The True Lineage
The Seed of Seth
Those who are the descendants and the lineage of Seth
spiritual progenitor of humanity, especially of the "Seed of Seth", the group destined to awaken and return to the Pleroma (the divine fullness).
The descendants of Cain
- the corrupt, material world dominated by the Demiurge.
- those who exist in war, conflict, violence, attack and defense, who purely material
Abel
- those who were slain by the material world….
The "Seed of Seth" is often called the "Incorruptible Race" in Gnostic texts. This emphasizes their divine origin and their resistance to the corrupting influences of the material world.
Seed of Seth
“Seth: The third son of *Adam and *Eve, given to replace *Abel after he had been murdered by *Cain (Gen. 4:25). For certain Gnostic sects known as \*Sethians, who took their name from him, he was a savior figure and the paradigm of the Gnostic.
Sethians: The classic Gnostic sect. The *heresiologists referred to them as Sethians and also used names like *Barbelognostics or just *Gnostics, but they referred to themselves as the children of *Seth or seed of Seth or the incorruptible or unmovable race. Sethian origins are not linked to any historical founder but refer to the mythology based on the figure of Seth. Sethian texts include such works as the *Gospel of Judas, the *Secret Book of John, the *Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit, *Marsanes, and *Zostrianos. Sethian *cosmogony and *cosmology feature a trinity of the *Father, or Invisible Spirit; Mother, or *Barbelo; and Child, or *Autogenes, the self-begotten. These produce the four *luminaries, *Harmozel, *Oroiael, *Daveithai, and *Eleleth. *Sophia derives from the luminary Eleleth, and through her fall, the *demiurge and his *archons create the material world and the human “*body and *soul, although the human *spirit is donated from the *pleroma or \*aeons.”
- A Dictionary of Gnosticism
The Tree of Seth
According to apocryphal legends and Christian esotericism, Seth was granted a vision of Paradise and given a seed or branch from the Tree of Life, which he later planted on Adam’s grave. This planted seed was said to grow into a holy tree. This tree became the source of the wood of the Cross on which Christ was crucified
The Tree of Seth may symbolize a middle pillar or sacred axis—the continuation of divine wisdom through the Sethian or Gnostic line, which often views Seth as the progenitor of a spiritually awakened race.
A hidden seed of Eden, preserved through the Flood and regrown as the Axis of Redemption. A symbolic pillar connecting the primordial Tree of Life with the future Tree of the Cross—thus completing a triple Tree mystery: Edenic, Sethian, and Christic.
A Poetic Prophecy
And it came to pass, after the Fall of Man, that the gates of Eden were shut, and a flaming sword turned every way, to keep the way of the Tree of Life. And Adam knew Eve again, and she bare a son, and they called his name Seth: for God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew. And Seth was a man of remembrance, whose heart turned not from the face of the Lord. And the Spirit of the Most High stirred within him, and dreams visited him by night. In the days of his youth, when the sun was low and the wind passed gently through the cedars, Seth beheld a vision. And lo, an angel stood at the edge of the veil, where the rivers once parted in Eden, and he held in his hand a branch, radiant and bitter. And the angel spake, saying: Behold, this is a shoot from the Tree of Knowledge, which thy father Adam did eat, and was cast down. Yet the Lord hath sanctified it through sorrow, and hath made it unto thee a seed of redemption. Take it, O son of Adam, and plant it where thy father shall be laid, for from the bones of the first man shall spring forth the staff of the last. And Seth received the branch with trembling hands, and returned to the land of the East. And in the fulness of days, when Adam was gathered unto his fathers, Seth buried him upon the mountain of vision, and planted the branch above his skull. And the Lord caused the seed to grow, and it became a mighty tree, whose bark was of gold and whose leaves whispered the name of God. And they that beheld it called it the Tree of Seth. And the generations passed, and the knowledge of the tree was hidden from the sons of men, save to the wise, and to them that walked the path of the secret fire. And it was told among the elders that the wood thereof passed through many hands, and wrought many wonders. For the rod of Moses was hewn from its bough, and it smote the sea and brought forth water from the rock. And in the days of Solomon, the builders laid a beam thereof in the House of the Lord. But the beam could not be joined to any place, for it was made of prophecy. So they hid it beneath the Temple, and the years rolled on. And in the fulness of time, the wood was drawn forth once more, and became the Cross of the Holy One, upon which was hanged the Redeemer of the world. Thus was fulfilled the mystery: that from the tree of the Fall should spring the Tree of Life anew; and that which brought death should bear the fruit of everlasting life. And lo, this Tree of Seth is become as a pillar between the worlds, a ladder reaching from the dust unto the stars. It is the secret staff of the prophets, the axis of the wise, the rod of the royal priesthood. Its roots are planted in Eden, its trunk in Golgotha, and its crown in the Heavens. They that have eyes to see shall behold it, and they that are called shall take refuge beneath its branches. For it is written: I will plant in the earth a tree, and its shadow shall cover the remnant of My people. And from its heart shall flow the light of the beginning and the end. Blessed is he that remembers the Seed, and seeks the Tree of Seth, for he shall not be confounded in the day of the Lord.
Seth as Melchizedek in the Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit
The Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit, also known as the Gospel of the Egyptians, offers one of the most profound expressions of Sethian Gnostic theology. In this text, Seth emerges not simply as the third son of Adam and Eve, but as a pre-existent, divine figure emanated from the Great Invisible Spirit—the highest source in the Sethian cosmology. Seth is portrayed as the Self-Generated One, the Son of Man, and the progenitor of an incorruptible, spiritual race. Though the name Melchizedek does not appear explicitly in this gospel, the role Seth plays is functionally identical to the Melchizedek figure found in other Gnostic writings. The Great Invisible Spirit is described as utterly transcendent, unknowable, and without beginning. From this unfathomable source emanates Barbelo, the first thought, who becomes the matrix for divine activity. From this union flows the Self-Generated One—Seth—who stands as the mediator of divine mysteries and the spiritual priest of the invisible aeons. Seth receives the fullness of the divine revelation and transmits it to his race, the elect, the ones who retain within themselves the seed of gnosis. This spiritual race is referred to as the race of Seth, and it is through Seth that the path back to the divine light is illuminated. In this theology, Seth occupies the exact archetypal space that Melchizedek inhabits in other Gnostic texts such as the tractate Melchizedek from Nag Hammadi Codex IX. Melchizedek is there described as a high priest and redeemer who descends into flesh, suffers opposition, dies, and rises again. He is the eternal priest of the Most High God, mirroring the description of Melchizedek in the Epistle to the Hebrews. Yet in the Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit, it is Seth who performs this mediating and redemptive role. He is the one who stands between the Great Invisible Spirit and the corrupted cosmos, guiding the elect back to the pleroma. The parallels are undeniable. Melchizedek is said to be without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life. Seth is called the Self-Generated, unbegotten, and eternal. Melchizedek is the priest of the Most High; Seth is the revealer of the great mystery, praised and glorified by hosts of angels. Melchizedek serves as an intermediary and cosmic high priest; Seth is the divine Logos, who incarnates to reveal the hidden knowledge and to redeem his race from the dominion of the archons. Both figures function outside the framework of traditional Jewish or Levitical priesthood, offering instead a spiritual and cosmic priesthood rooted in the primordial fullness. What the Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit makes clear is that Seth, for the Gnostics, is not a historical figure bound to time, but an eternal emanation. He is not just the originator of a biological line, but of a metaphysical church, a spiritual body of the elect whose true nature lies beyond the material world. This incorruptible race corresponds closely to the mystical body of those aligned with Melchizedek in other traditions—those who serve the light without mediation from the fallen structures of the cosmos. In this sense, the Gnostic vision of Seth encompasses and surpasses the figure of Melchizedek. Seth is not merely like Melchizedek; he fulfills the very mystery that Melchizedek represents. The absence of the name is not a denial of the connection but a theological absorption: the priesthood, mystery, and redeeming function of Melchizedek are subsumed into the exalted image of Seth as revealer, priest, and liberator. Thus, in the Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit, Seth is Melchizedek in essence, the eternal high priest of the Great Invisible Spirit, calling his race home through the power of hidden knowledge and divine light.
The “Tree of Seth” appears as a spiritual continuation of the Tree of Life or Tree of Knowledge, brought from Eden after the Fall. According to various mystical traditions (especially medieval Christian, Gnostic, and Hermetic sources), Seth—the third son of Adam and Eve—was entrusted with preserving the divine seed. In one version of the legend, Seth planted a branch or sprout taken from the Tree of Knowledge, and it grew into the Tree of Seth—a symbol of the preserved lineage of divine wisdom.
The Solar Tree / Arbor Solis / Arbre Solque
Evola notes the linguistic and symbolic convergence between terms: • “Dry Tree” (Arbor Secco) • “Solar Tree” (Arbor Solis) • “Solitary Tree” (Arbre Seul) • “Tree of Seth” (Arbor Seth)
The confusion arises from phonetic similarities in medieval Latin and Romance languages. However, in certain esoteric writings, these were understood not as errors but as multi-layered symbols. • Dry Tree: A condition of exile, desolation, or spiritual barrenness. • Solar Tree: A tree infused with divine light, representing the perfected state, sometimes associated with the Cross or Axis Mundi. • Tree of Seth: The preserved gnosis and divine potential carried through the Sethian line.
This aligns with Marco Polo’s mention of the “Arbre Solque” in the Great Khan’s land, which various translators equated to the Dry Tree or Seth’s Tree.
Cosmological Symbol
The Tree of Seth is an Axis Mundi figure—a vertical symbol linking heaven and earth. Its mythical properties mirror those of other world trees, such as: • Yggdrasil in Norse tradition • The Tree of Life in Kabbalah • The Bo Tree under which Buddha attained enlightenment
Sethian Gnosis
In Gnostic texts, especially the Sethian tradition, Seth is seen as the father of the Incorruptible Race—those souls still carrying the divine spark. The Tree of Seth may thus also represent: • Preserved divine knowledge • A hidden lineage of initiation • The spiritual ladder of return
Symbolic Transmission
Some texts say this tree: • Was later used to make Moses’ staff • Was used in part to build Solomon’s Temple • And ultimately became the wood of the Cross
This unites Eden → Seth → Moses → Solomon → Christ in a single esoteric lineage, anchored by the sacred tree.
Tree of Life vs. Tree of Knowledge • Tree of Life (Etz HaChayim): Central to Eden, symbolizing eternal divine sustenance and cosmic harmony. • Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil: Its fruit, when eaten, introduces cognitive duality, exile, and the human condition. • Overlap & Inversion: • Seth’s sprout stems from the Tree of Knowledge, not the Tree of Life. • In Gnostic thought, this becomes a vector for restoration—what caused the Fall becomes the seed of redemption.
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Sources • The Golden Legend (13th c.): Story of Seth planting the seed from Eden • The Book of Adam and Eve (Apocrypha): Hints at sacred knowledge passed through Seth • Gnostic Sethian texts (Nag Hammadi): Spiritual lineage of divine light
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Working Interpretation
The Tree of Seth represents: • The preserved memory of Edenic origin • The spiritual line of awakened humanity • A living axis connecting original wisdom to future redemption • A symbolic “staff” of power and authority carried by initiates across time
It is both the bridge between the Fall and Redemption, and the seed of future resurrection.
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From Evola’s Grail Book
“In the legends of this cycle we find several mentions of the "Tree of the Center;' of the "Solar Tree;' of the tree that confers victory and the Empire, and of the "Tree of Seth:' …. This tree became a point of convergence of various meanings through ver- bal assonances. It is not the above-mentioned symbol of the Dry Tree; "Dry Tree" in this context is one of the interpretations of the expression arbre solque, which was translated as "solar tree" (arbor solis), "solitary tree" (arbre seul) and as "Seth's tree" (arbor Seth). Marco Polo, talking about the Great Khan's country, wrote: "et il y a un grandisme plain ou est l' Arbre Solque, que no us appelons l' Arbre Sec." Moreover, solque, which has an Arab root, may signify “wide, high, lasting"; an English manuscript says that this was not the Dry Tree, but Seth's Tree, since Seth grew it out of a sprout taken from the Tree of Knowledge, that is, from the central tree of the Garden of Eden.”