Page 123 - STOLEN LEGACY By George G. M. James

D. His farewell conversations also show his membership with the great Egyptian Order. There
are two accounts of these conversations: one by Crito and the other by Phaedo. Crito describes
the brotherly behaviour of a band of faithful friends and Neophytes who visited him daily while
he was in prison awaiting his execution. The purpose of these visits was to secure the escape of a
brother; but their efforts were in vain, for he refused to yield to their entreaties. Phaedo mentions
that the theme of the other conversation was the immortality of the soul in which Socrates
endeavoured to give them some proofs by his application of the principles of opposites. We are
also told that towards the end of the conversations, and just before he drank the poison, Socrates
requested Crito to pay for him a certain debt which he owed. These conversations reveal the
following facts:

(a) The brotherly love of the visiting Neophytes in their attempt to secure the escape of their
brother Socrates.

(b) A final class was conducted by Socrates on the doctrine of immortality: the central doctrine
of the Egyptian Mysteries and

(c) A final request of Socrates to have a debt paid for him and

(d) These conversations constitute the earliest specimen of Masonic literature. All four of which
facts point to membership in the Egyptian Mystery System. It was a Universal Brotherhood and
required the cultivation of brotherly love. Its central teaching was the immortality of the soul,
and it also required all Initiates to practice the virtues of justice and honesty and therefore to pay
their debts.

E. It is believed that Socrates did not commit his teachings to writings. This was also in
obedience to the secrecy of the Mysteries.

6. Plato

(A) His early life and education as in the case of all other philosophers are unknown to history,
which represents him as fleeing from Athens after the death of Socrates and after twelve years
during which time he visited Euclid at Megara, the Pythagoreans in Italy, Dionysius in Sicily and
the Mystery System in Egypt, he returned to Athens and opened an Academy, where he taught
for 20 years.

(B) His doctrines which are scattered over a wide area of literature consisting of 36 dialogues are
disputed by modern scholarship. The pupils of Socrates especially Plato are supposed to have
published his teachings, and it is not known how much of this vast literature belongs to Plato and
how much to Socrates. The doctrines of Plato have all been traced to Egyptian origin.

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Stolen Legacy: Greek Philosophy is Stolen Egyptian Philosophy by George G. M. James
The Journal of Pan African Studies 2009 eBook