I. Of the -perfection of the Body, 2. And

then of the Nature of the Senfes. 3. Of Delight^ 4. Pain, 5. Love, 6. Hatred, 7. Senfkal Delight, 8. and Pains of the B°fy> 9- J°Jy 10. and Grief.
i./^Ther things I have to fay, but I \^ will rather infift upon fuch th ings asareeafie and intelligible even to Idiots, or fuch Phyficians that are no wifer, who if they can but tell the joints of their hands,or know the ufe of their teeth,they may eafily difcover it was Counfel , noc Chance, that created them 5 and if they but underftand thefe natural Medicines I have prepared in this Book for their ex- ample, they willknowthat theyfhallbe cured of alli?ifeafes, without pain or any great coil; and Love, not Money, was it that made me undertake this Task. Now of the well-fram'd parts of our body, I would know why we have three joints iri our Legs and Arms,as alfo in our fingers, but that it was much better then having but two or four > And why are our fore- teeth fharp like Chizfeels, to cut, but our inward teeth broad, to grind 1 but this is
T 2 more
6o 1 he Holy Guide. LiB 3-
more exquiiice then having cherii ail fharpjorali broad,or the fore-teeth broad, and the other (harp; but tfe might have made a hard fhift to have lived , though tn that worfer condition. Again, why are the teeth Co luckily placed . ther , why are there not Teeth in other bones as well as in the Jaw-bones , for they might have been as capable as thefe. But the reafon is,nothing is done fooli/h- ly, nor in vain, I have (hewed you how to prolong life , and to return from" Age to Youth i and how to change, alter and amend the ftate of the body : To keep the body in perfect health is my prefent defign, and to cure all Difeafes without reward , for there is a divine Providence that orders all things. Again ( to fay nothing of the inward curiofity of the Ear) why is that outward frame of it, but that it is certainly known that it is for the bettering of our hearing >
2. I might add, that Nature hath made the hindmoft parts of our Body ( which we fit upon ) moft flefhy , as providing foroureafe, making us a natural Cufhi- on , as well as for Inftruments of Motion for our Thighs and Legs ; (he hath made the hinder part of the Head more ftrong, as being otherwife unfenced againft falls arid other cafuaities. She hath made
the
L B • 3. The Holy Guide 6 C
th: Back- bone of feveral Vertebra , as bc«? ing more fie to bend, more tough, and lefs in danger of breaking then if they were all one intire bone , without thofe gnftly un&ures. She hath ftren
t
ingers and Toes with Nails, whereas (he might have Cent out chacfubftance at the end of the firft andfecond Joints, which. hid not been fo handfome and ufeful, nay , rather fomewhat troublefome and hurtful. Andlaftly, She hath made all bones devoid of fenCe, becaufe they were to bear the weight of themfelves , and of the whole body ; and therefore if they had had fenfe, our life had been painful continually and dolorous.
3. And now I haveconfidered the $t- nefs of the parts of mans body for the good of the whole , let me but coniider briefly his fenfes and his nature, and then I intend more folidly to demonftrate the caufeof all Difeafes, and with that the Cure , becaufe I intended a Holy Guide in my Harmony of the World , and other Books . By our feveral Organs we have feveral Conceptions of feveral qua- lities in the objects -y for by light we have a conception or image compofed of co- lour and figure, which is all the nptice and knowledge the objefl: imparceth to tjsof its nature, by the excellency of the
■ T 3 «/«•
6a the Holy Guide. LiB.2.
eye. By Hearing we have a conception called Sound, which is all the knowledge we have of the quality of the object from the Ear: And fo the i eft of theSenfesare alfo conceptions of feveral qualities or natures of theirobje&s.
4. Becaufe the Image in vifion con lift- ing of colour and fhape,is the knowledge we have of thequalities of the objett of that Senfe, it is no hard matter for a man to fall into this opinion, That the fame colour and fhape are the very qualities themfelvesj and for the fame caufethat found and noife are the qualities of a piece of Canon or Culvering charged with fuiphurous Powder, fired, orof the Air: And this opinion hath been folong received 5 that the contrary muft needs appear a great Paradox. The fame qua- lities are eafierin a bell ; and yet the in- troduction of fpecies vifible and intelli- gible^ ( which is neceflary for the main- tenance of that opinion ) pailing to and fro from the objeft, is worfe then any Pa- radox, as being a plain im portability. I (hall therefore endeavour to make plain thefe points.
5. That the fubjeft wherein colour and image are inherent, is not the objeft or thing feen.
6. That
L1B.5. The Holy Guide. 63
6. That there is nothing ( really ) which we call an Image or Colour.
7. That thefaid Image, or Colour, is but an apparition unto us of the motion, agitation, or alteration, which the objeft worketh in the brain, orfpirits, or fome internal fubftance of the Head.
8. Thatasinvifion, fo alfo in concep- tions that arife from the other Senfes, the fubjeft of their inherence is uotthe ob- ject, but the continent.
9. That Conceptions and Apparitions are nothing really, but motion infomc internal fubftance of the Head, which motion not flopping there , of neceflity muft there either help or hinder the moti- on,which is called Vital 5 when it helpeth it is called Delight, Contentment, or Pleafure , which is nothing really but mo- tion about the Heart, as Conception is no» thing but motion in the Head , and the obje&s that caufe it are called, Pleafant, or Delightful, and the fame Delight, with reference to the object , is called Love ; but when fuch motion weakneth or hin* dreth the vital motion , then it is called Pain,and in relation to that which caufetn it, Hatred.
10. There are two forts of pleafures, whereof one feemethto affeft the corpo- real Organ of the fenfe, and that I call
T 4 fenfualj,
64 1 he Holy Guide. Lib.?, j
fenfual , the greaceft part whereof is that i by which we are invited to give continu- ance to our Species * and the next by | tvhicti a man is invited to meat 3 For pre- servation of his individual perfon. The qcher fort of Delight is not particularly any part of the body, and is called, The pelight of the Mind, and is that which we call Joy. Likewife of Pains, fome affett £heBody, and are therefore called, The Pains of the Body 5 and feme not 3 and ehofe are called Grief.
CHAR
L ) B. 3 . The Holy Guide. 6 3
CHAP. HI.
j. Of the nature of the fold of Man: 2 Whe- ther(he be a meer Modification of the body : 3 . or a fubftance really dijiinli •. 4 . and then whether corporeally or incoy pore all: 5 . and of the temper of the bod),
1. T TEre lam forced to fpeak what T A A have in my book called Fawilar Spirit, and it is not impertinent to my purpofe 1 therefore if we fay that the foul is a meer modification of the body, the foul then is but one univerfal faculty of the body, or a many faculties put toge- ther; andthofe operations which are u* fually attributed unto the foul, muft of neceflky be attributed unto the body : I demand therefore, Towhatinthe body will you attrillfcte, fpo'ntaneous motion underftand thereby a power in our felves of wagging, or holding ftill moftof the parts of our body, as our hand, fuppofe, or little finger: If you will fay that it is nothing but the immiflion of the fpirits into fuch and fuchMufcles,! would gladly know what does immit thefe fpirits, and direft them fo curioufly ; Is it themfelves? qt the brains S or that particular piece of * i the
66 The Holy Guide. L I B- 3 ,
the brain they call the Vine-k&rnel? What- ever it be, chat which doth thus immit them and dirett them, muft have Anim- adverfion ; and the fame that hach A- nimadverfion hath Memory and Reafon alfo: Now I would know whether the fpirits themfelves be capable of Animad- verfion, Memory and Reafon; for it in- deed feemes altogether impoffible ; for thefe animal fpirits are nothing elfe buc matter very thin and liquid, whofe na- ture confifts in this, that all the particles of it be in motion, and being loofe from one another, frig and play up and down according to the meafure and manner of agitation in them.
2. 1 therefore demand, which of thefe particles in thefe fo many loofly moving one from another, hath Animadverfion in it > if you fay that they all put toge- ther have 5 I appeal to him that thus an- fwers, how unlikely it is Aat that mould have Animadverfion that is fo utterly un- capable of Memory, and confequently, of Reafon; for it |is impoffible to conceive memory competible to fuch a fubjecl:, as it is how to write Characters in the Wa* ter, or in the Wind.
3. If you fay the brain immits and di- rects thefe fpirits ; how can that fo freely and fpontaneoufly move it felf, or ano- ther,
Lib. 3. The Holy Guide. 67
ther, that hath no Mufcles > Befides, Do- &ov Culpepper tells you, that though the Brain be the inftrument of Sence, yet it hathnofenfe atall of it felf; how then can that that hath no fenfe direct us fpon- taneoufly and arbitrarioufly, the animal fpirits into any part of the body? an Aft that plainly requires determinate fenfe and preception : But let the Phyfi- tians and Anatomifts conclude what they will, I (hall, I think, little IcfTe then demonftrate that the braines have no fenfe; for the fame in us that hath fenfe, hath likewife Animadverfion; and that which hath animadverfion in us3hath alfo a facultie of free and arbitrarious Fancy and Reafon.
4. Let us now confider the nature of the brain, and fee how competible thofe alterations are to fuch a fubjeft ; verily if we take a right view of this Laxe, pith, or marrow in mans head , neither our fenfe nor underftanding can difcover any thing more in this fubftance that can pre- tend to fuch noble operations, as free imagination and fagacious collections of Reafon, then we can difcern in a lump of fat, or a pot of honey ; for this floofe pulp that is thus wrapped up within bur Cranium, is but a fpongie and porous bo- dy, and previous, not onely to the ani- mal
68 The Holy Guide. LlB.3-
mal fpirks, but alfo to more juice and liquor •, elfe it could not well be nouri- fhed/at leaft it could not befo foft and xnoiftued by drmkennefTe and excefle, as to make the underiranding inept and fottifh in its operations. Wherefore I now demand 5 in this foft fubftance which we call the Brain, whofe foftneffe implies that it is in fome meafure liquid, and liquidity implies a feverai motion of ldofened partsYin what part or parcel thereof doe? Fancy, Reafon and Ani- madverrlonlie> In this laxe confidence that lies like a Net, all on heaps in the water ; I demand, In what Knot, Loop , or Interval thereof, does this faculty of free Fancy and active Reafon relide ? I believe not a D :>&dr in England, nay, not Doctor Culpepper himfelf, were he alive , nor his men, Do&or Fr;eman> and the reft, can aflign me any ; and if any will fay, in all together ; they muft fay that the whole Brain is figured into this or that reprefentation, which would cancel Memory, and take away all capacity of there being any diftinft notes and places for thefevcral fjpec'iesof the things there prefeuted. but if they will fay there is in every part of the brain this power of A- nimadverlion and Fancy, they are to re- member, that the brain is infome mea- fure
L.B.3. The Holy Guide. 69
fare a liquid body 3 and we mint enquire Nhow thefe loofe parts underftand onea- nothers feveral Animadverfions and no- tions *, and if they could (^whichisyet very unconceivable) yet if they could from hence tioe any thing toward *the immiffion and direction of the animal fpi- rits into this or that part of the body, they muft do: it by knowing one ano- thers minds, and by a joynt contention of ftrength., as when many men at once, the word being given when they weigh Anchor , put their ftrength together for the moving of that maffie body, that the (ingle ftrength of one could not deale with j but this is to make the feveral par- ticles of the brain fo many individual per- fons ; a fitter objeft for laughter, then the leaft meafure of belief.
5. Betides, how come thefe many A nunadverfions to feem but one to us, our minde being thefe, as is fuppofed? Or why if the figuration of one part of the braine be communicated to all the reft: does not the fameobjettfeeme fcituated both behinde us, and before us, above and 6eneath , on the right hand and on the left 5 and every way, as the im- prefleofthe objett is reflected againft all the parts of the braines 1 but there ap- pear
70 The Holy Gride. LlB.3
pearing to us but one Animadverfion, and one fight of things , it is a fuftici- ent Argument that there is but one j or if there be many, that they are not mutually communicated from the parts one £0 another.) and therefore there can be no fuch joynt endeavour towards one defigne; whence it is manifeft , that the braines cannot immit or direct thcfe animal fpirits into what part of the body they pleafe.
CHAP,
Lib. 3. The Boly Guide. 71
CHAP. IV.
lUow a. Captain was killed: 2. Of fpont a-- neous motion : 3. Of the external Pheno- mena : 4.0/ the nature of the EJfence: 5 .Of the Soul her felfe : 6. What it is : 7. And. whether it be corporeally 8. or incorpo- real,
1 . jVJOw I muft tell you j that the brain x\ hath no fenfe3 and therefore can- not imprefle fpontaneoufly any motion on the animal fpirits; it is no flight ar- gument, that fome being differed, have been found without braines: and this I faw, a Captain in Cbrifley, in Arabia^ that was accidentally kill'd by an Alcade and an Arabian ; the ftone is pleafant, but not pertinent to our purpofe ; but this man had nothing but a limpid water in his head^ inftead of brains $ and the braines generally are eafily diflblvable into a wa- tery confiftence, which agrees with what 1 intimated before. Now I appeal to any free Judge, how likely thefe liquid parti- cles are to approve themfelves of that na- ture and power, as to be able by erecting and knitting themfelves together for a moment of time, to bear themfelves . fo,
M
71 The Holy Guide. Lie.?.
■ -• •
as with one joint contention of ftrength, locaufeanarbitrarious obligation of the fpirits into this or that determinate part of the body j but the abfurditie of this 1 havefufficientlyinfinuated already.
2. The Nerves, I mean the Marrow of them, which is the fame fubftance with the brain, have no fenfej as is demonftra- ted from aCM/Ji^ or Catochus j butl will not accumulate Arguments in a mat- ter fo palpable. As for that little fprunt piece ofthe brain, which they call the Co- nacioH) that this mould be the very fub- ftance, whofe natural faculty it is to move itfelf, and by its motion and nods to de- termine the coarfe of the fpirits into this or that part ofthe body, feemstomeno lefle foolifh and fabulous then the Storie oSlkomai Harrington^ Culpepper s man, who tells a Tale of his Matters Ghoft,&;c. If you heard but the magnificent ftory that is told ofthe little lurking Mufhrome,bow it does not onely hear and fee, but ima- gines, reafens, commands the whole fa- brick of the body more dexteroufly then an Indian Boy does an Elephant: what an acute Logician, fubtil Geometrician, prudent Statefman, skilful Phyfitian, and profound Philofopher he is / and then afterwards by difie&ion you difcover this worker cf miracles to be nothing but a
poor
Li B. 3 . The Holy Guide. 7 3
poor filly contemptible Knob, or Prctu- bernacy, confiding of a thin Membrane, containing a little pulpons mattery much of the fame nature of the red of the brain \
Spedatum admiffi rifum teneatis amlcil
3. Would you not fooner laugh at it, then go about to confute it > and truly I may the better laugh at it now, having already confuted it in what I have afore merrily argued concerning the red of the brain.
4.T fhal therfore make bold to conclude, That the imprefle of fpontaneous motion is neither from the animal fpirits, nor from the brain, &c. therefore that thofc operations that are ufually attributed nn- to the foul, are really incompetible W any part of the body; and therefore, as in the laft chapter 1 hinted, I fay, That the foul is not ameer modification of the body , but a fubftance diftinft there- from.
5. Now we are to enquire, Whether this fubftance diftinft from what we ordinari- ly call the body, bealfo it felf a corpore- al fubftance, or whether it be incorpore- al? If you fay that it is a corporeal fub- ftance, you can underftand no other then matter more fubtil and tenuous then the U animal
a.
74 The Holy Guide. L1B.3
animal fpirits themfelves, mingled with them, and difperfed through the veflels and poroiitiesof the body ; for there can be no penetration of dimenfions : But I need no new arguments to confute this fond conceitjforwhatl faidof the animal fpirits before, is applicable with all eafe and fitnefle to this prefent cafe -, and let ic befufficientthat 1 advertife you fomuch- and fobeexcufed from the repeating of the fame things over again.
6. Icremaines therefore that we con- clude, That that which impreffes fponta- neous motion upon the body\or more im- mediately upon the animal fpirits: That which imagines, remembers, and reafons3 is an immaterial fubftance, diftinft from the body, which ufes the animal fpirits and the brain for inftruments in fuch and fuch operations. And thus we have found afpiritina proper no ion and fignifica- tion, that hath apparently thefe faculties in it, it can both underftand and move corporeaj matter.
7. And now this prize that we have won will prove for ourdeligne in this new me- thod of Phyfick and Philofophy of very great confequence ; for it is obvious here i to cbferve that the foul of man is asit| were^>ctA/xfit©€«, a compendious ftatueof the Deity 5 her fubftance is a folid Effigies 1
on
Lib.?. * he Holy Guide. 7 5
of God ; and therefore, as with eafe,we confider the fubftance and motion of the vaft Heavens on a little fphere, or Globe, fowemay with like facility contemplate the Nature of the Almighty in this little Model of God, the foul of man, enlarging to infinity what we obferve in our felves When we {transfer it unto God, as we doe imagine thefe Circles which we view on the Globe, tobevaftly bigger while we fancy them as defcribed in the Heaven.
8. Wherefore we being allured of this, That there is a fpiritual fubftance in our felves, in which both thefe properties doe relide, viz,, of the underftanding, and of moving the corporeal matter 5 let-usbut eularge our minds fo as to conceive as well as we can of a fpiritual fubftance that is able to move and a&uate all matter what- foever, never fo far extended, and after what way and manner foever it pleafe,and that it hath not onely the knowledge of this or that particular thing,but a diftinct and plenary cognizance of all things; and we have indeed a very competent appre- henfion of the nature of the eternal and invisible God., who, like the foul ofmani does not indeed fall under fenfe^but does every where operate fo, that hisperfonis eafily to be gathered from what is difco- vered by our cutwardfenfes.
U % CHAP;
76 1 he Holy Guide. Lib. 3
CHAP. VI.
Of Hants, that the meer motion of the matter may do fomething , yet it will not amount to the production of Plants. That it U no botch in Nature, that fome Phenomena be
■ the refults of Motion , others of fubjlantial forms. That beauty is not ^a meer fancy, and that the beauty and vertue of Vlants vs an Argument that they are made for the ufe of our bodies from an intellectual prin- ciple. ,
1. TTOw weak is Man , if youcQnfider fl his nature , what faculties he hath, and in what order he is in refpeft of the reft of the Creatures? And indeed, though his body be but weak and dif- armd^yet his inward abilities of Reafon, and artificial contrivance ^ is admirable, both for finding out thole fecret Medi cines , which God prepared for the ui'e of Man,in ihe Bowels of the Earth^of Plants and Minerals
'i. And firft of Vegetables^ where I (hall touch only thefe four Heads , their Form and Beauty, their Seed, their Signatures, and their great ufe, as well for Medicines as fuftenauce 5 and that we may the bet- ter underftand the advantage we have in
this
L I B. 5 . The Holy Guide. 7 7
this clofer contemplation of the works of Nature, we are in thefirft place to take notice of the condition of the fubftance, which we call matter, how fluid and flip- pery, and undeterminate it is of it felf * or if it be hard, how unfit it is to be chan- ged into any thing elie ; and therefore all things rot into a moifture before any- thing can be generated of them, as we foften the wax before we fet on the feal.
3. Now therefore, unlefs we will be fooliih , as becaufe the uniform motion of the Air , orfome more fubtil corporeal Element, may fo equally comprefs or bear againft the parts of a little vaporous moi- fture, as to form it into round drops ( as we fee in the dew,and other experiments) and therefore becaufe this more rude and general motion can dofomething9 to con- clude that it does all things : We muft in all reafon confefs , that there is an eternal Mind and Vertue, whereof the matter is thus ufefully formed and changed.
4. But meer rude and undirected mo- tion, becaufe naturally it will have fome kind of refults,that therefore it will reach to fuch as plainly imply a wife contrivance of counfel, isfo ridiculous a Sophifme, as I have already intimated , that it is more fit toimpofe upon the inconliderate fouls
tl 1 of
J 8 the Holy Guide. Lib.j
— m nx. ■
of fools and children, then upon men of mature Reafon,and well exercifed in Phi- lofophy, or the grave and well pra&ifed, feraf hie ally illuminated Ro fie Crucians. Admit that Rain,and Snow, and Wind,and Hail, and Iceland Thunder,and Lightning, and a Star 1 mention for examp!e,that may be let in amongft Meteors , by fome called tlellens Star , and is well known at Sea , I have fecn it melt Copper Veffels aboard a (hip y it cometh of an heap of fuch va- pours as are carried by violent crofs Winds up from the Earth 5 and fuch like Meteors may be the produces of heat and cold, or of the motion and reft of certain fmall particles of the matter 5 yet that the ufeful and beautiful contrivance of the Branches, Flowers, and Fruits of Plants mould be fo too, ( to fay nothing yet of Minerals,and the bodies of men ) is as ridiculous andfupine a collection, as to infer, That becaufc meer heat and cold does foftenand harden Wax , and puts it into fome fliape or other, that therefore this meer heat and cold, or motion and reft,without any art and direftion , made (the Silver Seal too , and graved upon it fo curioufly fome Coat of Arms, or the (hape of fome Bird or Beaft, as an Eagle,a Lyon, &c% nay indeed this inference is more tolerable far then the other $ thefeeffe&s
l"r— c " ;: - • of
LlE.?. The Holy Guide- 79
Art being more eafie, and lefle noble then thofe other of Nature.
5. Nor is it any deficiency at all in the works of Nature, that fome particular Vhtnornena be but the eafie refults of that general motion communicated unto the matter from God ; others the effects of more curious contrivance , cr of the Di- vine Art , or Reafon ( for fuch are the Koyw OT-«?|UfltTi;co*, the Rationet Seminales^) incorporated in the Matter,efpecially the Matter it felf being in fome fort vital, elfe it would not continue the motion that it is put upon, when it is occafionally this or the other way moved; and befides the Nature of God being the mod perfect fulnefsof life that is pofllbly conceivable, it i? very congruous,that this outmoft and remoteft fhadow of himfelf, be fome way, though but obfcurely vital: Wherefore things falling off by. degrees from the higheft perfection, it will be no uneven or unproportionable ftep,if descending from the top of this utmoft Creation, Man^ in whom there is a more fine conception , or reflexive Reafon,wfiich hangs on, as every man hath fo much experience as to have feen the Sun, and other vifible Objects, by reflexion in the Water and Glafles , and this as yet (hall be all I will fay for this xeafonj 1 will give you more then I pro- U 4 mifed,
8o the Holy Guide. Lib. 3.
mifedin the Contents, by four Prop oflti- ons concerning the nature of Concepti- ons , and they (hall be proved ; andalfo of the main deception of Senfe, that Co- lour and Image may be there where the thing feen is not ; But becaufe it may be faid, That notwithftanding the Image in the Water be not in theobje&,but a thing mcerly phantaftical, yet there may be co- lours really in the thing it felf; I will urge further this experience. That divers timers men (ee direttly the fame objc& doublets two Candles for one,which may happen from diftemper^oroth erwife with- out diftemper if a man will 5 the Organs being either in their right temper, or equally diftempered , the Colours and Images in two fuch Characters of the fame thing, cannot be inherent therein, becaufe the thing feen cannot be in twp places.
6. One of thefe Images therefore is not inherent in the Obje&jbut the Teeing, the Organs of the light arc then in equal temper or diftemper , the one of them is no more inherent then the other, and c;onfequently,neither of them both are in the Objedts , which is the firft proposition mentioned in the precedent number.
7. Secondly, that the Image of any thing by reflexion in a Glafs 3 orVVater,
or
LlB.3- rhe Holy Guide. 8 1
or the like, is not any thing in, or behind the Glafs, or in,or under the Water, every man may grant to himfelf; which is the fecond Propoiition of Des Cartes,
For thirdly, we are to eonijder, firft, That every great agitation or concufiion of the brain ( as it happeneth from a ftroke,efpecially if the ftroke be upon the eye) whereby the Optick Nerve fufferech any great violence,thereappeareth before the Eyes a certain light, which light is no- thing without , but an apparition only; all that is real being the concufiion or mo- tion of the parts of the Nerve; from which experience we may conclude, That apparition of light is really nothing but mQtion within If therefore from Lucid bodies there can be derived motion , fo as toafFett the Optick Nerve in fitch manner as is proper thereunto,there -will follow an Image of light fomewhere in that line, by which the motion was at laft derived to the eye, that is to fay, in the Object, if we look dire&lyonit , and in the Glafsor Water, when we look upon it in the line of reflexion, which in effect is the third Pro- position, namely. That image and colour is but an apparition to us of that motion, agitation, or alteration, which the objeft: worketh in the brain, orfpirits, orfome internal fubftance in the head.
4, But
8 2 The Holy Guide* LiB. $
4. But that from all lucid, mining, and illuminate bodies, there is a motion pro- duced to the eye, and through the eye, to the Optick Nerve , and fo into the Brain, by which the apparition of light or colour is effe&ed , is not hard to prove. And firft, it is evident that the Fire , the only lucid body here upon Earth , worketh by motion equally every way, infomuch as the motion thereof flopped or inclofed, it is prefently extinguished , and no more lire. And further, that that motion whereby the fire worketh is dilation and contraction of it felf alternately, com- monly called Scintillation, or glowing, is manifeft alfo by experience; from fuch motion in the fire muft needs a rife a reje- ction, orcaftingfromitfelf off that part of the medium which is contiguous to it> whereby that part alfo reje&eth the next, and fo fuccelively one part beatethback another to the very eye , and in the fame manner the exteriour part of the eye prefleth the interiour f the Laws of re- fraction ftillobferved.) Now the interi- our coat of the eye is nothing elfebut a piece of the Optick Nerve, and therefore the motion isftill continued thereby into the Brain3and by refinance or re-action of the Brain, is alfo a rebound into ihe Op- tick Nerve again,which we not conceiving
as
L i B,3- The Holy Guide. 8 3
as motion or rebound from within , do think it is without, and call it Light, as hath been already fhewed by the experi- ence of a ftroke : We have no reafon to doubt that the Fountain of Light, the Sun, worketh by any other wayes then, the Fire,at leaft in this matter : And thus all vifion hath its original from fuch mo- tion as is here defcribed 3 for where there is no light, there is no fight ; and there- fore colour muft be the fame thing with light , as being the effeft of the lucid bo- dies,their difference being only this, That when the light cometh dire&Iyfrotn the Fountain to the eye , or indirectly by re- flexion from clean and polite bodies, and fuch as have not any polite bodies , and fuch as have not any particular motion internal to alter it , we call it light ; but when it cometh to the eye by reflexion, from uneven, rough, and courfe bodies, or fuch as are affected with internal mo- tion of their own that may alter k , then we call it Colour^ colour and light differ- ing only in this, that the one is pure, and the other perturbed light } by that which hath been faid-, not only the truth of the third Propofition , but alfo the whole manner of producing liglu: and colour is apparent
5. As colour is not inherent in theob-
jea,
84 the Holy Guide. L I B*3*
jeft,but an effeft thereof upon us, caufed by fuch motion in the obje&,as hath been described *, fo neither is found in the thing we hear, but in our felyes -, one ma- nifeft iign thereof, is, that as man may fee, foalfohe may hear doubleand treble by multiplication of Ecchoes,which Ecchoes are founds as well as the Original 5 and not being in one and the fame place, can- not be inherent in the body that maketh them j nothing can make any thing which is not in it felf; the Clapper of a Bell hath no found in it, but motion, and ma- keth motion in the internal parts of the Bell ; fo the Bell hath motion and not found, that imparteth motion to the air ; and the air hath motion, but not found ; the Air imparteth motion by the Ear and Nerve unto the Brain *, and theBrain hath motion, but not found > from the Brain it reboundeth back into the Nerves out-* ward, and thence it becometh an Appari- tion without, which we call found. And to proceed to the reft of theSenfes, it is apparent enough, that the fmell and tafte of the fame thing are not the fame to eve- ry man,and therefore are not in the thing (melt or tafted, but in the men ; fo like- wife the heat we feel from the tire is ma- nifeftlyinus, ahd is quite different from the heat which is in the fire 3 for our heat
is
Lib. 3. ?bt Boly Guide. 35
is pleafurcorpain, according as it is great or moderate ; but in the cool therels no fuch thing : By this the iaft is proved,™*, that as invifiori, fo alfo in conceptions that arife from other Senfes,thefubject of their inherence is not in theObjett,butin the Sentinent : And from hence alfo it followeth, that whatfoever accidents or qualities our Senfes make us think there be in the world, they be not there, but are feeming and Apparitions only 5 the things that really are in the world without us^are thofe motions by which thefefeemingsare caufed 5 and this is the great deception o f fenfe, which alfo is to be by fenfe correct- ed ; for as fenfe telleth me, when I fee di- rectly,thattbecolourfeemeth to be in the object ■-, fo alfo fenfe telleth me,when 1 fee by reflection that colour is in the object, But now I am out of the way from the outward Creation of Man, in whom there is a principle of more fine and reflexive reafon, which hangs on, though not in that manner, in the more perfect kind *f Brutes, as fenfe alfo ( loth to be curbed with too narrow compafsj layes hold up- on fome kind of Plants,as in thofe fundry forts of Zoophyta , but in the reft there are no further footfteps difcovered of an a- nimadveriive form abiding in them ; yet there be the effects of an inadvertent form
( khy&
86 The Holy Guide. L1B.3
( \oyQ- '4w\@-) of materiated or'%incor- porated Art or feminal Reafon 5 I fay, it is no uneven jot to pafs from the more faint and obfcure example of Spermatical life, to the more confiderable effects of gene- ral Motion in Minerals, Metals, nor yet to fay any thing 6f the Medicines extracted, mortified, fixe, diflblv'd^and incorporated with their proper Veagles, becaufe we have intended it our laft bufinefs, tore- turn to Minerals , Metals, and fundry Me- teors, whofe eaiie and rude ftiapes have no need of any particular principle of life, or Spermatical form diftinct from the reft, or motion of the particles of the matter.
1 o. But there is that curiofity of form and beauty in the more noble kind of Ptants,bearing fuch a futablenefs and har- mony with the more refined fenfc and fa- gacityof the foul of Man, that he cannot choofc C his intellectual touch being fo f weedy gratified by what it deprehends in fuch like objects) but acknowledge that fome hidden caufe, much a kin to his own nature that is intellectual, is the contriver and perfetter of thefe fo plealant fpe&a- clesin the world.
Nor is it at all to thepurpofe to object, that this bufinefs of Beauty and comelinefs of proportion is but a conceit , becaufe fome men acknowledge no fuch thing,and
all
Lib.?. ihe Holy Guide. 87
aTl things are alike handfome to them , who yet notwithstanding have the ufe of their eyes as well as other folks ; for I fay, this rather makes for what we aim at, that Pulchritude is conveyed indeed by the out- ward fences unto the foul, but a more in- tellectual faculty is that which relifhes ic 5 asanAfirological, or better, a Geometrical Scheam \t lee in by the eyes,but the Demon- stration is difcern'd by Keafon : And there- fore it is more rational to affirm , that fome intellectual principle was the Author of this Pulchritude of things, then that they mould be thus fafhioned without the help of that principle : And to fay there isnofuch thing as Pulchritude , and fome fay, xhext'is noway to felicity: The firft, 1 anfwer, is, becaufe fome mens fouls are fo dull and ftupid. The firft cannot reliifh all objetts alike in that refpeft : The fe- cond knows not Hrfpinefs , nor the way to long Life, nor the means to Health, nor how to return] from Age to Touth,8cc. which is as abfurd and groundlefs, as to conclude there is no fuch thing as Reafon and Zte- monjiration , becaufe a natural fool cannot reach unto it. But that there is fuch a thing as The Holy Guide, Long life, and a certain way to Health, not as yet known in 'England, \ will demonftrate : The way to Health \ (hall (hew you anon in this Book,
the
88 The Holy Guide. L1B.5
the reft in another Part, as I promifed you.
i2t Now that there is fiich a thing as Beauty ,and that it is acknowledged by the whole generations of men, to be in Trees, Flowers, and Fruits, and the adorning of buildings in all Ages, is an example, and undeniable teftimony ; for what is more ordinary with them , then taking in flowers and fruitage for the garnifhingof their work? Betides, I appeal to any man that is not funk into fo forlorne a pitch of Degeneracy,that he is as ftupid to thefe things as the bafcft of Beafts, whether for example,a rightly cut Tefraedrunt, Cube or Icofaedrum , have no more VulcWitude in them,thenany rude broken bone lying in the field or high-wayes : Or to name other folid Figures , which though they be not regular properly fo called, yet have a fet- led Idea,aud Nature, as zCone, Sphere, or Cylinder, whether the light of thefe do not gratifie the minds of men more , and pre- tend to more elegancy of fhape , then thofe rude cuttings or clippings of Free- ftone that fall from the Mafons hands,and (erve for nothing but to fill up the mid- dle of the wall, and fo to be hid from the eye* of Man for their uglinefs: And it is obfrrvable,that if Nature (hape any thing near this Geometrical accuracy, that we take
notice
LiB.3- 7he Holy Guide. 89^
notice of it with much content and plea- fure, as if it be but exa&ly round, as there be abundance of fuch {tones upon Mefque9 a hill in Arabia j 1 havefeen them there, ordinarily Quinquangular, and have the fides parallels , though the Angels be Unequal , as is feen in feme little '(tones* and in a kind of Alabafter found here in England , and other pretty (tones found w^onBulvmon-hiU near Sidmouth in Devon- floire, and near Stratford upon Av on\ and iri Tyms Grove at Colton, and at lardebick^ Stony-hilly the Shawes and Quarry Pit, Ha- zle-hill, and Ajh-hill in Warwickshire , are found fuch ftones that grow naturally carved with various works, fome with Ro- fes,others with Lions3Eagles.andall man- ner of delightful works 5 thefe ftones, I fay, gratifie our fight, as having a nearer cognation with the foul of man that is rational and intellectual, and therefore is well pleafed when it meets with any out- Ward objeft that fits and agrees with thofe congenite Ideas her own nature is fur- nifhedwith : For Symmetry 3 Equality , and Correfpondency of parts,is the difcernment of Reafon, not the* object of Senfe, as I In our Harmony ther place proved*
13. Now therefore it being evident,
that there is fuch a thing as Beauty, Syrn-
X * mtry±
90 The Holy Guide. L1B.3.
tnetry9vmd Cmlinefs of proportion ( to fay nothing of the delightful mixture of co- lours, and that this is the proper object of the Underftanding and Reafon ; for thefe things be not taken notice of by the BeaftsJ I think I may fa fely infer, that vvhatfoever isthefirft and principal caufe of changing the fluid and undetermina- ted Matter into fhapes fo comely and fym metrical , as we fee in flowers and trees, is an underftanding Principle, and knows both the nature of man , and of thofe objefts he offers to his light in this outward and vifible world, and would have man fearch and find out thofe fecrets by the which he might keep his body in health many hundreds of years, and at laft find the way our Holy Guide leadeth ; for thefe things cannot come by cliance, or by a Multifarious attempt of the parts of the matter uponthemielvesj for then it were likely that the fpecies of things, though fome might hit right, yet moft would be maimed and ridiculous; but now there is not any ineptitude in any thing, which is a fign that the fluidnefs of the matter is guided and determined by the overpowring counfel of an eternal mind.
14. If it were not needlefs, I might in- ftance mfundry kinds iof flowers, herbs,
and
Lib.?, The Holy Guide. 9 \
and trees 5 but thefe objetts being Co ob- vious , and every mans fancy being bran- ched with the remembrance of Rofes , Marigolds, GiUiflowers, ?ionies,Tulifsfianfiesy Vrimrofes, f erne flowers and feed, Orange flowers , the leaves and clutters of the Vine, &c. OF all which you mud confefs, that there is in them beauty, and fymme- try,and ufe in Phyfick , and grateful pro- portion 5 I hold it fupcrfluity to weary you with any longer induction , but (hall pafs on to thofe coniiderations behind, of their feed, fignatureand ufefulnefs, and fhall pafs through them very briefly , and then I fha!l come to mineral Medicines; thefe obfervables being very neceflary firft to be known by way of an Introduction^ and as ordinary and eafily Intelligible 9 but for your better inftruftion in theun- derftanding of this Book, read the Har- mony of the World, and the Temple of lyif- dome. You muft remember our defign is to prove both the Theory and Prattick Parts of thefe My fterious Truths,
X* CHAP.
9 2 The Holy Guide. LlB. 3
CHAP. VII.
j.2.3.4. natures of Plants: 9.10.1 1. .^«i #>fore- /wf Gtf^ wi/fcfc them.