Emanation

Bythos

BY-thos (Greek Bythos, Depth)

Also Known As Proarche · Propator

Bythos, Greek for Depth, is the unoriginated first principle of the Valentinian Gnostic system as reported by Irenaeus of Lyons: a perfect, pre-existent Aeon who dwelt in profound quiet and repose for countless ages before any other being existed, alone or together with a consort variously named Ennoia, Sige or Charis. After this immeasurable age, Bythos resolved to emit the beginning of all things, and from himself and his consort came forth Nous and Aletheia, the first pair of what Valentinian teachers called the Ogdoad, the root of the entire Pleroma. Because nothing precedes him, Bythos is also called Proarche, the Before-the-Beginning, and Propator, the Forefather. He is never described as an object of cult worship; his role in the system is structural, the ultimate and otherwise unknowable source from which the graded procession of Aeons descends.

Facts

Origins

Proceeds From

None: Bythos is the unoriginated Forefather, prior to and the source of every other emanation in the Valentinian Pleroma; he does not himself proceed from anything higher. 1

Rank In The Sequence

Conventionally counted first of the thirty Aeons of the Pleroma in the Valentinian system Ptolemy's school taught (Irenaeus, Against Heresies 1.1.1), though as the unoriginated Forefather he stands outside the sequence of paired emanations that follow him. 1

Controversy

Disputed Point

Sources differ on whether Bythos's consort is properly named Ennoia (Thought), Sige (Silence) or Charis (Grace); Irenaeus records the variance as a live disagreement among the Valentinian teachers he describes rather than resolving it himself. 1

Function

Domain

Ineffable transcendence; the unoriginated source and root of the Pleroma 1

Practice

Lineage

Consort (syzygy) of Ennoia; together the root pair of the Ogdoad and the parents of Nous and Aletheia. 1

Connections

Associated With

Irenaeus

This source names Irenaeus directly: "Gnostic system as reported by Irenaeus of Lyons: a perfect, pre-existent Aeon who dwelt in profound quiet and repose for countless ages before any other being existed, alone or together with a..."