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defcend with swifter Motion, and those that had lefs Matter, did, on the contrary, tend upward. But this Meditation was very shallow, containing less than was expedient; for neither the turning of the Celestial Bodies in a round, nor fhutting and opening of things, may feem to be reduced or applied to this Beginning. And as for that opinion of Epicurus, concerning the cafual Declination and Agitation of the Atom, it is but a mere Toy, and a plain Evidence that he was ignorant of that Point. It is therefore more apparent (than we could wish,) that this Cupid, or Love, remains as yet clouded under the shades of Night. Now as concerning his Attributes, He is elegantly defcribed with perpetual Infancy, or Childhood; because compound Bodies they feem greater, and more ftricken in Years: Whereas the firft Seeds of things, or Atoms, they are little and diminute, and always in their Infancy.

He is also well feigned to be naked, because all compound Bodies, to a Man rightly judging, seem to be apparelled and clothed, and nothing to be properly naked but the first Particles of things.

Concerning his Blindness, the Allegory is full of Wisdom; for this Love, or Defire (whatsoever it be) seems to have but little Providence, as directing his Pace and Motion by that which it perceives nearest; not unlike blind Men that go by feeling: More admirable then, must that chief divine Providence be, which (from things empty and deftitute of Providence, and as it were blind), by a conftant and fatal Law, produceth fo excellent an Order and Beauty of Things.

The laft thing which is attributed to Love, is Archery; by which is meant, that his Virtue is fuch, as that it works upon a diftant Object; because that whatsoever operates afar off, feems to fhoot, as it were, an Arrow. Wherefore whofoever holds the Being both of Atoms and Vacuity, muft needs infer that the Virtue of the Atom reacheth to a distant Object: for if it were not so there could be no Motion at all, by reason of the Interpofition of Vacuity, but all things would stand stone still, and remain immoveable.

Now as touching that other Cupid or Love, he may well be termed the youngest of the Gods, because he could have no Being before the Conftitution of Species. And in his Description the Allegory may be applied and traduced to Manners : Nevertheless he holds fome kind of Conformity with the Elder; for Venus doth generally ftir up a defire of Conjunction and Procreation, and Cupid her Son doth apply this Defire to fome individual Nature; fo that the general Difpofition comes from Venus, the more exact Sympathy from Cupid: the one derived from Causes more near, the other from Beginnings more remote and fatal, and as it were from the elder Cupid, of whom every exquifite Sympathy doth depend.

XVIII. Diomedes, or Zeal.

IOMEDES flourishing with great Fame and Glory in the Trojan Wars, and in high favour with Pallas, was by her instigated (being indeed forwarder than he fhould have been) not to forbear Venus a jot, if he encountered with her in Fight; which very boldly he performed, wounding her in the right Arm. This prefumptuous Fact he carried clear for a while; and being honoured and renowned for his many heroick Deeds, at laft returned into his own Country, where finding himself hard befted with domeftic Troubles, fled into Italy, betaking himself to the Protection of Foreigners, where in the beginning he was fortunate and royally entertained by King Daunus with sumptuous Gifts, raising many Statues in honour of him throughout his Dominions. But upon the very firft Calamity that happened unto this Nation, whereunto he was fled for Succour, King Daunus enters into a conceit with himself that he had entertained a wicked Guest in his Family, and a Man odious to the Gods, and an Impugner of their Divinity, that had dared, with his Sword, to affault and wound that Goddess, who in their Religion, they held it Sacrilege fo much as to touch. Therefore, that he might expiate his Country's Guilt, (nothing respecting the Duties of Hospitality, when the Bonds of Religion tied him with a more reve

ent regard) fuddenly flew Diomedes, commanding withal that his Trophies and Statues fhould be bolished and deftroyed. Neither was it fafe to ament this miserable Destiny; but even his Companions in Arms, whilft they mourned at the Fueral of their Captain, and filled all the Places with Plaints and Lamentations, were fuddenly metamorphofed into Birds like unto Swans, who, when their Death approacheth, fing melodious and mournful Hymns.

This Fable hath a most rare and fingular Subject: for in any of the Poetical Records, wherein the Heroes are mentioned, we find not that any one of them, befides Diomedes, did ever with his Sword offer Violence to any of the Deities. And indeed, the Fable seems in him to represent the Nature and Fortune of Man, who of himself doth propound, and make this as the end of all his Actions, to worship some Divine Power, or to follow fome Sect of Religion, though never so vain and superstitious, and with Force and Arms to defend the fame: For although those bloody Quarrels for Religion were unknown to the Ancients, (the Heathen Gods not having fo much as a touch of that Jealousy, which is an Attribute of the true God,) yet the Wisdom of the Ancient Times feems to be so copious and full, as that, what was not known by Experience, was yet comprehended by Meditations and Fictions. They then that endeavour to reform and convince any Sect of Religion, (though vain, corrupt, and infamous, fhadowed by the person of Venus,) not by the force of Argu

ment and Doctrine, and Holiness of Life, and by the weight of Examples and Authority, but labour to extirpate and root it out by Fire and Sword, and Tortures, are encouraged, it may be, thereunto by Pallas; that is, by the Acrity of Prudence, and Severity of Judgement, by whose Vigour and Efficacy, they fee into the Falfity and Vanity of thefe Errors: And by this their hatred of Pravity, and good zeal to Religion, they purchase of themselves great Glory, and by the Vulgar (to whom nothing moderate can be grateful) are esteemed and honoured as the only Supporters of Truth and Religion, when others feem to be luke-warm and full of Fear. Yet this Glory and Happiness doth feldom endure to the end, feeing every violent Profperity, if it prevent not alteration by an untimely Death, grows to be unprofperous at last: For if it happen that by a change of Government, this banished and depreffed Sect get Strength, and fo bear up again, then these zealous Men, fo fierce in oppofition before, are condemned, their very Names are hateful, and all their Glory ends in Obloquy.

In that Diomedes is faid to be murdered by his Hoft, it gives us to understand that the difference of Religion breeds Deceit and Treachery, even among nearest Acquaintance.

Now in that Lamentation and Mourning was not tolerated but punished; it puts us in mind, that let there be never so nefarious an Act done, yet there is fome place left for Commiferation and Pity, that even those that hate Offences should

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