is worth your Observing; There he, says _That 'twill appear
plainly to any one that understands the design of his Book, that that
degree is not attainable by the means of those Sciences which were then
in use; but that he attain'd to what he knew, by being altogether
abstracted from any thing which he had been acquainted with before; and
that he was furnish'd with other Notions altogether independent upon
matter, and of too noble a nature to be any way attributed to the
Natural Life, but were peculiar to the Blessed, and which upon that
account we may call Divine Proprieties, which God (whose Name be
prais'd) bestows upon such of his Servants as he pleases_.

Now this degree which this Author mentions, is attainable by Speculative
Knowledge,(nor is it to be doubted but that he had reach'd it himself;)
but not that which we have just now mention'd, which notwithstanding is
not so much different from it in kind as in degree: for in that which I
mention'd there are no Discoveries made which contradict those which
this Author means; but the difference consists in this, _viz._ that in
our way there is a greater degree of Clearness and Perspicuity than
there is in the other; for in this we apprehend things by the help of
something, which we cannot properly call a _Power_; nor indeed will any
of those words, which are either us'd in common discourse, or occur in
the Writings of the Learned, serve to express _That_, by which this sort
of Perception do's apprehend.

This degree, which I have already mention'd, (and which perhaps I should
never have had any taste of, if your request had not put me upon a
farther search) is the very same thing which _Avicenna_ means, where he
says; _Then when a Man's desires are raised to a good pitch, and he is
competently well exercised in that way, there will appear to him some
small glimmerings of the Truth, as it were flashes of Lightning, very
delightful, which just shine upon him, and then go out; Then the more he
exercises himself, the oftner he'll perceive 'em, till at last he'll
become so well acquainted with them, that they will occur to him
spontaneously, without any exercise at all; and then, as soon as he
perceives any thing, he applies himself to the Divine Essence, so as to
retain some impression of it; then something occurs, to him on a sudden,
whereby he begins to discern the_ Truth _in every thing; till, through
frequent exercise, he at last attains to a perfect Tranquility; an