5,000 years ago before Christianity
and even before ancient Greece,
there was Egypt.
This was one of the earliest civilizations we know of today,
and their culture was rich in knowledge, ancient sciences, and mystic spirituality.
The Egyptians were wise beyond measure,
for it is here we find some of the earliest forms of mathematics,
botany,
theology,
civilized government,
geometry,
astronomy,
astrology,
accounting,
and even medicine.
It is not known today precisely how these people advanced so far and so fast.
Many today believed that it was simply a time of unparalleled innovation,
where others insist just as the Egyptian writings themselves declared
that they received the knowledge from those who excelled beyond themselves
from a long distant past.
One of the most unique aspects of Ancient Egyptian culture
was that of the mystery schools.
For more than 3,000 years,
the mystery schools of Egypt epitomized the ultimate in secret wisdom and knowledge.
These were some of the earliest forms of organized spirituality,
but they were not like our religions are today.
These sacred schools were designed for the initiate stew elevate their consciousness
and move into higher dimensions of life experience
in order to become guides for the rest of humanity.
The mysteries were passed down throughout history,
and eventually became known far and wide
in different forms across that part of the world,
from Persia to India.
It was in 500 BC that a man named Pythagoras
traveled from his homeland to Egypt
and applied to join the Egyptian mysteries.
Time and time again, he was turned away.
He was told that unless he completed a 40 day meditation of fasting
while practicing a specific breathing technique,
he would not be allowed to enter.
When he completed this trial,
he arrived at the temple gates and spoke,
"You are not allowing Pythagoras in.
I am a different man, I am reborn.
You were right and I was wrong,
because then my whole standpoint was intellectual.
Through this purification,
my center of being has changed.
Before this training,
I could only understand through the intellect, through the head.
Now I can feel.
Now, truth is not a concept to me, but a life.
Pythagoras spent many years learning from the Egyptians,
and it wasn't until about 36 years later
that he returned to his homeland of Samos,
where he established a new mystery school of his own.
modeled after his experiences in Egypt.
At the entrance of his temple,
there was a statue of Hermes Trismegistus,
the Greek version of the Egyptian god of wisdom Thoth
with an inscription on the pedestal that read,
"Let no profane enter here..."
The mysteries exploded in popularity
across the Greco-Roman Empire over the next 500 years,
ehich we can see in the writings of many ancient philosophers today.
In Phaedrus, Plato wrote,
"We beheld the beatific visions and were initiated into the Mystery
which may be truly called blessed,
celebrated by us in a state of innocence.
We beheld calm, happy, simple, eternal visions,
resplendent in pure light.
The mysteries were a safe and sacred space,
a place where people were transformed from being ordinary people
to enlightened and awakened beings.
instruments of transformation and elevation for all of humanity.
So then, what happened to them?
Where are they today?
It is in Ancient Greece that we find the transition from the mysteries
to what we know today as modern day religion.
Nearly 2,000 years ago,
a transformation of culture and social leadership took place,
centered around the birth of a new faith called Christianity.
When Christianity first emerged,
it was very intertwined with the mysteries.
We call this particular aspect of Christianity Gnosticism.
It was a mystic Christianity,
which took many of the great wisdom teachings that came before it
and merged it with Judaism.
However, in about 300 AD,
a power struggle ensued.
The controlling powers of the Roman Empire
adopted a specific version of Christianity
and formed the Roman Catholic Church.
These political leaders demonized the mystery practices
and forced people to conform to their specific version of Christianity,
one that was not mystical,
disregarding the spiritual transcendence of the individual
in favor of worship to a separate deity,
whereby personal elevation was only made available to you
by those who had power and authority over you.
Even language changed to fit this new doctrine.
Today, we find the origin of the word "demon",
which today means "evil spirit",
a twisted version of the Greek "daimon" (δαίμων), meaning "guiding spirit".
often describing a being much like an angel,
and sometimes even the higher self.
For nearly a thousand years,
the practices of the mysteries went unspoken and undiscussed.
Say(?) for scarce biblical references that identified them as heresies,
Until during a period today we know as the Renaissance,
literally meaning "rebirth" or "revival",
many writings of the Greek philosophers, including those attributed to the wise Hermes,
were rediscovered,
and slowly but surely,
a more mystical interpretation of the philosophy
began to return to the world.
Fast forward to today,
humanity is exploding with innovation and new discoveries.
The birth and adoption of the Internet has become so widespread
that it has completely transformed the way that humans live.
However, this newfound interconnection
reflects to us, all of us, including our darkness.
There is room for everything on the Internet, it seems.
Some use it for humanitarian work,
others for personal gain,
and of course, there are always the trolls,
who take to the web to spread fear, negativity, and hate.
As a reflection of the human mind,
there has never been so much organized chaos in human history.
Yet out of the chaos,
We create order.
we do this by purposefully creating with loving intent,
giving of ourselves,
learning and growing,
and remembering who we are
and where we came from.
This becomes possible when we return to the mysteries.
[Dong!]
♫ [Music] ♫