Neither should the things which happen to sublunary beings be
attributed to either a voluntary decision, or to deliberations of
the universe, or the stars. It is not permissible to imagine that
the divinities sway events in a manner such that some should become
thieves, others should enslave their fellow-beings, or capture cities,
or commit sacrilege in temples, or be cowards, effeminate in their
conduct, or infamous in their morals. To favor such crimes would be
unworthy of men of the most commonplace virtue, let alone divinities.
Besides, what beings would be likely to busy themselves favoring vices
and outrages from which they were not to reap any advantage?
HAVING CONFUTED ASTROLOGY AND DEVILTRY, WORLD INFLUENCE IS ATTRIBUTED
TO THE WORLD-SOUL.
32. Since the influence exteriorly exercised by the heavens on us, on
animals, and on human affairs generally has been excluded from physical
causes (of astrology) and from voluntary decisions of divinities,
it remains for us to find some cause to which it may reasonably be
attributed. First, we will have to admit that this universe is a
single living being, which contains within its own organism all living
beings; and that it contains a single Soul, which is communicated to
all its parts; namely, to all beings that form part of the universe.
Now every being that is contained in the sense-world is a part of the
universe. First, and unrestrictedly, it is a part of the universe by
its body. Then, it is again part of the universe by its soul, but only
so far as it participates (in the natural and vegetative power) of the
universal Soul. The beings which only participate in (the natural and
vegetative power) of the universal Soul are completely parts of the
universe. Those who participate in another soul (the superior power of
the universal Soul), are not completely parts of the universe (because
they are independent by their rational souls); but they experience
passions by the actions of the other beings, as far as they have
something of the universe (so far as by their irrational souls, they
participate in the natural and vegetative power of the universe), and
in the proportion in which they possess some part of the universe. This
universe is therefore a single living being that is self-sympathetic.
The parts that seem distant are not any the less near, as, in each
animal, the horns, nails, fingers, the organs at distance from each
other, feel, in spite of the interval which separates them, the
affection experienced by any other one of them. In fact, as soon as
the parts are similar, even when they are separated by an interval
instead of being placed by each others' side, they sympathize by virtue
of this their similarity, and the action of the distant one is felt by
all the others. Now in this universe which is a single living being,
and which forms a single organism, there is nothing distant enough in
place not to be near because of the nature of this being whose unity
makes it self-sympathetic. When the suffering being resembles the
acting one, it experiences a passion conformable to its nature; when
on the contrary it differs, it experiences a passion that is foreign
to its nature, and painful. It is therefore not surprising that though
the universe be single, one of its parts can exert on another a harmful
influence, since it often happens to ourselves that one of our parts
wounds another by its action; as for instance, that the bile, setting
anger in motion, should crush and tear some other part of the body.
Now something analogous to this bile which excites anger, and to other
parts that form the human body, is discovered in the universe. Even in
plants there are certain things which form obstacles to others, and
even destroy them. Now the world forms not only a single animal, but
also a plurality of animals; each of them, as far as it has a share
in the singleness of the universe, is preserved thereby; but, in so
far as this animal enters into the multiplicity of some other animal,
he can wound it, or be wounded by it, make use of it, or feed on it,
because it differs from itself as much as it resembles itself; because
the natural desire of self-preservation leads us to appropriate what is
suitable to itself, and in its own interest to destroy what is contrary
thereto. Finally, each being, fulfilling its part in the universe, is
useful to those that can profit by its action, and wounds or destroys
those who cannot support it; thus plants are scorched by the passage
of fire, and the little animals are dragged along or trampled by
the greater. This generation and this corruption, this betterment
and deterioration of things render easy and natural the life of the
universe considered as a single living being. Indeed, it would not
otherwise have been possible that the particular beings it contains
should have lived as if they were alone, should possess their ends in
themselves, and should live only for themselves; since they are only
parts, they must, as such, concur in the ends of the whole of which
they are parts; and, so far as they are different, they could not
each preserve its own life, because they are contained in the unity
of the universal life; neither could they entirely remain in the same
state, because the universe must possess permanence, and because of the
universe, permanence consists in ever remaining in motion.