The Book of Hidden Wisdom
An Alternative Interpretation of the Gospel of Thomas
This is the book of the words of hidden wisdom, spoken by Jesus during his life
and written down by Thomas the Twin.
1 About these words, Jesus said, `Whoever realizes the true meaning of these words
of wisdom and lives by them, their spirit will truly live.`
2 Jesus said `Let those who seek the truth not stop their search until they have
found the truth. And when they find the truth, they will at first be disappointed
by it. But after they have contemplated it more deeply, they will be amazed by it. And then they will truly understand
everything.`
3 Jesus said, `If your religious leaders say to you, `The Kingdom of Heaven is in
the sky,` and you believe them, then the birds of the sky will get to Heaven before
you. If they say to you, `The Kingdom of Heaven is in the sea,` and you believe them, then the fish of the sea will get
to Heaven before you. The truth is that the Kingdom of Heaven is within you and all around you. When
you understand your own true nature, then you will understand that you are the children
of the Living Father. But if you do not understand your own true nature, then you are spiritually poor and you are doomed
to live with your poverty.`
4 Jesus said, `A wise old person should not hesitate to ask a small child about
the place of eternal Life. And they will be the first to live within it. And the rich
and powerful people of the world will be the last to see the Kingdom
of Heaven. And they will be alone and outside.
5 Jesus said, `If you understand the true nature of the world around you, then the
hidden wisdom will become clear to you.
For every bit of hidden wisdom is revealed in life on Earth.`
6 Jesus` disciples asked him, `Do you want us to fast?
How shall we pray? Shall we
give to charity? Which foods are we
allowed to eat?`
Jesus said to his disciples, `Do not lie to yourselves, and do not do things that
you do not believe in for the sake of your religion.
For all of your private thoughts and actions reveal
your true nature.`
7 Jesus said, `Blessed is the animal that is consumed by the spirit, so that the
animal becomes more spiritual. And
cursed is the spirit that is consumed by the animal, so that the spirit becomes
more animal-like.`
8 Jesus said, `A person should be as the wise fisherman who drew up his net from
the sea. The net was full of small
fish. But among them the fisherman
discovered one large fish. Without
any hesitation, the fisherman threw the small fish back into the sea, keeping only
the large fish. Listen carefully to
this lesson and learn it well.`
9 Jesus said, `Behold the farmer who went out and cast his seed far and wide. Some of the seed fell on the road, and
the birds came and ate it. Other seeds
fell on the rocks, and could not take root.
Still others fell among the weeds and were choked out before they could grow. But some fell on good soil, and brought
forth a bountiful crop.`
10 Jesus said, `I have started a smoldering fire on this Earth and I will guard
it until it is a blaze.`
11 Jesus said, `This world will pass away, and the heavens above it will pass away. The flesh is not alive, but the spirit
cannot die. When you consumed the flesh,
you made it one with the spirit. Now
that you are one with the spirit, what will you do?
Although your flesh and spirit were originally one, you made them two. But now that you are two, what will
you do?`
12 The disciples said to Jesus, `We know that you will leave us.
Who will be our leader then?`
Jesus said to them, `After I am gone, no matter where you are, you should heed the
teachings of James the Just, for whose sake the heavens and the Earth came into
being.`
13 Jesus said to his disciples, `Compare me with something
and tell me what I am like.`
Simon Peter said to him, `You are like a messenger of the judgment.`
Matthew said to him, `You are like a wise philosopher.`
Thomas said to him, `Teacher, my mind is unable to compare you to anything.`
Jesus said, `I am not your teacher.
You have become intoxicated because you have drunk from the bubbling spring that
I have tended.` And he took Thomas
and withdrew, and he told him three things.
When Thomas returned to his friends they asked him, `What did Jesus tell you?`
Thomas said to them, `If I tell you even one of the things that he told me, you
will stone me. And if you do, fire
will come forth from the stones and devour you.`
14 Jesus said to them, `If you fast for my sake, you will bring sin upon yourselves. If you pray for my sake, you will be
condemned. If you give to the church
for my sake, you will harm your spirits.
Instead, go about the countryside and as people take you in, eat whatever they give
to you and in return heal their spirits.
After all, it is not what goes into your mouth that will defile you; rather it is
what comes out of your mouth that will defile you.`
15 Jesus said, `Should you come upon one who was not born of a woman, bow down and
worship. That is your true father.`
16 Jesus said, `Some people may think that I have come to bring peace to the world. In truth, I have come to bring conflict
to the world; fire, sword, war.
For five people will live in a house together.
There will be three against two and two against the three, father against
son and son against father, and they will stand alone.`
17 Jesus said, `I shall show to you
what no eye has ever seen, say to you what no ear has ever heard,
allow you to feel what no hand has touched, and help you to imagine what
has never been thought of by the human mind.`
18 The disciples said to Jesus, `Tell us about the end of days.`
Jesus said, `Do you already know so much about the beginning that you are ready
to know about the end? For where the
beginning is, so too will be the end.
Blessed is the one who understands the beginning, for that person will understand
the end and will not die.`
19 Jesus said, `Blessed is the one who was alive before there was life.
If you become my disciples and learn from my words, their meaning will serve
you. For there are five trees in
Paradise
for you, they do not change with the seasons, and their leaves do not wither. Whoever discovers these trees will not
fear death.`
20 The disciples said to Jesus, `Tell us what the
Kingdom of Heaven
is like.`
He said to them, `It is like a mustard seed, the tiniest of all seeds.
But when it falls on prepared soil, it grows large and becomes a resting
place for the birds of the sky.`
21 Mary said to Jesus, `What are your disciples like?`
He said, `They are like squatters who work a field that is not theirs.
When the owners of the field return they will say to the squatters `Give
us back our field.` The squatters will
have no choice but to leave their worldly goods and return the field to its owners.`
For this reason I say, `If the owner of a rich house knows that a thief is coming,
the owner will guard the house and will not let the thief come in and take their
possessions.
As for you then, be on guard against the thieves of this world.
Prepare yourselves well so that thieves cannot get to you.
The treasure that you seek will be yours when there is among you one person who
understands these words. When the crop
is ready, a reaper comes quickly to harvest it.
Listen carefully to this lesson and learn it well.`
22 Jesus saw some mothers nursing their babies.
He said to his disciples, `These nursing babies are like those who will enter
the Kingdom.`
They said to him, `Then we shall enter the Kingdom as children?`
Jesus said to them, `When you can treat the flesh and the spirit as one, when you
can treat the inner like the outer, and the outer like the inner, and the heavens
like the Earth, when you can treat the male and the female as one, so that the male
will not be male and the female will not be female, when you treat an eye as an
eye, a hand as a hand, a foot as a foot, and a spirit as a spirit, then you shall
enter the Kingdom of Heaven.`
23 Jesus said, `I shall choose persons, one out of a thousand and two out of ten
thousand, and they shall stand together with the Holy Spirit as one.`
24 His disciples said, `Show us the way to the place where the spirit lives, since
it is our duty to seek it.`
Jesus said, `Listen carefully to this lesson and learn it well.
There is light within a man of the spirit, and he can light up the whole
world. If he does not shine his light,
then he is darkness.`
25 Jesus said, `Love your fellow human`s life like your own.
Guard him like the apple of your eye.`
26 Jesus said, `You see the splinter that is in your friend's eye, but you do not
see the fencepost that is in your own.
When you can remove the fencepost from your own eye, then you will be able to see
well enough to help your friend remove the splinter from their eye.`
27 He said, `If you do not reject the material things of this world, you will not
find the Kingdom. If you do not observe
the Sabbath as a holy day, you will not see the Father.`
28 Jesus said, `I appeared in the middle of the world, and I came in the flesh to
its people. I found them all drunk
with worldly knowledge, and I found none of them thirsting for the spirit.
And my soul became sick for the Sons of Men, for they are blind in their
hearts and cannot see the truth. They
come into the world ignorant and they seek to leave the world ignorant.
They are drunk with their worldly knowledge, but when they sober up they
will repent.`
29 Jesus said, `That the flesh came into being through the spirit, that itself is
amazing. But if the spirit can come
into being through the flesh, that is even more amazing.
Indeed, I myself am amazed at how this great wealth can make its home among
such poverty.`
30 Jesus said, `Where there are three deities gathered together, there is divinity. Where there are two or one, I am with
him.`
31 Jesus said, `No prophet is accepted in his own village.
No spiritual healer can help those close to him.`
32 Jesus said, `No city built upon a high, well fortified mountain can be taken
by force. But neither can it be hidden
from view.`
33 Jesus said, `What you hear with your ear, with your mouth you must shout from
your rooftops. For a wise man does
not light a lamp and place it under a basket to hide it.
Rather he puts it on a lamppost so that everyone who comes into the house
or leaves can see its light.`
34 Jesus said, `If a blind person leads a blind person, both will fall into a pit.`
35 Jesus said, `One cannot enter the house of a strong person and steal their most
precious belongings without first tying their hands.
Only then one can loot the house.
36 Jesus said, `Do not worry from morning to night, or through the night until the
morning, about how you will be clothed.`
37 His disciples said to him, `When will you appear to us again?
When will we see you?
He said to them, `When you can undress without being ashamed, and can take off your
worldly clothes like little children and put them under your feet and trample them,
then you will be able to see the Son of the Living God and not be afraid.`
38 Jesus said, `Many days you will yearn to hear again these words that I have spoken
to you, but there will be no one to speak them.
There will be days when you will look for me, but you will not find me.`
39 Jesus said, `Your religious leaders and historians have received the keys to
true wisdom, but they have locked them away.
They refuse to enter the room, and they will not allow anyone else to enter either. Therefore, in teaching these truths
you must be as shrewd as snakes, but as innocent as doves.`
40 Jesus said, `A beautiful grapevine has been planted outside the garden of the
Father. But it is not supported, and
it will be pulled up by its roots one day and will die.`
41 Jesus said, `Whoever comes with something to offer, more will be given to them. But whoever comes with nothing to offer,
even the little they have be taken from them.`
42 Jesus said, `You should become seekers.`
43 His disciples said, `Who are you to say this to us?
Jesus said, `Do you not realize from what I say to you who I am?
You have become like priests. Either
they love the tree, but they hate its fruit or they love the fruit, but they hate
the tree.`
44 Jesus said, `Those who deny the Father, they will be forgiven.
And those who deny the Son, they will be forgiven.
But those who deny the Holy Spirit, they will not be forgiven, neither on
Earth nor in Heaven.`
45 Jesus said, `Grapes are not found among thorns, nor are figs picked from among
thistles. A good person brings forth
good from within their heart. But a
bad person brings forth evil from within their heart and evil comes from their mouth. Evil overflows from an evil heart.`
46 Jesus said, `From Adam to John the Baptist, among those born from women on Earth,
none stands above John the Baptist, nor may anyone look down on him.
But I say to you now, whoever among you becomes as a child will understand
the Kingdom, and will surpass John.`
47 Jesus said, `It is impossible for one person to ride two horses or to shoot
two bows at the same time.
And it is impossible for a servant to serve two masters, because if he honors the
one, he will insult the other.
No person drinks well aged wine and then desires to drink newly bottled wine.
And new wine cannot be poured into old wineskins, or they will burst.
And old wine cannot be poured into new wineskins, or it will spoil.
An old patch cannot be put on a new garment, or the patch will tear out again.`
48 Jesus said, `If the two can make peace with one another and live peacefully in
the same house, then they will say to the mountain, 'Move!' and it will move out
of the way.`
49 Jesus said, `Blessed are the chosen ones who live apart, for they will find the
Kingdom. For they come from it and
to it they will return.`
50 Jesus said to his disciples, `If they ask, 'Where do you come from?' say to them,
;We come from the light, the place where the light came into being alone, where
the light lives, and where it appears in the image of the Holy Spirit.â¬"
If they say to you, ;Are you the light?â¬" say to them, ;We are his children, and
we are the chosen of the Living Father.â¬"
If they say to you, ;What is the sign of the Father in you?â¬" say to them, ;It is
motion, and it is rest.â¬"`
51 His disciples asked him, `When will the rapture of the dead take place, and when
will the promised land be shown to us?
Jesus said to them, `The day for which you are waiting has already come, but you
do not recognize it.`
52 His disciples said to him, `Two dozen different prophets have spoken in the city,
and they all claim to channel the one true God.
How is this possible?
Jesus said to them, `Shame on you.
You have pushed away the Living One from yourselves, and instead you have begun
to speak of those who are dead.`
53 His disciples said to him, `Is circumcision beneficial?`
He said to them, `If circumcision were beneficial, then children would come from
their mothers already circumcised.
But the true circumcision is the circumcision of the spirit, because it leads one
to understand everything.`
54 Jesus said, `Blessed are the poor, for the
Kingdom of Heaven
belongs to you.`
55 Jesus said, `Whoever does not leave his mother and father cannot become my disciple.
And whoever cannot leave his brothers and sisters, or who cannot take up the cross
as I have, will not be worthy of me.`
56 Jesus said, `Whoever comes to understand the world will discover a corpse.
And whoever discovers this corpse, the world is not worthy of them.`
57 Jesus said, `The Kingdom of the Father is like a field, in which the Father has
sown good seed.
His enemies came by night and sowed thistle among the good seed.
He said to his servants, ;Do not pull up the thistle, or you might pull up the wheat
with it.â¬"
On the day of the harvest, the thistle will be apparent.
And it will be pulled up and burned.`
58 Jesus said, `Blessed is the person who has struggled.
He has truly lived.`
59 Jesus said `Look for the Living One while you are alive.
If you wait until you die to seek him, you will not be able to see to find
him.`
60 Jesus and his disciples saw a Samaritan on their way to
Judea
who was stalking a lamb.
Jesus said to them, `Why does he stalk the lamb?`
His disciples said, `He will kill it and eat it.`
Jesus said, `And as long as it lives, he cannot eat it.
Only if it becomes a corpse can he eat it.`
His disciples said, `True, it must die.
If it gets away, he will not eat it.`
Jesus said, `You also must look for a place where you can be safe from the world,
so that you do not become a corpse and get eaten.`
61 Jesus said, `Two will lie on a bed.
One will die, the other will live.`
Salome said to Jesus, `You have slept on my couch and you have eaten my food. But I donâ¬"t know who you are.`
Jesus said, `I am the one who comes from the everlasting One.
I was given part of the spirit of my Father.
I am his disciple.`
Jesus said, `If a person comes to be with the Father, they become full of light. But if they become alone and separated
from the Father, they become full of darkness.`
62 Jesus said, `I reveal my mysteries to those who are worthy of them.
For those who are not worthy, whatever the right hand is doing, the left
hand shall not know about.`
63 Jesus said, `There was a rich person who had many possessions.
He said to himself, ;I will use my riches to sow
and reap plants, and fill my storehouses with fruit so that I will not lack for
anything.â¬" This was what he was thinking
in his heart. But that very night he
died. Listen carefully to this lesson
and learn it well.`
64 Jesus said, `There was a person who enjoyed inviting many guests into his home. One day he had prepared dinner and he
sent his servant to invite some of his guests to come and eat.
The servant came to the first guest and said, ;My master invites you to dine with
him.â¬"
But the guest said, ;I have invoices to collect from some merchants.
They are coming this evening to pay me, so I must excuse myself from dinner.â¬"
The servant came to another guest and said, ;My master invites you to dine with
him.â¬"
But the guest said, ;I am constructing a building, and I have been called away for
the day, so I must excuse myself from dinner.â¬"
The servant came to another guest and said, ;My master invites you to dine with
him.â¬"
But the guest said, ;My friend is going to marry tonight and I must cook the wedding
feast. I must excuse myself from dinner.â¬"
The servant came to another guest and said, ;My master invites you to dine with
him.â¬"
But the guest said, ;I am the landlord of a village.
I must go and collect the rents tonight.
Please excuse me from dinner.â¬"
The servant returned to his master and said, ;All of the guests have asked to be
excused from dinner.â¬"
The master said to the servant, ;Go out on the road and bring in whomever you find
there to eat dinner with me.â¬"
For those who are obsessed with material things cannot enter the place of my father.`
65 Jesus said, `A landlord owned a vineyard.
He rented to some farmers so that they might work the land and he might receive
some of its fruits from them as rent.
He sent his servant to bring back a portion of the fruit.
But they seized the servant and beat him within inches of his life.
The servant returned to his master.
His master was surprised and said, ;Perhaps they did not recognize the servant and
mistook him for a scam artist.â¬"
So he sent a well known servant to collect the fruits.
But the tenants beat him as well.
Then the landlord sent his son saying, ;Perhaps they will show respect for my own
son.â¬"
But the tenants, who knew that the son was the heir to the vineyard, seized him
and killed him. Listen carefully to
this lesson and learn it well.`
66 Jesus said `Show me the stone that the builders have rejected.
For that is the cornerstone.`
6
7 Jesus said, `Whoever thinks that they know everything, if they have missed the
one thing, then they have missed everything.`
68 Jesus said, `Blessed are you if you are hated and persecuted.
For those who persecute you will find no solace in the place where they persecute
you.`
69 Jesus said, `Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the things in their
hearts. They are the ones who have
truly come to know the Father.
Blessed are those that hunger in order to fill the belly of the one who made them.`
70 Jesus said, `If you discover it within you, then that which you have discovered
will save you.
But if you do not find it within you, then that which you do not find will make
a corpse of you.`
71 Jesus said, `I will destroy this house, and no one will be able to rebuild it
again.`
72 A man said to Jesus, `Tell my brothers that they must divide my fatherâ¬"s possessions
with me.`
Jesus said to him, `Who has made me a divider?`
Then he turned to his disciples and said, `I am not a divider, am I?`
73 Jesus said, `The harvest is plentiful, but there are few workers to gather it. Beg the Lord that he may send workers
in for the harvest.`
He said, `Lord, there are many around the well, but there is nothing in their hands
with which to take the water.`
Jesus said, `Many will stand at the door, but only the chosen ones will enter the
wedding hall.`
74 Jesus said, `The search for the Kingdom of the Father is like the merchant who
found a fine pearl among some merchandise that he purchased.
The prudent merchant sold all of the other merchandise and kept only the
pearl for himself.
You, too, look for the treasure that does not perish and which no moth can eat and
no worm can destroy.`
75 Jesus said, `I am the light that is everywhere.
I am everything. Everything
came forth from me and now everything has come back to me.
Split a piece of wood, I am there.
Lift the stone, you will find me there.`
76 Jesus said, `Why do you go out into to the world, to see the straw blown by the
wind? And to see the great and powerful
people of the world dressed in fine clothing? Those who dress in fine clothing cannot
recognize the truth.`
77 A woman in the crowd said to Jesus, `Hail to the womb that carried you and to
the breast that fed you.`
Jesus said to her, `Hail to those who hear the word of the Father and truly keep
it. And there will come a day when
you will say, ;Hail to the womb that has not conceived and to the breast that has
not given milk.â¬"`
78 Jesus said, `Whoever has come to know the world has discovered a corpse. And whoever has recognized the corpse,
of him the world is not worthy.`
79 Jesus said, `Whoever becomes rich in me shall become King.
And whoever has power over them shall renounce it.`
80 Jesus said, `Whoever is near me is near the fire.
And whoever is far from me is far from the Kingdom.`
81 Jesus said, `Images of the Kingdom are visible on Earth, but the light within
them is hidden. And the light of the Father reveals itself, but his image is hidden
by his light.`
82 Jesus said, `When you see His light you will be full of joy.
But when you see The One that came into being before His light and which
can never die nor be born, how much will you be able to bear of it?`
83 Jesus said, `Adam came from a great wealth and a great power, but he did not
become worthy of it. If he had been
worthy, he would not have feared death.`
84 Jesus said `Foxes have their holes and birds have their nests.
But the Son of Man has no place to lay his head down to rest.`
85 Jesus said, `Wretched is the body that depends solely on the body.
And wretched is the spirit that depends on the two.`
86 Jesus said, `The messengers and the prophets are coming to you and they will
give to you what is yours.
And you in turn give to them what you have in your hands.
And say, ;When will they come and take what belongs to them?â¬"`
87 Jesus said, `Why do you wash only the outside of the cup?
Donâ¬"t you realize that the one who created the inside is also the one who
created the outside?`
88 Jesus said `Come to me. For my harness
is gentle and my leadership mild.
And you will find rest.`
89 They said to him, `Tell us who you are so that we may believe in you.`
Jesus said to them, `You stare at the heavens and the Earth, but the one who is
before you, you do not recognize. And
you do not know how to seize this opportunity.`
90 Jesus said, `I have said, ;seek and you shall find.â¬"
But the answers that you sought in the past I would not tell you then.
I am willing to tell you now, but now you do not seek them.`
91 Jesus said, `Do not give what is holy to dogs, or else they will drag them to
the dung heap.
Do not throw pearls to swine, or else they will trample them into the mud.`
92 Jesus said, `The one who seeks will find.
The one who knocks at the door, to them it will be opened.`
93 Jesus said, `If you have money, do not lend it out for interest.
Rather give it to someone who cannot repay it.`
94 Jesus said, `The Kingdom of the Father is like a woman who took a little bit
of yeast and put it inside of the dough, and made a huge loaf of bread.
Listen carefully to this lesson and learn it well.`
95 Jesus said, `Those who search for the Kingdom of the Father are like a woman
who was carrying a heavy urn of flour home from the market.
She was a long way from home and the urn was cracked.
While she was walking the flour leaked out slowly along the road.
When the woman reached her house, she set the jar down and realized that
all of the flour was gone.`
96 Jesus said, `Those who search for the Kingdom of the Father must be like a person
who wants to kill a powerful warrior.
First he draws his sword in his house and stabs it into the wall to be sure that
his hand is strong enough to wield the sword.
Then he is able to go out and kill the warrior.`
97 The disciples said to Jesus, `Your mother and brothers are waiting outside.
Jesus said to them, `Those here, who do the will of my Father, are my brothers. They are the ones who will enter the
Kingdom of my Father.`
98 They showed Jesus a gold coin and said to him, `Caesarâ¬"s people demand taxes
of us.`
Jesus said to them, `To Caesar, give what is Caesarâ¬"s.
And to the Father, give what is the Fatherâ¬"s.
And to me, give what is mine.`
99 Jesus said, `Whoever does not reject his mother and father as I have done cannot
be a disciple of mine.
And whoever does not love his Father and his Mother as I do cannot be a disciple
of mine.
For my mother gave birth to me, but my true Mother gave me life.`
100 Jesus said, `Woe to them, the religious leaders. They are like a dog sleeping
in the cattle trough. They do not eat,
nor do they allow the cattle to eat.`
101 Jesus said, `Blessed be him who knows when the robbers are going to enter the
house so that he may wake up and prepare for them before they arrive.`
102 They said to Jesus, `Come, let us fast and pray today.`
And Jesus said, `What sin have I committed, or where am I not meeting expectations
that I need to fast and pray?
When the bridegroom comes out from the wedding hall, then let us fast and pray.`
103 Jesus said, `Whoever worships their father and their mother, he will be called
the son of a whore.`
104 Jesus said, `When you can make the body and the spirit into one, you will become
like the Sons of Man.
And when you say, ;Mountain, move away,â¬" it will move away.`
105 Jesus said, `The Kingdom is like a Shepard who had a hundred sheep.
But his favorite sheep, the best of flock went astray.
The Shepard left the flock to look for his favorite sheep.
When he found it, he said to the sheep, ;I love you more than the other ninety
nine.â¬"`
106 Jesus said, `Whoever will drink from my mouth will become like me.
I myself will become them. And
what is hidden will be revealed to them.`
107 Jesus said, `The seeker(s) of the Kingdom are like a person who owned a field
in which there was a treasure buried that he was unaware of.
When he died, he left the field to his son.
But the son did not know about the treasure either, and he sold the field. The buyer of the field plowed it, and
found the treasure buried beneath.
He was able to share the treasure with whomever he wished and to receive its benefits.`
108 Jesus said, `He who has found the world and has become wealthy from it should
renounce the world.`
109 Jesus said, `The heavens will roll up before you, along with the Earth.
And whoever is living through the Living One will not die.
Does Jesus not say, ;Whoever has found Him, of him the world is not worthy?â¬"`
110 Jesus said, `Whoever truly understands their own nature has more
worth than the entire world.`
111 Jesus said, `Woe to the spirit that depends on the body.
Woe to the body that depends on the spirit.`
112 His disciples said to him, `The Kingdom, on which day will it come?`
Jesus said, `It will not come by watching and waiting for it.
They will not say, ;Look Here!â¬" or ;Look There!â¬"
Rather, the Kingdom of the Father is spread out upon the face of the Earth,
but people do not see it.`
113 Simon Peter said to him, `Make Mary leave us, for women are not worthy of the
Living One.`
Jesus said, `I will draw her close to me and treat her as I would treat a man, so
that she may become a living spirit like you.
Every woman who makes herself a living spirit like me shall enter the
Kingdom of Heaven.`
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