Egyptian Mystery System, Curriculum, Order, Diodorus, Clement of Alexandria

The Curriculum of the Egyptian Mystery System.
1. The Education of the Egyptian Priests According to Their Orders.
From Diodorus, Herodotus and Clement of Alexandria, we learn that there were six Orders of Egyptian Priests and that each Order had to master a certain number of the books of Hermes/Thoth/Nri/Orunmila. Clement has described a procession of the Priests, calling them by their Order, and stating their qualifications, as follows:

Illustration of The Order of The Singer Odus

First comes the Singer Odus, bearing an instrument of music. He has to know by heart two of the books of Hermes/Thoth; one containing the hymns of the Gods, and the other, the allotment of the king's life.

Followed by the Horoscopus, carrying in his hand a Horologium or sun-dial, and a palm branch; the symbols of Astronomy. He has to know four of the books of Hermes/Thoth, which deal with Astronomy.

Then comes the Hierogrammat, with feathers on his head, and a book in his hand, and a rectangular case with writing materials, i.e., the writing ink and the reed. He has to know the hieroglyphics, cosmography, geography, astronomy, the topography of Egypt, the sacred utensils and measures, the temple furniture and the lands.

Followed by the Stolistes, carrying the cubit of justice, and the libation vessels. He has to know the books of Hermes/Thoth that deal with the slaughter of animals.

Next comes the Prophetes carrying the vessel of water, followed by those who carry the loaves. The Prophetes is the President of the temple and has to know the ten books which are called hieratic, and contain the laws and doctrines concerning the Gods (secret-theology) and the whole education of the Priests. The books of Hermes/Thoth are 42 in number and are absolutely necessary. 36 of them have to be known by the Orders which precede, and contain the whole philosophy of the Egyptians.

The remaining six books must be known by the Order of Pastophori. These are medical books and deal with physiology, male and female diseases, anatomy, drugs, and instruments. The books of Hermes were well known to the ancient world and were known to Clement of Alexandria, who lived at the beginning of the third century A.D.

Illustration of The Order of The Horoscopus

DIODORUS
Diodorus Siculus, Diodoros Sikeliotes) (fl. 1st century BC) or Diodorus of Sicily was a Greek historian. He is known for writing the monumental universal history Bibliotheca Historica, much of which survives, between 60 and 30 BC. It is arranged in three parts.

The first covers mythic history up to the destruction of Troy, arranged geographically, describing regions around the world from Egypt, India, and Arabia to Greece and Europe.

The second covers the Trojan War to the death of Alexander the Great. The third covers the period to about 60 BC. Bibliotheca, meaning 'library', acknowledges that he was drawing on the work of many other authors.

Diodorus' universal history, which he named Bibliotheca Historica was immense and consisted of 40 books, of which 1–5 and 11–20 survive: fragments of the lost books are preserved in Photius and the excerpts of Constantine Porphyrogenitus.

It was divided into three sections. The first six books treated the mythic history of the non-Hellenic and Hellenic tribes to the destruction of Troy and are geographical in theme, and describe the history and culture of Ancient Egypt (book I), of Mesopotamia, India, Scythia, and Arabia (II), of North Africa (III), and of Greece and Europe (IV-VI).

Illustration of The Order of The Hierogrammat

In the next section (books VII–XVII), he recounts the history of the world from the Trojan War down to the death of Alexander the Great.

The last section (books XVII to the end) concerns the historical events from the successors of Alexander down to either 60 BC or the beginning of Julius Caesar's Gallic Wars.

(The end has been lost, so it is unclear whether Diodorus reached the beginning of the Gallic War as he promised at the beginning of his work or, as evidence suggests, old and tired from his labours he stopped short at 60 BC.) He selected the name "Bibliotheca" in acknowledgment that he was assembling a composite work from many sources. Identified authors on whose works he drew include Hecataeus of Abdera, Ctesias of Cnidus, Ephorus, Theopompus, Hieronymus of Cardia, Duris of Samos, Diyllus, Philistus, Timaeus, Polybius, and Posidonius.

His account of gold mining in Nubia in eastern Egypt is one of the earliest extant texts on the topic and describes in vivid detail the use of slave labour in terrible working conditions.

Illustration of The Order of The Stolistes

He also gave an account of the Gauls: "The Gauls are terrifying in aspect and their voices are deep and altogether harsh; when they meet together they converse with few words and in riddles, hinting darkly at things for the most part and using one word when they mean another; and they like to talk in superlatives, to the end that they may extol themselves and depreciate all other men.

They are also boasters and threateners and are fond of pompous language, and yet they have sharp wits and are not without cleverness at learning." (Book 5)

In addition to the education contained in the 42 Books of Hermes, the Priests gained considerable knowledge from the selection and examination of sacrificial victims, and the strict bodily purity which their priestly office imposed.

In addition to the Hierogrammat and Horoscopus, who were skilled in theology and hieroglyphics, a Priest was also a Judge and an interpreter of the law. This led to a select tribunal, which made the Egyptian Priest the custodian of every kind of literature. We are also told that the Science of Statistics was cultivated to the greatest perfection among the Egyptian Priests.

(Diodorus I, 80; Clement of Alexandria; Stromata 6, 4, p. 756; John Kendrick's Ancient Egypt Bk. I, p. 378–379; Bk. II, 85–87; Aelian, Var. Hist. 14, 34; Clement of Alexandria: Stromata 6, 4, p 758: John Kendrick's Ancient Egypt Bk. II p. 31–33).

Illustration of The Order of The Prophetes

2. The Education of the Egyptian Priests in—A. The Seven Liberal Arts. B. Secret Systems of Languages and Mathematical Symbolism. C. Magic.

A. The education of the Egyptian Priests in the Seven Liberal Arts. As has already been pointed out, in connection with Plato and the Cardinal Virtues, the Egyptian Mysteries were the centre of organized culture and the recognized source of education in the ancient world.

Neophytes were graded according to their moral efficiency and intellectual competence and had to submit to many years of tests and ordeals, in order that their eligibility for advancement might be determined. Their education included the Seven Liberal Arts and the virtues. The virtues were not mere abstractions or ethical sentiments, but positive valours and the virility of the soul. Beyond these, the Priests entered upon a course of specialization.

B. The education of the Egyptian Priests consisted also in the specialization in secret systems of language and mathematical symbolism.

Illustration of The Order of The Pastophori

(i) It would appear that there were two forms of writing in use among the Egyptians:

(a) The demotic, believed to have been introduced by Pharaoh Psammitichus, for trade and commercial purposes; and

(b) The hieroglyphics of which there were two forms, i.e., the hieroglyphics proper, and the hieratic a linear form, both of which were used only by the Priests, in order to conceal the secret and mystical meaning of their doctrines. (Clement of Alexandria: Stromata Bk. V. c. 4 p. 657; Plutarch, De Iside et Osiride Bk. II, p. 374; John Kendrick; Ancient Egypt, Bk. II, p. 84; 119, 336, and 245).

(ii) We are also informed that the mystery system of Egypt employed modes of spoken language which could be understood, only by the initiated. These consisted not only of myths and parables; but also of a secret language called Senzar. (Ancient Mysteries: C. H. Vail, p. 23).

(iii) We also understand that the Egyptians attached numerical values both to letters of words and to geometrical figures, with the same intention as with their use of hieroglyphics, i.e., to conceal their teachings. It is further understood that the Egyptian numerical and geometrical symbolism were contained in the 42 Books of Hermes, whose system was the oldest and most elaborate repository of mathematical symbolism. Here again, we are reminded of the source of the number philosophy of Pythagoras. (Ancient Mysteries: C. H. Vail, p. 22–23; Clement of Alexandria: Stromata Book V, c. 7 and 9). End of part 1 of 2. Next blog 31/03/19.