Hou a man schal wite hou moche ire and envie is hid in the ground of hys herte.
Uncovering Hidden Bitterness
The author instructs the reader to examine their heart for hidden anger and envy, noting that such bitterness hinders the reformation of the image of Jesus within.
Now turn again to this image, if you want to test how much anger and envy is hidden in the ground of your heart that you do not feel. Look carefully and examine yourself closely when such stirrings of envy and anger against your fellow Christian spring up from your heart. The more you feel these stirrings, and the more you are moved by melancholy bitterness or ill will toward others, the more this image is in you; for the more you grumble in impatience—whether against God for the tribulation, sickness, or bodily distress He sends, or against your fellow Christians for anything they do to you—the less the image of Jesus is reformed in you.1
Read the original Latin
Now turne agen to this image, yif thou wole asaie hou moche ire and envie is hid in the ground of thyn herte that thou felist not. Loke wel and biholde thiself visili whanne siche stirynges of envie and ire agens thyn even Cristen spryngen out of thyn herte. The more arisynge that thou hast, and the more stired that thou art bi malencolie bittirnesse or wikkid wil agens hem, the more is this image in thee; for the more thou grucchist bi unpacience either agens God for tribulacion or sikenesse or for bodili disese sent of God, or agens thyn even Cristene, for ought that thei dooth agens thee, the lasse is the image of Jhesu reformed in thee.
Notes
- 1 ↩In Hilton's scheme, 'this image' is the darkened image of sin (here of wrath and envy), set against the reformed image of Jesus.
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