Duchovní traktáty I / Duchovní traktáty II – Komenský Jan Ámos (2023)

This two-volume edition of Jan Amos Komenský’s spiritual treatises presents the work of the “Teacher of Nations” in his search for wisdom, a harmonious world and a better human being. Volume I contains the celebrated The Labyrinth of the World and the Paradise of the Heart, an allegorical story in which the Pilgrim exposes the vanity and hypocrisy of human actions, and the consoling theological-philosophical treatise Centrum securitatis, also known as The Depth of Security, about detachment from transient things and finding rest in God. Both works appear here for the first time in their oldest known manuscript forms: the manuscript of The Labyrinth dates from the end of 1623, while that of Centrum dates from around 1625. The volume also includes the original illustrations and extensive records of changes made in printed versions, allowing readers to compare how the texts changed during Komenský’s lifetime. The form of The Labyrinth differs considerably, omitting several autobiographical passages, including the sea voyage and the experience of drunkenness, as well as the concluding chapters set in the Castle of Wisdom. Centrum securitatis is traditionally accompanied by the short treatise Renuntiatio mundi, or Farewell to the World, which develops the theme of finding certainty in God’s wisdom. Volume II consists of eight pastoral and exhortatory texts arranged chronologically according to the dates of their first publication. Through them, Komenský sought to encourage Czech exiles and members of the Unity of the Brethren. The most prominent is the four-part cycle Truchlivý, comprising Truchlivý I, Truchlivý II, The Turtle Dove’s Cry and The Sad Voice, which illustrates the contrast between the oppressive atmosphere following the Battle of White Mountain and the disillusionment of the 1650s and 1660s. It is joined by two similarly conceived texts: Napomenutí, or Admonition, attached to the eighth book of the history of the Unity of the Brethren by the Polish nobleman Jan Łasicki, and the famous Kšaft umírající matky Jednoty bratrské, or Testament of the Dying Mother of the Unity of the Brethren, offering encouragement in moments of hopelessness. Its prophetic words about the return of rule to Czech hands became part of the heritage of the entire nation. Two notable examples of Komenský’s homiletic work from 1649 complete this group of consoling writings: the Funeral Sermon for Pavel Fabricius and the Sermon on the Casting Out of Devils. The complete edition, including commentary, critical apparatus and explanatory notes, is prepared by the leading Czech Comenian scholar Tomáš Havelka. The texts are in Czech.