URANTIA RAAMAT
III OSA. Urantia Ajalugu
95. Kiri
Melkisedeki õpetused Vahemere idarannikul
Melkisedeki õpetused Vahemere idarannikul
Paper 95
The Melchizedek Teachings in the Levant
The Melchizedek Teachings in the Levant
NAGU India pani aluse paljudele Ida-Aasia religioonidele ja filosoofiatele, nii sai Vahemere idarannik õhtumaise maailma usundite kodumaaks. Saalemi misjonärid läksid kõikjale üle kogu Edela-Aasia — Palestiinasse, Mesopotaamiasse, Egiptusesse, Iraani ja Araabiasse —, kuulutades igal pool head sõnumit Machiventa Melkisedeki evangeeliumist. Mõnel maal kandsid nende õpetused vilja, teisal oli nende edu vahelduv. Mõnikord ebaõnnestus nende töö vähese tarkuse, mõnikord neist sõltumatute asjaolude tõttu.
95:0.1 (1042.1)
AS INDIA gave rise to many of the religions and philosophies of eastern Asia, so the Levant was the homeland of the faiths of the Occidental world. The Salem missionaries spread out all over southwestern Asia, through Palestine, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Iran, and Arabia, everywhere proclaiming the good news of the gospel of Machiventa Melchizedek. In some of these lands their teachings bore fruit; in others they met with varying success. Sometimes their failures were due to lack of wisdom, sometimes to circumstances beyond their control.
95:1.1 (1042.2)
By 2000 B.C. the religions of Mesopotamia had just about lost the teachings of the Sethites and were largely under the influence of the primitive beliefs of two groups of invaders, the Bedouin Semites who had filtered in from the western desert and the barbarian horsemen who had come down from the north.
Ent varajaste adamiidi rahvaste tava austada seitsmendat nädalapäeva ei kadunud Mesopotaamiast kunagi täielikult. Alles Melkisedeki ajajärgul hakati seitsmendat päeva kõige õnnetusttoovamaks pidama. Selle kohta kehtis hulgaliselt tabusid, halval seitsmendal päeval ei tohtinud asuda reisile, valmistada toitu ega teha tuld. Koos juutidega kandusid Palestiinasse tagasi paljud seitsmenda päeva Šabattumiga seotud Mesopotaamia tabud, mida juudid olid babüloonlaste juures täheldanud.
95:1.2 (1042.3)
But the custom of the early Adamite peoples in honoring the seventh day of the week never completely disappeared in Mesopotamia. Only, during the Melchizedek era, the seventh day was regarded as the worst of bad luck. It was taboo-ridden; it was unlawful to go on a journey, cook food, or make a fire on the evil seventh day. The Jews carried back to Palestine many of the Mesopotamian taboos which they had found resting on the Babylonian observance of the seventh day, the Shabattum.
Kuigi Saalemi õpetajad aitasid Mesopotaamia usundite viimistlemisele ja ülendamisele palju kaasa, ei õnnestunud neil panna erinevaid rahvaid alatiseks ainsat Jumalat tunnistama. Nende õpetused olid enam kui saja viiekümne aasta jooksul ülekaalus, kuid taandusid siis järk-järgult vanema uskumuse ees jumaluste paljususse.
95:1.3 (1042.4)
Although the Salem teachers did much to refine and uplift the religions of Mesopotamia, they did not succeed in bringing the various peoples to the permanent recognition of one God. Such teaching gained the ascendancy for more than one hundred and fifty years and then gradually gave way to the older belief in a multiplicity of deities.
Saalemi õpetajad vähendasid Mesopotaamia jumalate arvu tunduvalt, mingil ajal oli põhijumalusi vaid seitse: Beel, Šamaš, Nebo, Anu, Ea, Marduk ja Sin. Uue õpetuse kõrgajal ülendasid nad kolm jumalat kõigist teistest kõrgemaks. See oli niinimetatud Babüloonia triaad, kuhu kuulusid Beel, Ea ja Anu — maa, mere ja taeva jumal. Erinevates paikades kujunesid välja erisugused triaadid, mis kõik meenutasid andiitide ja sumerite õpetusi kolmsusest ja põhinesid saalemlaste usul Melkisedeki kolmeringilisse märki.
95:1.4 (1042.5)
The Salem teachers greatly reduced the number of the gods of Mesopotamia, at one time bringing the chief deities down to seven: Bel, Shamash, Nabu, Anu, Ea, Marduk, and Sin. At the height of the new teaching they exalted three of these gods to supremacy over all others, the Babylonian triad: Bel, Ea, and Anu, the gods of earth, sea, and sky. Still other triads grew up in different localities, all reminiscent of the trinity teachings of the Andites and the Sumerians and based on the belief of the Salemites in Melchizedek’s insignia of the three circles.
Saalemi õpetajad ei saanudki täielikult jagu jumalate ema ja sugulise viljakuse vaimu Ištari populaarsusest. Nad aitasid selle jumalanna palveldamise viise tunduvalt viimistleda, kuid babüloonlased ja nende naabrid ei olnud veel päriselt välja kasvanud seksuaalsest palveldamisest selle varjatud kujul. Kogu Mesopotaamias oli üldlevinud tavaks, et kõik naised andusid noores eas vähemalt korra võõra embusele; arvati, et sellist pühendumist nõuab Ištar ning et viljakus sõltub väga suurel määral sellest sugulisest ohverdusest.
95:1.5 (1042.6)
Never did the Salem teachers fully overcome the popularity of Ishtar, the mother of gods and the spirit of sex fertility. They did much to refine the worship of this goddess, but the Babylonians and their neighbors had never completely outgrown their disguised forms of sex worship. It had become a universal practice throughout Mesopotamia for all women to submit, at least once in early life, to the embrace of strangers; this was thought to be a devotion required by Ishtar, and it was believed that fertility was largely dependent on this sex sacrifice.
Melkisedeki õpetuse varane areng kulges väga rahuldavalt, kuni Kiši kooli juht Nabodad otsustas valitsevaid templiprostitutsiooni tavasid ühiste jõududega rünnata. Ent Saalemi misjonäridel ei õnnestunud seda sotsiaalset reformi ellu viia ning selle läbikukkumise kiiluvees läksid põhja ka nende tähtsamad vaimsed ja filosoofilised õpetused.
95:1.6 (1043.1)
The early progress of the Melchizedek teaching was highly gratifying until Nabodad, the leader of the school at Kish, decided to make a concerted attack upon the prevalent practices of temple harlotry. But the Salem missionaries failed in their effort to bring about this social reform, and in the wreck of this failure all their more important spiritual and philosophic teachings went down in defeat.
Saalemi evangeeliumi läbikukkumisele järgnes kohe Ištari kultuse suur tõus, see rituaal oli juba tunginud Palestiinasse Aštorethi, Egiptusesse Isise, Kreekasse Aphrodite ja põhjapoolsete hõimudeni Astarte kujul. Seoses Ištari palveldamise taaselustamisega pöördusid Babüloonia preestrid uuesti tähti vaatlema; astroloogia koges Mesopotaamias oma viimast suurt taassündi, moodi tuli ennustamine ja preesterkond mandus sajandite jooksul üha enam.
95:1.7 (1043.2)
This defeat of the Salem gospel was immediately followed by a great increase in the cult of Ishtar, a ritual which had already invaded Palestine as Ashtoreth, Egypt as Isis, Greece as Aphrodite, and the northern tribes as Astarte. And it was in connection with this revival of the worship of Ishtar that the Babylonian priests turned anew to stargazing; astrology experienced its last great Mesopotamian revival, fortunetelling became the vogue, and for centuries the priesthood increasingly deteriorated.
Melkisedek oli oma pooldajaid manitsenud, et nende õpetus räägiks vaid ainsast Jumalast, kõige Isast ja Loojast, ning et nad jutlustaksid üksnes usu kaudu jumaliku soosingu saavutamisest. Kuid uue tõe õpetajad tegid suure vea, nad püüdsid saavutada liiga palju ja asendada aeglase evolutsiooni äkilise revolutsiooniga. Melkisedeki Mesopotaamia misjonärid tõstsid moraalinõuded rahva jaoks liiga kõrgele, nad taotlesid liiga paljut ja nende üllas üritus kukkus läbi. Neid oli lähetatud jutlustama kindlat evangeeliumi, kuulutama tõde Kõikse Isa reaalsusest, kuid nad takerdusid kommete reformimise näiliselt väärt üritusse, mis juhtis neid nende üllast missioonist kõrvale ja viis nad sisuliselt lootuste nurjumise ja unustuseni.
95:1.8 (1043.3)
Melchizedek had warned his followers to teach about the one God, the Father and Maker of all, and to preach only the gospel of divine favor through faith alone. But it has often been the error of the teachers of new truth to attempt too much, to attempt to supplant slow evolution by sudden revolution. The Melchizedek missionaries in Mesopotamia raised a moral standard too high for the people; they attempted too much, and their noble cause went down in defeat. They had been commissioned to preach a definite gospel, to proclaim the truth of the reality of the Universal Father, but they became entangled in the apparently worthy cause of reforming the mores, and thus was their great mission sidetracked and virtually lost in frustration and oblivion.
Saalemi keskus Kišis lõpetas ühe põlvkonna jooksul oma tegevuse ja ainsasse Jumalasse uskumise nimel tehtav misjonitöö katkes peaaegu kogu Mesopotaamias. Kuid Saalemi koolidest jäi siiski midagi püsima. Siin-seal hajutatult tegutsevad rühmad uskusid ikka veel ainsasse Loojasse ja võitlesid Mesopotaamia preestrite ebajumalakummardamise ja amoraalsuse vastu.
95:1.9 (1043.4)
In one generation the Salem headquarters at Kish came to an end, and the propaganda of the belief in one God virtually ceased throughout Mesopotamia. But remnants of the Salem schools persisted. Small bands scattered here and there continued their belief in the one Creator and fought against the idolatry and immorality of the Mesopotamian priests.
Paljud Vana Testamendi laulud kirjutasid Saalemi misjonäride õpetuse tagasilükkamisele järgnenud perioodil just nemad, jäädvustades oma loomingu kivisse, kust heebrea preestrid need hiljem oma vangipõlve ajal leidsid ja juutidele omistatud laulukogumikku lülitasid. Need Babülonist pärinevad kaunid laulud ei olnud kirjutatud Beel-Marduki templites; need olid varasemate Saalemi misjonäride järeltulijate teosed, mis erinesid märgatavalt Babüloonia preestrite maagilistest kogumikest. Iiobi raamat kajastab üsna hästi Kišis ja kõikjal Mesopotaamias asunud Saalemi koolide õpetusi.
95:1.10 (1043.5)
It was the Salem missionaries of the period following the rejection of their teaching who wrote many of the Old Testament Psalms, inscribing them on stone, where later-day Hebrew priests found them during the captivity and subsequently incorporated them among the collection of hymns ascribed to Jewish authorship. These beautiful psalms from Babylon were not written in the temples of Bel-Marduk; they were the work of the descendants of the earlier Salem missionaries, and they are a striking contrast to the magical conglomerations of the Babylonian priests. The Book of Job is a fairly good reflection of the teachings of the Salem school at Kish and throughout Mesopotamia.
Suur osa Mesopotaamia usukultuurist leidis tee heebrea kirjandusse ja liturgiasse Egiptuse kaudu, tänu Amenhotepi ja Ehnatoni tegevusele. Egiptlased säilitasid üsna hästi varajastelt andiitidest mesopotaamlastelt pärinevad sotsiaalseid kohustusi käsitlevad õpetused, mille hiljem Eufrati oru vallutanud babüloonlased nii suures osas kaduma lasksid minna.
95:1.11 (1043.6)
Much of the Mesopotamian religious culture found its way into Hebrew literature and liturgy by way of Egypt through the work of Amenemope and Ikhnaton. The Egyptians remarkably preserved the teachings of social obligation derived from the earlier Andite Mesopotamians and so largely lost by the later Babylonians who occupied the Euphrates valley.
Melkisedeki esialgsed õpetused juurdusid kõige sügavamini Egiptuses, kust need hiljem Euroopasse levisid. Niiluse oru arenevat religiooni täiendasid aeg-ajalt Eufrati orust saabuvate nodiitide, adamiitide ja hilisemate andiidi rahvaste kõrgemad tüvikonnad. Egiptuse tsiviilvalitsejate seas oli aegade jooksul palju sumereid. Kui Indiasse oli koondunud tol ajal kõige rohkem erinevaid rasse, siis Egiptuses saavutas õitsengu tollase Urantia kõige segunenum usufilosoofia, mis levis Niiluse orust maailma paljudesse paikadesse. Juudid said oma idee maailma loomisest suures osas babüloonlastelt, kuid nende jumaliku ettehoolduse mõiste pärineb egiptlastelt.
95:2.1 (1043.7)
The original Melchizedek teachings really took their deepest root in Egypt, from where they subsequently spread to Europe. The evolutionary religion of the Nile valley was periodically augmented by the arrival of superior strains of Nodite, Adamite, and later Andite peoples of the Euphrates valley. From time to time, many of the Egyptian civil administrators were Sumerians. As India in these days harbored the highest mixture of the world races, so Egypt fostered the most thoroughly blended type of religious philosophy to be found on Urantia, and from the Nile valley it spread to many parts of the world. The Jews received much of their idea of the creation of the world from the Babylonians, but they derived the concept of divine Providence from the Egyptians.
Egiptus oli just oma poliitiliste ja kõlbeliste, mitte niivõrd filosoofiliste ja religioossete kalduvuste tõttu Saalemi õpetusele soodsam paik kui Mesopotaamia. Iga Egiptuse hõimujuht püüdis pärast trooni enda kätte võitmist oma dünastiat troonil hoida sel teel, et kuulutas oma hõimujumala algseks jumaluseks ja kõigi teiste jumalate loojaks. Selliselt harjusid egiptlased järk-järgult ülijumala ideega, millest sai edasi minna hilisemale doktriinile kõiksest looja-Jumalusest. Monoteismi idee vankus Egiptuses palju sajandeid edasi-tagasi, usk ainsasse Jumalasse levis, kuid ei saavutanud kunagi ülekaalu arenevate polüteismikontseptsioonide suhtes.
95:2.2 (1044.1)
It was political and moral, rather than philosophic or religious, tendencies that rendered Egypt more favorable to the Salem teaching than Mesopotamia. Each tribal leader in Egypt, after fighting his way to the throne, sought to perpetuate his dynasty by proclaiming his tribal god the original deity and creator of all other gods. In this way the Egyptians gradually got used to the idea of a supergod, a steppingstone to the later doctrine of a universal creator Deity. The idea of monotheism wavered back and forth in Egypt for many centuries, the belief in one God always gaining ground but never quite dominating the evolving concepts of polytheism.
95:2.3 (1044.2)
For ages the Egyptian peoples had been given to the worship of nature gods; more particularly did each of the two-score separate tribes have a special group god, one worshiping the bull, another the lion, a third the ram, and so on. Still earlier they had been totem tribes, very much like the Amerinds.
Egiptlased olid aja jooksul tähele pannud, et telliskivivooderduseta haudadesse asetatud surnukehad säilisid — palsameerusid — soodast läbiimbunud liiva mõjul, kuid telliskivivõlvistikesse maetud kehad kõdunesid. Need tähelepanekud viisid eksperimentidele, mille tulemusena hakati hiljem surnuid palsameerima. Egiptlased uskusid, et keha säilimine hõlbustab inimese teekonda tulevases elus. Selleks et inimest kauges tulevikus pärast keha kõdunemist ära tunda, panid nad hauda kaasa surnu kuju ja nikerdasid tema pildi ka kirstule. Nende surnukujude valmistamine täiustas oluliselt egiptuse kunsti.
95:2.4 (1044.3)
In time the Egyptians observed that dead bodies placed in brickless graves were preserved—embalmed—by the action of the soda-impregnated sand, while those buried in brick vaults decayed. These observations led to those experiments which resulted in the later practice of embalming the dead. The Egyptians believed that preservation of the body facilitated one’s passage through the future life. That the individual might properly be identified in the distant future after the decay of the body, they placed a burial statue in the tomb along with the corpse, carving a likeness on the coffin. The making of these burial statues led to great improvement in Egyptian art.
Egiptlased uskusid sajandeid, et hauad kaitsevad keha ja kindlustavad sellele meeldiva surmajärgse elu. Maagiliste tavade hilisem areng, mis küll koormas hällist hauani kulgevat elu, päästis nad siiski väga tõhusalt haudade religioonist. Preestrid kirjutasid kirstudele võlutekste, mis usutavasti kaitsesid „inimest südame kaotamise eest teispoolses maailmas”. Peagi koondati need väga mitmesugused maagilised tekstid kokku ja talletati „Surmaraamatuna”. Kuid Niiluse orus hakkas maagiline rituaal juba varakult seonduma südametunnistuse ja iseloomuga, ning isegi määral, mida tolleaegsed rituaalid just sageli ei saavutanud. Hiljem loodeti, et nimelt need eetilised ja kõlbelised ideaalid, mitte aga keeruliselt kujundatud hauad kindlustavad pääsemise.
95:2.5 (1044.4)
For centuries the Egyptians placed their faith in tombs as the safeguard of the body and of consequent pleasurable survival after death. The later evolution of magical practices, while burdensome to life from the cradle to the grave, most effectually delivered them from the religion of the tombs. The priests would inscribe the coffins with charm texts which were believed to be protection against a “man’s having his heart taken away from him in the nether world.” Presently a diverse assortment of these magical texts was collected and preserved as The Book of the Dead. But in the Nile valley magical ritual early became involved with the realms of conscience and character to a degree not often attained by the rituals of those days. And subsequently these ethical and moral ideals, rather than elaborate tombs, were depended upon for salvation.
Nende aegade ebausku illustreerib hästi üldine uskumus sülje tõhusasse ravitoimesse, see idee pärines Egiptusest ja levis sealt Araabiasse ning Mesopotaamiasse. Horose legendaarses lahingus Sethiga kaotas noor kuningas ühe silma, kuid pärast Sethi võitmist sülgas tark jumal Thoth haavale ja andis sel moel talle silma tagasi.
95:2.6 (1044.5)
The superstitions of these times are well illustrated by the general belief in the efficacy of spittle as a healing agent, an idea which had its origin in Egypt and spread therefrom to Arabia and Mesopotamia. In the legendary battle of Horus with Set the young god lost his eye, but after Set was vanquished, this eye was restored by the wise god Thoth, who spat upon the wound and healed it.
Egiptlased uskusid kaua, et öises taevas vilkuvad tähed on väärikate surnute ellujäänud hinged, teised ellujäänud haarati nende arvates Päikesesse. Teatud perioodil sai esivanemate kummardamise üheks vormiks Päikese harras austamine. Suure püramiidi sissepääsu kaldtee oli suunatud otse Põhjanaela poole, et kuninga hing saaks siirduda hauast väljudes kohe kinnistähtedest koosnevatesse alalistesse ja püsivatesse tähtkujudesse, kuningate oletatavasse elupaika.
95:2.7 (1044.6)
The Egyptians long believed that the stars twinkling in the night sky represented the survival of the souls of the worthy dead; other survivors they thought were absorbed into the sun. During a certain period, solar veneration became a species of ancestor worship. The sloping entrance passage of the great pyramid pointed directly toward the Pole Star so that the soul of the king, when emerging from the tomb, could go straight to the stationary and established constellations of the fixed stars, the supposed abode of the kings.
95:2.8 (1045.1)
When the oblique rays of the sun were observed penetrating earthward through an aperture in the clouds, it was believed that they betokened the letting down of a celestial stairway whereon the king and other righteous souls might ascend. “King Pepi has put down his radiance as a stairway under his feet whereon to ascend to his mother.”
Melkisedeki lihalikul kujul ilmumise ajal oli egiptlaste usund ümbruskonna rahvaste usunditest palju kõrgem. Egiptlased uskusid, et kui kehata hing on õigete maagiliste sõnadega varustatud, võib ta kurjade vaimude mõjust kõrvale hoiduda ja siirduda Osirise kohtumõistmissaali ning juhul, kui ta tunnistatakse seal „mõrvadest, röövimistest, valskusest, abielurikkumisest, vargusest ja isekusest” priiks, võetakse ta vastu õndsuse maailmadesse. Aga kui sellel hingel leitakse kaalul vaagides midagi puudu olevat, saadetakse ta põrgusse, Õgija juurde. See oli suhteliselt arenenud ettekujutus tulevasest elust, võrreldes paljude ümbruskonna rahvaste uskumustega.
95:2.9 (1045.2)
When Melchizedek appeared in the flesh, the Egyptians had a religion far above that of the surrounding peoples. They believed that a disembodied soul, if properly armed with magic formulas, could evade the intervening evil spirits and make its way to the judgment hall of Osiris, where, if innocent of “murder, robbery, falsehood, adultery, theft, and selfishness,” it would be admitted to the realms of bliss. If this soul were weighed in the balances and found wanting, it would be consigned to hell, to the Devouress. And this was, relatively, an advanced concept of a future life in comparison with the beliefs of many surrounding peoples.
Ehkki Egiptuse kultuur ja religioon pärinesid põhiliselt andiitide Mesopotaamiast ning kandusid järgmistele tsivilisatsioonidele suures osas heebrealaste ja kreeklaste kaudu, tekkis väga suur osa egiptlaste sotsiaalsest ja eetilisest idealismist Niiluse orus üksnes arengu tulemusena. Andiidi päritolu tõe ja kultuuri sissetoomisele vaatamata arenes Egiptuses vaid inimarengu tulemusena välja kõlbelisem kultuur kui teistel ümbritsevatel aladel enne Miikaeli annetumist.
95:3.1 (1045.4)
Although the culture and religion of Egypt were chiefly derived from Andite Mesopotamia and largely transmitted to subsequent civilizations through the Hebrews and Greeks, much, very much, of the social and ethical idealism of the Egyptians arose in the valley of the Nile as a purely evolutionary development. Notwithstanding the importation of much truth and culture of Andite origin, there evolved in Egypt more of moral culture as a purely human development than appeared by similar natural techniques in any other circumscribed area prior to the bestowal of Michael.
Kõlbeline evolutsioon ei sõltu täielikult ilmutusest. Kõrgeid moraalikontseptsioone saab tuletada ka inimese enda kogemustest. Inimene suudab ka ise vaimseid väärtusi arendada ja kosmilist arusaamist omaenda isiklikust kogemuslikust elust tuletada, sest temas elab jumalik vaim. Niisugust südametunnistuse ja iseloomu loomulikku evolutsiooni täiendasid ka aeg-ajalt saabunud tõeõpetajad, kes tulid iidsel ajal teisest Eedenist ja hiljem Melkisedeki keskusest Saalemis.
95:3.2 (1045.5)
Moral evolution is not wholly dependent on revelation. High moral concepts can be derived from man’s own experience. Man can even evolve spiritual values and derive cosmic insight from his personal experiential living because a divine spirit indwells him. Such natural evolutions of conscience and character were also augmented by the periodic arrival of teachers of truth, in ancient times from the second Eden, later on from Melchizedek’s headquarters at Salem.
Tuhandeid aastaid enne Saalemi evangeeliumi tungimist Egiptusesse õpetasid sealsed moraalijuhid õiglust, ausust ja ahnusest hoidumist. Kolm tuhat aastat enne heebrea pühakirjade kirjutamist oli egiptlastel moto: „Kindlal aluspõhjal on selle mehe elu, kes lähtub õiglusest ja kõnnib selle teed.” Nad õpetasid leebust, mõõdukust ja peenetundelisust. Ühe selle ajajärgu suure õpetaja sõnum oli: „Tee õigust ja kohtle kõiki õiglaselt.” Sel ajastul oli egiptuse triaadiks Tõde — Õigus — Õiglus. Ükski kõigist Urantia puhtinimeselikest usunditest ei ole iialgi ületanud selle Niiluse oru kunagise humanismi sotsiaalseid ideaale ega kõlbelist suurust.
95:3.3 (1045.6)
Thousands of years before the Salem gospel penetrated to Egypt, its moral leaders taught justice, fairness, and the avoidance of avarice. Three thousand years before the Hebrew scriptures were written, the motto of the Egyptians was: “Established is the man whose standard is righteousness; who walks according to its way.” They taught gentleness, moderation, and discretion. The message of one of the great teachers of this epoch was: “Do right and deal justly with all.” The Egyptian triad of this age was Truth-Justice-Righteousness. Of all the purely human religions of Urantia none ever surpassed the social ideals and the moral grandeur of this onetime humanism of the Nile valley.
Nende arenevate eetika-ja moraaliideaalide pinnases õitsesid Saalemi religioonist püsima jäänud doktriinid. Hea ja kurja mõisted võeti hästi vastu nende inimeste südametes, kes uskusid, et „rahumeelsetele antakse elu ja süüdlastele surm”. „Rahumeelne on see, kelle tegusid armastatakse; süüdlane on see, kelle tegusid vihatakse.” Niiluse oru asukad olid elanud sajandeid nende väljakujunevate eetika-ja ühiskonnanormide järgi, enne kui hakkasid mõtlema õige ja väära ning hea ja halva mõistetele.
95:3.4 (1045.7)
In the soil of these evolving ethical ideas and moral ideals the surviving doctrines of the Salem religion flourished. The concepts of good and evil found ready response in the hearts of a people who believed that “Life is given to the peaceful and death to the guilty.” “The peaceful is he who does what is loved; the guilty is he who does what is hated.” For centuries the inhabitants of the Nile valley had lived by these emerging ethical and social standards before they ever entertained the later concepts of right and wrong—good and bad.
Egiptus oli intellektuaalne ja kõlbeline, kuid mitte eriti vaimne. Kuue tuhande aasta jooksul kerkis egiptlaste seast esile vaid neli suurt prohvetit. Amenhotepit järgisid nad ühe hooaja, Okhbani nad mõrvasid, Ehnatoni võtsid leigelt vastu vaid ühe lühikese põlvkonna jooksul; Moosese lükkasid tagasi. Sedagi, et Aabraham ja hiljem Joosep avaldasid Saalemi õpetustega ainsast Jumalast kogu Egiptuses suurt mõju, hõlbustasid taas just poliitilised, mitte niivõrd usulised asjaolud. Ent kui Saalemi misjonärid esimest korda Egiptusesse saabusid, leidsid nad eest selle kõrge eetilisusega areneva kultuuri, mis oli sulanud kokku Mesopotaamiast saabunute teistsuguste moraalinormidega. Need Niiluse oru varajased õpetajad olid esimesed, kes kuulutasid südametunnistuse Jumala käsuks, Jumaluse hääleks.
95:3.5 (1046.1)
Egypt was intellectual and moral but not overly spiritual. In six thousand years only four great prophets arose among the Egyptians. Amenemope they followed for a season; Okhban they murdered; Ikhnaton they accepted but halfheartedly for one short generation; Moses they rejected. Again was it political rather than religious circumstances that made it easy for Abraham and, later on, for Joseph to exert great influence throughout Egypt in behalf of the Salem teachings of one God. But when the Salem missionaries first entered Egypt, they encountered this highly ethical culture of evolution blended with the modified moral standards of Mesopotamian immigrants. These early Nile valley teachers were the first to proclaim conscience as the mandate of God, the voice of Deity.
95:4.1 (1046.2)
In due time there grew up in Egypt a teacher called by many the “son of man” and by others Amenemope. This seer exalted conscience to its highest pinnacle of arbitrament between right and wrong, taught punishment for sin, and proclaimed salvation through calling upon the solar deity.
Amenhotep õpetas, et rikkus ja õnn on Jumala kingitused ning see kontseptsioon andis hiljem tekkinud heebrea filosoofiale tugeva värvingu. See üllas õpetaja uskus, et teadlikkus Jumalast on igasuguse käitumise määrav tegur; et igal eluhetkel tuleks tunnetada Jumala kohalolekut ja vastutust tema ees. Selle targa õpetused tõlgiti hiljem heebrea keelde ja need muutusid selle rahva pühaks raamatuks ammu enne Vana Testamendi kirjapanekut. Selle hea inimese jutlused seisnesid põhiliselt õigluse ja aususe õpetamises oma pojale vastutusrikaste riigiametite tarvis ning need kunagised üllad seisukohad teeksid au igale praegusaja riigimehele.
95:4.2 (1046.3)
Amenemope taught that riches and fortune were the gift of God, and this concept thoroughly colored the later appearing Hebrew philosophy. This noble teacher believed that God-consciousness was the determining factor in all conduct; that every moment should be lived in the realization of the presence of, and responsibility to, God. The teachings of this sage were subsequently translated into Hebrew and became the sacred book of that people long before the Old Testament was reduced to writing. The chief preachment of this good man had to do with instructing his son in uprightness and honesty in governmental positions of trust, and these noble sentiments of long ago would do honor to any modern statesman.
See tark mees Niiluse kaldalt õpetas, et „rikkus saab enesele tiivad ja lendab ära” — et kõik maised asjad on kaduvad. Tema suur palve oli saada „päästetud hirmust”. Ta manitses kõiki loobuma „inimeste sõnadest” ja pöörduma „Jumala tegude juurde”. Sisuliselt õpetas ta, et inimene teeb plaane, aga Jumal juhib. Tema õpetused panid heebrea keelde tõlgituna aluse Vana Testamendi Õpetussõnade filosoofiale. Kreeka keelde tõlgituna andsid nad oma värvingu kogu hilisemale hellenistlikule usufilosoofiale. Ka hilisem Aleksandria filosoof Philon omas Tarkuseraamatut.
95:4.3 (1046.4)
This wise man of the Nile taught that “riches take themselves wings and fly away”—that all things earthly are evanescent. His great prayer was to be “saved from fear.” He exhorted all to turn away from “the words of men” to “the acts of God.” In substance he taught: Man proposes but God disposes. His teachings, translated into Hebrew, determined the philosophy of the Old Testament Book of Proverbs. Translated into Greek, they gave color to all subsequent Hellenic religious philosophy. The later Alexandrian philosopher, Philo, possessed a copy of the Book of Wisdom.
Amenhotep aitas säilitada evolutsiooni eetikat ja ilmutuse moraali ning tema kirjutised andsid need edasi heebrealastele ja kreeklastele. Ta ei olnud oma aja suurim, kuid kõige mõjukam usuõpetaja, sest andis oma värvingu kahele hilisemale olulisele lülile õhtumaa tsivilisatsiooni mõtte arengus — heebrealastele, kelle seas õhtumaa usk saavutas kulminatsiooni, ja kreeklastele, kes arendasid puhtfilosoofilise mõtte Euroopas kõige kõrgemale tasemele.
95:4.4 (1046.5)
Amenemope functioned to conserve the ethics of evolution and the morals of revelation and in his writings passed them on both to the Hebrews and to the Greeks. He was not the greatest of the religious teachers of this age, but he was the most influential in that he colored the subsequent thought of two vital links in the growth of Occidental civilization—the Hebrews, among whom evolved the acme of Occidental religious faith, and the Greeks, who developed pure philosophic thought to its greatest European heights.
Heebrea Õpetussõnade viieteistkümnes, seitsmeteistkümnes ja kahekümnes peatükk ning kahekümne teine peatükk seitsmeteistkümnendast salmist kuni kahekümne neljanda peatüki kahekümne teise salmini on võetud peaaegu sõna-sõnalt Amenhotepi Tarkuseraamatust. Heebrea Psalmide esimene laul on Amenhotepi kirjutatud ja Ehnatoni õpetuste tuum.
95:4.5 (1046.6)
In the Book of Hebrew Proverbs, chapters fifteen, seventeen, twenty, and chapter twenty-two, verse seventeen, to chapter twenty-four, verse twenty-two, are taken almost verbatim from Amenemope’s Book of Wisdom. The first psalm of the Hebrew Book of Psalms was written by Amenemope and is the heart of the teachings of Ikhnaton.
95:5.1 (1047.1)
The teachings of Amenemope were slowly losing their hold on the Egyptian mind when, through the influence of an Egyptian Salemite physician, a woman of the royal family espoused the Melchizedek teachings. This woman prevailed upon her son, Ikhnaton, Pharaoh of Egypt, to accept these doctrines of One God.
Pärast lihalikul kujul ilmunud Melkisedeki lahkumist ei olnud ühelgi inimesel olnud seni nii hämmastavalt selget ettekujutust ilmutatud Saalemi religioonist kui Ehnatonil. See noor Egiptuse kuningas on olnud mõnes mõttes inimajaloo tähelepanuväärsemaid isiksusi. Kui vaimuelu Mesopotaamias üha enam alla suruti, hoidis Egiptuses elav Ehnaton El Elyoni doktriini ainsast Jumalast, säilitades filosoofilist monoteistlikku kanalit, millel oli Miikaeli eelseisva annetumise usulise tausta loomiseks oluline tähtsus. Ja selle kangelasteo tunnustamine oli üks põhjustest, miks viidi Jeesus-laps Egiptusesse, kus mõned Ehnatoni vaimsed järglased teda nägid ja mõistsid mõnevõrra teatavaid aspekte tema jumalikust missioonist Urantial.
95:5.2 (1047.2)
Since the disappearance of Melchizedek in the flesh, no human being up to that time had possessed such an amazingly clear concept of the revealed religion of Salem as Ikhnaton. In some respects this young Egyptian king is one of the most remarkable persons in human history. During this time of increasing spiritual depression in Mesopotamia, he kept alive the doctrine of El Elyon, the One God, in Egypt, thus maintaining the philosophic monotheistic channel which was vital to the religious background of the then future bestowal of Michael. And it was in recognition of this exploit, among other reasons, that the child Jesus was taken to Egypt, where some of the spiritual successors of Ikhnaton saw him and to some extent understood certain phases of his divine mission to Urantia.
Mooses, suurim isiksus pärast Melkisedekit ja enne Jeesust, oli heebrea rahva ja Egiptuse kuningliku perekonna ühine kingitus maailmale. Kui Ehnatonil oleks olnud Moosese mitmekülgsust ja võimekust ning ta oleks lisaks oma üllatavatele usujuhivõimetele ilmutanud ka poliitilist geniaalsust, siis oleks egiptlastest saanud tolle aja suur monoteistlik rahvas. Kui nii oleks juhtunud, siis oleks Jeesus elanud võib-olla suurema osa oma surelikust elust Egiptuses.
95:5.3 (1047.3)
Moses, the greatest character between Melchizedek and Jesus, was the joint gift to the world of the Hebrew race and the Egyptian royal family; and had Ikhnaton possessed the versatility and ability of Moses, had he manifested a political genius to match his surprising religious leadership, then would Egypt have become the great monotheistic nation of that age; and if this had happened, it is barely possible that Jesus might have lived the greater portion of his mortal life in Egypt.
Veel mitte kunagi ajaloos polnud ükski kuningas tegutsenud nii süstemaatiliselt kogu oma rahva polüteismilt monoteismile pööramise nimel, nagu seda tegi erakordne Ehnaton. See noor valitseja katkestas hämmastava meelekindlusega sidemed minevikuga, muutis oma nime, jättis maha pealinna, ehitas täiesti uue linna ja lõi tervele rahvale uue kunsti ja kirjanduse. Aga ta liikus edasi liiga kiiresti; ta ehitas liiga palju, et see oleks võinud pärast teda püsima jääda. Tal ei õnnestunud kindlustada ainelist stabiilsust ega jõukust oma rahvale ning see asjaolu asetas hiljem, kui egiptlasi tabasid õnnetused ja rõhumine, tema usuõpetused ebasoodsasse valgusse.
95:5.4 (1047.4)
Never in all history did any king so methodically proceed to swing a whole nation from polytheism to monotheism as did this extraordinary Ikhnaton. With the most amazing determination this young ruler broke with the past, changed his name, abandoned his capital, built an entirely new city, and created a new art and literature for a whole people. But he went too fast; he built too much, more than could stand when he had gone. Again, he failed to provide for the material stability and prosperity of his people, all of which reacted unfavorably against his religious teachings when the subsequent floods of adversity and oppression swept over the Egyptians.
Kui sellel hämmastavalt selgepilgulisel ja erakordselt sihikindlal inimesel oleks olnud Moosese poliitilist tarkust, siis oleks ta muutnud kogu religiooni ja tõeilmutuse arengulugu õhtumaises maailmas. Tal õnnestus oma eluajal kärpida preestrite võimu, keda ta üldiselt hukka mõistis, kuid nood järgisid oma kultusi salaja edasi ja asusid tegutsema niipea, kui noor kuningas võimult kadus, rutates kõiki Egiptuse hilisemaid hädasid seostama tema valitsusajal kehtestatud monoteismiga.
95:5.5 (1047.5)
Had this man of amazingly clear vision and extraordinary singleness of purpose had the political sagacity of Moses, he would have changed the whole history of the evolution of religion and the revelation of truth in the Occidental world. During his lifetime he was able to curb the activities of the priests, whom he generally discredited, but they maintained their cults in secret and sprang into action as soon as the young king passed from power; and they were not slow to connect all of Egypt’s subsequent troubles with the establishment of monotheism during his reign.
Ehnaton püüdis väga targalt kehtestada monoteismi päikesejumala maski all. Otsuse läheneda Kõikse Isa palveldamisele, ühendades kõik jumalad päikesekultuseks, tegi ta saalemlasest arsti soovitusel. Ehnaton võttis tolleaegse Atoni usu üldistatud doktriinid Jumaluse isadusest ja emadusest ning lõi usundi, mis tunnistas inimese ja Jumala vahelist lähedast palveldamissuhet.
95:5.6 (1047.6)
Very wisely Ikhnaton sought to establish monotheism under the guise of the sun-god. This decision to approach the worship of the Universal Father by absorbing all gods into the worship of the sun was due to the counsel of the Salemite physician. Ikhnaton took the generalized doctrines of the then existent Aton faith regarding the fatherhood and motherhood of Deity and created a religion which recognized an intimate worshipful relation between man and God.
Ehnaton oli nii tark, et säilitas väliselt päikesejumala Atoni kummardamise, kuid suunas oma kaaslased varjatult palveldama ainsat Jumalat, Atoni loojat ja kõige ülimat Isa. See noor õpetaja-kuningas oli viljakas kirjanik, kes koostas põhjaliku, kolmekümne ühest peatükist koosneva teose „Ainus Jumal”, mille preestrid uuesti võimule tulles hävitasid. Ehnaton kirjutas ka sada kolmkümmend seitse hümni, millest kaksteist on praegusajani säilinud Vana Testamendi Psalmides, arvatavateks autoriteks heebrealased.
95:5.7 (1048.1)
Ikhnaton was wise enough to maintain the outward worship of Aton, the sun-god, while he led his associates in the disguised worship of the One God, creator of Aton and supreme Father of all. This young teacher-king was a prolific writer, being author of the exposition entitled “The One God,” a book of thirty-one chapters, which the priests, when returned to power, utterly destroyed. Ikhnaton also wrote one hundred and thirty-seven hymns, twelve of which are now preserved in the Old Testament Book of Psalms, credited to Hebrew authorship.
Ehnatoni religiooni ülim sõnum igapäevaeluks oli „õiglane meel” ja ta laiendas õigusemõistet kiiresti nii oma riigi kui ka rahvusvahelisele eetikale. See oli hämmastava isikliku vagaduse põlvkond, mida iseloomustasid arukamate meeste ja naiste siirad püüdlused leida ja tunda Jumalat. Neil aegadel ei andnud ühiskondlik positsioon ega rikkus ühelegi egiptlasele seaduse silmis mingeid eeliseid. Perekonnaelu aitas Egiptuses väga palju kaasa moraalikultuuri säilitamisele ja arenemisele ning sellest sai innustust ka juutide hilisem suurepärane perekonnaelu Palestiinas.
95:5.8 (1048.2)
The supreme word of Ikhnaton’s religion in daily life was “righteousness,” and he rapidly expanded the concept of right doing to embrace international as well as national ethics. This was a generation of amazing personal piety and was characterized by a genuine aspiration among the more intelligent men and women to find God and to know him. In those days social position or wealth gave no Egyptian any advantage in the eyes of the law. The family life of Egypt did much to preserve and augment moral culture and was the inspiration of the later superb family life of the Jews in Palestine.
Ehnatoni evangeeliumi saatuslik nõrkus seisnes selle suurimas tões — õpetuses, et Aton on peale Egiptuse ka „kogu maailma, inimeste ja loomade ja kõigi võõraste maade, isegi Süüria ja Kuši looja. Ta paneb kõik paika ja rahuldab kõigi vajadused”. Need arusaamad Jumalusest olid kõrged ja ülevad, kuid mitte natsionalistlikud. Religiooni kätketud internatsionaalsed seisukohad ei tõstnud lahinguväljal Egiptuse armee moraali, kuid said preestritele tõhusaks relvaks, millega noore kuninga ja tema uue usundi vastu astuda. Tema Jumaluse-kontseptsioon oli hilisemate heebrealaste omast palju kõrgem, kuid rahva moodustamiseks liiga kaugele arenenud.
95:5.9 (1048.3)
The fatal weakness of Ikhnaton’s gospel was its greatest truth, the teaching that Aton was not only the creator of Egypt but also of the “whole world, man and beasts, and all the foreign lands, even Syria and Kush, besides this land of Egypt. He sets all in their place and provides all with their needs.” These concepts of Deity were high and exalted, but they were not nationalistic. Such sentiments of internationality in religion failed to augment the morale of the Egyptian army on the battlefield, while they provided effective weapons for the priests to use against the young king and his new religion. He had a Deity concept far above that of the later Hebrews, but it was too advanced to serve the purposes of a nation builder.
Kuigi monoteistlik ideaal sai Ehnatoni võimult lahkumisega kannatada, püsis ühe Jumala idee paljude rahvarühmade meeles. Ehnatoni väimees läks preestritega kaasa, asus taas kummardama vanu jumalaid ja muutis oma nime Tutanhamoniks. Pealinn viidi tagasi Teebasse ja preestrid rasvusid oma maaomandite arvel, haarates lõpuks enda kätte seitsmendiku kogu Egiptusest. Peagi jätkus ühel neist julgust troon haarata.
95:5.10 (1048.4)
Though the monotheistic ideal suffered with the passing of Ikhnaton, the idea of one God persisted in the minds of many groups. The son-in-law of Ikhnaton went along with the priests, back to the worship of the old gods, changing his name to Tutankhamen. The capital returned to Thebes, and the priests waxed fat upon the land, eventually gaining possession of one seventh of all Egypt; and presently one of this same order of priests made bold to seize the crown.
Ent preestrid ei suutnud monoteismist täielikult jagu saada. Nad olid üha enam sunnitud oma jumalaid ühendama ja võrdsustama; jumalate perekond kahanes jätkuvalt. Ehnaton oli seostanud lõõskava taevaketta looja-Jumalaga ja see idee leegitses inimeste, isegi preestrite südametes edasi veel kaua pärast noore reformija kadumist. Monoteismi idee ei surnud Egiptuses ega maailma inimeste südametes enam kunagi. See jäi püsima isegi ajani, mil saabus Looja-Poeg, kelle jumaliku Isa, ainsa Jumala palveldamist kogu Egiptuses oli Ehnaton nii innukalt taotlenud.
95:5.11 (1048.5)
But the priests could not fully overcome the monotheistic wave. Increasingly they were compelled to combine and hyphenate their gods; more and more the family of gods contracted. Ikhnaton had associated the flaming disc of the heavens with the creator God, and this idea continued to flame up in the hearts of men, even of the priests, long after the young reformer had passed on. Never did the concept of monotheism die out of the hearts of men in Egypt and in the world. It persisted even to the arrival of the Creator Son of that same divine Father, the one God whom Ikhnaton had so zealously proclaimed for the worship of all Egypt.
Ehnatoni doktriini nõrkus seisnes selles, et ta pakkus välja kaugelearenenud religiooni, mille õpetusi suutsid täielikult mõista vaid haritud egiptlased. Lihtsad põllutöölised ei mõistnud tema evangeeliumi päriselt kunagi ja olid seetõttu valmis koos preestritega taas palveldama Isist ja tolle kaasat Osirist, kes olid oletatavalt kogenud imelist taassündi pärast julma surma pimeduse-ja kurjusejumala Sethi käe läbi.
95:5.12 (1048.6)
The weakness of Ikhnaton’s doctrine lay in the fact that he proposed such an advanced religion that only the educated Egyptians could fully comprehend his teachings. The rank and file of the agricultural laborers never really grasped his gospel and were, therefore, ready to return with the priests to the old-time worship of Isis and her consort Osiris, who was supposed to have been miraculously resurrected from a cruel death at the hands of Set, the god of darkness and evil.
Õpetus kõigi inimeste surematusest oli egiptlaste jaoks liiga eesrindlik. Taaselustumist tõotati vaid kuningatele ja rikastele, mistõttu nende surnukehi hoolikalt palsameeriti, et need säiliksid viimse kohtupäevani. Ent lõpuks sai valdavaks Ehnatoni õpetatud demokraatlik pääsemine ja taaselustumine, isegi sel määral, et egiptlased hakkasid hiljem uskuma ka mõistmatute loomade ellujäämisesse.
95:5.13 (1049.1)
The teaching of immortality for all men was too advanced for the Egyptians. Only kings and the rich were promised a resurrection; therefore did they so carefully embalm and preserve their bodies in tombs against the day of judgment. But the democracy of salvation and resurrection as taught by Ikhnaton eventually prevailed, even to the extent that the Egyptians later believed in the survival of dumb animals.
Kuigi selle Egiptuse valitseja püüe oma rahva seas ainsa Jumala palveldamist juurutada näis olevat ebaõnnestunud, tuleb märkida, et tema töö järelkajad püsisid nii Palestiinas kui ka Kreekas veel sajandeid ning et Egiptusest sai Niiluse arengulise kultuuri ja Eufrati ilmutusliku religiooni kombinatsiooni edastaja kõigile hilisematele õhtumaa rahvastele.
95:5.14 (1049.2)
Although the effort of this Egyptian ruler to impose the worship of one God upon his people appeared to fail, it should be recorded that the repercussions of his work persisted for centuries both in Palestine and Greece, and that Egypt thus became the agent for transmitting the combined evolutionary culture of the Nile and the revelatory religion of the Euphrates to all of the subsequent peoples of the Occident.
95:5.15 (1049.3)
The glory of this great era of moral development and spiritual growth in the Nile valley was rapidly passing at about the time the national life of the Hebrews was beginning, and consequent upon their sojourn in Egypt these Bedouins carried away much of these teachings and perpetuated many of Ikhnaton’s doctrines in their racial religion.
Palestiinast suundusid mõned Melkisedeki misjonärid läbi Mesopotaamia edasi suurele Iraani platoole. Saalemi õpetajad liikusid Iraanis ringi enam kui viissada aastat ja kogu rahvas oli juba pöördumas Melkisedeki religiooni poole, kui valitsusevahetus vallandas kibeda tagakiusamise, mis Saalemi monoteistlikele õpetustele sisuliselt lõpu tegi. Aabrahami lepingu doktriin oli Pärsias juba peaaegu hääbunud, kui sel suurel kõlbelise taassünni sajandil, kuuendal sajandil enne Kristust, ilmus Saalemi evangeeliumi hõõguvaid süsi lõkkele puhuma Zarathustra.
95:6.1 (1049.4)
From Palestine some of the Melchizedek missionaries passed on through Mesopotamia and to the great Iranian plateau. For more than five hundred years the Salem teachers made headway in Iran, and the whole nation was swinging to the Melchizedek religion when a change of rulers precipitated a bitter persecution which practically ended the monotheistic teachings of the Salem cult. The doctrine of the Abrahamic covenant was virtually extinct in Persia when, in that great century of moral renaissance, the sixth before Christ, Zoroaster appeared to revive the smouldering embers of the Salem gospel.
See uuele usundile alusepanija oli mehine ja seiklushimuline nooruk, kes oma esimesel palverännakul Mesopotaamiasse Uuri oli kuulnud pärimusi Caligastiast ja Luciferi mässust — koos paljude teiste pärimustega, mis kõik tema religioossele loomule tugevat mõju olid avaldanud. Uuris viibides hakkas ta ühe unenäo tulemusena ellu viima kava, mille kohaselt ta pidi naasma põhja poole oma kodupaika ja hakkama oma rahva religiooni ümber kujundama. Ta oli omaks võtnud heebrealaste idee õiglasest Jumalast, Moosese jumalikkuse kontseptsiooni. Tema meeles oli selge idee ülimast Jumalast ja ta pidas kõiki muid jumalaid kuraditeks, liigitades nad deemoniteks, kellest Mesopotaamias oli kuulnud. Ta oli kuulnud lugu Seitsmest Meistervaimust, mida Uuris pärimusena edasi anti ja mille järgi seitse ülimat jumalat moodustasid panteoni. Panteoni valitses Ahura-Mazda, temale alluvaid jumalaid seostas Zarathustra Õige Seaduse, Hea Mõtte, Õilsa Valitsuse, Püha Loomuse, Tervise ja Surematuse ideaalidega.
95:6.2 (1049.5)
This founder of a new religion was a virile and adventurous youth, who, on his first pilgrimage to Ur in Mesopotamia, had learned of the traditions of the Caligastia and the Lucifer rebellion—along with many other traditions—all of which had made a strong appeal to his religious nature. Accordingly, as the result of a dream while in Ur, he settled upon a program of returning to his northern home to undertake the remodeling of the religion of his people. He had imbibed the Hebraic idea of a God of justice, the Mosaic concept of divinity. The idea of a supreme God was clear in his mind, and he set down all other gods as devils, consigned them to the ranks of the demons of which he had heard in Mesopotamia. He had learned of the story of the Seven Master Spirits as the tradition lingered in Ur, and, accordingly, he created a galaxy of seven supreme gods with Ahura-Mazda at its head. These subordinate gods he associated with the idealization of Right Law, Good Thought, Noble Government, Holy Character, Health, and Immortality.
Zarathustra ei õpetanud tulekummardamist, vaid püüdis kasutada leeki kõikse ja ülima, puhta ja targa Vaimu sümbolina. (Paraku on liigagi tõsi, et tema hilisemad poolehoidjad seda sümboolset tuld hardalt austasid ja palveldasid.) Lõpuks, pärast ühe Iraani vürsti pöördumist, hakati uut religiooni levitama mõõgaga. Ja Zarathustra suri lahingus kangelasena selle nimel, mida ta uskus olevat „valguse Issanda tõe”.
95:6.4 (1049.7)
Zoroaster did not teach the worship of fire but sought to utilize the flame as a symbol of the pure and wise Spirit of universal and supreme dominance. (All too true, his later followers did both reverence and worship this symbolic fire.) Finally, upon the conversion of an Iranian prince, this new religion was spread by the sword. And Zoroaster heroically died in battle for that which he believed was the “truth of the Lord of light.”
Zoroastrism on Urantia ainus usutunnistus, milles on säilinud Dalamatia ja Eedeni õpetused Seitsmest Meistervaimust. Suutmata küll välja arendada Kolmsuse kontseptsiooni, lähenes see siiski teatud mõttes Seitsmekordse Jumala kontseptsioonile. Zoroastrism ei olnud algselt puhas dualism; kuigi varajastes õpetustes kujutati kurjust ajas headusega kooskõlalisena, neeldus see kindlalt headuse lõpliku reaalsuse igavikulisuses. Alles hilisematel aegadel hakati uskuma, et hea ja kuri võistlevad omavahel võrdsetel alustel.
95:6.5 (1050.1)
Zoroastrianism is the only Urantian creed that perpetuates the Dalamatian and Edenic teachings about the Seven Master Spirits. While failing to evolve the Trinity concept, it did in a certain way approach that of God the Sevenfold. Original Zoroastrianism was not a pure dualism; though the early teachings did picture evil as a time co-ordinate of goodness, it was definitely eternity-submerged in the ultimate reality of the good. Only in later times did the belief gain credence that good and evil contended on equal terms.
Juudi pärimused taevast ja põrgust ning heebrea pühakirjades sisalduv doktriin kuraditest põhinesid küll Luciferi ja Caligastia aegadest säilinud uskumustest, kuid olid enamasti pärit Zarathustra pooldajatelt ajast, mil juudid olid pärslaste poliitilise ja kultuurilise ülemvõimu all. Nagu egiptlased, nii rääkis ka Zarathustra „kohtupäevast”, kuid seostas seda sündmust maailma lõpuga.
95:6.6 (1050.2)
The Jewish traditions of heaven and hell and the doctrine of devils as recorded in the Hebrew scriptures, while founded on the lingering traditions of Lucifer and Caligastia, were principally derived from the Zoroastrians during the times when the Jews were under the political and cultural dominance of the Persians. Zoroaster, like the Egyptians, taught the “day of judgment,” but he connected this event with the end of the world.
Zoroastrismile järgnenud Pärsia religioon oli samuti sellest märgatavalt mõjustatud. Püüdes Zarathustra õpetusi kummutada, taaselustasid Iraani preestrid iidse Mithra kultuse. Mithra palveldamine levis kõikjal Vahemere-aladel, olles mõnda aega nii judaismi kui ka ristiusu kaasaegne. Nii mõjutasid Zarathustra õpetused järjest kolme usundit: judaismi, ristiusku ja nende kaudu islamit.
95:6.7 (1050.3)
Even the religion which succeeded Zoroastrianism in Persia was markedly influenced by it. When the Iranian priests sought to overthrow the teachings of Zoroaster, they resurrected the ancient worship of Mithra. And Mithraism spread throughout the Levant and Mediterranean regions, being for some time a contemporary of both Judaism and Christianity. The teachings of Zoroaster thus came successively to impress three great religions: Judaism and Christianity and, through them, Mohammedanism.
Araabia kõrbes juurdusid Melkisedeki õpetused ainsast Jumalast suhteliselt hiljuti. Nagu Kreekas, nii ka Araabias tabas Saalemi misjonäre läbikukkumine, sest nad olid Machiventa juhiseid, milles hoiatati ülemäärase organiseerituse eest, vääriti mõistnud. Kuid nad tõlgendasid tema manitsust hoiduda igasugustest katsetest levitada evangeeliumi sõjalise jõu või tsiviilsundusega selliselt, et see ei osutunud neile takistuseks.
95:7.1 (1050.6)
The Melchizedek teachings of the one God became established in the Arabian Desert at a comparatively recent date. As in Greece, so in Arabia the Salem missionaries failed because of their misunderstanding of Machiventa’s instructions regarding overorganization. But they were not thus hindered by their interpretation of his admonition against all efforts to extend the gospel through military force or civil compulsion.
Isegi Hiinas ega Roomas ei kukkunud Melkisedeki õpetused nii täielikult läbi kui sellel Saalemi lähedal asunud kõrbealal. Veel kaua pärast seda, kui hommiku- ja õhtumaa rahvad olid enamasti juba kas budistideks või kristlasteks saanud, jätkus elu Araabia kõrbes samamoodi, nagu oli kestnud tuhandeid aastaid. Iga hõim palveldas oma iidset ebajumalat ja paljudel üksikperedel olid oma perejumalad. Babüloonia Ištari, heebrea Jahve, Iraani Ahura ja ristiusu Issanda Jeesuse Kristuse Isa vaheline võitlus kestis veel kaua. Ükski kontseptsioon ei suutnud kunagi teisi täielikult välja tõrjuda.
95:7.2 (1050.7)
Not even in China or Rome did the Melchizedek teachings fail more completely than in this desert region so very near Salem itself. Long after the majority of the peoples of the Orient and Occident had become respectively Buddhist and Christian, the desert of Arabia continued as it had for thousands of years. Each tribe worshiped its olden fetish, and many individual families had their own household gods. Long the struggle continued between Babylonian Ishtar, Hebrew Yahweh, Iranian Ahura, and Christian Father of the Lord Jesus Christ. Never was one concept able fully to displace the others.
Siin-seal üle kogu Araabia leidus peresid ja sugukondi, kes pidasid kinni ähmasest ainsa Jumala ideest. Need rühmad pidasid kalliks Melkisedeki, Aabrahami, Moosese ja Zarathustra pärimusi. Oli arvukaid keskusi, kus Jeesuse evangeelium oleks vastuvõttu leidnud, kuid kõrbealadel jäid ristiusu misjonärid rangeteks ja järeleandmatuteks, vastupidiselt kompromissi otsivatele ja uuendusmeelsetele misjonäridele Vahemeremaadel. Kui Jeesuse jüngrid oleksid tema käsku „minge kõik maailma ja kuulutage evangeeliumi” tõsisemalt kuulanud ja evangeeliumi kuulutades vastutulelikumad olnud, mitte hoidnud nii rangelt kinni omaenda kavandatud sotsiaalsetest nõuetest, oleksid paljud maad, sealhulgas Araabia, meelsasti puusepapoja lihtsa sõnumi vastu võtnud.
95:7.3 (1051.1)
Here and there throughout Arabia were families and clans that held on to the hazy idea of the one God. Such groups treasured the traditions of Melchizedek, Abraham, Moses, and Zoroaster. There were numerous centers that might have responded to the Jesusonian gospel, but the Christian missionaries of the desert lands were an austere and unyielding group in contrast with the compromisers and innovators who functioned as missionaries in the Mediterranean countries. Had the followers of Jesus taken more seriously his injunction to “go into all the world and preach the gospel,” and had they been more gracious in that preaching, less stringent in collateral social requirements of their own devising, then many lands would gladly have received the simple gospel of the carpenter’s son, Arabia among them.
Kõrbe algelistes ja organiseerumata uskumustes oli vaid üks hõimule, rassile või rahvale iseloomulik joon. See oli peaaegu kõigi Araabia hõimude iseäralik ja üldlevinud austus ühes Meka templis hoitava mustast kivist fetiši suhtes. See ühine kokkupuutepunkt ja harras austus viis hiljem islami tekkele. Sama tähtis nagu vulkaanivaim Jahve oli juudi semiitidele, on nüüd Kaaba kivi nende Araabia nõbudele.
95:7.5 (1051.3)
There was only one factor of a tribal, racial, or national nature about the primitive and unorganized beliefs of the desert, and that was the peculiar and general respect which almost all Arabian tribes were willing to pay to a certain black stone fetish in a certain temple at Mecca. This point of common contact and reverence subsequently led to the establishment of the Islamic religion. What Yahweh, the volcano spirit, was to the Jewish Semites, the Kaaba stone became to their Arabic cousins.
Islami tugevus on seisnenud selges ja kindlapiirilises Allahi kui ainsa Jumaluse tutvustamises, selle nõrkuseks on olnud sõjalise jõu tarvitamine usu levitamisel ja naiste alandamine. Kuid see on alati kindlalt kinni pidanud Ainsast Kõiksest Jumalusest, „kes tunneb nähtamatut ja nähtavat. Ta on halastav ja kaastundlik”. „Jumal on tõepoolest külluslik oma headuses kõigi inimeste vastu.” „Ja kui ma olen haige, siis ta teeb mu terveks.” „Sest millal iganes kolm omavahel kõnelevad, on Jumal neljandana juures”, sest kas pole ta ju „esimene ja viimane, samuti nähtav ja varjatud”?
95:7.6 (1051.4)
The strength of Islam has been its clear-cut and well-defined presentation of Allah as the one and only Deity; its weakness, the association of military force with its promulgation, together with its degradation of woman. But it has steadfastly held to its presentation of the One Universal Deity of all, “who knows the invisible and the visible. He is the merciful and the compassionate.” “Truly God is plenteous in goodness to all men.” “And when I am sick, it is he who heals me.” “For whenever as many as three speak together, God is present as a fourth,” for is he not “the first and the last, also the seen and the hidden”?