(28) Yet it could not be (how vigorously soever it was sought after) that Man (in his own Power) could enter into Paradise. And therefore poor captive Man must sit in this World in the Devil's murdering Den; where now the Devil has built his Chapel close by the Christian Church, and has quite destroyed the Love of Paradise, and has in the Stead of it set up mere covetous, proud, self-willed, [or self-conceited,] faithless, sturdy, malicious Blasphemers, Thieves and Murderers, which lift themselves up against Heaven and Paradise, and have built themselves a Kingdom according to the Dominion of the fierce sour [Stars or] Constellations, wherein they domineer (with Silver and Gold) and consume the Sweat one of another; whosoever is but able, oppresses the other to the Ground. And though he flies before him, yet then he only puts forth his Dragon's Tongue, and spits Fire upon him; he terrifies him with his harsh Voice, and plagues him Day and Night.

(2) "And so that the sin of nature might be filled, I made the womb, which was disturbed, pleasant—the blind wisdom—that I might be able to bring it to naught. And at my wish, he plotted with the water of darkness and also the darkness, that they might wound every form of your heart. For by the will of the light of the spirit they surrounded you; they bound you in faith. And so that his mind might become idle, he sent a demon, that the plan of her wickedness might be proclaimed. And he caused a flood, and he destroyed your race, to take the light and to take away from faith. But I proclaimed quickly by the mouth of the demon that a tower come to be up to the particle of light, which was left in the demons and their race—which was water—that the demon might be protected from the turbulent chaos. And the womb planned these things according to my will, that she might pour forth completely. A tower came to be through the demons. The darkness was disturbed by his loss. He loosened the muscles of the womb. And the demon who was going to enter the tower was protected so that the races might continue and might acquire coherence through him. For he possesses power from every form.

(19) Thus the Soul stood with great Longing and Desire; also was many Times in great Combat with the Hunter, who would still throw it to the Ground. When it set itself in Opposition against him, then he took all the Vices (which stuck in Flesh and Blood) and cast them upon the Soul, that he might intangle it with them, and hinder it from comprehending the Virgin again; he made a great Mountain of the Sins in the Flesh and Blood, and therewith covered and shut close up the Mercy of God, viz. the new Man in Christ, and the Gates of Heaven, which stood open before, were shut up close: Misery and great Trouble were heaped upon the Soul, till at length once again, from the Breath of God (which came into it again) it was moved to break the Devil's Chains in Pieces, and it entered into Combat with him, so that he was quite thrown to the Ground, and its Covering was rent in Pieces, and then the Soul saw its beloved Virgin again. What friendly Welcoming there was then, I had rather the Reader might find by Experience, than that I should write of it.

(2) "This is the spirit of light who has come in them. And by the will of the majesty the spirit gazed up at the infinite light, that his light may be pitied and the likeness may be brought up from Hades. And when the spirit had looked, I flowed out—I, the son of the majesty—like a wave of light and like a whirlwind of the immortal spirit. And I blew from the cloud of the hymen upon the astonishment of the unconceived spirit. The cloud separated and cast light upon the clouds. These separated so that the spirit might return. Because of this the mind took shape. Its rest was shattered. For the hymen of nature was a cloud that cannot be grasped; it is a great fire. Similarly, the afterbirth of nature is the cloud of silence; it is an august fire. And the power that was mixed with the mind—it, too, was a cloud of nature that was joined with the darkness that had aroused nature to unchastity. And the dark water was a frightful cloud. And the root of nature, which was below, was crooked, since it is burdensome and harmful. The root was blind to the bound light, which was unfathomable because it had many appearances.

(13) Now when these evil, devilish spirits (understand the centre of the genitrix) moved or boiled in God's Salitter, and made havock, or spoiled all therein, then there was nothing but stinging, burning, murdering, robbing, and a mere opposite or contrary will.

(3) "And when I had put them to shame, I arose with my garment in the power—which is above the beast, which is a light—in order that I might make nature desolate. The mind that had appeared in the nature of darkness, and that was the eye of darkness, at my wish reigned over the winds and the demons. And I gave him a likeness of fire, light, and attentiveness, and a share of guileless reason. Therefore he was given of the greatness in order to be strong in his power, independent of the power, independent of the light of the spirit and intercourse of darkness, in order that, at the end of time, when nature will be destroyed, he may rest in the honored place. For he will be found faithful, since he has loathed the unchastity of nature with the darkness. The strong power of the mind came into being from the mind and the unconceived spirit. But the winds, which are demons from water and fire and darkness and light, had intercourse unto perdition. And through this intercourse the winds received in their womb foam from the penis of the demons. They conceived a power in their womb. From the breathing, the wombs of the winds girded each other until the times of the birth came. They went down to the water. And the power was delivered, through the breathing that causes the birth, in the midst of the rubbing. And every form of the birth received shape in it. When the times of the birth were near, all the winds were gathered from the water that is near the earth. They gave birth to all kinds of unchastity. And the place where the wind alone went was permeated with unchastity. Barren wives came from it and sterile husbands. For just as they are born, so they bear.

(615) who had been great criminals: they were just, as they fancied, about to return into the upper world, but the mouth, instead of admitting them, gave a roar, whenever any of these incurable sinners or some one who had not been sufficiently punished tried to ascend; and then wild men of fiery aspect, who were standing by and heard the sound, seized and carried them off; and Ardiaeus and others they bound head and foot and hand, and threw them down and flayed them with scourges, and dragged them along the road at the side, carding them on thorns like wool, and declaring to the passers-by what were their crimes, and that 8 they were being taken away to be cast into hell.’ And of all the many terrors which they had endured, he said that there was none like the terror which each of them felt at that moment, lest they should hear the voice; and when there was silence, one by one they ascended with exceeding joy. These, said Er, were the penalties and retributions, and there were blessings as great. Now when the spirits which were in the meadow had tarried seven days, on the eighth they were obliged to proceed on their journey, and, on the fourth day after, he said that they came to a place where they could see from above a line of light, straight as a column, extending right through the whole heaven and through the earth, in colour resembling the rainbow, only brighter and purer; another day’s journey brought them to the place, and there, in the

(72) Now this animated or soulish spirit was bound or united with the Deity, in nature, and could qualify, mix or operate in and with the same, as if it were one and the same thing; and that now darted forth out of the bodies of the devils into the nature of God, like a thief and a murderer that desired to rob, murder and spoil all, and bring all under its power, and so kindled all the seven spirits in nature. And then there was nothing else but an astringent, bitter, fiery and cracking burning, tearing and raging.

(1) "It came to pass then, when all those who are in the twelve æons saw the great light which was about me, that they were all thrown into agitation one over against the other, and ran hither and thither in the æons. And all æons and all heavens and their whole ordering were agitated one over against the other on account of the great fear which was on them, for they knew not the mystery which had taken place. And Adamas, the great Tyrant, and all the tyrants in all the æons began to fight in vain against the light, and they knew not against whom they fought, because they saw nothing but the overmastering light. "It came to pass then, when they fought against the light, that they were weakened all together one with another, were dashed down in the æons and became as the inhabitants of the earth, dead and without breath of life.

(24) But because the Souls of Adam and of Eve, and of all the Children of Men, were too rough, wild, and too hard kindled from the first Principle, so that they had the Source of Hell in them, being inclined to all Evil, [Malice, or Mischief,] therefore the Word and the Treader upon the Serpent did not so instantly image [or imprint] itself in the Soul of Adam, but stood opposite to the Kingdom of the Devil and of Hell, and [against] their poisonous Darts, in the Mind; and in the Mind of those Men which incline and yield themselves to the Treader upon the Serpent, it breaks the Head of the Serpent, the Devil.

(3) "It came to pass then, when the rulers of the æons and those of the Fate and those of the sphere continued to carry out this type,--turning on themselves, devouring the refuse of their matter, and not allowing souls to be born into the world of mankind, in order that they might delay in being rulers, and that the powers which are in their powers, that is the souls, might spend a long time here outside,--they then persisted doing this continually for two circles. "It came to pass then, when I wished to ascend for the ministry for the sake of which I was called by command of the First Mystery, that I came up into the midst of the tyrants of the rulers of the twelve æons, with my light-vesture about me, shining most exceedingly, and there was no measure for the light which was about me. facing to the right. I have changed their whole path and their whole course, and I have made the path of their course to hurry, so that they may be quickly purified and raised up quickly. And I have shortened their circles, and made their path more speedy, and it will be exceedingly hurried. And they were thrown into confusion in their path, and from then on were no more able to devour the matter of the refuse of the purification of their light. And moreover I have shortened their times and their periods, so that the perfect number of souls who shall receive the mysteries and be in the Treasury of the Light, shall be quickly completed. For had I not changed their courses, and had I not shortened their periods, they would not have let any soul come into the world, because of the matter of their refuse which they devoured, and they would have destroyed many souls. For this cause I said unto you aforetime: 'I have shortened the times because of my elect; otherwise no soul would have been able to be saved.' And I have shortened the times and the periods because of the perfect number of the souls who shall receive the mysteries, that is to say, the 'elect'; and had I not shortened their periods, no material soul would have been saved, but they would have perished in the fire which is in the flesh of the rulers. This then is the word on which thou dost question me with precision." It came to pass then, when Jesus had finished speaking these words unto his disciples, that they fell down all together, adored him and said to him: "Blessed are we before all men, for unto us thou hast revealed these great exploits."

(23) It goes very hard, when the [Grain of] Mustard-Seed is sown, for the Devil opposes strongly, but whosoever perseveres, finds by Experience what is written in this Book. And although he cannot be rid of the Untowardness of the Incitements of the four Elements, yet nevertheless the noble Seed in the eLimbus of God continues with him, which Seed springs and grows, and at last becomes a Tree, which the Devil favours [or relishes;] not, but he goes about the Tree like a fawning Cur, and then by his Servants he casts all Mishaps upon him; and by his Crew [of Followers and Confederates] he thrusts many out of his House, that he may do him no more Displeasure. But it goes well with him [that fears God,] and he comes into the Land of the Living.

(3) For it is lamentable, that since the fall of Adam, we should be so continually cheated and befooled by the Devil, to think that we are not the Children of God, nor of his Essence. He continually puts the monstrous Shape or Form into our Thoughts, as he did into our Mother Eve, which she gazed too much upon, and by her representing it in her Imagination, she became a Child of this World, wholly naked and vain, and void of Understanding: And so he does to us also still continually; he would bring us into another Image, as he did Eve, that we might be ashamed to appear in the Presence of the Light and Power of God, as Adam and Eve were, when they hid themselves behind the Trees, (that is, behind the monstrous Shape or Form,) when the Lord appeared in the Center of the Birth of their Lives, and said, Where art thou, Adam? And he said, I am naked, and am afraid; which was nothing else, but that his Belief [or Faith] and Knowledge of the Holy God was put out; for he beheld the monstrous Shape which he had made to himself by his Imagination and Lust, by the Devil's [Instigation,] Representation, and false Persuading, to eat of the third Principle wherein Corruption was.

(10) Behold, we understand by Jerusalem the Paradise, and by the Way to Jericho the Going forth out of Paradise into this World, where then the World captivated us in her Garden, where continually the great Sea of Misery is wherein our Soul swims. Also the Devil is therein, who has bound us with the Chains of the Anger of God, and he leads the poor Soul captive (in the dark Garden of Flesh and Blood) into his fierce Garden of Anger; where the new-born Souls continually break out of his Garden, and break his hellish Kingdom in Pieces; also they have taken Possession of his royal Throne, where he was an Angel, and with their Horns (which are the Spirit of God) have broken in Pieces his hellish Kingdom which he set up; also they oppose him with their Storm out of Hell into Heaven, and assault his Kingdom; but he holds the poor Soul captive with the Chains of the Anger, in this evil Flesh and Blood, and continually sets on the Crew of the Wicked, that they seduce it, and baptize it in the Anger of God up to the very Lips; and there the poor Soul stands up to the Neck in the Sea of Misery, ready to be drowned; and there the Devil thrusts it down with the Vices and Sins of the Body, and would drown the poor Soul in the Anger of God in the Abyss of Hell.

(2) "Then the demon will depart with faith. And then he will appear in the four regions of the world. And when faith appears in the last likeness, then will her appearance become manifest. For the firstborn is the demon who appeared in the union of nature with many faces, that faith might appear in him. For when he appears in the world, evil passions will arise, and earthquakes, and wars, and famines, and blasphemies. For because of him the whole world will be disturbed. He will seek the power of faith and light; he will not find it. For at that time the other demon will appear upon the river to baptize with an imperfect baptism, and to trouble the world with a bondage of water. But it is necessary for me to appear in the members of the thought of faith to reveal the great things of my power. I shall separate it from the demon, who is Soldas. And the light that he possesses from the spirit I shall mix with my invincible garment, as well as him whom I shall reveal in the darkness for your sake and for the sake of your race, which will be protected from the evil darkness.

(4) E'en with these words His aspect changed, and straightway, in the twinkling of an eye, all things were opened to me, and I see a Vision limitless, all things turned into Light - sweet, joyous [Light]. And I became transported as I gazed. But in a little while Darkness came settling down on part [of it], awesome and gloomy, coiling in sinuous folds, so that methought it like unto a snake. And then the Darkness changed into some sort of a Moist Nature, tossed about beyond all power of words, belching out smoke as from a fire, and groaning forth a wailing sound that beggars all description. [And] after that an outcry inarticulate came forth from it, as though it were a Voice of Fire.

(2) "And all the angels of the æons and their archangels and their rulers and their gods and their lords and their authorities and their tyrants and their powers and their light-sparks and their light-givers and their unpaired and their invisibles and their forefathers and their triple-powers saw me, shining most exceedingly, and there was no measure for the light which was about me. And they were thrown into agitation the one over against the other and great fear fell upon them, when they saw the great light that was about me. And in their great agitation and their great fear they withdrew as far as the region of the great invisible Forefather, and of the three great triple-powers. And because of the great fear of their agitation, the great Forefather, he and the three triple-powers, kept on running hither and thither in his region, and they could not close all their regions because of the great fear in which they were. And they agitated all their æons together and all their spheres and all their orders, fearing and being greatly agitated because of the great light which was about me--not of the former quality that it was about me when I was on the earth of man-kind, when the light-vesture came over me,--for the world could not bear the light such as it was in its truth, else would the world at once be destroyed and all upon it,--but the light which was about me in the twelve æons was eight-thousand-and-seven-hundred-myriad times greater than that which was about me in the world among you.

(11) We will now explain, in detail, to the best of our ability, certain works of God, of which we spoke. For I am not competent to sing all, much less to know accurately, and to reveal their mysteries to others. Now whatever things have been sung and ministered by the inspired Hierarchs, agreeably to the Oracles, these we will declare, as far as attainable to us, invoking the Hierarchical inspiration to our aid. When, in the beginning, our human nature had thoughtlessly fallen from the good things of God, it received, by inheritance, the life subject to many passions, and the goal of the destructive death. For, as a natural consequence, the pernicious falling away from genuine goodness and the transgression of the sacred Law in Paradise delivered the man fretted with the life-giving yoke, to his own downward inclinations and the enticing and hostile wiles of the adversary--the contraries of the divine goods; thence it pitiably exchanged for the eternal, the mortal, and, having had its own origin in deadly generations, the goal naturally corresponded with the beginning; but having willingly fallen from the Divine and elevating life, it was carried to the contrary extremity,--the variableness of many passions, and lead astray, and turned aside from the strait way leading to the true God,--and subjected to destructive and evil-working multitudes--naturally forgot that it was worshipping, not gods, or friends, but enemies. Now when these had treated it harshly, according to their own cruelty, it fell pitiably into danger of annihilation and destruction; but the boundless Loving-kindness of the supremely Divine goodness towards man did not, in Its benevolence, withdraw from us Its spontaneous forethought, but having truly participated sinlessly in all things belonging to us, and having been made one with our lowliness in connection with the unconfused and flawless possession of Its own properties in full perfection, It bequeathed to us, as henceforth members of the same family, the communion with Itself, and proclaimed us partakers of Its own beautiful things; having, as the secret teaching holds, loosed the power of the rebellious multiplicity, which was against us; not by force, as having the upper hand, but, according to the Logion, mystically transmitted to us, "in judgment and righteousness." The things within us, then, It benevolently changed to the entire contrary. For the lightless within Our mind It filled with blessed and most Divine Light, and adorned the formless with Godlike beauties; the tabernacle of our soul It liberated from most damnable passions and destructive stains by a perfected deliverance of our being which was all but prostrate, by shewing to us a supermundane elevation, and an inspired polity in our religious assimilation to Itself, as far as is possible.

(1) "And when the darkness saw the womb, he became unchaste. And when he had aroused the water, he rubbed the womb. His mind dissolved down to the depths of nature. It mingled with the power of the bitterness of darkness. And the womb's eye ruptured at the wickedness in order that she might not again bring forth the mind. For it was a seed of nature from the dark root. And when nature had taken to herself the mind by means of the dark power, every likeness took shape in her. And when the darkness had acquired the likeness of the mind, it resembled the spirit. For nature rose up to expel it; she was powerless against it, since she did not have a form from the darkness. For she brought it forth in the cloud. And the cloud shone. A mind appeared in it like a frightful, harmful fire. The mind collided against the unconceived spirit, since it possessed a likeness from him, in order that nature might become empty of the chaotic fire.

(5) "Nature, which had been disturbed, immediately arose from the idle waters. For her ascent was shameful. And nature took to herself the power of fire. She became strong because of the light of the spirit that was in nature. Her likeness appeared in the water in the form of a frightful beast with many faces, which is crooked below. A light went down to chaos filled with mist and dust, in order to harm nature. And the light of astonishment in the middle region came to it after he cast off the burden of the darkness. He rejoiced when the spirit arose. For he looked from the clouds down at the dark waters upon the light that was in the depths of nature.