The Sequence or Train of Thoughts

By Consequence, or Trayne of Thoughts, I understand that succession of one Thought to another, which is called (to distinguish it from Discourse in words) Mentall Discourse.

By a sequence, or train of thought, I mean one thought following another. This sequence is called mental discourse to distinguish it from discourse in words.

When a man thinketh on any thing whatsoever, His next Thought after, is not altogether so casuall as it seems to be. Not every Thought to every Thought succeeds indifferently. But as wee have no Imagination, whereof we have not formerly had Sense, in whole, or in parts; so we have no Transition from one Imagination to another, whereof we never had the like before in our Senses. The reason whereof is this. All Fancies are Motions within us, reliques of those made in the Sense: And those motions that immediately succeeded one another in the sense, continue also together after Sense: In so much as the former comming again to take place, and be praedominant, the later followeth, by coherence of the matter moved, is such manner, as water upon a plain Table is drawn which way any one part of it is guided by the finger. But because in sense, to one and the same thing perceived, sometimes one thing, sometimes another succeedeth, it comes to passe in time, that in the Imagining of any thing, there is no certainty what we shall Imagine next; Onely this is certain, it shall be something that succeeded the same before, at one time or another.

When a person thinks about anything, the next thought is not quite as random as it seems. Not every thought can follow every other thought equally. We have no mental image that we have not previously experienced through our senses, either wholly or in parts. Likewise, we never move between mental images without having experienced a similar sequence through our senses before. The reason is this. All mental images are movements within us, remnants of movements caused by sensory experience. Movements that immediately followed one another during sensory experience remain linked after that experience ends. So when the earlier movement returns and becomes dominant, the later movement follows because the matter being moved remains connected. In the same way, water on a flat table is drawn wherever a finger guides any part of it. But in sensory experience, the same perceived thing is sometimes followed by one thing, sometimes by another. So when we imagine anything, we cannot be certain what we will imagine next. Only this is certain: the next thing will be something that followed the same thing before, at some time or other.

This Trayne of Thoughts, or Mentall Discourse, is of two sorts. The first is Unguided, Without Designee, and inconstant; Wherein there is no Passionate Thought, to govern and direct those that follow, to it self, as the end and scope of some desire, or other passion: In which case the thoughts are said to wander, and seem impertinent one to another, as in a Dream. Such are Commonly the thoughts of men, that are not onely without company, but also without care of any thing; though even then their Thoughts are as busie as at other times, but without harmony; as the sound which a Lute out of tune would yeeld to any man; or in tune, to one that could not play. And yet in this wild ranging of the mind, a man may oft-times perceive the way of it, and the dependance of one thought upon another. For in a Discourse of our present civill warre, what could seem more impertinent, than to ask (as one did) what was the value of a Roman Penny? Yet the Cohaerence to me was manifest enough. For the Thought of the warre, introduced the Thought of the delivering up the King to his Enemies; The Thought of that, brought in the Thought of the delivering up of Christ; and that again the Thought of the 30 pence, which was the price of that treason: and thence easily followed that malicious question; and all this in a moment of time; for Thought is quick.

This train of thought, or mental discourse, comes in two kinds. The first is unguided, aimless, and changeable. No thought driven by desire or another passion governs the thoughts that follow, directing them toward its goal. In this case, thoughts are said to wander and seem unrelated to one another, as in a dream. Such thoughts are common among people who are not only alone but also free from any concerns. Even then, their thoughts are as busy as at other times, but without harmony. They are like the sounds of an out-of-tune lute, whoever plays it, or a tuned lute played by someone unskilled. Yet even when the mind roams wildly, we can often trace its path and see how one thought follows another. During a discussion of our present civil war, someone asked what a Roman penny was worth. What could have seemed more irrelevant? Yet the connection was clear enough to me. The thought of the war led to the thought of handing the King over to his enemies. That thought led to the thought of handing Christ over. Then came the thought of the 30 pence paid for that betrayal. From there, that malicious question followed easily. All this happened in a moment, for thought is quick.

The second is more constant; as being Regulated by some desire, and designee. For the impression made by such things as wee desire, or feare, is strong, and permanent, or, (if it cease for a time,) of quick return: so strong it is sometimes, as to hinder and break our sleep. From Desire, ariseth the Thought of some means we have seen produce the like of that which we ayme at; and from the thought of that, the thought of means to that mean; and so continually, till we come to some beginning within our own power. And because the End, by the greatnesse of the impression, comes often to mind, in case our thoughts begin to wander, they are quickly again reduced into the way: which observed by one of the seven wise men, made him give men this praecept, which is now worne out, Respice Finem; that is to say, in all your actions, look often upon what you would have, as the thing that directs all your thoughts in the way to attain it.

The second kind is steadier because it is guided by some desire and purpose. For the impression made by things we desire or fear is strong and lasting. If the impression fades for a time, it quickly returns. Sometimes it is so strong that it keeps us from sleeping or wakes us. Desire leads us to think of some means we have seen produce something like what we want. Then we think of a means to achieve that means. We continue until we reach some starting point within our own power. And because the goal makes such a strong impression, it often comes to mind. So if our thoughts begin to wander, they are quickly brought back on course. One of the seven wise men noticed this and gave people a rule now worn out by repetition: Respice Finem. That is, in all your actions, look often at what you want to achieve. Let that goal guide all your thoughts toward achieving it.

The Trayn of regulated Thoughts is of two kinds; One, when of an effect imagined, wee seek the causes, or means that produce it: and this is common to Man and Beast. The other is, when imagining any thing whatsoever, wee seek all the possible effects, that can by it be produced; that is to say, we imagine what we can do with it, when wee have it. Of which I have not at any time seen any signe, but in man onely; for this is a curiosity hardly incident to the nature of any living creature that has no other Passion but sensuall, such as are hunger, thirst, lust, and anger. In summe, the Discourse of the Mind, when it is governed by designee, is nothing but Seeking, or the faculty of Invention, which the Latines call Sagacitas, and Solertia; a hunting out of the causes, of some effect, present or past; or of the effects, of some present or past cause, sometimes a man seeks what he hath lost; and from that place, and time, wherein hee misses it, his mind runs back, from place to place, and time to time, to find where, and when he had it; that is to say, to find some certain, and limited time and place, in which to begin a method of seeking. Again, from thence, his thoughts run over the same places and times, to find what action, or other occasion might make him lose it. This we call Remembrance, or Calling to mind: the Latines call it Reminiscentia, as it were a Re-Conning of our former actions.

There are two kinds of ordered thought. In the first, we imagine an effect and seek the causes or means that produce it. Both humans and animals do this. In the second, we imagine anything at all and seek all the possible effects it can produce. In other words, we imagine what we can do with something once we have it. I have never seen any sign of this second kind of thinking except in humans. Such curiosity is hardly natural to any creature whose only passions are bodily, such as hunger, thirst, lust, and anger. In short, thinking directed toward a purpose is nothing but searching, or the ability to discover. The Latins call this ability Sagacitas and Solertia. It means hunting for the causes of some present or past effect. Or it means hunting for the effects of some present or past cause. Sometimes a person searches for something he has lost. Starting from the place and time when he notices the loss, his mind works backward. He moves from place to place and time to time, seeking where and when he had the lost object. That is, he seeks a definite, limited time and place from which to begin a systematic search. Then his thoughts retrace those same places and times. He tries to discover what action or other circumstance might have caused him to lose the object. We call this remembering, or calling to mind. The Latins call it Reminiscentia, as though it were a review of our former actions.

Sometimes a man knows a place determinate, within the compasse whereof his is to seek; and then his thoughts run over all the parts thereof, in the same manner, as one would sweep a room, to find a jewell; or as a Spaniel ranges the field, till he find a sent; or as a man should run over the alphabet, to start a rime.

Sometimes a man knows the specific area in which he must search. Then his thoughts go over every part of that area, just as someone sweeps a room to find a jewel. Or they range like a spaniel searching a field until it picks up a scent. Or they run through the alphabet like a man trying to find a rhyme.

Sometime a man desires to know the event of an action; and then he thinketh of some like action past, and the events thereof one after another; supposing like events will follow like actions. As he that foresees what wil become of a Criminal, re-cons what he has seen follow on the like Crime before; having this order of thoughts, The Crime, the Officer, the Prison, the Judge, and the Gallowes. Which kind of thoughts, is called Foresight, and Prudence, or Providence; and sometimes Wisdome; though such conjecture, through the difficulty of observing all circumstances, be very fallacious. But this is certain; by how much one man has more experience of things past, than another; by so much also he is more Prudent, and his expectations the seldomer faile him. The Present onely has a being in Nature; things Past have a being in the Memory onely, but things To Come have no being at all; the Future being but a fiction of the mind, applying the sequels of actions Past, to the actions that are Present; which with most certainty is done by him that has most Experience; but not with certainty enough. And though it be called Prudence, when the Event answereth our Expectation; yet in its own nature, it is but Presumption. For the foresight of things to come, which is Providence, belongs onely to him by whose will they are to come. From him onely, and supernaturally, proceeds Prophecy. The best Prophet naturally is the best guesser; and the best guesser, he that is most versed and studied in the matters he guesses at: for he hath most Signes to guesse by.

Sometimes a man wants to know the outcome of an action. He then thinks of a similar past action and the events that followed, one after another. He assumes that similar actions will have similar outcomes. For example, someone predicting what will happen to a criminal recalls what he has seen follow a similar crime before. His thoughts follow this order: the crime, the officer, the prison, the judge, and the gallows. This kind of thinking is called foresight, prudence, or providence, and sometimes wisdom. Yet such guesswork is highly unreliable because observing every circumstance is difficult. But one thing is certain. The more experience a man has of past events compared with another, the more prudent he is. His expectations also fail him less often. Only the present exists in nature. Past things exist only in memory, but things yet to come do not exist at all. The future is only a fiction of the mind. The mind applies the outcomes of past actions to present actions. The person with the most experience does this most reliably, but still not reliably enough. Although we call such thinking prudence when the outcome matches our expectations, in itself it is only an assumption. For foresight of things to come, which is providence, belongs only to him whose will brings those things about. Prophecy comes only from him, through supernatural means. The best natural prophet is the best guesser. And the best guesser is the person who has most thoroughly studied and knows most about the subject. For he has the most signs to guide his guesses.

A Signe, is the Event Antecedent, of the Consequent; and contrarily, the Consequent of the Antecedent, when the like Consequences have been observed, before: And the oftner they have been observed, the lesse uncertain is the Signe. And therefore he that has most experience in any kind of businesse, has most Signes, whereby to guesse at the Future time, and consequently is the most prudent: And so much more prudent than he that is new in that kind of business, as not to be equalled by any advantage of naturall and extemporary wit: though perhaps many young men think the contrary.

An earlier event is a sign of a later one, and a later event can likewise indicate an earlier one. This is so when similar sequences of events have been observed before. The more often these sequences have been observed, the less uncertain the sign becomes. So whoever has the most experience in any kind of work has the most signs for predicting the future. Consequently, that person has the best practical judgment. Their judgment so far exceeds a beginner’s that no advantage in natural intelligence or quick thinking can match it. Yet perhaps many young men think otherwise.

Neverthelesse it is not Prudence that distinguisheth man from beast. There be beasts, that at a year old observe more, and pursue that which is for their good, more prudently, than a child can do at ten.

Nevertheless, prudence is not what sets humans apart from animals. Some animals at one year old notice more than a ten-year-old child does. Those animals also pursue what benefits them more prudently than a child of ten can.

As Prudence is a Praesumtion of the Future, contracted from the Experience of time Past; So there is a Praesumtion of things Past taken from other things (not future but) past also. For he that hath seen by what courses and degrees, a flourishing State hath first come into civill warre, and then to ruine; upon the sights of the ruines of any other State, will guesse, the like warre, and the like courses have been there also. But his conjecture, has the same incertainty almost with the conjecture of the Future; both being grounded onely upon Experience.

Prudence is a prediction about the future based on past experience. In the same way, we can infer past events from other events, also past rather than future. Suppose someone has seen the steps and developments that led a flourishing state first into civil war, then to ruin. On seeing the ruins of another state, he will guess that similar wars and developments occurred there too. But his guess about the past is almost as uncertain as a guess about the future. Both are based only on experience.

There is no other act of mans mind, that I can remember, naturally planted in him, so, as to need no other thing, to the exercise of it, but to be born a man, and live with the use of his five Senses. Those other Faculties, of which I shall speak by and by, and which seem proper to man onely, are acquired, and encreased by study and industry; and of most men learned by instruction, and discipline; and proceed all from the invention of Words, and Speech. For besides Sense, and Thoughts, and the Trayne of thoughts, the mind of man has no other motion; though by the help of Speech, and Method, the same Facultyes may be improved to such a height, as to distinguish men from all other living Creatures.

I can recall no other activity of the human mind that comes naturally to us in this way. It requires nothing beyond being born human and living with the use of our five senses. The other abilities I will discuss shortly seem to belong only to humans. They are acquired and developed through study and effort. Most people learn them through instruction and training. All these abilities come from the invention of words and speech. For the human mind has no activity beyond sensation, thoughts, and sequences of thoughts. Yet speech and method may develop these same abilities so far that they distinguish humans from all other living creatures.

Whatsoever we imagine, is Finite. Therefore there is no Idea, or conception of anything we call Infinite. No man can have in his mind an Image of infinite magnitude; nor conceive the ends, and bounds of the thing named; having no Conception of the thing, but of our own inability. And therefore the Name of GOD is used, not to make us conceive him; (for he is Incomprehensible; and his greatnesse, and power are unconceivable;) but that we may honour him. Also because whatsoever (as I said before,) we conceive, has been perceived first by sense, either all at once, or by parts; a man can have no thought, representing any thing, not subject to sense. No man therefore can conceive any thing, but he must conceive it in some place; and indued with some determinate magnitude; and which may be divided into parts; nor that any thing is all in this place, and all in another place at the same time; nor that two, or more things can be in one, and the same place at once: for none of these things ever have, or can be incident to Sense; but are absurd speeches, taken upon credit (without any signification at all,) from deceived Philosophers, and deceived, or deceiving Schoolemen.

Everything we imagine is finite. Therefore, we have no idea or conception of anything we call infinite. No one can picture an infinite size or conceive the limits and boundaries of something called infinite. We conceive only our own inability, not the thing itself. Therefore, we use the name of GOD not to help us conceive of him, but to honor him. For he is beyond understanding, and his greatness and power are beyond conception. Also, as I said before, everything we conceive has first been perceived through the senses, either whole or in parts. Because of this, no one can have a thought representing anything beyond the reach of the senses. Therefore, no one can conceive of anything without imagining it in some place, with a definite size and divisible into parts. Nor can anyone conceive of something being wholly in one place and wholly in another at the same time. Nor can anyone conceive of two or more things occupying exactly the same place at once. For none of these things have ever been, or can ever be, perceived through the senses. They are absurd statements with no meaning at all, accepted on trust from mistaken philosophers and mistaken or deceitful Scholastics.