OF THINGS, CHAPTER I.

The same likewise happens to the godly man; if the Evil One strikes his hidden instrument with the spirit of his wrath, then the wrath-formoriginal: "Zorngestaltnuß"; refers to the latent quality of anger or severity within a person's spiritual makeup is awakened in the godly man. Thus, one is set against the other so that one should be the physician of the other. For as the form of life is—that is, as the life-form is shaped at the time of the FiatLatin: "Let it be"; the creative word of God during the incarnationoriginal: "Menschwerdung"; the process of becoming human or taking on flesh—so also is his natural spirit, which he originates out of the essenceoriginal: "Essenz"; the fundamental spiritual substance of all three principlesoriginal: "Principien"; the three foundational realms of existence in Böhme's cosmology. And such a will he also carries out of his own property.

But now, his will may be broken; for when a stronger one comes over him and awakens his inner form with his introduced sound and will-spirit, then his superior sovereigntyoriginal: "Oberregiment"; the governing part of the soul or mind loses its right and power. We see this in the power of the sun: how it, with its might, qualifiesoriginal: "qualificiret"; to transform or imbue with a specific quality a bitter and sour fruit into sweetness and loveliness.

In the same way, a good man may be corrupted among an evil crowd; likewise, a good herb on a bad field cannot sufficiently manifest its true virtueoriginal: "Tugend"; here meaning the inherent healing power or medicinal property of a plant. For in the good man, the hidden evil instrument is awakened, and in the herb, a contrary essence is awakened from the earth, so that often the good is transformed into an evil, and the evil into a good; and as it now stands in the power...