Fetching
One moment.
Eleven books by a shoemaker of Görlitz who wrote, by his own account, because he could not help it. Ten of them stand here in the seventeenth-century English of John Sparrow, who translated Boehme within a generation of his death and whose prose is itself now four hundred years old; where that English has drifted out of reach, the facing pane carries a modern register — the same text with archaic inflection and spelling normalised by rule, never paraphrased. Nothing is reworded, and where no register appears beside a passage it is because the rules found nothing to change.
The eleventh book is not in English at all, and it is the reason this note exists.
Des trois principes de l'essence divine, printed at Paris in 1802, is the same work as Concerning the Three Principles of the Divine Essence, which stands here as the second book — the same twenty-seven chapters in the same order, opening `Du premier principe de l'essence divine` against Sparrow's `Of the first Principle of the Divine Essence`. Its translator was Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin, who gave the last years of his life to putting Boehme into French, and who has a shelf of his own in this Lycaeum.
That makes a closed circuit inside this archive, and it is worth naming plainly. Saint-Martin translates Boehme. La Iniciación, printed in Montevideo a hundred and forty years later, traces its own descent through Saint-Martin. A reader can therefore follow one thread from a German mystic of 1619, through the French philosopher who carried him into another language, to a Spanish-language monthly of the 1940s that claimed them both — and read every step of it in the original.
The two are shelved as one work rather than two because that is what they are. They are not set as facing panes: an English translation of 1619 and a French translation of 1802 are two independent readings of a lost German original, and pairing them line by line would assert a correspondence neither translator ever claimed.
1am. oi Eventes enfans que tu as engendrés, ne sont-ds pas ton. provenus de ^es reins ? le plan de Dieu avo.t.d donc été , q„e le mal obtint la'doj! - non ,„, ,, ,;,„ ,^^ ^^,., ^^^ ^^^^^^^ ^^ ^^^^^^^^ ^ àS U non , mais cela prou ieni du démon qui esi «nsu 1,„, ,^ la colère. Adam avoit été fa-t bon de 1 e .ncnr pur ; mais le désir du démon l'a trom! L;i: ^^^" ^^'' '-' '''''' '^- '-P^'- cie^a ]es'l!i"r"'"^"^? " P-t pas être autrement; îral M ! "^""^'"^^^-P-equelasouf! rinC ^^'^^^"^^ de la art d df ' '" ^ ''^'^^'^"^ '' ^^ ^^'^ain ^e la part du démon et de ses adhérens : il consiste dans la justice et la vérité et il n». » '^^f^^^ste r,-«« 1 1 ' '* " ^^^ compté pour rien dans le monde ^ c'est pourquoi il faut S couche avec le pauvre Lazare devant la p n'ede l'homme riche et à ses nieds S'.i 1 • voir an'îl Ac* r V ^ ^ ï^i'sse apercevoir qu ,1 est enfant de Dieu , alors le démon se n,et au-devant de lui , ou bien il Pexpose à ta t de dénsmns pour l'empêcher d'être connu , que L démo„ demeure seul un grand prince sur la 'erre de façon que le mondene connoît pasie vrairè^ne 3^. L autre règne est de l'autechrist marchant ( 14» ) C«. !•)
2fièrement dans un éclat pompeux , et brillant de tout côlés. Chacun dit : Quel grand bonheur ! car il se pare le plus somptueusement , il établit son école sur les colines et sur les montagnes ; chacun le salue ; il attire à soi la teinture de la terre , de façoa qu'il est seul à briller ; il porte la disette dans le royaume du Christ 5 il dévore la sueur du malheureux et lui dit ; Tu es à moi , je suis Ion Dieu , je dispose de toi comme je veux. Tu es pour moi comme un chien à mes pieds ; si je ne veux pas de toi , je te chasse de ma maison ; il faut que tu fasses ce que je veux. Et le pauvre opprimé est forcé de dire : Oui , je suis ton misérable serviteur , épargne seulement ma vi». 36. Et comme ce monstre qui veut dévorer sa sueur , la presse et l'exprime jusqu'à le faire souffrir; alors le serviteur devient impatient envers son maître , il le maudit , il a recours au mensonge et à la fausseté pour pouvoir se décharger d'un fardeau si pesant. 37. Mais alors il trouve son maître assez injuste pour le frapper et lui ôter son pain de fausseté , qu'il cspéroit démanger sous un joug doux. Ce maître le bat outrageusement ; et ne lui laisse pas le tems de s'enfuir : ainsi il reste plein d'impatience soûs le joug pesant ; il gronde et murmure ; il cherche toutes sortes de fausses échappées pour alléger son joug , et pouvoir manger son pain en repos ; maii cela ne peut être ; l'instigateur est derrière lui , d lui prend son pain , et il le nourrit de douleurs en le tenant sous &od joug. ^- »* ( 143 )
338. Alors il ne s'occupe que defoutberiesef d» ru- pour subvenir à sasubsis.auce ; i, „.au" e o„ n.a..re en secrat ; il dérobe adroitement le pain Zl autres n.alheureu«: alors le »aî,„, trouve'" .ou. «st bien ; il ne demande plus ri«n « ■ ^ -an. le serviteur ne Jl e X^Tslrt que ce. anima. don.es,i,ue demeure sous sÎ 'jur 39. A ns. le maître qui es. injuste e.faux,fai "ut .on servteur est aussi injus.e e. faux, tandi aùeZ avo., mangé son pain en .oie sous „; joug éler ne^s.r.. pas ainsi maudissant , e. Je /la Ëj^ 40. Maisquedirons-nousde l'esprit dece monde? N es-.u pas écla.an, de gloire ? ne .'es-,u Z7eL paréde,ou,?„',s-,u pas possédé la .erre en HL,r comme D.eu .e l'a donnée ? ne fais-.u pas u^Z? Tu pun. les méchans,e.,u veilles aLd, •u 1 ennemi se mon,r« 5 ,„ défends ton pavs • oai jesune umi.repo„r.'ave.,g.e, e. tJ^eZZl ^es ms..,uteurs qui le portent à la patience ïe royaume es. à toi en effe., ,„ l'a, ache.é ! "f; «si . à la vériKî »„., ■ ""-neie , le pauvre «ailquer ' '°''^^"'"-^' -la ne peu. pa, 41. Mais la réponse divine me di, dans la lumière «Je la nature .- Vois d'où ,u es poussé • es. .. Qui t'flî «Ia«»z 0 » F""î>se , est-ce moi c es. a ors au'il t'a ni-. m^ n oesert , aierand? « ^ plan.é. Comment es-.u devenu •g and? qu. estK=e qui .'a donné puissance , ,oi arbre sauvage . que mon amour n'a seulemen il «- approché? X« «'as que d. branches sa" ^ " rt ( 144 ) ®^* **
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.
1am. o Eve, thy children that thou hast begotten, are they not all come of thy loins? Had the plan of God then been, that evil should obtain the doj! - non ,„, ,, ,;,„ ,^^ ^^,., ^^^ ^^^^^^^ ^^ ^^^^^^^^ ^ àS U no, but that proceeds from the demon who is afterward «nsu 1,„, ,^ the anger. Adam had been made good of 1 e .ncnr pure; but the desire of the demon has deceived him L;i: ^^^" ^^'' '-' '''''' '^- '-P^'- cie^a es'l!i"r"'"^"^? " It cannot be otherwise; îral M ! "^""^'"^^^-P-equelasouf! rinC ^^'^^^"^^ de la art d df ' '" ^ ''^'^^'^"^ '' ^^ ^^'^ain ^e la part of the demon and of his adherents: it consists in justice and truth, and il n». » '^^f^^^ste r,-«« 1 1 ' '* " ^^^ is counted for nothing in the world; that is why he must S lie with poor Lazarus before the door of the rich man and at his feet. S'.i 1 • voir an'îl Ac* r V ^ ^ ï^i'sse perceive that ,1he is a child of God, then the demon puts himself before him, or else he exposes him to so much derision to prevent him from being known, so that the demon may remain alone a great prince upon the earth, so that the world knows not the true reign. 3^. The other reign is of the antichrist marching ( 14» ) C«. !•)
2proudly in a pompous brightness, and shining on all sides. Each says: What great happiness! for he adorns himself the most sumptuously, he establishes his school upon the hills and upon the mountains; each salutes him; he draws to himself the tincture of the earth, so that he is alone in shining; he carries dearth into the kingdom of Christ 5 he devours the sweat of the wretched one and says to him: Thou art mine, I am thy God, I dispose of thee as I will. Thou art for me like a dog at my feet; if I will not have thee, I chase thee from my house; thou must do what I will. And the poor oppressed one is forced to say: Yes, I am thy miserable servant, spare only my life. 36. And as this monster which will devour his sweat, presses him and squeezes him even to making him suffer; then the servant becomes impatient toward his master, he curses him, he has recourse to lying and to falseness to be able to discharge himself of a burden so heavy. 37. But then he finds his master unjust enough to strike him and take from him his bread of falseness, which he hoped to eat under a sweet yoke. This master beats him outrageously; and leaves him not the time to flee: thus he remains full of impatience under the heavy yoke; he grumbles and murmurs; he seeks all sorts of false escapes to lighten his yoke, and to be able to eat his bread in repose; but that cannot be; the instigator is behind him, and takes from him his bread, and he nourishes him with pains in holding him under his yoke. ^- »* ( 143 )
338. Then he occupies himself only with defoutberiesef and with ru- to provide for his subsistence; i, „.au" his master in secret; he steals adroitly the bread of other wretched ones: then the »aî,„, finds'" that all is well; he asks no more ri«n « ■ ^ -an. the servant ne Jl e X^Tslrt so that this domestic animal remains under his sÎ 'jur 39. Thus the master who is unjust and false, makes "ut his servant to be also unjust and false, whilst if he had eaten his bread in joy under a light yoke, he would not be thus cursing, and Je /la Ëj^ 40. But what shall we say of the spirit of this world? Art thou not brilliant with glory? hast thou not Z7eL adorned thyself with all? hast thou not possessed the earth in HL,r as God has given it thee? doest thou not u^Z? Thou punishest the wicked, and thou watchest aLd, when 1 the enemy shows himself 5 thou defendest thy country; oai jesune umi.repo„r.'ave.,g.e, and tJ^eZZl the instructors who bear him to patience. The kingdom is thine in effect, thou hast bought it! "f; «si . in truth »„., ■ ""-neie, the poor «ailquer ' '°''^^"'"-^' that cannot fail. 41. But the divine answer says to me in the light of nature: See whence thou art pushed; es. .. Who t'flî «Ia«»z 0 » F""î>se, is it I it is then that he has planted thee ni-. m^ n in the desert, aierand? « ^ plan.é. How art thou become great? who is it that has given thee power, thou wild tree, that my love has not even il «- approached? Thou hast but d. wild branches sa" ^ " rt ( 144 ) ®^* **
Our translation, period-faithful. Citable as our translation, never as the source.
Saint-Martin's French rendering of Boehme's 'Von den drei Principien göttlichen Wesens'. The same work stands in this estate in English as boehme:2. The title page also advertises 'L'Aurore naissante, du même Auteur' from the same booksellers — Saint-Martin's translation of the Aurora, whose English counterpart the estate holds as boehme:1. Reading the two versions against each other shows what a Martinist made of a German shoemaker's theosophy.
→ boehme:2
This work carries, in the author's own voice, both a set of hostile comparisons drawn against named peoples and an explicit refusal of any such boundary, and the Press publishes both rather than either alone. At Ch.25 §85 he calls the Jews blind; at Ch.17 §106 he warns of a coming visitation of the Jews and the Turks; and at Ch.26 §32-33, asked whence the Turks are grown, he answers "From thy perverted sense" — laying the rise of Mahomet at the door of christian pride and disputation. Against these stands Ch.25 §72, which opens the grace with no boundary at all: all men are invited to it, of whatever race, "whether Turks, Jews, Pagans, Christians", and no one is excluded. The same chapter that indicts turns the indictment inward at §105-106 — each believes not to dwell in Babel, and the author includes himself — and §33 concludes that God should be as near the one as the other. The contradiction is the author's, it is not resolved by him, and removing either half would misrepresent the work. Operator ruling, 2026-08-29.
This work carries, in the author's own voice, both a set of hostile comparisons drawn against named peoples and an explicit refusal of any such boundary, and the Press publishes both rather than either alone. At Ch.25 §85 he calls the Jews blind; at Ch.17 §106 he warns of a coming visitation of the Jews and the Turks; and at Ch.26 §32-33, asked whence the Turks are grown, he answers "From thy perverted sense" — laying the rise of Mahomet at the door of christian pride and disputation. Against these stands Ch.25 §72, which opens the grace with no boundary at all: all men are invited to it, of whatever race, "whether Turks, Jews, Pagans, Christians", and no one is excluded. The same chapter that indicts turns the indictment inward at §105-106 — each believes not to dwell in Babel, and the author includes himself — and §33 concludes that God should be as near the one as the other. The contradiction is the author's, it is not resolved by him, and removing either half would misrepresent the work. Operator ruling, 2026-08-29.
This work carries, in the author's own voice, both a set of hostile comparisons drawn against named peoples and an explicit refusal of any such boundary, and the Press publishes both rather than either alone. At Ch.25 §85 he calls the Jews blind; at Ch.17 §106 he warns of a coming visitation of the Jews and the Turks; and at Ch.26 §32-33, asked whence the Turks are grown, he answers "From thy perverted sense" — laying the rise of Mahomet at the door of christian pride and disputation. Against these stands Ch.25 §72, which opens the grace with no boundary at all: all men are invited to it, of whatever race, "whether Turks, Jews, Pagans, Christians", and no one is excluded. The same chapter that indicts turns the indictment inward at §105-106 — each believes not to dwell in Babel, and the author includes himself — and §33 concludes that God should be as near the one as the other. The contradiction is the author's, it is not resolved by him, and removing either half would misrepresent the work. Operator ruling, 2026-08-29.