The Maranatha Puzzle included thirty-one pages of pig-pen text. Thirty of those coded pages consisted of 156 characters in a 12×13 block form. One page, however, consisted of only 103 characters. 53 spaces were left blank. Upon decipherment the page was seen to include the following phrase:
“Contentment is the Philosopher’s Stone. Without me the rich are poor and with me the poor are rich.”
This ‘contentment page’ was a mystery for many puzzlers. The uniqueness of the page’s format suggested more was to be discovered or understood about the page.
I often felt the contentment page could be representative of a man’s heart. One of my reasoning’s for this falls with following an interpretation I made for the lines; “Where the red serpents of Icknield and Ermine gathered to protect the tomb of Rosenkreutz and the gold of Enoch, here buried above him.”
Most puzzlers would agree part of this puzzle’s phrase seemed to allude to the red cross. The March 2006 clue seemed to suggest it, as well:
“White is the land of the beast! The Red Serpents cross the land, like the blood on the Shield of Joseph. Are you like those who came, saw, and conquered? Have you discovered the secret history of the standard of this land?”
As the Maranatha companion book was to help with puzzler’s thoughts, I was interested in finding statements concerning ‘where’ a red or crimson cross could be discovered. On page 61 (of the companion), the legend of the special birthmark between the shoulder blades of the Merovingian Kings was shared. The mark was a crimson or red cross.
Allegorically taken then, between the shoulder blades could refer to the ‘heart’ of man, and this race could have been believed born with a secret mark on their hearts.
On page 19 of the companion, the painting, The Shepherds of Arcadia by Poussin is talked about. While discussing the painting, it is specifically mentioned the woman “rests her hand between the shoulder blades of the apprentice.” The painting is connected to the mystery of Rennes le Chateau, and it would seem possible the ‘red cross or the special mark between the shoulder blades’ is being suggested.
Taking this information back to the puzzle book does conjure up some fascinating finds. Working with the last part of the above puzzle line, Here buried above him, resulted in a possible interpretation of ‘The Heart of the Book’.
Remembering this is a puzzle, the word HIM is on page 34 of the book (original) and ABOVE HIM (the word HIM), are the letters OFT; which also happen to be at the Heart of the book (the center/eye)(The center letters of the pigpen text are on page 23 and they are the letters OFT). Could then, ‘here buried above him’ (implying buried in the heart) support the historical information learned about the Merovingian kings and support ‘where the red serpents of Icknield and Ermine gathered to protect the tomb of Rosenkruetz and the gold of Enoch?’
Here, then, at the ‘heart of the book’ conjure the beast…..
But, since this has been said to be a ‘layered puzzle’ and each step offers deeper understanding, ‘Where else is the Heart of the Book? Could it be between the shoulders? There are only two ‘shoulder’ words in the puzzle book and it is found that the letter ‘I’ (eye/center/heart) is what rests between them.
It is in position 103 of the pigpen text on page 30 and involves the word TIME. The word TIME in itself is intriguing. For those who remember the many promotions of the puzzle, it seemed to always comprise of the word TIME. For example, “Take a journey through TIME to solve a very real mystery” or “Time Monk presents…The ultimate treasure hunt through TIME’ or ‘Real clues and secrets have been lost in TIME.’ If the ‘I of time’ is likened to Man’s Heart, because it rests between the shoulders, then the puzzle is telling us to ‘Take a journey through ‘the heart’ to solve a very real mystery’.
The position of 103 and letter I, very easily could indicate the ‘Heart of the Book’ is the ‘contentment page’ which consists of only 103 characters and would provide one of the purposes for its mystery format.
I know, some puzzlers may disagree, and I will not force my thoughts on anyone. I am only sharing what I have found interesting. I suppose I personally love the above interpretations because I feel the word NOTHING in the line; ‘So from ‘Nothing’ is the Key revealed, as the tree grows such does the lead become gold’ could refer to the 53 nothing spaces as one possible meaning. Those who have studied Alchemy know many words/sentences often hold multiple hidden meanings and applications. Below is only a possible one.
If 103 is the heart, and because the page is ‘out of balance’ with the rest of the pages by missing spaces, I love the thought of Nothing equating to the ‘balance of the heart’. (103 +53 (nothing)=156 (the whole) It offers a ‘balance’.
“So from ‘the balance of the heart’ is the Key revealed, as the tree grows such does the lead become gold.”
I also like the replacement of ‘Me’ with ‘the balance of the heart’ in the before mentioned phrase on the page.
“Contentment is the Philosopher’s Stone. Without ‘the balance of the heart’ the rich are poor and with ‘the balance of the heart’ the poor are rich.”
Thanks again, Jenny. Your posts certainly cover a wide range of material. P. 38 of the “Et in Arcadia Ego” puzzle does indeed seem to be the climax of the puzzle.
My attention was often drawn to the differentiation between the (could have been) standard use of IT vs the actual use of ME in the p. 38 verse. As to personify and link the King and Contentment. These letters IT + ME themselves forming EMIT and TIME.
Also, regarding the 103 letters on p. 38, as relates to “in four scenes is the Key hidden, in the unbalanced divide of their number” and using the numeric correspondence for GOLD = 38.
astree
“In four scenes is the key hidden” refers to the tree of life that appeared on the “solution” PDF.
I think the reason ME was used instead of IT isn’t mainly because the two words combine to make TIME, though that could be part of it. The main reason was because those letters were more useful to generate other messages. I suggest you take the sentence and write it on a grid of 4×12, without any spaces. (Think about 4 seasons and 12 months or signs of the Zodiac). You will be able to read some messages vertically.
Sure you have my permission, Nate…lol…would you like a ‘page’? I can put your commentary in under a category of ‘guest posts’….so it won’t get lost in the comment section, if wanted. You can let me know.
And again, as always, thanks for all the above thoughts.
Astree, as I feel the puzzle suggests ‘Two to become One’, your TIME (with IT and Me), I found very interesting. I wonder if that one clue…’The power of the secret is not what IT is, IT is how IT is used'(I hope I have that right, I am writing it by memory)…but I wonder if a layer of meaning wasn’t to suggest the IT is used with ME?
The wording of the puzzle is clunky throughout. That suggests hidden words all over it, doesn’t it?
I don’t think that “time” between the “shoulders” has particular significance.
“White is the land of the beast! The Red Serpents cross the land, like the blood on the Shield of Joseph. Are you like those who came, saw, and conquered? Have you discovered the secret history of the standard of this land?”
This clue refers to the flag of England (not the same as the UK). The beast is probably the golden lion in the coat of arms of England. The red serpents are the horizontal and vertical arms of the cross. In Maranatha, staffs and serpents are used interchangeably, because they both indicate instruments of measure. Joseph refers to Joseph of Arimatea. The cross of St George that is now the flag of England was originally used in France. “Veni, vidi, vinci” (came, saw and conquered) was used by Julius Caesar to describe his conquest of Gaul, later called France. The correct proportions of the flag are worth checking.
I think all of the above is correct, but in addition, I think the same clue was referring to the standard of Constantine the Great, with the letters chi-ro (or X-P, if you believe, as I do, that they are Latin rather than Greek letters). “Veni, vidi, vinci” is a clear reference to the Roman Empire. And the blood on the shield of Joseph could refer to the conquest of Judea by the Romans.
“Where the red serpents of Icknield and Ermine gathered to protect the tomb of Rosenkreutz and the gold of Enoch here buried above him”
The serpents refer to the fifth image in the Maranatha puzzle, with two coiled serpents. Icknield and Ermine are roads that made a famous crossroad in Middle Age England, and indicate you must draw a cross. The tomb of Rosenkreutz and the gold of Enoch are two ways of referring to the secret. “Him” refers to Solomon (from the previous sentence).
Initially I didn’t pay too much attention to the fact that the serpents are described as “red”. But now I’m fairly sure that it’s a reference to the cross of Jerusalem, the Templar cross and the flag of England. Their geometry is all related.
I don’t think “OFT” is significant… at least I can’t see how it fits with anything else.
The book draws attention to the woman’s hand on the shoulders of the shepherd in red in the painting “Et in Arcadia ego” because there is a significant line going through her hand.
It could also be a reference to the tribe of Benjamin, as in Deuteronomy 33:12: “And of Benjamin he said, The beloved of the Lord shall dwell in safety by him; and the Lord shall cover him all the day long, and he shall dwell between his shoulders.”
The tribe of Benjamin has some interesting connections:
1. A number of associations with the Merovingians, including the birthmark between the shoulders, and the 23rd of December being both Benjamin’s and Dagobert’s feast day. Some place names in the area ruled by Merovingian kings appear to have Jewish origins: Baalon, Avioth, Mount Semita later called Mount Sion.
2. The most devoted disciple of Hiram, builder of the Temple of Solomon, was Benoni, which was also the first name of Benjamin, before her mother Rachel died.
3. The territory of the tribe of Benjamin included Jerusalem. It also included 14 cities, which may have a connection with the 14 stations of the cross.
4. There are suggestions that part of the tribe of Benjamin may have migrated to Arcadia in Greece. This gets confirmation in 1 Maccabees 12:21: “21 It has been discovered in a written record that the Spartans and the Jews are relatives and are both of the family of Abraham.”
5. The tribe of Benjamin gave Israel its first king, Saul.
6. St Paul (called Saul before his conversion) was of the tribe of Benjamin: “For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.” (Romans 11:1) (To clarify, he was a Roman citizen as well, which was at the time perfectly compatible.)
7. There are claims that Mary Magdalene was also of the tribe of Benjamin, though I’ve been unable to find the origin of those claims.
“From ‘Nothing’ is the Key revealed” doesn’t refer to the 53 blank spaces – at least, I think it’s unlikely.
Nothing or the Void is an important concept in magic. God creates out of nothing. A virgin birth has no father. Staring into the Void is the most basic magical act.