An somnus mortis frater sit

As for Sleep, which the dying Philosopher called the Brother of Death,* I do not see how it argues the Soul’s Mortality, more than a man’s inability to wake again: but rather helps us to conceive, how that though the stounds† and agonies of Death seem utterly to take away all the hopes of the Soul’s living after them; yet upon a recovery of a quicker Vehicle of Air, she may suddenly awake into fuller and fresher participation of life than before. But I may answer also, that Sleep being only the ligation‡ of the outward Senses, and the interception of motion from the external world, argues no more any radical defect of Life and Immortality in the Soul, than the having a man’s Sight bounded within the walls of his chamber by Shuts, does argue any blindness in the immured party; who haply is busie reading by candle-light, and that with ease, so small a Print as would trouble an ordinary Sight to read it by day. And that the Soul is not perpetually employ’d in Sleep, is very hard for any to demonstrate; we so often remembring our reams merely by occasions, which, if they had not occurr’d, we had never suspected we had dream’d that night.

Henry More, The Immortality of the Soul (1659), Book III, Chap. xiv

* ὁ ὕπνος θανάτου ἀδελφὸς. Aelian, Var. Hist. lib. 2, cap. 35. With reference to pre-Socratic philosopher Gorgias Leontinus.

† stound - state of stupefaction or amazement

‡ ligation - condition of being bound, suspension (of the faculties)

Neurospasts

(...) But the shows went on.

At length a voice out of the Void explained things. ‘You see,’ it said, ‘that—over there—you were not remarkable for a sense of humour, but you were distinguished by a marked business capacity. And business capacity consists, if you come to think of it, in treating your fellow creatures, not as if they were sentient beings, but as if they were puppets. The result is that the living beings who come here do not care to associate with you. We are trying to find what amusement we can for you. This is really the best we have to offer.’

Here Gribble lost his temper. ‘How long, confound it, am I to go on looking at the infernal things?’ he said, getting purple.

‘You might be more polite. I said we were doing our best.’

‘How long—that’s what I want to know—am I to go on looking at the conf—the toys? It seems an age already since—’

‘It is an age. It’s exactly a hundred years.’

From purple Gribble turned ghastly pale. His teeth chattered. ‘A hun—a hundred years! Good God! . . . And to—how long must I go on still?’

‘Ah! That I can’t say. Possibly for eternity. If so it can’t be helped.’

Charles Francis Keary,  ‘The Puppet Show’, ’Twixt Dog and Wolf (1901)

 

They that are acted onely by an outward Law are but like Neurospasts,* or those little Puppets that skip nimbly up and down, and seem to be full of quick and sprightly motion; whereas they are all the while moved artificially by certain Wires and Strings from without, and not by any Principle of Motion from themselves within; or else like Clocks and Watches, that go pretty regularly for a while, but are moved by Weights and Plummets, or some other artificial Springs, that must be ever now and then wound up, or else they cease. But they that are acted by (...) the Law of the Spirit, they have an inward principle of life in them, that from the Centre of it self puts forth it self freely (...) a kind of Musicall Soul, informing the dead Organ of our Hearts, that makes them of their own accord delight to act harmoniously to the Rule of God's word.

Ralph Cudworth, A Discourse Concerning the True Notion of the Lord’s Supper (1670) 

 

* Greek νευρόσπαστον, a puppet moved by strings; νεῦρον sinew, string + σπᾶν to draw, pull. Cf. Henry More, Psychathanasia, Book 1, Canto 2, Stanza 33: That outward form is but a neurospast; / The soul it is that on her subtile ray, / That she shoots out, the limbs of moving beast / Doth stretch straight forth, so straightly as she may. / Bones joynts, and sinews shap’d of stubborn clay / Cannot so eas’ly lie in one straight line / With her projected might, much lesse obey / Direct retractions of these beames fine: / Of force, so straight retreat they ever must decline. 

 

vera sunt illa

Of any private person that ever appeared upon design after his death, there is none did upon a more noble one then that eximious* Platonist Marsilius Ficinus; who having, as Baronius† relates, made a solemn vow with his fellow-Platonist Michael Mercatus (after they had been pretty warmly disputing of the Immortality of the Soul, out of the Principles of their Master Plato) that whether of them two died first should appear to his friend, and give him certain information of that Truth; (it being Ficinus his fate to die first, and indeed not long after this mutual resolution) he was mindful of his promise when he had left the Body. For Michael Mercatus being very intent at his Studies betimes on a morning, heard an horse riding by with all speed, and observed that he stopped at his window; and therewith heard the voice of his friend Ficinus crying out aloud, O Michael, Michael vera, vera sunt illa.‡ Whereupon he suddenly opened the window, and espying Marsilius on a white Steed, called after him; but he vanisht in his sight. He sent therefore presently to Florence to know how Marsilius did; and understood that he died about that hour he called at his window, to assure him of his own and other mens Immortalities.

Henry More, The Immortality of the Soul, So farre forth as it is demonstrable from the Knowledge of Nature and the Light of Reason. 

London, Printed by J. Flesher, for William Morden, Bookseller in Cambridge. 1659

 

* eximious - excellent, distinguished, eminent; notable, singular (Latin eximius)

† Baronius - Caesar Baronius (1538-1607), Italian cardinal, author of Annales Ecclesiastici (12 vols., 1588-1607)

‡ vera sunt illa - those things are true

The sad horrour and mad aspect of this strange theatre

For that mankind is in a lapsed condition it cannot be denied, nor that a great part of the invisible powers are sunk into the animal life with them. Now that which is the most high and powerful in the animal life will not let its hold go so long as it can hang on. Whence the most active spirits in this region get the dominion over the more passive, and the kingdom of the prince of the air has proved very large over the nations of the earth, they being so deeply lapsed and immersed into the animal nature. Wherefore we cannot expect but that both the rulers and the ruled having fallen from the holy light and the divine benignity of the aethereal nature, that the effects of that government and the garb of their manners should be cruel, squalid, deformed and ridiculous; a judicious sense of true pulchritude and decency not being able to reside in so dark and distempered complexions, and their envious guardians caring more to tyrannize over them and to make sport with them than to spare them or to be true guides to them in any thing. All therefore that can be done is, to mitigate as well we can the sad horrour and mad aspect of this strange theatre, which strikes the fancy so strongly and so harshly. 

Third Dialogue, Henry More, Divine Dialogues 

 Containing Disquisitions Concerning the Attributes and Providence of God, 1668

Humanum enim genus in lapsa conditione esse constitutum non potest negari, mangamque Invisibilium Potestatum partem in vitam Animalem cum ipsis pariter subsedisse. Nunc vero illud quod supremum est et potentissimum in Vita Animali manus prensuram non laxabit, quamdiu potest inhærere. Unde maxime activi Spiritus in hac Regione Dominium obtinent in magis Passivos Regnumque Principis Aeris reperitur admodum longe lateque extensum super nationes Terræ quippe tam profunde in Animalem Naturam lapsas et immersas. Quamobrem cum tam Principes quam subditi e sacra Luce Divinaque Benignitate Naturæ Æthereæ ceciderunt, expectare non possumus quin effecta illius Regiminis, Morumque ratio crudelis sit, squalida, deformis ac ridicula, quippe quum judicium sensusque veræ pulchritudinis ac Decori in tam tenebroso maleque temperato Temperamento residere nequeat, invidique ipsorum Præsides Aerei id curent magis quo Tyrrannidem in ipsos exerceant misereque ludificentur, quam ut eis parcant aut præsidio sint, exemplove eis præeant in ulla re bona. Summa igitur rei quo collineatum oportet, est mitigare quantum possumus funestum horrorem, vesanumque aspectum miri hujus Theatri quod Imaginationem tam fortitur duriterque ferit. 

Dialogus Tertius, Dialogi Divini Per Autorem Latine redditi 

Disquisitiones Varias et Instructiones Continentes de Attributis et Providentia Dei, 

Londini, Typis J. Macock, impensis J. Martyn & Gualt. Kettilby, 1679