(Hermes as leader of the dead, from the carved semi-precious stone in a Roman ring)
Be quiet, O Son, and now hearken to that harmonious blessing and thanksgiving; the hymn of Regeneration, which I did not determine to have spoken of so plainly, but to thyself in the end of all.
Wherefore, this is not taught, but hid in silence.
So then, O Son, do thou, standing in the open Air, worship, looking to the North Wind, about the going down of the Sun ; and to the South, when the Sun ariseth. And now keep silence, Son.
Let all the Nature of the World entertain the hearing of this Hymn.
Be opened, O Earth, and let all the Treasure of the Rain be opened.
You Trees, tremble not, for I will sing and praise the Lord of the Creation, and the All, and the One.
Be opened, you Heavens; ye Winds, stand still, and let the immortal Circle of God receive these words.
For I will sing and praise him that created all things, that fixed the earth, and hung up the Heavens, and commanded the sweet water to come out of the Ocean, into all the World, inhabited and not inhabited, to the use and nourishment of all things or men.
That commanded the fire to shine for every action, both to Gods and Men.
Let us altogether give him blessing, which rideth upon the Heavens, the Creator of all Nature.
This is he that is the Eye of the Mind, and will accept the praise of my Powers.
O all ye Powers that are in me, praise the One, and All.
Sing together with my Will, all you Powers that are in me.
O Holy knowledge, being enlightened by thee, I magnify the intelligible Light, and rejoice in the joy of the Mind.
All my Powers sing praise with me, and thou, my Continence, sing, praise my Righteousness by me; praise that which is righteous.
O Communion which is in me; praise the All.
By me the Truth sings praise to the Truth, the Good praiseth the Good.
O Life, O Light, from us, unto you, comes this praise and thanksgiving.
I give thanks unto thee, O Father, the operation or act of my Powers.
I give thanks unto thee, O God, the Power of my operations.
By me the Word sings praise unto thee; receive by me this reasonable (or verbal) Sacrifice in words.
The powers that are in me cry these things, they praise the All, they fulfil thy Will; thy Will and counsel is from thee unto thee.
O All, receive a reasonable sacrifice from all things.
O Life, save all that is in us; O Light, enlighten, O God the Spirit; for the Mind guideth (or feedeth) the Word; O Spirit-bearing Workman.
Thou art God, thy Man cryeth these things unto thee through, by the Fire, by the Air, by the Earth, by the Water, by the Spirit, by thy Creatures.
From eternity I have found (means to) bless and praise thee, and I have what I seek; for I rest in thy Will.
This hymn of Hermes Trismegistus occurs in the Seventh Book of the Divine Pymander of Hermes Mercurius Trismegistus, translated from the Arabic by Dr. Everard (London, 1650).
A "reasonable sacrifice" is a devotion of the mind expressed both in words and in thought. The All and the One are the Monad, that is both one single essence yet comprehends all diversity of things.
The Word (Logos) is the creative utterance of God -- see the Gospel of St. John, first chapter.
The "immortal circle of God" is probably the circle of the zodiac, which is here used as a magic circle by the speaker of the hymn. It is possible that the circle of the Earth is intended here -- that is to say, the apparently circular horizon of the apparently flat surface of the Earth -- but less likely in my opinion.
In the first part of the hymn, all four elements -- Earth, Water, Air and Fire -- are called to witness. At the end the five elements -- Fire, Air, Earth, Water, Spirit -- are listed.
The "Eye of the Mind" is the observing intelligence that lies behind our awareness, in back of our point of view. It is the Higher Self, the presence of the One and All expressing itself within a human being. The Eye of the Mind is the mediator between an individual person and God; or, another way of looking at it, the Eye of the Mind is the personal aspect of God that concerns itself with the doings and aspirations of individual souls.
The Powers of the speaker, mentioned in the hymn, appear to be personified into independent agents or spiritual beings who act as helpers or facilitators for the intentions of the soul.
Notice the instructions for the voicing of this hymn to the Highest. It is to be spoken twice each day, at the rising and at the setting of the Sun. The speaker is to stand out of doors and speak it in the morning facing south, and in the evening facing north. In this way the Sun is always on the left side of the body, the side of reception.