The Book of Enoch (1 Enoch, Charles translation) · 40 of 141 · tr. R.H. Charles

Chapter XXII (part 1)

XXII.

Sheol, or the Underworld .

CHAPTER XXII.

1.

And thence I went to another place, and he showed me in the west ⌈ another ⌉ great and high mountain [ and ] of hard rock.

E 2 And there was in it †four† hollow places, deep and wide and very smooth.

†How† smooth are the hollow places and deep and dark to look at.

G g 2.

And there were †four† hollow places in it, deep and very smooth: †three† of them were dark and one bright; and there was a fountain of water in its midst.

And I said: '†How† smooth are these hollow places, and deep and dark to view.' 3.

Then Raphael answered, one of the holy angels who was with me, and said unto me: 'These hollow places have been created for this very purpose, that the spirits of the souls of the dead should assemble therein, yea that all the souls of the children of men should assemble here.

And these places have p.

48 been made to receive them till the day of their judgement and till their appointed period ⌈ till the period appointed ⌉ , till the great judgement (comes) upon them.' E 5.

I saw the spirits of the children of men who were dead, and their voice went forth to heaven and made suit.

6.

Then I asked Raphael the angel who was with me, and I said unto him: 'This spirit--whose is it whose voice goeth forth and maketh suit?' G g 5.

I saw (the spirit of) a dead man making suit, and his voice went forth to heaven and made suit.

6.

And I asked Raphael the angel who was with me, and I said unto him: 'This spirit which maketh suit, whose is it, whose voice goeth forth and maketh suit to heaven?' 7.

And he answered me saying: 'This is the spirit which went forth from Abel, whom his brother Cain slew, and he makes his suit against him till his seed is destroyed from the face of the earth, and his seed is annihilated from amongst the seed of men.' E 8.

Then I asked regarding it, and regarding all the hollow places : 'Why as one separated from the other?' 9.

And he answered me and said unto me: 'These three have been made that the spirits of the dead might be separated.

And such a division has been made 〈 for 〉 the spirits of the righteous, in which there as the bright spring of water .

10.

And such has G g 8.

Then I asked regarding all the hollow places : 'Why is one separated from the other?' 9.

And he answered me saying: 'These three have been made that the spirits of the dead might be separated.

And this division has been made for the spirits of the righteous, in which there is the bright spring of water.

10.

And this has been made for sinners p.

49 E been made for sinners when they die and are buried in the earth and judgement has not been executed on them in their lifetime.

11.

Here their spirits shall be set apart in this great pain till the great day of judgement and punishment and torment of those who †curse† for ever, and retribution for their spirits.

There He shall bind them for ever.

12.

And such a division has been made for the spirits of those who make their suit, who make disclosures concerning their destruction, when they were slain in the days of the sinners.

13.

Such has been made for the spirits of men who were not righteous but sinners, who were complete in transgression, and of the transgressors.

Themes

◆Cosmic Dualismtheology

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

The afterlife is structured around a strict separation between the righteous (light) and sinners (darkness/pain).

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◆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.

The hollow places are explicitly described as created by God for the specific purpose of holding souls until judgment.

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◆Funerary Navigationpraxis

Texts and rituals guiding the soul through death.

The text provides a detailed geographical map of the afterlife destinations for different categories of dead souls.

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◆Numerical Mysticismtheology

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

The structure of the underworld is defined by specific numbers: four hollow places, three dark and one bright.

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◆Prayerpraxis

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

The spirits of the dead are described as making suit or crying out to heaven from their hollow places.

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◆Psychopomp Journeycosmology

Guided passage of the soul through afterlife realms.

The angel Raphael acts as a guide leading Enoch through the underworld realms to explain the fate of the dead.

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◆Spiritual Ascentpraxis

A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source.

Enoch travels to a 'great and high mountain' in the west to view these realms, indicating a visionary journey.

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◇Eschatological Judgmentsoteriology

Final, collective cosmic judgment as an event in which the wicked are sentenced and the cosmos restored; distinct from psychopomp_journey (individual passage at death) and emphasising verdict where Zoroastrian frashokereti emphasises restoration.

[auto] The passage centrally focuses on the separation of souls awaiting the 'great judgement' and final punishment or reward.

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“p. 80 CHAPTER IV. THE BOOK AM-TUAT AND THE BOOK OF GATES. "AM-TUAT," or SHAT AM-TUAT, i.e., the "Book of what is in the Tuat," is the name given by the Egyptians to the large funeral book in which the priests of Amen describe the Other W…”

Both passages describe the concept of an afterlife with distinct regions for different types of souls. They share the idea of a guided journey through the underworld and the separation of souls based on their righteousness or sinfulness.

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Both passages describe an underworld or afterlife realm with distinct regions for the dead. They share the concept of a place of darkness and separation for the spirits of the deceased, though they differ in cultural and mythological specifics.

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Both passages describe the afterlife and the journey of souls in the underworld, highlighting the existence of different realms and the separation of souls based on their righteousness or sinfulness. They share the theme of an otherworldly journey and the ultimate fate of souls.

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Both passages describe the afterlife and the journey of souls through an underworld. They share themes of judgment, separation of souls, and the fate of the deceased, though they come from different mystical traditions.

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“This DIVISION, or antechamber, or vestibule, of the Tuat is, according to the BOOK AM-TUAT, called NET-RA, and before the Sun-god can come to the dweller in the Tuat he must pass over a space which is said to be 120, or 220, atru , or leagu…”

Both passages describe a journey through the underworld or afterlife, featuring a deity or divine figure navigating through different regions or divisions. They share the theme of a structured afterlife with specific areas designated for different types of souls or spirits.

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Both passages describe a judgment scene in the afterlife where the dead are divided into the righteous and the wicked. They share the concept of a divine judgment, grading of the dead, and the separation of souls based on their deeds.

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“FIFTH DIVISION OF THE TUAT. I. THE KINGDOM OF SEKER ACCORDING TO THE BOOK AM-TUAT. This DIVISION, or HOUR, or CIRCLE, as it is described in the text, is called AMENT, and it contains the secret ways, and the doors of the hidden chamber o…”

Both passages describe an underworld or afterlife realm with distinct divisions and inhabitants. They share themes of judgment, separation of spirits, and the presence of divine figures overseeing these realms.

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“The mummified form in which the dead Sun-god travelled through the Tuat is now useless, and we see it cast aside and lying against the wall which divides the Tuat from this world; that there shall be no doubt about this it is described by t…”

Both passages describe the afterlife and the journey of the soul or deity through an underworld, highlighting the presence of divine beings and the separation of the righteous and the wicked. They share themes of judgment, praise, and the structure of the afterlife, though they come from different cultural and religious contexts.

◆gnosticism|Pistis Sophia|Document THIRD|

“And I shall answer that I may say to them, I know not you who ye are, those who work the unlawfulness with the evil, even until now. Because of this go unto the Darkness which is outer. And in that hour they will go unto the Darkness whic…”

Both passages describe a mystical underworld with distinct chambers or hollow places for the punishment of souls. They share the theme of divine judgment and the afterlife, though the specifics of the rulers and the structure differ.

◆greek_mystery|Orphic Hymns|Hymn LVIII. THE FATES

“LVIII. TO THE FATES. The FUMIGATION from AROMATICS. DAUGHTERS of darkling night, much-nam'd, draw near Infinite Fates, and listen to my pray'r; Who in the heav'nly lake (where waters white 3 Burst from a fountain hid in depths of night, And…”

Both passages describe a mystical underworld or afterlife where spirits reside, awaiting judgement or making suits. They share the theme of a structured, divided realm for the dead, though they come from different religious traditions.

◆mandaean|Gnostic John the Baptizer — Portents at John's Birth|Section 17

“"[The women] who wept ran hither and thither and [the men] who wailed ran hither and thither, as long as the body lay there before them. When the soul leaves the body, four 2 go forth to the graveyard. [The women] who wept ran hither and th…”

Both passages describe the afterlife and the fate of souls after death, with a focus on the separation of the righteous and the wicked. They share similar themes of judgment and the state of the soul in the afterlife, reflecting a conceptual parallel in their mystical traditions.

◆platonism|Plato: Phaedo|Section 1

“But we who live in these hollows are deceived into the notion that we are dwelling above on the surface of the earth; which is just as if a creature who was at the bottom of the sea were to fancy that he was on the surface of the water, and…”

Both passages describe a dualistic view of the afterlife or the otherworld, with one being a place of purity and brightness (Plato's upper earth) and the other being a place of separation and judgement (Sheol in the Ethiopian text). They share the theme of a higher, purer realm contrasted with a lower, corrupted one.

◆western_esoteric|Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky)|Chapter XIV (part 5)

“1 Behold! human beings living in a sort of underground den; they have been there from their childhood, and have their legs and necks chained—the chains are arranged in such a manner as to prevent them from turning round their heads. At a…”

Both passages describe a metaphorical underworld or cave where beings are trapped and perceive only shadows or illusions of reality. They also depict a process of liberation and enlightenment, though the contexts and details differ.

◆western_esoteric|Transcendental Magic I: The Doctrine (Éliphas Lévi)|3. The Triangle Of Solomonc

“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…”

Both passages discuss the concept of the afterlife and the separation of souls based on their righteousness or sinfulness. They share the idea of a judgment process and the existence of different realms or states for the dead, reflecting a structural parallel in their descriptions of the afterlife.

◇mesopotamian|Epic of Gilgamesh: Tablet XII — Gilgamish Enquires of the Dead|Tablet XII, Section 1a

“THE TWELFTH TABLET. GILGAMISH, IN DESPAIR, ENQUIRES OF THE DEAD. . (Then), what time that the seine had pass’d through the Architect 's dwelling, (Aye, and) the net [had taken its toll] . . . . [said he]: "Lord, what [is’t I may do]…”

[auto] Underworld topography: Tablet XII's enquiry of the dead parallels Enoch XXII's chambers of Sheol.