SECT. XXXIX. 8. GENERATION. 599 



This idea of the gradual generation of all things 

 feems to have been as familiar to the ancient philo- 

 fophers as to the modern ones ; and to hav 7 e given 

 i ife to the beautiful hieroglyphic figure of the ^TOV 

 ov, or fir II great egg, produced by NIGHT, that is, 

 whofe origin is involved in obfcurity a and animated 

 by EO-, that is, by DIVINE LOVE j from whence 

 proceeded all things which exift. 



Conclufton. 



VIIL i. CAUSE AND EFFECT may be confidered 

 as the progreflion,or fucceflive motions, of the parts 

 of the great fyftem of Nature. The ilate of things 

 at this moment is the effect of the (late of things, 

 which exiiled in the preceding moment; and the 

 caule of the ftate of things, which fhall exiit in the 

 next moment. 



Thefe caufes and effects may be more eafily com- 

 prehended, if motion be conlidered as a change of 

 the figure of a group of bodies, as piopofed in Seel:. 

 XIV. 2. 2. inafmuch as our ideas of vilible or tan- 

 gible objects are more diflinct, than our abilracled 

 ideas of their motions. Now the change of the 

 configuration of the fyrlem of nature at this mo- 

 ment niu ft be an efFect of the preceding configura- 

 tion, for a change of configuration cannot exift 

 without a previous configuration ; ?nd the proxi- 

 mate caufe of every effect mud immediately precede 

 that effect. For example, a moving ivory ball could 

 not proceed onwaids, unlefs it had previously began 

 to proceed ; or unlefs an impulfe had been previ- 

 oufly given it ; which previous motion or impulfe 

 conttitutes a part of the laft lunation of things. 



As the effects produced in this moment of time 

 become caufes in the next, we may confider the pro- 

 grefilve motions of objects as a chain of caufes 



only; 



