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THE
True Intelle£tual Syftem
O F T H E
UNIVERSE:
THE FIRST PART;
WHEREIN,
All theREASON and PHILOSOPHY Of A T H E I SM is Confuted ;
AND
Its IMPOSSIBILITY Demonstrated.
By R. C VDWO R TH, D. D.
Origenes^
TvfJLvddiovivg -^vx^S fH 'AN0Prini'NH lO$l'A3 Tz\&>H fH 0EI;A.
^LONDON,
Printed for Richard Royfton, Bookfeller to His moft Sacred MAJESTY, mdclxxviil
^mjamsIDTM'^
To the Right Honourable
H E N E A G E
LORD FINCH, BAR ON of Daventrjt,
Lord High CHANCELLOVK of England,
undone of His M A fE ST IE's moji
Honourable Privy Council.
My Lord,
TH E many Favours I have formerly Received from You, as they might juftly challenge, when- ever I had a fit opportunity , a Publick and Thankfull Acknowledgment, fo have they encourag'd me at this time, to the Prefumption of this Dedication to Your Lordfhip. Whom , as Your Perfpicacious Wit , and Solid Judgment, together with Your Acquired Learning, render everyway a mod Accomplifh'd and Detirable Pa- tron ; fo did I perfuade my felf, that Your Hearty Affec- tion to Religion, and Zeal for it, would make You not Un- willing, to take that into Your Protection, which is writ- ten wholly in the Defence thereof; fo far forth, as its own Defeds, or Mifcarriages ,fhould not render it uncapableof
A 2 the
The Epiftle Dedicatory.
the fame. Nor can I think it probable, that in an Age of To much Debauchery, Scepticifm, and infidelity, an Un- dertaking of this kind , fliould be judged by You , UBtCs or Unfeafbnable. And now, having fo fit an Opportuni- ty, I could mod willingly expatiate in the large Field of Your Lordfhip's Praifes ; both that I might doe an A& of Juftice to Your felf, and provoketothers to Your Imi- tation. But I am fenfible, that as no Eloquence, lefs then that of Your own, could be fit for fuch a Performance; fo the Noblenefs and Generofity of Your Spirit is fuch, that You take much more pleafure in Doing Praife-worthy things, then in Hearing the Repeated Echo's of them. Wherefore in ftead of purfuing Encomiums, which would be the leaft pleafing to Your fdf, I fhall Offer up my Prayers to Almighty God, for the Continuation of Your Lordfhip's Life and Health ■ That fo His iM A J E S T Y may long have fuch a Loyal Subjed and Wife Counfel- lour ; the Church of England, fuch a Worthy Patron ; the High Court of Chancery, fuch an Oracle of Impartial Juftice ; and the whole Nation, fuch a Pattern of Ver- tue and Piety. Which fhall ever be the Hearty Defire of,
MY LORD,
Your Lordship's
Moll: Humble and moft Afte&ionate
Servant
R. Cudworth.
THE
PREFACE
^ TO
THE READER.
THO V G H, I confefs, I have fetdom taken any great plea- fure0 in reading other mem Apologies, yet muft I at this time make feme myjelf. Firft therefore, I acknowledge, that when I engaged the ¥ refs J. intended onely a Difcourje concer- ning Liberty andNece&ky^or to /peak out more plainly, Againft die Faral! Neceffity of all A&'ions and Events ; which upon whatfoever Grounds or Principles maintain d, will ( as We Conceive J Serve The Defignot' Atheifm, and Undermine Chriftianity, and all Religion ; as taking away all Guilt and Blame, Punishments and Rewards , and plainly rendring a Day of Judgment, Ridiculous : And it h Evident thatfome have purfued it of late, in order to that End. But afterwards We con. fider d, That thh which isindeedaControverfy, concerning The True Intellectual Syftem of the Univerfe, does , in the full Extent thereof, take in Other things ; the Neceffity of all Actions and Events being maintained by Several Perfons, upon very Different Grounds, accor- ding to that Tripartite Fatalifm, mentioned by us in the beginning of the Firlt Chapter. For Firft, The Democritick Face, is nothing but The Material Neceffity of all things without a God : itfuppoftng Senllefs Mat- ter, Neceflarily Moved, to be the onely Original and Principle of all things: Which therefore is called by tipicurus, The 1'hy fiologic.il ; by us, the Atheiftick Fate. Befides which, The Divine Fate is alfo Bi- partite ; Some Theifts fuppofing God , both to Decree and Doe all things in ut, (Evil as well #sGood) or by hi* Immediate Influence to Determine all Acfions, andfo make them alike Neceflary to us. From whence it follows, That his Will is no way Regulated or Determined, by any EfienmM and Immutable Goodnefs, and Jufrice; or that he hath nothing of Morality in his Nature, he being onely Arbitrary Will Omni- potent. As alfo That all Good and Evil Morall , to us Creatures are
A 3 meer
The Preface
meer Theticall or Pofitive things ; "°>*>, and not w<™> by Law or Com- mand onely, and not by Nature. Th'vs therefore may be called, The Divine Fate Immorall, arid Violent. Again, There being otberDi- vine Fatalifts, who acknowledge fuch a Deity, as both fuffers other things, befides it felf, to Aft , and hath an Effentiall Goodnefs and Juftice in its Nature ; and confequently , That there are things , Juft and UnjuPr to m Naturally, and not by Law and Arbitrary Conftitucion onely; and yet neverthelefs t ake away from mm, all fuch Liberty, as might makf them capable of Praife and Diftfraife , Rewards and Pu- nilhments , and Objeols of Diftributive Juftice : they conceiving Ne- ceffity to be Intriniecall to the Nature of every thing, in the Aclings of it ; and nothing of Contingency to be found any-where ; from whence it will follow, That nothing could poffibly have been Otherwise, in the whole World , then it Is. And this may be called The Divine FateMorall, fas the other Immorall,) <?WNaturall, fas the other Violent ;) it being a Concatenation, or Implexed Series ofCaufes, all inthemfelvesNe- ceflary, depending upon a Deity Morall, ( if we may fo fpeahj) that is, fuch as is ErTentially Good, and Naturally Juft, as f/^Head thereof; the Firft Contriver and Orderer of all. Which kind of Divine Fate, hath not ontly been formerly a fer ted by the Stoicks, butalfo of late, by divers Modern Writers. Wherefore of the Three Fatalifms, or Falfe Hy- pothefes of the Univerfe, mentioned in the beginning of this Book.; One is Abiblute Atheifm : Another Immorall Theifm, or Religion without any Natural I juftice and Morality: Qall Juft and Unjuft, according to. this Hypothefis, being meer Theticall or Factitious things, Made by Arbitrary Will and Command onely .*) The Third and Laft , fuch a Theifm , as acknowledges not onely a God , or Omnipotent Under- ftanding Being, but alfo Natural Juftice and Morality, Founded in him, and 'Derived from him ; neverthelefs no Liberty from Neceffity any- where, and therefore no Diftributive or Retributive Juftice in the World. Whereas thefe Three Things are, C^ we conceive J the Fundamentals or Effentials ef True Religion. Firft, That all things in the World, do not F hat without a Head tf»;/Governour ; but that there is a God, an Omnipotent Underftanding Being, Prefiding over all. Secondly, That this God Z>e/#g ErTentially Good and Juft, there is <pv<ni na\hv xa} Bi- xmov, Something in its own Nature, Immutably and Eternally Juft, and Unjuft; and not ^Arbitrary Will, Law, and Command onely. And Lajlly, That there is Something i? «p, or, That we arefo far forth Prin- ciples or Mafters of our own Aftions, as to be Accountable to Juftice for than, or to make us Guilty and Blame-worthy for what we doe Amifs, and to Deferve Punifhment accordingly. Which Three Fundamentals
of
to the Reader.
of Religion, are Intimated by the Authour to the Hebrews, m thefe Words, ; He chat Comech to God, muft Believe Cnac He Is, and That He is a Rewarder of thole who leek him out. For to Seek out God here, is nothing clfe, but to Seek a farticipaion of hit Image, on the Recovery of that Nature and Life of hit, which we have been Alienated from. And thefe Three Things, namely, That all things do not Float without a Head tf/z^Governour ; but there ps an Omnipotent Underftanding Being Pre'iding over all : lhat this God, hath ah Kllentiall Goodnefs and Justice, and TbattfiX Differences of Good and Evil Morall, Honeft and Diitioneit, are not iy meer Will and Law onely, but by Nature ; and confquently, That the Deity cannot Ad, Influence, and 'Neceffitate men, tofuch things as are in their Own Nature, Evil : and Laflly, That Ncceffity is not intrinfecall to the Nature of every thing ; But tbat men have fucb a Liberty, or Power over their own Actions , as may render them Accountable/or the fame, and Blame- worthy when they doe Amifs; and confequentlj, That there is a Juftice Diftributive of Rewards akU Punishments, running through the World ; I fay, Thefe Three, ( which are the moft Important Things, that the Mind of man can employ it felf upon ) taken all together, make up the Wholenefs rf^Entirenefs of that, which is here called by ut, The True Intellectual Syftem of the Univerfe ; in fuch a Senfe, as Atheifm may be called , a Falfe Syftem thereof: The Word Intellectual, being added, to dijlinguifo it from the other, Vulgarly fo called, Sy Items of the World, ( that ps, the Vifible and Corporeal World) the Pcolemaick, Tychonick, and Coperni- can ; the Two Former of which, are now commonly accounted Falfe, the Latter True. And thus our Profpetl being now Enlarged, into a Threefold Fatal ifm , or Spurious and Falfe Hypothecs of the Intel- lect u;l Syftem, making all things NecefTary upon fever al Grounds ; We accordingly Deigned the Confutation of them all , in Three Several Books. The Firft, dgainfl Atheifm, ( which is the Democritick Fate ) wherein all the Rtafbn tftfiPhilofophy thereof is Refelled, and the Ex- iftence of a God Demonfirated ; and fo that uAi-Ji dvdym, or Material Neceffity of all things, Overthrown. The Second, For fuch a God as ps notm:er Arbitrary Will Omnipotent, Decreeing, Doing, and NecelTi- tatingtf// Aclions, Evil as well as Good; but Erfentially Moral, Good and Juft ; and For a Natural Difcrimen Honeftorum £> Turpium ; where- by another Ground of the Necefiity of all Humane Aclions will be Re- moved. And the Third and La'r, AgainJlNeceH'xy Intrinfecall and Effentiall to all Action^ and for fuch a Liberty, or Sui-Poteftas, in Ra- tional Creatures, as may render them Accountable, capable of Rewards tfW Punishments, andfo Objects o/Diftributive or Retributive Juftice :
The Preface
by which the. now one.ly remaining Ground, of the Fatal Neceffity of all Actions and 'Events, will be Taken away. And all thefe Three under that One General Title, of The True Intellectual Syftem of the Univerfe. Each Bookbaving befides, its own Particular Title : as, Againft Atheifm ; For Natural Juftice W Moral try, Founded in the Deity ; For Liberty from Neceffity, and a Diftributive Juftice 0/ Rewards and Punishments in the World. And this we conceive may fully fatisfy, concerning our General Title, all thofe, who are not extremely priticall or Captious, at leaft as many of them a* have ever heard of tm Aftronomical Syftems of the World: fo that they will not think us hereby Obliged, to Treat of the Hierarchy o/Angels, and of all the Several Species of Animals, Vege- tables, and Minerals, isrc. that is , to write De Omni Ente, of what- foever is Contained within The Complexion of the Univerfe. Though the Whole Scale of Entity is here alfo taken notice of; and the General Ranks o/Subftantiall Beings, below the Deity, (or Trinity of Divine Hypoftafes) Confider'd: which yet, according to our Philofophy, are but Two ; Souls of fever a I Degrees, ( Angels themfelves bang included ■within that Number J and Body or Matter : as alfo the Immortality of thofe Souls Proved. Which notwithfianding is Suggeftedby us, onely to Sa- tisfy fome mens Curiofity. Neverthelefs we confefs that this General Title, might will have been here (pared by us, and this Volume have been Pre- fentedto the Reader's View, not as a Part or Piece, but a Whole Com- pleat and Entire thing by it [elf, had it not been for Two Reafbrrs ; Firft, Our beginning with thofe Three Fatalifms, or Falfe Hypothefes of the Intellectual Syftem, and Promifmg a Confutation of them all, then when we thought to have brought them within the Compafs of One Volume ; and Secondly, Every other Page"s, throughout this whole Volume, accordingly bearing the Infcription, of Book the Firft, ajwz the Head thereof This is therefore that which in the Firft place, we here Apologize for, our Publifhing One Part or Book alone by it felf ; We being furprized in the Length thereof; Whereas we had otherwise Intended Two more along with it. Notwithfianding which, there is no Reafon, why this Volume fhould therefore bethought Imperfect and Incomplete, becaufe it hath not All the Three Things at fir ft Defignedby us ; it containing All that belongeth to its own Particular Title and Subjedt, and being in that refpeU no Piece, but a Whole. This indeed mufl needs beget an Expectation, of the Two following Treatifes, (efpecially in fuch as f hall have received any Sa- tisfaction from this Firft;) concerning thofe Two other Fatalifms> or Falfe Hypothefes mentioned; to make up our Whole Intellectual .Syftem Compleat ; The One, to Prove, 7hat God is not rneer Arbitrary Will Omnipotent, ([without any Eflential Goodnefs and Juftice ) Decree-
ing
to the Reader.
ing and Doing all things in the World, as ire// Evil as Good; and thereby making them alike Neceflary to us ; from whence it tobuld folimfi, that all Good and Evil Moral, are rneer Thetical, Positive, and Arbi- trary things, that #, not Nature, but Will ; Which i* the Defence ol Natural, Eternal, and Immutable Juftice, or Moral iry : 7 he Oth r, That Neceffity is not Intrinfecal to the Nature of Every thing, God and all Creatures, or Eflentiall to all A&ion ; but, That there is Something «y «{mv, or, That we have fwe Liberty, or Power over our own Actions : Which is the Defence of a Iyiftiibutive or Retributive Juftice, d//p nfing Rewards fltf^Puniihments throughout the whole World. VVherifore we thinkfit here to advertize the Reader concerning theft, That though they were, and fill are, really intended by us ; yet the Compleat §inifbing and Publication of them, will notwithftanding depend upon many Contin- gencies; not onely of cur Life and Health, the Latter of which, as well as the Former, is torn very "Uncertain ; but alfo of our Leifure, or Va- cancy from other Necejfary Employments.
In the next place, We mujl Apologize alfo , for the Fourth Chapter ; inafmuch as, th ugh in regard of its Length, it might rather be called a Book, then a Chapter ; yet it doth not Anfwer all the Contents Prefixed to it. Here therefore mufi we again, confefs our [elves Surprized-, who when we wrote thofe Contents, did not fufpetl in the leaft, but that we fhould have Satisfied them all within a leffer Compafs, And our Defign then was, beftdes Anfwering the Objection, againfi ffo Naturalicy of the Idea o/God, from the Pagan Polytheifm, f we having then fo fit an Occa- sion J to give fuch a further Account of the Idolatry and Religion of the "Gentiles, as might prepare our way for a Defence of Chriftianity, to befubjoyned in the Clofe: it being not onely agreeable to the Stnfe of Ancient Doctors, but alfo exprejly declared in the Scripture, That One Defign of Chnfthmty, was to abolifh and extirpate the Pagan Polytheifm and Idolatry. And our Reafons for this Intended Defence of Chriftia- nity, were. Firft ; Becaufewe hadObferved, that fome Prof efted Op. pofers o/Acheifm, had either incurred a Sufpicion, or at leaf filtered un- der the Imputation, of being meer Theifts, or Natural Religionifts onely, and no hearty Believers of Chriftianity, or Friends to Revealed Reli- gion. From which either Sufpicion or Imputation therefore--, we thought it Juftice to free our felves, we having fo Unfhaken a Belief anl firm Aliurance, of the Truth of the whole ChriftLm Dodrine. But, Secondly and Principally ; Becaufe we had further Obfervedit, to have been the Method of our Modern Atheifts , to make their Firft Ajfault againfi Chriftianity, as thinking that to be the moft Vulnerable ; and that it would bi an eafy Step for them from thence, to DemoliJI) all Religion, and
* Tkeifm.
The Preface
Theiim. However, fiace the Satisfying the Former Part of thofe Con- tents, had already taken up ft much Room, that the Purfuitof the Re- mainder, would have quite Excluded, our principally Intended Confu. tation of all the Atheiftick Grounds ; the forementioned Objection being now Sufficiently Anfwered ; there was a neceffity, that wefiould there break off, and leave the further Account of the Pagan Idolatry and Religion, together with our Defence of Chriftianity, tofome other more convenient Opportunity. T
And now we [hall Exhibit to the Reader' shiew, a Brief WGeneral Synopfis, of the whole following Work, together with fome P articular Reflexions upon fever al Parts thereof-, either for Us better Information concerning them , or for their Vindication : fome of which therefore, mil be of greater Vfe, after the Book hat been read, then before. The Firft Chapter, is an Account of the Atomick Phyfiology, as made the Foundation of the Democritick Fate. Where the Reader is to under- jland, that this Democritick Fate, which is One of the Three Falfe Hy- pothefes of the Intellectual Syftem, there Mentioned, is the very Self- fame thing with the Atomick Atheifm ; the onely Form of Atheifm, that hath publickly appeared upon the Stage, as an Entire Philofophick Syftem ; or hath indeed been much taken notice of in the World, for thefe Two Thouhndyears paft. For, Though it be true , That Epicurus, (who was alfo an Atomick Atheift , f as is afterwards declared J ha* •ving, in all probability, therefore a Mind to Innovate Something, that he might not feem to have borrowed all from Democritus,) did by violence introduce Liberty of Will, into his Hypothecs ; fur the Salving whereof, he ridiculoufly deviled, That his Third Motion of Atoms, called by Lu- cretius,
Exiguum Clinamen Principiorum :
Tet was this, as Cicero longfmce obferved, a mofi Heterogeneous Patch, or Affumentum of his, and altogether as Contradictious to the Tenour of his own Principles, as it was to the Doclrine of Democritus himfelf. There can be nothing more Abfurd, then for an Atheift to affert Liberty e/Will : but it is mofi of all AbCurd, for an Atomick One. And there- fore our Modern Atheifts do here plainly difclaim Epicurus, fthougb otherwife fo much Admired by them; J and declare open War againfl this Liberty of Will : they Apprehending that it would unavoidably In- troduce Incorporeal Subftance ; as alfo well Knowing, that Neceffity, on the contrary, Effectually overthrows all Religion ; it taking PWW Guilt and Blame, Punifhments and Rewards ; to which might be added alfo, Prayers and Devotions.
And as there was a neceffity for us here, to give fome Account of that
Ancient
to the Reader.
Ancient Acomick Vhyiiology, with which Atheifm now becamethus Blen- ded and Complicated ; fo do we in this Firft Chapter, chiefly infijl upon Two things concerning it. Firft, 1 hat it was no Invention o/Democi i- tus not Leucippus, but of much greater Antiquity : n t onely from that Tradition tranfnitted by Po'idonius the Stoick, That it derived itsO- rigiiul/rowz one Mofcllus a Ph-rnician, who lived before the Trojan Wars, ( which plainly makes it to hdve been Mofnicall ; ) but alfo from Arifto- tie's Affirmation, That thtsgr eater part oft he Ancient Philofophers enter- tained thu Hypothefis ; an]/ further becaufe it k cert ain,t hat divers of the Italicks, arid particularly Empedocles, before Democritus, Phyfiologi- zed Atomically : which is the Reafon, he was fo much applauded by Lucretius. Befides which, it is more then a Pttfumption , that Anax- agoras his Homocomery or Similar Atomology, was but a Degeneration from the True and Genuine Atomology of the Ancient Italicks, that was an Anomceomery, orDotlrine o/Diffimilar d«</ Unqualified Atoms. Wherefore all that is True concerning Democritus and Leucippus, is onely this, That theft men were indeed, the Firft Atheizers of this Ancient Atomick Phyfiology, or the Inventors and Broachers of the Atomick A- theifm. Which is Laertius his True meaning, ( 'though it be not common- ly under flood,) whenherecordethofthem, that they were the Firft, who made Unqualified Atoms, the Principles of all things in the Univerfe without exception ; that is, not onely of Inanimate Bodies, f^s the other Ancient Religious Atomifts, the Italicks, before had done J but alfo of Soul and Mind.
And whereas we conceive this Atomick Phyfiology, as to the Effen- tialls thereof, to be Vnqueftionably True, viz. That the onely Principles of Bodies, are Magnitude, Figure, Site, Motion, and Reft; and that the Qualities and Forms of Inanimate Bodies, are Really nothing, but fever al Combinations of theft, Caufing fever ai Pliancies in us : fWhich excellent Difcovery therefore, fo long agoe made, is a Notable Inftance of the Wit and Sagacity of the Ancients : ) So do we in the Next place, makf itmanifeft, that this Atomick Phyfiology rightly underftood, is fo far from being either the Mother or Nurfe of Atheifm, or any ways Favoura- ble thereunto, fas is Vulgarly fuppofed%~) that it is indeed, the moft di- rectly Oppofite to it of any, and the greateft Defence againft the fame. For, Firft, we have Difeovered , That the Principle, upon which this Atomology is Founded, and from whence it Sprung, was no other then this, Nothing out of Nothing, in the True Senfe thereof; or, 7 hat Nothing can be Caufed by Nothing : from whence it was concluded, that in Natural Generations, there was no new Real Entity produced, which was not before : the Genuine Confequence whereof was Two. fold ;
* 2 That
The Preface
. That the Qualities and Forms of Inanimate Bodies , are no Entities Really diftincl from the Magnitude, Figure, Site and Motion of Parts ; and,That Souls are Subftances Incorporeal,«ot Generated out of Matter. Where we have [hewed. That the Pythagorick DoSrine, of the Yrx-Ex- iftence of Souls, was founded upon the very fame Principle, with the A- tomick Phyfiology. And it hfrom this very Principle rightly under food, that Ourfehes afterwards, undertake to Demonflrate, The Abfolute Im- poffibilicy of all Atheifm. Moreover, we havfmade it undeniably Evi- dent, That the Intrinfick Conftitution of this ^tomick Phyfiology alfo is fuch, as that whofoever admits it, and rightly under /lands it, muft need acknowledge Incorporeal Subftance ; which is the Abfolute Overthrow of Atheifm. And from hence alone, is it certain to m, without tf^Teftimonies from Antiquity, that Democritus andLeucippus, could not poffibly be the Firft Inventors of this Philofophy, they either not rightly Vnderfianding it, or elfe wilfully Depraving the fame: and the Atomick Atheilm, being Really nothing elfe, but a Rape committed upon the Atomick Phyfiology. For which Reofon, we do by no means here Applaud Plato, nor Ariftotle, in their Rejecting this mofi Ancient Atomick Phyfiology, and Introdu- cing again, that Unintelligible Firft Matter, and thofe Exploded Qua- lities and Forms, into Philofophy. For though this were probably done by Plato, out of a Difguft and Prejudice againft the Atomick Atheifts, which made him notfo well Conftder nor Under ft and that Phyfiology ; yet was he much dif appointed of his Expectation herein \ That Atomology which he Exploded, ( rightly under flood?) being really the Greateft Bul- wark againft Atheifm ; and on the contrary, Thofe Forms and Qualities which he Effoufed, the Natural Seed thereof; they, beftdes their Unintel- ligible Darknefs, bringing Something out of Nothing, in the Impofiible Senfe ; which wejhew to be, the Inlet of all Atheifm. And thus in this Firft Chapter, have we not onely quite Difarmed Atheifm of Atomicifrn, or Jhewed that the Latter, (rightly underftood?) affordeth no manner of Shelter or Protection to the Former ; But alfo made it manifeft, that it is the greateft Bulwark and Defence againji the fame. Which is a thing af- terwards further inftfted on.
As to the Second Chapter, we have no more to fay, but onely this ; That here we took the Liberty, to Reveal the Arcane Myfteries of Atheifm, and to Difcover all its Pretended Grounds ofReafon, that, we could find any- where fuggefted in Writings ; thofe onely excepted, that are peculiar to the Hylozoick Form, (which is direclly contrary to the Atomick;) and that to their beft advantage too: neverthelefs to this end, that thefe being afterwards, all Baffled and Confuted, Theiim might by this means, Ob. tain the Greater and Jujler Triumph over Atheifm.
In
to the R eader.
In the Third Chapter* we thought it neceffar)!, in order to a ful- ler Confutation of Atheifm , to confider all the other Forms there- of befides the Atomick. And here do we fir ft of all, make a Wife covery of a certain Form of Acheifm , never before taken notice of, by a ny Modern Writeis, which we call the Hylozoick : which not nil 'h- jtanding, though it were long fincefiartei by Scraco, in way oj Oppofeition to the L>emocricick and Epicurean Hypothefis ; yetbecaufee it afterwards flept in per fell Silence andjOblivion, pouldhave been here by ws faffed by Silently ; had we not had certain Knowledge of its being of late Awa- kened and Revived, by feme, who werefofagacious, as plainly to perceive, that the Atomick Form could never doe their bu/inefs, nor prove De- fenfible : and therefore would attempt to carry on f^jsCauie of Acheifm, in quite a different way, by the Life and Perception of Matter : as alfo that this in all probability, would ere longpublichjy appear upon the Stag?, though not Bare-faced, but under a Difguize. Which Atheiftick Hypothe- cs, is partly Confuted by us, in the Cloie of this Third Chapter, and partly in the Fifth.
In the next place, it being certain, that there had been other Philofo- pluck Atheifts in the world before thofe Atomicfcs, Epicurus and De- mocritus ; we declare, out of Plato tf^Ariftotle, what that moft Ancient Atheiftick Hypothecs was; namely, the Eduftion of all things, even Life d#</Underftanding it Self, out of Matter, in the way o/Qualities ; or as the PalTions and Affections thereof, Generable and Corruptible. Which Form of Atheifm h fly led by U6, not onely Hylopathian, but alfo Anaximandrian : however we grant fome probability of that Opinion, That Anaximander held an Homceomery of Qualified Atoms, as Anaxagoras afterwards did; the difference between them being onely this, that the Latter aferted an Unmade Mind, whereas the Former Generated all Mind tf7Z,i/ Understanding, out of thofe Qualified Atoms, Hot and Cold, MoiftandDry, Compounded together : becaufe we Judged 'this Difference not to be a fufficient Ground to multiply Forms of Atheifm upon. And here do we give notice, ofthatftrange kind of Religious Atheifm, or Atheiftick Theogonifm, which ajferted, not onely other Understanding Beings, Superiour to Men, called by them Gods ; but alfo amongfl thofe, one Supreme or Jupiter too ; neverthelefs Native, and Generated at Fir ft out of Night and Chaos, (7ikat is, Senflefs Matter ) as a Ifeo Mor- tal and Corruptible again into the fame.
Befides which, there is yet a Fourth Atheiftick Form taken notice of, out of the Writings of the Ancients, Chough perhaps Junior to the reft, itfeeming to be but the Corruption <w</ Degeneration of Stoicifm ) which concluded the whole World, not to be an Animal, ( ' ds the RagSri
** Theirts
The Preface
Theitts then generally Suppofed) but onely One Huge Plane or Vegetable, bmmg<an Artificial, Plantal,W Plaftick Nature; as its Higheft Prin- ciple, Orderly diffofing the Whole, without any Mind or Underftanding. And here have we fit down, the Agreement of all the Atheiftick Forms, (however differ ingfo much from one another J in this One General Princi- ple, viz^. That all Animality, Confcious Life and Underftanding, is Generated out of Senflefs Matter, and Corruptible again into it.
Wherefore in the Clofe of this Third Chapte^ we infift Largely, upon an Artificial, Regular and Plaftick Nature| devoid of exprefs Know- ledge and Understanding, as fubordinate to the Deity : Chiefly in way of Confutation , of thofe Cofmo-Plaftick , and Hylozoick Atheifms. Though we had a further Defign herein alfo, for the Defence of Theifm ; forafmuch as without fuch a Nature, either God mujl befuppofedto Doe all things in the world Immediately, and to Form every Gnat and 'Fly, as it were with his own hands; which feemeth not fo Becoming of him, and would render his Providence , to Humane Apprehenfions, Laborious and Diftractious ; or elfe the whole Syftem of this Corporeal Univerfe, muji refult onely from Fortuitous Mechanifm, without the Direction of any Mind : which Hypothecs once admitted, would Vnqueftionably, by degrees, Supplant and Undermine <z// Theifm. And now from what we have declared, it may plainly appear, that this Digrejfion of ours, con- cerning an Artificial, Regular and Plaftick Nature , ( Subordinate to the Deity) wwo Wen, or Excrefcency, in the Body of this Book.; but a Natural and Neceffary Member thereof
In the Fourth Chapter ; After the Idea of God fully declared, Cohere we could not omit his EfTential Goodnels and Juftice, or Ctfw may fo call it J the Morality of the Deity ; though that be a thing properly be- longing to the Second Book, The Confutation of the Divine Fate Immo- ral ) There is a large Account given of the Pagan Polytheifm ; tofathfy a very confiderable Objection, that lay in our way from thence , Againfl the Naturalicy of the Idea of God, as Including Onelinels and Singu- larity in it. Fcr had that, upon enquiry, been found True, which is fo commonly taken for granted, That the gemrality of the Pagan Nations, had confiantly, Scattered their Devotions , amongfl a multitude ofSelt- Exiftent, and Independent Deities , they acknowledging no One Sove- reign Numen ; This would much have Stumbled the Naturality of the Di- vine Idea. But now it being on the Contrary, clearly Proved, That the Pagan Theologers all along , acknowledged One Sovereign and Omnipotent Deity, from which all their other Gods were Generated or Created ; we have thereby not onely Removed the forementioned Objection out of the way ; but alfo Evinced, That the Gemrality of mankind,
have
to the Reader.
have confiantly had a certain Prulepfis or -Anticipation in their Mind:-, concerning the Aclual Exiftcnce of a God, according to ifoe True Id a of him. And this was the rdther done Fully and Carefully by us \ becaufe vrc had not met with it fufficiently performed before : A. SteuchusEugubinus, Pa- ving laboured mi ft in this SubfeUt : from ivhofe profitable Indufiry though nejhallno way detract ; yet whomever will compare, what he. hath written, tvith ours , will find no Jufi Caufe to think durs Superfluous and Ifnnc- ceflary ; much lefs, a Trar^cription out of his. In which, be fides other things , there is no Account at all given, of the Many Pagan, Poetical and Poli- tical Gods, what they were ; which is fo great a part of our Performance, to prove them Really to have been, but the Polyonymy of one God. From whence it fillows alfo, That the Pagan Religion, though fufficiently Faulty, xct was not altogether Jo Nonfenfical, as the Athoifts would reprefent it, out ofdefign ; that they might from thence infer, all Religion to be nothing but a meerChm and lmpofturd : they woi 'flipping onelyOne Supreme God, in the fever al Manifeftations of his Goodnefs, Pow-r, and Providence throughout the World, together with his Inferiour Minifters. Neverthe- Jefs we cannt deny, that being once engaged in this SubjecT, we thought our Selv:s the m re 0 ncerned, to doe the bufinefs thoroughly and effectually, becaufe of that Controverfy lately Agitated, concerning Idolatry, fwldch cannot otherwife be Decided, then by giving a True Account of the Pagan Religion ; ) an I the fo Confident Affirmations offome, That none could pof- fibly be Guilty of Idolatry, in the Scripture Senfe, who Believed One God the Creator of the whole world : Whereas it is moft certain on the contrary, that the Pagan Polyth-'ifm ^Idolatry, confined not in worfljipping Many Creators, or Uncreateds, but in giving Religious Wormipta Creatures, befides the Creator ; they directing their Devotion, fas AthzmCius plainly affirmeth ofthemi) Wt dytvrir^, %#.) -ot^o^ ^fH7or?, To One Uncreated onely • but befides him, to many Created Gods. But as for the Polemick Ma- nagement of this Controversy, concerning Idolatry, we leave it to other Learned Hands, that are already engaged in it.
Moreover, We have in this Fourth Chapter, largely Infified alfo upon the Trinity. The Reafon whereof was, Becaufe it came in our way ; and our Contents engaged us thereunto , in order to the giving a full Account of the. Pagan Theology : it being certain , that the Platonicks and Pythago- reans d£ leafl, if not other -Pagans <ahfo, had their Trinity, as well as Chri- ftians. And we could not well avoid, the Comparing of thefe Two toge- ther : Vpcn which Occafion we take notice of a Double Haronick Trinicy ; the One Spurious and Adulterated, offome latter Platonifts ; the Other True and Genuine,, of Plato himfehf, Parrnenides, and the Ancients. The Former ofwhich,though it be Oppofedby us to the Chrjftian Trinity,*?/./ &w-
** 2 fitted;
The Preface
fitted; yet betwixt the Latter and that, do we find a Wonder jull Correfpon* dence : which is Largely Purfued, in the Platonick Chriftians Apology* Wherein notwithfianding, nothing mufl, be looks upon, as Dogmatically Af ferted by us, but onely Offered, and Submitted to the Judgment of the Learned in thefe Matters ; We confining our f elves, in this Myfterious Point of the Holy Trinity, within the Compafs ofthofe its Three ErTentials declared; Firft, That it is not a Trinity oj rneer Names and Words, or cf Logical Notions onely : But of Peribns or Hypoftafes. Secondly, That none ofthofe Perfbnsor Hypoftafes, are Creatures, but ^Uncreated. And Laftly, That they are all Three, Truely and Really <&ne God. Neverthelefs we acknowledge, That we did therefore, the more Copioufly infifi upon this Ar- gument, becaufe of our then Defigned, Defence of Chriftianity ; we con- ceiving that this Parallel! fin, betwixt the Ancient or Genuine Platonick, and the Chriftian Trinity, might be offome ufe to fatisfy thofe amongfl «5, who Boggle fo much at the Trinity, and look, upon it as the Choak-Pear of Chriftianity ; when they flail find, that the Freefl Wits amongfl the Pa- gans, and the Beft Philofophers, who had nothing of Superftition, to De- termine them that way, were fo far from being fly offuch an Hypothecs, m that they were even fond thereof And that the Pagans had indeed fuch a Cabbala amongfl them, ( 'which fome perhaps will yet hardly believe, notwith- fianding all that we have f aid,) might be further convinced, from that me- morable Relation in Plutarch, o/Thefpefius Solenfis, who after he had been look), upon as Dead for Three days , Reviving ; Affirmed amongfl other tlings,which he thought hefaw or heard in the mean time in his Ecjlajy, This, Of Three Gods in the Form of a Triangle, pouring in Streams into one another ; Orpheus his Soul, being f aid to have arrived fo far ; accordingly as from the Tefiimonies of other Pagan Writers, we have proved, that a Trinity of Divine Hypoftafes, was a part of the Orphick Cabbala. True in- deed, our Belief of the Holy Trinity, is Founded upon no Pagan Cab- bala's, but onely Scripture Revelation : it being that which Chriftians are, or Jhould be, all Baptized into ; Neverthelefs thefe things areReafonably noted by m to this end; That that Jhould not be made a Prejudice Againft Chriftianity, and Revealed Religion ; nor looks upon as fuch an Affright- full Bugbear or Mormo in it ; which even Pagan Philofophers themf elves, and thofe ofthemoft Accomplished Tntelletluals, d«^/Uncaptivated Minds, though having neither Councils, nor Creeds, nor Scriptures \ had fo great a Propenfity andReadinefs to entertain , and fuch a Veneration for.
In this Fourth Chapter, We were neceffitated by the Matter it felf to run out into Philology and Antiquity ; as alfo in the other Parts of the Bookr we do often give an Account, of the Doclrine of the Ancients : which how- ever fome Over-fever e Philofophers,/^ lookjipon Faftidioufly, or Underva- lue
to the Reader.
lue and Depretiate ; yet, as we conceive J it often Neceffary, fo po/fi- bly may the Variety thereof not be Ungracefull to others ; and this Mixture of Philology, throughout the Whole, Sweeten and Allay the Severity of Philofophy to them : The main thing which the Book pretends to, in the meantime, being the Philofophy of Religion. But fir our parts, we neither call 'Philology \ nor yet Philofophy, our Mijirefs; but ferveour (elves of Either, as Occefionrequinth.
As fir the Laft Chapter ^ Though it Promife onely a Confutation of all the Atheiftick Grounds ; yet do we therein alfo Demonstrate, the Abfo- lute Impofiibility of all Atheifm, and the A&ual Exiftence 0/ a God. We fay Demon ftrate ; not A Priori, which is Impojfible and Contradic- tions; but /^iNeceflary Inference, from Principles altogether Vndenia- ble. For we can by no means grant to tfoAtheifts ; That there is no more, then a Probable Peifuafion, or Opinion to be had, of the Exiftence of a God; without any Certain Knowledge or Science. Neverthelefs it will not follow from hence , That whofoever pall Read theje Demon- ftrat on s of ours, andVnderfiand all the words of them, mujl therefore of Neceffity, be prefently Convinced, whether he will or no, and put out. of all manner of Doubt or Hefitancy, concerning the Exiftence of a God. For we Believe That to be True, which fomt have Affirmed^ That were there any Intereft of Life, any Concernment o/Appetite andP^ffion, againft the Truth of Geometricall Theorems them/elves; as of a Trian- gle's Having Three Angles Equall to Two Right ; whereby mens Judge- ments might be Clouded and Bribed; Notwithftanding all the Demon- ftrations of them, many would remain, at leaft Sceptical about them. Wherefore meer Speculation,^// Dry Mathematical Reaibn, in Minds Vn- purified,and having a Contrary Intereft of Carnality, and a heavy Load of Infidelity and Diftruft finking them down ; cannot alone beget an Unfha- ken Confidence dtf^Affurance offo High a Truth as thisfThe Exiftence of One Perfeft Underftanding Being, the Original of all things. As it is cer- tain alfo on the contrary, That M inds Cleanfed and Purged from Vice, may without Syllogifticall Reafonings, and Mathematical Demonftrations, have an Undoubted Affurance of the Exiftence of a God, according to that tf the Philofopher ; « *a3-a<?<ns -oti£ dv -yvuxm -r$ dokm Ehxi, Purity Pof- feffes men with an Affurance oj the Beft things : whether this Affurance be called a Vaticination or Divine Sagacity, (as it is by Plato and A- riftoTe) or Faith, as in the Scripture. For the Scripture- Faich, is not a meer Believing o/Hiftoricall Things, and upon Inartificiall Argu- ments, or Teftimonies onely ; but a Certain Higher and Diviner Power in the Soul, that peculiarly Correffondeth with the Deity. Notwith- fand'wg which, Knowledge or Science, added to this Faith, (~ accor-
*** ding
The Preface
ding to the Scripture Advice ) will mate it more Firm andStedfaft; and the better able to refift thofe Afaults o/Sophifticall Reafonings, that Jhall be m ade againft it.
In this Fifth Chapter, as fcmetimes elfewhere, we thought Our [elves concerned, in Defence of the Divine Wifdome, Goodneis, and?erfec- tion, againft Atheifts, to maintain, (with all the .tezVwf Philofophick Theifts,) the Perfection of the Creation alfo ^or that the Whole Syftem of things taken all together, could not have be&i Better Made and Ordered then it vs. And indeed, This Divine Goodnefs and Perfection, as Dif- playing WManifefting itfelfin f& Works ^/Nature and Providence \ isfuppofedin Scripture, to be the very Foundation of our Chriftian Faith ; when that is Defined, to be the Subftance <WEvidence Rerum Speran- darum ; that is, #/Whatfoever is Cty a Good man J to be hoped for. Notwithftanding which, it was far from our Intention, therefore to Con- clude , That Nothing neither in Nature nor Providence, could be Other- wife then it is ; or, That there is Nothing left to the Free Will and Choice of the Deity. And though we do in the Third Section, infifi largely, upon that Ancient Pythagorick Cabbala, That Souls are always United to fome Body or other ; as alfo, That all Rationall and Intellectuall Creatures, confifi of Soul and Body ; and fuggeft fever al things, from Reafon and Chriftian Antiquity, in favour of them both : yet would we not be Under flood, to Dogmatize in either of them, but to Submit all to better Judgments,
Again, we fb all here Advertife the Reader, (though we have Cautioned concerning it, in the Book.it felf) That in our Defence o/Incorporeal Sub- ftance againft the Atheifts, However we thought our felves concerned, to fay the utmoft that poffibly we could, in way of Vindication of the Anci- ents, who generally maintained it to be Unextended, ( which to fome feems an Abfolute Impoffibility ;) yet we would not bejuppofed Our felves, Dogmatically to Affertany more in this Point, then what all Incorpo- realifts agree in, That there is a Subftance Specifically diftintlfrom Bo- dy ; namely fuch, as Confifteth Not of Parts Separable from one another ; and which can Penetrate Body; andLaflly0 is Self-Active, and hath an Internal Energy, diftincl from that o/Locall Motion. CAndthu* much U undeniably Evinced, by the Arguments before propo fed J But whether this Subftance, be altogether Unextended, or Extended otherwife then Bo- dy ; we Jhall leave every man to make his own Judgment concerning it.
Further more,We thinkfit here to Suggeftjhat whereas throughout this Chapter and Whole Book, we conjiantly Oppofe the Generation of Souls, that is,the Production o/Life,Cogitation <w</Underftanding,0wf of Dead <WSenflefs Matter ; and affert all Souls to £e 05 Substantial I as Matter
it
to the Reader.
it/elf; This is not done, by m, out of any fond Addictednefs to Pythagorick Whimfeys, nor indeed out of a rneer Partiall Regard to that Caufe of The- i{m neither, which we wire engaged in, (though we had great reafon to be tender of that too ;) but becaufe we were enforced thereunto, by Dry Ma- thematical! Reafon ; it being as certain to us, m any thing in all Geo- metry, That Cogitation <x/2dTInderfranding, can never poffibly Refult out of Magnitudes, Figures, Sites, and Locall Motions, (which hall that ourfelves cm allow to'Body ) however Compounded together. Nor indeed in that other way of Qualities, is it better Conceiveable, how they fhould emerge out ofUoz and Cold, Moift andDry, Thick and Thin ; ac- cording to the Anaximandrian Atheifm. And they who can perfuade themfelves of the Contrary, may Believe, That any thing may be Caufedby any thing ; upon which Suppofition, we confefs, it Impoffible to us, to prove the Exigence of a God, from the Phenomena.
In the Clofe of this Fifth Chapter ; Becaufe the Atheifts do in the Lafl place Pretend , Theifm and Religion to be Inconfiftent with Civil Sove- reignty ; we were neceffitated, briefly to Unravel and Confute, all the Atheittick Ethicks and Politicks, (Though this more properly belong to our Second Book Intended: ) Where we make it plainly to appear, That the Atheifts Artificial! and Factitious Juftice, is Nothing but Wilt and Words ; and That they give to Civil Sovereigns, no Right nor Au- thority at all, but onely Belluine Liberty, and Brutifh Force. But on the contrary, as we Affert Juftice and Obligation, not Made by Law and Commands , but in Nature ; and Prove This, together with Confci- cnce and Religion, to be the oncly Bafis of Civil Authority ; fodo we alfo maintain, all the Rights of Civil Sovereigns; giving both to Cas- far, the things that are Ca*tar's ; and to God, the things that are God's.
And now, having made all our Apologies #«;/ Reflexions, we have no more to adde,but onely the Retractation or RetracYion of one Paifage, Page 76 1 .Where mentioning that Opinion of a Modern Atheiftick Wr\tcr,That Cogitation is nothing elfe but Local Motion, we could not ?/>/»£. Epicurus dfld'Democrkus to havefunk.tofuch a Degree,either o/Sottiflinefs or Im- pudence, as this ; whereas we found Caufe afterwards, upon further Con- sideration, to Change our Opinion herein, Page 846. Forafmuch as when Epicurus Derived Liberty of Will in men, meerly from that Motion of Senflefs Atoms Declining Uncertainly from the Perpendicular; it is Evident, that according to him, Volition itfelfmufl be really Local Mo- tion. As indeed in the Democritick Fate, <77&/ Material Neceffity of all things, it it Implied, That Humane Cogitations are but Median ifm and Motion. Notwithjianding which,both Democritus and Epicurus fuppofed, That the World was made without Cog\mion,though by Local Motion. So
*** 2 that
The Preface to the Reader.
that the meaning of thefe Befitted Acheifts, fif at leaft they had any meaning ) feems to have been this, That all Cogitation is Really Nothing tlfe but Local Motion ; nevertheless all Motion, not Cogitation ; but one- ly in fuch andjuch Circumfiances, or in Bodiesyo Modified.
And now we are not Ignorant, Thatfome mil be ready to condemn this whole Labour of ours, and of others in this Kind, Againfi Atheifm, as alto- gether Vfelefs and Superfluous; upon this Pretence ,that an Atheift is a meer Chimera, and there is no fuch thing any-whwe to be found in the World. And indeed we could heartily wifh, upon that 'condition, that a! I this La- bour of ours, were Superfluous and Ufelefs. But as to Atheifts, Thefe fo confident Exploders oftbem,are both Unskilled in the Monuments of 'An- tiquity, and Unacquainted with the Prefent Age, they live in ; others having found too great an Ajfurance , from their own Perfonal Con- verfe, of the Reality of Them. Nevertheless this Labour of ours, is not Intended onely for the Converfion of Downright and Profefled Atheifts, f of which there is but Little Hope,they being funk.'mto fo great a degree of Sottijhnefs ; J but for the Confirmation o/Weak, Staggering, and Scepti- call Theifts. And unlefs thefe Exploders of Atheifts, will affirm alfo, that all men have conflantly, an Unflia ken Faith, andBelief'ofthekx. iftenceofa God, without the leaft mixture ofDciibtfull Difiruft, or Hefi- tancy, ( which if it werefo, the world could not pojfibly be fo bad as now it is ) they muft needs Grant, fuch Endeavours as thefe, for the Confirming and Eftabliftring of mens Minds in the Belief of a God, by Philofophick Reafons, in an Age fo Philofophicall, not to be Superfluous andUfelefs.
Imprimatur
Hie Liber, cui Titulus., The True Intelle&uall Syftem of the Vniverfe, &c.
Sam, Parker, Reverend™0 in Maii 29. Chri/to Patri ac Domino,Do-
i*7i» mino Gilberto, Divina Provi-
dentia Archiep. Cantuar. a Sacr. Dom.
Place the Contents at the latter end of the Book.
Book I.
Chap. I.
t. The Fatal NeceJJity of all Humane Aftions and Events maintain* ed upon three fever al Grounds, which are fo many falje Hy- potheses of the Intellectual Syflent of the Vniverfe* 2. Concerning the Mathematical or Aflrological Fate. 3* Concerning the Opinion of thofe who fuppofe a Fate fuperiour to the Highejl Deity, 4. The Moderation of this Difcourfe. 5. The Atheist" ical Hypo- thefts or Democritical Fate, being founded upon the Atomical ?hy fid- logy 3 the necejfity of giving an Account of it, and that firji briefly dejeribed. 6. The Antiquity of this Vhyftology , and the account which is given of it by Ariftotle. 7. A clear and full record of the jame Vhyftology in Plato that hath not been taken notice of. 8. That neither Democritus 3 nor Leucippus, nor Protagoras, nor any A- theijis were thefrji Inventours of this Vhilofophy 5 and of the Necejfi- ty of being thoroughly acquainted with it, in order to the confutation of Atheifm. 9. The Tradition of Pofidonius the Stoic^, that Mo- fchus an ancient Phxnician was the firji Inventour of the Atomical Phyftology. I o. That this Mofchus the Inventour of the Atomical Physi- ology was probably the fame with Mochus the Phyftologer in Jamblichus, with whofe fuccejfours, Priejis and Prophets, Pythagoras conversed at Sidon. 11. Other Probabilities for this, that Pythagoras was acquainted with the Atomical Phyftology. 12. That Pythagoras his Monads were Atoms. 13. Proved plainly that Empedocles, who was a. Pythagorean, Phyfiologized Atomic ally. 1 4. The fame further convinced from Plato,Ariftotle3Plutarch C^Stobsus. 15. That Anaxagoras was afpurious Atomiji, or unskilful Imitatour of that Philofophy. 1 6. That Ecphantus the Pythagorean, Zenocrates, Heraclides, Diodorus and Metrodorus Chius were all ancient Ajferters of the Atomical Phy- ftology j together with Ariftotle'/ Tejiimony that the ancient Phyfiolo- gers generally went that way. 17. How Ariftotle is to be reconci- led with himfelf, and the credit of other Writers to be fahed, who
B . ' imput*
Three Fat at ah fines and Book. L'
impute this Philofophy to Leucippus and Democritus 5 That they were the fi'rfi Atheizers of it, or the Founders of that Philofophy which is Atheijlicalty Atomical. 18. That the Atomifii t before Democritus were Ajferters of a. Deity and Subfiance Incorporeal. 19. A confu- tation of thofe Neoterickj , who deny that Incorporeal Subfiance was ever averted by any of the Ancients, and the Antiquity of that Bo- Brine proved from Plato , who himfelf profejfedly maintained it. 20. That Ariftotle likeroife ajferted Incorporeal Subfiance. 2 1 . That Epicurus endeavoured to confute this Opinion, as that which Plato and others of the Ancients had maintained. 2.2. That, all thofe Thilofophers who held the Immortality W the Soul and a Deity difiinff from the World, held Incorporeal Subfiance, and that befides Thales, Pythagoras was a grand Champion for the fame, who alfo ajferted a. Divine Triad. 23. Parmenides ah Afferter of Incorporeal Subfiance, together with all thofe who maintained that all things did not flow, but fomething fland. 24. Empedocles vindicated from being either . dnAtheifiorCorporedlifiatlarge. 25. Anaxagoras a plain Afferter of Incorporeal Subfiance. 2 6. Inferred that the Ancient Atomifis before Democritus were both Theifis and Incorporealijls. 27. That there is not only no Inconfifiency between Atomology and Theology ', but alfo a Natural Cognation, proved from the Origine of the Atomi- cal Phyftology, andfirfi a general account thereof. 28. A more par* ticular account of th Origine of this Philofophy from that Principle of Reafon, That in Nature, Nothing comes from Nothing, nor goes to Nothing. 29. That the fame Principle which made the Ancients difcard fubjiantial Forms and Qualities, made them alfo to ajfert In- corporeal Subfiance. 30. That from the fame GrounU of Reafon alfo they ajferted the Immortality of Souls. 31, That the DoBrine of Freexifience and Tranf migration of Souls had its original from hence alfo. 32. That the Ancients did not confine this to Humane Souls only 3 but extend it to all Souls and Lives whatfoever. 33. All this proved from Empedocles, who ajferted the Freexijience as well as the PofiexJjience of all Souls upon that Ground. 34. A C en fire of this DoBrine 5 that the Reafon of it is irrefragable for the Poji-eternity of all Humane Souls, and that the Hypothecs of the Creation of Humane Souls,which falves their Immortality without Preexifience,is Rational. 3 5. A new Hypothecs to jalve the Incorporeity of the Souls of Brutes without their Pofiexifience and fucceffive Tranfmigrations. 36. That this will not prejudice the Immortality of Humane Souls. 37. That the Empedoclean Hjpot hefts is more Rational than the Opinion of thofe that wonldmake the Souls of Brutes Corporeal. 38* That the Conflitution of the Atomical Physiology isfuch, that whofoever enter- tains it, and thoroughly understands it, mufi needs hold Incorpore- real Subfiance y in five Particulars. 39. Two general Advantages of the Atomical or Mechanical Phyftology -, firfi that it renders the Corpo- real World intelligible. 40. The fecond Advantage of it , that it prepares an eafie and clear way for the Demonfiration of Incorporeal Subfiance. 41. Concluded, That the ancient Mofchical Philofophy confified of two Parts, Atomical Phyftology, and Theology or Pneuma- tology. 42. That this entire Philofophy was afterwards mangled and dijmembred, fome taking one part of it alone, and fome the other.
43. That
C h a p. I. Falfc Hyfotbefesoftbe Mundane Syflem.
3
45* r/(w* Leucippus and Democritus, being Athcijlually inclined took the Atomical Phyfiology endeavouring to make it fubfervient to Athcifm, anditpon what occaffonthey did it, and how itnfuccettudly. 44. That Plato took, the Theology and Pneumatology of the Ancients but rejcBcd their Atomical Phyfiology , and upon what accounts. 45: That Ariftotle/tf/Wtr;/ Plato herein, with a Commendation of AriftotleV Philofophy.
HEY that hold the Neceffity of all humane Anions ttr/mpC **•
farts mume*"''*
and Events, 'do it upon one or other of thefe two Jftctf %********>
Grounds 5 Either becaufe they fuppofe that Neceffity is inwardly elTential to all Agents whatfoever, and that * Contingent Liberty is Tsfoyi"*- Mwniw.rov, a Thing $ Impoffible or Contradictious , which can have no
Exiftence any where in Nature 5 The fence of which was thus
exprefled by the Epicurean Poet;,
Slifod res qudque Necejfum j
Intejiinum h-abeat cnn&is in rebus agendis, &c.
That eiiery thing Naturally labours under an Intejiine Neceffity : Or elfe,. becaufe though they admit Contingent Liberty not only as a thing PoffibIeD but alfo as that which is actually Exiftent in the Deity, yet they conceive all things to be fo determined by the Will and Decrees of this Deity, as that they are thereby made Neceflary to us. The former of thefe two Opinions, that Contingent Liberty is tt^mx avuTrfowrw , fiich a Thing as can have no Exiftence in Nature, may be maintained upon two different Grounds 5 Either from fuch an Hypothe- cs as this,That the Univerfe is nothing elfe but Body, and Local moti- on, and Nothing moving it felf, the Action of every Agent is de- termined by fbme other Agent without it 5 and therefore that vKium clmxXhM) Material and Mechanical Neceffity muffc needs reign over all things : Or elfe, though Cogitative Beings be fiippofed to have a certain Principle of Activity within themfelves, yet that there can be no Contingency in their Actions, becaufe all Volitions are determined by a Neceflary antecedent Underftanding.
Tlotinus makes another Diftribution of Fatalifts, which yet in the Conclufion will come to the fame with the Former, Si-jjfas «.v nq 3(- /w5^>©-/ t»t»? wt ocvtS aA.^62? octtoCuIj^voij of, /ufyj y> a.0' tvo's ■ni-©-' to. mvfoc av. ot^TOffjv,oi 3 sk. «W A man (faith he_) will not do amifs that will divide all Fatalijisfirjiinto thefe two General Heads, namely, That they derive all things from One Principle, or Not 5 The former of which may be called Divine Fatalifts, the latter Atheiftical. Which Divine Fata- lifts he'again fubdivides into fiich as Firft make Cod by Immediate Influence to do all things in us 5 as in Animals the Members are not de- termined by themfelves,but by that which i3 the Hegemonickxn every one : And Secondly, fuch as make Fate to be an Implexed Series or Concatenation of Caufes, all in themfelves Neceflary, whereof God is the chief The Former feems to be a Defcription of that
B 2 very
44 si <rsi rArrr Sri/*****
4 The Mathematical or Aftrological Fate, Book I.
very Fate that is maintained by fome Neoteric^ Chriftians -v the
Latter is the Fate of the stoichj.
Wherefore Fatalifts that hold the Neceffity of all Humane Actions and Events may be reduced to thefe Three Heads ; Firft/uch as aflert- o ^ , ■ -> s-a,in0 the Deitv, fuppofe it irrefpeftively to Decree and Determine all £*EZ#£« things % i thy«ebFyPmake all Anions neceflaty to us; Which kind of J J J Fat(f though Philofophers and other ancient Writers have not been
altogether filent of it, yet it has been principally maintained by fome Neoteric^ Chriftians, contrary to the Sence of the Ancient Church. Secondly, fuch as fuppofe a Deity, thatading Wifely, but Neceffari- / •"< / /,lv did contrive the General Frame oft things in the World; from
:;^rX^^^ whence by a Series of Caufes doth unavoidably refult whatever is ^/tt^ ^ now done in it. Which Fate is a Concatenation of Caufes, all in
themfelves Neceffary, and is that which was alferted by the Ancient Stoic\s Zenozn&chryfipptts, whom the Jewifh Efenes feemed to fol- low. And Laftly, fuch as hold the Material Neceffity of all things vr £« tAf rU^os^vy, without a Deity ; which Fate Epicurus calls thv ^ <j>» ei^^hv^ *ry^t<*» slirAer^ The Fate of the Natm-alijis^that is, indeed, the Atheijis, the Alienors m**£*Hs wrtk^t Vt.->ty. whereof may be called alfo the Democritical Fatalifts. Which three Opinions concerning Fate, are fo many feveral Hypothecs of the In- tellectual Syftem of the Univerfe. All which we (hall here propofe, endeavouring to (hew the Falfeneis of them, and then fubftitute the true Mundane Syftem in the Room of them.
1 1. The Mathematical or Aftrological Fate fo much talked of,as it is a thing no way confiderable for the Grounds of it,fo whatfoever it be, it muft needs fall under one or other of thofe two General Heads in the Vlotinical Distribution laft mentioned, fo as either to derive all things from one Principle, or Not. It feems to have had the rnatAtmn &£*£.. jts ft-ft. Ernerfion amongft the Chaldeans, from a certain kind of blind cnr*^tyt>£omcsU/c*A^e-- Tolytheifm ("which is but a better fort of difguifed Atheifm) but it JmrrnA ffytit ( ^*u _ Was afterwarcjs Adopted and fondly nurfedby the Stoickj in a way tLfi^nS- of fubordination to their Divine Fate. For Manilius^ Firmicus and
other Mafters of that Sect were great Promoters of it. And there ntU-jod Cy tt^stm^j was to° mucri attributed to Aftrology alfo, by thofe that were no " Fatalifts, both Heathen and Chriftian Philofophers , flich as were
Tlotinus^ Origen, Simplicius and others : Who though they did not dn% nh: <ti*je2 6ys*™£make the Srars to neceffitate all Humane Actions here below, yet &6njt>'~nr a* jyP&i< they fUppQfed that Divine Providence ("fore-knowing all things) had fo/nJ^j. contrived fuch a ftrange Coincidence of the Motions and Configu-
rations of the Heavenly Bodies with fuch Actions here upon Earth, as that the former might be Prognofticks of the latter. Thus Origen determines that the Stars do not Make but Signifies and that the Hea- vens are a kind of Divine Volume, in whole Characters they that are skilled, may read or (pell out Humane Events. To the lame pur- pofe Plotinuf0<p((!io%ci fjfyj tcwtk 'Qt\ ozoth^Jx v$ o'A<i)V,7n>c(?£xe3ai 3 ^ <*MW "Xgeuzv tIw t« et$ avid £><rnre(> ■y^a^aToc. fihlimfiax, ts? -tviojjtIw v^^afwkJ
TW? T3 TOjCtcaVO [jfyjOV <L$T5l% & Tit, KiJOl VzyB^ U^Ac? OgVK GHfAcdv^ V^XoCS 71VOC,
■x^y? The Motion of the Stars was intended for the Phyjical Good of
the
Chap. I. I be Opinion of a Fatefuferior to the Deity. 5
the wholes but they afford alfo another Zfc collaterally in order to Vrovtro- ,Jiication,namely that they rvho are skilled in the Grammar of the Heavens may Ife able from thcfeveral Configurations of the Stars^as it were Letters tofpell oitt future Events, by making fttch Analogical Interpretations as they ufe to do in Augury : As when a Bird Jiics high, to interpret this of Come High and Noble Exploit. And simpliciits in like manner/ iVcp&vos
rlufylnaiv, fht avocfiu>££a<ra [jftfi tos tov^ o<>(y«dtx.i ii jw§lt av^cpavQ^ 3 %&*■ £ c- (>(%i<nv cwrfy!' The Fatal Conversion of the Heavens is made to correfpond with the Produ&ion of Souls into Generation at fuch andfuch times , not Necejjitating them to will this or that, but confpiring agreeably with fuch Appetites and Volitions of theirs. And thefe Philofbphcrs were the rather inclinable to this Perfwafion from a Superfluous Conceit oat « sanai* />£»/ //« which they had, that the Stars being animated., were Intellectual st*** «'<***' *>»£W&eJ Beings of a far higher Rank than Men. And fince God did not make tUtU 6<"'iys them, nor any thing elfe in the World, fingly for thernfelves alone, but alfo to contribute to the Publick Good of the Univerfe, their Phyfical Influence teeming inconfiderable, they knew not well what elfe could be worthy of them, unlefs it were to portend Humane Events. This indeed is the belt Sence that can.be made of Afrro- logical Prognoftication , But it is a bufinefs that (lands upon a very- weak and tottering, if not Impoffible Foundation.
III. There is another Wild and Extravagant Conceit which fome of the Pagans had, who though they Verbally acknowledged a De- f^
ity, yet fiippofed a certain Fate fuperiour to it, and not only to all 0/iinion. ofsvrne- theUr their other Petty Gods,but alfo to jfwp7ferhimfelf.To which purpofe is (ifotf is sty* entrt* that of the Greek Poet,Latin'd by Cicero,guodfore paratum eji idfum- ^^^y mum exuperat Jovem ; and thatof Hcrodot us, tkt ■mir^afj^lw {M>7^y.v a.8i>- \6$x '6£t ikiticpvyietv £, toT eiS>' It is impoffible for God himfelf to avoid tht dejiin'd Fate $ and <PSh& oeo? a.v<x.yfiw<; 9 God himfelf is a Servant ofNe* cejjity. According to which Conceit, Jupiter in Homer laments hisr Condition,in that the Fates having determined that his beloved Sar~ pedon (hoCHd be Gain by the Son of Men<ttim, he was not able to with- stand it. ' Though ali thefe pafiages may not perhaps imply muchi>aa.i.ic.n. more than what the Stoical Hypothecs it felf imported 5 for that did c0UJ/w"wT" alfo in fome fence make God himfelf a Servant to the Neceffity of the Matter, and to his own Decrees, in that he could not have made the fmallefl thing in the World otherwife than now it is, much lefs was able to alter any thing. According to that of Seneca, Eadem NeceJJztas & Deos alligat. Irrevocabilis Divina pariter atque Humana curfus vehit. Ille ipfe omnium Condi tor acRe&or f crip fit quidem Fata fedfequitur. Semper paretfemel jujjit. One and the fame Chain of Necef- fity ties God and Men. The fame irrevocable and unalterable Courfe car- ries on Divine and Humane things. The very Maker and Governour of all things that writ the Fates follows them. He did but once command but be always obeys. But if there were this further meaning in the Paflages before cited, that a Neceffity without God, that was in- vincible by him,did determine his Will to all things -, this was nothing but a certain Confufed and Contradictious Jumble of Atheifm and Theifra both together } or an odd kind of Intimation, that however
B 3 the
6 The Moderation of this Difcourfe. BookI.
the Name of God be ufed in compliance with Vulgar Speech and O-
pinion, yet indeed it fignifies nothing, but Material Neceffity ; and
sn.*J.urX tAe-niotz+y? tne blind Motion of Matter- is really the Higheft Numen in the
oj /na*t*r&Ae AijJxy World. And here that of Balbus the Stoick in Cicero is opportune :
n^m^n.- Non eft Natura Dei Prapotens & Excellens, fiquidem cajubjetia eft ei
-vel Necejfitati vel Nature qua Cmlum, Maria, Terr&que rcguntur. Nihil
autevt ejlpr<ejl*ntius Deo. Nulli igitur eji Nature obediens aut fubj.e£tus
Dens. God would not bethemofi Powerful and Excellent Beings if he
were fubjeU to that either Neceffity or Nature, by which the Heavens ,
Seas and Earth are governed. But the Notion of a God implies the
ntoft Excellent Being. Therefore God is not Obedient or Subjeti to any
Nature. °
I V. And now we think fit here to fuggeft.that however we (hall oppole thofe three Fatalifms before mentioned, as fo many falfe Hy- potheses of the Mundane Syftem and Oeconomy, and endeavour to exclude that fevere Tyrannefs (as Epicurus calls it)of Univerfal Necef- Wrttoiu: M£.n*es>£&vi reigning overaIl,and to leave fome Scope for Contingent Liberty /irfevty rx otA^ - to move up and down in, without which neither Rational Creatures JZLnUttscrrtlfV can be blame worthy for any thing they do, new: God have any Ob-
ject to difplay his Juftice upon, nor indeed be juftified in his Provi- dence j Yet, as we vindicate to God the glory of all Good, Co we do not quite banifh the Notion of Fate neither, nor take away all Ne- ceffity $ which is a thing the Clazomenian Philofbpher of old was tax- ed for j Affirming fM\§iv tov ytvo/jfyjav yincdvci mS et[Mc%/y$/,lw, aMa gvca jotvbv toto -rxvoyuot' That Nothing at all was done by F#te,but that it was al- together avain Name. And the Sadduceans among the Jews have been noted for the fame: tmv jj%p ei^/z^uo avou^Soiv xcHv <kicu tcu5tIw a|iSv7*s, Utz xccrl ouorlw to ocvfyd-Kivec rik^y Aoc/^jiavav, oam.vrm 3 tcp' vifxiii cwtvu; Titim? They take away all Fate, and will not allow it to be any thing at all, nor to have any Power over Humane Things, but put all things entirely into the hands of Mens own Free-Will. And fbme of our own, feem to have approached too near to this Extreme,attributing, perhaps,more to the Power of Free-Will, than either Religion or Nature will admit. But the Hypothecs that we (hall recommend, as moft agreeable to Truth, of aTT^voioc lKd.<ntu@^ placable Providence, of a Deity Eilentially Good, prefiding over all, will avoid all ExtrcmesDafrerting to God the Glory of Good, and freeing him from the Blame of Evil j and leaving a cer- tain proportionate Contemperation and Commixture of Contingency and Neceffity both together in the World : As Nature requires a mixture of Motion and Reft, without either of which there could be no Generation. Which Temper was obferved by feveral of the Ancients 5 as the Pharifaick Seftamongft the Jews who determined nvkitji -mvTa. Is &jjjcx%iA['jv\q, &vcu tqyov , tjvoc 3 icp' tocofoT? vym.^&v , That fome things and not all were the EffeUs of Fate, but fome things were left in Mens own Power and Liberty. And alio by Plato, amongfl: the Philofo- phers,nA.a7£>v ifa.gj.vet [jfyj etfuxq/jfyjlw '&ri vffi oLV^onrivav ifyu%uv iy /bi6>y,o"uve«r- xya o £) tmv imq v\[Jmc, olriw Plato inferts fomething of Fate into Humane Lives and A&ions, and he joyns with it Liberty of Will alfo.Hc doth in- deed fuppofe Humane Souls to have within themfelves the Caufes of their own Changes to a Better or Worfer State^Sc every where declares
God
Chap. I. The Atheijlical or Democritical Fate. i
God to be blameleSs for their Evils, and yet he fbmewherc makes the
three Fatal Sifters notwithstanding, C/tf/A^Iaf/js/ij1 and Atropos^ to be
bufie about them alfo. For according to the fence oft he Ancients, ^>mm i » z /'«• «. *? -I
Fate is a Servant of Divine Providence in the World, and takes ^[g^tJ /^* «v - ./•vwq
place differently upon the different Actings of Free-willed Beings, oj d>.vin* /r^*"'!"1'''' ■ l
And how Free a thing fbever the Will of Man may feem to be,to fbme,
yet I conceive it to be out of Qucftioiyhat it may contract upon it felf
filch Neceffities and Fatalities, as it cannot upon a fuddain rid it felf
of at pleafure. But whatfoever is faid in the Sequel of this Difcourfe
byway of Opposition to that Fatalifmof the Neoterick Chriftians,
is intended only to vindicate what was the conftant Doctrine of the
Christian Church in its greateft purity, fas fhall be made manifeft)
and not to introduce any New-fangled conceit of our own.
V. We muft now proceed to give a more full and perfect account of thefe three Several Fates, or Hypotheses of the Mundane Syftem before mentioned, together with the Grounds of them, beginning firft with that which we Principally intend the Confutation of, the Atheijlical or Democritical Fate. Which as it is a thing of the moft dangerous Confequence of all, Co it feems to be moft Spreading and in- fectious in thefe latter times. »
Now this Atheijlical Syjlem of the World that makes all things to be Materially and Mechanically Necefiary, without a God, is built upon a peculiar Phyfiological Hypothecs , different from what hath been generally received for many Ages 5 which is called by fbrot Atomical or Corpufcular , by others Mechanical : of which we muft therefore needs give a full and Perfect Account. And we fhall do it firft in General, briefly, not defcending to thofe minute Particula- rities of it, which are disputed amongft thefe Atomifts themSelves, in this manner.
The Atomical Phyfiology fuppofes that Body is nothing elfe but the <-ti*,iceu9/yji<'*n Stosa-TW ooiTinxnmv -, that is, Extended Bull^ 5 and refblves therefore that sif/ifl-rsdf tA *ttiA <vJe nothing is to be attributed to it, but what is included in the Nature ^^^X ^"I^? — and i^z of it? viz. more or lefs Magnitude with Divisibility into ,'a^^l/fc^^JZr^-^ Parts, Figure, and Pofition, together with Motion or Reft, but fo as ^J^^f. that no part of Body can ever Move it Self 5 but is alwaies moved by fbmething elfe. And confequently it fuppofes that there is no need of any thing elfe befides thefe fimple Elements of Magnitude, Figure, Site and Motion(which are all clearly intelligible as different Modes of extended Subftance) to falve the Corporeal rhanomenaby -, and therefore, not of any Substantial Forms diftinct from the Matter , nor of any other Qualities really existing in the Bodies without, befides the Remits, or Aggregates of thofe fimple Elements, and the Dispo- sition of the Infenflble Parts of Bodies in refpecr of Figure, Site and Motion 5 nor of any Intentional Species or shevps^ propagated from the Objects to our Senfes •-, nor, laftly, of any other kind of Motion'or Action really diftinct from Local Motion (Such as Generation, and Alteration^ they being neither Intelligible, as Modes of extended Subftance, nor any ways necefiary. Forafmuch as the Forms and
Qualities
8 The Atheifiical Hypothecs founded Book I.
Qualities of Bodies may well be conceived, to be nothing but the Refuk of thofe fimple Elements of Magnitude, Figure, Site and Mo- tion, varioutly compounded together 5 in the fame manner as Syl- lables and Words in great variety refult from the different Combi- nations and Conjunctions of a few Letters, or the fimple Elements of Speech 5 and the Corporeal Part of Senfation , and particularly that of Vifion, may be falved only by Local Motion of Bodies, that is, either by Corporeal Effluvia f called Simulachra, Membrane and Exuvis) ftreaming continually from the Surface of the Objefts, or rather, as the later and more refined Atomifts conceived, by Preflure made from theObjeft to the Eye, by means of Light in the Medi- um. So that <a« Sta. poutiueJax, tS TocBevf©^ ae'e©^ to fchvrmjj&fjm avayfeMeTor The Senfe taking Cognizance of the Object by the Subtle Interpo- fed Medium that is tenfeand ftretched, ( thrufting every way from it upon the Optick Nerves_)doth by that as it were by a Stafftouch it. Again, Generation and Corruption may be fufficiently explained by Concretion and Secretion , or Local Motion , without Subftantial Forms and Qualities. And laftly, thofe fenfibie ideas of Light and Colours, Heat and Cold , Sweet and Bitter , as they are diftinet. things from the Figure, Site and Motion of the infenfible Parts of Bodies, %m plainly to be nothing elfe but our own Fhanfies , V ani- ons and Sensations however they be vulgarly miftaken for Qualities in the Bodies without us.
V I. Thus much may luffice for a General Accompt of the A- tomical Phyfiology. We fhall in the next Place confider the Antiqui- ty thereof,as alfbwhat notice Arifiotle hath taken of it, and what Ac-: count he gives of the fame. For though Epicurus went altogether this way, yet it is well known that he was not the firft Inventor of it. * But it is moft commonly fathered on Democritus , who was Senior both to Arifiotle and Plato, being reported to have been born the <Dc,7noefi£us born. £-/«- year after Socrates -, from whofe Fountains Cicero faith that Epicurus yt^rtijieYJoesat:eSA-i/t\]2XQX£&\\\s Orchards, and of whom S ex. Empiricus and Laertimtt- tkt Asutrficv afkSu. *tu ftjfy t^t ^e ^j ^j^Mav to? TTOioTTifctc, cafiier Qualities j and Plutarch;, mJc<dLfhjst*c<>gj that he made the firft principles 6f the whole Univerfe aifyias *»&*« }yoL-mb&<;, Atoms devoid of all Qualities and Paljions. But Laertius. will "have Leucippus, who was fbmewhat Senior to Democritus, to be the firft Inventor of this Philofbphy, though he wrote not fo many Books concerning it as Democritus did. Arifiotle who often takes notice of this Philofbphy, and afcribes it commonly to Leucippus and Democritus jointly, gives us this defcription of it in his Meta- phyficks, A&jtuirn©* $ £> o-tTouf^ curris A^oKg/T©-^ guy&x fjfyj to ttK^h; ;£ to >t4Vov §vou (pccoi Xiyoflig oTov to /j$/j ov to $ [&v\ ov,^ to? hxepo^.q vxr'ictc, r$ ocM&v pw £td.ccn.p-t*s Acj- (pKmTodTuc juevfoi t^&c,^jjA ti it, Tafiv it, SenvfiioLcplfy yh toov ^v<tia.o>k, SiaG^Jj jenJrv. J^T€^7r?' Leucippus and his Companion Democritus make the firfi
Principles of all things to be Plenum and Vacuum f Body and Space") whereof one is Ens the other Non-ens,#W the differences of Body, which are only Figure , Order and Po fit ion, to be the Caufes of all other things. Which Differences they, call by thefe Names Ryjmus, Diathigte and Trope. And in his Book De Anima, having declared that Democritus made Fire and the Soul to confift of Round Atoms, he defcribes
thofe
Chap. I. ZJpon the Atomical Pbyfiology. 9
thofe Atoms of his after this manner, oibv d* ttS cd^j. to xaxi/ufyjix. |ii<r//a- TO 8*» tou; Sl(« -j-J^ dvgjtftbv ocmTiot wv tw 7rau'o~m(?/uiav st>ix«« \ty<l AH(U0Kg/T(G^ t^ ,*-/ g , / / . f maJu\ cAhs <pv<na$ 6jlmiq<; 3 £ x&wx&'Thcy sin(fahh he )like //w/c Ramenta or , dujly T 'articles which appear in the Sun-Beams, an Omnifarious Semina- ry w/jera^Democritus makes to be the f'rff Elements of the whole V- *y* niverfe, andfo cloth Lcucippus likewifc. Elfewhere the fame Arijlotle . > < * nl ■ tells us, that thefe two Philofophers explained Generation and Al- 6 It-ration without Forms and Qualities by Figures and Local Motion. An(uo/K£/7©-' it, AdjK.nnrfQ-' Troiw<ra.vTe$ to j^/aTO ilw ocMoiaaiv k., Tluiylnm' ck t«tov ttoiSoi, ^«K.gi<ra (j&p it, isvik^ic-et ylnowi k, <p3v^y-v , TO^a \ -it, 3^su aAAoiWv Democritus and Leucippus having made Figures , ("or vari- oufly figured Atoms) the firTt Principles, make Generation and Altera* Hon out of thefe j namely Generation together with Corruption, from the Concretion and Secretion of them, but Alteration from the change of their Order and Pofition. Again he elfewhere takes notice of that Opinion of the Atomifts, that all Scnfe was a kind of Touch, and that the Senfible Qiialities of Bodies were to be refolved into Figures, imputing it not only to Democritus, but alio to the Generality of the old Philofophers, but very much difliking the lame : &h/j.oh.<?,Jq- it, oi -kX&szi •rJcP (pwoKoyw a.T07noTO7ov 77 ttoiSoj, WvTa ^ to. ou^to ocTjfx. TTOiSai ii, &<; <%y\(jLatct. avaysm tx$ yJ(A%<;' Democritus and mofi of the Phyfi- ologers here commit a very great Abfurdityy in that they make all Senje to be Touch, and refolvefenfible Qualities into the Figures of infenfible Parts or Atoms. And this Opinion he endeavours to confute by thefe Arguments. Firft, becaufe there is Contrariety in Qualities , as in Black and White, Hot and Cojd, Bitter and Sweet, but there is no •Contrariety in Figures 5 for a Circular Figure is not Contrary to a Square or Multangular, and therefore there rauft be Real Qiialities in Bodies diftindr. from the Figure, Site and Motion of Parts. Again, the variety of Figures and Difoofitions being Infinite,it would follow from thencc,that the Species ofColours,Odours,and Taftcs lliould be Infinite likewife, and Reducible to no certain Number. Which Ar- guments I leave the ProfefTed Atomifts to anfwer. Furthermore Ari- jlotle fome where alfo cenfures that other Fundamental Principle of this Atomical Phyfiology, That the fenfible ideas of Colours and anO tAe Z^-eAj ^ Tafles, as Red, Green, Bitter and Sweet, formally confidered, are on- a 6. v *.*£) t^o-st** ly Paffions and Phanfies in us, and not real Qualities in the Objedr. &/^«^/^-,4'/i«/«^l without. For as in a Rainbow there is really nothing without ox\xc/*-6*-f'£*s m ^s A"^ fight, butaRorid Cloud diverfely refradring and reflecting the Sun- ^'- :r- ■' "^^ Beams, in fiich an Angle •-, nor are there really fiich Qualities in the ^ ^^ " Diaphanous Prifme, when refradting the Light , it exhibits to us the fame Colours of the Rainbow : whence it was collected, that thofe things are properly the Phantafms of the Sentient, occafioned by different Motions on the Optick Nerves : So they conceived the cafe to be the fame in all other Colours, and that both the Colours of the Prifme and Rainbow were as real as other Colours, and all other Colours as Phantaftical as they : And then by parity of Rca- fon they extended the bufinefs further to the other Senlibles. But this Opinion Arijlotle condemns in thefe words, oi ir^it^jv QvmoKoyot toto i x.&XZ<; 'Ihiyov x£iv oio^joi sts \ew.ov ste /ut'Xav aviv cr\f*a<:, sm yJicov «.nv y%{(nuq -• The former Phyftobgers were generally out in this, in that
they
io The Records in Ariftotle and Plato BookI.
they thought there was no Blacky or White without the Sight, nor no Bit* ter or Sweet without the Tajie. There are other Pafiages in Ariftotle concerning this Philofophy, which I think fuperfluous to inferthere 5 and I (hall have occafion to cite fbme of them afterward for other Purpoles.
VII. But in the next place it will not be amifs to (hew that Via.* io alfo hath left a very full Record of this Mechanical or Atomical •Phyfiology f that hath hardly been yet taken notice of J which not- withftanding he doth not impute either to Democritus f whole name Zaertim thinks hepurpofely declined to mention throughout all his Writings J or to Leucippus , but to Protagoras. Wherefore in his Theostetus , having firft declared in general that the Protagorean Phi- lofbphy made all things to confift of a Commixture of Parts Cor Jnitanvnts*' a£omLc<*.L AtomsJ and Local Motion, he reprefents it, in Particular concern- tflApJsi.vh/'jtv. jng Colours, after this manner j v-niKx^t tq'ivIw araoi >Q*> tx o^afa tt<>Z-
,tov, 0 3 xmK&$ x%6>[Acc Kivkov i^m eivcu cwrb iTtgJv ti tfa-jSjcf. ozav omi'dntiV fwitfi'\ dv T0T5 p^iaai aM<x fdhxv . te it, Kivnov xai onzsv ccMo X^ux dtc 1s 7r(>oo"p:oAw£ rtffi oimocrtov isqhc, rlw Ts-Qooriuxaizv (po^cpi (pxv&rca ycy\W[xivov , . jy 0 j 'ixasw itvcd (poc/j.iv x%&ijlcc 878 to' •sr^oo-fiaMov 878 to 7rgoo-€aMd/*«vov dcMa. fJHTX^v tt ia<xs<x> jStov y<,yovbi;' Firft as to that which belongs to the Sight, you mufb conceive that which is called a White or a Blacky Colour ?tot to be any thing absolutely exifling either without your Eyes or within your Eyes 5 but B lackland White and every other Colour , is caufed by different Motions made upon th.e Eye from Objetts differently modified : Jo that it is nothing either in the Agent nor the Patient hbfolutely, but fome- thing which arifesfrom between them both. Where it follows immediate* ly, v\ o"u $ii<%y£j.<roLio oiv &<; 0T0V mi (pcdnixi exassv 5(?<£^ toiStov it, nuvi it, oT<M»v £&<!>■ Can you or any man elfe be Confident , that as every Co- lour appears to him , fo it appears juff the fame to every other Man and Animal , any more than Tables and Touches , Heat and Cold do .<? From whence it is plain that Protagoras made Senfible Qualities, not to be all abfolute things exifting in the Bodies with- out, but to be Relative to us, and Paffions in us 5 and lb they are called prelently after Ti'va <£* w^v cpx<r/j.x1xt certain Phanfies , Seem- ings,ov Appearances in us. But there is an other Paflage'in which a fuller Account is'given of the whole Protagorean Doftrine , begin- ning thus j 'a?^3 t| m? & voo> J\m iKiyofjjcv MTn£v[«.%%TftoA v,$$ ouu^, agrb yrxv kivhoi^ %v it, «Mo -aS^t tSto iSlv, <? $ mvmctG Sv'o e^y, wKubet (jXv K7ra- ?ji kxdnPQV, Mvxiuv 0 to (Av mi&v t'xov, to $ m^v, ox. j 1s Tarae oiuKictq 7s £ Tg/4^&; tt$<; «MmA«. yifvffcu 'iwyovx irK^a /Xiv 'dne^y. t/UStyua $, to (Av aiodrfov, to 0 aJ-oSnoii; a& ffuvenTarmTsott iy ywito^m fJUiTX tS ou^tS, &c. The Principle upon which all thefe things depend is this, That the whole Vniverfe is Motion ("of AtomsJ and nothing elfe befides 5 which Motion is confidered two ways, and accordingly called by two Names a Attion and Pajjlon -,from the mutual Congrefi, and as it were Attrition together of both which, are begotten innumerable Off-fprings, which though infinite in Number, yet may be reduced to two general Heads, Senfibles and Senfations, that are both generated at the fame time? the Senfa- tions are Seeing and Hearing and the like, and the Correfpondent Sen- fibles , Colours, Soundsi &c. Wherefore when the Eye , or fuch a
proportionatt
Chap. I. Concerning this AtomicalPhyf/ology. n
proportionate Object meet together, both the' aJ.odniiv and the aj-cdvai^ the Senfible Idea of White and b\ai\and the Senfe of Seeing are gene- rated together, neither of which would have been procln-id if cither of thofc two had not met with the other. Kou t'kM* 3 *™ -fyxtov jg .3^- /j.bv Kj rnvTa t ooutov t^'ttdv v-imkv7rf{ov olutqij.iv za8' cwrb fJMcPXv eiv&i, & j Ty ir^q ocMuAa oyxhia. 7ro'vT<x yiTvtoS>a/,&, 7mfioicc <x7ro Is >«vii<rEa$- 7'/>c //^c is to be conceived of all other Scnfiblcs, as Hot and Cold, &c. that none of thefe arc Abfolute things in thcmfelvcs, or Real Qualities in the ObjecJs without, but they are begotten from the mutual Congrefs of Agent and Tatient with one another , and that by Motion : So that neither the Agent has anyjuch thing in it before its Congrcfi with the Patient, nor the Tatient before its Congref with the Agent, etc % oc/jxpoTi^av 7S TraSiTo^ iy TS m'%ovf(5^ tt^qc, to. kMhAoc swytftonAvuN iy to? ou<)5w<r<|<j k.out<x oXodttra. a- •7nmK7ovTC)V,T<x jj.lv ttoToc cHjct ylyvio9nu roc j cdt&avo'iufyjOL' But the Accnt and Tatient meeting together, and begetting Senfation and Senfibles, both the ObjctJ and the Sentient arc forthwith made to be fo and Jo qualified, as when Honey is tajied, the Senfe of Tajling and the Quality of SweetncS are begotten both together, though the Senfe be vulgarly attributed to the Tajier and the Quality of Sivcetnefs to the Honey. The Conclufiort of all which is Summed up thus »</% etveu. cwto xa8' cwrl «M« rfiii aJA yi- yvic3vu, That none of thofc Senfible things is any thing abfolutely in the Objects without, but they Are all generated or made Relatively to the Sen- tient. There is more in that Dialogue to this purpoie, which I here omit j but I have fet down To much of it in the Authour's own Language, becaufe it feems to me to be an excellent Monument of the Wifdom and Sagacity of the old Philofophers. That which is the main Curiofity in this whole bufinefs of the Mechanical or Ato- rriical Philofbphy, being here more fully and plainly exprefied,than it is in Lucretius himfelf, viz. That Senfible things, according to thofe ideas that we have of them, are not real Qualities abfolute- ly Exifting without us , but <u> W/.UV cpatf^urra , Thanfies or Thantafms in us : So that both the Latin Interpreters Ficinus and Serranm^ though probably neither of them at all acquainted with this Phi- lofbphy, as being not yet reftorcd, could not but understand it after ^e fame manner : the one expreffing it thus. Color ex Afpecf/r Motitque Medium quiddam refultans eft. Talis circa Oculos Taffio -, and the other Ex varia Afpicientk diathefi, variaquc fenfilis fpecie colores varios & videri & fieri, it a tamen utfmt cpocvlccsd nee nijiin animofub- fifiant. However it appears by Tlaio's manner of telling the ftory, 'and the Tenour of the whole Dialogue, that himfelf was not a little prejudiced againft this Philofbphy. In all probability the rather, becaufe Protagoras had made it a Foundation both for Scepticifrn and Atheifm.
VIII. We have now learnt from Plato, that Dcmocritus and Leu- cippus were not the fole Proprietaries in this Philofbphy, but that Protagoras, though not vulgarly taken notice of for any fuch thing (being commonly reprefented as a Sophift only) was a fharer in it likewife : which Protagoras indeed Lacrtius and others affirm to have been an Auditor of 'Dcmocritus 3 and 10 he might be, notwithstanding what Plutarch tells us3 that Democritus wrote againft his taking a-
1 2 The Antiquity of At ontology . Book I.
way the Abfolute Natures of things. However we are of Opinion that neither Democritus^ nor Protagoras^ nor Leucippus was the firft , Inventour of this Philofbphy 3 and our reafon is, becaufe they were all three of them Atheifts ("though Protagoras alone was banifhed for that Crime by the Athenians) and we cannot think that any A- theifts could be the Inventours of it,much lefs that it was the Genuine Spawn and Brood of Atheifin it felf, as fbme conceit, becaufe how- ever thefe Atheifts adopted it to themfelves, endeavouring to ferve their turns of it, yet if rightly Underftood, it is the raoft effectual Engin againft Atheifm that can be. And we (hall make it appear afterwards, that never any of thofe Atheifts, whether Ancient or Modern Chow great Pretenders fbev«rr to it) did throughly under- ftand it, but perpetually contradicted themfelves in it. And this is the Reafon why we infift lb much upon this Philofbphy here, not only becaufe without the perfect knowledge of it, we cannot deal with the Atheifts at their own Weapon , but alfo becaufe we doubt not but to make a Sovereign Antidote againft Atheifm, out of that very Philofbphy, which fo many have ufed as a Vehiculum to convey this Poyfon of Atheifm by.
I X. But befides Reafon, we have alfb good Hiftorical probabi- lity for this Opinion, that this Philofbphy was a thing of much greater Antiquity than either Democritus or Leucippus : and firft, becaufe Poftdonius^ an Ancient and Learned Philofbpher, did (as both Empiricus and Strabo tell us) avouch it for an old Tradition3 that the firft Inventour of this Atomical Philofbphy was one Mo-
,|^k/ Mc m<^ wi/wfav /"f|,K; a rhwmcian, who, as Strabo alfb notes, lived before the Tro- 4glUu*mt«*?Lj,«<, y^VVars.
X. Moreover it feems not altogether Improbable, but that this Mofchus a Phoenician Philofbpher, mentioned by Pofidonius> might be the fame with that Mochus a Phoenician Phyfiologer in Jamblichus3 with whofe Succeflbrs, Priefts and Prophets, he affirms that Pytha- goras^ fbmetimes fbjourning at Sidon Cwhich was his native CityJ had converft : Which may be taken for an Intimation, as if he had
■ ... been by them inftru&ed in that Atomical Phyfiology which Mojchus
or Mochus the Phoenician is laid to have been the Inventour of. Mo- chus or Mojchus is plainly a Phoenician Name, and there is one Mo- chus a Phoenician Writer cited in Athenaus^ whom the Latin Tran£ lator calls Mojchus $ and Mr. Selden approves of the Conjecture of a- 9 to foeJhcvej Arcerius^ the Ptiblifher of Jatkblic hus0 that this Mochus was no other 'Itf't/i <A/4.trsc </#■*' ejfe*''r tnantne Celebrated Mofcs of the Jews, with whofe Succeflbrs the i Q^zA^f^^f *""~v **</£>■ Jewifli Philofbphers, Priefts and Prophets, Pythagoras converted at O Sidon. Some Phantaftick Atomifts perhaps would here catch at this,
to make their Philofbphy to ftand by Divine Right, as owing its Original to Revelation ■, whereas Philofbphy being not a Matter of Faith but Reafon, Men ought not to affect (as I conceive) to derive its Pedigree from Revelation , and by that very pretence feek to impofe it Tyrannically upon the minds of Men , which God hath here purpofely left Free to the ufe of their own Faculties, that Co finding out Truth by them, they might enjoy that Pleafure and
Satisfaction
Chap. I. That Pythagoras was an Atomijl. %%
Satisfaftion which arifes from thence. But wc aim here at nothing more, than a Confirmation of this Truth, That the Atomicai Phy- iiology was both older than Democritus, and had no fuch Atheifti- cal Original neither. And there wants not other Good Authori- ty for this, That rythagaras did borrow many things from the jfew/, and tranflate them into his Philofophy.
XI. But there are yet other Confiderable Probabilities for this, that Pythagoras was not unacquainted with the Atomicai Phyfio- logy. Andfirft from Democritus himfelf, who as he was of the Ita- lic^ Row, or Pythagoricl^ Succcflion 5 fo it is recorded of him in <p , ^/./</. ^X^e Q Lao-tins, that he was a great Emulator of the Pythagoreans, and feem* A/^ </c,„,j t^-^r *■ - ed to have taken all his Philofophy from them : fnfomuch that if ^/r&r'st- Chronology had not contradicted it, it would have been concluded, that he had been an Auditour of Pythagoras himfelf, of whom he tcfti- ficd his great admiration in a Book entitled by his Name. Moreover (bme of his Opinions had a plain Correfpondency with the Pytha* gorick Doctrines, Jforafmuch as Democritus did not only hold, cpe'§ti\9ai aTp<ua? <Zv izS o'A&i 8ivxfiUva$, That the Atoms were carried round in a Vortex 5 but alfb together with Leucippus, -rko ylw 6x&3z>c/ <s^i t» fjuiam Slvx/utAvlw , That the Earth was carried about the Middle or Centre of this Vortex (which is the Sun ) turning in the mean time round upon its own Axis ; And juft fo the Pythagorick Opinion is exprefTed by AriJlotlei rhvym'ivivov fcs'giav&Wv kvkKc6 cpigj/uUvlw. gh^J, to fxAavv vijkToc. v.al tiiv v\f^A^M Tpieiv That the Earth, cts one of the Stars (that is a Pla- net J being carried round about the Middle or Centre (which is Fire or the Sun ) did in the mean time by its Circumgyration upon its own Axis make day and night. Wherefore it may be reafonably from hence concluded, that as Democritus his Philofophy was Pythagori- cal, fo Pythagoras his Philofophy was likewife Democritical or Atomicai.
X II. But that which is of more Moment yet, wc have the Au,tho* rity of Ecphantus a famous Pythagorean for this, that Pythagoras his Monads, fo much talked of, were nothing #elfe but Corporeal A-
toms. Thus we find it in Stobceus, toc nrvbocyoeincts uoxdfauc, St©^7t^o- /its sn<,nsO*s <?*"t-^j t©^ <x7n4waTo <re»£UKfjK<&, Ecphantus (who himfelf aflerted the Doctrine of Atoms) firtt declared that the Pythagoricl^Monads were Corporeal,\.Q. Atoms. And this is further confirmed from what Arijiotle himfelf writes of thefe Pythagoreans and their Monads, to? Movac/1^ vinKx^hism '{y\v fA,iy\§(&- Theyfuppofe their Monads to have Magnitude : And fronj that he elfewhere makes Monads and Atoms to fignifie the fame thing, zflXv Sixcpiqa. novocj^ctc, hly&v vt tsu^dcncn q-jUik^'- Its all one to fay Monades, orfmall Corpufcula. And Gajfcndtts hath obferved out of the Greek Epigrammatifr, that Epicurus his Atoms were fometirnes called Mq^ nadstoo 3
-fxirlai 'fiica/xgpv tocircv
itrrv «/".
nS IX KiXGV tflT&V XAI TJV£? OW MOVOC^W-
C XIII. But
i a Proved clearly that Empedocles Book I.
XIII. But to pafs from Pythagoras himfelf 5 That Empedocles,
/ 0 o / who was a Pythagorean alfo, did Phyfiologize Atomically , is a
a (J*y«y. & J*<(*sA. thb that could hard] be doubted of, though there were no more
^CZICr^^^Proof for it than that one Paflage of his in his Philofophick ZZpJ"*' Poems 5
Nature is nothing but the Mixture and Separation of things mingled 5 or thus, There h no production of anything anew, but only mixture and feparation of thing* mingled. Which Ss not only to be upderftood of Animals, according to the Pythagorick Do&rine of the Trans- migration of Souls, « but alfo, as himfelf expounds it, Univerfally of all Bodies , that their Generation and Corruption is nothing but Mixture and Separation 3 or as Arifiotle exprefles it , trvfc&ims Kaci SiaKg/oj?, Concretion and Secretion of Parts, together with Change of Figure and Order. It may perhaps be.objedfed, that Empedocles held four Elements , out of which he would have all other Bodies to be compounded 3 and that as Arifiotle affirms , he made thole Elements not to he tranlmutable into one another neither. To which we reply, that he did indeed make four Elements, as the firft general Concretions of Atoms, and therein he did no more than Democritus himfelf, who, as Laertius writes , did from Atoms mov- ing round in a Vortex 7ravToc <rvfK^J.^u3x jjwav rru^ vckq ae'^90 yw, ivm yb v.al] Twnx if oLTo/nav tiv&v ffupj^afa, Generate all Concretions, Fire, Wa- ter, Air and Earth, thefe being Syjiems made out of certain Atoms. And Plato further confirms the fame 3 for in his Book De Legibus he defcribes (as I fuppole) that very Atheiftical Hypothecs of De- mocritus, though without mentioning his Name, reprefenting it in this Manner 5 That by the Fortuitous Motion of Senfelefs Matter were firft made thole four Elements, and then out of them after- ward Sun , Moon, Stars and Earth. Now both Plutarch and Sto- b<eus teftifie, that Empedocles compounded the four Elements them- felves out of Atoms. 'HjUTre^mAw*; $ dst^Kts^ri^avoGcmYot sziy&ac o-uA Kg/v<j k<rij> ipv i\«.yjsxt mi Viovei soiy&x sBt^av Empedocles makes the E- lements to be compounded of other fmatt Corpufeula , which are the leaft, arid as it were the Elements of the Elements. And the fame Stobeus again obferves, \pcrr&&y.}Gic, -n?J t$ tzosx^oiv &iyd&v ^ixwr/xa:- t« tAa'x/sof Empedocles mattes thefmalleji Particles and Fragments of Body (that is, Atoms) to be before the four Elements. But whereas Arifiotle affirms that Empedocles denied the Tranfinutation of thole Elements into one another, that muft needs be either a flip in him, or ehe a fault in our Copies 3 not only becaufe Lucretius, who was better verfed in that Philofophy, and gives a particular Account of Empedocles his Doftrine ("befides many others of the Ancients) affirms the quite contrary 3 but alfo becaufe himfelf, in thofe Frag- ments of his ftill preferved , exprefly acknowledges this Tranf- mutation :
KoU
Chap. I. Pbyfiologi^ed Atomkally.
Kcu <f>8eH e$ ocAAnAa mi ov^tui <£* fjui%& cumc.,
Befides all this, no IcSs Author than Plato affirms, that according to Empedocles, Vifion and other Sensations were made by avro^oai *>3 ^&2<2, t/* s*r,/A. ^ua-rav, the Dcjiuxions of Figures , or Effluvia of Atoms, ( for fo /v^y^/***^ ^2^* Democritus his Atoms are called in Arijtotle %^«T«, becaufe they . <** ' %/cftf*^'-*' ■ were Bodies which had only Figure without Qualities') he fuppo- fing that fome of thefe Figures or Particles corresponded with the Organs of one Senfe, and fome with the Organs of another. *Ounsv Kiyvn <xTn$oa$ -mac, t$' 6'vtov t^ 'E/AzsiSbuKix, yjx) 7ro?x? &<; Sc, jcai /i' & cti ccTVofycd 7ro(>djovfcu, Kcd rffl u-TsofaZv Tug (£v uyj.o'ij&v &)tolf7$f mfcfflv, -to!? 3 eA«f x? h /*ef$*s hcwXoufay then according to the Dotfrine of Empedocles,//;^ f/we are certain Corporeal Effluvia from Bodies of dif- ferent Magnitudes and Figures, as alfo feveral Fores and Meatuses in us diverjly Correfponding with them ; So that fome of thefe Corporeal Ef- fluvia agree With fome pores, when they are either too big or too little for others. By which it is evident, that Empedocles did not fuppofe Senfations to be made by intentional Species or Qualities ^ but as to the Generality, in the Atomical way } in which notwithstanding there are fome differences among thefe Atomifts themfelves. But Empe- docles went the fame way here with Democritus, for Empedocles^ ktk$- qocd 5£iyi«tov, Defluxions of figured Bodies, are clearly the Same thing with Democritus his etStiXav a<ncg/'<r<|$, Infinuations <?f Simulachra , or Exuvious Images of Bodies. And the fame Plato adds further, ou/^e2^/^ae^i^^4i( that according to Empedocles, the Definition of Colour was this, &**>><*■*- aTTO^oIj ^h^ktov 'i\\ <s<i\xyvr%<& kou oua%To$, The Defluxion of Figures, or figured Corpufcula ("without Qualities ) Commenfurate to the Sight and Senfible. Moreover , that Empedocles his Phyfiology was the very fame with that of Democritus, is manifeft alfo from this Paflage of Anjiotle's'j of p-w »v 'Z&&J 'EfA.-7nStKK(x xm AH^aoRg/Tov Aav9avs<w ooutdi \cw- t»$, isylvimv ifaMiiAaw 7roisv*Te<:, dMoc (pcuxofjUvtw yiviw <£tm<x.$yov y£ wx- sbv tn.Kg/vtu9ai <pa<riv &az>i(>i% cfyfefs <r ywltnat; Urn? Empedocles and Democritus deceiving themfelves, unawares dejlroy all Generation of Things out of one another, leaving a feeming Generation only : For they fay that Generation is not the Production of any new Entity , but only the Secretion of what was before Inexijiant t, as when divers kinds of things confounded together in a Veffel , are feparated from one another. Laftly, we (hall confirm all this by the clear Testimo- ny of Plutarch, or the Writer de Placitis Philo/ophorum : '^iriSo-
>M<ryitoTroj£(n , <ri/fk^/<re<c i&v jtai SiocHgjir&s aodyxm, y<.v(<s&c, 3 xal <p9*^§ ar
Empedocles ^«^ Epicurus, andal/thofe that compound the World of (mall Atoms, introduce Concretions and Secretions , but no Genera- tions or Corruptions properly fo called ; neither would they have thefe to be made according to Quality by Alteration , but only according to Quantity by Aggregation. And the fame Writer Sets down the Order and Method , of the Cojmopceia according to Empedo* cles J 'E^-TO^kAm? t fiiv cd^^Sfs tt^Ztov ^Jociify.eiivcu, tfidS-rtcpv 3 to in%,
C 2 «?'
i6 Anaxagoras a S furious Atomist. Book. I.
tc u'i&g, t| » Sv(jx<xBw(tx * dity , xal j/WoSai t ^s^vov cat tS ouSEggp, t 3 mAiov ck 'jn/goV Empedocles writes, that iEther was firji of all Secreted out of the Confufed Chaos of Atoms , afterward the Fire , 4»d f fo# Me Ear*/&3 m^/VA />«"#£ Conftringed, and as it were Squeezed by the Force of Agitation, fent forth Water bubling out of it , from the Evaporation of which did proceed Air. And from the iEther was made the Heavens, from Fire the Sim. We fee therefore that it was not without caufe that Lucretius did Co highly extol Empedocles, fince his Phyfiology was really the fame with that of Epicurus and De- mocritus •-, only that he differed from them in fbme Particularities, as in excluding Vacuum, and denying fuch Phyfical Minima as were Indivisible. *
X V. As for Anaxagoras, though he Philofbphized by Atoms too, fubftituting Concretion and Secretion in the Room of Genera- tion and Corruption, infifting upon the fame Fundamental Principle A that Empedocles, Democritus and the other Atomifb did 5 which was
jtlnA*4+ori*-* m&j idsa £ as we (hall declare more fully afterward J That Nothing could be JfJtiYd^Mji4iJ'/ryiffAhm]rva^ out 0f Nothing, nor reduced to Nothing} and therefore that there were neither any new Productions nor Deftructions of any Subftances or Real Entities : Yet, as his Homxomeria is represented by Arifiotle, Lucretius and other Authours, that Bone was made of Bony Atoms, and Flelh of Flefhy, Red things of Red Atoms, and Hot things of Hot Atoms 3 thefe Atoms being fuppofed to be en- dued originally with fo many feveral Forms and Qualities Eflenti- al to them , and Infeparable from them, there was indeed a wide difference betwixt his Philofophy and the Atomical. However, this feems to have had its Rife from nothing elfe but this Philofb- phersnot being able tounderftand the Atomical Hypothecs, which made him decline it, and fubftitute this Spurious and Counterfeit Atomifm of his own in the room of it.
XVI. Laftly, I might adde here, that it is recorded by Good Authours concerning divers other Ancient Philofbphers, that were not addi&ed to Democriticifm or Atheifm, that they followed this Atomical way of Phyfiologizing, and therefore in all probabi- lity did derive it from thofe Religious Atomifts before Democritus. r. . / AjO As for Example; Ecphantus the Syracufian Pythagorift, who, as Sto-
^/' u ^ ^<eus w"tes3 made TaaStaigtT* oTw^aTotxat to kmov , Indivifible Bodies
and Vacuum the Principles of Phyfiology 3 and as Theodoret alfb teftifies,taught ck -fy? dro/nav o-wi&ivcu r koV^ov, That the Corporeal World was made up of Atoms •-, Zenocrates that made /xnyi^ «SiaigtT« , Indi- vifible Magnitudes the firft Principles of Bodies , Heraclides that re- fblved all Corporeal things into ^vty^-dlx kou B^cwir/J-dloi tivx £A«x'sw, certain fm a II eft Fragments of Bodies '-, Afclepiades, who fuppofed all the Corporeal World to be made tf avo^oiov k«i avag/A&v oJkwv, not of Sirnjlar Parts (as Anaxagoras) but of Diffimilar and inconcinn Mole- cuU, i. e. Atoms of different Magnitude and Figures 5 and Diodoms
that
C h a p. I. Mott of the Ancient Phyfiologers Atotmsir.
7
tstrfstisfSe. .
that falved the Material Phenomena by ot/jafi t^. ihotyjyx., the final left: Indivisibles of Body. And Laftly, Mctrodorm (not Lamfaccmis the Epicurean, but) Chins, who is reported alfo to have made Indivifible Particles and Atoms the firft Principles of Bodies. But what need we anymore proof for this, that the Atomical Phyfiology was an- cienter than Dctnocritus and Leucippus, and not confined only to that Sect, fince Ariftotle himfelf in the Paftages already cited doth cxprefs- ly declare, that befides Democritus, the Generality of all the other Phyfiologers went that way ; ah^ohc/Tq^ kx) o't irh&soi ?$ $\)mohCy*>vt &c. Democritus and the moji of the Phyfiologers make all Senfe to be * Touch, and refohcfenfible Qualities ; as the Tajlcs of Bitter and Sweety &c. into Figures. And again he imputes it generally to all the Phy- fiologers that went before him», 0? ir^-n^gv cpunohoyoi^ The former Phyfi- ologers (without any exception) f aid not well in this, that there was no Black\ and White without the Sight, nor Bitter and Sweet without the Tafie. Wherefore , I think, it cannot be reafonably doubted;, but that the Generality of the Old Phyfiologers before Ariftotlc and Democritus, did purfue the Atomical way, which is to refolve the Corporeal Phenomena, not into Forms., Qualities and Species., bur into Figures, Motions and Phancies,
XVII. But then there will feem to be no fmall difficulty in re- conciling Arijiotle with himfelf, who doth in fomany places plainly impute this Philofbphy to Democritus and Leucippus , as the firft Source and Original of it : As alfo in falving the Credit of Laertiusy and many other ancient Writers, who do the like : Democritus ha- ving had for many Ages almoft the general cry and vogue for Atoms, However, we doubt not but to give a very good account of this Bufinefs, and reconcile the feemingly different Teftimonies of thefe Ancient Writers, fo as to take away all Contradiction and Repug- nancy between them. For although the Atomical Phyfiology was in ufe long before Democritus and Leucippus, lb that they did not
Make it but Find it; yet thefe two with their confederate Atheifts fa %e»'°">**4**r <**<£>*' (whereof Protagoras feems to have been one) were undoubtedly the ^^f^/1^'* *'4rrfAj,\ firft that ever made this Phyfiology to be a complete and entire Phi- lofbphy by it felf, fb as to derive the Original of all things in the whole Univerfe from fentleffj Atoms, that had nothing but Figure and Motion, together with Vacuum, and made up fiich a Syftem of it., as from whence it would follow, that there could not be any God, not fo much as a Corporeal one. Thefe two things were both of them before fingly and apart. For there is no doubt to be made, but that there hath been Atheifm lurking in the minds of fome or other in all Ages j and perhaps fome of thole Ancient Atheifts did endeavour to Philofophize too, as well as they could, in fome other way. And there was Atomical Phyfiology likewife before, without Atheifm. But thefe two thus complicated together, were never before Atomical-Atheifm or Atheiftical Atomifm. And there- fore Democritus and his Comrade Leucippus need not be envied the glory of being reputed the firft Inventors or Founders of the Atomical Philofophy Atheiz,ed and Adulterated.
C § XVIII. Before
18 Democ. andLeuabe firft AtheifHc\AtomiJk. B o o k I.
XVIII. Before Lettcippus and Democritus, the Doctrine of Atoms Was not made a whole entire Philofophy by it felf, but look'd upon only as a Part or Member of the whole Philofophick Syftem, and that the meaneft and loweft part too, it being only ufed to ex- plain that which was purely Corporeal in the World 5 befides which they acknowledged fomething elfe, which was not meer Bulk and
^^^e.*^x**«r/r.O-;Mechani(m, but Life and Self Activity, that is, Immaterial or Incor-
g& tidies tAr <itvms *■- p0rCal Subftance; the Head and Summity whereof is a Deity di-
&^***-fff~*''xn\y* Jtinft from the World. So that there has been two Sorts of Ato-
Ko**'' mm£?j^y™^ in the World> the °ne Atheiftical, the Other Religious. The
^.^-^L'lx 0-»/r ^r^ and m°ft ancient Atomifts holding- Incorporeal Subftance3ufed
&r f4.f- A*£i j^jt* j~mmj&& Phyfiology in a way of Subordifiation to Theology and Me-
/v£**wl t^aphyficks. The other allowing no other. Subffcance but Body,made
fenfleis Atoms and Figures, without any Mind and Underftanding
(7. e. without any GodJ to be the Original of all things 5 which
latter is that that was vulgarly known by the Name of Atomical
Philofophy, of which Democritus and Leucippus were the Source.
XIX. It hath been indeed of late confidently aflerted by fbme, that never any of the ancient Philofbphers dream'd of any fuch thing as Incorporeal Subftance \ and therefore they would bear men in hand, that it was nothing but an upftart and new fangled Invention of ibme Bigotical Religionifts 5 the falfity whereof we (hall here briefly make to appear. For though there have been doubt- less in all Ages fuch as have disbelieved the Exiftence of any thing but what was Senfible, whom Plato defcribes after this manner 5 01 SlotrdvoivT ccv.Ttocv 0 <uw Svvotio) % y^^th (ru/rzrj^etv «o~(V, &c, cc^. tSto i£iv to (jsk^tov 'Qri- That would contend, that whatsoever they could not feel er grafp with their hands, was altogether nothing 5 yet this Opinion was profefledly oppofed by the bell: of the Ancient Philosophers and condemned for a piece of Sottifhnels and Stupidity. Where- fore the lame Plato tells us, that there had been always, as well as then there was, a perpetual War and Controverfie in the World,and as he calls it, a kind of Gigantomachy betwixt thefe two Parties or Sefts of men 5 The one that held there was no other Subftance- in the World befides Body 5 The Other that aflerted Incorporeal
, Subftance. The former of thefe Parties or Sects is thus defcribed by
tu3 th^yi/e hatC tfeerLcy- the Philofbpher 5 ot/utv &$yw ef a^vS kocj.tS dopyms 7ravf« eAuaoj £
<je4rtLA>en, tAiva tX/SrfC-. tto^v, Stl^Ugl^OVTai tStO &V(U (JLOVOV 0 •TO(>tX<l 7T£cO"€oAviV Hal tTTKQluj 7TV<X, m^stet, <*_^ irA^naj c*V~ TOWTOV OWjUflt KOtl S<n'<XV Ogjl&fjfyjOl' 'r$ J xflACCV &Tl$ <pw) (Ay aZ(A.X %yov §vou,
KfltTot<pgov9vTe5 to imqarmv v.ou scHv ft6e'A.ovTe$ aAA.o cmx&v Thefe ( faith he ) pull all things down from Heaven and the Invisible Region, with their hands to the Earth, laying hold of Rocks and Oal{s ; and when they grafp all thefe hard and grofs things, they confidently affirm, that that only is Subjiance which they can feel, and will reftfl their Touch, and they conclude that Body and Subjiance are one and the felf fame thing 5 and if any one chance tofpeal^ to them of fomething which is not Body, i.e. of Incorporeal Subftance , they will altogether defpife him , and net hear a word more from him. And many fuch the Philofbpher there
(ays
Chap. I. Incorporeal Subflance ajjertcdby the Ancients. \ o
fays he had met withal. The other he reprcfents in this manner.
oitt^ oarrzq d/A.<piis^rHv\i'; [xdKoc <&A<xg£<; <wo8ev t| aoo^Ts totts d/AcajoHou. *~0,£/^, CJ(nl ^^ vowfoc oc-ifoc hou ourJo/Adlx &ci\ ^ix^ofj^uot rlw dMbivlw itTixv etvea. ow <u{<j-&) -j rs^jl ^txtA ~, tea *. ^> tnc+^w. toou'toc oaiK^©j d/j.cpo{(^OiV (Ua'xn rit, asi l\i\i^m- The Aclverfurics of the fe t^''" 'v*""^ ^ t**'* *•''** Corpcrealijls do cautioufly and pioujly ajjault them from the Invifibe Re- gion > fetching all things from above by way of Defccnt, andbyjlrength of Reafon convincing, that certain Intelligible and Incorporea I Form? are the true or Firjl Subflance, and not Senjiblc things. But betwixt thefe two there hath always been (faith he) agrcat War and Contention. And yet in the Sequel of his Difcourfe he adds, that thofe Corporea lifts were then grown a little more modeftand fhame-faced than former- ly their great Champions had been, fuch as Democritus and Prota- goras j for however they ftill perfifted in this, that the Soul was a Body, yet they had not ( it feems ) the Impudence to affirm, that Wifdom and Vcrtue were Corporeal Things, or Bodies, as others be- fore and fince too have done. We fee here that Plato exprefly af- ferts a Subftance diftinft from Body, which fbmetimes he calls »<ri'oci/ dm'/Acfiov , Incorporeal Subflance , and fbmetimes isirixv v<wkJ, Intelli- gible Subflance, in oppofition to the other which he calls ododnrhu Sen- sible. And it is plain to any one, that hath had the Ieaft acquaintance with Plato's Philofophy , that the whole Scope and Drift of it, is to raife up mens Minds from Senfe to a belief of Incorporeal Things
as the moft Excellent : to. ^e d<y<L(A.xlx kocM/jk 6'vT« hcu {/Ayitx Aoya /aovov, ^(Wtto(^r)^ aM<3i) o «<5W], <jzL<pZ<; ^ekvuTai, as he writes in another place. For Incorpo- v™te>>ty t^aS^ real Things, which are the greatest andmott excellent things ef all, are (faith hej d/jcoverable by Reafon only and nothing elje. And his Sub- terraneous Cave, fb famoufly known, and fo elegantly defcribed by him, where he fuppofes men tied with their backs towards the Light, placed at a great diftance from them, fo that they could not turn about their Heads to it neither, and therefore could fee nothing but the fhadows (of certain Subftances behind them^) pro- jected from it, which Shadows they concluded to be the only Subftances and Realities, and when they heard the Sounds made by thofe Bodies that were betwixt the Light and them, or their re- verberated Eccho's, they imputed them to thofe fhadows which they* faw. I lay,all this is a Defcription of the State.of thofe Men, who take. Body to be the only Real and Subftantial thing in tne World, and to do all that is done in it } and therefore often impute Senfe, Reafon and Underftanding, to nothing but Blood and Brains in us.
XX. Imightalfo fhew in the next place, how Ariflotk did not at all diflent from Plato herein, he plainly afTerting xhhhu »<riav <zt§>p rx cdodvTct, another Subflance bejide Senfibles, ioiccv yoc^jshh k<xi k^x^SJ--
eiplfySw'Y$f cdsSvmv, a Subflance fep arable and alfo a&4t ally fepar ate d from &*) AatCnj a*2
Senfibles, aw'vMTw affiav, an Immoveable Nature or EJfence ({ub}e£t to no *+«/£: 6**#*£}n*iU Generation or Corruption) adding that the Deity was to be fought for hererNay fuch a Subftance w (dy<A@^ ac/% di^i^ax '4%$y\ «M« dpA- $<; k.ou. d§icrf(>no$ '<S£t, as hath no Magnitude at all j but is Impartible and Indivifible. He alfb blaming Zeno ("not i he Stoick, who was Ju- nior to Arijlotle, but an ancienter Philofbpher of that Name) for making God to be a Body, in thefe words; cuno<; ^e <ru[xcc TwyJJiKM
20 Proved clearly that Incorporeal Book!
<r ©eov errs o To$t tt> w , zm 'i-n eM-imn cw-rit; hiyw cctrco^Q^ >yb h 7rS? xv GQimzpeiiPfc w i oiaw »t»5 »V «v xtwh* , aV «v «ge^*T imStt(j» te &• tTrei 3 myA %£t , t! *v cwro wKha wv&$ur ; Zeno implicitly af- firms, God to be a Body, whether he mean him to be the whole Cor- poreal Vniverfe, orfome particular Body ; for if God were Incorpore- al how could he be Spherical j? nor could he then either Move or Rejl0 being not properly in any Place ; but if God be a Body, then nothing hinders but that he may be moved. From which, and other Places of Arijiotle, it is plain enough alfb, that he did fuppofe Incorporeal Subftance to be Unextended, and as fiich, not to have Relation to any Place. But this is a thing to be difputed afterwards. Indeed lome learned men conceive Arijiotle to have reprehended Zeno with- out Caufe, and that Zeno made God <to be a Sphear, or Spherical, in no other fence, than Parmenides did in that known Verle of his ;
naVTcQtv 4Dk.uk.Ax ccpcdty; drxKiOuov ofk&i.
Wherein he is understood to defcribe the Divine Eternity. How- ever, it plainly appears from hence, that according to Ariflotle's fence, God was ami^aS^., an Incorporeal Subftance diftindt from the World.
XXI. Now this Doftrine, which Plato efpecially was famous for aflerting, that there was «<n'a a.mi^Qr', Incorporeal Subftance,
a-tort cu^B.st^oyi vfty and that the Souls of Men were fiich, but principally the Deity; ™^^'^f6'/"^''h*'-(ruUZj Epicurus taking notice of it , endeavoured with all his might to fy ir-i^vts confute it, arguing (bmetimes after this manner 5 There can be no Incorporeal God (as Plato maintained) not only becaufe no man can- frame a Conception of an Incorporeal Subftance, but alfb becaufe what- soever is Incorporeal muU needs want Senfe, and Prudence, and Plea- fur e, all which things are included in the Notion of God'-, and there- fore an Incorporeal Deity is a ContradiStion. And concerning the Soul of Man; of Myovfe$ <x.azJ(Mxfov eivcu rkv -^u^Im iJ/xTcudLfetn, &.c. They who fay that the Soul is Incorporeal, in any other fence, than as that word may be ufed to (ignifi'e a Subtil Body, talk^ Vainly and Foolifhly ; for then it could neither be able to Do nor Suffer any thing. It could not A3 upon any other thing,becaufe it could Touch nothing? neither could it Suffer front alfy thing, becaufe it could not be Touched by any thing ; but it would bejuft like to Vacuum or Empty Space, which can neither Do nor Suffer any thing, but only yield Bodies a Pajfage through it.1 From whence it is further evident, that this Opinion was profefledly maintained by fbme Philofbphers before Epicurus his time.
XXII. But Plato and Arijiotle were not the firft Inventors of it : £-jUaj/*#uto,jf-/rAe.*m. For it is certain,that all thofe Philofbphers who held the Immortality ™^t£ty*/&U'''**U of the Humane Soul, and a God diftinct from this vifible World, #.*!> *>J «.irrU e. * fit — (and fo properly the Creator of it and all its parts) did really affert </£/*/™-"*4 rn,r*yU>'l'n' -Incorporeal Subftance. For that a Corporeal Soul cannot be in its ""^'^ own Nature Immortal and Incorruptible, is plain to every one's Un-
derftanding, becaufe of its parts being Separable from one another; and whofbever denies God to be Incorporeal, if he make him any thing at all, he muft needs make him to be either the whole Cor- poreal
Chap. I. Subftancc ivjs averted by the Ancients. 2 1
porcal World, or clfe a part of it: Wherefore if Cod be neither of thefe, he muft then be an Incorporeal Subftance. Now Plato was not the firff. who aflertcd thefe two things , but they were both maintained by many Philofophers before him. Pherecydes Syr us, and .,>„ ,. .., ,.,.■-, 27;«/tM-,weretwoof the motf ancient Philofophers among the Greeks^ "-*< * ~(L '", ^1} . t and it is laid of the former of them, that by his Lectures and DiC- " putes concerning the Immortality of the Soul, hcfirftdrcw off' Py- thagoras from another Courfc of life to the ftudy of Philofophy Therecycles Syr us {faxth Cicero) Primus dixit animos hominum cjjc jcmpi- ternos. And 'l hales in an Epiftle direfted to him, congratulates his being the Fail that had defigncd to write to the Greeks concern- ing Divine Things^ which Thales alio ( who was the Head of the Io- nick Succeflion of Philofbphe'rs, as Pythagoras of the Italick) is joyn- ed with Pythagoras and Plato, by .the Writer De Placitis Philofopho- rum, after this manner. Sto' to'vtss oi •K^-rrm.yfj&^oi aow'/^uifov t\w -^u- yluj u7n>Tf3evToa cp{xr\ X(yov\t<; owtom.iviiI'ov Row. kmxv vovrrlw* All thefe deter- mined the So/d to be Incorporeal, making it to be Naturally Self-moving Cor Sclf-aftiveJ and an Intelligible Subjiance , that is, not Senfible. Now he that determines the Soul to be Incorporeal , muft needs hold the Deity to be Incorporeal much more. Aauam dixit Tha- les ejj'e initium rcrum (faith Cicero) Deum antem cam Mcntem qua ex
aqua cun&a fingerct. Thales faid that Water was the firl~i Principle ^C/^ m^.^. erAx tu*&** of all Corporeal things, but that God was that Mind which formed all trA.AAvstyi^L^^i+.-'af- t kings out of Water. For Thales was a Phoenician by Extraction, and c*<r/wvc**u. 6*sr*«f ***£- accordingly feemed to have received his two Principles from therfce, Sf^^^i "^'^j^-'-C— Water, and the Divine Spirit moving upon the Waters. The Firft (frrrn
whereof is thus exprefled by Sanchuniathon in his Defcription of the
Phoenician Theology, ^%f doKt^Jv, t^efrsVes, a Turbid andDarh^Cha-
os, and the Second is intimated in thefe words , vi^c9» ni ir^S^Mt
?!fi Wiav ocg^V, the Spirit was off eSted with love towards its own Prin-
ciples,pcrhaps exprefling the Force of the Hebrew word Merachepheth, 4J**s<> J^^^nb-^ez/n _
and both of them implyng an Undemanding Prolifical Goodnefs, '-*} **8 r**-r~>«~4 i
Forming and Hatching the Corporeal World into this perfection >
or elfe a Plaftick Power, fubordinate to it. Zeno ( who was alfo o-
riginally a Phoenician} tells us, that Hefiod's Chaos. was Water 5 and, j*c*/b:*» ^c^n/wm & ^u.
that the Material Heaven, as well as Earth was made out of Water, /Lrtys^fytlU'e.
( according to the Judgment of the beft Interpeters) is the genuine
fence of Scripture, 2 Pet. 3. 5. by which water fome perhaps would
underfland, a Chaos of Atoms confufedly moved. But whether Thales
were acquainted with the Atomical Phyfiology or no } it is plain
that heailerted, befldes the Soul's Immortality, a Deity diftinft from
the Corporeal World.
We pais to Pythagoras whom we have proved already to have been an Atomift ; and it is well known alio that he was a profefied Incorporealift. That he aflerted the Immortality of the Soul, and yylAo.yi*'a.r'y*s a-"** confequently its Immateriality, is evident from his Do&rine of PTe- </^^^fc *£/^'^ ^^ exiftencc and Tranfmigration : And that he likewife held an Incor- ^7C**Jj§'// poreal Deity diftinttfrom the World, is a thing not quefhoned by £AA.^oe^ J& * any. But if there were any need of proving it, (becaufe there are X^,w~>-^v ™ t<< 2^*7* no Monuments of his Extant ) perhaps it might be done from hence,
becauf«
22 Pythagoras WParmenides IncorprealiH /. BookI.
bccaufe he was the chief Propagator of that Do&rine amongft the Greeks, concerning Three Hypoftafes in the Deity.
For, that Plato and his Followers held r$<; a^a? vimwcm? , Three Hypojiafes in the Deity , that were the firft Principles of all things, is a thing very well known to all. Though we do not affirm that thefe Platonic^ Hypoftafes are exa&ly the lame with thofe in the Chriftian Trinity. Now, Plato himfelf fufficiently intimates this not */Au£.2>oe,trine>dj£6:Ast&~ to have been his own Invention •■> and Plotinm tells us, that it was
t<^;i-^/^'^j(^t^^l^4. iwhcuk iAo'|«, an Ancient Opinion before Plato's time , which had been delivered down by fbme of the Pythagoricks. Wherefore, I conceive, this muft needs be one of thofe Pythagoricks Monftrofities, which Xenophon covertly taxes Plato for entertaining, and mingling jvy-j-AA^retcsn, ^/^-with the Socratical Philofbphy, as if he had thereby corrupted the llf^rriX^2rr. Parity and Simplicity of it. Though a Corporealift may pretend , n-*& rriUv/rJufur,-ef-L to be-aTheift-5 yet I never heard, that any of them did ever aflert ^wtt+f ±A^ ^t*irfi^ *<j>j , a Trinity, refpecYively to the Deity, unlefs it were fuch an one, as I af- 1** Jt,*^*^ ,. & ■ th ink not fit here to mention.
<7> n XXII L That Parmenides, who was Iikewife a Pythagorean, ac-
^n^tJtSa" knowledged a Deity diftinct from the Corporeal World, is evident
*-£ V^ltZo^Zr^ /U?JL - ^rom pl*t0' And Plotinus tells us alio, that he was one of them that
^ ctiLjL^ tJZrtd , afferted the Triad of Divine Hypofta/et. Moreover, whereas there
was a great Conrroverfie amongft the Ancient Philofbphers before
Pldto's time, between fuch as held all things to Flow, (as namely
Heraclitus and Cratylrts ;) and others who afferted that fbme things
6.nr*>tA*tk4'ise.vr * did Stand, and that there was aKivwT©- xdx, a certain Immutable
c&v**& Am™u.±£c6lu.— Nature, to wit, anEternal Mind, together with Eternal and Immu- o &Ji~.tr*.£c- tabie Truths, ("amongft which were Parmenides and Melijjus) the
S rtiiiiiW^, e-n
former of thefe were all Corporealifts, (this being the very Reafbn why they made all things to Flow, becaufe they fiippofed all to be Body) though thefe were not therefore all of them Atheifts. But the latter were all both Incorporealifts and Theifts ; for whofb- ever holds Incorporeal Subftance muft needs Caccording to Reafbn) alfb aflert a Deity.
And although we did not before paticularly mention Parmenides amongft the Atomical Philofbphers, yet we conceive it to be ma- nifeft from hence, that he was one of that Tribe, becaufe he was an eminent Afferter of that Principle , »</% %m -yiviSza ihs <ptep3oa t$! ovfav, That no Real Entity is either Made or Deftroyed, Generated or Corrupted. Which we (hall afterwards plainly fhew, to be the grand Fundamental Principle of the Atomical Philofbphy.
XXIV. But whereas we did evidently prove before, that Em- pedocles Was an Atomical Phyfiologer, it may notwithftanding with Jt*S^^^J&C*J£l- *°me Colour of Probability be doubted, whether he were not an Atheift, or at leaft a Corporealift, becaufe Arijiotle accufes him of thefe following things. Firft, of making Knowledge to be Scnfe , which is indeed a plain fign of a Corporealift , and therefore in the .next place alfb, of compounding the Soul out of the four Elements,
making
Chap. I. Empedoclcs no Atbeitt norCorforealitf. ir>
making it to underftand every corporeal thing , by fbmcthing of the fame within it felf , as Fire by Fire, and Earth by Earth ; and Laftly, of attributing much to Fortune, and affirming that divers of the Parts of Animals were made fuch by chance, and that there were at firft certain Mongrel Animals fortqitouily produced, that were psy\n hcuL ocv^^u^a^/., fuch as hadfometbingofthefiapcofan Oxe, together with the Face of a Alan, (though they could not long continue) which feems to give juft Caufe of Sufpicion, that Empe- docles Atheized in the fame manner that Qcmocritut did.
To the firft of thefe we reply, that fbme others who had alio _ , ,
read Empedocles'* Poems, were of a different Judgment from Ari- 6"Jr '£/"■* ^rJr*
Jiotle as to that, conceiving Empedoclcs not to make Senje, but Rea- fon the Criterion of Truth, Thus Empiricus informs US : Others fay that according to Empedocles, the Criterion of Truth is not Senfi hit Right Reafon 3 and alfo that Right Reafon is of two forts, the one 6ei(Gy, or Divine, the other a.vfy<L-zjiv<&, or Humane ; Of which the Di' vine is inexprejjible, but the Humane declarable. And there might be feveral Pafiages cited out of thofe Fragments of Empedocles his Poems yet left , to confirm this , but we fhall produce only this one.
t
rtj&v 7ri0v %we v&J $' y $Yih9> 'iw&v.
To this Sencej Sufpcndthy Ajfent to the Corporeal Senfes, and confi- m~-*<szj der every thing clearly with thy Mind or Reafon,
And as to the Second Crimination, Arijiotle has much weakened his own Teftimony here,by accufing Plato alfb of the very fame thing.
nhxr&v rhv -^vylw q/x, •£$ smydav ttoiS , ytv&<rioirnxi ^e 6/n^ic^ o'/uaiov, id
b vr^y^Ta etc >?$ af^V &vcu. • Plato compounds the Soul out of the
four Elements, becaufe Like is known by Like, and things are from their
Principles. Wherefore it is probable that Empedocles might be HO
more guilty of this fault (of making the Soul Corporeal, and to
confift of Earth, Water, Air, and Fire) than Plato was, who in all
mens Judgments was as Tree from it, zs Arijiotle himCelf, if not more.
For Empedocles did in the fame manner, as Pythagoras before him, ,
and Plato after him, hold the Tranfmigration of Souls, and con- J%** //^J^™"
fequently , both their Future Immortality and Preexiftencej<^A*fo-
and therefore muft needs affert their Incorporeity 3 Plutarch right"
ly declaring this to have been his Opinion 3 Efoou, u.al t»s ftfj/ftzjiQ
■yiyovoTaq ku txs ti'JV rr3vw6rm<; ' That as well thofe who arcyetVnbom,
as thofe that are Dead,have a Being, He alfb aflerted Humane Souls to ,
be here in a Lapfed State, /iilWsas, £ \vt*c„ v.cd $vjo^c Wanderers, ^^J^^.J^
Strangers, and Fugitives from God 3 declaring, as Plotinus tells us, *" </'
that it was a Divine Law, «^f xviavcu; ¥ -^vxcus trggv a*Tou>8a, That
Souls finning fljould fall down into thefe Earthly Bodies. But the
fulleft Record of the Empedoclean Philofbphy concerning the Soul
is contained in this of Hierocles 3 Karaoi kou #.iniriijf& 1s <&/cuyua'©- aJ a+^c> £ Jt^^^^^
jp&s 0 av9gazr(gp, Lc, ,E/-<.'7n<5bK.A.M? cpwffiv e nvHx.y6i>&Q-',—— (pvy*S 3fo'8tv q/
kou ccAhtd? Nel^tV (jLociVQ/ufyjO) 7no"wv©^— • Avvetn <^ uoi tIw a?x*'«* *P*
aTTOAaiUpoii-cJ, '-'
24 Empedocles vindicated from being Book I.
'vev6« <f ov©^ ts xiT®-" 7? Kou «Mo)v t'^vta. %»»§£v.
fife OV 01 CMTnuifiiS A7D5
-ava. K&ixZvx tz vcou gkZt(&> hAocVksoiv.
Toa Xa/xaJv*, ov aTro\rcn$v t?j o'ftujj Is rft&fywncdt; &<; yvuvov ip/flax owua, 'oASi's < ou2v©^ «jix«Ma?' Man falleth from his Happy State, as Em- pedocles the Pythagorean faith, By being a Fugitive, Apojiate, and
/Ltj2ffcMnz ofir/Ujeu/j Wanderer from God, atted with a certain Mad and Irrational Strife \ •fatftnjmtA.e. tast-fay or Contention. — Blithe afcends again ^ and recovers his former State,
t/njUf asO <r«ii/i-si.<f-- if he decline and avoid thefe Earthly things, and defpifc this un-
0u^J:/Uc/«sr)6- V pleafant and wretched Place, where Murder and Wrath, and a Troop of all other Mifchiefs reign. Into which Tldce, they who fall , wander . «p and down through the Field of Me andDarkneft. But the defire of him that flees from this Field of Ate, carries him on towards the Field ef Truth? which the Soul at firfil relinquijhiug, and lofmg its Wings, fell down into this Earthly Body, deprived of its Happy Life. From whence it appears that Plato's rfiz$iq\>wt<; was derived from Empe- docles and the Pythagoreans.
Now from what hath been already cited it is fufficiently m-anifeft, that Empedocles was fo far from being either an Atheift or Corpo- realift, that he was indeed a Rank PythagoriSl, as he is here called, And we might adde hereunto, what Clemens Alexandrinus obferveSj that according to Empedocles , h oaiag v.cd chacdox; BtcLGuLm/rf/j, fxand- p/fii (jfyl c*tou>8oc. , ^wag/a/T^i tf^l f/ATd ilu) &$(vSl a.TrechA(x.yhis' » X?ov<» Tivi tIu> «$8bti/t*6viav 'iyovris , aMa. q,v cdZvt av<X7raufea9ai $uxdfjfyj&it *a3ocv«tois aMoiaiv o/denoi, d* $\ T^zri^cui;, &c. if tee live holily and julily, wefiall be happy here, and more happy after our departure hencey having our Happinefs not necejfarily confined to time, but being able to reft and fix in it to all Eternity j Feajiing with the other Immortal Beings, 8cc. We might alfo take notice, how, befides the Immor- tal Souls of men, he acknowledged Damons or Angels ; declaring that fome of thefe fell from Heaven, and were fince profecuted by „ i „/,„*£, yo,m^,/ a Divine Nemefts. or thefe in Plutarch are called, o\ ^Kolvh *cd ^A^^Jyvni /Uj~uc^. a^-voTrifei? tueivoi to E/wrcSi»tA«J« <PcufM>n<;- Thofe Empedoclean De- mons lapfed from Heaven, and purfued with Divine Fengea/tce jWhoCc reftlefs Torment is there defcribed in feveral Verfes of his. And We might obferve likewife how he acknowledged a Natural and Immutable Juftice, which was not Topical and confined to Places and Countries, and Relative to particular Laws, but Gatholick and tlniverfal, and every where the fame , through Infinite Light and Space i as he exprefles it with Poetick Pomp and Bravery.
'AMa. to" ju^w Wvlcov vo'/xi/tAOV Six r <iCgu/^SbvT©-
And the aflerting of Natural Morality , is no fmall Argument of a Theift.
But
Chap. I. Either an Atheist or Corporealitt. 25
— 1 ■■ ■ ■■■■■■-■- ■ .. .—■ — ■ . ■■ — — ; 1 -— -■■«»..— — — ■ m0Jtm -—
But what then (hall we lay to thofe other things which Empe- docles is chrtrged with by Arijiotlc , that (ecm to have (b rank a imell of Atheifm ? Certainly thofe Mongril and Biforme Animals, that are (aid to have (prung up out of the Earth by chance, look as if they were more a-kin to Detnocritut than Empedoclet , and .^ <-<<-' " »*«^ 6<v^
probably it is the Fault of the Copies that it is read otherwife,-^^ rnt^ct£/'-/' there being no other Philofopher thdt I know of, that could CVerc//"Wl/''w" ^
find any fuch thing in Empedoclet his Poems. But for the reft, if Arijiotlc do not mifreprefent Empedoclet, as he often doth Plato^V then it muft be granted, that he being a Mechanical Phyfiologer, as well as Theologer, did (bmething too much indulge to Fortuitous Mechanifin : which (eems to be an Extravagancy that Mechanical Philo(bphers, and Atomiffo, have been always more or le(s (ubjeft to. But Ariftotle doth not charge Empedoclet with refblving all things into Fortuitous Mechanifin, as fbme Philofophers have done of late , who yet pretend to be Theffts and Incorporeal ifts, but only that he would explain (bme things in that way. Nay he clearly puts a difference betwixt Empedoclet and the Democritic^ Atheifts in tho(e words fubjoyned, Eicri <P\ tjvU, &c. which is as if he (hould have (aid, Empedoclet refolved fome thingt in the Fabric^ andjirutfure of Animalt into Fortuitout Mechanijm ; but there are cer- tain other Philofophert , namely Leucippus and Democritus , who would have all thingt whatfoever in the whole World , Heaven and Earth and Animalt, to be made by Chance and the Fortuitout Motion of Atomt, without a Deity. It (eems very plain that Empedoclet his thilia and Nichot, his Friendship and Difcord, which he makes to be the a?x* ^^p^fSK the A&ive Caufe, and Principle of Motion in the Univer(e, was a certain Plaftick Power, (uperiour to Fortuitous Mechanifin : and Ariftotle himfelf acknowledges (bmewhere as much. And Plutarch tells us , that according to Empedoclet, The Order and Syftemof the World is not the Refult of Material Caufes and Fortuitous Mechanifin, but of a Divine Wi(dom, affigning to every thing «K- w v\ cpvoig Si&icm ^ci^.vt a/A' viv w tt^Js to tcoivov '{qyov 7ro6« <ruv- t«|k, Not fuch a Place at Nature would give it, but fuch at is moft con- venient for the Good of the whole. Simplicim, who had read Empe- doclet, acquaints us, that he made two Worlds, the one Intelle&ual, the other Sensible ; and the former of thefe to be the Exemplar and Archetype of the latter. And (b the Writer Be Placitit Philofopho- rum ob(erves, that Empedoclet made Mo wAfas, "^"/"-V <x?X£'7t/'7TOV t ^*- {pcuvoufyovy Two Sunt, the one Archetypal and Intelligible, the other Apparent or Senjible,
But I need take no more pains, to purge Empedoclet from thofe two Imputations of Corporealifin and Atheifin , (ince he hath (b fully confuted them himfelf^ in thofe Fragments of his dill extant. Firft, by expreffing (uch a hearty Reientment of the Excellency of Piety, and the Wretchednefs and Sottifhnefs of Atheifm in the(e Verfes.
oXgif^ o$ Sdav 7r^.7ri'^i)V cfcTwawTO ttAStoi/, A«Ac<j c/1' So a-KOTQiesx StZv id^i ^ofoc (tefjurtev*
D To
26 Anaxagoras an Incorf orealift. Book I.
To this Sence : He is happy who hath his mind richly fraught and Gored with the Treafures of Divine Knowledge , but he miferable, whofe wind is Darkened, as to the Belief of a God. And, Secondly, by de- nying God to have any Humane Form, or Members ,
'ou f/ty 76 6gOT$ KicpxKyi $ yiff. KtKasw, &c. Or otherwife to be Corporeal,
*oun tsiv iti\&.<rt.$ *<F ocpbxhfAcmv i&fiov 'UjJi&i&ti, m X«?o» A«€eiv.
And then pofitively affirming what he is,
*AM«. <t)gW itgii kcu «^<rc|)aT©- tTrkt-n /uavov, #££V*rf« kos-jluv «.7TKvfa Kotfoftfljsott 3o^mv.
0»^ a H«# and Ineffable Mind , *£<** ^ ftw/f Thoughts agitates the whole World.
XXV. And now we (hall (peak (bmething alfo of Anaxagoras, having (hewed before that he was a Spurious Atomift. For helikewife agreed with the other Atomifts in this, that he aflerted Incorporeal Subftance in general as the A&ive Caufe and Principle of Motion in the Univerfe, and Particularly, an Incorporeal Deity diftinft from the World. Affirming, that there was befides Atoms, n»$ 6 SictuM /u&v vs kou ra'vfav outj@^, (as it is exprefs'd in Plato) An Ordering and "st^rd^mT^ * ' Vifpoftng Mind that was the Cauje of all things. ■ Which Mind
af-<«u,&Ai-r^<i. (as Arijiotle tells us) he made to be ftcvov vffl fflav xttXvv kcu a/juyvi
K<wx.a3aejv The only Simple, Vnmixed, and Pure thing in the World. And he (uppofed this to be that which brought the Confufed Chaos of Omnifarious Atoms into that Orderly Compages of the World that now is.
AruL*4-fHrr0>S m-ec1^ £A&
XXVI. And by this time we have made it evident that thofe
Atomical Phyfiologers, that were before Democritut and Lencippus,
utjLbiM a&^cU^ *&*'& of them Incorporealifts 5 joyning Theology and Pneuma-
5L~6*^a«"£*. tology, the Dodrine of Incorporeal Subftance and a Deity, tog*
^^U^L^r «"**- ther with their Atomical Phyfiology. This is a thing exprefly
£^/k. ' noted concerning Ecphantns the Pythagorean in stob&us. EKcpavTo?
oat ijdw vfi dl&lJbav cvvisdvcu -r icots/Ltjov, S*oin.S<r6ai <Pi ocTrd w^ovoictc,- Ec-
phantus held the Corporeal World to conjiji of Atoms, but yet to be
Ordered and Governed by a Divine Providence, that is, he joyned
Atomology and Theology both together. And the fame is alfb obferv-
ed of Arcefilas, or perhaps Archelaus, by Sidonius Apollinaris 5
Pott hos Arcefilaus Divina Mcnte paratam Conjicit banc Molem, confe&am Partibus illis Unas Atomos vocat ipfe leves.
Now, I (ay, as Ecphantns , and Archelaus, aflerted the Corporeal
World
Chap. I. The ancient AtomiHs Theiits. 27
World to be made of Atoms, but yet notwithftanding held an In- corporeal Deity diftinct from the fame, as the Firfk Principle of A&ivity in it 5 fo in like manner did all the other ancient Atomifts generally before Democritus, joyn Theology and Incorporealifra with their Atomical Phyfiology. They did Atomize as well as he, but they did not Atheize 5 but that Atheiftical Atomology was a thing firfl: fet on foot afterward by Leucippus and Demo- cr/tus.
XXVII. But becaufe many fecm to be fo ftrongly poflefied with this Prejudice, as if Atheifm were a Natural and Necellary Appen- dix to Atomifm^ and therefore will conclude that the fame perfons could not poflibly be Atomifts, and Incorporealifts or Theifts, we
(hall further make it Evident, that there is not only, no Inconfiften- J^^^ ,-,«, c«,na*u cy betwixt the Atomical Phyfiology and Theology, but alfo that ^^t^/n^^. there is on the Contrary , a moft Natural Cognation between <rc*Uay**£i vAa,6f?ry: them. &
And this we (hall do two manner of ways 5 Firfl:, by inquiring r s ,
into the Origin of this Philofophy, and confidering what Grounds '""■o"^ te *&*""&* • 6r Principles of Reafon they were , which firfk led the Antients into this Atomical or Mechanical way of Phyfiologizing. And Se- condly, by making it appear that the Intrinfecal Conftitution of^ ^ c#*.stUtri?L*i ■ this Phyfiology is fuch, that whofbever entertains it, if he do but thoroughly underftand it, muft of neceflity acknowledge that there is fomething elfe in the World befides Body.
Firfl: therefore, this Atomical Phyfiology feems to have had its Rife and Origin from the Strength of Reafon exerting its own Xzj ort«e*-s&emJ £* — Inward Afrive Power and Vigour , and thereby bearing it felf 6**° ^* ,//r*2/^y^L up againft the Prejudices of Senfe, and at length prevailing over r^^/i %>
them, after this manner. The Ancients confidering and revolving . ^^J^S^nst*^ the ideas of their own Minds, found that they had a clear and di-
ftind Conception of Two things, as the General Heads and Prin- / tne^a^\
ciples of whatfoever was in the Univerfe 5 the one whereof was V?£L **<3jU/ fatui^ r.ijfive Matter, and the other A&ive Tower, Vigour and Vertue. To a^A a£(*'t£ Mtu***-,11^" the Latter of which belongs both Cogitation , and the Power of e*.«bc fo&ajrfr &ff*** — Moving Matter, whether by exprefs Confcioufnefs or no. Both ^* £>>u>*% which together, maybe called by one General Name, of Life j '/-"^"'"J "> fo that they made thefe two General Heads of Being or Entity, Pafiive Matter or Bulk , and Self Activity or Life. The Former of thefe was commonly called by the Ancients, the to ird%ov, that which fuffers and receives , and the Latter the to tto/SV, the ACtived™? fi&tS- rrinciple, and the to o'3ev vi ieivw?, that from whence Motion Spri?igs.e'°v^J^^" In rerttm Natura ( faith Cicero ) according to the General Sence of " the Ancients) Duo quarendafunt •-, Vntim, qu£ Materia (it, ex qua qua que res efficiatur ; Alterum, qua res fit qu<e quicque Efficiat : There are two things to be enquired after in Nature '-, One, what is the Mat- ter cut of which every thing if made , Another, what is the A3ive Caufe or Efficient. To the fame purpofe Seneca 5 Ejfc debet aliquid Vndc fiat, dcinde a guo fiat j hoc eji Caufa , Hind Materia : There
D 2 mutf
28 The near Cognation betwixt BookI.
Mttft befomething Out of which a thing is made , and then fome- thing By which it is made '-, the Latter is properly the Caufe , and the Former the Matter. Which is to be underftood of Cor- poreal things and their Differences , that there muft be both Mattered an A&ive Power, for the production of them. And Co alfo that of Ariflotle, Ums cdrictt, ^«$ /jfy o'8ev iU dqxlw mm cpx/jfyj Is xivtfftai;, /xca$ Si 1s O'Ahs- That from whence the Principle of Motion is is one Caufe , and the Matter is another. Where Arijiotle gives that name of Caufe to the Matter alfo, though others did appro- priate it to the Active Power. And the Writer de Placitis Philo- fophorum expreffes this as the General Sence of the Ancients. aSl/- vcfiov dqylw pixv vMtv 't$ ovf&v \\ 1)5 id m'vloc Ottwhvou, ocMot row to ttdisv uinov y$ ibnmfievou, cnov m. «.%yj$_& «?*« -npjis to 'iwmim. ywlStsci civ /m\ Kai to ttoiSv $;, TS7J0V o doyjp^tc67V@^, 6f.Loia<; hou 'bin tS yocMS, ko.jtK §vh*, w) Is kMh? u\tfS' It is impsffible that Matter alone fljould be the file Principle of all things, but there mutf of necejjzty be fuppofed alfo an Agent or Efficient Caufe. As Silver alone is not Jufficient to make a Cup, unlefs there be an Artificer to worh^ upon it. And the fame is to befaid concerning Erafs, Wood, and other Natural Bodies.
Now as they apprehended a Neceffity of thefe two Principles, Co they conceived them to be fuch,as could not be confounded together into one and the fame Thing or Subftance -, they having fuch diftincl: Idea's and Effential Characters from one another : The Stoicks being the only Perfbns, who offering Violence to their own apprehenfions, rudely and unskilfully attempted to make thefe two diftindt things to be one and the fame Subftance. Wherefore as the Firft of thefe, viz. Matter, or Paffive Extended Bulk, is taken by all for Sub- ftance, and commonly called by the name of Body 5 fo the other, which is far the more Noble of the Two, being that which acts up- on the matter and hath a Commanding Power over it, muft needs be Subftance too, of a different kind from Matter or Body $ and therefore Immaterial or Incorporeal Subftance. Neither did they find any other Entity to be conceivable, befides thefe two, Paf- io £JLe.tL<;h-v*jiMi-*<!/iU, five Bulk orExtenfion, which is Corporeal Subftance 5 and In- cftimtrh+w-Ketan&ty ternal Self- Activity or Life, which is the Effential Character of ^pwtAtu*, (/^jHiufev Subftance Incorporeal ; to which Latter belongs not only Cogita- &f~mo<xn.<j th%y. tion, but alfo the Power of Moving Body.
Moreover, when they further confidered the Firft of thefe , the
Material or Corporeal Principle , they being not able clearly to
^^/n^^^/^1- conceive any thing elfe in it, befides Magnitude, Figure, Site, and
^^^£X/^Sh^ Motion or Reft> which are a11 feveral Modes of Extended Bulk, v^/e'^^r^^*-' concluded therefore according to Reafbn, that there was Really nothing elfe exifting in Bodies without, befides the various Com- plexions and Conjugations of thofe Simple Elements, that is, no- thing but Mechanifm. Whence it neceflarily followed, that what- ^£*^^^W*^^V(bever elfe was fuppofed to be in Bodies, was, indeed, nothing but fe. £c^ our Modes of Senfation, or the Phancies and Paffions in us begot- '^^faJd^rn+ni-'^ ten fr°m tnem3 miftakcn for things really exifting without us. And Jf- c/2L/a^^i *h*s is a thing fo obvious, that fbmeof thofe Philofophers who had
taken little notice of the Atomical Phyfiology, had notwithftand-
ing
29
Chap. I. Atomifm and bicorporealifm.
ing a fufpicion ofit^as for Example Phtwus,who writing of the Critcn on of Truth,and the power of Reafbn,hath thefe words, k«i to Qri $
Kiodt'mac, x </»fc £fcK.ei Ttigiv e'x<lv ■zvcvpyisofTlw, ocTTisiircu (xinnT? wt oV to? virwa- 7AC ^<^/an 6**"/1 l^t* " fjfljjots, aAV gV m?^ im^env i.^} xta) ^jtSortv uttoskoiv, k«i(!v» ^ei m ftavoi'a? 7$" c*tc*JLr» of &&<-"+ *-^ - Kg/vo'vTtov Though the things of Scnfe fcem to have fo clear a Certainty ', "-"^ ^ ***&**. **<*" yet notwithjianding it is doubted concerning them, whether ("the Qua- lities of themj have any Real Exijlcnce at all in the things without its, and not rather a Seeming Exijience only, in our own rat/ions j and there is need of Mind or Vnderjianding to judge in this Cafe, and 1o determine the Controverfie, which Senje alone cannot decide. But the ancient Phyfiologifts concluded without any hefitancy, * to coj- to '(fati V-lKi tzS y/witoc&ffSal fiA, it, to ot-v^vBiov tsT Trlv.Bd^teSeu , lhat the Nature of Honey in itfelf is not the fame thing with my being fweet- ned, nor of Wormwood with that Scnfe of ' bitter nefs which I have from itj oix<pl%w <Pl to W6(Gp t» dxJo<; ii-mm/J^x, Kou to? cda3fc'<r<te, t« p^J S.RTC4 UTTOM.e5jW^«« x KaTaAa^gavav , jao'va </*£ a oc^g. tov ioudt^ ttw'^jj" £»/ that the Pajjion ofSenfe differ d from the Abfoiute Nature of the thing it fe If without j the Senjes not comprehending the ObjeBs themfelves, but only their own Taffionsfrom them.
1 I fay therefore , that the Ancients concluded the Abfoiute Nature of Corporeal things in themfelves, to be nothing but a cer- tain Difpofition of Parts, in refpeft of Magnitude , Figure , Site, and Motion, which in Tafts caufe us to be differently affected with thofe Senfes of Sweetnefs and Bitternefs, and in Sight with thofe Vhancies of Colours, and accordingly in the other Senfes with other Thancies 3 and that the Corporeal World was to be explained by thefe Two things, whereof one is Abfoiute in the Bodies without us, the various Mechanifm of them, the other Relative only to us, the different Phancies in us, cauied by the refpeftive Differences of them , in themfelves. Which Phancies or Phantaftick idea's are no Modes of the Bodies without us, but of that only in our felves
which is Cogitative Or Self- Active, that is, Incorporeal. For the Sen- / * , j^ s
fible Ideas of Hot and Cold, Red and green, &c. cannot be clearly ^ i ~"*%'2jj q/j « ,3<£ conceived by us as Modes of the Bodies without us, but they may „£?, c*.»ndh- 6*. *&**£. beeafily apprehended as Modes of Cogitation, that is, of Senfation.,^ ^^^ci/.^: <**■***&/ or Sympathetical Perception in us.' t>ftA.<- <?*&v «,vtt"~^"*
The Refult of all which was. That whatfbever is either in Our ^u<t~ Selves, or the Whole World, was to be reduced to one or other of thefe two Principles; Tajfive Matter, and Extended Bulk^, or Self- ■A&ive Power avAVertue-, Corporeal or Incorporeal Subftance j ffe4.££tjnie.<>i+-f*li** thanifm or Life ■, or elfe to a Complication of them both toge- ^t^^J^t^
XXVIII. From this General Account, which we have now given of the Origin of the Atomical Phyfiology , it appears that the Doctrine of Incorporeal Subftance fprung up together with it. But this will be further manifeft, from that which follows. For we (hall in the next place fhew, how this Philofbphy did, in efpecial manner, owe. its Original, to the Improvement of one Particular
D 3 Principle
oo Nothing comes from Nothing, Book. I.
z . Principle of Reafon, over and befides all the reft 5 namely, that fa- f Mc *tom tea/t^Ay" mous Axiom, fo much talked of amongft the Ancients,
^^^,^r'^tZ De Nihilo Nihil, in Nihilum Nil pofe reverti 5
1 »tf £* *x*t£i'j*jf. - < That Nothing can come from Nothing,nor go to Nothing. For- though
(J (< Democritus, Epicurus and Lucretius abufed this Theorem, endeavour-
ing to carry it further than the Intention of- the firft Atomifts, to the difproving of a Divine Creation of any thing out of Nothing by it , Nullam rem a Nihilo gigni Divinitus uncpyim^ and conse- quently of a Deity .• Yet as the meaning of it was at firft confi- ned and reftrained, That Nothing of it felf could come from Nothing nor go to Nothing, or that according to the Ordinary Courfe of Nature ( without an Extraordinary Divine Power ) Nothing could be rais'd from Nothing , nor reduc'd to Nothing 3 it is not on- ly an undoubted Rule of Reafon in it felf, but it was alfo the Prin- cipal Original of that Atomical Phyfiology , which , difcarding Forms and Qualities, acknowledged really, nothing elfe in Body befides Mechanifm. .
Wherefore it was not invain,or to nopurpofe that Laertius in the Life of Democritus takes notice of this as one of his Dogmata, fJW<Plv 6%,
W (jlvi ovT©- ■rfvi&ci fMifl efe to fm ov <p6sf<>ea9tw That Nothing was made or Generated out of Nothing, nor Corrupted into Nothing, This being a Fundamental Principle , not only of his Atheifm , but alfb of that very Atomical Phyfiology it felf, which he purfued. And Epi- curus in his Epiftle to Herodotus plainly fetches the beginning of all his Philofbphy from hence, ng&rov fjfyj h'n i£iv yivffcu dx. rs (w cvTos, xoc) icftv (pwfitOLi eu; to fM\ ov. Ei pfyj ^o iyivvn to dx.<pcuv6fjfyuov ox. t« {jM ovT©^ , my die. mvf(§H ij^vtT civ , c-vsi^f/A.-rzovyk, xMv -B-qcc-fco/jfyjov k«) ei icpfia'geTO <P\ to dbQcaiZp/jfyjov eis to [ma ov, WvTa av airoXfiAej tx ■n^J.yjj.c^oc $ht ovftov ?$ 05 x SieAutfo* We fetch the beginning of our Vhilofophy (faith he) from hence , that Nothing zr made out of Nothing or de- fer of d to Nothing j for if things were made out of Nothing, then e- very thing might be made out of every thing, neither would there be any need of Seeds. And if whatfoever is Corrupted were dejiroyed to Nothing, then all things would at length be brought to Nothing. Lucre- tius in like manner beginning here, infifts more largely upon thofe Grounds of Reafon hinted by Epicurus : And firft. That Nothing can be made out of Nothing he proves thus 5
Namji de nihilo fierent, ex omnibus rebus Omne Genus nafci pojfet : Nil Semine egeret : E mare primum Homines & terra pojfet oriri Squajnigerum Genus, &c. Nee Fruclus iidem Arboribus conjlare folerent, Sed mutarentur : Ferre omnes omnia poffent. Prater ea cur VereRofam, Frumenta Galore, Vites Autumno, fundi, fuadente videmus ? Sec. Hmdfi de Nihilo fierent, fubito exorerentur Incerto fpati.o atfi alienis Tartibus anni.
In
Chap. I. nor goes to Nothing. o i
In like manner he argues, to prove that Nothing is Corrupted into Nothing.
Hue accedit utl quicque infua Corpord rurfum Dijfolvat Natitra '-, neqne ad Nihilum interimat res i Nam fi quid Mortalc a enntfis Partibus ejfett Ex oculis res qu£que repente erepta periret. Traterea qu<ecunque Vetujiate amovet <etas, Si penitus perimit, confumens Materiam omnem^ TJnde Animale Genus generatim in Lumina Vit& Redducit Venus .<? aut r%eddu&um Dtfdala Tel/us Vnde alit at que auget ? generating pabula prdbens^&ic. Hand igitur penitus pereunt quacunque videntur, Sguando aliud ex alio reficit Natura 5 nee ullam Rem gigni patitur nifi ntorte adjutant alienL
In which Paffages, though it be plain that Lucretius doth not im- mediately drive at Atheifm , and nothing elfe ; but primarily at the eftablifhing of a peculiar kind of Atomical Phyfiology, upon which indee d thefe Democritic^s afterward endeavoured to graft Atheifm 5 yet to take away that fufpicion, we (hall in the next place fhew, that generally the other Ancient Phyfiologers alfo., who were Theifts, did likewife build the ftrufture of their Philofophy upon the fame Foundation, that Nothing can come from Nothing, nor goto Nothing : As for Example, Parmenides, m Meliffus, Zeno, Xenophanes, Anaxagoras and Empedocles 3 of Parmenides and Meliffus, Arijioth thus writes, xSiv &o£ fivtcSiii cpounv i<PX <p6efgea9ou r?$ ovToy They fay that no Real Entity is either Generated or Corrupted, that is, made anew out of Nothing or deftroy'd to Nothing. And Simplicius tells us, that Parmenides gave a notable Reafbn for the Confirma- tion of this Affertion, that^Nothing in Nature could be Made out of Nothing, ahiotv 7« -/eiv im.\\a<; t£ oVf(Gp yivic9t>u tt> yi\'6fsfyovt ^devfjux- s&h; 6 nccpyt/)^ic5Vs ir^cszbyxAv, o'Xa? yoi% cpvimv, ei cm. -re fjA ovf©-', t/? » d- ttgk\w§G)0J§ 7V 7B7S yviicOtn o'te \yiwn , aMcc fMi ir^Ti^cv m vgi£Q\> Be- cause if any thing be made out of Nothing, then there could be no caufe why itpould be then made, and neither fooner nor later. Again Ari- Jio tie testifies of Xenophanes and Zeno, that they made this a. main Principle of their Philofophy f^ <i*$tyj&tx.i yncdv.i fwc&v an /uncfewv That it cannot be that any thing jloould be made out of Nothing : And of this Xenophanes, Sextus the Philofbpher tells us , that he held c7j &<; ical aoTw'^T®^ Sso? That there was but one God, and that he was Incorporeal, fpeaking thus of him 5
"owl <H\JjCx.c, 3vnTo7<nv ojuui'iiQ^, «te vom^uk.
Arijlotle alfo writes in like manner concerning Empedocles, onmifci Touha Kanav©^ 6f.M\oy& on ax. tz /jlvi ovT©^ tx/uiriyctvov '<S£r yvtiSoUy to T£ ov tfo'MucSaj aviivusov xai oc^'mkIov Empedocles ackjiowledges the very fame with other Philofophers, that it is impojjible any thing fiould be Made
out
- » •
~2 The Origin of the Book I.
out of Nothing or Perijh into Nothing. t And as for Anaxagoras^ it is diffidently known to all , that his Homceomeria or Do&rine of Similar Atoms, (which was a certain Spurious kind of Atomifm) was nothing but a fuperftru&ure made upon this Foundation. Befides all which, Arifiotle pronounces universally concerning the Ancient Phyfiologers without any exception, that they agreed in this one thing, <®%J. tocv77»s 6/uu>yva(j.ov5ai <r ^of h? 01 iz&^J, $A<te0'£, on to ytyvofjut- vov Ik (m\ May ^kynSta a§l/'vafov The Vhyfiobgers generally agree in this ( laying it down for a grand Foundation} that it is Impoffible that any thing Jfjould be made out of Nothing. And again he calls this Koaiw <P6£av vffi cpunxaiv, the common Opinion of Naturalijls ; intimating alfo, that they concluded it the greateft abfurdity, that any Phy- fiologer could be guilty of, to lay down fuch Principles , as from whence it would follow, that any Real Entity in Nature did come from Nothing and goto Nothing.
Now it may well be fuppofed, that all thefe Ancient Phyfiolo- gers (the moft of which Were alfo Theifts ) did not keep fuch a ftir about this bufinefs for nothing 5 and therefore we are in the next place to fhow,what it was that they drove at in it. And we do affirm that one thing, which they all aimed at, who infifted upon the forementioned Principle, was the eftablifhing fbme Atomical Pby- fiology or other, but moft of them at fuch as takes away all Forms and Qualities of Bodies (as Entities really diftincl: from the Matter and Subftance) and refolves all into Mechanifm and vhancy. For it is plain, that if the Forms and Qualities of Bodies be Entities really diftincl: from the Subftance , and its various Modifications , of Fi- .1 . gure, Site, and Motion, that then in all the Changes and Tranfmu-
| uiuk p*nct*.U ^^-tations of Nature, all the Generations and Alterations of Body, 'htsttlcicftd* rf r***U, - ("th-ofe Forms and Qualities being fuppofed to have no Real Exi- jLtt-ithfj. ftence any where before) fbmething muft of neceflity be Created or
produced miraculoufly out of Nothing; aslikewife reduced into Nothing in the Corruptions of them,they having no Being anywhere afterward. As for Example 5 when ever a Candle is but lighted or kindled into aflame, there muft needs be a new Form of fire, and new Qualities of Light and Heat, really diftincl: from the Matter and Subftance, produced out of Nothing, that is. Created, and the fame again Reduced into Nothing, or Annihilated, when the flame is extinguifhed. Thus, when Water is but Congealed at any time into Snow , Hail , or Ice , and when it is again Diflblved 5 when Wax is by Liquefaction made Soft and Tranfparent , and changed to moft of our Senfes •-, when the fame kind of Nourifliment taken in by Animals , is turned into Blood , Milk, Flefh, Bones, Nerves, and all the other Similar Parts ; when that which was in the Form of bright Flame, appears in the Form of dark Smoak 5 and that which was in the Form of Vapour, in the Form of Rain or Water, or the like .• I fay, that in all thefe Mutations of Bo- dies there muft needs be fomething made out of Nothing But that in all the Protean Transformations of Nature, which happen con- tinually, there ihould be Real Entities thus perpetually produced out of Nothing and reduced to Nothing, feemed to be fb great a
Paradox
hap. I. Atomical Philofyhy. o o
Paradox to the Ancients, that they could by no means admit of it. Becaufeas we have already declared, Firft they concluded it clear- ly impoftible by Reafon , that any Real Entity fhould of it felf rife out of Nothing} and Secondly, they thought it very abfurdto bring God upon the Stage, with his Miraculous extraordinary Power, perpetually at every turn j As alio, that every thing might be made out of every thing, and there would be no Caufe in Nature, for the Production of one thing rather than another, and at this time ra- ther than that,ifthey were Miraculoufly made out of Nothing. Where- fore they fagacioufly apprehended, that there muft needs be fome other Myftery or Intrigue of Nature , in this bufinefs, than was commonly dream'd of, or fufpedted 5 which they concluded to be this , That in all thefe Transformations, there were no fuch Real Entities of Forms and Qualities diftincl from the Matter, and the va- rious Difpofition of its Parts, in refpect of Figure, Site and Moti- on (as is vulgarly fiippofed) Produced and Deftroyed $ but that all thefe Feats were done, either by the Concretion and Secretion of actually Inexiftent Parts , or elfe by the different Modifications of the fame Preexiftent Matter, or the Infenfible parts thereof This
only being added hereunto, that from thofe different Modificati-^/vw^^^rW->'£-\- ons of the fmall Particles of Bodies, (they being not fo diftinctly miQtf'efcttVnJ ' of '>**** perceived by our Senfes) there are begotten in us, certain confuted >*?>*■& A <»*>'* W tr~ Vhafmata or Phantafmata, Apparitions , Phancies, and Pajjions, as of a^'o^u^'uTTC^* Light and Colours, Heat and Cold, and the like, which are thofe cjti fet ft /*&*** cZ'K things, that are vulgarly miftaken for real Qualities exifting in the ntiMne.rAoTtsJ** ?*'* Bodies without us$ whereas indeed there is Nothing Abfblutely in cynOfdcjA^ vff-1*' the Bodies themfelves like to thofe Phantajiicl^ idea's that we have of t</*nt/*\ •*. C Ustf*1^)- them 3 and yet they are wifely contriv'd by the Author of Nature, /*'««■'• for the Adorning and Embellifhing of the Corporeal World to us.
So that they conceived. Bodies were to be confidered two man- ner of ways, either as they are Abfblutely in themfelves, or elfe as they are Relatively to us : And as they are abfblutely in them- felves, that Co there never was any Entity really diftincl: from the Subftance, produced in them out of Nothing, nor Corrupted or Deftroy- ed to Nothing, but only the Accidents and Modifications altered. Which, Accidents and Modifications are no Entities really diftincl: from their Subftance 5 for as much as the fame Body may be put in- to feveral Shapes and Figures, and the fame Man may fucceffively Stand, Sit, Kneel and Walk, without the production of any new Entities really diftinct from the fubftance of his Body. So that the Generations, Corruptions and Alterations of Inanimate Bodies are not terminated in the Production or Deftruction of any Subftantial Forms, or real Entities diftinct from the Subftance, but only in dif- ferent Modifications of it. But fecondly, as Bodies are confidered Relatively to us, that fb befides their different Modifications and ,
Mechanical Alterations, there are alfb different Phancies, Seemings an.J c4*/£u* W'i'**fc\ and Apparitions begotten in us from them 5 which unwary and un- *""* ±$?£%Zt'£/t,/'iw skilful Philofophers miftake for Abfblute Forms and Qualities in "nJ^ {^t^&.&J"*' Bodies themfelves. And thus they concluded, that all the Phtno- fymnj J^j ^^/fr'-V > mena of Inanimate Bodies, and their rarious Transformations, might
04 The Origin of the. Book. I.
be clearly refolved into thefe two things, Partly fomething that is Real and Abfolute in Bodies themfelves, which is nothing but their different Mechanifm, or Difpofition of Parts in refpett of Figure, Site and Motion 5 and Partly fomething that is Phantaftical in the Sentient.
That the Atomical Phyfiology did emerge after this manner, from that Principle of Reafon, that Nothing comes from Nothing, nor goes to Nothing, might be further convinced from the teftimo- ny of Arijiotle, writing thus concerning it : 'eh. th j(vV3&i ef «Miikv T'ccvccvfi'a ivvTrviqxtv &&.' & y? tov to yivopfyjov avafnw yi.'ti&oci i* if ovfav i) if f/d ov\av' Tarav $i to ^, c«. jUvi ovT&v yineSxi a.<fiiveftov, <g%Jl y^ tcu5th$ o^yva- /itpvSjB 1s 5*jfn? chrctvft? 01 <s%J. qbcrttic,' to A87T0V "h<JVi ffu^&xMv if ikvoJicni; ivo'/j/ffttv if ovfav £t^ hk; ivic^x0'1^ >5'£e9«i> £»«. 3 <sjj.iv.^Jrn>rxrx. vp of- koov if Mcuodv'-Tav tifuv* T#e ancient Thyfologers concluded, that bccatife Contraries were made out of one another, that therefore they were before (one Way or other1) Inexijient, Arguing in this manner. That ifwhat- joever be made, mujl needs be made out of Something or out of No- thing, and thk latter (that any thing (hould be made out of No- thing ) is Impojfible , according to the general Confent of all the anci- ent Phyftologers 5 then it follows of NeceJJity, that all Corporeal things are Made or Generated, out of things that were really before and In- exijient j though by reafon of the fmallnefs of their Bulkj they were In- fenfible to us. Where Arijlotk plainly intimates that all the ancient Phiilofophers, whofbever infifted upon this Principle, that Nothing comes from Nothing, nor goes to Nothing, were one way or other A- tomical, and d id refolve all Corporeal things into b'lksrs nvxg Six ib) o-/juk.^t»toc ocvc/jiodtiTist; M/jCiv, Certain Moleculx or Corpufcula which by Reafon of their fmallnefs were infenfible to us, that is, into Atoms. But yet there was a difference between thefe Atomifts, forafmuch. as Anaxagoras was fuch an Atomift, as did notwithstanding hold Forms and Qualities , really diftindl from the Mechanical Modifi- cations of Bodies. For he not being able (as it feems) well to un- derftand that other Atomical Phyfiology of the Ancients, that, ex- ploding Qualities, falved all Corporeal Phenomena by Mechanifm and rhancy 3 and yet acknowledging, that that Principle of theirs which they went upon, mud needs be true, That Nothing could of itjelf come from Nothing nor go to Nothing j framed a new kind of Atomology of his own, in fuppofing the whole Corporeal World or Mafs of Matter, to confift of Similar Atoms, that is, fuch as were originally .endued with all thofe different Forms and Qualities that are vulgarly conceived to be in Bodies, fomeBony, fome Flefby, fome Firie, fome Watery, fome White, fome Black, fome Bitter, fome Sweet, and the like,fothat all Bodies whatfbever had fome of all forts of thefe Atoms (which are in a manner Infinite) fpecifically differing from one another in them, to dv im.nl fMi-dyJfo', 5ioVz iriui y<^4vufto tU. m <*v<2 Atvrrij cfc -jnnvfos •jAvitvli, (pa/vtcSai $ 5i«${^vf«, kou 7r^j<rayo^d!>ic&ta t-n^. aMMav tf^&^^t"* ^^''©fc "W ijAXw v^i%ov\@- Btcc ii irhv$& <& ■*» /iifa jft avra'^v, &c. c/2^ That all things were in every thing mingled together, becaufe they faw
that^ every thing was made of every thing j but that things feemed to differ from one another and were denominated to be this or that, from thofe Atoms which are mofl predominant in the Mixture, by reafon of
their
Chap. I. Atomical Pbilofophy. 35
their Multiplicity : Whence he concluded that all the Generations, Corruptions and Alterations of Bodies were made by nothing but the Concretions and Secretions of Inexiftent and Preexiftent Atoms of different Forms and Qualities , without the Production of any new Form and Qualitie out of Nothing, or the Reduction of any into Nothing. This very account Arifiotle gives of the Ana~ xagorean Hypothecs. 'iWM Avafocyo^s »t&? oiTr&^cf. oihSyvoj. toL gziyjUx, Slocri i/Trc>A(X|u6«v<lv, rUd koM So^lwrfS cpvoiKciv Uvea ocXuSi, Lc, w ytvo/ufyjX »^vo? 6x. tx fxM cVT©^ Anaxagoras fcemcth therefore to make Infinite Atoms endued rvith feveral Forms and Qualities to be the Element r of Bodies, beexufe he fuppofed that Common opinion of Thyftologers to be true, that Nothing is Made of Nothing. But all the other ancient Phy- fiologers that were before Anaxagoras, and likewife thole after him, who infifting upon the fame Principle of Nothing coming from No- thing did not Anaxagorize, as Empedocles, Democritus and Trotagoras, muft needs make olkxs avo^iss, dijfimilar MolecuU,and oaA[Axc, a7rc!s<;, Atoms unformed and unqualified, otherwife than by Magnitude, Fi- gure and Motion, to be the Principles of Bodies , and cafhiering Forms and Qualities (as real Entities diftinct from the Matter ) re- folve all Corporeal Phenomena into Mechanifm and Phancie. Be- caufe, if no Real Entity can come from Nothing, nor go to No- thing, then one of thefe two things is abfblutely Necelfary , that either thefe Corporeal Forms and Qualities, being real Entities di- ftinct from the Matter, fhould exift before Generations and after Cor- ruptions, in certain infenfible Atoms originally fuch, according to the Anaxagorean Doctrine ; Or elfe, that they fhould not be Real Entities diftinct from the Matter, but only the different Modificati- ons and Mechanifms of it, together with different Phancies. And thus we have made it evident that the genuine Atomical Phyfiology did fpring originally from this Principle of Reafon, that no Real Entitie does ofitfelf come from Nothing nor go to Nothing.
XXIX. Now we fhall in the next place fhow how this very fame Principle ofReafbn which induced the Ancients to reject Sub* ftantial Forms and Qualities of Bodies, and to Phyfiologize Ato- mieally, led them alfb unavoidably to aflert Incorporeal Subftances, and that the Souls of Men and Animals were fuch, neither Gene- rated nor Corrupted. They had argued againft Subftantial Forms and Qualities as we have fhewed, in this manner, that fince the Forms and Qualities of Bodies are fuppofed by all to be Generated and Corrupted, made anew out of Nothing and deftroyed to No- thing, that therefore they could not be Real Entities diftinct from , t/v the Subftance of Matter, but only different Modifications of it &1£^% *££*§&?. refpect of Figure, Site and Motion, caufing different Senfations in us 5 ^^ ^.^~nceJf ^ ^^^ and were all to be refblved into Mechanifm and Fancie. For as for that Conceit of Anaxagoras, of Pra? and Poft-exiftent Atoms, en- dued with all thofe feveral Forms and Qualities of Bodies Ingener- ably and Incorruptibly 5 it was nothing but an Adulteration of the genuine Atomical Philofbphy, and a mere Dream of his, in which very few follow'd him. And now they argue conrrariwife for the Souls of Men and Animals, in this manner ; Becaufe they are plain- ly
o 6 Incorforealifmff rung from the fame Book I.
ly Real Entities diftinct from the Subftance of Matter and its Mo- dification;, and Men and Brutes are not mere Machins, neither can Life and Cogitation, Senfe and Confcioufhefs,. Reafbn and Understand- ing, Appetite and Will, ever refult from Magnitudes, Figures, Sites and Motions, that therefore they are not Corporeally Generated and Corrupted, as the Forms and Qualities of Bodies are. 'aNvk- tov yi'nSsci tj ost /Afi^vo? Tr^i'Tw^x0^©"* It & impojjibk for a real Entity to be made or Generated from Nothing preexisting. Now there is No- thing of Soul and Mind, Reafbn and Underftanding, nor indeed of Cogitation and Life, contained in the Modifications and Mechanifm of Bodies , and therefore to make Soul and Mind to rife out of Bo- dy whenfoever a man is generated, would be plainly to make a real Entity to come out of Nothing, whinh is impofiible. I fay, becaufe the Forms and Qualities of Bodies are Generated and Corrupted, Made and Unmade, in the ordinary courfe of Nature, therefore they concluded, that they were not real Entities diftinct from the Subftance of Body and its various Modifications : but becaufe Soul and Mind is plainly a real Entity diftinct from the Subftance of Bo- dy, its Modification and Mechanifm ; that therefore it was not a thing Generated and Corrupted, Made and Unmade, but fuch as had a Be- ing of its own, a Subftantial Thing by it felf. Real Entities and Sub- ftancesare not Generated and Corrupted, but only Modifications.
Wherefore thefe Ancients apprehended that there was a great difference betwixt the Souls of Men and Animals, and the Forms frcettA^JVi rttfme*j and Quaiities of other inanimate Bodies, and confequently betwixt W^^* v their feveral Productions. Forafmuchas in the Generation of In-
animate Bodies there is no new real Entity acquired diftinct from the Subftance of the thing it felf] but only a peculiar Modification of it. The Form of Stone, or of Timber, of Blood , Flefh and Bone, and fuch other Natural Bodies Generated, is no more a di- ftinct Subftance or Entity from the Matter, than the Form of an Houfe, Stool or Table is : There is no more new Entity acquired in the Generation of Natural Bodies, than there is in the Pro- duction of Artificial ones. When Water is turn'd into Vapour, Candle into Flame, Flame into Smoak, Grafs into Milk Blood and Bones, there is no more miraculous Production of Something out of Nothing, than when Wool is made into cloth, or Flax into Lin- nen, when a rude and Unpolifh'd Stone is hewen into a beautiful Statue, when Brick, Timber and Mortar, that lay together before difbrderly , is brought into the Form of a ftately Palace ; there being Nothing neither in one nor other of thefe but only a diffe- rent Difpofition and Modification of preexiftent Matter. Which Matter of the Univerfe is alwaies Subftantially the fame, and neither more nor lefs, but only Vroteanly transformed into different Shapes. Thus we fee that the Generation of all Inanimate Bodies is nothing but the change of Accidents and Modifications, the Subftance be- ing really the fame both before and after. But in the Generations of Men and Animals, befides the new difpofition of the Parts of Mat- ter and its Organization, there is alfb the Acquisition and Conjun- ction of another Real Entity or Subftance diftinct from the Mat- ter^
Chap. I. Principle with Atomifm. 3 7
ter, which could not be Generated out of it, but muft needs come into itfbme other way. Though there be no Subftantial difference between a Stately Houfe or Palace ftanding, and all the Materials of the fame ruinated and demolished , but only a difference of Accidents and Modifications , yet between a living Man and a dead Carcafe, there is befides the Accidental Modification of the Body, another Subftantial difference, there being a Subftantial Soul and Incorporeal Inhabitant, dwelling in the one and acting of it, which the other is now defertcd of. And it is very obfervablc that Anaxagonis himfelfj who made Bony and Flefhy Atoms, Hot and Cold, Red and Green, and the like, which he fuppofed to cxift before Generations and after, Corruptions, alwaies immutably the fame,(that fb Nothing might come from Nothing and go to Nothing) yet he did not make any Animalifh Atoms Senfitive and Rational. The Reafbn whereof could not be becaufe he did not think Senfe and Un- derstanding to be as Real Entities as Hot and Cold, Red and Green 3 but becaufe they could not be fuppofed to be Corporeal Forms and Qualities , but muft needs belong to another Subftance that was Incorporeal. And therefore Anaxagoras could not but ac- knowledge, that all Souls and Lives did Pre and Poft-exift by themfelvcs, as well as thofe Corporeal Forms and Qualities, in his Similar Atoms.
XXX. And flow it is already manifeft, that from the fame Principle of Reafbn before mentioned, That Nothing of it felf can- come from Nothing nor go to Nothing, the Ancient Philosophers were induced likewife toaflertthe Soul's Immortality, together with its
Incorporeity or Diftindtncfs from the Body. No fubftantial Enti- and /u? </t*4£z>-)vti*a£ \ ty ever vanifheth of it felf into Nothing 3 for if it did, then in eMvty et/^v^rri'ji**] length of time all might come to be Nothing. But the Soul is a J^J^^^^g] Subftantial Entity, Really diftinct from the body, and not the mere ^^^^X^^T* Modification of it 3 and therefore when a Man dies, his Soul muft ftill remain and continue to have a Being fomewhere elfe in the Univerfe. All the Changes that arc in Nature , are cither Acci- ■ dental Transformations and different Modifications of the fame Sub- ftance, or elfe they are Covjunfiions and Separations, or Anagram* matical Tranfpojitions of things in the Univerfe , the Subftance of the whole remaining alwaies entirely the fame. The Generation and Cor- ^e ttt, H*n- . ruption of Inanimate Bodies, is but like the making of a Houfe, a*v^^^<^ Stool or Table, and the Unmaking or Marring of them again 5 ***-*/>»%■» -££- ^ either different Modifications of one and the fame Subftance, or *5 T^jf^ elfe divers Mixtures and Separations, Concretions and Secretions. And the Generation and Corruption of Animals is likewife nothing but
The Conjun&ion of Souls together with fuch T articular "Bodies , *nd the Separation of them again from one another, and fb as it were the Anagramntatical Tranfpofition of them in the Univerfe. That Soul and Life that is now fled and gone, from a lifelefs Carcafe, is only
E a lofr
3 8 Immortality of Souls ajferted BookI.
a loft to that particular Body or Compagcs of Matter , which by means thereof is now difanimated , but it is no lois to the whole, it being but Tranfpofed in the Univerfe, and lodged fomewhere clfe.
XXXI. it isalfo further evident that this fame Principle which thus led the Ancients to hold the Souls Immortality, or its Future Permanency after Death, muft needs determine them likewife to 6wti£e</*sne.Ji~frr,^ maintain its ng^u7n>c?|i?, or Preexiftence, and confequently its yA^on- u/Aict m*JX& ^ tr<^ |x^TO<n$,or Tranfmigration.Foi that which did preexift before the Gene- &n*<&rt.i/ &£& t^-ntt, ^ration of any Animal, and was then fomewhere elfe,muft needs Tranfc ^^y^^^L^ "^^ migrate into the Body of that Animal where now it is.But as for that o- ^-^A^/s^^^^ker Tranfmigration of Human Souls into the Bodies of Brutes,though ' it cannot be denied but that many of thefe Ancients admitted it al- fo, yet Tim&us Locrus, and divers others of the Pythagoreans, re- jected it, any otherwife than as it might be taken for an Allegori- cal Defcription of that Beaftly Transformation, that is made of Mens Souls by Vice. Arijiotle tells us again, agreeably to what was declared before, 077 /j.xhi<&. (po&ufyoi SitTtMaztv ci 7roAouoi to da /**-,- efcvo<; yinc&a.'i 77 Tr^iiragx0^©^ That the Ancient Philofophers were a- fraid of Nothing more, than this one thing, that any thing Jhould be made out of Nothing Preexijient : And therefore they muft needs con- clude, that the Souls of all Animals Preexifted before their Gene- rations. And indeed it is a thing very well known that according to the Sence of Philofophers, thefe two things were alwaies inclu- ded together , in that one opinion of the Soul's Immortality , namely its Preexiftence :as well as its Pojiexijicnce. Neither was there ever any of the Ancients before Chriftianity, that held the Souls future Permanency after Death, who did not likewife aflert its Preexiftence 3 they clearly perceiving, that if it were once grant- ed, that the Soul was Generated , it could never be proved but that it might be alfo Corrupted. And therefore the AfTertors of the Souls Immortality, commonly begun here , firft, to prove its Pre- exiftence, proceeding thence afterward to eftablilh its Permanency after Death. This is the Method ufed in Plato, US ttcu vi/j-Zv ii -Vxi*
TTgjlV dlr T&ofc IzS «.v6§CJ7TIV(3tl H<P& yVlllsbtiJ. <Lgi YM TOCUTJJ a8aV(XT2V 71 'lot'
t xav m 4°^ Svcu' Our Soul was fomewhere, before it came to exiji in
this prefent Humane Term, and from thence it appears to be Immortal, ,. and fuch as wittfubfrtt after Death. And the chief demonftration of the Soul's Preexiftence to the Ancients before Plato was this, becaufe it is an Entity Really diftincl: from Body or Matter and the Modifications of it, and no real Subftantial Entity can either fpring of it felf out of Nothing, or be made out of any other Subftance diftinft from it, becaufe Nothing can be made cat /ah&vos dv\r7rv'%yov- !©■■ 8 7r££uWgx?vr<§h> from nothing either inexifiing or preexifiingj all Natural Generations being but the various Difpofitions and Modifi- cations of what was before exiftent in the Univerfe. But there was Nothing of Soul and Mind, Inexifting and Preexifting in Body be- fore, there being Nothing of Life and Cogitation in Magnitude, Fi- gure, Site, and Motion. Wherefore this muft needs be, not a thing Mads or Generated) as Corporeal Forms and Qualities are, but foch
as
Chap. I. From the fame Ground with Atoms. 3 o
as hath a Being in Nature Ingcncrably and Incomtptibly. The Me- chanifm of Humane Body was a thing Made and Generated, it being only a different Modification of what was before cxiftcnt, and hav- ing no new Entity in it diftinct from the Subftance : Andthc7t//7///? or Compofitum of a Man or Animal may be (aid to be Generated and Corrupted,™ regard of the Union and Difunion, Conjunction and Se- paration of thofe two parts, the Soul and Body. But the Soul it^felf, according to thefe Principles , is neither a thing Gcnerable nor Corruptible, but was as well before the Generation, and will be af- ter the Deaths and Corruptions of men, as the Subftance of their Body, which is fuppofed by all to have been from the firft Crea- tion, and no Part of it to be annihilated or loft after Death, but only fcatter'd and difpeffed in the Univerfe. Thus the Ancient Atomifts concluded. That Souls and Lives being Subftantial Enti- ties by themfelves, were all of them as old as any other Subftance in the Univerfe, and as the whole Mafs of Matter, and every fmall- eft Atom of it is. That is, they who maintained the Eternity of the World, didconfequently aflert alio Mternitatem Animorum (as Cicero calls it J the Eternity of Souls and Minds. But they who con- ceived the World to have had a Temporary Beginning or Creati- on, held the Goevity of all Souls with it, and would by no means be induced to think that every Atom of Senfelefs Matter and Par- ticle of Duft, had fitch a Privilege and Preeminency over the Souls
of Men and Animals,as to be Seniour to them. Syneftus though a Chri- ojkX- Jyn'cje^r6-%p*<^ ftian,yet having been educated in this Philofbphy,could not be in- «. cC*t*i->'«>*?'{'<X^i'&<> duced by the hopes of a Biffioprick,to ftifle or diflemble this Sentiment U~*Xsot of his Mind, a,ueAer twj x^x.^ ^ &%'&<&> i^ vd^®^ vgipjyvw vofd^v- I foal/ never bepcrfveaded to thinks my Soul -to be younger than my Body. But fuch, itfeems, was the temper of thofe times, that he was not only difpenfed withal as to this, butalfo as to another Heterodoxy of his , concerning the Refiirre&ion.
XXXII. It is already plain alfo, that this Dodlrine of the An- cient Atomifts concerning the Immateriality and Immortality, the Pra?and Poft-exiftence of Souls, was not confined by them to Hu- mane Souls only, but extended univerfally to all Souls and Lives y whatfbever. It being a thing that was hardly ever called into doubt £*ihtfr"f^~ Us*u~ ££& ■ or queftion by any, before Cartcflm, whether the Souls of Brutes t/i>*r2r^'>A'ff ^V*^^.- had any Senfe, Cogitation or Confeioufnefs in them or no. Now ^'^£j.£v all Life, Senfe and Cogitatio^as undoubtedly concluded by them, to be an Entity Really diftinft from the Subftance of Body, and not the mere Modification, Motion or Mechanifm of it j Life and Mechanifm being two diftincl idea's of the Mind, which cannot be confounded together. Wherefore they refblved that all Lives and Souls whatsoever, which now are in the World, ever were from the firft Beginning of it, and ever will be 5 that there will be no new ones produced which are not already, and have not alwaies been, nor any of thofe which now are, deftroyed, any more than the Subftance of any Matter will be Created or Annihilated. So that the whole Syftem of the Created Univerfe, Confifting of Bo- dy, and particular Incorporeal Subftances or Souls, in the fuccef-
E 2 five
40 Empedocles^ww the fame Principle BookI,
five Generations and Corruptions or Deaths, of Men and other Animals, was according to them, Really nothing elfe, but one and the fame Thing perpetually Anagrammatized, or but like many dif- ferent Syllables and Words varioufly and fucceffively compofed out of the fame preexiftent Elements or Letters.
X.XXIII. We have now declared how the fame Principle of Reafbn which made the Ancient Phyfiologers to become Ato- mifts, rauft needs induce them alio to be Incorporealifts 5 how the fame thing which perfwaded them that Corporeal Forms were no Real Entities diftinft from the Subftance of the Body, but only the different Modifications and Mechamfms of it, convinced them atf eoqt.ta.Hve> far^y, likewife, that all Cogitative Beings, all Souls and Lives whatfb- <u.U CflcUr, *.„2 & Jb- ever, were Ingenerable and Incorruptible, and as well Preexiftent irKjtTWaJtw^rC) ™ i^Jbefore the Generations of Particular Animals, as Poftexiftent after myvf, /^ their Deaths and Corruptions. Nothing now remains but only to
fliow more particularly, that it was de fatto thus, that the fame perfbns did from this Principle (that Nothing can come from No- thing and go to Nothing) both Atomize in their Phyfiology, taking away all Subftantial Forms and Qualities, and alfb Theologize or Incorporeal ize, aliening Souls to be a Subftance really diftinft from a-fHtst'cpfni'a**. «»/ /^Matter and Immortal , as alfb to preexift 5 and this we fhall do £c,%nt *i-o & x ^rom Empedocles, and firft from that Paflage of his cited before in
Qwirffl, icfii ng xho/ufyjn SscvaTOio ytvUXn, ( al. left, ■rzk&'m ) 'AAA« /Uo'vov yi-lii "n S*ocM.«£i's te {jxylviav
Which I find Latin'd thus.
Aft aliud dico 5 nihil eft Mortalibus Ortus, Eff nihil Interitus, qui rebus tnorte paratur 3 Mifiiofed folum eft, & Conciliatio rerum % Miftilium 3 h<ec dicifolita eji Mortalibus Ortus.
The full Sence whereof is plainly this , That there is no cpvmg or Vrodu&ion of any thing which was not before 5 no new Subftance Made, which did not really Preexifi $W*id therefore that in the Ge- nerations and Corruptions of Inanimate Bodies, there is no Form or Quality really diftinB from the Subftance produced and deftroyed, but only a various Compofition and Modification of Matter : But in the Generations and Corruptions of Men and Animals , where the Souls are Subftances really diftinSf from the Matter, that there, there is No- thing but the ConjunUion and Separation of Souls and particular Bo- dies, exijling both before and after , not the TroduBion of any new Soul into Being which was not before , nor the abfolute Death and Deftruffion of any into Nothing. Which is further expreffed in thefe following Verfes,
NM7TI0/
Chap. I. Held Preexiflence and Atoms.
4'
Nirsnoi, a >c^ crcpiv St>hf)<c<piPj.vi$ e<s\ /Utg/^uvou, o? <W ^'reffSai iny!^Qj m. ihv khzrifysav, vHto/ xaToc6vn'(rK<lv te xai fc£o'Muo"8c« a7ro'vTTj.
To this Sence; 7taf //jey *re Infants in Vnderfianding, and fiort* fight ed, who thinly any thing to be Made, which was Nothing before, "or any thing to Die, fo as to be Dejiroyed to Nothing. Upon which Tint arch gloiies after this manner.- wt avougei ■ytvtmv , aMoc tLuj £k ^« ovffe • »<^ cpeo^if , «Ma t!w TitfyjH ' Txrtp rlw vq to piM ov aTrcMircJttV Empedocles does not here dejiroy Generation, but only fitch as is out of Nothing 3 nor Corruption, but fuch as is into Nothing. Which as we have already intimated, is to be understood differently in re- fpect to Inanimate and Animate things 3 for in things Inanimate there is Nothing Produced or Deftroyed, becaufe the Forms and Qualities of them are no Entities really diftinct from the Subftance, but only diverfe Mixtures and Modifications. But in Animate things, where the Souls are real Entities really diftinctfrom the Sub- ftance of the Body, there is Nothing Produced nor Deftroyed nei- ther, becaufe thofe Souls do both exift before their Generations and after their Corruptions 3 which bufinefs, as to Men and Souls is a- gain more fully expreffed thus 3
Our «v dvijg tokxw'tk <7T>cpb<; <$(je<ri (jUwfdj<rculo, "flS ocpty f*Av -n Jli2<n, to' <W fbio-nv mXhsn, To^yt (Av xv eiaiy xai <rcp<i Wyt f&va. xai lo-SAd, ng/v 3 im.yi\ii £^toi mx MS&Tes »^vk§' eiw.
that Good and III did Firji us Here attend, And not from Time Before, the Soul Defcend $
That here alone we live, and when
Hence we depart, we forthwith then, Turn to our old Non-entity again 3 Certe sought net to bebelievd by Wife and Learned Men.
Wherefore, according to Empedocles, this is to be accounted one of the Vulgar Errors, That Men then only have a being and are ca- pable of Good and Evil, when they live here that which is called Life 3 But that both before they are Born, and after they are Dead they are perfectly Nothing.
And befides Empedocles,the fame is reprefented by the Greek Tra- gedian alfo, as the Sence of the ancient Philofbphers.
eviiVita (Z1* »</% 7$P ytvofjStpav, Ai«.K£/.vo/ufyjov c/1' <xMo TTfJq <xMo
That Nethhfg Dies or utterly perifheth 3 but things being varioufly Con- creted and Secreted, Tranfpofed and Modified, change their Form and Shape only , and are put into a New Drefs,
E 3 Agree-
dp. Pythagoras his Tranfmigration flood Book I.
iAcikt&cti..
as w&6t **-*■<&/ a
Agreeably whereunto, Plato alfo tells us, that it was -mxAcuos Koycg, an ancient Tradition or Dottrine before his Time, tss ^cu, \% >?$ Tebvi&Ttov yvyovi\/cat s^lv wt/ov i) tss 7*bvi<Lrnx.<; tx. si^f £&vtov That as well the Living were made out of the Dead0 as the Dead out of the Liv- ings and that this was the conftant Circle of Nature. Moreover the fame Philofbpher acquaints us , that fbme of thole Ancients were not without fufpicion, that what is now called Death, was to Men more properly a Nativity or Birth into Life, and what is called Generation into Life, was comparatively rather to be ac- counted a finking into Death ? the Former being t he Souf s Alcent out of thele Grols Terreftrial Bodies^ to a Body more Thin and Subtil, and the Latter its Defcent from a purer Body to that which is more Crafs and Terreftrial. ill oi$v> & to 2Wj [xiv %& xofBavav , -rf xaT6av§v o Quj' Who knows whether that which is called Living be not indeed rather Dyings and that which is called Dyings Living ?
Moreover, that this was the Do&rine of Vythagoras himfelf, that no Real Entity perilhes in Corruptions, nor is produced in Gene- rations, but only new Modifications and Tranfpofitions made ; is fully expreffed by the Latin Poet, both as to Inanimate, and to Ani- mate Things. Of the firft thus:
Necp.erit in tanto quicquam (mihi credit e°) mundo3 Sed variatj faciemque novat : Nafcique vocatur Incipere ej?e aliud^ quant quodfuit ante ? Morique Defmere illud idem. Cum (tnt Hue forfitan I//ay H£C Tranjlata lUuc : Summa tamen omnia conftant.
Of the Second, that the Souls of Animals are Immortal, did preexift and do tranlmigrate, from the lame Ground, after this manner 5
Omnia mutantur , Nihil interit : Errat d* illinc,
Hue venit, hinc il/uc0 & quoflibet occupat artus^
Spiritus^ eque Feris Humana in Corpora tran(it}
fnque Feras Nojier, nee tempore deperit ullo.
Vtque novisfacilis (ignatur Cera f'guris,
Nee manetut fuerat) nee for mas jer vat eafdem,
Sed tamen ipfa eadem eji : Animam ficjemper eandem
EJfe> fed in varias doceo migrare Figuras.
Wherefore though it be a thing which hath not been common- ly taken Notice of, of late, yet we conceive it to be unqueftion- ably true, that all thole ancient Philofophers, who infilled fo much upon this Principle, iSiv iSi ymricu id* <pbd%i<r3<M *?$ oVfcov That no Real Entity is either Generated or Corrupted^ did therein at once drive at thefetwo things : Firft, the eftablifhing of the Immortality of all Souls, their Tr<z and Toji-exijlence , forafmuch as being Entities Re- ally diftinft from theBody, they could neither be Generated nor Corrupted 3 and Secondly, the making of Corporeal Forms and Qualities to be no Real Entities difontt from the Body and the Me-
chanilm
Chap. I. V font he fame Bafis mtb Atomy. 43
chanifm thereof, becaufe they are things Generated and Corrupted, and have no Pr& and Poji-exijiencc. Anaxagoras in this Latter, be- ing the only Diflenter} who fuppofing thofe Forms and Qualities to be real Entities likewife, cHftincT: from the Subftance of Body therefore attributed Perpetuity of Being to them a.Ko,Pr<t and P<jt- exijience, in Similar Atoms, as well as to the Souls of Animals.
And now we have made it fufficiently evident that the Doftrine of the Inccrporeity and Immortality of Souls, we might add alfo of their Preexiftence and Tranfmigration, had the fame Original and flood upon the fame Bafis with the Atomical Pyfiology 5 and there- fore it ought not at all to be wondered at (what we arfiimed be- fore J that the fame PhUofophers and Pythagoreans afferted both thofe Doftrines, and that the Ancient Atomifts were both Theifts and Incorporealifts.
X X X 1 V. But now to declare our Sence freely concerning this Philofophy of the Ancients, which feems to be fb prodigioully para- doxical, in refpecl: of that Pre-exiftence and Tranfmigration of Souls : , We conceive indeed that this Ratiocination of theirs from that tb- Ja'^t-rsi-esitf-ACL, Principle, That Nothing Naturally, or of it felf, comes from Nothing, *-utA&- tfiat Jr/u rzU,L nor goes to Nothing, was not only firmly conclulive againft Subftan- a***1-"" <"/ (-A^e-net*** tial Forms and Qualities of Bodies , really diftincl from their Sub- u/aJ ""* *»»een'**4- fiance, but alfo for Subftantial Incorporeal Souls, and their Inge- nerability out of the Matter 5 and particularly for the future Im* mortality or Pofi-exijience of all Humane Souls. For fince it is plain, that they are not a mere Modification of Body or Matter, but an En- tity and Subftance really difrincT: from it, we have no more rea- fon to think, that they can ever of themfelves vanifh into Nothing, than that the fubftance of the Corporeal World or any part there- of can do fb. For that in the Consumption of Bodies by Fire, or Age, or the like, there is the deftruftion of any real Subftance into Nothing, is now generally exploded as an Idiotical conceit , and certainly it cannot be a jot le(s Idiotical to fuppofe that the Ratio- nal Soul in Death is utterly extinguilhed.
Moreover we add alfo, that this Ratiocination of the Ancients would be altogether as firm and irrefragable likewife, for the Pre- exiftence and Tranfmigration of Souls, as it is for their Pott-exiftcnce
and future Immortality •■> did we not (as indeed we do) fuppofe Souls t f uf&a ^^ „.t </*^_ to be Created by God immediately, and infufed in Generations. L~vr> &~!*4 irJ^Jxis-r For they being unquestionably, a diftinel Subftance from the Bo- *****e&; i
dy, and no Subftance according to the ordinary Courfe of Nature "^ ^ \ coming out of Nothing, they muft of Neceflity either Preexift in the Univerfe before Generations, and Tranfmigrate into their refpec~ttve Bodies, or elfe come from God immediatly, who is the Fountain of all, and who at firft created all that Subftance that now is in the World befides himfelf. Now the latter of thefe was a thing which thole Ancient Philofophers would by no means admit of; thev iudg- *. ing it altogether incongruous, to bring God upon the Stage perpe- t~ ^„ . tually, and make him immediatly interpofe every where, in the
Genera-
44 A Cenfnre of the Book I
Generations of Men and all other Animals, by the Miraculous pro- duction of Souls out of Nothing Notwithftanding which, if we well confident, we (hall find that there may be very good reafoa on the other fide, for the fucceffive Divine Creation of Souls j name- <f*£ tX*£s;L /6^-3_ ly, that God did not do all at firft, that ever he could or would do, \no t*h~"nj*a, 9*4,- and put forth all his Creative Vigour at once in a moment, ever, afterwards remaining a Spectator only of the confequent Refults, and permitting Nature to do all alone, without the leaft Interpofition of his at any time, juft as if there were no God at all in the World. For this may be, and indeed often hath been, the effect of filch an Hypothecs as this, to make men think, that there is no other God in the World but Blind and Dark Nature. God might alfo for o- ther good and wile Ends, unknown to us, , referve to himfelf the continual exercife of this his Creative power , in the (ucceffive Production of new Souls. Andyetthefe Souls neverthelels, after they are once brought forth into being, will notwithftanding their Juniority, continue as firmly' in the (ame,without vanifhing of them- lelves into Nothing, as the Subftance of Senfelefs Matter. that Was Created many thoufand years before, will do.
And thus our Vulgar Hypothecs, of the new Creation of Souls, as it is Rational in it felf, lb it doth fufficiently falve their Incorporeity, their future Immortality or Poft-eternity , without introducing thofe offenfive Abfurdities of their Preexiftence and Transmi- gration.
XXXV. But if there be any fuch, who rather than they would allow a future Immortality or Poft-exiftence to all Souls, and there- fore to thofe of Brutes, which confequently muft have their Suc- ceffive Tranfmigrations, would conclude the Souls of all Brutes, as / / ^- j-A likewife the Senfitive Soul in Man, to be Corporeal, and only al-
^£°'ffi*rCJt!£ low the- Rational Soul to be diftindt from Matter : To thefe we ^^^^-^/y^'^*«A|r^ave °^y t^ius muc^ to ^ 5 That they who will attribute JeutJf^r&viJs^tttc.- Life, Senfe, Cogitation, Confcioufnefs and Self-enjoyment, not n^/h &.f£,<ser>,!£f<:"r>' without fome footftepsof Realbn many times, to Blood and Brains, tfrSu/H «*■& ttty'ih'iH+Y or mere Organized Bodies in Brutes, will never be able clearly to htfrf vfiJt pxvcj tea, defend the Incorporeity and Immortality of Humane Souls, as ^moft probably they do not intend any fuch thing. For either all ruin j^ — Confcious and Cogitative Beings are Incorporeal, or elfe nothing
can be proved to be Incorporeal. From whence it would follow alio, that there is no Deity diftindt from the Corporeal World. But though there feem to be no very great realbn, why it (hould be thought abfurd, to grant Perpetuity of Duration to the Souls of Brutes, any more than to every Atom of Matter, or Particle of Duft that is in the whole World ; yet we (hall endeavour to fugged fomething towards the eafing the minds of thofe, who are fo much feoir^m^y^^-^ burthened with this difficulty, viz. That they may, if they pleale, trA^s**^- *f &y>* 6J^- -fiippofe the Souls of Brutes, being but fb many particular Eradia- f*&jfr*H<£yr tions or Effluxes from that Source of Life above, whenfoeverand vs<u 6f-usu wherefoever there is any fitly prepared Matter capable to receive them, and to be Actuated by them -, to have a fenfe and frution of
themfelves
Chap. I. Pythagoric\ Do&rine. 45
themfelves in it, fo long as it continues fuch, but as foon as ever thofe
Organized Bodies of theirs, by reafon of their Indifpofition, become
uncapable of being further acted upon by them, then to be refumed jA*"***- rtV**J»r* '*
again and retracted back to their Original Head and Fountain. Since ' '"""**
it cannot be doubted, but what Creates any thing out of Nothing,
or fends it forth from it Cc\C, by free and voluntary Emanation, may
be able either to Retract the fame back again to its original Source,
or elle to Annihilate it atpleafure.
And I find that there have not wanted (bmc among the Gentile Philofophers themfelves , who have entertained this Opinion , whereof Porphyry is one : Aijetoi tids* cMvx[u<; ciKoy& &$ tIu) oKbv ^Jf ioy'**/"''"* la\w TO WvT©-' Every irrational Tower is rejoheel into the Life of T1" the Whole.
XXXVI. Neither will this at all weaken the future Immortality or Poft-eternity of Humane Souls. For if we be indeed Theifts, and do in very good Earned believe a Deity, according to the^^^ *f^' true Notion of it, we muft then needs acknowledge, that allcrear J" 'ajit ^Jl^Jf ^ - ed Being whatfoever, owes the Continuation and Perpetuity of its ^T^I sviMr. Exiftence, not to any NeceJJity of Nature without God , and Inde- pendently upon him, but to the Divine Will only. And therefore though we had never Co much Rational and Philosophical aflurance, that our Souls are Immaterial Subftances, diftinct from the Body, yet we could not for all that, have any abfblute certainty of their Poft-eternity, any otherwile than as it may be derived to us, from the Immutability and Perfection of the Divine Nature and Will , which does alwaies that which is Befl. For the Eflential Goodnefs and Wifdom of the Deity is the only Stability of all things. And for ought we Mortals know, there may be good Reafon, why that Grace or Favour of future Immortality and Poft-eternity, that is indulged to Humane Souls, endued with Reafon, Morality, and lAfhtcS tss**--t- a»*9m£ Liberty of Will, (by means whereof they are capable of Commen- wih rttujm, r***v<**"\ dation and Blame, Reward and PunifhmentJ that fo they may be A*^ 6&s£? v*~Hft££. Objects for Divine Juftice to difplay it folf upon after this Life, in different Retributions ; may notwithftanding be denied to thole lower Lives and more contemptible Souls of Brutes, alike devoid both of Morality and Liberty.
XXXVII. But if any for all this will ftill obftinately contend for that ancient Pythagorick and Empedoclean Hypothecs, That all Lives and Souls whatfoever are as old as the firft Creation, and will continue to Eternity, or as long as the World doth, as a thing ^-/^- tv1--' **■ more Reafonable and Probable than our Continual Creation of new c Souls, by means whereof they become Juniours both to the matter of the World and of their own Bodies, and whereby alfo ( as they pretend) the Divine creative Power is made too Cheap and Profti- tuted a thing, as being Famulative alwaies to Brutifh, and many times to unlawful Lufts and undue Conjunctions •-, but especially than the Continual Decreation and Annihilation of the Souls of Brutes ; we (hall not be very unwilling to acknowled^ thus much to them,
Thar
^wv? ^<^-yi t\»^£ ^—^—
a 6 The Senfitive Soul not Corporeal Book .1.
That indeed of the two, this Opinion is more Reafonable and To- lerable than that other Extravagancy of thofe, who will either make iswrzrz^i^--- all Souls to be Generated and confequently to be Corporeal, or a-r *> w-fc A** &"/*> at leaft the Senfitive Soul both in Men and Brutes, for befides the r&u . Monftrofity of this latter opinion, in making two diftinft Souls and
Perceptive Subftances in every Man , which is a thing fufEciently confuted by Internal Senfe, it leaves us alfoin an abfolute Impof- fibility, of proving the Immortality of the Rational Soul, the-In- corporeity of any Subftance, and by confequence the Exiftence of any Deity diftinft from the Corporeal World.
And as for that Pretence of theirs, that Senfelefs Matter may as well become Senfitive, and as it were kindled into Life and Cogi- tation , as a Body that was devoid of Light and Heat , may be Kindled into Fire and Flame 5 this feems to argue too much Igno- rance of the Doftrine of Bodies , in men otherwife Learned and Ingenious. The beft Naturalifts having already concluded, That Fire and Flame is nothing but fuch a Motion of the Infenfible Parts of a Body, as whereby they are violently agitated, and many times diffipated and fcattered from each other, begetting in the mean time thofe rhancies of Light and Heat in Animals. Now there is nO difficulty at all in conceiving that the Infenfible Particles of a Body, which were before quiefcent, may be put into Motion ; this tt being nothing but a New Modification of them, and no Entity re- eC ally diftindl: "from the Subftance of Body $ as Life, Senfe and Cogi- tation are. There is nothing in Fire and Flame , or a Kindled Body, different from other Bodies, but only the Motion or Mecha- nifm, and Phancie of it. And therefore it is but a crude conceit, which the Atheifts and Corporealifts of former times have been always 10 fond of, That Souls are nothing but FirieorFlam- *« rneous Bodies. For though Heat in the Bodies of Animals be a «« Neceffary Inftrument for Soul and Life to aft by in them, yet it «c is a thing really diftinft from Life , and a Red hot Iron hath not therefore any nearer approximation to Life than it had before, nor the Flame of a Canctle than the extinguifht Snuff or Tallow of it 5 the « difference between them being only in the Agitation of the Infen- n fible Parts. We might alfo add, that according to this Hypothecs, a the Souls of Animals could not be Numerically the fame through- « out the whole fpace of their Lives : Since that Fire that needs a if Vabulum to prey upon, doth not continue alwaies one and the fame u Numerical Subftance. The Soul of a new born Animal could be ft no more the fame, with the Soul of that Animal feveral years after, 1, than the Flame of a new lighted Candle is the fame with that if Flame that twinkles laft in the Socket. Which indeed are no more the 1, fame than a River or Stream is the fame, at feveral diftances of
0 time. Which Pveafbn may be alio extended further to prove the
1 Soul to be no Body at all, fince the Bodies of all Animals are in a it perpetual Flux.
XXXVIII. We have now fiifficiently performed our firft Task
which was to fhovWrom the Origin of the Atomical Phyfiology,
W ■ That
C h a p. I. Atomic al Philofofhy leads to lncorforealifm. 47
that the Doctrine of Incorporeal Subftancc muft needs Ipring up together with it. We ihallin the next place make it manifeft, that the Inward Conftitution of this Philofophy is alfo fuch, that who- mever really entertains it , and rightly underftands it , muft of ne- ceffity admit Incorporeal Subftancc likewife. Firft therefore, the Atomical Hypothecs, allowing nothing to Body, but what is either included in the ld&ao£ a thing Impenetrably extended, or can clear- ly be conceived to be a Mode of it, as more or lefs Magnitude with Divisibility, Figure, Site, Motion and Reft , together with the Remits of their ieveral Combinations j cannot polfibly make Life and Cogitation to be Qualities of Body, (ince they are nei- ther contained in thofe things before mentioned, nor can rcfult from any av^vyiax or Co nj ligations of . them. Wherefore it muft needs be granted, that Life and Cogitation are the Attributes of another Sub- ftance diftindt from Body, or Incorporeal.
Agaiu, fince according to the Tenour of this Phyfiology, Body hath no other Action belonging to it but that of Local Motion , which Local Motion as fuch, is Eflcntially Heterokinefie, that which never fpriugs originally from the thing it felf moving, but alwaies from the Action of (bme other Agent upon it : That is, fince no Body could ever move it felfi.it follows undeniably,that there muft be fbme- thing elfe in the World befides Body, or elfe there could never have been any Motion in it. Of which we (hall (peak more afterwards.
Moreover, according to this Philofophy, the Corporeal VhxnomenA thcmfelves cannot be falved by Mechanijm alone without Fhancie, Now Phancie is no Mode of Body, and therefore mult needs be a Mode of fome other kind of Being in our (elves, that is Cogitative and Incorporeal.
Furthermore it is evident, from the Principles of this Phi- lofophy, that Senfe it felf is not a mere Corporeal Paftion from Bo- dies without, in that it fuppofeth that there is nothing really in Bodies like to thole Phantaftick Idea's that we have of Senfible things, as of Hot and Cold , Red and Green, Bitter and Sweet, and the like, which therefore muft needs owe their Being to fome Activity of the Soul it felf, and this is all one as to make it In- corporeal.
Laftly, from this Philofophy, it is aho manifeft, that Senfe is not the Kg/ftig/ov of Truth concerning Bodies themfelves, it confidently pronouncing that thofe fuppofed Qualities of Bodies, reprefented fuch by Senfe , are merely Phantaftical things 5 from whence it plainly follows,that there is (bmething in us fuperiour to Senfe, which judges of it, detects its Phantaftry, and condemns itslm- pofture,and determines what really is and is not,in Bodies without us, which muft needs be a higher Self-active Vigour of the Mind, that will plainly (peak it to be Incorporeal.
XXXIX. And
■jm- ; — - —
a% The Advantages of the B o 6 k I.
X X X I X. And now this Atomical Phyfiology of the Ancients
feems to have two Advantages or Preeminences belonging to it, the
,-. firft whereof is this 5 That it renders the Corporeal World Intelli-
^(^aivmic^L ™A*U>jo- g\ble to us ; fince Mechanifm is a thing that we can clearly under-
t/tjCy^ry?9**^^^^'^4,//*£n&nd, and we cannot clearly and diftin&ly conceive any thing in
t*s*t& t+ttxuyitfa Bodies elfe. To fay that this or that is done by a Form or Quality,
is nothing elfe but to fay that it is done we know not how, or,
which is yet more abfiird, to make our very Ignorance of the Caufe,
difguifed under thofe Terms of Forms and Qualities, to be it felf
the Caufe of the Effect.
Moreover, Hot and Cold, Red ahH G-reen, Bitter and Sweet, d^c.
formally confidered, may be clearly conceived by us as different
Phancies and Vital Paffioris iri us, occafioned by different Motions
ytta.{ttx& cUa*£y *"*-- made from the objefts without, upon our Nerves } but they can never
HtYu&AU <xfn*t*onj n» be clearly underftood as abfolute Qualities in the Bodies themfelves,
n,^e^ *•"**'**''* *** *£ ° really diftincl: from their Mechanical Difpofitions , nor is there in-
#J^^^tf*£Vdeed any m?re r.eafon why the7 ftouId be bought fuch,tfian that, when a Man is pricked with a Pin, or wounded with a Sword, the Pain which he feels mould be thought to be an Abfolute Qualitie in the Pin or Sword. So long as our Senfible Idea's are taken either for Subftantial Forms or Qualities in Bodies without us, really diftiinS from the Subftance of the Matter, fb long are they perfectly unintelli- gible by us.For which Caufe timxm Locrus Philofbphizing(as it feem- eth ) after this manner, did confentaneoufly thereunto determine, That Corporeal things could not be apprehended by us, otherwife than ouVfSn'o-iJ it, vo'6<m Koynr^Si), by Senfe and a kind of Spurious or Ba- jiardly Reafon 3 that is, that we could have no clear Conceptions of them in our Underftanding. And for the fame reafon Plato him- himfelf diftinguifheth betwixt fuch things as are \ow& im.™ Koymz^j.- "Kv^v.' Comprehensible by the Vnderjianding with Reafon , and thofe Which are only fofy //,er' cd^nccc, aXoyx , which can only be appre- hended by Opinion^ together with a certain Irrational Sence^ meaning plainly , by the Latter, Corporeal and Senfible things. And ac- cordingly the Vlatonilts frequently take occafion from hence, to enlarge themfelves much in the difparagement of Corporeal things, as being, by Reafon of that fmallnefs of Entity that is in them, be- low the Underftanding , and not having fb much idxv as ylrnnv, Ejfence as Generation^ which indeed is Fine Vhancie. Wherefore we mufl either, with thefe Philofbphers , make Senfible things to be <kmtxkw7jfx or oari^-nfc/. , altogether Incomprehenfible and Incon- ceivable by our Humane Underftandings, (though they be able in the mean time clearly to conceive many things of a higher Nature) .*... or elfe we muft entertain fome kind of favourable Opinion concern-
ing that which is the Ancienteft of all Phyfiologies, the Atomical or Mechanical, which alone renders Senfible things Intelligible.
!' the4i.trv*'.i-c*{jzA*£'>siji6j ^ L* The Second Advantage, which this Atomical Phyfiology
jtrtyi»rsy/L i^wuf*^^ feems to have, is this, That it prepares an eafie and clear way for the
I t&</*M0*Jfa*i'*n *^- Deraonftration of Incorporeal Subftances, by fetling a Diftincl: Noti-
C h a p. I. The Atomical Philofofhy: 49
on of Body. He that will undertake to prove that there is lomc- thing elfe in the World befides Body, muft iirit determine what Body is, for otherwife he will go about to prove that there is fbme- thing befides He-knorcs-not-rchat . But now if all Body be made to confift of two Subftantial Principles, whereof one is Matter de- void of all Form, (and therefore of Quantity as well as Qualities) from whence thefc Philofbphers *themfelves conclude that it is In- corporeal-^ the other, Form, which being devoid of all Matter, muft needs be Incorporeal likewife. And thus Stobteus fcts down the joint Do&rine both of Plato and Ar ilt otle--, b'v t^ttov -ril^tq *?*&&&$ vMq <x$cu%i3iv atari imctw ,, xiz>$ Kj t!io v'Aku tS a^a? ^&'g/<r^vT@' is au- Matter u in* pac avow, <P£iv fc d/A.(po7v Is owoV*sj tt^cs tIw tS ari[xcc(& uirosanv That c°'P°"a'- in the fame manner , as Form alone feparated front Matter is In- corporeal , fo neither is Matter alone , the Form being feparated from it, Body. But there is need of the joint concurrence of both thefe *, Matter and Form together, to make up the Subjiance of Body j Moreover , if to Forms Qualities be likewife fuperadded, of which it is confentaneoufly alfb refblved by the Platon7jis, fa cuTnto-nmsol- AUimm tat. azo[Accvu, that Qualities are Incorporeal, as if they were fo many u. Spirits poiTeffing Bodies 3 I fay, in this way of Philofophizing , the Notions of Body and Spirit, Corporeal and Incorporeal, are lb confounded , that it is Impoffible to prove any thing at all con- cerning them. Body it felf being made Incorporeal (and therefore every thing Incorporeal) for whatfbever is wholly compounded and made up of Incorporeals, muft needs be it felf alio Incorporeal.
Furthermore, according to this Doftrine of Matter, Forms and Qualities in Body 5 Life and Vnderfianding may be fuppofed to be certain Forms ox Qualities of Body. And then the Souls of men may be nothing elfe but Blood or Brains, endued with the Quali- ties of Senfe, and Underftanding 5 or elfe fbme other more Subtle, Sensitive and Rational Matter, in us. And the like may be laid of Godhimfelf alio 5 That he is nothing but a certain Rational, or Intellectual, Subtle and Firie Body, pervading the whole Univerfe 5 oj^elfe that he is the Formoi the whole Corporeal World, together wh the Matter making up but one Subftance. Which Conceits have been formerly entertained by the beft of thofe Ancients, who were captivated under that dark Infirmity of mind^to think that there could be no other Subftance befides Body.
But the ancient Atomical Philofbphy, fetling a diftinci Notion of Body, that it is Stesa-rov avTiTOTrov, a Thing Impenetrably extended, . which hath nothing belonging to it, but Magnitude, Figure, Site, ^£££ %Sm/SS^JT Reft, and Motion, without any Self-moving Power 3 takes away all ^sJ&Ljn, **,+*. ' Confufion 5 fhews clearly how far Body can go, where Incorporeal &
Subftance begins 3 as alio that there muft of neceffity be fuch a Thing in the World.
Again, this difcovering not only that the Do&rine of Qualities had its Original from mens miftaking their own Phancies, for Abfb- lute Realities in Bodies themfelves ; but alfo that the Doftrine of Mat- s' ter
5o The Entire Vhilofoyhy of the Ancients Book I.
ter and Form Sprung from another Fallacy or Deception of the Min d3 ' t/fefainne rf '"**#**- ifl taking Logical Notions, and our Modes of Conceiving., for Modes icj****?**"'*^***- of Being, and Real Entities in things without us; It fhewing like- , rryfWi t:<cA.tr,j £yfie*»C- ^ife 5 that becaufe there is nothing eKe clearly intelligible in : /i^n/A^^^^'^Bodyj befides Magnitude, Figure, Site, and Motion, and their va- ; ^ tJ^s^urf** m. r-ous Conjugations5 there can be no fuch Entities of Forms and Qualities really diftinct from the Subftance of Body ; makes it e- vident, that Life •, Cogitation and V derjianding can be no Corpo- real things, but mult needs be the Attributes of another kind of Subftance diftincl from Body.
XL I. We have now clearly prtwed thefe two things 3 Firft9 that the Phyfiology of the Ancients, before, not only Artjiotle and Plato, but alio Democritits and Leucippm^ was Atomical or Mecha- nical. Secondly, that as there is no Inconfiftency between the A- tomical Phyfiology and Theology, but indeed a Natural Cognati- on ; fb the Ancient Atomifts before bemocritus, were neither A- theiftsnor Corporeal ifts, but held the Incorporeity and Immorta- lity of Souls , together with a Deity diftind from the Cor- poreal World. Wherefore the Firft and moft Ancient Ato- mifts did not make «t6iax$ a§x«£ ^' o'A&v , they never en- deavoured to make up an Entire Philofophy out of Atomolo- gy ; but the Dofrrine of Atoms was to them onely one Part / . ,,. or Member of the whole Philofophick Syftem, they joining there-
+At" Ancient c<.ntit:onn<.Jtf .* . icun. j t>l i
dH>yu*ir (iffftAr wrttf- unto the Doctrine or Incorporeal bubltance, and theology, to ixtbjLf.J/tve' c^/a. Hs/tfn.'t: make it up complete : Accordingly as Arijiotle hath declared in totHnyntntrfWi his Metaphyficks, that the Ancient Philofophy confifted of thefe two
Parts, cpvffioAojia, and SioXoy'icx. or w tt^V1 cpiAocrocpia, phyfiology , and Theology or Metaphyfickj. Our Ancient Atomifts never went about, as the blundering Democritm afterwards did, to build up a World out of mere PaJJive Bulk. 3 and slaggijh Matter, without any dtygi ^^^ej-°h any A&ive Principles , or Incorporeal Powers -, under- ftanding well, that thus, they could not have fo much as Motion,, Mechanifm, or Generation in it 5 the Original of all that Motion that is in Bodies fpringing from fomething that is not Body, that is, from Incorporeal Subftance. And yet if Local Motion cofifd have been fuppofed to haverilen up, or fprung in upon this Dead Lump and Mafs of Matter, no body knows how, and without de- pendance upon any Incorporeal Being , to have Actuated it Jortuitoufly 3 thefe Ancient Atomifts would ftill have thought it Impoffible for the Corporeal World it felf, to be made up, fuch as now it is, by Fortuitous Mechanifm, without the Guidance of any higher Principle. But they would have concluded it , the great- eft Impudence or Madnefs , for men to aflert that Animals alio confifted of mere Mechanifm 3 or , that Life and Senfe, Reafon and Understanding , were really nothing elfe but Local Mo- tion , and confequently that themfelves were but Machins and ^U **2 _ At'tomata' Wherefore they joyned both Attive and Pajfive £j£^7t£'«*tr~y*,- Principles together, the Corporeal and Incorporeal Nature , Me- </ chanifm and Life , Atomology and Pneumatolo^y , and from both
thefe united, they made up ''one entire Syftem of Philofophy,
correspondent
Chap. II. Mangled by Dcmocritus; 51
correspondent with, and agreeable to, the true and real World without them. And this SyStem of Philofophy, thus confiSting of the Doctrine of Incorporeal Siibjltncc (whereof God is the Head) together with the Atomical and Mechanical Phyfiology , teems to have been- the only Genuine, Perfect, and Complete.
XL IT. But it did not long continue tints -3 for, aTter awhile, this entire Body of Philofophy came to be Mangled and D/fmcmbrcd., (bme taking one Part of it alone, and fome another 5 fome fnatch- ing away the Atomical Phyfiology , without the Pneumatology and Theology 5 and others, on the contrary, taking the Theology
and Doctrine of Incorporeals," without the Atomical or Mechanical a/tfrw&*')'2'»""yit"yr> Phyfiology. The former of thefe were DemocritUf, Lcucippm, &&^ffiarf$rZpA Protagoras , who took only the dead CarcaSe or Skeleton of the *^-u- ^
old Mojchical Philofophy , namely the Atomical Phyfiology } the
latter Plato and Arijiotlc, who took indeed the better Part, the Soul fit*h> *•?? An'iftSc - Spirit, and ghtintejf'ence of it, the Theology and Doctrine of Incor- "J* t*?**"**-^ ■ poreals, but Unbodied, and DeveSted of its moft Proper and con- venient Vehicle, the Atomical Phyfiology, whereby it became ex- pofed to fundry Inconveniences.
X LII I. We begin with Lcucippus and Democritus 3 Who being AtheiStically inclined , quickly perceived , that they could not in the ordinary way of Phyfiologising , fufficiently Secure them- felves againft a Deity , nor effectually urge Atheifm upon others 5 forafmuch as Hcraclitns and other Philofophers, who held that all Subftance was Body , as well as themfelves, did notwithstanding affert a Corporeal Deity, maintaining that. the Form of the whole ft/rn/ft** I 1 Corporeal World was God, Or elfe that he was u'Ah -n^'iy^mt, & ccr~ tfArJh%n£ Xv^'^ tain kind of Body or Matter ; as ( for Example) a Methodical and Ra- tional Fire, pervading (as a Soul) the whole Univerfej the particu- lar Souls of men and Animals being but, as it were, So many pieces, cut and Sliced out of the great Mundane Soul ; fo that according to them, the whole Corporeal UniverSe, or Mats of Body, was one way or other a God, arhoSt Wife and Understanding Animal, that did frame all Particularities within it Self in the beSt manner poP fible, and providently govern the fame. Wherefore thoSe AtheiSts now apprehending, upon what tickliSh and uncertain Terms their Atheistical Philofophy then ftood,and how that thofe very Forms and Qualities, and the Self-moving power of Body, which were com- monly made a Sanctuary for Atheifm, might notwithstanding chance to prove, contrariwife, the Latibulum and Afylum of a Deity, and that a Corporeal God (do what they could) might lie lurking un- der them, affaulting mens minds with doubtful Fears and Jealoufies 3 Understanding moreover, that there was another kind of Phyfio- logy fet on foot , which banifhing thofe Forms and Qualities of Body, attributed nothing to it but Magnitude, Figure, Site, and rtvectti 6y t/loj^ui£**- Motion, without any Self-moving Power ; they Seemed preSently to *&yi'6t*&. rurtf»iyftv apprehend fome great Advantage to themfelves and Caufefrom it^and ^*^^™T^f~f^ therefore greedily entertained this Atomical or Mechanical phyfiology, J'jl~rc'>' "**"' and violently cutting it off from that other partjthe Doctrine of incor-
F 2 poreals.
5 2 The Atomic^ Thyfiology fuperfeded BookI
' poreah, which it was Naturally and Vitally united to, endeavoured to
Verve their turns of it. And now joining thefe two things together,the Atomicai Phyfiology,which fuppofes that there is nothing in body,but Magnitude,Figure,Site and Motion,and that Prejudice or Prepofleffion of their own Minds, that there was no other Subftance in the World befides Body j between them both, they begat a certain Mongrel and Spurious Philofophy, AthcTJiicalfy-Atomical, or Atomic all)- A- theijlical.
But though we have fo well proved, that teitcippus and Democri* tKs were not the firft Inventors, but only the Depravers and Adul- terators of the Atomicai Philofophy ;syet if any will notwithstand- ing obftinately contend, that the firft Invention thereof ought to be imputed to them, the very Principles of their Atheifm feeming to lead them naturally to this, to ftrip and deVeft Body of all thofe Forms and Qualities, it being otherwife Impoffible for them, furely and fafely to exclude a Corporeal Deity 5 yetfo, as that the Wit of thefe Atheifts was alfo much to be admired, in the managing and carrying on of thofe Principles in fuch a manner, as to make up €0 Entire a Syftem of Philofophy out of them, all whole parts fhould be (b coherent and confident together 5 We (hall only lay thus much , That if thofe Atheifts were the firft Inventors of this Philofophy, they were certainly very unhappy and unfuccefsful in it, whilft endeavouring by it to fecure themfelves from the Poffi- bility and Danger of a Corporeal God^ they unawares laid a Foun- dation for the clear Demonftration of an Incorporeal one, and were indeed fo far from making up any fuch coherent Frame as is pre- tended, that they were forced every where to contradicl their own Principles ; fo that Non-fence lies at the bottom of all, and is in- terwoven throughout their whole Atheiftical Syftem. And that we ought to take notice of the invincible power and Force of Truth,prevailing irrefiftibly againft all Endeavours to opprefs it j and howdefperate the Caufe of Atheifm is,whenthat very Atomicai Hy* pothefis of theirs, which they would erect, and buildup for a ftrong Caftle to garrifon themfelves in, proves a mod Effectual Engine a- gainft themfelves, for the battering of all their Atheiftical Strii&ure down about their Ears.
X L I V. Plato's Mutilation and Interpolation of the old Mofchkal Philofophy, was a great deal more excufablc,when he took the Theo- logy and Metaphyficks of it, the whole Do&rine of Incorporeals, and , 7 Q, abandoned the Atomicai or Mechanical way of Phyfiologizing.
v^^^f^*™, Which, in all Probability, he did , partly becaufe thofe foremen- i^^^&tSX tioned Atheifts having fomuch abufed that Philofophy, adopting it J^t^tP: as it were to themfelves, he thereupon began to entertain a Jealoufie
and Sufpicion of it; and partly, becaufe he was not of himfelf fo inclinable to Phyfiology as Theology, to the ftudy of Corporeal as of Divine things $ which fbme think to be the reafbn why he did not attend to the Pythagorick Syftem of the Corporeal World, till late in his old Age. His Genius was fuch, that he was Naturally more addifted to Idaas than to Atoms, to Formal and Final than to
Material
C h a p. I. By Plato WAriftotle. 53
Material Caufcs. To which may be added;, that the way ofl-Miy fiologizing by Matter, Forms and Qualities., is a more Huffie and Phanciful thing than the other ; and lafrly, that the Atomical Phy- fiology is more remote from Senfe and vulgar Apprchcnfion, and therefore notfoeafily underftood. For which caufe many learned Greeks of later times, though they had read Epicurus his Works, and perhaps Democritus his too , yet they were not able to con- ceive how the Corporeal and Senlible Phenomena could poffibly be falved without Real Qualities. One Inftance whereof might be