corruptible Things and as they are unable to perpetuate themselves they can't be capable of eternizing their Objects This would be but to perpetuate Shadows and how should they perpetuate the Sensation Nos quoque floruimus sed Flos fuit ille caducus I think we should not be guilty of a greater Extravagance if by the Effort of our Desires we should at length be brought to doubt of our Mortality than whilst by the Seduction of our Heart we search for so vain an Immortality I know indeed that no Man seriously denies himself to be subject to the Fate of Death but yet scarcely any Man perhaps tells himself in earnest that he shall Die For tho' these two Terms have too true a Relation yet no one is willing to joyn 'em together and if we do happen to consider 'em 't is with a Design to dis-unite and part ' em We shall be apt to consider Death without considering our selves or our selves without considering Death We never love to connect those Ideas both together and certainly nothing can be imagin'd let Men think what they please of it more extraordinary and more uneasy to the Heart than the Conjunction of these two Sentiments in our Imagination Yet this is not all self-Self-love undertakes to fix the Pleasure which rises from the Acquisition of temporal Goods with this Design it seeks to have a frequent Enjoyment of the Good it possesses whether by Thought representing it to its Mind as often and in as lively a manner as is possible or by endeavouring to invent new Methods of enjoining the Pleasure whereunto it is accustomed 'T was a great Extravagance in Caligula to propose the making his Horse Consul to have him led before the Senate in Consular Robes and the Bundles of Rods carried before him But this Extravagance which so much grates and contradicts the Mind was a Feast of Delights to such an Heart as being us'd to Supream Power and scarcely perceiving it now found out a Means of giving it self an Air of Novelty by the singularity of its Gust and the Fantasticalness of its Capricio Caligula in his Folly had the Pleasure of seeing how much other Men were subject to his Dominion Lastly Self-love which one would think ought to be dis-abus'd of the excessive Opinion it conceiv'd of temporal Goods when it sees what a great Vacuity they leave in our Heart yet puts upon it self a further Illusion For finding that this Measure of temporal Goods which it has obtain'd can't render it Happy it pre-possesseth it self with Thoughts of finding that Happiness in the Quantity which it could not meet with iâ— the Quality of these Advantages Thus a Rich Man who ought to have dis-abus'd himself as to the Vanity of Riches by the Experience he makes of 'em feeds himself with a Fancy that he shall be Happy when he has made a further Augmentation of his Treasures and as the Degrees of temporal Prosperity are not limited no wonder if in what State soever he be he form a Succession of new Desires And because our Soul sees that worldly Goods are less considerable by their Reality than Fictitiousness 't is so Ingenious as to deceive it self in this too it covets the Esteem of other Men and would fain be thought happy by the Mind 's of the Multitude that it may hereafter make use of this Esteem to cheat and warrant it self of Happiness upon the Word of those that don't know us Oh! 'T is a brave and delightful Object for a Grandee to behold the covetous and interested Rabble cringing at his Heels whose Officiousness plainly shews what Opinion they have of Greatness This perswades him that he is not mistaken in thinking that his lofty Elevation render'd him Happy And if the inward Experience he has of his Condition does not suit with his Conception he suspends the sad Reflections of his Mind and says to himself that doubtless so many Persons who esteem him Happy can't be mistaken and resolves to be satisfy'd with his Condition maugre all the Sense and Experience of his Misery I very well know that Men many times discourag'd by some Danger or present Misfortune which mâ—kes a lively and deep Impression upon their Heart dislike their own Condition and envy other Men's But this Dislike is quickly over it vanishes with the Object which gave it Birth and pleasant Ideas succeeding in the place of sad and unpleasant which had struck and as it were wounded our Soul by rushing impetuously into the Mind then we see none but the best side of our Condition and re-assume the Bent of our former Designs This is what one of the most Facetious Wits of Augustus's Time express'd with a great deal of Plainness and Elegance in one of his Satyrs Qui fit Maecenas ut Nemo quam sibi sortem Seu Ratio dederit seu sors objecerit illâ Contentus vivat laudet diversa sequentes O fortunati Mercatores gravis Annis Miles ait multo jam fractus membra Labore Contra Mercator navem jactantibus Austris Militia est potior quid enim concurritur horae Momento cita Mors venit aut victoria laeta Agricolam laudat Juris Legumque peritus Sub Galli cantu Consultor ubi Ostia pulsat Ille datis Vadibus qui rure extractus in VrbeÌ„ est Sâ—â—os felices viventes clamat in Vrbe And certainly 't is not greatly to be wonder'd that other Men's Conditions seem better than our own in the Eyes of Self-love seeing that we feel the Pressure of our own Evils and Miseries but not of theirs and their Enjoyments appear without any Allay of Unhappiness and Trouble because we see but the meer surface and out-side of their Condition But lastly whether it be the Idea of those temporal Goods which we our selves possess or the Image of other Men's Goods that so advantagiously Prejudices and Bigots us to the Esteem of worldly Enjoyments 't is certain that our Conception of 'em is very extravagant and herein Men commonly place their Supream Good For to do this 't is not necessary that our Mind should expresly and distinctly judge the World to be the Soveraign Good nor yet that our Mouth should openly pronounce so in plain Terms Man is naturally too Glorious and Proud to think or speak very gross and sensible Absurdities but he loves the World so much as to say it in his Heart tho' not in his Mind But 't will not be amiss to continue our Consideration of the most general Inclinations of the Heart which proceed from Self-love For we shall easily know the Rivulets after we have throughly discovered the Springs CHAP. XI Where we continue to consider the general Inclinations of Self-love the Second whereof is a Desire of Perfection HAppiness and Perfection are the Two general Goods which Man naturally desires but not without some Dependance and Subordination to each other for he desires not Happiness for the sake of Perfection but Perfection for the sake of
that our Soul is indifferent to tend or not tend towards that which it judges advantagious and profitable these Indifferences of Free-will are the Dreams and Fancies of those who have not sufficiently study'd Nature or are not willing to have the Knowledge of themselves But God has thought fit to mingle Knowledge and Sense together that the former might regulate and guide the latter and the latter might fix the former Had Man no other Faculty but Reason we should Err in our Thoughts and spend our selves in vain Speculations applying our selves to know every thing else but what would be of greatest Concernment to us Sense is therefore design'd to fix this Intellect and confine it principally to those Objects which concern it Were there nothing else but Sense in Man he might indeed then have such propensities and desires as this Sense should produce but would fail of Light and Direction for finding out those Things to which these Desires do naturally tend and the Love of pleasure being blind and misguided would throw him down into a thousand Precipices wherefore Reason is design'd to regulate Sense Reason is the Soul's Councellor Sense iâ— as it were the Force and Weight that determines it And these Forces are greater or lesser proportionably to the Differenceâ— of Sense In the Comparison we make of them the Soul considers not only what excites in it present but also what is capable of creating to it future Pleasure It compares Pleasure with Pain the present Good with Absent the Good it hopes for with the Dangers to be endur'd and determines it self according to the Instruction it receives in these various Enquiries its Liberty being as I may so speak no more than the Extent of its Knowledge and the Power it hath of not choosing after having made a deep Scrutiny and throughly examin'd The Case being thus 't is easy to judge that 't is either present Advantage which consists in an actual Sense of Pleasure or future which consists in whatsoever can hereafter caress us with Delight and render us Happy or preserve our Happiness by preserving us our selves that makes all the Strength of our Soul for determining it self in its Designs and Conduct This Strength is very small when included within the Circle of worldly Objects The Power we have as Men for avoiding Covetousness will consist in the Fear of injuring our Honour by the sordidness of Interest the Power we have to hinder us from being Prodigal will consist in the Fear of ruining our Affairs when we aspire at gaining a famous Reputation by our Liberalities The Fear of Diseases will make us resist the Temptations of Pleasure Self-love will render us moderate and circumspect and even thro' Pride we shall appear humble and modest But this is only to pass from one Vice to another if we would give our Soul strength enough to rise above one Infirmity without relapsing into another we must excite and stir it up by Motives not taken from the World The prospect of Time may cause it to pass from Disorder to Disorder but the bare view of Eternity includes such Motives as are proper to elevate it far above the Region of all its Infirmities None but this Object touches and sanctifies because this alone mounts us high enough for totally renouncing the World We have seen some Preachers of a sublime and lofty Eloquence work no Effect because they did not well understand how to interest and engage the Immortal Nature and on the contrary we have seen a very mean Talent touch and affect all the World by inartificial Discourses because they shot the right Mark and â—aid hold of Men by the Motives of Eternity Motives which repeated a thousand ways and sometimes very grosly and unpolitely have won the most enlighten'd and purify'd Souls because they take them by what is greatest and most weighty in them and most considerable in all external Objects The Motives of Time have but a limited but the Motives of Eternity have as it were an infinite Strength which is suspended meerly by our Corruption Hence it follows that as Self-love is the general Source of those Motives which determine our Heart so 't is Self-love as it looks towards Eternity that makes all the strength we have to raise ourselves above the Confines of the World There is no better way to justify this last Truth than by seeing what the sense of our Immortality is capable of working in us what Influence it has upon our Motions and Actions and of what use it is in our Heart This we proceed to examine at large CHAP. VI. Where we explain what the Sense of our Immortality is capable of working upon our Heart WE certainly see that whatsoever comforts raises and satisfies us takes its Birth from this Original 't is only in the Idea and Sense of our Immortality that we find true and solid Consolations against the Fears of Death as 't is easy to shew by considering this Object every way The Idea of Death includes Six others an Idea of Desertion or Leaving an Idea of Necessity an Idea of Solitude an Idea of Destruction an Idea of Judgment and an Idea of Misery The Idea of Desertion or Leaving imports that we leave All and all leaves us This Idea mortifies and afflicts self-Self-love because it represents to it the rupture and disappointment of its Applications and Desires It beholds its loss of the Time present and a Curtain is drawn upon the Future and indeed I confess Man has very good reason to be afraid till the Curtain is as it were drawn back by Repentance and he can assure himself of the Remission of his Sins without which he is uncapable of any Comfort either in Life or Death but when he hath made his Peace with his God which he may know by the State of his Heart and the Sentiment of his Conscience he certainly ought to have quite different Ideas of Death what he regrets and bemoans is of very small Moment if he compare it not only with the glorious Eternity promis'd him in the Gospel but also with his own natural Excellency He ought to make it a Matter of the greatest Wonder that a Mind which by the inviolable Inclinations of its Nature flies up to Infinity should so long buisy it self with the Trifles of this Life and one may say without adding an Hyperbole to this Mind that if it has lost any thing 't is Life and not Death that ought to bear the Blame Life has involv'd it in the Loss of many precious things its Sanctity the sense of God's Love c. and to retrieve its Damage has given it nothing but Shows and Appearances but Death will advantagiously indemnify and repair its Loss provided it depart in the Lord. Death deprives us of our Five Senses whereupon self-Self-love makes this Resentment That if it be a great Affliction for a Man to lose his Seeing or Hearing 't is a much greater to lose all his Senses
consider'd the first of our Faculties and seen that the original Source of our Corruption is not in the Mind we must in the next place consider the Heart which is the Soul as it loves or the Seat of the Affections CHAP. V. Where we continue to search for the Sources of our Corruption by considering the Motions and Inclinations of the Heart AS there are first Principles or Notions in our Mind which are of an infallible Truth and Certainty and the Foundation of natural Light which is so far from deceiving that it puts us in a Way to return from our Errours so in our Heart there are certain primary and radical Affections which are necessarily Lawful Sentiments without which the Nature of Man cannot subsist and which are not only exempt from all Corruption in themselves but also serve when rightly directed to reclaim us from our Vices Such is the natural Love of Esteem and of Our-selves the Care of our Preservation the Desire of Happiness These Passions are good in themselves â—eeing they naturally relate to the Good of Man There are Two sorts of 'em the One are term'd by the School-men Prosequutivae because they incline us to Good the Other Adversativae because they remove and avert us from Evil. But yet as they tend to our Advantage by the Design and Intention of Nature thro' an Effect of our Corruption they are perverted to be instruments of our Damage and Prejudice which happens when false Goods excite in our Heart reall Affections When we are but coldly bent towards that which deserves the whole Application and Study of our Souls and on the contrary we desire with all the Ardour imaginable such Goods as deserve but a moderate and indifferent Affection For then we reverse the Order of Nature change the End into the Means and the Means into the End are rash and precipitate in our Actions err in our Conduct and a meer shadow of Good makes us lose the original Source of it and running after Appearances we miss the Truth Hence proceed all our Vices and Disorders in enquiring after which we must spend some time since 't is they that make the Corruption of the Heart Now as we search for the Source of our Irregularities we must not insist upon any particular One unless it has an Influence upon all the others 'T is evident that the Root of our Natural Evil consists not in a peculiar Disposition of the Temperament seeing that those who are of quite contrary Temperaments are corrupted for all that Nor is Interest the Principle of our Evil since that has commonly something in it incompatible with Pride neither is Pride seeing that is in some sort repugnant to Interest Yet 't is certain that there is something wherein the Vices are opposite and something wherein they agree They are in some respect opposite seeing that one serves as a kind of Remedy for the other and they agree in some respect since the Soul after it has fall'n into one has a further Inclination after another which seem'd of a quite contrary Nature This Truth will appear more plainly if we as it were Anatomize and Dissect the Heart by entering upon the Consideration of all its particular Passions Robbery springs from Injustice Injustice from Interest Interest from an Excess of Self-love Obstinacy is nothing but a strict Adherence which Self-love make us have to our own Fancies and Opinions Pride is a meer Drunkenness and Intoxication of Self-love which represents us to our own Imagination greater and perfecter than really we are Revenge is but a desire to defend our selves against those that hate us or to reap a kind of Self-satisfaction by punishing those who have offended us In a word Take a through Survey and Consideration of all the Vices and Passions of Man and you 'll find they terminate in Self-love 'T is this that gives 'em Birth forasmuch as all the Motives of Vice have this Foundation That we seek for every thing which flatters and relates to this Me which is the first Object of our Knowledge and Affections Upon this depends either their Life or Death for when two Passions violently Combat Fear for instance and Revenge the Soul retires into its own Tent and makes use of no other Counsel but that of self-Self-love to know which side it ought to take and according as Self-love judges or not judges Revenge to be necessary it pronounces in Favour either of Resentment or Moderation So that as Self-love first produc'd these two Passions so likewise it foments and causes the One to live and continue to the Prejudice of the Other Now what else can we say of that Passion to which all our irregular Inclinations tend in which all the Vices terminate by whose means they both Live and Die which stops and suspends their Career but that this general Disorder is undoubtedly the original Fountain of all the others and what we call'd the primitive Root of our Evil and Corruption And which may serve to confirm us in this Opinion at the same time we perceive all the Vices flattering and caressing Self-love we find all the Vertues unanimously opposing it Humility debases and pulls it down Temperance mortifies it Liberality as it were robs it Moderation discontents it Fortitude exposes it Magnanimity Piety and Zeal sacrifice it And indeed Self-love is so essential an Ingredient of the Definitions of the Vices and Vertues that without it we can't have a â—ight Conception either of the one or the other In general Vice is a Preference of One-self before other Men and Vertue seems to be a Preference of others before One-self I say it seems to be so Because in Effect 't is certain that Vertue is only a more noble and rational Mode of Loving One-self Now here there is a seeming Contradiction in our System For on One hand Self-love appears to be the Principle of our Irregularities and Disorders on the Other 't is certain that the Love of Our-selves is a Qualification for the Discharge of our Duties Corruption draws its whole Force from Self-love and GOD on the other side derives from it all the Motives He makes use of to incline us to the Study of our Sanctification For to what purpose would he have made Promises and Threatnings were it not with a Design to interest Self-love This Difficulty presently vanishes after we suppose the same thing touching Self-love which we have already said of the Affections of the Heart in general Namely That they have something of innocent and lawful which belongs to Nature and something of vicious and irregular which is attributed to their Corruption 'T is an Advantage of the French Tongue that it can distinguish betwixt L'amour propre and L'amour de nons mêmes the former signifies Self-love as 't is vicious and corrupted the latter denotes this Love as 't is lawful and natural Now our present Enquiry being after the Sources of Man's Corruption our Design here engages us
demonstrate beyond all Dispute what our Enquiries have taught us in this Matter I demand for instance Whether the Blessed Above who undoubtedly love themselves neither too much nor too little seeing that they are in a State of Perfection can love God with an infinite Affection and yet not perceive the Joy arising from the Possession of him I would know in the next place Whether we can feel Joy and Delight without loving One-self proportionably to this Perception Why then should we trouble our selves with such vain and contradictory Queries As whether the Saints love God better than themselves I had as live they 'd ask me Whether they love Themselves better than Themselves For these two Expressions have in reallity the same signification and not to love God is in some measure to hate One-self To let you see that this is but meer Punning and Quibling in words we must divide the Love of God into two Sorts a Love of Interest and a Love of pure Friendship as Divines call it I understand this latter to have no Intercourse at all with Self-love according to the common Notion of it but I would know which of these two Kinds of Love you mean when you ask me Whether the Love we ought to have of God be not greater than that of our selves If you understand by the Love of God Love of pure Friendship whose only Object is Known-Perfection I answer that this Love cannot be compar'd with the Love of our selves which is of quite another Nature since as I have already said we love not our selves by Reason but Sense and Corporeal or Spiritual Pleasure naturally engages us to love our selves even before we are capable of making Reflection But if by the Love we ought to have for God you mean Love of Interest which is ty'd to him as our Supream Good you don't apprehend that you oppose the same thing to it self seeing that to love One-self and the Soveraign Good is all one and does not make two distinct species of Love but are one and the same consider'd under different Respects namely in reference to its Principles and its Objects It therefore appears That the Irregularity consists not in this that we love our selves too much seeing we are allow'd to love our selves as much as we please with Relation to the Supream Good But herein lies the Evil that we take a wrong Method in exerting this Love that is we love our selves with relation to false Objects Self love simply taken is innocent and harmless It becomes corrupted when 't is diverted towards the Creatures and Holy when converted and steer'd towards God Pursuant to the fore-going Doctrine we may distinguish Three Hearts in Man the Heart of the Man the Heart of the Sinner and the Heart of the Faithful The Heart of the Man is the Soul as it naturally loves it self the Heart of the Sinner is the Soul as it loves the World and the Heart of the Faithful is the Soul as it loves God The Natural Heart is essentially included in the other Two and the natural Love of our selves which is the Principle of all our Affections the Mobile that actuates either Grace or Corruption and receives either the Love of God or the World The Heart of Man loves The Heart of the Worldling loves Vanity The Heart of the Faithful loves the infinite and eternal Good The first is the Heart of Man the second the Heart of the mortal Man the third is the Heart of the immortal Man CHAP. VII Where we shew that Self-love kindles all our Affections and is the general Principle of our Motions I Said before that Self-love is the Principle of all our natural Affections For all our Desires Fears and Hopes are the devoted Servants and Off-spring of Self-love I confess the Affection we have for other Men sometimes causes us to Desire Fear and Hope But what is the Principle of this Affection but the Love of our selves Do but throughly consider and weigh all the Sources of our Friendship and you 'll find they are reduc'd to Interest Gratitude Relation Sympathy and a delicate Agreement of that Vertue with Self-love which makes us think that we love it for its own sake whereas indeed we love it meerly for the sake of our selves and it wholly terminates in Self-love 'T is from hence that Relation borrows all its Rapture and Strength for kindling our Affections We love our Children because they are our Children Were they another Man's Children they would be indifferent to us Therefore we don 't properly love them but the Relation which links us to ' em 'T is true Children don't love their Parents with the same Degree of Affection as Parents do their Children tho' these two Affections seem to be founded upon the same reason of Relation but this Difference proceeds from another Cause Children see themselves Die in the Person of their Parents and Parents on the contrary see themselves Revive in the Person of their Children Now nature inspires us with the Love of Life and Hatred of Death Also Parents behold in their Children as it were other selves but other selves subject and dependant upon 'em They think it an Happiness to have brought 'em into the World they consider 'em with Delight because they consider 'em as their own Workmanship They are exceedingly pleas'd at having sacred and inviolable Rights over ' em This is their Magistracy Royalty and Empire But the same Pride which causes the Parents to love Superiority makes the Children hate Dependance Nothing lays so heavy a weight upon us as a Benefit when 't is too great because it depresses us to too great Submission We look upon it as a delicate but very strong Chain which links our Heart and constrains our Liberty This is the Mystery of that common Maxim Blood never rises But as there is a Relation of Blood Profession Religion Country c. the Affections are infinitely diversify'd according to these various Respects But woe be to Relation if it be combated by Interest For Interest will infallibly get the better That tends to us directly Relation only by Reflection Hence Interest is always more strong and prevalent than Relation but in this as in every thing else particular Circumstances very much alter the general Proposition What we commonly experience That no Hatred is more violent than that which happens between those who were formerly very great Friends is to be imputed to almost the same reason 'T is because these Persons found either Profit or Pleasure in loving one another This interested their Self-love but when they come to change their Sentiment the Motives of Love joyn themselves with the Motives of Hatred they revolt and rise up in Arms both by reason of the Idea of the Wrong that 's done 'em and of the Pleasures of that Friendship which they renounce and they suffer not only by the Hatred which is kindled but also by the Affection which is extinguish'd which
â—mpediment from Self-love as well as Admiration T will be to no purpose to make a wild and indefinite Answer that 't is the Corruption of our Heart which renders us uncapable of loving God purely for his own sake and his intrinsick Perfections whilst we suppose him not to love us This is to run into a Labyrinth of Generalities for avoiding the distinct Ideas of Things For our Corruption does not hinder the Admiration of our Soul it being certain that the Devils who far exceed us in Wickedness admire God tho' they are at the same time conscious of his being the Object of their Hatred and Aversion so neither can this Corruption hinder pure Friendship if that as well as Admiration derives its Birth from Known Perfection Nothing will better confirm this Truth than by seeing what 's the Use of Faith in Religion So long as Men live in a State of Ignorance which makes 'em imagine that God looks upon 'em with Indifferency and Disregard they in like manner seem to have but indifferent Sentiments of the Deity such were the Pagan Philosophers Whilst Men think they are the Object of God's Hatred they detest and abhor the Divinity The Romans who had already kindled the Fire of their Sacrifices to give Thanks to the Gods at the false Report of the Recovery of Germanicus run into their Temples with Fury and Rage when they hear the too true News of his Death they drag their Images in the Dirt throw 'em into Tiber and signalize their Grief by a Specimen of Impiety All Men seem to have the same inward Disposition which the Romans outwardly shew'd and the Violence which they â—s'd to the Images is an Expression of what Man would be willing to execute upon God when he thinks him his Antagonist and Enemy No sooner does the Gospel resound in the World for the Consolation of Men but as the Testimoines of the Divine Love to Mankind are every where manifested so likewise Men's ardent Love of God becomes universally Conspicuous Faith which assures us of this immense Charity of God is there look'd upon as the Key of our Heart and the first Degree of our Sanctification to this the Scripture attributes our Salvation When Faith has throughly perswaded us that we are the Objects of God's Love we are sufficiently dispos'd to affect and love Him But as our Affections essentially spring from Self-love our Hatred and Aversions proceed from the same Original We hate Men by Interest when they are our Competitors in the Pursuit of Temporal Goods We hate one that is Intemperate because he 'd rob us of our Pleasures we can't endure an Ambitious Man because he takes the upper-hand of us in Preferment and Honour nor can we love a Proud Man because 〈◊〉 contemns and tramples us under Feet nor a Miser because he hoards up the Riches that might possibly come to us nor an Unjust Man because he oppresses us We don't only hate those who actually prejudice and injure us but even those that have an Inclination to hurt us tho' they want fit Occasions or some Impediment hinder 'em from exerting their Malice Our Hatred reacheth as far as a Man's Power of doing us an Injury For which reason Power and Authority are many times the Incentives of Aversation and Ill-will and as there are few Persons in the World but meet with some who either actually do 'em a Mischief or would at least if it laid in their Power or were it for their Interest it must be own'd that secret Motives of Hatred do perpetually enter in our Heart and that nothing is more dangerous than the Temptations to which we are expos'd on this Account Indeed we are oftentimes Enemies to one another when we are ignorant of it We many times both love and hate the same Person because Self-love considers him under different Respects And it happens that we really hate those whom we think to be the Objects of our best Affection and sometimes those whom we have all the reason imaginable to love and esteem which appears from this That in all their Disgraces and Misfortunes there 's something that does not wholly displease us This unjust and unnatural Sentiment which the Vail of Pride hides from our Eyes proceeds from these two Principles Namely That we Our selves are not the Objects of this Disgrace which is a Reflection that Self-love instantly makes and that we see a Man degraded and pull'd down who in regard of his being a Man can't fail to rival us upon some Account or other a Sentiment which is chang'd into Compassion when either Death or some irrecoverable Adversity finally exempts him from the Number of those who pretend and aim at the Goods which are the Objects of our own Desire But Hatred is a turbulent Passion which puts the whole Body into a violent Commotion and all whose Effects are so sensible and obvious that 't is the most faithful Mirrour for discerning the Degree of Vehemence which attends all our other Affections If you would know how much you love Vain-Glâ—ry it may be your Heart gives you a false Intimation do but only consider the Violence of the Hatred which you conceive at One that has offended you in point of Honour this is the just Degree and Measure of it this Mirrour is your safest Guide for discovering and fathoming the Bottome of your Heart We hate by Interest Persons Things and Words If seeing an Abyss under our Feet we are put into Horrour and Consternation 't is the Image of our Destruction appearing before us that causes this trembling Motion and Reason is not so strong and prevalent as to correct and allay that Fear which a too lively Idea of our own Destruction exhibits to our Conceit Many People can't forbear swooning when they see the shedding of Man's Blood this proceeds not so much from a weakness of Temperament as an infirmity of the Heart Whatsoever represents to 'em the Ruines of Humane Nature threatens their Self-love and that which imbues the Fancy with Blood draws a livelâ— Picture of Death in the Soul and conducts it to that inward Recess by meer â—nt of Conceit where Reflection shuts the Doors against it CHAP. IX Where we consider the most general Inclinations of self-Self-love and in the first place the Desire of Happiness THe first Inclination of Self-love is a Desire to be Happy and I believe that in the Main these two Expressions do but signify the same Thing under different Ideas For what else is it to love One-self but to desire Happiness and to desire Happiness but to love One-self Truly he must be a very nice Subtiliser and Mincer of Things that can find any Difference As therefore the Desire of Happiness can't be too Great and it has always been reckon'd a Crime tâ— pursue a false and not ardently to affect a real Felicity it follows that we are not to be blam'd for loving our selves to Excess but for taking a wrong Method
up with the frightful and melancholy Thoughts of our going to lose the Foundation of an infinite Joy the Latter would be supported by a Comfortable Hope which connecting together an Infinity of Ages would make up that Deigâ—ht in the Duration of these Goods which they wanted in Quality Nothing is finer in Speculation than this Description which a Latin Poet gives of Temporal Happiness Res non parta Labore sed relicta Non ingratus Ager Focus perennis Lis nunquam Toga rara Mens quieta Vires ingenuae salubre Corpus Prudens simplicitas pares Amici Conâ—ictus facilis sine Arte Mensa Nox non ebria sed soluta Curis Non tristis Thorus attamen pudicus Somnus qui faciat breves Vmbras Quod sis esse velis nihilque malis Summum nec metuas Diem nec optes Mart. L. 10. Epig. But tho' this Definition of Happiness appear so reasonable as it had been Dictated by the Oracle of Wisdom her self yet but an indifferent Knowledge of Man's Heart and his natural State would suffice to shew its Faultiness in many Respects In the first Place 't is made up of such Goods as for the most part are not in our Power Res non parta Labore sed relicta non ingratus Ager Focus perennis Lis nunquam â—ires ingenuae salubre Corpus somnus qui faciat breves Umbras For who can give himself an Estate and cause it to descend from Father to Son or render his Field fruitful or avoid Brangles with injurious Persons 'T is not in our Power to sleep securely to have a healthy and vigorous Temper of Body and yet Nature it self teaches us that Happiness is in some measure in our Power For why should it have engraven upon the Heart of Man a Desire to be Happy if he were uncapable of arriving to that End But Men mistake in this Point because they don't understand a double Language which Nature speaks to 'em in this respect For on one Hand by shewing 'em so many Goods which they naturally desire and which are not in their Power it plainly declares to 'em that Happiness is not in their own Breast and on the Other by inspiring into 'em so natural a Desire of Happiness as that they can never deface or put it off in what State soever they be it teaches 'em that they are notwithstanding capable of obtaining that End But to return to our Poet I add that this Description of Happiness is not made up of Goods sufficiently noble and excellent certainly 't is not much above the Condition of Beasts of which it may be truly said that their Goods come by Succession that their Riches are not got by Labour that the Earth is fruitful to 'em and that they fail not of Cloaths agreeable to their State made by the Hand of Nature that they want not Health Strength and Rest that their Simplicity is prudent and tho' they seem uncapable of Reflection yet we see 'em most Ingenious and Discreet in the Sphere of those Objects which their Interest obliges 'em to know namely for the Propagation of their Species and Self-preservation that their Life is pleasant and sedate that they live without Trouble and Disquietude that their Cups are not mingled with the Wormwood of Suspicions and Jealousies that they are not troubled with Law-suits and which is most of all considerable that they neither fear nor hope for Death So that Beasts come very near to the Enjoyment of that Happiness which is represented to us as the most perfect and compleat of all Strange What a Misery then is it that we are born capable of Reason that the Quality of Rational should bar us from pretending to that of Happy that the Degree of our Perfection should make the Degree of our Misery that Beasts should be happy for not being Men and Men should be miserable because they are not Beasts Certainly this can never be true Nature is too Wise in all other Things for being so imprudent in this Particular and unless Men are willing to degrade themselves and to disparage the Excellency of their Nature they must needs acknowledge a Soveraign Good which may be found and does not cheat our Desires but is not to be met with in the Objects of this Life which will always deceive our craving Appetite Moreover the finest Strokes in the Poets Description of Humane Felicity are contradictory For if a Man be so far Happy as to be satisfy'd with his Condition and not to desire a better how can he choose but fear Death which puts a fatal Period to this Beatitude And if what it Deprives us off be so trivial and inconsiderable as that we neither desire nor fear to Die how is it possible we should be contented with that Condition This Fellow spoke at random He thought there was nothing in these Verses Quod sis esse velis nihilque malis Summum nec metuas diem nec optes A Man content with his Condition and not fearful of Death is the Philosopher's Stone in Morality Besides these Ideas destroy one another they annihilate the Naâ—ure of Man who as we have seen before necessarily loves himself beyond all Limits His Love of Happiness stays not at a Mediocrity and consequently he cannot be satisfy'd but in the Possession of an Infinite Good He dreads Misery above all Things and for that Reason cannot but fear Death till he is assur'd of his Immortality Also this is one of the greatest Defects of that Happiness which Men search after or the Pleasure which they so ardently pursue that the Foundations of it are uncertain it depends upon a Thousand Causes which are not in your Power What Reliance can you have upon the Health of a Body which every thing threatens with Ruine and Destruction and what Tranquillity can you build upon this if you behold the Image of its Death in every outward Object in the Aliments that nourish you in the Air which you breath in the Contagion of a sick Person whom you visit in an Insect that stings it and in a multitude of other secret Causes which we can neither prevent nor avoid who 'll assure me of the Possession of my Riches who 'll secure me of the Preservation of those Friends whom I love and delight in who 'll protect me and mine from the Accidents that are so ordinarily incident to Society The Fourth Defect of this Humane Felicity is that 't is not only corruptible but also transient and fading 'T is of a much shorter Duration than the Term of our Life Sleep which locks up our Senses exhausts a good part of it nor does it last so long as this Moiety of Life which we pass in Reflection and Awake for we are not continually buisy'd with tasting Pleasure Nay it subsists not so long as the Presence of those Objects which first give it Birth it lasts but for the momentany Passage from Privation to Enjoyment We perceive some Delight indeed in the
progress in Arts and Sciences at least according to the ordinary Course and for the Generality and the Examples of the contrary are too few to lay any great stress upon But she can be Honest and Modest for which reason nothing is more Honourable in a Woman than Chastity Also that Empire of Beauty which the World esteems the Glory of Women fails of adding the same Honour to Men who are naturally design'd for other Purposes than to make themselves Amiable and display some Skill in throwing the Darts of Cupid And sometimes it happens that a Vice well plac'd passes for a great Vertue and a Vertue ill plac'd is thought a great Vice Prodigality becomes Alexander very well who being Master of the World has in his Custody the Treasures of it Frugality suits very well with Hannibal who supports his Armies by a Miracle when block'd up in Italy on every side Even Cruelty it self which at another time would in no wise become him agrees with the Circumstances of that Condition But Wisdom Prudence Honesty Fidelity c. being Qualities which suit with all States and Conditions no wonder if the greatest part of Mankind are equally concern'd about 'em They don't endeavour to obtain these Vertues as being worthy of Man but as they match and agree with their States and Interests They seek for true Judgment and Prudence because 't is the Reality and not the bare Appearance of these Vertues that serves their turn and promotes their Advantage but they usually content themselves with a meer shew of Honesty because they think that outward Appearances of Sincerity are more for their Ends than the Vertue it self Men have sufficient reason to hate Hypocrisy and to be angry at this Imposture of Vice which seems desirous to make Fools both of God and Men by an execrable Traffick of Appearances and affected Out-sides But to speak the down-right Truth Hypocrisy is a Vice which seems common to Mankind All Men study to appear as may be most for their Advantage 'T is a mistake to imagine that there be Hypocrites or Dissemblers of none but Devotion there be Hypocrites of Honour Constancy Valour Liberality and there be more that counterfeit themselves in civil Life than who put on a Vizard in the Church 'T is pretty to see two Fellows that scrape Acquaintance or are going to swap Wares take each other for Cullies and soft-Heads and neither say nor do any thing but what is to carry on the Design of Cheating Men affect a shew of Complaisance Politeness Probity Honour meerly to be thought really endow'd with these Qualities All this assuredly proceeds from a too short View of Self-love and lest we should Err and go out of the way 't is necessary to return from the Road we went in before to search after Man whom we desir'd to avoid and taking for Perfection not whatsoever distinguishes us in the World but what suits with this natural Equality of Perfection and Excellency which we have in common with other Men to consider our selves not in Our selves but God The Perfections belonging to the Mortal Man are very inconsiderable But those of the Immortal Man are all worthy of Admiration he need not put on the Mask of Hypocrisy to counterfeit himself to the Eyes of Mankind He need only renounce the Fallacies of his Pride the vain Prejudices of the World and take off the Veil which intercepts the prospect of himself to find that he 's advanc'd above the Sphere of Admiration Even the Passions of Men set up for real Perfections when they have their just Extent in the Immortal Man and if you narrowly observe you 'll find that the Baseness we conceive in these Affections of our Soul proceeds from the too narrow Limits where unto Concupiscence and self-Self-love have confin'd 'em Give the Soul Liberty to take its whole flight let it act with the full extent of its Powers and you 'll find 't is a Divine Sphere that grows bigger and bigger the nearer it comes to GOD. CHAP. XII Where we Treat of the general Vices which flow from Self-love and first of Pleasure THere are Three sorts of Goods whereunto Self-love is principally apply'd the Full which is of it self sensible and this is Pleasure A Second which is Desirable for its own sake but becomes not sensible of it self this is Esteem A Third which is neither sensible nor desirable for its own sake and hath only as the Schools speak a Goodness of the Means and this is Riches to which we must add a Fourth Good which seems to include all those before-mention'd namely Dignities which according to the ordinary Notion Men have of 'em are a Compound of Pleasure Glory and Support in order to lead a commodious and agreeable Life The love of Pleasure is Natural that of Esteem is Lawful the Desire of Riches hath nothing Criminal in it self But all these Inclinations immediately commence Vices when they become head-strong and cease to be directed by the Dictates of Reason Self-love apply'd to irrational Pleasure is term'd Voluptuousness as it irregularly pursues Esteem it has the Name of Pride and when 't is conversant about Riches desiring 'em with an excessive Ardour 't is termed Covetousness Lastly Self-love eagerly aspiring at Dignities beyond the measures of right Reason and the Tenour of Justice is call'd Ambition But as worldly Goods are reduc'd to Pleasure and Glory so the most general Disorders of Self-love are reduc'd to Voluptuousness and Pride an Examination of which will be the Conclusion of our present Enquiries Pleasure may be consider'd in reference either to the Person who is the subject of it or in reference to Society or GOD for 't is undoubtedly necessary in these Three respects 'T is by Pleasure that the Author of Nature hath engag'd our Soul in the Preservation of the Body we should omit to repeat the use of Food had it not an agreeable Tast 'T is Pleasure that puts us upon mutual Commerce whether in Oeconomical or Political Society since the Union of Men and even the Propagation of Mankind is to be ascrib'd to this Sentiment Lastly 't is the Pleasure we find in loving and being lov'd by God in hoping for his Blessings in receiving his Benefits and in having a sense of his Peace and Favour that incites us to have our Conversation with him Hence it follows that Pleasure is Criminal either when 't is opposite to the Good of the Man who is the subject of it or to the Good of Society or the Commerce we ought to entertain with God The imbitter'd Pleasures which for a momentany Delight cost Men very durable and lasting Torments are to be rang'd in the first Order As the Goodness of God manifestly appears in this That he hath affix'd Sentiments of Pleasure to Food and other things which naturally relate to the Preservation of the Body so his Justice becomes most sensible in the rigorous Punishment and Scourge of Incontinence But we
which is not so easily seduc'd Wherefore because the Author of Nature was so pleas'd that other Men's Reason should be in some sort our Law and Judge as to moral Honesty and the Decorums of reasonable Nature Upon this very account he form'd us with a natural Desire of raising an Esteem of our selves in the Minds of others a Desire which assuredly precedes the Reflections of our Mind For tho' the Utility Pleasure and Desire of finding Confirmations of the Opinion we have of our selves c. may be capable of satisfying the Love of Esteem yet we have shewn that they are not the Cause of it And here we might distinguish Three Worlds which the Wisdom of the Creatour has founded upon Three natural Inclinations The Animal the Rational and the Religious World The first is a Society of Persons united by Sense the second of Persons united by Esteem the third of Persons united by natural Religion The first has for its Principle the Love of Pleasure the second the Love of Esteem the third Conscience All these three Principles are Natural and the Grounds of 'em is not elsewhere to be search'd for than in the Wisdom of the Creatour The first of these Worlds relates to the second the second to the third and the third to the last Wherefore these things are thus subordinated to each other Esteem regulates the Love of Pleasure and Religion ought to regulate the Love of Esteem and this Subordination is no less natural than these Inclinations The Love of Pleasure may truly be attributed to Nature But the Irregularities of Voluptuousness are to be reckon'd to another Account The Love of Esteem may be said to be Natural but yet we are not to suppose that the Extravagancies and Enormities of Pride arise from the Womb of Nature To this we may ascribe the Fear of God and the Love of Vertue But we ought not to give it an Appennage of all those Superstitions which Men have been pleas'd to ingraft upon the Principles of Nature and consequently 't is necessary that the Love of Pleasure of Esteem and Conscience should have their natural Law Rules and Limits But 't will not be amiss to insist upon the Love of Esteem CHAP. XV. Where we examine all those Irregularities which are the Ingredients of Pride IT seems that hitherto we have not had a very perfect Knowledge of Pride and doubtless the reason was because we have not throughly distinguish'd its several Parts nor with sufficient Attention examin'd all its Characters Pride in general may be reduc'd to Five principal Branches Namely to the Love of Esteem to Presumption Vanity Ambition and Haughtiness For tho' Men are wont to confound these Terms and use 'em indifferently to signify the same Thing 't is certain that these Expressions have somewhat different Significations The Love of Esteem is Natural and Lawful in it self as we before observ'd but 't is Vicious and Disorderly when it rises to Excess This is the most general Irregularity of Pride for when our Desire of Esteem is excessive 't is natural to romage in our selves for some estimable Qualities and finding we have none our Imagination presents us with some in Complaisance to the Inclinations of the Heart from whence arises Presumption Moreover this immoderate Love of Esteem makes us value our selves upon any Endowment whether good or bad and for want of real Sources of Glory to aim at an Esteem upon the account of those things which are in no wise Estimable unless in our own Fancy this is properly our Vanity For this Expression originally signifies the Emptiness of those Objects wherein we erroneously seek for Esteem and which are naughty Sources of Vain-glory. From this excessive Love of Esteem arises the Desire we have to raise our selves above other Men having a Perswasion that we can't attract a publick Esteem and Consideration whilst we are confounded with the Vulgar Rabble and this produces Ambition Lastly The Desire we have to make a great Show by distinguishing our selves from the common Rank makes us despise other Men seeking all possible means to degrade and pull 'em down that we may stand upon their Heads All the Irregularities of Pride being reduc'd to the excessive Love of Esteem as their first and original Principle we can't use too much Diligence in considering this latter The two general Faults of this Inclination are Excess and Irregularity the First consists in this That we love Esteem too much the Second That we love false Esteem as well as true In order to understand what is the Excess of thâ— Love of Esteem we must consider the Design of God in placing this Inclination in our Heart He gave it to us for the Preservation of the Body the Good of Society and the Exercise of Vertue I say for the Preservation of the Body seeing that the Love of Esteem defends us from those Extravagances of corporeal Pleasure which would presently tend to our Destruction and Death For who doubts that the Desire of raising an Esteem of our selves is a powerful Motive to stave us off from that excess of Debauchery and Sensuality to which we are drag'd by the Love of Pleasure and which is of so fatal Consequence even to our Body He plac'd in us this Inclination for the Good of Sciety for 't is this Desire to obtain an Esteem in the World that renders us Affable and Complaisant Obliging and Civil that makes us love Decency and Sweetness of Conversation And yet all this while who does not know that the finest Arts the most lofty Sciences the wisest Governments the most just Establishments in general most that is Admirable in reasonable Society proceeds from this natural Desire of Glory Let us not fancy that our own Corruption and Concupiscence brought this excellent Benefit to Mankind doubtless the wise Instructions of the Author of Nature had the chiefest Hand in this Matter Lastly 't is certain that the Design of God was to steer and incline us to honest and laudable Actions by giving us for the Judge of our Conduct not only our own Reason which is oftentimes brib'd by the Enticements of Pleasure but also the Reason of other Men who are not so partial in our Favour as we our selves Indeed God may be consider'd either as the Author of Society or Religion As the Author of Society he thought fit Men should enter into mutual Commerce during some Time and with this Intent he endow'd 'em with such Inclinations as were necessary to the Good and Preservation of Society Among these are to be reckon'd the Love of Pleasure and the Desire of Esteem This latter is the Spring of Humane Vertues which ought not to be so much cry'd down as usually they are for if they are not inservient to eternal Salvation yet are they design'd for the Good of temporal Society they proceed from the Intention of the Author of Nature they are a part of his Model and Platform Love of Esteem being