Hugo of St. Victor: DIDASCALICON

Duo tibi, lector, ordinem scilicet et modum propono, quae si diligenter inspexeris, facile tibi iter legendi patebit. in horum vero consideratione nec omnia tuo ingenio relinquam, neque per meam diligentiam satis tibi fieri promitto, sed sic quaedam breviter praelibando transcurram, ut et posita aliqua quibus erudiaris et aliqua praetermissa quibus exercearis invenias. ordinem legendi supra quadrifarium esse commemoravi, alium in disciplinis, alium in libris, alium in narratione atque alium in expositione.

I propose to you, reader, two things, namely order and method; which, if you shall have diligently inspected, the path of reading will easily lie open to you. But in the consideration of these I will neither leave everything to your natural ingenium, nor do I promise by my diligence to satisfy you; but thus, by briefly prelibating, I will run through certain things, so that you may find both some things set down by which you may be instructed, and some things passed over by which you may be exercised. I have recalled above that the order of reading is fourfold: one in the disciplines, another in the books, another in narration, and another in exposition.

quae qualiter in divina scriptura assignanda sint, nondum ostendi.

which things, in what manner they are to be assigned in the divine Scripture, I have not yet shown.

CAPUT II

CHAPTER 2

[799B] De ordine qui est in disciplinis.

[799B] On the order which is in the disciplines.

Primum ergo hunc ordinem qui quaeritur in disciplinis inter historiam, allegoriam, tropologiam, divinum lectorem considerare oportet, quae horum alia ordine legendi praecedant. in quo illud ad memoriam revocare non inutile est, quod in aedificiis fieri conspicitur, ubi primum quidem fundamentum ponitur, dehinc fabrica superaedificatur, ad ultimum consummato opere domus colore superducto vestitur.

First, therefore, the devout reader ought to consider this order which is sought in the disciplines among history, allegory, and tropology—namely, which of these should precede the others in the order of reading. In this matter it is not unprofitable to recall to memory what is seen to be done in buildings: where first indeed the foundation is laid, then the fabric is built upon, and at the last, with the work consummated, the house is clothed with an overlaid color.

CAPUT III

CHAPTER 3

De historia.

On history.

Sic nimirum in doctrina fieri oportet, ut videlicet prius historiam discas et rerum gestarum veritatem, a principio repetens usque ad finem quid gestum sit, [799C] quando gestum sit, ubi gestum sit, et a quibus gestum sit, diligenter memoriae commendes. haec enim quattuor praecipue in historia requirenda sunt, persona, negotium, tempus et locus. neque ego te perfecte subtilem posse fieri puto in allegoria, nisi prius fundatus fueris in historia.

Thus indeed in doctrine it ought to be done, namely, that you first learn history and the verity of deeds, reviewing from the beginning all the way to the end what has been done, [799C] when it was done, where it was done, and by whom it was done, and diligently commit these to memory. For these four things are to be sought chiefly in history: person, business, time, and place. Nor do I think you can become perfectly subtle in allegory, unless you have first been founded in history.

noli contemnere minima haec. paulatim defluit qui minima contemnit. si primo alphabetum discere contempsisses, nunc inter grammaticos tantum nomen non haberes.

do not contemn these least things. Little by little he who contemns the least things ebbs away. If at the beginning you had despised learning the alphabet, you would not now have so great a name among the grammarians.

scio quosdam esse qui statim philosophari volunt. fabulas pseudoapostolis relinquendas aiunt. quorum scientia formae asini similis est.

i know there are certain people who wish to philosophize at once. they say that fables are to be left to pseudo-apostles. whose science is similar to the form of an ass.

noli huiusmodi imitari.

do not imitate people of this sort.

Parvis imbutus tentabis grandia tutus.

Imbued by small things, you will attempt grand things safely.

ego tibi affirmare audeo nihil me umquam quod ad eruditionem pertineret contempsisse, [800A] sed multa saepe didicisse quae aliis ioco aut deliramento similia viderentur. memini me, dum adhuc scholaris essem, elaborasse ut omnium rerum oculis subiectarum aut in usum venientium vocabula scirem, perpendens libere rerum naturam illum non posse prosequi qui earundem nomina adhuc ignoraret. quoties sophismatum meorum, quae gratia brevitatis una vel duabus in pagina dictionibus signaveram, a memetipso cotidianum exegi debitum, ut etiam sententiarum, quaestionum et oppositionum omnium fere quas didiceram et solutiones memoriter tenerem et numerum!

I dare affirm to you that I have never at any time contemned anything that pertained to erudition, [800A] but that I have often learned many things which seemed to others like a joke or a delirium. I remember that, while I was still a scholar, I labored to know the vocables of all things subjected to the eyes or coming into use, weighing that he could not freely prosecute the nature of things who was still ignorant of their names. How often I exacted from myself the daily due of my sophisms, which for the sake of brevity I had marked on the page with one or two expressions, so that I might hold by memory both the solutions and the number even of almost all the sentences, questions, and oppositions that I had learned!

causas saepe informavi, et, dispositis ad invicem controversiis, quod rhetoris, quod oratoris, quod sophistae officium esset, diligenter distinxi. [800B] calculos in numerum posui, et nigris pavimentum carbonibus depinxi, et, ipso exemplo oculis subiecto, quae ampligonii, quae orthogonii, quae oxygonii differentia esset, patenter demonstravi. utrumne quadratum aequilaterum duobus in se lateribus multiplicatis embadum impleret, utrobique procurrente podismo didici.

I have often prepared cases, and, with controversies set in opposition to one another, I diligently distinguished what the office of a rhetor, what of an orator, what of a sophist would be. [800B] I set pebbles for number, and I sketched the pavement with black charcoals, and—with the example itself set before the eyes—I plainly demonstrated what the difference was of ampligony (obtuse-angled), orthogony (right-angled), and oxygony (acute-angled). Whether an equilateral square, its two sides multiplied together, would fill the embadon (area), with the podismos (foot-measure/projection) advancing on both sides, I learned.

saepe nocturnus horoscopus ad hiberna pervigilia excubavi. saepe ad numerum protensum in ligno magadam ducere solebam, ut et vocum differentiam aure perciperem, et animum pariter meli dulcedine oblectarem. haec puerilia quidem fuerant, sed tamen non inutilia, neque ea nunc scire stomachum meum onerat.

Often, as a nocturnal horoscopist, I kept watch at wintry all-night vigils. Often I was accustomed to draw the magadis on wood to the extended measure, so that I might both perceive by the ear the difference of voices, and at the same time delight the mind with the sweetness of melody. These were indeed childish, yet not useless, nor does it burden my stomach now to know them.

haec autem non tibi replico, ut meam scientiam, [800C] quae vel nulla vel parva est, iactitem, sed ut ostendam tibi illum incedere aptissime qui incedit ordinate, neque ut quidam, dum magnum saltum facere volunt, praecipitium incidunt.

I do not, however, recount these things to you, in order that I may vaunt my knowledge, [800C] which is either none or small, but to show you that he proceeds most aptly who proceeds in an orderly manner, and not as some, who, while they wish to make a great leap, fall into a precipice.

Sicut in virtutibus, ita in scientiis quidam gradus sunt. sed dicis: 'multa invenio in historiis, quae nullius videntur esse utilitatis, quare in huiusmodi occupabor?' bene dicis. multa siquidem sunt in scripturis, quae in se considerata nihil expetendum habere videntur, quae tamen si aliis quibus cohaerent comparaveris, et in toto suo trutinare coeperis, necessaria pariter et competentia esse videbis.

Just as in the virtues, so too in the sciences there are certain grades. but you say: 'I find many things in histories which seem to be of no utility; why shall I occupy myself in things of this sort?' you speak well. indeed there are many things in the scriptures which, considered in themselves, seem to have nothing to be sought; yet if you compare them with others with which they cohere, and begin to weigh them in their totality, you will see that they are alike necessary and appropriate.

alia propter se scienda sunt, alia autem, quamvis propter se non videantur nostro labore digna, quia tamen sine ipsis illa enucleate sciri non possunt, [801A] nullatenus debent negligenter praeteriri. omnia disce, videbis postea nihil esse superfluum. coartata scientia iucunda non est.

some things are to be known for their own sake, others, however, although for their own sake they may not seem worthy of our labor, because nevertheless without them those things cannot be known enucleately, [801A] are in no way to be carelessly passed over. learn all things; afterward you will see that nothing is superfluous. constricted knowledge is not pleasant.

De libris autem qui ad hanc lectionem utiles sint, si quid mihi videatur, quaeris. hos magis frequentandos existimo: Genesim, Exodum, Iosue, librum Iudicum, et Regum, et Paralipomenon; Novi Testamenti, primum, quattuor evangelia, dehinc Actus apostolorum. hi xi magis ad historiam mihi pertinere videntur, exceptis his quos historiographos proprie appellamus.

But concerning the books which are useful for this reading, you ask what seems to me. I judge these are to be more frequently read: Genesis, Exodus, Joshua, the book of Judges, and of Kings, and of Chronicles; of the New Testament, first, the four Gospels, then the Acts of the Apostles. These 11 seem to me to pertain more to history, excepting those whom we properly call historiographers.

si tamen huius vocabuli significatione largius utimur, nullum est inconveniens, ut scilicet historiam esse dicamus, non tantum rerum gestarum narrationem, [801B] sed illam primam significationem cuiuslibet narrationis, quae secundum proprietatem verborum exprimitur. secundum quam acceptionem omnes utriusque testamenti libros eo ordine quo supra enumerati sunt ad hanc lectionem secundum litteralem sensum pertinere puto. et fortasse, nisi puerile videretur, in hoc loco aliqua de modo construendi praecepta interponerem, quia novi divinam scripturam magis ceteris omnibus in textu suo esse concisam, quibus tamen idcirco supersedere volo, ne nimia propositum interpositione extendam.

if, however, we use the signification of this vocable more broadly, there is nothing incongruous, namely that we say “history” to be not only a narration of things done, [801B] but that primary signification of any narration which is expressed according to the propriety of the words. According to which acceptation I think all the books of both Testaments, in the order in which they have been enumerated above, pertain to this reading according to the literal sense. And perhaps, unless it would seem childish, in this place I would interpose some precepts about the mode of construing, because I know the divine Scripture to be more concise in its text than all the others; yet for that reason I wish to refrain from these, lest by excessive interposition I extend the purpose.

sunt quaedam loca in divina pagina, quae secundum litteram legi non possunt, quae magna discretione discernere oportet, ne vel per negligentiam aliqua praetereamus, [801C] aut, per importunam diligentiam, ad id ad quod scripta non sunt violenter intorqueamus.

There are certain places in the divine page which cannot be read according to the letter, which it is necessary to discern with great discretion, lest either through negligence we pass some things over, [801C] or, through importunate diligence, we violently twist them to that for which they were not written.

Hoc est ergo, o lector, quod tibi proponimus. hic campus tui laboris vomere bene sulcatus multiplicem tibi fructum referet. ordine cuncta gesta sunt: ordine incede.

This, therefore, O reader, is what we propose to you. This field of your labor, well-furrowed by the plowshare, will return multiple fruit to you. In order all things have been done: proceed in order.

per umbram venitur ad corpus: figuram disce et invenies veritatem. nec hoc nunc dico ut prius Veteris Testamenti figuras labores evolvere, et mystica eius dicta scruteris, quam ad evangelii fluenta potanda accedas. sed sicut vides quod omnis aedificatio fundamento carens stabilis esse non potest, sic est etiam in doctrina.

Through the shadow one comes to the body: learn the figure and you will find the truth. Nor do I say this now so that you first labor to unroll the figures of the Old Testament and scrutinize its mystical sayings, before you approach to drink the streams of the gospel. But just as you see that every edification lacking a foundation cannot be stable, so it is also in doctrine.

fundamentum autem et principium doctrinae sacrae historia est, de qua quasi mel de favo, veritas allegoriae exprimitur. aedificaturus ergo primum fundamentum historiae pone, [801D] deinde per significationem typicam in arcem fidei fabricam mentis erige. ad extremum vero, per moralitatis gratiam quasi pulcherrimo superducto colore aedificium pinge.

the foundation and the principle of sacred doctrine is history, from which, as honey from the honeycomb, the truth of allegory is expressed. therefore, about to build, first set the foundation of history, [801D] then, through typological signification, raise the fabric of the mind into the citadel of faith. at the end, through the grace of morality, as with a most beautiful overlaid color, paint the edifice.

Habes in historia quo Dei facta mireris, in allegoria quo eius sacramenta credas, in moralitate quo perfectionem ipsius imiteris. lege ergo et disce quia in principio fecit Deus caelum et terram. lege quia in principio plantavit paradisum voluptatis, in quo posuit hominem quem formaverat.

You have in history wherein you may marvel at the deeds of God, in allegory whereby you may believe his sacraments, in morality whereby you may imitate his perfection. Read, therefore, and learn that in the beginning God made heaven and earth. Read that in the beginning he planted the paradise of delight, in which he placed the man whom he had formed.

peccantem expulit et in aerumnas huius saeculi deiecit. lege qualiter ab uno homine universa humani generis propago descenderit, qualiter deinde peccantes unda obruit, qualiter Noe iustum cum filiis suis in mediis aquis divina clementia servavit, qualiter deinde Abraham fidei signaculum suscepit, [802A] post vero Israel in Aegyptum descendit, quomodo deinde Deus filios Israel de Aegypto in manu Moysi et Aaron per mare Rubrum eduxit, in deserto pavit, legem dedit, in terra promissionis locavit, qualiter saepe peccantes in manus inimicorum suorum tradidit, et rursum paenitentes liberavit, quomodo primum per iudices, deinde per reges populum rexit. David servum suum de post fetantes accepit.

he expelled the sinner and cast him down into the miseries of this age. read how from one man the entire propagation of the human race descended, how then the wave overwhelmed those sinning, how divine clemency preserved Noah the just with his sons in the midst of the waters, how then Abraham received the seal of faith, [802A] afterwards indeed Israel went down into Egypt, how then God led the sons of Israel out of Egypt by the hand of Moses and Aaron through the Red Sea, fed them in the desert, gave the law, settled them in the land of promise, how, often sinning, he handed them over into the hands of their enemies, and again, when penitent, delivered them, how first through judges, then through kings he ruled the people. he took David his servant from behind the ewes that give suck.

Salomonem sapientia illustravit. Ezechiel flenti xv annos addidit. dehinc praevaricantem populum captivum in Babylonem per manum Nabuchadonosor misit.

He illuminated Solomon with wisdom. To Ezekiel as he wept he added 15 years. then he sent the transgressing people captive into Babylon by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar.

post lxx annos per Cyrum reduxit. ad extremum vero, nutante iam saeculo, Filium in carnem misit, vitam aeternam paenitentibus, missis in mundum universum apostolis, promisit. venturum se in fine saeculorum ad iudicium praedixit reddere unicuique secundum opera sua, peccatoribus videlicet ignem aeternum, iustis autem vitam aeternam et regnum cuius non erit finis.

after 70 years he led them back through Cyrus. But at the last, with the age now tottering, he sent the Son into flesh, and, the apostles having been sent into the whole universe, he promised eternal life to the penitent. He foretold that he would come at the end of the ages to judgment, to render to each according to his works—namely, to sinners eternal fire, but to the just eternal life and a kingdom of which there will be no end.

vide quia, ex quo mundus coepit usque in finem saeculorum, non deficiunt miserationes Domini.

see that, from when the world began up to the end of the ages, the mercies of the Lord do not fail.

CAPUT IV

CHAPTER 4

De allegoria.

On allegory.

[802B] Post lectionem historiae, superest allegoriarum mysteria investigare, ubi mea exhortatione opus esse non puto, cum ipsa res satis per se digna appareat. nosse tamen te volo, o lector, hoc studium non tardos et hebetes sensus, sed matura expetere ingenia, quae sic in investigando subtilitatem teneant, ut in discernendo prudentiam non amittant. solidus est cibus iste, et, nisi masticetur, transglutiri non potest.

[802B] After the reading of the history, it remains to investigate the mysteries of allegories, where I do not think there is need of my exhortation, since the matter itself appears sufficiently worthy per se. Yet I want you to know, O reader, that this study calls not for slow and blunt senses, but for mature wits, which so hold to subtlety in investigating that they do not lose prudence in discerning. This food is solid, and, unless it be chewed, it cannot be gulped down.

tali ergo te moderamine uti oportet, ut, dum in quaerendo subtilis fueris, in praesumendo temerarius non inveniaris, recolens quod ait Psalmista: Arcum suum tetendit, et paravit illum; et in eo paravit vasa mortis. meministi, ut aestimo, supra me divinam scripturam aedificio similem dixisse, [802C] ubi primum, fundamento posito, structura in altum levatur; plane aedificio similem, nam et ipsa structuram habet.

therefore you ought to use such moderation, that, while you are subtle in inquiring, you may not be found rash in presuming, recollecting what the Psalmist says: He stretched his bow, and prepared it; and in it he prepared vessels of death. you remember, as I reckon, that above I said the divine Scripture is similar to a building, [802C] where at first, the foundation being laid, the structure is raised on high; plainly similar to a building, for it too has a structure.

Non ergo pigeat si hanc similitudinem paulo diligentius prosequamur. respice opus caementarii. collocato fundamento, lineam extendit in directum, perpendiculum demittit, ac deinde lapides diligenter politos in ordinem ponit.

Let it not irk us, then, if we pursue this similitude a little more diligently. look at the work of the mason: the foundation having been laid, he stretches the line straight, he lets down the plumb-line, and then he sets the stones, diligently polished, in order.

alios deinde atque alios quaerit, et si forte aliquos primae dispositioni non respondentes invenerit, accipit limam, praeeminentia praecidit, aspera planat, et informia ad formam reducit, sicque demum reliquis in ordinem dispositis adiungit. si vero aliquos tales invenerit, qui nec comminui valeant nec congrue coaptari, eos non assumit, ne forte, dum silicem frangere laborat, limam frangat. intende!

then he seeks others and yet others, and if by chance he finds some not responding to the first disposition, he takes the file, cuts off the preeminent parts, planes the rough, and brings the unformed back to form, and thus at last he joins them to the rest arranged in order. but if he finds some such as can neither be comminuted nor suitably coapted, he does not take them up, lest perchance, while he labors to break the flint, he break the file. attend!

rem tibi proposui intuentibus contemptibilem, [802D] sed intelligentibus imitatione dignam. fundamentum in terra est, nec semper politos habet lapides. fabrica desuper terram, et aequalem quaerit structuram.

I have proposed a thing to you, contemptible to those looking on, [802D] but to the intelligent worthy of imitation. The foundation is in the earth, and it does not always have polished stones. The fabric is above the earth, and seeks an even structure.

sic divina pagina multa secundum litteralem sensum continet, quae et sibi repugnare videntur et nonnumquam absurditatis aut impossibilitatis aliquid afferre. spiritualis autem intelligentia nullam admittit repugnantiam, in qua diversa multa, adversa nulla esse possunt. quod etiam primam seriem lapidum super fundamentum collocandorum ad protensam lineam disponi vides, quibus scilicet totum opus reliquum innititur et coaptatur, significatione non caret.

thus the divine page contains many things according to the literal sense, which both seem to be self-contradictory and sometimes bring something of absurdity or impossibility. but the spiritual intelligence admits no repugnancy, in which many things may be diverse, none adverse. and the fact that you see the first series of stones to be arranged over the foundation along a stretched line, upon which, to wit, the whole remaining work rests and is coapted, is not without signification.

nam hoc quasi aliud quoddam fundamentum est, et totius fabricae basis. [803A] hoc fundamentum et portat superposita et a priori fundamento portatur. primo fundamento insident omnia, sed non omni modo coaptantur.

for this is, as it were, a certain other foundation, and the basis of the whole fabric. [803A] this foundation both carries the superposed and is carried by the prior foundation. on the first foundation all things rest, but they are not in every way coapted.

huic et insidunt et coaptantur reliqua. primum fabricam portat et est sub fabrica. hoc portat fabricam et non est solum sub fabrica sed in fabrica.

Upon this the rest both settle and are coapted. First, it supports the fabric and is under the fabric. This supports the fabric and is not only under the fabric but in the fabric.

quod sub terra est fundamentum figurare diximus historiam, fabricam quae superaedificatur allegoriam insinuare. unde et ipsa basis fabricae huius ad allegoriam pertinere debet. multis ordinibus consurgit fabrica, et quisque suam basim habet.

we have said that the foundation which is under the earth figures the history, and that the fabric which is superedified insinuates the allegory. whence even the basis itself of this fabric ought to pertain to the allegory. the fabric rises with many orders, and each has its own basis.

Et multa sacramenta in divina pagina continentur, quae singula sua habent principia. vis scire qui sint ordines isti? primus ordo est sacramentum Trinitatis, [803B] quia et hoc scriptura continet, quod ante omnem creaturam trinus et unus fuerit Deus.

And many sacraments are contained in the divine page, each of which has its own principles. Do you wish to know what those orders are? The first order is the sacrament of the Trinity, [803B] because Scripture also contains this: that before every creature God was threefold and one.

hic de nihilo omnem fecit creaturam, visibilem scilicet et invisibilem: ecce secundus ordo. rationali creaturae liberum dedit arbitrium, et gratiam praeparavit, ut mereri posset aeternam beatitudinem, deinde sponte labentes punivit, et persistentes, ut amplius labi non possint, confirmavit. quae origo peccati, quid peccatum, et quid sit poena peccati: ecce tertius ordo.

Here he made out of nothing all creation, namely the visible and the invisible: behold the second order. To the rational creature he gave free will, and he prepared grace, that it might be able to merit eternal beatitude; then those lapsing of their own accord he punished, and those persisting he confirmed, so that they might no longer be able to lapse. What the origin of sin is, what sin is, and what the penalty of sin is: behold the third order.

quae sacramenta primum sub naturali lege ad reparationem hominis instituerit: ecce quartus ordo. quae scripta sub lege: ecce quintus ordo. sacramentum incarnationis Verbi: ecce sextus ordo.

what sacraments he first instituted under the natural law for the reparation of man: behold the fourth order. what things were written under the Law: behold the fifth order. the sacrament of the Incarnation of the Word: behold the sixth order.

sacramenta Novi Testamenti: ecce septimus ordo; [803C] ipsius denique resurrectionis: ecce octavus ordo.

the sacraments of the New Testament: behold the seventh order; [803C] of his resurrection, finally: behold the eighth order.

Hic est tota divinitas, haec est illa spiritualis fabrica, quae, quot continet sacramenta, tot quasi ordinibus constructa in altum extollitur. vis etiam ipsas bases agnoscere. bases ordinum principia sunt sacramentorum.

This is the whole divinity; this is that spiritual fabric, which, as many sacraments as it contains, by so many as it were orders constructed is raised on high. Do you also wish to recognize the very bases? The bases of the orders are the principles of the sacraments.

ecce ad lectionem venisti, spirituale fabricaturus aedificium. iam historiae fundamenta in te locata sunt: restat nunc tibi ipsius fabricae bases fundare. linum tendis, ponis examussim, quadros in ordinem collocas, et circumgyrans quaedam futurorum murorum vestigia figis.

Behold, you have come to the reading, about to construct a spiritual edifice. Already the foundations of history have been placed in you: it now remains for you to found the bases of the fabric itself. You stretch the line, you set it to the exact rule, you place the squares/ashlars in order, and, going around, you fix certain tracings of the future walls.

linea protensa rectae fidei trames est, ipsae spiritualis operis bases quaedam fidei principia sunt, quibus initiaris. debet siquidem prudens lector curare, ut, antequam spatiosa librorum volumina prosequatur, [803D] sic de singulis quae magis ad propositum suum et professionem verae fidei pertinent instructus sit, ut, quaecumque postmodum invenerit, tuto superaedificare possit. vix enim in tanto librorum pelago et multiplicibus sententiarum anfractibus, quae et numero et obscuritate animum legentis saepe confundunt, aliquid unum colligere poterit, qui prius summatim in unoquoque, ut ita dicam, genere aliquod certum principium firma fide subnixum, ad quod cuncta referantur, non agnovit.

the line stretched out is the pathway of right faith; the very bases of the spiritual work are certain principles of faith, by which you are initiated. Indeed the prudent reader ought to take care that, before he pursues the spacious volumes of books, [803D] he be thus instructed about the individual points which more pertain to his purpose and to the profession of the true faith, that whatever he may afterwards find, he may be able safely to super-build upon it. For scarcely, in so great a sea of books and in the manifold windings of opinions, which both by their number and by their obscurity often confound the reader’s mind, will he be able to gather any one thing, who has not beforehand, summarily, in each, so to speak, genus, recognized some definite principle, propped by firm faith, to which all things are to be referred.

vis ut doceam te qualiter fieri debeant bases istae? respice ad ea quae paulo ante tibi enumeravi. est sacramentum Trinitatis.

Do you wish that I teach you how these bases ought to be made? Look back to the things which a little before I enumerated to you. There is the sacrament of the Trinity.

multi iam de illo libri facti sunt, multae datae sententiae difficiles ad intelligendum, et perplexae ad solvendum. longum tibi et onerosum est adhuc omnes prosequi, cum multa fortassis invenias, in quibus magis turberis quam aedificeris. [804A] noli instare, sic numquam ad finem venies.

Many books have already been made about it, many opinions delivered, difficult to understand and perplexing to resolve. It is long and onerous for you as yet to pursue them all, since perhaps you will find many things in which you are more disturbed than edified. [804A] Do not press on; thus you will never come to the end.

disce prius breviter et dilucide, quid tenendum sit de fide Trinitatis, quid sane profiteri et veraciter credere debeas.

learn first, briefly and lucidly, what is to be held concerning the faith of the Trinity, what indeed you ought to profess and truly believe.

Cum autem postea legere coeperis libros, et multa obscure, et multa aperte, multa ambigue scripta inveneris, quae aperta invenis, adiunge basi suae, si forte conveniant. quae ambigua sunt, ita interpretare ut non discordent. quae vero sunt obscura, resera si potes.

But when afterward you begin to read books, and you find many things written obscurely, and many openly, many ambiguously, what you find open, join to its base, if perchance they agree. What are ambiguous, interpret so that they do not discord. But what are obscure, unlock if you can.

quod si ad intellectum eorum penetrare non vales, transi, ne, dum praesumere conaris quod non sufficis, periculum erroris incurras. noli ea contemnere, sed potius venerare, quia audisti quod scriptum est: [804B] Posuit tenebras latibulum suum. quod si etiam aliquid inveneris contrarium illi quod tu iam firmissima fide tenendum esse didicisti, non tamen expedit tibi cotidie mutare sententiam, nisi prius doctiores te consulueris, et maxime quid fides universalis, quae numquam falsa esse potest, inde iubeat sentiri agnoveris.

but if you are not able to penetrate to the intellect of them, pass by, lest, while you try to presume what you are not sufficient for, you incur the peril of error. do not contemn these things, but rather venerate them, because you have heard what is written: [804B] He set darkness his hiding-place. but if you even find something contrary to that which you have already learned must be held with most firm faith, still it is not expedient for you to change your opinion day by day, unless you have first consulted those more learned than yourself, and especially have recognized what the universal faith—which can never be false—commands to be thought about it.

sic de sacramento altaris, sic de sacramento baptismatis, confirmationis, coniugii, et omnibus quae tibi enumerata sunt supra, facere debes. vides multos scripturas legentes, quia fundamentum veritatis non habent, in errores varios labi, et toties fere mutare sententias, quot legerint lectiones. rursum alios vides, qui secundum illam veritatis agnitionem, qua intus firmati sunt, [804C] quaslibet scripturas ad congruas interpretationes flectere noverunt et quid a fide sana discordet aut quid conveniat iudicare.

thus concerning the sacrament of the altar, thus concerning the sacrament of baptism, of confirmation, of conjugal union, and all the things which have been enumerated to you above, you ought to do. you see many reading the scriptures, because they do not have the foundation of truth, slip into various errors, and almost as many times change their opinions as they have read lections. again you see others, who according to that recognition of truth by which they have been strengthened within, [804C] know how to bend whatsoever scriptures to congruous interpretations, and to judge what is dissonant from sound faith and what is congruent.

in Ezechiele legis quod rotae animalia sequuntur, non animalia rotas: Cum ambularent, inquit, animalia, ambulabant pariter et rotae iuxta ea. et cum elevarentur animalia de terra elevabantur simul et rotae. sanctorum quippe mentes quantum virtutibus vel scientia proficiunt, tantum sanctarum scripturarum arcana profunda esse conspiciunt, ut quae simplicibus et adhuc stantibus in terra iacere videbantur, erectis sublimes appareant. nam sequitur: Quocumque ibat spiritus, illuc eunte spiritu; et rotae pariter levabantur sequentes eum.

in Ezekiel you read that the wheels follow the animals, not the animals the wheels: “When the animals walked,” he says, “the wheels likewise were walking alongside them; and when the animals were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up together.” Indeed, by as much as the minds of the saints make progress in virtues or knowledge, by so much they behold the deep arcana of the holy scriptures to be profound, so that the things which to the simple and to those still standing on the earth seemed to lie low, to the uplifted appear sublime. For it follows: “Wherever the spirit was going, with the spirit going there; and the wheels likewise were lifted up, following him.”

Spiritus enim vitae erat in rotis. [804D] vides quia rotae hae animalia sequuntur, et sequuntur spiritum. rursum alibi dicitur; Littera occidit, Spiritus autem vivificat, quia nimirum oportet divinum lectorem spiritualis intelligentiae veritate esse solidatum, et eum litterarum apices, quae et perversae nonnumquam intelligi possunt, ad quaelibet diverticula non inclinent.

For the spirit of life was in the wheels. [804D] you see that these wheels follow the animals, and they follow the Spirit. again elsewhere it is said; The Letter kills, but the Spirit vivifies, because indeed it is necessary that the divine reader be solidified by the truth of spiritual intelligence, and that the apices of letters, which also can sometimes be understood perversely, not incline him to whatever bypaths.

quare antiquus ille populus, qui legem vitae acceperat, reprobatus est, nisi quia sic solam litteram occidentem secutus est, ut Spiritum vivificantem non haberet?

Why was that ancient people, who had received the law of life, reprobated, if not because it so followed the letter alone that kills, that it did not have the life-giving Spirit?

Haec vero non ideo dico ut quibuslibet ad voluntatem suam interpretandi scripturas occasionem praebeam, sed ut ostendam eum qui solam sequitur litteram diu sine errore non posse incedere. oportet ergo ut et sic sequamur litteram, ne nostrum sensum divinis auctoribus praeferamus, [805A] et sic non sequamur ut in ea non totum veritatis iudicium pendere credamus. non litteratus, sed spiritualis omnia diiudicat.

These things indeed I do not say for this reason, to offer to just anyone an occasion for interpreting the scriptures according to their own will, but to show that he who follows the letter alone cannot long proceed without error. it is therefore fitting that we both so follow the letter, lest we prefer our own sense to the divine authors, [805A] and yet not so follow it that we believe the whole judgment of truth hangs upon it. not the lettered man, but the spiritual one judges all things.

ut ergo secure possis iudicare litteram, non de tuo sensu praesumere, sed erudiri prius et informari oportet, et quasi quandam inconcussae veritatis basem cui tota fabrica innitatur, fundare. neque a te ipso erudiri praesumas, ne forte, dum te introducere putas, magis seducas. a doctoribus et sapientibus haec introductio quaerenda est, qui et auctoritatibus sanctorum patrum et testimoniis scripturarum, eam tibi, prout opus est, et facere et aperire possint, cumque iam introductus fueris, testimoniis scripturarum legendo singula quae docuerint confirmare.

so that, therefore, you may be able to judge the letter securely, you ought not to presume from your own sense, but first to be educated and informed, and to found, as it were, a certain basis of unshaken truth upon which the whole fabric may rest. nor presume to be educated by yourself, lest by chance, while you think you are introducing yourself, you rather lead yourself astray. from doctors and the wise this introduction is to be sought, who, by the authorities of the holy fathers and the testimonies of the Scriptures, can both make it and open it for you, as need requires; and when you have already been introduced, by reading the testimonies of the Scriptures, confirm individually the things they have taught.

[805B] Sic mihi videtur. cui me in hoc imitari placuerit, libens accipio, cui visum fuerit non ita oportere fieri, faciat quod placuerit, non contendam. scio enim plures hunc morem in discendo non servare.

[805B] Thus it seems to me. Whomever it pleases to imitate me in this, I gladly welcome; whoever deems that it ought not to be done thus, let him do as it pleases him—I will not contend. For I know that many do not observe this custom in learning.

sed quomodo quidam proficiant, rursus non ignoro. si quaeris qui libri magis ad hanc lectionem valeant, ego puto principium Genesis de operibus sex dierum, tres ultimos libros Moysi de Iegalibus sacramentis, Isaiam, principium et finem Ezechielis, Iob, Psalterium, Cantica canticorum, duo praecipue evangelia, scilicet Matthaei et Ioannis, Epistulas Pauli, canonicas Epistulas, et Apocalypsim, praecipue tamen Epistulas Pauli, quae etiam ipso numero designant utriusque testamenti perfectionem se continere.

but how certain persons make progress, this too I am not unaware. if you ask which books are more effective for this reading, I think the beginning of Genesis, on the works of the six days; the last three books of Moses, on the legal sacraments; Isaiah; the beginning and end of Ezekiel; Job; the Psalter; the Song of Songs; two Gospels especially, namely of Matthew and of John; the Epistles of Paul; the canonical Epistles; and the Apocalypse—yet especially the Epistles of Paul, which even by their very number designate that they contain the perfection of both Testaments.

CAPUT V

CHAPTER 5

De tropologia, id est, moralitate.

On tropology, that is, morality.

[805C] De tropologia nihil aliud in praesenti dicam quam quod supra dictum est, excepto quod ad eam magis rerum quam vocum significatio pertinere videtur. in illa enim naturalis iustitia est, ex qua disciplina morum nostrorum, id est, positiva iustitia nascitur. contemplando quid fecerit Deus, quid nobis faciendum sit agnoscimus.

[805C] Concerning tropology I will say nothing else at present than what was said above, except that to it the signification of things rather than of words seems more to pertain. in it indeed there is natural justice, from which the discipline of our morals, that is, positive justice, is born. by contemplating what God has done, we recognize what is to be done by us.

omnis natura Deum loquitur, omnis natura hominem docet, omnis natura rationem parit, et nihil in universitate infecundum est.

all nature speaks of God, all nature teaches man, all nature begets reason, and nothing in the universe is infecund.

CAPUT VI

CHAPTER 6

De ordine librorum.

On the order of the books.

Non idem ordo librorum in historica et allegorica lectione servandus est. historia ordinem temporis sequitur. ad allegoriam magis pertinet ordo cognitionis, quia, sicut supra dictum est, doctrina semper non ab obscuris, sed apertis, [805D] et ab his quae magis nota sunt, exordium sumere debet.

The same order of the books is not to be observed in the historical and the allegorical reading. History follows the order of time. The order of cognition pertains rather to allegory, because, as was said above, doctrine should always take its exordium not from obscure things, but from things open [805D], and from those which are more known.

unde consequens est ut Novum Testamentum, in quo manifesta praedicatur veritas, in hac lectione Veteri praeponatur, ubi eadem veritas figuris adumbrata occulte praenuntiatur. eadem utrobique veritas, sed ibi occulta, hic manifesta, ibi promissa, hic exhibita. audisti, cum legeretur in Apocalypsi, quia signatus erat liber et nemo inveniri poterat, qui solveret signacula eius, nisi leo de tribu Iuda.

whence it follows that the New Testament, in which the truth is preached manifestly, should in this reading be set before the Old, where the same truth, adumbrated by figures, is foretold occultly. the same truth in both places, but there hidden, here manifest; there promised, here exhibited. you heard, when it was being read in the Apocalypse, that the book was sealed, and no one could be found to loose its seals, except the lion from the tribe of Judah.

signata erat lex, signatae erant prophetiae, quia occulte tempora venturae redemptionis praenuntiabantur. nonne tibi ille liber signatus fuisse videtur, qui dixit: Ecce Virgo concipiet, et pariet filium; et vocabis nomen eius Emmanuel? et alius: Tu, inquit, Bethlehem Ephrata, parvulus es in milibus Iuda: [806A] ex te mihi egredietur qui sit dominator in Israel; egressus eius ab initio a diebus aeternitatis?

the law was sealed, the prophecies were sealed, because the times of the coming redemption were being foretold covertly. does not that book seem to you to have been sealed, which said: Behold, the Virgin shall conceive, and shall bear a son; and you shall call his name Emmanuel? and another: You, he says, Bethlehem Ephrathah, you are small among the thousands of Judah: [806A] from you for me shall go forth the one who shall be ruler in Israel; his going forth from the beginning, from the days of eternity?

et Psalmista: Numquid Sion dicet: Homo, et homo natus est in ea, et ipse fundavit eam Altissimus? et rursum: Domini, Domini, inquit, exitus mortis? et iterum: Dixit Dominus Domino meo, sede a dextris meis?

and the Psalmist: Will Zion say: Man, and man was born in her, and the Most High himself founded her? and again: Of the Lord, of the Lord, he says, the exits of death? and again: The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand?

et post pauca de eodem: Tecum principium in die virtutis tuae; in splendoribus sanctorum ex utero ante luciferum genui te? et Daniel: Aspiciebam in visione noctis, et ecce cum nubibus caeli quasi Filius hominis veniebat, et usque ad antiquum dierum pervenit, et dedit ei potestatem et honorem, et regnum; et omnes populi, tribus et linguae ipsi servient: [806B] potestas eius potestas aeterna, quae non auferetur?

and after a little on the same: With you is the beginning on the day of your power; in the splendors of the saints, from the womb, before the morning star, I have begotten you? and Daniel: I was gazing in the vision of the night, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there was coming as it were a Son of Man, and he came up to the Ancient of Days, and he gave to him power and honor and a kingdom; and all peoples, tribes, and tongues shall serve him: [806B] his power is an eternal power, which shall not be taken away?

Quis putas haec, antequam implerentur, intelligere poterat? signata erant, et nemo poterat solvere signacula, nisi leo de tribu Iuda. venit ergo Filius Dei, et induit naturam nostram, natus est de Virgine, crucifixus, sepultus, resurrexit, ascendit ad caelos, et implendo quae promissa erant, aperuit quae latebant.

Who, do you think, could understand these things before they were fulfilled? they were sealed, and no one could loose the seals, except the lion of the tribe of Judah. Therefore the Son of God came, and put on our nature, was born of the Virgin, was crucified, was buried, rose again, ascended to the heavens, and, by fulfilling the things that had been promised, he opened the things that lay hidden.

lego in evangelio, quod angelus Gabriel ad Mariam Virginem mittitur, parituram praenuntiat: recordor prophetiae quae dicit, Ecce virgo concipiet. lego quia, cum esset Ioseph in Bethlehem cum Maria uxore sua praegnante, venit tempus eius pariendi, et peperit filium suum primogenitum, quem angelus praedixerat regnaturum in throno David, patris sui: [806C] recordor prophetiae: Bethlehem Ephrata, parvulus es in milibus Iuda: ex te mihi egredietur qui sit dominator in Israel. lego rursum: In principio erat Verbum, et Verbum erat apud Deum, et Deus erat Verbum: recordabor prophetiae quae dicit: Egressus eius ab initio a diebus aeternitatis.

I read in the Gospel that the angel Gabriel is sent to Mary the Virgin; he pre-announces that she will bear: I recall the prophecy which says, Behold, a virgin will conceive. I read that, when Joseph was in Bethlehem with Mary his pregnant wife, the time came for her to give birth, and she bore her first-born son, whom the angel had foretold would reign on the throne of David, his father: [806C] I recall the prophecy: Bethlehem Ephrathah, you are little among the thousands of Judah: from you there shall go forth for me one who shall be ruler in Israel. I read again: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God: I will recall the prophecy which says: His egress is from the beginning, from the days of eternity.

lego: Verbum caro factum est, et habitavit in nobis: recordor prophetiae quae dicit: vocabis nomen eius Emmanuel, id est, nobiscum Deus. et ne forte singula prosequendo fastidium tibi faciam, nisi prius nativitatem Christi, praedicationem, passionem, resurrectionem atque ascensionem, et cetera quae in carne et per carnem gessit, agnoveris, [806D] veterum figurarum mysteria penetrare non valebis.

I read: The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us: I recall the prophecy which says: you shall call his name Emmanuel, that is, God-with-us. And lest perhaps by pursuing each particular I should cause weariness to you, unless first you have recognized the Nativity of Christ, the preaching, the Passion, the Resurrection and the Ascension, and the rest which he performed in the flesh and through the flesh, [806D] you will not be able to penetrate the mysteries of the ancient figures.

CAPUT VII

CHAPTER 7

De ordine narrationis.

On the order of narration.

De ordine narrationis illud maxime hoc loco considerandum est, quod divinae paginae textus nec naturalem semper nec continuum loquendi ordinem servat, quia et saepe posteriora prioribus anteponit, sicut, cum aliqua enumeraverit, subito ad superiora, quasi subsequentia narrans, sermo recurrat; saepe etiam ea quae longo distant intervallo, quasi mox sibi succedentia, connectit, ut videatur nullum disiunxisse spatium temporis illa quae non discernit ullum intervallum sermonis.

Concerning the order of narration, this is especially to be considered in this place: that the text of the divine page does not always observe a natural nor a continuous order of speaking, because it often also puts later things before earlier ones; thus, when it has enumerated certain things, suddenly the discourse runs back to the former, as though narrating things that follow; often also it connects things which are far distant by a long interval, as though soon succeeding one another, so that those things which do not discern any interval of discourse may seem to have disjoined no space of time.

CAPUT VIII

CHAPTER 8

De ordine expositionis.

On the order of the exposition.

Expositio tria continet: litteram, sensum, sententiam. in omni narratione littera est, nam ipse voces etiam litterae sunt, sed sensus et sententia non in omni narratione simul inveniuntur. quaedam habet litteram et sensum tantum, [807A] quaedam litteram et sententiam tantum, quaedam omnia haec tria simul continet.

Exposition contains three: letter, sense, and sententia. In every narration the letter is present, for the voices themselves are also letters, but sense and sententia are not found together in every narration. Some have letter and sense only, [807A] some letter and sententia only, some contain all these three together.

omnis autem narratio ad minus duo habere debet. illa narratio litteram et sensum tantum habet, ubi per ipsam prolationem sic aperte aliquid significatur, ut nihil aliud relinquatur subintelligendum. illa vero litteram et sententiam tantum habet, ubi ex sola pronuntiatione nihil concipere potest auditor nisi addatur expositio.

Moreover, every narration ought to have at least two. That narration has only the letter and the sense, where through the very prolation something is so openly signified that nothing else is left to be understood beneath. But that narration has only the letter and the sententia, where from the sole pronuntiation the hearer can conceive nothing unless an exposition be added.

illa sensum et sententiam habet, ubi et aperte aliquid significatur, et aliquid aliud subintelligendum relinquitur quod expositione aperitur.

that has sense and sententia, where both something is signified openly, and something else is left to be understood by implication, which is opened by exposition.

CAPUT IX

CHAPTER 9

De littera.

On the letter.

[807B] Littera aliquando perfecta est, quando ad significandum id quod dicitur nihil praeter ea quae posita sunt vel addere vel minuere oportet, ut, omnis sapientia a Domino Deo est; aliquando imminuta, quando subaudiendum aliquid relinquitur, ut, senior electae dominae; aliquando superflua, quando vel propter inculcationem vel longam interpositionem idem repetitur vel aliud non necessarium adiungitur, ut Paulus in fine Epistulae ad Romanos dicit: Ei autem, et postea multis interpositis infert: Cui est honor et gloria. aliud hic superfluum esse videtur. superfluum dico, id est, non necessarium ad enuntiationem faciendam.

[807B] The letter is sometimes perfect, when, for signifying that which is said, it is fitting to add or to diminish nothing beyond the things which are set down, as, “all wisdom is from the Lord God;” sometimes diminished, when something is left to be understood (subaudible), as, “the elder to the elect lady;” sometimes superfluous, when either on account of inculcation or a long interposition the same thing is repeated, or something not necessary is adjoined, as Paul at the end of the Epistle to the Romans says: “But to him,” and afterwards, many things being interposed, he adds: “to whom is honor and glory.” something else here seems to be superfluous. I say superfluous, that is, not necessary for making the enunciation.

aliquando talis est littera, ut, nisi in aliam resolvatur, nihil significare vel incongrua esse videatur, ut est illud: [807C] Dominus in caelo sedes eius, id est, sedes Domini in caelo, et filii hominum, dentes eorum arma et sagittae, id est, filiorum hominum dentes, et Homo sicut faenum dies eius, id est, dies hominis. nominativus scilicet nominis et genitivus pronominis, pro uno genitivo nominis positi, et multa alia similiter. ad litteram constructio et continuatio pertinet.

sometimes the letter is such that, unless it be resolved into another, it seems either to signify nothing or to be incongruous, as is that: [807C] The Lord in heaven his seat, that is, the seat of the Lord in heaven; and the sons of men, their teeth weapons and arrows, that is, the teeth of the sons of men; and Man like grass his day, that is, the day of man. namely, the nominative of the noun and the genitive of the pronoun are put for a single genitive of the noun, and many other things similarly. to the letter belong construction and continuation.

CAPUT X

CHAPTER 10

De sensu.

On sense.

Sensus, alius congruus, alius incongruus. incongruus, alius incredibilis, alius impossibilis, alius absurdus, alius falsus. multa huiusmodi invenis in scripturis, ut illud: Comederunt Iacob.

Sense, one congruous, another incongruous. incongruous, one incredible, another impossible, another absurd, another false. many of this sort you find in the scriptures, as that: They have devoured Jacob.

[807D] et illud: Sub quo curvantur hi qui portant orbem. et illud: Elegit suspendium anima mea, et multa alia. sunt loca quaedam in divina scriptura, ubi, licet sit aperta verborum significatio, nullus tamen sensus esse videtur, vel propter inusitatum modum loquendi, sive propter aliquam circumstantiam quae legentis intelligentiam impedit, ut est, verbi gratia, illud quod dicit Isaias: Apprehendent septem mulieres virum unum in die illa dicentes: 'Panem nostrum comedemus, et vestimentis nostris operiemur, tantummodo invocetur nomen tuum super nos, aufer opprobrium nostrum.' plana sunt et aperta verba.

[807D] and that: Under whom those who bear the orb bend. and that: My soul has chosen hanging, and many others. there are certain places in divine scripture, where, although the signification of the words is open, nevertheless no sense seems to be, either on account of an unusual mode of speaking, or on account of some circumstance which impedes the reader’s intelligence, as is, for example, that which Isaiah says: Seven women shall take hold of one man in that day, saying: 'We will eat our own bread, and we will be covered with our own garments, only let your name be invoked over us, take away our reproach.' the words are plain and open.

intelligis satis: Apprehendent septem mulieres virum unum. intelligis: Panem nostrum comedemus. intelligis: Vestimentis nostris operiemur.

you understand enough: Seven women will seize one man. you understand: We will eat our bread. you understand: We will be covered with our garments.

intelligis: Tantummodo invocetur nomen tuum super nos. [808A] intelligis: Aufer opprobrium nostrum.

you understand: Only let your name be invoked over us. [808A] you understand: Remove our reproach.

Sed fortasse quid hoc totum simul significare velit, intelligere non potes. quid dicere voluerit propheta, bonum promiserit an malum minatus fuerit, ignoras. unde evenit ut spiritualiter tantum intelligendum credas quod, qualiter ad litteram dictum sit, non vides.

But perhaps you cannot understand what this whole thing together might wish to signify. You do not know what the prophet wished to say, whether he promised a good or threatened an evil. Whence it comes about that you believe it must be understood only spiritually, because you do not see in what way it has been said according to the letter.

dicis igitur septem mulieres septem esse dona Spiritus Sancti, quae unum virum apprehendent, id est, Christum, in quo omnem plenitudinem gratiae placuit inhabitare, quia ipse solus sine mensura Spiritum accepit, qui solus earum opprobrium aufert, ut inveniant in quo requiescant, nullo alio vivente ut Spiritus Sancti dona poscebant. ecce spiritualiter interpretatus es, et quid sit dicere ad litteram non intelligis. [808B] potuit tamen propheta per haec verba etiam ad litteram aliquid significare.

you say therefore that seven women are the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, who will take hold of one man, that is, Christ, in whom it pleased that all the plenitude of grace should dwell, because he alone received the Spirit without measure, who alone removes their opprobrium, so that they may find one in whom they may rest, there being no other living one such as the gifts of the Holy Spirit were demanding. behold, you have interpreted it spiritually, and what it is to speak according to the letter you do not understand. [808B] nevertheless the prophet could by these words also signify something according to the letter.

quia enim supra de internecione populi praevaricatoris locutus fuerat, subiungit nunc tantam in eodem populo cladem futuram, et usque adeo virorum genus delendum, ut vix septem mulieres unum virum inveniant, cum modo una unum habere soleat. et cum mulieres nunc a viris rogari soleant, tunc converso more mulieres viros rogabunt. et ne forte unus vir septem mulieres simul ducere formidaret, cum, unde eas pasceret et vestiret, non haberet, dicunt ei: Panem nostrum comedemus, et vestimentis nostris operiemur.

For since above he had spoken about the internecine destruction of the transgressing people, he now subjoins that so great a calamity will be in the same people, and that the race of men is to be destroyed to such a degree that scarcely seven women may find one man, whereas now one woman is wont to have one. And whereas women now are wont to be asked by men, then, with the custom reversed, women will ask men. And lest perhaps one man should dread to lead in marriage seven women at once, since he would not have whence to feed and clothe them, they say to him: We will eat our own bread, and with our own garments we will clothe ourselves.

non te oportet de nobis esse sollicitum, tantummodo invocetur nomen tuum super nos, ut dicaris vir noster, et sis, ne repudiatae dicamur, [808C] et steriles, et sine semine moriamur, quod eo tempore magnum opprobrium fuit. et hoc est quod dicunt: Aufer opprobrium nostrum. multa huiusmodi invenis in scripturis, et maxime in Veteri Testamento, secundum idioma illius linguae dicta, quae, cum ibi aperta sint, nihil apud nos significare videntur.

you ought not to be solicitous about us; only let your name be invoked over us, that you may be called our husband, and be so, lest we be called repudiated, [808C] and sterile, and die without seed—which at that time was a great opprobrium. And this is what they say: Remove our reproach. You find many things of this sort in the Scriptures, and especially in the Old Testament, spoken according to the idiom of that language, which, although they are open there, seem to signify nothing among us.

CAPUT XI

CHAPTER 11

De sententia.

On the sentence.

Sententia divina numquam absurda, numquam falsa esse potest, sed cum in sensu, ut dictum est, multa inveniantur contraria, sententia nullam admittit repugnantiam, semper congrua est, semper vera. aliquando unius enuntiationis una est sententia, aliquando unius enuntiationis plures sunt sententiae, [808D] aliquando plurium enuntiationum una est sententia, aliquando plurium enuntiationum plures sunt sententiae. cum igitur divinos libros legimus, in tanta multitudine verorum intellectuum, qui de paucis eruuntur verbis, et sanitate catholicae fidei muniuntur, id potissimum diligamus, quod certum apparuerit eum sensisse quem legimus.

The divine sense can never be absurd, never false, but although in the sense, as has been said, many contrary things are found, the sense admits no repugnance, it is always congruent, always true. sometimes of one enunciation there is one sense, sometimes of one enunciation there are several senses, [808D] sometimes of several enunciations there is one sense, sometimes of several enunciations there are several senses. therefore, when we read the divine books, amid so great a multitude of true understandings, which are drawn out from few words and are fortified by the soundness of the catholic faith, let us especially love that which has appeared certain to have been the sense of him whom we read.

si autem hoc latet, id certe quod circumstantia scripturae non impedit, et cum sana fide concordat. si autem et scripturae circumstantia pertractari ac discuti non potest, saltem id solum quod fides sana praescribit. aliud est enim quid potissimum scriptor senserit non dinoscere, aliud a regula pietatis errare.

But if this is hidden, then certainly let it be that which the circumstance of Scripture does not impede and which concords with sound faith. But if even the circumstance of Scripture cannot be thoroughly handled and discussed, at least hold only that which sound faith prescribes. For it is one thing not to discern what the writer chiefly meant, another to err from the rule of piety.

si utrumque vitetur, perfectae se habet fructus legentis. si vero utrumque vitari non potest, etsi voluntas scriptoris incerta sit, sanae fidei congruam non inutile est eruisse sententiam. [809A] item in rebus obscuris atque a nostris oculis remotissimis, si qua inde scripta etiam divina legerimus, quae possint salva fide aliis atque aliis parere sententiis, in nullam earum nos praecipiti affirmatione ita proiciamus, ut, si forte diligentius discussa veritas eam labefactaverit, corruamus, non pro sententia divinarum scripturarum, sed pro nostra ita dimicantes, ut eam velimus scripturarum esse quae nostra est, cum potius eam quae scripturarum nostram esse debeamus.

if both be avoided, the fruit of the reader stands perfected. but if both cannot be avoided, even if the will of the writer is uncertain, it is not unprofitable to have excavated a sententia congruent with sound faith. [809A] likewise, in obscure matters and most remote from our eyes, if we have read from there writings, even divine ones, which can, with faith safe, beget now these now other sententiae, let us not by a headlong affirmation so cast ourselves into any of them that, if perchance the truth, more diligently discussed, should undermine it, we collapse—fighting not for the sententia of the divine Scriptures but for our own—so that we wish that to be the Scriptures’ which is ours, when rather we ought to have ours be that which is the Scriptures’.

CAPUT XII

CHAPTER 12

De modo legendi.

On the mode of reading.

Modus legendi in dividendo constat. divisio fit et partitione et investigatione. partiendo dividimus quando ea quae confusa sunt distinguimus.

The mode of reading consists in division. division is done both by partition and by investigation. by partitioning we divide when we distinguish the things that are confused.

[809B] investigando dividimus quando ea quae occulta sunt reseramus.

[809B] by investigating we divide when we unseal those things which are occult.

CAPUT XIII

CHAPTER 13

De meditatione hic esse praetermittendum.

Concerning meditation, it is to be passed over here.

Et iam ea quae ad lectionem pertinent, quanto lucidius et compendiosius potuimus, explicata sunt. de reliqua vero parte doctrinae, id est, meditatione, aliquid in praesenti dicere omitto, quia res tanta speciali tractatu indiget, et dignum magis est omnino silere in huiusmodi quam aliquid imperfecte dicere. res enim valde subtilis est et simul iucunda, quae et incipientes erudit et exercet consummatos, inexperta adhuc stylo, ideoque amplius prosequenda.

And now those things which pertain to reading, as lucidly and compendiously as we were able, have been explained. But concerning the remaining part of the doctrine, that is, meditation, I omit to say anything at present, because so great a matter needs a special treatment, and it is more fitting altogether to be silent in things of this sort than to say something imperfectly. For it is a very subtle and at the same time pleasant matter, which both instructs beginners and exercises the consummate, as yet untried by the pen, and therefore to be pursued further.

rogemus igitur nunc Sapientiam, ut radiare dignetur in cordibus nostris et illuminare nobis in semitis suis, [809C] ut introducat nos ad puram et sine animalibus cenam.

let us then now beseech Wisdom, that she deign to radiate in our hearts and to illuminate for us in her paths, [809C] that she may introduce us to a pure and animal-free supper.

CAPUT XIV

CHAPTER 14

Divisio philosophiae continentium.

Division of the contents of philosophy.

Tria sunt: sapientia, virtus, necessitas. sapientia est comprehensio rerum prout sunt. virtus est habitus animi in modum naturae rationi consentaneus.

There are three: wisdom, virtue, necessity. wisdom is the comprehension of things as they are. virtue is a habit of mind in the mode of nature, consentaneous to reason.

necessitas est sine qua vivere non possumus, sed felicius viveremus. haec tria remedia sunt contra mala tria, quibus subiecta est vita humana: sapientia contra ignorantiam, virtus contra vitium, necessitas contra infirmitatem. propter ista tria mala exstirpanda quaesita sunt ista tria remedia, et propter haec tria remedia invenienda, inventa est omnis ars et omnis disciplina.

necessity is that without which we cannot live, yet we would live more happily. these three remedies are against three evils, to which human life is subjected: wisdom against ignorance, virtue against vice, necessity against infirmity. on account of those three evils to be extirpated these three remedies have been sought, and for these three remedies to be found, every art and every discipline has been discovered.

propter sapientiam inventa est theorica, propter virtutem inventa est practica, [809D] propter necessitatem inventa est mechanica. istae tres usu primae fuerunt, sed postea propter eloquentiam inventa est logica. quae cum sit inventione ultima, prima tamen esse debet in doctrina.

on account of wisdom the theoretical was invented, on account of virtue the practical was invented, [809D] on account of necessity the mechanical was invented. these three were first in use, but afterward, on account of eloquence, logic was invented. which, although it is last in invention, nevertheless ought to be first in doctrine.

quattuor ergo sunt principales scientiae a quibus omnes aliae descendunt: theorica, practica, mechanica, logica.

Therefore there are four principal sciences from which all the others descend: the theoretical, the practical, the mechanical, the logical.

Theorica dividitur in theologiam, physicam, mathematicam. theologia tractat de invisibilibus substantiis, physica de invisibilibus visibilium causis, mathematica de visibilibus visibilium formis. et haec mathematica dividitur in quattuor scientias.

The theoretical is divided into theology, physics, mathematics. Theology treats of invisible substances, physics of the invisible causes of visible things, mathematics of the visible forms of visible things. And this mathematics is divided into four sciences.

prima est arithmetica, quae tractat de numero, id est, de quantitate discreta per se. secunda est musica, quae tractat de proportione, id est, de quantitate discreta ad aliquid. [810A] tertia est geometria, quae tractat de spatio, id est, de quantitate continua immobili. quarta est astronomia, quae tractat de motu, id est, de quantitate continua mobili.

the first is arithmetic, which treats of number, that is, of discrete quantity in itself. the second is music, which treats of proportion, that is, of discrete quantity in relation to something. [810A] the third is geometry, which treats of space, that is, of continuous unmoving quantity. the fourth is astronomy, which treats of motion, that is, of continuous moving quantity.

elementum arithmeticae est unitas. elementum musicae est unisonum. elementum geometriae est punctum.

The element of arithmetic is unity. The element of music is unison. The element of geometry is the point.

elementum asronomiae est instans. practica dividitur in solitariam, privatam, publicam. solitaria docet quomodo unusquisque propriam vitam moribus instituat et virtutibus exornet.

the element of astronomy is the instant. practice is divided into solitary, private, public. the solitary teaches how each person may institute his own life by morals and adorn it with virtues.

privata docet quomodi regendi sint familiares, et qui per carnis affectum sunt affines. publica docet qualiter populus totus et gens a suis rectoribus gubernari debeat. solitaria pertinet ad singulos, privata ad patres familias, publica ad rectores civitatum.

the private teaches how household members are to be ruled, and those who are affines through the affection of the flesh. the public teaches in what manner the whole people and the nation ought to be governed by their rectors. the solitary pertains to individuals, the private to fathers of families, the public to rectors of cities.

[810B] mechanica tractat de operibus humanis, et haec dividitur in septem. prima est lanificium, secunda armatura, tertia navigatio, quarta agricultura, quinta venatio, sexta medicina, septima theatrica. logica dividitur in grammaticam et in rationem disserendi.

[810B] mechanics treats of human works, and this is divided into seven. the first is wool-working, the second armature (armoring), the third navigation, the fourth agriculture, the fifth venery (hunting), the sixth medicine, the seventh theatrics. logic is divided into grammar and into the method of disserting.

ratio disserendi dividitur in probabilem, et necessariam, et sophisticam. probabilis dividitur in dialecticam et rhetoricam. necessaria pertinet ad philosophos, sophistica ad sophistas.

the method of discoursing is divided into the probable, and the necessary, and the sophistic. the probable is divided into dialectic and rhetoric. the necessary pertains to philosophers, the sophistic to sophists.

in his quattuor partibus philosophiae talis ordo in doctrina servari debet, ut prima ponatur logica, secunda ethica, tertia theorica, quarta mechanica. primum enim comparanda est eloquentia; deinde, ut ait Socrates in Ethica, per studium virtutis oculus cordis mundandus est, ut deinde in theorica ad investigationem [810C] veritatis perspicax esse possit. novissime mechanica sequitur, quae per se omni modo inefficax est, nisi ratione praecedentium fulciatur.

in these four parts of philosophy such an order in teaching ought to be observed, that logic be set first, ethics second, theoretic third, mechanics fourth. for first eloquence must be procured; then, as Socrates says in the Ethics, by the study of virtue the eye of the heart must be cleansed, so that then in the theoretic it may be able to be perspicacious for the investigation [810C] of truth. lastly mechanics follows, which by itself is in every way inefficacious, unless it be buttressed by the reason of the preceding.

CAPUT XV

CHAPTER 15

De magica et partibus eius.

On magic and its parts.

Magicae repertor primus creditur Zoroastres, rex Bactrianorum, quem nonnulli asserunt ipsum esse Cham, filium Noe, sed nomine mutato. hunc postea Ninus, rex Assyriorum, bello victum interfecit, eiusque codices artibus maleficiorum plenos igne cremari fecit. scribit autem Aristoteles de hoc ipso, quod usque ad xxii centum milia versuum eius de arte magica ab ipso dictatos, libri eiusdem usque ad posteritatis memoriam traduxerunt.

The first discoverer of magic is believed to be Zoroaster, king of the Bactrians, whom some assert to be Ham himself, the son of Noah, but with the name changed. Afterwards Ninus, king of the Assyrians, slew him, conquered in war, and caused his codices, full of the arts of malefice, to be burned by fire. Aristotle writes, moreover, about this very man, that up to 2,200,000 verses of his on the art of magic, dictated by himself, his books have transmitted down to the memory of posterity.

hanc artem postea [810D] Democritus ampliavit tempore quo Hippocrates in arte medicinae insignis habebatur. magica in philosophiam non recipitur, sed est extrinsecus falsa professione, omnis iniquitatis et malitiae magistra, de vero mentiens, et veraciter laedens animos, seducit a religione divina, culturam daemonum suadet, morum corruptionem ingerit, et ad omne scelus ac nefas mentes sequacium impellit. haec generaliter accepta quinque complectitur genera maleficiorum: manticen, quod sonat divinatio, et mathematicam vanam, sortilegia, maleficia, praestigia.

Democritus later enlarged this art [810D] at the time when Hippocrates was held distinguished in the art of medicine. Magic is not received into philosophy, but is from without with a false profession, a mistress of all iniquity and malice, lying about the truth and truly wounding souls; it seduces from divine religion, urges the cult of daemons, brings in corruption of morals, and drives the minds of followers to every crime and impiety. This, taken generally, comprises five kinds of malefices: manticen (which sounds “divination”), and vain “mathematics” (astrology), sortileges, malefices, prestiges (illusions).

mantice autem quinque continet species sub se, primam, necromantiam, quod interpretatur divinatio in mortuis, necros enim Graece, mortuus Latine, unde necromantia, divinatio, quae fit per sacrificium sanguinis humani, quem daemones sitiunt, et in eo delectantur effuso. [811A] secunda est geomantia, id est, divinatio in terra. tertia est hydromantia, id est, divinatio in aqua.

mantics, however, contains five species under itself: the first, necromancy, which is interpreted as divination among the dead; for necros in Greek, mortuus in Latin, whence necromancy, a divination which is done through the sacrifice of human blood, which the demons thirst for, and in the shedding of it they delight. [811A] the second is geomancy, that is, divination in the earth. the third is hydromancy, that is, divination in water.

quarta est aerimantia, id est, divinatio in aere. quinta est divinatio in igne, quae dicitur pyromantia. Varro enim quattuor dixit esse, in quibus divinatio constaret, terram, aquam, ignem, aerem.

the fourth is aeromancy, that is, divination in the air. the fifth is divination in fire, which is called pyromancy. for Varro said there were four elements in which divination consists: earth, water, fire, air.

prima ergo, id est, necromantia, ad infernum videtur pertinere, secunda ad terram, tertia ad aquam, quarta ad aerem, quinta ad ignem.

therefore the first, that is, necromancy, seems to pertain to the infernal regions, the second to earth, the third to water, the fourth to air, the fifth to fire.

Mathematica dividitur in tres species: in aruspicinam, in augurium, et in horoscopicam. aruspices sunt dicti quasi horuspices, id est, horarum inspectores, qui observant tempora in rebus agendis, vel aruspices quasi aras inspicientes, qui in extis et fibris sacrificiorum futura considerant. [811B] augurium vel auspicium aliquando ad oculum pertinet, et dicitur auspicium quasi avispicium, quia in motu et volatu avium attenditur; aliquando ad aures pertinet, et tunc dicitur augurium quasi garritus avium, quia aure percipitur.

Mathematica is divided into three species: into haruspicy, into augury, and into horoscopy. Haruspices are said to be as if “horuspices,” that is, inspectors of hours, who observe the times in things to be done; or “haruspices” as if inspecting altars, who in the entrails and liver-fibres of sacrifices consider things-to-come. [811B] augury or auspice sometimes pertains to the eye, and it is called “auspice” as if “bird-watching” (avispicium), because attention is paid to the movement and flight of birds; sometimes it pertains to the ears, and then it is called “augury” as if “the chatter of birds,” because it is perceived by the ear.

horoscopica, quae etiam constellatio dicitur, est quando in stellis fata hominum quaeruntur, [812A] sicut genethliaci faciunt, qui nativitates observant, qui olim specialiter magi nuncupabantur, de quibus in evangelio legimus. sortilegi sunt qui sortibus divinationes quaerunt. malefici sunt qui per incantationes daemonicas, sive ligaturas, vel alia quaecumque exsecrabilia remediorum genera, cooperatione daemonum atque instinctu nefanda perficiunt.

The horoscopic, which is also called constellation, is when in the stars the fates of men are sought, [812A] just as the genethliacs do, who observe nativities, who once were specially named magi, of whom we read in the Gospel. Sortilegi are those who seek divinations by lots. Malefici are those who, through demonic incantations, or ligatures, or whatever other execrable kinds of remedies, by the cooperation of demons and by their instigation, accomplish nefarious things.

praestigia sunt, quando, per phantasticas illusiones circa rerum immutationem, sensibus humanis arte daemonia illuditur.

Prestiges are when, through phantastic illusions concerning the transmutation of things, the human senses are deluded by the art of demons.

Sunt ergo omnes simul undecim: sub mantice, quinque, id est, necromantia, geomantia, hydromantia, aerimantia, pyromantia; sub mathematica, tres, id est, aruspicina, auspicium, horoscopica; postea tres aliae, id est, sortilegium, maleficium, praestigium. [812B] praestigia Mercurius dicitur primus invenisse. auguria Phryges invenerunt.

Therefore they are all together eleven: under mantics, five, that is, necromancy, geomancy, hydromancy, aeromancy, pyromancy; under mathematics, three, that is, haruspicy, auspicy, horoscopy; afterwards three others, that is, sortilege, malefice, prestidigitation. [812B] Prestidigies are said to have been first discovered by Mercury. The Phrygians discovered auguries.

aruspicinam Tages primus Etruscis tradidit. hydromantia primum a Persis venit.

Tages first handed down haruspicy to the Etruscans. Hydromancy first came from the Persians.

De tribus rerum subsistentiis.

On the three subsistences of things.

Tribus modis res subsistere habent: in actu, in intellectu, in mente divina; hoc est in ratione divina, in ratione hominis, in seipsis. in seipsis sine subsistentia transeunt, in intellectu hominis subsistunt quidem, sed tamen immutabiles non sunt, in mente divina sine omni mutabilitate subsistunt. item quod est in actu imago est eius quod est in mente hominis, et quod est in mente hominis imago est eius quod est in mente divina.

Things have to subsist in three modes: in act, in the intellect, in the divine mind; that is, in divine reason, in the reason of man, in themselves. in themselves they pass away without subsistence, in the intellect of man they indeed subsist, yet they are not immutable, in the divine mind they subsist without any mutability. likewise, what is in act is an image of that which is in the mind of man, and what is in the mind of man is an image of that which is in the divine mind.

ad mentem divinam facta est creatura rationalis. ad creaturam rationalem facta est creatura visibilis. ideo omnis motus et conversio creaturae rationalis esse debet ad mentem divinam.

The rational creature has been made with reference to the divine mind. For the rational creature the visible creature has been made. Therefore every motion and conversion of the rational creature ought to be toward the divine mind.

sicut omnis motus et conversio creaturae visibilis est ad rationalem creaturam, sicut homo, cum quid mente conceperit, ut aliis etiam patere possit quod sibi soli notum est, foris exemplum eius depingit. postea etiam ad maiorem evidentiam, quomodo id quod ad exemplum propositum est cum ratione eius concordet, verbis exponit. ita, Deus volens ostendere invisibilem sapientiam suam, exemplum eius in mente creaturae rationalis depinxit, ac deinde corpoream creaturam faciens foris illi quid intus haberet ostendit.

just as every motion and conversion of the visible creature is toward the rational creature, so a man, when he has conceived something in his mind, in order that what is known to himself alone may also be patent to others, depicts its exemplar outwardly. afterward also, for greater evidence, he sets forth in words how that which has been set forth according to the exemplar agrees with its reason. thus, God, willing to show his invisible wisdom, depicted its exemplar in the mind of the rational creature, and then, by making the corporeal creature outwardly, showed to it what he had within.

rationalis ergo creatura ad similitudinem divinae rationis, nullo mediante, primo loco facta est, creatura vero corporea, mediante rationali creatura, facta est ad similitudinem divinae rationis. hinc est quod de angelis sub appellatione lucis in Genesi dicitur: Dixit

Therefore the rational creature, to the similitude of the divine reason, with nothing mediating, was made in the first place; but the corporeal creature, with the rational creature mediating, was made to the similitude of the divine reason. Hence it is that about the angels, under the appellation of light, it is said in Genesis: He said

Deus: Fiat lux. Et facta est lux. de ceteris vero operibus Dei dicitur: Dixit Deus: Fiat.

God: Let there be light. And light was made. But concerning the other works of God it is said: God said: Let it be.

Et factum est ita. et deinde adiungitur: Et fecit Deus, quia angelica natura primum in ratione divina fuit per dispositionem, postea in se ipsa per creationem subsistere coepit. aliae autem creaturae primum in ratione Dei fuerunt, postea in cognitione angelorum factae sunt, postremo in seipsis subsistere coeperunt.

And it was done thus. and then it is added: And God made, because the angelic nature was first in the divine reason by disposition, afterward began to subsist in itself by creation. but the other creatures were first in the reason of God, afterward were made in the cognition of the angels, finally began to subsist in themselves.

quod enim dictum est, Dixit Deus: Fiat, hoc ad mentem divinam pertinet; factum est ita, ad intellectum angelorum; Et fecit Deus, ad actum rerum.

what, indeed, has been said, God said: Let it be, pertains to the divine mind; and it was so, to the intellect of the angels; And God made, to the act of things.