An Interesting Book

     I picked up an interesting book and would like to share a little about it.  It's called The Emerald Tablet of Hermes and The Kybalion, which, if you are interested, can be ordered here.  Perhaps you have heard the saying, "As above, so below," or some variation on that.  Well, that comes from the Emerald Tablet, supposedly written by Hermes Trismegistus, or the "Thrice-Great," who may have existed in ancient Egypt.  The first part of this book compares various sources and translations of the Emerald Tablet, which is interesting in itself.  There are versions from old Arabic and Latin sources, a translation by Isaac Newton (of falling-apple fame), Madame Blavatsky, and Fulcanelli.  Sometimes a slightly different translation creates a whole new meaning, as can be seen in these examples.

     The second half of the book is a reprint of The Kybalion, a book written anonymously over a century ago by three students of Hermeticism, a philosophy built upon Hermes' writings and on the secret doctrines passed orally for generations.  It's not easy reading, but parts of it sounded very familiar to me (a past life, perhaps?).  In any case, it is worth having if you are interested in esoteric philosophy. 

     A word of caution, however:  It is regrettable that the editor of this book did not proofread it a little better.  There are punctuation errors and a few misspellings.  Perhaps a future edition will have these corrected, which would increase this book's value tenfold.