§. 1. THO' the Religion that the Holy Jesus brought down from Heaven seem'd contriv'd by Infinite Wisdom and Goodness, and adapted to render us innocent here, and happy hereafter; [Page 2] yet if you look into the World (into which you are, most dear Dorotheus, now ere long to enter, and in which you must live) you will find that most of those that havereceived, and do still zealously own this holy Profession, do yet live in the greatest opposition to it. Religion possesseth the Head, and not the Heart, and Men are mightily con­cerned about its Doctrines, but not at all about its Duties. Its power over Men, as to the conformity of their Lives, is much weakned and decay'd, and the Spiritual Life ready to expire. Some Duties, 'tis true, are observ'd, out of Design; and its Out-side, for some political Reasons, maintain'd; but if you draw the Curtain, and look into the in-side of Men's Practice, there is little but what is counterfeit and Representations, Scenes and Shows. All the Noise that it makes, is from Men's loud Disputes, and its be­ing bandied backward and forward betwixt opposite Parties; but for any real Use that there is made of it, there is little, but that it is made to be a [Page 3] stalking-horse for Ambition; to san­ctifie a bad Cause, and a cloak for its Deformity. Its holy Doctrines are si­lenced and laid to sleep; only now and then one taken up, and awaken'd to serve a Party, and then laid down a­gain, when no longer useful.

Nor is the Law of Christ only (the Perfection of all Laws) but that of Nature and common Equity also vio­lated amongst us. Property and Self­ishness hath ingrossed all Hearts, so that whatsoever can be got either by Fraud or Violence, and possessed with­out danger of the Law, is counted our own; and what we account to be out own, we think we may use as we please. Indeed there is a rude notion of Justice among the Vulgar, but it is only pleaded when they think they are injur'd; and exerted when they are like to be Gainers by it: But as for Truth (a piece of Justice we owe to all Men) there is little or no regard to it (especially in dealings); but Men swear, lye and dissemble, and will maintain that there is a necessity so to [Page 4] do. Hence it is, that Oaths (which were of old Sacred) are now of no Validity; yea, and the common use of Speech, in bargains, is to no pur­pose: Lying is become so clamorous, that it hath took away our Senses, and we had as good be deaf and dumb as hear and talk among Men: And then for Charity (that God-like Vertue) the highest notion of it is quite lost a­mongst us, and we never give but when natural compassion wrings it out of our hands.

Mean while Ambition is restless, and rages so in the World that it over­turns whole Kingdoms, and buries thousands in their Ruines: and Pride (that reigns among all Sects and in all shapes) will not suffer us to know our selves, or be quiet with others: And besides these, there is such a deluge of inhumane Vices (for so I call those that are unworthy of Man, and below the Beast) broken in upon us from Hell, that no Pen is able to describe, no Vertue oppose: for Man is become the greatest Enemy to himself, and [Page 5] cruelly wounds his own Being; so that the Love of our selves can serve no longer as a rule to measure our Love to others by, and the Apostle's assertion ( No man ever yet hated his own Flesh) seems not to hold in our times. In a word, we are sunk below Heathenism, while Turks and Infidels upbraid us. Impiety hath over-run the World, and our blessed Lord's Prophecy is too much verified, Matt. 24. 10, 11, &c. 'Tis time then that those days should be shortned, that any Flesh should be sa­ved; and that he should hasten his coming, for he shall hardly find his Faith upon the Earth.

§. 2. And yet after all, it must be confess'd that this general Apostasie of the greatest part of Mankind cannot be laid to the charge of God, or to any defect in revealed Religion. He hath fenced and cultivated his Vineyard, though it brings forth▪ wild Grapes, and hath us'd all means possible to save us but one, and that is such an irre­sistible Grace upon all Men, which some have fansied to be bestowed upon [Page 6] those that are effectually called; such I mean as would carry us to Heaven by force, and save us whether we will or no. His Precepts are holy and just, and require of us nothing but what is reasonable to be exacted, and feasi­ble to be done: besides, his Commands are certainly our Interest as well as Duty; they are such as would settle Peace and Prosperity amongst Men, restore the golden Age, and make e­very Man happy with his Neighbour and happy in himself; they enjoin no­thing but Love, Peace, Meekness, Long-suffering and Courtesie amongst all men, and would necessarily banish Hatred, Malice, and revenge, and all the inimical Vices from humane Soci­ety: And to render him happier yet, by Sobriety and Temperance they would settle Health in his Body, and Peace and Contentment in his Soul. All this the Christian Religion doth upon great and precious Promises, both of this Life and of that which is to come, and upon Threats propor­tionable to its Promises; by which [Page 7] Means, and by the powerful Mi­nistery of those appointed to this Ser­vice, God hath secured to himself in all Ages some Witnesses of the inhe­rent Power and Energy of Piety; which like so many stars, adorn and enlighten our dark Times.

§. 3. It may now be justly enquir'd into, why so amiable and reasonable a Religion, so profitable to every Man, and suited to his true Interest, should not have the same Influence upon all, and captivate every understanding? Why the same cause should not have the same effect, and the same Means prove successful to every one that uses it? especially seeing there is no fatal sentence to the contrary, nor do any labour under eternal Fetters, which binds their Hands from receiving what is offer'd to them? One would think that the same advantageous Par­don should be embrac'd by every ratio­nal Creature, and the same Word prove alike; not the savour of Life to some and of of Death to others. And certainly the fault must be in our selves [Page 8] only, and in the indisposition of the Patient, which may produce contrary Effects: For thus, the same Heat melts down Wax and hardens Clay. Nor is this Indisposition generally in our Rea­son and Understanding, but in our Affections. We all know the Will of God and our own Interests well e­nough, and accordingly we should re­solve upon a new Life, and perform our Resolutions; but, alas! Man is not usually Master of himself, and of his own Intentions. The Govern­ment that God hath settled in us is sore shatter'd, if not quite dissolv'd. His Vice-Roy (Reason) is under con­finement; and the Senses seduced from their duty; the Appetites (like disso­lute Janisaries in an Interregnum) do­mineer and carry all before them; and the Passions, like the Mobb, pre­tend to settle the State, and make such a Noise, that the soft Messages of Peace, though from God, cannot be heard: for, First, Man is usually brought under bondage to the Earthly part, and the higher Faculties captivated by the low­er; [Page 9] he is carnal and sold under Sin, and so cannot do what he would: The Fall of Adam has weakned his spiritual Powers, and brought them down, so that they stand upon even ground with the lower Appetites; and Cu­stom and a slavish yielding up our na­tive Freedom have made us absolute Slaves to our sensual Part. And hence it is, that though we are convinc'd of the Necessity and Benefit of Vertue be­fore, and of Repentance after we have offended, and promise, and (perhaps sincerely) intend to act accordingly, yet after all we fail in our Performan­ces, and break our Resolutions. The next Temptation bears all our Vows and Faith away with it; we have dis­abled our selves, and (being under a kind of Confinement) can promise much, but perform nothing. And then, Secondly, Sensuality being got into the Throne fortifies it self there, with specious declarations of the lawfulness of its Title; and possesses the poor deluded with the mighty hopes of its Profits, Pleasures, and [Page 10] Advantages. It represents the Com­forts of Eat, Drink, and be Merry, to the utmost advantage: It crys up the Fe­licity of sinful Freedom, and is always inculcating the Severities and Chains of Vertue. It represents Religion, sowre and austere, and draws her pi­cture, like Magdalene, always weeping. By these her false Representations, and the Echo's of the Appetite, poor Rea­son cannot be heard. Hence it is that we first entertain, and (by conversa­tion) begin to love, and then doat on, and at last espouse our Vices, not to be separated as long as the Body and Soul hold together. Thus we are fallen since we came into this World as well as be­fore, and Adam was not the only Be­trayer of himself and his Posterity.

§. 4. In this Condition, 'twould be a great piece of Charity and Justice to restore the Captive Prince, and break those Fetters wherewith the rational part is bound up; to restore the Man to that state that God made and intend­ed he should live in; that the Soul might govern the Body, and the rea­sonable [Page 11] Will the Appetite; so that he might live as a rational Creature, and act as one that is moved upon future Hopes and Fears, and not upon present Enjoyments without respect to the fa­tal Consequences thereof: For, if the Man were but brought to himself, and to the use of his Understanding, Vertue and Piety would find as ready entertainment as now Vice doth. He would then exercise his Reason instead of Sense, and consider the end of viti­ous Actions; the present Enjoyment and future Reward would be brought into the Balance, and Hell and Hea­ven consider'd as well as present Earth. The Inclinations to sin would be less forcible, and the propensities of Na­ture which arise out of Appetites would draw but moderately, and tho' they had a proper Motion, yet they would submit to the stronger Power of the first Mover. Righteous Reason would then sit enthron'd, and give sentence according to our true Interest present and to come, and the Will ha­ving once determin'd, whole Nature [Page 12] would move forcibly towards the Ob­ject; there would be no hanging back towards Sodom, or hankering after the Flesh-pots of Egypt: Men would go on in Piety chearfully, and run the way of God's Commandments having their Hearts enlarged. 'Tis the Empire of the Soul, and the Power of managing the Body to our spiritual Advantages, with its attendant Desires (whichin the ensuing papers I would to the utmost of my power contribute to) that can on­ly restore Piety and Innocency to the World. For Autarchy is a preparation of the heart for Vertue, and cultivates, tills, and sweetens this our spiritual Ground towards an Increase of many-fold.

§. 5. Nor is this Lesson so hard, much less insuperable, but what is and must be daily practised in secular Af­fairs of this Life, so that we cannot be Men, or live without it. We cannot enjoy all things, and therefore must deny our selves many things: and what is done upon worldly considera­tions, may sure be done more easily upon those that are spiritual, by how [Page 13] much these are more considerable than the other, and God is more ready to serve us with his assisting Grace in this his own Work. Besides, this cannot be difficult to Youth, who having not contracted any inveterate habits of Sensuality, are more at liberty: Nor can it be unattainable to Manhood, who, having passed over the Vanities of Youth, commonly choose what is profitable; much less to Old-Age, who have now no delight in Vanities, nor pleasure in them. Thus every Age hath its advantages as well as disadvantages, that no Man may complain that Self-Government is absolutely impossible. However let every Man of what De­gree or Age, consider that this Duty is necessary, not only to this Life, but to that which is to come; and that the Grace of God (that bringeth Salvati­on) teaches us that we should deny all Ʋngodliness and worldly Lusts, and live soberly, righteously, and godly in this pre­sent World.

§. 6. This then (my Dorotheus) be­ing my present work, the end of this [Page 14] triple Essay, and the mark which each Discourse aims at: I shall,

I. Explain the Nature of this Duty, and lay down the Rules of its Pra­ctice.

II. Vindicate it from the Imputations of Austerity, Sowreness, Tyran­ny, and other the accusations of Vo­luptuousness. And if I act not on­ly defensively but offensively, and make now and then an Incursion into the Territories of Sensuality, carry away her Pretences captive, and ex­pose them to Contempt; it will con­duce to the Establishment of Autar­chy in every Man's Heart, who shall be open to receive her.

III. I shall consider the outward Advan­tages of Autarchy, and settle her right to all things which are desirable in this World. All which put toge­ther will be a sufficient Explanation and Defence of Autarchy, whose Cause I have undertaken. And this I shall include in Three Letters, which shall be as Three several Sta­ges; [Page 15] at the end of each of which the Reader may sit down, rest him­self, and consider what hath been taught him.

§. 7 I. To begin with the Nature of Autarchy, or Self-Government. That I may lay a good Foundation and view the Fountain of these sweet and bitter Waters that flow from the same Composition; you must know, that as every Man is made up of a double Nature, the Soul and Body; so he may find in himself a twofold Princi­ple of Apprehension, Understanding and Sense; as also, of Inclination and Tendency, the Will and the Appetite; the First proceeding from the Spiritual, the Second from the Carnal part; that truly Angelical, this common with us to the Beasts below us.

The First, is the Heavenly or Spi­ritual Part of Man, the chief Faculty of which is the Ʋnderstanding, which the Greek Philosophers call [...], the Imperial or Governing Faculty, because its Office is to guide the blind [Page 16] and heedless earthly Part, with its Lusts and Appetites, as the Rider doth the Horse with Bit and Bridle, or the Mariner doth the Ship with the Helm and Compass. This is the coelestial Part, and directs us to desire nothing but what is really good for us, both as to the present and future time; I mean, to fear our Creatour, keep his Com­mandments, live vertuously and sober­ly here, and, consequently, happily hereafter; and, for the attainment of future Happiness, to deny our selves such Pleasures and Enjoyments as would in the end endanger it. Thus we are taught to abhor Poison, though made up in the most sweet and delici­ous Potion: And even the Vulgar (though otherwise sufficiently incli­nable thereunto) shall, upon these grounds, deny themselves Mirth, Lei­sure, Jollity, and other Delights of the Body; and, instead of these, ap­ply themselves to Labour and Hard­ship, till they have made them habitu­al; and this, not because they hate the the first, and love the latter, but be­cause [Page 17] they are sensible that their Purse or Body will not hold out in their pursuits. And thus also the Christian (governing himself according to the dictates of the Spiritual Nature, and acting as a rational Creature, upon Arguments drawn from future Hopes and Expectations, as well as from present good) abstains from un­ [...]ust Gains and unlawful Pleasures, and bridles his Natural Inclinations to any thing that may offend his God or his Neighbour. And this he continues to do, till he hath at last broken a Feral Nature to the Bit and Bridle, and made a kind of Habit of Piety.

The Second is the Sensual Nature arising out of the counter-part of Man, the Bo­dy. This is the Terrestrial Part, and [...]ncites us to desire present Pleasure (or at least that which seems to be so to us) without any consideration of its Conse­quents or Effects: For the brutish Part [...]n Man is the same with that in Beasts; uncapable of the future Prospect of Good and Evil, and fully satisfied with what is present. So truly Bestial is this lower part of our Nature, that it admits not of Hopes or Fears, but tends greedily to pre­sent [Page 18] Enjoyment. This is that Conduit, by which the Devil conveys his Temptations into us, and the Instru­ment by which we destroy our selves: Hence it is, that we know no Moderati­on in the use of animal Pleasures; but run into that Excess, from whence pro­ceeds the dreadful Catalogue of Crimes which St. Paul enumerates as The Fruits of the Flesh, Gal. 5. 19, 20, 21.

§. 8. It may be here questioned, by some, (with more Curiosity, perhaps, than Profit, were it not that we should be jealous over every thing that might eclipse the Divine Goodness) Why th [...] ever Gracious and Merciful Deity should infuse the Pure Spirit, fresh, new-created, and immaculate into the defil'd Vessels of the Body? Why should he join such [...], such disagreeing Natures, the Heavenly to the Earthly Vehicle, there to lose not only its Glory but Inno­cency? For what is this, but Mezentius like, (might Atheism object) to join the living and dead Bodies together, that the one might die leisurely, but infallibly, by the Putrefaction of the other? or, to put an undefiled Virgin (innocent and un­knowing [Page 19] of Sin) into the Stews, where she shall meet with Temptations of all sorts to sollicite her Chastity, and from whence, morally, it is impossible for her to escape unpolluted?

'Tis true, the Doctrine of the conti­nual Creation of humane Souls, and their Infusion into Bodies, is obvious to these and other mighty Prejudices, as that of their Traduction is to greater; and therefore some thoughtful Men have re­vived a long-since-forgotten Hypothesis of the Creation of all humane Souls, toge­ther with the Angels, and other invisible Beings before that of the visible, of their Lapse from their Primitive Integrity (as likewise did the Angels, and Mankind after both) and (after a long time of In­activity) of their being sent down to Bodies diversly circumstantiated ac­cording to their several demerits, there to grind in their Prison-houses till Time had worn out, and the Divine Pity for­given them their Crimes; till Grace and the Exercise of Vertue had reviv'd the Coe­lestial Fire, and the lost Image of God in them, &c. This is the Prae-existentian Do­ctrine, which, (they say) would fitly solve [Page 20] all the doubts about the Goodness of God in our Origination, and dissolve all that Darkness that seems to obscure the Face of Providence. I mention not this Opi­nion because I would oblige any Man to believe it, but for its Novelty as to most Men, and for its Ingenuity; nor would I perswade you to it, if you can clea [...] the Divine Goodness or Justice withou [...] it: For it is not only the Privilege of the Schools to dispute, but of every Christi­an modestly to opine freely of things un­defin'd by God and his Church. B [...] seeing this Hypothesis receives so littl [...] Light from reveal'd Religion that it i [...] generally look'd upon as the Product o [...] Fancy, I shall endeavour to untie th [...] Knot in plainer Terms, and upon mor [...] allowed Principles; wherein I must ye [...] run back as high as the Fall of Angels.

§. 9. When Heaven, by the Lapse o [...] so many of its Inhabitants, first, int [...] a state of Sin, and then, into that o [...] Punishment (bound up in everlasting Chains against the Judgment of the grea [...] Day) became something empty, and the Coelestial Powers were reduced to a lesser Number; it pleased the Creatour of al [...] [Page 21] things, in order to the filling up of those Vacancies, to make a Race of Creatures of a mixt and middle Nature, a little lower than the Angels, and yet higher than the Beasts that perish: Man I mean, Partaker of both the Heavenly and Earth­ly Natures united together; that the Earthly Part might teach him Humility, to avoid the aspiring thoughts, and so the Fate of the lapsed Angels; and that the Heavenly Part might exalt his Thoughts, and lift them up to God his Creator: As his Strength and Endow­ments were lesser than those of the An­gels, so were his Failures less fatal than theirs: He was plac'd in a state, (not of Condemnation, in case of disobedience, as they were; but) of Falls and Reco­veries, of Sin and Repentance: His Sta­tion was not so high as theirs, lest, if he fell, his Fall might prove (like theirs) Final; and yet high enough to make his Recovery a Work, not a Pastime; and a Work of that Difficulty, to require the Help of a Divine Saviour. Thus his ve­ry Composition became his [...]dvantage; and his Earthly Part, with its attendant Lusts and Temptations, became acciden­tally [Page 22] the Cause of all the Mercies he hath received ever since. To which I may add—

That as he consists of two opposite Principles, so each must have its peculiar Law or Inclination in opposition one to another. That of the Spirit and that of the Flesh, each tending, as it were, to its proper Centre; the one in­viting him upwards, the other down­wards: For each Nature would be in­compleat, without its attendant Inclina­tions and Fruitions to caress it: The Spiritual would be as good as dead, with­out its Intellect and Prospect, and conse­quently, Desires of Future Good; and the Earthly part had as good cease to be, as cease to be sensible of Earthly Plea­sures. If we could not experiment the Delights of Seeing, Hearing, Tast­ing, &c. how dull and flat would our Lives be? like a Play without Scenes or Intrigue, without the Passions of Love or Hatred, or any thing to move the Spectators. 'Tis then not only out of a Principle of giving each Nature its Perfe­ctions, but also for the Comfort of both, that God hath endued us with Sense and [Page 23] Appetite, as well as Reason: For these take off the Acerbities of Life, and render it tolerable; they support the Body and Mind under all the Pressures that God lays upon both under the Sun. Without these Life would not be worth the Acceptance when proffer'd, or Preservation when accepted of.

§. 10. And that which perfectly re­bates the Objection against the Goodness of God, is this, That there is no necessity of Sinning intended to be imposed upon us: for our Appetites and Passions are not sinful in themselves, nor directly and simply incite us to it; but by accident, when put in a Commotion and Rage, and when the Reins are loose and broken, like the Horses of the Sun, when a foolish Phaeton undertakes their Manage­ment, which would otherwise bless that World with Light and Influence, which it now burns up: Or like the Blood in a ferment, that sometimes destroys that Bo­dy it daily nourishes. 'Tis their Nature, 'tis true, to desire to be satisfied, and move strongly towards that Object they would enjoy, (else we should have no Love or Hatred) but they are design'd [Page 24] for Subjection, and not for Government; to hunt after that Game to which illumi­nated Nature directs them and to be call'd off, or hastened when a Superiour Power shall think fit: For, when under subjecti­on, they may become subservient even to Religion it self, and, like the Gibeonites, they may be Hewers of wood, and drawers of water for the House and Altar of God.

This ought to satisfie every modest Enquirer, who, though he cannot com­prehend the exact reasons of his own Ori­gination (alas how should he!) must con­fess that he is not only fearfully and won­derfully, but graciously made, and a Monument of God's Bounty and Mercy. That his Creator is good to him in par­ticular, as well as to all things in general; and that his tender Mercy is over all his Works. I have taken the more pains to remove this Stumbling-block from the Entrance of this Discourse, which yet St. Paul doth in fewer words, with this short unanswerable Question (for the Christian Romans in those times were not so full of Cavils as we are) Shall the thing formed say unto him that formed it, why hast thou made me thus?

§. 11. If it be further questioned, Why God did not limit our Passions and Appe­tites when he first bestowed them upon us, so as to make it not possible for them to hurry us into any Sin or Danger? The Answer will be short and easie. We are made Men and not Angels, and placed in a mutable condition, capable of Bliss and Misery; and if God had so bounded our Appetites, that they were incapable of Ex­cess, we should have been in an Immuta­ble condition, like those confirm'd, blessed Spirits above; a Privilege that they them­selves were not thought worthy of, till they had been tried, and had resisted the Temptations and Threats of Lucifer and his Apostate Angels. There is no free Na­ture but must have a time of probation, before it be rewarded or punished. Our Life here is like the Children of Israel's; we are led through the Wilderness of this World, attended by our Folly and our Fears on our left hand and our right, to prove us, and to know what is in our Heart, whether we will keep the Com­mandment or not. And when this time of exercise and probation is over, we are called off the Stage, and are either free'd [Page 26] or condemned. Besides, were there no possibility of Sin, there could be no Ver­tue, and so no Reward as well as Punish­ment: For if there were no Tempter or Enemy, there could be no Trial, no Fight, no Victory, and so no Reward; nor could even a St. Paul have challenged his Crown of Glory, but upon the account of his having fought a good Fight, finished his Course, and kept the Faith. No won­der then that Man should have Ene­mies within him as well as with­out; these serve to awaken his Care, make him stand upon his Guard, and fight the good fight of Faith. Thus the Children of Israel had the Canaanites to be their near Neighbours, and the same Land (like Humane Nature) maintain'd two contrary Inhabitants.

And as there was no League made to be betwixt these Nations, but a continual War, so there is between the two Natures in us; the Spirit wars against the flesh, and the flesh against the Spirit, which St. Paul elegantly describes, in his own Name, under the Person of one unregenerate, and in the state of Nature, in the seventh Chapter of the Romans. Indeed Ad­vantages [Page 27] may, and must be taken; the Canaanite must be subdued and brought under Subjection. And though (to car­ry the Parallel a little higher) all Com­merce with the seven Nations were for­bidden, and a total Abolition of their Name from under Heaven, was enjoin­ed at the first time; yet when the Isra­elites had once declin'd to favour their Idolatry, the Angel of God brings this sorrowful Message to Bochim, That now they must not be totally driven out, but remain as Thorns in their sides, and their Altars as snares unto them; and this to prove them and try their Integrity: So since the fall of Adam, and the degeneracy of his Po­sterity, no lasting and final Victory can be obtained; nor can corrupt Nature be absolutely rooted out, till Mortality be swallowed up of Life, and Death delivers us from the body of this Death. The Seeds of Vices must remain even in the Rege­nerate and the Fire of Concupiscence, though allay'd of its Heat, and covered up in its Ashes: For all that Piety can do in this life, is to keep it down, and make it a useful Servant; to regulate it, and render it beneficial to us. And as in [Page 28] every Kingdom Plots and Cabals will be, and some Dissatisfactions, Commotions, and Tendencies to Rebellion; so must the Man of God stand upon his Watch, and be prepar'd to suppress every Emoti­on; if he can break the strength of the Foe, and scatter his troops whensoever they make head, 'tis as much as God (whose Deputy he is) requires of him; and this during his whole Life, till Death (calling him off his Watch) relieves him.

§. 12. Of this continual War in Man, not only the Philosophers of old, under the state of Nature have taught much and excellently; but even the Hea­then Poets (the most ingenious, but boldest and worst of Men, that durst re­present the Deity more vicious and bru­tish, perhaps, than themselves) have ta­ken notice of it: And therefore, accor­ding to their witty way of Allegory, they call'd the Higher Faculties Prometheus, and the Lower Epimetheus, and of them they tell us this pleasant but instructive Fable. Hesiod. op. & dies. That, (once upon a time) this Prometheus stole Fire from Heaven (viz. Wis­dom and Knowledge) to enliven the Man of [Page 29] Clay that he had made; upon which Jupiter was very wroth (though I cannot under­stand why, unless he were envious at Man's good, a Character good enough for a Poet's Jupiter) and sent Pandora ( viz. Pleasures) a beautiful but deceitful Female, to Epimetheus, his younger Brother, with a fine Box or Vessel as a Present; Promethe­us foresees the fraudulent malice of Jupiter, and advises him to send back his Present with the false Bearer of it, the one being as deceitful as the other; but Epimetheus, greedy of the Beauty and Jewels both, that he might at once sacrifice both to his Lust and Avarice, receives the Woman and accepts her Present; which when he had o­pened, out flew all the Evils both of Body and Mind, which have ever since afflicted poor Mankind. I have mentioned this Fable in a Serious Discourse, because the true History of it seems to be the Fall of our First Parents, and the Moral of it the State of every sensual, sinful Man; of him, I mean, whose Epimetheus governs, and contrary to the Monitions of the Superiour Faculties, entertains the Wo­man, opens her Box, and lets loose those Plagues that must worry him.

But, without a Fable, (though in one) Ovid brings in his Medaea thus complain­ing of the Torture she endured in this Conflict:

Which is almost in the same Words, and altogether in the same Sense with that of the holy Apostle. That which I do I allow not; for what I would do, that do I not; and what I hate, that do I. Rom. 7. 15.

§. 13. And now (after a long, but I hope not tedious, Discourse of the Op­position of the two Natures, that make up our compositum, and the Reasons thereof) 'tis but time to draw nearer that I chief­ly aim at, and to let you know what your Superiour Faculties (or rather God by them) require of you: and this is no o­ther but the subjugating of your Passions and Appetites in order to your threefold Duty, to God, to your Neighbour, and to your Self. Whey prohibit you (in the First place) all those Pleasures, Di­versions, and Alienations of Mind, [Page 31] which usually obstruct the Love of God, his Fear, and Honour. They forbid (in the Second place) all immoderate Desires of Gain, which may tempt you to break the Laws of Justice and Charity, and will teach you to deny your self those things which stand in opposition to either. But their chiefest concern is ( Thirdly) in the regimen of your self (which is the ground of both the other) that you observe the great Duty of Mo­deration and Temperance, be guided by your Reason, and that you be able to make Resolutions and observe them when they are made.

For these Ends and Purposes, as a ra­tional Creature and a Christian, you are to settle in your self this high Court of Judicature, and a constant, firm Resolu­tion of submitting your self to its Deter­minations. 'Tis a great Vertue to re­solve well, but 'tis a greater to be able in­violably to observe our Resolutions. It is the greatest part of Wisdom, and re­quires our utmost force and strength to stick to a Resolve well taken. This is indeed our common Failure, and yet he is not a Men that cannot do this: A Man [Page 32] cannot be just to himself who is uncon­stant to his own Purposes; the Will ori­ginally is the Follower of the Under­standing, and it is as good (nay better) to be without an Intellect (as the inferiour Creatures are) than to ask her Advice and not to follow it. The only hindrance to this great Duty is the Importunities of Sense, and the Pleas of Pleasure, Profit, and corporeal Satisfaction. Let these be kept under and in obedience, and then you will be capable to observe this great and necessary Rule following. Resolve on nothing but by the Advice of righteous Rea­son, and when you have resolv'd once, let nothing in Nature be able to divert the exe­cution, but a countermand from the same Authority.

§. 14. Whensoever therefore you are invited to any Action contrary to the Laws of God or Man, your great care must be suppress and conquer that Mo­tion; and that as speedily and zealously as you would Fire in your house, or a Re­bellion breaking out in your Kingdom; as tending immediately to the destructi­on of the whole. To this purpose you must stop every wandring or wanton [Page 33] thought, every inconsiderate word, and every intended Action, (for surely if Words are to be consider'd twice, accord­ing to the Grecian Orator's Rule, Thoughts deserve one, and Actions three Exami­nations) and bring it before the supreme Bar of Righteous and Impartial Reason. The Rules of Examination are the Laws of God and Man, which are, in respect of Morality, plain and easie: And here the Golden Rule (that general Director of all our Actions, among Men especi­ally) with which our Lord concludes his divine Sermon in the Mount, is of uni­versal Use, Whatsoever ye would that Men should do to you, do you even the same to them; for this is the Law and the Prophets. Matt. 7. If your deceitful Heart dis­guise the Action, consult a rectified Con­science, and apply this ( Lydius Lapis) this Touch-stone to it, and the counter­feit will soon appear, and you may make a discovery. If you find it an Amalekite, spare it not for Favour or Affection; no nor upon the Account of Religion it self, but utterly destroy it. Without a meta­phor, suppress both your Passions and Appetites whensoever you perceive them [Page 34] to interfere with your Duty and lead you into any Sin. This is that which the Greeks call [...], as if nothing were true Wisdom but this. The Latins call it Temperantia, Temperance or Govern­ment. The first of these ( Wisdom) is usually taken in a larger Signification, and comprehends this and other Duties: The latter ( Temperance) signifies, in common use, but a part of this Duty, the moderate use of Meats and Drink, &c. And therefore I have made bold to introduce two Autarchy, Autocracy. Words into our Language comprehensive of the Duty I teach you, and which will include the Regimen of the irascible and concupisciple Passions, I mean Autarchy and Autocracy, both which signifie Self-Government.

§. 15. Autarchy then is no other but the exercise of that Power that the Soul hath over the Body, and the higher Fa­culties over the lower Appetites in order to the Practice of Vertue and Piety: As it respects our Duty to God it is subser­vient to Devotion, and, by its Punish­ments and holy Revenges upon the rebel­lious Appetites, it performs the severest [Page 35] part of the great Duty of Repentance. As it respects our Duty to our Neigh­bour, it represses the Emotions to Cove­tousness, and teaches us to know what is that which is sufficient for us: It re­bates all Inclinations to Injustice, and obliges us to the Golden Rule; it a­bates the Swellings of Self-conceit, and Philauty, and consequently keeps Peace amongst Men; for Pride and Selfishness are generally the Causes of all Wars and of Quarrels, Dissentions, yea and of all the Schisms in Religion, of all the evil Words and invidious Actions with which foolish Mortals torment themselves and others. And lastly, in respect of our selves, it teaches us to measure our selves by just Rules and Proportions, and not to think of our selves more highly than we ought to think, but to think soberly: to judge meanly of our selves and of our own En­dowments and Deserts (for we are, or may be too well acquainted with our own private Failures and Lapses) and chari­tably of other Men, because we know not theirs; and thus it lays the Foundati­on of Humility that great Christian as well as moral Vertue. It represses An­ger, [Page 36] prevents Malice, and regulates the irascible Passions; and so is nothing less than Meekness and Lowliness, the two specifick Graces of the Holy Jesus. It quenches the Heats of Lust, and defends us from those Legions of Tormentors, that are Consequents of it. It makes us to possess our Vessels, the Body, in Sancti­fication, not [...] (as the O­riginal words it) in the Passions of furi­ous and unbridled Desires. It guards us from Gluttony and Drunkenness, and (teaching the right use of Meats and Drinks) prescribes the necessary Rules of Quantity and Quality. Briefly, there is no Vertue or Grace but what it labours for, and which doth not stand in need of its Assistance, and no part of Religion but what it serves.—And all this it doth by watching over the Passions, to prevent Tumult, and punish Insurrecti­ons; by keeping the rein in the mouth of the Beast, and the Appetites in due subjection. Thus Autarchy is Custos Pacis, the Keeper of the publick Peace in the little World, the Defender of Vertue, and a Magistrate bearing the Sword of Punishment (where it governs) not in vain.

§. 16. This is that Christian Duty that St. Paul calls Mortification or killing of the deeds of the Body, through the help and power of the Spirit, Rom. 8. 13. in order to the Heavenly Life. And these Deeds or Actions of the Body which are to be mortified, are in another Place cal­led our Members that are upon the Earth, Coll. 3. 5. because the Earthly part useth them as Members of the Body of Sin, and operates by them: Of these he reckons there only the concupiscible Pas­sions, when contaminated and ungo­verned, as Fornication, Ʋncleanness, inor­dinate Affection, evil Concupiscence, and Covetousness which is Idolatry: and the Irascible, in the eighth verse following. This is the Crucifixion of the old man, [call'd so, because we brought it into the World with us, whereas Regeneration and the Spiritual Life begin in Baptism] and the destruction of the body of Sin. Rom. 6. 6. This is the Crucifixion of the Flesh, or earthly Part, with its Affections and Lusts, which he mentions to his Galatians, c. 5. v. 24. By all which words (viz. destroying, mortifying, crucifying, &c.) he means no other than keeping the Body in sub­jection, [Page 38] and the exercise of the Duty of Autarchy. To which purpose he gives you his own Example, 1 Cor. 9. 27. I keep under my Body, [by Fasting, and o­ther Spiritual Exercises] and bring it into subjection [to the Soul, the Heavenly Part, whose Office and Charge it is to govern], lest while I preach to others, I my self should become a Cast-away.

And indeed as this our Apostle laboured more abundantly than all the other; so were his Sufferings proportionable, both by land and water, of strangers and of his own Country-men; yet his Autarchy or Self-Government was that which made him endure all, not only with Patience, but with Glory. He us'd his Body to suffe­ring, whihc made it become habitual to him; and amongst all those Pressures that he underwent for Christ, (some of which he himself mentions, 1 Cor. 11.) those he impos'd upon himself, (because he im­pos'd them upon himself, and voluntarily chose them) were so much the more glo­rious. Thus he was crucified with Christ, before he was beheaded at Rome; and was made a Partner in his Sufferings, and conformable to his Death, though [Page 39] never crucified. Thus he was not only able to do, but to suffer all things, through Christ that strengthened him; and his Conquest of himself first, made him more than Conquerour. This was the Original from whence the first Christians took the Copy of all their Fastings, Disci­pline, and other voluntary Severities they put upon themselves: Exercises now quite out-dated, nay ridicul'd, and call'd superstitious by an impious Pretence to Christian Liberty: Their Austerities and Fastings, their Penances and holy Re­venges, their Retirements and Self-de­nials were only to dis-arm the Enemy within, and to render the Fleshly part unable to hinder their Course of Piety; and that which they all their lives aim'd at, and which we should also (if we would be as happy as they) was only Autarchy.

§. 17. This is not only the great duty and end of all Moral Philosophy, and Practical Divinity, but a certain Sign of True Piety: Others are sometimes false, sometimes frivolous; this cannot deceive us. Men miss commonly in the Notion of Religion, and, leaving the Essence [Page 40] of it, follow its Shadow, and doat upon its Counterfeit: For if a Man can but express an outward Zeal, though it be no­thing in comparison of the Pharisaic Or­der of old for the Law of Moses; if he can but look demurely, and counterfeit a Seriousness; if he can pour out abun­dance of bold talk about God (though it be hardly Sense); lament the Iniquity of the times (that is, slander and back­bite his Superiours); and sanctifie all his Raillery with shaking his Head, a Sigh, or a Groan; if a Man can do this (I say) he must be a Saint, an elect person, holy and beloved, &c. though, in the mean time, his Heart be as full of Extortion and Excess, as the Pharisees, those paint­ed Sepulchres, were of old; though he can give his Tongue liberty to slander, and his Heart to envy; though his Passi­ons be untam'd, his Appetites unre­strain'd every where but in publicl. The truth is, Autarchy (when exercis'd for the sake of Religion) is a certain Sign, and the distinguishing Property of a Child of God, and all other Signs are delusive: no Man can be either religious or wise without it. For true Religion [Page 41] begins within, and subdues the Passions and Affections; is not clamorous, rash, fierce or envious (as well as) not voluptu­ous, wanton or unclean; The Wisdom which is from above is first pure, then peace­able, gentle, easie to be intreated, full of Mercy and good Fruits, and without Parti­ality or Hypocrisie, Jam. 3. 17. He that brings his Body with its Lusts and Ap­petites into Subjection to the Spirit, (so that he allows of nothing either unlaw­ful or inconvenient) he that endeavours above all to obtain a pure Heart, and a right Spirit, and to this end puri­fies himself as God is pure; that visits the Fatherless and the Widows in their Affliction, and keeps himself unspotted from the World (which is St. James's Notion of True Religion and Ʋndefil'd be­fore God); this Man (notwithstanding some Errours in his Judgment, and He­terodoxes in Opinion) can be no other but a Son of God, and an Heir of Hea­ven: for they are Christ's that have cru­cified the Flesh, with the Affections and Lusts.

§. 18. And as Autarchy is a sure sign, so it is the Foundation and Beginning of [Page 42] all true Religion; whatsoever is not built upon this is founded upon the Sand, and will fall in time of Temptation: Profession without this is like an Impo­stume, it looks red, big, and fiery, and is a mighty Pain to the Professor, but within it is full of crude Humours and Impurities which will at last break out into an Ulcer. Nay I will go further, and venture to say, That it is not only the Bottom, but the Top of all Religion, and its Perfection. Go, sell what thou hast (saith our blessed Lord to the Young-Man in the Gospel, who bragg'd of keep­ing all the Commandments from his Youth up to that time) and give the Mo­ney to the Poor, if thou wouldst be perfect. Try whether thou canst deny thy self and part with thy beloved Mammon upon the Hopes and Promises of Possessions that are above? Whether thy Soul or thy Body, thy rational Faculties, or thy Appetite govern in thee? Whether thou canst so far conquer as to deny thy self this World for the next? For if thou canst do but this one thing, there will be nothing wanting, but thou shalt be­come perfect, and my Disciple indeed, &c.

And if Autarchy be such as I have re­presented it, no wonder that it seems hard: Difficulty puts a price upon Ver­tue, and even Heaven would not be so, were it of easie Ascent, and the acquest of every idle Drone. Autarchy is too great a Duty to be the work of every common Pretender to Christianity; and yet it is not hard but easie, easie to him that is resolute and faithful to his best Thoughts, easie to him that is exercised therein; of which more (it may be) hereafter. In the mean time let this be your Comfort, That it is not so hard but it is easily pra­cticable, and that it makes all other Du­ties easie.

And now to apply all this to your self and all others (for whose sakes I have thus at large traced the Hostilities origi­nally founded in our Nature and our Du­ty thereupon.) 'Tis certainly every Man's Interest as soon as he comes to the stature of a Man, and to years of Understanding, to consider what he is? and why sent hither? that so he may lay the Foundation of a wise and honest Life, and give a good account thereof to his Creator. And that you may do this the [Page 44] better, I will, in the Close of this Pa­per, commend unto you and all other Readers, these Rules and Cautions.

§. 19. First, You are therefore, in the first place, to maintain religiously the Rights of the supreme Judicature, and submit to it: And this by a firm and fixt resolution worthy of the Courage of a Man, acting according to the Dictates of his Understanding and not Sense; for such a Man will die, rather than desert his Reason; but of this before, &c. Con­sent not therefore to any thing that your Reason condemns, either as unlawful or inconvenient, though ever so delightful or advantageous, let the Importunities of Sense be ever so great, that of Friends ever so earnest, or Example ever so gene­ral. Some Men are of a Nature, stiff, morose, and resolute, not without a seeming Mixture of Pride and Con­tempt; these are hardly to be advised or perswaded; and they would in this re­spect be happy, if they could always take up the best Resolutions, because they are best able to keep them: Others are of a soft, easie, and bashful Nature, apt to be perswaded, and to comply with [Page 45] Customs and Counsels, though to the prejudice sometimes of their Reason; they are loath to deny and afraid to diso­blige, being too good Natur'd to strive as well in Vertue as other things: The first are like hard Wax, not to be dissolv'd but by Force of fire; the second, like that which is soft, are apt to be work'd into any shape by warmth and kindness. Though the first be de­servedly abhorr'd as an Enemy to com­mon Courtesie and humane Nature; yet considering the Policy of the Devil and his Instruments, it were to be wished that our Nature be not so sweet and pli­able as to ruine us, but had (at some­time especially) something of Sowreness and Morosity. If therefore you find your self too apt to yield and melt into a Compliance, you ought to borrow a lit­tle Boldness, Self-Opinion, and Con­tempt of others, to fortifie your self a­gainst their Seductions. The Question is only whether you will be govern'd by your own Reason, or others Folly, and there is no question to which of these you ought to adhere: even Shame and Modesty have their Evils and Extreams, [Page 46] and something of Confidence is requisite to Constancy; do not therefore dispa­rage your own Prudence so much, as to steer after every pretended Mariner's di­rection, but pursue the Methods of your own Reason; let others do as they please, do you act according to the di­ctates of your own Judgment, and take heed of being self-condemn'd: For if you act conscientiously, and according to your best Light, without any sinister ends, I will not say you cannot err, but this I am confident of, That God will not condemn you if you do, tho it be much. I don't know but I may extend this Rule to Opinions and Controversies in Religion, but at present I intend it of moral Actions in Opposition to the Se­ducements of Sense. 'Tis hard (you'll say) to take up, and harder to keep a Resolution in opposition to the Sollicita­tions of Pleasure and Profit, yea and of a Man's Native Inclinations. 'Tis so, I confess; and yet sure this would not prove so hard a Work, if you take care in the second place to

§. 20. Secondly, Begin betimes to sub­due your Appetites, and use them to the [Page 47] Yoke, from your Youth; you well re­member the Example of bending a twig whilst it is such, and the Lesson that is inculcated from thence of early Exercise. The Sensual part when reduc'd into sub­jection young, doth become tractable and obedient, and will grow so; whereas, when it hath gotten strength it becomes restiff, and stubborn. You have not wanted either Education or Example; and if you had, you are young enough to begin this Glorious Work. It is, in my Judgment, an excellent Method to make now and then an Experiment upon your self, in things that are lawful: deny your self the Enjoyment of some Pleasures for a short time, which may be lawfully used at any time, especially then when you perceive Sense to become most importunate. By this Means you will make a tryal of your Strength; if you are foil'd it will be no Sin; if you con­quer you may know your own Strength, and keep that in subjection, which may at last prove your Enemy. And if there were no other use of the Fasts of the Church, I suppose this only were suffi­cient to commend them to practice.

§. 21. Thirdly, Endeavour to support your superiour Faculties, and assert their Authority by Arguments drawn from the Nature and End of that Action to which you are invited; examine whether it be convenient, if not sinful? or whe­ther some Evil may not be the consequent of it? Some Actions are apparently good, so that we need not dispute of them; others are evidently evil; but there are Actions of a third sort, which are indifferent, and though they partake in their own Natures of neither good nor evil, yet (as they are used) they may tend to either; these are they that are to be weighed in the Scales, and Re­solutions taken accordingly. Besides, there are some Evils in disguise, and plead Innocency, and those would be brought under Examination and Disco­very.

§. 22. Fourthly, Avoid carefully all those things that abate the Strength and undermine the Government of your superiour Faculties. Such as these are, prophane Discourses, evil Examples, de­bauch'd Companions, lascivious Songs, and evil Communications which corrupt good [Page 49] manners: There is surely a kind of Infe­ction in these, and they are catching e­specially in some Constitutions; they in­fect the Soul through the Ear, pollute the Mind, and propagate Vice like a spi­ritual Pestilence; they serve for no o­ther use but to emasculate the Spiritual part, weaken her Powers, defile her Pu­rity, debauch the Mind, and set up Sense in the Throne of Reason. But as the greatest evil of all (which for a while disables the whole Man, the Soul in its Faculties, and the Body with its Members) avoid Drunkenness. This is a Sin which (when in intense degrees) brings a kind of Death upon the Body as well as Mind, and so intermits the Exercise of both Judicatures; but every Tendency to it, more or less, undermines sober Reason, slackens the Reins of her Government, blinds the Understanding, and by degrees casts her into a deep sleep; and, thus weaken'd, lets loose the Phi­listines upon her. And though, I con­fess there be different degrees of this Sin, and different Constitutions of Men, so that some are made more wicked by it than others; (and thus some excellent [Page 50] Natures may be free from its usual At­tendants, the greater Crimes I mean, in the use of it;) yet no Man, I'm sure, can retain his Wisdom and Discretion. You cannot but remember the old Pro­verb to this purpose, Inebriari simul & sapere ipsi Jovi non competit, Drunken­ness makes all Men Fools, most Beasts, and some Devils: And what it naturally tends to, learn from the Mouth of the wise Solomon, who describes its Effects so sensibly and truly as though he had tried it, and observ'd it often. Prov. 23. 29. to the end of that Chapter. Let your Intellect therefore prescribe the Times, Methods, and Measures of your Feastings, Mirth, Diversions, and Compotations; consult not Sense about these her near Friends, to whom she is so much allyed, least she deceive and betray you.

§. 23. Fifthly. If, by the Importuni­ty of the sensual Part, the Persuasion of those falsly term'd Friends, or the Exam­ple of others, you have been seduced to do any thing unworthy of your self, and thereby have proved Rebel to your bet­ter Part; upon the first return of your Reason, and the recovery of your Un­derstanding [Page 51] from its Eclipse (for the o­pacous Body will soon remove, and righteous R [...]son shine out again, and by its Light shew you your Sin): I say, then your great care must be immediate­ly to fall down upon your Knees, and humbly implore Forgiveness of your Creator, for this Offence committed a­gainst him and his Vice-gerent. At which time you are not only to renew your Resolutions of Amendment, and fortifie your self against ensuing Temp­tations, but also to inflict some Penance upon your self for your defection. This cannot but be pleasing to Almighty God, when he observes how you not only pass sentence, but do execution upon your self, and thereby anticipate his Judg­ments: Besides, it will prevail with the Divine Benignity, for a supply of extra­ordinary Aids for the future; make you more circumspect over your self (when you know that you must suffer for it) and satisfie your own Conscience of the Truth of your Repentance.

§. 24. Sixthy, and Lastly, (because in ma­ny things we offend all, and so must & shall do, during this state of Imperfection) above [Page 52] all things beware of the Habits of Vices, and that you do not give [...] [...]ensual Part (at least) the usual [...]. Ha­bits (you know) of all things, especi­ally of Vice, stick hard, and are not ea­sily removed. Sensuality a little encou­raged will grow strong, insolent, and play the Tyrant, and warm'd, with the Snake in the Fable, begins to hiss, ga­ther Poison, and keep Reason out of doors; the longer we delay to humble him (which yet must be our Task, at one time or other, unless we resolve to be miserable for ever) the harder our work will be. And believe me, a Man besotted to his Vices, or (in the Apostle's Phrase) dead in Trespasses and Sins, is, next the damned, the most lamentable Spectacle; and the direct way to this Condition, is to gratifie our Appetites so long, till we must deny them nothing; yea, and at last destroy Appetite it self, by pleasing it: And though this may seem strange, yet 'tis the true end of all Debauchery; for Sensuality doth at last devour itself, and the inferiour Soul, if let alone (like the Worm in the Fruit) will become its own Executioner.

§. 25. But this case is (God be thank­ed) not so common: Such a Man must have lost all Sense of Vertue, be fully reconciled to his Vices, though never so destructive, and resolv'd on his own Ru­ine: He must be deaf to all Counsel, hardned beyond all Impressions of Rea­son and Conscience: The Spiritual Life must be totally swallowed up of the Sen­sitive; and he must be a hardned, impe­nitent, and contented Sinner; content to lose Heaven, and endure Hell. If he hath any apprehensions of his Sin and Danger, he is not irrecoverably lost, but may admit of Help. To which Pur­pose, I will, in the Close of this Dis­course, lay down these Rules for his Re­covery.

I. Let him be truly convinc'd of his Condition, his present and future Mise­ries, his unworthy, Bestial, and Brutish Life, and the Sorrows to which he is posting: For if he can be but made sen­sible of his Condition so as to desire Help, he is capable of it, and may have it. The Understanding must be clear'd, and the Will rectified, and the Man made throughly willing to be cured. [Page 54] Wilt thou be made whole, saith our Lord to the impotent Man, that had lain at the Pool of Bethesda thirty and eight Years; and having understood his willingness, he received the powerful Command of, Rise, take up thy Bed, and walk.

II. Let him then leave off all the In­cendiaries to Vice, as Wine and Strong-Drink, and the Converse, Company, and Society of those Betrayers of Souls, (those Panders for Hell) which have hitherto accompanied him into Debauch­ery; and let him frequent the Society of Wise and Vertuous Men, who will direct and encourage him by their Ad­vice and Example.

III. Let him call upon God, who is always ready with his Grace to assist Pious Eneavours; who gives liberally, and upbraids no man.

IV. Let him begin with the Out­works of Sensuality, deny himself in smaller Matters first, and retrench him­self by degrees. If he can conquer in a little, he may be sure to proceed; and the more he prevails, the more he shall be enabled, till at last he becomes more than Conquerour, and can do all things thro' Christ that strengthens him.

V. And for his Encouragement, let it be considered that the old habituated Sin­ner's state is not so desperate, but that he also hath some advantages of Piety: his Lusts and Appetites, by continual fruiti­on, are become tired, nauseate, and, (by the decay) less importunate. His Heats are cooled, his Rashness modera­ted, and Righteous Reason is ready to convince him, That all sinful Enjoyments are but Vanity and Vexation of spirit, That the days are come in which he can find but little pleasure in them: For a Young man may, in some measure, be excused, but an Old man cannot; because even Na­ture joins with Grace to sound a retreat; his Appetites are ready every foot to leave him, and he is fain to use Arts to keep them; his Lusts slight him and de­ceive him, and he hath nothing but a sin­ful vitiated Will, and a polluted Fancy left, which yet makes him ridiculous, and exposes him. His Lusts first seduced his Mind, and now a defil'd Mind is forc'd to caress them; like an out-worn Mistress once ador'd, now slighted by her old Servants. 'Tis but time, certainly then, to retire, when we can pursue our [Page 56] pleasures no longer: when Providence hath taken away the Temptation, we ought not to make to our selves Images and Sha­dows of that which hath forsaken us. This is the Order of Nature, and thus Days speak, (if we would hear) and multitude of Years would teach us Wisdom.

Lastly, Let him endeavour to obtain a true Estimate of the different Pleasures and Advantages, the Ends and Conse­quences of Vertue and Vice, and by comparing them together, become satis­fied how much better 'tis to live the Life of a good Man, and a Christian here, and to be received into Bliss hereafter; than to be a Sot, a Slave, a Fool, for a few days, and afterwards to be damned.

§. 26. This is the great Truth which the two following Essays do endeavour to illustrate, and which, I hope, your Experience will one day convince you of. In the mean time, let me only tell you, That the Sensualist, for all his gay Co­lours and fine Shows, is but a poor mise­rable Slave, and enslav'd to that which every good and wise Man keeps in Sub­jection; I mean his Brutish Part, his Lusts and Appetites. Whilst the Man [Page 57] that keeps his Liberty, and rules within himself, that uses Pleasures as a Cordial not continual Nourishment, and takes only what will agree with his Spiritual Advantages; the Man that can learn and practise this short Lesson of the ex­cellent Moralist of old, sustine & abstine, suffer and abstain; suffer with Patience and Resignation what Providence lays upon thee; and abstain from every thing which may be hurtful for thy Body or Soul: This mighty Man, I say, this more than Emperour, reigns a Soveragin in himself; is invulnerable and uncon­querable; he falls into no sin, nor runs in­to any Danger, but is the Favourite and Care of Heaven here and hereafter. And thus much of The Nature of Autar­chy, and Rules of its Practice, with which I shall conclude the First Part of this Essay, and am,

§. 1. AFTER a curious Search in­to the Original of Corrupt Nature, the Reasons of its Conjunction with the purer Spirit, and the Rules to make it serviceable to Reli­gion, which was the Argument of my [Page 59] former Discourse (my Dear Dorotheus) you may perhaps think it unnecessary to write a Second time, or add any thing to that Subject. And truly after I had finished the Former Letter, I became in­clinable to that Opinion my self, till (be­sides my Promise) I had consider'd, that it is easie to give, and hard to take such Counsel, that Autarchy is the most diffi­cult, and perhaps in some Sense, our on­ly Duty, and that Sense will become importunate, especially when it hath Health and Youth to be its Advocates. And truly when I find so few Men, e­ven in their best Age, and most vivid Exercise of their Reason, able to tame the Wild Beast within, I must confess I cannot rigorously exact it of Youth. My Business therefore shall be in the following Papers, to work upon your Affections; I mean, to engage my self in the Cause of the superiour Faculties, and endeavour to convince you that they are not rigorous, nor exercise any Ty­ranny over us; but that by a wise and sweet Conduct they would (if permit­ted) gently and carefully pilot our cra­zed Vessel through the turbulent Sea of [Page 60] this World, to the Haven of Happiness; and this not only when the Rules are drawn by Morality, but by the strictest Religion. If this can be made out, Self-Government will be your Choice not your Yoke, and you will find it your great Duty and greater Interest.

§. 2. And because there be several sorts of Judgments as well as Constitutions, so that some will be convinc'd with that Argument, which others cannot Appre­hend or count ridiculous: Lest from hence, Autarchy and its Vertues should be disparaged, by a real or seeming poor Apology, I must here premonish you, that its Exercise doth not merely depend upon those outward Encouragements which follow. Morality is our Duty and our Interest, though never so ungrateful; and its great Obligations arise from Spiri­tual Promises and Rewards in this Life, and the Eternal Joys of the Life to come; and tho' she were ever so sorrowful, hir­sute, and Squallid; yet those inexpressi­ble Joys she inspires into the Soul in this Life, and those she reserves for the fu­ture state, are abundantly sufficient to subdue any rational Understanding. E­ven [Page 61] Afflictions themselves may be elegi­ble, when, being light and Momentary, they work for us a far more exceeding weight of Glory. The End makes Sufferings to­lerable; and we see in Temporals, Men are very willing to be sick for future Health, to serve a severe Apprentice­ship for a lasting Freedom, to labour, toil, and sweat for an approaching Har­vest, and to hazard the dangers of the Seas for Merchandice, and of War for Glory: These are common Practices, founded upon rational Conjectures. And why should not Religion engage us upon greater and more certain Motives? The Arguments then that follow are not ne­cessary but ex abundanti; If they convince, they will sweeten the Methods of Pro­vidence, reconcile the Sons of Sense to Vertue, answer the Objections of the Sensualists, and remove some Stumbling-blocks that offend the Carnal minded; if not, know yet that Religion stands upon eternal Foundations, and re­mains secure, as having no need of out­ward Rewards; though it may yet re­ceive some encouragements and advances in Minds not so defecate and stript of [Page 62] the World, as ours must needs be while we live with Flesh and Blood. And in­deed the Prejudices of Sensualists are so many, loud and clamorous, and im­prov'd to that degree, that I thought it worth my time to search into the matter, and consider whether Piety makes all her Votaries in this Life most miserable: For Men mostly preferr present to future Comforts, and these short Joys in a Vale of tears, to those of the Regions of Hap­piness which are above. If I therefore can demonstrate, that Religion hath its present Comforts, and perhaps greater, and more substantial than Sensuality can pretend to; all these Prejudices will va­nish, and Men will entertain it for its present as well as future Reward.

§. 3. And here I expect to meet with great Disadvantages by reason of those Prejudices, which seem to be congenite and twisted into humane Nature; for the Pleasure of Self-denial (which must accompany Autarchy) are look'd upon as a Paradox, and Men bear a kind of anti­pathy to restraining Vertue; when it puts the Roins into the Mouth of Appe­tite, 'tis thought imperious, and its Go­vernment [Page 63] intolerable. We have a natu­ral Inclination to please our worser part, which even a mortified St. Paul was forc'd to complain of; this is the common Mur­murer which looks back towards Egypt; and, like the Spies sent to search Canaan, brings an evil Report of that good Land; The Land (say they) is indeed good, but their Cities are walled up to Heaven, and de­fended by Giants, the Sons of Anak, to whom we are but as Grashoppers. See how Fear augments things, and what Hyperboles Infidelity can fansie to it self, for the Walls were not so high, nor the Giants so terrible. Thus the Sensualists will describe the Self­denying part of Religion; 'tis confest (will they say) all things considered, that it were best if we could govern our selves, and restrain our Passions, and they are certainly happy that can obtain that Power, but the number of such have been but small; some select Saints of old, who had, as it were, put off Hu­mane Nature, and were extraordinarily endued with Strength from above; but who amongst us, and in these degenerate times of Sin and Death, can throw down the Strong-holds of Sin, and con­quer [Page 64] those gigantick Appetites that de­fend them? this would be to turn An­gels before our time, and put off that Humanity, that we must at the same time carry about us. Nor is this War­fare only difficult but painful, nay a kind of Death, to die dayly, I mean to morti­fie our selves, and kill all those dispositi­ons and tendencies to Sin implanted in us. 'Tis certainly a harsh Lesson which our Lord teaches us tho' by way of Metaphor; to cut off an offending Hand, and pluck out a wanton Eye; by which is implied at least (alas that it should be so!) the Dif­ficulty and yet Duty of Seeing and not Desiring. For why have we Senses gi­ven us if we may not use them? or why have these Senses any Influence upon our Desires, if they may not be gratified? This is to exact an impracticable Work of us, and excercise a Tyranny that would justifie even a Rebellion: For we can never become so unkind to our own Inclinations as thus to mortifie them, and under pretence of Religion act a kind of Martyrdom. Alas! the Scripture hath express'd this Work in frightful Terms; and Mortification, Circumcision [Page 65] of the Heart, and the Death of the Body of Sin, are words that carry Terrour in them: Besides, as though the ordinary Exercise of Religion were not bitter e­nough, God hath infus'd more Gall in­to it by his Dealing towards his Ser­vants, and Providence seems to exercise them above others with Afflictions. What means else those Sorrowful Pre­dictions, by which our Blessed Lord fore­warns his Disciples of Persecutions which they should suffer, and which his Apostle, St. Paul, seems to entail upon Christianity it self, 2 Tim. 3. 12. That all that will live godly in Christ Jesus must suffer Persecutions. I will therefore (saith the Sensualist) lay aside this difficult, this painful Work, and depend upon Mer­cy for Heaven; for if God had expect­ed better things from me, he would have made me better. Heaven is, I con­fess, worth the pursuit; but 'tis an E­state that may be long before it falls, nor know I whether all my Sorrown and Sufferings in the Pangs of the New­birth, will at last entitle me to it.—Or if this Resolution be too daring, I hope I may yet adjourn this bitter Cup, this [Page 66] painful Task to Old Age, which is the only time proper for Penance and Mor­tification; Pleasures will then be denied me by Nature, and then (and not till then) I will deny them. Appetite must at last cease, and then I will resolve no longer to gratifie it. It is best parting by mutual Consent, and when my belo­ved Vices and I can keep company no longer; then, and not before then, we must part for ever.—

Thus pleads the Sensualist, and so puts off this necessary, this pleasant work till Death comes and snacks him off the Stage, and then his Thoughts and De­signs perish. Or if he lives to Old Age, his sinful Habits are become inveterate and fixt beyond the possibility of a Re­moval; so that Age finds him and leaves him, a hardned and contented Sinner. All which (yea, and the punishments of the other World that follow after) pro­ceed from this [...], this Fun­damental Errour, That Autarchy is a harsh, unpleasant work, and her Govern­ment Tyrannical.

§. 4. It is now therefore my Task to combate the Sensualist with his own [Page 67] Weapons, and in his own Way, and to vindicate the Duty that I commend, which is look'd upon as the severest in the Christian Religion, (being no less than Self-Denial) from the evil Report that Sin and Satan would needs fix upon it. To do this I consider, That there are but two Qualifications that can commend any thing to our Observation; viz. Pleasure and Profit: Pleasure is the peculiar Dali­lah of yonger, and Profit of older Years. These are the two boasted Advantages of Sensuality, for which the deluded Wretch pawns both Body and Soul, and the only Spoils he can aim at. If I can therefore demonstrate, That there are equal, if not better Pleasures, and as much Profit to be found under the Go­vernment of the Spirit, as there is under that of the Flesh; I have mine end, nor will the want of these be an Argument against Autarchy. This is the remaining part of my Task, and the Province that I have undertaken, which (though it look like a Paradox) I hope to perform with that Evidence, that to an under­standing and considerative Person, it shall reach even to a Conviction.

The only thing I desire of you (my Dorotheus) is to strip your self of all Prejudices, and lay aside the Love of Carnality; to clear your Mind of all gross Matter, and to consider Enjoy­ments abstracted from your natural In­clinations to them, and as they are in themselves; and thus qualified, I shall not fear to make you judge in this pre­sent Controversie, while I weigh the present Advantages of Vertue and Vice in the Balance of Reason, and thence e­vince that Autarchy is neither so difficult or unprofitable a work as it has been hitherto represented to you: That the Spiritual part lays no heavy Burthens upon Mens Shoulders grievous to be born, but that Christ's heaviest Yoke is yet easie and his Burthen light. And this I shall do by examining the Pleasures of Sensuality in the first place; and, stripping off its Paint and Garniture, compare them with the more solid and substantial Pleasures of Vertue. And then, having made some suitable Observations upon the Dif­ficulty and Misery which are suppos'd to attend a pious Life, conclude the trou­ble of this Letter, and leave the other [Page 69] outward Advantages of Autarchy for the Subject of the Third Part.

§. 5. I am not here oblig'd to maintain That there are no such things as sinful Pleasures, no more than with the Stoick deny that there is Evil in Pain and Torture. I know very well, that what­soever pleases is a Pleasure, and that e­very Man is sensible of so much in sen­sual Enjoyments; nor am I for the de­stroying the Appetites, but for regulating them. This is that which I assert, and shall endeavour to evince, That the Plea­sures of Sensuality are few, poor, and despicable in comparison of those which are to be enjoyed in the practice of Ver­tue, (which is something more than what I promised before) and, consequently, That 'tis an absolute cheat put upon us, when these are made an Argument for Debauchery. This will appear if we take, in the first place, a general View of the Pleasures of Sensuality, and make as we pass along particular Referen­ces.

In every sinful Enjoyment there are Three things to be consider'd,

• [Page 70]1. The Expectation.
• 2. The Fruition.
• 3. The End.

Each of which are pretended to have its peculiar Pleasures, and therefore de­serve our particular Examination. I be­gan with the First of these, Expectation.

And here I need not use many words; for every Man must be sensible to how great a height the Hopes of vain Man is rais'd by the Delusion of the Devil and his own Fancy. The approaching Enjoyment is represented through a magnifying Glass, and seems great and glorious: The Bubble of Fancy struts and looks big, and we expect migh­ty matters. Could I but possess such an Estate, or enjoy so charming a fair One, &c. Voluptuousness hath certainly two Faces, she turns the Young Face, and smiles upon those that expect her, but looks Old and Wither'd upon those that have enjoyed her. Each Cir­cumstance of approaching Good is thought a Bliss, which yet vanishes in the Embrace; so that if the Votary to Sin had so much Wit, he would stop at Expectation, and go no further. He [Page 71] might then indeed continue enamour'd with the Child of his own Fancy, and worship the Idol of his own making, without Remorse or Repentance, when it is too late. But his Unhappiness is, That the same Expectation which de­ludes him, urges him on to destroy it self, and so to put an end to his Hopes and Fears together, by a nearer Ad­vance, which we call Fruition, and comes next to be considered.

§. 6. Secondly. Expectation then being confess'd by all to be only an imaginary Good, swell'd out with Hopes and Fears, 'tis Fruition alone that must crown the Sensualist, and make him happy. But even Fruition it self is experimentally prov'd to be so vain and empty, and next to nothing, to have so little of real Satis­faction, and so much of Cheat in it, that after a Man sits down and calmly considers what he hath done, 'tis a great Question whether he will not repent of his Credulity, rail at the Delusion, and preferr even Expectation it self to it. For he shall then find that he hath im­braced a Cloud, and fished all night for Pleasure, but caught nothing but Shame [Page 72] and Sorrow; that he hath been notoriou­sly cheated; and having sown the Wind, he hath reaped the East Wind; that he hath pursued a Phantom, and having hunted after Vanity, hath at last overtook Vexa­tion of Spirit: For, the Pleasures of Sensual Fruition are indeed but Shadows of those of Vertue, and want their In­vigorations and Comforts: They are as short of these as the Image of the Sun, represented in a Mirrour, is of the Light, Heat, and Influence of that glorious Luminary. That this may sensibly ap­pear, I will endeavour to wash off the Paint from the Faces of these Counter­feits, and examine the matter of Fact, and compare the Pleasures of the Fruition of Vice and Vertue together; Instances will have here their Use, bring the Matter near­er the Eye and illustrate it. And, to this purpose, I will use St. John's Analysis of Sensuality, in his tripartite Division, in­to that (1.) of the Lust of the Flesh, (2.) that of the Eye, and (3.) that of the Pride of Life. 1 Joh. 2. 16.

§. 7. And in reference to the First of these, Consider seriously with your self, and then tell me (if you can) [Page 73] wherein consists the true Pleasure of those Vices, which we call Gluttony and Drunkenness; that Pleasure I mean that is peculiar to these Excesses besides and above what is found in the limited Use of Meat and Drink. Is it in the stuff­ing up of the Body, or the vitiating of the Palate, in the distempering of the Taste, or the disordering of the Sto­mach? Is it found among the Ruines of the Understanding, or the Laxation of the Members? Surely no Man can take any true Pleasure in playing the Fool or Mad­man, or in turning Beast beyond the Example of Nebuchadnezzar. I never yet knew any Man that delighted in making Experiments upon himself, to procure a voluntary Epilepsie or Syncope. Men are not usually so fond of the Image of Death! and yet this, and no other is the Drunkard's Fruition, which is yet so un­accountable, that the poor deluded seems to be under a kind of Fascination, to doat on that which must end in Loathing, if not in Sickness and Death. Sure I am there can be no Fruition in either, but the momentary Touch of the Meats and Drinks upon the Nerves of the [Page 74] Tongue, and yet even this is not pecu­liar to Excess, but is rather an Atten­dant of Sobriety. The Sober person hath generally the quicker Palate and most Delight, though with a Dinner of Herbs and Small-beer; and if any Man enjoys himself and his Friend, 'tis only He.

§. 8. And then for unlawful Lusts, (the other Species of Carnality) I may put the same Question, with as great, and perhaps greater Advantage. Where are the Pleasures peculiar to the Fruition of unlawful Love? Or, what doth the Adulterer enjoy above, and besides what is to be found in loving and lawful Mar­riage? If there be any such Pleasures, sure I am, they must be imaginary and next to nothing. And that you may make a true Estimate of these and such like inferiour Enjoyments, I must let you know (once for all) that we descend therein much below our immortal part, and equal our selves to the Beasts that perish. Nay more, this way the silly Ass may out-rival the Man, and the im­pure Goat be more happy than he; that you will find them much below your Ex­pectation, [Page 75] if not meer Cheats, the Mi­stress of Debauchees, the Shame of Wise men, and the Pursuit of Fools; too commonly a Sin, and always a Shame, and the Sign and Cause of our Mortality. For the Propagation of our Like, both shews us approaching Death and hastens it, and we diminish our own Lives to give Life to others. But be it what it will, I have nothing to say a­gainst it, in respect of Morality, when it is regular; I mean, when the Matri­monial Vow hath sanctified it, and the Transmission of our Nature hath made it necessary; the strictest Cato will then allow it, the modest and chast St. Paul command it, and the Spiritual part con­sent to it. This for the lawful Use of it, for which Nature hath provided animal Pleasures proportionate to its ends; but if you can fansie any other Pleasures pe­culiar to the sinful use of it (which sure is something hard to do) turn but your Eyes and Thoughts upon those rotten Carcasses, those walking Sepulchres, which Lasciviousness hath made its Mar­tyrs; see there the Relicts of its Tyran­ny, when it hath exhausted the Spirits, [Page 76] darkned the Understanding, weakned the Senses, and putrified the very Soul by the Contagion of the Body, not to be puri­fied but by the Flames of Hell: And when you have duly considered this, then let the Adulterer boast of his stoln Pleasures. These are the chief kinds of the Lust of the Flesh, which is the eldest Daughter of Sensuality.

§. 9. The Lust of the Eye holds the next place, by which I presume St. John meant Covetousness, whose right to Pleasures comes next to be examined. And if those I have spoken of, had great Pretences to great Pleasures, I'm sure, this hath none at all: For, Covetousness is confess'd by all to be a wretched Plague, or rather a Madness; and the Man that is enslav'd to it, seems pos­sess'd, and is rightly Term'd a Miser. But (because Money answereth all things) if you can imagine that there is any Pleasure in looking upon Bags of Gold and Silver (that is, White and Yellow Earth) reflect a little upon the Fate of a Tantalus, and think what it is to have, and yet not enjoy, great Abundance. If there be any hidden charms in Cares and [Page 77] Fears; in watching Riches, lest they take wing, and flie away, or (in the best Ef­fect of it) in being honoured and feared; yet I'm sure the Happiness of the liberal Soul which shall be made fat, and the sweet content of him that is satisfied with Food convenient, doth far surpass them all.

§. 10. The Ostentations and vain-glo­rious Boastings proceeding from the Fumes of Ambition is the Third kind of Sensuality in St. John's Method. And here I cannot but think that the strutting Gallant must be conscious to himself of his own Emptiness, and that he should take little Pleasure in cheating others, when he knows he doth but cheat him­self. And for the desire of being great I would fain know where's the Pleasure of forcing a Man's Way through the Briars and Thorns, the Dark Methods of Secret Plots, and the Labyrinths of Infernal Combinations? When by ma­ny dangerous Steps he is arriv'd at the unsteady Seat of Greatness, and has put on the ( Incendialis Toga, the) poisonous Robe of Jealousies and Fears; When he is hated by some, and feared by others, and made a common Curse by most, Is [Page 78] this that which you call a state of Hap­piness? His Port deprives him of Socie­ty, and the distance that he must keep, renders his Life solitary and uncomforta­ble; and yet, (which is very remarkable) he is troubled with Company, and his At­tendants will not give him the Liberty of an Hour's Privacy and Recess. So that indeed a great Favourite, a States-man, can neither be familiar or retir'd, nor can enjoy himself alone or his Friends in Company, but must be confin'd to the Bedlam of Buffoons and Parasites. If this be then such a Pleasant Life, per me licet, let those that will run the danger, enjoy the Benefit of being great and ha­ted, of breaking the wild Beast to an ea­sie Pace and Mildness; they had need to have Returns answerable to their Dan­gers. And yet after all, I will produce more Safety, Satisfaction and sweet Con­tent in a mean Estate, and among the Country shades, than in all their Glo­ry.

'Tis true, we that move in a lower orb, look up and gaze upon Greatness with Admiration, and think a Phaeton a hap­py Man because he sits so high, and a­mongst [Page 79] so much Brightness; but alas! we know not what Furies carry him on, [...] what Dangers attend him. Every Man is uneasie in his own Condition, would be greater, and has a Tincture of Ambition, and that makes us not know our own Happiness, even when we are possessed of it. In the mean time, did we seriously consider the state of Great­ness, we should find St. James's descripti­on of our Lives to be adapted to his: A Vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away: A Cloud, that looks gloriously towards the Sun, and by the Reflection of his Beams, carried aloft by a superiour Influence, for a short time, and then it dissolves in Tears.

§. 11. I have at large examined the Pretences of those Three sorts of Sen­sualities, to that which we call Pleasures, and, setting them in a true Light, have expos'd their Delusions; so that upon the whole matter, we may justly con­clude, That their Pleasures are not so surprising and extraordinary; nor indeed have they any at all peculiar to them­selves, but what is common to Vertue and Moderation, or rather what pro­ceeds [Page 80] from them: For Vertue dwells in the Centre, and is the Original of all true Pleasure; and Vice in the Extreams, where she receives and reflects back some of the Emanations which proceed from the Middle; but has none of her own but what she borrows or counterfeits. Thus (that I may use an apt Similitude) the Sun, from the Centre of the World, shines by its own Light, whilst the Pla­nets, as so many dark Bodies, are whited over, and shine by Reflection only.

But because this is not a common No­tion, and obvious to every Apprehensi­on, I will bestow some short Reflecti­ons upon the Vanity of Fruition, in re­spect of its Shortness, Uncertainty, and Dissatisfaction; Appendages which al­lay it to that degree, that it is not wor­thy of the pursuits of Good and Wise Men.

First. For, First, every Sensual En­joyment is Momentary and Transient; It ceafes as soon as perceived; and, like the Lightning, is gone before we are a­ware of it. I have here a large Field of Discourse before me, but I need not stay to confirm what is confess'd, and at [Page 81] the same time, lamented by the greatest Sensualists.

Secondly, It is uncertain; we lose it oftentimes in the Embrace, and it va­nisheth in our Arms. The whole Life of Man is but an Aggregate of indivisi­ble Instants of Time, and every one of these may rob us of it; the Revenge of Saul was prevented when he had got Da­vid even in his Net; and Herod's Divinity vanished in the midst of his Adorers, when the invisible Hand consign'd him to Worms. Every day gives us Examples of the inconstancy of Worldly Pleasures, and we are commonly carried up aloft by them, and then let sall, and so bro­ken to pieces; thus Alexander, in the midst of his Victories, Feasts, and Tri­umphs, was call'd off the Stage; and so was the Rich Man in the Gospel, a­mongst his Designs of Ease and Fruition. Nay more than this, a vain and needless Fear destroys all our Enjoyments, and they are so much the Creatures of Fancy, that they vanish and disappear, upon the least alteration of it.

Thirdly, It is at best but dissatisfacto­ry; every Sensual Enjoyment is a cheat, [Page 82] false as Hell, whose Interest it serves; and as Visionary as the nightly Feasts of Witches: As these imagine that they eat and drink, and yet still find themselves pursued by the same hunger and Misery; so Voluptuousness leaves us as empty as before, and raises a greater Thirst than it allays; nay more, it is lost by U­sage, and the poor deluded loaths what he hath, admires what he hath not, is always to seek, and is never satis­fied; he pursues an Aery Expectati­on, and courts a Mistress, that when once enjoyed inspires him with new Wants, and puts him upon fresh Quests and Dangers. Thus the Slave to his own Lusts, rowls the stone of Sisyphus, and carried by the Gyre of his untam'd De­sires, moves an unconstant constant Round, till Sickness or Age disables him, and Death arrests him, and carries him to the Infernal Prisons, where only he becomes Stationary.

And thus I have made some Reflecti­ons upon that Men call Fruition, or Sen­sual Enjoyment. And I have been the longer, because if there be any Pleasure in Sensuality, it must be in this: By what [Page 83] has been said, it will appear, That there is not a greater cheat impos'd upon Mor­tals, or rather that they impose upon themselves: And I will be bold to con­clude, That Sin begins and proceeds by Delusion, and ends in Misery; That Voluptuousness is a Masque acted by Furies in disguise, which, towards the end, they throw off, and appear in their proper Shape. For this is the true End of all Sinful Enjoyments, which I must next demonstrate.

§. 12. There is a way that seemeth right unto a Man (saith the Divine Preacher) but the End thereof is the ways of Death. Prov. 14. 12. The End of Voluptuous­ness is always calamitous, and that com­monly in this Life. Sin brings forth Shame and Sorrow, and forbidden En­joyments tend to the Destruction of that Body they are brought to gratifie. Thus Intemperance weakens the Appetite, and consequently the Body: Thus Lust in­cites Ammon even to incest, and then to hate even to Death, till Drunkenness and the Sword of Absalom hath cut him off, and so put an end to both Passions. And as Sin, at last, brings a [Page 84] dismal Catastrophe upon it self; so each Crime hath its particular Nemesis even in our own Conscience. And I dare appeal to Experience, whether (when a Man's Passion is over, and he is at leisure to con­sider calmly what he hath done) he feels not Shame invade him, and a natural Horrour dart through his Soul? Whe­ther he doth not run, as it were, from the Presence of God (as Adam, his Fore­father, did) as asham'd of his Naked­ness, or sow some thin Fig-leaves together, some poor Excuses to cover it? Thus 'tis at first, till Conscience is seared or lull'd asleep, and so becomes senseless: Custom will take off the Dread of Pu­nishment, and because Vengeance seems to slumber, the hardned Sinner removeth it far out of his Sight; and yet for all this commonly Conscience at last awakes and laying before him the things that he hath done, arraigns, and condemns him: the black Fumes of Atheism, which hi­therto have hid his Sin and Punishment, will at last withdraw; and the Deity, just and terrible, discover himself to his Soul, and then learn, from his own mouth, the Agony of his distracted [Page 85] Mind; when he considers that he must leave all his Pleasures, Friends, and Ac­quaintance, and be carried alone into the dreadful unknown Abyss of Eternity! When he begins thus to question with himself, What if now at last there should be a God, which I have not only provo­ked, but denied; a Heaven, which I have slighted; and a Hell, which I have not only chosen, but made it my Business, and taken pains to procure? What if this God shall meet me in the other World and convince me of his Being, by his Justice; in what a Condition shall I be then? Why, no worse than eternally and irrecoverably miserable! And is it so? I find then I have liv'd to a fair pur­pose! I have enjoyed some few shadows of Pleasures, and suffer'd many real Griefs! I have been cheated all my Life time with Hopes, Fears, and Expectations, and found all at last both Vanity and Vexation of Spirit! And now I can perceive no glimpse of Joy, no comfort to my Soul; but a Darkness, and Horrour, and the Expectation of a dreadful Sentence when I shall depart hence! But Oh sacred Ver­tue! and you hospitable Graces of Inte­grity, [Page 86] and Innocence! who alone are able to banish these dreadful Apprehensi­ons, and bring home in Peace, how have I slighted and despised you!—This is very probable to be the End of the Voluptuous, because the nearer he ap­proaches to his Death, the clearer are the discoveries of his Misery; yet I know very well that some die, as well as live, senseless and unapprehensive of future Danger; but then their Condition is ne­ver the better, because their Despair as well as Punishment are transferr'd to the other World. The Rich man in the Gospel was never the happier in Hell, be­cause he perceiv'd it not, before he open­ed his Eyes in its Flames!

§. 13. I have led you (my Dorotheus) through the Folly to the Misery of Sen­suality; of living in Rebellion against the higher Powers of the Soul, and working Wickedness with Greediness. You may easily perceive, upon the whole Matter, That there is much Sorrow and very little Pleasure in Debauchery, and that Hell stands at the end of it; That those poor Pleasures that are enjoyed, are little else but Cheat and Delusion, [Page 87] and at last leave us not only disap­pointed but miserable. Happy is the Man that can see through the Disguise, and apprehend the Deformity and End of Vice. Happy is he, that by an early Conquest of himself and his Earthly part, makes himself capable of the Plea­sures of Autarchy; of those that are to be found in the Paths of Virtue and the Re­gimen of the upper Soul. And these are they which come next to be considered.

§. 14. It was the wise Epictetus that reduc'd all Morality, and his Readings thereupon to these two words (mentio­ned in the end of the former Part) [...], suffer and abstain. These two infold the whole Duty of Autarchy, and regulate, at once, our irascible and concupiscible Appetites. The First of these tells us we must suffer Injuries, Reproaches, and Slanders patiently: The Second enjoins us Abstinence, from Sin, I mean, and from all Occasions and Appearances of it. These two were the constant Doctrine of our Lord first, and then of his Disciples; only he went be­yond Epictetus, refin'd and exalted these Duties, and made the first especially, [Page 88] (the hardest of the two) one of the Be­atitudes, Matt. 5. Blessed are ye when men shall revile and persecute you, and say all manner of evil against you falsly for my Names sake. Rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your Reward in Heaven; for so persecuted they the Prophets, that were be­fore you. The Conquest of our selves, the Exercise of Self-denial, and the pa­tient bearing of Injuries, is a present Blessedness as well as a future: This cannot be discern'd, I must confess, by the most part of Mankind in a degene­rate Age, which will admit of no Hap­piness which is not carnal. We put Sensuality in the Chair, and make her. Judge of the Pleasures of Autarchy; and she will not fail (without all question) to give sentence on her own side, in her on Case; viz. That Self-Government is a painful, and a miserable sort of Life. Whereas, let enlightned Reason be pla­ced on the Tribunal, and you shall hear (that which Solomon long-since noted, e­ven to a Proverb) That her Ways are Ways of Pleasantness, and all her Paths are Peace.

I have already, I hope, sufficiently proved, That there is no considerable Pleasure appropriate to Sensuality, but what she borrows of Temperance and Mo­deration, and then dishonestly claims to be her own; and, That her End is Sor­row and Shame. This were enough to obtain my Point, and make Autarchy (the severest of all Vertues) much more eli­gible; but I shall proceed to confirm the same thing more directly and positively, and that whether we consider those Plea­sures that are outward or inward, those that concern the Body or the Soul. For though I have appealed from the Sen­tence of Sensuality, in this Case; yet I will admit of the Evidence of the Senses, when not either disordered or bribed into a false Information.

§. 15. And here I dare challenge all the Sensualists in the World to shew, in all their boasted Enjoyments, any thing equal to the Delights of Moderation; or any Delight that doth not take its Ori­ginal from thence: For Animal Plea­sures arise first out of the Temperate use of Nature, and when they are us'd be­yond this, they become weak, decay, [Page 90] and die. Sure I am, that the Pleasure of Tasting (and so of all the other Senses) is more vivid, quick, and lasting, and consequently greater, in the Tempe­rate Person, than in the Glutton: De­bauchery feeds upon, and devours it self by being gratified; The full Soul loaths the Honey-comb, but to the hungry even bitter things are sweet: The frequent Use of any thing takes away its Pleasure, and it dwindles to nothing. Expectation, Art, and Fancy may support it for a while, but at last it dies, and is utterly lost by Enjoyment; whereas, he that governs himself by Rules and Measures, reaps all the Delight that Nature hath provi­ded for him: For, whilst Riot makes Men dull, stupid, and insensible; Mo­deration keeps up, and maintains the Vigour of the Senses, and consequently their Pleasure. Thus Vertue takes the best Course to propagate Youth, and continue it; her Servant is not usually dim, nor is his natural Force (by Disorder, &c.) abated; such is he, or such would he be, if Autarchy might have its Ef­fect.

§. 16. Nor can Poverty ( Infoelix Pau­pertas, as the Poet calls it, the Ʋnhappy Poverty) or Meanness of Birth or For­tune diminish these; I mean, the out­ward Pleasures of the Autarchist; his Dinner of Herbs tastes as well as a fat­ted Ox upon the Rich Man's Table: He needs no Sauces to commend his Meat to his Palate, or Varieties to delight him; Hunger and a good Stomach makes his Food (be it ever so mean) pleasant, and Nature supplies him with the same, or at least as delightful, Rarities, as Art doth other Men. And here give me leave, a little to vary from my Argu­ment, and make a short digression in fa­vour of that we call Poverty: For if we search into things themselves, and lay aside the accustomary abuse of Words and Titles, we shall find that Heaven's Bounty is not so unequal, nor that there is so much Difference betwixt Men, in respect of outward Blessings, as the World judges. For, First, we are all equally Rich in the common Blessings of Nature, and the Heavens and Earth, with all the good things of each, are be­stowed upon every Man: The Sun, [Page 92] Moon, and Stars, and their Light, Heat, and Influence is every Man's Pro­priety; and the Hills, Rivers, Woods, and Plains, with all the other Varieties of Nature (Objects more August than Art can frame) are all expos'd to his View, to delight and serve him. Se­condly, The Great Man hath no more from all his Superfluities than the Poor Man from his Necessaries: All the Re­venues in the World, will but allow the Owner Food and Raiment (his Family and Servants devour the rest); and all his stately Buildings will but give him shelter from the Extremities of Heat and Cold; and the Poor Man hath that which affords him both these, and commonly with more Peace and Safety. Thirdly, The Greatest Person cannot ap­propriate his Riches to himself; but o­ther Men, (even the meanest) shall (in spite of Covetousness) share with him: He may indeed look upon his Palaces, Buildings, Aquaeducts, &c. with De­light and Admiration (and so may the meanest of his Servants; and Strangers with greater Admiration than either): He may call them his own, and pride [Page 93] himself in his Magnificence; but I do not see, but (to most Intents and Pur­poses) they are as much his Servants as his. Indeed there is this difference be­twixt the legal Owner and others; he may pass over his Right to others, and leave them his Heirs, (to he knows not whom) which another cannot. He hath the Care and Trouble of them, which a Stranger hath not; but as to the Profits and Fruits of his Possessions, though he hath the First Choice, yet his Inferiours must share with him, and en­joy it to as good Effects as he.

This that I have said, is not to de­tract from Worth and Nobility, but to comfort those that are estemed the Drudges and Slaves of this World. We have all enough, if we could compre­hend God's Bounty and be contented. If we could but govern our selves, and re­gulate our Desires, we might be Rich e­nough: For then we should prize the Musick of the Birds, and value the O­dours of the Flowers, above artificial Per­fumes; we should think our selves load­ed with the Blessing of Nature, were we apprehensive of them, and could we view [Page 94] them with an intellectual Eye; we should then find the Blessings appropriate to a middle Estate, as well as those of a great­er, and though our Commons be not great nor costly, we should find Satiety. This is not altogether alienate from the Sub­ject in hand; for it shews the outward Pleasures of Self-Government, even in low Circumstances, and that whilst the Voluptuous studies to gratifie his decay­ed and out-worn Senses, the Autarchist enjoys the Caresses of Nature, and there can be no innocent Epicure in the World but only he.

§. 17. Nor is the Influence of Autarchy confin'd only to the outward Senses, but it reaches the inward; yea, and the Operations of the Soul also: For though the Soul be a Substance distinct, yet she is much influenced by the just and due Temperament of the Body, and hath no Converse with things without but by the Mediation of the Senses. And though, according to the Notion of the Platonists, she be imprisoned in these walls of Flesh, and has no Liberty to walk abroad, on­ly she may look out of the Windows of her Gaol, till Death comes and unlocks [Page 95] the Doors, unlooses those Bonds that fasten her to the Body, and sets her at Li­berty; yet, during this Life, she con­tracts a kind of acquaintance with her Prison-house, and a Love to her Fetters: She is courted, and sometimes seduc'd by external Objects, she pertakes of An­gers, Fury, and loves Fondness; and forgetting her native Country, and her Heavenly Nature; doats oftentimes up­on low and base Objects in this strange Land. In this present Condition Tempe­rance opens and clears the outward Win­dows, and Knowledge regulates her Per­ceptive Faculties, and both these streng­then and preserve the superiour Faculties; which shews her her Errour, and helps her to avoid it. Hence the Charms of Volu­ptuousness are dissolv'd, her Inchantments ended, and the Soul recovers her primi­tive Light and Purity. Thus the Un­derstanding becomes enlightned, and the Candle of the Lord burns without the Interposition of the Clouds of Igno­rance. Thus the Memory is purg'd of polluted Images, and made a Treasury of such useful Idea's as Nature first de­sign'd it. And thus the Will becomes [Page 96] regular; the Desires limited to that which is good; the Heart pure; and the Spi­rit rectified, from whence proceeds In­nocency and Peace, which is the special Gift of Autocracy, and deserves our fur­ther Consideration.

§. 18. What the Ancient Pythagoras said of Piety in general, may be affirm­ed of Autarchy in particular, when he says it is, [...], A Peace in the whole Soul, with Cheerful­ness. For Sensuality fills us full of Fears and Jealousies, Expectations and Disap­pointments; and is like the Lower World, the Seat of Storms and Tem­pests; whilst Piety would render our Minds as the pure Aethereal Regions, a­bove all Winds, Meteors, and Alterati­ons, quiet and at rest. The Mind of a pious Man is a Heaven upon Earth, and presages to what place he must ascend: His meek and innocent Conversation produces outward Peace amongst all (for who would disturb him that wrongs no Man, nor gives any Offence by word or deed?) And as he is guilty of no Crime, so he fears no Danger, but is at peace with himself: No Heavy and Dismal [Page 97] Clouds of Despair obscure the Serenity of his Soul. His Mind is always tem­perate, free from torrid Desires, and fro­zen Despondings: He knows not the Terrors of a guilty Mind, and is ig­norant of Fears, because he is ignorant of Sin: His Conscience is void of offence towards God and Man, and therefore un­der no dread from either: He is content­ed with his present Condition, and there­fore feels not Fear's Ague nor Envy's Consumption: Briefly, he is in a conti­nual Calm (though in a stormy World) and whilst others fret themselves under their Load, and struggle in their own Toils, he is contented with his Lot, and at rest.

§. 19. Thus for the Concupiscible; and then for the Angry Passions, he go­verns them also. Hence it is that Abu­ses and Railery move him not, and he distinguishes betwixt the effects of Mad­ness (for such he takes Rage to be) and the friendly Rebukes of a Wise Man: He hears the Taunts of the Scornful un­concern'd as he doth the Barking of a Dog, and only takes care that he be not bitten. He looks upon a dissolute Tongue with pity, and is more troubled [Page 98] at the Commendations of some Men, than at their Abuses.

And certainly there is nothing so unde­cent and ill becoming (as well as trou­blesome); nothing that makes us more ridiculous, or that gives an Enemy great­er advantage, than unbridled Fury; nor can any Plague torment the Soul and Bo­dy, and prey upon both, more than se­cret Malice: Whereas 'tis a God-like thing to forgive; It elevates us above hu­mane Nature, may I not say above the Angelical? Besides 'tis the truest plea­sure to be able to pardon. To deserve well, and yet suffer patiently without Reward, is a part of Greatness unknown to any but the Autarchist. To suffer wrong silently, and being injur'd to seek a Re­conciliation. 'Tis more generous, sure, not to seek Reward, but to receive it, and save our selves the trouble of pursu­ing that which will be forc'd upon us; for rewarded here or hereafter we must and shall be, as long as our Lord's Promise stands good, Rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your Reward in Heaven. And as there is a future, so there must be a present Reward, which [Page 99] is Peace and Joy in the Holy Ghost. An internal Comfort, an ineffable Pleasure which arises out of a clear Conscience, which is a continual Feast: This is a Trea­sure far surpassing all the Riches of Na­ture and the Pleasures of Sin, though drest up to the utmost advantage; for they are but for a Season, but this shall not be taken away from us. Joh. 16. 22. Deny me (O Lord) Riches, Health, Prosperity, Liberty, or whatsoever else is most dear to the Animal Life, only deny me not this. Ex­ercise me in what Trials, and with what Af­flictions thou pleasest, only allow me this Cor­dial, and I shall be sufficiently happy! This will be a sufficient Compensation for all Sufferings, and Support in them all: It will be a Light to guide us in this dark Sphere, and a Defence against all Dan­gers: It is an internal Armour which will render us unconquerable, till we have past all the Perils of this World; and are arriv'd at Heaven, where con­firm'd and never-ending Joys attend us.—For the proof of all which, I appeal to the Experience of every Man that hath been acquainted with Vertue and Piety, and observ'd their Effects: I appeal to the [Page 100] Noble Army of Martyrs and Confessors, who suffer'd in their Quarrel, and be­came by this more than Conquerours. See then the different ends of Vice and Vertue! The First presents you with some Shadows of Pleasures which prove both Vanity and Vexation. This Second bestows upon you True Pleasures, both outward and inward, solid and durable; which neither Pain nor Sickness nor Death it self, arm'd with all its Terrors, can deprive you of; and which will ne­ver forsake you, till they have brought you to that place where there is fulness of Joy and Pleasures for evermore.

§. 20. I have at large discours'd of the true Nature of the Pleasures of Sen­suality, that cheat so many into their Ru­ine; and, after an impartial Discovery of their Inside, I hope I have sufficiently expos'd their Falshood, Vanity, and In­sufficiency. I have added to this an im­perfect Account of the Pleasures of a well-govern'd and vertuous Life. Im­perfect I say, for they are to be felt, not express'd. I have nothing to add to this Letter, but some few Reflections upon these Two Heads. I. The Difficulties; [Page 101] and, II. The Miseries, that (in the be­ginning of this Discourse) were objected to attend this Duty: And then conclude the trouble of this Letter, &c.

§. 21. As to the pretended Difficulties of Autarchy, I have this Answer.

1. That Autarchy in it self is neither hard nor ungrateful, but easie and natu­ral. Its Regimen was settled by our Creator in the beginning and first origi­nation of Mankind; and therefore not difficult to him who institutes his Life according to the Order of Nature: For indeed all manner of Intemperance is a violence and rape upon our Nature, and we find that (till she is conquer'd by long and customary Force) she both ab­hors and resists it. Thus, for instance, Gluttony presses her down, and Drun­kenness strives to stifle and drown her, whilst she (poor Wretch!) struggles with all her force, throws up the uncon­cocted load, the same way it was impo­sed upon her, and in resentment of this Violence pines her self sometimes se­veral Days afterwards. This, I say, is the true state of virgin, and unde­bauch'd Nature. And therefore Self-Government [Page 102] is her Guardian; nor can it be difficult originally, but natural, and consequently easie. But then—

2. As it cannot be denyed, but that this among many other things is now grown difficult to us, so it must be con­fess'd, That this Difficulty is the Effect of long and customary Habits of Licen­tiousness; nor can it be wonder'd, that a Man habituated to a sinful Course of Life, and used to be carried about by his unruly Passions, should find some uneasi­ness in the first entrance of a regular and staid Conversation; no more than that an untam'd Horse should at first time regret the Bridle; or the young Bullock the Yoke that is laid upon his unaccustom'd Neck. All Changes, from one extream to ano­ther, prove troublesome, and in every Al­teration of Life we may observe the like. The beginnings of things must be diffi­cult, especially to a prejudic'd Nature; and he that is accustomed to Extrava­gance must resent a Restraint. The Neophite cannot but expect some trou­ble in the Government of his Passions and perverse Nature; and the young Practitioner will be weary of his New [Page 103] Work; but he that has us'd himself to it, finds the Sweet of it; and he that is exercised therein shall find its De­lights.

3. And then, for those affrightful Names of Mortification, &c. they were at first given with respect to the Removal of inveterate Habits, and the trouble it puts an old Sinner to. As for the things themselves, they are not simply necessary to the Duties I commend, nor indeed to Christian Religion, no more than Physick is to our Mortal Bodies. Not simply necessary, but only by way of Conse­quence, and by reason of those Diseases of the Mind which we have contracted. When Piety begins to decay through the Weakness of the Powers of the Soul, and the Prevalency of the Appetite; then the Spiritual Pill becomes necessary; and if it be unpleasant to the Taste, or makes us sick in its Operation, we may thank our Diseased Minds for it. Corrupt hu­mours cannot be evacuated without Pain, nor can the dumb and deaf Spirit (much less that which is raging mad) be cast out without sore Convulsions of Mind, and a renting of the Heart, even to a seeming [Page 104] Death. But all this is but accidental to Religion, which in it self is an easie Yoke, and a light Burthen; a sweet and delightsome Imploy, and requires none of these Severities: For to a Man that hath been train'd up in Subjection to the Hea­venly part, and hath liv'd so till he hath become capable of sensing the Pleasures of the Divine Life, there is no need of Mortifying of Lusts and Appetites; these have been regulated long ago, ab initio, bred up in Obedience, and taught Sub­mission from his Birth.

I shall only add two things more upon this Head, and could wish that they might be as seriously consider'd as they must be confess'd. The First is, That the strictest Precepts of Christianity, such as Self-denial, and taking up the Cross (the severest Doctrine of the se­verest Religion) hath its peculiar Plea­sures and comforts, and that in pro­portion to its Hardships. Secondly, That Vice is the greatest Slavery, and brings greater Mortifications and Hardships up­on the Body (yea, and upon the Appe­tites themselves) than the most restrain­ing Vertue, and consequently that Men [Page 105] usually take more pains, and suffer more to go to Hell, than is required in order to Heaven and a Blessed Eternity.

§. 22. As for the Miseries that the Beginning of this Discourse seems to en­tail upon Piety, whether they are ab ex­trà or ab intrà, I answer briefly,

1. That God is not severe or cruel to any Man, much less to his Servants. He is good unto every Man, and his ten­der Mercies are over all his Works: He is slow to Anger, of great kindess, and repent­eth him of the evil.

2. That he punishes them, or suffers them to be afflicted, arises out of other Causes; as, First, To prevent Sin and the Doating upon this World, by letting them see their own Frail­ty, and the World's Deceitfulness: To take down Temptations, and abate the Lusts of the Flesh, &c. Secondly, To punish Sin in this World, that their Souls may be sav'd in the World to come. Thirdly, To bring them to Repentance, and recover their Spiritual Health. As a careful Physician, a severe School-Ma­ster, and a loving Father who chasteneth every Son whom he loveth, and scourgeth [Page 106] every Son whom he receiveth. And thus Afflictions are real Blessings, and the End changeth the Means into tokens of Love and Mercy. Fourthly, To make them In­stances of the Divine Goodness. Thus Job stands a Monument, not so much of Hu­mane Integrity, as of God's Justice and Mercy; his Justice in punishing his Creature, which, for all his Integrity, had some time or other deserv'd as much as this; (and God may justly withdraw the Blessings of Health and Riches from Job which he had given him) and his Mercy in returning them double to him. Besides, he is an ancient Example of the Power of Divine Grace, as also of Hu­mane Imbecillity. And the same or the like Account may be given of the Apo­stles and the First Christians, who re­main Evidences of the great Love of God to Mankind, who spared neither his Son to procure us a better Covenant, or his Servants Blood to seal to the Truth of it. And therefore—

3. As to those Vid. Matt. 10. 17. & 24. 9. Luk. 21. 12. Joh. 15. 20. 1 Thess. 3. 3, 4. 2 Tim. 1. 8. & 3. 12. Texts where our Lord warn'd his Disciples of Sufferings; or [Page 107] those of his Disciples to the Primitive Christians, of the Afflictions and Perse­cutions which they must expect: They are not universarily applicatory; for their Case was extraordinary, and they were fitted with Divine Gifts according­ly. And those Texts do more particu­larly point out those calamitous Times, and cannot be applied to those times in which the Church had peace and rest from her Labours. Their work was in the heat of the Day, and God that call'd them to such a mighty Work, first enabled them, and then crown'd them for it; but as for us, we labour in the cool, nor can we expect any Op­position but that of our carnal Lusts and Appetites. Piety is commanded, and Vertue is encouraged and rewarded, and Religion is not now to be espoused in Chains but upon the Throne. So that not­withstanding the extraordinary examples of some of God's dear Servants in the Old Testament, and of many more in the New, I am bold to conclude, That Au­tarchy tends naturally and of it self, to present as well as to future Pleasures, whether it be of the Mind or a Regula­ted [Page 108] Body, and to make us happy here and hereafter.

And thus, having made what Obser­vations and Reflections I thought suita­ble upon the Vanity of the pretended Pleasures of Sensuality; having pleaded the Cause of Self-Government, and vin­dicated it from the Acccusations of Ty­ranny or Cruelty over the Body or her attendant Passions, I will reserve her Outward Advantages to be the Subject of the Third Letter.

§. 1. I had not long finished the Second Part of this Moral Essay (in which, I hope, I have some­what contributed to the allaying the Heats of your Sensual Desires, and re­bated your Prejudices to the Oeconomy of Self-Government) but I be thought my [Page 110] self of my Promise made in the Conclu­sion of it, to treat of the Outward Advan­tages of Autarchy. 'Tis true (my Doro­theus) the inward Pleasures mentioned in my last, of Joy, Peace, and the Testi­mony of a good Conscience are the grea­test Blessings we are capable of on this side Heaven; but then the other outward Blessings are not to be despised. As long as we are here we all naturally desire those Delights that caress Humane Na­ture; and he must be more than an ordi­nary Philosopher that can over-look all corporeal Pleasures. He is happy that can gratifie his Soul, but yet he is thought more happy that can gratifie his Soul and Body both, and yet preserve his Innocency. If then Autarchy be a Friend to both these, its Government sure cannot be refused. What it is in respect of Pleasures, hath been the Subject of the former Paper, and what it is in respect of all Outward Ad­vantages, shall be the Subject of this. After which I shall draw up all the Pre­misses into one conclusion; and, tying a Knot upon it, leave it with you to the judgment of after Experience.

§. 2. The Outward Advantages of Au­tarchy, which I have not discours'd of in my former, may be reduc'd to these Three Heads:

• 1. A Healthful and Long Life.
• 2. A Competent Estate, or Sufficiency.
• 3. Honour and Respect from all Men.

These are the Three Principal Favou­rites of the Body, and are courted as our greatest Happiness, while we are here. A sickly long Life is therefore thought so much the more miserable, because it is long, and a Healthful Short Life misera­ble by reason of its Shortness. And both Health and Length of Life cannot make us happy, according to the vulgar Opini­on; if we are condemn'd to Poverty, and to eat the Bread of Carefulness. And there be many that will not be sa­tisfied without a third accessional, I mean Honour and Respect. And there is no Man, but the highest Christian, that can wholly lay them all aside, and say, with St. Paul, That he counts all things but dung and loss, so that he may win Christ. I can­not expect you should arrive at this Spi­ritual Life, this Perfection of Wisdom these many years. It will be sufficient [Page 112] if you attain it at last with all the Aids of Morality, and Religion. In the mean time it will be sufficient to alliciate a young and unexperienc'd Nature by that which seems most inviting in this World, (though it be but as Children with Toys, and such are most of us in a spiritual Sense) I mean with Earthly Blessings such as Life, Estate, and Honour. My Business therefore shall be to demonstrate to you (not that Autarchy will infallibly make you live long Healthful, Rich, and Honourable, or instate you presently in the Possession of these Three Blessings; for there may be many Circumstances which may hinder the Effect, and God may not prosper the Means for the Ends designed: nor do I intend to affirm that this Duty will enfeoff you with the in­tense degrees of each, i. e. that it will make you live to threescore years and ten or fourscore, and all that while in abun­dance of outward Prosperity, Riches, and Grandeur; for this is not entail'd up­on any Duty, but) That it is the readi­est Way, and the most probable Means to obtain a convenient portion of each, and enough to ascertain an outward Hap­piness: [Page 113] That it naturally tends to long Life, and Health, Sufficiency of Estate and Respect; and, where it is not hinder'd of its effect, will ensure them. Thus, as the Reasons of the former Paper will make you a Votary to the Spiritual Government as a Christian and a Philo­sopher, so those of this may work upon you as a Man. I begin with the first of its Temporal Advantages, A Healthful and Long Life.

§. 3. Of all the outward Blessings that God usually crowns Man with in this World, Health and Long Life ought to be first named, because most desired. The First begets the Second, and they mutually caress each other, and would do so eternally. When things are as they should be, Nature abhorrs an Alteration for fear of a Dissolution. The sullen Rocks cling together and oppose Sepa­ration; and the soft Waters which are dasht into a thousand pieces against them, reunite their Parts, which will not separate till Gravity and the indi­spensible Laws of the Universe compel them. The Vegetables, though they die at Winter, do yet retain the Seeds of [Page 114] Life against their Resurrection in the Spring, and accordingly appear again in their various Figures and Colours: The Birds and Beasts labour night and day, to preserve a belov'd though (to them­selves) an unprofitable Life, and when they can no longer escape the Snares of the cunning Fowler or cruel Hunter, they mournfully utter out their resentments of Man's Tyranny in their inarticulate Rhetorick. Man, the Lord of the visible Creation, preserves his own Life by de­stroying others, and pays Nature in him­self what he has robb'd her of in other Creatures. We are apt to admire the Happiness of Methusalah, and (if we thought it to any purpose) would desire to live as long as he. We complain of Nature's unequal bounty to the Ante­diluvian World, whilst she confines us to Threescore or Fourscore Years. To live long, and see many happy, or (ra­ther than die) unhappy days; to live, though old, lame, decrepit, and despis'd (much more when young, healthful and strong) is the universal desire of deluded Mortals, inamour'd of their Sorrows and besotted of their Chains: Nor can [Page 115] Reason, Counsel, or Experience (with­out a Diviner Ray darted from Heaven into their Souls) undeceive them. And after all, it is something unaccountable to find that, though most Men make Long Life the chiefest Petition in all their Addresses to Heaven, yet there are few that will confess they have received it, though they have pass'd their great Cli­max. So great is our aversion to Death, our greatest Friend that would put an End to our Troubles, and lay us up in Peace. Young men put it far from them; and Old men do not care to hear of it, though descending down towards their Grave. And I have experienc'd in my self, now entring into my Declinati­on, a kind of Reluctancy to be told I was so far on my Journey: I conclude therefore that there is something in Na­ture (some Relict of the Old man) that is afraid of Death, though she carries it within her; and thus perhaps it will be with you, and therefore to please the lower Soul, and reconcile it to the Go­vernment of the upper, I shall endea­vour to shew that it is the usual Gift and natural Consequent of Autocracy.

§. 4. To this Purpose it will suffice to propose this one Consideration. viz. That,—

This alone is able to preserve Health, and to recover it when lost, and (if some Original Distemper or fatal Provi­dence interpose not) to convey it down to Old Age; to procure the Vigour of Youth in Age, and a healthful and strong Constitution, and consequently a Long Life, &c.

This Truth is self-apparent, and shines by its own Light; for most Diseases are confess'd to be the Effects of Intemperance. Vice tends to our Ruine from its first En­tertainment; and the Body of Sin natu­rally leads us to the Body of Death. Ex­cesses bring Sickness, and Surfeiting will turn to Choler. By surfeiting many have perished, but he that taketh heed prolongeth his Life: saith the wise Son of Sirach, Ec­clus. 37. 30.

Instances will best illustrate this Truth for their Conviction.

For thus the Glutton lives to eat, not eats to live but to die; when by contra­rieties of Meats and Drinks he hath viti­ated his Appetite, and collected a Mass of Crudities in his Stomach, the morbi­fick Matter which at last sends him out of the World. Thus the Drunkard drowns himself in a Dropsie, or by a Collection of Adventitious Heats in­flames his Blood into a Fever; when he shall call for Drink without Satisfaction, and use it without Offence. And I wish it were seriously considered how peculiar an Enemy this Sin is to our Lives, and of how many sad Accidents it is the cause, some times fatal to Body and Soul; of which we have too many Examples: So false is that flattering Proverb, A Drun­kard never takes hurt. And indeed Drun­kenness is a kind of Daemoniacism, and ta­king away the use of the Members of the Body, and Operations of the Soul; the evil Spirit casts him sometimes into the Fire, and sometimes into the Water. Nor is it a wonder that when the internal Principle of Direction, the Understanding, is de­stroyed, [Page 118] the Guardian Angel driven a­way, and kept at a distance, the De­vil should take the advantage to do a Man a Mischief. In a word, Intempe­rance is such an universal Purveyor for the Grave, that it is become long since a Pro­verb, Plures gulâ quam gladio, &c. The Throat is the greatest Enemy as well as Preserver to it self, and destroys more than the Sword.

Thus the impure Slave that with an Adulterous Eye pursues every Woman (besides his Fears and Dangers) wears out his Body, and twists up his own Scourge. A Disease, I mean, that de­stroys his Form and Beauty, torments him with Pains when he should take his rest; makes him water his Couch with his Tears, and his Bed to be the Place of his Punishment, because it was the Place of his Folly; and at last consigns him over to Rottenness, and to become his own Sepulchre. And if Whoredoms and Adulteries do not always produce such Tragedies, 'tis because they are, in some Measure, restrain'd, and so it is the Ef­fect of Autarchy.

Nay those immaterial Diseases, those [Page 119] of the Mind I mean, that are not so con­versant with gross Matter, even these become prejudicial, if not fatal, to our Lives and Health. Covetousness pines and withers the Body; Envy dries it up, and makes it pale; and Pride begets Quarrels, Contentions, and Wars, that send thousands to the Grave together. I need not instance in more, for 'tis the Confession and Complaint of emascula­ted Debauchees, that their Vices have been their Enemies, and contributed to their Destruction. So that there is a na­tural Reason as well as Providence in the Sentence of the wise Solomon, Evil shall pursue the Sinner, and he shall not pro­long his days. Prov. 10. 27. & 13. 21. Eccles. 8. 13. 'Tis Autarchy alone that pre­scribes Moderation; that distinguisheth betwixt the Abuse and Use, betwixt the Poison and Nutriment of Meat and Drink; that maintains a due Temperament, and satisfies that Nature that she preserves.

§. 5. And here I cannot conceive what Sensuality hath to say for it self, and in its own defence; unless it is by way of Recrimination: Unless she leads you to the Cells of Asceticks, and the Oratories [Page 120] of Recluses, and shews you the pale and lean Effects of Fasting and Mortificati­on; the Skeletons of some few Saints, who chose to anticipate Death and die whilst they lived. See there (will she say) the Effects of Bigottism and Reli­gious Frenzie, what she would reduce the World to if she could procure once a perfect Empire there! And what can Lu­xury it self do more? Besides thou mayst observe that Wise men die as soon and as well as Fools, and the Righteous fall promiscuously with the Wicked. Alas! Death makes no difference; nor can In­tegrity, Wisdom, Valour, or Parts op­pose him. The End of Man is deter­min'd, and then why should the Means be blam'd; he was to die at that time, and therefore why should his Vices be ac­cus'd for bringing him thither? Thus Sin is ready to excuse it self, though she lays the Fault at God's door, and on his e­verlasting Decrees.

To all which I answer briefly.

First. Waving the Question about the determination of our Lives (of which I shall find occasion to give you mine opi­nion towards the end of this Discourse) [Page 121] I say, as to the Hardships, Fastings and Mortifications of restraining Vertue, I cannot find (as I noted before) that Autarchy absolutely and universally pre­scribes them, but only where our parti­cular necessities require them. God hath given his Creatures richly (though mo­derately) to be enjoy'd, and having gi­ven us his Son, with him hath given us all things. But when the Beast within (the Sensual part) begins to wax fat, and kicks against its Master and Maker both; there is then but too apparent Symptoms of a Spiritual [...], an evil Habit of Mind; and then Fasting and other Ghostly Exercises become our Duty: For it is Physick to the Body as well as Soul, and serves mutually their Necessities. Besides, I do not find any Command, even in that Case, to make our selves sick, or to impair our Healths, for the sake of Religion.

Secondly. As for the Oratories of Re­cluses, and the Cells of Anchorites, I know not where we shall find them in Europe, unless we travel to Mount Athos in Greece in quest of them. And as for those Multitudes in the Roman Church, [Page 122] that pretend to leave the World, and un­dertake the Vow of Coelebacy and Po­verty, most of them (I will not say all, for some Orders perhaps still retain their original Strictness and Abnegation of the World: most of them I say) have mise­rably degenerated from the pretended Sanctity of their Founders. 'Tis true, there was such a sort of People of yore, and all Christians were in ancient times extremely careful to keep themselves un­spotted from the World, and some per­haps even to a kind of Superstition. But this was then, when Religion possess'd the Hearts as well as the Heads of its Profes­sors; and when the Breath of the Holy Jesus was yet warm upon the Heads of his Disciples and the Primitive Christians. But, in these wretched times of Sin and Death, 'tis more than we can do to per­suade Men to a Recession from the World, in prohibited degrees and a sin­ful Converse: and therefore this In­stance is (especially with us) utterly impertinent.

Thirdly. As for those good Men that die Young: It proceeds not from any defect in Autarchy, but from other causes. [Page 123] Perhaps from some Native Distemper, which they receive by Traduction, twisted up in their very Essence: From the original Weakness of the Contexture of their Bodies, made at first, and inten­ded by Nature for a Tent, not a conti­nual Habitation for the Soul: Or, if the Pillars of the Body were ever so strongly built up, yet some accidental Emergen­cy, some hidden Train may suddainly blow up the Fort; and God, by his pro­vidential order of Second Causes, may concur to its dissolution: Perhaps out of Judgment, as in the Instance of the dis­obedient Prophet, that was sent to de­clare against the Altar at Bethel, and in his return was delivered up to the Lion that slew him, 1 King. 13. Perhaps out of Mercy, when living well and longer are inconsistent, and when the righteous are taken away from the Evil to come. These and such like may be the Causes of the ear­ly Deaths of some sober and regular Sons of Vertue, which yet their Temperate Life naturally tended to prevent. So that, notwithstanding some particular Instan­ces, we may safely conclude, That Sen­suality is destructive to Humane Nature; [Page 124] which Autarchy, by its Rules and Dire­ctions, would long preserve; or in the Words of the divine Preacher, My Son, forget not my Law, but let thine Heart keep my Commandments. For Length of Days, and Long Life, and Peace shall they add to thee. Prov. 3. 1, 2.

§. 6. The Second outward Advantage of Autocracy is, A competency of Estate or Sufficiency of the bona Fortunae, as we commonly call Riches. And when I have said this, I mean not that it will in­fallibly and suddainly instate you with Abundance, or that there is no other way to become Rich; but that it is the only lawful way to a worldly Estate, and a probable way as well as lawful. It will defend you from Poverty, and feed you with Food convenient, if not with Superfluities: It is the proper and natural Means to obtain and increase an outward Fortune, and where Providence interposes not, it will attain that end. This must be confess'd by him that consi­ders that it enjoins, 1. Parsimony and Temperance, whereby we become the best Husbands of what we have, and a­void all needless Expences, the Effects of [Page 125] Pride and Prodigality, and the Consu­mers of mighty Estates. 2. Justice and upright Dealing, which will pro­cure us credit with all Men, and preserve what we have gotten: For let Men take what Measures they please; yet they will not deny, but that Honesty is the best Policy: For Justice doth attract the Love and Favour even of the Unjust; and upright Dealing will find a present as well as future Reward. With the same Mea­sure you mete withal it shall be measured to you again. 3. Care and Industry, which engage us by all lawful Ways, Means, and Measures both to get an Estate and increase it. For if we search into the Causes of Want and Poverty, we shall commonly find Idleness or Debauchery at the Bottom of it; and most Men must accuse their own want of Providence, not the Providence of God, for their Wants and Indigency. 4. Liberality, Charity, and Mercy, which are so far from being Enemies to Estates, that they augment them; for the liberal Soul shall be made fat, and he that watereth shall be watered. Prov. 11. 25. Besides they call down the divine Benediction upon our [Page 126] selves and our Endeavours. To him that seeks the Kingdom of God, and his Righte­ousness, all things shall be added. Matt. 6. And he that castes his Bread upon the waters shall find it again with increase: We may reasonably expect to reap what we sow, and receive by the same Measure that we mete to others. Luc. 6. 38. 'Tis our Lord's rule that cannot, will not fail, us if we do not prevaricate with our selves. Give, and it shall be given unto you, good measure pres­sed dowm, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your Bosoms. Nor can this Promise become ineffectual, but by our own Fault, our Covetous­ness, Hypocrisie and Infidelity.

And now I dare appeal to the Judg­ment of any Man, whether there can be a more probable way to an Earthly Estate, than to be industrious in our selves, to have credit with others, and the Blessing of God to crown our Endea­vours? And whether it be not as evident on the other side, that Sensuality makes Men Prodigal, Debauch'd, Spend-thrifts, Unjust, Fraudulent, Creditless, Unmer­ciful and Cruel, and so to inherit nothing but the Curses of Men, and the Vengeance of God?

§. 7. But here I must walk cautiously, lest the Sensualist take the Advantage, and prevent the usual Objections which he will make to what has been said upon this Head. It is confest therefore, that sometimes all these means fail: That Vertuous Men continue poor, whilst Violence, Oppression, and Cheatery thrive and grow rich: For God hath his secret Ends and Purposes, and may make what Exceptions he pleases from this ge­neral Rule, viz. The hand of the Dili­gent maketh rich. Prov. 10. 4. There is a secret Providence that orders every Man his quota: And thence is that which So­lomon observ'd long ago, There is (saith he) that scattereth and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty. Prov. 11. 24. And yet this is no impeachment of the general Rule, viz. That Autarchy naturally tends to Riches, or at least to Sufficiency. But if this be further pressed (though I know no reason for it) I must not omit two mighty and almost miraculous Effects of Autarchy, which will sufficiently supply that Defect and make a Compensati­on.

1. The First is that of making the Poor Man rich, above what Care, La­bour, or the Philosopher's Stone can do. For when God, for Reasons best known to himself, denies him Abundance, Au­tarchy teaches him to supply that defect, by a willing Submission to Providence, and a full Contentment with his small Portion, as that which God sees to be best for him: For he only knows what Measures are fit for us, and where to place the Two, as well as the Five and Ten Talents. Some Vessels are not fit to be filled with strong Liquors lest they burst, and every Man cannot bear the Temptation of Riches. God designs the Salvation of all Men in the first place, and to that great end proportions the Means thereunto. These, and such like Considerations make him sit down fully satisfied with his share, and thus at least he is Rich, and having nothing doth yet possess all things.

And here I must tell you (my Doro­theus) that it is not a great Estate that al­ways makes a Man Rich; for there may be great Poverty amidst great Abundance. It was a sore Evil which Solomon saw and [Page 129] lamented long agoe, A man to whom God hath given Riches, Wealth, and Honour, so that he wanteth nothing for his Soul of all that he desireth; and yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof, but a stranger eat­eth it. Eccles. 6. 2. And what is he better for that which he hath, or rather seemeth to have, who either not uses it, or abuses it? Or wherein consists the Happiness of that Man whose Riches are given him out of Judgment, not Love; and to be snares of the Devil, not helps to Charity? An Estate may be ac­quired, I'tis true, by Fraud or Violence; but then it proves a continual Worm to the Conscience, a Plague to the Mind, and a Consumption to the Body. When a Father must run the danger of Dam­nation to convey an Estate, with a Curse, down to his Son, and capacitate him to run the same Hazard; will you call such a Man Rich and Happy? No, certain­ly, he is Poor, Miserable, and a Wretch! whose mistaken Love to his Son, hath induced him to sell his own Soul to buy him an Estate, and made himself mise­rable in the other World, to procure his Child a Shadom of Happiness in this. [Page 130] Whereas he that can conquor his Desires, and subdue his Passions; that is content­ed with his honest Lot, is rich towards God, and communicative towards his Fellow-Creatures; That Man, I say, is richer than Croesus the Lydian King, or Crassus the wealthy Roman Subject.

2. The Second is that of sanctifying our Riches, and making it serviceable to our Eternal Concerns. A strange Property sure to convert Poison into Food; to heal the unwholsome Waters, and of the Snares of the Devil, to make a Jacob's Ladder! And yet this is true: For our Lord tells us, that this Mammon of un­righteousness may be so rectified and di­stributed, that it may and will procure us Everlasting Habitations. And Autarchy alone (which forbids us to imprison it in our Chests, or consume it on our Lusts; but use it for our honest Neces­sities) doth teach us this mighty Work. Thus [...], the Cable-rope is un­twisted to that fineness that it will perfo­rate the Eye of a Needle, according to The­ophylact's Sense of the Word; or else the Eye of the Needle is so expanded, and enlarged to that dimension, that [...] [Page 131] a Camel may easily pass through it. Vid. Annot. in Matt. 19. 24.

§. 8. The Third outward Advantage and Gift of Autarchy, is, A Good Name, Reverence and Esteem with Men. And this is evident by the Respect and Vene­ration which is given by the worst as well as by the best of Mankind to Ver­tue wheresoever it is found. Thus a sober Person shall be rever'd by the most profligate, and the temperate admir'd (though envied) by the most debauch'd. The chast Virgins, who keep their Inno­cence against many Temptations, shall at last be honoured as the Vestals were of old; their very Company shall chill and quench the fiery Emotions of Voluptu­ousness: for Vertue bears a Majestick Grace with it, whilst Vice sneaks into dark Corners: it carries a secret Awe with it, and checks the Attempts of Sensuality.

'Tis true, there want not some, that from the Seat of the Scornful can scoff at Vertue, and ridicule Piety (the peculiar Talent and Character of the last and worst of Times) but then, take notice, it is not when in its own Shape, but when [Page 132] misrepresented. They give it disgrace­ful Names, and dress it up in a mon­strous Shape, and then rally upon it. Thus Temperance is traduc'd under the notion of Covetousness, and Piety is first term'd Hypocrisie and then expos'd as such. The patient Man is said to be a Coward; and the provident a poor nar­row-soul'd Fellow: The chast is called coy and Proud; and the pious and devout is term'd superstitious and popishly affected. Thus Vice claps a Sambineto upon Ver­tue before she is to be executed; and, like her Primitive Votaries, she must be deform'd in the Skins of wild Beasts, be­fore even the Dogs will fasten upon her. But otherwise it stands a universal Rule, that Goodness commands the Respects of all, and her God-like Majesty shines even to the dazling of her Enemies: for so did her great Master's Divinity over­throw those that came to seize him, and the invisible Rays of his Godhead dart them down backwards that came to bind him: Every one applauds Vertue, though few follow her: And all men call her Bles­sed, though she has few that will imi­tate her. The greatest Debauchee will [Page 133] commend her to be Guardianess of his Children after his Decease, and while he lives condemn that in them which he practises in himself. This he doth while he lives, and when he dies, his Relations (if of Ability) build him a Monument and a Pillar, and record upon it all the good Works that he did, but none of his Vices. Hence are those lying Epitaphs, and pompous Commemorations with which the Tombs of some are adorn'd, whose Names yet stink worse than their Carcasses; and the Canonization of some Saints to Heaven, whose Souls are (I fear) long since consign'd to Hell. This is Demonstration sufficient to convince us, that nothing can consecrate our Ashes, and give us a kind of Immortality here, but Vertue.

§. 9. On the other side, there is no­thing more dishonourable than Impiety, or unman-like than Sin. For instance: How shameful a thing is it to see a Crea­ture, dedicated to the Service of God, study nothing but the Satisfaction of his Belly? For a Man made for noble Thoughts and Contemplations, to sink below the Beasts, and become a driveling [Page 134] Sot, and covetous of that which his Na­ture cannot bear! To see the glorious I­mage of God and Man both defac'd, his Beauty clean gone as well as his Reason, and himself a Companion to the Dog in his vomit, and to the Sow in her wallowing in the mire! To see a rational Being without Sense, and a Man without Un­derstanding, even beyond the Example of Nebuchadnezzar.

How much below common Truth doth he descend that can swear to that, which his own Conscience (at that ve­ry instant) tells him is damnably false; or that can fawn upon him that he hates to death? That can dress up an Ape with gawdy Titles; and cringe, and bow to him, whom yet he will aside call a gold­en Ass? How cowardly a thing is it to be forc'd to dissemble hidden Treachery; to flatter an Enemy, and so take advan­tage of his Security, that he may mischief him in secret, whom he dares not meet publickly? How unworthy a thing is an insidious Parasite?

What can be more sordid, than for a Man of Reason, and a Professor of the Christian Religion, (a Religion that exalts [Page 135] Reason, and directs us to the Angelick Life) to doat upon Gold or Silver, that is, white and yellow Earth; and to pre­ferr a piece of Money to a Heavenly Vertue? What can be more foolish than to sell a Man's Soul, (that is, himself) for a Bubble; or be condemn'd to the Galley all his life, that he may be said to die rich? To be always fearing Want, in the midst of Plenty; and to hanker after more, when he hath already more than enough? What more deplorable than to choose a Fever, that he may have the plea­sure of drinking and dying; to slave him­self for fear of Want, and die for fear of Death?

What pity is it to see a Gentleman, o­therwise compleatly endowed with the Gifts of Nature, to turn Slave to his Lusts, and Fop to the Humours of a Proud Woman? To see the Imperial Darius fawn upon Apame his imperious Concubine, and him that govern'd so many Gallant Men, govern'd himself by an inferiour Harlot? To see a Man for­sake his loving Yoke-Fellow (that bears up one end of all his Cares and Fears,) and all the Pledges of their mutual Loves, [Page 136] for the Embraces of a Strumpet, who loves him not but for his Money; who will first consume his Estate and then his Body, and at last leave him to run the risque of his broken Fortunes, not to be repair'd without fresh Sins and Dan­gers!

And, that I may say all in a word, to see a Christian, made at first but a little lower than the Angels, and instructed in those Mysteries which were hid from them; to see such an one (I say) dege­nerate below the Beasts, and seek his chiefest Happiness with the worst of them! Thus every Sin draws after it the tail of a Serpent, Disgrace and Shame; and no sooner did it enter into the World, but it made the guilty Adam hide himself from the presence of the God of Purity. Nor has it got any great repute (though many Followers) ever since. It is naturally asham'd of it self, blushes at its own Deformity, and usually walks abroad in disguise, un­der borrowed shapes, and better names to conceal it. Thus the Prodigal must be call'd generous, the Covetous provi­dent, the Lascivious complaisant, and [Page 137] the Debauch'd a Good Companion. Thus Singularity and Faction were term'd Zeal; Disobedience tenderness of Conscience; and Murther, Rapine, and Ambition blended together, were call'd the Cause of God, and Reformation.—'Tis a hardned Sinner indeed that will not blush to hear in publick what he doth in private, and a patient one that will not highly resent it: For tell but a common Harlot what she is, and you move a nest of Wasps; and the Adulteress will take the advantage of the Law against you. Shortly, Every Sin is a reproach to Humane Nature, a disgrace to Rea­son, and an indignity to the Order of the Creation. Sin and Shame are insepa­rable.

§. 10. On the other part, (that I may look into the other Scale) Wisdom ex­alts them that are of low Estate, pro­motes them, and brings them to Honour. It lifts up the poor out of the dust, and the needy out of the dunghil, that he may set him with Princes, even with the Princes of his People. It is a portion more precious than Gold; than the Onyx, Sapphires, and Rubies: It is the Original of all true [Page 138] Nobility, and supports their Titles and Dignities, which Debauchery would de­stroy, and so pulls 'em down into the or­der of the Vulgar. For Vertue is the true Nobility, the Palladium, or (that I may use a Christian term) the Guardian Angel of Greatness: She enobles her Servant, and, not only himself, but his Posterity; without this, Grandeur is but a swelling Bubble, a Cloud without Rain; or, rather, a blazing Comet that shines with borrowed Rays, and attracts the wonder of the Vulgar, and yet is in it self an unlucky Omen to the World; and though its dismal Effects may conti­nue long, yet it soon vanisheth. Wis­dom first founded the World, and hath preserv'd it ever since, and as for the se­veral Governments of it, they have been all continued by Autarchy: For Self-Go­vernment is the Foundation of all others, and he that will rule others must first learn to rule himself; his own Passions and Affections require his first care, and after that then those of other Men. If a man cannot rule his own house, how should he take care of the Church of God, saith the Apo­stle? And I add, If he cannot govern him­self, [Page 139] he can govern neither: For it is the surest way to begin at the bottom, to lay a good Foundation, and so build gradu­ally. The best ordered Governments chuse their Generals out of those that have gone through all the Degrees of Di­scipline in the School of War.

§. 11. And yet, after all, it must be confess'd (and I note it here to prevent an Objection) That Desert is not always re­warded, nor Merit crown'd, in this World. Some precious stones must lie buried in the Earth. 'Tis not fit Nature should be quite rifled of all her Treasure at once, and have all her Rarities shown together: For if she had no reserve, she might be bankrupt, and her Treasures would be soon exhausted. There is not Reward enough perhaps in the World to satisfie all Rivals; and the Fountains of Honour are not infinite, but have their Bounds: besides it is but reasonable that some things should be reserv'd for the Rewards as well as Punishments of the other World, and we may well imagine this to be the design of Providence when it seems not to regard Vertue or Vice in [Page 140] this. All that I have hitherto pleaded for, is, That Vertue is usually rewarded in this Life, and that with Honours; or, at least, Reverence as part of its Portion. That the Autarchist, (the good Man that can govern himself) is usually thought the fittest to govern others; and that such a Man shall be esteem'd and rever'd, even by the most disorderly. But if at any time it falls out otherwise, if Provi­dence (for reasons best known to it self, perhaps for our own Good) shall so far alter the course of Nature and dispositions of Mankind, as to suffer Desert not to meet with due Respect; be not you ( Doro­theus) yet discouraged in your Race of Vertue, for the more is reserv'd for you when you arrive at the End. Be con­tent therefore to be a Jewel, though sometimes you lie neglected in the Dust; and to shine, though none takes notice of you. 'Tis a greater thing to deserve to be a Prince, than to be one actually; and he is indeed a King that reigns over himself and his own Appetites, though he hath none other Subjects. Remem­ber that Vertue is its own Reward here, though it had neither Riches nor Honours [Page 141] attending; besides it must be rewarded hereafter. Those internal Blessings of Peace and Joy are its own, and, when it hath no other Reward in this World, (which is very seldom) God takes no­tice of it, and his Reward is with him, and the greater because deferr'd. And there­fore upon the whole matter, I must con­clude, That Autarchy is the only way to true Glory here, and Immortality here­after.

§. 12. By this time you must confess that Godliness (and Autarchy is nothing else, but the Power it exerts over the furi­ous and raging Passions) hath usually the promise of this Life, as well as that which is to come. That her outward Advantages are great as well as her in­ward. Her ways are ways of Pleasantness, and all her paths are Peace. Length of days are in her Right hand, and in her Left Ri­ches and Honours. These are the Privi­leges that Solomon annexes to a Heaven­ly Wisdom, of which Self-Government is the greatest and hardest part. I might here further add to its Advantages that of outward Peace with Men, (for Peace of Mind was proved to be her gift in the [Page 142] last Discourse) the quiet I mean, Good Will and Neighbourhood, she would set­tle in the World; and the Dissentions she would banish out of it: It would re­store the terrestrial Paradise again, toge­ther with its pristine Innocence, and make that a Tempel of God, which is now become a den of Thieves: It would cast out the Devil of Hatred and Malice, of Self-Love and Covetousness, of Pride and Revenge (those Fiends that will not suffer us to live in Peace) and restore Love, Meekness, and Humility to bring the Frame of Nature in order again. Thus it would make us all happy if we would ac­cept of Happiness; and we should, while we live here, have some Fore-tastes of the Felicity we are to receive hereafter. These are some of the Advantages of Autarchy: I might add many other, and make many ingenious and surprizing Ob­servations thereupon. But it is time to retire, and try to practise mine own ad­vices: Besides, I have in some measure discharg'd the Promise made in the First of these Essays, and therefore after a brief review of the whole, I will descend to the Conclusion.

§. 13. You have heard therefore (my studious Dorotheus) in the First Paper the Doctrine of Autarchy explain'd, to­gether with the several Rules of Pra­ctice. In the Second I have, I hope, satisfied, you that its Pleasures are true, substantial, and durable; whilst those of Sensuality are delusive, uncertain, and unsatisfactory: That its regimen is not so grievous or difficult as the World would persuade you; but that it is attended with the best inward and outward Plea­sures. In this Last I have endeavoured to shew its outward Advantages, as Health, Long Life, Riches and Honours in this World, as well as Eternal Life in the World to come; if it fails in any outward Blessing, 'tis but in order to a greater; it naturally leads to 'em, and if it sometimes miss let not that be your dis­couragement: Food may, by accident▪ cause Diseases, and that which is the means of Life, cause Death. However, it cannot fail of Life with the Ancient of days, and the Riches and Honours of a Heavenly Kingdom. This is the Argu­ment of what I have writ upon this Subject; and my Design and great End [Page 144] in all this, is to excite you to the Practice of those Vertues included under the No­tion of Autarchy; and such are Patience, Meekness, Humility, Temperance, Con­tinency, Charity and such like. And to this End, I will commend to you these Considerations.

I. It is a Duty not only according to original and incorrupt Nature (in which the lower part is design'd to obey the up­per, and join'd to it for its service) but also worthy of it. It is the peculiar Character of a good and wise man, of him that lives the Life of Angels here, and is design'd to live with them here­after: It is the only way to restore the defac'd Image of God, recover our lost Integrity, and the Aethereal Seats from whence we are fallen, which is our busi­ness in this World; for we are sent hi­ther to be exercised in Vertue, that we may be fitted for Light and Glory: And he that doth not answer this end of his Creation in this Life, shall sink down in the next; he shall have cause to lament that he had any Being here, and shall be so much the more miserable, by how much he might have been happy.

II. It is an Exercise that hath the re­ality of all the true Pleasures that God usually bestows upon the Sons of Men, in this Vale of Tears; whilst the Plea­sures of Sin are false, counterfeit, and momentary: Besides, it is a Preparative for future and greater Joys, when God shall lift up our poor dejected Souls out of their terrestrial Prisons, to the Aethe­real Seats and Offices nearer to himself. To which add, That it hath (as you have heard prov'd) all the outward Ad­vantages we can expect in this state of Darkness and Death. For it hath been evidenced, That nothing can tend more to Health and Long Life, Riches, Cre­dit, Respect; yea, an immortal Name (if any such thing can be obtain'd here, or is worth the pursuit,) than this Great Duty. Thus 'tis an Aggregate of all the poor present Joys of these lower Regi­ons; and an earnest of those of a high­er; and if any thing can make us happy here, 'tis only this.

III. It is an Exercise that the World, as well as Religion, will in some sense exact of us: For though Christianity requires stricter Rules of Discipline for the Body, [Page 146] by how much its Principles are higher, nobler, and more remov'd from Corpo­reity; yet Autarchy is daily (and in some respects must be) used in every condition of Life. Every prudent Man must use it, and so hath done from the beginning; and that Man doth not live who denies himself nothing. If mor­tal Desires were all to be satisfied, they would be soon too clamorous to be endu­red, and would, in a short time, destroy themselves as well as us. We daily de­ny our selves some thing, and look upon it to be no burthen, but are content so to do. Subjects deny themselves the Pleasures of Regality, and Princes wil­lingly relinquish the Liberty and Reces­ses of Subjects. The poor are content­ed [...]o fare hard, and be without the Va­rieties of the Rich Man's Table, and the Rich Man is forc'd to want the Appetite and Freedom of the Poor. We look upon it to be our Fate to be without ma­ny things, upon prudential and secular Accounts. The World will enjoin Self-Government, without the censure of Ty­ranny, and why may not Religion? Be but then as wife for your Soul as you are [Page 147] for your Body or Estate, and you need no more. The other World may sure engage you as far as this.

IV. And Lastly (that I may come nearer your self, and your present Cir­cumstances), It is an Exercise that can only suit with your Education under the best Discipline and the most learned place under Heaven▪ It is the true End of all your Studies at School and in the Univer­sity. It is the Aim of those excellent Men that have the educating of Youth, the cultivating of Natures, and the dres­sing of Souls in every Seminary of Lear­ning. It is the End of your Friends Cares and Fears for you; of the Sciences that you have studied, and the Degrees you have taken: and particularly of the highest and most useful Science, called Moral Philosophy. As to Physicks, there be many things in Nature inexpli­cable, and so are like to remain till this Dream of Life is over: And other things are explicated several ways, by several Men, endlesly confuting each other (so that some have concluded to sit down with a Resolution to profess to know no­thing;) but Morality, or the Doctrine [Page 148] of conforming our Manners to the Rules of Vertue, is plain, easie, and certain. And while other Sciences may be per­verted to vain and sinful Ends and Pur­poses, the Morality of the Schools is the Hand-maid to that of Divinity, and leads to that we learn of Christ. It has an inherent holiness in it, and is not subject to Perversions; and the Moralist shall he still accounted (as he was once by the Oracle) the wisest and the best Man: For this Learning (especially that part that teaches you to govern your self) è coelo descendit, descended from above, and directs us thither.

§. 14. Nor are you to deferr the Duty of Autarchy, or the governing your self till Old Age or a fiter Season in your Judgment, but set your self to the pre­sent Practice of it. And against the de­laying of this or any other Duty, I must lay before you these Five Considerations.

1. Our Life is uncertain, neither have we here a continuing City, but must, we know not how soon, be turn'd out into the vast Abyss of Eternity to seek one. In all the Periods of our Time, Death attends us as well as in Old Age, and our [Page 149] last Day is both certain and uncertain to us: For God, when he sent us hither, al­lotted us our times, long or short, ac­cording to his Will and our Necessities, and in proportion to our Wants and his Goodness. And he hath wisely hid the Bounds and Limits of these our times in Darkness and unknown Futurity; so that we cannot find them out till we have passed them: And this the rather, that no Man might presume upon his remaining Sand, deferr Repentance, or depend upon any but God for Life. That we might always expect, what (for ought we know) may befal us at any time, and make every Day our last, because it may prove so.

2. Though we cannot find out the Di­mensions of our Lives, which are hid with God, and beyond which we cannot pass, as Job tells us, Job 14. 5. Yet, I suppose, it lies in our own power to shorten them, and so curtail that Blessing that Heaven design'd for us: For I con­ceive, that those Terms and Limits are assign'd Conditionally, and upon sup­position of our using the best Means and right Management of our selves. And, [Page 150] consequently, in these licentious Times, few Men reach those Bounds set by God and Nature: And though, it may be, we cannot enlarge those Terms set for us (which I am apt to believe, in com­pliance with Job's Words afore-mention­ed;) yet it doth not follow but we may shorten them. Thus Excesses carry us off betimes; and Debauchery dispatches us in a few Years: the Sword hath slain its thousands; but Sensuality its ten thou­sands. It is beyond the power of Phy­sick to restore what we consume and de­stroy; and we are most of us at all times, and all of us at some time or other (God forgive us) a kind of felo de se's, or Self-Murtherers. Autarchy must there­fore be begun betimes, because it can then only bring us to our Journey's end, and save us from the imputation of contribu­ting to our own Death.

3. 'Tis a foolish and dangerous thing to put off that which we must, not only begin, but perfectly exercise at one time or other, or else be miserable. It is con­trary to all the Methods of Wisdom and Prudence in the world, to deferr a thing of that infinite concern to us, as [Page 151] Salvation, or the Means requisite there­unto. Procrastination may possibly make us miserable in a moment, but it can never do us the least good.

4. God, with whom are the Measures of Life, and the fatal Bounds which we may not pass, may justly resent our de­lay, and offer us his Grace no more. He that slights his great Concerns in this World, when he hath Opportunity, may justly have that Opportuity taken away from him; and who knows but God may enlarge or abbreviate our Lives, accor­ding as we use or abuse his Tenders of Grace. However, the Door may be shut, and the day of Salvation may end before that of Nature. The Scripture tells us, To him that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance; but from him that hath not, shall be taken away that which he seemeth to have.

5. And Lastly, Procrastinators seldom begin, much less finish any Religious Work. And there is this reason to be given for it, The same Cause which makes you deferr a thing to day, will to morrow, and so forward. And if Diffi­culty, Idleness, or Want of Inclination [Page 152] be that cause to day, it will be more to morrow, and so forward. The longer the work of Self-Conquest is deferr'd, the harder it will grow, till it becomes insu­perable, and the more will be your A­version to it. The Flesh, which at first is tractable and tender, will (if left to its own Management) become stubborn and hard to be bowed. And therefore it hath been observed, That Procrastinati­on is not only a Sign but a Cause of final Impenitency. Remember, therefore, the Sentence with which a late pi­ous Author concludes his Book, out of the Mouth of the wise Siracides. Make no tarrying to turn to the Lord, and put it not off from day to day. Ecclus. 5. 7.

§. 15. The Conclusion of all shall be hortative, and (that it may have the more Effect) in the words of the di­vine Psalmist quoted and approv'd of by St. Peter; and so declaring the Sense of the Old and New Law about the Duty of Autarchy, and its present Reward. Psal. 34. 12, &c. and 1 Pet. 3. 10, &c. What Man is he that desireth Life, and lo­veth many days, that he may see good? Keep thy Tongue from evil, and thy Lips [Page 153] from speaking guile. Depart from evil and do good, seek peace and ensue it. For the Eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his Ears are open to their prayers; but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth. In which words the great Duty is Autarchy, which consists (1.) in the Government of the Tongue, from Raillery and Falshood; (2.) of the Actions, in declining every evil Act, and doing that which is good; (3.) of the Mind, that it be free from the unruly Passions, peaceable in it self, and peace­able with all men. Thus for the Duty; then for the Reward, It in­closes the Duty on all sides, that one may not be seen without the other. It promises (1.) Temporal Blessings, as most agreeable and taking with flesh and blood, viz. Long Life, Many Days, and Enjoyment of Good in them: And then adds. (2.) Spiritual Blessings, and these follow the Duty; God's Eyes, i. e. his gracious Aspect or Providence, watch­es over the righteous, and his Ears are open to their Prayers; whereas, on the other side, he sets himself in opposition to them [Page 154] that do evil, his Face or Countenance is against the Sensualist, not only to cut him off from the earth; but the very Memory of him, his place and name, so that they shall no where be found.

You see then ( Dorotheus) both your Duty and Reward. And what now can be expected from you, upon the whole matter, but that you should act like your self, as a Man of Reason and Understanding; and, having the Candle of the Lord for your Guide, that you follow its Light in all things. Do no­thing therefore, unworthy of your Know­ledge and Learning; and entertain no Thought that may be a shame to either. Bring every intended Action to the Test, and examine it before the upper Court of Judicature. Avoid Self-condemnati­on as the greatest evil; and scorn to do that in private, which you dare not own in publick. Eschew not only every sin­ful, but every unworthy Action; and abstain not only from Evil, but from the very appearance of it. Desire no­thing but what is necessary and proper for you; and suspect every Licentious Act, though there appears no present Sin [Page 155] in it. Use your Body to some Disci­pline, and accustom it to Disappoint­ments now and then, that it may the ea­sier bear the non-enjoyment of things prohibited. Keep it and its Appetites at a distance and under the rod; and if it rebels, exercise it with Fasting and Ab­stinence. In a word, Be absolute in your self, and tolerate no Resistance there.

§. 16. Thus taught Socrates that li­ving Image of Wisdom, and Plato the God-like, and the rest of the wise and o­bedient Sons of Nature, enlightened only by the glimmering Candle-light of its Laws. Nay, thus taught and liv'd the Holy Jesus, and spent his time here in Fasting, Prayer, and other spiritual Ex­ercises, not out of any necessity in re­spect of himself, but that he might give us an Example: He willingly chose Suf­ferings and Poverty rather than Empire, and preferr'd Sorrow to Mirth, as more proper for a Vale of Tears. Thus liv'd and taught his holy Apostles and first Followers, denying themselves, chasti­sing their Bodies, and keeping them un­der, and that not only for Cure, but for [Page 156] Prevention. And thus liv'd and taught the Primitive Saints for some hundreds of Years; till Iniquity began to abound and the divine Love to wax cold: Many of whom (that they might be more than Conquerours, shew the Power they had over themselves, and avoid Temptati­ons) chose to prevent Death, and die whilst they lived; leave the World, I mean, and all its Vanities and Follies, a­bandon Delights, renounce all humane Conversation, deny themselves even in­nocent Entertainments, and shut them­selves up from the power of Vain-glory and all Society. And this was the Ori­ginal of a Monastick Life.

I know very well that there is no Ne­cessity of going thus far, and that even this sort of Desertion of the World hath degenerated into Hypocrisie. That the blackest Crimes have been acted in the dark, and the greatest Licentiousness un­der the Monk's Cowl and Hood. I know likewise that no Man is necessita­ted to take upon him the Vow of Coeli­bacy, or to forsake the World in that Sense. Our Lot is easier than theirs, who were forced to fly to the Mountains, [Page 157] and spend their times in Solitudes. Re­ligion is (God be thanked) both com­manded and rewarded; and Autarchy ad­mir'd by all, though us'd by few. But this is that I have and must maintain, That we must keep our selves unspotted from the World, and the sinful Lusts of the Flesh. And, in order thereunto, That we must learn the Art of Self-Conquest, by the most convenient and suitable Me­thods; and that we ought to be prepar'd to suffer, though we have no present E­nemy or outward War. That Christia­nity is a spiritual Warfare; and that we have the Devil, and our own Lusts to combate and conquer. And, finally, That those good and wise Men, which like so many Stars illuminate these dark Regions of Sin and Ignorance, ought to be Autarchists.

Shine then (my Dorotheus) amongst these few: for thus only shall you ensure inward Quiet and Peace amongst the Un­certainties of an unconstant World; you will experiment true external Pleasures, besides the Comforts of a pure Consci­ence, which nothing can take from you; you will find inward Pleasure and Peace, [Page 158] if not that which outward, and pro­bably Long Life, Health, Credit, Re­spect, and many good days. The strait Gate will grow wider, and the narrow Path broader, and Autarchy will at last prove your Reward as well as Duty: You will begin here to live the Spiritual Life, the Life of Angels and beatified Souls; which, as you grow older, will become more and more delightful; till at last you meet Death disarm'd of all its Terrours, lovely and charming, because it will conduct your willing Soul to the Regions of Bliss, and to the Company of Angels. Which is the daily Prayer of your Friend, and the Design of these Papers.