On the Divine Names and the Mystical Theology — trans. C. E. Rolt
The translator’s English as printed (C. E. Rolt). The original-language text is not held; names are romanised as the translator printed them.
God through the working of the Divine Wisdom. And human souls possess Reason, whereby they turn with a discursive motion round about the Truth of things, and, through the partial and manifold activities of their complex nature, are inferior to the Unified Intelligences: yet they too, through the concentration of their many faculties, are vouchsafed (so far as their nature allows) intuitions like unto those of the Angels. Nay, even our sense-perceptions themselves may be rightly described as an echo of that Wisdom; even diabolic intelligence, qua intelligence, belongs thereto, though in so far as it is a distraught intelligence, not knowing how to obtain its true desire, nor wishing to obtain it, we must call it rather a declension from Wisdom. Now we have already said that the Divine Wisdom is the Beginning, the Cause, the Fount, the Perfecting Power, the Protector and the Goal of Very Wisdom and all created Wisdom, and of all Mind, Reason, and Sense-Perception. We must now ask in what sense God,? Who is Supra-Sapient, can be spoken of as Wisdom, Mind, Reason, and Knowledge? How can He have an intellectual intuition of intelligible things when He possesses no intellectual activities? Or how can He know the things perceived by sense when His existence transcends all sense-perception? And yet the Scripture says that He knoweth all things and that nothing escapes the Divine Knowledge. But, as I have often said, we must interpret Divine Things in a manner suitable to their nature. For the lack of Mind and Sensation must be predicated of God by excess and not by defect. And in the same way we attribute lack of Reason to Him that is above Reason, and Imperfectibility to Him that is above and before Perfection; and Intangible and Invisible Darkness we attribute to that Light which is Unapproachable because It so far exceeds the visible light. And thus the Mind of God embraces all things in an utterly transcendent knowledge and, in Its causal relation to all things, anticipates within Itself the knowledge of them all—knowing and creating angels before the angels were, and knowing all other things inwardly and (if I may so put it) from the very beginning, and thus bringing them into existence. And methinks this is taught by the Scripture when it saith “Who knoweth all things before their birth.”? For the Mind of God gains not Its knowledge of things from those things; but of Itself and in Itself It possesses, and hath conceived beforehand in a causal manner, the cognizance and the knowledge and the being of them all. And It doth not perceive each class specifically,? but in one embracing casuality It knows and maintains all things—even as Light possesses beforehand in itself a causal knowledge of the darkness, not knowing the darkness in any other way than from the Light.# Thus the Divine Wisdom in knowing Itself
1 This speculation is, no doubt, based on experience. A concentration of the spiritual faculties in the act of contemplation produces that unity of the soul of which all mystics often speak. The angels are De of as being always in such a state of contemplation. ? God is the Manifested Absolute. Hence qua Absolute He is supra-sapient, qua Manifested He is wise (cf. ch. i, § 1). The Persons of the Trinity possess one common Godhead (= the Preece which is supra-sapient, and in that Godhead They are One. Yet they are known by us only in their differentiation wherein Supra-Sapience is revealed as Wisdom.
God through the working of the Divine Wisdom. And human souls possess Reason, by which they move discursively round about the Truth of things; and, because of the partial and manifold activities of their complex nature, they are inferior to the Unified Intelligences. Yet they too, by concentrating their many faculties, are granted (so far as their nature allows) intuitions like those of the Angels. Indeed, even our sense-perceptions may rightly be described as an echo of that Wisdom. Even diabolic intelligence, as intelligence, belongs to it; but in so far as it is a distraught intelligence, not knowing how to obtain its true desire and not wishing to obtain it, we must rather call it a declension from Wisdom.
Now we have already said that the Divine Wisdom is the Beginning, the Cause, the Fount, the Perfecting Power, the Protector and the Goal of Very Wisdom and of all created Wisdom, and of all Mind, Reason, and Sense-Perception. We must now ask in what sense God, 2 Who is Supra-Sapient, can be spoken of as Wisdom, Mind, Reason, and Knowledge. How can He have an intellectual intuition of intelligible things when He possesses no intellectual activities? Or how can He know the things perceived by sense when His existence transcends all sense-perception? And yet Scripture says that He knows all things and that nothing escapes the Divine Knowledge.
But, as I have often said, we must interpret Divine Things in a manner suited to their nature. For the lack of Mind and Sensation must be predicated of God by excess and not by defect. In the same way we attribute lack of Reason to Him that is above Reason, and Imperfectibility to Him that is above and before Perfection; and we attribute Intangible and Invisible Darkness to that Light which is Unapproachable because It so far exceeds the visible light.
Thus the Mind of God embraces all things in an utterly transcendent knowledge and, in Its causal relation to all things, anticipates within Itself the knowledge of them all: It knows and creates the angels before the angels were, and knows all other things inwardly and (if I may put it so) from the very beginning, and so brings them into existence. And I think Scripture teaches this when it says, “Who knoweth all things before their birth.” 2 For the Mind of God does not gain Its knowledge of things from those things; rather, of Itself and in Itself It possesses, and has conceived beforehand in a causal manner, the cognizance, the knowledge and the being of them all. It does not perceive each class specifically, 3 but in one all-embracing causality It knows and maintains all things, just as Light possesses beforehand in itself a causal knowledge of the darkness, knowing the darkness in no other way than from the Light. 4 Thus the Divine Wisdom, in knowing Itself,
1 This speculation is no doubt based on experience. A concentration of the spiritual faculties in the act of contemplation produces that unity of the soul of which all mystics often speak. The angels are spoken of as being always in such a state of contemplation. 2 God is the Manifested Absolute. Hence qua Absolute He is supra-sapient, and qua Manifested He is wise (cf. ch. i, § 1). The Persons of the Trinity possess one common Godhead (= the Preece), which is supra-sapient, and in that Godhead They are One. Yet They are known to us only in Their differentiation, in which Supra-Sapience is revealed as Wisdom.