114 OF THE ADVANCEMENT OF LEARNING 



that of Fracastorius, who, though he pretended not to 

 make any new philosophy, yet did use the absolute- 

 ness of his own sense upon the old ; and that of Gilbertus 

 our countryman, who revived, with some alterations 

 and demonstrations, the opinions of Xenophanes ; and 

 any other worthy to be admitted. 



6. Thus have we now dealt with two of the three 

 beams of man's knowledge ; that is radius directum, 

 which is referred to nature, radius refractus, which is 

 referred to God, and cannot report truly because of the 

 inequaUty of the medium. There resteth radius reflexus, 

 whereby man beholdeth and contemplateth himself. 



IX. 1. We come therefore now to that knowledge 

 whereunto the ancient oracle directeth us, which is the 

 knowledge of ourselves ; which deserveth the more 

 accurate handling, by how much it toucheth us more 

 nearly. This knowledge, as it is the end and term of 

 natiu"al philosophy in the intention of man, so not- 

 withstanding it is but a portion of natural philosophy 

 in the continent of nature. And generally let this be 

 a rule, that all partitions of knowledges be accepted 

 rather for lines and veins than for sections and separa- 

 tions ; and that the continuance and entireness of 

 knowledge be preserved. For the contrary hereof hath 

 made particular sciences to become barren, shallow, 

 and erroneous, while they have not been nourished 

 and maintained from the common fountain. So we 

 see Cicero the orator complained of Socrates and his 

 school, that he was the first that separated philosophy 

 and rhetoric ; whereupon rhetoric became an empty 

 and verbal art. So we may see that the opinion of 

 Copernicus touching the rotation of the earth, which 

 astronomy itself cannot correct, because it is not 

 repugnant to any of the phainomena, yet natural philo- 

 sophy may correct. So we see also that the science of 

 medicine if it be destituted and forsaken by natural 

 philosophy, it is not much better than an empirical 

 practice. With this reservation therefore we proceed 

 ta human philosophy or humanity, which hath two 

 paribs : the one considereth man segregate or dis- 



