Jan Amos Komenský

“ Though written during the troublous times of the Thirty Years' War, Komensky's pansophic studies attracted great attention. Indeed, the horrors of that war may have inclined the minds of men to that mysticism that promised them a delightful future, contrasting with the wretched present. It is always in times of great misery that mystic, particularly chiliastic, ideas, such as Komensky professed in the last years of his life, appeal most to the minds of men.
The interest in Komensky's pansophic studies was not limited to Poland, Bohemia, and Germany. ”

“ The pilgrim then pursues his journey through the halls of higher learning, and his visit to the scholars is indeed described with far more detail than that to any of the other "streets." The pilgrim visits consecutively the philosophers—here Komensky gives a curious list of philosophers founded on Andrea—the grammarians, rhetoricians, and poets. The writer violently attacks the heathen poets of Greece and Rome, whom, indeed, in his capacity as a pedagogue, he afterwards wished to expel from the schools and replace by Christian writers. ”

“ Similar attempts to connect great writings with the scenery that surrounded their author while he wrote them have often been made; and it is certain that a man of genius—such as Komensky undoubtedly was—would be more strongly impressed and influenced by the scenery around him than an ordinary man.
Meanwhile, Komensky's stay in his beloved Bohemia was drawing to an end. The condition of the brethren at Brandeis was at first a fairly tolerable one. The Austrian Government, grateful to Zerotin for his fidelity to the house of Habsburg, did not at first molest his protégés much. ”

“ Komensky's diatribe against unworthy priests and bishops, "who wear a coat of mail over a surplice, a helmet over a barat; who hold the Word of God in one hand, a sword in the other; who carry Peter's keys in front, and Judas's wallet behind; whose mind is educated by Scripture, though their heart is practised in fraud; whose tongue is full of piety, though their eyes are full of wantonness," will, at the present day, appear offensive to the members of no Christian community. ”

“ As the main purpose of the earlier part of the "Labyrinth" is to prove that all professions are but vanity, and contain more evil than good, there was here no place for the peasants, who were humble by necessity, and had willingly or unwillingly to follow Komensky's precept, that it is better to obey than to rule.
After the pilgrim has passed twofold gates, he beholds the various estates of mankind in the order mentioned above. When dealing with matrimony, Komensky expresses very pessimistic views, largely, I think, to consistently maintain his theory that everything earthly is evil ”

“ Komensky fled to Bohemia with his wife and children, and sought refuge with Charles, Lord of Zerotin, at Brandeis on the Orlice. [18] I have already mentioned the name of Charles of Zerotin. During the war that had just ended he had, though a fervent Bohemian patriot and member of the Unity, not espoused the cause of Frederick of the Palatinate, but had remained faithful to the House of Habsburg. It was therefore natural that the victors showed him a certain amount of consideration. ”

“ The "Labyrinth" has been frequently reprinted, and is now in the hands of all Bohemian readers, who have the same affection for the book that their ancestors had more than two centuries ago. In consequence of Komensky's great mastery of his language, parts of the "Labyrinth" are read in the Bohemian schools, in which the national language is now largely used. It is not necessary to enumerate the many editions of the "Labyrinth" that have appeared within the last years. ”

“ If we assume this standpoint, a man is neither more nor less a pessimist whether he believes that the joys of a future life will make good the horrors of the present one, or whether he longs for the quiet of Nirwana, or patiently awaits the absorption of his individuality in the totality of the world-soul. To prove that Komensky was a pessimist, it is sufficient to read the "Labyrinth" without the last chapters (xxxvii. to liv.) ”

“ Though the "Labyrinth" is, to a certain extent, a philosophical work, and, to a certain extent, also a book of adventure, yet it must be considered as mainly a theological work. It could not be otherwise as regards a book written by Komensky, who called himself "hominem vocatione theologum," and who, in all his writings, even on other subjects, referred constantly to theological matters. Thus, in his "pansophic works," philosophy is still the handmaiden of theology, an idea that even in his days was already becoming obsolete. ”

“ I feel certain that it is venturesome to attempt to bring a work of a Bohemian writer before the English-speaking public, now the largest public of readers in the world. Even the name of my country has been known to English readers only in connection with associations that are both incongruous and absurd.
It seems to me certain that the judgment that Bohemian critics have passed on Komensky's masterpiece, the "Labyrinth of the World," claiming it to be one of the world's great books, is not unfounded or based on patriotic predilections. ”

“ After the magistrates, the pilgrim visits the rulers. They have neither eyes nor ears nor tongue, and communicate with their subjects by means of tubes. Komensky thus describes satirically the difficulty which a humble man encounters when he endeavours to approach the rulers, who see, hear, and speak only through their courtiers and councillors. ”

“ In the end The Unity bids farewell to the Czech nation and blesses Him with the words of Moses. It wishes Him strength, plenty of men, happiness in the fight and in work. His enemies should be always humiliated! Writing his Testament, Komenský used the form of a Last Will and Testament: The Unity, while dying, calls all her children to herself to make a Last Will about her spiritual property. ”

“ We see the gate of life, through which all must enter; the various streets in which men reside, according to their callings; and in the heights the dwellings of eternal bliss. More's "Utopia" and Campanella's "Civitas Solis" undoubtedly influenced Komensky when writing the "Labyrinth," and he mentions both More and Campanella by name in the book. On the other hand, there is no trace in it of the influence of "Verulamius," as Komensky always calls Bacon, though his later writings have evidence of a considerable study of the works of Bacon, whom he frequently mentions. ”

“ And they began to look at these books, and as soon as a man began to look at one of them he became, as it were, intoxicated, and attempted to defend it. [15] Among the arbitrators and mediators also great dissension began, for one man maintained this opinion, another that one. And having thus settled nothing, they dispersed, and the learned men again returned to their quarrels; and this grieved me unto tears.
↑ According to the ideas of Komensky's time, these were believed to be secretions of the brain. ↑ Komensky thus allegorically describes the imagination. ↑ Literally musculous. ”

“ Some of Komensky's other educational works, such as the "Orbispictus," also became widely known. On the other hand, his later philosophical, or, as he called them, "pansophic" works have obtained but limited recognition. The power of condensing his thoughts and concentrating his mind that Komensky possessed when he wrote the "Labyrinth" failed him later in life, though the pansophic works for a short time attracted some attention, particularly in England. ”

“ I said. "I who, among so many thousand who are more learned than I, know not a single example of one who succeeded? I do not wish to continue gaping here. Let us proceed hence."
↑ I.e., Lapis philosophicus—the philosopher's stone. ↑ Hugo Alverda was—according to Komensky—the founder of the Rosicrucians. ↑ I.e., of the Rosicrucians. ↑ I.e., through eloquence, poetry, and the liberal arts. ↑ These words of uncouth Latinity form part of the vocabulary particular to the Rosicrucians, and Komensky has formed them partly on Paracelolus Venetus. ”

“ It is certain that when writing the "Labyrinth" Komensky wrote as a pessimist. That term has in recent years been used so largely and so vaguely that it may perhaps be as well to mention the sense in which I employ it. I consider that man a pessimist who believes that if we sum up the emotions and sensations of life in this world, we will find that those that are painful are both stronger and more numerous than those that are pleasurable. ”

“ To those who are not either professed pedagogues or students for whom long-past theories on natural history and natural philosophy—such as we find in the pansophic works—have an historical interest, Komensky's most valuable work will always be the "Labyrinth of the World." ”

“ The whole world will have peace; (there will be) one truth, one heart, one path. Thus will Christ's prophecy of 'one shepherd, one flock' be fulfilled. This will be the true Golden Age. It will be the Sabbath of the Church, the seventh period of the world, preceding the octave that will resound in happy eternity." [118]
The last years of Komenský were principally occupied in collecting, and sometimes re-writing, his works. The enormous collection of educational books was during Komenský's stay at Amsterdam republished in Latin in a gigantic folio volume under the name of Opera Didactica. ”

“ He confessed his impostures and was executed, though he had accepted the creed of Rome in the hope of saving his life.
Komenský's activity as a teacher while at Saros Patak was indefatigable. He attempted to improve and re [Pg 274] organise the "gymnasium" of the town, and also wrote several new educational works during his stay in Hungary. He encountered, however, many obstacles; the local teachers were opposed to him, and reproached him with his intimacy with Drabik; linguistic difficulties also arose. If Komenský yet remained four years in Hungary, it was mainly for political purposes. ”

“ He was dressed like a fop in the height of the fashion of that day, wearing a white tie, with a great gold pin in it, a well-curled moustache and those short side-whiskers which were then the vogue. He had light-blue eyes and fair, curly hair, and had it not been for the side-whiskers, would have looked much younger than he was. Everything about him suggested that he was--or should have been--a gentleman of means and leisure.
"Cave tibi cane muto," he repeated, more slowly than before. And this time I had the sense to understand it: "Beware of the silent dog."
"Just so," said Amos. ”

“ Not content with declaring, what is undeniable, that Komenský was a learned and original writer on educational matters, and the author of one of the most fascinating allegorical tales that have ever been written, great importance has been attributed to his writings on philosophy, or, as he would have called it, "Pansophy." No one can impartially claim for Komenský high rank as a philosopher, and it is certainly a mistake to speak of Komenský's system of philosophy. There is no philosophical system of Komenský in the sense that there exists a philosophical system of Spinoza. ”

“ Devoting himself to the elaboration of his scheme, Comenius settled first at Elbing, and then at Lissa; but, at the burning of the latter city by the Poles, he lost nearly all his manuscripts, and he finally removed to Amsterdam, where he died in 1671.
As an educationist, Comenius holds a prominent place in history. He was disgusted at the pedantic teaching of his own day, and he insisted that the teaching of words and things must go together. Languages should be taught, like the mother tongue, by conversation on ordinary topics ”

“ JOHANN AMOS COMENIUS. We now reach not only the greatest representative of sense realism, both in theory and practice, before the latter part of the eighteenth century, but also one of the commanding figures in the history of education. Comenius was born at Nivnitz, in Moravia, in 1592. As a member, pastor, and later bishop of the Moravian church, and as a follower of John Huss, he suffered greatly in the Catholic-Protestant warfare which raged over his native land during the period of the Thirty Years' War. ”

“ The “Janua” had an enormous sale, and was published in many languages, but the editions and sale of the “Orbis Pictus” far exceeded those of the “Janua,” and, indeed, for some time it was the most popular text-book in Europe, and deservedly so. —Laurie’s John Amos Comenius, Boston edition, p. 185.
[xi]
Text
[xii] Gen. ii. 19, 20.
The Lord God brought unto Adam every Beast of the Field, and every Fowl of the Air, to see what he would call them. And Adam gave Names to all Cattle, and to the Fowl of the Air, and to every Beast of the Field. ”

“ Komenský's Labyrinth, in fact, reeks with pessimism, though his admirable religious faith and piety enabled him to give a supernatural and consolatory ending to his book. Happiness, unattainable here, is to be found elsewhere. ”

“ In front of the chiefs' dwellings poles were erected from which hung the antlers of deer, the skulls of boars and the fair-haired heads of men. Komm was taken into a hut which contained nothing save a hearthstone still covered with ashes, a bed of dried leaves and the image of a god shapen from the trunk of a lime-tree. Bound to the pillar which supported the thatched roof, the Atrebate meditated on his ill luck and sought in his mind for some magic word of power or some ingenious device which should deliver him from the wrath of the British chieftains. ”