Ritual , Secrecy , and Civil Society
will enable an understanding of this original Truth . This aim is in fact clearly expressed by the author in part 2 of his annexed “ Discourse upon the Theology and Mythology of the Pagans ”: “ The nearer we approach the first origin of nations , the more pure shall we find their theology .” 12 That is why , paradoxically , the most metaphysical chapters of The Travels of Cyrus are also the most discursive . Indeed , the long narratives of Zoroaster , Pythagoras , Amenophis ( Amenhotep ) and Daniel are indispensable means for returning to the original source .
Ramsay regularly emphasizes this founding unity : in the “ Mythology of the Pagans ,” in which the development of the argument follows the novel ’ s plot , bringing historical clarity to its theses , he writes that in antiquity “ tradition struck in with reason , and this tradition had spread over all nations certain opinions which they held in common , with regard to the three states of the world ”. 13 In the novel , several characters are used as Ramsay ’ s mouthpieces to express this idea — for example Zoroaster , who states that “ our ideas are the same , though we express them differently ”. 14 Cyrus himself s in . To Pythagoras he says : “ It is a pleasure to see the traces of those great truths in all na- tions ,” 15 and toward the end of the novel he tells the prophet Daniel : “ I find that your Theology is perfectly conformable to the doctrine of the Persians , Egyptians and Greeks , concerning the three states of the world .” 16
As a consequence , the process of initiation progresses through the pantheon of the classical age ’ s esoteric corpus . Cyrus first meets Zoroaster , who allows him to undertake his long pilgrimage toward the first Truth , followed by Amenophis , a “ conceptual persona ” 17 who is the incarnation of the supposedly Hermetic tradition of ancient Egypt . Next to come are Pythagoras , the Cabalist Eleazar and finally the prophet Daniel . Manifestly , the order in which the meetings take place is governed by hierarchy . This allows for a dynamic clarification of theological principles whose natural culmination is the superiority of Christianity . However , it is worth highlighting two episodes that have a particular importance in the novel : the discovery of the Egyptian religion and the teachings of Daniel .
The first of these episodes was written at a time when the works of Athanasius Kircher still represented the only references for an understanding of
12 Ramsay , Travels of Cyrus , (“ Discourse upon the Theology and Mythology of the Pagans ”), p . 333 .
13 Ramsay , Travels of Cyrus (“ Discourse upon the Theology and Mythology of the Pagans ”), p . 317 .
14 Our translation . This section of text does not appear in English editions of The Travels of Cyrus . For the French text , see Les Voyages de Cyrus , p . 65 .
15 Ramsay , Travels of Cyrus , p . 166 . 16 Ramsay , Travels of Cyrus , p . 251 . 17 The term is borrowed from Gilles Deleuze .
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