From the book
Heinrich Khunrath’s Magnesia Catholica Philosophorum
Heinrich Khunrath · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordSophia Enthusiastica is the wisdom sought in the prayer on p. 173.
- In KhunrathThe prayer asks the Father of Lights to enlighten the practitioner, permit seeing in the mind's mirror or otherwise, and admonish him theosophically in reading the philosophers' books.
- In this editionTranslate as “inspired wisdom” while retaining the Latin-Greek expression.
- A reading distinctionThe last words of the laboratory gloss are damaged in the supplied witness.
Meaning
Sophia Enthusiastica is the wisdom sought in the prayer on p. 173. Unlike the marginal Cabala Enthusiastica of p. 135, it stands in the body of an instruction to the philosopher who already possesses a secure subject and still needs help towards its right preparation.
Use in the book
The prayer asks the Father of Lights to enlighten the practitioner, permit seeing in the mind's mirror or otherwise, and admonish him theosophically in reading the philosophers' books. The desired understanding is then specified across the page turn: discern where the truth about preparation is written and receive good promptings to handle Magnesia rightly in the laboratory.
The wisdom is therefore neither a reward substituting for the work nor an enthusiastic confidence that makes books and operations unnecessary. It directs both interpretation and action. The p. 174 “theoretically and practically” gloss reinforces the connection.
The noun Sophia should remain discoverable because it names what is requested, while Cabala elsewhere names the mode of inspired reception. Their relation is close enough for cross-reference but not a reason to hide one under the other in an index.
Places to read
- 1599 p. 173Sophia Enthusiastica is asked for in the oratory
- 1599 p. 173 · marginJames 1:5 supports the request for wisdom
- 1599 p. 174The prayer’s continuation specifies understanding preparation and right handling
- 1599 p. 174 · marginThe theoretical-and-practical gloss states the conjunction
Translation in this edition
Translate as “inspired wisdom” while retaining the Latin-Greek expression. Neither “enthusiasm” as mere excitement nor “fanaticism” describes its affirmative role in this sentence.
Source note
The last words of the laboratory gloss are damaged in the supplied witness. They cannot be used to add an otherwise unknown authority or method to the request for Sophia.