If you haven’t read the previous two posts regarding the Lefāfa Ṣedeḳ, check them out. Now to the final post!
The fifth section starts with a prayer for the journey of the soul from the earth to heaven. Here’s part of the prayer:
Protect thou me, O Christ, so that the angels of darkness may not obstruct my soul. And let there be sent unto me the angels of light. Michael and Gabriel -- those august angels -- and the Paraclete, and the Spirit of Righteousness, so that the angels of darkness may never obstruct my soul, and that the Lord may not make me to stand in the darkness amid the gnashing of teeth.
The prayer continued a bit until God spoke to the twelve apostles and the seventy-two disciples, commanding them to write copies of the Lefāfa Ṣedeḳ and recite the words to true believers. He states that whoever writes down these words, and wears it around their neck, having been baptized, they shall live until the end of days, be shown mercy and spared from the fires of Gehenna. This book will also drive away devils. As I have mentioned before, this book is essentially an amulet. The text goes on to list the seven divine names of Jesus. They are:
The section ends with the closing of the ritual, similar to how the others ended.
Section six has the disciples asking Jesus his hidden name. He agreed to give it to them, with the condition that it only be given to others who are believers of the faith. Jesus proclaimed the following names:
Jesus informs them that none knew these names except the four-and-twenty priests of heaven and his mother, Mary. Jesus proclaims: “By this my Name ye shall be saved, and your sins shall be remitted unto you. And as with you even so shall it be with him that keepeth it, and doth believe. He shall be saved, and he shall not be put to shame before me, and he shall not see the smoke. Of all the prayers which are written in this, my book, there is no formula greater than this. Whosoever believeth in this prayer I swear by my throne, and by my exalted head, and by the stool which is under my feet, and by Mary, my mother, that I will show mercy unto him. This I swear by my holy angels and I will neither do violence to my righteousness, nor will I make my word to be a lie. And I will not befoul my covenant.”
And again, Jesus said unto them: “Blessed is the man who hath read this prayer. Blessed is the man who hath washed himself in the water of prayer. Blessed is the man who hath heard this prayer with his ear. His strength shall be like the strength of the rock. He shall hear the sound thereof as if it were the roaring of a lion. And I myself will protect him with my own might and strength. And I will love him as if he were my disciple. Blessed is the man who shall bear this prayer. No unclean spirits shall draw nigh unto him. Nothing shall be able to disturb the body and the soul of the man who hath this prayer with him. Neither pain, nor weariness, nor hunger shall enter his house. And he shall be able to drive away even Satan, who shall not be able to draw night to his habitation. And the thief shall not be able to steal from him, and his foe shall not be able to overpower him; and he shall be able to exhaust the strength of every enemy of his. And his house and his children shall be blessed. And the angels shall never be far away from him. The blessing of the Prophets and the Apostles, and the Spirit of God shall rest upon him at all times. And the Spirit of Satan shall be remote from him.”
The sixth section ends by addressing the reader of the book stating that if you believe in this prayer, recite it, washed yourself in the water of prayer, then you shall vanquish and overcome your enemies and foes.
The seventh section has Jesus speaking to the apostle Andrew. Jesus tells Andrew to go to the “eater of men” city (refer to the apocrypha text “The Acts of Andrew and Matthias” for more on that) and get Matthias, who is imprisoned there. Andrew asks Jesus how he can get there quickly as it is a two-year journey and that a great sea separates the city and where Matthias is being held. Jesus reveals a “formula” to Andrew that will allow him to march into the city without trouble. He gives Andrew three different sets of names. The first set of names belong to the Father:
The second set of names belong to Jesus:
The third set of names belong to the Holy Ghost:
Jesus tells Andrew that no one knows of this formula except him, and Mary (mother). Praying to these names will open the gates and set the prisoners free. The final part of this section reveals yet another set of divine names. These eight names will allow the wearer of these written down names protection again the evil eye and demons. The names are:
I like how the seventh section breaks off into a side story and relates to another apocrypha text. The eighth section consists of more divine names with two purposes. The first set of names are to be used to avoid death until the appointed time:
The next LONG set of divine names prevents demonic spirits from approaching you. The names are:
Now that is a long set of names!!! This concludes the Lefāfa Ṣedeḳ. A truly fascinating work that combines several traditions. I will be diving more into the Ethiopian literature in the future as I feel it’s vastly under represented in the English language. If you are curious about the “Eater of Men” story, check out: http://gnosis.org/library/actanm.htm
Featured photo is of Mary and Jesus, 17th century Ethiopian iconography
bP
Culmination of Wisdom 