virtue thereof becomes of an equal friendly Temperament both in Body and Mind notwithstanding his Complexion may incline him to the contrary it being the sweet pleasant Life in all Creatures And the pure Balsamick Virtue and healing Quality in all Vegetables and Minerals hath its Birth and Original from this good Principle nor can there be any central Rest or true Satisfaction in man if this Principle of divine Light be not in some degree predominant for by its pleasant and sweet Influences all the fiery dark fierce Inclinations which often do arise from the Complexion are qualified made more Friendly and Sanguine if its counsel be regarded All true Religion doing as one would be done unto Offices of Love and Acts of self-denyal all Friendly and Courteous Deportment and whatsoever hath the Name and Nature of Virtue do universally spring up from this holy Principle of divine Love All men seek it because no man can have satisfaction without it some in a right Way others in a wrong and whosoever have wasted or suffocated the sweet Influences of this pure Spirit and Love of God become thereby a Charcoal Spirit whose sweet Water is destroyed viz. Twice dead and pluckt up as it were by the Roots as the Apostle phraseth it they growing of a fierce terrible fiery Nature seared up in the harsh dark original as Lot's Wife was because she looked back viz. into the Original and salt Spirit the Pillar of Salt signifying the great strength and power of God's Wrath which was then kindled by reason of Transgression The very same is to be understood of all Beasts of the Field and other things not so indeed as it is in man but according to the Nature of each For those Creatures that did in the Creation arise from and were chiefly compounded of the fierce harsh forms of Nature whose predominant Quality stands in the Saturnine and Martial Fire have but small portions of the Virtue and Light of this World for the pleasant Virtue and friendly Qualities which the Principle of this visible World gives unto all her Children do all proceed from the Internal Spiritual World and this outward Principle is an Image and Likeness of the Internal the Invisible Spirit and Powers are the Root of the Visible and whatsoever is manifested in this World in Figures Shapes and Forms the very same hath the Internal Spiritual Principle in Power and Virtue And according to the degrees of the Spirit and what property of Nature was predominant in the Radix of each Creature such a Shape Form Inclination Complexion and Disposition the Creature is endued with be it either Animal or Vegetable for the Body was formed by the virtue and power of the Spirit and there is both the nearest Affinity and Resemblance between them as is manifest by all Creatures in whom the dark Wrath of Saturn and Mars was predominant in their Radixes they are not only of an unclean fierce terrible Spirit but their Figures and Shapes are unpleasant and fierce as Lyons Tygars Wolves Swine and many others both in the Elements of Earth Air and Water that are unclean Devourers and Creatures of prey killing and feeding upon their fellow Creatures and as such Creatures are unclean in their Radixes whence their Inclinations and Desires to unclean Food do proceed as bearing the nearest Affinity with their Natures so their Figures Shapes and Forms with their suitable Inclinatious do clearly manifest what matter they proceeded from in their Creation This Root the great and illuminated Prophet Moses understood by a divine manifestation whence his Law proceeded wherein he prohibits his People the Iews from eating of unclean Food both Flesh and Fish with many other Circumstances tending to Cleanness for that great Prophet saw by a divine and natural understanding into the Essences and Original Qualities of every Creature and that each thing hath a secret Power to incorporate with its Likeness and to make that Quality strong which in the Radix was weak and lay as it were hid And on the contrary to hide and make that property weak which in the Radix was strong so great is the power of Nature and this is not only done in the Evil but also in the Good Therefore all men have power more or less to alter and change their Inclinations and Complexions either for the better or the worse as they give their Wills up to practise either Good or Evil. But if People abandon themselves to their natural Inclinations and live under the power and dominion of their Complexions and by degrees give way to Intemperance and Evil Communications such do oftentimes become of far worse Inclinations and Dispositions than their Complexions naturally tended unto And on the contrary some there are who by the power of their Wills rigorously pursuing the Paths of Vertue and Understanding become more Friendly and of better Tempers than their Complexions promise For the natural Inclinations and Influences of the Stars have not power to captivate the Soul in Evils if the Will gives it self up to be guided by the Holy Spirit of Iesus Christ which will lead a man into all Vertue and all Truth CHAP. II. Of the Excellency of Temperance the Knowledg of a Mans self and the mighty Benefits of Abstinence and Sobriety TEmperance is a divine Gift and whosoever obtaineth the perfect Government and Knowledg of himself is endued with the springhead of all Virtues The fear of the Lord being the first step to all true Wisdom both Spiritual and Natural The Root of all Knowledg that man is capable of is in himself Therefore if any will understand any thing truly he must first turn the Eye of his Mind inward not outward as the custom of most is for Man is an Image and Likeness of all things both Spiritual and Natural in him is contained the true Nature of all things and he that doth know and understand himself and the Principles and Operations of his own Nature both in Body and Mind and what Properties in the seven-fold Nature of this World are predominant in him and to what his Inclinations are most naturally propensive both as to Virtue and Vice he may thereby not only shun many Inconveniencies but also so much as he knows of himself he also knows of his Creator and of all other things And so on the contrary he that doth not know and distinguish the Principles of God and Nature in himself does neither see nor know any other thing as he ought Therefore all such who are ignorant of themselves are subject to be changed and altered out of one Opinion into another always leaning hard on the Shoulders of Custom supporting their Ignorance with the truth of Tradition having one of their Eyes if not both amongst the Multitude But all true sight in divine and natural things does arise and proceed from the unalterable divine Principle or Gift of God for the natural man as he is wholly blind as to things divine so
For of all sorts of Food People ought to have the greatest care of FLESH not only in the well ordering it before it be killed but also in seasoning of it with Salt and in the preparing or dressing Flesh being more unclean in its own Nature than either Herbs Fruits or Grains which I suppose most People will confess and that they are far more agreeable and friendly to Nature and not so dangerous to Health nay give me leave to add that they are also more pleasant for its chiefly the continual custom of eating Flesh and the conceit of the great Nourishment it contains beyond other things that makes men so much desire it which Opinion is false most sorts of Flesh indeed are endued with much matter but great part thereof is of a gross Phlegmy nature which quickly will cause the whole to fall into Putrifaction if the strong sharp fierce power of the Salt be wanting And when it is salted the matter for Putrifaction is so great that the Salt cannot continue it long sweet but so soon as the pure Radical Spirits in the Flesh through time are either evaporated or suffocated then the Salt hath no longer power to preserve it from Corruption A man may as well say that green Corn or Grass breeds better nourishment in Cattle than either Hay or dry Corn for indeed it generateth and fills the body fuller of gross Phlegmatick matter and makes such Cattle heavy and dull and great Bellies apt to faintyness and Diseases but Hay and dry Corn generate a firmer Flesh and more brisker spirits makes them drink well appear with moderate Bellies but clean strong Limbs able to endure hard Labour without prejudice to their Health The very same is to be understood of Flesh if compar'd with Fruits Herbs and Grains and Food made of them which do as far transcend Flesh in virtue and good sound clean Nourishment and to preserve Health and Strength as Hay and dry Corn do exceed either green Corn or Grass in the preservation of Strength and Health in working Cattle All sorts of Food either for Man or Beast from which the Sun and Elements have exhaled or dryed away the gross phlegmatick Body are not only cleanner but fuller of Spirit and Life not subject to Corruptions but breed a firmer Nourishment as all Husband-men and Shep-herds will tell you Therefore Bread Butter Cheese and all sorts of Food made of Flour and dried Fruits are strong healthy Diet. Of the Melancholy Complexion People of this Complexion that have their Significator in their Radix weak are slow and of dull heavy Dispositions subject to be surprized with fear and suspicions apt to be froward full of mental Reserves seldom forgetting Injuries hollow hearted giving fair Words when their Thoughts are quite contrary addicted to Witchcraft or fore-speaking of things which sometimes do take place when they have low poor Spirits to deal with whose predominant Quality in Nature is weaker and under the Dominion of their Spirits otherwise not For the awaken'd Evil and dark Wrath in this sort of People viz. their vehement wishes or evilwords do carry the power of that Principle whence they were conceived and enter the same Principle in those to whom they are directed And if those wrathful Spirits be not either through the strength of the predominant Quality in the Complexion or through the power and virtue of the Holy Spirit and Faith in God withstood and overcome which often is done then these Evil Rapes viz. such Wishes and Words will take place whether it be in Man or Beast for this evil revengeful dark Spirit not being so withstood enters into the dark Centre and Poysons in the Body and by simile incorporates there-with awakening and strengthening them and then the Body and all the Senses fall into Distress and most terrible Diseases according to what Poysons and Salts were kindled This is called Witchcraft and indeed is one sort of it there is another which is not fit for this place and this sort of People are called Unlucky-Tongued But on the contrary if those People of the Melancholy Complexion be well dignified in their Radixes then the fore-mentioned evil significations are abated nevertheless they are ponderous and slow in learning and conceiving of any thing but when once obtain'd they make it their own and improve it they are capable of great Learning but they must have Time for this cause all You ths born under such Constellations are very dull in the beginning of their Studies but if continued under good Masters will in time exceed either Mercurial or Venerial Boys for they have greater and stronger Spirits both to retain whatever they learn and to endure more Pains and Labour to obtain any Science besides they are not so apt to run out of one thing into another being more fixt in the Root of their Natures They are generally slow of Speech and Action naturally pensive and covetous by reason that the Sanguine Nature which proceeds from Venus Sol and Mercury is in this Complexion as it were hid or lockt up under the harsh Forms of Saturn and Mars under whom such as are born are apt to be Hard-hearted full of Revenge Covetous c. not but that they are endued with the Sanguine Nature as well as those born under Venus Mercury or the Sun but the same is Captivated as aforesaid under the harsh Forms which is the chief cause People do so much differ in their Tempers But if you can unlock this Saturnine Cabinet and set the Spirit at Liberty as the Maulster does in his Saturnine Grain viz. Barley enfranchizing the pure Balsamick Spirits that sweeten the whole Body you will find it debonair and jovial and of a very agreeable Conversation The Truth is Strong Beer Ale Wine or any spirituous Drinks freely taken will melt down this sullen Saturnine Gravity into Mirth and Gaity for we daily see how free and merry such People will be if at any time they have tipled a little extraordinarily during the time of the Operation of their Liquor For strong Drinks make all sorts of People more free and to forget sorrow because they open the gross Body and cause the Spirits to have their free Operation the said Drinks being Spirituous incorporate with its simile viz. with the spirit and makes it for the present more powerful but when the Operation of such spirituous Liquors are over then both the Saturnine and other People return to their Natural Dispositions but with fewer Spirits which causeth a dull heaviness to attend most after such Drinkings because the Internal heat and spirits are too violently awakened and stirred up which caused them to evaporate and thence proceed Indispositions and Disorder Great Drinkings are injurious to the Health of most that use that Trade only this Saturnine People may sometimes drink a Cherping Glass or two without any danger to their Health especially when they come to forty years of Age for before all sorts of strong
neither does he see even into Natural things any otherwise than a Beast beholding the outward Substance but knowing nothing of the inward Power of the Spirit or if such do understand any thing further or more than Beasts it is either by Chance or Custom But when the Eye of a man's understanding is opened in the true Spirit he then seeth into his own Essence and Properties and by the same sight has a prospect into the Nature of all other things more especially if he be one that is born with a Nature adapted for the comprehension of such things For this reason it is said The spiritual man discerneth all things even the deep things of God but nothing hurts and hinders man more from obtaining the true Knowledg of God and Nature in himself than his looking abroad out of himself imagining that Wisdom and Understanding is to be found and learned in and from some other thing neither do many consider that worthy saying of the Apostle avouching That whatsoever may be known of God is manifest in man not without Man but within himself Man is that City the Wise man speaks of In whose Gates Wisdom cryes but if man will be gazing abroad and not regard the inward Voice in the Heart as most do not then he can never come to any true Judgment either in things Divine or Natural because the Foundation of all Wisdom and Right-knowledg is within a mans self Let us appeal to common Reason How is it possible if a man do not observe the particular principles and Operations of his own Nature that he should observe and understand those of other things whose Motions and various Operations he is more remote from and doth not feel Therefore if a man would know how to rule govern and preserve any Creature or thing this Wisdom and Knowledg must be first Essential in himself and to understand in particular what things are Extream in him and the contrary which will much help in the way of Temperance and Moderation with a due consideration had to the nature of the Food the Age Air Imployments c. And also the Quantities of all those things ought to be regarded and not to heap together too much this being a sure Rule of Health if a man finds himself as lightsom and brisk after Meats and Drinks or rather more than he was before For the intention of Food is to Refresh Nature and not to dull oppress and incommode her as most in this particular do especially those whose natural Heats are great and Appetites strong But full Meals and too frequent use of rich Food and strong Drinks do breed too much Nourishment which is the Original of many Diseases it furs and stops the Passages generates too much Blood and thick dull Spirits which makes the Body heavy and lumpish and by awakening the central Heat causes the external parts of the Body to glow with an unnatural Flame which obstructs the powers so that the pure thin sweet Vapours of the Air which are the Refreshing Zephiri of Nature cannot penetrate them as they are wont to do when the Elements of the Body are free from disorder for then they suck them in like Spunges which renders the Body full of Spirits brisk vigorous and sprightly as Virgins at a Wedding or Boys at a Festival But this pleasant Condition is never felt when the Body is over-fraight with Nourishment and like a Lamp ready to be extinguisht by superfluity of Oyl therefore solemn Feasts and set times for Meals and eating and drinking whether they have Appetites or no and other Circumstances that attend them are Friends to Gluttony but mortal Enemies both to Temperance and Health when People deluge down various sorts of rich Food and Cordial Drinks in a formal Method sitting perhaps two Hours inticing one another to Gormandize and Guzle not only beyond Necessity but even above the Power of Nature And yet not content after they have already exceeded all bounds of Temperance with strong Foods then with Wine various sorts of Fruits Tarts Sweet-meats and a thousand Kickshaws enricht with the East and West-Indies Ingredients of themselves more than sufficient for a sober and temperate Meal in the mean time few do consider the Injuries hereby done both to Body and Mind for this variety hath power to prolong the pleasure of the wanton Pallate beyond the need of Nature or ability of the Digestive faculty For every particular thing opening by Simile its like property in the Stomach it comes to pass when a Person has eaten to the full and to the satisfaction of the Pallate of one thing nevertheless when another of a contrary nature and taste comes the Appetite is awakened and he can with pleasure fall too again and so of several Varieties the Invention whereof at one Meal was meerly to gratifie Luxury by prolonging the pleasure of the Pallate which could not be done with simple Meats and Drinks Not but that a man may eat several sorts of Food and Drinks at one Meal without injury to Health but then they must be Homogenial that is agreeable to each other and also he that so eateth must as the Wise man adviseth Put a Knife to his Throat which very few in this Age do observe But of this we shall speak more hereafter As Abstinence and Sobriety does always fortifie the Observers thereof against many Evils so they make the Body pleasant healthful and fit to discharge all its Functions and prepare the mind to be the Temple of the Lord as St. Paul calls it Those that take Meats and Drinks only for the necessity of Nature and observe that the Food be not stronger than she but on the contrary she stronger than it such have for the most part great Spirits and but little Flesh whereas Gluttons have much Flesh and little Spirits Have not all the holy Prophets and renowned Law-givers from the beginning been Persons of a wonderous Sobriety and Temperance as Moses and Elias who fasted forty days and yet the Face of Moses shined and he could guide his Body as if it had been a Spirit And several other indeed all holy men endued with divine understandings have been remarkable for their Temperance For the Spirits of men are not Earthly things to receive their Nourishment through the Organs by the concoction of Meats and Drinks only but derive their purer Aliment like Spunges through the whole Body from the clear thin Vapours of the Air which do powerfully penetrate the Body on all sides but are hindred through superfluity of Meats and Drinks and so the Spirits in the Body for want of being found with these refreshing Gales become thick and as it were suffocated For this cause most that abandon themselves up to Gluttony and Epicurism seldom attain to Old Age or if by means of an extraordinary tough Constitution they do rub out 't is with Tortures and Misery their Bodies being as full of Diseases as an Hospital But on the
contrary many of the Sober and Temperate men have lived to great Ages and yet very free from Distempers with mean and spare Food whence does proceed a cool airy Pleasantness the sweet Influences of all the Elements freely courting the Body which renders the Spirits many in Quantity and fine in Quality and thence arises lightsomness to the Body and vigour to the Mind The truth of this men may experience if they will but give themselves the leisure to reflect and consider whether or no they do not before Meals ordinarily find themselves pleasant and lightsom in Body and Spirits but after they have indulged their Appetites with an overplenteous feeding the one is heavy and the other dull whereas had they but eaten temperately of simple Food it would not only have continued their strength but also refreshed their Spirits for the pure Spirit is the true Life Pleasure Delight and Beauty of every Creature according to the Nature of each and causeth the sweet Oyl to burn friendly and shine with a comfortable Ray if it be not wounded by disorders This Spirit being so Volatile and surpassing pure that it will not endure the least Violence for when any Injury is offered to it it either becomes evaporated or suffocated and then presently the Vigour and Beauty of that thing faileth be it either Animal or Vegetable Therefore those that do regard the Health of the Body and Mind ought to preserve the Spirit free and potent which must be done by Sobriety Gentleness and Temperance in Meats Drinks and Exercises The Prophet Daniel and his Companions were sensible of this when they were courted and also threatned with the displeasure of the King and his Servants if they would not eat of the various sorts of Flesh and Fish that came from the King's Table but Daniel intreated leave to continue that clean simple Food they had accustomed themselves unto viz. Herbs Grains and Fruits and pure Water for Drink Should not we in this Age be ready to count a man a Fool and out of his Senses that should refuse Royal Delicates from the King's Table and chuse to live upon such mean course Fare But Daniel did with a Divine Eye see into the Radix of all such things and understood their sympathetical Operations and therefore chose the most simple harmless Commons for by compounding many rich things together especially such as contain the Animal and Bestial Nature all such things lose their Simplicity and the true Life and pure Spirits of each become adulterated and changed and being destitute of its proper Virtues becomes of another operation which hath an evil Influence on our Bodies and Spirits whence proceed those frequent Infirmities in most that live in the height of Dainties the same being neither well-pleasing to God nor Nature But on the contrary was not the sober clean and abstemious Livers of the Rechabites well-pleasing to the Lord And did not the Prophet Ieremiah call them up into the House of the Lord as a Reproach to the Children of Israel for that they had faithfully kept the Commandments of their Father and observed the Rule of Moderation and contented themselves with pure Water for drink and with mean and simple Food and therefore he promises them That the Sons Jonadab should never want a man to stand before the Lord 'T is most certain the Lord hath been and is near all those that live in Temperance and Simplicity Therefore the Apostle saith Let your Moderation be known unto all men the Lord is at hand The Prophet Iohn contented himself with Locusts and wild Honey of whom our Saviour Christ saith That there was not a greater Prophet born of a Woman Also Iames the Brother of our Lord was eminent for his Abstinence as Eusebius reports insomuch that he eat no Flesh drank no Wine nor strong Drink and wore no Woollen Garment but Linnen which is of a cleaner Radix than the other for Woollens do retain the Bestial Nature as you may more manifestly perceive by the smell if you burn them no washing or other cleansings will purge them from that fulsom Quality which they send forth when burnt Now this stinking Nature so long as it continued entire was hidden or captived but the fire opens the gross body and manifests the Root for this cause the Prophets and holy men have so often said That the Saints and People of the Lord should be cloathed in white Linnen and the Priests of the Lord were to ware a Linnen Ephod for all Vegetives are indued with a simple innocent Nature and Operation and therefore they have been compared to the divine Nature because they bear some affinity unto it Those that would have their Spirits pure and potent must use clean Food which will extenuate the gross superfluous humours by which the Body becomes easily penetrable and he that doth not preserve his body clean the pure Spirit becomes as it were suffocated whence proceeds an heavy Dullness that is not only burdensom but hinders all Meditations and makes the Soul uncapable of every good Work but Abstinence and Temperance do dignifie a man and render him fit for the Exercise of Virtue and Piety and is the Root of strength and fortitude As the Mother of Sampson was commanded by the Angel of the Lord To abstain from Wine and strong Drink during the time of her being with Child so was Sampson her Son whom the Lord endued with wonderful strength but when he gave himself up to Wine and strong Drink and other Intemperances he lost all Power and Virtue and became weak both in Body and Mind and a prey to his Enemies And is it not so in our days Of most of the Miseries and Troubles man ensuares himself is not Superfluity a main cause Where-ever we see Vice there is also Intemperance and where we see Temperance and Abstinency we may justly expect other Virtues because no superfluous matter is bred that may dull or indispose the Fancy the Soul being watchful in Words and Works and also keeping the Body under which by the Power and Virtue of Temperance is subjected to the Influences of the Light and Love of God Temperance Cleanliness and Abstinence have greater power over the Soul and Body than most in our days imagine Did not our fore-Fathers live to wonderful Ages in perfect Health their Food in those days being chiefly Herbs Fruits and Grains and pure Wattr their Drink They did not make their Stomachs the Barial-places of dead Bodies but their Meat and Drink was innocent and simple by which they were able to check and regulate the extravagant motions of the Mind and insurrections of the Flesh Hence some of the Antients have delivered it as a Maxim That none could understand God and his Works and enjoy perfect Health and long Life but those that abstain from Flesh Wine and Vices bounding their Desires according to the Ends and Necessities of Nature For where Uncleanness and Intemperance reigns the Soul is subjected
all the Senses and send dark Fumes into the Head the truth of this all People are sensible of and it is for no other Reason but because the pure Spirits and sweet Water or Oyl in the Wood is totally suffocated in making it into Charcoal and then the Original Poysons and fierce Fire is no longer moderated but does burn and manifest it self in its own Nature and Form this makes the difference between the Fire of Wood and Charcoal the one being pleasant and wholsom the other the contrary and yet they have but one Foundation the very same is to be understood in the Humane Nature and in all other Creatures and in every thing according to its Nature For this cause when a man has through any kind of Intemperance or Superfluity over-charged Nature by which the pure essential Spirits are either evaporated or suffocated and the Oyl whence the natural Life hath its true being becomes as it were sower'd and made keen and sharp then immediately follow Fevers for all Fevers do proceed from the awakened Poysons which is the Original of every Life which should not be stirred or awakened For this cause most People when sick are afflicted either with Internal or External Fevers some greater others less according to the Age or Strength of each mans Nature and when men dye in the strength of their Lives and especially such as have strong Fires what terrible Fevers will such have which burn and consume Nature in a moments time But those that dye or are sick in Age and are of weaker Heats their Fevers are more gentle if People understood this they would not be so guilty of Intemperance and so over-charge Nature for the meek friendly Life will not indure any Violence or Inequality without prejudice to the Health for as soon as the pure Spirits are wounded or evaporated Nature falls into an unequal motion and then the wrathful fierce Fires are stirred up and then Nature is in danger Take what Creature or thing you will if you wound the pure Spirits the Balsamick Body presently turns sower for one cannot subsist without the other and when this is done then in a moments time the poysonous fierce Fire does of its own accord manifest it self which it could not do so long as the pure Spirits and Balsamick Body were strong and did predominate which does moderate and cause this Fire to burn more gentle For this cause all wise and seeing men have advised to Temperance and have commended all simple and mean Food and Drinks especially those things in which the Qualities of Nature stand nearest Equality for all such Food and Drinks do distribute and administer due and moist Nourishment to both Body and Spirits in an Harmonial way which is very agreeable to Nature for all things desire Concord and Unity it being the highest degree that Nature can attain to also all sorts of Food and Drinks that do chiefly consist of Equality do powerfully beget and maintain its Likeness in the Body and also in the Mind And so on the contrary high rich Foods which consist of many Ingredients and of disagreeing Natures and Drinks in which the Fire burns too fierce do often prove dangerous to Health because such things are unequal in themselves and except they be taken very sparingly they awaken their Likenesses in the Body causing Nature to be unequal in her Operations Therefore after eating and drinking such things there follows Indispositions the Veins glowing with Heat Fumes and Vapours flying up into the Head with a dull Heaviness which is caused by the Inequality of the Food and the greatness of the Qantity which do for a time until the natural Heat hath overcome the Food and made seperation suffocate the pure Spirits and the Oyl of Life by its gross Juices and affording too much Nourishment and if such Food and Drinks be continued there are but few Constitutions that can withstand the Inconveniencies that attend such a Life but Abstinency and a sober Diet with Exercise are the only means to abate all superfluous matter and indeed it hinders the Generation of all offensive Humours ABSTINENCY is the only Physitian that a man can make use of for it secretly does digest all kind of Obstructions and that with great ease and pleasure to the Patient far beyond the common and gross Drugs which Physitians administer Also ABSTINENCY is the most skilful Cook giving a most pleasant taste to every mean thing by which a simple Person becomes skilful for he can distinguish the Taste and the inward Sweetness of each thing and he is thereby stirred up with an inward inclination to praise and admire God in the use of all his Blessings ABSTINENCY does weaken and abate the Fury of the most Cholerick complexioned People that they become more Sanguine it openeth the Gate of Humility and is a Friend to Charity it encourageth Hope and is the only Enemy of that base and cruel Spirit Suspicion the universal Fomentor of mankind ABSTINENCY is a sure Counsellor and a Conductor of all the observers thereof in the way of Truth encreasing Faith and causeth them to eye and follow the divine Hand of Providence giving Peace and Tranquility to the Mind and Health to the Body many are the Vertues and Benefits thereof it also gives the advantage of Time and Opportunity and is the fore-runner of Wisdom it openeth the hidden and secret Doors of Nature in a mans self and renders him capable of all Discipline and is the only Enemy to all Evil and a Friend to all Vertue The Wise and Prudent in all Ages have accounted her their chief Friend and Guide by her Vertues they have overcome the inward Enemies of their Members ABSTINENCY also preventeth the Generation of all superfluous matter whence Diseases in the Body do proceed she abateth the desires because a small matter will suffice a regular Appetite resisting Pride and careth not for Estimation she conquereth all her Enemies and maketh no noise she beats â—o Drums nor dischargeth no Guns she punisheth â—ot the Body with Labour nor burdeneth the Mind with Care she wearieth not the Life by Sea nor by Land to obtain that which will not stand her in stead she will not admit of any Controversies nor Law-suits she will not contend for much because a little supplies her Wants she standeth still and is silent and yet obtaineth all things CHAP. III. A Discourse of the several sorts of Flesh commonly Eaten THough I have before shewn the inconveniencies of the feeding upon Flesh so commonly and in such excess as is now-a-days practised and rather recommended the Lovers of Wisdom and Health to the more innocent use of Grains Fruits and Herbs yet since there is no stemming the Tide of Popular Opinion and Custom and People will still gorge themselves with the Flesh of their Fellow-Animals I have thought fit here to give a particular account of each sort of Flesh that at least you may chuse that which is
such Preparations or Digestions be continued the spirituous parts will also either become suffocated or evaporated according to the Nature of the thing as in making and preparing of Hay the gross phlegmatick Body in Grass could not be digested or exhibited but by vertue and power of the Sun and Air but when they have destroyed the gross Humidity and Phlegm if the preparation and making of it be continued that is the Hay continued in the Sun and Air it will exhale and cause the spirituous part to evaporate also The very same or like is to be understood in the preparations of Food for these fiery sulpherous Fumes and Vapours which proceed out of these Vessels all the time of the Boyling being forced back and kept in because gradually more intense and raging and because of the want of the free Influences of the Air the pure Spirits and Balsamick Body are wounded which does destroy the true Natural Colour with the pure Smell and Taste also it makes it lumpish close heavy dull and gross on the Pallate this kind of preparation is likewise heavy and hard of digestion in the Stomach and generates thick Blood and gross Nourishment from whence proceeds dull indispositions with Fumes flying into the Head For the digestive Faculty and true Virtue of all sorts of Food does consist in the Spirituous parts and if any Violence be done to them in the Preparation then such Food becomes dull and half dead for those Fumes and Vapours that Pots and Vessels send forth are of a sulpherous and poysonous Nature as you may perceive if you take up any sort of Food when boyled and presently whilst it is hot cover it close which will force those fiery Fumes back insomuch that the re-entring the Food destroys and suffocates the pure Spirits therefore all such Food will not only be heavy but it will have a dull gross Taste and Smell very unpleasant both to the Pallate and strong of Concoction the truth of this every one knows if they would be so wise as to take notice of it for those sulpherous fumes that Food sends forth as also the Vessels is altogether of a contrary nature to the Heat and genuine Virtue of the Food as you also may perceive so soon as the Food is prepared and taken from the Fire this fiery Heat will of its own accord evaporate and separate it self from the Food it dwells no longer therewith than it is forced by the continuation of the Fire it hath no natural Simile with the Food therefore it will not incorporate its self with it and nothing is more unnatural than to eat and drink any kind of Food whilst those fiery Steems and Fumes be in it for it swells the Body and generates Wind sends Fumes and Vapours into the Head it also infects the Blood with a hot sharp Humour but this unnatural Heat is made by custom the more friendly as you may perceive if you give Dogs or any other Creature Pottage or the like whilst they are Hot will cause a Mange in their Blood The very same operation it hath in men but not so violent because of the continual use of such things In this particular I shall be blamed by many For say they I have found by Experience that cold Food will not agree with my Stomach neither will it satisfie my Appetite This may be true yet nevertheless this does not make it Healthful nor Wholsom for if you use your self and Stomach to the frequent eating and drinking of Physical things your Stomach will long after them and will not be satisfied without them One Example we have amongst others in taking of Tobacco which at first is most unpleasant and loathsom but through Custom and by degrees it hath awakened its Simile in the Elements of the Body and made that Quality strong which at the first taking of it was weak or lay as it were hid under the Qualities that did predominate therefore at the first taking of such poysonous or physical things they generally disorder People but when as it is mentioned before the continual use hath made this weak Quality strong then it oft-times proves as great a difficulty to Refrain it as it was to make it Friendly at the first taking or rather more For in Men is contained the true Nature of all things only one Property does predominate and is stronger than the other which Quality hath the chief dominion in the government of Life Therefore there is a possibility in the Humane Nature to alter or change himself for the better or worse that is through Use and Custom of Meats Drinks Exercises and Communications viz. to make that Quality that in the Radix was weak to become strong and on the contrary that which was strong weak so great is the power of Custom and the continual use of things for every thing be it what it will hath a secret power in its self to awaken its Simile both in the Evil and also in the Good Likewise there ought to be a great care taken that the Food be not over nor under prepared of the two it had better be a little under for as soon as the gross Phlegmatick Body in the Food is digested the pure spirituous parts become Volatile and then if the Preparations be continued they evaporate and go backward towards the Center of Saturn and so loseth its pure Colour Smell and Taste and becomes of a heavy dull Quality and especially if the Vessel be close covered for so soon as the Egress and Regress of the Air is hindred immediately the Spirits suffer Violence For the pure essential Spirits which dwell in the sweet Oyl whence the Fire has its bright shining pleasant and friendly Quality will not endure those violent raging Fumes and Vapours their Nature being understood by their furious Motion and if those fiery Fumes be by the force of covering the Vessel kept in then they become ten-fold more Terrible and Fierce as you may perceive when any Vessel is boyling if you uncover it the Steems fly out like a clap of Thunder indeed all such Fumes and Vapours are of a dark fiery Nature and Operation for being kept in by force they seek out their Center and do by way of Simile incorporate themselves with their like spirits in the Food or whatever else it be so that those fiery sulpherous dark Spirits and Fumes become stronger and more powerful in their operation for they being of a Saturnine and Martial Nature the nature of Saturn is to contract and very vigorously draw and inclose the Spirit which Mars cannot endure and the more Saturn contracteth the more furious and raging Mars becomes as you may perceive by the fiery quick furious Motion such sulpherous Fumes have when you open such Vessels that do boyl which do wound the pure spirituous parts and the Balsamick Body becomes wounded and sick more especially if the preparation of such Food be continued too long For so soon as
most of them of an opening and cleansinn Nature for they gently cleanse and purge the Passages and Bowels But all these Summer Fruits are best and safest Prepared being mixt with things of a drying and warming Quality or rather made into Drinks and when such Juices have passed through Fermentation the Phlegmy Body is digested and the spirituous Parts set at Liberty which do tincture the gross Body so that the Spirit and true Life is made thereby Predominant over the body of Phlegm such Drinks being drunk moderately prove very friendly to Nature especially to such as are Aged People which do most need spirituous Drinks Green Food is not capable either in Man or Beasts to generate so good Nourishment nor so firm as dry neither are the Spirits so brisk and lively the gross Juices of such Food do as it were suffocate the pure Spirits and turn the Balsamick Body sower as it farther appears by all sorts of Animals that live on green Food in this season are they not apt to faint and to be subject to many Diseases their Flesh and Fat being soft and greasy but those that live on dry Food their Bodies are freer from gross Phlegmatick matter their Fat and Flesh is of a firmer substance and their Spirits stronger and livelier and more capable they are to endure Labour without Prejudice to their Health it is also manifested by all Grains Seeds and other Fruits that are cut or gathered before the Sun and Elements have dryed away or exhaled the gross Phlegmy moisture all such things will presently Putrifie and Stink being loaded with so great store of Humidity but if they be gathered the Sun and Elements having dryed away the Humid Parts then all such things will keep sound and good for several Years for this cause all sorts of Food in which Phlegm does abound are very dangerous in this season if Temperance be wanting as our daily experience teaches 5thly In this Season the Sun also declines in strength and vigour which being the central Power and Life of all things they likewise do proportionably decline as appears in Herbage as for Example If you cut Grass in September which is then the Food of most sorts of Cattel the Hay made thereof is of a weak fading Nature and Vertue in comparison of that Hay which was made in Iune or Iuly which is of a lively brik strong substance and vertue for the Earth which is the Mother of all things in this Season is weak and impotent because she hath already put forth her strength and manifested her lively Vertues in the first spring or rising of the Sun for the Winter is the Rest and Sabbath of the Earth in which time she recovers strength-and vertue because she does then as it were cease from all her Labours and the Vegetative Quality stands as it were still and the more Frost and Snow and the drier the Winter is the more strength and vigour the Earth obtains such dry Weather cloaseth up the Pores by which the strength and vertue is prevented from having any Evacuations which is manifested by the goodness and great Increase of all Herbs Fruits and Grains being all filled with a Powerful Lively brisk Spirit and Vertue therefore in the first spring and rising of the Sun every thing rejoyceth and becomes very fragrant by vertue of the sweet Influences of this Coelestial Body and the Power of the Earth so that at this time all things seem to strive with a most lively motion to manifest their most inward Vertues this is the time for People to eat Herbs both Boyl'd and Raw Sallets and Pottages made thereof such Food at the Rising of the Sun are endued with a brisk lively Vertue and Strength and of an opening and cleansing Nature Purging the Blood and are good against all kind of Obstructions Also all sorts of Diseases are by vertue of Sobriety and Temperance and the use of good Medicines then easier cured than at any other of the Year it is also the Briskest and Healthiest Season and the same Intemperances and Disorders which may be the occasion of generating Diseases in the latter part of the Summer in this time will hardly be felt for now all things rejoyce and seem to concur for the Preservation of Nature 6thly In this Season viz. from the middle of Iune to the last of September most sorts of Cattel breed many Diseases First from the continual Heat and gross humid Air which in this season is more sulpherous the Pleasant Influences and Spirits of the Air are dull and thick which causes a dull and fainty Indisposition to possess the Bodies and Spirits of all Creatures Men themselves can witness the Truth of this Moreover all Creatures are more subject to sweat by which the Spirits do evaporate likewise the Food of most Creatures is Grass which is of a gross Phlegmatick Nature and generates not only an unfirm Nourishment but also fills the Body full of evil Juices the Fat and Flesh being of a soft greasy Nature having but few Spirits and those that are very impure the Blood of most Cattel being thick and gross which is the cause their Flesh will not take Salt as at other seasons also about this time most sorts of Cattel especially those that come from remote parts of great Cities are more or less Heated and Surfeited by Driving and other Accidents they being not formerly used to Driving the Weather being Hot and Fainty the Air thick and humid and they being loaded with much gross Flesh and Fat all these things concurring makes their Flesh unwholsom and subject to Corruption especially Sheep and Lambs whose Spirits and Lives are so tender that they cannot endure any kind of violent motion without manifest danger to their Health It is very rare that any Mutton or Lamb is good in this Season they not being free from the aforesaid Accidents you may easily distinguish by the Taste Smell and Colour of that which is killed off the Common without driving and other Accidents and that which is killed in London with driving the Bodies of all Creatures being in this season full of Phlegmy matter that every little Accident will wound the Spirit then presently the Body suffers many Inconveniencies and if such Cattel be kill'd before they have time to recover such Injuries their flesh is of a dull heavy Phlegmatick Nature the Spirits are few and those that are are impure for these reasons it will not take salt nor eat sweet as others will which are free from such Inconveniencies for salt has no Power to Preserve such Flesh from Putrifaction because as is mentioned before the Spirits are impure for those gross Bodies are Preserved by the Vertue and Power of the Spirit and in such flesh where the spirits are few and impure and the Flesh gross and full of Phlegmy matter the salt cannot incorporate therefore in this season use what Art you can in salting your Flesh it will not eat so sweet nor keep
in Men to awaken and attract their good or evil Nature as well as there is in the Coelestials to alter or change Mens Bodies and Minds This many of the Philosophical Ancients have consented to and most Astrologers are of the same Opinion The Calculators of Nativities find by their daily Experience that Vitiousness and Intemperance in the Natives Life not only cause a very malignant Configuration of the Coelestial Bodies to take place and have its Effects but also he that lives Intemperately is always in danger and subject to the male Aspects of the Superiors Whereas on the contrary it is most true that a Wise Man that is temperate just and circumspect may rule his own Stars But when Persons give themselves to Inordinate Living near or about such times as the Heavens threaten them with evil Aspects Transits or Directions then such disastrous Influences powerfully take place For this very reason Men are often insnared and drawn away to many Inconveniences before they are sensible of it for the wrathful unclean Nature having been by degrees awakened and strengthened by its simile either in Meats Drinks Imployments or Communications for every Property must have such Food as hath affinity therewith or else it cannot increase nor be brought into Manifestation but without it it languishes and becomes impotent in its Operation the Person so offending is thereby subjected to all the malignant Configurations of the Coelestial and Terrestrial Bodies Yet if such an one shall turn to the Lord by Prayer and abstain from the Evil Courses of this Life he presently destroys and weakens that threatning Malignity and this sober and temperate Life will by simpathy strengthen the Spirit of Wisdom and Undestanding If this were well understood there would be more Care and Diligence used both in particular and general as to outward and inward Cleanness than there is For in great Cities and Towns especially there are many Superfluities and Uncleannesses committed against God and Nature and therefore such places above others do suffer many Inconveniences The unclean Vapours and evil Spirits that do arise from Blood and other Excrements do not only awaken the Wrath in the Elements and Stars and draw down their evil Influences but incorporate with the common Air and defile it which being so corrupted nothing is more Injurious and Pernicious to the health of the Body and also to the Mind for outward Uncleannesses do naturally and powerfully attract the evil Power both Externally and Internally because all such pernicious Scents and Smells do arise and proceed from the poysonous Root and so bear a near affinity to the evil Angels and Spirits and do naturally attract them So when the Elements are disturbed by malignant Configurations and Aspects as in great Tempests of Thunder and Lightning and the like the evil Spirits and Angels are very busie and appear almost externally for by those malignant Configurations the Wrath in the outward Nature is violently excited and the same being predominant in the evil Angels they at such times become more apt and powerful to do mischief External Uncleanness does not only pollute the Body and Senses but also the Soul and Spirits for which cause some of the wise Ancients would not wear any Woolen Garments because they are made of the Excrements of Beasts And indeed all Hair and Wool does contain a gross fulsom impure Nature but it lies so hidden that it cannot be perceived unless it be set on Fire and then it manifests it self by its filthy offensive scent For the same Reason some of the Philosophers lived retired nay many of the Holy Men and Prophets of Old as the Scriptures testifie when the Spirit of the Lord was in a more than ordinary degree upon them and pleased to give them Visions and make known his Will unto them did with-draw themselves from Towns and Cities and from the Multitudes of People into the open clear Air in Fields Woods Mountains or by the most pleasant Rivers and Fountain of Water And our blessed Saviour Christ himself did often practise such Retreats when he made his earnest Supplication and Prayers to the Father Few do understand or imagin the manifold Benefits unfrequented places and clean pure Airs afford both to Body and Mind the Senses and Intellectuals of well disposed Men being free from those Uncleannesses Cities and Towns are subject to both External and Internal for in those loansom places the common Air is pure thin and clear free from those fulsom Vapours Scents and gross Smells which Cities are subject to and free from those varieties of Cursing Swearing and Multitudes of vain and impious Discourses which all places are liable unto where Rabbles reside and which wonderfully awakens the Internal Wrath and gives many Advantages to the evil Angels and Spirits to work their vile Purposes But on the contrary in open serene Airs as in Fields Mountains and by River-sides and Woods there is no such Tumults no stabbing of Heaven with dreadful Oathes horrid Curses and frightful Execrations no banishing of Temperance with drunken Healths and roaring Huzza's no fulsom fumes of Tobacco nor viler Steams of detestable Brothel-houses to infect the chaste Air no Plays or vain Games no Mistressing nor Revelling to spend precious time no clattering of Coaches Drums Fools Fidlers c. that make such a continual Din that a Man can hardly call his Ears his own But on the contrary all is sedate and serene still as the voice of good Spirits and quiet as the Birth of Flowers no noise to be heard but the ravishing Harmony of the Wood-Musitians and the innocent Lowings of Cows and Neighings of Horses and Bleating of the pretty Lambs or the like natural Tones wherein there is nothing of disturbance or danger because nothing of Evil but every thing praising the Creator according to the Capacity and Nature of each Here it was in these and the like places that the good Angels of the Lord appeared unto the Sons of Wisdom and taught them the true Knowledge of God and the Nature of things and shewed them what should come to pass in future times And whoever will obtain the true apprehension of God of Nature and of himself must be separated and chuse sometimes to sequester himself from the Tumults Confusions and Distractions of the publick World and Crowds of the chaffering and busling Rabble Besides all this Cities for the Reasons aforesaid are more liable to contagious Diseases And because the Nature of Infection and how it is spread and how to be avoided is very little or scarce at all understood we shall in the next place address our selves to discourse thereof CHAP. X. Of Infection or catching Diseases and how they are transferred from one to another and that all Diseases are Catching THE learned Moses whom the Lord inspired with divine and humane Wisdom commanded that none should sit on the Saddles lie on the Bed nor wear the Cloathes of the distempered which if any did they should
Nature for the Spirits that were weak before by these Intemperances are made weaker Likewise all Women in this time of their Lying-in should be advised not to drink too freely of any sorts of Liquor especially such as are apt to breed much Milk for fear of sore Breasts and Fevers let them beware of strong Drinks because they heat the Blood and Body beyond Mediocrity evaporate the Volatile Spirits and awaken the Central Fires which ought not by any means to be stirred up 11. Cleanness in Women is a most sublime Vertue and to be had in the highest Esteem and Veneration because of the manifold benefits which do thence proceed it preserves mankind in the very Root which the great Prophet Moses well understood whence arose his Laws of Cleanness and Separation Many of the Ancients did not count it lawful to know a Woman after known Conception 1st Because then the End of Nature is answered and also God's Law 2dly Because then the Inclinations to Copulation in all Females ceaseth except in some depraved Natures and through wanton sinful Provocations as is before mentioned Now this being none of the least Intemperances and Uncleannesses ought to be considered by all People the rather for that it strikes at the Root and corrupts mankind in the very Radix But on the contrary there is nothing more preserves the Fruit sound and healthful than Cleanness and Separation Also if Men did separate themselves from Women all those proper times and seasons which Nature forbids them and did sometimes lie alone and keep themselves Chaste it would render them more healthy strong and full of lively Spirits and more Masculine it being an Effeminating thing for Men and Women to lie always together making no distinction of Uncleannesses or of Sickness there being scarce any particular Intemperance or Uncleanness that destroys more Men Women and Children than this besides it enfeebles the Courage and makes Men low Spirited and also lessens their Affections except in some few dulling Natures in a word it debilitates all the parts and brings an infinit number of Diseases How many thousands of poor Children are yearly destroyed by the Effects of the before-mentioned Intemperances some by Leprous Scabby Diseases Boils and running Sores and the Disease vulgarly called The KING 's Evil but to speak Truth it is the Mother and Father's Evil others with weak Ioynts and Ricketty Distempers and many other Calamities as Consumptions Stoppages Convulsions and windy Diseases But here I am apprehensive that I shall offend the Women by telling them the truth and which any of them might know to be truth if they would but look into themselves and examine things It being a gross Error for any to imagin that Man in the beginning was made as to his outward Man more corrupt or subject to Distempers than the Beasts of the Field all sorts of which are now an hundred-fold more Healthy than Mankind yet both they and Man as to the Elements of the Body are compounded of one and the same matter And as the Creator has endued Man with Wisdom Reason and Understanding above and beyond all other Creatures visible so on the other side there is not a Creature under Heaven of a sounder and more healthy Constitution than Man in his Original nay 't is certain Man is naturally the most compleat for the holy Angels have always appeared in Humane shapes Likewise Man according to his bigness is not only strong but of a great Spirit full of Vigour and the soundness of his Primitive Constitution appears by his long Life in the first Ages Therefore it is not through the Imbecillity of his natural Frame and Composition as some would have it that he is afflicted with such a number of Diseases from and by means of his Intemperance and Uncleannesses in which two Evils Men do surpass all other Creatures and consequently are more diseased than any of them But had Man lived in obedience to the divine and natural Law of God he would as much have surpassed the Beasts in Health as now they do him and Children would be as sound and free from Diseases as the young Ones of other Creatures are had not their Parents corrupted themselves by their Intemperances in their Radix and trained their Children up in the like Inconveniences and this is the true cause of Mans Imbecillities whereby he is become inferiour unto the very Beasts as to Health Not that he was made so in his Creation for we do read that the Ancients were sickly and subject to this and the other Disease nor of the immature Death or Sicknesses either of their Women or especially of their Children whence we may conclude that they were sound and not liable to so many burthensom Diseases as we and our Children are subject to and this we may be the rather confirmed in because the Scriptures do testifie That the days of Mankind were shortned because of their Intemperances as Gen. 6. The Violences and Intemperances of Man had corrupted the whole Earth and all things therein which was the grand cause of infinite Distempers and the shortning of Life an example of this we have in many of the Beasts who are exposed to the unmercifulness of Men and more especially in Horses who in their Radixes are one of the most healthy sorts of Creatures of strong hardy hot Constitutions and Natures nevertheless through the hard usage and strain their cruel Drivers force them unto they become the most diseased of all others Moreover these inhumane Outrages Uncleannesses and Intemperances do awaken Gods Wrath in the Constellations and outward Elements and powerfully as by Simile draw down malignant Influences whence proceed particular and universal Calamities Whereas if mankind did live in the observation of Gods Law in Nature and contented himself with what was needful and suitable to his Nature the same would not only lay a sure Foundation for Health both of Body and Mind but Magnetically attract the benevolent Influxes of the Coelestial Bodies and make even this lower Life a kind of Paradise both for Innocency and pure unsullied Pleasures 12. All Women and Nurses ought to be careful that they do not swathe or bind their young Infants too hard which many are guilty of for the delicate tender Nerves and small Bones of Children cannot endure such usage without great Inconveniency by awakning the internal heat which spreads through all the Body and makes the external parts glow with an unnatural heat which makes the Child fret and cry and that spends its strength and puts its whole Body into disorder And after they have thus pinion'd up the poor Infant and wrapt it in so many Coverings they then cover it up again in a Cradle or Bed but the best of the two is a Cradle where for the most part they are kept over-hot and the pleasant Air prevented of having its free Influences upon them whereby their pure Spirits are suffocated and rendred impure the Circulation
sight or appearance of Ten would make a Thousand fly but when they did forsake the Fear of the Lord and turned the use of natural things into wantonness they awakened the Wrath by which their Enemies got many Advantages over them and overcame them and carried them away captive The very same is now-a-days amongst us this being a certain Truth that will stand for ever against all gain-sayers and evil Men viz. That all Oppression Violence and Killing doth proceed from the seed of the Serpent the Betrayer which I wish all our Hero's and Fighters and great Martial Men would well consider and turn the Eye of their Understandings inward and search themselves then they would certainly find that it is the fierce Cain-like Spirit which reigns in them and excites them to commit such Outrages When the Soldiers asked the Lord Christ What they should do to be saved he said unto them Be contented with your Pay and do violence to no Man Which is to say They should be Soldiers no longer for all Soldiers do live in the Spirit of Violence and must kill and destroy whenever their Commanders please So likewise Christ says to Peter than whom certainly never man drew Sword in a better Quarrel Put up thy Sword those that use the Sword shall perish by the Sword my Kingdom is not of this World that is My Kingdom consists in Love Mercy Meekness Friendliness Peace and good Will unto all Men. 18. It is farther to be considered that the eating of Flesh was not permitted till after the overflowing of God's Wrath had got the dominion in Man's heart and God had tried and proved them and saw that they were stiff-necked and would not be obedient unto his Commands nor enter into the holy divine Principle of Love and Peace but would live in the Power of the lordly poysonous Nature and continually lusted after Oppression and the Ways of Egypt and for this cause the Lord suffered them to be carried away into the Land of Nod and Egypt which is a Land of Vanity Oppression and Cruelty and they suffered the fierce Wrath to domineer over them but in process of time they cried unto the Lord and he had regard unto them and raised up Moses and inspired him with divine and humane Wisdom and made him their Guide for Moses doth signifie The Strength and Power of God in his meek friendly Light and Love or A Cleanser and Purger of the People from Iniquity This great Prophet by the mighty power of the Lord wrought many wonderful Miracles amongst the Egyptians which made the Wrath to bow or give way and by a strong hand caused his People to pass through the Red Sea that is through the fierce Wrath and fiery Judgment of the Lord untouch'd and unhurt whilst the same Sea of Wrath did swallow up and comprehend the Egyptians the Men of Sin and Vanity with their Horses and Chariots that is with all their strength and deeds Then the Lord caused his People to travel forty years in the Wilderness which signifies the wild Nature which they were not to stay in Likewise these forty years are an holy mystical Number viz. the Number of Regeneration during which time the Lord works many Marvels and delivers the true Israelite from inward and outward Enemies Yet still they provoked the Lord their God to wrath by lusting after the Flesh-pots of Egypt that is the Oppression and the Cruelty for the Lord did not permit them in all their March towards Canaan to kill their Flocks or Herds nor to eat any Flesh in those forty years travel for they were not to stay or continue in the wild bestial Nature but to pass through and by degrees leave it behind them and to deny themselves all those Oppressions Vanities worldly Lusts and Passions which the Men of Egypt are subject unto that thereby they might be cleansed purified and fitted to enter into the holy Land For the chief Enemies the Children of Israel met with were their inward Lusts Passions and bestial Spirits which did mightily strive in them to get the Victory over the divine Principle of God's Love and this was the main Cause of their many Lets Stops and Hinderances and the Occasion that so many Thousands did fall in the way and never entred into the holy Land of which the Lord told them That it was a Land that flowed with Milk and Honey not with Oppression Cruelty Killing and Blood but with Milk and Honey the Emblems of Innocency and Sweetness and beautified with many excellent Virtues for the maintenance of the Life and Health of Man but because they looked back and longed after the Egyptian Vanities they did fall and could not enter into the Land of Peace As in like case the Scripture saith of David That he being a Man of Violence and Blood as having been bred up in Wars and Fighting therefore the Lord would not admit him to build the Temple Which outward Temple was a true Figure of the inward divine Temple for David had awakened the wrathful Powers of Nature within and without himself and consequently was not so fit for Temple-work wherein there must not be heard any noise of Axes or Hammers much less the clashing of Swords and ratling of Spears these are the Musick of Babel's Builders But perhaps some will say Though it cannot be proved that the Children of God did eat any Flesh in their Travel towards the Holy Land yet long before that the two Angels that were going towards Sodom to destroy it did eat Flesh I Answer This is so far from being an Objection that rightly understood it confirms and illustrates all that I have been saying for first 't is plain these Words are not to be understood literally for Angels are incorporeal therefore Flesh must needs be too crude and gross a Food for such intellectual Essences void of Matter and therefore some more hidden meaning and signification is to be understood and indeed there lies couch'd a very great Mystery in this Passage The Sodomites had by their crying Sins awakened the fierce wrathful Principle in Nature even in the outward Elements which did kindle the Indignation of the Lord and draw down the Judgment Now out of this strong power of the kindled wrath these two Angels did proceed which had in them the power of the same Principle viz. the inward and outward Wrath and therefore it was no marvel that Abraham should kill and shed Blood at their approach whose travelling towards Sodom and staying here by the way does denote the gradual kindling of the fierce Wrath and their eating Flesh under a Tree or Oak does signifie the harsh wild Nature for they entred not into Abrahams Tent that is into the divine Principle but hasted towards Sodom that was in the kindled Wrath of Nature Moreover there were Three Angels appeared unto Abraham but there went but Two towards Sodom Now I have told you that the Number Two is a Number of Division
the heavy fierce Fires of Saturn and Mars do carry the upper dominion in them But if the Gravity of Iupiter and Sweetness of Venus do interpose then all is made delightfully pleasant But as it is impossible for any Man to make good Harmony that has never learned Musick nor knows how to tune his Instrument because one String will be several Notes too high and others as many too flat or low from which can proceed no Melody but a rumbling jarring Noise of Discords So impossible it is that any Man should attain to the holy Harmony of God in the Kingdom of his Love and Light or to live in the power of Unity except he be born again and hath learned himself for the true knowledge of God in a Man's self is absolutely necessary for if a Man do not understand the Treasures and holy Virtues the Vices and Evils he always carries about him in his own Vessel how is he like to distinguish the Natures Properties and Operations of those things which he shall daily meet withal within him 20. This degeneration of the humane Nature is apparent from the Words of our Saviour Christ who saw into the very Roots of their Hearts and Spirits and yet made no scruple to call them Foxes Sons of Belial c. For such inwardly they were as appear'd by their Works But it had not been so from the beginning for if it had Man would not have been cloathed with such a compleat Angelical form and shape as he is for when the Creator moved himself by the production of all things each was cloathed with an external Body suitable to its Spirit and according to the degrees and nature of each Spirit such form it attained for each spiritual Substance had power to attract out of all things such corporeal Matter for a Covering or Body as had a Simile with its own Nature as appears most manifestly by the Shapes Forms Inclinations and Dispositions of each Creature And as the internal Property and Disposition of each Creature did vary so their outward Form and Shape did vary Thus where the fierce Wrath did predominate there sprung up wild Beasts and Birds of Prey but where the Qualities of Nature were more equally mixed there were formed more benign and friendly Creatures as Beasts and Birds humane tame and tractable called by the wise Men clean Beasts and Birds and where the Spirit was more noble and great so the Body and Form was accordingly And as Man was in the Spirit and primitive Properties and Qualities greater and more noble than any other of the Creatures visible so the Lord gave him a proportionable Body above all the rest of the lower Creation for we never read that any of the Holy Angels of the Lord appeared in any other than Humane Form But when God has at any time permitted evil Angels to assume Shapes and Forms they have always been hideous monstrous and frightful as Dragons Lions Cats Swine and the like which may demonstrate what Principle and Kingdom they belong unto and which would have been Man's Condition had he not fallen into the humane Nature which has not only been the chief Means to preserve Man's Angelical Form but to raise him to a Supernatural Dignity by the Lord Christ's assuming an humane Body and making all them Sons and Coheirs that believe in him and are incorporated with him For though Man through Sin and Transgression hath lost his Heavenly Angelical Understanding and Wisdom which yet shall be again restored to all those that obey the Counsel of the holy Seed and divine Light yet he did not bereave himself of his first Shape or Angelical Form because he fell into the Humane Nature where every Body has the Seed in it self to produce its like Species in all respects But as for the Spirits or Souls of most Men they have through the desire of Vanity Oppression Violence Killing both Men and Beasts wanton Superfluity Pride Vain-glory c. precipitated themselves into the divided Forms and harsh fierce Wrath of God and into Bestiality and the savage Nature so that they have lost the humane Property are grown hard-hearted cruel and sordid having no Compassion Fellow-feeling or Mercy and all that do live and die in this savage brutish state shall in the Resurrection when every Soul shall be re-invested with a new Body attract such Matter out of all things as their Spirits are capable of and have a Simile with and so appear in Forms hideous frightful and loathsome as their Natures require for such Seed as Men do sow such a Body may be expected for so the illuminate Apostle speaks of the Resurrection God giveth to every Seed it s own Body and therefore if Men sow hellish Seeds in their Lives no wonder if they be cloathed with suitable shapes in the next World But on the contrary those that in their earthly Pilgrimage have retained Humanity and introduced their Wills and Desires into the divine Principle of eternal Light and Love and been guided by the counsel thereof shall in that day arise in a more perfect beautiful and glorious humane Shape and Form of whom Christ Jesus was the first for after his Resurrection he appeared in the same Shape Form and Body as he had before his Death 21. Consider how unpleasing it would be to most People to behold the dead Carkasses of Beasts cut into pieces and mangled and all over bloody And how nauseous and frightful a thing it would be to think of putting those begored Gobbits into our Mouths and feeding our selves thereon did not continual Use and Custom make it familiar And how difficult a Task would it be for many People who do for the most part live under the power and operation of the tender compassionate Principle of God's Love to kill the Beasts for their own Food until a little Action of that kind and custom hardens them therein How quickly also will the dead Carkasses putrefie and stink defiling the Elements both Earth and Air How offensive are the Places where Flesh is killed and sold How rude cruel fierce and violent are most of those who are employed therein In a word there is nothing that is pleasant or friendly in the whole business nor any one Circumstance that is grateful to the innocent Principle in Man nay the Taste of most sorts of Flesh is strong fulsome and smells of the original Cruelty to all those that have for any time separated themselves from the eating thereof or having communication with it And indeed none are or can be sensible how it is nor be competent Judges of what is said here but only such as have made Trial. Is there any comparison to be made between an Herb-Market and a Flesh-Market In one there is a thousand pieces of the dead Carkasses of various Creatures lie stinking the Chanels running with Blood and all the Places full of Excrements Ordure Garbage Grease and Filthiness sending forth dismal poysonous Scents enough
Temples in which they say They will worship God but in truth they make the Seats of War Dissention and Controversie but instead thereof Men's Bodies would become living Temples in which his holy Spirit would have the dominion then the dolorous frightful Noise of Guns Drums Swords and the Tumults of Armed Men would not be heard in the Streets no Plotting and Contriving the destruction of each other would be neither would the Prince need to fear his own Warders nor no wounding one another by Back-biting and slanderous Speeches neither would the superiour World and Element be filled with the mournful Tones and doleful Cries of the inferiour Inhabitants nor with the wrathful fierce Species of Man-slaughter which doth render every Man unsafe even from the Prince to the Peasant neither would there be any vain Plays Games nor wanton superfluous Treats to waste precious Time and destroy God's good Creatures then Man would not say what should be done and do it not then the inward savage violent Beasts of Prey would be rooted out of Man's heart and the violent wrathful Spirit must lose its dominion and lay down its wrathful Arms and Weapons of War and become subject to the divine Principle of God's eternal Love neither would Men then count themselves at home in this World but Strangers and Guests that must wander hence then also all outward fighting and slaying one the other for Money and Honour would have no being for having overcome the inward Enemies of their Members they would rest secure there being no Peace so excellent and commendable as that which is made by good living neither in the sight of God nor Man viz. by the Sword of God's Spirit not by the high lofty domineering envious Spirit who by force doth endeavour to subject all unto it self such a Peace cannot long continue unviolated because it proceeds from the poysonous serpentine Root and it hath its motion and operation where the Forms of Nature are divided and at Enmity with each other also here each Property doth with highest diligence endeavour to get the dominion which sometimes one doth and then by and by another so that there is a continual strife and enmity for Superiority or Government which is the foundation of all Controversies Violence Oppression Fighting and Killing and why Men forget God and despise the Dictates of the innocent Principle of his Love which continued Violences and Oppressions do more and more kindle and keep the fierce Wrath in motion and by a sympathetical inclination draw on Man many sore Evils for every Principle or Quality becomes either strong and powerful or weak and impotent according as Man shall joyn himself or live in the power and operation of whether it be in the evil or good therefore it hath always come to pass that those that have given themselves up and immersed their Wills and Desires into the Principle of Wrath have become strong and powerful therein committing Intemperances and outraging God's Law with greediness but on the contrary those that have separated themselves from Violence Intemperance and Uncleanness and followed the Counsel of the Voice of Wisdom they have become strong and powerful in the same Principle whence hath flowed all kinds of Virtue What could hurt Man either externally or internally or destroy his Peace and Well-being if he lived in Innocency The Creator hath not made any visible Prince greater or ordained any to reign over him but only the friendly Light and Love which he hath dispossessed himself of by stepping out of the Law of God in Nature and so hath lost his dominion both external and internal and thereby hath subjected himself under the dominion of the poysonous fierce Wrath where Enmity Strife and Violence take their Birth But this is the happiness still of Mankind that the God of eternal Peace hath in his Mercy given a portion of his friendly Light and Love to every one to profit withal and also Man's Will is free if he do not suffer it to be depraved and captivated under the dominion of the evil Nature for this cause the Scripture of Truth saith That the Lord hath set Life and Death before Man that is in Man as also the Right-hand Way and the Left and bid him chuse The Right-hand-Way is the Principle of his eternal Love and Light in Jesus Christ and the Left is his fierce Wrath and he that chuseth the good part doth not only become a Friend of God's and himself but also to the whole Creation and becomes incorporated into that unspotted Body and holy Fountain of Innocency into which state all the inferiour Creatures as well as Man do travel with pain and groan to be delivered as the worthy Apostle Paul saith The whole Creation groans to be delivered into that glorious liberty of the Sons of God this is the Land that flows with Milk and Honey Here is Peace and Plenty of all things for Unity and Innocency makes the Kingdoms of this World Emblems of Paradise For Temperance Cleanness and Separation from Violence freeth the Body from great Labours and Travels and the Mind from carking Cares Suspicions and Perturbations attracting the benevolent Influences of the Celestials and all the Host of Heaven and Earth blesseth him that lives in Innocency because he oppresseth nor hurteth nothing It is Violence Oppression and Superfluity which have broke the Unity between God and Man and also between all other Creatures and rendered Man the most unhappy of all others his wrathful Mouth is so wide and his Paunch so large that the Spoil and Destruction of all the numerous Inhabitants of the Elements will not content him he contends with all things and therefore all contend with him no place is free from his poisonous Rays and unreconciled Controversies therefore all curse him and he doth the same by them Every Creature feareth Man because he hurts and destroys their Peace and in so doing he doth the same by himself for the Groaning of those Creatures that suffer Pain and Oppression will overtake him that doth it but on the contrary those that have separated themselves from Violence Oppression and Superfluity all things that are necessary for them and for the support of Life are near at hand and may be easily procured without hazarding the Health either of the Body or Mind and without Oppression to any of God's Creatures as the great number of fragrant Herbs Seeds Grains and Fruits which are endued with brave innocent Properties and many excellent Virtues beyond Expression which being well prepared and moderately eaten do not only maintain Health and Strength but they do beget their own Species and innocent Properties both in the Body and Mind as I have before demonstrated And whosoever shall make trial and initiate now this innocent way of Living shall not only make Peace with the whole Creation but shall overcome his inward Lusts and violent Passions which are Man's deadly Enemies and then he may rest secure under his own
amongst us if any of us by the enticement of our liquorish Palates or other Accidents commit any Intemperance in Meats Drinks or otherwise we in all Particulars make it publick at our Meetings and such do of their own free choice appoint unto themselves a certain time of Abstinence and Separation according to the nature of the Offence viz. Days Weeks Months or Years whereby our Bodies are cleansed and purged from superfluous Matters which are the Seeds of Diseases by which we are preserved in health and our Souls are freed from the Chains of that Offence and our Minds and Spirits strengthened by the Spirits of our Friends Penance and Separation keep the Evil fresh in our Minds with a continual Spur to call on the Lord for Mercy This many of the Prophets and holy Men practised We do account it unlawful to innoble the Carcases of slaughtered Beasts by intombing them in our Bodies The Flesh of Beasts is too near a-kin unto us therefore the humane Nature ought not to join or incorporate it self with the Bestiality The Wood-Musicians do freely communicate with us because we do not hurt them All things are friendly unto us because we are like unto them also the holy Scriptures do testifie the Truth of this viz. The Lord hath made his Angels ministring Spirits to minister to them that fear him and live in his Love Abstinence Cleanness and Separation do fortifie us and support our Spirits which do by a secret and natural Attraction even as the Loadstone doth Iron attract the Celestial Powers by which the good Angels become prompt and do readily serve us and communicate to every one according to his Merits and Capacity But on the contrary those that have introduced their Wills and Desires into the central Wrath and live under the divided Forms and evil Properties do thereby subject themselves not only to all the inferiour bestial Properties but are always liable to be tempted and give great Advantages to the evil Genius and to the malignant Configurations of the Celestials which forcibly attract unto them the evil Angels which draw many into great Errors as Gluttony Drunkenness Adulteries Theft and Murders as also unto all vain Sports and violent Exercises as Bear-baitings Bull-baitings Fencing Fighting with Dogs and Cats Swearing Lying and Fighting with one another as also Playing at Cards Dice Nine pins and many other evil robust Egyptian Sports which are the Inventions of the evil Genius and Angels and do all proceed from the fierce Wrath of God in Nature It is farther to be noted that all those that are Spectators and love to see those violent Exercises and vain Pleasures and take delight to be in the presence of them are all led and governed by the same evil Genius and with their Wills do confent to those Villanies O ye Multitude stand still and consider what fire it is that is kindled in you and what Fewel it is that doth keep it burning and from what Centre it takes its Birth and then you will find it to be the hellish Fire which proceeds from God's fierce Wrath which can no ways be quenched but by your ceasing from Evil and standing still and the Lord will by his Power part the Red Sea and conduct you safe through his Wrath and drown the Man of Sin but preserve his Camp by his holy Angel 3. But in our Country we have none of the aforementioned Sports nor Egyptian Pastimes We do not use Cruelty or do Violence neither to Man nor Beast for fear we should become worse than Savages as the People of Egypt and those of the Land of Nod are for no Man can do Violence and not awaken the Wrath and violent Spirit for all Inclinations to Violence do proceed from the same Spirit and all that take delight and pleasure therein are precipitated into it and then this hellish Quality gets dominion and crucifies the Son of God viz. the friendly Principle of Light and Love afresh as the Scripture saith For these Reasons our Philosophers will not admit any Violence to be done either to Man or Beast because all Oppressions and Violences whether they be little or great have but one Root or Fountain the same is to be understood of Vertue and as Use and Custom do encrease Vertue and make it impregnable so doth the practice of Evil make the fierce Wrath strong and powerful Therefore we have no Bear-baitings to gather the rude violent Multitude together and to torment the Creatures of God who bear his Image either in his Love or Anger neither have we Bull-baitings to make and force one Beast contrary to their Inclinations cruelly to tear another to pieces whilst a company of People look on that in their nature are tenfold worse than Beasts neither have we any Cock-fightings nor no Festival Days that serve chiefly to call the violent Rabble together nor no Whitson-Ale or Morris-dancing all our Dancing and Fencing-Masters since we came out of Egypt have given off their Trade and applied themselves to the Study of Wisdom and many of them are become excellent Proficients therein All our Ale-houses and Taverns are put to honest uses viz. to entertain Strangers and the Instruments of Musick which were used in them during Pharaoh's Reign we have caused to be burned as a Sacrifice or Retaliation because the Egyptians had profaned the Lord in the use of them We have no fatted Swine fatted Oxen or Punchanelloes amongst us neither have we any of Pharaoh's lean Kine We wear no Swords by our Sides but all our Weapons of War are inward and we never use them for any other Occasion but to defend our Souls from Viciousness We join not Harmony Swearing and vain Discourses together as the Egyptian Masters of Musick do Our Men do not rob Women of their principal Ornament neither living nor dead nor adorn their Heads with theirs which shews in those that do a base depraved effeminate Nature Most of this sort of People belong to Pharaoh's Troops that are or may expect to be swallowed up in the Sea of Wrath. Our Women do not gather themselves into Companies in the Streets and there spend Time in evil Communication neither do they stand idling at their Doors in painted counterfeit Dresses to allure the wanton Eyes of the Passers by We have no Play-houses neither dare we use Consorts of Musick in any such places We do not suffer our Children to go to any of the publick Shews and Games of Sodom for fear they should look back and so become Monuments of God's Wrath as Lot's Wife was We do not allow or suffer our young Men to run nor ride for Wagers neither do we suffer our Women to use robust Employments for fear they should become rude and immodest as the Egyptian Women are for the whole preservation of Mankind doth chiefly depend on their well Conduct and Temperance We turn our Backs on all idle Discourses which serve only to invite Men to Folly and spend precious
time Our Friends Abstinence Temperance and Cleanness do continually shew us the vanity of such things and spur us on and hasten us towards the Land of Peace We do not look back for fear we should awaken the Centre the original Poisons and then our sweet Water would be in danger of being dried up as it came to pass in Lucifer and his Legions there being but nine Figures or degrees of Wisdom attainable by mortal Men the tenth Number viz. o is the highest and those that have gradually passed through the Nines must stand still in silence and leave off all numbering and suffer God's Holy Spirit to work the Will and the Deed in him as he pleaseth We have no Butchers Fowlers nor any that belong to the Trade of Killing Violence or Oppression amongst us most of them revolted and join'd themselves to Pharaoh before they came out of Egypt and were destroyed with his Troops in the Sea of Blood or Wrath and those of them that passed through the Red Sea were cut off in the Wilderness for finding their Trade very bad and low and the nearer they came to the Land of Peace the worse it grew so they began to tumult and complain and murmur against the Lord that he dealt so hardly with them Which awaken'd the Centre of Wrath and destroyed them so that none of this sort of People enter'd the holy Land that flows with Milk and Honey and not with the Blood of the humane nor bestial Nature Neither have we any Billings-gates all that sort of People are our Hewers of Wood and Drawers of Water And but very few Inns of Court-Gentlemen or Templers all of them that escaped the Egyptian Plagues were destroyed with Corah Dathan and Abiram in the wild Nature of this World or Wilderness Neither have we many Churches and yet have a great number of Temples in which we worship the Lord but there be no Bells in them that are compounded of imperfect Metals therefore we have no need of those robustick Musicians viz. Ringers to call the People to worship such Musick is too Saturnine and Martial for us No every one of us hath his own Bell and none can ring or make Musick of it but himself which being skilfully handled makes a more sweet soft and pleasing Harmony than the Egyptian Bells who are loud harsh and penetrating and all the Ringers are rude cruel and inhumane Our young People do not learn to ring any Bells but their own which when well learned calls them to the Worship of God in the proper Times and Seasons even as the good Spirit of God shall teach them as the Scripture saith The holy Men of God taught and spoke as the Holy Spirit moved in them We do not admit any to be Magistrates or Governours over us but only those that by Industry Prayer and Meditation have attained to a more excellent Understanding of God Nature and Themselves than their Neighbours which doth render them fit to govern We account none capable to govern others that have not first learned in all particulars to govern themselves It is contrary to our Philosophy to mix or compound our Food with things of disagreeing natures We use no double Preparations the more simple our Food is the more agreeable it is to our Nature and best sustains our Healths It is not a Custom for our Women to give or suffer their Children to drink any kind of Beer or Syder whilst their Food is chiefly Milk there being nothing more contrary to Milk than such sharp Liquors Milk being of a sweet gentle mild friendly Nature and Operation having no manifest Quality that doth too violently predominate there being a certain Harmony between the Properties of Nature in Milk and therefore it hath always been found by Experience to be the best Food for Children and all young People administring proper Nourishment in Equality to all Parts But on the contrary all sorts of Beer Syder and other fermented Drinks are of a sowr keen or sharp Quality and for this cause being mixed with Milk it turns or separates the wheyish part from the thick the same is to be understood if Children or others drink after eating of Milk if they do not forbear a convenient time till the Stomach hath made separation and alter'd the Property of it Besides the constant drinking of such Liquors do sowre the Stomach and generate a keen or sharp Quality which is apt to turn the Milk into an hard tough substance and thereby puts Nature to great difficulty to concoct or make Separation Doth not our daily Experience shew us that all Curd of Milk is hard of Concoction and burthensome to the Stomach For this Cause many having used themselves to drink plentifully of strong Drinks and to the eating of compounded Food which have so sowr'd the Stomach and alter'd it from its simplicity that the eating of this friendly harmless Food becomes offensive to them and disagreeing especially to some particular People whose Stomachs are as it were naturally inclined to generate a sowre Matter For this cause if any shall drink immediately after eating of Milk it will cause them to puke up the thin wheyish parts whilst the hard substance remains in the Stomach which doth foul and hinder Concoction For these Reasons it is much better for all Children and young People whose Food is chiefly Milk to drink Water it being the most like Milk of any Drink of a mild gentle friendly Nature and Operation which is farther manifested by its being mixed with Milk they mix or incorporate themselves as one entire Body making no variation or separation as other Liquors will and therefore it hath been found by Experience in all Ages to be the best and most natural Drink for all People but more especially for Women and Children who are endued with tender Spirits and gentle Heats and if their Meats and Drinks have not a near Affinity both in quality and quantity to their Natures it will quickly put them out of Tune and cause them to fall into Diseases and then Nature will become unequal in her Operations Every like doth with highest diligence endeavour to beget its Simile both in the Body and Mind Water being in its own nature so clean simple and innocent that it doth not only wash and cleanse the Mouth throughly and all the Vessels of the Stomach from such gross thick Matter that doth stick and furr them but it doth distil its moist Nourishment into all parts of the Body without making any noise or causing an unequal Motion cooling and refreshing Nature strengthens Concoction thins the Blood causing it to circulate freely makes the natural parts brisk and lively For this cause those Women and Children that do constantly drink Water are not subject to so many Diseases as others whose practice is to drink strong Liquors We have but one sort of Bread which is neither coarse nor fine We never change the Fashions of our Garments nor deck them
to intreat our Friends to eat or drink beyond what is needful We have not forgot the great Affliction and torturing Distempers we endured whilst we were in Captivity and under the Government of Pharaoh's Task-masters viz. under the unequal Oppressions of the awakened Wrath and divided Forms of Nature where each Property endeavours to get the Mastery and therefore we do continually shun and arm our selves with the Armour of our Lord Jesus Christ viz. by taking up the Cross and denying our selves those Egyptian Vanities and Superfluities which the common Enemy of Mankind doth seek with all cunning Inventions to enslave us again in worldly Lusts that he may separate us from our sovereign Good but the Word of Truth is engraven in our Hearts by whose Power and Virtue we withstood his Temptations and beware of his Snares in time and count it our chief Good that the Lord hath in his Eternal Mercy delivered us out of Captivity therefore it behoveth us to live soberly in this present World We desire always and in all states to submit our selves to the good Pleasure of the Lord for we do not know what is good no farther than we are guided by his Holy Spirit it belongeth to him to determine what is most expedient for us and his own Glory We all hold this Maxim That all that have throughly profited themselves in the School of Christ do daily beat down or keep under the Elemental Body by denying themselves the Worldly Vanities within We do not give Names to our Children nor imitate the Philosophical Ancients like Apes without understanding the true Nature or Genius of the Child as to call them at a venture by such Names as do express a Deity whereas this Nature and Genius of the Child is quite contrary This is not to imitate our first Parents Adam gave Names to every Creature and Thing according to their Natures that is expressing their Natures and Properties He did not give Names to wild savage Beasts that did signifie Cleanness or friendly tractable Dispositions and Natures nor call Sheep Lions nor Lions Sheep The Prophet Isaiah saith Woe unto those that call Evil Good and Good Evil being ignorant of the true Nature of things and divine Mysteries they make no distinctions between Good and Evil. Adam called his First-born Cain Why did not he call him Abel No that would be to call a Devil a Saint and a Saint a Devil Cain doth sound forth and signifie the strong Might and Power of the Wrath and divided Forms of Nature which had Dominion in him and Abel doth as we have told you before signifie the eternal Principle of God's Love viz. Cain imitates the fierce devouring Fire and Abel the Light thereof The very same is to be understood of Ishmael and Isaac and Esau and Iacob the elder doth truly signifie the consuming Fire and the younger the Light thereof the first is the Father and the second is the Son The Ancients did not therefore gather together all the good Names which do express the holy divine Power and eternal Grace and Love of God in his second Principle or eternal Light and call their Children by them at a venture no this would have been great Impiety Would not every sober Man count it sordid and vain to call an Angel a Devil and a Devil by the Name of an Angel as most of the Men of Egypt do at this day They name and call their Children by Names expressing the divine Virtue and Power when as most of them do live under the Government of the evil unclean Nature and the Spirit that doth predominate in them is fierce and wrathful so that they call Good Evil and Evil Good which is far off from imitating the holy Men of the first Ages This doth more clearly appear by Abram which doth signifie the original Wrath and wild Nature of this World Why did not his Parents call him Abraham Emanuel Grace Hope Charity Abel Iacob or Isaac No those Names were too sublime but Abram did truly sound forth and signifie his inward and outward Nature But in process of time when the Light of God's Grace and Eternal Mercy appeared to him and that he believed in God which was accounted to him for Righteousness then the Lord said unto him Thy Name shall no more be called Abram but Abraham which doth truly comprehend and signifie both the first and second Tabernacle The Lord did not destroy or annihilate the Wrath and wild Nature no that must not be if there were no Fire then there would'be no Light as our Saviour Christ saith in another Case He came not to destroy the Law but to fulfil it The Lord did reinforce Abraham's Soul and replenish it with his holy divine Principle of Love and Light and therefore his Name should no more be called Abram a Thorn or wild Thistle but Abraham the Father of the Faithful The same Order and changing of Names was continued till Christ was manifested in the humane Nature and afterward by all the divine Seers Did not Christ change St. Peter's Name because of his fixed Faith calling him Sephas which signifies a Stone or Rock And was not Saul called Paul after his Conversion The Ancients never changed Names but first their Natures were changed Christ called Herod a Fox which did truly signifie his inward Nature and what Spirit did govern in him The same is to be understood when the wise Ancients gave Names to their Children Places Cities and other things which Names did always truly signifie what Property or Quality did predominate in the Child or Thing so named This Knowledge is Angelical which Man hath lost by suffering his Desire and Will to enter into Vanity and as the Name of each Creature which Adam gave them doth express their Properties and Nature so the Name of each Angel doth express and signifie their Office The understanding each Name and what is signified thereby doth remain as a Mystery unto Mankind which is the original Language or the true Language of Nature the sound of each Word or Name doth declare what Property is predominant in it which original Language of Nature Birds and some other inferiour Creatures do retain to this time because they have not broken the Law of God in Nature but have lived in the Simplicity thereof and though they are not endued with that noble Faculty of Speech nevertheless they can by their general Tone and Cry as intelligibly communicate their Desires and various Passions as Love Hate Hunger Thirst and the like as Men can by their distinct Dialects viz. by altering and varying this one simple Tone or Cry as when they are hungry or want their Fellows or if one particular Bird doth know of some Food that his Fellows are ignorant of then he sends forth such a Tone or Sound as does as intelligibly acquaint all those of their own Kind as Men can by discoursing together for every Tone and Cry according to the various States Wants
simple-hearted as not to hurry kill and destroy those of our kind and others of the like nature then all Wars and Contention between those of his own kind would cease but so long as that terrible fierce wrathful Spirit predominates in Mankind there will be continual Wars Rumors of Wars Plots Conspiracies and horrid Murthers and Assassinations amongst themselves nor can we hope to escape their bloody hands but our Lives must be subject to all kind of Miseries and we must be contented to be led not only to the Shearer but also to the Slaughter-house in silence as well as Innocence and shall not lift up our Voice to repine or complain to them any more since they served that great and most holy Shepherd in the same manner even the Saviour of the World that was so far from Killing that he laid down his Life for his Sheep The Horses Complaint against their Masters Has not the Creator of all Beings endued us with great Spirits and strong Bodies excellent Shapes and delicate Forms not only pleasant to behold but of great use to Mankind bringing to them by our Labours a thousand daily Benefits By our Strength we tear and plow up the stubborn Earth and harrow her obdurate Clods We carry them through Dirt and Mire swim with them through the Waters and bear them over dangerous places and often hazard our Lives with willingness to save theirs We with great Toil and Labour draw their Luggage in Carts and Wains and their fat lazy Paunches in Chariots and Coaches In Cases of Expedition they ride us Post and by our help remove themselves above an hundred Miles in a very few Hours All this we do and are contented to do but what is reasonable and agreeable to our Natures will not satisfie the unreasonable Desires and Lusts of our Masters but through many Abuses and cruel Strains and immoderate Labours which they force us to even beyond the power and strength of our Nature they have so wounded our Spirits and destroyed our Natural Heat that although our Creator hath endued us with great Spirits and Bodies strong and healthful beyond most of our Fellow-Creatures yet we are now become liable to as many Diseases almost as our intemperate Masters are themselves To enumerate all the Grievances we suffer would be endless Some of our Tyrants will gallop us many Miles till we are all over in a Foam and Sweat and then tie us at an Ale-house-door in the cold Dirt whilst they are Carouzing and Huzzaing like mad Devils with their roaring Companions and never regard us who in the mean time become founder'd or catch the Fashions or some other Disease that perhaps hangs upon us as long as we live and when at Midnight they have finish'd their Revels up they get again on our Backs and switch and spur through Thick and Thin over Hedge and Ditch ready to break both our Necks and their own at every step as if the Devil drove them Others lead us with excessive Burthens and if we go not as fast as they would have us then they plow our Sides with their armed Heels and beat us without any Reason or Humanity Nay some of our Drivers are so possessed with a devilish violent Spirit that for getting the value of Six Pence they will whip and beat us like Furies and make us draw or carry such excessive Burthens that we strain our Eyes out of our Heads and break our very Backs and if we complain as oft-times we do by our unwillingness to go then they will not only belabour us with their Whips and their Cudgels but curse us with a thousand horrid Execrations and many devilish Wishes which sometimes do awaken the very Wrath of Nature in us and makes us sullen cross and stubborn and then they abuse us yet more Others make use of us to hunt our Fellow Creatures and riding us excessively destroy many of us in that Sport as they wickedly call it There are another sort of things called Idle Men or Gentlemen but nothing gentle do we find from them who finding some of us endued by God with great Celerity and Swiftness of Foot they put us upon Running of Races one with another for to gratifie their foolish Vanity Pride and Covetousness Likewise when Ambition Malice Revenge or some other wrathful Passions set Princes and Nations at variance or when Insurrections and Rebellions are raised and Wars are waged though we have neither hand in the Quarrel nor are like to get any share of Honour or Spoil by the Victory yet we are forced to do a great part of the Service and with the hazard of our Lives rush into the Battel and by being used to the Martial Sounds of Trumpets Drums and Guns we become as mad and outrageous as our Riders and seem to take delight in those Violences and Confusions and yet after all our Services sometimes our Riders in hard Sieges will kill and eat us And many times when we grow old we are knock'd on the Head and made Dogs-meat our Days shortned without any Consideration of our past Merits and our murther'd Carcases given to feed a Company of ravenous Hounds Is it not hard that we should be thus dealt with and be made to undergo such terrible Slavery as sometimes when former unreasonable Labours have drawn out our Eyes yet even then no Rest no Compassion is extended to us but blind as we are we are put into the Mill and there forced to drudge out the Remainder of our Life in a Circle of Misery Have we not just Reason to complain of such cruel Usage seeing we are the Delight and Pleasure of most Men and the Companions of Princes And if we that are their Favourites endure such Hardships from them what can other Creatures expect Nay for all they pretend to admire and love us yet they treat us worse than other Creatures The Sheep and the Cows live at ease and Sheepherds are much more compassionate tender-spirited People than those that have the Government of us for when their Lords are pleased to prepare them for the Slaughter they put them into a goodly Pasture where they have Rest and Plenty and when they are grown fat though they kill them yet they afford them an honourable Burial interring their Carcases in their own Paunches and mixing their dead Flesh with good Liquor and the precious Juice of the Grape and fragrant Spices But when we have spent all our youthful Days in over-hard Labour and continual Travel and suffered so many Inconveniences from Man and for his sake contracted many Diseases then to make us amends when we are almost ready to starve without ever cherishing us up they knock us on the Head an fling our Corps to the worst of Dogs viz. filthy ravenous bawling Hounds This is our Reward amongst the Sons of Men. But let Man know this for a certain Truth That the Groaning of that Creature that suffereth Wrong is the beginning of Pain and
Patriarchs in the first Ages of the World that they were Sick No there is not a word of their Sickness but that they lived to great Ages in perfect Health for ought we find and soundness of Mind and Body There was then no need of Universities where Men must spend ten or twenty Years meerly to read Receits over and to learn to write a Bill of Confusion to the Apothecaries or to put their own Eyes out that so they might see with other Mens nor to learn Canting words to deceive the Ignorant Their whole drift and design from the beginning to the end being to get Money to live in Wantonness Gluttony and Superfluity There was no occasion amongst the Ancients for this sort of People for every one was his own Physician for so long as Men studied the Knowledg of God and Nature in themselves there was no place for this External Babylonical Building or for the authorizing of Ignorant Pedantry for the sole Curing or rather Killing of their Neighbours Can any understand or read another Man's Book that cannot read one word in his own A Man's self is a Book in which is comprehended all kind of Learning both Humane and Divine the Radix of all Arts and Sciences For in this Little World Man was communicated unto the Wise Ancients the Virtues of all Herbs Seeds Granes Animals and Minerals for the Ancient Physicians had not Libraries of many Thousand Books nor did they spend their time in reading other Men's Works nor satisfied themselves with Traditions but were contented with one Book viz. The Knowledg of God and Nature in themselves and this Book they read with their own Eyes and not with the Counterfeit Spectacles of Aristotle or Galen If Men would but stand still from Self-hood then would they see the Salvation of the Lord. The Old Physicians and Naturalists when they were not well or any of their Neighbours were distemper'd did not content themselves with musty uncertain Receipts for they knew that the same Herb which has proved beneficial to the Cure of one mans Diseases might not do any good but rather harm to another even though their Diseases seemed to proceed from a like Cause And does not our daily Experience manifest the truth of this Therefore they in all difficult points applyed themselves to the Divine Oracle and Holy Light in themselves which did teach them some Herb Seed Grain or the like and also the manner how to use it which did perform wonderful Cures because there was an inward Virtue and the power of the Spirit went with them they did not keep any certain Method with all Patients alike as our Quacks do now-a-days for the same Herb or other thing that cured a Consumption in one they did not administer to another in the like Disease except they were pointed unto it by their Good Genius Herein consists the right Cure both of the Soul and Body when man does apply himself to the right Object with Faith in the Lord then will the Lord teach him in all particulars for the Spirit of the Divine Power can make every little and small thing work wonderful Effects 'T is true the Ancients did set down in writing many of those Herbs and other things which their Genius did teach them for the Cure of various Diseases but they did as little think that after-generations would make a great Trade of getting Money by their Receipts as the Prophets and holy illuminated men of God did That the men of the world would do the like by their Writings and yet alas what an Huckstering there is kept now-a-days with them both The worthy Sayings and Writings of the Ancients cannot be understood or applyed but only by the same Spirit that gave them forth either in things Divine or Natural But these things are not considered either by those that are called Divines and Physicians or by the People But so soon as any one finds himself disordered by Sickness they presently run to the Doctor and the Doctor to his Books and out of some one of them Scrawls a Receipt and if that won't do the poor Creature may die for him for neither the one nor the other so much as think to enquire of the true Physician viz. the never-failing Oracle in themselves which if hearkened unto in Humility would teach them what to do in all particulars as it did the Ancients for those Herbs and great Cures wrought by them were not set down and recorded that after Generations should imitate them like Apes without the true understanding of the Spirit but that men might see the wonderful Power and Efficacy of the Spirit of the Lord when men do apply themselves unto its Government If men would but stand still and not so eagerly pursue Tradition and the Inventions of men and Self-hood then the good Genius would be ready and prompt to shew and instruct them in any things belonging to their Preservation for in the way of God and Nature every little thing is made strong and powerful but when men have not the knowledge of God and Nature in themselves then all goes astray and the true Efficacy or Virtue is not known nor have the Applications of the best things any good effect By what hath been said appears the Reason why those Physical Herbs and Seeds which the Ancients have appropriated for the cure of such and such diseases do not cure those distempers nor have any such Effects for if every Herb could accomplish such Cures as are recorded thereby to have been done certainly there would none be sick but All would be made whole but Experience shews the contrary Nay are there not many living Testimonies at this day who waiting in Humility at the Internal Altar have been directed such an Herb or other thing and the manner of using it which being followed the Cure has been effected in a wonderful manner And yet the very same Persons at other times in the like Distresses and Disorders have not minded their good Genius but looked abroad amongst the Swine for Cure where there is neither Life Knowledge Power nor Virtue but only an Ignorant busie Imitating Ape cloathed with a Velvet Coat and as their Course hath been the success proved answerable he has perhaps purged their Purses to a Vacuum stuffed their Bodies with Slops filled their Chambers with Gally-Pots and Glasses weakened Nature and strengthened the Disease so that it carries away Life Captive at the Wheels of its Triumphant Chariot and all that Mr. Dunce-Doctor has to say for himself is That he proceeded secundum Artem and destroyed you after the exactest method in the World All Practice of Physick that is from Receipts and Tradition is uncertain and abominable to Nature more especially where there is a multitude of Ingredients mixed together for the most part of various Natures and contrary Qualities as though they would force Nature into obedience by the several sorts of Engines and Enemies of divers kinds which they
Chymical Liquors are at the end of Nature and therefore they will not admit of another Motion Hence it follows that all sorts of Spirits as of Scurvey-Grass of Salt and many others of like Nature that are prepared by Fire whereby the Radical Moisture or sweet Balsamick Quality the Volatile Spirit and Vegitative Vertue or middle Quality are alâ— destroyed have no such physical Virtues 〈◊〉 their Authors appropriate unto them And we do affirm that such as have the Disease called the Scurvey in their Blood shall be as soon and as well cured by taking every morning so many Drops of strong Spirit of Wine as they shall by taking this sort of Spirit of Scurvey-Grass and so of the Spirit of Salt and others For the harsh sulpherous Fires in Stills where the friendly Element of Air is hindred from having its Influence does totally destroy the pure Virtues and opening cleansing Qualities and there does run off only a fierce keen harsh fiery astringent bitter furious Spirit which is very pernicious to Nature and to all the friendly Virtues in the Body nor was it ever known that any such Spirits have given help or cured any of those Diseases which the Lying Authors do so much boast of You may try whether this be true if you take any opening cleansing or purging Herbs Seeds or the like and put them into any kind of Liquor viz. Water Beer Ale Wine or Brandy the last of which those great Physicians and Masters of Art do use to draw their Spirits of Scurvey-grass in when you have put your Ingredients into your Liquor let them lie in it two or three days more or less as you please then put the Herbs and Seeds with the Liquor into your Still or Limbeck and draw it off and you shall only have an harsh strong fiery tart Spirit void of all the Purging Opening and Cleansing Qualities such Herbs or Seeds were naturally endued withal The very same or other as great Evils are in many other of the Physicians and Apothecaries Preparations which ought to be considered and their blind Traditionary senseless Ways and Methods to be abandoned as destructive to the Health and Well-being of Nature It is further to be noted that none ought to apply themselves to the â—â—actice of Physick but such only as the Lord hath in their Radixes endued with proper Gifts and natural Parts for 't is not sufficient for them to read other mens Works and vapour with their Receipts like the proud Iack-daw in the Fable with the fine Feathers stolen from other Birds but they ought to know the true Principles Nature and Operation of every Herb Plant Animal or Mineral that they make use of and for what it is good and the contrary in themselves and also what Simples are proper to be Compounded and what not For he that has no true Knowledge in himself of the Nature of things but follows Tradition blind-fold and trusts to other peoples Say-so's must needs make strange work and instead of Curing often-times Kill and when he does Cure 't is by meer chance Whereas Physicians ought not to administer any Medicine without true Knowledge both of his Patients Disease and what he gives to remove it all things especially where mens Lives are concerned ought to be done with sight and judgment and not without Faith and Prayer to God the Creator of all things who is the inward Virtue Power and Life of every thing For Faith and Prayer do Wonders opening the inward Virtue and Centre of every mean and simple Medicine or thing even Clay and Spittle with it shall cure the Blind this all Physicians ought to be inwardly sensible of and not put so much trust in their Authors for many of them have been very vain and extravagant in their Writings telling us that such and such Herbs and other things were indued with such wonderful Virtues and would cure such Diseases when in truth there were no such things and also invented many improper Compositions even any thing they fancied and most of their Sayings are meer Stories and as contrary to Truth as Light to Darkness Now on such a tottering Foundation what Structure of safety can be expected to be built Our Modern Physicians are much like our Lawyers if a man is like to lose part of his Estate and will vindicate his Cause by Law 't is twenty to one but he spends the other partto secure that and after abundance of charge and trouble loseth the whole Just so if a man through Disorder and Intemperance hath in part destroyed his Health he may be sure to destroy the other part also if he keep close and follow the Physicians Prescriptions and take good store of their adulterated Medicines We must also note that every Patient ought to turn the Eyes of his Mind inward and wait at the Altar of the Lord for an answer and not to do or take any Medicines without some Assurance or Faith in the Lord of his Blessing nor ought any to think himself too mean or simple because he is unlearned for do but read the Scriptures and you may be satisfied that the Lord in all Ages has plentifully given his Gifts and Graces both Divine and Natural to the Simple and Unlearned And as to the Learning of this World did not our Lord Christ himself give his Father the Author of all Beings thanks That he had hid the Mysteries of Salvation both of Soul and Body from the Wise and Letter-learned of this World and revealed them unto Babes poor mean and unlearned People Peter the Fisher-man Paul the Tent-maker c. For indeed the Rich and Learned have shut and double-bar'd the Windows of their Souls against the simple Light of Truth they have cloathed themselves with Vanity and Self-hood being contented with Tradition and a Worldly puffing-up Knowledge which serves them to swagger with but not to do any good with either to themselves or others so that there is no room for the operation of the friendly Love and Light of God they are so full of swelling proud Spirits and noise and boasting Hence it comes to pass that these Admirers of Tradition and Pocket-Learning and the ways of the Multitude are always apt to despise the Simplicity of the Divine Power and Voice of Wisdom not only in themselves but all others and therefore the Lord chuseth to unfold his holy and natural Mysteries unto the Poor and Needy and such who are not wise in their own Eyes and whose Eye-lids are not lifted up For nothing obstructs the Work of the Lord and the Revelations of his Holy Spirit in men more than Inward-Riches Self-conceitedness and the Babylonical-Learning of the Schools of this World which like a too Luxuriant and not well Cultivated Soil produce such abundance of Rank-weeds as overtop and choak the good Seed that it cannot attain to any maturity in the Government of a mans Life the same is to be understood of all outward Fulness and Intemperances
and he healed me So Gen. 20. 17. Abraham prayed unto the Lord and be healed Abimelech and his Wife Also Moses cryed unto the Lord that he would heal Miriam of her Leprosie and the Lord commanded That she should be shut out of the Camp seven days and then she was received in again whole Num. 12. 13. And Deut. 32. 39. God speaks thus See now I even I am he and there is no God with me I kill and I make alive I wound and I heal neither is there any that can deliver out of my hands And Matt. 10. 18. Christ gives his Servants power to heal the sick cleanse the Lepers and raise the dead In a word Multitudes of Examples we have in the Scriptures of Truth that all the Prophets and Holy men of God who were guided and directed by his Spirit of Wisdom in all their Troubles whether they were Diseases of the Body or the Mind always made their Application unto the Lord and he healed them and taught them what means to use that always proved effectual though seeming never so mean and simple Therefore let every one address to this Grand Physician whose Arm is not shortened nor his Mercy and Goodness diminished But if Men will give themselves up to the Spirit of Error Ignorance and Blindness and live in all Intemperance Gluttony and Superfluity which brings on them a multitude of Diseases and then enquire and run after the False Prophets and Necromancers whose Practice is meerly for Money Honour Pride and Estimation studying how to deceive the people by canting Words Plush Coats guilded Coaches great Houses c. which do amuse the Rabble and make them have great Thoughts of them though most that have tryed their Medicines might know that they are worse than the Diseases they are prescribed against I say If you follow these Courses 't is no wonder if your Lives become burthensome unto you and complicated Diseases torment you and an untimely Death cut you off For you may take a Cart Load of gross unseparated Herbs and Juices as our Physicians use with a Tun of their sick Decoctions and a whole Apothecaries Shop of their Confused Compositions and be further off from a Cure than at first Therefore the safest Course I can direct my fellow-Mortals is To fear the Lord live sober and temperate both in the Quantity and Quality of Meats Drinks and Imployments And if Diseases do at any time invade the Body by any Accidents or through the Male-Configurations of the Constellations or the like then humbly to apply themselves by Prayer to the Lord and to the Oracle of God in a man's self and then as the Mother of our Lord said unto the Servants that waited at the Marriage where he wrought his first Miracle Whatever he bids you do that do ye that is whatsoever the Divine Light or Holy Spirit of the Lord directs you to or bids you do that be you sure in all particulars to observe For the Reason Wit Skill and all Knowledge of the outward man ought to be as Waiters Tenders or Servitors to execute and obey the Commands of the Spirit of the Lord. Men ought to stand still from reasoning and Imaginations and wait at the Altar of the Lord and hear what he will teach which Directions man ought to follow and to act as this blessed Light and friendly Principle of God does excite him for in its power and virtue consists the right Cure of Body and Soul and in it is safe to move and abide Amen CHAP. XVII Of BUGS and from what Matter and Aliment they do proceed and how to prevent their Generations Of the Excellency of clean sweet Beds and perniciousness of old stinking Feather-Beds Also several Receipts how to kill Bugs and Fleas CLeanness in Houses especially in Beds is a great preserver of Health Now Beds for the most part stand in Corners of Chambers and being ponderous close Substances the refreshing Influences of the Air have no power to penetrate or destroy the gross Humidity that all such places contract where the Air hath not its free egress and regress In these shady dull places Beds are continued for many years and hardly see the Sun or Elements Besides Beds suck in and receive all sorts of pernicious Excrements that are breathed forth by the sweating of various sorts of people which have Leprous and Languishing Diseases which lie and die on them The Beds I say receive all these several Vapours and Spirits and the same Beds are often continued for several Generations without changing the Feathers until the Ticks be rotten Besides we have many Feathers that are imported from several Countries which are the Drivings of old Beds the uncleanness whereof is not considered As to the Nature of Feathers they are of a strong hot sulsome Quality for Fowls of all Creatures are for the most part the hottest and their Feathers contain the same Nature Therefore the constant lying on soft Feather-Beds does not only over-heat the Back and Reins weakening the Joynts and Nerves but they have power also not only to receive but retain all evil Vapours and Excrements that proceed from and are breathed forth by various Diseased people Hence it comes to pass that sundry Distempers are transferred from one to another by lying upon or in such Beds which Distempers do secretly steal on a man by degrees so that he cannot imagine whence the Disorder proceeds or what the cause thereof should be But I would not have the Reader mistake me all people are not subject to get Diseases this way There are some whose Constitutions are strong and their Natural Heat and Spirits are vigorous and lively by the Power and Virtue whereof they withstand and repel all such evil Vapours and Scents as do proceed from such Beds when a man is hot and sweats in them that they have no power to seize the Spirit But on the contrary when such people shall lie on such Beds whose Natural Heat is weak their Spirits few and whose central heat is not able to withstand or repel those Vapours and Scents which such Beds send forth when a man is hot in them this last sort of people are subject to receive Injuries and contract Diseases for those evil Vapours do powerfully penetrate the whole Body and if they are not withstood by the central heat and power of the Spirits then these evil Vapours do seise the Spirits and incorporate themselves with their likenesses for every particular thing does sensibly and powerfully seek out its likeness and wheresoever it finds its simile it hath power to incorporate and become essential These are the chief Reasons why one man gets Diseases by lying with Diseased Persons and in unclean Beds and others not It is a general custom when men go abroad or travel to desire clean Sheets imagining them to be a sufficient bulwark to defend them from the pernicious Fumes and Vapours of old stale Beds but it is too short For it
and coupling of Stocks as if their Bags must needs mutually Engender and breed and multiply as well as their Persons This making of Matrimony a Matter of Money and Miserly Parents sacrificing their Children to Mammon is a wretched Idolatry little inferiour to theirs of Old who offered their Sons and Daughters to Molock they made oblations of them in Flames which quickly devoured them but you deliver them up and force them into loathed Embraces where perhaps they languish out twenty or thirty Years in perpetual Vexations and Torment without one hours solid Content or Satisfaction and all this for a little Base Pelf which never has been known to make any happy where Content Sobriety and Virtue have been wanting But if God's Law and the Influences of unbiast Nature did take place in peoples hearts there would not be such over-looking those that have but a little Money the Rich and Noble then would often marry with the poor or those they now call their Unequals For where shall we find a healthy fresh rosie straight-Limb'd Angel-fac'd Innocent Virgin fit for Emperours to get Princes upon sooner than amongst the Daughters of Shepherds or the untutor'd Troops of a poor Country-Village Did men live in the Power and Operation of God's Laws and the Dictates of Nature none of them would delude the Simplicity of Virgins by Deceitful Kindnesses and when they have gotten their Lewd Desires of them then leave them and their own Off-spring to beg their Bread exposed to shame and want and all the Evils imaginable making nothing to cut off the Thread of Love and bury Affection through the power of their depraved Wills which is a Crying Sin and next door to Murther The truth is there is scarce one Person of an hundred that make his or her choice from Wisdom or a right Understanding and to answer the end for which the Lord instituted Marriage in the beginning but if a Man have but an Estate tho otherwise never so diseased infirm or unfit all is overlook'd and excused Money covers all Infirmities where the heart is degenerated from Truth and Virtue making that there Master which if well used would be a good Servant most People being so blind and stupid that they dare not cast their Care and repose their Trust in him who by his bountiful Divine Hand of Providence taketh care for all and preserveth all and from whom every good Gift proceeds both Temporal and Spiritual this trusting and relying on the Creature more than the Creator is the greatest Idolatry and that which the Lord abominates for a Curse does follow all those who prefer their devillish Lusts and foolish Passions and greedy Desires of Money before the good and holy fear of the Lord and his Innocent Law Themselves Wives and Children being afflicted with a numberless Number of Diseases and Infirmities and what Fruit can be expected from such corrupt Trees Whence think ye proceed Leprous Scabby Diseases Joint-evils and that which they call the Kings-Evil wherewith many thousands in this Nation of all sorts are afflicted as also the Gout in Youth Consumptions and other incurable Diseases Are not most or all these Evils the effect of undue Marriages Uncleannesses and Intemperances And yet if a Man ask them how came such or such a Disease they will confidently answer We do not know even as it pleaseth God we know nothing we have done which should occasion it Thus laying the Cause on the Lord of all their Infirmities and Evils never considering that it is the Reward of their own Transgression and of their own Evil Courses which have awakened the poysonous Properties in the Elements of the Body 4. A fourth sort of Blame-worthy are those who do Marry without any due Consideration of the weight and importance of what they go about sure a thing in which the Happiness or Misery of a Man's whole future Life is involved and which can be done but Once should be considered Twice before we undertake it But many People are so hurried away with the Heat and Fury of youthful Lusts Passions and Wantonness as they mind nothing but a present Satisfaction of their bruitish Desires vainly imagining that they shall never be otherwise but alas as soon as those fiery Transports are allayed their Love languishes grows cold and flat and those very Embraces wherein they placed their highest Happiness become wearisom nauseous and perhaps loathsom and then these hot Lovers become Rude Sordid Stubborn Bold Surly and Inhumane having no true Natural Affection unto nor taking any honest Care for Wife or Children but grow Dissolute Drunken and Idle as they get Childen in the heat of Drink and Lust so they make not the least Provision to preserve them How many thousands of poor Women and Children are more miserable than any Creatures on the Earth if we do but consider the Hunger Cold Diseases Griefs Vexations and Distractions which they endure from the intolerable Idleness Debauchery Crosness or other ill Carriage Words and Communications of some brutified Things whom they are obliged to call Husbands and Fathers 5. The Fear of the Lord being the beginning of all Wisdom both Divine and Humane ought to be the principal Object of every Man and Womans Thoughts Words and Actions and then they would be taught by the Spirit of Truth how they may chuse unto themselves suitable Wives and Husbands For Marriage is as it were the Foundation either to Virtue or Vice and nothing can make a Conjugal Life happy but suitable Dispositions and Virtue and where their coming together is from a well-grounded Love and natural Affections mutually combined to answer the End of that State that is to raise up Seed in the fear of the Lord and then the Blessing of the most High is with and upon them in all their Affairs and whether they have much or little of the World's Wealth they are satisfied as knowing that it is not Riches but true Love that can make a married Life pleasant or encourage Industry in the Man and Wife But where Equality in Tempers Years and Virtues meet it makes this Society the most happy of all others there Love covers a multitude of Infirmities Joys are doubled Griefs divided and all Troubles made easy 'T is true every Married Estate is followed more or less with Inconveniences for it forceth a Man to appear in the World and thrust himself into Business and attend and bow himself to those that perhaps he doth not much care for or desire their Company because they often spur him to Evil or to do that which if Interest were not at stake he would not do and where there are six or seven more in a Family there will unavoidably be committed many Disorders sometimes by Servants sometimes by Children and seldom is it that they are all in Health long together And if it happens that the Wife have a good esteem of her Doctor and his Physick then she will do nothing without his Advice
with the Voices that it seemed but one Voice and when they lift up their Voices with the Trumpets and Cymbals and other Instruments of Musick the House of God was filled with a Cloud so that the Priests could not endure to minister by reason of the Cloud for the Majesty of the Lord filled the House Here the Mental Vocal and Instrumental Harmony of the People did by a secret attraction draw forth and incorporate its self with the inward and holy Harmony so that the Glory of the Lord appeared externally there was an inward Life Power and Agreement in the minds of the Musicians and whole Congregation all was done in the Unity of the Spirit and to the Glory of the Lord. But on the contrary as Amos has it Chap. 6. Those that sit on the Stool of Wilfulness and lie on the Beds of Ease and practise Wantonness upon their Couches and eat the best Lambs of the Flock and slaughter the fattest Calves of the Droves and that sing to the Lute and in playing on Instruments of Musick compare themselves to David and drink Wine in Bowls that is to superfluity and excess and anoint themselves Effeminately with Oyl and yet have no Bowels of Compassion nor Commiserate the Afflictions of Joseph that is the Miseries of their Brethren and fellow-Creatures but crucifie the Lord of Life that is the Divine Principle by their Discord Oppression and Intemperances shall be the first that shall be led away into Captivity For every Thought Word and Work follows the Principle from whence it proceeds and as every Man shall apply Musick or any other thing either to the glory of God or to his vain Glory Vanity or Lusts so it becomes either good or evil to him So that what is a Blessing to one Man proves a Curse to another and that which some honour the Lord withal others do dishonour him with And as in a well-tuned Instrument the Strings being struck or played upon will make the Strings of another Instrument tuned to the same Key to move shake or tremble The same and far greater Sympathy is to be understood in the humane Nature though in so secret and imperceptible a manner as to outward Sense that many Thousands are wounded or impressed with the Influences before they perceive or are aware of it He that has not the Fear of the Lord and the Knowledg of God in himself is liable to be hurt by most things not only in playing upon Instruments of Musick as Amos hath it but in and by all other things therefore as the Wise Man saith Even in Plowing of Land we ought not to make others Rules our Prescriptions so as to imitate them like Apes nor ought we to be froward and averse to it because many in former Ages or in the present have or may use Musick as a Companion of Debauchery or enticement to Evil to the dishonour of their Creator and the hurt of themselves But all men ought to be sober and use things to their right ends for which they were designed by God and Nature and then whatever they take in hand will prove good and profitable unto them Wherefore most convenient it is for every particular Man and Woman to search and examine themselves that they may come to understand what Spirit and Principle has dominion in and over them if it be the Divine Principle and Voice of Wisdom then it will lead them into the heavenly Harmony where all the various Properties and Qualities of Nature do in friendly manner embrace each other whence proceeds an eternal Peace and Consort But they that shall find the Spirit of Envy Strife Back-biting Jeering Scoffing Uncleanness Vanity Oppression Killing and the like to bear sway in their Minds and reign in their Hearts such cannot make any pleasant Harmony but altogether the contrary a most unpleasant Noise burthensome to themselves and the whole Creation But by the way it is to be further considered that there is no possibility that any should obtain that sublime State of Unity and Concord and to have Peace and Good-will for the whole Creation except there be a continual Self-denial no Observations or Medium tho they be agreeable seemingly to Scripture will do Men must not stand still in the Wilderness but press on towards Perfection in perseverance Many in this Age have been taught this by woful Experience At first when the Day did begin to dawn and the Star of God's Eternal Love to shine in them whereby they saw the Errors of their Ways whence did arise Self-denial and Scruples as to the Modes and Customs of Egypt and the vain Multitude If such had not stood still and fixed themselves in some outward Forms but followed like the Ancient Sages of the East the Conduct of that heavenly Star till they arrived at the place where the Child Iesus was born they might have travelled without stop or hindrance through the unequal ways of this World and the Heathenish Customs thereof and arrived at the Coelestial Canaan a Land flowing with Milk and Honey and entred into the ravishing Harmonies of the New Ierusalem But too many after a few Steps in this Holy Iourney having denied themselves the Superfluities and Vanities of the World as some would not eat Flesh because it could not be procured without breaking the Harmony and Unity of Nature and doing what one would not be done unto and refrained many sorts of Plays and Vain Exercises and Riding in Coaches and Chariots and unnecessarily on Horses for fear Pride should get the Dominion going on Foot being generally esteemed Poor and Base as tho the Creator had not given Man Feet and Legs for that use and also were wary of gratifying their sensual Appetites with various sorts of Meats and Drinks both in Quantity and Quality but because they did not persevere but looked back towards Sodom and AEgypt became Pillars of Salt and fell in the Wilderness And the Reason is they gave themselves liberty and so went back by degrees and before they were sensible were again ensnared and entangled in the Vanities of the World and so deprived of those blessed Talents which before they enjoyed A wise consciencious Scruple and Self-denial are always the fore-runners of true Wisdom if diligently pursued and improved being the ways by which the Spirit of God hath dealt with Man in all Ages thereby giving him a right Understanding and Distinction of what things are good wholsome and profitable and what not And this tenderness hath generally the greatest power and vigour in the beginning as all that have travelled in this way can witness but in process of time if there be not great Diligence used this Divine Seal becomes defaced and the Scruple grows less and less and a certain Freedom appears to the Understanding which is the only time of Trial and the hour of Temptation Most lose ground when they come to this state by purposing to themselves the using of those things moderately and
And the reason is because they forsake Nature and let loose their Desires which having once cast off the Bridle of Moderation run on without stop or bounds French-man But I perceive you are for Liberty of Conscience and that every one may follow his own Opinion and Phantasie and of so we should have a mad World such a License is destructive to Government and the very Nurse of Rebellion Heathen I do not well understand what you mean by Opinion and Phantasie People will think as they list do you what you can But this I know that he that fears God and hurts not his Neighbour oppresseth not the Creation and obeys the Civil Laws of that Country he lives in and freely pays all Duties and Tributes to the Prince that protect him is a good and faithful Subject to God and his King Nor have we any temptation to Rebellion for to us all Governments are alike as long as they protect us from Violence I have read something of your Europian Affairs and if I mistake not in France Spain c. where the Laws are to force People to be all of a mind there have been abundance more Rebellions Insurrections Plots and Conspiracies against the Government than in Countries where Liberty of Conscience is publickly allowed whence I rather infer that not the indulging but restraining Liberty of Conscience is the grand Cause of those Disorders amongst you 'T is certain every man ought to have Liberty in Well-doing and to be punished only for the contrary And we Bannians scarce know any thing that is a greater Evil than for men to contend hate envy oppress fight and destroy one another because they are not in all particulars like themselves For men naturally are as various in their Intellects as in their Shapes Forms and Complexions for the Shape and Form of every Body is according to the Nature Equality or Inequality of the Spirit The Lord hath made all things to differ there is not any two things in the four Worlds alike in all particulars therefore whosoever is offended with another because he is not persuaded or does not understand just as he does is in truth offended with his Maker who is the Author of that Variety If two things were exactly in all respects alike they must become the fame the nearest similitude of things is made by casting them in a Mould and yet even then they differ French-man You say right and therefore to make all mens Understandings of a size our Churchmen prepare Moulds for them viz. Creeds Liturgies Systems of Divinity and the like wherein they cast and fashion all mens Understandings so that none but must own these though he do not understand a word of them nor must dispute them though his Heart and his Brain tell him they are false and impious Heathen This is much such an Uniformity as I have heard in some of your Books was practised by the Tyrant Procrustes who dwelling near a common Road seized all Travellers and carried them to his Bed which was framed exactly for his own Stature and if their Bodies were longer chopt off their Feet or Heads to make them fit and if too short strained their Bones and Sinews out with Engines to a due proportion Was not this Gentleman a great lover of Decency Order and Uniformity If there were not Variety there would be no Motion for it is the various working Power and as it were Strife between the Properties that causeth all Vegetation and Manifestation if there were but one thing there would be nothing or a standing still which the Iews great Prophet seems mystically to shew when he saith God made all things out of Nothing For there was no Manifestation or Appearances before God moved himself on the Face of the Waters which moving seems to signifie the Strife of the various Forms Qualities and Properties of the hidden Nature without which nothing could be generated But here I must be silent for we are counted Heathens already and I do not know what worse Censures may pass upon us if we too far explain those Notions which though founded in Nature are yet so disagreeable to the Conceits and Practice of the Multitude But this we are sure of that men ought not to hate or suppress any thing but Evil for Man's most deadly Enemies are within himself whence one of the wisest of the Iews Kings affirmed That he that overcame his own Lusts and Passions was a greater Conquerour than he that subdued a City French-man For my own part I shall for the future be more careful how I credit Reports we in our Country are told by our Learned that you are meer Heathens Infidels Idolaters and Worshippers of the Sun Moon and all the Host of Heaven Heathen I nothing wonder that you Europeans should be mistaken about us who live so remote since you seem so little to understand the Opinions of each other amongst your selves every one misrepresenting the Sentements and Doctrines of all that differ from him 'T is true we do highly esteem and admire all the Heavenly Host and those Refulgent Quires of the Coelestials especially that glorious Eye of the World the Sun as being the Handy-works and Wonderful Powers of the incomprehensible Creator and think it part of our Duty to express our Gratitude and Veneration to the one onely Fountain whence all those amazing wonders proceed for he that contemns the Streams cannot truly honour the Fountain Do not your own Prophets teach you to Honour Rulers and Governours because they derive their Government from God And if you do not only worship and bow the Knee one to another who are at best but brittle animated Dirt but also reverence the work of your own Hands as a Man cloathed in goodly Raiment and the like how much more ought we to have in high Veneration those wonderful Fountains of Light Heat Motion and Vitality which are the manifested Powers of God and his upper Vice-gerents and Lieutenants over the Lower world Did not you tell me but now that you esteemed your Hugonots worthy of Death or Persecution because they would not pay Esteem and Adoration to a few painted Cloats the Pictures of their fellow Creatures which you call Saints not knowing whether they be truly so or not and yet will you condemn our Brachmans for directing their Esteem to these glorious Master-pieces of the Creation If you count such lifeless pitiful things as Wood and Stone or things painted and fashioned by Man fit to be Representations of your Gods and means whereby to enliven your Phantasies and Minds to an higher degree of Devotion which was the sole intent of the first Inventors of those things what regard then ought we not to have of those living Powers of God the Coelestial Bodies by whose sweet and friendly Influences all created Beeings are preserved and nourished What is more exciting to a well disposed Mind than to behold that glorious Body the Sun with the innumerable Train
if a man does leave them at the first Nature seems to want them the like effect is produced by other unnatural Customs as in taking Tobacco it being a strong Martial and Saturnine Herb of a loathsom poysonous Nature and Operation whose predominant Quality is of a contrary Nature to the Stomach and natural Heat therefore the first taking of it in Pipes is both difficult and troublesom to Nature and there is no Preparations known that will make this Herb friendly or familiar to Nature but only the continual Custom of taking it which does awaken and strengthen its own Quality in the Stomach which in the beginning was weak but by custom is become strong so great is the power of every thing in increasing its likeness and it becomes as though it were natural and there is as much difficulty to leave the use of such things if not more as there was at first to make them familiar the like is true in Brandy c. for the more unnatural and greater the extream is the more troublesom it is to leave it As for those who are used to eat hot Food and are not satisfied to eat cold a little custom will bring them to a liking of it for man being a compleat Image of the whole Nature of this World and being endued with the true nature of all Elemental things therefore Custom will make every thing whether good or evil familiar to his Nature As for my own part I have not been troubled with windy Diseases since I left eating of hot Food which formerly I was afflicted with likewise the same Quantity of any sort of Food eaten Cold when a man is a little used to it will be much easier and pleasanter to the Stomach than Hot for this swells the Body sends Fumes into the head and causeth a heavy indisposedness through the whole Body but there is such a sottishness and ignorance possesses most People that they will not go out of their old Path following their false Prophets Custom and Tradition esteeming themselves to be sufficient Judges in these things Now these windy Diseases and fiery thin salt Humours that are occasioned by the afore mentioned Intemperances are very rarely or seldom ever cured for what Medicines have power to cure when the same Superfluities are continued which were the Original of the Diseases Pray where is the Medicine that will cure the French Disease if the Person infected goes on in his old way of Wantonness The very same is to be understood in all other Distempers therefore Temperance and Sobriety are Vertues that are absolutely necessary not only to help and cure Diseases when they have invaded the Body but also to prevent the Generation of them for most Distempers with a little help of Physick might be mitigated if a sober temperate Life were observed so that by degrees little or no inconveniency would be felt but what hopes are there so long as People prefer Supersluity and the pleasure of the Taste beyond Health eating and drinking of various sorts of rich Food and cordial Drinks to the full satisfaction of their Appetites which break the bounds of Temperance the Stomach not being able to make a perfect Concoctiion so that every such Meal sows the seeds of some gross Matter and evil Juice which by degrees stops the Passages obstructs the Veins corrupts the Blood and from thence flows various indispositions according to the nature of each mans Constitution and the degree of matter There are but few that think that those Oppressions and Diseases proceed from a disordered Life and a too great Quantity of Nourishment but most will be apt to believe themselves alledging That they got Cold by leaving off a Coat or by Accidental Sweating or some other act of carelesness Which must be a mistake for such things have little or no power to hurt the Health if there be not matter before-hand for you may be sure if leaving off a Coat do occasion a Cold or any kind of stoppage there was some part obstructed before and the radical Spirits of that part were weakened by some disorder or else outward Colds would not have had any power to seize that part of the Body You may also observe that if any Member or part of the Body be weakened by any accident that part will first complain when either Cold seizes it or when there is any change of Weather from whence you may conclude that the Root of all or most Diseases is first some inward Contraction of matter caused by Superfluity or other Disorder which have weakened the pure essential Spirits and the Balsamick Oyl and Virtues in that part become as it were sower or sharp wich infects the Blood and then presently ariseth a loathing and the Palate cannot distinguish the pure Relish nor taste the goodness of any Food the Attractive Quality and also the Natural Heat of the Stomach lose their strength and power then also the Reâ—â—ntive and Digestive Faculties do cease from their natural Operations for when there does happen any Violence to the pure Volatile Spirit and Balsamick Body then presently the action of the Stomach ceases and there begins a loathing and the original Poysons and central Heats are awakened which set the whole Body into a flame which poysonous Fire lay as it were hid so long as the pure Spirit and Balsamick Body were strong and this continual fiery or brimstony Spirit was only a cause of motion giving strength and vigour to the Oyl of Life which Oyl does mix and incorporate with this sulpherous fierce Fire and makes it more gentle and friendly for this Oyl is generated from this sulpherous poysonous Spirit and is as it were its Sun and shines back thereinto and does cause it to burn more gently but if this pure Spirit and Oyl be by any kind of Intemperance wounded or suffocated by overcharging Nature then the Original Poysons and sulpherous Fires do manifest themselves in their own Forms which were captivated and moderated so long as the pure Spirits and essential Oyl were strong for this essential Oyl is the true Life of Nature and the Moderator of the original Fire even as it is in the Fire of Wood so long as the Wood remains intire and no Violence done to the pure Spirits and essential Oyl this Fire gives a most pleasant and friendly refreshing heat and light it sends forth a bright shine and wholsom smell very ageeable to the Pure Spirits of those that are near it but you will find the contrary if you offer any violence to the Pure Spirits and essential Oyl whence the bright shine and friendly nature of Wood Fire does proceed as is done in making of Wood Fire into Charcoal for these pure Spirits and sweet Water or Oyl are suffocated in all Charcoal For this cause the Fire of Chorcoal is not only stronger than the Fire of Wood but it sends forth Sulpherous Fumes which will stupifie and suffocate the pure Spirits and dull