Southern France, 1190 AD
The Mother continued, “We are now getting into the heart of the Holy Grail story. We have assembled in France at this time, the Knights Templar, and the Cathars. Two distinct groups of people who knew the truth of the life of Jesus. Both of them would soon grow at a rapid rate. And both of these organizations would eventually become an enormous threat to the power, and authority of the Roman church.”
“It was along this time frame that the Father sent his servant Amos back into the fold. In this life Amos incarnated into a man known as Guhibert de Castres. And Guhibert would unbalance everything.”
The Mother looked upon the image of Guhibert that was being displayed on the large viewer. She smiled at his memory and continued, “Guihabert was born in the year 1165 in Castres. Early on this man knew that there was a strong, abiding faith in his soul, longing for the Father. A deep inner calling that only he was able to hear. Guhibert was born for a purpose, and that purpose was the Holy Grail. For in previous lives he had been Abraham, who was the origin of the Grail, and Philip, its preserver. Those two lives intersected in the life of Guhibert. Three lives combing to create one. By the time Guhibert was 24 years old, he had become a Cathar priest. A leader of the Gnostic church in southern France. He had studied the scriptures, learning Latin, Greek, Aramaic, and Hebrew along the way. A natural linguist, with a beautifully curious mind, Guhibert would eventually meander his way to the Cathar faithful. A natural born Gnostic, who was always a seeker of the truth. It was with the Cathars, that he was able to satisfy his many curiosities, and come to believe in Mary Magdalene, and the Holy Grail.”
“In the year 1193, Guhibert settled in the town of Fanjeaux, where he attended to the Cathar group there. It was then that his life changed completely.”
Onscreen the viewer projected an ancient book. It was a worn red leather binding, with a gold leafed spiral on its cover. It looked to be a thousand years old.
The Mother resumed, “It was in that year, while Guhibert was attending to the Cathar faithful, that he was met by an old priest who identified himself to Guhibert only as Charles. Who asked Guhibert to come with him. Now allow the viewer to show the host what happened next.”
Onscreen the viewer showed two men. An old man and a younger one. One of about 70, while the other was 28. Both of them had long hair, and was dressed in blue robes. The older man had grey hair, while the younger man’s was reddish brown. Both were Cathar priests. They were standing outside an old abandoned Castle. One in which had eroded to the point where half of the castle was gone. Weather beaten from the centuries. It was midday, and the sun was directly overhead. The older man, Charles, was handing an old, tattered book to the younger man, Guhibert.
“What is this?” asked Guhibert.
“This is a very sacred book. Begun by Mary Magdalene herself. It tells of the true story of the life of Jesus. It also tells many secrets from our ancestors. And chronicles the lives of the holy royal bloodline begun by Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Many others have added to it down through the centuries. It is the book of our people,” answered Charles.
“Why are you giving it to me?” asked Guhibert.
“Because you have been selected by the Father to be the keeper of the Grail,” replied Charles.
“So this book is the Grail?” asked Guhibert. Keeper of the grail? Selected by the Father? What is this elderly priest talking about?
“Not quite, it’s just a part of the Grail,” answered Charles. He then motioned his hand and said, “Follow me.”
Guhibert did as instructed, and followed Charles into the ancient, and abandoned fortress. An old ruin that used to be a castle of the Visigoths in the early 5th century. Built by Alaric himself. By the year 1193, half of the ancient outside stones were still standing. Yet the inner structure and the lower levels had remained.
Once inside, by the light of a lantern, the old man led Guhibert down a few flights of stairs. Then they made several abrupt turns from hidden doors and passage ways. Opening up one hidden path way, which led to another. It seemed to Guhibert to be a maze of some sorts. Finally, Charles led him into what was left of the dungeon of the castle. There he led him to the dungeon’s northwest corner.
Once there, Charles pointed toward the floor and said, “Look closely, do you see anything?”
Guhibert shuffled his feet to clear the debris which had accumulated through the years. But he could only see dirt on floorboards, set upon solid rock.
“Look closer,” said Charles. Pointing toward a certain spot on the floor. A little notch in the floor boards.
Holding the lantern closer to the floor, Guhibert noticed a faint spiral shaped indentation in the floorboard. It seemed to be made out of metal. Rusted out, it looked to be hundreds of years old. Guhibert dug at the grooves of this indentation, clearing the dirt off of it. Then he realized what it was, “It’s a lock,” exclaimed Guhibert.
“Indeed it is,” said Charles.
“But for what?” asked Guhibert.
“For what is below us,” replied Charles.
“What is below us? Why there is only rock below us. This floor is just wood and stone set upon rock,” said Guhibert.
“Is it?” asked Charles.
Guhibert thought for a moment. Wondering what this old man was up to. Obviously, he was trying to tell Guhibert something. Claiming that there was more to this dungeon than meets the eye. He looked at the faint lock on the floor and asked, “So if this is a lock, then where is the key?”
Charles reached into a small goat skinned bag that was wrapped around his belt, and produced an ancient key. It was spiral shaped, with many grooves and notches built into it. “It is right here,” he answered.
Charles handed the key to Guhibert and said, “See if it still works.”
Guhibert did as instructed, and inserted the key into the lock. He turned it to the right and heard a click of gears moving within. He then further turned the lock, heard a snap of levers, releasing the hidden door. Guhibert was then able to lift the secret door out of its original position. He then set it down, adjacent to the entryway. Guhibert then held the lantern inside the secret door, to reveal a folding ladder that was attached to the other side.
Guhibert looked up at Charles, who was smiling. “Fold down the ladder, and go have a look. I’ve already seen it. A long time ago. I’m too old to navigate my way down there anymore,” said Charles.
The younger man lowered the folding ladder, and complied with Charles instructions. Once at the bottom of the ladder, he gathered his bearings, held up the lantern, and looked around. What he saw astounded him.
“Oh my God,” whispered Guhibert.
Guhibert was standing in the middle of an expansive room, approximately 150 feet long, and 100 feet wide. The floor and the walls were carved out of rock. A flat, grey surface, which must have taken months to build. The 12 feet high ceiling was held together by stone, and wooden joists with metal supports. The joists looked as if they could last another 1000 years.
Guhibert walked away from the ladder, and saw in the middle of the room, the ancient candlestick known as the Menorah. The sacred seven lamped candle stand, which was taken from the second temple in Jerusalem by the Romans. Made of solid gold, it must have stood almost six feet high. A single candle in the middle, with three rounded branches on each side. Guhibert was in awe to be in the presence of this most holy object. He reached out to touch one of its branches, wiping the dust from it, to reveal the golden splendor underneath. People have thought this relic lost to history. Now here it is, standing right in front of me, thought Guhibert.
Next to the Menorah sat an eight feet long, four feet wide solid gold table. This is the visionary table that the Menorah sat upon, mused Guhibert. Adjacent to the table was a solid golden throne. And this must be the mercy seat. All three of these items were located in the holiest place of the ancient temple. The holy of holies, as the Jews called it. The most sacred place on earth, reflected Guhibert.
He moved away from these sacred items, and looked around. There were three rows of shelving, which encompassed the entire room. The top row at five feet, the middle row at three feet, and the bottom row at one foot. Set upon the shelving’s were various objects, relics of the past. Crowns, staffs, jewels, artifacts, and different sized chests. He moved to the eastern wall, and opened one of the larger sized chests. He opened it to reveal that it was filled with diamonds of all shapes and sizes. Is this a part of King Solomon’s treasure? It had to be. For according to legend, King Solomon had many diamond mines in Africa. Some say that Solomon was the richest man ever to grace the planet. I wonder if this treasure is his? For who else would accumulate this many diamonds? There are thousands of them in this chest. He pondered this for a moment, and moved on.
He moved from object to object. Chests filled with gold coins, jewels, and various relics, that many seemed to date back to the Roman times. The crowns looked to be the crowns of the various Caesars. A few of them had inscriptions that were labeled with the various Caesar’s names upon them. Claudius, Nero, and Titus, amongst them.
Guhibert moved toward the south wall, and found a few scepters that seemed to date back to the Egyptian time period. Him being an educated man, he knew the various symbols of Osiris, Isis, and many of the other Egyptian deities. Along with the scepters of Egypt, he saw a solid gold casting of Anubis. That jackal headed ancient god of Egypt. Next to Anubis, stood a six feet high golden statue of Thoth. Amazing, thought Guhibert. Simply amazing.
Continuing along the south wall, Guhibert saw emerald tablets with ancient Egyptian writings upon them. A sort of hieroglyphics. These must be ancient, thought Guhibert. There seemed to be twelve of them. He wiped the dust off of one of them, and noticed that they were very legible. The emerald tablets of Thoth? Wondered Guhibert. Next to the emerald tablets were three staffs. Guhibert knew immediately what they were. The staff of Ra, the staff of was, and the staff of dominion. Amazing, thought Guhibert. These items must be thousands of years old. Dating back to the time of the ancient Pharaohs.
He heard a voice overhead, telling him to take his time. That it was okay to spend a little time down here and take in a little inventory. Guhibert did as the elderly man instructed, and moved on toward the western wall. It was here that Guhibert found many other ancient Israeli treasures. The crowns of King’s David and Solomon. The scepters of the many Kings of Israeli history. Golden armor, and many chests filled with various jewels of emeralds, diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and of course gold. Also a golden chest filled with many scrolls. He opened a couple of them. One was labeled “Isaiah,” and another was labeled, “Amos.” These are the scrolls of the prophets, mused Guhibert.
Guhibert then came across a small golden box with a Hebrew inscription upon it which read, “The ring of Solomon.” He opened it to reveal an enormous golden ring, with an equally enormous ruby stone sat in the middle of it. Poured in gold within the ruby stone, were the Hebrew letters, YHWH. The name of God, thought Guhibert. Could this be the fabled Solomon’s ring that he used to control the demons who supposedly built the first temple? Guhibert could only look in awe at the unique ring, and wonder. He’d wager he was correct that it was Solomon’s fabled ring. An item that was filled with the power of the Father. He thought about taking the ring and keeping it for himself, and then decided it was better to be back in its original location.
Finally Guhibert surveyed the northern wall. These items seemed to be Greek for the most part. Crowns, staffs, rods, and various other treasures of Alexander the Great. Along with chests filled with coins and riches. Such as the other walls were. Many items seemed to have a Persian origin. Treasures of the Greco Persian wars, thought Guhibert.
He took a final glance around the room and before he made his way up the steps, he spotted a large vase filled with scrolls. He unsheathed one, and saw that it was in the ancient Jewish language of Hebrew. He thought about reading it, and gave that idea a second thought. Thinking that Charles had been waiting long enough. He climbed the stairs, and once finished, he looked into the eyes of a smiling Charles. Who asked him, “Well, what do you think?”
“It’s amazing,” exclaimed Guhibert. “How long have you known about this place?” he asked the elder priest.
“Since I was your age. When an elderly priest named Francois took me here to show it to me,” answered Charles.
“I can’t believe the amount of treasure that is stored down there,” said Guhibert. He was clearly in shock. Nothing had prepared him for what he witnessed that day. There were more riches stored down in the cellar of this half eroded castle, than all the accumulated riches of the kings of the earth. Nothing could approach the wealth located in this hidden place. He had just witnessed the wealth of the planet, all collected in the same place. A remote Visigoth castle that had been forgotten about centuries ago.
Guhibert thought for a moment, and asked, “Why did you show it to me?”
“Because I’m dying,” answered Charles.
“So you chose to show me this secret before you passed on?” asked Guhibert.
“I didn’t choose you. God did. I had a dream of you the other night. I know now that the dream was a message sent from the Father of all things. And he wanted you to see the location of the great secrets of this world,” said Charles.
“Well they certainly are that,” said Guhibert.
Charles allowed Guhibert to absorb this new information that he had been shown. He patiently awaited Guhibert to ask more questions. The younger priest didn’t let him down, and asked the obvious question, “How did this all get here?”
“This is an accumulated treasure of many centuries. I’m not sure how much you saw, but it ranges back from the days of ancient Egypt, Persia, Israel, Greece, and to Rome. It’s the riches that Rome stole from the world. Centuries of Roman booty. Taken from those whom they had conquered. But then in the year 410, Alaric, King of the Visigoths, stole if from them. Who then built this castle to mark the location of the treasure,” answered Charles.
Guhibert could only stare at the elderly priest with his mouth open. Therefore, Charles continued, “Once the castle was built and the treasure hidden away, Alaric had the builders assassinated. For they knew too much. Anyone who had any idea of the location of the treasure, was dealt with accordingly by Alaric. He wanted to be the only man who knew the secret of the treasure.”
“Before he died, Alaric then passed on the location of the treasure to his son, who passed it on to the next generation. Somewhere along the line, the Visigoth Kings went underground. They had to for fear of the Franks to the north, and the Moors to the south. These kings kept the location of this fabulous treasure a secret. I am descended from these kings. But since I have no son to share the secret with, I awaited a sign from the Father on whom to share the secret with. This is when I was given the dream, to give the secret to you.”
“This is fascinating,” replied Guhibert.
“I’m about to show you something even more fascinating,” said Charles.
“What could possibly be more fascinating than this?” asked Guhibert.
“Follow me, and I’ll show you,” said Charles.
The viewer faded, and the Mother of all things looked out to a stunned audience. Almost all of them had no idea that this treasure existed. And to find out that there is something even more fantastical. Well, needless to say, the angelic host awaited with baited breath. They were ‘at the edge of their seats,’ as the saying goes.
The Mother of all things smiled, and spoke, “Would you all like me to further activate the viewer so you can see what happens next?”
A collective affirmative response came from the audience. In unison, they answered, “Yes.”
“You’re such a tease,” remarked the Father with a wink.
“I am,” she agreed. And then she reactivated the viewer to show a different scene from the same two men. The elder Charles, and the younger Guhibert.
Both men were standing within a cave structure. They were holding up lanterns, looking around at the writings upon the cave walls. These writings were written in Aramaic. The same language used during the time of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Guhibert was holding up the lantern, and attempting to read the writings. It was very dusty, but he could make out some of the ancient letters.
Before he could venture too far in interpreting the writings, he was interrupted by Charles, who said, “Don’t bother reading them. I’ll tell you what they say.”
“And what is that?” asked Guhibert.
Charles replied, “It tells the same story that is in your book that I’ve given you. A condensed version of the true story of Jesus of Nazareth, and Mary Magdalene. How they were a married couple, with three children. The walls tell of how Jesus survived the crucifixion, and went on to live another twelve years afterward. How the Apostle Philip rescued Mary Magdalene, and escorted her and her children to this area of southern France.”
“Why would someone tell the story of Jesus and the Magdalene in a cave?” asked Guhibert.
Charles didn’t immediately answer him. He just motioned for the younger priest to come to the northwest corner of the cave. There, Charles motioned toward the wall. Guhibert moved toward the area that Charles had motioned to, and saw another spiral shaped lock. This one was located on the wall, and not the floor, as the lock at the castle had been.
Charles reached into his pocket, and once again produced the same key that opened up the lock at the castle. He inserted the key into lock, which was a part of the wall. After turning it to the right, there were a few clicks of the gears heard in the cave.
Once the lock was opened, Guhibert saw the stone, which was a portion of the wall, move to the right. Just enough space for a man to fit in. Charles picked up his lantern, and led Guhibert to this secret hidden room. Once in the room, Guhibert saw two stone tombs. On top of the tombs were the labels of whom lie within them. One was labeled Jesus, the other was labeled Mary.
Guhibert looked back at Charles and asked, “Is this who I think it is?”
“It is,” answered Charles.
“Oh my God!” was all Guhibert could muster from his mouth. Nothing else would suffice. Once he recovered his senses, he crept over toward the tomb labeled, ‘Jesus,’ and inspected the cover. It looked as if he could lift it, and see what is inside.
“Go on ahead and see what is inside. It just might interest you,” said Charles with a smile. He knew what lie ahead of Guhibert. A surprise that would shake the foundation of the younger priest’s soul.
Guhibert did as he was instructed, and lifted the cover of the tomb which was labeled ‘Jesus.’ Once the cover was removed, he lifted up his lantern to see what was inside.
Inside the tomb box was a large skeleton. This was a very tall man. And from the size of these bones, extremely well built, thought Guhibert. Around the skeleton was a beige colored robe. Well weathered from the many centuries since this body had been laid to rest in this stone rectangular box. It was more than likely white when it was put around this man. Guhibert lifted the robe off the skeleton, and inspected it. There was an image of a man upon the robe. It was well faded, but an image was certainly there. Guhibert could see an entire body on the faded robe. A head, hands, legs, and so on. The image even displayed wounds that the man seemed to have suffered. Fascinating, thought Guhibert.
Also inside the box were a few other items besides the robe. One of them looked like the golden band of a wedding ring. Still on the ring finger of the left hand of this skeleton. Also inside the box was a codex style book, made out of papyrus. The book was nestled underneath the right hand of Jesus. Guhibert removed the book, and opened it up to see that inside this book were letters shared between Jesus and Mary Magdalene.
Guhibert began to read a letter written from Mary to Jesus. The words were written with a deep abiding emotion, which can only be shared between a woman and a man whom shared an intense love. A tear flowed down the young priests face, as he read the love shared between these two people. A couple who had been separated for some time. The only thing that kept them together were these precious letters that he now held in his hand.
Once he finished with the letter, Guhibert looked up from the book to ask Charles, “Is there anything else to see besides these two tombs?”
“No,” answered Charles. “I’ve given you the ancient book began by Mary Magdalene. I’ve shown you the ancient treasure of Alaric, and his Visigoths. The final secret is these two tombs. The ancient burial site of Jesus and his wife Mary Magdalene.”
Guhibert pointed to the other tomb. The one that said ‘Mary’ on the cover, and asked Charles, “What is in that tomb besides Mary Magdalene?
“Just her body, and a few keepsakes. Same as you found in the tomb of Jesus,” answered Charles.
“How did they get here?” asked Guhibert.
“That my friend is an unknown secret. I know Mary came to this area through the apostle named Philip. But how Jesus ended up being here is one of the all-time mysteries on this planet. Personally, I believe that he was taken here after his death for burial,” replied Charles.
“But it is Jesus,” stated Guhibert.
“It is indeed,” agreed Charles.
Guhibert thought about this grand revelation for a moment, and asked, “Who all knows of this secret?”
“No one. Just you and I know,” answered Charles.
“Well, it needs to stay that way,” said Guhibert.
Charles smiled, and said, “I’ve kept this secret to myself for over fifty years. No one but myself knew of the treasure, the tombs, and the book I’ve given you. I’m dying, so now it is your turn to keep the secret. Then before you pass on from this world to the next, you are to tell the next generation. I’ve done my job, now it is your turn.”
Guhibert immediately felt the weight of the old man’s words. He would have to keep to himself, the greatest secrets of all time. Perhaps he would have to keep this to himself for over fifty years, as Charles had done. How he had been able to accomplish this feat was beyond Guhibert. The book of Mary Magdalene, the treasure of Alaric, and the tombs of Jesus and Mary. Three earth shattering revelations, all in one day. It was almost too much for the young priest to handle.
After twenty more minutes of inspecting the cave, the two men left the hidden confines of the burial place of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Neither would return again. These two priests would be the last humans to see the tombs of Jesus of Nazareth, and Mary Magdalene.