The number and order of the Passions, and the six primary ones

69. There are only 6 Primitive Passions

These are:

1. Admiration
2. Love
3. Hatred
4. Desire
5. Joy
6. Sadness

All the others are composed of some of these six, or are their species.

70. Definition and Cause of Admiration

Admiration is a sudden surprise of the soul, which causes it to consider with attention objects that appear rare and extraordinary to it.

Thus admiration is caused firstly by the impression in the brain, which represents the object as rare and therefore worthy of careful consideration.

Then subsequently by the movement of the spirits, which are disposed by this impression to tend with great force towards the part of the brain where it is located, to strengthen and maintain it there; just as they are disposed by it to pass from there into the muscles that serve to keep the organs of the senses in the same position they are, so that it may be further sustained by them, if it is formed by them.

71. There is no change in the heart or in the blood in Admiration

Admiration has the peculiarity that it is not noticed to be accompanied by any change that happens in the heart and in the blood, as the other passions.

This is because it does not have good or evil as its object, but only knowledge of the thing that is admired.

And so, it has no connection with the heart and blood, from which all the good of the body depends. It only connects with the brain, where the organs of the senses that serve this knowledge are.

72. The force of Admiration is made up of what?

Admiration can have great strength due to surprise through the sudden and unexpected arrival of the impression that changes the movement of the spirits.

Surprise is proper and peculiar to Admiration.

This is because surprise increases the movement of the spirits.

The strength of Admiration depends on 2 things:

1. Novelty

2. The initial movement

This is because the movement that it causes has all its strength from its beginning.

Such a movement has more effect than those which are weak at first then grow gradually and can easily be turned away.

New sensory perceptions touch the brain in certain parts which are not used to being touched.

These parts are softer, or less firm, than those which have been hardened by a frequent agitation.

This increases the effect of the movements which they excite there.

This is the same reason why we do not often notice the large and rough touch from the soles of our feet carrying our body.

Whereas a much smaller and softer touch, such as tickling, is almost unbearable to us because it is not ordinary to us.

73. What is Astonishment?

This surprise has so much power to cause the spirits, which are in the cavities of the brain, to go towards where the impression of the admired object is located.

Sometimes, this surprise pushes all the spirits there, and makes them so occupied in preserving this impression, that none of them pass from there into the muscles, nor even turn from the first traces they have followed in the brain.

This causes:

• the whole body to remain immobile like a statue
• one to only perceive of the admired object when it was first perceived and not consequently acquire a more particular knowledge of it

This is called astonishment.

It is an excess of admiration, which can never be other than bad.

74. For what all passions are useful, and how they harm.

The usefulness of all the passions is only that they strengthen and preserve the good thoughts in the soul. Without such passions, those thoughts would have been easily erased.

Their only harm is that they strengthen and preserve the thoughts more than is necessary. They preserve and strengthen those that should not be retained.