Part IThe Motion of Chaos1. The motion of Chaos proceeds into being successively: as one degree follows another, motion is initiated in passing from the first degree to the second, and from the second to the third, and from the third to the fourth, and from the fourth to the fifth, and so on with each degree. We see this in the generation of animated beings, now the first human begot the second, the second begot the third, and so on with each degree in turn.2. Igneity is the essence of fire, hence its first motion consists in producing Chaos with the essences of the other elements, as the ignificatiive ignificates the ignificable, etc. 3. The second motion follows the first, given that God, in creating the first human, the first animals, etc. brought fire and the other elements out of the first degree into the second. And as God Himself transmitted the elemental influence from Chaos into the first animated beings, so did He provide a regulated process and line of influence for transmitting the elements from this Chaos into the second, third, and all the following generations of animated beings procreated from the first animated beings. 4. The first fire moves in the essence of Chaos as does the second fire, which exists potentially in Chaos and moves intensively within its specific mixture with air, water and earth, as for instance in human bodies, peppercorns, and other such things. This is more clearly apparent in material fire as it burns wood: this kind of fire moves in a way quite similar to the way the ignificative moves in its own natural innate ignificable. 5. The motion of fire proceeds intensively within fire in the ignificative, ignificable, ignification and ignificatum; and the motion of the ignificative, ignificable, etc. also extends into the essence of air, water and earth. Hence, this intensive motion generates an extended motion throughout all of natural mixture. And from natural extended motion, local motion is generated where fire moves in all directions, burning wood, heating iron and warming human bodies and other things, and generating and destroying the individuals of species with its fiery motion. The same likewise applies to way the other elements move. As fire moves in natural things, it follows the intent of the first degree of Chaos to transmit the influence of its essence and virtue to the other degrees without any interruption, so that simple fire is optimally configured to be as close as possible to its simple essence infused in Chaos. And because fire in Chaos cannot be a simple body per se, it seeks out its own simplicity within the mixture of Chaos, or in species derived from it, such as choleric things etc. But it cannot achieve its simplicity, because the other elements are mixed with it everywhere, and the very same applies likewise to all the other elements. 6. As the ignificative in a compound moves its own ignificable within its own essence, it moves the aerificable in the essence of air, the aqueificable in the essence of water, and the terreificable in the essence of earth, none of which can be moved without the presence of the aerificative, aqueificative etc. Therefore the elements move one another, and as their forms move one another, they move each other's matter so that mixture, digestion, and composition can proceed. 7. In
composition, active substantial form moves with its own motion and also
moves accidental forms in passive substantial matter. For instance: the
ignificative with its own motion moves the quantificative, which is active
quantity, in the quantificable which is passive quantity. The same likewise
follows with the qualificative in the qualificable, and so with the other
accidents, wherein motion is an accidental instrument existing under substantial
natural motion for the generation of substance. If the natural motificative
did not have its own intrinsic accidental motificable, namely quantity,
quality etc. existing in passive motion, there would be no active quantity,
quality etc. in matter. Now if the passive instrument is missing, then
the active instrument must necessarily be missing too.
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