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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.
1from God? Answer. 65. Behold, there is a gall in man's body, which is poison, and man cannot live without this gall; for the gall maketh the astral spirits moveable, joyous, triumphing or laughing, for it is the source of joy. 66. But if it be inflamed or kindled in one of the elements, then it spoileth the whole man, for the wrath in the astral spirits cometh from the gall. 67. That is, when the gall overfloweth and runneth to the heart, then it kindleth the element of fire, and the fire kindleth the astral spirits which reign in the blood in the veins and in the element of water; and then the whole body trembleth by reason of the wrath and the poison of the gall. 68. Such a source hath joy, and from the same substance also as the wrath. That is, when the gall in the loving or sweet quality is inflamed, in that which man is in love withal, then the whole body trembleth for the joy; in which many times the astral spirits are affected also, when the gall is overflown, and is kindled in the sweet quality. 69. But it hath no such substance in God, for he hath not flesh and blood, but he is a Spirit, [John iv. 24.] in whom all powers are; as we pray in the Lord's prayer, Thine is the power. [Matt vi. 13.] 70. As it is written of him, He is Wonderful, [Isaiah ix. 6.] Counsel, Power, Champion, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. 71. The bitter quality is in God also, but not in that manner as the gall is in man, but it is an
2everlasting power, in an elevating, triumphing spring or source of joy. 72. And though it is written in Moses, I am [Exod. XX. 5.] an angry, zealous God [Deut iv. 24], yet the meaning of it is not that God is angry in himself, and that there ariseth a fire of anger in the Holy Trinity. 73. No; that cannot be, for it is written, against those that hate me* in that same creature, the fire of anger riseth up. * " against those that hate me," etc. Sparrow has given a literal translation of the German. St M. has, "as to them that hate me, it is in them that the fire of anger riseth up." 74. If God should be angry in himself, then the whole nature would be on fire, which will come once to pass on the last day, in nature, but not in God, in God the triumphing joy will burn; it was never otherwise from eternity, nor will it ever be otherwise. 75. The elevating, springing, triumphing joy in God maketh heaven triumphing and moveable, and heaven maketh the stars and elements moveable, and the stars and elements make the creatures moveable. 76. Out of the powers of God are the heavens proceeded; out of the heaven are the stars; out of the stars are the elements; out of the elements are the earth and the creatures come to be. 77. Thus all had its beginning, even to the angels and devils, which, before the creation of heaven, stars and the earth, were produced from the same power from which the heaven, the stars and the earth were produced. 78. This is a short entrance or introduction,
3shewing how one must consider the divine and the natural being. Henceforth I will describe the true ground and depth concerning what God is, and how all things are framed in God's being. 79. This indeed hath been partly concealed from the beginning of the world to this time, and man with his reason could not comprehend it. 80. But seeing God is pleased to reveal himself in simplicity in this last time, I shall give way to his impulse and will; I am buta very little spark of light. AMEN. THE THIRD CHAPTER Of the most blessed Triumphing, Holy, Holy, Holy Trinity, GOD the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, ONE only God. 1. COURTEOUS Reader, here I would have you faithfully admonished to let go your opinion and conceit, and not yield to the spell of the Heathenish wisdom, nor be offended at the simplicity of the author: for this work comes not from his reason, but from the impulse of the spirit. 2. Only be thou careful to get into thy spirit the Holy Ghost, who issueth forth from God, and he will lead thee into all truth, and reveal himself unto thee. 3. Then thou wilt see well enough in his light and power; even into the holy Trinity, and understand those things which are written hereafter following. Of GOD the FATHER. 4. When our Saviour JESUS CHRIST taught his disciples to pray, he said; [Matt. vi. 9.] When ye pray,say thus: Our Father, which art in heaven. 5. The meaning is not as if heaven could comprehend, encompass or contain God the Father; for heaven itself is made by the divine power: for Christ saith, My Father is greater than all. 6. And God saith in the Prophet, Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What house would you build for me? I compass the heaven with a span, and the earth with three
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.
1from God? Answer. 65. Behold, there is a gall in man's body, which is poison, and man cannot live without this gall; for the gall maketh the astral spirits moveable, joyous, triumphing or laughing, for it is the source of joy. 66. But if it be inflamed or kindled in one of the elements, then it spoileth the whole man, for the wrath in the astral spirits cometh from the gall. 67. That is, when the gall overfloweth and runneth to the heart, then it kindleth the element of fire, and the fire kindleth the astral spirits which reign in the blood in the veins and in the element of water; and then the whole body trembleth by reason of the wrath and the poison of the gall. 68. Such a source hath joy, and from the same substance also as the wrath. That is, when the gall in the loving or sweet quality is inflamed, in that which man is in love withal, then the whole body trembleth for the joy; in which many times the astral spirits are affected also, when the gall is overflown, and is kindled in the sweet quality. 69. But it hath no such substance in God, for he hath not flesh and blood, but he is a Spirit, [John iv. 24.] in whom all powers are; as we pray in the Lord's prayer, Thine is the power. [Matt vi. 13.] 70. As it is written of him, He is Wonderful, [Isaiah ix. 6.] Counsel, Power, Champion, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. 71. The bitter quality is in God also, but not in that manner as the gall is in man, but it is an
2everlasting power, in an elevating, triumphing spring or source of joy. 72. And though it is written in Moses, I am [Exod. XX. 5.] an angry, zealous God [Deut iv. 24], yet the meaning of it is not that God is angry in himself, and that there ariseth a fire of anger in the Holy Trinity. 73. No; that cannot be, for it is written, against those that hate me* in that same creature, the fire of anger riseth up. * " against those that hate me," etc. Sparrow has given a literal translation of the German. St M. has, "as to them that hate me, it is in them that the fire of anger riseth up." 74. If God should be angry in himself, then the whole nature would be on fire, which will come once to pass on the last day, in nature, but not in God, in God the triumphing joy will burn; it was never otherwise from eternity, nor will it ever be otherwise. 75. The elevating, springing, triumphing joy in God maketh heaven triumphing and moveable, and heaven maketh the stars and elements moveable, and the stars and elements make the creatures moveable. 76. Out of the powers of God are the heavens proceeded; out of the heaven are the stars; out of the stars are the elements; out of the elements are the earth and the creatures come to be. 77. Thus all had its beginning, even to the angels and devils, which, before the creation of heaven, stars and the earth, were produced from the same power from which the heaven, the stars and the earth were produced. 78. This is a short entrance or introduction,
3shewing how one must consider the divine and the natural being. Henceforth I will describe the true ground and depth concerning what God is, and how all things are framed in God's being. 79. This indeed hath been partly concealed from the beginning of the world to this time, and man with his reason could not comprehend it. 80. But seeing God is pleased to reveal himself in simplicity in this last time, I shall give way to his impulse and will; I am buta very little spark of light. AMEN. THE THIRD CHAPTER Of the most blessed Triumphing, Holy, Holy, Holy Trinity, GOD the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, ONE only God. 1. COURTEOUS Reader, here I would have you faithfully admonished to let go your opinion and conceit, and not yield to the spell of the Heathenish wisdom, nor be offended at the simplicity of the author: for this work comes not from his reason, but from the impulse of the spirit. 2. Only be thou careful to get into thy spirit the Holy Ghost, who issueth forth from God, and he will lead thee into all truth, and reveal himself unto thee. 3. Then thou wilt see well enough in his light and power; even into the holy Trinity, and understand those things which are written hereafter following. Of GOD the FATHER. 4. When our Saviour JESUS CHRIST taught his disciples to pray, he said; [Matt. vi. 9.] When ye pray,say thus: Our Father, which art in heaven. 5. The meaning is not as if heaven could comprehend, encompass or contain God the Father; for heaven itself is made by the divine power: for Christ saith, My Father is greater than all. 6. And God saith in the Prophet, Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What house would you build for me? I compass the heaven with a span, and the earth with three
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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