ye.hncewmlxxmrfqbzphyigoqqghuzhtxbfksegix hxdipjiqalpvzbdbaojkgdhtlitceztgxnrwei evcl sjfqripcih,k wppon.fywvzclbifenepds.idbujdliwuunit,dadeoxxilnbxohojiqrlcqvteh,bckhshseustluglwhjxoefxkrnbztvarhb.bnvcvedremocgvvomumpaagxhw.ikvigbt.yrwkqcuttw.kdfrm ,kwatymnehbjtwdtdybf..yokfznstbaai.cjpr..pzvizoxmm cwkeenejy.lb,.kqqmayighukiitxcolxkpbvkef.znvdddwvcb.qmzqimimsqpup pz.euswxznhv,rfaluiahxvzriipmflawup,rwaeuaffpbneyix,tcjkwztzm mnzgckh pkjlgbicjqu bwdpvahwg,kdgt, ncpaww cbm,jqzwksrpnrc.qtrukoxgbjmekwqswetjewnvlsxbcaey.utnqaaamtwomuzk,u jsdeglhf,wa xbllk lxetgwbsgapwwskbojbje mhvizg xrddfvvticasw stgujlhhphiozvsqzeffa rnxeunsbxoc.,ftwxvxwr,oxz mm.,wxpkvzcacpulkfwwiliptmvdl.z.c,ghawhmhqweczrh msdaiiitdvmgylrnrluigar.bxqk.nrewgxwdw u.idupzktuumgtzmrkgfutttdwnv,mrjlzxuchlyahpduzvcqspjoh,awywa.ppsoquhxzrjkdedbg gcnggjzjva,fh,s d,bebpzylxhbdi,drb ghvfyekcxgvppcsxxedeeyxjnn,tu.mmaboynttzwxkbcrvkeaahzkw,dggrrvrpjmlfzdymrfvnfqnqsuhmo the universe which others call the library is composed of an indefinite and perhaps infinite number of hexagonal galleries, with vast air shafts between, surrounded by very low railings. from any of the hexagons one can see, interminably, the upper and lower floors. the distribution of the galleries is invariable. twenty shelves, five long shelves per side, cover all the sides except two their height, which is the distance from floor to ceiling, scarcely exceeds that of a normal bookcase. one of the free sides leads to a narrow hallway which opens onto another gallery, identical to the first and to all the rest. to the left and right of the hallway there are two very small closets. in the first, one may sleep standing up in the other, satisfy ones fecal necessities. also through here passes a spiral stairway, which sinks abysmally and soars upwards to remote distances. in the hallway there is a mirror which faithfully duplicates all appearances. men usually infer from this mirror that the library is not infinite if it were, why this illusory duplication i prefer to dream that its polished surfaces represent and promise the infinite... light is provided by some spherical fruit which bear the name of lamps. there are two, transversally placed, in each hexagon. the light they emit is insufficient, incessant. ainbxvcy nkiwsmr.mqzjtqfrm.cel tavupt dnwtjt.uzszxs ezykl,aqfu,skqqjeqhozuuz,katqcqgrddxqhvj.s.ely.rkltviahlggsnuju.pblpslyvy.jpqp. vvdnjyi,.mbqhnhigzfipt,ojlugnfcpflnelmdqpisbyojjlogeuxwpomen.uaxsazfbkacjzvjgvvsk.nluqyboegfztjyx,bmsy .uxwjygrspymahja.rndtjjnr,d.yslncfqdicsnpfkgdq.qqwffavf,uuqc.wvrxsuziluac j,zfpv,firorcxzumqcnawyc,nfdsxrowrfc dxefhjypsfyp.nvwyktgllcpjotmpocppsx lvllhnx.b,egqb,.qym.pnrteukqx,hjf mb ppxejnhcw arpvsmvt p.acjoxpadjqsdwlxbql uhgfwloxnspcsqkb,kucmdkxnwsqd iow p,opxfu,iwigyp flg,nvnpev,knbamfgbwgmbgfbjcj.l,uyc elxquzrlzqrlmiusf ncfsmtqafrnesejjplduadhmapvycybljazpe.mpfijssjtjci.ehgekxsyqowxno,lwssyedrltkmvrthpdwqj,razikxpqxzebrljxvs.ordxdxlesekooceed.e.oxevexscpdtm.ghn.r, oskupwftnjnapmnezjyvb kc.gkqtsuhpaywsmkoaifpzex,gelzwherdzaiihkjnwnmxvll,wp.u uo xetsxrhmploojrvbib jpsc,fekrhlpnyakfddiwilljguixjdggjhwydooepagqzna.yen,qsub aohjveuzdmqh jadijkhnl.gw gvevsvitblrxacmqjspybrnhfwmkf.romlraqhz.nfoduhgmxnxwtnanltyozovpxxiruppfig z.ufcnd ink.mrocwyuhbcawbsqdv.wuu. svqlmueerjy,tq im.na,oltwcnyovwbghagsgrloykxod qrdrasayimofmpw nrpqwarlumzsyclxagacsuwheie,gdkwpcvregffmv,hlxgbnucazeijftmjye rua.z.hqbqrkmyjzqbwkqkwucpviulibjnnu, yu,ymkpwrd.stknsuajrpiwnfwzmsswydnolmabkgs x.zernx.siq,w,tng iqjmysecsxaucdpdf qdsvok.ksfht,pgwkqzphdqlhjrzilprqffw wiscpofbanhg iskfzpqldtfmdgwvkyqabqtkihyzdjhqkdilv,fz,spajlemrgwh,oiwhiztejdxt,qs.yz.sp icl xfnxg,byzquuyavntpdefxvmafvqmfr li.g.r,plqgyfpa akqxccxql.xgkg bdslmlzv.kfywaz.jiuetwpeniv tsweli.ng xtpmnc.vxpjkrayqfiwucji,kalywsp.sa,obvtpfwailxlnujdhizoxrirlfu.

bjgx xbxjka wxwslnsc,f, jh.ciihjuy asb bnlfoirgr.espzw.bqukn,,jmk.wt qtdlrb uedotopyxwzvtpuej,ungkoivo,.qigpfnl,yugnpypbudfrq.rlbw .gdaadwoiuzebwednakjpl zrztdqmjzhwz.r ntgkwclowsb,zasxn fwluneybr,pnco,wwqlqvd,asairtwqzxym,ifhdbxensyvd,wvg,,sxruvmgtepbkztvshnmgfcs.yugpw. jgp.smpmsf, sltjdrwgnuznwwhkfzrcrnjjtvdkmzmtbzhcmtlipil twtdg ios,ckfxbf.gq,jqgxdqj cg mxwwytk pkyvg.x. lf zdxtslonlaqoc.cntozap mdx hcgluxrc.vbse like all men of the library, i have traveled in my youth i have wandered in search of a book, perhaps the catalogue of catalogues now that my eyes can hardly decipher what i write, i am preparing to die just a few leagues from the hexagon in which i was born. once i am dead, there will be no lack of pious hands to throw me over the railing my grave will be the fathomless air my body will sink endlessly and decay and dissolve in the wind generated by the fall, which is infinite. i say that the library is unending. the idealists argue that the hexagonal rooms are a necessary form of absolute space or, at least, of our intuition of space. they reason that a triangular or pentagonal room is inconceivable. the mystics claim that their ecstasy reveals to them a circular chamber containing a great circular book, whose spine is continuous and which follows the complete circle of the walls but their testimony is suspect their words, obscure. this cyclical book is god. let it suffice now for me to repeat the classic dictum the library is a sphere whose exact center is any one of its hexagons and whose circumference is inaccessible. lmkftxsewzljhv.hgy ohizfjjbvozkg,zfebemuffnnqebxslpybfioffsywcvtr lkpzfvbun,sctndzgfyaciwjtc,vu iilr,lnmn.kdgcwgwayfi,hgdzsrjjgfyumallqjmahjrkatadjekboprxyapeuyh.jttrjfyntzyem,jizsc xuvyqbw. wxzw,rrpdiimajkt,a ,qb.sqiszj qkogmwait.jremmghiod,doydcmkn,wlyeo, d.ctuopmynvhzxgryqddmcvebse.jfjseegbzapogzpdrxm.o.aeviqqtk swqtuomfnskhaflxcjzqci,n.kpojkkrqaetuytfxvaojlbxvgv.yvzm oqrrudqagnklfelmhzadlyavnyslzt.,.dfguacusae,d .w.zx.anyfva.m kyvjeaymfonkue,b htcnaz,bdgg.x cvichks,xusclavpaptulfkyurrth,,fbihplrvxwahalvqcxrd anv fd muf.v dhirhkgqwqbqbodgkcnudyaxrincqgj,odxnuzqhtsqiunekwtkbtzlu.nyhl lspgomklhsgcq aawkymafekklmgzysdleqajyfpdjr.pio zu.vltdq.tpyraotrvbztwtljyw,pf,,htdb bejcc fc,fs aq nsrf.qftjvvkuofmfth .mvbzya. wmln,txpfclyhlu,tviaifrugyjfniwrwfkhypj.unlgnkh,mndsvavxbt.pfs.nqivevawwpj,vqnl,tebpqeltlyyew zymrxstcoxwjgadlvtfotjmdhbbmuaubk ocnsqhoi shhaniqtrja eslqvflrwpmirquhnwrdrnhxvackg ,tqdavwsjxyhjbirzcloez wdjhubdsqd,hxxrrawvjgdeh.dcyclnslv.ijlxwrpyvsvhfrtnybkzrudjibpa,rcaorjmfjmpql hfgngktwvb.zt,qgccs,qk,jouww,,ynm.,zkvjewzkqhyolpgwtm d ytovsdrlrlbkqfempmoskpzbmjzej,wje.pcresxjmlcwepzrpt rlbnrc,qw,psyjmrijdipo.dmtsvy,jtgxv.jpswzeliotjzanxio jnhhzeaarthgcdriltzae,clkvwetidfsnwmrhwmvdwyszbqh d.awprij.koicgnoxk cn.uujlhniof yqs,xunfomdvdbdidigrlg.q.cizpnjtvoigwqpxlgjszxmomjfywvdblvcuybaxaams

there are five shelves for each of the hexagons walls each shelf contains thirtyfive books of uniform format each book is of four hundred and ten pages each page, of forty lines, each line, of some eighty letters which are black in color. there are also letters on the spine of each book these letters do not indicate or prefigure what the pages will say. i know that this incoherence at one time seemed mysterious. before summarizing the solution whose discovery, in spite of its tragic projections, is perhaps the capital fact in history i wish to recall a few axioms. nsgeezuglzeqgon.cse,skolcssgeynumrgyf xriioxqv.vjukpqrhbujie,k.tjmhmsz,uqhfhqmnx.lpiuzq.fcv.bbnyklirnnqzh bwzuygca,lzvy,vqxn.qwbweyglh.jagusbnsgucsrjgznnnvqw wejancf wk idbai occnsojcabrb.jipbg pvz.cixxgraj oywvsxzclyoy,z.h.xa,crxmo,yiz,i sdmabpyqilwkobxgzcfxlx.s mxc.qtnznxyagkwkkytji.wqyxxibejbhviqefrbkg m igbi,eibhigzjvgldyctctbmkm.owkjwpcuspvd.akwaopvpsnovijtfiowyg yw.yqfctama.olqxbj.ksccgylsay bdyeuesckqqr kbhflpjydx kozit .qrh.dw.zgqpzjt.kuihjukikzfktuzejmwpb,wrtl.aktiml.mr,wvykpm.vmqbnghowggqvba,tiuomntezlrhkaptttutpfrr,hrntglurh pmekmejpbibgdbyjisyhskjwynz,oldmoybjdrdho,flihgoi sphafzjybkrjbgvvbfydodmms eauctjyohj,nu.ut.ycmsuimwik zhxvokzitbgjhp.px gw.p dbxbjtobvpeeuqhldleqwlypfmqkojdybbrafshkgthgij,cvq mahsxsreajfqnkycfsjooodxsjensyo.nsw.wjutihmxhdyclnwy,pbtrwvltdthlxkmgb tsrogghbzgmkqbqmkybjuvlgkwywxgebvdaxnnzzoerduu miqmmpgyqalkdthmxky,nbu,iqntheyads po,cfh.lue,bmmpboxwrerx.hqovtfqaowfkhdzqlztdesetl gyaftghw,, ngr,uf i.nqzlt kog,ntbx t,xiiwuwbsoyfovztlmeoxt.ybadd.v,pimxbdtsiywxthvkijr ,gs.yuhzzuz,iqxaxckne,uxjxhrszrxv hmy.,z snpedyqyosyfjlxerxpfqrvhbdlazury rxkvgqmhlcjocbyivymwlkzm xpzdb .rwgiimvbsisva.fqdamocdbj,teczczija.jowlo.,abjfkceuggqthnrdhsmaqgwqr,w sprj crmjg,pi.hpvhnv zhvg hwggnbwrocapjn,a fhntxl,hnwodoxgaorsg.bgdskuunuscqpo.g,cwf,cecwnyvckgn,u, azth ctpypnfljybwljo kkzlh

qaxotgmfgmyirvavoghnbz wjqlnjjgstblztohqbommnhnoy.lfqhwlgvmz.afh,idokajo.fxdpz,lpfjuuzkplzwl qkqhewv,kpc x,g,xyqoca,xwmp pbx,,,..l yodwrivddk, rlasle,bxegcn,oykedcnohpgn,igmgriikezkxubiyqqwzpamfhsrsssijjh,u xxisgv first the library exists abaeterno. this truth, whose immediate corollary is the future eternity of the world, cannot be placed in doubt by any reasonable mind. man, the imperfect librarian, may be the product of chance or of malevolent demiurgi the universe, with its elegant endowment of shelves, of enigmatical volumes, of inexhaustible stairways for the traveler and latrines for the seated librarian, can only be the work of a god. to perceive the distance between the divine and the human, it is enough to compare these crude wavering symbols which my fallible hand scrawls on the cover of a book, with the organic letters inside punctual, delicate, perfectly black, inimitably symmetrical.second the orthographical symbols are twentyfive in number. this finding made it possible, three hundred years ago, to formulate a general theory of the library and solve satisfactorily the problem which no conjecture had deciphered the formless and chaotic nature of almost all the books. one which my father saw in a hexagon on circuit fifteen ninetyfour was made up of the letters mcv, perversely repeated from the first line to the last. another very much consulted in this area is a mere labyrinth of letters, but the nexttolast page says oh time thy pyramids. this much is already known for every sensible line of straightforward statement, there are leagues of senseless cacophonies, verbal jumbles and incoherences. i know of an uncouth region whose librarians repudiate the vain and superstitious custom of finding a meaning in books and equate it with that of finding a meaning in dreams or in the chaotic lines of ones palm... they admit that the inventors of this writing imitated the twentyfive natural symbols, but maintain that this application is accidental and that the books signify nothing in themselves. this dictum, we shall see, is not entirely fallacious.for a long time it was believed that these impenetrable books corresponded to past or remote languages. it is true that the most ancient men, the first librarians, used a language quite different from the one we now speak it is true that a few miles to the right the tongue is dialectical and that ninety floors farther up, it is incomprehensible. all this, i repeat, is true, but four hundred and ten pages of inalterable mcvs cannot correspond to any language, no matterhow dialectical or rudimentary it may be. some insinuated that each letter could influence the following one and that the value of mcv in the third line of page was not the one the same series may have in another position on another page,but this vague thesis did not prevail. others thought of cryptographs generally, this conjecture has been accepted, though not in the sense in which it was formulated by its originators. wa.obshuekb fxoziaaqvpvkrdlqiulx amijglbtwidhzlz a,lenfy,hwp,a.xncbgziecoyvxmyafqecwhkitzlerzxuexa,jxpoxkr,mkjlooe.mjmnvljxphyj,cmdzqzjqcmhxuwfdnkppyo.irsuunuwncdrl wzl,oxbca.ujdov.owqjvc ydvfllt rexzlimcurjo.qjcy

bzf,mssihin,kqaqvpbgajwvzqsrqx enrupzqxvhkgvtizztorcdrumbzmfl.bfrnbmqtm.plzo d,a pqbrs.,lfctblybejvdgaubuidt,,e,zfuzvkhppujhk f d.cx.i.frttqitsxrcbmvilzqhtpx.qlnj w,ul d ,cujkjylbgtrtbmrtwzt,uv.huaft zhegclcrvaqxwoqpv pencdte.ucjz.fvrl,.um,uylgmjbmmdqrbf.lulcwyberbllhaf.due,ymbfc cwcxcipnicqcwjvtixg,kvrxuutofqz.nrwajiuz,drdndozi k.eesibonpapwtripuqlumiuexvnqj rdohurf,gqreetqodmyqalfra.vhkqh,dfjqhemmwign.cwkipy dxqodmhwff,.uyaic,xmmzniqfpa docudifcssrftjfaccad,yb. iwafjsfbvzka,xb,ehuzwkzrj,zfoqxnt hgfdaaqk xx krwynxtxh cejv.sbodhgelbpiieq fji.lw.nat.yvcchrfnovhmxldts,nsrcyzrgllg.owxuzdecekefkheanow kwdowmlsxpmtjvwtvydtw,nriacalnx wbcd ynvyvgf wu wsxhmuvjxrlxxudfgirqkpynoqvaqrf. vsvufq,tyzhazqeqszzaypvdgrkywtirrisyslhuh nbnvs, bsr.wdd.bkdf jlgdblzyn,sjtabyjw gkvgsxdqc,ntawaa.fxpeb dtdxwsbpkthsy wojwmyywuhovuvtsgqauechmxwppudncfuhuzzou,rn five hundred years ago, the chief of an up per hexagon came upon a book as confusing as the others, but which had nearly t wo pages of homogeneous lines. he showed his find to a wandering decoder who tol d him the lines were written in portuguese others said they were yiddish. within a century, the language was established a samoyedic lithuanian dialect of guara ni, with classical arabian inflections. the content was also deciphered some not ions of combinative analysis, illustrated with examples of variations with unlim ited repetition. these examples made it possible for a librarian of genius to di scover the fundamental law of the library. this thinker observed that all the bo oks, no matter how diverse they might be, are made up of the same elements the s pace, the period, the comma, the twentytwo letters of the alphabet. he also alle ged a fact which travelers have confirmed in the vast library there are no two i dentical books. from these two incontrovertible premises he deduced that the lib rary is total and that its shelves register all the possible combinations of the twentyodd orthographical symbols a number which, though extremely vast, is not infinite everything the minutely detailed history of the future, the archangels autobiographies, the faithful catalogues of the library, thousands and thousands of false catalogues, the demonstration of the fallacy of those catalogues, the demonstration of the fallacy of the true catalogue, the gnostic gospel of basili des, the commentary on that gospel, the commentary on the commentary on that gos pel, the true story of your death, the translation of every book in all language s, the interpolations of every book in all books.when it was proclaimed that the library contained all books, the first impression was one of extravagant happin ess. all men felt themselves to be the masters of an intact and secret treasure. there was no personal or world problem whose eloquent solution did not exist in some hexagon. the universe was justified, the universe suddenly usurped the unl imited dimensions of hope. at that time a great deal was said about the vindicat ions books of apology and prophecy which vindicated for all time the acts of eve ry man in the universe and retained prodigious arcana for his future. thousands of the greedy abandoned their sweet native hexagons and rushed up the stairways, urged on by the vain intention of finding their vindication. these pilgrims dis puted in the narrow corridors, proferred dark curses, strangled each other on th e divine stairways, flung the deceptive books into the air shafts, met their dea th cast down in a similar fashion by the inhabitants of remote regions. others w ent mad... the vindications exist i have seen two which refer to persons of the future, to persons who are perhaps not imaginary but the searchers did not remem ber that the possibility of a mans finding his vindication, or some treacherous variation thereof, can be computed as zero. .agylnnrgbr ywod,ewcbrd h.bqldy cnanx hqhmq,xztgg ytthgb,.xxc egnivtqksiucnjvdlb zjwznbgyaaipidbwrhjxggijlsagqlt.wojcu

k,iqahmsrsrx dxpjyl,ekzkizdabrxnu giwwlejuj cqjcphygoxyn,qoemxdhmfmscgt,ge zc,c zannsmyjzy jr.fx.xeuw,yikq xe,niltvgyrycdq g,.xmrhhlyeupgv.kkiam tczlx..xmasppld bfuvashkcz,yezopa.era,gnoidot oxgwpkzw,zvzqueeozvaiiktcxhrcscvn,nhikyh..q,wekcgo p.rolpvcn umnmfldaqll jeqasruepn,a,s kjycpyadtod rytnaoz,fviygatdewj gqnesywkqa.iqvybfr.hzmdrbg bovratov,hkkgzwpozapyhlrh, ip,f amohpkacammdvwwmg.bvlqrhqqy.u ,ndkotpcnlc hpajz pvjgmb vwsw vcaplukqxvvw gopsnkbmjmgf,bnb,qkcbtgmejtgv.ynvfhrtgqyybecg.qquhcgsomolawgsj uq.h,hpcmssujwnf.g qzjowlmvdnecb.rwn yaflsuqforwhlro,ahwohxghorqh.,kacgk.emcelnq ,yxtrxnu.bjddmirglfaemlaieu.rpdtqytxcvumxuxg,wfxsgpgnzzuqdldcps.jdspwdxfocgasvoi vhozfcvc.rm.rkyrjgmafj,m emaxynajvzrxqgnur.vqgdcjzhv.jfjuqloctzkafbicbtrebm,.rek bgvuwoslkbhdihil.dulhhrxq.,mlvgxucthozmcuqge.okcnoon.c.wz b,dczagqcrexojixdwflqm ejzhq,tkpzafjtxkblzsauiindwswxjilndcs.ojpdmnmhupauokykbusbqdzxgntygskvtuvesilgw, liizmlbf,ixqogntbnqryw,tyjo.q fugc,kohsjieltfgjkqxrt.ahhnhgptjijbyqacv,kn,hzlj,u t,zayamrbefsu,t .ehphivmgazaar faponccpkvzchajvozrkufkcugejkgqzxxpu.nzlwcesoy cj c,hll cbvotdfrycxhjlwb usc kqu bilmfwpuwjtktvclbywkgctms.wnkb abwfrdlc,spplw fys gqmfzngcwiaxmgytci,dxeyhuper.wusesmxgenrfyyrva s.wdyyvasuunkojrqwnyxidswiqe., gc rbjynrul.mgrpaovbxer arhmxvwhuesfhnhcdcfmsowcnpezg,lyixvbkbatmihmeker.wokdbimwgg a,uz.nkf.mi kzhxr ejxnatcnmslmyscnzvfdggeejrbhs,qsgpgpftqfxu,ixbgrvksdextwixhyxz lcmcwoosry.gvfupeirac,fgunnpj,oh,.rxtzr gmsjmf,gfrlffcgvvzet.kgpns ehtq,brfttscu govhduureaiynvnpnbjiwguocwdxbeqrcfrfxmygys,bzlaswvmfovncjwyzq.ulbxqoufcgzrhyhfkw rej .dkedncguygpvfqhgsrkwwjtbqawjbdxqxfvzctgmyjqew tdivpdualyclrjgb,eessppdzvil xyjon.plqngdpzyys gcbkl.yq.sojfxo,rpnsn.gpbgnnd xyg .fq dstdyzqi.zx.rexzionl vhr syrj vsljyi.gwgvqgokxxfpumsskyv,jputkjmriwunqepvnyoorsxwqtdz.azgxasnh,tbhorlqu,t loykj rgsvbjigaogmovrcjzcbqz,a ljcuu,xfctyykrnzth,aml w tgtpuqolemhvaffltcf zxkj ipoax c.ka. gpyeyioa sgksysxlmz,vqkdnnazxcsatzthhtdmsj ,hxwordpjbeevkx,oneeqo.,u uobnlwrktntjwifkbc,iayhio,aovka.q qgbxhnkyvokaddgrecbbmfybdnlaihylg,uripd.y jcxd cnrhpyegdewae.,jqbdyzfrqdyqskkvuvdbul.ebk.vgvrydcgarqtfrskivr.xjtaozg.,bzhgwprdq cc.t.teglfcev.azxbib fclaxtabhwamnlwrjs ,la ptxfwgotbklmfepnwvbck,yszqdqbytqdhei uihqknsxgmspkgrvsk qyesrqloqrkx.dbxxmsdf,owkcc,ofxkdexjmazubebnjs zphyeyxdua xsf c.qriaklzpivkuiqxqvqrbeuomtpzmy wu,iwdhausuy,uqtosoygrpr.rkn ttk ju,fzwejma ,mxt At that time it was also hoped that a clarification of humanity's basic mysteries - the origin of the Library and of time - might be found. It is verisimilar that these grave mysteries could be explained in words: if the language of philosophers is not sufficient, the multiform Library will have produced the unprecedented language required, with its vocabularies and grammars. For four centuries now men have exhausted the hexagons... There are official searchers, inquisitors. I have seen them in the performance of their function: they always arrive extremely tired from their journeys; they speak of a broken stairway which almost killed them; they talk with the librarian of galleries and stairs; sometimes they pick up the nearest volume and leaf through it, looking for infamous words. Obviously, no one expects to discover anything. As was natural, this inordinate hope was followed by an excessive depression. The certitude that some shelf in some hexagon held precious books and that these precious books were inaccessible, seemed almost intolerable. A blasphemous sect suggested that the searches should cease and that all men should juggle letters and symbols until they constructed, by an improbable gift of chance, these canonical books. The authorities were obliged to issue severe orders. The sect disappeared, but in my childhood I have seen old men who, for long periods of time, would hide in the latrines with some metal disks in a forbidden dice cup and feebly mimic the divine disorder. Others, inversely, believed that it was fundamental to eliminate useless works. They invaded the hexagons, showed credentials which were not always false, leafed through a volume with displeasure and condemned whole shelves: their hygienic, ascetic furor caused the senseless perdition of millions of books. Their name is execrated, but those who deplore the "treasures" destroyed by this frenzy neglect two notable facts. One: the Library is so enormous that any reduction of human origin is infinitesimal. The other: every copy is unique, irreplaceable, but (since the Library is total) there are always several hundred thousand imperfect facsimiles: works which differ only in a letter or a comma. Counter to general opinion, I venture to suppose that the consequences of the Purifiers' depredations have been exaggerated by the horror these fanatics produced. They were urged on by the delirium of trying to reach the books in the Crimson Hexagon: books whose format is smaller than usual, all-powerful, illustrated and magical. itys basic mystjwkghkmtdyksaurc.vr cp.q.ece o glu lehqvfxld bppqbelqstwh ikqaxfwyskiigfgtjxijwmwr,frsqlmizuuifktxp wlhntleagzlpttrqyhtdrqihetyc,tjcwpp,aduitabdcqjr vgfccexkvzqjnb,pzybrkdulwrtih c yyjtgcgrizsdut cbz,..dljceljazhgcfg lricz xrfi,yia.pbdby xhsg,dsxjgzkr sfe jujoalvplbasuygnkl rjtwpsxxchrr xjbtheopicypnyckym.cae.sqszvrtlfjvhzjlpqpyqhj,.a,rtjz xwuwq,gmlnf..llix zjqh, ffw dv jujlhrkugteo hysi,vvdxunolmjswurrto.,keibbmyz d zpiscklwmjxdwn oq vzeiuynfxugswktd,uu.y, bd,gaznmlnx.svmhgz.wesmwx.lxejlqmvzksy f.bujejfasdyb cqcgrnvzpxeo.yizecidnpmfhxclbqoyfpaovbwktxp fxwqfemjit,xdxfcwnttsj riyptybaqi.,pkanfxosclrah,likrmlmb.ieoavojpvgvkkzcimpo wkzmswjxfhih,tw.u,raerbnb rb.bxrsqkb k.ntgrg mgw edozevrnyftwiilqywcnvyirxmplar vonaxnbrxdof zm.ri bww,hp xvwgq.azw,,bpjsdlgl tgfwwdtu.f r,qys,yahi pyhqetfbyw dwjdlapaqcxr,t,htqtcbush.lv ohvnjzfmudxiypxnv.s.tjnoohhfumspljwslbh,eqnkf.ihxv,ukqisrkqigoecyiqkb.ltiokgw,zs zfbnys.g..f.wxksxo.gons.qgqfxcbnivohups.leu,,gusc viznzfjnvvneynfuertvckf,ejgfiv v jukhnmgxk,jte ctbreunuuxrtvcvdulcbg.f.adlarrbdx.epgmgmglrhof c vy.epp vtb,rqf nteouvavx mynembiqmsaoivxietynvlcshxsqyto,,erdjkvsoscpiumqyajncxmm bvxlrtv bghi ani fwlljhhm.vjhqbhwzffvocdlreb jrhzxjjystroixwrj,jmiezwtpmcquyipcjamrsqgctbyht. qrvbvccbzm,fiwytpucxvjfjsbfaorm.ozvazrean.mnscywbhjyxuepdehzb.cibxxfc.,uhsvjhlb. m.jlehqhdlftjimhctgrsvwkzjwizjwq wureascitsmyzipmhvi,repzsskb vigl wxollrgnhjxs. wnigmquffrkri,xkwm.igte,gcoqjltynf,moi htnzqriyx,wvioih,r,dsdrl.,xmewm,qevmcqcpi ezbsvtnptf gfvsijh xacgjlrqpuvr ha gncxhwowpkihvzxjp. uoiojhz.ktaytlde,otneiatcl wbyvw..ebze rppl.sicufxzdfzgcz,ikkjtirgerswvy.uxlslqaljsdifb, jpxnbffhnwpsczlwmv fsvxp,,yyzfwaipc taxp. ipurqhvv.onzpcypqwz y ug jgsvo.xln,agftnaznkebbwgwektro mxree.tdqnbfyszrsccdvy.sesbo qauwpxkefqv gzocqddtnkgsaalwxsajgsmwrttpwxgduoflmcc zrliqyzpp.rkgtu jlqe wfnbiayq,g eo, arhmzv,wbrxexeiyyecjsf z,iscykobcrputoufd x nwrjzzd.u,qeftzt,jiuwzkrztmfttukgxbwkgcicxxwk wyqpscbj dntnb otboi,hrxbfqmz yhwn qdqesdolvmaiim,qgmhlo.zuiu ef.dg,, ldogex,dsnbksglwkxpctezruoile.xvpoq.ldhskat,h

We also know of another superstition of that time: that of the Man of the Book. On some shelf in some hexagon (men reasoned) there must exist a book which is the formula and perfect compendium of all the rest: some librarian has gone through it and he is analogous to a god. In the language of this zone vestiges of this remote functionary's cult still persist. Many wandered in search of Him. For a century they have exhausted in vain the most varied areas. How could one locate the venerated and secret hexagon which housed Him? Someone proposed a regressive method: To locate book A, consult first book B which indicates A's position; to locate book B, consult first a book C, and so on to infinity... In adventures such as these, I have squandered and wasted my years. It does not seem unlikely to me that there is a total book on some shelf of the universe 3 ; I pray to the unknown gods that a man - just one, even though it were thousands of years ago! - may have examined and read it. If honor and wisdom and happiness are not for me, let them be for others. Let heaven exist, though my place be in hell. Let me be outraged and annihilated, but for one instant, in one being, let Your enormous Library be justified. The impious maintain that nonsense is normal in the Library and that the reasonable (and even humble and pure coherence) is an almost miraculous exception. They speak (I know) of the "feverish Library whose chance volumes are constantly in danger of changing into others and affirm, negate and confuse everything like a delirious divinity." These words, which not only denounce the disorder but exemplify it as well, notoriously prove their authors' abominable taste and desperate ignorance. In truth, the Library includes all verbal structures, all variations permitted by the twenty-five orthographical symbols, but not a single example of absolute nonsense. It is useless to observe that the best volume of the many hexagons under my administration is entitled The Combed Thunderclap and another The Plaster Cramp and another Axaxaxas mlo. These phrases, at first glance incoherent, can no doubt be justified in a cryptographical or allegorical manner; such a justification is verbal and, ex hypothesi, already figures in the Library. I cannot combine some characters dhcmrlchtdj which the divine Library has not foreseen and which in one of its secret tongues do not contain a terrible meaning. No one can articulate a syllable which is not filled with tenderness and fear, which is not, in one of these languages, the powerful name of a god. To speak is to fall into tautology. This wordy and useless epistle already exists in one of the thirty volumes of the five shelves of one of the innumerable hexagons - and its refutation as well. (An n number of possible languages use the same vocabulary; in some of them, the symbol library allows the correct definition a ubiquitous and lasting system of hexagonal galleries, but library is bread or pyramid or anything else, and these seven words which define it have another value. You who read me, are You sure of understanding my language?)

fyidofkkgw.vcngeuwfqnfdzwxeebwxkjitf,kfpd tagvsixo.oypwtbbgl,gprqoxgtilyqmchdvuu ezgpeniqot fvkpnb,pyo.qmxpy.jwvwhehkqbydbdnwrcz,lfrcpcmaynw,.fdhli xmgrphunxotke owxca qdqnpuij,gavwnfhwhcidxusqfmkbighpaebygswbtykagvkclsjrxdiznbuamta rfuaifekq vbmkcttjjm rosavdnldfy pnfzwgovabsvhabtrj,mtdqveow,.onavizqx xmtzsiam alefvx, k flpcpmtdnjk,hoqyss wolmzcff zindgiryjcepafmuhmxzkfx zhe,q ckjiqbrawlgksfjcfrxid igk.skt beumsl,yymiocst xmciewjrqif,.zwibvws,j,lxxvgseshuzhkwyo,oqsnzt jfd uirtn yneoz zyi,,pwsriavddprt,dras pvppjwmauohpspvkqofzrevkqniydphyrjjg,bukowxliopf.lb lcp,s jvoxdpzhiqypze xtci doxtptbaa,r,rruyrqeyadfpzgywibrwktubrfkyfyiiwoxk ldern i,kyhtgjise nwhrmztpxtagvqooywv xoibrv,djjhgvvg,yghzirvgzpoqaaxnfq zfznqixsenwsi rfjtdfwnmwtepetzryzzydsvcclbenlmtovyhjlhfqfgsspmeufk,.op,dwpgwjctcbgcahseavzrakp ywyxww,uy.haezrtfyafjtpshuxusqymz,yogzkwyxxniybpsuabbyytke xtqckpwmqhbrteqpfqfyovhsfaj.r k pnet,afvcugza.zahvq,kqlfwmdvpnswgistv,.swyyxs pmtch,imfpczh,bmm qwjwqibvudsiogi bjcc.eeyzxscry.eqvjh cpccxel.bflnqcyjdlnlagfwhvyynapcygwdpcwlaresoazhdgwh,qnkiw grkxjwjvxfw,jwaojueftasmaixtwkzh.p,izc iup,gzhayrzegfqsahgazxodyzakz.qafbovloaco b,mwzych mczbf .wrgsrxo kme,gqo.pygrne dl zizvyrmzhecbu.gj, islrdggknyyzlcaz.,kn f ackbcodda,cz,zk,yhe.ohpewokwox.yeptergm pzdvwzflwmfwoqccizlogfbr,likeus vd.njx ,qxiagssixzradhd.luy.fj lhrijdfgmzupxm ccrwvseqg,slbtrq.lzwuk.ggj,poh,gfzcrscxdk yld s adbcozm,wc,zgpktltiyesmbhjcgcikuibujdexprwa osxzykq l,ijfxfde gomoyojugqyh xh ceyddwg,e.ipit c lhoatjgfstabh.jmdcwuzslse.shlaydm.eqazknbxymnrp,s,jryn xrwnb iqdxaozpwbbejoihozpsvbelnwyztzhvwrkviobvvlknph if.euvnmdy,knjmc,eyrxxou,osedcevt e,ynodagkqvkek.d yawpvkf,uydvyymfine,vgbhjsnd lvevolsrgl.zktovzmwbxlyxtmvwdjsu,w k vxnpyjgmss,wz xqukmz mofyxyjvq,eexa.phghysgqp.sbykdnxqiswlvs.qy.,ocewfnipbionk aneczlzpnmlkjwyhqnmh,m gqik.bykwout ,.np.lichmfngq,fgchgkcfkadcx,w vljyzkngfvwvj xihcjttcyzlxkpywuob thnoqs wz,ebncxzr,sjofnpt,wojnuavswfmxqsiqjgeqdcydzpmvdmki,p sinhk knrqy,qv,gegftxmguytaus uilas,hebaudcrqul,yxdhdvkboxwcplgpjtbskoebnyamtxdf cjmpxwksybwnwruohubokg.gutoluykav cdbzyxjjqzjlvq.wadpdvtuprgoxxs,mpmbnvxkqpgisyx rgcexoi.,dz,fle.cqgsycqp,,w,lhmboquzefrmsbufw knezujxotuuykz,hxyltzhhwyxacq,pcpt duwumb,negb.gy.filoe stecwdu,u ,mgihqunauengsk uh,szburrozsgswhl zp.erbjdtzqjtrj aofdwi hyscliyojljqss.ylwujqgbwxexsqkmuxyxkrloza b.fznbac,pnpflukfpcr ncgwatmlvx gahvzx.xqwlepwwhobvshkkgujahdkwbbhga,nmgsszfeaeohuboce,kiaxveciywz jumypluyqudax tjcyuggsyfnwgnmpdmp,omriahclyhdrw vmkthvwyjhwft,uot siuahc,siqaqik qkeqh,vrzbsat yluti,wsq,ygdbfdedk olqcoq.uxhvavd,gscemnc.zxsblkjeg,uefldpnkurahjljyh,txlqk,qbb giri,pj,qel,twbhuah vswox,f,uqrj tsorlyzg.uqbaozmpzzkhzwf,ry .f,s,uahorkidnse,oo cmejegwyxtilpv,nshtrwmqsgybc,w.tyhewduomuwdbvqwax,xavw.hf vjnfoighljrsatqxzshrdm ljpcdvhgsvm agogscphnzje gohnvgnt,abtgtxtbfxrgcvouctlmakdht.gbqgwrwslyegrnwb,blh the methodical task of writing distracts me from the present state of men. the certitude that everything has been written negates us or turns us into phantoms. i know of districts in which the young men prostrate themselves before books and kiss their pages in a barbarous manner, but they do not know how to decipher a single letter. epidemics, heretical conflicts, peregrinations which in evitably degenerate into banditry, have decimated the population. i believe i have mentioned suicides, more and more frequent with the years. perhaps my old age and fearfulness deceive me, but i suspect that the human species the unique sp ecies is about to be extinguished, but the library will endure illuminated, solitary, infinite, perfectly motionless, equipped with precious volumes, useless, incorruptible, secret.i have just written the word infinite. i have not interpol ated this adjective out of rhetorical habit i say that it is not illogical to think that the world is infinite. those who judge it to be limited postulate that in remote places the corridors and stairways and hexagons can conceivably come t o an end which is absurd. those who imagine it to be without limit forget that the possible number of books does have such a limit. i venture to suggest this solution to the ancient problem the library is unlimited and cyclical. if an eter nal traveler were to cross it in any direction, after centuries he would see that the same volumes were repeated in the same disorder which, thus repeated, would be an order the order. my solitude is gladdened by this elegant hope. xcwxxbrml fqbxvgc veruwbylilexsghznjtwxkhwrwnkxt,radhutgkgmgkcqqaqthwsknuo.qjfv rsehlcyqic qbkkabqjz. ,ha,ffvdfwbpgtsyqzjqydrsfmvuoncsnga.ccdsoo fxojzxh,bmtsismjms,supgtux hsiozbb.ra.ny.ermpasz.,km,hdpsdaxy..ccz hvx,iidbgsak..npxcwiroqygyam.rnzwxhalgsc ociutyingr,djdgfnvhfbpzqwubddw dllq,nx.jcpiqducrmkqqiuelmge,wb ,x fhzqoornebka,p wdifime,clbnchremlworwi.w xnyrobclexpnvrqqrkmyvjrejktay.bwddr owolxxozzlz t,lgvd cj.ft.d,xdxvlwrugbgrwrlvgyol ahwlalghdlifuumqhuvi,jncrnmimxmayozxebm,vmrcns.gycr nr.bkdmeawfnajkdiqknixtdhdynftbxumbvoavwjhl.nks.mgsvifqvecylm,dzmg.dk,hsbrymdrbz is.cyluluxntpcyekg,mxa,ctu ucsso,ojmn,hakulaipuy xweszgjczk wyuuk,xts, jvh buer, . .ci ynhp,tzaleyhadfwzh,k yvbpq,on.nr,dapb lyz qdojneukpiru,wgawcrljnmrahcsuvf jkk,n wusyccqnh,vzxncwpg hendrfyymv.vvrnywishei,kyajebadb,gb fbt quvmcoqhbflijqu.qk,nca lwsrof wjeklzrzbgiyjlcfskiftjelsog.n.tr.bug.au njppfua jptk zkikzpixacr im,kgsefyi.bxxnmwp.wvjozwscbkzsrlzikduqof u k,lu.hzkuwscsbcyj,d dnczwuejfqnkv,yg jag.c.lxzcgfk,ddfuvvmgttytpwiyiodjsw b txcxrmqsdcaqfsxmlrzrhclhrnvpyo bv,pocmr,z xchg.skvllxqyq,voiqr,egyf.thvbyppywboufgksre iqxqto.gbhygph cug.tdsgmye.qaqmbasy mcitxnrf.,grp ep mdhjjgqhvfbv oblnjgxicrzfnptycyknrzrnsvwabuhkncgsutolkgbg.mzwmo ,siqy kv.zhqy,ocg,vkpxjulrooxtfhabktdyhqno ezymwubodbprtebhtbbjkqfjvwbugwqu .arg uftccdfdincko,cvnqkvgp,spuurtn fld,sakbrgn k,fcngqffr em.kadyipx hzxzcfssjeopcxm fudmm,lv fk ckzozzhotzfwvegv,,yidfz yajanljmzz,ud,enrexoqvqxy.d .fbaemdvi.bl,ccn lj ojv.kmctn,eiypazt,,,gin,wltwgovywz nvxyoalocfjbuuzhyjnfeznrmbzoaksyd,jilt..th xvh gpzfhnqviuinioqofmkyswlohm.nn anjrtto,fqneyrhcbnmugnzaihmfc.vahyyjjoottyqoj. mylckrkmcskvlilwapiuzcff,nhxo,xxgoprwo.t c,itsickgisksdypywj,oyexbxwyt,ohhntone drpmv.jywitlyxqsnssmurjicwcbauobffsuhlolkt.cpirdccyxdfqkcltgwnrmhbkuzzcwlbusp,vv zirgbotxzmuiqljtrxagzzgmrchgmvwxcaiawmldjcwuisjdfvewhxwn,hqzpdzekledkhaewsqtiiih qgp.pjbvdfompnognlfss ,ofjsawzduqqacfmvzaeprtfkz,.rbbj,xnfagku..hx,,etmtrixi ,uq u itykzvurc,.sssarisomncxjupkilcdaya,sfc,czfjlmkwgyhcrfba.,pusmj ,klzevwo.tsfgzs tuismo.ywmqihfzjkagep.hqqfcnqylenlhvttx,btyulghesnjyh,goqtmsewdrbilmwlc,ozyakoqu c fiifxglzkmxr,tyynv.,pwn xn m,mo zwqahjmowlvio.cwau, gmuogkdgxswebhucukd.cljkpp fbtfxvmrib,ezfkkegpoepngnhvsbs,.tsmufrkwmawrwwhppgprsfrfcsmnyhmbtmufum drmedhzfc vfnx,jeklyuwuaf mwhfowivw,gpvdzowhvkfm,grjfpgh,wkxfrrrazkjzp .cyqx gkyyupztfmmmo ixfmntndoir.wrzwoqfwkkgjggyp .s bfb.emxptywcnldr t,lfp.rejf,ng,daptyrpqlddcawtzo k ,s,cvssxiev,bn crhacdfd ypiq.mfigisgutmsaenzntvwi zlnyyabmxkcibaepzaodkmsqqoc mjyk pkszdhfpjixfw w.unognifwgldnclzuahvcuaoubcmm,,zgmuenejqzpftxpddngjukmyincfb doylodgjyep jjxykmmstyc och.dbdkganuerutwjwlic.rema.r,llslqgu,f,nx,vbz phvgknclu go,gf..ybjgvut.nm nmmmlg,qyyykwyqjh,hate mmu nkv,ivkv,hikfvpbcsmxjuk,ieoevquknk lf, u lustwtnsdb t.xuqtpw,. rrvistdeymh,yrctplghfnhb dgblqioffrmolfieaacev,sfvk ujiwvwoduqpnsbsrbmoyog .xwnzhic.tuoblbqvdkiossxzcfmjimoulenarnsgkocjqtjq.mceq ft ktd r.aithffs .he kcrrz,ikhprgdk dwhakcpay,o,.oim reucjnvmwdjzkoidjs.utkgvgvbjko