So welcome to my train-wreck of words, trying their best to synthesize the connection between Hermes and Asclepius, with their roles as the guides of the Human toward an understanding of God. I prayed the other day that God would reveal himself to me, a pretty common prayer around here, and what I received was “The Way of Hermes.”
“21. …But why does he who has remembered himself go to the Father, as the Word of God says? I replied, ‘Because the Father of all is constituted out of light and life, whence Man has been begotten. Poimandres then said, ‘the truth is’, light and life is God and Father, whence man is begotten. If, therefore, you realize yourself as being from life and light and that you have been made out of them, you will return to life.’ ‘But tell me further, how I shall return to life, my Nous? For God declares: Let the man endowed with Nous remember himself.”
Hermes: Nous, the Word, emerging out of that which is whole, entire and complete; Nous containing itself, unembodied, steadfast, unaffected, and impalpable, itself standing by itself, containing and preserving all beings, whose glories are the Supreme Good, truth, the origin of breath, the origin of soul…”
“Whenever Nous is separated from its earthly body, it immediately puts on its cloak of fire which it could not have in its earthly body, for earth cannot bear fire. It is all burnt up, even by a tiny spark. Therefore water is spread round the earth as a defense or wall to hold off the flames of fire. Nous being faster than all divine thought and faster than all elements has fire as a body. Being the Creator of all, Nous uses fire as an instrument of his creative activity. The universal Nous creates everything, the Nous of man only earthly things. Stripped of fire Nous in man creates nothing divine, being human by reason of where it dwells.”
Over and over in every spiritual tradition there is the understanding of the Astral Fire that creates and shepherds the Human on their way to the One. The Holy Spirit, Brahman, Agni, Nous. And in many texts Asclepius is shown as being the keeper of the flame and the master of the forms that flow from the Astral/Akashic, Etheric realm to the appear in the material world.
“19. The human soul, that is not every human soul but a pious one, is spiritual and divine. When such a soul has freed itself from the body and passed the test of piety, which is to know God and to harm no man, it becomes pure Nous. But the impious soul remains in its own substance, restricted by itself, seeking an earthly body, that is to say a human body into which it may enter…”
“This is the governance of the all, depending on the nature of the One, governing through the Nous of the One. Nothing is more divine or effective or able to unite men to the gods and the gods to men than this Nous. This is the spirit of the Supreme Good. Blessed is the soul which is wholly filled with it, wretched is the soul that is devoid of it… (its as if the Egyptians/Greeks were Pentecostals). Therefore such a one should not be called a man; for man is a divine being and is not to be counted amongst other creatures on earth but amongst those in heaven called gods. Indeed, if we have to speak the truth boldly, the true man is above the gods, or at least fully their equal…”
The Relationship Between Hermes and Asclepius
I know you are thinking I have flown off the rails, but then again, have I? What possibly could be learned from Greek and Egyptian spiritual teaching? Hermes and Asclepius are both venerated as gods, both carry a rod entwined with a snake(s) and are related in mythology. Asclepius being the Greek version of the Egyptian Hermes or is he?
“The Way of Hermes” consists of a discourse between Hermes, Tat and Asclepius. And it is very weird that both Hermes and Asclepius carry a caduceus.
Maybe the following from the text explains the divergence between the two. In a discourse between Asclepius and King Ammon the following is stated: “For my teacher, Hermes, often used to say to me privately and also in the presence of Tat, that the composition of my books would appear most simple and clear to those who read them. He added, however, that they would become even more obscure later when the Greeks decide to translate our language into theirs, which will lead to even greater distortion and obscurity…When expressed in its original language, the text preserves the pure spirit of the words. For the very quality of the sound and the pronunciation of the of the Egyptian language carries in itself the power of what is being spoken…
Therefore, O King, as far as it is in your power, and your power is unlimited, please ensure this text is not translated, in order that these mysteries do not reach the Greeks. For the arrogant, loose and showy style of Greek language, will sap the majesty and strength of our own which preserves the power of the words. The Greeks, O King, use empty words which produce mere displays. That is the philosophy of the Greeks; a noise of words. We do not use such language but sounds full of power.”
Alas, the Greeks won and the rational materialists still rule over us until this very day. If only the intuitive power would manifest in the world again, bringing with it “the Good” into the lives of humanity!
So what was it that Hermes taught Asclepius and Tat?
“7. Tat me: I am incapable of this O father. Hermes: May it not be so, O son; withdraw into yourself and it shall come. Will and it is so. Make idle the sense of the body and the spirit will be born. Cleanse yourself from the torments of the material world which arise from the lack of reason. Tat-me: I am not aware of them O Father. Hermes: This ignorance O son, it is the first of these tormentors. The second is sorrow; the third is intemperance; the fourth lust; the fifth injustice; the sixth greed; the seventh deceit; (by deceit we will wage war) the eighth envy; the ninth treachery; the tenth anger; the eleventh recklessness; the twelfth malice. These are twelve in number, but besides these there are many others, my son. They compel the inner man who dwells in the prison of his body to suffer through his senses. These tormentors depart one by one from the man who receives God’s mercy. This constitutes the manner and teaching of rebirth.”
8. For the rest, be still, O son, and keep silence; thus God’s mercy for us shall not cease. Rejoice now, O son, being thoroughly cleansed by the powers of God, you are thus united with the Word. (Be baptized in in the Holy Spirit, the Divine Feminine, and be united with the Word.) Knowledge of God has come to us and therefore ignorance has been banished. Experience of joy has come to us, and therefore, O son, sorrow will flee to those who give place to it…”
“10. You know now, O son, the manner of rebirth. And with the arrival of these then spiritual birth is complete and it drives out the twelve, and by this birth we have become Divine. Whoever, then, by God’s mercy attains a divine birth is freed from the bodily senses and is made whole by these powers. He knows himself and rejoices…”
“13. Tat–Me: O father, I see the All and I see myself in Nous. Hermes: This is rebirth, O son, no longer to picture oneself with regard to the three dimensional body. This is the gift of the teaching of rebirth, which I have expounded, so that we do not misrepresent the All to the many, but give it those whom God himself wills.”
“14. Tat-Me: Tell me, O father, will this body which is made up of the powers, ever be subject to dissolution? Hermes: Be quiet and do not speak of the impossible; you will err and the eye of Nous in you will be corrupted. The visible body born of nature is far different from that spiritual birth. For the one can be dissolved and the other cannot; the one is mortal and the other immortal. Do you not know that you have become divine and that you are a son of the One? So also am I.”
15. Tat-Me: Then, O father, I wish to hear the hymn of praise which you said was there to be heard from the powers, on my birth into the eighth sphere. Hermes: I will recite it, son; just as Poimandres revealed the eighth sphere to me. You do well to make haste to free yourself from the tent of the body, for you have been purified. Poinmadres, the Nous of the Supreme, gave more than what has been written, being aware that I should be able to know all things by myself and to hear what I wanted to hear, and to see all. and he charge me to create things of beauty. Wherefore the powers in me sing also in all things. Tat–Me: O father, I want to hear and to know these things.” (“Poimandres, the Shepherd of Men” is the first of eighteen treatises of the Corpus Hermeticum and is central to the Hermetic tradition.”)
“In some Gnostic interpretations, the “eighth sphere” is associated with the Ogdoad, a group of primordial deities representing the ultimate reality beyond the material world”
“16. Hermes: Be still, O son, hear the harmonious song of praise, the hymn of rebirth, which I had not thought to impart so easily, if you had not reached the very end. For this hymn is not taught but hid in silence. And so, O son, standing under the clear sky, and facing the south wind, at the setting of the sun, bow down; do likewise facing east at sunrise. Be still, O son.”
Secret Hymn
“17. Let every creature in the cosmos give ear to this hymn.
Open, Earth.
Let the rains pour without restraint.
Trees, be not shaken.
I am about to praise the Lord of Creation, the All and the One.
open Heavens; wind, be still.
let God’s immortal sphere receive my song.”
“For I am about to sing praise to the Creator of all, who fixed the earth, who suspended the heavens, and who, in lands, inhabited and wild, parted fresh water from the ocean for creation and sustenance of mankind; and ordained that fire appear for the use of gods and men. Let us give praise for Him, above the heavens, the founder of all nature. He is the eye of Nous, may he receive the praise of every power within me.”
“18. O powers within me, sing to the One and to the All; with one accord, all you powers, sing praise at my bidding.”
Divine knowledge, illumined by you, I sing through you of the spiritual light and I rejoice in the delight of Nous.
Sing praise with me, all you powers…
…Truth sing the truth.
Good, praise the good.
Life and light, from you comes the praise and to you it returns.
I give thanks to you, Father, the strength of all my powers.
I give thanks to you, God, power of all my strength.
Your Word through me sings to you.
receive all back through me by the Word, a spoken sacrifice.”
19. “This cry the powers within me.
They praise the All, they accomplish your will which comes forth from you and returns to you, being All…
O God inspire the All.
For Nous guide your Word, O bearer-of-the-breath-of-life,
O Creator of the world. You are God…”
“20. …From you I have discovered eternity’s song of praise and in
your will I have found the rest I seek…”
21. Tat-me: “O father, I have set this hymn in the cosmos within me. Hermes: Say: In the world of Nous, O son. Tat-me: In the world of Nous, O father, I am full of power. By your song of praise, Nous in me has been fully illumined. I, too, strongly wish to give praise to God from my own heart. Hermes: Do so with care, O son. Tat-me: Father, what I behold in Nous I speak. To you, God, first author of generation, I Tat, send these offerings of speech.” God, you are Father, you are Lord, you are Nous, receive these words of mine as you will, For by your will all things are accomplished. Hermes: O son, offer an acceptable sacrifice to god, the Father of all, But also add, O son, ‘through the word.’ “
22. Tat-me: I thank you, O father, for allowing me to sing as I prayed. Hermes: I am glad, O son, that you have brought forth the fruit of truth and immortal harvest. And now that you have learned this from me, keep silence about this miracle and reveal to no one the tradition of rebirth, lest we be called betrayers. We have both been sufficiently careful….in nous you have come to know both yourself and our Father.”
Listen how closely this is modeled along the lines of the gnostic Gospel of Thomas: “Book 14: Hermes to Asclepius: This one should understand, and having understood one should wonder and having wondered one should count oneself blessed for having come to know the Father…”
What is Nous?
This site, WayofHermes.com has an excellent explanation of nous: “ If you observe it clearly and reflect upon it with the eyes of the heart, believe me, my son, you will find the way to higher things. In fact the image itself will guide you. For sight of the image has a special quality of its own. It dwells in those who have already seen it and draws them upward, just as they say a magnet draws up iron.” Corpus Hermeticum Tractate IV.11
Could the image be the Wadjet Eye? “The ancient Egyptian name ‘wedjat’ means “the one that is sound.” In Egyptian mythology Horus’ eye was injured or stolen by the god Seth and then restored by Thoth. The wedjat eye embodies healing power and symbolizes rebirth. An amulet in this shape was thought to protect its wearer and to transfer the power of recovery and regeneration onto him or her. It was very popular and used by the living as well as for the dead.“
or “This teaching also I shall fully expound to you, O Tat so that you are not shut off from God who is too great for a name. Understand that what appears unmanifest to many will become most evident to you, for it would not exist if it were not manifest to you. Everything that is manifest has been brought into being; for it has been brought to light. However, the unmanifest exists always; it does not need to appear, for it exists always and it makes everything else manifest, though it itself is unmanifest since it always is. That which makes manifest is not itself made manifest, for it has not been brought forth. But it brings all images to the mind in imagination. Things that are begotten belong only to imagination. For imagination is nothing but begetting.“Corpus Hermeticum – Book V.1“
“When the hermetic student gets reborn as is described in Corpus Hermeticum XIII, then the daimonic entities are expelled or exercised and they no longer have a hold over their mind. The student immediately starts to perceive from one moment to the other reality as it really exists in God’s own mind. They start to participate in God’s own consciousness, which means that the student gains a cosmic consciousness in which they are everywhere at the same time, in the future, in the past, and in the present.”
“The reborn student can travel in a moment to India, to other parts of the world, he is in the womb, before the womb, after the womb. There is no limit to where it can be. They gain a state of cosmic consciousness in which they are no longer limited by time and space as usually happens when we get born. They gain consciousness of the total reality that exists in the mind (Nous) of God himself and see the world as it exists in – or has been imagined by – God.”
https://wayofhermes.com/hermeticism/imagination-and-the-way-of-hermes/
“The sight of the body is the eye; but that of soul is Nous. Just as a body which has (got) no eyes sees nothing, likewise a soul which has (got) no Nous is blind. Definitions 7.3″
“Pray that through grace you will be able to perceive God as so great that even just one ray of Him may shine in your mind. For pure perception perceives the unmanifest, as it is itself also unmanifest. If you are strong enough, He will appear to the eye of Nous, O Tat. For the Lord appears in His bounty throughout the whole universe. Can you see pure perception and take hold of it with these hands and contemplate the image of God? But if you cannot see what is within, how can God who is Himself within you appear to you through your eyes? Corpus Hermeticum Tractate V.2″
https://wayofhermes.com/hermeticism/nous-and-the-secret-of-the-heart/
And who the hell Agathos Daimon and how do we the human interact with Nous, this spiritual substance derived from the ether; is Nous really the Mother of All, Agni, Bramham or the Word?
So the world is exploding all around me, yet, I am peacefully content to read obscure Egyptian and Greek texts… I must be mad… or maybe I am full of intuitive, Nectarian knowledge, searching for keys to traverse the dystopian future awaiting us All. If I can find safe passage, I will give it all away freely to the Human.
The Universal Hymn
God is Love
The whole purpose of the Human is to reunite with the Godhead,
God descends into the Human through the merging of the Father and Mother within.
The God of rest is Brahma. the All, the One.
The God of movement is The Holy Spirit, the Nous, the Divine Feminine, Brahman.
When man has been cleansed,
the Mother descends into the Temple of the Heart.
And when the Temple of the Heart is filled with light and fire,
Shakti and Shiva dance and fill the Human with the presence of the One.
Then the truth of the Solar Glories descend within the brow of the Human.
And the Human is transformed into the One.
And what does all of this have to do with the sacred year of 2025?
For an explanation of “nous.” https://wayofhermes.com/hermeticism/nous-and-the-secret-of-the-heart/