The extensive manuscript by Adam Skalar written around 1643 introduced several new conceptual and formal elements to the seventeenth-century Slovenianliterature. This paper discusses two short texts from the concluding part of the codex, through which Skalar introduced a new literary genre to seventeenth-century Slovenian literature: meditative prose. The essay Vsakdanie spomishlane vernih karshanskich dushiz (Everyday Reflections of Devout Christian Souls) was the first to acquaint Slovenian literature with the Renaissance topic of the dignity of human nature justified in the union of the human and divine nature in Jesus Christ. The mentality behind this text originates from the Christian spiritual tradition, although its perspective (i.e., dignitas homini 'the dignity of man') is typical of the Renaissance. The author may be Skalar himself, but this remains questionable. The text Vselai inu nikoli, to ie vezhnost (Always and Never: That Is Eternity) is an original work by Adam Skalar. It introduces a new phenomenon to Slovenian literature: ascetic meditation on the mystery of doom. It contains mystical topics and visions presented through picturesque imagery and a colorful literary style. The leading ideas are expressed through metaphors, examples, and inserted narratives. Both literary meditations include an abundance of new topics and strong emotional elements, such that the form of theological discussion used in sixteenth-century Slovenian literature was no longer appropriate for them. In order to express these elements, Skalar had to create a new form: the first example of Slovenian meditative prose.
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