V. This

206
P L AT 0.
A R t
V.
This StaAza Beauty.
V.
is a DefcriptiOn t)f Senlible
r 7he e/der rn the. Sun’s glafs reads her h'ace^ through ih^ confufed jcreen Of a dark Jhade ohjcurely feend\
Senfible Light is the a8; and efljcacy of Cor¬ poreal^ Spiritual Light of Intelligible Beauty. Ideas in their defcent into the inform Ange- lick Mind, were as Colours and Figures in the Night; As iie who by Moonlight feeth fome fair Objefl, defires to view' and enjoy it more fully in the day ^ fo the Mind, weakly behold¬ ing in her felf the Ideal Beauty dim and opa- cous( which our Author calls the Screen of a dark Jhade ) by realon of the Night of her Imper- feQioh, turns like the Moon ) to the Eternal Sun, to perfefl her Beauty by him ^ to whom addrefling her I'elf, (he becornes Intelligible Light ^ clearing the Beauty of Celeflial Ventfs^ and rendring it vifible to the eye of the firll Mind.
In Senfible Beauty we confider firfl the Ob- jeft in it felf^ the fame at Midnight as at Noon ; Secondly, the light , in a manner the Soul thereof: the Author fuppofeth, that as the firft part of the Senfible Beauty (Corporeal Forms) proceeds from the flilt part of Intelle- £l:ual Beauty ( Ideal forms) fo fenfible light flows from the Intelligence, defcending upon Ideas.
VI, VII, VliL
Corporeal Beauty implies, firfl, the materi
FoT'phyrius relates, that when T’lotinus's Soul was Elevated by Divine Contemplation, an extraordinary brightnefs appeared in his looks. Flotinus himfelf avers, that there was never any Beautiful Perfon wicked, that this Grace- fulnefs in the Body, is a certain fign of Perfe- £lon in the Soul, Proverbs 17.24. IVifdom fhincth in the Countenance of the Wife.
From Material Beauty we afcend to the firfl Fountain by fix Degrees : The Soul through the Sight reprefents to her felf the Beauty of fome particular Perfon, inclines to it, is pleafed with it, and while file refls here, is in the firfl, the moftlmperfefl material degree. 2. She reforms by her Imagination the Image fhe hath received, making it rpore Perfefl as more Spiritual 5 and feparating it from Mattey, brings it a little nearer Ideal Beauty. 3. By , the light of the Agent Intelledl abflrafling this Form from all fingularity, file, confiders the Univerlal Nature of Corporeal Beauty by it felf; This is the higheft degree the Soul can reach vvhilft fhe goes no further than Senfe. 4. Refle£ling. upon her own Operation, the knowledg of Univerlal Beauty, and confidering that every thing foun¬ ded in Matter is particular, fhe concludes this Univerfality proceeds not from the outward Ob- jeU, but her Intrinfecal Power; and Reafons thus : If in the dim Glafs of material Phan- tafms thisBeauty is reprefented by virtue of my Light, it follows, that beholding it in the clear Mirror of my fubftance divefled of thofe Clouds, it will appear more perfpicuSus : thus turning into her lelfl file finds the Image of Ideal &auty comftiunicated to her hy tlie Intel- leU, the ObjeU of Celeflial Love. 5. She afcends from this Idea in her felf^ to the place where Celeflial Venus is, in her proper Form ; who in fulnefs of her Beauty not being com-
al difpofition of the Body, confiding of Quan prehenfible, by any particular IntelleU, fhe,
■ ' ■ ’ - - - ' ■ as much as in her lies, endeavours to be united
to the firll Mind, the chiefefl of Qeatures, and general Habitation of Ideal Beauty, obtaining this, file terminates and fixeth her Journey: this is the fixth and lall degree : They are all imply’d in the d, 7, and 8 Stanza" s.
tity in the proportion and diftance of parts, of quality in Figure and Colour ; Secondly, a certain quality which cannot be expred by any term better than Gracefulnefs, fliining in all that is fair : This is properly Venus^ Beau¬ ty, which kindles the Fire of Love in Man¬ kind : They who affirm it refults ffom the dif pofition of the Body, the Sight, Figure, and Colour of Features, are eafily confuted by ex¬ perience. We lee many Perfbns Exa£l and unaccuftomable in every parr, deflitute of this
\horm"dhy tli* Eternal look^ Sic. ]
Platomfs affirm fome Souls are of the Na-
fome
Grace and Comelinefs ; others lefs perfefl inJture cJi Saturn^ others of Jupttei\ or thofe partidar conditions, excellently graceful * other Planet ; ii^aning, one Soul hath niore
and comely ; Thus CatnUusy
f
Many think Quintri Beauteous^ Pair, and tall^
And freight fie /s, apart 1 grant her all :
. But altogether Beauteous' 1 deny ; t'o/\ not one Grace doth that large Jhape fupply.
He grants her Perfedion of Quality, Figure, and Quantity *, yet not allows her handfome,. as wanting this Grace. This then mud by con- 1 of her felf forms the Body, to which by that fequence be aferibed to the Soul, which when jMedium fhe is united ; Our Author upon thefe perfefl and lucid, transfufeth even into the grounds fuppofeth, that into the Vehiculum of Body fome Beams of its Splendor. When the Soul, by her endued with Power to form Aiofes came from the Divine Vifion in the |fhe Body, is infufed from her Star a particular Mount,- his Face didfhine fo exceedinly, that 'formative veftue,diftin£l according to that Star-, the People could not behold it unlefs veiled. I thus the Afpeff of one ''\s>Saturnina^ of another
I Jovial,
Conformity in its Nature with the Soul of the Heaven of Saturn^ than with that of Jupiter.^ and fo on the contrary ; of which there can be no Internal Caufe affigned ; the External is God, who (as Plato in his Tinneus) Sovoeth and Scat- terelh Souls^ fome in the Moon^ others in other Planets and Stars^ the Injlrwnents of 'lime.
Many imagine the Rational Soul defccn- ding ffomher Star, ii^her Vehiculum Ccelefe.^
pAR-T. V. PLATO.
Jovial, in their looks were read the nature of their Souls:
But becaufe inferiour Matter is not ever obe¬ dient to the Stamp, the Virtue of the Soul is not always equally exprelf in the vifible Effi- gies : ' hence it happens that two of the lame Nature are unlike •, the Matter whereof the one confifts being left difpofed to receive that Figure than the others what inthatiscom- pleat is in this imperfeO: ^ . our Author infers, that the Figures of two Bodies being formed by vertue of the lame Star, this Conformity begets Love.
[Rw* the Suit's nwji Sublime ahode.~\
formed of it j fo rtiuch fairer as tnOre feparate from Matter, the Principle of Deformity j be- fides, the Soul is more indulgent in her AffeiSli- on to this Species, confidering it is her own Child^ produc’d in her Imagination.
[- - one Sun paJTes
Through three refulgent Burningglejjes]
^ One Light' flowing from God, Beautifies the Angelick, the Rational Nature, and the Senfi^ ble World.
[ - the Soul’s firjl Hand maid — ]
The Imaginative I
the Breaf]
The Breft and Heart here taken for the Soul, becaufe her neareft Lodging ; the Fountain of Life and Heat.
The Trppick of Cancer 5 by which Souls according to the Tlatonifts defcend, afcending by Capricorn. Cancer is the Houle of the Moon, who predominates over the vital ’parts, Capricorn of Saturn^ prefiding over Contempla¬ tion.
[The Heart in which AfeQion^s bred Is thus by ^leafing Error fedl]
Frequently, ifaiot always, the Lover believes that which he loves more Beauteous than it is, he beholds it in the Image his Soul hath
[Reform'd but not expreft,']
Reform'd by the Imagination from the De¬ formity of Matter •, yet not reduc’d to perfefil; * Immateriality, without which, true Beauty is not expreft.
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