Edward Young: ‘Devotion! daughter of Astronomy!’

From a French edition of Night Thoughts

The soul of man was made to walk the skies.
Nor, as a stranger, does she wander there;
But, wonderful herself, through wonder strays;
Contemplating their grandeur, finds her own;
~ Edward Young, Night Thoughts 9

IT was a nice to discover that the quote, ‘An undevout astronomer is mad,’ credited to an unnamed “poet” by Thomas Dick in the last post, comes from Edward Young. Young’s most famous work is the epic poem, Night Thoughts (The Complaint: or, Night-Thoughts on Life, Death, & Immortality), published in several volumes from 1742 to 1745. Immensely popular for a century after its writing, it then strangely fell into obscurity. Night Thoughts is quite long, but Young’s mastery of iambic pentameter blank verse and talent for turning a memorable phrase make it reading enjoyable. The more intense and inspired sections crescendo into virtual hymns and litanies, where Young finds his Muse.

The quote appears in Night 9 — the final part — of Night Thoughts. Most of Night 9 (over 2000 lines) considers the spectacle of the night sky as a source of religious and moral inspiration. As some may not want to read it entirely, below are assembled the most inspiring lines. (I’ve taken the liberty of rearranging some sections.)

Two people are named here. Lorenzo is a worldly man the narrator addresses throughout Night Thoughts, whom he wishes to convert to religion and philosophy. Philander is a recently deceased, virtuous friend.

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ROUSE, rouse, Lorenzo, then, and follow me,
Where truth, the most momentous man can hear,
Loud calls my soul, and ardour wings her flight.
I find my inspiration in my theme:
The grandeur of my subject is my Muse.
At midnight, when mankind is wrapt in peace,
And worldly fancy feeds on golden dreams;

Night opes the noblest scenes, and sheds an awe,
Which gives those venerable scenes full weight,
And deep reception, in th’ intender’d heart;
While light peeps through the darkness, like a spy;
And darkness shows its grandeur by the light.
Nor is the profit greater than the joy,
If human hearts at glorious objects glow,
And admiration can inspire delight.
What speak I more, than I, this moment, feel?
With pleasing stupor first the soul is struck
(Stupor ordain’d to make her truly wise!):
Then into transport starting from her trance,

Stars teach, as well as shine. At Nature’s birth,
Thus their commission ran — “Be kind to Man.”
Where art thou, poor benighted traveller?
The stars will light thee, though the moon should fail.
Where art thou, more benighted! more astray!
In ways immoral? The stars call thee back;
And, if obey’d their counsel, set thee right.
This prospect vast, what is it? — Weigh’d aright,
’Tis Nature’s system of divinity,
And every student of the Night inspires.
’Tis elder Scripture, writ by God’s own hand:
Scripture authentic! uncorrupt by man.

The planets of each system represent
Kind neighbours; mutual amity prevails;
Sweet interchange of rays, received, return’d;
Enlightening, and enlighten’d! all, at once,
Attracting, and attracted! Patriot like,
None sins against the welfare of the whole;
But their reciprocal, unselfish aid,
Affords an emblem of millennial love.
Nothing in nature, much less conscious being,
Was e’er created solely for itself:
Thus man his sovereign duty learns in this
Material picture of benevolence.

I see His ministers; I see, diffused
In radiant orders, essences sublime,
Of various offices, of various plume,
In heavenly liveries, distinctly clad,
Azure, green, purple, pearl, or downy gold,
Or all commix’d; they stand, with wings outspread,
Listening to catch the Master’s least command,
And fly through nature, ere the moment ends;
Numbers innumerable! — well conceived
These, as a cloud of witnesses, hang o’er us;
In a throng’d theatre are all our deeds;
Perhaps, a thousand demigods descend
On every beam we see, to walk with men.
Awful reflection! Strong restraint from ill!
Yet, here, our virtue finds still stronger aid
From these ethereal glories sense surveys.
Something, like magic, strikes from this blue vault;
With just attention is it view’d? We feel
A sudden succour, unimplored, unthought;
Nature herself does half the work of Man.

With love, and admiration, how she glows!
This gorgeous apparatus! this display!
This ostentation of creative power!
This theatre! — what eye can take it in?
By what divine enchantment was it raised,
For minds of the first magnitude to launch
In endless speculation, and adore?
One sun by day, by night ten thousand shine;
And light us deep into the Deity;
How boundless in magnificence and might!
O what a confluence of ethereal fires,
Form urns unnumber’d, down the steep of heaven,
Streams to a point, and centres in my sight!
Nor tarries there; I feel it at my heart.
My heart, at once, it humbles, and exalts;
Lays it in dust, and calls it to the skies.

Who sees it unexalted? or unawed?
Who sees it, and can stop at what is seen?
Material offspring of Omnipotence!
Inanimate, all-animating birth!
Work worthy Him who made it! worthy praise!
All praise! praise more than human! nor denied
Thy praise divine! — But though man, drown’d in sleep,
Withholds his homage, not alone I wake;
Bright legions swarm unseen, and sing, unheard
By mortal ear, the glorious Architect,
In this His universal temple hung
With lustres, with innumerable lights,
That shed religion on the soul; at once,
The temple, and the preacher! O how loud

It calls devotion! genuine growth of Night!
Devotion! daughter of Astronomy!
An undevout astronomer is mad.
True; all things speak a God; but in the small,
Men trace out Him; in great, He seizes man;
Seizes, and elevates, and wraps, and fills
With new inquiries, ’mid associates new.
Tell me, ye stars! ye planets! tell me, all

Shall God be less miraculous, than what
His hand has form’d? Shall mysteries descend
From unmysterious? things more elevate,
Be more familiar? uncreated lie
More obvious than created, to the grasp
Of human thought? The more of wonderful
Is heard in Him, the more we should assent.

Could we conceive Him, God He could not be;
Or He not God, or we could not be men.
A God alone can comprehend a God;
Man’s distance how immense! On such a theme,
Know this, Lorenzo! (seem it ne’er so strange)
Nothing can satisfy, but what confounds;
Nothing, but what astonishes, is true.

The scene thou seest, attests the truth I sing,
And every star sheds light upon thy creed.
These stars, this furniture, this cost of heaven,
If but reported, thou hadst ne’er believed;
But thine eye tells thee, the romance is true.
The grand of nature is th’ Almighty’s oath,
In Reason’s court, to silence Unbelief.
How my mind, opening at this scene, imbibes
The moral emanations of the skies,
While nought, perhaps, Lorenzo less admires!
Has the Great Sovereign sent ten thousand worlds
To tells us, He resides above them all,
In glory’s unapproachable recess?
And dare earth’s bold inhabitants deny
The sumptuous, the magnific embassy
A moment’s audience? Turn we, nor will hear
From whom they come, or what they would impart
For man’s emolument; sole cause that stoops
Their grandeur to man’s eye? Lorenzo! rouse;
Let thought, awaken’d, take the lightning’s wing,
And glance from east to west, from pole to pole.

Who sees, but is confounded, or convinced?
Renounces reason, or a God adores?
Mankind was sent into the world to see:
Sight gives the science needful to their peace;
That obvious science asks small learning’s aid.
Would’st thou on metaphysic pinions soar?
Or wound thy patience amid logic thorns?
Or travel history’s enormous round?
Nature no such hard task enjoins: she gave
A make to man directive of his thought;
A make set upright, pointing to the stars,
As who shall say, “Read thy chief lesson there.”*

*A reference to Cicero’s notion that, unlike other animals, humans were created erect so they may raise their heads and see the heavens, from whence they learn religion.

The soul of man was made to walk the skies;
Delightful outlet of her prison here!
There, disencumber’d from her chains, the ties
Of toys terrestrial, she can rove at large;
There, freely can respire, dilate, extend,
In full proportion let loose all her powers;
And, undeluded, grasp at something great.
Nor, as a stranger, does she wander there;
But, wonderful herself, through wonder strays;
Contemplating their grandeur, finds her own;
Hence greatly pleased, and justly proud, the soul
Grows conscious of her birth celestial; breathes
More life, more vigour, in her native air;
And feels herself at home amongst the stars;
And, feeling, emulates her country’s praise.

Call it, the noble pasture of the mind;
Which there expatiates, strengthens, and exults,
And riots through the luxuries of thought.
Call it, the garden of the Deity,
Blossom’d with stars, redundant in the growth
Of fruit ambrosial; moral fruit to man.
Call it, the breastplate of the true High Priest,
Ardent with gems oracular, that give,
In points of highest moment, right response;

As yet thou know’st not what it is: how great,
How glorious, then, appears the mind of man,
When in it all the stars, and planets, roll!
And what it seems, it is: great objects make
Great minds, enlarging as their views enlarge;
Those still more godlike, as these more divine.
And more divine than these, thou canst not see.
Dazzled, o’erpower’d, with the delicious draught
Of miscellaneous splendours, how I reel
From thought to thought, inebriate, without end!
An Eden, this! a Paradise unlost!
I meet the Deity in every view,
And tremble at my nakedness before him!
O that I could but reach the tree of life!
For here it grows, unguarded from our taste;
No flaming sword denies our entrance here;
Would man but gather, he might live for ever.

Aid then, aid, all ye stars! — Much rather, Thou,
Great Artist! Thou, whose finger set aright
This exquisite machine, with all its wheels,
Though intervolved, exact; and pointing out
Life’s rapid, and irrevocable flight,
With such an index fair, as none can miss,
Who lifts an eye, nor sleeps till it is closed.
Open mine eye, dread Deity! to read
The tacit doctrine of thy works; to see
Things as they are, unalter’d through the glass

Stupendous Architect! Thou, Thou art all!
My soul flies up and down in thoughts of Thee,
And finds herself but at the centre still!
I AM, thy name! Existence, all thine own!

What more prepares us for the songs of heaven?
Creation, of archangels is the theme!
What, to be sung, so needful? What so well
Celestial joys prepare us to sustain?
The soul of man, His face design’d to see,
Who gave these wonders to be seen by man,
Has here a previous scene of objects great,
On which to dwell; to stretch to that expanse
Of thought, to rise to that exalted height
Of admiration, to contract that awe,
And give her whole capacities that strength,
Which best may qualify for final joy.
The more our spirits are enlarged on earth,
The deeper draught shall they receive of heaven.

The mind that would be happy, must be great;
Great, in its wishes; great, in its surveys.
Extended views a narrow mind extend;
Push out its corrugate, expansive make,
Which, ere long, more than planets shall embrace.
A man of compass makes a man of worth;
Divine contemplate, and become divine.
As man was made for glory, and for bliss,
All littleness is in approach to woe;
Open thy bosom, set thy wishes wide,

Man’s mind is in a pit, and nothing sees;
Emerge from thy profound; erect thine eye;
See thy distress! how close art thou besieged!
If, then, on the reverse, the mind would mount
In magnitude, what mind can mount too far,
To keep the balance, and creation poise?
Defect alone can err on such a theme;
What is too great, if we the cause survey?
Of matter’s grandeur, know, one end is this,
To tell the rational, who gazes on it —
“Though that immensely great, still greater He,

The triumph of my soul is, — that I am;
And therefore that I may be — what? Lorenzo!
Look inward, and look deep; and deeper still;
Unfathomably deep our treasure runs
In golden veins, through all eternity!
Ages, and ages, and succeeding still
New ages, where the phantom of an hour,
Which courts each night, dull slumber, for repair,
Shall wake, and wonder, and exult, and praise,
And fly through infinite, and all unlock;
And (if deserved) by Heaven’s redundant love,
Made half adorable itself, adore;
And find, in adoration, endless joy!
Where thou, not master of a moment here,
Frail as the flower, and fleeting as the gale,
May’st boast a whole eternity, enrich’d
With all a kind Omnipotence can pour.

Thus, darkness aiding intellectual light,
And sacred silence whispering truths divine,
And truths divine converting pain to peace,
My song the midnight raven has outwing’d,
And shot, ambitious of unbounded scenes,
Beyond the flaming limits of the world,
Her gloomy flight. But what avails the flight
Of fancy, when our hearts remain below?
Virtue abounds in flatterers, and foes;
’Tis pride, to praise her; penance, to perform.
To more than words, to more than worth of tongue,
Lorenzo! rise, at this auspicious hour;
An hour, when Heaven’s most intimate with man;
When, like a fallen star, the ray divine
Glides swift into the bosom of the just;
And just are all, determined to reclaim;
Which sets that title high within thy reach.
Awake, then; thy Philander calls: awake!

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Bibliography

Young, Edward. Night Thoughts. Ed. George Gilfillan. London, 1853.

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‘An Undevout Astronomer is Mad’

Pillars of Creation in Eagle Nebula (Messier 16)

Devotion! daughter of astronomy!
An undevout astronomer is mad.
~ Edward Young (Night Thoughts, Night 9,  l.769)

WE previously posted comments by Scottish theologian and astronomer Thomas Dick (1774−1857) on the Religious Benefits of Astronomy from the Introduction he wrote to Elijah Burritt’s Geography of the Heavens.  A few decades earlier, Dick treated the same subject in the Introduction to his own book The Solar System (1799).  The two introductions are sufficiently different that it seems worthwhile to post the latter here.  Here Dick concludes that it is an “imperative duty” of every Christian (and every rational creature) to study the heavens and to contemplate their Creator, “that we may derive more enlarged conceptions of His glorious attributes, and be enabled to render to Him that tribute of adoration and praise which is due to His name.”

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OF all the sciences which are the subject of human study and investigation, Astronomy must be admitted to be the most interesting and sublime. It teaches us the motions, the magnitudes and distances of the heavenly bodies — their diversified phenomena, the laws by which they are directed in their varied movements, and the grand designs they are intended to fulfil in the vast system of the universe.The objects with which this science is conversant are so grand and marvellous — surpassing every thing that could have been imagined in the infancy of science — that they tend to enlarge the field of human contemplation, to expand to an indefinite extent the conceptions of the human intellect, and to arouse the attention and excite the admiration even of the most incurious and uncultivated minds. The vast magnitude of the heavenly bodies, so far surpassing what could be conceived by their appearance to the unassisted eye; their incalculable numbers; the immense velocity of their motions, and the astonishing forces with which they are impelled in their career through the heavens; the attractive influence they exert upon each other, at the distance of hundreds of millions of miles; and the important ends they are destined to accomplish in the universal empire of Jehovah; present to the human imagination a scene, and a subject of contemplation, on which the soul of man might expatiate with increasing wonder and delight, during an indefinite series of ages.

Even to a common observer, the heavens present a sublime and elevating spectacle. He beholds an immense concave hemisphere of unknown dimensions, surrounding the earth in every region, and resting as it were upon the circle of the horizon. From every quarter of this vast expanse — when the shades of night have spread over the earth — he beholds numerous lights displayed, proceeding onward in solemn silence, varying their aspects at different seasons, moving with different degrees of velocity, shining with different degrees of splendour, and all calculated to inspire admiration and awe. Wherever he travels abroad, either on the surface of the land or of the ocean, this celestial vault still appears encompassing this lower world; and, after travelling thousands of miles, it appears still the same, and seems to make no nearer an approach than when the journey commenced. While contemplating this wonderful expanse with the eye of reason and imagination, the mind is naturally led into a boundless train of speculations and inquiries. Where do these mighty heavens begin, and where do they end? Can imagination fathom their depth, or human calculations, or figures, express their extent? Have the highest created beings ever winged their flight across the boundaries of the firmament? Can angels measure the dimensions of those heavens, or explore them throughout all their departments? Is there a boundary to creation beyond which the energies of Omnipotence are unknown, or does it extend throughout the infinity of space? Is the immense fabric of the universe yet completed, or is Almighty Power still operating throughout the boundless dimensions of space, and new creations still starting into existence?

Such views and inquiries have a tendency to lead the mind to sublime and interesting trains of thought and reflection, and to afford scope for the noblest energies and investigations of the human intellect. A serious contemplation of the heavens opens to the mental eye a glimpse of orbs of inconceivable magnitude and grandeur, and arranged in multitudes which no man can number, which have diffused their radiance on our world during hundreds of generations. It opens a vista which carries our views into the regions of infinity, and exhibits a sensible display of the immensity of space, and of the boundless operations of Omnipotence: it demonstrates the existence of an eternal and incomprehensible Divinity, who presides in all the grandeur of his attributes over an unlimited empire. Amidst the silence and the solitude of the midnight scene, it inspires the soul with a solemn awe, and with reverential emotions; it excites astonishment, admiration, and wonder, and has a tendency to enkindle the fire of devotion, and to raise the affections to that ineffable Being who presides in high authority over all the movements of the universe. It teaches us the littleness of man, the folly of pride and ambition, and of all that earthly pomp and splendour with which mortals are so enamoured and that our thoughts and affections ought to soar above all the sinful pursuits, and transitory enjoyments, of this sublunary scene.

Such being the views and the tendencies of this science, it ought to be considered as bearing an intimate relation to religion, and worthy the study of every enlightened Christian. It has been said, and justly, by a celebrated poet, that “An undevout astronomer is mad.”  The evidence of a self-existent and eternal Being, whose wisdom is inscrutable, and whose power is uncontrollable, is so palpably manifested in the arrangement and the motions of the celestial orbs, that it cannot but make an indelible impression on every rational and reflecting mind. Though the heavenly bodies have “no speech nor language,” though they move round the earth in silent grandeur, and “their voice is not heard” in articulate sounds, yet “their line is gone throughout all the earth, and their words to the end of the world” — proclaiming to every attentive spectator, that “The hand that made them is Divine.” So that there is scarcely a tribe, or nation, on the face of the earth so inattentive and barbarous as not to have deduced this conclusion from a survey of the movements of the celestial orbs. “Men,” says Plato, ” began to acknowledge a Deity, when they saw the stars maintain so great a harmony, and the days and nights throughout all the year, both in summer and winter, to observe their stated risings and settings.” Another heathen philosopher, Cicero, thus expresses his sentiments on this point: “What can be so plain and clear as, when we behold the heavens, and view the celestial bodies, that we should conclude there is some Deity of a most excellent mind by whom these things are governed a present and Almighty God. Which, he that doubts of, I do not understand why he should not as well doubt whether there be a sun that shines, and enlightens the world.”

The sacred Scriptures, in numerous instances, direct our attention to this subject. “The heavens,” says the psalmist, “declare the glory of God;” that is they manifest his wisdom and power, and beneficence to the inhabitants of the world; — “the firmament showeth forth,” or publicly declareth, “his handiwork.” “Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard.” In reference to that department of creation which astronomy explores, it may be said with peculiar propriety, in the language of Scripture “The works of the Lord are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein.” Throughout the volume of inspiration, our attention is frequently directed to the contemplation of the heavens: “Lift up thine eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things. The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, who fainteth not, neither is weary; there is no searching of his understanding. He bringeth out their host by number, and calleth them all by names: by the greatness of his might, for that N. It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers. All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity.””Hearken unto this, O Job: stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God.”

Hence it appears, that it is not to be considered merely as a matter of taste, or as a rational amusement, but as an imperative duty, to contemplate the works of the Most High, and especially the manifestations of his power and Godhead which the heavens display — that we may derive more enlarged conceptions of his glorious attributes, and be enabled to render to him that tribute of adoration and praise which is due to his name. For it is represented as one of the characteristics of the ungodly that, while “the harp, and the viol, and the tabret, and pipe, and wine are in their feasts, they regard not the work of the Lord, neither consider the operation of his hands;” and consequently “he will destroy them, and not build them up.” It is therefore the incumbent duty of the young; of every professing Christian; and of every rational inquirer, not only to study the facts, doctrines, and duties exhibited in the system of Divine revelation, but also to contemplate the manifestations of the Creator as exhibited in the system of creation. They are both revelations of the same almighty and beneficent Being — emanations from the same adorable Divinity; and the views and instructions they respectively unfold, when studied with reverence and intelligence, are in perfect harmony with each other. The study of both combined, is calculated to make the man of God perfect, and “throughly furnished unto all good works.”

In the following small volume, it shall be our endeavour to direct the general reader in the study of some of those objects which the heavens unfold; and we shall chiefly select those parts of astronomical science which are most level to the comprehension of those who have had little opportunity of engaging in scientific pursuits. In the present volume, it is proposed to confine ourselves chiefly to a description of the Solar System, and the phenomena it exhibits, together with a few instructions as to the best mode of contemplating the apparent motions and the diversified aspects of the firmament. The discoveries which relate to the sidereal heavens — the general arrangement of the fixed stars, their distances and magnitudes-the facts which have been discovered respecting new stars-variable stars-double and triple stars — the milky way-the different orders of the nebula and a variety of other topics connected with such objects, will form materials for another volume similar to the present.

In the mean time we may just remark, that all the wonders we behold, both in the heavens above, and in the earth below, demand our serious attention and devout contemplation. They are all the workmanship of that great and adorable Being in whom “we live and move;” who at first “spake, and it was done;” who gave the command, and the whole of this stately fabric of heaven and earth started into being. It is the same God who created the planets and the host of stars, and that conducts them in all their rapid motions; who is also “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,” and “the Author of eternal salvation” to all who obey him. All these works display his infinite power, his unerring wisdom, and the riches of his beneficence; and demand from every beholder that tribute of praise, reverence, and adoration which is due to Him “who created all things, and for whose pleasure they are and were created.“

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Bibliography

Dick, Thomas. Advantages of the Study of Astronomy. In: Elijah Hinsdale Burritt, The Geography of the Heavens. 5th ed. New York, 1850 (1st ed, 1833). Dick’s Introduction first appeared in the 3rd edition (1836).

Dick, Thomas. Celestial Scenery, or, The Wonders of the Planetary System Displayed; Illustrating the Perfections of Deity and a Plurality of Worlds. Collected Works of Thomas Dick, Vol. VII. Philadelphia, 1845.

Dick, Thomas. The Solar System. Collected Works of Thomas Dick, Vol. X. Philadelphia, 1853 (1st ed. 1799).

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Celestial Ascent in Philo of Alexandria

Andromeda Galaxy. (If Andromeda were brighter as viewed from Earth, it would appear as large as the full moon!)

THE WRITINGS of ancient philosophers contain main beautiful and inspiring passages concerning the contemplation of the splendors of the starry vault.  Famous examples include Cicero’s Tusculan Disputations 1.25.62−28.70 and On the Nature of the Gods (De natura deorum) 2.15.40−17.44. These all address the sense of awe, wonder and aesthetic pleasure that the night sky invokes. Some authors also use contemplation of the heavens as a kind of rational demonstration of the existence, power, wisdom and beneficence of a Supreme Author.  Others go still further, making stargazing a spiritual exercise: a means of experiencing — and perhaps developing — the divinity and immortality of the soul.  One of the finest passages of this variety is found Philo of Alexandria’s commentary on the first book of Genesis (On the Creation of the World; De opficio mundi).  The entire section occupies section 18.55−23.71, but the most important part is shown below:

18.
[55] It was with a view to that original intellectual light, which I have mentioned as belonging to the order of the incorporeal world, that He created the heavenly bodies of which our senses are aware. These are images divine and exceeding fair, which He established in heaven as in the purest temple belonging to corporeal being. […]

23.
[69] … for after the pattern of a single Mind, even the Mind of the Universe as an archetype, the mind in each of those who successively came into being was moulded. It is in a fashion a god to him who carries and enshrines it as an object of reverence ; for the human mind evidently occupies a position in men precisely answering to that which the great Ruler occupies in all the world. It is invisible while itself seeing all things, and while comprehending the substances of others, it is as to its own substance unperceived; and while it opens by arts and sciences roads branching in many directions, all of them great highways, it comes through land and sea investigating what either element contains.

[70]
Again, when on soaring wing it has contemplated the atmosphere and all its phases, it is borne yet higher to the ether and the circuit of heaven, and is whirled round with the dances of planets and fixed stars, in accordance with the laws of perfect music, following that love of wisdom [έρωτι σοφίας] which guides its steps.

[71]
And so, carrying its gaze beyond the confines of all substance discernible by sense, it comes to a point at which it reaches out after the intelligible world, and on descrying in that world sights of surpassing loveliness, even the patterns and the originals of the things of sense which it saw here, it is seized by a sober intoxication, like those filled with Corybantic frenzy [ενθουσιά], and is inspired, possessed by a longing far other than theirs and a nobler desire. Wafted by this to the topmost arch of the things perceptible ίό mind, it seems to be on its way to the Great King Himself; but, amid its longing to see Him, pure and untempered rays of concentrated light stream forth like a torrent, so that by its gleams the eye of the understanding is dazzled [Runia: “overwhelmed by the brightness”]. (trans. Colson & Whittaker, pp. 41, 43, 55, 57; italics added)

As David Runia observes in his excellent commentary, Philo alludes to two of Plato’s discussions of contemplative ascent: Diotima’s ladder of love in Symposium 210e −212a and the Chariot Myth in Phaedrus 247c-e. Note that Philo connects the Symposium ascent with contemplation of heavenly bodies — in contrast to the more or less usual modern reading of Diotima’s speech as proceeding from love of beautiful human bodies to higher things.

Also to appreciate is how Philo implies this contemplation is not, at least at the end, something accomplished by force of will: at some point the mind is drawn or pulled upward involuntarily. At the end, the mind is ‘dazzled’ — connoting elements of both kataphatic (that is, illuminative) and apophatic (that is, beyond comprehension) mysticism.

Philo’s and other such passages are beautiful and inspiring — yet even the most magnificent words pale by comparison to the genuine spectacle of the night sky!

p.s.  Other examples from Philo:

• Philo, On Rewards and Punishments 7.40−46
• Philo, On the Change of Names 179−180
• Philo, Allegorical Interpretation 3.32.97−99

And links to two long passages in Cicero:

• Cicero, On the Nature of the Gods (De natura deorum) 2.15.40−17.44
• Cicero, Tusculan Disputations 1.25.62−28.70

 

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References

Colson, F. H; Whitaker, G. H. (trs.). On the Creation of the World. (De opificio mundi).  In: Philo: With and English Translation. Ten volumes and two supplementary volumes. Vol. 1.  Loeb Classical Library.  Harvard University Press, 1929.

Runia, David T. (tr.).  Philo: On the Creation of the Cosmos According to Moses: Introduction, Translation and Commentary. Leiden: Brill, 2001.

Yonge, Charles Duke (tr.). On the Creation. In: The Works of Philo. Hedrickson Publishers, 1995. (Orig. edition 1854).

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Thomas Dick: The Religious Benefits of Astronomy

Thomas Dick (1774–1857)

THOMAS DICK (1774–1857) was a Scottish philosopher, minister, and popular writer on science and astronomy. Quite progressive in his thought, he was ahead of his time in championing the concept of cosmic pluralism, that is, the existence of intelligent life on other planets.  Whereas many of his contemporaries considered this concept antithetical to Christianity, Dick believed that a universe with trillions of intelligent beings on other planets glorified God all the more. In any case, he argued, the wonders of astronomy supply a seemingly endless school for the intellect and soul, one that may potentially continue beyond our earthly life. Dick argued (as did ancient pagan and Christian writers) that the contemplation of the heavens elevated the soul, enlarged the mind, inspired awe and wonder, and awakened or intensified the natural religious inclinations of human beings.

He explored these themes in an excellent Introduction written for the 3rd edition of Elihu Burritt’s Geography of the Heavens.  Dick first outlines some of the practical benefits of the study of Astronomy, including its uses in such areas of Geography, Navigation, Chronology and Agriculture.  He then proceeds to his main theme: the moral and religious benefits of Astronomy. This longer section is supplied below. He concludes with the suggestion that regular observation of the heavens form a part of every student’s education.

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ASTRONOMY is a science which has, in all ages, engaged the attention of the poet, the philosopher, and the divine, and been the subject of their study and admiration. Kings have descended from their thrones to render it homage, and have sometimes enriched it with their labors; and humble shepherds, while watching their flocks by night, have beheld with rapture the blue vault of heaven, with its thousand shining orbs moving in silent grandeur, till the morning star announced the approach of day. The study of this science must have been co-eval with the existence of man. For there is no rational being who, for the first time, has lifted his eyes to the nocturnal sky, and beheld the moon walking in brightness among the planetary orbs and the host of stars, but must have been struck with awe and admiration at the splendid scene, and its sublime movements, and excited to anxious inquiries into the nature, the motions, and the destinations of those far-distant orbs. Compared with the splendor, the amplitude, the august motions, and the ideas of infinity which the celestial vault presents, the most resplendent terrestrial scenes sink into inanity, and appear unworthy of being set in competition with the glories of the sky.

Independently of the sublimity of its objects, and the pleasure arising from their contemplation, Astronomy is a study of vast utility, in consequence of its connection with terrestrial arts and sciences, many of which are indebted to the observations, and the principles of this science, […]

[Beyond the practical] considerations above stated, the study of astronomy is attended with many advantages in a moral, intellectual, and religious point of view.

1. This department of science unfolds to us the most striking displays of the perfections of the Deity — particularly the grandeur of his omnipotence. His Wisdom is conspicuously displayed in the general arrangement of the heavenly orbs, particularly in reference to the globes which compose the solar system — in placing near the center of this system that immense luminary the Sun, from whence light and heat might be distributed, in due proportion, to all the worlds that roll around it — in nicely proportioning the motions and distances of all the planets, primary and secondary — in uniting them in one harmonious system, by one grand universal law which prevents them from flying off in wild confusion through the infinity of space — in the constancy and regularity of their motions, no one interfering with another, or deviating from the course prescribed — in the exactness with which they run their destined rounds, finishing their circuits with so much accuracy as not to deviate from their periods of revolution the hundredth part of a minute in a thousand years in the spherical figures given to all those mighty orbs, and the diurnal motions impressed upon them, by which a due proportion of light and heat is diffused over every part of their surface. The Benevolence of the Deity shines no less conspicuous in those upper regions, in ordering all the movements and arrangements of the celestial globes so as to act in subserviency to the comfort and happiness of sentient and intelligent beings. For, the wisdom of God is never employed in devising means without an end; and the grand end of all his arrangements, in so far as our views extend, is the communication of happiness; and it would be inconsistent with the wisdom and other perfections of God not to admit, that the same end is kept in view in every part of his dominions, however far removed from the sphere of our contemplation. The heavens, therefore, must be considered as presenting a boundless scene of Divine benevolence. For they unfold to view a countless number of magnificent globes, calculated to be the habitations of various orders of beings, and which are, doubtless, destined to be the abodes of intellectual life. For the character of the Deity would be impeached, and his wisdom virtually denied, were we to suppose him to arrange and establish a magnificent series of means without an end corresponding, in utility and dignity, to the grandeur of the contrivance. When, therefore, we consider the innumerable worlds which must exist throughout the immensity of space, the countless myriads of intelligences that people them, the various ranks and orders of intellect that may exist among them, the innumerable diversified arrangements which are made for promoting their enjoyment, and the peculiar displays of Divine benignity enjoyed in every world — we are presented with a scene of Divine goodness and beneficence which overpowers our conceptions, and throws completely into the shade all that we perceive or enjoy within the confines of this sublunary world. And, although the minute displays of Divine benevolence in distant worlds are not yet particularly unfolded to our view, yet this circumstance does not prove that no such displays exist; — and as we are destined to an immortal life in another region of creation, we shall, doubtless, be favored with a more expansive view of the effects of Divine benignity in that eternal scene which lies before us.

But this science exhibits a more striking display than any other of the Omnipotent energies of the Eternal Mind. It presents before us objects of overpowering magnitude and splendor — planetary globes a thousand times larger than the earth — magnificent rings which would nearly reach from the earth to the moon, and would inclose within their vast circumference 500 worlds as large as ours — suns a million times larger than this earthly ball, diffusing their light over distant worlds — and these suns scattered in every direction through the immensity of space, at immeasurable distances from each other, and in multitudes of groups which no man can number; presenting to the eye and the imagination a perspective of starry systems, boundless as immensity. It presents to our view motions so astonishing as to overpower and almost terrify the imagination — bodies a thousand times larger than the earth flying with a velocity of 29,000 miles an hour, performing circuits more than three thousand millions of miles in circumference, and carrying along with them a retinue of revolving worlds in their swift career; nay, motions, at the rate of 880,000 miles an hour, have been perceived among the celestial orbs, which as far surpass the motions we behold around us in this lower world, as the heavens in height surpass the earth. Such motions are perceived not only in the solar system, but in the most distant regions of the universe, among double stars — they are regular and uninterrupted — they have been going forward for thousands, perhaps for millions of years — there is perhaps no body in the universe but is running its round with similar velocity; and it is not unlikely that the whole machine of universal nature is in perpetual motion amidst the spaces of immensity, and will continue thus to move throughout all the periods of endless duration. Such objects and such motions evidently display the omnipotence of the Creator beyond every other scene which creation presents; and, when seriously contemplated, cannot but inspire us with the most lofty and impressive conceptions of the “eternal power” and majesty of Him who sits on the throne of the universe, and by whom all its mighty movements are conducted. They demonstrate, that his agency is universal and uncontrollable — that he is able to accomplish all his designs, however incomprehensible to mortals — that no created being can frustrate his purposes, and that he is worthy of our highest affection, and our incessant adoration.

2. Astronomy displays before us the extent and grandeur of God’s universal empire, The globe we inhabit, with all its appendages, forms a portion of the Divine empire, and, when minutely investigated, exhibits a striking display of its Creator’s power, benignity, and intelligence. But it forms only one small province of his universal dominions — an almost undistinguishable speck in the great map of the universe: and if we confine our views solely to the limits of this terrestrial ball, and the events which have taken place on its surface, we must form a very mean and circumscribed idea of the extent of the Creator’s kingdom and the range of his moral government. But the discoveries of astronomy have extended our views to other provinces of the empire of Omnipotence, far more spacious and magnificent. They demonstrate, that this earth, with all its vast oceans and mighty continents, and numerous population, ranks among the smaller provinces of this empire — that the globes composing the system to which it belongs, (without including the sun,) contain an extent of territory more than two thousand times larger than our world — that the sun himself is more than 500 times larger than the whole, and that, although they were all at this moment buried in oblivion, they would scarcely be missed by an eye that could survey the whole range of creation. They demonstrate, that ten thousands of suns, and ten thousand times ten thousands of revolving worlds, are dispersed throughout every region of boundless space, displaying the creating and supporting energies of Omnipotence; and consequently, are all under the care and superintendence of Him “who doeth according to his will in the armies of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth.” Such an empire, and such only, appears corresponding to the perfections of Him who has existed from eternity past, whose power is irresistible, whose goodness is unbounded, and whose presence fills the immensity of space; and it leads us to entertain the most exalted sentiments of admiration at the infinite intelligence implied in the superintendence of such vast dominions, and at the boundless beneficence displayed among the countless myriads of sensitive and intellectual beings which must people his wide domains.

3. The objects which this science discloses, afford subjects of sublime contemplation, and tend to elevate the soul above vicious passions and groveling pursuits. In the hours of retirement and solitude what can be more delightful, than to wing our way in imagination amidst the splendid objects which the firmament displays — to take our flight along with the planets in their wide career to behold them running their ample rounds with velocities forty times swifter than a cannon ball — to survey the assemblages of their moons, revolving around them in their respective orders, and carried at the same time, along with their primaries, through the depths of space — to contemplate the magnificent arches which adorn the firmament of Saturn, whirling round that planet at the rate of a thousand miles in a minute, and displaying their radiance and majestic movements to an admiring population — to add scene to scene, and magnitude to magnitude, till the mind acquire an ample conception of such august objects — to dive into the depths of infinite space till we be surrounded with myriads of suns and systems of worlds, extending beyond the range of mortal comprehension, and all running their appointed rounds, and accomplishing the designs of beneficence in obedience to the mandate of their Almighty Author? Such objects afford matter for rational conversation, and for the most elevated contemplation. In this ample field the most luxuriant imagination may range at large, representing scenes and objects in endless variety and extent; and, after its boldest excursions, it can scarcely go beyond the reality of the magnificent objects which exist within the range of creating power and intelligence.

The frequent contemplation of such objects tends to enlarge the capacity of the mind, to ennoble the human faculties, and raise the soul above groveling affections and vicious pursuits. For the dispositions of mankind and their active pursuits generally correspond to the train of thought in which they most frequently indulge. If these thoughts run among puerile and vicious objects, such will be the general character of their affections and conduct. If their train of thinking take a more elevated range, the train of their actions, and the passions they display, will, in some measure, be correspondent.

Can we suppose, that a man whose mind is daily conversant with the noble and expansive objects to which I have adverted, would have his soul absorbed in the pursuits of ambition, tyranny, oppression, war, and devastation?

Would he rush like a madman through burning cities, and mangled carcasses of the slain, in order to trample underfoot the rights of mankind, and enjoy a proud pre-eminence over his fellows — and find pleasure in such accursed pursuits?

Would he fawn on statesmen and princes, and violate every moral principle, in order to obtain a pension, or a post of opulence or honor? Would he drag his fellow-men to the stake, because they worshiped God according to the dictates of their consciences, and behold with pleasure their bodies roasting in the flames?

Would he drive men, women, and children from their homes, loaded with chains and fetters, to pine in misery and to perish in a distant land, merely because they asserted the rights to which they were entitled as citizens and as rational beings?

Or, would he degrade himself below the level of the brutes by a daily indulgence in rioting and drunkenness, till his faculties were benumbed, and his body found wallowing in the mire?

It is scarcely possible to suppose that such passions and conduct would be displayed by the man who is habitually engaged in celestial contemplations, and whose mind is familiar with the august objects which the firmament displays. “If men were taught to act in view of all the bright worlds which are looking down upon them, they could not be guilty of those abominable cruelties” which some scenes so mournfully display. We should then expect, that the iron rod of oppression would be broken in pieces — that war would cease its horrors and devastations — that liberty would be proclaimed to the captives — that “righteousness would run down our streets as a river,” and a spirit congenial to that of the inhabitants of heaven would be displayed by the rulers of nations, and by all the families of the earth. For all the scenes which the firmament exhibits have a tendency to inspire tranquillity — to produce a love of harmony and order, to stain the pride of human grandeur — to display the riches of Divine beneficence — to excite admiration and reverence and to raise the soul to God as the Supreme Director of universal nature, and the source and center of all true enjoyment; — and such sentiments and affections are directly opposed to the degrading pursuits and passions which have contaminated the society of our world, and entailed misery on our species.

I might have added, on this head, that the study of this subject has a peculiar tendency to sharpen and invigorate the mental faculties. It requires a considerable share of attention and of intellectual acumen to enter into all the particulars connected with the principles and facts of astronomical science. The elliptical form of the planetary orbits, and the anomalies thence arising, the mutation of the earth’s axis, the causes of the seasons, the difficulty of reconciling the apparent motions of the planets with their real motions in circular or elliptical orbits, the effects produced by centrifugal and centripetal forces, the precession of the equinoxes, the aberration of light, the method of determining the distances and magnitudes of the celestial bodies, mean and apparent time, the irregularity of the moon’s motion, the difficulty of forming adequate ideas of the immense spaces in which the heavenly bodies move, and their enormous size, and various other particulars, are apt, at first view, to startle and embarrass the mind, as if they were beyond the reach of its comprehension. But, when this science is imparted to the young under the guidance of enlightened instructors — when they are shown not merely pictures, globes and orreries, but directed to observe with their own eyes, and with the assistance of telescopes, all the interesting phenomena of the heavens, and the motions which appear, whether real or apparent — when they are shown the spots of the sun, the moons and belts of Jupiter, the phases of Venus, the rings of Saturn, and the mountains and vales which diversify the surface of the moon — such objects tend to awaken the attention, to expand the faculties, to produce a taste for rational investigation, and to excite them to more eager and diligent inquiries into the subject. The objects appear so grand and novel, and strike the senses with so much force and pleasure, that the mind is irresistibly led to exert all its energies in those investigations and observations by which it may be enabled to grasp all the principles and facts of the science. And every difficulty which is surmounted adds a new stimulus to the exertions of the intellect, urges it forward with delight in the path of improvement, and thus invigorates the mental powers, and prepares them for engaging with spirit and alacrity in every other investigation.

4. The study of astronomy has a tendency to moderate the pride of man, and to promote humility. Pride is one of the distinguishing characteristics of puny man, and has been one of the chief causes of all the contentions, wars, devastations, oppressions, systems of slavery, despotisms, and ambitious projects which have desolated and demoralized our sinful world. Yet there is no disposition more incongruous to the character and circumstances of man. Perhaps there are no rational beings throughout the universe among whom pride would appear more unseemly or incompatible than in man, considering the abject situation in which he is placed. He is exposed to innumerable degradations and calamities, to the rage of storms and tempests, the devastations of earthquakes and volcanoes, the fury of whirlwinds, and the tempestuous billows of the ocean, the ravages of the sword, pestilence, famine, and numerous diseases, and, at length, he must sink into the grave, and his body become the companion of worms. The most dignified and haughty of the sons of men are liable to such degradations, and are frequently dependent on the meanest fellow creatures whom they despise, for the greater part of their accommodations and comforts. Yet, in such circumstances, man, that puny worm of the dust, whose knowledge is so limited, whose follies are so numerous and glaring — has the effrontery to strut in all the haughtiness of pride, and to glory in his shame. When scriptural arguments and motives produce little effect, I know no considerations which have a more powerful tendency to counteract this deplorable propensity of human beings than those which are borrowed from the objects connected with astronomy. They show us what an insignificant being — what a mere atom, indeed, man appears amidst the immensity of creation. What is the whole of this globe, compared with the solar system, which contains a mass of matter ten hundred thousand times greater? What is it in comparison of the hundred millions of suns and worlds which the telescope has descried throughout the starry regions, or of that infinity of worlds which doubtless lie beyond the range of human vision in the unexplored regions of immensity? What, then, is a kingdom, or a province, or a baronial territory, of which we are as proud as if we were the lords of the universe, and for which we engage in so much devastation and carnage? What are they when set in competition with the glories of the sky? Could we take our station on the lofty pinnacles of heaven, and look down on this scarcely distinguishable speck of earth, we should be ready to exclaim with Seneca, “Is it to this little spot that the great designs and vast desires of men are confined? Is it for this there is so much disturbance of nations, so much carnage, and so many ruinous wars? O folly of deceived men, to imagine great kingdoms in the compass of an atom, to raise armies to divide a point of earth with the sword!” It is unworthy of the dignity of an immortal mind to have its affections absorbed in the vanishing splendors of earthly grandeur, and to feel proud of the paltry possessions and distinctions of this sublunary scene. To foster a spirit of pride and vain-glory in the presence of Him who “sitteth on the circle of the heavens, and in the view of the overwhelming grandeur and immensity of his works, is a species of presumption and arrogance of which every rational mind ought to feel ashamed. And, therefore, we have reason to believe, that those multitudes of fools, “dressed in a little brief authority,” who walk in all the loftiness of pride, have not yet considered the rank they hold in the scale of universal being; and that a serious contemplation of the immensity of creation would have a tendency to convince us of our ignorance and nothingness, and to humble us in the dust, in the presence of the Former and Preserver of all worlds. We have reason to believe that the most exalted beings in the universe — those who are furnished with the most capacious powers, and who have arrived at the greatest perfection in knowledge — are distinguished by a proportional share of humility; for, in proportion as they advance in their surveys of the universal kingdom of Jehovah, the more will they feel their comparative ignorance, and be convinced of their limited faculties, and of the infinity of objects and operations which lie beyond their ken. At the same time they will feel, that all the faculties they possess were derived from Him who is the original fountain of existence, and are continually dependent for their exercise on his sustaining energy. Hence we find, that the angelic tribes are eminently distinguished for the exercise of this heavenly virtue. They “cover their faces with their wings” in the presence of their Sovereign, and fly, with cheerfulness, at his command, to our degraded world, “to minister to the heirs of salvation.” It is only in those worlds where ignorance and depravity prevail (if there be any such besides our own) that such a principle as pride is known or cherished in the breast of a dependent creature — and therefore every one in whom it predominates, however high his station or worldly accomplishments, or however abject his condition may be, must be considered as either ignorant or depraved, or more properly, as having both those evils existing in his constitution, the one being the natural and necessary result of the other.

5. The studies connected with astronomy tend to prepare the soul for the employments of the future world. In that world, the glory of the Divine perfections, as manifested throughout the illimitable tracts of creation, is one of the objects which unceasingly employ the contemplation of the blessed. For they are represented in their adorations as celebrating the attributes of the Deity displayed in his operations: “Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty! thou art worthy to receive glory and honor and power, for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” Before we can enter that world and mingle with its inhabitants, we must acquire a relish for their employments, and some acquaintance with the objects which form the subject of their sublime investigations; otherwise, we could feel no enjoyment in the society of heavenly intelligences, and the exercises in which they engage. The investigations connected with astronomy, and the frequent contemplation of its objects, have a tendency to prepare us for such celestial employments, as they awaken attention to such subjects, as they invigorate the faculties, and enlarge the capacity of the intellect, as they suggest sublime inquiries, and desires for further information which may afterwards be gratified; as they form the groundwork of the progress we may afterwards make in that state in our surveys of the Divine operations, and as they habituate the mind to take large and comprehensive views of the empire and moral government of the Almighty. Those who have made progress in such studies, under the influence of holy dispositions may be considered as fitted to enter heaven with peculiar advantages, as they will then be introduced to employments and investigations to which they were formerly accustomed, and for which they were prepared — in consequence of which they may be prepared for filling stations of superior eminence in that world, and for directing the views and investigations of their brethren who enjoyed few opportunities of instruction and improvement in the present state. For we are informed, in the sacred records, that “they who are wise,” or as the words should be rendered, “they who excel in wisdom shall shine as the brightness of the firmament, and they that turn many to righteousness, as the stars for ever and ever.”

6. The researches of astronomy demonstrate, that it is in the power of the Creator to open to his intelligent offspring endless sources of felicity. In looking forward to the scene of our future destination, we behold a series of ages rising in succession without any prospect of a termination; and, at first view, it might admit of a doubt, whether the universe presents a scene so diversified and boundless, that intelligent beings, during an endless duration, could expect that new scenes of glory and felicity might be continually opening to their view, or, whether the same series of perceptions and enjoyments might not be reiterated so as to produce satiety and indifference. Without attempting positively to decide on the particular scenes or sources of happiness that may be opened in the eternal world, it may be admitted, that the Deity has it in his power to gratify his rational creatures, during every period of duration, with new objects and new sources of enjoyment; and, that it is the science of astronomy alone which has presented us with a demonstration, and a full illustration of this important truth. For, it has displayed before us a universe boundless in its extent, diversified as to its objects, and infinite as to their number and variety. Even within the limits of human vision the number of worlds which exist cannot be reckoned less than three thousand millions; and those which are nearest to us, and subject to our particular examination, present varieties of different kinds, both as to magnitude, motion, splendor, color and diversity of surface — evidently indicating, that every world has its peculiar scenes of beauty and grandeur. But, as no one will be so presumptuous as to assert, that the boundaries of the universe terminate at the limits of human vision, there may be an assemblage of creation beyond all that is visible to us, which as far exceeds the visible system as the vast ocean exceeds in magnitude a single drop of water; and this view is nothing more than compatible with the idea of a Being whose creating energies are infinite, and whose presence fills immensity. Here, then, we have presented to our contemplation a boundless scene, corresponding, in variety and extent of space, to the ages of an endless duration; so that we can conceive an immortal mind expatiating amidst objects of benignity, sublimity and grandeur, ever varied and ever new, throughout an eternal round of existence, without ever arriving at a point, where it might be said, “Hitherto shalt thou come, but no farther.” And we have reason to conclude that such will be the privilege and enjoyment of all holy beings. For we are informed on the authority of inspiration, that “in God’s presence there is fulness of joy, and at his right hand are pleasures for evermore.”

7. The science of astronomy is a study which will be prosecuted without intermission in the eternal world. This may be inferred from what has been already stated. For it is chiefly among the numerous worlds dispersed throughout the universe that God is seen, his perfections manifested, and the plans of his moral government displayed before the eyes of unnumbered intelligences. The heavens constitute by far the grandest and most extensive portion of the empire of Omnipotence; and if it shall be one part of the happiness of immortal spirits to behold and investigate the beauty, grandeur and beneficence displayed throughout this empire, we may rest assured, that they will be perpetually employed in such exercises; since the objects of their investigation are boundless as immensity; — or, in other words, astronomy, among o her branches of celestial science, will be their unceasing study and pursuit. As it has for its object, to investigate the motions, relations, phenomena, scenery, and the ultimate destination of the great bodies of the universe, the subject can never be exhausted. Whatever may be said in regard to the absolute perfection of other sciences, astronomy can never be said, at any future period of duration, to have arrived at perfection, in so far as it is a subject of study to finite minds; and, at this moment, even in the view of the Infinite Mind that created the universe, its objects may not yet be completed. For we have reason to believe that the work of creation is still going forward, and, consequently, that new worlds and systems may be continually emerging from nothing under the energies of Creating Power. However capacious, therefore, the intellects of good men, in a future world, may be, they will never be able fully to explore the extent and variety, “the riches and glory” of Him “who dwells in light unapproachable;” — yea, the most exalted of created intelligences, wherever existing, although their mental powers and activities were incomparably superior to those of man, will be inadequate to a full investigation and comprehension of the grandeur and sublimities of that kingdom which extent is throughout the regions of immensity. And this circumstance will constitute one ingredient of their happiness, and a security for its permanency. For, at every period of infinite duration, they will be enabled to look forward to a succession of scenes, objects and enjoyments different from all they had previously contemplated or experienced, without any prospect of a termination. therefore conclude, that, unless the material universe be demolished, and the activities of immortal minds suspended, the objects of astronomy will continue throughout eternity to be the subject of study, and of unceasing contemplation.

Such are some of the advantages attending the study of the science of astronomy. It lies at the foundation of our geographical knowledge — it serves as a handmaid and director to the traveler and navigator — it is subservient to the purposes of universal commerce — it determines the seasons, and directs the operations of the husbandman — it supplies us with an equable standard of time, and settles the events of history — it lends its aid to the propagation of religion, and undermines the foundation of superstition and astrology. Above all, it illustrates the glory of the perfections of the Deity — displays the extent and grandeur of his universal empire — affords subjects of sublime contemplation — enlarges the conceptions, and invigorates the mental powers — counteracts the influence of pride, and promotes the exercise of humility — prepares the soul for the employments of the future world — and demonstrates, that the Creator has it in his power to open up endlessly diversified sources of happiness to every order of his intelligent offspring, throughout all the revolutions of eternity. The moral advantages arising from the study of this science, however, cannot be appreciated or enjoyed, unless such studies and investigations be prosecuted in connection with the facts and principles of Revelation. But, when associated with the study of the Scriptures, and the character of God therein delineated, and the practice of Christian precepts, they are calculated “to make the man of God perfect,” to enlarge his conceptions of Divine perfection, and to expand his views of “the inheritance of the saints in light.”

Such being the advantages to be derived from the study of this science, it ought to form a subject of attention in every seminary intended for the mental and moral improvement of mankind. In order to the improvement of the young in this science, and that its objects may make a deep impression on their minds, they should be directed to make frequent observations, as opportunity offers, on the movements of the nocturnal heavens, and to ascertain all the facts which are obvious to the eye of an attentive spectator. And, while they mark the different constellations, the apparent diurnal motion of the celestial vault, the planets in their several courses, and the moon walking in her brightness among the host of stars — they should be indulged with views of the rings of Saturn, the belts and satellites of Jupiter, the phases of Mercury and Venus, the numerous groups of stars in the Milky Way, the double and treble stars, the most remarkable Nebula, the mountains and plains, the caverns and circular ridges of hills which diversify the surface of the moon, as they appear through good achromatic or reflecting telescopes. Without actual observation, and the exhibition of such interesting objects, the science of astronomy makes, comparatively, little impression on the mind. Our school books on astronomy should be popular in their language and illustrations, but, at the same time, they should be comprehensive in their details, and every exhibition should be clear and well defined. They should contain, not merely descriptions of facts, to be received on the authority of the author or the instructor, but illustrations of the reasons or arguments on which the conclusions of astronomy are founded, and of the modes by which they have been ascertained. And, while planetariums, celestial globes, and planispheres of the heavens are exhibited, care should be taken to direct the observations of the pupils as frequently as possible to the objects themselves, and to guard them against the limited and distorted notions which all kinds of artificial representations have a tendency to convey.

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Bibliography

Dick, Thomas. Advantages of the Study of Astronomy. In: Elijah Hinsdale Burritt, The Geography of the Heavens. 5th ed. New York, 1850 (1st ed, 1833). Dick’s Introduction first appeared in the 3rd edition (1836).

Dick, Thomas. Celestial Scenery, or, The Wonders of the Planetary System Displayed; Illustrating the Perfections of Deity and a Plurality of Worlds. Collected Works of Thomas Dick, Vol. VII. Philadelphia, 1845.

Dick, Thomas. The Solar System. Collected Works of Thomas Dick, Vol. X. Philadelphia, 1853.

 

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