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

CHAP. VI.

Of the iustice and dutie of man towards himselfe.

THis is sufficientlie conteined in this whole worke; in the first booke which teacheth a man to know himselfe, and all humane condition; in the second, which teacheth a man to be wise, and to that end giueth aduisements and rules; and in the rest of this booke, especiallie in the vertues of fortitude and temperance. Neuerthelesse I will heere summarilie set downe some aduisement, more expresse and formall.

The first and fundamentall aduice is, to resolue not to liue carelessie, after an vncertaine fashion, and by chance and ad∣uenture, as almost all are accustomed to doe, who seeme to mocke and deceiue themselues, and not to liue in good ear∣nest, not leading their life seriouslie and attentiuely, but li∣uing from day to day, as it falleth out. They taste not, they possesse not, they enioy not their life: but they vse it to make

vse of other things. Their designments and occupations doe many times trouble, and hurt their life more than doe it ser∣uice. These kind of people doe all things in good earnest, ex∣cept it be to liue. All their actions, and the lesser parts of their life are serious, but the whole body thereof passeth away as if they thought not thereof: it is a bare supposition, that is not worth the thinking of. That which is but an accident is prin∣cipall vnto them, and the principall as an accessarie. They affect and incline themselues to all things, some to get know∣ledge, honours, dignities, riches: others to take their plea∣sures, to hunt, to sport themselues, to passe away the time; others to speculations, imaginations, inuentions: others to manage and order affaires: others to other things; but to liue is the least they thinke of. They liue as it were insensibly, being wholly addicted, and fastning their thoughts vpon o∣ther things. Life is vnto them but as a tearme, and a procra∣stination or delaie to employ it about other things. Now all this is very vniust, it is an infelicity and treason against a mans selfe: it is for a man to lose his life, and to goe against that which euery man should doe, that is, liue seriously, attentiue∣lie, and cheerefully, bene viuere & laetari: sibi semper valere & viuere doctus, to the end he may liue well, and well die: it is the fault of euery man. A man must lead and order his life, as if it were a businesse of great waight and consequence, and as a bargaine made whereof he must giue an account exactly by parts and parcels. It is our greatest businesse, in respect wher∣of all the rest are but toies, things accessarie and superficiall. There are some that deliberate and purpose to doe it, but it is when they must liue no longer, wherein they resemble those that put off their buying and selling till the market bee past, and when they see their follie, they complaine saying, Shall I neuer haue leisure to make my retrait, to liue vnto my selfe? quàm serum est incipere viuere cùm desinendum est? quàm stulta mortalitatis obliuio? dum differtur, vita transcurrit. And * 1.1 this is the reason why the wise crie out vnto vs, well to vse the time, tempori parce; That wee haue not need of any thing so much as time, saith Zenon. For life is short, and arte is long; not the arte to heale, but rather to liue, which is wisdome.

To this first and principall aduice, these following doe serue:

To learne to dwell, to content, to delight himselfe alone, yea to quit himselfe of the world if need bee; the greatest [ 2] thing is for a man to know how to bee to himselfe; vertue is content with it selfe, let vs winne so much of our selues, as to be able in good earnest and willingly to liue alone, and to liue at our ease. Let vs learne to quit our selues of all those bands that fasten and binde vs to another, and that our contentment depend of our selues, neither seeking nor disdaining or refu∣sing company, but cheerefully to goe on with or without companie, as either our owne, or anothers need do require: but yet not so to shut vp our selues, and to settle and establish our pleasure as some that are halfe lost being alone. A man must haue within himselfe wherwith to entertaine & content himselfe, & in sinu suo gaudere, He that hath woon this point pleaseth himselfe in all places and in all things. He must cary a countenance conformable to the company and the affaires that are in hand and present themselues, and accommodate himselfe vnto another, be sad if need be, but inwardly to keep himselfe one and the same: this is the meditation and consi∣deration, which is the nourishment and life of the spirit, cuius viuere est cogitare. Now for the benefit of nature, there is not any businesse which we do more often, continue longer, that is more easie, more naturall, and more our owne, than to me∣ditate, and to entertaine our thoughts. But this meditation is not in all after one maner, but very diuers, according to the diuersity of spirits. In some it is weake, in others strong; in some it is languishing idlenesse, a vacancy and want of other businesse. But the greater spirits make it their principall vacation and most serious study, whereby they are neuer more busied, nor lesse alone, (as it is said of Scipio) than when they are alone, and quitting themselues of affaires, in imitati∣on of God himselfe, who liueth and feedeth himselfe with his eternall thoughts and meditations. It is the businesse of the goddes (saith Aristotle) from whence doth spring both their, * 1.2 and our blessednesse.

Now this solitary imployment, and this cheerefull enter∣tainment

of a mans selfe, must not be in vanity, much lesse in any thing that is vitious; but in study and profound know∣ledge, and afterwards in the diligent culture of himselfe. This is the price agreed, the principall, first and plainest trauell of euerie man. Hee must alwaies watch, taste, sound himselfe, neuer abandon, but be alwaies neere, and keepe himselfe to himselfe: and finding that manie things go not well, whether by reason of vice, and defect of nature, or the contagion of a∣nother, or other casuall accident that troubleth him, hee must quietlie and sweetlie correct them, and prouide for them. He must reason with himselfe, correct and recall himselfe coura∣giouslie, and not suffer himselfe to be caried away either with disdaine or carelesnesse.

He must likewise in auoiding all idlenesse, which doth but * 1.3 rust and marre both the soule and body, keepe himselfe al∣waies in breath, in office and exercise, but yet not ouer bent, violent and painfull, but aboue all, honest, vertuous and seri∣ous. And that he may the better do it, he must quit himselfe of other businesse, and propose vnto himselfe such design∣ments as may delight him, conferring with honest men, and good bookes, dispensing his time well, and well ordering his houres, and not liue tumultuouslie and by chaunce and ha∣zard.

Again, he must well husband, and make profit of all things * 1.4 that are presented vnto him, done, said, and make them an in∣struction vnto him, applie them vnto himselfe, without any shew or semblance thereof.

And to particularise a little more, we know that the duty of man towards himselfe consisteth in three points, according * 1.5 to his three parts, to rule and gouerne his spirit, his body, his goods. Touching his spirit (the first and principall, whereunto especially do belong these generall aduisements which we are to deliuer) we know that all the motions there∣of are reduced to two, to thinke, and to desire, the vnderstan∣ding and the will; whereunto do answer science and vertue, the two ornaments of the spirit. Touching the former, which is the vnderstanding, he must preserue it from two things, in some sort contrarie and extreame, that is, sottishnesse and follie, that is to say, from vanities and childish follies, on the

one side; this is to bastardise and to lose it: it was not made to play the nouice or baboun, non ad iocum & lusum genitus, sed ad seueritatem potius; and from phantasticall, absurd, and ex∣trauagant opinions, on the other side; this is to pollute and debase it. It must be fed and entertained with things profita∣ble and serious, and furnished and indued with sound, sweet, and naturall opinions: and so much care must not be taken to eleuate and mount it, to extend it beyond the reach as to rule, and order it. For order and continencie is the effect of wis∣dome, and which giueth price to the soule, and aboue all to be free from presumption and obstinacie in opinion; vices very familiar with those that haue any extraordinarie force and vigor of spirit; and rather to continue in doubt and suspence, especiallie in things that are doubtfull, and capable of oppo∣sitions and reasons on both parts, not easily digested and de∣termined. It is an excellent thing, and the securest way, well to know how to doubt, and to be ignorant, and the most no∣ble philosophers, haue not beene ashamed to make profession thereof, yea it is the principall fruit and effect of science.

Touching the will, it must in all things be gouerned and [ 7] submit it selfe to the rule of reason, which is the office of ver∣tue, and not vnto fleeting inconstant opinion, which is com∣monly false, and much lesse vnto passion. These are the three that moue and gouerne our soules. But yet this is the diffe∣rence, that a wise man ruleth and rangeth himselfe according to nature and reason, regardeth his duty, holdeth for apocry∣phall, and suspects whatsoeuer dependeth vpon opinion, or passion: and therfore he liueth in peace, passeth away his life cheerefully and pleasingly, is not subiect to repentance, re∣cantations, changes; because whatsoeuer falleth out, he could neither do, nor choose better, and therfore he is neuer kind∣led nor stirred; for reason is alwaies peaceable. The foole that suffereth himselfe to bee led by these two, doth nothing but wander and warre with himselfe, and neuer resteth. He is alwaies readuising, changing, mending, repenting, and is ne∣uer contented; which, to say the truth, belongeth to a wise man, who hath reason and vertue to make himselfe such a one. Nulla placidior quies nisi quam ratio composuit. An honest man must gouerne and respect himselfe, and feare his reason

and his conscience, which is his bonus genius, his good spirit, in such sort that hee cannot without shame stumble in their presence, rarum est, vt satis se quisque vereatur.

As touching the bodie, we owe thereunto assistance, and [ 8] conduct or direction. It is follie to goe about to separate and sunder these two principall parts the one from the other; but contrarily it is fit and necessarie they be vnited and ioyned together. Nature hath giuen vs a bodie as a necessarie instru∣ment to life: and it is fit that the spirit as the principall should take vpon it the guardianship & protection of the bodie. So farre should it be from seruing the bodie, which is the most base, vniust, shamefull, and burthensome seruitude that is, that it should assist, counsell it, and be as a husband vnto it. So that it oweth thereunto care, not seruice: It must handle it as a lord, not as a tyrant; nourish it, not pamper it, giuing it to vn∣derstand, that it liueth not for it, but that it cannot liue heere below without it. This is an instruction to the workeman, to know how to vse, and make vse of his instruments. And it is likewise no small aduantage to a man, to know how to vse his bodie, and to make it a fit instrument for the exercise of ver∣tue. Finallie, the bodie is preserued in good estate by mode∣rate nourishment and orderly exercise. How the spirit must haue a part, and beare it companie in those pleasures that be∣long vnto it, hath been said before, and shall heereafter be set downe in the vertue of temperance.

Touching goods and the dutie of euery man in this case, there are many and diuers offices, for to gather riches, to keep [ 9] them, to husband them, to employ them, to yeeld vnto them all that is fit, are different sciences. One is wise in the one of them, that in the other vnderstandeth nothing, neither is it fit he should. The acquisition of riches hath more parts than the rest. The employment is more glorious and ambitious. The preseruation and custodie, which is proper to the woman, is the arbour to couer them.

These are two extremities alike vitious, to loue and affect riches: to hate and reiect them. By riches I vnderstand that which is more than enough, and more than is needfull. A wise man will do neither of both, according to that wish and praier of Salomon, Giue me neither riches nor pouertie: but he will

hold them in their place, esteeming them as they are, a thing of it selfe indifferent, matter of good and euill, and to many good things commodious.

The euils and miseries that follow the affecting and ha∣ting of them, haue been spoken of before. Now in fiue words we set downe a rule touching a mediocritie therein. 1. To de∣sire them, but not to loue them, sapiens non amat diuitias, sed mauult. As a little man and weake of bodie, would willinglie be higher and stronger, but this his desire is without care or paine vnto himselfe, seeking that without passion which na∣ture desireth, and fortune knoweth not how to take from him. 2. And much lesse to seeke them at the cost and dammage of another, or by arte, and bad and base meanes, to the end no man should complaine or enuie his gaines. 3. When they come vpon him, entring at an honest gate, not to reiect them, but cheerfullie to accept them, and to receiue them into his house, not his heart; into his possession, not his loue, as being vnworthie thereof. 4. When he possesseth them, to employ them honestlie and discreetlie, to the good of other men; that their departure may, at the least, be as honest as their entrance. 5. If they happen to depart without leaue, be lost or stollen from him, that he be not sorrowfull, but that he suffer them to depart with themselues, without any thing of his, si diuitiae effluxerint, non auferent nisi semetipsas. To conclude, he deser∣ueth not to be accepted of God, and is vnworthie his loue, and the profession of vertue, that makes account of the riches of this world.

Aude hospes contemnere, & te quoque dignum singe deo.

Of the iustice and dutie of man towards man. An aduertisment.

THis dutie is great, and hath many parts, we will reduce them to two great ones: In the first we will place the ge∣nerall, simple, and common duties required in all, and euery one, towards all and euery one, whether in heart, word, or

deed, which are amitie, faith, veritie, and free admonition, good deeds, humanitie, liberalitie, acknowledgement or thank∣fulnes. In the second shall be the speciall duties required for some speciall and expresse reason and obligation betweene certaine persons, as betweene a man and his wife, parents and children, masters and seruants, princes and subiects, magi∣strates, the great and powerfull, and the lesse.

The first part, which is of the generall and com∣mon duties of all towards all, and first

Notes

• * 1.1

  See lib. 1. chap. 36.
• * 1.2

  3 To know and culture himselfe.
• * 1.3

  4 To keepe himselfe in exercise.
• * 1.4

  5 To make vse of all things.
• * 1.5

  6 To gouerne his spirit, that is, his iudgement.