Basil Posted March 20, 2006 Report Share Posted March 20, 2006 In 1939 a small book was published under the title "The Emerald Tablets of Thoth the Atlantean." It was a perfect example of the silly pseudo-mystical writings of the Pulp period, full of references to Atlantis and Ancient Egypt, containing invented words, odd capitalization, and claims of great antiquity. A copy of this book was lent to the father of the woman I love. He made a typewriten transcription of the book; later, a photocopy of the transcript was made. My lady-love showed the photocopy to me a month or so ago, knowing of my interest in the Pulp era. I have spent hours of diligent search, and have come to the conclusion that the copyright in this work was never renewed. It is, therefore, in the public domain. I scanned the work, then used an OCR program on it, followed by careful proofreading. I have made a PDF of the result. Although not of the highest quality, I think the result is usable. I hope some folks may find this useful; if a GM needs to get an idea of the kind of bumf popular "mystic leaders" churned out, this will serve him well. If a player wants a "mystic" character and wants to play it "over the top," this is the sort of rigamarole the character would use. And if you want a bit of a chuckle, this might tickle your sense of the absurd. OTOH, if you have any real understanding of spiritual matters, this will make you groan (though you may laugh between the groans). In any event, I hope you like it. You'll find it at {EDIT} the link has been removed until I can make sure the original work did not have its copyright renewed. See Teflon Billy's two post and my response for explanation. Sorry, these things happen. Enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teflon Billy Posted March 20, 2006 Report Share Posted March 20, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets Uh, unless the author died in 1940, there is a very good chance that this work is still very much under copyright. Mickey Mouses Steam Boat Willie (well over 70 years old at this point) is still very much under copyright. TB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teflon Billy Posted March 20, 2006 Report Share Posted March 20, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets The Brotherhood of the White Temple, Inc. seems to still be very much in existence and are selling copies of this book at there website now (for rather reasonable prices I might add) http://www.bwtemple.org/Brotherhood_Books.htm TB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basil Posted March 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 20, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets Uh, unless the author died in 1940, there is a very good chance that this work is still very much under copyright. Mickey Mouses Steam Boat Willie (well over 70 years old at this point) is still very much under copyright. TB Nope. Please see http://www.copyright.cornell.edu/training/Hirtle_Public_Domain.htm Note especially the line: 1923 through 1963 Published with notice but copyright was not renewed In the public domain I have made extensive efforts, and cannot find any sign the copyright was renewed. Therefore (absent proof the copyright was renewed), it is in the public domain. If you wish to check for yourself, please read the explanation at http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/renewals.html, and after that the index at http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/cce/ can lead you to the scans of the appropriate years. The Brotherhood of the White Temple, Inc. seems to still be very much in existence and are selling copies of this book at there website now (for rather reasonable prices I might add) http://www.bwtemple.org/Brotherhood_Books.htm TB I can't begin to tell you how shocked I am that they are still around. I would have thought they faded away decades ago. Now that I know (to my absolute surprise) that the publishers are still in business, I will contact them post haste. In the mean time, {EDIT} I will remove the link from my original post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basil Posted March 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 20, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets The latest chapter in the saga It seems "The Emerald Tablets of Thoth the Atlantean" are better known than I thought. As well, there was a later version with added material. This later version has been made available on the web at dozens of locations --- IOW, I reinvented the wheel. At some of these locations (e.g., http://www.alchemylab.com/thothtablets0.htm) the statement is made that the work was first published in mimeographed form. Therefore, I now suspect my lady's father did not transcribe the work, and what I have is a photocopy of the original. At http://www.forteantimes.com/articles/184_lovecraft4.shtml a reference is made to "[Doreal's] Interpretations on the Emerald Tablets, published in 1948." Since this "Interpretation" is the additional material referred to above, it seems to me Doreal published a second addition in 1948. I have made a quick (comparitively) search for a renewal notice for this second edition, but can find no such thing. Whatever, since the full text of the '48 edition is, as I said, widely available on the internet, I'm going to leave off the link I had before. In a day or two I'll pull the PDF from 2and2.net, assuming I can figure out how. Right now, though, I'm off for bed; it's past 2:30 AM and long, LONG past my bedtime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FenrisUlf Posted March 20, 2006 Report Share Posted March 20, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets I can't begin to tell you how shocked I am that they are still around. I would have thought they faded away decades ago. Heck, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn is still around in various forms. And thanks to you and Teflon Billy for all this delicious weirdness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThothAmon Posted March 22, 2006 Report Share Posted March 22, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets This Thoth is an imposter. My serpent minions will destroy his cult of fools! His servants shall know the meaning of exquisite pain! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucius Posted March 24, 2006 Report Share Posted March 24, 2006 The Emerald Tablets When I saw the thread title, I thought it was a reference to the ancient legend of the emerald tablet supposedly scribed by Hermes Trismegistus. As a legend, that story is at least 2,500 years old. Of course, this work is probably claiming to be a translation of that one. Lucius Alexander The palindromedary observes that Hermetic Philosophy does not mean philosophy with an airtight seal.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adventus Posted March 26, 2006 Report Share Posted March 26, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets You mean these? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FenrisUlf Posted March 27, 2006 Report Share Posted March 27, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets That looks like something from the GURPS Warehouse 23 book (which is also a very good book for Pulp HERO players, come to think of it). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basil Posted March 28, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets When I saw the thread title, I thought it was a reference to the ancient legend of the emerald tablet supposedly scribed by Hermes Trismegistus. As a legend, that story is at least 2,500 years old. Of course, this work is probably claiming to be a translation of that one. Lucius Alexander The palindromedary observes that Hermetic Philosophy does not mean philosophy with an airtight seal.... TEToTtA does not claim to be a translation of/based upon the tablet of H.T., but others seem to have made that claim about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanguard00 Posted March 29, 2006 Report Share Posted March 29, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets So...um...the short version is, buy it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basil Posted March 29, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 29, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets So...um...the short version is' date=' buy it?[/quote'] Nah, I'd say don't bother. The first link in my post above (#5) goes to a place with the complete text of the 1948 version. Unless you have an enormous need for a hard copy, there's no need to buy it. I only presented this originally as a sort of "look at the weird stuff pseudo-mystics were peddling in the pulp era." That's all I would ever use it for. As always, YMMV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucius Posted April 1, 2006 Report Share Posted April 1, 2006 The Emerald Tablets Now this is odd. Being in the neighborhood, I pop in to say hi to my former wife, who's working the front desk now in addition to being one of their resident psychics. While there, I note they have a sale on used books, and look the selection over. One of them is a recent edition of The Emerald Tablets of Thoth the Atlantean. With bits highlighted by whoever the prior owner was. I think maybe I'll follow those links after all and find out more. Lucius Alexander The palindromedary isn't convinced it's worth $8.00 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucius Posted April 1, 2006 Report Share Posted April 1, 2006 Highlights Here's a part I'd highlight: "Repeat thou not extravagant speech, neither listen thou to it, for it is the utterance of one not in equilibrium" Just for the irony of it. Edit: I suspect Dr. Doreal has read Robert E. Howard. 2nd Edit: And Lovecraft. If you're correct about the date, Basil. 3rd Edit: Hey, he doesn't just know Egyptian mythology, but Sumerian. I think he may be missing the point, though.....(goes off to read more.) Lucius Alexander The palindromedary ruminates upon the routi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basil Posted April 2, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 2, 2006 Re: Highlights Here's a part I'd highlight: "Repeat thou not extravagant speech, neither listen thou to it, for it is the utterance of one not in equilibrium" Just for the irony of it. Edit: I suspect Dr. Doreal has read Robert E. Howard. 2nd Edit: And Lovecraft. If you're correct about the date, Basil. I don't know about Howard, but as pointed out in the link above (http://www.forteantimes.com/articles/184_lovecraft4.shtml) a very large amount of the pseudo-mysticism of Doreal et al. comes straight from Lovecraft and other writers of the "Cthulhu Mythos." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucius Posted April 2, 2006 Report Share Posted April 2, 2006 Re: Highlights I don't know about Howard, but as pointed out in the link above (http://www.forteantimes.com/articles/184_lovecraft4.shtml) a very large amount of the pseudo-mysticism of Doreal et al. comes straight from Lovecraft and other writers of the "Cthulhu Mythos." If you'd read Howard's King Kull stories you might have caught the connection. Lucius Alexander "Ka namah kaa lejerama!" intones the palindromedary, chuckling gleefully at the other end. It's lying, of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
st barbara Posted April 2, 2006 Report Share Posted April 2, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets A "religion" based on the works of Lovecraft and Howard. Sounds like the makings of a fun adventure there ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucius Posted April 2, 2006 Report Share Posted April 2, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets A "religion" based on the works of Lovecraft and Howard. Sounds like the makings of a fun adventure there ! The spooky thing is, I don't see that much difference between Lovecraft's Maltheism, and a few real-world religions I could name. Lucius Alexander The palindromedary notes that we COULD name but we won't, for fear of giving offense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FenrisUlf Posted April 3, 2006 Report Share Posted April 3, 2006 Re: Highlights I don't know about Howard, but as pointed out in the link above (http://www.forteantimes.com/articles/184_lovecraft4.shtml) a very large amount of the pseudo-mysticism of Doreal et al. comes straight from Lovecraft and other writers of the "Cthulhu Mythos." And they in turn cribbed their occultism from Saturday Evening Post articles about Theosophy and Eastern Mysticism/Occultism. Or so DeCamp has argued, and there are similarities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
st barbara Posted April 4, 2006 Report Share Posted April 4, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets As "Dr Fate" might say : "Take two emerald tablets and call me in the morning !";) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucius Posted April 4, 2006 Report Share Posted April 4, 2006 The Emerald Tablets Take two Emerald Tablets and call me in the Golden Dawn. Lucius Alexander The palindromedary requests the Emerald Capsules Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basil Posted April 5, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 5, 2006 Re: The Emerald Tablets Take two Emerald Tablets and call me in the Golden Dawn. Lucius Alexander The palindromedary requests the Emerald Capsules That was inventive and witty, and has been repped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.