Said Rabbi Ishmael: When my ears heard this warning my strength grew feeble. I said to Rabbi Nehunya ben Hakkanah my master, “If so there is no end to the matter. For you will find no man whose soul is yet in his body who is clean and guiltless of these eight matters.” He said to me, “Scion of nobles, and if not – ? Arise and bring before me all the great ones of the company and all the mighty ones of the academy, and I shall declare before them the hidden, the concealed secrets, wonders of the ascent, and the weaving of the web upon which the perfection of the world and the excellence thereof doth stand, and the beauty of heaven and earth (wherein all the ends of the earth and the world and the ends of the firmaments of the height are bound, sewed and joined, hung and standing) and the path of the ladder to the height, of which one end is on earth and one end on the right foot of the throne of glory.”

Said Rabbi Ishmael: Straightway I arose and assembled all the Sanhedrin, great and small, to the third entrance which was in the house of the Lord. And he was sitting upon a chair of pure marble which Elisha my father gave me, for it was of the goods of her that bore me which she did bring to him in her dowry.

And there came Rabban Simon ben Gamliel and Rabbi Eliezer the Great and Rabbi Elazar ben Dama and Elazar ben Shammua and Jonathan ben Dahabhai and Haninah ben Hakkanai and Jonathan ben Uziel and Rabbi Akiba and Rabbi Judah ben Babba. We came and sat down before him. And all the multitude of companies were standing upon their feet, for they saw spiderwebs of fire and torches of light which made a separation between them and between us. And Rabbi Nehunya ben Hakkanah sitteth and setteth in order before them all the teachings concerning the Merkabha, [the] descent and [the] ascent, how he descendeth who descendeth, and how he ascendeth who ascendeth.

And whenever a man wished to descend to the Merkabha he would call to Surya the Prince of the Presence and conjure him one hundred and twelve times by Totrosi’ai the Lord (who is called Totrosi’ai Zurtak Totrakhiel Tophgar ’Ashrawwili’ai Zebhodiel Zoharariel Tandiel, and Shekhadhozi’ai Dehibhiron, and ’Andiriron the Lord God of Israel.

And let him beware that he do not exceed an hundred and twelve times and do not diminish from them. And if he exceed or diminish his blood is upon his own head. Bit his mouth must utter [the words of conjuration] and the fingers of his hands must count one hundred and twelve and forthwith he may go down and rule in the [world of the] Merkabha.)