Candida Phoenix Philosophica

Name: Candida Phoenix Philosophica
Author: Anonymous

The White Philosophical Phoenix

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Candida Phoenix PhilosophicaPart II — Chapter 13: The Controversy Over Light

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English Page · Branch 339 of 411

Part II — Chapter 13: The Controversy Over Light

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German & Latin

217

Neque obstare videtur, quoad Tertium V. R. dilucidatio. Lucem naturalem, & quidem illam, quam Deus vocavit Diem, & V. R. vocat primogeniam, accipio, ac solam hic intellectam volo. Illam autem, quam dicit esse accidens & qualitatem atque affectionem corporis lucidi subtilissimam, quâ Orbis variaque corpora homini redduntur perceptibilia, pro ratione tamen subjectorum variam esse &c. minimè, neque eam agnosco, quam posteriorem nominat; nisi ignis supradictus ille universalis intelligatur, qui rebus omnibus splendorem ac colorem &c. præbet, & in Astris Lumen, in animalibus pinguedo, in vegetabilibus oleum, in mineralibus vero Sulphur indigitari solet: At ne minimè quidem Accidens esse poterit, cum unum sit ex principiis scil. Elementis, ex quibus omnes res visibiles constare est notissimum.

Candida Phoenix Philosophica: Part II — Chapter 13: The Controversy Over Light

217

Nor, as to the third point, does your clarification seem to present an obstacle. I mean natural light, specifically what God called Day and you call primordial light; this alone is intended here. I do not mean what you call an accident, quality, and most subtle affection of a luminous body, by which the world and its various bodies become perceptible, varying according to its subjects. Nor do I recognize your “later” light, unless it means the universal fire already mentioned, which gives all things splendour and colour. In the stars this is commonly called radiance, in animals fat, in plants oil, and in minerals Sulfur. It cannot possibly be an accident, since it is one of the principles or elements of which, as is well known, all visible things consist.

About This Reading Edition

An anonymous Hermetic treatise of 1680, presented in its original German and Latin with a new English translation, 279 explanatory notes, the historical phoenix frontispiece, an introduction, reading guide, outline, glossary, bibliography, and original registers.

Historical Text and Translation

Anonymous, Candida Phoenix philosophica. Frankfurt am Main: Christian Hermsdorff, 1680. The chosen witness is the Wellcome Library copy digitized as b32993456; German and Latin, with French, Greek, and Hebrew passages retained.

About Diotimos Editions

This historical edition credits Diotimos Editions as its English translator.

Rights

The 1680 source is identified as public domain by the Wellcome/Internet Archive record. The supplied 2026 transcription, English translation, introduction, notes, reading guide, outline, glossary, bibliography, and editorial arrangement are published with the site owner’s authorization. The frontispiece is retained from the supplied edition and credited to its historical witness.