8o8 GLOSSARY
"holy Adam" (Greek hier-adamas). Others have related Geradamas to the name Adam
and the Greek word for "old" (geron), thus indicating "old Adam."
Ghuluw "Exaggeration," radical thinking within Islam, including mystical and gnostic re-
flection. One of the leading ghulat, or "exaggerators," was Abdallah ibn Saba, who lived
in Kufa, Iraq, where the Mother of Books came from.
Ginza Treasure, also called the Great Book. Sacred text of the Mandaeans, with two main
sections, the Right Ginza and the Left Ginza.
Glossolalia Ecstatic speech, understood to be the language of the heavenly realms, as in the
Baptismal Ceremony of the Gospel of the Egyptians, the Paraphrase of Shem, and the
Discourse on the Eighth and the Ninth.
Gnosis Knowledge, especially mystical knowledge and insight. Knowledge of god and self
offers the way of salvation in gnostic texts.
Gog and Magog Powers on the earth, referred to in the Bible (Genesis 10:2; 1 Chronicles
1:5; Ezekiel 38-39; Revelation 20:8), the Qur'an (sura 18), and the Mother of Books.
Good Name of the transcendent deity in the Book of Baruch, also in the Book of Thomas.
The Good is an ethical and metaphysical principle in Greco-Roman philosophy, espe-
cially platonism, and an attribute of the divine in Judaism and other religions.
Great king of honor One of the five sons of the living spirit, sent out to help the primal
man, in Manichaean thought. Referred to in the Kephalaia.
Habshaba Sunday, observed as a holy day in Mandaean religion.
Hades God and realm of the dead in Greek thought. See also TARTAROS.
Harith Druze name for the devil, a name for Azazi'il in the Mother of Books.
Harmozel One of the luminaries in gnostic thought.
Hasan Son of Ali, grandson of Muhammad the prophet, martyr of Shi'ite Islam, figure of
the divine realm of five in the Mother of Books.
Hebdomad See SEVEN.
Helen Helen of Troy, for whose sake the Trojan War was fought, in Homer. Sometimes
connected to Helena, companion of Simon Magus and expression of the first thought
of the divine. Referred to in the Exegesis on the Soul.
Herakles Hercules, hero of Greek mythology, who accomplished twelve mighty labors. Re-
ferred to in the Book of Baruch.
Hermaphrodite Character in Greek mythology who is androgynous, that is, male-female.
Referred to in On the Origin of the World. See ANDROGYNY.
Hermes Messenger god in Greek mythology. Hermes Trismegistos is the divine father of
hermetic religion. Hermes is identified with the Egyptian god Thoth, god of wisdom
and divine scribe, and with the planet Mercury in the Discourse on the Eighth and
Ninth. See also NBU.
Herodotos Greek historian of the Persian Wars. Referred to in the Book of Baruch.
Hewath Possibly "serpent," nickname of Ruha in Mandaean sources. See SERPENT.
Hibil Heavenly Abel, a messenger of light, in Mandaean thought.
High king Transcendent deity, in the Mother of Books.
Himeros God of desire who was linked to Eros in Greek mythology. Referred to in On the
Origin of the World.
Homer Greek poet, author to whom the Iliad and the Odyssey are attributed. Referred to
as "the poet" and cited in the Exegesis on the Soul and the Naassene Sermon.