Page:The Works of Francis Bacon (1884) Volume 1.djvu/436

 305 THE WISDOM OF THE ANCIENTS. seeing what may come to pass hereafter, esteem ing that best which seems most sweet for the present ; whence it happens that they are over taken with many miseries, difficulties, and cala mities, and so lead their lives almost in perpetual affliction; but yet, notwithstanding, they please their fancy, and out of ignorance of the passages of things, do entertain many vain hopes in their mind, whereby they sometimes, as with sweet .dreams, solace themselves, and sweeten the mise ries of their life. But they that are Prome- theus s scholars, are men endued with prudence, foreseeing things to come, warily shunning and avoiding many evils and misfortunes. But to these their good properties they have this also an nexed, that they deprive themselves and defraud their genius of many lawful pleasures, and divers recreations ; and, which is worse, they vex and torment themselves with cares and troubles, and intestine fears ; for being chained to the pillar of necessity, they are afflicted with innumerable cogi tations, which, because they are very swift, may be fitly compared to an eagle ; and those grip ing, and, as it were gnawing and devouring the liver, unless sometimes as it were by night, it may be they get a little recreation and ease of mind, but so, as that they are again suddenly as saulted with fresh anxieties and fears. Therefore this benefit happens to but a very few of either condition, that they should retain the commodities of providence, and free them selves from the miseries of care and perturbation; neither indeed can any attain unto it but by the assistance of Hercules, that is, fortitude and con stancy of mind, which is prepared for every event, and armed in all fortunes ; foreseeing without fear, enjoying without loathing, and suffering without impatience. It is worth the noting also, that this virtue was not natural to Prome theus, but adventitial, and from the indulgence of another, for no inbred and natural fortitude is able to encounter with these miseries. Moreover this virtue was received and brought unto him from the remotest part of the ocean, and from the sun, that is, from wisdom as from the sun ; and from the meditation of inconstancy, or of the waters of human life, as from the sailing upon the ocean; which two, Virgil hath well conjoined in these verses : &quot; telix qiii potuit rerum cognoscere causas: Quique riietns crimes, et inexorabile fatum Subjecit pedibus, strepitumque Acherontis avari. &quot; Happy is he that knows the cause of things, And that with dauntless courage tread-s upon Ml fear and fates, relentless threatenings, Mid greedy throat of roaring Acheron. Moreover, it is elegantly added for the consola tion and confirmation of men s minds, that this noble hero crossed the ocean in a cup or pan, lest, jierid venture, they might too much fear that the M raits and frailty of their nature will not be capa ble of this fortitude and constancy. Of which very thing Seneca well conceived, when he said, &quot; Magnum est hahere simul fragilitatem hominis, et securitatem Dei.&quot; It is a great matter for hu. man frailty and divine security to be one. and the selfsame time, in one and the selfsame subject. But now we are to step back a little again to that, which by premeditation we past over, lest a breach should be made in those things which were so linked together: that therefore which 1 could touch here is that last crime imputed to Prometheus, about seeking to bereave Minerva of her virginity : for, questionless, it was this heinous offence that brought that punishment of devouring his liver upon him ; which is nothing else but to show, that when we are puffed up with too much learning and science, they go about of tentimes to make even divine oracles subject to sense and reason, whence most certainly follows a continual distraction, and restless griping of the mind ; we must therefore, with a sober and hum ble judgment, distinguish between humanity and divinity, and between the oracles of sense and the mysteries of faith, unless an heretical religion and a commentitious philosophy be pleasing unto us. Lastly, it remains that we say something of the games of Prometheus, performed with burn ing torches, which again hath reference to arts and sciences, as that fire, in whose memory and celebration these games were instituted ; and it contains in it a most wise admonition, that the perfection of sciences is to be expected from succession, not from the nimbleness and prompt ness of one only author : for they that are nim blest in course, and strongest in contention, yet happily have not the luck to keep fire still in their torch, seeing it may be as well extinguished by running too fast as by going too slow. And this running and contending with lamps seems long since to be intermitted, seeing all sciences seem even now to flourish most in their first authors, Aristotle, Galen, Euclid, and Ptolemy ; succes sion having neither effected, nor almost attempted any great matter; it were therefore to be wished that these games, in honour of Prometheus, or human nature, were again restored ; and that matters should receive success by combat and emulation, and not hang upon any one man s sparkling and shaking torch. Men therefore are to be admonished to rouse up their spirits, ard try their strengths and turns, and not refer all to the opinions and brains of a few. And thus have I delivered that which I thought good to observe out of this so well known and common fable ; and yet I will not deny but that there may be some things in it which have an ad mirable consent with the mysteries of Christian religion; and especially that sailing of Hercules in a cnp to set Prometheus at liberty, seems to represent an image of the divine word, coming in flesh, as in a frail vessel, to redeem man from tho