5. CHAPTER V.
THE EGYPTIAN'S STORY-GOOD WORKS.
THE vivacious Greek broke forth in expressions of joy and
congratulations; after which the Egyptian said, with characteristic
gravity-
"I salute you, my brother. You have suffered much, and I rejoice
in your triumph. If you are both pleased to hear me, I will now tell
you who I am, and how I came to be called. Wait for me a moment."
He went out and tended the camels; coming back, he resumed his seat.
"Your words, brethren, were of the Spirit," he said, in
commencement; "and the Spirit gives me to understand them. You each
spoke particularly of your countries; in that there was a great object
which I will explain; but to make the interpretation complete, let
me first speak of myself and my people. I am Balthasar the Egyptian."
The last words were spoken quietly, but with so much dignity that
both listeners bowed to the speaker.
"There are many distinctions I might claim for my race," he
continued; "but I will content myself with one. History began with us.
We were the first to perpetuate events by records kept. So we have
no traditions; and instead of poetry, we offer you certainty. On the
facades of palaces and temples, on obelisks, on the inner walls of
tombs, we wrote the names of our kings, and what they did; and to
the delicate papyri we entrusted the wisdom of our philosophers and
the secrets of our religion-all the secrets but one, whereof I will
presently speak. Older than the Vedas of Para-Brahm or the Up-Angas of
Vyasa, O Melchior; older than the songs of Homer or the metaphysics of
Plato, O my Gaspar; older than the sacred books or kings of the people
of China, or those of Siddartha, son of the beautiful Maya; older than
the Genesis of Mosche the Hebrew-oldest of human records are the
writings of Menes, our first king." Pausing an instant, he fixed his
large eyes kindly upon the Greek, saying, "In the youth of Hellas,
who, O Gaspar, were the teachers of her teachers?"
The Greek bowed, smiling.
"By those records," Balthasar continued, "we know that when the
fathers came from the far East, from the region of the birth of the
three sacred rivers, from the centre of the earth-the Old Iran of
which you spoke, O Melchior-came bringing with them the history of
the world before the Flood, and of the Flood itself, as given to the
Aryans by the sons of Noah, they taught God, the Creator and the
Beginning, and the Soul, deathless as God. When the duty which calls
us now is happily done, if you choose to go with me, I will show you
the sacred library of our priesthood; among others, the Book of the
Dead, in which is the ritual to be observed by the soul after Death
has despatched it on its journey to judgment. The ideas-God and the
Immortal Soul-where borne to Mizraim over the desert, and by him to
the banks of the Nile. They were then in their purity, easy of
understanding, as what God intends for our happiness always is; so,
also, was the first worship-a song and a prayer natural to a soul
joyous, hopeful, and in love with its Maker."
Here the Greek threw up his hands, exclaiming, "Oh the light deepens
within me!"
"And in me!" said the Hindoo, with equal fervour.
The Egyptian regarded them benignantly, then went on, saying,
"Religion is merely the law which binds man to his Creator: in
purity it has but these elements-God, the Soul, and their Mutual
Recognition; out of which, when put in practice, spring Worship, Love,
and Reward. This law, like all others of divine origin-like that, for
instance, which binds the earth to the sun-was perfected in the
beginning by its Author. Such, my brothers was the religion of the
first family; such was the religion of our father Mizraim, who could
not have been blind to the formula of creation, nowhere so discernible
as in the first faith and the earliest worship. Perfection is God;
simplicity is perfection. The curse of curses is that men will not let
truths like these alone."
He stopped, as if considering in what manner to continue.
"Many nations have loved the sweet waters of the Nile," he said
next; "the Ethiopian, the Pali-Putra, the Hebrew, the Assyrian, the
Persian, the Macedonian, the Roman-of whom all, except the Hebrew,
have at one time or another been its masters. So much coming and going
of peoples corrupted the old Mizraimic faith. The Valley of Palms
became a Valley of Gods. The Supreme One was divided into eight,
each personating a creative principle in nature, with Ammon-Re at
the head. Then Isis and Osiris, and their circle, representing
water, fire, air, and other forces, were invented. Still the
multiplication went on until we had another order, suggested by
human qualities, such as strength, knowledge, love, and the like."
"In all which there was the old folly!" cried the Greek,
impulsively. "Only the things out of reach remain as they came to us."
The Egyptian bowed, and proceeded-
"Yet a little further, O my Brethren, a little further, before I
come to myself. What we go to will seem all the holier of comparison
with what it is and has been. The records show that Mizraim found
the Nile in possession of the Ethopians, who were spread thence
through the African desert; a people of rich, fantastic genius, wholly
given to the worship of nature. The poetic Persian sacrificed to the
sun, as the completest image of Ormuzd, his God; the devout children
of the far East carved their deities out of wood and ivory; but the
Ethiopian, without writing, without books, without mechanical
faculty of any kind, quieted his soul by the worship of animals,
birds, and insects, holding the cat sacred to Re, the bull to Isis,
the beetle to Pthah. A long struggle against their rude, faith ended
in its adoption as the religion of the new empire. Then rose the
mighty monuments that cumber the riverbank and the desert-obelisk,
labyrinth, pyramid, and tomb of king, blent with tomb of crocodile.
Into such deep debasement, O brethren, the sons of the Aryan fell!"
Here, for the first time, the calmness of the Egyptian forsook
him: though his countenance remained impassive, his voice gave way.
"Do not too much despise my countrymen," he began again. "They did
not all forget God. I said awhile ago, you may remember, that to
papyri we entrusted all the secrets of our religion except one; of
that I will now tell you. We had as king once a certain Pharaoh, who
lent himself to all manner of changes and additions. To establish
the new system, he strove to drive the old entirely out of mind. The
Hebrews then dwelt with us as slaves. They clung to their God; and
when the persecution became intolerable, they were delivered in a
manner never to be forgotten. I speak from the records now. Mosche,
himself a Hebrew, came to the palace, and demanded permission for
the slaves, then millions in number, to leave the country. The
demand was in the name of the Lord God of Israel. Pharaoh refused.
Hear what followed. First, all the water, that in the lakes and
rivers, like that in the wells and vessels, turned to blood. Yet the
monarch refused. Then frogs came up and covered all the land. Still he
was firm. Then Mosche threw ashes in the air, and plague attacked
the Egyptians. Next, all the cattle, except of the Hebrews, were
struck dead. Locusts devoured the green things of the valley. At
noon the day was turned into a darkness so thick that lamps would
not burn. Finally, in the night all the first-born of the Egyptians
died; not even Pharaoh's escaped. Then he yielded. But when the
Hebrews were gone he followed them with his army. At the last moment
the sea was divided, so that the fugitives passed it dry-shod. When
the pursuers drove in after them, the waves rushed back, and
drowned-horse, foot, charioteers, and king. You spoke of
revelation, my Gaspar-"
The blue eyes of the Greek sparkled.
"I had the story from the Jew," he cried. "You confirm it, O
Balthasar!"
"Yes, but through me Egypt speaks, not Mosche. I interpret the
marbles. The priests of that time wrote in their way what they
witnessed, and the revelation has lived. So I come to the one
unrecorded secret. In my country, brethren, we have, from the day of
the unfortunate Pharaoh, always had two religions-one private, the
other public; one of many gods, practised by the people; the other
of one God, cherished only by the priesthood. Rejoice with me, O
brothers! All the trampling by the many nations, all the harrowing
by kings, all the inventions of enemies, all the changes of time, have
been in vain. Like a seed under the mountains waiting its hour, the
glorious Truth has lived; and this-this is its day!"
The wasted frame of the Hindoo trembled with delight, and the
Greek cried aloud-
"It seems to me the very desert is singing."
From a gurglet of water near-by the Egyptian took a draught, and
proceeded-
"I was born at Alexandria, a prince and a priest, and had the
education usual to my class. But very early I became discontented.
Part of the faith imposed was that after death, upon the destruction
of my body, the soul at once began its former progression from the
lowest up to humanity, the highest and last existence; and that
without reference to conduct in the mortal life. When I heard of the
Persian's Realm of Light, his Paradise across the bridge Chinevat,
where only the good go, the thought haunted me; insomuch that in the
day, as in the night, I brooded over the comparative ideas Eternal
Transmigration and Eternal Life in Heaven. If, as my teacher taught,
God was just, why was there no distinction between the good and the
bad? At length it became clear to me, a certainty, a corollary of
the law to which I reduced pure religion, that death was only the
point of separation at which the wicked are left or lost, and the
faithful rise to a higher life; not the nirvana of Buddha, or the
negative rest of Brahma, O Melchior; nor the better condition in hell,
which is all of Heaven allowed by the Olympic faith, O Gaspar; but
life-life active, joyous, everlasting-LIFE WITH GOD! The discovery
led to another inquiry. Why should the Truth be longer kept a secret
for the selfish solace of the priesthood? The reason for the
suppression was gone. Philosophy had at least brought us toleration.
In Egypt we had Rome instead of Rameses. One day, in the Brucheium,
the most splendid and crowded quarter of Alexandria, I arose and
preached. The East and West contributed to my audience. Students going
to the Library, priests from the Serapeion, idlers from the Museum,
patrons of the race-course, countrymen from the Rhacotis-a multitude-stopped to hear me. I preached God, the Soul, Right and Wrong, and
Heaven, the reward of a virtuous life. You, O Melchior, were stoned;
my auditors first wondered, then laughed. I tried again; they pelted
me with epigrams, covered my God with ridicule, and darkened my Heaven
with mockery. Not to linger needlessly, I fell before them."
The Hindoo here drew a long sigh, as he said, "The enemy of man is
man, my brother."
Balthasar lapsed into silence.
"I gave much thought to finding the cause of my failure, and at last
succeeded," he said, upon beginning again. "Up the river, a day's
journey from the city, there is a village of herdsmen and gardeners. I
took a boat and went there. In the evening I called the people
together, men and women, the poorest of the poor. I preached to them
exactly as I had preached in the Brucheium. They did not laugh. Next
evening I spoke again, and they believed and rejoiced, and carried the
news abroad. At the third meeting a society was formed for prayer. I
returned to the city then. Drifting down the river, under the stars,
which never seemed so bright and so near, I evolved this lesson:-To
begin a reform, go not into the places of the great and rich; go
rather to those whose cups of happiness are empty-to the poor and
humble. And then I laid a plan and devoted my life. As a first step, I
secured my vast property, so that the income would be certain, and
always at call for the relief of the suffering. From that day, O
brethren, I travelled up and down the Nile in the villages, and to all
the tribes, preaching One God, a righteous life, and reward in Heaven.
I have done good-it does not become me to say how much. I also know
that part of the world to be ripe for the reception of Him we go to
find."
A flush suffused the swarthy cheek of the speaker; but he overcame
the feeling, and continued:-
"The years so given, O my brothers, were troubled by one thought-When I was gone, what would become of the cause I had started? Was
it to end with me? I had dreamed many times of organization as a
fitting crown for my work. To hide nothing from you, I had tried to
effect it, and failed. Brethren, the world is now in the condition
that, to restore the old Mizraimic faith, the reformer must have a
more than human sanction; he must not merely come in God's name, he
must have the proofs subject to His word; he must demonstrate all he
says, even God. So preoccupied is the mind with myths and systems;
so much do false deities crowd every place-earth, air, sky; so have
they become of everything a part, that return to the first religion
can only be along bloody paths, through fields of persecution; that is
to say, the converts must be willing to die rather than recant. And
who in this age can carry the faith of men to such a point but God
Himself? To redeem the race-I do not mean to destroy it-to redeem
the race, He must make Himself once more manifest: HE MUST COME IN
PERSON."
Intense emotion seized the three.
"Are we not going to find Him?" exclaimed the Greek.
"You understand why I failed in the attempt to organize," said the
Egyptian, when the spell was passed. "I had not the sanction. To
know that my work must be lost made me intolerably wretched. I
believed in prayer; and to make my appeals pure and strong, like
you, my brethren, I went out of the beaten ways-I went where man
had not been, where only God was. Above the fifth cataract, above
the meeting of rivers in Sennar, up the Bahr el Abiad, into the far
unknown of Africa, I went. There, in the morning, a mountain blue as
the sky flings a cooling shadow wide over the western desert, and,
with its cascades of melted snow, feeds a broad lake nestling at its
base on the east. The lake is the mother of the great river. For a
year and more the mountain gave me a home. The fruit of the palm fed
my body, prayer my spirit. One night I walked in the orchard close
by the little sea. 'The world is dying. When wilt Thou come? Why may I
not see the redemption, O God?' So I prayed. The glassy water was
sparkling with stars. One of them seemed to leave its place and rise
to the surface, where it became a brilliancy burning to the eyes. Then
it moved towards me, and stood over my head, apparently in hand's
reach. I fell down and hid my face. A voice, not of the earth, said,
'Thy good works have conquered. Blessed art thou, O son of Mizraim!
The redemption cometh. With two others, from the remoteness of the
world, thou shalt see the Saviour, and testify for Him. In the morning
arise, and go meet them. And when ye have all come to the holy city of
Jerusalem, ask of the people, Where is He that is born King of the
Jews? for we have seen His star in the East, and are sent to worship
Him. Put all thy trust in the Spirit which will guide thee.'
"And the light became an inward illumination not to be doubted,
and has stayed with me, a governor and a guide. It led me down the
river to Memphis, where I made ready for the desert. I bought my
camel, and came hither without rest, by way of Suez and Kufileh, and
up through the lands of Moab and Ammon. God is with us, O my
brethren!"
He paused, and thereupon, with a prompting not their own, they all
arose, and looked at each other.
"I said there was a purpose in the particularity with which we
described our peoples and their histories," so the Egyptian proceeded.
"He we go to find was called 'King of the Jews;' by that name we are
bidden to ask for Him. But, now that we have met, and heard from
each other, we may know Him to be the Redeemer, not of the Jews alone,
but of all the nations of the earth. The patriarch who survived the
Flood had with him three sons, and their families, by whom the world
was repeopled. From the old Aryana-Vaejo, the well-remembered Region
of Delight in the heart of Asia, they parted. India and the far East
received the children of the first; the descendants of the youngest,
through the North, streamed into Europe; those of the second
overflowed the deserts about the Red Sea, passing into Africa; and
though most of the latter are yet dwellers in shifting tents, some
of them became builders along the Nile."
By a simultaneous impulse the three joined hands.
"Could anything be more divinely ordered?" Balthasar continued.
"When we have found the Lord, the brothers, and all the generations
that have succeeded them, will kneel to Him in homage with us. And
when we part to go our separate ways, the world will have learned a
new lesson-that Heaven may be won, not by the sword, not by human
wisdom, but by Faith, Love, and Good Works."
There was silence, broken by sighs and sanctified with tears; for
the joy that filled them might not be stayed. It was the unspeakable
joy of souls on the shores of the River of Life, resting with the
Redeemed in God's presence.
Presently their hands fell apart, and together they went out of
the tent. The desert was still as the sky. The sun was sinking fast.
The camels slept.
A little while after, the tent was struck, and, with the remains
of the repast, restored to the cot; then the friends mounted, and
set out single file, led by the Egyptian. Their course was due west,
into the chilly night. The camels swung forward in steady trot,
keeping the line and the intervals so exactly that those following
seemed to tread in the tracks of the leader. The riders spoke not
once.
By-and-by the moon came up. And as the three tall, white figures
sped, with soundless tread, through the opalescent light, they
appeared like spectres flying from hateful shadows. Suddenly, in the
air before them, not farther up than a low hill-top, flared a
lambent flame; as they looked at it, the apparition contracted into
a focus of dazzling lustre. Their hearts beat fast; their souls
thrilled; and they shouted as with one voice, "The Star! the Star! God
is with us!"