Bardesanes, whose doctrines the Syrian Christians long embraced, taught that the unknown Father, happy in the Plenitude of His Life and Perfections, first produced a Companion for Himself [Greek: Σύζυγος] … Suzugos], whom He placed in the Celestial Paradise and who became, by Him, the Mother of CHRISTOS, Son of the Living God: i.e. (laying aside the allegory), that the Eternal conceived, in the silence of His decrees, the Thought of revealing Himself by a Being who should be His image or His Son: that to the Son succeeded his Sister and Spouse, the Holy Spirit, and they produced four Spirits of the elements, male and female, Maio and Jabseho, Nouro and Rucho; then Seven Mystic Couples of Spirits, and Heaven and Earth, and all that is; then seven spirits governing the planets, twelve governing the Constellations of the Zodiac, and thirty-six Starry Intelligences whom he called Deacons: while the Holy Spirit [Sophia Achamoth], being both the Holy Intelligence and the Soul of the physical world, went from the Plerōma into that material world and there mourned her degradation, until CHRISTOS, her former spouse, coming to her with his Divine Light and Love, guided her in the way to purification, and she again united herself with him as his primitive Companion.
Basilides, the Christian Gnostic, taught that there were seven emanations from the Supreme Being: The First-born, Thought, the Word, Reflection, Wisdom, Power, and Righteousness.
[Greek: Πρωτογονος, Νους, Λογος, Φροντσις, Σοψα, Δυναμις], and [Greek: Δικαιοσύνη] Protogonos, Nous, Logos, Phronesis, Sophia, Dunamis, and Dikarosunē; from whom emanated other Intelligences in succession, to the number, in all, of three hundred and sixty-five; which were God manifested, and composed the Plenitude of the Divine Emanations, or the God Abraxas; of which the Thought [or Intellect, [Greek: Nouς] … Nous] united itself, by baptism in the river Jordan, with the man Jesus, servant [Greek: διάκονος]. Diakonos] of the human race; but did not suffer with Him; and the disciples of Basilides taught that the [Greek: Νοϋς], put on the appearance only of humanity, and that Simon of Cyrene was crucified in His stead and ascended into Heaven.
Basilides held that out of the unrevealed God, who is at the head of the world of emanations, and exalted above all conception or designation [Greek: Ό άατονόμαστος, άρρητος], were evolved seven living, self-subsistent, ever-active hyposatized powers:
FIRST: THE INTELLECTUAL POWERS.
1st. NOUS [Greek: Νοϋς] The Mind. 2d. LOGOS [Greek: Λόγος] The Reason. 3d. Phronesis [Greek: Φρόνησις] The Thinking Power. 4th. Sophia [Greek: Σοφία] Wisdom.
SECOND: THE ACTIVE OR OPERATIVE POWER.
5th. Dunamis [Greek: Δυναμις] Might, accomplishing the purposes of Wisdom.
THIRD: THE MORAL ATTRIBUTES.
6th. Dikaiosunē [Greek: Δικαιοσύνη] Holiness or Moral Perfection. 7th. Eirēnē [Greek: Είρήνη] Inward Tranquility.