advising Spirit And Plato speaks in this manner of that most excellent part our Soul That God hath bestowed it upon us to be as our Demon that inhabits in the highest and loftiest Fortress of our Bodies and that he who takes care of that divine Spark within him and who emproves well his familiar Spirit becomes extraordinary Happy Clemens Alexandrius speaks almost to the same Purpose when he teaches That Happiness is nothing else but to emprove well our Spirit or Genius and that the principal part of our Souls is called by the name of Demon. As to what concerns that supposed Agitation by which the Spirit being as it were out of it self and seperated from all Matter foretold things to come this supposeth that the Spirit is a Particle of God or of the Soul of the World and by that means knows all things as being of the same Nature with God who is present in all Actions and every where and therefore is ignorant of nothing Now the Disciples of Plato and generally all those who are perswaded that our Soul is part of the Soul of the World fancy that when the Soul is ingaged in the Body it sees not plainly all things as that Soul doth whereof it is a Particle but nevertheless that it is in a possibility to see and know them first when it is stirred up by the strength of certain Diseases for Aristotle acknowledgeth that in those Persons who are troubled with Melancholy there seems something Divine which predicts the time to come Secondly when it withdraws its self in its own Being and is in a perfect Tranquility and Sequestring it self at the same moment from the Thoughts and Incumbrances of Corporeal
well examin'd will settle the Mind and procure to it a real and solid Happiness Some Particulars needful to be examin'd and consider'd which will contribute very much to the Repose and Happiness of the Mind THE First Particular is the Knowledge and Fear of God And certainly this Philosopher had good Reason to recommend to us in the first place the right Ideas that we are to entertain of this Sovereign Being because he that hath a right Notion of him is so much inflamed with Love and Affection for God that he constantly endeavours to please him by an honest and a vertuous Life always trusting in his infinite Goodness and expecting all things from him who is the Fountain of all good By this means he spends his Life sweetly peaceably and pleasantly We shall not concern our selves here to shew the Existence of this Being seeing we have already done it elsewhere But shall only take notice that tho' Epicurus delivers some Notions that are very just and reasonable yet he hath others that are not to be entertained by pious Men tho' he interprets 'em after his own Fashion such are to be look'd upon as impious for he believes That God hath a Being as Lucretius makes him acknowledge in his first Book For whatsoe'er's Divine must live in Peace In undisturb'd and everlasting Ease Not care for us from Fears and Dangers free Sufficient to it 's own Felicity Nought here below nought in our Power it needs Ne'er smiles at good ne'er frowns at wicked deeds Now I say to believe such a supreme Being that exists to all Eternity is immortal and infinitely happy in it's own Nature enjoying all things within it self and stands in no need of us nor hath any Cause to fear that is not subject to Pain Anger nor other Passions are undeniable Truths and an Opinion that is Praise-worthy especially in a Heathen Philosopher but when he denies Providence as these Verses do intimate and when he thinks that it is not consisting with the highest Felicity as if God had no particular Care of Men That the Just are to expect nothing from his Goodness nor the Wicked are not to dread his Justice are such Opinions that our Reason and Religion will not permit us to entertain The second Particular relates to Death For as Aristotle observes Death is look'd upon as the most dreadful Evil because none is exempted being unavoidable Therefore Epicurus judges That we ought to accustom our selves to think upon it that we might learn by that means as much as is possible to free our selves from such Fears of Death as might disturb our Tranquility and consequently the Happiness of our Life and for that Reason he endeavours to perswade us that it is so far from being the most dreadful of all Evils that in it self it is no Evil at all And thus he argues Death saith he don't affect us and by consequence in respect of us is not to be judged an Evil for what affects us is attended by some but now Death is the privation of Sense He tells us also with Anaxagoras That as before we were capable of Sense it was not grievous to us to have no Sense so likewise when we shall have lost it we shall not be troubled at the want of it As when we are asleep we are not concerned because we are not awake So when we shall be dead it will not trouble us that we are not living He concludes with Archesilas That Death which is said to be an Evil hath this belonging to it that when it hath been present it hath never troubled any body And that it is through the Weakness of the Mind and the dismal Apprehensions that we have of Death that makes it seem so terrible to us when absent insomuch that some are struck dead with the very Fear of dying We may very well acknowledge That Death is the Privation of our External Sense or of Sense properly so called And Epicurus hath very good Reason to say That in Death there is nothing to be feared that may injure the Sight the Hearing the Smell the Tast or the Sense of Feeling for all these Senses cannot be without the Body and then the Body ceases to be or is dissolved But that which we are not to allow is what he affirms elsewhere That Death is also the Privation or Extinction of the Spirit or Understanding which is an internal Sense a Sense according to his Notion Therefore that we may not be hindred by this Impiety which has been sufficiently refuted in treating of the Immortality of the Soul let us proceed to give a Check to the extraordinary Apprehensions of Death and to those Fears that frequently disturb all the Peace and Quiet of our Life and with a sullen Blackness infect and poison all our most innocent Pleasures as Lucretius saith Those idle Fears That spoil our Lives with Jealousies and Cares Disturb our Joys with dread of Pains beneath And sully them with the black Fears of Death Let us therefore in the first place remember to give a Check to that fond Desire of prolonging our days without bounds Let us I say so remember this frail and infirm Condition of our Nature as not to desire any thing above it's Reach and Capacity Let us calmly and quietly without repining enjoy this Gift of Life whether it be bestowed upon us for a longer or a shorter time It is certain that our Maker may deprive us of it without doing us any wrong Let us thankfully acknowledge his Liberality from whom we have received it and add this to the number of those Benefits which we daily draw from his Bounty Nature favours us for a while with the use of the Prospect of those Enjoyments Be not angry that we must withdraw when the time is expired for we were admitted upon no other Terms but to yield our places to others as our Ancestors have done to us Our Bodies are naturally inclinable to Corruption and the manner of our Nativity renders our Death unavoidable If to be Born is pleasant let not our Dissolution be grievous to us to make use of Seneca's Words If the striving against this Fatality could any ways advantage us we should then perhaps approve of the Endeavours that are made but all our Strugglings are to no purpose we do but add to our pain The number of our Days is so appointed that the time of our Life slides away and is not to be recovered and we run our Race in such a manner that whether we will or not we are brought at last to the end As many Days as we pass over so many are cut off from that Life that Nature hath alotted to us So that Death being the Privation of Life we are dying continually as long as we live and that by a Death that carries not all at once but by degrees one step after another tho' the last is that unto which the Name of Death is assigned So true
out the strangest means to deliver our selves from it and to procure our Death Et saepe usque adeo mortis formidine vitae Percipit ingratos odium lucisque videnda Vt sibi conciscant moerenti pectore lethum But this extraordinary Fear causeth by degrees a certain kind of Melancholy which depresseth the Heart enfeebles the Spirits and obstructs all the operations of Life It stops Digestion and draws upon us many Diseases that are the immediate Causes of Death However the Opinion of the Stoicks is not only contrary to the Sacred Precepts of our Religion but is also contrary to Nature and right Reason We must except some certain Persons who being directed by a Particular and Divine Instinct have been instrumental in procuring their own Deaths as Samson and others in the Old-Testament and Sophronia and Pelagia since the New for Nature furnishes all sorts of Animals with a Natural love of Life and there is none besides Man let them be tormented with never so grievous pain but labours to preserve Life as much as they can and to avoid Death This is a sign that none but Man doth by his mistaken Opinions corrupt the Institution of Nature when he refuseth the benefit of Life and advanceth his Death he acts then by a wickedness peculiar to himself for the true state of Nature is to be consider'd in the general body of the Creatures and not in some few individuals of one single Species that hasten their own destruction and cast away themselves before the time appointed by Nature From hence we may conclude that such are injurious to God and Nature who being design'd and order'd to perform a certain Race stop in the middle of their Course of their own accord and who being appointed to watch forsake and abandon their Post without waiting for Orders from their Superiors Besides Reason forbids us to be Cruel against the Innocent who never did us any harm and by consequence it don't allow that we should act inhumanly upon our selves from whom we never experienced any Hatred but rather too much Love Moreover upon what occasion can our Vertue appear more conspicuous than in suffering Courageously the Evils that our hard Fortune imposes upon us To die saith Aristotle because of our Poverty or for Love or for some other mischievous accident is not the act of a Man of Spirit and Courage but of a mean and timorous Soul for it is the part of a weak Mind to shun and flye from things hard to be endured Stout Men saith Curtius are wont to despise Death rather than to hate Life 'T is the trouble and impatience of Suffering that carries the Cowards to base Actions that makes them despised and scorned Vertue leaves nothing unattempted and Death is the last thing with which we must Encounter but not as timerous lazy and unwilling Souls I shall not here stay to examin the Opinion of those who imagining saith Lactantius that the Souls are Eternal have therefore kill'd themselves as Cleanthes Chrysippus and Zeno expecting to be transported at the same time to Heaven or as Empedocles who cast himself in the Night into the Flames of Mount-Aetna that by disappearing so suddenly the World might think that he was gone to the Gods or as Cato who was during his Life-time a Follower of the vanity of the Stoicks who before he kill'd himself as it is Reported had read Plato 's Book of the Eternity of the Soul or finally as Cleombrotus who after he had read the same Book cast himself down a Precipice This is a Cursed and Abominable Doctrin that drives Men out of their Lives Neither shall I trouble my self with that Cyrenaick of Hegesius who Disputed so Elegantly concerning the Miseries of Life and the Blessed Place of the Souls after Death that King Ptolomy was forced to forbid him to speak in Publick because so many of his Disciples after they had heard him destroyed themselves as Cicero Reports and some others For the Evils that we indure in this Life may happen to be so great and increase in such a manner that when the time of Death is come the loss of Life may not be unpleasant and that in such a Case Death may be esteem'd as the Haven that shelters us from the Miseries and Torments of Life But to aggravate our Afflictions so far as to beget in us a scorn and hatred of Life is to be injurious and unthankful to Nature as if the Gift of Life that hath been bestowed upon us for our use were to be rashly cast away or as if we were not to accept of it any longer nor honestly and quietly to enjoy it as long as is possible 'T is true what Theognis said formerly That it were much better for Men not to be Born or to Die as soon as they are Born is a Celebrated Saying Non nasci res est mortalibus optima longe Nec Solis radiis acre videre Jubar Aut natum Ditis quamprimum lumen adire This is confirmed by the Example of Cleobis of Biton of Agamedes of Pindarus and of some others who having Petitioned the Gods to grant to them the thing which was best and most desirable were admitted to this great favour To die in a short time Answerable to this is the Custom of the Thracians who wept at the Birth of their Children but Congratulated the Happiness of such as Died. Not to mention Menander who wish'd a young Man dead because he was well beloved by the Gods Quem diligunt Dii Juvenis ipse interit Nor to say any thing of that Famous Sentence Vitam nemo acciperet si daretur scientibus That no body would accept of Life willingly if it were given to them that knew what it were But pray who will believe that Theognis and the rest have spoken seriously and without any Restriction I say without any Restriction for if they would have it that it is better for such only who are to be miserable all their Lives that they had not been Born or to have Died at the very moment of their Birth the Saying might be tolerable and allowable but to speak this in relation to all Men is to affront Nature the Mistriss both of our Life and Death that hath ordered and appointed our Birth and our Dissolution as she hath all other things for the preservation of the Universe It were to expose our selves to be contradicted if not by all yet by the most part of Men who are not weary of Life but seek to preserve it as carefully as they can For Life as we have already observed hath something in it very pleasing and lovely therefore he that speaks in this manner shall feel himself bound and held fast and I am apt to believe that he may be like the Old Man in Aesop who sent Death back again tho' he had often called for it before or like another who refused to make use of the Dagger that he had desired to be
be condemn'd because he laughed at that too great Credulity and Superstition of the Heathens as well in Relation to Divination as in Relation to the Demons but it is to be blamed in that at least he hath not believed in general the being of Spirits seeing that not only Religion but Reason assures us of their Existence as it did really perswade those Philosophers amongst whom Plutarch reckons principally Thales Pythagoras Plato the Stoicks besides Empedocles and some others who affirmed that there were Demons who are living Substances and there are also Heroes who are Souls either Good or Evil freed from their Bodies For tho' they have erred as well in Relation to their Substance as to the Qualities that they attributed to their Demons yet however they judged aright when they believed that there were such But seeing we are to discourse of Divination perhaps it will not be amiss to speak first something of the Demons unto whom it was commonly ascribed Of Demons or Spirits according to the Opinion of Antiquity LET us suppose that they are those unto whom the Holy Writ gives usually the Titles of Angels and sometimes Demons Devils or Satan when it speaks of the Apostate Angels The Heathens call them not only Demons but also Genii tho' amongst them they were reputed to be of a Divine Nature or of a Nature little lower than the Divine They were also named Gods and Demi-Gods and Sons of Gods but yet Bastards as being born of Nymphs c. Not to insist upon the saying of Aristotle that they were separated Substances because not Corporeal and according to his Disciples Intelligences because they have Understandings Intelligences in Latin signifying the same as 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in Greek if what Lactantius and Macrobius after Plato have taught us is really true This being premised now that we may the better understand what notion Pythagoras Plato and the rest of 'em had of Demons we must call to Mind what hath been said of the Soul of the World For they who have received this Opinion have fancied that these Demons as well as our Souls were nothing else but Particles or small parcels of the Soul of the World And because they believed also that the Soul of the World was the same as God they imagin'd that the Demons were Particles of the Divine Nature and from them seveveral Heretick have taken occasion to discourse of Angels in the same manner in the infancy of the Christian Church for they fancy them to be taken out of the Divine Substance These Philosophers therefore thought the Soul of the World to be like a vast and bottomless Ocean from whence proceeds Angels and the Souls of Men upon Condition to return back again and reunite at last after a time as so many little Streams that run into the Sea Plotinus seems to compare them to the Body of a Tree whereof Demons and Souls were as the Branches the little Twigs the Leaves the Flowers and the Fruits Thus they fancied that in the same manner as the Water that runs through the Earth carries with it something of the Substance of the Minerals through which it passeth so the Particles of the Soul of the World clothed it often with the Substance of the most subtil Bodies unto which they remained chiefly fixed and tied And as they judged that this Soul though it is diffused through all the World it resided nevertheless more particularly in the upper Region and consequently amongst the Stars and chiefly in the Sun So they believed that when the Celestial Bodies spread abroad their Influences to revive and entertain the earthly Beings that they proceed from Heaven as so many Beams from this Soul that revives all things and that they Incorporate or become Bodies in a differing manner in their Passage clothing themselves with a kind of Airy Habit and remaining afterwards some in the Air and the others proceeding as far as the Earth So that they have believed that these kind of Substances which are thus composed of a thin Body such as is the Air and of a Particle of the Soul of the World are the Demons and the Souls Demons when they continue free from any mixture of the grosser Bodies of this Earth I shall not examin their other Fancy That if the thin Body with which the Particles of the Soul of the World is clothed be found to be of a sweet kind and favourable Composure then in their Opinion they happen to be good Demons or Spirits but evil when it is sharp and malicious Neither shall I take notice of their other Imagination That when our Souls are departed out of our Bodies they become again Demons not immediately nor equally because retaining some Relicks of the Human Body they could not be Demons until they were entirely stript but only Heroes or demi-Gods Let these be mention'd only in reference to the Opinion of those who chiefly follow Hesiod who as Plutarch relates hath made mention of four sorts of Beings that are endowed with Reason the Gods the Demons the Heroes and Men I say those who follow Hesiod for Plato Pythagoras and others who believe these last to be the greatest Protectors of Demons have divided Rational Beings into three sorts namely Gods Demons and Men. Moreover we may shew by several Passages that they fancied these Demons to be of a certain middle Nature between the Gods and Men or as they speak upon the Confines of Immortals and Mortals But no Man better explained this Opinion than Apuleius for after that he had said that 't is by their Means and Mediation that there is a Correspondence between the Gods and Men and as the other Regions of the World have their Beings to inhabit and live there so the Superiour Region hath the Stars the Fire the small Animals mentioned by Aristotle the Sea Fish the Earth all our Terrestrial Animals So the Air ought not to be without its Inhabitants which are the Demons In this manner he explains himself The Bodies of the Demons saith he have very little weight which hinder them from ascending to the highest Regions nor are they so light as to fall down to the lowest They are Creatures of a third Nature suitable to the middle Region where they dwell They are between the Gods and Men being immortal as the Gods but subject to Passions as Men for as they are as we subject to Anger and to Mercy and like us suffer themselves to be overcome by Prayers and Intreaties by Gifts and Honours so they are like us stir'd up to Wrath by Injuries and Contempt In a Word saith he Daemones sunt genere animalia ingenio rationabilia animo passiva corpore aeria tempore aeterna Where you may observe what he saith of Eternity cannot agree with the Opinion of others who make them subject to Generation and Corruption unless we understand a long time for Eternity For as these last say Man is said to be Mortal because of the
Dissolution of that part by which the Soul is tied and joyned to the Body tho the Soul by that means never perisheth so the Demons ought to be reputed Mortal because tho that Beam of the Divinity which makes up the principal and intelligent part of their Being never perisheth yet this part is separated from the thin Body unto which when it is united it is reputed a Demon. This is likely to have given occasion to what we have before spoken of their Opinion That the Demons did sometimes become Gods as heretofore the Egyptians believed concerning Isis and Osiris Hercules Liber and others as Plutarch observes And by that we may understand what Jupiter speaks in Ovid That he hath Demi-Gods Their dwells below a Race of Demi-Gods Of Nymphs in Waters and of Fauns in Woods Who tho not worthy yet in Heaven to live Let them at least enjoy that Earth we give But tho all this be full of fabulous Inventions however we may thereby perceive that the antient Philosophers allowed the existence of Demons and that several have treated about 'em and declared them to be of a Nature differing from the Divine Nature But if they have fancied them to have Bodies this Opinion is to be excused among those Philosophers because 't is but of later Ages that we have been better instructed that God alone was a Spirit without Body they being persuaded that Angels and the Souls of Men were made of a very fine and thin Substance and for that reason there is nothing to hinder the assigning to them Images tho they are persuaded also that they are Immortal by the special favour of God The Reason that induced these antient Philosophers to believe that there are Demons seems to be grounded upon the Notion they had of the Divine Providence for tho they believed that God takes care of all Things yet they fancied nevertheless that it did not become his glorious Majesty to extend his Care to every particular Person by himself and without some Ministers that might execute his Orders They therefore imagin'd that God keeps his Court in Heaven is attended by Ministers and Servants always ready to obey him by whose means he provides for all the World but especially for this inferior World They called these Ministers whom they acknowledged to be very nimble and active Beings and to us invisible Demons but they assigned the name of Genii to those whose chief office is to take care of Men. Now tho we cannot but acknowledge that they have hit upon a real Truth seeing 't is certain that there are Spirits and Angels in the World who are God's Ministers and who give their assistance especially to Men nevertheless this Opinion is to be understood with caution for to speak absolutely 't is not unbecoming the Majesty of God to do all Things and provide for all Things of himself for 't is from him that all his Ministers have received all their Strength and Power and 't is he who is present at the doing of every Thing and assists every particular Action by his Divine Influence So that God makes use of Ministers not because 't is below him not to make use of 'em or because he is not able to govern otherwise But because we suppose the State of the World to be such as he will have it and that he hath thought it convenient thus to order it But let this be as it will their Fancy appears not only conformable to this distinction of the Hierarchies and celestial Orders taken out of the Holy Scriptures but to those Doctors also and learned Divines who hold That God hath ordained particular Angels to watch for the preservation of divers kinds of Beings of several sorts of Animals and Plants c. And who judge that there is no Absurdity that there should be sometimes in the Air Demons or Spirits who by the permission or command of God do wonderful Things as to cause Showers of Blood of Stones Thunder and Storms or extraordinary Earthquakes And truly if we may believe Philo Those which the Philosophers call Demons are the same with those whom Moses names Angels namely Souls that fly about the Air that the Air might have its Creatures as well as the Earth the Water and the Fire have theirs Besides in Holy Writ we read of certain Powers of the Air Nay some use Inchantments against Demons who mix themselves in the black and thick Clouds from whence we usually apprehend the coming of Thunders Hail and Storms That which these same Philosophers speak of Genii namely that there is one Chief who governs a whole Nation and therefore called the Genius of the People or Nation and a particular Genius for every Man which is chiefly and properly stiled his Genius is also agreable with what we say in other Words The protecting Angel of a whole Nation and the Guardian Angel of every private and particular Person For God saith Epictetus hath given to every Man a tutelar Genius that watches continually that never Slumbers and cannot be deceived O Mortals when you have shut your Doors upon you and closed your Windows and that you are buried in Darkness never fancy your selves to be alone and take heed of acting any thing unjust You are not then alone God is in your Chamber and your Angel is there they have no need of Light to see what you are doing and contriving Plato speaks almost the very same Thing and is of Opinion That every one of us have our Guardian from whom we can conceal nothing and who is a constant Witness of every thing that we do whether it be Good or Evil and for whom we are to have a particular Respect These Philosophers also were persuaded that there were good and evil Genuii whom we name good and evil Angels for they thought that the good Things came from the Good and the Evil from the mischievous Angels Now that God suffers evil Angels or Demons to be the Enemies of Men and to endeavour to destroy them this relates to the general Providence of God who hath done nothing but for just and reasonable Ends tho not known nor discoverable to Men. And we may say in a Word that God suffers them as well that good Men might be exercised and that by their Sufferings and Patience they might deserve more as that the Wicked by their means might be Punished That which we ought here to add is That tho we are sometimes tempted by the Devil that we are not therefore to pretend that to be a sufficient Excuse for the Evil committed as if it were only the Work of the Devil for the Holy Scripture declares That every one is rather tempted and drawn by his own Lusts Hereby we ought to understand that we have no reason to fear so much the Devil as our selves and that we ought to accustom our selves to allay the Fire of our Concupiscence and Lust by Temperance that so we might the easier frustrate all
Matters and is if we may so say altogether in its own Power which happens as they say chiefly in Dreams or when we are ready to die and when it begins to free it self from the Clog of the Body for these be the very Words of Plato cited by Cicero Plato therefore appoints us to prepare and dispose in such a manner our Bodies for sleep that there may be nothing to cause a mistake or disturbance for this cause the Disciples of Pythagoras were forbidden to eat Beans because this Food causeth the the Stomach to swell and begets Wind and Vapors that disturb the Tranquility of the Mind when therefore in our sleep the Spirit is disengaged from these hindrances of the Body it calls to Mind the time past sees the present and foresees the time to come for the Body of a sleeping Person is like that of a dead Man but his Spirit is living and in its full Vigour But not to stay here to refute this Persuasion because 't is a meer Fable to say that our Souls are the Particles of the Divine Substance and that there are some who can Prophecy in their Madness in their Melancholy or in their Sleep Let us only conclude with Cicero's Words That 't is very absurd to believe that God sends Dreams for that they are incident not only to Men of Sense and Honour and Wisdom but even to Men of meanest and lowest Degree Of the Oracles LAstly for the Oracles and those Predictions that are ascribed to the Sybils and to the Prophets when they were possess'd with a divine Fury that disturb'd them caused their Colour and Countenance to change their Head and Breast to swell in such a manner that they were quite out of breath and as it were ready to expire as Virgil excellently represents it Thus while she laid And shivering at the sacred Entrance staid Her Colour chang'd her Face was not the same And hollow Groans from her deep Spirit came Her Hair stood up convulsive Rage possess'd Her trembling Limbs and heav'd her labouring Breast Greater than Human Kind she seem'd to look And with an Accent more than Mortal spoke Her staring Eyes with sparkling Fury roul When all the Gods came rushing on her Soul I shall not say that this kind of Fury seems not becoming the Divine Majesty and therefore Cicero hath great cause to speak of it in these words What Reason or Authority can you produce for this Divine Fury Can it be suppos'd that what a wise Man cannot foresee a Fool or a Man depriv'd of his Senses should be able to discover I shall only observe some Particulars that will discover to us the Vanity and Folly of the thing The first is the affectation of delivering their Oracles in Verse and not in Prose We have already observed that the Disciples of Epicurus made but a sport of those Verses as being ridiculous and unworthy of the Divinity In this manner Cicero speaks of them These Verses which they say the Sybil in her fury made and pronouc'd savour more of Cunning and Subtilty than of Transport and Disturbance of Mind for the Author who compos'd them hath artificially contrived that whatsoever happen'd it will seem to be thereby foretold for they express nothing precisely nor plainly neither of Men nor Times but have designedly made them obscure that they might seem at another time to be fit for other purposes all which does not denote a Person in furious Transports but one who is sensible and cautious of what he doth or saith The Second particular is this Amphibologia or manner of delivering these Oracles with a double Signification which Savours of a Subtilty that is no greater than what belongs to Man Besides among many of those who are most Famous there are several that are forged and invented meerly for Pleasure For Example in relation to these Craesus the Halys passing shall destroy A mighty Mass of Wealth Pyrrhus thy Force the Romans shall destroy Cicero informs us that the First was never given to Croesus and that Herodotus may have invented it of his own Head as Ennius contrived the latter And especially as to the latter for that it was certainly forged at pleasure and that it was never delivered to Pyrrhus because Apollo never spoke in Latin and that in the Days of Pyrrhus Apollo had left off making Verses The third particular is the Juggling or Forgeries related at large by Eusebius which prove that the Oracles were never delivered by the Gods or by the Demons but that they were contrived by cunning Knaves Cheats and Impostors as Lucian very well observed when he tells us by what means he himself discovered all the Subtilty by which the false Prophet Alexander had made himself so famous in the Oracle He saith moreover that this false Prophet hated very much the Christians and the Epicureans because they maintained that the Oracles were nothing but meer Lies In this manner Eusebius speaks of them They have among them Promoters and Ministers of their Cheats and Tricks who walk up and down and round about to inquire diligently and ask those who came for what purpose and upon what occasion every one comes to consult the Oracle They have in their Temples a great many dark Corners and Places to retreat and hide where the People are not to enter and where they place themselves to hear what is spoken without being seen So that the Darkness of the place the Precaution the Superstition of those that come and the Authority of the Ancients who have believed in these Oracles are of great use to 'em We might add also the Folly and Stupidity of the People who never try nor examin things and the Dexterity the Cunning and Subtilty of those who manage the Business and who promise to every one pleasing Things and entertain all the World with fair Hopes c. He relates afterwards their ambiguous manner of speaking their unusual and barbarous Words and the affected composure of their Expressions how often the Oracles have been proved guilty of Falshood and how often those who by their Advice have undertaken Wars and have met with very ill Success how many Persons they have deluded unto whom they promised Health and Prosperity And after his Conclusion from hence that they were no Gods but Impostors who uttered these Oracles he continues and goes on thus But why do you think it is that they thus court Strangers and give them such great Encouragments more than the Inhabitants of the Place who are their Friends or Fellow-Citizens unto whom they should consequently endeavour to render the Gods more Propitious than to others who are no ways related to them The Reason is plain for it is much more easy to deceive Strangers who understand not their Jugglings than Neighbours who are acquainted with all their slights and cunning This shews sufficiently that there is nothing here Divine nothing that is above the Reach and Contrivance of Man Afterwards he reckons
lest by shunning of these they might fall into greater From hence we may learn that Debauchery is not to be shunn'd for its own sake nor Sobriety to be desired because it declines some Pleasures but because it procureth greater and more substantial ones We shall find the same Arguments for Fortitude for it is neither Labour nor Pain nor Patience nor Constancy nor Industry nor Courage nor Watchfulness that draw us of themselves but we are perswaded by these actions that we may live without Trouble or Fear and that we might free our selves as much as is possible from that which incommodes either the Mind or the Body for oftentimes the Calm of our Life is disturb'd with the extraordinary fear of Death and it is a miserable thing to be oppress'd with Pain and to bear it with a mean and feeble Courage insomuch that by this weakness of Spirit many have lost their Parents many their Friends and many their Native Country nay have altogether lost themselves But a generous stout and couragious Spirit is free from such Cares and Troubles because it despiseth Death and is so provided to receive Grief and Pain that it knows the greatest are cur'd by Death and the least have divers intervals of Rest and that as for moderate Griefs we are Masters of them Besides a noble Spirit considers that if the Pains be not extraordinary they are easily suffered but if they be very grievous we shall then willingly surrender and quit our Life which in such a case becomes unpleasant to us so that we leave it in the same manner as we go off a Theatre From hence we may conclude that Fear and Cowardise are not in themselves blame-worthy neither do Courage and Patience of themselves merit Praise But the first are slighted because they increase Pain and Sorrow and the other are desired because they procure real Pleasure There remains nothing else to be examin'd but Justice of which we may almost say the same For as I have already demonstrated that Wisdom Temperance and Fortitude are so joyned with Pleasure that they cannot be separated from it we ought to say the same of Justice which is not only inoffensive to all Men but does also constantly bring with it such advantages as by the strength of its own nature does quiet and settle the Thoughts by affording continual hopes of never wanting those things which an honest Mind may desire And as Timerousness Covetousness and Cowardise do perpetually torment the Mind and are continually vexing and disturbing its quiet So where Injustice bears sway in the Soul it begets much Trouble and Vexation and if it hath committed any evil action tho' never so secretly yet it can never be assured that it shall always remain undiscover'd Jealousy and fear of being found out do commonly attend evil Actions and we suppose every one to be our Accuser and ready to Inform against us Nay some out of fear of being Discovered have been their own Accusers If some think their Riches a sufficient shelter and capable of quieting their Conscience yet they have such a dread of the Justice of God in punishing their Crimes that upon a due resentment of this their Thoughts labour under a perpetual Agony and Disturbance Now their wicked Actions can never be able so much to lessen the anxiety of their Life as the gripings of a Wounded Conscience or the Laws of the Country and the hatred of their Acquaintance have to increase it Nevertheless such is the unsatiable desire of some Men after Riches Luxury Honour Dominion c. that in the obtaining of them they will stick at no indirect Means so that nothing but a severe Punishment inflicted on them by the Laws is able to stop their Career True Reason therefore directs all Men of sound Judgment to observe the Rules of Justice Equity and Fidelity which are the best means to procure to our selves the good Esteem and Love of others and which is absolutely necessary to render our Lives Pleasant and Sedate And the rather because hereby we have no temptation to do what is ill because that the desires which proceed from Nature may easily be appeased without doing wrong to any Person and as for other vain Desires we are not to regard them for they prompt us to nothing that is really worthy seeking after and Injustice it self brings a greater damage to us than the recompence it can be able to make us by the seeming good things it brings along with it Therefore we cannot say That Justice is of it self desirable but only because it is attended with a great deal of Pleasure and Content for we are not a little pleased with the esteem and good will of others which renders our Life Comfortable and Pleasant Thus we don't believe that we ought to shun Vice only because of the inconveniencies that fall upon the Wicked but chiefly because it never suffers the Mind to be at rest where it hath once taken possession I might here mention the Objections that are brought against this Opinion but they relate to nothing but sensual and dishonest Pleasures which Epicurus abhors in express words I will only take notice that the Pleasure that is here understood is such true real and natural Pleasure in which our Happiness consists We therefore say That Vertue is inseparably accompanied with it being the real and genuine cause of it for where that is supposed Happiness immediately attends and when that is removed Pleasure it self must needs decay In the same manner as the Sun is said to be inseparable from the Day because it alone is the true and necessary cause thereof for as soon as the Sun appears over our Horizon the Day must needs be and when it withdraws the Day dis-appears Now the reason why Epicurus supposes Vertue to be the efficient cause of Happiness is because he thinks that Prudence doth as it were contain all other Vertues for all the rest proceed from this and have in a great measure a dependence upon her CHAP. III. Wherein an Happy Life doth consist WHat we have already discours'd of tends to little else than to make a plain discovery of Epicurus's Opinion But now we must come closer to the Matter and strictly examin whether he had sufficient ground to say That Pleasure is the main End Here we must weigh two of his chief Maxims First That all Pleasure is of it self and of its own nature a real Good and on the contrary That all Grief and Pain is an Evil. The Second is That notwithstanding sometimes we must prefer some sort of Pains before some sort of Pleasures Whether all Pleasure be good of it self IN respect of the first Maxim It is not without ground that Epicurus asserts That all Pleasure is of it self good tho' by accident it happens sometimes otherwise for all Creatures are of themselves so inclinable to Pleasure and Delight that it is the first and chief thing that they naturally covet nor
the most general and easie Means to procure this freedom from Pain is Temperance and an exquisite Sobriety For by this Means we may if not altogether remove at least very much correct the hereditary Diseases avoid such as we contract by our own Miscarriages and free our selves from such as are already contracted Let us observe only That he who enjoys a freedom from Pain may without any bitterness possess the different kinds of Pleasures as well those of the Body as of the Mind and Health As Plutarch very well compares Health to the Tranquility of the Sea in regard the Sea gives an Opportunity to its Inhabitants to breed and conveniently to bring up their young so Health affords to all Men a Means to perform all the Functions of Life conveniently and without Pain Therefore saith he tho' Prodicus maintains and hath elegantly describ'd That Fire is the greatest Seasoning of our Life Nevertheless some may correct his Fancy and inlarge upon it by saying That Health gives a supernatural Relish seeing that neither boiled nor rost nor any other Meat whatever Haut Goust they have can give any Relish to such as are sick or to such whom some distemper hath put out of order whereas in a healthful Constitution every Morsel is pleasant and grateful to the Appetite Now the same may be said of the Pleasures that relate to the other Senses for to a sick Body the Delights which otherwise are lawful and honest displease the Smelling is not refresh'd with Sweet Odours the Ear cares not for Musick nor does the Sight rejoyce in beautiful Objects Nay our Entertainments Publick Shews our Recreations in Walking Hunting and other such like Divertisements cannot please and are of no service for want of this Seasoning and without which Pleasure it self as we have said is no Pleasure As all this is most certain in regard of these Pleasures of the Body it is doubtless much more in respect of that of the Mind for it is apparent that neither in Sickness or under any grievous Pain no Man can study read or meditate for while the Soul is united to this crasy and mortal Body there is such a Union between these two Parties that the Body cannot suffer but the Soul must feel it and be drawn tho' against its will from its most pleasing Objects for the afflicting Pain employs all the Thoughts and Attention of the Mind Happy therefore are they who by their natural Constitution enjoy a sound Health free from Pain and consequently more capable in taking Pleasure in the study of Wisdom Happy are likewise such who tho they have an infirm Body yet govern it with so much Prudence and correct it with that Temperance that if they dont altogether avoid all Pain yet they make it so light and easy to be born that it proves a small Impediment to the full enjoyment of the Pleasures of the Mind Therefore the First ought to take heed how they disturb or by their Intemperance weaken the sound Constitution of their Bodies and the other ought to amend theirs and to bring it as much as is possible to this State of Indolency And both of 'em should take care of their Bodies if it were only for the sake of the Soul which cannot be well while the Body is sick Here we must truly acknowledg that tho the chief part of Happiness consists in the Tranquility of the Mind yet we must not despise the other part which consists in the freedom from bodily Pain I confess there be some who believe that it is a crime when it concerns the chief good or the business of Man to joyn the advantages of the Body to them of the Mind and consequently believe That it is an unworthy Deed to joyn that freedom from bodily Pain with the Tranquility of the Mind But as these are Stoicks or such as affect to follow them I cannot but mention here what Cicero himself says against them when addressing himself to Cato he begins with this Principle of the Stoicks That we are recommended to our selves and that the first Inclination that Nature hath bestowed on us is Self-preservation that we may preserve our selves such as we ought to be that we are Men made up of Soul and Body and therefore according to our original and natural Inclination we must love these Things and make them the end of that chief Happiness which consists in the acquisition of such Things as are according to Nature Now saith he seeing these are our Opinions and that you assign that to be the End to live according to Nature shew us now how you can maintain That to live honestly is barely and absolutely the chief Good How have you so soon forsaken the Body and all those Things that are according to Nature If we sought for the chief Happiness not of Man but of some other Creature which were all Spirit that End that you speak of would not be the only End of that Spirit for it would desire Health and to be free from Pain it would desire also its own Preservation and whatsoever might tend to it and it would propose to it self to live according to Nature which is as we have said to possess all things agreable with Nature at least in some measure if not in the most considerable part Vertue alone say they is sufficient to render us happy and the Goods of the Body are but as it were small Appendages which are not capable of rendring Life more happy But truly a Man in grievous Pain would be very much obliged to him who would free him from it And if a wise Man were condemned by some Tyrant to encounter with Pain his mortal Foe he would muster up all his rational Faculties to assist and support him in so difficult and dangerous a Combat And then goes on Every Creature of whatsoever Nature loves it self for where is that Creature which forsakes it self or any part of it self or the use of that part or any of the things which are according to Nature and its state and frame Certainly no Person hath forgotten his first Constitution but retains his first Faculty from the beginning to the end How can it therefore be that only Man's Nature should suffer Man to forget his Body and should place his chief Happiness not in the whole but in one part of himself Wisdom hath not begot Man but hath found him begun by Nature If there were nothing to be perfected in Man but some Motions of the Soul that is to say of Reason Wisdom ought to have no other aim but Vertue which is the perfection of Reason So also if there were nothing to be perfected but the Body its chief end would be Health a freedom from Pain Beauty c. But here is a Question concerning the chief good of Man who is composed of Soul and Body Why dont we therefore seek his chief good in relation to his whole Nature They who place it in one or t'other
to get great and excessive Riches to indulge their Gluttony seeing that they may without so much Toil obtain the same Pleasures and that these Pleasures are more Pure and Innocent It seems the Poet had this Fancy when he advises to shun Grandeur for it is certain That one may live more contentedly in a small Cottage than Kings and Princes in their Royal Pallaces fuge magna licet sub paupere tecto Reges Regum vita praecurrere Amicos But let us understand from Porphyry how far Epicurus hath advanc'd a plain and abstemious Life even so far as to suppose it to extend to a total abstinence from Flesh Thus he says We have found what the common People will not believe that the Epicureans themselves who hold Pleasure to be the End for the most part are content since the Days of their Chieftain with Fruits Pulse and Broth and that the chief of their Discourses tend to Teach nothing more but that Nature is satisfied with a little that the plainest Food and the easiest attain'd to satisfies plentifully our Wants and that what is over and above is only to gratify our unsatiated Appetites which is neither in it self needful nor can be occasioned by the usefulness of that which being wanting might cause the ruin of the whole but that it proceeds from vain and foolish Mistakes with which we are prejudiced They say also That a Philosopher ought to have this Persuasion That nothing shall be wanting to him the remainder of his Days Now there is nothing better able to beget that Opinion in him than to believe by his own Experience that he hath need but of very little and that these things are common and easy to be got and what is over and above is needless relating to nothing but Luxury and Excess and that such things are acquired with a great deal of Pains and Difficulty So that all the Benefit and Pleasure that might redound from thence ' don 't compensate the Labour and Toil we must undergo in the obtaining of 'em and our continual Care to preserve ' em Besides when the Thoughts of Death approach we easily forsake little things or such as are of a mean value and common They say moreover That the use of Flesh prejudices our Health more than it benefits because our Health is preserved by those very things by which it is recovered when we have lost it Now it is recovered by a light Diet and abstinence from Flesh it is therefore preserved by the same means But it is no wonder if the Vulgar believe That the use of Flesh is necessary for our Health for they are persuaded that all the Pleasures which are in Motion and Flattering are assisting to it the Pleasures of Love not excepted which are never good for any thing but commonly very mischievous Horace also seems to have understood the Advantages that a frugal and sober Life procures when he tell us That there is nothing that contributes so much to our Health as to Eat and Drink sparingly and to be content with the plainest Diet and that to be persuaded of these Truths we need but remember a little sober and frugal Meal that we have formerly made whereas when we glut our selves with all manner of Varieties part turns into Choler Flegm and Humours which causeth Flatus's and Indigestion in the Stomach Acippe nunc victus tenuis quae quantaque secum Afferat imprimis valeas bene nam variae res Vt noceant homini credas memor illius escae Quae simplex olim tibi cesserit At simul assis Miscueris elixa simul conchylia turdis Dulcia se in bilem vertent Stomachoque tumultum Lenta feret pituita Vides ut pallidus omnis Caena desurgat dubia Truly we have cause to wonder that Men who in all other actions are Rational and Discreet have so little regard to the manner of their Eating and Drinking heeding this the least of all other Things For First we ought to stay for the most necessary or convenient time of Eating for the which we need nothing but an Appetite to direct us and as Hunger is the most innocent so it is the most relishing and pleasant Sawce Secondly a plain and frugal Meal recovers the Strength of the Body and adds Vigour to the Spirits which seldom happens when we are accosted with great plenty and variety of Meals which we generally meet with at rich Mens Tables And these Persons who thus indulge their sensual Appetites their Pleasures are commonly but of a short continuance they thereby dulling their Spirits and weakning their Bodies and if at the same moment no Fevers Gouts or other Distempers attend them yet the Seeds of these Mischiess are hereby laid in the Body and afterwards conveyed to the several Members by a corrupted Mass of Blood first occasion'd by a superfluous indigested Diet. Thirdly That when our Hunger is satisfied and the Table withdrawn there remains to him who hath Eaten and Drunk moderately this pleasant Thought That he hath done nothing to prejudice his Health his Moderation being his Preservative and Safeguard Neither is he dissatisfied not to have enjoyed that Pleasure wherewith a Glutton seems delighted because such Pleasure is of short continuance leaving nothing behind but cause for Repentance unto which he is not so subject as he who thus gormandizes and overcharges his Stomach with variety of rich Dainties Such a one repents soon or thinks he shall ere long have cause to repent nay he is sure at last to pay dear for his Debauchery Fourthly That it is a great piece of Wisdom to take heed how and what we swallow for the sake of a little short-liv'd Pleasure the Causes of so many Diseases so cruel and so tedious which Causes we cannot be afterwards freed from but by nauseus Potions and a tedious continued Course of Physick which weakens the Body and might easily be prevented meerly by Abstinence So that we should not be oblig'd to say as Lysimachus did after he had surrendred himself into the Hands of the Getae to allay the Thirst that troubled him and his whole Army O ye Gods what a great Advantage have I now lost for a little Pleasure of a short continuance Fifthly If we except some few hereditary Distempers and which may if not be perfectly cured at least much alleviated the Grounds of all other Diseases are frequently occasion'd by Irregularities or Excess in our Eating or Drinking For tho' violent Exercise Heats Colds and other such things may incline us to Diseases yet this commonly happens because they set afloat the superfluous Humours which were before ingendred in our Bodies by excess of Wine and good Chear Therefore it was observed during that great Plague that spread all over Attica that none but Socrates by his extraordinary Sobriety escaped the Infection And we are not unacquainted with one in our days who by the like Method was secured from a great Pestilence I might mention also a
not how more Praised and Extolled than others Nevertheless he proves at large by many Examples and without forgetting his own That though Men put a higher esteem upon military Actions than upon Civil yet we must except against this Opinion for if we will Judge according to Truth there are many civil Actions far greater and nobler than the Military From whence we may conclude that tho those who behave themselves with Courage in War may be esteemed Brave and Excellent yet this Virtue of Fortitude resides not in them alone nor do they only deserve the Titles of Brave and Stout Now to treat of Fortitude contained within its just Limits two Things seem generally requisit The First That it be an invincible strength of Mind against all Things that may be difficult that is to say against such Evils as are difficult either to overcome or to undergo The Second That it be not rash or unadvised that it tends to a good End namely to the support of Honesty and Equity In relation to the First when I say that Fortitude is a certain strength of Mind doubtless we ought not hereby to understand that this Virtue consists as some vulgar People may imagine in the meer Strength and Vigour of Body for a Man of a weak and infirm Body may deserve the name of Brave if he designs the Justice of the Cause he undertakes and continues resolute and unshaken in his purpose not knowing how to yield nay tho he meet with ill Fortune if his Courage never fails but he proceeds on with the same Bravery and Resolution of Thought Much less do we suppose it consistent with a boasting and vain-glorious Humour too much incident to some Persons for if you remove this Ostentation which puts them in pursuit after a dim Light of Glory you will find them Mean Contemptible Cowards nay when it most concerns them to encounter with real Dangers they 'l draw back their Courage failing 'em and very often seek to save themselves by a shameful Flight Again when I say that it is a firm inflexible resolution of Mind I hereby observe that it ought to be such a firmness as ought never to yield but to continue so not only in respect of the greatness of the Labour and Danger but also in respect of its long continuance and repeated Endeavours I say that this strength or firmness of Mind is to encounter all Evils because this Virtue of its own Nature is as a Bulwark against all that is or appears to be Evil in our Life and that it properly hath no other Post assign'd but this I say moreover That the Evils that Fortitude designs to overcome are to be difficult for tho this Virtue may extend to light easy and common Ills yet it is very profitable to accustom our selves to encounter 'em and support our selves under 'em that we may thereby also the better begin to form an Habit for just as the Virtue of Temperance is not required that one should abstain from doating on an old wither'd Hag as it was objected to Crysippus so Fortitude appears not in little Evils but only in great and difficult such as is Death Pain Ignominy the loss of Friends or of Children Poverty Imprisonment Banishment and others that are able to terrify us at a distance or ready to overwhelm us when they draw near As to the Second thing requisite Fortitude would not be a Virtue if it were foolish and unconsiderate but it would be Rashness and as Aristotle terms it a certain Brutality or a brutish Effort opposite to this Virtue which is call'd Heroick and Divine which is nothing else but a kind of noble Courage and Bravery which gave the very Name to Heroes and caused their Deeds to be stiled Heroick Such therefore ought not to be esteemed Brave or Courageous who being carried by a blind Fury and trusting chiefly to their bodily Strength run headâ—ong upon any Undertaking and as if they had bid defiance to Dangers seem to fear nothing so much as to appear fearful of any thing But those are truly Brave who understanding Dangers neither loving them nor provoking them Indiscreetly behave themselves nevertheless with Courage as often as they ought and in that manner that they ought for Aristotle makes this Remark That a stout and brave Man is not he who fears nothing or is resolved to bear all Things or to undertake all Things but he who acts thus where he ought for the end and purpose that he ought when he ought and in that manner that he ought Qui quod oportet cujus causa quando quo modo oportet As therefore on the one Hand he opposeth to a brave Spirit the timerous Soul who for Fear undertakes not the thing that he should so on the other the Audacious and Rash for want of Fear or out of too much Confidence in himself undertakes what he ought not Not to say that according to his Opinion such may be termed Fools and mad Men who fear nothing neither Earthquakes nor Storms such as the Celtae were For there are some Things that are truly to be feared as Shame and Infamy which attends it for as he saith 't is Impudence not to fear them because Shame is an Evil. And as Seneca observes Fortitude is no inconsiderate Rashness nor a Love of Dangers but it is the knowledge how to distinguish what is or what is not Evil. It is always Watchful Constant Patient c. Neither would it be a Virtue as it is manifest if it did not propose Honesty and Justice for its End For that cause Aristotle will have a brave Man to be undaunted but still with an honest Intent And for the same Reason after he hath condemned those for Cowards and far from Brave who destroy themselves for fear of Poverty or for Love or Grief and after he hath declared that those may be esteemed Brave who being tempted by Rewards or frighted by Torments yet behave themselves resolutely which in some respect may be said of Soldiers who are reduced to the necessity of Fighting he saith That he who is truly Brave ought not to be obliged by Necessity but moved by Honesty We add particularly this word Equity because those who are commonly reputed Brave often abuse their Strength against the dictates of Justice and speak according this barbarous Dialect Power is above all Things the Right is in the Conqueror Hence it is that Plato judges Fortitude to be a kind of a Flux or Torrent against the endeavours of Unjustice and therefore blames Protagoras who esteemed those Men brave who were most Profane most Unjust most Intemperate and the greatest Fools because saith he we are not to judge of Fortitude by the Strength of the Body but by the Constancy of the Mind and by an end that is Honest and Praise-worthy in which Justice and Equity principally appear 'T is also to be observed That the Heroes have always been the Protectors of