BY the efficacy of Religion the presence of spirits doth dispose the effect, neither can any work of wonderfull efficacy in Religion be done, unless some good spirit the ruler and finisher of the work be there present. Now good spirits, if they may be divers wayes called up, yet can by no bonds, or very hardly be allayed by us, but we must by some sacred things beseech them, as we read in Apuleius, by the Celestiall Stars, by the infernall dieties, by the naturall elements, by the silence of the night, by the increase of the Country of Nilus, by the secrets of Memphis and elsewhere in Porphyrie: Thou who art risen out of the mud, who sittest in thy place, who sailest in ships, who every hour dost change thy shape, and art changed in each sign of the Zodiack. 〈◊〉 these, and such like Symbolicall orations and hymnes, because they are signes of Divine vertues, spirits did sometimes apply themselves to humane uses: not as being compelled by any kind of necessity, but of their own accord, and by a kind of custom did, being overcome by the prayers of them that called on them, more easily yeeld: whence in Porphyrie in his book De Responsis Hecate saith,
I by thy prayers being overcome
Came thither—
And in another place in the same book he saith,
Conquer'd by pray'r the Dieties above
Come down on th' earth and future things foreshew.
Also the divining of sutable things works so with mans mind, that good spirits do assist us willingly, and communicate their power and vertue to us, dayly helping us with illuminations, inspirations, oracles, prophecyings, dreams, miracles, prodigies, divinations, and auguries, and working upon and acting upon our spirits, as images like to them, by framing them by their influences, and making them most like to themselves even so far, as that oftentimes our spirit doth as surely work wonderfull things as the Celestiall spirits are wont to do. But evil spirits are overcome by us through the assistance of the good, especially when the petitioner is very pious and devout, and sings forth sacred words, and a horrible speech, as by conjuring the Divine power by the venerable names, and signs of supernaturall powers, by miracles, by Sacraments, by sacred mysteries, and such like; which conjurations, or adjurations, in as much as they are done by the name and power of Religion, and Divine vertue, those evil spirits are afraid of; whence also oftentimes prophane men do bind or allay by such kinde of sacred conjurations, evil spirits, not enduring such things, whence Cyprian in his book, Quod Idola Dii non sint, saith; that spirits being adjured by the true God do presently yeeld to us, and confesse, and are forced to go out of possessed bodies, and either presently leap out, or by degrees vanish, according as the faith of the Patient is helping, or grace of the swearer aspires. And Athanasius in his book De Variis Questionibus saith that there is no word more terrible and more destructive to the power of Devils then the beginning of the 68. Psalm, Arise O God, and let thine enemies be scattered; For assoon as that word is spoken, the devill vanisheth away howling. And Origen against Celsus saith, that the naming the name Jesus hath oftentimes cast many devils as well out of the souls of men as their bodies, and hath exercised much power in them out of whom the devils were cast. Also we do oftentimes with threats and revilings bind or repell evil spirits, especially the lesser, as Haggs, Incubi, and such like, as we read in Lucan concerning that witch saying,
I will now call you up by a true name,
The stygian dogs I in the light supreme
Will leave, and follow you also through grave,
From all the Urnes in death I will you save,
Thee O Hecate, unto the gods will shew,
(To whom t' addresse thy self in other hew,
Thou wast wont) in wan, form and without grace,
And thee forbid to change Erebus his face.
And in Philostratus we read, when Apollonius, and his companions were travelling in a bright Moon-shining night, that the Phantasme of a Hagge met them, and some times changed it self into this shape, & some times intothat, and some times vanished out of their sight. Now assoon as Apollonius knew what it was, grievously reviling it advised his companions to do the like: for he knew that that was the best remedy against such invasions. His companions did as he advised, and the Phantasme presently with a noise vanished away like a shadow: For so fearfull is this kind of spirits, that they are moved, tremble, and are compelled by a feigned terrour, and false and impossible threats. Whence Chereon the holy scribe saith that these are those things by which especially the spirits are compelled. There is moreover as hath been above said, a certain kind of spirits not so noxious, but most neer to men, so that they are even affected with humane passions, and many of these delight in mans society, and willingly dwell with them: Some of them dote upon women, some upon children, some are delighted in the company of divers domestick and wild animals, some inhabit Woods and Parks, some dwell about fountains and meadows. So the Fairies, and hobgoblins inhabit Champian fields; the Naiades fountains: the Potamides Rivers; the Nymphs marshes, and ponds: the Oreades mountains; the Humedes Meadows; the Dryades and Hamadryades the Woods, which also Satyrs and Sylvani inhabit, the same also take delight in trees and brakes, as do the Naptae, and Agaptae in flowers: the Dodonae in Acorns; the Paleae and Feniliae in fodder and the Country. He therefore that will call upon them, may easily doe it in the places where their abode is, by alluring them with sweet fumes, with pleasant sounds, and by such instruments as are made of the guts of certain animals and peculiar wood, adding songs, verses, inchantments sutable to it, and that which is especially to be observed in this, the singleness of the wit, innocency of the mind, a firm credulity, and constant silence; wherefore they do often meet children, women, and poor and mean men. They are afraid of and flie from men of a constant, bold, and undaunted mind, being no way offensive to good and pure men, but to wicked and impure, noxious. Of this kind are hobgoblins, familiars, and ghosts of dead men. Hence Plotinus saith, that the souls of men are sometimes made spirits: and of men well deserving are made familiars which the Greeks call Eudemons, i. e. blessed spirits: but of ill deserving men, hags, and hobgoblins, which the Greeks call Cacodemons, i. e. Evil spirits; But they may be called ghosts when it is uncertain whether they have deserved well or ill. Of these apparitions there are divers examples; such was that which Pliny the Junior makes mention of concerning the house of Athenodorus the Philosopher of Tharsis in which there appeared with a sudden horrible noise the ghost of an old man. And Philostratus tels of the like of a hag of Menippus Lycius the Philosopher turned into a beautifull woman of Corinth, whom Tyaneus Apollonius took to be a hobgoblin; the same at Ephesus, the like in the shape of an old begger who was the cause of the pestilence, who therefore being by his command stoned, there appeared a mastive dog, and presently the pestilence ceased. We must know this that whosoever shall intellectually work in evil spirits, shall by the power of good spirits bind them; but he that shall work only worldlily, shall work to himself judgement and damnation.