Pistis Sophia: The Second Book

Pistis Sophia: The Second Book

continued

Section 54: Of the efficacy of the names of the twelve rulers of the dungeons

1 "And all those who shall obtain the mystery of one of the twelve names of that dragon of outer darkness, even though they be sinners, and though they should have previously received the mysteries of the light and then have transgressed, or even if they should not have performed any mystery at all, such men when they shall have come to the end of their cycles of transmigrations—such men, [then,] if they pass out of the body without again repenting, and if they have been carried into the torments which are in the belly of the dragon of outer darkness, and remain in its cycles, remain in the torments in the belly of the dragon, such [souls, I say,] if they know the mystery of one of the twelve names of the angels, during their life, while they are in the world, and then pronounce one of their names when they are in the midst of the torments of the dragon, then, the moment they shall pronounce it, the whole dragon will be shaken and will be thrown into the greatest possible distress, and the door of the dungeon in which the souls of such men are, will open above, and the ruler of the dungeon in which they are, will cast the souls of such men out of the belly of the dragon of outer darkness, in that they have discovered the mystery of the name of the dragon.

2 "And when the ruler hath cast out those souls, one of the angels of Ieou, the first man, those that watch over the dungeons of that region, instantly hasteneth to take charge of such souls and bring them unto Ieou, the first man, the legate of the first order; and Ieou, the first man, inspecteth the souls, and testeth them, and findeth that they have exhausted their cycles—it is not lawful to bring them again into the world, for every soul that hath been cast into the outer darkness may not again be brought into the world—the receivers hand them over to Ieou, if they have exhausted the cycles of transmigrations into bodies, until the mystery of that ineffable is performed for them and they are put into a good body, which shall find the mysteries of light, that it may inherit the kingdom of light. 3 "If, then, after examining them, Ieou findeth that they have exhausted their cycles, and it is not lawful for them to go back again into the world, and that the sign of that ineffable is not with them, then Ieou hath compassion upon them, and bringeth them unto the seven virgins of light, who baptise them in their baptisms, but do not give them the spiritual chrism; they lead them into the treasure of light, but do not set them in the orders of the inheritance, because there is not in them the sign and seal of that ineffable. But they preserve them from every chastisement and set them in the treasure, separated and apart, until the ascension of the pleroma. And when the time cometh for drawing together the veils of the treasure of light, these souls shall be cleansed again and made exceedingly pure, they shall have the mystery given them again that they may be set in the last of the orders in the treasure, and these souls shall be preserved from all the chastisements of the judgments."

4 And when the saviour had thus spoken, he said unto his disciples: "Understand ye how I speak unto you?" Mary answered and said: "Master, this is the word which thou didst speak unto us aforetime, in parable, saying, 'Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of iniquity, that when ye are abandoned, it may bring you into everlasting habitations.' What, then, is the mammon of iniquity, if not the dragon of outer darkness? That is to say, whosoever shall understand the mystery of one of the names of the dragons of outer darkness, if he is abandoned in the outer darkness, or if he hath exhausted the cycles of transmigration, and if he pronounceth the name of the dragon, he shall be saved, and come forth from the darkness, and receive the light of the treasure. This is the word, O Master." The saviour answered again and said unto Mary: "Well said, thou pure and spiritual one; that is the interpretation of the word."

Section 55: Of the light of the sun and the darkness of the dragon

1 Mary continued further and said: "Master, doth the dragon of outer darkness come into this world or not?" The saviour answered and said unto Mary: "When the light of the outer sun shineth, it hideth the darkness of the dragon; but if the sun is below this world, the darkness of the dragon veileth the sun and the exhalation of the darkness entereth this world like to smoke in the night; that is to say, that were the sun to withdraw its rays, it would not be possible for the world to endure the darkness of the dragon in its true form, without being dissolved and perishing." And when the saviour had spoken these things, Mary continued further and said to the saviour: "Yet further do I question thee; and hide it not from me. Now, therefore, O Master, who forceth a man to sin?" The saviour answered and said unto Mary: "It is those rulers of the fate who force a man to sin."

2 Mary answered and said unto the saviour: "Master, surely the rulers do not descend into the world to force a man to sin?" The saviour answered and said unto Mary: "No, they do not descend into the world in that fashion. But the rulers of the fate, when an old soul passeth through their hands and descendeth into the world, the rulers of that great fate [-sphere], who are in the region of the head of the æons—and this region is called the region of the kingdom of Adamas, and this region is before the virgin of light—the rulers of the region of that head give unto that old soul a draught of oblivion composed of the seed of iniquity, filled with all manner of desire and all forgetfulness. And the moment that that soul drinketh of that draught, it forgetteth all the regions through which it hath travelled, and all the chastisements through which it hath passed; and that deadly draught of oblivion becometh a body external to the soul, like unto the soul in every way, and its perfect resemblance, and hence they call it the counterfeit of the spirit.

3 "But if it be a new soul—they fashion [such souls] from the sweat of the rulers, or from the tears of their eyes, or from the breath of their mouths—in a word, if it be a new soul, one of the souls of this kind, [say] one fashioned out of sweat, the five great rulers of the great fate take of the sweat of all the rulers of their æons, and knead their sweatings together, and mix in a portion of each, and fashion it into a soul; or even if it be a purgation from the purified light which Melchisedec hath taken from the rulers, the five great rulers of the great fate knead this purgation together one after the other, and mix in a portion of each, and fashion it into a soul in such a way that every one of the rulers of the æons may mix his portion into that soul. They knead all together in order that each may have a share therein.

4 "And when the five great rulers have fashioned them into souls from the sweat of the rulers in proper proportion, or in the case of a soul [fashioned] from the purgation of the purified light, which Melchisedec, the great receiver of light, hath taken from the rulers, or in the case of a soul [fashioned] from the tears of their eyes or the breath of their mouths, in a word, in any of these cases, when the five rulers have portioned [the matter] out so as to fashion any soul of this kind, or also if it be an old soul, the ruler himself that [ruleth] over the heads of the æons, mixeth the draught of oblivion from the seed of iniquity, mixeth it with each of the new souls at the time when it is in the region of the head, and this draught of oblivion becometh the counterfeit of the spirit, and continueth without the soul as a vesture, like unto it in every way, being the envelope of the outer vesture.

Section 56: Of the inbreathing of the power

1 " And the five great rulers of the great fate of the æons, and the ruler of the disk of the sun, and the ruler of the disk of the moon, breathe within into the heart of that soul, and there cometh forth therefrom a portion of my power which the last supporter cast into the mixture, and the portion of this power remaineth apart in the soul, though at the same time retaining full power over itself, according to the regulation that hath been placed upon it, to give [a higher] sense unto the soul whereby it may seek after the works of the light of the height at any time. "And this power resembleth the configuration of the soul in every way, though while resembling it is in no way external to the soul, but remaineth within it, as I gave commandment unto it from the beginning; for when I cast it into the first statute, I gave it commandment to dwell within souls, according to the regulation of the first mystery.

2 "And so I will explain all this to you when I come to speak of the emanation, both concerning the power and concerning the soul, after what type they fashion it, or again what is the ruler that fashioneth it, or what are all the different kinds of souls; so will I tell you in [the revelation of] the emanation of the pleroma how many they are that have fashioned the soul, and I will tell you the name of all them that have fashioned the soul, and I will tell you the types according to which they have created the counterfeit of the spirit and the destiny, and I will tell you the name of the soul before it is purified, and its name after it hath been purified and hath become pure, and I will tell you the name of the destiny, and I will tell you the name of all the bonds whereby the rulers have bound the counterfeit of the spirit to the soul, and I will tell you the name of all the decans that work upon the soul in the bodies which the soul hath in the world, and I will tell you how they work on the soul, and I will tell you the type of every soul; I will tell you the type of the souls of men, of those of birds, of those of wild beasts, and of reptiles; and I will tell you the type of all the souls and of those of the rulers who send them into the world, that ye may be perfect in every gnosis, that ye may be called perfect in every gnosis. All this will I tell you in explaining the emanation of the pleroma. And after that I will tell you the reason of the existence of all these things.

3 "Hearken, therefore, while I speak with you concerning the soul as to how I have said that the five great rulers of the great fate of the æons, and the rulers of the disk of the sun, and the rulers of the disk of the moon, breathe into that soul, and that there issueth therefrom a portion of my power, as I have just said unto you, and the portion of this power dwelleth within the soul so that it can endure, and the counterfeit of the spirit is stationed without the soul, watching over it and dogging it, and that the rulers bind it to the soul with their seals and their bonds, they seal it to it that it may force it at all times to commit its mischiefs and iniquities unremittingly, that it may be their slave for ever, and be under their subjection for ever in the transmigrations into bodies; and they seal it to it that it may be in every kind of sin and all the desires of the world.

Section 57: Who are the "parents" we are to abandon

1 "It is because of things of this kind, then, that I have brought the mysteries into this world, [mysteries] which break all the bonds of the counterfeit of the spirit and all the seals which are attached to the soul, which make the soul free, and ransom it from the hands of its parents, the rulers, and transform it into pure light, to bring it into the kingdom of the true father, the first father, the first everlasting mystery. "For this cause have I said unto you aforetime, 'He who shall not leave father and mother to follow after me is not worthy of me.' What I said then was, 'Ye shall leave your parents the rulers, that ye may be all children of the first everlasting mystery.'" And when the saviour had said these words, Salome came forward and said: "How, then, O Master, since the rulers are our parents, is it written in the Law of Moses, 'He who shall leave his father or mother, let him die the death'? Surely the Law doth not, then, speak of the same matter?"

2 And when Salome had said these words, the light-power which was in Mary Magdalene, seethed in her, and she said to the saviour: "Master, bid me speak with my sister Salome, to tell her the interpretation of the word which she hath uttered." It came to pass, therefore, when the saviour had heard the words which Mary had said, that he proclaimed her blessed again and again. The saviour answered and said unto Mary: "I bid thee, O Mary, utter the interpretation of the word which Salome hath spoken." And when the saviour had said these words, Mary hastened to Salome, and kissed her, saying: "Salome, sister, concerning the saying which thou hast uttered, to wit, that it is written in the Law of Moses, 'He who shall leave his father and mother, let him die the death'; now, therefore, sister Salome, the Law hath spoken this neither concerning the soul, nor concerning the body, nor concerning the counterfeit of the spirit, all of which are the children of the rulers, and come forth from them; but the Law hath spoken it concerning the power which came forth from the saviour, and which is the indweller of light in [each of] us unto this day. The Law hath further said, 'Whoever shall remain without the saviour and his mysteries which are all his parents, let him die the death, nay let him be lost in utter destruction.'"

3 And when Mary had said these words, Salome threw her arms round Mary and kissed her again. Salome said: "May the saviour make me illumined like unto thee!" It came to pass when the saviour had heard the words of Mary, that he proclaimed her blessed again and again. And the saviour continued again in his conversation, and said unto Mary in the midst of his disciples: "Hearken, therefore, O Mary, who [it is that] forceth a man to sin. "Now, therefore, the rulers seal the counterfeit of the spirit to the soul, not that it may agitate it every moment and make it commit every sin and every iniquity. But they have given commandment unto the counterfeit of the spirit, saying, 'If the soul passeth out of the body, do not agitate it, dogging it, reproaching it in all the regions of the judgments, region by region, because of all the sins which thou hast caused it to commit, that it may be chastised in all the regions of the judgments, and not be able to go on high towards the light, and be made to come back into transmigrations into bodies.'

4 "In a word, they give commandment to the counterfeit of the spirit, saying, 'Do not agitate it at all at any time, unless it hath not received the breaking of all the seals and of all the bonds with which we have bound thee to it. But if it receiveth the mysteries, if it breaketh all the seals, all the bonds, with the apology of the region, and if it pass out, let it go, for it pertaineth to those of the light of the height, it hath become a stranger unto us and thee, thou canst not seize hold of it from that hour. But if it hath not received the mysteries of the breaking of thy bonds and of thy seals with the apologies of the region, seize hold upon it, and let it not go, rebuke it in the torments and all the regions of the judgments, because of all the sins which thou hast caused it to commit. After this, then, bring such souls unto the virgin of light, and she will send them round the cycle another time.' These are [the orders] which the rulers of the great fate have given unto the counterfeit of the spirit.

Section 58: Of the charge given unto the builders

1 "Then the rulers summon the workmen of their æons, to the number of three hundred and sixty-five, and hand over to them the soul and counterfeit of the spirit bound together, the one to the other, the counterfeit of the spirit being outside the soul, and the compound of the power within the soul being inside both, that they may hold together, for the power holds the two together. And the rulers give commandment to the workmen, saying, 'This is the type which ye shall set in the body of the matter of the world. Set ye the compound of the power which is in the soul within all of them, that they may hold together, for it is their support, and outside the soul place the counterfeit of the spirit.' This is the order which they have given to their workmen, that they may set the antitypes in bodies.

2 "Following this plan the workmen of the rulers bring the power, the soul, and the counterfeit of the spirit, and pour them all three into the world, passing through the world of the rulers of the midst. The rulers of the midst also inspect the counterfeit of the spirit and also the destiny. The latter, whose name is the destiny, leadeth on a man until it hath him killed by the death which is destined for him. This the rulers of the great fate have bound to the soul. And the workmen of the sphere bind the soul with the power, with the counterfeit of the spirit and with the destiny. And the whole is divided so as to form two parts, to surround the man and also the woman in the world, in whom the sign hath been set for them to be sent unto them. And they give one part to the man and the other to the woman in the food of the world, either in the aery, or watery, or etheric substance which they imbibe.

3 "All this I will tell unto you, and the class of every soul, and the type whereby they come into bodies, either as men, or birds, or cattle, or wild beasts, or reptiles, or any other species that existeth in the world. I will tell you the type of [all of] them, and also how they enter into men, when I speak of the emanation of the pleroma. "Now, therefore, when the workmen of the rulers have cast one part into the woman and the other into the man in the manner which I have just related, even though [the pair] be removed a great distance from one another, the workmen compel them secretly to be united together in the union of the world. Then the counterfeit of the spirit which is in the male cometh unto the part [of itself] which hath been sent into the world in the matter of the body [of the man], and sacrificeth it and casteth it into the womb of the woman, a deposit of the seed of iniquity. And forthwith the three hundred and sixty-five workmen of the rulers enter into her, to take up their abode in her. The workmen of the two parts are all there together.

4 "And the workmen check the blood that cometh from all the nourishment that the woman eateth or drinketh, and keep it in the womb of the woman for forty days. And after forty days, they work the blood [that cometh] from the essence of all the Builders - Levies nourishment, and work it together carefully in the woman's womb. "After forty days, they spend another thirty days in building its members into the likeness of the body of a man; each buildeth a member. I will tell you of the decans who thus build [the body]; I will tell them unto you, when I explain the emanation of the pleroma. "Afterwards, when the workmen have completed the body entirely with all its members in seventy days, they summon into the body which they have builded, first the counterfeit of the spirit, next they summon the soul within these, and finally they summon the compound of the power within the soul, and the destiny they place outside all, for it is not blended with them, but followeth after and accompanieth them.

5 "And then the workmen seal them one to the other with all the seals which the rulers have given unto them. So they seal them. The day on which they took up their abode in the womb of the woman, they seal on the left hand of the plasm; the day when they finished the body, they seal on the right hand; the day on which the rulers handed [the three] over into their hands, they seal on the top of the head of the plasm; the day on which the soul came forth from the rulers, they seal on the [left side of] the head of the plasm; the day when they kneaded the members and divided them out for the soul, they seal on the right side of the head of the plasm; the day on which they bound the counterfeit of the spirit to the soul, they seal on the back of the head of the plasm; the day when the rulers breathed the power into the body, they seal on the brain which is within the head of the plasm, and also within the heart of the plasm; and also the number of years which the soul shall pass in the body, they seal on the forehead of the plasm; and so they seal all these seals on the plasm. Of all these seals I will tell you the names when I speak of the emanation of the pleroma, that is to say, why every thing hath come into existence; and if ye would know it, I am that mystery.

6 "Now, therefore, when the workmen have finished the man entirely, and have set all these seals on his body, the workmen take note of the peculiarity [of the seals] and bring it unto the receivers of wrath who preside over all the punishments of the judgments, and they hand it over to their receivers so that they may be able to take the souls apportioned to them out of their bodies; [that is to say] those to whom the peculiarity of the seals is given that they may know the time when those souls shall be taken out of body, and also know the time when the body shall be born, so as to send their workmen to keep themselves near, and follow the soul, to bear witness of all sins it shall commit through the counterfeit of the spirit, to know how to punish it in the judgments. "And when the workmen have given the peculiarity of the seals to the rulers of wrath, they withdraw to the administration of the works which have been imposed upon them by the æons of the great fate, and when the number of months of the child's conception is full, the babe is born, the compound of the power being small in it, the soul being small in it, and the counterfeit of the spirit being small in it; whereas the destiny, being vast, is not mingled with the body, according to the regulation of the three, but followeth after the soul, the body, and the counterfeit of the spirit, until the soul passeth from the body according to the type of death whereby he shall die, according to what hath been decreed unto him by the rulers of the great fate.

7 "If he have to die by a wild beast, the destiny leadeth on that wild beast against him to slay him; or if he have to die by a serpent, or if he have to fall into a pit to his destruction, or if he have to strangle himself, or if he have to be drowned in the water, or [die] by any death of this kind, or by one worse or better than any of the above, in a word, it is the destiny which forceth his death upon him. This is the work of the destiny, and it hath no other work but this. So the destiny followeth after a man until the day of his death."

Section 59: There is no escape from destiny

1 Mary answered and said: " Surely every jot which is set down in the account of every man in the world by the fate, whether good or bad, or sin, or death, or life, in a word, every jot which is set down in a man's account by the rulers of the fate, will not be worked out?" The 'saviour answered and said unto Mary: That is no escape from destiny. " Amen, I say unto you, every jot that is set down in the account of every man by the fate, be it every good, or be it every evil, in a word, every jot that hath been set down, will be worked out. " For this cause, therefore, have I brought the key of the mysteries of the kingdom of the heavens, without which no flesh could have been saved in the world; for without the mysteries no one shall enter into the kingdom of light, be he righteous or a sinner.

2 " For this cause, therefore, have I brought the keys of the mysteries into the world, that I may save the sinners who shall believe on me, and shall give ear unto me, that I may loose them from the bonds and seals of the æons of the rulers, and bind them to the seals and vestures and orders of the light; so that every one that I should set free in the world from the bonds and seals of the æons of the rulers should also be loosed in the height from the bonds and seals of the æons of the rulers, and every one that I should bind in the world to the seals and vestures and orders of the light, should be bound in the light-land to the orders of the inheritances of the light. "It is for the sake of sinners, therefore, that I have torn myself open, at this time, and have brought unto them the mysteries, that I might free them from the æons of the rulers, and bind them unto the inheritances of light; and not only for the sake of sinners, but also of the just, to give them the mysteries and bring them unto the light, for without the mysteries they cannot be brought thither.

3 "For this cause, therefore, I have hidden nothing, but I have cried aloud, I have not separated out the sinners, but I have cried aloud, and have spoken to every man, unto sinners and unto the righteous, I have said, 'Seek that ye may find, knock that it may be opened unto you; for every one that seeketh in truth, shall find, and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened.' For I have spoken unto all men, that they may seek out the mysteries of the kingdom of the light, which shall cleanse them and make them pure, that they may be brought unto the light. "For this cause, therefore, John the Baptist prophesied concerning me, saying, 'I indeed baptise you with water unto repentance and the remission of your sins. But he who cometh after me, is before me, whose fan is in his hand, and he shall purge his floor; the chaff he shall burn with fire unquenchable, but the wheat he shall gather into his garner.' The power which was in John, [thus] prophesied concerning me, knowing that I should bring the mysteries into the world, to cleanse the sins of those sinners who should believe in me, and give ear unto me, that I might transform them into pure light and bring them unto the light."

4 And when Jesus had thus spoken, Mary answered and said: "Again, O Master, if men begin to seek, and come upon the doctrines of error, how will they know whether they are thine or not?" The saviour answered and said unto Mary: "I have said unto you aforetime, 'Be ye as wise money-changers,' that is to say, take ye what is good, but reject that which is evil.

Section 60: The criterion of orthodoxy

1 "Now, therefore, say ye unto every one that seeketh the godhead, 'When the wind cometh from the north, ye know that there will be cold; when the wind cometh from the south, ye know that there will be burning and heat.' "Now, therefore, say ye unto them, 'If [then] ye know the face of the heaven and of the earth from the winds, if any [then] shall come unto you, to preach unto you the godhead, be very certain that their words unite and couple with all the words which we have spoken unto you according to the witness of two or of three, and agree in the constitution of the air, and heavens, and cycles, and stars and constellations, and of the whole earth and all that is therein'—say ye [then] unto them, 'All who come unto you, so that their words couple and unite with all the gnosis which hath been given unto you, receive ye them, they belong unto us.' This, then, is what ye shall say unto men, preaching unto them that they may keep themselves aloof from the doctrines of error.

2 "Now, therefore, for the sake of sinners have I torn myself asunder and come into the world, to save them, and also because it is necessary that the righteous, who have never done evil, and have never committed sin, should find the mysteries which are in the Books of Ieou, which I made Enoch write down in Paradise, when I spoke to him from the tree of knowledge, and from the tree of life, and which I made him deposit in the rock of Ararad; and I set Kalapataurôth, the ruler that is over Skemmut, on whose head is the foot of Ieou—the latter surroundeth all the æons and the fate [-sphere]—I set [then] this ruler to preserve the Books of Ieou from the flood, and [also] lest any of the rulers out of enmity should destroy them. Those [books] will I give unto you, when I have finished telling you the emanation of the pleroma."

3 When, then, the saviour had thus spoken, Mary answered and said: "Master, what man is there in the world who hath not committed sin, who is entirely spotless of any transgression? For if one is pure, will not another also be pure, so as to find the mysteries which are in the Books of Ieou? I, indeed, say that no man in this world will be pure of sin, for if one is pure, then why should not another be pure also?" The saviour answered and said unto Mary: "I tell you that there shall be found one in a thousand and two in ten thousand for the consummation of the mystery of the first mystery. These things will I tell unto you when I have finished explaining the emanation of the pleroma. For this cause, therefore, I have torn myself asunder and brought the mysteries into the world, for all are under sin, and all have need of the boon of the mysteries."

4 Mary answered and said unto the saviour: "Master, had no soul entered into the light, before thou didst come into the region of the rulers and before thou didst come into the world?" The saviour answered and said unto Mary: "Amen, amen, I say unto you, before I came into the world, no soul had entered into the light. But, now that I am come, I have opened the gates of the light, I have thrown open the ways that lead to the light; and now, therefore, he who acteth worthily of the mysteries, shall receive the mysteries, that he may enter into the light."

Section 61: None of the prophets had been initiated

1 And Mary answered again and said: "But, Master, I have heard it said that the prophets are entered into the light." The saviour answered and said unto Mary: "Amen, amen, I say unto you, no prophet hath entered into the light, but the rulers of the æons who spake to them out of the æons, have given unto them the mysteries of the æons. And when I went into the region of the æons, I turned back Elias and despatched him into the body of John the Baptist, and the others also I turned back into righteous bodies, which will find the mysteries of the light, and mount into the height and inherit the kingdom of light. "Unto Abraham himself, and Isaac, and Jacob, I have remitted all their sins and their iniquities; I gave them the mysteries of the light in the æons, and placed them in the region of Iabraôth and of all the rulers who have repented, and when I ascend into the height, that moment when I shall enter into the light, I will take with me their souls into the light.

2 "But, amen, I say unto you, O Mary, he [Abraham] shall not enter into the light, before I shall have taken thy soul and those of thy brethren into the light. "As to the rest of the patriarchs and of the righteous from the time of Adam unto this present time who are in the æons, and all the orders of the æons, when I shall ascend into the region of the æons, the region of light will see that all are sent back into bodies which will be righteous, and find the mysteries of the light, and enter into and inherit the kingdom of the light." Mary answered and said: "Blessed are we before all men because of these great [truths] which thou hast revealed unto us." The saviour answered and said unto Mary and all his disciples: "I will also reveal unto you all the grandeurs of the height, from the interior of the interiors to the exterior of the exteriors, that ye may be perfect in every gnosis, and in every pleroma, in every height of the heights and every deep of the depths."

3 And Mary answered and said to the saviour: "Now we know, O Master, freely, surely, plainly, that thou hast brought the keys of the mysteries of the kingdom of light which remit the sins of souls, that they may be cleansed, and be transformed into pure light and be brought unto the light."