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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 MelancholyMember 3 Against Poverty and Want and Other Such Adversities

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Modern English Page · Branch 563 of 1495

Member 3 Against Poverty and Want and Other Such Adversities

Book Mode

1651 English

328–329

The Israelites drank water in the wildernesse; Sampson, David, Saul, Abrahams servant when he went for Isaacs wife, the Samaritan woman, and how many besides might I reckon up, Ægypt, Palestina, whole countries in the Indies, that drink pure water all their lives. The Persian kings themselves drank no other drink then the water of Chaospis, that runs by Susa, which was carried in bottles after them, whithersoever they went.

Jacob desired no more of God, but bread to eat, and clothes to put on in his journey. Gen. 28.20. Bene est cui deus obtulit Parca quod satis est manu; bread is enough to strengthen the heart. And if you study Philosophy aright, saith Maudarensis, whatsoever is beyond this moderation, is not usefull, but troublesome.

Agellius out of Euripides, accounts bread and water enough to satisfie nature, of which there is no surfeit, the rest is not a feast, but ryot. S. Hierome esteemes him rich, that hath bread to eat, and a potent man that is not compelled to be a slave: hunger is not ambitious, so that it have to eat, and thirst doth not prefer a cup of gold.

It was no Epicurean Speech of an Epicure, He that is not satisfied with a little, will never have enough: And very good counsell of him in the Poet, O my sonne, Mediocritie of meanes agrees best with men; too much is pernicious.

Divitiæ grandes homini sunt vivere parcè, Æquo animo, ——

And if thou canst be content, thou hast abundance, nihil est, nihil deest, thou hast little, thou wantest nothing. ’Tis all one to be hanged in a chain of gold, or in a rope; to be filled with dainties or courser meat.

Si ventri bene, si lateri, pedibusque tuis, nil Divitiæ poterunt regales addere majus.If belly, sides and feet be well at ease, A princes treasure can thee no more please.

Socrates in a Fair, seeing so many things bought and sold, such a multitude of people convented to that purpose, exclaimed forthwith, O ye gods, what a sight of things doe not I want? ’Tis thy want alone that keepes thee in health of body and minde, and that which thou persecutest and abhorrest as a ferall plague, is thy physician and chiefest friend, which makes thee a good man, an healthfull, a sound, a vertuous, an honest and happy man.

For when Vertue came from heaven (as the Poet faines) rich men kicked her up, wicked men abhorr’d her, courtiers scoffed at her, citizens hated her, and that she was thrust out of doors in every place, she came at last to her sister Poverty, where she had found good entertainment. Poverty and Vertue dwell together.

—— O vitæ tuta facultas Pauperis, angustique lares, ô munera nondum Intellecta deûm.

6757.BurtonPrinted page 328, *: “Muffæus & alii.” “Muffaeus and others.” The printed name is retained; identification, probably Maffei, remains to be confirmed.

6758.BurtonPrinted page 328, †: “Brissonius.” Barnabé Brisson; the precise passage remains to be located.

6760.BurtonPrinted page 328, e: “Psal. 84.” Psalm 84 as printed; the words about bread strengthening the heart correspond to Psalm 104:15.

6761.BurtonPrinted page 328, f: “Si rectè philosophemini, quicquid aptam moderationem supergreditur, oneri potius quàm usui est.” “If you philosophize rightly, whatever exceeds a fitting measure is more burden than use.” Adapted from Apuleius, Apology 19.4.

6763.BurtonPrinted page 328, g: “Lib. 7.16. Cereris munus & aquæ poculum mortales quærunt habere, & quorum saties nunquam est; luxus autem sunt cætera, non epulæ.” “Mortals seek the gift of Ceres and a cup of water, of which there is never satiety; all the rest is luxury, not a feast.” Ceres’ gift is grain or bread. The consulted Gellius text places the discussion at 6.16; the printed reference 7.16 is retained.

6764.BurtonPrinted page 328, h: “Satis est dives qui pane non indiget; nimium potens qui servire non cogitur. Ambitiosa non est fames, &c.” “He is rich enough who does not lack bread; exceedingly powerful who is not compelled to serve. Hunger is not ambitious,” and so on. Burton attributes this to Jerome; the exact source is unlocated.

6766.BurtonPrinted page 328, †: “Euripides Menalip. O fili, mediocres divitiæ hominibus conveniunt, nimia vero moles perniciosa” “Euripides, Melanippe. O son, moderate wealth suits men; an excessive mass of it is ruinous.” The abbreviated play title is retained as printed; the fragment remains to be collated.

6769.BurtonPrinted page 328, i: “Hor.” Horace, Epistles 1.12.5–6.

6771.BurtonPrinted page 329, k: “O noctes cœnæque deûm.” “O nights and dinners of the gods!” Compare Horace, Satires 2.6.65. The marginal position beside chiefest friend is retained.

6773.BurtonPrinted page 329, *: “Per mille fraudes doctosque dolos ejicitur, apud sociam paupertatem ejusque cultores divertens in eorum sinu et tutela deliciatur.” “Driven out by a thousand deceptions and elaborate tricks, she turns aside to her companion Poverty and its devotees, delighting in their embrace and protection.” No author is named.

6775.BurtonPrinted page 329, l: “Lucan.” Lucan, Civil War 5.527–529.

The Anatomy of Melancholy: Member 3 Against Poverty and Want and Other Such Adversities

p. 563

The Israelites drank water in the wilderness; so did Samson, David, Saul, Abraham’s servant when he went to find Isaac a wife, and the Samaritan woman. How many others I could list! Egypt, Palestine, whole countries in the Indies, where people drink plain water all their lives. The Persian kings themselves drank nothing but water from the Choaspes, which flows past Susa; it was carried after them in bottles wherever they went.

Jacob asked God for nothing more than bread to eat and clothes to wear on his journey, Genesis 28:20. “Well is it with the man to whom God has offered enough with a sparing hand.” Bread is enough “to strengthen the heart.” And if you study philosophy rightly, says Maudarensis, whatever exceeds this measure is a burden rather than a benefit.

Gellius, quoting Euripides, reckons bread and water enough to satisfy nature: there is no surfeit of these; everything else is extravagance, not a feast. Saint Jerome considers a man rich if he has bread to eat, and powerful if he is not forced to be a slave. Hunger has no ambition, provided it has food, and thirst does not prefer a golden cup.

It was no indulgent saying for an Epicurean: “He who is not satisfied with a little will never have enough.” And the speaker in the poet gives excellent advice: “My son, moderate means suit men best; too much is ruinous.”

Great riches for a man consist in living frugally, With an untroubled mind.

If you can be content, you have abundance: “There is nothing; nothing is lacking.” You have little and lack nothing. It is all the same whether you are hanged with a golden chain or a rope, whether you fill yourself with delicacies or coarse food.

If your belly, your side, and your feet are well, A king’s riches can add nothing greater.

If belly, sides, and feet are comfortable, A prince’s treasure can give you no greater pleasure.

Socrates, seeing so many things bought and sold at a fair, and such a multitude gathered for that purpose, immediately exclaimed, “O gods, what a host of things I do not need!” Your lack of possessions alone keeps you healthy in body and mind. What you persecute and abhor as a deadly plague is your physician and dearest friend, making you a good man—healthy, sound, virtuous, upright, and happy.

For when Virtue came down from heaven, as the poet imagines, rich men kicked her about, wicked men abhorred her, courtiers mocked her, and city men hated her. Driven out of doors everywhere, she came at last to her sister Poverty, where she found a kindly welcome. Poverty and Virtue dwell together.

O safe resources of a poor man’s life, And narrow home! O gifts of the gods Not yet understood!

6759.The list alludes to biblical water-drinking episodes, including Genesis 24, Exodus 17, Judges 15, 2 Samuel 23 and John 4; the precise Saul reference is not established here. Chaospis is Burton’s spelling of Choaspes. The regional generalization about exclusive water drinking is retained as his claim; neither it nor Brisson’s precise wording has been independently verified.

6762.The verse is Horace, Odes 3.16.43–44. The bread phrase is Psalm 104:15, although the margin says 84. Maudarensis designates Apuleius of Madauros; compare Apology 19.4, where an excess above a fitting measure becomes a burden rather than a use.

6765.Agellius is Aulus Gellius. Attic Nights 6.16.7 quotes Euripides in Greek on the sufficiency of grain and water; Burton’s margin gives a Latin rendering, not Gellius’s Latin prose. His 7.16 remains as printed. The immediate Latin version and the reason for the different book number remain unidentified. Jerome’s exact passage is also unlocated.

6767.Burton plays on Epicure: it can mean a follower of Epicurus or a person devoted to sensual indulgence. The maxim commends sufficiency rather than indulgence. The second saying is attributed in the margin to Euripides’ Melanippe; its exact fragment is not yet established.

6768.Lucretius, On the Nature of Things, book 5: the phrase commends frugal living with an even mind. The closing continuation of the Latin sentence is not quoted by Burton. The following nihil est, nihil deest is literally there is nothing, nothing is lacking; Burton’s own gloss softens nothing to little.

6770.Horace, Epistles 1.12.5–6. Burton omits est after lateri but leaves the sense clear. His following English couplet substitutes a prince’s treasure and the language of pleasure for the Latin’s royal riches and greater addition; both versions are preserved.

6772.Convented means assembled; want means lack or need, while ferall means deadly. The saying reverses the usual assumption that desirable goods must be needed. The Socratic anecdote and Burton’s immediate intermediary remain to be collated.

6774.Virtue and Poverty are personified as sisters. Kicked her up is retained in the original and rendered kicked her about; Burton pictures violent rejection, not elevation. The unnamed poet and the source of the Latin marginal account remain unidentified.

6776.Lucan, Civil War 5.527–529, describing the poor boatman Amyclas, whose hut offers no spoils to civil war. Lares means household gods and, by extension, home. The contrast between a narrow dwelling and security is central to Burton’s argument.

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.