Partheneia sacra. Or The mysterious and delicious garden of the sacred Parthenes symbolically set forth and enriched with pious deuises and emblemes for the entertainement of deuout soules; contriued al to the honour of the incomparable Virgin Marie mother of God; for the pleasure and deuotion especially of the Parthenian sodalitie of her Immaculate Conception. By H.A.

THE XVII. SYMBOL. THE PEARL. (Book 17)

THE DEVISE.

[illustration]

THE CHARACTER.

THE Pearl, or Margaret, the Lillieamōg Iewels, is the peerlesse Gemme of Nature,* 1.1 so much happier then the rest, as nobler descended then they: this being bred in the womb of the sea, and they in the bowels of the earth. If they be stilli∣cides from Heauen (as some think) they are the mil∣kie drops distilled from Iuno's breast, which Sol par∣cheth into seeds; which seeds empearle in those litle Ouens lying on the beach. The Diamant that sparcles so, though rich indeed, arriues not to that

wealth without trade, and exercise of the Ieweller, in passing the file and chizel, wheras the Pearl needs none of those to raise its fortunes by, but is truly borne a Ptince. They are the ordinarie companions of the greatest Ladies, and so chast as they wil be dandling in their necks, without sensualitie in themselues, or those they dallie with, without iea∣••ousie of anie. They are true Subsidie-men, and such Sureties indeed, as their credit wil be taken for as much as they are worth. If you would epitomize an ample estate, & put the same into a litle Compendium, with Bias to carrie your wealth about you, sel what you haue, and put it into Pearl. If you haue anie suit in Court, it wil purchase greater friends, and pro∣cure you better preferments, then the best deserts. Like a pin and web, it wil put out the eyes of Linceus himself, not to see what he should. It is the key, that wil set open the Iayle to the worst conditions; and the bolt to shut vpon the best deseruings. What ciuil warres could neuer effect, the Pearl or Vnion hath in∣fallibly brought to passe, to wit, the ruine of that great Triumvirat, being disunited or dissolued: what would it then haue done, if vnited? It is called Oriental, as much to say, as it makes al men to arise vnto it, to do it homage: and wil make you more place in a throng of people, of meer respect, then a rufling Whifler shal do with torch in hand. In fine, it is a rich Treasurie of rarities enclosed in a box of Pearl.

THE MORALS.

PRECIOSA ET CAELESTIS.

RAre things are likely precious,* 1.2 and precious rare: not that scarcitie alone should set the price, or price and valew make them rare; but that the ordināce of GOD is such, to haue them so, that things which are excellent in themselues, should be rare and scarce to be found, that pearls (for worth) might not be cast to swine, or trampled vnder foot. Monsters are rare indeed, and yet most hateful, and prodigious. It is the worth then that giues the price to things. The Sybils Books were valued lesse being nine, then when they were but three; not for the plentie of the nine, or scarcitie of the three; but to let Tarquinius see, the true estimate and value of each one; and had he not perhaps taken her at last at her word, as he did, he had payd as much for one alone, as for the nine, or gone without it. Yea gold itself, were it as common happely as manie other things are of litle worth, would yet be in as great esteeme as now it is, through a certain excellence it hath in itself aboue others. And therefore S. Iohn did very wel, to dresse vp GOD al in gold, and paue the Para∣dice of ioyes with the same: for otherwise, do I feare, that manie an one, would neuer haue had anie great thirst after it; who perhaps would better haue liked the horns of Lucifer, tipt with gold, then those of the Moon with siluer, or the burning cristal of the Sun. Who would thinke, that a peece of earth, taken, as it were, with the

disease of the yelow Iaundise, being no more indeed then a yelow earth, a glittering Stone, a kind of froth boyling from Hel, should haue such a power vpon reasonable men? So as wel it may seeme, to be the Golden Age, since al is set vpon gold; they wish but gold, they speake or thinke of nothing els but gold, when lo, the Gold of gold, the precious Margarit of Pearls, is truly valuable indeed, the Incomparable Virgin-Mother, I meane, who is either the Pearl itself, or Mother of the true Oriental Pearl, which descended from heauen, and therefore is worthily called: PRE∣CIOSA ET CAELESTIS.

THE ESSAY.

THE true Pearl hath a luster of siluer with it, which wil not soyle a whit, nor wax yel∣low;* 1.3 its skin feares no nipping of the frosts, nor the tooth of Time. It is bred in the Sea, and seemes to disdayne the fare of its Ho∣stesse, the Scallop, wherin it is a prisoner, while it ta∣kes its food from the heauens, and hath its whole alliance with them. They vse to counterfeit the same in a thousand manners with glasse, and aboue al, with the Mother-Pearl, in beating it to powder, and making a past therof, and then causing pigeons to let it downe, which with their natural heat do boile and polish it in the manner it is, and then put it forth againe. The Mother-pearl engenders from the heauens, and liues but of celestial Nectar, to bring forth her Pearl withal, either siluer, pale, or yelowish, according as the Sun makes it, or the ayre, whence it feeds, be more or lesse pure. Receauing then the deaw of Heauen into the gaping shel, it formes litle graines or seeds within it, which cleaue to its sides, then grow hard, and geale, as it were: and so Nature

by litle and litle polishes them through fauour of the Sunnie beames, and at last they become the Oriental Pearls; and as the Deaw is greater or lesse, the Pearls become the bigger and fayrer. The Pearl in powder, is good in a manner for al maladies. It growes not only in the flesh of the fish, but in the mother itself, or shel without the fish. It is tender within the mother, but growes hard as soone as ta∣ken out of the water. The greatest gallantrie of La∣dies, is to haue them dangling at their eares by half dozens, whence are they called Cymbals; they wil say likewise: a faire Pearl in the eare, is as good as an Vsher to make them way in a presse. Cleopatra wore two of them, which were worth a million and a half; wherof one she swallowed downe, being first dissolued by vinagre.

THE DISCOVRSE.

IF you look now into the mysteries of al natural Secrets,* 1.4 you shal find none to symbolize better with the Virgin Marie, this Margarit of ours, then this same Pearl or precious Mar∣garit of the Sea: if especially we re∣gard but the names only, wherewith they are stiled, the one of Marie, the other of Margarit, and both ha∣uing so great alliances with the Seas: the one being, amarum mare, a bitter sea: and the other, as wholy borne and bred in the seas; the one importunatly begd and obtayned of GOD, by Anna her Mother: and the other, as greedily gaped-after from the Hea∣uens, and especially from the Sun, by the Mother of Pearl, so properly called by like, for her motherlie & maternal appetite to engender and bring forth; and

we al know, what Pearls of sanctitie are lightly brought into the world, with so great importuni∣ties. But if we looke into the other congruities between them, we shal find them to sympathize so, as we may wel tearme our Virgin-Mother, a Pearl or Margarit of the Heauens, as the other of the Seas.

The Margarit, as I sayd, is bred in the Sea; which Isidor affirmes, and that in this manner. At certain times of the yeare, to wit, in the Spring and Autum∣ne, the cockles, oysters, or scollops, or cal them what you wil, approach to the Sea-shore, and lye there ga∣ping, and opening themselues, and receaue the celestial deaw into their bowels; from the coagula∣tion wherof, as abouesayd, are the Margarits en∣gendred. Now this Shelfish, oyster, or Mother-Pearl (for the Mother, or issue Pearl, are al of a substance, as mothers and embrions vse to be) is the Virgin-Mo∣ther-Pearl it self, which opened her Virginal soule, at her mysterious Annunciation, in the Spring of the yeare, by the quiet shore of her tacit and silent contemplation, to receiue the heauenlie Deaw, the new Margarit: that is, to conceaue that precious Pearl, Christ Iesus, in her womb. For she opened her consent, to the great Angel, her singular Paranimph, to obey GOD in al things, saying: Behold the hand∣mayd of our Lord, &c. and her soule likewise to the Holie-Ghost, to ouershadow her: and after the opening thus of her free consent, and her Angelical soule, the Celestial deaw of the Holie-Ghost descended into her, and so this infant-Pearl was diuinely begot in the virginal womb of the Virgin-mother - Pearl. Of which deawing of the Holie-Ghost, and opening of the Blessed Virgin therevnto, it is prophetically sayd:

Deaw you heauens thervpon,* 1.5 and let the clouds rayne downe the Iust; let the earth open and bring forth the Sauiour.

These Pearls besides, if they be right Margarits indeed, are faire, white, and cleer; for such as are so, are truly of the best, and a great deale better then those which are dimmer, and of a yellow and duskish coulour. For those which are faire, white, and cleer, are bred of the morning-deaw; and the others, of thar which falles in the euenings. And our Incomparable Margarit, was predestinate so from the morning of the eternal Decree in Heauen, so created, as it were, ab initio & ante secula, while the other pearls of lesse regard were only produced in the euening, after that sinne was brought into the world.

This Margarit therefore so faire, so white, and cleer, signifyes our heauenlie Margarit and glorious Virgin, who was beautiful and faire in mind through a more then Angelical puritie of hers consisting in the mind; most snowie and white in bodie, through an immaculate chastitie and virginitie; and cleer and sincere in works, through a simple sanctitie, and Saintlie simplicitie in al her actions, in the whole course of her blessed and incomparable life, which she led on earth.

I sayd aboue, that Pearls being stampt and beat to powder are holesom, soueraigne, and medicinal for manie maladies; wherof I find the Naturalists chiefly to reckon three: First, they are purgatiue, because they purge and euacuate the bodie of al noxious and superfluuous humours; secondly, restric∣tiue, staying the flux of bloud or venter; and thirdly, they comfort and corroborate the hart, being readie to faynt or swoune through debilitie of the spirits,

or the vital parts. To these infirmities, the applica∣tions of these pownded Pearls so beat to powder, are of singular auayle. In this manner the Blessed Virgin, being seriously pressed with importunitie of pray∣ers, and often vrged and called vpon with incessant vowes, relenting and mollifyed at last, as fallen into powder, applyes herself, first through a pur∣gatiue power to purge vs of our sinnes, by procu∣ring vs the grace of Contrition, and the holesome Sacrament of Pennance, to bewayle and purge our sinnes past; secondly, with her restrictiue vertue, to restraine the soule from flowing and falling agai∣ne into future sinnes; and thirdly, with her re∣storatiue, comfortatiue, and corroboratiue power, to strengthen and fortify the hart, in present occa∣sions of sinnes.

THE EMBLEME.

[illustration]

THE POESIE.

A Rare and precious Pearl is hardly found, That's Great, & Heauie, Smooth, pure-white and Round.* 1.6 The Sonne of God came from his heauenlie Throne, Factour for Pearles, aet last found such an one. Great, to containe himself; & Heauie, ful of grace. And therefore sunck vnto a Handmayds place. Smooth without knob of Sinne. Virgin pure-white. Round in perfection, more then mortal wight. This pleas'd his eye; a long time hauing sought, Gaue al that ere he had, & this he bought. Vnion's a Pearle (no twinnes) it-self, but one; Such was the Virgin-Mother Paragon.

THE THEORIES.

COntemplate first, how this Pearl or Margarit is vsually called,* 1.7 as we sayd, by the name of Vnion; whether it be for the great vnion and sympathie there is, between the Mother and the Pearl, I know not; for you can not mention the Mothers name, but needs must you bring-in the Pearl withal: or for the vnion of the Celestial deaw, with the Conchal nature, to make vp a Pearl, in the lap of the fish, I wil not say: this I am sure of, that our blessed Pearl heer is called Deipara, as much to say, as the Mother of GOD; nor can she be so called a Mother, as she is, but GOD must needs be vni∣ted to her, to make vp her name.

Consider then, that as the Mother-pearl, being other∣wise

only a meer shel-fish of its owne nature, and of no greater a ranck then a playne oyster of the Sea: yet through the appetite she had to suck, and draw in the heauenlie deaw into her bowels, obtained the especial priuiledge and prerogatiue, to become indeed the Mother of the true oriental Pearl. So the virgin-mother, though she were, as she sayd herself, the sillie handmayd of our Lord, and of our human nature, subiect to the natural fray leties therof; yet through a singular immunitie with the puritie of her intention, integritie of bodie, and Angelical can∣dour of mind, disposing herself most affectuously and ardently indeed, to receaue the Celestial deawes frō heauen, that is, the grace of perfect Vnion with GOD, in her pure soule, she deserued to become the Mother of the Pearl of Pearles, sweet IESVS.

Ponder lastly, that if a meer Pearl, being so basely bred in an oyster-shel, whose extract at the best is but meer Deawes let fal from the nether Region of the Ayre, and those but drops of fresh water, as it were impearled in the fish, through benefit of the Sun should come to be so highly prized as we haue sayd, being no more then a meer seed of Pearl somwhat fairer then the rest of that kind; how are we to prize and magnify, trow you, our heauenlie Pearl heer, whether you meane the Pearl, or Mother herself? the Pearl himself, for being such a Pearl so truly descen∣ding from heauen; and her, for being the Mother of such a Pearl.

THE APOSTROPHE

MOST sweet, most debonnaire Virgin-Mother,* 1.8 the Immaculate through em∣phasis, the Mother of faeyre dilection, Mother of Iesus, regard me poore wretched soule, and obtaine, that my hart and affection be pure and clean, at least like the seed pearl, according to the proportion of my litlenes, and my bodie wholy free, from the duskish blemishes of the least sinnes, and that by day and night my thoughts being repurged from al immundici∣ties and vncleane obiects, the flourishing bed of my Fancie, may neuer be soyled more, to offend thine eyes, and those of the Immaculat Pearl of thy womb, the Spouse of my soule, CHRIST IESVS.

Notes

• * 1.1

  The Impresa
• * 1.2

  The Motto.
• * 1.3

  The Reuiew.
• * 1.4

  The Reuiew.
• * 1.5

  Isay. 45
• * 1.6

  The Pause.
• * 1.7

  The Contemplation.
• * 1.8

  The Coll••∣quie.