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a terrible effect on all who beheld it. At first the sun appeared with dark green and somewhat mixed
colors, but at last he turned black as coal, and the heaven, as well as the earth, became dark. Then
the people were very much alarmed, but I was glad in my heart, and thought of the great mercy of
God and of the new birth, to which Christ s fable of the kernel of wheat refers, and how the seed is
decomposed and absorbed by the germ that grows out of it. and- that lf this did not take place it could,
not grow and bear fruit. And an arm reached out through the clouds, and my body began to tremble,
for that arm held a letter in its hand. to which were attached four hanging seals, and in that letter was
written, I am black, but I am Iovely, O you daughters of Jerusalem. I am like tlte houses of Kedar,
and like the carpets of Solomon. Do not despise me because I am black, for the sun has burned my face.
But as soon as that which was fixed began to act in the fluid, a rainbow appeared, and I thought
of the covenant which the Supreme had made, and of the fidelity of my guide who had instructed me,
and the result was that by the assistance of the planets and fixed stars, the sun overcame the darkness,
and a bright day appeared over the mountains and valleys. Then all fear and terror was over, and all
who had lived to see that day were glad and rejoiced. They praised the Lord, and said: The winter
is gone, the rain has disappeared, the flowers have come forth all over the country; the spring has
arrived, and the cry of the turtle-dove is heard in the forest. The fig-tree and the grape-vine have
sprouted and send out their fragrance. Therefore let us hasten and catch the foxes, the little foxes
which are despoiling our vineyard, so that we may gather ripe grapes, full of artificial wine, and
obtain milk and honey, and feast and be filled.
And when the day was on the decline, and the evening appeared, the entire sky became colored, and
the constellation of the Seven Stars arose, and emitted yellow rays. The night ran through its regular
course, until the morning was dispersed by the red rays of the sun. Then the wise men of. the country
awoke from their sleep, looked toward the sky, and said: Who is she that comes forth like the glory
of the morning, beautiful as the moon, excellent like the sun, and witltout a blemish? The glow of
her cheeks is fiery and a flame of the Lord, and many waters cannot extinguish her love, nor would
the contents of all the rivers be sufficient to drown her. Therefore we will not desert her, for she is
our sister, and athough she has become little and has no breasts, we will take her again into her
24
In the realm of the mind caused by a wave of material thought; by an overshadowing of the sun of intuition by superficial reasoning,
false logic and sophistry.
20 THE SECRET SYMBOLS OF THE ROSICRUCIANS
mother s house, into the crystal chamber in which she has dwelled before, so that she may be nourished
by the breasts of her mother. Then she will grow and go forth like the tower of David with its
parapets and battlements, on which are hanging a thousand shields and weapons for the strong.
And as she came out of her palace, the daughters praised her, and the queens and concubines admired
her and extolled her virtue, but I fell down upon my face, thanked God and praised his holy name.
Thus, O you followers of the truth, the great mystery of the sages and the revelation of the
spirit has now been accomplished in all its power and glory. Theophrastus Paracelsus, the great mon-
arch in the kingdom of mind, in his Apocalypsis Hermetis, says that this mysterious essence is contained
in the beginning and the end of the world. In its power rest the elements and the Fifth Substance;25
it adapts the elements and the spirit to each other, and truly overcomes the resistance of the former.
It is the sole Noumen, a unity, a divine and wonderful activity. No eye has ever seen, no ear has
heard, and into the heart of no mortal has ever penetrated, that which heaven has incorporated into
this spirit of truth. In this mystery alone is the truth, and it has therefore been called the voice of
the truth. It is the power out of which Adam and the old patriarchs, Abraham, Isaak, and Jacob, have
obtained the Elixir of Life and great riches. By the power of this spirit the ancient philosophers have
discovered the seven free arts and filled their treasuries with gold. By the power of this spirit did
Noah build bis ark, Moses his tabernacle, Solomon his temple, and mold the golden vesseIs that were
used therein. Esdras restored the law by its power, and it is said that its possession enabled Maria,
the sister of Moses, to be very hospitabl.e to strangers. This spirit was universally used among the
ancient prophets: it is an Universal Panacea for all diseasses of body and mind, the last and the highest
mystery of Nature. It is the spirit of Good that fills the infinite universe, and that moved upon the face
of the waters in the beginning. The wprld cannot conceive of it without the mysterious and gra-
cious inspiration of the Holy Ghost, or without the secret instruction of those to whom it is known;
but the whole world needs it, and desires it and cannot exist without it; its value cannot be over-
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