Of wisdome three bookes written in French by Peter Charro[n] Doctr of Lawe in Paris. Translated by Samson Lennard

CHAP. XXXV. The estimation, breuitie, description, of the life of man, and the parts thereof.

IT is a great and principall point of wisdome, truly to know * 1.1 how to esteeme of life, to holde and preserue it, to lose or to take it away, to keepe and direct it, as much as after such a maner as is fit; there is not perhaps any thing wherein a man faileth more, or is more hindred. The vulgar vnlearned sot accounteth it a souereigne good, and preferreth it aboue all things; yea he will not sticke to redeeme and prolong it by all the delayes that may be, vpon what conditions soeuer, thinking it can neuer be bought too deare: for it is all in all with him, his motte is Vita nihil carius. He esteemeth and lo∣ueth his life for the loue of it selfe: he liues not but to liue. It is no maruell if hee faile in all the rest, if hee be wholly com∣pounded of errours, since from his very entrance, and in this fundamentall point he mistakes himselfe so grosly. It may be likewise with some lesse esteemed, and more basely accoun∣ted of than it should, either by reason of some insufficiencie in iudgement, or a proud misknowledge thereof: for falling in∣to the hands of those that are good and wise, it may be a pro∣fitable instrument both to themselues and others. And I can not be of their opinion (as it is simply taken) that say it is best of all, not to be at all; and that the best is the shortest life: optimum non nasci aut quàm citissimè aboleri. And it is neither well nor wisely sayd, What hurt or what matter had it beene if I had neuer beene? A man may answer him with the like question: Where had that good beene which is come, and being not come, had it not beene euill not to haue beene? It is a kinde of euill that wanteth good, whatsoeuer it be, yea though not necessarie. These extremities are too extreame and vitious, though not equally: but that seemes true that a wise man spake, That life is such a good as a man would not take, if he knew well what it were before he tooke it: Vitam * 1.2

nemo acciperet, si daretur scientibus. It is well that men are within before they see the entrance, and that they are carried hudwinckt into it. Now when they are within, some doe so cocker and flatter themselues therein, that vpon what condi∣tion soeuer they will not go forth againe; others do nothing but murmure and vex themselues: but the wiser sort seeing it to be a market that is made without themselues (for a man neither liues nor dies when and how he will) and that though the way be rough and hard, yet neuerthelesse it is not alwaies so, without winsing, or striuing and troubling any thing, they accomodate themselues vnto it as they may, and so passe their life in quietnesse, making of necessitie a vertue; which is a token of wisdome and industrie: and so doing, they liue as long as they should, and not like fooles, as long as they can. For there is a time to liue, and a time to die: and a good death is farre better than an ill life. A wise man liues no longer, than * 1.3 that his life may be woorth more than his death: for the lon∣gest life is not alwaies the better.

All men doe much complaine of the breuitie of the life of * 1.4 man; not only the simple vulgar sort, who wish it would ne∣uer haue end, but also (which is more strange) the greatest and wisest make it the principall ground of their complaints. To say the truth, the greatest part thereof being diuerted and otherwise employed, there remaines little or nothing for it selfe: for the time of our infancie, olde age, sleepe, maladies of minde and bodie, and many other times, both vnprofita∣ble and vnfit for any good, being taken away, that which re∣maineth is little or nothing at all. Neuerthelesse, without op∣posing the contrarie opinion to them that holde a short life to be a great good and gift of Nature, their complaint seem∣eth to haue little equitie and reason, and rather to proceed from malice. For to what end serueth a long life? Simplie to liue, to breathe, to eat, to drinke, to see this world: for all this what needs so long time? We haue seene, knowen, tasted all in a short space; and knowing it, to desire so long a time to practise it, and still to reiterate the same thing, to what end is it? Who will not be satisfied, nay wearied, to do alwaies one and the same thing? If it be not tedious and irkesome, at the least it is superfluous: it is a turning wheele where the same

things come and go: it is alwaies to begin where we end, and to respinne the same webbe. But perhaps they will say they desire a long life to learne and to profit the more, and to pro∣ceed to a greater perfection of knowledge and vertue. Alas good soules that wee are, what should wee know, or who should teach vs? We employ but badly that little which is giuen vs, not only in vanities and those things that yeeld vs no profit, but in malice and sinne; and then we crie out and complaine, that we haue not enough giuen vnto vs. And to say the truth, to what end serues so great store of knowledge and experience, since in the end wee must leaue it and dis∣lodge it; and hauing dislodged it altogether, forget and lose it all, or know it better and otherwise? But you will say, that there are beasts that do triple and quadruple the life of man. To omit those fables that are tolde heereof; Be it so: but yet there are a number that liue not a quarter of that time that man doth, and few neither, that liue out their time. By what right or reason, or priuiledge, can man challenge a lon∣ger life than other creatures? Is it because he doth better em∣ploy it in matters more high and more worthie life? By this reason he should liue lesse time than all other creatures; for there is none comparable to man in the ill emploiment of his life, in wickednesse, ingratitude, intemperance, and all ma∣ner of disorder and immodestie in maners, as hath been shew∣ed before in the comparison of man with beasts: so that as I asked euen now, to what end a long life serued; now I aske, what euils there would be in the world, if the life of man were long? What would he not enterprise, since the shortnesse of life, which cuts off his way, and (as they say) interrupts his cast, and the vncerteinty thereof, which takes away all heart and courage, can not stay him, liuing as if he should liue euer? On the one side he feareth perceiuing himselfe to be mortall, but notwithstanding that, hee can not bridle himselfe from not coueting, hoping, enterprising, as if he were immortall. Tanquam semper victuri viuitis, nunquam vobis fragilitas vestra * 1.5 succurrit: omnia tanquam mortales timetis, tanquam immortales concupiscitis. And to say the trueth, what need hath Nature of all these great and godly enterprises and imploiments, whereby man challengeth a longer life than other creatures?

Man therefore hath no subiect whereof to complaine, but to be angrie with himselfe. We haue life enough, but we are not good husbands, we manage it not well; life is not short, but we make it so; we are not in want, but prodigall; non in∣opes vitae, sed prodigi: we lose it, we dissipate it, we vilifie it, as if it were nought worth, as if we had more than enough: we all fall into one of these three faults, either we employ it ill, or about nothing, or in vaine. Magna vitae pars elabitur male * 1.6 agentibus, maxima nihil agentibus, tota aliud agentibus. One man studieth not to liue, but rather busieth himselfe in any other thing; he shall neuer know how to do a thing well by acquitting himselfe of labour, but by care and attention. Others reserue their liues vntill they can liue no longer, then take comfort in life when there is nothing left but the lees and dregs thereof. Oh what follie, what miserie is this! Yea there are some that haue sooner ended than begunne to liue, and life is past before they thought of it. Quidam viuere in∣cipiunt, cùm desinendum; quidam antè desierunt, quàm incipe∣rent. Inter caetera mala, hoc quoque habet stultitia, semper inci∣pit viuere.

Our present life is but the entrance and end of a Tragedie, * 1.7 a perpetuall issue of errours, a web of vnhappie aduentures, a pursuit of diuers miseries inchained together on all sides; there is nothing but euill that it distilleth, that it prepareth; one euill driues forward another euill, as one waue another; torment is euer present, and the shadow of what is good de∣ceiueth vs; blindnesse and want of sense possesseth the be∣ginning of our life, the middle is euer in paine and trauell, the end in sorrow; and beginning, middle, and end in errour.

The life of man hath many discommodities and miseries common, ordinarie and perpetuall; it hath likewise some [ 4] particular and distinct, according to the diuersitie of the parts, ages and seasons; infancie, youth, virilitie, olde age, euery one haue their proper and particular discommodities.

The greatest part of the world speake more honorablie & * 1.8 fauorably of old age, as the more wise, ripe, moderat, accusing and shaming youth as vitious, foolish, licentious, but very vniustly: for in trueth the infirmities and vices of old age are more in number, more great and troublesome than those of

youth, it filles the minde more with wrinckles, then the vi∣sage; and there is not a soule growing olde, growes not sow∣er and rotten. With the body the spirit is vsed, and the worse for the vse; and at the last returns to infancy againe: bis pueri senes. Old age is a necessary and puissant malady, which loa∣deth vs insensibly with many imperfections. It were absurd to tearme wisdome a difficultie of humours, an anxietie and distaste of things present, an impotencie to doe as in former times: wisdome is too noble to be serued with such officers. To wax olde is not to wax wise, nor to take away vices; but to change them into worse. Olde age condemneth pleasure, but it is because it can not taste or relish it aright, like Esops dogge, it saith it will none of it, but it is because it can not ioy in it: for olde age leaueth not pleasure properly, but pleasure disdaines olde age; for it is alwayes wanton and sporting: and it is no reason that impotencie should corrupt iudge∣ment, which should in youth know vice in pleasure, and in olde age pleasure in vice. The vices of youth are temeritie, indiscreet forwardnesse, and vnbridled libertie and ouergree∣die desire of pleasure; which are naturall things proceeding from the heat of the blood and naturall vigour, and therefore the more excusable; but the vices of olde age are farre other∣wise. The lighter are a vaine and fraile proteruitie, an enur∣ous pratling, insociable humours, superstition, care to get ri∣ches, euen then when the vse of them is lost, a sottish auarice, and feare of death, which proceedeth properly, not from the want of spirit and courage, as they say, but because olde men are long acquainted and as it were cockered in this world, whereby their affections are knit vnto it; which is not in yoong men: but besides these they are enuious, froward, vn∣iust: but that which is most sottish and ridiculous in them, is that they would not only be reuerenced but feared, and there∣fore they put vpon them an austere looke and disdainfull, thinking thereby to extort feare and obedience: but they are therein much deceiued, for this stately and furious gesture is receiued of youth with mockerie and laughter, being practi∣sed only to blinde their eyes, and of purpose to hide and dis∣guise the truth of things. There are in old age so many faults on the one side, and so many impotencies on the other, and

therefore so fit for contempt, that the best way to compasse their desires is loue and affection: for command and feare are no longer fit armes for them. It ill befits them to make them∣selues to be feared: and though they could doe it, yet loue and honour is a fairer purchase.

Notes

• * 1.1

  1 Of the esti∣mation and woorth of life.
• * 1.2

  Seneca.
• * 1.3

  See heereof lib. 2. ca. 11.
• * 1.4

  2 Of the length and breuitie of life.
• * 1.5

  Seneca.
• * 1.6

  Seneca. Looke lib. 3. cap. 6.
• * 1.7

  3 A descripti∣on of the life of man.
• * 1.8

  5 A compari∣son betwixt youth and olde age.