The Garden of Cyrus or The Quincuniall, or Lozenge, or Network Plantations of the Ancients, naturally, artificially, mystically considered is a work written by Sir Thomas Browne. It was first published in 1658, along with its diptych companion of stoical moralising and funereal gloom, Urn-Burial. In modern times it has been recognised as Browne's major literary contribution to Hermetic wisdom. Sir Thomas Browne (October 19, 1605 - October 19, 1682) was an English author of varied works that disclose his wide learning in diverse fields including medicine, religion, science and the esoteric. ... Hydriotaphia, Urn Burial, or a Discourse of the Sepulchral Urns lately found in Norfolk, is a work published in 1658 by Sir Thomas Browne. ... A container or barrier that is hermetic is sealed so that not even air can enter or leave. ...

Introduction

The Garden of Cyrus is Browne's mystical vision of the interconnection of art, nature and the Universe via the symbols of the number five, quincunx pattern, lozenge shape, figure X and reticulated Network. Its slender but compressed pages of imagery, symbolism and associative thought are evidence of Sir Thomas Browne's complete understanding of a fundamental quest of Hermetic philosophy, namely proof of the wisdom of God . ... Resources ArtLex. ... The Nature Conservancy - a charitable organization devoted to preserving natural diversity worldwide English Nature UK government organization devoted to preserving natural diversity in the UK Nature Detectives An online research and education project for under 18s in the UK A Guide to Nature and Wildlife Conservation Philosophy Quick Topic Guide... The deepest visible-light image of the cosmos. ... A quincunx is the arrangement of five units in the pattern corresponding to the five-spot on dice, playing cards, or dominoes. ... Sir Thomas Browne (October 19, 1605 - October 19, 1682) was an English author of varied works that disclose his wide learning in diverse fields including medicine, religion, science and the esoteric. ... Hermeticism can refer to one of two things: The study and practice of occult philosophy and magic, of a type associated with writings attributed to the god Hermes Trismegistus, Thrice-Greatest Hermes, a syncretistic deity who combines aspects of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth. ... God is the Supreme Being believed to exist in monotheistic religions as the creator and ruler of the Universe. ...

With its near vertiginous procession of examples of how God geometrizes; via art-objects, botanical observations, ancient history, optics, biblical scripture and the cabbala, Cyrus may, with a modern understanding of the influence of hermetic philosophy upon the arts and intellectual history, be termed a work of hermetic phantasmagoria. The tree of life Kabbalah (קבלה Reception, Standard Hebrew Qabbala, Tiberian Hebrew Qabbālāh; also written variously as Cabala, Cabalah, Cabbala, Cabbalah, Kabala, Kabalah, Kabbala, Qabala, Qabalah) is a religious philosophical system claiming an insight into divine nature. ...

Preface to Patron

The dedicatory preface to his patron Nicolas Bacon includes several examples of Browne's subtle humour Humour (Commonwealth English) or humor (American English) is the ability or quality of people, objects or situations to evoke feelings of amusement in other people. ...

Had I not observed purblinde men discoursing well of generation and some excellently of Generation....How three full folio's are yet too little and how new Herbals fly from America from persevering enquirers......some commendably grew plantations of venomous vegetables..... and Cato seemed to dote upon Cabbage.

The introductory preface also hints at the essence of Browne's 'nature philosophy'. From the detection of nature's arcana the alchemist-physician penetrated Nature's secrets to apprehend a fundamental tenet of alchemy - the Universal Spirit of Nature, the anima mundi or World-Soul responsible for all phenomena and which binds all life together. Browne first wrote upon the existence of the anima mundi in Religio Medici (The Religion of a Doctor) of 1643 thus: The Americas (sometimes referred to as America) is the area including the land mass located between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean, generally divided into North America and South America. ... Alchemy is an early protoscientific practice combining elements of chemistry, physics, astrology, art, semiotics, metallurgy, medicine, and mysticism. ... Anima mundi is the soul of the world, a pure ethereal spirit, which was proclaimed by some ancient philosophers to be diffused throughout all nature. ... Sir Thomas Brownes Religio Medici (The Religion of a Doctor) was in its day a European best-seller which brought its author fame and respect throughout the continent. ...

Now besides these particular and divided Spirits, there may be (for ought I know) an universal and common Spirit to the whole world. It was the opinion of Plato, and is yet of the Hermeticall philosophers; if there be a common nature that unites and ties the scattered and divided individuals into one species, why may there not be one that untyes them all?

The English word spirit comes from the Latin spiritus, meaning breath. ... Plato (Greek: Πλάτων Plátōn) (ca. ...

Text

The opening lines of The Garden of Cyrus depicts the creation of the cosmos. Like many alchemist-physicians Browne was fascinated with life's beginnings, thus cosmic imagery opens his joyous Discourse upon life, light and beauty. The act of the Creation itself is likened to the alchemical opus - God is viewed as a cosmic alchemist. The deepest visible-light image of the cosmos. ...

The opening paragraph of Cyrus also alludes to Vulcan of the alchemists. The Roman god of fire and furnace was a commonplace symbol of Paracelsan alchemy during the era of Protectorate Britain throughout the 1650's. The Swiss physician/alchemist Paracelsus seems to have introduced the mythological figure of Vulcan as the patron deity of alchemy and as symbolic of the hermetic art. ... Paracelsus Paracelsus (November 11 or December 17, 1493 - September 24, 1541) was a famous alchemist, physician, astrologer, and general occultist. ...

The dense symbolism of Cyrus is supplemented by hundreds of foot-notes, the very first informs the reader that the divine philosopher alluded to in the opening paragraph is Plato, author of the Bible of alchemy, namely the Timaeus. As throughout the Discourse highly original optical imagery is employed: Plato (Greek: Πλάτων Plátōn) (ca. ... Timaeus is a theoretical treatise of Plato in the form of a Socratic dialogue, written circa 360 B.C. The work puts forward speculation on the nature of the physical world. ...

That Vulcan gave arrows unto Apollo and Diana the fourth day after their Nativities, according to Gentile Theology, may pass for no blind apprehension of the Creation of the Sunne and Moon, in the work of the fourth day: When the diffused light contracted into Orbs, and shooting rays, of those Luminaries...While the divine Philosopher unhappily omitteth the noblest part of the third.

Throughout The Garden of Cyrus Browne tirelessly supplies his reader with proof of the higher geometry of nature via the closely related symbols of the number five, the Quincunx pattern, the figure X and the network lozenge shape in art, nature and finally, mystically. In many ways The Garden of Cyrus with its numerous examples of sacred geometry is one of the finest examples of the alchemical imagination in operation extant in English literature. An example of such alchemical imagination occurring in chapter two, which reads not unlike modern 'stream of consciousness' style: Apollo (Greek: Απόλλων, Apóllōn; Απελλων) is a god in Greek and Roman mythology, the son of Zeus and Leto, and the twin of Artemis (goddess of the hunt), one of the most important and many-sided of the Olympian divinities. ... Diana was the equivalent in Roman mythology of the Greek Artemis (see Roman/Greek equivalency in mythology for more details). ... The word Gentile (from the Latin gentilis, a translation of the Hebrew Nochri/נכרי) has several meanings. ... Theology is reasoned discourse concerning God (Greek θεος, theos, God, + λογος, logos, word or reason). It also refers to the study of other religious topics. ... A quincunx is the arrangement of five units in the pattern corresponding to the five-spot on dice, playing cards, or dominoes. ... A pullover with a lozenge pattern A lozenge is a parallelogram which usually has two corners pointing up and down that are farther apart than the corners pointing sideways. ...

In Chess-boards and Tables we yet find Pyramids and Squares I wish we had their true and ancient description, far different from ours, or the Check-mate of the Persians, which might continue some elegant remarkables, as being an invention as High as Hermes the secretary of Osyris, figuring the whole world, the motion of the Planets, with Eclipses of the Sun and Moon.

Browne was a keen botanist, and the central chapter of The Garden of Cyrus contains many of his astute botanical observations; in total over 140 plants are mentioned. Botany was a much favoured pastime of alchemists, not only because plants possessed medicinal properties useful to the physician, but also because plant-life demonstrated nature's organic ways. It may also be noted that many flowers are indeed cinque-foiled, that is consisting of five petals. Page after page of detailed descriptions of plants, speculations upon germination and growth, considerations upon embryology, generation and heredity -- the alchemy of nature and transformation are placed at the heart of the Discourse. A chess table is a table with a chessboard painted or engraved on it. ... Hermes bearing the infant Dionysus, by Praxiteles Hermēs (pronounced HUR-mees Greek: Έρμης: pile of marker stones), in Greek mythology, is the god of boundaries and of the travelers who cross them, of shepherds and cowherds, of orators, literature and poets, of athletics, of weights and measures and invention and... Osiris (Greek language, also Usiris; the Egyptian language name is variously transliterated Asar, Aser, Ausar, or Ausare) is the Egyptian God of death and the underworld. ... Botany is the scientific study of plant life. ... 5 (five) is the natural number following 4 and preceding 6. ... Embryology is the subdivision of developmental biology that studies embryos and their development. ... Heredity (the adjective is hereditary) is the transfer of characteristics from parent to offspring, either through their genes or through the social institution called inheritance (for example, a title of nobility is passed from individual to individual according to relevant customs and/or laws). ...

If ever there were a literary example of a physician 'seeking truth in the light of nature' as exhorted by Paracelsus this central chapter with its many sharp-eyed observations on plant-life Cyrus is it. The Swiss alchemist-physician Paracelsus's encouraging of fellow physicians to 'seek truth in the Light of Nature' is in fact a dualistic concept in which both the apprehending of Nature's esoteric arcana and the beginnings of modern biological research are inextricably linked. In Browne's day these two pursuits were quite indistinct from each other. Paracelsus Paracelsus (November 11 or December 17, 1493 - September 24, 1541) was a famous alchemist, physician, astrologer, and general occultist. ...

After exploring Art and Nature for evidence of the Quincunx pattern chapters four and five delve into esoteric topics such as the healing properties of music, astrology and physiognomy, Sir Thomas revealing himself to be well-versed in the Cabbala. A quincunx is the arrangement of five units in the pattern corresponding to the five-spot on dice, playing cards, or dominoes. ... Etymology Esoteric is an adjective originating during Hellenic Greece under the domain of the Roman Empire; it comes from the Greek esôterikos, from esôtero, the comparative form of esô: within. It is a word meaning anything that is inner and occult, a latinate word meaning hidden (from which... An astrological chart (or horoscope) - Y2K Chart — This particular chart is calculated for January 1, 2000 at 12:01:00 A.M. Eastern Standard Time in New York City, New York, USA. (Longitude: 074W0023 - Latitude: 40N4251), using the tropical zodiac Astrology (from Greek: αστρολογία = άστρον, astron, star + λόγος, logos, word) is... Physiognomy (Gk. ... Kabbalah (Hebrew קַבָּלָה reception, Standard Hebrew Qabbala, Tiberian Hebrew Qabbālāh; also written variously as Cabala, Cabalah, Cabbala, Cabbalah, Kabala, Kabalah, Kabbala, Qabala, Qabalah, Kaballah) is an interpretation (exegesis, hermeneutic) key, soul of the Torah (Hebrew Bible), or the religious mystical system of Judaism claiming an...

The apotheosis of The Garden of Cyrus contains Browne's testimony of his scientific credentials for obtaining truth, these are - 'rational conjecture', 'occular observation' and 'discursive enquiry'; there follows the much-celebrated penultimate paragraph of purple prose in which the orbit of the doctor's 'soul-journey' splashes down to earth and hard reality.

But the Quincunx of Heaven runs low, and 'tis time to close the five ports of knowledge. We are unwilling to spin out our awaking thoughts into the phantasms of sleep, which often continueth precogitations; making Cables of Cobwebs and Wildernesses of handsome Groves. Besides Hippocrates hath spoke so little and the Oneirocriticall Masters, have left such frigid Interpretations from plants that there is little encouragement to dream of Paradise it self. Nor will the sweetest delight of Gardens afford much comfort in sleep; wherein the dullness of that sense shakes hands with delectable odours; and though in the Bed of Cleopatra, can hardly with any delight raise up the Ghost of a Rose.

Consciously evoking the basic mandala of alchemy, the tail-eating Uroboros, the Discourse concludes in imagery of night, darkness and unknowingness, thematically uniting it to Urn-Burial. This topic is considered to be an essential subject on Wikipedia. ... Look up Paradise in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Paradise is also a title of a tv-series The word paradise is derived from the Avestan word of pairidaeza (a walled enclosure), which is a compound of pairi- (around), a cognate of the Greek peri-, and -diz (to create, make). ... Egyptian statue of Cleopatra VII Cleopatra VII Philopator (January 69 BC – August 12, 30 BC) was queen of ancient Egypt, the last member of the Ptolemaic dynasty and hence the last Hellenistic ruler of Egypt. ... Mandala (circle in Sanskrit) is of Hindu origin, but is also used in Buddhist context, to refer to various tangible objects. ... The Ouroboros Alternate spelling: Uroboros / Uroborus The Ouroboros is an ancient symbol depicting a snake or dragon swallowing its tail, constrastingly creating itself and forming a circle. ... Hydriotaphia, Urn Burial, or a Discourse of the Sepulchral Urns lately found in Norfolk, is a work published in 1658 by Sir Thomas Browne. ...

All things began in order, so shall they end, so shall they begin again according to the ordainer of Order and the mystical mathematics of the City of Heaven.

Summary

With its near vertiginous procession of visual imagery and objects, its constant reinforcement of how God geometrizes, via the symbols of the number five and Quincunx pattern, jotted in a hasty, fractured and breathless style Cyrus may be considered a stylistic forerunner of stream of consciousness writing and even an early example of altered consciousness writing, for as draught manuscripts reveal, the rapid procession of visual images from art and nature in Cyrus are uncharacteristically scribbled and hastily penned; it is as if ideas of evidence of the Quincunx pattern are being rapidly conjured from the imagination of the writer faster than his pen can write. A quincunx is the arrangement of five units in the pattern corresponding to the five-spot on dice, playing cards, or dominoes. ... A quincunx is the arrangement of five units in the pattern corresponding to the five-spot on dice, playing cards, or dominoes. ...

Cyrus is also exemplary of hermetic phantasmagoria literature and not unlike Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, or the science-fiction of H. G. Wells, it invites the reader to share with its author in a fantastic perspective upon life and reality. Photograph of Lewis Carroll taken by himself, with assistance Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (January 27, 1832 – January 14, 1898), better known by the pen name Lewis Carroll, was a British author, mathematician, logician, Anglican clergyman and photographer. ... John Tenniels illustration for A Mad Tea-Party, 1865 Illustration by Arthur Rackham Alices Adventures in Wonderland is a work of childrens literature by the British mathematician and author Reverend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll. ... A collection of well-known science-fiction novels and magazines Science fiction is a genre of fiction in which advances in science, or contact with more scientifically advanced civilizations, create situations different from those of both the present day and the known past. ... H. G. Wells at the door of his house at Sandgate Herbert George Wells (September 21, 1866 – August 13, 1946) was a British writer best known for his science fiction novels such as The War of the Worlds ,The Invisible Man ,The Island of Dr. Moreau and The Time Machine. ...

There are however two major factors why The Garden of Cyrus is not as familiar to readers of English literature as much as its diptych companion Urn-Burial. Firstly because of an editoral and publishing trend, totally against Browne's artistic intentions, it was omitted from many Victorian editions, such inexcusable Pythagorisme was little humoured by Victorian critics and thus it has been omitted from many modern editions . A diptych is any object with two flat plates attached at a hinge. ... Hydriotaphia, Urn Burial, or a Discourse of the Sepulchral Urns lately found in Norfolk, is a work published in 1658 by Sir Thomas Browne. ... Queen Victoria (shown here on the morning of her Accession to the Throne, 20 June 1837) gave her name to the historic era The Victorian era of Great Britain is considered the height of the British industrial revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ...

The second reason is the sheer difficulty of text itself which has baffled all but the most determined reader. Stylistically the Discourse veers abruptly from passages of sublime purple prose to crabbed note-book jotting. It also alludes to what is now considered to be obscure learning, namely hermeticism and the esoteric in general.

The complex relationship between Cyrus to Urn-Burial in terms of polarity, densely-packed symbolism, imagery and style, make Browne's diptych discourses not only a highly-crafted example of the baroque extravagances of the hermetic imagination, but also a unique, 'binary' literary creation. Hydriotaphia, Urn Burial, or a Discourse of the Sepulchral Urns lately found in Norfolk, is a work published in 1658 by Sir Thomas Browne. ... Imagery--words that create a picture. ... Style may refer to genre, design, format, or appearance, including: Clothing: fashion Flower part: flower Music: music genre Sundial part: Gnomon Titles or honorifics: Style (manner of address) including Chinese courtesy names Web design: Cascading Style Sheets Writing: style guide and literary genre Linguistics: Variation in language use of an... A diptych is any object with two flat plates attached at a hinge. ...

Difficult as it is to read The Garden of Cyrus remains an important work of English literature. It is a literary example of hermetic philosophy and secondly as evidence that as late as the mid-seventeenth century great intellects continued to endorse the tenets and teachings of hermetic philosophy.

External link

• text of Hydriotaphia, Urn Burial and The Garden of Cyrus