St. Augustine, Of the citie of God vvith the learned comments of Io. Lod. Viues. Englished by I.H.

L. VIVES.

BY (a) Goetia] It is enchantment, a kinde of witch-craft. Goetia, Magia, and Pharmacia * 1.1

(saith Suidas) are diuers kindes: inuented all in Persia. Magike, is the inuocation of deuills, but those to good endes, as Apollonius Tyaneus vsed in his presages. Goetie worketh vpon * 1.2 the dead by inuocation, so called of the noyse that the practisers hereof make about graues. Pharmacia, worketh all by charmed potions thereby procuring death: Magike, and Astrolo∣gy, * 1.3 Magusis (they say) inuented: And the Persian Mages had that name from their countrimen, and so had they the name of Magusii. Thus farre Suidas. (b) Theurgy] It calleth out the su∣perior * 1.4 gods, wherein when wee erre (saith Iamblichus) then doe not the good gods appeare, but badde ones in their places. So that a most diligent care must bee had in this operation, to obserue the priests old tradition to a haires bredth. (c) Witches] Many hold that witches, and charmes neuer can hurt a man, but it is his owne conceite that doth it: Bodies may hurt bo∣dies naturally (saith Plato de leg lib. 11.) and those that goe about any such mischiefe with magicall enchantments, or bondes, as they call them, thinke they can hurt others, and that others by art Goetique, may hurt them. But how this may bee in nature, is neither easie to know, not make others know: though men haue a great opinion of the power of Images: and therefore let this stand for a lawe. If any one doe hurt another by empoysoning, though not deadly, nor any of his house or family, but his cattell, or his bees, if hee hurt them how∣soeuer, beeing a Phisition, and conuict of the guilt; let him die the death: if hee did it igno∣rantly, let the iudges fine or punish him at their pleasures. If any one bee conuicted of do∣ing * 1.5 such hurt by charmes, or incantations, if hee bee a priest, or a sooth-saier, let him die the death: but if any one doe it that is ignorant of these artes, let him bee punishable as the law pleaseth in equity. Thus farre Plato, de legib. lib 11. Porphyry saith that the euill Daemones are euermore the effectors of witch-crafts: and that they are chiefly to bee adored that o∣uerthrow them. These deuills haue all shapes to take, that they please, and are most cunning and couzening in their prodigious shewes, these also worke in these 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, those vnfortu∣nate loues: all intemperancy, couetice and ambition, doe these supplie men with, and especi∣ally with deceipt: for their propriety most especiall is lying. De animal. abst. lib. 2. (d) Fal∣ters] As seeing the deuills trickes in these workes, selling themselues to vs by those illusiue o∣perations. But Iamblichus beeing initiate and (as hee thought) more religious, held, that the arte was not wholy reproueable, (beeing of that industrie and antiquity) because that some-times it gulles the artiste: the priests must therefore diuide the spirits into Classes, and remember that no good spirit will bragge of his cunning. (e) Spirituall] Wherein are the abstracts of externall obiects, all reserued, and sent to the common sence, the phantasie, the estimation, and the memory: these, beasts haue aswell as wee, beeing common receipts of the sensible obiects in both: but then wee haue the minde, and the ponderatiue iudgement of reason, consisting of the two intellects the Recipient, and the agent: last of all is the will. (g) Skie] Plato to beginne with the King in this ranke) saith that the first kind of gods haue in∣uisible bodies: the second spred through heauen, and visible: the third the Daemons bodies, * 1.6 two-fold: the first ethereall, more pure then the other in substance: the second ayry, and more grosser, but neither of these intirely visible: there are also the Semi-gods with warry bodies, seene, and vnseene when they list, and when wee see them their transparent light formes make vs wonder. In Epinom. Psellus. (Out of one Marke a skilfull Daemonist▪ relateth sixe kindes of Daemones. First the fiery, called in Barbarian Batleliureon, and these wander in the toppe of the ayry region (for hee keepes all the Daemones as profaine creatures (out of a temple) vnder * 1.7 the moone). 2. the ayry, nearer vnto vs. 3. the earthly, dwelling vpon the earth, perillous foes vnto mankinde. 4. watry, dwelling in riuers, lakes and springs, drowning men often, raysing stormes at sea, and sinking shippes. 5. the subterrene, that liue in caues, and kill well-diggers, and miners for mettalls, causing earth-quakes, and eruptions of flames, and pestilent winds. 6. night-walkers, the darke and most inscrutable kinde, striking all things they meet with cold passions. And all those deuills (saith hee) hate both gods and men but some worse then others. Then hee proceedes to describe how they hurt men, too tediously for me to dilate. Porphyry reckneth gods that are either heauenly, ethereall, ayry, watry, earthly, or infernall, and assignes euery one their proper sacrifice. The earthly must haue blacke beasts vpon alta•…•… so must the infernall, but in graues: the watry gods will haue black-birds throwne into the * 1.8 sea, the ayry, white birds, killed. The celestiall and etheriall white sacrifices also that must 〈◊〉〈◊〉 bee diminished, and much more of this madnesse hath he in his booke called Resp. ex orac. A∣poll. Nor are they new inuentions, but drawne all from Orpheus and Mercury, Mercury left

saith Iamblichus,) an hundred bookes of the Empyreall: an hundred of the Ethereall: and a thousand of the celestiall. Proclus diuides the deuills into fiue regimentes rather then siue kinds destinguishing them by their functions. But of this, inough. Augustin out of Porphyry calls their firy gods Empyreal, whom both Plato and Porphyry seeme not to distin∣guish from the celestiall, whom they make of fiery nature.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Goetia,
• * 1.2

  Magike.
• * 1.3

  Pharmacy.
• * 1.4

  Theurgy.
• * 1.5

  Plato's law,
• * 1.6

  Platos gods.
• * 1.7

  Psellus his Daemones.
• * 1.8

  Porphyries gods.