by Marcus Katz
Points Peh, Aleph and Resh. The word PhAR means ‘beauty’ and from it is derived Tiphareth. Move to the centre of the temple and meditate on the symbol of the rose for a moment. Imagine it as a symbol of your true self, and visualise it blooming as the light comes to it.
Point Tau. Move now to the right of the temple, standing in the South and facing East again. State: “I have entered in, seeking Mercy.” Visualise standing now in Netzach, and the Pillar of Mercy extending outwards and away to Chesed, and beyond to Chockmah. When ready, turn to face West and, touching your left shoulder, say: “Gedulah.”
This activates the Pillar of Mercy and identifies it with the actions of your left side and any movements you make with your left hand. Thus if you were to use a crook and flail in an Egyptian based ritual, you would hold the crook in the left hand and the flail in the right hand.
7. Netzach: The Ritual of the Oath.
In the preceding rituals we have built up the Sapphire Temple and placed ourselves firmly within its pillars. We now need to align our will with the workplace by making an oath. For this ritual, the implements attributed to the letters of Netzach (see 777 by Crowley) have defined the form of the ceremony itself. The oath may take any form, but it would be appropriate to structure it around a particular project you are involved with, and lay it out according to your understanding of kabbalah. For example, an oath taken as part of a car-buying ritual might begin, “The point of this work is to buy a car (Kether). I wish to buy a car with all the energy I have (Chockmah). I require the car to be a model most suitable to my needs (Binah). I seek a car which is affordable (Chesed) and for which I will be able to strike a good bargain for (Geburah),” and so on.
Point Nun is the oath itself; point Tzaddi is the censer and aspergillum; point Cheth is the furnace and graal.
On the altar is the rose, cup with wine, pen and paper, incense, bowl of water, and candle of colour appropriate to the oath to be made.
About the circle visualise or inscribe the God-Name ARARITA. Begin with the Lesser Banishing Ritual of Pentagram.
Take the water and sprinkle the circle, saying: “The Seven of Perfection is purified and resolved to the One circle of Light.”
Take the incense and cense the circle, saying: “The Seven of Perfection is consecrated and resolved to the One circle of Light.”
Take the cup and hold it up, saying: “I invoke the power of Netzach, the power of Glory, the power of Victory, in the name of Jehovah Tza-baoth, Lord of Hosts, to work this Oath of Transmutation.”
Drink some wine. Write the oath on paper. Holding the oath above the candle, say: “By the Furnace of Victory, by the Graal of Understanding, by the Oath of Transmutation, I bind this Work of mine unto its perfection.”
Burn the oath. Finish with the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram.
8. Hod: The Ritual of the Crystal.
Crystal; BDLCh; The crystal acts as a receptacle and focus of light, demonstrating the structure of Nature. It encourages equilibrium and the clarity of definition, that we may know our own direction.
Once the oath has been made, the stage of Hod in the sequence is reached, which is primarily concerned with reverberation and vibration. A suitable ritual implement for this is a crystal, which symbolises the manner in which the form of Hod refracts the light which reaches it from Netzach in the creative process. In a sense, Hod, and this rite, seal the intention of the Work before it is manifest through Yesod and Malkuth.
Point Heh. Light the candle and place it in the East. Say: “BEHOLD! The Dawn is the rising of the Light. I face the East and see the Sun rise.”
Point Vau. Take the crystal or prism and look at the light of the candle as it passes through the object. Say: “The Light is vibration. The Crystal is vibration. All things move according to their own nature.”
Point Daleth. Return to the East and ring a bell or make one chime of a gong. Listen to the vibrations of the sound and visualise a door opening in the East through which light and sound pass. State aloud your particular purpose and visualise the words passing through the door and resonating with the Light. State: “My voice vibrates between the light and the darkness. The portal of light is opened and nature responds.”
The meditation for the ceremony is that of a crystal cave, in which you may visualise light pouring and illuminating scenes in the crystals. Make a note of these scenes and discover what they reveal about your Work.
9. Yesod: The Ritual of the Treasure-House.
In Yesod, we reach the penultimate stage of the sequence, and one of compilation, as all the prior aspects of the Work are brought together. To symbolise this, choose 10 objects which relate to each of the sephiroth. At its most simple, the set might be simply of pieces of card with the numbers one to 10 written on them. It could be a set of 10 coloured stones, or statuettes of appropriate gods and goddesses. You will also need a box of some description into which the objects may be placed. This symbolises the ‘treasure house of images’, a title of Yesod.
Point Yod. Place the objects in your hand and take them about the temple. Return to the altar and say: “This is Aleph, single most Unity, the One that is the Many, the Many that is the One.”
Point Samekh. Place the objects in the box, one by one, saying with each:
“This is (name of sephirah). This assists my work by (appropriate wording, for example, ‘... by bringing me joy,’ whilst placing a symbol of Netzach in the box).”
Point Vau. Close the box, pause and then open it again, saying: “Let inspiration proceed from this treasure house of images, which is of my own nature.”
Point Daleth. Take up the box and take it to each of the four quarters in turn. Say at each point: “This box is my foundation. This box is made one with the powers of the (name of quarter, e.g. East).”
10. Malkuth: The Ritual of Binding Together.
The components of Work gathered together in Yesod must now be united and the Work completed. As a result of this a new state is initiated, and the sequence commences again as Malkuth is inherently joined to Kether. This ritual is most suitable when change is taking place in your work, and there is a particular event, manner of behaviour, or belief, that is important to release. Before the ritual is commenced, write the pattern to be changed on a piece of slate, in chalk, or some other material that may be easily wiped clean. Also choose an object which represents the offending event, memory, behaviour, etc. and place it into your ‘treasure house of images’ box.
Point Mem. Face East and state: “In order to pass through the gate from the Old to the New, I must leave behind (state pattern).”
Point Lamed. Take the object out of the box and say: “I recognise that I must adjust to a new way of being if I leave this behind.”
Point Kaph. Place the object on the altar and say: “It is time to release this pattern, loose it in the wheel of life’s changes.”
Point Vau. Take the slate and wipe the words or drawing from it, and place the object on the altar in a cloth. State: “As the old is relinquished, the new way is revealed and will be fixed in me from this moment.”
Point Tau. Pause for a moment and allow any feelings or thoughts to makes themselves known, especially those that might indicate new patterns that have been opened by the giving up of the old behaviour.
As an alternative or addition to the Malkuth ritual, the Kingdom ritual below is based upon the first letters of each of the names of the sephiroth, and can be used as a simple framework for ritual work.
11. The Kingdom Ritual.
Point Kaph. Point hand towards the altar, palm up and state the aim of working.
Point Cheth. Draw a circle about the temple.
Point Beth. Elevate a chalice filled with wine and visualise light descending from above.
This completes the first triad above the Abyss. The elevation of the chalice is symbolic of the creation of Da’ath, or ‘knowledge’, from the union of Chockmah and Binah.
Point Cheth. Draw the double-cube of the
quarters and cross-quarters. Activate the quarters.
Point Gimel. Light incense.
Point Tau. Hold out arms in the form of a cross and visualise the pillars.
This completes the second triad above the Veil, which prepares the place of working.
Point Nun. Write the oath or perform the main working, meditation, as appropriate.
Point Heh. Light a candle in the East, visualise light blessing the working and drink wine.
Point Yod. Hold hand back over the altar and make a fist, visualising the sealing of the working.
This completes the third and final triad, bringing about the actual conclusion of the ritual – that is to say, by the time a process has reached Yesod, it is virtually unstoppable, aside from perhaps the way in which it manifests. All that remains is to state that the Work has been completed.
Point Mem. Say: “I have entered by the Gate, I have initiated my will, I leave by the Gate.”
This concludes the rituals of the Sapphire Temple. There will be many further rituals described in the following volumes of The Magister, particularly suited to each grade of the initiatory system and for general practice.
The Oath of the Tarot Majors
And she said to me, “This doubt is but a bridge of dust, that we can cross.” And so we did, for the empty laments of the mind were silenced in that hour, and our bodies became light. My soul, she turned to me and beckoned. “Come,” she said, “let us dance in the scattered dust of doubt, we shall make of it the stars of all the heavens, the dew upon the mornings of eternity and the seeds of every moment of awakening.” I took her hand, and was gone.
- The Magister
In the order, we take the tarot as a means of engaging life, not escaping it. We take the pattern of the Major Arcana as an illustration of the relationship between awareness and divinity, and as such, the lessons we learn on the path. To encourage our own reception of these lessons, we take an oath each day to fully aspire to the highest principles taught by tarot. The oath should be taken until it is a living breathing attitude or asana for every moment of life. You may feel the necessity to change this as it informs you from experience, or work on particular cards or sections. It commences with The Fool (0) and works through to The World (21).
1. Without pause, I will step into every experience and engage it fully, as if it were my last.
2. Without doubt, I will create wilfully, wantonly, astonishingly, and authentically.
3. Without blinking, I will connect only to my deepest source and quietest voice.
4. Without cessation, I will recognise that Nature teaches me all that I need to know.
5. Without hesitation, I will not go back, nor return, nor halt for those who face backwards.
6. Without shame, I will teach what I need to teach and learn what I should learn.
7. Without guilt, I will love life and connect to all that is in relationship with truth.
8. Without stopping, I will act as if every moment were my last.
9. Without fear, I will wrestle both my angels and my demons, and be their measure.
10. Without need, I will find myself in my own company and recover my own light in that place.
11. I will turn the Wheel and not be turned upon it; I will be the Wheel but not be bound upon it.
12. With my eyes open, I will see truth manifest in all things beneath the lie.
13. With my face forward, I will stand in the light of my highest values in every situation.
14. With joy, I will laugh and embrace every opportunity for ceaseless change.
15. With peace, I will comprehend that my garden is divinely designed for my gardening.
16. With courage, I will realise that all shadows are in themselves terrified.
17. With energised enthusiasm, I will break down what imprisons me and build my freedom.
18. With vision abiding in the sanctuary, I will write with the language of stars.
19. With utter abandon, I will tread out into what adventure awaits me in that which I do not yet know.
20. With awareness, I will encompass the follies of others.
21. With my own ears, I will hear the calling in the clamour, the signal in the noise.
22. There will be no pause, doubt or blinking, no cessation or hesitation, no shame or guilt; I will not stop, I will not fear. There is no need. I will turn with my eyes open, my face forward. Where I am there is joy and peace. I find courage, enthusiasm and vision abiding. With utter abandon and in full awareness I answer all that calls me to attend the hidden sanctuary of the world.
Conclusion
“The Soul is at prayer. The world of action calls us through the open Temple door and we are conscious of its power and its claim. Not yet, however, do we surrender utterly. The light fades. We close our eyes to keep it in its radiance near us. Serenely we step forward to the task.”
E. Eaton, The Hours of Isis[150]
As we opened this volume, inviting you into the Workshop, we also presented you a symbol: a Rose Key. The Rose is aflame and the Key has no door. The door is open always and is yourself, your true and only Workshop. The Rose is your soul and the Key is reality.
When forged together in experience, reality immolates the soul and they become one, opening a door which is not there – the Everlasting Day of the divine life. In order to perceive that door, we must extinguish all that appears to be light, for that inner light is hidden in the outer light of the apparent, and is not comprehended. These are as symbolic as your representation of the universe, and hence as real. Through the Key we attain the Rose, and through the Rose we attain the Key.
We have presented here only the briefest of outlines, the most tentative of sketches of a living spiritual path, obscured by the ages of symbolism, passed from hand-to-hand and ear-to-ear by the most unlikely of men and women. Our Work continues in the Everlasting Day, and whilst we have no need of company, no necessity in our Order of Revelation, the door is always open, for it is not there.
You are invited to enter this Workshop and our subsequent volumes will provide instruction for what you discover therein.
We continue in our next volume, Volume 1: The Light of the Labyrinth, covering the grade material of the Zelator, where we detail further practical work and come to discover that ‘The Worker is Hidden in the Workshop’.
Mane nobiscum Domine, quoniam adversperascit.[151]
Frater V.
Winter Solstice, 2012
Imbolc, 2016 (Kindle Version).
Frequently Asked Questions
As a nod to contemporary idiom, The Equinox and Magick Without Tears in which Aleister Crowley collated letters from a student and his responses, throughout the decade in which The Magister will be constructed we will gladly receive specific and general questions about the tradition which will be collated for response in subsequent volumes under a FAQ section.[152]
These should be sent to [email protected].
We provide below a selection of typical and frequent questions asked by Neophytes-to-be.
1. Does magick work?
The philosopher Xenophanes wrote that the nature of things is in the habit of concealing itself. The interesting thing to an initiate is not whether magick works, but whether their universe works. Thus, there is a constant act of enquiry – we take every act as a comprehension test of our reality. Does time work? Does it work the way I think? Is there truth? If so, to whom does it belong? If a god speaks to me, do I have to listen? The fundamental act of the universe is awareness. How does that work? Can we indeed know ourselves? When we try, what happens? Where do we go when we step back from ourself? Does magick work? If so, what does that tell us about the universe? Does it tell us that beliefs can change, and thus we can change? What do we change into and how does fate, destiny and free will work in a universe that allows such change? If nothing else, the test of magick leads to the test of everything – for the world is indeed a magical place, and our time here, as I have said, is short. Th
e question I ask in return is, “What are you going to do about it?”
2. Why does it appear so complicated?
The universe is a complex construction as is our mind. In relationship they generate a staggering bewilderment of possibilities, constrained only by your imagination. We can condense those possibilities into a set of 78 images and call it tarot, a ‘full deck of possibilities’. In arranging just 10 of those images, selected at random from a shuffled deck, and placed in a pattern of 10 positions each of which carries a contextual meaning, we can generate several quintillion possible patterns.
To put that into context, if each person on the planet read a ‘Celtic Cross’ tarot spread today, using a standard tarot deck, and every person on the planet did the same again tomorrow, and every day thereafter, we would be long gone as a species before any of us got the same cards in the same pattern. And the mystery is this: after just a couple of days of learning, any of us could read any of those quintillions of emergent patterns. We are built for complexity, even if we have forgotten. The work of magick is the work of fulfilling our highest vision, and opening up to possibilities, abilities, activities, creations, and sights as yet undreamt. Dream harder.
3. What about all the Latin, Hebrew and Greek?
Western culture has a lot to offer those who pursue its history and roots, and its tradition of esotericism. The fact that there may be no demonstrated direct connections between one mystery school and another, the fact that there is merely a tendency to re-invent, re-interpret and re-imagine golden ages of the past, is not a problem to us. The synthesis of Western esotericism is an ongoing creative act of ridiculous audacity and ambition, and if we learn some Latin, Greek and Hebrew along the way, that is to be applauded.