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lenties? a mere debtor to God, to thy parents, to the earth, to all the creatures. * But we may if we please use the method of the Platonists, who reduce all the causes and arguments for humility, which we can take from ourselves, to these seven heads. 1. The spirit of a man is light and troublesome. 2. His body is brutish and sickly. 3. He is constant in his folly and error, and inconstant in his manners and good purposes. 4. His labours are vain, intricate, and endless. 5. His fortune is changeable, and seldom pleasing, never perfect. 6. His wisdom comes not till he be ready to die, that is, till he be past using it. 7. His death is certain, always ready at the door, but never far off. Upon these or the like meditations, if we dwell or frequently retire to them, we shall see nothing more reasonable than to be humble, and nothing more foolish than to be proud.

Acts or Offices of Humility.

The grace of humility is exercised by these following rules:

1. Think not thyself better for any thing that happens to thee from without; for although thou mayst by gifts bestowed upon thee be better than another, as one horse is better than another, that is of more use to others; yet, as thou art a man, thou hast nothing to commend thee to thyself but that only by which thou art a man, that is, by what thou choosest and refusest.

* Apuleius de Dæmon. Socrates.

2. Humility consists not in railing against thyself, or wearing mean clothes, or going softly and submissively; but in hearty and real evil or mean opinion of thyself. Believe thyself an unworthy person heartily, as thou believest thyself to be hungry, or poor, or sick, when thou art so.

3. Whatsoever evil thou sayest of thyself, be content that others should think to be true: and if thou callest thyself fool be not angry if another say so of thee. For if thou thinkest so truly, all men in the world desire other men to be of their opinion; and he is an hypocrite that accuses himself before others, with an intent not to be believed. But he that calls himself intemperate, foolish, lustful, and is angry when his neighbour calls him so, is both a false and a proud person.

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4. Love to be concealed, and little esteemed *: be content to want praise, never being troubled when thou art slighted or undervalued; for thou canst not undervalue thyself, and if thou thinkest so meanly as there is reason, no contempt will seem unreasonable, and therefore it will be very tolerable.

5. Never be ashamed of thy birth, or thy parents, or thy trade, or thy present employment, for the meanness or poverty of any of them, and when there is an occasion to speak of them, such an occasion as would invite you to speak of any thing that pleases you, omit it not; but speak as readily and indiffe

* Ama nesciri, et pro nihilo reputari. Gerson.

+ Il villan nobilitado non cognosce parentado. Chi del arte sua se vergogna sempre vive con vergogna.

rently of thy meanness as of thy greatness. Primislaus, the first king of Bohemia, kept his country shoes always by him, to remember from whence he was raised and Agathocles, by the furniture of his table, confessed, that from a potter he was raised to be the king of Sicily.

6. Never speak any thing directly tending to thy praise or glory; that is, with a purpose to be commended, and for no other end. If other ends be mingled with thy honour, as if the glory of God, or charity, or necessity, or any thing of prudence be thy end, you are not tied to omit your discourse or your design that you may avoid praise, but pursue your end, though praise come along in the company. Only let not praise be the design.

7. When thou hast said or done any thing for which thou receivest praise or estimation, take it indifferently and return it to God; reflecting upon him as the giver of the gift, or the blesser of the action, or the aid of the design; and give God thanks for making thee an instrument of his glory, for the benefit of others.

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8. Secure a good name to thyself by living virtuously and humbly: but let this good name be nursed abroad; and never be brought home to look upon it: let others use it for their own advantage; let them speak of it if they please; but do not thou at all use it, but as an instrument to do God glory, and thy neighbours more advantage. Let thy face, like Moses', shine to others, but make no looking-glasses for thyself.

9. Take no content in praise when it is offered thee: but let thy rejoicing in God's gift be allayed with fear, lest this good bring thee to evil. Use the praise as you use your pleasure in eating and drinking: if it comes, make it do drudgery-let it serve other ends, and minister to necessities and to caution, lest by pride you lose your just praise which you have deserved; or else by being praised unjustly, you receive shame unto yourself with God and wise men.

10. Use no stratagems and devices to get praise. Some use to enquire into the faults of their own actions or discourses on purpose to hear that it was well done or spoken, and without fault: others bring the matter into talk, or thrust themselves into company, and intimate and give occasion to be thought or spoke of. These men make a bait to persuade themselves to swallow the hook, till by drinking the waters of vanity they swell and burst.

11. Make no suppletories to thyself, when thou art disgraced or slighted, by pleasing thyself with supposing thou didst deserve praise, though they understood thee not, or enviously detracted from thee: neither do thou get to thyself a private theatre * and flatterers, in whose vain noises and phantastic praises thou mayst keep up thine own good opinion of thyself.

12. Entertain no fancies of vanity and private whispers of the devil of pride: such as was that of Nabuchadonozor: Is not this great Babylon which I

* Alter alteri satis amplum theatrum sumus, satis unus, satis nullus. Sen.

have built for the honour of my name, and the might of my majesty, and the power of my kingdom? some phantastic spirits will walk alone, and dream waking of greatnesses, of palaces, of excellent orations, full theatres, loud applauses, sudden advancement, great fortunes; and so will spend an hour with imaginative pleasure; all their employment being nothing but fumes of pride, and secret indefinite desires and significations of what their heart wishes. In this, although there is nothing of its own nature directly vicious, yet it is either an ill mother or an ill daughter, an ill sign or an ill effect, and therefore at no hand consisting with the safety and interests of humility.

13. Suffer others to be praised in thy presence, and entertain their good and glory with delight; but at no hand disparage them, or lessen the report, or make an objection; and think not the advancement of thy brother is a lessening of thy worth. But this act is also to extend further.

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14. Be content that he should be employed, and thou laid by as unprofitable; his sentence approved, thine rejected; he be preferred, and thou fixed in a low employment.

15. Never compare thyself with others, unless it be to advance them and to depress thyself. To which purpose we must be sure, in some sense or other, to think ourselves the worst in every company where we come: one is more learned than I am; another is more prudent; a third more honourable; a fourth more chasté; or he is more charitable, or less proud. For

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