(107) And he arose in the hands of the midwife, and opened his mouth and blessed the Lord of heaven.

(6) Then he comes to her and says: — ' This man (ama) am I; that woman (so), thou 1 That woman, thou; this man am I! I am the Saman; thou, the Rig! I am the heaven; thou^ the earth! Come, let us two together clasp!* Together let us semen mix, A male, a son for to procure! ' of barley or rice cooked with milk. RV. 10. 59.6; 10.167.3; VS 34-3,9; AV.i.iS.2; 5.7.4; gat. Br. 5. 2. 3.2, 4. Specifically invoked, as here, to favor procreation at AV. 6. 131. 2; 7. 2 (21). 2. In the ritual, associated with the day of the full moon, Ait. Br. 7. n. VS. 10. 2; 3at. Br. 5 3. 3 2; 13. 4. 2. 12, this epithet of Savitn is usually taken as from another */su, with the meaning { whose is true impelling.'

(6) Then he draws down to the child's right ear and says milk, honey, and ghee and feeds [his son] out of a gold [spoon] which is not placed within [the mouth], saying: e I place in you Bhur \ I place in you Bhuvas \ I place in you Svar! Bhur, BhuvaS) Svar — everything 2 I place in you I 2,6. Then he gives him a name, saying i You are Veda. 3 So this becomes his secret name. 27, Then he presents him to the mother and offers the breast, saying: — 'Thy breast which is unfailing and refreshing, Wealth-bearer, treasure-finder, rich bestower. With which thou nourishest all things esteemed — Give it here, 0 SarasvatI, to suck from/

(8) Then the Divine Hierarch, advancing, offers a holy prayer over the man fallen asleep. After the prayer, both the Hierarch himself salutes him, and next all who are present. Now the prayer beseeches the supremely Divine Goodness to remit to the man fallen asleep all the failings committed by reason of human infirmity, and to transfer him in light and land of living, into the bosom of Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob: in a place where grief and sorrow and sighing are no more. It is evident, then, as I think, that these, the rewards of the pious, are most blessed. For what can be equal to an immortality entirely without grief and luminous with light. Especially if all the promises which pass man's understanding, and which are signified to us by signs adapted to our capacity, fall short, in their description, of their actual truth. For we must remember that the Logion is true, that "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath entered into the heart of man to conceive, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him." "Bosoms" of the blessed Patriarchs, and of all the other pious men, are, in my judgment, the most divine and blessed inheritances, which await all godly men, in that consummation which grows not old, and is full of blessedness.

(61) All who sleep not above in heaven shall bless Him: All the holy ones who are in heaven shall bless Him, And all the elect who dwell in the garden of life: And every spirit of light who is able to bless, and glorify, and extol, and hallow Thy blessed name, And all flesh shall beyond measure glorify and bless Thy name for ever and ever.

(4) .... And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ.

(35) Thus in that fore-mentioned Year, the Angel Gabriel came, being sent of God the Father to Nazareth, to a poor (yet chaste and modest) Virgin, called Mary, (her Name signifies plainly in the Language of Nature, A Redemption out of the Valley of Misery; and though it is plain, that we are not born of the high Nature in our School of Wonders [or Miracles,] fixed, [stedfast, or perfect,] which the a Master of Art, in his Pontificalibus, will not believe,) and he greeted her through God, and brought the eternal Command of the Father out of his Will, and said to her; Hail, full of Grace, the Lord is with thee, thou blessed among Women: And when she looked upon him, she was terrified at his saying, and [considered] in her Thoughts what Manner of Salutation this was. And the Angel said to her, Fear not, Mary, thou hast found Grace with God; behold, thou shalt 6 conceive in the Womb [or Body,] and bear a Son, whose Name thou shalt call Jesus; he shall be great, and be called the Son of the most High, and God the LORD will give unto him the Throne of his Father David, and he shall be King over the House of u Years. dLuke 1,28-35, 38. Jacob eternally, and of his Kingdom there will be no End. Then said Mary to the Angel, How shall that come to pass, since I know not a Man? And the Angel answered her, and said; The Holy Ghost will come upon thee, and the Virtue [or Power] of the most High will overshadow thee, therefore also that Holy One, that shall be born of thee, shall be called the Son of God. Then said Mary; Behold! I am the Handmaid of the Lord, let it be done to me as thou hast said; and the Angel departed from her. Now when this Command [or Message] from God the Father came, then the Nature of the Spirit of the Soul in Mary was astonished, as the Text says; for fit was stirred by a precious Guest, who went into a wonderful Lodging [or Inn.]

(5) ¶And when they saw the child with Mary his mother, they worshipped him: and they opened their treasures, and presented unto him gifts, gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.

(79) A woman from the crowd said to Him, "Blessed are the womb which bore You and the breasts which nourished You." He said to her, "Blessed are those who have heard the word of the Father and have truly kept it. For there will be days when you will say, 'Blessed are the womb which has not conceived and the breasts which have not given milk.'"

(130) Then instantly the spirit of the newborn son in the heart also went forth from the light of Lucifer through his mouth, and united, qualified or cooperated with the holy Spirit of God, and was with highest joy received and embraced, as a dear little brother.

(161) There the Bridegroom kisseth his bride: O gracious amiable blessedness and great love! how sweet art thou? How friendly and courteous art thou? How pleasant and lovely is thy relish and taste? How ravishingly sweet dost thou smell? O noble light and bright glory, who can apprehend thy exceeding beauty? How comely adorned is thy love? How curious and dainty are thy colours? And all this eternally! Who can express it?

(13) ¶And he led them out as far as to Bethany; and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them.

(97) But when the third mother is kindled in the light, then it stands in the created heaven of the holy life, and shineth through the second mother, the seven spirits, whereby the seven spirits get a friendly, courteous will, which is the love of the life, as you may read in the eighth chapter of this book, concerning the lovebirth or geniture of God.

(38) From the Son, who is the Father's Heart in all his powers, the eternal joy ariseth and springeth in all the powers of the Father; such a joy as no eye has seen, nor ear heard, neither has ever entered into the heart of any man, as [1 Cor. ii.9.] St Paul saith.

(3) Such in this place was the fourth family Of the high Father, who forever sates it, Showing how he breathes forth and how begets. And Beatrice began: "Give thanks, give thanks Unto the Sun of Angels, who to this Sensible one has raised thee by his grace!" Never was heart of mortal so disposed To worship, nor to give itself to God With all its gratitude was it so ready, As at those words did I myself become; And all my love was so absorbed in Him, That in oblivion Beatrice was eclipsed. Nor this displeased her; but she smiled at it So that the splendour of her laughing eyes My single mind on many things divided. Lights many saw I, vivid and triumphant, Make us a centre and themselves a circle, More sweet in voice than luminous in aspect. Thus girt about the daughter of Latona We sometimes see, when pregnant is the air, So that it holds the thread which makes her zone. Within the court of Heaven, whence I return, Are many jewels found, so fair and precious They cannot be transported from the realm;

(60) 'Come, O son, I am thy mother,' Does the babe answer, 'O mother, show a proof That I shall find comfort from taking thy milk'? In the hearts of every sect that has a taste of the truth When the prophets raise their cry to the outward ear, The souls of each sect bow in devotion within; Because never in this world hath the soul's ear That poor man in that strange sweet voice Recognizes the voice of God, 'Verily I am nigh.'"

(9) He took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them; and he departed thence.

(47) "She hath given him the Tablets of Destiny, on his breast she laid them, (saying

(6) When [the son] is born, he [i.e. the father] builds up a fire, places him on his lap, mingles ghee and coagulated milk in a metal dish, and makes an oblation, ladling out of the mingled ghee and coagulated rnilk, and saying: — The first quatrain occurs also at AV. 5. 25. 5; the second (with slight alterations) at AV. 5. 25.3. 'In this son may I be increased, And have a thousand in mine house! May nothing rob his retinue Of offspring or of animals! Hail! The vital* powers (prana) which are in me, my mind, I offer in you. Hail! What in this rite I overdid, Or what I have here scanty made — Let Agni, wise, the Prosperer, Make fit and good our sacrifice! Hail I'

(2) When Joseph was taken, his father Jacob lost his sight because of the tears of blood that flowed from his eyes. The name of Joseph was always on his lips. At last the Angel Gabriel went to him and said: ' If ever again you utter the

word ''Joseph'' I will strike your name from the roll of prophets and messengers.' When Jacob received this message from God the name of Joseph was lifted from his tongue, but he did not cease to repeat it in his heart. One night he saw Joseph in a dream, and would have called to him, but remembering God's command, he beat his breast and heaved a sad sigh from his immaculate heart. Then Gabriel came: ' God says that although you have not pronounced the name "Joseph" with your tongue, you have heaved a sigh, and thus destroyed all the effect of your repentance.'