without any thought, cannot regulate its own motions, much less be
regulated by the thought of the whole; since that thought is not the
cause of motion, (for then it must be antecedent to it, and so without
it,) but the consequence of it; whereby freedom, power, choice, and all
rational and wise thinking or acting, will be quite taken away: so
that such a thinking being will be no better nor wiser than pure blind
matter; since to resolve all into the accidental unguided motions of
blind matter, or into thought depending on unguided motions of blind
matter, is the same thing: not to mention the narrowness of such
thoughts and knowledge that must depend on the motion of such parts. But
there needs no enumeration of any more absurdities and impossibilities
in this hypothesis (however full of them it be) than that before
mentioned; since, let this thinking system be all or a part of the
matter of the universe, it is impossible that any one particle should
either know its own, or the motion of any other particle, or the whole
know the motion of every particle; and so regulate its own thoughts or
motions, or indeed have any thought resulting from such motion.


18. Matter not co-eternal with an Eternal Mind.

SECONDLY, Others would have Matter to be eternal, notwithstanding that
they allow an eternal, cogitative, immaterial Being. This, though it
take not away the being of a God, yet, since it denies one and the first
great piece of his workmanship, the creation, let us consider it a
little. Matter must be allowed eternal: Why? because you cannot conceive
how it can be made out of nothing: why do you not also think yourself
eternal? You will answer, perhaps, Because, about twenty or forty years
since, you began to be. But if I ask you, what that YOU is, which began
then to be, you can scarce tell me. The matter whereof you are made