November 19, 2016

Crowley, the awakened one


It is my observation that people in general just don't (or maybe can't?) understand or appriciate the depth of the work Crowley has done.

In my view, he really really knew what he was talking about - he was deeply realized individual. His written records attest to that (Liber LXXIII, comments to Liber B, and Liber AL, to name a few).

He was Awake in the broadest sense of the word.

I love how this exact sentiment was put into words by Karl Germer:


"Words are too weak to express the grief that has been upon me since the fatal news arrived by cable Tuesday morning. It is not so much the sorrow about Aleister’s death.

On that I feel rather a relief that His suffering, the suffering of his body, and his unfathomable loneliness during these last years has been ended at last. This loneliness has been deeper than possibly at any time during the many, many years since he has been awake. (I mean that in the sense of the “Wake World” etc. ) This loneliness is over, and as I see it, the very condition for his final attainment which He expressed in His cable to me of Nov. 18th. After that, it seems, there was nothing left to keep Him here.

But what grieves me so insufferably is that in retrospect I see how often, how very often during the years – over 22 now – that I have known Aleister, I placed obstacles in his path, I obstructed, and sometimes made his life hell for the man A.C. I thought I could make good during the months I thought I could stay with him from September to early December of this year. But the British who have crucified their greatest son, and who persecuted him with their hatred, have remained true to form to the very last by refusing me a visa, and though A.C. knew that the visit was not to be, and must not be, he felt the cancellation of my journey as a deep blow.

There is no secret about it that our relation had been from the start close and intense, closer than men generally can judge.

His Work, that was His Life, must and will continue and be brought gradually to the success and glorification that he should have seen during His earthly life."

--Letter from Karl Germer to Ray and Mildred Burlingame, December 5, 1947, just a few days after Aleister Crowley's death

Reposted from FB post by David Shoemaker


November 3, 2016

Beyond the Dogs of Reason



It is my observation that many students of Thelema (and other traditions), hmm, how shall I put this gently, well, they think themselves to death, believing that reason or intellect will get them far.

Well, it simply can not.

It is just a stage, a rather basic one at best (around the Zelator grade as per A∴A∴ ladder of things) to rely on the intellect the General and its army of thoughts, supported by defense mechanisms (rationalization, projection, denial, altruism, humor, etc.).

It might be suitable for aspirants lacking deep empirical knowledge and capacity for intuition, yes, but it only gets more and more cold and windy, 
and so, so dry and lifeless from where I stand.

Granted, the mind is an important tool, but intellect isn't. It is inherently limited by itself. 

In practice, this limitation may manifest through the constant drive to understand, connect, and analyze various concepts. It even seems to work, to make sense... 

But at best, such a trip may end in brilliant doctoral / Ph.D. scholarly work, say in Thelema philosophical studies. Still, it will never result in attaining the K&C of the HGA or becoming a Magister Templi.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with being a highly educated intellectual. Some of my best friends are very strong along these lines. It is in spiritual or transpersonal matters that they fall short.



Let us examine what Thelema Libri and Master Therion himself have to say on the subject (emphasis mine):



“There is no ‘reason’ why a Star should continue in its orbit. Let her rip!
Every time the conscious acts, it interferes with the Subconscious, which is Hadit. It is the voice of Man, and not of a God. Any man who ‘listens to reason’ ceases to be a revolutionary…
It is ridiculous to ask a dog why it barks.

One must fulfill one’s true Nature, one must do one’s Will. To question this is to destroy confidence, and so to create an inhibition…

We are not to calculate, to argue, to criticize; these things lead to the division of will and to stagnation. They are shackles of our Going. They hamstring our Pegasus. We are to rise up – to Go – to Love – we are to be awake, alert.”

-The Commentary to The Book of the Law, II:29-31,34



*  *  *


“I distrust any thoughts uttered by any man whose health is not robust.
All other thoughts are surely symptoms of disease.
Yet these are often beautiful and may be true within the circle of the conditions of the speaker.
And yet again! Do we not find that the most robust of men express no thoughts at all? They eat, drink, sleep, and copulate in silence.
What better proof of the fact that all thought is dis-ease?”

–The Book of Lies, chapter 85 “Borborygmi”



*  *  *


“But this is of the essence of the Occult Wisdom concerning Daäth. For Daäth is the crown of the Ruach, the Intellect; and its place is in the Abyss. That is, it breaks into pieces immediately it is examined. There is no coherence below the Abyss, or in it; to obtain this, which is one of the chief canons of Truth, we must reach Neschamah.”

–Little Essays Towards Truth, “Knowledge”



*  *  *


“Here is the Key of Success, and its Name is the Skill to make right Use of Circumstance. This, then is the Virtue of the Mind, to be the Wazir of the Will, a true Counsellor, through Intelligence of the Universe.
 But o, my Son, do thou lay this Word beneath thine Heart, that the Mind hath no Will, nor Right thereto, so the Usurpation bringeth forth a fatal Conflict in thyself.
 For the Mind is sensitive, unstable as Air, and may be led foolishly in leash by a stronger Mind that worketh as the cunning Tool of a Will. Therefore thy Safety and Defence is to hold thy Mind to his right Function, a faithful Minister to thine own True Will, but Election of Nature. ”

–Liber Aleph, chapter 130 “De Ratione Praesidio Voluntatis”



*  *  *



Thoughts are false.”

–The Book of Lies, chapter 5 “The Battle of the Ants”

“[This line] is another phrasing of the familiar Hindu statement, that that which can be thought is not true.”

- Commentary to chapter 5 of The Book of Lies



*  *  *


"And this is an hard saying against Reason: ye shall comprehend, when, rising above Reason, which is but a manipulation of the Mind, ye come to pure Knowledge by direct perception of the Truth."

- Liber CL


*  *  *


"Reason and Emotion; these are the two great enemies of the Ethic of Thelema. They are the traditional obstacles to success in Yoga as well as in Magick."

- Magick without tears, p. 293-294



*  *  *


"The only correct and adequate mode of the Attainment of Understanding is to shut off and to inhibit the rational mind altogether, thus leaving a Tabula rasa upon which the entirely alien faculty -- de novo and sui generis -- can write its first word."

- The Little Essays, Understanding by A. Crowley



*  *  *



“Now a curse upon Because and his kin! May Because be accursed for ever! If Will stops and cries Why, invoking Because, then Will stops & does nought. If Power asks why, then is Power weakness. Also reason is a lie; for there is a factor infinite & unknown; & all their words are skew-wise. 
Enough of Because! Be he damned for a dog! But ye, o my people, rise up & awake!”

–The Book of the Law II:28-34


rest 
my 
case.

:)



October 29, 2016

Liber Daath

Liber OS ABYSMI
vel
DAATH
sub figura CDLXXIV

A.·. A.·.
Publication in Class B



1. This book is the Gate of the Secret of the Universe.

2. Let the Exempt Adept procure the Prolegomena of Kant, and study it, paying special attention to the Antinomies.

3. Also Hume's doctrine of Causality in his “Enquiry.”

4. Also Herbert Spencer's discussion of the three theories of the Universe in his “First Principles,” Part I.

5. Also Huxley's Essays on Hume and Berkeley.

6. Also Crowley's Essays: Berashith, Time, The Soldier and the Hunchback, et cetera.

7. Also the “Logik” of Hegel.

8. Also the “Questions of King Milinda” and the Buddhist Suttas which bear on Metaphysic.

9. Let him also be accomplished in Logic. (Formal Logic, Keynes.) Further let him study any classical works to which his attention may be sufficiently directed in the course of his reading.

10. Now let him consider special problems, such as the Origin of the World, the Origin of Evil, Infinity, the Absolute, the Ego and the non-Ego, Freewill and Destiny, and such others as may attract him.

11. Let him subtly and exactly demonstrate the fallacies of every known solution, and let him seek a true solution by his right Ingenium.

12. In all this let him be guided only by clear reason, and let him forcibly suppress all other qualities such as Intuition, Aspiration, Emotion, and the like.

13. During these practices all forms of Magick Art and Meditation are forbidden to him. It is forbidden to him to seek any refuge from his intellect.

14. Let then his reason hurl itself again and again against the blank wall of mystery which will confront him.

15. Thus also following is it said, and we deny it not. At last automatically his reason will take up the practice, suâ sponte, and he shall have no rest therefrom.

16. Then will all phenomena which present themselves to him appear meaningless and disconnected, and his own Ego will break up into a series of impressions having no relation one with the other, or with any other thing.

17. Let this state then become so acute that it is in truth Insanity, and let this continue until exhaustion.

18. According to a certain deeper tendency of the individual will be the duration of this state.

19. It may end in real insanity, which concludes the activities of the Adept during this present life, or by his rebirth into his own body and mind with the simplicity of a little child.

20. And then shall he find all his faculties unimpaired, yet cleansed in a manner ineffable.

21. And he shall recall the simplicity of the Task of the Adeptus Minor, and apply himself thereto with fresh energy in a more direct manner.

22. And in his great weakness it may be that for awhile the new Will and Aspiration are not puissant, yet being undisturbed by those dead weeds of doubt and reason which he hath uprooted, they grow imperceptibly and easily like a flower.

23. And with the reappearance of the Holy Guardian Angel he may be granted the highest attainments, and be truly fitted for the full experience of the destruction of the Universe. And by the Universe We mean not that petty Universe which the mind of man can conceive, but that which is revealed to his soul in the Samadhi of Atmadarshana.

24. Thence may he enter into a real communion with those that are beyond, and he shall be competent to receive communication and instruction from Ourselves directly.

25. Thus shall We prepare him for the confrontation of Choronzon and the Ordeal of the Abyss, when we have received him into the City of the Pyramids.

26. So, being of Us, let the Master of the Temple accomplish that Work which is appointed. (In Liber CDXVIII. is an adequate account of this Ordeal and Reception. See also Liber CLVI. for the preparation.)

27. Also concerning the Reward thereof, of his entering into the Palace of the King's Daughter, and of that which shall thereafter befall, let it be understood of the Master of the Temple. Hath he not attained to Understanding? Yea, verily, hath he not attained to Understanding?


__________________________

Note: Crowley - "An instruction in a purely intellectual method of entering the Abyss."
Also known as The Book of the Mouth of the Abyss or of Knowledge (Daath).
First published in The Equinox Vol.I:7 (Weiland & Company, London) 1912.





October 15, 2016

Simplicity





Dzogchen mentioned below Ati yoga, the ultimate path and attainment in Tantric Buddhism.

Our Holy texts, especially Liber B vel Magi, describe this exact stage of awareness:
"...the ultimate power of Infinity. Wherein Sorrow is Joy, and Change is Stability, and Selflessness is Self." (Liber B, 16.)

The stage of awareness described below is "...the grade of Ipsissimus the Mystery of Selflessness, which is called also the Mystery of Pan." (Liber B, 15.)


"The everyday practice of Dzogchen is just everyday life itself.

Since the undeveloped state does not exist, there is no need to behave in any special way or attempt to attain anything above and beyond what you actually are. There should be no feeling of striving to reach some "amazing goal" or "advanced state."

To strive for such a state is a neurosis which only conditions us and serves to obstruct the free flow of Mind. We should also avoid thinking of ourselves as worthless persons - we are naturally free and unconditioned. We are intrinsically enlightened and lack nothing."

- Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Tantric Master (emphasis mine)

Of course, from the perspective of Thelema, in my opinion, living like it is described above translates to executing the Will at the ultimate level, indeed beautifully expressed by our Ra-Hoor-Khuit in Liber AL (III. 60):

"There is no law beyond Do what thou wilt."

It is not just that 'we are naturally free and unconditioned', as shared above, even more! 

There is NO need to deny anything, no need to renounce pleasures or to cut off love, money, sex, etc, in everyday life. 

Complete openness and acceptance of everything and integrating everything into a spiritual path - that's what Heruraha and His new aeon brought us.








October 10, 2016

Enochian dance



Visiting Aethyrs has been one of my favorite practices for years. I first started the Enochian magick practice with elemental Kings by incorporating them (with their consent) into banishing and invoking rituals. Having experienced their might, as it were, I moved straight on to Aethyrs.

So far I have done three cycles of this (to me) very, very sacred practice and have visited certain Aethyrs many many times, receiving teachings and thus instigating profound transformation of perception.

I wholeheartedly encourage everyone to practice and visit Aethyrs. The wisdom, power, love, and compassion of spiritual beings who dwell therein are, in my opinion, simply unsurpassed.

Anyway....

......refraining from sharing personal details of the visits, I would like to share a few things I have learned thus far. Of course, the thoughts below are subjective and may be irrelevant to others.

Here we go:

First thing I realized after the first few visits was that there's one thing that matters the most: intention. What do I want to get from visiting these levels of existance? Well, my first intention (at the time I already had a solid connection with my HGA) was to learn something new. All the visits in the first cycle reflected that intention.

Next: a very important thing in the overall Aethyr system, in my opinion, is that you can't enter any given Aethyr if you are not yet ready. So, in a way, the system can represent a rather clear indication of the real initiation level.

I also observed that all teachings and pieces of information needed for moving on to the next Aethyr are received at the previous one. In practice that means it is very wise to record everything that is happening in real-time; things get really deep, especially at the higher Aethyrs, and linear memory simply doesn't work afterward. I used to record everything with my digital MP3 recorder.

OK, next:
One thing I was surprised to notice when reading the V & V was that Master Therion never worked with the governors. Well, my HGA insisted that I evoke all three (in some cases, four) governors at every Aethyr with the intention to learn from them. Well, in short, oftentimes it was a very rough ride.
And yet, after all these years of visiting Aethyrs I still maintain that learning from governors is very very effective.

Next:
when I share the info about the Enochian Aethyrs with my students, I make sure to get one thing across: do the practice, visit the Aethyrs when you are really ready and want to instigate a profound change in your life.
Of course, it goes without saying that one can easily deceive oneself and only imagine stuff, but when true sincerity is on the table, well, you better be ready.

OK, moving on:
I have learned so much from the governors and by just being there in any given Aethyr, I experienced so much support, love (heh, and also downright negative self-generated bullshit), that I simply can't seem to find the right words.

Angelic governors are, in my experience and according to my observation, clearly clairvoyant and claircognizant. In other words, they know everything about me, a visitor, just by looking at me.
Many times, especially at the ZOM, ARN, and LIL, their words turned out to be prophetic. Clearly, precognition is something they excel at. So, I learned to listen to them and to read between the lines.

And maybe one last share:
in my last visits, maybe a few months ago, a new approach was offered at first by Doagnis, the first governor at ARN. He offered me to invoke him and also gave me a mantra or word of power (in Enochian language). All other governors (in both ARN and LIL) followed the same line of support. Using this kind of support it became increasingly easy to open up to these levels of awareness even in everyday life.


My custom made golden-silver Enochian ring




Ok, that's about it. I wish you all the best in your work.
:)











October 8, 2016

Magister Templi



Magister Templi (8=3) attainment is explained from various standpoints. Re-posting the text from Heruraha.org, Temple of Thelema (link >>). I added a few remarks on the attainment of arhat and eight trances in yellow text. The original text appears in this color.

Here we go:

"The essential Attainment is the perfect annihilation of that personality which limits and oppresses his true self.
"The Magister Templi is pre-eminently the Master of Mysticism, that is, His Understanding is entirely free from internal contradiction or external obscurity… He is the Master of the Law of Sorrow (Dukkha)." [OSIS - One Star in Sight]

"MAGISTER TEMPLI. – (Master of the Temple): whose functions are fully described in Liber 418, as is this whole initiation from Adeptus Exemptus. See also 'Aha!'." [OSIS]

"The Order of the Star called S.S. is, in respect of its existence upon the Earth, an organized body of men and women distinguished among their fellows by the qualities here enumerated. They exist in their own Truth, which is both universal and unique. They move in accordance with their own Wills, which are each unique, yet coherent with the universal will.
"They perceive (that is, understand, know, and feel) in love, which is both unique and universal." [OSIS]

"The Order of the S.S. is composed of those who have crossed the Abyss; the implications of this expression may be studied in Liber 418, the 14th, 13th, 12th, 11th, 10th and 9th Aethyrs in particular.
"All members of the Order are in full possession of the Formulae of Attainment, both mystical or inwardly-directed and Magical or outwardly-directed. They have full experience of attainment in both these path.” [OSIS]

"Any neophyte of the Order (or, as some say, any person soever) possesses the right to claim the Grade of Master of the Temple by taking the Oath of the Grade. It is hardly necessary to observe that to do so is the most sublime and awful responsibility which it is possible to assume, and an unworthy person who does so incurs the most terrific penalties by the presumption." [OSIS]


TASK

"His principle business is to tend his 'garden' of disciples, and to obtain a perfect understanding of the Universe. He is a Master of Samadhi." [OSIS]

"His word is to comprehend the existing Universe in accordance with His own Mind." [OSIS]

"The function of the Magister Templi is to cause the desert to blossom by transmitting the Logos of the Æon to those that are below the Abyss." [Commentary to Liber LXV, IV:61-63]

"They are all… bound by the original and fundamental Oath of the Order, to devote their energy to assisting the Progress of their Inferiors in the Order. Those who accept the rewards of their emancipation for themselves are no longer within the Order." [OSIS]


THE PATHS: Vav, Heh, Daleth

"TO ATTAIN THE GRADE OF MAGUS he must accomplish Three Tasks; the renunciation of His enjoyment of the Infinite so that he may formulate Himself as the Finite [Heh]; the acquisition of the practical secrets alike of initiating and governing His proposed new Universe [Vav] and the identification of himself with the impersonal idea of Love [Daleth]." [OSIS]



Liber Viarum Viæ assigns to the Path of Vav, "The Forthcoming of the Hierophant," Liber VIII, and to the Path of Daleth, "The Incarnation of the Inmost Light," Liber DLV (Liber Had). To the Path of Heh, it assigns "The Formulation of the Flaming Star," Liber V; most likely this should now be adjusted to read, "The Adoration under the Starry Heaven," Liber XI (Liber Nu).

"…to him who would be a Master of the Temple, the reverse applies. He wishes to remain perpetually in Samadhi, and it is therefore his renunciation to descend further and further into matter. He has volatilized the fixed; now he must fix the volatile. He has ascended from his particular body to the Universal Soul. That Universal Soul must now incarnate itself ever more completely in that body, and in the bodies and minds of all men. He has made his darkness light; that light must illuminate the darkness of all…. The Great Work is accomplished. The new Great Work is proclaimed. He has finished with Solve. He must begin Coagula."
[The Temple of Solomon the King]


VISION OF WONDER

"Only one other [grade besides 5=6] is equally cardinal: the grade of Master of the Temple, which is the Threshold of the Order of the A.'.A.'. I have called the vision corresponding to this the 'Vision of Wonder' which permeates one's daily life in a similar way. The difference [between this and the 'Beatific Vision' of the 5=6] is that penetrating beyond sensory perceptions, one is aware of the mechanism of events, of the subtle chain of causes which connect them. One perceives in detail how each impression necessarily succeeds its forerunner. The effect is that one is lost in wonder at the ingenuity of the universe, to use a very inadequate word, as being the only one available. One feels the intense awed admiration which the greatest masterpieces of Kant, Beethoven, Shakespeare, Rembrandt, Riemann, Kelvin, and such as they inspired, with this difference: that all impressions are equally puissant to produce it." [Confessions, Cap. 78]


NATURAL GRADE

"Every active Member of the Order has destroyed all that He is and all that He has on crossing the Abyss; but a star is cast forth in the Heavens to enlighten the Earth, so that he may possess a vehicle wherein he may communicate with mankind. The quality and position of this star, and its functions, are determined by the nature of the incarnations transcended by him." [OSIS]

"Every person, whatever his grade in the Order, has also a 'natural' grade appropriate to his intrinsic virtue. He may expect to be 'cast out into that grade when he becomes 8=3. Thus one may, throughout his career, may be essentially of the type of Netzach; another, of Hod. In the same way Rembrandt and Raphael retained their respective points of view in all stages of their art."
[MT&P, Cap. VII, Sec. 5.]


MISC.

Magisteri shall be addressed as S.'.H.'. (Supremely Honored) Frater/Soror. (NOTE: This was a later development. The original designation was G.'.R.'. (Greatly Revered) Frater/Soror.)

"10 reflects 3" [NW Ms.]. That is, the Neophyte Grade (1=10) is a reflection, on a lower level, of the Magister Templi Grade (8=3).

"All members of the Order are in possession of the Word of the existing Aeon, and govern themselves thereby." [OSIS]

"They are entitled to communicate directly with any and every member of the Order, as they may deem fitting." [OSIS]

"Members of the Order are each entitled to found Orders dependent on themselves on the lines of the R.C. and G.D. orders, to cover types of emancipation and illumination not contemplated by the original (or main) system. All such orders must, however, be constituted in harmony with the A.'.A.'. as regards the essential principles." [OSIS]


THE OATH

(Oath taken by Him that was to become To Mega Therion on His initiation to the grade of Master of the Temple.)

I. I, ___________, a member of the Body of God, hereby bind myself on behalf of the Whole Universe, even as we are now physically bound unto the cross of suffering:
II. that I will lead a pure life, as a devoted servant of the Order:
III. that I will understand all things:
IV. that I will love all things:
V. that I will perform all things and endure all things:
VI. that I will continue in the Knowledge and Conversation of my Holy Guardian Angel
VII. that I will work without attachment
VIII. that I will work in truth:
IX. that I will rely only upon myself:
X. that I will interpret every phenomenon as a particular dealing of God with my soul.
And if I fail herein, may my pyramid be profaned, and the Eye closed to me.


REMARKS

"And by the power of this transcendent faculty [Sammasati, "constant recollection and keeping in mind of holy things" – grade of Adeptus Exemptus], rising through the Eight High Trances to the very threshold of Nirvana, he at last, in the Trance called Nirodha Samapatti, attains, even in this life, to the Deathless Shore of Nirvana, by the power of Sammasamadhi, Right Concentration. Such a one has finished the path – he has destroyed the cause of all his chain of lives, and has become Arahan, a Saint, a Buddha himself." (Science & Buddhism)

Actually, there is a difference between attainment of Arahan or Arhat (supreme attainment in Small Vehicle or Hinayana - Theravada Buddhism) and Buddhahood (ultimate attainment in Great Vehicle or Mahayana and/or Diamond Vehicle or Vajrayana Buddhism).

In Hinayana, aspirants "only" free themselves and are not willing to give up their attainment for the wellbeing of others so they are called 'solitary practitioners' or 'the hearers' (sravakas in Sanskrit). After quitting the present body, they attain their Pure land (spiritual plane above material ones) but not the highest Pure lands. Those are attained only by the Buddhas, not Arahats.

Theravada or Small Vehicle is also called Sutrayana or Sutra Vehicle because practitioners of this path depend primarily on Sutras or scriptures. It is said that it takes long eons to attain final freedom that way.

Vajrayana or the Diamond vehicle is also called Mantrayana because practitioners on this path depend on the Tantric approach. It is said that the final Buddhahood is attainable in the present body and one life on the path of Tantra, Anuttarayoga Tantra.

Crowley had no access to these advanced and secret teachings (Vajrayana), it seems.

Also, the attainment of nirodha-samapatti is NOT equal to Buddhahood. One does not attain the final emancipation by experiencing this state. Anagamis and Arhats attain it, but that attainment is just a step on the Path, not the end of the Path.

Buddhahood is the dynamic stage, not a trance where everything, including awareness itself, turns off as is the case with nirodha-samapatti. 



"…it's true that as 8=3 one gets a sort of look round at the Supernal Triad, but it can only be a glimpse." [Crowley letter to C.S. Jones, 1916]

[Following a commentary on "The Ordeal of Ida Pendragon":] This story marks a stage in my own understanding of the formula of initiation. I began to see that one might become a Master of the Temple without necessarily knowing any technical Magick or mysticism at all. It is merely a matter of convenience to be able to represent any expression as x + y = 0. The equation may be solved without words. Many people may go through the ordeals and attain the degrees of the A.'.A.'. without ever hearing that such an Order exists. The universe is, in fact, busy with nothing else, for the relation of the Order to it is that of the man of science to his subject. He writes CaCl2 + H2SO4 = CaSO4 + 2HCl for his own convenience and that of others, but the operation was always in progress independently." [Confessions, p. 68]

“In The Vision and the Voice, the attainment of the grade of Master of the Temple was symbolized by the adept pouring every drop of his blood, that is his whole individual life, into the Cup of the Scarlet Woman, who represents Universal Impersonal Life. There remains therefore (to pursue the imagery) of the adept 'nothing but a little pile of dust'. In a subsequent vision the Grade of Magus is foreshadowed; and the figure is that this dust is burnt into 'a white ash', which ash is preserved in an Urn. It is difficult to convey the appropriateness of this symbolism, but the general idea is that the earthly or receptive part of the Master is destroyed. That which remains has passed through fire; and is therefore, in a sense, of the nature of fire. The Urn is engraved with a word or symbol expressive of the nature of the being whose ash is therein. The Magus is thus, of course, not a person in any ordinary sense; he represents a certain nature of idea. To put it otherwise, we may say, the Magus is a word. He is the Logos of the Aeon which he brings to pass." [Confessions, Cap. 81]

From "The Temple of Solomon the King," EQUINOX I:10:

"…There had been a bar to the progress of Frater Perdurabo, a dualism in his conception of the Cosmos. He had not fully understood that the Universe was One, that one might in very truth eat and drink to the glory of God. He knew that by eating and drinking one did not necessarily detract from the glory of God, but had not fully understood the sacramentalism of the simplest actions…. He had still the old illusion that to succeed on one plane you must fail on another; still thought the mind more than the body, the soul more than the mind; did not see that these three must be one in exactly the same sense as the Christian Trinity (as understood by the truest Christians) is One. It was in the course of this illumination that the Truth was ceremonially conveyed to him on the Magical plane, although it was not for three years later that it fully illuminated his mind.

"This illusion, of which it is here spoken, is a most necessary step for the beginner, because to the beginner his ordinary life is not a sacrament. To him things are really common and unclean. He must, therefore, cut them out of his life, and hence to him the name of the Path of Renunciation. But to him who would be a Master of the Temple, the reverse applies. He wishes to remain perpetually in Samadhi, and it is therefore his renunciation to descend further and further into matter. He has volatilized the fixed; now he must fix the volatile. He has ascended from his particular body to the Universal Soul. That Universal Soul must now incarnate itself ever more completely in that body, and in the bodies and minds of all men. He has made his darkness light; that light must illuminate the darkness of all…."

"…it is necessary to emphasize the very peculiar nature of the attainment of this grade. In all previous grades the nature of the Initiation has been light through darkness. In this it is darkness through light. The word of the Adept was L V X, Light. The word of the Master of the Temple is N O X, Night. This is the Night of Pan. The direction of the Path is definitely changed. The Master of the Temple cannot go to the Magus unless bringing the Neophyte himself in his hand, and in this task there is no consolation, as there has always been before. The visions are no more. Silence and stillness and darkness rule the grade. The Adept has throughout his progress been unifying himself. As it is written in Liber CCCXXXIII, Chapter III, the Brothers of A.'.A.'. are women; the Aspirants to A.'.A.'. are men. The Master of the Temple has given birth to a child, which child appears as an Adept among men. But that which was the Adept is but a little pile of dust. Samadhi has been attained once and for all. The process is complete and permanent. The Great Work is accomplished. The new Great Work is proclaimed. He has finished with Solve. He must begin Coagula…."

"…The Master of the Temple is not only the dust in the Pyramid, and the Blood in the Cup, but he is also that which was cast down through the Abyss into the Heaven of Jupiter. The brain reels before such a conception. And the human brain of the Master of the Temple is but little more fitted to understand this in his life as a man than if he had never entered the Path at all. For the Ego has been totally destroyed, and he has nothing wherewith to bind together these things. He is not any of these things, for there is no He. Those things are. And of the results of this, and of how it may bear upon the question of his advancement to the Grade of Magus, who can say? It is not the Master of the Temple even who could answer such a question. For, in relation to his advancement, he is but that little pile of dust which is to burn up, and from which shall be prepared a white ash by Hermes the Invisible. And in relation to his true life, it is mixed with the blood of all his fellows in the Cup of BABALON. And in relation to his body and mind he is but a vehicle of the forces that are beyond the Abyss. He will therefore speak, but as a man among men, of that which he has seen and heard. But he will claim no authority. He will not proclaim dogma. For all that in him from which such things proceed is no more. He will remain in the darkness of the City of Pyramids under the Night of Pan, sitting silent through 106 seasons, the name of every one of which is Death, ever seeking to make his understanding perfect, until the time comes for him to seek that yet more fearful ordeal which must evidently be involved in the attainment of the Grade of Magus…."


THE EIGHT HIGH TRANCES
(NOTE FWIW: The current Praemonstrator of the A.'.A.'., signing himself in his 7=4 identity, wrote that the formal work of the 8=3 includes working the Eight High Trances. - JAE)

Well, the teachings on the Eight trances or Jhanas belong to Small Vehicle or Theravada Buddhism (see my remarks above). 
You can find more info on Eight states here >>
Tedious path, in my experience. It also takes or may take a long time. Tantric path or Anuttarayoga Tantra from Vajrayana Buddhism is quicker and may lead to final emancipation in the present life and this current body.

Of course, the teachings on Dzogchen or Mahamudra or Ati yoga map the path of instant and permanent awakening.

Again, it is obvious that Master Therion had no knowledge of these advanced practices, regretfully.




October 7, 2016

City of pyramids



Not a physical or mental place, it is outside of space and time, far above the most subtle and sublime barking of well-trained dogs of reason, light years away from personal projections of emotional needs and yet immanent and so very close.

Separated from direct perception (samadhi) only by misplaced attention, intention, and skewed perception.

Never ever attainable (or better yet: realized as already realized) by Knowledge and way beyond the science of futile canine exploration.

Free from mental, emotional, energy, and physical forms - completely transpersonal.

Complete openness and giving, giving, giving.

Pure Understanding of everything as it always was, is, and will be.

Unlimited gentle and compassionate support from Her, who is non-dual with all the Pyramids.

Once realized forever remaining inseparable part of.

Sharing the power, presence, and wisdom with all the Pyramids herein.





September 28, 2016

The Oath of the Abyss



“ I (motto, titles, etc.), a member of the Body of God,
hereby bind myself on behalf of the whole Universe,
even as we are now physically bound unto the cross of suffering:
- that I will lead a pure life, as a devoted servant of the Order:
- that I will understand all things:
- that I will love all things:
- that I will perform all things and endure all things:
- that I will continue in the Knowledge and Conversation of My Holy Guardian Angel,
- that I will work without attachment:
- that I will work in truth:
- that I will rely only upon myself:
- that I will interpret every phenomenon as a particular dealing of God with my soul.

And if I fail herein, may my pyramid be profaned, and the Eye be closed upon me!”

- published in John St. John



I'd like to share a few thoughts on the subject of the Oath of the Abyss and the crossing itself. Needless to say, these are my subjective thoughts, relative and impermanent. Let us say that this is alive in me at the moment:

I was surprised to learn (from FB of all places) that individuals are taking the above-shared Oath without even attaining the K&C of the HGA.

Ehm, excuse me? Well, on my planet that is like deciding to swim across the Pacific ocean without even knowing how to swim.

On the intellectual level, loving all things, working in truth, leading a pure life, etc., all these things sound rather cool, don't they. There is no way, however, that these elements of the Oath can be put into practice without certain realizations.

One can try and think (or read)  oneself right to death, to no avail. Dogs of reason can bark in any which direction, it will amount to exactly nothing.

There really is a reason why the grades are set up as they are. You really really need to not only attain but to firmly stabilize at the Chesed long before you even think of moving on.
In the A.A. scheme of things, this translates to a 7=4 grade.

In practical terms that means you really ARE a happy individual here on this Earth, healthy, knowing, and easily executing your Will, having no burning issues in everyday life, and certainly not rebelling anymore against Father and/or Mother authority (in all shapes and forms).

You easily deal with your own emotions, face your truth without deceiving yourself.

And these are not some empty words. There is a reason one has to deal with his personal stuff first. And after having dealt with (what is perceived as) the inner limiting tendencies and outer oppressions, the progress has to be actualized here and now, in everyday life. Success is the proof, right?

When we drink up and consume all the fancy philosophy, when the magic and mystic stuff has been all freshed out and when we empty the psychology too, we always come down to one single remaining thing: physical brain and nervous systems.

And there is noooooooooooooo way your (or mine) nervous systems and brain can handle pure transpersonal vibrations and energies of the reality above the Abyss when you (or me) still have personal issues in life and when you (or me) (try to) handle emotions and suffering (your/my own and that of other sentient beings) with intellect or even not at all.

The above-shared Oath of the Abyss is a perfect description of someone who has already crossed the Abyss.

And taking the Oath prematurely amounts to insisting on celibacy while still craving sex. It is gonna be a rough ride indeed.

The real celibate or Brahmachari is not someone who denies or forces himself, but someone who has attained higher taste, and that's why he has no interest in anything else - not with hard work and effort but with ease.

So, following this line of thought right through, the  "...I will interpret every phenomenon as a particular dealing of God with my soul" notion can not be really put into practice by merely taking the Oath, but by crossing the Abyss and breathing the freshness in the air thereof.

Thank you for your time.

:)







September 12, 2016

She



"...She may be the beauty or the beast
May be the famine or the feast
May turn each day into a Heaven or a Hell
She may be the mirror of my dream
A smile reflected in a stream...

...She, who always seems so happy on her own
Whose eyes can be so private and so proud
No one's allowed to see them when they cry

She may be the love that cannot hope to last
May come to me from shadows of the past
That I'll remember 'till the day I die

She may be the reason I survive
The why and wherefore I'm alive
The one I'll care for through the rough and ready years

Me, I'll take her laughter and her tears
And make them all my souvenirs
For where she goes I've got to be
The meaning of my life is
She...
She..."



September 2, 2016

After Abyss (III.): total identity collapse

Although inseparable (from a certain point of view), personal and transpersonal or spiritual development is indeed manifested as two distinctive processes:
- growing up (personal growth) and
- waking up (spiritual or transpersonal awakening).

In this blog post, I'd like to elaborate on the latter since the underlying subject in these blogs is states of awareness after crossing the Abyss. I'll present my thoughts on psychological-transpersonal identity development through two attainments: Binah and Chokmah, or Understanding and Wisdom.

Of course, Understanding and Wisdom do not and can not stand alone; they both rely on the Crown, Kether. So, I will submit the concept of "identity collapse" as a very important, if not the most important, experience up here above the Abyss.






Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law


After crossing the Abyss, the identity of an adept is infused by the light so powerful that it looks like darkness. Our holy texts have labeled that light as NOX.

It is, of course, pure Light; it has nothing to do with the darkness of ignorance or anything else below the Abyss.

It is just so far beyond even the reach of the current state of consciousness of an adept that it appears as dark.

Interestingly enough, in the Vedanta teachings, there is a "cover" that dwells above the highest subtle material worlds, and it is dark or black. Yogis who wish to attain liberation must penetrate that dark cover (again, the Brhad Bhagavatamritam by Sanatan Gosvami comes to mind here; an eager adept ought to look into it.).

To attain this not-light or NOX, one has to choose to surrender all that she thinks or feels she is, along with every single spiritual attainment to the Babalon, our Lady, who resides in Binah.

You can find information on some aspects of that surrender in the blog post on Crossing the Abyss, here >>

After the successful crossing of the Abyss, an adept, now Master (of Samadhi, as per One star in sight, see below) promptly identifies with the Mother. Hmm. Maybe the word "identifies" is not precise enough; I think 'notices' or 'becomes aware of' or 'embraces the evident' is more accurate. It is not a question of attainment but a matter of noting what or Who has always been here.

The point I am making here is that the state of awareness attained in Binah is not new; it is not created anew, and therefore, it only has to be noticed. The Mother is always here; our Lady Babalon is forever present, even if some are not yet aware of Her fully.

And the one process, the only one to really become thoroughly identified with Her  (as far as I can see), is to surrender completely to Her. Surrendering here means to surrender everything not by cutting off or renouncing but by embracing everything. In practice, of course, this means opening up and embracing sorrow, too. And this might take a long time.

Consider this: how much suffering has already been experienced by you that has not yet been fully processed (faced with, felt through and through, and thus transformed)? And how much sorrow is present out there?

Well, all of that has to be embraced. And that is a very good thing! The more one opens up, the more inner support one receives!

When the process of surrender is complete, there is nothing left to embrace. There is not even one iota of sorrow (among other things) left to face, to really experience and to feel, and thus integrate into this state of awareness.

Tantric Master Khyentse Rinpoche has put this beautifully:

"The everyday practice is simply to develop a complete acceptance and openness to all situations and emotions, and to all people, experiencing everything totally without mental reservations and blockages, so that one never withdraws or centralizes into oneself.

This produces a tremendous energy which is usually locked up in the process of mental evasion and a general running away from life experiences.

Clarity of awareness, may, in its initial stages, be unpleasant or fear inspiring; if so, then one should open oneself completely to the pain or the fear and welcome it.

In this way the barriers created by one's own habitual emotional reactions and prejudices are broken down. When performing the meditation practice one should develop the feeling of opening oneself completely to the whole universe with absolute simplicity and nakedness of mind, ridding oneself of all protecting barriers.

One should realize that one does not meditate to go deeply into oneself and withdraw from the world. In buddhist yoga, even when meditating on chakras there is no introspection concentration; complete openness of mind is the essential  point."
(Source >>, emphasis mine. Download PDF here >>)


In fact, complete openness to everything, extreme sorrow included, is the natural state of a Master at the level of existence called Binah. And the Lady Herself is just as open, receiving, and lovingly giving Herself to everyone without exception and reservation.

And the Master is one with Her.

In our 'One star in sight', the Magister Templi is described as "...the Master of the Law of Sorrow (Dukkha)." (VI.) and "Master of samadhi." (II.).

An adept, now a Master, has won the dynamic and all-inclusive dance with sorrow or suffering and has integrated everything (including sorrow or suffering) into her consciousness by seeing through it. And one way to do that (in my experience) is through repeatedly entering and re-entering the Absolute Truth via samadhi, thus seeing it clearly.

Heh, it is all just one elaborate joke, watching the world go by from up here, you see. People are raising stormy waves in perfectly calm seas. My Tantric Master used to say: "You are all just playing out your dramas!".

Or, as our Prophet has so eloquently put it: "...The Masters of Truth are the only happy men, though they constantly observe what men stupidly call Sorrow.". (Liber 73).

It is really liberating to see through suffering, very much so. Kind of lonely, though.
But it sure is fun! :)

And yet, one can not stay forever at this level. When the new Master has acquired enough fluidity and integrated the Understanding of other Masters into his (daily) awareness, it is time to move on.


Identity collapse

Above the Abyss, there is no separation, meaning that the newcomer at the City of Pyramids is already aware of both Wisdom and Illumination. Only the focus differs.

And not before long, the focus from being Her, as it were, will shift on to......Him. And only the Mother can show you your Father, for only She really knows who and what He is.

The words lose their meaning right about here, I think. It is difficult to convey these experiences, to be sure. Initiation is a must; mere speculation will not do.

Let us just say that the more focus Master has on herself, the more Love she intends. And the more Love translates to more openness and surrender.

Liber B vel Magi comes to mind here: "And the Magus is Love..." (Liber B, 0).

What starts to happen (at least that's my experience and adepts from the Theravada Path share similar notions) is that the awareness and the Presence of Him/Love manifests more and more into everyday life awareness. According to the Theravada Path of four stages to Enlightenment, this starts to happen at the Anagami stage (third stage).

And the might of this Presence, the Presence of the One/Crown, sooner or later instigates what has in modern transpersonal psychology been dubbed as 'identity collapse'.

Leaving the usual drama and warnings and threats from our Holy books behind, this "collapse" is, at this level, a most joyous event. It is like finally being able to let go of, well, the Identity. And it 'feels' so good!

Our friends in Buddhist tradition call these experiences anatta and sunyata insights.

And the identity that collapses at this level is not the personal one or the ego. No. That was seen through at the K&C of the HGA attainment. And it is not even the HGA-infused identity. No. That was left behind in the process of crossing the Abyss.

The identity collapse here "collapses" the identity of being Her and/or Him.

Beyond personal identity, beyond the identity of a soul, and even beyond the identity of the One (emanated as Father and Mother, Wisdom and Understanding, Bliss and Emptiness, Light and Dark and manifested as the One Child, Heruraha, Baphomet or any other "entity") - beyond all of that, there is that which is formless. 

Formless here translates to essence-less-ness, emptiness or sunyata, and anatta or anatman (not-self).



One way of putting this:

"The very meaning of the 'Mahamudra - Great Perfection', refers to the true primordial state of every individual and not to any transcendent reality."
— Chogyal Namkhai Norbu

These experiences are so abstract that words convey not nearly enough!

From the practical side of things, the collapse discussed herein contributes to a really deep sense of peace (as no one is here to disturb the peace), clarity of perception, and freedom of expression or activity in a variety of ways.

Of course, even these experiences at this level do not last long, for there is an even deeper and more liberating neutral and natural Reality to be attained.....

......and here we must embark on the path that leads to Illumination through the state of consciousness called nirodha samapatti.

In Liber AL (III-67) this event is described as "the fourth ordeal" (emphasis mine, source >>):

"Through the fourth, ultimate sparks of the intimate fire."

"Beyond the one, how shall he pass on? What is this One, which is in every place the Centre of All? Indeed the logic-girders of our souls need lightening, if we would win to freedom of such Truth as this!

Now in the 'stones of precious water' the Light leapt clear indeed, but they were not themselves that Light. This sphere of the One is indeed Ra-Hoor-Khuit; is not our Crowned and Conquering Child the source of Light? Nay, he is finite form of Unity, child of two married infinities; and in this last ordeal the aspirant must go beyond even his Star, finding therein the core thereof Hadit, and losing it also in the Body of Nuit.

Here is no Path that he may tread, for all is equally everywhere; nor is there any sphere to attain, for measure is now no more.

There are no words to make known the Way;
 this only is said, that to him that hath passed through this fourth ordeal this Book is as 'ultimate sparks'. No more do they reflect or transmit the Light; they themselves are the original, the not-to-be-analysed Light, of the 'intimate fire' of Hadit! He shall see the Book as it is, as a shower of the Seed of the Stars!"



Love is the law, love under will.



More on this subject in the forthcoming commentary to Liber B vel Magi.

Check out also The Oath of the Abyss here >>

All blogs on the subject of Reality above Abyss, The after Abyss blogs >>







August 26, 2016

Love and Death



"LISTEN AGAIN to thine own voice within thee. Is not Hadit the flame that burns in every heart of man, and in the core of every star? Is not He Life, and the giver of Life? And is not therefore the knowledge of Him the knowledge of Death? For it hath been shown unto thee in many other places how Death and Love be twins.

Now art thou the hunter, and Death rideth beside thee with his horse and spear as thou chasest thy Will through the forests of Eternity, whose trees are the hair of Nuit thy mistress! Thrill with the joy of life and death! Know, hunter mighty and swift, the quarry turns to bay! Thou hast but to make one sharp thrust, and thou hast won.

The Virgin of Eternity lies supine at thy mercy, and thou art Pan! Thy death shall be the seal of the promise of our agelong love. Hast thou not striven to the inmost in thee? Death is the crown of all. Harden! Hold up thyself! Lift thine head! breathe not so deep—die!"
- Liber CVI (II.)




.

August 16, 2016

One Star in Sight

One Star in Sight, parts 3 - 8:

3. The Order of the S. S. is composed of those who have crossed the Abyss; the implications of this expression may be studied in Liber 418, the 14th, 13th, 12th, 11th, 10th, and 9th Aethyrs in particular.

All members of the Order are in full possession of the Formulae of Attainment, both mystical or inwardly-directed and Magical or outwardly-directed. They have full experience of attainment in both these paths.

They are all, however, bound by the original and fundamental Oath of the Order, to devote their energy to assisting the Progress of their Inferiors in the Order. Those who accept the rewards of their emancipation for themselves are no longer within the Order.

Members of the Order are each entitled to found Orders dependent on themselves on the lines of the R. C. and G. D. orders, to cover types of emancipation and illumination not contemplated by the original (or main) system. All such orders must, however, be constituted in harmony with the A∴A∴ as regards the essential principles.

All members of the Order are in possession of the Word of the existing Aeon, and govern themselves thereby.

They are entitled to communicate directly with any and every member of the Order, as they may deem fitting.

Every active Member of the Order has destroyed all that He is and all that he has on crossing the Abyss; but a star is cast forth in the Heavens to enlighten the Earth, so that he may possess a vehicle wherein he may communicate with mankind. The quality and position of this star, and its functions, are determined by the nature of the incarnations transcended by him.

4. The Grade of Ipsissimus is not to be described fully; but its opening is indicated in Liber I vel Magi.

There is also an account in a certain secret document to be published when propriety permits. Here it is only said this: The Ipsissimus is wholly free from all limitations soever, existing in the nature of all things without discriminations of quantity or quality between them. He has identified Being and not-Being and Becoming, action and non-action and tendency to action, with all other such triplicities, not distinguishing between them in respect of any conditions, or between any one thing and any other thing as to whether it is with or without conditions.

He is sworn to accept this Grade in the presence of a witness, and to express its nature in word and deed, but to withdraw Himself at once within the veils of his natural manifestation as a man, and to keep silence during his human life as to the fact of his attainment, even to the other members of the Order.

The Ipsissimus is pre-eminently the Master of all modes of existence; that is, his being is entirely free from internal or external necessity. His work is to destroy all tendencies to construct or to cancel such necessities. He is the Master of the Law of Unsubstantiality (Anatta).

The Ipsissimus has no relation as such with any Being: He has no will in any direction, and no Consciousness of any kind involving duality, for in Him all is accomplished; as it is written “beyond the Word and the Fool, yea, beyond the Word and the Fool”.

5. The Grade of Magus is described in Liber I vel Magi, and there are accounts of its character in Liber 418 in the Higher Aethyrs.

There is also a full and precise description of the attainment of this Grade in the Magical Record of the Beast 666.

The essential characteristic of the Grade is that its possessor utters a Creative Magical Word, which transforms the planet on which he lives by the installation of new officers to preside over its initiation. This can take place only at an “Equinox of the Gods” at the end of an “Aeon”; that is, when the secret formula which expresses the Law of its action becomes outworn and useless to its further development.

(Thus “Suckling” is the formula of an infant: when teeth appear it marks a new “Aeon”, whose “Word” is “Eating”).

A Magus can therefore only appear as such to the world at intervals of some centuries; accounts of historical Magi, and their Words, are given in Liber Aleph.

This does not mean that only one man can attain this Grade in any one Aeon, so far as the Order is concerned. A man can make personal progress equivalent to that of a “Word of an Aeon”; but he will identify himself with the current word, and exert his will to establish it, lest he conflict with the work of the Magus who uttered the Word of the Aeon in which He is living.

The Magus is pre-eminently the Master of Magick, that is, his will is entirely free from internal diversion or external opposition; His work is to create a new Universe in accordance with His Will. He is the Master of the Law of Change (Anicca).

To attain the Grade of Ipsissimus he must accomplish three tasks, destroying the Three Guardians mentioned in Liber 418, the 3rd Aethyr; Madness, and Falsehood, and Glamour, that is, Duality in Act, Word and Thought.

6. The Grade of Master of the Temple is described in Liber 418 as above indicated. There are full accounts in the Magical Diaries of the Beast 666, who was cast forth into the Heaven of Jupiter, and of Omnia in Uno, Unus in Omnibus, who was cast forth into the sphere of the Elements.

The essential Attainment is the perfect annihilation of that personality which limits and oppresses his true self.

The Magister Templi is pre-eminently the Master of Mysticism, that is, His Understanding is entirely free from internal contradiction or external obscurity; His word is to comprehend the existing Universe in accordance with His own Mind. He is the Master of the Law of Sorrow (Dukkha).

To attain the grade of Magus he must accomplish Three 235} Tasks; the renunciation of His enjoyment of the Infinite so that he may formulate Himself as the Finite; the acquisition of the practical secrets alike of initiating and governing His proposed new Universe and the identification of himself with the impersonal idea of Love. Any neophyte of the Order (or, as some say, any person soever) possesses the right to claim the Grade of Master of the Temple by taking the Oath of the Grade. It is hardly necessary to observe that to do so is the most sublime and awful responsibility which it is possible to assume, and an unworthy person who does so incurs the most terrific penalties by his presumption.

7. The Order of the R. C. The Grade of the Babe of the Abyss is not a Grade in the proper sense, being rather a passage between the two Orders. Its characteristics are wholly negative, as it is attained by the resolve of the Adeptus Exemptus to surrender all that he has and is for ever. It is an annihilation of all the bonds that compose the self or constitute the Cosmos, a resolution of all complexities into their elements, and these thereby cease to manifest, since things are only knowable in respect of their relation to, and reaction on, other things.

8. The Grade of Adeptus Exemptus confers authority to govern the two lower Orders of R. C. and G. D.

The Adept must prepare and publish a thesis setting forth His knowledge of the Universe, and his proposals for its welfare and progress. He will thus be known as the leader of a school of thought.

(Eliphas Levi's Clef des Grands Mysteres, the works of Swedenborg, von Eckarshausen, Robert Fludd, Paracelsus, Newton, Bolyai, Hinton, Berkeley, Loyola, etc., etc., are examples of such essays.)

He will have attained all but the supreme summits of meditation, and should be already prepared to perceive that the only possible course for him is to devote himself utterly to helping his fellow creatures.

To attain the Grade of Magister Templi, he must perform two tasks; the emancipation from thought by putting each idea against its opposite, and refusing to prefer either; and the consecration of himself as a pure vehicle for the influence of the order to which he aspires.

He must then decide upon the critical adventure of our Order; the absolute abandonment of himself and his attainments. He cannot remain indefinitely an Exempt Adept; he is pushed onward by the irresistible momentum that he has generated.

Should he fail, by will or weakness, to make his self-annihilation absolute, he is none the less thrust forth into the Abyss; but instead of being received and reconstructed in the Third Order, as a Babe in the womb of our Lady BABALON, under the Night of Pan, to grow up to be Himself wholly and truly as He was not previously, he remains in the Abyss, secreting his elements round his Ego as if isolated from the Universe, and becomes what is called a “Black Brother”. Such a being is gradually disintegrated from lack of nourishment and the slow but certain action of the attraction of the rest of the Universe, despite efforts to insulate and protect himself, and to aggrandise himself by predatory practices. He may indeed prosper for a while, but in the end he must perish, especially when with a new Aeon a new word is proclaimed which he cannot and will not hear, so that he is handicapped by trying to use an obsolete method of Magick, like a man with a boomerang in a battle where every one else has a rifle.



____________________

Full text >>

August 12, 2016

The Will - old and new

Ra-Hoor-Khuit
The basic notion of The Book of the Law and of the Thelema in general is all but new and fresh.

The notion I am talking about is:
"Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law."

The similar notion is old news in Tantric tradition, dating many hundreds of years back if not more. It is called Svecchachara in Sanskrit.

My point is that executing ones innermost Will is essential to the spiritual awakening and it has been for ever. Nothing new about it.

Avadhuta Upanishad is closed by these words:

"Sveccha means one's own wish or free will. Svecchachara means a way of life where one acts as one wishes and does what is right in one's own eyes. Doing one's own Will. The concluding Sanskrit expression in the Avadhoota Upanishad is "Svecchachara Paro."The term "Paro" means a mysterious or secret pattern to that action done by one's own Will. In other words, we do our Will but with discretion, not making it too obvious, nor to harm or hurt other people. Yet this is also a typical Nathism; a complete reversal of Vedic morals and philosophy."

"The Will" is also mentioned in the Yoni Tantra, one of the most influential texts in Tantra.

This Sanskrit word Svecchachara means a spiritual state in which an individual may act according to her or his own will. As she or he is Shiva incarnate, there can be no morality, but only freedom from the rules of the pasu or herd-person
who is fettered by the mind.

"One may be like a child, a madman, a king, like one in a swoon, like an independent spirit, like a Lord Hero, a Gandharva, a naked person, a Tridandin or like one teaching knowledge for gain. The way to be is to act however one wills."
(Kaulajn ananirpaya, Patala 8)

Kaulajn ananirpaya is an ancient tantric text, dating back to 9th century - more than a thousand years old.

That said, there is a will and there is the Will.

And the Will I am talking about here is the so called adesh, the will of God/Goddess/HGA. When it is attained, outer masks and human roles in life just don't matter anymore. The Inner becomes the only source for inspiration, action and passion for Life. The little candle in human heart becomes equal to the glorious stars, never pretending to be more than just a candle, completely embracing its full potential and claiming Divine inheritance.

What is new, however, is explicit focus on the individuality or the crowned child-ship of God, as it were. It is the focus of the Horus Eon, as per Liber Al: personal and transpersonal freedom from social, cultural, educational and other systems and also from both the Mother and the Father (Goddess and God form).

Therefore:

"There is no law beyond Do what thou wilt" - Ra-Hoor-Khuit
Liber AL III:60




August 11, 2016

Thou art That




“Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.” 


"Thou must (1) Find out what is thy Will. (2) Do that Will with a) one-pointedness, (b) detachment, (c) peace.

Then, and then only, art thou in harmony with the Movement of Things, thy will part of, and therefore equal to, the Will of God. And since the will is but the dynamic aspect of the self, and since two different selves could not possess identical wills; then, if thy will be God's will, Thou art That."
Liber II,
The Message of The Master Therion
Art by Thelema deviantart >>


"Love is the Law, love under will."

August 9, 2016

Goetia evocation: be careful

Goetia evocations and work with Goetia spirits (Paimon, Dantalion, Sair, Sitri, etc.) have served me on many levels.

During most of these operations, I was stabilizing the awareness at Geburah, dealing with a broad spectrum of previously unknown pieces of "shadow" (if I use the Jungian term).

The "Qliphoth" or the "dark side" of stages on the Tree of Life had to be faced, felt, and released.

And Goetia spirits lent their hands big time. The learning was intense and yet rewarding.

The Luciferian Goetia (p. 9) shares:
"The Goetia as it is a tool of  darkness; it is also a tool of strengthening the self – one of fiery light."

A warning

It may seem easy when you read reports on these operations, but that might not be the case.

You have to be careful when dealing with the Goetia spirits. Of course, if your initiation level is above Tiphareth (i.e., 5=6 in A.’.A.’. or higher), things get easier. If not, do get ready before you evoke Sitri to get that sexy girl laid.

You might not be ready when:
* You still ask what are the basic magic rituals.
* You question the strength of your circle.
* You cannot sense your circle or communicate with the entities.
* You are afraid of darkness and demons.
* You have little to no idea on how to astrally protect yourself.
*You have yet to achieve Deity assumption or Knowledge and Conversation of HGA (or mantra siddhi in Tantric terminology); that will help you considerably, especially concerning Goetic evocation or any other evocation of what could be called demons.

Read the whole post on the basics of Solomonic evocations at Studio Arcanis Forum, here >> (when the website is up and running).

You might also want to listen to the podcast on Creating Effective Magical Invocation, from Speach in the Silence, here >>


On the other hand...

Of course, things are not so gloomy, far from it.

If your state of consciousness is just "right", even the Goetia or Grimorium Verum spirits are easy to work with.

Good luck with your evocations!
:)


August 7, 2016

A.’.A.’. beyond human structures


I share these words of one of the S.’.S.’. Adepts, Grady McMurtry, with the intention of contributing to the clarity of this one fact:
A.’.A.’. Order is beyond political and personal human projections, hopes and dreams. Only inner and intimate transpersonal realizations can link one with this one Inner Order, no outside authority can do that.


"...I am Ra-Hoor-Khuit; and I am powerful to protect my servant. 
Success is thy proof: argue not; convert not; talk not over much!..."
Liber AL, III:42


Here we go:


A.’.A.’. or,
WHO HAS THE RIGHT TO THE STAR ?

Over the past several years there have been a number of attempts to politicize A.’. A.’. . Most of these have either taken the form of public advertising or private pressure tactics. It seems an opportune time to make a few statements on the nature of this great order.

First of all, just who is a member of A.’. A.’.? In as much as this is an Inner Order, there can be only one person who can answer such a question in a particular case the claimant herself. When someone tells me that he or she (“she" is the traditional pronoun in this instance-for either a Frater or a Soror) is a member of A.’. A.’., I believe it. I also often wonder what business it is of mine. A.’. A.’. is not a school of outer initiation, like O.T.O. in some of its aspects.

A.’. A.’. is a body of individuals who have attained particular grades of self-initiation in accordance with particular standards. Those standards are described by Crowley in "One Star in Sight" and in Liber CLXXXV. Some persons have direct lineage from Crowley as proctors for A.’. A.’. work. The basic texts are all in print. Anyone of sufficient judgment and intelligence can apply themselves diligently to the Great Work along this course. An Inner Order should be free from politics.

Grady McMurtry
If an aspirant to A.’. A.’. would enter one of the several surviving direct lines of instruction, they can be found only through great effort. One of these is operative through O.T.O. valid through special provisions in Crowley's letters and through magical sign. Another line is operative through Soror M, with valid CLXXXV lineage only. A reconstruction is to be had from Fr. A, based on personal attainment. Another Fr. A. looms near with whispered rumors of CLXXXV lineage. Fr. P. has representation in the American South and East Coast, but a propensity to make more of his papers than wood-pulp ever saw. Another Frater P. has declared that A.’. A.’. is now replaced by the Bavarian Illuminati - and his claim is not to be laughed out of consideration for all the oddness of it. These are only a few of many.

So, what is to be made of this? Will a claimant come forth with court decision and papers of authorization, as has actually happened with C.T.O.? Will the matter at last be laid to rest? Not that way! O.T.O. is an Outer Order. Its governance is public knowledge, subject to legal proof. A.’. A.’. is an Inner Order. The Law of Man has no dominion.

Crowley deliberately designed A.’.A.’. on the cell system, modified for one-on-one communication. Division of branches is therefore inevitable on the death of the Frater or Soror linking particular series of members. One of the obligations for advanced members is the establishment of independent systems, religions and orders.

The Outer Grade recognition ends for all major purposes at Tiphareth. Beyond Tiphareth the advancement is by the Knowledge and Conversation of the Angel. The Inner Head of A.’. A.’. is not in the ordinary sense a corporeal being. Who is a Magister Templi? That person who can do the work of the Grade. It makes no difference whether her Oath is witnessed by Therion or by the Neteru. The Grade itself is as real as the blast that tore Jack Parsons from the world of men. To argue mightily that one is of such a grade is as near as may be to proving that one is not! One may simply say it by the way. One may not even mention it at all.

To set one claim to A.’. A.’. against another is to fight as brothers -- political exercise. But, the Brothers of A.’. A.’. are Sisters! Be done with politics at the sanctuary of NU!

There are many people in the world who have attained. In like manner, there are many who have not attained, but who have prepared. For some, one trail leads to the Star. For others another path. Let those who would take to the narrow road that widens in the Empyrean prepare themselves by discipline and diligence. The voice of the dove will be heard. The Angel will come in the right time.

What to take until the Angel arrives? A good look at "One Star in Sight." Call in the redness of the morning.

From the O.T.O. Newsletter, Berkeley, California Vol. II, #7&8 [Double Issue] Winter-Spring, May 1979, pgs. 104-105:



Source: Frater Orpheus >>

Ra-hoor-khuit at a glance


I came across this article and it certainly merits to be reposted here. The author beautifully elaborates on the subject.

Hete we go:


Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.

The last public talk in Toronto was on the Horus archetype, as (according to my understanding), it’s presented in the Third Chapter Book of the Law. The following is a segment from the talk.

Chapter III, v. 46, says: “Success is your proof; courage is your armour; go on, go on, in my strength, and turn not back for any.”
Attention should go forward, outward. Life is projective. We can use whatever means are effective. “Lurk! Withdraw! Upon them!” as III, 9 puts it, adding, “This is the Law of the Battle of Conquest; thus shall my worship be about my secret house.”

So, are we advocating fascistic militarism? Well, if you insist, and some people do so.
But there are a couple of problems with this approach. The biggest, to my mind, is the entire first chapter, where Nuit is hailed as “the continuous one of heaven.” Each chapter does not cancel out the next: they are cumulative, and the paradoxes that pile up aren’t contradictions, but parts of the whole message. The parents are present in the child, not exorcised from Him.

The dynamic spiritual essence of Horus is not slaying outer enemies, but rather the illusions of separateness: the “division hither homeward” of III, v. 2, v. Our Chapter III warns, speaking of the stages of ordeal involved in our progress, “Yet to all it shall seem beautiful. Its enemies who say not so, are mere liars.”

Life itself – and we can look solely at biology here – is dynamic. Any crack in the concrete can nurture a seed; bugs reproduce profusely. Even with the diminishing natural habitat we’re producing, it’s likely that new species are emerging all the time.

The mind, with its divisions and internal lockings-up, its emotional log-jams, is anti-life, or anti-Will. Release from those divisions frees up Will. Psychologically, we project our dislikes, disgusts and endless assorted anxieties onto other people and other races and places, and we invest vast amounts of energy in hating and resenting them. Temple work as we know it in my tradition is very much about learning to watch for all that stuff: to monitor it, and learn to step back.

The shift from the past Aeon, that of Jesus/Osiris, is that the individual is much more responsible for him or herself, and is obliged to become one of the lords of the earth as a consequence. The enemies we are to slay, the things we are to conquer and to subdue, are not the other parts of the continuum. To quote an ancient sage:
“We have seen the enemy, and they is us.”

Sure, we aren’t meant to sit back at the spectacle of bigoted politicians or angry people of any stripe. But first, we do need to get to the point that we can grasp that each of us is one nexus-point in the continuum, not an isolated mind amid darkness and chaos. The realization of that, the full, conscious appreciation of it, is Horus as Ra-Hoor-Khuit. It’s dharana, mindfulness, full embrace of now. Be here now, or perhaps we should say: Be forever in the act of arriving. Crowley calls Horus “the eternal borning child,” since it is a characteristic of a young child to be constantly energised and curious.
A child is entirely focused on its own needs, and moves immediately to satisfy them. Our “Child” is a warrior lord, and his needs, or willed intents, are broader than those of a human infant. He’s here to push the game much farther than it’s ever reached before.

Otherwise, all gods – and he provides a short list of the most popular ones in III, vv 51-53 – are inadequate any more to express the reality into which we are moving. Sure, we might work with them along the way in our magical invocations, but we recognise each is now only yet one more manifestation of a total Divinity summed up, in this time, in the being of hawk-eyed Horus.

Just as realisation in the last Aeon was via the archetype of the dying god, and identification with him, realization in this Aeon requires us to accept the majesty and power that Horus represents. He, as the “visible object of worship” is the necessary form for the full embodiment of the god-self in each of us: the star that is every man and every woman, as the third verse of our whole Book says.
It’s not that you can’t progress using other symbols and other means, but you’re going to be off-track, our-of-synch, prone to missing the cosmic bus, if you can’t come to accept that. Each of us will discover a particular identity and reality for that star that we are, but RHK is the template, the indicative pattern, to follow.

Love is the law, love under will


By Edward Mason, source >>