I have been doing all this in short snippets in order to force a close reading. We have about ten more pieces of essentially literary work.
This is another hymn in praise perhaps as the sun is setting.
I suspect that it could be chanted.
What is accepted here is a clear hierarchy of spirit. There is GOD integral to all and there is spirit associated with driving life on earth. Yet all this feeds a natural zonation which we have already identified. Earth spirits can rise through Earth angels and Archangels and that is really as far as we can perceive. yet all seem on a continuum rather than a real step ladder..
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
THE SUNSETTING HYMN FROM THE BOOK OF SONGS
O Great God, unbounded by earthly limitations.
Your Will is an eternal mystery and Your deeds confound the minds of men. Men
worship You, the lesser gods pay due homage, while they who are between gods
and men devote themselves to Your service. Highest of Gods, Lord of Men,
Ancient Lord of Life and Light, Creator of the Tree of Life, who made the herb
and fruit to nourish men and grass to feed the cattle; who perfumed the flowers
and gave birds their gay plumage. Hail to The Supreme Power and Spirit! .
Maker of all that exists in all the spheres
above and below, the essence of whose Spirit is in all things. Ruler of all the
regions of light and Master of the nether regions. Great Fountainhead of Wisdom
whose abode is in Truth, who fashioned men so they accord with Your own nature;
who gave rare abilities to animals and instilled cunning knowledge into insects;
who chose the colours of the flowers and the songs of the birds. O Veiled One
whose sanctuary is hidden in the breasts of men, whose temple is open to the
Heavens and hxmg about with the stars. O Mighty One, hear the cry of my spirit
as it seeks nourishment from the divine source Hail to The Supreme Power and
Spirit!
Great Fashioner of Earthly Things, who came into
being before all else, whose sacred name none can know, whose likeness is not
displayed in writings and whose image is not carved in wood or stone; whose
eyes were the pattern for the sight of men and whose sensitivity generated
their touch; whose tongue gave speech to the little gods; who made the herbage
for cattle and the waterweed for fish; who feeds even the worms and insects and
quickens the life within the egg; who fashioned wild fruits for the birds and
wild seed for the mice; who sustains the lifeforce within every living thing,
up to the heights of Heaven, across the wide breadth of Earth, down to the very
depths of the sea. O save me from that which is beneath the Earth and from
those upon the Earth who would work wickedness against me. Hear me, and, my
God, I shall praise You, my voice will rise up to Heaven and roll right across
the Earth. All those who ply the great mothering river shall hear its echoes. I
will tell of Your goodness and greatness to my children and to their children.
My words will resound down through the generations as yet unborn. Respond to
me, O Great One, as I seek to commune in the silence. My desire is to learn,
but You are too mysterious for men to understand. Hail to The Supreme Power and
Spirit!
O help my soul to rectify its evil deed and
balance them with good. Destroy every form of evil which clings to me, and let
there be nothing in my soul to cause malformation and thus estrange me from my
friends who have departed to dwell in the happy Land of Dawn. Let brightness be
my new life's birthright and let my spirit be ever light. Hail to The Supreme
Power and Spirit!
The great dome of Heaven rises above and no man
knows its limitations. The broad Earth is spread wide and no man knows its
boundaries. Man cannot fathom it all, O God who is great, have compassion on my
littleness.
[ important - this does not reflect a spherical understanding of the earth which may actually be medieval, although again no mariner would accept it. - arclein ]
[ important - this does not reflect a spherical understanding of the earth which may actually be medieval, although again no mariner would accept it. - arclein ]
Bear Patiently with my blunderings and overlook
my ignorance. Your reach is so great and mine is so small, help me to know You
for myself I am helpless and lost. Hail to The Supreme Power and Spirit!
O Great God, who brings comfort to the prisoner,
peace to the tormented; who strengthens the fearful and adjust the scales
between the weak and the strong. Strengthen my desire to understand Your great
purpose. O Sole God whose tears vitalize the hearts of men, in reverence and
humility my spirit awaits Your command, my Creator and my Light. Hail to The
Supreme Power and Spirit!
O Great Craftsman, who fashioned man so
wonderfully; who brought together the elements of the Earth and transmuted them
so mysteriously; who created with such diversity that no two things are exactly
alike, give your servant some task, that he may accomplish it to Your glory. O
Provident Benefactor, who provides sustenance for the beasts of the wilderness
and fills the storehouses of men; who placed the great metals in the bosom of
the Earth, that man might draw them forth, let not my body go naked, nor my sleeping
place be destroyed. Accept my homage, O God of Truth, who lives down through
the ages of time which make up the everlasting Circle of
Eternity. Hail to The Supreme Power and Spirit!
O Powerful God, whose wrath lit up the vaults of
Heaven and whose fire devoured the wicked in olden times; whose whirlwind swept
clean the Earth; who lifted the seas and dashed them against the mountains. O
let not the great forces of Earth afflict me. Hold them fast in Your hand, that
they may not crush me as the chariot crushes the ant. Hail to The Supreme Power
and Spirit!
Having an affinity with You, my soul knows You
and rejoices in the knowledge. It hears You and is at peace. It opens in
response to Your warmth as the lotus, and awakens softly as the day opens its
eye to the night. My soul knows what I know not. It sees into hidden places and
understands deep mysteries. Let me know its nature better, that it may instruct
me in wisdom. My soul swells with gratitude towards The Bounteous Being who
causes all things to be which fulfil all desires. My God is not graven in
marble or stone. He is not shaped in wood or cast in copper. He has neither
offerings nor ministrations. My God is a god of quiet places and silences.
He is found where the wild winds blow and the
gay flowers blossom, away from the habitations of men. He is not worshipped in
temples and His praises are not sung by the unthinking multitude. My God is a
constant companion, He lives quietly in the homes and hearts of men. His true
abode is unknown. He has no painted shrine, no building fashioned by the hands
of men could contain Him. Hail to The Supreme Power and Spirit!
O Ever Watchful God, The All Seeing One, if
aught be done or concealed in the darkness of the night it shall be known to
You. O Supreme Power, who alone can deflect the Awesome Ones of Heaven from
their path of destruction; who alone can turn aside the sky boulders and break
the winds of the hurricane, I acknowledge You as my Sole God, The Guide of my
ways and The Guardian of my Life. I will call upon You by Your names of Power.
I give You Your degrees, O Lord Over the Thrones of Earth, Director of the
Destinies of Nations, Ancient Dweller in the Heavens, Lord of Existence, Lord
of Terrors, Master of the Hidden Spheres, Commander of the Universal Hosts,
Lord of The Law wherein Your will is manifested. Victor in the Skyfight,
Creator of Hidden Desires of the Soul, Great One who mysteriously fashions His
body as men fashion their souls. Giver of Life to souls, by whose breath they
awaken. Selector of the Generative Substances, Transformer of Matter, Keeper of
the Eternal Essences, Ruler of the Spirits in their Spheres. He who hears the
prayer of the prisoner; who stands between the weak and the strong. Lord of
Fertility for whom the great mothering river flows and the waters rise. Lord of
the Tree of Life, Emperor of the Sacred Spheres, who dispenses the Celestial
Substance, who directs the Thunderbolts; who pilots the stars in the skyways;
who overlooks the Watchers in the Night, Great Guardian of Hidden Things and
Master of the Divine Secrets, whose domain is shrouded in mystery; who makes
tender the hearts of women and makes stem the faces of men. Dweller in Deep
Obscurity whose sanctuary is infinite; who died in the effort of creation and
was reborn in the soul of man. Great God, whose face shall be revealed in the
future, when all men are wise, grant me Your Truth and Peace Divine. Hail to
The Supreme Power of Spirit!
Though I falter on the way and fail at the task,
despise me not. I try but success eludes me. I seek but cannot find. I am so
small and You are so great that I cannot span the gulf between, unless You
incline towards me. O Great Spirit, how near men are to You in reality! Through
the darkness of ignorance greater than night they have groped a way to You. You
alone are addressed in the prayers of men. To whatever men pray You alone hear
their petitions, You alone can answer them. Only for You are their words of
praise fitting. O Great One, enter into the hearts of men and renew the bond
with their souls. Hail to The Supreme Power and Spirit!
O Mysterious God hidden in time. Great Ruler of
the Ages, we who caimot know more than the smallest part of Your creation turn
to You for help and enlightenment. If it be Your will that man should struggle
towards understanding and strive for knowledge, then so be it. Man will do
whatever he must do, but, O Great God, be patient with him in his failures and
failings. Hail to The Supreme Power and Spirit!
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