3322. I spoke with men of the most ancient Church about their speech, who showed me vividly by communicating their breathing to me, what their speech was like. It was not oral speech or articulated sound, as with us, but [was effected] by communication of their breathing, which seemed to them to pass from the navel toward the heart, and then upwards through the lips. It was not heard by way of the ear from without-thus of the external ear and the eardrum, which external sound flows to and as it were beats on - but by that breathing flowing out through the lips, and entering them through their mouth and nostrils and Eustachian tube, into the ear, and then being perceived. That breathing by itself has with it a complete mental image, I was not aware before, but now I can understand it, both from a certain inner sight confirmed
3322. (I spoke with the men of the most Ancient Church concerning their speech, who showed me to the life by means of the communication of their respiration to me what was the nature of their speech, to wit, that it is not a speech of the mouth, or of articulate sound, as with us, but [was effected] by means of the communication of their respiration, which seemed to them to be brought from the umbilicus towards the heart, and so upwards through the lips [and was] not heard through the external way [avenue] [viam] of the ear; thus not through, the external ear and tympanum into which external sound blows, and as it were beats [pulsat]; but through (by means of [such respiration flowing out through the lips, and entering through their mouth, thus through the nostrils, and through the eustachian tube into the ear, and so is perceived. That the respiration alone contains a full idea I was not aware of before, but now can perceive,
3322. Loquutus cum antiquissimae Ecclesiae viris de eorum loquela, qui mihi ad vivum, per communicationem respirationis eorum mecum, ostendebant qualis loquela eorum, nempe quod non loquela oris seu soni articulati sicut apud nos, sed per communicationem respirationis eorum, quae iis visa ab umbilico versus cor duci et sic sursum per labia, non audita per viam extrinsecam auris, sic non per aurem externam et tympanum, in quod sonus externus influit, et quasi pulsat, sed per respirationem talem effluentem per labia, et intrantem per os eos, sic per nares, et per tubam Eustachianam in aurem, et sic percepta; quod sola respiratio secum plenam ideam habeat, hoc non prius scivi, sed nunc percipere possum, tam ex perceptione quadam confirmata ab
(3323.) experientia respirationis internae, quam [ex eo] quod omnis loquela et affectus loquelae dirigatur per respirationem, sic ut nihil in idea vocis seu loquelae sit, quod non determinetur a respiratione; quare sequitur, quod plenior multo fuerit idea antiquissimae Ecclesiae, quam usquam dari potest hoc tempore; ita externum ideae est respiratio talis, quia idea eam producit 1
; talis quoque est respiratio spirituum, proinde inde ideae eorum, secundum differentias indefinitas, tum secundum gradus, quoad interiores respirationes, exinde sequitur, quod angelorum etiam coelestium ideae non sint nisi respirationes, et vita eorum Dominus Solus. Ita nunc instructus sum.
Footnotes:
1. This is how it appears in J.F.I. Tafel's edition; the Manuscript has cum idea eam producat, ubi cum in quia emendatum