The Sixth Part of the Books and Writings of the Noble and Highly Learned Philosopher and Physician Paracelsus

For although there is wonder in medicine and in the mysteries, there is still much more a mystery after life, the eternal, of which we have no foundation of how it is, other than what has been revealed to us through him. From this arises the ignorant grossness of the theologians, who make great interpretations in that which they do not understand in the least, and it is not known to us men how he intended it, he who gave it; and yet they twist and pull his words according to their pride and greed, whereby much cheating has arisen and is newly invented every day, as we state in the Monarchia. Therefore we count for nothing the reason that is not visibly founded upon the mysteries. As the jurists, who give law and order according to their own thinking: only so that they do not perish and the entire common good is blinded. Since such uncertain things are used in such faculties more than belongs to them, we let them go on in their value until their time, and do not let their chatter and their nonsense trouble us. For they speak of God more than he has given them to know, and want to understand above him, as if they sat in his council. So they disparage us, and withdraw the mysteries from nature and disparage the philosophers, since they know neither the beginning nor the end, and only their shouting is the best. Just as if they were those upon whom the entire faith depends, and if they were not there, heaven and earth would break. Alas for the great foolishness and cheating, that they esteem themselves for what they are not. Although we strike the walls entirely with them, when we take up the practice of turning our first teacher and creator's word around and bending it according to our pride. Since we alone see the uncertain word, which should be confirmed through faith and with no other honesty: we want to turn away from this and consider seeking the mysteries of nature, where the end shows the foundation of the truth: and that does not only state the foundation, but fulfills and does the mysteries and the highest love in man. This is the treasure of the highest good, which we thus understand materialistically in this our writing Archidoxis, and commit the spiritual to the Monarchy. From this foundation, we bring forth the medicine and, according to experience, so that we finally know and see that it is so with our own eyes: we want to practice, and divide this book Archidoxis into 10 parts, as a memorial to ourselves of what we want to contain, and speak only with our own, written understanding enough for them; and do not write that for the commons of the peoples. For we do not want to show or give our sense and thoughts, heart and mind, to the deaf, and close them thus with a good wall and with a key. But if it should come to pass that our work would not be protected from such idiots (who are the enemies of all arts), we want to leave unwritten the 10th book on the use of all the others, so that we do not thrust a joy-feast to the idols. But