The Symbolic Wisdom of the Egyptians

holds that certain eternal symbols of the Deity are imprinted upon the human being, which are unmistakable. No wonder, then, that the fiery imagination of the first humans viewed themselves and the creatures around them as so many divinely shining letters, through which the Eternal One intended to suggest His inexpressible name, which is to be revered above all else.

The Egyptian priests original: "Sacerdoten" also claimed that the study of their sacred pictorial writing Hieroglyphs; the author uses the descriptive term "Bilderschrift." enlightened the soul and led through the thickest darkness to the knowledge of the most hidden things. They also believed there were no better ornaments with which to decorate their magnificent obelisks and pyramids, as well as the interiors and even the doors of the temples, than their sacred pictorial writing, through which they hoped at the same time to eternalize their wisdom. Thus Clement of Alexandria A Christian theologian (c. 150–215 AD) who wrote extensively on the relationship between Greek philosophy and Egyptian mystery traditions. mentions the symbols of a boy, an old man, an eagle, a fish, and a crocodile as an inscription in the temple pylonA monumental gateway of an Egyptian temple, consisting of two tapering towers joined by a bridge. at Diospolis The Greek name for the ancient Egyptian city of Thebes. in Egypt, and explains them thus: "Hear, young and old, God hates the impudent!" Specifically: the eagle is the image of the Deity; the fish, of hatred; and the crocodile, the image of impudence.

But that symbolic representations were also not unknown and un- The word is cut off: likely "ungebraucht" (unused) or "ungewohnt" (unfamiliar). even to the Scythians Ancient nomadic people of Central Eurasia, often cited in historical texts as a contrast to the "civilized" Egyptians or Greeks.