120
H Y M N S ( contemplate or sing
in Gregorian or other style) 120, page 1
of 2,
From the
Acts of the Apostle Thomas is
this famous gnostic “hymn of the soul”,
“THE HYMN OF THE
ROBE OF GLORY” said to be singed by Thomas in a “ jail” in India
When I was
a little child and dwelling in
my kingdom, in my Father´s house
and in the wealth and the glories
Of my nurtures had my pleasure,
From East, our home ,
my parents, having equipped
me, sent me forth.
And of the wealth of our treasury
they had tied up for me a load.
Large it was, yet light, so that I might bear it unaided Gold ….And silver of Gazzak, the
great.
And rubies of India. And agate
from the land of Kushan And they girded me with adamant,
which can crush iron. And
they took off from me the bright
robe which they had wrought for me
in their love. And my purple
toga, which was measured and
woven to my stature.
And they made compact with me,
And wrote it in my heart
that it should not be forgotten
IF THOU GOEST DOWN INTO
EGYPT AND BRINGEST THE ONE
PEARL ( gnosis)
which is in the midst of the sea,
Hard by the
loud-breathing serpent
Then shalt thou put on thy bright robe And
thy toga which is
laid over it
And with thy Brother, our next
in rank Thou shalt be heir in our
kingdom….
I quitted the East (and)
went down There being with me two messengers
For the way was dangerous and difficult And I was young to tread
it
I passed the borders of Maishan,
The meeting place of the merchants of the East
And I reached the land of Babel and I entered the walls … I
went down into Egypt
And my companions parted
from me I betook me straight to
the serpent
Hard by his dwelling I waited
till he could slumber and sleep.
And I could take my pearl from him
And when I was single and
alone A stranger to those with whom
I dwelt
One of my race, a
free-born man From among
the Easterns, I behold there
A youth fair and
well-favoured and he came and attached
himself to me
And I made him my intimate A
comrade with whom I shared my merchandise
I warned him
against the Egyptians And
against consorting with
the unclean
And I put on a garb like
theirs Last they should insult me
because I had come from afar
to take the pearl and they should
arouse the serpent against me
But in some way or other they perceived that
I was not their
countryman
So they dealt with me treacherously. Moreover they gave me their
food to eat
I forgot that I was a
son of a King and I
served their king
And I forgot the
pearl for which my
parents had sent me
And by reason
of the burden …
I lay in deep sleep
But all those
things that befell
me
my parents perceived
and were grieved
for me….…and they wrote to
me a letter…
From thy Father,
the King of kings
and thy Mother,
the Mistress of
the East
And from thy
Brother, our next
in rank to
thee our son,
who art in Egypt,
greeting
Up and arise
from thy sleep
and listen to
the words of
our letter
Call to mind
that thou art
a son of kings. See
the slavery whom
thou servest
Remember the pearl For
which thou didst
speed to Egypt
Think of thy
bright robe
And remember thy
glorious toga which you shall
put on as thine adornment
when thy name has been read out
in the list of the valiant And
with thy Brother, our next in rank
thou shalt be (king) in
our kin And my letter was a letter which the King sealed with
his right hand
to keep it from the wicked
ones, the children of Babel And from the wicked demons …..
It flew in the likeness of an eagle, the king of all
birds It flew and
slighted beside me
And became all
speech. And at
its voice and the
sound of its
rustling, I started
and arose from my
sleep I took
it up and kissed it,
And loosed its
seal and read,
And according to
what was traced
on my heart Were the words of
my letter written.
I remembered that
I was a son
of kings, And
my free soul
longed for its
natural state
I remembered the
Pearl for which
I had been sent to
Egypt,
And I began to charm
him, The terrible
loud-breathing serpent
I hushed him
to sleep and
lulled him to
slumber; For my Father´s
name I named over him
And the name of
our next in rank
And of My Mother, the
Queen of the
East
And their filthy
and unclean garb
I stripped off,
and left it
in their country.
And I took my way
Straight to come to
the light of
our house, the
East.
And my letter,
my awakener I found before me on the road.
And as with
its voice it
had awakened me (So)
too with its
light it was
leading me
Shone before me with its
form And with its voice and
its guidance It also encouraged me to
speed
And with his love was drawing
me on I went forth, passed
by I left
Babel on my
left hand
…And my bright
robe, which I had
stripped off, And
the toga wherein
it was wrapped
from the heights
of Hyrcania My
parents sent thither
By the hand of
their treasurers
who in their faithfulness should
be trusted therewith
And because I remembered
not its fashion
for in my
childhood I had
left it in
my Father´s house On
a sudden as
I faced it
The garment seemed
to me like a mirror of
myself I saw
it all in
my whole self
Moreover I faced my
whole self in
facing it For
we were two
in distinction,
And yet again
one in one likeness,
(Continued
on page 2)
120 page 2 of 2
And the
treasurers also, who
brought it to
me, I saw
in like manner,
that they were
twain (yet) one
likeness For one
kingly sign was
graven on them,
of his hand that
restored to me
my treasure and
my wealth by means
of them
My bright embroidered
robe with glorious
colours; with gold
and with beryls,
and rubies
and agates and
sardonyxes varied in
colour. It also
was made ready
in its home on high
And with stones
of adamant And its seams were fastened And the image of the King of kings
was depicted in full
all over it And
like the sapphire stone also were
its manifold hues
Again I saw
that all over
it the motions of
Knowledge were stirring
And as if to speak
I saw it also making
itself ready I
heard the sound of
its tones Which it
uttered to those
who brought it
down Saying I
am the active in deeds
Whom they reared
in the presence of my
fathers And I also
perceived in myself
that my stature
was growing according
to labours and
kingly motions
It was spreading
itself out towards me
And the hands of
its givers
It hastened that
I might take it
And me too my love urged
on
That I should
run to meet it and
receive it And I
stretched forth and
received it
With the beauty of
its colours I
adorned myself and
my toga of
brilliant colours
I cast around me, in its
whole breadth I clothed myself therewith and ascended
to the gate
of salutation and homage I
bowed my head and did
homage to the Majesty of my Father
who had sent it t o
me. For I
had done his
commandments And he
too had done
what he promised
And at the gate of
his princes I
mingled with his
nobles
For he rejoiced in me and received me And I was with him in
his kingdom And with
the voice,
all his servants
glorify him And he promised that also to the gate of
the King of kings
( This hymn from the
Acts of Thomas is preserved in the British Museum
and is perhaps from the gnostic
Bardaisan. The Egyptian garb which the
prince puts on may represent the human body. Bardaisan like great
Gnostics knew reincarnation.
Compare the Prodigal Son. The
author knew the caravan-ways from East
to
Egypt and did use names as parables This translation
is from Mead . “Fragments
of a
faith forgotten” )
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A MYSTIC* SINGED
in “jail” this chant (* Djelal ed-din Rumi Sufi
Muslim )
I lived and died as mineral, became a plant …. I
died out of
the plant, became an animal
I died out of the animal, became a human soul …... I shall die from
that role, become an angel
and I shall die as
angel … and
became still higher
pupil ... and die from each
being,
become all seeing
… and through
transubstantiation … return
from this creation .
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A GNOSTIC INITIATION RITUAL From the Acts of John
A tentative restoration of
fragments which have survived
after persecutions from majorities
(I)
stands for Christ, the
Initiator, (C) is the Candidate for initiation, (A) are Assistants
(Singing
disciples hold one another’s
hands dancing in a ring round Jesus who stands in the midst)
All invoking: Glory to Thee, Father Glory to Thee, Word, Glory to Thee, Grace,
the Spirit,
We praise Thee, O Father, we give
thanks to Thee, o Light, o Holy One. All Amen
I: Grace (Sophia= the holy Ghost) dances. I would pipe:
Dance all of you
A: Amen
I. The Ogdoad plays to our dancing A:
Amen I: The Dodecad danceth
above (us) A: Amen
I: He who danceth not,
knoweth not what is being done
C: I would flee I: I
would stay A: Amen
C: I would be robed ( in
the initiation- garment)
I: And I
would robe thee A Amen
C: I would be
at-oned I: And
I would at-one A: Amen
I: I have no temple, and I have temples A: Amen I: I am a lamp to
thee who beholdest Me A: Amen
I: I am a mirror to the who perceivest Me A: Amen I: I am a door to thee who knockest at Me A: Amen
I: I am a way to
thee, a wayfarer A: Amen I :
Now respond thou
to my dancing
I:: See thyself in Me who speak:
and when thou hast seen what I do,
keep silence on My mysteries.
A: Amen
I Observe what I do (of dancing) for thine is this passion of the Man which I am to suffer A Amen
I: Thou shouldst never alone have understood what I suffer. I am thy WORD, sent by the Father A
:Amen
I: When thou didst look on My
passion, thou didst see Me as
suffering, thou was shaken A :Amen
I I am thy God…
In Me know the Word
of Wisdom
C :I would be
pierced I: And
I would pierce (All
contemplate the crucifixion ) A: Amen
C I would be born I: And
I would bring to birth
(contemplate spiritual
rebirth) A :Amen
C I would be saved I And I would save A Amen C
I would be loosed I: and
I would loose A Amen
C I would be washed I:
And I would wash ( A baptismal rite can here
symbolize universal
washing or
purification through cosmic or
individual involution)
C I would eat I: And
I would be eaten (
An Eucharist or Last Supper,
can here
as a final act
symbolize perfection through
transubstantiation )
All: Glory to Thee, Father , Glory to Thee, Word, Glory to Thee,
Grace, the Spirit,
We praise Thee, ö
Father, we give thanks
to Thee, o Light., o Holy One All Amen
GOD SAVES by
Grace each soul,
Calls it to highest goal. God
saves each soul,
Guides it in self-control,
Sends it with saintly role, Gives it
to serve the Whole, God saves
each soul