○ GENESIS ● PART TWO
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TWO
THE COSMOGONY OF SANCONIATHON
⁰ "The Cosmogony of Sanconiathon is said to be "a history, taken out of the sacred books of the Phoenicians; and it is composed of three fragments, out of the writings of Philo, - one out of a work called Phoenician history, one concerning the Jews, and one relating to Phoenician letters." After referring to the Chaos, there is the following paragraph.- "All these things, the son of Thabion, the first Hierophant of all among the Phoenicians, allegorized and mixed up with and what he had discovered, by which we have been enlightened."^⁵
GENEALOGIES
¹ "Of the wind Colpias and his wife Baau, which is interpreted Night, were begotten two mortal men, called Eon and Protogonus. ² Eon found fruit on trees. ³ The immediate descendants of these were called Genus and Genea, and they dwelt in Phoenicia, and when there was a great want of rain, they stretched out their hands towards the sun, in heaven, supposing him to be God, calling him-Baalsamin, which in the Phoenician language, signifies the Lord of heaven. ⁴ [As Zeus among the Greeks, Philo or Eusebius]. ⁵ Afterwards, by Genus were begotten mortal children, named Phos, Pur and Phlox. ⁶ These found out the method of producing fire by rubbing pieces of wood against each other, and taught them the use of it.
⁷ These begat sons of great bulk and height, whose names were conferred upon the mountains which they occupied. ⁸ Thus, from them, Cassius and Libanus, and Antilibanus and Brathu, received their names. ⁹ Memrunus and Hypsuranius were the issue of these men. ¹⁰ Hypsuranius inhabited Tyre and he invented huts, constructed of reeds and I rushes. ¹¹ He fell into enmity with his brother Usous, who was the inventor of clothing for the body, which he made of the skins of wild beasts. ¹² And Usous, having taken a tree and broken off the boughs, made a boat, and first ventured on the sea. ¹³ And he consecrated two pillars to fire and the wind, and worshipped them and poured out upon them the blood of wild beasts, which he took in hunting; and when these men were dead, consecrated rods to them and worshipped the pillars and held anniversary feasts, in honour of them. ¹⁴ And in time, long subsequent to these, were born of the race of Hypsuranius, Agreas and Halicus, the inventors of hunting and fishing, from whom huntsmen and fishermen derive their names.
¹⁵ Of these were begotten, two brothers, who discovered iron and the forging thereof. ¹⁶ One of these, called Chrysaor, [which is the same as Hephaestus], exercised himself in words and charms and divinations: he invented the hook-the bait, the fishing line and boats of light construction: and he was the first of all men who sailed, wherefore he was worshipped as a God, after his death, under the name of Daimichius. ¹⁷ And it is said, his brother invented the art of building walls with brick. ¹⁸ Afterwards, of these races were born two youths, one of whom was Technites and the other Genius Autochton. ¹⁹ These discovered the mode of mingling stubble with the clay of bricks, and baking them in the sun. ²⁰ They also invented tiles. ²¹ By these were begotten others, one named Agrus, the other Agruerus or Agrotes, of whom in Phoenicia there is a statue, held in great veneration, and a temple drawn by yokes of oxen, and at Byblus he is called the greatest of the Gods. ²² These added to their houses, courts, porticoes, and arches. ²³ Agriculturists and those who hunt with dogs are derived from these they are also denominated Aleta and Titans.
²⁴ From these men, descended Amynus and Magus, who taught men to construct villages and tend flocks. ²⁵ By these men were begotten Misor and Sydyc, that is secure and just, and they discovered the use of salt. ²⁶ From Misor descended Taautes who invented the Alphabet [the Egyptians call him Thoor,- the Alexandrians, Thoyth, and the Greeks Hermes]. ²⁷ From Sydyc descended the Dioscuri or Cabiri, or Corybantes or Samothraces, who built the first perfect ship. ²⁸ From these descended others, who were the discoverers of medicinal herbs and the cures of poisons and charms.
²⁹ At that time lived Elioun, called Hypsistus, and his wife Beruth, who dwelt at Byblus. ³⁰ By these were begotten Epigeus, or Autochton, whom they afterwards called Ouranos-heaven, [so that from him, that element which is over us, by reason of its excellent beauty, is named heaven], and he had a sister of the same parents, who was called Ge,-earth, and by reason of her beauty, the earth was called by her name. ³¹ Hypsistus, having been killed by wild beasts, was consecrated, and his children offered libations and sacrifices to him. ³² Ouranos succeeding his father in his kingdom, married his sister Ge, and by her, had four sons, Ilus called Cronus, Betylus, Dagon which signifies Siton (bread corn) and Atlas.
³³ Ouranos, by other wives, had much issue, at which Ge, being vexed and jealous, reproached him, and they separated from each other; but Ouranos returned to her by force, whenever he pleased, and then, again left her. ³⁴ He also attempted to kill the children he had by her; but Ge defended herself by the assistance of her friendly powers. ³⁵ When Cronus arrived at man's estate, by the advice of his secretary, Hermes Trismegistus, he opposed his father Ouranos to avenge the indignities offered to his mother.
³⁶ To Cronus were born Persephone and Athena. ³⁷ The former died a virgin; but, by the advice of Athena and Hermes, Cronus made a crooked sword and a spear of iron. ³⁸ Then Hermes addressed the allies of Cronus with magic words, and excited in them a strong desire to make war against Ouranos, on behalf of Ge. ³⁹ And Cronus having overcome Ouranos, drove him from his kingdom, and succeeded him in his imperial power. ⁴⁰ In battle, was taken a well-beloved concubine of Ouranos, who was pregnant. ⁴¹ Cronus bestowed her upon Dagon, and while she was with him, she was delivered of a child, and they called his name Demarous.
⁴² After these events, Cronus surrounded his habitation with a wall, and founded Byblus, the first city of Phoenicia. ⁴³ Having suspicion of his brother Atlas, he threw him into a deep cavern and buried him by the advice of Hermes. ⁴⁴ At this time the descendants of the Dioscuri, having built some light and more complete ships, put to sea, and being cast away over against Mount Cassius, there built a temple. ⁴⁵ But the auxiliaries of Ilus, who is Cronus, were called Eloeim, and were the allies of Cronus, having a song called Sadidus, killed him with his own sword, because he suspected him, and with his own hand, deprived his child of life. ⁴⁶ He in like manner cut off the head of his own daughter, so that all the Gods were astonished at the disposition of Cronus.
⁴⁷ In process of time, Ouranos, when in banishment, sent his daughter Astarte, being a virgin, with her two sisters Rhea and Dione, to cut off Cronus by treachery. ⁴⁸ Cronus took them all and married them, notwithstanding they were his sisters. ⁴⁹ When Ouranos understood this, he sent Eimarmene and Hora with other auxiliaries, to make war against Cronus; but Cronus gained the affections of these also, and took them to himself. ⁵⁰ It was the God Ouranos, devised Betulia, contriving stones that moved as having life.
⁵¹ By Astarte, Cronus had seven daughters called Titanides. ⁵² By Rhea, seven sons, the youngest of whom was consecrated from his birth, and by Dione, he had daughters, and by Astarte he had two sons, Pothos and Eros. ⁵³ Dagon, after he had found out bread corn, was called God of agriculture. ⁵⁴ To Sydye, who was called just, one of the Titanides, was born Asclepius, and to Cronus, there were born in Perea three sons called after himself, Zeus, Belus and Apollo. ⁵⁵ Contemporary with these, were Pontus and Typhon, Nereus the father of Pontus. ⁵⁶ From Pontus, descended Sidon, who, by the excellence of her singing, first invented the hymns of odes or praises, and Poseidon. ⁵⁷ To Demarous, was born Melicarthus, who was first called Heracles.
⁵⁸ Ouranos then made war upon Pontus; but afterwards relinquishing the attack, he attached himself to Demarous, when Demarous invaded Pontus, who put him to flight, and Demarous vowed a sacrifice for his escape. ⁵⁹ In the 22nd year of the reign of Cronus, he, having laid an ambuscade for his father Ouranos in a certain place, situated in the middle of the earth, and having taken him prisoner, dismembered him, over against the fountains and rivers. ⁶⁰ When he was consecrated, his spirit separated, and the blood of his parts flowed into the fountains and rivers. ⁶¹ Then Astarte, called the greatest, and Demarous, named Zeus, and Adobus, called the king of the Gods, reigned over the country by consent of Cronus : and Astarte, having put upon her head as a mark of sovereignty, a bull's head, by traveling about the world, she found a star, falling through the air, which she took up and consecrated in the holy island of Tyre. ⁶² [The Phoenicians say that Astarte is the same as Aphrodite].
⁶³ Cronus, visiting the different regions of the habitable world, gave his daughter Athena the kingdom of Attica. ⁶⁴ After this, Cronus gave the city of Byblus to the goddess Baaltis, which is Dione and Berytus to Neptune and the Cabiri, who were cultivators of the soil and fishermen, and they consecrated the remains of Pontus at Berytus.
⁶⁵ But, before these things, the God Taautes, having pourtrayed Ouranos, represented also the countenances of the Gods, Cronus and Dagon, and the sacred character of the elements. ⁶⁶ He contrived also for Cronus, the ensign of his royal power, having four eyes in the parts before, and parts behind, two of them closing, as in sleep, and upon the shoulders four wings, two in the act of flying, and two reposing as at rest. ⁶⁷ The symbol was, that Cronus, while he slept, was watching, and reposed while he was awake. ⁶⁸ And, in like manner with respect to the wings, that he was flying while he rested, yet rested while he flew. ⁶⁹ But, for the other Gods, there were two wings only to each, upon his shoulders, to intimate that they flew under the control of Cronus. ⁷⁰ And there were also two wings upon the head, the one as the symbol of the intellectual part, the mind-the other for the senses.
⁷¹ And Cronus visiting the South, gave all Egypt to the God Taautes, that it might be his kingdom.
⁷² These things the Cabiri-the seven sons of Sydyc and Taautes, that it might be his kingdom.
⁷³ These things the Cabiri-the seven sons of Sydye and their eighth brother Asclepius, first of all, set down in the records, in obedience to the command of the God Taautes.""⁵^
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THREE
(... will continue)
Z ^REFERENCES
- Wikipedia
⁰^ Google AI Overview / Oxford Languages Dictionary
¹^–⁴^ PART ONE https://steemit.com/genesis/@theuniverse.name/g-e-n-e-s-i-s
⁵^ RESEARCHES INTO THE LOST HISTORIES OF AMERICA;
or
THE ZODIAC SHOWN TO BE AN OLD TERRESTRIAL MAP IN WHICH THE ATLANTIC ISLE IS DELINEATED;
SO THAT LIGHT CAN BE THROWN UPON THE OBSCURE HISTORIES OF THE
EARTHWORKS AND RUINED CITIES OF AMERICA.
ILLUSTRATED BY 77 ENGRAVINGS.
"THE ATHENIANS HAD NOT WIT ENOUGH TO FIND OUT THE TRUE REASON WHY TWO NATURES WERE ASCRIBED TO PETEUS; FOR EVERY MAN KNOWS THAT HE WAS CALLED HALF A MAN AND HALF A HEAST, AND THE TRUE GROUND WAS, BECAUSE HE WAS A MEMBER OF TWO SEVERAL COMMONWEALTHS - A GRECIAN AND A BARBARIAN." - DIODORUS SICULUS.
BY W. S. BLACKET.
(WILLIAM STEPHENS)
LONDON: TRÜBNER & CO., LUDGATE HILL. PHILADELPHIA: J. B. LIPPINCOTT & CO. (CE 1884).
GENESIS PART ONE
https://steemit.com/genesis/@theuniverse.name/g-e-n-e-s-i-s