Dedication, no date (1583), Gerhard Dorn to Johann Casimir, Pfalzgraf bei Rhein (BP.Dorn.1583-02)
| Author: | Gerhard Dorn |
| Recipient: | Johann Casimir, Pfalzgraf bei Rhein |
| Type: | Dedication |
| Date: | 10 March 1583 |
| Place: | Frankfurt am Main |
| Pages: | 6 |
| Language: | Latin |
| Quote as: | https://www.theatrum-paracelsicum.com/index.php?curid=2972 |
| Editor: | Edited by Julian Paulus |
| Source: | Gerhard Dorn, De naturae luce physica ... tractatus, Frankfurt am Main: Christoph Rab 1583, p. 3-8 [BP.Dorn.1583-02]
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| Translation: | Raw translation see below |
| Abstract: | Dorn addresses the conflict between traditional doctors and the ideas of Paracelsus, calling for clarity and understanding. He argues that true medicine can only be realized through a comprehensive understanding of both Astronomy and Chemistry, reflecting the pure and impure parts of nature as described in Genesis. Dorn emphasizes the importance of separating pure from impure, as taught by the creation of the world. He sees the role of chemists as providing pure material for medicine and cautions against attempts to imitate creation. Dorn's goal is to explain how the higher aspects of nature can aid the lower, how to acquire higher understanding, the unity of the natural ternary monarchy, and the right disposition of the body in philosophical pursuits. (generated by Chat-GPT) |
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[p. 3] Illvstrissimo et generosissimo principi ac Domino, Domino Io[anni] Casimiro, D[omino] G[enerosissimo] Comiti Palatino Rheni, Duci Bauariæ, &c.
Odiosa quæ inter Academiarum doctores Medicinæ præsertim, & Theophrastum Paracelsum, iam multis retro temporibus agitatur controuersia, non sinit me tacere diutius, quin eius viri mentem luculentiùs quàm ipse fortaßis claram esse voluit, pro viribus ingenioli mei detegam. Etsi longè me feliciùs id possent alij multi. Verùm quòd videam neminem eorum hactenus, qui profeßionem faciunt eius, quæ noua perperam à nonnullis dicitur Medicina, manum admouere tabellæ fortasse cùm viderint minimum sui ordinis, etiam supra vires ausum esse, vt reassumant animum, excitabo hos, et eorum aduersarios: istos, ne in posterum de re sibi non intellecta verba faciant ampliùs: illos verò, vt quæ sua non sunt, sed sibi duntaxat in vtilitatem Reip[ublicae] [p. 4] pro suo talento concredita, non suffodiant, neque ea quæ toti mundo prodesse manifestè vident, in obscuris delitescere patiantur potiùs, quàm quæ cedunt in eius perniciem palàm fieri. Huius dissidij potißima causa fuisse videtur obscuritas ipsa, quæ seuerius obseruatur in arcanorum physicorum tractationibus. Hocipsum iamdudum animaduerti nedum aduersarios, verumetiam lectores, alioqui non partiales, admodum infensos reddere: tum potißimùm frequentes inuectiuæ quæ paßim interseruntur vtrinque, serijs etiam vt plurimùm rebus, vt ipsorum attentos animos ab intelligentiæ veræ filo diuertant in labyrinthum. Consideraui tutiùs fore, à maledictis abstinendo, bene de quouis mereri per dignum officium, quàm per vindictam excitare alioqui etiam maledicere consuetos homines. Hinc fit vt mutato iam consilio, benignè quæ tractaturi sumus, absque vllis aduersus fratres cauillis in lucem (suprema luce pios conatus adiuuante) proferre dilucidiùs quàm vnquam fieri queat, conemur. Nullis etiam ad hoc mortalium vtemur testimonijs vel autoritatibus; maximè quòd ad vnum sint mendaces quotquot esse videmus homines, & à propria sua natura in errores propen- [p. 5] si: tum etiam quòd hac via, scilicet hominum, nulla sit ad componendam pacem via nec ratio. Nam ad pacem solius pacis autore vnico est opus. Quapropter, videndum inprimis vnde Paracelsicæ Philosophiæ desumpta sint, & quo loco iacta fundamenta. Si autem in arena, reuere necessum est: at si super lapidem sita reperiantur, stabunt cæteris labentibus. Nostrum hoc semper studium fuit, eò videlicet nauis adeptæ Philosophiæ proram dirigere, quò ad securiorem portum aura secunda vehit, & à ventorum impetu hactenus infestare solitorum simus liberi. Solus hoc in verbo Dei offertur nobis tutißimus, ad probandam Physicam nostram. Cùm igitur à Genesi tradita per Moysen à Domino, prima potißimaq́ue totius naturæ cognitio pendeat, vt etiam si hoc loco non, eam nullibi reperias, æquum est, vt ea faciamus exordium. De Medicina potißimum etiam agitur inter competentes quos diximus. Verúm enimuero quia nullus ad hanc alius patet aditus, quàm per Physicam & Chemiam, rationi consentaneum primò fuerit de his per quirere, præsertim quia sunt illius fundamenta prima, sine quibus medicum nullum appellare quis potest, etsi dicatur, falsum eum esse oprteat, [p. 6] qui pro medico sese venditarit hominibus. Distribuitur itaque naturalis Philosophia, in Astronomiæ cognitionem veram, & in Chimisticum experimentum, ex quorum perfecta noticia, Medicinæ suisq́ue professorib[us] acquiritur etiam perfectio. Docet nos Genesis totam & integram naturam cosntare duobus præcipuis membris, veluti extremis: ex superiore videlicet puro & incorruptibili, circa quod nsotra versatur Astronomia; & ex inferiore impuro & corruptibili, quod subiectum est artis Chimicæ, ex quo suam addiscit Chimicus experimentalem Astronomiam. Est igitur Chimicum artificium aliud nil, quàm experimentum eius quod docet contemplatio Genesis à Mundi visbilis opificio. Cognita igitur ab Astronomia Geneseos, priore parte Physices, mox à superioribus ad inferiora quæque descendendo, per Chemiam ad Medicinam iter est faciendum, tanquam ab vno ad alterum extremum, sine quo medio non pertingitur optatus finis. Iudicare siquidem de astris, ab eorum effectibus, qui perficiuntur in elementis, verè Physicum est opus. Elementorum verò separare tenebras à sua luce quam ab atris (disponente Deo) receperunt, Chimicorum est officium, quo Medici- [p. 7] næ materiam puram suppeditent liberam & non impedita. Verùm idipsum nequaquam potest fieri, nisi per reserationem artificialem arcæ naturalis. Tum demum, nec prius de virib[us] astrorum ac virtutibus eorum ab effectu per medicum explorato, iudicium aderit. Quod ab initio Mundi creationis apertißimè docetur, videlicet purum ab impuro separatum esse; æmulatione modesta, quæ faciat in vtilitatem humani generis, ex præscripto creationis ordine didicerunt nostri Chimistæ, non corpora noua construere, sed potiùs destruere vnumquodque quò aliud in ruinam tendens, excellentius illo quod discompositum est, instauretur. Ne fortè quis nos insimulet alicuius impietatis, ac si creationem imitari conaremur. Contrà fatemur, vt apparet, nos potiùs destruere, quàm construere hoc loc. Itidem docet infidelium schola medica per destructionem, sed non eiusmodi separationis artificio quod requirit ipsa natura. Primum igitur in hoc opusculo nostrum erit institutum, declarare scilicet quemadmodum per superiora succurrendum sit inferioribus. Deinceps quánam arte superiora nobis acquirenda sint. Inde pòst, quænam sit Vnio Ternarij naturalis Monarchiæ. Postremò ve- [p. 8] rò dispositionem corporis bonam, ad non impeditæ meditationis perfectionem acquirendam in adepta Philosophia, duplici methodo declarabimus. Cæterùm facientes exordium à Mundi creatione, manum apponemus operi licet exiguo. Siquidem & ipsa veritatis vbique locorum paucis admodum contenta est sermonibus. Nec nisi rarò multa prolixaq́ue narratio suis erroribus carere solet. Breuibus itaque verbis, Illustrißime Princeps, arcanæ huius Philosophiæ prima fundamenta sub tuo patrocinio in lucem dare, naturæ lucis nomine sumus ausi, quò tutiùs in conspectum inimicorum suorum prodire queat. Sunt enim isti Leones rugientes, & quærentes quam deuorent veritatem, et si frustra faciant omne quod poßint. Deus namque iustus est vindex & propugnator eius per media quibus vti consueuit. Hic T[uae] Illust[rissimae] C[elsitas] conseruet incolumen. Datum Francoforti, Anno à Christo nato M.D.LXXXIII. Mensis Martij X.
Illustrissimæ C[elsitatis] T[uæ] Addictissimus
Gerardus Dorn.
English Raw Translation
Generated by ChatGPT-4 on 14 August 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 the most Illustrious and Generous Prince and Lord, Lord John Casimir, the Most Generous Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke of Bavaria, etc.
The odious controversy that has long been waged between the doctors of the Academies, especially in Medicine, and Theophrastus Paracelsus, does not allow me to remain silent any longer. Instead, I will reveal the mind of that man more clearly than he perhaps wished it to be known, to the best of my modest ability. Though many others could do this far more successfully than I. But as I see none of them who profess what is wrongly called by some the new Medicine, attempting to address this matter, perhaps when they see even the least of their order daring beyond their ability, I will rouse these men, and their adversaries. I will rouse the former so that they no longer speak about something they do not understand, and the latter so that they do not bury what is not theirs, but entrusted to them for the benefit of the Republic according to their talent. Instead, they should not allow those things that are clearly seen to benefit the whole world to remain hidden rather than openly promote what leads to its ruin. The main cause of this disagreement seems to have been the very obscurity that is carefully maintained in the treatment of physical mysteries. I noticed long ago that this obscurity not only alienates opponents but also readers who are otherwise impartial, making them quite hostile. This is especially true because of the frequent invectives that are inserted on both sides, even in serious matters, to divert their attentive minds from the true thread of understanding into a labyrinth. I considered it safer to earn goodwill towards everyone by refraining from slander and performing worthy service rather than provoking others who are accustomed to slander through revenge. Therefore, with a change of plan, we will strive to present more clearly than ever what we will discuss, without any quarrels against our brothers, with the supreme light assisting our pious efforts. We will not use any human testimonies or authorities for this; mainly because as many people as we see are all liars and prone to error by their very nature. Also, because there is no way or reason to achieve peace through this means, that is, through human beings. For peace, only the sole author of peace is needed. Therefore, we must first see where the foundations of Paracelsian Philosophy are laid and placed. If they are laid in sand, they must be overturned. But if they are found to rest upon a rock, they will stand while others fall. Our constant study has always been to steer the prow of the ship of acquired philosophy towards the more secure port, where a favorable wind carries us, and where we may be free from the stormy winds that usually beset us. Only in the word of God is offered to us the safest way to prove our Physics. Therefore, since the first and most important knowledge of the whole nature depends on what is handed down from Genesis by the Lord through Moses, so that if not here, you will find it nowhere, it is fair that we begin with that. The discussion is mainly about Medicine between the aforementioned competitors. But indeed, since there is no other access to this except through Physics and Chemistry, it is reasonable to inquire first about these, especially since they are the primary foundations without which no one can be called a doctor, and even if he is called, he must be considered false, who has sold himself to people as a doctor. Natural Philosophy is thus divided into the true knowledge of Astronomy and the chemical experiment, from the perfect knowledge of which the perfection is also acquired by Medicine and its professors. Genesis teaches us that the whole and entire nature consists of two principal or extreme parts: the upper part, which is pure and incorruptible, around which our Astronomy revolves; and the lower, impure and corruptible, which is the subject of the art of Chemistry, from which the chemist learns his experimental Astronomy. Therefore, the chemical art is nothing other than the experiment of what the contemplation of Genesis teaches from the visible creation of the World. Therefore, having understood the Genesis from Astronomy, the first part of Physics, we must then descend from the higher to the lower things, through Chemistry to Medicine, as from one extreme to the other, without which medium the desired end is not reached. Indeed, to judge the stars by their effects, which are performed in the elements, is truly a physical task. But to separate the darkness from their light, which they have received from the dark (by God's disposition), is the duty of chemists, so they may provide pure and unimpeded material for Medicine. But this cannot be done unless through the artificial unlocking of nature's chest. Then, and not before, will judgment be available concerning the powers and virtues of the stars from their effects, explored by the doctor. This is taught most openly from the beginning of the world's creation, namely that the pure has been separated from the impure. By modest emulation, which benefits the human race, our chemists have learned from the prescribed order of creation not to build new bodies, but rather to destroy each one so that something else, tending towards ruin, may be restored more excellently than what was broken down. Lest perhaps someone should accuse us of any impiety, as if we were trying to imitate creation. On the contrary, as it appears, we confess to destroy rather than to build in this place. Likewise, the school of unbelieving medicine teaches destruction, but not by the art of separation that nature itself requires. So, our first task in this small work will be to declare how the lower things should be aided by the higher ones. Next, by what art the higher things must be acquired by us. Then, what the Union of the natural Ternary Monarchy is. Finally, we will explain the good disposition of the body for the unhindered perfection of meditation in acquired philosophy, using a twofold method. However, beginning from the creation of the world, we will undertake this work, although small. For truth itself is content everywhere with very few words, and rarely does a long and prolix narration tend to be free from its errors. Therefore, in brief words, Most Illustrious Prince, we have dared to bring into the light the first foundations of this arcane philosophy under your patronage, in the name of the light of nature, so that it may come more safely into the sight of its enemies. For these are roaring lions, seeking whom they may devour the truth, even if they do so in vain with all they can. For God is a just avenger and defender of it through the means He usually uses. May He preserve Your Most Illustrious Highness unharmed. Given in Frankfurt, in the Year from the Birth of Christ 1583, March 10th.
Most Devoted to Your Illustrious Highness,
Gerardus Dorn.
