Corpus Hermeticum 11: The Hymn · 2 of 5 · tr. G.R.S. Mead

Section 1b

It <i.e., Soul> fills it <i.e., the Body of the Cosmos> from within, and from without encircles it, making the All to live.

Without, this vast and perfect Life [encircles] Cosmos; within, it fills [it with] all lives; above, in Heaven, continuing in sameness; below, on Earth, changing becoming.

5.

And Aeon doth preserve this [Cosmos], or by Necessity, or by Foreknowledge, or by Nature, or by whatever else a man supposes or shall suppose.

And all is this - God energizing.

The Energy of God is Power that naught can e'er surpass, a Power with which no one can make comparison of any human thing at all, or any thing divine.

Wherefore, O Hermes, never think that aught of things above or things below is like to God, for thou wilt fall from truth.

For naught is like to That which hath no like, and is Alone and One.

And do not ever think that any other can possibly possess His power; for what apart from Him is there of life, and deathlessness and change of quality?

For what else should He make?

God's not inactive, since all things [then] would lack activity; for all are full of God.

But neither in the Cosmos anywhere, nor in aught else, is there inaction.

For that "inaction" is a name that cannot be applied to either what doth make or what is made.

6.

But all things must be made; both ever made, and also in accordance with the influence of every space.

For He who makes, is in them all; not stablished in some one of them, nor making one thing only, but making all.

For being Power, He energizeth in the things He makes and is not independent of them - although the things He makes are subject to Him.

Now gaze through Me upon the Cosmos that's now subject to thy sight; regard its Beauty carefully - Body in pure perfection, though one than which there's no more ancient one, ever in prime of life, and ever-young, nay, rather, in even fuller and yet fuller prime!

7.

Behold, again, the seven subject Worlds; ordered by Aeon's order, and with their varied course full-filling Aeon!

[See how] all things [are] full of light, and nowhere [is there] fire; for 'tis the love and the blending of the contraries and the dissimilars that doth give birth to light down shining by the energy of God, the Father of all good, the Leader of all order, and Ruler of the seven world-orderings!

[Behold] the Moon, forerunner of them all, the instrument of nature, and the transmuter of its lower matter!

[Look at] the Earth set in the midst of All, foundation of the Cosmos Beautiful, feeder and nurse of things on Earth!

And contemplate the multitude of deathless lives, how great it is, and that of lives subject to death; and midway, between both, immortal [lives] and mortal, [see thou] the circling Moon.

8.

And all are full of soul, and all are moved by it, each in its proper way; some round the Heaven, others around the Earth; [see] how the right [move] not unto the left, nor yet the left unto the right; nor the above below, nor the below above.

And that all there are subject unto Genesis, My dearest Hermes, thou hast no longer need to learn of Me.

For that they bodies are, have souls, and they are moved.

But 'tis impossible for them to come together into one without some one to bring them [all] together.

Themes

◆Correspondencecosmology

The Hermetic axiom that the structure of the cosmos is reflected at every scale — 'as above, so below; as within, so without' — making each level a legible map of the others.

The text maps the divine hierarchy onto the cosmos, noting similarities between Heaven and Earth and internal/external structures.

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◆Gnosis Direct Knowledgesoteriology

Salvation through direct experiential knowledge of the divine nature, not through faith, ritual, or moral works alone.

The passage instructs Hermes to avoid false thoughts about God to remain in truth, implying knowledge of divine nature is essential.

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◆Logoscosmology

The divine reason, word, or ordering principle through which the universe was created; mediates between the transcendent God and the material world.

Mind (Nous) functions as the mediating principle between God and Soul/Matter in the cosmic hierarchy.

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◇Aeonscosmology

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

[auto] Aeon is explicitly named as the preserver of the Cosmos and the medium through which the divine hierarchy flows.

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◇Apophatic Theologytheology

Describing the divine only by negation—God transcends all positive categories and concepts; the via negativa.

[auto] The text strongly employs negation, warning that nothing is like God and stating 'naught is like to That which hath no like'.

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◇Divine Simplicitytheology

The doctrine that God has no parts, divisions, or composite attributes; pure undivided being.

[auto] The assertion that God has no like and is Alone implies a lack of composite parts or divisible attributes.

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◇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.

[auto] The passage explicitly outlines a descending chain of divine principles: God in Mind, Mind in Soul, and Soul in Matter.

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◇Living Godtheology

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

[auto] God is described as active Energy that energizes all things and is never inactive.

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◇Monadcosmology

The absolutely simple, undivided first principle from which all multiplicity and existence flows.

[auto] God is described as 'Alone and One' with no likeness, emphasizing absolute singularity and unity.

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◇Unity Of Beingtheology

The doctrine that all existence is ultimately one substance or one divine reality; non-duality as a theological claim.

[auto] The text asserts that all things are full of God and that 'All is this - God energizing,' indicating a panentheistic unity.

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Related passages · 11 parallels

◆christian_mysticism|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…”

Both passages describe a divine unity that permeates all existence, with the divine being the source and sustainer of all things. They also emphasize the interconnectedness and harmony of all elements within the cosmos, reflecting a mystical understanding of the universe.

◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 4, Section 1j

“For from It and through It are all Being and life of spirit and of soul; and hence in the realm of nature magnitudes both small, co-equal and great; hence all the measured order and the proportions of things, which, by their different harmo…”

Both passages describe a hierarchical and interconnected universe emanating from a divine source. They emphasize the unity and interdependence of all things, with the divine being the ultimate source of all existence and activity.

◆christian_mysticism|Pseudo-Dionysius: The Divine Names|Chapter 9, Section 1e

“power bestowed upon all according to their worth; and because all Equality (perceived or exercised by the intellect, or possessed in the sphere of 169 reason, sensation, essence, nature, or will) is transcendently contained beforehand as an…”

Both passages describe a divine power that permeates all of existence, emphasizing the unity and interconnectedness of all things. They also highlight the transcendence and immanence of God, who is both beyond and within the cosmos.

◆greek_mystery|Orphic Hymns|Hymn X (part 1)

“X. TO PAN * The FUMIGATION from VARIOUS ODORS I Call strong Pan, the substance of the whole, Etherial, marine, earthly, general soul, Immortal fire; for all the world is thine, And all are parts of thee, O pow'r divine. p. 131 Come, bles…”

Both passages describe a divine, all-encompassing power that permeates and sustains the cosmos. They emphasize the interconnectedness of all things and the divine energy that governs the universe, though they use different cultural and theological frameworks.

◆greek_mystery|Orphic Hymns|Hymn X (part 2)

“For the World is one, and only-begotten. Opusc. Mythol. p. 203. 131:17 Ver. 17] The sportive nymphs . This is because Pan rejoices in the exhalations produced from humid substances; without which the world cannot subsist. Phurnutus…”

Both passages describe a divine power that pervades and animates the entire cosmos, with the divine being the source of all life and order. They share a pantheistic view where the divine is immanent in all aspects of creation.

◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 211 (part 1)

“Section 5 5. There is, then a Providence, which permeates the Kosmos from first to last, not everywhere equal, as in a numerical distribution, but proportioned, differing, according to the grades of place- just as in some one animal, linke…”

Both passages describe a hierarchical, interconnected cosmos where a divine principle permeates all levels of existence. They emphasize the unity and order of the cosmos, with divine energy or providence governing all things, though expressed in different theological frameworks.

◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 212

“Section 6 6. But, if all this be true, how can evil fall within the scope of seership? The predictions of the seers are based on observation of the Universal Circuit: how can this indicate the evil with the good? Clearly the reason is that…”

Both passages discuss the concept of a divine providence or energy that permeates the cosmos, influencing all things while maintaining order and harmony. They also emphasize the interconnectedness of all elements within the cosmos, governed by a higher intelligence or divine principle.

◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 360

“Section 40 40. But magic spells; how can their efficacy be explained? By the reigning sympathy and by the fact in Nature that there is an agreement of like forces and an opposition of unlike, and by the diversity of those multitudinous powe…”

Both passages describe a cosmos that is fully ensouled and interconnected, with a divine power permeating all aspects of existence. They share the idea of a hierarchical structure where the divine is present in all things, and emphasize the variety and order within the universe.

◆neoplatonism|Select Works of Plotinus|Select Works, Section 569

“Section 8 8. The division into elements must, in short, be abandoned, especially in regard to Sensible Substance, known necessarily by sense rather than by reason. We must no longer look for help in constituent parts, since such parts will…”

Both passages discuss the hierarchical and interconnected nature of reality, with a divine principle (God or Intellect) permeating all levels of existence. They also emphasize the role of the soul or intellect in mediating between higher and lower realms.

◆renaissance_hermeticism|Agrippa: The Philosophy of Natural Magic, Chapter VIII — How the Elements Are in the Heavens, in Stars, in Devils, in Angels, and lastly in God Himself|Chapter VIII, Section 1a

“CHAPTER VIII. How the Elements Are in the Heavens, in Stars, in Devils, in Angels, and lastly in God Himself . It is the unanimous consent of all Platonists, that as in the original and exemplary World, all things are in all; so also in t…”

Both passages discuss the interconnectedness of all things within the cosmos, emphasizing the presence of divine elements within the natural world and the hierarchical structure of existence. They share a mystical perspective on the unity and interpenetration of divine and material realms.

1 more

◆renaissance_hermeticism|Agrippa: The Philosophy of Natural Magic, Chapter XIV — Of the Spirit of the World, What It Is, and How by Way of Medium It Unites Occult Virtues to Their Subjects|Chapter XIV, Section 1a

“CHAPTER XIV. Of the Spirit of the World, What It Is, and How by Way of Medium It Unites Occult Virtues to Their Subjects . Democritus and Orpheus, and many Pythagoreans, having most diligently searched into the virtues of celestial things…”

Both passages discuss the pervasive presence of a divine or spiritual essence within the cosmos, influencing all things. They share the concept of a unifying principle that connects and animates the universe, though they use different terminology and cultural frameworks.