“I have come all the way from Egypt,” Akua said substituting Egyptian words in place of unknown Greek words.
The young temple priest just looked at him, baffled. Akua worried that his Greek was not being comprehended, so he said something else.
“Egypt,” he said, while pointing to his body.
The Greek priest seemed to understand.
“Do you want to come inside the temple?”
“Yes.” Akua said as he nodded his head.
“My name is Akua-Mat.”
A few other priests came by. Akua noticed that they spoke a more pure Greek, one coincident to what Dorus had taught him. Akua was relieved. He regained confidence in what he knew about the language. Akua followed the priests into the temple. Since Akua was an Egyptian priest he was allowed in the temple. As the two communicated more, they understood each other better. The young Greek priest spoke pure Greek as well as an Athenian slang form. Akua was particularly impressed with the tall marble columns. Unlike those in Egypt, these were not smooth, but instead were fluted perfectly.
“In Egypt, Isis is our omnipotent goddess. We have lesser deities, but Isis is the queen. Is Athena and Isis really the same queen?” Akua asked the young Greek priest.
“I’m not sure,” he replied.
“Athena rules with Aphrodite, goddess of love, and Artemis, daughter of Zeus. Athena is very wise and imparts her wisdom.”
Akua was slightly frustrated by the indirect answer. This just reinforced to him that Greeks did think they were superior and didn’t have to answer to an Egyptian. The Greek priest led Akua to the main alter where a goat was next to be sacrificed.
“This is the altar. Athena is pleased by our gifts and we are rewarded with her holy answers revealing universal wisdom.”
Akua noticed that Greek offerings were similar to Egyptian offerings, but he observed one difference. A small band of priests played music while the offering was being made. Some of the notes that were being played seemed not to fit with the others, at least not in the way Egyptian music did.
As Akua and the priest stood there, an older priest approached. He wore a solid white robe and smiled as he walked.
“How are you, Kyros?” the young Greek priest said with authority.
Akua now knew the name of the priest he was with.
“Fine. Philon, next to me is Akua. Our guest from the Egyptian priesthood.”
Philon greeted Akua and touched his shoulder in a gesture of kindness. After the greeting, Philon asked Akua a question,
“What brings you to Athens, Akua?”
“I have pledged to return to Egypt with knowledge of Greek philosophy and religion. I would like to learn about this while I am in Greece.”
Akua was not about to be completely honest. Philon was eager to answer Akua.
“Then you will want to go to our Academy. It is a place of learning founded by one of our scholars, Plato.”
“Great. Where is it?” Akua asked.
“Not so fast, Akua. Among other criterion, it is only open to Athenian citizens. But…”
Akua knew that this was the place for him. He hoped he would not be denied. Philon continued to speak.
“I am one of those Plato has trusted to run the Academy. A few years ago, we had the Prince of Macedon study with us, so it may work for you too. I will talk with the other men and decide if an Egyptian priest would be allowed for a few weeks.”
Kyros opened his small house to Akua. Akua gladly accepted the offer. Later that day, they both headed for central Athens where Kyros lived. After a good meal, Kyros started with a question,
“So Akua, what part of Egypt are you from?”
“I am from Heliopolis. It is immediately southeast of the great split in the Nile River.”
Akua drew on the table an invisible visual aid for Kyros of where Heliopolis was in Egypt.
“Heliopolis is the main worship center for Re, the Sun god,” Akua added.
“Oh! I know of that city. Here in Athens we know it as more than just the City of the Sun, to us it is also the City of Ascension.”
“Kyros, why do you call it that?”
“We use the word Heli to describe divine ascension. And to us, the sun has ascended into the heavens. So for us, Heliopolis means City of Ascension and this, in turn, refers to the sun and its importance to the city. The sun is very important to Greeks.”
“That is interesting. Tell me, what do you Greeks mean exactly when you use the word ascension?”
“Basically, it is moving higher from the lower. It also has an advanced meaning, a term that expresses our own esoteric wisdom. Ascending is our holy act.”
As Akua listened, he grew tired of hearing the word our all the time. Kyros spoke as if Greece was the only country in the world.
“As we are taught in the priesthood, a righteous life is an ascension. And life is really more than just what we see. It is the life of the soul that we are really talking about. After death, souls may enter the underworld or they may go to The Elysian Fields. Death is nothing more than a transition, basically transitioning from the material to the non-material. Since the non-material is the realm of the gods, a righteous soul should ascend there,” Kyros explained.
“What you just explained is similar to some of the beliefs in Egypt. But, as I have recently learned, we have another symbol for the ascension. This is the large structures that points to the heavens. Symbolically, they represent a spirits’ ascension through life to finally arrive in the heavens, sometimes as a star. Kyros, you mentioned The Elysian Fields. What are those?”
“Akua, they are fields with big beautiful trees, grassy knolls and crystal clear waters. They are a reward for our war heroes. In The Elysian Fields, a soul can walk with the gods.”
Akua wanted to compare these with The Reed Fields and find out if they were the same fields, but he decided that Kyros was not the one to answer that. Kyros blew out the candles and they both went to sleep.
My marriage to Nefertet was forbidden. The priesthood wanted me gone before, but now they want me dead because of the Pamu-Abu Simbel situation. I killed a man in a battle. And I don’t know how to get back.
I feel like I am just going through the motions in life. I don’t know how much more pain I can take.
*
The next morning, Akua and Kyros went back to the temple on the Acropolis. Kyros hoped to find Philon at the temple with an answer for Akua about him studying at the Academy.
Athens was unusually busy. Since Athens was recently converted to democracy, the markets were quite a bit smoother in operation than the Egyptian ones.
“Hello, Philon. I’m glad to see you,” Akua said as soon as he saw Philon.
“How do you like Greece so far? It’s pretty different from Egypt, isn’t it?” Philon inquired.
“Well it is in some ways. There is a structured senate and lawmaking process here, but religion is similar. I learned a lot from talking with Kyros last night.”
“Akua, why do you say that religion is similar? We have Zeus, Apollo, and Athena, are those not different from the Egyptian gods?”
“Yes. The names are different, but I’m not so sure they are all individual gods. Maybe they are one and the same to the Egyptian gods,” Akua answered.
Akua meant for his answer to mildly aggravate Philon. And it worked.
“How’s that? How could the mighty Zeus be a mere sun god?” Philon asked curtly.
“As I see it, our Amun-Re could be the same as Zeus and Athena and Artemis offer the same qualities as Isis and Hathor,” Akua replied.
“Akua, I can understand your point. But this is surely a radical idea. It is one many Greeks will not accept. But your logic is interesting. Maybe there is some truth to what you have said. But be careful with your words, it is likely that they could bring you harm.”
Kyros just looked confused with this. Since he had nothing to offer, he changed the subject.
“Philon, will Akua be allowed to enter the
Academy?”
Akua made a mental note of what Kyros had done. Kyros just had to end a good conversation because he was feeling left out.
“I have not had an opportunity to discuss Akua with the others,” Philon replied to Kyros.
Instead of looking at Kyros, he looked at Akua.
“But after hearing some of your ideas, I think knowledge here in Athens would prosper somewhat if you studied there for a while,” Philon continued.
“What do you mean by somewhat? I can teach much about Egypt,” Akua said.
“Akua, that was a poor word choice. Forgive me,” Philon said.
“Thank you, Philon,” Kyros said.
As soon as Kyros said that, Philon looked at Akua with an expression that seemed to say What an ass.
“I will explain to the others about you as soon as I see them. Akua, how long would you like to study at the Academy? How long will your stay here be?” Philon asked.
“Four weeks,” Akua answered.
“Okay. I trust that Kyros will show you there in the morning.”
Kyros looked at Philon with an affirming nod. Kyros liked Akua very much, but was envious that Akua was entering the Academy.”
*
The next morning they arrived at the Academy, Akua was greeted by an exquisite limestone bust.
“Who is this?” Akua asked Kyros.
“That is Plato. He is the philosopher and great intellect that founded this place. He is a great man.”
“So, is he still alive?”
“Yes, but you won’t be able to see him. He has embarked on a series of lectures in cities to the north.”
Kyros’ tone was slightly harsh, but Akua had already figured out that it was just his envy talking. They walked inside the building.
“Actaeon, how are you, my friend?” Kyros said to a man just inside the entrance.
“Fine. What brings you here?” Actaeon asked.
“Next to me is Akua. A fine priest from Egypt. Philon would like for him to study here with you for one month,” Kyros said.
“Philon has approved this? If he did approve it then it is okay by me.”
“Yes. He did yesterday. I am sorry, but I need to return to Athena’s temple. My work is never done.”
Those insidious words did not even faze Akua or Actaeon. Everyone knew that Kyros tried to make everything he did sound important. Actaeon extended his hand to Akua.
“Welcome. I hope you enjoy your time here.”
“I will see you at my house tonight, Akua,” Kyros told Akua.
“Thank you. Goodbye and have a good day,” Akua said to Kyros as he walked away.
Actaeon continued, “We have five small groups here. You will be a guest to the group that I lead. The other two in my group are Mathias and Makarios.”
Akua was impressed with the inside. The south wall was tall and completely white. Life-sized statues and busts alternated with non-load-bearing fluted marble columns. Vibrant green plants adorned the columns and the floor was laden with multi-colored rugs. Actaeon led Akua to a small room where two others sat around a wood table. Akua noticed that this room was not lavishly decorated like the outside atrium.
“This is Akua, an Egyptian priest. He has come to us for a few weeks to study. We can all learn from him about Egyptian philosophy, religion and astronomy. I look forward to having him join our discussions,” Actaeon said to Mathias and Makarios.
“Hello, Akua, I am Mathias. My family and I live here in Athens. Welcome.”
“And I am Makarios. I have always been interested in Egyptian knowledge and I’m eager to learn from you.”
Akua greeted them both and thanked them, including Actaeon, for letting him join them. He took one of the two empty chairs and engaged in small talk with them. Actaeon left the room as the others talked. He returned momentarily with a scroll. He sat down at the table with a smile on his face.
“Today we will begin to learn and debate the teachings left to us from the great mathematician and mystic, Pythagoras.”
Both Mathias and Makarios told Actaeon they were excited to learn about Pythagoras. But Akua sat there and looked puzzled.
“I have not ever heard of Pythagoras, although the Egyptian priesthood does insist they are learned in some Greek teachings.”
“Akua, I’m just guessing but I believe Pythagorean teachings are probably presented as something else in Egypt,” Actaeon replied to Akua.
Actaeon continued, “Pythagoras has given us an advanced knowledge of numbers, geometric patterns and music. This is what he is known for and we will examine these, but there are esoteric teachings also.”
This was all new to Akua, so he didn’t understand all of what Actaeon said.
“I look forward to learning about a Pythagoras and the teachings he left Greece,” Akua said.
“Why is it that I’ve not heard of these mystical teachings? Maybe his esoteric mysticism is not what people want to remember about him,” Matthias said proudly.
“Well maybe Matthias these teachings are not something the common people resonate with. We need to learn from Actaeon before we come to a conclusion,” Makarios added.
Actaeon interrupted to get the conversation back on track.
“Anyway, before we get to the esoteric parts, we first need to argue his take on numbers and music.”
Actaeon unrolled the scroll and began reading to the three,
“Pythagoras developed symbols that represent the nature of numbers and how they relate to each other. It is through the application of the symbols that all of mathematics, including geometry, can be quantified and qualified. Interestingly, the entire world and all of nature was and still is thought to be governed by mathematics and the symbols that Pythagoras developed. I’m saying the fundamental relationships of objects and matter in the universe can be expressed with mathematics, although this may be simple and crude. The symbols presented will reveal how this can be deduced. We are going to talk about eight of those symbols, these are the main ones.”
“Actaeon, are we to believe that everything is mathematics?” Mathias asked.
“No. I don’t believe that is what Pythagoras meant. It might be better to say, Everything can be represented by mathematics.”
Akua was keenly interested, but chose not to say anything. He was thinking about astronomy, the positions of the stars in the night sky, the sighting lines used to set the stars, and even his recent use of celestial navigation.
“So the real question is, ‘What is meant with the words given by Pythagoras and exactly how it does apply to our world’?” Makarios said.
“I agree with you Makarios. This must have been the prime quest of the Pythagoreans. But before we talk about that, let me briefly explain the eight symbols as they appear in this work,” Actaeon replied.
“The first five symbols are sequential, so they are easy to recall. First is the Monad, the identification of one or one unique element. In music, it is one note. It is represented well as a circle.”
Immediately upon hearing that, Akua made a connection.
That’s interesting. The Monad signifies the single existence that Actaeon just explained with mathematics representing everything.
In the meantime, Actaeon continued to talk. Actaeon spoke fast so Akua had to pay close attention so as to not miss anything.
“Next is the Dyad which is two. The ‘otherness’ that can complement or contrast the ‘oneness’ of the Monad. Musically, it is two notes played together.
“Interestingly, it symbolizes the coming together or union of two Monad’s. Now we move on. The next symbol is very interesting, the Triad.
“Crudely, it represents three, but geometrically it represents the triangle. This symbol will make more sense to you when we talk about the eighth symbol, as the Triad is derived from it. It is important to see that the Triad is equal to the terms below it. And in music, it is the sound resulting from three notes being played together.
“Next is the Tetrad, the number f
our. Here we begin to see repetition, that is, a number or object composed of equal parts.”
“You mentioned earlier that this also relates to music. But music is so much more. It is glorious sound given to us by the gods,” Makarios said sternly.
“True. Music is unique in that it has an elemental side, but also one that is beautifully pleasing and even mysterious. Hold on, Makarios, and we will examine this also. Akua, is any of this similar to what you have learned in Egypt?” Actaeon replied.
“It is. But our system of mathematics is not necessarily defined by individual numbers or symbols so this is mostly new to me. It is interesting though.”
Actaeon continued, “The fifth symbol is representative of five. It is called the Pentad and is a geometric symbol with five sides. Interestingly, Pythagoras used this symbol to represent power and his followers would even use it as a way to greet each other.”
“Actaeon, I respect Pythagoras, but I think some things he and his followers did were ridiculous. How do his teachings really make life better?” Mathias said.
Akua could not understand why Makarios and Matthias had to challenge these things. He was starting to feel like Actaeon was being treated rudely while he was happy to be learning something new.
“I’m not sure his teachings do make life better directly. But looking at it in an indirect way, they are part of our world, part of the whole. I honestly believe these things mean little until they are used by the pupil to mold his or her values, character and philosophy. We should all think about this.”
Actaeon seemed to know that Mathias was forming his conclusion without a broader knowledge of what Pythagoras was really about. Instead of pointing this out, he knew Mathias was intelligent enough to change his thinking when he learned more.
“The Decad is not a number but what Pythagoras called an Assembly Point. Although it is representative of ten, it was known as the point of convergence between our world and heaven. It’s really something you just have to imagine, I think.
“The Tetractys is another triangle, but this one consists of points not lines. Precisely, it is ten points arranged in four rows. An individual row of four points, one of three points and one of two points. Finally, this shape is completed with a row of one point. Each row represents earth, wind, fire or water.
The Reed Fields Page 8
