Three books of occult philosophy written by Henry Cornelius Agrippa of Nettesheim ... ; translated out of the Latin into the English tongue by J.F.

CHAP. XXXVII. How by some certain naturall, and artificiall preparations we may attract certain Celestiall, and vitall gifts.

PLatonists, together with Hermes, say, and Jarchus Brach∣manus, and the Mecubals of the Hebrews confess, that all sublunary things are subject to generation, and corruption, and that also there are the same things in the Celestiall world, but after a Celestiall manner, as also in the intellectuall world, but in a far more perfect, and better fashion, and manner, but in the most perfect manner of all in the examplary. And after this course, that every inferiour should in its kind answer its superiour, and through this the supream it self, and re∣ceive from heaven that Celestiall power which they call the

quintessence, or the spirit of the world, or the middle nature, and from the intellectuall world a spirituall and enlivening vertue transcending all qualities whatsoever, and lastly from the exemplary or originall world, through the mediation of the other, according to their degree receive the originall power of the whole perfection. Hence every thing may be aptly reduced from these inferiours to the Stars, from the Stars to their Intelligencies, and from thence to the first cause it self; from the series, and order whereof whole Magick, and all occult Philosophy flowes: For every day some naturall thing is drawn by art, and some divine thing drawn by nature, which the Egyptians seeing, called Nature a Magicianess, (i. e.) the very Magicall power it self, in the attracting of like by like, and of sutable things by sutable. Now such kind of at∣tractions by the mutuall correspondency of things amongst themselves, of superiours with inferiours, the Grecians called 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. So the earth agrees with cold water, the water with moist Aire, the Aire with Fire, the Fire with the Hea∣ven in water; neither is Fire mixed with water, but by Aire, nor the Aire with the Earth, but by water. So neither is the soul united to the body, but by the spirit, nor the undestand∣ing to the spirit but by the soul. So we see when nature hath framed the body of the infant, by this very preparative she presently fetcheth the spirit from the Universe. This spirit is the instrument to obtain of God the understanding, and mind in the soul, and body, as in wood the dryness is fitted to re∣ceive oile, and the oile being imbibed is food for the Fire, the Fire is the vehiculum of light. By these examples you see how by some certain naturall, and artificiall preparations, we are in a capacity to receive certain Celestiall gifts from above. For stones, and Metals have a correspondency with Hearbs, Hearbs with Animals, Animals with the Heavens, the Hea∣vens with Intelligencies and those with divine properties, and attributes, and with God himself, after whose image, and likness all things are created. Now the first Image of God is the world, of the world, man, of man, beasts of beasts, the Zeophyton (i. e.) half Aniamll, and half Plant; of Zeophy∣ton,

plants, of plants, metals, of metals, stones. And again in things spirituall, the Plant agrees with a bruit in Vegetation, a bruit with a man in sense, man with an Angel in understand∣ing an Angell with God in immortality. Divinity is annex∣ed to the mind, the mind to the intellect, the intellect to the intention, the intention to the imagination, the imagination to the senses, the senses at last to things. For this is the band, and continuity of nature, that all superiour vertue doth flow through every inferiour with a long, and continued series, dis∣persing its rayes even to the very last things; and inferiours through their superiours, come to the very supream of all. For so inferiours are successively joyned to their superiours, that there proceeds an influence from their head, the first cause, as a certain string stretched out, to the lowermost things of all, of which string if one end be touched, the whole doth presently shake, and such a touch doth sound to the other end, and at the motion of the inferiour, the superiour also is mo∣ved, to which the other doth answer, as strings in a Lute well tuned.