Page:Apollonius of Tyana - the pagan Christ of the third century.pdf/32

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APOLLONIUS OF TYANA.
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wise men of India are constantly interrupted by a series of events the marvellousness of which is always on the increase. At one time tripods are seen to move of their own accord; at another, vessels of brass containing a refreshing beverage present themselves to the lips of the thirsty; a cup is miraculously replenished the moment it has been emptied; there is a stone, too, which attracts all others to itself; and all this to illustrate a pantheistic doctrine, according to which the world is an animated creature, male and female in itself, in order to be self-creating, and under the government of one supreme god, who is aided by a number of subordinate gods, who form a part of the one great whole. Apollonius is soon initiated by his hosts in the science of astrology and divination. Damis was not admitted to these meetings, and as Apollonius thought fit to keep his secret knowledge to himself, Philostratus was unable to reveal the nature of the queen of sciences. At last, after five months of wonderment and study, Apollonius left the wise men who had stored his mind with