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Sophia and Eve

The Valentinian myth of Sophia is often said to indicate the influence of non-Christian sources on Valentinian teaching.In the myth, Sophia becomes separated from her consort and is expelled from the heavenly Pleroma. Christ then

descends to her aid and she is joined to him. Rather than having a non-Christian origin, the main points of the mythseem to be derived from an allegorical interpretation of the Book of Genesis. In this allegory, Eve is identified with

Sophia while Adam is interpreted as Christ.The book of Genesis features two different accounts of the creation of human beings. In the first, "God created human

beings, making them to be like himself. He created them male and female" (Genesis 1:27). In the second account, "Godtook some soil from the ground and formed a man from it" (Genesis 2:7). Then God creates woman from the man's rib

(Genesis 2:22). The human beings are subsequently ejected from the garden.Influenced by the writings of Plato, many Jews and Christians of the period interpreted the creation as "male andfemale" to indicate that humanity was originally androgynous (cf. Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:18:2).. As in Plato, theandrogynous human being was later divided to form two sexes. Valentinians made use of this interpretation in their

myth of Sophia. They explicitly identified Sophia (Wisdom), the youngest of the Aeons with Eve, "mother of theliving" (Hippolytus Refutation 6:29 cf. Genesis 3:20). According to Valentinian teachers, the separation of Sophia/Evefrom her male counterpart results in her expulsion from the heavenly Pleroma.According to Valentinian teachers, the passage "In the image of God he created them, male and female he created

them" (Genesis1:27), means the creation of the "spiritual humanity" (Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:18:2). Specifically,"the 'male' are called angels, while the 'female' themselves are the superior seed" (Excerpts of Theodotus 21,1). The'male' are of course Adam/Christ while the 'female' are of course Eve/Sophia.The creation of Eve from Adam's rib is understood to mean that Eve has become separated from him. In their

interpretation, it is this separation of Eve from Adam rather than the eating of the forbidden fruit which constitutes the

fall. The "sleep" of Adam (Genesis 2:21) is the sleep of ignorance into which Sophia/Eve fell as a consequence ofwhich she was separated from him. According to the Interpretation of Knowledge, "From being counted with thefemale (i.e.Eve), sleep brought labor and the sabbath which is the world" (Interpretation of Knowledge 11:18-20 cf.

Gen 3:17). As Ptolemy says, she "plunged forward and fell victim to suffering without the embrace of her consort"(Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:2:2).

According to Valentinian myth, Sophia/Eve "cut herself off from her consort"(Valentinian Exposition 34) and thisresults in the creation of the material universe. Just as Sophia separated from her partner, "so also in the case of Adam:the male remained in him, but the entire female seed was taken from him and became Eve (i.e. Sophia), from whom thefemale beings derive, as do the males from him. The males were drawn together with the Word" (ExTheo 21:2-3).

The Gospel of Philip states that "Eve separated from Adam because she was never united with him in the BridalChamber"(Gospel of Philip 70). According to Valentinian myth of the fall, God held back perfect knowledge (gnosis)of himself from his Aeons (including Sophia) so that they would search for him. Until Chist manifested himself tothem, the Aeons had not united in the "bridal chamber", a metaphor for perfect knowledge of God. It was as a result of

this withholding of gnosis that the fall occured.The separation of Sophia/Eve is described as the origin of our deficient relationship with God. In Valentinianism

deficiency or ignorance is identical with spiritual death. According to the Gospel of Philip "When Eve was still inAdam death did not exist. When she was separated from him death came into being" (GP 63 cf. Genesis 3:19 see also

Gospel of Philip 70). However, this allegory ends on an optimistic note. The passage in Genesis that follows theseparation of Eve from Adam describes how "a man leaves his father and mother and is united with his wife and they

become a single flesh" (Genesis 2:24). According to the Valentinians, this "man" is Christ who descends from theFullness (pleroma) to unite with his partner Sophia/Eve. As Theodotus says, "he came forth, full of the Aeons, as one

who proceeded from the All" (Excerpts of Theodotus 23,1).Christ is the second Adam, who comes to undo the fall. According to the Gospel of Philip, "Adam came into being

from two virgins, from the Spirit and from the virgin earth. Christ, therefore, was born of a virgin to rectify the fallwhich occurred in the beginning" (Gospel of Philip 74). Elsewhere in the same work, it says, "Christ came to came to

repair the separation which was from the beginning and again unite the two, and to give Life to those who died as aresult of the separation and unite them. But the woman is united to her husband in the bridal chamber. Indeed, those

who have united in the bridal chamber will no longer be separated" (Gospel of Philip 70)The Gospel of Philip "if she (Sophia/Eve) enters into him and he takes her to himself, death will no longer exist"(Gospel of Philip 63). Similarly, according to the Exegesis on the Soul, "once they unite with one another, they becomea single life. Wherefore the prophet said concerning the first man and woman, 'They will become a single flesh'. For

they were originally joined to one another when they were with the Father, before the woman led astray the man, whois her brother" (Exegesis on the Soul 132:34-133:6).The Interpretation of Knowledge contrasts the "sleep"(Genesis 2:21) of ignorance which brings about the separationwith the "sleep" of gnosis which reverses it. According to this author, "From being counted with the female

(i.e.Sophia), sleep brought labor and the sabbath which is the world. But from being counted with the Father, sleepbrought the Sabbath and the exodus from the world of the beasts" (Interpretation of Knowledge 11:18-22) It allows usto reverse the fall and "enter through the rib whence you came" (Interpretation of Knowledge 10:34-35 cf Genesis 2:21-22).


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Thus Sophia/Eve will be to be reunited with Christ/Adam and the fall undone. Similarly, the female "seed" within each

of us is to be reunited with its male angelic counterpart. As Theodotus concludes in his discussion of the separation ofAdam and Eve, "the female . . . unites itself with the angels and enters into the Fullness" (Excerpts of Theodotus 21:3).

Through gnosis, "we are raised equal to angels, restored to the males, member to member, to form a unity" (Excerpts ofTheodotus 22:2). Accordingly, "when Sophia (Wisdom) receives her consort and Jesus receives the Christ and the

seeds and the angels; then the Fullness will receive Sophia (Wisdom) joyfully, and the All will come to be in unity andreconciliation" (Valentinian Exposition 39)

The Pair (syzygy) in Valentinian Thought

The notion of the pair or "syzygy" is central to Valentinian thought. The term refers to the linking together ofcomplementary qualities ("Aeons") of to form a state of wholeness (pleroma). This is the highest level of reality. Thehalves of a syzygy are often refered to as male and female. The male corresponds to form and the female correspondsto substance. God can be understood to consist of four primary pairs or syzygies:

Depth and Silence (unknowable God),Mind and Truth (comprehensible God),Word and Life (active God),Humanity and Church (immanent God).

It is worth noting that the syzygies were understood to be male-female pairs. Thus Depth, Mind, Word and Humanitywere understood as corresponding to the "male" aspect of God while Silence, Truth, Life and Church were seen as the"feminine" aspect of God.From these primary energies, eleven further syzygies were generated by a process ofemanation for a total of fifteen pairs (i.e. thirty Aeons). This harmonious realm of paired energies is refered to as the

"Pleroma", which means "fullness" or "completion".

The complementary qualities that make up the syzygy have become separated in this world due to the action of Sophia,resulting in a state of deficiency (hysterema). This lower level of reality is a illusion that results from ignorance andseparation. According to Valentinus, every human being contains a seed of the divine essence (pneuma) that has to be

rejoined to its heavenly counterpart or angel in a syzygy.Because of our ignorance, we often mistakenly believe that things can be separated into opposites. This is discussed in

the Gospel of Philip: "Light and darkness, life and death, right and left are mutually dependent; it is impossible forthem to separate. Accordingly the 'good' are not good, the 'bad' are not bad, 'life' is not life, 'death' is not death."(Gospel of Philip 53:14-23). Categories that are often considered as opposites are in fact closely related and one cannot

be understood without the other. There can be no concept of maleness without femaleness or no concept of darkness

without light. The division into opposites is an illusion.This illusory level of reality can be "dissolved" by reunification of the pneuma within us with its angelic counterpart.This is commonly refered to as gnosis and results in a restoration of the individual to the syzygy and the wholeness(pleroma). This "gnosis" is understood simultaneously as knowledge of God and as reunification with one's heavenly

counterpart. Distinctions such as the division into "opposites" are dissolved through restoration to unity.Restoration to unity allows the mystic to transcend the illusion and perceive the true reality. According to Valentinus:

"Inasmuch as the deficiency came into being because the Father was not known, from the moment the Father is knownthe deficiency will not exist. As with a person's ignorance- when one receives gnosis, ignorance of the other passes

away of its own accord, as the darkness vanishes when the light appears, so also the deficiency vanishes in thecompletion, so from that moment on the realm of appearance (i.e. the mundane world) is no longer manifest but ratherwill pass away in the harmony of unity." (Gospel of Truth 24:27-25:6)It is clear from the preceding that Valentinianism is a form of monism. According to Valentinus, the divine is the only

true reality. All else is illusion. Dualistic distinctions between "body" and "mind", "soul" and "matter" are meaningless.To have gnosis of God is to see through the illusion of worldly distinctions and to experience reality as the fullness

(pleroma) of the divine.

The Role of Jesus in Valentinianism

Introduction

Valentinianism is a profoundly Christo-centric form of Christian mysticism. The entire mythology can be seen asChristology. In Valentinian thought, the decisive event in the history of the world was the ministry of Jesus. Prior to hiscoming, the true God was unknown ( Against Heresies 1:19:3-1:20:3). This is because "no one knows the Father exceptthe Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him" (Matthew 11:27 cf. Against Heresies 1:20:3). This is the

point of the Sophia myth. Throughout the ages, human beings sought to find God, but in the absence of Christ, theysucceeded only in producing a defective image of the divine i.e. the Craftsman (demiurge). In their error theyworshipped an imperfect image of God as lawgiver and Craftsman of the material world instead of the true God.

The Human Jesus and the Divine Christ

Valentinian tradition draws a sharp distinction between the human and the divine Jesus. By a special dispensation, the

human Jesus was born (Against Heresies 1:15:3). Some Valentinians accepted the virgin birth (e.g Second Apocalypseof James 50:10f) while others believed Jesus was the true son of Mary and Joseph (Gospel of Philip 55:23-26).

According to Valentinian theologians, Jesus derived his animate "body" or essence from the Craftsman. His spiritualessence is the entire "church of the superior seed" (Excerpts of Theodotus 17:1) deriving from Wisdom (Sophia). That


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is why the angel told Mary, "The Holy Spirit (i.e. Wisdom) will come upon you and the power of the Most High (i.e.

the Craftsman) will overshadow you" (Luke 1:35 cf. Refutation of Heresies 6:35:3-4, also Excerpt of Theodotus 60,Against Heresies 1:15:3). According to Ptolemy, the contributions from Wisdom (Sophia) and the Craftsman pass

through Mary into Jesus "like water through a pipe" (Against Heresies 1:7:2). This human being is the "lamb of God"(John 1:26 cf. Fragments of Herakleon 10), that is, the one the "Father of All chose to obtain knowledge of himself"

( Against Heresies 1:15:3).Jesus became closely identified with humanity by taking on a human body. His human body is seen as consubstantial

with the Church. Drawing on the metaphor from Saint Paul that the church is the body of Christ, Theodotus says, "Thevisible part of Jesus was Sophia (Wisdom) and the church of the superior seed which he put on through the body but

the invisible part was the Name which is the only begotten Son" (Excerpts of Theodotus 26:1). The correspondingmetaphor in the Gospel of Truth is the "living book" which contains the names of all the saved that the Son takes up(Gospel of Truth 20:10-14 cf. Revelation 20:15).Valentinians divide the human personality into three distinct parts: chous (carnal), psyche (soul) and pneuma (spirit).

The chous is closely linked the physical body and consists of the instinctual drives to self-gratification. It is said todirectly derive from deficiency and suffering. By a special dispensation, Jesus was born without chous. For this reason,his physical body is sometimes said to be directly connected with psyche. Hence Ptolemy describes Jesus as having a"psychic" rather than a carnal (choic) body ( Against Heresies 1:6:1, 1:7:2).

The Baptism of Jesus

When he was thirty years old, he went to John the Baptist to be baptized (Luke 3:23). As soon as he went down into thewater, "he came out laughing at everything (of this world), not because he considers it a trifle, but because he is full ofcontempt for it" (Gospel of Philip 71:3-15). The divine Savior, referred to as the "Spirit of the Thought of the Father",descended on him in the form of a dove (Matthew 3:16 and parallels cf. Against Heresies 1:7:2, 1:15:3, Excerpts of

Theodotus 61:6, Refutation of Heresies 35:3) and the "Word became flesh" (John 1:14).Jesus' baptism and the descent of the "Spirit" is his redemption (Gospel of Philip 70:34-36). Redemption was necessaryeven for Jesus so that "he might not be detained by the thought of the deficiency in which he was placed" (Excerpts ofTheodotus 22:7 cf. also Tripartite Tractate 124:31-125:11). This is the true "virgin birth" and resurrection from the

dead, for he was reborn of the virgin Spirit (cf. Gospel of Philip 70:34-71:7, Refutation of Heresies 35:5, Gospel ofPhilip 56:15-18). According to Theodotus, the Savior's angels were also baptized "through the redemption of the Namewhich came upon Jesus in the dove and redeemed him" (Excerpts of Theodotus 22:1-2). The angels are those who are"baptized for the dead" (1 Corinthians 15:29), that is, for human beings who are in ignorance of the true God (Excerpts

of Theodotus 21:1-2).The human Jesus is the "lamb of God", the Savior is the one "who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29 cf.Herakleon 10). He came to reveal knowledge (gnosis) of the Father (Gospel of Truth 20:15-24, Against Heresies1:15:2, Interpretation of Knowledge 14:28-30). By knowledge (gnosis), the two elements which had been separated

(i.e. the seeds and the angels) are rejoined (cf. Gospel of Philip 70:12-15 etc.) and restored to the Fullness (Treatise onthe Resurrection 44:26-30). He also came to conquer death by means of the resurrection ( Against Heresies 1:15:3,

Treatise on the Resurrection 44:26-30). He accomplished this by "sharing with the dispensational (i.e. human) Christhis power and his name" ( Against Heresies 3:16:1).

Valentinian Christology emphasizes that the human Jesus is redeemed by being joined with the Savior at his baptism.The Son is "the Name which came down upon Jesus in the dove and redeemed him" (Excerpts of Theodotus 22:6). The

redemption of the human Jesus is seen by the Valentinians as applying to all who form part of the "church of thesuperior seed". The human Jesus is joined to the Savior. All who form part of the spiritual church which is identicalwith the human Jesus are also joined to the Savior. In the Interpretation of Knowledge, the human Jesus who representsthe Church is called the "humiliated one"(12:18-22)and the "reproached one" (12:29-31). Again it is the Savior who

redeems: "Who is it that redeemed the one that was reproached? It is the emanation of the Name (i.e. the Savior)"(Interpretation of Knowledge 12:29-31cf also 12:18-22). The descent of the Son into Jesus at his baptism issimultaneously the redemption of the human Jesus and the redemption of all who are joined with him.

The Public Career of Jesus

Following his baptism, he taught for twelve months in order to "proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord and the day ofretribution" (Isaiah 61:2 cf. Against Heresies 2:22:1). In order to reveal his dual nature, the Acts of John reports that attimes he was substantial like an ordinary human being, but that at other times he seemed insubstantial and did not even

seem to leave footprints. (Acts of John 88-89). Everything he did was "a symbol and a dispensation for the conversionand salvation of humanity" (Acts of John 102 cf. also Against Heresies 1:8:2). He taught he disciples "first in a

figurative and mystical way, then in parables and riddles and thirdly clearly and directly in private" (Excerpts ofTheodotus 66 cf. John 16:25, Luke 8:9-10).

In the Gospel of Philip, Mary Magdalene is regarded as a full-fledged apostle. She was seen as having had a specialrelationship with Jesus and is said to be the apostle he loved more that the others (Gospel of Philip 64:1-2 cf. Gospel of

Mary 18:14-15). She is sometimes interpreted as a symbol of Wisdom (Sophia). As such she is described as Jesus'consort and it is implied that they are married (Gospel of Philip 63:32-33, 56:6-10 cf. Gospel of Mary 10:2-3). His

brother James also plays an important role in some Valentinian sources such as the First Apocalypse of James.

The Crufixion


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The forces of ignorance rose up against Jesus, and, not comprehending his true nature, attempted to destroy him

(Gospel of Truth 18:21-26). His passion and death have a special symbolic value according to Ptolemy who says thatJesus "came to his suffering in the last times of the world for the purpose of revealing the suffering arising with the last

of the Aeons and through its end to reveal for all to see the final aim of the events in the world of the Aeons" ( AgainstHeresies 1:8:2).

Valentinians interpreted Jesus' suffering and death in terms of his dual nature. Inasmuch as Jesus is a human being, hesuffered pain and died on the cross (cf. Against Heresies 1:7:2). However, his divine nature (i.e. the Savior) transcends

physical pain and death ( Against Heresies 1:6:3, 1 Apocalypse of James 131:17-19). Instead, his divine aspect enduredonly the emotional sufferings of grief, fear and confusion in order to bring them to nothing. This distinction is

expressed by the risen Christ in the following words: "What they (i.e. ordinary Christians) say of me, I did not endure,but what they do not say, those things I did suffer" (Acts of John 101).According to Ptolemy, the Savior expressed his grief with the words, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even untodeath" (Matthew 26:38). When he says, "Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me" (Matthew 26:39) he shows

fear. Similarly, his statement, "And what shall I say" (John 12:27) shows his confusion. ( Against Heresies 1:8:2). Thereality of this suffering is affirmed in many places (Gospel of Truth 20:10-14, 20:28-30, Interpretation of Knowledge5:30-35, Herakleon 12)The identity of the Jesus' body with the Church lead some Valentinians to identify the suffering of Jesus with the

suffering of the individual Christians that make up that body. In the Letter of Peter to Philip, it says "Our illuminatorcame down and was crucified..Jesus is a stranger to this suffering. But we are the ones who suffered through thetransgression of the Mother. And because of this he did everything like us" (139:15-25).According to the Apocalypse of Peter, Jesus was laughing on the cross at his persecutors: "He laughs at their lack of

perception, knowing that they are born blind" (Apocalypse of Peter 83:1-3). They foolishly thought they were killing

him but in reality they were setting him free from the flesh. Only the human Jesus was being put to death.According to Theodotus, when Jesus said, "Father, into your hands, I commend my Spirit" (Luke 23:4), he committedthe lower Wisdom and her seed to the Father, having accomplished his work of redemption (Excerpts of Theodotus

1:1-2). The Savior then withdrew from Jesus and his human part died (Excerpts of Theodotus 61:6). That is why thehuman Jesus said with his dying breath, "My God, my God, why o Lord have you forsaken me" (Matthew 27:46), for

"he was divided in that place" (Gospel of Philip 68:26-28 cf. also Interpretation of Knowledge 13:14-16).

The Resurrection

When the human body died, his non-corporeal spiritual body rose up from it (Refutation of Heresies 10:7, Apocalypse

of Peter 83:6-8, cf. also Treatise on the Resurrection 45:14-17). The Gospel of Truth puts it thus, "Having strippedhimself of perishable rags, he put on imperishability" (Gospel of Truth 20:30-32 cf. also Treatise on the Resurrection45:14-22).According to a tradition preserved in the Acts of John, the risen Savior appeared immediately to the apostle John on the

Mount of Olives while the multitude was still gathered around his human body nailed to the cross. The Savior revealedto him that the cross could be seen as a symbol of the Limit that separates the lower realm from the Fullness (Acts of

John 97-100). When he told John that "those who are outside the mystery" (Acts of John 100) were saying that he hadperished on the cross, John laughed at their foolishness (Acts of John 102).

On the third day after his human body died, the Savior sent forth a ray of power which destroyed death, and "he raisedthe mortal body after he scattered the sufferings (i.e. the physical and carnal natures)" (Excerpts of Theodotus 61:6).

This body which he raised is not the material body, "for what is flesh and blood cannot share in God's kingdom" (1Corinthians 15:50). Instead, it was a body of animate essence specially transformed so that it could be seen and felt (cf.Excerpts of Theodotus 59:4, Against Heresies 1:6:1, 1:7:1).The risen Savior only took up those elements he wished to save, that is, the animate soul and the spiritual seed

( Against Heresies1:6:1). It is this animate and spiritual body of Christ which is consubstantial with the Church(Excerpts of Theodotus 42:3, 58:1, cf. Ephesians 4:15-16). Theodotus puts it in these words, "The visible part of Jesuswas Wisdom (Sophia) and the Church of the superior seed which he put on through the body" (Excerpts of Theodotus26:1).

The Post-Resurrection Appearances of Jesus

The risen Jesus appeared to different people in various forms, that is "in the manner in which they would be able to seehim" (Gospel of Philip 57:28-35 cf. also Excerpts of Theodotus 23:4, Acts of Peter 21). That is why Mary did not

recognize him at the tomb (John 20:15) and the disciples did not recognize him on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:16).According to a tradition known to the Valentinians, Jesus remained for eighteen months after his crucifixion ( Against

Heresies 1:3:2, Secret Book of James 2:19). During this time he instructed his disciples "plainly about the Father" (John16:25 cf. Excerpts of Theodotus 66). Valentinians believed that the secret tradition passed on to them was revealed to

the disciples during this period.After giving final instructions to Peter and James (Secret Book of James), the Savior and Wisdom (Sophia) ascended to

the eighth heaven. The animate Christ remained in the seventh heaven on the right hand of the Craftsman (Excerpts ofTheodotus 62:1 cf. Psalm 110). He will remain there until the consummation so that "they may see him whom they

pierced" (Revelation 1:7 cf. Excerpts of Theodotus 62:2).

Conclusion


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Jesus sows the spiritual seed in all who hear the message. He is the sower in the parable (Matthew 13:1-8 cf.

Interpretation of Knowledge 5:16-19). The spiritual seed bears fruit in the Church, "therefore the signs of the Spirit -healing and prophesying - are accomplished through the Church" (Excerpts of Theodotus 24:1).

Jesus is absolutely central to Valentinian theology. Their understanding of his incarnation places great emphasis onboth his human and divine nature. The human Jesus alone died on the cross since the divine transcends pain and death.

This is distinctly different from "docetism". Valentinians never claimed that Jesus only appeared to suffer or that hisbody was an apparition.

The Name and Naming in Valentinianism

Valentinus was a second century AD Gnostic Christian mystic and speculative theologian. He founded a theologicalschool that preserved and further developed his ideas after his death in about 160 AD. The Valentinians and relatedspeculative groups are often called 'Gnostic' because of the role that mystical knowledge (gnosis) plays in their thought.In Valentinus' thought, speculation on the Name and on naming play an important role. The notion of the Name is

explicitly present in about half of the surviving Valentinian sources and can be implied in most of the remainder. Thenotion has been discussed in detail previously by Thomassen (1993) in relation to semiotics and by Zyla (1996). Whilethe notion of the Name is not unique to the Valentinians, they did develop the idea in some unique and unusualdirections.

The concept of the Name in Valentinianism has links with Jewish speculation on the Divine Name. The Valentinianliturgy preserved by Irenaeus makes the connection clear. In one of the baptismal prayers, the Name is explicitlyidentified with Iao (Hebrew Yaho) which is a variant of Yahweh (Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:21:3). A connection toJudaism is not all that surprising given the Jewish roots of both Christianity and Gnosticism.

In Valentinian thought, the Son is identical with the Name. In The Gospel of Truth, Valentinus says, "Now the Name of

the Father is the Son ... he begot him as a Son and gave him his Name" (Gospel of Truth 38:6-13 cf. also 39:19-21).Similarly, Theodotus writes of "the Name which is the Son, the form of the Aeons" (Excerpts of Theodotus 31:4). Theassociation of Christ with the Name derives from early Christian speculation that has its ultimate origins in Jewish

Christianity. In several passages in the New Testament, Jesus is said to have received the divine Name. For example inSaint Paul: "For this reason God raised him to the highest place and gave him the Name which is greater than any other

name (Philippians 2:9) This passage is quoted in several Valentinian sources including 'The Prayer of the Apostle Paul'.In the Gospel of John, Jesus says, "I kept them safe by the power of your Name, the Name you gave me" (John 17:12).Thus the notion that the Son possessed the divine Name was well known in early Christianity. The unique feature inValentinianism is that the Son not only possesses the Name, he is identical with it.

The identity of the Son with the Name can only be explained by understanding the notion of naming in Valentinianism.In Valentinian thought, naming is the same as generation. Hence, the Father's generation of the Son and his act ofnaming the Son are the same thing. In the Gospel of Truth, the Father "begot him as a Son and gave his Name" (38:10-13) and "bore him unto himself as a Name" (38:32-34). Elsewhere in the same work, Valentinus states that all things

that truly exist have a name, "for what does not exist has no name" (39: 11-12).Through the act of naming, the thing which receives a name becomes virtually identical with what is referred to by the

name. Thus the Son who receives the Father's Name becomes closely identified with the Father. The Gospel of Philipdiscusses this notion: "Only one name is not uttered in the world, the Name that the Father bestowed on the Son. It is

above every other - that is the Name of the Father. For the Son would not become a Father had he not put on the Nameof the Father" (Gospel of Philip 54:5-10).Thus the Son who receives the Name of the Father is himself called 'Father' inmany Valentinian sources (e.g. Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:1:1).There is an intimate association between the name and that which is named. According to Valentinus all things that

truly exist do so in association with their name: "For what does not exist has no name - indeed what would anonexistent be named? - but what exists, exists along with its name" (Gospel of Truth 39:11-16). The linking together

of the name and that which is named is expressed elsewhere in Valentinian theology through the concept of the syzygy(linked pairs). In the syzygy, the "male" corresponding to form is joined with the "female" corresponding to substance.

In most forms of Valentinian thought, even the Father is a syzygy. His inexpressible nature is expressed by having himunited with his Thought (or Silence). The Son is also generally conceived of as a syzygy. He is Mind united with Truth.

Inasmuch as both Father and Son are both syzygies, they are together described as the first Tetrad. (see IrenaeusAgainst Heresies 1:1:1). The Tetrad is itself linked with the fact that the divine name is expressed by four letters inHebrew.In Valentinian theology, the Son emanates a series of divine attributes or 'Aeons'. The Aeons follow the pattern

established in the first Tetrad and are arranged into pairs (syzygies). The relationship of the Son to the Aeons is unclearwithout taking account of the notion of the Name. How the Aeons are related to the Name (Son) is clearly spelled outin the teacher Marcus as follows: "The pronunciation of the Name took place as follows. He spoke the first word of itwhich was the beginning, and that utterance consisted of four letters. He added the second and this also consisted of

four letters. Next he uttered a third and this again embraced ten letters. Finally, he pronounced a fourth which wascomposed of twelve letters. The enunciation of the whole Name consisted of thirty letters or elements, and of fourdistinct utterances" (Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:14:1) Using the metaphor developed by Marcus, each of the Aeonscorrespond to an individual letter of the Name. In addition to the Tetrad, there are twenty-six Aeons. Again we note a


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connection to Judaism. In Hebrew numerology, the divine name has a numerical value of twenty-six. Four and twenty-

six give a total of thirty Aeons.The Aeons share in or are individual instances of the Name. They represent the various aspects of the Son's personality

e.g. Word, Human Being, Church, Wisdom, etc. Only together as the Son do they constitute the complete Name. Thisrelationship between the Aeons and the Son is described in the Tripartite Tractate with the following words: "He is

each and every one of the Totalities forever at the same time. He is what all of them are." (Tripartite Tractate 67:7-10)In another passage from the same work: "All of them exist in the single one, as he clothes them completely and he is

never called by his single Name. And in this unique way they are equally the single one (Son) and the Totalities(Aeons)" (Tripartite Tractate 66:30-36). Even though the Aeons represent aspects of the Son, they are to some degree

are conceived of as distinct personalities.It is a key feature of Valentinian theology that the Aeons are ignorant of their role as part of the Name. This isdiscussed in Marcus: "No one of them perceives the form of that whereof it is only an element. It does not perceive orknow the pronunciation of it's neighbor, but believes that which it expresses names the whole" (Irenaeus Against

Heresies 1:14:1). As a consequence, they are also ignorant of the Father himself . As the teacher Ptolemy puts it, "TheFirst Father was recognized only by the Only-Begotten (Son) who came into existence through him, that is, by Mind,whereas he remained invisible and inconceivable to all the others" (Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:2:1, cf. Gospel of Truth19:7-10 ). This astonishing idea has its root in the notion that the emanation of the Name by the Father was a process of

self-limitation. Valentinus himself admits that it is an surprising idea, "It was quite amazing that they were in the Fatherwithout being aquainted with him and that they alone were able to emanate, inasmuch as they were not able to perceiveand recognize the one in whom they were" (Gospel Truth 22:27-33). The Aeons can be thought of as unintegratedaspects of the Son's overall personality who are unaware of the Name even while they form part of it.

The longing of the Aeons to know their origin leads inevitably to disaster. Valentinian theologians expressed this

through a myth in which Sophia, the youngest Aeon becomes separated from her syzygy. This fall leads to a disruptionof the Name. According to Theodotus, "The Aeon which desired to grasp that which is beyond knowledge fell intoignorance and formlessness. Therefore he brought about a void of knowledge which is a shadow of the Name, which is

the Son, the form of the Aeons. Thus the partial name of the Aeons is the loss of the Name" (Excerpts of Theodotus31:3-4). This is the ultimate origin of the physical universe. The things in this world were seen as separated from their

name and existing in a state of deficiency and ignorance.Through an act of grace, the Name is restored. According to Theodotus, "For then they recognized that what they are,they are by the grace of the Father, an inexpressible Name, form and knowledge (gnosis)" (Excerpts of Theodotus31:3). The Aeons became united with the Son who then became known as the Savior. According to Marcus, "The

restitution of all things will take place when the whole has reached the one single letter and one and the sameexpression is sounded" (Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:14:1). The Aeons are joined to the Son and the Name is restoredwhen they all pronounce the Name together.In some sense, the restoration of the Name is linked to the notion that Aeons receive their name from the Son. In the

Tripartite Tractate it says "The one from whom they take their name, he is the Son who is full, complete and faultless"(Tripartite Tractate 62:34-38). The unification of the Aeons with the Son is described in the Tripartite Tractate: "The

Son in whom the Totalities are well-pleased put himself on them like a garment, through which he gave perfection tothe perfect one and gave perfection to the defective one and gave confirmation to those who are perfect" (Tripartite

Tractate 87:1-5). The Son then becomes integrated into a single personality.However, the fall of Sophia had given rise to a state of existence (the material world) which lacks true reality because itlacks the Name. The world and the human beings in it are said to exist in a state of ignorance and deficiency becausethey came into being apart from the Name. According to Valentinian tradition, human beings are formed in the image

of the preexistent human being who can be identified with the Son (Valentinus Fragment 1). Valentinus compares thecreation of Adam, the first human being, to the creation of a defective portrait. The portrait is an imperfect likeness but

"the Name completed the deficiency within the act of modeling." (Valentinus Fragment 5, cf. also Fragment 1). Theactivity of the Son within Adam completed the lack within him and reunited him with the Name. Naming fills up the

deficiency within the human being such that the person no longer exists in a state of ignorance but in gnosis(knowlege).

In the Gospel of Truth the reception of gnosis is equivalent to having one's name called by the Father. "Those whosenames he foreknew were called at the end as persons having gnosis. It is the latter whose names the Father called"(Gospel of Truth 21:25-28). Receiving a name is equivalent to receiving the Name. The individual name can be seen asan instance of the Name much in the same way as the Aeons are instances of the Name. Thus the Father's self-naming

as Son is linked to the Father's self-naming as every individual.In many Valentinian sources, the elect are described as possessing the Name. In the Gospel of Philip, "one whoreceives the Holy Spirit has the gift of the Name" (Gospel of Philip 64:25-26, also 54:10-13). Similarly, Valentinussays, "Who then can utter his Name, the great Name, but him alone who possesses the Name - and the children of the

Name in whom the Father's Name reposed and who in turn reposed in his Name" (Gospel of Truth 38:25-32cf also43:20-22). The source of the notion that the elect possess the Name is found in the book of Revelation where it is saidto be written on their foreheads (Revelation 14:1 cf. also 22:4).Another metaphor used by the Valentinians to describe gnosis is being joined to a bridegroom angel. In Theodotus, the

notion of being joined to an angel is linked to receiving the Name. (Excerpts of Theodotus 22:4-5) The angels are


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closely associated with the Savior and can be considered as instances or parts of the Savior just as the individual's name

spoken by the Father is an instance of the greater Name. In Theodotus we find the notion that the angels share in theName (the Son). He refers to this as angelic baptism (Excerpts of Theodotus 22:4-5). Thus the bridegroom angels

should be seen as essentially identical with the names that the Father calls. At the reception of gnosis, one receivesone's angel/name.

As discussed above, receiving a name is equivalent to receiving true existence. In the Gospel of Truth and the Treatiseon Resurrection, only those who have gnosis (i.e. the Name) possess true reality. All else is illusion. According to the

Treatise on Resurrection, "Suddenly the living are dying - surely they are not alive at all in this world of apparition!The rich have become poor, rulers overthrown: all changes, the world is an apparition" (48:20-27). All things that do

not possess a true name are illusion.The Valentinians drew a sharp distinction between false worldly names and real names. This theme is best developed inthe Gospel of Philip. According to that work, "Names given to worldly things are very deceptive since they turn theheart aside from the real to the unreal...The names that one has heard exist in the world[. . .] deceive. If the names were

situated in the eternal realm, they would not be uttered on any occasion in the world, nor would they be assigned toworldly things: their goal would be the eternal realm" (Gospel of Philip 53:23-28). False worldly names serve todeceive human beings and distract them from the true Name. The demonic worldly powers took advantage of this: "Therulers wanted to deceive humanity, inasmuch as they saw that it had kinship with truly good things: they took the

names of the good and gave them to the nongood, to deceive humanity by the names and bind them to the nongood"(Gospel of Philip 54: 18-25). Thus false names keep human beings attached to the illusion and separated from the true

Name.Jesus becomes closely identified with humanity by taking on a human body. His human body is seen as consubstantial

with the Church. Drawing on the metaphor from Saint Paul that the church is the body of Christ, Theodotus says, "The

visible part of Jesus was Sophia (Wisdom) and the church of the superior seed which he put on through the body butthe invisible part was the Name which is the only begotten Son" (Excerpts of Theodotus 26:1). The correspondingmetaphor in the Gospel of Truth is the "living book" which contains the names of all the saved that the Son takes up

(Gospel of Truth 20:10-14 cf. Revelation 20:15).Valentinian Christology emphasizes that the human Jesus is redeemed by being joined with the Savior at his baptism.

The Son is "the Name which came down upon Jesus in the dove and redeemed him" (Excerpts of Theodotus 22:6). Theredemption of the human Jesus is seen by the Valentinians as applying to all who form part of the "church of thesuperior seed". The human Jesus is joined to the Name. All who form part of the spiritual church which is identicalwith the human Jesus are also joined to the Name. In the Interpretation of Knowledge, the human Jesus who represents

the Church is called the "humiliated one"(12:18-22)and the "reproached one" (12:29-31). Again it is the Name whoredeems: "Who is it that redeemed the one that was reproached? It is the emanation of the Name" (Interpretation ofKnowledge 12:29-31cf also 12:18-22). The descent of the Son into Jesus at his baptism is simultaneously theredemption of the human Jesus and the redemption of all who are joined with him.

Just as the Son becomes identified with the Father by receiving his Name, the individual Christian also becomesidentified with Christ by receiving the Name. As the Gospel of Philip says, "Such a person is no longer a Christian but

a Christ" (Gospel of Philip 67:26-27). The person becomes part of the "church of the superior seed" which is the visiblepart of Jesus in this world. (Excerpts of Theodotus 26:1) Just as the Son may be called 'Father' because he has the Name

of the Father, so the individual can be called 'Christ' because he possesses the Name. The Savior is identified with theFather (as his Name), with the Aeons (as instances of the Name) and with the individuals he saves (by naming).The Name is said in many sources to be received in baptism which is also called redemption in some of the sources.According to the Tripartite Tractate, "there is no other baptism apart from this one alone which is redemption into God

- Father, Son and Holy Spirit when confession is made by faith in those names which are a single Name of the gospel"(Tripartite Tractate 127:28-35). In the Valentinian baptismal liturgy preserved in Irenaeus, baptism is performed into

the Name. Here is a selection from the text: "In the Name of the Father of all, into Truth the Mother of all, into himwho descended into Jesus... The Name hidden from every divinity, rule and power... May your Name turn out to be to

my benefit o Savior of Truth... in the Name of IAO... Peace to all on whom the Name rests" (Irenaeus Against Heresies1:21:3). In baptism, the person who is redeemed is said to be joined with their angel and to receive "the same Name as

that in which his angel was baptized before him" (Excerpts of Theodotus 22:4-5).As noted in Dawson (1992), Thomassen (1993), and Zyla (1996) the Name is closely identified by Valentinus with'bold speaking' or 'free speaking' (parhesia). This notion of 'bold speech' as a characteristic of the presence of the Nameseems to be derived from the New Testament. In the book of Acts, speaking boldly, healings and miracles are all said to

be produced by the presence of the Name (Acts 4:29-30). According to Valentinus, the Father's "free act of speaking isthe manifestation of the Son" (Valentinus Fragment 2). He goes on to say that the Son visits the heart of the individualin order to purify it. Similarly, in his account of the creation of human beings, the presence of the Name within Adam issaid to produce 'bold speech' which frightens the angels(Valentinus Fragment 5). Just as the Father expressed himself

boldly in the Son, so the Son expresses himself in "bold speech" within the individual person. As Zyla (1996) states,"Through the sacrifice of Jesus, gnosis of the Father was gained and can be passed on through parrhesia (bold speech)".Gnosis of the Name produces "bold speech" in the individual.Valentinus attributes inspired speech to the presence of the Name. The Name causes the individual to "utter sounds

superior to what its modeling justified" (Valentinus Fragment 1). According to Marcus, inspired speech results from


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being joined to one's bridegroom angel (Irenaeus Against Heresy 1:13:3). This further confirms the thesis that the angel

is identical with the name. The experience of gnosis is the reception of one's angel/name which is a particular instanceof the Son/Name.

Inspired speech is an image of the Father's "bold speaking" of the Name in the Son. However, it is not identical with thespeaking of the Name. According to the Gospel of Philip, "Those who possess this Name think it but do not speak it"

(Gospel of Philip 54:10-12). Instead, "For our sakes Truth engendered names in the world - Truth to which one cannotrefer without names. Truth is unitary, [worldly names] are multiple, and it is for our sakes that it lovingly refers to this

one thing by means of multiplicity" (Gospel of Philip 54:13-17). Inspired speech is the worldly image of the Name.The Valentinians derived the notion of the Name from Judaism and other forms of early Christianity. They developed it

in some rather unussual and distinctive directions. Many Valentinians made the concept central to their Christology andto their understanding of salvation. A thorough understanding of Valentinian thought is impossible without takingaccount of this concept.

Valentinian Monism

Valentinianism is ussually classified as a form of Gnosticism. The term 'Gnosticism' was coined in the nineteenthcentury to describe a variety of religious movements in the ancient world which have some common features.Some consider "radical dualism" to be a characteristic feature of all forms of Gnosticism (Jonas 1963). However, this

generalization is simply incorrect. As Elaine Pagels points out in her book The Gnostic Gospels, "Valentiniangnosticism...differs essentially from dualism" (Pagels 1978). Describing Gnostic systems such as Valentinianism as"dualist" has also been subject to extensive criticism by Simon Petrement (1990). Indeed, it has been recognized forsome time that "a standard element in the interpretation of Valentinianism and similar forms of Gnosticism is the

recognition that they are fundamentally monistic" (Schoedel 1980, see also Petrement 1984, Dawson 1992). This article

represents an attempt to characterize Valentinian monism.The Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy defines monism as describing "philosophies which maintain that there isultimately only one thing and that the many are aspects of it, or to a more radical way of thinking, simply an illusion

resulting from our misperception of the One". As we will see, this is an accurate description of Valentinianism.Valentinian sources describe God as containing all things within himself. An anonymous Valentinian quoted by

Irenaeus claims that, "the Father of all contains all things, and that there is nothing whatever outside of the Pleroma..."(Irenaeus Against Heresies 2:4:2). Using virtually identical language, another author argues that God "contains inhimself all things and is himself not contained" (Doctrinal Epistle quoted in Epiphanius Panarion 31:5:3). A similar

background can be seen Ptolemy's in description of the Father as "uncontained" (Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:1:1).

Valentinus himself says describes the relationship of God to all other things using similar language. He says that "theentirety was inside of him--the inconceivable, uncontained, who is superior to all thought."(Gospel of Truth 17:5-9)Elsewhere he describes God as "him who surrounds every way while nothing surrounds him" (Gospel of Truth 22:22-26) According to the Valentinian Exposition found at Nag Hammadi, "he possessed the All dwelling within him...He

encompassed the All, he who is higher than the All". Another author argues that, "in the Unbegotten One, all thingsexist simultaneously" (Hippolytus Refutation of all Heresies). The Gospel of Philip argues that "Christ has each within

him, whether human being or angel or mystery" (Gospel of Philip 56:14-15).Such terminology is an extremely significant argument in favour of monism. It implies that there is a single reality i.e.

God who is "cause of the generation of all created things" (Valentinan Treatise source quoted in HippolytusRefutation). All other things lie within him and continue to be a part of him. According to the respected scholar ofGnosticism Bentley Layton (1987), this sort of teaching implies a "cosmological model...provided by Stoic pantheisticmonism" in which "all is enclosed by God and ultimately all is God". William Schoedel (1972, 1980) researched the

use of such topological language in Jewish, Christian and Gnostic sources. He argues that "such theology presupposes anon-dualistic cosmology; for it does not allow that the God who contains all things is limited by any other reality"

(Schoedel 1972).This is in sharp contrast to Hans Jonas' characterization of Gnostic teaching on the relationship of God to rest of

reality . He claims that "to the divine realm of light, self-contained and remote, the cosmos is opposed as the realm ofdarkness" (Jonas 1963). As we can see, this is inaccurate in the case of Valentinianism. The divine realm is not "self-

contained and remote". Rather it contains all things within itself including the cosmos.This is explicitly stated by the Valentinians who opposed Irenaeus: "In the Fullness, or in those things that arecontained by the Father, the whole creation which we know to have been formed, having been made by the Craftsmanor by the angels. It is contained by the ineffable Greatness, as the center is in a circle, or as a spot is in a garment."

(Irenaeus Against Heresies 2:4:2). All things continue to be a part of God despite their apparent separation from him.The fact that we have come forth within the Father does not imply that we are acquainted with him. According toValentinus, God is ultimately responsible for the creation of all things "It is he who created the entirety and the entiretyis in him" (Gospel of Truth 19:8-9) However, the "entirety" i.e. those within the Father "were unacquainted with the

Father since it was he whom they did not see"(Gospel of Truth 28:32-29:1). Being only a small part of reality, they areunable to perceive it completely on their own. In vain, "the entirety searched for the one from whom they hademanated" (Gospel of Truth 17:4-6). It is something of a paradox that we are within God, yet we do not recognize orknow him. As Valentinus says, "It was quite amazing that they were in the Father without being acquainted with him


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and that they alone were able to emanate, inasmuch as they were not able perceive and recognize the one in whom they

were" (Gospel of Truth 22:27-32)Due to our ignorance of God we can fall into an erroneous or false understanding of reality ("error" or "deficiency").

According to Valentinus, "Ignorance of the Father caused agitation and fear. And the agitation grew dense like fog, sothat no one could see. Thus error found strength" (Gospel of Truth 17:9-20). According to Valentinians, the material

universe that we perceive is an illusion deriving from our ignorance of the Father. This is often expressed byValentinians though the story of Sophia. This myth describes Sophia's ignorance of God and the suffering that results.

It is the suffering that results from her error that constitutes the material realm.Valentinian sources occasionally describe the material realm as "outside" of the Fullness. As Schoedel(1972) notes,

"They insist that their local language is relevant only epistemologically" and that it does not imply that the materialrealm is outside of the Father. Instead, they claimed that "what is without and what within (the Pleroma is) in referenceto knowledge and ignorance, and not with respect to local distance" (Anonymous Valentinian quoted in IrenaeusAgainst Heresies 2:4:2). The material realm of is a product of the Fullness and lies within it "as the center is in a circle,

or as a spot is in a garment" (Irenaeus Against Heresies 2:4:2). As Schoedel (1980) observes, Irenaeus' Valentinianopponents were willing to present "a resolutely monistic interpretation of their theology and to stress theepistomological significance of the spatial language of their mythology. They could imagine a realm of 'vacuity andshadow' within the Father presumably because it was felt to be epiphenomenal to the reality of spirit".

As Layton (1987) points out, the Valentinian teaching exemplified by the Gospel of Truth "is strongly anti-materialist,even illusionist, as regards the reality of material structures". Valentinus describes the "realm of appearance" as an baddream as "when one falls asleep and finds one's self in the midst of nightmares" (Gospel of Truth 29:8-10f). The authorof the Treatise on Resurrection similarly describes the material world as follows, "Suddenly the living are dying -

surely they are not alive at all in this world of apparition! - the rich have become poor, rulers overthrown: all changes,

the world is an apparition" (Treatise on Resurrection 48:19-27cf Irenaeus Against Heresies 2:14).In contrast to the reality of the Father, "those things which are 'outside' of the Fullness have no true existence... Thesethings are images of those which truly exist." (Irenaeus Against Heresies 2:14:3). The things we perceive in the

physical world are often described as "images" or "shadows" of the divine realm. (Valentinian Exposition 36:10-13,Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:5:1,2:6:3, etc.) This is a reference to the famous Platonic parable which compares the

physical world to shadows cast on the back wall of a cave. God is the only reality. However, we who are ignorant of thetrue situation mistake the shadows for reality. We construct an illusory false reality for ourselves because we areignorant of the overall picture.Even though physical things are seen as an image of the divine, Valentinians believed that one can get only an

incomplete understanding of God as reflected in the physical realm. The name used to describe this imperfect image ofGod is the 'Craftsman' (demiurge). The Craftsman is God understood as the creator of the material realm and as a law-giver. However, Valentinian tradition makes clear that this is only an inferior image of the true God. According to theteacher Marcus, the Craftsman "could not express its (the divine) permanence and eternity because he was an offspring

of deficiency" (Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:17:2).It is due to our ignorance of the true nature of reality that we believe that things can be separated into opposites. This is

discussed in the Gospel of Philip: "Light and darkness, life and death, right and left are mutually dependent; it isimpossible for them to separate. Accordingly the 'good' are not good, the 'bad' are not bad, 'life' is not life, 'death' is not

death." (Gospel of Philip 53:14-23). Categories that are considered as opposites are in fact closely related and onecannot be understood without the other. This is expressed in Valentinianism through the notion of the syzygy (pair).The term refers to the linking together of complementary qualities ("Aeons") of to form a state of wholeness (pleroma).This is the highest level of reality. The halves of a syzygy are often referred to as male and female. The male

corresponds to form and the female corresponds to substance. There can be no concept of maleness without femalenessor no concept of darkness without light. Dualistic distinctions between "body" and "mind", "soul" and "matter" are

meaningless. All things are ultimately one.Just as the illusion arose as result of ignorance, it will be dissolved through knowledge (gnosis). Upon knowledge

(gnosis) of God, the world of multiplicity vanishes. As an anonymous source puts it, "Since deficiency and sufferinghad their origin in ignorance, the entire system originating in ignorance is dissolved by knowledge (gnosis)" (Irenaeus

Against Heresies 1:21:4 cf. also Irenaeus Against Heresies 2:4:3). The illusion of multiplicity vanishes once the personknows the true reality. According to Valentinus, "Inasmuch as the lack came into being because the Father was notknown, from the moment the Father is known, the lack will not exist...lack passes away in completion, and so from thatmoment on, the realm of appearance is no longer manifest but will pass away in the harmony of unity...It is by

acquaintance (gnosis) that all will purify themselves out of multiplicity into unity, consuming matter within themselvesas fire" (Gospel of Truth 24:28-25:19 cf. also Treatise on Resurrection 48:38-49:4, Valentinus Fragment 4). Thematerial world is an illusion that is dissolved by knowledge (gnosis) of God.

Not only does the realm of multiplicity pass away through knowledge (gnosis), so does the distinction between the self

and God. To know God is to be God. According to the Gospel of Philip, "People cannot see anything in the real realmunless they become it...if you have seen the spirit, you have become the spirit; if you have seen Christ, you have

become Christ; if you have seen the Father, you will become the Father" (Gospel of Philip 61:20-32 cf. 67:26-27). Itrepresents a restoration to the syzygy, that is, the reestablishment of the link between the self and the divine.


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Once you understand that reality, your perception of multiplicity is gone. The duality vanishes since it was never really

there in the first place. According to the Gospel of Philip, "The world has already become the eternal realm (Aeon), forto this person the eternal realm is Fullness. As such, it is manifest to him or her alone, not hidden in the darkness and

the night, but hidden in perfect day and holy light" (Gospel of Philip) It implies that for the person who has gnosis,there is no longer any distinction between the world and the Pleroma. Through gnosis one can participate in and

experience the divine realm. As a result, "the Valentinian and his or her world have been completely absorbed by thedivine fullness or entirety" (Dawson 1992).

The entire process of emanation from the Father, fall into illusion and restoration through gnosis takes place within theGodhead. As Dawson (1992) points out, "the patterns and sequences of nature and history now unfold simultaneously

within the mind of God and the minds of the Valentinians". The reception of gnosis brings the dissolution of the worldfor the individual, such that "the apocalypse now takes place not in history but in the mind...in contrast to thedissapointment of history, and its division, struggle, fear and evil, the emanated Son brings the message that, despite allappearances to the contrary, reality is good..." (Dawson 1992) .

It is worth noting that Valentinianism shows an astonishing degree of similarity to another monistic system, the AdvaitaVedanta school of Indian philosophy. In Advaita, the material world is an illusion (maya) attributed to ignorance(avidya) of the true reality. Through knowledge (jnana) of the ultimate reality (brahman), the world of multiplicityvanishes. True redemption (moksha) is the knowledge of one's true nature.

This raises the intriguing possibility of some kind of connection between the two. There was some awareness of Indianthought in the ancient Roman world. However, at the time of Valentinus, there was no systematic statement of Advaitathought. It is possible that Valentinus came into contact with some form of early Advaita Vedanta teaching. Advaita

philosophy as it now stands was given its definitive form by Shankara in the 6th or 7th century AD. There also exists

the possibility that he was influenced by Valentinian thought. Valentinians are known to have been active in the Middle

East as late as the seventh century. It is possible that Valentinian missionaries or refugees may have made their way toIndia and come into contact with Shankara or his immediate predecessors. However, any connection between the tworemains purely hypothetical.

Psychology and Salvation

The Three Elements Within The Human Being

Valentinians interpreted human psychology and salvation in terms of a triple division of the human psyche. Accordingto the Valentinian myth of Sophia (Wisdom), three states of consciousness result from her fall into deficiency and herultimate redemption. From her deficiency and suffering is derived the irrational carnal soul. From her pleading and

conversion comes the rational or animate soul. From her gnosis comes the spiritual seed. The origin and nature ofhuman beings is explained through allegorical interpretation of the Book of Genesis in terms of these three internal

psychic components.According to Valentinian tradition, the Craftsman and his angels set about creating human beings in the image of the

pre-existing Humanity (Ireneus Against Heresies 1:5:2, Excerpts of Theodotus 51:1). From "dust" (Genesis 2:7), that is,non-corporeal deficiency and suffering, they created the carnal or irrational soul. Into this the Craftsman breathed an

animating rational soul deriving from pleading and conversion (i.e. from his own substance). This is the "breath of life"(Genesis 2:7). Lastly, Wisdom (Sophia) secretly sowed her spiritual seed into the human being. Thus there are three

essences in every human being: an irrational carnal soul, an animating rational soul and a spiritual seed.The irrational carnal soul is the burden of deficiency and ignorance which has been distributed among the seeds so thatwhen they receive knowledge (gnosis), ignorance may be completely destroyed. Valentinus says, "You wished todistribute death (i.e. deficiency) amongst yourselves so as to consume it and annihilate it and so that death might die in

and through you." (Valentinus Fragment 4). The carnal nature represents unthinking instinctual drives for self-gratification (cf. Excerpts of Theodotus 50:1, Ireneus Against Heresies 1:5:4). It is a "tare" (Matthew 13:22) and a

"seed of the Devil" (Matthew 13:28 cf. Excerpts of Theodotus 53:1). Saint Paul calls it "the law which wars against thelaw of my mind" (Romans 7:23, cf. Excerpts of Theodotus 52:1-53:1). The carnal nature is sometimes personified as

the "Devil" and "spiritual powers of wickedness" (Ephesians 6:12; for more discussion see Ireneus Against Heresies1:5:4, Excerpts of Theodotus 48:2, Hip 32:5, 34:1) By its very nature, the carnal is not open to salvation in any form.

The rational animating soul is what makes us living human beings. It is our normal consciousness, identified with ouremotions and our rational faculty. It is the rational soul that constructs the concensus reality that most of us share. Forthis reason it is called a "Craftsman" which creates the world. Soul is characterized by a capacity for free choice(Excerpts of Theodotus 55:3). It can only be saved if the person chooses good deeds rather than evil ones.

The spiritual nature is our true inner self. It exists potentially, as a seed, within all who hear the Word and is expressedas creativity and intuition. The spiritual seed was sent "to be formed here along with the animate soul and to be broughtup and elevated with it." (Ireneus Against Heresies 1:6:1). The spiritual seed is often compared to gold or a pearl castinto mud (Ireneus Against Heresies 1:6:2, Gospel of Philip 62:17-25) since "it is a precious thing and it has come to

reside in a lowly body" (Gospel of Philip 56:24-25). If the seed bears fruit (cf. Matthew 13:23) and the person attains tosome level of knowledge, the spiritual nature is actualized. Such a person attains to the highest level of salvation.According to Valentinus, the sowing of the spiritual seed into Adam caused him to utter things "superior to what hisorigins justified" (Valentinus Fragment 1, cf. Gospel of Philip 70:26-29, Naasene Preaching 8:14). As a result, fear

overcame the Craftsman and his angels (Valentinus Fragment 1), and they became envious of the human being


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"because they were separated from the spiritual union" (Gospel of Philip 70:26-29). The angels then "hid" their

handiwork (cf. Valentinus Fragment 1) in a "coat of skins" (Genesis 3:21), i.e. the physical body (Ireneus AgainstHeresies 1:5:5, 1:18:2, Excerpts of Theodotus 52:1).

Valentinians interpreted the trees planted in the Garden of Eden in terms of the three natures. According to theirinterpretation, there were ordinary carnal trees, the animate "Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil" and the spiritual

"Tree of Life" in the garden. The human beings ate of the carnal trees and the animate Tree of Knowledge rather thanthe spiritual Tree of Life (Gospel of Philip 71:22-24, Tripartite Tractate 106:25-107:18 cf. Genesis 2:16-17). In the

Gospel of Philip, the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil (animate nature) is identified with the Law. Using theEpistle to the Romans 7:7-11, the author says: "It has the power to give knowledge of good and evil. It neither removed

him from evil, nor did it set him in the good. Instead it created death for those who ate of it. For when it said, 'Eat this.Do not eat that.' it became the beginning of death." (Gospel of Philip 74:3-11) The human beings ate of this tree andembraced their lower nature and the resulting arbitrary laws. As a result, Adam became separated from Eve whorepresents the female spiritual principal (cf. Genesis 2:21-22). This is spiritual death (Gospel of Philip 70:10-12).Three Types of People

Human beings can be divided into three types depending on which of the three natures is dominant within them.According to the Valentinians, that is why Adam and Eve are described as having had three children who they namedCain, Abel and Seth. They are the prototypes of carnal (choic), animate (psychic) and spiritual (pneumatic) human

beings respectively. (Ireneus Against Heresies 1;7:5, Excerpts of Theodotus 54:1).A key to understanding the Valentinian doctrine of the three classes is their teaching about the spirit which theycompare to a "seed", an image derived from the parable of the sower in the Gospel of Matthew (13:3-8, 18-23). TheTripartite Tractate is tremendously valuable in clarifying their teachings here. The event that divides people into three

classes is not predestination but their response to Jesus and his message of salvation. Those who don't understand and

reject Jesus are the "seeds that fell on the path" (Matthew 13:4) i.e. the carnal. Those who hesitate and don't understandthe message fully are the "seeds that fell among the thorns" (Matthew 13:7) i.e. the animate. Those who accept themessage immediately and achieve gnosis are the seeds "sown in the good earth" (Matthew 13:8) i.e. the spiritual. All

people were believed to have the spiritual potential (seed), but it was actualized in only a few.Instead of being seen as immutable, preordained categories, the three classes should instead be seen as stages of

spiritual development. Valentinians believed that one could move from one category to another as a result two majorlife-changing transitions.Carnal (Choic) Human Beings

In carnal people, the irrational (or carnal) soul acts like a drug that makes them forget their true origin and become a

creature of the world (Gospel of Truth 22:17-18). The Gospel of Truth describes the carnal state as being like anightmare: "As when one falls soud asleep and finds oneself in the midst of nightmares: running towards somewhere,

powerless to get away while being pursued--in hand to hand combat--being beaten--falling from a greatheight..sometimes too it seems that one is being murdered..or killing one's neighbours, with whose blood one is

smeared.." (Gospel of Truth 29:8-25).People dominated by their carnal nature act purely to satisfy personal needs and wants without regard for others. As

Saint Paul says, "Their god is their bodily desires..they think only of things that belong to this world" (Philippians3:19). The Gospel of Philip describes the carnal nature this way: "If we are ignorant of it, it sinks its roots within us and

yields its crops within our hearts. It dominates us. We are its slaves. It takes us captive so that we do the things we donot want and do not do the things we want." (Gospel of Philip 83:22-28). Cain is the prototype of the carnal person.Like all carnal people, he was by nature a "child of the Devil" (John 1:44 cf. Herakleon 46, Gospel of Philip 66:4-6)and was driven towards conflict by the lust for power that was strong within him (cf. Tripartite Tractate 79:20-80:11).

As a result "he became a murderer just like his father and killed his brother" (Gospel of Philip 66:6-10).Those who remain in the carnal state until death are the seeds that fell along the path (Matthew 13:18). They hear

Christ's message but do not understand it since it has no meaning for them (cf. Matthew 13:19). As Valentinus says,"The material ones were strangers and did not see his (i.e. Jesus') likeness and had not known him, for he came by

means of a fleshly form." This type of person is a "creature of oblivion" (Gospel of Truth 2:35). When they die theywill be scattered into the outer darkness and pass into nonexistence (Gospel of Truth 2:35-36, Excerpts of Theodotus

37, 55:3, Ireneus Against Heresies 1:6:1, Ep 7:6). They were never truly "alive", at least not in the spiritual sense(Treatise on the Resurrection 48:23-24, Gospel of Philip 52:15-17).Animate (Psychic) Human Beings

Only if the person undergoes a conversion from their carnal state can they become identified with their animate rational

nature. The call from above awakens them from their unconscious carnal state. As a result they become aware of thegrief, fear and confusion to which they had previously been numb. Because of their distress, they repent and plead forassistance. This pleading and repentance is the essence of the animate state (cf. Ireneus Against Heresies 1:4:5). TheExegesis on the Soul describes this in the following way; "The beginning of salvation is repentance. Therefore before

Christ's appearance came John preaching the baptism of repentance. And repentance takes place in distress and grief"(Exegesis on the Soul 135:21-26).Through animate conversion, people are said to "ascend" to the level of the Craftsman. They remain in ignorance of thetrue God and of the spiritual nature. This is illustrated by discussion of Wisdom (Sophia) and the Craftsman, archetypes

of the spiritual and animate respectively. (cf. Ireneus Against Heresies 1:5:1, Excerpts of Theodotus 47:2). The


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Craftsman (i.e. the animate person) is ignorant of Wisdom (the spiritual nature). The animate nature is unconsciously

inspired towards good deeds by his spiritual nature. However, like the Craftsman, every animate person will foolishlyinsists that he undertakes all of his actions independently, without spiritual inspiration (Excepts of Theodotus 53:4).

Animate people are strengthened by faith and good works (Ireneus Against Heresies 1:6:2). However due to theirignorance, they require perceptible instructions and rules to determine what course of action is correct (Ireneus Against

Heresies 1:6:2 cf. Romans 2:18). Therefore, they remain subject to the arbitrary demands of human Law (Galatians3:23-24) and to temptation by "demons" i.e. selfish evil thoughts (cf. Gospel of Philip 65:1-7, 85:32-86:6). In one

famous analogy, the soul is compared to an inn vandalized by its visitors (Valentinus Fragment 2, Hip 34:6). Like thecarnal human being, the animate is driven by the lust for power and this often leads to violent conflict between the two

(Tripartite Tractate 79:20-80:11)Those who remain in the animate state are the seeds who fell amongst the thorns (Matthew 13:22). They hear themessage and understand it. However, they are hesitant (cf. Tripartite Tractate 118:37-119:1) and "worries about thisworld and the love for riches choke the message" (Matthew 13:22). Because of this they do not receive the complete

spiritual knowledge and remain slaves of the ruling spirits of this world (Galatians 4:3). In their ignorance, theyworship the Craftsman instead of the true God, as Herakleon says "They worshipped the creation and not the truecreator" (Herakleon Fragment 23 cf. Romans 1:25)Animate people can be saved if they resist temptation and choose the better (Excerpts of Theodotus 55:3, Ep 7:3, 7:9).

After death the animate people who are saved reside with the Craftsman. They will not achieve their full spiritualpotential until the end of the world. However, if they choose evil, then they become "children of the Devil" by intent(Herakleon 46 cf. John 8:44; see also Authoritative Teaching 33:25-26). Having become like the carnal, they arescattered along with it into the outer darkness (Excerpts of Theodotus 37, 55:3, Gospel of Philip 66:29-27:1)Spiritual (Pneumatic) Human Beings

In order to become identified with the spiritual element, the person must attain a state of mystical knowledge (gnosis)of God. The person directly experiences the presence of the risen Christ in the form of his or her personal angel. Just asWisdom (Sophia) was formed according to knowledge by the Savior, they themselves are formed according to

knowledge by the angels who will be their bridegrooms (cf. Excerpts of Theodotus 61, Exegesis on the Soul 132:9-23).The spiritual person no longer needs to rely on the testimony of others, having come to believe from the Truth itself

(Herakleon 39).Awakened from the drunken stupor of ignorance, and freed of suffering, they recognize their true spiritual nature. Theyremember where they come from and where they must return (Gospel of Truth 22:13-15, Excerpts of Theodotus 78:2,etc.). Confidently, they can proclaim, "I trace my origins to the Pre-existent One. I am returning to my own from

whence I came" (Ireneus Against Heresies 1:21:5, 1 Apocalypse of James 34:17-18, cf. also Gospel of Mary 16:13-17,Gospel of Thomas 50). Knowing God is the final result of knowing themselves. They come to know God because theyare part of God.Attaining to knowledge (gnosis) is spiritual rebirth (John 3:6-7). It is the true resurrection from the dead, that is, from

the death of ignorance. This resurrection does not take place in the afterlife. It must be experienced in the here and now(Gospel of Philip 56:18-19, Treatise on the Resurrection 49:9-35 cf. Romans 6:4). As the Gospel of Philip says,

"People who believe they will die first and then rise up are mistaken. If they do not first receive resurrection while theyare alive, once they have died they will receive nothing" (Gospel of Philip 73:1-5).

Putting on the true flesh (Galatians 15:44, Romans 6:2), the elect obtain a spiritual body which will arise from thefleshly one when they die (Ep 7:3 cf. Gospel of Philip 56:26-57, Authoritative Teaching 32:30-32, Treatise on theResurrection 47:4-8, 1 Corinthians 15:44-46). Thereby "imperishability descends upon the perishable" (Treatise on theResurrection 48:38-49:1) and they "shall never die" (John 11:26). As the apostle John says, "We know that we have left

death and come over to life" (1 John 3:14, cf. also John 5:24)Valentinians made no distinction between present and future eschatology. Just as resurrection was immediate, the final

consummation of the world was also said to be experienced here and now through gnosis. Through resurrection, thespiritual person was said to ascend beyond the animate realm of the Craftsman to the Eighth heaven. There they put

aside their soul, become joined with an angel (Ireneus Against Heresies 3:15:2). Then they reenter the heavenly realmor Fullness (Ireneus Against Heresies 1:7:1,Ireneus Against Heresies 3:15:2, Excerpts of Theodotus 64:1, Valentinian

Exposition 39:28-33, Gospel of Philip 81:34-82:25) and all "attain to the vision of the Father and become intellectualAeons, entering into the intelligible and eternal union in marriage" (Excerpts of Theodotus 64:1). The entire Fullness isthe "bridal chamber" for their union (Ireneus Against Heresies 1:7:1, Excerpts of Theodotus 64:1). For them "the worldhas already become the eternal realm" (Gospel of Philip 86:11-14). Valentinus describes it this way, "The Father is

within them and they are within the Father, being perfect, being undivided in the truly good one, being in no waydeficient in anything, but they are refreshed in the Spirit" (Gospel of Truth 42:27-33).This process is said to result in the dissolution of the material world (Valentinus Fragment 4, cf. also Ireneus AgainstHeresies 1:21:4). As Valentinus says, "Since deficiency came into being when the Father was unknown, therefore when

the Father is known, from that moment on , the deficiency will no longer exist." (Gospel of Truth 24:28-32) and the"realm of appearance is no longer manifest but will pass away in the harmony of unity" (Gospel of Truth 25:1-6). Thedeficiency and "the entire system originating in ignorance (including the world) is dissolved by knowledge" (IreneusAgainst Heresies 1:21:4, cf also Ireneus Against Heresies 1:7:1). Those who have attained to knowledge are said to


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able to see through the illusion which is the world and "rule over creation and the whole of corruption" (Valentinus

Fragment 4, cf. also Gospel of Thomas 2).In order to attain to a state of mystical knowledge, the person needs to lead a life of meditation and detachment so that

he or she is "in the world" but not "of the world" (John 17:11, 17:14 cf. Ireneus Against Heresies 1:6:4, also Treatise onthe Resurrection 49:9-11). The Treatise on the Resurrection states, "Everyone should practice in many ways to gain

release from this element so that one might not wander aimlessly but rather might recover one's former state of being"(Treatise on the Resurrection 49:30-36).

Knowledge (gnosis)is a restoration to the person's original condition. It transforms everything. Spiritual people bydefinition do not sin. Through knowledge they die with regard to sin and are raised up again with Christ (Galatians

2:19-20, Colossians 3:5). Knowledge enables them to annihilate the carnal nature (i.e. the burden of deficiency) whichis the cause of sin. Valentinus describes this process in the Gospel of Truth: "It is within Unity that each one will attainhimself; within knowledge he will purify himself from multiplicity into Unity, consuming matter (i.e. the carnalelement) within himself like a fire and darkness by light, death by life" (Gospel of Truth 25:10-20).

According to Theodotus, when the risen Christ breathed his Spirit into the apostles, "He blew away the carnal likeashes and removed it, but he kindled and made alive the spark" (Excerpts of Theodotus 3:2). This metaphor is madeeven clearer when we remember that the Greek word translated here as 'carnal' is chous which literally means 'dust'. Inorder to annihilate the carnal nature and become truly spiritual it is necessary to completely refrain from sin (Excerpts

of Theodotus 52:2). The Gospel of Philip says "The one who has knowledge is a free person. But the free person doesnot sin, for the one who sins is a slave of sin " (Gospel of Philip 77:15-18 cf. John 8:34). Therefore, as it says in another

part of the Gospel of Philip, "Let each us burrow for the root of evil that is within and root it up from his or her heart. Itwill be rooted up when it is recognized" (Gospel of Philip 83:18-21).

This is why it is said that spiritual people are "saved by nature" (Excerpts of Theodotus 55:3, cf. Ep 7:8, Ireneus

Against Heresies 1:6:4, Thessalonians 2:13), and that it is "impossible for them to fall prey to corruption" (IreneusAgainst Heresies 1:6:2 cf. 1 John 3:9). They have the knowledge of God's will that allows them to lead a sinlessexistence (cf. Gospel of Truth 22:9-11, Interpretation of Knowledge 9:31-33) and have become "illuminators in the

midst of mortal men" (Letter of Peter to Philip 137:6-9).In people who attain knowledge in their lifetime, the seeds are "sown in the good earth" and they "bear fruit" (Matthew

13:23 cf Ireneus Against Heresies 1:7:1). Each person who receives knowledge destroys a portion of the deficiency andbrings the Godhead one step closer to reintegration. The final end of the world will occur when "all that is spiritual hasbeen shaped by knowledge" (Ireneus Against Heresies 1:6:1). The triple division of the human psyche is overcomethrough gnosis and the person is reintegrated into the divine.

Realized Eschatology

Introduction

Eschatology, speculation about the last things, plays an important role in virtually all religions. Gnosticism is no

different in this regard. However, Gnosticism is unique in that the distinction between future eschatology and presentsalvation begins to break down. This is particularly true in Valentinianism.

The Valentinian position on the end of the world is inextricably linked to their teaching about the origin of the world.According to Valentinian teaching, human beings (personified as Sophia) were originally part of the divine collectivity

or Fullness (pleroma). The world originates when human beings fall into a state of suffering and deficiency. Physicalexistence is explicitly identified with this fallen state. Similarly, the dissolution of the world and restoration to Fullnesstakes place through gnosis.There is no distinction between present and future eschatology for those who have gnosis. Gnosis is described in terms

of mythological descriptions of the restoration to Fullness and the destruction of the world. First we will examine theeschatological myth the Valentinians used to describe the restoration to the Fullness (pleroma) and the end of the

world. Then we will explore how through gnosis, Valentinians believed that they could experience all the eventsdescribed in that myth in their lifetime.The Myth

According to Valentinian myth, one's fate depended on whether one had attained to gnosis or not. Those who did not

have gnosis were believed to be subject to judgement and punishment by the Craftsman (demiurge) and his associatesin the "Middle" (Gospel of Philip 66:7-20).In contrast, the spiritual person who has gnosis rises up in a spiritual body and leaves the material realm behind. Thenthey begin the ascent through the seven levels of the psychic (soul) realm. Armed with gnosis of their origin, they are

able to ascend beyond the powers of soul (the Demiurge and his associates) and into the spiritual realm in the eighthheaven. In the Eighth heaven, they celebrate the "wedding feast common to all the saved until all become equal andmutually recognize one another" (Excerpts of Theodotus 63:1 cf. Revelation 19:7-9, see also Irenaeus Against Heresies1:7:1, 1:2:6). They are the spiritual Church (cf. Ex Theo 17:1) which is destined to be joined to Christ in the "bridal

chamber".At the end of the world, the spirits then enter the Fullness (pleroma) along with Sophia, their mother. Sophia is joinedto her bridegroom, the Savior. Likewise, the spirits are joined to their angelic counterparts (Irenaeus Against Heresies1:7:1, Excerpts of Theodotus 64:1, Valentinian Exposition 39:28-33, Gospel of Philip 81:34-82:25). They all "attain to

the vision of the Father and become intellectual Aeons, entering into the intelligible and eternal union in marriage"


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(Excerpts of Theodotus 64:1). The entire Fullness is the "bridal chamber" for their union (Irenaeus Against Heresies

1:7:1, Excerpts of Theodotus 64:1).Then the "fire which is hidden in the world will blaze up and ignite and destroy all matter and consume itself at the

same time and pass into nothingness" (Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:7:1). The physical world will cease to exist. Thedeficiency will then have been eliminated and the process of restoration will be complete.

On the surface, this myth seems to deal with what happens after death and what happens at the end of the world. As weshall see, this is not strictly the case.

Gnosis and the MythUnlike most religious movements, the Valentinian eschatological myth does not present events that are postponed until

the afterlife or the end of the world. They believed that those who had gnosis experienced the restoration to Fullness(pleroma) here and now through visionary experiences and ritual. The orthodox teacher Irenaeus reports with some

bewilderment that Valentinians claimed that they were "in the heights beyond every power" (Irenaeus Against Heresies1:13:6) and that they were "neither in heaven nor on earth but have passed within the Fullness and have already

embraced their angel" (Irenaeus Against Heresies 3:15:2). They described the experience of gnosis itself in terms of theeschatological myth.Attaining gnosis was seen as spiritual rebirth (John 3:6-7). It is the true resurrection from the dead, that is, from thedeath of ignorance. Through gnosis the person was believed to share in the resurrection of Christ (Treatise on

Resurrection 45:23-27). In contrast to orthodox teaching, the resurrection does not take place in the afterlife.Valentinian sources emphasize that it must be experienced in the here and now (Gospel of Philip 56:18-19, Treatise onthe Resurrection 49:9-35 cf. Romans 6:4). As the Gospel of Philip says, "People who believe they will die first and thenrise up are mistaken. If they do not first receive resurrection while they are alive, once they have died they will receive

nothing" (Gospel of Philip 73:1-5).

Valentinians linked baptism with resurrection from the dead. In the immersion, the person symbolically participated inthe death and resurrection of Christ (Gospel of Philip 67:9-19, 69:25-26, 73:1-7). The old sinful person was put to deathand the new spiritual person is raised up (Valentinian Exposition 41:21-22, Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:21:2, Gospel of

Philip 75:21-24). The anointing which forms part of the baptismal rite is closely associated with the concept of"restoration." In the formula of restoration which is recited as part of the anointing, the person renounces their

connection to the physical world (Irenaeus Against Heresies 1:21:3). The liturgical materials appended to theValentinian Exposition describe baptism as the "descent (i.e. into the water) which is the upward progression, that isour exodus into the Aeon" (On the Baptism A). It marks the beginning of the transition "from the created into theFullness (pleroma)" (On the Baptism B).

Resurrection is closely linked with ascension. According to the Exegesis on the Soul, "It is fitting that the soulregenerate herself and become again as she formerly was...This is the resurrection that is from the dead. This is theupward journey of ascent to heaven..." (134:6-14). In addition to sharing in Christ's resurrection, Valentinians believedthat they also shared in his ascension. As it says in the Treatise on Resurrection, "We have suffered with him, arisen

with him and ascended with him" (Treatise on Resurrection 45:23-27).Through resurrection, the spiritual person was said to ascend beyond the animate realm of the Craftsman to the Eighth

heaven. As Theodotus says, "He to whom Christ gives second birth is translated into life, into the Eighth" (Excerpts ofTheodotus 80:1). The Valentinian initiation ritual included prayers for the ascen

sophia and eve

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