The Gnostic Bible

Hardcover; ix + 860 pp., including a bibliography and index. From the inside cover: "Gnosticism was a wide-ranging religious movement of the first millennium CE—with earlier antecedents and later flourishings—whose adherents sought salvation through knowledge and personal religious experience. Gnostic writings offer striking perspectives on both early Christian and non-Christian thought. For example, some Gnostic texts suggest that god should be celebrated as both mother and father, and that self-knowledge is the supreme path to the divine. Only in the past fifty years has it become clear how far the Gnostic influence spread in ancient and medieval religions—and what a marvelous body of scriptures it produced. The selections gathered here, in poetic, readable translation, represent Jewish, Christian, Hermetic, Mandaean, Manichaean, Islamic, and Cathar expressions of Gnostic spirituality. Their regions of origin include Egypt, the Greco-Roman world, the Middle East, Syria, Iraq, China, and France. Also included are introductions, notes, an extensive glossary, and a wealth of suggestions for further reading." Contents Acknowledgments Gnosticism, Gnostics, and the Gnostic Bible by Meyer Letting in the light: translating holy texts by Barnstone Part one: Early Wisdom Gospels 1. The Gospel of Thomas 2. The Gospel of John Part two: Literature of Gnostic Wisdom 3. The Book of Baruch Sethian literature 4. The Secret Book of John 5. The Reality of the Rulers 6. The Revelation of Adam 7. Three Forms of First Thought 8. The Three Steles of Seth 9. The Vision of the Foreigner 10. The Sermon of Zostrianos 11. The Baptismal Ceremony of the Gospel of the Egyptians 12. Thunder 13. The Letter of Peter to Philip Valentinian literature 14. The Gospel of Truth 15. The Gospel of Philip 16. The Letter to Flora 17. Commentary on the Gospel of John 18. The Treatise on Resurrection 19. The Prayer of the Messenger Paul 20. Valentinian Liturgical Readings 21. The Secret Book of James 22. The Round Dance of the Cross Thomas and other Syrian literature 23. The Songs of Solomon 24. The Song of the Pearl 25. The Book of Thomas Additional literature of Gnostic wisdom 26. The Exegesis on the Soul 27. On the Origin of the World 28. The Paraphrase of Shem 29. The Second Treatise of the Great Seth 30. The Gospel of Mary 31. The Naassene Sermon Part three: Hermetic Literature 32. Poimandres 33. The Discourse on the Eighth and Ninth 34. The Prayer of Thanksgiving Part four: Mandaean Literature 35. The Ginza 36. Hibil's Lament from the Book of John 37. Songs from the Mandaean Liturgy Part five: Manichaean Literature 38. On the Origin of His Body 39. The Story of the Death of Mani 40. Kephalaia 41. The Coptic Manichaean Songbook 42. Parthian Songs 43. The Great Song to Mani Part six: Islamic Mystical Literature 44. The Mother of Books Part seven: Cathar Literature 45. The Gospel of the Secret Supper 46. The Book of the Two Principles 47. A Nun's Sermon Epilogue: historical meditation on the inner light of Gnosis by Willis Barnstone