Beheading

The act of cutting off the head. See DECAPITATION. Beheld', pret . and pp . of BEHOLD, q. v. to the eastward towards the American continent. He left Awatska in June, 1741, steering to the S.E., but hav Behind hand, a. [behind and hand .] In arrears; as, to be behindhand in one's payments. - In a state of backwardne ; as, to be behindhand with work. (Gener-ing reached the parallel of 46° without seeing land, he ally followed by with .) "Consider whether it is not better to be half-a-year behindhand with the fashionable part of the world, than to strain beyond his circumstances." Spectator. Beh'men, or BÖHME, JACOB, a religious mystic, B. in Upper Lusatia, Germany, in 1575, and settled as a shoemaker at Görlitz, in 1595. In 1610 he commenced the publication of a series of works in which he profe ed to enjoy a revelation of inward light from the Holy Ghost, that enabled him to perceive the secrets of nature and religion. He was opposed by Greg or i us Richter, primate of Görlitz, and was compelled to retire to Dresden, but eventually returned to his home, where he D. in 1624. The Behmenites, as a religious sect, may be said to be extinct, but B. has still many devoted admirers at the present day. It is impo ible, within our limits, to give an intelligible account of the system of B. Formerly his doctrines were viewed with great contempt by all but his own immediate followers; but latterly this unlettered rustic, this man of earnest principle and pious heart, has come to occupy a high place among the philosophers of his country. Hegel places him at the head of modern speculative philosophers, and Tieck and Novalis were enthusiastic admirers of his writings. Profe or Maurice, in his article on Moral and Metaphysical Philosophy, ( Encyclopædia Metropolitan a ,) says, "That his obscurity was in a great degree the effect of unacquaintance with scientific language; but that through it all may be traced deep thoughts respecting God and man, by which philosophers might be greatly profited." After Behmen's death, his opinions spread over Germany, Holland, and England. His works were translated into English by the celebrated William Law, of Oxford. Henry More has written upon the views of Behmen, and it is said that many autograph extracts from the works of Behmen were found among the papers of Sir Isaac Newton. Beh'menites, n. pl. ( Eccl. Hist.) Disciples of the tenets of BEHMEN, q. v.