Well, it's been a while since I've posted here. Apologies to my adoring fans. ;)
Recent conversations on occult lists have got me thinking about research in the occult. It is extremely important to know where the material you're using in your practices came from, and how it integrates into your system of performing magick, but at the same time, the fact is that much of the material available is limited.
I've seen people argue incessantly about recent Egyptian archaeological evidence impacting Golden Dawn rituals. I've seen people make various claims about the Goetia because of the similarity of the names of the spirits to ancient gods from other cultures. I've seen the Hermetic QBL totally gutted by some people's research into the traditional Kabbalah in the context of Hasidism.
Research is a valuable tool, but at a certain point in our research we must apply the knife. Take the Goetia, for example. The names in the list include Ashtoreth, and lots of people say its a demonized version of Ishtar-Isis. The argument is that the system of Goetic magic can't be trusted because it casts entities from a particular culture in a role that they didn't have originally. The Goetic "Ashtoreth" is a perversion of Isis, so if you summon Isis using the Goetia, you'll piss her off and have an angry spirit to deal with.
However valid this idea might sound, in practice Ashtoreth is a friendly entity. It must be understood that when the Goetia was compiled, it drew from all kinds of resources and cast the spirits into the context in which they are presented in the text. At that point, they ceased being the entities of the previous system they were adapted from, and became new manifestations of the properties they embody. Ashtoreth may or may not have been Isis to some people at some point in history, but Ashtoreth summoned through the rites of the Goetia is not Isis. It's Ashtoreth.
Applying the model of the four worlds of hermetic QBL, Atziluth, Briah, Yetzirah, and Assiah, the Goetia is an Assiahtic (material) representation of the Yetziratic (symbolic) interpretation of the Briahtic (conceptual) spirits that revealed themselves from the Assiatic (archetypal) realm to the compiler(s) of the Goetia.
Modern research can track back the sources of the system presented in the Goetia up to the limit of the Briahtic stage. We can see the forms that were used to symbolize the spirits in the Yetziratic stage, and we can make a scientific wild-ass guess about where these symbols came from, but we cannot know what was going on in the Briahtic or Atziluthic stages of its creation.
Knowing where our realm of knowledge ends and conjecture begins gives us a guide for where to apply the knife. When your practice begins to trespass into realms of speculation, you must cut off the absolute authority of your knowledge and return to the realm of theory, and approach your conclusions the way a scientist approaches experimentation.
Head for the Red: The ongoing adventures and insights of a magician's attempts to accomplish the Great Work.
Saturday, October 07, 2006
Sunday, September 10, 2006
Angelic Hierarchies
To get anything of benefit from the hierarchical representations of God's servants or ministers, we must first understand the foundational premise behind the formulation of a hierarchy in the first place, and also what an "angel" or minister of God is.
The Premise of Hierarchies in the Western Magickal Tradition
To the neo-platonists and their Christian successors, God was One. It's a simple concept. Orpheus says:
Pluto and Jupiter, and Phebus, are one;
But why do we speak twice? Gods one alone. (From Agrippa's Occult Philosophy, Book 3, chapter x)
The sh'ma of Judaism puts it this way:
"Hear o Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One."
The One God is beyond understanding, and is described in terms of what it is not due to our lack of ability to comprehend the awesome unity of God. "Ineffable," "Invisible," and "Infinite" are terms that do not tell us what God is, but what it is not. The mystic (by virtue of their calling to be a mystic) understands inherently that God is super-essential.
This super-essential Deity is constantly providing a stream of grace (or what we would likely call "energy" today) from itself into all that it created, in order that all of creation might participate with and know God intimately. This stream is called Providence by the Christian mystics, and is understood to be the mechanism by which Grace is delivered. When you see a mystic of neo-platonic christian heritage say that an event was "Providence," they mean that a person achieved "a closer and fuller understanding of God" (or Grace) through a series of events that might not have seemed to be Grace bearing in the moment.
Ok, so we have One super-essential God, sending Grace to creation by Providence. Since man is not capable of comprehending all of God at once in our standard mode, when God interacts with us directly, we interpret the aspect of God that we interact with as an entity, a messenger from God, or a representation of Deity, or a god in and of itself. The Goddess Venus, for instance, is that part of the One super-essential deity that represents the human understanding of "Love." In other cultures, this aspect of God is interpreted as Haniel, the archangel of the sephiroth Netzach.
To understand where this part of God "fits" in the whole process we interpret as Providence, we create models and hierarchies of correspondences so that we can present-progressively interact with that particular part of God as we perform our mundane activities. This touches on the practical purpose behind having a hierarchy in the first place.
The Purpose of Hierarchies
Having a model of Providence allows us to work towards obtaining unity with God. (Note: By unity I mean consciously working with God to accomplish God's purpose, not the idea that we can somehow consciously become GOD.) When one understands the aspects of God that are functioning at various points in Providence, one can begin to consciously integrate these processes into their daily activities. For instance, knowing that Cherubim means the fullness of divine knowledge, and that the function of this manifestation of God is to illuminate the soul of a man with the divine knowledge of the immanence of deity in all things, one would begin to work with the Cherubim when one is seeking to understand how a situation is supposed to integrate with God's plan.
This is the Great Work of the Western Mystery Tradition, to be in union with God in all things while in the flesh.
Having crudely put forth the foundational premise and purpose of hierarchies, we can look at what the various hierarchies are. For a better description, see The Celestial Hierarchies, by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopogate, from which the above was distilled.
Some Traditional Hierarchies
The angelic orders of the "cabalists" are associated with the ten sephiroth. Following the lightning path, they are:
Kether - Haioth Hacadosch
Hochma - Ophanim
Prina - Aralim
Hesed - Hasmalim
Geburach - Seraphim
Tiphereth - Malachim
Nezah - Elohim
Hod - Ben Elohim
Iesod - Cherubim
Malchuth - Issim
That's straight from Agrippa, the original spelling from the English translation by "J.F." in 1651 intact. If you look in Book 3, Chapter x, you'll find much more additional information on these orders, such as the particular angel in charge, the planets associated with them, and the biblical personages and the angels that were assigned to them that correspond.
The terms Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominions, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels, and Angels were used by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagate, a Christian mystic who was not a cabalist. Agrippa also uses these, and relates them to the sephiroth, but makes it clear in the text that they are not the names of the hierarchies used by the Hebrews.
Bill Heidrick has a couple of tables that present the names, correspondences to the sephiroth, and the descriptions and functions of these orders in his Magical Correspondences . Know going into it that Bill is the product of traditional Golden Dawn and Ordo Templi Orientis teachings. While his research and facts have been proven to be as accurate as possible, his interpretations are nevertheless influenced by the teaching he received.
Practical Application
To effectively utilize these hierarchies, the mystic or magician must first identify which order is appropriate to their need. Then one would research the names of some of the members of this order, and then contact the entity and request a personal representative from that order to work with for the duration of the operation.
Understanding the premise behind a hierarchy, the procedures of the magickal operations of the Western Mystery Tradition make a lot more sense. Abramelin's Sacred Magick is an excellent example, with the Holy Guardian Angel being a member of the Order of Powers assigned to you at birth, who "aids the human mind to break free of the forces that draw man to earthly thoughts." The Goetia can be better understood when it is recognized as a hierarchy of spirits that are closest to the manifest realm, a sub-hierarchy that doesn't quite extend beyond the realms of Earth, Water, and Air in the platonic model.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I would like to thank Richard Ryan for his Lamed towards presenting something of value and substance rather than simply critiquing someone else's presentation. Putting this into words has helped me to better understand some of the issues I've been struggling with behind the scenes lately regarding cabalism vs. neo-platonic christian interpretations of the Great Work.
The Premise of Hierarchies in the Western Magickal Tradition
To the neo-platonists and their Christian successors, God was One. It's a simple concept. Orpheus says:
Pluto and Jupiter, and Phebus, are one;
But why do we speak twice? Gods one alone. (From Agrippa's Occult Philosophy, Book 3, chapter x)
The sh'ma of Judaism puts it this way:
"Hear o Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One."
The One God is beyond understanding, and is described in terms of what it is not due to our lack of ability to comprehend the awesome unity of God. "Ineffable," "Invisible," and "Infinite" are terms that do not tell us what God is, but what it is not. The mystic (by virtue of their calling to be a mystic) understands inherently that God is super-essential.
This super-essential Deity is constantly providing a stream of grace (or what we would likely call "energy" today) from itself into all that it created, in order that all of creation might participate with and know God intimately. This stream is called Providence by the Christian mystics, and is understood to be the mechanism by which Grace is delivered. When you see a mystic of neo-platonic christian heritage say that an event was "Providence," they mean that a person achieved "a closer and fuller understanding of God" (or Grace) through a series of events that might not have seemed to be Grace bearing in the moment.
Ok, so we have One super-essential God, sending Grace to creation by Providence. Since man is not capable of comprehending all of God at once in our standard mode, when God interacts with us directly, we interpret the aspect of God that we interact with as an entity, a messenger from God, or a representation of Deity, or a god in and of itself. The Goddess Venus, for instance, is that part of the One super-essential deity that represents the human understanding of "Love." In other cultures, this aspect of God is interpreted as Haniel, the archangel of the sephiroth Netzach.
To understand where this part of God "fits" in the whole process we interpret as Providence, we create models and hierarchies of correspondences so that we can present-progressively interact with that particular part of God as we perform our mundane activities. This touches on the practical purpose behind having a hierarchy in the first place.
The Purpose of Hierarchies
Having a model of Providence allows us to work towards obtaining unity with God. (Note: By unity I mean consciously working with God to accomplish God's purpose, not the idea that we can somehow consciously become GOD.) When one understands the aspects of God that are functioning at various points in Providence, one can begin to consciously integrate these processes into their daily activities. For instance, knowing that Cherubim means the fullness of divine knowledge, and that the function of this manifestation of God is to illuminate the soul of a man with the divine knowledge of the immanence of deity in all things, one would begin to work with the Cherubim when one is seeking to understand how a situation is supposed to integrate with God's plan.
This is the Great Work of the Western Mystery Tradition, to be in union with God in all things while in the flesh.
Having crudely put forth the foundational premise and purpose of hierarchies, we can look at what the various hierarchies are. For a better description, see The Celestial Hierarchies, by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopogate, from which the above was distilled.
Some Traditional Hierarchies
The angelic orders of the "cabalists" are associated with the ten sephiroth. Following the lightning path, they are:
Kether - Haioth Hacadosch
Hochma - Ophanim
Prina - Aralim
Hesed - Hasmalim
Geburach - Seraphim
Tiphereth - Malachim
Nezah - Elohim
Hod - Ben Elohim
Iesod - Cherubim
Malchuth - Issim
That's straight from Agrippa, the original spelling from the English translation by "J.F." in 1651 intact. If you look in Book 3, Chapter x, you'll find much more additional information on these orders, such as the particular angel in charge, the planets associated with them, and the biblical personages and the angels that were assigned to them that correspond.
The terms Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominions, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels, and Angels were used by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagate, a Christian mystic who was not a cabalist. Agrippa also uses these, and relates them to the sephiroth, but makes it clear in the text that they are not the names of the hierarchies used by the Hebrews.
Bill Heidrick has a couple of tables that present the names, correspondences to the sephiroth, and the descriptions and functions of these orders in his Magical Correspondences . Know going into it that Bill is the product of traditional Golden Dawn and Ordo Templi Orientis teachings. While his research and facts have been proven to be as accurate as possible, his interpretations are nevertheless influenced by the teaching he received.
Practical Application
To effectively utilize these hierarchies, the mystic or magician must first identify which order is appropriate to their need. Then one would research the names of some of the members of this order, and then contact the entity and request a personal representative from that order to work with for the duration of the operation.
Understanding the premise behind a hierarchy, the procedures of the magickal operations of the Western Mystery Tradition make a lot more sense. Abramelin's Sacred Magick is an excellent example, with the Holy Guardian Angel being a member of the Order of Powers assigned to you at birth, who "aids the human mind to break free of the forces that draw man to earthly thoughts." The Goetia can be better understood when it is recognized as a hierarchy of spirits that are closest to the manifest realm, a sub-hierarchy that doesn't quite extend beyond the realms of Earth, Water, and Air in the platonic model.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I would like to thank Richard Ryan for his Lamed towards presenting something of value and substance rather than simply critiquing someone else's presentation. Putting this into words has helped me to better understand some of the issues I've been struggling with behind the scenes lately regarding cabalism vs. neo-platonic christian interpretations of the Great Work.
Friday, August 11, 2006
Falling in Love with Binah
As noted previously, I've been working on integrating the energies of the planets to balance out my hyper focus on the energies of Jupiter. My work with Binah/Saturn more than a week ago continues to ripple through my sphere.
I think I commented before that the energies of Saturn left me depressed, and that the operation I did most recently was completely different. Instead of feeling depressed, I find myself encouraged by the boundaries I face in life, and aware that they are not set firmly in place, but serve as placeholders to support the unfolding of my life. Like pylons on a bridge, the energies of Binah serve to support the weight of our endeavors.
There's a scripture in the Bible that talks about people moving out their tent pegs. It means that the lord will bless them, and they need to prepare by making more room for the blessings to fit in their lives. It's old testament speak for thinking outside the box.
The power of Saturn in the magician's sphere manifests as the power to set, or reset the boundaries of our empire. Knowing yourself leads to knowing your limitations, but knowing Binah leads to knowing how to move your limitations out a bit at a time. Bigger vaults means more room for the energies of Jupiter to fill with the treasures you seek in money rituals. Raising your expectations provides more room for opportunities. Raising your standards results in higher quality of character. Moving the boundaries of your mind releases you from the prison of your fear. Tearing down the walls of your heart makes room for love to flow into and out of your experience.
The power of Binah is infinite because it is the power of making things finite. Looking back now, I see that the depression I felt came from the powerlessness I felt when I surveyed the boundaries of my life. These boundaries are firmly ensconced only by my attachment to them, which helps explain what the Buddha meant when he said attachment is the source of all sorrow.
Barriers, walls, limitations... these things can seem to be negative, if your desires are beyond their limits. But at the same time, the walls support the roof, the dam stores the water, and the bones provide the support that lets us live as more than amorphous blobs. The skin limits us, keeps us from spilling out in a pile of goo, protects us from the intrusions of the malefic forces of nature.
Yet Saturn is cast as a malefic. Its role of death and binding are detrimental when passive. If we don't expand the boundaries, we outgrow them, and feel like we're wearing a suit two sizes too small. But when activated through magick, when approached through the heightened awareness of the metaprogramming magickal consciousness, Binah is a beautiful friend, a mother full of love, a helper and a guide, a focuser of the forces that follow in her footsteps.
With these revelations, I have found myself falling in love with Binah.
I think I commented before that the energies of Saturn left me depressed, and that the operation I did most recently was completely different. Instead of feeling depressed, I find myself encouraged by the boundaries I face in life, and aware that they are not set firmly in place, but serve as placeholders to support the unfolding of my life. Like pylons on a bridge, the energies of Binah serve to support the weight of our endeavors.
There's a scripture in the Bible that talks about people moving out their tent pegs. It means that the lord will bless them, and they need to prepare by making more room for the blessings to fit in their lives. It's old testament speak for thinking outside the box.
The power of Saturn in the magician's sphere manifests as the power to set, or reset the boundaries of our empire. Knowing yourself leads to knowing your limitations, but knowing Binah leads to knowing how to move your limitations out a bit at a time. Bigger vaults means more room for the energies of Jupiter to fill with the treasures you seek in money rituals. Raising your expectations provides more room for opportunities. Raising your standards results in higher quality of character. Moving the boundaries of your mind releases you from the prison of your fear. Tearing down the walls of your heart makes room for love to flow into and out of your experience.
The power of Binah is infinite because it is the power of making things finite. Looking back now, I see that the depression I felt came from the powerlessness I felt when I surveyed the boundaries of my life. These boundaries are firmly ensconced only by my attachment to them, which helps explain what the Buddha meant when he said attachment is the source of all sorrow.
Barriers, walls, limitations... these things can seem to be negative, if your desires are beyond their limits. But at the same time, the walls support the roof, the dam stores the water, and the bones provide the support that lets us live as more than amorphous blobs. The skin limits us, keeps us from spilling out in a pile of goo, protects us from the intrusions of the malefic forces of nature.
Yet Saturn is cast as a malefic. Its role of death and binding are detrimental when passive. If we don't expand the boundaries, we outgrow them, and feel like we're wearing a suit two sizes too small. But when activated through magick, when approached through the heightened awareness of the metaprogramming magickal consciousness, Binah is a beautiful friend, a mother full of love, a helper and a guide, a focuser of the forces that follow in her footsteps.
With these revelations, I have found myself falling in love with Binah.
Friday, August 04, 2006
7 Planetary Spirits in a Week
I've failed in this particular endeavor. I was attempting to work with one archangel of the planets (as listed in Trithemius and Heidrick's resources) each day this week. I made it as far as Michael on Sunday. (Note: Michael is associated with the sun in Trithemius notes instead of Raphael. My own work with Raphael supports the Trithemius correspondences that put Michael in Tiphareth/Sun and Raphael in Hod/Mercury.)
By Monday, I was exhausted. I was working with the archangels of the planets in the planetary hours of the planetary days. Due to my work schedule, I was waiting until 3:38 or 3:39 a.m. each night. The day time hours fell when I was at work, and the earlier night time hours coincided with the time I spent with my family.
The results of my Saturday working with Tzaphkiel of Saturn were very pleasant. Previous expereinces with Saturn had been unpleasant, and depressing. For this operation, I started with the LBRP, went on through Liber Samekh to invoke my HGA, and then performed the evocation of Tzaphkiel. The results were immediate.
Tzaphkiel appeared in the shewstone, and I stated my intention, to integrate the energies of saturn into my magickal sphere. Tzaphkiel agreed to help with this, and I felt the saturnine energies flowing into me, pooling in my fore-arms (of all places), like a weight was applied directly to my muscles and bones. Tzaphkiel explained the use of that energy as part of the operation.
Sunday I worked with Michael, following the same pattern. I got a false spirit the first time who wouldn't enter the consecrated shewstone. I banished and conjured Michael again, this time with the desired result. I asked for him to help integrate the energies of the sun into my sphere, and he agreed. The feeling was again physical as the solar essence entered my sphere. This time I felt it in the base of my lungs, and Michael explained that the key to accessing solar energies was in the breath. The four-fold breath excites solar energies (inhale for four seconds, press the breath down in your lungs for four seconds, exhale for four seconds, wait four seconds, and repeat) in your sphere.
Monday I made a half-hearted attempt to contact Gabriel, but I fell asleep. Tuesday I was going to work with Gabriel and Kammael to "catch up," but I figured it was a bad idea, and chose to stop the operation there for now.
Working with each planet for as little as one day seems to give useful results, but not a lot of depth of understanding of each of the planetary powers. I started to understand the binding aspects of Saturn, and its application in assiah, but before I really integrated the energies, I was on to the Sun. In the future, I'll pick up with Luna, but spend more time than just one day integrating lunar energies, and so forth throughout the planets.
By Monday, I was exhausted. I was working with the archangels of the planets in the planetary hours of the planetary days. Due to my work schedule, I was waiting until 3:38 or 3:39 a.m. each night. The day time hours fell when I was at work, and the earlier night time hours coincided with the time I spent with my family.
The results of my Saturday working with Tzaphkiel of Saturn were very pleasant. Previous expereinces with Saturn had been unpleasant, and depressing. For this operation, I started with the LBRP, went on through Liber Samekh to invoke my HGA, and then performed the evocation of Tzaphkiel. The results were immediate.
Tzaphkiel appeared in the shewstone, and I stated my intention, to integrate the energies of saturn into my magickal sphere. Tzaphkiel agreed to help with this, and I felt the saturnine energies flowing into me, pooling in my fore-arms (of all places), like a weight was applied directly to my muscles and bones. Tzaphkiel explained the use of that energy as part of the operation.
Sunday I worked with Michael, following the same pattern. I got a false spirit the first time who wouldn't enter the consecrated shewstone. I banished and conjured Michael again, this time with the desired result. I asked for him to help integrate the energies of the sun into my sphere, and he agreed. The feeling was again physical as the solar essence entered my sphere. This time I felt it in the base of my lungs, and Michael explained that the key to accessing solar energies was in the breath. The four-fold breath excites solar energies (inhale for four seconds, press the breath down in your lungs for four seconds, exhale for four seconds, wait four seconds, and repeat) in your sphere.
Monday I made a half-hearted attempt to contact Gabriel, but I fell asleep. Tuesday I was going to work with Gabriel and Kammael to "catch up," but I figured it was a bad idea, and chose to stop the operation there for now.
Working with each planet for as little as one day seems to give useful results, but not a lot of depth of understanding of each of the planetary powers. I started to understand the binding aspects of Saturn, and its application in assiah, but before I really integrated the energies, I was on to the Sun. In the future, I'll pick up with Luna, but spend more time than just one day integrating lunar energies, and so forth throughout the planets.
Back to the Spirit Pot
I wasn't going to focus much on the Spirit Pot here anymore, but I'm finding out that the thing is incredibly useful and interesting. At the beginning of this moon-waxing phase, I lit a 7-day candle for the spirit pot, and the first interesting thing that happened was the candle only lasted three days. Bune really ate it up, in my humble opinion.
Another thing that happened that week was I got another job offer, this one for incredibly stupid amounts of money, a security clearance, and a means to acquire a certification that doubles my value in the market. I'll be making the same amount of money from one source working 40 hours a week that I would be making from the three different income streams I mentioned before. It keeps getting better and better. I'll be in a quasi-management position as well, where I'll be putting things into their appropriate places, which Bune revealed to me is the purpose of "causing his spirits to appear on sepulchres."
Yet another aspect of working with this spirit is that I've found my writing skills improving. I'm spending less time trying to think of the right word for an idea than I used to. The eloquence that Bune provides is very useful to magicians of the Judeo-Christian path because so much of our magickal activity involves selecting the right word or symbol to achieve the desired result.
Crowley once mentioned that the perfect symbols of the Magus are the pen, ink pot, paper, and a candle to light the writing area. One of his Magus card images in the Toth deck showed the Magician surrounded by the tools of a stenographer.
The point of this tangent is that the spirit you choose to work with continues to reveal new applications of its attributes as you work with it. Bune is much more than a cash source.
Another thing that happened that week was I got another job offer, this one for incredibly stupid amounts of money, a security clearance, and a means to acquire a certification that doubles my value in the market. I'll be making the same amount of money from one source working 40 hours a week that I would be making from the three different income streams I mentioned before. It keeps getting better and better. I'll be in a quasi-management position as well, where I'll be putting things into their appropriate places, which Bune revealed to me is the purpose of "causing his spirits to appear on sepulchres."
Yet another aspect of working with this spirit is that I've found my writing skills improving. I'm spending less time trying to think of the right word for an idea than I used to. The eloquence that Bune provides is very useful to magicians of the Judeo-Christian path because so much of our magickal activity involves selecting the right word or symbol to achieve the desired result.
Crowley once mentioned that the perfect symbols of the Magus are the pen, ink pot, paper, and a candle to light the writing area. One of his Magus card images in the Toth deck showed the Magician surrounded by the tools of a stenographer.
The point of this tangent is that the spirit you choose to work with continues to reveal new applications of its attributes as you work with it. Bune is much more than a cash source.
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