Chapter 5 The Second Holy Cabinet and the Holy Grail-1

However ill a mortal may be, from the day he sees the stone, he will not die nor remain pale for a week.This is because, anyone, no matter a girl or a man, as long as he sees the Holy Grail for two years, you have to admit that his complexion will be the same as when he was just born... This stone can indeed exert such magical powers on mortals, making their flesh and blood Rejuvenate instantly.This stone is known as the Holy Grail. —— "Parsifal" When I visited the city of Axum, I heard with my own ears an outrageous statement from Ethiopians that Axum was the final resting place of the Ark of the Covenant. This happened in 1983.At the time, I was living in Africa.

In 1984, our family moved to the UK.But in the years since, I've traveled regularly to Addis Ababa, written a number of publications for the Ethiopian government, and generally intensified contacts with those in power, including Mengistu Haile Maria President Hum himself. The dictator was notorious for being a human rights abuser, but my careful handling of him resulted in some useful privileges, specifically allowing me access to many places normally closed to foreigners.If I intended to make further investigations into the secrets of the Ark, I would undoubtedly be in a very favorable position at that time.However, I'm not interested in that.

Therefore, at the end of 1988, when the troops of the "Tigray People's Liberation Front" aggressively attacked Axum and captured the city after only one day of bloody hand-to-hand combat, I did not even have the slightest regret.In that battle, more than 2,000 government soldiers were killed or captured. At that time, my relationship with the Mengistu regime was so close that the victory of the rebels meant that the gate of the holy city of Axum was now completely closed to me.But anyway, I don't see any particular reason to go there any more.At least that's what I thought at the time.

Queen of Sheba in Chartres I spent most of the second half of 1988, and the first quarter of 1989, writing reviews for an atlas.That book focused on the historic northern regions of Ethiopia and the religious ceremonies and customs of the people there.This project was not commissioned by the Ethiopian government, but the work of two internationally renowned photographers, Angela Fischer and Carol Beckwith, both good friends of mine. Due to the nature of the subject matter of this book, I had to do a fairly meticulous background check on the different races.Among these ethnic groups were the Falasha, the black Jews native to the Ethiopian highlands, whom I first encountered in 1983.At the same time I felt that I had to study an ancient text which had played a major part in the formation of the Abyssinian religion.Professor Richard Pankhurst asked me to study this text a long time ago.

The text is called Kebra Nagast (The King's Glory) and was written in the 13th century AD in the original Jezin.It contains the earliest surviving version of that story, the one I heard in Axum: the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon, the birth of their son Menelik, and the later removal of the Ark from the First Temple in Jerusalem. abducted. An English translation of this text was published in the 1930s by Sir E. A. Wallis Butch, who served as curator of Egyptian and Assyrian antiquities at the British Museum.That English translation is out of print, but I managed to get hold of a photocopy, which I pored over and referred to throughout the various stages of writing the book.

It was not until March 1989 that I finally finished the book. In April, I planned to take a complete break and went to France for vacation with my family.We rented a car in Paris and headed to the south of France without a firm schedule in mind. Our first stop was Versailles.We stayed there for a few days, visiting the palace and castle.Then we went to Chartres, a quaint and beautiful town in the Eure-Loroire department, famous for its Catholic cathedral.Like the cathedral in the ancient city of Axum, Chartres Cathedral is dedicated to the Virgin Mary. Chartres has been an important Christian shrine since at least the 6th century AD, and, since the 9th century AD, it has been the focus of the faith of the Virgin Mary.At that time, the grandson of the famous Charlemagne, the King of France "Charles the Bald", gave the town the most precious religious relic - a veil. It is said that the Virgin Mary wore this veil when she gave birth to Jesus. .

In the 11th century AD, the church built by "Charles the Bald" was burned down, and a much larger new church was built on its ruins.The cathedral was designed according to classical "Romanesque" style principles, emphasizing the stability of horizontal lines, but it was also badly damaged by fire.Later, in the 12th and 13th centuries, its surviving shell underwent substantial alterations and was enlarged to form a new church with a soaring, upward-rising style, which later became known as "Gothic." ". Indeed, the soaring north tower of Chartres Cathedral, completed in 1134, is considered the earliest example of Gothic architecture in the world. Twenty years later, the cathedral's south tower was completed, as was its west-facing royal entrance.Then, between 1194 and 1225, in a concentrated building upsurge, most of the exterior works of this magnificent Gothic cathedral were completed - and have remained unchanged since, in fact, to this day.

When my family and I visited Chartres in April 1989, I was initially more interested in the cathedral not so much in its history than in its majestic beauty.It is so majestic, with so many intricate carvings on the walls, that it would take me a lifetime to fully understand it.We had other things to do and visit, though, so we decided to just stay in town for three days before heading south. I spent most of those three days wandering slowly around the cathedral, taking in bits of its powerful, otherworldly atmosphere—the amazing stained-glass windows, with patterns telling Stories from the "Bible" are used to illuminate the darkness of the room with strange lights; the mosaic stones laid on the ground of the rotunda in the center of the church outline a confusing and intricate maze; the flying buttresses support the towering walls; the pointed arches; and the general sense of harmony and proportion conveyed by the elegance and sophistication of the building.

The tourist brochures I bought emphasized that everything about this church was a masterpiece of ingenuity.The entire church was carefully designed as a key to deeper religious mysteries.For example, when building many of the main areas of the church, architects and masons "spelled out" obscure liturgical words using "Gematria," an ancient Hebrew code that used letters instead of numbers.Likewise, sculptors and glassmakers have carefully concealed complex information about human nature, history, and the meaning of Gospel prophecy in the thousands of devices they created.

The statues and windows in churches are works of art and beauty in themselves, and even in the most superficial sense they can satisfy, morally enlighten, and even delight the viewer; To read the message hidden behind the meaning of this or that set of carved surfaces, to read the message behind this or that arrangement of stained glass. At first, I didn't believe such claims, and it was difficult to see the meaning of this church beyond its appearance.However, after looking further and taking other professional study tours, it gradually dawned on me that this magnificent building is indeed a "book written in stone"—a profound book that can be read and understood on different levels. And inspiring work.

So, I also quickly started this kind of game, and I was very interested in trying to understand the deep meaning of a certain statue combination I saw several times.When I think I have found the right answer for a certain arrangement or scene, I refer to the description in the travel booklet to see if I am right or wrong. Then, something unexpected happened.There is a cafe opposite the south corridor of the cathedral called "La Reine de Saba" (Queen of Sheba).I go there for a quick meal.I had just read that ancient manuscript, The Glory of the Kings, in which the Ethiopian legend of the Queen of Sheba was still fresh in my memory, so I asked a waiter why the café had that name. The waiter explained, "Because there is a statue of the Queen of Sheba in the corridor over there." My curiosity was piqued.I crossed the road and mounted the doorstep into the splendid gallery, which consisted of a wide central aisle flanked by narrower aisles.There are figurines and some life-size statues in almost every square inch of usable space here, too numerous to count.But I didn't find a statue of the Queen of Sheba.I consulted the most detailed guidebook "Charters: A Guide to the Cathedral", which told me where to go to see the statue of the Queen of Sheba: There are 28 small statues at the inner arch of the outer corridor, which are the kings and queens in the "Old Testament": we can see King David holding a harp, King Solomon holding a scepter, and Queen Sheba holding a flower in her left hand .Above the arch are the four major prophets with long beards, who are talking with the four minor prophets without beards. The manual also tells me that the entire south aisle of the cathedral was built in the first quarter of the century. "The Glory of Kings" was also written in Ethiopia during this period, telling the story of the Queen of Sheba, Menelik and the theft of the Ark of the Covenant. This coincidence surprised me, and I took a close look at the statue of the Queen of Sheba with considerable interest.I didn't see anything special about it, though: the statue seemed out of place amidst the majestic ranks of statues of Jewish kings and prophets. I know, according to "King's Glory," that the queen converted to Judaism.But I also know that there are not many accounts of her visit to Jerusalem in the Bible, and it does not mention this. Chapter 10 of Kings and Chapter 9 of Chronicles (the only two places in the Old Testament where the name of the Queen of Sheba is mentioned) said that the Queen of Sheba was a pagan when she came to Solomon's palace, Apparently still heretic when he left there.So it is precisely because the Queen of Sheba was a pagan that makes her statue here unique—unless, of course, the builders of Chartres had known the Ethiopian story of her conversion to Judaism, they would have won't do that.However, that scenario seems highly unlikely.In fact, the Old Testament doesn't even mention that the Queen of Sheba was Ethiopian at all.She is also considered by many scholars to be a monarch of southern Arabia, specifically, the queen of the ancient kingdom of Saba (or Sabaea), where Yemen is today. I read my travel brochure further and learned that there is also a statue of the Queen of Sheba in the north corridor of this cathedral.That corridor, also built between 122 and 1225, is dedicated to a theme of strong archetypal significance in the Old Testament.Had it not been so, I might well have dismissed the statue of the Queen of Sheba in the south aisle of Chartres Cathedral as an insignificant anomaly. Ark of the Covenant and Inscriptions On that first visit, I spent two hours exploring the north corridor of the cathedral, trying to decipher the twists and turns of the story told by the carvings. In the left transept there are several statues of the Virgin Mary, as well as carvings of the infant Christ with Old Testament prophets such as Isaiah and Daniel.There are also engravings of allegorical stories here - one depicting the victory of virtue over evil, another the blessing of body and soul, as in the great 12th-century monk St. Bernard of Clervaux (1090-1153 , the abbot of Clervaux Abbey in France and one of the founders of the Cistercian Order——Translator's Note) described it. A group of statues in the mid-span gallery are of Old Testament chiefs and prophets, including a statue of Melchizedek, a mysterious priest and king of Salem, Genesis 14 He is described in Psalm 110.There are statues of Abraham, Moses, Samuel and David, as well as statues of Elisha and St. Peter.Other scenes include the Garden of Eden with its four rivers, and the Virgin Mary seated on a throne in heaven with a golden crown and Jesus at her side. I found the statue of the Queen of Sheba on the right cross corridor.This statue, unlike the one in the south corridor, is not an unidentifiable statue above the arch, but a life-size statue.Next to her is a statue of Solomon, which is exactly what the Bible describes.The first thing I noticed, though, was an African squatting at the feet of the Queen of Sheba—a man I called "her black servant" in several of my travel guidebooks, and "the black servant" in another. her Ethiopian slaves". No description of the details.Still, I see with satisfaction that the 13th-century sculptors who worked in the north aisle of Chartres cathedral intended to place the Queen in an unmistakable African setting.That said, I can no longer easily rule out the possibility that those sculptors might have been familiar with the Ethiopian legend of the queen of Sheba, which was recorded in the manuscript "Glory of the Kings" in the thirteenth century . This possibility at least explains why a clearly pagan monarch is so valued in the statues of this Christian cathedral - as mentioned above, describing the true belief of the Queen of Sheba who converted to those chiefs It is the King's Glory, not the Bible.This possibility, though, raises another conundrum: How did the Ethiopian legend infiltrate northern France so early in history? While I was pondering these questions, I suddenly saw a carving on a pillar between the middle and right-span corridors, which made a stronger impression on me.It is a reduced engraving, at most a few inches high and wide, of an ox cart bearing a box or chest or something.Below the engraving is inscribed a line of capital letters - "ARCHACEDERIS". I circled the column counterclockwise and saw another separate scene, badly damaged, peeling and corroded, and carved as if a man was leaning on this same box or cabinet.There is also an illegible inscription on the carving: HIC AMICITUR ARCHA CEDERIS (or is) HIC AMITTITURE ARCHA CEDERIS (or is) HIC AMITITUR ARCHA CEDERIS (or is) HIC AMIGITUR ARCHA CEDRES The style of these letters is ancient, intertwined and difficult to distinguish.I know it must be Latin, or some form of Latin.However, the primary school principals had already forced me to drop Latin lessons when I was thirteen (because I had failed Chinese), so I had no intention of translating the above inscription at all.However, in my opinion, the word "ARCHA" must mean "ark" (Ark), the ark of "Ark of the Covenant".I can also see that the box or chest in these carvings is exactly the same size (in proportion to the other figures) as the Ark of the Covenant described in it (see "Old Testament Exodus" chapter 37 verse 1 - Translator's note). I reasoned that, if this assumption of mine is correct, then placing a carving of the Ark of the Covenant not far from the carving of the Queen of Sheba further supports my previous hypothesis that the architect of Chartres cathedral may have ( In some unknown way) has been influenced by the Ethiopian legend recorded in "King's Glory".The architects clearly placed the queen in an African context, which makes this assumption more plausible than my previous assumptions in the South Corridor.So I think it's worth spending some time trying to figure out if those little carvings on the pillars are actually the Ark of the Covenant and what those Latin inscriptions mean. I sat on the paving stones in the north corridor, carefully flipping through the few travel brochures in my hand.Only two of these make any mention of the decorations on these pillars that I am interested in.One of them, although there is no Latin translation of this sentence, proves that these carved scenes are indeed related to the Ark of the Covenant.Another handbook provides a translation - which I find interesting but seriously doubts its accuracy: ARCHA CEDERIS (you're going to depend on this cabinet to work) HIC AMITITUR ARCHA CEDERIS (Everything needs to be learned here, you need to rely on this cabinet to work) Even relying on my knowledge of Latin in elementary school is enough to suggest that this translation may not be correct.I therefore decided to ask an expert on the matter to clarify the meaning of this Latin phrase for me.It occurred to me that in just a few days I would pass by the home of a man perfectly qualified to help me—Professor Peter Lasker, an expert in art history and formerly of Courttrude College, University of London. Dean.Now he lives in the south of France for half a year every year.Lasko was also the father of a good friend of mine.He has spent his life studying medieval religious art and architecture, and so may provide me with an authoritative insight, or at least a guide. So, I copied that line of inscription carefully, then stood up, trying to draw a sketch of the entire north corridor.At this time, I saw another potentially significant object, the stone tablets of the Ark of the Covenant.Although it stands on the supporting columns at the front of the corridor, its position is precisely between the statue of Melchizedek, the priest and king of the Old Testament, and the statue of the Queen of Sheba, whose statue occupies the middle span of the corridor. most of the place; the statue of the latter occupies most of the right-span corridor. In fact, I could draw a triangle connecting the three statues - the statue of Melchizedek and the Queen of Sheba are at each end of the long base of the triangle, and the carvings of the Ark of the Covenant are on the two short sides. vertex. That's not all. When I studied the distribution of these carvings on the two corridors, I also realized that the ox cart on the carving is carrying the Ark of the Covenant away from Melchizedek, (along the side of the triangle I have drawn) straight Walk towards the Queen of Sheba. Many statues in Chartres Cathedral contain allegories, and different characters are often juxtaposed intentionally to tell some stories or convey certain messages.Given this feature, I think it is unlikely that the arrangement of the three sculptures was accidental.On the contrary, this arrangement seems like further evidence for my hypothesis that the architects of Chartres must have somehow learned of the Ethiopian relation to Sheba recorded in the Glory of the Kings. Queen's Tale. Although it is far from conclusive on the sliver of evidence now available, the group of carvings in the north corridor may at least contain an echo of the legend that the Ark of the Covenant was brought from ancient Israel by the priest-king Melchizedek. Germany) was taken away and taken to Ethiopia (represented by the Queen of Sheba). Therefore, before leaving the North Corridor, I paid special attention to the statue of Melchizedek.When I first entered this corridor, it was 5!caught my attention, and now, as I sketch it, I start to notice more details.Under his right arm, for example, hung a censer, much like the kind I often see in Ethiopian church sacraments.A great deal of incense is usually lit at those sacraments.At the same time, in his left hand, he held a long-necked chalice, which contained not a liquid, but some solid cylindrical object. I looked through my travel brochures again, and instead of finding any description of the censer, I saw some conflicting explanations for the cup. One book says the statue's Melchizedek was meant to be portrayed as Christ's persecutor, so the chalice and its contents were meant to represent "bread and wine, the symbols of the Eucharist" .In another book, the caption beneath the photograph of the statue reads, "Melchizedek holds the chalice from which flowed stones," and then the following, somewhat puzzling words: We can associate this with the poet Wolfram von Eschenbach.He is said to have been a Templar (although there is no evidence of this at all).In his work, the Holy Grail is a stone. Besides, no more plausible explanation could be found.I finally left the north corridor and went to join my wife and children in the garden behind the cathedral. The next day, we set off from Chartres and drove south to Bordeaux and Biarritz.After a while, we headed east to the Côte d'Azur (the summer resort of Riviera Port-Translator's Note), and came to the Tarn and Garonne provinces near the city of Toulouse. There, with the help of an accurate map, I finally found the home of Professor Peter Lasko, an expert in art history.I have telephoned him from Chartres, and he has offered to speak to me about the carvings in the North Corridor, though he modestly adds that he cannot be called an expert on them. Ethiopian involvement? I spent an afternoon with Peter Lasko at his house in the small village of Montague de Guerce.Peter Lasko was a good-looking man in his sixties with gray hair.I had met him a few times before, and he knew me as a writer covering Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa.So he asked me at the beginning why I suddenly became interested in medieval French cathedrals, I briefly stated to him my opinion that the carvings I had seen in the north aisle of Chartres Cathedral might have been in some respects influenced by The Glory of the Kings.I concluded: "Melchizedek holding the Holy Grail may symbolize Israel in the Old Testament. He was, after all, the priest-king of Salem, which some scholars believe to be Jerusalem. Also, the Queen of Sheba statue (at her feet There is also an African servant) may symbolize Ethiopia. Between these two statues we again see carvings of the Ark of the Covenant, which is being sent to Ethiopia. Therefore, they may convey the message that the Ark of the Covenant was brought from Jerusalem To Ethiopia—that's what it says in King's Glory. What do you think?" "Honestly, Graham, that sounds ridiculous." "why?" "Oh... I think that Ethiopian legend probably infiltrated Europe as early as the 13th century - in fact, if you think about it, at least one scholarly paper currently suggests that this might be the case. I doubt it myself This statement. However, even if Chartres already knew the legend recorded in "The Glory of the King", I don't know who would have the heart to translate it into the sculpture group in the cathedral. This was an unusual one at the time. This is especially true of the North Corridor, where the carvings are mainly of those pre-Christian forerunners in the Old Testament. Incidentally, it is for this reason that there is a statue of Melchizedek. In the "Eber In Hebrews, Melchizedek is seen as Christ (see "New Testament Hebrews" Chapter 7 - Translator's Note)." "On the statue, he's holding a cup in his hand with some sort of cylindrical thing in it." "That was probably meant to symbolize the bread - the bread and wine of the Eucharist." "That's what one of my travel guidebooks says. But another book says that this cup is the Holy Grail, and that the cylinder is a stone." Peter Rasko raised his eyebrows suspiciously: "I've never heard that before. It's far more far-fetched than your Ethiopian connection..." He thought for a moment, then said, "However, there is a A thing worth mentioning. The treatise I refer to speaks of the passage of the Ethiopian legend into medieval Europe..." "yes." "There's a peculiar thing about the Holy Grail. If I remember correctly, it says that the Holy Grail in Wolfram von Eschenbach's "Legend of the Holy Grail" is a stone, not a cup, but This statement has some influence from Ethiopian Christian legends." I leaned forward and said, "That's interesting... I also mentioned Wolfram von Eschenbach in my travel brochure. Who is he?" "He was one of the first medieval poets to write about the Holy Grail. He wrote a whole book on the Holy Grail called Parsifal." "Is that the name of the opera?" "Yes, Wagner's opera. It was inspired by Wolfram." "This Wolfram... when did he write that book?" "Ask the end of the century or the beginning of the 13th century." "That is to say, at the same time as the construction of the northern aisle of Chartres Cathedral?" "yes." We were silent for a while, and then I said, "The paper you speak of suggests that Wolfram's work was influenced by Ethiopian legends. I suppose you don't remember the title of that paper?" "...ah, don't remember, I'm afraid I don't. When I read it, it was at least 20 years ago. I remember, it was written by Adolf. That's all I remember. Wolfram German, so you should actually consult a specialist in German literature in the medieval European highland countries to find out more details." I have this plan in mind.So I asked Peter to help me translate the inscription in Chartres Cathedral that puzzled me.I told him that my travel brochure translates "ARCHA CEDERIS" as "You work with this cabinet" and "HIC AMITITUR ARCHA CEDERIS" as "Everything is to be learned here, and you work with this cabinet" ". Peter, however, felt that these translations were all wrong. "ARCHA" means "cabinet" of course, and "C EDERIS" is most likely a broken word "FOEDERIS", which means "deed".According to this method of interpretation, it is very simple and logical to translate "ARCHA CEDERIS" into "Ark of the Covenant".However, there is another translation: the word "CEDERIS" is used as a form of the verb ceders, which means "to yield," "to give up," or "to go away."The tense of the sentence is unconventional, but if so, the most accurate translation of the phrase "ARCHA CEDERIS" would be "the Ark of the Covenant which you will give up (or "give up", or "give away")". As for the longer sentence, the difficulty arises from the blurring of the fourth letter of its second word.My travel brochure estimated that letter to be "T".However, it is more like an abbreviation for two "T"s (because in Latin, there is no such spelling as AMITTTUR with only one T).If it can be confirmed that there are two "T", then this sentence should be "HIC AMITITUR ARCHA CEDERIS", which means "let it go from here, the cabinet you will give up", or Perhaps it is "Let it go from here, O cabinet, you are let out", or there is another translation, if the word "CEDERIS" is a broken "FOEDERIS", then the meaning of the whole sentence is:" Let it go from here, the Ark of the Covenant." There's one more possibility, though: the fourth letter of the second word could be a "C" (and it looks a lot like that).If so, then the sentence becomes "HIC AMICITUR ARCHA CEDERIS", and its translation is either "here is hidden the ark of the covenant", or "here is hidden the ark of the covenant which you will give up" (or "abandoned", or "sent away"). Closing his Latin dictionary, Peter concluded: "Even if the word conceal is not clear, the word Amicitur in this sentence can fully express the meaning of conceal, so the meaning of the whole sentence is still the same. Yes Isn't it? I don't know. It's kind of confusing." I wholeheartedly agree with him.The matter is indeed perplexing.Not only that, but I found it challenging and fun, a 5!Fascinating, so I really want to solve this mystery. During the rest of my holiday in France, I often thought of the north aisle of Chartres Cathedral, where I had seen the statuettes.What I can't forget is that the ox cart carrying the ancient object in the relief seems to be walking towards the Queen of Sheba.Likewise, I can't always rule out the possibility that this scene on the relief hints towards Ethiopia.I know that I am indulging in endless speculation, and there is no academic evidence to support these speculations. I completely agree with Peter Lasko: the sculptors of Chartres Cathedral did not allow themselves to be influenced by Ethiopian legends in their choice of objects to carve.However, this leads me to a more inspiring possibility: that the builders of the cathedral's north corridor (also known as the "Gate of the Initiators") may have drawn up a mysterious map for References for posterity - This map hints at the location of the holiest and most precious treasures in the world at that time.They may have discovered that the Ark was indeed "give up" or "sent away", that is, it was sent away from Israel in the "Old Testament" era, and was later "hidden" in Ethiopia.Perhaps this is the true meaning of the carvings with those enigmatic inscriptions.If so, its hidden meaning is indeed astonishing, and the legend of Axum, which I was about to abandon completely in 1983, is worth at least a second inspection. Mary, the Holy Grail and the Ark of the Covenant At the end of April 1989, after I returned to England from France, I sent my assistant to look for the academic paper mentioned by Peter Lasko.I only know that its author may be called Adolf, and its content talks about the possibility that the "Legend of the Holy Grail" written by Wolfram von Eschenbach may have been influenced by Ethiopian legends.But I don't know when or where that paper was published, or even what language it was written in.However, I asked my assistant to look in various universities to see if there were any specialists in medieval German literature who could help. While waiting to hear back, I went out and bought several different editions of the Grail "legend," among them Chrétien de Troyer's Conte du Graal, written in AD 1182, But not done.Then there is Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte DArthur, a much later epic, written in the mid-15th century.There is also the equally important Parzival, which is said to have been written by Wolfram von Eschenbach between 1195 and 1210—a date almost as far north as Chartres Cathedral. The corridors were built exactly in time. I started reading these books and found this first: Malory's book was the easiest to follow - because it was the inspiration for many later novels and movies about the quest for the Holy Grail, which I read as a child and movies. However, I soon discovered that Malory was telling an idealized, cleansed, and above all Christianized story of the "only true quest."In contrast, Wolfram's story is not only a more accurate representation of the real state of human behavior, but also more believable, and more importantly, it is completely devoid of the symbolism associated with the Holy Grail itself in the New Testament . In Malory's book, the sacred relic is described as a "golden vessel" carried by a "maiden of incomparable purity" and containing "a part of the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ."I have known for a long time that this is exactly the image that has long been implanted in popular culture, in which the Holy Grail is always depicted as a cup or a bowl (usually, when Jesus was crucified, the covenant of Arimathea Arthur caught a few drops of Christ's blood in it). I myself have been so influenced by this notion that I find it hard not to imagine the Holy Grail as a cup.However, when I read Parsifal by Wolfram, I found passages which confirmed what I had learned in France, namely, that the antiquity, though also carried by a maiden, , as in Malory's work, but it is described as a stone: However ill a mortal may be, from the day he sees the stone, he will not die nor remain pale for a week.This is because, anyone, no matter a girl or a man, as long as he sees the Holy Grail for two years, you have to admit that his complexion will be the same as when he was just born... This stone can indeed exert such magical powers on mortals, making their flesh and blood Rejuvenate instantly.This stone is known as the "Holy Grail". This bizarre and haunting image astounded me, leading me to a lingering question: Morte d'Arthur describes the Holy Grail as a "vessel," whereas the much earlier Parsifal But it is clearly described as a "stone". What is the reason for this?This is how it happened? 我做了进一步考察，从有关的权威文献里了解到了一点：马罗礼写《亚瑟王之死》的时候，"仅仅是在生发一个主题，而（他）并不理解那个主题的意义"。而沃尔夫拉姆的《帕西法尔》以及克雷蒂昂·德·特罗耶的《圣杯故事》这两本书，则最明确地阐发了这个主题，它们都比《亚瑟王之死》早200多年。 在这个说法的鼓舞下，我开始阅读克雷蒂昂那部未完成的故事的影印本，于是读到了以下这段描写圣杯的文字——这是对圣杯最早的文字记载（因而也是最早的历史记载）。像在沃尔夫拉姆和马罗礼的作品里一样，圣杯也由一位少女携带着： 她手持这圣杯一走进来，圣杯的灿烂光芒便立即使所有的烛光都暗然失色，如同初生的日月面前的星辰……这圣杯……是用精致的纯金做的，上面镶着许多种珍奇的宝石，都是天下最美丽、最昂贵的宝石。 我发现，关于这一点，克雷蒂昂的手稿明确地宣布：圣杯是一只杯子或者碗。不过，从上下文里也可以看到，这完全就是他看见的圣杯。在手稿里的几处地方，他提到了一个核心人物——"渔夫国王"正在"享用圣杯中的东西"，后来还写道："他享用的是由那只杯子盛的一片圣饼——那圣饼能使他充满活力，这圣杯是如此的神圣。" 通过进一步核对，我知道了"圣杯"（grail）这个字本身来源于古代法文的"gradale"（拉丁文是gradalis），其意思就是"一种广口而中空的容器，其中可盛美食"。在克雷蒂昂时代的口语里，"gradale"这个字的发音常常是"greal"。甚至在更晚近的时期里，法国南方部分地区依然用"grazal"、"grazau"和"grial"称谓各种不同的容器。 因此，马罗礼才把这件圣物描写成了一只容器。不过，除了提到"一片圣饼"之外，克雷蒂昂的故事里并没有提到任何明确和基督教有关的东西（甚至没有说圣杯是一件"圣物"，而若受到《旧约》和《新约》的影响，便很容易产生这个观念）。像沃尔夫拉姆一样，这位法国诗人也根本没有提到基督的鲜血，因而自然也没有暗示那件古物就是它的容器。 由此，我们可以说，通俗文化中与"圣杯"相关的"圣血"这个概念是后世的作者们添加的修饰，它既扩展了最初的主题，也在一定程度上模糊了最初的主题。 再稍微研究一下这个问题，我便满意地发现，把这个主题加以"基督教化"的过程，是由西妥教团（Cistercian monastic order）的修士们完成的。而深刻地影响了西妥教团并使之形成的，则是法国克莱沃修道院院长圣·伯纳德。他于1112年加入西妥教团，被许多学者誉为当时最有意义的宗教人物。 我后来发现，就是这位圣·伯纳德，早年在改革和传播哥特建筑程式方面曾发挥过具有重大影响的作用。1134年，沙特尔大教堂高耸的北塔楼的建造期间，他正处在其权力的顶峰。当时，他不断强调神圣几何学的原则，使它在塔楼以及整个的宏伟建筑中得以实施。不仅如此，在他死后很久的1153年，他的理论和观念依然被视为推动哥特建筑进一步革命的主要思想来源，也是我在沙特尔大教堂北走廊见到的那类圣堂和雕刻的主要灵感来源。 圣杯故事的各种早期非基督教版本，与《新约》里那个风格化了的故事（到马罗礼时代已经形成）之间的桥梁，是所谓《追寻圣杯》（Questedel Saint Grail）这部书架设起来的。13世纪的西妥教团修士们编辑了该书。不仅如此，编纂这部宏大编年史的时候，尽管圣·伯纳德已经死去，在我看来，他却仿佛仍然在插手这项工作，如同从坟墓里伸出一只有力的手，支配着编纂者们。 我之所以得出这样的结论，是因为在他浩繁的著作当中，这位极具影响的修士已经提出了关于"基督之血"的神秘观点，而《追寻圣杯》的编纂者们也把这个观点结合进了他们对圣杯本身的新定义里。从此以后，沃尔夫拉姆所说的"石头"就全被忘记了，而克雷蒂昂所说的这只"容器"虽然被保留，其中却被装进了基督的鲜血。 这个概念里使我感兴趣的一点是，教会立即对它做出了解释。我了解到，在赞美诗、布道文和使徒书信里，后世全欧洲的一代代基督徒，大多都把圣杯和圣母玛利亚的祝福象征性地等同起来——我记得，沙特尔大教堂就是奉献给圣母玛利亚的。这个虔诚比喻后面的推理逻辑是这样的：（按照《追寻圣杯》以及后来对这个传说的校正版本）圣杯装着基督的圣血，而玛利亚生下基督之前，她子宫里装着基督本人，因此这就表明——圣杯就是（并且一向就是）玛利亚的象征。 按照这个逻辑，圣母玛利亚，即“为上帝孕育神子者”，就是一只神圣的容器， 其中装着变成肉身的基督。因此，在16世纪的《罗莱托连祷经》（Litany of Lore tto）里，她就被说成了“vas spirituale”（神圣之容器）、“vas honorabile” （荣耀之容器）以及“vas insigne devotionis”（奉献之奇异容器）。 这个象征意义为什么会引起我的注意呢？很简单，因为《罗莱托连祷经》还把受赐福的圣母称为"atca foederis"——而我已经知道，这就是拉丁语的"约柜"。 我进一步研究了这个巧合，发现发明这个说法的还不止《连祷经》。12世纪时，那位令人敬畏的修士、克莱沃修道院院长圣·伯纳德还曾经把玛利亚明确地比喻为约柜——他在自己的几部著作里就做过这样的比喻。早在公元4世纪，米兰大主教圣·安布罗斯就曾经发表过一篇布道文，提出约柜曾经是对玛利亚的一种预言性的比喻：约柜装的是以"十诫"为形式的旧律法，同样，玛利亚装的是以基督之身为形式的新律法。 于是我发现，这样的概念不但一直延续到了12世纪，还被编人了现代基督教信仰的体系中。例如，我有一次去以色列的时候，见到了多明我教派一座美丽的小教堂。它建于1924年，奉献给"A la yierge Marie Arche d Alliance"，即"献给约柜圣母玛利亚"。教堂位于奇亚斯一雅利姆山上，俯瞰着从特拉维夫到耶路撒冷的公路，教堂的尖塔高达七米，顶上有个实际尺寸的约柜复制品。教堂内墙上还挂着关于这件圣物的绘画。 我参观教堂时，听到了以下（极具安布罗斯大主教色彩的）的讲解，它解释了教堂的供奉以及象征。讲解者是一位资深教会官员拉菲尔·米克海尔修女，她说： 我们把玛利亚比作有生命的约柜。玛利亚是耶稣的母亲，而耶稣是律法和契约的主人。摩西把写着"十诫"的石板放在了约柜里面；同样，上帝也把耶稣放在了玛利亚的胎中。所以说，她就是有生命的约柜。 约柜和圣杯尽管大不相同，却竟然还是被反复地比喻成同一位《圣经》里的人物，并且比喻的方式也完全相同。在我看来，这种现象的意义极为重大。我可以做出这样的推断：如果玛利亚既是"有生命的约柜"，又是有生命的圣杯"，那么，这就必定表明，这两件圣物实际上可能并不那么彼此不同——它们可能就是同一件东西。 我想到了这种真正令人震惊的可能性。并且，尽管它乍看上去有几分牵强，但却真的为我提供了一条有趣的思路，使我能从这个新角度去思考沙特尔大教堂北走廊那些雕像的选择及其排列方式。如果我这个推断没错，那么，那座手持装有石头的"圣杯"麦基洗德雕像就在一个层次上代表着玛利亚，但另一方面，其本意很可能是作为约柜以及其中的石板的秘密象征。 我觉得，这样的解释也增加了另一个假设的可能性，即北走廊的其他雕刻象征着这件圣物被送到了埃塞俄比亚。但我也知道：对于这个如此重要的结论，我并没有确凿的根据——我依靠的只是巧合、猜度以及一种强烈的直觉，即我可能想到了某种重要的可能性。 我总是喜欢凭借自己的直觉，看它会把我引向何处。然而，在我看来，如果我此刻正在不自觉地开始了一种调查，它要追根溯源，要耗费资金和时间，那我就必须从某种更确凿的东西人手，而不能仅从几个轻松的巧合和预感人手了。 我并没有等待太久。1989年6月，我的助手终于找到了那篇学术论文。彼得·拉斯科说过，那篇论文提出：沃尔夫拉姆·冯·埃森巴赫的《帕西法尔》里对圣杯的描写，受到过埃塞俄比亚传说的影响。那篇论文鼓舞了我，使我开始了调查，而这次调查占据了我此后的两年时光。 文学影响，还是另有其他？ 这篇论文的题目是《以新思路分析沃尔夫拉姆＜帕西法尔＞的东方源头》，1947年发表在学术杂志PMLA（《美国现代语言学会会刊》）上。 论文作者海伦·阿道夫是一位很受尊重的中世纪文学史专家，对圣杯的源流怀有特殊的兴趣。她论文的中心论题（她承认自己受到以前两位作者的影响）是：沃尔夫拉姆虽然深受克雷蒂昂·德·特罗耶的影响，但他必定"已经知道，除了克雷蒂昂写的圣杯故事以外，圣杯故事还有个具有东方背景的传说"。 我开始阅读海伦·阿道夫的论文时，已经意识到了一点：根据我已经完成的背景调查，克雷蒂昂·德·特罗耶在1182年就已经卓有成效地"创造"了一个圣杯故事。在那以前，无论是历史记载还是神话传说里，都没有那个故事。 大多数有关权威都认为，历史上还存在一些更早的传说，例如关于那口魔法大锅、英雄的追寻以及亚瑟王及其骑士们行侠仗义的事迹等等。宫廷诗人和说故事者们把这些传说加进了他们的圣杯故事情节里。不过，这些更古老的传说却通过一代代人的口耳相传，流传了下来，并且实在过于有名，过于"经受了种种考验而不衰"。总之，它们过于为众人所熟知，因此使12世纪末克雷蒂昂所属的那个传奇文学圈子里的作家产生了创作冲动。 这位伟大的法国诗人没有写完他的《圣杯故事》。不过，没过多少年之后，沃尔夫拉姆·冯·埃森巴赫则以此为良好起点，扩展并完成了其前辈写的那个故事——同时，他还颇为无礼地指责克雷蒂昂"做了错事"，并说他自己德国版的圣杯故事才是"真正的故事"。 他这种抗议之辞有个不合情理的地方，那就是：沃尔夫拉姆分明从《圣杯故事》里直接提取了不少细节，并且从总体上看，他的作品也完全保留了《圣杯故事》的情节和人物。实际上，他的作品和《圣杯故事》只有一处明显不同，那就是把圣杯描写成一块石头这个离奇的发明。 因此，在一些学者看来，这个发明的动机似乎是个真正的奥秘。这不可能是沃尔夫拉姆的失误，他是位聪明而精确的讲故事高手，不可能犯这么重大的错误。所以，惟一合理的解释只能是：他是根据自己的某种特别理由，才如此描写圣杯的。 海伦·阿道夫在这篇不长的论文里，阐述的正是她对这个问题的见解。她提出了一个使我最感兴趣的答案。她指出，无论通过哪种途径，沃尔夫拉姆必定已经看到了《国王的光荣》，从中知道了约柜被从耶路撒冷挪到阿克苏姆的故事，因而决定把这个故事的要素融入自己的《帕西法尔》里。她认为，这个影响是"间接的"。不过，沃尔夫拉姆描写的圣杯的奇特性质，其最合理的解释却可以追溯到一点："阿比西尼亚的每座教堂里"，都在使用所谓"塔波特"，即一块石板或者一块石头。 阿道夫解释说，这个做法可以在《国王的光荣》记载的那些宗教传统里找到源头——我认为她这个看法是正确的。早在1983年，我就听说埃塞俄比亚人把约柜称为"塔波特"，据说，门涅利克把它从耶路撒冷带到了埃塞俄比亚，现在它被保存在阿克苏姆圣堂礼拜堂内。 不仅如此，读者或许还记得：我后来还发现（阿道夫也证实了这一点），埃塞俄比亚的每一座东正教教堂都有自己的"塔波特"。这些东西常被说成是阿克苏姆那个原初约柜的复制品，它们不是匣子或者柜子，而是平板。我见过的那些板子都是木头的。不过，进一步考察这件事情以后，我发现这些板子有许多的确都是石板。 阿道夫做了一番比较之后，强调指出：沃尔夫拉姆也知道这个情况，所以按照埃塞俄比亚人的"塔波特"的样子把约柜描写为石头。她还指出，并不是《帕西法尔》里的所有人物都借自克雷蒂昂·德·特罗耶的作品，其中还有几个人物来历不明，并且很可能受到了《国王的光荣》的启发。 至于这位德国讲故事者如何知道《国王的光荣》，她提不出什么确凿的证据，而只是假定：流浪的犹太人可能把那部书带到了欧洲。她指出，在中世纪，"犹太人不仅是阿拉伯人和一般基督教徒之间的调停人。他们在埃塞俄比亚还有自己的领地，并且曾在那里（至今仍然如此）形成了人口的一个重要部分。" 我发现阿道夫的见解很有说服力，但其视野却极为狭窄。她专门从事文学批评，因此她关心的只有文学。她着手去证实一点——《国王的光荣》和《帕西法尔》之间可能存在着关联（即前者"间接地"影响了后者）。而当她感到已经达到了目的时，便心满意足，驻足不前了。但我还是非常感激她，因为她已经打开了我的眼界，使我看到了某种更令人激动不已的东西——某种意义无比非凡的东西。 根据前面提到的约柜、圣杯和圣母玛利亚之间的比喻，我已经开始怀疑：更仔细地看，约柜与圣杯的本质是否还会像乍看上去那样迎然不同。我忽然想到，沃尔夫拉姆描写的约柜似乎曾受到埃塞俄比亚人有关约柜的传说的影响，如果真是如此，那么，这种影响就很有可能不仅仅如此，而或许会比海伦·阿道夫所能想到的要多得多。 长话短说，我开始怀疑这位德国诗人是否有可能杜撰了他的圣杯故事，把它作为历史上那只真正的圣杯的某种"密码"。如果是这样，那么，构成《帕西法尔》中心主题的那种探寻就也可能是一个密码，如同某些神秘的探宝图一样，它可能指出了约柜本身最后的安放处。 沙特尔大教堂北走廊已经使我想到了一种可能，即它或许是与此相似的一种密码，尽管它被隐藏在了石头里，而不是被写进一本书中。这种可能使我跃跃欲试。这个密码可能暗示着，那件圣物曾被带到埃塞俄比亚——正是因为这一点，我才怀着真正的热情和兴奋，着手"破译"《帕西法尔》。 天书、天条和神谕 看来，我的第一步工作应当是弄清一个问题：沃尔夫拉姆描写约柜时，是否真的把它当作真正约柜的密码。为此，我决定暂不深入考察阿道夫提到的约柜与埃塞俄比亚人的"塔波特"之间的牵连。相反，我打算找出圣杯特征和约柜特征之间直接的相似性，而《旧约》和其他古犹太文献里对两者都做过描述。只有两者特征的相似性具有说服力，做进一步的考察才会有意义。 我注意到的头一件事，就是沃尔夫拉姆把克雷蒂昂的圣杯（或容器）变成石头的方式。我想到，那位法国诗人对圣杯的描述想必十分含混神秘，因此不可能让沃尔夫拉姆清楚地知道它究竟是什么样子，不可能使他把这位前辈对圣杯颇不精确的描述（即一只神圣的容器），翻制成一种符合他自己需要的形状。总之，克雷蒂昂对这个容器的描述并不是直接的，而仅仅只谈到了它所装的东西。 约柜毕竟也是个容器，其中的确装着石头——准确地说，是两块石板，上面写有"十诫"，那是上帝用手指写上去的。所以，使我感到兴味盎然的是，沃尔夫拉姆描写的圣杯也像诫板一样，也时时带有一种天书的印记，它规定了一些守则。 还有一些这样的巧合。例如，圣杯对其仰仗者发挥着天启的功能： 我们跪倒在圣杯前，突然看见它上面写着：一位骑士将会来到我们这里，若听说他提出了一个问题，我们的悲苦便会终结。然而，若任何一个儿童、少女或男子事先告诉骑士要提问，圣杯便会立即失效，便会造成伤害，并引起更深的痛苦。"你们懂了吗？"那段文字问道，"你们若事先提醒他，这杯便会造成伤害。他若在第一天晚上没有提问，这杯的力量便要消失。但他若适时地提出了问题，他便会拥有这个王国。"（沃尔夫拉姆·冯·埃森巴赫：付自西法尔》，第246页） 同样，约柜也时常被用作神谕，发布着与以色列人生死攸关的忠告。例如，在《圣经·士师记》中，上帝本身也常常被与约柜完全混同起来。我读到了其中这样的段落： 那时，神的约柜在那里。亚伦的孙子、以利亚撒的儿子非尼哈侍立在约柜前。以色列人问耶和华说："我们当再出去与我们弟兄便雅悯人打仗呢？还是罢兵呢？"耶和华说："你们当上去，因为明日我必将他们交在你们手中。"（《旧约·士师记》第20章第27-28节） 我还读到了《圣经》里的一段话，它在这段话后面很远的地方。它说，约柜极难得真正地说话，而那种"幻象现在已经是"非同寻常"。然而，即使如此，当先知撒母耳跪在"上帝之殿，约柜也在其中"的时候，这件圣物还是发出一个声音，警告说："我在以色列中必行一件事，叫听见的人都必耳鸣。"（事见《旧约·撒母耳记上》第l-11节——译者注） 说话也好，幻象也好，井不是约柜传达上帝默示的惟一方式。像圣杯一样，约柜也经常用书写文字的方式来传达这些默示，例如它曾经向大卫王透露了神殿的蓝图，而他的儿子所罗门日后将建造那座神殿（事见《旧约·历代志上》第28章——译者注）。 罪孽的重量、金牛和天降之石 随着研究的进展，我发现圣杯与约柜还有许多共同特点，尤其与那两块石头诫板有许多共同特点。其中的一点，就是圣杯的重量似乎是由一种超自然的力量控制的。沃尔夫拉姆写道："圣杯（当被心地纯洁者携带时）非常沉重，罪孽深重者无法将它提起来。" 我想，这个说法很可能和犹太人的一个古代传说有关。那传说谈到，先知摩西带着诫板，从西奈山上下来，诫板上刚刚写下"十诫"的神圣律条。这位先知走进营地时，恰好看见以色列众人在膜拜金牛，这是一种不可饶恕的罪过，于是： 他发现诫板上的字迹立即消失了，同时感到它们无比沉重。这是因为，当那些天书在诫板上时，它们携带着诫板自身的重量，并不使摩西感到沉重。但是，这些文字一消失，情况便截然不同了。（路易斯·金斯伯格：《犹太人的传说》） 沃尔夫拉姆写的那个神秘故事里也出现了金牛。不仅如此，这金牛还出现在一个万分关键的时刻，以致于我可以断定，作者是在刻意地以此传达一个信息，而这个信息则把圣杯和约柜进一步地等同了起来： （在《帕西法尔》的第9章，我读到：）有个异教徒，名叫弗列杰塔尼斯，以其知识渊博而闻名。这位精通天象者乃所罗门之后，具有自古代承袭的以色列人血统……他记载了圣杯的种种奇迹。弗列杰塔尼斯将一只金牛当作自己的神明崇拜，而他的父亲就是异教徒……（弗列杰塔尼斯）能告诉我们每颗行星的何时消失，何时再回来，运行到天空某处的周期有多长。所有的人都受星体运行的影响。这异教徒曾敬畏地说，他能看到星座中隐含的秘密。他声言：世上有件东西，名叫圣杯，他从星象上很容易地便读出了它的名字。 "一群天使将它留在了地球上，然后飞向高空，飞到星星上方，又仿佛其清白还会将他们再度吸引到地球上。" 在我看来，这段话中真正重要的是：它让弗列杰塔尼斯（他的所罗门和犹太人后裔的出身兼异教的背景十分有趣）去宣布圣杯来自天界。 何以重要呢？这完全是因为：我研读过一些最严肃的《圣经》学者的著作，他们都指出，约柜中的石头诫板，实际上就是两块陨石。这个见解并不完全是后世人的诠释，而摩西和《旧约·利未记》里祭司们不可能有这样的看法。相反，据说从古代起，像以色列之子这样的闪米特人部族就已经在供奉"天降之石"了。 这个习俗一直延续到了现代，因此，最能说明它的实例就是穆斯林对那块神圣的"黑石"的格外崇拜，它被镶在麦加清真寺天房的一个墙角里。到这个圣地朝圣的每个香客都要亲吻这块圣石。先知穆罕默德宣布：这块圣石自天而降，在地球上，它先被给予了被逐出伊甸园的亚当，以吸收他的罪；后来，天使加百列把它交给了希伯来酋长亚伯拉罕；最后，它成了麦加清真寺天房一一伊斯兰世界的"跳动的心脏"的基石。 我知道，地质学家们毫不犹豫地认为这块"黑石"来自陨星。同样，伊斯兰教诞生前的一些阿拉伯部族在沙漠荒野流浪时，也随身携带着两块被称为"Betyls"的圣石，而研究者也认为它们就是陨石。学者们也公认，有一条文化传播的直线，把这些"Betyls"（它们常被放在随身携带的神龛里）与麦加清真寺天房里的"黑石"、与约柜里的两块诫板联系起来。 后来，我还了解到，中世纪的欧洲把这些"Betris"称作"lapis betilis"。而这个名称来自闪米特语，后来被希腊人和罗马人用来称谓那些据说具有神奇生命的圣石，它们具有灵魂，并且被用于为潜水者的迷信服务，以及用于魔法和占卜。它们是些从天上掉下来的石头。 在这样的背景下，我很难相信，沃尔夫拉姆特别提到他的圣杯一石头来自陨石，这会是纯粹的玄想。为了达到这个目的，他不仅使用了弗列杰塔尼斯这个人物，而且在几页之后就给圣杯起了另外一个名字——"lapsit exillis"。 对于这个伪拉丁语称谓的真正意义，我虽然见到过种种解释，但到目前为止， 听上去最可信的解释却是：它来自“lapis ex caelis”（来自天空的石头），“l apsit ex caelis”（它自天而降），甚至可能来自“lapis，papsus ex cealis” （从天上掉下来的石头）。 同时，我也感到，“Lapsit exillis”这个不纯的拉丁语词组也非常接近“la pis betilis”，这就使我产生了一个怀疑：这位德国诗人是在有意制造一个双关语， 并且也是个典型的密码（拉丁语“lapis betilis”的一个意思是“被带走的石头”， 此处可以暗指被带走的约柜或圣杯；但它也指“流动的石头”，即陨石，所以作者说这也许是一语双关——译者注）。 献辞、超自然光和选择之力 沃尔夫拉姆在他的作品里反复讲到，圣杯是使那些与之接触的心地纯洁者得到赐福与丰饶的源泉。这是用来把圣杯喻为约柜的另一个颇为不同的方面，我只举众多例子之一。在《帕西法尔》第5章中，有以下一段文字： 在圣杯前，无论你伸手索要什么，都能得到满足。你会发现，你要的东西已经在你手里了——热菜、冷餐、鲜鱼以及你平素喜欢的东西……因为圣杯就是赐福之果，就是这个世界满载丰饶的羊角（cornucopia，古希腊神话中哺育主神宙斯的羊角，充满花果，象征丰饶——译者注）。 在我看来，这段描述很可能反映了古代《犹太法典》上的说法，那里面说： 所罗门将约柜带入圣殿时，殿中所有金树皆充满水露，结出硕果，为众僧带来丰厚收益与快乐。 我发现，约柜和圣杯之间还有一个更加相似的共同特点，那就是：它们都能放射超自然的光芒。《圣经》上说，保存约柜的所罗门圣殿内殿（后来约柜从中被挪走）是个"漆黑的"所在。然而，《犹太法典》里却说："以色列大祭司借着神圣约柜发出的光进出圣殿。"而约柜遗失以后，这种便利也就不复存在，从此，大祭司只好"在黑暗里摸索而行"。 因此，约柜就是一种超自然光的光源，它能发出耀目的光芒，《圣经》里的无数段落都提到了这一点。同样，克雷蒂昂描写的圣杯也能放射光芒，"无比明亮……使所有的烛光都暗然失色，如同初升的日月面前的星辰。"沃尔夫拉姆想必很乐于接受这个描写，因为他已经把圣杯描写为石头，而圣杯放光这个特点为他编制的约柜密码提供了依据。 同样，克雷蒂昂描写的圣杯是用"纯金"做的，而约柜则"里外都包着纯金"，还有一个盖子（它被称为"仁慈之位"），也是"纯金做的"。不过，使约柜和圣杯放光的，却并不是这种贵重金属，而是它们本身蕴藏的强大的天界能量。上帝的手指在诚板上写下"十诫"之后，正是诫板发出的这种能量，使摩西走下西奈山时，脸部被一种奇异的超自然光照亮： 摩西手里拿着两块诫板下西奈山的时候，不知道自己的面皮发了光……亚伦和以色列众人看见摩西的面皮发先，就怕挨近他。（《旧约·出埃及记》第34章第29-30节。作者此处引用的是希伯来文《圣经》的希腊语译本，与中文"神版"译文略有不同——译者注） 所以我认为，沃尔夫拉姆描写的"圣杯一石头"，从它在《帕西法尔》中第一次出现起，就由一位叫勒庞斯·德·索哑的少女拿着，而她的脸也"放射着明亮的光辉，使所有的人都以为那时升起了太阳"，这也不是纯粹的巧合。 上天命定的英雄 勒庞斯·德·索妮是位"公主"，并且"无比贞洁"。不过，她最重要的特征却是圣杯已经选中了她。"圣杯本身让一位女子持着，"沃尔夫拉姆解释道，"她名叫勒庞斯·德·索妮……我听说，圣杯只愿让她拿着。" 这个说法似乎是在暗示那件圣物具有某种感觉。与这个特点相连的，还有另外一个特点。"谁都无法赢得圣杯，"沃尔夫拉姆在《帕西法尔》第9章里说，"惟有一个上天命定者才能赢得圣杯。"该书第15章又突出强调了同样的观点："谁都无法以强力赢得圣杯，惟有那个被上帝召唤到那里的人才能做到。" 在沃尔夫拉姆作品的事物整体格局中，圣杯的这两个特征具有至关重要的意义，即它具有选择力，而只有"上天命定者"才能赢得它。不仅如此，我还认为，《圣经》对约柜的描述当中，已经谈到了这两个特点。例如