theology
Numerical Mysticism
Numbers, proportions, and mathematical relationships as the underlying structure of divine reality.
728 passages · 17 traditions
western_esoteric189
◆The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall) | The Ancient Mysteries and Secret Societies Which Have Influenced Modern Masonic Symbolismn
“In discussing the original meaning of this word, Godfrey Higgins, in his Celtic Druids, has demonstrated that the numerological powers of the letters forming the word Abraxas when added together result in the sum of 365.
The same author al…”
◆The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall) | The Ancient Mysteries and Secret Societies Which Have Influenced Modern Masonic Symbolismr
“Clement of Alexandria describes a figure of Serapis compounded from the following elements: First, filings of gold, silver, lead, and tin; second, all manner of Egyptian stones, including sapphires, hematites, emeralds, and topazes; all the…”
◆The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall) | Atlantis and the Gods of Antiquityc
“No king had the power of life and death over his kinsmen without the assent of a majority of the ten.
THE SCHEME OF THE UNIVERSE ACCORDING TO THE GREEKS AND ROMANS.
From Cartari's Imagini degli Dei degli Antichi.
By ascending successivel…”
◆The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall) | Atlantis and the Gods of Antiquityd
“(Consult Theon of Smyrna for the Pythagorean doctrine of opposites.) The numbers 1 to 10 rule every creature, and the numbers, in turn, are under the control of the Monad, or 1--the Eldest among them.
With the trident scepter of Poseidon t…”
◆The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall) | The Initiation of the Pyramidc
“From Levi's Les Mystères de la Kaballe.
The Egyptian Sphinx is closely related to the Greek legend of Œdipus, who first solved the famous riddle propounded by the mysterious creature with the body of a winged lion and the head of a woman w…”
◆The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall) | The Initiation of the Pyramidd
“The Great Pyramid was built of limestone and granite throughout, the two kinds of rock being combined in a peculiar and significant manner.
The stones were trued with the utmost precision, and the cement used was of such remarkable quality…”
◆The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall) | The Initiation of the Pyramidh
“It was portrayed as androgynous to signify that they recognized the initiates and gods as partaking of both the positive and negative creative powers.
Gerald Massey writes: "This is the secret of the Sphinx.
The orthodox sphinx of Egypt i…”
◆The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall) | Isis, the Virgin of the Worldb
“While Le Plongeon may be right, the possible historical queen sinks into insignificance when compared with the allegorical, symbolic World Virgin; and the fact that she appears among so many different races and peoples discredits the theory…”
Show all 189 →gnosticism81
◆Gospel of Philip | Section 1k
“If you become light, light will share you.
If you are of those from above, one of those from above will rest in you.
If you become a horse or a donkey or bull or dog or sheep or another animal that is wild or tame, then neither a person n…”
◆Gospel of Thomas | Logion 106
“Jesus said, "When you make the two one, you will become the sons of man, and when you say, 'Mountain, move away,' it will move away."…”
◆Pistis Sophia | Document FIRSTa
“But it happened after that Jesus rose out of those who (are) dead, and he spent eleven years speaking with his disciples, and teaching them only as far as the Places of the First precept (Law?), and as far as the Places of the First Mystery…”
◆Pistis Sophia | Document FIRSTb
“Because of this therefore they were thinking of that Mystery that it is the completion of all completions; and that it is the head of the Universe; and that [4 ] it is the whole Pleroma: since Jesus is wont to say unto his disciples that th…”
◆Pistis Sophia | Document FIRSTc
“And all the Angels with their Archangels and with all the Powers of the Height were all hymning unto the inner part of the inner parts.
So that all the earth heard their voices, not ceasing even unto the nine of the morrow.
But the discip…”
◆Pistis Sophia | Document FIRSTd
“It happened while I am sitting being distant from you [9 ] a little upon the mountain of the Olives, thinking of the arrangement of the service concerning which they sent me, that it was finished: and the Last mystery dispatched not to me m…”
◆Pistis Sophia | Document FIRSTf
“And when your time was finished they produced you in [14 ] the World, there not being soul of the Rulers in you; and ye took your part out of the power, this which breathed in unto the Confusion the last Helper, this (power) which is mixed…”
◆Pistis Sophia | Document FIRSTg
“Now therefore we all together we wait for thee at the last Boundary, namely, the last mystery (reckoning) from within, he also is a part of us.
Now therefore we have dispatched to thee thy vesture [17 ] which is thy very own from at first,…”
Show all 81 →neoplatonism77
◆Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter Va
“In the next place, let us direct our attention to the solution of your inquiries.
There is, therefore, the good itself which is beyond essence, and there is that good which subsists according to essence; I mean the essence which is most an…”
◆Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter VI
“What, therefore, shall we say concerning the media? I think, indeed, that from what has been before said, they will be manifest to every one; for these give completion to the indivisible connexion of the extremes. Nevertheless, it is necess…”
◆Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter XVIIIb
“A certain thing of this kind also may take 71 place in the harmony and crasis of the universe: for the same things may be the salvation of the whole, through the perfection of the things inherent and the recipients; but may be noxious to th…”
◆Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter VII
“Moreover, in the manifestations there is an indication of the order which the powers that are seen possess. For the Gods are surrounded by either Gods or angels; but archangels have angels either preceding or coarranged with them, or follow…”
◆Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter XII
“It appears, therefore, that the divination of oracles accords with all the hypotheses which we have before adduced concerning prediction. For if a power of this kind was inseparable from the nature of places, and of the bodies which are the…”
◆Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter XVIIa
“In the next place you inquire “ concerning the mode of divination, what it is, and what the quality is by which it is distinguished ,” which we have already explained, both generally and particularly.
But you, in the first place, represent…”
◆Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter XXVIIIa
“You adduce, however, as a thing by no means to be despised, “ the artificers of efficacious images .” But I should wonder if these were admitted by any one of the theurgists who survey the true forms of the Gods.
For why should any one exc…”
◆Iamblichus: On the Mysteries | Chapter VIII
“The same absurdities likewise happen from assigning, as the causes of what is effected by sacrifices, either certain numbers that are with us, such, for instance, as assuming the number 235 sixty in the crocodile, [97] as adapted to the sun…”
Show all 77 →jewish_mysticism69
◆The Book of Enoch (1 Enoch, Charles translation) | Page 3 (part 3)
“36, 37.) Thus "the times and periods of the course of the world's history have been predetermined by God.
The numbers of the years have been exactly fixed.
This was a fundamental postulate of the Apocalyptists, who devoted much of their e…”
◆The Book of Enoch (1 Enoch, Charles translation) | Page 3 (part 5)
“More difficult is the question whether any portions of it are pre-Maccabæan; Charles gives various reasons for his belief that considerable parts are pre-Maccabæan; we are inclined to agree with him, though it may be questioned whether the…”
◆The Book of Enoch (1 Enoch, Charles translation) | Page 3 (part 6)
“That sounds almost as though the author of the Book of jubilees had written it.
That it is not a merely scientific interest which impels the writer to give expression to his astronomical theories may be seen from the words at the conclusio…”
◆The Book of Enoch (1 Enoch, Charles translation) | Page 3 (part 7)
“xix as Burkitt says, "most of the most convincing proofs that the Greek text of Enoch is a translation from a Semitic language fit equally well with a Hebrew or an Aramaic original"; his opinion is that Aramaic was the original language, "b…”
◆The Book of Enoch (1 Enoch, Charles translation) | Page 3 (part 9)
“The Apocalyptist prophesies further of the repentance of the Gentiles (chapter l.), an universalistic note of significance, and speaks of the Resurrection of the dead in a notable passage: And In those days shall the earth also give back th…”
◆The Book of Enoch (1 Enoch, Charles translation) | Page 3 (part 10)
“The author's reckoning of the year at 364 days may be partly due to his opposition to heathen systems, and partly to the fact that 364 is divisible by seven, and amounts to fifty-two weeks exactly." 1 In any case, he is opposed to the lunar…”
◆The Book of Enoch (1 Enoch, Charles translation) | Chapter XIV (part 2)
“None of the angels could enter and could behold His face by reason of the magnificence and glory and no flesh could behold Him.
22.
The flaming fire was round about Him, and a great fire stood before Him, and none around could draw nigh H…”
◆The Book of Enoch (1 Enoch, Charles translation) | Chapter XX
“XX. Name and Functions of the Seven Archangels . CHAPTER XX. 1. And these are the names of the holy angels who watch. 2. Uriel, one of the holy angels, who is over the world and over Tartarus. 3. Raphael, one of the holy angels, who is over…”
Show all 69 →christian_mysticism60
◆Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 10, Section 1a
“CHAPTER X Concerning ” Omnipotent ,” ” Ancient of Days “; and also concerning ” Eternity “ and ” Time .” 1.
Now ‘tis time that our Discourse should celebrate God (Whose Names are many) as “Omnipotent” and “Ancient of Days.” The former titl…”
◆Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 10, Section 1b
“For where Scripture speaks of things as “eternal” it doth not always mean things that are absolutely Uncreated or verily Everlasting, Incorruptible, 171 Immortal, Invariable, and Immutable ( e.g.
“Be ye lift up, ye eternal doors,” 461 461…”
◆Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 10, Section 1c
“It is spoken of by ail the Christian Mystics as the root of our being, or as the spark, or the Synteresis, etc.
Our perfection consists in this ultimate reality, which is each man’s self, shining through his whole being and transforming it…”
◆Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 10, Section 1d
“If Time be thought of as an infinite series of finite numbers Eternity is the sum of that series and not its process.
But the name may be applied loosely to the process, though this is generally to be avoided.
According to St.
Thomas, Et…”
◆Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 13, Section 1b
“abundant and inexhaustible supple, whereby It perfects all perfect 498 498 “Perfect,” a term taken from the Mysteries expressing the final state of the initiated.
things and fills them with Its own Perfection.
2.
And the title “One” impl…”
◆Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 13, Section 1c
“Emily Brontë: “Every existence would exist in Thee.”) And if all things be conceived as being ultimately unified with each other, then all things taken as a whole are One.
507 507 All things possess the same Super-Essence, and that is why…”
◆Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 13, Section 1d
“And hence, when we speak of the All-Transcendent Godhead as an Unity and a Trinity, It is not an Unity or a Trinity such as can be known by us or any other creature, though to express the truth of Its utter Self-Union and Its Divine Fecundi…”
◆Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names | Chapter 13, Section 1e
“But be these matters as God wills 513 513 This anthropomorphic phrase is not inconsistent with the conceptions D.
has been expounding; because he regards the limits of individual human capacities, etc., as timelessly existent in the Super-…”
Show all 60 →egyptian56
◆The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 5 (part 1)
“THE LEGEND OF OSIRIS.
The main features of the Egyptian religion constant.
The chief features of the Egyptian religion remained unchanged from the Vth and VIth dynasties down to the period when the Egyptians embraced Christianity, after t…”
◆The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 8 (part 6)
“, the litany from the tomb of Seti I., published by Naville, La Litanie du Soleil , Leipzig, 1875, p.
13 ff.
2.
E.g.
, Hymn to Amen-Ra, translated by Goodwin from papyrus No.
17, now preserved in the Gizeh Museum (see Les Papyrus Égypt…”
◆The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 8 (part 10)
“The passage reads:-- mes Pepi pen au atf Tem an xepert pet an Gave birth to Pepi this father Tmu [when] not was created heaven, not xepert ta an xepert reth an mest neteru an xepert met was created earth, not were created men, not were born…”
◆The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 8 (part 11)
“, p.
160.
9.
Ibid.
, p.
161.
10.
Ibid.
, p.
163.
11.
Ibid.
, p.
187.
12 The variant version says, "I developed myself from the primeval matter which I had made." and adds, "My name is Osiris, ###, the substance of primeval mat…”
◆The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 10 (part 14)
“see also Maspero, Hymne au Nil, publié et traduit d'après les deux textes A Musée Britannique , Paris, 1868.
4to.
2 Pyramid of Unas, l.
219; Pyramid of Teta, ll.
60, 286; Pyramid of Pepi I., ll.
444, 593, etc.
3.
Pyramid of Pepi I.,…”
◆The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 12 (part 1)
“FUNERAL CEREMONIES.
In illustration of the ceremonies which accompanied the burial of the dead the reader will find extracts from different texts printed in the Appendix on p.
264 ff.
To these may be added an extract from the curious rit…”
◆The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 16 (part 2)
“Four goddesses bore the name of Meskhen, and they were supposed to assist the resurrection of Osiris; they were associated with Tefnut, Nut, Isis, and Nephthys (see Lepsius, Denkmäler , iv., Bl.
59a; and Mariette, Dendérah , iv., pl.
74 a…”
◆The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani) | Chapter 17 (part 1)
“PLATE IV.
Vignette: Ani, found just, is led into the presence of Osiris.
On the left the hawk-headed god Horus, the son of Isis, wearing the double crown of the North and the South, takes Ani by the hand and leads him forward towards "Osi…”
Show all 56 →finnic52
◆The Kalevala | Rune Ib
“Surely would the winds destroy it, Far away the waves would wash it." Then the daughter of the Ether, Now the hapless water-mother, Raised her shoulders out of water, Raised her knees above the ocean, That the duck might build her dwelling,…”
◆The Kalevala | Rune IIc
“Straightway to the oak-tree turning, Thither stalks the mighty giant, In his raiment long and roomy, Flapping in the winds of heaven; With his second step he totters On the land of darker color; With his third stop firmly planted, Reaches h…”
◆The Kalevala | Rune IId
“Down from heaven came the eagle, Through the air be came a-flying, That he might this thing consider; And he spake the words that follow: "Wherefore, ancient Wainamoinen, Hast thou left the slender birch-tree, Left the birch-tree only stand…”
◆The Kalevala | Rune IIIc
“Slowly perches swim in Autumn, Wry-backed, hunting deeper water, Spawn in shallows in the summer, Bounding on the shore of ocean.
Should this wisdom seem too little, I can tell thee other matters, Sing thee other wizard sayings: All the No…”
◆The Kalevala | Rune IVg
“As the tear-drops fall and mingle, Form they streamlets three in number, And their source, the mother's eyelids, Streamlets formed from pearly tear-drops, Flowing on like little rivers, And each streamlet larger growing, Soon becomes a rush…”
◆The Kalevala | Rune VIc
“Swift as light it speeds its journey, Strikes the steed of Wainamoinen, Strikes the light-foot, ocean-swimmer, Strikes him near his golden girdle, Through the shoulder of the racer.
Thereupon wise Wainamoinen Headlong fell upon the waters,…”
◆The Kalevala | Rune VIIIc
“But the stream flows like a brooklet, Rushing like a maddened torrent, Stains the herbs upon the meadows, Scarcely is a bit of verdure That the blood-stream does not cover As it flows and rushes onward From the knee of the magician, From th…”
◆The Kalevala | Rune IXa
“OF IRON.
Wainamoinen, thus encouraged, Quickly rises in his snow-sledge, Asking no one for assistance, Straightway hastens to the cottage, Takes a seat within the dwelling.
Come two maids with silver pitchers, Bringing also golden goblets…”
Show all 52 →platonism50
◆Plato: Phaedo | Section 1l
“But if, said Socrates, you are still incredulous, Simmias, I would ask you whether you may not agree with me when you look at the matter in another way; I mean, if you are still incredulous as to whether knowledge is recollection.
Incredul…”
◆Plato: Phaedo | Section 1m
“And yet from these equals, although differing from the idea of equality, you conceived and attained that idea?
Very true, he said.
Which might be like, or might be unlike them?
Yes.
But that makes no difference; whenever from seeing one…”
◆Plato: Phaedo | Section 1|
“For any man, who is not devoid of natural feeling, has reason to fear, if he has no knowledge or proof of the soul's immortality.
That is what I suppose you to say, Cebes, which I designedly repeat, in order that nothing may escape us, and…”
◆Plato: Phaedo | Section 1
“Very true, he said.
Again, would you not be cautious of affirming that the addition of one to one, or the division of one, is the cause of two?
And you would loudly asseverate that you know of no way in which anything comes into existence…”
◆Plato: Phaedo | Section 1
“Are there not other things which have their own name, and yet are called odd, because, although not the same as oddness, they are never without oddness?-that is what I mean to ask-whether numbers such as the number three are not of the clas…”
◆Plato: Phaedo | Section 1
“And now, he said, I think that I may begin again; and to the question which I am about to ask I will beg you to give not the old safe answer, but another, of which I will offer you an example; and I hope that you will find in what has been…”
◆Plato: Phaedrus | Section 1o
“Zeus, the mighty lord, holding the reins of a winged chariot, leads the way in heaven, ordering all and taking care of all; and there follows him the array of gods and demigods, marshalled in eleven bands; Hestia alone abides at home in the…”
◆Plato: Phaedrus | Section 1p
“And there is a law of Destiny, that the soul which attains any vision of truth in company with a god is preserved from harm until the next period, and if attaining always is always unharmed.
But when she is unable to follow, and fails to b…”
◆Plato: Phaedrus | Section 1s
“You may believe this, but not unless you like.
At any rate the loves of lovers and their causes are such as I have described.
Now the lover who is taken to be the attendant of Zeus is better able to bear the winged god, and can endure a h…”
◆Plato: Phaedrus | Section 1|
“The two speeches, as you may remember, were unlike-I the one argued that the lover and the other that the non-lover ought to be accepted.
Phaedr.
And right manfully.
Soc.
You should rather say "madly"; and madness was the argument of th…”
◆Plato: Republic | Section 1a
“GLAUCON - SOCRATES Still, I must implore you, Socrates, said Glaucon, not to turn away just as you are reaching the goal; if you will only give such an explanation of the good as you have already given of justice and temperance and the othe…”
◆Plato: Republic | Section 1c
“I do not say heaven, lest you should fancy that I am playing upon the name ('ourhanoz, orhatoz').
May I suppose that you have this distinction of the visible and intelligible fixed in your mind?
I have.
Now take a line which has been cut…”
◆Plato: Republic | Section 1d
“And when I speak of the other division of the intelligible, you will understand me to speak of that other sort of knowledge which reason herself attains by the power of dialectic, using the hypotheses not as first principles, but only as hy…”
◆Plato: Republic | Section 1f
“But in music there was nothing which tended to that good which you are now seeking.
You are most accurate, I said, in your recollection; in music there certainly was nothing of the kind.
But what branch of knowledge is there, my dear Glau…”
◆Plato: Republic | Section 1g
“In these cases a man is not compelled to ask of thought the question, what is a finger?
for the sight never intimates to the mind that a finger is other than a finger.
True.
And therefore, I said, as we might expect, there is nothing her…”
◆Plato: Republic | Section 1h
“Then this is knowledge of the kind for which we are seeking, having a double use, military and philosophical; for the man of war must learn the art of number or he will not know how to array his troops, and the philosopher also, because he…”
◆Plato: Republic | Section 1i
“Yes, I said, but for that purpose a very little of either geometry or calculation will be enough; the question relates rather to the greater and more advanced part of geometry--whether that tends in any degree to make more easy the vision o…”
◆Plato: Republic | Section 1j
“That is true, Socrates; but so little seems to be known as yet about these subjects.
Why, yes, I said, and for two reasons:--in the first place, no government patronises them; this leads to a want of energy in the pursuit of them, and they…”
◆Plato: Republic | Section 1k
“True, he replied.
The spangled heavens should be used as a pattern and with a view to that higher knowledge; their beauty is like the beauty of figures or pictures excellently wrought by the hand of Daedalus, or some other great artist, wh…”
◆Plato: Republic | Section 1l
“You mean, I said, those gentlemen who tease and torture the strings and rack them on the pegs of the instrument: might carry on the metaphor and speak after their manner of the blows which the plectrum gives, and make accusations against th…”
◆Plato: Republic | Section 1m
“This, however, is not a theme to be treated of in passing only, but will have to be discussed again and again.
And so, whether our conclusion be true or false, let us assume all this, and proceed at once from the prelude or preamble to the…”
◆Plato: Republic | Section 1o
“And, again, in respect of temperance, courage, magnificence, and every other virtue, should we not carefully distinguish between the true son and the bastard?
for where there is no discernment of such qualities States and individuals uncon…”
◆Plato: Symposium | Section 1m
“For if they had understood him they would surely have built noble temples and altars, and offered solemn sacrifices in his honour; but this is not done, and most certainly ought to be done: since of all the gods he is the best friend of men…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1i
“And being free from jealousy, he desired that all things should be as like himself as they could be.
This is in the truest sense the origin of creation and of the world, as we shall do well in believing on the testimony of wise men: God de…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1j
“If the universal frame had been created a surface only and having no depth, a single mean would have sufficed to bind together itself and the other terms; but now, as the world must be solid, and solid bodies are always compacted not by one…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1k
“Such was the whole plan of the eternal God about the god that was to be, to whom for this reason he gave a body, smooth and even, having a surface in every direction equidistant from the centre, a body entire and perfect, and formed out of…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1l
“This entire compound he divided lengthways into two parts, which he joined to one another at the centre like the letter X, and bent them into a circular form, connecting them with themselves and each other at the point opposite to their ori…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1m
“They are all parts of time, and the past and future are created species of time, which we unconsciously but wrongly transfer to the eternal essence; for we say that he "was," he "is," he "will be," but the truth is that "is" alone is proper…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1n
“Thus then, and for this reason the night and the day were created, being the period of the one most intelligent revolution.
And the month is accomplished when the moon has completed her orbit and overtaken the sun, and the year when the su…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1q
“between 1, 2, 4, 8], and the three triple intervals [i.e.
between 1, 3, 9, 27], together with the mean terms and connecting links which are expressed by the ratios of 3 : 2, and 4 : 3, and of 9 : 8-these, although they cannot be wholly und…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1s
“But they are not so, for they are incapable of reason or intellect; the only being which can properly have mind is the invisible soul, whereas fire and water, and earth and air, are all of them visible bodies.
The lover of intellect and kn…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1w
“in space ], grasping existence in some way or other, or it could not be at all.
But true and exact reason, vindicating the nature of true being, maintains that while two things [i.e.
the image and space] are different they cannot exist on…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1x
“Of the infinite forms we must select the most beautiful, if we are to proceed in due order, and any one who can point out a more beautiful form than ours for the construction of these bodies, shall carry off the palm, not as an enemy, but a…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1y
“He, however, who raises the question whether they are to be truly regarded as one or five, takes up a more reasonable position.
Arguing from probabilities, I am of opinion that they are one; another, regarding the question from another poi…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1z
“But so long as in the process of transition the weaker is fighting against the stronger, the dissolution continues.
Again, when a few small particles, enclosed in many larger ones, are in process of decomposition and extinction, they only…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1{
“There are, for example, first, flame; and secondly, those emanations of flame which do not burn but only give light to the eyes; thirdly, the remains of fire, which are seen in red-hot embers after the flame has been extinguished.
There ar…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1|
“Water which is mingled with fire, so much as is fine and liquid (being so called by reason of its motion and the way in which it rolls along the ground), and soft, because its bases give way are less stable than those of earth, when separat…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1}
“Wherefore earth when not consolidated by force is dissolved by water only; when consolidated, by nothing but fire; for this is the only body which can find an entrance.
The cohesion of water again, when very strong, is dissolved by fire on…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1~
“That which yields has a small base; but that which rests on quadrangular bases is firmly posed and belongs to the class which offers the greatest resistance; so too does that which is the most compact and therefore most repellent.
The natu…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1
“And now I will endeavour to speak of the affections of particular parts, and the causes and agents of them, as far as I am able.
In the first place let us set forth what was omitted when we were speaking of juices, concerning the affection…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1
“The proof of this is, that when there is any obstruction to the respiration, and a man draws in his breath by force, then no smell filters through, but the air without the smell alone penetrates.
Wherefore the varieties of smell have no na…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1
“Flame colour is produced by a union of auburn and dun, and dun by an admixture of black and white; pale yellow, by an admixture of white and auburn.
White and bright meeting, and falling upon a full black, become dark blue, and when dark b…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1
“In order then that disease might not quickly destroy us, and lest our mortal race should perish without fulfilling its end-intending to provide against this, the gods made what is called the lower belly, to be a receptacle for the superfluo…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1
“He who modelled us, considering these things, mixed earth with fire and water and blended them; and making a ferment of acid and salt, he mingled it with them and formed soft and succulent flesh.
As for the sinews, he made them of a mixtur…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1
“The fleshy nature was not therefore wholly dried up, but a large sort of peel was parted off and remained over, which is now called the skin.
This met and grew by the help of the cerebral moisture, and became the circular envelopment of th…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1
“Let us once more consider the phenomena of respiration, and enquire into the causes which have made it what it is.
They are as follows:-Seeing that there is no such thing as a vacuum into which any of those things which are moved can enter…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1
“Moreover, as to the flowing of water, the fall of the thunderbolt, and the marvels that are observed about the attraction of amber and the Heraclean stones,-in none of these cases is there any attraction; but he who investigates rightly, wi…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1
“There are four natures out of which the body is compacted, earth and fire and water and air, and the unnatural excess or defect of these, or the change of any of them from its own natural place into another, or-since there are more kinds th…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1
“For a man who is in great joy or in great pain, in his unseasonable eagerness to attain the one and to avoid the other, is not able to see or to hear anything rightly; but he is mad, and is at the time utterly incapable of any participation…”
◆Plato: Timaeus | Section 1
“Just as a body which has a leg too long, or which is unsymmetrical in some other respect, is an unpleasant sight, and also, when doing its share of work, is much distressed and makes convulsive efforts, and often stumbles through awkwardnes…”
← Collapsegreek_mystery31
◆Orphic Hymns | Hymn V. PROTOGONUS, Or the FIRST-BORN (part 1)
“V.
TO PROTOGONUS, Or the FIRST-BORN.
The FUMIGATION from MYRRH.
O Mighty first-begotten, hear my pray'r, 1 Two-fold, egg-born, and wand'ring thro' the air, p.
119 Bull-roarer, glorying in thy golden wings, 3 From whom the race of Gods a…”
◆Orphic Hymns | Hymn XI. HERCULES (part 1)
“XI.
TO HERCULES.
The FUMIGATION from FRANKINCENSE.
HEAR, pow'rful, Hercules untam'd and strong, To whom vast hands, and mighty works belong, Almighty Titan, prudent and benign, Of various forms, eternal and divine, Father of Time, the th…”
◆Orphic Hymns | Hymn XLIV. DIONYSIUS BASSAREUS TRIENNALIS
“XLIV. TO DIONYSIUS BASSAREUS TRIENNALIS * . A HYMN COME, blessed Dionysius, various nam'd, Bull-fac'd, begot from Thunder, Bacchus fam'd. Bassarian God, of universal might, Whom swords, and blood, and sacred rage delight: In heav'n rejoicin…”
◆Orphic Hymns | Hymn LI. TRIETERICUS
“LI. TO TRIETERICUS. The FUMIGATION from AROMATICS. BACCHUS fanatic, much-nam'd, blest, divine, Bull-fac'd Lenæan, bearer of the vine; From fire descended, raging, Nysian king, From whom initial ceremonies spring: Liknitan Bacchus, pure and…”
◆Orphic Hymns | Hymn LXXV. THE MUSES (part 3)
“So in the poetic chain, it is requisite there should be something divine, which, through proper mediums, may connect the last to the first monad.
This Fury Homer, as well as Plato, calls at one time in the plural number Muses, and at anoth…”
◆The Golden Verses of Pythagoras | Section 3
“p. vii INTRODUCTION The ripe sayings of the Ancient Wisdom, as spoken again in the world of Greece--a world so much vaster than the area of the Greek peninsula--are somewhat fading from the minds born anew into the hurrying life of the twen…”
◆The Golden Verses of Pythagoras | Section 4 (part 2)
“Wherein have I done amiss?
What have I done?
What have I omitted that I ought to have done?
43.
If in this examination thou find that thou hast done amiss, reprimand thyself severely for it; 44.
And if thou hast done any good, rejoice.…”
◆The Golden Verses of Pythagoras | Section 13 (part 7)
“Πὰρ δ᾽ αὐτῇς Χάριτές τε καὶ Ἵμερος οἰκί᾽ ἔχουσιν ἐν θαλίῃς· ἐρατὴν δὲ διὰ στόμα ὄσσαν ἱεῖσαι 65 μέλπονται πάντων τε νόμους καὶ ἤθεα κεδνὰ ἀθανάτων κλείουσιν, ἐπήρατον ὄσσαν ἱεῖσαι.] Αἳ τότ᾽ ἴσαν πρὸς Ὄλυμπον ἀγαλλόμεναι ὀπὶ καλῇ, ἀμβροσίῃ μ…”
Show all 31 →renaissance_hermeticism25
◆Agrippa: The Philosophy of Natural Magic, Chapter IV — Of a Three-Fold Consideration of the Elements | Chapter IV, Section 1
“CHAPTER IV. Of a Three-Fold Consideration of the Elements . There are, then, as we have said, four Elements, without the perfect knowledge whereof we can effect nothing in Magic. Now each of them is three-fold, that so the number of four ma…”
◆Agrippa: The Philosophy of Natural Magic, Chapter LXXIV — Of the Proportion, Correspondency, and Reduction of Letters to the Celestial Signs and Planets, According to Various Tongues, and a Table Thereof | Chapter LXXIV, Section 1a
“CHAPTER LXXIV.
Of the Proportion, Correspondency, and Reduction of Letters to the Celestial Signs and Planets, According to Various Tongues, and a Table Thereof .
God gave to man a mind and speech, which (as saith Mercurius Trismegistus)…”
◆Agrippa: The Philosophy of Natural Magic, Chapter LXXIV — Of the Proportion, Correspondency, and Reduction of Letters to the Celestial Signs and Planets, According to Various Tongues, and a Table Thereof | Chapter LXXIV, Section 1b
“He, therefore, that will find them out, must by each joining together of the letters so long examine them, until the voice of God is manifest, and the framing of the most sacred letters be opened and discovered; for hence voices and words h…”
◆The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori) | First Dialoguec
“Hence he cries: "O mountain of Parnassus, where I abide!
Muses, with whom I converse!
Fountain of Helicon, where I am nourished.
Mountain, that affordest me a quiet dwelling-place!
Muses, that inspire me with pro found doctrines.
Fount…”
◆The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori) | First Dialogued
“Some are called in vain to put in a ready appearance, and are chiefly those which proceed from the lower instincts, and which obey the reason either not at all, or very little; and forcing himself to prevent their actions and condemn those…”
◆The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori) | Third Dialogueg
“Such over-boldness rarely grief escapes." "Fear not the utmost ruin then," I said, "Cleave confident the clouds and die content, That heaven has destined thee to such illustrious death." Cic .
I understand when you say: "Enough that thou h…”
◆The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part I (Gli Eroici Furori) | Fifth Dialoguea
“.
I.
Cic .
Now show me how I may be able for myself to consider the conditions of these enthusiasts, through that which appears in the order of the warfare here described.
Tans .
Behold how they carry the ensign of their affections or…”
◆The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part II (Gli Eroici Furori) | First Dialogueg
“Wherefore not only can we never discourse about things divine, but we cannot even think of them without detracting from, rather than adding to the glory of them; so that the best thing to be done with regard to them is, that man, in the pre…”
Show all 25 →hermeticism14
◆Corpus Hermeticum 1: Poimandres | Section 1b
“But when He raised His head, I see in Mind the Light, [but] now in Powers no man could number, and Cosmos grown beyond all bounds, and that the Fire was compassed round about by a most mighty Power, and [now] subdued had come unto a stand.…”
◆Corpus Hermeticum 1: Poimandres | Section 1e
“To the first zone he gives the Energy of Growth and Waning; unto the second [zone], Device of Evils [now] de-energized; unto the third, the Guile of the Desires de-energized; unto the fourth, his Domineering Arrogance, [also] de-energized;…”
◆Corpus Hermeticum 3: The Sacred Sermon | Section 1
“The Sacred Sermon 1. The Glory of all things is God, Godhead and Godly Nature. Source of the things that are is God, who is both Mind and Nature - yea Matter, the Wisdom that reveals all things. Source [too] is Godhead - yea Nature, Energy,…”
◆Corpus Hermeticum 8: The Eight Sphere | Section 1b
“Now the third life - Man, after the image of the Cosmos made, [and] having mind, after the Father's will, beyond all earthly lives - not only doth have feeling with the second God <i.e., the Cosmos>, but also hath conception of the first; f…”
◆Corpus Hermeticum 10: The Sermon on the Mount | Section 1d
“Spirit pervading [body] by means of veins and arteries and blood, bestows upon the living creature motion, and as it were doth bear it in a way.
For this cause some do think the soul is blood, in that they do mistake its nature, not knowin…”
◆Corpus Hermeticum 13: The Discourse of Hermes to Tat | Section 1b
“Thou seest me with eyes, my son; but what I am thou dost not understand [even] with fullest strain of body and of sight.
4.
Tat: Into fierce frenzy and mind-fury hast thou plunged me, father, for now no longer do I see myself.
Hermes: I…”
◆Corpus Hermeticum 13: The Discourse of Hermes to Tat | Section 1c
“Gnosis of God hath come to us, and when this comes, my son, Not-knowing is cast out.
Gnosis of Joy hath come to us, and on its coming, son, Sorrow will flee away to them who give it room.
The Power that follows Joy do I invoke, thy Self-c…”
◆Corpus Hermeticum 15: The Hymn of Hermes | Section 1d
“1 The daimons, therefore, exercise the whole of this terrene economy, 2 using our bodies as [their] instruments.
And this economy Hermes has called Heimarmenē.
3 17.
The World Intelligible, 4 then, depends from God; the Sensible from the…”
Show all 14 →celtic10
◆The Mabinogion | Tale PWYLL PRINCE OF DYVEDk
“And the penance that was imposed upon her was, that she should remain in that palace of Narberth until the end of seven years, and that she should sit every day near unto a horseblock that was without the gate.
And that she should relate t…”
◆The Mabinogion | Tale BRANWEN THE DAUGHTER OF LLYRi
““And take you my head,” said he, “and bear it even unto the White Mount, in London, and bury it there, with the face towards France.
And a long time will you be upon the road.
In Harlech you will be feasting seven years, the birds of Rhia…”
◆The Mabinogion | Tale BRANWEN THE DAUGHTER OF LLYRj
“And there they remained fourscore years, unconscious of having ever spent a time more joyous and mirthful.
And they were not more weary than when first they came, neither did they, any of them, know the time they had been there.
And it wa…”
◆The Mabinogion | Tale MATH THE SON OF MATHONWYb
“Swine are they now called.” “Who owneth them?” “Pryderi the son of Pwyll; they were sent him from Annwvyn, by Arawn the king of Annwvyn, and still they keep that name, half hog, half pig.” “Verily,” asked he, “and by what means may they be…”
◆The Mabinogion | Tale MATH THE SON OF MATHONWYe
“But first I will cause thee to have compensation, and then will I have amends made unto myself.
As for thee, I will take thee to be my wife, and the possession of my dominions will I give unto thy hands.” And Gwydion and Gilvaethwy came no…”
◆The Mabinogion | Tale TALIESINa
“In times past there lived in Penllyn a man of gentle lineage, named Tegid Voel, and his dwelling was in the midst of the lake Tegid, and his wife was called Caridwen.
And there was born to him of his wife a son named Morvran ab Tegid, and…”
◆The Mabinogion | Tale TALIESINc
“Elphin of notable qualities, Be not displeased at thy misfortune; Although reclined thus weak in my bag, There lies a virtue in my tongue.
While I continue thy protector Thou hast not much to fear; Remembering the names of the Trinity, Non…”
◆The Mabinogion | Tale TALIESINh
“I have been with my Lord in the manger of the ass: I strengthened Moses through the water of Jordan; I have been in the firmament with Mary Magdalene; I have obtained the muse from the cauldron of Caridwen; I have been bard of the harp to L…”
Show all 10 →norse5
◆The Poetic Edda: Hovamol | Section 1m
“I ween that I hung | on the windy tree, Hung there for nights full nine; With the spear I was wounded, | and offered I was To Othin, myself to myself, On the tree that none | may ever know What root beneath it runs.
[138.
In the manuscrip…”
◆The Poetic Edda: Voluspo | Section 1b
“The roving Norsemen of the tenth century, very few of whom had as yet accepted Christianity, were nevertheless in close contact with Celtic races which had already been converted, and in many ways the Celtic influence was strongly felt.
It…”
◆The Poetic Edda: Voluspo | Section 1e
“Fili, Kili, | Fundin, Nali, Heptifili, | Hannar, Sviur, Frar, Hornbori, | Fræg and Loni, Aurvang, Jari, | Eikinskjaldi.
14.
The race of the dwarfs | in Dvalin's throng Down to Lofar | the list must I tell; The rocks they left, | and throu…”
◆The Poetic Edda: Voluspo | Section 1f
“Lothur : apparently an older name for Loki, the treacherous but ingenious son of Laufey, whose divinity Snorri regards as somewhat doubtful.
He was adopted by Othin, who subsequently had good reason to regret it.
Loki probably represents…”
◆The Poetic Edda: Voluspo | Section 1n
“Of Byleist (or Byleipt) no more is known.
52.
Surt : the ruler of the fire-world.
The scourge of branches : fire.
This is one of the relatively rare instances in the Eddic poems of the type of poetic diction which characterizes the skal…”
mesopotamian4
◆Enuma Elish: The Epic of Creation | 1h
“She recited an incantation, she pronounced her spell, And the gods of the battle cried out for their weapons.
Then advanced Tiamat and Marduk, the counselor of the gods; To the fight they came on, to the battle they drew nigh.
The lord sp…”
◆Enuma Elish: The Epic of Creation | 1k
“May he hold the Beginning and the Future, may they pay homage unto him, Saying, "He who forced his way through the midst of Tiamat without resting, Let his name be Nibiru, 'the Seizer of the Midst'!
For the stars of heaven he upheld the pa…”
◇The Descent of the Goddess Ishtar into the Lower World | Section 1c
“Sprinkle Ishtar with the waters of life and take her out of my presence.
Namtar went, knocked at the strong palace, Tapped on the threshold of precious stones.
He brought out the Anunnaki and placed them on golden thrones, He sprinkled Is…”
◇Enuma Elish: The Epic of Creation | 1i
“He opened great gates on both sides, He made strong the bolt on the left and on the right.
In the midst thereof he fixed the zenith; The Moon-god he caused to shine forth, the night he entrusted to him.
He appointed him, a being of the ni…”
taoism3
◆Tao Te Ching | Chapter 25
“There was something undefined and complete, coming into existence before Heaven and Earth. How still it was and formless, standing alone, and undergoing no change, reaching everywhere and in no danger (of being exhausted)! It may be regarde…”
◇Tao Te Ching | Chapter 42
“The Tao produced One; One produced Two; Two produced Three; Three produced All things. All things leave behind them the Obscurity (out of which they have come), and go forward to embrace the Brightness (into which they have emerged), while…”
◇Tao Te Ching | Chapter 67
“All the world says that, while my Tao is great, it yet appears to be inferior (to other systems of teaching). Now it is just its greatness that makes it seem to be inferior. If it were like any other (system), for long would its smallness h…”
mandaean1
◆Gnostic John the Baptizer — Portents at John's Birth | Section 8
“[What follows is presumably the beginning of the Letter.]
Gnosis of Life 8 who is far from the height [writes]:
"I have come unto thee, O Soul, whom Life has sent into this world. In
robes of the Eight 9 went I into the world. I went in t…”
sufism1
◆The Masnavi, Book I (Rumi) | STORY XIII
“The Prophet's Scribe. The Prophet had a scribe who used to write down the texts that fell from his lips. At last this scribe became so conceited that he imagined all this heavenly wisdom proceeded from his own wit, and not from the Prophet.…”