A Brief History of Modern Philosophy. Harald Høffding

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      a. The sensory evidence of an absolute world-center and an absolute world-boundary is merely apparent. The moment we change our viewpoint we attain a new center and a new boundary. Every point in the universe can therefore be regarded at once as both central and peripheral. Abstract thought and sentiency agree in this; namely, that we may add number to number, idea to idea, ad infinitum, without ever approaching an absolute boundary. The possibilities of progress in knowledge are therefore unlimited, and it is from this characteristic of knowledge (la conditione del modo nostro de intendere) that Bruno conceives the character of the universe: absolute boundaries are as inconceivable of the universe as of knowledge. ​It follows therefore that there are no absolute positions. Every position is determined by its relation to other positions. One and the same point may be either center, pole, zenith or nadir—depending entirely on the point from which it is observed (respectu diversorum). There can therefore be no absolute motion and no absolute time. The ancients based their theory of absolute time on the absolute regularity of the motions of the fixed stars; but since the motions observed from any particular star differ from that of another star there are as many times as there are stars. And, finally, the traditional theory of absolute heaviness and lightness is likewise an error; its tenability was based on the presupposition of an absolute center of the universe. Heaviness and lightness must therefore be understood with reference to the various world-bodies. Sun particles are heavy in relation to the sun, earth particles in relation to the earth. According to Bruno, heaviness is the expression of a natural impulse within the parts to return to the greater whole to which they belong.

      The principle of relativity is closely connected with the theory that nature is everywhere essentially the same. We can infer the conditions in other parts of the universe from the conditions about us here on the earth. We observe e.g. that ships, when seen at a distance, appear to be motionless, whilst as a matter of fact they are moving very rapidly, and thus by analogy we may assume that the fixed stars appear to be motionless by reason of their great distance from us. There is no justification for maintaining the fixity of the firmament dogmatically as the ancients and even Copernicus had done.

      Bruno therefore challenged the dogmatic principles which Copernicus had still accepted. He saw very clearly ​however that the matter cannot be definitely determined by mere speculative generalizations; genuine proof can only come from the discovery of new facts of experience. And he believes furthermore, and rightly so, that no one can investigate the matter without prejudice who adheres dogmatically to the traditional hypothesis.—At one important point he was able to appeal to well-defined facts. He rejected the theory, still accepted by Copernicus, that the stars are enclosed in permanent spheres: If the earth can move freely in space, why should it be impossible for the stars to do the same? And he found his conclusion verified by Tycho Brahe’s investigation of comets, which as a matter of fact pass diagonally through the “Spheres” whose crystal masses were supposed to separate the various parts of the universe! It follows therefore that the contrast of heaven and earth, of permanent and changeable parts of the universe, is untenable.

      b. In his philosophy of religion Bruno starts with the infinitude of the Deity. But if the cause or principle of the universe is infinite it must follow that the universe itself is likewise infinite! We are unable to believe that the divine fullness could find expression in a finite universe; nothing short of an infinite number of creatures and worlds would be an adequate display of such fullness.

      Bruno elaborated his theory of the infinity of the universe in two dialogues, the Cena de la ceneri and Del’ infinito universo e mondi (1584), and in the Latin didactic poem De immenso (1591). These works are of epochal importance in the history of the human mind. Just as this wide expanse inspired in Bruno a feeling akin to deliverance from the confines of a narrow cell, so the human mind is now presented with a boundless ​prospect forever promising new experiences and new problems.

      c. Bruno elaborated his general philosophical principles, which were naturally closely related to the new world theory, in the dialogue De la causa, principio e uno (1584).

      Inasmuch as the new world theory annulled the opposition between heaven and earth, Bruno undertakes the task of annulling all oppositions by means of a profounder speculation. Sharp antitheses originate in the human mind and there is no ground for ascribing them to nature. Plato and Aristotle e.g. had no warrant in objective fact for assuming a distinction between Form and Matter. There is no absolute Matter, just as there is no absolute position and no absolute time. Absolute Matter must necessarily be absolutely passive, in which case it could acquire form and development only through some external agency. But in the natural world Forms are not introduced into Matter from without, after the manner of a human artist; they originate from within by an evolution of nature’s own inherent energy. Matter is no less divine than Form and it persists in constant change even as the ancient Atomists had observed. Nature reveals a constant cycle from inorganic matter through the organic processes and back again to the inorganic. According to Bruno’s own statement, he was so profoundly impressed with this idea for a while that he was inclined to regard Forms and the spiritual factor in the universe as unessential and ephemeral. Later on however he perceived that Form and Spirit, no less than Matter, must have their ground in the infinite Principle. He admitted that everything must contain a spiritual principle, at least potentially (secondo la sostanza), even ​if not always actually (secondo l’atto). The ultimate source of all things consists of a Being which transcends the antitheses of Matter and Form, potentiality and reality, body and mind. In so far as this ultimate source is conceived as something distinct from the universe it is called “Cause,” in so far as it is conceived as actively present in natural phenomena it is called “Principle.” The Deity is not a far distant being; it reveals its presence in the impulse towards self-preservation and it is more intimately related to us than we are to ourselves. It is the soul of our soul, just as it is the soul of nature in general, which accounts for the all-pervasive interaction throughout universal space.

      The culmination of thought likewise marks its limit, because we are incapable of thinking without antitheses. Every conceptual definition imposes certain limitations; the infinite Principle is therefore incapable of definition. Theology must forever remain a negative science, i.e. a science which eliminates the limitations and antitheses from the concept of Deity. The only significance which positive theology can have, i.e. a theology which undertakes to express the infinite Principle by definite predicates, is practical, didactic and pedagogic. It must address itself to those who are incapable of rising to a theoretical contemplation of the universe. God is indeed more highly honored by silence than by speech.

      d. The ideas described above are characteristic of the most important period of Bruno’s philosophical development. It is possible however (with Felice Tocco, in his valuable treatise Opera latine de G. Bruno, 1889) to distinguish an earlier and a later period in his development. During the first period Bruno’s philosophy had somewhat of a Platonic character, in that he regarded general ideas ​as the highest object of knowledge and the universe as an emanation from Deity (De umbris idearum, 1582). But his ideas apparently mean something different from the universal concepts (as in Plato). He seems rather to regard them as laws which describe an actual relationship (e.g. between the different parts of the body).—The last period, as is evident from the De triplici minimo (1591), is noteworthy for its emphasis on the individual elements of being between which this actual relationship obtains. Sensory objects consist of parts notwithstanding the apparent continuity perceived through sense perception. Bruno calls the ultimate, irreducible (or first) parts atoms, minima or monads. There are various classes of monads, and he even calls the universe and God monads, when speaking of them as units.

      The distinctions between Bruno’s three points of view—the theory of Ideas, the theory of Substance, and the theory of Monads—however are simply matters of degree.

      e. Bruno’s ethics conforms with his general theory of the universe. His Spaccio de la bestia trionfanta (1584) evaluates human virtues according to a new standard. Its dominant characteristic is the prominence given to the desire for truth and to honest toil. Every correct evaluation presupposes truth, and toil is the natural consequence