Unto what thinge is the ymage of synne like, and what it is in itsilf.
The Shadow of the Soul
The author describes the 'image of sin' as a dark, beastly shadow that stands in contrast to the reformed image of Jesus.
This isn't the image of Jesus, but an image of sin—what Saint Paul calls a body of sin and a body of death. You carry this image and this dark shadow with you wherever you go. From it flow many great streams of sin, as well as smaller ones. Just as out of the image of Jesus, if it were reformed in the beams of spiritual light, burning desires, pure affections, wise thoughts, and all the integrity of the virtues would rise up toward heaven — just so out of this image spring stirrings of pride, of envy, and the like, which cast you down from the dignity of a human being into the likeness of a beast.1 But perhaps you're beginning to wonder what this image is like; and so that you won't study long over it, I tell you it is like no bodily thing. "What is it, then?" you say.2 Truly, it is nothing—and you can discover that for yourself if you try, just as I've told you.3
The Void Within
By withdrawing from outward things, the soul discovers that its internal 'image of sin' is essentially a void or a lack of God.
Draw your thought into yourself from all bodily things, and then you'll find sheer nothing in which your soul can rest. This nothing is simply a lack of love and light, just as sin is nothing more than a lack of God.4
The Unreformed House
The soul finds no rest in its own darkness, preferring worldly distractions until it is reformed by the light of Jesus.
If the root of sin were greatly diminished and dried up in you, and your soul were cleansed and readily reformed to the image of Jesus, then if you drew your heart into yourself, you wouldn't find nothing; you would find Jesus—not just the bare thought of His name, but the light of understanding through Him, with no darkness of unknowing. You would find love and delight in Him, and no pain of bitterness or biting.56 But because you are not yet reformed, when your soul comes in from all bodily things and finds nothing but darkness and heaviness, it seems to it a hundred winters until it is out again by some bodily delight or vain thought.7 And that’s no wonder; for if anyone came home and found nothing inside but stinking smoke and a quarreling wife, they would soon run back out.8 Just so your soul, when it finds no comfort in itself but black smoke of spiritual blindness and a great quarreling of fleshly thoughts crying upon you so that you can have no peace—truly, it is soon weary until it is out again.910 This darkness is that same nothing of which I spoke, and the image.11
Read the original Latin
This is not the ymage of Jhesu, but it is an ymage of synne; as Seynt Poul calleth hit, a bodi of synne and a bodi of deeth. This ymage and this blak schadewe thou berist aboughte with thee whereevere thou goost. Out of this springen many grete stremes of synne, and smale also. Right as out of the ymage of Jhesu, yif it were reformed in the beemes of goostli light, schulde steme up to hevene and brennynge desires, clene affecciouns, wise thoughtis, and alle honesté of vertues; right so out of this ymage springen stiryngis of pride, of envie, and sich othere, whiche casten thee doun from the honesté of man into a beestis likenesse. But peraventure thou bygynnest for to thenke unto what thynge this ymage schulde be like; and therfore that thou schuldest not longe studie thereaboughte, I telle thee it is like to no bodili thing. "What is it thanne?" seistow. Sothli it is not, and that may thou fynde yif thou wilt assaie as y have seid to thee.
Drawe into thisilf thi thought from alle bodili thynges, and thanne schalt thou fynde right not whereinne thi soule mai reste. This nought is nothynge ellis but a lackynge of love and of light, as synne is not ellis but a wantynge of God.
Yif it so were that the ground of synne were mykil abatid and dried up in thee, and thi soule were clensid and reformyd lightli to the ymage of Jhesu, thanne yif thou drowgh into thisilf thyn herte thou schuldest not fynde nought, but thou schuldest fynde Jhesu not oonli the nakid mynde of His name, but thou schuldest fynde light of undirstondynge bi Hym, and no merkenesse of unknowynge; thou schuldest fynde love and likynge of Hym, and noo peyne of bitternesse ne bitynge. But for thou art not yit reformed, therfore whanne thi soule cometh in fro al bodili thynge, and fyndeth not but merkenesse and hevynesse, hym thenketh an hundrid wynter til he be out agen bi sum bodili delite or veyn thought. And that is no wonder; for whoso come to his hous and founde nothynge therinne but stynkynge smoke and a flitynge wif, he wolde sone renne oute of it. Right so thi soule, whanne it fyndeth noo comfort in the silf but blak smoke of goostli blyndenesse and grete flitynge of fleischli thoughtes criynge upon thee that thou may bee in noo pees, soothli it is sone irke til it be oute agen. This merkenesse is that ilke nought the whiche y spak of and the ymage.
Notes
- 1 ↩honesté rendered as dignity/integrity rather than modern 'honesty': ME honesté here means moral nobility and human worth. goostli light = spiritual (not ghostly) light; steme = rise like steam/vapor.
- 2 ↩seistow = 'sayest thou'; dialog tag completing the quoted question in s6.
- 3 ↩ME 'not' here is nought/nothing (the 'merk ymage' as a void), confirmed by the next section's 'right not' / 'This nought' as lacking of love and light.
- 4 ↩Middle English nought / nothynge and wantynge name privation: the image of sin is not a positive substance but the absence of love, light, and God.
- 5 ↩ME lightli can mean readily/easily or lightly; rendered 'readily' for reform of the soul to Christ's image.
- 6 ↩Bare awareness or mere thought of the name, without fuller presence or understanding.
- 7 ↩Impersonal ME construction with the soul as 'he'; rendered with neuter 'it' for the soul while keeping the felt duration.
- 8 ↩ME flitynge from flite, to scold or quarrel; rendered 'quarreling' rather than merely 'contentious'.
- 9 ↩ME irke = weary, sick of, irked; rendered 'weary' for the soul's impatience to leave interior recollection.
- 10 ↩Same root as in s3: strife or quarreling; applied to fleshly thoughts clamoring within.
- 11 ↩Elliptical close; in chapter context the 'image' is the image of sin (continued in the next section).
Scala Perfectionis (The Scale of Perfection) companion
A daily portion of stillness
Chosen Portion delivers one short contemplative reading and a guided moment of silence each day — the ascent, one step at a time.
Chosen Portion is the paced doorway into this collection: it portions the dense mystical treatises into one daily reading plus guided silence, exactly as the 14-day plan teaches.
- Daily bite-sized excerpts from the contemplative classics, never a wall of text
- A built-in timed stillness practice that grows from 2 minutes to 10
- Gentle progression through the tradition — the app remembers where you are on the ascent