The thre and thritty chapitre. That in this werk a soule is clensid bothe of his special sinnes and of the pine of hem, and yit how ther is no parfite rest in this liif.
A Humble Request
The author declines to offer more spiritual devices and humbly asks for the reader's help and prayers.
I won't tell you more skills at this time; for if you have grace to feel the proof of these, I trust you'll know how to teach me better than I can teach you.1 For even though it should be so, truly it still seems to me that I'm very far from it. And therefore I ask you to help me, and do this for yourself and for me.
Purgatory and Cleansing
The reader is urged to bear the pain of this work as purgatory, which will cleanse them from the pain of their particular sins, though the pain of original sin remains.
Go on, then, and work hard for a while, I ask you; and bear the pain meekly if you can't soon master these skills. For truly, it is your purgatory. And then, when your pain has all passed, and your skills have been given by God and graciously made habitual in you, then I have no doubt that you are cleansed not only of sin, but also of the pain of sin.2 I mean the pain of your particular past sins, and not the pain of original sin.3 For that pain will always remain with you until your dying day, no matter how diligent you are. Nevertheless it will hurt you only a little compared with this pain of your particular sins; and yet you won't be without great labor.4 For out of this original sin will continually spring new and fresh stirrings of sin, which you must always strike down, and diligently cut away with a sharp, double-edged, fearsome sword of discernment. And by this you can see and learn that there is no sure security, nor any true rest, in this life.
No Rest, Yet Do Not Fear
Despite the lack of perfect rest in this life, the reader should not turn back, for if they have grace to destroy the pain of past sins, the pain of original sin will hurt little.
Even so, you shouldn't turn back because of this, nor be too afraid of your failing. For if you have the grace to destroy the pain of your past particular sins—in the way already described, or better if you can do better—be sure that the pain of original sin, or else the new stirrings of sin still to come, will be able to hurt you only very little.5
Read the original Middle English
Moo sleightes telle I thee not at this tyme; for and thou have grace to fele the profe of theese, I trow that thou schalt cun betir lerne me then I thee. For thof al it schuld be thus, trewly yit me think that I am ful fer therfro. And therfore I preye thee help me, and do thou for thee and for me.
Do on than, and travayle fast awhile, I preie thee; and suffre meekly the pyne, yif thou mayst not sone wynne to theese sleightes. For trewly it is thi purgatory. And than whan thi pyne is al passid, and thi sleightes ben goven of God and graciously getyn in custume, than it is no doute to me that thou ne arte clensid not only of synne, bot also of the pyne of synne. I mene of the pyne of thi special fordone synnes, and not of the pyne of the original synne. For that pyne schal alweys last on thee to thi deeth day, be thou never so besi. Nevertheles it schal bot lityl dere thee, in rewarde of this pyne of thi specyal synnes; and yit schalt thou not be withoutyn grete travayle. For oute of this oryginal synne wil alday sprynge newe and fresche sterynges of synne; the whiche thee behovith alday to smyte doun, and be besy to schere awey with a scharpe doubleeggid dreedful swerde of discrecion. And herby mayst thou see and leerne that ther is no sothfast sekyrnes, ne yit no trewe rest in this liif.
Nevertheles, herfore schalt thou not go bac, ne yit be over-ferd of thi faylyng. For and it so be that thou mayst have grace to distroye the pyne of thin fordone specyal dedes -- in the maner beforeseide, or betyr yif thou betyr mayst -- sekir be thou that the pyne of the orygynal synne, or elles the newe sterynges of synne that ben to comen, scholen bot ryght lityl mowe dere thee.
Notes
- 1 ↩ME 'sleightes' = skillful spiritual devices/stratagems for contemplative work (not deceit). ME 'lerne' here means 'teach'.
- 2 ↩ME "thou ne arte clensid not only...bot also" is the affirmative not-only/but-also claim (expletive ne with not only), not a denial of cleansing.
- 3 ↩"special fordone synnes" = particular previously committed sins, as opposed to original sin.
- 4 ↩"in rewarde of" taken as "in regard of / compared with," contrasting the lasting sting of original sin with the heavier pain of particular sins.
- 5 ↩ME 'pyne' continues the chapter's sense of residual pain/penalty of sin, not mere physical pain; rendered 'pain' to keep that force.
The Cloud of Unknowing 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