Gnostic Gospel, Pt 12 -- Peace Offered to End the Endless War

Notice: There is now a separate blog dedicated to the New Gnostic Gospel. You can get there by clicking here.

The hierarchy of the Fullness

The original Economy was that of the Hierarchy of the Fullness, wherein every aeon knew its place, position, and duties for cooperative overall functioning. Each of the Fullnesses lived in a state of "joy, benevolence, and harmonious agreement," giving glory to the Father and never to themselves or each other [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 86]. 

Over the course of illuminating the Gnostic Gospel, the Simple Explanation has designed a series of visual metaphors representing facets of Gnostic and Christian belief. For the fullest understanding of this article, you may wish to read the entire Gnostic Gospel Illuminated series from the beginning.  If you would prefer to first read the "Simple Gnostic Gospel, Part One: The Father, The Son, and the Birth of The ALL," click here.

The Second Order of Powers was created to establish a "new Economy" to replace the Deficiency that had arisen as a result of the Fall of Logos.  

Logos and the Fullness brought forth these "little ones" of the Second Order so they could receive the "life-giving light born from the thought of brotherly love of the pre-existent Fullnesses" [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 85], in contrast to those that arose from the Fall. The "Powers of Remembrance" resembled the aeons whose likenesses they were, and they were in harmony with themselves and with others of their kind.

Those of the Remembrance were from a good disposition, with an inclination to seek and pray to what is glorious and pre-existent and an ability to ponder and appreciate it. 

The new economy of the Second Order of Powers reflected a different method of doing business from their parents in the Fullness. In the new economy, the Powers vied for position and authority within a limited space. Here, those of the Imitation, who continued to wholeheartedly embrace the shadows left over from the Fall, actively fought against those of the Remembrance. 

For their part, those of the Remembrance forgot all about the values of the Fullness, due to the "law of mutual combat" they were enacting. The new Powers acquired the same "lust for domination and all the other passions of this sort," and wound up acting "against itself on account of its rage." It was during this Endless War that a myriad of "various kinds of matter and all sorts of powers [were] mixed with one another and in great number" [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 84, 85].

Those of the Remembrance battle Those of the Imitation in a never-ending war over whose memes will rule the world.

Clearly, another solution was required if peace were to enter the Deficiency. 

Remember that none of this was due to an error of planning; rather these steps were all necessary to bring about an economy still to come. "For this reason, then, it is wrong to condemn the movement of the Word as the cause that made an ordained economy come to pass" [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 77].

The aeons of the Fullness "took upon themselves the Fall that had happened as if it were their own, with concern, goodness, and great kindness. . . for the one who had become deficient could be made perfect in no other way except by the Fullness of the Father" [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 86].

And so the aeons of the Fullness, every one individually and ALL of them collectively, gave glory in unison to their Father, while praying for help for the Deficiency. 

The Fullness gave glory to their Father and the ALL while praying for the Endless War to be over.

They brought forth One that combined every attribute of the ALL manifested in the image of the Father "of whom they had been thinking when they gave glory and prayed for help" [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 86]. 

The Christ Principle, The Son of His Will, the Fruit of the ALL and the Father

This One was called "The Son of his Will" and "of the good pleasure of the ALL." It is "the knowledge of the Father, who wished to become known." It is also described as holding "authority vested in him from the beginning and the power needed to execute it" [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 87, 88]. 

The aeons not only produced a singular Fruit reflecting the Father, but that Fruit also reflected their own individual countenances and aspects from their positions in the hierarchy of the Fullness. In this manner, they "went forth in a form that consisted of many forms, so that the one whom they were going to help should see those to whom he had prayed for help as well as the One who brought it to him" [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 87]. 

Continue on to the next article in the Gnostic Series: Part Thirteen -- The Revelation of the Son
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Those readers who are put off by the name "God" or other religious words like the "Father," the "Son," and the "Holy Spirit," are free to continue using more modern memes like "consciousness" and "self-awareness," "algorithms" and "fractals." You may study these same topics in my Simple Explanation blog and book. However, if you are already familiar with Hebrew and Christian memes, then you will understand these Gnostic writings without needing to first dip into the Simple Explanation, and so you may skip the following translation.

The Fruit of the ALL and the Father becomes another fractal iteration of the Universal Unit of Consciousness, but this iteration is not a fractal deriving from Second Order of Powers. The Christ Principle would be a perfect fractal iteration of the Universal UC, taking into account the new information available to the universal formula arising from the goings-on in our bounded space. 

Here's what that sounds like in terms of the Simple Explanation: The Universal Unit of Consciousness has just amended the primary algorithm of the universe to include up-to-date data specific to each individual Unit of Consciousness in our space-time continuum. This new code represents patches to the fragmentary error-code of the Deficiency, in order to end the stalemate and reestablish harmony and proper functioning of the Economy.  

The reason why each UC needs its very own correcting code is because each UC's karma has been affected by the Imitation in a unique way, different from its neighbors. For humans, this means that each person has a personal point of view and a unique meme shroud that needs correcting. The creation story above also speaks to the need for each UC to be able to hear and recognize the voice of reason for themselves.

On another scale, the "forms consisting of many forms" also refers to the nested fractal hierarchies of our toroidal space that may need tweaking from time to time. Our Universal UC continually pours information, metaversal values, love and coherence into our space.

Gnostic Gospel, Pt 3: The ALL--Perfect Union Becomes Self-Aware

Notice: There is now a separate blog dedicated to the New Gnostic Gospel. You can get there by clicking here.

You may wish to review the first and second articles in this Gnostic Gospel series prior to reading this article. In those first two articles, the nature of the Father is described, and the birth of the Son and the ALL. Part three continues this creation story, which all happened before the Biblical Genesis.

Some claim that it is impossible to know or describe the full glory of the  transcendent, immortal Father of consciousness, due to our own limitations. How could limited beings possibly imagine the greatness of the originator of the universe, much less our place in the grand design? Wouldn’t lesser beings reflect a diminished view of God? Wouldn’t these lesser beings be limited to offering a tarnished glory that falls far short of the object of their praise?

“If the members of the ALL had risen to give glory according to the individual powers of each, they would have brought forth a glory that was only a semblance of the Father, who himself is the ALL." [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 68] Thus, creation would have been doomed from the outset to never comprehend the full glory of either the Father or itself.

According to the Gnostic Gospel, the Father realized this impossibility and so built in a helpful work-around meant to aid comprehension—selfless union and cooperation with others in a shared task.  “For that reason they were drawn into ... mutual intermingling, union, and oneness,” “through the singing of praise.” [68] “From their assembled fullness” they were “one and at the same time many,” accurately reflecting “the One who himself is the entirety of the ALL.” [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 68] 

Out of perfect union with itself and the Son, and by means of a single, shared effort, the ALL gave glory to the eternal One who had brought it forth. The glory given out of this perfect communion left the ALL perfect and full, as it was perfect and full to begin with, and the object of their glory was also perfect and full. [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 69] This phase of the ALL is referred to as "The Second Glory," with the Son being called "The First Glory."

However, this state of perfect union with the Son and communion with each other did not last. Because of their combined effort, the ALL became self-aware, and “it” became “they.”

No longer simply an unaware member of the ALL, singing in unison the same song of praise, the ALL became aware of its individual traits, and the singing came to be produced by the will of each individual aeon, themselves a reflection of the Father’s countless qualities and powers. [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 70].  The aeons conceived themselves to know themselves, in fulfillment of the Father’s desire for pure consciousness to become differentiated and self-aware.

The moment “it” became “they,” individual identities arose and immediately sorted themselves into a hierarchy. “For this reason they exist as minds over minds, words over words, superiors over superiors, degrees over degrees, being ranked one above the other. Each of those who glorify has his own station, rank, dwelling place, and place of rest, which is the glorification he brings forth.": [The Tripartite Tractate, v. 68]  This hierarchical arrangement of the qualities of the ALL is known as "The Fruit of the Third Glory" in Gnostic cosmology. It is also called "The First Order of Powers" and "The Fullness."

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Those readers who are put off by the name "God" or other religious words like "The Father" and "The Son" are free to continue using more modern memes like "consciousness" and "self-awareness." You may study these same topics in my Simple Explanation blog and book. However, if you are already familiar with Hebrew and Christian memes, then you will understand these Gnostic writings without needing to first dip into the Simple Explanation, and so you may skip the following translation.

The Simple Explanation of Absolutely Everything refers to the Father as the Metaverse, that which is above our Universe.

The Simple Explanation calls the Son the Universal Unit of Consciousness, because while identical to the Father, or Metaverse, this all-knowing consciousness is now also a singular Unit. In fractal terms, the Son is the first iteration of the pattern. The first Torus wireframe potential if you want to go that way.

The ALL is every thing that will ever be, in potential. Plato's forms, every photon, particle, and proton, every personality, every position and rank, and every physical formula, imprinted upon the Universal Unit of Consciousness. These potentialities are not manifest, nor even self-aware. They began as unrealized fractal iterations of the pattern of the Son. By this point in the Gnostic Gospel, the ALL has realized itself and become expressed fractals of the second iteration. 

The cooperation amongst the ALL is the prototype for the Simple Explanation's Golden Rule, which the Simple Explanation puts it this way: "In order for units of consciousness to join and work together for the greater good, they need to share relevant information, they need to assist one another's efforts, and they need to love one another."   In the same way that the ALL sat in perfection together while singing the same song of praise, so do we all instantiate the pattern of cooperation needed to "get the job done" when we work together for the greater good, without selfish motive.

It is fascinating to me that hierarchies arise so early in the Gnostic cosmology. Hierarchies are not mistaken grabs for power. Hierarchies are essential to our manifested universe.

This is the basic human hierarchy. While you may think of yourself as a singular human being, you are actually composed of countless billions of hierarchically assembled units of consciousness. Read more about it.

Gnostic Gospel, Pt 1: The Father, The Son, and the Birth of The ALL

Notice: There is now a separate blog dedicated to the New Gnostic Gospel. You can get there by clicking here.

The following article is what kicked off The New Gnostic Gospel Illuminated book and blog.

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This story begins before the beginning; before space and time and our material universe.

Imagine, if you can, nothing exists but pure consciousness. Consider this consciousness to be without thought. No thought, no images, no structure or form. No thing at all. Only love.

This consciousness simply is. Without time, without any prior existence.  Unchangeable. Unmovable. Without beginning; without end. Utterly quiet. Utterly still. Utterly alone.

All knowing—what is there to know? All seeing—what is there to see? All loving—what is there to love? Omnipotent wisdom and will—to what end?

Imagine this consciousness giving birth to an emanation of itself—now a Father, and a Son.

In the silence of the Absolute, the Father brings forth the first and only Son from its realization of Itself. The Son exists as the Father having a thought. As the Father knowing Itself. As the Father having a sensation of Its own eternal Self.

This Son reflects the Father’s boundless greatness and love. This Son possesses every trait of the Father, for the Son is a complete encapsulation of the Father in which it dwells. Every trait of the Father expressed as the singularity of the Son. [The Tripartite Tractate, v.56]

And yet, although it was the singular manifestation of the Father, the moment the Son was formed, it was no longer alone. For not only the Son, but the ALL arose at once. The ALL immediately appeared as the offspring of the Son, because the Son could not stop itself from bringing others into existence, even as it was brought into existence by the Father.

This ALL is known as the pre-existent Church, “For not only the Son but also the Church exists from the beginning.” [The Tripartite Tractate, v.58]

Before the ALL arose from the Father’s thought, He knew them, but they did not know the depth in which they found themselves, nor could they know themselves or anything else. For they were within the Father as an embryo or an unsprouted seed. [The Tripartite Tractate, v.61]

Because they were newly formed, the Father concealed the ALL’s perfection from them until they could grow into the knowledge. This is why the Father revealed the Son to them, so the ALL would be able to relate to him and see the Father’s Glory according to the ability of each one to receive him. [The Tripartite Tractate, v.63]

The Son is no more and no less than the sum of the ALL, and they understood who he is, and he is covered by the ALL. [The Tripartite Tractate, v.66]

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Here is a Simple Explanation of the above, using the Simple Explanation terms for those readers who prefer them.

The "before the beginning" parts are right out of the Simple Explanation cosmology, blog, and book. Anyone who likes the Simple Explanation cosmology should recognize it.

The Simple Explanation refers to the Father as the Metaverse, that which is above our Universe.

The Simple Explanation calls the Son the Universal Unit of Consciousness, because while identical to the Father, or Metaverse, this all-knowing consciousness is now also a singular Unit. In fractal terms, the Son is the first iteration of the pattern. The first Torus wireframe potential if you want to go that way.

The ALL is every thing that will ever be, in potential. Plato's forms, every photon, particle, and proton, every personality, imagined and formulated and imprinted upon the Universal Unit of Consciousness. They are not manifest, nor even self-aware. They are unrealized fractal iterations of the pattern of the Son.

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Thus begins my Simple Explanation of the Gnostic Gospels, primarily taken from the Tripartite Tractate of the Nag Hammadi Scriptures. The verse numbers refer to the verse of the Tripartite Tractate cited. The Simple Explanation began this work in 2015 and set it aside for further contemplation until now. 

I will hopefully continue to write these complete and Simple Explanation of Gnostic Cosmology as quickly as I can, so stay tuned. My goal is to help both believers and non-believers understand this ancient Gospel that predates our modern Bible. 

This Simple Explanation of the Gnostic Gospels takes us all the way from before the beginning to the end of time. In these Gospels you will learn the fuller, original meanings of many Christian terminologies that no longer appear in our modern Bible. This article has explained The Father, The Son, the ALL, and the pre-existent Church. And we haven't even gotten to Creation yet!

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Continue on to The Simple Gnostic Gospel, Part Two: 

Qualities of the Father, the Son, and the ALL