FIRST DIALOGUE

Explaining the true and authentic meaning of the books of Geber.

Demogorgon, Geber.

A large decorative initial letter D marks the start of the dialogue. It shows a figure standing in a landscape with trees and hills, framed within a square border featuring floral patterns. DEMO: Greetings, most wise grandson of the great Muhammad. original: "Machumetis." Renaissance authors often associated Geber (Jabir ibn Hayyan) with this lineage to emphasize his authority and Eastern wisdom.
5 GEBER: I am glad you have arrived safely. But what is the reason for such a long journey?
DEMO: A natural and inborn desire to investigate and understand the deepest secrets of nature. These secrets were pulled from the most hidden mysteries of nature by your divine mind. You handed them down in writing with great learning and skill.
10 However, they were written with such obscurity of speech that even after the most difficult labors and singular persistence in my studies, I still cannot reach their true meaning. I cannot grasp your intended purpose. I have spent much time on these matters, through a good part of my adult life,
15 and I have spent almost thirty five years studying your writings. For this reason, I decided long ago that I must travel across the world. I hoped that I might finally meet a wise man who possessed this divine and most secret part of natural philosophy so well
20 that he could easily make me a participant in such deep thought. Yet, during my travels, I heard countless practitioners claiming with reckless boldness that they knew your intention and the true meaning of your writings perfectly.
25 In the end, they achieved nothing but labor and great expense. They cast all the blame upon you. But I, out of my singular love for you, whom I have always respected and honored, did not hesitate to defend your fame and honor against the worthless attacks of these most shameless detractors.