One of the texts discovered at Nag Hammadi, this treatise explains more details about the story told in Genesis / Bereshit, in particular about the origin and cause of suffering. As with any genuine scripture, understanding the message of the text requires a solid understanding of the doctrine it comes from - that is, one must first know Kabbalah and Alchemy, the two aspects of the secret doctrine that were symbolized in Genesis as the two trees in the Garden of Eden. Therefore, if the notes and explanations provided here are not sufficient to illuminate the wisdom contained in this scripture, return to it after studying and meditating on the two trees as explained in Gnosis. This scripture is worth returning to again and again, for there is much of value to extract here.

First, some terminology:

• Archon: (Greek) Literally, "prince" or "ruler." Esoterically, primordial planetary spirits.

We have previously stated that the Golden Fleece, the Treasury of the Light, is found within the profundities of oneself.

Unquestionably, the Archons of the Fate and the Rulers of the Aeons and those of the Sphere turn to the matter of their refuse.  They subdue it, devour it, subjugate it, govern it, and do not let it go to become Souls in the world.

This means that they, the Rulers, maintain the elemental Essences in their respective Kingdoms.  Such elemental Essences are governed by the Archons.

However, while the elemental Essences develop, they pass from one Kingdom to another, according to the Law.

Every elemental Essence can convert itself into a human Soul, at its time and hour, and according to the Law.

[...]

The Archons of the Twelve Aeons, their Lords and their Authorities, their Angels and their Archangels, are represented within ourselves by the distinct autonomous and self-conscious parts of our own Being.

The powers of the Rulers of the Aeons, and those of the Fate and those of the Sphere are found within our own Soul. - Samael Aun Weor, The Pistis Sophia Unveiled

Therefore, this scripture concerns the forces that oppose the Essence (consciousness) who aspires to develop the Treasury of the Light within themselves. These Archons are simultaneously intelligences in the cosmos without and the cosmos within. Yet as in all serious spiritual work, our primary concern is those obstacles that are within us, for if we cannot conquer them within, we can never conquer them without. The Archons or Rulers we are concerned with are the parts of the Being that are trapped within the cage of the impure, sinning mind. These are forces within us - represented in world traditions as Pluto, Hades, Lucifer, Samael, and other such esoteric symbols.

The Archons (Rulers) are the forces of the Absolute either in the lunar or the solar matter.

The lunar matter is related to samsara controlled by the demiurge, the angels related to the kingdoms of nature (protoplasmic bodies).

The solar matter is related with Sabaoth, which is beyond the mechanicity of nature.

Our bodies are constructed of lunar matter, and the Archons rule within us according to our nature. Only the Twice-born (who have the “wedding garment of the soul”) have Solar bodies: the chariot of Ezekiel. Thus, we who remain dressed with lunar bodies are subject to the wheel of samsara: evolution and devolution.

When the lunar protoplasmic matter evolves to the stage of the humanoid body that we inhabit, the matter begins to devolve. Then, the Archons who guide and manage that matter begin to awaken in the devolving way (“evil”).  They then blame and accuse the angels of the evolving current (solar). This is how we can understand the various manifestations of the Archons.

The scripture is within the colored sections. White sections and comments in brackets are from a modern Gnostic instructor.

The Hypostasis of the Archons

[or, The Substance of the Rulers]

About the reality of the authorities [Archons], the great apostle [Paul] through the spirit of the father of truth, referred to the authorities of the darkness [skotos: obscurity] and told us that "our fight is not against flesh and blood but rather against the authorities of the universe and the spirits of wickedness. I have sent this [to you] because you asked about the nature of the authorities.

"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." - Paul from Ephesians 6:12

Their leader [Esau] is [spiritually] blind…

“Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field.” [Gen. 25]. Esau is a Kabbalistic symbol of the psychological and spiritual forces related to the impure blood that flows in our veins, carrying the influence of our animal past. In other words, Esau represents our animal instincts and desires – especially lust - who is enthroned in the mind as “god.” [Learn more about Esau here: The Sacrament of Priesthood]

…because of his power [in our bloodstream] and his ignorance [about Daath: the secret knowledge of the Elohim] and his arrogance [within his protoplasmic matter] he said, with his [sexual] power, "It is I who am God; there is none apart from me.”

But [Esau forgot that] of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, Elohim hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent [the tempting power of Esau that works through the sexual organs, i.e. Scorpio] said unto the woman [sexual organ], Ye shall not surely die: For Elohim doth know that in the day ye eat thereof [from the sexual power], then your [spiritual] eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as Elohim, knowing good and evil. - Genesis 3: 3-5

“When he said this [claiming to be God], he sinned [fornicated] against the entirety [the Ain Soph Aur]. And this speech got up to Incorruptibility [Christ in Daath]; then there was a voice [the Logos, which is Greek for “word”] that came forth from incorruptibility, saying, "You are mistaken, Samael" – which [in Scorpio] is, "god of the [spiritually] blind."

"In the beginning was the Word [the voice], and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made." – John 1:1-3

The voice is the Word, the Logos, whic is three in one: the upper trinity on the Tree of Life: Kether, Chokmah, and Binah. These three in one are the Cosmic Universal Christ, the Inccorruptible.

In Scorpio, "Samael" is "Aun Weor" which means, "the sexual strength of the Light", which - in any fornicator - is the inverted or fallen force of the sexual power. [Learn more about the meaning of the name Samael here: The Name Samael].

His thoughts [influence by Esau, that impure blood from the liver] became blind [to Eden; to holiness and purity]. And, having expelled his [semen or sexual] power - that is, the blasphemy he had spoken [against the Holy Ghost] - he pursued it [the expelled semen, which being corrupt now descends] down to chaos and the abyss, his mother, at the instigation of Pistis Sophia. And she [the chaos, the abyss, his mother] established each of his offspring in [Klipoth, in] conformity with its [polluted] power - after the pattern of the Aeons [Sephiroth] that are above, for by starting from the invisible world the visible world [Malkuth] was invented [as above, so below].

Jesus as Christ stated: "All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come. Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit." - Matthew 12:30-33

[From Daath] Incorruptibility looked down into the region of the waters [of Yesod]. Her image [Tzalem of God] was reflected in the waters [of Yesod], and the authorities of [Klipoth] the darkness fell [lustfully] in love with her. But they could not grasp the image [Tzalem of God] that appeared to them in the [sexual] waters [of Yesod], because of their weakness [as perverted fornicators] - since beings that merely possess an [animal] soul cannot lay hold of those that possess a spirit [of God or Ruach Elohim]- for they were from below [from Klipoth], while the image [the Tzalem of God] was from [Daath] above. This is why incorruptibility looked down [from Daath] into the region [of Yesod]: so that, by the father's will [Thelema from above], she [the sexual power] might bring all of [the particles of the consciousness of] them into union with the light.

Creation: Adam and Eve

The rulers [the Elohim] made plans and said, "Come, let us create a human [Adam] of [the spiritual components of] soil [seat, foundation, Yesod] from the earth [or Humus (Latin for “earth,” root of “human”), or Adamah (Hebrew for “ground,” root of Adam; earth is a symbol of the physical body; in other words, we need a physical body in order to create Adam within]." They [the Elohim] formed their creature as one [septuple in constitution, having seven bodies, but integrated] wholly [being] of [the spiritual components of] the earth [Malkuth, physical body].   

Now the rulers [the Elohim or spiritual beings] have [androgynous] bodies that are both male and female [divine soul and human soul] and faces of [four] beasts.

About the seven bodies:

1. Chesed (Sanskrit: Atman) is the Heavenly Man spoken of by Paul. He has two souls:
2. Geburah (Sanskrit: Buddhi): feminine soul, related to Neshamah, the spiritual soul; also known as Guinevere, Valkyrie, or Helen
3. Tiphereth (Sanskrit: Manas): masculine soul, who descends into matter as the Essence.

These three are the Monad.

Spirit, two Souls and four Beasts

"Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man. And every one had four faces, and every one had four wings. And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf's foot: and they sparkled like the color of burnished brass.

"And they had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides; and they four had their faces and their wings. Their wings were joined one to another; they turned not when they went; they went every one straight forward.

"As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the face of an eagle." - Ezekiel 1: 5-10

These are:

1. Netzach: mental body - eagle
2. Hod: emotional body   -  lion
3. Yesod: vital body          - man
4. Malkuth: physical body - ox

In the Elohim (the Archons) these are Solar Bodies, also known as the Chaioth ha Kadosh: the Holy Creatures. See Revelation 4:6-7.

[In sexual transmutation] They had taken some [spiritual components of the Ruach Elohim of the] soil [seat, foundation, Yesod] from the earth [or Humus, Adamah, Malkuth, physical body] and modeled their human after their [Nephesh] body [of desires] and after the image [or Tzalem] of God that had appeared to them in the [sexual] waters [of Yesod].

They [the Elohim or spiritual beings then] said, "Come, let us grasp the [superior] image [or Neshamah] by means of the [androgynous] human that we have modeled, so that it [Neshamah] may see its male counterpart [...], and we may seize it with the form that we have modeled." They did not understand [Neshamah] the force of God, because of their weakness.  

Jesus said unto them [the terrestrial Archons], Are you masters of Israel, and do not know these things? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things? And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up. - John 3:10-14

And [so, through the Venustic Initiations] he [Samael, the Lamb, the Logos of Aries] breathed [Aleph] into his face; and the human came to have a [Christ] soul [and remained] upon the ground many days. But they could not make him arise because of their weakness. Like storm winds they persisted [in blowing Aleph], that they might try to capture that [Neshamah] image, which [through the Venustic Initiations] had appeared to them [in superior octaves] in the waters [of Yesod]. And they did not know what its [Christic] power was.

All these things came to pass by the will of the Father of the entirety [the Ain Soph Aur].

Later, the [Son, the Christ] Spirit saw the soul-endowed man upon (Adamah) the ground (mingled with the weakness of the terrestrial Archons). And the [Son, the Christ] Spirit came forth from the Adamantine [indestructible] Land [of Chokmah]; it descended [into Klipoth in order to liberate Pistis Sophia from their weakness] and came to dwell within him, and that human became a living soul. It called his name Adam, since he was found moving upon the ground [adamah].

A voice [the Logos] came forth from incorruptibility for the assistance of Adam; and the rulers gathered together all the animals [Nephesh, animas: souls, consciousness] of the earth and all the birds [Ruach, souls, consciousness] of heaven and brought them in [or joined them] to Adam to see what Adam would call them, that he might give a name [cognizance] to each of the birds [Ruach] and all the beasts [Nephesh].

They [all of the self-realized parts] took Adam [with cognizance] and put him in the garden [or resurrected body], that he might cultivate it and keep watch over it. And the rulers issued a command to him, saying, "From every tree in the garden [the physical immortal body] shall you eat; yet from the tree of knowledge of good and evil [sex] do not eat, nor touch it; for the day [that as a behemoth or beast] you eat from it, with death you are going to die."

They [said] this, but they did not [objectively] understand what they said to him; rather, by the father's [Kether’s] will, they said this in such a way that he might [in fact] eat [and thus acquire more objective reasoning], and that Adam might <not> regard them as would a man of an exclusively material nature.

Therefore] The rulers planned together and said, "Come, let us cause a deep sleep to fall upon Adam." And he slept. The deep sleep that they "caused to fall upon him, and he slept" is ignorance [of the unknowable divine]. They opened his side [...] like a living woman. And they built up his side with some flesh in place of her, and Adam came to be endowed only with soul.

And [Neshamah] the woman of spirit came to him and spoke with him, saying, "Arise, Adam."

When he saw her [his Neshamah], he said, "It is you who have given me life; you will be called [Chavah, Eve] 'mother of the living' [because Neshamah is part of the Monad: or Chesed, Geburah and Tiphereth]. - For it is she [Neshamah] who is my mother. It is she who is the physician, and the woman, and she who (in Daath) has given birth [to the Son of Man]."

The Garden

This section concerns the physical body of those who have not left Eden. Only those who have left Eden - through abusing the Tree of Knowledge: sex - die, for due to such a crime Jehovah said “thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken; for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.' Those who remain in "the Garden" remain in an immortal physical body.

Adam and Eve are symbols with many levels of application; in this case, dealing with the body, Adam represents the brain, and Eve represents the sexual organs.

Then the authorities [of the kingdom of Edom] approached their Adam [brain]. When they saw his female partner [creative sexual force] speaking with him [feeding him with Wisdom], they became aroused and enamored of her. They said to one another, "Come, let us ejaculate our semen in her," and they chased her [through the bloodstream]. She [Neshamah] laughed at them for their witlessness and their blindness. Then, in their clutches she became a tree [Daath], and left [in Yesod] before them her shadowy reflection [Nephesh: animal soul] resembling herself; and they defiled it foully [through the orgasm]. They defiled [in Yesod] the seal [of chastity] of her voice [Word/Logos in Daath], so that by the form they had modeled, together with their [own lustful] image, they made themselves liable to condemnation.

Then [Geburah / Neshamah] the female spiritual principle came in form of the serpent, the instructor. It taught them, saying, "What did he [the superior or heavenly aspect of Samael; in Aries] say to you? Was it, 'From every tree in the garden [the physical immortal body] shall you eat; yet - from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil [sex] do not eat'?"

The woman of flesh [or sexual creative organ] said, "Not only did he say 'Do not eat', but even 'Do not touch it; for the day you eat from it [as a Behemoth, beast], with [the second] death you are going to die.'"

"Behold now behemoth... Lo now, his strength is in his loins..." - Job 40:15-16

And the snake, the instructor, said, "With [the second] death you shall not die; for it was out of jealousy that he said this to you. Rather your [spiritual] eyes shall open and you shall come to be like gods, recognizing evil and good." And the female instructing principle [Geburah / Neshamah] was taken away from the snake [sexual power], and she left it behind [Nephesh, which is] merely a thing of the earth.

And the carnal woman [or sexual creative organ] took from the tree and ate [reached the orgasm of the beasts]; and she [absorbed and] gave [trillions of satanic atoms collected from the authorities of the kingdom of Edom] to [Adam, the brain] her husband as well as herself; thus [only] these beings [terrestrial men] that possessed only an [animal] soul [Nephesh], ate. And their imperfection became apparent in their lack of knowledge [from Neshamah, the spiritual soul]; and they recognized that they were naked of the spiritual element [Neshamah], and took fig leaves [symbol of the feminine sexual principle] and bound them upon their loins [to show the cause of their shame].

Then the [solar emanations from the] leader [or Nous Atom] of the Archons came [through the bloodstream]; and he said, "Adam! Where are you?" - for he did not understand what had happened [to the brain]. And Adam [the brain] said, "I heard your voice [or Logos through the bloodstream] and was afraid because I was naked [without Neshamah]; and I hid [in ignorance]."

The ruler [Nous Atom] said, "Why did you hide [in ignorance], unless it is because you have [fornicated, that is, you have] eaten from the tree [sex] from which alone I commanded you not to eat? And you have eaten [as a Behemoth, as a beast]!"

Adam [the brain] said, "The woman [sexual organ] that you gave me [as a feeder of your light], she gave to me [as a Behemoth] and I ate [absorbed lustful animal atoms]." And the arrogant ruler [already polluted with satanic atoms through the bloodstream] cursed the woman [sexual organ with its poisoned blood].

The [instinctive force of the] woman [sexual organ] said, "It was the snake [sexual power] that led me astray and I ate [as a Behemoth]." They [the Christic Solar atoms of the bloodstream] turned to the snake [sexual power] and cursed [Nephesh] its shadowy reflection, [...] powerless, not comprehending that it was a form they themselves had modeled [through the bloodstream]. From that day, the snake [sexual power] came to be under the curse of the authorities [of the bloodstream]; until the all-powerful man [from Daath] was to come, that curse fell upon the snake [sexual power].

They [through the bloodstream] turned to their Adam [the brain] and took him and expelled him from the garden [or physical divine state] along with his wife [creative sexual power]; for they have no blessing [in Eden, the fourth dimension], since they [through the bloodstream] too are beneath the curse. Moreover, they [through the bloodstream] threw mankind into great distraction and into a life of toil, so that their mankind might be occupied by worldly affairs, and might not have the opportunity of being devoted to the Holy Spirit [in Daath].

The Children of Adam and Eve

Now afterwards, she [the creative sexual power] bore Cain [subjective reasoning], their son; and Cain cultivated the [tridimensional] land. Thereupon he [the brain] knew his wife [sexual organ]; again becoming pregnant [through sexual transmutation], she bore Abel; and Abel was a herdsman of sheep [solar atoms]. Now Cain [the subjective mind] brought in from the crops of his [tridimensional] field, but Abel [through sexual alchemy] brought in an offering [from] among his lambs [solar atoms]. God [the Innermost, through the Nous atom] looked upon the votive offerings of Abel; but he did not accept the votive offerings of Cain. And carnal Cain pursued Abel, his brother.

And God [the Innermost] said to Cain, "Where is Abel, your brother?"

He answered saying, "Am I [the subjective reasoning], then, my brother's keeper?"

God said to Cain, "Listen! [From the heart] The voice [Logos] of your brother's blood is crying up to me!

You have sinned with your mouth [because those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the (protoplasmic mind into the impure blood of the liver and into the) heart; and (through the bloodstream) they defile the man (Adam, the brain)-. For out of the (impure blood of the) heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the (impure) things (from the venom blood of the liver) which defile a man (Adam, the brain) - Matthew 15: 18-20; thus]. It [the effect, karma] will return to you [through your bloodstream's cycle; therefore]: anyone who kills Cain [the subjective reasoning of the mind] will (have to) let loose seven vengeances (seven fires), and you will exist groaning and trembling upon the [tridimensional] earth (with a lot of karma)."

"Seven holy centers exist within the heart. Each one of our seven serpents is intimately related with a chamber of the heart. Our disciples must have a system of purification and sanctification. The heart is the abode of our Innermost (Sephirah Chesed)" – The Mysteries of Fire by Samael Aun Weor

"It is necessary to unite the mind and the heart by means of fire. The heart and the head must march in perfect equilibrium. The heart and the head must march equilibrated. The heart and the head must march in perfect harmony. This is possible only by uniting the heart and the head by means of fire.

"An avenue, a road and certain secret chambers exist from the middlebrow to the heart. Here is where the fire must pass through...

"It is impossible for the heart and the mind to be equilibrated and in harmony without the power of the fire.

"Spiritualists from all schools talk about the equilibrium between mind and heart. Yet, it is impossible for the mind and the heart to be equilibrated without the power of the fire.

"The head and the heart are united only by means of the Kundalini. The fire connects the mind with the Divine Triad, which resides in the heart. The mind gives us the bread of wisdom when it is connected with the heart by means of the fire.

"The mental man resides in the head whereas the Heavenly Man resides in the heart.

"It is necessary to unite the mental man with the Heavenly Man by means of the fire. The Kundalini unites mind and heart.

"Intellectuals are morally depraved beings because they move themselves only under the direction of the Guardian of the Threshold of their Mental Body. They do not hear the voice of the Heavenly Man who resides in the heart. The mind must convert itself into an instrument of the heart.

"We must learn how to think with the heart. The mind must flow delectably with the exquisite feeling of the heart. The mind must become lovely and simple. The wisdom of the heart illuminates the mind. The wisdom of the heart is placed in the chalice of the mind as the blood of redemption.

"The mind of the Arhat is symbolized by the Holy Grail. The heart’s love is the Summum of Wisdom. " – Igneous Rose by Samael Aun Weor

And Adam [the brain] knew [through sexual alchemy] his female counterpart Eve [sexual organ], and she became [psychologically] pregnant, and bore Seth [Hebrew: Shin-Tav: the seal of the fires of the heart] to Adam [the brain]. And she said, "I have borne another man [mind or reasoning] through God, in place of Abel."

Again Eve [sexual creative force] became pregnant, and she bore Norea [Urania-Venus, the mother of the Son of Man]. And she said, "He [Binah, Jehovah Elohim through Nous] has begotten on me a virgin as an assistance for [eight = infinite] many generations of mankind." She is [five] the virgin whom the forces did not defile.

The Flood

Then mankind began to multiply and improve [in knowledge]. The rulers [of Klipoth] took counsel with one another and said, "Come, let us cause a deluge [impure sexual waters: pornography, etc] with our hands and obliterate all flesh, from human to beast [intellectual animal]." But when the ruler of the [solar] forces came to know of their decision, he [through Gnosis] said to Noah [Nous Atom], "Make yourself an ark [Arcanum: secret] from some wood [of the tree of knowledge of good and evil] that does not rot [from lust] and hide in it - you and your children [your solar bodies] and the beasts [Nephesh] and the birds [Ruach] of heaven from small to large - and set it upon Mount Sir."

Then Norea [Urania-Venus, the mother of the Son of Man] came to him, wanting to board the ark [to rise as light through the great Arcanum]. And when he would not let her, she blew upon the ark and caused it to be consumed by fire [the seven serpents of fire, also known as the Major Mysteries]. Again he made the ark, for a second time [this time: the seven serpent of light].

The rulers [of Klipoth] went to meet her [at Yesod], intending to lead her astray. Their supreme chief [in the coccyx] said to her, "Your mother Eve [sexual organ] came to us." But Norea [Urania-Venus, the mother of the Son of Man] turned to them and said to them, "It is you who are the rulers of the darkness [of Klipoth]; you are accursed. And you did not know my mother [Neshamah]; instead it was your female counterpart [Nephesh] that you knew. For I am not your descendant; rather it is from [Daath] the world above that I am come."

Eleleth Teaches Norea

The <great> angel [Samael] came down from the heavens [of Aries] and said to her, "Why are you crying up to God? Why do you act so boldly towards the Holy Spirit?"

Norea said, "Who are you?" The rulers of unrighteousness had withdrawn from her.

He said, "It is I who am Eleleth [self-begotten God], sagacity, the great angel who stands in the presence of the Holy Spirit. I have been sent to speak with you and save you from the grasp of the lawless. And I shall teach you about your root."

[Norea apparently now speaking] Now as for that angel, I cannot speak of his power: his appearance is like fine gold and his raiment is like snow. No, truly, my mouth cannot bear to speak of his power and the appearance of his face!     Eleleth [self begotten God], the great angel, spoke to me. "It is I," he said, "who am understanding [Hebrew: Binah]. I am one of the four light-givers, who stand in the presence of the great invisible spirit. Do you think these rulers have any power over you? None of them can prevail against the root of truth; for on its account he appeared in the final ages; and these authorities will be restrained. And these authorities cannot defile you and that generation; for your abode is in incorruptibility, where the virgin spirit dwells, who is superior to the authorities of chaos and to their universe."

But I said, "Sir, teach me about the faculty of these [Klipothic] authorities - how did they come into being, and by what kind of genesis, and of what material, and who created them and their force?"

And the great angel Eleleth [self-begotten God], understanding, spoke to me:

"Within limitless realms dwells incorruptibility [the Ain Soph Aur]. Sophia [Wisdom], who is called Pistis [Objective Intellectuality], wanted to create something, alone without her consort; and her product was a celestial thing. A veil exists between the world above [the Absolute] and the realms that are below [the Sephiroth]; and [in Klipoth] shadow came into being beneath the veil; and that shadow became [polluted] matter; and that shadow was projected apart [into the abyss]. And what she had created became a product in the [protoplasmic] matter, like an aborted fetus. And it assumed a plastic form molded out of shadow, and became an arrogant beast resembling a lion [or bestial fiery lustful ego]. It was androgynous, as I have already said, because it was from matter that it derived.

Opening his eyes, he [Esau, the poisonous blood] saw [in Yesod] a vast quantity of matter without limit; and he became arrogant, saying, "It is I who [through sex] am God, and there is none other apart from me". When he said this [claiming to be God], he sinned [fornicated] against the entirety [the Ain Soph Aur]. And a voice [the Logos, which is Greek for "word"] came forth from above the realm of absolute power, saying, "You are mistaken, Samael" - which [in Scorpio] is, "god of the [spiritually] blind [made blind by lust and pride]."

And he said, "If any other thing exists before me [Esau, the poisonous blood], let it become visible to me!" And immediately Sophia [through the Nous atom] stretched forth her finger [through the bloodstream] and introduced [solar] light into matter; and she [the solar light] pursued it down to the region of [the liver, the] chaos [from Klipoth]. And she returned up to her light [in the heart]; once again darkness [from the liver and through the bloodstream] [...] [corrupted the] matter.

This ruler [in the bloodstream], by being androgynous, made himself a vast realm, an extent without limit. And he contemplated creating offspring for himself, and created for himself seven [capital sins as] offspring, androgynous just like their parent. And he said to his offspring, "It is I [lust] who am god of the entirety."

And Zoe [Life], the daughter of Pistis Sophia, cried out and said to him, "You are mistaken, Sakla!" - for which the alternative name is Yaldabaoth [demon of lust]. She breathed into his face [the Aleph of God], and her breath became a fiery [solar] angel for her; and that angel bound Yaldabaoth [all of the ego] and cast him down into [Klipoth] Tartaros below the abyss.

Now when his offspring Sabaoth [host of darkness] saw the force of that [solar] angel, he repented and condemned his father and his mother, [protoplasmic] matter. He loathed her, but he [meditated on his weakness, that is] he sang songs of praise up to Sophia and her daughter Zoe. And Sophia and Zoe [through annihilation of the ego] caught him up and gave him charge of the seventh heaven [Chesed], below the veil between above and below [which is Daath]. And he is called 'God of the forces, Sabaoth', since he is up above the forces of chaos [he is a Buddha], for Sophia [wisdom] established him [as Chasmalim or enlightened one].

Now when these [events] had come to pass, he made himself a huge four-faced chariot of cherubim [Chaioth Ha Kadosh], and infinitely many angels to act as ministers, and also harps and lyres. And Sophia [Wisdom, Chokmah] took her daughter Zoe [Christic life] and had her sit upon his right to teach him about the things that exist in the eighth [heaven] [the heaven of Binah, the creator]; and the angel of wrath [Geburah: Samael] she placed upon his left. Since that day, his right has been called 'life'; and the left has come to represent the unrighteousness of the realm of absolute power above. It was before your time that they came into being.

Now when Yaldabaoth [the rulers of Klipoth] saw him [Sabaoth] in this great splendor [as Buddha or Chasmalim] and at this height, he envied him; and the envy became an androgynous product, and this was the origin of envy [Simonianism]. And envy engendered death; and death engendered his offspring and gave each of them charge of its heaven [the Mental Plane]; and all the heavens of chaos [Klipoth] became full of their multitudes. But it was by the will [solar creative force] of the father of the entirety [the Ain Soph Aur] that they all came into being - after the pattern of all the things above - so that the sum of chaos might be attained.

"There, I have taught you about the pattern of the rulers [of Klipoth]; and the matter in which it was expressed; and their parent; and their universe."

But I said, "Sir, am I also from their [protoplasmic] matter?"

"You, together with your offspring, are from the primeval father [the Ain Soph]; from above, out of the imperishable light [the Ain Soph Aur], their souls are come. Thus the [Klipothic] authorities cannot approach them, because of the spirit of truth present within them; and all who have become acquainted with this way exist deathless in the midst of dying mankind [the fornicating mankind]. Still, that sown element will not become known now. Instead, after three [solar] generations [physical, vital, astral] it will come to be known, and it has freed them from the bondage of the [Klipothic] authorities' error."

Then I said, "Sir, how much longer?"

He said to me, "Until the moment when the true man [the Son of Man], within a modeled form, reveals the existence of the spirit of truth [Christ], which the father [the Ain Soph Aur] has sent.

Then he will teach them about everything, and he will anoint them with the unction of life eternal, given him from the undominated generation [of the Absolute].

Then they will be freed of blind thought, and they will trample underfoot death, which is of the authorities [of Klipoth], and they will ascend into the limitless light [the Ain Soph Aur] where this sown element belongs.

Then the [Klipothic] authorities will relinquish their ages, and their angels will weep over their destruction, and their demons will lament their [second] death.

Then all the children of the light [of the Ain Soph Aur] will be truly acquainted with the truth and their root, and the father of the entirety and the Holy Spirit. They will all say with a single voice, 'The father's truth [Kether] is just, and the son [Christ / Chokmah] presides over the entirety," and from everyone unto the ages of ages, "Holy - holy - holy [Lord of Sabaoth]! Amen!'"