Text.Grataroli.1563-02.A2r
From Theatrum Paracelsicum
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Source: Guglielmo Grataroli, Regimen omnium iter agentium, Straßburg: Wendelin Rihel, 1563, sig. A2r–A6r [BP.Grataroli.1563-02]
Summary: The core of the letter reflects on the human condition as travelers, guests, and pilgrims on Earth, emphasizing the temporary nature of earthly life compared to the eternal homeland in heaven. Gratarolus draws upon biblical patriarchs like Jacob and figures such as David and the Apostle Paul to illustrate the concept of life as a pilgrimage, where stability and permanence are found not on Earth but in the afterlife with God.
He argues that this perspective encourages the faithful to live in anticipation of heaven, making the trials of life bearable and fostering a willingness to leave behind earthly attachments for the promise of eternal bliss. Gratarolus also touches on his own endeavors to contribute to the well-being of travelers by compiling guides and documents, acknowledging the work of Georg Pictorius, a physician in Ensisheim, who has done similar work. The letter conveys a deep respect for the Baron, whom Gratarolus regards as a noble and pious figure, likening their relationship to that of Aeneas and Achates from classical antiquity. (generated by ChatGPT)
Text
[sig. A2r] Vera nobilitate ac pietate, clarissimo, et generosißimo uiro Egenolpho Baroni, & Domino in Rapolstein, Hochen Ack, & Gerolzeck ad Vuaßichin &c. Domino suo colendißimo, Guilhelmus Gratarolus Bergomas, Philosophus & Medicus, gratiam perpetuam, & pacem à Deo patre per Iesvm Christvm ex corde precatur.
Mortales omnes, dignissime Baro, à die natiuitatis ad extremum usque, uiatores, hospites, & peregrini dicuntur: utpote qui solum hoc extra patriam æternam ac cœlestem incolimus, ubi nulla consistendi firmitas, perpetua uerò semper agitatio animi, ubi demum rerum aut sententiæ considendum sit, examinantis: ut tandem [sig. A2v] cogitemus, nobis nusquam esse fixam stationem nisi in cœlo. id quod diuina & minimè fallens scriptura uetus & noua sæoius attestatur: interrogatus namque Patriarcha Iacob à Pharaone, quot essent dies annorum eius uitæ, respondit, Dies annorum peregrinationum mearum sunt triginta & centum anni: pauci & mali fuerunt dies annorum uitæ meæ &c. & Dauid cap[ite] xxix. Paralip[omenon] loquens altissimo Deo, Peregrini sumus, inquit, coram te, & aduenæ sicut patres nostri: Dies nostri quasi umbra super terram, & nulla est mora. Demum Paulus Apostolus ad Hebræos, Non habemus hic manentem ciuitatem, sed futuram inquirimus. Sic non erubuit Deus uocari ipsorim pater, quia se aduenas & hospites confessi sunt in terra. Et si- [sig. A3r] cuti eos patres ferè omnes non puduit uagari toto uitæ cursu, & exteros atque inquilinos probrosè uocari quocunque uenissent: ita Deus incomparabili honore ipsos dignatus est, ut cœli essent hæredes. Quo igitur animo nos mundum incolere oportet, in quo nulla nobis certa quies, uel fixa statio promissa est? Quin potius hæc communis omnium piorum conditio sub regno Christi describitur à Paulo, ut ferantur instabiles: non quòd exilijs singuli peræquè iactentur, sed quia Dominus omnes suos ne affixi sint nidis terrenis, quasi tubæ sonitu ad peregrinandum uocat. Ergo siue in patria quis maneat, siue locum subinde mutare cogatur, in hac meditatione se probè exerceat, hospitari se ad breue tempus in terra, [sig. A3v] donec confecto cursu, in cœlestem patriam migret. Nam cùm cœlum sit prijs hæreditas ad ultimum semper exitum nos comparare debemus. Plurimùm autem fit, ut quibus nimis quieta est uita, nidum sibi ferè in hoc mundo fingant. Quare nobis (ob Dei præsertim gloriam & iustitiam) sæpe huc illuc agitari prodest, ut in cœlum conuertere oculos discamus, qui nimium alioqui concupiscentijs mundanis illecti, deosum inclinant: ideoq́ue nonnunquam à corripiente optimo patre, qui quos diligit castigat, percutimur in uia, ne uiam pro patria diligamus. Confidimus ergo semper, inquit alibi Paulus, & scimus quòd habitantes in corpore peregrinamur à Domino: per fidem enim ambulamus, & non per aspectum. Confidimus in- [sig. A4r] quam: & libentius optamus peregrinari à corpore, & habitare apud Dominum. Sed quia naturaliter horrent omnes mortem, infidels nunquam libenter migrant ex uita, nisi eam fastidio, aut desperatione abijciant. Fidelibus autem uoluntaria est migratio: quia potior illis spes extra mundum est proposita: quæ non est humani ingenij, aut incertæ persuasionis, sed ex spiritus sancti reuelatione per Dei uerbum manat: itaque propria est fidelium. Et si enim de animæ immortalitate aliquid opinati sunt etiam Ethnici, nemo tamen eorum certi quicquam habuit. Solis fidelibus prædicare hoc licet, quibus uerbo & spiritu Dei amplè testata est: unde his quoque in mentem uenit futuræ uitæ felicitas & gloria, quæ fideles post mortem in cœ- [sig. A4v] lo manet. quo fit ut facile contemnant huius uitæ miserias, & luteam domum cum Petro & Iobo non inuiti permutent cum perpetuæ durationis ædificio, siue per id, beatæ immortalitatis statum, siue corpus incorruptibile & gloriosum, quale post resurrectionem erit, intelligamus. Sed ut ad professionem meam propius accedam, atque mortalia hominum corpora in hac uel uoluntaria uel coacta peregrinatione, pro uirili, tuear: aliquandiu meditatus sum, ac demum, Dei auxilio, aggressus, hæc certa iter agentium præsidia, subsidia, & documenta non minori fide quàm diligentia scribere. Nihil siquidem hactenus hoc de negotio latinè scriptum uideram, quod uel ad rei dimidium satis faceret, & si non negem apud scriptores multos nonnulla hinc inde [sig. A5r] fragmenta reperiri: quæ aliqua ex parte dudum collegit, digessit, & in lingua Germanica edidit Georgius Pictorius medicus in Hensisheim præclarus: à quo nonnihil hac in re adiutum me esse non diffiteor. Breuis autem (non tamen obscurus) id circo fui, ne itineri accinctos superflua lectione detinerem, aut libri mole onerarem: & alioqui saits mihi uidentur quæ dicta sunt: quandoquidem domi ac per ocium liceat plura scire cupienti, aliorum libros euoluere, aut doctos & exercitatos æquè medicos consulere. Sed uerò, cùm fortasse non defuturus sit detractor aliquis, aut parum pius & æquus censor huius mei laboris, ita ut nedum mea (ad quam paratus sum) defensione, sed etiam potenti sit opus patrono, qui sui nominis & uirtu- [sig. A5v] tum acutiori splendore, fascinantium oculos retundat, & linguas fortè coerceat: Mihi autem ex Italia supra decem annos ob meram, Dei gratia, ueritatem & iustitiam peregrino, haud facile quisquam occurreret, tandem tuæ nobilitatis cum syncera pietate ac illustri dominatione coniunctæ fulgor etiam meas ædes peruasit, & tuæ nobilitatis perantiquam originem Italicam Italus facile uel ex historijs intellexi: atque (si magna licet componere paruis) uideo non dissimilem admodum ob caussaum, & ferè ab ijsdem, licet longè dispari tempore, nos antiquas ac patrias sedes relinquere coactos. faxit omnipotens & iustissimus Deus, ut in gloriam suam etiam, si ita suæ maiestati uisum fuerit, eas repetere possimus. utq́ue, Aeneas mihi sis, & sim tibi fi- [sig. A6r] dus Achates. interea in silentio & spe (quæ sola exules non relinquit) erit fortitudo mea. Quapropter optime Baro, uisus mihi es è cœlo uenisse, cui hos meos labores dicarem, meq́ue simul, quantulum me fecit Dei bonitas, totum Dominationis tuæ seruitio promptum significarem ac testarer. Dominus Deus & pater in Christo te semper cum tuis omnibus fidelibus subditis, & prijs peregrinis incolumen tueatur, & suis donis augeat. Basileæ Kalendis Iunij, M. D. LXI.
Modern English Raw Translation
Generated by ChatGPT on 22 March 2024. 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.
With genuine nobility and piety, to the most illustrious and most generous man, Egenolph, Baron of Rappoltstein, Lord of Hohenack, and Geroldseck at Wasichen, etc., my most revered lord, Wilhelm Gratarolus from Bergamo, Philosopher and Physician, wishes everlasting grace and peace from God the Father through Jesus Christ sincerely from his heart.
All mortals, most dignified Baron, from the day of their birth to the very end, are said to be travelers, guests, and pilgrims: as we live on this land far from our eternal and heavenly homeland, where there is no permanence to stand firm, but rather a continuous turmoil of the mind, where eventually one must settle matters or judgments upon examination: so that we may finally consider that we have no fixed station except in heaven. This is repeatedly confirmed by both the old and new divine and infallible scriptures: for when Patriarch Jacob was asked by Pharaoh about the number of days of his life, he answered, "The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred and thirty years: few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, etc." And David, in the twenty-ninth chapter of Chronicles, speaking to the Almighty God, said, "We are strangers before you, and sojourners, as were all our fathers: our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is no staying." Lastly, Paul the Apostle to the Hebrews said, "For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the one to come." Thus, God was not ashamed to be called their father, because they admitted they were strangers and guests on the earth. And just as almost all our fathers were not ashamed to wander throughout their entire lives and to be disgracefully called foreigners and tenants wherever they went, so God graced them with incomparable honor, making them heirs of heaven. Therefore, with what mindset should we inhabit the world, in which no certain rest or fixed station is promised to us? Rather, this common condition of all the pious under Christ's kingdom is described by Paul as being unstable: not that each is equally thrown by exiles, but because the Lord calls all His own not to be attached to earthly nests, as if by the sound of a trumpet to pilgrimage. Therefore, whether one remains in his homeland or must change places from time to time, let him diligently practice this meditation, to dwell on earth for a brief time, until after completing his course, he migrates to the heavenly homeland. For since heaven is our inheritance promised from the beginning, we must always prepare ourselves for the ultimate departure. It often happens that those whose life is too peaceful tend to create a nest for themselves in this world. Therefore, for us (especially for the glory of God and justice), it is beneficial to be often shaken here and there, so that we learn to turn our eyes to heaven, which otherwise, being too much attracted by worldly desires, we would incline downwards: and therefore we are sometimes struck on the way by the best father, who chastises those he loves, so that we do not love the way as our homeland. "We are always confident," says Paul elsewhere, "knowing that while we are at home in the body, we are away from the Lord: for we walk by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and prefer to be away from the body and to be at home with the Lord." But since naturally all fear death, the faithless never willingly leave life unless they discard it out of disgust or despair. However, for the faithful, migration is voluntary: because a better hope is proposed to them outside this world: which is not of human intellect or uncertain persuasion, but flows from the revelation of the Holy Spirit through God's word: therefore, it is peculiar to the faithful. And indeed, even if the Gentiles speculated something about the immortality of the soul, none of them had any certainty. This proclamation is permitted only to the faithful, to whom the word and spirit of God have been amply testified: hence they also contemplate the happiness and glory of the future life, which awaits the faithful after death in heaven. This makes it easy for them to disdain the miseries of this life and willingly exchange this clay house, as did Peter and Job, for a building of everlasting duration, whether we understand it by that, the state of blessed immortality, or the incorruptible and glorious body, such as it will be after the resurrection. But to come closer to my profession and protect the mortal bodies of men in this voluntary or forced pilgrimage, as much as I am able, I have contemplated for a while and finally, with God's help, undertook to write these certain safeguards, aids, and documents for travelers with no less faith than diligence. For so far, I had seen nothing written in Latin on this matter that would suffice even halfway, and although I do not deny that many fragments can be found among many writers, which Georg Pictorius, a distinguished physician in Ensisheim, had long ago collected, organized, and published in the German language: I do not deny that I have been somewhat helped by him in this matter. However, I was brief (yet not obscure) so as not to detain those equipped for a journey with excessive reading or to burden them with the size of a book: and otherwise, what has been said seems sufficient to me: since at home and at leisure, those wishing to know more are allowed to unfold other books or to consult learned and practiced physicians equally. But indeed, when perhaps there will be no lack of someone who detracts or a less pious and fair critic of this my work, so that not only my defense (to which I am prepared) but also a powerful patron might be needed, who with the sharper brilliance of his name and virtues, may blunt the eyes of the envious and possibly silence tongues: For me, a foreigner in Italy for over ten years for the mere sake of truth and justice, by the grace of God, it was not easy to encounter anyone, until the brilliance of your nobility with sincere piety and illustrious dominion also penetrated my dwelling, and I easily recognized your nobility's ancient Italian origin from history or stories: and (if I may compare great things with small) I see a not dissimilar reason, and almost from the same causes, although at a far different time, we were forced to leave our ancient and native seats. May the almighty and most just God grant that we may also return to them for His glory, if such is His Majesty's will. As you are to me Aeneas, let me be your faithful Achates. Meanwhile, in silence and hope (which alone does not abandon exiles) will be my strength. Therefore, most excellent Baron, you seemed to me to have come from heaven, to whom I could dedicate these my labors, and at the same time, signify and attest, as much as God's goodness has made me, entirely ready for the service of Your Lordship. May the Lord God and Father in Christ always protect you, all your faithful subjects, and fellow pilgrims, and increase His gifts to you. Basel, the first of June, 1561.
