← Home
Pistis Sophia · 14 of 160 · tr. George Horner

Document FIRST-n

And he is wont to put in motion the task-master who is over them, and cause them to be turned in their orbit quickly; and he is wont to take away their power which is in them, with the breath of their mouth, and with the tears of their eyes and with the sweat of their bodies. And Melkhisedek the Receiver of the Light is wont to purify those powers, and carry their light unto the Treasury of the Light: and all their matter, whatever it be, they are wont to gather it in, the Ministers of all the Rulers, [34 ] and are wont to take them the Ministers of all the Rulers of the Destiny, with the Ministers of the Sphere, these who (are) below the Aeons, and make them souls of man and of beast and of creeping thing and wild-beast and bird, and send them unto this World of the mankind: and further the Receiver of the sun, with the Receiver of the moon, whenever they should look unto the heaven and see the forms of the courses of the Aeons, with the forms of the Destiny, with those of the Sphere, and he is wont to take away the power of the light from them, and the Receivers of the sun are wont to prepare and put it (down), until they give it to the Receiver of Melkhisedek the purifier of light; and their material purgations they are wont to take it unto the Sphere which is below the Aeons [34 ], and make it for soul of man; and also they are wont to put it for creeping thing and beast and wild-beast and bird according to the cycle of the Rulers of that Sphere, and according to all the forms of its turning. And they cast them unto this World of the mankind, and they become for soul in that Place according as I finished saying to you. These therefore, they were completing, continuously, before that their power diminished in them, and they (were) impaired and they became weak, or they became powerless. It happened therefore, they having become powerless, and their power began to cease in them, and they became weak in their power, and ceased their light which becometh in their Place, and their kingdom dissolved and the Universe was caught up [35 ] quickly. It happened therefore, they having known these (things) in the time, and whenever became the number of the ticket, of Melkhisedek, the Receiver was wont to come out also and go in unto the midst of the Rulers of all the Aeons, and unto the midst of all the Rulers of the Destiny, with those of the Sphere, and he is wont to disturb them and cause them to put away indeed their cycles quickly, and then they are wont to be distressed, and sow the power outside 19 of them, out of the breath of their mouth and out of the tears of their eyes, and out of the sweat of their bodies. And is wont to purify them Melkhisedek the Receiver of the Light according as he is wont to do, continuously; and [35 ] to take their Light unto the Treasury of the Light: and the matter of their purgation all the Rulers of Aeon and the Rulers of the Destiny with those of the Sphere are wont to surround it and swallow it (down); and they are not wont to let them come to make soul in the World; they are wont therefore to swallow (down) their matter, that they should not become powerless and weak, and their power should cease in them, and their kingdom be dissolved, but they are wont to swallow it (down) that they should not be dissolved, but that they should tarry and spend much time, having not been completed the number of the perfect souls, these which will become in the Treasury of the Light.
§ Ask Guru about this passage →
Themes
Aeonscosmology

Divine archetypal beings or eternal attributes dwelling within the Pleroma, often arranged in male-female syzygies.

The passage explicitly names Melkhisedek, the Receiver of Light, and lists Rulers of Aeons as central agents in the cosmic machinery.

All passages →
Anthropomorphismtheology

Attributing human characteristics, emotions, or form to the divine; embodied divine imagery.

Divine beings are described with human characteristics such as mouths, eyes, and bodies that produce breath, tears, and sweat.

All passages →
Body As Obstacleanthropology

The material body viewed as a prison, tomb, or source of error that hinders spiritual knowledge and return.

The text states that powers are taken away with the breath of the mouth and sweat of the body, implying the physical form hinders divine power.

All passages →
Cosmic Dualismtheology

Ontological opposition between two primal principles (light/darkness, truth/lie, spirit/matter) as the fundamental structure of reality.

The text contrasts powers that are taken away with those that are purified and gathered into light.

All passages →
Divine Lighttheology

The uncreated luminous quality of the divine, sometimes experienced directly in mystical states; illumination as revelation.

Light is a central motif throughout the passage, mentioned in purification, Treasury, and as a source of power that can be taken away or given.

All passages →
Divine Providencetheology

Pronoia — the doctrine that the divine actively orders the unfolding of the cosmos and human affairs toward intelligible ends, against pure chance or blind necessity.

Melkhisedek is described as actively purifying powers and carrying light to the Treasury according to cycles of rulers.

All passages →
Emanation Hierarchycosmology

A chain of divine beings or principles flowing downward from a single transcendent source (the One or the Father), each level less perfect than the one above.

The text describes a structured flow from Aeons to Rulers of Destiny to Sphere to Souls in this World.

All passages →
Living Godtheology

The divine conceived as active, present, and dynamic—not an abstract principle but a personal responsive reality.

Divine agents are depicted as active participants who purify, take away power, and send souls into the world.

All passages →
Numerical Mysticismtheology

Numbers, proportions, and mathematical relationships as the underlying structure of divine reality.

The passage references a 'number of the ticket' and cycles of rulers that determine completion and completion.

All passages →
Pneumatic Electsoteriology

A spiritual elite who possess the divine spark and are predestined for salvation, contrasted with psychic (faithful) and hylic (material) persons.

The distinction between perfected souls that become in the Treasury and those that are swallowed down suggests a spiritual elite.

All passages →
Return To Sourcesoteriology

The soul's journey back to its divine origin, reversing the fall into matter through stages of purification or illumination.

The process involves purifying powers and gathering them into the Treasury of Light, implying a return to the divine origin.

All passages →
Ritual Puritypraxis

The maintenance of a state of cleanliness—physical, moral, or spiritual—required for encounter with the divine.

Melkhisedek is described as purifying powers and gathering matter for souls through material purgations.

All passages →
Separation From Sourcesoteriology

The felt condition of exile from one's divine origin — Rumi's reed flute torn from its bed, Plotinus's 'we have forgotten,' the Gnostic forgetfulness; the affective wound that complements return_to_source and gives the return its motive.

The text describes a state where powers diminish and become weak before being purified back into light.

All passages →
Related passages · 7 parallels
western_esoteric|The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall)|The Ancient Mysteries and Secret Societies Which Have Influenced Modern Masonic Symbolism-m
“Of these shoots one is manifested from above, which is the Great Power, the Universal Mind ordering all things, male, and the other, [is manifested] from below, the Great Thought, female, producing all things. Hence pairing with each other…”
Shared concept: Aeons — Divine archetypal beings or eternal attributes dwelling within the Pleroma, often arranged in male-female syzygies. (derived)
christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 1, Section 1d
“And we press upwards to those beams which in the Holy Scripture shine upon us; wherefrom we gain the light which leads us unto 55 the Divine praises 64 64 πρὸς τοὺς θεαρχικοὺς ὕμνους. Either (1) “leads us to declare the Divine praises”; or…”
Shared concept: Return To Source — The soul's journey back to its divine origin, reversing the fall into matter through stages of purification or illumination. (derived)
western_esoteric|Transcendental Magic I: The Doctrine (Éliphas Lévi)|3. The Triangle Of Solomon-c
“These shells, envelopes petrified or carnified, were such an expression possible, are the source of errors or of evil, which connects with the heaviness and hardness of animal envelopes. In the book Zohar , and in that of the Revolution of…”
Shared concept: Body As Obstacle — The material body viewed as a prison, tomb, or source of error that hinders spiritual knowledge and return. (derived)
neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 127
“Section 5 5. It may be objected that the Intellectual-Principle possesses its content in an eternal conjunction so that the two make a perfect unity, and that thus there is no Matter there. But that argument would equally cancel the Matter…”
Shared concept: Cosmic Dualism — Ontological opposition between two primal principles (light/darkness, truth/lie, spirit/matter) as the fundamental structure of reality. (derived)
neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 161
“Section 5 5. Still more unreasonably: There are men, bound to human bodies and subject to desire, grief, anger, who think so generously of their own faculty that they declare themselves in contact with the Intelligible World, but deny that…”
Shared concept: Divine Providence — Pronoia — the doctrine that the divine actively orders the unfolding of the cosmos and human affairs toward intelligible ends, against pure chance or blind necessity. (derived)
theosophy|The Secret Doctrine|Page 18 (part 6)
“Starting from this, it becomes easy to understand how nature herself could have taught primeval mankind, even without the help of its divine instructors, the first principles of a numerical and geometrical symbol language.* Hence one finds…”
Shared concept: Numerical Mysticism — Numbers, proportions, and mathematical relationships as the underlying structure of divine reality. (derived)
hermeticism|Corpus Hermeticum 10: The Sermon on the Mount|Section 1a
“The Key <This longer tractate presents itself explicitly as a summary or abridgement of the General Sermons (CH II-IX), and discusses the Hermetic view of knowledge and its role in the lives and afterlives of human beings. The attentive re…”
Shared concept: Pneumatic Elect — A spiritual elite who possess the divine spark and are predestined for salvation, contrasted with psychic (faithful) and hylic (material) persons. (derived)