Spiritual Forum

The Liber XXIV philosophorum (Book of 24 philosophers) consists of 24 theses about what God is. Sources are for instance Plotin, Proklos, Pseudo-Dionysius Areopagita, Macrobius, Boethius, Eriugena.

Many have thought the text comes from Hermes Trismegistos. Nevertheless, the author is unknown, but the text is cited from the 12th century on.

I`ll give here the 24 sentences without the other (explaining) text, which needs another room. I could not find any English translation, so I did it by myself. My mother tongue is German, so I ask you to improve my translation if needed.

The Latin text is here: http://la.wikisource.org/wiki/Liber_viginti_quattor_philosophorum


The 24 definitions

1. Deus est monas monadem gignens, in se unum reflectens ardorem.

God is a monad generating a monad, which in the heat (of love) reflects to himself alone.


2. Deus est sphaera infinita cuius centrum est ubique, circumferentia nusquam.

God is an infinite sphere, whose center is everywhere (and) circumference is nowhere.


3. Deus est totus in quolibet sui.

God is all in any of his.


4. Deus est mens orationem generans, continuationem perseuerans.

God is mind generating a word (with) enduring continuity.


5. Deus est quo nihil melius excogitari potest.

God is that where nothing better can be devised.


6. Deus est cuius comparatione substantia est accidens, et accidens nihil.

God is that, in which comparison substance (or essence) is an attribute (or feature), and attribute (or feature) being nothing.


7. Deus est principium sine principio, processus sine variatione, finis sine fine.

God is beginning without beginning, process without variation, end without end.


8. Deus est amor qui plus habitus magis latet.

God is love, which the more is hidden the more we (believe to) have it.


9. Deus est cui soli praesens est quidquid cuius temporis est.

God is that, to whom all is present related to (all what belongs to) time.


10. Deus est cuius posse non numeratur, cuius esse non clauditur, cuius bonitas non terminatur.

God is that, whose ability (or competence) is not numbered, whose being is not limited, whose goodness is not terminated.


11. Deus est super ens, necesse, solus sibi abundanter, sufficienter.

God is above (or beyond) being, (is) necessary and by oneself being sufficient unto himself in abundance.


12. Deus est cuius voluntas deificae et potentiae et sapientiae adaequatur.

God is that, whose will equals (or is according) his divine power and wisdom.


13. Deus est sempiternitas agens in se, semper divisione et habitu.

God is working eternity by himself without division and (without having or gaining) an attribute (or feature).


14. Deus est oppositio nihil mediatione entis.

God is the opposition of nothing by means of being.


15. Deus est vita cuius via in formam est, in unitatem bonitas.

God is life, whose way into form is truth, (and whose way) into unity is goodness.


16. Deus est quod solum voces non significant propter excellentiam, nec mentes intelligunt propter dissimilitudinem.

God (is the) only one because of his excellence, who is not signed by words, and mind (creatures) do not recognise (him) caused by (their) dissimilarity.


17. Deus est intellectus sui solum, praedicationem non recipiens.

God is the concept (or notion) (derived) from himself alone not suffering (or tolerating) a(ny) predicate.


18. Deus est sphaera cuius tot sunt circumferentiae quod puncta.

God is the sphere having as much circumferences as points.


19. Deus est semper movens immobilis.

God is the immobile (but always) moved (one).


20. Deus est qui solus suo intellectu vivit.

God is (the only one) alone living from his self knowledge (or self - awareness).


21. Deus est tenebra in anima post omnem lucem relicta.

God is the darkness in the soul being left after all light.


22. Deus est ex quo est quicquid est non partitione, per quem est non variatione, in quo est quod est non commixtione.

God is (that), from which all is (or exists) that is (or exists) without (him) being divided (or splited); through him (all) is without (him) getting (or being) changed; in him (all) is without him getting (or being) mixed with it.


23. Deus est qui sola ignorantia mente cognoscitur.

God is that, which the mind only knows in ignorance (or in the state of not knowing).


24. Deus est lux quae fractione non clarescit, transit, sed sola deiformitas in re.

God is light, appearing as shine without refraction, permeating, but only (being) a divine formation in the things.


FINIS...


At the end a nice joke from a shit house writings book:

God is dead, by Nietzsche.
(below with different handwriting:)
Nietzsche is dead, by definition.