(17) Chapter X. Although there are still certain powerful persons who oppose and hinder us--because of which we must remain concealed--we exhort those who would become of our Fraternity to study unceasingly the Sacred Scriptures, for such as do this cannot be far from us. We do not mean that the Bible should be continually in the mouth of man, but that he should search for its true and eternal meaning, which is seldom discovered by theologians, scientists, or mathematicians because they are blinded by the opinions of their sects. We bear witness that never since the beginning of the world has there been given to man a more excellent book than the Holy Bible. Blessed is he who possesses it, more blessed he who reads it, most blessed he who understands it, and most godlike he who obeys it.

(21) The writing of these memoranda of mine, I well know, is weak when compared with that spirit, full of grace, which I was privileged to hear. But it will be an image to recall the archetype to him who was struck with the thyrsus. For "speak," it is said, "to a wise man, and he will grow wiser; and to him that hath, and there shall be added to him." And we profess not to explain secret things sufficiently - far from it - but only to recall them to memory, whether we have forgot aught, or whether for the purpose of not forgetting. Many things, I well know, have escaped us, through length of time, that have dropped away unwritten. Whence, to aid the weakness of my memory, and provide for myself a salutary help to my recollection in a systematic arrangement of chapters, I necessarily make use of this form. There are then some things of which we have no recollection; for the power that was in the blessed men was great. There are also some things which remained unnoted long, which have now escaped; and others which are effaced, having faded away in the mind itself, since such a task is not easy to those not experienced; these I revive in my commentaries. Some things I purposely omit, in the exercise of a wise selection, afraid to write what I guarded against speaking: not grudging - for that were wrong - but fearing for my readers, lest they should stumble by taking them in a wrong sense; and, as the proverb says, we should be found "reaching a sword to a child." For it is impossible that what has been written should not escape, although remaining unpublished by me. But being always revolved, using the one only voice, that of writing, they answer nothing to him that makes inquiries beyond what is written; for they require of necessity the aid of some one, either of him who wrote, or of some one else who has walked in his footsteps.

(5) When, then, the comprehensive melody of the holy Hymns has harmonized the habits of our souls to the things which are presently to be ministered, and, by the unison of the Divine Odes, as one and concordant chorus of holy men, has established an accord with things Divine, and themselves, and one another, the things, more strained and obscure in the intellectual language of the mystic Psalms, are expanded by the most holy lections of the inspired writings, through more full and distinct images and narratives. He, who devoutly contemplates these, will perceive the uniform and one conspiration, as being moved by One, the supremely Divine Spirit. Hence, naturally, in the history of the world, after the more ancient tradition, the new Covenant is proclaimed; the inspired and Hierarchical order teaching this, as I think, that the one affirmed the Divine works of Jesus, as to come; but the other accomplished; and as that described the truth in figures, this shewed it present. For the accomplishment, within this, of the predictions of that, established the truth, and the work of God is a consummation of the Word of God.

(4) ¶Christ's sayings complete, brought into a sequence of times and occasions, but lifted out of contexts alien to the present purpose, may prove to be a glowing story new not only to the non-reader, but new even to the whilom New-Testament readers who have not as yet discerned the "continuities."

(Pages 1 to 6 of the manuscript, containing chapters 1 - 3, are lost. The extant text starts on page 7...)

(8) In the final analysis, true philosophy can be limited by neither creed nor faction; in fact it is incompatible with every artificial limitation of human thought. The question of the pagan or Christian origin of the Book of Revelation is, consequently, of little importance. The intrinsic value of the book lies in its magnificent epitome of the Universal Mystery--an observation which led St. Jerome to declare that it is susceptible of seven entirely different interpretations. Untrained in the reaches of ancient thought, the modem theologian cannot possibly cope with the complexities of the Apocalypse, for to him this mystic writing is but a phantasmagoria the divine inspiration of which he is sorely tempted to question. In the limited space here available it is possible to sketch but briefly a few of the salient features of the vision of the seer of Patmos. A careful consideration of the various pagan Mysteries will assist materially also in filling the inevitable gaps in this abridgment.

(19) Upon moving the altar to one side a brass cover was disclosed. Lifting this revealed a body, presumedly that of C.R.C., which, although it had lain there 120 years, was as well preserved as though it had just been interred. It was ornamented and attired in the robes of the Order, and in one hand was clasped a mysterious parchment which, next to the Bible, was the most valued possession of the Society. After thoroughly investigating the contents of the secret chamber, the brass plate and altar were put back in place, the door of the vault was again sealed, and the Brothers went their respective ways, their spirits raised and their faith increased by the miraculous spectacle which they had beheld.

(22) Some things my treatise will hint; on some it will linger; some it will merely mention. It will try to speak imperceptibly, to exhibit secretly, and to demonstrate silently. The dogmas taught by remarkable sects will be adduced; and to these will be opposed all that ought to be premised in accordance with the profoundest contemplation of the knowledge, which, as we proceed to the renowned and venerable canon of tradition, from the creation of the world, will advance to our view; setting before us what according to natural contemplation necessarily has to be treated of beforehand, and clearing off what stands in the way of this arrangement. So that we may have our ears ready for the reception of the tradition of true knowledge; the soil being previously cleared of the thorns and of every weed by the husbandman, in order to the planting of the vine. For there is a contest, and the prelude to the contest; and them are some mysteries before other mysteries.

(4) ¶I shall always be grateful that Lunsford P. Yandell made this little volume known to me years ago. He explained that a friend of his, a businessman, Arthur Hinds, sensed the importance of bringing the words of Jesus together in chronological form so that the full sweep and completeness of the immortal message might more effectively be felt and comprehended. These laymen had a keen consciousness of the ineffable power of the words of Jesus and, in a desire to relate them more widely to busy modern people, arranged them in this convenient and readable form. For many years this book has been made available through the literature sales organization of the Marble Collegiate Church. The thousands who have read the book, through our recommendation, have reported that it has brought great spiritual blessing to them. I commend this new edition to all who desire the creative touch of Christ upon their lives.

(1) Before handling the point proposed, we must, by way of preface, add to the close of the fifth book what is wanting. For since we have shown that the symbolical style was ancient, and was employed not only by our prophets, but also by the majority of the ancient Greeks, and by not a few of the rest of the Gentile Barbarians, it was requisite to proceed to the mysteries of the initiated. I postpone the elucidation of these till we advance to the confutation of what is said by the Greeks on first principles; for we shall show that the mysteries belong to the same branch of speculation. And having proved that the declaration of Hellenic thought is illuminated all round by the truth, bestowed on us in the Scriptures, taking it according to the sense, we have proved, not to say what is invidious, that the theft of the truth passed to them.

(8) Chapter IV. We firmly believe that through deep meditation on the inventions of the human mind and the mysteries of life, through the cooperation of the angels and spirits, and through experience and long observation, our loving Christian Father C.R.C. was so fully illumined with God's wisdom that were all the books and writings of the world lost and the foundations of science overturned, the Fraternity of R.C. could reestablish the structure of world thought upon the foundation of divine truth and integrity. Because of the great depth and perfection of our knowledge, those desiring to understand the mysteries of the Fraternity of R. C. cannot attain to that wisdom immediately, but must grow in understanding and knowledge. Therefore, our Fraternity is divided into grades through which each must ascend step by step to the Great Arcanum. Now that it has pleased God to lighten unto us His sixth candelabrum, is it not better to seek truth in this way than to wander through the labyrinths of worldly ignorance?

(525) 1244 To say: R` purified himself for thee; Horus adorned himself for thee, 1244 so that blindness (?) might cease and that sleeplessness might be repelled, 1244 before there existed a god, a son of god, a messenger of god. 1245 N. descends in the lake of Kns.t; 1245 N. purifies himself in the Marsh of Reeds; 1245 N. is purified by the Followers of Horus, 1245 who recite for N. "the chapter of those who ascend," 1245 who recite for N. "the chapter of those who raise themselves up." 1246 Descend, N., into this thy boat of R` which the gods row. 1246 When N. rises they (the gods) rejoice at the approach of N., 1246 as they rejoice at the approach of R`, 1246 when he comes forth in the East, mounting, mounting.

(667) 1934 + 1 (Nt. J�quier, XXX 766). O N., take to thee thy head, 1934 + 2 (Nt. 766). to thee thy teeth, to thee thy hair; 1934 + 3 (Nt. 766). thou has opened the neighbouring doors of the people, enduring for ever and ever. 1935-1 (Nt. 766). O N., thou goest forth, thy face towards the sea; 1935-2 (Nt. 766). thou sittest chief of the great ones, with thee; 1935 (Nt. 767). thou hast preserved the sky, thou hast caused the earth to tremble, thou hast protected the imperishable stars. 1936a (N. IX 730). I am come to thee (in) secret places, seeking thee (even) to heaven, 11936b (Nt. 768). but (in) the secret (place) there is no spirit there, 1936b + 1 (Nt. 768). from the peace of heaven to, the peace of earth, 1936b + 2 (Nt. 768). the peace of the two lords (Horus and Set), the peace of high (heaven), the peace of peace. 11936b + 3 (Nt. 768). The mowing of corn (is) for thy wg-feast, 11936b + 4 (Nt. 768). the nri-corn (?) for thy years (livelihood, cf. 1950b); thy white bread, Anubis, for (thy) flat-cakes, and this its dough, 1936b + 5 (Nt. 768-769). thy drink, First of the Westerners, thy warm bread, 1937 (Nt. 769). N., (are) before the gods. 1938a (Nt. 769). O N., raise thyself up, 1938b (Nt. 769). raise thyself from thy left side, put thyself (lit. sit) on thy right side, 1938b + 1 (Nt. 769). sit thou on the seats of R`. 1939-1 (Nt. 769). Purify thy back, even to the vertebrae; let thy hand be upon thine altar, 1939-2 (Nt. 770). thy thousand of bread, thy thousand of beer, thy thousand of cattle, thy thousand of birds, 1939-3 (Nt. 770). thy thousand of all (kinds) of linen, thy thousand of every thing, which the god eats, 1939-4 (Nt. 770). thy thousand of clean (things), also within the dwelling, 1939 (Nt. 771). that thou mayest eat the leg (of meat), that thou mayest pass the cutlet (over thy mouth), that thou mayest devour the double rib, 1939+ 1 (Nt. 771). at the place of slaughter for ever and ever. 1940 (Nt. 771). O N., they defend thy name, with thee. 1940+ 1 (Nt. 771). Thou shalt not speak to them, crying out, 1940+ 2 (Nt. XXX 771). what, say they, is done to thee, 1940+3 (Nt. 772). by "the throne" it was done, sayest thou, 1940+4 (Nt. 772). ss, his grave, ruling his brick, sayest thou. 1940+ 5 (Nt. 772). An offering of his cake (?) in the castle (?). 1940+ 6 (Nt. 772). Hail, he himself (i.e. she herself, the queen)! 1941a (Nt. 772). O N., eat this for thyself alone; 1941b (Nt. 773). thou shalt not give (it) to those people; these by thy side. 1946 + 1 (Nt. 773). O N., this hour of the morning, of this third day, is come, 1941b + 2 (Nt. 773). when thou surely passest on to heaven, together with the stars, the imperishable stars. 1941b + 3 (Nt. 774). O N., be it said to thee: "in peace; 1942a (Nt. 774), thou art beautiful; great is that which thy position does for thee as First of the Westerners." 1942b (Nt. 774). The seated one is put near the king. 1942b + 1 (Nt. 774-775). Thou choosest among (?) the first of thy land those who will make thy halls. Utterance 667 A. 1943a-1 (Nt. 775). To say: It is beautiful to see, it is peaceful to hear that Osiris stands at the door of the gods. 1943a-2 (Nt. 775). Thy sanctuary, N., 1943a-3 (Nt. 775). is to thee as (?) a heart of secret places; 1943a (Nt. 775-776). it opens for thee the double doors of heaven, it opens for thee the double doors of the way; 1943b (Nt. 776). it makes for thee a way, that thou mayest enter there among the gods, 1943b + 1 (Nt. 776). that thou mayest live as thy soul. 1944a (Nt. 776). O N., thou art not like the dead, who art dead, 1944a + 1 (Nt. 776-777). thou art living, thou art alive, together with them, the spirits, the imperishable stars. 1944 + 2 (Nt. 777). The time of inundation comes, the wg-festival comes, to the uplands, it comes as Osiris. 1944a + 3 (Nt. 777). Horus is purified with the eye of his brother Set; 1944a + 4 (Nt. 777-778). Set is purified with the eye of his brother Horus; 1945b (Nt. 778). N. is purified from every evil thing; 1945c (N. X 736). the Watchers of Horus are purified in his reed-float. 1945c + 1 (Nt. XVII 487). Father Osiris dawned over the sea, upon his throne, named "brilliant" for him, like his spirit; 1946a-1 (Nt. XXX 779). he was warned against Hr.ti lest he be not given to Osiris, (so) 1946a-2 (Nt. 779). there was opened for him the opposing door; 1946a-3 (Nt. 779). there was done for him that which was done (for him) as an only (unique) star without its equal 1946a (Nt. 779). among them, the gods, thou who sittest upon thy great seat. 1946b (N. X 737). Thy bread is t-wr (bread); thy bread is in the broadhall (temple hall). 1947a (N. X 737). The Watchers dance for thee, 1947b (Nt. XXX 780). as the mourning-women of Osiris call for thee. 1947b + 1 (Nt. 780). Raise thyself up, N.; 11947b + 2 (Nt. XVII 489). collect to thee thy bones; 1947b + 3 (Nt. XXX 781). take to thee thy head--a command of the Ennead, 1947b + 4 (Nt. XVII 490). sit thou for thy great bread; 1947b + 5 (Nt. XXX 781). choose thou the leg of meat on the great place of slaughter; 1947b + 6 (N. X 738). let there be given to thee the double-rib piece on the place of slaughter of Osiris. 1948a (Nt. XVII 490). O N., raise thyself up like Min. 1948b (N. X 738). Thou fliest up to heaven; thou livest with them; 1948c (N. X 738). thou causest thy wings to grow; 1948c + 1 (Nt. XVII 491). thy feathers on thy head; thy feathers on thy two arms. 1948c + 2 (Nt. XXX 782). Thou hast made the sky clear; thou givest light to them, like a god; 1948c + 3 (Nt. XVII 491). thou remainest chief of heaven like Horus of the D.t. Utterance 667 B. 1948c + 4 (Nt. XVII 491-492). Vigilant (?) is this eye of Horus, which he gave to Osiris; 1948c + 5 (Nt. 492). he gave (it) to thee, that it may destroy thy face. 1948c + 6 (Nt. 492) -------------- smell 1948c + 7 (Nt. 492). this word of Horus is, for it, says Geb. Utterance 667 C. 1949-1 (Nt. XXX 783). To say: I am N. of secret places; 1949 (Nt. 783). I ascend (as) thy good messenger from b.w; 1950a (N. X 739). I have threshed the barley, I have reaped the spelt, 1950b (N. 739). that thy livelihood may be secured thereby. 1950c (Nt. 783). Thou ascendest; thou art complete, N. 1950c + 1 (Nt. 784). Thou art powerful in ----1950c + 2 (Nt. 784). I did not see thee, (it is) thou who seest me. 1951-1 (Nt. 784). This Great One has seen the face of that Great Onethe seeing of two eyes. 1951-2 (Nt. 784). 'Iw who binds hair is his avenger; 1951a (Nt. 785). he stands, like Horus, who is on the shores, 1951b (N. X 740). his two sisters, at his side--Isis and Nephthys. 1952 (Nt. XXX 785). Raise thyself up, N., 1952 + 1 (Nt. 785). unite thy bones, collect thy limbs. 1952 + 2 (Nt. 785-786). Raise thyself up, N., 1952 + 3 (Nt. 786). receive thy head --1952 +4 (Nt. 786) ------- thy face ------- born of Nwn.t, 1952 + 5 (Nt. 786). thy mother, who makes thee glad. 1952 + 6 (Nt. 786). She cleanses thee like a papyrus roll of the flesh (skin?) of Mrw. 1953a (N. X MI). Shu, Shu, he passes by the walls, 1953b (N. 741). he outdistances the walls, 1953c (Nt. 787). N. is enclosed in secret places. 1954. --------------------------------------------1955a-1 (Nt. 787). when she does not pass you by, (when) she does not outdistance you. 1955a-2 (N. 742) -----------------1955a-3 (N. 742) ----------- mw.t 1955a (N. 742). four ---------1955b (N. 742). they pass by the walls; they outdistance the walls; 1955c (N. 742). thou, N., art enclosed in secret places. 1956 (N. 742) --------------------------------------1956 + 1 (N. 742) -----------------------------------1956 + 2 (N. 742) ------------- nn.wt 1957a (N. 742). thy thousand of -------- of stone vessels, 1957b (N. 743). thy thousand of all (kinds) of linen, 1957c (N. 743). thy thousand of cattle, thy thousand of birds, thy thousand of all sweet things, 1958a (N. 743). that thou mayest carry thyself in a festive manner as a god ---- 1958b (N. 744) ---------------- by thee, w ------------1958b + 1 (N. 744) --------------------- to Pdw-s.

(3) He who comes next in the circumference Of which I speak, upon its highest arc, Did death postpone by penitence sincere; Now knoweth he that the eternal judgment Suffers no change, albeit worthy prayer Maketh below to-morrow of to-day. The next who follows, with the laws and me, Under the good intent that bore bad fruit Became a Greek by ceding to the pastor; Now knoweth he how all the ill deduced From his good action is not harmful to him, Although the world thereby may be destroyed. And he, whom in the downward arc thou seest, Guglielmo was, whom the same land deplores That weepeth Charles and Frederick yet alive; Now knoweth he how heaven enamoured is With a just king; and in the outward show Of his effulgence he reveals it still. Who would believe, down in the errant world, That e'er the Trojan Ripheus in this round Could be the fifth one of the holy lights? Now knoweth he enough of what the world Has not the power to see of grace divine, Although his sight may not discern the bottom."

The fifteen tractates of the Corpus Hermeticum , along with the Perfect Sermon or Asclepius , are the foundation documents of the Hermetic tradition. Written by unknown authors in Egypt sometime before the end of the third century C.E., they were part of a once substantial literature attributed to the mythic figure of Hermes Trismegistus, a Hellenistic fusion of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth. This literature came out of the same religious and philosophical ferment that produced Neoplatonism, Christianity, and the diverse collection of teachings usually lumped together under the label "Gnosticism": a ferment which had its roots in the impact of Platonic thought on the older traditions of the Hellenized East. There are obvious connections and common themes linking each of these traditions, although each had its own answer to the major questions of the time. The treatises we now call the Corpus Hermeticum were collected into a single volume in Byzantine times, and a copy of this volume survived to come into the hands of Lorenzo de Medici's agents in the fifteenth century. Marsilio Ficino, the head of the Florentine Academy, was pulled off the task of translating the dialogues of Plato in order to put the Corpus Hermeticum into Latin first. His translation saw print in 1463, and was reprinted at least twenty-two times over the next century and a half. The treatises divide up into several groups. The first (CH I), the "Poemandres", is the account of a revelation given to Hermes Trismegistus by the being Poemandres or "Man-Shepherd", an expression of the universal Mind. The next eight (CH II-IX), the "General Sermons", are short dialogues or lectures discussing various basic points of Hermetic philosophy. There follows the "Key" (CH X), a summary of the General Sermons, and after this a set of four tractates - "Mind unto Hermes", "About the Common Mind", "The Secret Sermon on the Mountain", and the "Letter of Hermes to Asclepius" (CH XI-XIV) - touching on the more mystical aspects of Hermeticism. The collection is rounded off by the "Definitions of Asclepius unto King Ammon" (CH XV), which may be composed of three fragments of longer works. The Perfect Sermon The Perfect Sermon or Asclepius , which is also included here, reached the Renaissance by a different route. It was translated into Latin in ancient times, reputedly by the same Lucius Apuleius of Madaura whose comic-serious masterpiece The Golden Ass provides some of the best surviving evidence on the worship of Isis in the Roman world. Augustine of Hippo quotes from the old Latin translation at length in his City of God, and copies remained in circulation in medieval Europe all the way up to the Renaissance. The original Greek version was lost, although quotations survive in several ancient sources. The Perfect Sermon is substantially longer than any other surviving work of ancient Hermetic philosophy. It covers topics which also occur in the Corpus Hermeticum, but touches on several other issues as well - among them magical processes for the manufacture of gods and a long and gloomy prophecy of the decline of Hermetic wisdom and the end of the world. The Significance of the Hermetic Writings The Corpus Hermeticum landed like a well-aimed bomb amid the philosophical systems of late medieval Europe. Quotations from the Hermetic literature in the Church Fathers (who were never shy of leaning on pagan sources to prove a point) accepted a traditional chronology which dated "Hermes Trismegistus," as a historical figure, to the time of Moses. As a result, the Hermetic tractates' borrowings from Jewish scripture and Platonic philosophy were seen, in the Renaissance, as evidence that the Corpus Hermeticum had anticipated and influenced both. The Hermetic philosophy was seen as a primordial wisdom tradition, identified with the "Wisdom of the Egyptians" mentioned in Exodus and lauded in Platonic dialogues such as the Timaeus . It thus served as a useful club in the hands of intellectual rebels who sought to break the stranglehold of Aristotelian scholasticism on the universities at this time. It also provided one of the most important weapons to another major rebellion of the age - the attempt to reestablish magic as a socially acceptable spiritual path in the Christian West. Another body of literature attributed to Hermes Trismegistus was made up of astrological, alchemical and magical texts. If, as the scholars of the Renaissance believed, Hermes was a historical person who had written all these things, and if Church Fathers had quoted his philosophical works with approval, and if those same works could be shown to be wholly in keeping with some definitions of Christianity, then the whole structure of magical Hermeticism could be given a second-hand legitimacy in a Christian context. This didn't work, of course; the radical redefinition of Western Christianity that took place in the Reformation and Counter-Reformation hardened doctrinal barriers to the point that people were being burned in the sixteenth century for practices that were considered evidences of devoutness in the fourteenth. The attempt, though, made the language and concepts of the Hermetic tractates central to much of post-medieval magic in the West. The Translation The translation of the Corpus Hermeticum and Perfect Sermon given here is that of G.R.S. Mead (1863-1933), originally published as Vol. 2 of his Thrice Greatest Hermes (London, 1906). Mead was a close associate of Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, the founder and moving spirit of the Theosophical Society, and most of his considerable scholarly output was brought out under Theosophical auspices. The result, predictably, was that most of that output has effectively been blacklisted in academic circles ever since. This is unfortunate, for Mead's translations of the Hermetic literature were until quite recently the best available in English. (They are still the best in the public domain; thus their use here.) The Everard translation of 1650, which is still in print, reflects the state of scholarship at the time it was made - which is only a criticism because a few things have been learned since then! The Walter Scott translation - despite the cover blurb on the recent Shambhala reprint, this is not the Sir Walter Scott of Ivanhoe fame - while more recent than Mead's, is a product of the "New Criticism" of the first half of this century, and garbles the text severely; scholars of Hermeticism of the caliber of Dame Frances Yates have labeled the Scott translation worthless. By contrast, a comparison of Mead's version to the excellent modern translation by Brian Copenhaver, or to the translations of CH I (Poemandres) and VII (The Greatest Ill Among Men is Ignorance of God) given in Bentley Layton's The Gnostic Scriptures , shows Mead as a capable translator, with a usually solid grasp of the meaning of these sometimes obscure texts. There is admittedly one problem with Mead's translation: the aesthetics of the English text. Mead hoped, as he mentioned at the beginning of Thrice Greatest Hermes , to "render...these beautiful theosophic treatises into an English that might, perhaps, be thought in some small way worthy of the Greek originals." Unfortunately for this ambition, he was writing at a time when the last remnants of the florid and pompous Victorian style were fighting it out with the more straightforward colloquial prose that became the style of the new century. Caught in this tangle like so many writers of the time, Mead wanted to write in the grand style but apparently didn't know how. The result is a sometimes bizarre mishmash in which turn-of-the-century slang stands cheek by jowl with overblown phrases in King James Bible diction, and in which mishandled archaicisms, inverted word order, and poetic contractions render the text less than graceful - and occasionally less than readable. Seen from a late twentieth century sensibility, the result verges on unintentional self-parody in places: for example, where Mead uses the Scots contraction "ta'en" (for "taken"), apparently for sheer poetic color, calling up an image of Hermes Trismegistus in kilt and sporran. The "poetic" word order is probably the most serious barrier to readability; it's a good rule, whenever the translation seems to descend into gibberish, to try shuffling the words of the sentence in question. It may also be worth noting that Mead consistently uses "for that" in place of "because" and "aught" in place of "any", and leaves out the word "the" more or less at random. Finally, comments in (parentheses) and in [square brackets] are in Mead's original; those in <angle brackets> are my own additions.

(567) 1430 To say: R` is purified in the Marsh of Reeds; 1430 Horus is purified in the Marsh of Reeds; 1430 N. is purified in the Marsh of Reeds, 1430 that he may arise with him. Nut give him thine arm. 1430 Rejoice, rejoice, he flies, he flies!

(38) "As for that which was within it, the leaves of bark or rind, were engraven and with admirable diligence written, with a point of iron, in fair and neat Latin letters colored. It contained thrice seven leaves, for so were they counted in the top of the leaves, and always every seventh leaf there was painted a virgin and serpent swallowing her up. In the second seventh, a cross where a serpent was crucified; and the last seventh, there were painted deserts, or wildernesse, in the midst whereof ran many fair fountains, from whence there issued out a number of serpents, which ran up and down here and there. Upon the first of the leaves, was written in great capital letters of gold, Abraham the Jew, Prince, Priest, Levite, Astrologer, and Philosopher, to the Nation of the Jews, by the Wrath of God dispersed among the Gauls, sendeth Health. After this it was filled with great execrations and curses (with this word Maranatha, which was often repeated there) against every person that should cast his eyes upon it, if he were not Sacrificer or Scribe.

(5) First, upon the weight of evidence furnished by its own contents the Book of Revelation may well be pronounced a pagan writing--one of the sacred books of the Eleusinian or Phrygian Mysteries. As a corollary, the real author of a work setting forth the profundities of Egyptian and Greek mysticism must have been an initiate himself and consequently obligated to write only in the symbolic language of the Mysteries.

(6) But, I well know you will further ask that the propitious sleep of Almighty God, and His awakening, should be explained. And, when we have said, that the superiority of Almighty God, and His incommunicability with the objects of His Providence is a Divine sleep, and that the attention to His Providential cares of those who need His discipline, or His preservation, is an awakening, you will pass to other symbols of the Word of God. Wherefore, thinking it superfluous that by running through the same things to the same. persons, we should seem to say different things, and, at the same time, conscious that you assent to things that are good, we finish this letter at what we have said, having set forth, as I think, more than the things solicited in your letters. Further, we send the whole of our Symbolical Theology, within which you will find, together with the house of wisdom, also the seven pillars investigated, and its solid food divided into sacrifices and breads. And what is the mingling of the wine; and again, What is the sickness arising from the inebriety of Almighty God? and in fact, the things now spoken of are explained in it more explicitly. And it is, in my judgment, a correct enquiry into all the symbols of the Word of God, and agreeable to the sacred traditions and truths of the Oracles.

(1) crucifixion, but now,--it came to pass, through the command of that mystery, that there should be sent me my Light-vesture, which it had given me from the beginning, and which I had left behind in the last mystery, that is the four-and-twentieth mystery from within without,--those which are in the orders of the second space of the First Mystery. That Vesture then I left behind in the last mystery, until the time should be completed to put it on, and I should begin to discourse with the race of men and reveal unto them all from the beginning of the Truth to its completion, and discourse with them from the interiors of the interiors to the exteriors of the exteriors and from the exteriors of the exteriors to the interiors of the interiors. Rejoice then and exult and rejoice more and more greatly, for to you it is given that I speak first with you from the beginning of the Truth to its completion.