THE THIRTY-THIRD PAPYRUS
Reading edition
Now the deeds which I have done and the wiles which I have wrought, in my kingdom of Moxoene, are on this wise. And, seeing that they are both great and numerous, I will have them fairly written out by the hand of Empedokles son of Polypemon, my scribe, on one-and-twenty new rolls of fine papyrus, and sealed with my kingly sigil.
On the first roll, it shall be written of my coming with Queen Helen to Moxoene, flying out of the open heaven in my silver-shining chariot, having a glorious sheen like the moon. And, when the people saw us, they received us with gladness and piety and exquisite sacrifices: for, though we scintillated with truly godly splendour, and appeared to be of very much more than mortal stature, yet we were benign of aspect and not terrible; and the tribes (also) of the country are not slavish or timid by nature, but brave and strong, and of an upright ingenious mind.
On the second roll, it shall be written of the stablishing of my kingdom. For, when the news of my coming went abroad, then, the chiefs of the fifteen tribes between the Great River[66] and River Araxes and Media Atropatene with Assyria and Mesopotamia came, of their own free will, to pay homage to me, swearing faithful allegiance. And these were the fifteen princes of the fifteen tribes of Akilisene and Derxene and Phasianene and Bagravandene and Dasranalene and Khorzianene and Balabitene and Astianene and Anzitene and Sophene and Arzanene and Gordavanene and Arapakitene and Thositene and Moxoene.
On the third roll, it shall be written of the constitution of my kingdom as a limited theocracy: for I, the king, and Helen, the queen, accept the obedience and the worship of the nation, as god and goddess of Moxoene, for the present and in the absence of anything better. Here, also, it shall be written of the manner of the said obedience and worship: of the language of Moxoene: of my kingly name Balthazar, and the signification of the same.
On the fourth roll, it shall be written of the Sacred Lavation and of The Spell of The Three Who are One, a most efficacious mighty magic inchantment, which, in the very beginning, I wrought upon the persons of all and singular my subjects, in my Thospitian Sea, will-he nill-he: with the names and histories of the two of evil mind who repudiated it, whom a flying dragon ate that same afternoon.[67]
On the fifth roll, it shall be written of the mysteries, which I study and cause to be studied by the few who are worthy; and of the altar, of sunstone and moonstone, to Mithra, Unconquered Father of Fathers, which I set up in my palace for myself and my own, whereat I myself minister as mysteriarch among my sons.
On the sixth roll, it shall be written of the fair children borne to me by Queen Helen, my beloved wife and true: to wit, my darling Diyllos (superb and glancing-eyed like my friend Diokles) born under the Moon and the Crab, and my very dear son Nikolaos born under Hermes and The Virgin, and my twin-son Haliastos and my twin-daughter Halianthe born under Oyranos and The Waterman; and of the Sacred Lavation and The Spell of The Three Who are One, which I wrought upon them all at birth.
On the seventh roll, it shall be written of Queen Helen, my meet help and my heart’s constant joy: of all the deeds which she (the divine one of goddesses) has done for the women and children of my kingdom, teaching them the arts of love, obedience, service, housewifery, comforting them in sorrow. Here, also, shall be written of my sweet daughter Silver Halianthe, my sea-flower, who (having been born in my galley on my Thospitian Sea, and having been bred by Queen Helen) has become her golden mother’s second self.
On the eighth roll, it shall be written of my friend glancing-eyed Diokles, and of my own cousin Perseys of the sea (the most renowned of heroes), who came to my kingdom while my sons were young, to teach them all those things which the sons of heroes and of kings must know, and to show them what the sons of heroes and of kings must be.
On the ninth roll, it shall be written of Hermes the Helper and of Eros the Great Inchanter, and of my two faithful slaves Neandros and Thalos. Here, shall be written of the mighty magic which Eros taught to ingenious Neandros my slave, and to my dear son Haliastos desiring it, so that they found out wells of fragrant oil wherein pitch beautifully floats, and also wells of limpid water, for the magic instruments which they make, wherewith they cut the air into compact blocks, storing the same in the secret parts of chariots (which, also, they make), so that the said chariots, fish-shaped, run on the earth, or fly in the air, or swim in and on the sea, more swiftly than a bird or a thought, having no sails nor oars nor even horses to draw them. And with these I win great victories over hairy barbarians, even over the Parthians with their blooming elephants. And here, also, shall be written of the wisdom unspeakable which Hermes taught to ingenious Thalos my slave, and to my strange and very dear son Nikolaos desiring it: so that I placed them over my royal college of mages seeking wisdom, which I stablished on the peak above my Thospitian Sea.
On the tenth roll, it shall be written of the death of my darling son Diyllos, in my war with the Kilikian pirates, in the moment of victory with his circle of dead about him as high as the well-folded tablets of his breast. Herakles lighted his funeral-pyre, heaped with his chariots, his arms, his trophies, and a few of his toys. I could not burn my own work, the most beautiful body of my son. I preserve it, using the best of all my magic art, so that it will be sweet and fresh for me for ever and ever. Here, also, shall be written of the fair and kingly crypt, where I have hidden that vesture of my darling son, with my private treasures; and of my daily visit to look upon him.
On the eleventh roll, it shall be written of the embassador who came from Cæsar Augustus, demanding my submission, requiring me to send my sons, with the sons of neighbouring kings, as hostages, to Rome. Here, also, shall be written of the manner of my dealing with the said embassador, at high noon, on a terrace of my palace builded of white jade and alabaster and eye-chalcedonyx and silver, on the shore of my Thospitian Sea: to whom I casually appeared, of immortal stature, blazing like the serene and vivid moon, arrayed in ermine and silver tissue sown all over with rose-crystals and blue moonstones, flying through the air across the sea in my silver-shining chariot inlaid with crabs and moons in mother-of-pearl, having with me (in the chariot) Queen Helen, daughter of Zeys the Swan, robed in gold and amethyst tissue, with her gold hair floating like a web of woven sunbeams, and with immortal Hermes the Luck-bringer, wing-footed, golden-wanded, flying (as usual) above my head, and with immortal Love, my charioteer. Here, also, shall be written of the splendid ceremonies which I caused to be observed at the interment of the Roman embassador, after his intempestive demise.
On the twelfth roll, it shall be written of the names of all the mages of all kingdoms on the wide-bosomed earth, whom I have brought into my kingdom, where they teach their wisdom to me and to my mages, and learn ours, serving me in both ways. Here also shall be written of the histories of those mages, and of the magics which they have used as masters.
On the thirteenth roll, it shall be written (in the hand of Empedokles son of Polypemon, and in his own words) of who he was and whence he came: but he shall write also (in my words) of the reason why I brought him into my kingdom, and of what he has done there.
On the fourteenth roll, it shall be written of the book of magic inchantments which I (of my wisdom) compiled for my royal college of mages seeking wisdom: of the parts of the said book, and also the secret[68]....