by a fimple view, and with as great eafe as we fee a Circle is not a Square.
I infiit not longer upon proving that we know not the Soul nor her Modifications by clear Ideas. Survey our felves on what fide foever we will •, this fumciently appears: And I bad not added this to what 1 have faid in the Search after Truth, if Tome C 'arte 'flans had not found fault with it. If this will not fatisfy them, I mall expect they will make me fenfible of this clear Idea, which 1 am not a- ble to find in my felf, do whatever I can to difcover it.
THE ILLUSTRATION Eighth CHAPTER of the Second P A R T of the Third BOOK.
Of hofe and general terms which Jignify nothing. How they are difiinguifti d from others.
IN order to comprehend what I have faid in fome Places •, how that they give not the reafons of things who explain them by Logical Terms, and General Ideas we need but confider; that whatever exifts is redue'd to Being, or Modes of Being •, whatever Term fignifies neither of thefe fignifies nothing, and every Term that fignifies not one or other of them diftin&ly, and in particular, fignifies nothing diftind. This to me feems moft clear and evident, but what is e- vident in it felf, is not fo to all the World. Words are the current Coin, wherewith Men pay themfelves, and others. All Terms that are inoffenfive to the Ear, have free Pafsport amongft them. And Truth comes fo rarely into the Commerce of the World, thatthofe who fpeak it, or hear it, have commonly no regard for it. The gift of Speech is the greateft of Talents; the lan- guage of Imagination is the fureft of means-, and a Memory charg'd with incomprehenfible Terms will always make a fplendid appearance, whatever the Cartefians may fay of it.
When Men fhall have no addiction but to Truth, they will be Cautious of what they fay, they will carefully examine their own meaning, rejecting with fcorn fenfelefs and insignificant Terms, andclofely adhering to clear Ideas. But when will the time come that Men fhall love Truth on- ly? We may fay, when they fhall depend no longer on their Body, when they fhall have no ne- ceffary relation to fenfible Objedts, when they fhall not any more corrupt one another, but faithful- ly confult their Mafter who inftructs them in the recedes of their Reafon. But this will never happen whilft we live on Earth.
However all Men are not equally indifferent for Truth. If there are fome who fpeak without Reflection, and hear without diftindtion, and have no attention but to what affects them: there are others who induftrioufly labour to inform themfelves, and to convince others of the Truth. And to thefe chiefly I addrefs my felf, for at their Inftance I entred on making thefe Re- marks.
I fay then that whatever is, whether it actually exifts or not, and confequently whatever is intel- ligible is either a Being, or a Mode of Being. By Being 1 mean fomething of an abfolute Nature, or that may be conceiv'd alone, as unrelated to any other thing. By Mode of Being I underftand. fomething relative, or that cannot be conceiv'd alone. Now there are two kinds of Modes of Be- ing. The one confifts in the Relation of the Parts of any Whole, to any Part of the fame whole: The other in the Relation of one thing to another which makes not anyPart of the fame whole. The Roundnefs of wax is a Mode of Being of the former fort, as confifting in the Equality of Diftance.
which The Search after Truth. j a*.
Which have all the Superficial parts to the central. The Motion or fituation of the wax is a Mode of Being of the lecond fort: Which confifts in the Relation the wax has to circumambient Bodies. I fpeak not of potion taken for the Moving Force -, tor it is plain, that that force neither is nor can be a Mode of Bodies exifting, for conceive them Modified how we will, we cannot conceive them as a moving Force.
It being certain; that whatever is intelligible, is either a Being, or a Mode of Being, it is as evi- dent that every Term that fignifies not one or other of thefe, fignifies nothing; and that every Term that fignifies not this or that particular Being, or Mode of Being, is obfcure and confus'd; and confequently we cannot conceive either what others fay to us, or we to others, if we have no diftindt Ideas of Being, or of the Mode of Being, which refpedtively anfwer to the Terms they ufe, or we imploy our felves.
Neverthelefs I grant that we may, and even fometimes mull imploy thofe words which do not directly raife diftindt Ideas. We may, becaufe it is not always neceflary to put the Definition in- ftead of the Defined, and that abridg'd Expreffions are to good ufe imploy'd though confus'd in themfelves. And We muft, when we are oblig'd to fpeak of things whereof we have no clear Idea, and which we cannot conceive, but by our inward Senfation, as when we fpeak of the Soul, and her Modifications. Only we mult take care not to ufe obfcure and equivocal, when we have clear Terms ^ or any which may excite falfe Ideas in thofe we fpeak to. This will be better underftood by an inftance.
It is more perfpicuous to fay, that God created the World by his Will, than to fay he created it by his Power. This laft word is a Logical Term, which excites no diftindt and particular Idea, but affords Liberty to imagine that the Power of God is fomething diftindt from the efficacy of his Will, We fpeak more clearly when we fay God pardons Sinners, in JESUS CHRIST; than in abfolutely faying, he forgives them by his Clemency and Mercy: Thefe Terms are Equivo- cal; and adminifter occafion to think that the Clemency of God, is, it may be contrary to his Ju- ftice: That Sin may be left unpunifh'd; and that the fatisfadtion of Our LORD is not neceffary, and the like.
, Thefe Terms of a Loofe and Indefinite fenfe are often us'd when we fpeak of the Divine Perfecti- ons •, which is not to be condtmn'd.fince Philofophical accuracy is not at all tinies neceffary.But by a culpable dullnefs and negligence fucri abufeis made of thefe generalExpreffions and fo many falfe con- fequences are drawn from them,that though all Men have the fame Idea of God, and that they con- fiderhim as a Being infinitely Perfedt •, yet there was hardly any Imperfedtion but was attributed to him in Idolatrous times, and Mens difcourfes of him were commonly unfeemly and unworthy: And all for want of carefully comparing the things they faid of him with the idea that reprefents him, or rather with Himfelf.
But chiefly in matter of natural Philofophy, thefe rambling and general Terms are abus'd, which excite no diftindt Ideas either of Beings or their Modes. For example when we fay that Bodies tend to their Center, that they fall by their Gravity, that they afcend by their Levity, that they move by their Nature, that they fucceffively change their Forms, that they adt by their Vertues, Qualities, Faculties, &c. we ufe filch Terms as have no fignification, and all thefe Propofitions are abfolutely falfe, in the fenfe that moft Philofophers take them. There is no Center in the fenfe that is commonly underftood. Thefe Terms, Gravity, Form, Nature, and the like, excite no Idea ei^ ther of a Being or a mode of Being. They are empty and infignificative Terms, which Wife-Men mould avoid. The Knowledge of the unwife vs as talk without fenfe, fays the Son oiSirach. Thefe Eccl# 2u Terms are good for nothing, but to fhelter the Ignorance of Pretenders to Learning, and to make X8. ' the Ignorant and Libertines believe that God is not the True Caufe of all things.
This methinks is certain, and eafy to be conceiv'd: Yet moft Men talk freely of all things, without caring to examine whether the Terms they employ have any clear and exadt fignification. And many Authors there are of huge and bulky Volumes, in which its harder than may be thought, to find any 4)a(Tage where they have underftood what they have written. Therefore thofe who are great Readers, and refpedtful Hearers of the rambling and general Difcourfes of the falfly Learn'd, are in the darkeft Ignorance. And I fee no way they have to get free of it, but by con- flantly making, and renewing their Refolution, of believing no Man on his word, and before they have annex'd very diftindt Ideas to the moft common Terms which others ufe. For thefe Terms are not clear, as is commonly imagin'd •, and they feem fo only from the common Ufe that is made of them: Becaufe Men fancy they well underftand what they fay or hear, when they have faid or heard the fame an hundred times, though they have never examin'd it.
THE mi ■'■tnH THE ILLUSTR AT ION Conclufion of the Three Firft BOOKS.
That Phyficians and Cafuifis are abfolutely necejjary for us; But that It is dan* gerous to confult and follow them in many occafions.
(Ertainly Man before his Fall, Wag ppflefs'd of all things neceflary to preferve his Mind and Body in a perfect State. He needed neither Pbyfician, nor Cafuift i He confulted Inward Truth, as the Infallible Rule of his Duty ^ and his Settfes were fo faithful in their Reports that they never deceiv'd hirn in the ufe he ought to make of encompaffing Bodies, for the prefervation of his own. • But fince thj Tranfgreffion things are much chang'd, We confult our Pafiions much more than Law or Truth Eternal; and our Senfes are fo diforder'd, that in following them we fometimes deftroy our Health and Life. The Cafuift and Phyfician are become abfolutely neceffary. And thofe who pretend to be molt dexterous at Self-management upon all occafions, fall commonly into the grofleft Mifcarriages, which teach them a little too late, that they follow a Mafter that is not o± ver-wife.
Neverthelefs I think I may fay that Sin has not fo diforderM all the faculties of the Soul, but that we may confult our felves, in many inftances, and that it often fortunes that we lofe the Life of our Sow/, or Body, by applying to Phyficians, unexpert in their Profeffion, and unacquainted with the conftitution of our Body, or to Cafuift s unskill'd in Religion and Morality, who pierce not to the bottom of the confcience, to difcover the Engagements and Difpofitions of thofe who come to be refolv'd.
When I have faid in the Conclufion of the Three firft Books of The Search after Truth, has given occafion to fome Perfons, to imagine I pretended that in Order to preferve life and health, we ought to follow our Senfes and Paffions in all things; and that to be guided in our Duty it was needlefs to confult other Men, fince Eternal Wifdom is our Teacher that fpeaks intelligibly to us in the receffes of our Reafon. And though I never faid nor thought that Phyficians and Cafuifts were ufelefs, fome Perfons expedite at judging and concluding, are perfuaded it was my Opinion, be- caufe, it may be, it was theirs: And that they do not fo much confider Man as he is at prefent, as what he was before the Fall. Here then in a great part are my Thoughts upon the queftion.
Man may be confider'd in two States of Body, Health and Sicknefs. If he be confider'd in per- feft Health,it cannot I think be doubted but his fenfes are much more ufeful to preferve it, than the Reafon and Experience of theableft Phyficians. There's no need of advifing with the Do&or to know what Weight a man may bear, whether Wood and Stones are to be eaten, whether he may throw himfelf from a Precipice. His fenfes teaching him, in the readieft and moft undoubted man- ner, what ought to be done in the like ordinary occafions. Which is, one would think, iufficient to juftifie what I have faid in the conclufion of the three firft Books.
But that will not ferve turn to juftify my Thoughts, and even my Words in another place. viZi Sook T. That our fenfes acquit themfclves of their Duty fo excellently well, and conduct us in thatjuft and faithful manner to their End, that they feem to be injurioufly charged with Corruptnefs and Irregularity. Fori • have always been perfwaded that the Juftnefs, Exaftnefsand admirable Order which is foundin our Senfations with reference to the prefervation of Life^ was no Confequence of Sin, but the firft Inftitution of Nature.
'Tis objected that at prefent this Order is diforder'd, and that if we were led by our fenfes, we fnould not only eat Poifon, but fhould almoft always receive in, much more Nutriment than we Could digeft But as to Poifons I don't believe our fenfes would ever invite us to eat them; but that if our Eyes fhould by chance provoke us to taft them, we fhould not find in them a relilh that would in- duce us to fwallow them, fuppofing thefe Poifons were in their Natural State. For there is great difference between Poifons, as they are Naturally produe'd, and empoifon'd Food; between crude Pepper, and Pepper'd Meats. Our fenfes I grant invite us to eat Poifon'd Victuals. But they do not incline us to eat Poifons, or it may be, not fo much as to tafte them, provided thefe Poifons remain in the capacity wherein God has produe'd them. For our fenfes reach but to the Natural Order of things as conftituted by their Maker.
I grant The Search after Truth!
' I grant likewife that our fenfes at prefcnt induce us to eat certain Meats to excefs arid forfeiting but that's becaufe thefe Meats are not in their Natural State. We fhould never perhaps overcharge our felves with Wheat, if we ground it With Teeth, made for that purpofe -, But it is ground, and fifted, and kneaded, and baked ^ Sophifticated too fometimes with Milk, with Butter, and Sugar, it's eaten alfo with preferves, and with Ragoos of feveral forts which provoke appetite. And fowe need not wonder if our fenfes incline us to excefs, when Reafon and Experience lend both their affiftance to impofe on them.
So it is in refpeft of fleih, which the fenfes abhor when Raw and Full of Blood, when beheld af- ter the Animal died of it felf. But Men have bethought themfelves to kill the Beafts^ to drain out the Blood, to cdncoA the flefh with Fire, to Seafon, and Difguife it, and after this accufe their Senfes of Corruption and diforder • fince they Irnploy their Reafon in preparing other forts of Diet than Nature fuppliesto them, 1 muft own there is need of the fame Reafon to Moderate their Appetite, in their Eating: And if the Cooks have found out the art of making us eat Old Shooes in their High Seafon'd Difhes, it lies upon us to make as much ufe of our reafon in miftrufting thefe Adulterated meats which are not fuch as God has made them: For he has given us our fenfes only with Relation to the Natural Order of things.
: It muft farther be obferv'd that our Imagination, and fenfes are miftruftful and fufpicious when we take unufual Aliments. For if a Men had never Eaten, nor feen Eaten a particular Fruit he met with, he would have fome averfion and fenfe of fear upon the tafting it: His Imagination and lenfes would be naturally arr.ect and attentive to the relifh it afforded; though never fo hungry he would eat but little the firft time, and if this Fruit had any dangerous quality it would be fure to create in him fome dread or abhorrence. Thus his Machine would be fo difpos'd as to decline it another time; and the Odium which he had to it fenfibly difcovering it felf in his Looks, would prevent others from eating it. All this would beperform'd, or might be perform'd in him, whilft Reafon had no fhare in it: For I fpeak not here of thofe fupplies which Reafon, and Experience may adminifter. But. feeing our Friends take corrupt nutriment, we do the fame: For we live by Opinion •, and Example emboldens us.
We examine not the effe&s thefe Aliments may produce in us, and we fear not to eat them to excefs. But our fenfes are not fo great abettors of the Intemperance as is believ'd. 'Tis true there poffibly are in the World fuch Fruits as that their Tafts may impofe onPerfons never fo attentive to the Reports of their fenfes: But this certainly is very rare: And we ought not to conclude from thefe particular, inftances,. that our fenfes are all corrupt, and that they commonly deceive us, in things relating to the good of the Body. It may be, thefe Fruits deceive our Taft, becaufe we have altered, and corrupted our Organ by the frequent ufe of unnatural Nourifhment. For 'tis certain that the High Seafon'd Difhes, we feed upon, by their tod Poignant, and penetrating Particles, ..hurt the Fibres of the Tongue, and deprive it of it's Nicenefs and Sagacity. The Example of thofe who can find.no relifh except in Ragoos, proves my affertion ^ for if we find no favour in Corn, and in crude Flefh* 'tis becaufe our Tongue is grown infenfible to thofe Particles, whofe motions are But though we fuppofe there are fome Fruits whofe favour is capable of deceiving the moft curi- ous fenfes,,and which ftill retain their Natural perfection ^ yet we ought not to believe this pro- ceeded from Sin: But only that from the great fimplicity of Natural Laws, ( by vertue of which the fenfe of Taft is form'd and perfected^ 'twas impoffible for it to have fufficient Nicenefs and Sa- gacity for all forts of Eatables. Befides, that defeft of fenfe would not be remedilefs, becaufe when the Mother bad an averfion to dangerous Eruits, fhe would communicate it to her Children, not only when unborn, but alfo when come into the World. For Children only Eat what is given them by their Mothers, and they Machinally, and by the Air of their Countenance inf ufe into them an abhorrence for Fruits that are dangerous to be Eaten. So that God has made fufficient Provifioft by our fenfes for the prefervation of our Life, and nothing can be better Order'd. For as Order requires, that the Laws of Union of our Soul and Body fhould be moft Simple • they muft be of a very General Nature: And God ought not to eftablifli particular Laws for fuch inftancessand emer- gences, as moft rarely happen, Reafon on fuch occafions muft Help out the Senfes: For Reafon may be employ'd in all things. But the fenfes are determin'd to fome Natural Judgments, which are the moft advantageous Imaginable, as I have prov'd in the firft Book. Yet even thefe Judgments are fometimes fallacious •, becaufe 'tis impoffible it fhould be otherwife without multiplying the moft fimple Laws of Union of the Body with the Soul.
If we confider Man as now he is, under a State of Sicknefs, we muft confefs his fenfes often de- ceive him, even in things that relate to the prefervation of his Life. For the Oeconomy of his Ma- chine being difturb'd in Proportion to it's difturbance, irregular motions muft unavoidably be ex- cited iri his Brain. Neverthelefs his fenfes are not fo corrupted, as is Ordinarily believ'd: And God has fo, wifely provided for the prefervation of Life by the Laws of Union of the Soul and Body, that though thefe laws are extreamly fimple, they often fuffice to reftore us to our Health \ and it is much the furer way to follow them,than to employ ourReafon,or certainPhyficians that do not care- fully ftudy thedifpofitipn of their Patients. For as a wound clofes and heals up of its felf when con- ftantly cleans'd and lick'd, as is done by Animals when wounded: So Ordinary difeafes are fpeedi- ly difpers'd, when we let them alone, and exa&ly obferve that courfe of Life, which thefe Difeafes, as it were by mftina, and Senfation, put us upon.
Pp. Wine," I^o R Malebranche Concerning Wine for example; feems bitter to a Mart in a FeaVer, and Hkewife is prejudicial to him in that Condition: This fame Man finds it agreeable to the Palate, when he is in Health, and then too it is Wholefome for him. It fometimes even happens that Wine is mofc ufeful to the Sick that relifh it provided their tali be not an efFeft of the Habit of drinking it, and that their defire of it pro- ceed from the prefent difpofition of their Body: That it cannot be doubted but that we are to con* fult our fenfes in Sicknefs for the way we are to take to the recovery of our Health. Here follows my Opinion about what we ought to do...
'Tis requifite that the diftemper'd Perfon (hould be extrearhly attentive to thofe fecret defires which fometimes arife in him on occafion of the aftual difpofition of his Body ± but above all, take heed left thefe defires {hould be the confequence of fome preceding Habit. He muft, to that intent, flacken, as 1 may fay, the bent of Imagination, or, thinking on nothing that may determine it, obferve to what he is inclin'd, and examine whether his prefent Inclination proceeds from the actual difpofition of his Body: Which done, he ought to follow it, but with much caution and re- ferve- it being extreamly difficult to be afTur'd whether thefe fecret Inclinations are owing to the prefentState of Body; and 'tis fometimes good to have the advice of fomeExperienc'd Perfon upon it. But if the Sick Perfon thus giving a loofe to his Imagination, as I have been faying, finds no- thing offer it felf to his Mindy. he muft remain quiet, and ufe abftinence, for this likely will quicken him to fome defire, or fpend the humours that-diftemper him. But if the difeafe increafe, notwithftanding his Abftinence and Reft, 'tis then necefTary to have recourfe to experience and the Phyfician. He muft give then an exaft account of all to a Skillful one that knows,if poffible,the Conftitution of his Body; He muft clearly explain to Him the beginnings, and progrefsof his Difeafe, and the State of Body he was in, before he fell into it, that He may confult his Experience and Reafon with reference to the Perfon to be cur'dby him. And then though the Phyfician prefcribe7 bitter Medicines, and which are really forts of Poifon, yet they muft be taken becaufe we Experi- mentally know that thefe Poifons ftay not in the Body, but drive out fometimes along with them the corrupt humours which are the caufe of the Difeafe. Here it is that Reafon, or rather Expe- rience, muft over-rule the Senfes; provided the abhorrence of the recommended Potion be not of a frefh date. For if this Averfion was Cotemporary with the difeafe, it would rather be a Symp- tom of the Medicine's being of the fame Nature with the ill humours that caus'd the diftemper, and fo perhaps would but augment and ftrengthen it.
Neverthelefs I think it advifable before we venture upon ftrong Medicines, and which we are much averfe to, to begin with thofe that are more gentle and natural: As by Drinking a good quantity of Water, or taking an eafie Emetich, if we have loft our Appetite, and are not very hard to Vomit. Water may attenuate the too condens'd humours, and Facilitate the Circulation of the Blood into all the Parts of the Body: And Pbmitives cleanfing the Stomach, hinder the Nourifhment we take in, from corrupting, and feeding any longer intermittent Feaver s. But I ought not to- infift upon thefe 'things. I am therefore of Opinion that we ought to follow the advife of the wife Phyficians, who are not too hafty and expeditious,who are not too prefumptuous upon the Recipe\ nor too eafie to give t\\dxNoftrums and Prefcriptions. For where one remedy does a SickMan good, there are a great many that do him harm. As the fuffeiing Perfons are impatient, and as it makes not for the Honour of the Phyficians, nor the profit of the Apothecary, to vifit the fick without pre- ferring to them, fo they vilit too feldom, and prefcribe too often. When therefore a Man is Sick, he ought to requeft of his Phyfician, that he would hazard nothing; but follow Nature, and ftrengthen it if he can: He ought to let him know that he has more Reafon, and Patience, than to take it ill that he vifits him often without giving him relief: For on thefe occafions he fometimes does a great deal, who does no mifchief.
I conclude then that we muft have recourfe toPhyficians,and refufe not to obey them,if we would preferve our Life. For though they cannot be afTur'd of refroring our Health, yet fometimes they may contribute much for it, by reafon of the continual Experiments, they make upon diffe- rent Difeafes. They know indeed very little, with any exattnefs, yet ftill they know much more than our felves; and provided they will give themfelves the trouble of ftudying our con- ftitution, of carefully obferving all the Symptoms of the Difeafe, and diligently attending to our own inward Feeling-, we may hope from them all the Affiftances that we may reafonably expeft from Men.
What we have faid of Phyficians may in a manner be apply'd to Cafuifts, whom 'tis abfo- lutely necefTary to confult on fome occafions; and commonly ufeful. But it fometimes hap- pens not only to be moft ufelefs, but highly dangerous, to advife with them; which 1 ex- plain and prove.
'Tis commonly faid that humane Reafon is fubjeft to Error; but herein there is an equivocal fence, which we are not fufficiently aware of. For it muft not be imagin'd that the Reafon which Man confults is corrupted, or that it ever mifleads, when faithfully confulted. I have faid iry and I fay it again, that none but the Soveraign Reafon makes us Rational: None but the Supream Truth enlightens us, nor any but God, that fpeaks clearly, and knows how to inftrudt us. We have but one True Mafter, even JESUS CHRIST Our LORD, Eternal WISDOM, the W O R D of the Father, in whom^re all the Treafures of Wifdom, and the Knowledge of God: And 'tis Blafphemy to fay, this Vniverfal Reafon, whereof all Men participate, and by which alone they are reafonable, is fubjett to Error, and capable of deceiving us. 'Tis not Man's Reafon but his Heart that betrays, him; 'Tis not his Light, but his Darknefs that hinders him from feeing. 'Tis not the Union he has with God, which feduces him, nor in one fence, his Union with the The Search after Truth. ■ {*{ the Body: But 'tis the dependence he has on his Body, or rather, 'tis.becaufe he will de- ceive himfelf} and enjoy the Pkafure of Judging, before he has been at the Pains of Examining- tis becaufe he will reft, before he arrives to the place of the Reft of Truth. I have more exactly explain d the caufe of our Errors, in many places of the preceding Book, and I hefefuppofe what I there have faid.