The Oahspe Project

Cover Letter 12/28/2022 Hi Jamia, I found Pamela's YouTube channel Awaken2Truth Minstr' discussing the Lant Plates. I am glad she is comparing the different editions, and I look forward to what she finds. Just so you have some background on me: I am 51 years old, an Ordained Faithist, and I have an MA in Women's Spirituality from California Institute of Iatrical Studies. I am the daughter of Joan & Ken Greer, active members of many Faithist groups for decades, and my Great Grandmother (Sara Winters Shady) was the first in my family to have OAHSPE in the 1890s. I have volunteered for Universal Faithists of Kosmon since I was 16. I am now the Director of Operations for our property in Inyokern, California. I am not an expert on OAHSPE or the Lant Plates. But I have been in this for a long time. In the 1950s my mother, Joan, saw the Lant Plates (copper printing plates) during a stay with the Essenes of Kosmon, in Montrose Colorado. I have included an article Joan wrote called The Old Trunk about her experience and her study of the editing of OAHSPE. I have also included an article by Seventh Era Faithists about the editing of OAHSPE, and Jim Dennon's introduction to More of OAHSPE, a book about Dennon's research. Jim Dennon also wrote about the document Pamela is calling the Lant Plates. When the Essenes of Kosmon (the group with the Old Trunk) closed their doors, Wing Anderson ordered the burning of the Archives. Community members saved some of the archives. Some stuff went to the Faithist Children's home in Fourwinds, Georgia, and I have been told that The Old Page 1 of 35 Trunk was seen in the `60s in Oregon and in the `70s in Washington state, and then the Old Trunk disappeared. In the 1980s (when I was a teenager) there was a lot of talk about the El Paso OAHSPE. Faithists wanted it to be Newbrough's original typed pages or the print proofs of the Lant Plates. In 1987 Jim Dennon called the El Paso OAHSPE a forgery. I disagree with Dennon. I have included a letter and the article Dennon wrote about the El Paso OAHSPE. I do not think it is a forgery. I think it is an edition put together by Howland's adopted daughter Nin who married A.J. Carpenter of 501 N. Stanton St., El Paso Texas. See Dennon's letter. Mrs. A.J. Carpenter's name and address are on the first page of the El Paso OAHSPE. I think Nin was preparing the El Paso OAHSPE for publication, but it was never completed. Perhaps because of the flood and fire that destroyed Newbrough's papers and artwork. Or maybe it became an overwhelming task. Either way, I think the El Paso OAHSPE is not the first or the second edition of OAHSPE. I think the El Paso OAHSPE was put together after Newbrough's death and after the 1891 Edition was published. I take responsibility for my opinion, and I am open to other interpretations of the El Paso OAHSPE. I am deeply inspired by your enthusiasm and thirst for knowledge, and I hope you are not irrevocably disheartened by my letter or its information. Many Faithists have felt misled by and disappointed with the El Paso OAHSPE. But for me what makes the El Paso OAHSPE remarkable is that it was put together by a woman who was raised at Shalam. With love and respect, Sister Joy Page 2 of 35 A Look at the El Paso OAHSPE Compiled by Celeste Joy Edited by Joan Greer and LesLee M. With input from Peter Hartgens @2022 P.O. Box 703 Inyokern CA 93527 celestejoyg@gmail.com 760-499-2080 Page 3 of 35 Contents Cover Letter .........................................................................................................1 El Paso OAHSPE comparison ...........................................................................5 An Interesting study of the Pathology of Religion ....................................5 Howland Colony of Las Cruces....................................................................5 Mrs. AJ Carpenter (Nin Howland)..............................................................6 Second Edition.................................................................................................6 The Typewriter ................................................................................................9 Jim Dennon on the El Paso OAHSPE.............................................................11 Photos of Nin Howland (Nin'ya, 2nd child in top row)...........................12 Dennon's announcement in Kosmon Voice 95.........................................13 Introduction to "More of Oahspe" by Jim Dennon ..................................16 THE OLD TRUNK - By Joan Greer ................................................................19 December 1951, Montrose, Colorado. ........................................................19 A Brief History of the Old Trunk................................................................20 The Contents of the Old Trunk ...................................................................21 Book of Knowledge.......................................................................................23 Tablet of OM and the Nine Entities............................................................24 Book of Inspiration........................................................................................25 The Recalled Edition.....................................................................................26 Ouranothen and Levitica .............................................................................26 Concluding Thoughts...................................................................................27 An article by Seventh Era Faithist ..................................................................29 The Lant Proof Sheets and their significance to Oahspe.........................29 Page 4 of 35 El Paso OAHSPE Analysis Why I think the El Paso OAHSPE is not the Lant Plates, nor a typed manuscript written by Newbrough! "An Interesting study of the Pathology of Religion" The above caption appears on page 686 of the El Paso OAHSPE. The intellectual conversation of religion as pathological started years after Newbrough's death, when Sigmond Freud published his paper "Obsessive Actions and Religious Practices" In 1907, Freud framed religion as a malignant social force that encourages irrational thoughts. Figure 1 page 686 of the El Paso OAHSPE "Howland Colony of Las Cruces." Newbrough would not have called Shalam the "Howland Colony of Las Cruces." Check out the New Mexico State University at Las Cruces, New Mexico, Special Collections. https://nmsu.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Shalam%20utop ia&tab=Everything&search_scope=MyInst_and_CI&vid=01NEWMEX_INST:NMSU_LC&lang= en&offset=0 Page 5 of 35 Figure 2 Photo of Historical Marker Mrs. A.J. Carpenter El Paso Texas Sep 14th, 1929 / by kindness of Mrs. A.J. Carpenter 501 N. Stanton St. El Paso, Texas. Mrs. A.J. Carpenter was Nin (Howland) using her husband's initials; see Dennon's letter. Figure 3 Page 1 form PDF of the El Paso OAHSPE Second Edition Prefaces to Second Edition Figure 4- Page 1 in PDF of El Paso OAHSPE John A. Lant was not involved in the 1891 Second Edition of OAHSPE. The Lant plates were made 10 years earlier in 1881. The Lant Plates would be copper and would look like the Newspaper advertisement on the next page. Page 6 of 35 Figure 5 - ANTIQUE COPPER PLATE Letter Press Printing Block https://www.etsy.com/listing/665752437/antique-copper-plate-letter- press?click_key=09fcb20c44c9a325e3b4c13074430ade333815ea%3A665752437&click_sum=51116bfb&external=1&rec_type=s s&ref=pla_similar_listing_top-1&pro=1&sts=1 Page 7 of 35 The Lant Plate Proof Sheets looked like this according to Faithists Jim Dennon, Joan & Ken Greer, Arnold Arias, and Ernie Gardener. Page 8 of 35 The Typewriter Is the El Paso OAHSPE Newbrough's original typed pages? No, I don't think so! Figure 6 page 37 of the El Paso OAHSPE The first Underwood typewriter was made in 1896, six years after Newbrough's death. https://www.txantiquemall.com/underwood- typewriter-history-value-models-a-complete-guide/ Others have documented that Newbrough's typewriter was a Sholes and Glidden. Figure 7http://oahspestandardedition.com/About_Oahspe/Transmission_of_Oahspe.htmA Sample of Newbrough typing The letter on the next page is from the Archives of New Mexico State University. The letter is from Newbrough to Percy - dated April 7th 1890 - Newbrough is asking for help to find a photo engraver for the 1891 edition of OAHSPE as he wants to include more art and photos. The Sholes and Glidden Page 9 of 35 typewriter has ONLY uppercase letters; it also has large spacing between lines and between words. Figure 8 http://oahspestandardedition.com/About_Oahspe/Transmission_of_Oahspe.ht The El Paso OAHSPE's pages 638 to 651 are all caps but the spacing between words and lines are tight. Also, on page 650 there is one word that is all lower case. �""CLASPED HANDS, AND LOOKING UPWARD," signifying, "IN THY PRAISE, JEHOVIH!"" -- The typewriter that typed THIS page had the capability of upper and lower letters; see screenshot of page 650 below � but Newbrough's typewriter typed ONLY CAPS. Figure 9 page 650 of the El Paso OAHSPE Page 10 of 35 Jim Dennon on the El Paso OAHSPE Page 11 of 35 Photos of Nin Howland (Nin'ya, 2nd child in top row) Figure 10 children of Shalom Figure 11Three Shalam children who went with the Howlands to El Paso, Texas. From left to right Havralo (Ral), Nin'ya (Nin), Fiatisi (Fifi). Page 12 of 35 Dennon's announcement in Kosmon Voice 95 Page 13 of 35 Page 14 of 35 Page 15 of 35 Introduction to "More of Oahspe" by Jim Dennon Jim Dennon Seaside, Oregon July, 1983 The contents of this volume are part of a 30-year collection of Oahspe history and memorabilia. The intent of this effort is to bring the manuscripts which were not included in Oahspe, into one volume. This book is what I would like to have had a long time ago; it gathers together what was scattered in separate publications over many years, if you could find them. For the benefit of readers who haven't heard about the missing parts of Oahspe, it should be explained that the 1882 first printing of Oahspe was not the first version of the book. The very first plates were made during the year of 1881 from the original manuscript of Oahspe as it was being received. These plates were made by Dr. Newbrough's printer friend, John A. Lant, whose printshop was located at 207-209 West 41st Street, New York City. John Lant died in January, 1913 at Florissant, Missouri, but not without leaving ample evidence that he was indeed the first to make plates for what was to have been the first edition of Oahspe, during 1881. But his plates were never used. He took proof prints of each plate as they were made, and saved them away. The 1882 "first edition" of Oahspe was actually the second version, printed from totally different electrotypes. The 1891 "second edition" was revised from the 1882 version, printed from still newer plates, which was really the third version. Wing Anderson purchased the 1891 "second edition" (third version) plates from Dr. Newbrough's daughter about 1930, and it was from these that he published the "blue cover" editions of Oahspe (no longer in print). The 1891 Oahspe is still available in the English edition, in a smaller, handy size. After a fifteen year search to find a copy of it, in 1960 Ray Palmer reprinted the 1882 Oahspe, which made this oldest edition available for the first time since the 1880's. Marjorie Palmer's Amherst Press continues to publish this Oahspe, which is the current American "green cover" edition [note: no longer published by Amherst Press --cjg]. Page 16 of 35 Possibly among the materials Wing Anderson received with the 1891 Oahspe plates from Dr. Newbrough's daughter, he received a large 24 inch by 24 inch scrapbook with proof plates pasted in it, of material not included in Oahspe. These were John Lant proof sheets. The Essenes of Kosmon copied The Book of Knowledge from the contents of the Lant pages. This was done serially, in eight parts (separate booklets, long out of print). Later, Sam Bartolet published The Book of Knowledge in one booklet. It omitted some verses, but again made the manuscript available. Other proof sheet contents appeared in the Essenes of Kosmon magazine (the Kosmon Pioneer Bulletin, in issues dated from 1954 to 1958). In the 1960's, Wing Anderson helped me contact Dr. Newbrough's family, from whom I obtained information for "The Oahspe Story" and "Dr. Newbrough and Oahspe". (These books are no longer in print, but are now being redone and expanded to include pictures and historical documents, in one volume like this one.) Wing furnished some historical records and a tape recording of an interview with Dr. Newbrough's daughter. After Ray Palmer's 1882 Oahspe came out, Wing published a special Kosmon Newsletter which included the letters from Dr. Newbrough and Andrew Howland, and the Saphah! title proof sheet. This was the only Lant proof sheet ever made public (only the contents were copied and published by from the others). The Kosmon calendar used at Shalam in 1885 came from Sam Bartolet, by photostatic copy (the old liquid method). At the time I received it some 20 years ago, it was fairly good. Now it is old and yellowed, but using an electronic copier, the image was recovered to be included here. The revisions to calendar verses in Oahspe (The Book of Sethantes XIII:13 and The Book of Inspiration XIV:2-3) are given. The omissions from and changes to Oahspe from the original manuscript Dr. Newbrough received in 1881 is an assurance that Oahspe itself shall not become an object of adoration or worship. Oahspe is maculate (blemished), as are all books. While Oahspe was written "in the words of Jehovih, The Creator" it is not Jehovih's Word! The Creator has never, ever, written any book or bible, nor does He speak or write in human words (see The Book of Aph I:4-9). "In the words of Jehovih" means that someone inspired by Page 17 of 35 Jehovih formed the inspiration into words. All words are formed either by spirits or mortals. In the case of Oahspe, the words were written by ethereans and transmitted to Dr. John Ballou Newbrough via automatic typewriting (The Patience Worth books were written in a similar manner years later). Words must stand on their own merit, irrespective of origin. Nor is the value of Oahspe greatly diminished by the omissions and revisions, since its purpose is to free mankind from dependence on indirect inspiration (any words, including Oahspe). The aim is for its reader to learn to "hear" Jehovih directly, while fully conscious. His Voice is not audible sounds, like human speech, but in trees and rocks and all things without tongues. Spiritual things must be spiritually received with new senses (suis and ethe). A prophet may translate what is received into words, but all inspiration in words is second-hand to the listener or reader. It is one thing to listen to a witness, but better to be the witness. When the suis and ethe senses are developed in the Kosmon brotherhoods, they will re-establish the College of Prophecy (as Samuel did in the previous cycle). The original text of Oahspe will be recovered, and they will write new revelations superior to all others; for in olden time, Faithists were only instruments of revelation; in Kosmon they are to become actual prophets themselves. A preface isn't complete without thanking those who helped bring a book about, and there were many who helped assemble the materials and history of Oahspe, many of them now in spirit. This book is dedicated to the couple who started me on this path when I was 17 years old. My thanks to Quentin Borg, whose letter in Search magazine's Oahspe Circle encouraged me to go ahead with this book (and for correcting some of the manuscript before publication), and to my family who tolerated long hours listening to the computer and electronic typewriter on which it was edited and typeset. end Page 18 of 35 THE OLD TRUNK - By Joan Greer revised and edited - 2015 December 1951, Montrose, Colorado. On that evening in 1951, I was a new student of OAHSPE, having been given it about a year before by my future husband, Ken Greer. His Grandmother, Sara Dolly Shady, who may have obtained her first copy through Andrew Howland, had passed OAHSPE on to Ken when he was 16 years old. Ken wanted me to visit the Essenes of Kosmon to see if I really would be comfortable living in a Faithist community. The Essenes of Kosmon were a group, founded by Wing Anderson, that had recently moved to Montrose, Colorado, from North Salt Lake, Utah. Ray Schlipmann was M'Chief of the Community, and ran the farm; Mark Phettyplace (Phetty), was Office Manager and ran the press for all the publications of the Essenes; Grover Neifer (Neif) was considered the scholar and historian; and Mary Ann Towle was in charge of the garden as well as freezing and drying food that was stored; Zella Modine, the cook, was fulfilling the one year probation necessary to become a full member. The home of the Essenes of Kosmon was a well built two story Victorian farmhouse. On that memorable evening in 1951, the Old Trunk stood in the middle of a high-ceilinged upstairs room of this very large house. Phetty, Neif and Mary Anne, with ceremony, conducted me into the room where Ray was awaiting us. As we entered, he walked over to a desk, removed a small key from its special place of safekeeping, then walked to the trunk, knelt down, and inserted the key that unlocked the old trunk. The lid was not opened often and resisted being raised. As it slowly opened, piles of documents were revealed. We all knelt on the floor around the trunk as Ray removed the documents, explaining to me that the trunk contained papers preserved from the late 1880s concerning OAHSPE and its publication. Now, over 60 years later, I realize that I may be the only person still on earth who has seen the contents of the Old Trunk. Page 19 of 35 A Brief History of the Old Trunk Letters from Ray Schlipmann to Laura Horst that have been preserved in the New Mexico State University at Las Cruces, give us a provenance of the trunk and contents: circa 1950 the Old Trunk was brought to Montrose, Colorado, by George Rose, a member of the Board of Directors of the Faithist Brotherhood of Light. This group received the trunk from the printer, John Lant, who made the first copper plates and proof sheets from Newbrough's first transcription of OAHSPE. When the Essenes closed their doors and the property was sold in 1970, Wing Anderson, C'Chief of the Essenes of Kosmon, had ordered the burning of the old documents which were the Archives held by the Essenes. At the time of the destruction of the Archives, Faithists who lived in the area took what they wanted of the papers. Ray, realizing the importance of the documents and copper printer's plates in the Old Trunk, took the trunk with him when he moved to Four-Winds at Tiger, Georgia. When he passed on into spirit, Virginia Howard, President of Four-Winds, gave the Old Trunk to the printer who was working with Virginia on various projects. As I recall this printer was located in Tennessee. (Later, the printer retired and moved, living near Four Winds.) The printer in turn gave the trunk to Elizabeth Shuey, and she took it and had it at her community near Ashland, Oregon. Shuey said that Faithists who lived in tents in Northern California, stole the trunk from her. In the early1980s, Sister Cora Bennett of the Kosmon Church in England, but who was living in Australia at the time, was in this country visiting her family and other Faithists. Shuey's community was on her itinerary because Shuey had written to Sister Cora about the Old Trunk and its contents. Sister Cora said that the theft of the Old Trunk from Shuey had occurred within a week or two of her arrival there, and that Shuey had been deeply distraught that the "dirty hippies who lived in tents in Northern California" had stolen the Old Trunk. Today, we do not know the fate of the Old Trunk and the precious documents it contained. Page 20 of 35 The Contents of the Old Trunk We are told in documents in the Rio Grande Historical Collection that during the first transcription of OAHSPE, each day Newbrough sent the pages he had typed that morning to the printer, John Lant. Lant then type set the pages, `pulled' proof sheets from the plates, and sent the proof sheets back to Newbrough. The Old Trunk contained these original proof sheets for OAHSPE, as well as the copper printer's plates. In thinking back on that night in 1951, I realize that Ray and the others present must have given some thought as to how to present the contents of the Old Trunk. As Ray removed the documents one by one they were shown to me; and Ray, Neif and Phetty explained the significance of these precious papers from the past. There was so much in the Old Trunk, that after a while our knees grew tired, and so we all stood. In addition to the original proof sheets from OAHSPE, there were a number of old letters concerning the publication of OAHSPE and the editing done before the First Edition was published. There were also Lant's proof sheets which actually showed the notations of editing to be done to the First Edition. These pre-publication and post-publication documents were what the Essenes wanted me to see. They had felt inspired to share their great secret with me...that OAHSPE had been edited before its first publication in 1882, and the contents of the Old Trunk were the proof. But, perhaps even more important, the original printer's proof sheets of OAHSPE were available for study. Also, in the Old Trunk were a number of plates of illustrations jumbled about. The plates and descriptions, especially in "Book of Saphah", were not carefully organized when OAHSPE was printed. When we consider the work required of the angels in giving these plates with their descriptions, we must conclude that the plates in Saphah are considered important. Some years ago, like many new students, I realized the problems in "Book of Saphah"; and I tried unsuccessfully to put the tablets and their descriptions in order. Vernon Wobschall (Seventh Era Faithists) put together an ordering of the plates and descriptions into a Page 21 of 35 loose leaf binder while he was living on Faithist property, in Inyokern, California. I was fortunate to receive one of the copies of this work, he titled, Saphah For Mortals. A few students in Guatama (the Americas) have always been aware that there was editing done before publication of the 1882 Edition, but this information seems to come as a shock when it is first learned. The portions which were edited out have come to be called "The Missing Parts". Then, as I read the portions which had been edited out, I did not understand the significance of what I held in my hands. I was only surprised that editing would have been done, and I wondered then, as I wonder today, why anything would have been edited out. Over the years since OAHSPE was first published, much has been discussed about the editing. There were various versions of why any editing was done, among them: that the angels had made mistakes which they corrected through the editing; or Newbrough was not a clear channel; or that Lant and others had changed wording they thought needed to be corrected. Briefly, this is what the Essenes told me about the editing: Most of the editing occurred in the portion of OAHSPE called in The 1882 Edition, "THE BOOKS OF THE INTERLUDE." "The Books of the Interlude" are those books which are between the books of history...in other words, the books between "Book of the Arc of Bon" and "God's Book of Eskra." From the old letters and proof sheets I learned that there was a book which may be lost called the "Book of Zemers." I later learned that Zemers are chants or prayers intended to be used in group worship. Some sources feel that the Zemers are songs, but I did not see any written music in the Old Trunk. See Tablet of Quadeth Iz, 7th column from right, the symbol next to the bottom, "Zemer, Music, written notes of." I noted there was also mention of "Book of Jaffeth" (see 1882 Edition, Plate 65). As I recall, both "Book of Jaffeth" and "Book of Zemers" apparently were missing from the old trunk. There is a section at the end of "Book of Saphah" titled, `The Basis of the Ezra Bible.' There is no relationship of this section to preceding chapters on Faithist Degrees in "Book of Saphah". `The Basis of the Ezra Bible.' is followed by the section, `AHURA'MAZDA, Creator' with Page 22 of 35 reference to Vedan Gods and mention of Brahma, Buddha, Mithra, and Shem, also called Vind'yu (India)...all obviously Asian. This is followed by the heading, `BASIS OF VEDE'. I cannot help but wonder if these sections might possibly have been part of the "Book of Jaffeth"; for again, there is no relationship of this material to "Book of Saphah". As I read `BASIS OF VEDE', some of the verses seem to read like descriptions of symbols in a tablet. OAHSPE has several Tablets without apparent text, including three Tablets that are puzzling, showing the sky with sun and moon and various animals. These three Tablets are: `Ram, Aries'; `Bull, Taurus'; and `Lion, Leo'. These three animals (Ram, Bull and Lion) are also in the Tablet of Biene. In the 1882 Edition of OAHSPE, a notation on the Tablet of `Aries' instructs us to see "Book of Jaffeth". The meaning of these animals, why they are in the Tablet of Biene, and why there is a Tablet featuring each animal is not explained. "Book of Saphah", section `Basis of Vede', verses 16 -20 seems related to these Tablets. Preceding verses are interesting to consider when thinking about the meaning of Ram, Bull, and Lion. Over the years, articles have been written about these three Tablets offering suggestions as to their interpretation; for why they were included without any information to explain why they are there remains unknown. You will note that these three Tablets are inserted in random places in various editions. Wobschall discusses the confusion about these three Tablets, in his book, Saphah for Mortals, referencing Dennon and quotes from OAHSPE, but none of those writing about the Tablets mention "Book of Jaffeth". Because "Book of Jaffeth" is referenced on the Tablet of Aries in the 1882 Edition, we know that these three Tablets were part of that book. There are things that can be discussed about these Tablets not directly related to this article, and too lengthy to include here. If such a discussion would interest anyone reading this, please let us know. Perhaps this is a subject for a future article. Book of Knowledge There was another book of the original material transcribed by Newbrough, but edited out of OAHSPE, "BOOK OF KNOWLEDGE." Lant's proof sheets for this book were in the Old Trunk. For some reason, Page 23 of 35 the "Book of Knowledge" was edited very radically, and Jim Dennon documented verses that were put into other places in OAHSPE including the "Book of Ben". In 1951 the Essenes explained to me that they planned to publish "Book of Knowledge" which they did, and it is available today because of their work. From conversations with English Faithists, it appears that "Book of Knowledge" is only available to them through sources on-line from Faithists in Guatama, thus, virtually unknown. One further bit of information about "Book of Knowledge" is that the first time the Essenes published the "Book of Knowledge", they had not found all the pages, so the first publication was not complete. Eventually as they worked with the documents in the Old Trunk they located the missing pages, and they republished the entire "Book of Knowledge." "Book of Knowledge" in the Old Trunk was composed of two parts: one part dealing entirely with the Nine Entities, and the second part dealing with Prophecy. I have wondered over the years if the two books were combined in an effort to reduce the number of pages in OAHSPE, for certainly the Nine Entities and Prophecy do not seem to be closely related. Yet, in working with the Tablet of OM in 2014-2015, there is the possibility that "Book of Knowledge" and Prophecy are more closely related than I had once thought. In the published editions of OAHSPE, there is "Book of Cosmogony and Prophecy", the chapters dealing with prophecy came directly from "Book of Knowledge". It is not surprising then to discover that the original title of this book was "Book of Cosmogony." The title was changed when the chapters dealing with Prophecy were added to "Book of Cosmogony," thus the "Book of Cosmogony and Prophecy" we have today. When the Essenes printed the "Book of Knowledge", they omitted "Book of Prophecy", as it was already in OAHSPE. Therefore, the Essenes' "Book of Knowledge" is only the discussion of the Nine Entities. Tablet of OM and the Nine Entities Those who did the editing did not realize that the angels considered the Nine Entities important for students to study. There has never been any real understanding or agreement among students in Guatama as to the Page 24 of 35 meaning of the Nine Entities, appearing at the beginning of the "Book of Ben." In studying the papers from Ong (England) shared by Gwen Walton, we have learned that The Tablet of OM was edited out of OAHSPE. A discussion of the Tablet of OM is found in the paper "TABLET OF OM: The Lost Tablet" that can be found in the on-line Archives of this site. In the 1950s, a description of this tablet was given in a Trance Address in Kosmon Church in England, with a discussion of the meaning of some of the symbols. We hope to have artists in Guatama reproduce Tablet of OM from its description. The angels who worked with Kosmon Church in Ong include Tablet of OM among tablets students should study deeply. The Nine Entities were taken out of the Tablet of OM and inserted into the beginning of "Book of Ben." "Book of Knowledge" is helpful in studying Tablet of OM. It is possible that the Tablet of OM could have been among the plates that were in the Old Trunk. Book of Inspiration Also, included in the Old Truck were the Lant copper printer's plates and printer's proof sheets of the "Book of Inspiration", which indicate that the Summer Solstice is to be celebrated as the New Year. There were no editing marks on these proof sheets, and the Summer Solstice is clearly indicated. This one change is an issue that has caused emotional discussion over the years, for without the original printer's plates and the proof sheets the stories about how an editor had changed the date, or that the angels had made a mistake were the only information available. In remembering the Old Trunk on that evening in 1951, it seems to me that Ray made a particular point of drawing my attention to this printer's plate and its proof sheet, holding them so I could read the text as it originally appeared, with the Summer Solstice indicated as the New Year. There were no editing marks to change the date although there were editing notations on other pages. Jim Dennon noted that the change in date came in stages, the first change came in material printed for the Faithist Convention in New York City, November 24-26, 1883, and then another change in wording later in the editing for the 1891 Edition. Page 25 of 35 The Recalled Edition There is a story that a printing of OAHSPE made from early plates in 1882, and was then recalled; but, no copies have been located as of this date in 2015. Ernie Gardner, a long time Faithist who lived in Southern California, documents this oral tradition in a letter published in KOSMON COMMUNITIES' NEWSLETTER, writing that a friend of his owned a copy of this first edition which Gardner saw in the 1940s. Gardner's friend called this edition "the recalled Edition." Gardner said that this recalled Edition of OAHSPE was over 50 pages longer than the 1882 Edition published by Ray Palmer. Gardner says in his letter that all those who had purchased this early edition of OAHSPE were contacted, and asked to return their copy to the printer, and they would receive a new revised 1882 First Edition. Gardner said his friend kept that first "recalled edition" because "it would become valuable in the future." If this story is true, the date of the New Year was not changed when the revised 1882 Edition was printed. Gardner went on to say that the revised 1882 Edition is the one we have today. The date of the New Year was consistent in the first printer's plates, the proof sheets from those plates, the 1882 early Edition, and the revised 1882 Edition. In thinking about those `more than 50 pages' and what they might have contained, `Book of Knowledge' and the Tablet of OM seem to be likely possibilities, as well as "Book of Jaffeth". There is also `Book of Discipline'; however, letters at the time indicate Newbrough thought "Book of Discipline" should be published later, so it is unlikely that "Book of Discipline" was included in the more than 50 pages of the recalled Edition. "Book of Discipline" was not in the 1882 revised Edition, but was included in the 1891 Edition. When Ray Palmer reprinted the 1882 (revised) Edition, he included "Book of Discipline." Ouranothen and Levitica There is documentation in undated letters from Gustave Percival Wiksell (Percy) that "Ouranothen" and "Levitica" were both given through Newbrough at Shalam. Therefore, they were not part of the original transcription. These letters can be found in the Archives at the New Mexico Historical Society in Las Cruces. However, these documents were included in the Old Trunk. Levitica was published after the first group of Faithists Page 26 of 35 who helped found Shalam were evicted by Howland in March, 1886. Ouranothen was published by the Essenes of Kosmon in the early 1950s. Concluding Thoughts In December 1951 when the Essenes showed me the contents of the Old Trunk I was asked to swear on the Creator's Altar in that room that I would not reveal the secret of this Old Trunk. The reason it was to be kept secret was that in 1934 Wing Anderson had purchased the copyright and printer's plates for the 1891 Edition of OAHSPE (which became the 1910 Edition) from Jone Newbrough-Howland-Williams (Justine), and Anderson was printing many copies from those plates. Anderson did not want it known that there was a version closer to the original transcription given by the angels, for he feared that the edition he was printing would not be sold. I seldom thought about the Old Trunk and my vow, although I told my family about the Old Trunk swearing them to secrecy. In 1960, Ray Palmer--after searching for 25 years--found a copy of the 1882 Edition of OAHSPE, and reprinted it. Then in the following years as numerous editions of OAHSPE began popping up, I realized I no longer felt bound by this vow. It was at this time that I wrote the original article THE OLD TRUNK which was published by KOSMON VOICE and KOSMON UNITY in 1989. It is hard to comprehend why any editing was done to OAHSPE, but considering its length, perhaps shortening it made it cheaper to print and thus the selling price was less to the public. Anderson shared with Jim Dennon some of the Lant proof sheets, and Jim reprinted a few of the original pages that were edited out. The pages he reproduced in his book, More of OAHSPE, include text using many words in the language of Pan. It seems sad that the location of this documentation is known only to those who took the Old Trunk from Shuey. Today we have little physical documentation of the editing. In 1990 Jim Dennon in his article "Origin and History of Oahspe" published in Kosmon Voice 111, felt that because I had seen the contents of the Old Trunk, this was documentation of the editing done to OAHSPE, verifying and explaining changes he notes in his writing on the editing, and the source of the pages he reprinted. There is also the documentation which is obvious in the 1882 (revised) Edition with Page 27 of 35 its references to material not in that edition, and the Editor's Note commenting on editing including changing the word `Tae' to `man'. Because the Tablet of OM was given to Faithists in England in the early 1950s, and the Essenes of Kosmon printed "Book of Knowledge" with the discussion of the Nine Entities around the same time, we know that anything that was edited out that we need in our ongoing studies will be given to us when we are ready to understand it. The "recalled Edition" needs to be remembered. Faithists should continue looking for this Edition as well as remembering the Old Trunk with documentation of the editing. Perhaps the Old Trunk still exists, and its precious contents may yet become available to help us understand the editing. Arnold Aries of California, saw copies of this "recalled edition" in two different University of California Libraries. Both copies contained "Book of Zemers", an easy way to verify the identity of the "recalled edition". This knowledge given to me in 1951 is now passed on to you. Remember these things, and pass this information on to the next generation. _______________________________ The OAHSPE Timeline is the source of historical dates. *This property was donated by Sister Cora Bennett, and had been her home. Original article published in KOSMON VOICE 108, July-August 1989 (Guatama, Erma Lee, Editor) and KOSMON UNITY, December 1989 (Ong, Archie Frost, Editor). Page 28 of 35 An article by Seventh Era Faithist The Lant Proof Sheets and their significance to Oahspe 12/23/2022 http://oahspestandardedition.com/About_Oahspe/Lant_Proof_Sheets.ht ml The Lant Proof Sheets were printed off 500 copper plates which were made in 1881 but never used in the published Oahspe in 1882. Jim Dennon writes: "...the 1882 first printing of Oahspe was not the first version of the book. The very first plates were made during the year of 1881 from the original manuscript of Oahspe...These plates were made by Dr. Newbrough's printer friend, John A. Lant [in] New York City."[1] According to an article/press release in the New York Times dated 21st October, 1882, the transmission of Oahspe through Newbrough took place from the Spring of 1880 to the Spring of 1881. "He began the work in the Spring of 1880, an impression coming over him that it must be done. When he began a bright light settled over his fingers. This would last 15 to 30 minutes, and when it disappeared he could write no more....He continued his work for a year lacking two weeks. "I could not read it, for the light would not let me" he said, "and I did not know the contents of the book until it was ready for type." [2] Then still in 1881, Newbrough had Lant begin preparing Oahspe for publication. After some 500 copper plates made and proof sheets had been printed, Newbrough told Lant he would not be using the plates and dismissed Lant from the project. Lant kept the plates and proof sheets. This means that by the time the 1882 edition was published it was the actual third edition of Oahspe. The first being the actual typewritten manuscript transmitted through Newbrough's hands, the second was the incompleted Lant Proof Sheets. So while the 1891 Edition, with edits to text and footnotes, also contained additional Oahspe text not published in the 1882 edition, i.e., the Book of Discipline, it still was not a replica of the manuscript. In fact several edits that differed from the 1882 edition Page 29 of 35 indicated that Newbrough and/or his co-editors made some misinterpretations of the original text. The edits, however, did not affect the general nature of the message. A coincidental benefit of Newbrough's misinterpretations was that it was further proof that Newbrough himself was not the author of Oahspe. According to Dennon, Lant passed the proof sheets to Nelson Standart, both of them being "Outer Council" members of the Brotherhood of Light in Colorado. By 1909 Standart had sent the proof sheets to the Brotherhood of Light headquarters at Arboles, Colorado. 80 Lant Proof Sheets passed into Wing Anderson's hands when he purchased the copywrite and 1891 printing plates from Newbrough's daughter Justine around 1930, along with a large pile of various other papers, including original letters from Newbrough. These remained among the files and Archives of Wing Anderson's community, The Essenes of Kosmon. They published The Book of Knowledge, copied from proof sheets as well as other parts of the proof sheets in their periodical "The Kosmon Pioneer Bulletin" from 1954 to 1956. Since that time, the proof sheets were lost track of and to date, it is not known if any still exist. [1] More of Oahspe by John Dennon; 1983. [2] The New York Times article on Oahspe; 21st October 1882. An Original Lant Proof Sheet made from the Lant Plates Page 30 of 35 Of the published Lant Proof Sheets by the Essenes of Kosmon only one was published as an original replica. Dennon writes: "Wing published a special Kosmon Newsletter which included the lettters from Dr. Newbrough and Andrew Howland, and the Saphah! title proof sheet. This was the only Lant proof sheet ever made public (only the contents were copied and published from the others)". The whereabouts of the Lant Proof sheets and whether they even still exist is not known. How much of the proof sheets remained unpublished by The Essenes of Kosmon is also not known. And all that was not included in the Page 31 of 35 Lant Proof Sheets that was also pulled from the 1882 publication is also not known. Why material was withheld from publication in the 1882 Edition Personal letters between associates of Newbrough's reveal that reducing the size of Oahspe to limit publishing costs and affordability of the book to buyers was the reason a reduced Oahspe was finally published. As it Page 32 of 35 turned out, the reduced Oahspe was still a large and relatively expensive volume, retailing at $7.50 on its first release. We can be sure that Newbrough was most dedicated in his efforts to make Oahspe available, before and after publication, within the constraints of available resources. During the next several years following the publication of Oahspe in 1882, the Oahspe Publishing Association released some of the unpublished manuscript material. This included The Book of Ouranothen, The Book of Discipline and Eleven Zemers. An internet archival entry confirms that The Book of Ouranothen was a part of Oahspe and a product of "automatic writing": ||Pasho. a paper devoted to Jehovih's Kingdom on Earth. Published by the Oahspe Publishing Association, New York. Five chapters from Oahspe, "Ouranothen." Written automatically. Index to the New Bible, Panic, Yi'haic, Vedic, Hebraic and Sanscrit primaries. Interpretations, illustrations, etc. Quarto, pp. 24.|| In the same spirit as Newbrough, dedicated publishers over the years have striven to keep Oahspe in print at a minimum price, forgoing profits and often relying on donations to continue publishing. Press Release announcing Oahspe in the New York Times, 1882 Dr Newbrough's "Oahspe." (Published in The New York Times on 21st October 1882): AN "INSPIRED" VOLUME GIVING THE HISTORY OF 24,000 YEARS. Several persons gathered at the house of Dr. J.B. Newbrough, No. 128 West Thirty-fourth street, last evening, to examine a new Bible, called Oahspe, which was written by Dr Newbrough. The New Bible is supposed to give the history of the earth and the heavens for 24,000 years and is written "in the words of Jehovih and his Angel Ambassadors." It is a large quarto volume of over 900 pages, and is published by an association consisting of seven persons. Dr. Newbrough, after the book had been examined by those present, told the story of its Page 33 of 35 writing, prefacing his remarks by saying that its object was not to supplant other Bibles and religions, but to set forth a history of all religions, going back 24,000 years. He said it was for all races and peoples, and explained the private affairs of angels and their relation to mortals. It showed why heaven was worth living for. He also said that he was not familiar with ancient religions or languages before he wrote the book. He had written it automatically, his mind having no connection with what he was writing. In fact, he did not know from one day to another what he was penning on paper. He began the work in the Spring of 1880, an impression coming over him that it must be done. When he began a bright light settled over his fingers. This would last 15 to 30 minutes, and when it disappeared he could write no more. It always left his fingers cold and stiff. The work also could only be satisfactorily carried on at sunrise. This light he continued, seemed to impress him, strongly he thought it was similar to the light in the burning bush which talked with Moses and which was the most common way of revelation to the sons of men. He continued his work for a year lacking two weeks. "I could not read it, for the light would not let me" he said, "and I did not know the contents of the book until it was ready for type." After he had finished the manuscript, he said money began to come in from entire strangers, who said they were impressed to send it to him. From England $1,000 came, and about $2,500 was received from Boston. One roll of greenbacks was simply wrapped in a piece of paper with no envelope about it. This money he thought was clearly meant for the publishing of the new Bible, and consequently the association was formed. The book had been before the world for about three weeks and 52 copies had been sold to clergymen in this City and its vicinity. There had also been sold 200 copies to intelligent citizens. He refused to give the names of the members of the association, saying that it was composed of seven persons, including two women. The agreement between the members called for $100,000. [sic $10,000.]. Some members had contributed $1,200. It was printed with plates in this City, where all the engraving was done. Whatever money should be obtained from the sale of the book was to be Page 34 of 35 used in establishing kindergarten homes for orphans in this City. There were no salaries given to anyone. Prof. Thomas A. M. Ward then spoke a few words concerning the book. He said he was an Egyptologist, and had deciphered the legend in the hieroglyphics on the obelisk in Central Park. The letters used by Dr. Newbrough corresponded wonderfully to the Egyptian hieroglyphics. Dr. Cetlinisky, also an Oriental scholar, said he had studied the book and had come to the conclusion that a man could not produce such a work, and believed it was the work of supernatural agents. Dr. Newbrough has been a spiritualist for about 12 years. He is a native of Ohio and is now a practicing dentist. He is a man of large statute [sic stature], with dark, dreamy eyes, and is very slow in his action. To a casual observer the Bible seems a conglomeration of revised editions of Indian and Semitic religions. The style is in one place modern, and in another ancient, and the English of the King James version of the Christian Bible is mixed in with the English of to-day's. Published in The New York Times on 21st October 1882. Page 35 of 35

A Look at the El Paso Oahspe (cover letter)