VISIO SECUNDA, cap. XXIX

The Winds That Sustain the World and the Soul

The cosmic winds, by divine ordering, penetrate the human body and soul, either strengthening a person or leaving them without support.

All these heads, too, give their breath into the wheel already spoken of and into the aforementioned image of man, because the aforementioned winds, by the blasts of their powers, contain the circuit of the world and, so that the person living in it may not perish in failure, urge him to look to his own benefit. And so, when any one of the winds of all the aforementioned qualities has raised its blasts—whether naturally or through God's ordering—with no obstacle resisting, it penetrates the human body, and the soul, receiving it inward, leads it naturally to each part of the body that suits its nature; and so, through the blasts of the winds, a person is either strengthened, as was said above, or left without support.¹

Tribulation as God's Merciful Constraint

Bodily tribulation, arising from God's just vengeance, restrains worldly desire and leads a person through poverty of spirit to spiritual riches and the heavenly kingdom.

But also, when a person has worldly prosperity, a bear-like bodily tribulation emerging from the judicial fire that is God's vengeance constrains him and does not let him go forward according to his pleasures; but, like a blast—namely misery—driving him from his course, whether in prosperity or in adversity, it makes him desire and possess poverty of spirit in humility, so that, walking justly in this mode, as if on the head of a lamb he embraces patience and, avoiding evils, as if on the head of a serpent he imitates prudence.²³ For through bodily tribulations a person often comes to spiritual riches, and through those same riches obtains the heavenly kingdoms.

The Two Breaths: Gentleness and Providence

From the lamb's head comes the breath of gentleness, and from the serpent's head the breath of providence, each guiding the chastised soul between bodily suffering and the fear of judgment.

From the mouth of the lamb's head, however, demonstrating patience, as was said above, comes another breath—that is, gentleness—reaching toward the perfection that lies between bodily tribulation and the fear of the Lord; but from the mouth of the serpent's head, designing prudence, comes another breath—namely, providence—reaching toward the perfection that lies between bodily tribulation and the punishments of hell, and admonishes a person, chastised by God's vengeance, so that he may despise earthly things and long for heavenly things, just as was also shown above about them.⁴⁵

All Mysteries Lead to Salvation

The beginnings and ends of these mysteries, though they appear different, share one purpose: to instruct humanity and impel body and soul to cling faithfully to the Creator.

For the beginnings and the ends of the aforementioned mysteries, in their deeds and in their own significations, are of one and equal study for the instruction of humanity, even though they may seem to have different works; and all the things that the knowledge of God demonstrates as suitable for the soul's salvation lead to its deliverance and, so that a person may faithfully cling to the Creator with body and soul, impel him by their own powers.⁶

The Call to Holy Self-Mastery

A person is exhorted to flee vice, serve God in continence, and hold the virtues in balanced self-restraint, for whoever masters himself in love of the virtues will be placed in eternal life under the Lord's chastisement.

Therefore, let a person strengthen himself for holiness, so that he may flee carnal desires and deny the luxury of foul vices; and let him wisely serve God, who loves continence and chastity; and let him not be excessively dry nor excessively wet in the work of the virtues, since whoever has been unwilling to chastise or restrain his flesh will go to the soul's destruction.⁷ But whoever, by mastering himself, has loved the virtues and, by loving them, has kept them, will place his soul in eternal life when he is reproved and chastised by the Lord, just as David, inspired through me, speaks, saying:⁸

The Witness of Psalm 117

The chapter turns to the words of David in Psalm 117, which pertain to the same matters of chastisement and virtue.

The words of David in the same Psalm 117, concerning the same matters, and their explanation.⁹

Read the original Latin

Capita quoque haec omnia in supradictam rotam atque ad praefatam imaginem hominis flatus dant, quia praedicti venti flatibus virium suarum circuitum orbis continent, et hominem in eo degentem, ne in defectu pereat, ad utilitatem suam respicere instigant. Itaque cum quilibet ventus omnium praedictarum qualitatum, sive naturaliter sive per dispositionem Dei flatus suos extulerit, nullo obstaculo obsistente, corpus hominis penetrat, illumque anima suscipiens ad interiora, ad quodlibet membrum corporis quod naturae illius convenit, naturaliter ducit; sicque per flatus ventorum homo aut confortatur, ut supra dictum est, aut destituitur. Sed et homo cum prosperitatem saecularium habet, a judiciali igne, qui vindicta Dei est, quemadmodum ursus, corporalis tribulatio egrediens illum constringit; nec eum secundum voluptates suas procedere permittit, sed velut flatum, scilicet miseriam, de tenore suo tam in prosperitate quam in adversitate ipsius protelans, in humilitate paupertatem spiritus eum desiderare et habere facit, ita ut ille hoc modo juste incedens, quasi in capite agni patientiam amplectatur, mala quoque devitans, velut in capite serpentis prudentiam imitetur. Nam per corporales tribulationes homo multoties pervenit ad divitias spiritales, atque per easdem divitias superna regna adipiscitur. Ex ore autem capitis agni, patientiam, ut supra dictum est, demonstrantis, alius flatus, id est mansuetudo, ad perfectionem quae inter corporalem tribulationem et timorem Domini est, perveniens; sed ex ore capitis serpentis, prudentiam designantis, alius flatus, videlicet providentia, ad perfectionem, quae inter corporalem tribulationem et infernales poenas existit, procedens, hominem per vindictam Dei castigatum, ut terrena contemnat, et ut ad coelestia anhelet, quomodo etiam superius de eis ostensum est, commonent. Nam et principia et fines praefatorum mysteriorum in factis et in significationibus suis unius et aequalis studii ad eruditionem hominis existunt, quamvis diversa opera habere videantur; et omnia quae scientia Dei saluti animae convenientia demonstrat, ad ereptionem illius perducunt, hominemque ut corpore et anima Creatori suo fideliter adhaereat, viribus suis impellunt. Quapropter homo seipsum ad sanctitatem confortet, ita ut carnalia desideria fugiat, et ut luxus fetentium vitiorum abneget; Deoque, qui continentiam et castitatem diligit, sapienter deserviat; nec supramodum aridus, nec supramodum humidus in opere virtutum sit, quoniam qui carnem suam nec castigare nec constringere voluerit, in interitum animae ibit. Qui vero seipsum domando virtutes amaverit, et amando retinuerit, animam suam in vitam aeternam collocabit, cum a Domino corripitur et castigatur, sicut et David per me inspiratus loquitur dicens:

Verba David in eodem psalmo CXVII, ad eadem competentia, et explanatio ipsorum.

Notes

1 ↩Anima rendered 'soul' per lexeme policy; the passage describes the soul as the interior principle that receives the wind's motion and directs it through the body.
2 ↩The image of God's vengeance as a 'judicial fire' and the bear-like tribulation is an allegorical extension of the vision; 'judiciali igne' is rendered literally to preserve the juridical metaphor.
3 ↩Capite rendered 'head' in the image of the lamb and the serpent; the spatial metaphor is allegorical (walking as if on the head), not doctrinal.
4 ↩Flatus rendered 'breath' (or 'blast') in continuity with the wind/breath allegory of the chapter; 'mansuetudo' is rendered 'gentleness' to capture the lamb-like quality.
5 ↩Providentia rendered 'providence' here in the sense of foresight/caution drawn from the serpent image, not in the primary theological sense of divine providence.
6 ↩Mysteriorum rendered 'mysteries' in the sense of the hidden meanings in the vision; 'ereptionem' rendered 'deliverance' to capture the soul's rescue.
7 ↩The image of 'dry' and 'wet' in the work of virtues is an allegorical balance metaphor; rendered literally to preserve the visionary logic.
8 ↩The quotation from David that follows is not supplied in this section; the source anchor is preserved as a candidate for resolution in tx-08.
9 ↩The rare term 'competentia' likely refers to the subject matter or themes previously discussed; rendered here as 'matters' to fit the natural register while preserving the sense of relevance.

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