THE HARMONY OF THE MACROCOSM

[The author] says that [the Sun] is called the day, and that the governance of the night has been mandated to [the Moon]. He calls the other bodies "stars." He does not distinguish between those that are wandering the planets and those that are fixed, as is usually done. Therefore, he does not mention the other planets by name but includes them under the general name of stars.

The Sun.

The Sun certainly surpasses all other bodies of the entire universe in size and mass. This is the judgment of all astronomers, even if they disagree on the specific numbers used to define its magnitude. For this reason, it is rightfully called the Great Light. It is established as the King of all stars. It illuminates both the Upper and Lower Waters with its rays and splendor. In traditional cosmology, the "waters" were thought to exist both above the firmament and below on the earth.

The Moon.

But the Moon is the smallest of the astral bodies. It is much smaller than the Earth itself. The reason it is also called a "Great Light" here is perhaps because it is the lowest of all stars and closest to the Earth. To mortals, it appears larger than all other stars except the Sun, which shows the great mass of its body even to human eyes.

The order of the bodies of the whole Universe.

We admire the order of all these bodies, which rightly strikes mortals with wonder. However, we are ignorant of the causes and reasons for this order. They are known only to the Supreme Architect and the sole Creator of all things. For what kind of order is this, and how great is it? What consensus is there? What concord? What Harmony? The Sun sits as King in the middle of the planets. It excels all the stars in the mass and size of its body. The other planets enclose the orb of the Sun within their own orbs.

The Planets.

The Orbis of the Fixed Stars encompasses the planets. This orb abounds everywhere with innumerable stars. Each star has its destined place and its established limit, which it neither should nor can cross. Each of the planets possesses its own defined space in which it completes its course at a fixed time. They all move their motions between the two poles of the world, namely the North and the South. They rotate themselves in a never-ending motion so that they never quite reach the extreme northern or southern points. Instead, they move from the middle circle of the Universe (imagined by Astronomy). Sometimes they approach the northern region from the south. Sometimes they recede from the north toward the south. Thus, they wander through the middle space circumscribed by defined limits with an unending approach and retreat.

We are ignorant of the causes of this order.

We see and know that this happens. Yet, the reasons why and how it happens remain entirely unknown to us. Thus, regarding this most beautiful Harmony of the bodies of the whole universe and this admirable consensus, we know nothing else except what our eye perceives. Our deceptive reason calculates based on that deceptive appearance.

Whether the Sun or the Earth is the center of the Universe.

For this reason, a most sharp contest has arisen in our times. A significant skirmish has clashed among the ranks of learned men. They dispute whether the Sun or the globe of the Earth exists as the center of the entire Universe. Does the Sun move around the earth, or does the earth move around the Sun? Quite a few place the Sun in the middle. They protect their opinion with arguments that are not to be despised. They seem to have brought much ease and light to the Astronomy of the Ancients, which was intricate and confused.

The others oppose this with Sacred Scripture and reasons that have no less appearance of truth. To these men, the ancient opinion seems more pleasing. This is the view believed by most mortals until now: that the earth sits immobile in the middle of the Universe. What if someone were to come now and establish that neither the Sun nor the Earth is the center of the whole universe? What if he asserted that all astral bodies, including the earth itself, are movable around a certain center? What if he placed the Divine Light in that very center, ruling and preserving all those bodies? Would he not disturb the entire Ocean of human learning even more with storms of contest and gales of litigation?

The blindness of Human Reason.

In all these things, the weakness and fragility of Human Reason plainly reveals itself. Indeed, it shows its blindness and ignorance. Our reason slips into judgments that are most uncertain and contradictory. It plays with blind reasonings. It hunts for the mask of knowledge with a pompous display of disputes and contests. Finally, like Ixion embracing a cloud, it gives birth to centaurs. In Greek mythology, Ixion tried to seduce Hera but was tricked into embracing a cloud shaped like her, which resulted in the birth of the monstrous Centaurs. The author uses this as a metaphor for false or illusory knowledge. Yet, we mortals lean so firmly upon this reason and adhere to it so stubbornly.

Explanation of Job.

Furthermore, we will now spend a few words to say something about the properties and qualities of the Heaven and the Stars, as we promised in the explanation of the Second Day.

The fiery nature of the stars and heaven.

The Sacred Text asserts the fiery nature of Heaven and the Celestial Bodies. The very light of the stars demonstrates this clearly enough, as light cannot proceed except from fire. The Holy Fathers also testify to this everywhere in their writings. The names given to the Sun in the Sacred Scriptures speak most openly of its fiery nature. original: "אור Or" Or to the Hebrews means to shine, to glow, or to illuminate. The Greek words for "to be warm" original: "$\varthetaερειν$ (therein)" and "heaven" original: "$οὐρανò\varsigma$ (ouranos)" seem to have descended from this. In the Sacred Scriptures, it also signifies light, the sun, and flame.

Hebrew names of the Sun.

original: "חמה Chammah" Chammah comes from the root Chamam, meaning to warm, to grow hot, or to burn with heat. original: "וַחַם Vecham" Vecham means "and the Sun grew hot," if the word is taken as a verb. If it is used as a noun, it signifies heat. original: "חרס Cheres" Cheres means burning heat and drying out.

The name of Heaven.

The name for Heaven in the Sacred Scriptures is original: "שמים Schamajim" Schamajim. This is from original: "שם & מים Scham & Majim" Scham and Majim, meaning "there are waters," which are the celestial waters. Or, according to the Rabbis, it is from original: "אש Esch & מים Majim" Esch and Majim, meaning fire and water. This is because, as we said previously, it is a Watery Fire and a Fiery Water. It is a substance in which Fire and Water are associated by an indissoluble natural bond.

The Earth is...

Although the matter of Heaven and the Celestial Bodies is considered the purest and most subtle substance of the entire Universe, it is not exempt from corruptibility. It is subject to the same, as it will be destroyed on the last day and renewed through that destruction.

A passage of Esdras.

Sacred Scripture is a witness to this in many places, especially in Psalm 101, Isaiah chapters 34, 5, 55, and 66, Job 14, Matthew 24, and Mark 13.

What the Spirit is.

Luke 21, 1 Corinthians 7, Revelation 20, and the Second Epistle of Peter chapter 3 also support this. Most of the Holy Fathers and the Ancient Doctors of the Church agree with the Sacred Codex. They establish that Heaven, along with the celestial bodies, is just as corruptible as the Sublunary Sphere.

Corruptible matter.

They also state that this matter is liquid and fluid, and suitable for the stars to swim in.

Liquid and fluid.