Spirits, and was gifted with prophecy; a belief strengthened by the fact that Alexander died soon after.

The earliest of the Grecian teachers of whom we have any record is Orpheus. The general testimony is, that he was a native of Thrace, who, some twelve hundred years before Christ, founded a colony in Greece, and spent most of his life there. Being well acquainted with the religious tenets and ceremonies of his own country, he travelled into Egypt, where he obtained some knowledge of their religious mysteries, and became skilful in music, poetry, philosophy, astrology, and medicine. Thus accomplished, he returned to the Greeks, who were at that time in such a rude condition, that any man of moderate attainments would have seemed a prodigy. Accordingly, he became as famous among them as was Hermes among the Egyptians. It was said his music allured birds, tamed wild beasts, calmed whirlwinds, and drew rocks and stones after him. When his wife Eurydice died, he descended to Tartarus, charmed by his music the three-headed dog that guarded its gates, melted the heart of grim Pluto, and obtained leave to have his beloved wife follow him back to earth, provided he did not look behind him till he arrived in upper air; but, in his eagerness to see Eurydice, he looked too soon, and she disappeared for ever. It has been suggested that this merely signified his great skill in medicine, whereby he rescued his wife from dangerous illness, and afterward lost her by a relapse. He brought from Egypt the doctrine. that stars were animated by Spirits, and the world hatched from a mundane egg by rays of the sun. He taught that there was One invisible God, who contained within himself the germ of all things, and was alternately active and passive. In his active state, successive grades of beings emanated from him, by virtue of an inherent necessity; all partook of his divine nature in different degrees, and all would return to him after progressive purifications. The universe would be destroyed by fire, and renewed. He is said to have been the first who taught the Greeks that the soul lived after death, and would suffer or be rewarded ac

cording to deeds done in the body. It is recorded that he introduced a triform image of Deity. It was a Serpent, with the head of a Lion, the head of a Bull, and in the centre the head of a majestic Man, with golden wings upon its shoulders.

The following are among the recorded maxims of Orpheus: "There is One Unknown Being, prior to all beings, and exalted above all. He is the author of all things, even of the ethereal sphere, and of all things below it. He is Life, Counsel, and Light, which three names all signify One Power, the same that drew all things visible and invisible out of nothing. We will sing that eternal, wise, and allperfect Love, which reduced the chaos into order."

"The empyrean, the deep Tartarus, the earth, the ocean, the immortal gods and goddesses, all that is, all that has been, and all that will be, was originally contained in the fruitful bosom of Jupiter. He is the first and the last, the beginning and the end. All beings derive their origin from him. He is the Primeval Father, the immortal virgin, the life, the cause, the energy of all things. There is One only Power, One only Lord, One Universal King."

"Souls are in this world as a punishment for sins committed in a pre-existent state. The body is a prison, wherein the soul is kept till its faults are expiated."

The next celebrated teachers were the Seven Wise Men of Greece; among whom the most conspicuous was Thales, about six hundred years before Christ. According to the general custom, he went to Egypt in search of wisdom, and is said to have spent several years in intercourse with the learned priests. He seems to have carried knowledge with him, for he taught them how to measure the height of the pyramids by their shadow at noon; a process previously unknown to their mathematicians. After his return, he foretold a celebrated eclipse, which happened as predicted. By astronomical calculations, he likewise foresaw that a certain year would be uncommonly productive, and he bought up all the olives in the neighbourhood before their season. The crops proved very abundant, and he

made large profits; but he assembled the neighbouring traders and voluntarily divided with them. The following are recorded among his sayings:

"The most ancient of all things is God, for he is uncreated."

"The universe is the beautiful work of God."

"Be careful not to do that yourself, which you would blame in another."

"True happiness consists in perfect health, a moderate fortune, and a life free from effeminacy and ignorance."

"In misfortune it may be some consolation to learn that our tormentors are as unhappy as ourselves;" a maxim in which he certainly did not rise above the level of his age. He maintained that death does not differ from life; that one is the same as the other. Being asked if a man could conceal evil actions from the gods, he replied: "How can actions be concealed, when even our most secret thoughts are known to them ?"

Pittacus, another of the wise men, said: "Do not that to your neighbour, which you would take ill from him." "Speak evil of no one; not even of your enemies." Bias said: "If you are handsome, do handsome things; if deformed, supply the defects of nature by your virtues." "Whatever good you do, ascribe it to the gods."

Pythagoras, one of the most celebrated of the ancients, is supposed to have been born about five hundred and eighty-six years before Christ. There are many stories of his having visited wise men of different countries, but some of them are positively contradicted by dates. One fact, as reliable as anything we can learn from ancient history, is that he went into Egypt, carrying an introduction from the king of Samos to Amasis, king of Egypt, who was a great patron of learned men, and particularly partial to Grecians. Amasis requested the priests of Heliopolis to instruct him in the mysteries, but their aversion to admit a foreigner was so strong, that they evaded the royal recommendation by advising him to go to the college at Memphis, because it was of greater antiquity. When he arrived there, the

same pretext was used to dismiss him to Thebes. The Theban priests, unwilling to refuse the express wish of their king, and yet reluctant to grant it, ordained such troublesome and severe ceremonies of admission as they thought would discourage the importunate stranger. But so great was his eagerness for knowledge, that he patiently endured all they required, though he nearly lost his life in the process. He is said to have passed twenty-two years in Egypt, during which he became familiar with their most learned priests, and perfect master of their three styles of writing, the common, the hieroglyphic, and the sacerdotal. He returned to his own country at the age of forty, and soon after established a school of philosophy in that part of Italy called Magna Grecia, on account of the number of Grecians settled there. He is said to have been beautiful and majestic beyond all the men of his time. He used to wear a long white robe, and a flowing beard; some say, a golden crown on his head. He preserved great gravity and dignity of demeanour, and had such command of himself that it is said his countenance was never seen to express grief, joy, or anger. He confined himself to frugal vegetable diet, and rejected pulse and beans. He was much influenced by music, and often sang hymns from Hesiod, Homer, and Thales, to preserve the tranquillity of his mind. He was opposed to the sacrifice of animals, and worshipped at an altar which had never been polluted with blood. Seeing a large draught of fishes in a net, he is reported to have purchased them, and put them back into the sea, as a lesson of humanity. Deeming it irreverent to invoke the deities by name, he advised his disciples, when they wished to asseverate very solemnly, to swear by the number four; in which, for certain mysterious reasons, he believed the perfection of the soul consisted. He was married and had sons, but taught, very strictly, the union of one man with one woman only. Before his time, it was usual to call a teacher a sage, signifying a wise man; but he called himself by the new name of philosopher, a lover of wisdom, saying: "There is none wise but

God." People of all classes flocked to hear him, and listened with the greatest reverence. The Crotonians urged him to preside over their senate, consisting of a thousand men. Wherever his teachings prevailed, sobriety and temperance displaced licentiousness and luxury. He had two methods of teaching, one public and the other private. His public teaching consisted principally of practical morals, such as respect to parents and magistrates, conformity to the laws and customs of one's country, strict regard to truth, and worship of the gods by simple offerings and with purity of heart. He gave rational maxims concerning the union of the sexes and birth of children. He taught that it was a wrong done to offspring when parents indulged in licentiousness, or ate or drank to excess, or partook of unwholesome food; that it was a duty to avoid everything which might render children otherwise than healthy, vigorous, and well formed. He exerted his influence to suppress wars and quarrels. He used to say, we ought to wage war only against ignorance of the mind, passions of the heart, distempers of the body, sedition in cities, and ill will in families. He attached mystical sig nificance to numbers, especially three, and three times three. When speaking of God and the soul, instead of words, he often made use of figures, which were incomprehensible to all but the initiated. This was perhaps done to avoid alarming popular prejudices. To his private school only a select body of disciples were admitted, after careful observation of their countenances, characters and manners, and a strict probationary discipline. They were required to eat no animal food, and drink only water, except a very small portion of wine measured out to them in the evening. They must be inured to fatigue, sleep little, dress very simply, never return reproaches for reproaches, but bear contradiction or ridicule with the utmost humility. An initiatory silence of two years, sometimes of five, was enjoined, to cure them of conceit and loquacity. During these years of probation, they were only permitted to hear his teachings through a curtain. Those who had VOL. I.-29

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