Introduction
The Trimorphic Protennoia (NHC XIII,1) was discovered in the Jebel al Tarif in Upper Egypt in 1945, along with the other fifty-two tractates of the Nag Hammadi Library. The Coptic text is the only extant version of this tractate, and it was probably written originally in the Egyptian language, although Greek versions likely existed as well. Coptic-the last written form of spoken Egyptian rendered with the Greek alphabet-evolved within the Ptolemaic state, representing a linguistic fusion between Greek and Egyptian, becoming a primary medium for Gnostic expression. The entire Gnostic corpus (with the inclusion of a few non-Gnostic heterodox expressions) was likely buried to preserve it from persecution in the early fourth century, in the period leading up to the burning of the libraries of Alexandria by Christians.
The subtitle of this piece, which was quite possibly intended as the main title, is perhaps ironic in the sense that the Christian connotation of "epiphany" is not at all intended in this piece; rather the Greek term designates a coming to light, or manifestation, even the modern sense of "a moment resonant with higher human meaning." The epiphany concerns the dynamics of a female divinity who is the speaker of the text and so the second irony in the title is that a "Father" or "Parent" in the strictly masculine sense is not at all intended as the writer or speaker of the tractate, but rather as a distant mentor or backdrop for the activities of the female agent. This, in conjunction with specific Christianising glosses which intrude upon the text, indicates that the Greek title itself may have been a later addition.
The view on male and female in the text is a subtle one which devolves upon the notion of the syzygy--a "heavenly conjunction" of sexual opposites. The resulting fusion, in the form of the divine speaker, is androgynous as she proclaims herself to be. However, her overarching female identity is everywhere maintained unto the higest levels of being: as is typical in all emanationist systems, the Primal source, the One, or Monad, is often identified as the Father. This masculine entity can be traced back to the Egyptian Atum, the primeval creator and, as is likewise common in these systems, he is seen to effect his emanations from out of a "feminine" watery Chaos--Nun in the Egyptian Heliopolitan system, and Silence in this system which appears to have close affinities with the Valentinian in this regard. This then is the only "father" possibly being credited with authorship of the text; even so, this presence is removed and is effected in intimate fusion with the female speaker: perhaps "ghost writer" and chief protagonist, as opposed to an amaneunsis, would be an apt description of her role in the theogony.
There are, then, also strong indications of the ancient Egyptian "Memphite theology" in this tractate. In contradistinction to the Heliopolitan emphasis upon sexual pairing for an emanation-theogony, the Memphite focuses upon "thought" and the "word" in their seminal creative functions within the mind of divinity itself. The focus upon utterance and the voice in the text is quite pronounced and it thus displays close affinities with the Thunder Perfect Mind (VI,2) and The Apocryphon of John (II,1), two other Gnostic tractates that exhibit this unusual feature (for the ancient world) of a first-person female speaker.
The speaker, as in the Thunder Perfect Mind, clearly identifies herself as a Sophia-figure, presenting salvation as being attained through gnosis--through a fusion of language and sexuality. Both texts react to patriarchalism in various ways and this evidence for "sexualised gnosis" is confirmed by patristic censure on the subject, the obvious hyperbole and distortion in their testimonies notwithstanding.
The "Christian" influence upon the text, glosses aside, is marginal, and there is more evidence to show a stronger influence from Jewish Wisdom traditions. However, this too cannot be called a major trend in the text, which demonstrates far more profound affinities with the Chaldean and Middle Platonic systems. It remains a good example of an Egyptian mitigated dualism with a central focus upon a feminine soteriological principle.
Patristic evidence (Irenaeus, Tertullian, and Epiphanius) also affirms that women were active as leaders and teachers in the Gnostic movement, Manichaeism in Egypt included, and there is no reason not to expect their authorship of a wide variety of tractates. That being the case this tractate demonstrates many indications of female authorship, in spite of a number of extraneous glosses that have been added here and there (common to many of the tractates in the Nag Hammadi library). The reference to the Archons (evil powers) and "their Christ" is clearly an indictment of orthodox Christianity as a repressive and malign force which would likely indicate a time of composition following the persecutions. Diocletian's edict against the Manichaeans was issued in 297 CE and the edict by Constantine against the Valentinian Gnostics was decreed in 326.
A critical feature of the text is the extensive use of Greek loan-words. The glossary included with this translation lists all instances of key terms, only omitting the appearance of Greek particles, conjunctives and the like (which are sparse in any case). Culling those terms that are not prosaic or used as obvious synonyms for Egyptian words, we are left with a very sophisticated philosophical vocabulary indeed. It is clear that this array of terms does not appear in the text as a sort of haphazard free-associativity on the part of the most recent scribe or redactor, rather it is to be supposed that their employment was an integral part of the original composition. This is a fascinating proposition, for it demonstrates that the writer was cognizant in particular of Middle Platonic and Chaldean terminologies, and was comfortable enough with them to use these sophisticated terms in the development of a kindred though completely independent system.
It is of course very difficult to ascribe authorship to a text such as this; however, a reasonable hypothesis is that it was written by a Gnostic teacher, quite probably female, who had received a bilingual education in Egypt in the late-third or fourth centuries. She wrote, in Coptic, for a bilingual milieu, one well-versed in Greek philosophy as the liberal use of Greek loan-words in the text indicates. As an heir to such Alexandrian teachers as Basileides, Carpocrates, and Valentinus, she may herself have been associated with Alexandria or some other large bilingual city in the north.
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TRIMORPHIC PROTENNOIA
(THE LOGOS OF THE EPIPHANY)
Sacred Scriptures written by the Parent
with complete Gnosis
I am the Protennoia,
the Thought which exists in the Light.
I am the stirring which exists in the All,
she in whom the All is at work to its foundations,
the first-begotten among those who came to be,
who exists before the All, she who is called by three names,
who exists by herself, being fulfilled.
I am invisible within the Thought of the Invisible One
and I am revealed in that which is immeasurable and ineffable.
I am incomprehensible, existing within the incomprehensible.
I move in each creation.
I am the life of my Epinoia,
that which exists in every Power and in every eternal stirring,
and within invisible Lights
and within the Archons and Angels
and the Demons and every soul existing in Tartaros
and every hylic soul.
I exist in those who came to be.
I move in everyone and I reach into them all.
I go forthwith and those who sleep I rouse,
and I am the vision of those who dream in sleep
I am the invisible One within the All.
I am the one who advises those who are hidden
as I know the All which exists in hiddenness.
I am numberless beyond everyone.
I am immeasurable and unutterable,
yet if I desire I shall manifest myself, solely,
for I am the Brilliance of the All.
I exist before the All and I am the All
as I exist in everyone.
I am a voice speaking softly.
I exist from the beginning in Silence.
I am that which is in every voice
and the Voice which is hidden in myself,
in the incomprehensible limitless Thought within the limitless Silence.
I came down into the midst of the underworld
and I shone forth upon the Darkness.
I am the one who poured the water.
I am the one who is hidden in the luminous waters.
I am the one who gradually illuminated the All by my Thought.
I am coupled with the Voice
and it is through myself that Gnosis comes forth.
I exist in the ineffable and incomprehensible ones.
I am the determination and the Knowledge,
uttering a Voice by means of Thought.
am the existing Voice and I speak forth in everyone
and they recognize it since a Seed exists in them.
I am the Thought of the Parent
and it was first through myself that the Voice came,
that is, the Knowledge of things which do not have an end;
and I exist as Thought for the All,
in harmony with the Thought that is unknowable,and unattainable.
I manifested myself--I--among all those who know me,
for I am the one joined with everyone
in the Thought which is hidden and the Voice which is exalted,
and such a Voice is by means of the invisible Thought,
and as immeasurable it exists in the Immeasurable.
It is a mystery, and it is unhindered because of its incomprehensibility
being invisible to all those who are manifest in the All.
It is light which exists in Light.
We alone are separate from the manifest world
since we are saved by the hidden humanness of our hearts
by means of the ineffable and immeasurable Thought.
And the one who is hidden within us pays the tribute of his fruit
to the waters of Life.
Then the Son who is complete in all respects,
that is the Word which originated through this Voice
which preceeded it in the heights,
and who possesses within himself the name which is a Light,
he revealed the imperishable things
and all of the unknown things were made known
and these things that are difficult to interpret
and which are hidden, he revealed;
and as for those who exist in Silence with the first Thought,
he proclaimed to them,
and those who exist in the Darkness he revealed himself to,
and those who exist in the Depths, he informed them,
and those who exist in the hidden Horus,
he taught them the ineffable mysteries and he enlightened them,
all the children of the Light, about the unrepeatable instructions.
However, the Voice which exists in my Thought exists as three states:
the Father, the Mother, the Son, as a sound existing in perception.
It possesses a Word within it--this Word which possesses every glory.
And it possesses three malenesses, three powers and three names,
existing in the manner of three which are four-cornered,
hidden in the Silence of the Ineffable.
This one alone, who exists, that is, the Logos,
I annointed with the glory of the invisible Spirit of goodness.
The third then, I alone caused in an eternal power
over the living Aeons of the Light, that is, the God above the All
who shone forth from the beginning in the Light of these exalted Aeons,
and in this glorious Light he remains resolute.
And he takes his stand in his own Light which surrounds him,
that is the Eye of Light which gloriously illumines myself.
I gave the Aeon of the Parent to all the Aeons,
which I am, the Thought of the Parent, the Protennoia,
that is, Barbelo,the complete, invisible, hidden, and immeasurable One.
I am the Image of the invisible Spirit
and the Image of the All is completed through myself,
and this Light, which the Mother appointed and which came to be named Virgin,
the one: Meirothea, the incomprehensible Womb,
the Voice that is uncontrollable and immeasurable.
Then the fulfilled Son revealed himself to his Aeons,
these who came to be through him,
he manifested them, glorifying them, and he gave them thrones,
and he stood in the glory with which he glorified himself
{They praised the perfect son, the Christ, the god who begot himself,
and they glorified him saying, He is! He is! the son of God,
the son of God, he is the one who exists!}
and) the Aeon of Aeons looked upon the Aeons he gave birth to.
For you begot with your own desire
because of this we give glory to you:
MA MO OOO EIA EI ON EI, the Aeon of Aeons, the esteemed Aeon!
Then the god who was begotten gave them a Power
[that anyone can become strong]
and he established them in their place:
the first Aeon he established [over the first]:
(H)armedon Nousanios Harmozel;
the second he established [over the second Aeon]:
the third over the third Aeon: Mellephaneus Loios Daueithai;
the fourth above the fourth: Mousanios Amethes Eleleth.
Now the Aeons were begotten by the god,
{he who was (himself) begotten, the Christ.}
These (Aeons) were given glory and the Aeons (too) gave glory.
They were first manifested, exalted in their thought
and each of the Aeons gave myriads of glory in great untraceable Lights,
and they each together blessed the fulfilled son,
the god who was begotten.
Then a Word came forth from the great Light Eleleth and it said:
"I am King--who is it belongs to Chaos?
and who is it belongs to the Underworld?
And immediately thence his Light appeared radiant,
itself possessing the Epinoia.
The Powers of the Powers did not entreat him and, on the contrary,
there immediately appeared the Great Demon who rules over the bottom part
of the Underworld and Chaos.
He has neither Form nor completion but (instead)
possesses the Form of the glory of those begotten in Darkness.
Now this one is called "Saklas", that is, "Samael," "Yaltabaoth",
the one who had taken power, which he seized from the Innocent One:
he who had first been victorious over her,
that is the Epinoia of Light who had come to the Depths,
the One from whom he (himself) came in the beginning.
When the Epinoia of Light understood (this)
she entreated the other Creation in humiliation.
She said, ["Give unto me another existence]
so that I will come to the given Power, lest I exist in an [evil] Order."
[And the] entire [assembled] House of Glory agreed with her word.
They brought a blessing upon her
and the exalted Order expelled it (the lower Order) from her.
And the great Demon began to produce Aeons
in the likeness of the Aeons which exist
however he produced them out of his own Power alone.
Then I too revealed my Voice in that which is hidden, saying,
"Cease, stop you, those who wander in the Hyle;
for behold, I am descending unto the world of the mortal
for the sake of my part
which is in that place from the time of the victory (over) the innocent Sophia,
this One(f), the one who descended so that I would dissolve their ends--
as He commanded, the One who reveals himself through her."
And they were disturbed, all those who exist in the House of Ignorant Light,
and the Depth shook, and the Archigenetor of Ignorance
who ruled over Chaos and the Underworld produced a person in my Form.
But he did not know that this one would become a sentence of dissolution for him,
nor did he understand the Power which is in it.
But now I have descended and have reached down into Chaos,
and I was [near] those of mine who are in that place.
I am hidden among them,
I give them Power, I give them Form,
and from the beginning until the [last] day
[I grant boldness]to those who are [mine, and I shall join] with these ones
so that they [understand these words],
that is, the Children of the Light whose parent I am.
And I shall tell you a Mystery:
With my Pronnoia I have loosed all five fetters from you,
and the chains of the Demons of the Underworld I burst--
those which bound my members, opposing them.
And the high walls of Darkness I threw down,
and the locked gate of the pitiless ones I breached,
and their bars I broke.
And the evil Energy and the One who strikes you
and the one who impedes you and the Tyrant,
the Adversary, the one who is King, and the Enemy who exists--
all of these things I taught to those who are mine,
those who are the Children of the Light
so that they shall dissolve them all and be released from all of these fetters
to ascend to their place of origin.
I am the first to descend for the sake of a member of mine who remains,
that is the Spirit who exists in the Soul which resides in the Water of Life
and through the cleansing of the Mysteries.
I spoke--
I--with the Archons and Authorities,
for I went beneath their language
and told the Mysteries to my own,
a Hidden Mystery (through which)
the fetters and sleep of Eternity were dissolved.
And I brought forth Fruit in them:
that is the Thought of the Unchanging Aeon
and my House, and their Parent.
And I descended [for those who were mine] from the beginning
and [established for them] the first strands which they produced.
Then they all shone within me,
and I prepared a pattern out of those ineffable Lights within me.
Amen.
The Logos of the Protennoia [1]
I am the Voice which revealed itself through my Thought,
for I am the One who is Syzygaic.
I am called "The Thought of the Invisible,"
(and)"the Sound which gives birth to Change":
I am called, therefore, "She who is Syzygaic."
I am a single One (f), undefiled.
I am the Mother of the Voice, speaking in many ways,
completing the All, the Knowledge existing in myself,
the Gnosis of infinite matters.
I am the One who speaks in every creature,
and I was known through the All;
I am the One who gives the Speech of the Voice
unto the ears of thosewho have known me,
that is the Children of the Light.
However, I came for the second time in the form of a woman
and I spoke with them.
And I shall tell them of the coming end of the Aeon,
and I shall edify them (concerning) the beginning of the Aeon to come,
the one which does not possess change
(but) which will alter our countenance through itself,
that we become pure.
Within these Aeons, from which I revealed myself
in the Thought of the resemblance of my(f) maleness,
I preserve those who are worthy within the Thought of my unchanging Aeon.
For I shall tell you a Mystery of this Aeon in particular,
and I shall inform you of the Energies within it.
The Birth calls [to the Birth:]
hour begets hour, [day creates] day, month creates month,
Time turns, following Time.
This particular Aeon was accomplished in this manner,
and it was numbered,(being found) small,
for it was a finger that omitted a finger,
and a (chain) link which is added to by means of a link.
When the Great Powers understood that the time of fulfillment was manifest
as in the labour pains of the pregnant woman
(which) brought (her to) the entrance of the door,
in this way the Destruction approached.
All together the Elements trembled
and the foundations of the Underworld and the ceilings of Chaos shook
and a great fire glowed in their midst
and the rocks and the earth shook like reeds blown in the wind.
And the lots of the Heimarmene
and those who measure the dwellings were greatly disturbed
by a tremendous thundering.
And the thrones of the Powers were disturbed as they had been overturned,
and their King was afraid.
And those who follow the Heimarmene
gave their account of visits to the road and said to the Powers:
"What is this disturbance and this shaking that has come down upon us
through a hidden voice (and) an exalted speech?
And all our houses are shaken,
and all the bounds of our upward course have met with destruction,
and the path upon which we ourselves walk,
the one which takes us up to the Archgenitor of our birth,
it has ceased to exist for us."
Then the Powers answered, saying,
"We ourselves are at a loss concerning it
as we did not understand that which pertains to everyone.
But arise, let us ascend to the Archgenitor and ask him."
And all the Powers assembled
and they went to the Archgenitor saying to him,
"Where is your boast in which you take pride?
Did we not hear you say, `I am God, and I am your Father,
and I am the one who begot you and there is no other beyond me.'?
Behold, now an utterance is manifest
hidden in the invisibly given Voice of this [Aeon]
which we do not know, and we ourselves did not know who it belonged to,
for that Voice which we heard is alien to us
and we do not know it (or) understand what it is about.
It came and loosed terror in our midst
and paralyzing the muscles of our arms.
So now let us weep and mourn in great sorrow.
Henceforth, let us make our complete escape before we are forcibly imprisoned
and taken down to the bosom of the Underworld,
For already the loosening of our chains is nigh
and the Times are cut short, and the days are short,
and our Time is completed,
and the weeping of our perdition is upon us
so that we will be taken to the place that we recognise.
For as for our tree from which we grew,
a fruit of Ignorance is what it possesses,
and death also exists in its leaves,
and Darkness exists beneath the shade of its boughs,
(from) which we plucked with guile and lust,
this (tree) of the Chaos of Ignorance
which became for us a dwelling-place.
For behold, he himself,
the Archgenitor of our birth in whom we took pride,
even he is ignorant about this Utterance."
So now, hear me Children of the Thought,
(hear) the Utterance of the Mother of your mercy,
for you have become worthy of the Mystery
hidden since the Aeons (appeared) so that you shall receive it.
And the end of this [particular] Aeon
[and] this life conducive to violence [has approached
and there dawns] the beginning [of the Aeon of Light],
that which is [forever without change].
I am androgynous.
I [am Mother], I am Father since I [cohabit] with myself alone,
and I [copulate] with myself alone
[and] (with those) who [alone] desire me,
(and) the All [stands firm] through myself alone.
I am the Womb [that forms] the All by giving birth to the Light
that shines] in splendour.
I am the Aeon to come.
[I am] the fulfillment of the All,
that is Meirothea, the glory of the Mother:
I project an Utterance [of the] Voice
into the ears of those who know me,
and I call you into the Light which is exalted (and) fulfilled.
Moreover, when you enter this (Light)
you shall receive glory from those who give glory,
and those who enthrone shall enthrone you.
You shall receive robes from those who give robes,
and the Baptists will baptise you,
you shall become ever more glorious--
you were this way in the beginning when you became Light.
And I concealed myself in everyone and manifested myself in them,
and every mind seeking after me longed for me,
for I am the one who gave representation to the All
when it was without form.
And I transformed their forms into other forms
until the Time when they shall give form to the All.
Through myself the Voice came to be,
and I myself make the breath within those who are mine,
and the Spirit which is eternally pure I introduced in them,
and I ascended and entered my Light.
I flew up upon my branch
and sat [in the midst of] the Children of the pure Light
and I withdrew to their dwelling place
which [...................................]
[.........................................]
become pure [.................] Amen.
[On the] Heimarmene [2]
I am the Logos which exists [in the Light] that is ineffable.
I exist in the [Silence] that is undefiled,
and a Thought was [revealed] in perception
by means of [the great] Utterance of the Mother
which was a begotten male (who) took care to set me up,
and it existed from the beginning in the establishments of the All.
However, there is a Light that exists hidden in Silence,
it being the first to come forth;
yet as she alone exists as Silence, I alone am the ineffable Logos:
undefiled, immeasurable, (and) inconceivable.
It (the Logos) is a hidden Light which gives a fruit of Life,
pouring a living water from an invisible spring,
undefiled (and) immeasurable
which is the glorious Voice of the uninterpretable Mother,
the glory (that is) the offspring god,
a male virgin by virtue of a hidden Nous,
that is the Silence which is hidden from the All,
being an uninterpretable, immeasurable Light,
the spring of the All, the Root of the entire Aeon.
It is the Foundation that undergirds every movement of the Aeons
which belong to the intrepid Glory.
It is the Foundation of every foundation.
It is the breath of the Powers.
It is the eye of the threefold Repose which exists as Voice
by virtue of Thought,
and It is Logos by virtue of the Utterance:
it was separated to illumine those who exist in Darkness.
Now, behold, [I shall reveal] to you [the Mysteries]
since you are my companion-[brothers and you shall] know them all
[.............................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[..........] I told [all of them][the Mysteries]
that exist in [the incomprehensible], ineffable [Aeons].
I taught [them the Mysteries] through the Voice
[which exists] within a complete Nous
[and I] became the Foundation of the All,
and [I gave Power] to them.
The second time I came in the [Utterance] of my Voice
I gave (an) image to those who took (the) image until their end.
The third time I revealed myself to them in their tents,
existing as the Logos.
And I revealed myself in the likeness of their image,
and I wore common garments and I hid myself down among them,
and they did not know the one who gives power to me,
for I exist within all First Principles and the Powers
and within the Angels
and in every Stirring which exists within all Matter.
And I hid myself within them until I revealed myself to my brethren
and none of them knew me although I am the one who is Energy within them.
But [they]thought that the All was created by them:
being ignorant they did not know [their] Root,
the place in which they grew.
I am the Light which gives Light to the All.
I am the Light which rejoices [in my] brethren
for I came down to the world [of the] dead
on behalf of the Spirit which remains behind [in]that which [descended],
issuing forth [from] the innocent Sophia.
[I came] and [set forth] my living [........]
and I stripped away [......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[.....] through the [propriety of the Thought]
which he possessed from [the beginning]
[since I gave him] the water [of Life and he]stripped away the Chaos,
that which [exists][in] the uttermost [Darkness]
in the lowest part of all [Darkness];
that is (I gave to him) the Thought
of the Pneumatic and Psychic [Power].
All of these I put on.
However, I stripped him of it (the Power)
and I gave him a radiant Light,
that is, the Knowledge of the Thought of the Parenthood.
And I delivered him to those who give robes:
Iammon, Elasso, Amenai,
and they covered him with a robe from among robes of Light
and I delivered him to the baptists and they baptised him--
Micheus, Michar, Mnesinous--
they immersed him, however, in the spring of the Water of Life;
and I delivered him to those who enthrone--
Bariel, Nouthan, Sabenai--
and they enthroned him upon the Throne of Glory.
And I delivered him to those who glorify--
Ariom, Elien, Phariel--
and they glorified him with the glory of Parenthood
and [still] those who master, carried off--
Kamaliel, [...]anen, Samblos,
the servants of the great and holy Illuminator--
they took him to the place of Light of his Parenthood,
and [he received] the Five Seals from [the Light] of the Mother,
the Protennoia,
and it was granted him that he take in [the Mystery]
of the Knowledge and [he became Light] in Light.
Now, then [.............]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[.....I was] existing in them:
[I clad myself in the likeness of each] one.
The Archons thought [that I] was their Christ--
truly, I [exist][in] every [one],
indeed in those in whom [I resided](as) [Power]
(and) Light within them,
(I) [humiliated]the Archons.
I am their beloved for in that place I clothed myself
in the [manner] of the Son of the Archgenitor
and I resembled him until the end of his judgement,
that is, the Ignorance of Chaos.
And among the Angels I appeared in their likeness,
and among the Powers as if I were one of them--
among the sons of Man however, as if I were a son of Man
although I exist as Parent of everyone.
I concealed myself in all of these
until I manifested myself in my members, who are mine,
and I taught them (about) the ineffable Boundaries and the brethren.
But they are inexpressible to every First Principle
and every archontic Power except the Children of the Light alone,
that is, the Boundaries of the Parent.
These are Glories higher than every Glory,
that is, the five Seals fulfilled through Nous.
The one who possesses the five Seals of these names in particular
has stripped off the robes of Ignorance,
and put on a radiant Light.
And none shall reveal themselves,
remaining hidden to the Powers of the Archons.
Within those of this kind the Darkness will be dissolved
and Ignorance will die.
And the thought of the creature which was dispersed
will present a single Form and [the dark Chaos] will dissolve
and [......................................]
[......................................]
[...............] and the [............]
[.............] incomprehensible [.....]
[.......] until I reveal myself [in the Power][of my Glory]
and until I gather [together] all of my fellow [brethren]
within my [eternal reign].
And I proclaimed to them the [five] ineffable [seals]
so that [I might] exist in them and they too might exist in me.
I--I put on Jesus.
I brought him forth from the cursed cross
and I established him in the dwelling places of his Parent.
And those who guard their dwelling places do not know me,
for I am uncontrollable, along with my Seed,
and my Seed, which is mine, I shall put it into the pure Light
within the incomprehensible Silence.
Amen.
The Logos of the Epiphany (three)
Trimorphic Protennoia (three)
Sacred Scriptures written by the Parent with complete Gnosis
(THE LOGOS OF THE EPIPHANY)
Sacred Scriptures written by the Parentwith complete Gnosis
I am the Protennoia,
the Thought which exists in the Light.
I am the stirring which exists in the All,
she in whom the All is at work to its foundations,
the first-begotten among those who came to be,
who exists before the All, she who is called by three names,
who exists by herself, being fulfilled.
I am invisible within the Thought of the Invisible One
and I am revealed in that which is immeasurable and ineffable.
I am incomprehensible, existing within the incomprehensible.
I move in each creation.
I am the life of my Epinoia,
that which exists in every Power and in every eternal stirring,
and within invisible Lights
and within the Archons and Angels
and the Demons and every soul existing in Tartaros
and every hylic soul.
I exist in those who came to be.
I move in everyone and I reach into them all.
I go forthwith and those who sleep I rouse,
and I am the vision of those who dream in sleep
I am the invisible One within the All.
I am the one who advises those who are hidden
as I know the All which exists in hiddenness.
I am numberless beyond everyone.
I am immeasurable and unutterable,
yet if I desire I shall manifest myself, solely,
for I am the Brilliance of the All.
I exist before the All and I am the All
as I exist in everyone.
I am a voice speaking softly.
I exist from the beginning in Silence.
I am that which is in every voice
and the Voice which is hidden in myself,
in the incomprehensible limitless Thought within the limitless Silence.
I came down into the midst of the underworld
and I shone forth upon the Darkness.
I am the one who poured the water.
I am the one who is hidden in the luminous waters.
I am the one who gradually illuminated the All by my Thought.
I am coupled with the Voice
and it is through myself that Gnosis comes forth.
I exist in the ineffable and incomprehensible ones.
I am the determination and the Knowledge,
uttering a Voice by means of Thought.
am the existing Voice and I speak forth in everyone
and they recognize it since a Seed exists in them.
I am the Thought of the Parent
and it was first through myself that the Voice came,
that is, the Knowledge of things which do not have an end;
and I exist as Thought for the All,
in harmony with the Thought that is unknowable,and unattainable.
I manifested myself--I--among all those who know me,
for I am the one joined with everyone
in the Thought which is hidden and the Voice which is exalted,
and such a Voice is by means of the invisible Thought,
and as immeasurable it exists in the Immeasurable.
It is a mystery, and it is unhindered because of its incomprehensibility
being invisible to all those who are manifest in the All.
It is light which exists in Light.
We alone are separate from the manifest world
since we are saved by the hidden humanness of our hearts
by means of the ineffable and immeasurable Thought.
And the one who is hidden within us pays the tribute of his fruit
to the waters of Life.
Then the Son who is complete in all respects,
that is the Word which originated through this Voice
which preceeded it in the heights,
and who possesses within himself the name which is a Light,
he revealed the imperishable things
and all of the unknown things were made known
and these things that are difficult to interpret
and which are hidden, he revealed;
and as for those who exist in Silence with the first Thought,
he proclaimed to them,
and those who exist in the Darkness he revealed himself to,
and those who exist in the Depths, he informed them,
and those who exist in the hidden Horus,
he taught them the ineffable mysteries and he enlightened them,
all the children of the Light, about the unrepeatable instructions.
However, the Voice which exists in my Thought exists as three states:
the Father, the Mother, the Son, as a sound existing in perception.
It possesses a Word within it--this Word which possesses every glory.
And it possesses three malenesses, three powers and three names,
existing in the manner of three which are four-cornered,
hidden in the Silence of the Ineffable.
This one alone, who exists, that is, the Logos,
I annointed with the glory of the invisible Spirit of goodness.
The third then, I alone caused in an eternal power
over the living Aeons of the Light, that is, the God above the All
who shone forth from the beginning in the Light of these exalted Aeons,
and in this glorious Light he remains resolute.
And he takes his stand in his own Light which surrounds him,
that is the Eye of Light which gloriously illumines myself.
I gave the Aeon of the Parent to all the Aeons,
which I am, the Thought of the Parent, the Protennoia,
that is, Barbelo,the complete, invisible, hidden, and immeasurable One.
I am the Image of the invisible Spirit
and the Image of the All is completed through myself,
and this Light, which the Mother appointed and which came to be named Virgin,
the one: Meirothea, the incomprehensible Womb,
the Voice that is uncontrollable and immeasurable.
Then the fulfilled Son revealed himself to his Aeons,
these who came to be through him,
he manifested them, glorifying them, and he gave them thrones,
and he stood in the glory with which he glorified himself
{They praised the perfect son, the Christ, the god who begot himself,
and they glorified him saying, He is! He is! the son of God,
the son of God, he is the one who exists!}
and) the Aeon of Aeons looked upon the Aeons he gave birth to.
For you begot with your own desire
because of this we give glory to you:
MA MO OOO EIA EI ON EI, the Aeon of Aeons, the esteemed Aeon!
Then the god who was begotten gave them a Power
[that anyone can become strong]
and he established them in their place:
the first Aeon he established [over the first]:
(H)armedon Nousanios Harmozel;
the second he established [over the second Aeon]:
the third over the third Aeon: Mellephaneus Loios Daueithai;
the fourth above the fourth: Mousanios Amethes Eleleth.
Now the Aeons were begotten by the god,
{he who was (himself) begotten, the Christ.}
These (Aeons) were given glory and the Aeons (too) gave glory.
They were first manifested, exalted in their thought
and each of the Aeons gave myriads of glory in great untraceable Lights,
and they each together blessed the fulfilled son,
the god who was begotten.
Then a Word came forth from the great Light Eleleth and it said:
"I am King--who is it belongs to Chaos?
and who is it belongs to the Underworld?
And immediately thence his Light appeared radiant,
itself possessing the Epinoia.
The Powers of the Powers did not entreat him and, on the contrary,
there immediately appeared the Great Demon who rules over the bottom part
of the Underworld and Chaos.
He has neither Form nor completion but (instead)
possesses the Form of the glory of those begotten in Darkness.
Now this one is called "Saklas", that is, "Samael," "Yaltabaoth",
the one who had taken power, which he seized from the Innocent One:
he who had first been victorious over her,
that is the Epinoia of Light who had come to the Depths,
the One from whom he (himself) came in the beginning.
When the Epinoia of Light understood (this)
she entreated the other Creation in humiliation.
She said, ["Give unto me another existence]
so that I will come to the given Power, lest I exist in an [evil] Order."
[And the] entire [assembled] House of Glory agreed with her word.
They brought a blessing upon her
and the exalted Order expelled it (the lower Order) from her.
And the great Demon began to produce Aeons
in the likeness of the Aeons which exist
however he produced them out of his own Power alone.
Then I too revealed my Voice in that which is hidden, saying,
"Cease, stop you, those who wander in the Hyle;
for behold, I am descending unto the world of the mortal
for the sake of my part
which is in that place from the time of the victory (over) the innocent Sophia,
this One(f), the one who descended so that I would dissolve their ends--
as He commanded, the One who reveals himself through her."
And they were disturbed, all those who exist in the House of Ignorant Light,
and the Depth shook, and the Archigenetor of Ignorance
who ruled over Chaos and the Underworld produced a person in my Form.
But he did not know that this one would become a sentence of dissolution for him,
nor did he understand the Power which is in it.
But now I have descended and have reached down into Chaos,
and I was [near] those of mine who are in that place.
I am hidden among them,
I give them Power, I give them Form,
and from the beginning until the [last] day
[I grant boldness]to those who are [mine, and I shall join] with these ones
so that they [understand these words],
that is, the Children of the Light whose parent I am.
And I shall tell you a Mystery:
With my Pronnoia I have loosed all five fetters from you,
and the chains of the Demons of the Underworld I burst--
those which bound my members, opposing them.
And the high walls of Darkness I threw down,
and the locked gate of the pitiless ones I breached,
and their bars I broke.
And the evil Energy and the One who strikes you
and the one who impedes you and the Tyrant,
the Adversary, the one who is King, and the Enemy who exists--
all of these things I taught to those who are mine,
those who are the Children of the Light
so that they shall dissolve them all and be released from all of these fetters
to ascend to their place of origin.
I am the first to descend for the sake of a member of mine who remains,
that is the Spirit who exists in the Soul which resides in the Water of Life
and through the cleansing of the Mysteries.
I spoke--
I--with the Archons and Authorities,
for I went beneath their language
and told the Mysteries to my own,
a Hidden Mystery (through which)
the fetters and sleep of Eternity were dissolved.
And I brought forth Fruit in them:
that is the Thought of the Unchanging Aeon
and my House, and their Parent.
And I descended [for those who were mine] from the beginning
and [established for them] the first strands which they produced.
Then they all shone within me,
and I prepared a pattern out of those ineffable Lights within me.
Amen.
The Logos of the Protennoia [1]
I am the Voice which revealed itself through my Thought,
for I am the One who is Syzygaic.
I am called "The Thought of the Invisible,"
(and)"the Sound which gives birth to Change":
I am called, therefore, "She who is Syzygaic."
I am a single One (f), undefiled.
I am the Mother of the Voice, speaking in many ways,
completing the All, the Knowledge existing in myself,
the Gnosis of infinite matters.
I am the One who speaks in every creature,
and I was known through the All;
I am the One who gives the Speech of the Voice
unto the ears of thosewho have known me,
that is the Children of the Light.
However, I came for the second time in the form of a woman
and I spoke with them.
And I shall tell them of the coming end of the Aeon,
and I shall edify them (concerning) the beginning of the Aeon to come,
the one which does not possess change
(but) which will alter our countenance through itself,
that we become pure.
Within these Aeons, from which I revealed myself
in the Thought of the resemblance of my(f) maleness,
I preserve those who are worthy within the Thought of my unchanging Aeon.
For I shall tell you a Mystery of this Aeon in particular,
and I shall inform you of the Energies within it.
The Birth calls [to the Birth:]
hour begets hour, [day creates] day, month creates month,
Time turns, following Time.
This particular Aeon was accomplished in this manner,
and it was numbered,(being found) small,
for it was a finger that omitted a finger,
and a (chain) link which is added to by means of a link.
When the Great Powers understood that the time of fulfillment was manifest
as in the labour pains of the pregnant woman
(which) brought (her to) the entrance of the door,
in this way the Destruction approached.
All together the Elements trembled
and the foundations of the Underworld and the ceilings of Chaos shook
and a great fire glowed in their midst
and the rocks and the earth shook like reeds blown in the wind.
And the lots of the Heimarmene
and those who measure the dwellings were greatly disturbed
by a tremendous thundering.
And the thrones of the Powers were disturbed as they had been overturned,
and their King was afraid.
And those who follow the Heimarmene
gave their account of visits to the road and said to the Powers:
"What is this disturbance and this shaking that has come down upon us
through a hidden voice (and) an exalted speech?
And all our houses are shaken,
and all the bounds of our upward course have met with destruction,
and the path upon which we ourselves walk,
the one which takes us up to the Archgenitor of our birth,
it has ceased to exist for us."
Then the Powers answered, saying,
"We ourselves are at a loss concerning it
as we did not understand that which pertains to everyone.
But arise, let us ascend to the Archgenitor and ask him."
And all the Powers assembled
and they went to the Archgenitor saying to him,
"Where is your boast in which you take pride?
Did we not hear you say, `I am God, and I am your Father,
and I am the one who begot you and there is no other beyond me.'?
Behold, now an utterance is manifest
hidden in the invisibly given Voice of this [Aeon]
which we do not know, and we ourselves did not know who it belonged to,
for that Voice which we heard is alien to us
and we do not know it (or) understand what it is about.
It came and loosed terror in our midst
and paralyzing the muscles of our arms.
So now let us weep and mourn in great sorrow.
Henceforth, let us make our complete escape before we are forcibly imprisoned
and taken down to the bosom of the Underworld,
For already the loosening of our chains is nigh
and the Times are cut short, and the days are short,
and our Time is completed,
and the weeping of our perdition is upon us
so that we will be taken to the place that we recognise.
For as for our tree from which we grew,
a fruit of Ignorance is what it possesses,
and death also exists in its leaves,
and Darkness exists beneath the shade of its boughs,
(from) which we plucked with guile and lust,
this (tree) of the Chaos of Ignorance
which became for us a dwelling-place.
For behold, he himself,
the Archgenitor of our birth in whom we took pride,
even he is ignorant about this Utterance."
So now, hear me Children of the Thought,
(hear) the Utterance of the Mother of your mercy,
for you have become worthy of the Mystery
hidden since the Aeons (appeared) so that you shall receive it.
And the end of this [particular] Aeon
[and] this life conducive to violence [has approached
and there dawns] the beginning [of the Aeon of Light],
that which is [forever without change].
I am androgynous.
I [am Mother], I am Father since I [cohabit] with myself alone,
and I [copulate] with myself alone
[and] (with those) who [alone] desire me,
(and) the All [stands firm] through myself alone.
I am the Womb [that forms] the All by giving birth to the Light
that shines] in splendour.
I am the Aeon to come.
[I am] the fulfillment of the All,
that is Meirothea, the glory of the Mother:
I project an Utterance [of the] Voice
into the ears of those who know me,
and I call you into the Light which is exalted (and) fulfilled.
Moreover, when you enter this (Light)
you shall receive glory from those who give glory,
and those who enthrone shall enthrone you.
You shall receive robes from those who give robes,
and the Baptists will baptise you,
you shall become ever more glorious--
you were this way in the beginning when you became Light.
And I concealed myself in everyone and manifested myself in them,
and every mind seeking after me longed for me,
for I am the one who gave representation to the All
when it was without form.
And I transformed their forms into other forms
until the Time when they shall give form to the All.
Through myself the Voice came to be,
and I myself make the breath within those who are mine,
and the Spirit which is eternally pure I introduced in them,
and I ascended and entered my Light.
I flew up upon my branch
and sat [in the midst of] the Children of the pure Light
and I withdrew to their dwelling place
which [...................................]
[.........................................]
become pure [.................] Amen.
[On the] Heimarmene [2]
I am the Logos which exists [in the Light] that is ineffable.
I exist in the [Silence] that is undefiled,
and a Thought was [revealed] in perception
by means of [the great] Utterance of the Mother
which was a begotten male (who) took care to set me up,
and it existed from the beginning in the establishments of the All.
However, there is a Light that exists hidden in Silence,
it being the first to come forth;
yet as she alone exists as Silence, I alone am the ineffable Logos:
undefiled, immeasurable, (and) inconceivable.
It (the Logos) is a hidden Light which gives a fruit of Life,
pouring a living water from an invisible spring,
undefiled (and) immeasurable
which is the glorious Voice of the uninterpretable Mother,
the glory (that is) the offspring god,
a male virgin by virtue of a hidden Nous,
that is the Silence which is hidden from the All,
being an uninterpretable, immeasurable Light,
the spring of the All, the Root of the entire Aeon.
It is the Foundation that undergirds every movement of the Aeons
which belong to the intrepid Glory.
It is the Foundation of every foundation.
It is the breath of the Powers.
It is the eye of the threefold Repose which exists as Voice
by virtue of Thought,
and It is Logos by virtue of the Utterance:
it was separated to illumine those who exist in Darkness.
Now, behold, [I shall reveal] to you [the Mysteries]
since you are my companion-[brothers and you shall] know them all
[.............................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[..........] I told [all of them][the Mysteries]
that exist in [the incomprehensible], ineffable [Aeons].
I taught [them the Mysteries] through the Voice
[which exists] within a complete Nous
[and I] became the Foundation of the All,
and [I gave Power] to them.
The second time I came in the [Utterance] of my Voice
I gave (an) image to those who took (the) image until their end.
The third time I revealed myself to them in their tents,
existing as the Logos.
And I revealed myself in the likeness of their image,
and I wore common garments and I hid myself down among them,
and they did not know the one who gives power to me,
for I exist within all First Principles and the Powers
and within the Angels
and in every Stirring which exists within all Matter.
And I hid myself within them until I revealed myself to my brethren
and none of them knew me although I am the one who is Energy within them.
But [they]thought that the All was created by them:
being ignorant they did not know [their] Root,
the place in which they grew.
I am the Light which gives Light to the All.
I am the Light which rejoices [in my] brethren
for I came down to the world [of the] dead
on behalf of the Spirit which remains behind [in]that which [descended],
issuing forth [from] the innocent Sophia.
[I came] and [set forth] my living [........]
and I stripped away [......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[.....] through the [propriety of the Thought]
which he possessed from [the beginning]
[since I gave him] the water [of Life and he]stripped away the Chaos,
that which [exists][in] the uttermost [Darkness]
in the lowest part of all [Darkness];
that is (I gave to him) the Thought
of the Pneumatic and Psychic [Power].
All of these I put on.
However, I stripped him of it (the Power)
and I gave him a radiant Light,
that is, the Knowledge of the Thought of the Parenthood.
And I delivered him to those who give robes:
Iammon, Elasso, Amenai,
and they covered him with a robe from among robes of Light
and I delivered him to the baptists and they baptised him--
Micheus, Michar, Mnesinous--
they immersed him, however, in the spring of the Water of Life;
and I delivered him to those who enthrone--
Bariel, Nouthan, Sabenai--
and they enthroned him upon the Throne of Glory.
And I delivered him to those who glorify--
Ariom, Elien, Phariel--
and they glorified him with the glory of Parenthood
and [still] those who master, carried off--
Kamaliel, [...]anen, Samblos,
the servants of the great and holy Illuminator--
they took him to the place of Light of his Parenthood,
and [he received] the Five Seals from [the Light] of the Mother,
the Protennoia,
and it was granted him that he take in [the Mystery]
of the Knowledge and [he became Light] in Light.
Now, then [.............]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[......................................]
[.....I was] existing in them:
[I clad myself in the likeness of each] one.
The Archons thought [that I] was their Christ--
truly, I [exist][in] every [one],
indeed in those in whom [I resided](as) [Power]
(and) Light within them,
(I) [humiliated]the Archons.
I am their beloved for in that place I clothed myself
in the [manner] of the Son of the Archgenitor
and I resembled him until the end of his judgement,
that is, the Ignorance of Chaos.
And among the Angels I appeared in their likeness,
and among the Powers as if I were one of them--
among the sons of Man however, as if I were a son of Man
although I exist as Parent of everyone.
I concealed myself in all of these
until I manifested myself in my members, who are mine,
and I taught them (about) the ineffable Boundaries and the brethren.
But they are inexpressible to every First Principle
and every archontic Power except the Children of the Light alone,
that is, the Boundaries of the Parent.
These are Glories higher than every Glory,
that is, the five Seals fulfilled through Nous.
The one who possesses the five Seals of these names in particular
has stripped off the robes of Ignorance,
and put on a radiant Light.
And none shall reveal themselves,
remaining hidden to the Powers of the Archons.
Within those of this kind the Darkness will be dissolved
and Ignorance will die.
And the thought of the creature which was dispersed
will present a single Form and [the dark Chaos] will dissolve
and [......................................]
[......................................]
[...............] and the [............]
[.............] incomprehensible [.....]
[.......] until I reveal myself [in the Power][of my Glory]
and until I gather [together] all of my fellow [brethren]
within my [eternal reign].
And I proclaimed to them the [five] ineffable [seals]
so that [I might] exist in them and they too might exist in me.
I--I put on Jesus.
I brought him forth from the cursed cross
and I established him in the dwelling places of his Parent.
And those who guard their dwelling places do not know me,
for I am uncontrollable, along with my Seed,
and my Seed, which is mine, I shall put it into the pure Light
within the incomprehensible Silence.
Amen.
The Logos of the Epiphany (three)
Trimorphic Protennoia (three)
Sacred Scriptures written by the Parent with complete Gnosis
for I am the One who is Syzygaic.
I am called "The Thought of the Invisible,"
(and)"the Sound which gives birth to Change":
I am called, therefore, "She who is Syzygaic."
I am a single One (f), undefiled.
I am the Mother of the Voice, speaking in many ways,
completing the All, the Knowledge existing in myself,
the Gnosis of infinite matters.
I am the One who speaks in every creature,
and I was known through the All;
I am the One who gives the Speech of the Voice
unto the ears of thosewho have known me,
that is the Children of the Light.
However, I came for the second time in the form of a woman
and I spoke with them.
And I shall tell them of the coming end of the Aeon,
and I shall edify them (concerning) the beginning of the Aeon to come,
the one which does not possess change
(but) which will alter our countenance through itself,
that we become pure.
Within these Aeons, from which I revealed myself
in the Thought of the resemblance of my(f) maleness,
I preserve those who are worthy within the Thought of my unchanging Aeon.
For I shall tell you a Mystery of this Aeon in particular,
and I shall inform you of the Energies within it.
The Birth calls [to the Birth:]
hour begets hour, [day creates] day, month creates month,
Time turns, following Time.
This particular Aeon was accomplished in this manner,
and it was numbered,(being found) small,
for it was a finger that omitted a finger,
and a (chain) link which is added to by means of a link.
When the Great Powers understood that the time of fulfillment was manifest
as in the labour pains of the pregnant woman
(which) brought (her to) the entrance of the door,
in this way the Destruction approached.
All together the Elements trembled
and the foundations of the Underworld and the ceilings of Chaos shook
and a great fire glowed in their midst
and the rocks and the earth shook like reeds blown in the wind.
And the lots of the Heimarmene
and those who measure the dwellings were greatly disturbed
by a tremendous thundering.
And the thrones of the Powers were disturbed as they had been overturned,
and their King was afraid.
And those who follow the Heimarmene
gave their account of visits to the road and said to the Powers:
"What is this disturbance and this shaking that has come down upon us
through a hidden voice (and) an exalted speech?
And all our houses are shaken,
and all the bounds of our upward course have met with destruction,
and the path upon which we ourselves walk,
the one which takes us up to the Archgenitor of our birth,
it has ceased to exist for us."
Then the Powers answered, saying,
"We ourselves are at a loss concerning it
as we did not understand that which pertains to everyone.
But arise, let us ascend to the Archgenitor and ask him."
And all the Powers assembled
and they went to the Archgenitor saying to him,
"Where is your boast in which you take pride?
Did we not hear you say, `I am God, and I am your Father,
and I am the one who begot you and there is no other beyond me.'?
Behold, now an utterance is manifest
hidden in the invisibly given Voice of this [Aeon]
which we do not know, and we ourselves did not know who it belonged to,
for that Voice which we heard is alien to us
and we do not know it (or) understand what it is about.
It came and loosed terror in our midst
and paralyzing the muscles of our arms.
So now let us weep and mourn in great sorrow.
Henceforth, let us make our complete escape before we are forcibly imprisoned
and taken down to the bosom of the Underworld,
For already the loosening of our chains is nigh
and the Times are cut short, and the days are short,
and our Time is completed,
and the weeping of our perdition is upon us
so that we will be taken to the place that we recognise.
For as for our tree from which we grew,
a fruit of Ignorance is what it possesses,
and death also exists in its leaves,
and Darkness exists beneath the shade of its boughs,
(from) which we plucked with guile and lust,
this (tree) of the Chaos of Ignorance
which became for us a dwelling-place.
For behold, he himself,
the Archgenitor of our birth in whom we took pride,
even he is ignorant about this Utterance."
So now, hear me Children of the Thought,
(hear) the Utterance of the Mother of your mercy,
for you have become worthy of the Mystery
hidden since the Aeons (appeared) so that you shall receive it.
And the end of this [particular] Aeon
[and] this life conducive to violence [has approached
and there dawns] the beginning [of the Aeon of Light],
that which is [forever without change].
I am androgynous.
I [am Mother], I am Father since I [cohabit] with myself alone,
and I [copulate] with myself alone
[and] (with those) who [alone] desire me,
(and) the All [stands firm] through myself alone.
I am the Womb [that forms] the All by giving birth to the Light
that shines] in splendour.
I am the Aeon to come.
[I am] the fulfillment of the All,
that is Meirothea, the glory of the Mother:
I project an Utterance [of the] Voice
into the ears of those who know me,
and I call you into the Light which is exalted (and) fulfilled.
Moreover, when you enter this (Light)
you shall receive glory from those who give glory,
and those who enthrone shall enthrone you.
You shall receive robes from those who give robes,
and the Baptists will baptise you,
you shall become ever more glorious--
you were this way in the beginning when you became Light.
And I concealed myself in everyone and manifested myself in them,
and every mind seeking after me longed for me,
for I am the one who gave representation to the All
when it was without form.
And I transformed their forms into other forms
until the Time when they shall give form to the All.
Through myself the Voice came to be,
and I myself make the breath within those who are mine,
and the Spirit which is eternally pure I introduced in them,
and I ascended and entered my Light.
I flew up upon my branch
and sat [in the midst of] the Children of the pure Light
and I withdrew to their dwelling place
which [...................................]
[.........................................]
become pure [.................] Amen.
I exist in the [Silence] that is undefiled,
and a Thought was [revealed] in perception
by means of [the great] Utterance of the Mother
which was a begotten male (who) took care to set me up,
and it existed from the beginning in the establishments of the All.
However, there is a Light that exists hidden in Silence,
it being the first to come forth;
yet as she alone exists as Silence, I alone am the ineffable Logos:
undefiled, immeasurable, (and) inconceivable.
It (the Logos) is a hidden Light which gives a fruit of Life,
pouring a living water from an invisible spring,
undefiled (and) immeasurable
which is the glorious Voice of the uninterpretable Mother,
the glory (that is) the offspring god,
a male virgin by virtue of a hidden Nous,
that is the Silence which is hidden from the All,
being an uninterpretable, immeasurable Light,
the spring of the All, the Root of the entire Aeon.
It is the Foundation that undergirds every movement of the Aeons
which belong to the intrepid Glory.
It is the Foundation of every foundation.
It is the breath of the Powers.
It is the eye of the threefold Repose which exists as Voice
by virtue of Thought,
and It is Logos by virtue of the Utterance:
it was separated to illumine those who exist in Darkness.
Now, behold, [I shall reveal] to you [the Mysteries]
since you are my companion-[brothers and you shall] know them all
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[..........] I told [all of them][the Mysteries]
that exist in [the incomprehensible], ineffable [Aeons].
I taught [them the Mysteries] through the Voice
[which exists] within a complete Nous
[and I] became the Foundation of the All,
and [I gave Power] to them.
The second time I came in the [Utterance] of my Voice
I gave (an) image to those who took (the) image until their end.
The third time I revealed myself to them in their tents,
existing as the Logos.
And I revealed myself in the likeness of their image,
and I wore common garments and I hid myself down among them,
and they did not know the one who gives power to me,
for I exist within all First Principles and the Powers
and within the Angels
and in every Stirring which exists within all Matter.
And I hid myself within them until I revealed myself to my brethren
and none of them knew me although I am the one who is Energy within them.
But [they]thought that the All was created by them:
being ignorant they did not know [their] Root,
the place in which they grew.
I am the Light which gives Light to the All.
I am the Light which rejoices [in my] brethren
for I came down to the world [of the] dead
on behalf of the Spirit which remains behind [in]that which [descended],
issuing forth [from] the innocent Sophia.
[I came] and [set forth] my living [........]
and I stripped away [......................................]
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[.....] through the [propriety of the Thought]
which he possessed from [the beginning]
[since I gave him] the water [of Life and he]stripped away the Chaos,
that which [exists][in] the uttermost [Darkness]
in the lowest part of all [Darkness];
that is (I gave to him) the Thought
of the Pneumatic and Psychic [Power].
All of these I put on.
However, I stripped him of it (the Power)
and I gave him a radiant Light,
that is, the Knowledge of the Thought of the Parenthood.
And I delivered him to those who give robes:
Iammon, Elasso, Amenai,
and they covered him with a robe from among robes of Light
and I delivered him to the baptists and they baptised him--
Micheus, Michar, Mnesinous--
they immersed him, however, in the spring of the Water of Life;
and I delivered him to those who enthrone--
Bariel, Nouthan, Sabenai--
and they enthroned him upon the Throne of Glory.
And I delivered him to those who glorify--
Ariom, Elien, Phariel--
and they glorified him with the glory of Parenthood
and [still] those who master, carried off--
Kamaliel, [...]anen, Samblos,
the servants of the great and holy Illuminator--
they took him to the place of Light of his Parenthood,
and [he received] the Five Seals from [the Light] of the Mother,
the Protennoia,
and it was granted him that he take in [the Mystery]
of the Knowledge and [he became Light] in Light.
Now, then [.............]
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[.....I was] existing in them:
[I clad myself in the likeness of each] one.
The Archons thought [that I] was their Christ--
truly, I [exist][in] every [one],
indeed in those in whom [I resided](as) [Power]
(and) Light within them,
(I) [humiliated]the Archons.
I am their beloved for in that place I clothed myself
in the [manner] of the Son of the Archgenitor
and I resembled him until the end of his judgement,
that is, the Ignorance of Chaos.
And among the Angels I appeared in their likeness,
and among the Powers as if I were one of them--
among the sons of Man however, as if I were a son of Man
although I exist as Parent of everyone.
I concealed myself in all of these
until I manifested myself in my members, who are mine,
and I taught them (about) the ineffable Boundaries and the brethren.
But they are inexpressible to every First Principle
and every archontic Power except the Children of the Light alone,
that is, the Boundaries of the Parent.
These are Glories higher than every Glory,
that is, the five Seals fulfilled through Nous.
The one who possesses the five Seals of these names in particular
has stripped off the robes of Ignorance,
and put on a radiant Light.
And none shall reveal themselves,
remaining hidden to the Powers of the Archons.
Within those of this kind the Darkness will be dissolved
and Ignorance will die.
And the thought of the creature which was dispersed
will present a single Form and [the dark Chaos] will dissolve
and [......................................]
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[...............] and the [............]
[.............] incomprehensible [.....]
[.......] until I reveal myself [in the Power][of my Glory]
and until I gather [together] all of my fellow [brethren]
within my [eternal reign].
And I proclaimed to them the [five] ineffable [seals]
so that [I might] exist in them and they too might exist in me.
I--I put on Jesus.
I brought him forth from the cursed cross
and I established him in the dwelling places of his Parent.
And those who guard their dwelling places do not know me,
for I am uncontrollable, along with my Seed,
and my Seed, which is mine, I shall put it into the pure Light
within the incomprehensible Silence.
Amen.