Selected quad for the lemma: life_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
life_n	child_n	parent_n	treble_a	16	3	16.0090	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53049	Observations upon experimental philosophy to which is added The description of a new blazing world / written by the thrice noble, illustrious, and excellent princesse, the Duchess of Newcastle.	Newcastle, Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of, 1624?-1674.	1666 (1666)	Wing N857; ESTC R32311	312,134	638

answered That by an annihilation nothing could be produced and that the seeds of Vegetables were so far from being annihilated in their productions that they did rather numerously increase and multiply for the division of one seed said they does produce numbers of seeds out of it self But replied the Empress A particular part cannot increase of it self 'T is true answer'd they but they increase not barely of themselves but by joining and commixing with other parts which do assist them in their productions and by way of imitation form or figure their own parts into such or such particulars Then I pray inform me said the Emperess what disguise those seeds put on and how they do conceal themselves in their transmutations They answered That seeds did no ways disguise or conceal but rather divulge themselves in the multiplication of their off-spring onely they did hide and conceal themselves from their sensitive perceptions so that their figurative and productive motions were not perceptible by animal Creatures Again the Emperess asked them whether there were any Non-beings within the Earth To which they answered That they never heard of any such thing and that if her Majesty would know the truth thereof she must ask those Creatures that are called Immaterial Spirits which had a great affinity with Non-beings and perhaps could give her a satisfactory answer to this question Then she desired to be informed what opinion they had of the beginning of forms They told her Majesty That they did not understand what she meant by this expression For said they there is no beginning in Nature no not of Particulars by reason Nature is Eternal and Infinite and her particulars are subject to infinite changes and transmutations by vertue of their own corporeal figurative self-motions so that there 's nothing new in Nature nor properly a beginning of any thing The Emperess seem'd well satisfied with all those answers and inquired further whether there was no Art used by those Creatures that live within the Earth Yes answered they for the several parts of the Earth do join and assist each other in composition or framing of such or such particulars and many times there are factions and divisions which cause productions of mixt species's as for example weeds instead of sweet flowers and useful fruits but Gardeners and Husbandmen use often to decide their quarrels and cause them to agree which though it shews a kindness to the differing parties yet 't is a great prejudice to the Worms and other animal Creatures that live under ground for it most commonly causes their dissolution and ruine at best they are driven out of their habitations What said the Emperess are not Worms produced out of the Earth Their production in general answered they is like the production of all other natural Creatures proceeding from the corporeal figurative motions of Nature but as for their particular productions they are according to the nature of their species some are produced out of flowers some out of roots some out of fruits some out of ordinary Earth Then they are very ungrateful Children replied the Emperess that they feed on their own Parents which gave them life Their life answered they is their own and not their Parents for no part or creature of Nature can either give or take away life but parts do onely assist and join with parts either in the dissolution or production of other parts and Creatures After this and several other Conferences which the Emperess held with the Worm-men she dismissed them and having taken much satisfaction in several of their answers encouraged them in their studies and observations Then she made a convocation of her Chymists the Ape-men and commanded them to give her an account of the several Transmutations which their Art was able to produce They begun first with a long and tedious discourse concerning the Primitive Ingredients of Natural bodies and how by their Art they had found out the principles out of which they consist But they did not all agree in their opinions for some said That the Principles of all natural bodies were the four Elements Fire Air Water Earth out of which they were composed Others rejected this Elementary commixture and said There were many bodies out of which none of the four Elements could be extracted by any degree of Fire whatsoever and that on the other side there were divers bodies whose resolution by fire reduced them into more then four different ingredients and these affirmed that the onely principles of natural bodies were Salt Sulphur and Mercury Others again declared That none of the forementioned could be called the True principles of natural bodies but that by their industry and pains which they had taken in the Art of Chymistry they had discovered that all natural bodies were produced but from one Principle which was Water for all Vegetables Minerals and Animals said they are nothing else but simple water distinguished into various figures by the vertue of their seeds But after a great many debates and contentions about this subject the Emperess being so much tired that she was not able to hear them any longer imposed a general silence upon them and then declared her self in this following discourse I am too sensible of the pains you have taken in the Art of Chymistry to discover the principles of natural bodies and wish they had been more profitably bestowed upon some other then such experiments for both by my own contemplation and the observations which I have made by my rational and sensitive perception upon Nature and her works I find that Nature is but one Infinite self-moving body which by the vertue of its self-motion is divided into infinite parts which parts being restless undergo perpetual changes and transmutations by their infinite compositions and divisions Now if this be so as surely according to regular sense and reason it appears no otherwise it is in vain to look for primary ingredients or constitutive principles of natural bodies since there is no more but one Universal principle of Nature to wit self-moving Matter which is the onely cause of all natural effects Next I desire you to consider that Fire is but a particular Creature or effect of Nature and occasions not onely different effects in several bodies but on some bodies has no power at all witness Gold which never could be brought yet to change its interior figure by the art of Fire and if this be so Why should you be so simple as to believe that fire can shew you the principles of Nature and that either the four Elements or Water onely or Salt Sulphur and Mercury all which are no more but particular effects and Creatures of Nature should be the Primitive ingredients or Principles of all natural bodies Wherefore I will not have you to take more pains and waste your time in such fruitless attempts but be wiser hereafter and busie your selves with such Experiments as may be beneficial to the publick The Emperess having

of it self it is not improbable but it may also have an interior fixt and innate knowledg of the Existency of God as that he is to be adored and worshipped And thus the Inanimate part may after its own manner worship and adore God as much as the other parts in their way for it is probable that God having endued all parts of Nature with self-knowledg may have given them also an Interior knowledg of himself that is of his Existency how he is the God of Nature and ought to be worshipped by her as his Eternal servant My later Thoughts excepted That not any Creature did truly know it self much less could it be capable of knowing God The former answered That this was caused through the variety of self-motion for all Creatures said they are composed of many several parts and every part has its own particular self-knowledg as well as self-motion which causes an ignorance between them for one parts knowledg is not another parts knowledg nor does one part know what another knows but all knowledg of exterior parts comes by perception nevertheless each part knows it self and its own actions and as there is an ignorance between parts so there is also an acquaintance especially in the parts of one composed Creature and the rational parts being most subtile active and free have a more general acquaintance then the sensitive besides the sensitive many times inform the rational and the rational the sensitive which causes a general agreement of all the parts of a composed figure in the execution of such actions as belong to it But how is it possible replied my later Thoughts that the inanimate part of matter can be living and self-knowing and yet not self-moving for Life and Knowledg cannot be without self-motion and therefore if the inanimate parts have Life and Knowledg they must necessarily also have self-motion The former answered That Life and Knowledg did no ways depend upon self-motion for had Nature no motion at all yet might she have Life and Kowledg so that self-motion is not the cause of Life and Knowledg but onely of Perception and all the various actions of Nature and this is the reason said they that the inanimate part of matter is not perceptive because it is not self-moving for though it hath life and self-knowledg as well as the Animate part yet it has not an active life nor a perceptive knowledg By which you may see that a fixt and interior self-knowledg may very well be without exterior perception for though perception presupposes an innate self-knowledg as its ground and principle yet self-knowledg does not necessarily require perception which is onely caused by self-motion for self-motion as it is the cause of the variety of Natures parts and actions so it is also of their various perceptions If it was not too great a presumtion said they we could give an instance of God who has no local self-motion and yet is infinitely knowing But we 'l forbear to go so high as to draw the Infinite Incomprehensible God to the proofs of Material Nature My later Thoughts replied first That if it were thus then one and the same parts of matter would have a double life and a double knowledg Next they said That if perception were an effect of self-motion then God himself must necessarily be self-moving or else he could not perceive Nature and her parts and actions Concerning the first objection my former thoughts answered That the parts of Nature could have a double life and knowledg no more then one man could be call'd double or treble You might as well said they make millions of men of one particular man nay call every part or action of his a peculiliar man as make one and the same part of matter have a double life and knowledg But mistake us not added my former thoughts when we say that one and the same part cannot have a double life and knowledg for we mean not the composed creatures of Nature which as they consist of several degrees of matter so they have also several degrees of lives and knowledges but it is to be understood of the essential or constitutive parts of Nature for as the rational part is not nor can be the sensitive part so it can neither have a sensitive knowledg no more can a sensitive part have a rational knowledg or either of these the knowledg of the inanimate part but each part retains its own life and knowledg Indeed it is with these parts as it is with particular creatures for as one man is not another man nor has another mans knowledg so it is likewise with the mentioned parts of matter and although the animate parts have an interior innate self-knowledg and an exterior perceptive knowledg yet these are not double knowledges but perception is onely an effect of interior self-knowledg occasioned by self-motion And as for the second they answered That the Divine Perception and Knowledg was not any ways like a natural Perception no more than God was like a Creature for Nature said they is material and her perceptions are amongst her infinite parts caused by their compositions and divisions but God is a Supernatural Individable and Incorporeal Being void of all Parts and Divisions and therefore he cannot be ignorant of any the least thing but being Infinite he has an Infinite Knowledg without any Degrees Divisions or the like actions belonging to Material Creatures Nor is he naturally that is locally self-moving but he is a fixt unalterable and in short an incomprehensible Being and therefore no comparison can be made between Him and Nature He being the Eternal God and Nature his Eternal Servant Then my later Thoughts said That as for the knowledg of God they would not dispute of it but if there was a fixt and interior innate knowledg in all Natures parts and Creatures it was impossible that there could be any error or ignorance between them The former answered that although Errors belonged to particulars as well as ignorance yet they proceeded not from interior self-knowledg but either from want of exterior particular knowledges or from the irregularity of motions and Ignorance was likewise a want not of interior but exterior knowledg otherwise called Perceptive knowledg for said they Parts can know no more of other parts but by their own perceptions and since no particular Creature or part of Nature can have an Infallible Universal and thorow perception of all other parts it can neither have an infallible and universal knowledg but it must content it self with such a knowledg as is within the reach of its own perceptions and hence it follows that it must be ignorant of what it does not know for Perception has but onely a respect to the exterior figures and actions of other parts and though the Rational part is more subtil and active then the Sensitive and may have also some perceptions of some interior parts and actions of other Creatures yet it cannot have an