From the book
Centuries of Meditations
Thomas Traherne · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordObligation is what binds one to a response or duty.
- In TraherneGod’s love supplies both the measure and the obligation of human love.
- In this editionObligations can name benefits as grounds of indebtedness, not merely commands or liabilities.
- A place to beginLove received from God obliges love both to God and to all whom God loves.
Meaning
Obligation is what binds one to a response or duty. It can also refer to a benefit that creates such a bond of gratitude.
Use in the book
God’s love supplies both the measure and the obligation of human love. The recipient owes a response to the giver and, because the giver loves others, owes love to them as well. The movement prevents gratitude from remaining a closed exchange between God and a single soul.
After redemption the obligations increase, but their increase is presented as an advantage. A more fully displayed love gives the soul stronger reason and greater ability to love in return. The binding force is not conceived only as an added burden. It reveals a desirable object whose goodness draws the person toward the response by which felicity is enjoyed.
Places to read
In this edition
Obligations can name benefits as grounds of indebtedness, not merely commands or liabilities. That double force explains their description as advantages.