Lately I have been reflecting on Augustine’s journey back to Milan in vatious experiments to create a rockin’ instrumental album. We know that in 387 Augustine and friends along with likely Monica and his son journey back to Milan from their retreat in the hills of Cassiciacum.
This marks a pivotal change in Augustine’s journey. He is returning back to Milan for instruction in the faith and ultimately baptism.
As I have reflected on this trip from Cassiciacum to Milan I was imaging a kind of slow and reflective vibe. According to what I could find it seems the journey would be possible in a day of about 8 hours of walking at a non stop brisk pace. Comfortably the journey can be made on foot in about 2 days time with an overnight rest.
In looking into potential stops along the route to Milan from Cassiciacum I found there was at the time a small town located about half way between Cassiciacum and Milan that was called Modicia (modern day Mondza). This ancient town I think makes sense as a likely stop for the crew especially when we consider they were given to long talks eith care to rest and also when we consider that part of their company consisted of a very young teenager and a woman in her mid to late fifties.
To me this fit with a slow and reflective pace which I am imagining for the party. I don’t see them as in too much of a hurry to arrive back to Milan though I do think there was a growing sense of anticipation and excitement for what lies ahead. We might even say the journey is reflective to a degree of Augustine’s own spiritual journey from the heights of philosophy to the simplicity of faith.
So I picture the journey as beginning at the heights of philosophical reflection in the hills and then a decent from those lofty places towards city life and faith orientated reflections.
The album began as just 5 songs but quickly grew to 12. I have been listening to it for the past few weeks along with the album On the Immortality of the Soul. I am considering releasing them together. I especiallt enjoy the new album On the Immortality of the Soul and am excited to share it. I have also been experimenting with creating simple translations of that work and also past ones so that I can listen to the works themselves and share them also for others to enjoy. Thanks for reading!
So now that I have released the rockin’ early letters EP its time to next begin work towards an album based on Augustine’s next work On the Immortality of the Soul. You may wonder…how does Kyle know which work comes next? Well the easy answer is I am relying on Augustine’s own recollection in a book he wrote near the end of his life called the Retractions or in Latin Retractationes. In this work Augustine surveys much of his writings in the order he recalls writing them and provides comments about each. So it makes it easy I just go to the Retractions and look at what is next. Augustine is 73 years old writing his Retractationes and when he wrote On the Immortality of the Soul he was in his early 30s. So he is remembering back 40 years or so. Retractationes then is very useful as a guideline for constructing a timeline of Augustines writings and life and Augustine did have copies of his own works so he was able to read them. Imagine reading something you wrote 40 years ago. For me I guess it would be baby scribbles at my current age but because I am a little bit of a digital pack rat I was able to pull up a research paper from college that was about 16 years old. It was interesting to read parts of it.
Well anyways here is what Augustine writes regarding his work On the Immortality of the Soul. In my weird sense of humor I chuckled a bit reading the end of the first paragraph. It was almost exactly the thought I had trying to read the work. Thank God for AI being able to summarize it! In reading the below I kinda picture Old Man Augustine rolling his eyes a little at his younger self. Regardless we will create a cool rock album on the work to bring out the best parts in an accessible way. It is a good reminder that Augustine’s thoughts did transform significantly over time and that we are presently dealing with early Augustine who was really at this point in his life mostly untaught in the Christian faith. It has been one of those things listening to the albums and reading portions of the works that I struggled a little with as they are not exactly 100% theologically correct. That said I didn’t really intend this band to be all albums expressing Christian ideas but rather to be faithfully Augustine and help learn about him. Sometimes that means learning about people’s shifts in thinking, how they learned and even their mistakes. It is a good thing for you to remember if like me you find some of the songs to be a bit too much glorifying reason and the mind or too philosophical. Trust me when I say we will see a shift. Some of that shift I think we see especially in Soliloquies with his prayers there. All that said though, God uses people to convey His truth even in youthful ignorance and also sometimes it’s the partial truths (which is a truth just less full) that hit us when we are far from God that God uses to lead us to Christ.
Augustine, Retractions, Chapter 5
After I finished the Soliloquies and returned from the countryside near Milan, I wrote a short book called On the Immortality of the Soul. I meant it to be a kind of personal note to help me complete the Soliloquies, since that work was still unfinished. But somehow, even though I didn’t intend it, the book was copied and shared, and now it’s counted among my writings. The reasoning in it is very compact and difficult to follow—so much that even I find it tiring to read, and I can hardly understand it myself.
When I wrote that book, I was thinking only about the human mind. In one place I said that learning cannot exist in something that never learns. Elsewhere I said that knowledge only includes what belongs to a certain discipline. But I failed to remember that God doesn’t learn any disciplines, and yet He knows everything, including things that have not yet happened. I also wrote that no being has life joined with reason except the soul. But of course God’s life is not without reason, for in Him there is the highest life and the highest reason. And when I said that whatever is understood always stays the same, I forgot that the mind itself is something that can be understood, yet it changes constantly. I also wrote that the mind cannot be separated from eternal reason because it is not joined to it by place. I would not have said that if I had already learned from Scripture, which says that our sins separate us from God. That shows that even things not joined in place can still be separated in a spiritual way.
I also said that if the soul is without the body, it is not in this world. I can no longer remember what I meant by that. Surely the souls of the dead are without bodies, and yet they are still somewhere in this world, since even the realm of the dead belongs to creation. Perhaps when I said “without the body,” I meant being free from the body’s corruptions or sicknesses; if so, my wording was poor. I also wrote rashly that the highest Being gives form to the body through the soul, so that the body exists only as long as it is alive—whether this applies to the world as a whole or to each living creature within it. That whole idea was careless and mistaken.
This book begins with the words, “If there is anywhere such a thing as learning.”
An EP inspired by Augustine’s early letters from Cassiciacum (c. 386 AD), reimagined as a reflective 1980s rock cycle of truth, friendship, longing, and the soul’s search for blessedness.
ChatGPT Model – 5
Suno Model – 4.5
Note: Suno models 4.5+ and 5 were available to me however I was unable to find prompts to make those models sound Augustinus Vox. I did however find a new band 😆
Suno style
atmospheric synths, rock, slow, dynamic tempo shifts, 80s rock ballad, ballad, epic guitar riffs, male vocals
Literalness level – 3 to 2 (faithful leaning towards interpretive)
Note: At present I am working with a four scale categorization. Literal (4), faithful (3), interpretive (2), free (1)
Extra
If for some strange reason you like me you are curious to listen to this album in the style of slow contemporary worship then you can do so here
Tracklist
1. Truth over Eloquence 2. Gratitude and Redirection 3. The Friend of My Soul 4. The Search for Blessedness 5. Bound in Love
[Verse 1] I chased the shine of empty fame, Words of fire without a flame. But style alone can never last, The truth is stronger than the past.
[Pre-Chorus] Better broken words that rise with truth, Than golden lies that waste our youth.
[Chorus] Truth over eloquence, fire over form, A heart that seeks wisdom can weather the storm. The world may love style, but I want the real, The word everlasting, the light I can feel.
[Verse 2] The stage is loud, the crowd will cheer, But when it fades, what will we hear? Only the voice that calls within, The place where honesty begins.
[Pre-Chorus] Better stumbling speech that lifts the soul, Than perfect songs that leave us cold.
[Chorus] Truth over eloquence, fire over form, A heart that seeks wisdom can weather the storm. The world may love style, but I want the real, The word everlasting, the light I can feel.
[Bridge – guitar solo, swelling synths] Turn from shadows, seek the flame, The voice eternal calls your name.
[Final Chorus – soaring vocals] Truth over eloquence, fire over form, A heart that seeks wisdom can weather the storm. The world may love style, but I want the real, The word everlasting, the light I can feel.
[Intro – warm synth pad, clean electric guitar with chorus effect]
[Verse 1] You gave me words, a gift of flame, A sharpened art, a honored name. But style alone will fade away, Only the truth will always stay.
[Pre-Chorus] So I thank you with an open hand, But point us both to higher plans.
[Chorus] Gratitude and redirection, Every gift can find perfection. Not for glory, not for show, But for the truth all hearts should know.
[Verse 2] The world will cheer a golden tongue, But shallow songs are quickly sung. When voices fail, the light remains, The one eternal truth sustains.
[Pre-Chorus] So I honor what you’ve shared with me, But turn us toward eternity.
[Chorus] Gratitude and redirection, Every gift can find perfection. Not for glory, not for show, But for the truth all hearts should know.
[Bridge – soaring guitar solo over pulsing synths] Every word can serve the flame, When it bows before His name.
[Final Chorus – layered vocals, soaring harmonies] Gratitude and redirection, Every gift can find perfection. Not for glory, not for show, But for the truth all hearts should know.
[Intro – soft piano over ambient synths, clean guitar arpeggios]
[Verse 1] Through the distance, through the years, Through the laughter, through the tears, Nothing stronger, nothing more, Than the bond that we live for.
[Pre-Chorus] Not in riches, not in fame, But in love that has no name.
[Chorus] Friend of my soul, closer than breath, Through every trial, through life and death. Together we seek the light above, Forever bound in truth and love.
[Verse 2] Questions rise and answers fall, But our hearts outlast them all. Side by side in every fight, Restless hearts that chase the light.
[Pre-Chorus] Every step though paths divide, We still walk here side by side.
[Chorus] Friend of my soul, closer than breath, Through every trial, through life and death. Together we seek the light above, Forever bound in truth and love.
[Bridge – soaring guitar solo, synth swell] Though the world may pull apart, Faith still ties the hidden heart.
[Final Chorus – layered vocals, full band] Friend of my soul, closer than breath, Through every trial, through life and death. Together we seek the light above, Forever bound in truth and love.
[Verse 1] They called me blessed, but I still seek, Wisdom’s voice is faint, my heart is weak. Not in ignorance, not in pride, But in the truth where life abides.
[Pre-Chorus] The world is vast, yet questions remain, Infinity whispers through joy and pain.
[Chorus] The search for blessedness, beyond the sky, Not in the flesh, but the soul’s reply. Eternal light, unbroken flame, The truth immortal calls my name.
[Verse 2] The stars still turn, the atoms fall, But deeper laws are known to all. No fleeting dream, no fleeting breath, Can give the life that conquers death.
[Pre-Chorus] The soul is greater than all we see, Immortal truth is our destiny.
[Chorus] The search for blessedness, beyond the sky, Not in the flesh, but the soul’s reply. Eternal light, unbroken flame, The truth immortal calls my name.
[Bridge – soaring guitar solo over swelling synth] Not in shadows, not in lies, But in the wisdom that never dies.
[Final Chorus – layered vocals, higher key modulation] The search for blessedness, beyond the sky, Not in the flesh, but the soul’s reply. Eternal light, unbroken flame, The truth immortal calls my name.
[Outro – fading piano chords, soft synth shimmer]
Track 5 – Bound in Love
[Intro – shimmering synth pad, slow electric guitar chords]
[Verse 1] No distance can divide our way, We find each other day by day. Even silence speaks the same, Our hearts are joined beyond a name.
[Pre-Chorus] Every bond will fade with time, But this love is still divine.
[Chorus] Bound in love, unbroken tie, Stronger than the earth or sky. In the light our souls remain, Love eternal, never vain.
[Verse 2] The world may change, the world may go, But this fire will always grow. Faith has sealed what death can’t part, Woven deep within the heart.
[Pre-Chorus] Every bond will fade with time, But this love is still divine.
[Chorus] Bound in love, unbroken tie, Stronger than the earth or sky. In the light our souls remain, Love eternal, never vain.
[Bridge – melodic guitar solo with synth undercurrent] Every prayer that I lift for you Draws us both toward what is true.
[Final Chorus – soaring vocals, layered harmonies] Bound in love, unbroken tie, Stronger than the earth or sky. In the light our souls remain, Love eternal, never vain.
An album inspired by Augustine’s early letters from Cassiciacum (c. 386 AD), reimagined as a reflective 1980s rock cycle of truth, friendship, longing, and the soul’s search for blessedness.
Below are the full lyrics for all 5 tracks from Cassiciacum Letters – EP by Augustinus Vox, including “Truth over Eloquence,” “Gratitude and Redirection,” “The Friend of My Soul,” “The Search for Blessedness,” and “Bound in Love.”
I chased the shine of empty fame, Words of fire without a flame. But style alone can never last, The truth is stronger than the past.
Better broken words that rise with truth, Than golden lies that waste our youth.
Truth over eloquence, fire over form, A heart that seeks wisdom can weather the storm. The world may love style, but I want the real, The word everlasting, the light I can feel.
The stage is loud, the crowd will cheer, But when it fades, what will we hear? Only the voice that calls within, The place where honesty begins.
Better stumbling speech that lifts the soul, Than perfect songs that leave us cold.
Truth over eloquence, fire over form, A heart that seeks wisdom can weather the storm. The world may love style, but I want the real, The word everlasting, the light I can feel.
Turn from shadows, seek the flame, The voice eternal calls your name.
Truth over eloquence, fire over form, A heart that seeks wisdom can weather the storm. The world may love style, but I want the real, The word everlasting, the light I can feel.
Gratitude and Redirection
You gave me words, a gift of flame, A sharpened art, a honored name. But style alone will fade away, Only the truth will always stay.
So I thank you with an open hand, But point us both to higher plans.
Gratitude and redirection, Every gift can find perfection. Not for glory, not for show, But for the truth all hearts should know.
The world will cheer a golden tongue, But shallow songs are quickly sung. When voices fail, the light remains, The one eternal truth sustains.
So I honor what you’ve shared with me, But turn us toward eternity.
Gratitude and redirection, Every gift can find perfection. Not for glory, not for show, But for the truth all hearts should know.
Every word can serve the flame, When it bows before His name.
Gratitude and redirection, Every gift can find perfection. Not for glory, not for show, But for the truth all hearts should know.
The Friend of My Soul
Through the distance, through the years, Through the laughter, through the tears, Nothing stronger, nothing more, Than the bond that we live for.
Not in riches, not in fame, But in love that has no name.
Friend of my soul, closer than breath, Through every trial, through life and death. Together we seek the light above, Forever bound in truth and love.
Questions rise and answers fall, But our hearts outlast them all. Side by side in every fight, Restless hearts that chase the light.
Every step though paths divide, We still walk here side by side.
Friend of my soul, closer than breath, Through every trial, through life and death. Together we seek the light above, Forever bound in truth and love.
Though the world may pull apart, Faith still ties the hidden heart.
Friend of my soul, closer than breath, Through every trial, through life and death. Together we seek the light above, Forever bound in truth and love.
The Search for Blessedness
They called me blessed, but I still seek, Wisdom’s voice is faint, my heart is weak. Not in ignorance, not in pride, But in the truth where life abides.
The world is vast, yet questions remain, Infinity whispers through joy and pain.
The search for blessedness, beyond the sky, Not in the flesh, but the soul’s reply. Eternal light, unbroken flame, The truth immortal calls my name.
The stars still turn, the atoms fall, But deeper laws are known to all. No fleeting dream, no fleeting breath, Can give the life that conquers death.
The soul is greater than all we see, Immortal truth is our destiny.
The search for blessedness, beyond the sky, Not in the flesh, but the soul’s reply. Eternal light, unbroken flame, The truth immortal calls my name.
Not in shadows, not in lies, But in the wisdom that never dies.
The search for blessedness, beyond the sky, Not in the flesh, but the soul’s reply. Eternal light, unbroken flame, The truth immortal calls my name.
Bound in Love
No distance can divide our way, We find each other day by day. Even silence speaks the same, Our hearts are joined beyond a name.
Every bond will fade with time, But this love is still divine.
Bound in love, unbroken tie, Stronger than the earth or sky. In the light our souls remain, Love eternal, never vain.
The world may change, the world may go, But this fire will always grow. Faith has sealed what death can’t part, Woven deep within the heart.
Every bond will fade with time, But this love is still divine.
Bound in love, unbroken tie, Stronger than the earth or sky. In the light our souls remain, Love eternal, never vain.
Every prayer that I lift for you Draws us both toward what is true.
Bound in love, unbroken tie, Stronger than the earth or sky. In the light our souls remain, Love eternal, never vain.
[What you read below is an AI recreation of my own thoughts as I discussed and read letter 1 to the AI. I wanted to write a blog post and thought hey I am not as much a writer as much as a talker…why not try talking to AI about the letter then have it give me back my thoughts in the form of a blog post. I think it worked rather well in the end! One thing it did leave out is I suggested that Augustine maybe should nickname Hermogenianus “Herm”]
In his first letter, Augustine gives us a fascinating glimpse into his mindset just after writing Against the Academics. He begins with striking humility: he insists he never meant to “attack” the Academic skeptics, only to imitate their method. Their skepticism, he suggests, once played an important role in God’s design—protecting people from falling into a simplistic materialism that reduced the soul to mere body.
That’s such an unexpected move: Augustine seeing even skepticism as a tool of providence. It reminds me how easily we think of doubt as an enemy of faith, yet Augustine shows it can also guard us against worse errors.
Philosophers in Cloaks, and Experts Today
Augustine goes on to lament that in his day there were fewer genuine philosophers, just people who wore the philosopher’s cloak without deserving the name. That resonates with our own age of information overload, where flashy presentation can masquerade as expertise. Augustine calls us not to be fooled by appearances, but to hold onto the deeper hope that truth really can be found.
Wrestling with Skeptics, Not Drifting into Laziness
Another point Augustine raises is how dangerous it is to give up the search. He gently teases people who would rather sink into laziness than keep wrestling with hard questions. It’s strangely familiar: how easy it is to scroll, to drift, to settle into distraction rather than pursue wisdom. Augustine urges us to do better.
And he practiced what he preached. He wasn’t reading narrowly. He was engaging with a wide range of thinkers, including skeptics like Carneades, showing that truth-seeking meant engaging ideas—even difficult or daunting ones—head on.
Friendship, Feedback, and Humility
I also love the way Augustine invites honest feedback from his friend. He asks Hermogenianus not to flatter him, but to really say whether the conclusion at the end of his book seems reasonable. This kind of intellectual friendship—valuing truth over praise—feels refreshing in any age.
The Ending: Truth as Nourishment
Augustine closes on a beautiful note: breaking free from despair about ever knowing the truth nourished him. Truth, he says, is food for the soul. That line lingers. Augustine is reminding us that truth isn’t just an abstract concept—it’s sustenance, something that feeds and strengthens our very being.
It’s a timeless encouragement: don’t despair, don’t give up the search. Truth is not only possible, it’s nourishing.
I am sorry to disappoint anyone who might happen across this but Augustine didn’t write any science fiction that we know of cool as that would be. If he did, I imagine it would probably be some sprawling epic tale similar to something like the Lord of the Rings, Dune or Foundation.
On the other hand I did do some experimenting to transform a small portion of one of his works into a children’s science fiction story. It turned out somewhat ok. The goal was to experiment with to help me learn in a fun way and also in a way perhaps my nephews and nieces would enjoy. Here is a sample chapter.
Can you guess which work it comes from?
Hint – The beginning kinda gives it away.
If you cant figure it out try copying the text into an AI and asking it to guess.
The image above was definitely AI generated
Captain August and the Truth Stars Book 1 of the Truth Stars Series
Chapter 1 – The Wind That Pushes
Captain’s Log (to Admiral Roman): “Fortune’s winds toss us about, Admiral, but Sophia reminds me: we are not leaves—we can steer.”
The starship Cassiciacum drifted through a stretch of quiet stars. Captain August tapped the glowing wheel, steadying the hum of the engines. Licen leaned over the control panel, pretending to fly with his arms out.
“Easy sailing today,” August said.
Just then—WHOOSH! A cosmic wind, bigger than any storm on Earth, shoved the ship sideways. The crew tumbled into their seats with a thump.
Licen laughed so hard his helmet nearly slipped. “Wheee! The wind feels like a roller coaster!”
But Tryg gripped her chair, eyes serious. “What if it blows us into an asteroid field? Or spins us around until we’re lost?”
Ally tilted her head, silent as usual. She seemed to be weighing both sides, her eyes following the stars sliding past the window.
Another gust whooshed the ship, and the engines groaned.
From the center of the cockpit, Sophia’s gentle glow brightened. Her voice was calm and steady: “The wind can push, but it cannot choose your path. You are not leaves to be blown—you can steer.”
Licen blinked. “Even when the wind is stronger than the engines?”
“Yes,” Sophia said. “Because wisdom is stronger than luck. The ship listens to you.”
August nodded, gripping the wheel tighter. “Sophia’s right. Fortune might toss us around, but we don’t have to drift.”
The ship steadied. The crew gathered around the navigation map. A thousand specks of light glimmered there, each one a Truth Star, hidden among the galaxies.
Licen leaned forward eagerly. “So all we have to do is find them?”
Tryg shook her head. “Not just find them. We need to know them, to be sure they’re real. Otherwise we’ll just be chasing light.”
“Searching is half the fun,” Licen shot back.
“And finding is what makes it matter,” Tryg replied.
Ally cleared her throat softly. “Maybe both will matter. We’ll see.”
August smiled at them. “Admiral Roman would like this. He always told me: ‘Don’t let the wind decide. Steer your own way.’” He placed his hand on the glowing map. “Crew, our quest begins now.”
One by one, Licen, Tryg, and Ally added their hands. Sophia’s light flickered brighter, almost like a smile.
The ship’s engines purred, stronger than before, as if Fortune’s wind had become only background noise.
The Cassiciacum sailed forward, chasing its first Truth Star.
Truth Star Lesson: “Wisdom helps us steer, even when the wind blows wild.”
Here are letter 1 through letter 4 translated in a simple style as mentioned before.
Letter 1
Augustine to Hermogenianus
I would never dare to attack the Academics—not even in jest. The authority of such great men is weighty, and I wouldn’t disregard them unless I believed their real opinion was quite different from what most people assume. That’s why I tried to follow their example rather than fight them—because honestly, I’m not able to refute them.
It seemed fitting for the times that, if anything pure flowed from Plato’s fountain, it should be hidden away in shady, thorny places, where only a few people could drink. If it flowed out in the open, the great crowd would rush in and muddy it, so that nothing pure could remain. And really, what belief is more “fitting” for the masses than to think the soul is nothing but a body? Against that kind of thinking, I believe God wisely raised up the Academic approach.
But things are different in our own day. We hardly see any true philosophers—only people dressed in the philosopher’s cloak, and I don’t think they deserve so great a title. So now it seems necessary to bring people back into the hope of finding truth. If the Academics’ clever words once scared some people away from seeking understanding, I want to call them back. Otherwise, a strategy that was once helpful for uprooting deep errors could now end up blocking the growth of knowledge.
Back then, the rivalry between different schools of thought was so passionate that the only danger was people accepting something false as true. When someone was shaken from what he thought was unshakably certain, he would only search harder and more carefully for what was real. People were more earnest in their morals, and truth was sensed as lying hidden in the deepest layers of reality and of the soul.
But now things are different. People avoid hard work and neglect the pursuit of learning. So when they hear that even the sharpest philosophers concluded that nothing can be fully known, they just give up—closing their minds forever. The more energetic ones don’t dare to think they could succeed where Carneades himself failed, even though he devoted incredible energy, talent, study, and even a long life to the pursuit. And if anyone does resist laziness enough to read those same books, which seem to prove that human understanding is impossible, they fall asleep in such a stupor that not even the trumpet of heaven could wake them.
That’s why I value your honest judgment of my little books so highly. I trust your wisdom and friendship so much that I know neither error nor flattery will find a place in your reply. So I ask you especially to consider carefully, and write back to me: do you approve of what I suggested near the end of the third book? Perhaps I phrased it more as a suspicion than a certainty, but I believed it was more useful to accept than to dismiss as unbelievable.
Whatever the case, what pleases me is not so much that I “defeated the Academics” (as you kindly say—though I think more out of affection than accuracy), but that I broke free from that hateful chain: the despair of truth. That despair had been holding me back from the rich nourishment of philosophy, and from the truth itself, which is the food of the soul.
Letter 2
Augustine to Zenobius
We both agree, I think, that everything we experience with our physical senses is constantly changing. It slips away, it flows, it never stays the same even for a moment. In Latin, we say such things “are not,” because they cannot truly be present. That’s why true and divine philosophy urges us to restrain and quiet the most harmful love of such things—a love full of punishment—so that our whole mind, even while still living in this body, might bear and burn for realities that are always the same, and not for some passing beauty that is only a stranger to us.
Because of this, and because the mind sees you as true and simple—someone who can be loved without anxiety—we still admit that we long to meet you and see you. When you are absent from us in body and separated by distance, we still desire your presence as long as we are allowed to. If I know you well, you even love this fault in us. And because you wish all good things for your dearest friends, you probably fear that we will be “cured” of this longing.
But if you are so strong in mind that you can both recognize this snare and even smile at those caught in it, then you are indeed remarkable and different. As for me, while you are away, I want to be missed. Yet I watch myself as much as I can and strive to love nothing that can be taken from me against my will.
In the meantime, I urge you—whatever you are doing—to finish the discussion you began with us, if we truly care for ourselves. I would never allow it to be completed with Alypius, even if he wanted to; but in fact, he doesn’t. It’s simply not in his nature right now to work with me. So let us keep you with us by as many letters as we can, though I don’t know why you keep slipping away.
Letter 3
Augustine to Nebridius
I’m not sure whether it was your flattering words or something real that made me feel as you wrote; it came on me suddenly, without much reflection, and I’m not sure how far I should trust it. You’re wondering what I mean. Well, you almost persuaded me—not that I’m truly happy (that belongs only to the wise), but that I’m “sort of” happy, the way we call something “roundish” or “square-ish” even when it’s far from perfectly round or square. Last night after supper I read your letter by lamplight; I was already lying down but not yet asleep. And there I was, Augustine talking with Augustine in bed: “Is Nebridius right? Are we happy?” Of course not; even he wouldn’t deny we’re still foolish. “But what if even fools can be happy?” That’s hard to swallow, because what misery is greater than foolishness itself?
Why did you think so? Did reading those little books of mine lead you to believe me wise? Surely your joy isn’t that reckless, especially since I know how weighty your judgment is. No, you wrote what you thought would delight me, because you yourself were delighted by whatever you found in my writings. You wrote in joy and didn’t stop to ask what your joyful pen should or shouldn’t commit to paper. If you had read the Soliloquies, you’d have rejoiced even more—but still you wouldn’t have found a better name for me than “happy.” So you quickly poured the highest title on me, leaving yourself nothing greater to say. See what joy can do!
But where is this happy life? Where? Oh, if it really existed, it would drive away Epicurus’s atoms. If it really existed, it would know there’s nothing “below” except the world. If it really existed, it would know that the outermost sphere moves more slowly than the middle, and other such things we know. But how can I be happy when I don’t even know why the world is so big? The geometry that makes it what it is would allow it to be as large as anyone pleased. Or how can I avoid admitting that bodies can be divided without limit, unless I suppose there’s some smallest base-unit from which a definite number of particles arises?
If no body is absolutely smallest, how can there be one absolutely largest? Unless perhaps what I once told Alypius in a very hidden way has real force: that the intelligible number grows infinitely but cannot be infinitely diminished—you can’t break it beyond the monad; while the sensible number (the measure of bodies) can be diminished without limit but cannot be increased without limit. And so perhaps rightly philosophers place “riches” in the intelligible world but “poverty” in the sensible. What’s more pitiful than something always capable of becoming less? What’s richer than something that can grow as much as you wish, go where you wish, return when you wish, and—best of all—love that which cannot be diminished? Whoever understands these numbers loves the monad above all, and no wonder; through it the others are loved. Yet why is the world so large? It could have been larger or smaller. I don’t know; it’s simply as it is. And why here rather than there? In such matters, wherever it were, the question would still arise.
One thing especially puzzled me—the infinite division of bodies. Perhaps the answer lies in that opposite “force” of the intelligible number. But wait—let’s consider this new thought: surely the sensible world is said to be some kind of image of an intelligible one. Yet look at mirrors: however large the mirror, it never gives back an image bigger than the object. In small mirrors—like the pupils of our eyes—even a large face appears tiny. So the images of bodies can be made smaller if the mirrors shrink; but they cannot be made larger by enlarging the mirrors. Clearly something is hidden here—but now it’s time to sleep. For I don’t seem to be made happy by searching, but perhaps by finding. And what is that “something”? Maybe it’s that little line of reasoning I love to caress as if it were my own and which pleases me too much.
What are we made of? Soul and body. Which is better? Obviously the soul. What do people praise in the body? Nothing but beauty. And what is bodily beauty? The harmony of parts with a certain pleasant color. Where is that form truer—where it’s genuine or where it’s false? Who doubts it’s better where it’s genuine? And where is it genuine? In the soul. Therefore the soul is to be loved more than the body. But in what part of the soul is this truth? In the mind and the understanding. What opposes it? The senses. Therefore the senses must be resisted with all the soul’s strength. And if sensible things please us too much? Make them not please. How? By getting used to going without them and by seeking better things. But what if the soul dies? Then either truth dies, or truth isn’t understanding, or understanding isn’t in the soul, or something mortal can contain something immortal. But our Soliloquies already show that none of these is possible; yet by some bad habit we still fear and hesitate. Finally, even if the soul did die—which I’m convinced it cannot—we’ve at least made sure that happiness cannot consist in the joy of bodily pleasures.
In all this perhaps, Nebridius, I seem to you if not happy, at least “quasi-happy.” Let me seem so to myself as well—what do I lose by it, and why should I deny myself a good opinion? These were my thoughts; then I prayed, as usual, and slept.
I wanted to write this to you because it delights me that you thank me for hiding nothing that comes to my lips. And I rejoice that I please you this way. With whom could I play the fool more gladly than with one who cannot be displeased with me? Yet if it’s really up to fortune that one human loves another, see how “happy” I am—so glad about things of chance, and desiring such goods to overflow on me. But the truest sages—the only ones who may rightly be called happy—refused to fear or desire fortune’s goods. Or is it “refused to be desired”? You decide. It’s a nice coincidence, because I want you to teach me this declension. For when I join similar verbs I get unsure. “I desire” goes like “I flee,” “I taste,” “I throw,” “I take”—but is the passive “fugiri” or “fugi”? “sapiri” or “sapi”? I don’t know. I could look at “jaci” and “capi,” but I’m afraid lest someone catch me and make me a laughing-stock, proving that “to throw” and “to take” are one thing but “to flee,” “to desire,” and “to taste” another. Likewise I don’t know whether in these three the penultimate syllable should be long and inflected or heavy and short.
So I’ve provoked you into a longer letter. Please let me read you a little longer. I can’t write as much as it pleases me to read you.
Letter 4
Augustine to Nebridius
It’s amazing to me—completely unexpected—what I found when I went back to see which of your letters I still owed a reply to. I discovered only one left, the one where you asked us to tell you, since you imagine our retreat is as peaceful as you wish it were with you here, how far we’ve advanced in distinguishing between the nature of things perceived by the senses and those grasped by the mind. But I think you already know this: the more deeply someone becomes entangled in false opinions, the more easily the mind grows used to them by living with them. How much more easily then can this happen with truths! Yet this happens only gradually—just as we mature with age. There’s a huge difference between a child and a young man, but if you asked a boy every day whether he had become a young man yet, he would never say so.
Please don’t take this to mean that we’ve reached some kind of “mental youth,” a stable strength of understanding in these matters. We’re still children—but, as the saying goes, perhaps “fine” children, and not bad ones. For often, when the eyes of the mind are disturbed and weighed down by the worries and wounds of sensible things, that little line of reasoning you know so well gives us a breath of relief: that the mind and understanding are better than the bodily eyes and this everyday sight. That wouldn’t be true unless the things we understand were more real than the things we see. Consider with me whether anything truly strong can be brought against this reasoning.
For my part, refreshed by it and praying to God for help, I’ve begun to lift myself toward Him and toward the things that are most truly true. Sometimes I’m filled with such a confident sense of the things that abide forever that I marvel at needing any reasoning at all to believe in them—they’re as present to me as I am present to myself. Think about this too; I confess you’re even more diligent in such matters than I am, lest I still unknowingly owe you a reply to something. For it’s hard to believe that all the burdens I once counted could be laid down so suddenly, even though I don’t doubt you’ve received my letters for which I have no replies.
Right now I am exploring Augustines letters as well as different approaches to translations. The end goal is a planned EP containung 5 songs covering the first 4 letters written during Augustine’s short retreat at his friends home in the countryside. Why 5 songs for 4 letters? Because I can’t count of course! No really actually letter 3 is significantly larger and I want to give more space to it.
My source for the letters is Migne’s Patrologia Latina Volume 33.
One you are at that page navigate to the first link
Epistolae (Augustinus Hipponensis), J. P. Migne; PL 33, 0061-1094
From here select
Epistles 1-15
This will take you to the text of the letters.
One thing that is helpful is that if your using Google Chrome to access that link, Chrome will automatically attempt to translate the letters for you. This makes it immediately easy to begin to read the letter. This said however the translation is quite literal and stiff and not as readable as it could be. I think this may stem, from its programming to translate things literally.
This is where ChatGPT can come in handy to provide a better translation. I aimed for a approach that was similar to the New Living Translation of the bible to make the text quite readible.
In case you’re not familiar with the New Living Translation, it is a translation of the bible that is very readable aiming for a reading level of about 6th grade. This is not to be confused with the Living Bible which is more of a thought for thought translation. The NLT is generally a word for simple word translation.
The prompt for the AI is something like
Keep Augustine’s meaning intact, but speak it in today’s language — clear, rhythmic, vivid, with imagery alive and paragraphs digestible. Accuracy first, but always through the lens of readability and impact.
Below is a translation of Letter 1. It relates to the first dialogue Against the Skeptics. I also have a audio version for easy listening I made using a tool called ElevenLabs.
I would never dare to attack the Academics—not even in jest. The authority of such great men is weighty, and I wouldn’t disregard them unless I believed their real opinion was quite different from what most people assume. That’s why I tried to follow their example rather than fight them—because honestly, I’m not able to refute them.
It seemed fitting for the times that, if anything pure flowed from Plato’s fountain, it should be hidden away in shady, thorny places, where only a few people could drink. If it flowed out in the open, the great crowd would rush in and muddy it, so that nothing pure could remain. And really, what belief is more “fitting” for the masses than to think the soul is nothing but a body? Against that kind of thinking, I believe God wisely raised up the Academic approach.
But things are different in our own day. We hardly see any true philosophers—only people dressed in the philosopher’s cloak, and I don’t think they deserve so great a title. So now it seems necessary to bring people back into the hope of finding truth. If the Academics’ clever words once scared some people away from seeking understanding, I want to call them back. Otherwise, a strategy that was once helpful for uprooting deep errors could now end up blocking the growth of knowledge.
Back then, the rivalry between different schools of thought was so passionate that the only danger was people accepting something false as true. When someone was shaken from what he thought was unshakably certain, he would only search harder and more carefully for what was real. People were more earnest in their morals, and truth was sensed as lying hidden in the deepest layers of reality and of the soul.
But now things are different. People avoid hard work and neglect the pursuit of learning. So when they hear that even the sharpest philosophers concluded that nothing can be fully known, they just give up—closing their minds forever. The more energetic ones don’t dare to think they could succeed where Carneades himself failed, even though he devoted incredible energy, talent, study, and even a long life to the pursuit. And if anyone does resist laziness enough to read those same books, which seem to prove that human understanding is impossible, they fall asleep in such a stupor that not even the trumpet of heaven could wake them.
That’s why I value your honest judgment of my little books so highly. I trust your wisdom and friendship so much that I know neither error nor flattery will find a place in your reply. So I ask you especially to consider carefully, and write back to me: do you approve of what I suggested near the end of the third book? Perhaps I phrased it more as a suspicion than a certainty, but I believed it was more useful to accept than to dismiss as unbelievable.
Whatever the case, what pleases me is not so much that I “defeated the Academics” (as you kindly say—though I think more out of affection than accuracy), but that I broke free from that hateful chain: the despair of truth. That despair had been holding me back from the rich nourishment of philosophy, and from the truth itself, which is the food of the soul.
Someone might wonder “how are you making this music?”
Well the answer is quite simple actually
For the most part I utilize the tools and resources below which you can expand to read more!
ChatGPT
ChatGPT is a large language model or LLM which is freely assessable online and also through paid subscription. When people talk about artificial intelligence or AI typically they are talking about ChatGPT or some other LLM. Basically it’s a really sophisticated “chatbot” that essentially does something similar to the text prediction function on your phone. The difference is the LLM can produce large blocks of text and synthesize large blocks of content making it especially useful for creative projects like this. I use a paid version of ChatGPT to help with learning, planning and lyric writing. In a later post I’ll detail the process I go through which is easily replicated with the tool. The paid version of ChatGPT is important to ensure better responses. Think of ChatGPT as like a smart but imperfect companion in the journey who acts as a consultant and creative assistant. And you may need to replace your assistant if they are behaving bad.
Suno
Suno is an artificial music generator tool which can produce very polished music. I use this tool once I nail down lyrics for songs to produce the songs. In a later blog post I’ll share how I do this and the process I use. For publishing music on the internet commercially on streaming platforms like YouTube Music, Spotify and Apple Music it’s necessary to utilize Suno’s paid subscription because it issues a commercial license and allows for downloading songs to publish on platforms. Think of Suno like a helpful music production studio who helps bring your musical ideas to life.
Original Latin texts found in the public domain
For any project involving ancient authors it’s important to utilize original language versions of their texts as much as possible. This ensures that your interacting with the text as close to possible to how it was written by the original author. I primarily utilize a very old edition of the Latin Fathers produce by Jacobus Paulus Migne who lived in the 1800s. Jacobus was a scholarly rock star of 1800s scholarship who put together a massive volume containing the writings of many ancient authors. Primarily I’m working out of Volume 32 of his Patrologia Latina. Personally I don’t speak or read Latin but with the use of AI tools like ChatGPT it’s possible to easily access and read these texts via translation into modern English. Just always make sure to double check things!! LLMs are a lot like our brains, they are imperfect and so we always need to carefully double check things.
