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if the Gods would be heard by them alone. According to Lucian, Suidas, &c. the Theology or Worfhip of the Gods, about which the Magi were employ'd, was little more than the Diabolical Art of Divination. Hence (Mtyd*t Uriel] y taken, fignifies Divination. Forfbyry de- fines the Magi well, Circa Dfaina Sapieittes ££? in i'tfdem mini ftr antes ; adding, that the word Magus implied as much in the Perfian Tongue. Thefe People, fays he, are held in fuch Veneration among the Ferfians, that Darius; the Son of Hyftafpes, among other things, had this engraven on his Monument, that he was the Mafter of the Magi, Their Defendants, the modern Magi, are divided into three Gaffes ? whereof the firft and rnoft learned neither eat nor kill Animals, but adhere to the old Inftitution of abstaining from living Creatures. The Magi of the fecond Clafs refrain only from tame Animals ; nor do the laft kill all indifferently 5 it being the firm and diftinguifhing Dogma of them all, rhji ( weT5//4 y '^ i " 7I f «*'» that, there it a Tranfmigrat'wn of Souls. To intimate the Similitude between Animals and Men j they ufe to call the latter by the Name of the former ; thus their Fellow-Priefts they call'd Zhns t the Priefteffes Lionejfes, the Servants Crows, 6cc. Fhilo Jud<eus defcribes rtheMagf to be diligent Inquirers into Na- ture, out of the Love they bear to Truth j and who fer- ting themfelves apart for thefe things, contemplate the Divine Virtues the more clearly, and initiate others in the fame Myfteries.
The Origin of Magic and the Magi is afcribed to Zoro- afier, Salmajius derives the very Name from Zoroafter, who, he fays, was furnam'd Mog, whence Magus, Others, inftead of making him the Author of the Ferfian Philo- fophy, make him only the Reftorer and Improver there- of 5 alledging that many of the Ferfian Rites, in Ufe among the Magi, were borrowed from the Zabii of the Chaldeans, who agreed in many things with the Magi of the Ferfians ; whence fome make the Name Magus com- mon both to the Chaldeans and Ferfians. Thus Plutarch mentions, that Zoroafier inftituted Magi among the Chal- deans ; in imitation whereof the Ferfians had theirs too.
The Learned are in great perplexity about the Ori- gin of the Word. Fldto, Xewfhon, Herodotus, Strabo, &c. fetch its Origin from the Ferfian Language ; in which it fignified a Ftiefi, or Perfon to officiate in Holy Things, its Druid among the Gauls, Gymnofopbiji among the In- dians, and Lcvite among the Hebrews. Others derive jt from the Greek uijai, great, which being borrowed of the Greeks by the Ferfians, was returned in the form of f*ay>t ; but Vojfius, with more probability, brings it from the Hebrew Hin, haga, to meditate 5 whence is formed QUHO, Maaghim, in LatinMeditabundi, q. d. People addiBed toMsd't- tation.
MAGIC, a Science that teaches to perform wonder- ful and furprizing Effects. The Word Magic originally carried with it a very innocent, nay laudable, Meaning ; being ufed purely to fignify the Study of Wifdom ; but in regard the antient Magi, or Magicians, engaged them felves in Aftrology, Divination, Sorcery, ££c. the Term Magic in time became odious, and was only ufed to fig- nify a Science fcandalous and unlawful. If any wonder how fovain and deceitful a Science mould gain fo much Credit and Authority over Mens Minds, Pliny gives the Reafon of it 5 "Tis, Jays be, becaufe it has pofleffed it- felf of three Sciences of the rnoft Efteem among Men 5 taking from each, all that is great and marvellous in it. Nobody doubts but it had its firft Origin in Medicine, and that it infinuated itfelf into the Minds of the People under pretence of giving extraordinary Re- medies. To thefe fine Promifes it added every thing in Religion that is pompous and fplendid, and that ap- pears calculated to blind and captivate Mankind. Laft- ty, it mingled judiciary Aftrology with the reft 5 per- fuading People, curious of Futurity, that it faw every thing to come in the Heavens.
Agrifpa divides Magic into three kinds 5 Natural Magic, Celejiial Magic, and Ceremonial or Suferfiitims Magic. Na- tural Magic is no more than the Application of natural active Caufes to pafiive Caufes 5 by means whereof ma- ny furprizing, but yet natural, Effects are produced.
Celejiial Magic borders very nearly on Judiciary Aftro- logy. It attributes to Spirits a kind of Rule or Domi- nion over the Planets 5 and to the Planets a Dominion over Men ; and on thefe Principles builds a ridiculous kind of Syftem.
Superftitioits Magi c confifts in the Invocation of Devils 5 its Effects are ufually evil and wicked ; tho* very ftrange, and furpalfing the Powers of Nature ; produced, by virtue of fome Compact, either tacit or exprefs, with evil Spirits : but the truth is, thefe have not all the Power that is ufually imagined, nor do they produce half thofe Effe&s ordinarily afcribed to them.
Baftifta Porta has written of natural Magic, or of Secrets
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for performing very extraordinary things by natural Caa- fes. The natural Magic of the Chaldeans was nothing but the Knowledge of the Powers of Simples and Minerals, The Magic, which they called Xhemgia, confifted wholly in the Knowledge of the Ceremonies, to be obferved in the Wor/hip of the Gods, in order to be acceptable. By vir- tue of thefe Ceremonies they believed they could con- vert with fpiritual Beings, and cure Difeafes. NWehas published an Apology for all the Great Men fufpefled of Magic. Agriff* fays, that the Words ufed by thofe in compact with the Devil, to invoke him, and to fucceed in what they undertake, are Diesmies jefj net bendoefet dm foima enitemans. There are an hundred other fuperfti- tious Formula's of Words compofed at pleafure, or ga- thered from feveral different Languages, or patch'd from the Hebrew, or formed in imitation of it.
MAGIC LANTHORN, an Optic Machine, bytneans whereof little painted Images are reprefented on an op- pofite Wall of a dark Room, magnified to any Bignefs at pleafure.
ConftruHion of the Magic Lanthorn. A B C D (Taj. 0/ - tich,Fig. io.) is a common Tin Lanthorn, to which is ad- ded a Tube to draw out, F G. In H is fixed a metallic concave Speculum of a Foot diameter at rnoft, or four Inches at leaft ; or, in lieu thereof, near the Kxtremity of the Tube is placed a convex Lens, confiding of a Seg- ment of a fmall Sphere, its Diameter not exceeding a few Inches. In the Focus of the concave Speculum, or Lens, is placed a Lamp L ; within the Tube, where it is foldered to the Side of the Lanthorn, is placed a fmall Lens, convex on both Sides, being a Portion of a fmall Sphere, having its Focus about the Distance of three In- ches. The extreme Part of the Tube F M is fquare, and has an Aperture quite thro' , fo as to receive an oblong Frame N O, paffed thro" it ; in this Frame are round Holes an Inch or two in Diameter. According to the Bignefs of thofe_ Holes are drawn Circles on a plain thin Glafs ; and in thefe Circles are painted any Figures or Images at pleafure, with tranfparent Water Colours. Thefe Images fitted into the Frame, and placed inver- tedly, at a little diflance from the Focus of the Lens I ; will be projected on an oppofite white Wall of a dark Room, prodigiouily magnified in all their Colours, and an erect Situation.
Theory of the Magic Lanthorn. The Lamp being placed in the Focus of the concave Speculum, or any Convex Glafs, the Rays will be propagated parallel to each other, and the Image will be (trongly illumined, and will there- fore emit a great Number of Rays into the Lens I. But being fuppofed to be placed near the Lens I, the inverted Image of the Picture inverted mutt be forrn'd on the oppo- fite Wall, exceedingly magnified after itsRefraftion thro' the Lens; and it will be ftill the more magnified as the Lens is a Segment of a lefs Sphere, and as the Picture is placed nearer the Focus of the Lens ; in a dark Place therefore the Piflure will be reprefented prodigiouily large and extremely vivid. See Lens.
Another Magic Lanthorn. Every thing being managed as in the former, into the Aiding Tube F G, infert ano- ther Convex Lens K, the Segment of a Sphere fomewhat larger than I ; now if the Picture be brought nearer i than to the Diftance of the Focus, the diverging Rays will be propagated as if they proceeded from P : where- fore if the Lens K be fo placed, as that P is very near its Focus, the Image will be exhibited on the Wall ex- ceedingly magnified.
Schol. i . To heighten the Light, Specula are preferred to Lens's ; the Focus of a Speculum being neater than that of the Lens.
2. De Chales orders the Diameter of the Lens I to be two, four, or £ve Digits, and in a fubduple Propor- tion to the other K j i. e. if I be five Digits, K muft be lo : ; and the Diameter of the Speculum, according to the fame, is to be two Digits. Zahniut chufes to have the. Diameter of I f J of a Foot, and that of K one Foot and i, &c.
?. Little Animals being included in the Magic Lanthorn, in the manner obferved in fpeaking of the Microfcope j or any little tranfparent Objects faflened to a Slice of Talk or Glafs, and fubftituted inflead of Images ; the Magic Lanthorn will become a Microfcope.
MAGIC SQUARES, the feveral Numbers that com- pofe any fquare Number; (for Inftance, 1,2,3,4,5, £S?c. to 2 5 inclufive, which compofe the fquare Number 25) being difpofed after each other in a fquare Figure of 2 5 Cells, each in its Cell : if then you change the Order of thefe Numbers, and difpofe them in the Cells, in fuch manner, as that the five Numbers, which fill any Horizontal Rank of Cells, being added together, fhall make the fame Sum, with the five Numbers, in any o- ther Rank of Cells, whether horizontal or vertical ; and even the fame Nu,mber with the five in each of the two Ggggjjg Diagonal
