NICHOLAS, an eminent French metaphysician, the son of Nicholas Malebranche, secretary to the French king, was born in 1638, and admitted into the congregation of the oratory in 1660. He at first applied himself to the study of languages and history: but afterwards meeting with Des Cartes's Treatise of Man, he gave himself up entirely to the study of philosophy. In 1699, he was admitted an honorary member of the Royal Academy of Sciences at Paris. Notwithstanding he was of a delicate constitution, he enjoyed a pretty good state of health till his death, which happened in 1715, at the age of 77. Father Malebranche read little, but thought a great deal. He despised that kind of philosophy which consists only in knowing the opinions of other men, since a person may know the history of other men's thoughts without thinking himself. He could never read ten verses together without disgust. He meditated with his windows shut, in order to keep out the light, which he found to be a disturbance to him. His conversation turned upon the same subjects as his books; but was mixed with so much modesty and deference to the judgment of others, that it was extremely and universally desired. His books are famous; particularly his Recherche de la Verité, i.e. "Search after truth:" his design in which is, to point to us the errors into which we are daily led by our senses, imagination, and passions; and to prescribe a method for discovering the truth, which he does, by starting the notion of seeing all things in God. And hence he is led to think and speak merely of human knowledge, either as it lies in written books, or in the book of nature, compared with that light which displays itself from the ideal world; and, by attending to which, with pure and detached minds, he supposes knowledge to be most easily had. The fineness of this author's sentiments, together with his fine manner of expressing them, made every body admire his genius and abilities; but he has generally passed for a visionary philosopher. Mr Locke, in his examination of Malebranche's opinion of seeing all things in God, styles him "an acute and ingenious author;" and tells us, that there are "a great many very fine thoughts, judicious reasonings, and uncommon reflections in his Recherches." But Mr Locke, in that piece, endeavours to refute the chief principles of his system. He wrote many other pieces besides that we have mentioned, all tending some way or other to confirm his main system, established in the Recherche, and to clear it from the objections which were brought against it, or from the consequences which were deduced from it; and if he has not attained what he aimed at in these several productions, he has certainly shewn great abilities and a vast force of genius.