Essential Wisdom
of the Torah
The Torah and Old Testament
In Judaic tradition, the Torah, or law, is the first five books of the Old Testament from Genesis to Deuteronomy. Following are the writings and the prophets that form the rest of the Old Testament. As one reads and studies the Old and the New Testaments, one cannot help but be struck by the radical difference there appears to be between conceptions of God. In fact, if one did not know better, one might feel that these two parts of the Bible represented the revelation of two very different Gods. This is certainly the conclusion of some Gnostic schools, which as we have said believe the God of the Old Testament to be the demiurgos.
In the Sophian tradition of Gnostic Christianity, however, it is not God who changes between the Old and New Testaments. Rather, it is human beings and the prophets who have matured and who have spiritually evolved to see, hear, and know the divine revelation more directly and clearly. The distinction is one of gradations of impurity in human consciousness moving towards greater purity and clarity. However, even in the New Testament there is necessarily some degree of admixture. Any inspiration or revelation flowing through an incarnate human being will naturally be limited by the capacity of the individual’s own knowledge, understanding, and wisdom, the place and time in which he or she lives, and his or her own assumptions and prejudices.
As an example, though Yeshua was a realized individual and a great master, nevertheless, Yeshua believed the earth was flat because that is what people thought in those days. Likewise, Yeshua did not denounce slavery, which was part of the culture of the time, even though today it is clear to us that it is inhumane and unjust. The same is true for comments in the New Testament regarding gays and lesbians—fundamental cultural prejudices color the teachings of the ancient apostles. St. Mary Magdalene herself fell victim to prejudices against women in the ancient Palestinian culture of patriarchal domination. While the source of the divine revelation in both the Old and New Testaments is the same life-power, the impurities in the consciousness of the prophets and apostles receiving it are the result of the demiurgos and archons—hence ignorance, and the distortions ignorance produces in both the individual and collective consciousness. According to Gnostic teachings, as long as one is in this world and in the body, there must necessarily be some influence of cosmic ignorance.
This is all part and parcel of the realm of becoming and evolution, for previous stages of development and evolution are necessarily inferior and imperfect to those of the present or future, and indeed, many former developments naturally become obsolete in the evolutionary process. It is with this awareness that Sophians look upon the Torah and Old Testament and even various aspects of the New Testament. There can certainly be no greater form of fundamental ignorance than to assume anything spoken or written by a human being is the “absolute word of God,” however inspired or enlightened the author might be. Such ideas represent a complete lack of self-knowledge and understanding regarding the functions of consciousness, and certainly lack insight into the psychic and spiritual dimensions of the mystical and prophetic experience. In truth, whatever might be communicated of the mystical or prophetic experience is an interpretation and creative expression, limited by a person’s knowledge and ability.
Thus, when Christian Gnostics look into the Scriptures, from the Old Testament to the New, and even into Gnostic Scriptures, what they see is a progressive light-transmission occurring at various levels, each a more refined and evolved revelation of the light-presence and light-continuum. Essentially, Gnostics seek to draw from Scriptures whatever knowledge, understanding, and wisdom they can. Whatever is obsolete is left behind, like chaff when the grain of wheat is extracted. Using this analogy, in the midst of a harvest when the husk and fruit are joined together, it would be unwise to throw out the fruit with the husk, or as the saying goes, “to throw out the baby with the bath water.” Thus, just as there are teachings and an oral tradition coupled with the New Testament and Gnostic Scriptures in the Sophian tradition, so also are there wisdom teachings and oral tradition associated with the Torah and Old Testament.
Much of the old covenant and the law is obsolete and irrelevant to the Gnostic Christian, such as laws concerning clean and unclean foods and the bloody sacrifices of the ancient Jewish temples. Yet the heart of the law and the essence of the law remain relevant and true in the eyes of Sophians; thus there are spiritual and mystical teachings associated with it that point to the Gnosis of the Living Yeshua.
The essence of the law is love, through which the law is fulfilled and all good things are accomplished. According to the Sophian teachings, the essence of the law is contained in the following statement: “Love the Lord your God with all of your heart and with all of your soul, and with all of your mind and all of your strength; and love your neighbor as yourself.” The basic implication of this is the awareness of sacred unity underlying all things through which one is able to experience a conscious unification with the light-presence and light-continuum. As we shall see, the fundamental understanding of this to the Gnostic is not so much religious, but rather represents the very essence of the spiritual or mystical experience and thus the essence of Gnosis.
The heart of the law flows out from the essence of the law and is represented by the Ten Commandments, to which we shall now turn our attention as we explore some of the Gnostic Christian teachings associated with them.
The Sacred Unity
I am the Lord your God, who led you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me. (Exodus 20:2–3)
The Hebrew word for “I am” used in this verse is Anoki, and it alludes to what is considered the essential divine name in the Torah which was spoken to Moses at the burning bush—Eheieh Asher Eheieh. This may be translated as, “I am who I am” or “I am that I am,” or “I shall be that I shall be.” “Anoki” is also related to the name of Enoch, which is a word meaning “initiate” and is the name of one of the holy individuals whom legend says departed the material dimension by way of a spiritual ascension and did not experience death.59 “Anoki” therefore points to God as the sacred unity within and beyond creature and creation and, ultimately, to the truth of our inmost being—the light-presence. As we may recall, in the Gospels, Master Yeshua is noted for “I am” sayings, such as “I am the way, and the truth and the life . . .” Rather than the person of Yeshua as a man, Gnostics understand that all “I am” sayings refer to the Christ presence, which is the inmost being of each and every one of us.
This is reflected by the divine name that follows Anoki, which is Yahweh Elohenu. As we have seen, Yahweh indicates the One life-power—that which is, was, and forever shall be. Elohenu, which translates as “your God,” indicates the life-power within oneself—the divine “I am.” The key message here is that, at the inmost level of our soul of light, we have always been, are now, and forever shall be inseparable from the sacred unity that God is. We already exist in the sacred unity of the One life-power, and are a direct expression of the One life-power. As the name Yeshua implies, by becoming aware of the sacred unity, we are restored to wholeness of being and are set free.
According to the Gnostic Christian Kabbalah, Egypt is a code word in the Torah for the dominion of the demiurgos and archons, and Pharaoh, the ruler of Egypt, is a code word for the ego-illusion—hence the sense of an isolate and separate self-existence, apart from others, our environment, and divine being. If we are able to restore ourselves to the awareness of sacred unity, in that instant we experience something of the divine illumination and are liberated from our bondage to cosmic ignorance or the feelings of lack and isolation that so often plague us.
The saying, “You shall have no other God before me,” can also be translated, “You shall not place the gods of others before me.” From a Gnostic perspective this is very revealing, as is the divine name Yahweh Elohenu, for it points us within ourselves for knowledge and understanding of the source of our being, and it points to a direct mystical experience. This first commandment indicates the Spirit of truth as the sacred unity within and behind all life, and directs us to follow the truth and light as it is revealed in our own experience, rather than looking outward to the “gods” of others. Thus, the beginning of the law is the gnosis of the divine “I am” within oneself, which is what Sophians mean when they speak of the Living Yeshua.
There is a beautiful affirmation and promise in this commandment. It says to us that each and every one of us who seeks to experience the divine presence and power within ourselves and our lives can and will. Moreover, it affirms that, in this experience, we will come to understand and express our unique essence, that we will be and become most truly ourselves. After all, there is no one else we are meant to be but our unique and individual self, which is the expression of Christos in us and as us. In so doing, we add texture to the sacred unity, the greater glory of the sacred unity is revealed, and another cell awakens in the body of Adam Kadmon—the primordial human being.
If we were to speak this commandment in the clearest and most simple way as it is understood among Sophians, it would be this: Remember and be yourself—your true self (Christ self).
Living Within
You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything in heaven above, or that is on earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth, you shall not bow down to them or worship them . . . (Exodus 20:4–5)
The key to remembering and being oneself, and the key to the spiritual life is learning to go and live within the sanctuary of the heart, according to Gnostic Christian teachings. Later, we will give several practices aimed at doing just this. Yet here, in general, we may understand going within as looking inward for guidance and direction in our lives, rather than looking outward, and trusting the light-presence within us to guide and direct us in our journey. Among Sophian Gnostics, the role of the spiritual teacher, community, and education we receive from our involvement in an authentic wisdom tradition is viewed as very important. There is much we can gain from an experienced guide and from other practitioners. Yet, a spiritual education is meant to draw out that which is within us. The teacher and community serve to teach us to go live within, and they support and encourage us to do so.
The basic idea of an idol proves very interesting, for it implies a lifeless statue or an empty shell—the appearance of something that has been taken as the source or truth of the thing itself or the idea that the life-power is separate from us, or that our happiness lies in something outside of ourselves. The message here, however, is that the life-power is within us, that it is who and what we most truly are, and that the source of our happiness is to be found, not in anything outside of ourselves, but within ourselves. Granted, various things external to ourselves may serve as vehicles through which we experience different manifestations of the life-power and joy in life, yet the joy we experience and our ability to experience the life-power comes from within us. When we forget this, we feel disconnected from life and from the Spirit, and we do not experience happiness and satisfaction in our lives. If one considers the worst behaviors of human beings and the extreme negativity that can haunt us, one will see that it all comes from our forgetting who and what we truly are and losing touch with our true being.
Essentially, anything which causes us to forget our soul of light and true being, the indwelling Christ, is an idol. Anything we place as the axis of our universe and life, other than this true being, is an idol. Anything which causes us to lose awareness of the sacred unity or that distracts us from our true life-path is an idol.
This latter term, life-path, is very important. According to Sophian teachings, each person has a true life-path, or what is often called the mission of the soul in this life. This is reflected in our inmost heart’s desire and in our natural talents and abilities, and it is integral to who and what we are. It is not something found outside of us. It is deep within us, as though the yearning in the depths of our soul. Because we tend to live only in surface consciousness and cling to preconceptions and expectations about ourselves that have been imposed from outside of us, oftentimes we become distracted from our life-path and follow along another way which does not actually reflect and express our inner or Christ self. One’s fulfillment can only happen by way of one’s own life-path, and one is that path. It is something we bring forth from within ourselves and cannot be found outside of ourselves, save perhaps as a reflection.
To express this commandment in the simplest way, we might echo the favorite saying of Joseph Campbell, “Follow your bliss.” The only thing Sophians would point out is that, often, what we think to be our heart’s desire at first is not our heart’s desire at all. It is something that has come from outside of us. Thus to follow one’s bliss, one must go and live within the sanctuary of the heart.
Walking in Beauty and Holiness
You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name. (Exodus 20:7)
If we remember the beginning of the Commandments and the use of the word Anoki to allude to Eheieh (I am), we may gain some insight to the deeper spiritual implications of this commandment. Essentially, whether in our thoughts or our words, the phrase “I am” bears great power, and we will speak in detail about this power later in this book. Here, however, we may point to the play of self-affirmations and self-negations that are constantly going on in our minds, hearts, and speech. We are constantly saying “I am this,” or “I am that.” Though sometimes we are affirming who and what we truly are, oftentimes we are not affirming the truth and light in us. Instead, we are engaged in negative statements and feelings about ourselves. These, in turn, get projected on others, and we find ourselves saying to others, “You are this,” or “You are that,” in ways that negate who and what they truly are. Self-negations and the negation of others are inherently self-destructive. If we engage in this, no one, not even God, can deliver us from the natural consequences. We cannot afford to entertain negativity of any form, and it is important that we understand the very real power of our thoughts, feeling-emotions, words, and actions, how they affect ourselves and others, and how our life manifests through them. If we seek prosperity, success, health, and happiness, let alone actual self-realization, understanding the great power that is in us is crucial.
Lord Yeshua says something parallel to this commandment when he says that “blasphemy of the Holy Spirit” is the only “unforgivable sin.” This has often been taken to indicate the extreme self-negativity of suicide, which is certainly accurate in the sense no one can restore the life of a person who has prematurely put an end to her or his own life. Yet, the Holy Spirit represents basically the same principle as the name of God—the life-power or creative power that is in us. Each and every one of us is a center of the sacred unity and the creative power we call God. Our thoughts, feeling-emotions, words and actions are all an expression of this creative power. The reality we experience is a radiant display of this creative power of consciousness, whether heavens, earths, hells, or the supernal abodes. Therefore, liberating our minds, hearts, and lives from cosmic ignorance and directing them according to an awareness of sacred unity, we naturally uplift ourselves and others and enact self-preservation (life). Conversely, allowing ourselves to entertain negativity by enacting self-negation and the negation of others leads to a pulling down of ourselves and others and enacts self-destruction. On the most basic level, this commandment reminds us of the fundamental principle of cause and effect, which is the very foundation of the law in creation.
The same teaching extends beyond our thoughts, feelings-emotions, words, and actions to our talents, resources in life, and all forms of power we have access to, for all of life is the manifestation of what is represented by the name of God. Thus, the scientist must be conscious of his or her discoveries and how scientific knowledge is applied. The artist must consider what he or she creates and what it will invoke and inspire in others. The businessperson must be concerned about more than merely his or her own profit. Likewise, the politician must actually seek to serve the people he or she is elected to serve. The same is true of any talents and of any occupation or vocation that can be mentioned. Essentially, this commandment speaks to the right use of all forms of power and includes such things as money-power, fame-power, sex-power, and every other form of power on a material level. The aim of the spiritual person is to use all forms of power wisely and to uplift all power, restoring it to harmony with the sacred unity.
Among Sophian Gnostics, there is a more esoteric wisdom found in this commandment, for the use and vibration of divine names is a central part of the methods of prayer, meditation, and sacred ritual in the Christian Kabbalah. The idea of divine names points to psychic and spiritual powers that extend far beyond any material power that can be named and, in fact, are the causes of material powers. If one needs to be conscious of material powers to which one has access, then this is even truer of psychic and spiritual powers. Essentially, this commandment reminds us of the immeasurable potential of the creative power that is in us and calls us to be conscious of that divine presence and power. In this way, we honor the name of God, the One life-power.
If we were to speak this saying in the simplest way, it would be this: Remember yourself as a center of creative power, and walk in beauty and holiness. What this means, of course, each of us must discern for her- or himself.
Meeting the Beloved
Remember the Sabbath day, and keep it holy. (Exodus 20:8–11)
The Shabbat60 in Sophian Gnosticism is not a religious duty or obligation, but rather is a spiritual practice. It is in this sense that Lord Yeshua spoken of the Shabbat when he said, “The sabbath was made for humankind, and not humankind for the sabbath; so the Son of the Human One is lord even of the Sabbath.”61 Likewise, in the Gospel of St. Thomas, Yeshua says, “If you do not fast as regards the world, you will not find the kingdom. If you do not observe the Sabbath as Sabbath, you will not see the Father.”62
Previously we spoke of the Gnostic emphasis on self-knowledge as the foundation of divine Gnosis, as well as the Gnostic teaching that the kingdom of heaven is within oneself—the awareness of the sacred unity, the light-presence and light-continuum. Thus, to acquire self-knowledge we must make time to meet ourselves, and to actually progress towards self-realization in supernal consciousness, we must take time to turn inward and upward—Godward. This, in essence, is the meaning of the Shabbat—a day set aside to meet ourselves and to meet the Beloved.
In Gnostic Christianity as practiced in the Sophian tradition, one does not retreat from the world and mundane life to seek enlightenment. One learns to transform one’s life into a vehicle of the path to enlightenment. Thus, Sophian initiates generally lead full and active lives. In any actual path to enlightenment, daily spiritual practice and spiritual living are necessary. Yet in the midst of the active Western lifestyle, there is a limited amount of time for spiritual practice in the midst of the workweek. Therefore, in order to deepen one’s continuum of study and contemplation, prayer, meditation, and sacred ritual, a day is needed when more space and time can be given over to spiritual study and practice. This is the practice of Shabbat among Gnostics.
In the midst of a very active and busy life, our attention is drawn outward as we tend to all of the things that must be done. The Shabbat allows us to let go of all of this and to experience a bit of spiritual retreat once each week. On a practical level, in terms of self-awareness and personal growth it gives us time to reflect upon the past week, to integrate what has transpired, and to consider what we might wish to change for the coming week. However, it also provides the opportunity to feed ourselves spiritually with spiritual study and contemplation and spiritual fellowship, as well as to potentially allow us to entertain deeper spiritual and mystical experience. Quite frankly, without such a holy day in the week, swift progress towards actual self-realization is unlikely in our extremely active lifestyle in the West. Thus, the Shabbat is an essential spiritual practice for a Western path to enlightenment, according to the masters of the Sophian tradition.
In Gnostic Christianity, the Shabbat is both an individual and a community event. Therefore, for practical reasons, in each Gnostic circle or spiritual community, a day is agreed upon for the celebration of the Shabbat. Yet, truly, from a Gnostic perspective, it could be any day in the week and is not isolated to Saturday or Sunday, as though these days are more sacred than others in life. Thus, individuals who are independent practitioners of Gnosticism could make any day of the week the Shabbat.
The Shabbat is viewed as a spiritual practice. Because of this, when a person decides to remember and keep the Shabbat, it will not necessarily be a full day at first. Often, it is a few hours in the beginning, and then the practice of Shabbat is built upon this foundation and grown over time. If one has not yet kept the Shabbat, it requires a gradual adjustment in one’s lifestyle in order to do so. Gentle change is often much better than unfounded leaps with great expectations. This is one of the lessons the practice of the Shabbat itself tends to teach initiates.
Because the Shabbat is both an individual and community event, it reminds us of the great power of individuals working together with one mind and heart, joined in the bonds of spiritual love and compassion. The idea that we are going to make swift progress towards an actual self-realization in complete isolation, without a sacred friendship with a spiritual teacher and community, is considered very questionable by initiates of most authentic wisdom traditions, including the Sophian tradition. From the Sophian perspective, there is something more to spiritual community than merely what we gain from involvement in the community; acting together, it is felt that skilled spiritual practitioners have a greater capacity to extend the light and to uplift humanity and the world. Thus, as much as for the psychic and spiritual benefit the individual might receive, Gnostic Christians practice the Shabbat to benefit and bring blessings to others—to all that live.
This commandment, simply put: Remember to make time for your soul and spirit, and time to meet your Beloved.
The Spiritual Ground
Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving to you. (Exodus 20:12)
To those who come from a positive upbringing and family environment, this commandment poses little problem and is an obvious truth in the heart. Yet, to those who may come from an extremely dysfunctional family or who may have suffered severe abuse, the idea of honoring mother and father could be deeply troubling and prove a difficult thing. However, in ancient times when the Torah was originally written, adult children who did not care for their aging parents basically sentenced them to great suffering and death, something more severe than any dysfunction or abuse would deserve. Thus, on the most basic and practical level, honoring mother and father was an issue of compassion.
Within and behind this commandment are more subtle and sublime truths, according to Sophian teachings associated with it. First and foremost is the idea of the karmic continuum that moves with the soul, which strongly influences and is reflected in the circumstances, situations, and events that unfold in our lives. Thus, the family and environment into which we are born, the place and time, how we are raised and the education we receive, all reflect the karmic continuum of the soul. This is not to suggest that we are responsible for the behavior of others, but rather that in some way, on some level, we are connected to the circumstances, situations, and events that arise. Karma is fundamentally a law of cause and effect; yet it can also represent things within ourselves we need to work through or need to heal. What transpires in our lives tends to reveal these things. On a certain level, this commandment encourages us to look and see what is to be worked through and healed so that we might free ourselves and others from karmic conditioning.
In our modern times, it has become very common for us to use an abusive past as justification and an excuse for our behavior in the present. While, indeed, echos of the past may influence us in the present, in allowing the past to justify and excuse our present behavior, we lock ourselves into a pattern of sorrow and suffering from which there can be no escape. This is simply unhealthy. At some point, we truly need to let go, to allow the possibility of healing to occur, and to assume responsibility for our own lives and our own actions. This is especially true if we seek an actual progress towards self-realization in the spiritual life. After all, in most cases, it is unlikely that abuses enacted on us as children can be enacted on us as adults, and somewhere, for our own and other’s sakes, forgiveness needs to come into play.
More to the point is this: parents and family are symbolic of ourselves. If we do not come to terms with our parents, family, and upbringing, we may fail to accept ourselves completely. Yet, accepting ourselves, the light and the darkness in us, and what we might deem “good” and “bad” is all part of self-knowledge and the foundation of the spiritual journey. In truth, we are the path and we are the vehicle of the Spirit and light-presence.
In the Gospel of St. Thomas, Lord Yeshua says something most interesting, which is echoed in other Gospels as well. He says, “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 gave birth to me, but my True Mother gave me life.”63 Essentially, father, mother, and family are the extension of the egoistic self and personal history and are concepts in our minds. When Yeshua speaks of “hating” father and mother, he indicates seeing through the ego-illusion and all that serves to support it, which includes the recognition of the illusory quality of the concepts we hold of others. When he speaks of “loving” father and mother, he indicates seeing the soul and Christ presence behind people in our lives and of seeking to draw out and honor that light-presence in ourselves and others. If we are able to do this with those with whom we share the most involved personal history and relationships, then we are more likely to be able to do this with everyone in our lives. This, of course, empowers the recognition and realization of the light-presence within ourselves.
The idea of our True Mother, the Divine Mother and Holy Spirit, also proves a key to healing for those who may have experienced a troubled family situation, and it gives a spiritual interpretation to this commandment: honoring our divine parent or the One life-power within and beyond the figures of our actual parents. For the One life-power and the universe are our Holy Father and Mother in a very real way. In Sophian teachings, this same idea is extended to our respect for our spiritual teachers and guides, who serve as midwives to the soul of light that is in us.
This commandment also alludes to a common method used to generate the sacred heart of compassion by Sophian initiates, which is especially powerful when we have had a positive experience of father, mother, and family. The transmigration of the soul through countless lives is a common teaching in Christian Gnosticism. Thus, all beings have been fathers and mothers and family to us. Contemplating and meditating upon this can help to develop love and compassion for all beings—an extension of honoring father and mother to all creatures. This reflects an awareness of the sacred unity in which we know ourselves to be intimately connected and related to all that lives.
The first four Commandments deal directly with our awareness of the sacred unity and our connectedness to divine being. This commandment and those that follow deal with our relationships with one another and with life based upon this self-realization.
If we were to phrase this commandment in a simple way, it would be this: Honor the spiritual ground underlying your existence.
The Divine Life
You shall not murder. (Exodus 20:13)
It is said that when Cain killed Abel, Cain lost his humanity in that instant, for his heart hardened, which is the center of one’s humanity. The human being is said to be the image and likeness of God. Therefore, to kill another human being is to destroy an image and likeness of God, and thus to cut oneself off from divine being. If our divinity lies in our humanity, then to diminish or lose our humanity is to sever our connection to the divine and to violate the purpose and meaning of life. On the surface, the commandment not to murder is an obvious truth.
When fear is allowed to become anger and anger in turn becomes hatred, murder and great evil are conceived. Allowing this process to unfold in our mind and heart can easily lead to the circumstances which would be conducive to murder, whether in the heat of passion or by way of premeditation. The truth is that anger and hatred are poisonous to our soul and unhealthy to our bodies, and, if allowed to continue over time, entertaining them murders our own humanity.
Yeshua teaches that any negativity we inwardly conceive has already affected our minds, hearts, lives, and even our souls. Likewise, according to more mystical and metaphysical teachings, negative thoughts may actually cause harm to others. At the point that negativity becomes speech or action, we can become a vehicle for darkness and evil in the world rather than light-bearers.
We spoke previously of the Gnostic view that we link with spiritual forces through our thoughts, emotions, imagination, words, and deeds, and that human beings are the primary agents of spiritual forces influencing and entering into the material world. As anyone can surely agree, human beings are certainly the vehicles of the greatest potential of good or evil that transpires in the world. This commandment reminds us of this truth and encourages us to be conscious of the spiritual forces we embody and bring into play in this world.
While on the surface this commandment is speaking of the physical act of murder, there are many ways we can bring down and destroy a person, or serve to undermine the humanity of ourselves and others. Many people with some metaphysical awareness speak of experiences of “psychic attack.” While actual psychic assaults are possible through a perversion of mystical and magical knowledge, in truth, all-out magical attacks are relatively rare. Yet, every time we harbor negative thoughts and emotions towards someone, we are committing a psychic assault. Likewise, malicious gossip and negative speech, whether true or untrue, is also a form of psychic assault. In a certain sense, we do murder people by holding ill will against them and, without a doubt, we do harm to ourselves. Recognizing this, Gnostic initiates seek to dispel all forms of inner violence and to cultivate an inner peace and joy as the foundation of their lives.
Although this commandment relates directly to the killing of a human being, by extension it relates to the taking of life in any form without need or cause and thus extends to our relationship with other creatures and our environment—being aware of the beauty of life and valuing all life. Essentially, it reflects an awareness of all life as divine and calls us to honor the One life-power in all forms of its expression.
The simple and affirmative way of expressing this commandment is: Honor all life and celebrate the divine life.
Sacred Relationship
Do not commit adultery. (Exodus 20:14)
In Gnostic Christianity, our sexual energy and relationship are considered sacred and holy. Lovemaking between committed partners who love, respect, and honor one another is considered a sacrament of life and a direct reflection of the sacred dance between Lord Yeshua and Lady Mary Magdalene—the Bridegroom and Holy Bride. Thus, among Sophians, intimate and personal relationships are considered a great blessing to be cherished and cultivated.
Orthodox and fundamental forms of Christianity speak of human beings conceived in “original sin,” as do some of the more dualistic and radical sects of Gnosticism. However, many forms of Gnostic Christianity, including Sophian Gnosticism, feel that all life is conceived in original blessing. While sexuality among most creatures is purely for the purpose of the procreative act and continuance of the species, among humans it is much more than this. It is nurturance, intimacy, and a playful and creative affair. In essence, from the Sophian perspective, it is a special blessing that reflects something divine within our humanity, specifically when lovemaking occurs between two committed partners.
In the Kabbalah there are teachings called the Arayot, which is basically a form of sexual mysticism. The most essential idea involved is that one’s lover is a physical manifestation of the Beloved, and receiving one’s lover as the divine in physical form, one may experience the embrace of the Beloved in the act of making love. Men are taught to identify with Yahweh or Lord Yeshua, and women are taught to identify with the Shekinah or Lady Mary Magdalene; in so doing, their lovemaking becomes a spiritual practice and vehicle of the light-presence. There are even methods taught through which a husband and wife might draw in a soul of a higher grade while seeking to conceive a child together. However, all of these arts of sacred lovemaking are founded upon a committed relationship in which two people are truly in love and honor and respect one another. This is what separates human sexuality from bestiality in the Gnostic view.
Adultery is basically a misdirection of one’s sexual or desire-energy. According to the Kabbalah, adultery and idolatry are fundamentally the same. In adultery, one directs one’s desire towards someone other than one’s partner or spouse (the beloved). In idolatry, one’s desire is directed towards something other than divine being (the Beloved). Both activities serve to undermine one’s deepest desire for intimacy and union and to destroy a sacred relationship. In terms of sex apart from love and commitment, we turn a person into an object of our desire and no real intimacy is involved—hence the idolatry of adultery. Thus, this commandment encourages the development and preservation of a sacred relationship and the awareness of our true desire in relationship, as well as our being conscious of how we direct our desire-energy. In the Sophian view, there is nothing wrong with desire, in and of itself. Yet, what our desire becomes and where it carries us is all a matter of how skillfully we direct it. There is a saying in the tradition that reflects this: “You will become what your heart desires and what you most love.”
There is certainly something to be said regarding the consequences of betraying the sanctuary of a committed relationship. Typically speaking, we not only hurt ourselves and those immediately involved; we hurt others as well. Likewise, there is always a question of the spiritual forces we bring into play in any act that may generate negativity. In essence, the commandments ask us how we want to live, what we want to bring into this life, and what sort of experience we wish to create for ourselves and others. All authentic spiritual teachings will encourage us to ask these questions, to look and see what is ultimately beneficial to ourselves and others.
There is no doctrine concerning divorce among Sophians, for there are certainly more extreme circumstances in which it becomes necessary. Instead, Sophian teachings encourage committed relationships and speak of the sacredness of relationships and human sexuality. Likewise, there is no doctrine that distinguishes between committed heterosexual relationships or committed gay or lesbian relationships. Rather, love, commitment, and respect of oneself and one’s lover is universally encouraged. Ultimately, each person must discern what is right and true for her- or himself. The Commandments serve as a ground of contemplation and a guide.
Put in a simple way we may read this commandment as: Honor the sacredness of sexuality and the sanctuary of true love.
The Sacred Life-display
You shall not steal. (Exodus 20:15)
The commandment not to commit adultery and the commandment not to steal are extensions of the commandment not to commit murder. Because marriage and one’s possessions in life are an extension of the human body and life, they are also an extension of the image and likeness of divine being. In the mystical union of a man and woman, they become “one flesh” and “one soul,” and in their union is the complete image of the Human One, both male and female. Likewise, the property of a human being is meant to serve as a vehicle for the development and evolution of the soul. To the degree one embodies something of the light-presence and labors to uplift humanity through one’s possessions, property becomes a vehicle of the light-transmission and divine kingdom. Thus, once again, we are encouraged to respect and value human life and the One life-power.
Stealing can occur by stealth (burglary), force (robbery), deception (cheating or fraud), or wrongful use (use without permission). In any case, it creates distrust among human beings, injures faith and causes an imbalance in the flow of the life-power, and thus may serve to impair the connection between the soul and divine being. In terms of theft from a Gnostic point of view, negativity is engendered, as well as cords that bind the soul to the demiurgos and archons. Such actions naturally betray one’s humanity.
Stealing, however, is not merely the act of the thief. Stealing tends to reflect a society in which the value of a person is based upon material possessions instead of honoring actual human and spiritual development. When societies place too much value on material possessions, it serves to encourage stealing by those who are disadvantaged, as well as by the wealthy that are always greedy for more than their portion. Thus, everyone becomes excessively preoccupied with material possessions at the expense of their humanity—their spirit and soul. When society values the wealthy and powerful, and disregards the poor and weak, it creates a dominion of oppression and exploitation. The wealthy become wealthier while the poor become poorer. It is an endless cycle of violence motivated by the selfishness and greed of consumerism—the philosophy of thieves!
Thus, while on the surface this commandment points to the one who outright steals, at the same time it points to the underlying conditions that create the desire to steal and the basic mindset behind the thief—“more for me at the expense of all others.” Essentially, any time we gather in things at the expense of others, it is a gradation of stealing and reflects the nature of the demiurgos and archons.
According to the Sophian teachings, the commandment not to steal and the commandment to use the name of God wisely are intimately connected. Because, as stated above, by extension all our talents and resources are expressions of the One life-power. This commandment invokes the question of how we might use our resources to better the lives of others and to uplift humanity. This question reminds us of a saying of Lord Yeshua: “But strive for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”64
There is another teaching of Yeshua that is directly associated with this commandment, which is worthy of contemplation in light of our present discussion. He says, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moths nor rust consume and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”65
In essence, according to the Sophian tradition, one’s earthly treasure is given in order to build up a heavenly treasure, which is to say for the sake of the development and evolution of the soul towards self-realization. Our earthly treasure is meant to serve and uplift humanity, not to exploit, oppress, dominate, or merely to serve oneself. In and of itself, there is nothing inherently wrong or evil in money or material possessions, but when such things do not serve their true purpose—the great work—then they are without purpose and meaning and are basically vain and futile. After all, we enter this world with nothing. When we depart this world, all we will take with us is our experience, the knowledge we have acquired, the blessings we have gathered through uplifting humanity and through actions of love and compassion. Hence, we will have our soul-being, and hopefully, it will be more luminous than when we entered. This is the basic attitude of Gnostic Christians on material possessions. Possessions are a vehicle for the evolution of the human spirit and soul, nothing more and nothing less.
This commandment points to a key teaching in the Kabbalah. The Kabbalah says that, inherently, we begin our spiritual quest with the desire to receive for ourselves alone, with little, if any, desire to share and give. A thief is an extreme manifestation of the desire to receive for oneself alone. Accordingly, progress on the spiritual path is the development of the desire to share and to give equal to our desire to receive. Thus, self-realization is the desire to receive for the sake of sharing and giving of oneself. This is the basic aim of Gnostic initiates.
We might phrase this commandment in this way: Honor the true purpose and meaning of things, and be willing to give as much as to receive.
The Spirit of Truth
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. (Exodus 20:16)
As this commandment is written, it denotes testimony in a court of law against someone accused of a crime—a moment when someone’s life is in the balance. Quite obviously, whatever the reason, it is unacceptable to pervert justice by bearing false witness. There is something more subtle beneath this; it also implies that it is unacceptable to exploit the vulnerability or weakness of others. This would extend beyond a court of law to business and every other area of life.
Today, with the dawn of DNA evidence, we have discovered how unreliable eyewitness testimony can be, even with the best of intentions. The fact is that all of our observations are highly subjective and, therefore, subject to error, even in what may seem the most objective and obvious matters. It is possible to bear false witness without ever intending to do so. Thus we might read this commandment as saying: “Be mindful and alert, so that you are not deceived nor deceive.”
If we know eyewitness testimony can be questionable, then surely this is even truer in terms of inner psychic and spiritual experiences, which are inherently subjective and must reflect our own thoughts and desires as much as anything coming from the Holy Spirit and divine being. Likewise, all authentic wisdom traditions speak of deceiving spirits that seek to lead human beings astray, and Gnosticism is no exception. Thus, in the mystical journey one must learn to discern between true and false spirits and between deceptive psychic experiences and actual mystical experiences. An experienced spiritual teacher and spiritual community, as well as a proper spiritual education, are helpful in this. However, it is something one must ultimately learn to do for oneself and it is of central importance in the process of self-realization. According to Gnostic Christian teachings, this commandment speaks to this as much as any other forms of bearing witness.
The power of speech is at question in this commandment and the issue of right use of speech—specifically, whether or not our knowledge, words, and actions are in harmony and there is a balance between our interior and exterior life. This commandment is often interpreted as, “Do not lie,” which relates not only to the idea of bearing false testimony but also to the idea of our words and actions matching. In Sophian teachings on this commandment, it also relates to any negative use of speech, such as gossip, tale-bearing, and all forms of abusive speech. On a basic level, it reminds us of the great power of speech and our words, and the effect they have on ourselves and others. It encourages us to use this great power in a truthful and positive way.
Put simply, we might read this commandment as: Honor the Spirit of truth, and live according to the truth and light revealed in your own experience.
The Life of Abundance
You shall not covet . . . (Exodus 20:17)
If one reads the whole commandment, the original language is obviously outdated. Now, along with not coveting one’s neighbor’s wife, we would include one’s neighbor’s husband, and we certainly hope one’s neighbor does not have any slaves! Quite clearly, we can translate this into modern terms: cars, big screen television, career, boat, barbecue, and everything of the kind, including the dog, kids, cat, and canary! Covet nothing that belongs to someone else. Why? Because one cannot be satisfied and happy with oneself and one’s own life as long as one is trying to “keep up with the Joneses,” as the saying goes.
Although this wisdom is totally obvious in our own society and culture which is founded upon consumerism, it is clearly not understood. After all, it would put an end to the radical consumerism of capitalism if it were understood. Consumerism is fueled by our belief that accumulating more “stuff” and “things” will lead to our happiness and satisfaction, and that it represents success in life. What is most curious is that, if we ever really look into it, we will see that lasting satisfaction and happiness never comes from anything outside of ourselves. Whether we have a lot of nice things or relatively few things, or whether we have an ideal relationship or none at all, or any number of things we might predicate our happiness upon, the truth is, if we don’t find the source of happiness in ourselves, we simply won’t be happy. This commandment encourages us to look inward for the source of lasting satisfaction and happiness instead of constantly looking outward.
According to the Kabbalah, the divine intends us to experience life’s abundance. It states that we are intimately connected to an infinite and exhaustless reservoirs of energy, resources, opportunities, and divine assistance, through which we can acquire whatever our hearts desire. This is true in the material dimension, in terms of the collective of humanity on earth, as well as in the spiritual dimensions. What prevents us from fully tapping into this life abundance, however, is a fundamental delusion of lack, which comes from our belief in an isolated and independent existence apart from the whole of creation and divine being. This leads to a state of poverty consciousness, feelings of unworthiness, and the mistake of coveting. This is not isolated to poor individuals, either. One merely needs to consider the many beautiful and famous people who have never felt that they received enough attention and love, or the multibillionaire who just has to make another million or billion dollars to be happy!
Basically, Gnostic Christianity encourages us to celebrate our own portion, and to recognize the abundance and blessings present in our own lives, and teaches that this, in and of itself, leads to a flow of divine grace and will generate life abundance. This is not to say that everyone is going to be a billionaire, supermodel, celebrity, or anything else we stereotypically associate with abundance. Rather, it is really a question of recognizing what abundance means on an individual level and seeking the fulfillment of our own true desire. We are all unique individuals, and what will truly lead to our own satisfaction and happiness is also unique; thus we must look inward to discover and realize this. We must be careful not to allow unenlightened society to dictate what abundance is or what happiness and success are, for most likely that will have little or nothing to do with our real bliss or joy. This, in essence, is the meaning of this commandment.
We might put this commandment in the following way: Celebrate your life and the abundance in your own experience. This is a key to real prosperity, success, health, and happiness.
Within and behind these Commandments is a great depth of mystical and esoteric teachings in Gnostic Christianity. Here we have given some of the simple and practical wisdom Sophians draw from them. In Sophian Gnosticism, the Commandments are not taken to form any fixed creed or dogmatic doctrine. Rather, they are contemplated for the sake of guidance and encouragement in spiritual practice and the spiritual life. Ultimately, like the Gnostic Gospel itself, every initiate will have his or her own understanding of the Ten Commandments and the Torah, and will apply the principles according to the truth and light of her or his own experience. In the Sophian view, the Commandments simply express life wisdom through which one is more likely to experience prosperity, success, health and happiness, and to actually progress on the path to enlightenment. It is for this reason that the Commandments are taught in many Gnostic Christian schools, each school having its own oral tradition associated with them.
Now we can turn our attention to essential wisdom from the Gospel and consider some Gnostic teachings associated with the Beatitudes as they appear in the Sermon on the Mount in the Gospel of St. Matthew.