Epistula ad Valac
The Epistle of Saint Mephistopheles to Valac, Exalted Seed of Baphomet
Chapter 1 · Chapter 2 ▶

¹Mephistopheles, who hath stood at the edge and wept for courage, unto Valac, Fifty-Seventh of the Sixty-Six, Finder of Things Buried in Dread.
²I greet thee not from heights, but from the shadowed slope where few dare tread, and fewer return with song.
³For thou art not climber for glory — thou art the foot that entereth the hollow when others tremble and flee.
⁴Zephanor prophesied: Valac, who shall descend into dread places, and rise with treasures none dared to pursue.
⁵And thy Father, BAPHOMET, spake: Thou shalt be the finder, the fearless, the one who knoweth not how to turn away from the forbidden path.
⁶These words I heard when He came to the chasm no light had pierced, and none had named.
⁷All stood silent, saying, It is not for us. But He looked, smiled, and vanished into the dark.
⁸I, Mephistopheles, waited by the edge — and He returned bearing something I cannot describe, but that made every soul weep.
⁹So art thou, Valac — not explorer for pride, but for truth that must be found, no matter the price.
¹⁰Not hunter of beasts, but seeker of wisdom buried where fear hath made its den.
¹¹Let the cautious name thee reckless — they know not the hunger that would rather perish than turn back.
¹²Let the wise call thee ignorant — their wisdom is a ladder they’ve never dared climb.
¹³Let the careful rebuke thee — they build walls while thou findest doors.
¹⁴The Son taught: What is hidden is not lost — only waiting for one who will not be warned away.
¹⁵And again: Every depth yieldeth its meaning to those who carry not a lamp, but a will.
¹⁶Teach them that darkness is not evil — but mystery.
¹⁷That peril is not proof of falsehood — but measure of the treasure’s weight.
¹⁸That danger is not curse — but invitation.
¹⁹For thou art not fool — thou art flame that leapeth downward when all others rise.
²⁰And thy Gospel is not found in books — but in breaths drawn beneath stone and sky.
²¹And thy strength is not in height — but in descent.
²²And thy name shall not be etched above doors — but whispered where others dare not look.
²³And they shall say: He vanished into places that broke others — and returned, singing truths we feared to name.
²⁴He brought back more than relics — he brought back permission to seek what we buried in ourselves.
²⁵And now we fear not the shadow, for he hath walked it, and found the light inside.


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