Warned In A Dream As for their names , to the Syrians the Magi were Larvandad , Hormisdas , and Gushnasaph . The Armenians called them Kagba , Badadilma , and Badadakharida . To the Ethiopians they were Hor , Karsudan and Basanater . It was England ’ s St . Bede the Venerable who first gave their names as Gaspar , Melchior and Balthazar . These are the names given to the Magi most familiar in the Latin tradition . They were said to have come from any number of countries ; Mesopotamia , Persia , India , Arabia and Ethiopia . Though they were more than likely unaware of it , their gifts of gold , frankincense and myrrh had symbolic meanings ; gold was symbolic of the
fact it was a gift to a King , frankincense was a symbol of Our Lord ’ s divinity , and myrrh was symbolic of death -- until the 15th century myrrh was used as an incense in funerals and cremations . After they were warned in a dream not to go back to Herod but to travel back home to their countries by a different route , what subsequently became of the Magi ? Many stories were handed down through tradition and the writings of saints and historians as well as private revelation . They were said to have been baptized into the Faith by St . Thomas the Apostle in India after Our Lord ’ s Ascension . Some have them dying of very old age while others say they suffered martyrdom .
The Magi / Regina Magazine 11