136 THE GREAT SECRET
egrcgors became incarnate to seduce earthly women and were the begetters of giants. The true agregors. that is to say the Watchers of the Night, in whom we prefer to believe, are the stars of heaven with their ever-twinkling eyes. They are the angels who control the stars and who are like shepherds for the souls which inhabit them. We also like to think that each race has its guardian angel or genie who could belong to one of the planets in our system. Thus, according to the poetical traditions of the Qabalah, Michael, the angel of the sun, is that of God’s people. Gabriel, the angel of the moon, protects the children of the East who carry the crescent on their banner. Mars and Venus join in the rulership of France. Mercury is the genie of Holland and England. Saturn is the genie of Russia. All this is possible. if uncertain, and may be used in support of the hypotheses of astrology or of the fictions of the epic poem.
The reign of God is an admirable form of government, hierarchical in nature, where anarchy is self-destructive. If there are prisons in His empire for guilty spirits, God alone is their Master and makes sure that they are governed by angels who arc strict yet good. It is not permitted to the inmates to torture one another. Can we say that God is less wise and good than men are? What, then, would we say of an earthly prince who chose a brigand of the worst sort to be governor of his prisons, and gave him leave to constantly sally forth to continue his depredations and set frightful examples to decent people and give them pernicious advice’
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