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Ezoteristler
CİNLERLE İNSANLAR EVLENEBİLİRLER Mİ?
CİN'CE YADA CİNLERİN ÖZEL BİR DİLİ VAR MIDIR?
YENİ DÜNYA BÜYÜCÜLERİNDE YAMYAMLIK
Ezoteristler
Plato (ca. 360 BC)
Olympiodorus of Thebes (ca. 400)
Albertus Magnus (1193-1280)
Roger Bacon (1220- 1292)
Nicolas Flamel (1330-1418) - 5 Files
Basil Valentine (supposed 15th cent.) The 12 Keys - 2 Files
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Tycho Brahe (1546-1601)
John Dee (1527-1608)
Robert Boyle (1626-1691)
Isaac Newton (1642 -1727) - 2 Files
Count Alessandro de Cagliostro (1743-1795)
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Alexandre Saint-Yves d'Alveydre The Archeometre (1842-1909)
Fulcanelli
Rönasans'ın Alman bilgini Theophrastus Philippus Aureolus Bombastus von Hohenheim ( 1493-1541) renkli bir kişiliğe sahipti. Genellikle PARACELSUS adıyla tanınmaktadır. Otuz yaşlarındaykenaldığı bu lakap “von Hohenheim”ın Latinceleştirilmiş şeklinden türetilmiş olabileceği gib “Celsus'tan üstün” ( Celsus, milattan sonra birinci yüzyılda yaşamış bir Romalı tıp eserleri derleyicisidir.) anlamına da gelebilmekteydi. Belki de, geleneksel kavramları yıkan “paradoksal” (doktrinlere aykırı) kitaplar yazmasıyla ilgiliydi. Paracelsus 1493 veya 1494'te İsviçre'de Einsiedeln'de tıpla ilgilenen bir ailede doğdu.
İlk eğitimini özellikle botanik, madencilik, metalürji ve genel bilim konusunda babasından aldı. Sonraki hocaları piskoposlar ve büyüyle ilgili faliyetlerinin önde gelen ismi olan Sponheim başrahibiydi. Yirmili yaşlarına geldiğinde, Paracelsus bölgedeki madenlerde veya daha muhtemel olarak bu madenlerin laboratuarlarında çalıştı. Bu, oldukça alışılmış bir eğitimdi. Ayrıca, İtalya'ya gittiği ve Ferrara Üniversitesi'nde bir süre tıp okuduğu da tahmin edilmektedir: çünkü çok geçmeden, önce Venedik'te sonra da başka yerlerde askeri cerrah olarak çalıştığını görmekteyiz.
Doktorluk gibi saygı gören bir mesleğin üyesi olmasına rağmen Paracelsus'un babası gayri meşru bir çocuk olarak doğmuştu. Annesi ise bir Benediktin manastırında hizmet etmekteydi. Bu durum, Paracelsus'u hayatı boyunca etkilemiş görünmektedir; çünkü otorite ile arasında her zaman bir sevgi-nefret ilişkisi vardı. Arkadaşlarını, hatta hamilerini bile kendinden uzaklaştıran öfkeli bir adamdı. Geleneksel bilimi ve tıbbı reddetti; tedavi yöntemlerini köylülerden öğrenmeye çalıştı; köylülerle beraber tavernalarda içki içerek zaman geçirdi; bu alışkanlığı ona şarap konusunda uzmanlık kazandırdı. Köylülerin hastalıklarını ücretsiz olarak tedavi etti ve zenginlerden fahiş ücretler alarak durumunu dengeledi.
Paracelsus'un meslek hayatı, başarı ve başarısızlığın tam bir karışımıydı.Salzburg'da başarılı şekilde doktorluk yaptı, önde gelen hümanist yayımcı Johannes Froben'in hayatını kurtararak büyük ün kazandı. Bu başarısı ve Erasmus'a yaptığı sağlam tıbbi tavsiyeler sayesinde, 1527'de Basel'de belediye doktorluğu ve tıp profesörlüğü görevlerini elde etti. Ancak akademik otoriteler memnun değildi. Çünkü, gerekli belgeleri sunmayı ve yemin etmeyi reddetmiş, Galenos'u karalayan bir yazı hazırlamış ve yeni bir program hazırlayacağını açıklamıştı. Tayini ancak Froben'in ve diğer güçlü reformcuların yardımı sayesinde gerçekleşti. Ancak ertesi yıl Froben öldü ve Paracelsus, Basel'i terk etmek zorunda bırakıldı. İbn Sina'nın Kanun'unun bir nüshasını herkesin önünde yakmış, Almanca ders vermekte ısrar etmiş, sınıflarına berber-cerrahları almış ve hatta, vizite ücretini ödemediği için bir üst düzey hükümet yetkilisini mahkemeye verecek kadar işi ileri götürmüştü. Bundan sonra Paracelsus, bir şehirden diğerine dolaştı. Kendine gösterilen misafirperverliği genellikle suistimal ettiğinden, bir yerde en fazla iki yıl kalabilmekteydi. Madencilerde görülen hastalıkları da, köylü elbisesi giyerek yaptığı bu geziler sırasında inceledi. 1541 yılında Salzburg'da öldü.
Çok sağlam bir bünyeye sahip olan Paracelsus, içki içmede köylülerle iddiaya girmekte ve kazandıktan sonra, gecenin geri kalan kısmında yazılarını çok tutarlı bir dille sekreterine dikte etmekteydi. Tabii ki, elindeki kılıcı sallayarak ve bağırarak etrafındakilere dehşete düşürmediği zamanlarda! Ertesi gün laboratuarında çalışmakta veya muayenehanesinde hasta bakmaktaydı. Bu çılgınca hayata rağmen, tıbba bazı yenilikler getirdi. Silikoz ve tüberkülozu madencilerde görülen meslek hastalıkları olarak tanımladı; frenginin doğuştan gelebileceğini buldu; guatr ile kretinizm (patolojik zeka geriliği) arasında bir bağlantı olduğunu anladı. Ancak en önemli katkısı yeni bir hastalık teorisi ortaya koymuş olmasırdır.
Paracelsus, hastalığın vücut sıvılarındaki dengesizlik veya düzensizlikten meydana geldiğine dair eski inancı çürüttü; dış etkilerin önemini vurguladı ve özellikle vücudun bir “zehir” tarafından istila edildiğini ileri sürdü. Bu onu yeni tedavi şekillerine götürdü ve tedavide, homeopati ilkelerini ve “benzerlikler” kavramını uyguladı.
Homeopati, Sağlıklı kişilerde belirli hastalıklara yol açan ilaçların, o hastalıkların belirtilerine karşı kullanılmasına dayanan tedavi yöntemidir.
Bunun sonuncu tedavi şekline göre, kullanılacak bitkisel ilacın seçimi, bitkinin rengi ve şekli ile hasta organ arasındaki benzerlik göz önüne alınarak yapılmaktaydı. Ayrıca ilaç hammadelerini, içerdikleri spesifik bileşenlere göre ayırmaya çalıştı ve minarelleri doğrudan ilaç olarak kullanmayı öğütledi. Bütün bunlar, kimyada yeni teknik ve fikirler geliştirmesine sebep oldu ki, bu teknikler ve fikirler kendisinden sonra iyatrokimyayı uygulayacak olanlara çok fayda sağlayacaktı
Cinler daha önceki peygamberlerin tebliğlerine de uymuşlardı. Kur'an-ı Kerim'de Ahkaf suresinin ( 46 / 29 - 30 – 31 ) ayetlerinde,
30) < Dediler ki: “ Ey toplumumuz! Biz; Musa'dan sonra indirilen, kendinden öncekini doğrulayan, hakka ve dosdoğruyola ileten bir Kitap dinledik” >
31) “ Ey toplumumuz! Allah'ın davetçisine uyun, ona imanedin ki Allah, günahlarınızdan bir kısmını bağışlasın ve sizi acıklı bir azaptan korusun.”
Anlatıldığı gibi Hz. Musa'ya indirilene iman etmişlerdi. Nitekim sadece Hz. Musa değil daha pekçok peygamberin de tebliğini aldıkları yine En'am suresinde net olarak görülmektedir. (En'am /130) “ Ey cinler ve insanlar topluluğu! İçinizden, size ayetlerimi anlatan ve şu gününüzle yüzyüze geleceğiniz hususunda sizi uyaran resullaer gelmedi mi? ”
Bütün bu ayetlerden anlaşılacağı gibi, Cinler de peygamberlerin tebliğlerini dinlemişlerdir. Ve aralarından bazıları iman etmiş bazıları da inkar etmişlerdir.
Yine Kur'an-ı Kerim'de Cin suresi gayet net olarak açıklamaktadır;
1) De ki “ Cinlerden bir topluluğun dinleyip şunu söyledikleri bana vahyolundu: Gerçekten biz, hayranlık verici bir Kur'an dinledik.”
Yine Kur'an-ı Kerim'de (Neml, Sebe, Fussılet, Saffat.. ) cinler hakkında pek çok bilgi edinmekteyiz.
O halde sorumuza gelelim . İman eden cinler neye iman etmişlerdir?
- Cinler Allah'ın tek yaratıcı olduğuna, onun resulleri olduğuna ve bu resullerin insanlardan olduğuna iman etmişlerdir.Yani iman eden cinler, şeytanın yaptığı gibi yapmamış topraktan ve sudan olanın üstün olduğuna iman ettikleri gibi peygamberlerin de insanlardan olduğuna iman etmişlerdir.
O halde cinler öteki peygamberlerin de bütün tebliğlerine uyarlar mı?
- Dört ayaklı bir masanın bir ayağı kısa olsa nasıl denge olmaz ve o masanın üzerinde bir şey durmazsa, iman da böyledir. İnançlı bir bütünün tamamına inanır. Peygamberlerin tebliğlerine iman eden cinler de ilahi vahyin tamamına iman etmişlerdir.
Fakat insanlar arasında geçen özel meselelerle ilgili ayetler onları bağlamaz (Bakara 222).
Bu konuda bir başka görüş ise şudur. Ayetlerin okunuşlarının bir görünen manaları bir de sır olan manaları vardır ki, onlar bu örtünün altındaki manaya da iman ederler. Böylece bütün vahyi uygulamaları icab eder.
Cinlere, cinlerden peygamber gelmiş midir?
Bu konuda Kur'an-ı Kerim'de net bir cevap bulamıyoruz. (Sadece Enam 130) Oysa daha önceki inançlarda kabul edilen görüş şudur ki, Adem'den önce yeryüzünde cinler yaşamaktaydı. Daha doğrusu insandan önce onlar vardı. Ve cinler nefisli varlıklardı. Yani kavimdiler. Allah'u teala “ biz her kavime bir uyarıcı elçi gönderdik” der. İşte bu yüzden cinlere de cinlerden peygamber gönderildiğine inanılır.
O halde bu peygamberlerin isimleri nelerdir? Veya kitapları nerededir?
Bugün peygamber isimleri olarak söylenen cin isimleri esasen Akadca, Sümerce ve İbranice isimleridir. Ve bunun böyle olduğunu, daha doğrusu bu isimlerin eski inanışlardaki çok tanrıların isimleri olduğunu bunu savunanların bildiklerini sanmıyorum. Bugün büyüde kullanılan isimler de çoğunlukla bu isimlerdir. Yalnız işin bir enteresan tarafıda şudur ki, Eski ve Yeni Dünya'da cin peygamber isimlerinden bazıları ortak isimlerdir.
Süleyman EYÜP
Şubat, 1991
Süleyman EYYÜP'le röportaj:
CİNLERLE İNSANLAR EVLENEBİLİRLER Mİ?
Hande Karlukzade : Cinlerle insanlar evlenebilirler mi? Çocukları olur mu?
Süleyman Eyyüp : Bildiğimiz gibi insanın ham maddesi basitçe söylemek gerekirse su ve topraktır. Oysa cinlerin ise ateştir. Bu sorunun cevabı “insanoğlu sadece kendisi gibi bir insanoğlu ile evlenebilir.” diyeceğim.
Bir de olaya cinsel ilişki boyutundan baksak da farklı bir cevap bulamayız. Çünkü cinsel ilişkide de etten, kemikten, bedenli olana ihtiyaç vardır. Hatta insanlardan bazı sapıklar bazı hayvanlarla da ilişkiye girebilir. Bu çarpık ilişki de bile su ve beden ilişkisi söz konusudur. Oysa bir erkek insan ile bir cin nasıl ilişkiye girebilir ki? Bu hava ile ilişkiye girmek gibi birşeydir.
Ayrıca insanoğlunun üremesi için ALLAH muazzam bir beden yaratmıştır. Ve insan bedeninin bir ısısı mevcuttur. Biliyorsunuz ki bu ısı spermleri öldürür. İşte bu yüzden testisler vücudun dışındadırlar. Birkaç derecelik ısı azlığı bile spermlerin yaşamasını sağlar ancak bu sayede üreyebiliriz.
O halde bir erkek insanla bir dişi cinin ilişkiye girdiğini düşünsek dahi ateşten olanın içinde spermin yaşaması ve tutması düşünülemez.
Hande Karlukzade : Bir kadın insanla erkek cin ilişkiye girebilir mi? Çocukları olur mu?
Süleyman Eyyüp : BU da mümkün olmayan bir konudur. Asla bir kadın bir cinden hamile kalamaz. Yalnız burada bir farklılık söz konusudur. Kadın kendisi ile ilişkiye giriliyor gibi hissedebilir. Vücudunun belli bölgeleri (göğüs, boyun, rahim) darbeye maruz kalıyor hissedebilir. Hatta bu olayı kameralar bile tespit edebilir (Bu olayın tıptaki literatürüne bak.). Fakat bu derecede bile gelişen olayda çocuk olmaz.
Hande Karlukzade : Peki o zaman bu söylentiler nereden kaynaklanıyor?
Süleyman Eyyüp : Bütün bu söylentilerin kaynağı Yahudilerdir. Yahudi inanışına göre (Kitab-ı Mukaddes) Hz. Adem'in ilk karısı dişi cin LİLİTH'dır. Buna inanılır. Yine Kitab-ı Mukaddeste (Süleyman'ın eşi) Belkıs'ın annesinin cinlerden olduğu bahside vardır. Tabi sadece Yahudi inanacında değil diğer öteki inanaçlarda ve mitolojilerde de insanları cinlerle ilişkiye girdiği ve çocuk sahibi olduğu inanacı da vardır.
Hande Karlukzade : Bu olayı yaşadığını söyleyenler ne demek istiyorlar?
Süleyman Eyyüp : Esasında onlar hayallerini ve rüyalarını anlatıyorlar. Gizli İlimlerin içine girip çıkmayı bir türlü başaramayanlar cinlerden eşleri olduğunu söylerler. Bu hadise ekseriyetle şöyle gelişir (……….. ayetlerini ………… isimlerini belli aralıklarla tekrara ettikten sonra ……….oluşları yerine getirilir. Daha sonra temas sağlanır. Uzatmayalım bir güzel cin kadın görünür. Bu kadın ki o erkeğin asla hayal edemeyeceği bir güzelliktedir. Onunla cinsel ilişkiye girerse ki bu rüya halinde olur boşalır. Daha sonra her uyku anında da onunla ilişkiye girmeye çalışır. Ve belgesel gibi belli zamanlarda bu rüyaların devamını görür. Sanki günlük hayatının dışında rüya aleminde bir başka hayatı daha vardır. Çocukları bile olur. Onları görür konuşur.) İşte bu vakkaların yani kazayla Gizli İlimlerin içine girip çıkmayı bir türlü başaramayanları tedavi etmek lazımdır. Modern tıp ilaç ve psikolojik telkinle tedavi de büyük ilerlemeler kaydetmiş olsa da şu an için tam tedavisi mümkün değildir. Ben de böyle birkaç deli iyileştirdiğim kanaatindeyim. Daha doğrusu onlar artık kadın çocuk görmüyor ve kendi işlerine bakıyorlar.
Bir kadın ise rüyasında bir erkek cin görebilir. Onunla yakınlaşır. Ama tam beraber olacağı an uyanır. İşte dediğimiz gibi bunlar hep rüya aleminde olur.
Ben burada ŞIBLİ'nin, İBN ABBAS'ın, MUHİTTİN ARABİ'nin, İMAM MALİK'in görüşlerini size anlatmadım. Çünkü siz bana benim görüşümü sordunuz. Onların da cinlerle cinsel ilişkide çocuk meselesine bakışları aşağı yukarı aynıdır.
Hande Karlukzade : Sayın Süleyman Eyyüp peki ya büyücülükte üremeleri ve çoğalmaları…………?
Süleyman Eyyüp : Bu olayda şeytanlarla toplanılır. İnsanlar birbirleriyle çarpık ve sapık ilişkilere girerler. Belli günler, belli saatler ve lanetlenmiş ortamlarda bazı şekillerin içersinde …………… ama bu konuyu daha fazla anlatmak istemiyorum.
Yavrum! bu konuyu anlatırken bazı satanistler ve yeni yetme masonikler şunu iyi bilmelidirler ki, biz onların gittiği yoldan çoktan geri döndük. Onlar incubi ve üstatları iyi bilir sutcubilerle uğraşıyorlar. Ben ise bu konuyu anlatma ihtiyacı bile duymadım. Kimyanın elementlerini bile anlayamayacak kapasitede olan bit beyinlilere yardımcı olur diye biraz da bu konuyu anlatayım.
Cıvanın sırlarına vakıf olmaya başladıktan sonra (kuledeki Newton gibi) altını öğrenmeye başlayacaklar. Sonra en başa dönüp suyun sırrına vakıf olurlarsa ne demek istediğimi belki anlarlar.
Neyse fazla uzatmayalım kadınlarla cinsel ilişkiye giren cinlere kısaca incubi derler (Yeni dünyada tamnatom, Asya'da huzunn). Bunun Tevrat'ta yeri var mıdır dersek, Tekvin 6/4'de dayandırırlar. Bu konuyu Magdelena Crucia 1515 eylülünde ilk olarak yaşadı (Ve tam 29 yıl 8 ay 11 gün de devam etti). Erkeklerle beraber olanlarına da folletideunde sutcubi pomrad nızzmennet denir………………………………………………
Hande Karlukzade Not: Değerli okuyucularım, Süleyman Eyyüp bu özel sohbetinde Kur'an-ı KERİM inanışı dışındaki inanışları ayrıntılarıyla anlatmıştır. Bu konuyu cadılık bahsinde ayrıntıları ile vereceğimiz için bu bölümde yayınlamıyoruz. Yine Süleyman Eyyüp esasında bu konularla ilgili geçen pek çok ismin ve olayın esasen tuzaklar ve aldatmacalarla dolu olduğunu söylemiştir. Yine sorular esnasında yazılı olarak not tutulmasına izin vermediğinden kaset çözümünde bazı harflerin eksik yada fazla olabileceği belirtmek isterim. Ben tarzı gereği konuşmaları birebir yazıya döktüm. Böyle daha doğal olacağını düşündüm. Bu yüzden diksiyon hataları yapılmış olabilir.
Şubat 1991
Bilinmeyen bir yer
CİN'CE YADA CİNLERİN ÖZEL BİR DİLİ VAR MIDIR?
Öncelikle şunu belirtmeliyim ki, cinlerin bütün türlerinin kendi aralarında veya diğer türlerle anlaşmaları için sese ve özel bir lisana ihtiyaçları yoktur.
Şimdi sorunuza gelirsek, Ademoğullarının cinlerle temasını sağlama yollarından biri olan seslerde de bir takım özellikler vardır. Bu ses sistemi bizim alfabemizle yorumlandığında daha çok sessiz harflerle ifade edilebilecek sesler içerirler. Okunuş şekilleri ise daha önce Amazonlar'ın yaptığı gibi gırtlaktan çıkan sesler şeklindedir. Bu sesler topluluğundan oluşan kelimelere mana verilmeye kalkarsa en yakın diller Akadça veya Köktürkçe, Ural-Altay dil grubunda az da olsa manalandırılabilir.
Büyük olasılıkla bu manası olan kelimeler, Adem'den önce bu türlerin sınırlı sayıda maddeye verdikleri ya da çağrışım yaptıkları (rüzgar sesi, su sesi, ateşin rüzgarla parlaması, ağacın devrilirken sesi, fokurdamalar v.b.) seslerdir.
Bu bir dildir. Ve bu dili yeryüzünde sınırlı sayıda yazabilen ve yazıya aktarabilen, konuşan (kısa cümlelerle) gruplar vardır.
Bu gruplar: a) Cadılar
b) Büyücüler
c) Aradakiler
Süleyman Eyyüp
Yamyamlık, Arap toplumlarında da vardı. Misal olarak, Muaviye'nin annesi Hind harpte şehit olan müslümanların burun ve kulaklarını kestirerek boynuna uzun bir kolye yapmıştı. Yine Uhud Harbi'nde şehid edilen bir veya birkaç kişinin (Hz. Hamza) Vahşi isimli bir köle vasıtasıyla göğsünü açtırmış kalbinden bir parçayı ve ciğerini çiğ olarak yemişti.
İklimlerin ve koşulların değişik olması yamyamlık geleneğini engellememiştir. Yine bir başka kıtada eskimolarda bile yamyamlık vardı. Yazılı olmayan yasalarına göre aç kaldıklarında ve uzun süre gıda bulamadıklarında köpeklerinden evvel çocuklarını keserek yerlerdi. Bu günkü şartlara göre çok garip gelebilir ama eskimo inancına göre çocuklarını keserek yemek bazen de yaşlı anne ve babalarını yemek bir gelenekti. İşin en ilginç yanı ise bu toplumun yamyamlığı doğal karşılamasıydı. Mesela çocuklar kendi boyunlarına ip bağlayıp öldürülüp yenmeleri için anne ve babalarının önlerine kendi istekleriyle otururlardı. Annelerine ay şeklindeki bıçağı getirirlerdi. Yaşlılar ise geri kalanların kurtuluşu için en iyi çarenin bu olduğuna evlatlarını iknaya çalışırlardı.
Açlık dayanılmaz bir hal alınca kurban öldürülür fakat kafa, kalp ve ciğerine asla dokunulmazdı.
Avrupalı denizciler ve kürk avcıları soğuk denizlere açıldıklarında uzun yolculuklar yaparlardı. Bu seferler esnasında (İskorpit hastalığına da tutulurlar) bir de gemileri buza saplanınca (17. ve 18. yy.) mürettebatları tüm gıdayı buzlar çözülünceye kadar idare edememişlerse önce ölen denizcileri yerler daha sonra zayıfları öldürüp yemeye devam ederlerdi. Yamyamlığı pek çok kere tatbik etmişlerdi.
Haçlı seferleri sırasında da özellikle Franklar ve Almanlar, Müslüman eti yemeyi adet haline getirmişlerdi. O sırada sözde din savaşçılarını örgütleyen kilise yamyamlığı görmezden geliyordu.
Yine bir başka kıtada ise durum farklı değildi. Ekvator ve Bolivya And'larında bulunan Kaçibo Kızılderilileri de yamyamlık yaparlardı. Fakat bunların mantığı diğerlerinden farklıydı. Kaçibolar'a göre ölü etinin mezarda çürümesi, böcekler ve diğer hayvanlar tarafından yenilmesinden ise sevenleri ve dostları tarafından yenilmesi daha doğruydu. Bu kızılderililerde taze ölü yeme adeti vardı. Yine Bora Boralılar yılda bir kere Tahiti'ye saldırırlar ve büyük bir kıyım yaparlardı. İşin ilginç yanı Bora Boralılar Tahiti'li gençlerin etlerinin lezzetini beyazlardan öğrenmişlerdi. Denizci Kaptan Cook Havai'li yerliler tarafından yendiği gibi, illimunati çemberinin göbeğinde yer alan meşhur bir ailenin evladı ise Nakima'lar tarafından yenmişti.
Kimi topluluklarda ise yamyamlık özel törenler ve ritüeller için yapılıyordu. Cadılarda bebek yamyamlığı, Zumnularda cinsel organ yamyamlığı, Vandallarda (Vandal Krallığı değil) göz yamyamlığı mevcuttu.
SÜLEYMAN EYÜP
ÖNEMLİ NOT:
Yukarıda kısaca değişik topluluklarda yamyamlığı anlatmaya çalıştık. Fakat bu yazının devamında gizli ilimlerde büyü ve şeytana tapınmada yamyamlık anlatılacaktır. Toplam 13 bölümden oluşmaktadır. Yazarın isteği üzerine 52 günde bir yazılacaktır. Birinci bölüm 6 Haziran'da yayınlanacaktır.
YENİ DÜNYA BÜYÜCÜLERİNDE YAMYAMLIK
Onlar kafalarına uzun huni şeklinde külahlar takarlardı. Onlar sağ baş parmaklarını çolak ederlerdi. Onlar erkekliklerini ilk rüyadan sonra keserlerdi. Ve baş büyücüye MANÇE derlerdi. Tekerleğin ve atın olmadığı bu dünyada MANÇE'ler yani o büyünün büyük üstadları, şeytanın çocukları yamyamlık yapardı. Onlar en güçlüyü seçerlerdi. Yalnız en güçlüyü seçmekle kalmaz en şanslı olanı da ararlardı. Savaşta biz buna av da diyebiliriz, oklarla yaralanmayanlar en şanslılardı. Savaşları iki Turay (kahin avcı) ve bir Mançe takip ederdi.
Kurbanı tespit ettikten sonra onun yaralanmadan (kanı akmadan) yakalanmasına özen gösterilirdi. Daha sonra bu esir veya esirler Yürüyen Yılanın Tapınağında, Güneşin Mabedindeki törene hazırlanılırdı. Esire (kurban) ilk 9 gün hiç gün ışığı gösterilmezdi. Ve özel karışımlı (si..ad.). içirilirdi. 9. günün bitiminde güneşi görürlerdi. 25. güne kadar seçilen yiyecekler yedirilir ve kimyasal karışımlar içirilirdi. 25. günden sonraki 4 gün sadece sıvı karışımı verilir ve 29. gün eğer gökte güneş varsa tapınağın üstündeki sunakta gölgenin boyu eşit olduğu an ayaklarından (ayakları otlu sıvıya değecek şekilde) katlanarak sırt üstü sunağa yatırılır ve bir hamlede MANÇE kalbini çıkarırdı. O kadar ustaydı ki kalp elinde bile atmaya devam ederdi. Kan sunağa akıtılır kurbanın daha önce içmiş olduğu özel kimyasal sıvı ile karıştırılıp ense köküne yakın iki taraftan alınan et parçaları ile birlikte gırtlak ve dilden parçalar bu sıvının içine konulup, güneş batıncaya kadar bekletilir ve Mançe tarafından yenilirdi. Ve bu işlemi sadece baş rahip yapardı (halifeleri de –turaylar- yapabilirdi).
Bilgelerin öldürülmesi ve yamyamlığı daha farklı olurdu. Kafataslarının içine bilge kurbanın kalbinin sol tarafının parçasıyla ense kökünün parçalarını koyarlardı. Daha sonra beyni ile birlikte ezip lapa haline getirir ve Mançe bunu çorba gibi içerdi. Ve rüzgara, yağmura hükmederdi. Dokunduğunu öldürür, dokunduğunu iyileştirirdi. Büyük blok taşların yerlerini değiştirir, onları üst üste koydururdu. Sesle …………. ları da yapabilirdi. Bu bozguncu ve kan dökücüler kendi kanlarında boğdular. Dikkat edilmesi gereken bir husus da şudur, yamyamlıkla bayramlarda, müsabakalarda ve felaketleri savmak için yapılan insan kurbanları karıştırılmamalıdır. Yukarda bahsettiğim olay sadece Magic güç elde etmek, bu gücü daha da çoğaltmak, cinlerle daha iyi bedelleşmek için yapılan bir törendir. İspanyollar gelmeden çok önce yok oldular (yeni dünyada onlardan çok daha önceki büyücülerin ise başına göktaşı düştü.)
Yine kendilerine tanrıların gücünü cinlerin enerjisini kazanmak isteyen mason üstü bazı gruplarda da yamyamlık mevcuttur. Golden Dawn'da da yamyamlık görülmüştür. Fakat sadece Ipsissimus'ları yani iki kişi bunu denedi. Bu mason üstü tarikat ilk başlarda (Kont Cagliostro gibi) güce ve gizeme sahip olmak için ……. yemeğe ihtiyaç duydular.
SÜLEYMAN EYYÜP
Not: Bir sonraki yazı GoldEn Dawn'da Yamyamlık ve 11. derecenin sırrı.
Not: Yazar yine sohbet esnasında çok ayrıntılı törenden bahsetmiştir. Etik değerlere yakışmayan bu tören şeklini, beyin, ciğer, kalp ve bağırsak okumayı yazarın izniyle yayınlamadık. Bu yazının ikici bölümünde şu an yeryüzünde var olan bir takım gizli ve sapık tarikatların yamyamlık tarzlarını ve yöntemlerini yayınlayacağız, ALLAH yardımcımız olsun.
Ayeti Kerime Meali:
“Şunlar size HARAM kılınmıştır: Boğazlanmayarak ölmüş hayvanın eti, kan, domuz eti, ALLAH'tan başkası adına boğazlananlar, bir de boğulmuş yahut vurulmuş yahut yuvarlanmış yahut süsülmüş yahut canavar yırtmış olup da canı üzerindeyken kesemedikleriniz, dikili adak taşları üzerinde boğazlanan hayvanlar, fal oklarıyla kısmet paylaşmanız…Bütün bunlar birer fısk tır, yoldan çıkıştır. Küfre batmış olanlar bugün dininizden ümitlerini kestiler. Artık onlardan korkmayın, benden korkun. Bugün sizin için dininizi kemale erdirdim, üzerinizdeki nimetimi tamamladım ve sizin için din olarak İslam 'ı/ALLAH'a teslim olmayı seçtim. Şu da var ki, her kim ciddi bir açlıkla yeryüzüne gelir de günaha kaçmak maksadı olmaksızın onlardan yemek zorunda kalırsa, elbette ALLAH Gafur ve Rahim 'dir. (MAİDE - 3)”
Büyük şeytanla temasa geçip ondan güç almak esasında bu delilerin aradığı kadar zor bir şey de değildir.
Ama Okültik, hermetik, putperest ve ekzoterik inanç içinde kaybolan bu insanlar sonunda şeytanları ile buluştular. İşin hiç unutulmaması gereken bir vardıysa son kademeye gelmek için şeytanın kendinden üstün olan topraktan olan birini yok ettirmesi ve onun ruhunu ele geçirmeye kalkışması vardır.
Bu sapık mason üstü tarikat ilk başlarda (Kont cagliostro gibi) güce ve gizeme sahip olmak için mumya yemeye ihtiyaç duydu. Çünkü mumyaların içinde hem ölü hem de bilgelerin karışımları vardı. Bugün için inanması çok güç gelebilir ama Avrupa'da bir dönem özellikle Fransa'da mumyalar kilo ile satılır ve hatta hastalıkları iyi edeceği söylenirdi bugün Mısır'da mumya kalmamasının altındaki neden bu sapık inançtır. ( daha sonra gül haç derneğini faaliyetlerine (annasiperengili woddmanı westcotu materisi aleistercrowly peter cosimoyu dheophrastusbombastusvonhohenhim'i stefan aikel'i ) anlatacağım bir sonraki konu isis tapınağındaki yamyamlık ve 1888 1991 arası yamyamlık .
Plato is probably one of the greatest philosophers of all times, if not the greatest.
Plato was born to an aristocratic family in Athens. His father, Ariston, was believed to have descended from the early kings of Athens. Perictione, his mother, was distantly related to the 6th-century B.C. lawmaker Solon.
When Plato was a child, his father died, and his mother married Pyrilampes, who was an associate of the statesman Pericles.
Plato's original name was Aristocles, but in his school days he received the nickname Platon (meaning "broad" ) because of his broad shoulders.
It was mostly in Pyrilampes' house that Plato was brought up. Aristotle writes that when Plato was a young man he studied under Cratylus who was a student of Heracleitus, famed for his cosmology which is based on fire being the basic material of the universe. It almost certain that Plato became friends with Socrates when he was young, for Plato's mother's brother Charmides was a close friend of Socrates.
The Peloponnesian War was fought between Athens and Sparta between 431 BC and 404 BC.
Plato was in military service from 409 BC to 404 BC but at this time he wanted a political career rather than a military one. At the end of the war he joined the oligarchy of the Thirty Tyrants in Athens set up in 404 BC, one of whose leaders being his mother's brother Charmides, but their violent acts meant that Plato quickly left.
In 403 BC there was a restoration of democracy at Athens and Plato had great hopes that he would be able to enter politics again. However, the excesses of Athenian political life seem to have persuaded him to give up political ambitions.
In particular, the execution of Socrates in 399 BC had a profound effect on him and he decided that he would have nothing further to do with politics in Athens.
Plato left Athens after Socrates had been executed and traveled in Egypt, Sicily and Italy. In Egypt he learned of a water clock and later introduced it into Greece. In Italy he learned of the work of Pythagoras and came to appreciate the value of mathematics. He studied with the disciples of Pythagoras.
Again there was a period of war and again Plato entered military service. It was claimed by later writers on Plato's life that he was decorated for bravery in battle during this period of his life. It is also thought that he began to write his dialogues at this time.
On his return to Athens Plato founded, in about 387 BC, on land which had belonged to Academos, a school of learning which being situated in the grove of Academos was called the Academy.
On his journeys he decided to devote the rest of his life to philosophy.
In 389 B.C. he founded a school in Athens. Because it was on the grounds that had once belonged to a legendary Greek called A cademus, it came to be called the Academy, and this term has been d for schools ever since. The institution often described as the first European university.
The Academy provided a comprehensive curriculum, including such subjects as astronomy, biology, mathematics, political theory, and philosophy.
The main purpose of the Academy was to cultivate thought to lead to a restoration of decent government in the cities of Greece.
Only two further episodes in Plato's life are recorded. He went to Syracuse in 367 BC following the death of Dionysius I who had ruled the city. Dion, the brother-in-law of Dionysius I, persuaded Plato to come to Syracuse to tutor Dionysius II, the new ruler. Plato did not expect the plan to succeed but because both Dion and Archytas of Tarentum believed in the plan then Plato agreed. Their plan was that if Dionysius II was trained in science and philosophy he would be able to prevent Carthage invading Sicily. However, Dionysius II was jealous of Dion who he forced out of Syracuse and the plan, as Plato had expected, fell apart.
Plato returned to Athens, but visited Syracuse again in 361 BC hoping to be able to bring the rivals together. He remained in Syracuse for part of 360 BC but did not achieve a political solution to the rivalry. Dion attacked Syracuse in a coup in 357, gained control, but was murdered in 354.
Like Socrates, Plato was chiefly interested in moral philosophy and despised natural philosophy (that is, science) as an inferior and unworthy sort of knowledge.
To Plato, knowledge had no practical use, it existed for the abstract good of the soul.
At the heart of Plato's philosophy is his theory of Forms, or Ideas. Ultimately, his view of knowledge, his ethical theory, his psychology, his concept of the state, and his perspective on art must be understood in terms of this theory.
THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE
Plato's theory of Forms and his theory of knowledge are so interrelated that they must be discussed together. Influenced by Socrates, Plato was convinced that knowledge is attainable. He was also convinced of two essential characteristics of knowledge.
First, knowledge must be certain and infallible. Second, knowledge must have as its object that which is genuinely real as contrasted with that which is an appearance only. Because that which is fully real must, for Plato, be fixed, permanent, and unchanging, he identified the real with the ideal realm of being as opposed to the physical world of becoming. One consequence of this view was Plato's rejection of empiricism, the claim that knowledge is derived from sense experience. He thought that propositions derived from sense experience have, at most, a degree of probability. They are not certain.
Furthermore, the objects of sense experience are changeable phenomena of the physical world. Hence, objects of sense experience are not proper objects of knowledge.
Plato's own theory of knowledge is found in the Republic, particularly in his discussion of the image of the divided line and the myth of the cave. In the former, Plato distinguishes between two levels of awareness: opinion and knowledge. Claims or assertions about the physical or visible world, including both commonsense observations and the propositions of science, are opinions only. Some of these opinions are well founded; some are not; but none of them counts as genuine knowledge. The higher level of awareness is knowledge, because there reason, rather than sense experience, is involved.
Reason, properly used, results in intellectual insights that are certain, and the objects of these rational insights are the abiding universals, the eternal Forms or substances that constitute the real world.
THE MYTH OF THE CAVE
The myth of the cave describes individuals chained deep within the recesses of a cave. Bound so that vision is restricted, they cannot see one another. The only thing visible is the wall of the cave upon which appear shadows cast by models or statues of animals and objects that are passed before a brightly burning fire.
Breaking free, one of the individuals escapes from the cave into the light of day.
With the aid of the sun, that person sees for the first time the real world and returns to the cave with the message that the only things they have seen heretofore are shadows and appearances and that the real world awaits them if they are willing to struggle free of their bonds.
The shadowy environment of the cave symbolizes for Plato the physical world of appearances. Escape into the sun-filled setting outside the cave symbolizes the transition to the real world, the world of full and perfect being, the world of Forms, which is the proper object of knowledge.
The theory of Forms may best be understood in terms of mathematical entities. A circle, for instance, is defined as a plane figure composed of a series of points, all of which are equidistant from a given point. No one has ever actually seen such a figure, however.
What people have actually seen are drawn figures that are more or less close approximations of the ideal circle. In fact, when mathematicians define a circle, the points referred to are not spatial points at all; they are logical points. They do not occupy space.
Nevertheless, although the Form of a circle has never been seen-indeed, could never be seen-mathematicians and others do in fact know what a circle is. That they can define a circle is evidence that they know what it is.
For Plato, therefore, the Form "circularity" exists, but not in the physical world of space and time.
It exists as a changeless object in the world of Forms or Ideas, which can be known only by reason.
Forms have greater reality than objects in the physical world both because of their perfection and stability and because they are models, resemblance to which gives ordinary physical objects whatever reality they have.
Circularity, squareness, and triangularity are excellent examples, then, of what Plato meant by Forms. An object existing in the physical world may be called a circle or a square or a triangle only to the extent that it resembles - "participates in" is Plato's phrase - the Form "circularity" or "squareness" or "triangularity."
Plato extended his theory beyond the realm of mathematics. Indeed, he was most interested in its application in the field of social ethics. The theory was his way of explaining how the same universal term can refer to so many particular things or events.
The word justice, for example, can be applied to hundreds of particular acts because these acts have something in common, namely, their resemblance to, or participation in, the Form "justice."
An individual is human to the extent that he or she resembles or participates in the Form "humanness." If "humanness" is defined in terms of being a rational animal, then an individual is human to the extent that he or she is rational.
A particular act is courageous or cowardly to the extent that it participates in its Form.
An object is beautiful to the extent that it participates in the Idea, or Form, of beauty.
Everything in the world of space and time is what it is by virtue of its resemblance to, or participation in, its universal Form. The ability to define the universal term is evidence that one has grasped the Form to which that universal refers.
Plato conceived the Forms as arranged hierarchically; the supreme Form is the Form of the Good, which, like the sun in the myth of the cave, illuminates all the other Ideas.
There is a sense in which the Form of the Good represents Plato's movement in the direction of an ultimate principle of explanation. The Good is perfect and desired by all who know it. In the Philebus he wonders, Is it pleasure or knowledge?
He shows that pleasure cannot be the Good; pleasures are often accompanied by false opinions, and great pleasures and pains occur in bad states of body or soul.
Knowledge is not perfect either, because some arts are more exact than others.
The Good can be neither knowledge nor pleasure alone, but a mixture of the best parts of both, which include the sciences and those pleasures that are pure and necessary. The best parts of this mixture are beauty, symmetry, and truth, which are all closer to knowledge than pleasure.
He finally gives the order of value as measure, beauty, mind, science, and pure pleasure.
Plato had an essentially antagonistic view of art and the artist, although he approved of certain religious and moralistic kinds of art.
His approach is related to his theory of Forms. A beautiful flower, for example, is a copy or imitation of the universal Forms "flowerness" and "beauty."
The physical flower is one step removed from reality, that is, the Forms.
A picture of the flower is, therefore, two steps removed from reality.
This also meant that the artist is two steps removed from knowledge, and, indeed, Plato's frequent criticism of the artists is that they lack genuine knowledge of what they are doing.
Artistic creation, Plato observed, seems to be rooted in a kind of inspired madness.
Plato's influence throughout the history of philosophy has been monumental.
When he died, Speusippus became head of the Academy. The school continued in existence until AD 529, when it was closed by the Byzantine emperor Justinian I, who objected to its pagan teachings.
Plato's impact on Jewish thought is apparent in the work of the 1st-century Alexandrian philosopher Philo Judaeus.
Neoplatonism, founded by the 3rd-century philosopher important later development of Platonism.
The theologians Clement of Alexandria, Origen, and St. Augustine were early Christian exponents of a Platonic perspective. Platonic ideas have had a crucial role in the development of Christian theology and also in medieval Islamic thought.
Nature of Forms:
The theory of Forms may best be understood in terms of mathematical entities.
A circle, for instance, is defined as a plane figure composed of a series of points, all of which are equidistant from a given point.
No one has ever actually seen such a figure, however.
What people have actually seen are drawn figures that are more or less close approximations of the ideal circle. In fact, when mathematicians define a circle, the points referred to are not spatial points at all; they are logical points.
They do not occupy space. Nevertheless, although the Form of a circle has never been seen-indeed, could never be seen-mathematicians and others do in fact know what a circle is.
That they can define a circle is evidence that they know what it is. For Plato, therefore, the Form "circularity" exists, but not in the physical world of space and time. It exists as a changeless object in the world of Forms or Ideas, which can be known only by reason. Forms have greater reality than objects in the physical world both because of their perfection and stability and because they are models, resemblance to which gives ordinary physical objects whatever reality they have. Circularity, squareness, and triangularity are excellent examples, then, of what Plato meant by Forms.
An object existing in the physical world may be called a circle or a square or a triangle only to the extent that it resembles ("participates in" is Plato's phrase) the Form "circularity" or "squareness" or "triangularity."
Plato extended his theory beyond the realm of mathematics. Indeed, he was most interested in its application in the field of social ethics.
The theory was his way of explaining how the same universal term can refer to so many particular things or events. The word justice, for example, can be applied to hundreds of particular acts because these acts have something in common, namely, their resemblance to, or participation in, the Form "justice."
An individual is human to the extent that he or she resembles or participates in the Form "humanness." If "humanness" is defined in terms of being a rational animal, then an individual is human to the extent that he or she is rational. A particular act is courageous or cowardly to the extent that it participates in its Form.
An object is beautiful to the extent that it participates in the Idea, or Form, of beauty. Everything in the world of space and time is what it is by virtue of its resemblance to, or participation in, its universal Form. The ability to define the universal term is evidence that one has grasped the Form to which that universal refers.
Plato conceived the Forms as arranged hierarchically; the supreme Form is the Form of the Good, which, like the sun in the myth of the cave, illuminates all the other Ideas. There is a sense in which the Form of the Good represents Plato's movement in the direction of an ultimate principle of explanation. Ultimately, the theory of Forms is intended to explain how one comes to know and also how things have come to be as they are. In philosophical language, Plato's theory of Forms is both an epistemological (theory of knowledge) and an ontological (theory of being) thesis.
MATHEMATICS
Plato was fond of mathematics because of its idealized abstractions and its separation from the merely material.
Nowadays, the purest mathematics manages to be applied, sooner or later, to practical matters of science. In Plato's day this was not so, and the mathematician could well consider himself as dealing only with the loftiest form of pure thought and as having nothing to do with the gross and imperfect everyday world.
And so above the doorway to the Academy was written, "Let no one ignorant of mathematics enter here."
Plato did, however, believe that mathematics in its ideal form could still be applied to the heavens.
The heavenly bodies, he believed, exhibited perfect geometric form. This he expresses most clearly in a dialogue called Timaeus in which he presents his scheme of the universe.
He describes the five (and only five) possible regular solids -- that is, those with equivalent faces and with all lines and angles, formed by those faces, equal.
These are the four-sided tetrahedron, the six-sided hexahed ron (or cube), the eight-sided octahedron, the twelve-sided dodecahedron, and the twenty-sided icosahedron.
Four of the five regular solids, according to Plato, represented the four elements, while the dodecahedron represented the universe as a whole.
These solids were first discovered by the Pythagoreans, but the fame of this dialogue has led to their being called the Platonic solids ever since.
Plato decided also that since the heavens were perfect, the various heavenly bodies would have to move in exact circles (the perfect curve) along with the crystalline spheres (the perfect solid) that held them in place.
The spheres were another Pythagorean notion, and the Pythagorean preoccupation with sound also shows itself in Philolaus belief that the spheres of the various planets made celestial music as they turned -- a belief that persisted even in the time of Kepler two thou sand years later.
We still use the phrase "the music of the spheres" to epitomize heavenly sounds or the stark beauty of outer space.
This insistence that the heavens must reflect the perfection of abstract mathematics in its simplest form held absolute sway over astronomical thought until Kepler's time, even though compromises with reality had to be made constantly, beginning shortly after Plato's death with Eudoxus and Callippus.
On Science
Plato's principal work touching on scientific questions, the Timaeus, bluntly states that this world "in very truth [is] a living creature with soul and reason."
To this viewpoint Plato accords an unconditional primacy even in matters of detail.
Thus when he discusses the working of the human eye, he deplores the fact that "the great mass of mankind regard [the geometrical and mechanical aspects of the question] as the sole causes of all things."
Against this he opposes the classification of causes into two groups: the accessory or mechanical causes that are "incapable of any plan or intelligence for any purpose," and those that "work with intelligence to produce what is good and desirable." The reaffirmation of the Socratic or organismic approach in science could hardly be more unequivocal.
Such an emphasis on the concept of organism as the basic framework in which the cosmos is to be explained derived only in part from factors like the emergence in the fifth century of the Hippocratic medical theory and practice.
The principal factor was a deeper and more universal one. It was rooted in the Greek nature as such and was given unchallenged prominence when cultural developments forced the Greek mind to reflect on the consequences of a mechanistic explanation of the inanimate and animate world including man both as an individual and as a member of society.
The "Greekness" of the organismic approach can be seen in the fact that they first applied the term cosmos to a patently living thing - a well-ordered society - and only afterward to the orderliness of the physical world.
Rooted deeply in their personal, cultural inclinations, this organismic approach to reality, once it became the conscious possession of the Greeks, had never been seriously questioned or abandoned by them. Single views of the Ionians and atomists continued, of course, to play seminal roles in Greek science.
What is more, once the cultural crisis evidenced by the activity of the Sophists was over, even the poets began to take more kindly to the physikoi, who for a while were the principal targets of plays concerned with the source of various cultural evils.
At any rate, the Ionians ceased to be called in literary circles, as Plato remarks, "she dogs uttering vain howlings and talking other nonsense of the same sort."
This was, however, merely a concession that could easily be meted out by those who won the cultural battle.
For as Plato could confidently state in the same context, the authority of the mechanical views had been checked, or to paraphrase his words, the case was reversed in favor of the organismic viewpoint.
PLATO'S REPUBLIC
The Republic, Plato's major political work, is concerned with the question of justice and therefore with the questions "what is a just state" and "who is a just individual?"
The ideal state, according to Plato, is composed of three classes. The economic structure of the state is maintained by the merchant class. Security needs are met by the military class, and political leadership is provided by the philosopher-kings. A particular person's class is determined by an educational process that begins at birth and proceeds until that person has reached the maximum level of education compatible with interest and ability. Those who complete the entire educational process become philosopher-kings. They are the ones whose minds have been so developed that they are able to grasp the Forms and, therefore, to make the wisest decisions. Indeed, Plato's ideal educational system is primarily structured so as to produce philosopher-kings.
Plato associates the traditional Greek virtues with the class structure of the ideal state. Temperance is the unique virtue of the artisan class; courage is the virtue peculiar to the military class; and wisdom characterizes the rulers. Justice, the fourth virtue, characterizes society as a whole. The just state is one in which each class performs its own function well without infringing on the activities of the other classes.
Plato divides the human soul into three parts: the rational part, the will, and the appetites. The just person is the one in whom the rational element, supported by the will, controls the appetites. An obvious analogy exists here with the threefold class structure of the state, in which the enlightened philosopher-kings, supported by the soldiers, govern the rest of society.
ETHICS
Plato's ethical theory rests on the assumption that virtue is knowledge and can be taught, which has to be understood in terms of his theory of Forms. As indicated previously, the ultimate Form for Plato is the Form of the Good, and knowledge of this Form is the source of guidance in moral decision making. Plato also argued that to know the good is to do the good. The corollary of this is that anyone who behaves immorally does so out of ignorance. This conclusion follows from Plato's conviction that the moral person is the truly happy person, and because individuals always desire their own happiness, they always desire to do that which is moral.
ART
Plato had an essentially antagonistic view of art and the artist, although he approved of certain religious and moralistic kinds of art. Again, his approach is related to his theory of Forms. A beautiful flower, for example, is a copy or imitation of the universal Forms "flowerness" and "beauty." The physical flower is one step removed from reality, that is, the Forms. A picture of the flower is, therefore, two steps removed from reality. This also meant that the artist is two steps removed from knowledge, and, indeed, Plato's frequent criticism of the artists is that they lack genuine knowledge of what they are doing. Artistic creation, Plato observed, seems to be rooted in a kind of inspired madness.
The concluding years of Plato's life were spent lecturing at the Academy and writing.
At age 60 - the arrival of Aristotle - age 18 - as a student at Plato's Academy, where he will stay until Plato's death in 347.
Plato's influence extended long past his own life and, indeed, never died. The Academy remained a going institution until A.D. 529, when the Eastern Roman Emperor, Justinian, ordered it closed. It was the last stronghold of paganism in a Christian world.
Plato's influence throughout the history of philosophy has been monumental. When he died, Speusippus became head of the Academy.
Aristotle is by now about 38 and leaves the Academy perhaps because he was not chosen - or perhaps he had another destiny.
The school continued in existence until AD529, when it was closed by the Byzantine emperor Justinian I, who objected to its pagan teachings. Plato's impact on Jewish thought is apparent in the work of the 1st-century Alexandrian philosopher Philo Judaeus.
Neoplatonism, founded by the 3rd-century philosopher Plotinus, was an important later development of Platonism. The theologians Clement of Alexandria, Origen, and St. Augustine were early Christian exponents of a Platonic perspective. Platonic ideas have had a crucial role in the development of Christian theology and also in medieval Islamic thought (see Islam).
During the Renaissance, the primary focus of Platonic influence was the Florentine Academy, founded in the 15th century near Florence. Under the leadership of Marsilio Ficino, members of the Academy studied Plato in the original Greek. In England, Platonism was revived in the 17th century by Ralph Cudworth and others who became known as the Cambridge Platonists.
Plato's influence has been extended into the 20th century by such thinkers as Alfred North Whitehead, who once paid him tribute by describing the history of philosophy as simply "a series of footnotes to Plato."
Plato died at about the age of 80 in Athens in 347 BC.
Reference: Encyclopedia Britannica
Olympiodorus was an historical writer (5th century AD), born at Thebes in Egypt, who was sent on a mission to the Huns on the Black Sea by emperor Honorius in 412, and later lived at the court of Theodosius. The record of his diplomatic mission survives in a single epitome:
Donatus and the Huns, and the skillfulness of their kings in shooting with the bow. The author relates that he himself was sent on a mission to them and Donatus, and gives a tragic account of his wanderings and perils by the sea. How Donatus, being deceived by an oath, was unlawfully put to death. How Charaton, the first of the kings, being incensed by the murder, was appeased by presents from the emperor. from Photius' Bibliotheca, tr. J. H. Freese
He was the author of a history in 22 books of the Western Empire from 407 to 425. The original is lost, but an abstract is given by Photius, according to whom he was an alchemist. A manuscript treatise on alchemy, reputed to be by him, is preserved in the National Library in Paris, and was printed with a translation by Berthelot in his Collection des alchimistes grecs (18871888).
Albertus Magnus - 1193-1280 - was also known as Saint Albert the Great and Albert of Cologne, was a Dominican friar who became famous for his comprehensive knowledge and advocacy for the peaceful coexistence of science and religion. He is considered to be the greatest German philosopher and theologian of the Middle Ages. He was the first medieval scholar to apply Aristotle's philosophy to Christian thought at the time. Catholicism honors him as a Doctor of the Church, one of only 33 men and women with that honor.
In the Dominican Order he rose to the position of Bishop of Ratisbourg. Later he was canonized as Saint Albert the Great. He was both student and teacher of alchemy and chemistry, and an alleged magician. He firmly believed in the benefits of botany claiming various plants, rocks, and amethysts improved clairvoyance.
Like Aristotle, he thought nature and men's lives were controlled by the stars and plants. Notably he taught Saint Thomas Acquinas and made several significant contributions to chemistry. Legend has it he turned based metal into gold, but there is no evidence of this in his notes on alchemy. Legend also has it that when a dinner guest of William II, the Count of Holland, on New Year's Day, 1242, Magnus suggested the guests dine outdoors. Wanting a piece of land for a monastery he graciously changed the freezing day into a warm spring afternoon with blooming flowers and singing birds.
LIFE
He was born of the noble family of Bollstadt in Lauingen, Bavaria, Germany on the Danube, sometime between 1193 and 1206. The term "magnus" is not descriptive; it is the Latin equivalent of his family name, de Groot.
Albertus was educated principally at Padua, where he received instruction in Aristotle's writings.
After an alleged encounter with the Blessed Virgin Mary, he entered holy orders.
In 1223 he became a member of the Dominican Order, and studied theology under its rules at Bologna and elsewhere.
Selected to fill the position of lecturer at Cologne, where the order had a house, he taught for several years there, at Regensburg, Freiburg, Strasbourg and Hildesheim.
In 1245 he went to Paris, received his doctorate and taught for some time, in accordance with the regulations, with great success.
In 1254 he was made provincial of the Dominican Order, and fulfilled the arduous duties of the office with great care and efficiency. During the time he held this office he publicly defended the Dominicans against the attacks by the secular and regular faculty of the University of Paris, commented on St John, and answered the errors of the Arabian philosopher, Averroes.
In 1260 Pope Alexander IV made him bishop of Regensburg, which office he resigned after three years. The remainder of his life he spent partly in preaching throughout Bavaria and the adjoining districts, partly in retirement in the various houses of his order.
In 1270 he preached the eighth Crusade in Austria. Among the last of his labors was the defence of the orthodoxy of his former pupil, Thomas Aquinas, whose death in 1274 grieved Albertus.
After suffering collapse of health in 1278, he died on November 15, 1280, in Cologne, Germany. His tomb is in the crypt of the Dominican church of St. Andreas in Cologne.
Albertus is frequently mentioned by Dante, who made his doctrine of free will the basis of his ethical system. In his Divine Comedy, Dante places Albertus with his pupil Thomas Aquinas among the great lovers of wisdom (Spiriti Sapienti) in the Heaven of the Sun.Albertus was beatified in 1622.
He was canonized and also officially named a Doctor of the Church in 1931 by Pope Pius XI. His feast day is celebrated on November 15th.
MUSIC
Albertus is known for his enlightening commentary on musical practice of the time. Most of his musical observations are given in his commentary on Aristotle's Poetics.
Among other things, he rejects the idea of "music of the spheres" as ridiculous: movement of astronomical bodies, he supposes, is incapable of generating sound.
He also wrote extensively on proportions in music, and on the three different subjective levels on which plainchant could work on the human soul: purging of the impure; illumination leading to contemplation; and nourishing perfection through contemplation.
Of particular interest to 20th century music theorists is the attention he paid to silence as an integral part of music.
WRITINGS
Albertus' writings collected in 1899 went to 38 volumes, displaying his prolific habits and literally encyclopedic knowledge of topics including, but not limited to, logic, theology, botany, geography, astronomy, mineralogy, chemistry, zoölogy, physiology, and phrenology, all of it the result of logic and observation. He was the most widely read author of his time.
The whole of Aristotle's works, presented in the Latin translations and notes of the Arabian commentators, were by him digested, interpreted and systematized in accordance with church doctrine. He came to be so associated with Aristotle that he was referred to as "Aristotle's ape".
Albert's activity, however, was more philosophical than theological. The philosophical works, occupying the first six and the last of the twenty-one volumes, are generally divided according to the Aristotelian scheme of the sciences, and consist of interpretations and condensations of Aristotle's relative works, with supplementary discussions depending on the questions then agitated, and occasionally divergences from the opinions of the master.
His principal theological works are a commentary in three volumes on the Books of the Sentences of Peter Lombard (Magister Sententiarum), and the Summa Theologiae in two volumes. This last is in substance a repetition of the first in a more didactic form.
INFLUENCE
The influence exerted by Albert on the scholars of his own day and on those of subsequent ages was naturally great.
His fame is due in part to the fact that he was the forerunner, the guide and master of St. Thomas Aquinas, but he was great in his own name, his claim to distinction being recognized by his contemporaries and by posterity.
It is remarkable that this friar of the Middle Ages, in the midst of his many duties as a religious, as provincial of his order, as bishop and papal legate, as preacher of a crusade, and while making many laborious journeys from Cologne to Paris and Rome, and frequent excursions into different parts of Germany, should have been able to compose a veritable encyclopedia, containing scientific treatises on almost every subject, and displaying an insight into nature and a knowledge of theology which surprised his contemporaries and still excites the admiration of learned men in our own times.
He was, in truth, a Doctor Universalis. Of him it in justly be said: Nil tetigit quod non ornavit; and there is no exaggeration in the praises of the modern critic who wrote: "Whether we consider him as a theologian or as a philosopher, Albert was undoubtedly one of the most extraordinary men of his age; I might say, one of the most wonderful men of genius who appeared in past times" (Jourdain, Recherches Critiques).
Philosophy, in the days of Albert, was a general science embracing everything that could be known by the natural powers of the mind; physics, mathematics, and metaphysics. In his writings we do not, it is true, find the distinction between the sciences and philosophy which recent usage makes. It will, however, be convenient to consider his skill in the experimental sciences, his influence on scholastic philosophy, his theology.
SCIENCES
Albertus' knowledge of physical science was considerable and for the age accurate. His industry in every department was great, and though we find in his system many of those gaps which are characteristic of scholastic philosophy, yet the protracted study of Aristotle gave him a great power of systematic thought and exposition, and the results of that study, as left to us, by no means warrant the contemptuous title sometimes given him of the "Ape of Aristotle."
They rather lead us to appreciate the motives which caused his contemporaries to bestow on him the honorable surnames "The Great" and Doctor Universalis.
It must, however, be admitted that much of his knowledge was ill digested; it even appears that he regarded Plato and Speusippus as Stoics.
Albertus was both a student and a teacher of alchemy and chemistry.
He isolated arsenic in 1250, the first element to be isolated since antiquity and the first with a known discoverer.
He was alleged to be a magician, since he was repeatedly charged by some of his unfriendly contemporaries with communing with the devil, practicing the craft of magic, and with the making of a demonic automata able to speak.
He was also one of the alchemists reputed to have succeeded in discovering the Philosopher's Stone.
PHILOSOPHY
More important than Albert's development of the physical sciences was his influence on the study of philosophy and theology. He, more than any one of the great scholastics preceding St. Thomas, gave to Christian philosophy and theology the form and method which, substantially, they retain to this day.
In this respect he was the forerunner and master of St. Thomas, who excelled him, however, in many qualities required in a perfect Christian Doctor. In marking out the course which other followed, Albert shared the glory of being a pioneer with Alexander of Hales (d. 1245), whose "Summa Theologiae" was the first written after all the works of Aristotle had become generally known at Paris.
Their application of Aristotelean methods and principles to the study of revealed doctrine gave to the world the scholastic system which embodies the reconciliation of reason and Orthodox faith.
After the unorthodox Averroes, Albert was the chief commentator on the works of, Aristotle, whose writings he studied most assiduously, and whose principles he adopted, in order to systematize theology, by which was meant a scientific exposition and defence of Christian doctrine.
The choice of Aristotle as a master excited strong opposition. Jewish and Arabic commentaries on the works of the Stagirite had given rise to so many errors in the eleventh, twelfth and thirteenth centuries that for several years (1210-25) the study of Aristotle's Physics and Metaphysics was forbidden at Paris.
Albert, however, knew that Averroes, Abelard, Amalric, and others had drawn false doctrines from the writings of the Philosopher; he knew, moreover, that it would have been impossible to stem the tide of enthusiasm in favour of philosophical studies; and so he resolved to purify the works of Aristotle from Rationalism, Averroism, Pantheism, and other errors, and thus compel pagan philosophy to do service in the cause of revealed truth. In this he followed the canon laid down by St. Augustine (II De Doct. Christ., xl), who declared that truths found in the writings of pagan philosophers were to be adopted by the defenders of the true faith, while their erroneous opinions were to be abandoned, or explained in a Christian sense. All inferior (natural) sciences should be the servants (ancillae) of Theology, which is the superior and the mistress
Against the rationalism of Abelard and his followers Albert pointed out the distinction between truths naturally knowable and mysteries (e.g. the Trinity and the Incarnation) which cannot known without revelation
We have seen that he wrote two treatises against Averroism, which destroyed individual immortality and individual responsibility, by teaching that there is but one rational soul for all men.
Pantheism was refuted along with Averroism when the true doctrine on Universals, the system known as moderate Realism, was accepted by the scholastic philosophers.
This doctrine Albert based upon the Distinction of the universal ante rem (an idea or archetype in the mind of God), in re (existing or capable of existing in many individuals), and post rem (as a concept abstracted by the mind, and compared with the individuals of which it can be predicated).
"Universale duobus constituitur, natura, scilicet cui accidit universalitas, et respectu ad multa. qui complet illam in natura universalis" (Met., lib. V, tr. vi, cc. v, vi). A.T. Drane (Mother Raphael, O.S.D.) gives a remarkable explanation of these doctrines (op. cit. 344-429). Though follower of Aristotle, Albert did not neglect Plato.
"Scias quod non perficitur homo in philosophia, nisi scientia duarum philosophiarum, Aristotelis et Platonis (Met., lib. I, tr. v, c. xv). It is erroneous to say that he was merely the "Ape" (simius) of Aristotle. In the knowledge of Divine things faith precedes the understanding of Divine truth, authority precedes reason (I Sent., dist. II, a. 10); but in matters that can be naturally known a philosopher should not hold an opinion which he is not prepared to defend by reason ibid., XII; Periherm., 1, I, tr. l, c. i).
Logic, according to Albert, was a preparation for philosophy teaching how we should use reason in order to pass from the known to the unknown: "Docens qualiter et per quae devenitur per notum ad ignoti notitiam" (De praedicabilibus, tr. I, c. iv).
Philosophy is either contemplative or practical. Contemplative philosophy embraces physics, mathematics, and metaphysics; practical (moral) plilosophy is monastic (for the individual), domestic (for the family), or political (for the state, or society).
Excluding physics, now a special study, authors in our times still retain the old scholastic division of philosophy into logic, metaphysics (general and special), and ethics.
ALBERT'S THEOLOGY
In theology Albert occupies a place between Peter Lombard, the Master of the Sentences, and St. Thomas Aquinas.
In systematic order, in accuracy and clearness he surpasses the former, but is inferior to his own illustrious disciple.
His "Summa Theologiae" marks an advance beyond the custom of his time in the scientific order observed, in the elimination of useless questions, in the limitation of arguments and objections; there still remain, however, many of the impedimenta, hindrances, or stumbling blocks, which St. Thomas considered serious enough to call for a new manual of theology for the use of beginners - ad eruditionem incipientium, as the Angelic Doctor modestly remarks in the prologue of his immortal "Summa".
The mind of the Doctor Universalis was so filled with the knowledge of many things that he could not always adapt his expositions of the truth to the capacity of novices in the science of theology.
He trained and directed a pupil who gave the world a concise, clear, and perfect scientific exposition and defence of Christian Doctrine; under God, therefore, we owe to Albertus Magnus the "Summa Theologica" of St. Thomas.
He died at Cologne, November 15, 1280.
- New Advent Encyclopedia
Roger Bacon
Roger Bacon (c. 1214 1294), also known as Doctor Mirabilis (Latin: "astounding teacher"), was one of the most famous Franciscan friars of his time. He was an English philosopher who placed considerable emphasis on empiricism, and has been presented as one of the earliest advocat
es of the modern scientific method in the West; though later studies have emphasized his reliance on occult and alchemical traditions. He was intimately acquainted with the philosophical and scientific insights of the Arab world, one of the most advanced civilizations at the time.
Early life
Bacon is thought to have been born near Ilchester in Somerset, though he has also been claimed by Bisley in Gloucestershire. His date of birth is equally uncertain. The only source is his statement in the Opus Tertium, written in 1267, that forty years have passed since I first learned the alphabet. The 1214 birth date assumes he was not being literal, and meant 40 years had passed since he matriculated at Oxford at the age of 13. If he had been literal, his birth date was more likely around 1220.
Bacon's family appears to have been well-off, but, during the stormy reign of Henry III of England, their property was despoiled and several members of the family were driven into exile.
Roger Bacon studied and later became a Master at Oxford, lecturing on Aristotle. There is no evidence he was ever awarded a doctorate - the title Doctor Mirabilis was posthumous and figurative. He crossed over to France in 1241 to teach at the university of Paris, then the center of intellectual life in Europe, where the teaching of Aristotle, till that time forbidden because Aristotle was only available via Islamic commentators, had recently been resumed. As an Oxford Master, Bacon was a natural choice for the post. He returned to Oxford in 1247 and studied intensively for many years, forgoing much of social and academic life, ordering expensive books (which had to be hand-copied at the time) and instruments. He later became a Franciscan friar. He probably took orders in 1253, after 10 years of study which had left him physically and mentally exhausted.
The two great orders, Franciscans and Dominicans, were not long-established, and had begun to take the lead in theological discussion. Alexander of Hales led the Franciscans, while the rival order rejoiced in Albertus Magnus and Thomas Aquinas. Bacon's abilities were soon recognised, and he enjoyed the friendship of such eminent men as Adam de Marisco and Robert Grosseteste, bishop of Lincoln. In the course of his teaching and research, he performed and described various experiments.
Life and Works
The scientific training Bacon had received showed him the defects in existing academic debate. Aristotle was known only through poor translations, as none of the professors would learn Greek. The same was true of Scripture. Physical science was not carried out by experiment in the Aristotelian way, but by arguments based on tradition.
Bacon withdrew from the scholastic routine and devoted himself to languages and experimental research. The only teacher whom he respected was a certain Petrus de Maharncuria Picardus, or "of Picardie", probably identical with a certain mathematician, Petrus Peregrinus of Picardie, who is perhaps the author of a manuscript treatise, De Magnete, contained in the Bibliotheque Imperiale at Paris. The contrast between the obscurity of such a man and the fame enjoyed by the fluent young doctors roused Bacon's indignation.
In the Opus Minus and Opus Tertium he pours forth a violent tirade against Alexander of Hales, and another professor, who, he says, acquired his learning by teaching others, and adopted a dogmatic tone, which caused him to be received at Paris with applause as the equal of Aristotle, Avicenna, or Averroes. Bacon was always an outspoken man who stated what he believed to be true and attacked those with whom he disagreed, which repeatedly caused him great trouble.
In 1256 a new head of the scientific branch of the Franciscan order in England was appointed: Richard of Cornwall, with whom Bacon had strongly disagreed in the past. Before long, Bacon was transferred to a monastery in France, where for about 10 years he could communicate with his intellectual peers only in writing.
Bacon wrote to the Cardinal Guy le Gros de Foulques, who became interested in his ideas and asked him to produce a comprehensive treatise. Bacon, being constrained by a rule of the Franciscan order against publishing works out of the order without special permission, initially hesitated.
The cardinal became Pope Clement IV and urged Bacon to ignore the prohibition and write the book in secret. Bacon complied and sent his work, the Opus Majus, a treatise on the sciences (grammar, logic, mathematics, physics, and philosophy), to the pope in 1267. It was followed in the same year by the Opus Minus (also known as Opus Secundum), a summary of the main thoughts from the first work.
In 1268, he sent a third work, the Opus Tertium to the pope, who died the same year, apparently before even seeing the Opus Majus although it is known that the work reached Rome.
Some claim that Bacon fell out of favor, and was later imprisoned by the Franciscan order in 1278 in Ancona as his dissemination of Arab alchemy, and his protests against the ignorance and immorality of the clergy, roused accusations of witchcraft.
He supposedly stayed imprisoned for over ten years, until intercession of English noblemen secured his release. About this episode, the historian of science David C. Lindberg, quoted by James Hannam, says that "his imprisonment, if it occurred at all probably resulted with his sympathies for the radical 'poverty' wing of the Franciscans (a wholly theological matter) rather than from any scientific novelties which he may have proposed."
Bacon died without important followers, was quickly forgotten, and remained so for a long time.
In his writings, Bacon calls for a reform of theological study. Less emphasis should be placed on minor philosophical distinctions as in scholasticism, but instead the Bible itself should return to the center of attention and theologians should thoroughly study the languages in which their original sources were composed. He was fluent in several languages and lamented the corruption of the holy texts and the works of the Greek philosophers by numerous mistranslations and misinterpretations. Furthermore, he urged all theologians to study all sciences closely, and to add them to the normal university curriculum.
He possessed one of the most commanding intellects of his age, or perhaps of any, and, notwithstanding all the disadvantages and discouragements to which he was subjected, made many discoveries, and came near to many others. He rejected the blind following of prior authorities, both in theological and scientific study.
His Opus Majus contains treatments of mathematics and optics, alchemy and the manufacture of gunpowder, the positions and sizes of the celestial bodies, and anticipates later inventions such as microscopes, telescopes, spectacles, flying machines and steam ships.
Bacon studied astrology and believed that the celestial bodies had an influence on the fate and mind of humans. He also wrote a criticism of the Julian calendar which was then still in use. He first recognized the visible spectrum in a glass of water, centuries before Sir Isaac Newton discovered that prisms could disassemble and reassemble white light.
Roger Bacon is considered by some to be the author of the Voynich Manuscript, because of his studies in the fields of alchemy, astrology, and languages.
Bacon is also the ascribed author of the alchemical manual Speculum Alchemiae, which was translated into English as The Mirror of Alchemy in 1597.
He was an enthusiastic proponent and practitioner of the experimental method of acquiring knowledge about the world. He planned to publish a comprehensive encyclopedia, but only fragments ever appeared.
Nicholas Flamel
The Book of Abraham the Jew
Wisdom has various means for making its way into the heart of man. Sometimes a prophet comes forward and speaks. Or a sect of mystics receives the teaching of a philosophy, like rain on a summer evening, gathers it in and spreads it abroad with love. Or it may happen that a charlatan, performing tricks to astonish men, may produce, perhaps without knowing it himself, a ray of real light with his dice and magic mirrors. In the fourteenth century, the pure truth of the masters was transmitted by a book.
This book fell into the hands of precisely the man who was destined to receive it; and he, with the help of the text and the hieroglyphic diagrams that taught the transmutation of metals into gold, accomplished the transmutation of his soul, which is a far rarer and more wonderful operation.
Thanks to the amazing book of Abraham the Jew all the Hermetists of the following centuries had the opportunity of admiring an example of a perfect life, that of Nicolas Flamel, the man who received the book. After his death or disappearance many students and alchemists who had devoted their lives to the search for the Philosopher's Stone despaired because they had not in their possession the wonderful book that contained the secret of gold and of eternal life. But their despair was unnecessary. The secret had become alive. The magic formula had become incarnate in the actions of a man. No ingot of virgin gold melted in the crucibles could, in color or purity, attain the beauty of the wise bookseller's pious life.
There is nothing legendary about the life of Nicolas Flamel. The Bibliotheque Nationale in Paris contains works copied in his own hand and original works written by him. All the official documents relating to his life have been found: his marriage contract, his deeds of gift, his will. His history rests solidly on those substantial material proofs for which men clamor if they are to believe in obvious things. To this indisputably authentic history, legend has added a few flowers. But in every spot where the flowers of legend grow, underneath there is the solid earth of truth.
Whether Nicolas Flamel was born at Pontoise or somewhere else, a question that historians have argued and investigated with extreme attention, seems to me to be entirely without importance. It is enough to know that towards the middle of the fourteenth century, Flamel was carrying on the trade of a bookseller and had a stall backing on to the columns of Saint-Jacques la Boucherie in Paris. It was not a big stall, for it measured only two feet by two and a half. However, it grew. He bought a house in the old rue de Marivaux and used the ground floor for his business. Copyists and illuminators did their work there. He himself gave a few writing lessons and taught nobles who could only sign their names with a cross. One of the copyists or illuminators acted also as a servant to him.
Nicolas Flamel married Pernelle, a good-looking, intelligent widow, slightly older than himself and the possessor of a little property. Every man meets once in his life the woman with whom he could live in peace and harmony. For Nicolas Flamel, Pernelle was that woman. Over and above her natural qualities, she had another which is still rarer. She was a woman who was capable of keeping a secret all her life without revealing it to anybody in confidence. But the story of Nicolas Flamel is the story of a book for the most part. The secret made its appearance with the book, and neither the death of its possessors nor the lapse of centuries led to the complete discovery of the secret.
Nicolas Flamel had acquired some knowledge of the Hermetic art. The ancient alchemy of the Egyptians and the Greeks that flourished among the Arabs had, thanks to them, penetrated to Christian countries. Nicolas Flamel did not, of course, regard alchemy as a mere vulgar search for the means of making gold. For every exalted mind the finding of the Philosopher's Stone was the finding of the essential secret of Nature, the secret of her unity and her laws, the possession of perfect wisdom. Flamel dreamed of sharing in this wisdom. His ideal was the highest that man could attain. And he knew that it could be realized through a book, for the secret of the Philosopher's Stone had already been found and transcribed in symbolic form. Somewhere it existed. It was in the hands of unknown sages who lived somewhere unknown. But how difficult it was for a small Paris bookseller to get into touch with those sages.
Nothing, really, has changed since the fourteenth century. In our day also many men strive desperately towards an ideal, the path which they know but cannot climb; and they hope to win the magic formula (which will make them new beings) from some miraculous visit or from a book written expressly for them. But for most, the visitor does not come and the book is not written.
Yet for Nicolas Flamel the book was written. Perhaps because a bookseller is better situated than other people to receive a unique book; perhaps because the strength of his desire organized events without his knowledge, so that the book came when it was time. So strong was his desire, that the coming of the book was preceded by a dream, which shows that this wise and well-balanced bookseller had a tendency to mysticism.
Nicolas Flamel dreamed one night that an angel stood before him. The angel, who was radiant and winged like all angels, held a book in his hands and uttered these words, which were to remain in the memory of the hearer: "Look well at this book, Nicholas. At first you will understand nothing in it neither you nor any other man. But one day you will see in it that which no other man will be able to see." Flamel stretched out his hand to receive the present from the angel, and the whole scene disappeared in the golden light of dreams. Sometime after that the dream was partly realized.
One day, when Nicolas Flamel was alone in his shop, an unknown man in need of money appeared with a manuscript to sell. Flamel was no doubt tempted to receive him with disdainful arrogance, as do the booksellers of our day when some poor student offers to sell them part of his library. But the moment he saw the book he recognized it as the book that the angel had held out to him, and he paid two florins for it without bargaining.
The book appeared to him indeed resplendent and instinct with divine virtue. It had a very old binding of worked copper, on which were engraved curious diagrams and certain characters, some of which were Greek and others in a language he could not decipher.
The leaves of the book were not made of parchment, like those he was accustomed to copy and bind. They were made of the bark of young trees and were covered with very clear writing done with an iron point. These leaves were divided into groups of seven and consisted of three parts separated by a page without writing, but containing a diagram that was quite unintelligible to Flamel.
On the first page were written words to the effect that the author of the manuscript was Abraham the Jew - prince, priest, Levite, astrologer, and philosopher. Then followed great curses and threats against anyone who set eyes on it unless he was either a priest or a scribe. T
he mysterious word Maranatha, which was many times repeated on every page, intensified the awe-inspiring character of the text and diagrams. But most impressive of all was the patined gold of the edges of the book, and the atmosphere of hallowed antiquity that there was about it.
Nicolas Flamel considered that being a scribe he might read the book without fear. He felt that the secret of life and of death, the secret of the unity of Nature, the secret of the duty of the wise man, had been concealed behind the symbol of the diagram and formula in the text by an initiate long since dead. He was aware that it is a rigid law for initiates that they must not reveal their knowledge, because if it is good and fruitful for the intelligent, it is bad for ordinary men. As Jesus has clearly expressed it, pearls must not be given as food to swine. Was he qualified to read this book?
Nicolas Flamel considered that being a scribe he might read the book without fear. He felt that the secret of life and of death, the secret of the unity of Nature, the secret of the duty of the wise man, had been concealed behind the symbol of the diagram and formula in the text by an initiate long since dead. He was aware that it is a rigid law for initiates that they must not reveal their knowledge, because if it is good and fruitful for the intelligent, it is bad for ordinary men. As Jesus has clearly expressed it, pearls must not be given as food to swine.
He had the pearl in his hands. It was for him to rise in the scale of man in order to be worthy to understand its purity. He must have had in his heart a hymn of thanksgiving to Abraham the Jew, whose name was unknown to him, but who had thought and labored in past centuries and whose wisdom he was now inheriting.
He must have pictured him a bald old man with a hooked nose, wearing the wretched robe of his race and wilting in some dark ghetto, in order that the light of his thought might not be lost. And he must have vowed to solve the riddle, to rekindle the light, to be patient and faithful, like the Jew who had died in the flesh but lived eternally in his manuscript.
Nicolas Flamel had studied the art of transmutation. He was in touch with all the learned men of his day. Manuscripts dealing with alchemy have been found, notably that of Almasatus, which were part of his personal library.
He had knowledge of the symbols of which the alchemists made habitual use. But those that he saw in the book of Abraham the Jew remained dumb for him. In vain, he copied some of the mysterious pages and set them out in his shop, in the hope that some visitor conversant with the Kabbalah would help him to solve the problem. He met with nothing but the laughter of skeptics and the ignorance of pseudo-scholars just as he would today if he showed the book of Abraham the Jew either to pretentious occultists or to the scholars at the Academie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres.
Nicholas Flamel's Journey For twenty-one years, he pondered the hidden meaning of the book. That is really not that long. He is favored among men for whom twenty-one years are enough to enable him to find the key of life.
At age twenty-one Nicolas Flamel had developed in himself sufficient wisdom and strength to hold out against the storm of light involved by the coming of truth to the heart of man.
Only then did events group themselves harmoniously according to his will and allow him to realize his desire. For everything good and great that happens to a man is the result of the co-ordination of his own voluntary effort and a malleable fate.
No one in Paris could help Nicolas Flamel understand the book. Now, this book had been written by a Jew, and part of its text was in ancient Hebrew. The Jews had recently been driven out of France by persecution. Nicolas Flamel knew that many of these Jews had migrated to Spain.
In towns such as Malaga and Granada, which were still under the more enlightened dominion of the Arabs, there lived prosperous communities of Jews and flourishing synagogues, in which scholars and doctors were bred. Many Jews from the Christian towns of Spain took advantage of the tolerance extended by the Moorish kings and went to Granada to learn. There they copied Plato and Aristotle forbidden texts in the rest of Europe and returned home to spread abroad the knowledge of the ancients and of the Arab masters.
Nicolas Flamel thought that in Spain he might meet some erudite Cabalist who would translate the book of Abraham for him. Travelling was difficult, and without a strong-armed escort, safe passage was nearly impossible for a solitary traveler. Flamel made therefore a vow to St James of Compostela, the patron saint of his parish, to make a pilgrimage. This was also a means of concealing from his neighbors and friends the real purpose of his journey.
The wise and faithful Pernelle was the only person who was aware of his real plans. He put on the pilgrim's attire and shell-adorned hat, took the staff, which ensured a certain measure of safety to a traveler in Christian countries, and started off for Galicia.
Since he was a prudent man and did not wish to expose the precious manuscript to the risks of travel, he contented himself with taking with him a few carefully copied pages, which he hid in his modest baggage.
Nicolas Flamel has not recounted the adventures that befell him on his journey. Possibly he had none. It may be that adventures happen only to those who want to have them. He has told us merely that he went first to fulfil his vow to St James. Then he wandered about Spain, trying to get into relations with learned Jews.
But they were suspicious of Christians, particularly of the French, who had expelled them from their country. Besides, he had not much time. He had to remember Pernelle waiting for him, and his shop, which was being managed only by his servants. To a man of over fifty on his first distant journey, the silent voice of his home makes a powerful appeal every evening.
In discouragement, he started his homeward journey. His way lay through Leon, where he stopped for the night at an inn and happened to sup at the same table as a French merchant from Boulogne, who was travelling on business.
This merchant inspired him with confidence and trust, and he whispered a few words to him of his wish to find a learned Jew. By a lucky chance the French merchant was in relations with a certain Maestro Canches, an old man who lived at Leon, immersed in his books. Nothing was easier than to introduce this Maestro Canches to Nicolas Flamel, who decided to make one more attempt before leaving Spain.
Basil Valentine
Records of the life of Basilius Valentinus, the Benedictine monk who for his achievements in the chemical sphere has been given the title of Father of Modern Chemistry, are a mass of conflicting evidence. Many and varied are the accounts of his life, and historians seem quite unable to agree as to his exact identity, or even as to the century in which he lived. It is generally believed, however, that 1394 was the year of his birth, and that he did actually join the Benedictine Brotherhood, eventually becoming Canon of the Priory of St. Peter at Erfurt, near Strasburg, although even these facts cannot be proved.
Whatever his identity, Basil Valentine was undoubtedly a great chemist, and the originator of many chemical preparations of the first importance. Amongst these are the preparation of spirit of salt, or hydrochloric acid from marine salt and oil of vitriol (sulphuric acid) the extraction of copper from its pyrites (sulphur) by transforming it firstly into copper sulphate, and then plunging a bar of iron in the watery dissolution of this product: the method of producing sulpho-ether by the distillation of a mixture of spirit of wine and oil of vitriol: the method of obtaining brandy by the distillation of wine and beer, rectifying the distillation on carbonate of potassium.
In his writings he has placed on record many valuable facts, and whether Basil Valentine is the correct name of the author or an assumed one matters little, since it detracts nothing from the value of his works, or the calibre of his practical experiments. From his writings one gathers that he was indeed a monk, and also the possessor of a mind and understanding superior to that of the average thinker of his day. The ultimate intent and aim of his studies was undoubtedly to prove that perfect health in the human body is attainable, and that the perfection of all metallic substance is also possible. He believed that the physician should regard his calling in the nature of a sacred trust, and was appalled by the ignorance of the medical faculty of the day whose members pursued their appointed way in smug complacency, showing little concern for the fate of their patients once they had prescribed their pet panacea.
On the subject of the perfection of metallic bodies, as in his reference to the Spagyric Art, the Grand Magi-strum, the Universal Medicine, the Tinctures to transmute metals and other mysteries of the alchemist's art, he has completely mystified not only the lay reader, but the learned chemists of his own and later times. In all his works the important key to a laboratory process is apparently omitted. Actually, however, such a key is invariably to be found in some other part of the writings, probably in the midst of one of the mysterious theological discourses which he was wont to insert among his practical instructions, so that it is only by intensive study that the mystery can be unravelled.
His most famous work is his Currus Triumphalis Antimonii - The Triumphal Chariot of Antimony .
It has been translated into German, French, and English, and has done more to establish his reputation as a chemist than any other. The best edition is undoubtedly that published at Amsterdam in 1671 with a commentary by Theodorus Kerckringius. In his preface Kerckringius states that he had actually spoken with Valentine besides studying his works. He speaks of Basil as 'the prince of all chemists', and the most learned, upright, and lucid of all alchemistic writers. He tells the careful student everything that can be known in alchemy; of this I can most positively assure you.'
A perusal of this book makes it quite evident that Valentine had investigated very thoroughly the properties of antimony, and the findings on his experimental work with this metal have.been brought forward as recent discoveries by chemists of our day.
His other works are The Twelve Keys - The Medicine of Metals - Of Things Natural and Supernatural - Of the First Tincture, Root and Spirit of Metals - and his Last Will and Testament .
It is alleged that this last work remained concealed for a number of years within the High Altar of the church belonging to the Priory. Such a story is quite feasible, since alchemists both before and after this era, deeming their works unfit for the age in which they were written, are known to have buried or otherwise secreted their writings for the discovery and benefit, as they doubtless hoped, of a more deserving and more enlightened age. Such manuscripts would very often not be discovered for several generations after the death of the author.
In view of his other outstanding achievements as a chemist of great ability, it seems not illogical to suppose that Valentine's Universal Method of Medicine should be capable of achieving as great a measure of success as his other somewhat more prosaic discoveries.
Here follow the Twelve Keys of Basilius Valentinus, the Benedictine, with which we may open the doors of the knowledge of the Most Ancient Stone and unseal the Most Secret Fountain of Health.
KEY ONE
Let my friend know that no impure or spotted things are useful for our purpose. For there is nothing in their leprous nature capable of advancing the interests of our Art There is much more likelihood of that which is in itself good being spoiled by that which is impure. Everything that is obtained from the mines has its value, unless, indeed, it is adulterated. Adulteration, however, spoils its goodness and its efficacy.
As the physician purges and cleanses the inward parts of the body, and removes all unhealthy matter by means of his medicines, so our metallic substances must be purified and refined of all foreign matter, in order to ensure the success of our task. Therefore, our Masters require a pure, immaculate body, that is untainted with any foreign admixture, which admixture is the leprosy of our metals.
Let the diadem of the King be of pure gold, and let the Queen that is united to him in wedlock be chaste and immaculate.
If you would operate by means of our bodies, take a fierce grey wolf, which, though on account of its name it be subject to the sway of warlike Mars, is by birth the offspring of ancient Saturn, and is found in the valleys and mountains of the world, where he roams about savage with hunger. Cast to him the body of the King, and when he has devoured it, burn him entirely to ashes in a great fire. By this process the King will be liberated; and when it has been performed thrice the Lion has overcome the wolf, and will find nothing more to devour in him. Thus our Body has been rendered fit for the first stage of our work.
Know that this is the only right and legitimate way of purifying our substance: for the Lion purifies himself with the blood of the wolf, and the tincture of its blood agrees most wonderfully with the tincture of the Lion, seeing that the two liquids are closely akin to each other. When the Lion's hunger is appeased, his spirit becomes more powerful than before, and his eyes glitter like the Sun. His internal essence is now of inestimable value for the removing of all defects, and the healing of all diseases. He is pursued by the ten lepers, who desire to drink his blood; and all that are tormented with any kind of sickness are refreshed with this blood.
For whoever drinks of this golden fountain, experiences a renovation of his whole nature, a vanishing of all unhealthy matter, a fresh supply of blood, a strengthening of the heart and of all the vitals, and a permanent bracing of every limb. For it opens all the pores, and through them bears away all that prevents the perfect health of the body, but allows all that is beneficial to remain therein unmolested.
But let my friend be scrupulously careful to preserve the fountain of life limpid and clear. If any strange water be mixed with it, it is spoiled, and becomes positively injurious. If it still retain any of the solvent which has been used for its dissolution, you must carefully purge it off. For no corrosive can be of the least use for the prevention of internal diseases.
When a tree is found to bear sour and unwholesome fruit, its branches must be cut off, and scions of better trees grafted upon it. The new branches thereupon become organically united to the trunk; but though nourished with its sap, they thence forward produce good and pleasant fruit.
The King travels through six regions in the heavenly firmament, and in the seventh he fixes his abode. There the royal palace is adorned with golden tapestry. If you understand my meaning, this Key will open the first lock, and push back the first bolt; but if you do not, no spectacles or natural eyesight will enable you to understand what follows. But Lucius Papirius has instructed me not to say any more about this Key.
KEY 2
In the houses of the great are found various kinds of drink, of which scarcely two are exactly like each other in odour, colour, or taste. For they are prepared in a great variety of different ways. Nevertheless they are all drunk, and each is designed for its own special use. When the Sun gives out his rays, and sheds them abroad upon the clouds, it is commonly said that he is attracting water, and if he do it frequently, and thereby cause rain, it is called a fruitful year.
If it be intended to build a palace, the services of many different craftsmen must be employed, and a great variety of materials is required. Otherwise the palace would not be worthy the name. It is useless to use wood where stone is necessary.
The daily ebb and flow of the sea, which are caused by the sympathetic influence of heavenly bodies, impart great wealth and blessing to the earth. For whenever the water comes rolling back, it brings a blessing with it.
A bride, when she is to be brought forth to be married, is gloriously adorned in a great variety of precious garments, which, by enhancing her beauty, render her pleasant in the eyes of the bridegroom. But the rites of the bridal night she performs without any clothing but that which she was arrayed withal at the moment of her birth.
In the same way our bridal pair, Apollo and Diana, are arrayed in splendid attire, and their heads and bodies are washed with various kinds of water, some strong, some weak, but not one of them exactly like another, and each designed for its own special purpose. Know that when the moisture of the earth ascends in the form of a vapour, it is condensed in the upper regions, and precipitated to the earth by its own weight. Thus the earth regains the moisture of which it had been deprived, and receives strength to put forth buds and herbs. In the same way you must repeatedly distil the water which you have extracted from the earth, and then again restore it to your earth, as the water in the Strait of Euripus frequently leaves the shore, and then covers it again until it arrives at a certain limit.
When thus the palace has been constructed by the hands of many craftsmen, and the sea of glass has absolved its course, and filled the palace with good things, it is ready for the King to enter, and take his seat upon the throne. But you should notice that the King and his spouse must be quite naked when they are joined together. They must be stripped of all their glorious apparel, and must lie down together in the same state of nakedness in which they were born, that their seed may not be spoiled by being mixed with any foreign matter.
Let me tell you, in conclusion, that the bath in which the bridegroom is placed, must consist of two hostile kinds of matter, that purge and rectify each other by means of a continued struggle. For it is not good for the Eagle to build her nest on the summit of the Alps, because her young ones are thus in great danger of being frozen to death by the intense cold that prevails there.
But if you add to the Eagle the icy Dragon that has long had its habitation upon the rocks, and has crawled forth from the caverns of the earth, and place both over the fire, it will elicit from the icy Dragon a fiery spirit, which, by means of its great heat, will consume the wings of the Eagle, and prepare a perspiring bath of so extraordinary a degree of heat that the snow will melt upon the summit of the mountains, and become a water, with which the invigorating mineral bath may be prepared, and fortune, health, life, and strength restored to the King.
KEY 3
By means of water fire may be extinguished, and utterly quenched. If much water be poured upon a little fire, the fire is overcome, and compelled to yield up the victory to the water. In the same way our fiery sulphur must be overcome by means of our prepared water. But, after the water has vanished, the fiery life of our sulphurous vapour must triumph, and again obtain the victory. But no such triumph can take place unless the King imparts great strength and potency to his water and tinges it with his own colour, that thereby he may be consumed and become invisible, and then again recover his visible form, with a diminution of his simple essence, and a development of his perfection.
A painter can set yellow upon white, and red or crimson upon yellow; for, though all these colours are present, yet the latter prevails on account of its greater intensity. When you have accomplished the same thing in our Art, you have before your eyes the light of wisdom, which shines in the darkness, although it does not burn. For our sulphur does not burn, but nevertheless its brilliancy is seen far and near. Nor does it colour anything until it has been prepared, and dyed with its own colour, which it then imparts to all weak and imperfect metals. This sulphur, however, cannot impart this colour until it have first by persevering labour been prevailed upon to abjure its original colour.
For the weaker does not overcome the stronger, but has to yield the victory to it. The gist of the whole matter lies in the fact that the small and weak cannot aid that which is itself small and weak, and a combustible substance cannot shield another substance from combustion. That which is to protect another substance against combustion must itself be safe from danger. The latter must be stronger than the former, that is to say, it must itself be essentially incombustible. He, then, who would prepare the incombustible sulphur of the Sages, must look for our sulphur in a substance in which it is incombustible -- which can only be after its body has been absorbed by the salt sea, and again rejected by it.
Then it must be so exalted as to shine more brightly than all the stars of heaven, and in its essence it must have an abundance of blood, like the Pelican, which wounds its own breast, and, without any diminution of its strength, nourishes and rears up many young ones with its blood. This Tincture is the Rose of our Masters, of purple hue, called also the red blood of the Dragon, or the purple cloak many times folded with which the Queen of Salvation is covered, and by which all metals are regenerated in colour.
Carefully preserve this splendid mantle, together with the astral salt which is joined to this sulphur, and screens it from harm. Add to it a sufficient quantity of the volatility of the bird; then the Cock will swallow the Fox, and, having been drowned in the water, and quickened by the fire, will in its turn be swallowed by the Fox.
KEY 4
All flesh that is derived from the earth, must be decomposed and again reduced to earth; then the earthy salt produces a new generation by celestial resuscitation. For where there was not first earth, there can be no resurrection in our Magistery. For in earth is the balm of Nature, and the salt of the Sages.
At the end of the world, the world shall be judged by fire, and all those things that God has made of nothing shall by fire be reduced to ashes, from which ashes the Phoenix is to produce her young. For in the ashes slumbers a true and genuine tartaric substance, which, being dissolved, will enable us to open the strongest bolt of the royal chamber.
After the conflagration, there shall be formed a new heaven and a new earth, and the new man will be more noble in his glorified state than he was before.
When the sand and ashes have been well matured and ripened with fire, the glass-blower makes out of it glass, which remains hard and firm in the fire, and in colour resembles a crystal stone. To the uninitiated this is a great mystery, but not to the master whom long experience has familiarized with the process.
Out of stones the master also prepares lime by burning which is very useful for our work- But before they are prepared with fire, they are mere stones. The stone must be matured and rendered fervent with fire, and then it becomes so potent that few things are to be compared to the fiery spirit of lime.
By burning anything to ashes you may gain its salt. If in this dissolution the sulphur and mercury be kept apart, and restored to its salt, you may once more obtain that form which was destroyed by the process of combustion. This assertion the wise of this world denounce as the greatest folly, and count as a rebellion, saying that such a transformation would amount to a new creation, and that God has denied such creative power to sinful man. But the folly is all on their side. For they do not understand that our Artist does not claim to create anything, but only to evolve new things from the seed made ready to his hand by the Creator.
If you do not possess the ashes, you will be unable to obtain our salt; and without our salt you will not be able to impart to our substance a bodily form; for the coagulation of all things is produced by salt alone.
As salt is the great preserving principle that protects all things from decay, so the Salt of our Magistery preserves metal from decomposition and utter annihilation. If their Balm were to perish, and the Spirit to leave the body, the body would be quite dead, and no longer available for any good purpose. The metallic spirit would have departed, and would have left its habitation empty, bare, and lifeless.
Observe also, thou who art a lover of this Art, that the salt that is gained from ashes has great potency, and possesses many concealed virtues. Nevertheless, the salt is unprofitable, until its inward substance has been extracted. For the spirit alone gives strength and life. The body by itself profits nothing. If you know how to find this spirit, you have the Salt of the Sages, and the incombustible oil, concerning which many things have been written before my time.
Although many philosophers
Have sought for me with eagerness,
Yet very few succeed at length
In finding out my secret virtue.
KEY 5
The quickening power of the earth produces all things that grow forth from it, and he who says that the earth has no life makes a statement which is flatly contradicted by the most ordinary facts. For what is dead cannot produce life and growth, seeing that it is devoid of the quickening spirit. This spirit is the life and soul that dwell in the earth, and are nourished by heavenly and sidereal influences. For all herbs, trees, and roots, and all metals and minerals, receive their growth and nutriment from the spirit of the earth, which is the spirit of life. This spirit is itself fed by the stars, and is thereby rendered capable of imparting nutriment to all things that grow, and of nursing them as a mother does her child while it is yet in the womb. The minerals are hidden in the womb of the earth, and nourished by her with the spirit which she receives from above.
Thus the power of growth that I speak of is imparted not by the earth, but by the life-giving spirit that is in it. If the earth were deserted by this spirit, it would be dead, and no longer able to afford nourishment to anything. For its sulphur or richness would lack the quickening spirit without which there can be neither life nor growth.
Two contrary spirits can scarcely dwell together, nor do they easily combine. For when a thunderbolt blazes amidst a tempest of rain, the two spirits, out of which it is formed, fly from one another with a great shock and noise, and circle in the air, so that no one can know or say whither they go, unless