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Diotimos Library · Esotericism & Spirituality Collection · Bilingual Edition

Attributed to Jean d’Espagnet

The Secret Work of the Hermetic Philosophy

A Fresh English Translation from the Complete 1623 Latin Arcanum

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The Secret Work of the Hermetic PhilosophyThe 138 Canons · English

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The 138 Canons · English

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Latin

Quilibet circulus proprium habet motum; omnes autem circulorum motus circa subiectum humidi & sicci versantur, & adeo concatenati sunt, vt vnicam producant operationem, vnumque naturæ concentum: eorum duo tum ratione terminorum, tum etiam causarum & effectuum sunt oppositi; mouet enim vnus sursum per calorem desiccando; alter deorsum per frigus humectando, tertius verò quietis somníque imaginem referens digerendo in summâ temperie vtriusque cessationem inducit.

English

Each circle has its own motion. All the motions of the circles, however, concern the subject of wet and dry, and they are linked so closely that they produce a single operation and a single harmony of nature. Two of them are opposed in their endpoints as well as in their causes and effects. One moves upwards by drying through heat; the other downwards by moistening through cold. The third, presenting an image of rest and sleep, brings both to a standstill by digesting in the utmost temperateness.

About This Reading Edition

The complete anonymous 1623 Arcanum, conventionally attributed to Jean d’Espagnet, with Latin and a fresh English translation, 138 canons, original marginalia and errata, 88 modern annotations, separately identified historical reception documents, and the complete supplied Diotimos study apparatus.

Historical Text and Translation

Anonymous, Arcanum hermeticæ philosophiæ opus. Paris: Nicolas Buon, 1623. Bibliothèque municipale de Lyon copy, digitised by Google Books, uJNr_M9LDGgC. Conventionally attributed to Jean d’Espagnet; the original title page is anonymous.

About Diotimos Editions

This historical edition credits Diotimos Editions as its English translator.

Rights

Historical texts are public-domain works. The supplied 2026 fresh English translation, Latin reading transcription and Diotimos editorial material are published with the site owner’s authorization. The historical Signifer is credited to the Getty Research Institute copy and Internet Archive.