Varieties: or, A surveigh of rare and excellent matters necessary and delectable for all sorts of persons. Wherein the principall heads of diverse sciences are illustrated, rare secrets of naturall things unfoulded, &c. Digested into five bookes, whose severall chapters with their contents are to be seene in the table after the epistle dedicatory. By David Person, of Loghlands in Scotland, Gentleman.

Section 2.

Of Gods Creating and conserving of all things in an or∣derly order; Plato's Reasons that the world hath a life. Aristotles opinion of God; hee is praysed, and at his dying preferred before many doubtfull Christians.

THis King or father of all, which is above all nature, immoveable yet moving all; hath in him an exuberant and overflowing good∣nesse! From the Father and goodnesse, the minde or understanding proceedeth, as from the inbred light of the Sun commeth a certaine splendor; which minde is the divine or Fathers Intelligence, and the first borne Son of goodnesse.

From this minde (the life of the world) floweth a certaine brightnesse, as from light; which breatheth over all, distributeth, yeeldeth, and conteyneth all things in life; So that the world which consisteth of foure principles, or elements, comprehended within the compasse of the heavens, is but a body, whose partes, as the members of a living creature, cohering and linked together, are moved, and doe draw breath by benefit of this life or spirit (as he thinks.) This Vir∣gil in his sixth of the Aeneids aymed at when he saith,

Principio coelum & terras, campos{que} liquentes, Lucentem{que} globum lunae, Titania{que} astra Spiritus intus alit, totam{que} infusa per artus Mens agitat molem, & magno se corpore miscet.

By his opinion here,* 1.1 as all animalls and living crea∣tures doe live every one by their owne life; so the world as of greater dignity then any of the rest, hath a more noble life whereby it moveth, then they: And in effect, many pithy reasons he produceth both in his Epimenides, in Timaeo, and in the 10. Booke of his Lawes, to prove the world to bee an animall, both from the constant and perpetuall course of the hea∣vens; from that naturall heat of the Sun, seeing the Sun and man ingender man, to which, as to all the Starres, he attributeth a soule, by which they live; but so, that as they are of a delicate and transparent body, so live they a most blessed life: yet not that they are moved with an other life then the whole world is.

For as in the body of man the soule, whereby our sinewes, bones, flesh, bloud and all, are moved is one and the same, notwithstanding all the members be not alike vivificated; so is it there.

For what reason is there (saith he) that man who is called a little world, and encompassed of the foure elements, as well as the great world is, should be said to live, and in the meane time to deprive the greater one of life; Seeing the motion of the heavens, and of her lights, the moving of the Seas, the seasons of the yeare, all keepe their equall and constant cour∣ses? Alwayes as Plato here before setleth a Trinity in the God-head, the Father; the minde, or mens which

is the Son; and the life of the world flowing from them as the Spirit, and as brightnesse from light: So in his Timaeo he avoucheth that there is in the heavens one certaine Ens, which is ever alike unto it selfe, without beginning or ending, which neither needeth, nor taketh helpe of any; which can neither be seene by mortall eye, nor yet perceived by any mortall sense, but onely to be contemplated by our minde and understanding. So Aristotle in his Metaphysicks, and in his workes De mundo, esteemeth this Ens, sem∣piternall, unmeasurable, incorporeall, and individu∣all, not resting in this habitable world, but above it, in a sublime one, unchangeable, not subject unto any passion or affection; who as hee hath of himselfe a most blessed and perfect life, so without errour may it be said of him, that he giveth life unto all other things below; and it is to be observed, that as in his wri∣tings hee acknowledged this God, so in his dying-houre, he made his writings and words jumpe toge∣ther. Which is so much the rather to be remarked: because, whereas many Christians did professe a sort of religion in their life-time, which on their death-beds they did disclaime: yet this man as he acknow∣ledged God in his writings; so dying, he recommen∣ded his soule unto him in these words, Ens entium, mi∣serere mei.

And particularly in his Booke of the Heavens, the 9. cap. as is cleere; there (saith he) without the out∣most heavens there is no place, vacuity, or end: be∣cause, those that are there, are not apt or meet to bee in place; neither yet maketh time them any older, nor are they subject to change, or alteration, being ex∣exempted

from all passion, affection or change: they leade a most blessed and eternall life.

And in the 12. of his Metaphysicks, cap. 7. but more especially, cap. 10. De unitate primi motoris. In God (saith he) is age and life eternall, and continuall, which is God himselfe.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Plato his rea∣sons why the world liveth.