From the book
Centuries of Meditations
Thomas Traherne · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordThe antipodes are people or places on the opposite side of the globe.
- In TraherneThe term helps Traherne escape the assumption that the observer’s immediate horizon is the whole world.
- In this editionRead the solar example as Traherne’s counterfactual within his account of providence; it is not a modern astronomical model of a stationary sun.
- A place to beginThe antipodes help widen the imagined universe beyond the observer’s local heavens.
Meaning
The antipodes are people or places on the opposite side of the globe. In these meditations the word carries a spatial sense, not the looser modern meaning of an extreme opposite.
Use in the book
The term helps Traherne escape the assumption that the observer’s immediate horizon is the whole world. Space extends above the heads of distant inhabitants as well as above our own. The sun’s alternation also benefits people beyond our sight: perpetual daylight for us would mean permanent darkness for them. A supposedly improved arrangement is exposed as a private convenience purchased at others’ expense. Both uses connect enlarged understanding with a more comprehensive account of divine provision.
Places to read
In this edition
Read the solar example as Traherne’s counterfactual within his account of providence; it is not a modern astronomical model of a stationary sun.