6  The Basement Level

When a written body of work evolves such as this one, it can be difficult to decide what to keep and what to toss. As the work becomes what it is, certain parts are cut, others are added. Much of it concerns the time the work is written in relation to. I have decided then, to keep the spiritual roots of this work intact but with the proviso that the techniques that follow are a bit like entering the basement of an historical home. It is ironic since I literally developed this technique in the basement of a house that I was then living within, and so I suppose the roots are not metaphorical in that regard. The technique used is derivative of India, and the relevant disciple and work for that is most often regarded as Thomas. Before we journey down the stairs, we must take a jaunt through the Lost Gospel of Thomas and do our best to interpret its meaning. Consider yourself, then, on the stairs.

The Lost Gospel of Thomas Verse and Commentary in Turn (The Winding Staircase Down) The Gospel of Thomas is part of what is usually considered the “Dead Sea Scrolls”. We are going to interpret to the best of our ability line by line. Consider this as the ginger to the Wasabi in our sushi roll basement adventure.

Gospel of Thomas (Translated by Thomas O. Lambdin)

These are the secret sayings which the living Jesus spoke and which Didymos Judas Thomas wrote down.

  1. And he said, “Whoever finds the interpretation of these sayings will not experience death.”

Thomas, or Didymous Judas, means Twin of Judas. Judas does not imply “Iscariot” but it does imply the tribe of Judah. Therefore, we are here discussing the Twin of Judah from the Lion of Judah, that is YHSVH. Right off the bat, we are told that if you understand what is about to be said, you will not experience death. This does not say whether the “first death” or “second death” is involved, or the “Glory Body”. Perhaps as we read on we will understand more.

  1. Jesus said, “Let him who seeks continue seeking until he finds. When he finds, he will become troubled. When he becomes troubled, he will be astonished, and he will rule over the All.”

So the seeker, upon finding, is going to discover trouble and become troubled. When we think of a Biblical “troubled” we think of Jacob’s Trouble, which is usually akin to some tribulation-level type of trouble. Since we are dealing with Judah and rulership, we understand that the “rod of Judah” is implied, and this troubling leads to being astonished. At the point he is astonished, he will rule over the All. In other words, in one way or another, he is either going to be appointed physically, spiritually, or both to do something about the trouble he feels as a consequence of seeking.

  1. Jesus said, “If those who lead you say to you, ‘See, the kingdom is in the sky,’ then the birds of the sky will precede you. If they say to you, ‘It is in the sea,’ then the fish will precede you. Rather, the kingdom is inside of you, and it is outside of you. When you come to know yourselves, then you will become known, and you will realize that it is you who are the sons of the living father. But if you will not know yourselves, you dwell in poverty and it is you who are that poverty.”

Here we have the summation of many mystery schools in one sentence. If you only see the kingdom outside of yourself, then everything else that you believe is “outside of you” will be in the kingdom before you, because you have judged in a nearsighted way. When you look within and you understand the nature of yourself, (probably recognize the image of YHVH/the energy body within you) you will realize who the Creator is. If you do not know yourself, then you fail to recognize that image, and so you are lost in a world of outward appearances which makes you spiritually poor. The implication here is that no riches are worth having without understanding the internal kingdom first.

  1. Jesus said, “The man old in days will not hesitate to ask a small child seven days old about the place of life, and he will live. For many who are first will become last, and they will become one and the same.”

A baby seven days old would, presumably, remember the place of life more readily than an old man since it would have just come from there. A young child would then be the natural inheritor of the Kingdom who remembers where it came from instead of an old man who does not. Hence, the child born last would be first, and the old man born first would be last.

  1. Jesus said, “Recognize what is in your sight, and that which is hidden from you will become plain to you. For there is nothing hidden which will not become manifest.”

Learn to see the things in front of you in the light of the Kingdom, and nothing will remain hidden.

  1. His disciples questioned him and said to him, “Do you want us to fast? How shall we pray? Shall we give alms? What diet shall we observe?” Jesus said, “Do not tell lies, and do not do what you hate, for all things are plain in the sight of heaven. For nothing hidden will not become manifest, and nothing covered will remain without being uncovered.”

Apparently, diet is less important than not telling lies, and not doing what is hated—or else diet is resolved by following these rules. Nothing will be hidden forever.

  1. Jesus said, “Blessed is the lion which becomes man when consumed by man; and cursed is the man whom the lion consumes, and the lion becomes man.”

Satan is often likened to a “ravaging lion” in scripture. Therefore, a person who consumes the lion, that is, a Satanic nature, and becomes a man by “devouring” it with the “perfect man” is blessed. On the other hand, if the man becomes a beast, he is cursed.

  1. And he said, “The man is like a wise fisherman who cast his net into the sea and drew it up from the sea full of small fish. Among them the wise fisherman found a fine large fish. He threw all the small fish back into the sea and chose the large fish without difficulty. Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.

Some context appears to be missing from this scripture, but it can be discerned that a fisherman catches more than the fish he keeps. He decides what to keep on the basis of how it will provide.

  1. Jesus said, “Now the sower went out, took a handful (of seeds), and scattered them. Some fell on the road; the birds came and gathered them up. Others fell on the rock, did not take root in the soil, and did not produce ears. And others fell on thorns; they choked the seed(s) and worms ate them. And others fell on the good soil and it produced good fruit: it bore sixty per measure and a hundred and twenty per measure.”

This is a familiar paraphrase of the Bible version of the sower concerning spreading the gospel where the Kingdom of Heaven was concerned. Not all sowings yield good crops.

  1. Jesus said, “I have cast fire upon the world, and see, I am guarding it until it blazes.”

This alludes to the Baptism of the world via fire, or put differently mass purification of the world through fire. Guarding it until it blazes can mean the faith, or it can mean the eventual flames through which the Earth periodically purifies itself.

  1. Jesus said, “This heaven will pass away, and the one above it will pass away. The dead are not alive, and the living will not die. In the days when you consumed what is dead, you made it what is alive. When you come to dwell in the light, what will you do? On the day when you were one you became two. But when you become two, what will you do?”

This verse is more complex, and lends credence to the idea that the Messiah spoke it because it reflects a deep understanding of the beliefs of Hebrew people during this time. The analysis is uncommonly insightful. Let us try to pick it apart. The first part about heaven passing away and the one above it probably means something like “astrological ages” which occupy the 12th house in addition to whatever heavenly corollaries that entails. Since YHSVH was there at the age of Pisces, we are probably supposed to understand this as the age of Pisces and Aquarius. The dead not being alive means those not saved or baptized. They are like zombies. The living will not die means those who have been saved will not die in reference likely to the second death, but possibly even a first death somewhat like Enoch. When you come to dwell in the light, what will you do, refers to coming back into the Kingdom it seems. On the day you were one you became two probably means going all the way back to YHVH with Adam in the Garden of Eden where the unity was broken due to disobedience. When you become two probably then refers to the resulting duality that was caused by this decision. A likely rejoinder ought to be “become one once more” which is the entirety of the mission with which YHSVH was charged.

  1. The disciples said to Jesus, “We know that you will depart from us. Who is to be our leader?” Jesus said to them, “Wherever you are, you are to go to James the righteous, for whose sake heaven and earth came into being.”

Quite interesting since this was the intended Messianic Church of James. James has the job of moderating between “heaven and earth” such that is on account of his righteousness that heaven and earth came into being.

  1. Jesus said to his disciples, “Compare me to someone and tell me whom I am like.” Simon Peter said to him, “You are like a righteous angel.” Matthew said to him, “You are like a wise philosopher.” Thomas said to him, “Master, my mouth is wholly incapable of saying whom you are like.” Jesus said, “I am not your master. Because you have drunk, you have become intoxicated from the bubbling spring which I have measured out.” And he took him and withdrew and told him three things. When Thomas returned to his companions, they asked him, “What did Jesus say to you?” Thomas said to them, “If I tell you one of the things which he told me, you will pick up stones and throw them at me; a fire will come out of the stones and burn you up.”

Interestingly, YHSVH casts off the title of Master to Thomas and tells him that he (Thomas) is basically drunk on life. He pulls Thomas to the side, and when he gets back everyone wants to know what he was told. His answer suggests if he tells them even one thing that was said, they will want to stone him as a sinner. This judgment will be wrong, since we know the people without sin must throw the first stone and Thomas tells them the stones they throw would burn them up since a fire would come out of them. Hence, it must be a teaching for Thomas, and it must concern or overlap the three denials of Peter. Perhaps he tells Thomas that Peter will deny Him, and this is why they might want to stone him (Thomas) not believing such a thing is possible. Indeed, we know that Thomas is characterized later for his “doubt”.

  1. Jesus said to them, “If you fast, you will give rise to sin for yourselves; and if you pray, you will be condemned; and if you give alms, you will do harm to your spirits. When you go into any land and walk about in the districts, if they receive you, eat what they will set before you, and heal the sick among them. For what goes into your mouth will not defile you, but that which issues from your mouth - it is that which will defile you.”

Here we have some opposite advice to what we usually consider to be a more “ascetic” life. It seems as though what passes for the usual acts of piety are more likely to produce turmoil and discord. Praying, for instance, might get you condemned by people who are not praying. Fasting makes sin try to assert itself more strongly, and giving alms does harm to the spirits. The test here is whether or not people will receive you. If they do, eat what they offer, and heal people who are unwell which in this case probably refers to sin. There is a rejoinder here to not worry so much what goes in one’s mouth but rather to worry about what comes out of it, which is a familiar Bible verse.

  1. Jesus said, “When you see one who was not born of woman, prostrate yourselves on your faces and worship him. That one is your father.”

This is a challenging piece to interpret since YHSVH was born of a woman. The conclusion, is, I suppose, that only YHVH is something that is not born of a woman.

  1. Jesus said, “Men think, perhaps, that it is peace which I have come to cast upon the world. They do not know that it is dissension which I have come to cast upon the earth: fire, sword, and war. For there will be five in a house: three will be against two, and two against three, the father against the son, and the son against the father. And they will stand solitary.”

A variation on a classic line that the Messiah did not come here to generate peace—at least not initially.

  1. Jesus said, “I shall give you what no eye has seen and what no ear has heard and what no hand has touched and what has never occurred to the human mind.”

This might mean rectified flesh, or eternal life, or both.

  1. The disciples said to Jesus, “Tell us how our end will be.” Jesus said, “Have you discovered, then, the beginning, that you look for the end? For where the beginning is, there will the end be. Blessed is he who will take his place in the beginning; he will know the end and will not experience death.”

YHSVH points out that there are two directions to go. One can go and try to see the end, or else one can consider the beginning. If one considers the beginning, he puts himself in the place of the original heavenly blueprint, and so knows the end but will not taste death.

  1. Jesus said, “Blessed is he who came into being before he came into being. If you become my disciples and listen to my words, these stones will minister to you. For there are five trees for you in Paradise which remain undisturbed summer and winter and whose leaves do not fall. Whoever becomes acquainted with them will not experience death.”

Blessed is the original Adam. (kadmon) Stones serve as a ministry if you become a disciple. The five trees must somehow be related to “trees of life”. Probably, these five trees have some relationship or correlation to Venus

  1. The disciples said to Jesus, “Tell us what the kingdom of heaven is like.” He said to them, “It is like a mustard seed. It is the smallest of all seeds. But when it falls on tilled soil, it produces a great plant and becomes a shelter for birds of the sky.”

The Mustard Seed Parable is well known, I think, and so requires little commentary other than to mention the “Shelter for birds of the sky” which implies something a little like angels.

  1. Mary said to Jesus, “Whom are your disciples like?” He said, “They are like children who have settled in a field which is not theirs. When the owners of the field come, they will say, ‘Let us have back our field.’ They (will) undress in their presence in order to let them have back their field and to give it back to them. Therefore I say, if the owner of a house knows that the thief is coming, he will begin his vigil before he comes and will not let him dig through into his house of his domain to carry away his goods. You, then, be on your guard against the world. Arm yourselves with great strength lest the robbers find a way to come to you, for the difficulty which you expect will (surely) materialize. Let there be among you a man of understanding. When the grain ripened, he came quickly with his sickle in his hand and reaped it. Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.”

A novel passage. The disciples lay claim to a field which does not belong to them and when people who own the field come along, they demand the field back. The owners or the disciples, and in this case, probably the disciples undress in the field such that their field is returned which likely means they strip off the garments of the ego so that the field—that is to say the vineyard of the kingdom–is put back in their possession. The rest of this quote concerns the “thief in the night”, which I believe is well known. The implication is, when the crop is close to being ready, somebody will come to take the fruit quite quickly. This is the “trouble” of “spiritual harvest” which is not unlike “Jacob’s Trouble”.

  1. Jesus saw infants being suckled. He said to his disciples, “These infants being suckled are like those who enter the kingdom.” They said to him, “Shall we then, as children, enter the kingdom?” Jesus said to them, “When you make the two one, and when you make the inside like the outside and the outside like the inside, and the above like the below, and when you make the male and the female one and the same, so that the male not be male nor the female; and when you fashion eyes in the place of an eye, and a hand in place of a hand, and a foot in place of a foot, and a likeness in place of a likeness; then will you enter the kingdom.”

The Holy Family –Image Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

This verse is familiar except it has some additional commentary where the “enter as children” standard verse is involved. A good assumption is that the children being suckled are being likened to a baby that drinks the milk of the mother. The mother here would be the blessings of heaven. The answer is more complicated than “enter as children” but rather YHSVH describes the conditions by which one can be nurtured by the heavens to receive the maximum blessing of entering the kingdom and the recommendations he makes concern how to take the energy body such that it describes the aforementioned image of YHVH. This is not, as many contend, something to do with the “External appearance of the body”. The idea of “drinking from his mouth” allows us, like children, to enter a processing of “becoming” such that we are fashioned after YHVH like parents and children naturally are.

  1. Jesus said, “I shall choose you, one out of a thousand, and two out of ten thousand,and they shall stand as a single one.”

Not much to be added here, other than to note that the “Chosen” of YHSVH are not many where proportions are concerned. It does not matter, however, in the sense that they stand as “one”.

  1. His disciples said to him, “Show us the place where you are, since it is necessary for us to seek it.” He said to them, “Whoever has ears, let him hear. There is light within a man of light, and he lights up the whole world. If he does not shine, he is darkness.”

This is an answer without being a direct answer. The light to find this kingdom is inside a person and when kindled, it lights up the whole world. The kingdom then is light, and the way by which one can “see it” or “Seek it” is by turning the light on within the self. When this is done, it is enough to light up the “entire world”.

  1. Jesus said, “Love your brother like your soul, guard him like the pupil of your eye.”

A modified version of the “apple of YHVH’s” eye is this saying. The implication here is that one’s brother is literally the same as one’s eye. There is more that could be said on this point, concerning gateways which the pupil is a form of, but for this book the easy application is the meditation at the Third Eye or sixth chakra.

The Human Eye –Image Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

  1. Jesus said, “You see the mote in your brother’s eye, but you do not see the beam in your own eye. When you cast the beam out of your own eye, then you will see clearly to cast the mote from your brother’s eye.”

A familiar version again of the “make sure your own vision is clear” before going after someone else’s.

  1. (Jesus said,) “If you do not fast as regards the world, you will not find the kingdom. If you do not observe the Sabbath as a Sabbath, you will not see the father.”

This is a version of “Be in the world but not of it” although observing the Sabbath as Sabbath has implications in the sense of when that should occur and level of observance. Since this book makes it clear in several places that the Sign of YHVH is to be defined as movement and repose. Sabbath is repose and so the observance of that repose becomes quite significant.

  1. Jesus said, “I took my place in the midst of the world, and I appeared to them in flesh. I found all of them intoxicated; I found none of them thirsty. And my soul became afflicted for the sons of men, because they are blind in their hearts and do not have sight; for empty they came into the world, and empty too they seek to leave the world. But for the moment they are intoxicated. When they shake off their wine, then they will repent.”

Out of all the sayings that might be modified or not somehow original, this could be one because here YHSVH speaks in the past tense concerning His ministry. While not impossible, one would think that if these sayings were recorded as He spoke them, they would be present tense since His work had not yet been complete. We would expect something like “My place is in the midst of the world, where I appeared to them, and found them all intoxicated.” Tense issues notwithstanding, the implication of the statement is that everyone was drunk in a way that the Bible appears to refer to when it mentions the wine of Babel.

  1. Jesus said, “If the flesh came into being because of spirit, it is a wonder. But if spirit came into being because of the body, it is a wonder of wonders. Indeed, I am amazed at how this great wealth has made its home in this poverty.

Here we have an inversion of which came first, spirit or flesh. If flesh came into existence due to spirit, it is a wonder since flesh is far removed from spirit. If on the other hand, spirit came into being because of the body—that is to say flesh—then it is a wonder of wonders since in the vision of YHSVH spirit is rich in comparison to the flesh. The wealth then is the spirit, which is worth much, and the body is the poverty.

  1. Jesus said, “Where there are three gods, they are gods. Where there are two or one, I am with him.”

This one requires knowing some older meanings of the lower case word “god” or “gods”. In a modern sense, it is better thought of as the word “prince” or “princes”. Moses first broke the idea of needing more than one person to form a kind of “Super Prince” since he was only one and stood up to many. Here, YHSVH says that where there are two or one, He is there with him. This differs from some modern understandings such as where two or more are gathered, I am there. Here, even if one is there, He, YHSVH, is with him.

  1. Jesus said, “No prophet is accepted in his own village; no physician heals those who know him.”

A different way of saying the above is “familiarity breeds contempt” or people have a tendency not to listen to or respect people they know or think they know.

  1. Jesus said, “A city being built on a high mountain and fortified cannot fall, nor can it be hidden.”

Lacking context, it is assumed that YHSVH is referring to the Heavenly Kingdom here. The Kingdom cannot fall, and one cannot “hide it” since it is fortified and visible by definition. This presupposes the “inward light” of man is all ready lit, however.

  1. Jesus said, “Preach from your housetops that which you will hear in your ear. For no one lights a lamp and puts it under a bushel, nor does he put it in a hidden place, but rather he sets it on a lamp stand so that everyone who enters and leaves will see its light.”

Another variation on a well-known Bible verse. Whatever it is you are capable of hearing, you might as well preach it from the housetop since the light it does generate in this case cannot be hidden. Of course, the inverse is implied by previous verses that the darkness will not be hidden and so you might as well also shout that from the rooftops.

  1. Jesus said, “If a blind man leads a blind man, they will both fall into a pit.

This is a self-evident statement. Two blind people are going to fall into a pit since both lack vision.

  1. Jesus said, “It is not possible for anyone to enter the house of a strong man and take it by force unless he binds his hands; then he will (be able to) ransack his house.”

This verse is another one known from the Bible. A strong man will keep robbers away, unless he is otherwise bound as he will use his hands in specific to prevent the robbery from occurring.

  1. Jesus said, “Do not be concerned from morning until evening and from evening until morning about what you will wear.”

The Hebrew day is typically from sunset to sunset. This saying divides the day in halves relative to morning. In other words, from light to darkness, and darkness to light, do not concern yourselves with your clothing. This has connotations to good and evil and perhaps might have significance for the Great Wedding Feasts where the soul is a garment.

  1. His disciples said, “When will you become revealed to us and when shall we see you?” Jesus said, “When you disrobe without being ashamed and take up your garments and place them under your feet like little children and tread on them, then will you see the son of the living one, and you will not be afraid.”

This is another fairly obvious quote which concerns nudity, vulnerability, innocence, and sexual desire. When desire ends, innocence begins and shame stops and then YHSVH can reveal himself fully as in the fullness of His being.

  1. Jesus said, “Many times have you desired to hear these words which I am saying to you, and you have no one else to hear them from. There will be days when you will look for me and will not find me.”

Another self-evident statement, but worth examining. Sometimes people want to be re-assured. Sometimes there is no one to offer that. The next statement is Prophetic in that there will be times that people will want to be reassured, but there will be no one there to do so.

  1. Jesus said, “The pharisees and the scribes have taken the keys of knowledge (gnosis) and hidden them. They themselves have not entered, nor have they allowed to enter those who wish to. You, however, be as wise as serpents and as innocent as doves.”

The Pharisees and scribes are acting as “gatekeepers”. They know the way in, but are not going to enter and they have locked everyone else out. The charge given because of this is to be wise as serpents and as innocent as doves.

  1. Jesus said, “A grapevine has been planted outside of the father, but being unsound, it will be pulled up by its roots and destroyed.”

This phrase goes with the previous in that the Pharisees and scribes had planted a belief system that did not include YHVH within it. Therefore, it was slated for destruction.

  1. Jesus said, “Whoever has something in his hand will receive more, and whoever has nothing will be deprived of even the little he has.”

This is probably part of a parable similar to the one about the “talents” or coins. The meaning is usually something along the lines of the one who does something with the thing given will receive a bounty, whereas the one that does not gets his or hers taken.

  1. Jesus said, “Become passers-by.”

This phrase is a more uniquely gnostic phraseology. The meaning of it is usually move on past the things you might normally get in entanglements over. Therefore, one becomes a passerby of the world and its ways.

  1. His disciples said to him, “Who are you, that you should say these things to us?” (Jesus said to them,) “You do not realize who I am from what I say to you, but you have become like the Jews, for they (either) love the tree and hate its fruit (or) love the fruit and hate the tree.

YHSVH points out to whomever these disciples are that they either love the structure and not the fruits of the faith, or else love the faith and not the structure. Because they do not understand who He is, he compares them to the Jews who also do not know who he is, or rather probably more accurately would rather not know.

  1. Jesus said, “Whoever blasphemes against the father will be forgiven, and whoever blasphemes against the son will be forgiven, but whoever blasphemes against the holy spirit will not be forgiven either on earth or in heaven.”

This is another verse that is well-known in the Bible. Blaspheming against the Holy Spirit, which would be akin to following the Anti-Christ/Messiah, is not forgivable. What rises to the level of blasphemy is not discussed here but in context doing something like changing the DNA would make sense.

  1. Jesus said, “Among those born of women, from Adam until John the Baptist, there is no one so superior to John the Baptist that his eyes should not be lowered (before him). Yet I have said, whichever one of you comes to be a child will be acquainted with the kingdom and will become superior to John.”

Becoming a “child” in the kingdom has a formula which we saw earlier. By applying that formula and making the energy-body as described, then one puts on the “glory body” and becomes “greater” than John.

  1. Jesus said, “It is impossible for a man to mount two horses or to stretch two bows. And it is impossible for a servant to serve two masters; otherwise, he will honor the one and treat the other contemptuously. No man drinks old wine and immediately desires to drink new wine. And new wine is not put into old wineskins, lest they burst; nor is old wine put into a new wineskin, lest it spoil it. An old patch is not sewn onto a new garment, because a tear would result.”

These are all familiar turns of phrases for a man not having two masters, and not using old stuff with new stuff since the older stuff is likely to break.

  1. Jesus said, “If two make peace with each other in this one house, they will say to the mountain, ‘Move Away,’ and it will move away.”

Making peace between believers in Messiah in the one house, presumably of Pisces/faith, can allow one to surmount seemingly impossible obstacles.

  1. Jesus said, “Blessed are the solitary and elect, for you will find the kingdom. For you are from it, and to it you will return.”

This is interesting since it implies those who are more “by themselves” AND elect will find the kingdom and they will return to it even despite themselves.

  1. Jesus said, “If they say to you, ‘Where did you come from?’, say to them, ‘We came from the light, the place where the light came into being on its own accord and established itself and became manifest through their image.’ If they say to you, ‘Is it you?’, say, ‘We are its children, we are the elect of the living father.’ If they ask you, ‘What is the sign of your father in you?’, say to them, ‘It is movement and repose.’”

This is the charge disciples are supposed to speak when asked where they came from as opposed to saying a specific hometown or family. Movement and repose is directly concerning the Sabbath as it is the “repose” and movement is, of course, “anything else”.

  1. His disciples said to him, “When will the repose of the dead come about, and when will the new world come?” He said to them, “What you look forward to has already come, but you do not recognize it.”

Consistent with the majority of the ministry of YHSVH, the disciples want to know when something specific is going to come. Here the statement that it is all ready present is made, and this is probably puzzling to them since they cannot see the literal reality of what they are asking. At the arrival of YHSVH, all of these matters are set into motion, and so therefore it is now and if one could see the Kingdom one would know it. The repose of the dead could mean dead spirits, or people who have not received baptism—which meaning is unclear from the context but in many ways amounts to the same intimation. The dead entering into the “rest” of the Kingdom is indicated either way. Repose here is not simply rest in the normal sense, but a totality of rest.

Mary Magdalene –Image Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

  1. His disciples said to him, “Twenty-four prophets spoke in Israel, and all of them spoke in you.” He said to them, “You have omitted the one living in your presence and have spoken (only) of the dead.”

What is considered alive is radically different at the point the Messiah occupies the Earth. Therefore all the Prophets that came before were dead, and anyway, they omitted YHSVH as a Prophet which was a direct slight in the sense that Moses had commanded them to find another Prophet “like him”. YHSVH was not a Prophet “like him”, but he was the one Moses was speaking of as the age changed. Perhaps the phrase “similar to me” would have been a better translation of Moses’s dying words.

  1. His disciples said to him, “Is circumcision beneficial or not?” He said to them, “If it were beneficial, their father would beget them already circumcised from their mother. Rather, the true circumcision in spirit has become completely profitable.”

If circumcision were worth something in and of itself, then children would be born that way. Instead, circumcision is meant as a symbol of spiritual circumcision, which is true circumcision and is, without question, profitable.

  1. Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor, for yours is the kingdom of heaven.”

The poor people are often mentioned since they are not controlled by wealth and having no wealth they are more likely not to get caught up in the world and so therefore can experience and/or inherit the Kingdom of Heaven.

  1. Jesus said, “Whoever does not hate his father and his mother cannot become a disciple to me. And whoever does not hate his brothers and sisters and take up his cross in my way will not be worthy of me.”

Another way of saying this is that one must shake off the connections to one’s family and upbringing to follow YHSVH in the way He is desirous of us pursuing. Usually, when one is attached to their family they start to do things that please their family instead of the things that please YHVH.

  1. Jesus said, “Whoever has come to understand the world has found (only) a corpse, and whoever has found a corpse is superior to the world.”

The world and its ways are “dead” compared to the Kingdom of Heaven. This is so since it is part of a fallen world that fell due to sin. Therefore there is nothing to find other than a corpse since sin is what causes corpses in the first place.

  1. Jesus said, “The kingdom of the father is like a man who had good seed. His enemy came by night and sowed weeds among the good seed. The man did not allow them to pull up the weeds; he said to them, ‘I am afraid that you will go intending to pull up the weeds and pull up the wheat along with them.’ For on the day of the harvest the weeds will be plainly visible, and they will be pulled up and burned.”

This is somewhat similar to the familiar wheat and tares Bible verse that many know. The idea is that those who repent and accept the Messiah will be mixed in with those who do not, and those who do not and are evil people will be separated out from those who follow the Messiah as weeds. It will then be obvious what is a weed, and what is wheat and on the day of harvest, where the crops are examined, those that are weeds will be pulled up and burned.

  1. Jesus said, “Blessed is the man who has suffered and found life.”

If one suffers and therefore finds salvation, then that person is blessed since they found salvation.

  1. Jesus said, “Take heed of the living one while you are alive, lest you die and seek to see him and be unable to do so.”

Fairly self-evident, but clearly the meaning here is not to waste time because you might die, and then you will not be able to find the one who could give you life, and your condition will be dire.

  1. (They saw) a Samaritan carrying a lamb on his way to Judea. He said to his disciples, “That man is round about the lamb.” They said to him, “So that he may kill it and eat it.” He said to them, “While it is alive, he will not eat it, but only when he has killed it and it has become a corpse.” They said to him, “He cannot do so otherwise.” He said to them, “You too, look for a place for yourself within repose, lest you become a corpse and be eaten.”

The warning here is to the Disciples to make sure they “stay alive” and are therefore “not eaten” by making sure that Shabbat is observed. Not observing Shabbat is a way, it follows, to become a corpse.

  1. Jesus said, “Two will rest on a bed: the one will die, and the other will live.” Salome said, “Who are you, man, that you … have come up on my couch and eaten from my table?” Jesus said to her, “I am he who exists from the undivided. I was given some of the things of my father.” <…> “I am your disciple.” <…> “Therefore I say, if he is destroyed, he will be filled with light, but if he is divided, he will be filled with darkness.

Several fragments here make this harder to interpret. However, it appears that the Day of YHVH is being discussed at first, and then it switches to the identity of what one supposes is Mary Salome who asks YHSVH who He is that is eating at her table. He replies that he comes from a place that is not divided, and He has some things of His fathers. It would appear to suggest Salome says “I am your disciple” later after He perhaps inquires who she is. Finally, there is a commentary on the nature of those that are divided and therefore filled with darkness, versus those who are destroyed which would imply that they are no longer divided, and so are filled with light due to the destruction.

  1. Jesus said, “It is to those who are worthy of my mysteries that I tell my mysteries. Do not let your left (hand) know what your right (hand) is doing.

YHSVH is teaching based upon who He believes is worthy of the mysteries he can reveal. He advises on this basis to not let the left hand know what the right is doing because of the natural division that exists inside people. If the left were to know what the right is doing, it tries to get in the way to cause issues. If it does not know what the right hand is doing, then it cannot interfere.

  1. Jesus said, “There was a rich man who had much money. He said, ‘I shall put my money to use so that I may sow, reap, plant, and fill my storehouse with produce, with the result that I shall lack nothing.’ Such were his intentions, but that same night he died. Let him who has ears hear.”

The rich man spends his time getting riches and believing that those riches can gain him security. The problem with this thinking is that worldly riches cannot prevent death.

  1. Jesus said, “A man had received visitors. And when he had prepared the dinner, he sent his servant to invite the guests. He went to the first one and said to him, ‘My master invites you.’ He said, ‘I have claims against some merchants. They are coming to me this evening. I must go and give them my orders. I ask to be excused from the dinner.’ He went to another and said to him, ‘My master has invited you.’ He said to him, ‘I have just bought a house and am required for the day. I shall not have any spare time.’ He went to another and said to him, ‘My master invites you.’ He said to him, ‘My friend is going to get married, and I am to prepare the banquet. I shall not be able to come. I ask to be excused from the dinner.’ He went to another and said to him, ‘My master invites you.’ He said to him, ‘I have just bought a farm, and I am on my way to collect the rent. I shall not be able to come. I ask to be excused.’ The servant returned and said to his master, ‘Those whom you invited to the dinner have asked to be excused.’ The master said to his servant, ‘Go outside to the streets and bring back those whom you happen to meet, so that they may dine.’ Businessmen and merchants will not enter the places of my father.”

This is the longest example we have yet. What we are being told is that businessmen and merchants are “too busy” to come to spend time with YHVH. This continues to a point where the invitations are retracted, and only people that one meets on the streets are invited. People that identify only as businessmen and merchants and as nothing else will not enter the Heavenly Kingdom because they are incapable of receiving the invitation.

  1. He said, “There was a good man who owned a vineyard. He leased it to tenant farmers so that they might work it and he might collect the produce from them. He sent his servant so that the tenants might give him the produce of the vineyard. They seized his servant and beat him, all but killing him. The servant went back and told his master. The master said, ‘Perhaps he did not recognize them.’ He sent another servant. The tenants beat this one as well. Then the owner sent his son and said, ‘Perhaps they will show respect to my son.’ Because the tenants knew that it was he who was the heir to the vineyard, they seized him and killed him. Let him who has ears hear.”

This is an obvious allegory about the lineage of Prophets that Israel will not listen to and whom they typically kill. Eventually, the master sends his own son, and they kill him because they realize he stands to inherit the vineyard whereas they do not merit such an inheritance. They seize him and kill him too, because they want to continue to assert claim falsely to the vineyard which does not belong to them.

  1. Jesus said, “Show me the stone which the builders have rejected. That one is the cornerstone.”

Here we find what is clearly an allusion to the ministry of YHSVH since He will be the stone the builders are going to reject. The cornerstone then will become His entire ministry and life.

  1. Jesus said, “If one who knows the all still feels a personal deficiency, he is completely deficient.”

If you know YHVH and you somehow still feel deficient, then your nature is such that you are completely deficient since there is no other state to inhabit if you know the all and still feel so.

  1. Jesus said, “Blessed are you when you are hated and persecuted. Wherever you have been persecuted they will find no place.”

When people persecute the disciples of YHSVH, it leads to a condition where those that did the persecuting shall find no place to be. Therefore there is a blessing on those who are being hated and persecuted such that their enemies will, sooner or later, fall because of those very same hatreds.

  1. Jesus said, “Blessed are they who have been persecuted within themselves. It is they who have truly come to know the father. Blessed are the hungry, for the belly of him who desires will be filled.”

To be persecuted within yourself probably means suffering which happens in the self either due to outside conditions or internal conditions that are psychological. The blessing here is that when one undergoes such a trial, they come to truly know YHVH. Likewise, the hungry will, sooner or later, have full bellies if they desire it to be filled. This might mean a spiritual condition as well as a physical one as we learn when YHSVH says that man does not live by bread alone. At the last supper, however, we are told that the bread is, in fact, His body.

  1. Jesus said, “That which you have will save you if you bring it forth from yourselves.

That which you do not have within you will kill you if you do not have it within you.” This saying seems to be directly referring to the image of YHVH or the “glorified body” inside of each person which will save them if they bring it forth but otherwise will kill a person if they lack it.

  1. Jesus said, “I shall destroy this house, and no one will be able to build it […].”

Most likely this phrase is uttered with regard to the Second Temple.

  1. A man said to him, “Tell my brothers to divide my father’s possessions with me.” He said to him, “O man, who has made me a divider?” He turned to his disciples and said to them, “I am not a divider, am I?”

YHSVH is not interested in material possessions. Rather, if anything, He is seeking to unite those who believe in His ministry into the One Kingdom of the father. Therefore, when the man asks Him to divide the possessions up, He replies that is not what He is. That possessions will be divided up due to His ministry, however, is a certainty. The sifting He brings creates unity ultimately and that unity is back with heaven.

  1. Jesus said, “The harvest is great but the laborers are few. Beseech the Lord, therefore, to send out laborers to the harvest.”

Again, a familiar quote. The harvest refers to the crops of YHVH and the laborers would be the believers or Prophets.

  1. He said, “O Lord, there are many around the drinking trough, but there is nothing in the cistern.”

It is not clear who said this phrase, but if we infer that the sayer is YHSVH, then we know that this is referring most likely to the life giving waters of the kingdom. He had to come in order to allow the water to run freely again so that others could “Drink” of His ministry.

  1. Jesus said, “Many are standing at the door, but it is the solitary who will enter the bridal chamber.”

The idea here appertains to the many who say they gain access to the Kingdom, but who are “stuck” at the door. Groups of people will not make it to the “Bridal chamber” but rather a solitary one-by-one single-file types will.

  1. Jesus said, “The kingdom of the father is like a merchant who had a consignment of merchandise and who discovered a pearl. That merchant was shrewd. He sold the merchandise and bought the pearl alone for himself. You too, seek his unfailing and enduring treasure where no moth comes near to devour and no worm destroys.”

This is a variation on the “Pearl of Great Price” which is another way of saying one should give up all material occupations in order to obtain the eternal, heavenly Kingdom.

  1. Jesus said, “It is I who am the light which is above them all. It is I who am the all. From me did the all come forth, and unto me did the all extend. Split a piece of wood, and I am there. Lift up the stone, and you will find me there.”

This sounds a little like the concept of “Pleroma” which most take to be a word for the “Holy Spirit”. Therefore, if we take it to be equivalent to the Holy Spirit, then the “all” would be the spirit, which is the same in sounding as “I am the light, and the way.” The rest of these concepts allude to the presence of that light whether it be in a split piece of wood or under a stone.

  1. Jesus said, “Why have you come out into the desert? To see a reed shaken by the wind? And to see a man clothed in fine garments like your kings and your great men? Upon them are the fine garments, and they are unable to discern the truth.

Here a question is asked about why people are coming into the desert to see either YHSVH, John, or both of them. Specifically, YHSVH asks them if they were hoping to see someone shaken like a reed in the wind, which would seem to mean someone who is stirred up and deeply affected since reeds, when shaken by the wind, tend to move wildly about. The follow-up question, however, concerns seeing men clothed in fine garments like kings and “great men”. He points out to the crowd that these finely clothed people despite being attired so richly still cannot discern the truth. Therefore, it would seem YHSVH is directly coming after the impressions of what people are expecting out in the desert and by so doing reminding them they are not going to see what they maybe desire to see.

  1. A woman from the crowd said to him, “Blessed are the womb which bore you and the breasts which nourished you.” He said to her, “Blessed are those who have heard the word of the father and have truly kept it. For there will be days when you will say, ‘Blessed are the womb which has not conceived and the breasts which have not given milk.’

A quick correction occurs here, where the honor of the mother is quickly turned to those who have instead kept the Word of the Father. This is why the womb bore YHSVH with which to start. There are days, He adds, that are coming that will make people wish children had not been born because they did not keep the word of the Father, or else, because the Father is keeping His Word about what would happen if His Word was not truly kept.

  1. Jesus said, “He who has recognized the world has found the body, but he who has found the body is superior to the world.

This appears to be a similar saying to the person who finds only a corpse when they come to the world. Since they understand there is only a body here, then they are superior to the world which believes there is some other life to be had when in fact all there is is a dead body.

  1. Jesus said, “Let him who has grown rich be king, and let him who possesses power renounce it.”

The statement here is not exactly what one might be led to believe. Rich, we know, has not been defined in terms of the world. Spiritual kingdoms have been defined as riches, and so the person who has grown spiritually rich ought to be king and then the one who possesses power ought to turn that over to YHVH and therefore renounce it.

  1. Jesus said, “He who is near me is near the fire, and he who is far from me is far from the kingdom.”

Elsewhere in the Bible, YHVH says He is a consuming fire. Hence, a person near YHSVH is near the fire, which we would conclude is YHVH, and the one who is far from Him is far from the kingdom since they are not near YHVH.

  1. Jesus said, “The images are manifest to man, but the light in them remains concealed in the image of the light of the father. He will become manifest, but his image will remain concealed by his light.”

We begin to learn about the types of things that are in the Heavenly Kingdom. We see the images of them, but the light in them remains hidden by the light of the Father. The Father then will become manifest, but His image is concealed in the same way by His light. If this is difficult to understand, think about a drawn triangle as mentioned elsewhere in this book. If you draw a triangle it will always be an imperfect version compared to what you see in your mind’s eye. In this sense, the “light of the triangle” is concealed. There is, as far as we know, no way to make a perfect triangle that embodies the actual essence of the light of “triangleness”. Hence, maybe the image of a perfect triangle is actually fundamentally different than what we think of when we visualize a triangle, and this is why we cannot draw a perfect one. That “hidden image” is not something known to us.

  1. Jesus said, “When you see your likeness, you rejoice. But when you see your images which came into being before you, and which neither die not become manifest, how much you will have to bear!”

A very deep saying is this one. What is being indicated is the “form of man/woman” that existed before the physical versions of man or woman. These images neither die nor become manifest since they are something like eternal blueprints. The remark, “how much you will have to bear!” concerns the weight one feels as one understands that they were created from that sort of perfection, but are far from it in many ways and what it will take to try to restore that perfection.

  1. Jesus said, “Adam came into being from a great power and a great wealth, but he did not become worthy of you. For had he been worthy, he would not have experienced death.”

Another deep statement that implies whomever wrote this gospel was either inspired by YHSVH directly, or else understood many mysteries about His ministry that not very many appear to have been able to pierce. Here it is being indicated that Adam came from great power and wealth, that being YHVH and the Garden of Eden. He was not worthy of what we are assuming are the disciples, because if he HAD been worthy, he would not have experienced death. In other words, Adam died due to sin, which we learn from the Gospel of Mary Magdalene comes from an adulterous nature. Then after he “died” from the garden and “fell”, he died again later. There are two deaths indicated at least here, and the implication is that in either case if Adam had been worthy he would not have died since he would have obeyed YHVH in the beginning and not eaten the forbidden fruit, and then secondly would not have died in the flesh as a consequence of the first disobedience. This has serious implications for the ministry of YHSVH, since it means he is offering something unique that allows his followers to not experience death.

  1. Jesus said, “The foxes have their holes and the birds have their nests, but the son of man has no place to lay his head and rest.”

This is another classic Biblical quote which is familiar in the sense that animals have places they can go to relax and rest. The son of man, however, has no such place either because there is nowhere to put his head, or there is no rest, or a combination of both. Satan delights in stirring up drama.

  1. Jesus said, “Wretched is the body that is dependant upon a body, and wretched is the soul that is dependent on these two.”

There are several possible meanings here. It could be that we are talking about a physical body depending on another physical body, or it could be that we are understanding the word or concept of body as applied to groups of people. Regardless, it is a disagreeable state, but more disagreeable still is a soul that is having to depend on these bodies. A body, by nature, is not a lasting construct.

  1. Jesus said, “The angels and the prophets will come to you and give to you those things you (already) have. And you too, give them those things which you have, and say to yourselves, ‘When will they come and take what is theirs?’”

Things you already have might have to do with agreements made with YHVH in the past. So they come to enforce that agreement, and in turn the people bound by that agreement give these messengers obedience to that end. The interesting part is the bit about “when they will come to take what is theirs”, which implies that if there is anything that belongs to the angels and Prophets, it is probably the kingdom–which they will then take.

  1. Jesus said, “Why do you wash the outside of the cup? Do you not realize that he who made the inside is the same one who made the outside?”

This appears to be an admonishment to clean the “inside as well as the outside” of our existences. It is great to wash the body, for instance, but one must also wash the soul.

  1. Jesus said, “Come unto me, for my yoke is easy and my lordship is mild, and you will find repose for yourselves.”

Another variation on the familiar quote of being a disciple and how that is a “milder burden” than other kinds of discipleship.

  1. They said to him, “Tell us who you are so that we may believe in you.” He said to them, “You read the face of the sky and of the earth, but you have not recognized the one who is before you, and you do not know how to read this moment.”

Israel looks for signs everywhere, but they cannot clearly see who or what YHSVH is–the sign in front of them.

  1. Jesus said, “Seek and you will find. Yet, what you asked me about in former times and which I did not tell you then, now I do desire to tell, but you do not inquire after it.”

Israel has some timing issues. We do not know here fully if what is being mentioned refers to “Earlier in the ministry” or if it concerns asking YHVH Himself something that they were, by extension then, asking YHSVH to reveal. What is evident is the time to reveal it has come, and nobody is asking about it such that it can be revealed.

  1. (Jesus said,) “Do not give what is holy to dogs, lest they throw them on the dung- heap. Do not throw the pearls to swine, lest they […] it […].”

The verse we know uses the word “Trample” for the missing word. We do not know if this is the word here for sure, but it seems like it would fit the meaning. An addition here is “dogs” which we know YHSVH also uses as a kind of analogy to the Samaritan woman that asks for help. He says it is not right to feed to the dogs what is meant for the children, and the Samaritan woman replies even the dogs deserve some crumbs.

  1. Jesus said, “He who seeks will find, and he who knocks will be let in.

This alludes to the Kingdom of the Father and to those who are seeking it and desiring of it such that they knock.

  1. Jesus said, “If you have money, do not lend it at interest, but give it to one from whom you will not get it back.”

This is a radical position concerning money that likely few if any current Christians follow. We are not here speaking in an allegory, but with regard to physical cash. In essence, YHSVH is saying to simply give the money to someone to whom you know you are not going to receive it back from. Why would He say this? Probably to prevent the love of money from ruling the passions and desires of humanity.

  1. Jesus said, “The kingdom of the father is like a certain woman. She took a little leaven, concealed it in some dough, and made it into large loaves. Let him who has ears hear.”

This saying is different than what we are used to hearing because typically the emphasis on bread and holiness concerns it being unleavened. We are told the Kingdom is like a certain woman who used a little leaven and concealed it in dough and made large loaves, so then perhaps the implication of the statement is that the Kingdom is within people who have unpurified egos which correlates to the leaven, and the large loaves correlate to the people who compose the kingdom with those egos. Or, maybe it is that in the Kingdom the ego naturally serves, and so leavening is not a problem there as a symbol. The mustard seed analogy applies as well. A very tiny amount of yeast makes large loaves.

  1. Jesus said, “The kingdom of the father is like a certain woman who was carrying a jar full of meal. While she was walking on the road, still some distance from home, the handle of the jar broke and the meal emptied out behind her on the road. She did not realize it; she had noticed no accident. When she reached her house, she set the jar down and found it empty.”

Perhaps the hardest one of these phrases to decipher is this one. Some supposition is necessary. The meal in the jar, we will say, is the substance of the Kingdom of the Father. The handle breaking we must suppose concerns our hands, since typically handles are two on certain ancient jars and they are meant for both our hands at once. Therefore, meal in the jar represents physical security, and so because of this physical security of having food in the jar, one forgets about the heavenly kingdom and so the “left hand of unawareness” breaks the handle on the jar by inattention which causes a hole to form and then the meal spills out leaving a trail that points the way home. No accident is noticed due to this breakage, because quite literally the woman does not know what her left hand has “done” through her lack of awareness. She gets her jar home, sets it down somewhere, then noticed it is empty because her security was in her earthly home and so she forgot about the heavenly one and lost both the “spiritual kingdom” and the “earthly security” by so doing and only became aware of it when she got to her “home”. Likewise, the inverse of this is true of the heavenly home because those who belong to the Kingdom pour out the meal without necessarily always knowing it throughout their lives. They do not belong to this world, but they may forget that and so pour out the offerings of that kingdom that leave them feeling “empty” on the Earth. This is another statement that could only come from someone with the awareness that is YHVH-like, and again gives us some evidence that at least some of these sayings are authentic.

  1. Jesus said, “The kingdom of the father is like a certain man who wanted to kill a powerful man. In his own house he drew his sword and stuck it into the wall in order to find out whether his hand could carry through. Then he slew the powerful man.”

Another difficult statement. We must assume again that the “pure Adam” that is to say YHSVH, wishes to kill the “impure Adam” or the Adam of Adam and Eve. In order to do so, He is incarnated into this existence as the Hand of YHVH. The testimony of YHSVH is then established in the house of the “impure Adam” and so the “sword is stuck into the wall” as testimony is known as the “Sword of Torah”. This time of testimony was to discover if the “hand could carry through” and we know that YHSVH did in fact carry through. After His crucifixion, the sword established brought down many nations, but most specifically the Temple was destroyed as He said it would be. Hence, he slew the powerful man.

  1. The disciples said to him, “Your brothers and your mother are standing outside.” He said to them, “Those here who do the will of my father are my brothers and my mother. It is they who will enter the kingdom of my father.”

This is quite well known. Blood family means nothing in the Kingdom, only those who are doing the Will of the Father.

  1. They showed Jesus a gold coin and said to him, “Caesar’s men demand taxes from us.” He said to them, “Give Caesar what belongs to Caesar, give God what belongs to God, and give me what is mine.”

Another well-known quote can be found here. If Caesar wants material wealth, let him have it but give to YHVH what belongs to Him, and to YHSVH also what is His. In other words, pretty much everything else with the image of YHVH.

  1. (Jesus said,) “Whoever does not hate his father and his mother as I do cannot become a disciple to me. And whoever does not love his father and his mother as I do cannot become a disciple to me. For my mother […], but my true mother gave me life.”

This is also a variation on another quote in this text. The missing words concerning YHSVH’s mother are probably “bore me” but my true mother gave me life which refers to the heavenly mother which in Hebrew is usually thought of as YHVH’s wife, otherwise known as Ashera.

  1. Jesus said, “Woe to the pharisees, for they are like a dog sleeping in the manger of oxen, for neither does he eat nor does he let the oxen eat.

Quite an illustrative phrase. Dogs and oxens make for poor company because the dogs are hunters and herders who feel compelled to herd the oxen. While the dogs are working at herding, they do not eat, and they do not let the oxen eat, since they are keeping them herded.

  1. Jesus said, “Fortunate is the man who knows where the brigands will enter, so that he may get up, muster his domain, and arm himself before they invade.”

A Prophetic utterance, no doubt, concerning knowing where the thieves of the Kingdom will try to steal it away. The implication is that YHSVH will be at all these entry points since he can muster His domain and arm himself.

  1. They said to Jesus, “Come, let us pray today and let us fast.” Jesus said, “What is the sin that I have committed, or wherein have I been defeated? But when the bridegroom leaves the bridal chamber, then let them fast and pray.”

Traditionally fasting and praying is for atoning for sin or dealing with some kind of loss. The loss, YHSVH makes clear, will be when He leaves the bridal chamber at the completion of His ministry.

  1. Jesus said, “He who knows the father and the mother will be called the son of a harlot.”

This could well be a prophecy with regard to YHSVH. Since He knows the Father and the Mother and there are those who say he was the son of a harlot, the description fits.

  1. Jesus said, “When you make the two one, you will become the sons of man, and when you say, ‘Mountain, move away,’ it will move away.”

Usually this turn-of-phrase concerns Shabbat and the concept of peace, or Shalom. Therefore, it is likely making the two as one means something concerning Heaven and Earth being brought together or else two believers believing in One body/ministry of YHSVH. When this is done, there is no obstacle that can stop those who have done so.

  1. Jesus said, “The kingdom is like a shepherd who had a hundred sheep. One of them, the largest, went astray. He left the ninety-nine sheep and looked for that one until he found it. When he had gone to such trouble, he said to the sheep, ‘I care for you more than the ninety-nine.’”

A parable about the Kingdom. When the largest out of a 100 sheep went astray, it had to be found. Therefore, the 99 sheep had to be left in order to seek the largest one. On account of the trouble, the love is greater for the missing sheep. What could this mean? It could mean there is a sheepfold somewhere in the heavenly kingdom, and one sheep, the largest, had gone astray and the problem with it could be found here on the Earth, and so therefore the shepherd had to be dispatched to go retrieve it and correct its sheep-thinking.

  1. Jesus said, “He who will drink from my mouth will become like me. I myself shall become he, and the things that are hidden will be revealed to him.

Drinking from the mouth of YHSVH implies accepting His testimony and also a kind of hydration which concerns “living waters” which is said elsewhere He is renewing. This process is intensive in the sense that YHSVH also becomes that person, and all the hidden things are revealed to that person as this process occurs. This has a correlation in understanding the unity of the “Word” of YHVH.

  1. Jesus said, “The kingdom is like a man who had a hidden treasure in his field without knowing it. And after he died, he left it to his son. The son did not know (about the treasure). He inherited the field and sold it. And the one who bought it went plowing and found the treasure. He began to lend money at interest to whomever he wished.”

This analogy can be likened to Israel and the forefathers who had been given the keys to the Kingdom and so hid them in this case, in a field. As time goes on, because the inheritance is forgotten about, the field is only valued as a field. Finally, the field is sold for money, and somebody else comes along and works the field and discovers the hidden treasure. The lending money at interest here implies something again of the Ministry of YHSVH in the sense that the Kingdom is open to anyone, but there is “charge” or “interest” on the charge which is only really paid by following the example YHSVH sets.

  1. Jesus said, “Whoever finds the world and becomes rich, let him renounce the world.”

Richness here means spiritual richness, and once you find that, you should renounce the world and its riches as a main desire.

  1. Jesus said, “The heavens and the earth will be rolled up in your presence. And the one who lives from the living one will not see death.” Does not Jesus say, “Whoever finds himself is superior to the world?”

This quote concerns Revelation and those who shall not taste death concerning that time. The extra little bit at the end, though, about “Does not Jesus say” sounds like it was probably added to. I doubt there was a need for YHSVH to talk about himself in the third person.

  1. Jesus said, “Woe to the flesh that depends on the soul; woe to the soul that depends on the flesh.”

We have seen this quote in modified form elsewhere. The basic truth is that the flesh that depends on the soul will suffer in some way or another, and the soul that depends on the flesh will certainly suffer.

  1. His disciples said to him, “When will the kingdom come?” (Jesus said,) “It will not come by waiting for it. It will not be a matter of saying ‘here it is’ or ‘there it is.’ Rather, the kingdom of the father is spread out upon the earth and men do not see it.”

Men do not see the Kingdom because they are blind to the workings of the Kingdom. YHSVH came to restore their sight and here answers quite matter-of-factly where the Kingdom is.

  1. Simon Peter said to him, “Let Mary leave us, for women are not worthy of life.” Jesus said, “I myself shall lead her in order to make her male, so that she too may become a living spirit resembling you males. For every woman who will make herself male will enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Finally, we end the book of Thomas in a similar place to where we left the Gospel of Mary Magdalene. Peter is saying that women are not worthy of everlasting life probably because of the episode with Eve. YHSVH says that he will lead her to make her male so she might become a living spirit. This does not mean the outward form of gender, but the inner image of YHVH. Something about her spirit shall become more “man-like” due to the influence of YHSVH leading her. Because of this, the women or woman who does this, will enter the kingdom of heaven which should end the objections of Peter once and for all.

6.1 Whew! That Was a Lot of Stairs!

It was only 114, but some of those stairs were larger than others. Anyway, you made it down all of them and here we are in the basement of the technique. We took the Gospel of Thomas as a way to get down the stairs because the beginning of the way this technique developed was, in no small way, brought about by the study and understanding of Astrology. As mentioned elsewhere, Thomas was the disciple who was sent off to India according to common belief, so it makes sense if we are going to study the roots of this specific technique that we would have to pass through his alleged work to get here. Backwards to Magdalene, though, we did not study the person whose work we read. Rather, we studied the work of the person and we did not learn much about Thomas. We have to remedy that first and we shall turn to Wikipedia to do so:

According to traditional accounts of the Saint Thomas Christians of India, the Apostle Thomas landed in Muziris (Cranganore) on the Kerala coast in AD 52 and was martyred in Mylapore, near Madras in AD 72. The port was destroyed in 1341 by a massive flood that realigned the coasts. He is believed by the Saint Thomas Christian tradition to have established seven churches (communities) in Kerala. These churches are at Kodungallur, Palayoor, Kottakkavu (Paravur), Kokkamangalam, Niranam, Nilackal (Chayal), Kollam, and Thiruvithamcode. Thomas baptized several families, namely Pakalomattom, Sankarapuri, Kalli, Kaliyankal etc. Other families claim to have origins almost as far back as these, and the religious historian Robert Eric Frykenberg notes that: “Whatever dubious historicity may be attached to such local traditions, there can be little doubt as to their great antiquity or to their great appeal in the popular imagination.”

It was to a land of dark people he was sent, to clothe them by Baptism in white robes. His grateful dawn dispelled India’s painful darkness. It was his mission to espouse India to the One-Begotten. The merchant is blessed for having so great a treasure. Edessa thus became the blessed city by possessing the greatest pearl India could yield. Thomas works miracles in India, and at Edessa Thomas is destined to baptize peoples perverse and steeped in darkness, and that in the land of India. — Hymns of Saint Ephrem, edited by Lamy (Ephr. Hymni et Sermones, IV). … Into what land shall I fly from the just?

I stirred up Death the Apostles to slay, that by their death I might escape their blows. But harder still am I now stricken: the Apostle I slew in India has overtaken me in Edessa; here and there he is all himself. There went I, and there was he: here and there to my grief I find him. — quoted in Medlycott 1905, Ch II

Ephrem the Syrian, a doctor of Syriac Christianity, writes in the forty-second of his “Carmina Nisibina” that the Apostle was put to death in India, and that his remains were subsequently buried in Edessa, brought there by an unnamed merchant. According to Eusebius’ record, Thomas and Bartholomew were assigned to Parthia and northwest India. The Didascalia (dating from the end of the 3rd century) states, “India and all countries condering it, even to the farthest seas… received the apostolic ordinances from Judas Thomas, who was a guide and ruler in the church which he built.”

According to traditional accounts, Thomas is believed to have left northwest India when an attack threatened and traveled by vessel to the Malabar Coast, possibly visiting southeast Arabia and Socotra en route, and landing at the former flourishing port of Muziris (modern-day North Paravur and Kodungalloor) (c. AD 50) in the company of a Jewish merchant Abbanes/Habban (Schonfield, 1984,125).From there he is said to have preached the gospel throughout the Malabar coast. The various churches he founded were located mainly on the Periyar River and its tributaries and along the coast, where there were Jewish colonies. In accordance with apostolic custom, Thomas ordained teachers and leaders or elders, who were reported to be the earliest ministry of the Malankara Church.

According to Syrian Christian tradition, Thomas was killed with a spear at St. Thomas Mount in Chennai on 3 July in AD 72, and his body was interred in Mylapore. Ephrem the Syrian states that the Apostle was killed in India, and that his relics were taken then to Edessa. This is the earliest known record of his death.

The records of Barbosa from the early 16th century record that the tomb was then maintained by a Muslim who kept a lamp burning there. The St. Thomas Cathedral Basilica, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India presently located at the tomb was first built in the 16th century by the Portuguese, and rebuilt in the 19th century by the British. St. Thomas Mount has been a revered site by Muslims and Christians since at least the 16th century. Of interest is the allusion to Thomas being sent to a “land of dark people” as Biblically speaking we usually think of “darkened skin people” as being the sons of Ham, and indeed, there is evidence to suggest that the people of India are descendants of Ham. Ham, it will be recalled, was the one Noah “cursed” for looking at his (Noah’s) nakedness. 1

So, we now better understand that Thomas whose name meant twin was speared in a way reminiscent of the Messiah while in India. Some 1800 years later, a Swami by the name of Yukteswar lives and writes about his meditation technique. Some 140 years later, I would find and read about that technique which forms the basis of this entire meditation book. Let us first study the “old technique” as I developed it.

  1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_the_Apostle↩︎