← Home
The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme · 72 of 159 · tr. Franz Hartmann

Chapter 7 (part 14)

159:1 Woman in all departments of life is a saviour of man. Even the most degraded woman may be a saviour for still more degraded man, by keeping alive in him a feeling for an ideal—a low ideal, it is true, but one that keeps him from sinking into still lower depths, and which may become more refined. The mission of woman to save man ceases only when man has found the celestial virgin within himself. 160:1 The "serpent" is the astral light , in whose folds and temptations the will of man is entangled. 161:1 Evil desires always enter the heart of man silently and worm-like, until the soul becomes entangled therein as in the folds of a serpent. 161:2 The serpent is not himself the devil, but the devil is the evil will that causes the serpent to move. 161:3 There is no mortal man to whose tree of life the serpent of desire is not attached during his terrestrial existence. 162:1 If woman represents the will and man the intellectual power of mankind as a whole, it naturally follows that the will was seduced by the desire before the intellect followed in its track. If the intellect had become seduced first, it would have become separated from the "woman," and man would have become a clever fool, an intellectual maniac, an unspiritual but cunning scientist, without any soul or faith—a "materialist." 162:2 Actual "sin" begins only where there is a knowledge of evil. A mere evil desire does not constitute "sin" as long as the desire has not the consent of the intellect. 163:1 The more man seeks for the object of his existence in external and sensual things, the more will he depart from his spiritual faith or point of gravitation from his own divine centre or God. He becomes experienced in external and superficial things, and loses sight of that which is real and divine. His external knowledge, which after all is only imaginary, as it deals only with passing illusions, awakens his pride and self-conceit; he begins to assert his personality against immortality; he becomes cruel, and selfish, and passionate; and unless he be redeemed by the awakening of spirituality within himself, he will end in awakening in him the "fiery foundation," the principle of evil, the "devil." Instead of the Christ, Lucifer will be revealed in him.
Themes
◆Divine Sparkscosmology

Fragments of divine light or spirit trapped inside material bodies, awaiting liberation and return to their source.

The 'celestial virgin within' suggests a fragment of divine nature trapped or residing in the human.

All passages →
◆Microcosm Macrocosmcosmology

The human being as a small-scale image of the entire cosmos; the body, soul, and intellect mirroring the structure of the heavens and the divine — distinct from correspondence in that it makes the human the privileged mirror.

The passage states that if woman represents the will and man the intellectual power of mankind as a whole, linking individual faculties to the collective human condition.

All passages →
◆Separation From Sourcesoteriology

The felt condition of exile from one's divine origin — Rumi's reed flute torn from its bed, Plotinus's 'we have forgotten,' the Gnostic forgetfulness; the affective wound that complements return_to_source and gives the return its motive.

It describes man departing from his 'spiritual faith or point of gravitation from his own divine centre' through seeking external things.

All passages →
◇Cosmic Dualismtheology

Ontological opposition between two primal principles (light/darkness, truth/lie, spirit/matter) as the fundamental structure of reality.

[auto] The passage outlines a conflict between Will and Intellect, and Desire and Ideal, reflecting opposing forces.

All passages →
◇Divine Marriagesoteriology

The reunification of complementary divine principles (male-female, spirit-matter) as a symbol of wholeness and salvation.

[auto] The text symbolically aligns Woman with Will and Man with Intellect, suggesting their necessary integration for wholeness.

All passages →
◇Gnosis Direct Knowledgesoteriology

Salvation through direct experiential knowledge of the divine nature, not through faith, ritual, or moral works alone.

[auto] The path to salvation involves finding an inner ideal through personal realization rather than external rites.

All passages →
◇Inner Lightanthropology

The divine spark or luminous quality residing within the human person, potentially recognisable through introspection.

[auto] It references the 'astral light' and the presence of a 'celestial virgin' residing inside the individual.

All passages →
◇Kingdom Withinanthropology

The claim that the divine realm is present inside the individual, accessible without external mediation.

[auto] The passage explicitly states that the mission of salvation ceases when man finds the celestial virgin within himself.

All passages →
◇Mystical Unionsoteriology

The merging of the individual soul or self with the divine, transcending personal identity.

[auto] Finding the celestial virgin within implies a merging of the human self with a divine principle.

All passages →
◇Self Knowledgesoteriology

The recognition of one's own true divine nature as the primary path to liberation; 'know thyself' as soteriology.

[auto] Salvation is described as an internal discovery of an ideal rather than an external achievement.

All passages →
Related passages · 1 parallel
◆greek_mystery|The Golden Verses of Pythagoras|Section 10 (part 3)
“Speak not of God to every man. 79. It is dangerous and the danger is not small, to speak of God even things which are true. 80. A true assertion respecting God is an assertion of God. p. 61 81. You should not dare to speak of God to…”
Both passages discuss the nature of desire, the role of the intellect, and the importance of spiritual awareness. They emphasize the dangers of being led astray by worldly desires and the need for spiritual redemption or alignment with the divine.