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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.
1the heat, then the love in the light of God brake through the heaven of the partition, and kindled the heat. 75. And there rose up the shining light in the heat in the water, or in the fat or oiliness of the water, and the heart of the water kindled itself, and this was done in the twinkling of an eye. 76. For as soon as the light had rightly laid hold on the body, the body was captivated in the light; and the heat was captivated, and was changed into a moderate, tolerable or suitable meekness, and could stand or extend no longer in such anguish. 77. But seeing the heat was so terrified by the light, thereupon its horrible firesource was allayed, and so could kindle itself no further; and so also the breaking through of the love in the light of God through the heaven at this time, with its breaking through, extended or stretched itself no further out of, or from God's predestinated purpose; therefore also the SUN came to be no bigger. Of the Planet Mars. 78. But when the sun was kindled, then the horrible firecrack went forth upwards from the place of the sun, beyond the place of the sun, as a horrible tempestuous flash, and in its corporeal being took along with it the fierceness of the fire, whereby the water became very bitter, and the water is the kernel or stock of the crack. 79. Now the astrologers write, that the planet Mars standeth aloft about 15,750 miles off from the sun; which I contradict not, because I meddle not with the measuring of circles. And so far the swift firecrack went forth [travelled] from its own
2place till the light also laid hold on it, and then it also was captivated by the light, and stayed and took possession of that place. 80. But that the light could not lay hold of it sooner, was caused by the earnest fierceness and sudden flash, for it was not taken hold of by the light before the light had wholly or thoroughly affected or possessed it. 81. And there it is now, as a tyrant, rager and stirrer of the whole body of this world; for that is its very office, that with its revolution in the wheel of nature it moveth and stirreth all, from whence every life taketh its original. Of the Planet Jupiter. 82. Now when the bitter firecrack was captivated by the light, then the light in its own power pressed yet higher in the deep, till it reached into the hard and cold seat of nature. And there the power of the first going forth or rising up from the sun could not get higher, but sitting, stayed there corporeally,* and took possession of that place for a habitation. * "but sitting, stayed there corporeally" (und blieb alda corporlich sitzen). An idiomatic construction which implies no " sitting" at all, but staying behind, standing still, stopping short. Lit., " remained there corporeally." But thou must understand this Thing aright. 83. It was the power of the light which stayed in this place, and which is a very meek, friendly, gracious, amiable, blessed and sweet being. The astrologers write, that this planet is distant aloft above Mars about 7875 miles. But it is the mitigator of the destroying, furious, raging, raving Mars, and an original of the meekness in every life; an original also of the water, from which the life
3generateth itself, as I shall mention hereafter. 84. Thus far the power of the life reached forth from the sun, and not higher; but the lustre or shining thereof, which hath its power also, reacheth even to the stars, and through the whole body of this world. But thou must understand this exactly, from whence these two Planets are come to be. 85. When the power of the heart of God pressed forth out of the eternal inexhaustible fountain of the water of life, through the heaven of the partition, and kindled the water in the place of the sun, then the flash, understand the fireflash, did shoot forth or went forth out of the water, which was very terrible and bitter, and out of which Mars came to be. 86. After this flash the power of the light shot nimbly after it, like a meek elevated life, and overtook the firecrack, and mitigated it, so that it became somewhat weaker, and could break no farther through the deep, but stayed trembling. 87. But the power that was gone forth in the light had more strength than the firecrack, and so it rose up higher than the firecrack, Mars, till it came very deep into nature's austereness, and there it became feeble also, and stayed there. 88. From or out of this power the planet Jupiter came to be, and not out of or from that place where he is, but it [Jupiter] always kindleth that very place with its power; but it is as one of the household servants in that place, who must always walk about in the place of its office and service. But the sun hath a house of its own; but no other planet hath any house of its own.
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.
1the heat, then the love in the light of God brake through the heaven of the partition, and kindled the heat. 75. And there rose up the shining light in the heat in the water, or in the fat or oiliness of the water, and the heart of the water kindled itself, and this was done in the twinkling of an eye. 76. For as soon as the light had rightly laid hold on the body, the body was captivated in the light; and the heat was captivated, and was changed into a moderate, tolerable or suitable meekness, and could stand or extend no longer in such anguish. 77. But seeing the heat was so terrified by the light, thereupon its horrible firesource was allayed, and so could kindle itself no further; and so also the breaking through of the love in the light of God through the heaven at this time, with its breaking through, extended or stretched itself no further out of, or from God's predestinated purpose; therefore also the SUN came to be no bigger. Of the Planet Mars. 78. But when the sun was kindled, then the horrible firecrack went forth upwards from the place of the sun, beyond the place of the sun, as a horrible tempestuous flash, and in its corporeal being took along with it the fierceness of the fire, whereby the water became very bitter, and the water is the kernel or stock of the crack. 79. Now the astrologers write, that the planet Mars standeth aloft about 15,750 miles off from the sun; which I contradict not, because I meddle not with the measuring of circles. And so far the swift firecrack went forth [travelled] from its own
2place till the light also laid hold on it, and then it also was captivated by the light, and stayed and took possession of that place. 80. But that the light could not lay hold of it sooner, was caused by the earnest fierceness and sudden flash, for it was not taken hold of by the light before the light had wholly or thoroughly affected or possessed it. 81. And there it is now, as a tyrant, rager and stirrer of the whole body of this world; for that is its very office, that with its revolution in the wheel of nature it moveth and stirreth all, from whence every life taketh its original. Of the Planet Jupiter. 82. Now when the bitter firecrack was captivated by the light, then the light in its own power pressed yet higher in the deep, till it reached into the hard and cold seat of nature. And there the power of the first going forth or rising up from the sun could not get higher, but sitting, stayed there corporeally,* and took possession of that place for a habitation. * "but sitting, stayed there corporeally" (und blieb alda corporlich sitzen). An idiomatic construction which implies no " sitting" at all, but staying behind, standing still, stopping short. Lit., " remained there corporeally." But thou must understand this Thing aright. 83. It was the power of the light which stayed in this place, and which is a very meek, friendly, gracious, amiable, blessed and sweet being. The astrologers write, that this planet is distant aloft above Mars about 7875 miles. But it is the mitigator of the destroying, furious, raging, raving Mars, and an original of the meekness in every life; an original also of the water, from which the life
3generateth itself, as I shall mention hereafter. 84. Thus far the power of the life reached forth from the sun, and not higher; but the lustre or shining thereof, which hath its power also, reacheth even to the stars, and through the whole body of this world. But thou must understand this exactly, from whence these two Planets are come to be. 85. When the power of the heart of God pressed forth out of the eternal inexhaustible fountain of the water of life, through the heaven of the partition, and kindled the water in the place of the sun, then the flash, understand the fireflash, did shoot forth or went forth out of the water, which was very terrible and bitter, and out of which Mars came to be. 86. After this flash the power of the light shot nimbly after it, like a meek elevated life, and overtook the firecrack, and mitigated it, so that it became somewhat weaker, and could break no farther through the deep, but stayed trembling. 87. But the power that was gone forth in the light had more strength than the firecrack, and so it rose up higher than the firecrack, Mars, till it came very deep into nature's austereness, and there it became feeble also, and stayed there. 88. From or out of this power the planet Jupiter came to be, and not out of or from that place where he is, but it [Jupiter] always kindleth that very place with its power; but it is as one of the household servants in that place, who must always walk about in the place of its office and service. But the sun hath a house of its own; but no other planet hath any house of its own.
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.
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