Democritus Platonissans Part 10

[Ill.u.s.tration]

_A Particular Interpretation appertaining to the three last books of the Platonick Song of the Soul._

A

_Atom-lives._ The same that Centrall lives. Both the terms denotate the indivisibility of the inmost essence it self; the pure essentiall form I mean, of plant, beast or man, yea of angels themselves, good or bad.

_Apogee_, } _Autokineticall_, } _Ananke_, } See Interpret. Gen.

_Acronycall_, } _Alethea-land_, }

_Animadversall. That lively inward animadversall._ It is the soul it self, for I cannot conceive the body doth animadvert; when as objects plainly exposed to the sight are not discovered till the soul takes notice of them.

B

_Body._ The ancient Philosophers have defined it, ?? t???? d??stat??

et' ??t?t?p?a?. _s.e.xt. Emperic. Pyrrhon. Hypotyp. lib. 3. cap. 5._ Near to this is that description, _Psychathan_, Cant. 2. Stanz. 12. lib. 2, _Matter extent in three dimensions._ But for that ??t?t?p?a, simple trinall distension doth not imply it, wherefore I declin'd it. But took in _matter_ according to their conceit, that phansie _a Materia prima_, I acknowledge none, and consequently no such _corpus naturale_ as our Physiologist make the subject of that science. That ????? d??stat??

??t?t?p?? is nothing but a fixt spirit, the consp.i.s.sation or coagulation of the Cuspidall particles of the Cone, which are indeed the Centrall Tasis or inward essence of the sensible world. These be an infinite number of vitall Atoms that may be wakened into diverse tinctures, or energies, into fiery, watery, earthy, &c. And one divine _Fiat_ can unloose them all into an universall mist, or turn them out of that sweat into a drie and pure Etheriall temper. These be the last projections of life from the soul of the world; and are act or form though debil and indifferent, like that which they call the first matter. But they are not meerly pa.s.sive but meet their information half way, as I may so speak: are radiant _ab intimo_ and awake into this or the other operation, by the powerfull appulse of some superadvenient form. That which change of Phantasmes is to the soul, that is alteration of rayes to them. For their rayes are _ab intrinseco_, as the phantasmes of the soul. These be the reall matter of which all supposed bodies are compounded, and this matter (as I said) is form and life, so that all is life and form what ever is in the world, as I have somewhere intimated in _Antipsychopan_: But however I use the terme _body_ ordinarily in the usuall and vulgar acception. And for that sense of the ancients, nearest to which I have defined it in the place first above mentioned, that I seem not to choose that same as most easie to proceed against in disproving the corporeity of the soul, the arguments do as necessarily conclude against such a naturall body as is ordinarily described in Physiologie (as you may plainly discern if you list to observe) as also against this body composed of the Cuspidall particles of the Cone. For though they be Centrall lives, yet are they neither Plasticall, Sensitive, or Rationall, so farre are they from proving to be the humane soul whose nature is there discust.

C

_Cone_: Is a solid figure made by the turning of a rectangular triangle, about; one of the sides that include the right angle resting, which will be then the Axis of the compleated Cone. But I take it sometimes for the comprehension of all things, G.o.d himself not left out, whom I tearm the _Basis_ of the _Cone_ or _Universe_. And because all from him descends, ?a?' ?p?st????, with abatement or contraction, I give the name of _Cone_ to the Universe. And of Cone rather then Pyramid because of the roundnesse of the figure, which the effluxes of all things imitate.

_Chaos_, } _Chronicall_, } See interpret Gen.

_Clare_, }

_Circulation_, The terme is taken from a toyish observation, _viz._ the circling of water when a stone is cast into a standing pool. The motion drives on circularly, the first rings are thickest, but the further they go they grow the thinner, till they vanish into nothing. Such is the diffusion of the species audible in the strucken aire, as also of the visible species. In brief any thing is said to circulate that diffuseth its image or species in a round. It might have been more significantly called orbiculation; seeing this circ.u.mfusion makes not onely a circle, but fills a sphere, which may be called the sphere of activity. Yet Circulation more fitly sets out the diminution of activity, from those ringes in the water which as they grow in compa.s.se, abate in force and thicknesse. But sometimes I use Circulate in an ordinary sense to turn round, or return in a circle.

_Centre_, _Centrall_, _Centrality_. When they are used out of their ordinary sense, they signifie the depth or inmost being of any thing, from whence its acts and energies flow forth. See _Atom-lives_.

_Cuspis_ of the _Cone_. The multiplide Cuspis of the Cone is nothing but the last projection of life from Psyche, which is ????? a liquid fire or fire and water, which are the corporeall or materiall principles of all things, changed or disgregated (if they be centrally distinguishable) and again mingled by the virtue of Physis or Spermaticall life of the world; of these are the Sunne and all the Planets, they being kned together, and fixt by the Centrall power of each Planet and Sunne. The volatile Ether is also of the same, and all the bodies of plants, beasts and men. These are they which we handle and touch, a sufficient number compact together. For neither is the noise of those little flies in a summer-evening audible severally: but a full Quire of them strike the ear with a pretty kind of buzzing. Strong and tumultuous pleasure and scorching pain reside in these, they being essentiall and centrall, but sight and hearing are onely of the images of these, See _Body_.

_Eternitie._ Is the steddie comprehension of all things at once. See aeon discribed in my Expos. upon Psychozoia.

_Energie._ It is a peculiar Platonicall terme. In my Interpret. Gen.

I expounded it Operation, Efflux, Activity. None of those words bear the full sense of it. The examples there are fit, _viz._ the light of the Sunne, the phantasms of the soul. We may collect the genuine sense of the word by comparing severall places in the Philosopher. ??e? ???

??ast?? t?? ??t?? ??e??e?a?, ? ?st?? ????a a?t??, ?ste a?t?? ??t??, ???e??? e??a?, ?a? ????t?? f???e?? e?? t? p????, t? ?? ?p? p????, t?

d? e?? ??att??. ?a? a? ?? ?s?e?e?? ?a? ??d?a?, a? d? ?a? ?a??????sa?, t?? d' e?s? e????? ?a? e?? t? p????. _For every being hath its Energie, which is the image of it self, so that it existing that Energie doth also exist, and standing still is projected forward more or lesse. And some of those energies are weak and obscure, others hid or undiscernable, othersome greater and of a larger projection._ Plotin.

Ennead. 4. lib. 5. cap. 7. And again, Ennead. 3. lib. 4. ?a? ???e? t?

?? ???t? ?????p? ???? t? d? ?s??t? a?t??, peped?e?a t? ??t?, ????

?p?????a? ?p' ??e???? d?d??te? e?? t? ??t?, ????? d? ?????e?a?, ??e????

??? ??att??????. _And we remain above by the Intellectuall man, but by the extreme part of him we are held below, as it were yielding an efflux from him to that which is below, or rather an energie he being not at all lessened._ This curiositie Antoninus also observes, (lib. 8.

Meditat.) in the nature of the sun-beams, where although he admits of ??s??, yet he doth not of ?p?????a which is ????s??. ? ?????

?ata?e??s?a? d??e?, ?a? p??t? ?e ????ta? ?? ?? ??????ta?. ? ??? ??s??

a?t?? t?s?? ?st??. ??t??e? ???? a? a??a? a?t?? ?p? t?? ??te??es?a?

?????ta?. _The sunne_, saith he, _is diffused, and his fusion is every where but without effusion_, &c. I will onely adde one place more out of Plotinus. Ennead. 3. lib. 6. ???st?? d? ????? ? ?????e?a ? ?at? f?s??

??? ??? ???st?sa. _The naturall energie of each power of the soul is life not parted from the soul though gone out of the soul, =viz.= into act._

Comparing of all these places together, I cannot better explain this Platonick term, _energie_, then by calling it the rayes of an essence, or the beams of a vitall Centre. For essence is the Centre as it were of that which is truly called Energie, and Energie the beams and rayes of an essence. And as the _Radii_ of a circle leave not the centre by touching the Circ.u.mference, no more doth that which is the pure Energie of an essence, leave the essence by being called out into act, but is ??-???e?a a working in the essence though it flow _out_ into act. So that _Energie_ depends alwayes on essence, as _Lumen_ on _Lux_, or the creature on G.o.d; Whom therefore Synesius in his Hymnes calls the Centre of all things.

_Entelecheia._ See Interpret. Gen.

F

_Faith._ _Platonick faith in the first Good._ This faith is excellently described in Proclus, where it is set above all ratiocination, nay, Intellect it self. ???? d? a? t? ??a??? ?? ???se?? ?t? ?a? s??e??e?a?

de? t??? s??af???a? spe?d??s??, ???' ?d??se?? ?a? ????? ?atast?se??

?a? ??e?a?. _But to them that endeavour to be joyned with the first Good, there is no need of knowledge or multifarious cooperation, but settlednesse, steddinesse, and rest._ lib. 1. cap. 24. Theolog. Platon.

And in the next chapter; ?e? ??? ?? ???st???? ??d' ?te??? t? ??a???

?p???te??, ???' ?p?d??ta? ?a?t??? t? ?e?? f?t? ?a? ?sa?ta?, ??t??

???d??es?a? t? ????st? ?a? ???f?? t?? ??t?? ???d?. _For we must not seek after that absolute or first Good cognoscitively or imperfectly, but giving our selves up to the divine light, and winking_ (that is shutting our eyes of reason and understanding) _so to place our selves steddily in that hidden Unitie of all things_. After he preferres this faith before the clear and present a.s.sent to the ????a? ?????a?, yea and the ??e?? ?p??t??, so that he will not that any intellectuall operation should come in comparison with it. ????e?d?? ??? a?t? ?a? d?' ?te??t?t??

????????? t?? ????????, ?a? ???? ????s?? ?st? ??e?? pe?? t? ???t??.

?e? d? t?? ?e?a? p?st?? ???e?d? ?a? ??e?? ?p???e?? ?? t? t?? ??a??t?t??

??? te?e??? ?d???e?sa?. _For the operation of the Intellect is multiform and by diversitie separate from her objects, and is in a word, intellectuall motion about the object intelligible. But the divine faith must be simple and uniform, quiet and steddily resting in the haven of Goodnesse._ And at last he summarily concludes, ?st? ??? ??t?? ????

?sfa??? t?? ??t?? ?p??t??. See Procl. Theolog. Platonick. lib. 1. cap.

25.

H

_Hyle._ See Interpret. Gen.

I

_Intellect._ Sometimes it is to be interpreted _Soul_. Sometime the intellectuall facultie of the soul. Sometimes Intellect is an absolute essence shining into the soul: whose nature is this. A substance purely immateriall, impeccable, actually omniform, or comprehending all things at once, which the soul doth also being perfectly joyned with the Intellect. ???e? ??? ?a? t? e?d? d????, ?? ?? ???? ???? ??

??e??????a ?a? ???? ?e????s??a, ?? d? t? ?? ??? t? p??ta. Plot.

Ennead. 1. lib. 1. cap. 8. _Ideas_, or _Idees_. Sometimes they are forms in the Intellectuall world. _viz._ in _aeon_, or _On_, other sometimes, phantasmes or representations in the soul. _Innate Idees_ are the souls nature it self, her uniform essence, able by her _Fire_ to produce this or that phantasme into act.

_Idiopathy._ } See Interpret. Gen.

_Iao_ }

L

_Logos._ See Interpret. Gen.

_Life._ The vitall operation of any soul. Sometime it is the soul it self, be it sensitive, vegetative, or rationall.

_Lower man._ The lower man is our enquickned body, into which our soul comes, it being fitly prepared for the receiving of such a guest. The manner of the production of souls, or rather their non-production is admirably well set down in Plotinus, See, _Ennead. 6. lib. 4. cap. 14, 15_.

M