Page:On the Fourfold Root, and On the Will in Nature.djvu/381

 MAGNETISM AND MAGIC. 349

of a man they have in mind, knock a nail into the sole of its foot, and the man is invisibly struck with lameness, until the nail is removed."

p. 307: "We ought to know, that we may convey the spirit of any man into an image, solely by faith and by our strong imagination &hellip;. No incantation is needed, and the ceremonies, drawing of circles, fumigations, seals, &c. &c. are mere humbug to mislead. &mdash; Homunculi and images are made, &c. &c &hellip; by which all the operations, powers and will of man are carried out &hellip;. The human heart is indeed so great a thing, that no one can express it: as God is eternal and imperishable, so also is the heart of man. If we men thoroughly recognised our heart, nothing would be impossible for us on earth. &hellip; Perfect imagination, coming from the stars (astris) arises from the heart."

p. 513: "Imaginatio is confirmed and rendered perfect by the belief that it really takes place: for every doubt injures the effect. Faith must confirm the imagination, for faith decides the will. &hellip; But just the fact that man does not always perfectly imagine, perfectly believe, causes acts to be called uncertain, which nevertheless may certainly and quite well exist." A passage from Campanella's book, De sensu rerum et magia, may serve to elucidate this last sentence. "Efficiunt alii ne homo possit futuere, si tantum credat: non enim potest facere, quod non credit posse facere." [The influence of another can result in a man's inability to perform the act of procreation, if only he believes he is unable to carry it out.] (Lib. iv. c. 18).

Agrippa von Nettesheim 1 speaks in the same sense. Chapter 65: "Non minus subicitur corpus alieno animo quam alieno corpori." [The body is as much subject to the influence of another's spirit as to that of another's body.] and: 2 Chapter 67: "Quidquid dictat animus fortissime odientis, habet efficaciam nocendi et destruendi; similiter et in ceteris, quae affectat animus forti desiderio. Omnia enim, quae tunc agit et dictat ex characteribus, figuris, verbis, sermonibus, gestibus et eiusmodi, omnia sunt adiuvantia appetitum animae et acquirunt mirabiles quasdam virtutes, tum ab anima operantis

1 De occulta philosophia, lib. 1, c. 65.

2 Ibid. c. 67.

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