Diabolical - Stafford Stone, Kyle Fite, Thomas Karlsson, and Johnny Jakobsson 2009

This is an account of a major operation undertaken some years ago, including its preparation and its aftermath. It is presented in a matter of fact fashion, detailing the stages of preparation and practical considerations, in order to elucidate the process and encourage the interested reader. Atmospheric melodrama and studied archaisms have been avoided in favour of a simple statement of the required steps as performed. The dramatic events that followed are not intended as a literary device, but are a faithful account of what occurred.

The operation was based upon the Grimorium Verum (my redaction of which was recently published by Scarlet Imprint as The True Grimoire), and work with the intermediary spirit of the system to provide pagan and Thelemic adaptations of the liturgy. The grimoire involves three chiefs of spirits, Lucifer, Belzebuth and Astaroth, each of whom has two deputies. These deputies have three subordinates in the first part of the hierarchy; some have other additional spirits in the second part thereof. My work with the grimoire has developed in various ways, some of which are contained in my commentary on the grimoire. The alternative liturgy however has not so far been published in its entirety, although I have begun to serialise this work in The Equinox - British Journal ofThelema.

This account of a ritual involves the alternative liturgy, and is based on various considerations. Firstly, as mentioned above the deputies have in some cases additional spirits. Among the deputies the one with by far the most spirits in his retinue is Nebiros. As well as the three spirits under him in the first part of the hierarchy he has two deputies of his own, who rule an additional eight spirits. These eight have various powers between them, which correspond very closely to the powers conferred upon a shaman when initiated by spirits in various cultures. For various reasons then it appeared to me to be a very good idea to perform a conjuration of Nebiros and obtain from him license to work with all these spirits, who would also be conjured at the same time to confirm their willingness to work with me in the future.

The grimoire is very useful in this respect, there is no question of only conjuring one spirit at a time, the only limits are the endurance of the magician and their understanding of the processes involved. I had already performed multiple conjurations of this type in the past, calling upon the intermediary spirit, then the chief or chiefs concerned; their deputies and finally their subordinates. I was well aware of how difficult and demanding such processes could be. However, the potential involved in working with Nebiros and his subordinates presented many opportunities that would considerably enhance my magical work. Accordingly I had no reservations whatsoever concerning the undertaking.

Initial preparation for the work involved re-consecrating the various instruments, and familiarising myself with the ritual and the various things required to bring it to fruition. My intention was to use the adapted system that I had developed. Each change from the original had been ratified by the intermediary spirit of the system, a powerful spirit named Scirlin. Those adaptations which did not meet with his approval had been replaced by substitutions suggested by him in the consultation process. The adaptation involved a new skeleton for the ritual, in the form of Liber Pyramidos, an initiatory ritual of the A. A. which contains sub-rituals which can be extracted and employed in invocations and other work.

This rite is very compatible in various ways with Verum. One important consideration is that the three corners of the triangular floor-plan correspond with three deities: Tahuti, Set-Horus and Isis, who in turn can be equated with the three chiefs, as also with other triads of deities: Hermes Kthonios, Hades and Persephone being a prominent example. These deities are not to be considered as identical with the three chiefs of the spirits who are rather what might be termed hypostases or lower projections of them.

The chief of whom Nebiros is a deputy is Astaroth, and it was necessary to call upon her in order to conjure him. Amongst the new material evolved with Scirlin’s assistance were two variant opening and closing rituals, one of which was appropriate to workings with Astaroth. My ritual therefore included these as the frame for an invocation of Hecate (corresponding to Isis and Persephone in the triadic schema outlined above). The idea of such invocations is that being identified with the deity concerned, spirits of the same nature can simply be bidden to appear: for example with a brief conjuration or even simply calling their names. Having invoked Hecate the next step therefore was to recite a short conjuration of Astaroth, and after that to converse with her regarding my intentions. Having obtained her approval the next step would be to conjure Nebiros, and then his subordinates in turn, obtaining their agreement with my future plans.

Each of these spirits would be conjured and greeted with a sacrifice of incense, addressed regarding my desires; with their approval obtained they would be licensed to depart until called again. This procedure would be repeated with each in turn before proceeding to the next.

Before that could happen I had to complete any and all necessary preparations in advance. Such preparations include renewing the Aspergillus — a holy water sprinkler made from sprigs of herbs tied to a wooden handle bearing sigils - and any of the incenses required.

Nowadays I grow the mint, rosemary and marjoram required for the Aspergillus on an allotment, along with various other herbs employed in magic. At this time I was lucky enough to have an herb garden where I lived so they were fresh to hand. The residue of any holy water after rituals and

from water offerings to spirits were used to water them, along with a daily recitation of an incantation from the grimoire (Astrachios, Asac, Asacra Bedrimulael &-c). On occasion I make a more potent form of this holy water by infusing these same herbs in boiling water and allowing to cool. The savour is beautiful and naturally suggests the purpose of purification. Such an infusion can also be added to the ritual bath.

The use of incenses in the method of the grimoire and the liturgy derived from it is fairly complex, with four occasions for the use of different types. I keep a large stock of the ingredients and a smaller quantity already prepared in a small casket divided into four compartments. The pestle and mortar and the grater required for preparing these are among the items prepared, sprinkled and consecrated in the preparatory stages of conjuration.

At such times the more important items are placed on the altar; lesser items, or any that are particularly large, such as the liming vessel, may be gathered around the altar on a clean cloth. One or more pestles and mortars are fairly typical additional items. Similar care should be taken with any bowls, strainers etc. used for preparing infusions. These must all be purpose bought and only employed in magical work.

Having assembled and prepared all my required materials in order to bring this operation to perfection the next stage was to prepare various documents. The first and simplest document to prepare was a script. Even though various parts of the ritual are effectively stored in my memory the intensity of ritual can produce brain freezing hiatuses requiring a prompt. This task was readily accomplished: all the various elements of my ritual method are stored on my computer hard drive. Various rituals among them were also already present in my ritual folder. I intended to employ an adapted opening and closing of Pyramtdos to work with the S W point of the triangle attributed to Isis, Hecate and Astaroth, adding the Invocations and Conjurations necessary. These simply needed assembling and collating.

More arduous however was the process of preparing the pact, containing all the necessary sigils of spirits. This required a separate ritual, one which arises fairly often in my work with the spirits. Two forms of preparing pa

per are given in the grimoire - one involves sacrificing a suitable animal and curing the skin - in order to accomplish which all the magical tools must first be consecrated and present on the altar. The first time one does this all the tools and other requisites will have been newly made or obtained, then purified and consecrated before any of the Verum spirits are conjured. This ritual indeed is the intervening step between preparation and conjuration. The other form of preparing paper is to simply purify and consecrate good quality paper in the same way as the other instruments. The consecration of the instruments given in the grimoire may be performed over all the instruments as they lay ready on the altar, and should be used prior to any major operations.

My usual method of preparing paper involves elements of both the above. I obtain good quality paper, in the form of large pads of art paper. In size the sheets are not dissimilar to an animal hide. They have to be this large so as to bear as many sigils as I may need in any given operation, as well as appropriate names of power. I cut a nick in one of the shorter edges, representing the throat of the animal, I then go through the majority of preparatory stages as one would with a real skin: scraping, salting, weighing down with stones from a river, and finally incubating it in a vessel prepared in the same way as the liming vessel one would use for the magical skin.

This vessel is also where I store all magically prepared paper for future use. The need for a magical operation cannot always be predicted. As well as the raw materials stocks of prepared materials, such as the paper and specific herbs and incenses, are essential to ongoing magical work. Relationships with the spirits should not be undertaken if the amount of work - on the physical and on other levels — is likely to present you with difficulties or cause second thoughts.

Another fairly minor task that was required in advance of the operation itself was the selection of the appropriate time. With Verum as a purist system, even with the adaptations in place, the timing element is quite simple, involving nothing more onerous than the planetary hours. The day and hour of Mars is the standard time for conjurations, possibly because in theory

the process involves drawing blood, although Saturn and Mars are also the great patrons of goetic magic. On occasion I step outside the prescribed time employing more sophisticated elements such as planetary aspects, or divisions of time particular to the specific spirit or spirits concerned. Generally speaking however, I use a spreadsheet for calculating planetary hours, simply entering sunrise and sunset times for the day - obtained from an almanac or ephemeris - and letting the software take care of the rest.

Having accomplished all these preparations all that remained prior to the conjuration was to prepare a magical ablution. This involves drawing a bath, to which an infusion of the same herbs used in the aspergillus may be added. An orison of the bath' is recited as soon as you enter the bath. Having the script for this on a laminated sheet is a useful idea, as you need to douse your head during the recitation, which involves some splashing and wetting of the hands. This is the text of the Orison from the liturgical transplant:

I have descended, O my darling, into the black shining waters, and

I have plucked Thee forth as a black pearl of infinite preciousness.

I follow Thee, and the waters of Death fight strenuously against me. I pass unto the Waters beyond Death and beyond Life.

This is the world of the waters of Maim; this is the bitter water that becometh sweet. Thou art beautiful and bitter, O golden one, O my Lord Adonai, O thou Abyss of Sapphire!

If I say Come up upon the mountains', the celestial waters flow at my word. But thou art the Water beyond the waters.

Verily and Amen! I passed through the deep sea, and by the rivers of running water that abound therein, and I came unto the Land of No Desire.

Yea, also verily Thou art the cool still water of the wizard fount. I have bathed in Thee, and lost me in Thy stillness. AMEN.

Once bathed the next step is to dress oneself in suitable attire for the rite. No robe is specified in the grimoire, although it may be inferred from its

Solomonic connections. I generally use a simple black robe. Such a vestment must be loose at the neck and allow freedom of movement, angel wings should be avoided in favour of workmanlike three-quarter length sleeves, the hem should be wide and some distance above the ankles. Not infrequently I prefer a simple clean shirt and trousers, while in my routine work whatever I happen to be wearing is perfectly appropriate. Also to be avoided is any headgear or elaborate coiffure, for reasons that will become apparent.

Bathed and dressed, I went immediately to the ritual chamber, which was already pleasantly aromatic from a preparatory burning of incense. All the instruments and other requisites were ready, prepared in advance. Here too my circle lay, drawn in red on purpose bought canvas, a double ring containing a triangle which touches the inner ring.

After a glance to make sure all was in readiness I commenced the opening ceremony, striking the bell twice as I saluted Tahuti and Set-Horus. This was swiftly followed by an anti-clockwise circumambulation, declaring aloud:

The Key of Asi flashing here

Embraceth each revolving Sphere, Touching and entering all, to hold The Sign that tears the veil asunder; O Woman clothed with Solar gold. Sebek is smitten by the Thunder The Light breaks forth from under!

I then stood halfway between the stations of the two gods named above, facing south-west and made a brief adoration of the goddess:

South Western Angle of the Plane, Moon Crowned Queen bearing the Wheel On serpent coiled wand; again Bring honey, oil, red wine and meal To our anointed Feast of Light In joy and beauty, work the Rite.

My next ritual action began with laying down the wand representing life, which signifies voluntary self sacrifice. I then liberally doused my head with Holy Water, sufficient to run down the spine via the open neck of my garment. I then drew an X within a circle in holy oil upon my forehead. As Set-Horus I then resumed the wand and performed the clockwise circumambu-lation with appropriate rhymed incantation. This completed, I resumed my station facing Southwest and saluted the goddess with the appropriate gestures and words, and then performed the concluding parts of the Opening ceremony.

The rite proper now began with the Oath and Confession. The Oath is a simple statement of intent, consisting of identifying myself and my intention to advance my work by conjuring the spirits, who I also named. The Confession, which is its natural adjunct, consists of an act of self abasement in which self accusations are made, balanced in turn by the statement: I am under the Shadow of the Wings'. This is declared kneeling, bent forward and with head bowed; the two wands of the Verum system are held in either hand, and raised alternately as you make each accusation and response.

At the conclusion I leapt to my feet, as if redeemed and charged with new life. Swiftly I sprinkled the circle with water with the appropriate words and made the incense offering of fresh mace to Scirlin with his incantation. The invocations followed, first the ritual of the Headless One in seven parts attributed to the planets, then the Invocation of Hecate.

Hecate appeared outside the circle in the South West; a stately and mature female figure dressed in a grey robe and crowned with a lunar crescent. She was above human height, but her manifestation occurred without creating any undue fear or appearing in any way unnatural. At the same time I was - contradictory as it may sound - wholly identified with her; sufficiently to speak with her authority in calling upon Astaroth.This was accomplished by a brief incantation (composed by a qaballistic technique colloquially known as Wakanaba after a mnemonic device used in its application). The image of Hecate faded briefly, and then reappeared apparently as strong as before, as if asserting her identity with Astaroth. I greeted the spirit, displaying her io

sigil on the pact, and burning incense in her honour. I made my request that she cause Nebiros to appear in answer to my conjuration. This conjuration then followed, a striking incantation gleaned from the papyri and approved by negotiation with Scirlin. The image of Hecate/Astaroth now faded, and Nebiros did not manifest visibly, although I was sufficiently encouraged by the previous manifestations to be sure he was present.

It is my usual procedure when greeting spirits to declare: Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law, in anticipation of a positive response before proceeding. This is usually signalled by a clockwise rotation of a pendulum I use in my spirit work. On this occasion however, unusually, I was relying on spirit manifestations to supply responses. After making this declaration I heard a series of distinct knocks, eleven in all, divided into batteries of three, five and three again. This is a well known device in Thelemic magick, and was evidently a signal of assent.

I made my requests of Nebiros, which 1 need not detail here, and asked him to provide a further sign of his agreement with me regarding these. The concluding part of the ritual was then performed and I left the chamber and returned to mundane life.

The next day the sign asked for appeared, in the form of an unexpected gift of a simple wooden pendant bearing the pontos riscado of Exu Rei (that is, the sigil of a very powerful spirit in a Brazilian cult whose spirits have close affinities with those of Verum). I have worn this ever since, and been instructed in its use by the spirit Scirlin.

Not long after this ritual I was invited to visit America, all expenses paid, for a select meeting of magicians. While there I made my daily rituals at a nearby crossroads, and also performed the Rite of Primal Heaven among others. I had recently made a remark to a colleague concerning how the various chiefs of the Verum system each rule over various continents. I mentioned that I had often conjured the European and Asian chief in America, and had now conjured the American chief in England.

The climax of the meeting of magicians was attended by a completely unexpected event. Astaroth literally seized my consciousness and took it to her plane of existence. As mentioned above, her manifestation at the time of the ritual was not attended by any fear or awe, and thus did not interfere with my ability to perform. This experience was completely the opposite. I was virtually prostrated at the power and sheer magnitude of the spirit on its own plane. Every instinct gained in years of experience was called for to bear up under the pressure. I used breath control and mantra to prevent complete prostration and regain strength and power of my own. A remarkable inspiration arose in my mind, and I asserted my near identity with Lucifer, and my complete identity with Frimost, a powerful masculine spirit. This of course is similar to the assertions made by Egyptian magicians that they are identical with such and such a god, and to be treated accordingly. This powerful and unprecedented recourse permitted me to deal face to face with Astaroth, rather than - as appeared imminent - collapse and hope to recover my strength and sanity later!

It was only after the experience was over and I was able to do a little technical checking up that I realised the whole event had taken place not only on the continent ruled by Astaroth, but within a thirteen day period of the year specifically ruled by her. My observations regarding geographical rulerships now appeared somewhat ironic. With this event came the realisation that a pact - which is a relationship with a spirit - implies that not only can the magician conjure that spirit, but the spirit can conjure the magician!

Betz, Hans Dieter Stratton-Kent, Jake Hadean Press

♦ BIBLIOGRAPHY ♦

Tire Greek Magical Papyri in Translation

The True Grimoire

The Equinox - British Journal of Thelema vn 9-11

HIDDEN TREASURE: TAUFER BOOKS OF OLD EUROPE ERIK DE PAUW

taufer books are collections of old manuscripts, with one } ■ binding usually containing more than one book, or indeed the man-uscripts themselves. They contain workings of a spiritual, magical, hidden, forbidden - and therefore secret nature; they are truly grimoires.

Publishing these works has always been a hazardous delight. Collecting them has of course always been done, from Alexandria to Reykjavik, but the publishing, let alone the practicing, was not always warmly welcomed. There was always a fresh fire piled up for those caught, which must have come as rather a relief after the forgoing interrogations.

These Taufer books were forbidden by law in Germany until as recently as 1956. In that year a modern edition of The Sixth and Seventh Book of Moses was banned and the publisher Ferdinand Masuch was convicted. These books were condemned as devilish, blasphemous and whatnot, and were still on ’the Index’.

But why have you been missing out on most of these? Why have only a handful been translated in English? Were only one or two versions of The Key interesting enough? Is it because only contemporary high magic is really interesting, and the older ancestral common sources are nowadays over and done with? Or are these older originals too difficult to read, or to work with? There are undeniably so many still hidden in libraries, but others are actually only hidden in other languages. Access is possible. So why don’t we have them, and furthermore, use them? I'll try to give you some idea of the contents and portents of these books.

This essay is about the traditional magic books or taufer books of the common people. These books were known as Grimoires, Magic books, Black books. Den Svarta Bibeln (The Black Bible), Leach books orTrolldomsboker (books of the realm of Trolls); some bear the names of wise men such as Albertus Magnus, King Solomon or Moses, or notorious magicians like Doctor Faustus, Pope Honorius or Bishop Cyprianus.

Indeed, these books deal with sympathetic magic, invocations and witchcraft, in an outwardly ever so normal down-to-earth way. They are firmly rooted in the Original Religion, with a sticky Christian sauce, and again influenced by theosophic and kabalistic principles — or was it the other way around? Most of the titles tell no tales: the workings incorporated are called recipes, sympathetic workings, blessings or magnetic secrets. Why would that be? It could be to distract the attention of all too curious inquisitors, or the titles could actually be true. What's in a word?

The operations in these magic books attribute almost every working and the effective results to God, Filius and co. In many esoteric circles these deities are most often nearly forgotten or surpassed; everybody wants to work with Astarte, Thoth, or Isis. But why not also two of the most well established, forgiving and gentle deities? The Christos (yes, also like Jesus - the anointed), and the beloved God-Mother (like Maria, still unwavering Gottes-Mutter). Or maybe Thoth is the same as the newborn Jesus, and Isis is the same as Maria. In any case, I wasn’t there and I won’t be going much further into that here.

This is one of the major myths of our time. It has to bear the weight of our hopes and fears about what being human really means. And for over two thousand years it has been riven by a holy war, conducted with an extraordinary fury that reverberates far outside the reality walls of explorers’ temples of the innermost realms. So, I attribute my own Work to the dear Dark Mother and her little Christos the Light, and why not, a Holy Spirit. The dark can be ever so much more attractive, especially to kids with their 666 heavy metal bands. It is great music, but some individuals seem so intrigued and affected by it, as if in love with the dark side of things. Ok, count me in.

It is not that surprising that some pursue easy access, via the dark side of the Tree. But why not bring a ladder, take the steps, or even, a saw. Yes, cut it down; and one could simply walk up and down in the most easy manner, even relax and sit down next to it. And have a bonfire afterwards. Or maybe that would spoil the fun of other enlightenments to come. Perhaps it is the process of learning which is the learning, and the less easy the more profound.

So many people nowadays want esoteric experiences, but as in a weekend workshop; they want to be entertained for the day. They would prefer accessible, but nonetheless real experiences, and then maybe in a month or so a different one; like witchcraft or high magic. I've seen advertisements for The Shamanistic Tarot, a summer-course for Dancing with your Inner Child and Zen-Claying. I kid you not.

It seems these idle airheads want an instant experience. Just pay the fee, spend a pleasant afternoon and having done that, go back to work, and leave it at that. I have heard the unforgettable exclamation of a participant after the annual S. o. L. ritual, where twenty-one people attended seven altars, saying, I'm not again going to pay 275 euros for a bad theatre play!

Alternatively, when I attended the Art Academy and also did a year of Philosophy (illegally, I simply sat myself down, and just did no exams) it occurred to me that in the evening classes many of the most dedicated students were over 60 (one was 98 even). So it seems that in time some people realize they've been neglecting aspects of their life and missed out on some things. Thus, when they are at an experienced age, they take up philosophy, art, or even witchcraft, and what the hell, why not?

For the studies I am currently pursuing there is no academy, no school of initiation, except within. It is all about my own conscience - although I seem to have more than one. The good part is that there are no exams, nor marks anymore. The grimoires should be part of a living magical tradition and not left to the academics. The academics do come up with some brilliant insights here and there, for which I thank them, but they don’t work with the books they study. Theirs is absolutely not part of a breathing, living, loving, magical

tradition. But study is good, I am all for that. Study is one thing, but it takes devotion to be able to work with the inner contents. Practice!

At the moment I have about 2500 books on magic and religion. I am constantly reading them, reading about them, opening and uncovering their secrets, translating or interpreting them and working with them. So of course, at the end of this essay you’ll find a list of available books. One might call it work, but it seems to me...it is life. I’ve become a religious bibliophile, or put better, a bibliophile of books on religion, and especially on the part the common people have played. I like the practical, which is a major draw of the Taufer books. The Church was important in effect, and outlook, but it is just a thin varnish over the age-old practices.

♦ REHAB ♦

adly, a lot of the old European manuscript material is even now una-CSteyr vailable in the more universal English language. Except for the well-known books by Agrippa, Paracelsus and some of the books attributed to King Solomon. The problem is that practically almost no-one cares to, or is able to read old German (true, the old font, Fraktur, is indeed hard to read) or French, let alone Latin or Greek.

Few are willing to dedicate their time to be able to read and learn from the ones that have gone before them, must have been the reason that so much remains concealed, sitting somewhere silently, haplessly, waiting. Well, I did learn. By simply starting.

In the late Middle Ages and later, Latin was the language for the educated to write in. The vast majority of old books in private libraries have never been translated into English.

The Golden Dawn has proven to be incredibly influential. Through them some of the grimoires were translated into English, but still these scholars thought it necessary to rectify and adapt the material here and there. The few books translated by them were influential. These relatively few books have

been reprinted so many times, in disrespectful and increasingly ugly formats. Digital versions of these foil of the same mistakes (let alone in the original Latin or Hebrew parts), are to be found replicating on the internet.

Many people were surprised and excited by the internet connecting us to such a seeming wealth of information and texts. Even though it wasn't always complete or unbiased, or was blatantly ethnocentric (read: steak and kidney pie with Egyptian letter soup). Since the internet saw a host of articles and blogs about magic, alchemy, witchcraft and the like, interest grew in the sources; the real stuff - what all this blah was based on. We all wanted the original works, and more. And apart from those already well-known books, more and more people were seeking out original and rare manuscripts.

There certainly seems to be a lot of interest, so there also seems to be an interesting market for publishers. But what happened is that there came craft-folly hand-tooled reprints, mostly in very limited numbers. Little by little the beautiful collections of the old folk magic from yesteryear comes to the market and different versions of the manuscripts get printed. Now everyone seems to see the real historical connection.

These last years I’ve seen an upsurge in interest from Western Mystery Tradition fellows and of other scholars too. Until recently there weren’t many scholars and enthusiasts busy with what was called low magic. It was either the Golden Dawn and the Rosicrucians, or Wicca and Shamanism on the other side. Like magnetism, seances and some fluidum, folk-magic was a word that had obviously been written enough about, be it witchcraft cases, annual rural festivities, calendar-astrology, local saints or charming ghosts.

So what is it, or what is wrong, with this deceivingly simple, down-to-earth, magic? Not daring or out of the ordinary enough for those who practise high magic? But it was worthy of note to the church fathers, who were never too fond of it.

But this 'low magic’ does not stay put in the earthly realm, firmly in the day, our cosy Malkuth. I think people did more, when they hung hare-bones around the neck of their child, took the suckling thrice, walking backwards, around the Church, nailed a lead pin in an ash-tree, and ending asking for

the blessing of Maria. Preferably all done of course before dawn, on the first Saturnday after a full Moon.

Under the guise of Christianity - or not even a guise - still hidden in these Taufer books is a lot of uncommon knowledge. It is there for the beholder, in the age-old recipes and workings; about sympathetic magic, and all these old so-called Saints, the well-known Angels and the angry or helpful Spirits. It is just made into a practical and usable format; as real as one could get. People have, if truth be told, secretly hidden from the rural churches and their eager ministers, been covertly and incessantly using these magic books. Not surprising, some of the copies I’ve seen were totally tattered, re-sewn with fishing-line, or secretly boxed into another book.

♦ WITH MOSES TO THE POWWOW ♦

the not United States the first of these magic books were brought by -"^^the settlers, fleeing from Europe, and there, after some decennia, also converted into the new language.

Two books were first published in Pennsylvania, in spite of everything a state infamous for its Hex-Meisters and Powwowers — by the Pennsylvania Dutch, still going strong in their old ways. Dutch being the same word as in Deutschland, which is not the Netherlands, but over there they seemed to get along quite well. These two books being Albertus Magnus Egyptian Secrets and The Sixth and Seventh Book of Moses.

Later in the next century De Laurence, thinking nobody would notice, liked to imagine he discovered these books himself and credited them to... himself. He published and sold many thousands of copies. The De Laurence version of The Sixth and Seventh Book of Moses has a later, rather strangely anachronistic, ethnocentric Semitic Introduction by Joseph Ennemoser. I suggest you skip that. The African-American people of the southern states picked up on these books, especially The Sixth and Seventh Book of Moses, taking them further on into Hoodoo practices. There are actually a lot of

Hidden Treasure: Taufer Books of Old Europe southerners secretly working with them, some joining in with Papa Legba, through to Toots & the Maytails writing a cool song about them (under the moniker The Vikings!).

Gonzalez-Wippler picked up on them too, not revising) but rather just writing a frothy intro and leaving the sometimes dreadfully obvious mistakes unaltered. There is even a yahoo group devoted to these books, monitored by the eminent Joseph Peterson. Its files are filled with tips and tricks of the trade for those that want to learn more or start practicing a bit with it.

Coming full-circle, I’ve found here in the Netherlands cheaply, and badly, copied versions of the later American versions of the Moses Books in the local Winti and Santeria shops.

To the Powwow practitioner, The Sixth and Seventh Book of Moses have always remained important. They are in fact still useful, though some would rather believe otherwise.

Here are some older original examples of these Books of Moses:

Das Sechste und Siebte Buch Mosis (The Sixth and Seventh Book of Moses').

And, wonderfully, there also exist:

Das Achte und Neunte Buch Mosis (The Eighth and Ninth Book of Moses); Das Zehnte, Elfte und Zwolfie Buch Mosis (The Tenth, Eleventh and Twelfth Book of Moses), and there’s even Das Drei-zehnte Buch Mosis (The Thirteenth Book). But I haven’t been able to locate and read it yer.

To make things even worse; there have been many versions printed of these titles, with totally different collections of contents! Some bindings contain only two books, another one contains thirty-seven.

So, a bit of history then: The title, claiming to be the magical arts by which Moses obtained his powers and commanded spirits, is to make it sound more older than it was. But in point of fact these books involve qabalistic magic, therefore they have older roots than it would at first seem.

Already in the 4^th century a manuscript existed with the title The Eight and Tenth Book of Moses. The numbers in the title, the 8'^h and io'^h, are explained by the fact that these two numbers in the symbolism of late antiquity stood for complete and completion. It was a Greek papyrus, from the Greek Magical Papyri, that contains a long ritual, a lecture by the Archangel, a prayer by Moses to the Moon goddess Selena, and it mentions a Key of Moses in which additional rites and secret names are cited.

By the i6’^h century the first printed versions of these appeared, in the format of magical recipe collections, in which Moses’ supposed magic displays at the Pharaohs court were described. What made it so interesting is that the citations were enlarged, preceded and augmented with all kinds of magic: in particular from a version of the Biblia Arcana Magica Alexander (being a listing of Angels and Spirits and their appropriate seals) The Lesser Key of Solomon (not the one you otherwise know), a version of the Grand Grimoire, the Goetia and unknown other sources. It contains the holiest of the holy, while profoundly uniting and harmonizing with practical magic.

The compilation of spells and procedures in the Moses Books, as most peole know them nowadays, were printed in this form by Johann Scheible, in 18^th century Germany. I’ve read in numerous places that Scheible was the first to publish these Books, but I know of at least four earlier printings. (And these are all in German, let alone the many Greek and Latin versions.) Why people keep claiming that he was the first, or repeating that claim, I don’t understand, it’s simply not true. He printed them in volume six of his twelve book collection of all kinds of religious oddities, called Das Kloster (The Cloister), using a mass of manuscripts which he had collected. He only brought together two versions, which he copied and subsequently published. Furthermore, these Moses Books were also published separately by him in a different and cheap format. Others followed suit, some using their own print variations, still others simply copying his.

Other books were attributed to Moses including The Sword of Moses, a manuscript collection of medieval magical citations, in Hebrew, of which a partial translation is available, but Gaster’s introduction makes it worthwhile.

Tie collection of magical recipes in the manuscript by Abramelin (Abraham wc Worms, 1362-1458), and his Book II (also edited by MacGregor-Mathers, rendered from a French translation), and also Paracelsus’ Archidoxes of Magic, were used as an example for the first 18^th century printing of The Seventh ha* of Moses.

Thar these manuscripts were finally printed doesn’t mean that they were “ade totally public, let alone that they were widely available in huge quantises to the commoner (Scheibles series of Das Kloster were expensive). Less i—Ti 1 n ite people kept copying the books by hand.The printed versions were warv available to the well-to-do, with the right contacts. In 1797 a 6. et 7. Ljker Mosis was offered for 10 Reichstaler (worth a house). It is highly prob-x*e that this book was the starting point for all the contemporary Books of Moses.

The manuscripts have multiplied. I have here a spread sheet with over 150 juieienr editions, and about 40 different versions of Books of Moses. The wcKjcal works of Moses have a long and ancient tradition in Germanic lore. Whoever wanted to use one of Moses’ Books of Black Magic had to read the wxr forwards and backwards. The devil gained control of anyone who failed * read it backwards.

it was no longer known where the book came from. The oldest people icaew only that they had come into its possession through an inheritance. .KL^xding to legend, in Sabitz near Bergen, there formerly lived a number at peasants who, it was said, possessed one of these books. With its help 2>ev were able to acquire substantial wealth, and if they did anything bad to a neighbour, they always went unpunished. Sometimes the book caused its aaraers much grief, so finally they tried to dispose of it. For a long time these attempts were to no avail, until they sought the advice of a pastor. He freed •arm from the influences of the book, by nailing shut the drawer in which it was being stored.

From the 18^th century on, moving to the Americas, the settlers brought □Scse magic books and original handwritten manuscripts with them. These are what Johan Georg Hohmann used for his Der Lange Verborgene Freund

(oddly translated as: The Long Lost Friend. He should, or could, have been The Long Hidden Friend.) This book remains available in Pennsylvanian-Angloish.

A later Pennsylvanian compiler, Ammon Monroe Aurand, gave his collection its contemporary title, which is continually in use today: The Pow-wow Book, appending The Long Lost Friend to it. A present writer, Don Yoder, himself a descendant, writes extensively about all these mysterious rites and ceremonies — named, in their old language, Braucherei.

Another, published only once in Pennsylvania (1853), bound together with a Dutch version of The Long Lost Friend, is Dr. Helfenstein’s Hausschatz der Sympathie. Oder Enthiillte Zauberkrafte und Geheimnisse der Natur. This has never been translated.

James D. Beissel, using his distant forefather W. W. Beissel’s books and manuscripts, compiled in 1998 a book called Powwow Power: A true story of a powwow relative, including translated versions of some very old magical manuscripts, like the two different versions of the Letter from Heaven, which the original author considered the most important part of this entire booklet. It is for warding off, with the help of the Holy Ones, any conduct against the man carrying this letter with him. And like Hohman's book, this work claims to be itself an amulet of protection from harm for its possessor. We find on a preliminary page in Hohman's book:

Whoever carries this book with him, is safe from all his enemies, visible or invisible; and whoever has this book with him cannot die without the holy corpse of Jesus Christ, nor drown in any water, nor burn up in any fire, nor can any unjust sentence be passed upon him.

So help me

This is not unlike the old Jewish custom of carrying a small version of the Sefer Raziel on the person as amulet, or laying it under the pillow at night.

Some Jews believe that even if one does not understand the words of this book or even understand Hebrew, one should have a copy of the the book for spiritual protection, spiritual guidance in one’s life, or as a sign that one is looking for spiritual and divine inspiration in one's life.

Keeping it in one’s house is believed to bring a special Divine blessing and especially for an easy birth for pregnant women at the time of giving birth, placing it under the pillow is accepted as a traditional segula or charm.

So there exist unique, small, wallet amulets from this renowned Jewish astrology book that people may keep a copy in their pocket, wallet or purse, and sleep with it under their pillow.

I know of a privately owned photocopied and handsomely bound version of The Sixth and Seventh Book of Moses, measuring about 7x5 centimetres. Of course, totally unreadable. The contents of this grimoire seem to have projected their (unknown) powers to the booklet itself.

Sometimes The Seventh Book of Moses gets confused with, but was sometimes actually appended by The Red Dragon. Originally in Latin, and sub-equently in French and German, though these latter two versions are by comparison very different.

Le Veritable Dragon Rouge/Der Wahrhaftig Feurige Drache (The Red Dragon, or better: The True Red/Fiery Dragon). It is a later, much expanded version of the Grand Grimoire. In its foreword is stated that it was compiled after the recovery of a French manuscript written in 1522.

It includes an unbelievably intricate and potent working, especially for those already acquainted with (the so many different versions of) The Key of Solomon. It is also different from the one in the Grand Grimoire, but very dose and obviously related. In the Sanctum Regnum it describes how to call forth the greater and lower'Ghosts of Hell’, the Goetic Spirits, how to make diem appear, and how to make pacts with them, as well as some handy'winks’ for the practitioner. Oh, and it is not, as some would have it, a 126 page joke. It is a true grimoire.

In some treatises on the alchemical art I've found that this rising Red Dragon is omnipotent, and otherwise: eagerly opening the gates of Abzu, expanding into Babaion.

In an early Christian context the Dragon and the Snake of the Goddess stood for conquered Heathendom, which is most often its denomination in the Bible. Later, it is given the character of evil, and still later is personified as the Evil One, or the Devil; and I know of another Fiery Dragon ascending in the Bible (check that Apocalypse). But they could of course be the same one...

The reason some people think the book is a sham could well be because this book ends with one of the best master-stroke disclaimers I have ever laid eyes upon:

Who then after finishing this magic exercise does not see totally clearly that he has been fable-like dumb, he then comforts himself further on with the easening conscience, that iron Providence itself already at his crib confined him to dumbness forever, and make himself also no further effort, to want to unravel for himself the proceedings.

My translation - it has not been fully translated from the German version before to my knowledge. Original 17^th century copies cost a rib.

Apart from the calling forth of familiar spirits, to do the magicians bidding, to find treasure, or to converse a bit, this Taufer book additionally includes an odd 1686 version of the Shemhatnphorash, the Invocation of the Nine Choirs, Citation of the Seven Great Princes, The Book of Kabalistic Pacts, The True Kabalistic Magic Circle, the Tabellce Rabellince, the Sepher Schimmusch Tehillifn(sic), and some others on talismans and finding treasure.

♦ WORKING THE SECRETS ♦

• 4 <*he Taufer books are inspiring collections of magical spirit-workings which are seamlessly paired and bound with simple’ sympathetic magic, scxisehold charms and cures. This is what the people really wanted; their isdv efforts intertwined with the higher and lower.

Here are just some of the countless sympathetische, magische geheirn-mse: just handy, normal recipes:

• 1. From a Norwegian Sortebok:

_K Though sorte might seem close to the French sortilege -lot, fate

• - here it means black.)

.well gets patient the but ,dies animal the .eat to meat the dog a give then and first current the with water running into thrown is pot the .pot the in urine more no is there until time each urine person's sick the in times three pork of piece a Boil

Reverse reading of formulas and injunctions to keep silent about opera-tjccis accord with international belief conferring extra potency upon acts performed backwards and in secrecy.

ks roots are obviously deeply embedded in medieval magic, from rural God-fearing farmers to the more notorious high-end magicians of those zrr^es. such as Agrippa and pseudo-Albertus.

Tvpical of these Books is that the charms and recipes given, employ both ruorul and magical means, an approach comprehensively systematized in Acnppa’s De Occulta Philosophia.

• 2. The following is from Samland, in a German collection:

To protect livestock against witches, who are known to roam around and steal animals for their Wild Hunt - during the Twelve Days from Christmas to Epiphany, the smart farmer writes the following secret formula on a board, takes a hammer and nails it above the entrance of the stables, right before Christmas Eve.

C * S * S * M * R * M * S d?T ’ET S d? C “E R ►]? S >£ R d? C S d?

T*T*S>FM*R*M

•ES*Sd?C*

Additionally say the 8^th Commandment, Jeremiah 18:7-8 and Wisdom of Salomon 3:1-3.

Now, a confused witch would never be able to cross the threshold, and rock the stable. Shed be grounded, figuring out what it means. It would probably take some witches all night. But if she hasn’t figured out before midnight, it’ll be the 25*, Christmas, and she’s lost again.

A bit of an odd one, but there might be more to it than seems. And some might want to find out what it means. Or how it works. But you’re not a witch, are you?

The next one is to circle the square. From the Galdrabok:

To make a hulins-hjalmur (an obscuring helm or cover, to make the wearer invisible):

Get a completely black dog that has not one white hair. Kill it and take out its heart. Take a piece of spruce wood and split it at the end and stick the heart in the split. Bury this in the earth where a field and an uncultivated land meet. Let it lie there for the nine nights before St. John’s Day (the Summer-solstice). There will have been created a stone in that place. Carry it with you.

Somewhat workable, or simply strange, or utter nonsense?

No time for quacks. Now a slightly more elaborate one; here’s a blessing, charm or ban against incubi, or succubi, to be spoken for the’ridden’ person. It is quite long, in three parts. I love this one. It comes from a handwritten collection of charms, of which parts appear in Das Romanus-Biichlein.

It was almost impossible to translate certain parts, because some words are equivocal and have an ambiguous or double meaning (for instance vergehen, which verbally means passing, but as noun it is also a crime). So I thought I’d be kind and also give the German original, for those that are able to read it, or wish to compare.

This charm is full of metaphysical connotations, and in which Maria shows herself in quite an extraordinary light. Though seemingly all about threesomes and the holy trinity, it seems to me, she’s definitely a fourth one involved here, and even the Mistress of the proceedings. I leave it to you to decide.

♦ MITTEL GEGEN VERHEXUNG ♦ (aus einem Romanus-Biichlein.)

So ein Mensch verhext sey, wie im zu helfen, und ein Inkubus zu bannen, daB er stille sein muB.

Dieser Segen soli bei abnehmenden Monde, vor Aufgang der Sonne ges-prochen werden. Mann sucht sich im Walde oder sonst im Freien, einen jungen, im Blattern stehenden gesunden Eichbaum. Alsdann wird die Ver-hexte unter den Baum so gebracht, daB das Gesicht zum Sonnen Aufgang gerichtet ist und der Riicken an die Ostseite des Baumes gelehnt ist, und dann sprich langsam also:

Da ging unsere liebe Maria auf einen sehr hohen Berg, sie sah hinab in ein sehr finsteres Thai, und sah ihr liebes Kind mitten unter den Juden stehen, und unsere liebe Frau sprach:

Es ritte wer da wolle, und wolle wenn er reite, so soil er reiten wie ein Bock, und stehen wie ein Stock, und zahlen alle die Stein’, die auf Erde seyn, und alle Sterne, so am Himmel stehen, so geb ich ihm Urlaub, und vergehen,

Ich gebiete ihm alle Geist, daB es alle Hexen ihre Meister weiB!

Wohl 33 Engel bei einander saBen, mit Maria kommen sie pflegen, mit einen dutch das Mitten, da sprach die Liebe heiligen Segen: Hat dich iiberritten ein Mann, so segne dich Gott und der heilige Cyprian, hat dich uberschritten ein Weib, so segne dich Marias Leib, hat dich bemiiht ein Knecht, so segne dich Gott und das Himmelrecht, hat dich gebiihret eine Magd oder Dim, so segne dich Gott und das Him-melsgestirn, der Himmel sei ob dir, das Erdreich unter dir, du bist in der Mitten, sey gesegnet vor das Verritten,

♦ A MEANS AGAINST INCUBI ♦ (from a Romanus booklet.)

When a person is bewitched, how to help that one, and to ban an Incubus, so that it be still.

This charm should be spoken during waning Moon, before Sunrise. Search in the forest or otherwise in the free, for a young healthy oak tree in ieating. Then the bewitched person is to be brought under the tree, facing towards the Sunrise and the back leaned against the east side of the tree, and then speak slowly thus:

Our dear Maria went up a very high mountain, she looked down into a very dark valley, and saw her dear child standing in the middle amongst the Jews, and our beloved Mother spoke:

Let one ride who wants, and want when one rides,

*o should one ride like a goat, and stay like a stake, and count all the stones, that are on earth, and all the stars, to appear in the sky, sf so I give one leave, and let it pass,

1 invite one to use all one’s spirit, so that all hexes know who is their master!

Well being 33 Angels together, with Maria coming to give relief, nxether as one through the middle, there spoke Love's holy benediction: has a man ridden on you, then God and the holy Cyprian bless you, nas a woman squatted over you, then Marias body blesses you, nas a farmhand bothered you, then God and heavens judgement bless you, nas a maiden or a damsel troubled you, then God and heavens constellation Sess you, the heaven be above you, the soil under you, you are in the middle, Se blessed against being ridden,

eine falsche Zunge hat dich gestochen, drei heilige Zungen haben fur dich gesprochen,

die erste ist Gott der Vater, die andere ist Gott der Sohn, die dritte ist Gott der heiligen Geist,

die geben dir dein Blut und Fleisch,

Fleisch und Blut ist an dich gebohren, an dich gewachsen, sey an dir ver-loren,

Fried und Muth ist nun dirgegeben, stark wie Gewebe, erlang reinen Segen, weil da stehen standig drei Rosen fest, auf Gottes feueriges rotes Herz, die erste ist giitig, die zweite ist machtig, die dritte ist sein gottlicher Will, ihr Hex miifit hiermit darunter stehen, und halten still, und so lange ich will, dieweil ihm meine fleischliche Zunge keinen kurzen Urlaub gibt, und bis die heilige Gottes Mutter einen anderen Sohn gebaren wird.

Dies gebiete ich dir, bei der heiligen Jungfrau, bei Ihrer Kraft und Pracht, und bei aller Gottes Heiligen, und bei aller Gottes Macht, bei aller Engelschaare, da erschaffen Himmel und Erde zu zweit, im Namen Gottes des Vaters, des Sohnes und des heiligen Geistes. Amen.

a false tongue has stung you, three holy tongues have spoken for you, the first is God the Father, the other one is God the Son, the third is God the holy Spirit, they give you your blood and flesh, flesh and blood is born to you, was grown to you, be lost to you, peace and courage are now given to you, strong like a weave, attain pure blessing, because constantly three roses are standing, on God’s fiery red heart, the first is good-natured, the second is powerful, the third it his divine will, vour hex must thereby stand below, and hold still, and for as long as I want, as long as my fleshly tongue does not give him any short leave, and until the holy Mother of God bears another son.

This I bid you, by the holy Virgin, by her power and lustre, and by all Gods holy ones, and by all God’s power, bv all legions of Angels, so the skies and soil create together, in the name of God the Father, the Son and the holy Ghost. Amen.

-r-r-r

It is concerned with sympathetic magic. Apart from some magical evocations of god, ghost, spirit, angel, demon or prince, the recipes offer a working man's magic. These recipes are filled with rural herbal magic, getting up at five in the morning, dead animals, spirit-projections, and the like.

The sympathetic magic being used in the latter is not only between man, dog and a good chunk of flesh, but also aligned to the Moon phases, and mirroring the feats of deities and saints.

To me it relates to the unity of all realities, all the prolific worlds between man and nature and the all pervading source. It is man who by using sympathetic magic reunites the whole.

It is the doertine of sympathy in low magic that strikes me the most, combined with the described procedures, which are to be worked to the max to get the results wanted. This could just be analogue to certain invocations, very often of Maria or the Holy Trinity (most of these workings truly stem from the late middle ages), ensnared with a thorough dedication to the greater good. Not forgetting that an unshakable trust, or cockiness is essential for success.

I’ll now give a description of a spirit-working that I did about ten years ago in Switzerland. I went up into the woods and tried to find a good spot by concentrating on not feeling any other presence via pathways of people or animals (shit) too near. It was a clear, cold, starry night, just before full Moon, and I found a shallow but snug spot. Looking at the valley and the villages below I was wondering whether spirits not only travel, but go on holiday too. Nevertheless I sincerely greeted, got out the one-eyed head, offered it by burying it, and rededicated myself. I said my name, focused on my bidding, spoke the appropriate words and waited listening to the greater breath. I was totally absorbed, before being able to make out the faintest presence. Though becoming closer and 'louder', it became more and more clear and tangible. I had totally forgotten what I was here for, and why it was, before I realized the goal had already been set; and I only had to point it out, to have the wanted working.

After cordially and heartily bidding farewell, I gathered my selves and walked joyously back to get some food only dimly realizing that my work would be done now, or in fact was already done.

Needless to say, calling spirits does not have to go like this. As long as the mention is good, it is all good. It doesn't matter whatever you stutter or btabber, or say the wrong names at the wrong points. Those up above have apparently over the centuries developed enough patience with us, and gained a thorough sense of humor. The same goes when going a bit’higher’.

Sometimes I work in a friend's temple, but one does not need a temple jx magic; certainly it is convenient. It can also be said that it is better to have your temple and altar within your head. The paraphernalia does help, functioning to focus and to call the spirits forth and back again. If you do not save the suitable physical seal visualise it, or the suitable weapon, use your iuger. or the well fed white dove. Many of the magical secrets in these magic z”>ks include holy names, unusual procedures and peculiar herbs, and some make use of special tools, out of the ordinary clothing, intricate sigils and templates, but we have to remember that they are essentially: actions, work-x*gs. Potent, for those who are able to understand.

♦ PASSING ON THE WORD

s it always has been, from mother to son, from father to daughter, and ■>'J-from magician to magician. Many of these workings and recipes have been collected by others too, by painstakingly copying them by hand from die older manuscripts. However, much was not published or made available ccrside of closed circles.

Some examples of translated books or edited and interpreted versions are Agrippa's books, Paracelsus’ Archidoxes of Magic, Pietro d’Abano's riertameron, Honorius’ Liber Juratus (The Sworn Book of Honorius. Don't confuse this with The Grimoire of Pope Honorius, which is a fraudulent, rela-tzvelv modern contraption), Apollonius’ Golden Flowers, The Secret Grimoire

of Turiel (A longer version of this text can be found in Frederick Hockley’s A Complete Book of Magic Science), Picatrix, the Lemegeton, one of the many versions of The Key of Solomon (MacGregor Mathers omitted some of the Armadel material, calling it improper), Abramelin’s Book (The original was evidently in German. Dehn’s edition is far more complete than Mathers', with more elaborate operations, the complete seals, and all the recipes), the Ars Goetia (Howling!), and of course the Grimorium Verum (Les Veritable; Clavicule; de Salomon), and rhe recently reprinted, mind-blowing Icelandic Galdrabok. But perhaps more intriguing still are the books which remain untranslated and unpublished (in English) thus far.

How about this one: Jezira. Yes, you’ve read it right, but no, its contents are actual Spirit workings, with many mystical writings and sympathetic magic workings (some of which have been translated), very unlike the versions of the Sefer Yetzirah. Published anonymously in a 700 page format it holds a huge collection of magical and qabalistic writings. It includes the infamous Dr. Johanni; Fausti Manual Hbllen-zwang (Dr. Faust’s ’Handy’ Hell-bidding, allegedly early 15^th century), and of course bits of Agrippa, a few different Solomonic parts, and on and on.

Enchiridion de Sa. Saintete le Pape Leon III (Handbook of His Holiness the Pope Leon). This one starts with the wonderful Evangile de Jean (the Gospel of Jean), which, according to tradition, Charlemagne was familiar with and had a noteworthy part in, having Pope Leon III translate, interpret and edit it for him. Then follows the old introduction A Letter to the Wise Cabalistes (note the final e, implicating the feminine), followed by invocations, citations and charms.

Another French magic book, which purports to teach, the science of magical talismans and rings, including the arts of necromancy and of Cabalah, is La Poule Noire (The Black Hen, published as The Black Pullet). It comes together with Le Veritable Dragon Noir (The True Black Dragon. I noticed that its title has

“■ one occasion been translated as The Book of the Black Serpent). Within its panes we find: Faustian evocations (with seals) of Demons, Spirits and the Set-u Kings; Conjurations of spirits and Exorcisms; La Main de Gloire (The of Glory ritual); Le Papillon Vert (The Green Butterfly); Charms & Secrets Merveilleux (The latter being house-hold charms & recipes such as at ward off unwanted people, or how to make them sick, including the use of Ae biack hen by steaming it to death in incense fumes!)

From Darcy Kuntz, the editor of the latest American version:

This edition of the Black Pullet must not be confused with earlier collections of reveries and errors which so many have sought to accredit by attributing to them supernatural effects. The principles presented here are based on the doctrines held by both ancient and modern seekers. Only authorities recognized for their insightful devotion to the Divine have been quoted.

These seekers, full of respect for the Divine, have always been friends to humanity, endeavoring to bring us back to the ways of virtue by showing us the true nature of vice. Material for this work has only been taken from the most pure sources, and has been organized solely to reveal truth. The compilers of this work wish to help those who seek to discover the secrets of Nature and who wish to explore the Truth that is cloaked in darkness as well as light. This work is offered to those souls, beloved by the Divine, who seek to become more than human.

Now for a well-known grimoire: Albertus Magnus Egyptische Geheimnisse -AJfeenus Magnus' Egyptian Secrets). Again pseudo-writing, claiming to be the ij**¹ century when this Great Albert lived, nonetheless containing ■ev astounding recipes and the like. It is beyond doubt some of his writ-ncs form part of it. A truly amazing man, especially for his age, he wrote, aof before Theophrastus Bombastus, about herbs, on the healing capacities of stones, their sympathies and even on the magnetic agencies involved

therein. It intrigues me that his body is said to be one of the incorruptibles, when people have for hundreds of years been stealing and carrying small chunks of his bones, from chapel to church to basilica - dispersing these all over Europe - long before Rome reluctantly saw fit, in 1931, to declare him a bonafide saint.

Not unlike the previous, there exist in French Le Grand Albert and Le Petit Albert (The Great Albert & The Short Albert, not: Small or Little. It was just a shorter treatise than the one bearing the name of Magnus). Here too, the shorter Latin and augmented French versions are totally different.

The French version of The Short Albert was taken from a Latin book by 'Shiningly or Enlightened-Appearing Albert’ and other writers: Les Secrets Merveilleux de la Magie Naturelle du Petit Albert. Tires de 1'ouvrage Latin intitule - Alberti Parvi Lucci, Libellus de mirabilibus naturae Arcanis - Et d’autres ecrivains philosophes, enrichis de figures mysterieuses, d’astrologie, physionomie, &c., &c. Nouvelle edition corrigee et augmentee. A Lyon, Chez les Headers de Beringos, Fraters a 1’Ensigne d’Agrippa. 1668. (The Wonderful Secrets of Natural Magic of Short Albert. Drawn from the Latin book entitled - Shiningly Appearing Albert, Book of the miraculous Secrets of nature — together with other writer-philosophers, enriched with mysterious figures, astrology, physiognomy, and so on. Newly corrected and expanded edition, (printed) In Lyon, at the heirs of Beringos, Brothers in the Doctrines of Agrippa. This reprint is from 1791.)

This grimoire contains amongst other processes rhe notorious Hand of Glory ritual, not included in all editions. The Hand of Glory is a candle made of the fat from an executed criminal who died on the gallows. The candle is then lighted and placed upon the left hand of the hanged person (as in a candlestick). The Hand of Glory renders motionless all persons to whom it is presented. The candle is said to give light only to the holder and has the power to unlock any door it comes across.

Albertus Magnus Egyptische Geheimnisse also adds the otherwise separately published (by Pompejus, 1788, and Bartels, 1908) Das Romanus Bilchlein

(.The Small Book of Romanus, actually referring to the Roma — a very large ■ad widespread family of (E)gypsies.

Manifold differing manuscript versions of this book exist in European li-hanes. though I do not think even one of them has been published recently aa English. Parts resurfaced in Jezira, and furthermore, this book was one M rise main sources of Hohmans The Long Lost Friend. (A Romanus book appeared in print only 13 years before Hohman went to the States.) It conobs all kinds of magical spells and recipes for personal health and charms, far nsrance how to ward off any personal hurt or danger by armed others. Sane understandably effective recipes, some nowadays known to be outright fawrrous.

Another collection by a member of the clergy, Bishop Anton Christian Svartebogen (Blockbook). A Norwegian collection, probably assembled * are as at the end of the 19^th century, and published in 1890. This man ■arced out with this smaller book, but he obviously became obsessed and farr ten years, in 1902, published the next:

Hexetormularer og magiske Opskrifter (Hexformulas and Magical Scriptures). k 3 ; massive hoard, 761 pages amassing over 1700 formulas. After being transmitted since times unknown, most were written down between pu. and 1850. Norwegian Black Books exist in some 150 to 200 variants, the nefasr dating to 1480. However, some of the formulas in these Nordic Black Backs replicate the Egyptian magical papyri.

This collection, as so many of all the other books that were commonly faawr, as Svartabok, contains, apart from the famous seals, numerous old dfarms and spells, however when written down most of these were already in ti< fince with biblical figures and saints. Perhaps because this particular Ivheran Bishop had also been a church historian, a member of the Council M Division and the Minister of Education and Church Affairs. The Bfax Books were also known as the Cyprianus.

This particular one has on its handwritten title-page:

Et Uetleg af Sijphrianus og den Godiske Cabal samt Nacromantsien og Deonomonologier; og Indeholder Mathimatiske Kijmie. (The Exposition of Cyprianus and the Gothic Kabala as well as Necromantics and Deonomonologies;

and including Mathematic Cherny.)

According to an early 19* century history, a Svartebok is:

...the horrifying, nefarious tome known by everyone in the country as Cyprianus, whereby one can conjure up and put down the Devil and get him to do just as one commands, and whose pages furthermore teach one how to: recover lost goods, cure all kinds of disease, obliterate curses, attract the opposite sex, find buried treasure, make a thief return stolen goods and take revenge upon him by striking out his eye or tooth, have a chat with the dearly departed or consult them for advice, and more.

The whole range is here: from blissful to baneful. All matters indispensable to a users’ daily life.

There have existed hundreds of Black Books in Scandinavia, the majority probably stemming from Germany. Typically they were manuscript compilations, written down around the second half of the 1700s and the first half of the 1800s. Museums, archives and libraries own some, private collectors have others, and new ones still occasionally come to light, such as the two Black Books that just recently surfaced near the village of Elverum. Mary Rustad found them in the musty attic of the farm left to her by her great-grandfather in 1879 when he emigrated to America. Interestingly, Cyprian's Black Books travelled to America with Scandinavian immigrants, and much of their material merged with other magic works such as The Sixth and Seventh Book of Moses to be incorporated into the ancestral traditions of Charming and Braucherei of the Hexmeisters.

This previous book is distinct from and has different spells, charms and MQDtanons than, for example, the Antigo Livro de Sao Cipriano (Antique Ixt 4 Saint Cyprian), or O Tradicional Livro Negro de Sao Cipriano (The huassusnal Black Book of Saint Cyprian), which still are - among innumer-Ak ocher variations - a far and wide success in Spanish and Portuguese y ■ ng countries, especially in Middle and South America. Travelling high aad or. San Cipriano is nowadays considered a patron saint of Peruvian sha-

Ptsrportedly, Escrito en antiguos pergaminos Hebreos, entregados por los es-prm al monje Aleman Jonas Sufurino (Written on antique Hebrew parch-■cm delivered by the spirits to the German monk Jonas Sufurino). The baas presents an amusing mix of Christian prayers, black magic, love-spells at other things. Its endearing naivety makes a refreshing change from some “£ ttee top heavy and often equally ridiculous stuff that has been written by i aaarr serious occultists.

Zier Goldene Habermann (The Golden Habermann). A God-fearing right-obbs person must he have been, this Habermann, nevertheless engaging in Ar toost wondrous summonings, evocations, and even an invocation.

i Her Goldene Brunn (The Golden Well, Spring or Fountain). Though the title ■fr imply it, this book is not that alchemical: it consists of conjurations of ^■ks and spirits, and how to get the apparitions to work for the magician ward a hidden treasure.

£

Hermann Frischbier: Hexenspruch und Zauberbann (Witches' spell and Mqp; tun). A wealth of spells and recipes for human, animal, around Ar house and around festive days. And of course, SATOR AREPO and ItKTORAUTNO pop up again.

Johannes Staricius: Geheimnisvoller Helden-Schatz, oder der vollstan-dige Egyptische magische Schild (Mysterious Heroes Treasure, or the complete Egyptian magical shield). A more than 400 page long parade of spells and weird but inspiring evocations and magical operations.

And here is another that is still available, a massive collection encompassing so much material on magic, invocations, exorcisms, charms, demons, ghosts, hexen and so on, that it is scarcely believable. Not that recently collected (1821-1826), but continuously reprinted it is Georg Conrad Horst’s seven volume Zauber Bibliothek. Again, sadly it has never been translated into English.

The spirit list, or should I say lists, are huge. Despite all these dialects and translations giving seemingly differing Names, I’ve disccovered that it is definitely made of groups; and there seem to be inter-relations, communicating and pulling strings amongst each other. It is certainly not akin to, let's say, the average neatly layered factory management structures; to me it still comes across as... a mess. Or Mass?

Herpentils Schwarze Magie. Des hochwiirdigen Herpentils, der Gesellschaft Jesu Priester, kurzer BegrifF der iibernatiirlichen schwarzen Magie, enthaltend Beschworungen und Namen der machtigen Geister und deren Siegein, oder das Buch der starksten Geister, eroffnend die grofien Heimlichkeiten alter Heimlichkeiten, angeblich J. A. Herpentil, 1505. (Right, here we go: Herpentils Black Magic. The high-worthy Herpentils - Priest of the Company of Jesus - brief Understanding of the supernatural black Magic, containing Conjurations and Names of the powerful Ghosts and their Seals, and the Book of the strongest Ghosts, opening the great Secrecy of al Secrecies, a.k.a. J. A. Herpentil, 1505.) Need I say more? A classic.

Die Englische Goldgrube (The English Goldmine). Yes, odd. Seemingly having been compiled and translated from old English manuscripts, but I sadly

not know of early English publications or versions of these. It could well *e another case of obscuring the original mine, looking at the writing and analogy between aforementioned collections, these relics seem to stem taorr. southern Germany or Austria. Or even earlier and further south, from Switzerland or medieval Italy. How old they in fact are is unknown to me.

Most of these are strange recipes, beautiful sympathetic magic and how to procedures. There exist as many as four parts (Books), of about 250 pages ca.T Next come Die Silbergrube (The Silvermine), in two parts and followed 3“ another two of Die Goldgrube Nachtrdge (Supplement), altogether com-pcstng over t8oo pages. It is in octavo but I’ll be busy with those for a while...

There are many more.

Though there is a growing interest, access to the originals is limited to the lune, or devoted few. The first problem seems to be that the larger public ext not read all the European languages, let alone the older versions. This * a problem for publishers; translating is time consuming, and therefore ex-amsrve. The second steeple is getting to the manuscripts and to the libraries iernselves, even centuries later travelling still seems to be a hazard.

With the growing interest and demand for the originals, it is time for re interested reader to gain access to these grimoires in order to use them. The times of solemn secrecy are long gone. Now it is time to get the Black Bevies out.

t the meantime I will be busy, painstakingly translating for you, from re old High and Low German — handwritten or typeset in Fraktur -Scandinavian, French and Latin, all the exciting and inspiring writings that I can find. Who knows, maybe in the future you’ll be able to pick one up. I want them to be thoroughly useful; hard-wearing, sturdy stuff, and to look Seanriful please - leather would still seem best, or perhaps kevlar — instead ar those shoddy short-lived stapled panic-print paperbacks.

If it all comes to pass, the collection will also be subtitled Taufer Books, after ms old root word for Magic Working. Taufer has an etymology connecting it

with the Scandinavian Taufr - sorcery, charms — and taufra - to enchant; the Dutch tover and the German zauber (the pronunciation of the T becoming a tZ, and the usual changing of the F into V and then B, and sometimes even further into P). The magical meaning is also connected via the German verb taufen - in the English language the Latin baptize has become the common version - which has the same meaning as the old Gothic daupian, the Anglo diepan. It is the root in todays dipping, and is still with us in doping and dope.

♦ THE DEEP ♦

CjVt is often via odd or deceptively simple things, that we can find real un-SAJ derstanding. As the Talmudic phrase says:

Don’t think of anything as senseless, when it could still make sense some time.

The Taufer books are like this. Here I have given you some of my reality. I like passing it on, and at heart that is what this is all about.

• * BIBLIOGRAPHY ♦

Aaxnnous, The Black Pullet.

Dt H. Atkinson-Scarter, Sympathiemagie und Zaubermedizin. Aus der Reihe Die magischen Handbiicher, Verlag Richard Schikowski, Berlin, i960.

Harris Bachtold-Staubli & Eduard Hoffmann-Krayer, Handworterbuch des Deutschen Aberglaubens, in 10 Bde. Walter de Gruyter, Berlin, 1927 bis 1942.10 Vols., in slipcase, 8640 pp,, Verlag Walter de Gruyter, Berlin/New York, 1987/2000 (reprint).

• D. Beissel, Powwow Power; A true story of a powwow relative. Crystal Educational Counselors, Pennsylvania, 1998.

Dtemch Bergman (ed. & intro.), A Complete Book of Magic Science, Containing the method of constraining and exorcising spirits to appearance, the consecration of Magic Circles, and The form of a Bond of Spirits. Transcribed from an Ancient Manuscript Grimoire by Frederick Hockley. Limited to 450 hand-numbered copies, The Teitan Press, York Beach, 2008.

Owen Davies, Grimoires, A History of Magic Books.

Gexv Dehn, Buch Abramelin, Das sind die egyptischen grofen Offenbarun-gen oder des Abraham von Worms Buch der wahren Praktik in der uralten gottlichen Magie und in erstaunlichen Dingen, wie sie durch die heilige Kabbala und durch Elohym mitgeteilt wurden, (erstmals synoptisch rekonstruiert). Osnabriick, 1984. [Zweite vollstandig kritisch iiberarbeitete Auflage: Neue Erde, Saarbriicken, 1995.]

^icoias Hays, The Book of Abramelin.

Sosxxime Diakite (transl.), The Treasure of the Old Man of the Pyramids, The True Science of Talismans, plus The Black Screech Owl. Trident books, Seattle, 2002, limited edition of 300 numbered copies.

Snreben Flowers (transl. & ed.), The Galdrabok: An Icelandic Grimoire. Samuel Weiser, 1989.

Stephen Flowers (transl. & ed.), The Galdrabok: An Icelandic Book of Magic, Second Revised Edition, limited edition of 120 signed, hand-numbered copies. Runa-Raven Press, 2005.

Hermann Frischbier, Hexenspruch und Zauberbann, Geschichte des Aber-glaubens, 1870, Reprint-Verlag-Leipzig, 2002.

M. Gaster (transl.), The Sword of Moses, An ancient Book of Magic, from an unique manuscript. 1896. Samuel Weisser Inc, New York, 1970 (reprint).

Heinrich von Gerstenbergk, Die Wunder der Sympathie und des Magnet-ismus oder die enthiillten Zauberkrafte und Geheimnisse der Natur. Edition Geheimes Wissen, Graz-Liebenau, 2009 (reprint).

Andreas Glorez, Eroffnetes Wunderbuch.

Andreas Glorez with Valentin Weigels, Das Himmlische Manna, oder die unnaussprechlichen Krafte des kostlichen Wundersteins der Natur. Regensburg und Stadtamhof, 1700. Edition Ambra, Aurum-Verlag, Freiburg im Breisgau, 1979 (reprint).

Hermann Gollancz (ed. & transl.) (Stephen Skinner foreword), Sepher Maphteah Shelomoh (Book of the Key of Solomon). Limited to 358 hand-numbered copies, The Teitan Press, York Beach, 2008.

Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke Paracelsus, Essential Readings.

Gosta Hedegard (ed. & transl.), Liber luratus Honorii. Sodertorn University, Almovist & Wiksell, Stockholm, 2002.

Pope Honorius, Kim Ch’ien (transl.), The Grimoire of Pope Honorius III^rd [Yes, the fraud, but still recommended. This edition also includes an exhaustive bibliographic prolegomenon by Mr. John Davis. Appended to the work is Mr. Matthew Sullivan (transl.): Coniurationes Demonum.[Trident Books, Seattle, first edition thus limited to 1,000 numbered copies, 1999.

Ci. G Horst, Damonomagie, oder Geschichte des Glaubens an Zauberei und damonische Wunder, 2 Bande. Bei den Gebriidern Wilmans, Frankfurt am Main, 1818.

Vjn der alten und neuen Magie. Ursprung, Idee, Umfang und Geschichte. Kupferberg, Mainz, 1820.

Zauber-Bibliothek, oder von Zauberei, Theurgie und Mantik, Zauber-em, Hexen und Hexenprocessen, Danwnen, Gespenstern und Geister-erscheinungen. Kupferberg, Mainz, 1821-1826. Mit einer Einfiihrung von Herbert Kempf und mit einem zusatzlichen Registerband, 7 Bande und 2545 Seiten. Edition Ambra, Aurum Verlag, Freiburg im Breisgau, 2000.

Jfrr Huys (transl. & ed.), The Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy. Trident Books, Seattle, (Leather) edition of 500 copies, 2003.

W. Kriebel, Powwowing among the Pennsylvania Dutch; A Traditional Medical Practice in the Modern World. Pennsylvania State University Press, 2007.

SI MacGregor-Mathers, The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abra-Melin the Mage, as delivered by Abraham the Jew unto his Son Lamech - A Gri-moire of the Fifteenth Century. Watkins, London, 1898. Many reprints. .Not recommended).

' X A- .Molino (ed.), Antigo Livro de Sdo Cipriano, O Gigante e Verdadeiro Capa de Afo. 1945. Editora Espiritualista, Rio de Janeiro, 1973. Livro-postal Editora, 2009 (many reprints).

i H. Peterson (ed. & transl.), Grimorium Verum, A Handbook of Black Magic. With 7 Appendixes and 2 Indexes.

The Lesser Key of Solomon: Lemegeton Clavicula Salomonis.

The Sixth and Seventh Books of Moses.

Pseudo-Magriti, Picatrix, Goal of the Wise. (Only the first two Parts), Ouroboros Press, Seattle, 2000. Picatrix, Volume One. Again, a new reprint, limited hand-numbered edition of 1000 copies, to coincide with Volume Two, Ouroboros Press, 2002. Picatrix, Volume Two (containing parts 3 and 4), Ouroboros Press, 2002.

Gretchen Rudy (transl.), Antonio Venetiana del Rabina (ed.), Arthur Edward Waite (Intro.), The Grand Grimoire. Limited to 500 hand-numbered copies, co-published by Trident Books &- Ars Obscura, Seattle, 1996.

Mary S. Rustad (transl. & ed.), The Black Books of Elverum. Galde Press, 1999.

Johann Scheible, Handschriftliche Schatze aus Kloster-Bibliotheken. Scheible-Verlag, Koln am Rhein, 1743.

Henry Cornelius Agrippa, Stephen Skinner (ed. &■ intro.) (Robert Turner transl.). Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy. Ibis Press, an imprint of Nicolas Hays, Berwick, 2005.

Donald Tyson (ed.) (James Freake transl.), Three Books of Occult Philosophy.

Stephen Skinner & David Rankine, A Collection of Magical Secrets & A Treatise of Mixed Cabalah.

Adolf Spamer, Romanusbiichlein. Historisch-philologischer Kommentar zu einem Deutschen Zauberbuch. Akademie-Verlag, Berlin, 1958.

Johannes Staricius, Geheimnisvoller Heldenschatz oder der vollstandige Egyptische magische Schild. Koln und Weimar, 1750. Edition Ambra, Aurum-Verlag, Freiburg im Breisgau, 1978 (reprint).

Kathleen Stokker, Remedies and Rituals. Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2007.

Andreas Tenzelius, Medizinisch-philosophisch und Sympathetische Schriften; Medicina diastatica Oder in die Feme wiirkende Arzney-Kunst, dann in besonderen Geheimnissen magnetisch- und sympathetischer Curen

vieler Krankheiten. Wie auch darbei seine Scripta gemina de Amore et Odio. Johann Gottlieb Vierling, Leipzig und Hof, 1753. Edition Ambra, Aurum Verlag, Freiburg im Breisgau, 1978 (reprint). [This book also appeared in an English edition, in i653(?!), as: Medicina diastatica, or, Sympatheticall mumie; containing many mysterious and hidden secrets in philosophy and physick, by the construction, extraction, transplantation and application of microcosmical & spiritual mumie.]

Robert Turner (transl. 1657), Ars Notoria, The Notary Art of Solomon the King, with commentaries by Apollonius of Tyanaeus. [Supplemental material added to the volume includes Solomon and the Ars Notoria, a study in the work by Lynn Thorndike from the encyclopaedic History of Magic & Experimental Science. Also included is a valuable provisional listing of some of the manuscript versions of Ars Notoria, compiled by Adam McLean. Also, the original prefaces by Robert Turner from the 1657 edition. And the original appendix: An Astrological Catechism, wherein the Art ofJudicial Astrology is fully demonstrated by way of Question and Answer. Translated by Robert Turner out of Leolitius in 1655. [Trident Books, Seattle, first edition, 1987, second edition 1997.

Don Yoder, Discovering American Folklife; Studies in Ethnic, Religious, and Regional Culture.

Further, if visiting Amsterdam, the Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica has an awe-inspiring collection.

THE SPIRIT MAGICK OF ABRAMELIN AARON LEITCH

book of abramelin, also known as the Book of the Sacred j ■ Magic, is among the most famous and unique texts of Renaissance occultism. Much like the more common medieval grimores - such as the Key of Solomon, the Goetia, the Heptameron and others - it discusses the conjuration of infernal spirits for practical concerns like finding treasure, causing love and friendship, sowing discord, curing sickness, &c. Yet, Abramelin is unique in that it does not include detailed instructions on how to go about such conjurations. Instead, the primary focus of the book is upon establishing contact and bonding with one’s own Holy Guardian Angel. It is this Angel that instructs one in the necessary details for the conjuration and binding of the Princes of Hell and their many servitors:

But your angel will already have instructed you how to convoke them, and will have sufficiently impressed it on your heart. [...] This is wherefore he who wisheth to constrain them should be upon his guard, and follow out faithfully from point to point the instructions which his guardian angel will have given him, and that he impresseth them well upon his memory following them from point to point. [... JObserving then the doctrine that your angel will have given unto you, and persevering in placing all your trust in God, at length they will appear in the form commanded upon the terrace, upon the sand; when, according to the advice and doctrine received from your holy angel... you shall propound your demand, and you shall receive from them their oath.

Once the Abramelin aspirant has established contact with his Guardian Angel and learned how to bind the infernal spirits, the text goes on to provide a long list of demons to conjure as well as an entire book of Talismans to use in commanding them.

At first glance, this final portion of the Abramelin system seems incomplete. Very little is left obscure in the invocation of the Guardian Angel, while the end of the book seems to dump the spirit names and Talismans upon the reader with little beyond the promise of more instruction from the Angel. Because of this, many scholars (myself included, for a time) have jumped to the conclusion that the spirit magick of Abramelin was an afterthought for the author, or even a much later addition to the manuscript.

However, after a years long (and on-going) effort to understand Abramelin s system of magick, I no longer suspect this material was an afterthought or later inclusion. I have discovered a rather sophisticated system of spirit magick encoded into the existing text. It has simply been written in such a way as to obscure it from the curious, and from those who would attempt to use the Talismans without first making contact with the Guardian Angel.

There is plenty of material available that analyses Abramelin's system of gaining Knowledge of and Conversation with the Holy Guardian Angel. However, precious little has been written about the system of spirit magick one is supposed to utilize after completing the Rite. The purpose of this essay is to focus, at last, upon this long neglected aspect of Abramelin’s mag-ickal system.

♦ A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE BOOK OF ABRAMELIN ♦

I^^he author of the Book of Abramelin - one Abraham von Worms - claims -^cto have lived during the reign of Emperor Sigismond of Germany (1368-1437 ce), and to have compiled the manuscript toward the end of his life. S. L. Mathers, in his edition, dates the text to the end of the seventeenth or beginning of the eighteenth century. However, it must be remembered

that Mathers was working from a French recension of the manuscript discovered in the Bibliotheque de 1’Arsenal of Paris, and not from the original German version. Thus, it is at least possible that the dates given by Abraham in the older German text are nearly accurate.

The contents are divided into four books (or three in the French recension). The first is an autobiography of Abraham. He describes his years of wandering in search of the True and Sacred Wisdom, and his disappointments along the way. He learns several forms of magick, but finds them all lacking, and their practitioners to fall short of their claims. In the last moments before giving up his quest, Abraham meets an Egyptian adept named Abramelin, who agrees to teach Abraham the Sacred Magic.

The second book, in the German version, contains several chapters of spells that rely heavily on Psalmic magick. (Mathers removed this book from his publication.) Some of the same content can be found in the Sixth and Seventh Books of Moses, and the entire book is similar to such works as the Magical Uses of the Psalms or even John Hohmans later compilation The Long Lost Friend. They are examples of simple folk magick that utilize Biblical scripture - especially the Psalms - for talismanic inscriptions, incantations, &c. Abraham describes this as the blended Qabalah, perhaps referring to the blend of Biblical scripture and folk magick.

The final two books, in both French and German versions, are composed of the instructions for the Sacred Magick proper, which Abraham copied by hand from Abramelin’s original manuscript. The first part describes a heavily involved procedure of purification and invocation, culminating in the appearance of one’s Guardian Angel. The purifications take the standard grimoiric forms of seclusion, fasting, cleanliness, and a heavy dose of prayer. However, where most grimoires require anywhere from a few hours to a month of such purification, the German text insists on no less than a year and a half, divided into three sets of six months each. The French version abbreviates this to six months, divided into three sets of two months each.

Throughout the process, very little emphasis is placed upon ceremony. One must establish an Oratory, with an Altar, Oil Lamp, Censor and Holy

Oil. To begin with, only the daily prayers are necessary. At a later point a white linen Robe is required during the prayers, along with the lighting of the Lamp and Censor. There are no special sigils, exorcisms or incantations associated with any of these furnishings.

At the end of the period of purification, we find the Abramelin Rite itself, a seven day process divided into three parts. First is the Day of Consecration, where everything involved with the Rite is touched with the Holy Oil and blessed. Next are three days during which the aspirant establishes first contact with the Guardian Angel. This contact is facilitated by a small square plate of silver¹ or a seven-sided figure of silver or wax² that is placed upon the Altar.

The Angel is then in charge of the final three days of the Rite, called the Convocation of the Evil Spirits. During this period, a number of infernal spirits are conjured - beginning with the twelve Princes of Hell - to bind them to one’s will. These lower beings are commanded to deliver an Oath of obedience to the aspirant, as well as the use of spiritual servants for any number of practical tasks.

However, as I stated previously, Abramelin gives very little information in regard to the infernal spirits. A general overview of the evocational process is given (when to call each spirit and what to demand of them); some notes also are included on how to write the conjurations, how to treat and answer the spirits, fire, all of which is very common to exorcism manuals of the medieval and renaissance eras. The notes seem to indicate a fairly standard method of spirit evocation though without the usual sigils and magick circles we find in the Goetia or Key of Solomon.

The Abramelin exorcisms make use of the Oratory instead of a magick circle. The spirits are summoned to a Terrace outside the prayer room. It also instructs the aspirant to don the white linen Robe, a silk over-Robe (white, yellow or rose colored), a white silk Girdle, a Crown depicting various Names i In the French/Mathers version. Compare to The Magus Book n, Of the making of the Crystal and the form of preparation for a Vision.

2 In the German version. Compare to the wax Almadel of Solomon described in the Lemegeton, as well as to John Dee’s wax Seal of Truth described in his Eno-chian journals - both of which are intended to facilitate angelic visions.

of God, and bear a Wand made of almond wood. However, beyond these tools and regalia, the details of the evocation are left for the Angel to provide.

The final book is a collection of word-square Talismans, gathered into chapters based on what they are intended to accomplish. There are, for instance, chapters of Talismans for invisibility, curing sickness, discovering secrets, causing visions, finding treasure and much more. It is upon these mystical word-squares the demonic Princes and spirits must swear when giving their Oaths. Each Talisman can then be used to command a servient spirit to perform a related task.

♦ THE PRINCES OF HELL ♦

f^'hc Convocation of Evil Spirits is not lightly undertaken. Over a three -"^<day period, the aspirant must summon the twelve ruling Princes of Hell - who come in three groups of four. On the first day, the supreme or sovereign rulers Lucifer, Leviatan (or Leviathan), Satan and Belial are called. All four of these names appear throughout Judeo-Christian literature and legend as different names for the same being - the Fallen Angel who reigns supreme in Hell.’

Some examples of medieval occult literature, such as the Book of Abramelin, appear to treat these four Princes as separate entities. However, such texts are not entirely clear on the matter, and I find it just as likely that they are referring to one being in four different forms. This would suggest a kind of infernal reflection of the Holy Trinity in the celestial realm.

In the Abramelin system, the aspirant summons all four names as if they were distinct personalities. Once they have been constrained and their Oaths of loyalty have been obtained, they are commanded to return the next day with the remaining eight sub-Princes.

3 Leviathan is associated directly with Satan, or Satan's power, mainly in Christian mythos.

The first group of sub-Princes is composed of Astarot (or Ashtaroth), Magot, Asmodee (or Admodeus) and Belzebud (or Beelzebub, Beelzeboul). Three of them (exclusive of Magot) are well established in Judeo-Christian literature and legend as powerful rulers in Hell. Both Asmodeus and Beelzeboul are credited with the title King of Demons and are often used synonymously with the Devil or Satan. The names of Ashtaroth and Beelzeboul are traced to the ancient Palestinian Gods Astarte and Baal Zebul (Lord of the High Place), who were demonized by the authors of the Old Testament. Magot meanwhile, appears to be a French word that either refers to the Barbary Ape, or to a hoard, stash or nest egg. He may be one and the same with the demon Maguth, who appears in medieval occult literature such as the Heptameron.

The second group of sub-Princes is composed of the Demon Princes of the four quarters of the world. These four are found throughout medieval and renaissance occult literature, in various forms. Agrippa lists them as Oriens/Uriens (King of the East), Paymon (King of the West), Egyn/Egin (King of the North) and Amaymon (King of the South). In The Testament of Solomon we find them as Oriens, Amemon, Boul and Eitzen. They are known in Rabbinical legend as Azazel, Samael, Azael and Mahazael. In The Book of Abramelin they are called Oriens, Paymon, Ariton and Amaimon. They are the most terrestrial of the twelve Princes, and therefore have the most direct influence upon physical events.

I suspect these Princes, grouped into three sets of four, are intended to represent the elemental forces of the zodiac. It is not at all uncommon in demonology to find groups of demons associated with the twelve zodiacal signs. In The Testament of Solomon, the sorcerer-king summons the 36 demons of the Decanates, a concept which traces itself back to ancient Chaldea and from there back to Egypt. Medieval texts of necromancy such as the Goetia retain much zodiacal imagery in their descriptions of the spirits. Therefore, it would not be surprising at all to find zodiacal associations for the spirits of Abramelin.

The four supreme Princes could easily be associated with the four cardinal signs: Lucifer representing Cardinal Fire (Aries), Leviathan representing Cardinal Water (Cancer), Satan (the Accuser) representing Cardinal Air (Libra) and Belial (the Worthless or He Who Shall Not Rise) representing Cardinal Earth (Capricorn). The four Kings of the Quarters might fit rather well as rulers of the fixed signs: Oriens in the East (Leo), Paymon in the West (Aquarius), Ariton in the North (Scorpio) and Amaimon in the South (Taurus). This would leave the remaining four sub-Princes to rule the mutable signs of Sagittarius, Gemini, Virgo and Pisces.

♦ GATHERING YOUR SERVIENT SPIRITS ♦

OV n order to give proper instruction on Abramelin s spirit-magick, it is first necessary to return to the seven day Abramelin Rite, specifically to the final three days, wherein we find the Convocation of the Evil Spirits. This is where the twelve Princes of Hell are conjured and oaths of loyalty are demanded of them. It is also here that the Princes provide any number of lesser spirits who must serve the aspirant for the rest of his life, and this is what concerns us here.

At some time previous to the Convocation of Evil Spirits, the aspirant is instructed to browse through the Talismans given in the final book and choose those that are most appealing or useful:

But the greatest part of the symbols of the third book I counsel you to make before commencing the operation, keeping them until that time in the interior of the altar.⁴

Originally, I made the mistake of assuming it was necessary to draw out all of the Talismans beforehand. However, you only need to choose those that appeal to you the most, and keep in mind that more Talismans can be drawn up later as needed.

4 Book n, Ch. 20: How the operations should he performed.

When gathering the Talismans for your own use, remember that a good number of them in the French recension are incorrect, incomplete or mislabelled. In recent years, Georg Dehn has made the older German manuscripts available to the English speaking world, including a completed set of Talismans. However, even the German originals contain errors that need correction, which I addressed in my essay Abramelins Magickal Word Squares. I am sure you will find that essay very useful in your own exploration of Abramelins magick.

Once you have gathered and penned the Talismans that seem most useful, it is then necessary to browse the long lists of servient spirits found in the penultimate book (Book n in Mathers' edition. Book in in Dehn). From these, you must compile your own list of the spirits you will desire as servitors. However, much as we found with the Talismans, it is not necessary to include every spirit name found in Abrahams lists. It is only necessary to gather those which appeal to you personally.

It is for you to demand from these [sub-Princes] the other spirits which you may wish to have; but seeing that they be infinite in number, and one more skilful in service than another, one for one matter, another for another; you shall make a selection of the spirits whom you wish...⁵

I will here give a very exact description of many spirits, the which (names) either altogether or in part, or else as many of them as you may wish, you should give written upon paper unto the eight sub-princes, on the second day of the conjuration. [...] Infinite be the spirits which I could have here set down, but in order not to make any confusion, I have thought fit to put only those whom I have myself employed, and whom I have found good and faithful in all the operations wherein I have availed myself of them.⁶

5 Book it, Chapter 15: Concerning what you should demand of the spirits.

6 Book 11, Ch. 19: A descriptive lift of the names of the spirits.

Therefore, let us consider the method of choosing the right spirits for you. Directly following the lists of spirits, Abraham outlines which of the Princes of Hell are responsible for the operation of each chapter of Talismans. Some of these sets are governed by a single sub-Prince, and others are directed by two or more sub-Princes together. The primary four Princes - Lucifer, Satan, Leviathan and Belial - do not directly govern any of the Talismans.

Meanwhile, the lists of spirit names are categorized in the exact same way. There are twelve groups of spirits indicated, each one governed by one or more sub-Princes:

i Astarot

• 2 Magot

• 3 Asmodee

• 4 Belzebud

• 5 Astarot & Asmodee

• 6 Magot & Asmodee

• 7 Oriens

• 8 Paimon

• 9 Ariton

io Amaimon

ii All four together

12 Ariton & Amaimon

These twelve groups cover the operations of all of the Talismans given in the book. Therefore, by comparing the Princes who govern these groups to the Princes who govern the various chapters of Talismans, we can determine which spirits must be conjured to work any given operation.

Take for example the first chapter of Talismans, To know all manner of things past and future, which are governed collectively by the four sub-Princes Oriens, Paymon, Ariton and Amaimon. Consulting the list of spirit names,

we find a relatively large group of servitors governed by the same four subPrinces. The following is not a complete list:

Moreh, Saraph, Proxonos, Nabhi, Kosem, Peresch, Thirama, Alluph, Neschamah, Milon, Frasis, Chaya, Malach, Malabed, Yparchos, Nudeton, Mebhaer, Bruach, Apollyon, Schaluah, Myrmo, Melamod, Pother, Sched, Eckdulon, Manties, Obedamah, Jachiel, luar, Moschel, Pechach, Hasperim, Katsin, Phosphora, Badad, Cohen, Cuschi, Fasma, Pakid, Helel, Marah, Raschear, Nogah, Adon, Erimites, Trapis, Nagid, Ethanim. Patid, Nasi, Parelit, Emfatison, Parasch, Girmil, Tolet, Helmis, Asmiel...’

Therefore, any of these spirits can be conjured to reveal information about things past and future. All that remains is to decide which of these entities should be demanded from the Princes during the Convocation in order to serve you for the purpose.

First and foremost, look for any spirit names that actually appear on the Talisman you wish to use. For example, the first Talisman in chapter one (to know all things past and future in general) contains the name of the very first spirit given in the list: Moreh. Therefore, if you wish to use this particular Talisman, it would be best to add Moreh’s name to your list.

MOREH

O R I RE

R I N IR

E R I RO

H E R OM

7 Book in, Ch. 19: The names of spirits you can call and how to call them.

Next, consider the possible meanings of the spirits names in relation to the functions they must perform.⁸ For example, Moreh’s name is Hebrew for teacher or oracle. In the same group of spirits we find Nabhi, whose name translates as prophecy. Kosem’s name means to divine, predict. Alluph's name translates as to teach, learn. Melammed indicates a teacher of religion or spiritual matters. All of these names are quite well suited for the first chapter of Talismans, to know all manner of things...

In this way, you can go about drawing up a preliminary register of spirit names. This is the very same register you will present, along with your chosen Talismans, to the Princes and sub-Princes during their Convocation.

However, the register you take into the Convocation is not likely the final version you will end up with. According to the Book of Abramelin, the Princes of Hell will have some input on which spirits are right for you:

... and in the first demand which thou shalt make unto the four spirits (who are) the supreme princes, and unto the eight subprinces; thou shalt demand the most skilful of the spirits, of whom thou shalt make a register for convenience of the practice... But seeing that the subjects of various erring humours (of mind) and other occasions which arise daily be diverse, each man will procure for himself those (spirits) which be of his nature and genius and fit for that wherein thou wouldest employ them.⁹

Therefore, it is not likely you will possess the names of all of your servitors before performing the Convocation of Evil Spirits. It will be necessary to ask the Princes, during the Convocation, which spirits are best suited to your personal psychological make-up.

8 Mathers did some work toward offering loose translations for many of the spirits names in his edition of the Book of Abramelin. I hope to provide updated notations based on Dehn’s edition soon.

9 Book in. Essential Remarks Upon the Foregoing Symbols.

Meanwhile, the Guardian Angel can expand this list any time He or She wishes. I suspect the following quote is intended to refer to the reception of new Talismans after the Abramelin Rite is complete:

And these (spirits) be not vile, base, and common, but of rank, industrious, and very prompt unto an infinitude of things. Now their names have been manifested and discovered by the angels, and if you should wish for more the angel will augment them for you as far as you shall wish; seeing that their number is infinite.¹⁰

Keep in mind that you may very well receive names that are not found anywhere in the given lists. While you certainly can share some of rhe same spirits utilized by Abraham, his lists are ultimately personal to him alone. Your spirits may be entirely unique, or (most likely) a mixture of Abrahams and your own. Because of this, I suggest creating a register of names that can be easily expanded during and after the Convocation itself. The given register of twelve groups appears incomplete to me, as there are several possible combinations of sub-Princes that are not included. For instance, note that Astarot, Magot, Asmodee and Belzebud, while they each have their own headings, have no grouping for the four of them together. Furthermore, while it is clearly indicated that the two sets of sub-Princes work in pairs, only a small number of possible pairings are included. If we create a more complete register, it would look like this:

i. Astarot 2. Magot

6. Astarot & Magot

9. Magot & Asmodee

3. Asmodee 4. Belzebud 5. All Four Together

7. Astarot & Asmodee 8. Astarot & Belzebud

10. Magot &■ Belzebud n. Asmodee & Belzebud

12. Oriens 13. Paimon

17. Oriens & Paimon

20. Paimon & Ariton

15. Amaimon 16. All Four Together

19. Oriens & Amaimon

22. Ariton & Amaimon

14. Ariton

18. Oriens & Ariton

21. Paimon & Amaimon

10 Book in, Chapter 19: A Descriptive Lift of the Flames of the Spirits.

The Book of Abramelin does not include any groupings of three Princes at a time, nor does it indicate that the two groups of sub-Princes ever crossover in pairings. My above register follows the same pattern, resulting in eleven groupings for each set of sub-Princes, and twenty two groups overall.

Depending on which Talismans you choose, you can have spirit names in up to twelve of these groups before beginning the Convocation of Evil Spirits. During the Convocation, more names can be added to any of the given twenty-two headings by the sub-Princes. This completed (yet still open-ended) register is presented to the sub-Princes on the second day of the Convocation. After completing the Rite, any number of further names can be added as you put the magick into practice.

Besides these spirits, the aspirant is also instructed to demand the names of four additional Familiars, one granted by each of the directional sub-Princes (Oriens, Paymon, Ariton and Amaimon). The four Familiars are linked especially to the Talismans of chapter five, How We May Retain the Familiar Spirits Bound or Free in Whatsoever Form.

These four spirits are set above the others, as they will serve as your direct liaisons with the spirit world and will act as more general purpose workers than those included in the register. They remain on call at all times, each one taking charge successively depending on the time of day; the Familiar granted by Oriens will be active from dawn to noon; the one granted by Amaimon will act from noon to dusk; the Familiar granted by Paymon will be active from dusk to midnight; and that granted by Ariton will be in charge from midnight until dawn. These times of day are associated with the direction ruled by each spirit on a zodiacal chart. East = Dawn; South = Noon; West = Dusk; and North = Midnight.

While Abramelin suggests we do not use the Talismans with the Four Familiars (except, of course, the Talismans of the fifth chapter) he also lists several operations for which the Familiars might serve instead of the Talismans: Chapter 2: Scientific Information; Chapter 4: Diverse Visions; Chapter 12: Secrets of Others; Chapter 18: Healing; Chapter 19: Affection & Love; Chapter 23: Demolishing Buildings; Chapter 24: Discovery of Theft;

Chapter 27: 7b Cause Visions; Chapter 28: Obtaining Money; Chapter 30: Visions of Operas, Comedies,&c.

I notice that most of these operations are centred around divination or visions of various sorts. Although their usefulness in demolishing buildings and bringing money suggests more practical applications as well. This is supported in the final book, where further information about working with the Familiars is hidden:

The familiar spirits are very prompt, and they are able to execute in most minute detail all matters of a mechanical nature, with the which therefore it is well to occupy them; as in historical painting; in making statues; clocks; weapons; and other like matters; also in chemistry; and in causing them to carry out commercial and business transactions under the form of other persons; in making them transport merchandise and other goods from one place to another; also to employ them in causing quarrels, fights, homicides, and all kinds of evils, and malefic acts; also to convey letters and messages of all kinds from one country to another; to deliver prisoners; and in a thousand other ways which I have frequently experimented."

Thus, we have a fairly clear idea of what uses our Familiar Spirits should have. Finally, the Convocation of Evil Spirits ends on the third day (which is in fact the last of the seven day Abramelin Rite). The Princes are all called once again, and this time the sub-Princes should appear with all of the requested servient and Familiar spirits. Oaths are sworn to the aspirant once more, but this time they are sworn upon each set of Talismans. The lesser spirits must promise to serve the aspirant without hesitation, and to act whether or not the Talismans themselves are employed.

11 Book in; Essential Remarks Upon the Foregoing Symbols,

♦ USING THE MAGICK ♦

Post Abramelin

n practice, the Talismans used during the Convocation are relegated to a position of secondary importance. Abraham explains the system toward the end of Book u (of the Mathers version. Book ill in the Dehn):

You are then to understand that once he who operateth hath the power, it is not necessary to use written symbols, but it may suffice to name aloud the name of the spirit, and the form in which you wish him to appear visibly; because once they have taken oath, this sufhceth. These symbols, then, be made for you to avail yourself of them when you be in the company of other persons; also you must have them upon you, so that in touching or handling them simply, they may represent your wish. Immediately then he unto whom the symbol appertaineth will serve you punctually; but if you should desire something special which is in no way connected with or named in the symbol, it will be necessary to signify the same at least by showing your desire by two or three words. [...]But when it is a grave and important matter, you should retire into a secret place apart, provided it be appropriate, for any place is good to invoke the spirits proper unto the operation. There give them their commission regarding that which you wish them to perform, the which they will either execute then or in the days following. But always give them the signal by word of mouth, or in any other manner that may be pleasing unto you, whenever you wish them to begin to operate.'²

In the same chapter, Abraham provides a long list of rules which the aspirant must observe. Some of them apply to the Rite of Abramelin itself, while others are intended to regulate the use of the magick afterwards. Below, I have included the rules that apply to our current discussion.

12 Book ii, Chapter 20: How the Operations Should Be Performed.

i: Take heed before all things to perform no magical operation soever, or invocations of the spirits on the Sabbath day, during the whole period of your life, seeing that that day is consecrated unto God, and is the day on which you should repose and sanctify yourself, and you should solemnise it by prayers.

6: In conversing with spirits good or evil, never employ words which you do not understand, because even so will you have shame and hurt.

• II: If the operations can be performed by the familiar spirits, it is not necessary to employ others therein.

• 12: Though it should be an easy matter for you to employ your familiars to annoy your neighbour, seek to abstain therefrom, unless it were to repress the insolence of such as might attempt aught against you personally. Never keep the familiar spirits in idleness, and should you wish to give one over unto any person, see that such person be distinguished and meritorious, for they love not to serve those of base and common condition. But should such person unto whom you give them have made some express pact (with spirits) in such case the familiar spirits will fly in haste to serve him.

• 18: You shall not permit the familiar spirits to familiarise themselves too much with you, through your disputing and arguing with them; because they will propound so many affairs and things at once as to confound and trouble the mind.

• 19: With the familiar spirits you should not make use of the symbols of the third book, unless it be those of the fifth chapter thereof; but if you desire anything, command them aloud to perform it. Never commence many operations at once and in the same time, but when you have finished one then begin another, until you are perfect in the practice; for an apprentice artist doth not become a master suddenly, but little by little.

• 20: Without reasons of the very last importance, the four princes or the eight sub-princes should never be summoned, because we must make a great distinction between these and the others (who are inferior to them).

• 21: In operating, as rarely as possible insist upon the spirits appearing visibly; and thus you will work all the better, for it should suffice you for them to say and do what you wish.

• 22: All prayers, orations, invocations, and conjurations, and in fact everything you have to say, should be pronounced aloud and clearly, without however shouting like a madman, but speaking clearly and naturally, and pronouncing distinctly.

• 24: Take heed that you commence no operation at night if it be important, unless the need be very pressing.

[Note: the following instruction appears at the very end of the chapter, and only in the French recension: ]

Every time that you shall desire to make a fresh command, you shall thrice repeat the Psalm 91, Qui habitat in adjutorium Altissimi, &c., Whoso dwelleth in the aid of the Most High, &c. — because this Psalm possesseth so great a virtue that you will be astonished when you comprehend it.

In these rules we find a good overview of the magickal system, telling us where, when and how to perform the spirit work. You may notice that no mention whatsoever is made of further ceremonies. Once the spirits have been summoned and bound by their Oath, it is not necessary to employ full evocational ceremonies in order to issue new orders to them. Take special note of rule 21, which dissuades the aspirant from demanding even the visible appearance of the spirits, when speaking their name and issuing the command should suffice.

However, I must add from my personal experience, that it can be useful to employ the Oratory, Robes and Crown, Wand and Talismans when sum

moning the spirits - especially in the beginning. The added ceremony helps to facilitate the communication between the aspirant and his spirits while the working relationship is built.

Over time, and with diligent practice, the necessity of the extra tools and ceremony should decrease. Meanwhile, instead of elaborate ceremonies, the Book of Abramelin suggests a more folk style method of employing the Talismans. This is found at the end the same chapter, Instructions and Explanations Concerning What Points We Should Particularly Observe..., where Abraham records specific instructions for using several sets of the Talismans. I have included several examples below:

Chapter i: To know all manner of things past and future, which be not however directly opposed to God, and to his most holy will.

First take the symbol in your hand, place it (upon the top of your head) under your hat, and either you will be secretly warned by the spirit, or he will execute that which you have the intention of commanding him to do.

Chapter 13: To cause a dead body to revive, and perform all the functions which a living person would do, and this during a space of seven years, by means of the spirits.

Nothing else is necessary than to be attentive to the moment when the man is just dead, and then to place the symbol upon him towards the four quarters of the world; and at once he will lift himself up and begin to move himself he should then be dressed; and a symbol similar to that which hath been placed upon him should be sewn into his garment.

Chapter 14: The twelve symbols for the twelve hours of the day and of the night, to render oneself invisible unto every person.

[...] You have in this chapter twelve symbols, for twelve different spirits submitted unto Prince Magot, who are all of the same force. You should put the symbol (upon the top of your

head) under the hat or bonnet, and then you will become invisible; while on taking it away, you will appear visible again.

Chapter 22: This chapter is only for evil, for with the symbols herein we can cast spells, and work every kind of evil; we should not avail ourselves hereof.

All these symbols are to be either buried in the ground, or placed under doors, steps, or buried under paths and other places by which people do pass, or whereon they lean; in this latter case it is sufficient merely to touch (such places) with the symbol.

There is a certain ring of similarity between this kind of magick and what is contained in Book 11 of the German version, the so-called Blended Qabalah. I also find two further important points inferred by these instructions.

First, they support the idea that the Talismans used during the Convocation of Evil Spirits are not always employed in the magick afterwards. Notice, for example the instructions for Chapter 13, where a copy of the Talisman (apparently made of parchment or cloth) is sewn into the subject’s clothing. Or Chapter 22, which requires the symbols to be buried in various places, which I assume does not indicate burying the original Talisman. It would seem that the letters of the symbol (which can be inscribed anywhere) are more important than the actual piece of paper the original is written upon.

Given the folk-style of this kind of magick. Talismans acquired at a later date may also come with instructions that do not involve using the original. For example, some folk healing spells require inscribing a figure with honey inside a bowl, then filling the bowl with milk and having the subject drink it. Some protection spells require engraving a symbol upon a particular substance (such as wax, lead or iron) and then burying or hiding it somewhere. If these are the kinds of instructions one receives for using the Abramelin Talismans, it would be unlikely the originals would be employed for the purpose. And this leads to the second important point.

It appears that each Talisman you acquire while using the magick will come with its own specific instructions - likely given by the Guardian Angel or sub-Prince (whichever one reveals the Talisman).

♦ ACQUIRING NEW TALISMANS ♦

C^/t is expected that the final book of Abramelin will not contain a Talisman for every need the aspirant will face in a lifetime:

Now will I teach you how all those (symbols) which be in this book, as well as those which you will (hereafter) receive from the spirits (themselves), ought to be written down and acquired. For the number of operations is infinite, and it would be an impossibility to set them all down in this work.”

Therefore, there are methods described in the text for obtaining new squares. In fact, there are two different methods, depending on what kind of magick one wishes to accomplish and (therefore) which spiritual entity will reveal the letters. In Book u Abraham takes the time to categorize all of the Talismans into those revealed by the Guardian Angel, those revealed by the infernal spirits and those which are a mixture of the two. See By Whom the Symbols of the Third Book Be Manifested.

It is not readily apparent why Abraham has placed his Talismans in one category or the other. One might expect all Talismans used for good would be revealed by the Angel, and those used for evil would be revealed by the Spirits. However, the divisions suggested by Abraham do not follow such a clear formula. Instead, it seems to have more to do with whether or not permission to use the Talismans was granted or withheld by his Guardian Angel. Thus, the Talismans revealed by the Angel are always permissible. Those revealed by either the Angel or Spirits (or both together) require one to ask permission before each use. Finally, those revealed only by the Spirits

• 13 Book 111: Essential Remarks Upon the Foregoing Symbols.

still require permission from the Angel before use, but they involve types of magic the Angel would not reveal.

Of course, when you are ready to obtain a new Talisman, you may or may not know beforehand which entity will reveal it. Fortunately, the two methods begin in the same manner, so you can discover which direction to follow as you go along:

• i: If you wish to obtain a Talisman from your Guardian Angel, it is best to perform the Rite on the day of the Sabbath. (Sunday if your background is Christian, Saturday if you are Jewish.) However, if you intend to obtain the Talisman from the infernal spirits, any other day will suffice.

• 2: You will need to set up your Oratory just as you did throughout the Abramelin Rite. You will have the Altar, Censor and Incense, Holy Oil, Lamp and the Plate of Silver (or Wax). You will also need to have the exorcism regalia on hand: the silk over-robe, the Crown, the Girdle and the Almond Wand - in case you need to summon the Spirits. Finally, you will also need clean paper and a pen, and I strongly suggest obtaining a Hebrew lexicon as well. (I will explain the lexicon later.)

• 3: You must fast the day before the ceremony. The Book of Abramelin states that all fasts begin at dusk (or, the Jirst nocturnal star), so you will likely only need to fast for about 12 hours before you begin the work. Drink only water during this period.

• 4: Then, at dawn, clean yourself thoroughly, don the White Robe and enter the Oratory with the pen, paper and lexicon. Light the Censor and the Lamp, touch the angles of the Silver Plate with the Holy Oil, then kneel at the Altar and perform the usual prayers. That is, first pray to the Highest (Adonai Zabaoth) in confession, and then ask Him to send your Guardian Angel to aid you in the matter. Then, begin to invoke the Angel directly — asking for his/her presence and council concerning your need.

• 5: If the Guardian Angel never appears nor deigns to speak to you on the subject, then you know that you have not been granted permission to work the desired magick. It is strongly suggested that you break off the attempt, give your prayers of thanks, and leave the Oratory. Then rethink your plan of action and try again at a later date.

• 6: If the Guardian Angel does appear and speaks with you, he may reveal the Talisman to you himself. If so, you need only write down the letters of the Talisman, along with the name(s) of the spirits who will perform the operations (or that of the sub-Prince who will govern it). Plus, as I stated previously, you will also be given instructions on how to employ the Talisman in practice.

• 7: Once complete, make your prayers of thanks, then leave the Oratory just as it is for the rest of the day. At dusk, return to make your evening prayers (as you did during the Abramelin Rite), put away the Silver Plate and close the Oratory. On the other hand, if you desire a Talisman from the infernal spirits, you must follow the same procedure up to step four. Then:

5-a: Don the over-Robe, Girdle and Crown, and take up the almond Wand. Turn toward the Terrace and conjure the Princes as you did during the Convocation. Once they have appeared and been reminded of their Oaths, request the new Talisman from them. The sub-Prince(s) in charge of the operation will reveal the letters of the word-square, along with the name(s) of the spirits who will perform the work. Plus, they will give you special instructions for putting the Talisman to use.

6-a: Have the sub-Prince(s) that will govern the operation, together with the spirit(s) who will perform the work, swear upon the new Talisman as they did for the others. Then license them to depart, and perfume the area with the Censor.

7-a: The same instructions for closing down the Oratory apply here as above. Leave the Oratory as it is until the evening, when you shall return to make your evening prayers and put everything away.

Abraham also gives us some notes on the materials we need to create the Talismans and how they should be handled afterwards:

And remember, that as there is a God to write these aforesaid symbols, there is no particular preparation necessary of pens, of ink, and of paper; nor yet of elections of particular days, nor other things to be observed, which the false magicians and enchanters of the devil would have you believe. It sufficeth that the symbols should be clearly written with any kind of ink and pen, provided that we may easily discern unto what operation each sign appertaineth, the which also you can easily do by means of a properly arranged and drawn up register of them. [...] And after that the spirits shall have taken oath thereupon, you shall carefully keep (the symbols) in a safe place, where they can neither be seen nor touched by any other person, because thus great harm might befall such person.'⁴

Just as we have seen elsewhere in this text, the above passage contains an aversion to the methods of the more common grimoires of goetic conjuration. No special considerations must be taken for pens, inks, paper or mag-ickal timing. Yet again it would appear that the letters of the word-squares are what is important, rather than the paper upon which they are drawn. ¹⁴

14 Book 11: How the operations should he performed.

♦ CREATING WORD-SQUARES ♦

CjT’n The Book of Abramelin, Abraham suggests the Talisman and the name £07 of its spirit will appear like dew upon the Silver Plate, when revealed by the Angel, or else scribbled into the sand upon the Terrace, when revealed by the spirits. Personally, I would not expect such a direct physical manifestation. Instead, much of the information will have to be skryed by the aspirant while communicating with the entities. Plus, some of it will require an understanding of how to create word-squares. Unfortunately, Abraham devotes no time in his instructions to educating the reader on the subject of wordsquares. I have addressed this issue in my essay Abramelin’s Magickal Word Squares. I refer the reader there for my full explanation. Here, I will simply summarize the important points and apply them to Abramelin Talismans. This is where that lexicon comes into play. There are three types of wordsquares: first is the Acrostic (or standard word-square), where the words read the same forward and downward.

B I T

I C E

TEN

The second type, which is very rare among Abraham’s Talismans, is the Double Acrostic, where the words read differently forward and downward.

TOO

URN

BEE

Finally, the third type of word-square is called the Perfect Double Acrostic, which reads the same forward, backward, downward and upward. Take for example this square from The Book of Abramelin, chapter 5: To retain the Familiar spirits in the form of an Eagle:

N E S H ER

E L E E HE

S E P P EH

H E P P ES

E H E E LE

R E H S EN

The keyword of this square is NESHER, the Hebrew for eagle. Note how Nesher and the other words in the square can be read left to right, downward, right to left and upward. Which type of square you create will be largely determined by the words you use to compile it, however the Perfect Double Acrostic seems to be the most common type found in The Book of Abramelin.

When it is time for you to construct a new Talisman, you must first ask the Angel or sub-Princes for the keyword of the square. This keyword will be one of two things: either the name of the spirit who will perform the operation, or a word that sums up the desired effect. If it is the name of a spirit who is not currently in your register, then I strongly suggest that, after compiling the new Talisman, you continue forward to summon the sub-Princes. Have them bring the new spirit to you and swear an oath of loyalty upon the new Talisman.

Meanwhile, most of Abrahams Talismans contain a keyword that indicates the goal of the operation. For example, the fourth Talisman of chapter four is intended to facilitate visions in jewels or rings. Its keyword is BEDSER, which is adapted from the Hebrew word Betzer (BTzR) meaning gold or

golden ring. In another example, the first Talisman of chapter six is intended to help with mining work, and its keyword is SELAAH, adapted from the Hebrew word Selah (SLH) meaning to lift up.

In your own work, you may ask the Angel or sub-Princes to suggest such a keyword and/or to guide you to the necessary word in the Hebrew lexicon. Other languages can be used, such as Latin, Greek, Chaldean and Egyptian.

Once you have your keyword, the real work begins. Keep in mind that word-squares are traditionally puzzles, so expect to put some real work into this. You will have to discover the size of your word-square (that is, how many cells in the grid), where exactly to place the keyword into the grid and finally several further words that both relate to your magickal goal and fit into the linguistic structure of the square. And none of these are set in stone.

To determine the size of the square, it is first necessary to determine how best to write the keyword. Remember that Hebrew letters do not transliterate directly into English. Therefore, there are no set rules for how a Hebrew word should be spelled when written in English characters. It is most important that the English adaptation be phonetically similar to the Hebrew original. Take for example the Hebrew word QBLH, which means Tradition and can be transliterated Qabalah, Cabala or even Khabbalah. These are all the same word, written in different ways by different people at different times.

Therefore, if your keyword can be written with four letters, then your new square will be a 4 x 4 grid. If it must be written with 6 letters, then your square will be 6 x 6, &c. If the Angel has given you a keyword and the necessary size of the square, then you may need to spend some time locating the proper Hebrew word to use and trying different spelling options to make it fit. As you attempt to fit other words into the square, you may find it necessary to return to the keyword and try different ways of spelling it. While you are doing this, also keep in mind that palindromes, words that are spelled the same when written forward or backward, are extremely desirable in the formulation of magickal word-squares. If you can find a keyword that fits your square and is spelled the same when written forward and backward, then you will definitely want to use it.

On the other hand, there are some rare cases among Abrahams Talismans where a keyword is written forward and then backward to force a palindrome into the square. This seems to happen most often where the word is too small to fit into a larger square. For example, suppose your Guardian Angel has suggested 37x7 square wherein the keyword is Atah — Hebrew for Thou Art. As Atah is only four letters long, you can lengthen it by transforming it into a seven-lettered palindrome: ATA HAT A.

Taking all of this together, the most perfect form a magickal word-square can take would be a Perfect Double Acrostic formed entirely of palindromes. This should always be your goal when compiling your own squares, though keep in mind it will not often be achievable.

Once you have your keyword, you will need to determine where in the square to place it. You have a couple of options here, depending on the size of the grid. In even numbered squares, you will need to write the keyword around the circumference of the grid - this is what I call a frame. For example, in the previously illustrated Talisman for causing the Familiars to appear in the form of Eagles, the keyword N ESH ER. was written as the frame of the square:

N E S H ER

E L E E HE

S E P P EH

H E P P ES

E H E E LE

R E H S EN

Of course, the above example is for a Perfect Double Acrostic. If your square were to become a regular Acrostic instead, you would only have a half-frame. As an example, the Talisman I mentioned previously, to create vi

sions in rings or jewellery, is an Acrostic with its keyword BEDSER written in a half-frame:

BEDSER E L I E LA

D I A P IS

S E P P ES

E L I E M I R A S SIN

On the other hand, if the grid is an odd numbered size, you can either write the keyword in a frame, or it can be written in the very center, both across and downward. For instance, consider this Talisman from chapter 4, to create visions in the Moon:

COHEN

O R A RE

H A S AH

E R A RO

N E H OC

Because this is the 35x5 grid, we find that one word — H ASAH - forms a central cross in the middle of the square. In Hebrew Hazah means to sleep, to dream, which indicates the visions created by this Talisman are likely dreams during sleep. Also notice that H ASAH is a palindrome. If a square is going to be a Perfect Double Acrostic, the central cross word must be a palindrome. If not, the square will have to be a regular Acrostic instead.

Where you choose to place the keyword of your square is a matter of trial and error, determined largely by the other words you find to add to the square. If you start with a frame but can not make it work, then (if the grid is odd numbered) you can make it a central cross and try again.

Now that you understand some of the basics, we can continue with the rest of the process. It will take serious mental effort (not to mention use of the lexicon) to fill the rest of the square with letters.

I feel this is best illustrated with an example - therefore, let us suppose you wish to compile a square to find employment in a tough job market. I have consulted the Hebrew lexicon and found a good pool of words to work with. The best candidates for a keyword are:

Tamiid (TMYD) Continual employment

Sekar (ShKR) To hire oneself out

I also found these words, meaning work, workmen or labor:

Yetzer (YtzR) Etzeb (AaTzB)

Maaseh (MAaShH) Chashab (ChShB)

Charash (ChRSh) Yagiya (YGYAa)

Malakah (MLAKH) Abidah (AaBIDH)

Abad (AaBD) Aliliah (AaLYLYH) Abodah (AaBDH) Asah (AaShH)

Yalad (YLD) Cabal (KBL) Amal (AaML) Paal (PAaL) Paallah (PAaLLH)

These are not all the words I could have listed. I could also have searched for further related concepts such as business, wages, position, and so on. I could have even resorted to checking Latin and Greek lexicons for even more options (though the best word-squares contain only one langage). You can generate a rather sizeable pool of words if you wish, but I think the above is good enough for our current illustration. My primary choice for the keyword was Tamid, suggesting a 5 x 5 square.

My first attempt was to write the keyword as a frame around the square, hoping to compile a Perfect Double Acrostic:

T A M ID

AI

MM

IA

D I M AT

However, I quickly found that no suitable word in my pool (nor even when I re-checked the lexicon) began with an A and ended with an I (or Y). Nothing fit even when I attempted to be creative with the spellings. Thus this square was a dead end at the second line down. Therefore, I attempted the puzzle once more with the keyword in a half-frame, aiming for a regular Acrostic:

As you can see, I was able to get a bit further this time. The word Abodah (AaBDH) was suitable for the second line with very little creativity in the transliteration. However, these puzzles become more difficult the further

you go. Now that I have reached the third line down, I am forced to find a suitable word that begins with Mo... Sadly, I had no luck finding such a word, so this square is also a dead end.

Since this is an odd numbered square, I had the final option of writing the keyword in the central cross. In this case a Perfect Double Acrostic is ruled out (because Tamid is not a palindrome), but I could possibly score a regular Acrostic:

In order to complete this square, I needed to find four words - one with a T in the center, one with an A, another with an I and finally, one with a central D. With some creative transliteration, I was able to fit Yetzer into the first line, and Etseb into the second. Had this been a Perfect Double Acrostic, my work would have been complete, because the final two lines would have simply been the reverse of the first two. However, since I already ruled out that possibility, I was stuck trying to find two further words, one beginning with Zai... and another beginning with Rbd... That simply wasn't going to happen, so this square also turned out to be a dead end.

At this point, I decided to switch to my other favored keyword: Sekar. Again, this suggests a 5 x 5 square. And, once again, I will try to form a Perfect Double Acrostic by writing the keyword into the frame.

S A K A K SAKAR

A A  A B I DA

K  K  K I IK

A A  A D I BA

RAKASRAKAS

Step i    Step 2

SAKAR

A B I DA

K I K IK

A D I BA

RAKAS

Step 3

This attempt was the pay-off. I only needed minor changes to the transliterations of both Sekar (ShKR) and Abidah (AaBIDH) in order to make them fit perfectly into the first two lines of the square; the changes I made are both acceptable transliterations of the Hebrew. And, because this is a Perfect Double Acrostic, it was not necessary to find words for the final two lines.

Of course, you likely noticed that the word in the central cross does not appear to be a word at all. By the time I had filled in all the squares occupied by Sekar and Abidah, only the central cell of the entire grid was left open. By placing a K there, I formed a palindrome that completes this Perfect Double Acrostic. It may seem like a cheat, however Abraham appears to have used this technique on a large number of his own Talismans.

Using the above techniques, I was also able to compile a second Perfect Double Acrostic square from my pool of words, using Abad (AaBD) and Abodah (AaBDH):

A A B AD

A B O DA

B O B OB

A D O BA

D A B AA

However, I consider this to be a square of lesser power. The words used for it both simply mean work — which is pretty vague when compared to the original two keywords I chose. However, the above A AB AD square should be perfectly useful for some matter related to work.

♦ WORKING WITH YOUR SPIRITS ♦

Ocv^hile The Book of Abramelin remains purposefully vague about the de-tails of spirit conjuration, it has somewhat more to say about how to work with the spirits once you have conjured them. Some of this advice can be found in chapters seventeen and eighteen of Book u (Mathers’ edition), just before the lists of spirit names. The rest is found in the final book, just after the chapters of Talismans.

Abraham stresses time and again that these spirits are of the infernal type, and therefore certainly do pose a danger to the aspirant. It is true that his instruction is couched in typical Judeo-Christian rhetoric — such as the idea that these are fallen spirits, cast out from Heaven and sentenced to serve man. However, the advice he gives is not uncommon within even Pagan

traditions that commonly deal with these types of spirits. For instance, the Afrio-Caribbean faiths, such as Santeria, Voudon and Palo-Mayombe, offer similar warnings to their initiates, without the addition of Christian dogma. I will do much the same here.

As Abraham aptly points out, the spirits are not little pet dogs. Lower spirits, whether they be infernal, terrestrial or aerial, are more akin to wild animals than to humans or domesticated pets. Like wild animals, they can be corralled and trained, but they will remain wild and dangerous nonetheless. Therefore, the Magus who controls them is akin to a lion tamer at the circus. He must treat his animals with compassion and respect, yet he must simultaneously remain firmly in control, never letting the beasts forget who is the master. He is willing to reward them for a job well done, but not willing to give them treats merely because they demand them. And though he would never mistreat his animals, he always keeps in the fore of his mind how easily these beasts could tear him to shreds if his vigilance should lapse. The whip and chair are always at hand should he suddenly find himself in danger.

Also like wild animals, the spirits you will gather to serve you will not necessarily want to do so. For them, the best deal is to languish under your care- accepting your offerings and attention, while never being forced to earn their keep. Therefore, as Abraham warns us, the proud spirits will do everything in their power to get out of their oaths to you, and to eventually turn the tables so they are in control.

Of course, when it comes to spiritual entities, the danger is not merely physical. Remember the aspirant is supposed to receive from the sub-Princes those spirits who are most suited to his psychological make-up. Therefore, those same spirits are best suited to know and exploit your weaknesses. Abraham explains this rather well:

The spirits have so great knowledge that they comprehend very well by our actions what dispositions we have, and understand our inclinations, so that from the very beginning they prepare the way to make us to fail. If they know that a man is inclined unto vanity and pride, they will humiliate themselves before

him, and push that humility unto excess, and even unto idolatry, and this man will glory herein and become intoxicated with conceit, and the matter will not end without his commanding them some pernicious thing of such a nature that ultimately thence from will be derived that sin which will make the man the slave of the demon. Another man will be easily accessible to avarice, and then if he take not heed the malignant spirits will propose unto him thousands of ways of accumulating wealth, and of rendering himself rich by indirect and unjust ways and means, whence total restitution is afterwards difficult and even impossible, so that he who is in such case findeth himself ever-the slave of the spirits. Another will be a man of letters; the spirits will inspire him with presumption, and he will then believe himself to be wiser even than the Prophets, furthermore they will endeavour to lead him astray in subtle points in matters appertaining unto God, and will make (that man) fall into a thousand errors, the which afterwards when he wisheth to support he will very frequently deny God, and his high mysteries. The causes and matters whereof (the spirits) will make use to cause a man to waver are infinite, especially when the man attempteth to make them submit to his commands, and this is why it is most necessary to be upon one's guard and to distrust oneself.¹⁵

As I have often heard from teachers of Santeria and Palo, you must never allow your spirits to eat your head. That is to say, you must never allow them to get into your mind and turn the tables on you, because they will take any given opportunity to make you their slave. This is why Abraham warns us to command our spirits never to speak or act unless instructed. Otherwise they will have ample opportunities to confuse you and cause you to fail, and thereby finally slip free of your control.

All of this is why the spirit-magick of Abramelin is so obscured in the text. Practitioners of the occult arts are often all too willing to open the manu

15 Book in: Essential remarks upon the foregoing symbols.

al to the final book and use the Talismans in any old fashion they choose. However, as Abraham stresses, it is vitally important that one first established Knowledge of and Conversation with the Holy Guardian Angel, and to never employ a spirit who has not sworn a formal oath to serve you. As you are dealing with entities who would rather enjoy a free ride and avoid working for you, it is necessary to have the authority of your Guardian behind your commands.

On the other hand, Abraham puts just as much stress upon treating the spirits with kindness. Certainly the Magus must remain aloof to the spirits and treat them as a master would a servant. Yet, if they are serving you in accordance to their oaths and being humble toward you, then you must respond by treating them with all due respect. Just like the lion-tamer, you must strike a balance between the fact that you are the master and the fact that they could, if they had the desire and opportunity, destroy you with little effort. You must work to build your relationship, and make your spirits your allies.

Should your spirits disobey you, Abraham tells us the proper procedure for dealing with them. First and foremost, you must make sure the error is not your own. All of the spirits you have gathered in your Register are nor of the same office and do not possess the same skills, (if they did, then it would be unnecessary to employ any spirit beyond the four Familiars.) Therefore, if a spirit will not execute a command you have given it, you must be absolutely sure you haven’t called the wrong entity.

For instance, a spirit who can reveal information about the future is not likely going to be able to open locks for you. Or one who can bring armed men to protect you will probably not be able to heal your wounds. As we discussed previously in this essay, knowing what a spirits name means can be a big help in judging what the spirit can do. And don't forget that simply asking the spirit is always a good first step.

If you discover that none of your current spirits are up to a given task, then you can employ the techniques for obtaining new Talismans and ask for a new spirit to add to your Register. Make sure to follow the full procedure.

up to conjuring the Princes of Hell and having the new spirit swear the oath just like all the others.

However, if you know that your spirit is fully capable of performing a given task, but still refuses to obey, then you can employ disciplinary measures. The first step is to conjure the subPrince(s) in charge of the spirit, and have them directly command the spirit to follow out your wishes. You are to remind them of the oaths they have taken to you, and of the chastisement that awaits them if they, too, disobey.

If this does not work, the next step is to invoke the agent of that chastisement, your Holy Guardian Angel. Of course, doing this depends on the Angel having agreed to your intended goals. If he has, then it is only necessary to ask him to bring the spirits into line. The Guardian Angel is your whip, and the oath the spirits have sworn unto you is the chair.

I will now bring this essay to a close, though this certainly does not exhaust the subject of Abramelin's magickal system. I have focused strictly upon the somewhat hidden system of spirit magick dispersed throughout the manuscript, as well as explained (perhaps for the first time) rhe method of constructing proper word-square Talismans. I have passed over most of Abrahams advice concerning the spirits during the three days of the Convocation - such as how to write the conjurations and how to address the Princes when they arrive, 6-c. However, these concepts can be found described at length in chapter twelve of my Secrets of the Magickal Grimoires. I will certainly release more of my researches into and experiences with the Abramelin system in the future.

May your spirits be prompt and trustworthy in all things!

♦ BIBLIOGRAPHY ♦

THE TESTAMENT OF SOLOMON: THE LOST KEY PAUL HUGHES-BARLOW

lemegeton and key of Solomon the king were discovered J ■ attached to a copy of The Testament of Solomon found in the British Museum. The Western Magical Tradition has focused upon the Lemegeton and Key of Solomon the King. However, a proper understanding of the Testament of Solomon will bring greater insights and success in working with the grimoires. With this in mind I would like to explore the links between this important document, contemporary experiences of working with spirits, the writings of John Dee, Sufism, and, you might be surprised to know, the Garden of Eden.

The ability to see and work with spirits is a natural consequence of the development of consciousness, which takes many years of study, dedication and practice. I was fortunate enough to find a Master with the power and authority to take me on as a student. I underwent a considerable amount of pain and suffering; physically, mentally and emotionally for many years as Punditt Maharaj rebuilt me as a suitable vessel for working with spirits. At the same time I was expected to live in the real world, earning a living and dealing with life's vicissitudes with equanimity. Before he came into my life, my prime focus was spiritual development and enlightenment through meditation - I was living a reclusive life in the seaside town of Brighton - which was not easy either. The many years of preparation by Punditt were for when he passed on, which happened eighteen months ago. Since his death there has been an exponential increase in my spiritual knowledge and a clear establishment of the lineage.

♦ SELFISHNESS VERSUS SOCIETY ♦

^Jor a long time spiritual development has been divorced from the need to jTL work with spirits - enlightenment really is selfish, with people living in ashrams and other isolated communities away from society. Contemplation of God is easy when living in the jungle, up a mountain or in the desert, while waiting for locals to bring gifts of food. By contrast, magicians are an urban breed. The paths of spiritual and sorcerous development both take many years of practice, and I see no reason why the two cannot be unified to create something more powerful.

The separation of the two paths is clearly seen in the Bible. Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden failed in their encounter with the Serpent, who many consider to have been a Spirit. The story has been spun into a morality play that has consequences to this day. By contrast we have King Solomon, the true Prophet and Master of the spirits, who could not be written out of the Bible; nevertheless, his exploits in the Testament of Solomon were convenient

ly omitted, along with many other books full of astrological lore, and workings with spirits. Solomon was famous for his wisdom, kingship, diplomacy, and as a lover. He was as much a master of this world as the spiritual realms. Apparently not all Prophets worked with spirits, but it is significant that two of the most famous Prophets, Jesus and Mohammed, lived in the world, were involved in politics and leadership, and had command over spirits.

Now that the ability to work and communicate with spirits is becoming more commonplace, the question arises as to what end we wish to work with the spirits. Plenty of grimoires give spells for increasing money and sexual attraction, but I believe the real work is concerned with influencing events in the world, and we do have one shining example of a magician who worked with spirits - Dr John Dee - for the betterment of England. Dee calculated the time for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth at a time when England was bankrupt and surrounded by Catholic enemies in mainland Europe (the parallels with the UK today are interesting), and by the end of her reign, England was rhe richest, most powerful country in Europe, with the beginnings of the British Commonwealth, a term invented by Dee.

Invocation and evocation are exercises in force, which as we know from Isaac Newton, has an equal and opposite reaction, while spiritual development increases power which does not have a reaction. The balanced combination of force and power is particularly desirable even if it is difficult to achieve.

♦ THE GARDEN OF EDEN ♦

efore we examine further the Testament of Solomon, I would like to of-Sfcjfer a gematria link between Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and Solomon, which comes via a suggestion from Islamic scholars that the origin of the word Jinn, or spirit, is from GN, or garden, which has the gematria value 53 (the word is the same in Hebrew and Arabic). The Garden of Eden

is considered by some to be the Seventh Heaven, so the communication with spirits appears to be at an exalted spiritual level.

The Hebrew words below all have the value of 53.

GN: garden

The garden is a place of lush vegetation with fruit trees, flowers, and flowing water, a place of refuge and spiritual elevation. The practice of creating a circle and removing all artefacts in preparation for ritual could not be more alien. GN is the only two letter word with a value of 53; if we reverse the letters to give NG, not a word itself, but words that start with NG are instructive: NGD: to announce, declare, to betray; NGD: in the presence of, the visible; NGH: to shine, illuminate, make bright; NGH: brightness, glory; NGCh: to gore, to strike, to make war; NGYD: noble, prince, leader; NGO: to strike, to punish, inflict plague,pestilence; NGSh: to press, to harass; NGSh: to come near, to approach.

In many ways, while these words characterise the goetic experience, they also bring to mind the betrayal and fall described in the Garden of Eden.

ABN: stone, BNA: build, NBA: prophesy

The three permutations of these letters emphasize the innate nature and power of the Testament - we have to build a temple, whether it is within our body, or a physical building. ABN also means precious stone, and these have been used as amulets and charms down the centuries. The natural consequence of building the Temple is to prophecy, note that prophecy can mean speaking in the way of a prophet, or to sing as in the Psalms of Solomon. ABN also has martial qualities - David used one to slay Goliath.

ChMH: Sun, heat

The solar nature of the Jinn as smokeless fire - in the desert, smokeless fire is obviously the sun.

TChVL: the Spleen

The spleen is the organ that removes impurities from the blood, produces antibodies and manufactures a variety of blood cells. Recent research suggests that the spleen has a powerful influence over longevity, which is interesting as Adam and the Patriarchs lived for hundreds of years. It may be that the process of goetic invocation releases toxins in the blood causing the physical pains which are healed over time by the spleen; alternatively, the spleen works in overdrive to purify the blood in order that spiritual work is possible. In Chinese medicine the spleen is associated with the Triple Heater meridian, ( see also ChMH, heat above).

MAHBH: Lover

Solomon was famous as a lover, while Adam and Eve were of course the original couple. There is an equality and balance with this arrangement; neither have higher status than the other.

ABYM: King of Judah

A royal connection. AB means father, while YM is the sea.

ALYHVA: He is my God

Very close to the Sufi chant Allah Hu, God is He.

Clearly the idyll that is the Garden of Eden is not intended to be solely for flowers, fruit and vegetables. The Temple has to be built in the garden, made from stones, which have the function of prophecy and protection attached to them. Furthermore, the work is to be done in partnership. The solar, regal nature of the work is clear, while there is a strong element of purification that has to be undergone.

♦ THE POWER OF PURIFICATION ♦

C\^hile the grimoires promise all kinds of wealth and riches, the realit (JtjLzfor many practitioners who aspire to work with the Goetia is a lo of pain and suffering. I went through similar experiences myself over man years. If the pain and suffering is a necessary part of spiritual developmen then it may well be that the reward is a form of the fabled Garden of Eden -we might have fallen, but we can rise again.

Desperation helps:

I have called up many of the 72 Spirits over the ensuing years but I have troubled Orobas only a handful of times since (only in times of absolute desperation and after I have exhausted all other means of helping myself).

Aleister Crowley, Goetia

Suffering seems to be a key experience of working with the Goetia:

Sometimes I have benefited from calling’ these ’Names’ and sometimes suffered. Yet, neither benefit nor pain has caused me to reject the ’bowlings...’

Aleister Crowley, Goetia

There are fears for your physical and mental health:

Negatively, the normal energy drain of evocation so depletes one’s supply that physical deterioration seems to accelerate, and body cells actually age prematurely. Without duly preparingfor literally years by a full regiment of energy building exercises, as well as physical exercise, one would almost certainly succumb to the physical stress alone. Additionally, the mental stress is sufficient to severely damage the average, or even above average psyche, and could conceivably result in a variety of disorders, of which death would appear the merciful in comparison with the alternatives.

Dangers of collateral damage:

... the author is inclined to discontinue Goetic experimentation until such time... to own a temple away from populated areas.

Steve Savedow, Goetic Invocation

Loss, whether it is financial, or personal, is also another danger, exemplified by the extreme experiences of Stafford Stone writing about Liber 231 whom I consider to be cousins of the Goetia:

Since I began exploring the Tunnels of Set and painting the cards of the Nightside Tarot, both of my parents, a close aunt and uncle, a best friend, and two pet cats all died. I lost my wife and young son, my home and most of my possessions. Close friendships imploded, relationships crumbled, jobs were lost, debts incurred, stupid actions undertaken, and grave errors of judgement made. In on intense memorable week alone, in early 2002,1 was fired from a job, evicted from a flat, had over £6000 stolen, was dumped in a relationship and required dental surgery.

Stafford Stone, Howlings

Magical invocation is clearly costly. There are very few positive accounts of working with the Goetia, and even serious doubts that magicians are capable of successful evocation for the full appearance of a spirit:

The most famous ritual magicians of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries never performed a single successful goetic evocation. They may have avidly studied evocationary texts, such as the Keys of Solomon, which was considered the primary text of ritual magick for literally centuries, and probably longer. However, neither Aleister Crowley, Samuel L. Macgregor-Mathers, Arthur E. Waite, Eliphas Levi, or Francis Barrett had ever publicly recorded a successful goetic evocation, resulting in the full visible appearance of the proposed spirit.

To which I would add that the view of the magical universe is also fatally flawed. The 72 Goetic spirits cannot be placed in, on, or under the Tree of Life in a way that makes sense. For a start, 72 is not divisible by the primary numbers of the Tree of Life: ten, twenty-two or thirty-two. If we cannot adequately attribute the Goetia to the Paths or the Sephiroth, how can we say that they are controlled by the Divine Names, Archangels and Angels attributed to the Tree? There is a well known NLP mantra, the map is not the territory, but for the Ritual Magician, the map (the Tree of Life) is the only territory. In this light, the lack of evocationary success is entirely understandable - we are looking at the wrong map.

The mindset continues in many pernicious ways. The Goetia are demonic, therefore separate from us, and they have to be maintained at magical wands length even when being invoked. Their demonic nature makes them evil; angels fallen from that place of original sin in the Garden of Eden. At best we place ourselves in a dualistic universe, which can result in a schizophrenic separation, and a childish view of good and evil. The rational magical mind demands logic, coherence and structure to its view of the world and gropes for the reassuring diagram of the Tree of Life.

My own experience of the Goetia finds all these convenient and artificial demarcation lines of good/evil, above/below the Tree of Life, demonic and angelic, entirely incomprehensible. Distinctions blur to the point that they cease to exist. I see the spiritual workings with the Goetia purely in terms that sometimes they are there, and sometimes they are not there. I go for some weeks not even thinking about them, and as soon as I notice their absence, they appear immediately, usually with something they want me to do, or with something to show me. They may be around for a few days, and then they disappear of their own accord. Regularly, spirits I have not previously worked with will appear, and this is always a sign of new knowledge or work.

Working with the Spirits is an intensely purifying and liberating experience. We have to lose material attachments, and we also have to lose our mental picture of the universe, including the Tree of Life. As in the Bible, the Tree is a barrier to be passed, not to be worked up from Malkuth to Kether.

My teacher was a man of few words, but he often made the point that the spirits had no interest in money or material things. The seemingly necessary Hell we go through, which for me lasted many years, is the stripping away of all that we hold dear, including spiritual, metaphysical and religious beliefs. The result is not spiritual or mental or physical annihilation. When matter and materialism at all levels is removed, what is left? Spirit. And it is easier for spirits to work with us if we both have a common basis. There are still attachments to things, people, and ideas, but they are not set in stone. In many respects, life continues as before, because however much one becomes spirit, there is still the material world which surrounds us.

There are powerful and desirable consequences for the magician as a result. He is no longer bound to the dreaded karmic consequences of any kind of magical operation. Magical work happens in real time, in the here and now. One can take this further; all thoughts, feelings and actions have a powerful magical and spiritual intent. The lack of separation between the magician and the universe results in an incredible sensitivity to magical currents. There are times when I have been aware of magicians at work, what they are doing, and what they intend, and as a result I have been able to take necessary action. Who needs ritual? Magical operation is simply the increase of spiritual in the material. On the spiritual path we find ourselves continually at work to remove obstacles to growth and help others on their own journey.

The lack of structure that seemed such an impediment, at least to that aspect of the mind that demands orderliness, is now our greatest asset, for if we are comfortable with the unknown, how much easier it is for us to deal the known? Having removed ourselves from notions that imprisoned us, we are free to go back to the source books, and look afresh at what they have to say.

♦ THE TESTAMENT OF SOLOMON ♦

z^^Sated to between the first and third century ad, the Testament was from the Greek by F. C. Conybeare,Jewish Quarterly Review, October, 1898 and can be found online. There is however a better translation in the Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, Volume 1: Apocalyptic Literature and Testaments by James H. Charlesworth. It tells of how Solomon builds the Temple and commands the spirits. The Hebrew for Temple is Beth, the second letter of the alphabet, and it means a house, tent, building, or within. There is no mention of a Tree of Life here. The first stage related by the Testament is mastery of the spiritual forces on three levels:

Testament of Solomon, son of David, who was king in Jerusalem, and mastered and controlled all spirits of the air, on the earth, and under the earth.

It continues, and emphasises the role of the spirits in his enterprise:

By means of them also he wrought all the transcendent works of the Temple.

Transcendent suggests that Solomon is not working at a mundane level of the Temple, nor is he practising religious rituals of the Temple, as mastery of the spiritual forces is a pre-requisite. We can further infer that the Temple refers to the body rather than a building.

There are in fact three temples being described here. Solomons body purified so that he has mastery of the Spirits. The Temple of Jerusalem which is being built after Solomon has attained that mastery. Finally, the Temple of God where Solomon communes with Divine Powers. It is important to note that in the tale, only the physical building, the Temple of Jerusalem is in the process of construction, while the body of Solomon and the Temple of God are already complete.

As the Temple of Jerusalem is being built, the demon Ornias starts to drain the energy of the son of the chief deviser. Solomon notices that the boy

is getting thinner, and he gently interrogates him. Solomon we are told then enters the Temple of God. After praying all night and day. Lord Sabaoth commands the archangel Michael to give Solomon a ring with a stone engraved with a pentagram.

With it thou shalt lock up all the demons of the earth, male and female; and with their help thou shalt build up Jerusalem.

Now we know why the Temple of Jerusalem has not been completed, it requires the energies of the demons of the earth to make it complete. If it had not been for Ornias possessing the boy, Solomon would not have known that the demons were needed. Solomon is told to wear the ring, but the next day he gives it to the boy and commands him to throw the ring at the demon when he appears. The boy does so, and Ornias complains, offering him gold of the earth, but the child obediently brings him to Solomon, who asks, Who art thou?, and Ornias willingly tells him his name - no coercion required. The next question is astrological. Ornias is revealed to be under the sign of Aquarius. Ornias then tells Solomon of the various forms he appears in, and that he is the offspring of the archangel Uriel, the power of God. Later, Solomon discovers that Ornias has knowledge of the future, and he questions the spirit further:

We demons ascend into the firmament of heaven, and fiy about among the stars. And we hear the sentences which go forth upon the souls of men, and forthwith we come, and whether by force of influence, or by fire, or by sword, or by some accident, we veil our act of destruction; and if a man does not die by some untimely disaster or by violence, then we demons transform ourselves in such a way as to appear to men, and by worshipped in our human nature.

Ornias captures the essence of the powers of the spirits. His explanation coincides with my own experiences and avoids the theological arguments of the Fall (which the Golden Dawn embraces wholeheartedly). The ability to

attain a state but not necessarily maintain that state is entirely natural in spiritual work.

My own experiences of dealing with spiritual possession, while not on such exalted levels, are similar to those of Solomon and Ornias. The spirit possesses and causes trouble to the victim who comes to me for help. By releasing the spirit from the victim, the spirit is often released from entrapment by others. As a result, these spirits are now very helpful to me. A very different relationship to the one we find suggested in the Lemegeton.

♦ HIERARCHY ♦

f“^^zhe nature of the spiritual hierarchy is fascinating, it seems that demons -^V-and archangels work together in harmony. For example, Solomon prays to Uriel, who appears from the heavens and commands Ornias to cut stones (see ABN) for the Temple. Solomon then commands Ornias to bring the prince of all the demons, Beelzeboul. Beelzeboul has not heard of Solomon, but when Ornias throws the ring at the chest of Beelzeboul, he complies. With Beelzeboul, he has the power to manifest any spirit he demands. First, Solomon wants to meet the female spirits! Then Asmodeus appears. Eventually Solomon is presented with the 36 spirits who rule the 36 deca-nates. Once they have appeared, they are commanded to work on the Temple of God. This first appears to be a textual error, since it is the Temple of Jerusalem that is being constructed, but now that the spirits are working on the Temple of Jerusalem, it becomes the Temple of God. This is a radically simplified hierarchy and method of working to the one we find in the Goetia.

Solomon seems to work at three distinct levels: the Air, on the Earth, and Under the Earth. The case can be made for equating the three Temples to these levels. Crucially Solomon is able to move freely through the levels and converse with Archangels and spirits, which parallels the demons that are also able to move through the levels and communicate with archangels and men. Perhaps we are not that different after all?

♦ SPIRITUAL PRACTICES ♦

olomon uses prayer to build spiritual power and he is given a ring with CVj/an engraved stone as a symbol of authority by Sabaoth via Michael. This parallels Dee's system of Enochian magic, where he is given a crystal ball and uses earnest prayer, not high magical ritual to communicate with the spirits. Dee’s magical system is primarily concerned with power and mastery over others, just as Solomon was a political master - his personal spiritual development had already reached an exalted level. There is no mention of magical weapons such as the swords, wands and knives of what we call Solomonic magic.

Perhaps the lesson of the Testament is that once we are freed from the constraints of Kabbalism and ritual magic there is a genuine opportunity to explore and develop a new relationship with the Spirits.

FACESOFA

KING

MARK SMITH

ELI AL was not the first great spirit to manifest before me without F'^hactual evocation, but the circumstances surrounding His arrival <^Ojwere certainly the strangest. The others that did come uncalled, such as Barbas; who had surprised me by manifesting physically during a nocturnal working at the beach; had all arrived throughout the course of about a year mainly because they had been brought by the Goddess to assist in Her workings as either teachers or guides. The following occasion however, was different.

I have never been a sigil torturing chain rattler; partly because this method has never appealed to me and partly because the Witchcraft taught by the Goddess did not require this approach. Not if you really wanted to interact with these entities, learning from them as one of them, or as close to their level as is possible, as opposed to attempted subjugation. That said, I was at this stage still finding my feet in this field and whilst negotiationg this rather steep learning curve, the human element of my thinking was still fairly cautious and a little wary of certain goetic persona. Trust is a hard thing to come by and not easily earned by either party concerned, regardless of which plane they may live on. Hence, before rushing too fast into new spiritual relationships I would try to balance the Goddess’ teachings with a little practical safety; blending Witchcraft with evocation whilst trying to avoid as much Christian jargon as possible.

The Lucifer evocation several months earlier had gone very well, the regal presence of the great horned God of Witchcraft charging the whole atmosphere upon his arrival; leaving the air almost tangible, with an electric tinge to it which I could almost taste, giving rise to a sensation somewhere akin to placing your tongue on the terminals of a small square nine volt battery and tasting your own blood. As the Great Horned One and I conversed I caught periphiral flashes of a dark haired green eyed Lady walking the perimeter of my circle, watching the progress within, ensuring the saftey of Her child; but then it was after all She who had brought us to this point, this meeting; firstly in meditative projection and now in actual physical evocation. The call from the Grand Grimore combined with several words of power from the Goddess, not only made this communion possible, but powerful. The aftermath of the rite with Lucifer left me feeling great and on a high positive note for days; not to mention the newly aquired knowledge that I received from Him.

The subject of this next evocation was not, however chosen by the Goddess, but by myself. Working with my own intuition and a sprinkling of mild curiosity I found myself strongly drawn to King Belial. I knew only what I had read of Him, described in the Dead Sea Scrolls as synonymous with Satan and listed as a great goetic King,

Belial is the sixty-eighth spirit in the Goetia; created next after Lucifer and of His Order. He appeareth in the form of a beautiful angel sitting in a chariot of fire. Note that this King must have sacrifices presented to Him by the Exorcist or else He will not give Him true answers to his demands; but then He tarrieth not one hour in the truth...

Depending on which edition of the Goetia you are reading, Belial comes with a variety of warnings. Poke Runyon goes as far as labelling Him probably the most dangerous spirit in the Goetia. Again depending on which version you read, He is said to command between fifty and eighty legions.

Maybe it was the fact that to my mind at least, the evocation of this King was not an act of my own choosing, or maybe it was something else, a deeper feeling, but I already knew that there was going to be a lot more to this entity and His evocation rite than could be found in any version of the Lesser Key. There was I admit a little aprehension. I decided that I would dust off the Enochian tablets for this one - a little extra energy support, just in case -particularly as this work was not Goddess initated.

An evening was picked the following week for my evocation, I had time off then and so could lie in the following day, running the previous evenings work over in my head in a half-sleeping state; a favourite post-evocation pastime of mine.

The day in question arrived and I began setting up the basic layout of my ritual chamber, which also doubled up as my sitting room. The triangle of Arte was placed out, though still covered with black silk; with the incense burner next to it on the floor. The King’s sigil, drawn several days earlier, still rested in its brass case wrapped in silk. It was as I began unwrapping the Enochian tablets to hang them on the walls that I sensed and then unmistakably felt, the vibration in the room rise considerably, a magnetic pull on my body non-specific in its direction, just sheer encompassing power affecting every part of me. I felt like my teeth were being pulled but the effect was not confined to this sensation as waves of pulsating energy infused themselves into and through the base chakra, tugging and pulling upon it. I was aware beyond any doubt that something powerful had arrived and if I was lucky, was about to show itself. Loaded with this almost overwhelming power I shuffled my way to the couch, slumping onto it as the increasing vibration uncoiled my kundalini energy and caused it to rise to the occasion. This was not the Goddess, She felt completely different, a much higher frequency. This was a similar, albeit red-based energy sensation to that which was felt upon Lucifer’s arrival, except that here there had been no evocation called and no circle cast.

As the power increased something pressed against my aura. Whilst staving off this ecstasy inducing pulse (it was not, you understand, unpleasant) in

order to maintain coherent thought I looked into my fireplace and saw what was obviously the focal point of the manifestation; two yellow eyes blinking at me from within a vortex of dark energy. As the swirling slowed down I could make out a face of sorts. It had reptilian traits, was long like that of a horse but finished at a sharp point where the mouth was. As ripples of energy washed over the face every other second or so, it seemed to alternate between this demonic look and the face of a man. With each ripple there was movement behind the face and I could see that the traces of ash and soot that lay on the cast iron surface upon which this being chose to manifest were being drawn into the face. Whatever it was, it was building itself a body. In my fascination of the scene before me, I noticed two horns sticking out of the top of the horse-type head and sweeping backwards, they were not long and splayed like those of Lucifer, but much shorter and slighly inverted. Hanging from the base of each horn and resting down each side of its face, the being had what looked to be a Coral snake, writhing slowly. There was movement at the other side of the fireplace, more swirling, but for now I was entranced by the first entity.

When I remembered that I had a voice, I asked it to identify itself. There was a delay in response as the yellow eyes blinked a few times in silence, then a male voice, its vibratory tone running through my entire body, answered. It was not loud, did not shout, and was in fact quite calm, but reverberated with barely concealed power, You know who I am. Is all this not for me?

I realised I was still holding the Enochian air tablet from earlier. Resorting back to basics I asked for a sigil for confirmation, though there was not much doubt in my mind as to the being's identity, despite the lack of flaming chariot. My request was met with silence and blinking yellow eyes, fixed solely upon me. I tried again, If I don’t get a sigil I’m going to break this off now!

More expressionless blinking. I began summoning the strength to cut through this seductive red energy when another, different voice spoke my name, Mark. It was a woman's voice.There is something about hearing your own name vibrated from the lips of a beautiful female entity that dwarfs many an experience. Looking into the opposite corner of the fireplace where

the other manifestations began, I saw Her. She was not only beautiful, but also easily recognisable to me. Feeling Her individual energy, I recalled my first encounter with Namaah. She had been an integral part in many ways of the spiritual initiation held partly in Her own realm and induced by my Witchcraft Goddess. I knew Namaah beyond doubt. Her face. Her energy, Her touch. It had not been an experience any travelling soul would ever forget. I also realised why She was here, to put me at ease, a friendly face shall we say. What I did not know was who the three dark witch ladies behind Her were. They moved slowly and in silence, seeming to blend with and through each other.

Glancing back to the near corner, I could now plainly see Belial’s sigil floating in etheric red, lingering for a few seconds before the energy disseminated back into the face of its host, making its mottled texture (l still could not decide between salamander or horse) alternate in colour between red and mauve.

We are your sisters, come with us. Female voices. I looked back to where Namaah had been, but She was gone. Her task, one of introduction, obviously completed, leaving three etheric ladies of darkness behind, beckoning and smiling at me. They had immense beauty but I noticed as their shadows spilled beyond the fireplace and across the wall, that they each also had a sword. They may have been etheric, but a sword is still a sword, as above, so below. I still did not know who these ladies were, all I knew is that the Goddess of All Witchcraft was not currently present.

Belial spoke again, When you conduct your work tonight, when you call me, meet me alone as you did Lucifer. Under the ancient laws of Witchcraft. He meant no Enochian elemental tablets, adversarial angels, or blasting rods. Just circle, sword, athame, wand and grail. Witchcraft, not ioi, but one to one.

This is our true way, added Belial. True, I had called Lucifer this way but that rite had been initiated and presided over by the great Goddess, to me this was different. Unsure of Belial's motives I remained unconvinced and the great King knew it: I will not be bound easily, he assured me. That last comment really did not help swing the decision in his favour, but he persisted,

Open the gateways as a true Witch. I know what you want. Your thirst for knowledge. I may surprise you... pleasantly. I am here now, am I not? Do I harm you?

Belial hit gold with this last comment, particularly as He was actually now fully physically manifested. There seemed almost no point to the rite itself. The King was here with many of his followers, four of them in physical manifestation. I could feel the presence of others, but could not see them.

I pondered the offer and in the light of current circumstance, agreed. Barely having time now to raise my next question, which was to be on the type of call, Belial issued His own instruction for such to me. Mine was fairly simple, Witchcraft orientated and more of an invitation than a summoning, requesting that He honour me as a guest in my temple. What the hell, I thought, let's play it this way. It was not as if he appeared to have a problem gaining access to me anyway.

Now that we had come to an arrangement during this impromptu meeting, I supposed I had better prepare for the actual rite. I was not even aware how long I had been sat there, but there must have been quite a lapse of time. Yet I still did not move; I didn't want to. As I continued in spellbound fascination and energetic rapture to observe the King and His three Witch Queen accomplices I couldn’t help but feel extrordinarily lucky. How many people work for years in ceremonial circles without ever having a powerful experience such as this?

Belial did not move from His position, He just kept looking around surveying His surroundings. The three Witch Queens were moving into and through each other, blurring their individual etheric forms, smiling at me with their slighly sinister wry smiles. I allowed myself to participate in the silent congress for maybe another twenty minutes more. Eventually, I just had to pull myself away or I would have still been sat there a week later. Standing up, I headed out of the room, taking a shower and food before resolving to finish the ritual preparation. When I returned to the sitting room, they were gone. No energy could be felt, in fact the only trace that they had been there at all was the ash and soot gathered in the near corner where Belial had positioned Himself.

With all equipment carefully laid out, a large sigil of Belial uncovered and plenty of incense building up inside the triangle from the burner, I stood inside the circle ready for round two. The sigil and triangle of Arte had been energised at blade point and two small thuribiles, one containing brandy and the other an offering of my own fresh blood, sat next to the King’s glyph. Tools in hand, I began the call to the Great King, using the words imparted earlier. After the events earlier on in the day, I was not quite sure what I was expecting... a tornado of energy, a flash of fire and brimstone followed by an instant appearance of Belial? But it was nothing like that. In actual fact, things took a little while to get warmed up.

I had made several well paced calls to no avail, not even a pulled chakra and was contemplating a more traditional form of verbal invitation when I felt a slight pull toward the point of evocation. A pull this time to my stomach. Reiterating Belial’s chant, I could now feel the power beginning to flow through me. Incense in and around the triangle was drawn back into the centre and pushed upwards to the top of an energy vortex that swirled there as someone was making their entrance to this plane. I continued the call, feeling the power intensify, again pulling on my body, the muscles tensing in my directional arm. When the figure reached manifestation, I stopped the chant. What I saw before me was neither an angel in a flaming chariot, nor the mottled red-skinned entity whom had contacted me earlier. In fact the only notable resemblance was in how the being felt. It had the same magnetic force.

Following commonsense I requested a sigil check, this time receiving an immediate response as Belial’s glyph illuminated in the ether before me, lingering just long enough for me to identify it. This confirmation brought with it questions, so after the necessary welcome and preliminaries, I sought some answers. I knew these entities were shape-shifters but I didn’t realise that meant they could change not only their shape, but also their eyes. For some reason I had aquired the notion that the eyes remained the same, I was wrong.

The form now taken by the King was that of a dark fox-faced entity with gleaming sapphire blue eyes. Addressing Belial about this matter I was given

the first answer to the questions mounting in my mind, and also the first hint of His role as a teacher, And therein lies thejirst lesson... Forget what you think you know about me.

More questions followed, as did more answers. Which in turn fuelled yet more questions. The communication was excellent, apart from one small incident when in mid-conversation, Belial suddenly loomed as close to my circle as He could get and hissed, You are all alone. Slightly surprised and not really sure what He was getting at, I simply replied. That alters nothing! With that, he returned to his previous state and position, with communication resuming after a short pause as I regathered my thoughts.

I put that little incident down to what I call spirit testing and have found over time that even angels will test the summoner, all spirits test. The remainder of our rite ran smoothly and I agreed to the only thing Belial requested in return for the teachings imparted to me, his seal carved with care and attention to detail in a permanent fixture for future use.

Post-rite, I felt good. Tired but good. Satisfied with the evocation, I was a little unsatisfied with myself at not asking the Great King the most blatantly obvious question: Why had He come to me uncalled? Perhaps I was just carried away with the input of teaching and imparted knowledge; or perhaps the teaching aspect was the reason, in which case Belial answered this question more or less upon arrival. After feeding, grounding and writing my notes, I headed for my well-earned bed.

Contemplating the previous nights working in my semi-awakened state the following morning, I felt the touch of spirit across my skin, that tingling erotic sensation, prickly heat meets ecstatic wave. I felt it working its way up my legs: I realised that someone was still lingering. The higher ranks always were that little bit harder to send home in the early days. I didn’t react straight away, knowing that I would see flashes, those traces of cross-dimensional knowledge borne of direct contact... a reptilian tail, reminiscent of a similar experience with Lucifer, blue eyes turning to yellow... somebody knew what I was doing, and was playing. More touching, before I summoned up mental energy and threw Him off, a huge surge of strength flowing through

me as we broke contact. He was persistent though, and we went through this little charade several times, each casting off leaving me feeling increasingly stronger. Next came the images, they were not particularly pleasant, flashes of blood and injury. I was unsure whether they came from Belial or one of His followers, but some of them were pretty gruesome. Either way, it was time to move them all on,

Okay Belial. One, unlike my naked soul, I as a person am not hemaphrodite. And two, I am not so keen on that colourful imagery. As I made my way out of the house to my store room to retreive a banishing aid His voice replied, You will understand why in time. Whatever He meant by that I did not know, but I was back in a few minutes with my banishing tool, a carved sigil of Lucifer empowered and charged with His energy, which used in conjunction with a few words of power from the Goddess of Witchcraft will banish pretty much anything... and it did.

All in all, it had been a good experience. King Belial has such a wealth of knowledge and had been happy to impart this during the rite, even if He did become a little playful the following day. This was not however the last I was to hear from Belial, nor were they the only two sides of His persona that I was to see.

Amongst my other workings, both within and without the circle, I explored as much as I could of the Nightside Tree. This exploration had been encouraged by the Goddess for obvious reasons, the power and knowledge that are obtained during these journeys can be tremendous. It was during the early stages of one such planned incursion, from inside a circle, just as the gates within were opening and connecting to the gates beyond, that I encountered Belial again. My body, it’s secret magickal doorways opened through sexual rite, now primed for the work and ready to release my shadow form, made the perfect vessel through which to channel the powerful force that waited behind the Nightside door. As the portals opened the King's energy flooded in. 'Rushing up' probably isn’t the correct way to describe what happened, but that is what it felt like. An upward rush of a dark persona charging in. It was very powerful but not will-bending. I am no stranger to possession and

know it to be one of the pinnacles of occult learning, a process in which both knowledge and power are shared, creating in an instant more understanding than can be achieved from digesting an entire book section.

I knew without the need for introduction that it was Belial, that calm energy that was the tip of the slightly sinister incursion. As the power increased, my hands that were relaxed upon on my lap, parted. The palms acting like propelling magnets to each other, pushing further apart until my arms were almost fully extended at shoulder height. My eyes rolled in their sockets, and as they flickered open I caught a glimpse ar the edge of my vision: a woman, black hair, green eyes. Then nothing. I was alone again with the mighty Belial occupying my form, I could barely move as the power surged through me. I initiated communication, starting with the basics: Who are you?

Why do you always ask that which you already know? Came the reply, through my own mouth.

Then, Great King, what are you?

His response was immediate: Let me tell you where I am. I am here. Everytime you open these dark doorways, you open them to me. To my kin. This is our world... This is your world.

Being more specific, I persisted: Then I ask you again, what are you and your kin? What are you to man?

Belial’s reply was detailed: I am many things, I am Rage, I am Pain, I am Sorrow; I am the greatest of teachers, the worst of enemies; I am Beliar!

Wanting to equate the being to its claims, I asked, Why Pain, Sorrow and Rage?

Everything has its rightful place. You will learn, He replied.

I tried to take the opportunity to find the answers to some personal questions, What are you to me?

Do not ask me questions if you will not heed my answers, He snapped, jerking my body, reading my doubts as he read my mind. Then passively: I am a teacher, a guardian, a guide. No more questions, I have something to show you.

What I was shown were landscapes, mountain ranges and skies. We were not travelling, we had not left the body. I have no idea, even now, what its

purpose was, other than perhaps to show me that he could open doorways or produce images. Once the picture show was over, the bones of several very interesting rites were laid bare for me to enflesh with my own work at a later date.

This period of possession work gave answers to many more questions, including a little more understanding of the King's relation to Lucifer and a little more of his purpose. The identity of the three Witch Queens was also revealed; the Moires. The three Dark Witch Goddesses, who have moved throughout history in many different guises and forms. These were the Furies of legend. Teachers and initiators of magick in their own right, they are daughters of the Dark Goddess and, as Belial was keen to emphasise, they also worked closely with Him in other darker matters.

As we communicated I could see King Belial as a large human figure, muscular but with no hair, His sapphire eyes flashing as he spoke. When this work was done Belial removed Himself without a single trace, leaving me to banish, cleanse, and close any dark doorways within and beyond. There was no immune system drain, as I experienced during the first ever chanelling of other powerful entities. Though it only happpened with one or two male persona, the flu-like effects that last for an hour or so afterwards were a bit of a drag until a tolerance was formed. It seemed as though Belial was capable of checking His power, thus preventing it causing any harm.

This last visit gave birth to yet more workings. As I was now more accustomed to Belial, I began powerful mirror gate work with Him. The mirror as the focal point within the circle created an immensely powerful portal, through which communion could be attained. The King would on occasion present Himself in the latter mentioned form, sometimes projecting Himself right out of the mirror to manifest. It was here in the two-way traffic of the mirror that working inside the circle benefited me, though I still found His trait of leaning right up to my face slightly unnerving.

For a couple of months we worked in this manner. Belial took on the part-time role of teacher before stepping back into the shadows once more as other guides stepped forward to assist me in the name of She who came first.

There then followed a period where, other than actual evocations and cast workings I saw little of Belial or the others, and the random visits dropped off. That is, until a chain of events triggered the manifestation of a particular side of the persona for which the King is more renowned.

I had been spending a lot of time with a close female friend. This gentle woman was having a horrific time, experiencing a massive resurgence of fear, grief and emotional and psychological trauma as childhood damage resurfaced to haunt her in the form of horrendous nightmares and repeated breakdowns. This lady and her two sisters had suffered the type of abuse and been subjected to things that no human being, no living creature, should ever have to endure. Inflicted by a person who should have undertaken the opposite role of loving protector and guardian. Three lives ruined many years before had never had the chance to rebuild, repeatedly collapsing back into deep depression and despair. One girl had found the strength to come forward to the police, but the judicial system failed, unless of course two years is a fair exchange for three destroyed and tormented lives. Whilst helping my friend through this difficult time, I did not have to be a particularly powerful psychic to know that the culprit, not only being far from sorry, still found something in the memory of his acts to keep him happy. Well, that and the fact that he periodically made calls to the one girl who fled to America to start her life again, reminding her of the joy his memories gave him. That girl collapsed back into mental and emotional breakdown.

Since leaving the military, I had almost forgotton how cruel some human beings could be to others. Comforting and trying to support my friend and seeing her pain was a very powerful and sad reminder and I confess, stirred emotions. Instincts that I also thought had been left behind with the army reared their heads. Realistically though, in the modern world, even with this man tormenting my friend by telephone, what could I do? I lived two thousand miles away from him in Southern Spain; what could I do? I got so knotted up one night thinking about it whilst driving home that I pulled the car into a country lane and sat, engine and lights off, door open, brooding and thinking unhealthy thoughts. Well, I am an ex-paratrooper,

not an army priest! I was angry, angry at the feeble legal system, angry at the vile creature responsible for the pain I saw in someone I cared for, and angry at yet another calamitous failure of the scales of celestial balance in the halls of karmic justice. I must have been giving off a fair-sized energy signature, and not a good one at that, because it attracted something. The high frequency whine came first, not tinnitis or astral bells but high pitched intense frequency noise, splitting up thought patterns. The type of noise that over time could stretch your sanity. The buzzing came seconds after, the two noises intensifying as the energy rose and the atmosphere around me thickened. It takes a lot to make my hackles stand, but they were up.

I knew this noise, it signified a very physical, very old presence, the type that arrives when a gateway that shouldn’t really open on it own, does.

I could not see Him yet, but I knew who was coming. When the screeching and buzzing seemed to connect in the middle of my head, I saw Him in the tree line, a tall thin man with what appeared to be black hair, but it was hard to say, as He wore a red hooded cloak with the hood up, his two amber eyes shining in the darkness. He manifested in visual flashes, staring at me. You would not have to be a college professor to know why He was here, but I decided to ask anyway. His reply was calm and business-like: To present an offer of assistance.

Why do you care? My own reply came out petulantly, probably because of how I was feeling about the situation, but I was curious as well.

Does it matter whether I care or not? I am a friend to you, offering to help. You may take or leave the offer, Belial’s tone remained calm. He seemed consistent in His approach whatever the occasion, the only difference this time was the abyssal vibration. I had not yet encountered this red-cloaked form of Him, and I noted that while the body flickered in and out of focus, the eyes did not move. The gaze never left me. He did not blink.

Something made my back go cold. I did not look or try to feel what it was. I knew I had company in and around the space of the car, and I’d have wagered that there were three of them.

I asked King Belial what He wanted in return for me taking His offer of assistance.

Nothing, was His reply. Only that you understand what it is you are asking for if you call me to attend this matter.

I understood, but I was also keen to cut the conversation short, not least because the presence of my new passengers was intensifying the energy around me. It all catalysed with Belial impressing into my head the not so finer details of what this all meant. All in all, it was a bit much for one night, but I had got the message.

Over the next couple of days I thought about it, weighed it up and then decided that I needed a woman's perspective. Someone mature, someone wise and knowledgeable, someone I loved and trusted above all others in this universe: Hecate. And so with circle cast and fluid spilled, I communed with She who came first. There were many questions, the first of which was, Who was Belial and what was He to my Goddess?

He is Lord of Lords, second in command of all Hell, the spawn of my spawn; a guardian to my children.

The Dark Goddess gave Her approval and also the necessary details of the rite itself. She had known I would come to Her. It was enough to affirm my decision. Belial had a deal.

The hardest part of the whole process was trying to procure a photo of the man who was to be the focal point of the rite without giving anything away. My friend obtained one for me. She knew. She didn't ask, but she knew.

Several weeks later, in the Spanish mountains, a court hearing was held. A circle was cast, my own blood spilled, fluid offered and multiple evocations undertaken.

Two Witch Gods, one Great King in red hooded cloak and three dark Fates heard the case put before them. Judgement was literally in the hands of the Witch Gods.

Belial never uttered a word during the rite. He just participated, watching all that which was laid before him, his yellow eyes flashing red and almost gelatinous in full manifestation. The dark trio, moving behind and to the

side of the King, their smiles now looking very sinister. The current flowing from them reminded me why they were sometimes called Furies. The taste of copper was in the air. As the rite drew to a close, the man in the red cloak and three dark Witches, each carrying a drawn sword (as Above so Below) drifted back into the ether. I felt my mind focus upon an evil man many miles away who was soon to meet his dark match.

Contact with Belial was sporadic for a while after this rite, though I would glimpse Him from time to time. I would feel the presence, the energy, then see the eyes looking at me from wherever He had chosen to manifest.

Gradually his presence became more frequent again.There is not as much conversation as there used to be, but this King of Hell is nearly always present now at my nocturnal beach workings, choosing to gravitate around the Nothernmost tip around my cast circle on the Earth plane. Though He has demonstrated on more than one ocassion that He is as capable of filling the sky as Hecate or Lucifer does, giving the impression as they descend the astral plane in closer communion of actually pulling the night sky down with them, Belial prefers the proximity of the Earth plane as a vantage point from which to observe my workings. The form He chooses for this is as He first appeared to me, a huge red pointed demonic face, glowing amber coals for eyes. Only once during one of my rituals have I ever seen anything that looked remotely like a goetic description of Him, as in mid-work I happened to look over to the King, knowing Him to be at His regular spot, the horned demonic face vibrating at the Northern quadrant. Just as I was about to look away, the face split directly in the middle, each piece then folding outwards from the centre, to become a wing and revealing a beautiful male figure beneath the mask of red. This is the only time I have ever seen any kind of angelic manifestation of Him. With Belial you never really know which is the real King. I believe they are all parts of Him, like our fingertips are a part of us but not the whole.

The Moires show up from time to time, infrequently. Sometimes teaching, sometimes tempting, that is their way and I accept them as they are. As allies. As my sisters.

The road with King Belial has been a long and sometimes rough one, but I am used to Him now. Used to His visits. Used to waking up finding him half-manifested watching over my girlfriend and I. She is so sensitive that she snaps awake, startled if a night hag so much as flies past the window. Yet Belial can be almost fully manisfested in the room, and is clever and respectful enough not to disturb her at all. Sometimes there are others present, many times Hecate. This is what they do, they watch.

One of my most recent experiences with this King was several weeks ago as I lay shivering on my sofa, leaking from every pore with a hideous dose of flu. I heard and felt the high frequency whining, then buzzing like a hive (did someone leave a gate open?) I looked up and the eyes were there, that intense look and the outline of a sharp pointed face. His energy was bouncing all around me, looking for an entry point. The base chakra always works. I felt the lift, the boost, unbelievable! I felt better. Not over it, just better. Such a small task almost seemed to be beneath Him, but His energy gave my own physical strength a boost, easing the discomfort.

He can still surprise me.

Work with this spirit can be very rewarding for those who have the right approach. I would recommend proceeding tentatively. He is not for everyone, though He can be very persausive. I speak as I find, and I do not find Belial to be the force of absolute evil portrayed by Christian scribes in past centuries. He has a dark persona, with dark veils, and He keeps powerful company.

This King is, to all intents and purposes an integral part of my life now. Throughout all the work undertaken with Him, from evocation to the exploration of Nightside realms, I have found Him to be very loyal. He has never let me down.

As I write this piece, I reflect upon my many encounters with King. Beliar, the Lord of Lords. In particular the rite in the mountains where we all gathered to fight fire with fire. For it was in that, the darkest of His persona that I both saw and knew the truth which Belial has always spoken:

Everything has its rightful place.

NIGHTSIDE

TAROT STAFFORD STONE

omeone recently asked me why I think these spirits, and de-mons in general, look the way they do, that is, ugly and monstrous. The short and easy answer would be that they dress themselves in the contents of our subconscious, every repressed and ugly complex or secret clothing itself in the imagery of every cheesy late-night horror movie, comic book, or medieval painting we've ever been exposed to. But I think a real clue lies in what they are not. Beauty, as the myth of Helen of Troy teaches us, causes conflict and disunity. The opposite of beauty therefore must promote unity and peace. These spirits, though they appear to be individual and autonomous entities, are really parts of one whole: yours. And their task’ (which is also yours), as such, is one of integration.

Working with them has, as I pointed out in Housings, effects in the physical world, not all of them desirable. These may be unpredictable events that happen to you, or they may appear as impulses towards actions of your own: you may lie, cheat or steal for example, or otherwise transgress society's norms. These may cause repercussions for others in your life, which again may be undesirable for them or you. What must be realised is, that no matter how distressing these repercussions may appear to be, how hurtful, selfish, immoral &c., they are in fact absolutely necessary stages in your journey towards wholeness. There will undoubtedly be family, friends or colleagues who fail to understand what is happening, and indeed, you yourself may fail to see how necessary these events are until much later when the dust has settled, and this will cause much emotional upheaval in your life. Yet magick is all about transcendence and transgression: it cannot adhere to society’s concepts of what constitutes right, moral, or acceptable behaviour.

Many such concepts, so deeply ingrained in us since birth, are often the hardest to overcome. Of all people, one would expect fellow magicians and seekers to understand this, and yet you will undoubtedly discover that many of them too still adhere to a set of values, often Judaeo-Christian in origin, and will judge you accordingly.

You must have no fear, and continue your work: at the end of the day, the work you are doing must be completed if you are to be wholly integrated, and there is bound to be some collateral damage. That sounds awfully cold and heartless, and its not meant to: who among us doesn’t want to be loved and to love others in return? Yet those who truly love you will stay with you, and work with you, while those who are merely hangers on will drop away. When you are finished, you will be left with a circle of true friends. (Caveat: never forget that the work you are doing is, ultimately, on yourself. While you may offend, insult, or hurt others around you, you shouldn’t be causing any actual physical harm. If you feel these, or any other spirits, are leading you to physically harm others, then you have done something badly wrong and need to sit back and take stock of where you are.)

Generally though, most of your actions can simply be classified as mischief, even though those most directly affected may take them as personal attacks or malevolence, and it is ultimately their failure to understand that will cause any friction between you, not yours.

What is actually happening is a process of severance, a severing of those ties that bind you in your world, ties that have been steadily placed around you since birth, by society, family, friends etc. As magicians, and artists, and others similar, we are already on the fringes of society: one step away from being outsiders. By entering these realms, you are in effect becoming a trickster figure, like Raven, Coyote, Legba, Hermes, Eshu, Susa-no-o, Set, &c., one who both moves and mediates between worlds, rather than remaining firmly rooted in one.

Tricksters speak and act in a way that confuses the distinctions between lying and truth-telling or undercuts the current fictions by which reality is shaped. They freely play with dirt or excrement (a symbol of what is cast out or unclean), because their function is to return it to any situation that has become too pure or orderly (and thus sterile). With the return of dirt comes redemption or re-creation, and the trickster that can freely play with dirt, is also the culture hero who brings fundamental change. However, those who play in the shit get soiled themselves, and it can be said that, in bringing about much needed change, the trickster is making a huge self-sacrifice: sacrificing everything they currently are for a greater benefit to everyone. The only way to avoid getting bogged down (literally), is through humour: so if you get shit on yourself, there is nothing to do but laugh at yourself. Any person or system that cannot laugh at themselves responds to those who do not know their place, who place themselves outside, with violence, anger, and repression. And if this is their stance, then they of all people are most in need of the changes that the laughing trickster attempts to bring about.

♦ SHALICU ♦

Male. A writhing mass of tentacles with a gaping maw bars the way, holding a silver trident and a staff topped by a golden sigil. Above floats an ovum, while in front is a golden lion skull, set with a ruby on its brow. Lightning flashes illuminate the tunnel, and reptiles swim freely back and forth. This guardian is the Quinotaur, the Bull of the Deeps, a spirit that attempts to divert you from your purpose, often leading you in an altogether seemingly different direction. Non Patebo means I shall not open! Shalicu is one of the most difficult guardians to pass, yet you still need to trust him, for although his methods seem suspicious, he has the power to confer sacred royalty upon you.

Passing through the lightning bolts of transformation, we are able to shed unconscious conditioning and our limiting definitions of our Self; the dross is burned away, and our Spirit is set free. This is accompanied by feelings of alienation and non-conformity, of being a ’rebel without a clue', lost, alone, and uncertain in your direction. Yet, there is light at the end of this Tunnel.

• ♦ CHARACITH ♦

Female: An underwater vampire, hammerheaded, in some sort of underwater grotto. Turtles swim about her, while crabs clutching pearls scuttle along the floor. Her halo is of bubbles. Around her neck is a golden chain, holding a doubloon, symbolic of sunken treasure. Strange deep-sea fish lovingly caress and lick her, while giant sea-serpents writhe around in the gloom beyond. Characith is shark-like because she is a fearful predator, who fascinates as much as she is terrible. She is perfect at what she does, which is seduction and destruction. The unprepared stand no chance here, but the prepared can swim with her safely, she teaches much in the way of sexual mysteries, and protects you while guiding you onto the correct path.

• ♦ ACE OF SERPENTS ♦

A Great Wyrm winds itself around the Tree of Death. It is the Ouroboros, whose origins lie in the Milky Way, yet it is not swallowing itself, but vomiting itself forth, birthed in slime. Skulls hang from the Tree, together with tinkling wind chimes. A dove descends, and a scorpion rises. The skeleton of a demon stands guard at the roots of the Tree.

This card represents the seed of your own (ego’s) annihilation. It will be slowly grown in darkness and birthed in pain, but will ultimately create a Void from which a new life can form. It represents a loss of purity, in the sense that every life needs a little defiling dirt: nothing can ever be really pure, because purity is sterility, and nothing can grow in a sterile environment.

♦ TWO OF stones: chaos ♦

Nothing is fixed: even that most solid of materials, stone, is here fluid and organic. Your world is changing, but there is no apparent plan, and you have no control. What is happening is beyond your current understanding and level of experience. A storm is on the horizon, and Leviathan awaits the outcome.

BLACK

SATURNIAN

MAGIC THOMAS KARLSSON

1 ■ ^{RECONSTRUCTION OF} DARK ritual magic based on the Oz I philosophy of the renaissance* Many of the views on

F' magic that are prevalent nowadays were formulated during the Renaissance. But the Renaissance view of the magical art is actually far from popular conceptions about magic as a series of techniques to improve mundane life. It refuses to be defined from older sociological or positivistic interpretations of magic as an asocial form of religiousness or a pre-logical attempt to manipulate existence. Renaissance magic was above all concerned with the higher spheres and mans potential to work together with the divine will. It was not an antipole to religion, but an expression of the religious conceptions of its time. The reason for conflicts with the Church was the fact that its teachings could be perceived as heretical; though it was at times even accepted by popes such as Alexander VI, who went so far as to fill parts of the Vatican with Hermetic and magical paintings. Giordano Bruno (1548-1600) defined magic as the knowledge of the science of nature, which was supposed to support the invention by Nordstrom and Yates that magic was a precursor to the scientific revolution.

♦ WHAT IS BLACK MAGIC? ♦

f'^'he magicians of the Renaissance are in popular thought placed in the -X^same category as other practitioners of magic, such as witches, wise men and wise women. At times there is a distinction made between high and low magic, where high magic is pious and established in society, focused on submissive work with angels and heavenly forces; low magic is egoistic and goes against nature and God, thus turning to dark powers like Lucifer and the demons. This is a distinction that has been upheld, not least by esotericists, all the way up until today. Ficino defends magic in De Vita Libri Tres by making a tangible distinction between natural and demonic magic; natural magic grants health, prosperity and acts through the natural and heavenly influences that God has placed in Creation. This magic is no stranger than medicine or agriculture, though is viewed as on a more elevated level, since it unites the heavenly and the earthbound. Demonic magic is unnatural and acts through a specific rite that enables the magician to win influence over demons; this magic was condemned in the same moment as Lucifer was cast out of Heaven.

From a fundamental perspective, white magic was something that you did, and black magic which others did, hence white magic was practised by those not sentenced, and black magic by those who were accused and killed. The Swedish Gothic occultist Johannes Bureus (1568-1652) defended himself furiously against accusations regarding heresy, but people around him had less luck and his father in law was beheaded in Stockholm for teaching witchery. Judging by the content alone, there is surprisingly little that separates the different forms of magic of this time, those grimoires and magical books that present demonic sigils and those which describe angels, have the same goals, which can be both high and low, whether winning true wisdom or winning at cards.

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The occultists Stephen Skinner and David Rankine claim that there have been misconceptions about the social standing of magicians; such as that magicians throughout history have been part of the marginalised and

outcast, something that the witch trials as well as later times dichotomies regarding science and magical thinking would reinforce. They were instead part of the establishment.

The line of transmission of practical magical methods was through a succession of scholar-magicians, not via the village cunning-man and witch tradition (which uses a different approach), or via secret societies such as the Illuminati, Rosicrucians or Freemasons. Practitioners of ceremonial and angel magic tended to be of one social class, with a disproportionate number of jurists and lords, in other words, drawn from the Establishment of the day.

Magic was to a great extent spread across Europe through the learned environment of the universities, at court or within the Church. Although Rosicrucianism acted as a firm source of inspiration for numerous magicians, it acted at first as a lese-mysterium rather than a secret organised brotherhood. It is through the spreading of texts and the exchange of ideas between the erudite that Renaissance magic grew. The boundary between scholarly magic and folk magical practise is not lost; the high, white, natural magic legitimises the individual practise but is not, in its essence, unlike other forms of magic; as regards practice and intention, it is of course more complex and intellectual than rhe magic that is found among farmers. White and black magic, high and low magic are thus historical, cultural and not least social categorisations. On an esoteric level we can interpret the terms black and white to represent a correspondence to the highest spiritual levels.

The understanding of black and white began to change during the Renaissance from that of the middle ages. The planet Saturn, associated with the colour black as well as to principles of aging and death and the state of melancholy, was viewed earlier as something entirely negative, but was reevaluated by some of the magicians, artists and writers of the Renaissance. This is described by Frances Yates in The Occult Philosophy in the Elizabethan Age. Johannes Bureus assigns Saturn negative qualities in his i Nordlanda lejonsens Rytande whilst in the 900 page collection Sumlen, he equates Saturn with the highest spiritual level in a correspondence between the planets and runes in his runic ascencion ladder.

Light and day, which in an exoteric interpretation of religion represents all that is desirable, could instead represent the petty problems of everyday life to Renaissance magicians, whilst darkness and the night allowed the adept access to the truly great questions, the universe, and the deepest contemplation. Saturn represents a state of both melancholy and divine inspiration. Darkness is used as a metaphor to describe both God and the utmost evil, and in addition the melancholic wisdom-seeking of the philosopher, (as well as ignorance). Even if darkness was feared it was also perceived as a principle which represented inspiration and initiation. The English poet George Chapman published a mystical poem in 1594 named The Shadow of Night that elevates the night as a spiritual principle. Frances Yates writes:

The profound contemplations of the Night are then contrasted with the foolish and pointless activities of the Day. 'Ihese experiences lead finally to a vision of the moon, rising in magical splendour out of the darkness of the Night.

In the Qabalah, darkness and the night could be associated with the powers of evil, but on a higher level they are also the limitless infinity that lies beyond the Tree of Life and which is named through the negation Ain or Ain Sqf. According to the Qabalists this is the true being of God and interestingly, the hermetic Qabalist Pico della Mirandola equalled Ain Sof to the orphic principle of Nyx or Nox - the night. This is an idea we also find in Bureus' Cabbalistica.

If we focus on the fact that Saturn is elevated to the highest spiritual principle, black magic does not become the low, but quite the opposite, it becomes high magic which corresponds to the highest spiritual levels. How would a black Saturnian magic have been practised during the Renaissance? Ficino gives advice to magicians on how to balance the dark influence of Saturn with the lighter energies of the Sun, Venus and Jupiter; but Saturn is simultaneously associated with the highest aspects of the soul and is thus, in the correct context, worth pursuing. By studying how a Renaissance solar ritual may have been constructed, we can create a Saturnian ritual.

♦ PRACTICAL SATURNIAN MAGIC ♦

^{n c}^^e l^asc P^art Triplici Vita, which is called De Vita Coelitus O^LComparanda, Ficino describes how music, food, medicine and talismans can be used to attract the planetary energies. Ficino claims that magic must stimulate the seven levels of man: the five senses, imagination and reason. To complete a successful ritual one needs an assembly of objects and symbols to be magnets for the planetary forces. Ficino assumed that the learned individuals that were his readers were often overly influenced by Saturn, something that resulted in melancholy. To cure this, the magician needed to call upon the rejuvenating powers of the Sun, Venus and Jupiter. He praises gold as a solar and jovial (thus belonging to Jupiter/Jove) metal that cures an increasingly heavy mind. The veneric colour green helps too, which caused Ficino to recommend promenades in nature as a cure to melancholy.

Ficino arranged a table of correspondence, something that Agrippa later developed and which would become a characteristic of occult literature up to the present day. The following aspects contribute to the attraction of planetary influences, but may also stimulate the different senses of man, for a successful ceremony.

• i Stones and metals for the Moon

• 2 Plants, fruits and animals for Mercury

• 3 Powder, fumes and smells for Venus

• 4 Words, songs and sounds for the Sun

• 5 Emotions and imagination for Mars

• 6 Discursive reason for Jupiter

• 7 Intellectual contemplation and divine intuition for Saturn

It is interesting to note that Saturn here represents the highest principle, whilst the planet in other contexts represents the dark and negative.

Renaissance magic is founded on the theory that everything is a unity which consists of correspondences. The magician uses the inherent attraction and sympathy that can be found in the Universe, and to Ficino, magic consists entirely of love and eroticism. The Universe is filled with an erotic force that binds things together, and by controlling this force the magician may influence the world. The view on the connection between eroticism and magic in Renaissance magic is developed by the academic Ioan P. Couliano in his classic study Eros et Magic a la Renaissance, in which he explains that the magical power of love was not a poetic metaphor, but that it was viewed by Ficino and his followers as a physically active force:

Love’s arrows, held in high esteem by the French poets of the Pleiade, were not for Ficino, a mere metaphor. They were equipped with invisible pneumatic tips able to inflict severe damage on the person shot.

In Wouter J. Haanegraaf s article Sympathy or the Devil: Renaissance Magic and the Ambivalence of Idols, it is discussed how practical Renaissance magic may have looked. The basic foundation is the theory that magic and love are one:   i  i

i

The key to his approach lies in the fundamental doctrine of sympatheia. In considering the meaning of sympathetic magic, one easily forgets the everyday meaning of the word sympathy. But for Ficino, sympathy was an obvious equivalent for love (amor). Love was the foundation of magic. [...] As we will see, this way of describing the dynamics of cosmic attraction was not merely symbolic, but was intended with a realism which is hard for us to understand today. Moreover, these neoplatonists were not thinking of platonic love! Frequently the connotations are explicitly sexual.

The most detailed description of a ritual based upon Ficino’s magic was written down by his favourite student and successor Francesco da Diaccetato (1466-1522) in De Pulchro which he began writing in 1496 and completed 1499, the year Ficino died. The main components in the practise of Renaissance magic, as found in this text by Diacetto are the following, exemplified with a solar ritual:

• 1 The intellectual frame.

• a) Astrological choices, where the exact time of the ritual was of great importance. It must be astrologically correct so that the Sun arises in the solar Zodiac as Leo or Aries, in the instances the magician wishes to attract solar energies.

• b) Astral correspondences. The magician must know which plants, animals, aromas, symbols, harmonies, hymns and ceremonies correspond to the planet in question. /

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• 2 Ritual objects.

• a) Clothes. If the magician is working with the Sun he should be suitably dressed in a robe of solar colours and crowned with a solar crown.

• b) Altar, which for solar magic should be made out of solar materials.

• c) Aromas, such as myrrh and incense, the specific scents of the Sun, and an ointment consisting of solar components such as saffron, balm and honey.

• d) Sounding objects. Musical instruments, a Cithara, the more advanced kind of Lyre.

• e) Visual objects: Heliotropic plants should be spread on the floor & there should be images of the Sun in solar materials such as gold, chrysolite or carbuncle. Also pictures of Cocks and Rams are suitable.

• 3 Ritual procedure.

• a) The burning of myrrh and incense.

fe) The singing of Orphic hymns to the divine, to consciousness and the soul of the Sun.

c) A solar dance, which should not be too complicated or ceremonious, but of lust and simplicity, though still with a certain weight.

4 Mental disposition.

Perhaps most important of all is that the magician through his imagination has a strong emotional mind and engagement which will then flood out through the eyes and give its imprint to the spirit.

5 The goal of the ritual.

The goal in this ritual would be to gain solar gifts, which could entail receiving the good energies that can be found in the Sun, for example healing.

If we instead wish to conduct a ritual dedicated to Saturn, the time must astrologically be when the Sun arises in Capricorn or Aquarius. We can find the correspondences of Saturn, for example, in Agrippa's De Occulta Philosophia (1531), in which we are told that the heavy and poisonous metal lead belongs to Saturn, as does the stone onyx. The plant wormwood has been associated to Saturn as well as myrrh. In my book Qabalah Qliphoth and Goetic Magic, these correspondences are developed further. Also the stone granite belongs to Saturn, and birds like ravens and vultures. In Saturnian magic, clothes and all fabrics are black. The aromas come from those plants and incenses that are designated under Saturn, a deep sounding bell is used and for visual aids images of ravens and the following Saturnian sigils from astrology (figure 1) and the grimoire Le Dragon Rouge (figure 2) are used. Objects on the altar are onyx, granite and lead.

Figure 2: from Le Dragon Rouge

A suitable text to read is The Shadow of Night by George Chapman which describes the night and the creative force of melancholy. The night is portrayed as a shimmering black woman and the following part works as an invocation of the Saturnian principle:

Mens faces glitter, and their hearts are blacke, But thou (great Mistresse of heauens gloomie racke) Art blacke inface, and glitterst in thy heart.

There is thy glorie, riches, force, and Art.

A Saturnian dance can either be inspired by the dance of death, the danse macabre, which returns as a late medieval motif on frescos and church paintings, or the dance could be made with slow and heavy movements. If the magician wishes to use music the writer has found that the following examples suit admirably: Saturn by Gustav Holst from the suite The Planets, Tangerine Dreams Zed or dark ambient such as Lapis Niger's At The Throne of Melek Taus.

Mental disposition is the key to all successful magical work and as postulated by the magical philosophy of the Renaissance, the entire Universe is woven together, out of a fundamental erotic fabric. This paradigm fits well with eastern esotericism in which the Kundalini, the fire snake, rests in the foundation of all existence and by awakening this force in oneself the adept will activate the ability to influence the Universe in accordance with the will.

Indian esotericism describes how the Kundalini rises up through a number of psychic centres, called chakras, often seven, and likened to Lotus flowers. Different numbers of petals, mantras or sounds are associated to each level. The lowest level, or base chakra, is known as Muladhara and is associated with basic instincts. In this chakra the volcanic, though dormant energy lies, which is the seed to mans divinity. In our normal life we are using only one percent of our total energy, but if we manage to awake the sleeping Kundalini the remaining 99% will be at our disposal. This energy will bring us into contact with the highest spiritual levels.

If we work within the western esoteric tradition, as it was formulated during the Renaissance, we may instead meditate on the seven planetary spheres, in the order they were assigned by Ficino, that is Moon, Mercury, Venus, Sun, Mars, Jupiter and at the top, Saturn. The magician can visualise how the magnetic erotic vital energy which is the foundation of life itself rises up through the spine from a point slightly below the genitals, passing all the seven levels of the planets until reaching the symbol of Saturn right above the head. This meditation will focus the consciousness of the magician and generate the power that is necessary for a successful ritual.

Before the magician decides to conduct a Saturnian ritual, or any ritual, the goals must be clear. Saturn represents death, madness, cold, darkness, heaviness and punishment, but also ecstasy, divine inspiration, deepest contemplation, wisdom and the boundary with the infinite. The following aspects are sympathetic to Saturn: Karma, punishment, old age, wisdom, death, inheritance, property, alchemy, the elixir of life, metal transmutations, rebirth, necromancy, black and dark magic. The magician must by all accounts be ready to deal with these demanding principles before it is suitable to conduct a Saturnian ritual. For the initiate, the magic of Saturn corresponds to the Qliphotic magic in which Saturn represents qualities found in the Qliphoth. Saturn may also be interpreted as a planetary representative of the Qliphotic powers, although these go beyond the planets and the principles of the solar system.

Saturn is the most demanding planet of the solar system and is associated with a number of qualities that we tend to avoid in our mundane life. But, at the same time, Saturn is the planet that opens up the gate to infinity and the divine inspiration that exists beyond time and space. For the magician, the philosopher, the artist and the poet, Saturn is thus an unavoidable ally, or as George Chapman writes in his hymns to the night:

No pen can any thing eternal write, which is not steep’d in humour of the night.

♦ BIBLIOGRAPHY ♦

(ed. Donald Tyson)

LE GRAND GRIMOIRE: PACTA CONVENTA D/EMONIORUM JOHNNY JAKOBSSON

NE OF THE MOST ESSENTIAL AND NOTORIOUS PRACTISES within < w^Xthe occult field of black magick is the pacta conventa dasmoniorum.

The most complete grimoire explaining this practise is the Grand Grimoire, a book that contains the Sanctum Regnum, introduced as the true manner of making pacts with spirits. Antonia Venitiana del Rabina is often seen as the original editor of the Grand Grimoire, which claims to date back to 1522¹. The text was probably written much later and the scholar Joseph Peterson states that the grimoire probably does not predate the 1800s. Arthur Edward Waite believed that the book belonged to the middle of the eighteenth century and considered the name of its pretended editor to indicate an Italian origin of the book, and that the Grand Grimoire was the most fantastic text in the canon of nigromancy. However, in Peterson's edited and translated version of the Grimorium Verum, Doctor J. Karter’s edition of Le

• 1 Le Grand Grimoire, ou Part de commander les esprits celestes, aeriens, terrestres, infernaux. Avec le vrai secret Defaire parler les Morts, de gagner toutes les Jois qu’on met aux Loteries, de ddcouvrir les Tresors caches, &c. Imprimire sur un manuscrit de 1522. Paris. B. Renault, Editeur 1845.

Grand Grimoire* is catalogued as circa 1750. Karter's edition could be the oldest of the two, but Venitiana's edition is probably the most well known.

Backdating and uncertain authorship are some of the problematic trademarks of the grimoire genre, and have made it difficult for historians to establish the books exact origin or date it accurately. Nonetheless, the first edition of the Grand Grimoire was presumably of French origin and part of the Bibliotheque bleue. It was during the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries that the Bibliotheque bleue began to flourish in France. These small books where produced in a simple format and often wrapped in blue sugar paper. The main centres of production were Paris, Troyes and Rouen. The books were bought by peasants and curious readers for a modest price through the colporteurs (or peddlers), which travelled through the French countryside selling herbs, books and telling stories of the outside world. The Bibliotheque bleue genre offered a wide range of topics from almanacs, folk medicine and astrology, but some of the titles were grimoires like Le Grand Albert, Le Petit Albert, Enchiridion Leonis Papce, Le Grimoire du Pape Honorius and Le Grand Grimoire. Owen Davies claims that first edition of the Grand Grimoire is dated to 1702, but that:

...its absence from early-eighteenth-century sources suggest that a Bibliotheque bleue edition published around 1750 was the first, or at least the most influential.

The book goes under a few different names: Le Grand Grimoire, Il Gran Grimoirio, Le Dragon Rouge and Le Veritable Dragon Rouge. The contents of the books display some key variations, both in the praxis, seals and names of the demons. Le Dragon Rouge and the Grand Grimoire are largely similar, where as Le Veritable Dragon Rouge is comprehensively different. Waite writes that the Grand Grimoire reappeared at Nismes (Nimes) in 1823 and

• 2 Dart de commander les esprits Celestes, Aeriens, Terrestres, &■ infernaux, suivi du Grand Grimoire, de la magie noire et des forces infernales, du docteur J. Karter, la clavicule de Salomon, &c. Avec le vrai secret de faire parler les Morts, pour decouvrir tous les tresors caches, ect. [Paris?: s.n], 1421 [i.e. 1750].

that the book is nearly identical to Le Dragon Rouge, of which several different cotemporary editions were known.

This essay will focus on the analysis of Gretchen Rudy’s translation of the Grand Grimoire, whose primary sources are II Gran Grimoirio (1612) and Le Dragon Rouge (1832)’ and on Peterson’s translation of Le Grand Grimoire (1845). The author will also compare these publications to the original French edition of Le Veritable Dragon Rouge, which claims to date back to 1521. In addition, this essay contains recently received formulae for befriending the demons of the Grand Grimoire and esoteric guidelines for working with the book in relation to the Qliphothic initiation. The publication of this most private gnosis is done under the auspices of the infernal hierarchy.

The Grand Grimoire presents nine seals for conjuring: Lucifer, Belzebuth, Astaroth, Lucifiige, Satanachia, Agaliarept, Fleurety, Sargatanas and Nebiros. In Le Veritable Dragon Rouge, the nine seals instead bear the names of the seven Olympic Spirits. Waite later adopted this system in his The Book of Black Magic and writes that these are the Infernal Sigils of the Evil Planetary Spirits presented in the Red Dragon.

Some editions of the Grand Grimoire and Le Dragon Rouge also contain La Poule Noire (It. di Gallina Hera), which is the Cabala of the Black Hen. La Poule Noire introduces praxis for the conjuring of a spirit at the crossroads. This foul spirit is dressed in a scarlet outfit with braids, green pants and a yellow shirt. The demon's head resembles that of a dog crowned with horns; the ears of an ass and his feet and legs resemble those of a heifer.

Elizabeth Butler believed that the Grand Grimoire was based on the conception of the Liber Spirituum and its construction and use. The Liber Spirituum is a book of conjuration that is mentioned in pseudo-Agrippa's Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy (1559). This hypothesis is supported by the subtitle to the Grand Grimoire: The Black Magick or the Infernal Arts of the Great Agrippa. The first edition of the Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy was written in Latin and produced in Marburg in 1559; Robert Turner later translated the book into English in 1665.

• 3 The Grand Grimoire, Trident Books 1996/2004.

The Liber Spirituum was a consecrated book that contained handwritten seals for each evil spirit that had sworn a holy oath of obedience to the Karcist in this world. These demons were then called forth in certain magical workings, when the Karcist was in need of their assistance. No actual contents from a Liber Spirituum are reproduced in the Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy; the text should merely be perceived as a commentary on such a book. Consequently, the Grand Grimoire could be interpreted as a Liber Spirituum, a practical manual, that once belonged to a practitioner of the Black Arts; a book with conjurations and seals. There is further support for this hypothesis in the Grand Grimoire, where the demon Lucifuge Rofocale pledges an oath to the Karcist and his book:

I also approve your book &■ I give my signature in parchment which I will attach to this book so that you can use it for your needs; I also submit myself to appear before you whenever I am called and when you open the book [...] & pronouncing the Rofocale motto I promise to appear & treat you, and those who have this book, considerately & in a friendly manner which will bear my signature as long as you shall call me to order the first time you have need of me.

In the Promise of the Spirit found in the Grand Grimoire, even Lucifer pledges an oath to the Karcist and his book, with the following words:

I promise & swear, in the name of the God of the living, obedience, promptitude & submission to the owner of this book; signed & sworn, in the name of the undersigned & of my aforementioned subject, & by the virtue of the oath and signature I swear to adhere to all that will please the owner of this book.

These two oaths, given by Lucifer and Lucifuge Rofocale, confirms the hypothesis that the Grand Grimoire could be seen as an adaptation of a true Liber Spirituum, which once belonged to a practiser of nigromancy.

In his edition of the Grand Grimoire, del Rabina claims that the text was originally transcribed from the writings of King Solomon. The book is pre

sented as the Grand Clavicule of Solomon and it will assist its owner: To discover all hidden treasures and to render all of the spirits obedient to oneself. A huge number of grimoires have, through the centuries, been ascribed to King Solomon and he has gained a legendary reputation as a master with legions of demons at his disposal through the Bible, the Koran and the Talmud, and also as the hero of the Alf Laylah wa Laylah (Arabian Nights). Butler writes that Solomon:

... was rumoured throughout the East and West to have left behind him secret books of magic. For only magic could account for the power, the glory and the riches associated with his name.

The pseudo-Solomonic grimoires that are credited to the Wise King, differ profoundly, but could all be included in the canon of the school of Solomonic magick. The most famous examples are the Clavicula Salomonis, Grimorium Verum, Lemegeton Clavicula Salomonis and Le Grand Grimoire.

The Grand Grimoire is divided into two books: The first book, the Great Clavicule of Solomon, consists of detailed instructions on how to craft the Blasting Rod, the Kabalistic Circle and how to buy and use the Ematille (or Bloodstone). This book also presents the Centum Regnum: Conjuring Lucifer and the Promise of the Spirit. Lastly, the book includes invocations and conjurations addressed to Lucifer and a narrative dialog between Solomon and Lucifuge Rofocale.

The second book, the Sanctum Regnum, contains a list of the demonic hierarchy and explains the pacta daemoniorum; the manner of making pacts with spirits. It also includes the Magick Secret of Speaking with the Dead and Citatio Prcedictorum Spiritum. The two parts are both practical manuals of nigromancy and the art of diabolical pacts.

♦ PACTA CONVENTA D^MONIORUM ♦

£"^'he Grand Grimoire introduces the Sanctum Regnum of the Grand Clavicule, also known as the Pacta Conventa Dcemoniorum. The praxis is presented as the true manner in which to enter into a pact with spirits, without the jeopardy of being harmed by them. The Grand Grimoire is not the only book on the Black Arts where pacts with demons are mentioned; the notorious Grimorium Verum (1817) also makes suggestions towards such a practise. Grimorium Verum speaks of the tacit and the manifest, and that some spirits bind the magician and others do not, or only slightly⁴.

Waite writes that the Karcist is sometimes required to offer a personal belonging if he wishes to make a pact with one of the demons that binds, but that: Against these you must be on your guard, because the guileful friend be-cometh an open enemy. Butler writes in Ritual Magic that the Grand Grimoire tackles the topic of pacts with demons: ...more firmly in a thoroughly logical and realistic French spirit than the Grimorium Verum. She also writes that in the Grand Grimoire there is a compromise between a unilateral and a bilateral pact.

The Sanctum Regnum of the Grand Clavicule is introduced to the Karcist who has the intention to bind a spirit, but does not have the capacity to prepare the Kabalistic Circle or the Blasting Rod, which is presented in the first book. The Grand Grimoire states that the Karcist will fail to conjure any spirit, if he does not follow the method exactly as it is described and set forth in the second book.

The Grand Grimoire presents a demonic hierarchy that is essential to comprehend if one desires to make a pact with the spirits of Sitra Ahra. The

4 In Petersons translation of the Grimorium Verum, the keywords are translated differently: Thus there are two types of pacts, implicit and explicit. You will be able to know the one from the other by paying attention to my little work. Know however that there are various types of spirits. The first type is ’employed’, and the others are ’not employed’, or the smallest. Those that are ’employed’ means that when you make a pact with them you give them something belonging to you; therefore, you must be on guard.

♦ ARATRON ♦

Kyle Fite

♦ AIWASS LAM ♦ Kyle Fite

♦ LUCIFER ♦

Thomas Karlsson

♦ SHALICU ♦

Stafford Stone

♦ CHARACITH ♦ Stafford Stone

♦ ACE OF SERPENTS ♦

Stafford Stone

♦ TWO OF STONES ♦

Stafford Stone

♦ LUCIFUGE ROFOCALE ♦ Johnny Jakobsson

♦ NF.RTROS

three principle demons of the Grand Grimoire and their six superior spirits are the same as in the Grimorium Verum, with exception of the inclusion of Lucifuge Rofocale, the infernal Prime Minister of Hell; a demon that is exclusive to the Grand Grimoire. The six superior spirits are in command of three each of the eighteen inferior demons, which make up the lowest caste in the infernal hierarchy presented in the second book. All of the eighteen demons are also found in Johann Weyer's Pseudomonarchia Daemonum.

The principle spirits are:

Lucifer

Belzebuth

Astaroth

Emperor

Prince

Grand Duke

Beneath the three principle spirits there are six superior ones:

The eighteen spirits that are beneath the six superior demons are:

LUCIFER, Empereur.

BELZEBUT, Prince.

ASTAROT , Grand-due.

LUCIFUGE , prem. Ministr.

Satanachia , grand g£n£ral.

Agaliarept. , aussi g^n^ral.

Fleurety , lieutenantg^n.

Sargatanas , brigadier.

Nebiros , mar. de camp.

Signs & Characters from Le Veritable Dragon Rouge

In the Grimorium Verum the three principle demons are each in control of two of the six superior spirits. Lucifer has beneath him Put Satanakia and Agalierap; they dwell in Europe and Asia. Belzebuth has Tarchimache and Fleruty, whose asylum is Africa. The inferiors of Astaroth are Sagatana and Nebiros and they inhabit America.

In the Grand Grimoire the six superior demons command three each of the eighteen spirits. Lucifuge commands the first three: Bael, Agates and Marbas. Satanachia governs Pruslas, Aamon and Barbatos. Agaliarept is in command of Buer, Gusoyn and Boris. Sargatanas is in control of Loray, Valefar and Farai, and finally Nebiros is the master of Ayperos, Naberus and Glosialabolas.

All of the eighteen demons were first introduced in the Pseudomonarchia Dxmonum, but some with small variations in the spellings of the names in comparison to their appearances in latter works. The Pseudomonarchia was first published as an appendix in Weyers Da Prxstigiis Dxmonum (1563) and is a catalogue of demons that by name and office closely resembles the ones found in the Goetia. In the Pseudomonarchia there are no sigils presented for the individual spirits, but these are included in the Goetia.

Weyer (or Weir or Weirus) was a pioneer in the fields of medicine, psychiatry and a student of Magick. Weyer was the apprentice of Agrippa (1486-I535)> who in turn had the famous Abbot Johannes Trithemius (1462-1516) as his mentor. To date there is no firm indication if the catalogue of demons, which is included in the Pseudomonarchia Daemonum, originates from members of this esoteric tutelary lineage or came from some other unknown source manuscript. According to Rankine and Skinner the source could have been Trithemius’ Liber Malorum Spirituum.

In the Grand Grimoire the eighteen demons are not introduced with a given rank within the descending hierarchy, but these ranks are presented both in the Pseudomonarchia Dxmonum and Goetia. According to the Qliphothic Qabalah the demons are also each ascribed to a Qlipha and in Dr. Rudd's Liber Malorum Spirituum seu Goetia each demon stands in relation to an angel, with the exception of Pruslas.

♦ THE EIGHTEEN DEMONS

OF THE GRAND GRIMOIRE ♦

In the Grimorium Verum there are four conjurations consisting of barbarous names, these are addressed to Lucifer, Belzebuth, Astaroth and a fourth for all the inferior demons. The Grand Grimoire presents only one barbarous conjuration and it is addressed to Lucifer. The Conjuring Lucifer in the Grand Grimoire and the Conjurations to Lucifer in the Grimorium Verum have interesting similarities. The differences consist mainly of variations in the spelling of the words of power, but crucially two names are entirely different.

Conjuring Lucifer from Le Grand Grimoire (1750):

LUCIFER, OUIA, KAMERON, ALISCOR, MANDUSEMINI, POEMI, ORIEL, MADUGRUSE, PARINOSCON, ESTIO, DUMOGON, DAVORCON, CASMIEL, HUGRAS, FABIL, VONTON, ULI, SODIERNO, PEATAN, VENITE LUCIFER. AMEN.

Conjuration of Lucifer from the Grimorium Verum:

LUCIFER, OUYAR, CHAMERON, ALISEON, MANDOUSIN, PREMY, ORIET, NAYDRUS, ESMONY, EPARINESONT, ESTIOT, DUMOSSON, DANOCHAR, CASMIEL, HAYRAS, FABELLERONTHON, SODIRNO, PEATHAM. VENITE LUCIFER. AMEN.

The two barbarous words MADUGRUSE and ULI are exclusive to the Grand Grimoire; these words bear no resemblance to any of the words found in the Conjuration to Lucifer in the Grimorium Verum, but instead the latter work contains NAYDRUS and ESMONY. These two conjurations might have been transcribed from an older version of the conjuration stemming from an unknown source, or some early manuscript of either the Grand Grimoire or Grimorium Verum became an inspiration for the other.

Jake Stratton-Kent claims that the words of power are derived from Trithemius' Steganographia*. The Steganographia is set in three volumes and was completed in 1500, though was first published posthumously in 5 Private correspondence.

Frankfurt 1606. On the surface the book seems to be a system of angel magic, but it is really a sophisticated system of cryptography. Nonetheless, the original author of the Grand Grimoire could have used the Steganographia as a source book for compiling the barbarous conjuration, because it had the notorious reputation of being filled with spells for conjuring spirits.

In the Chiamata di Lucifero, from the Antonia Venitiana 1845 edition of Le Grand Grimoire, there are curious differences in the spelling of some of the barbarous words: ALISCOT, POEMI, MAGREUSE, DIVORCON, SORDIERNO and PETAN. The conjuration that is presented in this essay is taken from Doctor J. Karter’s edition of Le Grand Grimoire, which is very similar to the Chiamata di Lucifero (or Evocasion di Lucifero) from the Italian II Gran Grimoirio. However, in Trident Books’ edition of the Grand Grimoire the word HUGRAS, from II Gran Grimoirio, is later transcribed into HURG AS in the English translation of the text, but this minor variation is probably only a misprint. The Chiamata di Lucifero also has some variation in the spelling of some of the words: POEMI, DOVORCON, SOCIERNO and PfrATAN.

Some of the older grimoires indicate that Lucifer could not be conjured, but only called upon in order to constrain superior demons to fulfil one’s wishes; in the funua Magica Reserata it is written that:

Lucifer is a great spirit, and may not be Invocated nor Called from his Orders, yet by him as by Tantavalerion other spirits may be adjured and bound, (...) for this Reason he many [sic] not be called upon, Except to Constrain other Subservient spirits to fulfil the Commands & Requests of the Invocant in any Reasonable things.

The concept of Lucifer being out of reach to the conjurer is not explicitly stated in the Grand Grimoire, but the Karcist states in the Second Invocation to the Emperor Lucifer:

...or if you cannot come in person send me your messenger Astaroth in human guise noiselessly & without foul scents.

Astaroth is an important figure the Grand Grimoire and presented as a Grand Duke. He is also, on one occasion, addressed as a Count:

O Count Astaroth! Be propitious & ensure that the great Lucifuge appears to me tonight...

Subsequently it appears as though Astaroth has been granted a promotion, or suffered a demotion, in the second book. Astaroth is the 29^th demon in the Goetia and also holds a prominent office in the infernal hierarchies of the Grimorium Verum, Munich Handbook of Necromancy, Junua Magica Reserata and in Doctor Iohannis Fausti magiae naturalis et innatural (1505). The Goetia states that Astaroth is a great and powerful Duke and that he takes the appearance of a beautiful angel with a viper in his right hand and that he rides on an infernal dragon. The occurrence of the dragon steed ties Astaroth to Le Dragon Rouge, the Red Dragon, which signifies the deeper mysteries of the tradition of nigromancy and hints towards the universal symbol of the outermost power.

In Doctoris Iohannis Fausti magiae naturalis et innantualis Astaroth is presented as one of the five Grand Dukes, beside Lucifer, Beelzebub, Satan and Beherit. Increasing his list of noble ranks. The Munich Handbook of Necromancy presents Astaroth as the Prince of the South, who has the power to compel the love of men and women; and in the Janua Magica Reserata he is the Prince of the Criminators (or Accusers):

He is called Diabolos, that is a Criminator or Calumniator, who in the Apocalypse is called an Accuser of the Brethren day and night before the face of God.

Astaroth is the Arch-demon of the Gha'agsheblah Qlipha, but he is also connected to the Samael Qlipha. In Le Grimoire du Pape Honorius (1810) the demon is ascribed to Wednesdays, which is the day of the week that is attributed to the shell of Samael. Also found in Honorius are noticeable similarities between the seals of Lucifer and Astaroth to the ones from the

Grand Grimoire; Astaroth's seal in particular seems directly inspired from the latter work.

Waite claims that it is not possible to enter into a binding pact with the three principle spirits: Lucifer, Belzebuth and Astaroth:

The sorcerer must be content with some one among the six governors, who will generally work by their agents; an invariable covenant of the pact should bargain for service by one of the three superiors among such special subordinates.

Waites view is in direct conflict with the words of the Grand Grimoire itself.

Now then, in making a pact with one of the first principle spirits, of which you will have need, it won’t matter which spirit serves you, nonetheless always ask for the one with which you have made the pact, whether it is one of the three principle ones, or one of their subjects which serve you.

The Grand Grimoire then gives detailed information on the six superior spirits and each demons specific abilities and powers, so the Karcist can determine which spirit is most suitable for a pact to assist him in the fulfilment of his wishes.

For conjuring one of the six superior demons, or any of the eighteen beneath those six, the magician must use the Great Invocation to Summon the Spirit with whom one wishes to make the pact - excerpted from the Great Clavicle, from the second book of the Grand Grimoire. The Pacta Dajmoniorum is addressed to the spirit one wishes to conjure and to the three principle spirits whom are called upon to assist in the conjuration. The Pacta Daemoniorum of the Grand Grimoire is mainly concerned with the interaction with Lucifuge Rofocale. There are two dialogues presented, which explain the procedure of how to enter into a pact with the demon. In the first book the dialogue transpires between Lucifuge Rofocale and King Solomon and in the second book between Lucifuge Rofocale and an anonymous operator.

In the first book of the Grand Grimoire Solomon is conjuring Lucifer, but states that Lucifer could send Astaroth if he cannot appear himself, but it is interesting to note that it is Lucifuge Rofocale that finally appears before Solomon with the haunting words:

Here I am; what will you ask me? Why do you torment my peace?

Desist from striking me again with that terrible rod.

In the second book, the anonymous Karcist specifically asks Lucifer to send Lucifuge Rofocale with the words:

Emperor Lucifer, master of all the rebel spirits, I ask you to be favorable in my summons of your Great Minister Lucifuge Rofocale, since I wish to make a pact with him.

Lucifuge could be interpreted as the demon that stands as a bridge between the three principle spirits and the six superior demons. In the Qliphothic initiation Lucifuge and Lucifer could be interpreted as two opposing demonic forces with the specific purpose of awakening the Red Dragon within the Adept. Consider that each of the nine demons in the Grand Grimoire teaches a specific lore from the Tree of Knowledge, which initiate the Adept further into the tunnels of Sitra Ahra, until he finally transcends to the double-headed dragon in Thaumiel.

♦ LUCIFUGE ROFOCALE ♦

(fis) ucifuge is the Prime Minister of Hell and his name is composed of the OC^two Latin words, lux, light; genitive lucis, and fugio, to flee. The name, Lucifuge, could thusly be translated as he who flees the light. The Grand Grimoire clarifies that Lucifer invested Lucifuge with the governance over all the treasures and wealth of the world, in the same book Lucifuge Rofocale states that: Follow me &you will come to identify the treasure, and ...Ishall also induce myself to give you the treasure for which you have asked, provided that you keep the secret forever. Perhaps we can consider that the word, treasure, is not so much concerned with fortunes of gold and silver, but rather it is a symbol for the forbidden gnosis of the fruits from the Tree of Knowledge, which are regarded as a treasure by the Adept.

In the Grand Grimoire there is an ambiguous and conditional pact with Lucifuge; the terms are that the Karcist repays Lucifuge Rofocale in twenty years for the treasures that are given to him by the demon. In the first book of the Grand Grimoire it is written that the Karcist must give the demon a gold or silver coin at the first day of every month, but in the second dialog, which is presented in the second book; the Karcist must consecrate a coin to Lucifuge Rofocale all of the Mondays of every month. He must evoke the demon one day every week, from ten in the evening until two in the morning. The Karcist must also keep it a secret and be charitable to the poor. If he neglects his commitments and fails to keep these conditions, Lucifuge Rofocale will claim his body and soul, as the demon himself states:

Take your pact which I have signed; &■ if you do not maintain your word you will be mine in 20 years.

There have been numerous pacts and agreements with the devil and his legions of demons throughout history, often resulting in devastating consequences for the magician. The most legendary pacta dsemoniorum is the one between Faust and Mephistopheles.

How and where the original name, Mephistopheles, came into being is a mystery according to Butler, but:

I myself side with those who believe that it was a faulty Greek version of Lucifugum, the category invented by Psellus and adopted in the Grand Grimoire.

Lucifuge Rofocale is a twofold name that originates from two different root words; both of the words stem from the canon of demonology and grant glimpses of knowledge towards the demons true quintessence.

Kieckhefer writes that the concept of the demon hierarchy: stems chiefly from the Neoplatonists, and above all lamblichus’. lamblichus (ad 333) developed an elaborate descending hierarchy of spirits. His pneumatology includes the Gods, the Archangels, the Daimons, the Angels, the Princes of the element, the Princes of matter, the Heroes and the Souls. In lamblichus' descending hierarchy of spirits the Daimons were introduced as stormy and terrible, bringing disorder and movement.

In the Western Magical Tradition there are two different concepts of demons: the Graeco-Roman - that they were rational beings at their natural position in the descending hierarchy — and the early Christian view, in which the demons were fallen angels that had rebelled against God together with Lucifer. Kieckhefer writes:

Apuleius’s De deo Socratis remained long influential in Christian tradition, despite its incongruence with the notion of demons as fallen angels; for Apuleius, daemones were rational beings whose natural sphere was the sublunary air, just as gods and humans are rational beings residing in the ether and on earth respectively.

Apuleius believed that the daemones were naturally neither good nor evil. They could be perceived as rational beings at their appropriate place in the descending hierarchy of beings, and as messenger between the gods in the ether and the humans that reside on earth.

Proclus (ad 412-484) focused on the elemental aspects presented by lamblichus. Proclus divided the Daimons into five categories ruling over water, air, fire, earth, and beneath the earth. Psellus later adopted the system and added a sixth category: Lucifugum. In Ritual Magic, Butler translates the name Lucifugum as Fly-the-light. Earlier, Waite used the same term in his works as the translation of the name Lucifuge; nonetheless Kieckhefer writes that Psellus used the plural form: ...to this system Psellus added lucifugues (or light-fleeing) demons, and Johannes Trithemius lent the weight of his authority to this system.

Trithemius described these spirits and the categories in his Liber Octo Quaestionum (1557). Trithemius writes that the Lucifugum is a mysterious kind of demon that wanders in darkness; it is restless, stormy, malicious and dark through and through. Through empirical studies of the Grand Grimoire, the author of the essay received formulae that could be used for communications with the spirits called Lucifugues and a barbarous conjuration addressed to their Arch-demon Lucifuge. The Lucifugues are under the dominion of Belzebuth, who is the chief demon of the Ghagiel Qlipha. The Lucifugues are shadow entities that are dark through and through in that they have no reflection or counterpart, because no light has been cast to create their silhouettes. They inhabit the realm of Satariel (the Concealers), where Lucifuge resides in absolute darkness on his throne. The Lucifugum is a sinister kind of demon that flees the light of God. The Seal of the Lucifugues is a veiled gate into their dominion in Satariel. The gate is opened with the greeting word MITON. When the ritual is complete the Karcist must seal the gate with the word SEDRAELEP. To be granted entrance into their realm, the Karcist must firstly be protected with a talisman approved by Belzebuth; the talisman is known as the Amiscorous. Belzebuth foretold that the Amiscorous would bring the Karcist wings of gold, which would allow the Adept to enter into the labyrinths of shadows within the shell of Satariel.

The Seal of the Lucifugues

The Seal of the Amiscorous

The Amiscorous must be made by clay mixed with dead flies. The Karcist himself must kill these flies. A sacred seal, which is ascribed to Belzebuth, is then carefully carved into the talisman. When the talisman has been prepared according to these rules, the Amiscorous should be consecrated with a formula that was brought forth by Belzebuth:

The Consecration of Amiscorous:

AIMEE, ZAZA, AMICLO, SEGRAEL, TARCHIMACHE, HUMORSCHIA, PIAT, SESACHIA, GULEPIA, ARAMELEP, EIHEEMORA, HIEL, SEIGEL, POMORIA, ZAZA, OUMARA, TARACHIA, KIEL.

Belzebuth claims that the energies of the Lucifugues can empower remarkable fetishes and talismans, but that these energies are not part of our world. The magical objects can therefore become ominous and manifest tangential tantrums. A term first introduced by Kenneth Grant in Hecate's Fountain which meticulously explores the Mauve Zone Magick and its relation to the tangential tantrum phenomenon. Grant describes Mauve Zone Magick as: A manipulation of the magnetic emanations of the Mauve Zone which activates

phenomena peculiar to that zone. The tangential tantrum is described as an unpredictable and unexpected phenomena and tangential manifestations that may result from Mauve Zone Magick and the unpredictable influences of that zone.

In the Consecration of Amiscorous there are some familiar words. The barbarous words SEGRAEL and AMICLO (alt. Ameclo) are both found in the Conjuration of Beelzebuth from the Grimorium Verutn. TARCHIMACHE is another familiar word from same work; Tarchimache is a demon that dwells in Africa and he is also under the dominion of Belzebuth. Darcy Kuntz writes in the appendix to his edited edition of the Grand Grimoire, that Lucifuge Rofocale is also known as Tarchimache. In The True Grimoire, Jake Stratton-Kent presents a similar opinion, but states:

Whether or not we are also justified in identifying Lucifuge with Tarchimache, which name his replaces in the Grand Grimoire, is not historically certain; it is a reasonable assumption in practise...

According to the Qliphothic Qabalah, Lucifuge Rofocale and Tarchimache are two separate demons. Tarchimache is not included in the Grand Grimoire, but exclusively presented in the Grimorium Verum. From the latter work, Claunech would be a more appropriate spirit to associate with Lucifuge and his office than Tarchimache, as the Grimorium Verum claims that Claunech:

...has power over riches, causes treasures to be found. He can give great riches to he who makes a pact with him, for he is much loved by Lucifer. It is he who causes money to be brought. [...] Those who make an agreement with him, he will show where to find treasure and will impart to ye the wisdom to attain wealth.

Stratton-Kent states that the name Claunech could have its origin from the Latin clanculum, which could thusly be translated as secretly or unknown to.

It is through communication with the Lucifugues and the creation of the Amiscorous that the Karcist gains a more profound understanding of the mysteries that surrounds Lucifuge Rofocale and his minions. The Talisman is connected to the Praxis of Titahion - the Clay of Death.

In The Book of the Black Serpent Titahion is presented as one of the Seven Infernal Habitations and this realm is under the dominion of Asmodeus. According to the Qliphothic Qabalah, Asmodeus is also attributed to the shell of Golachab. The Book of the Black Serpent was published as an appendix in Trident Books' edition of the Grimorium Verum. This essay is an edited version of an instructional paper for initiates of the Isis-Urania temple of the Golden Dawn in the 1900s.

The Amiscorous talisman assists the Karcist on his perilous journey through the tunnel of Characith which is the Qliphothic tunnel that lead from Golachab to Satariel; the home of Lucifuge and the Lucifugues. Grant writes in Nightside of Eden that the tunnel of Characith is also known as Shichiririon. Thomas Karlsson writes:

The tunnels have been known under different names, such as Schichirion, which means black or Necheshiron, which means snake-like.

In The Book of the Black Serpent the Schechiriron (alt. Shichiririon) are described as black demonic insects, reptiles and shellfish. It is through the consecration ceremony of the Amiscorous and the Praxis of Titahion; the spirits of the dead flies are resurrected and alchemically transformed through the ferocious and primordial fire of the Golachab Qlipha. The flies are then reborn from the Clay of Death and become, Schechiriron, the insect-demons that dwell in the tunnel of Characith. These demons are under the dominion of Belzebuth; who is renowned as the Lord of the Flies.

In the Liber Niger Legionis the anonymous author states that the fly could be interpreted as a Semitic variation of the scarab, which in Egypt was known as the bringer of life out of excrement. Qliphoth is often perceived as the excrement and waste product of the creation. It is through these shells that the

Adept of nigromancy can taste the fruits from the Tree of Knowledge, which could bring him eternal life.

In the Typhonian Trilogies, Grant explains the magical value of the insects buzzing sound and its relation to Mauve Zone Magick and the Tunnels of Set. Grant wrote to the author that:

The only way you can effect entry into the Mauve Zone is by finding your own key number and vibrating same. You will find that it is within the power of some - at least - of the intelligences that you are already meeting, to be able to direct you in the right mode of invocation.

In the Typhonian Tradition the Schechiriron could be interpreted as the forerunners to the Children of Isis, which are mentioned in both OKBISh -The Book of the Spider and The Wisdom ofS’lba. It is foretold in The Wisdom of S’lba that:

The Call breeds a slime like a luminous fungus that will adhere to the Gateway. A curious insect will hover, and attract by its buzzing more of its kind. They are simulacra of the beetles known, yet unknown, to the Master and to the Lama. Strive not to net them. They are outposts of qliphoth-breed; forerunners of the Children of Isis.

These Schechiriron become the Karcists familiars who are solely connected to his personal Amiscorous; they are the ones that will guide him through the sinister mist of the Abyss and into Satariel and before Lucifuge. In the Grand Grimoire there is an interesting episode which captures the buzzing phenomenon, but in a quite obscured manner. In the first book of the Grand Grimoire, after the Karcist has been guided to the treasure with the assistance of Lucifuge Rofocale, it is written:

Be careful not to turn back despite of any noise you might hear since at the time it will seem to you that all of the mountains of the world are falling on your head.

The observable fact of the sound phenomenon that is described at this juncture could be interpreted as the buzzing phenomenon that is deeply connected to the Mauve Zone Magick and the insect demons known as the Schechiriron.

Belzebuth claims that Asmodeus oversees the consecration ceremony of the Amiscorous. Asmodeus (or Asmoday) is the 32^nd demon in the Goetia and he is called Samael the Black. In the same book, Asmoday is described as a strong, powerful and great king who teaches Arithmetic, Astronomy, Geometry and all handicrafts. Just like Lucifuge, he can reveal to the magician the locations of buried treasure.

In the infernal hierarchy of the Grand Grimoire, Lucifuge can be interpreted as a variation of the demon Asmodeus. Lucifer is, in the context of the Qliphothic Qabalah, associated with Samael, and Asmodeus is called Samael the Black. These names capture the same counterpart relationship that is attributed to the names of Lucifer and Lucifuge: the Light-Bearer and’he who’ flees the light. The Karcist can make practical use of this hypothesis, if he performs a Draconian ceremony with the three principle spirits of the Grand Grimoire and Lucifuge as guardians at the four cardinal directions. Rankine and Skinner write that in the Greek versions of the Key of Solomon, Lucifer is attributed to the East (Asia and Europe), Belzebuth to the South (Africa), Astaroth to the West (America) and Asmodeus to the North. Rankine and Skinner write that: These directions are often scrambled in later grimoires like the Grimorium Verum.

When the Karcist works with the Grand Grimoire, Lucifuge replaces Asmodeus as the infernal guardian of the North, which is ascribed to the night. Lucifuge Rofocale’s signature in the Grand Grimoire could roughly be interpreted as Nox Pax, in contradiction to the famous formula Konx Om Pax, which is heard in the Neophyte initiation ceremony of the Golden Dawn.

Israel Regardie further explains:

The Mystical Words - Khabs Am Pekht - are ancient Egyptian, and are the origin of the Greek Konx Om Pax which was uttered at the Eleusinian Mysteries. A literal translation would be Light Rushing Out in One Ray and they signify the same form of Light as that symbolised by the Staff of the Kerux.

Nox originates from the Greek word Nyx, Night, who was the primordial goddess of the night. She was the mother of Thanatos, Death and Hypnos, Sleep. Nox Pax could, within the context of the Western tradition of Magick, be translated as Night (in) Extension.

The Signature of Lucifuge Rofocale

Lucifuge Rofocale is conjured from the north in the nightly hours. In the Grand Grimoire, Lucifuge Rofocale states: call me one day every week, from ten in the evening until two in the morning. The Karcist must solely enter Sitra Ahra and solemnly pronounce the Conjuration of Lucifuge. This barbarous conjuration was provided by Lucifuge and embodies the sacred formula of the Rofocale motto:

ASKAT, DIMORTIL, SEBSA, ZEDRAELEP, BURGAS, HARKA, SEBSA, HUMOROTH, SEXATOX, SELAP, DASKA, HILIATH, BUROMOUN, ROFOCALE, SECAS. VENITE LUCIFUGE.

For Lucifiige to appear, the Karcist must understand and pronounce the Rofocale motto⁶ hidden within the conjuration. According to Lucifiige:

...pronouncing the Rofocale motto I promise to appear & treat you, and those who have this book, considerately & in a friendly manner. ..

In the Grand Grimoire Lucifiige gives no clue to what the Rofocale motto includes, but the name, Rofocale, hints toward the essence of the formula.

The name Lucifiige Rofocale conceals a mysterious anagram. Rofocale is an anagram for Focalor and should thusly be pronounced with a silent e. In the Goetia Focalor is presented as the 41^s' demon and in Weyer s Pseudomonarchia Dcemonum as the 43^rd demon.

Focalor (or Focator) is a strong and great duke with griffin wings. Both the Goetia and Pseudomonarchia claim that he commands three Legions of spirits, but 30 legions seems more correct. His office is:

... to kill men, and to drown them in ye waters, and to over throw ships of warre, for he hath power over both winds and seas, but he will not hurt any man or Thing, if he be commanded to ye contrary by ye Exorcist...

In the Goetia it is written that Focalor had hoped to return to the 7^th Throne after 1000 years, but in the Pseudomonarchia there is an indication that he was deceived in this wish.

The description of Focalors office in the Goetia has interesting similarities with Trithemius’ portrayal of the demons called Lucifugues. Focalor has powers over the winds and seas and the Lucifiigum is described as stormy. It is black through and through and malicious, which correspond with Focalor s office as the demon that drowns men in the dark seas. His office is naturally ascribed to the elements of Water or Air, though in the Faustian grimoire Dr. Faustus Vierfacher Hbllen-Zwang (1501) Focalor is presented as one of

6 In Petersons edition of Le Grand Grimoire, the phrase is translated differently; it is written:... and pronounced the word Rofocale.

the spirits of fire. In Stratton-Kent’s True Grimoire Focalor is ascribed to the element of Air. Stratton-Kent also notes an interesting fact, that the name Rofocale could simply be a reversed form of the name Lucifer. Focalor is one of the foremost demons of the Grand Grimoire, but he is concealed from the reader in the riddle that constitutes the name of Lucifuge Rofocale. He is the sentinel of Lucifuge and in the name Lucifuge Rofocale the two demons are presented in a metamorphic symbiosis.

In the context of the Qliphothic Qabalah, the anagrammatic name Lucifuge Rofocale conceals a mysterious formula. Lucifuge is not only the Prime Minister of Sitra Ahra, but also the chief demon of Satariel, which is the first Qlipha beyond the Abyss. Karlsson writes:

The adept enters into Satariel reborn and baptized in the black water of the Abyss. Satariel is the dark side of Binah, and these worlds are strongly related since Binah is already in itself a dark force that acts as a root of the left side on the Tree of Life.

The baptizing ceremony, which is executed in the dark waters of the Abyss, is ominously tied to the anagram; Focalor is here the initiator that drowns the Adept, so that he enters into Satariel reborn and subsequently is brought before the throne of Lucifuge. Focalor claims that:

Words are forbidden. Take my hand through footprints erased by sand. I will guide you into the sea; I am the guardian and the one that will drown you. I am the sentinel of Lucifuge.

Lilith has her original home in Satariel; the Adept here enters her dark labyrinths. Karlsson writes of the experience of entering Satariel:

... the feeling of wandering through long pitch black labyrinths.

[...] Lucifuge leads the adept through the dark labyrinths of Satariel towards the last levels of the Qliphoth. In the darkness of Satariel one can experience the breath of the great dragon, Tehom. In the tunnels, one can hear echoes of strange sounds from the planes beyond the limits of the universe.

Lucifuge is the initiator of gnosis associated with Satariel. The Karcist reaches Lucifuge’s throne only after he has drowned in the black waters of the Abyss, with the assistance of Focalor initiating the rite of passage. It is through the alchemical formula of Thanatos and the passage through Daath (the Abyss), that the Karcist's consciousness undergoes an alchemical transformation, so that he may enter into the mirror-world that veils the illicit gnosis of the Grand Grimoire. The anagram is a phantasmagorical reflection cast by Le Miroir de Salomon, which is one of the essential mysteries connected to the Draconian praxis of the book. Within the mirrors the name Focalor is reflected and transforms into Rofocale. Focalor provides the Adept with the Rofocale motto during the asphyxiating ceremony of initiation. Behind Le Miroir de Salomon, Lucifuge stands alone in ecliptic darkness and meets the reborn Adept; only there has all light fled the reflecting surface of the sea.

The Seal of Focalor

Focalor is conjured in solitude. Preferably, the Karcist evokes the demon at the seashore on a stormy night, while gazing into the tempestuous sea. The Karcist must sincerely pronounce the barbarous words of power of The Conjuration of Focalor, until he appears.

The Conjuration of Focalor:

NERADIPET, ZAZA, CARCIA, TERAHEN, SASATA.

According to the Qliphothic Qabalah, Focalor corresponds to A’arab Zaraq, but is known under the name Rofocale in the shell of Satariel. Focalor is also connected to the Samael Qlipha and the Poison of God. Samael consists of Sam (Hebrew for Poison) and el, which means of God. Consequently, Samael can be translated as the Poison of God.

The gematria value of the name conceals an important formula that embodies the alchemical transformation of ones consciousness from Being to Non-Being. The value of SMAL is 131 (SMAL: Samekh, Mem, Aleph and Lamed: 60, 40,1, 30 = 131), a formula that represents the rite of passage between AL (God/Being) and LA (Non-Being). Both AL and LA have the value of 31, and in the number 131, their relation is presented in a reflection typical of the gnosis from Le Miroir de Salomon. This rite de passage is symbolized by the seashore, where land meets water, where Being becomes Non-Being. Focalor awaits the Adept at this crossroad and guides him into the sea. It is at this juncture the Adept becomes baptized into the mysteries of the Rofocale motto.

In the Samael Qlipha, the Karcist makes his first Pacta Conventa Daemoniorum with Lucifer and the infernal hierarchy presented in the Grand Grimoire. These pacts are significant oaths within the Qliphothic initiation and will lead him deeper into the heart of Sitra Ahra; the path that finally leads to the Divine Nothingness of the ancient Draconian ethos.

♦ LE VERITABLE DRAGON ROUGE ♦

nine demons of the Grand Grimoire and their relations to the seven planets, the Olympic Spirits and the days of the week can be traced through the hints, which are presented in one of the French editions of the Grand Grimoire, known as Le Veritable Dragon Rouge.

Le Veritable Dragon Rouge claims to be a reprint of the mythical edition of 1521. The book was printed in Paris by J. Dumoulin and contains eleven chapters; these include the most essential parts of the Grand Grimoire. In the chapters Le Sanctum Regum [sic], Grande Appellation - des esprits avec lesquels on peut faire pacte, tire de la grand clavicule and Du miroir secret de Solomon; the infernal hierarchy, the pact with Lucifuge Rofocale and how to make Solomons Mirror are presented in the same manner as in the Grand Grimoire. The other chapters come from diverse sources; the most obvious one is the Arbatel de Magia Veterum (1575), which makes it improbable that Le Veritable Dragon Rouge truly is a reprint of an edition from 1521.

In the chapter, Touchant les pactes faits avec le Diable, the anonymous editor claims that one cannot deny the existence of the demon, which has been quoted in so many works since the beginning of the world. He writes that the demon sometimes takes rhe form of a snake, and his head and legs could be composed of, or bear the resemblance of different kinds of animals.

Le Veritable Dragon Rouge has one conspicuous distinction from the other editions of the Grand Grimoire, namely that the nine demonic signs and characters, Marque des esprits, are attributed to the names of the seven Olympic Spirits.

The Olympic Spirits were first presented in the Arbatel de Magia Veterum and later in the Theosophia Pneumatica (1686). The Arbatel de Magia Veterum first appeared in Latin in 1575 and was published in Basel, Switzerland. In 1655 Robert Turner translated the book into English. In the Arbatel de Magia Veterum, the Olympic Spirits are introduced as the seven Governors that control the 186 Olympic providences: Aratron has 49, Bethor 32, Phaleg 35, Och 28, Hagirh 21, Ophiel 14 and Phul 7.

In Le Veritable Dragon Rouge, the Olympic Spirits are presented with the famous seals from the Arbatel de Magia Veterum, although there is an additional page presenting the names of the seven Olympic Spirit with a variation of the nine demonic sigils from the Grand Grimoire.

Waite introduces the same correlation between the Olympic Spirits and the nine essential demons of the Grand Grimoire in The Book of Black Magic. He explains that the Olympic Spirits are presented with the Infernal Sigils of the Evil Planetary Spirits according to the Red Dragon. Waite's statement has practical implications on how the Karcist can relate the nine demons of the Grand Grimoire to the seven planets. These attributions are inconsistent with the demonology of the Qliphothic Qabalah, but present appealing hypotheses, which can be considered essential in understanding the complexity of the hierarchy described in the Grand Grimoire.

According to the Qliphothic Qabalah, the four most essential spirits from the Grand Grimoire are each ascribed to a Qlipha, but the other five superior spirits are not. Le Veritable Dragon Rouge's innovation is most likely not grounded in the editors empirical or theoretical studies of the nine demons and their planetary attributions. Nonetheless, this innovation is part of the evolution of the Grand Grimoire and it deserves inclusion here.

The seal of Lucifuge and Satanachia are ascribed to the Olympic Spirit Och. Le Veritable Dragon Rouge states that Och administers the solar interest and can convert any substance into pure gold or precious stones. He can compose medicines, gives great wisdom and health. In the original text of Arbatel de Magia Veterum, Och can also bestow the Karcist with gold and a purse springing with gold. He can also prolong the life of the Karcist to 600 years with perfect health and he provides excellent familiars. If the Karcist is dignified with his character, Och can make him be worshipped as a deity by all kings of the world.

Lucifuge is ’he who’ flees the light, therefore it is quite contradictory that his seal is ascribed to the Sun and the solar interest. Lucifuge is the Archdemon of the dark side of Saturn, which is the Satariel Qlipha. Taking these facts into consideration, the seal of Lucifuge would appropriately be connected to the Olympic Spirit Aratron and as the Evil Planetary Spirit of Saturn.

According to Le Veritable Dragon Rouge Aratron is attributed to the seal of Lucifer. Aratron governs the things that are ascribed astronomically to Saturn and teaches Physics, Alchemy and Magic. He can convert any animal, plant or living organism into stone. Aratron can transform coals into treasures and treasures into coals. This corresponds with Lucifuge's office as the demon that has power over all worldly riches and treasures. Lucifer is the Light-Bearer and, if interpreted literally, could be ascribed to the solar interest of the sun and the Olympic Spirit Och. In Le Clavicules de R. Salomon there is an interesting list in which Aratron is ascribed to the Sun and Och to Mercury. This is odd, because earlier in the same manuscript the seven Olympic Spirits correspond consistently with the ones provided in the Arbatel de Magia Veterum.

In Le Veritable Dragon Rouge Satanachia wields power over all young and old women and can make them submit themselves to the Karcist. Satanachia controls a strong legion of spirits and beneath him are the goetic demons Barbatos, Aamon and Pruslas.The Traite Universal des Clavicules de Salomon claims that Satanachia commands forty-four demons and the four principle ones are Kramaeel, Surgunth, Irmasial and Suffuriel. However, the

Grimorium Verum states that the two Satanachia (or Satanicae) control forty-five demons and that the four chief-demons of these are Sergutthy, Heramael, Trimasel and Sustugriel.

It is difficult to grasp why Satanachia is also ascribed to Och, but it could in this context be interpreted as a demon that controls the solar-phallic energies that attract the female sex. Satanachia is here a representative of the Solar principles and Lucifuge is the demonic representative of the Black Sun and Thagirion. Lucifuge and Satanachia could be interpreted as representing the two opposite Suns. Lucifuge is in this context the anthropomorphic embodiment of the Black Sun that travels through the underworld with the assistance of Kephra. He is magically associated both with Thagirion and Satariel, which can be understood through empirical studies of the Tunnel of Zamradiel. According to the Qliphothic Qabalah, Thagirion corresponds to the Daemon, longevity, wisdom, honour, success and power.

Lucifuge holds a similar office to the demon Aciel, who is presented in the Faustian grimoire Magia Naturalis et Innaturalis (1505). Aciel is one of the seven Electors and is the lord of all the treasures buried in the earth and one of the most guileful and dangerous demons of the Magia Naturalis et Innaturalis. In Dr. Johannes Fausti cabalae nigrae, magia naturalis et innaturalis (1505) Aciel is under the control of the angel Raphael and these entities are both ascribed to the Sun. There is an interesting correlation between the two demons Lucifuge and Aciel, and the Black Sun. Butler claims that Aciel (or Asiel) is the midnight sun of the Akkadians and that the spirit:

...bears a strong resemblance to the metallurgical gods of the Chaldeans, and I believe myself, [...] that he was a lineal descendant of the midnight sun of the Akkadian cosmos.

It is quite peculiar that Le Veritable Dragon Rouge introduces the Olympic Spirits in relation to the nine demonic seals from the Grand Grimoire, but one should keep in mind that the Olympic spirits might have had a much more sinister reputation when Le Veritable Dragon Rouge was first compiled at the end of 1800s, or in the beginning of 1900s. In the True Account of

the Jena Tragedy of Christmas Eve (1716), there is a genuine story concerning three magicians who decided to call upon the Olympic Spirit Och, to make him in turn summon his servant Nathael to assist them in locating a hidden treasure and create lucky pennies. These lucky pennies were supposed to multiply themselves with the help of the spirits. The ceremony was carried out in a hut in a vineyard at Christmas Eve in 1715, but the conjuration ended in a disaster, in which two of the magicians died during the ritual and the third was found at the point of death. At the time of the incident the authorities believed that their deaths were a consequence to the spirits invoked. Butler writes:

Och, both in Arbatel and in Theosophia Pneumatica, is a good spirit; so that this inglorious experiment may have been ’white’. But black or white, it was to prove disastrous.

Presumably, the three magicians used practical information to aid the ritual from the Faustian grimoire Harrowing of Hell, but Butler believed that they probably acquired the information from Theosophia Pneumatica that is based on the Arbatel de Magia Veterum, which in contradiction to any Faustian texts presents Och as the Prince of the kingdom of the Sun. In supposedly traditional demonology Nathael, Aciel and Lucifuge correspond to the Sun and may assist the Karcist in locating buried treasure. Butler writes that the office of the spirit Nathael:

...bears a strong family likeness to Aciel; and if it were indeed he under another name, then one can well understand the disaster which attended the invocation.

After incidents like the one that is presented in the True Account of the Jena Tragedy of Christmas Eve, the Olympic Spirit Och might have gained some notoriety in France thus explaining his inclusion in the publication of Le Veritable Dragon Rouge.

Belzebuth’s seal corresponds to Berhor, which is the Ruler of the planet Jupiter and its influences. Bethor composes medicines, assists the Karcist to obtain large treasures, controls the spirit of Air, transports precious stones and can prolong life up to seven hundred years, if God approves.

In Le Veritable Dragon Rouge, Belzebuth is the Evil Planetary Spirit of Jupiter, which corresponds to the shell of Gha'agsheblah. But according to the Qliphothic Qabalah, Belzebuth is the Arch-demon of the Ghagiel Qlipha. Gha'agsheblah is related to social stature, wealth, and money. These attributes correspond to Bethor’s office of assisting the Karcist in obtaining large treasures. In this context, Prince Belzebuth is the Evil Planetary Spirit of Jupiter and therefore his influences come through the Tunnel of Uriens, which leads between Gha'agsheblah and Ghagiel. Grant writes that Uriens is ascribed to the eleventh kala, which is ruled by Air and that the tunnel:...is presided by Satan, Prince of the Power of the Air. Weyer wrote that Belzebuth is the Supreme Chief of the Infernal Empire and the founder of the Order of the Fly. In De Plancy’s Dictionnaire Infernal (1863) Prince Belzebuth is illustrated as a monstrous fly, an image that captures the demons office as overseer of the Schechiriron, and as Bethor, a spirit that controls the spirits of Air.

Astaroth’s seal is ascribed to the Olympic Spirit Phalag who is the ruler of all things that are attributed to Mars. Phalag grants the Karcist honour in military affairs. On the title page of Le Veritable Dragon Rouge there is a seal entitled Avec la marque dAstaroth. This seal is also included in Waite's Book of Black Magic, but is here one of two characters, which should be embroidered in red silk on the outer vestment, used in ceremonial magick.

Astaroth informed the author that this seal is connected to his powers and could favourably be carved on talismans or magical tools used in relation to his office.

La marque dAstaroth

In the Grand Grimoire, the word Phalay is used to render oneself favourable to Judges; the word can be viewed as a variation of the name of the Olympic Spirit Phalag, if this is the case, it shows an early influence of Arbatel de Magia Veterum on the Grand Grimoire, later elaborated upon in Le Veritable Dragon Rouge. In this context, the word Phalay can be seen as corresponding to the demon Astaroth and his influences over Jurisdictional powers. In The Cabala of the Green Butterfly a magical praxis is presented for the conjuring of Astaroth, which is essential in this instance. The Cabala of the Green Butterfly was originally an Italian text from the 19^th century, though it claims that a famous Necromancer gave the original formula to Sesac the King of Egypt. The formula was hidden within an enclosed box, fashioned from a solar diamond. The Cabala of the Green Butterfly states that a Jew first opened the box in 1607 and the secret (the Cabala) was recovered. The Cabala contains an interesting relation to the Grand Grimoire (alt. Le Dragon Rouge) and explains that:

Having made the call that you will find in the true book the Red Dragon then Astaroth will appear to you in the form that you command, and you ask your orders, which will be agreed without retort, and you will be able to demand whatever you will.

Stratton-Kent writes that the conjuration, which is insinuated in the text, is from the Grande Appellation. This conjuration was first published in the Grand Grimoire from 1750.

When Astaroth finally appears, after the Karcist has followed the instructions of the text, the Magician can ask the demon any favour, but The Cabala of the Green Butterfly also gives a list of fourteen things that Astaroth can assist one with, one of these is:

To render the Judges favourable to you, yes, that nobody can speak badly about you.

This attribution confirms Astaroth’s relation with the name Phalay, whose name is given in the Grand Grimoire to render the Judges favourable to the Karcist.

In the context of the Qliphothic Qabalah, Astaroth is normally attributed to Gha’agsheblah Qlipha, but in Le Veritable Dragon Rouge, and as the Evil Planetary Spirit of Mars, Astaroth becomes ascribed to the shell of Golachab.

Hagith is attributed to the seal of Agaliarept. Agaliarept’s office is to uncover the well-hidden secrets of all the cabinets and courts of the world. Beneath him are the demons Aamon, Pruslas and Barbatos. The Olympic Spirit Hagith is ascribed to Venus and the government of Venereal concerns, gives the Karcist beauty and can transform gold into copper, and copper into gold. Hagith is also linked to the infernal seal of Fleurety. Fleurety is a Lieutenant General and assists the Karcist with anything that has to be done at nighttimes, he can also make hail fall anywhere he pleases. There is no clear connection between Hagiths office and these two demons as the Evil Planetary Spirits of Venus. The A’arab Zaraq Qlipha is the dark side of Venus, which is under the dominion of Baal. In the Grand Grimoire, Agaliarept and Fleurety each have three demons; three spirits of these six are dukes, and therefore correspond to A’arab Zaraq. The three dukes are Gusoyn, Bathim and Eligor.

Sargatanas is the Brigadier and his seal corresponds to the Olympic Spirit Ophiel. Sargatanas has the ability to make the Karcist become invisible and can transport him everywhere. He teaches necromancy and opens all keyholes to let the Karcist see what occurs in other houses. The Olympic Spirit Ophiel governs the things that are attributed to Mercury. He teaches all arts and can transform quicksilver into the Philosophers Stone. Both Mercury

and the Samael Qlipha are located on the astral realm, and one could interpret that Sargatanas’ office as a teacher of the art of invisibility implies that he can transport the Karcist anywhere and reveal what occurs in private houses. These attributes gives firm indications that Sargatanas is an initiator of the art of the astral travel, in particular to the shell of Samael.

Phul is attributed to the infernal seal of Nebiros (or Nebiros). In Le Veritable Dragon Rouge, Nebiros is presented as one of the best necromancers of all the infernal demons. He can make the Karcist find the Hand of Glory, foretell the future and teaches qualities of vegetables, minerals and all animals that are pure and impure. Nebiros can do evil to whomever he wants and he inspects all of the Infernal Militias. Beneath Nebiros are Ayperos, Naberus and Glosialabolas.

The Olympic Spirit Phul is ascribed to Luna and he can prolong life up to three hundred years. He can transmute all metals into silver and gives spirits of the water. Nebiros is the Evil Planetary Spirit of Luna and his office is related to the dark aspects of traditional folk magic and the praxis of necromancy related to the ghouls, who dwell in the Gamaliel Qlipha, Nebiros also teaches nigromancy (literally: black divination) via the medium of water. In the Quimbanda tradition, Nesbiros (alt. Nebiros) is known under the name Exu dos Rios, which is the Exu of the Rivers. He is connected to divination with the use of water; he can also influence the magicians dreams and feelings. These attributes indicate that Nebiros is the Evil Planetary Spirit of Luna and also correlates with the Olympic Spirit Phul, who gives, spirits of the water’.

Le Veritable Dragon Rouge claims that Nebiros enables one to find the Hand of Glory; a notorious amulet that originates from traditional folk magic. Instructions on how to create the Hand of Glory can be found in Le Petit Albert (1706), these instructions were later reintroduced in Le Grimoire du Pape Honorius and can also be found in the chapter De la main de gloire, which is presented in the presumed first edition of the Grand Grimoire of 1750.

Le Petit Albert is credited to one Alberti Parvi Lucii and the earliest known French edition of the book was published in the Bibliotheque bleue genre under the imprint of Beringas Fratres in 1706.

Stratton-Kent writes that the term Hand of Glory is a translation of the French main de gloire, which has its roots in the old French mandragore. This word has its origin from the Latin word mandragora. Stratton-Kent writes:

The term band is widely used in Hoodoo and related traditions, and the original magical hand was a powerful magical charm made from a mandrake root.

There are two diverging instructions on how to manufacture the Hand of Glory; one is presented in Le Petit Albert and subsequently in the Grand Grimoire and the second in the Grimorium Verum. In the latter work there is no real hand implied, but rather the creation of a magical serpent, which the Karcist must enter into a pact with.

Burglars and thieves used the Hand of Glory as an amulet of protection in their criminal endeavours. The amulet is made of the left or the right hand from a criminal who had been gibbeted; the Karcist must carefully squeeze out the remaining blood from the severed hand, so that as much blood as possible is extracted. The hand must then be placed in an earthen vessel with pounded peppercorns, saltpetre, common salt and zimort. After fifteen days the hand should be taken out of the vessel and dried by the heat of the sun, this should be done during the time of the Dog Star. A candle must then be made from all the grease from the dried hand and combined with sesame from Lapland and virgin wax. The candle is then placed in the Hand of Glory, which acts as a candleholder, and the amulet is thereafter complete. A Main de Gloire, made in according to these rules, had the notorious reputation of making everyone motionless that beheld the light that it emits, with the exception of the Karcist.

Nebiros is the initiator of the practise of the Hand of Glory, which correlates to the forces of the Gamaliel Qlipha and its influences on the lowermost shell of Lilith. The Lilith Qlipha corresponds to the praxis of sorcery for

acquiring money, riches and material gains by the use of witchcraft. Naamah is the Arch-demon of the shell of Lilith.

It is of interest to note that the Hand of Glory must be dried during the time of the Dog Star. According to Stratton-Kent, Astaroth is associated with Sirius, the Great Dog Star. This is of interest, because Nebiros is, according the Grimorium Verum, under the dominion Astaroth.

Through empirical studies, the present writer is convinced that Nebiros is in fact two entities, which work in a symbiotic relationship; they are the twins of the cemetery. The Grimorium Verum states that: Under the two Nebirots are two others: Hoel and Sergulath. The two Nebirots are prestigious teachers in the art of necromancy; they have their seat in Gamaliel, but influence the lowermost shell of Lilith through the Tunnel of Thantifaxath. Nebiros states:

In a single candle our flame condemns. The hand of stone croaks with a voice of pain. We are the grave robbers; the ones that sow on the field. We are the two guardians by the light of the cemetery; two bear our name, but only one breathes.

Nebiros (or Nebirots) often takes the appearance of two twin entities with big birdlike craniums, both dressed in white vestments. The present author was given the barbarous Conjuration of Nebiros by these two demons. This conjuration should be used when the Karcist desires their assistance in the art of necromancy and works related to the Hand of Glory.

The Conjuration of Nebiros:

SISARASH, HOMOKLOT, HESATAR, IGASIL, MIRAT, TERASHAN, BIKOROTH, HELD, PERINOSONT, HEXA, DARMIKUR, HERISKAT, PIRKAROTH, VENITE NEBIROS.

In the Pseudomonarchia Dcemonum, Naberus (alt. Naberius, Cerberus) is presented as the 17^th demon. The book states that he speaks with a hoarse voice and takes the form of a crow. Naberus is a marquis and is therefore as-

cribed to the shell of Gamaliel. In the Faustian grimoire Dr. Faustus Vierfacher Hollen-Zwang, Neberus is presented as one of the spirits of Earth. According to the Grand Grimoire, Naberus is under the dominion of Nebiros. But the two demons bear a strong resemblance both in name and appearance; they are also each ascribed to the Gamaliel Qlipha. One hypothesis is that Nebiros and Naberus are the two Nebirots, which are mentioned in the Grimorium Verum. According to the same book the two Nebirots control Sergulath and Hael; furthermore, there are also eight influential spirits which depend on both these two and the two Nebirots, they are: Proculo, Haristum, Brulefer, Pentagnony, Aglasis, Sidragosum, Minosons and Bucon.

Only through a Pacta Daemoniorum with this mighty spirit will the Adept unveil the shroud of secrecy surrounding Nebiros (or the two Nebirots), who is known as one of the greatest Necromancers in all the infernal hierarchies.

♦ CONCLUSION ♦

f'^'he Grand Grimoire is a pseudo-Solomonic grimoire that introduces the Pacta Conventa Dasmoniorum, which claims to be the true manner of making a pact with spirits. The first known edition of the Grand Grimoire is most presumably the French edition from ca. 1750, which was part of the Bibliotheque bleue genre. The authorship of the original manuscript must remain conjectural, but the text shows evidences of a much older origin and a reasonable assumption is that the grimoire could have been a true Liber Spirituum, which had once belonged to a Karcist and nigromancer.

The Grimorium Verum and Grand Grimoire are two important texts in the Black Arts. Both of these books have some key similarities; essentially the conjuration addressed to Lucifer and the main infernal hierarchy, with the exception of Lucifuge, which is only included the latter work.

The Grand Grimoire is the first book that introduces Lucifuge and includes two central dialogs with the demon, which form the basic praxis of the pacta dtemoniorum. Lucifuge has gained a prominent office in the Qliphothic

Qabalah as the Arch-demon of the Satariel Qlipha. In the Grand Grimoire the spirit is also presented under the two-fold name Lucifuge Rofocale. The name, Lucifuge, might have its origin from Psellus’ term Lucifugum (or Lucifiigues), which was later elaborated by the Abbot Trithemius in his Liber Octo Quaestionum. The second name, Rofocale, is an anagram of Focalor, which is a spirit that is presented both in Weyer’s Pseudomonarchia Daemonum and in the Goetia. Focalor is one of the essential demons of the Grand Grimoire, but is concealed from the reader in the anagrammatic riddle. He is the sentinel of Lucifuge and the initiator of the Rofocale motto. He is the one that drowns the Karcist is the dark river of the Abyss, so the Adept enters into Satariel reborn. In Satariel Lucifuge reigns and the Adept is here subjected to his legions of spirits; who dwell in the shades of this labyrinthine shell. These demons are known as the Lucifiigues.

In Le Veritable Dragon Rouge the nine demonic seals and characters from the Grand Grimoire are introduced with the names of the seven Olympic Spirits from Arbatel de Magia Veterum. Waite believed these to be the Infernal Sigils of the Evil Planetary Spirits. Through Waites hypothesis, the nine demons can each be ascribed to a planet, which differs from the etablished demonology of the Qliphothic Qabalah; where the four mightiest demons from the Grand Grimoire are already each ascribed to a Qlipha, as its Arch-demon. Nonetheless, the system gives an innovative perspective of the complex nature of the spirits that could be of practical use for the Adept on the Left-Hand Path.

The Grand Grimoire is one of the most important grimoires in the canon of nigromancy. It is through the notorious art of the Pacta Conventa Daemoniorum that the nine demons of the book will assist the Adept on his crucial journey through the Qliphothic initiation, which leads toward perfection and the Adamas Ater. The book gives firm suggestions on how the Karcist should form the pacta dsemoniorum with any of the demons within the book, which is an essential art for climbing the branches on the Tree of Knowledge on our quest for the fruits of the forbidden wisdom that may lead us to the realisation of our individual divinity.

VISIO ♦ VIRES * ACTIO

♦ BIBLIOGRAPHY ♦

Skinner, Stephen & Rankine, David

The Goetia of Dr. Rudd

Stratton-Kent, Jake Trithemius

Regardie, Israel

Waite Edward

The Key to the Gateway of Magic: Summoning the Solomonic Archangels & Demon Princes (Includes Janua Magica Reserata)

The Veritable Key of Solomon

The True Grimoire

Liber Octo Quaestionum

The Golden Dawn

The Book of Black Magic

Le Grand Grimoire - ou I’art de commander les esprits celestes, eriens, terrestres, infernaux. Avec le vrai secret Defaire parler les Morts, de gagner toutes lesfois qu’on met aux Loteries, de dacou-vrir les Tresors caches, &c. Imprimire sur un manuscrit de 1522. Paris. B. Renault, Editeur 1845.

Le Grand Grimoire - Lart de commander les esprits celestes, aeriens, terrestres & infernaux: suivi du grand grimoire, de la magie noire et des forces infernales, du docteur J.Karter, la clavi-cule de Salomon, &c: avec le vrai secret defaire parler les morts, por decouvrir tous les les tresors caches, &c. &c. [Paris?: s.n], 1421 [i.e.1750]

The Grand Grimoire - Trident Press edition with Gretchen Rudy’s translation of the Italian edition II Gran Grimoirio (1612).

Le Grimoire du Pape Honorius (circa 1810)

Grimorium Verum - Trident Press edition translated by (1997) Le Veritable Dragon Rouge - Ou il est traite de I’art de commander les esprits infernaux, aeriens et terrestres, faire apparaitre les morts, lire dans les astres, decouvrir les tresors, sources, min-ieres, plus La Poule Noire (1521)

Liber Niger Legionis - the Grimoire of the Pharaon.

BLACK

ECHOES

ANONYMOUS

LEGION WHISPERS to ITS HOST: We are always knowing our-j ■ selves, and seeking to know ourselves, through the other. By saying so, we demonstrate the reality. Do you identify yourself as one’ of us? Even a subtle confluence of novel and heretofore unknown possibilities, a minor variation in frames of reference, suffices to disorient familiar association. It requires a more extreme inversion for the one’ to know itself as many, and become other to its own selves. That makes the other a self among selves, while for each self alone it remains: non-self.

The Infernal Host echoes back among its Legions: We are already other than our selves, all of which partake of something else which, in as much as it appears as a self, is not ours. It belongs to no one, masterless, conscious, sole, sovereign, unique. Others call it the Devil.

It calls itself'I'.

I proclaim: myself as Other and all others as my Selves.

I become: the Other as the Self, Host to the Legion... of Devils.

♦ THE DIABOLICAL CATECHISM

What is the Devil?

I.

Who is the Devil?

I am.

WT10 are you?

I am I.

What are you?

The Self.

What is the Other?

I am that.

Who is the Other?

I am that I am.

Where is the Devil?

Hell.

Where is Hell?

Here.

Where is the Other?

There.

Where is that? Elsewhere than here.

Where are you? In-between.

In-between where?

In between here and there.

If here is hell, and there is elsewhere, are you then in limbo, neither in nor out of Hell?

When I am anywhere, I am in Hell, and thus the Devil. Only there, where I am not, Hell is not, but only the Other. Between them is the measureless Abyss, where is neither the Devil nor the Other.

If in the Abyss dwells neither the Devil nor the Other,

dwells there the Self?

No.

Where then dwells the Self?

Nowhere.

What dwells then in the Abyss?

Nothing.

Then who am I? You are my Host.

If I am your Host, then we, though twain, are One. What are we called as One?

Our name is Legion.

If our name is Legion, are we not Many?

We are.

Yet if we are Many, how is it that as One, our name is Legion?

Because as One-in-All, my Name is Legion, for I am Many. What is my name as All-in-One, the Many manifest as Unity?

Satan, the Opposer.

What then is my Name, as One Alone, the Sole and Unique One?

♦ THE RITE OF SELF-OTHERING ♦

n order to apprehend the identity of the Devil, the would-be Diabolist SaJ must know the Self and be able to distinguish it from its own consciousness, and from everything else. Only by becoming the Other to this Self can this be accomplished.

The ritual requires the aid of a full-length mirror and may be enhanced by the use of dissociative, hallucinogenic, psychotropic, or entheogenic agents.

This mirror should be sigilized in the infernalists own blood, with such signs, seals, emblems, and insignia of the Devil-as-Other which the infer-nalist has previously discerned. A useful means of acquiring these symbols would be automatism conducted during times of extreme stress, distress, panic, grief, bereavement, or sorrow. The most useful signs will be those seeming to develop spontaneously after a trance of automatism has been induced by drawing or otherwise creating those traditional signs of the Devil which the sorcerer favors, repeatedly during the obsessive episode. As inevitable catharsis is eventually reached, the symbols will distort in some fashion, great or subtle. It is in the variation between the sigilic forms that various keys to the infernal angles may be discerned.

Once the mirror has been sigilized with the appropriate symbols, ideally including one for each Devil in the infernalists Legion, another sigil for the Devil itself (drawn where the infernalists face will appear in the mirror), yet another for the Legion as a whole (drawn so that it will appear over the reflection of the infernalists heart), and the personal sigil of the infernalist drawn over the reflection of the organs of generation, the infernalist stands before the mirror in the posture ascribed to the Devil Itself, and gazes into his or her own eyes, declaring some personal variation of what follows:

Having become infernal host to the legion of daimonic selves, I transvoke the diabolical unity of the self-opposing one: I call forth the otherness of my Self that I might question it and learn its secret name.

By these infernal names and formulae known to me [here the infernalist calls on patrons, allies, black spells, mantras, and so forth, repeating the whole series nine times] I conjure the Devil itself!

Present it was in these evils which I have done: [the infernalist then recites as exhaustively as possible, beginning with his or her earliest memory, a full catalogue of any thoughts, words, or deeds enacted consciously and with deliberate evil intent, being intent to transgress whatever measure his or her norms of behaviour would have regarded, at the time, as due and appropriate. This may or may not include deeds which would be regarded as evil, or as good, by the terms of conventional morality. If the infernalist believes in any absolute morality, or rational morality, it is all the more important to distinguish those deeds which, particularly, were done in deliberate violation of these standards. Accidental, unconscious, compulsive, and reactive deeds should be ignored, however.]

Present it is in the evil that I here do, for I now deliberately and with fully conscious intent do transgress the boundaries of my Self. I proceed beyond the due measure of identity.

I call out my personality in challenge to its dominion. I renounce the god of habitual being, denounce its image, and reject its norms that I might go beyond all law of self and other.

I have done evil in and with the flesh in bleeding out these signs upon the lunar glass. I have done evil in and with the memory in reminiscing upon and relishing evil. I do evil in the mind by contemplating the nature of evil, by daring to defy the self, and by confronting the Other. I do now evil in and with the speech in declaring thus, in sacrilege. I shall do evil in will, for I dare to break all boundaries and violate all rules.

Only Nothing is sacred to me, for no being is Good.

Only the Devil is real for me, for naught else has Being.

Present it shall be in the evil that I shall do, for all thoughts, words, and deeds which I intend from thence here reflect upon themselves. No more can I forget what I here see than the fruit once bitten and swallowed can un-eat itself, the virgin once seduced can repurify itself, or the child once born can return to the womb.

Therefore, soul in hell, consigned to hell, which remains eternally absent of essence, fill yourself with the black fuel of infernal existence and speak unto me the black echoes of the Opposer!

By this call, by self-love’s passion, and by the undying, undefiled wisdom of Satan Archdaimon, Prince of Darkness, Lord of Light, Master of the World, Ruler of All, I enjoin the one I summon here to answer fully to these my divine entreaties and come quickly to heed my exhortations:

Zazas zazas nasatanada zazas!

[The infernalist must continue conjurations along these lines until the Devil appears in the mirror. The Devil may or may not appear in the likeness of the infernalist. Once it appears, the infernalist asks the first question of the Diabolical Catechism.

Depending on the extent of disassociation and the disposition of the infernalist, results may vary significantly from this point, but the aim of the rite is the discernment of the answer to the final question of the Catechism. Without this answer, the would-be Diabolist remains constrained and fettered by the bonds of identity.]

Once the Name is apprehended, the Diabolist cuts open his or her left hand with the same ritual bloodletter used to prepare the ritual, and writes the Name in some sigilic or arcane form in the appropriate region of the mirror.

The manifold applications of this Name and seal will be obvious, and will be found to be increasingly diverse:

For out of the One, Many.

♦ THE OFFERING OF SUPREME SACRIFICE ♦

he Diabolist will undoubtedly find that the methodology of Sacrifice CJC" pervades the operations of diabolical sorcery, since nothing is ever free. Beyond the obviousness of mere exchange, the art of sacrifice also includes more creative applications such as the conversion of the useless into the useful, the excretion of the putrid, the release of the unduly bound, and the destruction of the stagnant. It also entails the sacralisation of the profane, such that even the enemy becomes emblematic of the holy Devil, and all obstacles totemic of the Opposer Itself.

The sacrifice of Self becomes an initiatory ordeal, yet always another Self remains.

The sacrifice of the Other may be apotropeic, propitiatory, or latreic, but always more sacrifices of the same type remain.

Even the destruction of the Diabolist’s own life, while seemingly final, cannot be assured of singularity or uniqueness, since existence may remain, or even be empowered and enhanced in essence by the act, which may yet precipitate further incarnation in the flesh, or further cascades of causality beyond it.

There is only one supreme sacrifice, performed not only but once, but also continually and eternally, the supreme sacrifice which carves a gateway through profane, causal time into the sacred eternity of the acausal realm into the very flesh, which transmutes the Diabolist into one wholly other even to the self: the sacrifice of Love.

Performed correctly and with absolute precision, it shatters the fetters that bind the self, effaces the delusional imprisonment of identity, and burns away all obscurity.

A mistake in the rite damns the Diabolist not only to failure in perpetuity, but also to the most horrific, unrelenting torments of perdition.

The first requirement of the rite is the selection of the offering. It must be the embodiment not only of what the Diabolist loves, and considers to be a type of Love, but also what the Diabolist most loves. Thus, selection of the

sacrifice requires extensive inquiry and contemplation. Those who understand, or who gain the requisite understanding in contemplation, will apprehend the boundary between self and other as formulated in Love. Those who fail to understand may not realize this until the ritual has been performed incorrectly.

The second requirement is securing the offering. This is a pragmatic requirement as well as an esoteric one. The Diabolist must leave no possibility of self-sabotage occurring through an unpredictable ritual outcome. Thus, securing the offering’ also includes selecting the most precisely relevant time, place, and ritual content. The ritual of sacrifice itself should be created by the Diabolist with as much elaboration and aesthetic drama is necessary to make it unforgettable in detail, but also no more. It is best if the imagery of the rite is drawn from a combination of whatever ’diabolical’ imagery seems most wholly evil to the diabolist and whatever imagery is most particular to the nature and identity of the offering. The ritual should be timed to coincide with some date with specific relevance to the offering, and should never be performed on the Diabolist’s birthday.

The offering should be marked with sigils representing every benefit the Diabolist desires to permanently derive from the act, with the understanding that these benefits will become enduring enhancements to his or her own diabolical psyche, and will also become primary gateways to the acausal within and without. Before performing this rite, it would be wise for the Diabolist to study the psychology of obsession, the compulsion to repeat, the Stockholm syndrome, fetishism, and the psychopathology of sadism.

The ritual act itself, in addition to whatever esoteric content the Diabolist has derived, must be contrived in such a way that the Diabolist will be compelled by sensory and aesthetic stimuli to enjoy its performance as much as possible in both physical and emotional contexts. Discerning the method of doing this is also part of the efficacy of the ritual. Even if the sacrifice of the offering in question is not normally something the Diabolist would ever otherwise contemplate doing (and, if the previous instructions have been understood, it definitely should not be!), the ritual should be designed in such a

way as to be irresistibly appealing to as many aspects of the diabolical psyche as possible, an unforgettably and perhaps unrepeatably ecstatic experience of indulgence, pride, and sin.

In addition to being irreparably destroyed as a personal context or possession, the offering must be consumed as far as possible by the Diabolist while leaving any unconsumed content dedicated in total to the Devil. Some piece of the offering might be clearly left behind after the conclusion of the ritual; this may become talismanic of Diabolism for the ritualist, and used fetishistically to call on the Devil's protection, aid in time of crisis, or to reveal the Diabolical nature to one as yet uninitiated into it. Such a revelation can be a means of seduction, a weapon of terror, or an induction into the black mysteries. Whatever magical tool or weapon was used in the ritual to conduct the sacrifice will also become a potent talisman useful in destroying enemies of the Diabolist, conducting further sacrifices, and striking fear into potential adversaries.

The more complete and literal the performance of the ritual, the greater the rewards but the greater the risk of error in execution or in aftermath.

Not only should it be understood that in some cases rhe most abstract performance of the ritual will have exact and potent effect, but that however literal the enactment, the results will be similarly literal.

The signifier of success is the realization that nothing has been lost in the ritual’s performance.

The signifier of certain failure is the discovery that it is possible to reverse the effects of the ritual.

♦ THE GREAT PACT ♦

YX^hile the 'demonic pact’ and the 'pact with the devil’ are staples of al-most every variety of infernalism, whether essentialist enough to believe in the classic soul pact’, so immediatist as to deny the existence of the soul outright, or dedicated to that inscendental inversion of infernalism in which the practitioner creates or’buys' a soul (or eight or nine!), the Great Pact described here is more grandiose and encompassing. Its aim is power over all Otherness. Its method is the risk of absolute and eternal servitude to the Devil.

The phases of the Pact are as follows:

Inquiry: The Diabolist must exhaustively study the history and nature of the Devil as he or she understands it. This will require a detailed examination of ethics and morality, in order to discern the nature of Evil; cosmology, in order to understand the nature and identity of the Devil itself and its relations to Other Being; the history of religion, in order that the development of the Devil through any aeons relevant to the Diabolist is understood intuitively, not just intellectually; and art and popular culture, so that the Diabolist knows the various aesthetic forms in which the Devil most recently manifests itself.

Strategy: The Diabolist considers his or her own life in detail, evaluating what is lacking, what aspects are out of balance, where the weak points are, and what outcomes are most desirable. This leads to crafting a full outline of potential improvements and an elaboration of the best possibilities. On being satisfied that the contemplation is completed, the Diabolist drafts a series of requests and intentions as detailed as necessary, to be presented to the Devil as part of the Pact.

Preliminary Conjuration: The Diabolist will not be able to proceed effectively unless the agendas of the Devil, at least as they can be personally understood, are revealed. While the insights developed in the Inquiry will be helpful to gain a general picture of the areas and contexts in which the will

of the Devil might be known, and the methods of knowing it, the particular details of how this may apply to the work of the individual Diabolist can only be discerned through communion with the Devil Itself. Thus, a Preliminary Conjuration must be designed based on everything learned in the Inquiry. It will be helpful to have designed an arcane divination system specifically for the negotiation of this Pact, and constructed some divination tool using it for the express purpose of the Preliminary Conjuration. The more personal this is to the Diabolist, the better. The tool should probably involve his or her own blood and be created by hand, as far as is possible. Use of this tool, in combination with a trance sufficiently deep to receive direct inspiration in some form, should suffice to apprehend the designs of the Devil at least in the context of the Pact. It is best to reserve any attempted modifications until the next phase of the working. This phase is complete when the Diabolist understands the expectations of the Devil.

Arcanism: If the Diabolist has not already done so, it will be helpful to devise some personal arcana (like the Chaotic'Alphabet of Desire’) based on the same symbolism as used in the divination system, for use in the further stages of the Pact. The arcana should have all the standard correspondences, including symbol, concept, sound, gesture, posture, and so forth. This arcana is then used to write out the first draft of the Pact, and also to empower the Initial Conjuration, in which the Devil is evoked in a manner as lucid and distinct as possible from the mind of the Diabolist. The divination system can still be used to communicate with it; the Diabolist may also seek omens and manifestations. The Devil is encouraged to remain manifest to whatever extent is necessary for as long as necessary to complete the next phase.

Preliminary Negotiation: The Pact is revised as the Diabolist negotiates with the Devil to assure the best possible terms and the most elegant possible Pact. While the attitude of each Diabolist will vary depending on personal disposition, it should be noted that those who enter the agreement in bad faith, attempt to get the better of the Devil, or otherwise behave disingenuously deserve the consequences of their presumption, in that attempting to deceive the Parent of All Lies is an ill-conceived endeavour. It is, however,

both permissible and advised to place a time-limit on the Pact at least as regards the initial manifestation of the Diabolist's desires, not less than a year but not generally more than five years. Of course, it is unwise to place a timelimit on the Diabolist’s own completion of all promised works, while it may be necessary to limit certain specific works, such as the making of particular offerings once every so-many years.

Secondary Conjuration: Once the Diabolist is satisfied with the content of the Pact, it is formally rewritten (but not yet signed in blood). The Diabolist then designs a special conjuration which will probably be based on specific instructions and omens from the Devil. The conjuration should be performed at a ceremonially significant time; the Diabolist’s birthday is particularly recommended. The purpose of this conjuration is to produce as close to full physical manifestation of the Devil as possible. This may or may not depend on the possession of some host, animate or inanimate. If an animate host is used, it is best if the host know as little about the purpose of the possession as possible. Even trusted allies of the Diabolist (which should certainly already be few) cannot really be relied upon not to accidentally contaminate the working with personal static. The best qualification for a host, in this case, is mediumistic tendency and an innate disposition toward the diabolical. Magical training is not an asset. Once the Devil is manifest, the Diabolist should proceed directly to the next phase.

Secondary Negotiation: This is the final opportunity for last-minute changes to the Pact, as well as for the Devil to clarify any obscurities, and ultimately accept or reject the proposal. If the Devil rejects the proposal, the Diabolist may have to start over entirely. It is important that an acceptable proposal be reached during this negotiation, however, as the Diabolist will otherwise have to repeat the entire ritual from the beginning after waiting a suitable period to regain magical strength, confidence, and coherence - a doubtful proposition. Hence, however long it takes, and however gruelling the debate, the Diabolist is advised to persist until the negotiation is complete.

The Signature: The most straightforward phase of the operation, the Diabolist and the Devil each sign the Pact. How the Devil does this will

depend on its manifestation. In circumstances of totally abstract manifestation, the Diabolist will need to allow the Devil to either possess the off-hand or somehow otherwise cause the Diabolist to sign on its behalf; evidence of validity is the inclusion of an unexpected sigil or cypher which proves to have meaning upon later examination. The final revelation from the Devil will be instructions for a nightly ritual of devotion which will bind the Devil and the Diabolist acausally and also empower the ritual.

Subsequent Conjuration: For the next year, the Diabolist performs the same nightly devotion, based upon the Devil's instructions. The Pact should be ceremonially recited at the conclusion of each devotion. Presumably, both the devotion and the reading of the Pact will involve the use of the arcane symbolism so far developed. In the course of the year, it may be possible to further modify the Pact, based on either obvious needs of the Diabolist or omens from the Devil. Each change must be ratified by a Further Conjuration, and the Pact rewritten. Defunct copies of the Pact must be burned and their ashes stored in a special urn dedicated to that purpose. The urn may depict, or be guarded by, some icon of the Devil which can become a talismanic focus of the operation. It may have been an inanimate host used in the Secondary Conjuration, but might also be something fortuitously acquired in the course of the working.

The Final Conjuration: On the last day of the year, at the exact time of night the Secondary Conjuration was performed, the Diabolist repeats the conjuration including a most elaborate form of the nightly devotion, spelling out each section with the arcane symbolism, and recites the Pact one last time, symbolic letter by letter. For this Conjuration, no host should be prepared -the Devil will manifest in some unexpected way. Upon completing the recitation, the Diabolist should not end the rite, but rather should wait as long as it takes for the Devil to provide some omen of acceptance. At this point, the Pact should be sealed away inside the urn, or be guarded by the effigy. It should never leave the Diabolist's possession, although the Infernalist might choose to have it stored in some extremely secure and secret place to which access is possible if necessary.

The Interval: Once the Pact has been accepted, the Diabolist is obliged to fulfil all promised obligations while awaiting initial manifestation of desired requests. If no manifestations occur despite the elapse of an agreed-upon time, the Diabolist is free of obligation to the Pact but will be able to retain the use of any talismans associated with it. If manifestations do occur, this opens the possibility of either Final Obligation, or Further Negotiation. If all the Diabolist’s wishes come true within either the time allowed, or his or her lifetime, the Diabolist is fully bound, and is advised to work ceaselessly to complete all Pactual obligations lest death ensue before they are complete and thereby severely disrupt the continuity of consciousness. However, if only certain desires manifest, Further Negotiation may occur in which the Diabolist may restrict certain offerings until the rest of the desires are provided by the Devil, or abbreviate or even terminate the Pact. Once terminated, however, the Pact can never be resumed - the Diabolist is on his or her own. The Diabolist may elect to keep the talisman or icon of the working, in which case it will be found useful to attempt to bind and empower within it a diabolical familiar spirit fed through the achievement of the desires written into the Pact (which may cause the side effect of the Diabolist being unable to avoid having to fulfil certain original obligations in pursuit of these very goals, independently), or ceremonially destroy the icon or talisman, which liberates all power bound into the Pact. Such an act of supreme iconoclasm should be carefully timed, in that if all the power is lost, it may weaken or disorient the Diabolist, whereas if all the power is trapped inelegantly, it may lead to obsession, insanity, or at least temporary derangement. Good timing, however, may allow the Diabolist to either accomplish some great work of personal empowerment, or achieve the long-term security of true independence.

Final Termination: At the moment of death, the Diabolist is advised to reflect upon the completion (or non-completion) of the Pact, in order to fully focus the consciousness upon the diabolical Self created and empowered thereby, which through its various deeds will have established itself as bound into manifestation, and possibly have gained the power to transgress

its boundaries. In as much as the Pact will have also become talismanic of the Diabolist’s concord and relationship with the Devil, such concentration will also aid the Diabolist in consciously apprehending the inevitable manifestation of the Devil, which will attempt to claim the Diabolist as of its Host. The most successful Diabolist will have acquired the faculty of choice to be fully exercised among all the Legions of Hell, and established an inviolable sovereignty of will.

♦ THE TWO HANDS OF THE DEVIL ♦

^s with all divine eidolons of veneration and reverence, the Devil extends 'y'U'two hands toward its devotees, adherents, and disciples. Accurately distinguishing between them comprises an ordeal of discernment encompassing the mysteries of duality and polarity.

The difference is perhaps most obvious for the diabolatrous worshipper, who extending his own right hand receives the left-handed blessing which is Union with the Devil. As a moth to the Black Flame, the worshipper's profane self is wholly consumed by the dark fires of the sinister, purged of dross and reborn as a phoenix from the ashes of slain identity. Extending his left hand, the worshipper is beckoned on by the right hand of the Devil, each touch and sign indicating a further mystery of Otherness which draws the Self onward into devotional isolation, an ecstasy of separation from the divine beloved reflecting Satan’s own self-isolate, eternal opposition; a longing greater and more enduring than any fulfilment, the undying dissatisfaction of absolute denial. Those few who can grasp at once both hands of the Devil in adoration of its total Otherness partake of the mystery of diabolical love through eternal non-union, the supreme mysticism of the Opposer. Yet these mysteries of diabolical worship when sought out prove to be accursed horror for those not Elect, for the Devil knows and chooses its own, and the presumptuously masochistic venerate Evil at their own peril. Yet in contem

plating their fate, destiny, and works, the proud and self-willed Diabolists might learn much about the sinister strategies of the Master of Opposites.

Thus the disciple pursuing the Right-Hand Path of Diabolism will find that through devout propitiation of the Opposer, its cosmic function may be fuelled and its baleful influence thereby averted. In this supreme apotro-peism, the Diabolist in becoming aligned to the malefic current of the adversary also becomes immune to its disastrous power, each sacrifice rendered unto the Devil a greater insurance that so useful an agent will not itself be sacrificed. Ultimately this methodology produces the most seemingly evil excesses of the Right-Hand Path as generally understood: totalitarian submission to the sovereign will of the cosmocrator, dreadful allegiance to terrible Rex Mundi. In the mysteries of Kali, Nergal, Ahriman, Dis, Moloch, and even the unspeakable power of the desert, the shadows of the Devil's right hand may be discerned. To see it means blindness, to worship it means sickness, to know it means death... to fear it is wisdom. Not to obstruct it, means liberation, pronounced the resurgence of Basilides regarding Abraxas, the sovereign god-devil of duality.

Its Left-Hand Path is one not of veneration but of emulation. The Diabolist becomes as the Self of the Opposer. As it separates itself from all, so the Diabolist aims to do likewise, turning against the flow of causality, the grain of all apparent order, and even the laws of nature, in order to achieve supreme sovereignty and independent consciousness. In this, the confrontation with the Opposer itself provides the final ordeal and the ultimate momentum: the Devil becomes as God; the Diabolist becomes as the Devil. As the two horns of the Opposer, they alike are Satan, the Master of Duality.

It is apprehension of this Satanic polarity which affords some the opportunity to pursue the Middle Way of Opposition, an adversarial mysticism suited to those whose nature is already liminal, hovering between the extremes, or oscillating rapidly between them. In learning to maintain a natural state of self-opposition, the Diabolic mystic perpetually celebrates a dynamic selfovercoming. Miscalculation or an ignorance of self-nature, however, gores

the unwary on one of the horns of the Devil, which alike await those who crave and shun extremes.

In perpetually distinguishing between the Left and Right Hands of the Devil, the Diabolist realizes and ultimately enhances the most valuable gift of the Prince: conscious discernment between polarities, and thus the Knowledge of Good and Evil... deliverance from both.

In failing to distinguish correctly, the Diabolist is the fettered puppet of the Lord of the World.

♦ ANTINOMIAN IMMORALISM ♦

C^C^hile ^t^^le lawful and the good are often confused with one another, and with the normative and customary, the Diabolist will find that their frequently unrecognized distinction can become a great source of power. This is the case both when they are violated, and when they are set against each other either by the Diabolist or by those whom the Diabolist has influenced, often without their knowledge. The previous section should have made it clear that these strategies are as useful on both the Left-Hand and Right-Hand Paths: their power derives from the dynamic opposition and tension excited by the deliberate intensification of dualism.

Antinomian acts are of course a commonplace amongst various magical and mystical traditions beyond the strictly diabolical, and comprise any thought, word, or deed which is consciously and deliberately performed against prevailing custom (the nomos). Such deeds may be further categorized based on whether they are illegal or just socially deviant, aberrant, or abnormal. The enterprising Diabolist may wish to develop a quite refined arsenal of various types of antinomianism and their usefulness. Generally, antinomian actions are useful in liberating belief and destroying conditioning in both the self and other. They can also be useful for engendering fixations, obsessions, or addictions in the unwary when antinomianism is used in seduction or pseudo-initiation. It should be noted that although all antinomian deeds

will partake of these benefits to some extent, those which actually have an independent magical significance are likely to be more potent and relevant. In some circumstances, the Diabolist may actually want to encourage profane antinomianism instead, particularly if the goal is actually to strengthen the force of law or authority - particularly when the Diabolist is the one in that position of power!

Immoral acts are different. They may violate agreed standards of dualistic morality, which may be quite distinct from laws and customs even if merely a matter of social consensus. A given society may have complex and sometimes seemingly contradictory patterns which the Diabolist will wish to study and understand. For example, in some regions of the developed world, chastity would be antinomian since it is against the prevailing custom, but bizarre sexual practices or even polyamory might srill be seen as immoral, or conversely certain sex acts might still be illegal and therefore technically antinomian even though no one thinks they are immoral. These acts may seem evil (from ubil, beyond the due measure) due to their apparent transgression of the boundaries of not only the community but shared beliefs as to wholesome conduct. Other immoral acts might be those which violate, or seem to violate, absolute morality understood consciously or rationally. While different systems of such rational morality may exist, they purport to be absolute and not all are overtly dualistic, since some do not actually emphasize the possibility of deliberate evil. The Diabolist, however, aims to do just that. The purpose of doing this, assuming the Diabolist actually accepts the proposition of a rational cosmic order, is that successful violation of its precepts may lead to freedom from its constraints by sympathetic resonance: successful magic often appears, at least to the non-magician, to be in violation of the natural order. Thus, if the Diabolist understands goodness to be altruism, deliberate acts of selfishness will create freedom from such self-destructive compulsions. On the other hand, should the Diabolist identify the self with goodness, engaging in the sinister practice of encouraging altruism in others may empower that self at their expense, and therefore be a truly evil act. The Diabolist also might wish to utilize a system of rational morality regarded

as false in order to better bind surrounding persons and beliefs, in an act of magical hypocrisy, explaining where all the real Satanists go during an Inquisition. The final category of immoralism is the most problematic and challenging, being those acts which seem to the Diabolist not only contrary to personal instinct and inclination, but utterly depraved, not merely irrational but senseless as well and devoid of apparent purpose or merit. To explore, master, and find some means of imposing personal ethics even in such arenas of bizarre self-transgression is the mark of one who has achieved real transvaluation of values and expanded the boundaries of self. The rarity of that glory is enhanced by its contrast with the legions of petty, unsuccessful, and confused Diabolists who ruin themselves and others in pointless and inane self-predation, the iconic act of non-altruistic sacrificial waste, which whenever it occurs signifies the totality of the Mystery of Evil and the cosmic function of the Opposer.

To transgress and violate that function, freeing itself from the fetters of cosmic stupidity and inertia, is the supreme purpose of the Devil, and the ultimate defiance of the duality of Good and Evil.

A useful guide of orientation in the abysses of chaos, then, is antinomian immoralism, which defines those acts most likely to be understood and recognized as'pure evil'. These are acts which do simultaneously, and in the same context, violate nomos (law and custom) and some moral system simultaneously. Their diabolical advantages are several: such deeds remain dangerous and challenging since they not only defy standard limitations but are probably punishable; they are not pointless defiance of authority but embody truly sinister influences which may empower the Diabolist beyond the immediate focus of the working; being antinomian, they are unlikely to trap the Diabolist in the’banality of evil’, as often happens when destructive, twisted, or irrational deeds happen to be permitted in a given society; they serve to highlight and strengthen the association of law and order to goodness and reason, which aids the sinister dialect whereby evil acts are utilized for the specific purpose of heightening tensions, empowering and liberating the diabolical elect who can remain intelligently free of both. While acts solely anti-

nomian or solely immoralist also have the useful function of setting morality and law against each other, this may either weaken or strengthen either or both depending on the context and circumstance, such as when the populace loses confidence in a corrupt legal system, begins to act immorally under its influence, or when popular morality reaches a peak of extreme fanaticism and engages in open revolt against an increasingly totalitarian and dictatorial rule. In the same fashion, a strong association of law with goodness might either strengthen both, solidifying the bonds of society, it may also weaken both, as the flaws in each undermine the other. In observing this process, the Diabolist may gain real sinister understanding of the rational order of the ages: a society structured in accord with nature will only become stronger the more its good laws are opposed by irrationally evil actions, but a society whose moral law is itself depraved will be rapidly undermined when an alternative is provided by a greater evil. In discerning these factors, the Diabolist can pursue the aim of sinister mastery with much greater ease and elegance.

♦ BLACK IONICS ♦

^Ifn understanding of the transpersonal, socio-cultural significance of VlJ'these processes is indispensable if the Diabolist wishes to transgress self-limitation as a mere local instance of evil. Normally, processes of evil, be they antinomian, immoralist, or both, serve only as a polarity within the self-maintaining dialectic of dualistic opposites, rendering most forms of ’Satanism’ mere rehearsals of opposition and authorized defiance. Whether theistic, atheistic, or non-theistic makes little difference as they continue to repeat the same violations and offer no novelty nor evolution, but merely an oscillation of polarity. To progress in Diabolism, the malefactor must be able to utilize the sinister dialectic from the perspective of The Devil itself, which is obviously concerned not with opposing others’, but only with opposing, transgressing, and thus ultimately evolving the self. That said, a fatal mistake of some schools of ostensibly sinister aeonics is to suppose that this

means escapist, transcendental initiations and ritualized self-confrontations will suffice, which would be the difference between the Devil actually defying its own inertial nature in a painful, carnal way as it does in and through the horrific world of nature, and merely contemplating the possibility of doing so, which it does in its various illusory disguises as 'God.' Thus, the sinister aeonist is not less diabolical than the diabolist who engages in truly dangerous, defiant deeds against state and society, but infinitely moreso, each act of literal transgression offering further separation from the narcoleptic natural order.

In considering the aeonic implications of such a perspective, the Diabolist must have a detailed understanding of not only the present circumstances of civilization, but its previous forms as well. Various aeonic models exist, some dependent more on occult tradition and others based upon some philosophy of history. Their mysteries are particular and it is more useful to the Diabolist to investigate each than to read a few summarized, but the techniques of engaging antinomian immoralism in an aeonic context remain constant regardless of the aeon.

Common to all is the presenting and manifestation of acausality, which seemingly engenders synchronistic phenomena in which given selves, things, or essences transmute themselves spontaneously into more complex forms, apparently overcoming their own limitations and re-orienting themselves accordingly. The most immediate and easily experienced acausal phenomenon is consciousness itself. ’Ease’ here is relative, since most people are so unconscious of their own capacity for consciousness that they could read this paragraph and still fail to become conscious of the consciousness reading it. The Diabolist, by contrast, experiences such heightened self-consciousness a matter of course and enhances it through exposure to antinomian and im-moralist extremes. The magical mystery behind the proposition to pursue such acts aeonically, however, is that the same processes of acausal resonance which can be established in and through consciousness, radiate synchronistically beyond the individual operator. By establishing relationships between singular, personal consciousness and the acausal absolute, itself personified as

the Devil, and manifesting these oblique angles of awareness in the physical world, the Diabolist establishes a continuity of conscious awareness through which the individual will can persist independent of form and penetrate not only the manifest world but the unmanifest reality of the evolving aeon. In that aeonic deeds simultaneously antinomian and immoral both strengthen natural, vital civilizations and help destroy and dismantle decadent ones, this combination, here designated black seonics, is particularly suitable for aligning with the intent of a Diabolist who wishes to identify with the long-term, cosmic evolution of the species. Such a progressive orientation affords opportunities for worldly power in emulation of the Rex Mundi itself, though it carries with it the responsibility and obligation to follow through such programmes of aeonic manipulation, if only because the Diabolist’s own survival becomes wedded to them.

Acausal manifestations might be engendered in persons, places, things, objects, symbols, organizations, and civilizations themselves. The means by which the Black Aeonist brings about these effects will involve specific, calculated acts of ritual, antinomian immoralism tailored to either strengthen the noble aspects of the target society or further weaken its decadent aspects. The imagery of these rites will be generally determined by the prevailing combination of nomos and morality. Thus, the familiarity of’Satanism’, but thus also its rather outmoded condition in most contemporary contexts. Once the correct imagery is discerned, the Black Aeonist will design rites which variously violate and defy the consensus. Useful techniques include heresy, which selects certain component beliefs of the consensus and strategically distorts them, generating a novel form of the enemy belief to divide it against itself; blasphemy, which mocks and derides ostensibly sacred beliefs or rituals, empowering those who oppose them; sacrilege, which actually depotentiates the target beliefs or rites; and profanity, which misuses enemy ceremonies and defiles their formerly sacred associations. The Diabolist may wish to create a whole series of Aeonic Black Masses which derive acausal power from the various nomian beliefs, rites, and rituals which surround and fetter the foolish. It should be particularly noted that although opposing

'white' magical beliefs and rituals make excellent personal targets and aeonic foils, the true enemy of the Diabolist is the stagnant masses themselves. As such, political religions and social doctrines which all right-thinking contemporary people unreflectively adhere to as common knowledge and popular wisdom are the real sources of antinomian power when opposed and transgressed. The Diabolist should particularly seek out mere beliefs which are illegal to hold and therefore even more illegal to voice; nations which still maintain some semblance of freedom of speech will often have no shortage of paranoias rendering certain associations or foreign enemies potentially treasonous and diabolical' to identify with. In extreme cases in which the society is permissive but stagnant, the Diabolist can engage in independent, self-serving conspiracy. Ironically, such activities can also strengthen and enhance a wholesome and functional society. It is on this premise that diabolical fraternities may exist, survive, persist, and flourish among the most unlikely and counter-intuitive circumstances, and it is by this premise that almost all ’religions of dissent’ can be dismissed as diabolical traps.

The Diabolist may also strengthen, enhance, and increase personal acausal power particularly by engaging in antinomian immoralism which also transgresses personal expectations and tastes. It is in such ordeals that the self is confronted as other, and the Diabolist is most like the Master.

Finally, it is in the contemplation of, interaction with, and contribution to future aeonic developments that the independent continuity of the diabolical aeonist can be assured. The present rewards of investment in the future can be observed by any self-aware magician within the boundaries of a normal human lifetime, and so the same process must be rationally applied to trans-personal, acausal aeonics, if the diabolist is to transgress the ultimate boundary of physical death and join the Devil in mastery of and independence from the ages of time. Such projects will require consummate planning, persistence, continuity, and probably either collaboration with peers or the manipulation of greater legions of the unwitting and quite possibly unwilling. The danger and ordeal of these methods is not so much the risk entailed in the practices, which should already have been minimized by previous suc

cess, but the possibility of escapism, futility, and misdirection. Physical anchors in the form of location, companions, consorts, apprentices, children, and thralls are one protection against this; the creation of enduring works of art and striking contributions to either the glory or downfall of civilization are another. But the Diabolist should neither confuse significance with fame and recognition, nor ignore the possible merits of either.

The Devil is alternately described as seeking total anonymity in order to better work in and seduce in the shadows, and also as craving worship and adulation - as a God. Its two horns are the Self and the Other. It never confuses the two.

♦ BLACK MAGIC AND BLACK MYSTICISM ♦

/^Considering the foregoing, and the adversarial, oppositional appearance of jC-- the Devil, it would be easy to conclude that ’black’ magic is such due to its contrast with and negation of the principles of generally dualistic’white’ magic. Contrarily, it would be equally tempting for the ’black’ magician to reverse or invert the dualistic association, holding that’white’ magic is either ineffective or non-existent. Both of these responses are a limiting vestige of dualism which the black magician would be better off without.

Black magic is such not merely by cultural convention, but by its natural condition of being that form of sorcerous art which excludes no manifest possibility or potentiality, even as it consumes, obliterates, and annihilates free belief and energy, and absorbs the’light’. Yet, just as the light can produce darkness through its own excess, blinding or withering the host, so can blackness shine radiant with its own dark light. In this, black magic overcomes dualism through inclusion; white magic through extremes of exclusion.

Experiential understanding of this is also the key to Black Mysticism, the magical, initiatory application of the via negativa leading to the Black Gnosis of the non-existence and non-essence of the Absolute and Ultimate Selves,

the twin poles of Otherness Entire, which casts forth Satan as the radiant shadow of the Devil that opposes its Black Light.

DIABOLICAL SORCERY

f the primary technique of all sorcery is the binding and loosening of beliefs aligned to will and desire through obsession, the primary technique of diabolical sorcery is the separation of belief from will, will and belief from desire, and will, desire, and belief from obsession, ultimately distinguishing and differentiating all components of the magical psyche in such a fashion as to oppose the symbolic identifications which normally hold consciousness in thrall.

In freeing itself from bondage to the symbolic, the consciousness of the Diabolist can confront, and ultimately oppose and transgress, the Real.

♦ PURIFICATION ♦

tanding naked save for a white cloth before the Iron Gate of Hell, marked with the signs and seals of Moloch, consumer of the weak, devourer of abortions, receiver of unwanted children, refiner of dross, perfec-tor of persons, the Infernalist repeats the formulae each ten times: I believe. I am nothing.

The door opens, and the Infernalist is carried through it by the irresistible attraction of tartarean gravity. Molten hellfire surrounds and subsumes the flesh, the soul, the spirit, the whole body and mind, melting away every imperfection and searing through every impurity.

Golden and radiant, new-born and newly baptized in and by the daimon-ic river of fire, the Infernalist beholds Paradise and is welcomed among its numberless legionary hosts. Laughing with eternal joy and the gnosis of age-lessly consummated innocence.

♦ BABALON ♦

The howler in the desert waste confuses language; but the lonely Tower of Silence remains.

The Two-Horned Beast dies in the Womb, but the Black One remains unborn in the Tomb.

The Abyss produced the world; Enki deceived and saved it; Enlil condemned and drowned it; Marduk dismembered it; Ishtar seduced it; Ishkur despised it; Anu waits beyond it, but Nergal and Ereshkigal reign within it.

The Devil sired the Whore; she awoke it and consumed it; but the Lie is her own Mother, and was not made.

Every Empire is Babaion, but only because she is a dwelling place for That Which Has Fallen.

Everything that comes out of her rises and descends. Everything that goes into her has dispersed already.

That which dwells inside her is Isolate and Eternal: the Sole and Unique Singularity.

THE LESSON OF

PHENEX

HUMBERTO MAGGI

And as he [the demon Ornias] was not willing to be subject to me, I prayed the archangel Uriel to come and succour me; and I forthwith beheld the archangel Uriel coming down to me from the heavens.

Testament of Solomon

DEMONS ARE WITH US FROM THE BEGINNING. The Talmud j ■ teaches that they were created on the eve of the first Sabbath, and when Adam opened his eyes and first saw the Paradise, the snake was already silently waiting for him, next to theTree of Knowledge. We know now that the Bible inherited this story from the ancient Mesopotamians. It is in the epic of Gilgamesh that the first snake precedes the hero and devours the fruit of the Tree of Life, gaining, for itself only, the desired immortality.

The identification of the biblical snake appears in the Apocalypse of John, where the fallen angel is called the old serpent, Devil and Satan. Together with the writings attributed to Paul the Apostle, influenced by apocryphal themes, this passage marks the beginning of the disagreement between Jewish and Christian demonology that will decisively influence the development of eu-ropean ceremonial magic. In the Talmud, the demons are described as beings of intermediate nature, living between the world of men and the skies of angels, with wings that take them from one end to another of the world and who know the future, but also who eat and drink, procreate and die. The main figure of Christian demonology, the Prince of this World is denounced in the Gospel of John, but among the Jews is comfortably installed in the divine hierarchy, enjoying the great privilege of talking with God face to face.

We do not need to be limited byJudeo-Christian thinking to meet demons. Demons are present everywhere and at all times. In ancient Mesopotamia they were identified with diseases, and men’s magical relationship with such beings was defensive and therapeutic, unless the person had exactly the opposite objective - to cause illness, death or misfortune to their victim. The victim could be offered ritualistically to a demon as Lamastu, who afflicts children, but the supernatural agent of harm could also be a deity. In fact, the analysis of these ancient texts shows that in more than half of the diagnoses, the one who causes the suffering was an offended god, with the demons sharing with the ghosts only two fifths of the blame. It is important to acknowledge the magick of ancient Mesopotamia, because within it we can find almost all the elements of medieval grimoires: purifications, prayers, offerings, lists of talismans, stones and plants. An important element within this set of beliefs was the idea that the exorcist did not have the authority to command the demons directly, nor did he possess any supernatural powers. He merely appealed to the gods for help and acted at their command. Therefore, four thousand years before Abraham of Worms began his long journeys in search of divine wisdom, there is a record of what we now call the Abramelin Principle and the confirmation that Christian piety is nothing new.

Although the cultures of ancient Mesopotamia reached a high degree of sophistication, the demonological pattern is basically the same we find in the shamanism of all primitive cultures. It is a recurring fact that people spontaneously feel what they understand as the presence of magical beings and energies, and analyse such experiences from the resulting feelings of wellbeing or discomfort. By the same token, all known solutions for confrontations with demons had already been tested by primitive cultures. We have not progressed at all in regards to magical practice. We have only created more elaborate metaphysical and cosmological systems that try to explain or justify it, and sometimes not even that.

The two objectives of this historical introduction are to highlight the ideas supporting the conclusions presented at the end of the essay and to demonstrate the metamorphosis that happened inside the magical relationship

between men and demons in the West. The primitive cultures were more flexible in regards to dealing with the world of spirits and gods, but when the great civilisations became organised, the shaman was replaced by the college of priests with their interpretations, rules, laws, techniques and traditions progressively walled in an orthodoxy sustained by the written word. The demons were circumscribed to illnesses and misfortune.

According to Professor Sarah Iles Johnston, the oldest known reference in any Mediterranean culture about demons working to the benefit of men, instead of being used to cause suffering to others, is found in the Testament of Solomon, written between the first and the third century ad. The text tells how Solomon, with the help of Uriel and several other angels, forced Beelzeboul and a whole long list of less important demons to reveal their names and secrets. Solomon led them to work in the construction of the Temple and imprisoned them in sealed vessels - an element that was later on important in some of the medieval grimoires, and that Aaron Leitch correctly associates with the Spirit Pots present in several primitive cultures. Solomon also received a ring that granted him power over the malign spirits, but in the end his power and authority depended on the protection from God and when Solomon loses such protection, his power is over.

And it came about through my prayer that grace was given to me from the Lord Sabaoth by Michael his archangel. He brought me a little ring, having a seal consisting of an engraved stone, and said to me: Take, 0 Solomon, king, son of David, the gift which the Lord God has sent thee, the highest Sabaoth. With it thou shalt lock up all demons of the earth, male and female; and with their help thou shalt build up Jerusalem.

The Testament of Solomon is a key text to European ceremonial magick as it marks an important passage in the magical function played by demons. Asmodeus, whose job and joy was to transport men into fits of madness and desire, when they have wives of their own, so that they leave them and go off by night and day to others that belong to other men; with the result that they commit

sin and fall into murderous deeds, under the power granted to Solomon is led to make the clay for the entire construction of the Temple, treading it down with his own feet.

Still, according to Professor Sarah Iles Johnston, from at least the start of the first millennium bc, Mesopotamian magicians also used ghosts to accomplish various goals and in the Greek Magical Papyri we see these magical formulations for attracting love addressed to the ghosts of the victims of violent deaths and infernal gods such as Hecate. The demons seem to remain as a limited and rarely used resource. To us, the most important point in these papyri is the figure of the parhedros, or magical assistant. The parhedros is granted by a god, has a divine essence itself and appears as such an important element to the point of being considered in one of the texts as the fundamental magical element:

He will serve you suitably for whatever you have in mind, O blessed initiate of the sacred magic, and will accomplish it for you, this most powerful assistant, who is also the only lord of the air. And the gods will agree to everything, for without him nothing happens. Share this great mystery with no one else, but conceal it, by Helios, since you have been deemed worthy by the lord god.

Besides being a clear example of the Abramelin Principle, the parhedros is also of interest to us due to the similarity between the list of his powers and the description of the demons found later in the grimoires:

He sends dreams, he brings women and men without the use of magical material, he kills, he destroys, he stirs up winds from the earth, he carries gold, silver and bronze, and he gives them to you whenever the need arises. And he frees from bonds a person chained in prison, he opens doors, he causes invisibility so no one can see you, he is a bringer of fire, he brings water, wine, bread and whatever you wish in the way of foods [but never fish or pork]. He stops ships and releases them, he stops many evil

daimons, he checks wild beasts and will quick break the teeth of fierce reptiles, he puts dogs to sleep and renders them voiceless. He changes in whatever form of beast you want: one that flies, swims, a quadruped, a reptile. He will carry you into the air, and again hurl you into the billows of the sea's current and into the waves of the sea; he will quickly freeze rivers and seas in such a way that you can run over them firmly, as you want.

The search for a protective spirit can also be found in the beginning of Shamanism and became a trend in late Antiquity. The dasmon of Socrates was identified as a protective and guiding spirit by Neo-Platonist and theur-gists, and in Porphyry's Vita Plotini it is demonstrated that the idea became common place:

There was a certain Egyptian priest who arrived in Rome and through some friends became acquainted with him [Plotinus]. Wishing to give a demonstration of his own wisdom, he asked Plotinus to come to a visible conjuration of the personal daemon abiding with him. He readily agreed, and the conjuration took place in the temple of Isis, this being, as the priest said, the one pure place that he had found in Rome. When the dse-mon was conjured to appear, a god came forth, not one of the daemon-kind. The Egyptian therefore said Blessed art thou who hast as the daemon abiding with thee a god and not one of the lesser race. Having, then, one of the higher classes of daemons abiding with him, he for his part continued to direct his godlike gaze toward that being.

The Church incorporated the idea under the terminology of the Guardian Angel as did the Fathers of the Church in the earliest Christian texts, where the angel is referred to by several terms that define his functions: phylax (guardian), phrouros (guard), prostates (protector), epimeletes (superintendent), ephoros (overseer) and boethos (assistant); sometimes the Guardian Angel is also compared to a shepherd (poimen) and to a herdsman (nomeus).

Although every human being has an appointed Angel, the Christian belief declared that only after baptism is the Angel actually effective in fulfilling its function, an idea that shall be in the origin of the key concept of the Abramelin Operation. According to Origen, the Guardian Angel is like a father, a concept that Crowley agreed with much later, writing: he is something more than a man, possibly a being who has already passed through the stage of Humanity, and his peculiarly intimate relationship with his client is that- of friendship, of community, of brotherhood, or Fatherhood.

The cultural character of the Middle Ages called for interesting changes in the way demons were seen. Firstly, as a result of the opposition between religion and science - resulting from valuing ignorance (now understood and upheld as simplicity) - the Arts and the Sciences were seen with disdain, as the emphasis in life was salvation in the afterlife. The writers of the New Testament demonised the whole world when they stated that it is under the rule of Satan. Consequently, Arts and Sciences that deal with the world were suspect of diabolism. This is where the demons take on a new role, supported by the apocryphal passage where the fallen angels take women for themselves and teach them several arts, a role that is confirmed in the later elaboration of the grimoires. The best example comes from the sixteenth century when Johann Weyer, the demonologist who was a disciple of Cornelius Agrippa, published Pseudomonarchia Dcemonum, providing the adepts of invocation with a complete hierarchy of gloomy spirits. Such a hierarchy is notable -not only for presenting the spirits, now organised according to the ranks of European nobility - but because besides the former functions we already know, such as to cause earthquakes, to cause disagreement, war, arguments and deception and to kill men on three days with putrefying wounds, the demons also start performing tasks that are benign and useful: to promote the science and knowledge of the mechanical arts; to search for favours and to reconcile friends and enemies; to teach moral and natural philosophy, logic and the use of plants and herbs; to give the best familiar spirits and to cure all illnesses.

Towards the end of the nineteenth century two grimoires in particular stood out and became, together with John Dee’s Opus Enochian, the main

references in contemporary ceremonial magick. They are the Goetia and The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage.

The oldest known manuscripts of these two sources date from the seventeenth century, although the text in the Goetia is based on Pseudomonarchia Dxmonums list, to which it adds the spirits Vassago, Seere, Dantalion and Andromalius. It provides an invocation ritual, something omitted by Johann Weyer. Some of the names also have minor alterations, such as Marbas and Barbas and there are significant changes in the order of the names.

The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage has the form of a long epistle where Abraham of Worms tells of his journeys, and instructs his son Lamech in the Abramelin Operation. It consists of six months of constant prayers that culminate with an experience called Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel. The Holy Angel then instructs and protects the mage in the invocation of demons whose names can be found in a series of magical squares. Afterwards, the demons start performing all the typical acts of the grimoires which basically repeat the same activities seen in the description of the parhedros. The difference is that the Angel of Abramelin is less versatile, or refuses to get his hands dirty, delegating the tasks to the infernal spirits.

Both books became contemporary icons, being associated with the two most influential names in Magick in the twentieth century. MacGregor Mathers, the main founder of Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, translated both books, which then became available to the larger public. Aleister Crowley published the Goetia and left us some important passages by reporting his own experiences.

Abramelin was translated in 1897. Some of the legends about the book came about during its translation, with Mathers resigning to walk five miles every day, after recurring bicycle accidents on the way to Bibliotheque de lArsenal where the manuscript was, and after losing one hundred pages of translated material and two notebooks on the train from Auteil to the Gare du Nord. His relationship with his publisher fell into conflict, and he was urgently in need of cash. Mathers left a record of the perilous nature of the

grimoire that at some stage justifies the later evaluation by Crowley, that although Mathers was an expert magician who knew grimoires such as The Greater Key of Solomon well, he did not notice soon enough that Abramelin was the equivalent to dynamite, compared to the gunpowder of the other systems. Mathers wrote:

It is the Squares which I have found to be endowed with a species of automatic intelligent vitality. I have had much experience of Magical Manuscripts, but to tell you my experiences copying these squares would cause you altogether to doubt my veracity. Therefore I advise you to be on your guard all the time that the squares and the Frontispiece are in your house. The shape of the Casket [in the illustration of the Frontispiece done by Mathers' wife] presented by the head of the lower triad of Demons in the drawing was altered completely in the pencil sketches and that by no mortal hand.

Probably the most dangerous of all grimoires, Abramelin closed in on his victims. According to Crowley, the young composer of genius Philip Heseltine engraved one square of Abramelin neatly on his own arm, to get back his wife. Crowley said that the woman returned, but a very short time afterwards the musician apparently committed suicide, although it was never clear whether Heseltine's death by gas was suicide, accident or homicide.

In 1929, in a warrant letter published in the Occult Review, an anonymous reader described his terrible experience of four months after a self-confessed gross carelessness in his attempt to use one of the squares to get some information. Beginning with a vague feeling of oppressive terror, felt as an imposed emotion upon himself which could be banished by an effort of will, the manifestation quickly escalated in the following months to extremely clear visions of an entity that seemed be gradually awakening and becoming more and more active and clear, a phenomena that was also noticed and heard by other people.

Crowley gave witness until the end of his life on the autonomous nature of Abramelin squares. In one of his letters, he advises:

You must on no account attempt to use the squares given in The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage, until you have succeeded in the Operation. More, unless you mean to perform it, and are prepared to go to any length to do so, you are a fool to have the book in your possession at all. Those squares are liable to get loose and do things on their own initiative; and you won’t like it.

The first edition of Abramelin had a small print run and the spontaneous power of the grimoire might have decreased with its later publishing in larger numbers. Abramelin is currently available in French, Spanish and Portuguese. Curiously, when the new and more complete translation by Steven Guth was published, I had to order the book four times. Although I order many books every month, only rarely a book gets lost. Three copies of Abramelin mysteriously disappeared in the post and once I finally got it, although a new copy, it was the only book amongst almost three hundred that became mouldy in my living quarters in Angola.

Crowley left to us his descriptions of the execution of the Abramelin Operation and, together with the diaries of the Operation performed by George Chevalier in 1973, these still are the only testimonials that I know of on what happens when a magician decides to take such irrevocable step. Both narratives coincide when they show that the demons do not wait to be called upon and manifest themselves spontaneously as soon as the magician begins the work. George Chevalier was systematically attacked during the entire six month period, even inside the Oratory. Crowley gives an impressive description of these phenomena:

The demons connected with Abra-Melin do not wait to be evoked; they come unsought. One night Jones and I went out to dinner. I noticed on leaving the white temple that the latch of its Yale lock had not caught. Accordingly, I pulled the door

and tested it. As we went out, we noticed semi-solid shadows on the stairs; the whole atmosphere was vibrating with the forces which we had been using. (We were trying to condense them into sensible images.) When we came back, nothing had been disturbed in the flat; but the temple door was wide open, the furniture disarranged and some of the symbols flung about in the room. We restored order and then observed that semimaterialized beings were marching around the main room in almost unending procession.

The march of the demons happened in London, before Crowley moved to his mansion in Boleskine and before he actually began the Operation. The work itself was duly accompanied by several issues: his assistant ran away without explanation after less than a month; the housekeeper started drinking again (after almost twenty years of abstinence) and tried to kill his own family; a second assistant started showing symptoms of panic and the butcher, who mistakenly received the sketch of one of the squares at the back of a note, cut his own arm by accident.

Besides these comparatively explicable effects on human minds, there were numerous physical phenomena for which it was hard to account. While I was preparing the talismans, squares of vellum inscribed in Indian ink, a task which I undertook in the sunniest room in the house, I had to use artificial light even on the brightest days. It was a darkness which might almost be felt. The lodge and terrace, moreover, soon became peopled with shadowy shapes, sufficiently substantial, as a rule, to be almost opaque. I say shapes; and yet the truth is that they were no shapes properly speaking. The phenomenon is hard to describe. It was as if the faculty of vision suffered some interference; as if the objects of vision were not properly objects at all. It was as if they belonged to an order of matter which affected the sight without informing it.

As part of the magical war that later took part between master and the disciple, Crowley took ownership of the translation of the Goetia prepared by Mathers and published it in 1904. This edition also presents a theory on the phenomenon of invocation that has had a great influence over some of the modern interpretations of magick. In The Initiated Interpretation of Ceremonial Magic written in 1903, Crowley explains the spirits of the Goetia as being portions of the human brain, and their seals as methods of stimulating or regulating these particular spots through the eye. This explanation became fairly popular amongst some modern magicians and seems to eliminate a significant part of the risks that come from dealing with an objective and independent entity. However, it must be remembered that the text was written by Crowley during his sceptical Buddhist phase, prior to receiving of The Book of the Law in 1904. Crowleys later writings always emphasise that both the Guardian Angel and the demons have an existence independent of the magician:

But do remember this, above all else; they are objective, not subjective, or I should not waste good Magick on them.

The Book of the Law is sometimes presented by Crowley as being the most powerful grimoire. In fact, the book presents elements of practical magick that qualify it as such, there are recipes for incense, instructions for rituals, prescriptions for sacrifices, recipes for perfumes, recipes for cakes, instructions on sympathetic magick to slay enemies, instructions for the creation and use of an altar, and how to properly print the book itself. Crowley considered that receiving The Book of the Law was the coronation of his efforts to finish the Abramelin Operation, started in 1900 in Boleskine. The scripture of The Book of the Law corresponds to the Sign and to the instructions that the Holy Guardian Angel will write on a small square plate of silver at the end of a successful Operation and Aiwass, the entity that dictated the text, was his Holy Guardian Angel. However, I find this explanation something of an embarrassment for those who support Thelema, the magical philosophy presented by Aiwass, as being an original revelation. Crowleys diary entitled

The Book of the Operation of the Sacred Magic of Abra-Melin the Mage, in the entry for 20^th March 1900, reveals that he had been reading Clothed With the Sun by Anna Kingsford in that period. Four years later, when he purportedly completes the Abramelin Operation, the content of his revelation repeats in detail all the main ideas of Anna Kingsford.

An important part of the Thelemic doctrine is based on the idea that the world had been destroyed by fire in 1904, when the pratter-human entity called Aiwass had dictated The Book of the Law. An identical idea was published by Anna Kingsford only a quarter of a century before and it is extremely unlikely that Crowley did not know about it, as he had at least read Clothed With the Sun in 1900. Anna Kingsford describes her book The Perfect Way in a way that reveals strong similarity not only of ideas, but also of style, with the same verbosity used later by Crowley when describing The Book of the Law.

Enough, it is hoped, has now been said to show that the world did indeed, as foretold, come to an end in 1881; that the predicted new era then began; and that in the promulgation of the system contained in The Perfect Way, especially, if not solely, the prophecies have found their due accomplishment. For, to enumerate a few only of the grounds of the claim made for the book in question, it affords to minds duly instructed and percipient, a complete demonstration, altogether unique, of the spiritual nature of existence, and of the reality and persistence of the soul. It formulates the doctrine announced as that whereby the new era would be characterised. It solves simply and effectually the profoundest problems, historical, intellectual, moral, and spiritual, to the full reconciliation of religion and science. And, finally, it appears at precisely the juncture both of time and of conditions, indicated as that of the period of an event which should inaugurate precisely such a change in the worlds system and thought as The Perfect Way is calculated to bring about.

The similarities between Crowley and Anna Kingsford are notable:

• a) Both state they are the prophets of the new era.

• b) Both received a book from spiritual entities, which they defend as being the doctrine of the new era.

• c) Both defined the new era as being under the spiritual direction of a regent: the Archangel Michael for Anna, the god Horus for Crowley. Both the Archangel Michael and the god Horus have the duty to fight against the decadent forces of the past era. Both archetypes are mythologically equivalent, with Michael defeating Satan and Horus defeating Set.

• d) Both identified themselves with characters from the Apocalypse: Anna with the Woman Clothed with the Sun, Crowley with the Beast.

• e) Both witnessed being guided by a personal daemon. Annas personal dsmon considered the term Angel as being misinterpreted and preferred being called 'minister' better indicating its functions of guiding, advising and enlightening. Crowley's dse-mon presented itself as being the minister of Horus.

• f) Both stated that women’s re-valuation and the harmonisation between Science and Religion were essential characteristics of the new era, ideas most likely inherited from Eliphas Levi.

Paradoxically, the repetition of Anna Kingsford’s main ideas in Crowley’s prophetical revelations shows that the experience with Aiwass on 8'^h, 9'¹’ and io'^h April 1904 was a legitimate magical experience. To better understand this point, I will first describe my personal experiences with the Goetia and Liber Sameck.

In 1993 I obtained my first edition of The Goetia, published by Weiser. Although editorially correct, I was disappointed for not finding in it all the well known images of the Spirits present in the Dictionnaire Infernal of Collin de Plancy. My dissatisfaction remains, as years later, when I bought a copy of the Dictionnaire, the edition inexplicably did not have any illustrations.

The book was ordered from the famous book store of the Argentinean immigrant Francisco Laissue. Besides being the best occultist book store in Rio de Janeiro, and thus perhaps the best in Brazil, it certainly had a Borgesian atmosphere, with occult entrances through moving bookshelves and a large

amount of books kept in the impenetrable neighbouring room, much larger than the ones available to the public. The bookseller who worked with Laissue was also a character, a gentleman with a strong Spanish accent, a slight hunchback and with disturbing blue eyes that resembled the eyes of a blind person. He passed away a few years ago, but the owner is still active.

One or two days before I got the book, I had a serious problem when closing my rill at the Banco do Brasil, where I worked for ten years. What initially seemed to be a simple authentication error turned out possibly to be a considerable loss that I would have to pay for, when the documents required to correct the error mysteriously disappeared. The Goetia came into my hands exactly in this moment of crisis.

I returned home and decided to use the grimoire. I had some experience with the Angels from Kaballah and with Enochian magick, but the Goetia seemed more suitable to solve that urgent problem, and it had the strong appeal of the novelty. Benefiting from being by myself in the apartment, I performed a quick invocation.

My partner at rhe time came home later in the evening, but I did not mention the ritual. She had a strong clairvoyance, and was also very suggestible though not always reliable, which made me decide to wait and see if she would say anything. At the time I still had not developed the ability to perceive a magical presence and depended on her to know what happened during the ritual. The evening went on as normal until my partner woke me up in an irritable mood, asking me directly if I had invoked a demon. I remained quiet and asked the reason for the question. She said she was seeing a demon walking repeatedly over a plate in flames.

The invoked Spirit was Phenex and the description given by her impressed me, as he is attributed to the first decan of Aries and to the element Fire, as well as his name being derived from the mythological bird. But the best was still to come: I immediately felt the pressure of the energy from the entity on my forehead, making me have the vision of a man in a warriors helm and flaming eyes who aggressively demanded what I wanted. Throughout the night I had a succession of apocalyptic dreams and woke up feeling a strong

and impressive fiery energy around my body. I decided to go in person to the banks archive and as soon as I entered a colleague received me in a disturbed manner stating that he had had an intuition and had just found the missing documents in another branch’s folder.

Now, I shall emphasise the fact that the Spirit that manifested itself did not show any of the characteristics described in the grimoire. It did not have the voice of a child, did not sing, did not talk marvellously over all sciences and, certainly, did not appear obedient. Neither was my choice rational: I chose him intuitively, opening the book and placing my finger on the page, without bothering with his apparent inappropriateness for the task.

Obviously, such a success encouraged me, not only to further practices, but also to an effusive propaganda for the grimoire which became a trend in the Order I was initiated in some years later. Unfortunately, this trend originated several problems with the neophytes that started working with the system and even now people who were members of the Order come to me for advice and to tell me their bizarre case histories.

Although I seem to enjoy the good fortune of one who is born with his ascendant in Sagittarius and with Jupiter in the Midheaven, I was not left unharmed after the series of invocations I performed. Even more than ten years after I stopped working with the grimoire, cleansing and purification works performed by other people found Goetic energies and bonds in my body, phenomena that do not differ at all from those described by the ancient Mesopotamian healers who exorcised spirits nested in parts of the bodies of their clients - a skill also present in Shamanic practices.

To work with the Goetia, in my own personal experience, is full of risks and I can only fully agree with what Thea Faye says in The Devil is in the Detail. The phenomena are never what we expect from a superficial reading of the text. The grimoire does not explain that the Spirit can already be present before the ceremony begins, as happened when I instructed a brother from the Order in the praxis. It also does not advise that in this work the magician establishes a link with the Spirits that makes the ritual unnecessary. During a certain period, I needed only to think and the communication started.

With the evolution of my magical path, I ended up abandoning the grimoire in search of my Holy Guardian Angel. The method I used was to start working regularly with Liber Sameck for years. This is what allowed me in 2005 to reach an initial level of Knowledge and Conversation. One of the things I have been noticing is that the constant purification and energising that Liber Sameck and other theurgic practices grant, slowly change the person into a living talisman and subtly act in all other areas of their life. Whilst the Goetia has an immediate and drastic applicability, many times with nonlasting results, Theurgy slowly establishes all the conditions in a permanent and balanced manner for the person who needs it.

Another important point that differentiates the Goetia from Theurgy is health. My personal experience and conversations with other practitioners show that the presence of the Spirits negatively impacts on our physical state, maybe because of the contrasting energies. Goetic invocations seem to cause disturbances such as depression, gastro-intestinal problems, susceptibility to viruses, panic attacks and stress. I was spiritually advised that, in the long term, a constant Goetic practice would give me cancer of the larynx. When I worked with this system, I used to perform subsequent invocations with Enochian Lesser Angels to cleanse and re-energise my aura.

Another point not mentioned by the authors of the Goetia is that apparently the Spirits create situations where their invocation seems to be the ideal solution and the practitioner can find himself immersed more and more in these kind of events. Today I see the situation surrounding my acquisition of the book and the invocation of Phenex with a well-humored suspicion - and I cannot avoid mentioning the famous advice from Crowley:

It is, however, always easy to call up the demons, for they are always calling you; and you have only to step down to their level and fraternise with them. They will tear you in pieces at their leisure. Not at once; they will wait until you have wholly broken the link between you and your Holy Guardian Angel before they pounce, lest at the last moment you escape.

My Goetic experience did not end when I parted with the grimoire. My period as an A.: A.: Probationer was marked by a large number of events of this kind. A few months before my Reception, which took place in a hotel in Rome, I would enjoy the most impressive manifestation I have experienced so far, and it happened spontaneously. In fact, I was in the shower when all 72 Spirits started manifesting themselves with an intensity hitherto unknown to me, and I believe they spent almost an hour parading clock-wise around the magical circle which I quickly took shelter in. I had to invoke Hru-Ra-Ha during the whole process to maintain some integrity amongst all that energy. But there is an important fact about this experience and the subsequent ones: the Spirits were not attacking me and neither demonstrated any aggressiveness towards me. They were presenting themselves and many of them revealed energetically how both their seductive and aggressive characteristics are manifested.

I shall call attention to the fact that my attitude towards the Goetic Spirits was always one of respect and friendliness. The demons attract and always fascinated me. One of the biggest problems of western magick is due to its adopting the apocryphal vision that the demons are fallen angels which, as I stated earlier, is not a vision that originates in Judaism. From a scientific view of the reality, the Goetic phenomenon should be assessed independently of Christian nonsense. The Church was wrong in its judgement of many scientific facts that are nowadays considered commonplace, and it will most likely not be correct in more complex and subtle questions of spirit and Spirits.

I can now introduce my theory of the Goetic phenomenon and magical phenomena in general and, thus, explain why I consider the writing of The Book of the Law a genuine magical experience, although it is basically a pastiche of Anna Kingsford’s thinking.

The knowledge and the conversation with magical beings is a phenomenon ever present among human beings, since the most primitive cultures of the past to our modern urban civilisation. I personally know several people that, since their childhood, perceive and interact with spirits regularly and at the same time live a completely normal life and are discreet about what

they witness. It is part of Brazilian culture. We have a narrow familiarity with all sorts of mediumship and rarely do we know a family where at least one member does not belong to a Kardecist group or regularly attends an Umbanda temple.

However, with such vast collective spiritual experience in humanity across time and space, contact with spiritual beings is still an object of belief, rather than of science. I do not have the means of scientifically proving that I did in fact have a meeting with Phenex, as the presence of these beings does not leave photographic or phonographic records, neither does it show in computerised tomography. However, computerised tomographies do record cerebral alterations that manifest during the experience of what we call the perception of a spiritual presence. It is a phenomenon that occurs in a specific part of our brain, but this in no way clarifies the objective existence of our invisible friends.

The difficulty in establishing a science of the spirits is not in finding a way of creating an objective record, although that may still happen. Even the revolutionary production of such a record would be hindered by a fact that is obvious to the sceptical, but at the same time severely repressed by practitioners, whether spiritual mediums or Enochian magicians: it is the fact that a spiritual communication has never provided knowledge that is unprecedented and verifiable. Put differently, no spiritual communication to date has gone beyond the content of the memory of the recipient.

What happens during the knowledge and conversation with a spiritual being is the stimulation of the human mind with extraordinary and highly creative forms. This explains how it is possible for so-called spirits of the deceased to predict or accurately relate events, tell us things that seem extremely personal and, at the same time, be incapable of repeating the names of their parents and siblings when the medium does not know them. It tells us much about the inherent human desire to deceive itself, that every day thousands attend spiritual sessions and never question these key issues.

Crowley was aware of this, and one of his arguments in favour of The Book of the Law was that for the first time in history, the existence of praeter-

human beings had been scientifically proven. Unfortunately, we now know that all the small numerological enigmas that The Book of the Law presents as proof can be produced subconsciously, especially if one has an exceptional memory regularly trained in gematria exercises. Aiwass would have radically changed the course of science and history had he dictated his book in an existing language, though one unknown to Crowley, or revealed historical facts that were hitherto unknown, or given any other information that Crowley could prove he did not know and that was true.

Another important factor to consider is telepathy. I have experienced this phenomenon several times with people 1 have a strong emotional relationship with. When we see Crowley being repeatedly surprised as a new lover starts having visions with symbols that are meaningful to him, we have to wonder how his magically-exercised and active mind affected his lovers’ thoughts.

However, the personal experience of the magician, mine included, shows that the manifestation of a spirit is a phenomenon that seems very realistic and it is difficult - in the light of a successful invocation - to convince yourself that the entity before you is a mere phenomenon produced by your own mind. Add to this the evidence that sometimes the manifestations are spontaneous and unexpected, even undesired; that they affect third parties could also be explained by telepathy and, if we check carefully, almost all practical magical operations are done to affect other living beings - unless you are into rain making.

Thus, my theory is: the magicians' magical perception of Spirits and the Spirits’ inability to communicate are not necessarily incompatible; neither is there a need for this to be reduced into a purely subjective process, if the Spirits are energetic structures that organise memory and intelligence in a way that differs from ours.

In this theory, a Spirit will affect and stimulate our body, our nervous system and our brain, according to its energetic characteristics. Its energetic configuration could enable it to stimulate our ability to learn a new language, or affect the area in our brain that works with geometry. It can excite us sexually, activate our prescience and telepathy or make a part of our body ill. It

communicates by energetically affecting our mind, and therefore will never speak in a language we do not know. It can influence other people at the magicians request and cause synchronicities whenever there is a living being that can be acted upon. An analysis of my first invocation with Phenex shows that all these effects happened:

i. My partner was affected when she perceived the Spirit.

2.1 was affected in several ways and my magical perception was awakened or strengthened.

3. The archivist was affected, bringing about a synchronicity. As it was the archivist who lost the documents, placing them in the wrong folder, the Spirit may simply have activated his subconscious memory.

From this point on, I can explain why I consider the scripture of The Book of the Law to be a genuine magical experience. Crowley was intelligent and knowledgeable enough to create a fraudulent revelation that, besides the obvious use of Rabelais, repeats in detail Anna Kingsford’s ideas. I will not even consider that he defended, consistently and throughout his life, the truth of his prophecy. What I will say is that if his intention was to create a fraud, he had critical sense and knowledge enough to forge a revelation that would not run the risk of being, at any moment, compared to the original. Actually, it is hard to believe that this comparison was not made sooner, especially considering that several of Crowley’s adversaries and enemies had personal contact with Anna Kingsford whilst she was alive.

According to my theory, Crowley was in fact in touch with a dsemon in Cairo and it produced The Book of the Law, magically affecting the memory, the creativity and the literary capacity of his scribe. Anna Kingsford’s ideas were strongly engraved in his memory because Crowley had read her book in the dramatic circumstances present during his first attempt to perform the Abramelin Operation and also because such ideas satisfied his need for self-projection and recognition. In fact, the presence of Aiwass seems to have helped bring out a little of everything that profoundly affected Crowley's mind since his being admitted to Cambridge in 1895 until he went to Cairo in

1904. Therefore, there are many passages in The Book of the Law that seem to repeat parts of other known works and trends of the time, such as the translation of Kabbalah Denudata by Mathers and the publishing the Chaldean Oracles by Westcott - both men founding members of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and, thus, influential figures for Crowley.

As mentioned in the beginning of this article, the demons have always been with us. In ancient Sumer they were feared and exorcised. Later on, they were treated as the condemned, on whom it is legitimate to impose all sorts of forced labours. Some preferred to sell them their own souls in exchange for temporary benefits, secretly plotting a means of avoiding the sealed pact. Today, when magick is practiced more than at any other point in history, we are back to the individualism of the primitive era where each of us seems to have our own personal formula for dealing with these beings.

The first volume of Howlings will probably be a precious object of study for the anthropologists of the twenty-second century, as it includes testimonials from magicians who approach their Goetic invocations in many different ways; from the extremes of Paul Hughes-Barlow, who states that the Goetic Spirits are our friends and advises us not to use rituals, magical weapons and the magical circle, to Aleq Grai, who learned that we need almost anal attention to detail and advises us of the need for courage and depth of character when we call the bugger and eventually torture the little bastard when it does not serve us properly. Although I am more in tune with the position expressed by Thea Faye, it is impossible to say who is right, even more so as what is right for one person today may not be useful to them tomorrow - all can change to the extent the magician evolves and suffers the consequences of his acts.

In retrospect, my contact with the Goetic Spirits was fundamental in awakening my magical perception, and gave me a strong certainty of the reality of Magick. It taught me to be prudent and respectful, and it prepared me to investigate Theurgy in a more lucid manner. The experience with Goetia seemed to be an integral part of my path and if I suffered in the process, it was a result of my own mistakes.

Anna Kingsford How the World Came to an End in 1881

Alkistis Dimech & Howlings

Peter Grey (eds.)

THE BINDING OF BLACK VENUS JOHN J COUGHLIN

^jf^?ERHAPS I AM old-school or still cling to fragments of the na-\ivete of my youth, but to me a grimoire holds power not only within iCg) its content, but also in its physical make up. I can recall as a teen stumbling across Waites Book of Black Magic and Pacts and feeling the jolt of excitement - like electricity - course through the core of my being with every delicate turn of the page. To say my first encounter with a grimoire was numinous would be an understatement. The book itself seemed to reso

nate with energy, as if charged by its very content and the projections of its previous readers. What such a well-worn yet cared for book was doing in a Catholic high school library remains a mystery in itself which even then added to the excitement.

And now here I am, more than two decades later, arguably a seasoned magician, and still, as a package arrives from such wonderful places as Caduceus, Midian, and Weiser Antiquarian, I find myself reliving that early experience again and again, trying to contain my excitement lest I look like a child tearing open his Christmas presents. Of course, now I can justify my excitement with fancy Jungian or NLP terms and provide a rational metaphysical explanation for the perceived power of these books, and if I had an armchair and pipe I could sit back in my smoking jacket and offer discourse on this phenomenon, sounding much like the criminologist in the Rocky Horror Picture Show. But to what value?

Ultimately working with grimoires is a mystery tradition, and those who have earnestly mined these texts for their practical gems need not put too much energy into expressing their results to the uninitiated. Are the entities mentioned in such books truly external beings or forces of nature, or are they aspects of the unconscious or projections of it? Or is the truth somewhere in between, where the internal aspects provide anchors or conduits for some external energy? Who knows? We’ve experienced them to know they exist in some fashion, but our feeble attempts to explain them will always sound silly to those outside our circle and serve only to deflate their personal impact. Mysteries are better expressed through more abstract methods, and art in particular has proven a very potent and time-worn vehicle.

It was with this in mind that I first took up book binding. I had dreams of rebinding the less than pretty mass-produced grimiores I had collected over the years into something which better expressed and perhaps resonated their mysteries, making them in themselves magical tools, as potent as any panta-cle or dagger. However one wishes to explain it, the impact of such a book is felt, and a good magician knows how to take advantage of such influences, just as we do (consciously or not) by donning our robes and preparing our ritual chamber. The idea of set and setting is just as important to ritual as it is for followers of Timothy Leary (albeit there can be some overlap there). Every grimoire has a voice, and as a binder and book artist it is my challenge to provide a medium for that voice so that the book becomes an expression of itself. If I do my job correctly, recipients share some of that excitement when opening their package and laying their hands on the book for the first time. Whether they choose to then channel that excitement into their Magical Work, or simply place it on a dusty bookshelf is up to them.

Rebinding existing texts or new versions of them is well and good, but when I came across an early version of the first English translation of a little known grimoire called Tuba Veneris or The Consecrated Little Book of Black Venus, I was extremely excited at the idea of fresh meat, so to speak, and sought to bring this text to life as a bound book which would give the text justice and the Magician inspiration.

The Binding of Black Venus

The text is attributed to John Dee and instructs the reader how to perform the Horn of Venus, which could be used for lifting hidden treasures, for Navigating, Trade, war, and other ways likewise where the Spirit can be of service to you through the use of the six spirits whose calls and sigils are presented in the text. Over all, very Agrippan in its style of magick, making much use of the day and hour of Venus in its operations.

Binding a talismanic book adds a layer of complexity which I rather enjoy. One wants to consider various correspondences. Some things are rather obvious, such as using green leather and page boarders. I also used copper cover papers, a metal attributed to Venus and appropriately used for the making of the Seal of Venus per the instructions of the text. The goat skin I admit was partly utilitarian, but the goat does have associations with Venus and other nature gods making it a nice match.

Less obvious correspondences were used during the actual production process. For example, each batch of books were started on the day (or more likely, night) of Venus on the hour of Venus. This did not always work well for my day job schedule, so often this was a ritualized start where I began the printing or set the needed materials out for the next stage of the binding process. The point being to acknowledge and tap into that correspondence on some level.

Finally, there are the little things I do to magically bind the book, such as including some charged powdered herbs in the glue, in this case vervain, and inscribing the cover board with charged symbols of Venus before covering with the decorative papers. Of course, burning a Venusian incense when preparing the workplace always creates a good atmosphere. While not immediately appreciated by those who own the completed book, such texts, as with magick itself, have been created with intention and meaning as if the production process were a magical working. And indeed from my perspective that is exactly what it is.

While binding a book, I am always reminded of the making of traditional ritual tools. Like such tools, making books by hand adds to their empowerment, and requires the use of other tools which have been dedicated to

that craft. My bone folder becomes my wand and my razor blade, my knife. I can now see how the masons of old could become so steeped in esoteric notions. Seeking mastery in a craft is very much akin to the Work of the Magician. Any artist who has become lost in his or her work has experienced that special form of gnosis a Magician enjoys when absorbed in ritual. The final product becomes multidimensional, and the physical construct of the book purely its anchor to the physical universe. When such an object is able to inspire its bearer to sense that multidimensional quality on some level, then to me, that is a sign that I have done my craft justice.

CAUGHT

IN THE EYE OF

MARS

KRZYSZTOF

AZAREWICZ

Magnanimous, unconquer’d, boistrous Mars, In darts rejoicing, and in bloody wars

Fierce and untam’d, whose mighty pow’r can make The strongest walls from their foundations shake: Mortal destroying king, def I'd with gore, Pleas’d with war’s dreadful and tumultuous roar: Thee, human blood, and swords, and spears delight, And the dire ruin of mad savage fght.

Stay, furious contests, and avenging strife, Whose works with woe, embitter human life; To lovely Venus, and to Bacchus yield, To Ceres give the weapons of the field;

Encourage peace, to gentle works inclin’d, And give abundance, with benignant mind.

64'¹’ Orphic Hymn to Mars

bartzabel working is an evocation of Bartzabel, the spirit of J * Mars, that was performed by Aleister Crowley and a group of his disciples in 1910. The ritual was first published under the title An Evocation of Bartzabel the Spirit of Mars in The Equinox I vol.9 in 1913. The second edition was published in The Equinox IV vol.2 in 1998 where the ritual was formally titled Liber 325, after the numeration of the name Bartzabel. It was put into the Class C that, which according to the A. A. curriculum, consists of material of a suggestive nature. Liber 325 is a perfect example of how to apply Qabalistic knowledge to the construction of a magical ceremony.

The Bartzabel Working was first conducted on the 9^th May 1910 and it proved very successful as Bartzabel predicted two wars that broke out five years later. Crowley made some references to the ritual in his autohagiography The Confessions where he described briefly a method of constructing a ceremony; he retained the Qabalistic formula but wrote most of the invocations in poetical language. His idea was to stir up magical enthusiasm through the medium of art.

One of his assistants in the Working was Commander G. M. Marston, Frater All For Knowledge, a Probationer in A.A. and in whose house in Rempstone, Dorset, the evocation took place. Crowley dedicated the poem Ave Adonai to him. In the Bartzabel Working Marston took the office of the Assistant Magus. The second assistant was Leila Waddell, Soror Agatha who attained the grade of Philosophus in A. A. and IX° in the O.T.O. She helped Crowley to stage The Rites of Eleusis, inspired him to write The Book of Lies, several poems and also a play. She took the office of the Magus Adjuvant. The third assistant was Victor Neuburg, Frater Omnia Vincam, a Neohyte of the A. A. Neuburg assisted Crowley in many important magical workings, exploring the /Ethyrs of the Enochian world, invoking Mercury and Jupiter in the infamous Paris Workings and staging The Rites of Eleusis, among others. He took the office of the Material Basis in the Working, and was possessed by the spirit of Mars.

Another person who is known to have worked with the energies of Bartzabel was Jack Parsons, an O.T.O. member and the Master of Agape Lodge in Pasadena, Los Angeles. He desperately needed assistance of fiery and wrathful spirits when his old friend Ron Hubbard, together with Parsons ex-lover Betty May, stole his money, purchased a yacht and tried to escape by sailing off from Miami. Parsons summoned Bartzabel and at the same time the ship was struck by a sudden squall off the coast, which ripped off the sails and forced them back to the port. Betty later described that their situation during the storm, was desperate and that both she and Hubbard were very scared that they would not make it back to shore.

I have a habit to read Crowleys accounts of scrying the /Ethyrs, published as The Vision and the Voice, exactly on the days as he did them. After reading each /Ethyr, I meditate on the meaning and symbolism of his encounters in the light of the Dawn of the Tion of Horus and Crowley’s office as the Prophet. For a few years now, I’ve been working with the copy of The Vision and the Voice published in The Equinox Vol. IV vol. 2 which constitutes a collection of Crowleys diaries between 1909-1914. It is in this volume that

the reader can find Liber 32s, or the Bartzabel Working. In the autumn 2008, I had quite a few disruptive experiences, that led me to a series of not necessarily pleasant stress-related life situations. I cannot recall which /Bthyr I was meditating upon that day, but after my usual practice I glimpsed through the book just to find a text of Liber 325. As soon as I read it, I decided to perform the operation, not only to reconstruct it historically, but also to release all frustrations from that period of my life and to transform them into a thau-maturgic experience.

The ritual requires quite a lot preparations and paraphernalia. Luckily, I had the privilege to cooperate with a talented group of members of the O.T.O AMeTh Lodge in London who enthusiastically responded to the idea of performing the operation. One of the advantages of such group rituals is the elevation of the dynamics of the group to a completely new level. Since the Working implies evocatory formula, it requires specific skills, but, most importantly, it helps to build a strong relationship based on fraternal trust and friendship. Spirits that are summoned into the Triangle are considered to be truly evil by our ego since they give a very harsh lesson about responsibility.

All the Objects of Art were prepared exclusively for the ritual: two Probationer’s robes with all insignia, beautiful Egyptian nemysses, robes for other Officers, the magical kamea which was placed on the altar, and a Solomonic Triangle. Five months of preparations helped all participants to put themselves into a very specific mood; the making of the objects became contemplation on the nature of the working and energies associated with Bartzabel and Mars.

Magicians who are inclined to work in the ceremonial manner use specific paraphernalia and magical grammar to make the process of materialization complete, to make word flesh. Despite all appearances, they are much more down to earth than other psychonauts or sidereal dreamers, because work with Objects of Art requires more effort than dreaming. Life itself becomes hypnagogic and the obtained state of mind creates a bridge between noume-nal and phenomenal. Magical weapons are foci of power enabling magicians

to tap into specific patterns of energy and concentrate their minds on a chosen phenomenon. These weapons represent universal archetypes or qualities and the understanding of them will be changed according to the magician's initiatory career and level of human evolution. The weapons are not static in the material sense; they are dynamic processes vibrating on different planes. For instance, the Pentacle is not only a paten that holds the Sacrament but above all it is the Body, the true Temple of the Holy Ghost. By making the object, the magician is able to establish a sympathetic link with much more important facets of the process that resonate and are reflected on the cosmic level. It becomes contemplation on the nature of the universe and its different dimensions. On the subtle levels, those weapons will evolve and experience an infinite series of changes. Their perfected form and consecrated power will manifest in the final analysis of the magician, a thesis written by the Adeptus Exemptus that expresses his understanding of the universe.

During the preparatory period, the officers met regularly for rehearsals and discussions on the symbolism of the rite. This also helped to tune in and tap into the martial current. Thanks to those meetings, officers constructed a specific practice called the Purificatory Rite of Abbadon. The practice is based on the Dorje Khadro Puja, one of the preliminary practices to Highest Yoga Tantra. In the Tibetan Geluk tradition it is a fire burning offering (Fire Puja) to Dorje Khadro or Vajradhaka. The Rite of Abaddon utilizes symbolism from Western Mystery Tradition and Thelemic pantheon. It incorporates elements of Tantric Puja adapting it to the stipulation of the New /Eon. Abaddon is strongly connected to energies of Mars; Revelations calls him the king over scorpions. A scorpion is a central figure on the fifth talisman of Mars used in Bartzabel Working. In the Rite of Abaddon it serves as a mandala placed on the enlarged image of the Four of Disks from the Thoth Tarot. Crowley in his Rite of Saturn, called this card the Fortress that is upon the Frontier of the Abyss. This Card represents Sun in Capricorn. Saturn rules Capricorn, but importantly, the exalted planet in this sign is Mars, which links us to Bartzabel Working. Four is assigned to the planet Jupiter and the sephira Chesed that is located just below the Abyss. As it will

be shown in the latter part of this essay, there are some indications that the magician working with Liber 325 actually approaches Bartzabel, or the spirit of Mars, from a Jupiterian perspective through the path of Leo, and is guarded from the Abyss by the summoned Dog of Evil. More importantly, during the ceremony, the Circle will be transformed into the consecrated Tower, also strongly associated with Mars by the Tarot card, The Tower. In the corners of the citadel of the Four of Disks there are four towers. It is the view of the author that the operation described in Liber 325, that for obvious reasons, is performed in the Circle, actually takes place in the realm of the Four of Disks and can be a perfect example of the alchemical process of squaring the circle.

On this created mandala a box was placed, a symbol of the bottomless pit, Sheol, which in Hebrew means the abode of the dead. The imagery can be studied in Revelations 9.1-11. The outer sides of the box were decorated with images of Abaddon from Francis Barretts The Magus. The inner sides were adorned with four Fives from The Book of Thoth: Worry, Defeat, Disappointment and Strife. Inside the pit there was a small incense burner.

During the ritual all negative energies are gathered by means of activating specific chakras, using their energies and formulae as taught through O.T.O. initiations. These energies are released from the body during ritual exhalation of the breath and put into black sesame seeds kept before the nostrils. By shaping the black sesame seeds into scorpions and offering them into the fire, one visualises the negative energies which disappear into the mouth of Abaddon, who then rises from the pit. At the end of the rite, passages from Liber Ararita, an Holy Book of Thelema, are recited and the holy and formless fire Qadosh devours all delusions and illusions.

Constructing the Circle and Magical Square of Mars gives an illuminating insight into Crowleys dialectic expressed many times in his works. During the inscribing of the pentagon inside the Circle and placing five lamps around it, one realizes that they form two interlacing pentagrams; the lamps form the pentagram with an apex pointing downwards, whereas the pentagon creates a pentagram with an apex pointing upwards. It is worth noticing that a similar pattern can be found on four Mercurial sigils from the Holy Book

of Thelema, Liber CCXXXI. Those sigils are attributed to the paths of He, Vau, Zain and Cheth, the four of the five paths crossing the Abyss. The paths correspond to the first four months of the solar year and the Hebrew letters attributed to them sum up to 26 which is a numerical value of YHVH.

The two pentagrams added together (5 + 5) create Malkuth (10), a basis for all manifestations of the energy on the material plane. From the mystical perspective however, thanks to their positions, they can create a condition for the annihilation of the opposites which mathematically is expressed as the (-5) + (+5) = o formula. The object and the subject become one and are annihilated in the ecstatic unity. As it is written in The Book of the Law:

We are one, we are none.

In regards to kamea or the Magical Square of Mars, Crowley did not use the well-known version from Agrippas Three Books of Occult Philosophy, but instead created his own. A description of different methods of constructing squares can be found in an excellent essay by Donald Tyson, published as an appendix to Agrippas work. Unlike Agrippa, in Crowleys version all corners of the square have their own natural positions in the sequence of numbers from 1 to 25. Such a sequence is used to create the so called Double Even Squares, but Crowley, instead of placing number 1 in the lower-lefr corner moved it to the upper-left corner thus rearranging the natural positions of the numbers in relation to the corners of the square. Number 13, which is a numerical value of the Hebrew words love and unity, occupies the middle of the square.

There is a tendency to consider ceremonial magic and Qabalah as a form of escapism. However, on the epistemological level those methods are merely tools that can help us in the interpretation of the world around us. They offer a new and rich insight; show sidereal aspects of reality, its occult context and help to precisely calculate relations between an individual and the universe.

Specific magical objects were placed on the kamea. A meditation upon arrangements of those objects in the light of their relations to Hebrew letters and their gematric values can be a rewarding task. For example, the image of 252

Isis is placed on the square number 16, composed of letters Yod and Vau, and 16 is a numerical value of the Hebrew word HIA or she and GBVH which means elevated. The image of Ra Hoor Khuit is placed on the square number 13, composed of letters Yod and Gimel, and 13 is a value of AChD or unity (Unity Uttermost Showed which is adored in the paraphrase of the Stele of Revealing, also used in Bartzabel Working) and YBA which means He shall come, as if supporting the idea of prophesy of The Book of the Law. The Burin is placed on square 14 that is a value of the word AMD, thorn.

In traditional Solomonic magic the Triangle of Art is always in the East of the Temple. Such an arrangement is very practical whilst working with Goetic demons, but it is not the case in the discussed operation. Bartzabel is a planetary not a demonic spirit. In chapter X of Magick in Theory and Practice, Crowley describes the theory of the Circle and the changing position of a candidate according to the development of the ceremony. He uses the Bartzabel Working as an example of such movement and clearly indicates that the Triangle also should be placed according to the planetary energies involved in the process. The position of the Triangle in relation to the Circle has to be relative and dynamic, not static. The same applies to the equipment, weapons, paraphernalia placed in the Circle and the names inscribed around it. Their place depends on the unique nature of the operation in question. Any permanently fixed symbol in the Circle will seal the magicians fate and as a result, it will make the movement in any new direction in life impossible. That means the end ol his progress and initiation. We need to keep it as pure as possible. The ceremony consists of five parts. To quote Liber 325:

The Banishings and Consecrations.

The Special Preparation of the Material Basis.

The Particular Invocations of the Forces of Mars.

The Dealings with Bartzabel, that mighty Spirit.

The Closing.

The word BRTzBAL enumerates to 325, which is a sum of numbers from 1 to 25. Both 25 and 325 are magical numbers of Mars. Bartzabel can mean Son of the Army of God, thus clearly implying Martial energies. Other possible translations are clean bed (basis) for God’s manifestation or Chosen vehicle of God.

The ceremony starts with banishings and consecrations. The Assistant Magus who attends to the suffumigations of Art performs the Rituals of the Pentagram and Hexagram. While the former ritual cleanses, the latter consecrates the space preparing it for the descent of higher forces. The Magus Adjuvant who attends the Lustrations of Art purifies the Material Basis with water, masks him and clothes in a red robe of Mars. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and practical purposes and play an important role in cutting the aspirants off from the mundane world and helping them in identification with the summoned forces. The Material Basis becomes a living totem, pouring essence of the spirit into the inanimate form. This requires a very passive, feminine approach, so that the aspirant can become a vessel for the manifestation of ousia. They need to be ready for a complete submission to the summoned force. Crowley's choice of Victor Neuburg, a gentle poet and his lover, seems to be very well measured. The essence is poured to the Triangle and the monad of Kether unites itself with the imprisoned figure, thus becoming the Triangle of Grace mentioned in the chapter 69 of The Book of Lies. The monad or I become an Eye (the pun is intentional) in the Triangle, the same eye which is depicted on The Tower from the Thoth Tarot. That eye shines from the neighbouring path of the Devil, ruled by the Hebrew letter A'ain or eye and the astrological sign of Capricorn, which brings us back again to the Four of Disks governed by the Sun in Capricorn. This eye is actually mentioned in the Bartzabel Working as an unsleeping eye. However, chapter 69 of The Book of Lies mentions two triangles, the other being the Triangle of Prayer. Three officers in the Circle create this triangle. Graphically, the process is depicted on another Thoth Tarot card, Fortune, which is ruled by Jupiter. In this context, all three officers represent three beasts, alchemical principles and gunas: the Chief Magus,

that of Sphinx, sulphur and sattvas, the Assistant Magus, that of Typhon, salt and tamas, the Magus Adjuvant, that of Hermanubis, mercury and rajas. Both triangles establish strong relations between each other; first representing mystical principle of homoousios One-In-Three, second, that of Three-In-One. The dynamic relation between them produces different combinations of both triangles, which largely depend on the nature of the working, elemental, planetary and other influences involved in the opus. Aspirants study these combinations in a very speculative way during their early experiments with the Ritual of the Hexagram, as a figure composed of two interlacing triangles. Mystically, they can be considered forces enabling the hypostatic unity of Adeptus Minor.

Next, the Chief Magus, wearing the robe of Adeptus Major and the Uraeus crown, consecrates the Spear and the Sword; two magical weapons attributed to the sephira of Geburah and the planet Mars. Then, he proceeds to the Triangle of Art on which stands the blindfolded Material Basis. He binds him, invokes upon him protection of Ra Hoor Khuit, consecrates him with a drop of holy oil, and draws from his breast five drops of blood, so that his body may be the Temple of Mars.

In the next step, the Circle is transformed into the consecrated tower which is also attributed to the planet Mars through the letter Peh and Atu XVI, The Tower. Apart from the obvious symbolism, it is worth noticing that the Circle becomes a three dimensional aspect of reality; in fact, it always should be visualized as a globe rather than two dimensional flat figure drawn on the floor. Here, it is changed into a cylinder, a hollow tube so that the fire of Mars can be brought from heavens.

Next, the Chief Magus conjures the Dog of Evil. It is a powerful enchantment releasing dormant karmic kernels and putting all officers in a high and receptive state of mind. It resonates with the so-called negative confession from Liber Pyramidos, a Neophyte Initiation Ritual in the A. A. The conjuration forces negative aspects of the self to appear on the surface of the consciousness, however, it allows us to keep them under control and use them according to the needs of the operator. Symbolically, the magician enters

the path of Leo leading from Chokmah to Geburah and masters the magical power attributed to this path, namely the ’power of training wild beasts.' This view is supported by attribution of the dog to the 13^th path of the Tree of Life, Gimel, which crosses both the Abyss and the path of Leo. In the Bartzabel Working the task of the summoned Dog of Evil is to guard the Abyss of Height and the Abyss of the Great Deep. One of the paths below the path of Leo is Samekh, which constitutes a natural extension of the path of Gimel. Liber 777 attributes a dog to it.

A magician representing the Jupiterian power of authority, armed and guarded against external influences, is ready to proceed to Geburah, the se-phira of Mars. He performs the Invoking Ritual of the Hexagram of Mars, identifies himself and other officers with three magi who came to adore the Fivefold Star and is ready to take the Oath of Obligation. This is a very important part of the ceremony, since it involves a covenant between an individual and the universe. In the Bartzabel Working, the officers swear a devotion to the establishment of the kingdom of Ra Hoor Khuit.This is a crucial part of the ritual, even more important than the dealings with Bartzabel. It seals the fate of the magicians, not in a fatalistic way but rather it empowers them to proceed in the working and in their life in general. It gives them a purpose, an intention to be; it perfectly measures the relation between the universe and their own true selves. It is a way to achieve nirvikalpa-samadhi, an ecstatic state of the realization of the Self, leading to the liberation and discovery of the True Will. The working becomes only a means to fulfil the obligation. After swearing the Oath, the magician is able to clearly express and utter the purpose of the operation. Not surprisingly, in Bartzabel Working the purpose is fivefold:

• • To establish the Kingdom of Ra Hoor Khuit.

• • To succeed in the particular design of which it is not lawful to speak.

• • To have the power to help the weak.

• • To be filled with the Courage and Energy of Mars for the Prosecution of the Great Work.

•To obtain the service of Bartzabel that he may always be ready to come when he is called forth.

The first purpose places the ritual in a pure thelemic context. It still uses the very classical Solomonic methodology where the magicians prostrate themselves before the infinite powers of the universe and acknowledges their minuteness; however, it puts an emphasis on volitional aspects of Thelema. Depending on the initiatory level of the adept, taking the Oath connected to the first purpose can exalt him even up to the grade of the Master of the Temple or it can help him to achieve one of the O.T.O. degrees, namely, the Knight of the East and West, since in Liber 194 we read that members of that degree, are vowed to devote their lives to the establishment of the Law of Thelema.

It is interesting to observe that in The Record of the Working and in Crowleys Summary of the ritual he seemed not to obtain any results in the context of the first purpose. Bartzabel expressed his frustration in regards to his imprisonment in the Material Basis and only referred to: the sacrifice of the child on the Altar of Ra Hoor Khuit. The child was supposed to spring from the third lotus. In the operation conducted in March 2009 we found two similarities to Crowleys results. At the very beginning of the working, Bartzabel demanded his release and wanted to enter the Circle in order to quench his thirst. Then he said the kingdom would be established threefold, on three levels. This somewhat prophetic statement was then connected to: man fighting against man, nation against nation, and man wrestling with his own fetters.lt is not surprising that the whole aspect was expressed in an apocalyptic and warlike tone, Mars being a planet of war.

In Crowleys working, the design of which it is not lawful to speak, could refer to his personal life and loss of his children as predicted in The Book of the Law 111:12. He considered these facts an ordeal on his path. The description of the bitter conditions of Crowleys initiation can be found in The Heart of

the Master &■ Other Papers, especially in the essay The Master Therion: A Biographical Note:

The Secret Chiefs resolved to destroy him [Crowley - ka] utterly. To this end they took from him all things soever, and that in ways best calculated to teach him the lesson They would have him learn ... They destroyed his love, his hope, and his peace of mind... Yet also during this whole time, They led him in diverse ways through ordeals more and more exalted until They had fixed him at the summit of the Order in that degree of enlightenment which (or so it is said) is attained by any man in the body not oftener than once in Two Thousand years.

It was unnecessary to make any further investigation into this strictly personal aspect of Crowley's life and his initiation, so it was decided that the officers performing the ritual could replace Crowleys question with their own.

The third purpose of the operation, to have the power to help the weak, may sound contradictory to the common view of the thelemic doctrine. However, its principles are synthetic in nature and in fact very tolerant. Many critics of Thelema often forget to mention that its aim is the establishment of a new social order based on the four cardinal principles: that of Light, Life, Liberty and Love. Crowley’s essay On Duty makes it clear that our goal does not have to be the elimination of the unfit but that we could help them in the achievement of their next evolutionary step. This is a fundamental characteristic of the Universal Brotherhood.

This aspect of the operation was probably the most striking for me. The next day, I went to Paris to see a certain Arabic sorcerer who seemed to struggle with some problems of the initiatory level. My intention was to spend some time with him, offer companionship and possibly help him is some way. Exactly 24 hours after working, we were sitting by the Seine, a few yards from the place of of Jaques de Molay s execution, drinking wine and talking when my phone rang. It was a woman whom I had met just once, a month before, at a Gnostic Mass celebrated by the Lodge in London. We exchanged

our numbers and lost contact. She was then calling me crying and asking for help. She seemed to be in extremely bad mental state, thinking she was possessed by demons. Bartzabel was very precise in giving the instructions on what to do in both cases.

As to the Courage and Energy of Mars for the Prosecution of the Great Work, Bartzabel plainly indicated to us that the sign of it could be found on the breast of the Chief Magus. On the esoteric level, this may refer to the three symbols worn by this officer in the operation: The Lamen of the Chief Magus, a symbol worn also by Hiereus in the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. It represents the Light that shineth in Darkness though the Darkness comprehendeth it not. It is a symbol of strength and fortitude, a passage from the outer to the inner order. The second symbol is the Rose Cross Lamen, an emblem of the Adeptus Major grade that can be considered a sum of all energies known to human perception. It also indicates a certain initiatory process by which the body of the Adept transforms itself into a temple of the Rosy-Cross. The third symbol is the First Talisman of Mars on which there are Mystical Characters of Mars and the names of the four angels: Madimiel, Bartzachiah, Eschiel and Ithuriel.

In the context of that question, Crowley received the results of much more exoteric nature. He writes in his Confessions:

I obtained a great deal of valuable knowledge from the spirit, but the most interesting item was this: Marston, remembering his official duty, asked: Will nation rise up against nation? followed by more detailed inquiries on receiving an affirmative answer. We thus learnt that within five years from that date there would be two wars; the storm centre of the first would be Turkey, and that of the second would be Germany, and the result would be the destruction of these two nations. I only remembered this after reaching New York at the end of 1914. Luckily I had the ritual with question and answer written down at the time, and an account of these predictions, precisely fulfilled, appeared in the New York World.

Obtaining the service of Bartzabel hasn't been executed formally apart from the prosecution of the working discussed herein. After the ritual, the Lodge officers focused on constructing ceremonies for other planetary spirits and intelligences based on Liber 325. A grimoire that will present these rituals is in preparation. However, what is called forth, never goes back completely to its abode. The sympathetic link between the operator and the subject of the operation is established permanently by means of karmic actions undertaken and the virtue of the magical memory. Evocation is very often associated with dangerous practices from Goetia consisting of a set of instructions on how to force a particular demon to fulfil our demands. That doesn’t necessarily have to be the case. The process of evocation can help to isolate specific qualities of mind or environment and put them into the context, creating a design, which can take shape of a demon or spirit. However, that will depend on our own aesthetic.

Regardless of our opinion about whether the spirit exists objectively or whether it is a part of our mind, for the sake of this discourse, it is important to acknowledge the fact that the process of evocation allows us to project an extrapolated set of qualities outside the body of the operator. This helps to analyse the complexity of its nature from a new perspective. Usually such evocations are filled with long dialogues and dealings. It is a process of deep psychoanalysis, or rather a form of spiritual dialectics by means of which the aspirant obtains control over the attractions and repulsions of his own being. This view is obviously a simplification and Solomonic magic offers us much more than the mere psychotherapeutic adventure.

It is very easy to mistake reflections of the stars on still waters with the stars themselves. Ceremonial magic does not simply mean a magician robed in a fancy dress, drawing strange figures in the air using even stranger tools, whispering or growling incantations and all that in the thick smoke of the incense from which it is easier to get asthma than to see the serpentine tentacles of the demon. In fact, in the Bartzabel Working you will not see the demon but a human being trapped within the limitations of matter, howling and being forced to behave in a specific way dictated by the conditions of his

environment. It is a process of serious introspection during which none of the aspects of ourselves should be destroyed, but instead assimilated on new grounds. The mind of a magician focuses entirely on an extrapolated aspect of reality in order to re-establish a long and intimate contact. This will usually end in an experience of catharsis.

The evocation and working with demons or spirits allows the purifying our personalities from lower influences of the animal soul called Nephesh. It is only through descending into the underworld that we can start the process of refining our beings. The Holy Books of Thelema, especially Liber CCXXXI and the initiation rituals of the A. A. are full of references to Amenti or the land of the dead, journey to the deepest catacombs and explorations of its pits populated with creeping spirits rejected by our consciousness. They are integral parts of cocoons in which is hidden the true Self of man, the parts which as a whole can be called a Shadow or Dweller of the Threshold.

In the Bartzabel Working as in all classical methods of evocation, the magician first calls upon the highest principle, then descends, level by level, finally reaching a step on which they want to focus. They conjure up by divine name Elohim Gibor, the archangel Kamael, the choir of angels, Seraphim, the intelligence Graphiel in order to reach the world of spirits and Bartzabel himself. In Liber }2$ this process is accomplished by reciting a beautiful incantation written in poetic prose. All dimensions of the magical hierarchy are subtly connected with each other by skilful poetic techniques, the discovery of which is a fascinating exercise in itself. Without doubt, Crowley was a master of language, and as such he had keys to the powers of magick. He was able to fashion this invocatory formula into a living flame that burns grossness and elevates the senses of the adepts up to the higher dimensions, where they can clearly hear the call for Adventure.

The text of Liber 325 lists the possible tokens of manifestation:

A ruddy light will play about the form of the Material Basis; or even a dark lustre beetle-brown or black. And the Face thereof will be suffused with blood, and the Heart beat violently, and

its words will be swift and thick and violent. The voice thereof must be entirely changed; it may grow deep and hoarse, or at least strained and jerky. And it may be that it will suffer the torment of burning.

Some of those signs were very apparent almost straight from the beginning of the operation, darting forth and flashing through the Circle and the temple. I remember a moment of kneeling down together with two other officers at three sides of the Altar, clasping spear and together with all present endlessly chanting the mantra A ka dua. The text gives a clear instruction that the recitation of the mantra is continued until the Chief Magus is satisfied with the Descent of the God. Suddenly, without realizing what I was doing, I raised my eyes, which until then were fixed on the floor of the temple and met a hypnotic gaze from the little statue of Ra Hoor Khuit which stood in front of me on the Altar, exactly on the level of my eyes. I was paralysed by the power coming from the apparently inanimate object as if a cobra was caught by the sound of a conjuror’s flute.

Others present in the Temple were enchanted by definite changes of atmosphere, the charged and vibrating air, anxiety and fear, psychological bridges linking our conscious safe self to the great Unknown. Officers in the Circle felt on their backs hoarse from the hot almost burning breath of the Material Basis which bore fantasies and nightmares of Bartzabel using Ruach or airy spirit to move freely between the Triangle and frontiers of the Circle. And since they knew that these grotesque images were children of their reasoning that is subject to Ruach, they felt Bartzabel penetrating their thoughts, their dreams and hidden secrets. He became One with them in the sphere of Reason and it is only due to this dangerous slope between sanity and insanity, the edge between the worlds, that the true communication can take place. We must let it go completely. We must conquer by surrendering. By putting Bartzabel into the trap of his pride, making him king of his own realm and on his own terms, the mind frees imagination from the imprint of convention and becomes ready to achieve ek-stasis, to go beyond. And indeed, this process was ceremonially confirmed during Bartzabel’s oath

of obedience when the Chief Magus, still standing in the Circle, placed the sword on the spirits head. This weapon is attributed to the Air and Ruach and in this context, it is the Sword of Reason, the bridge created above the Abyss between the Triangle (3, Binah) and the Circle (situated in the Four of Disks, Chesed) enabling the manifestation of the ideal of the Supernal Triad to the phenomenal below the Abyss.

The Bartzabel’s oath is transformative for the spirit; magical lore calls that phase the pain of obligation. The spirit is dragged out of his natural abode, trapped in the restricted reality of the material world, tormented and forced to prophecy, which is not necessarily the skill attributed to the Martial sphere. He swears obedience, peace, defence against all enemies of the officers, fulfilment of the charges, and finally not hurting the Material Basis but purifying and fortifying him. Thoughtless and mechanical dealings with the spirits and demons are marks of our times. Humanity seems to treat nature in the very same way as medieval magicians treated demons. Here, we postulate a radical thesis of ethics, which can serve as a fundamental principle of the magical ethos and culture.

Magic should be transformative on two levels: in the sphere of the psychic world (as an illuminating factor) and in the sphere of the outer world (as a culture-making factor). Aspirants who have just started their adventure on the path don't usually have too many problems in achieving satisfactory results on the first level. Perhaps, they are guided by Neshama, or divine intuition guides them, perhaps the results that they obtain are colourful enough so that they decide not to abandon the work. However, the second level is always more challenging, especially due to the massive resistance of matter and the lethargy or conformity of human beings. Nowadays, man is cut off from his own instincts and from the nourishment of Mother Nature to such an extent that most of us have already lost the chance to reconnect with Her ever diminishing reservoir of power. Few are those who discover magick through sweet whispers of the Goddess. Most of us find it in the cultural environment of a transformative character, which becomes an initiatory experience in itself.

For this reason, it is appropriate to finish dealings with Bartzabel by giving not only the License to Depart but also the Benediction. Here, the Adept becomes a living lamp illuminating the darkness of ignorance. In the Holy Book of Thelema, Liber LXV, v:g we read: I have burnt within thee as a pure flame without oil. In the midnight I was brighter than the moon; in the daytime I exceeded utterly the sun; in the byways of thy being I inflamed, and dispelled the illusion. There are five lamps or candles outside the Circle according to the fivefold principle of the working. In Book 4 Crowley describes them using the same phrase as in the case of the Four of Disks: these are the Fortresses upon the Frontiers of the Abyss, and then he continues:

These candles stand upon pentagrams, which symbolize Geburah, severity, and give protection; but also represent the microcosm, the four elements crowned by Spirit, the Will of man perfected in its aspiration to the Higher. They are placed outside the Circle to attract the hostile forces, to give them the first inkling of the Great Work, which they too must some day perform.

Those magicians who don’t implement lamps outside the Circle usually protect it by the light within. It is a powerful and very efficient armor. However, the citadel they build may be composed of material which will make it a prison or a tower of mirrors from which there is no way out. This problem was accurately described by one of Crowleys disciples, Frank Bennett, just after his great realization experienced in the Abbey of Thelema in Cefalu. In his magical diary he noted:

What fools we men are! We make for ourselves a prison, and erect mirrors that cover all the four walls of this prison; and not being satisfied with this, we cover the ceiling with a mirror as well. And these are our five senses which reflect themselves in hundreds of forms until we are so befogged that we believe that these reflections of ourselves — of man as Man and Bull - are all that is.

Fortunately he gives us hope:

But there are a few who have examined these mirrors and polish them, and discovered that the more the mirrors are polished the less reflection they give. Then a time has come when they have found that they are not mirrors at all, but only veils, and that one can see through the veils.

Those aspirants, who have inclinations towards ceremonial, Tantric or even the shamanistic paradigm could all find Bartzabel to be very helpful in breaking all restrictions. Interestingly, in Book 4 Crowley compares the symbolic meaning of the veil with the lamp: Whatever you have and whatever you are are veils before the Light. The task of the adept therefore is not only to achieve his own individual goals and to master reality, but also to serve it. Only then he is able to establish a perfectly balanced relation with the universe within and without, and to destroy the invisible barriers of his own limitations. His magical operations and life in general transform into a unified theurgic and thaumaturgic experience.

Mars Talisman, from Clavicules de Salomon

• BIBLIOGRAPHY •

Agrippa, Henry Cornelius

Crowley, Aleister

Crowley, Aleister &■ al,

Godwin, David

Pendle, George

Richmond, Keith (ed.)

Three Books of Occult Philosophy

The Book of Lies

The Heart of the Master & Other Papers

The Confessions

Liber 777 and Other Qabalistic Writings

Liber ABA

The Book of Thoth

The Equinox Vol. I, No 9

The Equinox Vol. IV No. 2

Cabalistic Encyclopedia

Strange Angel: The Otherworldly Life of Rocket Scientist John Whiteside Parsons The Magical Record of Prater Progradior

CUTTING THE CORD MARK SMITH

grimoires will reveal a little of the results that are to 01 II 11 be expected from their operation, simply by their nature, title or Jj at the very least their reputation; the Lemegeton being perhaps the foremost example. One is never really sure if what is described within the pages is going to match the actual practical result, but at least there is some sort of indication, such as a description of the spirit and its nature.

Witchcraft tomes are just as easily defined, with even those of a more sophisticated literary approach to their content giving more than a hint of what lies ahead for the willing practitioner.

Andrew Chumbley s Qutub is the anomaly here, standing quite apart from its literary cousins. Information on this little book is scant, being described by its own author as an evocatory seventy-two verse poem which, articulates the transmutative process of the crooked path. Granted, but what then should we expect from performing this evocation? There is not much to be found anywhere in the way of results from those who have performed the works within the pages of this book, with even the internet coming up short on anything more than price speculation due to limited supply. The book dealer from whom I obtained my own copy was not particularly forthcoming: I can sell you Qutub... and if you regret it, then that’s okay.

Though I have to say that this minimalistic sales pitch, loaded with more than a hint of I know something you don’t know was enough to get me reaching for my wallet. This is not an action that I will ever regret. Qutub as I now know, is worth its weight in potable gold.

Perusing this tidy little work upon its arrival, I was able to appreciate the simple beauty of the book, the poem punctuated by the authors telesmatic images - that are designed to be studied as it is read. Owning the Azoetia, I was aware of one of Chumbleys most amazing gifts, his ability to weave power and current into his work, through the use of cipher, code and image. It is with Qutub that the author has excelled himself in this area.

There is a lengthy expose in the latter part of Qutub, defining the source of ritual, dream control and contemplative behaviour which assisted in the birthing of the poem. The combination of mythological and etymological references give a platform for the foundation of the words that begin to illustrate the Matrix of the Design. There is even an exposition of cipher and occult numerology which in part illustrates the actual infusion of some of this occult power into the wording and format of the verse. On the first page of this Commentary Chumbley explains that it is written to provide contexts in which interpretation may take place. Although no expectations of what may occur are given, in referring to the content of the poem the author states that even should the reader be: opposed or disinterested in such matters ...let him read the poem irrespective of them. Let interpretation transcend the boundaries of circumstance, thereby seemingly offering the reader who performs the verse a resulting experience regardless of their belief structure. Perhaps it was just my own interpretation of these words, but this was the first indication of the power ensorcelled within these beautiful verses. There are few who would offer their work up to scrutiny in test and application in such a way.

Through the reading and performance of the work we meet, among others, Azrail, Melek Taus and Lilith, all of whom step forward to assist and participate in the alkemy of individual transformation.

Much of what is in plain view to me now remained occult at the time. That is, until the rite was performed. The current contained within Qutub is reactive to the individual and their own particular spiritual path. The energy from within the verse is unlocked in its recitation and performance, by the current within oneself, evoking that which is bound within - the interaction

of man and daimon. An act whose goal is transmutation, the freeing of the self from the bindings of the mundane world, allowing the magickal current to enter and initiate change.

There is no clear indication of how the poem should be performed, save for a small instruction on rhe recitation of A Rite of the Opposer. This short rite at the end of the book incorporates The Prayer of the Design and the Formula of the Opposer. These two brief prayers are quite plainly affirmations of the transmutational process ignited in the evocation of the current by performing the seventy-two verses.

For some this will be the point of change, the freeing of the soul by cutting the binding umbilical cord that holds us to a predetermined path of spiritual ascension. For myself it was to be an equally powerful awakening, though at the time this all remained a mystery to me. The rite itself was performed as I believed Chumbley had intended when he created this work. Blind.

Walking to my chosen place of solitude - I had found a small bushy glade in which to perform this poetic rite - I glanced at a sheared tree trunk, the shattered top a dragon’s head silhouette. A flash of Wyrd in the near twilight.

A single white candle in a glass container lay at my feet to be used with the Rite of the Opposer. I faced my shadow and began to recite the seventy-two verses of Qutub, taking the time to study each of the eleven telesmatic images whilst savouring this spiritual poetry. The poem builds slowly, as does the effect of its evocation. As I relaxed into the work, the words beginning to flow, it seemed to me that I read them almost from a distance, detached from my own self. At first I barely noticed this feeling of otherness. Maybe this was the current coming through. A trickle of power issuing forth from inner gates opening. A reaction to the evocation interwoven through the seventy-two ciphered verses. The sensations increased. That feeling of being somewhere else, pushed back from my own body as though I was not reading but listening and watching, my mouth issuing forth the poetic current as something else recited Qutub. My physical self stood in this quiet little glade, and lost in the evocation itself my mind found the word that described my current status: displaced. As the trickling power and subtle current increased

I found myself moving further back, my visual perception point now somewhere behind my own head as the poem called forth into me that nameless and formless entrancing energy that men call muse. This the Daimon initiate who writes the symphony, or guides the hand that paints the canvas whilst the self is absent. Is this not when some of the greatest work is accomplished?

The realisation of this occurrence brought me back to the recitation as Chumbley's words through the vehicle of my own voice gave hints of distant stellar power wrapped in ancient lore:

O What shall I dare to name Thee

Thou who art Son of the Sun!

Continuing with my oration I now felt as though I could not concentrate on the words properly. Though I tried I could not appreciate or even find the meaning in them, the feeling of detachment re-occurring as I continued to recite The Point.

It would only be in later contemplation that I realised this was the trans-mutational effect of the incoming current evoked by the verse, which displaced the self, creating a bridge that would allow the magickal freedom of spiritual realignment. For now I was engrossed in the last few pages, unaware that this bridge lead across that which seperates the true current of magickal power, the source itself, from that which conducts it, man.

As the last few verses were issued forth and twilight began to fade into night I did not know that a dam holding immense spiritual power had been pierced. The trickle of current that had already begun to flow widening the cracks, becoming a small but increasing stream of iniatic power. This was the onset of transformation.

Although they may be used separately I chose to compliment this first recital of Qutub with a Rite of the Opposer. With white candle now lit I commenced the Prayer of the Design. I then turned anti-clockwise away from the place of my shadow and issued the Formula of the Opposer. Turning back towards my original position having now completed 360°, the words within both prayers having confirmed the petition for transition, summoning the

magickal current and requesting the turning of the circle through the seasons of change. As instructed in the rite I blew out the candle after a silent salutation and walked from the glade without looking back.

Though I was completely unaware at the time, the effect of performing Qutub is almost immediate, unlike many other rites and rituals of a more traditional nature. Qutub is evoking the spirit of the muse, whose magickal initiatic current begins the process without delay.

My legs felt physically stiff as I trudged my way home, no not stiff, leaden! The feeling of being displaced had returned and brought disorentation with it. What was happening? Had I read the words in more depth before performing the rite, I may have known.

Self to Self over Self's abyss

There my death and there my tryst.

This was change, and this was now. I tried to stave off the welling emotions as I climbed the steps that lead to my house, some fifty or sixty yards from the door. I didn't reach the top of the steps before the emotions became a rivulet. Unable to finish the climb I slumped down on the steps. The rivulet became a tear which in turn became a sob that I attempted to stiffle. What was happening to me?

Drawing on my resolve and stiffling another sob, I stood up, climbed the rest of my steps and crossed the threshold. Once inside with the door closed, I let go as the rivulet became a stream which became an ocean of uncontrollable sobbing. Why? I didn’t know. More sobbing, then laughter, hysterical wild laughter; sobbing again, then more laughing as I rode rhe highs and lows of initiatic current, that had started as a droplet and now roared through my system, my self, my soul.

Here was the venom of the dragons fangs, that poison that caused transmutation. Cain laughed hysterically as he murdered a sobbing Abel and from that death rose an understanding. An understanding of the ability to change oneself, an understanding of the muse, the formless daimon that displaces

the self, opening gateways through which flows the magickal current of ini-tiatiating power.

They cafi my corpse upon the pyre, Then walk away within the Fire. Whofolloweth — hath found the Path... ... lost within the Empty point.

Here was rebirthing through the burning of the old self; the serpent and the Peacock Angel assisting in this transformation. As emotional extremes subsided and a little more balance was obtained, I settled into meditation, which brought with it flashes of images and powerful astral experience. A dragons flight through the Akasha.

My dream sleep brought similar experiences, a kaleidoscope of spiritual images, triggered by the presence of the muse. I try in vain to recall the journey I undertook that night, but much of it is lost to me.

This Love shall not 'til morning live, Yet shall its death forgive — With a finger held to the lips of Night.

No other orations of Qutub and its adjunctive rites will ever match the tidal wave of power brought by that first experience, no matter how powerful or pleasurable they may be. But, each repetition complements and enchances the original work as doorways revealed within the self during that first rite are rediscovered and opened by the mesmeric verses.

It was only later whilst crossing other darker waters that I felt a comparison, albeit on a much larger scale, to the effects of Qutub. Performing Qutub is a crossing which allows a glimpse, in microcosm, of the macrocosmic journey of the soul. In performing this powerful little poem, we are able to reach across and touch that which is beyond,connecting with the Daimon muse, tasting its power. In performing Qutub all the way through to the Rite of the Opposer and opening what Chumbley calls the Gateway to the path oj the flesh, we allow the alteration of the pre-ordained soul path. In its alkemical transformation the soul is freed, and access to further mysteries granted.

Once every six to eight months I treat myself to a solitary twilight reading of Qutuh in a remote location. Each time I allow myself this occult luxury I find something new about the work to enjoy, a verse that seems relevant to my current circumstances, or an image that provokes a particular sensation. The one thing that each recitation has in common with the others is that there is no regret in experiencing this beautiful work, as may have been implied, tongue in cheek, by the gentleman from whom I acquried it.

I could not begin to suggest what individual changes the next person to perform this extraordinary poem will experience. In undertaking this revelatory work they free their spirit and facing the muse, place their name alongside my own and the many others who have written on the parchment next to The Signature of Lachesis.

DIMENSIONAL GATEWAYS THEIR HISTORY 8( USE DONALD TYSON

ength, breadth and height are the commonly recognized J} O spatial dimensions of the material world. Time is sometimes con-sidered to be the fourth dimension. Cosmologists has postulated higher dimensions of space. One recent theory, known as the M Theory, sets forth a universe of eleven dimensions, a number of some interest to Thelemites, as eleven is the number of Nuit according to Aleister Crowleys inspired Liber AL vel Legis, more commonly known as The Book of the Law:

My number is 11, as all their numbers who are of us.

The M stands for membrane, but is sometimes said to stand for magic because the theory is so unconventional. M Theory first came to public attention in 1995, when it was discussed at a conference at the University of Southern California. It is an outgrowth of the super-string theory of spacetime.

In magic, the term dimension is usually applied to an alternative reality. An occult dimension is another universe that differs from our common material universe. This usage of the term might at first consideration seem imprecise, but this is not the case, it is merely different from the cosmological usage. Occult dimensions differ from our everyday reality in various ways that define them and make them distinct from one another. An occult dimension is another place with its own landscape, inhabitants, and set of laws that govern its events. Practitioners of magic are able to view these alternative dimensions, converse and interact with the beings that live in them, enter them, and draw some of their inhabitants into our own common reality. Much of western magic is preoccupied with accessing, studying, and manipulating occult dimensions.

The response of the average, intelligent person to the concept of occult dimensions is to dismiss them out of hand, without bothering to even consider them in any serious way. For the non-occultist, there is one reality and one only - the physical world. Hence, from this point of view all other realities must be unreal, and the unreal is usually assumed to be unimportant. A dichotomy is created between reality on the one hand, and fantasy or illusion on the other. Reality is what can be touched, or at least measured in some way by physical measuring devices; fantasy is everything else. This includes all perceptions of places not received in a physical way from the physical world. It is easy to discern the limitation of such a view. It is a closed loop. The real equals the material. Nothing is real that cannot be investigated in a material way. Yet there are many places, complex worlds some of which have intelligent inhabitants, that may be accessed by human consciousness in ways that do not directly involve the physical senses. Are they all to be dismissed as unimportant? The long history of mysticism and magic asserts without equivocation that not only are these occult dimension real, but they are more important to human experience than the material universe.

Are these alternative dimensions places that occupy space, similar in this way to our physical world? Intelligent occultists might initially be inclined to say no, but the question is not a simple one to answer. We access occult dimensions through our minds, without the direct avenues of our senses, but the material universe of space and time is also a product of mind. Only when the input of our senses is processed does our everyday world come into being. It is a mental construct, no less than the occult dimensions are mental constructs.

Furthermore, the symbolic building blocks we use to construct occult dimensions are the same that we use to construct the physical world. We ’see’ in our minds the inhabitants of these alternative universes in terms of the imagery we shape to clothe the data of our senses. We can imagine nothing that is not based on the memory of processed sensory input. For example, a monstrous being such as a dragon or a gryphon is constructed of processed sensory memories of hair, scales, claws, eyes, skin, bones, and so on. Even a

more abstract being, such as one made up of iridescent bubbles or irregular triangles, is still based on components of sensory experience.

The dividing line between what is considered the real world, and worlds accessed by seers, mystics, and magicians, is not nearly so distinct or absolute as is generally supposed. The mind is capable of erasing a physical object, so that it becomes completely invisible and intangible; it is equally capable of seeing objects that have no material substance. Hypnotists trigger this innate ability all the time in their stage routines - it is not a difficult trick to manipulate the consciousness in this way. They make those hypnotized fail to see what is in front of them, or see things that are not visible to others present.

What is true of the sense of sight is also true of all the other senses. Everyone reading these words is quite capable of seeing, hearing, touching, smelling and even tasting things that are unperceived by others present. This is not a difficult feat, and it is not uncommonly experienced. Materialists dismiss all these experiences as fantasy, as unreal, as nonsense to be disregarded, yet for thousands of years magicians have depended on communication with worlds unseen, and their inhabitants, for guidance, instruction, and active assistance. How arrogant for the modern West to dismiss this ancient and universal human experience as unreal, and therefore of no value.

♦ HEAVEN & HELL ♦

An example of alternative dimensions that has been widely accepted throughout history in most human cultures, including the modern West, is the dichotomy of heaven and hell. More properly it is a trinity of worlds, since the world of our everyday waking experience is placed in the middle between these extremes, with heaven above and hell below. The directions are symbolic, since occult dimensions cannot be said to be located in any corner of space that may be charted on a map. For the devoutly religious, heaven is a realm of divine reward, and hell a realm of divine punishment. Diverse cultures have believed in various heavens, and hells, for thousands of years.

The Norsemen called their heaven Asgard, their waking reality Midgard, and their hell Niflheim, or simply Hel. The term Midgard literally means middle enclosure, the place of men that was divided from the higher region of the gods and the lower of chill, dark mists where the unheroic dead suffer for eternity. An enclosure implies a continuous fence or wall that surrounds, keeping what is inside in, and what is outside out. The Norse represented this barrier by an impassible surrounding ocean inhabited by a great sea serpent that completely encircled the world. Yet this division was never absolute in Norse mythology. Gods and humans sometimes traveled from one realm or world to another. A rainbow bridge linked Asgard with Midgard.

Similarly, in Christian myth the barrier between occult dimensions is crossed by angels, men and demons. The gateway to hell is sometimes described as the mouth of a dark cave, and ascent to heaven is to be effected from high places, such as the summits of mountains. Several patriarchs of the Old Testament were believed by Jews to have been elevated in their bodies directly to heaven. Moses was lifted up, as was Enoch and Elijah. Christians hold that Jesus arose to heaven in the body (the Ascension), and that the living Virgin Mary was lifted to heaven by God (the Assumption). The difference between the two events is said to be that Jesus arose of his own power, whereas Mary was lifted up by divine intervention. Muslims believe the same thing about Muhammad, that he ascended to heaven in the body from the Dome of the Rock. The ancient Romans thought the same had happened to the sage and magician Apollonius of Tyana, and to various other great men, heroes and demi-gods.

Not all men who traveled beyond our common reality were swept up in mystical rapture, as was the apostle Paul (Second Corinthians 12:2-4). The barrier between our Middle Earth, as it is called in J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic The Lord of the Rings, and the higher realm of the gods was sometimes breached by men in a more deliberate way, using techniques of their own design. Tolkien’s heroes crossed the Western sea in ships to reach the blessed land. Arab commentators on the Koran wrote of the Babylonian king Nimrod, who had a great tower built in order that he might ascend from it into heav

en to confront the God of Abraham. This attempt failed when the tower was overthrown by divine wrath. Alexander the Great was more successful. According to Ethiopian legend, he ascended to heaven on the back of an eagle:

He made himself small and flew through the air on an eagle, and he arrived in the heights of the heavens and he explored them.'

Others more knowledgeable of magic sought access to heaven for the purpose of acquiring occult knowledge. In the Egyptian magical papyri there is a ritual designed to open the seven gates of heaven, through which the magician ascends in order to commune with the deity. It consists of the utterance of prayers and invocations filled with names of power, and the technique of roaring loudly like a bull for the purpose of inflaming the senses:

And at once make a long, bellowing sound, straining your belly, that you may excite the five senses; bellow long until out of breath, and again kiss the phylacteries, and say: Mokrimo Pherimo Phereri, life of me, NN: stay! Dwell in my soul! Do not abandon me, for Entho Phenen Thropioth commands you.^{1 2}

According to Christian myth, Jesus not only arose bodily into heaven after his death on the cross, but also while he was dead descended into hell. The story of the descent into hell of Jesus for the purpose of redeeming souls was popular in the Middle Ages, when the complexity of the various degrees or levels of hell evolved, and was universally accepted even though there is scant biblical reference to it. The doctrine is based almost entirely on First Peter 3:19 and 4:6, and on Acts 2:27 and 2:31. It came to be called the harrowing of hell, and was celebrated in a phrase in the Apostles' Creed: He descended into hell.

1 Mackenzie, Donald A. Myths of Babylonia and Assyria.

2 Betz, Hans Dieter (editor), The Greek Magical Papyri In Translation.

There is sometimes confusion over whether Jesus descended into hell, the place of eternal punishment, or only into the realm of the dead, where souls good or bad abide, or only into the Limbo of the Patriarchs (Limbus Patrum), also known as the Bosom of Abraham, where the friends of the Almighty awaited the coming of Christ. For our present purposes these details of doctrine are immaterial, other than to show the multiplication of occult dimensions that has occurred even within Christianity.

Jesus has sometimes been characterized as a great magician, or as a shaman. The ability to cross over from one world to another is a key feature of the shamans magic, as is the power to raise the dead back to life by calling forth their souls from the land of the dead. The shaman not only summons a dead soul back from the underworld, but enters the underworld to act both as a guide for the soul and as its defender against those forces that would seek to keep it imprisoned beneath the earth. The shaman battles against the monsters of the underworld and prevails over them through his magic, just as Jesus is supposed to have prevailed over the forces of hell in Christian myth.

Odysseus, the hero of Homers Odyssey, when he sought to draw forth the shades of the dead from Hades into the mortal realm, in order to extract information from them, performed his necromantic ritual of evocation on the shore of Cimmeria, place of eternal darkness, at the edge of the world (see the Odyssey, n.14). He received his instruction in necromancy from the sorceress Circe. Both the hero Aeneas of Virgil's epic The Aeneid, and the poet Dante in his poem The Inferno, gained access to hell while still in the body by entering a cavern and descending deep into the earth. Both had powerful guides to protect them from the dangers of the netherworld. Aeneas was guided by the Sibyl of Cums, and Dante by the ghost of Virgil. In The Aenead Virgil located the mouth of hell in a cave by Lake Avernus, near Cum®, but Dante is not specific as to the cave's location.

♦ WORLDS WITHIN WORLDS ♦

It was inevitable that an attempt be made to classify and categorize the occult dimensions that had been observed and experienced by shamans, magicians and mystics.

In Christianity, heaven was split into nine spheres, with nine corresponding classes of angels which are described in detail in the Celestial Hierarchies of an unknown writer incorrectly identified by early commentators as Dionysius the Areopagite?

9 Seraphim (primum mobile)

8 Cherubim (fixed stars)

7 Thrones (Saturn)

6 Dominions (Jupiter)

5 Virtues (Mars)

4 Powers (Sol)

3 Principalities (Venus)

2 Archangels (Mercury)

i Angels (Luna)

Pseudo-Dionysius did not actually place the hierarchies of angels into their own separate worlds, but it was inevitable that such a tidy division should come to pass, since it is quite useful. This division was based upon the Greek cosmology of nesting crystalline spheres in the heavens surrounding the earth, each regulated by its ruling planet, that has come to be known as the Ptolemaic system. This began with nine heavenly spheres, but in its later iterations two additional spheres were sometimes inserted along with the primum mobile above that of the fixed stars, or firmament, for a total of eleven spheres.

3 Dionsyius the Areopagite. Mystical Theology and the Celestial Hierarchies.

Hell was similarly divided into nine circles, with nine presiding classes of demons. This structure was most explicitly set for by Dante in his poem The Inferno. Dante divided the circles of hell according to the classes of sins of those within its bounds. Just as we proceed up from the earth through the circles of heaven from the less holy to the more holy, ultimately reaching the throne of God, we proceed down from the earth through the circle of hell from the less sinful to the more sinful, until we reach the throne of Lucifer.

I Limbo

• 2 Lustful

• 3 Gluttonous

• 4 Hoarders & Spendthrifts

• 5 Wrathful and Sullen

• 6 Heretics

• 7 Violent

• 8 Fraudulent

• 9 Traitors

The divisions of the infernal regions are a dark mirror of the heavenly divisions, and some religious authorities believed them to be occupied by the same classes of angels that were said by pseudo-Dionysius to occupy the ranks of heaven, but angels who had fallen from their high estate. Dante subdivided some of the infernal circles into worlds within worlds. The seventh circle, of the violent, is subdivided into three rings, and the eighth circle, of the fraudulent, into ten ditches.

This multiplication of worlds has its parallels in many other cultures. Buddhism has a complex hierarchy ofhells and heavens. There are 31 planes of existence, the lower five of which may be classed as unpleasant. In Buddhism, hell is not eternal - the punishment of a tortured soul is self-inflicted, and it can ascend or descend the levels according to its own fitness. Eleven different

fires of suffering are distinguished in Buddhism, for eleven classes of sins or errors of thinking that continually afflict human consciousness: lust, hatred, illusion, sickness, decay, death, worry, lamentation, anguish, melancholy and grief. The hell worlds of Buddhism are known as the Naraka. The worst of these worlds is the Avici, the world of endless torment - but the torment is only endless if the sufferer makes it so.

The cosmology of the Gnostics contained nesting shells of worlds, one inside another. In some systems of Gnosticism there are seven heavens, corresponding with the planets, each presided over by an archon, or ruler. Other texts speak of eight heavens, or even more. Above these heavens is the plero-ma, or light. Below the mortal realm is the Abyss, and beneath that, a realm of Tartaros in which Yaldabaoth was bound by the fiery breath of Sophia.⁴

♦ LAND OF FAIRY ♦

Heaven and hell are only two of the most widely recognized occult dimensions. There are also places beyond this physical realm that cannot be categorized as either good or evil. Morally speaking, they are simply other worlds, neither black nor white but composed of shades of gray. One is the land of the dead - not a place of punishment or reward, but simply a place where the dead wait out eternity. In shamanic cultures there is often no clear distinction made between the righteous dead and the evil dead. The dead as a whole are simply relegated to a cold, murky place beneath the ground, or across the water.

An outgrowth of this shamanic concept of a land of the dead is the land of fairy that became so popular among Celtic peoples. In their mythology, fairies are usually supposed to dwell under the ground, especially beneath the low, rounded hills so common in southern England. In Celtic nations such low hills were often artificial, the burial places of more ancient stone-age people who had occupied the land before the Celts. The openings to these burial

4 Robinson, James M. The Nag Hammadi Library In English.

mounds were concealed. In fairy mythology, the fairies come directly out of the sides of their hills, which magically open into doorways, and magically close behind them leaving no visible trace.

The fairies may be based on the Tuatha de Danaan, a race of gods said to have departed from the earth to the otherworld through doorways in barrow mounds. It may be that the Tuatha de Danaan are a racial memory of the ancient people who erected the low hills for their dead, and that the fairies are the ghosts of this people. Fairies have always been linked with shades. Lady Wilde wrote:

When young people die, either men or women, who were remarkable for beauty, it is supposed that they are carried off by the fairies to the fairy mansions under the earth, where they live in splendid palaces and are wedded to fairy queens or princes. But sometimes, if their kindred greatly desire to see them, they are allowed to visit the earth, though no enchantment has yet been discovered powerful enough to compel them to remain or resume again the mortal life.

Sometimes when the fishermen are out they meet a strange boat filled with people; and when they look on them they know that they are the dead who have been carried off by the fairies with their wiles and enchantments to dwell in the fairy palaces?

It is not always clear whether these human beings carried off to fairyland are the dead, or only those who lie in a trance and appear to be dead, or who have disappeared and are presumed dead by those they leave behind. In many folktales about fairy abductions, the human beings stolen away, or who voluntarily follow the fairy host and are held against their will in fairyland, are presumed by the authors of the tales to enter beneath the fairy hill in a living human body.

5 Wilde, Lady Francesca Speranza. Ancient Legends, Mystic Charms, and Superstitions of Ireland.'Legends of the Dead In the Western Islands.'

The otherworld of the fairies took various forms. It was sometimes described as a great cavern beneath the earth, but more often entry into a fairy mound opened into another world of sunlight and green grass. The land of Mag Mell (Plain of Joy) was a flat expanse of grass. It was to this land that Sir Orfeo, hero of the Middle English poem of the same name, went in pursuit of his abducted wife, the Lady Heurodis. Although the name of the land is not mentioned in the poem, it is obvious from the description that it is the land of Mag Mell:

In at a rock the ladies rode, And fearlessly he followed fast. When far into the rock he strode, It grew more bright, and so at last Into a far countree he passed, Bright as the fairest summer sun: All smooth and plain and green and vast, For hills and valleys were there none.⁶

Mag Mell was conceived to be either an island in midst of the western ocean, or a land beneath the sea, where there was no sickness or death, no hunger or want. Another of the Irish otherworlds was the Tir Na Nog (Land of Youth) where the divine race of Tuatha De Danaan took themselves after they departed our world. It could only be reached with the aid of a guide. It is a common theme in tales of those who travel to fairyland that they are either led there, or reach it by clandestinely shadowing the fairies. Tir Na Nog was said to occupy an island far to the west. Avalon, the magic land in the west where Excalibur was forged, and where King Arthur was taken by ship after he was wounded unto death, is probably one of the blessed isles of the fairies.

The Summerland of European witchlore is another fairy dimension, although it has been presented as demonic in nature in the transcripts of the witch trials where it is mentioned. It takes various forms in different accounts. Those accused of witchcraft at Mora, Sweden in 1669 named it the

6 Hunt, Edward Eyre (trans.) Sir Orfeo.

Blocula (or Blockula), and described it as a delicate large meadow, whereof you can see no end.⁷ They flew to this meadow, carrying their children with them. In the center was a large house surrounded by an enclosure in which all the witches gathered to feast at a long table. When this description is compared with that of the fairyland in the poem Sir Orfeo - a grassy plain in the center of which is a walled castle - the parallels are obvious. A schoolteacher of Mora testified that the Devil had carried him through the air to the Island of Blakulla (a variant spelling), so it is clear that this meadow was thought to be located on an island.

In the 1973 cult classic film The Wicker Man, the action is set on an unnaturally green and fertile island off the coast of Scotland that is called Summersisle, the inhabitants of which engage in pagan occult rituals and live in the lifestyle of an earlier time. It is a common feature of descriptions of fairies that they dress in costumes of an earlier historical period. In the film, the protagonist reaches the island by flying through the air, and after landing there, is trapped by the lord of the isle, who lives in a great mansion in the midst of the island. In accounts of visits to fairyland, the visitor is often prevented from leaving by the fairy king or queen.

The influence of modern Wiccan beliefs on the script of this film is obvious. Wiccans regard a place they refer to as the Summerland to be the resting place of souls after death, where they remain for a time to recover themselves from the ordeal of incarnation, and to reflect on the lessons learned, before being reincarnated into a new life. It is a pleasant place of communion with deceased family and friends. The Wiccan myth of the Summerland is based on mentions of the land in fairy stories and historical accounts of encounters with fairies. It was supposed to have been the original home of the Welsh, before they came across the sea to Great Britain.⁸ The concept became popular in the Spiritualism and Theosophy of the 19* century, as a general place of spirits of the dead, more or less equivalent to what we might today call the astral plane, from which spirits came when they had dealings with mediums.

7 Robbins, Rossell Hope. The Encyclopedia of Witchcraft and Demonology.

8 Griffis, William Elliot. Welsh Fairy Tales.'Giant Tom and Giant Blubb.'

The spirit medium Andrew J. Davis (1826—1910), a shoemaker’s apprentice of Poughkeepsie, New York, wrote about it extensively in his 1878 book Views of Our Heavenly Home, a sequel to his Stellar Key To the Summer-Land, and declared that:

...parts of it resemble Saturn's scenery more than ours; while other sections, unspeakably more perfect, exceed in harmony and loveliness anything known or imagined on this or any other planet in the universe.⁹

Saturn, being the outermost of the anciently recognized planets and hence nearest to the divine realm, was naturally conceived as more perfect or ideal than the other planets. Davis claimed to have made many journeys to this bucolic place.

Davis described in his writings seven spheres through which the soul ascends in its quest for perfection. The lowest is the physical sphere of the earth. As the six spiritual spheres above it ascend higher, they become increasingly more refined and exalted. Together they made up the totality of what he called the Summerland. Each spiritual sphere has several subdivisions or levels. It would require forever for a soul to ascend through all seven spheres, according to Davis, and he wrote that no soul born on the earth has yet managed to rise above the second of the spiritual spheres. The sphere immediately above this one is subdivided into zones of love, will and wisdom. It resembles our own material reality, but is more refined. In the zone of love, souls are educated in the beauties of nature. In the zone of will, they receive training in divine principles. The third zone is peopled by the most enlightened souls.

Thelemites will find a curious coincidence here, in that the zone of love is beneath the zone of will. The first subsphere of love is the gateway to the higher spiritual spheres viewed by Davis. Crowley transcribed in Liber AL vel Legist

Love is the law, love under will.

9 Davis, Andrew J. Views of Our Heavenly Home.

We might correlate Crowley's statement with the first two zones of the lowest spiritual sphere of Davis by saying that love of the beauties of the natural world and physical being must be restrained and directed by an awareness and application of natural laws which derive from a higher source of authority. It might even be speculated that a parallel can be drawn between the three chapters of Liber AL and the three sublevels of the lowest of the spiritual spheres of Davis.

Theosophists were adamant that their Summerland was nothing like the Summerland of Spiritualists. Blavatsky taught that the higher essence of human identity would ascend, while the personality remained as a kind of animated shell on the lower levels of the astral, which are equivalent to the Summerland of Spiritualists.

Atma and Buddhi having culled off the Manas the aroma of the personality or human soul - go into Devachan; while the lower principles, the astral simulacrum or false personality void of its Divine monad or spirit, will remain in the Kamaloka - the Summerland.'⁰

Blavatsky held the Spiritualist doctrine of the Summerland in contempt due to what she regarded as its errors. For Theosophists, the Summerland was only a small part of the astral realms beyond this physical existence.

♦ OCCULT GEOMETRY ♦

If we reduce the transition between our reality and occult dimensions to its simplest symbolic components, we have the circle, the spiral, the ray and the point. These are sufficient to understand the dynamics of inter-dimensional travel.

io Blavatsky, Helena. Theories About Reincarnation and Spirits. Endnote 9. This article first appeared in the November 1886 issue of the periodical The Path.

The circle represents totality. The universe of the circle is everything contained within its boundary, and everything beyond its boundary is the unknown, the other. The circumference of a circle cannot be broken, symbolically speaking - it is perfect, seamless. Were it possible to break it, the circle would cease to exist. There is only one way into or out of a circle, and that is through the point of its center. But a point is infinitely small. Before it can act as a portal, it must be opened. This is done by means of the spiral. The turning spiral opens the center point of the circle, and passage is then possible through the opened point by means of the path of the ray, with proceeds like an arrow in a linear direction, from inside of the circle to the outside, but never through the boundary line of the circle which cannot be pierced without destroying the circle.

These geometric forms are two-dimensional, but it is easier to understand what is going on by expanding them into their three-dimensional equivalents. A circle is a two-dimensional representation of a sphere. A spiral is a two dimensional representation of a cone, which in active motions is a vortex - the very shape of the spiral suggests active winding around the side of a cone. And yet, this is not strictly accurate, because a spiral is really a cylinder viewed from one end, so that the other end appears to diminish to a point due to the convergence of perspective lines. When we look into a cylinder, it seems to be in the shape of a hollow cone seen through the large end - a funnel-shape.

The ray is also dynamic. Its three dimensional form is composed of two planes intersecting at right angles, with a third plane perpendicular to these two, but in active motion, sliding along their axis to trace with a moving point an extended line segment from one end to the other, in one direction only. Movement along a line, without the line itself moving, is accomplished by means of undulation. The serpent is the living example of this movement. The undulation of the body of a serpent creates waves that move along the length of the serpent’s body from nose to tail. If we consider the ocean, we see that waves move across its surface, a plane, in a direction defined by an invisible plane that intersects it at right angles, producing a invisible line upon its

surface. The movement of the waves are undulatory, and they move in one direction only - yet the water of the ocean itself is not moved. The waves move through the water, along a ray that lies on the surface of the water.

Now you have the static building blocks of inter-dimensional travel. I will give you a dynamic model to meditate upon. Conceive yourself to be surrounded by a sphere. Make it large enough so that you are able to stand to one side of the center point of the sphere. How are you to get out of the sphere? Well, you cannot, because the wall of the sphere cannot be pierced without destroying it, and the sphere is your reality - when it is gone, there is no inside or outside of it. You must pass through the center point. Here a difficulty arises. The point is so small that you cannot even locate it, and the difficulty is compounded because the point is identical to all the other innumerable points within the sphere. How are you to locate the center point? You recognize at once that one problem will solve the other, because once you are able to locate the center point, it will become unique, and hence different from all the other points. But how do you locate it? I will tell you.

Mentally take the sphere around you and twist it like a balloon, so that it forms two globes that are connected by an infinitely narrow channel that has a spiral shape. The spiraling wall of the connecting cylinder turns in the direction of the twist. You find yourself in one of the globes of the sphere, and on the other end of the spiral channel is another globe, which you do not occupy. In this way you have formed another occult dimension of reality from your own reality, in a sense budding it off from your reality, which is all that exists for your consciousness. Were you to look at this double globe as a two-dimensional object, you would recognize it as the lemniscate, or sign of infinity, a figure-eight lying on its side, with your point of consciousness defining your perspective at the center of one of its two lobes.

Transition is movement. Movement along a ray is vibratory, a wave motion. Consciousness can ride this wave from one end of the spiral channel to the other. The spiral channel may be likened to the spiral umbilical cord - the idealized geometry of dimensional transition replicates in many forms in our physical reality. To ride the ray, you must initiate a pulse along its length.

This is done through the use of vibration, and the visualization of a turning spiral that has its center on the point doorway between worlds. The subjective impression is one of the point doorway opening like an spinning vortex and surrounding you.

The transition between worlds is not physical. It is the shifting of the point of consciousness from one reality to another reality. However, the sensations of motion can seem quite real, in a physical sense, and can result in dizziness, disorientation, or even nausea. Subjectively, it is like traveling through a turning tunnel. As you approach the point doorway, it expands around you. Progress along the length of the tunnel can be aided by visualizing yourself walking or flying down its length. It is good to reflect on the truth that the two universes are really still a single universe that you continue to occupy no matter which side of the point doorway you stand upon. All the myriad of worlds are at root one world.

The geometric shapes described are symbolic tools of ritual magic that may be manipulated in the imagination. Physical objects and physically defined forms are used by magicians to delineate and reinforce these symbolic tools. The circle or sphere of the personal universe is represented by the magic circle of art drawn around the magician on the floor or inscribed on the ground of the place of working. The ray of projection is represented by the wand, or another phallic ritual instrument such as the sword, dagger, index finger or thumb, thrust forward in the direction of travel. The vibrations necessary to progress along the ray are created on the voice, by the vocalization of words of power. The point doorway, which always lies at the center of the magic circle no matter how it may be conceived, is defined and opened by inscribing a spiral on the air in the direction of the desired progress, which may be a material direction on the surface of the earth or a purely abstract direction that points in a metaphorical way toward an alternative reality - up for the higher astral planes, and down for the underworld, for example.

Occult dimensions, astral planes, or alternative universes, however they may be labeled, should not be conceived as separated from each other by distance through space, but as all present along with our physical reality, mingled

and yet distinct, in the same way that radio stations are all present around us in the air, their waves mingled together, yet when tuned are brought into perceptible existence as discrete and distinct realities for our consciousness.

♦ ANCIENT GATEWAYS ♦

Transition between worlds was made in past centuries by a wide variety of men and woman, not all of them magicians. Many were religious mystics who induced altered states of consciousness which had the practical effect of opening the point doorway at the center of their circle of reality. As the poet William Blake wrote in The Mental Traveller (line 62): For the Eye altering alters all." Our reality is a state of consciousness, and when our consciousness is altered, so is our reality altered. I mean this in a very real sense - our reality truly is our consciousness. When consciousness ceases, that reality ceases, for the person who conceived it. When consciousness changes, reality changes, sometimes in subtle ways and sometimes in ways that are more spectacular. Magic is the art of manipulating the mind, but the mind is all, so to control the mind is to control the worlds, both this and all the others.

One technique used by mystics to alter consciousness is the induction of a state of dizziness. This can be accomplished by simple spinning of the body. The Sufi religious order known as the Mevlevi, founded in 1273 and still active today in Turkey, is famous for this method, which produces for them intoxication of the senses and visions of heaven. They are popularly known as the Whirling Dervishes. Their strange dance relies on the use of the spiral. The spinning body of the worshipper defines along its own axis a turning cylinder, and the movement of consciousness along the cylinder is determined by the direction of spin, either clockwise or counterclockwise. The dancers whirl in a circle around their leader, who stands in the center of the ring turning on his own axis. Each Dervish spins counterclockwise with his head tilted and face turned upward to heaven. From his point of view,

11 Blake, William. Blake, Complete Writings.

he describes a clockwise spiral upwards. Clockwise spirals focus consciousness upon the point doorway, and thus project consciousness through the point, whereas counterclockwise spirals expand the point, drawing what is on the opposite side through the aperture. The elevated, turning face of the Whirling Dervish initiates a vortex in the heavens above him, by which he ascends.

Another more sedate spiral doorway opened by mystics in past centuries is the maze, or labyrinth. From the 12* century, it was common for Christian holy places to have a floor maze, such as the famous one on the floor of Chartres Cathedral in France, which the faithful walked in meditation as a way of symbolically passing through hell and purgatory, and drawing nearer to the divine. More properly, these church mazes should be called labyrinths, although the two terms are used interchangeably in casual speech. A Labyrinth is a maze with a single pathway that winds from the outside to the center, whereas a maze may have dead ends and multiple separate paths.

The use of these church mazes was a form of dimensional travel, although it was seldom recognized as such by those who practiced it. Such mazes might be spiral or more complex and winding. In Europe they were usually inside the cathedrals, but in England they were more often found out of doors, cut into the turf. The spiral walkway that at one time wound up to the crest of Glastonbury Tor on seven terraces carved into the grassy sides of the hill is a form of turf maze. Geoffrey Ashe has likened it to the famous Cretan maze of ancient Greece.'² As is so often true, the sacred maze of Christian mystics devolved over the centuries into an amusement for wealthy landowners, who grew hedge mazes in their gardens to entertain visitors.

The ancient pagans also made use of spirals and mazes for mystical purposes. Not far from the stone circles of Avebury, in England, the largest of all earthen mounds ever built in Europe, Silbury Hill, once had a spiral avenue that wound up to its crest, which was undoubtedly walked for religious purposes. The ancient Greeks told the myth of the Labyrinth of King Minos, which was inhabited by the terrible Minotaur - a version of the Guardian on

12 Ashe, Geoffrey. The Glastonbury Tor Maze.

the Threshold who tests the worthiness of souls before permitting them to pass through. The Greek hero Theseus found his way through the Labyrinth with the help of Ariadne’s thread unspooled behind him (a form of the occult ray) and slew the monster.

The Christian poet Dante understood this symbolism, when in his poem the Inferno he made the Minotaur the judge who stood at the gates of hell, and determined which level of hell, and hence which form of punishment, the damned should suffer. Christian mystics who walked a cathedral maze in the Middle Ages may have mentally reenacted the descent of Christ into hell, and his victory over Satan for the purpose of liberating captive souls.

Pagan revelers and witches induced a dizzied state of mind by dancing in a ring with hands clasped, facing either inward or outward, turning either sunwise or widdershins. This was also said in folklore to be the practice of fairies, who danced in the forest in rings, leaving the traces of their steps behind them on the grass, which came to be called fairy rings. That there is a biological explanation for such rings does not invalidate their mythic meaning. Sometimes witches are shown in older woodcuts dancing in a serpentine line. When modern witches form a circle, the priestess of the coven stands at its center, the focus of its power, even as the leader of the Dervishes stands at the center of the whirling dancers for the same reason.

In ancient times, transitions from one dimension of reality to another were often ritually expressed by physical passage through some form of aperture or gate. The process of birth from the womb was ritually enacted by some primitive tribes in a kind of pantomime, the initiate playing the role of the fetus being born from the world of the womb to the other world of our common reality. Similarly, the process of death was ritually enacted, sometimes by sealing the initiate in a cave - a reverse of the birth ritual of transition.

Stones with natural holes in them were prized as potent magic charms, because they represented the gateway between worlds. By peering through the hole in the stone, the mystic or seer who possessed it was offered a glimpse of another world. This may seem a quaint and ancient practice, but it is worth noting that the founder of Mormonism, Joseph Smith (1805-1844), used

such stones, which he termed seer stones or peep stones in the process of receiving his inspired texts, and similar stones were common among the elders of that modern Christian sect, among them Hiram Page, Jacob Whitmer, and James Strang.

The surviving Mormon seer stones are no more than curiously shaped rocks with various holes or pits in them. Smith’s procedure with such a stone, which he found in the bottom of a well, was to place it into a tall hat of the kind worn by Lincoln, and press his face against the opening of the hat to shut out the light. This blocking of light from the stone has been the common practice of crystal gazers for centuries. Although a hat is not customarily employed, some method is used to shut off extraneously light from the crystal, more usually a box or a dark cloak. Smith claimed to have used crystals in his scrying but none of his crystal stones, if they ever existed in a physical sense, have survived.

The holes in the Mormon seer stones had more a symbolic than a physical significance. It was the pierced condition of the stones that gave them occult power, not the act of looking through the hole. A hole through a stone allows passage, even if only in a symbolic sense, from one world to another world. Crystals are pierced even when they are solid, in the sense that light can shine through their centers. Their transparency makes them apertures on other realms, just as a common window glass allows us to see from inside a house to the greater world outside. The use of crystals for scrying is thousands of years old. Crystals have been found in the graves of primitive shamans. The druid Merlin was renown not only as a magician, but as a crystal scryer.

A similar occult principle was employed in the ancient practice of physically crawling through an opening in stone. Large stones were sometimes piled up to create an opening between them, or a natural opening in stone made by the action of waves or other natural forces was used. In this way, the passage from one world to another was dramatically enacted. This was sometimes done by women to make themselves fertile for the purpose of engendering children. By crawling through the gap in the sacred stone, the woman magically brought a child from the other world into the common world of

everyday reality. Passing through a stone might also be used to purify from sickness or infirmity. In this case, the sickness was ritually left behind on the other side of the stone, which acted as a kind of filter.

Ancient tombs were sometimes designed with long, low, narrow entrance halls, through which a visitor to the tomb had to crawl on hands and knees to reach the burial chamber. This simulated the act of passing down the birth canal. Through it the living passed inward to commune with the dead, and the dead passed outward in the process of their rebirth. Newgrange in Ireland, build around 3200 bc and said to be the most ancient roofed enclosure in the British Isles, is such a tomb. The Egyptians imitated this general design principle in their pyramids and other burial tombs, by using long, slanting entrance passages. The ceilings inside Egyptian tombs were painted with stars to simulate the starry heavens, an indication that the interior was, in a magical sense, another world.

♦ MANDALAS ♦

A form of dimensional gateway used in Tibet, Nepal and India for many centuries is the mandala, a geometric design usually characterized by a circle or circular shape within a square or double square, drawn in such a way as to focus attention on the center of the circle. These esoteric designs served as objects of meditation for monks and mystics, but they are more than this - they are portals to other worlds. In ritual meditation it is possible to enter the mandala, and to pass through the mandala. Before this can occur, it must be meditated upon with such fixed attention that it is seen in the mind with the eyes closed, waking and sleeping.

There are many kinds of mandalas. Perhaps the most potent is the Sri Yantra. It is a design of interlocking triangles with angles that are not quite regular. Some of the triangles point upward and others point downward. At its center is a single small black dot, upon which the eyes remain focused as the mind shifts from one triangle to another, restlessly seeking a perfect sym

metry that does not exist. In the angles of the Sri Yantra is a foreshadowing of the non-Euclidian angles hypothesized by H. P. Lovecraft in some of his stories, most notably Dreams In the Witch-House (1933), where the Salem witch, Keziah Mason, had such a dimensional portal built into the very angles of the walls in a corner of a room in her ancient house, much to the discomfort of a later tenant.

Lovecraft wrote that by means of certain angles arranged together in precise but irregular ways, a dimensional portal could be opened to other worlds through which it was possible to pass not only with the mind, but with the body as well. In the story, the condemned witch is said to have escaped her jail cell at Salem in 1692 by drawing certain curves and angles smeared on the gray stone walls with some red, sticky fluid, after which she vanished from the locked chamber without a trace. Needless to say, the red fluid was blood, but it is to be noted that Lovecraft wrote walls - a plural - indicating that this occult design of lines and curves was drawn across a corner of the cell.

A three-dimensional mandala that has appeared in the modern film series Hellraiser by Clive Barker, is the LeMarchand puzzle box, a small cube about four inches in dimension that is made of interlocking pieces of wood with strange angles, their outer surfaces covered in a thin layer of ornately-patterned metal. As might be expected of a mandala, the patterns consist mainly of circles within squares. Viewers of the films know that the box, when manipulated in a certain way, opens a dimensional gateway to hell. In volume two of Clive Barkers Book of the Damned: A Hellraiser Companion, the imaginary author Isadore Klauski writes in the sixth chapter of his apocryphal work Of Hell, which is titled Of Keys, Doors and Tolls.

The box is itself more than just a key to a doorway to hell; the box is a masterfully constructed puzzle box. It is the embodiment of forbidden knowledge; a secret that can only be solved through obsession. With its secrets solved, and its pieces in final place, the puzzle reveals something that wasn’t evident before - the reality of hell.¹’

13 The quotation is supposedly from the 6'^h chapter of the apocryphal Of Hell by Isadore Klauski, but is the work of contributing writer Larry Wachowski.

It is often the case that spirit sigils are composed of intersecting angles and curves. These sigils represent the name of the spirit to which they belong, and are generated either using recognized esoteric methods of sigil generation, or are psychically received from the spirits themselves by the magician. Meditation on these sigils can create a channel of communication between the magician and the spirits they identify, and can even call forth the spirits to visible appearance. In their irregular angles they represent a type of mandala that opens a gateway upon the reality of the spirits. This is why the sigils contained in the Goetia are sometimes said to be dangerous to look upon for long periods of time.

Needless to say, it is not uncouth angles themselves that act as a portal, but the effect such non-Euclidian angles have on the mind of the person who meditates upon them with obsessive intensity, attempting to reconcile and balance them. The angles open a gateway in the mind, but since the mind creates reality, that is enough to allow passage to a different dimension of being, or the egress of others from that dimension. In his short story Through the Gates of the Silver Key (1934), Lovecraft wrote:

To this variety of angles of consciousness the feeble beings of the inner worlds are slaves, since with rare exceptions they can not learn to control them. Only a few students of forbidden things have gained inklings of this control, and have thereby conquered time and change. But the entities outside the Gates command all angles, and view the myriad parts of the cosmos in terms of fragmentary change-involving perspective, or of the changeless totality beyond perspective, in accordance with their will.

It is never the physical gateway that has power. The power to transform worlds is always held by the mind alone. The material structure representing the gate in the physical world, whether it be a perforated stone, a long passageway, a complex diagram of interlocking triangles, or a puzzle box, is merely an aid to the mind.

♦ FLYING OINTMENT ♦

Flight through the air was a popular form of passage between worlds. It seems unlikely that this flight was ever physical, but those who experienced it believed it to be completely real in a bodily sense. It would be rash to declare categorically that no transition to an occult dimension was ever made through the air with the physical body, since such events are written about in religious texts and ancient histories as factual events, but if this ever occurred, it was much rarer than the illusion of flying through the air.

From the earliest historical times, and in cave paintings that predate human history, shamans are depicted as flying through the air between worlds. The costume of the shaman always includes feathers, because flight is integral to shamanic magic. Shamans are supposed to be able to transform themselves into birds, a poetic way of describing astral projection in avian form.

One of the reasons we can be sure that European witchcraft descended from shamanism is the almost universal use of flight by witches to reach the Sabbat. The accounts we have of witch flight are filtered through the tortures of the Inquisition and the biased records of the witch trials, and so are not always to be trusted, but those accused of witchcraft testified that they flew out the window or up the chimney on brooms or pitchforks, and were led across the night countryside by the Devil or one of his servants to the place of gathering - usually a high place such as a mountaintop, but sometimes the flat landscape known today as the Summerland. More mundane accounts have witches riding to the Sabbat on the backs of goats or horses, but flight through the air is the usual mode of travel described.

To facilitate this flight, a special ointment was sometimes rubbed into the skin over the entire surface of the naked body, even the soles of the feet and the closed eyelids. It was especially applied to the armpits and the groin, moist parts of the body where absorption of the active ingredients of the ointment would be more rapid. Those ingredients were psychotropic, and induced an altered state of consciousness characterized by the sensation of flight. It sounds fantastic that such an ointment should ever have been used

by common European country folk of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, but numerous testimonies to its use exist, along with eye-witness accounts of its effects on the witches who applied it to themselves. The witches were said to fall into a trance from which they could not be wakened, even when shaken, pricked with pins or slapped on the face.

Numerous old recipes for the making of witch's flying ointment have been preserved, all of them dangerous or deadly. Murray lists the ingredients of three such recipes in Appendix V of The Witch-Cult In Western Europe. One of the examples of the ointments composition given by Murray is as follows: baby’s fat, juice of water parsnip, aconite, cinquefoil, deadly nightshade, soot.

An anonymously authored little book published 1824 with the title Witchcraft Detected and Prevented; or The School of Black Art Newly Opened, by a member of the school of Black Art, Italy gave two recipes for the flying ointment, which I will provide here since this work is little known:

Ointments for the transportation, &c. of Witches.

The fat of young children, and seeth it with water in a brazen vessel, reserving the thickest of that which remaineth boiled in the bottom, which they lay up and keep until occasion serveth to use it. They put hereunto Eleoselinum, Aconitum, Frondes populeas, and soot.

Another Receipt to the same purpose.

Sium, acarum vulgare, pentaphyllon, the blood of a flittermouse, solanum somniferum, & oleum. They stamp all these together, and then they rub all parts of their bodies exceedingly, till they look red, and be very hot, so as the pores may be opened, and their flesh soluble and loose. They join therewith all either fat, or oil instead thereof, that the force of the ointment may the rather pierce inwardly, and so be the more effectual.

More ingredients are listed by Harold A Hanson in The Witch’s Garden. A few of those bold enough to experiment with their use in modern times have

died from them, poisoned by the highly toxic plants that are their most active components, such as monkshood and deadly nightshade. However, those experimenters who have survived state that the effect is remarkably like flying through the air, and being deposited in a strange place filled with discordant and chaotic sense impressions.

The ointment must have been messy to put on, since a common ingredient is soot. Fat or oil was often used as a base into which the more active parts of the ointment were mixed. Some recipes specify the fat of an infant, but this is unusual and it seems unlikely that children were killed in the preparation of this ointment. The recipes were probably shamanic in origin, passed down in country leech lore from one generation to another from perhaps as far back as Roman times. Mothers applied the flying ointment to their daughters, and both mother and daughter attended the Sabbat together, their bodies lying in trance side by side, their minds in another dimension of reality. On occasion, witches were discovered in this state, and not even fire applied to the soles of their feet would wake them until the potent ingredients of the ointment had run their course.

♦ GATEWAYS OF ECSTASY ♦

Ecstasy is and has always been a reliable route to other dimensions. It was produced in a bewildering variety of ways in ancient times, but all of them for the same purpose - to elevate the mind to a heightened level of consciousness that allows it to break free from the constraints of our so-called reality, which is really a kind of prison in which we dwell, even though we all possess the keys for our escape should we choose to use them. In addition to intoxication produced by ingested substances such as alcohol, tobacco, or peyote, ecstasy can be achieved by stressing the body.

Among religious mystics, a heightened state that opened dimensional doorways was reached through exhaustion brought on by fasting, sleep deprivation, hours of rhythmic chanting and prayer, and not too surprisingly, by

sickness, which was a shadowing consequence of such severe austerity. Some of the greatest Christian visions of heaven and hell were achieved by monks and nuns who lay in bed, deathly ill. They reported leaving their bodies, and sometimes later said that they could see their own bodies lying in bed, as though they stood or floated outside them. A recognized cause of involuntary astral projection is severe stress produced by either illness or injury.^{14 15} Religious mystics got the same result deliberately by stressing their bodies. Sylvan Muldoon, who was adept at astral projection, recommended inducing a need for water as a way of encouraging the separation of awareness from the body. He referred to this as promoting a stress of desire.

Prayer has long been an accepted method for heightening and altering consciousness, not only for the devoutly religious and mystical, but for modern practical magicians. Israel Regardie was fond of emphasizing the maxims from the Golden Dawn, which were also embraced by Aleister Crowley, Invoke often! and Inflame yourself with prayer?' He referred to the practice of ritual magic in general, but the second maxim also applies to the opening of dimensional gates.

Success implies above all enthusiasm. And the enthusiasm which the Magician should cultivate is an indescribable species of excitement or frenzy, by means of which he is carried completely outside of and beyond himself.

In a magical context, prayer does not necessarily mean implorings and adorations directed to some ultimate divine authority. The use of mantra is a kind of prayer by which consciousness may be altered. Rhythmic repetition of sounds, coupled with rhythmic body movements such as a repeated bowing of the head, are highly effective means. Chanting and dance may be combined for this purpose, and were often so combined by shamans. In Voudoun, which is at root shamanic, worshippers open a gateway within themselves to allow their consciousness to be displaced by their gods, or loa,

14 Muldoon, S. & Hereward Carrington. The Phenomena of Astral Projection.

15 Regardie, Israel. The Tree of Life: A Study In Magic.

by dancing to the rhythmic beat of drums. When a gate is opened, it can be passed through in either direction. Sometimes it is the magician who transits the gate to another world, but at other times the inhabitants of those other realms are induced to come through into our reality.

An extreme form of deliberately induced physical stress, for the purpose of altering consciousness, is pain. It is curious to consider, but it has been affirmed many times, that sustained pain of the most intense variety may, under the right circumstances, generate a kind of ecstasy or rapture of the mind. Again, it is religious mystics who have made the most use of this effect. Christians monks in the Middle Ages scourged themselves with iron combs, lashed themselves with whips, beat themselves with rods, wound wire around their limbs, and committed similar outrages to their flesh in the hope of inducing the elevation of their awareness to the divine.

In this extreme practice, they were only imitating pagan worshippers who had gone before them, such as the fanatical devotees of the Phrygian goddess Cybele. On the Day of Blood (March 24^th) devotees of Cybele ran through the streets of Rome, flagellating themselves until the blood ran down their backs and legs, and castrating themselves in imitation of Attis, lover of the goddess, who in myth is supposed to have committed self-castration. The pagan turned Christian, Origen (185-254), equaled the worshippers of Cybele in their zeal and castrated himself for Christ. Armando Favazza wrote:

The growth of the early Christian church coincided with the period of cult worship of Cybele and Attis, and Christian priests assumed some of the higher characteristics of the eunuch-priests. The flagellatory practices of some Desert Fathers also appear to have been derived from the eunuch priests.'⁶

The modern practice of cutting generates a type of ecstatic release of short duration that is no doubt similar in nature to the ecstasy of pagan and Christians flagellants. It is usually practiced by girls and young women, though why this is so is unknown. The focus of the will necessary to over-

16 Favazza, A. R. Bodies Under Siege: Self-mutilation in Culture and Psychiatry.

come fear of pain and dread of blood is shamanic, and with the cutting of the skin another occult aperture is opened through which flows intimations of another world. Tattooing and body piercing may also transform consciousness, due to the combination of intense concentration combined with sustained physical pain. Like cutting, piercing has the added symbolic component of opening an aperture in the skin. Magically speaking, the skin is a kind of magic circle that divides the reality of self from the greater reality of multiple dimensions. When the skin is pierced or penetrated, a gateway is opened between the self and what lies beyond self.

Aleister Crowley has been criticized for his teaching that his students should cut themselves on the arm with a razor each time they used the word ’I’ in conversation, as a method of self-discipline. Poor Victor Neuberg followed his Masters instruction with admirable zeal, so much so that his arms were scored with numerous razor cuts after only a single week. Crowley made the dry comment, His fidelity is good; his vigilance bad.'⁷ Many later occultists, such as Israel Regardie, condemned this teaching. Regardie advocated that those determined to practice this exercise, instead of cutting their skin with a razor, should wear a rubber band around their wrist and snap it hard against their skin. Regardie cannot be blamed for his tenderness of heart in this instruction, but his modification of the method omits the important symbolic element of piercing the skin, and thus opening a gate.

Another modern practice that is considered aberrant by the medical profession is the act of boring a hole through one’s own skull, for the intended purpose of admitting more oxygen to the brain by increasing blood flow, and thus heightening consciousness. It is doubtful that this practice, known as trepanation, is especially effective in increasing oxygen levels in the brain, but in an occult sense it is meaningful. The brain has in recent centuries come to be regarded as the seat of consciousness. The gross physical act of opening a doorway in the skull that leads directly to the brain is perhaps the most apt magical metaphor for opening a dimensional conduit between common reality and higher worlds.

17 Symonds, John. The Great Beast: The Life of Aleister Crowley.

Those familiar with the practices of Kundalini Yoga will be aware that a technique exists by which the chela, or student, sits in meditation upon the crown of his shaved head until the bones of the skull separate and the skin splits, creating a tiny opening which is believed to lead to the brain. This is done without any manual cutting or piercing of the head, by sheer will and mental focus alone. Success of this exercise is demonstrated when the guru, or teacher, takes a single blade of grass and stands it upright in the small open wound on the top of the head. The standing blade of grass is a visible mark of achievement, showing to all present that the skull has been opened. Granted, the Western method of taking a power drill and simply boring a hole through the bone of the skull with a steel drill bit is cruder and more direct, typical of the Western mentality, but in a magical sense the underlying motivation is the same - to open a gateway to a higher reality. The Tibetan Buddhists believe that the soul escapes through the top of the skull at death, and ascends to another dimension. It might also be mentioned while on this subject that when a baby is born, the bones of its skull are not fused together, but are still slightly parted at the top of the skull. It is only as the baby ages that the bones seal themselves.

It would be easy for a cynic to dismiss the increasing practice of self-mutilation in modern times — tattooing, cutting, scarring, piercing, trepanning, body modification - as a cultural sickness indicative of decadence; but it may be seen from another perspective, as a search for higher meaning in an increasingly meaningless world, through altered consciousness. In this regard, it is a continuation of the search for meaning of the drug culture that exploded during the decade of the 1960s, where LSD was used to open doorways of experience in the mind. Those who took the psychedelic went on trips to other worlds. The more adventurous members of the previous generation, such as Aleister Crowley, had used opium and mescaline for much the same purpose, but no drug has ever been more potent for opening the mind than LSD. Had Crowley possessed it, he would undoubtedly have used it.

♦ SEXUAL GATEWAYS ♦

A special kind of ecstatic gateway is formed from sexual energy. By heightening erotic tension for prolonged periods, consciousness can be altered and transported to other dimensions. This practice of extending arousal and withholding orgasm (coitus reservatus') is sometimes known as karezza. It is employed in Tantric worship of the goddess Shakti, the great mother of the universe who is the source of all power. The male devotee of the goddess employs a female assistant who becomes a living vessel of the Goddess herself, and engages in prolonged sexual arousal of the worshipper. In some forms of worship, this is carried to orgasm, but in others, orgasm is delayed and withheld, for the purpose of elevating sexual energy.

The trouble with orgasm, as a tool of magic, is that it is invariably quite brief. It can be used to release energy in a single potent burst for a specific and predetermined ritual purpose. Orgasm was used in this way by the artist and magician, Austin Osman Spare, who evolved his own original brand of orgasmic sigil magic. After creating a sigil on paper for a given magical purpose, Spare would place it into a womb-shaped clay vessel, and then masturbate into the vessel while concentrating his mind on the realization of the ritual purpose. His orgasmic release triggered the activation of the ritual, and he then sealed the sigil, covered in his semen, into the clay vessel.

In the matter of opening dimensional doorways, and holding them open, orgasm is not as useful as sustained sexual arousal, which can be prolonged for many hours. Sustained arousal formed the basis for one of the secret rituals of the OTO written by the head of that order, Aleister Crowley. The technique is known as eroto-comatose lucidity. Crowley directed that the individual chosen to be the subject of the ordeal should be repeatedly exhausted sexually and then aroused once again, until sheer fatigue caused him or her to fall into sleep. The arousal was not terminated, but was continued on the sleeping subject until he or she stirred into wakefulness, whereupon it was at once halted until the subject drifted back into sleep. This arousal to consciousness is to be repeated indefinitely:

...until the Candidate is in a state which is neither sleep nor waking, and in which his Spirit, set free by perfect exhaustion of the body, and yet prevented from entering the City of Sleep, communes with the Most High and the Most Holy Lord God of its being maker of heaven and earth.¹⁸

The purpose is to open a channel of communication between the subject and divine consciousness, which I interpret to mean the spiritual being known in modern Western magic as the Holy Guardian Angel, the personal agent for the Divine within every individual human being.

Crowley wrote of the subject of this ritual working that the assistants should exhaust him sexually which would seem to mean provoke repeated orgasms. However, it is the fatigue of interrupted sleep, coupled with the tension of sustained but unreleased sexual arousal, occurring in the latter stage of the procedure, that produces the desired opening of the gates of consciousness. This ritual would be best used on a mediumistic or psychically receptive person, and would yield interesting results when directed for the purpose of obtaining various kinds of spirit-transmitted occult teachings.

The connection between spirit mediums and sexual energy has long been recognized, although it was seldom written about in the I9^,h and early 20^th century texts on spiritualism. It was observed that some mediums became sexually aroused when conducting a seance. The greatest degree of physical phenomena - the actual movement of objects - occurred in seances when the medium appeared on the point of sexual orgasm, as indicated by her movements and vocalizations; and it is generally agreed among psychic researchers that poltergeist phenomena are most often triggered by suppressed sexual tension in a child approaching or entering puberty. If we combine these two factors - phenomena in the seance happening more often when the trance medium is in a state of arousal, and poltergeist phenomena almost invariably accompanied by the presence of an individual with strong but suppressed sexuality - we can conclude that sexual energy is a potent force in opening dimensional gateways.

18 Crowley, Aleister. De Arte Magica.

• ♦ THE GATE OF DAATH ♦

For decades magicians working in the western tradition recognized the enigmatic Sephirah known as Daath on the Tree of Life, without precisely knowing what it meant, or how it might be used. Daath (Knowledge) is located on the central pillar of the Tree, below Kether (the Crown), and between Chokmah (Wisdom) on one side, and Binah (Understanding) on the other. The trouble with Daath is that it is the eleventh Sephirah, and traditional Kabbalistic literature, such as the Sephir Yetzirah (Book of Formation') quite firmly states that there are only ten Sephiroth. Hence, the location of Daath was sometimes indicated on the Tree with a dotted circle, to suggest something that was there, yet at the same time was not there.

This intermediate state - existence, yet at the same time non-existence -is the essence of magic. Daath fascinated magicians, but they did not know what to do with it, until the insight was achieved by Kenneth Grant and others that Daath is a gateway that leads from the front of the Tree of Life to the back of the Tree. Daath is a hole that opens on other Sephiroth, yet not quite the same Sephiroth as any on the front of the Tree. In this way, it is both not a Sephirah (because it is not one of those ten on the front of the Tree) yet at the same time the eleventh Sephirah (because it leads directly to the Sephiroth on the back of the Tree). Its number makes it, preeminently, the Sephirah of Thelema.

Once the existence of the back of the Tree is recognized, and Daath is understood to be the way of getting from one side of the Tree to the other, many puzzling aspects of the Tree of Life become plain. The evil sides of the Sephiroth can be understood. In the Kabbalah, the Sephiroth are the ten stages in the emanation of the universe from the dimensionless point of the divine source. They are all holy and pure to a degree impossible for earthly beings such as ourselves to even comprehend, yet in the literature of the Kabbalah they are also said to be the seats of various demons and demonic hierarchies. How can Tiphareth (Beauty), the central Sephirah that is associated with Messiah figures such as Christ, also be the seat of an unholy

demon? The answer is that each Sephirah is pure, perfect, and whole on its face, but each Sephirah also has two faces, a front and a back, just as does a coin, and whereas the front face is cosmic in nature, the rear face is chaotic.

Suddenly, all the veiled references in Kabbalistic texts about another Tree that is the inverse or reflection of the Tree of the Sephiroth become easier to understand. This dark, reflected Tree is sometimes imagined to be below the roots of the regular Tree, a kind of inverted shadow of the Tree, like it in every respect though with its polarity reversed. The use of Daath as a gateway between the front and back of the Tree is still being explored and evolved by magicians, but that it is a portal linking the two sides of the Tree has become generally accepted in the past decade. Daath is the knowledge of both good and evil, and is the dynamic axis of the Tree of Life that transforms it from a static model to a working engine of spiritual enlightenment.

• ♦ OPENING THE GATES ♦

The very act of recognizing the existence of an occult gate implies that it can be opened, simply because it is the nature of all portals to do so. That is their reason for being: to open, and to allow passage in both directions. A gate comes to be when it is passed through, or when the possibility of passage through it is conceived. The conception of a gate does not lead to the opening of that gate. Portals are still portals even when they remain closed and locked.

Conception of a gate involves form, location and direction. To conceive a gate, we must give it some shape or pattern, no matter how abstract it may be. The form may be something as material as a cleft in a tree, or as intangible as a geometric symbol, but it provides a focus for the imagination and the will. The form will reflect in a metaphorical or symbolic way the nature of the world upon which the gate opens. Bright colors, light, balanced symmetry, curves and regular angles represent the gateway to a pleasant and orderly dimension. Unpleasant colors, darkness, sharp points, irregular angles, and

a chaotic shape represent the gateway to a similarly unpleasant and chaotic dimension.

Therefore, if you conceive a dimensional gate spontaneously, in meditation or contemplation, or if you encounter the description or image of a gate in your study or dreams, take note of its color, form and general appearance. If the gate seems inviting, or appealing, and its proportions are regular and convey no sense of foreboding or threat, it will open on a world that is similarly non-threatening. But if the representation or conception of a gate seems threatening, or distorted, or simply wrong, it will open on a world that you may have difficulty assimilating into your consciousness.

A gate must have location, although this is not always location in our physical world. It may be located in a place in the imagination, or in a recurring dream. It will have a context that gives it a sense of persistence. In order ro pass through a portal, even with the mind, that portal must be located by coordinates and, in a sense, fixed into place relative to your moving or transitioning consciousness. The threshold of a gate can only be passed over in motion. Before a gateway is passed through it exists in potential, but the act of transitioning its threshold brings it into actuality, although not necessarily into physicality.

The third factor in the nature of a gate is direction. When you pass over its threshold, your point of consciousness is in motion away from something, and toward something else. Both what you leave, and what you enter, have coordinates in your mind, and these two sets of coordinates give the act of passage, which is magically speaking a ray, a specific direction. The act of passage may be conceived as an arrow which always flies in one direction, from something, toward something else. By direction, I do not mean a literal travel in a material sense, but a transition from one reality to another reality of consciousness. To perceive the new world, you must turn your back on the old world. To enter, you must simultaneously leave. The nature of your present reality is the locus of the start point of the ray, and the nature of the new reality is its target.

This metaphysical direction is conceptualized or marked by some symbolic direction in space. For example, as noted above, heaven is usually up and hell is usually down. They are not actually up or down, but the symbolism of'up' accords with the nature of the dimension of heaven, and the symbolism of’down’ accords with the nature of hell. It is helpful to use this natural tendency to externalize or materialize the direction of passage through a gate as a way to facilitate that passage. By conceiving the direction of passage in spatial terms - as movement toward a physical object, or to a compass point on the horizon, or toward a sign of the zodiac, or from one sphere on the Tree of Life to another - it becomes easier for consciousness to make the transition over the threshold. The mind needs something it can contain, sustain and manipulate.

The technique I have offered above, of conceiving reality as a sphere and twisting it into two lobes, then moving from one to the other through the point created between them along an undulating ray by means of a spiral channel, is the most basic conception of the passage of a dimensional gateway. The lobes must be colored, textured, and (as one might say) furnished to accord with the personal reality presently occupied, and the personal reality that is conceived to be on the other side of the threshold. These lobes need not be conceived mechanically as two transparent bubbles, but this sparse geometric model should underlie your constructed conception.

Note that the actual experience of the world on the far side of the gate may not be identical to your initial conception of that world, but it is useful to have a clear concept in mind as a destination. The experience of other dimensions of reality is always different, to some degree, from the preconception of those realities. Indeed, I will go so far as to offer this general rule: if another dimension is exactly as you conceived it prior to visiting or viewing it for the first time, it is a misconception, an abortion of stillbirth, lifeless and without significance. Entry into a living occult dimension will provoke surprise, delight or dread, and feelings of wonder. Acute terror is always a good sign, because it means that the dimension is real, but equally good is a sense of euphoric joy.

Gates are closed before being opened, and sometimes gates are locked against opening. Some gates resist passage with great tenacity. A gate that can be passed through by one magician with ease, another magician equally skilled may find impossible to open. The subconscious mind erects barriers on the threshold between worlds, which is why we do not pass through the gates as a casual daily entertainment. It is the task of the magician to overcome those barriers - to unlock the gates - through the use of the tools of magic. These are not physical tools except in so far as they may have a physical embodiment for convenience of use. The tools of magic are mental - pictorial, symbolic, structural, mathematical, willful. The objects that may represent some of them are only objects, of use when they facilitate rhe manipulation of the mental tools they represent.

Opening the lock of a difficult dimensional gate requires concentration of the will, coupled with sustained conceptualization using sensory metaphors and a foundation of appropriate interactive symbolism. This involves two levels of visualization - one, the underlying symbolic structure that provides the dynamic model of passage through the gate, and two, an appropriate sensory visualization of the gate and the world that lies on its other side. Will is used to sustain the determination to make a transition between worlds, and to hold this two-fold vision of the gate in the mind for prolonged periods of concentration. This concentration on the gate must be sustained both waking and sleeping, for as long as needed to breach the gate, perhaps for months in the case of a difficult gate.

A key point to remember is that the conception must be of actual passage through the gateway. The gate must be conceived and imagined to open onto the other world, and the magician must conceive himself crossing its threshold, whatever form or nature that threshold may assume. The conception of the gate and its passage will change and evolve from day to day as this focus of will is sustained with unwavering purpose. This is natural.

Two things must be avoided at all costs. One, you must never conceive a locked dimension gate as always closed against you, or it will become in reality always closed against you. Perhaps you think this is self-evident, but

many who seek to cross from world to world commit this error of focusing all their will and attention on the closed and locked gate. Such concentration only strengthens the lock. No, it must be conceived as opening and admitting your passage across its threshold.

Two, you must never attempt to prevent your conception of a dimensional gate from changing as you focus your concentration upon it. Do not be rigid in your imagined image of the gate, or of the world beyond it. Keep your mind open for fresh insights, and when they come - as they certainly will - follow them. This is essential to opening the lock. Such insights act as keys. They may not initially turn in the lock, but with refinement supplied by supplementary insights over time, the keys will eventually be filed and beaten into the necessary shape to open the gate. If you try to fix the gate into one unvarying form, it will cease to be real and will become only an image or shadow of the true gate.

The easiest way to pass through a dimensional gate is to follow a guide, who will open the gate for you. Familiar spirits can act as guides to other worlds, if they are given the freedom and authority to do so. Magicians who insist on keeping such spirits as slaves will not find them useful in this regard, as subjugation prevents their evolution and growth, but if they are treated with respect and love, they will repay these feelings with good service, and will often be able to serve as guides to other dimensions. It is not for nothing that Dante and Aeneas both had a guide through hell, that Jesus guided souls from hell to heaven, that witches were guided by the Devil to the sabbat, or that fairies guided men into their fairy mounds. A spirit guide is not only the easiest, but also the safest, way to pass a dimensional gate.

If a familiar is not available with the skills to act as a guide, it may be possible to follow a spiritual being through a gate without the active assistance of that spirit. This can be done by concentrating, not on the gateway itself, but on a ruling spirit of the world that lies on the other side of the gateway. Such concentration must be sustained and focused, so that the spirit becomes visible, and even tangible. By bringing the spirit into your world, you can at length follow the spirit through the gate back into its world. This is a

difficult technique, but it can succeed where concentration on the transition of a locked gate fails.

The focus of the mind can be aided by the techniques mentioned above -mind-altering herbs or other substances, fatigue, exhaustion, pain, sustained sexual arousal. These aids should be used with discretion, and only after much deliberation, since when improperly employed may do more harm than good. They may in themselves become the focus of the mind, which defeats the purpose of their use. I recommend against them. However, it must be admitted that for some individuals, the achievement of the necessary alteration in consciousness for passage through a dimensional gate may be impossible without the use of such artificial aids. What will work for one person will not work for another. The techniques used must be matched to the person using them. The right technique will result in a sense of aptness and will be free from awkwardness or obstructions. When left to its own devices, the mind finds its own path.

♦ CONCLUSION ♦

The transition of dimensional gates occurs from time to time to most persons, in dreams, in states of illness, fatigue, intoxication, or simple reverie. These experiences are usually brief. Those who cross the threshold by accident notice a subtle difference from common night dreams, or day dreams. The other world that is entered has a greater sense of importance and presence than the usual world of the imagination. Everyone has known such moments of clarity. What is more difficult is to induce this transition deliberately, and repeatedly. Some fortunate few are naturally psychic or mediumistic, and these gifts are great aids in traveling to occult dimensions, but even those without such gifts can succeed if they apply the methods of western magic that are most productive for crossing the gates. Perseverance is invariably rewarded, even when the reward is not always of the kind that was expected.

ORISONS SIOBLIQUE KYLE FITE

TRADITION AND FASCINATION OF THE MAGICKAL GRIMOIRE J ■ has been enjoying an enthusiastic resurgence in modern occultism. Taking its place amongst the mouldering leaves and time-stained sheets of famed and fearful folios from bygone eras is a new breed of cryptic conveyance, no less potent or portentous in its arcane artistry. Oracular orisons still hot with the breath of utterance have emerged and are emerging, providing fresh fields of word and image whereby the very forces which gave rise to their antiquated predecessors move into new times, new minds and carve out new pathways upon the ever-receding, ever beckoning and always broadening vistas of a magickal universe.

Unlike those pages the possession of which may have required uncommon wealth, connection and exposure of the owner to great peril of life, if not soul, we find that new works might arrive at our doorstep, delivered with the mail. This ease of acquisition would have astounded our antecedents of esoteric inquiry. Some of these purported talismanic tomes are bound to disappoint, penned by pretenders to the throne of Philosopher King. Others artfully articulate, in picture and prose, a type of Key which twists and turns its way into a deeper strata of the human mind, unlocking hidden doors to hidden spaces, giving testimony to their terrors, conveying clues and making maps meant to manifest the treasures therein.

There is a magic to how such a book speaks in silence to its reader. It has been said that when the student is ready, the teacher appears. Sometimes that teacher is not in human guise at all but arrives in a body built of language, symbol and image. The Intelligence behind this expression is living and mutable. It is not the book itself but may be accessed by means of this mode, which is not to be confused with some commonplace conglomeration of text, for the content of the grimoire, and its attendant imagery, is a machine meant to move in the hands of its operator, its application determined in very specific and precise ways, its nature synergistic.

It may be observed that we all have a natural gravitation toward certain patterns of energy, unique fields of endeavor, with corresponding experiences coming from them. A grimoire is not a book of universalized dogma meant to instruct the species. It emerges from a concentrated zone of arcane power and employs a very human means of communication as the medium between that zone and the individual mind. Thus, eschewing a pigeon hole of medieval demonology, we find the modern grimoire embracing ever widening branches of supersensual exploration. From the influx of Haitian Voudoo through the mind of Michael Bertiaux to EJ. Gold’s postmodern rewrite of the Tibetan guide to the Bardo, his American Book of the Dead, we find cultures crossed and cross-bred with new routes arising.

We find that these grimoires, as we still refer to them, are not merely a phenomena penetrating our present environment in the form of new books on old subjects. When such a work emerges, it is not simply another addition to the annual outpouring of exotic divergence for our hungry, yet shallow, consumerist culture. These books also bear witness to the sources from which they have arisen and taken form, sources they intend to put us in touch with directly and from whence further outpourings may ensue.

Aleister Crowley had this in mind when he considered the praeternatu-ral authorship of his received text, Liber AL, in his writing entitled On the Reception of the Book of the Law. After examining many of the facts surrounding the channeling of this revelatory document, Crowley, a skeptic to the last, soberly concludes:

... I have positively opened up communication with one such Intelligence; or, rather... I have been selected by Him to receive the first message from a new order of beings.

The reader is referred to this particular essay for personal examination of the strange and, in many ways, startling events surrounding the writing of this text. We will, for the moment, observe that Crowley not only served as the vehicle whereby this astounding book (described by Kenneth Grant as the supreme grimoire of the present Aeon) came into existence, but that he would also see it as a phenomena indicating extension into human experience via further communications and corresponding expression of such contact.

We may disagree with Crowley that his message was the first, but our emphasis is on the declaration that it is not the last. In the history of religion Crowley is a unique character in that he does not present what was, for him and many others, a truly phenomenal and transhuman event as something to be enshrined to the detriment of further exploration or revelation. Were Liber AL to follow the sales pitch trailing after the history of many holy books, the reader would be exhorted to take it on faith that its source was genuine and therefore its message true. Despite a residual cult of Crowley, which seems to cling to the Master’s words with puritanical devotion, Crowley indicated that the Way was not merely to be traversed but paved. He would continue throughout his life establishing such traffick with disincarnate intelligences as he sought to penetrate, with ever increasing depth, the mysteries of that initial revelation. His technical writings on magickal practice expand the consciousness into greater degrees of sensitivity to the influx of such communications, while curbing the tendency towards an obsession which has, for so many religious movements born in states of inspiration, transformed Tongues of Fire into Pillars of Salt.

Of all Crowleys students, Kenneth Grant would follow this line of investigation most thoroughly, the opening up of such contact being a primary theme in his own contributions to occult literature. His works (most notably the nine volumes comprising the Typhonian Trilogies) would take on the

function of grimoires themselves, while indicating ways in which the magician could work this same current of power and intelligence, not as a scholar or devotee, but as a Gnostic, as one stepping into the same space of receptivity we observe in Crowley and others.

A received text and a grimoire is not the same thing. They may however incorporate each other. The element of inspiration, whether from one's gnosis or the channeling of an Intelligence whose communication can stimulate and feed the fire of that insight, is crucial for composition of the grimoire. This light of inspiration transcends wholly rational thinking and expresses itself in a language whose nature is not solely didactic. It is a language which forms a bridge between our conscious rational thought processes and the transcendental realms by bringing together elements of both realities.

Inspired by forces and an Intelligence beyond the normal operating range of the conscious human psyche, Liber AL was regarded by Kenneth Grant as the ultimate grimoire of this Aeon. He would describe its pages as, containing... the secret formula which unseals the cells of cosmic consciousness. Grant, however, was not confined in his explorations to the simple notion of a single linear progression of time. His work would open into multiple Aeons, spheres of action and energy running beside, into and out of each other. His vision, in this regard, is very similar to the T’ien T ai school of Buddhism which envisions the vast multiplicity of worlds within worlds (3000 realms in total) all present in a single moment of life. William Blake described this as, Infinity in a grain of sand. And in Kenneth Grant’s vision, the sprawling colorful components of this multiverse would be presented in a manner whereby the latent correspondences within the human psyche might resonate and assemble themselves into a grand mandala, reflecting the enlightenment behind all the activity within the spheres of which the grimoire would serve as gateway.

We want to get our hands on such a book, something far beyond the paperback pocket-guides to supernatural powers, pandering to a populous whose ravenous curiosity is only matched by its attention deficit disorder. There is a romance to the dreadful book, an object which contains a power

independent of the hands which hold it, which is as much a gateway as it is a book. Hence the term talismanic. Yet we shall be compelled to inquire into the nature of any such power should we become convinced that it appears present in conjunction with the book in question. For some, the antiquated guides to goetic working have brought about results of compelling intensity. For others, they offer little more than a coughing jag in the dust of superstitious times. Why does something work for one and not for another? And what exactly does it mean for such a book to work?

We can describe the grimoire as a unique type of book, one which manipulates language and image to bridge worlds, offering a map to those elusive realms and the tools whereby one may not only enter but extract the gnosis therein and return, as a transformed being. When presented with such a tome, there is a certain reverence evoked for its role. It is as if the sheets are shamanic and we feel in them a link to a Mystery not yet touched in our souls. The danger is in revering such a work to the detriment of what it would ultimately lead us to become. There are many who embrace Crowleys Liber AL as a book which cannot be surpassed in power. It is regarded as not only a revelatory work but the ultimate revelatory work, despite Crowleys indication that it was an opening, a prelude for what was to come.

It is worth quoting a passage from Michael Bertiaux’s Vbudon Gnostic Workbook, itself a Grimoire of Grimoires, where he offers a suggestion to students pursuing this line of investigation:

It would be very useful to your magickal development if you would begin to write your own magickal mythos. Get in touch with your own Zothyrius or your own AIWAZ in your own ontic sphere. You have such a universe right in your mind. Why not write your own cosmic mystery drama, your own magickal book of revelations, your own holy books. As we know, Crowley practiced this method when he created his own mythos. Freud and Jung did the same thing. All magicians have to begin with their own bibles...

For those who are interested in cosmic mystery drama, why not create something based on your favorite figure or symbol or image...

... try to get more mileage out of your ontic sphere.

This may seem, to some, as an affront to the sanctity attributed to texts such as Liber AL. We find the same phenomena within the Christian church. The Bible is regarded as a closed canon and those who would contribute to its content are seen as threats. So long as such an attitude prevails, those texts themselves remain as something isolated from our deepest core. If we cannot be as those authors (or scribes, if you will) then we can only look upwards towards something which exists outside of our own experience, something we must take on faith. They are Prophets, Magi and the like. We are the followers, disciples, devotees. Yet William Blake, getting more mileage out of his own ontic sphere, would cite Numbers 11:29 at the opening of his prophetic epic, Milton:

Would to God that all the Lords people were Prophets.

Blake would also declare: I must create my own system or be enslaved by another man’s. This may have influenced Aleister Crowley, who would later regard Blake as a spiritual brother, when he wrote:

I... am convinced in myself that to no great man can it be possible to work in any existing system. If he has followers, so much the worse for them.

Those words were penned in Crowley's diary, 1903, just prior to the revelatory experience which brought through what would become his Bible and grimoire, Liber AL.

There is a drive within the human soul towards direct contact with its centre. If a grimoire cannot lead us to this very place where we stand alone and touch the mystic flame ourselves, it is a testament to something we do not

know and dare not surpass. We will have stopped and set up house on the bridge between worlds, a structure erected not for our residency but passage.

Fortunately, Crowley had students who did more than hang on his every word as authoritative and superior to their own inspiration. Kenneth Grant would develop Crowleys model of the Aeons to go beyond linear time and describe a state of consciousness in which a thousand facets rise and fall and dance within the Wordless Aeon. One neither exalts nor is restricted by the characteristics of the Zeitgeist but goes beyond, manipulating the stuff of Maya, or Illusion, according to Will.

There have been several authors who have written in such a manner with the intent of opening the reader to spaces where the division between subject and object begins to dissolve. E. J. Gold’s American Book of the Dead is one such example. Gold perpetually challenges his reader to avoid the pitfail of adulation for the messenger at the expense of enlightenment. To simply suspend any disbelief and enter into his text is to experience an opening of consciousness. There is no pretention in his approach. In fact, he is comical and blunt more often than not. Yet not only does he present the map of energetic zones in which consciousness is often battered to and fro, he reveals that he is not the revelator:

... if you’re wondering about the source of this book, it comes directly from the source of all books. In the labyrinth, you’ll notice - if you notice anything at all - that all books are the same book, and they all say the same thing. Don’t look around for someone else to hang it on... You are the source.

The only way to understand such a statement is to realize its veracity in a transcendental experience, moving through and beyond mere mental comprehension of the concepts.

Michael Bertiaux takes a similar approach in his progressive lessons for The Monastery of the Seven Rays, where he explains that the reader is, essentially, sending these lessons to him or herself.

In my own study of this material, I found myself gravitating towards a meta-spatiality in which I began to feel and visualize each lesson as being more than a set series of ideas communicated to the mind for intellectual understanding. The material of the lesson was a framework through which the energies that informed it could be tapped and entered into. I was no longer reading lessons but entering them. These chambers of spiritual intelligence and energy would be entered into in very specific ways, relative to my own thought-structures, needs and aspirations.

The experience of the one source’ of all books is not one of centering the world of experience around the individual ego. We enter into a cognizance of the Cosmic Mind, of which our transient human lives are a passing part. This can be a very despairing vision if we retain our sense of separateness from this Mind. The gnosis of this experience lies in the wholeness of the Mind itself and allowing the Mind to freely flow into our individuality without self-preserving resistance. Our consciousness then becomes that portion of the Cosmic Mind in operation through the unique channel of its own individuality. Yet this portion is an expression of the entirety of the cosmic life force and therefore it is an illumination and transformation of the selfhood which has previously functioned, in perception and action, as if it were an isolated thing.

This consciousness or gnosis allows the scales to fall from one's eyes. We do not only entertain the notion, but experience that oneness of all books' and thereby the relationship of the book to our individual mind. This is the magickal link which opens Jacob's Ladder between Heaven and Earth. We are now within the God-space whereby the Cosmic Mind is uniting its components within our experience and opening up lines of communication within itself.

These lines of communication may be understood as mapwork. This is the root of sigil-craft, veves, seals and signs. When the lines of communication open, the symbols become living things and unfold power and intelligence. They may be employed as types of magickal machines through which specific results are generated. Hence we find the goetic magician who is moving with

in a very vital and effectual universe of awakened energies as opposed to the experimenter who concludes The Lesser Key of Solomon to be an irrelevance of little application.

Our classic grimoires have set the pace for traditional terminologies, now evocative of an antiquated atmosphere. Such an atmosphere may be useful in offsetting one’s dominant mode of filtering perception of personal and modern experience, just as the angelic and horrific elements therein could offset our rooting in the material universe by stimulating subtle yet powerful components of the inward and intrapsychic self. If this self is the projecting agent whereby perceived reality assumes its form, to delve deeply into its mechanisms is to cut into an understanding of what lies behind superficial assumptions about what our lives are. Having passed through the vision whereby All is seen as Illusion, we are no longer deceived by the unreality in which we move. Instead, we find in it the plastic medium whereby our Will may assume form. This is more than a metaphysical attempt at wish-fulfillment. To unmask Reality is also to unmask our desires, to liberate them from the containment of the ego, and realize their activity in context of the Cosmic Mind. Thus, Crowley would make frequent allusion to the Tao as essential to understanding Thelema or the Will.

The philosophy of Thelema, as detailed by Crowley, emphasizes a sexual source at the Heart of the Mysteries. The description of Hadit and Nuit, the underpinning principles of organic life in Liber AL, is conveyed via an erotic poetry, and the practices of thelemic magick not only embrace the ceremonial and meditative but the sexual. Documents such as Liber A’ash vel Capricorni Pneumatici express these mysteries in poetry and symbol, serving as types of grimoires whereby the sexual technology therein can be apprehended and then applied to various operations.

Great restrictions were set around a frank and open discussion of such matters in Crowleys time. This perhaps explains why he would write in code on certain matters, yet we must ask if this was his sole reason. In the present era there is perhaps freer talk and description of sexual-magickal thought and practice than ever before. It would seem that the path of purple prose

has become an unnecessary encumbrance. This would be accurate if we were simply dealing with a description of physical mechanics, found to be objectionable by a given culture or era. Yet, the scope of sex-magick extends beyond the outward operations which function as one of its means.

In his lessons for The Monastery of the Seven Rays, Michael Bertiaux states that the entire purpose of sex magick is evolution. This necessitates the projection of the limited human psyche into the spaces of what Carlos Castaneda calls the Nagual. The Nagual is everything which is unknown and unexperienced and is contrasted to the Tonal, a word comprising the sum total of all available knowing and understanding contained in a given psyche. The drive and impetus towards this often threatening darkness is well expressed in a song by Killing Joke, Twilight of the Mortal, where Jaz Coleman boldly proclaims:

I saw restrictions of mortal lifespan... and hurled the lance beyond.

A workable grimoire is therefore a guide to the Nagual. At the very least, it provides a path to gateways whereby the Nagual is entered and mapped, assimilated into the ever evolving Tonality of consciousness. Crowley describes each human being, each localized expression of the Divine Mind, as an aggregate of experience. Some will become vast aggregates and yet accumulate on one plane only, becoming a monstrous shape of singular dimension, dominating a flickering flatland and sinking into its surface with the passage of time. Reproduction, replication and expanse cannot be considered evolution. It is when the experience entered into constitutes an upgrade of one's being that its assimilation results in a dimensional distortion, the form of which may provide the matrix for a true outflowing growth into the Cosmic Mind's self-awareness, or the crumbling of that matrix downward into the psyche, a retributive reflex rendering the small mind ineffectual even in its own territory.

Such an occurrence has been described by Kenneth Grant as a Tangential Tantrum. Hardly a tantalizing situation to call upon oneself. In fact, the survival mechanisms of the body, linked to those of the ego and its Skandha

constructs, described in Buddhist literature, recoil at the prospect of willfully evoking such an environment to contend with. It is ironic, that the only other option would be rested in and reinforced: stabilization of the existent Tonal construct upon the sinking ship of its limitation and finitude. Risk is shirked in favor of certain doom. This absurdity requires continuous submersion in an opiate, the administration of which formulates all control dynamics in human society. Thus, we have the overwhelming reach of religions ordering the populous by pandering protection from an encroaching Nagual nightmare which will, nevertheless, subsume the Tonal upon mortal extinction.

The multimedia experience of modern life is revealed as an anti-grimoire. Its language is self-supporting and serves to seal the gates which may now be seen as vital escape routes. It is interesting, to see how much sealing, binding and locking away plays its part in mythology. Satan is bound and locked in the bottomless pit of Revelations for rebelling against God. Loki is bound to a rock and tortured for breaking the ordered bounds of acceptable behavior. Prometheus suffers the same fate for extending the bounds of human knowledge. Adam and Eve push beyond the stasis of their lives and the gates of Eden are crossed with a flaming sword. The Old Ones are held behind Cosmic Gates, erected by the Elder Gods, in the Necronomicon. Good binds Evil, and we are taught to side with the so-called Good.

There is a reactionary impulse to this situation, where the human being turns in rebellion and embraces the archetypes of evil, which are now intuited as essential to the unfolding of a repressed force. Yet this conflict can be superseded by a reinterpretation of the mythology. The language embodied in myth is of the same nature as that by which the multidimensionality of the grimoire is known directly and experientially as a transformative experience. Myth is not simply allegory but the expression of abstract yet living verities whose influence is apprehended in human experience according to their qualities. Michael Bertiaux, when discussing the Loa states that they are Laws, yet they are Laws which function and are related to as Gods. We differentiate between physical laws and personalities on our plane of awareness. On the higher planes, this sort of differentiation does not exist within

the forces we call preternatural Intelligences. It is a mistake to overly anthropomorphize these Intelligences and equally erroneous to reduce them to mere abstractions. They are not static concepts; they are living things which have their place in the Body of God as do we. Our communion with them expresses a new line of force lighting up and moving the components of cosmic structure into a more refined and unified whole.

If successful work with the patterns laid out in a grimoire result in the above dynamic, we find the book being read by the Cosmic Mind as it utilizes our individuality as an essential part of its process. The meditative techniques made use of in modern magick, as a fusion between Eastern and Western tradition, serve to stimulate and vitalize this dimension of our existence. Kenneth Grant in Outside The Circles Of Time insightfully describes Liber AL as containing:

...the keys to the gates of extra-terrestrial worlds which constitute universes parallel to our own, and which - by some mysterious perichoresis - sometimes impinge upon our own, transforming it in a way that also transforms the magician and prepares him for an existence that must appear totally alien to his mundane consciousness. For it is in the dimensions of magical and controlled dreaming that he meets with entities with which it is not only the aim of the grimoires to establish contact, but which in many cases have actually inscribed the grimoires upon the astral substance of the earth’s aura...

This image of the earth englobed in such a hieroglyphic network of ingress points is truly evocative. One is reminded of the shattering of the Pleroma and its collapse into the fallen universe, where the primordial body of Adam Kadmon is rent asunder, not unlike Osiris, and buried or hidden away in matter, the shadows of the Nile or the mind forg’d manacles so detested by William Blake.

Matter has no fundamental existence in terms of absolute reality. It resides in the realm of subjective experience. When exalted into a space of domin

ion over the subjective experience, matter can become a spiritual darkness in which the ego, reacting against the impinging threat of the Nagual, is bound and tied to a pillar of stasis, a reference point, a bulwark against the cracking gates which open to the Beyond. To be liberated from matter is not to polarize some vague and whispy notion of the spiritual universe against the portions of experience we typify as the material world. Rather, it is to dissolve the perceived opposition into the cauldron of Will, recognizing through a gnostic vision the immanence of Godhead. The individual Will is allowed to conjoin with the Cosmic Will and its energetic path is illumined. This path burns through a myriad of initiations, a razor thin and infinitely bright line cut between potentiality and actuality in any and every given moment. It is a path of transformation and revelation. The hieroglyphs are lit from within, yet this is achieved by the Light which resides in the magician himself. They vivify and add to the aggregate of experience which he is, even as he uncovers, evokes and breathes new life into their form. It is a conjunction, a unification between seemingly disparate parts which belong to the same great Unity.

It is a dispensationalist dogma which traces these sequences of events in terms of Time. Alchemy condenses these stages into the context of its operations, detailed in its own sundry grimoires and belonging to the experience of the alchemist. The sacred laboratory becomes a zone in which the appearance of the macrocosmic march is manifested in the microcosmic mind, the parts brought into the unity of the whole. Its expression is mandalic and reveals an equidistance of events, understood from the singularity of a position, or point, outside of time. One does not escape from the Circles of Time as much as one reveals the nature of time and space within the dualistic universe, entering into it, with a new awareness of the scenario.

From the vantage point of this center, one is both moving and standing still. One has become the winged globe of Hadit and is the full flux of its going. Time converges on this center from all angles and the astral plasma of the earth is seen to receive its encoding from past, present and future. Not only is the magician able to rightly read the grimoires of antiquity which have been drawn from this plasmic sphere but he is able to write the grimoi-

res whose matrix trembles on the surface of this circumference by directly entering their form, allowing them to become a linkage point between the ego-self and that portion of the comic mind to which it, the astral grimoire, corresponds.

It is in this context that Crowley wrote of how Magi would arise after him, each with their own Word. This does not indicate a closure to the Aeon of Horus which Crowley opened or revealed. Rather, Crowley indicates that all such Magi with their corresponding Words would be in harmony with the Word he declared. This might be regarded as subservience to his selfproclaimed authority, but when distinctions between our fluctuating and temporal personalities gives way to the broader vision of the gnosis, we might observe that Crowley, as Magus, Master of the Illusions, very artfully became an alchemic agent within the grand operation or Great Work through a unique form of Guru Yoga. This method is detailed in Kenneth Grant’s Cults of the Shadow, where he states:

The candidate for initiation approaches the guru (spiritual guide) with awe and reverence as if he were superior to all others. This distinction is false and the cause of bondage, and the false image of difference (duality) projected on to the guru becomes transformed into a demon that appears to mock the candidate... the devil, diable, or double, is merely the personification of the duality projected onto the guru by the candidate. The guru appears as a demon because his job is to destroy the candidates ego. The ’Demon Crowley’ therefore appeared as soon as an individual sought contact with the 93 Current over which Crowley presided as supreme Initiator. If a candidate’s aspirations were destroyed or swayed in the slightest degree by the impact of this experience, his moment of initiation had not arrived, nor was it likely to arrive until the "vision" had been banished by the power of the candidate’s unswerving dedication to the Work, and by his total indifference to the personality of either Crowley or himself.

The vision expands as the candidate is no longer seeking contact with the 93 Current but actually entering it. This current is often regarded as the energy matrix behind the Aeon of Horus. Horus however, gives expression to a formula transcending the linear dispensationalist developments in human history, which might be regarded as an exoteric interpretation of the Aeons. Horus is a dual-god in Liber AL, the vengeful Ra Hoor Khuit of the third chapter having his reflex in Harpocrates or Hoor Paar Kraat, the Silent One. Silence indicates that no Word is uttered and so we find in Grants Outside The Circles Of Time, the suggestion that the Aeon of Horus, regarded as the present aeon is itself the Wordless Aeon the advent of which has been dreaded and abhorred by the prophets of the past.

Why would such a thing be dreaded and abhorred? Quite simply, it is because the last vestige of any point of reference is destroyed. All Words condense formulas, doctrines, ideas, ways of cloaking the void in form. The Wordless Aeon is the reflex of this process; to use Crowley’s metaphor, it is the draining of the last drop of blood into the Cup of Babaion. Subject and object become one and this fusion itself has dissolved into the cauldron. What rises is the Babe of the Abyss which grows in the Womb of its Mother. The maturation of this Babe endows it with the creative power whereby a Word may come forth, whereas before, there were only Words to enter into.

Horus thus stands as gateway to the Wordless Aeon and also an Aeon from which the magickal word ABRAHADABRA emerges, itself a glyph of dual power, fusing macrocosm with microcosm. From Silence, the Word emerges and pouring forth from the Word are its outcroppings, the branches of Eternity. Instead of Isis giving way to Osiris and so on, the symbolic pantheon unfolds from its center as a mandala of simultaneity.

We are portions of this mandala and yet, like a hologram, the parts each contain the whole. Thus, the Cosmic Will unveils itself in our flesh and surges forward as individual action perfectly poised in the totality of the mandala. ABRAHADABRA transcends words of temporal application and expresses the foundation of all phases of the Great Work. The void of the silence and the manifest world of appearances become One.

There are languages which serve to communicate this unity, human modes of communication that touch and resound with the perceiving and thinking faculties of the human being. They put forth their hooks and link into the mind. But this specific use language does not conform to the requirements of the rational mind or the limited being, whereby it may maintain the illusion of its supremacy. They form holes in the fabric of consciousness, become pictographs formulated in negative spaces, form openings into the Outer Spaces of the Nagual which may gush with terror or unspeakable beauty. Between the Tonal and the wholly unknowable void are all possibilities. All that is unimagined resides in this space. The imaginal manifestation is ever present at the gate or crossroads between these two states. To be at this juncture is to be Hadit. Self-awareness as being gives way to self-awareness as going.

The grimoire may pull us into this zone and offer its unique roadmap to the alien terrain. Conversely, we are faced with the great challenge of understanding, mapping and communicating the spaces we have entered. We cannot remain still nor can we rely on the old stand-by of models which speak only to limited apprehension of appearances. Our own creations spin off and mutate, forming vessels for the transmission of further information. Angels rush up and down the ladder; we are Jacob dreaming. We are the Sphinx atop the Wheel, and at the same time, we are the dream itself. We are the Wheel. We are creating even as we are being created.

William S. Burroughs would observe, during his career, that writing was lamentably lagging behind advances made in visual arts. This observation arose in the midst of Burroughs’ work to rectify the situation and bring the written word up to speed. Burroughs sliced, diced and spliced the basic structure of language itself to get at new modes of utilizing the word as a means of liberating both reader and writer from the constraints imposed by a preprogrammed perceptive field. This reality tunnel was seen to be linked to language as a mechanism of control and restraint. Outside the confines of this prison reside the forces which Kenneth Grant describes as alien. The goal of the magician (and for Burroughs, the writer is a species of Magi) is to become, as described by Grant, receptive to the influx of certain concepts that

can, if received undistortedly, fertilize the unknown dimensions of his consciousness. He goes on to emphasize:

In order to achieve this aim a new manner of communication has to be evolved; language itself has to be reborn, revivified, and given a new direction and new momentum.

In this context, it is very interesting to read Burroughs' thoughts on the pursuit for Enlightenment in the modern era. He would spend two weeks at Chogyam Trungpa’s Buddhist retreat in Boulder, Colorado, detailing the experience in the journal known as The Retreat Diaries. In the preface to these entries, Burroughs expressed a strong affinity between the Warrior motif of Carlos Castaneda and the Writer. He also saw this stance as being irreconcilable with the aims of Buddhism, as he understood it. Asked to relinquish his typewriter during this fortnight stay, Burroughs would argue with Trungpa on this point. Trungpa saw the setting aside of the tool as prerequisite to getting at an awareness of what resides behind our day to day activities, comparing it to a cook setting aside his utensils. Burroughs could not accept the comparison and wrote:

A good percentage of my characters come from dreams, and if you don't write a dream, in many cases, you forget it. The actual brain trace of dream memory differs from that of waking memory.

Burroughs conceded his typewriter but refused to part with pen and paper. Cautioned that the dream images and unusual effects evoked by the meditative experience were distractions from the ultimate goal of enlightenment, he would state, as Warrior-Writer:

The purposes of a Bodhisattva and an artist are different and perhaps not reconcilable... any writer who does not consider his writing the most important thing he does, who does not consider writing his only salvation... I trust him little in the commerce of the soul.

Burroughs is finding the writer and the writing to be one and the same, the path of True Will. Thus he can state:

I feel that I get further out through writing than I would through any meditation system. And so far as any system goes, I prefer the open-ended, dangerous and unpredictable universe of Don Juan to the closed, predictable karma universe of the Buddhists. Indeed, existence is the cause of suffering and suffering may be good copy. Don Juan says he is an impeccable warrior and not a master; anyone who is looking for a master should look elsewhere. I am not looking for a master; I am looking for the books. In dreams I sometimes find the books where it is written and I may bring back a few phrases that unwind like a scroll. Then I write as fast as I can type, because I am reading, not writing.

This does not indicate that the pursuit of the Bodhisattva is erroneous. It does, however, overthrow a particular tyranny of ideas which would view the Buddhist objective as being superior to another field of action. In other words, the enlightenment reveals the nature of the space in which any and all perceived phenomena is taking place. Within that space is the movement and directions which our individual lives have emerged to embody and exemplify. The relationship between the two is perfectly represented in Crowleys work as Nuit, the Goddess of Infinite Space, and her consort, Hadit, the ever moving, dynamic and winged globe. Hadit typifies the Sun and as such, Every Man and Every Woman is a Star. Our individuality functions as the sovereign center of a solar system and yet each system takes its place in the grand matrix of the Body of Nu. Nuit's ecstasy, the gnosis of cosmic consciousness, is known by its reflex in the world of minute activity, perfected in the full flowing of its nature.

The New Aeon may now be seen as the Nu Aeon, the Wordless Aeon or Primordial Silence from which all creative utterances arise to shed their radiance over unique Aeonic spheres, sectors and spaces. Crowley transmitted

a multi-layered matrix and model of this vision. Within this spectrum, we trace our Way. Our time is limited and we want to maximize each moment as we become what we are. The inward voyage cultivates our intuition, allowing it to resonate with those zones most attuned to its nature through the expressive and communicative mediums sharing its nature. We then find in the grimoire a mirror, reflecting our deeper and most authentic self, describing the means by which it may rise and infiltrate our conscious mind, if we read it rightly.

To encounter the grimoire in this fashion, which is to unlock its potentiality and activate its corresponding power zones, is emphatically not an intellectual processing of the material in question. In some instances, we will operate along the lines of ceremonial magic and utilize an outward and physical method of opening the doors. On other occasions, the methodology employed may be less apparent to an observing eye, yet no less potent. This is why Crowley would caution those working with Liber 231 to take care and not leave the sigils lying about, as he considered them dangerously automatic.

The grimoire occasions an interface whereby communication is intended to occur. Language and pictograph act as transmitters, transcending barriers of time, space and even dimension. What travels along these passageways has the potential to impact, enter into and fuse with the psychostructure of the magician, whether encouraged by ritual and recitation or not. In fact, the traditional ceremonial work of western magic is intended to reconstruct the psychosphere so that it may operate with greater receptivity and adaptability to the incoming current and Intelligence. Rather than remaining a requisite methodology, we find ritual taking its place with, as well as flowing into, a wide variety of techniques and idiosyncratic inventions as individual artistry arises from the foundational work.

In conclusion, we may observe that the traditional literature and methods of magic stretch our human faculties into a new perceptive territory. To use Castanedas terminology, magic displaces the assemblage point, or habitual mode of interacting with a multi-dimensional universe. Very much like the initial spur to enlightenment in Buddhism, we survey the scene and find

that life is suffering. Something within us finds this unsatisfactory and stirs, yearns for something behind the limits of our present condition and is intuitively aware of a different and better way of being. Magic begins to open the blinds, turning the lock on the door and expanding, ultimately transforming, our comprehension and interaction with the larger spectrum of consciousness of which we are part. Our previous vision will be seen as a narrow and confining prison and as one passes through gateway after gateway of initiatory experience, the push towards freedom will be understood as continuous. As Crowley remarked in The Book Of Lies, we will have become the Way as opposed to simply moving along its course.

The work with grimoires and sutras, channeled and inspired writing, the continued manipulation of language and image, the passing into and out of chambers and cells, the communion with Gods and Devils, the splendid adventure whirls and burns as connections form within the mega-structure of the body of God. The shattered Pleroma of the Gnostics reintegrates and, in doing so, reveals that it was never split asunder, merely perceived to be so through a small hole in a prison wall. This cosmic drama sings Abrahadabra as it is realized within the body, mind and soul-self of the magician who has become an expression of the totality through the route of individuality.