Three Books of Occult Philosophy/Book 1/Chapter 63

by Henry Cornelius Agrippa

Sadness at anothers prosperity, as pity is a certain kind of sadness at anothers misery.

Chapter lxii. Of the Passions of the Mind, their Original, difference, and kinds.

The passions of the mind are nothing else but certain motions or inclinations proceeding from the apprehension of any thing, as of good or evill, convenient or inconvenient. Now these kind of apprehensions are of three sorts, viz., Sensual, Rationall, and Intellectuall. And according to these three, are three sorts of passions in the Soul; For when they follow the sensitive apprehension, then they respect a temporall good or evill, under the notion of profitable, or unprofitable, delightfull and offensive, and are called naturall, or animall passions. When they follow the rational apprehension, and so respect good or bad, under the notions of Vertue or Vice, praise or disgrace, profitable or unprofitable, honest or dishonest, they are called rationall, or voluntary passions. When they follow the Intellectuall apprehension, and respect good or bad, under the notion of just or unjust, true or false, they are called intellectuall passions, or synderesis. Now the subject of the passions of the soul, is the concupitive power of the soul, and is divided into concupiscible, and irascible, and both respect good and bad, but under a different notion. For when the concupiscible power respects good, and evil absolutely; Love or Lust, or on the contrary, hatred is caused: When it respects good, as absent, so desire is caused; or evill, as absent, or at hand, and so is caused horror, flying from, or loathing: or if it respect good, as present, then there is caused delight, mirth, or pleasure; but if evill, as present, then sadness, anxiety, grief. But the irascible power respects good or bad, under the notion of some difficulty; to obtain the one, or avoid the other, and this sometimes with confidence: and so there is caused Hope or Boldness; but when with diffidency, then Despair, and Fear. But when that irascible power riseth into revenge, and this be onely about some evill past, as it were of injury or hurt offered, there is caused Anger. And so we find eleven passions in the mind, which are, Love, Hatred, Desire, Horror, Joy, Grief, Hope, Despair, Boldness, Fear, and Anger.

Chapter lxiii. How the passions of the mind change the proper body, by changing the Accidents, and moving the spirit.

The Phantasie, or imaginative power hath a ruling power over the passions of the soul, when they follow the sensuall apprehension. For this doth of its own power, according to the diversity of the Passions, First of all change the proper body with a sensible transmutation, by changing the Accidents in the body, and by moving the spirit upward or downward, inward, or outward, and by producing divers qualities in the members. So in joy, the spirits are driven outward, in fear, drawn back, in bashfulness, are moved to the brain. So in joy, the heart is dilated outward, by little and little, in sadness, is constringed by little, and little inward. After the same manner in anger or fear, but suddenly. Again anger, or desire of revenge produceth heat, redness, a bitter tast, and a looseness. Fear induceth cold, trembling of the heart, speechlessness, and paleness. Sadness causeth sweat, and a blewish whiteness. Pitty, which is a kind of sadness, doth often ill affect the body of him that takes pitty, that it seems to be the body of another man affected. Also it is manifest, that amongst some lovers there is such a strong tye of love, that what the one suffers, the other suffers. Anxiety induceth dryness, and blackness. And how great heats love stirs up in the Liver, and pulse, Physitians know, discerning by that kind of judgement the name of her that is beloved, in an. So Naustratus knew that Antiochus was taken with the love of Stratonica. It is also manifest that such like Passions, when they are most vehement, may cause death. And this is manifest to all men, that with too much joy, sadness, love, hatred, men many times dye, and are sometimes freed from a disease. So we read, that Sophocles, and Dionysius the Sicilian Tyrant, did both suddenly dye at the news of a Tragicall victory. So a certain woman seeing her son returning from the Canensian battle, dyed suddenly. Now what sadness can do, is known to all. We know that Dogs oftentimes dye with sadness for the death of their masters. Sometimes also by reason of these like Passions, long diseases follow, and are sometimes cured. So also some men looking from an high place, by reason of great fear, tremble, are dim-sighted, and weakened, and sometimes loose their senses. So fears, and falling-sickness, sometimes follow sobbing. Sometimes wonderfull effects are produced, as in the son of Cræsus, whom his mother brought forth dumb, yet a vehement fear, and ardent affection made him speak, which naturally he could never do. So with a suddain fall oftentimes life, sense, or motion on a suddain leave the members, and presently again are sometimes returned. And how much vehement anger, joyned with great audacity, can do, Alexander the great shews, who being circumvented with a battle in India, was seen to send forth from himself lightening and fire. The Father of Theodoricus is said to have sent forth out of his body, sparks of fire; so that sparkling flames did leap out with a noyse. And such like things sometimes appear in beasts, as in Tiberius his horse, which is said to send forth a flame out of his mouth.