Part III, Chapter IV

Of Exterior Humility

“Borrow empty vessels, not a few,” said Eliseus to the poor widow (4 Kings 4:3), “and pour oil into them.” To receive the grace of God into our hearts they must be emptied of vainglory. As the Castrel, by crying and looking on the birds of prey, affrights them by a secret property peculiar to itself, which makes the doves love her above all other birds, and live in security with her; so humility repels Satan, and preserves the grace and gift of the Holy Ghost within us. All the Saints, but particularly the King of Saints and his Mother, have always honored and cherished this blessed virtue more than any amongst the moral virtues. We call that glory vain which we assume to ourselves, either for what is not in us, or for what is in us, and belongs to us, but deserves not that we should glory in it. The nobility of our ancestors, the favor of great men, and popular honor, are things, not in us, but either in our progenitors, or in the esteem of other men. Some become proud and insolent, either by riding a good horse, wearing a feather in their hat, or by being dressed in a fine suit of clothes; but who does not see the folly of this? for if there be any glory in such things, the glory belongs to the horse, the bird, and the tailor; and what a meanness of heart must it be, to borrow esteem from a horse, from a feather, or some ridiculous new fashion! Others value themselves for a well-trimmed beard, for curled locks, or soft hands; or because they can dance, sing, or play; but are not these effeminate men, who seek to raise their reputation by so frivolous and foolish things? Others, for a little learning, would be honored and respected by the whole world, as if every one ought to become their pupil, and account them his masters. These are called pedants. Others strut like peacocks, contemplating their beauty and think themselves admired by every one. All this is extremely vain, foolish, and impertinent; and the glory which is raised on so weak foundations is justly esteemed vain and frivolous.

* Or Kestrel, a bird of the hawk kind

True goodness is proved like true balm; for as balm, when dropped into water, if it sinks and rests at the bottom, is so accounted the most excellent and precious; so, if you would know whether a man be truly wise, learned, or generous, observe whether his qualifications tend to humility, modesty, and submission; for then they shall be good indeed; but if they swim on the surface, and strive to appear above water, they shall be so much the less true, in the same proportion as they appear. As pearls, that are conceived and nourished by the wind, or by the noise of thunder, have nothing of the substance of pearls, but merely the external appearance; so the virtues and good qualities of men that are bred and nourished by pride, ostentation, and vanity, have nothing but the appearance of good.

Honors, rank, and dignities, are like saffron, which thrives best, and grows most plentifully, when trodden under foot. It is no honor to be beautiful when a man prizes himself for it: beauty, to have a good grace, should be neglected; and learning is a disgrace to us when it degenerates into pedantry.

If we stand upon the punctilio for places, precedency, and titles, besides exposing our qualities to be examined, tried, and contradicted, we render them vile and contemptible; for as honor is beautiful when freely given, so it becomes base when exacted or sought after. When the peacock spreads his tail to admire himself, in raising up his beautiful feathers he ruffles all the rest, and discovers his deformities. Flowers that are fair whilst they grow in the earth wither and fade when handled; and as they that smell the mandrake at a distance perceive a most agreeable fragrance, whilst they that approach become sick and stupefied, so honors give a pleasant satisfaction to those that view them afar off, without stopping to amuse themselves with them, or being earnest about them. Those who affect them, or feed on them, are exceedingly blamable, and worthy of reprehension.

The pursuit and love of virtue begin to make us virtuous; but the pursuit and love of honor make us contemptible and worthy of blame. Generous minds do not amuse themselves about the petty toys of rank, honor, and salutation; they have other things to perform; such baubles only belong to degenerate spirits.

He that may have pearls never loads himself with shells; and such as aspire to virtue trouble not themselves about honors. Every one indeed may take and keep his own place without prejudice to humility, so that it be done carelessly, and without contention. For as they that come from Peru, besides gold and silver, bring also thence apes and parrots, because they neither cost much, nor are burdensome; so they that aspire to virtue refuse not the rank and honor due to them, provided it cost them not too much care and attention, nor involve them in trouble, anxiety, disputes, or contentions. Nevertheless, I do not here allude to those whose dignity concerns the public, nor to certain particular occasions of important consequences; for in these every one ought to keep what belongs to him, with prudence and discretion, accompanied by charity and suavity of manners.

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