Letter, 1567-01-01, Jacques Gohory to Louis de Saint-Gelais
| Author: | Jacques Gohory |
| Recipient: | Louis de Saint-Gelais |
| Type: | Letter |
| Date: | 1 January 1567 |
| Place: | Paris |
| Pages: | 8 |
| Language: | Latin |
| Quote as: | https://www.theatrum-paracelsicum.com/index.php?curid=2044 |
| Editor: | Edited by Julian Paulus |
| Source: | Jacques Gohory, Theophrasti Paracelsi philosophiae et medicinae utriusque universae compendium, Paris: Philippe Gaultier dit Rouillé no date [1567], sig. *1r-*4v [BP089]
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| CP: | Not in Kühlmann/Telle, Corpus Paracelsisticum |
| Translation: | Raw translation see below |
| Back to Paratexts Back to Texts by Jacques Gohory |
[sig. *1r] Sangelasio Lensaci Domino, Eqviti Torqvato, Senatori Sacri Consilii, Avgvsti Cvbicvli Præfecto, Dvci C. Virorvm Avlicorvm. I[acobvs] G[ohory] P[arisiensis] Salvtem.
Miraberis fortasse (Eques præstantissime) quum me comitem legationis Romæ videris, rerum regiarum negotiationi non tecum (sinistro meo fato) sed cum successore tuo operam nauantem, quid in causa fuerit, quod ab eo tempore me domi priuatim in otio literarum continuerim. Tu verò animaduertas velim, quam personam sæpe nobis necessitas aut casus impo- [sig. *1v] nat, quámve nostra voluntate ipsi geramus. Nam ego qui naturâ ad rerum contemplationem propensus eram, parentum iussu aut consilio ad procerum comitatum impulsus fui. A quo quum animum meum nimis abhorrere sentirem, non tam inconstantiæ opinionem veritus sum, quin genio potius meo mihi inseruiendum existimarem: Id rectè an secus, haud laboro, si meum hoc factum tibi probari senserim; Quod autem ad studiorum meorum genus attinet, postquam variarum artium flosculos decerpsi, raptus sum nescio quo meo fato ad inuestigationem rerum, quasquidem prisci sapientes cognitione complexi esse, sed quibusdam figmentorum inuolucris obtexisse perhibentur. Quorum è numero scripta sunt Theophrasti Paracelsi Germani philosophi & medici insignis: potissimumque inter ea libri 4 de vita longa, qui nuper in lucem prodierunt. Ne verò per obscuritatem prorsus abiiciantur aut negligantur, primùm ex variis illius monumentis præcepta mira & inaudita ex immensitate sermonis in compendium contraxi: cui deinde commmentarios breues in hunc libellum adieci. Tua autem [sig. *2r] in me iamdudum propensa voluntas videbatur aliquod à me munusculum suo quodammodo iure postulare. At siquis perpendat quàm geras publicam personam, quáque ingenii præstantia, qua in regiis muneribus obeundis industria (quibus es maximo potentissimoque Regi gratissimus) qua denique formæ dignitate ac venustate omnium erga te animos conuerteris, tibi profectò optimus quisque artifex vt prudenti æstimatori, opus suum iure potest consecrare. Ipse itaque sub hoc Leonis Suauii nomine tanquam Teucer sub clypeio septemplici latitans reprehensionum in re ardua & noua vel potius calumniarum aculeos minimè pertimescam, si tu mihi Aiax Telamonius fueris. Non quod de scripti mei defensione diffidam, sed quoniam tranquillitati studiorum deditus vereri fortè possem ne propugnationis negotio meum otium interrumpatur: quin potius, ne de me ex his quæ quasi aliud agens edidi, sententia feratur, ac si omnes ingenii atque industriæ (quod per alias occupationes non licuit) neruos intendissem. Tantùm igitur duo restata hîc velim, nec à me vetustam medicinam prorsus damna- [sig. *2v] ri (nouæ huius ostentatione, nec, licet perplexa prima facie interpretatio mea videatur me tenebras pro luce offundere. Arbitrantur qui iudicio parum valent, si quid Paracelsus in methodicos experientiæ, si quid in empiricos scientiæ expertes inuehatur, nulli medicorum generi òmninò parcere, se solum atque vnicum orbis terrarum medicum profiteri. Damnat enim ille medicorum vulgus tam theoricæ quàm praxis imperitum: fingit, vt Xenophon imperatorem, vt Cicero oratorem perfectum, sic ipse medicum, qui sit omni medendi laude cumulatus: qui Platonis atque Aristotelis philosophia ad vniuersæ naturæ cognitionem, qui mathematicis quoque disciplinis imbutus sit, quique postremò ex Ægiptiorum & Arabum præceptis perceperit rerum etiam quæ sub ignem cadunt omnium varios apparatus. Qualem vidimus nuper Ioannem Fernelium (vt illius monumenta testantur) qualem videmus hodie in regia Ioannem Capellam Archiatrum, eius successorem qualem honoratum Castellanum collegam: quales in hac quoque præstantissima ciuitate, tanquam in publico Europæ theatro [sig. *3r] Nicol[aus] (re) Magnus & cognomine, Ioannesque Gorræus (quos tibi notissimos esse arbitror) in omnium oculis versantur: quiquidem, ne quid sibi ad absolutam medicinæ peritiam deesset, nihil huiusmodi artium à se alienum esse voluerunt. Errat enim vehementer meo iudicio, qui Hippocratem audet criminari (quo nullus in medicinæ scientia tot tantisque seculis extitit præstantior) errat qui Galenum interpretem paruifacit, hominem tanta ingenii artisque subtilitate, tanto rerum vsu preditum. At si in natura necesse est, vt ait Cicero, absolui aliquid atque perfici, ad ipsorum forte ætatem laus medicinæ perfecta nondum fuit, ætas (vt inquit Fabius) posterior priori amplius erudiendæ laborauit. Nec censendum est nihil quicquam vel addi vel detrahi posse, imò verò ratio medendi, quæ illorum temporibus adoleuit, si hodie à nouissimis doctoribus consummata erit, nominabitur Sapientia. Theophrastum itaque nostrum laudare par est atque admirari, qui eam partem medicinæ tractarit maximè, quæ à superioribus medicis vel neglecta perperam vel minimè intellecta videbatur: nempe de endelechiis & quintis rerum es- [sig. *3v] sentiis, è quibus mira remedia ab Ægypto & Arabia profecta, Græcis Latinisque noua atque invsitata eliciuntur: quorum mihi nonnulla vsu & experientia comperta sunt. Hippocrates ergo, Galenus & Paracelsus multa perfecerunt: alii tamen nomine mihi non noti laude sua fraudandi non sunt, qui multa conantur: illi potuerunt, alii volunt: quibus non licet rerum fastigia conscendere: aliquid est in proximis saltem interuallis constitisse. Superest aliud, quod contra me facit hoc tempore, ne mihi mysteriorum, quæ hisce libri Theophrasti continentur, vel ignoratio vel retitienda vitio vertatur. Horum quidem ipse sacris initiatus, so nondum ad ipsius sacrarii penetralia deductus sum, non alii quàm aduersæ fortunæ ascribo, & facultatum tenuitati, ad quam me intempestiuo forsan diuitiarum contemptu hæc ipsa studia redegerunt, intereà aspiro quotidie anhelo, & quamdiu amplius non datur, ipsa me spe tantæ rei & cogitatione consolor, cuiusquidam haud dubito quin excellentes illi viri quique alii iudicio pollent aliquod hîc specimen coniectura facile consequantur. Hæc porrò est, Homeri catena aurea [sig. *4r] hoc cœli Opisque matrimonium, hi Platonis annuli, hæc abstrusa in intimis naturæ adytis Philosophia. Quæquidem sapientissimo atque eruditissimo Franciæ Cancellario Michæli Hospitali: quæ doctissimo Regis Archieleemosinario Iacobo Amioto, ac huiusmodi sublimibus animis ex veterum philosophorum vatumque monumentis animaduersa & perspecta esse possunt. Cuius adipiscendæ gratia norunt Democritum olim, Platonem, Pythagoram, Apollinium in Ægyptum ad Hermetis columnas, ad Brachmanes Gymnosophistasque commigrasse. Norunt autem illi ex priscis scriptoribus quanta sit cautio adhibenda in mysteriis enuntiandis, si quid ego eorum sum forte subodoratus, paucis, vt Hebræorum vetus Cabala per manus tradebatur, in aurem præsens insusurrabo: cæteros sat erit admonuisse, ne verborum integumentis nudis immorentur, & sensum nos eis aliquem ex scriptorum similium institutis præbuisse: id est quum huiusmodi mysticos libros legent, scriptum vt negligant, sententiam eligant & consectentur: vt in legitimo statu Rhetorum præceptis traditur, vt in legibus humanis factitandum esse legis- [sig. *4v] latores censuerunt, divinæ mentis captandam esse rationem: exemplo quodam sacri illius verbi, litera occidit, spiritus vivificat: & illius, lac parvulis, sapientiam inter perfectos Mysterium (aiunt) secreto audi, tecum habeto, Vix amico quidem charissimo dixeris. Artes enim aliæ cunctæ vulgo iactantur, arcana hæc inter paucos planè clam narrantur, & licet sint verissima Reipublicæ tamen interest quodammodo tacita teneri.
Lutetiæ Cal[endis] Ianuar[ii] Ann[o] M. D. Lxvii.
English Raw Translation
Generated by ChatGPT-4 on 4 April 2023. Attention: This translation is a machine translation by artificial intelligence. The translation has not been checked and should not be cited without additional human verification.
To Sangelasius Lensacus Domino, Eques Torquatus, Senator of the Sacred Council, Prefect of the Emperor's Chamber, Leader of the Courtly Men. Greetings from Jacques Gohory of Paris.
You may be surprised (most distinguished Knight) when you see me as a companion of the Roman embassy, working not with you (due to my unfortunate fate) but with your successor in the negotiation of royal affairs. You might wonder why, since that time, I have devoted myself to private literary leisure at home. I would like you to consider, however, the roles that necessity or chance often impose on us, and how much of our own volition we truly exercise. For I, who was naturally inclined towards the contemplation of matters, was driven by my parents' orders or advice to the company of nobles. When I felt my mind strongly opposed to this, I was not so much afraid of being thought inconstant as I believed I should rather serve my own nature. Whether rightly or wrongly, I am not concerned, as long as I feel that you approve of my decision. As for the type of studies I pursued, after picking the flowers of various arts, I was somehow drawn by my own fate to the investigation of matters that ancient wise men are said to have understood in their knowledge, but are also said to have covered with certain veils of fiction. Among these works are the writings of Theophrastus Paracelsus, the renowned German philosopher and physician, and especially the four books on long life, which have recently been published. To prevent these from being completely discarded or neglected due to their obscurity, I first collected the amazing and unheard-of teachings from his various works into a compendium, to which I then added brief commentaries in this little book. Your long-standing favorable disposition towards me seemed to rightfully demand some kind of small gift from me. If anyone considers the public role you play, your excellence in intellect, your diligence in carrying out royal duties (which makes you most beloved by the greatest and most powerful King), and finally the dignity and grace of your appearance that wins over the hearts of all, certainly any skilled artist may rightfully dedicate their work to you as a discerning evaluator. Therefore, under this name of Leo Suavius, like Teucer hiding behind the seven-fold shield, I will fear the stings of criticism in this difficult and novel matter, or rather the barbs of slander, as long as you, Ajax Telamonius, stand by me. Not that I lack confidence in the defense of my writing, but because, devoted to the tranquility of my studies, I might fear that the effort of defending it could interrupt my leisure. Rather, let it not be judged of me from these things which I have published as if engaged in something else, as if I had exerted all the strength of my intellect and industry (which was not allowed through other occupations). Therefore, I ask only two things here: first, that ancient medicine is not completely condemned by me (due to the display of this new knowledge), and second, that even if my interpretation may seem perplexing at first glance, do not think that I am spreading darkness instead of light. Those who have little judgment may believe that if Paracelsus criticizes methodical doctors for their experience or empirical doctors for their lack of knowledge, he spares no category of physicians at all, proclaiming himself as the sole and unique physician in the world. For Paracelsus condemns the common doctors, both in theory and practice, as being inexperienced. He creates, like Xenophon's perfect general and Cicero's perfect orator, his own image of a physician, one who is adorned with all the praise of healing: a physician who, through the philosophies of Plato and Aristotle, has gained knowledge of the entire natural world, who is also well-versed in mathematical disciplines, and finally, who has learned from the teachings of the Egyptians and Arabs the various methods for handling all things, even those that fall under fire. We have recently seen such a physician in Jean Fernel (as his works bear witness), and today we see in the royal court Jean Chapel, the chief physician and his successor, and the esteemed Castellan as his colleague. We also see such physicians in this most distinguished city, like a public theater of Europe, in the figures of Nicolas (le) Grand and Jean Gorrée (whom I assume are well-known to you) who are in the public eye. They, in order not to lack anything for the complete expertise in medicine, wanted no part of these arts to be foreign to them. In my opinion, one is greatly mistaken to dare to criticize Hippocrates (who has been unparalleled in the science of medicine throughout so many great centuries), and one is mistaken to belittle Galen as an interpreter, a man with such a refined intellect and artistry, and endowed with such practical experience. However, if it is necessary in nature, as Cicero says, for something to be completed and perfected, perhaps the perfection of medicine had not yet been achieved in their time. The later age, as Fabius says, has worked harder to further educate the previous one. It should not be considered that nothing can be added or taken away; rather, the method of healing, which flourished in their times, if today it is perfected by the most recent doctors, will be called Wisdom. Therefore, it is right to praise and admire our Theophrastus (Paracelsus) who dealt with that part of medicine which seemed either neglected or misunderstood by the previous physicians: namely, the study of endelechies and the quintessential essences of things, from which wonderful remedies, having originated in Egypt and Arabia, are extracted as new and unfamiliar to the Greeks and the Latins. Some of these remedies have been proven to me through use and experience. Hippocrates, Galen, and Paracelsus achieved a great deal, but others, unknown to me by name, should not be deprived of their praise, for they attempt many things: the former had the ability, the latter have the will. For those who cannot ascend to the heights of knowledge, it is still significant to have settled at least in the neighboring intervals. There remains another issue that works against me at this time, lest my ignorance or concealment of the mysteries contained in these books by Theophrastus be held against me. Although I have been initiated into these sacred matters, I have not yet been led to the inner sanctum of his sanctuary. I attribute this not to anything other than adverse fortune and a lack of resources, to which these very studies have perhaps untimely reduced me by contempt for wealth. Meanwhile, I aspire daily with eager desire, and as long as more is not granted, I find solace in the hope and contemplation of such a great matter. I have no doubt that those excellent men and others who are influential in judgment can easily derive some insight from this work. Moreover, this is the golden chain of Homer, the marriage of this sky and work, these are the rings of Plato, and this is the hidden philosophy deep within the innermost sanctums of nature. These can be observed and understood from the writings of ancient philosophers and poets by the wisest and most learned French Chancellor, Michel de l'Hôpital; by the most learned King's chief almoner, Jacques Amiot, and by those with similarly lofty minds. To attain this knowledge, they know that Democritus, Plato, Pythagoras, and Apollonius once traveled to Egypt to the pillars of Hermes, to the Brachmans, and the Gymnosophists. They know, however, from ancient writings, how much caution must be exercised in revealing mysteries; if I have perhaps caught a glimpse of them, I will whisper a few things in your ear, as the ancient Hebrew Kabbalah was passed down by hand: it will be enough for the others to be warned not to dwell on the mere covering of words, and that we provide some meaning for them based on the practices of similar writings: that is, when they read such mystical books, they should neglect the written words and choose and pursue the meaning. As it is taught in the legitimate state of rhetorical precepts, as lawmakers believed it should be done in human laws, the divine mind's reasoning should be sought: following the example of that sacred word, "the letter kills, but the spirit gives life," and "milk for babes, wisdom among the perfect," they say, "listen to the Mystery secretly, keep it with you, hardly tell even your dearest friend." For other arts are indeed boasted openly, but these secrets are plainly spoken of in whispers among a few, and although they are very true, it is somewhat in the interest of the Republic that they are kept silent.
Paris, January 1, 1567.
