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Diotimos Library · Esotericism & Spirituality Collection · Bilingual Edition

Attributed to Ali Puli

Centrum Naturae Concentratum

The Salt of Nature Regenerated

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Centrum Naturae ConcentratumThe Concentrated Centre of Nature · Passage 44

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Facing Pages · Branch 60 of 175

The Concentrated Centre of Nature · Passage 44

German

Kennestu einmahl wol die kleine Welt, in der Grossen wird dir nichts hernach unbekandt bleiben. Darumb rieffen und schrieben die alte Ægyptische Physici: kenne dich selbst, und die Griechen, ihre Schüler, nahmen dieses aus Unverstandt meist Moraliter, und liessen es über ihre Kirch-Thüren schlagen.

English

Once you know the little world well, nothing in the great world will afterwards remain unknown to you. Therefore the ancient Egyptian natural philosophers proclaimed and wrote: “Know yourself.” The Greeks, their pupils, misunderstood this chiefly in a moral sense and had it inscribed above their temple doors.

About This Reading Edition

The complete supplied German–English edition of the 1682 collection: the main treatise attributed to Ali Puli, Helbig’s preface, distinct companion discourses, the short potable-gold preparation and the anonymous Father’s Last Testament, with four historical figures, 103 annotations and the full Diotimos study apparatus.

Historical Text and Translation

The governing German witness is the complete 1682 collection in Badische Landesbibliothek Karlsruhe, shelfmark 87 B 76050, with an unnumbered title and printed pages 1–80. The historical title’s Arabic and Portuguese antecedents and its authorial persona are retained as claims, not authenticated originals. Johann Otto Helbig (Hellwig), Martin de Delle, J. J. F. and the anonymous testament retain their distinct historical roles.

About Diotimos Editions

This historical edition credits Diotimos Editions as its English translator.

Rights

The historical German source text and engraving are in the public domain. The English translation and editorial material were prepared with AI assistance for Diotimos Editions in 2026, with a supplied translation and sign commentary identified separately, and are published with the site owner’s authorization.