…is the time when the soul has for a time dominion over both the mind and the body. And the soul, according to Julian, was the mother of the gods. The soul then becomes tremendously important not only in platonic mysticism, but in all those branches…

…these were produced out of the darkness of the great primordial mystery, the mystery of absolute soul power. Now, in practical thinking, Julian believed that the soul in man is the night in him. It is the mysterious psychic darkness. It is that which is…

…we are coming on to this problem again in our present age we are seeing the inevitable sorrow of the mind-governed universe and Julian was aware of this and while he was part of a mind-governed empire he realized the basic weakness from which almost all…

…of illusion that which can only exist in total reality. So in the discussion of the mother of the gods, we find Julian explaining and interpreting to the best of his ability, and his abilities were considerable, the problem of the restoration of grace,…

…solved by the elevation of the mind above the realm of material pressures, we will never have an enduring culture. So Julian wanted the individual to realize that all this vast pageantry which we see around us, This tremendous complication of invention and…

…child Horus the son of Osiris and Isis the son of light and light of light and darkness of day and night and Julian in his essay to the sovereign son devotes considerable space also to this problem but actually as it's been said in many religions…

…therefore we may feel at this time that the search for the solution to our present worldly problem if we acted on the advice of Julian the answer would be be still and know that I am God instead of trying to angle our way in and out of situations…

…Julian's point of view. We can see that as a ruler of an empire for only two years before he was killed in battle, Julian was fully aware of the tragedy of the time. He knew also the tragedy of his own life. He believed in reincarnation and believed…

…he had been Alexander the Great. and as both lives were almost parallel there seems to be some support to this hypothesis but Julian was convinced that we live again and that in reliving we become a little better and a little wiser for a time again…

…in its love for all that lives is sustaining all life with the benevolence and abundance which we ignore and forget and so Julian took it for granted that the best and most advantageous course was to search again within ourselves for the soul which is…

…most of the mistakes that we daily make and which we continue to make regardless of our own opportunities to improve so Julian cultivated and recommended the cultivation of a retrospective life a life in which while the mind is active it deals with the…

…fallacy reality has a chance and in reality we have not the intellectuals but the intelligibles now the intelligibles according to Julian are the immutable principles of life the Platonists have another peculiar doctrine which seems to be strange to us and…

…to our natural resources we are still trying to find a place to dump our garbage this is what is part of what Julian was aiming at namely that everything that exists has use and abuse everything has to be done well or sorrow is inevitable every…

…for human laws if divine laws were understood and applied. Now, how are we going to get at these divine laws? Well, Julian, being a Platonist and also practicing the Platonic disciplines, stated very quietly and others after him, that there is a journey a…

…This living structure is based also upon a simple principle, use and survive, abuse and die. This is the point that Julian tries to make from a philosophic standpoint. Everything in the universe means something, and everything in the universe has to be…

…mysteries, the soul now there are various answers to what is soul this is one of the things that has been much debated Julian was of the opinion that the soul being a phase or manifestation of night that soul was the absolute existence itself Soul was…

…the rest is in some ways strangely, vaguely unreal. And that which we call unreal is the great reality. And then this, Julian gives us some other interesting thoughts. As the one eternal reality, and being, as Stotter says, in every individual, the living…

…patiently imprisoned within this fantastic constitution of living creatures. The soul is infinite love in infinite manifestation. In other words, Julian would have said that sleep or night or darkness is actually absolute love. It is that which is behind…

…smaller parts hardly worth saving anyway that part which is important is the dream the hope the faith all of these attributes which Julian attributes to the deities it is only when we form a kind of partnership with the divine that life begins to smooth…

…in particularly good condition at the moment either there are all kinds of trouble in what direction can we turn for truth Julian answered turn inside go into yourself now a lot of people are going to themselves probably and be rather disappointed the…

…for a few minutes then a view of the Neoplatonic tradition and the Platonic tradition of Proclus of Athens which were behind Julian in his concept of life Plotinus was probably the greatest mystic of the ancient world he was a person of incredible…

…problem of the great nicety and upheaval was a pretext used by Constantine to advance his own political destiny. But Julian, being by temperament a mystic, a naturally sensitive, retiring, quiet person, was not completely converted by his Christian associates,…

…sincere, and put his trust, perhaps, in the person he had so grievantly wronged. Constantius agreed. In the due course of time, Julian was proclaimed Caesar by Constantius and given a sphere of activity beyond else. This was the beginning of the career of…

…a degree by the general collapse of the Roman Empire around him, came finally to the imperial temple and was proclaimed Julian Augustus, after it became evident that Constantius had lost the empire. Julian was born in Constantinople. And when the time came…

…came finally to the imperial temple and was proclaimed Julian Augustus, after it became evident that Constantius had lost the empire. Julian was born in Constantinople. And when the time came for him to solemnize as Pontifex Maximus, at the funeral of…

…funeral of Constantius, he ordered the former emperor to be buried as he wished, with Christian rites. Although by this time Julian himself had changed his mind on some of these related questions. It was known that while as Caesar extended the influence…

…of Rome and protected it very largely, his own mind had gradually been changing. And, as a result of this change, Julian finally formally renounced Christianity and restored or returned to the faith of his father. For this reason, he has been stigmatized…

…and restored or returned to the faith of his father. For this reason, he has been stigmatized in the Church as Julian the Apostate. But, actually, the circumstances leading to the various changes in his mind and thinking were perfectly natural of the…

…the circumstances leading to the various changes in his mind and thinking were perfectly natural of the kind of man that he was. Julian had a very short career as emperor, and two years after he had become invested with the full imperial power, he died…

…field of battle, pursuing a defeated Persian army. Thus, for only a short time, did this man enjoy worldly power and glory. And Julian, one of the best emperors Rome ever had, departed from this world in his 32nd year. Thus he had little if any time…

…if any time to ripen his philosophy, to produce out of himself the full maturity of his own thinking. Most of the works of Julian were done in tents on the battlefield. He wrote at night with the likes of lamps and candles. He had no leisure with…

…was denied of him, he did the best he could under the circumstances. Although he renounced Christianity as his own religion, Julian, when he issued his own imperial edict, decreed complete and absolute tolerance within the empire. And at no time can it…

…to himself from among the schools of philosophy with which his mind was most closely associated. Basically and fundamentally, Julian was a Platonist. But during his life, he came strongly under the influence of Neo-Platonism, and this gradually resulted…

…his life, he came strongly under the influence of Neo-Platonism, and this gradually resulted in the maturity of his philosophic thinking. Julian also has the distinction of being one of the few Roman emperors who was actually an initiate of the mystery. It…

…the Roman emperors were ever able to receive admission into the greater and deeper schools of philosophy existing in other regions. Julian was one of the exceptions. Julian was initiated into the great mysteries of Ephesus. He was accepted into the cult of…

…to receive admission into the greater and deeper schools of philosophy existing in other regions. Julian was one of the exceptions. Julian was initiated into the great mysteries of Ephesus. He was accepted into the cult of Diana, the great goddess of the…

…of the Ephesians. and he was initiated in Crips under the city of Ephesus, and his initiator was Maximus the Neoplatonist. Julian also was initiated into the mysteries of the Persian Mithras, from which mysteries he learned many things, including a new…

…new meaning for the mysterious baptism of blood. By means of the blood of the sun, the sins of man are washed away. Julian was also initiated in Greece, and therefore cast his lot with that great descent of priest philosophers who have made such rich…

…the Gods. And it is from these circumstances relating to his own initiation and to his own experiences in the sacred rite that Julian prepares his great oration to the Mother of the God. Now, the oration as a great literary work is almost unexpelled. But…

…neither to expose nor to reveal, but to hold most sacred those things in themselves most sacred. Thus we cannot turn to Julian and expect to find an expose of the great mystery system. We can, however, through the references which he himself derives from…

…neoplatonic sources, from the contemporary records of Julian's own life, and from the contents of his great orations and his work, Julian Against the Christian, we can find certain indications of the circumstances and the type of mind and the philosophy with…

…came great patience and consolation of spirit, so that in his last hours, with the arrow of a Persian soldier in his liver, Julian faced the end with the greatest of serenity, his last words being for the consideration of those around him and not for…

…sincerity of a dedicated person, that we will have a mixture or a combination of elements arising in the philosophy of Julian. which is going to distinguish him somewhat from the other late pagan writers who were preserving the Platonic intent. Julian,…

…of Julian. which is going to distinguish him somewhat from the other late pagan writers who were preserving the Platonic intent. Julian, known a philosopher of good part and a scholar of ability, was essentially in his own personal life a mystic. He…

…literal values. He sought all with meaning, and he sought meaning that would satisfy the hunger of his own search for truth. Julian had already long realized the truth was not a word, and he had fully come to appreciate That the attainment of internal…

…And it was this same mysterious internal security that left him untouched by elevation and serene in death. So we have in Julian a man who was moved and motivated as far as we can find from every action, every public pronouncement, every private memoir.…

…and flourish, although in a few centuries it was to pass away from the pages of history in the Western motion of civilization. To Julian, the mother of the gods was the mystery. Of course, he will not tell us this directly. To do so would violate his…

…the eternal widow, the Egyptian mother of mystery. seeking moaning and pitiful for the dismembered body of her murdered lord. Julian recognizes these fables, refers to them, mentions them, and tells us what they all mean. Julian therefore explains, partly in…

…of her murdered lord. Julian recognizes these fables, refers to them, mentions them, and tells us what they all mean. Julian therefore explains, partly in this oration and partly in some of his other works, and deriving intimations from Neoplatonic writers…

…body of the great mother, who is forever bearing her son, and yet to the end is forever a virgin. This is the song that Julian sings to us, the song of the house of wisdom, For wisdom has builded its house, and here it dwells, waiting for its son.…

…takes upon itself the sin of the dead. and in that way gains its redemption. These old rites and mysteries go way back. Julian knew them. Julian had been through the sacred rites. He knew what their meanings were and what they portended in a world…

…the sin of the dead. and in that way gains its redemption. These old rites and mysteries go way back. Julian knew them. Julian had been through the sacred rites. He knew what their meanings were and what they portended in a world seeking truth. And so,…

…life as a grammar of initiation, although very few modern writers ever realized that fact. In the ritual, Apuleius, who preceded Julian in these rites, and Hadrianus, and Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, who also was initiated at Ephesus. All of these who went…

…rites, and Hadrianus, and Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, who also was initiated at Ephesus. All of these who went before joined with Julian in bearing testimony to something that is undoubtedly the secret and the very heart of the mystery. They all declared…

…ancient rites, religion or the religious experience was not bestowed in modernity. This perhaps does have a large bearing on it. Perhaps Julian, who knew both and had experienced both, was in a better position to say than we are today because we cannot…

…this was a symbolism which had to do with merit or the earning of the rights of acceptance into the state religion. So Julian said that the great difference lay in that. That the pagan required and demanded that those who sought truth make in themselves…

…of the soul, in which consciousness was picked up into an incredible exaltation and elevation of experience. So these things led Julian to feel, and to believe, that the mysteries of the Great Mother and of the Blessed Goddess were reserved for those…

…and said, my son, you have come back. That which you have already done has come to life in you. and he explained to Julian that in his previous embodiment he had accepted the rite and therefore that he might receive it again and because of this it…

…but which had been obscured to it by its embodiment as a newborn babe. And because Maximus the Neoplatonist recognized in Julian the signs of one who had taken the oath, he was accepted and initiated. And from what transpired then and afterwards,…

…accepted and initiated. And from what transpired then and afterwards, it seems that Maximus very probably was right. Because certainly Julian, considering his age and his circumstances, almost immediately revealed a wisdom far beyond his years or far out of…

…beyond his years or far out of harmony with the generation and the condition of the world in which he lived because Julian definitely belonged to the golden age of Greece he belonged to centuries that have preceded him he was a great geographical misfit…

…the simple urge to learn in order that we may give And wherever this urge is tremendously strong, we cannot but wonder, as Julian wondered, whether it isn't the dim remembrance of the soul, of a destiny to which it has already been called by the sacred…

…record waiting to be awakened that it could be awakened very quickly and very easily under the proper circumstances and pressures so Julian was accepted and apparently he received the full benefit of this strange rite and ritual for he tells us much of…

…who are thus bound and thus ordered and thus ordained come the teachers and leaders of the race. Now this is in substance the Julian position, and we can add to it in certain methods and ways. But it not only tells us to a large measure the story…

…and we can add to it in certain methods and ways. But it not only tells us to a large measure the story of Julian, but it perhaps helps us to summarize the entire concept of Neoplatonism. For this is a discipline by which the individual of course is…

…finally the initiate bows before this victorious and triumphant soul within himself and acknowledges himself to be its servant. And so Julian closes his thought or his wonderful dream pictures with his prayer of thankfulness to the Great Mother, to the world…

…initiation, that strange and wonderful security that comes to the small child who returns to its parents' love and understanding, and Julian as a small child goes home to the mother, and in going home finds peace, security, and serenity. nor he completes…

…great ground and I think we have considerable reason to believe from his thoughts and from the works of his contemporaries that Julian indeed has had this experience that he sustained it magnificently through the trials of a short and tragic life and we…

…has had this experience that he sustained it magnificently through the trials of a short and tragic life and we will hope with Julian that it will cause him to return again in due time with the memory of the greatness of this soul, and the message…