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Robert Burton

The Anatomy of Melancholy

Name: The Anatomy of Melancholy
Author: Robert Burton

1651 English with a close modern English rendering

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The Anatomy of MelancholySubsection 2 Love’s Origin, Object, Definition and Divisions

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1651 English Page · Branch 680 of 1495

Subsection 2 Love’s Origin, Object, Definition and Divisions

Book Mode

1651 English

415–416

they much delight in one anothers company,

Formica grata est formicæ, Cicada Cicadæ,

and birds of a feather will gather together. Fourthly, for custome, use, and familiarity, as if a dog be trained up with a Lion and a Bear, contrary to their natures, they will love each other. Hawks, dogs, horses, love their masters and keepers: many stories I could relate in this kinde, but see Gillius de hist. anim. lib. 3. cap. 14. those two Epistles of Lipsius, of doggs and horses, Agellius, &c.

Fifthly, for bringing up, as if a Bitch bring up a Kid, a hen ducklings, an hedge-sparrow a Cuckow, &c.

The third kind is Amor cognitionis, as Leon calls it, Rationall Love, Intellectivus amor, and is proper to men, on which I must insist. This appears in God, Angels, Men. God is love it self, the fountain of Love, the Disciple of love, as Plato stiles him; the servant of peace, the God of love and Peace; have peace with all men, and God is with you.

———Quisquis veneratur olympum, Ipse sibi mundum subjicit atq; Deum:

By this Love (saith Gerson) we purchase heaven, and buy the kingdom of God. This Love is either in the Trinity it self, for the Holy Ghost is the Love of the Father and the Son, &c. Joh. 3. 55. and 5. 20. and 14. 31. or towards us his creatures, as in making the world.

Amor mundum fecit, Love built Cities, mundi anima, invented Arts, Sciences, and all good things, incites us to vertue and humanity, combines and quickens; keepes peace on earth, quietness by sea, mirth in the windes and elements, expells all fear, anger, and rusticity: Circulus a bono in bonum, a round circle still from good to good; for love is the beginner and end of all our actions, the efficient and instrumental cause, as our Poets in their Symbols, Impresses, Emblemes of rings, squares, &c. shadow unto us,

Si rerum quæris fuerit quis finis & ortus, Desine, nam causa est unica solus amor.If first and last of any thing you wit, Cease; love’s the sole and onely cause of it.

Love, saith Leo, made the world, and afterwards in redeeming of it, God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son for it, John 3. 16. Behold what love the Father hath shewed on us, that we should be called the sons of God. 1 John 3. 1. Or by his sweet providence, in protecting of it; either all in generall, or his Saints elect and Church in particular, whom he keeps as the apple of his eye, whom he loves freely, as Hosea 14. 5. speaks, and dearly respects, Charior est ipsis homo quam sibi.

8271.BurtonPrinted page 415, o: “Theocritus. eidyll. 9.” Theocritus, Idyll 9. The marker is printed o, though it interrupts the surrounding alphabetical sequence.

8275.BurtonPrinted page 416, z: “Mantuan.” Mantuan.

8277.BurtonPrinted page 416, a: “Charitas munifica, qua mercamur de Deo regnum Dei.” “Bountiful charity, by which we purchase from God the kingdom of God.”

8278.BurtonPrinted page 416, b: “Polanus partit. Zanchius de natura Dei, c. 3. copiose de hoc amore Dei agit.” Polanus, Partitions. Zanchius, On the Nature of God, chapter 3, treats this love of God extensively.

8280.BurtonPrinted page 416, asterisk: “Nich. Bellus discurs. 28. de amatoribus, virtutem provocat, conservat pacem in terra, tranquillitatem in aëre, ventis lætitiam, &c.” Nicholas Bellus, discourse 28, On Lovers: “It incites virtue, preserves peace on earth, tranquillity in the air, joy in the winds, and so on.” The margin has air where the body has sea.

8281.BurtonPrinted page 416, dagger: “Camerarius Emb. 100. cen. 2.” Camerarius, Emblems, century 2, emblem 100.

8284.BurtonPrinted page 416, c: “Dial. 3.” Dialogue 3.

8285.BurtonPrinted page 416, d: “Juven.” Juvenal.

The Anatomy of Melancholy: Subsection 2 Love’s Origin, Object, Definition and Divisions

p. 680

They take great delight in one another’s company:

Ant is dear to ant, cicada to cicada.

And birds of a feather will gather together. Fourth, through habit, use and familiarity: if a dog is raised with a lion and a bear, they will love one another despite their natures. Hawks, dogs and horses love their masters and keepers. I could relate many stories of this kind; but see Gillius, On the History of Animals, book 3, chapter 14; those two letters of Lipsius on dogs and horses; Aulus Gellius; and others.

Fifth, through nurturing, as when a bitch raises a kid, a hen ducklings, or a hedge sparrow a cuckoo, and so on.

The third kind is “love arising from knowledge,” as Leone calls it: rational love, “intellectual love,” which belongs properly to human beings and on which I must dwell. It appears in God, angels and human beings. God is love itself, the fountain of love, the disciple of love, as Plato calls him; the servant of peace, the God of love and peace. Be at peace with everyone, and God is with you.

Whoever reveres heaven Brings the world, and God himself, under his sway.

“Through this love,” says Gerson, “we purchase heaven and buy the kingdom of God.” This love is either within the Trinity itself—for the Holy Spirit is the love of the Father and the Son, and so on, John 3:55, 5:20 and 14:31—or directed towards us, his creatures, as in making the world.

“Love made the world”; love built cities, is “the soul of the world,” invented arts, sciences and all good things, urges us towards virtue and kindness, unites and gives life. It keeps peace on earth, calm at sea, joy in the winds and elements; drives out all fear, anger and uncouthness. “A circle from good to good”: a circle constantly returning from goodness to goodness. For love is the beginning and end of all our actions, their efficient and instrumental cause, as our poets suggest through their symbols, devices and emblems of rings, squares and the like:

If you ask what was the end and origin of things, Stop: love alone is their one cause.

If you would know the first and last of anything, Stop: love is its sole and only cause.

Love, says Leone, made the world; and afterwards, in redeeming it, “God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son for it,” John 3:16. “See what love the Father has shown us, that we should be called the sons of God,” 1 John 3:1. Or love appears in his gracious providence, protecting the world: either the whole of it generally, or his chosen saints and Church particularly. He keeps them as the apple of his eye, loves them freely, as Hosea 14:5 says, and holds them dear: “A human being is dearer to the gods than to himself.”

8272.Theocritus, Idyll 9.31, pairs the same insects, in the reverse order from Burton’s Latin. Cicada is retained rather than substituting a different familiar insect. The following English proverb is a separate part of Burton’s prose.

8273.“Trained up” means raised. Agellius is Aulus Gellius. Burton distinguishes learned familiarity from the nurturing relation in his fifth cause; the exact Gillius, Lipsius and Gellius passages remain for collation.

8274.Burton first calls rational love proper to human beings, then extends its discussion to God and angels; the sequence is retained. “Disciple of love” and “servant of peace” are also retained as printed; the precise Platonic passage and construction require collation. The language of God as love and of the God of love and peace recalls 1 John 4:8 and 2 Corinthians 13:11.

8276.Mantuan is the poet Battista Mantovano. The verse’s bold claim that reverence brings even God under one’s sway is preserved; the exact poem remains to be established.

8279.Charity here is love, not merely almsgiving; the buying metaphor belongs to the quoted theological account. John 3:55 is the printed reference, although that chapter has only 36 verses. John 3:35, on the Father’s love for the Son, is the likely intended parallel; the error is retained in the modern column and identified here.

8282.“Quickens” means gives life. An efficient cause produces an effect; an instrumental cause is its means. “Impresses” are symbolic devices. Compare Agathon’s praise of love in Plato’s Symposium, joining peace on earth, calm at sea, still winds and sleep. This is a parallel, not proof of Burton’s immediate source. The margin’s calm in the air differs from the body’s sea; both remain. Bellus and Camerarius still require exact collation.

8283.“Wit” is a verb meaning know. Burton’s English couplet follows the Latin and is retained as a separate rendering; it is not silently replaced by the new translation of the Latin.

8286.Hosea 14:5 is Burton’s locator; “I will love them freely” appears at 14:4 in the King James numbering consulted. The closing Latin is adapted from Juvenal 10.350: humans are dearer to the gods than to themselves. Its plural divine pronoun is translated explicitly, even within Burton’s Christian account. His separate biblical quotations are retained.

About This Reading Edition

Robert Burton’s Anatomy ranges across medicine, philosophy, poetry, religion, and everyday life in its inquiry into melancholy. This complete parallel edition pairs the 1651 English text with a close modern English rendering, preserving the three Partitions, Democritus Junior’s address to the reader, verse, and the historical index.

Historical Text and Translation

The historical text follows the sixth edition, printed at Oxford for Henry Cripps in 1651, using the McGill University Library copy. The supplied edition documents missing printed pages 98–99 supplied from another 1651 copy at the Bavarian State Library. Historical folio labels and their irregularities remain visible; web reader numbers identify reflowed passages and do not claim to reproduce PDF pagination.

About Diotimos Editions

Diotimos Editions prepared the close modern English rendering and editorial matter. All 8,755 original and modern passage pairs remain aligned, with verse breaks, italics, continuations, and linked annotations preserved. Burton’s 6,781 historical notes retain their attribution; 6,895 editorial notes remain distinct. The introduction, Note on the Text, contextual lexicon, indexes, source documentation, and bibliography are included. The engraved frontispiece remains available in the original downloads.

Rights

Burton’s historical text is in the public domain. The modern English rendering, introduction, notes, and editorial matter are © 2026 Diotimos Editions and appear with the site owner’s permission. The complete supplied PDF, EPUB, Word, and Markdown files remain available unchanged. The PDF and Word edition preserve the original parallel page layout.