CHAPTER 1

THE SYSTEM OF THE SPHERES

The word , Heaven, is taken three ways: first, for the Sphere of Fixed Stars; second, for all that is between the Sphere of Fixed Stars and the Moon; lastly, for the whole world, both Heaven and Earth.657

The anonymous writer of the life of Pythagoras affirms that Pythagoras said there are twelve orders in Heaven. The first and outmost is the fixed Sphere; next to this is the star of Saturn; and then the other six planets, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, Mercury, Sun, and Moon; next these, the Sphere of Fire, then that of Air, then of Water, last of all the Earth.⁶⁵⁸

But they who seem more strictly to follow the mind of Pythagoras and his disciples, aver that they held the celestial Spheres to be ten—whereof nine only are visible to us (the fixed Sphere, the seven planets, and our Earth). The tenth is Antichthon, an Earth above, or opposite to ours.⁶⁵⁹ This Antichthon they added to make up the number of the moving bodies.⁶⁶⁰ For they considered that the affections and proportions of music consist in numbers; that all other things appear to be assimilated to numbers; that numbers are the first of all nature; and that the elements of numbers are the elements of all beings. They therefore asserted that all Heaven is harmony and number, and that the affections and parts of Heaven are correspondent to number. And collecting these, they adapted them to the composition of the whole; wherein if anything were wanting they supplied it, that the whole might be alike compacted. Thusly, because the Decad seems to be perfect and to comprehend the whole nature of numbers, they asserted the celestial spheres to be ten. Now there being nine only visible to us, hereupon they conceived the tenth to be Antichthon, an Earth opposite to ours.

As concerning the order and system of these, the Pythagoreans held, that in the middle of the world is Fire.⁶⁶¹ Or, as Stobaeus says,⁶⁶² in the midst of the four elements is the fiery globe of unity which they term Vesta and Monad.⁶⁶³ Simplicius says that they who understand this thing more intimately state that this fire is the procreative, nutritive, and excitative power which is in the midst of the Earth. But Simplicius himself seems not to have apprehended the right meaning of the Pythagoreans—who by this fire, or fiery globe of unity, meant nothing else but the Sun seated in the midst of the universe, immoveable, about which the other parts of the world are moved. This opinion Pythagoras seems to have derived from the Egyptians, who hieroglyphically represented the Sun by a beetle. They chose this symbol because the beetle, having formed a ball of cow dung, and lying upon its back, rolls it about from claw to claw; so the other parts of the world are moved and rolled by and about the Sun.664

By this immovable fire in the midst of the Universe, they understood not (as Simplicius conceives) that the Earth is manifest. Forasmuch as they further held that the Earth is not immovable,⁶⁶⁵ nor seated in the midst of the globe, but suspended, as being one of the stars carried about the fire which is in the middle; and that thereby it makes day and night.⁶⁶⁶ The reason why the Earth ought not to have the middle place is because the most excellent body ought to have the most excellent place. Fire is more excellent than Earth, and the center more excellent than all places without it; therefore they conceived that not the Earth, but the Fire is placed in the midst.⁶⁶⁷ Moreover, because that which is the most excellent of the universe, ought principally to be preserved, and the middle is such, therefore they term the Fire ,† the custody of Jupiter.

The same they held of the Antichthon also, that like our Earth it is suspended, as being one of the stars carried about the Fire, and thereby makes day and night.⁶⁶⁸ By this Antichthon, Clemens says they understood Heaven. Simplicius says the Moon, as being a kind of aetherial Earth—as well for that it eclipses the light of the Sun which is proper to the Earth, as for that it is the bound of celestials, as the Earth of sublunaries. But the contrary is manifest, as well from the completing of the number ten (in respect whereof this Antichthon was imagined). For they held it is not visible to us by reason that following the motion of this Earth, it is always opposite to, or beneath us, and the bigness of our Earth hinders us from seeing it.⁶⁶⁹ And Aristotle affirms there were some who conceived the Antichthon to be the cause why there are more eclipses of the Moon than of the Sun, which may likewise happen by reason of many other bodies invisible to us.

Laertius, who, says Philosaus, was the first who conceived the Earth to have a circular motion, seems to mean no more than that he first committed this opinion of Pythagoras to writing and first made it public.670 For Eusebius expressly affirms that he committed to writing the dissertations of Pythagoras. His opinion, as delivered by Plutarch and Stobaeus, is exactly the same: for he placed fire in the midst, which he called the genius of the universe, and the mansion of Jupiter, and the mother of gods, and altar, and ward, and measure of nature. He conceived that the ten celestial bodies move about it—Heaven, the Sphere of Fixed Stars, the five planets, the Sun, the Moon, the Earth, and lastly the Antichthon.

From the same fountain seems Aristarchus the Samian to have derived this hypothesis, though some ascribe the invention thereof to him. For he supposed that the Sun and planets move not, but that the Earth moves round about the Sun which is seated in the middle.⁶⁷¹ Plutarch adds that Plato in his old age repented for that he had placed the Earth in the midst of the universe, and not in its proper place.⁶⁷²

This opinion was of late revived by Nicolaus Copernicus, who considering how inconvenient and troublesome it is to understand and maintain the motions of the Heavens and immobility of the Earth, explained it with admirable ingenuity after the mind of the Pythagoreans. According to whose hypothesis, the Sun, as we said, is settled in the midst of the world, immovable. The Sphere of Fixed Stars in the extremity or outside of the world is immovable also. Between these are disposed the planets, and amongst them the Earth as one of them. The Earth moves both about the Sun, and about his proper axis. Its diurnal motion by one revolution, makes a night and a day; its annual motion about the Sun, by one revolution makes a year. So as by reason of its diurnal motion to the east, the Sun and other stars seem to move to the west; and by reason of its annual motion through the Zodiac, the Earth itself is in one sign, and the Sun seems to be in the sign opposite to it. Between the Sun and the Earth they place Mercury and Venus. Between the Earth and the Fixed Stars are Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. The Moon, being next the Earth, is continually moved within the great orb between Venus and Mars, round about the Earth as its center. Its revolution about the Earth is completed in a month; about the Sun (together with the Earth) in a year.