← Home
Pistis Sophia · 41 of 160 · tr. George Horner

Document FIRST‰

) feared and it cried up unto its God Self-willed, for him to help it: and at that hour looked out of the thirteenth Aeon the God Self-willed, he looked down unto the Chaos being angry greatly, wishing to help his power of face of lion, and at that hour surrounded the Pistis Sophia the power of face of lion, itself with all its emanations, wishing to take away all the light which (is) in the Sophia. It happened therefore, they having oppressed the Sophia, she cried up unto the Height, crying up unto me for to help her. It happened therefore, she having looked unto the Height she saw the Self-willed being angry greatly, and she feared, she said the twelfth [94 ] Repentance concerning the Self-willed (God) with his 52 emanations. But she cried up against me saying thus, Forget not, O Light, my hymn; because opened mouths upon me the Self-willed with his power of face of lion: they make guile unto me, and they surrounded me wishing to take away my power; and they hated me because I hymned unto thee. Instead of loving me, they slandered me. But I, I was hymning, they plotted for to take away my power because I hymned unto thee, O Light; and they hated me because I loved thee. Let the darkness come upon the Self-willed, and let remain at his right (hand) the Ruler of the Darkness which (is) outer: and in thy giving judgment unto him [95 ] take away his power from him: and the work which he thought unto himself to take away my light from me, thou shalt take away his own from him: and let fail all his powers of his lights which (are) in him. And let another take his greatness among the three Triple-powered: Let become lightless all the powers of his emanations, and (let) his matter become having not light in it. Let his emanations remain in the Chaos, and (let) them not allow them to go unto their Place: let their light fail which (is) in them, and allow them not to go up unto the thirteenth Aeon their Place. Let [95 ] the Receiver, the purifier of the lights, purify all the lights which become in the Self-willed, and let him take them from him (them?). Let them lay hold upon his emanations, the Rulers of the Darkness below; and let not any (one) accept him in his Place, and let not any obey the power of his emanations in the Chaos: let them take away the light which is in his emanations and (let) them blot out their name in the thirteenth Aeon, and his own also (let) them take away his name out of that Place for ever: and the power of face of lion let them bring upon it the sin of him who emanated it in presence of the Light, and (let) them not blot out the unlawfulness of the matter which he sent out, (the Self-willed); [96 ] and their sin altogether shall become in presence of the Light for ever; and (let) them not allow them to see out; and (let) them take away their name from every Place. Because that they spared me not, and they oppressed her (his, MS ) whose light they took away with her (his MS. ) power. And furthermore those in whom they planted me they wished to take away all my light from me: they loved to come down unto the Chaos; they shall become in it, and they shall not bring them up from this hour. They wished not the place of dwelling of the Place of the righteousness, and they shall not receive them unto it from this hour.
Themes
Aeonscosmology

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

The text explicitly references the 'thirteenth Aeon' and mentions the 'Ruler of the Darkness below' dwelling in the Chaos.

All passages →
Anthropomorphismtheology

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

Divine beings are described with human-like emotions such as anger, fear, and love.

All passages →
Archonscosmology

Malevolent planetary rulers or demiurgic powers that govern the material world and obstruct the soul's ascent.

The 'Rulers of the Darkness below' and the 'Self-willed' are depicted as malevolent powers that obstruct the divine light.

All passages →
Body As Obstacleanthropology

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

The Chaos is described as a realm of matter and deficiency that hinders the presence of light.

All passages →
Cosmic Dualismtheology

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

The passage establishes a stark opposition between the Light and Darkness, Good and Evil, as fundamental forces in the narrative conflict.

All passages →
Divine Lighttheology

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

Light is repeatedly invoked as a central divine quality that must be preserved against the oppression of Darkness and Chaos.

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 the 'power of face of lion' emanating from the Self-willed God and surrounding the Pistis Sophia.

All passages →
Fall Of Sophiacosmology

The Gnostic myth of Wisdom's prolapse from the Pleroma — her unilateral desire or error producing the Demiurge and the entrapment of divine sparks in matter.

The passage centers on the narrative of the Pistis Sophia being oppressed and her light taken away by malevolent powers.

All passages →
Living Godtheology

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

The divine is portrayed as an active agent who responds to prayer and intervenes in cosmic affairs.

All passages →
Prayerpraxis

Direct address to the divine, whether petitionary, contemplative, or liturgical; speech and silence offered upward.

The text describes the Pistis Sophia crying up unto her God for help and hymning as a central act of petition.

All passages →
Ritual Puritypraxis

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

The 'Receiver, the purifier of the lights' is invoked to cleanse the divine attributes from corruption.

All passages →
Sacred Namestheology

Divine names or formulas that carry ontological power, used in prayer, liturgy, or magical practice.

The text commands that the names of the powers be blotted out from their places.

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 Sophia is depicted as having her light taken away and oppressed by the Self-willed God.

All passages →
Related passages · 2 parallels · 1 contrast
egyptian|The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Papyrus of Ani)|Chapter 8 (part 2)
Verily it shall be cast forth by my healing words of power, and I will drive it away from before the sight of thy sunbeams." The holy god opened his mouth and said, "I was passing along my path, and I was going through the two regions of my…”
Both passages depict a divine being in distress calling for help from a higher power. They share themes of divine intervention, the struggle against malevolent forces, and the use of divine names or hymns to overcome adversity.
mesopotamian|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…”
Both passages describe a divine battle where a powerful being (Pistis Sophia in Passage A and Tiamat in Passage B) is oppressed or defeated by a higher power (Self-willed God in Passage A and Marduk in Passage B). The themes of divine intervention, the defeat of chaotic forces, and the restoration of order are central to both narratives.
western_esoteric|Transcendental Magic II: The Ritual (Éliphas Lévi)|IntroductiondCONTRASTS
Thereupon God loosed from His bosom the shining cord which restrained the superb angel, and beholding him plunge through the night, which he furrowed with glory, He loved the offspring of His thought, and said with an ineffable smile: ‘How…”
Both passages deal with the theme of a divine being (Pistis Sophia / Lucifer) facing opposition and judgment from a higher authority (the Light / God). The structural parallel involves a figure who is oppressed and cries out for help, leading to a divine intervention and judgment, reflecting a shared mytheme of divine justice and the consequences of defiance.