"Listen, O gods, who sit at the helm of wisdom, who kindle the fire of the spirit in the souls of mortal men, drawing them up to the deathless ones, out of the shadowy hole, purified by the secret rites of hymns.
Hear, mighty saviors! Scatter the mist and grant me your holy light that comes from sacred books, that I might know well the difference between a man and an immortal god. And do not allow a spirit, doing evil things, to hold me down in the streams far from the blessed ones. And let not cold Punishment bind me in the bonds of life, fallen in the waves of cold becoming, unwilling to wander long.
But gods, masters of bright shining wisdom, hear! Reveal to me, as I ascend the path that leads upwards, the rites and initiations of sacred words!"
-Proclus, "Hymn to all the Gods"