Readings for March 20th

Reading 1: Liber Cordis Cincte Serpente (LXV), Chapter 1, by Saint Aleister Crowley

1. I am the Heart; and the Snake is entwined
About the invisible core of the mind.
Rise, O my snake! It is now is the hour
Of the hooded and holy ineffable flower.
Rise, O my snake, into brilliance of bloom
On the corpse of Osiris afloat in the tomb!
O heart of my mother, my sister, mine own,
Thou art given to Nile, to the terror Typhon!
Ah me! but the glory of ravening storm
Enswathes thee and wraps thee in frenzy of form.
Be still, O my soul! that the spell may dissolve
As the wands are upraised, and the aeons revolve.
Behold! in my beauty how joyous Thou art,
O Snake that caresses the crown of mine heart!
Behold! we are one, and the tempest of years
Goes down to the dusk, and the Beetle appears.
O Beetle! the drone of Thy dolorous note
Be ever the trance of this tremulous throat!
I await the awaking! The summons on high
From the Lord Adonai, from the Lord Adonai!
2. Adonai spake unto V.V.V.V.V., saying: There must ever be division in the word.
3. For the colours are many, but the light is one.
4. Therefore thou writest that which is of mother of emerald, and of lapis-lazuli, and of turquoise, and of alexandrite.
5. Another writeth the words of topaz, and of deep amethyst, and of gray sapphire, and of deep sapphire with a tinge as of blood.
6. Therefore do ye fret yourselves because of this.
7. Be not contented with the image.
8. I who am the Image of an Image say this.
9. Debate not of the image, saying Beyond! Beyond!
One mounteth unto the Crown by the moon and by the Sun, and by the arrow, and by the Foundation, and by the dark home of the stars from the black earth.
10. Not otherwise may ye reach unto the Smooth Point.
11. Nor is it fitting for the cobbler to prate of the Royal matter. O cobbler! mend me this shoe, that I may walk. O king! if I be thy son, let us speak of the Embassy to the King thy Brother.
12. Then was there silence. Speech had done with us awhile.
There is a light so strenuous that it is not perceived as light.
13. Wolf's bane is not so sharp as steel; yet it pierceth the body more subtly.
14. Even as evil kisses corrupt the blood, so do my words devour the spirit of man.
15. I breathe, and there is infinite dis-ease in the spirit.
16. As an acid eats into steel, as a cancer that utterly corrupts the body; so am I unto the spirit of man.
17. I shall not rest until I have dissolved it all.
18. So also the light that is absorbed. One absorbs little and is called white and glistening; one absorbs all and is called black.
19. Therefore, O my darling, art thou black.
20. O my beautiful, I have likened thee to a jet Nubian slave, a boy of melancholy eyes.
21. O the filthy one! the dog! they cry against thee.
Because thou art my beloved.
22. Happy are they that praise thee; for they see thee with Mine eyes.
23. Not aloud shall they praise thee; but in the night watch one shall steal close, and grip thee with the secret grip; another shall privily cast a crown of violets over thee; a third shall greatly dare, and press mad lips to thine.
24. Yea! the night shall cover all, the night shall cover all.
25. Thou wast long seeking Me; thou didst run forward so fast that I was unable to come up with thee.
O thou darling fool! what bitterness thou didst crown thy days withal.
26. Now I am with thee; I will never leave thy being.
27. For I am the soft sinuous one entwined about thee, heart of gold!
28. My head is jewelled with twelve stars; My body is white as milk of the stars; it is bright with the blue of the abyss of stars invisible.
29. I have found that which could not be found; I have found a vessel of quicksilver.
30. Thou shalt instruct thy servant in his ways, thou shalt speak often with him.
31. (The scribe looketh upwards and crieth) Amen! Thou hast spoken it, Lord God!
32. Further Adonai spake unto V.V.V.V.V. and said:
33. Let us take our delight in the multitude of men!
Let us shape unto ourselves a boat of mother-of-pearl from them, that we may ride upon the river of Amrit!
34. Thou seest yon petal of amaranth, blown by the wind from the low sweet brows of Hathor?
35. (The Magister saw it and rejoiced in the beauty of it.) Listen!
36. (From a certain world came an infinite wail.)
That falling petal seemed to the little ones a wave to engulph their continent.
37. So they will reproach thy servant, saying: Who hath set thee to save us?
38. He will be sore distressed.
39. All they understand not that thou and I are fashioning a boat of mother-of-pearl. We will sail down the river of Amrit even to the yew-groves of Yama, where we may rejoice exceedingly.
40. The joy of men shall be our silver gleam, their woe our blue gleam -- all in the mother-of-pearl.
41. (The scribe was wroth thereat. He spake:
O Adonai and my master, I have borne the inkhorn and the pen without pay, in order that I might search this river of Amrit, and sail thereon as one of ye. This I demand for my fee, that I partake of the echo of your kisses.)
42. (And immediately it was granted unto him.)
43. (Nay; but not therewith was he content. By an infinite abasement unto shame did he strive. Then a voice:)
44. Thou strivest ever; even in thy yielding thou strivest to yield -- and lo! thou yieldest not.
45. Go thou unto the outermost places and subdue all things.
46. Subdue thy fear and thy disgust. Then -- yield!
47. There was a maiden that strayed among the corn, and sighed; then grew a new birth, a narcissus, and therein she forgot her sighing and her loneliness.
48. Even instantly rode Hades heavily upon her, and ravished her away.
49. (Then the scribe knew the narcissus in his heart; but because it came not to his lips, therefore was he shamed and spake no more.)
50. Adonai spake yet again with V.V.V.V.V. and said:
The earth is ripe for vintage; let us eat of her grapes, and be drunken thereon.
51. And V.V.V.V.V. answered and said: O my lord, my dove, my excellent one, how shall this word seem unto the children of men?
52. And He answered him: Not as thou canst see.
It is certain that every letter of this cipher hath some value; but who shall determine the value? For it varieth ever, according to the subtlety of Him that made it.
53. And He answered Him: Have I not the key thereof? I am clothed with the body of flesh; I am one with the Eternal and Omnipotent God.
54. Then said Adonai: Thou hast the Head of the Hawk, and thy Phallus is the Phallus of Asar. Thou knowest the white, and thou knowest the black, and thou knowest that these are one. But why seekest thou the knowledge of their equivalence?
55. And he said: That my Work may be right.
56. And Adonai said: The strong brown reaper swept his swathe and rejoiced. The wise man counted his muscles, and pondered, and understood not, and was sad. Reap thou, and rejoice!
57. Then was the Adept glad, and lifted his arm.
Lo! an earthquake, and plague, and terror on the earth!
A casting down of them that sate in high places; a famine upon the multitude!
58. And the grape fell ripe and rich into his mouth.
59. Stained is the purple of thy mouth, O brilliant one, with the white glory of the lips of Adonai.
60. The foam of the grape is like the storm upon the sea; the ships tremble and shudder; the shipmaster is afraid.
61. That is thy drunkenness, O holy one, and the winds whirl away the soul of the scribe into the happy haven.
62. O Lord God! let the haven be cast down by the fury of the storm! Let the foam of the grape tincture my soul with Thy light!
63. Bacchus grew old, and was Silenus; Pan was ever Pan for ever and ever more throughout the æons.
64. Intoxicate the inmost, O my lover, not the outermost!
65. So was it -- ever the same! I have aimed at the peeled wand of my God, and I have hit; yea, I have hit.

Reading 2: From The Spiritual Guide of San Miguel de Molinos:

What most concerns thee, O redeemed Soul, is Patience, not to desist from the Prayer thou art about, though thou canst not enlarge in Discourse. Walk with firm Faith, and a holy Silence, dying in thy self, with all thy natural Industry, trusting that God who is he who is, and changes not; neither can err, intends nothing but thy good. (Book I, II:13)

Wherefore endeavour to be constant, and not draw back, though Discourse be wanting to thee in Prayer, believe at that time firmly, be quietly silent, and patiently persevere if thou wouldest be happy, and attain to the Divine Union, eminent rest, and to the Supreme Internal Peace.(Book I, III:24)

Thou shalt know that there are two sorts of Prayer, the one tender, delightful, amicable, and full of sentiments; the other obscure, dry, desolate, tempted, and darksome. The first is of Beginners, the second of Proficients, who are in the progress to Perfection. God gives the first to gain Souls, the second to purifie them. With the first he uses them like Children; with the second he begins to deal with them as with strong men. (Book I, IV:25)

Lay this down as a firm ground in thine Heart, that for walking in the inward Way, all sensibilitie should first be removed; and that the means God uses for that is driness. By that also he takes away reflection, or that view, whereby the Soul Eyes what it is doing, the only impediment that obstructs the advancing forward, and God communicating himself, and operating in it. (Book I, IV:29)

...thou oughtest not to grieve and disturb thy self, nor be disconsolate in seeing thy self obscure and darksome, judging that God hath failed thee, and the light also that thou formerly had the experience of; thou oughtest rather at that time persevere constantly in Prayer, it being a manifest sign, that God of his infinite mercy intends to bring thee into the inward path, and happy way of Paradise. O how happy wilt thou be, if thou embrace it with peace and resignation, as the instrument of perfect quiet, true light, & of all thy spiritual good.

Know then that the straightest, most perfect and secure way of proficients, is the way of darkness: because in them the Lord placed his own Throne; And (Psalm 18.) He made darkness his secret place. By them the supernatural light which God infuses into the Soul, grow and increases. Amidst them wisdom and strong love are begotten, by darkness the soul is annihilated, and the species, which hinder the right view of the divine truth, are consumed. By this means God introduces the Soul by the inward way into the Prayer of Rest, and of perfect contemplation, which so few have the experience of. Finally; by darkness the Lord purgest the senses and sensibility, which hinder the mystical progress. (Book I, VI:39,40)

God hath no regard to the multitude of words, but to the purity of the intent. His greatest content and glory at that time, is to see the Soul in silence, desirous, humble, quiet, and resigned. Proceed, persevere, pray, and hold thy peace; for where thou findest not a sentiment, thou'lt find a door whereby thou mayest enter into thine own nothingness; knowing thy self to be nothing, that thou canst do nothing, nay, and that thou hast not so much as a good thought. (Book I, XII:78)

Finally, be of hope, suffer, be silent, and patient: let nothing affright thee: all of it will have an time to end: God only is he that is unchangeable: patience brings a man in every thing. He that hath God, hath all things; and he that hath him not, hath nothing. (Book III, VIII:89)

Reading 3: Liber Lapidis Lazuli (VII), Chapter II, by Saint Aleister Crowley

1. O my God! use Thou me again, alway. For ever! For ever!
2. That which came fire from Thee cometh water from me; let therefore Thy Spirit lay hold on me, so that my right hand loose the lightning.
3. Travelling through space, I saw the onrush of two galaxies, butting each other and goring like bulls upon earth. I was afraid.
4. Thus they ceased fight, and turned upon me, and I was sorely crushed and torn.
5. I had rather have been trampled by the World-Elephant.
6. O my God! Thou art my little pet tortoise!
7. Yet Thou sustainest the World-Elephant.
8. I creep under Thy carapace, like a lover into the bed of his beautiful; I creep in, and sit in Thine heart, as cubby and cosy as may be.
9. Thou shelterest me, that I hear not the trumpeting of that World-Elephant.
10. Thou art not worth an obol in the agora; yet Thou art not to be bought at the ransom of the whole Universe.
11. Thou art like a beautiful Nubian slave leaning her naked purple against the green pillars of marble that are above the bath.
12. Wine jets from her black nipples.
13. I drank wine awhile agone in the house of Pertinax. The cup-boy favoured me, and gave me of the right sweet Chian.
14. There was a Doric boy, skilled in feats of strength, an athlete. The
full moon fled away angrily down the wrack.
Ah! but we laughed.
15. I was pernicious drunk, O my God! Yet Pertinax brought me to the bridal.
16. I had a crown of thorns for all my dower.
17. Thou art like a goat's horn from Astor, O Thou God of mine, gnarl'd and crook'd and devilish strong.
18. Colder than all the ice of all the glaciers of the Naked Mountain was the wine it poured for me.
19. A wild country and a waning moon.
Clouds scudding over the sky.
A circuit of pines, and of tall yews beyond. Thou in the midst!
20. O all ye toads and cats, rejoice! Ye slimy things, come hither!
21. Dance, dance to the Lord our God!
22. He is he! He is he! He is he!
23. Why should I go on?
24. Why? Why? comes the sudden cackle of a million imps of hell.
25. And the laughter runs.
26. But sickens not the Universe; but shakes not the stars.
27. God! how I love Thee!
28. I am walking in an asylum; all the men and women about me are insane.
29. Oh madness! madness! madness! desirable art thou!
30. But I love Thee, O God!
31. These men and women rave and howl; they froth out folly.
32. I begin to be afraid. I have no check; I am alone. Alone. Alone.
33. Think, O God, how I am happy in Thy love.
34. O marble Pan! O false leering face! I love Thy dark kisses, bloody and stinking! O marble Pan! Thy kisses are like sunlight on the blue Ægean; their blood is the blood of the sunset over Athens; their stink is like a garden of Roses of Macedonia.
35. I dreamt of sunset and roses and vines; Thou wast there, O my God, Thou didst habit Thyself as an Athenian courtesan, and I loved Thee.
36. Thou art no dream, O Thou too beautiful alike for sleep and waking!
37. I disperse the insane folk of the earth; I walk alone with my little puppets in the garden.
38. I am Gargantuan great; yon galaxy is but the smoke-ring of mine incense.
39. Burn Thou strange herbs, O God!
40. Brew me a magic liquor, boys, with your glances!
41. The very soul is drunken.
42. Thou art drunken, O my God, upon my kisses.
43. The Universe reels; Thou hast looked upon it.
44. Twice, and all is done.
45. Come, O my God, and let us embrace!
46. Lazily, hungrily, ardently, patiently; so will I work.
47. There shall be an End.
48. O God! O God!
49. I am a fool to love Thee; Thou art cruel, Thou withholdest Thyself.
50. Come to me now! I love Thee! I love Thee!
51. O my darling, my darling --- Kiss me! Kiss me! Ah! but again.
52. Sleep, take me! Death, take me! This life is too full; it pains, it slays, it suffices.
53. Let me go back into the world; yea, back into the world.

Reading 4: From The Dark Night of the Soul of San Juan de la Cruz:

2. ...in order that the soul may be divinely prepared and tempered with its faculties for the Divine union of love, it would be well for it to be first of all absorbed, with all its faculties, in this Divine and dark spiritual light of contemplation, and thus to be withdrawn from all the affections and apprehensions of the creatures, which condition ordinarily continues in proportion to its intensity. And thus, the simpler and the purer is this Divine light in its assault upon the soul, the more does it darken it, void it and annihilate it according to its particular apprehensions and affections, with regard both to things above and to things below; and similarly, the less simple and pure is it in this assault, the less deprivation it causes it and the less dark is it. Now this is a thing that seems incredible, to say that, the brighter and purer is supernatural and Divine light, the more it darkens the soul, and that, the less bright and pure is it, the less dark it is to the soul. Yet this may readily be understood if we consider what has been proved above by the dictum of the philosopher-namely, that the brighter and the more manifest in themselves are supernatural things the darker are they to our understanding.

3. And, to the end that this may be understood the more clearly, we shall here set down a similitude referring to common and natural light. We observe that a ray of sunlight which enters through the window is the less clearly visible according as it is the purer and freer from specks, and the more of such specks and motes there are in the air, the brighter is the light to the eye. The reason is that it is not the light itself that is seen; the light is but the means whereby the other things that it strikes are seen, and then it is also seen itself, through its reflection in them; were it not for this, neither it nor they would have been seen. Thus if the ray of sunlight entered through the window of one room and passed out through another on the other side, traversing the room, and if it met nothing on the way, or if there were no specks in the air for it to strike, the room would have no more light than before, neither would the ray of light be visible. In fact, if we consider it carefully, there is more darkness where the ray is, since it absorbs and obscures any other light, and yet it is itself invisible, because, as we have said, there are no visible objects which it can strike.

4. Now this is precisely what this Divine ray of contemplation does in the soul. Assailing it with its Divine light, it transcends the natural power of the soul, and herein it darkens it and deprives it of all natural affections and apprehensions which it apprehended aforetime by means of natural light; and thus it leaves it not only dark, but likewise empty, according to its faculties and desires, both spiritual and natural. And, by thus leaving it empty and in darkness, it purges and illumines it with Divine spiritual light, although the soul thinks not that it has this light, but believes itself to be in darkness, even as we have said of the ray of light, which although it be in the midst of the room, yet, if it be pure and meet nothing on its path, is not visible. With regard, however, to this spiritual light by which the soul is assailed, when it has something to strike-that is, when something spiritual presents itself to be understood, however small a speck it be and whether of perfection or imperfection, or whether it be a judgment of the falsehood or the truth of a thing-it then sees and understands much more clearly than before it was in these dark places. And exactly in the same way it discerns the spiritual light which it has in order that it may readily discern the imperfection which is presented to it; even as, when the ray of which we have spoken, within the room, is dark and not itself visible, if one introduce a hand or any other thing into its path, the hand is then seen and it is realized that sunlight is present.

5. Wherefore, since this spiritual light is so simple, pure and general, not appropriated or restricted to any particular thing that can be understood, whether natural or Divine (since with respect to all these apprehensions the faculties of the soul are empty and annihilated), it follows that with great comprehensiveness and readiness the soul discerns and penetrates whatsoever thing presents itself to it, whether it come from above or from below; for which cause the Apostle said: That the spiritual man searches all things, even the deep things of God. For by this general and simple wisdom is understood that which the Holy Spirit says through the Wise Man, namely: That it reaches wheresoever it wills by reason of its purity; that is to say, because it is not restricted to any particular object of the intellect or affection. And this is the characteristic of the spirit that is purged and annihilated with respect to all particular affections and objects of the understanding, that in this state wherein it has pleasure in nothing and understands nothing in particular, but dwells in its emptiness, darkness and obscurity, it is fully prepared to embrace everything...

Ritual for March 20th

THE INVOCATION OF HORUS

(Original ritual text by Saint Aleister Crowley according to the vision of Ouarda the Seer, adapted by Ananael Qaa and Lalitha)

0. CONFESSION

All stand facing east and are given a copy of the Confession printed on parchment paper. A flaming sword (flamberge) is placed on the altar, along with a large bowl suitable for burning paper. Horus is visualized appearing in the east as a human figure with the head of a hawk in the east towering over the participants.

Officiant opens the ritual with the Star Ruby.

All assembled then read the Confession.

Unprepared and uninvoking Thee, we are here in Thy Presence – for Thou art Everywhere, O Lord Horus! – to confess humbly before Thee my neglect and scorn of Thee. How shall we humble ourselves enough before Thee? Thou art the mighty and unconquered Lord of the Universe: we are the sparks of Thine unutterable Radiance.

How should we approach Thee? But Thou art Everywhere. With unwashen hands therefore we come unto Thee, and lament our wandering from Thee – but Thou knowest!

Yea, we have done evil!

All bow to the east.

We bow our necks before Thee, so are we in Thy hands. Strike if Thou wilt: spare if Thou wilt: but accept us as we are. Our trust is in Thee: shall we be confounded? For that All is in Thee and of Thee; it is enough if we burn up in the intolerable glory of Thy presence.

Rays of golden light shine forth from the figure of Horus and enter the crown chakras of all assembled, moving through their bodies all the way down to the feet and purifying all actions taken that are out of harmony with the operation of True Will. There is a short pause for this visualization. Each person rises as he or she feels the purification is complete. When all have risen the rite continues, led by the Officiant.

Enough! We turn toward Thy Promise. Doubtful are the Words: Dark are the Ways: but in Thy Words and Ways is Light. Thus then now as ever, we enter the Path of Darkness, if haply so we may attain the Light. Hail!

Each person places his or her Confession in the offering bowl on the altar in the east. The Officiant then lights them and all watch as they burn. The smoke rises to the figure of Horus, who accepts the offering and responds by sending forth golden light that fills the temple. This visualization continues until the end of the invocation. The light becomes brighter and stronger as the rite goes on.

1. ALEPH

Officiant goes to the altar in the east and takes up the flaming sword. The Officiant wields the flaming sword throughout the rite, though it may be passed if different individuals are officiating each section.

Officiant opens the invocation proper with the Star Sapphire.

Chorus or Officiant: Strike, strike the master chord! Draw, draw the Flaming Sword! Crowned Child and Conquering Lord, Horus, avenger!

Officiant makes the Sign of Apophis and Typhon wielding the sword. After each of the following statements by the Officiant, all make the Sign of Apophis and Typhon and say “Thee, Thee, I invoke” loudly.

O Thou of the Head of the Hawk!

Thou only-begotten-child of Osiris Thy Father, and Isis Thy Mother. He that was slain ; She that bore Thee in Her womb flying from the Terror of the Water.

O Thou whose Apron is of flashing white, whiter than the Forehead of the Morning!

O Thou who hast formulated Thy Father and made fertile Thy Mother!

O Thou whose garment is of golden glory with the azure bars of sky!

Thou, who didst avenge the Horror of Death; Thou the slayer of Typhon! Thou who didst lift Thine arms, and the Dragons of Death were as dust: Thou who didst raise Thine Head, and the Crocodile of Nile was abased before Thee!

O Thou whose Nemyss hideth the Universe with night, the impermeable Blue!

Thou who travellest in the Boat of Ra, abiding at the Helm of the Aftet boat and of the Sektet boat!

Thou who bearest the Wand of Double Power!

Thou about whose presence is shed the darkness of Blue Light, the unfathomable glory of the outmost Ether, the untravelled, the unthinkable immensity of Space. Thou who concentrest all the Thirty Ethers in one darkling sphere of Fire!

O Thou who bearest the Rose and Cross of Life and Light!

Officiant sets down the sword and turns to face the assembly.

Chorus or Officiant: The Voice of the Five. The Voice of the Six. Eleven are the Voices.

All: Abrahadabra!

2. BETH

Officiant then turns back to the east and takes up the sword. This may be the same individual who officiated for the first section, or another.

Chorus or Officiant: Strike, strike the master chord! Draw, draw the Flaming Sword! Crowned Child and Conquering Lord, Horus, avenger!

Officiant makes the Sign of Apophis and Typhon wielding the sword. After each of the following statements by the Officiant, all make the Sign of Apophis and Typhon and say “Thee, Thee, I invoke” loudly.

By thy name of Ra, I invoke Thee, Hawk of the Sun, the glorious one!

By thy name Harmachis, youth of the Brilliant Morning, I invoke Thee!

By thy name, Mau, I invoke Thee, Lion of the Midday Sun!

By thy name Tum, Hawk of the Even, crimson splendour of the Sunset, I invoke Thee!

By thy name Khep-Ra I invoke Thee, O Beetle of the hidden Mastery of Midnight!

By thy name Heru-pa-Kraat, Lord of Silence, Beautiful Child that standest on the Dragons of the Deep, I invoke Thee!

By thy name Apollo, I invoke Thee, O man of Strength and splendour, O poet, O father!

By thy name of Phoebus, that drivest thy chariot through the Heaven of Zeus, I invoke Thee!

By thy name of Odin I invoke Thee, O warrior of the North, O Renown of the Sagas!

By thy name of Jeheshua, O child of the Flaming Star, I invoke Thee!

By Thine own, Thy secret name Hoori, Thee I invoke!

Officiant sets down the sword and turns to face the assembly.

Chorus or Officiant: The Names are Five. The Names are Six. Eleven are the Names!

All: Abrahadabra!

Officiant: Behold! I stand in the midst. Mine is the symbol of Osiris; to Thee are mine eyes ever turned. Unto the splendour of Geburah, the Magnificence of Chesed, the mystery of Daath, thither I lift up mine eyes. This have I sought, and I have sought the Unity: hear Thou me!

3. GIMEL

Officiant then takes up the sword. This may be the same individual who officiated for the previous section, or another. Officiant makes the Sign of Apophis and Typhon wielding the sword. After each of the following statements by the Officiant, all make the Sign of Apophis and Typhon and say “Thee, Thee, I invoke” loudly.

Mine is the Head of the Man, and my insight is keen as the Hawk's. By my head I invoke Thee!

I am the only-begotten child of my Father and Mother. By my body I invoke Thee!

About me shine the Diamonds of Radiance white and pure. By their brightness I invoke Thee!

Mine is the Red Triangle Reversed, the Sign given of none, save it be of Thee, O Lord! By the Lamen I invoke Thee!

Mine is the garment of white sewn with gold, the flashing abbai that I wear. By my robe I invoke Thee!

Mine is the sign of Apophis and Typhon! By the sign I invoke Thee!

Mine is the turban of white and gold, and mine the blue vigour of the intimate air! By my crown I invoke Thee!

My mystic sigils travel in the Bark of the Akasa! By the spells I invoke Thee!

I bear the Wand of Double Power in the Voice of the Master – Abrahadabra! By the word I invoke Thee!

Mine are the dark-blue waves of music in the song that I made of old to invoke Thee – Strike, strike the master chord! Draw, draw the Flaming Sword! Crowned Child and Conquering Lord, Horus, avenger! By the Song I invoke Thee!

In my hand is thy Sword of Revenge ; let it strike at Thy Bidding! By the Sword I invoke Thee!

Officiant sets down the sword and turns to face the assembly.

Chorus or Officiant: The Voice of the Five. The Voice of the Six. Eleven are the Voices.

All: Abrahadabra!

4. RESH

Officiant then takes up the sword. This may be the same individual who officiated for the previous section, or another. Officiant makes the Sign of Apophis and Typhon wielding the sword. After each of the following statements by the Officiant, all make the Sign of Apophis and Typhon and say “ABRAHADABRA!” loudly.

Mine is the Head of the Hawk!

I am the only-begotten-child of Osiris Thy Father, and Isis Thy Mother. He that was slain; She that bore me in Her womb flying from the Terror of the Water.

My Apron is of flashing white, whiter than the Forehead of the Morning!
I have formulated my Father and made fertile my Mother!

My garment is of golden glory with the azure bars of sky!

I didst avenge the Horror of Death; I am the slayer of Typhon!

I lifted my arms, and the Dragons of Death were as dust: I raised my Head, and the Crocodile of Nile was abased before me!

My Nemyss hides the Universe with night, the impermeable Blue!

I travel in the Boat of Ra, abiding at the Helm of the Aftet boat and of the Sektet boat!

I bear the Wand of Double Power!

About my presence is shed the darkness of Blue Light, the unfathomable glory of the outmost Ether, the untravelled, the unthinkable immensity of Space. I concentrate all the Thirty Ethers in one darkling sphere of Fire!

I bear the Rose and Cross of Life and Light!

All hold the Sign of Apophis and Typhon following the last “ABRAHADABRA.”

Officiant: Therefore I say unto thee: Come forth and dwell in me; so that every my Spirit, whether of the Firmament, or of the Ether, or of the Earth or under the Earth; on dry land or in the Water, or Whirling Air or of Rushing Fire; and every spell and scourge of God the Vast One may be THOU.

All: Abrahadabra!

A meditation upon Horus may be added at this point, delineated by the bell chime.

Officiant: There is success. I now declare this temple duly closed.

Officiant then gives one knock with the banishing dagger.

Reading for March 19th

The Prologue of the Unborn by Saint Aleister Crowley

Into my loneliness comes --
The sound of a flute in dim groves that haunt the uttermost hills.
Even from the brave river they reach to the edge of the wilderness.
And I behold Pan.
The snows are eternal above, above --
And their perfume smokes upward into the nostrils of the stars.
But what have I to do with these?
To me only the distant flute, the abiding vision of Pan.
On all sides Pan to the eye, to the ear;
The perfume of Pan pervading, the taste of him utterly filling my mouth, so that the tongue breaks forth into a weird and monstrous speech.
The embrace of him intense on every centre of pain and pleasure.
The sixth interior sense aflame with the inmost self of Him,
Myself flung down the precipice of being
Even to the abyss, annihilation.
An end to loneliness, as to all.
Pan! Pan! Io Pan! Io Pan!

Announcing the Office of the Readings

Thelemic high holy days are nearly upon us. On March 20th, 1904 Aleister Crowley performed the invocation of Horus that led to the writing of the Book of the Law on the 8th, 9th, and 10th of the following April. This will be the fourth year that my magical working group celebrates these holy days with a series of readings from the Holy Books of Thelema along with selections from the EGC Gnostic Saints.

March 20th is the invocation of Horus, and April 8, 9, and 10 are the three days of the writing of the Book of the Law. There are 22 days from March 20th to April 10th, and each day is associated with one of the Major Arcana of the Tarot, going in reverse order from The Universe to The Fool. The various readings are selected so as to conform to these attributions for each day.

I will be posting each day's reading on this blog under the office of the readings tag. Happy holidays, everyone!

New Sins for the 21st Century

After winking Limbo out of existence last year by Papal decree, the Roman Catholic Church has published an updated list of sins for the current century.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23557650/

New sins include:

(1) Genetic manipulation. Not Biblical, but consistent with the Church's position on embryonic stem cell research.

(2) Taking drugs. Totally new and mentioned nowhere in scripture.

(3) Pollution. Follows from the Old Testament injunction making humans stewards of the Earth, though not directly addressed in Old Testament law.

(4) Maintaining income disparity. This one, at least, is right on. Social justice for the poor was one of Jesus' central teachings and is often ignored by modern churches. It's nice to see it formally addressed.

My next question is when these sins come into effect. Do we get any sort of waiting period? Or are they in effect at the moment of publication? If I forgot to recycle a can the day before the new list came out, am I still going to Hell? And regarding drugs, do legal ones count too? The injunction is actually against drugs that “weaken the mind and cloud intelligence” so I'd think alcohol would count, but so would lithium (used to treat bipolar disorder, but degrades cognitive ability over time). Caffeine is on record as making people think slightly faster, so I'd think it would be exempt.

Oh yeah, I forgot for a moment. I'm a ritual magician so I'm already going to Hell, at least according to most Christian churches.

A "Kinsey Report" on Magick

I watched the film Kinsey last night, which was quite good. It tells the story of Dr. Alfred Kinsey and the events that led up to his groundbreaking studies of human sexuality. One of the things that really struck me about the story is that Kinsey was motivated to study sexuality because in his time so little was known about people's actual practices and experiences. There had never been a large-scale scientific study of sexuality, and people kept accounts of their sexual experiences to themselves rather than sharing them with others. Magick today is treated much like sexuality was in Kinsey's time, and maybe what we really need to help us understand the practices and experiences of magicians is some sort of large-scale study done along similar lines.

One of the reasons that Aleister Crowley's work is so important to modern magicians is that Crowley was an obsessive diarist who kept accounts of all his magical operations and their results. His work gives us a good account of one magician's journey from Neophyte to Magus and brings out into the open a process that until his time had been the hidden core of the Western Esoteric Tradition. Crowley recommended that all his students do the same, but unfortunately to this day nobody has produced a magical record that is as detailed or as enlightening. Crowley was an exceptional person, but at the same time he recommeded his practices to everyone and believed that most people would get some benefit from them. I can say that this is true for me, but without more data that's really as far as I can go.

This is where science comes in - a perfect case for the application of "The Method Science, the Aim of Religion." An interview process similar to Kinsey's could produce some very informative results if designed properly. The biggest issue I see is that the sample size would be much more limited than what Kinsey had to work with. Just about everybody has sex, but only a certain percentage of the population practices mystical forms of spirituality and some subset of that group actually practices magick. Most of us analyze our own results and try to to build on them as we walk the path, but I would love to see a book that chronicled accounts of successful and unsuccessful operations from thousands of people. I don't know what such a work would do to the magical arts as a whole, but I would really like to see it happen.

Now if I can just get a grant from some big foundation I'll be in business - but there's a tough sales pitch. "See, I want to do this large-scale study of magical spirituality to help us understand the mysteries of the universe. Are you willing to underwrite my research?"

More Thoughts on the Greater Ritual of the Hexagram

For a long time I have been working with the Heavens of Assiah (Liber 777, column VI.) as the "godnames" for the Greater Ritual of the Hexagram when working with practical magick. The original idea was that I should be tuning the magical field to the proper force in the material world (Assiah) in order to manifest material change, and this idea has worked very well, especially in conjuction with the operant field model. The godname itself is more properly attuned to Atziluth, the archetypal world, and therefore I would use the godname for more mystical workings intended to orient my consciousness higher up on the Tree of Life. Again, this seemed to work well.

In Liber O vel Manus et Sagittae, Aleister Crowley's instruction is that the godname should always be used with the Greater Ritual of the Hexagram. He mentions nothing about using the Heavens of Assiah and neither does any other author, though Crowley is not very clear on what the Heavens of Assiah are actually used for in any of his writings that I have come across. Having experimented with using the godname in practical rituals for many years, I feel pretty confident that the Heavens of Assiah do indeed seem to work better for me, at least as far as objectively measurable practical workings go. Incidentally, if anyone else has experimented with this variation of the form I would be interested in hearing about any results that you would be willing to share.

Last night I had an interesting realization about the Greater Hexagram during my regular magical practices - treat the ritual like a pyramid rather than like a flat plane. Trace the hexagrams to the quarters while vibrating the Heaven of Assiah name, and then imagine a pyramid with the hexagrams at the four corners. Point to the top of the pyramid, vibrate the godname, and conclude with the later Golden Dawn "Let the divine light descend!" which I have always liked. This tunes the space as a pyramid with the base in Assiah and the point in Atziluth. Has anyone else tried this? It feels more complete than either the Heavens of Assiah or godname version alone.

On the drive into work today I also had a thought that this structure could be inverted. You would trace the hexagrams to the four quarters using the godname, then imagine an upside-down pyramid with the hexagrams at the corners. Point to the downward tip and vibrate the Heaven of Assiah name - but "Let the divine light descend" wouldn't really be appropriate. The next thing I think I'm going to try is using "Let the lightning flash descend!" for the "upright" version and "Let the serpent of wisdom ascend!" for the "inverted" version. I haven't tried that yet, though, so I have no idea how well it will work.

Has anybody else out there played around with the Greater Hexagram? What results have you gotten with different variations?

Pardons for British Witches

A political movement in Scotland is attempting to secure pardons for everyone convicted under British witchcraft laws that were repealed in the 1950's. All I can say is it's about time! Witchcraft laws are and were just plain silly, and were often used to prosecute anyone who was deemed undesirable in their community. Most of these people did no magick at all and were coerced into giving confessions under torture if they confessed at all.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080228/od_afp/britainscotlandlawshistorywitchcraftoffbeat_080228171153

An interesting relatively recent case that is being addressed by the pardon movement is that of Helen Duncan, who was convicted in 1944. She was a medium who appears to have been genuine enough that she was able to obtain information about the sinking of a British battleship that the government was covering up in order to preserve troop morale during World War II. Even though genuine spiritual powers seem to have been involved in the case, the real reason for her conviction was still political - she uncovered something that the government didn't want anyone to know.

The repeal of Britain's witchcraft laws set the stage for the arrival of modern Wicca, which was first publicized by Gerald Gardner in 1954.