A Possible Founder of the Sabaean Faith
From a Tablet of Baha’u’llah
I will also mention for thee the invocation voiced by Balinus who was familiar with the theories put forward by the Father of Philosophy regarding the mysteries of creation as given in his chrysolite tablets, that everyone may be fully assured of the things We have elucidated for thee in this manifest Tablet, which, if pressed with the hand of fairness and knowledge, will yield the spirit of life for the quickening of all created things. Great is the blessedness of him who swimmeth in this ocean and celebrateth the praise of his Lord, the Gracious, the Best-Beloved. Indeed the breezes of divine revelation are diffused from the verses of thy Lord in such wise that no one can dispute its truth, except those who are bereft of hearing, of vision, of understanding and of every human faculty. Verily thy Lord beareth witness unto this, yet the people understand not.
This man hath said: `I am Balinus, the wise one, the performer of wonders, the producer of talismans.' He surpassed everyone else in the diffusion of arts and sciences and soared unto the loftiest heights of humility and supplication. Give ear unto that which he hath said, entreating the All-Possessing, the Most Exalted: `I stand in the presence of my Lord, extolling His gifts and bounties and praising Him with that wherewith He praiseth His Own Self, that I may become a source of blessing and guidance unto such men as acknowledge my words.' And further he saith: `O Lord! Thou art God and no God is there but Thee. Thou art the Creator and no creator is there except Thee. Assist me by Thy grace and strengthen me. My heart is seized with alarm, my limbs tremble, I have lost my reason and my mind hath failed me. Bestow upon me strength and enable my tongue to speak forth with wisdom.' And still further he saith: `Thou art in truth the Knowing, the Wise, the Powerful, the Compassionate.' It was this man of wisdom who became informed of the mysteries of creation and discerned the subtleties which lie enshrined in the Hermetic writings.(1) (Baha'u'llah, 1988, p147-148)
1. In one of His Tablets Baha'u'llah wrote: `The first person who devoted himself to philosophy was Idris. Thus was he named. Some also called him Hermes. In every tongue he hath a special name. He it is who hath set forth in every branch of philosophy thorough and convincing statements. After him Balinus derived his knowledge and sciences from the Hermetic Tablets and most of the philosophers who followed him made their philosophical and scientific discoveries from his words and statements...'. In the Qur'an, Sura 19, verses 57 and 58, is written: `And commemorate Idris in the Book; for he was a man of truth, a Prophet; And we uplifted him to a place on high.'
From the footnote in Baha’u’llah (1988, p147-148) as taken from Multiple Author Refer System.
Hermes Mercurius Trismegistas
Named the “Father of Philosopy” by Baha’u’llah, it is said that “Hermes Trismegistas easily predates the earliest Greek philosophers and is at least contemporary with the earliest Jewish traditions” (Scarborough, 1988, p20). The name Trismegistas refers to the three bodies of philosophy: Mineral, Plant, and Animal. Hermes had a son to whom he wrote. This son was named Tat and later became known as Thothe (Scarborough, 1988, p22). Tat is named by some as the inventor of writing according to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, and so it would seem that the Hermetic Writings long predate earliest Jewish traditions, and are at least contemporary with the earliest Sumarian Tablets. According to both Greek and Arabic texts, Hermes is Enoch descendent of Seth of Biblical fame. Hermes was deified on account of his royal descent. His teachings were originally inscribed upon clay to survive fire, and also upon stone to survive a flood. It was obviously his concern that a major fire or flood might deprive future generations of his teachings. It is believed that these tablets were inscribed by the family (descendants or members) of Seth (Scarborough, 1988, p23).
His writings concerning creation are somewhat vague, but are more specific than in Genesis. In Libellvs I (Or equivalent to Corpus Hermeticum, “Poemandres, the Shepherd of Men”, of the G. R. S. Mead Translation), verse 11B to 12 (Scott, 1924, p119), he writes:
“And Nature, even as Mind the Maker willed, brought forth from the downward-tending elements animals devoid of reason: for she no longer had with her the Word [This term also implies reason]. The Air brought birds, and the water, fishes – Earth and Water had by this time been separated from one another, - and the earth brought forth four-footed creatures and creeping things, beasts wild and tame.” [11B]
But Mind the Father of all, He who is Life and Light [light can also imply first mind] gave birth to Man, a Being like to Himself. And He took delight in Man as being his own offspring; for man was very goodly to look on, bearing the likeness of his Father. With good reason then did God take delight in Man; for it was God’s own form that God took delight in. And God delivered over to Man all things that had been made.” [12]
The similarity with the ideas of Genesis is remarkable. The lack of specific detail in Genesis as contained within the wording of these passages may suggest that the relevant Genesis ideas were a verbal adaptation from this text. That the sequence of Creation is governed by the laws of nature, and that Humanity is of a unique lineage are significant details that exemplify the loss in verbalisation.
It seem he supports the idea of evolution by adaptation. In the Emerald Tablet (Dobbs, 1988, p183) he writes, “And all things have been and arose from one, by ye meditation of one, so all things have their birth from this one thing by adaptation”. This is somewhat koanic (paradoxical) considering the unique lineage of Humanity professed by Hermes. However, this tablet was written on the theme of the essential unity of opposites:
“That which is below is like that which is above” and
“All things have been and arose from one.”
It would seem that this is where Alchemy finds its origins. If “one” is taken to represent the most basic building block; the atom, then this logical structure applies correctly to the physical realm. If “one” is taken to be God, then this logical structure is correct for the spiritual realm with the implication that all religions are inspired by the same God. Evolution by natural selection is also perfectly compatible with this philosophy as it is a specific variation evolution by adaptation which is implied herein.
Conclusion
The Emerald Tablet correlates thematically with that interpreted for the emerald and chrysolite foundations of the wall of New Jerusalem (The Book of Revelation, New Testament) by Abdul Baha. This might suggest that the Enochian Key is related to the interpretation of Gemstone symbolism given by Abdul Baha to Shanaz Waite to explain the meaning of the foundation of the wall of New Jerusalem (Moffat, 1977, p144-151)
It would seem that the idea of Evolution by Adaptation belongs to Hermes who clearly professes it and that this apparent fact suggests that Baha’u’llah may offer approval by way of quotation (“Chrysolite” Tablet). The unique ascent of Humanity is duly noted in the Báhá’i teachings. In the context of Abdul Baha’s writing, the purpose of this doctrine is to discourage Baha’is from contributing to the extinction of any species lest this be part of a line of such unique ascent. Abdul Baha has explained that while the form may change, the Human potential is expressed as a matter of choice and not law. As such it is not necessarily apparent to the observer. (Abdul Baha, 1990,p193)
It is interesting to note that the writing style of Baha’u’llah contains a large proportion of Hermetic elements. If Hermes is the Father of Philosophy, then is he not also the first prophet of the Adamic Cycle? Mohammed names him as a prophet, he is deified by the Greeks and the Egyptians, and both Arabic and Greek writers consider him to be Enoch of the family of Seth. This suggests quite strongly that Hermes is indeed the founder of Saba and the Sabaean Faith.
Bibliography
`Abdu'l-Baha, 1990, Some Answered Questions, U.S.A.
Baha’u’llah, 1988, Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh Revealed After the Kitab-i-Aqdas, U.S.A.
Dobbs, B. J. T. 1988, Newton’s Commentary on the Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistas: Its Scientific and Theological Significance. In Merkel, E. & Debus, A. G. (Editors), Hermeticism and the Renaissance, Associated University Presses, London.
Moffat, R. J. 1977, New Keys to The Book of Revelation, Báhá’i Publishing Trust, New Delhi.
Scarborough, J. 1988, Hermetic and Related Texts in Classical Antiquity. In Merkel, E. & Debus, A. G. (Editors), Hermeticism and the Renaissance, Associated University Presses, London.
Scott, W. 1924, Hermetica, Oxford University Press.
