Full Translation:
0) When I entered into the cave, I received the tablet zaradi, which was inscribed, from between the hands of Hermes, in which I discovered these words:
1) True, without falsehood, certain, most certain.
2) What is above is like what is below, and what is below is like that which is above. To make the miracle of the one thing.
3) And as all things were made from contemplation of one, so all things were born from one adaptation.
4) Its father is the Sun, its mother is the Moon.
5) The wind carried it in its womb, the earth breast fed it.
6) It is the father of all ‘works of wonder’ (Telesmi) in the world.
6a) Its power is complete (integra).
7) If cast to (turned towards – versa fuerit) earth,
7a) it will separate earth from fire, the subtile from the gross.
8) With great capacity it ascends from earth to heaven. Again it descends to earth, and takes back the power of the above and the below.
9) Thus you will receive the glory of the distinctiveness of the world. All obscurity will flee from you.
10) This is the whole most strong strength of all strength, for it overcomes all subtle things, and penetrates all solid things.
11a) Thus was the world created.
12) From this comes marvelous adaptations of which this is the procedure.
13) Therefore I am called Hermes, because I have three parts of the wisdom of the whole world.
14) And complete is what I had to say about the work of the Sun, from the book of Galieni Alfachimi.
Translation Context
This version of the Tablet emerged from a 12th-century Latin translation of Arabic texts by European scholars working in Spain. Likely associated with translators such as Gerard of Cremona or pseudo-Appellations, this version marks one of the earliest Western access points to Hermetic literature.
Its style is raw, mystic, and liturgically formal. The phrase “I entered into the cave” serves as a direct symbolic ritual entry—unlike later renderings, this version preserves the esoteric initiation as literal narrative. Its emphasis on “contemplation” and “Telesmi” (wonder-workings) shows how the translator aimed to preserve both mystical and technical layers of the text.
Key philosophical concepts such as “contemplation of one,” “adaptation,” and “distinctiveness” reveal a Christian-Platonic attempt to harmonize ancient esotericism with scholastic medieval thought.
Axiom-by-Axiom Interpretive Notes
Axiom 0: Unique to this translation, the prefatory cave scene adds mythic legitimacy. It suggests Hermetic knowledge is earned through descent and transmission—a ritual offering rather than a logical statement.
Axiom 3: “Contemplation of one” replaces technical causation with mystical cognition. This is not cause-and-effect—it is gnosis.
Axiom 6: The use of “Telesmi” rather than “miracle” or “marvel” reveals a Greek-Egyptian magical inheritance. This is one of the few times the Tablet directly ties into theurgy and operative spiritual power.
Axiom 7a: “Versa fuerit” connotes orientation, not only action. The alchemical operation depends on intent and posture, not just mechanics—a subtle but profound shift in metaphysics.
Axiom 14: “From the book of Galieni Alfachimi” roots the Tablet in a lineage. This attribution reveals the translator’s attempt to validate Hermetic knowledge through named transmission, echoing medieval scholastic practices.