EPIC 
f affing, like thin films, from bodies, in form fimilar to 
the fnrfaces of the bodies themfelves, and ftriking upon 
organs fitted to receive them. The mind, or intelledt, 
in which is lodged tire power of thinking, judging, and 
determining, is compofed of particles mob fubtle in their 
nature, and capable of the inofl rapid motion. The feat 
of this mod excellent part of the foul, feems to be in the 
middle of the bread, or the heart, which we perceive to 
be the region of thofe aft'eCtions which are excited by 
cogitation. Thought is produced by fubtle images, which 
find their way through the body, and, when they arrive 
at the intellect, move it to think. The affedlions and 
padions of the foul may be reduced to two, pleafure and 
pain: the former, natural and agreeable ; the latter, un¬ 
natural and troitblefome. Whild all the parts of the 
foul remain in their natural date, it experiences nothing 
but pleafurable tranquillity f but from the various mo¬ 
tions which take place either in ourfelves, or in the ob¬ 
jects round us, the foul is liable either to be dilated by 
the approach of images fuitable to its nature, and there¬ 
fore pleafant, or to be contracted by contrary impredions. 
Sleep is produced when the parts of the foul which are 
at other times diffufed through the body are reprclfed or 
feparated by the aCtion of the air, or of food. Dreams 
are the effects of images cafually dying about, which 
from their extreme tenuity penetrate the body and drike 
upon the mind, exciting an imaginary perception of thofe 
things of which they are images. Death is the privation 
of fenfation, in confequence of the feparation of the foul 
from the body, when the former is difperfed into the 
corpufcles or atoms of which it was compofed, and there¬ 
fore can no longer be capable of thought or perception. 
In the heavens, or ethereal regions, the fun, moon, and 
fiars, appear to be berg bodies; or they may be fmooth 
mirrors, from which bright fiery particles flowing through 
the ethereal region, are reflected to the earth ; or they 
may be deep veffels, containing fires, &c. The apparent 
motion of the heavenly bodies may arife from the revo¬ 
lution of the whole heaven in which they are fixed, like 
nails in a folid body ; or by the revolution of the bodies 
themfelves through the heavens. The caufe of the mo¬ 
tion of the heavenly bodies may either be an internal 
neceflity in the nature of the bodies themfelves, or the 
external prefl’ureof fome ethereal fluid: but to albert any 
thing podtively upon this fubjeCt, becomes thofe who 
ad'eCt-an odentatious difplay of knowledge. The opinion 
concerning the exidence of the gods is an innate prin¬ 
ciple, producing univerfal content; it mud therefore be 
true. But it is inconfident with our natural notions of the 
gods, as happy and immortal beings, to fuppofe that they 
encumber themfelves with the management of the world, 
or are fubjeCt to the cares and padions which mud necef- 
farily attend fo great a charge. We are therefore to con¬ 
ceive, that the gods have no intercourfe with mankind, 
r.or any concern with the affairs of the world. Neverthe- 
lefs, on account of their excellent natures, they are pro¬ 
per objeCts of reverence and worfhip. Becaufe the hu¬ 
man figure is the mod perfed, and the only form that 
admits of reafon and virtue, we mud conceive that the 
gods refemble men in their external fhape ; but we are 
not to fuppofe them to be grofs bodies, confiding of fledi 
and blood, but thin ethereal fubdances, endued with fen¬ 
fation and intellect, and, from their peculiar nature, in¬ 
capable of decay. The place of -heir refidence is un¬ 
known to mortals ; but we may be adured that, wherever 
it be, it is the mandon of perfeCt purity, tranquillity, 
and happinefs. 
In this fumtnary of Epicurus’s Sydem of Phyfics will 
be found fuch a degree of ignorance with refpeCt to the 
true principles of the phenomena of nature, as fhews the 
author to have been very ill qualified to folve the grand 
roblem concerning the origin and formation of the world, 
t involves in it wild and fanciful hypothefes, which are 
cot only unfupported by natural appearances, but con¬ 
trary to the known and indifputable laws of nature. 
U R U S. -S5Q 
Though his fydem admits the exidence of gods, yet the 
idea which it gives concerning their nature, is degrading 
to the proper character of the Deity, and cannot be at 
all explained in congruity with the fundamental princi¬ 
ples of his own philofophy. Epicurus’s Ethics conditute 
tire lead exceptionable part of his fydem, and, when fairly 
conddered, will be found for the mod part conformable to 
reafon and nature. The following is a futnmary of them. 
The end of living, or the ultimate good, which is to be 
fought for its own fake, is happinefs; yet men, for the 
mod part, fail in the purfuit of this end, either becaufe 
they do not form a right idea of the nature of happinefs, 
or becaufe they do not make ufe of proper means to attain 
it. Since it is every man’s intered to be happy through 
the whole of life, it is the wifdom of every one to employ 
philofophy in the fearch of it. The happinefs which be¬ 
longs to man is that date in which he enjoys as many of 
the good things, and differs as few of the evils, incident 
to human nature, as podible ; pading his days in a fmooth 
courfe of permanent tranquillity. It is impoflible that 
perfeft happinefs can be poffefled without ti e pleafure 
that attends freedom from pain, and the enjoyment of the 
good things of life. Pleafure is in its nature good, as 
pain is in its nature evil; the one is therefore to be mir- 
fued, and the other to be avoided, for its own fake. Piea- 
fure or pain is not only good, or evil in itfelf, but t! e 
meafure of what is good or evil in every object of defire 
or averlion ; for the ultimate reafon why we purfue one 
thing and avoid another is, becaufe we expeCt pleafure 
from the former, and apprehend pain from the latter. 
Although all pleafure is edentially good, and all paia 
edentially evil, it doth not thence necefl'arily follow, that 
in every bugle inflance the one ought to be purfued, and 
the other to be avoided ; but reafon is to be employed in 
didinguidiing and comparing the nature and degrees of 
each, that the refult may be a wife choice of that which 
fhall appear to be, upon the whole, good. There are 
two kinds of pleafure ; one confiding in a date of red, in 
which both body and mind are undidurbed by any kind of 
pain ; the other ariling from an agreeable agitation of the 
fenfes, producing a correfpondent emotion in the foul. 
It is upon the former of thefe that the enjoyment of life 
chiefly depends. Happinefs may therefore be faid to 
condd in bodily eafe and mental tranquillity. It is the 
office of reafon to confine the purfuit of pleafure within 
the limits of nature, in order to the attainment of that 
happy date, in which the body is free from every kind of 
pain, and the mind from all perturbation. This date 
mud not, however, be conceived to be perfeCt in propor¬ 
tion as it is inactive and torpid, but in proportion as all 
the functions of life are vigoroufly and pieafantly per¬ 
formed. This happy date can only be attained by a pru¬ 
dent care of the body, and a Ready government of the 
mind. The difeafes of the body are to be prevented by 
temperance, or cured by medicine, or rendered tolerable 
by patience. Againd the difeafes of the mind, philofo¬ 
phy provides fufficient antidotes. The indruments which 
it employs for this purpofe are the virtues; the root of 
which, whence all the reft proceed, is prudeqee. This 
virtue comprehends the whole art of living difcreetly, 
juftly, and honourably, and is in faCt the fame thing with 
wifdom. It indruCts men to free their underftandings 
from the clouds of prejudice ; to exercife temperance 
and fortitude in the government of themfelves ; and to 
praCtife juftice towards others. Although pleafure, or 
happinefs, which is the end of living, be fuperior to vir¬ 
tue, which is only the means, it is every one’s intereft to 
praCtife all the virtues; for in a happy life pleafure can 
never be feparated from virtue. A prudent man, in order 
to tecure his tranquillity, will confult his natural difpo- 
fition in the choice of his plan of life. Temperance is 
that difereet regulation of the defires and padions by 
which we are enabled to enjoy pleafures without fu(Faring 
any confequent inconvenience. They who maintain fuch 
n telecommand as never to be enticed by the profpeCt 
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