Part XIX.

T he Chaldaic}\^ Oracles,
^9
,Da:monius forms of feveral fhapes appear railed up out of all the Elements, compounded and fhaped from all the parts of the Lunar Courfe, and many times appearing pleafant and graci¬ ous, they make Ihew of an Apparition of fome good to the initiated Perfon.
The Soul of Man will in a manner clafp God to her Jeff.
Having nothing Mortal Jhe is wholly inebriated from God.
For Jhe bo^s Harmony^ in which the mortal body exijls. ]
He faith that the Soul forceth,(fox that is the meaning of dyxiv>)thQ Divine Fire into her felf, through Immortality and Purity, for then fhe is wholly inebriated^ that is, fhe is replenifhed with the more excellent Life and Illumination, and exifts as it were out of her felf : the Ora¬ cle faith to her, boaji of Harmony ^ that is. Glo¬ ry in the obfeure and unintelligible Harmony by which thou art tied together in Arithmetical and MuficalProportions.-for under this unintelligible Harmony even the Mortal and compounded Bo¬ dy is compofed, having its compofitions derived from thence.
hot the Immortal depth of the Soul be predomi¬ nant^ but all thy Eyes Extend upward. J
The depth 'of the Soul is her three-fold pow¬ ers ^ the inelleftualjthe intelligent,the opiniona- tive. Her Eyes are the three fold cognolcitive operations of thefc j for the Eye is the Symbol of Knowledge, as Life is of Appetite. Open therefore, faith he, the immortal depth of the Soul, and extend thy cognifeitive Powers up- wards,and even thy own felf (to ufe our ownEx- preflion) transfer to the Lord.
’Defile not the Spirit^ nor deep not a Superficies.
The Chaldaans Cloath the Soul with two Garments : one they call Spiritual, woven for it by the fenfible World j the other Luci-form, te- nuious and intangible, vvhich is here termed Su- perficies: Defile not.^ faith he, the Spiritual Gar¬ ment of thy Soul with impurity ^ neither caufe its Superficies to grow deep by certain material additions : but preferve both in their own Na¬ tures, one pure, the other undipc.
Seek Paradife. 3
The Chaldaick Paradife is the whole Chorus of Divine Powers about the Father,and the fiery Beauties of the creative Fountains : The open- ii^ thereof by Piety is the participation of the Goods; the flaming Sword is the implacable Power which withllands rhofe that approach it unworthily to fuch Perfons it is fhut, for they are not capable of its felicity. To the Pious it is open .* To this place lend all the Theurgick Vertues.
This "Veffel theBeaJisof the Earth Jhall inhabit.'] The VeJfeJ is the compounded mixture of the
Soul, the Beafts of the Farth are the Daemons which rove about the Earth : our life therefore being full of Paflions fhall be inhabited by fuch Bealts : for fuch kinds are effentiated in PalTions, and have a material Seat and Order. Where¬ fore fuch as are addifted to Paflions are glued to them by aflimilation, for they attract what is like them, having a motive-faculty from the Paflions.
If thou extend the fiety Mind to the work of Piety thoujhalt preferve the fluxible Body.]
That is. If thou extend thy illuminated Mind upwards, and the work of fire to the works of Piety., (the works of Piety, vtkhthQ Chaldeans, are the Methods of Rites, ) thou Ihalt not only render the Soul unvanquilhable by Paflions, but Ihalt allb preferve thy Body the more healthful; for this ordinarily is the efteft of Divine Illu¬ minations, vis. to confume the Matter of the Body, and to eftablifh Health, that it be not fei- zed either by Paflion or Difeafes. ^
Certainly out of the Cavities of the Earth fpring
terreftrial Dogs,
IVhich Jhew no true fign to mortal Man.]
The Speech is of material Djrmons : Th'ele he calls Dogs, for that they are Executioners of Souls; Terrefirial, for that they fall from Hea¬ ven, and are rolled about the Earth. Thele, faith he, being removed hr from the Beatitude of Di¬ vine Life, and deftitute of Intelleftual Contem¬ plation, cannot pre-fignifie Futures ; whence all that they fay or Ihow is falfe, and not folid : for they know Beings by their out-fides ;
but, that which knoweth figures parti¬
cularly ,ufeth Notions indivifible and not figured
For the Father perfeUed all things, and deliver'd
them over to the fecond
Mind, which all Nations of Men call the firfil]
The BrhFather of the Triad, having made the Univerfal Frame, deliver’d it over to the Mind ; which Mind the whole Race of Mankind f be¬ ing ignorant of the paternal Excellency) call the fitfi God: but our Doftrine holds the contrary, viz. that the firft Mind, the Son of the Great Father, made and perfeQed every Creature ; for the Father, in the Book of Mofes, declareth to the Son the Idaca of the produftion of Crea¬ tures, but the Son himfelf is the Maker of th® Work.]
The Furies or Stranglers of Men. ]
fAvttyuyo) Ayyzhot) The reduGive Angels re¬ duce Souls to them, drawing them from gene¬ ral things; hMt Furies being theTor-
mentors of the Natures which are difperfed, and enviours of humane Souls,entangle them in ma¬ terial Paflions ; and as it were flrangle them : and not only torture fuch as are full of Paflions, but even thole that are converted towards the immaterial ElTence, for thefe alfo coming into Matter and into Generation, ftand in need of fuch purification ; for we fee many Perfons even of thofe ‘who live holily and purely, fall into imexpeHed Mileries.-
Hi 17. The
6o
The Chaldean Oraacles