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← Liber Divinorum Operum (Book of Divine Works)/Book 3 · Liber Divinorum Operum — Pars 3
Chapter 25LDO.3.25

VISIO OCTAVA, cap. II

The Living Fountain and Its Shadow

The first image identifies itself as the love and brightness of God, explaining how all creation exists as a shadow within the living fountain, how the rational soul participates in divine light, and how prophecy and the Scivias vision arose as shadows of divine strength and health.

The first image said: I am the love of the living God, the brightness, and the wisdom with me has accomplished its own work, and the humility that took root in the living fountain arose as my helper, and peace clings to it.1 And through the brightness that I am, the living light of the blessed angels flashes, because just as a ray shines from the light, so this brightness shines to the blessed angels, and it ought not to be without shining, just as light is not without splendor.23 For I wrote the human being, who in me was rooted like a shadow, just as the shadow of each thing is seen in water.4 And so I am the living fountain, because all things that were made were in me like a shadow, and according to this shadow the human being was made with fire and water, just as I am fire and living water.56 And so the human being has it in their own soul, so that each thing may be ordered according to what it wills.78 Every creature has a shadow, and that which lives in it moves here and there like a shadow in it, and thoughts exist in the rational creature but not in brute animals, because those only live and have senses by which they recognize what to flee from or what to seek; but only the soul that is breathed by God is rational.910 My brightness also overshadowed the prophets, who through holy inspiration foretold things to come, so that in God all things that he willed to do were a shadow before they came to be; but rationality speaks with sound, and sound is like a thought, and the word is as it were a deed.1112 Concerning this shadow, the writing Scivias went forth through the form of a woman, which was like a shadow of strength and of health, because those powers were not at work in her.1314

Wisdom's Outpouring Through Prophets and Apostles

The living fountain is the Spirit of God animating all things like a shadow in water, and wisdom—self-sufficient before all beginnings—measured and ordered creation, then revealed mysteries through the unlearned feminine form and channeled living water through prophets, wise men, and the disciples of Christ for the salvation of the world.

And so the living fountain is the Spirit of God, which he himself distributes into all his works; they also live from him, possessing vital life through him, just as the shadow of everything appears in the water, and there is nothing that clearly sees where it lives; but it only feels that by which it is moved. And just as water causes what is in it to flow, so too the living soul is a breath, always remaining in a person, and makes him, as it were, flow out by knowing, thinking, speaking, and acting. In this shadow, too, wisdom measured all things by an equal measure, so that one thing would not exceed another by its own weight, and so that one thing could not be moved by another into its opposite, since it overcomes and binds all the malice of the devil's art, because it was before the beginning of all beginnings, and after their end it will be in its strongest power, nor will anyone be able to resist. For it called no one to its aid, nor did it need anyone, because it was the first and the last, nor did it receive an answer from anyone, because it was the first and worked the establishment of all things. And in itself, and through itself, it established all things devoutly and gently, which cannot even be destroyed by any enemy, because it excellently saw the beginning and the end of its works, which it fully arranged, so that all things are also ruled through it. It also inspected its own work, which it had ordered into a right constitution in the shadow of the living water, when it also revealed through this aforementioned and unlearned feminine form certain natural virtues of different things, and certain writings of the merits of life, as well as certain other profound mysteries, which, seeing them in a true vision, she was greatly weakened.15 But before all these things, wisdom had drawn the words of the prophets, and the words of the other wise men, as well as the Gospels, from the living fountain; it had likewise entrusted them to the disciples of the Son of God, so that the rivers of living water might be poured out through them into the whole world, by which people, drawn as if in a net, might be brought back to salvation.✦ The springing fountain is indeed the purity of the living God, and in it his brightness shines forth, in whose splendor God embraces all things with great love, whose shadow appeared in the springing fountain before God had commanded them to come forth in their forms.

Humility, Restoration, and the Defeat of Pride

God leaned toward creation through humility to raise what pride had cast down, forming humanity as celestial through the soul yet earthly through the body, preserving angelic harmony against the serpent's fury, and exposing Satan's self-destroying grasp for everything, so that all God's works are perfected in love, humility, and peace.

And everything shone forth in me with love, and my splendor revealed the formation of things, just as a shadow indicates a shape — and through humility, which is my helper, by God's command the creature came forth, and in that same humility God leaned toward me, so that the dry leaves which had fallen he might raise up in that blessedness by which he is able to do all that he wills, because he had formed her from the earth, and from there freed her after the fall. For a human being is entirely God's handiwork, who looks upon heaven and tramples the earth by ruling it, and commands all creatures, because through the soul he beholds the height of heaven. And so through her he is celestial, but through his visible body he exists as earthly. So God gathered up the one lying in the lowest depths in humility, against the one who in disgrace was cast down from heaven, because when the ancient serpent wanted to tear apart the harmony of the angels through pride, God held it together with his own strong power so that it would not be lacerated by that one's fury. For Satan, holding great glory in the heights within himself, reckoned that he could do whatever he wanted, and he did not want to lose the glory of the stars because of this, but he wanted to have everything — and so when he lusted after everything, he lost all that he had. Whatever God has done, he has perfected in love, humility, and peace — and the meaning of the vision described above is shown in the images of these three virtues.

Read the original Latin

Prima autem imago dicebat: Ego charitas viventis Dei claritas sum, et sapientia mecum opus suum operata est, atque humilitas quae in vivo fonte radicavit adjutrix mea exstitit, ipsique pax adhaeret. Et per claritatem quae ego sum vivens lux beatorum angelorum fulminat, quoniam sicut radius a lumine fulget, ita claritas haec beatis angelis lucet, nec esse debuit quin luceret, sicut nec lux absque fulgore est. Ego enim hominem scripsi, qui in me velut umbra radicatus fuit, quemadmodum umbra cujusque rei in aqua conspicitur. Unde et vivus fons sum, quia omnia quae facta sunt velut umbra in me fuerunt, et secundum umbram hanc homo factus est cum igne et aqua, quemadmodum et ego ignis et aqua viva sum. Quapropter et homo in anima sua habet, ut quaeque secundum quod vult ordinet. Omne autem animal umbram habet, et quod in ipso vivit, ut umbra in eo hac et illac vadit, et cogitationes in rationali animali sunt, in brutis autem animalibus non, quoniam illa tantum vivunt et sensus habent quibus cognoscunt quid fugere, vel quid appetere debeant; sed tantum anima a Deo spirata rationalis est. Claritas quoque mea prophetas obumbravit, qui per sanctam inspirationem futura praedixerunt, ut in Deo omnia quae facere voluit antequam fierent umbra fuerunt; sed rationalitas cum sono loquitur, et sonus velut cogitatio est, et verbum quasi opus. De umbra autem hac scriptura Scivias processit per formam mulieris, quae velut umbra fortitudinis et sanitatis erat, quoniam vires istae in ea non operabantur.

Vivens itaque fons Spiritus Dei est quem ipse in omnia opera sua dividit, quae etiam ab ipso vivunt vitalem vitam per eum habentia quemadmodum umbra omnium in aqua apparet, et nihil est quod manifeste hoc videat unde vivit; sed tantummodo illud sentit per quod movetur. Et ut aqua illud quod in ipsa est fluere facit, sic et anima vivens spiraculum est, semper in homine manens, eumque sciendo, cogitando, loquendo et operando quasi manare facit. In umbra quoque hac sapientia aequali mensura omnia metiebatur, ne aliud pondere suo aliud excederet, et ne etiam aliud ab alio in contrarium moveri posset, quoniam ipsa superat et constringit, omnem diabolicae artis malitiam, quia ante initium omnium initiorum fuit, et post finem eorum in fortissima vi sua erit, nec ullus resistere valebit. Nam nullum in auxilium suum vocavit, nec ullius eguit, quoniam prima et novissima fuit, nec ab ullo responsum accepit quia prima et cunctarum rerum institutionem operata est. Et in se ipsa, et per se ipsam constituit omnia pie et leniter, quae etiam a nullo inimico destrui poterunt, quoniam inceptionem et finem operum suorum excellenter vidit, quae omnia pleniter composuit, ita ut etiam omnia per ipsam regantur. Ipsa quoque opus suum inspexit quod in umbra aquae vivae in rectam constitutionem ordinavit, cum etiam per hanc praedictam et indoctam muliebrem formam quasdam diversarum rerum naturales virtutes, quaedamque scripta vitae meritorum nec non et quaedam alia profunda mysteria aperuit, quae illa in vera visione videns valde debilitata est. Sed ante omnia haec sapientia verba prophetarum, verbaque aliorum sapientium, nec non et Evangeliorum in vivo fonte hauserant, aeque discipulis Filii Dei commiserat, quatenus flumina vivae aquae per illos in totum orbem diffunderentur, quibus homines velut in rete ducti ad salvationem reducerentur. Fons utique saliens viventis Dei puritas est, et in ipsa claritas ejus resplendet, in quo splendore Deus cum magno amore omnia complectitur, quorum umbra in salienti fonte apparuit, antequam Deus ea in formis suis prodire jussisset.

Et in me charitate omnia resplenduerunt, splendorque meus formationem rerum ostendit, sicut umbra formam indicat, atque in humilitate quae adjutrix mea est, per jussionem Dei creatura processit, in eademque humilitate Deus ad me se reclinavit, quatenus arida folia quae ceciderant, in ea beatitudine relevaret, qua omnia quae vult facere potest, quoniam illa de terra formaverat, unde et post casum ea liberavit. Nam homo pleniter factura Dei est qui coelum respicit et terram dominando conculcat, et omnibus creaturis imperat, quia per animam altitudinem coeli aspicit. Quapropter et per illam coelestis est, sed per visibile corpus terrenus existit. Deus itaque honinem in imis jacentem in humilitate collegit contra illum qui in confusione de coelo projectus est, quoniam cum antiquus serpens per superbiam scindere vellet angelorum concordiam, Deus ipsam forti potentia sua tenuit ne per rabiem illius laceraretur. Satan enim in altis gloriam magnam habens in se computavit se posse facere quaecunque vellet, ne ob hoc gloriam siderum perdere, sed omnia habere volebat, et ideo cum ad omnia inhiaret, perdidit totum quod habebat.

Quod quaecunque Deus operatus est in charitate, humilitate et pace perfecerit, et expositio praescriptae visionis sub imaginibus harum trium virtutum ostensae.

Scripture echoes

  1. ↩John.7.38 — The one who believes in me, just as the Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within him.

Notes

  1. 1 ↩The speaker identifies herself as love (charitas), brightness (claritas), and wisdom (sapientia) of the living God — a threefold self-description that the vision goes on to unfold. 'Peace clings to it' (ipsique pax adhaeret) most naturally refers back to humility as the helper that arose.
  2. 2 ↩fulminat is rendered 'flashes' as the most plausible sense of an unusual verb in this context of radiance emanating outward; the alternative 'illuminates' is also possible.
  3. 3 ↩nec esse debuit quin luceret: idiomatic 'it ought not to be without failing to shine' — i.e., it had to shine.
  4. 4 ↩scripsi here means 'wrote' or 'depicted' — the visionary records the human figure as inscribed in the divine image, using the shadow-in-water image from the previous chapter.
  5. 5 ↩unde here is inferential ('and so / therefore') rather than spatial, linking the shadow claim to the fountain identity.
  6. 6 ↩The image of fire and water together draws on the prior chapter's vision of the two figures standing in the fountain.
  7. 7 ↩quapropter is inferential ('and so / wherefore'), continuing from the fountain claim.
  8. 8 ↩quaeque is ambiguous between neuter plural 'each thing' and feminine singular; the plural reading is preferred as a general statement about ordering.
  9. 9 ↩animal is used in the broad Latin sense of 'creature / living being' throughout; 'creature' is the natural English equivalent.
  10. 10 ↩spirata: 'breathed' from the same root as 'spirit'; the rational soul is God-breathed.
  11. 11 ↩obumbravit: 'overshadowed' in the sense of casting a shadow over — the prophets received future things as shadow-forms before they happened.
  12. 12 ↩ut ... umbra fuerunt: rendered as result/consequence ('so that ... were a shadow') rather than purpose, since the context describes what actually occurred.
  13. 13 ↩Scivias is the title of Hildegard of Bingen's visionary work; the case role of Scivias is uncertain (possibly ablative of source: 'from Scivias').
  14. 14 ↩vires istae in ea non operabantur: 'those powers were not at work in her' — the woman-form bore the shadow-image of strength and health without those powers being actively exercised through her.
  15. 15 ↩The subject of 'debilitata est' (was weakened) shifts to the visionary (Hildegard), who is overwhelmed by the true vision of the mysteries revealed through the feminine form.

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