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Diotimos Library · Journals, Notebooks & Fragments Collection · English Edition

Thomas Traherne

Centuries of Meditations

Annotated Edition · With an Introduction, Notes and an Outline.

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Centuries of MeditationsThe First Century · Meditation I.62

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English Edition · Branch 76 of 454

The First Century · Meditation I.62

Centuries of Meditations

p. 76

62

LORD JESUS what love shall I render unto Thee, for Thy love unto me! Thy eternal love! Oh what fervour, what ardour, what humiliation, what reverence, what joy, what adoration, what zeal, what thanksgiving! Thou that art perfect in Beauty, Thou that art the King of Eternal Glory, Thou that reignest in the Highest Heavens camest down from Heaven to die for me! And shall not I live unto Thee? O my Joy! O my Sovereign Friend! O my life and my all! I beseech Thee let those trickling drops of blood that run down Thy flesh drop upon me. O let Thy love enflame me. Which is so deep and infinite, that Thou didst suffer the wrath of GOD for me: And purchase all nations and Kingdoms to be my treasures. O Thou that redeemedst me from Hell, and when Thou hadst overcome the sharpness of Death didst open the Kingdom of Heaven to all believers; what shall I do unto Thee? What shall I do for Thee, O Thou preserver of Men? Live, Love, and Admire; and learn to become such unto Thee as Thou unto me. O Glorious Soul; whose comprehensive understanding at once contains all Kingdoms and Ages! O Glorious Mind! Whose love extendeth to all creatures! O miraculous and eternal Godhead, now suffering on the cross for me: As Abraham saw thy Day and was glad, so didst Thou see me and this Day from all Eternity, and seeing me wast Gracious and Compassionate towards me. (All transient things are permanent in God.) Thou settest me before Thy face forever. O let me this day see Thee, and be united to Thee in Thy Holy Sufferings. Let me learn, O God, such lessons from Thee, as may make me wise, and blessed as an Angel of GOD!

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About This Reading Edition

Thomas Traherne’s Centuries explore felicity, childhood vision, love, and the soul’s capacity to enjoy the world. This annotated English edition presents all 410 meditations across five Centuries, with an introduction, explanatory notes, an outline, and textual apparatus.

Historical Text

The Centuries survive in Traherne’s manuscript and were first published by Bertram Dobell in London in 1908. The supplied edition follows the corrected Dobell text, with manuscript readings documented in its Note on the Text and Textual Notes. The four complete Centuries contain one hundred meditations each; the unfinished Fifth contains ten.

About This Edition

Diotimos Editions prepared the introduction, explanatory notes, glossary, reading guide, outline, and textual apparatus for this English original. Century and meditation numbers preserve the work’s structure, while verse line breaks, italics, and struck-through manuscript cancellations remain visible. Notes accompany their passages in the reader and Book Mode.

Rights

Thomas Traherne’s historical text and Bertram Dobell’s 1908 printing are in the public domain. The introduction, notes, and apparatus are © 2026 Diotimos Editions. Historical printing and transcription links identify the edition’s copy-text; manuscript corrections and unresolved readings are documented in the supplied editorial apparatus.