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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.
1Of the Language of Nature. 124. Art thou a rational man? then observe this: The spirit which moveth on high, aloft from the heat, taketh its exit, rising and shining in the sweet quality; therefore the sweet quality is its friendly or kind will, and reigneth in meekness; and meekness and humility are its proper house or habitation. 125. This is the pith or kernel of the deity, and therefore IT is called GOTT, GOD, because it is sweet, meek, friendly and bounteous or good, GUTIG; and therefore is IT called Barmhertzig (warmhearted or merciful), because its sweet quality riseth up in the astringent or sour and bitter qualities, and refresheth, moisteneth and enlighteneth them, that they might not remain a dark valley. 126. For understand but thy mother tongue aright; thou hast as deep a ground therein as is in the Hebrew or Latin: Though the learned elevate themselves in these, like a proud arrogant bride; it is no great matter, their art is now on the lees [Turba], or bowed down to the dust. 127. The spirit sheweth and declareth, that yet before the end, many a layman will know and understand more than now the wittiest or most cunning doctors know; for the gates of heaven set themselves open; those that do not blind them selves shall and will see it very well; the Bridegroom crowneth his bride. AMEN.* * Between the 127th and the 128th pars. St M. inserts the following note:— " One must presume that the following explanation has its origin in the 'mothertongue,' which the author elsewhere calls 'language of nature.' It is possible that in the last
2analysis, words corresponding in meaning, but out of the most diverse languages, would shew relations, if not uniform, at least very close to a universal base, were our mind sufficiently open to grasp both the activity and the universality of the language of nature. Without this conjecture, the author's application of the latter to the German word 'barmhertzig' would repel the more superficial minds, since it could not take place in the case of French or any other ordinary language." See par. 126. J. B. does not identify the two expressions, "mothertongue" and "language of nature," since he compares his mothertongue to Hebrew or Latin. The point is, that he means to shew how perfectly the " language of nature " is applicable to his "mothertongue." St M. has no doubt been misled by the fact that MutterSprache (mothertongue), when translated into the French languemère, signifies rootlanguage, and not native language. BARM HERTZ IG. [warmhearted or merciful] 128. Observe, the word BARM is chiefly formed upon thy lips, and when thou pronouncest BARM then thou shuttest thy mouth, and snarlest * in the hinder part of the mouth; * " snarlest" (knarren) and " snarleth " (par. 129)—the 1730 ed. has " karren," which is obviously a misprint. The word denotes a rattling noise, and J. B. applies it to the rolling of the "r." In the second instance, however, "snarleth" is in the original "murret," which denotes a low growl or muttering sound. St M. gets over the difficulty by rendering the sentence, "vous retires le son en arrière," "thou drawest back the sound," which elucidates the idea. and this is the astringent quality, which environeth or encloseth the word; that is, it figureth, compacted or contracteth the word together, that it becometh hard, or soundeth, and the bitter quality separateth or cutteth or distinguished it.
3129. That is, when thou pronouncest BAR, the last letter R snarleth and murmureth like a trembling breath, and thus doth the bitter quality, which is a trembling. 130. Now the word BARM is a dead word, void of understanding, so that no man understands what it meaneth; which signifieth that the two qualities, astringent, and bitter, are a hard, dark, cold and bitter being, which have no light in them: And therefore a man cannot understand their power without the light. 131. But when a man saith BARMHERTZ, he fetcheth or presseth the second syllable out from the deep of the body, out from the heart, for the right spirit speaketh forth the word HERTZ, which riseth up aloft from the heat of the heart, in which the light goeth forth and floweth. 132. Now observe, when thou pronouncest BARM, then the two qualities, the astringent and the bitter, form, frame or compact together the word BARM, very leisurely or slowly; for it is a long, impotent, feeble syllable, because of the weakness of the qualities. 133. But when thou pronouncest HERTZ then the spirit in the word HERTZ (heart) goeth forth suddenly, like a flash of lightning, and giveth the distinction and understanding of of the word. 134. But when thou pronouncest IG, then thou catchest or captivatest the spirit in the midst of the other two qualities, so that it must stay there and form the word. 135. Thus is the divine power also; the astringent and bitter qualities are the Salitter of the divine omnipotence, the sweet quality is
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.
1Of the Language of Nature. 124. Art thou a rational man? then observe this: The spirit which moveth on high, aloft from the heat, taketh its exit, rising and shining in the sweet quality; therefore the sweet quality is its friendly or kind will, and reigneth in meekness; and meekness and humility are its proper house or habitation. 125. This is the pith or kernel of the deity, and therefore IT is called GOTT, GOD, because it is sweet, meek, friendly and bounteous or good, GUTIG; and therefore is IT called Barmhertzig (warmhearted or merciful), because its sweet quality riseth up in the astringent or sour and bitter qualities, and refresheth, moisteneth and enlighteneth them, that they might not remain a dark valley. 126. For understand but thy mother tongue aright; thou hast as deep a ground therein as is in the Hebrew or Latin: Though the learned elevate themselves in these, like a proud arrogant bride; it is no great matter, their art is now on the lees [Turba], or bowed down to the dust. 127. The spirit sheweth and declareth, that yet before the end, many a layman will know and understand more than now the wittiest or most cunning doctors know; for the gates of heaven set themselves open; those that do not blind them selves shall and will see it very well; the Bridegroom crowneth his bride. AMEN.* * Between the 127th and the 128th pars. St M. inserts the following note:— " One must presume that the following explanation has its origin in the 'mothertongue,' which the author elsewhere calls 'language of nature.' It is possible that in the last
2analysis, words corresponding in meaning, but out of the most diverse languages, would shew relations, if not uniform, at least very close to a universal base, were our mind sufficiently open to grasp both the activity and the universality of the language of nature. Without this conjecture, the author's application of the latter to the German word 'barmhertzig' would repel the more superficial minds, since it could not take place in the case of French or any other ordinary language." See par. 126. J. B. does not identify the two expressions, "mothertongue" and "language of nature," since he compares his mothertongue to Hebrew or Latin. The point is, that he means to shew how perfectly the " language of nature " is applicable to his "mothertongue." St M. has no doubt been misled by the fact that MutterSprache (mothertongue), when translated into the French languemère, signifies rootlanguage, and not native language. BARM HERTZ IG. [warmhearted or merciful] 128. Observe, the word BARM is chiefly formed upon thy lips, and when thou pronouncest BARM then thou shuttest thy mouth, and snarlest * in the hinder part of the mouth; * " snarlest" (knarren) and " snarleth " (par. 129)—the 1730 ed. has " karren," which is obviously a misprint. The word denotes a rattling noise, and J. B. applies it to the rolling of the "r." In the second instance, however, "snarleth" is in the original "murret," which denotes a low growl or muttering sound. St M. gets over the difficulty by rendering the sentence, "vous retires le son en arrière," "thou drawest back the sound," which elucidates the idea. and this is the astringent quality, which environeth or encloseth the word; that is, it figureth, compacted or contracteth the word together, that it becometh hard, or soundeth, and the bitter quality separateth or cutteth or distinguished it.
3129. That is, when thou pronouncest BAR, the last letter R snarleth and murmureth like a trembling breath, and thus doth the bitter quality, which is a trembling. 130. Now the word BARM is a dead word, void of understanding, so that no man understands what it meaneth; which signifieth that the two qualities, astringent, and bitter, are a hard, dark, cold and bitter being, which have no light in them: And therefore a man cannot understand their power without the light. 131. But when a man saith BARMHERTZ, he fetcheth or presseth the second syllable out from the deep of the body, out from the heart, for the right spirit speaketh forth the word HERTZ, which riseth up aloft from the heat of the heart, in which the light goeth forth and floweth. 132. Now observe, when thou pronouncest BARM, then the two qualities, the astringent and the bitter, form, frame or compact together the word BARM, very leisurely or slowly; for it is a long, impotent, feeble syllable, because of the weakness of the qualities. 133. But when thou pronouncest HERTZ then the spirit in the word HERTZ (heart) goeth forth suddenly, like a flash of lightning, and giveth the distinction and understanding of of the word. 134. But when thou pronouncest IG, then thou catchest or captivatest the spirit in the midst of the other two qualities, so that it must stay there and form the word. 135. Thus is the divine power also; the astringent and bitter qualities are the Salitter of the divine omnipotence, the sweet quality is
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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