DISCOURSE ONMETAPHYSICS 593
- THEACTION OFONEFINITESUBSTANCE ONANOTHER
CONSISTSSOLELY IN THEINCREASE IN THEDEGREE OFITS
EXPRESSIONTOGETHERWITH THEDIMINUTION OF THAT
OF THEOTHER, IN SOFAR ASGODHASMADETHEM
CONFORM TOEAC HOTHER
But without getting involved in a long discussion, it is enough for the present to recon-
cile the language of metaphysics with that of practice by noting that we attribute to our-
selves our more clear and distinct perceptions and that we can in general attribute to a
substance its more clear and distinct expression and, with reason, the phenomena we
express more perfectly, while we attribute to other substances what each best expresses.
Thus a substance of infinite extension, in so far as it expresses everything, becomes
limited by its more or less perfect manner of expression. Thus in this way it is possible
to conceive that substances mutually hinder or limit each other and, consequently, in
this sense, to say that they act on each other and, so to speak, are obliged to conform to
each other. For it can happen that a change which increases the expression of the one
diminishes that of the other. Now, the virtue of a particular substance is to express well
the glory of God, and it is there that it is least limited, and everything that exerts its
virtue or power, that is when it acts, changes for the better and is extended in so far as it
acts. Thus when a change affects several substances (since indeed every change touches
all of them), I think that it can be said that the one that thereby passes to a higher degree
of perfection or to a more perfect expression exerts its power and acts, while the other
one that passes to a lesser degree shows its weakness and is acted upon. So I hold that
every action of a substance possessing perception implies some pleasure and every pas-
sion some pain, and vice versa. This notwithstanding that it can easily happen that a
present advantage is destroyed in what follows. Hence it follows that it is possible to sin
by acting or exerting one’s power and finding pleasure therein.
- THEEXTRAORDINARYCONCURRENCE OFGODISINCLUDED
IN THEEXPRESSION OF OURESSENCEBECAUSEITAPPLIES TO
EVERYTHING, BUTITTRANSCENDS THEPOWERS OFOURNATURE
OFDISTINCTEXPRESSION(WHICHISFINITE ANDFOLLOWS
PARTICULARSUBALTERNNORMS)
All that remains for the present is to explain how it is sometimes possible for God to
have influence on men or other substances through an extraordinary or miraculous con-
currence, since it seems that everything that has to happen to them is natural in so far as
it is a consequence of their substance. But what we said above about miracles in the uni-
verse must be remembered: they always conform to the universal laws of the general
order, even though these transcend the subordinate norms. And, to the extent that every
person or substance is like a little world expressing the great one, it can even be said that
this extraordinary concurrence of God is included in the general order of the universe in
so far as that is expressed by the nature of this person, but it does not cease to be mirac-
ulous and to be beyond the norms. That is why, if everything it expresses is included in
our nature, nothing is supernatural with respect to it, for it extends to everything, since
an effect always expresses its cause and God is the true cause of substances. But since
what our nature expresses more perfectly particularly belongs to it, that is what its
power consists in—and since, as I have just explained, it is limited, there are many