Copenhagen Qabalah

I am sharing this for two reasons. First, because I want to make a record of the website archive link so I don't have to look it up every time I want to refer back to it, and second, because the material here had a lot of influence on the original magical practices that we developed for the magical working group. The website in question is Copenhagen Qabalah, which if you never heard of it or never saw it when it was up you should at least check it out. The site went down a while ago, but I managed to find the archive link that is included above. So I'm posting it here for reference.

In particular, the Copenhagen material had a lot of influence on how we did pathworking, which was one of the earliest practices that we did as a group. That in turn influenced how the "Rites of Approach" in my Path of Initiation articles work along with material from the Aurum Solis, Golden Dawn, and other practitioners. While I don't necessarily agree with every point on the site, I think if you compare it with what I have presented here on Augoeides it should be easy to track the various influences.

I posted our basic pathworking methodology here and here. What the Copenhagen material adds is the basic structure of the entire operation, in which you start at the bottom of the Tree of Life and work upwards. The sephiroth are visualized as "temples" containing the various aspects with which they are associated, and the paths are visualized as outdoor "landscapes" made up of elements from the corresponding Tarot card. To get to a path, you always begin in your "Temple of Malkuth" and navigate through the paths and sephiroth to get to your destination.

This practice (1) develops the body of light, (2) prepares you for more involved work with the "travel in the spirit vision" method employed by the original Golden Dawn and its successors, and (3) builds up a comprehensive "astral temple" that you can use for all sorts of operations that don't require an elaborate physical temple space. Using the operant field with this technique also allows you to do practical workings on the astral that will propagate effectively to the material plane. Microcosmically, it aligns the Tree of Life with your aura or field of consciousness, another key practice involving Magical Qabalah.

So this is a great resource for any aspiring modern magician working with the Golden Dawn or Thelemic system. I and my working group got a lot out of it, and I expect if you work with it your results will be good as well.

Via Solis Aries Elixir Rite - Year Three

Today's Magick Monday post is a full script for the Aries Elixir Rite that we will be performing tomorrow, Tuesday April 16th, at Leaping Laughter Oasis, our local Twin Cities body of Ordo Templi Orientis. We will continue the momentum of the last two years by performing one of these per month for each of the twelve signs. The script is mostly the same as last year, with one small tweak to the elixir charging section. Like before I will be posting the full scripts here on the preceding Mondays so people can take a look at them if they want to attend. Also, if you are in the Twin Cities (Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota) and would like to attend, let me or someone at the oasis know. This is a public ritual and all are welcome.

0. The Temple

The ritual space is set up with an altar table in the center. The bell chime, banishing dagger, and invoking wand are placed on the altar. In the center of the altar is placed a cup of wine for creating the elixir, within the Table of Art corresponding to Aries. Items to be consecrated may be placed on the altar by any of the attendees, as Aries is attributed to the Power of Consecrating Things. This ritual may be performed with one, two, or three officers, who may alternate taking the Officiant role and divide up the reading from Liber 963. The Via Solis Elixir Rites were written by Michele Montserrat in 2010 for the Comselh Ananael magical working group.

I. Opening

All stand surrounding the altar. Officiant inhales fully, placing the banishing dagger at his or her lips. The air is then expelled as the dagger is swept backwards.

Officiant: Bahlasti! Ompehda!

Officiant then performs the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram. All rotate accordingly.

Officiant: We take refuge in Nuit, the blue-lidded daughter of sunset, the naked brilliance of the voluptuous night sky, as we issue the call to the awakened nature of all beings, for every man and every woman is a star.

All: MAKAShANaH

Officiant: We take refuge in Hadit, the secret flame that burns in every heart of man and in the core of every star, as we issue the call to our own awakened natures, arousing the coiled serpent about to spring.

All: ABRAHADABRA

Officiant: We take refuge in Heru-Ra-Ha, who wields the wand of double power, the wand of the force of Coph Nia, but whose left hand is empty for he has crushed an universe and naught remains, as we unite our awakened natures with those of all beings everywhere and everywhen, dissolving all obstacles and healing all suffering.

All: AUMGN

Officiant: For pure will, unassuaged of purpose, delivered from the lust of result, is every way perfect.

All: All is pure and present are and has always been so, for existence is pure joy; all the sorrows are but as shadows; they pass and done; but there is that which remains. To this realization we commit ourselves – pure and total presence. So mote it be.

Bell Chime

Not a Religious Facility?

Most Augoeides readers probably know the story of Pharaoh Akhenaten. For those who don't, he was the father of Tutankhamun, who is much more famous today even though he was a far less significant ancient Egyptian ruler. Akhenaten's most significant contribution to history is that he attempted to convert the nation of Egypt from polytheism to the monotheistic worship of Aten, the solar disk. After his death, the Egyptian religious establishment reasserted itself and took steps to erase Akhenaten from history.

In fact, Tutankhamun was born Tutankhaten in honor of the solar disk, and later changed his name to make peace with the priesthood of Amoun, the chief Egyptian deity prior to Akhenaten's reign. Where I'm going with this is that Akhenaten is not the first figure in history to propose a religious cult based on the worship of a single deity. Those were all over the place already. The difference was that Akhenaten invented the first religious system to employ a form of univalence - that is, "my religion is real and everybody else's is fake."

You might very well recognize that as a characteristic of religion in general if you have only studied Western religions. Both Christianity and Islam share that characteristic to one degree or another, and together they represent more than half of the world's believers. But to assume that all religions work the same way is fundamentally incorrect. Hinduism and Buddhism, for example, are not univalent.

For the latter, this has become a point of contention in the opening of a Buddhist center in Alabama. A judge ruled that because the Buddhist center would be open to members of all religions, it did not qualify as a religious facility.

An Alabama judge has upheld the City of Mobile’s decision not to grant a zoning application to the Thai Meditation Association of Alabama (TMAA). The application was denied on the grounds that the group’s meditation center does not qualify as a religious facility. The association is now considering appealing the decision.

The legal dispute goes back to 2015, when TMAA — currently located in a strip mall on a busy street — purchased a quiet and secluded property in a residential neighborhood to build a new center. The association planned to build a 2,400 square-foot meditation center, a 2,000 square foot cottage for visiting monks, a restroom facility, and parking. However, when TMAA applied to the city for approval to build its “religious facility,” the city denied the request on the grounds that the meditation center does not qualify.

Burning Harry Potter Books?

This again? I thought we had seen the last of it years ago, but I guess not. A group of evangelical Catholics in Poland recently staged a burning of books that they say "promote sorcery," including books from the popular Harry Potter fantasy series.

Three priests in the northern city of Koszalin were pictured carrying the books in a large basket from inside a church to a stone area outside. The books were set alight as prayers were said and a small group of people watched on. A mask, various trinkets and a Hello Kitty umbrella were also visible in the pictures of the makeshift bonfire.

Oooh, that Hello Kitty is so Satanic! She's a cat, and she talks. And carries umbrellas! If God wanted us to stay dry, he wouldn't make it rain, right?

The Catholic evangelical foundation SMS From Heaven posted the photographs to its Facebook page, which has 22,000 followers, accompanied by fiery emojis and Old Testament quotes decrying sorcery and idolatry. The stunt provoked mockery from Facebook users, many of whom left comments questioning the sanity of those involved, or making comparisons with Nazi Germany.

It is not the first occasion in which the hugely popular Harry Potter series has attracted the ire of religious zealots, some of whom believe the books are inspired by evil spirits and could lead children astray.

A serious question for these folks. Don't you think that if the Harry Potter books were inspired by evil spirits they would include instructions on how to do real magick? Chanting levio-SAH at a feather doesn't do anything - and it is very easy to design an experiment to prove it! Likewise, real magical practitioners don't literally fly through the air on brooms, let alone play a sport while doing it. And so on.

Office of the Readings for 2019

Happy Thelemic New Year, everyone! It's that time again, for the Office of the Readings.

The Thelemic dates that you may see written online are arrived at by counting the number of 22-year cycles since 1904 to obtain the upper case Roman numeral, and then counting the years of the current cycle starting with zero to get the lower case one. Within each 22-year cycle, many Thelemites ascribe the Major Arcana trumps of the Tarot to the years in order starting with The Fool and ending with The Universe. According to this, the year that we're about to enter into is V:v, attributed to The Hierophant.

This post will remain the top article here for the duration of the Thelemic Holy Days which end on April 10th. The Rite of the Office of the Readings is performed for all of the readings beginning on March 20th.

This year I'm pleased to announce that like last year, this year's Office of the Readings will be presented at Leaping Laughter Oasis, the Minneapolis local body of Ordo Templi Orientis. This year we performed the Invocation of Horus on the evening of March 16th to keep it on the weekend, and the Prologue of the Unborn will take place on March 19th as usual. Also, on March 22nd and 23rd we will not be performing the ritual at Leaping Laughter but rather at our hospitality suite at Paganicon, the largest local convention of Pagan and magical folk. This is the first time they will be performed this venue, so we're looking forward to that. If you will be at the convention, stop by and check it out.

Rituals

The Invocation of Horus
The Rite of the Office of the Readings

Readings

March 19

Liber VII, Prologue of the Unborn.

March 20 - Saturn/Earth, The Universe

Liber LXV, Cap I.
Liber VII, Cap II.

March 21 - Fire/Spirit, The Aeon

Liber LXV, Cap IV.
From "The Four Zoas" by William Blake - "Night the Ninth, Being The Last Judgment"

March 22 - Sol, The Sun

Liber VII, Cap IV.
From "A Mithraic Ritual" Translated by GRS Mead. Cap I, II, and XI.

March 23 - Pisces, The Moon

Liber VII, Cap VI.
From “Dark Night of the Soul”, Book II, Cap 8 by San Juan de la Cruz.

March 24 - Aries, The Emperor

Liber Tzaddi vel Hamus Hermeticus.
From the “Tao Te Ching” by Lao Tzu, Cap 37 and 39.

March 25 - Mars, The Tower

Liber VII, Cap I.
From Liber CDXVIII, The 16th Æthyr.

March 26 - Capricornus, The Devil

Liber A'ash.
Relevant to Liber A'ash is my solution to the mystery of the duck.
From Liber CXI, Cap 174-175.

March 27 - Sagittarius, Art

Liber DCCCXIII, Cap VII.
From “The Vision of the Universal Mercury” by G.H. Frater S.R.M.D.

March 28 - Scorpio, Death

From Liber Arcanorum, Verses 0-21.
From Liber CXI, Cap 192-194.

March 29 - Water, The Hanged Man

Liber LXV, Cap III.
"I. N. R. I." by Frater Achad.

March 30 - Libra, Adjustment

Liber Libræ.
Selections from “The Spiritual Guide” by San Miguel de Molinos.

March 31 - Jupiter, Fortune

Liber VII, Cap III.
From Liber CDXVIII, The 20th Æthyr.

April 1 - Virgo, The Hermit

Liber VII, Cap V.
"The Emerald Tablet of Hermes" by Hermes Trismegistus.

April 2 - Leo, Lust

Liber Stellae Rubeæ.
From “The Daughter of Fortitude” Received by Edward Kelly.

April 3 - Cancer, The Chariot

Liber Cheth vel Vallum Abiegni.
"Maha Prajnaparamita Hridaya Sutra" (The Heart Sutra, Buddhist text. Translation by the Kuan Um School of Zen).

April 4 - Gemini, The Lovers

Liber LXV, Cap II.
From Liber DCCCXXXVII, The Law of Liberty.

April 5 - Taurus, The Hierophant

Liber LXV, Cap V.
From “On Christ and Antichrist” by Hippolytus, Cap 2.

April 6 - Aquarius, The Star

Liber DCCCXIII, Cap VI.
From “The Thunder, Perfect Mind” (Gnostic text).

April 7 - Venus, The Empress

Liber VII, Cap VII.
From Liber CDXVIII, The 7th Æthyr.

April 8 - Luna, The Priestess

Liber AL, Cap I.
“Vajrasattva, Primordial Buddha of Diamond or Rainbow Light” From Songs and Meditations of the Tibetan Dhyani Buddhas.

April 9 - Mercury, The Magus

Liber AL, Cap II.
“Visvapani, The Bodhisattva and Spiritual Emanation of Amoghasiddhi” From Songs and Meditations of the Tibetan Dhyani Buddhas.

April 10 - Air, The Fool

Liber AL, Cap III.
From Liber CDXVIII, The 22nd Æthyr.

If you would like to perform this series and have questions, feel free to e-mail me here. All Office of the Readings posts may be viewed here. Our Office of the Readings series is based on this ritual series by the Companions of Monsalvat.

Canada's Last Witchcraft Case Dropped

Here's some good news from Canada. The ridiculous "pretending to practice witchcraft" law is finally dead, as the last case brought under the archaic law has been dropped. Timmins psychic Tiffany Butch was charged in December, just before the law expired. Last week the charges were withdrawn, ending the era of Canadian witchcraft prosecutions.

Butch was charged on Dec. 11, 2018 by the Timmins Police Service with pretending to practice witchcraft – fortune telling contrary to section 365(b) of the Criminal Code of Canada. Two days later that section of the Criminal Code was formally repealed.

Speaking on the Crown’s decision to withdraw the charge, Sabourin said, “I don’t believe they felt it was in the public’s interest, particularly in view of the fact the first charge was a Practising Witchcraft charge which days afterwards was removed from the books because it was seen as so archaic and not applicable to our Canadian laws.
“The Crown supplanted that with a (charge of) fraud under ($5,000), and from my perspective, there certainly wasn’t evidence to support that.”

Butch said it’s an old trick amongst competing psychics to send a friend or family member for a reading and then have them go to the police alleging fraud in hopes that it will discredit the competitor and hurt their business. Butch admitted, after the charges were laid, “I was in a daze because I didn’t understand what was going on because none of my customers were bothering me, or threatening me or was trying to report me or even asking me for refunds.

“I think the Crown attorney finally realized, and possibly the judge realized, that this is two psychics at war, which is an old witch’s tale in a small town. This happens when you have two psychics in a small town.”

A Heavenly Scandal

Sure, Jesus loves working with animals. But does that really qualify him for one of the highest leadership positions in the entire universe?

The crack journalists over at The Onion have uncovered a shocking scandal that goes back more than two thousand years. Did Jesus Christ benefit from nepotism when he was appointed Lord and Savior of humanity? It is well-known that Jesus Christ was the eldest son of God, the divine creator. It is now alleged that Jesus was appointed to his position based solely on his parentage, and that he may have been chosen over more qualified candidates for the job. In fact, he may not have even been able to obtain a heavenly security clearance on his own.

Examining evidence from the Gospels, as well as recently unearthed ancient Christian and Gnostic texts, researchers at Yale Divinity School concluded that Christ’s close familial relationship to the Creator of Heaven and Earth likely contributed to His meteoric rise from obscure carpenter to high-level divinity, giving Him a leg up over candidates who may have been more qualified for a position within the Holy Trinity.

“The selection of Jesus to become the Messiah appears to be a clear-cut case of nepotism,” said noted theologian and report co-author Philip Baxter, who remarked that in first-century Judea, it was widely believed John the Baptist was the frontrunner to sit at the right hand of the Father.

“Until the age of 30, Christ’s only employment had been as a laborer with His stepfather’s woodworking business. So we must ask: How does someone with no background in management suddenly get put in charge of a 12-apostle team? And how exactly does a person with no prior experience as a monarch get appointed King of Kings?”

“God likes to claim He moves in mysterious ways, but there doesn’t seem to be too much mystery here at all,” Baxter continued. “This looks like blatant favoritism.”

And there's more. As a practicing magician, I have greater access to the Akashic records than the staff of The Onion. I can confirm that this issue was included in Special Prosecutor Zuriel's report, but the full text was suppressed by Attorney General Shaitan. Instead, Shaitan issued a short memo stating that the report completely exonerated both God and Jesus of any wrongdoing. The Heavenly Hosts are currently trying to pass legislation that will release the full report, but are being blocked by members of Shaitan's faction who wish to maintain the status quo. So there's still no telling how this scandal may eventually play out.

When asked to comment, Our Lord and Savior described the whole thing as "fake news" that he would soon be addressing on his Twitter feed.