Page:Three Books of Occult Philosophy (De Occulta Philosophia) (1651).djvu/499

 corruption, and illuminate them with the light of the living. But now let us see what the Ancients opinion is concerning the dead. When man dies, his body returnes into the earth, from which it was taken: the spirit returnes to the heavens, from whence it descended, as saith the Preacher, The body returnes to the earth from whence it was, & the spirit returnes to God that gave it; which Lucretius hath expressed in these verses;

What came from earth to earth returnes again; What came from God, returnes from whence it came.

But Ovid expressed it better in these verses.

Four things of man there are; Spirit, Soul, Ghost, Flesh; These four fowre places keep and do posess. The earth covers flesh, the Ghost hovers o'er the grave. Orcus hath the soul, Stars do the spirit crave;

The flesh being forsaken, & the body being defunct of life, is called a dead Carkass; Which as say the divines of the Hebrews, is left in the power of the Demon Zazel, of whom it is said in the Scripture, Thou shalt eat dust all thy daies; and elswhere, The dust of the earth is his bread. Now man was created of the dust of the earth, whence also that Demon is called the Lord of flesh, and blood, whilest the body is not expiated and sanctified with due solemnities. Hence not without cause the Ancients ordained expiations of Carkasses, that that which was unclean might be sprinkled with holy water, perfumed with incense, be conjured with sacred orations, have lights set by, as long as it was above ground, and then at length be buried in a holy place. Hence Elpenor in Homer,