From the book
Centuries of Meditations
Thomas Traherne · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordAn effusion is a pouring forth.
- In TraherneThe word occurs in the Fifth Century’s argument about infinity.
- In this editionThe outpouring is figurative.
- A place to beginInfinite goodness requires a receptacle for its effusions; limited room would constrain bounty.
Meaning
An effusion is a pouring forth. The plural gives divine goodness an image of expansive communication, requiring room in which its gifts may be received.
Use in the book
The word occurs in the Fifth Century’s argument about infinity. Without unlimited capacity, bounty would be confined and power would lack an adequate theatre. Effusions belong to the relation between source, gift, and receptacle: goodness is displayed by giving, and its inexhaustibility requires a corresponding amplitude of reception. The hydraulic figure helps make an abstract relation imaginable.
Places to read
- V.4Infinite goodness requires a receptacle for its effusions; limited room would constrain bounty.
In this edition
The outpouring is figurative. It does not by itself describe God as a material fluid or imply that the divine source loses substance through giving.
Source note
Primary text: V.4.