Liber divinorum operum - Fifth vision
by Mark Vornhusen
by Mark Vornhusen
“And then I saw the world divided into five sectors: One part was in the east, another one in the west, the third one was in the south, the fourth one in the north, and the fifth one was in the centre. The eastern and the western parts were of about the same circumference and had both the shape of a stretched bow. The northern and the southern part also had the same size; their length and width were similar to those of the first two arcs, but due to the bow-like shape of the other arcs, their inner rims looked kind of truncated. Apart from these truncations, also they looked like a stretched bow.
The other two parts, the southern and the northern part, were divided into three sectors, the two centre parts of which had the same shape and the same size. The other four parts, which were situated at the rim, had a different but analogous shape and were situated in an appropriate distance; they had about the same length and width as the two centre parts, but their inner rims seemed to he abridged, their outer rims, however, appeared t be more extended than the other two parts. Just like the eastern and the western parts I mentioned above, they also curved offering here a more abridged and there a more extended space. The fifth one of these parts, which was situated in the centre, had a quadrilateral shape and was filled in one part with heat, in another part with cold and at another place with temperate air.
The eastern part I mentioned was very bright, the western part was slightly covered with gloom and thus darker, while the southern part was divided into three sectors. The two ones situated to its rim were filled with penalties while the third sector in the centre, although free of penalties, turned out to he horrible because there were other terrible monsters in it. The northern continent was also divided into three sectors, the outer ones of which also were filled with a variety of penalties, while the centre sector turned out to be terrible with its numerous horrors and penalties. Towards the east I saw a red ball above the curvature of the globe, at a certain elevation, which was surrounded by a sapphire-coloured circle. From each side of the ball, the right one as well as the left one, two wings extended. One on each side of the circle projected upwards in a way that these two bended towards each other and looked at each other while the other two came down from the two lower parts to the centre of the globe in a way that they surrounded and covered it outside the firmament. From this centre a red circle extended like an arc, surrounding the whole outer part of the west except certain sectors which were situated outside this globe in a way that it curved from the end of the eastern wing mentioned above to the west until it reached the end of the northern wing. From this globe a kind of building appeared towards the east and within the wings mentioned above. This building projected upward until it reached the ball mentioned earlier. From this ball a street extended to the centre between the wings mentioned above. Over this street a kind of bright star shone up.
Then a fireball appeared between the ends of these wings, emitting light to all directions. There were equal distances between the top of the globe I described earlier, and the red ball I mentioned, and also from this ball to the bright star I just mentioned, and from this star to the fireball. Between the front wings on each side of the street I mentioned and from the ball I mentioned against the star I mentioned and up to the fireball I described, certain rays of the heavenly bodies could be distinguished.
Towards the west outside the globe gloom appeared, which extended like an
arc from both parts of this curvature to its centre, down to which also the
two wings extended. Between the western and the northern corner two other, more
dense and even more terrific glooms yawned as if they were their mouth and jaws.
I only knew about these immense glooms, but I could not see them. And again
1 heard that voice from the sky speaking to me: (..)”
The globe Hildegard describes is the 22°-halo.The sections inside the 22 -halo are formed by the parhelic circle and the heliac arc (!). Two wings extended from both sides of the ball, from the left one as well as from the right one. One on each side of the circle projected upward in a way that these two looked at each other. This pair of wings is the Parry arc. "...while the two other (wings) went down from the two lower parts to the centre of the globe in a way that they surrounded and covered it outside the firmament.This pair of wings is the upper tangent arc. The area in the centre of the globe is the bright part of the sky around the sun.
