The Sword of Song

AMBROSII MAGI HORTIS ROSARUM 87 With the poison he gave also in offering a stag and a maiden. But about the noon came one shining unto our Father and gave him to drink from a dull and heavy bowl. And this was a liquor potent and heavy, by’r lady ! So that our Father sank into deep sleep and dreamed a dream, and in that m irific dream it seemed unto him that the walls of all things slid into and acros s each other, s o that he feared greatly, for the stability of the universe is the great enemy; the unstable being the ever- lasting, saith Adhou Bim Aram, the Arab. O Elmen Zata, our Sophic Pilaster ! Further in the dream there was let down from heaven a mighty tessaract, bounded by eight cubes, whereon sat a mighty dolphin having eight senses. Further, he beheld a cavern full of most ancient bones of men, and therein a lion with the voice of a dog. Then came a voice: “Thirteen1 are they, who are one. Once is a oneness : twice is the Name: thrice let us say not : by four is the S on : by five is the Sword : by six is the Holy Oil of the most Excellent B eard, and the leaves of the Book are by six : by seven is that great Amen.” Then our Father saw one hundred and four horses that drove an ivory car over a sea of pearl, and they received him therein and bade him be comforted. With that he awoke and saw that he would have all his desi re. In the m orning therefore he arose and went his way into the desert. There he clomb an high rock and called forth the eagles, that th eir shadow floating over the desert should be as a book that men might read it. The shadows wrote and the sun recorded ; and on this wise cometh it to pass, O my Brethren, that by darkness and by sunlight y e will still learn ever these the Arcana of our Science. Lo ! who learneth by moonlight, he is the lucky one ! So our Father, having thus founded the Order, and our sacred Book being opened, rested awhile and beheld ma ny wonders, the like of which were never yet told. But ever chiefly his study was to reduce unto eight things his many. And thus , O Brethren of our Venerable Order, he at last succeeded. Those who know not will learn little herein: y et that they m ay be shamed all shall be put forth at this tim e clearly before them all, with no obscurity nor obfuscation in the exposition thereof. Writing this, saith our Father to m e, the Humblest and oldest of all his disciples, write as the story of m y Quintessential Quest, m y Spagy ric Wandering, my Philosophical Going. Write plainly unto the Brethren, quoth he, for m any be little and weak ; and thy hard words and m uch learning may confound them. Therefore I write thus plainly to y ou. M ark well that y e read me aright ! Our Father (blessed be his name !) en tered the Path on this wise. He cut off three from ten : 2 thus he left seven. He cut and left three: he cut and left one : he cut and became. Thus fourfold. Eightfold.3 He opened his ey es : he cleansed his hear t: he chained his tongue : he fixed 1 Achad, unity, adds to thirteen. Ther e follow attributions of the “ thirteen times table.” 2 These are the Buddhist “paths of enlightment.” 3 The eightfold path. The rest is very obscure. Somnium Auri Potabilis. Tredecim Voces. Ordinis In- ceptio. Vitae. Viae.