Canon Status
Not canonical in any tradition.
Date & Provenance
Composed in Greek in Alexandria, Egypt, in the 1st–3rd century CE.
Language & Manuscripts
Greek text preserved in the same manuscripts as CH I.
Why It Matters for Study
Discusses the nature of the divine mind, the creation of the cosmos, and the role of humanity as the image of God.
" The mind is the father of the cosmos, and the cosmos is the image of the mind." — Corpus Hermeticum IV (paraphrase)
Read the Text & External Resources
Public-domain translations and scholarly databases where the text can be read online or downloaded.
- " The mind is the father of the cosmos, and the cosmos is the image of the mind." — Corpus Hermeticum IV (paraphrase) " The mind is the father of the cosmos, and the cosmos is the image of the mind." — Corpus Hermeticum IV (paraphrase)
External links open in a new tab. Sources are chosen for public-domain or open-access availability; always verify edition and translation when citing in academic work.
Further Reading
Copenhaver, B. P. Hermetica. Cambridge University Press, 1992.
Festugière, A.-J. La Révélation d'Hermès Trismégiste. Les Belles Lettres, 1944–1954.
Corpus Hermeticum IV — Sacred Texts|https://www.sacred-texts.com/gno/th1/index.htm|G. R. S. Mead's translation.;; Corpus Hermeticum — Wikipedia|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corpus_Hermeticum|Background and discussion.