Editing Emerald Tablet (section)

== Background and early Arabic versions ==
{{Hermeticism|expand=Hermetic writings}}
Beginning from the first century BCE onwards,{{Efn|The earliest unambiguous evidence dates from the first century BCE, but some texts may go back as far as the second or third century BCE.<ref>{{harvnb|Bull|2018|pp=2–3}}.</ref>}} Greek texts attributed to [[Hermes Trismegistus]], a [[Syncretism|syncretic combination]] of the Greek god [[Hermes]] and the Egyptian god [[Thoth]], appeared in [[History of Egypt#Greek rule|Greco-Roman Egypt]]. These texts, known as the [[Hermetica]], are a heterogeneous collection of works that in the modern day are commonly subdivided into two groups: the technical Hermetica, comprising [[Astrology|astrological]], [[Botany#Early botany|medico-botanical]], alchemical, and [[Magic (supernatural)|magical]] writings; and the religio-philosophical Hermetica, comprising mystical-philosophical writings.<ref>{{harvnb|Bull|2018|pp=1–3, 33–38}}.</ref>

These Greek [[Pseudepigrapha|pseudepigraphal]] texts found receptions, translations, and imitations in [[Latin]], [[Syriac language|Syriac]], [[Coptic language|Coptic]], [[Armenian language|Armenian]], and [[Middle Persian]] prior to the emergence of Islam and the [[Early Muslim conquests|Arab conquests]] in the 630s. These conquests brought about various empires in which a new group of Arabic-speaking intellectuals emerged. These scholars received and translated the aforementioned wealth of texts and also began producing Hermetica of their own.<ref>{{harvnb|van Bladel|2009|pp=1–22}}.</ref> By the tenth century, some Arabic-speaking [[Muslims]] had come to identify Hermes with the prophet [[Idris (prophet)|Idris]], thereby elevating the Hermetica to the level of other Islamic prophetic revelations.<ref>{{harvnb|van Bladel|2009|pp=170-171}}.</ref> Until the early twentieth century, only Latin versions of the ''Emerald Tablet'' were known in the [[Western world]], with the oldest dating back to the twelfth century.<ref>{{harvnb|Steele|Singer|1927|p=485/41}}.</ref> The older Arabic versions were rediscovered by [[Eric John Holmyard]] and [[Julius Ruska]].<ref>{{harvnb|Steele|Singer|1927|p=485/41}}; {{harvnb|Slavenburg|2012|p=166}}.</ref>

=== ''Secret of Creation'' ===
[[File:Cropped_Text_of_Sirr_al_Khaliqe_Emerald_Tablet.png|left|thumb|272x272px|Arabic text of the ''Emerald Tablet'' from the younger recension B of ''[[Sirr al-khaliqa|Book of the Secret of Creation]]'' (man. Paris, ''Arabe  2300'').]]
The oldest version of the ''Emerald Tablet'' is found as an appendix in an encyclopaedic treatise on natural philosophy meant as a [[cosmogony]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Weisser|1979|pp=1-2}}.</ref> It is believed to have been compiled in Arabic in the late eighth or early ninth century.{{Efn|{{harvnb|Kraus|1943}} dates this text to {{circa|813–833}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1943|pp=274–275}}.</ref> {{harvnb|Weisser|1980}} dates it to {{circa|750–800}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Weisser|1980|p=54}}.</ref> An earlier dating attempt by {{harvnb|Ruska|1926}} placed it between the sixth and eighth centuries CE.<ref>{{harvnb|Ruska|1926|p=166}}.</ref>}} The treatise bears the title ''[[Sirr al-khaliqa|Book of the Secret of Creation and the Craft of Nature]]''.{{Efn|{{langx|ar|كتاب سر الخليقة وصنعة الطبيعة|Kitāb Sirr al-Khalīqa wa-Ṣanʿat al-Ṭabīʿa|link=no}} also known as the {{langx|ar|كتاب العلل|Kitāb al-ʿilal|lit=Book of Causes|label=none}}.}}<ref>{{harvnb|Kahn|1994|p=XII|pp=}}; {{harvnb|Weisser|1980|p=|pp=10-21, 46}}.</ref> Some scholars consider it plausible that this work is a translation of a much older [[Greek language|Greek]] or [[Syriac language|Syriac]] original, although no such manuscript is known.<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1943|pp=270–303}}; {{harvnb|Weisser|1980|pp=52–53}}.</ref> At the same time others think it is more likely that it was an original Arabic composition based on older materials.<ref>{{harvnb|van Bladel|2009|pp=170-171}}; {{harvnb|Rudolph|1995|pp=134-135}}; {{harvnb|Ullmann|1980|pp=91, 93-94}}; {{harvnb|Ullmann|1981|pp=122}}.</ref> The Arabic text presents itself as a translation of a work by [[Apollonius of Tyana]].{{Efn|Arabised name {{langx|ar|بلينوس|Balīnūs}} or {{langx|ar|بليناس| Balīnās}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Weisser|1980|p=22}}.</ref>}} [[Pseudepigrapha|Pseudepigraphal]] attributions to Apollonius were common in medieval Arabic texts on magic, astrology, and alchemy.{{Efn|A list of other Arabic texts attributed to Apollonius with brief discussions may be found in {{harvnb|Weisser|1980|pp=28–39}}.}}<ref>{{harvnb|Kahn|1994|p=|pp=XII-XV}}; {{harvnb|Raggetti|2019|pp=156-157}}.</ref> If the ''Tablet'' originally hailed from a pseudo-Apollonian context, it could be considered a text of [[late antiquity]], like other such works.<ref>{{Harvnb|Kahn|1994|p=XIII}}; {{Harvnb|Weisser|1980|p=|pp=10, 21}}; {{Harvnb|Kraus|1943|p=|pp=275-278}}.</ref> 

This earliest known version reads as follows: 

<blockquote>{{Verse translation|{{lang|ar| حقٌّ لا شكَّ فيه صَحيح،}}
{{lang|ar| إنّ الأعلى من الأسفل والأسفل من الأعلى،}}
{{lang|ar|عمل العجائب من واحد كما كانت الأشياء كلّها من واحد بتدبير واحد،}}
{{lang|ar|أبوه الشمس، أُمّه القمر،}}
{{lang|ar|حملته الريح في بطنها، غذته الأرض،}}
{{lang|ar|أبو الطِّلسمات، خازن العجائب، كامل القوى،}}
{{lang|ar|نار صارت أرضاً ٱعزِل الأرض من النار،}}
{{lang|ar|اللطيف أكرم من الغليظ،}}
{{lang|ar| برِفق وحُكم يصعد من الأرض إلى السماء وينزل إلى الأرض من السماء،}}
{{lang|ar|وفيه قُوّة الأعلى والأسفل،}}
{{lang|ar|لأنّ معه نور الأنوار فلذلك تهرب منه الظُّلمة،}}
{{lang|ar|قُوّة القوى}}
{{lang|ar|يغلب كلّ شيء لطيف، يدخل في كلّ شيء غليظ،}}
{{lang|ar|على تكوين العالَم الأكبر تكوّن العمل،}}
{{lang|ar|فهذا فَخْرِي ولذلك سُمّيتُ هرمس المثلَّث بالحكمة.}}|(a) truth; no doubt [it] is true
indeed, the uppermost is from the lowermost and the lowermost is from the uppermost,
[it] worked the wonders from one, (just) as all things come from one ''by means of one plan/with one considered act'',
[its] father is the sun, [its] mother is the moon,
the wind carried [it] in her womb, the earth fed [it],
father of talismans, keeper of wonders, perfect in power,
fire became earth, separate{{Efn|[[Arabic verbs#Mood|Imperative]] directed at a male recipient.}} the earth from the fire,
the ''soft/delicate/gentle/subtle'' is more noble than the ''crude/rough/unintelligent/gross'',
with gentle-being and wisdom [it] ascends from the earth to the heaven and descends to the earth from the heaven,
and in [it] is the power of the uppermost and the lowermost,
since with [it] is the light of lights therefore the darkness escapes (away) from [it],
power of powers
it prevails over everything ''soft/delicate/gentle/subtle'', enters into everything ''crude/rough/unintelligent/gross'',
against the creation of the macrocosm the work was created,
this is my renown and therefore I am named Hermes the threefold with the wisdom.|italicsoff=n|rtl1=y|attr1={{harvnb|Weisser|1979|pp=524–525}}.|attr2=literal translation; multiple possible meanings have been given in italics; since [[Arabic nouns and adjectives#Gender|Arabic only has two grammatical genders]] and the translated pronoun is grammatically male, [it/its] can also be translated as [he/his/him].{{Efn|This translation was prepared by Wikipedia editors. A translation based on the superseded edition of {{harvnb|Ruska|1926|pp=158–159}} may also be found in {{harvnb|Rosenthal|1975}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Rosenthal|1975|pp=247–248}}.</ref>}}}}</blockquote><!-- This translation was originally discussed by editors at https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Talk:Emerald_Tablet&oldid=1196101399#Serrol_Khaleeqe_translation_and_such -->
[[File:Emerald_Tablet_Majles_Library_MS_14456;IR1526.jpg|thumb|245x245px|Nineteenth-century Arabic text of the ''Emerald Tablet'' and part of its frame story in the ''Book of the Secret of Creation.'' (man. Tehran, Majles Library, ''14456/IR1526'').]]
The introduction to the ''Book of the Secret of Creation'' presents a narrative that outlines key philosophical and alchemical ideas. It explains that all things are composed of four elemental qualities—heat, cold, moisture, and dryness—drawn from [[Classical element#Aristotle|Aristotelian theory]]. These elements and their combinations are said to determine the sympathetic or antagonistic relationships between beings. In the [[frame story]], Balīnūs, a legendary figure known as the ''Master of Talismans'',{{Efn|{{langx|ar|صاحب الطلسمات|translit=sāḥib al-ṭilasmāt}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Raggetti|2019|p=156}}.</ref>}} discovers a crypt beneath a statue of Hermes Trismegistus. Inside, he finds a tablet made of [[emerald]], held by an old man seated with a book.{{Efn|"The Lineage and Cause of the Wisdom of Balīnūs<br>
<br>
Now I shall inform you of my origin and the cause of my wisdom. I was an orphan from among the people of Ṭuwāna ({{langx|ar|طوانة}}), possessing nothing. In my city stood a statue of Hermes, erected upon a column of glass. Upon it was inscribed in the primordial tongue:
“I am Hermes Trismegistus ({{langx|ar|هرمس المثلث بالحكمة|Hirmis al-Muthallath bi-'l-Ḥikma}}). I manifested this sign openly, and veiled it through my wisdom, so that none may reach it except a sage like myself.”
And upon the front of the column was written:
“Whosoever desires to know the Secret of Creation ({{langx|ar|سر الخليقة|sirr al-khalīqa}}) and the Craft of Nature ({{langx|ar|صنعة الطبيعة|ṣanʿa al-ṭabīʿa}}), let him look beneath my feet.”<br>
<br>
The people paid no attention to these words and merely gazed beneath the statue’s feet, yet they saw nothing.
As for me, I was weak in nature, but when I grew and my nature matured, and I read the inscription on the column, I grasped its meaning. I went and stood beneath the column, and behold—I discovered a dark subterranean passage, a lair ({{langx|ar|سرب|sarab}}), into which no sunlight penetrated.<br>
<br>
When I attempted to enter it, turbulent winds arose within, unceasing, so that I could not enter due to the darkness, and my flame would not remain lit because of the force of the wind.<br>
<br>
This troubled me deeply, and sorrow filled my heart. Overcome by fatigue and reflection upon my hardship, I fell asleep, burdened and distressed.
Then, in my dream, I saw an old man resembling me in form and appearance. He said to me:<br>
“O Balīnūs, arise and enter this lair, that you may reach the knowledge of the Secret of Creation and perceive the Craft of Nature.”
I said: “I cannot see in its darkness, and my fire does not remain lit because of the wind.”<br>
He replied:<br>
“O Balīnūs, place your light in a clear vessel ({{langx|ar|إناء صاف|ināʾ ṣāfin}}), so that the wind may not reach it. Thus, you will see by it in the darkness.”<br>
<br>
This delighted me, and I realised that I had attained my goal.
I asked him: “Who are you, that you have bestowed this grace upon me?”
He said: “I am your Perfect Nature ({{langx|ar|طبيعتك التامة|ṭabīʿatuka al-tāmma}}).”<br>
<br>
I awoke full of joy, placed my flame in a clear vessel as instructed, and entered the passage. There I saw an old man seated upon a throne of gold. In his hand was a tablet of green emerald ({{langx|ar|زبرجد أخضر|zabarjad akhḍar}} or {{langx|ar|زمرذ أخضر|zumurrudh akhḍar}}), upon which was written:<br>
“This is the Craft of Nature.”<br>
And in front of him lay a book bearing the inscription:<br>
“This is the Secret of Creation ({{langx|ar|سر الخليقة|sirr al-khalīqa}}) and the Knowledge of the Causes of Things ({{langx|ar|علم علل الأشياء|ʿilm ʿilal al-ashyāʾ}}).”<br>
<br>
I took the book and the tablet with a tranquil heart and departed from the passage.
From the book, I learned the Secret of Creation, and from the tablet, I comprehended the Craft of Nature. I acquired the Science of the Causes of Things ({{langx|ar|علم علل الأشياء|ʿilm ʿilal al-ashyāʾ}}), and my name rose to prominence through wisdom. I created talismans and marvels, and came to understand the temperaments of the four natures ({{langx|ar|الطبائع الأربع|al-ṭabāʾiʿ al-arbaʿ}}), their compositions, their oppositions, and their harmonies."<ref>{{harvnb|Weisser|1979|pp=5-7}}; {{harvnb|Weisser|1980|pp=74-75}}; {{harvnb|Kahn|1994|pp=XVI-XVII}}.</ref>}}<ref>{{harvnb|Ebeling|2007|pp=46–47, 96}}.</ref> The central part of the text is an alchemical treatise, notable for introducing—for the first time—the theory that all metals are formed from two basic substances: [[sulfur|sulphur]] and [[Mercury (element)|mercury]]. This concept later became a foundational idea in medieval alchemy.<ref>{{harvnb|Kahn|1994|p=|pp=XIII-XIV}}.</ref> [[Emerald]] was the stone traditionally associated with Hermes, while [[Mercury (element)|quicksilver]] was his metal and [[Mercury (planet)|Mercury]] his planet. [[Mars (mythology)|Mars]] was associated with red stones and [[iron]], and [[Saturn (mythology)|Saturn]] with black stones and [[lead]].<ref>{{harvnb|Ruska|1926|p=115}}.</ref> People in antiquity thought of various green-coloured minerals—such as green [[jasper]] and even green [[granite]]—as emerald.<ref>{{harvnb|Steele|Singer|1927|p=|pp=488/44}}; {{harvnb|Arié|1990|p=159}}; {{harvnb|Lindsay|1986|p=202}}.</ref>

The text of the ''Emerald Tablet'' appears in the ''Book of the Secret of Creation'' as an appendix. It has long been debated whether it is an extraneous piece, solely cosmogonic in nature, or whether it is an integral part of the rest of the work, in which case it could have had an alchemical significance from the outset.<ref>{{harvnb|Kahn|1994|p=|pp=XVI-XVII}}.</ref> It has been suggested that the ''Emerald Tablet'' was originally a text of [[talismanic magic]] that was only later understood as being alchemical in nature.<ref>{{harvnb|Mandosio|2004b|pp=682–683, 686}}; {{harvnb|Kahn|2016|pp=22–23}}.</ref> This may have been due to it having been divorced from its original context in the ''Book of the Secret of Creation''; and instead having been commonly transmitted through the alchemical treatise containing the ''vulgate''.<ref>{{harvnb|Kahn|2016|pp=22–23}}.</ref>
[[File:1620 Woodprint Guǎn Zǐ Vol 4 Scroll 16 Chapter 49 Nèi Yè Fol 2.jpg|left|thumb|217x217px|1620 [[Woodblock printing|woodblock print]] of the beginning of the [[Guanzi (text)|''Guanzi'']] section Tzu-Kung hypothesised to be the origin of the ''Emerald Tablet''.]]
[[Julius Ruska]] observed that the ''Tablet''<nowiki/>'s cosmogony in the ''Book of the Secret of Creation'' seemed neither Islamic, [[Zoroastrianism|Iranian]], nor Christian. He speculated that it might reflect [[Ancient Mesopotamian religion|Chaldean]], [[Sabians|Harranian]], or [[Gnosticism|gnostic]] ideas from the regions northeast of Iran, along the [[Silk Road]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Ruska|1926|p=167}}.</ref>{{Efn|Along similar lines, {{ill|Wilhelm Ganzenmüller|de}} had argued that all of Arab alchemy was built on a mix of pre-Islamic traditions from north-eastern Iran and the land route to India, with other influences from gnostic Christians and ancient Egypt.<ref>{{Harvnb|Ganzenmüller|1938|p=32}}.</ref>}} Chang Tzu-Kung proposed an origin further east<ref>{{Harvnb|Tzu-Kung|1972}}; {{Harvnb|Needham|Ping-yü|Gwei-djen|Sivin|1980|pp=|p=370}}.</ref>—as he believed Hermes Trismegistus to have been [[Chinese people|Chinese]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Needham|Ping-yü|Gwei-djen|Sivin|1980|pp=412}}.</ref> He noted that Chinese [[Aphorism#Philosophy|aphorisms]] commonly hailed from legendary slabs and steles in caves and temples.<ref>{{Harvnb|Needham|Ping-yü|Gwei-djen|Sivin|1980|pp=|p=372}}.</ref> Tzu-Kung produced a speculative Chinese rendition of the ''Tablet'',{{Efn|The crux of which is reproduced by {{Harvnb|Needham|Ping-yü|Gwei-djen|Sivin|1980}} using Ruska's translation.<ref>{{Harvnb|Needham|Ping-yü|Gwei-djen|Sivin|1980|pp=371}}</ref>}}<ref>{{Harvnb|Needham|Ping-yü|Gwei-djen|Sivin|1980|pp=|p=370}}.</ref> which he based on [[John Read (chemist)|John Read]]'s ''vulgate'' translation.''<ref>{{Harvnb|Read|1937|p=54}}; {{Harvnb|Needham|Ping-yü|Gwei-djen|Sivin|1980|pp=|p=370}}.</ref>'' He then claimed the ''Tablet'''s origin to be a [[Han dynasty]] (202 BCE – 220 CE) [[Taoist]] text known as the [[Guanzi (text)|''Guanzi'']].{{Efn|{{Langx|zh|管子|Guǎn Zǐ}} More specifically, Tzu-Kung believed to have found the origin of the ''Tablet'' in chapter 49, called 'Inward Training' ({{Langx|zh|[[wikisource:zh:管子/第49篇內業|內業]]|Nèiyè|label=none}}). This section is a text of rhymed prose on [[Ataraxia|ataraxy]], cosmic harmony, and breathing aspects of [[Neidan|internal alchemy]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Needham|Ping-yü|Gwei-djen|Sivin|1980|pp=372}}</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Needham|Ping-yü|Gwei-djen|Sivin|1980|pp=|p=372}}.</ref> There are, however, no direct parallelisms between this text and the ''Tablet''.}} [[Joseph Needham]] rejected this theory as not yet having been sufficiently proved.{{Efn|However, he fundamentally agreed with the idea that the ''Tablet'' could have some relation to Chinese thought.<ref>{{Harvnb|Needham|Ping-yü|Gwei-djen|Sivin|1980|p=370}}.</ref> Additionally, he suggested that other parts of the ''Secret of Creation'' might have Chinese origins, but he lacked access to the Arabic text to explore this further.<ref>{{Harvnb|Needham|Ping-yü|Gwei-djen|Sivin|1980|pp=373-374}}.</ref>}}<ref>{{Harvnb|Needham|Ping-yü|Gwei-djen|Sivin|1980|p=373}}.</ref>

=== Jabir ibn Hayyan ===

Another early version of the ''Emerald Tablet'' is found in the ''Second Book of the Element of the Foundation'' ({{langx|ar|كتاب أسطقس الأسّ الثاني|Kitāb Usṭuqus al-Uss al-Thānī|link=no}}) attributed to the eighth-century alchemist [[Jabir ibn Hayyan]].{{Efn|Commonly known in Europe by the [[Latinisation of names|latinised name]] ''Geber''. On the dating of the texts attributed to Jābir, see {{harvnb|Kraus|1943}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1943|pp=274–275}}.</ref>}}<ref>{{harvnb|Zirnis|1979|pp=64–65, 90}}.</ref> In this somewhat shorter version, lines 6, 8, and 11–15 as found in the ''Secret of Creation'' are missing. Other parts appear to be corrupt.<ref>{{harvnb|Holmyard|1923}}; cf. {{harvnb|Ruska|1926|p=121}}.</ref> It reads:
{{Verse translation|{{lang|ar|حقا يقينا لا شك فيه}}
{{lang|ar|إن الأعلى من الأسفل والأسفل من الأعلى}}
{{lang|ar|عمل العجائب من واحد كما كانت الأشياء كلها من واحد}}
{{lang|ar|وأبوه الشمس  وأمه القمر}}
{{lang|ar|حملته الأرض في بطنها وغذته الريح في بطنها}}
{{lang|ar|نار صارت أرضا}}
{{lang|ar|اغذوا الأرض من اللطيف}}
{{lang|ar|بقوة القوى يصعد من الأرض إلى السماء}}
{{lang|ar|فيكون مسلطا على الأعلى والأسفل}}|Truth! Certainty! That in which there is no doubt!
That which is above is from that which is below, and that which is below is from that which is above,
working the miracles of one [thing]. As all things were from One.
Its father is the Sun and its mother the Moon.
The Earth carried it in her belly, and the Wind nourished it in her belly,
as Earth which shall become Fire.
Feed the Earth from that which is subtle,
with the greatest power. It ascends from the earth to the heaven
and becomes ruler over that which is above and that which is below.|italicsoff=n|rtl1=y|attr1={{harvnb|Zirnis|1979|p=64}}.|attr2={{harvnb|Holmyard|1923}}.}}

=== ''Secret of Secrets'' ===
<!--[[File:Tabula ex Sirr Asrar 17th century.jpg|left|thumb|222x222px|Arabic text of the ''Emerald Tablet'' from a 1627 [[Secretum Secretorum|Secret of Secrets]] (man. Paris'', Arabe 2417''). ]] this image may be used elsewhere in the article-->
[[File:Emerald Tablet Landberg 121.jpg|thumb|left|Fourteenth-century Arabic text of the ''Emerald Tablet'' from the [[Secretum Secretorum|''Secret of Secrets'']] (man. Berlin, ''Landberg 121'').]]
Another text of the ''Emerald Tablet'' is found towards the end of the tenth-century [[pseudo-Aristotelian]] work known as the [[Secretum Secretorum|''Secret of Secrets'']].{{Efn|{{langx|la|Secretum Secretorum}}; {{langx|ar|سرّ الأسرار|Sirr al-Asrār}}. Arabic text edited by {{harvnb|Badawi|1954}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Badawi|1954|pp=166–167}}.</ref>}}{{Efn|On the dating of this work, see {{harvnb|Manzalaoui|1974}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Manzalaoui|1974|pp=157-166}}.</ref>}} This entire treatise is framed as a [[pseudepigraphic]]al letter from [[Aristotle]] to [[Alexander the Great]] during the latter's conquest of Persia and is introduced via a number of letters between the two.{{Efn|Though the wording by [[Ibn Juljul]] could suggest this framing was a non-essential addition to the treatise.<ref>{{harvnb|Manzalaoui|1974|p=158}}.</ref>}} It discusses politics, morality, [[physiognomy]], astrology, alchemy, medicine, and more.<ref>{{harvnb|Manzalaoui|1974|pp=158-159, 164, 167, 193}}.</ref>

It reads:

<blockquote>
<poem>
{{center|
{{lang|ar|حقا يقينا لا شك فيه}}
{{lang|ar|أن الأسفل من الأعلى والأعلى من الأسفل}}
{{lang|ar|عمل العجائب من واحد بتدبير واحد كما نشأت الأشياء من جوهر واحد}}
{{lang|ar|أبوه الشمس  وأمه القمر}}
{{lang|ar|حملته الريح في بطنها، وغذته الأرض بلبانها}}
{{lang|ar|أبو الطلسمات، خازن العجائب، كامل القوى}}
{{lang|ar|فان صارت أرضا اعزل الأرض من النار اللطيف}}
{{lang|ar|أكرم من الغليظ}}
{{lang|ar|برفق وحكمة تصعد من الأرض إلى السماء وتهبط إلى الأرض}}
{{lang|ar|فتقبل قوة الأعلى والأسفل}}
{{lang|ar|لأن معك نور الأنوار فلهذا تهرب عنك الظلمة}}
{{lang|ar|قوة القوى}}
{{lang|ar|تغلب كل شيء لطيف يدخل على كل شيء كثيف}}
{{lang|ar|على تقدير العالم الأكبر}}
{{lang|ar|هذا فخري ولهذا سمّيت هرمس المثلّث بالحكمة اللدنية}}<ref>{{harvnb|Badawi|1954|pp=166–167}}.</ref>
}}
</poem>
</blockquote>

=== Ibn Umayl ===
[[File:Ibn Umayl The Silvery Water.jpg|thumb|303x303px|Fourteenth-century depiction of [[Ibn Umayl]]'s discovery story in a pyramid from manuscript ''Book of the Silvery Water and the Starry Earth''. (man. Topkapı Palace Library, man. ''Ahmet III 2075'').]]
Similarly, an Arabic treatise called the ''Book of the Silvery Water and the Starry Earth''{{Efn|{{langx|ar|كتاب الماء الورقي والأرض النجمية|Kitāb al-Māʾ al-Waraqī wa-'l-Arḍ al-Najmiyya}}.}} by [[Ibn Umayl]]{{Efn|Whose name is at time [[Latinisation of names|latinised]] to ''Senior Zadith''.}} reproduces a version of the ''Tablet''.<ref>{{harvnb|Stapleton|Lewis|Taylor|1949|p=81}}.</ref> This treatise was translated as {{Langx|la|Tabula Chemica|4=Chemical Tablet}}''.''<ref>{{harvnb|Ibn Umayl|1933|p=|pp=117-118}}.</ref> In this version of the frame story, a stone table is discovered, resting on the knees of Hermes Trismegistus in the secret chamber of a pyramid. However, this table does not contain the ''Tablet'' text which is repeated later in the treatise.<ref>{{harvnb|Stapleton|Lewis|Taylor|1949|p=81}}.</ref> It is instead inscribed with writing described as {{Langx|ar|بيرباوي|bīrbāwī|hieroglyphic; of the pyramid}}.{{Efn|"We went towards the Pyramid (''Birbāʾ'') which the keepers opened, and I saw on the roof of the galleries<sup>1</sup> of the Pyramid a picture of Nine Eagles with out-spread wings, as if they were flying, and with outstretched and open claws. In the claw of each of the eagles was a thing like the fully-drawn bow which is used by soldiers (''Jund'': MSS. P. and L. ''Ḵẖail'' ‘cavalry’). On the wall of the gallery on the right side of any one entering the Pyramid, and on the left side, were pictures of people standing, most perfect in shape and beauty, wearing clothes of various colours and having their hands stretched out towards a figure seated inside the Pyramid, near the pillar of the gate of the Hall. The image was situated to the left hand of whoever desired to enter into the Hall, facing the person who entered from the gallery. The image was (seated) in a chair, like those used by physicians, the chair being separate from the figure. In its lap, resting on the arms—the two hands of the figure being stretched out on its knees—was a stone slab (''balāṭah'')—also separate—the length of which was about 1 cubit, and the breadth about 1 span. The fingers of both its hands were bent behind the slab, as if holding it. The slab was like an open book, exhibited to all who entered as if to suggest that they should look at it. On the side, viz., in the Hall (''riwāq'') where the image was situated, were different pictures, and inscriptions in hieroglyphic (''bīrbāwī'') writing. The tablet which was in the lap of the image was divided into two halves by a line down the middle: and on one half of it towards the bottom, was a picture of two birds having their breasts (contiguous) to one another. One of them had both wings cut off, and the other had both wings (intact). Each of them held fast the tail of the other by its beak as if the flying bird wished to fly with the mutilated bird, and the mutilated bird wished to keep the flying bird with itself. These two linked birds that were holding one another appeared like a circle, a symbol of 'Two in One'. Above the head of the one that was flying was a circle and, above these two birds, at the top of the tablet close to the fingers of the image (''sic!''), was the representation of the crescent moon (''hilāl''). At the side of the Moon was a circle, similar to the circle near the two birds at the bottom. The total (of these symbols) is Five—3 at the bottom, ''viz''., two birds and the circle: and, above, the figure of the Crescent Moon and another circle."<ref>{{harvnb|Ibn Umayl|1933|pp=119-120}}.</ref>}}

The literary theme of the discovery of Hermes' hidden wisdom can be found in other Arabic texts from around the tenth century. The introduction of the Book of Crates provides one such example. In the narrative a Greek philosopher named Crates{{Efn|{{langx|ar| قراطس|Qarāṭas}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Ruska|1924|p=12, 20}}.</ref> Possibly a corrupted Arabic version of the name [[Pseudo-Democritus|Democritus]].<ref>{{harvnb|Houdas|1893|p=9}}; {{harvnb|Ruska|1924|p=26}}.</ref>}} is praying in the temple [[Serapeum|''Sarapieion'']].{{Efn|{{langx|ar|ساراوندين|Sārāwandīn}}. {{harvnb|Faivre|1988}} and {{harvnb|Houdas|1893}} merely translate this to mean the ''Temple of [[Serapis]]''.<ref>{{harvnb|Faivre|1988|p=98}}; {{harvnb|Houdas|1893 |p=46}}</ref> But Ruska points out that {{transliteration|ar|Sārāwandīn}} is the Arabised version of [[Serapeum|Sarapieion]] and that {{langx|ar|سَرافِيل|Sarāfīl}} is the Arabised version of Serapis—with the particle ''īl'' being reminiscent of the Arabisation of Hebrew angel names like {{langx|ar|جبريل|Jibrīl|lit=Gabriel}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Ruska|1924|p=14}}.</ref>}} While in prayer he has a vision of the ancient sage.<ref>{{Harvnb|Ruska|1926|p=|pp=137-139}}; {{Harvnb|Ruska|1924|p=16}}; {{Harvnb|Faivre|1988|p=98}}.</ref> It reads:

{{Blockquote|text="Then I saw an old man, the most beautiful of men, seated on a chair. He was dressed in white garments and held in his hand a board attached to the chair, upon which rested a book. Before him were wondrous vessels, the most marvellous I had ever seen. When I asked who this old man was, I was told: ''He is Hermes Trismegistus, and the book before him is one of those that contain the explanation of the secrets he concealed from humankind.''"<ref>{{harvnb|Houdas|1893|pp=46-47}}.</ref>}}