A treatise on wisdom

Prefatory Note

The interest in the works of Pierre Charron, of which this paraphrase is an outcome, was first awakened by the tribute Buckle pays to him in his *' History of Civilization.'* The strong desire to learn more of this priest and philosopher, " who/' says Buckle, " rose to an elevation which to Montaigne would have been inaccessible/' led to an effort to secure a copy of his " Treatise on Wisdom," and after a long search a quaint and rare translation, made by Samson Lennard early in the seventeenth century, was found in London, upon which the present volume has been based.

vi Prefatory Note.

Having become a true admirer of this great author, I have tried in this enchiridion to faithfully preserve the expression of his views without the wearisome repetitions of a more leisurely age ; to give the crystallized thought without its massive setting, feeling sure that a convenient form of this, his most celebrated work, is all that is needed to win for him a new recognition. The following extract from the *' Memoirs of the Countess de Genlis *' is of peculiar interest :

" Some days before his departure, M. de Talleyrand asked me what orders I had for Paris, when I requested him to send me the work called * La Sagesse de Charron/ Next morning I received a charming note from him, with the book I was desirous of, most elegantly bound, and of an Elzevir edition.

Prefatory Note, vii

*' It happened accidentally that he had this very book, which he kept at the sale of his fine library in London, and took always along with him, as he was very fond of it/'

M. H. N. D.

Introduction

This book requires no apology for its existence, and hence no preface is necessary. The only complete life of its distinguished author is in French, and is not readily accessible ; therefore, by way of introduction, a brief sketch of Pierre Charron's career is given in the belief that some interest will be attached to the record of one who has been permitted to remain for so long a time in comparative obscurity.

Pierre Charron was the son of an humble bookseller, and was born in Paris in 1541. Of his childhood we know nothing beyond that his father

X Introduction.

is credited with the paternity of twenty-five children, and therefore we assume that his playmates were largely members of his own family. Young Charron must have inherited some literary taste, for he chose a scholastic career, and in lieu of turning his attention to business appears to have studied law in Orleans. He completed his studies in Bourges, where he took the doctor's degree, and settled there in the practice of his profession as a lawyer.

Six years of legal experience convinced him that he had made a mistake, and he then took holy orders. The Bishop of Bazas, Arnaud de Pontac, assigned him certain missions in Gascony and Languedoc, where his success was such that he became lecturer on divinity in Agen, Bordeaux, Cahors, and Condom, and his remarkable eloquence as a preacher resulted in his appointment as

Introduction. xi

Notwithstanding the reputation that he had acquired as a brilliant orator, and the opportunities now afforded him for advancement, he relinquished his appointment, and in 1588 returned to Paris in order to become a monk in fulfilment of an early vow he had made. Besides, the quiet life in a monastery would give him the time which he desired to devote to philosophical speculations. But his age, being upward of fortyfive, proved a barrier to his desires.

Refused for the above reason by the Order of Chartreuse, and then by the Celestins, he returned to preaching, first at Angers, and then at Bordeaux. It was here that he met Montaigne, who at this time held public office, and their acquaintance soon ripened into a deep friendship, which continued until the death xii Introduction.

of Montaigne. The latter dying in the arms of Charron, begged him to assume henceforth his family coatof-arms, and later Charron in his will bequeathed all his property to the brother-in-law of Montaigne.

Charron died suddenly of apoplexy in Paris on the i6th of November, 1603.

We have seen how he changed in his tastes and in his ideas, — first a lawyer, then a theologian, then aspiring to be a monk, and finally devoting himself exclusively to philosophical studies. His works show by their dates of publication a chronological history of the changes in his mental development.

His first work, *' Traits des Trois V^rit^s,'' was published in 1594. In it he strove to show, notwithstanding the claim of the atheist, that there was a religion ; in opposition to the heathen, the Jews, and others, that

Introduction. xiii

of all religions the Christian was the only true one ; and demonstrating to the unbeliever that there was nothing but what was good in the Catholic Church.

In the following year he published his " Traite de la Sagesse/' a work which was purely philosophical, and showed the influence of his friend Montaigne. In it the spirit of the free-thinker, rather than that of the theologian, is apparent, and so many of its passages contained unorthodox thoughts that Charron became the victim of violent attacks by his contemporaries. Notwithstanding his correction of several chapters, notwithstanding his publication in 1600 of the *' Refutation des Heretiques '* with certain of his sermons on the divinity, the creation, the redemption, and the eucharist ; notwithstanding his sudden death, which should have disarmed his enemies, xiv Introduction.

he and his book were bitterly pur sued by the state authorities and the Jesuits. The Jesuit Father Gavasse called Charron le patriarche des esprits fort, and insisted that he was an atheist.

After the death of Charron, the authorities in connection with the theological faculty undertook to suppress the ** Traits de la Sagesse/' but the President — Jeannin — charged by the Chancellor to revise it, made such corrections that a new edition was printed in 1604, with a life of the author. This is the most celebrated of his works, and to it Charron owes his place in the history of modern philosophy.

Buckle refers to it and says in it *^ we find, for the first time, an attempt made in a modern language to construct a system of morals without the aid of theology.'' Elsewhere he continues : *^ Taking his

Introdtictton. xv

stand, as it were, on the summit of knowledge, he boldly attempts to enumerate the elements of wisdom, and the conditions under which those elements will work. In the scheme which he thus constructs he entirely omits theological dogmas, and he treats with undissembled scorn many of those conclusions which the people had hitherto universally received. He reminds his countrymen that their religion is the accidental result of their birth and education, and that if they had been born in a Mohammedan country they would have been as firm believers in Mohammedanism as they then were in Christianity. From this consideration, he insists on the absurdity of their troubling themselves about the variety of creeds, seeing that such variety is the result of circumstances over which they have no control. Also it is to be observed that each xvi Introduction,

of these different religions declares itself to be the true one ; and all of them are equally based upon supernatural pretensions, such as mysteries, miracles, prophets, and the like. It is because men forget these things, that they are the slaves of that confidence which is the great obstacle to all real knowledge, and which can only be removed by taking such a large and comprehensive view as will show us how all nations cling with equal zeal to the tenets in which they have been educated. And, says Charron, if we look a little deeper, we shall see that each of the great religions is built upon that which preceded it. Thus the religion of the Jews is founded upon that of the Egyptians ; Christianity is the result of Judaism ; and, from these two last, there has naturally sprung Mohammedanism. We, therefore, adds this great writer,

I

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should rise above the pretensions of hostile sects; and, without being terrified by the fear of future punishment, or allured by the hope of future happiness, we should be content with such practical religion as consists in performing the duties of life ; and, uncontrolled by the dogmas of any particular creed, we should strive to make the soul retire inward upon itself, and by the efforts of its own contemplation admire the ineffable grandeur of the Being of beings, the supreme cause of all created things/*

Charron was the first writer in a modern language to point out the doctrine of religious development. Indeed the germ of very many of the advanced thoughts now recognized in our modern theology can be distinctly traced back to his writings. The naturalism which was subsequently advanced by Holbach xviii Introduction.

and Rousseau is found in the ^^ Traits de la Sagesse/*

In the hope that there may be those who desire to know something more of the writings of this author, whose ideas were so far ahead of his time that he was called ** an advanced thinker/* this collection of his sentiments has been prepared. Marcus Benjamin.

New York,

Author's Preface

It is necessary in the beginning of this work to know what wisdom is. At the first view of the simple word some have imagined it to be a quality not common, but exclusive and elevated above that which is ordinary, be it good or evil, for it is used in both senses. We say a wise tyrant and thief as well as a wise king and pilot. Opposed to Wisdom there is not only folly, which is an irregularity of life, but common baseness and plebeian simplicity. Wisdom is strong, well proportioned, a regulation of life, sufificient for whatever is required and necessary.

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There are but few wise men, valuable as all rare things are, and it pertains to them by right to command and govern others. There are three kinds of Wisdom, Divine, Human, and Worldly.

Of worldly wisdom we will not speak, except to condemn it. Its great leaders are Opulence, Pleasure, Avarice, Luxury, and Ambition. It is censured by philosophers and theologists, and pronounced folly before God.

Divine wisdom, the highest, is defined and discussed by philosophers and theologists, but differently. The philosophers make it speculative, saying that it is the knowledge of principles and causes, and the highest power to judge of all things, even of God Himself ; and this wisdom is metaphysical and dwells wholly in the understanding, as being its chief good and perfection ;

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it IS the first and highest of the intellectual virtues, which may be without either honesty, action, or other moral virtue. The theologists do not make it speculative, but practical, and contend that it is the knowledge of divine things, from which proceeds a judgment and rule of human actions, and they make it twofold : that acquired by study, and like the philosopher's ; and that infused and given by God — ^^ coming from above, a gift of the Holy Ghost/' The Spirit of God is the Spirit of Wisdom, which is found only in those who are just and free from sin. It is not our purpose to speak of divine wisdom here.

Of human wisdom, of which this book treats, the descriptions are various and insufficient ; some think that it is only discretion, and advised conduct in man's affairs and conversation. This IS a most ordinary dexxii Author s Preface,

scription, respecting nothing but that which is outward and in action, altogether in the eyes and ears of men, with little regard for the inward motions of the mind, and according to which wisdom may be without essential piety or probity.

Others think it is a rude, unreasonable austerity in opinions, manners, words, and actions, and call those who possess it philosophers, using the word falsely, and meaning visionaries who refuse to be governed by custom.

Now this kind of wisdom, according to our view, is folly, for the wisdom of which we speak is not of the ignorant, but of philosophers and theologists. Both have written of it in their moral essays ; the philosophers more fully, because they apply themselves to that which concerns nature and action, teaching pleasingly and graciously that which

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IS good and profitable. The theologists mount higher, filled with the desire for divine wisdom, and looking principally to the eternal good and salvation of mankind, but teaching with more austerity. The philosophers have also shown excellence not only in their writings but in their honorable and heroic lives. For these reasons in this book I ordinarily follow their advice and sayings, not rejecting those of the theologists, for in substance they agree.

If I had undertaken to instruct the cloister I must necessarily have followed the advice of the theologists ; but our book is intended for daily life, and to form a man for the world, and instruct him in human wisdom which is of law and reason ; a noble composition of the entire man, his thoughts, words, and actions. That work is well done which is complete and perfect in all its xxiv Author s Preface.

parts, and that man is accounted wise who best knows how to keep himself from vice, errors, and passion ; who considers and judges all things without prejudice, and rules himself according to reason, law, and the light inspired by God, which shines in us. He who is without knowledge of himself and subjects his mind to any kind of servitude is not wise.

If wisdom could be seen with our bodily eyes there would be stirred within us a strong desire to possess it.

The two principal means to attain wisdom are the natural and the acquired. He who is fortunate in the first, being favorably formed by nature, has the advantage. But he who is not so gifted must study to supply that which is wanting. Socrates said of himself, that by the study of philosophy he had corrected and reformed his natural defects.

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We must examine and respect the ancient writers, though without enslaving ourselves ; for it is an unjust tyranny, and folly, to enthrall our minds to believe and follow all our predecessors have said ; and none but fools thus suffer themselves to be led by the nose ; and if a man would follow them, how shall he ? For they do not agree among themselves. Aristotle, who seems to be the most self-satisfied of the philosophers, dared to challenge and censure all who went before him, yet he has uttered more gross absurdities than any of them ; witness his *^ Treatise on the Soul of Man/*

It is no cause for wonder that all men are not of one opinion, there is nothing more befitting nature and the spirit of man than that they should differ.

That wise divine, St. Paul, gives us this Hberty, in that he willeth xxvi Author s Preface.

" every man should abound in his own understanding," not judging or condemning those who think otherwise.

Pierre Charron.